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voyage are the "Agreement and Account of Crew," and the Official Log. The latter commences with a
Note—"The importance of keeping this Book properly, and duly making all the entries at the proper time, and with the strictest regard to form, cannot be too strongly impressed on shipmasters, By neglecting to do so, they subject themselves to heavy penalties, and their owners to serious loss and inconvenience, and they prevent discipline from being maintained, as no fine or forfeiture can be deducted and no punishment inflicted for any offence, unless the entries are properly made and attested. Entries should be made in order of date, and no blanks should be left."
Although the "Agreement and Account of Crew," commonly known among seamen as the "Articles," have to be deposited with the authorities at the mercantile marine offices at home, and at the British Consulates in foreign, or shipping offices in British ports abroad, the official log book remains with the master of the ship, unless under circumstances provided for in the Act 723 (1) it is required to be produced. At the end of the voyage, which may have been any time between, say, three weeks and a possible three years—a common period of agreement—these documents within forty-eight hours after the ship's arrival at her final port of destination in the United Kingdom, or upon the discharge of the crew, whichever happens first, have to be delivered to the superintendent of the mercantile marine office before whom the crew is to be discharged. This act particularly puts the ship out of commission, though the voyage ended when the ship arrived. To proceed, we must revert to the agreement on the blank portion where any other stipulations may be inserted to which parties agree, and which are not contrary to law, thus:
"And itis also agreed that the said master shall be entitled to deduct from the wages of the said crew respectively the following amounts, viz.: for not joining at the time specified in column eleven, two days' pay, or my expenses which have been properly incurred in hiring a substitute, and for absence from the ship at any time without leave, a sum not exceeding two weeks' pay; and it is hereby mutually agreed that any dispute arising on the subject of these deductions shill be settled by the superintendent of a mercantile marine office, consular officer, or shipping master abroad, and that his decision shall be final"
is common to ships from the Mersey. When the ship is being paid off, if any member of the crew has offended in any way against the terms of agreement, or of the provisions of the Merchant Shipping Act, the matter of deductions in fine or forfeiture has to be submitted to the superintendent of a mercantile marine office, as agreed upon, whose decision shall be final. This is provided for in section 137 M.S.A., 1894, if the amount in
