be sold when undue delay or expense would be caused by sending them home; but in all such cases the consul will endorse on the Form C. 15 his reasons for the sale. Documents found amongst the effects should be transmitted direct to the Board of Trade with the Form C. 15."

Disinfection of Effects.

"The effects of seamen dying of contagious or infectious diseases as are likely to convey infection should be at once destroyed; and other articles, such as letters, trinkets, etc., should be thoroughly disinfected before being forwarded to the United Kingdom. The disposal of the effects in such cases should be fully described in Form C. 15, and the expense of disinfecting articles sent home should be charged against the estate of the deceased seaman.'

Money and Effects of a British Seaman dying Abroad.

"When any seaman belonging to any British ship, or when any seaman who within six months of the time of his death belonged to a British ship, dies at the port, leaving money or effects on shore, the consul will claim and receive such money and effects. The money he will credit to the Board of Trade in his account current, under the head of 'Cash received for proceeds of sale of effects, etc., of seamen who have died in charge.' The effects

are to be dealt with as in ordinary cases.

For every

seaman so dying a separate account of receipts and

expenses should be made out in Form C. 14 and sent to the Board of Trade, whether any balance is due to the estate of the deceased seaman or not.

"An account on Form C. 25 of the proceeds of the sale of the effects belonging to, and money in possession of, such seaman dying in the consul's district, is to be sent to the Board of Trade with the account current."

SEAMEN'S WILLS.

"The consul will observe, and point out to those who are interested, that in order to entitle persons claiming under a seaman's will to receive his wages and effects from the Board of Trade, it must be shown that the will, if executed on board ship, was executed in the presence of, and attested by, the master or mate, and if on shore, in the presence of two witnesses, one of whom is some shipping master appointed under the Merchant Shipping Act, 1854, or some minister or officiating minister or curate of the place in which the same is made, or, in a place where there are no such persons, some justice of the peace, or some British consular officer, or some officer of customs, and is attested by such witnesses."

Estates and Effects of Masters.

"The foregoing relates to all persons employed in the service of any British ships, except masters. Their effects, if they die in foreign ports, are to be treated in the same manner as those of other British

subjects. If, however, they have certificates of competency or service, these should be sent to the Registrar-General of Seamen, London."

Effects of Foreign Seamen-French, German, Swedish, and Norwegian.

"The British Government have agreed with the Governments of France, Germany, Sweden, and Norway, to deliver to their respective consul-generals in London the wages and effects received by the Board of Trade, under the provisions of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1854, of seamen belonging to those countries who have died on board British merchant vessels; and these Governments have, on their part, agreed to deliver to the nearest British consul the property of British seamen dying on board their merchant vessels, or on shore in their territories. The consul will, therefore, report to the Board of Trade the particulars of the deaths of such British seamen, receive their wages and effects, deal with them, and account for them to the Board of Trade, as if the seamen had belonged to British ships."

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Of Danish and Italian Seamen.

Copies of the declarations made between the British Government and the Governments of Denmark and Italy relative to the disposal of the estates of deceased seamen will be found in the Appendix, and the consul will hand over the property of de

ceased Danish and Italian seamen (as provided for by the terms of the declarations aforesaid) to their respective consuls, and will account for the property of British seamen received from the Governments of Denmark and Italy, as if the seamen had belonged to British ships."

AGREEMENTS OPENED AND TERMINATED ABROAD. Agreements opened.

The practice of opening the Agreements for British ships, i.e. entering into fresh Articles, at ports out of the United Kingdom is now so frequent as to make it important that the following instructions should be carefully followed by her Majesty's consuls in such cases, with a view to compliance with the Merchant Shipping Act, 1854, which provides (s. 160) "that the same rules as are hereinbefore contained with respect to the engagement of seamen before shipping masters in the United Kingdom shall apply to such engagements made before consular officers."

Section 149 of the Act requires that "the master of every ship, except ships of less than eighty tons registered tonnage exclusively employed in trading between different ports on the coast of the United Kingdom, shall enter into an agreement with every seaman whom he carries to sea from any port in the United Kingdom as one of his crew, in the manner hereinafter mentioned; and every such agreement

shall be in a Form sanctioned by the Board of Trade, and shall be dated at the time of the first signature thereof, and shall be signed by the master before any seaman signs the same, and shall contain the following particulars as terms thereof; that is to say :— (1) The nature and, as far as practicable, the duration of the intended voyage or en

gagement;

(2) The number and description of the crew, specifying how many are engaged as

sailors;

(3) The time at which each seaman is to be on board or to begin work;

(4) The capacity in which each seaman is to

serve;

(5) The amount of wages which each seaman is to receive;

(6) A scale of the provisions which are to be furnished to each seaman;

(7) Any regulations as to conduct on board, and

as to fines, short allowance of provisions, or other lawful punishments for misconduct, which have been sanctioned by the Board of Trade as regulations proper to be adopted, and which the parties agree to adopt.

And every such Agreement shall be so framed as to admit of stipulations, to be adopted at the will of the master and seaman in each case, as to advance and allotment of wages, and may contain any other stipulations which are not contrary to law."