A "DUMMY" CAPTAIN

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 263, 2 August 1919, Page 6

A "DUMMY" CAPTAIN

PECULIAR SHIPPING CASE IN '- AUCKLAND. By Telegra-ph-Presi Anociation. Auckland, August 1. » An allegation of dummyism in manning a vessel was involved in charges-heard at the Police Court against a seaman named Edward Donovan; that on April 1 he fraudentlv engaged himself to serve on the Akaroa for the purpose of enabling the ship to dear, and not for purposes of the whole voyage, and tha being master of the Akaroa,,he earr: Peter Petersen and H. Booth on bo? without having entered into an agr ment. , r . , Mr. Selwyn Mays, for the Marine L. partment, stated that the Akaroa, \vii» owned by the Parker-Lamb Timber Co., and was used for towing rafts of kauri logs from the East Coast beaches and ports to the company's mill at Auckland. Petersen, a man with special qualifications as a raftsman, and a master, mariner, had for a lohg time been m charge of the steamer, but on account of-his German parentage,-and birth the Merchant Service Guild had. objected to his being'kept in charge of the-steamer. Evenluallv, after much agitation, the Minister 'of Marine had insisted on Petersen's being removed from -com- ■ inand. That, counsel stated, was obviously the reason for the present breaches of the Shipping and Seamen-s Act. On April 1 Donovan was signed on as master of the ship, being a man who had a master's certificate, acquired by long service and efficiency' in the .river limit trade. Other members of the crew were also signed on,' but Booth and Petersen, who were also on board, did not enter into an agreement thai; same day. -When the'Akaroa went to coal from the Glenolg the ship was navigated by'Petersen, and the nominal master, Donovan, was doing work of an ordinary seaman, and the eauie thing was noticed again when the Akaroiueoalod at Onerahi. Wharf. .Inquiries were made, and it was found that on April 19 Peterson had tried to e'mi himself ou as an ordinary seaman, and when ihe question of Ins membership with Ihe'union was raised, he mi fiiWd on as ii "boy;" AH Or fnrlher mniiiries were made, ' Donovan made. s written admission thai he had been ask-wl-if he would ship as 'tailing master with Petersen, at. J"2O a month, and ta« had agreed. "Sailing master,- counse stated,' was a. -polite for 'dummy master." Donovan admitted that leter. sen was in reality in charge ot the ship, > though he signed as "boy. " Mr Moodv, for Donovan, stated that lie had been approached and tempted with the wages. He was an illiterate man, and had been, used as a- tout by Defendant, was fined 4:5, and 28s. costs for enlering himself as master, and 20s. and 28«. on each of the other t«o charges. Arising out of the same circumstances eliarges of breads of, the Shipping Act are being-heard against Peter Petersen.