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der attached to the end of each, brought up on dirks which have a large bearing surface, and through which they were driven. These piles are imbedded ten and twelve feet below the surface, which is coral rock and sand. The structure is composed of a series of iron pillars, the lower of which stands perpendicular, being ten feet above high-water mark. Upon the heads of the lower tiers are cast-iron sockets, or couplingboxes, in which are placed the heads of the second series of pillars, departing from the perpendicular at an angle of 10 degrees, thus marrowing the building as it rises, and presenting the frustum of a cone, with a base fifty feet in diameter. About forty feet above high-water mark, the pillars are inclosed by two rows of cast-iron plates, inside of which are laid two floors, and the whole covered in with a roof. The lower of the rooms thus formed is intended for water and stores, while the upper serves as a dwelling for the keeper. From the roof of these rooms ascends a cylinder tower, inclosing the stairway to the watch-room and lantern. The hight of the entire structure, that is, from the heel of the center pile to the silvered ball above the lantern, is 128 feet. The light, which will be revolving, it is calculated can be seen thirty miles--the atmosphere being sufficiently clear for it to penetrate that far. In addition to the radial and periphery ties, or braces, by which the center and angle piles are attached to each other, the whole is secured by tension bracing, tightened by a lever and turnbuckle, which make it perfectly tight. An ornamental gallery is arranged around the dwelling-house, giving it a light and airy appearance.

IMPROVEMENTS IN LIGHT-HOUSES.

A plan of much importance to commercial interests has been put forward by Mr. George Wells, of the British Admiralty, for giving a telegraphic character to various light-houses. The evils of existing light-houses are alleged to be:-"1. Their unnecessary elevation, which gives them the appearance of being at a greater distance than they really are. 2. In giving colored lights to some, which is worse than useless, as in hazy or foggy weather the density of the atmosphere creates such an optical illusion as completely to vary all descriptions of color, and consequently to lead the seamen to agitation, and thence too often to destruction. 3. The general insufficiency of the light, and its similarity in appearance, which not unfrequently misleads the mariner as to the actual locality of the light-house and the course of his ship; as was evidenced, amid many other instances, in the disaster that befell the Great Britain, though under the guidance of a most experienced sailor." And the following is the remedy proposed:-"The process of the proposed change in the existing light-house is exceedingly simple, and the expense of it comparatively trifling, bearing in mind the security it would insure, being no more than the cutting of four or more circular apertures in all the present structures, just below the lantern, and fitting the openings with glazed sashes of ground plate-glass, painted so as to leave the initial of the particular light-house bold and distinct. The length of the letter being three times the size of the light of the lantern, would be more clearly visible, and leave no doubt as to what the light-house is and where situated. "Tis the few moments lost in thinking what light house it is, that allows the ship to be drawn by wind or current upon the iron-bound rock, where all are lost.' This alteration is suggested for the existing lighthouses, but where it might be necessary to construct new ones it would be better they should not be carried to the present altitude, as the nearer the light is level to the eye, the less probability would exist as to any mistake in the distance of it."

NEW MODE OF DETERMINING LONGITUDE.

The Pacific publishes a new method of determining longitude at sea, by observation independent of the chronometer, discovered by Rev. Tyler Thacher, on his late passage to San Francisco. This method of determining longitude by a single observation of any heavenly body, seen by night or day, either on meridian, or at any angle with the meridian, is perfectly geometrical, and as obvious and certain in its results as any case whatever in spherical trigonometry. He employs the same observation also to fix the longitude. The method by which this is done is partly geometrical and partly arithmetical, but is plain and certain. The certificates from the master and the first mate of the ship Capitol, show the discovery was made and tested by Mr. Thacher during the late voyage to that State. Mr. Thacher is now preparing for the press a work which will contain his discovery, so important to mariners and to the whole commercial world.

COMMERCIAL REGULATIONS.

BRITISH LAW REGULATING THE CARRIAGE OF PASSENGERS IN MERCHANT VESSELS.

