c. 60. Merchant

1894.

685. (1.) Where any district within which any court, justice of the 57 & 58 VICT. peace, or other magistrate, has jurisdiction either under this Act or under any other Act or at common law for any purpose whatever is situate on the coast of any sea, or abutting on or projecting into any bay, channel, Shipping Act, lake, river, or navigable water, every such court, justice, or magistrate, shall have jurisdiction over any vessel being on, or lying or passing off, Jurisdiction that coast, or being in or near that bay, channel, lake, river, or navigable over ships water, and over all persons on board that vessel or for the time being lying off the belonging thereto, in the same manner as if the vessel or persons were coasts. within the limits of the original jurisdiction of the court, justice, or magistrate.

(2.) The jurisdiction under this section shall be in addition to and not in derogation of any jurisdiction or power of a court under the Summary Jurisdiction Acts.

in case of offences on

686. (1.) Where any person, being a British subject, is charged with Jurisdiction having committed any offence on board any British ship on the high seas, or in any foreign port or harbour, or on board any foreign ship to which board ship.he does not belong, or, not being a British subject, is charged with having 12 & 13 Vict. committed any offence on board any British ship on the high seas, and c. 96. that person is found within the jurisdiction of any court in Her Majesty's dominions, which would have had cognizance of the offence if it had been committed on board a British ship within the limits of its ordinary jurisdiction, that court shall have jurisdiction to try the offence as if it had been so committed.

(2.) Nothing in this section shall affect the Admiralty Offences (Colonial) Act, 1849.

any

ports to be

687. All offences against property or person committed in or at any Offences com. place either ashore or afloat out of Her Majesty's dominions by any mitted by master, seaman, or apprentice who at the time when the offence is com- British seamitted is, or within three months previously has been, employed in men at foreign British ship shall be deemed to be offences of the same nature respectively, within and be liable to the same punishments respectively, and be inquired of, Admiralty heard, tried, determined, and adjudged in the same manner and by the jurisdiction. same courts and in the same places as if those offences had been committed within the jurisdiction of the Admiralty of England; and the costs and expenses of the prosecution of any such offence may be directed to be paid as in the case of costs and expenses of prosecutions for offences committed within the jurisdiction of the Admiralty of England.

691. (1.) Whenever in the course of any legal proceedings instituted in Depositions to any part of Her Majesty's dominions before any judge or magistrate, or be received in before any person authorised by law or by consent of parties to receive evidence when evidence, the testimony of any witness is required in relation to the witness cannot be produced. subject matter of that proceeding, then upon due proof, if the proceeding is instituted in the United Kingdom that the witness cannot be found in that kingdom, or if in any British possession that he cannot be found in that possession, any deposition that the witness may have previously made. on oath in relation to the same subject matter before any justice or magistrate in Her Majesty's dominions, or any British consular officer elsewhere, shall be admissible in evidence, provided that—

(a.) if the deposition was made in the United Kingdom, it shall not be admissible in any proceeding instituted in the United Kingdom; and (b.) if the deposition was made in any British possession, it shall not be admissible in any proceeding instituted in that British possession; and

57 & 58 VICT. c. 60.

Merchant

(c.) if the proceeding is criminal it shall not be admissible, unless it was made in the presence of the person accused.

(2.) A deposition so made shall be authenticated by the signature of Shipping Act, the judge, magistrate, or consular officer before whom it is made; and the judge, magistrate, or consular officer shall certify, if the fact is so, that the accused was present at the taking thereof.

1894.

Proof of attestation not

required.

Admissibility of documents in evidence.

(3.) It shall not be necessary in any case to prove the signature or official character of the person appearing to have signed any such deposi tion, and in any criminal proceeding a certificate under this section shall unless the contrary is proved, be sufficient evidence of the accused having been present in manner thereby certified.

(4.) Nothing herein contained shall affect any case in which depositions taken in any proceeding are rendered admissible in evidence by any Act of Parliament, or by any Act or ordinance of the legislature of any colony, so far as regards that colony, or interfere with the power of any colonial legislature to make those depositions admissible in evidence, or to interfere with the practice of any court in which depositions not authenticated as herein before mentioned are admissible.

Evidence, Service of Documents, and Declarations.

694. Where any document is required by this Act to be executed in the presence of or to be attested by any witness or witnesses, that document may be proved by the evidence of any person who is able to bear witness to the requisite facts without calling the attesting witness or the attesting witnesses or any of them.

695. (1.) Where a document is by this Act declared to be admissible in evidence, such document shall, on its production from the proper custody, be admissible in evidence in any court or before any person having by law or consent of parties authority to receive evidence, and subject to all just exceptions, shall be evidence of the matters stated therein in pursuance of this Act or by any officer in pursuance of his duties as such officer.

(2.) A copy of any such document or extract therefrom shall also be so admissible in evidence if proved to be an examined copy or extract, or if it purports to be signed and certified as a true copy or extract by the officer to whose custody the original document was entrusted, and that officer shall furnish such certified copy or extract to any person applying at a reasonable time for the same, upon payment of a reasonable sum for the same not exceeding fourpence for every folio of ninety words, but a person shall be entitled to have(a) a certified copy of the particulars entered by the registrar in the register book on the registry of the ship, together with a certified statement showing the ownership of the ship at the time being;

and

(b) a certified copy of any declaration, or document, a copy of which is made evidence by this Act

on payment of one shilling for each copy.

