The Sun.
London, England, 1844-12-19 00:00:00

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LONDON, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 19, 1844.

We have been favoured, from highly respectable
quarters, with the perusal of some correspondence
addressed to them, by influential parties in the north
of Scotland, on the extreme hardship likely to be in-
flicted by the enactments of the 7 and 8 Vie., c. 112,
for amending and consolidating " the laws relating
to merchant seamen; and for keeping- a register of
seamen," on the brave and hardy race of sermon who
inhabit the north and north-west shores of Caithness,
Suthekliand, and Inverness-shire, the remote districts
of lobermory, and the yet further isles and western
highlands. Under what circumstances this hardship
is likely to be experienced is well set forth in the
following extracts :

(From the Scottish Guardian, Dec. 3, 1844.)
°MERCHANT bEAMEN.—We understand that the
issue of the tickets commenced yesterday, at the various
custom-houses in the United Kingdom, and, to avoid
any misconstruction in the intention of the new law, it
is declared that the persons requiring to be ticketed,
comprise all male persons (subjects of her Majesty)
forming part of the crews of vessels, whatever may be
their aapaci, whether as mates, or other officers ;
engineers, Ofemen, &c. ; stewards, servants, &c. ; boys,
or apprentices ; the only persons exempt being ras-
senzer3, masters of vessels, and surgeons. All open or
decked boats are, foi, the purposes of the Act, considered
vessels,' Whether employed in trading, fishing, or in
Cleasuring, if as regards the Clyde, they pass Dumbarton
astle. Masters of vessels (a hatever the size may be)
carrying any male person as part of the crew, except as
aforesaid, after Ist of January next, without obtaining
his register ticket, incurs a penalty of 101. for each
person."

(Extract of a Letter.)
" If such a Bill has really been passed, with regard to
the registration of sailors, as was represented in the para.
graph I sent you by last post, it would be good to repre-
sent to the proper authorities the great hardship of
carrying it into execution on the west coast of Suther-
land, Ross-shire, Inverness-shire, &c., &c., as the agri-
cultural population are generally obliged to use boats to
get their manure, often to carry their fuel, and even
their potatoes, from one part of their farm to another.
It should be observed that the arms of the sea along
these coasts are so land-locked as often to be as smooth
or smoother than fresh-water lakes, so that no skill is
necessary in navigating them, and that the people em-
ployed on them anti between them and the Isle of Skye,
an our neighbourhood, are not to be considered as sailors,
but landsmen. The sails of poor fishermen are often
formed of a patched blanket from their beds, which goes
in this country by the name of Kintail rig. Almost all
the poor people possess a boat, or a share in a boat, and
it is their carriage to go to church in, to which there is
often no other easy access. The application of the Bill
ought to have been confined to persons navigating boats
tkn or fifteen miles from land, at least in this country."
(Extract from another Letter.)
" It will be a most dreadful hardship for the poor
people of this country, and I fear there is another grie-
vance still greater than any mentioned in the paragraph,
that is, that the tickets can only be obtained from a
custom-house. Now one of the nearest custom-houses
to us is at Tobermory, the others are at Stornoway and
Inverness. We belong to the port of Inverness. You
know that numbers of our poor boys gain their liveli-
hoodby fishing, and it is monstrous to suppose that they
should he required to go to Inverness to a ticket. If
a ticket was to cost thena one shilli 't uld be a vast
hardship a and I belieiet many go nO,tl fiwhooitilif Tho are
not fit to go such ajour.ey, both old and
To the wisdoni.9ri .lie y of consolidatingg. the -
rims laws relatiii,z' merchant seamen, it is by Ina.; means our to except; and we can readil
enter into the statistical as well as political views
which may render the " Keeping a Registry of Sea-
men" an object of paramount importance under many