We give below extracts, (embracing the substance,) of the British law regarding the carriage of passengers in merchant vessels:

SECTION 1. Repeals laws inconsistent with this Act.

SEC. 4. This Act shall extend to every passenger ship proceeding on any voyage from the United Kingdom to any place out of Europe, and not being within the Mediterranean Sea, and on every colonial voyage as hereinafter described, but not to any steam vessel carrying mails under contract with the government of the country to which such steam vessel may belong.

SEC. 8. The master of every ship, whether a passenger ship or otherwise, fitting or intended for the carriage of passengers, or which shall carry passengers upon any voyage to which this Act extends, shall afford to such emigration officer as aforesaid at any port or place in her Majesty's cominions, and, in the case of British ships, to her Majesty's consul at any foreign port or place at which such ship shall be or arrive, every facility for inspecting such ship, and for communicating with the passengers, and for ascertaining that the provisions of this Act, so far as the same may be applicable to such ships, have been duly complied with.

SEC. 9. No passenger ship shall be allowed to clear out or proceed on any voyage to which this Act extends until the master thereof shall have obtained from the Emigration Officer at the port of clearance a certificate under his hand that all the requirements of this Act, so far as the same can be complied with before the departure of such passenger ship, have been duly complied with.

SEC. 10. No ship shall be allowed to clear out or shall proceed on her voyage with a greater number of persons on board (including the master and crew, and cabin passengers, if any,) than in the proportion of one person to every two tons of the registered tonnage of such ship, nor, whatever may be the registered tonnage of such ship, with a greater number of passengers on board, exclusive of bona fide cabin passengers, than in the following proportions to the space occupied by such passengers and appropriated for their use, and unoccupied by stores, not being their personal luggage; (that is to say,) on the main deck, and on the deck immediately below the same, or in any compartment of either, appropriated as aforesaid, one passenger for every twelve such clear superficial feet; or if such ship is destined to pass within the tropics, and the duration of the intended voyage, computed as hereinafter mentioned, exceeds 12 weeks, one passenger for every fifteen such clear superficial feet: Provided always, that no passenger shall in any case be carried on an orlop deck; and if there shall be on board of any ship at or after the time of clearance a greater number either of persons or of passengers than in the proportions respectively hereinbefore mentioned, the master of such ship shall be liable, on such conviction as hereinafter is mentioned, to the payment of a penalty not exceeding £5 nor less than £2 sterling for each person or passenger constituting any such excess.

SEC. 11. For the purposes of this Act two children, each being under the age of fourteen years, shall be computed either as one person or as one passenger, as the case may require, except in the case hereinafter mentioned, but that children under the age of one year shall not be included in such computation.

SEC. 12. The master of every ship, whether a passenger ship or otherwise, carrying passengers on any voyage to which this Act extends, shall, before demanding a clearance for such ship sign two lists, setting forth the name and other particulars of the ship, and of every passenger on board thereof; and the said lists, when signed, shall be delivered to the officer of the customs from whom a clearance of the said ship shall be demanded, and such officer shall thereupon countersign and return to the said master one of such lists, hereinafter described as the master's list; and the said master shall exhibit such last mentioned list, with any additions which may from time to time be made thereto, as hereinafter directed, to the chief officer of her Majesty's Customs at any port or place in her Majesty's possessions, or to her Majesty's consul at any foreign port at which the said passengers or any of them shall be landed, and shall deposit the same with such chief officer of customs, or such consul, as the case may be, at the final port or place of discharge.