(3.) If any such officer wilfully certifies any document as being a true copy or extract knowing the same not to be a true copy or extract, he shall for each offence be guilty of a misdemeanour, and be liable on conviction to imprisonment for any term not exceeding eighteen months.

(4.) If any person forges the seal, stamp, or signature of any document to which this section applies, or tenders in evidence any such document with a false or counterfeit seal, stamp, or signature thereto, knowing the

c. 60. Merchant

same to be false or counterfeit, he shall for each offence be guilty of a 57 & 58 VICT. felony, and be liable to penal servitude for a term not exceeding two years with or without hard labour, and whenever any such document has been admitted in evidence, the court or the person who admitted the same Shipping Act, may on request direct that the same shall be impounded, and be kept in the custody of some officer of the court or other proper person, for such period or subject to such conditions as the court or person thinks fit.

1894.

696. (1.) Where for the purposes of this Act, any document is to be Service of served on any person, that document may be served

(a.) in any case by delivering a copy thereof personally to the person to be served, or by leaving the same at his last place of abode; and

(b.) if the document is to be served on the master of a ship, where there is one, or on a person belonging to a ship, by leaving the same for him on board that ship with the person being or appearing to be in command or charge of the ship; and

(c.) if the document is to be served on the master of a ship, where there is no master, and the ship is in the United Kingdom, on the managing owner of the ship, or, if there is no managing owner, on some agent of the owner residing in the United Kingdom, or where no such agent is known or can be found, by affixing a copy thereof to the mast of the ship.

(2.) If any person obstructs the service on the master of a ship of any document under the provisions of this Act relating to the detention of ships as unseaworthy, that person shall for each offence be liable to a fine not exceeding ten pounds, and, if the owner or master of the ship is party or privy to the obstruction, he shall in respect of each offence be guilty of a misdemeanour.

documents.

697. Any exception, exemption, proviso, excuse, or qualification, in Proof, &c., of relation to any offence under this Act, whether it does or does not accom- exemption. pany in the same section the description of the offence, may be proved by the defendant, but need not be specified or negatived in any information or complaint, and, if so specified or negatived, no proof in relation to the matter so specified or negatived shall be required on the part of the informant or complainant.

698. Any declaration required by this Act to be taken before a justice Declarations. of the peace or any particular officer may be taken before a commissioner for oaths.

Application of Penalties and Costs of Prosecutions.

699. (1.) Where any court, justice of the peace, or other magistrate, Application of imposes a fine under this Act for which no specific application is herein penalties. provided, that court, justice of the peace, or magistrate, may if they think fit direct the whole or any part of the fine to be applied in compensating any person for any wrong or damage which he may have sustained by the act or default in respect of which the fine is imposed, or to be applied in or towards payment of the expenses of the proceedings.

(2.) Subject to any directions under this section or to any specific application provided under this Act, all fines under this Act shall, notwithstanding anything in any other Act

(4.) if recovered in the United Kingdom, be paid into the Exchequer in such manner as the Treasury may direct, and be carried to and form part of the Consolidated Fund; and

57 & 58 VICT. c. 60.

Merchant

Shipping Act, 1894.

Expenses of prosecution of misdemeanour.

Payment of

costs of prose

cution of offences committed in Admiralty jurisdiction.

Offences as to use of forms.

Short title. Commence. ment.

(b.) if recovered in any British possession, be paid over into the public treasury of that possession, and form part of the public revenue thereof.

700. Where an offence under this Act is prosecuted as a misdemeanour, the court, before whom the offence is prosecuted may in England make the same allowances and order payment of the same costs and expenses as if the offence were a felony, and in any other part of Her Majesty's dominions may make such allowances and order payment of such costs and expenses as are payable or allowable upon the trial of any misdemeanour or under any law for the time being in force therein.

701. Such costs and expenses of and incidental to any prosecution for a felony or misdemeanour as are by law payable out of any county or local rate shall, where the felony or misdemeanour has been committed within the jurisdiction of the Admiralty of England be paid in the same manner and subject to the same regulations as if the felony or misdemeanour had been committed in the county in which the same is heard and determined, or where the same is heard and determined at the Central Criminal Court. as if the same had been committed in the county of London, and all sums properly paid out of any county or other local rate in respect of those costs and expenses shall be repaid out of money provided by Parliament.

722. (1.) If any person

(a) forges, assists in forging, or procures to be forged, the seal or any other distinguishing mark of the Board of Trade on any form issued by the Board of Trade under this Act; or

(b) fraudulently alters, or assists in fraudulently altering, or procures to be fraudulently altered, any such form,

that

person shall in respect of each offence be guilty of a misdemeanour. (2.) If any person

(a) when a form approved by the Board is, under the Second Part of this Act, required to be used, uses without reasonable cause a form not purporting to be a form so approved; or

(b) prints, sells, or uses any document purporting to be a form approved by the Board of Trade, knowing the same not to be the form approved for the time being, or not to have been prepared or issued by the Board of Trade,

that person shall, for each offence, be liable to a fine not exceeding ten pounds.

Short Title and Commencement.

747. This Act may be cited as The Merchant Shipping Act, 1894." 748. This Act shall come into operation on the first day of January one thousand eight hundred and ninety-five.

INDEX.