Shipping Articles

An agreement, in writing or print, between the master and seamen or mariners on board his vessel (except such as shall be apprenticed or servant to himself or owners), declaring the voyage or voyages, term or terms of time, for which such seamen or mariners shall be shipped. It is also required that at the foot of every such contract there shall be a memorandum, in writing, of the day and the hour on which each seaman or mariner who shall so ship and subscribe shall render himself on board to begin the voyage agreed upon.

An agreement, in writing or print, between the master and seamen or mariners on board his vessel (except such as shall be apprenticed or servant to himself or owners), declaring the voyage or voyages, term or terms of time, for which such seamen or mariners shall be shipped. It is also required that at the foot of every such contract there shall be a memorandum of the day and the hour on which each seaman or mariner who shall so ship and subscribe shall render himself on board to begin the voyage agreed upon. They must state the number and description of the crew, specifying their respective employments; the time at which each seaman is to be on board to begin work; the capacity in which each seaman is to serve; the amount of wages which each seaman is to receive; a scale of the provisions which are to be furnished to each seaman; any regulations as to conduct on board, and as to fines, short allowance of provisions or other lawful punishments for misconduct; any stipulations in reference to advance and allotment of wages or other matters not contrary to law; U. S. R. S. § 4511, as amended in 1911. The shipping articles ought not to contain any clause which derogates from the general rights and privileges of seamen; and, if they do, such clause will be declared void; Brown v. Lull, 2 Sumn. 443, Fed. Cas. No. 2,018; Harden v. Gordon, 2 Mas. 541, Fed. Cas. No. 6,047. A seaman who signs shipping articles is bound to perform the voyage; and he has no right to elect to pay damages for non-performance of the contract; Ex parte Pool, 2 Va. Cas. 276. See, generally, Douglass v. Eyre, Gilp. 147, Fed. Cas. No. 4,032; Magee v. The Moss, Gilp. 219, Fed. Cas. No. 8,944; Wickham v. Blight, Gilp. 452, Fed. Cas. No. 17,611; Jameson v. The Regulus, 1 Pet. Adm. 212, Fed. Cas. No. 7,198; U. S. v. Hamilton, 1 Mas. 443, Fed. Cas. No. 15,291; U. S. v. Haines, 5 Mas. 272, Fed. Cas. No. 15,275; Bartlett v. Wyman, 14 Johns. (N. Y.) 260; Seamen.

A written agreement between the master of a vessel and the mariners, specifying the voyage or term for which the latter are shipped, and the rate of wages.

Defined under Shipping in Black's Law Dictionary.