SEC. 13. If at any time after such lists shall have been signed and delivered as aforesaid there shall be taken on board any additional passenger, in every such case the master shall, according to the form aforesaid, add to the master's list the names and other particulars of every such additional passenger, and shall also sign a separate list, made out according to the form aforesaid, containing the names and other particulars of every such additional passenger; and such last mentioned list, when signed, shall, together with the master's list to which such addition shall have been made, be delivered to the chief Officer of Customs as aforesaid, and thereupon such officer shall countersign the master's list, and shall return the same to the said master, and shall retain the separate list; and so on in like manner whenever any additional passenger or passengers may be taken on board; or if no Officer of Customs shall be stationed at the port or place where such additional passenger or passengers may be taken on board, the said lists shall be delivered to the Officer of Customs at the next port or place at which such vessel shall touch or arrive and where any such officer shall be stationed, to be dealt with as hereinbefore mentioned.

SEC. 14. No passenger ship shall be allowed to clear out or proceed on her voyage unless she shall have been surveyed, under the direction of the Emigration Officer at the port of clearance, but at the expense of the owner or charterer thereof, by two or more competent surveyors, to be duly authorized and approved of by the said colonial land and emigration commissioners for each port at which there may be an Emigration Officer, and for other ports by the Commissioners of Customs, nor unless it shall be reported by the same, or by two other surveyors to be appointed as aforesaid, that such passenger ship is in their opinion seaworthy, and fit in all respects for her intended voyage: Provided always that the precautions for ascertaining the seaworthiness of ships and their fitness for their intended voyages respectively shall be the same for foreign as for British ships.

SEC. 15. In every passenger ship there shall be lower or hold beams of adequate strength, forming part of the permanent structure of such a ship, and also a second deck or platform not less than one and a half inches in thickness, properly laid upon the lower or hold beams, or substantially secured to the same, at least three inches clear above the bottom thereof; and further, that there shall be between the upper and the second deck or platform a hight of at least six feet, and a like hight between such second deck or platform and any deck beneath it, if used for carrying passengers; and that there shall not be more than two tiers of berths on any one deck in such passenger ship, and that the interval between the floor of the berths and the deck or platform immediately beneath them shall not be less than six inches, and that the berths shall be securely constructed, and of dimensions not less than after the rate of six feet in length and eighteen inches in width for each passenger; and that not more than two passengers, unless members of the same family, shall be placed in any one berth; and that no berths occupied by passengers during the voyage shall be taken down until forty eight hours after the arrival of such ship at the port of final discharge unless all the passengers shall have voluntarily quitted the ship before the expiration of that time.

SEC. 16. For the purpose of insuring a proper supply of light and air in every passenger ship, the passengers shall at all times during the voyage (weather permitting) have free access to and from the between decks by the whole of each hatchway situate over the space appropriated to the use of such passenger: Provided always, that if the main hatchway be not one of the hatchways appropriated to the use of passengers, or if the natural supply of light and air through the same be in any manner unduly impeded, it shall be lawful for the Emigration Officer at the port of clearance to direct such other provision to be made for affording light and air to the between decks as the circumstances of the case may, in the judgment of such officer, appear to require; and in case of noncompliance with any such directions the owner, charterer, or master of such ship shall be liable, on such conviction as hereinafter is mentioned, to the payment of a penalty not exceeding £50 nor less than £20: Provided also, that no passenger ship having on board as many as 100 passengers shall clear out or proceed on her voyage without having on board an adequate and proper ventilating apparatus, to be approved by the Emigration Officer at the port of clearance, and fitted to his satisfaction.

SEC. 17. Every passenger ship shall carry a number of boats according to the fol lowing scale: (that is to say.) two boats for every ship of 100 tons and upward; three boats for every ship of 200 tons and upward, in case the number of passengers shall exceed fifty; four boats for every ship of 500 tons and upward, in case the number of assengers shall exceed 200: Provided always, that one of such boats shall

in all cases be a long boat, and one shall be a properly fitted life boat, and that each of such boats shall be of a suitable size, to be approved by the Emigration Officer at the port of clearance, and shall be seaworthy, and properly supplied with all requisites for use; provided also, that there shall likewise be on board two properly fitted life buoys, kept ready at all times for immediate use.

