Year: 1862

taken on board of them, which shall be all
judged good prize, shall when of equal or su
perior force to the vessel or vessels maxim,
the capture, be the sole property Of the cap
tors and when of inferior force, shall be di
vided equally between the United States AN,
the officers and men making the capture
SEC. g. Ind he IL further enacted. That tb
prize mopey belonging to the officers and mel
shall be distributed in the following manner
fra. To the commanding officer of a flee
or squadron, one twentieth part of all prz,
money awarded to a vessel or vessels under hi
immediate command


Sscond To the commander of a single ship
one-tenth part of all prize money awarded {,
the snip under his command, il such ship, al
.he time oi making the capture, was under
the immediate command of the commanding
officer of a fleet or squadron. and three TWEEN.
tleths If his ship was acting Independently oi
such scperior officer.


THIRD. The share Of the commanding officer
OF the tiect or squadron, if any, and the share,
OF the commander of the ship being deducted.
the residue shall he distributed and apportion
ed among all others doing duty on board, and
borne upon the books, according to their re.
spcctive rates of pay i'm the service.


fc"'th. When one or more vessels of the M
Wy shall be within signal distance of another
making prize, all shall share in the prize
and money awarded shall be apportoned
among the officers and men of the several vcs-
seis according to the rates of pay of all ON board
who are borne upon the books after deduct.
ing one-twenticth to the flag officer, if there
he any such entitled to share.


Fyh. No commander of a fleet or squadron
shall bc entitled to receive any share of prizes
taken by vessels not under his immediate COM
mand nor of such prizes as may have been
taken by ships or vessels intended to he placed


~ Lax-
der his immediate orders nor shall a comman-
der OF a hect or squadron, leaving the station
where he had the command, have any share
IN the prizes taken by ships left on such sta
tion after he has gone out Of the limits of his
said command, nor after he has transferred his
command to "a successor


SiIh. No officer or other person who shall
have been temporarily absent on duty from
the vessel, on the books of which he continued
to be borne while so absent, shall be deprived,
in consequence of such absence, of any prize
money to which he would otherwise bc enti.
tied


SEC. 4. And be u further en0c,ed That a
bounty shall be paid by the United States for
each person on board any ship or vessel of.
war belonging to an enemy Mt the commence
ment OF AN engagement which shall be sunk
or otherwise destroyed in such engagement,
ny any ship or vessel belonging TO the United
States, or which it may be necessary to des-
troy IN consequence OF injuries sustained i'm ac-
ton, of one hundred dollars if the enemy :
vessel was of inferior force and of two hun.
dred dollars, it of equal or superior force to
be divided among the officers and crew in the
same manner as prize money and when the
actual number OF men on board any such YES
sci cannot be satisfactorily asccrtaned, il shall
be estimated according to the complement al
lowed to vessels OF their class in the navy OF
the United States and there shall be paid H.
bounty to the captors of any veSsel-of- war cap
tured from an enemy, which they may be in
structcd To destroy, or which shall bc imme-
diately destroyed for the public interest but
not in consequence of injuries received i'm ac.
ton, fifty dollars for every person weo NAV be-
ON board ut the time of such capture.


SEC. D. Ind lie n further enacted, That the
commanding officer of every vessel or the
senior officer OF all vessels of the navy, which
shall capture or seize upon any vessel or YES
sells as prize, shall carefully preserve all the
papers and writing found on board, and trans
NIT the whole of the originals. unmutilated
to the judge OF the district to which such prizc
is ordered to proceed, with the necessary wit
nesses, and a report of the circumstances at
tending the capture, stating the names of ves-
sells claiming share thereof; and the COM
manding officer of every vessel in the navy
entitled to or claiming an award of prize mon
ey shall, as early as practicable after the cap
tnre, transmit to the Navy Department a COM
piete list of the officers and men of his vessel
entitled to share, inserting thereon the quality
OF every person rating, on pain of forteiting
his whole share of the prize money resulting
from such capture, and suffering such further
punishment as court martial shall adjudge.


SIC. q Aad he IL further enacted, That any
armed vessel in the service OF the United
States which shall make a capture, or assist in
a capture, under circumstances which would
entitlc a vessel of the navy to prize money,
shall be entitled to an award of prize money
IN the same manner as il such vessel belonged
To the navy; and such prize money shall be
distributed and apportioned in the same man
ner and under the same rules and regulations
as provided for persons in the naval service,
and paid under the direction OF the Secretary
of the Navy.


SEC. T. And be a further enacted, That no per-
son in the navy shall take out of a prize, or
vessel seized rs a prize, any money, plate,
goods, OF any part OF her equipment, unless it
be for the better preservation thereof. or abso-
lutely necessary for the use of any Of the YES
sells or armed forces OF the United States, be-
fore the same shall be- adjndged lawful prize
by "a competent court but the whole, with
out fraud, concealment, or embezzlement,
shall be brought in, and judgment passed
thereon, upon pain that every person offend
ing herein shall forfeit his share of the cap
ture, and suffer such further punishment as a
court-marth.l shall adjudge.


SEC g. Aad be IL further enacted, That no per.
son in the navy shall strip Off the clothes, or
pillage, or in any manner maltreat, persons
taken on board a prize, on pain of such pun
ishment as a court-martal shall adjudge.
SEC. y. Ind be IL further enacted, That all
ransom money, salvage, bounty, or proceeds
Of forfeiture or contiscsition, accruing awai d.
ed to any vessel of the navy, shall be distrib.
uted and paid to the officers and men entitled
thereto, in the same manner as prize money
under the direction OF the Secretary of the
Navy.


SIC. TO- And be Il further enacted, That any
person entitled to wages or prize money may
have the same paid to his assignee, provided
the assignment be attested by the captain and
paymaster and in case Of the assignment OF
wages, the power shall specify the precise time
they commence. But the commander of eye-
ry ve Sci is required to discourage his crews
from selling any part of their wages or prize
money, and never to attest any power of at
torney, until he is satisfied that the same is
not granted in consideration of money given
for the purchase of wages or prize money.
| SEC. IL. And be IL furthrr enacted, That all
money accruing or which has already accrued
to the United States from sale of prizes shall
| be and remain forever fund for the payment
of pensions to the officers, seaman and marine.
who may be entitled to receive the same and
| if the said fund shall BE- insufficient for the
purpose, the public faith is hereby pledged to
make up the deficiency but ii it should be
more than sufficient, the surplus shall be ap
piled to the making of further provision fol
| the comfort of the disabled officers, seamen
and marines.


SEC. II. 4ad Be IL further enacted, That tn,
district attorneys of the several districts O
the courts of the United States in which an,
cases of prize are or may be depending shall
as soon as may be after the passage of this ac


furnish to the Navy Department complet


list of all the prize cases which have been dc


termined, or may still be pending within thei
respective districts, with "a statement of tn


condition of each, in such form and embrat


ing such particulars as the Secretary of tn


Navy may require, and shall as often as one
Tin each month thereafter, furnish a furthe


statement OF the condition of every case i


their respective districts and of any furth,


proceedings had therein since their last return:


And the Secretary Of the Navy is hereby al
thorized to appoint an agent or to emplo
, counsel when the clptors do not employ cour


sci themselves, in any case i'll which he ma