Customs Act 1812
| Year | 1812 |
(52 Geo. 3) C A P. CXLI.
[22d July 1812]
'WHEREAS by an Act made in the Eighth Year of the Reign of His late Majesty KingGeorge the First, intituled BritishPlantations, to such Regulations as other enumerated Commodities of the like Production are subject ; it was, amongst other things, enacted, that if any Boat, Wherry, Pinnace, Barge or Galley, rowing or made or built to row with more than Four Oars (not belonging to His Majesty or any of the Royal Family, or not being a Long Boat, Barge or Pinnace, belonging to or used in the Service of any Merchant Ship or Vessel) shall be found upon the Water, or in any Place within the Counties ofMiddlesex, Surrey, Kent or Essex , or in the River of Thames , either above or below London Bridge , or within the Limits of the Ports of London , Sandwich or Ipswich , without a Licence as therein directed, such Boat, Wherry, Pinnace, Barge or Galley, with all her Tackle and Furniture, or the Value thereof, should be forfeited, and the Owner or Owners thereof, or any Person using or rowing the same, should also forfeit and lose the Sum of Forty Pounds: And whereas by another Act, passed in the Nineteenth Year of the Reign of His present Majesty, intituled , the said in Part recited Act, and the several Clauses, Penalties and Forfeitures and Restrictions therein contained (not altered by that Act) were extended to all Boats, Wherries, Pinnaces, Barges or Galleys whatever, rowing or made or built to row with more than Six Oars, which shall be found either upon the Land or Water, within any Harbour, Port or Place whatever, in any other Part ofGreat Britain , or within TwoLeagues of the Coast thereof; but it was nevertheless provided, that nothing therein contained should extend or be construed to extend to Boats commonly calledTow Boats (used in the towing Ships or Vessels) belonging to licensed Pilots within the Port and Jurisdiction of the City of Bristol : And whereas by another Act, passed in the Forty seventh Year of the Reign of His present Majesty, intituled , Boats belonging in the Whole or in Part to His Majesty's Subjects, or whereof One Half of the Persons on board are Subjects of His Majesty, being rowed with, or constructed to row with more than Six Oats, (except Boats employed in the Whale Fisheries, or belonging to Merchant Ships or Vessels exceeding the Burthen of Two hundred and fifty Tons, or Life Boats, or Boats employed solely in Rivers or Inland Navigations) found within the Limits of any Port in the United Kingdom, or in any Part of theBritish or Irish Channels, or elsewhere on the High Seas, within One hundred Leagues of any of the Coasts of Great Britain , are subject to Forfeiture, with all her Furniture, Tackle and Apparel, unless such Boats are licensed by the Commissioners of His Majesty's Customs in England or Scotland respectively, to use more than Six Oars: And whereas it is expedient, in order to check and suppress the illegal and noxious Transactions carried on upon the Coasts of Great Britain by Row Boats, further to require the Owner or Owners of Boats in Great Britain , rowing with more than Four Oars, to take out Licences in certain cases, for using or navigating such Boats, from the said Commissioners of His Majesty's Customs in England or Scotland , as the case may be, and to provide that no Licences for Boats rowing with more than Six Oars shall in future be granted, except as herein mentioned;' Be it therefore enacted by the King's Most Excellent Majesty, by and with the Advice and Consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the Authorityof the same, That if any Boat, Wherry, Pinnace, Barge or Galley, being rowed with, or made or built or constructed to row with more than Four Oars, belonging in the Whole or in Part to His Majesty's Subjects, or whereof One Half of the Persons on board are Subjects of His Majesty, shall, from and after the Thirty first Day ofAugust One thousand eight hundred and twelve, be found within the Limits of any Port of Great Britain , or in any Part of the British or Irish Channels, or elsewhere on the High Seas within One hundred Leagues of the Coast of Great Britain , or shall be discovered to have been within the said Limits or Distance, the Owner or Owners of which shall not have obtained a Licence for using or navigating such Boat, Wherry, Pinnace, Barge or Galley, from the Commissioners of His Majesty's Customs in England or Scotland , as the case may be, or from the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty, prior to the passing of the before recited Act of the Forty seventh Year of the Reign of His present Majesty; every such Boat, Wherry, Pinnace, Barge or Galley, with her Tackle and Furniture, shall be forfeited, and may and shall be seized by any Officer of the Army, Navy or Marines, or of the Customs or Excise: Provided always, that nothing hereinbefore contained shall extend, or be construed to extend, to any Boat, Wherry, Pinnace, Barge or Galley, belonging to His Majesty or any of the Royal Family, or in the Service of Government, or in the Employment of the Customs or Excise, or to any Long Boat, Yawl, Pinnace or other Boat belonging to any square-rigged Ship or Vessel employed in the Merchants Service, or to any other Merchant Ship or Vessel exceeding the Burthen of One hundred and fifty Tons, not otherwise requiring a Licence for the Use thereof, or to any Boat employed in the Whale Fisheries, or to any Life Boat or any Tow Boat used in the towing Ships or Vessels belonging to licensed Pilots...
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