SEC. 18. No passenger ship shall be cleared out or proceed to sea until it shall be proved to the satisfaction of the officer from whom a clearance of such ship may be demanded that she is manned with a proper complement of seamen for the intended

voyage.

SEC. 19. No passenger ship shall clear out or proceed on her voyage if there shall be on board as cargo any gunpowder, vitriol, guano, green hides, or any other article likely to endanger the safety of the ship or the health or lives of the passengers, or if any part of the cargo shall be on deck.

SEC. 20. For the purposes of this Act, the following shall be the number of weeks deemed necessary for the voyage of any ship carrying passengers from the United Kingdom to the under mentioned places respectively; (that is to say,) to North America, except the West coast thereof, ten weeks; to the West Indies, ten weeks; to any part of the East coast of the Continent of Central or South America Northward of the 25th degree of South latitude, except British Guiana, twelve weeks; to the West coast of Africa, twelve weeks; to the Cape of Good Hope or the Falkland Islands, or to any part of the East coast of South America Southward of the 25th degree of South latitude fifteen weeks; to the Mauritius and to the Western coast of America South of the Equator, eighteen weeks; to Ceylon, twenty weeks; to Western Australia, twenty weeks; to any other of the Australian Colonies, twenty-two weeks; to New Zealand and to the Western coast of America North of the Equator, twenty-four weeks: Provided nevertheless, that for the like purposes it shall be lawful for the said colonial land and emigration commissioners, acting by and under the authority of one of her Majesty's principal Secretaries of State, from time to time, by any notice in writing issued under the hands of any two of such commissioners, and published in the London Gazette, to declare what shall be deemed to be the length of voyage from the United Kingdom to any of the said herein before mentioned places, or to any port or place whatsoever, anything herein contained to the contrary notwithstanding.

SEC. 21. No passenger ship shall be allowed to clear out or to proceed on her voyage until there shall be supplied, by and at the expense of the owner or charterer thereof, and properly stowed away on board under hatches for the use of the passengers during the voyage, pure water, and wholesome provisions in a sweet and good condition, of a quality to be approved by the Emigration Officer, and in quantities sufficient to afford the allowances to each passenger as hereafter provided; and if any person shall fraudulently obtain a clearance for any passenger ship which shall not be then stored with the requisite quantities of such water and provisions as aforesaid, he shall be liable, on such conviction as hereinafter is mentioned, to the payment of a penalty not exceeding £100 nor less than £50.

SEC. 22. In every passenger ship the water to be laden on board, as herein before required, shall be carried in tanks or casks to be approved of by the Emigration Officer at the port of clearance: Provided always, that all such casks small be sweet and tight, of sufficient strength, and properly charred inside, and shall not be made of fir or soft wood staves, nor be capable severally of containing more than 300 gallons each, and shall have been filled with water for the space of twenty-four hours at least, before the same shall be put on board.

SEC. 23. Before any passenger ship shall be cleared out the Emigration Officer at the port of clearance shall survey or cause to be surveyed by some competent person the provisions and water hereinbefore required to be placed on board for the consumption of the passengers, and shall ascertain that the same are of good quality and in a sweet and good condition, and shall also ascertain, that over and above the same there is on board an ample supply of water and stores for the victualling of the crew of the ship and all other persons, if any, on board: Provided nevertheless, that if any passenger ship shall be destined to call at any intermediate port or place during the voyage for the purpose of taking in water, and if an engagement to that effect shall be inserted in the bond hereinafter mentioned, then it shall be sufficient to place on board, at the port of clearance such supply of water as may be requisite, according to the rate hereinafter mentioned, for the voyage of the said ship to such intermediate port or place, subject to the following conditions; (that is to say,)

1st. That the Emigration Officer signify his approval in writing of the arrangement. to be carried among the papers of the ship, and exhibited to the chief Officer of

Customs, or to her Majesty's Consul, as the case may be, at such intermediate port or place, and to be delivered to the chief Officer of Customs, or to her Majesty's Consul, as the case may be, on the arrival of the said ship at the final port or place of discharge.

