498

LAWS OF MARYLAND.

of the vessel and the number of her State oyster license, if she
has one; the names of the owners and master, the names,
places of birth, ages and residences of the various members of
the crew, together with the amount of wages to be paid to
each respectively, and the date of employment of each member,
and the expiration of the period of such employment is to
terminate, the amount of advance, if any, made at the time of
such contract, and whether in money or articles, and the
respective prices of such articles; one of said duplicate con-
tracts shall be entered in a book to be kept by said commis-
sioner in his office expressly for said purpose, and shall be
delivered at the termination of his office to his successor, and
said book shall be open for inspection at all times; one of said
duplicate contracts shall be delivered by the commissioner to
the captain of the boat or vessel, and the other preserved by
the commissioner; third, the crew or any member of the same
of any such boat or vessel shall be discharged and paid off
before a commissioner of the district named as the place of
discharge in the contract, and if such place be before a com-
missioner other than the one before whom such member was
engaged, then it shall be the duty of the commissioner before
whom the discharge was made to inform the other commis-
sioner by letter of such discharge; and it shall be the duty of
any commissioner thus appointed to hear and determine all
complaints of the non-performance of said contract, and this,
certified under his hand and seal, to be furnished on demand,
shall be prima facie proof of the violation of the contract,
and of the amount of damages suffered thereby, in any court,
before any -justice of the peace of this State; fourth, every

Form of con-
tract.

contract or agreement entered into before a shipping commis-
sioner shall be acknowledged by the persons executing the
same and certified under the hand and official seal of such com-
missioner; the certificate of acknowledgment shall be endorsed
on, or annexed to the contract, and shall be in the following
form : State of Maryland, —— District, —— on this ——
day of —— A. D. —— , personally appeared before me, a
State Shipping Commissioner, in and for said district, severally
known to me to be the same persons who executed the fore-
going instrument, who each for himself acknowledged to me
that he had read, or had heard read, the same; that he was by
me made acquainted with the condition thereof and understood
the same, and that, while sober, and not in a state of intoxica-
tion, he signed it freely and voluntarily for .the uses and
purposes therein mentioned; fifth, and the said shipping
commissioner shall procure and keep official seal, with the