til 



SHIPWRECKS. 



SHIPWRECKS. 



642 



belonged to ships in distress or not. The statute which relates to the 

 Cinque-Ports is 1 & 2 Oeo. IV. e. 76. 



In case of capture, by the ancient maritime law the ship and goods 

 became the absolute property of the captor. The old practice in this 

 country was, when ships were in pay of the king, to divide in certain 

 proportions, which varied at different times, the value of the capture 

 between the king, the owners, and the captors. Where the capture 

 was made by ships not in the king's pay, he received no share, but a 

 small proportion wag paid to the admiral. In the reign of George II. 

 provision was for the first tune made by various statutes for the resto- 

 ration of the recaptured ship and cargo to the owners, and the rates of 

 salvage were fixed, varying according to the length of time that had 

 elapsed since the capture. In the reign of George III. these rates 

 were done away with, and by various acta the rate of salvage was fixed 

 at one-eighth of the value in the case of king's ships, and one-sixth for 

 private ships ; where the re-capture was effected by the joint operation 

 of king's and private ships, the Court of Admiralty were to' order such 

 salvage a* was reasonable. Convoying ships are entitled to salvage for 

 the recapture of ships which accompanied them. A ship, which has 

 once been used as a ship of war, is not subject to be restored if after- 

 wards recaptured. If a ship is deserted by the enemy after capture 

 and subsequently taken possession of, this is not a recapture, but those 

 who take possession are entitled to recompense aa in an ordinary cose 

 of salvage. If after the recapture the ship is again taken and con- 

 demned, the right of salvage is extinguished. Where the ship of a 

 jMiwer hi alliance with Great Britain is taken by the common enemy 

 and afterwards recaptured by a British ship, the rule for restitution on 

 payment of salvage is the same as in the case of the capture of a 

 British ship ; provided the allied power chooses to adopt that rule in 

 reciprocal cue*. If it does not, the same rule which is acted upon in 

 the courts of the allied power is adopted in the British courts. If the 

 ship of a neutral nation be taken as prize by an enemy of Great 

 Britain and be retaken by British subject*, it is restored to the owners 

 without salvage, unless there la reason to suppose that under the cir- 

 cumstances the ship would have been condemned in the courts of the 

 capturing nation. Where it appears that such would have been the 

 case, the British subjects are entitled to salvage. Ships and merchan- 

 dise taken from pirates are subject, by Geo. IV., c. 49, to a payment 

 of one-eighth of the value. [PmzE.] 



(Maclachlan, On the Law of Merchant Skipping; Abbott, On Sl< i 



i j. Shee ; Maude and Pollock, Compendium of the Lau> of Mi /</,</ r 

 Shift.} 



SHIPWRECKS. That wrecks are numerous, Is a fact well-known 

 to a seafaring nation like ours ; that they must necessarily be consider- 

 able in number, regard being had to the perils of the deep, will of 

 course be admitted ; but that nothing can be done to lessen their 

 frequency, would be a hope-lens theory of which we ought to be 

 ashamed. Supposing, for the sake of fixing the ideas, that some wrecks 

 are occasioned by a want of scientific knowledge of winds, waves, cur- 

 rents, whirlpools, shoals, reefs, and sunken rocks, on the part of 

 meteorologists and hydrographers ; that others are caused by the in- 

 competency of captain* and mates ; that others again result from the 

 insubordination, carelessness, ignorance, or obstinate fatalism of sea- 

 men ; that a fourth group are due to the deficiency of lighthouses, 

 beacons, and buoys ; and that the remainder arise from want of ready 

 assistance to ships which, though placed in peril on shoals or near 

 rocks, might yet be saved if aid were at hand on the beach or the cliff 

 who shall say that these evils are incurable ? who can put a limit to 

 the improvements which might be wrought 1 



A dismal story, indeed, does the " Wreck-chart of the British 

 Islands" tell, as published annually by the Admiralty, and afterwards 

 in the ' Life-Boat Journal.' It may be designated a truly distressing 

 map. Every wreck on our coast* has it* little black mark ; and the 

 aggregate of such black marks reveals the number of wrecks in one 

 year. Knowing that a black H],t indicates a vessel wrecked, and 

 that + indicate* a vessel so seriously damaged as to need to discharge 

 cargo, we look eagerly for the relative numbers of these little spots and 

 stars ; and it i* saddening to see how numerous are the fatal black 

 signs. At some place* the wrecks are numerous because the coast is 

 dangerous ; at others, because the congregating of ships is very great. 

 These charts refer only to our own coasts the coasts of the most 

 buy maritime islands in the world; where, if there be liability of 

 disaster through the vast congregation of snipping, there ought, on 

 the other band, to be a supply of invention and good sense sufficient 

 to check, in some degree, such disasters. In examining the details of 

 the chart, it will bo seen that the line of coast between Dungenees and 

 the I'entland Frith i* the most fatal, and that the mouth of the Tyne 

 takes the unenvitxl precedence of all other place*, in the number of 

 black dot* and (tars opposite to it* name ; next come the mouth of 

 the Tees and the mouth of the Wear. These three rivers may be 

 taken as the representatives of the district whence three million lona 

 of eo*J are brought by sea to London yearly, empluying the services of 

 several thousand collier ships, which sail to and fro, and add to tint 

 otherwise busy commercial trade of the Northumbrian and Durban) 

 port*. The month of the Humber, the Suffolk coast between Yar- 

 niMiith and Southwold, the intricate sandy shoals off the mouth of tl>.' 

