The Express.
London, England, 1846-10-12 00:00:00

POLICE.-SATURDAY.

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MANSION-HOUSE.—INFRINOEMENT OF MERCHANT
Sesms:v's Acr.—John Pye, was charged with haring in-
fringed the act for the protection of merchant seamen, by
giving a false answer, in stating that he had not received a
register ticket; and Captain Gardner, of the ship Pacific,
was charged with having aided and abetted the boy in
committing the misdemeanor. The solicitor to the Board
of Admiralty attended for the prosecution, and stated that
the Merchant Seamen's Act required that each peron
in the merchant service should be registered, in order
that, if able-bodied seamen should be wanted for her
Majesty's service upon any emergency, the government
might be able to procure, without trouble, the necessary
amount of assistance.—Mr. E. H. R. Coleman, clerk in the
General Register and Record Office for Seamen of the Port
of London, Hamet-street, Minories, stated that when seamen
were registered at the outports, duplicates of the register-
tickets were returned in pursuance of the act of parliament to
the office in London within a week from the time of such re-
gistration. In the present case the duplicate register ticket
was signed in the handwriting of Mr. Bentley, the proper
officer at Hull, and was numbered 204,730, and issued
to John Pye, at Hull, on the 11th of September, 1846.
Witness, in conaequence of some information which he
received, went on board the Pacific, lying in the London
Docks, to make inquiries. The prisoner Pye was on board,
and witness asked him where his Hull ticket was. He
replied that he never had a Hull ticket, and witness took
him into custody. Pye then took witness to his lodging, and
gave to him the original register ticket produced, acknow-
ledging that he had been registered at Hull, and that he
knew he had done wrong, but it was the fault of the captain,
who had made him do it. Witness then accompanied Pye
towards the Mansion-house, and in passing the house of
Thomas King, a licensed shipping agent, that agent identified
the boy as a person whom he had bound apprentice.—Mr.
R. Peppercorn, clerk in the register and record office for
seamen in the Custom-house, said it was part of his duty to
register apprentices to seamen, and to put the necessary
questions previously to granting a register. On the 2nd of
October a youth, whom witness believed to be Pye, applied
to him to be registered as an apprentice, and was accompanied
by a Captain Gardner, the captain of the Pacific. Witness put
to him. amongst other questions, tie following " Have you, or
have you not, been registered before ? " and he said " No."
Witness then asked him where and when he was born ? and
he replied " in Kirkaldy, county of Fife, 29th June,
1830.' In consequence of his answers he had • register-
ticket granted, a duplicate of which was produced, and the
captain took the indenture and the ticket away with him.
—Mr. Thomas King, licensed shipping agent under
the Board of Trade, said that he was employed
by Captain Gardner, the captain of the Pacific, and
bound Pye to that person as an apprentice on the 2nd of
October. The bey was called forward by the captain, in
order that the indenture might be made out, and said that he
had obtained a register ticket in Hull, and that he was 18
years of age. Witness said to the captain that the lad could
not be bound, as he was 18 years of age. The captain then
told the boy to put the Hull ticket out of the way, and say
nothing about it, and witness said it would be illegal, and
the captain would be liable for his own actions. The captain
then said that witness would do him a favour by filling up
the indentures according to the instructions, and witness
directed the indentures to be filled up accordingly.—The
Lord Mayor here said it appeared to him that the agent who
had been licensed by the Board of Trade was much more
culpable than either of the individuals accused, as it was
evident the imposition was sanctioned by the authority of
the agent.—Further evidence having been given, in which