Merchant Shipping Act 1871
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | 1871 c. 110 |
| Year | 1871 |
Merchant Shipping Act, 1871.
(34 & 35 Vict.) CHAP. 110.
An Act to amend the Merchant Shipping Acts.
[21st August 1871]
W HEREAS it is expedient to amend the Merchant Shipping Acts:
Be it enacted by the Queen'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 authority of the same, as follows:
Preliminary.
1 Short title.
1. This Act may be cited as theMerchant Shipping Act, 1871.
2 Act to be construed with Merchant Shipping Acts.
2. This Act shall be construed as one with the Merchant Shipping Act, 1854, and the Acts amending the same, and the said Acts and this Act may be cited collectively as the Merchant Shipping Acts, 1854 to 1871.
3 Commencement of Act.
3. This Act shall come into operation on the first day of January one thousand eight hundred and seventy-two.
Registry (Part II. of Merchant Shipping Act
4 Particulars to be marked on ship before registry.
4. Every British ship shall, before registry, be permanently and conspicuously marked, to the satisfaction of the Commissioners of Customs, as follows; that is to say,
Her name shall be marked on each of her bows, and her name and the name of her port of registry shall be marked on her stern, on a dark ground in white or yellow letters, of a length not less than four inches, and of proportionate breadth.
Her official number and the number denoting her registered tonnage shall be marked on her main beam.
A scale of feet shall be marked on her stem and on her stern post, in Roman capital letters or in figures, six inches in length, the lower line of such letters or figures to coincide with the draught line denoted thereby.
The Board of Trade may, however, exempt any class of ships from the requirements of this section, or any of them.
If the said scale of feet is in any respect inaccurate, so as to be likely to mislead, the owner of the ship shall incur a penalty not exceeding one hundred pounds.
The marks required by this section shall be permanently continued, and no alteration shall be made therein except in the event of any of the particulars thereby denoted being altered in the manner provided by the Merchant Shipping Acts, 1854 to 1871. Any owner or master of a ship who neglects to keep his ship marked as aforesaid, and any person who conceals, removes, alters, defaces, or obliterates, or suffers any person under his control to conceal, remove, alter, deface, or obliterate, any of the said marks, except in the event aforesaid, or except for the purpose of escaping capture by an enemy, shall for each offence incur a penalty not exceeding one hundred pounds; and any principal officer of Customs may detain a ship which is insufficiently and inaccurately marked until the insufficiency or inaccuracy has been remedied; provided that no fishing vessel duly registered, lettered, and numbered in pursuance of the ‘Sea Fisheries Act, 1868,’ shall be required to have her name and port of registry marked under this section.
5 Ship's draught of water to be recorded.
5. The Board of Trade may, in any case or class of cases in which they think it expedient so to do, direct any person appointed by them for the purpose to record, in such manner and with such particulars as the Board of Trade direct, the draught of water of any sea-going ship, as shown on the scale of feet on her stem and on her stern post, upon her leaving any dock, wharf, port, or harbour for the purpose of proceeding to sea; and such person shall thereupon keep such record, and shall from time to time forward the same, or a copy thereof, to the Board of Trade; and such record, or any copy thereof, if produced by or out of the custody of the Board of Trade, shall be admissible in evidence of the draught of water of the ship at the time specified in the record.
The master of every British sea-going ship shall, upon her leaving any dock, wharf, port, or harbour for the purpose of proceeding to sea, record her draught of water in the official logbook (if any), and shall produce such record to any principal officer of Customs whenever required by him so to do, or in default of such production shall incur a penalty not exceeding twenty pounds.
6 Rules to be observed in naming of ships.
6. With respect to the names of British ships, the following rules shall be observed:
(1) (1.) A ship shall not be described by any name other than that by which she is for the time being registered:
(2) (2.) No change shall be made in the name of a ship without the previous permission of the Board of Trade...
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