2d. That if the length of either portion of the voyage, whether to such intermediate port or place or from such intermediate port or place to the final port or place of discharge, be not prescribed in or under the provisions of this Act, the Emigration Officer at the port of clearance shall in every such case declare the same:

3d. That the ship shall have on board at the time a clearance is demanded tanks or water casks of the description hereinbefore mentioned, sufficient for stowing the quantity of water required for the longest of such portions of the voyage as aforesaid:

SEC. 24. In addition to and irrespective of any provisions of their own which any passengers may have on board, the master of every passenger ship shall make to each passenger during the voyage, including the time of detention, if any, at any port or place before the termination of such voyage, the following issues of pure water and sweet and wholesome provisions: (that is to say,) of water at least three quarts daily, and of provisions at the rate per week of two and a half pounds of bread or biscuit, not inferior in quality to what is usually called navy biscuit, one pound of wheaten flour, five pounds of oatmeal, two pounds of rice, two ounces of tea, half a pound of sugar, and half a pound of molasses: Provided always, that such issues of provisions shall be made in advance, and not less often than twice a week, the first of such issues to be made on the day of embarkation: Provided also, that potatoes, when good and sound, may be substituted for either the oatmeal or rice, in the proportion of five pounds of potatoes to one pound of oatmeal or rice; and that in ships clearing out from the port of Liverpool, or from Irish or Scotch ports, oatmeal may be substituted in equal quantities for the whole or any part of the issues of rice.

SEC. 26. No passenger ship carrying as many as 100 passengers shall clear out or proceed on her voyage unless there shall be on board a seafaring person who shall be rated in the ship's articles as passengers' cook, to be approved by the Emigration Officer at the port of clearance, and engaged for the purpose of cooking the food of the passengers, nor unless a convenient place for that purpose shall have been set apart on deck, and a sufficient cooking apparatus, properly covered in and arranged, shall have been provided to the satisfaction of the said Emigration Officer, together with a proper supply of fuel adequate in his opinion for the intended voyage.

SEC. 27. It shall not be lawful for any passenger ship having on board as many as fifty persons, if the length of the intended voyage, computed as herein before mentioned, shall exceed twelve weeks, nor, whatever may be the computed duration of the voyage, for any passenger ship having on board as many as 100 persons, except she be bound to North America, (including in both cases the master and crew, and cabin passengers, if any,) to clear out or proceed on her voyage, unless there shall be on board, and rated on the ship's articles, some person duly authorized by law to practice in the United Kingdom, as physician, surgeon, or apothecary, and whose name shall have been notified to the Emigration Officer at the port of clearance, and not objected to by him; and further, that no passenger ship bound to North America having on board as many as 100 persons, exclusive of the master and crew, and cabin passengers, if any, shall clear out or proceed on her voyage without having on board, and rated on the ship's articles, such duly authorized medical practitioner, whose name shall have been notified to the Emigration Officer at the port of clearance, and not objected to by him: Provided nevertheless, that if in any ship bound to North America there be appropriated on the second deck or platform, or in the poop, (if any,) instead of twelve clear superficial feet, as hereinbefore required, fourteen clear superficial feet, unoccupied by stores not being the personal luggage of the passengers, for each passenger on board, counting for this purpose each child above the age of one year as one passenger, then and in such case, but not otherwise, it shall be lawful for such ship to clear out and proceed to sea without having on board a medical practitioner as aforesaid.

SEC. 28. In every passenger ship there shall be furnished and laden on board, at the expense of the owner or charterer thereof, a medicine chest containing a supply of medicines, instruments, and other things proper and necessary for diseases and acci. dents incident to sea voyages, and for the medical treatment of the passengers during the voyage, including an adequate supply of disinfecting fluid or agent, together with printed or written directions for the use of the same respectively; and that such medicines and other things shall be good in quality, and, in the judgment of the Emigration Officer at the port of clearance, sufficient in quantity for the probable ex

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