we shall refer hereafter, as well as to the numerous important changes in the merchant service of England which have since been made.
Mate successor in law to the Master.
Mode of address to Chief and Second Mates.
The law also makes the chief mate the successor to the
master in case the latter should die, or be unable
to perform the duties of his office; and this without
any action on the part of the crew when at sea, or of
the consignees of the vessel when in harbour abroad.
It is always important, therefore, that to the practical
seamanship and activity necessary for the discharge
of the proper duties of his office the mate should
add a sufficient knowledge of navigation, to be able
to carry the ship on her voyage should anything
happen to the master. In the case of a ship coming
from the East Indies, there is a decision that no ship
insured can be deemed seaworthy unless she have on
board, at the time of sailing, a mate competent to
take command of the ship in the event of the death
or sickness of the master. This principle, however,
can in strictness only be applied to long voyages,
and a high American authority calls it in question.[1]
Both the chief and second mates are always
addressed by their surnames, with the courteous
prefix of "Mr.," and are answered with the addition
of "Sir." This is a requirement of ship's duty, and
an intentional omission of such courtesies constitutes
an offence against the rules and understanding of
the service.
- ↑ Chancellor Kent impugns this decision, and says the warranty of seaworthiness implies no more than that the assured must have a sound and well-equipped vessel, with reference to the voyage, and have on board a competent person as master, a competent person as mate, and a competent crew as seamen; and he cites cases where, as regards the American coasting and West India trades, this doctrine has been discarded. (See Arnold's work, p. 721.)
