answer for the said wages; and if the master shall neglect to appear, or, appearing, shall not shew that the wages are paid, or otherwise satisfied or forfeited, and if the matter in dispute shall not be forthwith settled, in such case the judge or justice shall certify to the clerk of the court of the district, that there is sufficient cause of complaint whereon to found admiralty process, and thereupon the clerk of such court shall issue process against the said ship or vessel, and the suit shall be proceeded on in the said court, and final judgment be given according to the course of admiralty courts in such cases used, and in such suit all the seamen or mariners (having cause of complaint of the like kind against the same ship or vessel) shall be joined as complainants, and it shall be incumbent on the master or commander to produce the contract and log-book, if required, to ascertain any matters in dispute, otherwise the complainants shall be permitted to state the contents thereof, and the proof of the contrary shall lie on the master or commander; but nothing herein contained shall prevent any seaman or mariner from having or maintaining any action at common law for the recovery of his wages, or from immediate process out of any court having admiralty jurisdiction, wherever any ship or vessel may be found, in case she shall have left the port of delivery where her voyage ended before payment of the wages, or in case she shall be about to proceed to sea before the end of the ten days next after the delivery of her cargo or ballast.

Sect. 7. "If any seaman or mariner, who shall have signed a contract to perform a voyage, shall at any port or place desert, or shall absent himself from such ship or vessel, without leave of the master, or officer commanding in the absence of the master, it shall be lawful for any justice of peace within the United States (upon the complaint of the master) to issue his warrant to apprehend such deserter, and bring him before such justice; and if it shall then appear by due proof, that he has signed a contract within the intent and meaning of this act, and that the voyage agreed for is not finished, altered, or the contract otherwise dissolved, and that such seaman or mariner has descrted the ship or vessel, or absented himself without leave, the said justice shall commit him to the house of correction or common jail of the city, town, or place, there to remain, until the said ship or vessel shall be ready to proceed on her voyage, or till the master shall require his discharge, and then to be delivered to the said master, he paying all the cost of such commitment, and deducting the same out of the wages due to such seaman or mariner.

Sect. 8. " Every ship or vessel belonging to a citizen or citizens of the United States, of the burthen of one hundred and fifty tons, or upwards, navigated by ten or more persons in the whole, and bound on a voyage without the limits of the United States, shall be provided with a chest of medicines, put up by some apothecary of known reputation, and accompanied by directions for administering the same; and the said medicines shall be examined by the same or some other apothecary, once at least in every year, and supplied with fresh medicines in the place of such as shall have been used or spoiled; and in default of having such medicine chest so provided, and kept fit for use, the master or commander of such ship or vessel shall provide and pay for all such advice, medicine, or attendance of physicians, as any of the

crew shall stand in need of, in case of sickness, at every port or place where the ship or vessel may touch or trade at during the voyage, without any deduction from the wages of such sick seaman or mariner.

Sect. 9. "Every ship or vessel. belonging as aforesaid, bound on a voyage across the Atlantic ocean, shall, at the time of leaving the last port from whence she sails, have on board, well secured under deck, at least sixty gallons of water, one hundred pounds of salted flesh meat, and one hundred pounds of wholesome ship-bread, for every person on board such ship or vessel, over and besides such other provisions, stores, and livestock, as shall by the master or passengers be put on board, and in like proportion for shorter or longer voyages; and in case the crew of any ship or vessel, which shall not have been so provided, shall be put upon short allowance in water, flesh, or bread, during the voyage, the master or owner of such ship or vessel shall pay to each of the crew one day's wages beyond the wages agreed on, for every day they shall be so put to short allowance, to be recovered in the same manner as their stipulated wages."

For subsequent laws relating to seamen, see act of May 28th, 1795 (L. U. S vol. 3, p. 332) act of March 2d, 1799, (L. U. S. vol. 4, p. 502) act of July 16th, 1798 (L. U. S. vol. 4, p. 223) act of March 2d, 1799 (L. U. S. vol. 4, p. 497) act of May 3d, 1802 (L. U. S. vol. 6, p. 176.) See also title SEAMEN, in the body of this work.

(a) Warrant against a seaman or mariner for neglecting to render himself on board a vessel, or for deserting, after having signed a contract to perform a voyage:

Whereas A C, commander of the her kind and name, as ship, sloop, &c ] of

complaint to me, P, a justice of the peace for

[describe the vessel by hath this day made in the state

aforesaid, that B S, who was bound by contract to perform a voyage in

the said ship

the port of

or sloop
to the port of

&c. as the case may be) from did altogether neglect to (or other vessel, as the

on the day of

render himself on board the said ship case may be [or, having rendered himself on board the said ship, &c. did desert therefrom, so that the said ship, &c did proceed to sea without him]: These are therefore to require you to summon the said B S to appear before me, at next, to shew cause why the said B S shall not forfeit and pay to the master (owner, or consignee, as the case may be) of the said ship, &c. a sum equal to that which was paid by the said A C to the said B S. at the time of signing the said contract, over and besides the sum so advanced and paid. Given under my hand, &c.

Το

to execute.

For the forms of judgments and executions, see title WARRANTS in the body of this work.

