208 LAWS GOVERNING MARINE INSPECTION 



Accounting as to wages 



46 U.S.C. 642 (R.S. 4550) 



Every master shall, not less than forty-eight hours before payh _ 

 off or discharging any seaman, deliver to him, or, if he is to be dis- 

 charged before a Coast Guard official to whom the duties of shipping 

 commissioner have been delegated, to such Coast Guard official, a full 

 and true account of his wages, and all deductions to be made therefrom 

 on any account whatsoever; and in default shall, for each offense, be 

 liable to a penalty of not more than $50. No deduction from the 

 wages of any seaman except in respect of some matter happening after 

 such delivery shall be allowed, unless it is included in the account de- 

 livered; and the master shall, during the voyage, enter the various 

 matters in respect to which such deductions are made, with the amounts 

 of the respective deductions as they occur, in the official log book, and 

 shall, if required, produce such book at the time of the paj-ment of 

 wages, and, also, upon the hearing, before any competent authority, of 

 any complaint or question relating to such payment, (R.S. §4550. 

 1946 Reorg. Plan. No. 3, §§ 101-104, eff. July 16, 1946, 11 F.R. 7875, 60 

 Stat. 1097.) 



Certificate of discharge; issuance; form and contents 



46 U.S.C. 643(e) (R.S. 4551) 



For the purpose of furnishing evidence of sea servdce in the case of 

 seamen preferring the certificate of identification instead of the con- 

 tinuous discharge book, the Coast Guard shall provide a certificate 

 of discharge, printed on durable paper, in such form as to specify 

 the name and citizenship of the seaman to whom it is issued, the serial 

 number of his certificate of identification, the name and official num- 

 ber of the vessel, the nature of the voyage (foreign, intercoastal, or 

 coastwise) , the class to which the vessel belongs (steam, motor, sail, 

 or barge), the date and place of the shipment and of the discharge of 

 such seaman, and the rating (capacity in which employed) then held 

 by such seaman. Records of service entered in either continuous dis- 

 charge books or certificates of discharge shall contain no reference 

 to the character or ability of the seaman. The Coast Guard official 

 to whom the duties of shipping commissioner have been delegated 

 shall issue such certificate of discharge and make the proper entrie> 

 therein, which certificate shall be signed by the seaman to whom ii 

 is issued and the master of the vessel and shall be witnessed by such 

 Coast Guard official. 



Records of discharge books and certificates 



46 U.S.C. 643(f) (R.S. 4551) 



There shall be maintained in the Coast Guard in Washington, 

 District of Columbia, a record of every continuous discharge book, 

 certificate of identification, certificate of discharge, and any other 

 certificate issued by the Coast Guard, together with the name and 

 address of the seaman to whom it is issued and of his next of kin, 

 and certified copies of all entries made in continuous discharge books 

 or certificates of discharge, which entries shall be forwarded to the 