 Thames, the Goodwin Sands, the Scilly Islands, Banustaple Bay, and 

 Liverpool, are the portion* of the English coast which present, in the 



next degree, the most numerous indications of ship-losses. The Welsh 

 coast is thickly strewn, especially Glamorgan, Pembroke, and Anglesea. 

 Scotland, except in and near the Frith of Forth, presents no large 

 numbers ; the western coast is, indeed, remarkably free, due probably 

 to the less exposure to the winds which tend to drive ships ashore on 

 our eastern seaboard. Ireland presents a tolerably equable distribu- 

 tion along the east and south coasts : less on the northern and western. 



Many inquiries into the causes of shipwreck have been instituted ; 

 and especially one by a committee of the House of Commons. One of 

 the results has been the construction of harbours of refuge, which 

 have not hitherto been very successful. One frequent cause of wreck 

 is collision, arising from bad look out or neglecting to show light. 

 Another cause was the occasional incompetence of the master in 

 merchant vessels. To remedy this, Mr. Cardwell, in 1854, brought in 

 and carried a bill " To Amend and Consolidate the Acts relating to 

 Merchant Shipping;" it constitutes the act 17 & 18 Viet. c. 104, and 

 received the royal assent August 10, 1854. The statute is of great 

 length, and relates to eleven different topics, bearing upon the well- 

 being of sailors and their ships : the relation of the Board of Trade 

 to the commercial marine ; the ownership, measurement, and register 

 of British merchant ships ; the qualifications of masters and seamen ; 

 the precautions for safety on ship-board ; the arrangements concerning 

 pilots ; the management and tolls of lighthouses ; the constitution of 

 the Mercantile Marine Fund ; the laws relating to wrecks, casualties, 

 and salvage ; the liabilities of ship-owners ; legal course of procedure 

 in the event of misdemeanor ; and miscellaneous details. Inspectors 

 of merchant ships, and investigators in respect to wrecks and accidents, 

 are appointed by the Board of Trade ; new examinations for masters 

 and mates are organised, separating foreign-going ships from home- 

 trade passenger ships ; the Board is empowered to suspend certificates 

 to masters and mates, in case of misconduct or inefficiency; naval 

 courts are instituted abroad or on the high seas, in correspondence 

 with the Board, to inquire into cases of wreck or abandonment of 

 ships ; the number and size of the boats to accompany all trading 

 ships are denoted ; every ship carrying more than ten passengers 

 must be provided with a life-boat, or an ordinary boat rendered 

 buoyant, and with two life-buoys the boat and buoys being always 

 kept ready for use ; lights and fog-signals are to be used, such as may 

 be suggested by the Admiralty ; iron steamers must have water-tight 

 compartments, and safety-valves beyond the control of the engineer ; 

 sea-going ships must be provided with fire-engines and hose, signal- 

 guns, and ammunition for tiring signals of distress. 



Besides the provision for preventing wreck, the Act contains many 

 clauses, applying to cases in which wreck may unhappily have occurred. 

 As these arrangements are somewhat peculiar, it may be well to notice 

 them a little closely. All matters relating to wreck are placed under 

 the general superintendence of the Board of Trade, by whom " receivers 

 of wreck " are appointed. These receivers have the chief command 

 and authority over all persons present at any wreck, or similar 

 casualty, and power to issue such directions as may seem expedient 

 for the preservation of life and property, or for the prevention of 

 plunder and disorder. Whenever a ship is stranded, or otherwise 

 in distress on British shores, bystanders are encouraged to render 

 assistance, by having a pecuniary interest in the preservation of life or 

 property. If services so rendered shall be instrumental towards the 

 object in view, the persons shall have a claim on the owner of the ship 

 for a " reasonable amount of salvage." Numerous directions are given 

 for ascertaining what would be a " reasonable amount " in each case ; 

 for enforcing the claim of the salvor against the distrainor ; for dis- 

 posing of an unclaimed wreck ; and for adding to the salvor's reward 

 out of the Mercantile Marine Fund, in cases where life has been pre- 

 served, and where the wrecked ship is insufficient in value to pay 

 the salvage awarded. The Mercantile Marine Fund here adverted to is 

 made up in a curious way : it consists of certain fees received by the 

 Board of Trade for examinations and registries connected with mer- 

 chant-ships ; lighthouse dues accruing by virtue of certain sections of 

 the Act ; rates accruing from lastage and ballastage in the Thames ; 

 and fees derived through the receivers of wreck. The fund, kept by 

 her Majesty's Paymaster-General, is employed in payment of the 

 salaries of examiners, surveyors, receivers, &c. ; expenses in regard to 

 lighthouses, buoys, beacons, lastage, ballastage, lite-boats, Ac.; and 

 rewards to persons who assist in savlug wrecked ships, or crews, or 

 passengers. 



Wrecks, however, will still occur on our coasts, and the necessity 

 arise* for affording assistance. By the efforts of the National Life- 

 Boat Institution, which has received the support of the government, 

 life-boats have been placed at most of the dangerous parts of our coast. 

 [LIFE-BOATS.] But there are times when other aid is needed ; when 

 a ship is in distress so near the shore as to be within reach of a rope, 

 if means were at hand to throw it while, perhaps, no boats are near 

 the spot fitted to render the required service. What arc the crews 

 to dot Sailors, unfortunately for themselves, are in too few cases 

 swimmer* ; a"nd even a swimmer has a poor chance for his life in such 

 weather and such a sea as usually accompany these straudings of 

 ships. The men generally cling to their vessel as long as her timbers 

 will hold together, rather than strike out and endeavour to swim to 

 shore. In such case their safety mainly depends on the establish- 

 ment of somo communication with the shore. Such cominuni- 