(b) Warrant to three persons to view the condition of a vessel bound to a foreign port, which is complained of as unfit for the voyage: on sect. 3.

did this day appear

in the state of

before me, JP, a and gave me

a voyage to the port of justice of the peace for information, that in the opinion of A M, mate of the said ship, and a majority of the crew of the same, the said ship is too leaky [or, if unfit in her crew, tackle, &c. mention it] to proceed on her intended voyage, and hath also made application to me to have the same viewed, according to the directions of the act of the congress of the United States in that case made and provided: These are therefore to require you forthwith to repair on board the said ship and to cxamine the same in respect to the defects and insufficiencies complained of, and to make report to me in writing under your hands, or the hands of two of you, whether in any and what respect the said ship is unfit to proceed on the intended voyage, and what addition of men, provisions, or stores, or what repairs or alterations in the body, tackle, or apparel, will be necessary. Given under my hand,

this

in the year

day of year of the independence of the United States.

State of

and in the

(c) Report of the viewers.

to wit.

In pursuance of a warrant to us directed by J P, a justice of the peace for in the state aforesaid, we have this day repaired on board the ship now lying at and bound on a voyage to the port of and having carefully examined into the sevaral de. fects and insufficiencies complained of by the mate and a majority of the crew of the said ship do report as follows, viz. [here make the report specially, and of such things as are required in the magistrate's warrant.]

On this report the magistrate is to endorse his judgment, and of such objects as are prescribed by the above section.

The costs and damages attending the view are to be taxed by the magistrate, on a fair copy of the proceedings.

(d) Warrant to commit a seaman to prison who refuses to proceed on the intended voyage, after the ship is fit for

To the keeper of the jail for

Whereas A M, commander of the ship

and bound on a voyage to the port of

now lying at did make ap

plication to me, J P, a justice of the peace for the county of to issue my warrant directed to three men in the neighbourhood, the most skilful in maritime affairs that could be procured, in order to have the condition of the said ship viewed, according to the act of the congress of the United States in that case made and provided, he, the said A M, accompanied by two of the crew of the said ship, having given me information, that in the opinion of the mate, and a majority of the crew of the said ship, she was unfit to proceed on her intended voyage; and whereas, in consequence of the said application, I did accordingly issue my warrant, directed to A N, BN, and C N, requiring them to report to me the defects and insufficiencies complained of in the said ship, by the mate and a majority of the crew of the same; and it being my judgment, upon the report of the said A N, B N, and C N, that the said ship was fit to proceed on her intended voyage, I did endorse such judgment on the said report, and direct the master and mariners of the said ship'in all things to conform thereto; but AS, B S, &c. crew of the said ship, do altogether refuse to proceed on the intended voyage: These are therefore to require you to receive the bodies of the said A S, B S, &c. into your jail and custody, and them therein safely to keep, without bail or mainprise, until they shall have severally paid to the said A M double the sum advanced to them respectively, at the time of signing the said original contract for the aforesaid intended voyage, to wit, until they shall pay the sum of also the sum of being the reasonable costs attending this warrant. Given under my hand and seal, this day of year of the indepen

in the year

and in the

dence of the United States of America.

NOTE. If the seamen are not already in custody, this last precept should be preceded by a warrant to bring the accused party before a justice of the peace. This warrant may be easily drawn, by observing the formal parts of the last precedent.

(e) Warrant against a seaman for absenting himself from on board a vessel.

Complaint being this day made to me, JP, a justice of the peace in the state of by A M, master of the ship that B S, one of the seamen of the said ship, who

for
now lying at

to the port of

ship, for the space of

day of

next, to

had signed a contract for a voyage in the said ship from the port of did absent himself from on board the said as appears by the entry in the log-book of the said ship. These are therefore to require you to summon the said BS to appear before me, at on the shew cause why he should not forfeit and pay [as the forfeiture depends on the length of time the seaman is absent, the warrant must vary accordingly] and moreover, all such damages as the said A M shall have sustained in consequence of being obliged to hire other seamen in the place of the said B S, and do you then and there make return how you have executed this warrant. Given &c.

On hearing the matter of the within complaint, it is considered that the said B S forfeit and pay unto the said A M the sum of (according to the nature of the case) also, the sum of and the further sum of for the costs of this warrant.

for damages,

(f) Warrant for a seaman's wages, on sect. 6.

WHEREAS, P S, one of the seamen of the

JP.

now lying at

commanded by A M, hath this day made complaint to me, JP, a justice of the peace for in the state aforesaid (the residence of the judge of the district of the United States being more than three miles from the place where the said vessel lies) that the said (vessel) hath performed the voyage for which the said BS contracted, and the cargo and ballast of the said (vessel) hath been fully discharged at the last port of delivery, more than ten days past, and that there is now due to the said B S the sum of for his wages in performing the said voyage, agrecable to contract which the commander of the said (vessel) doth refuse to pay; these are therefore to require you to summon the said A M, to appear before me, at on the day of &c. to shew cause why process should not issue against the said (vessel) her tackle, furniture and apparel, according to the course of admiralty courts, to answer for the said wages; and then and there make return how you have executed this precept. Given under my hand, at &c.

NOTE....If the application is for one third of the wages, to which the seamen are entitled on their touching at a port and delivering the vessel's cargo, before the voyage is ended, the same proceedings are to be had as in the last case. The above warrant may also be adopted. with such variations as will suit the case.