[Concerning Passes for Ships.]

BY THE KING.

A PROCLAMATION

Requiring Passes formerly granted to Ships and Vessels, trading in the Way of the Cruizers belonging to the Governments on the Coast of Barbary, to be returned into the Office of the Admiralty of Great Britain, and other Passes of different Forms to be issued.

George R.

Whereas our Royal Father of Glorious Memory, by His Proclamation, bearing Date the Nineteenth Day of July, in the Eighth Year of His Reign[1], did charge and command all His loving Subjects, who then were, or should be possessed of any Passes, which before the said Nineteenth Day of July had been issued for Ships and Vessels belonging to His said late Majesty's Subjects trading to Portugal, the Canaries, Guinea, the Indies, into the Mediterranean, or elsewhere, in the Way of the Cruizers of the Government of Algiers (excepting such as had been granted to such Ships or Vessels as were gone or going to the East Indies, or the South Seas, or any other long Trading Voyages) to return the same, and furnish themselves with Passes of a new Form, under the Hands and Seals of the Commissioners for executing the Office of High Admiral of Great Britain and Ireland, in lieu thereof, for their several Ships and Vessels, in such Manner as by the said recited Proclamation was directed: And whereas it hath been humbly represented unto Us, That it may have happened that several Passes granted pursuant to the said recited Proclamation may, either by Accident, or undue Means, have fallen into the Hands of Foreigners, who by Colour of such Passes may carry on their Trade; We, taking the Premises into Our Royal Consideration, and judging it necessary to put a speedy Stop to all such indirect Practices, which do not only tend to the Prejudice of Our trading Subjects, but may occasion a Misunderstanding between Us and the Governments on the Coast of Barbary, for preventing thereof have thought fit, by the Advice of our Privy Council, to publish this Our Royal Proclamation, and do hereby declare, That all such Passes of the present Form now in being shall not continue in Force longer than Twelve Months, to be computed from the First Day of March next ensuing the Date hereof (except such Passes as have been granted to Ships gone or going to the East Indies, or other remote Voyages, where they cannot be timely furnished with new Passes) and We do hereby strictly charge and command all Our loving Subjects, who are or shall be possessed of any such Passes, That they do within the Space of Twelve Months, to be computed from the said First Day of March next, return the same (except such as are before excepted) into the Office of the Admiralty of Great Britain, or to the respective Collectors of Our Customs at the Out-Ports of Great Britain and Ireland, or to the Governors of some of Our Foreign Plantations or Dominions, in order to their being cancelled; and that they do furnish themselves with Passes of a new Form, under the Hands and Seals of our Commissioners for executing the Office of High Admiral of Great Britain and Ireland, in lieu thereof, for their several Ships and Vessels, according to the Treaties subsisting between Us and the said Governments on the Coast of Barbary, and the Regulations made by Our said Royal Father, by Order in His Privy Council, on the Fourteenth Day of June, in the Year One thousand seven hundred and twenty two, and Our Instructions given to Our said Commissioners for executing the Office of High Admiral of Great Britain and Ireland, touching the same: And whereas many Ships and Vessels belonging to Our loving Subjects continue several Years trading from Port to Port in the Mediterranean without returning Home, whereby they cannot so conveniently procure their Passes to be exchanged, We do hereby, for the Ease of Our Trading Subjects, publish and declare Our Pleasure, That upon the Application of any Owner of any Ship or Vessel, or other substantial Merchant, to the Office of the Admiralty of Great Britain, and Oath made by him of the Property of such Ship or Vessel, and that Three Fourths of the Company are Our Subjects, according to an Act made in the Twelfth Year of the Reign of Our Royal Predecessor King Charles the Second [intituled, An Act for the Encouraging and Increasing of Shipping and Navigation] and upon entring into the usual Bond for the Return of such Pass at the End of the Voyage, it shall and may be lawful for Our Commissioners for executing the Office of High Admiral of Great Britain and Ireland, or Our High Admiral of Great Britain and Ireland for the time being, and they are respectively impowered to make out a new Pass for such Ship or Vessel, and send the same to such of His Majesty's Consuls in the Mediterranean, as the said Owner or Merchant shall desire, with Direction to such Consul, that upon Application to him from the Master of the Ship for which the Pass is made out, and surrendering up his old Pass, and entring into a like Bond for the Return of such new Pass, he shall deliver out the said new Pass to such Master, and transmit the old one, with the Bond, to the Office of the Admiralty of Great Britain. And in order more effectually to hinder for the future any Abuses that may be attempted by Foreigners relating to the new Passes to be issued as aforesaid, We do hereby further declare Our Royal Will and Pleasure, That all such new Passes to be hereafter issued for any Ships or Vessels whatsoever belonging to any of Our Subjects of the Island of Minorca or Gibraltar, shall be made out in a peculiar Form, different from the Form of the new Passes to be issued for Ships and Vessels belonging to any other Part of our Dominions, and that such new Passes shall be lodged with the respective Governors, Lieutenant Governors, or Commanders in Chief for the time being, of the said Island of Minorca and Gibraltar, and issued out only by them, according to the Regulations made by Our said Royal Father in Council, as aforesaid; and the said respective Governors, Lieutenant Governors, and Commanders in Chief are hereby charged and required not to issue or deliver out any such Passes to any Persons whatsoever, other than such as are really Our Subjects inhabiting in the said Island of Minorca or Gibraltar respectively, and strictly to conform themselves in all respects to the Regulations and Instructions made and given, as aforesaid. And We do hereby further publish and declare, That by Our Orders made in Our Privy Council on the Eighteenth Day of this instant December, We have ordered and directed, that the proper Officers of Our Customs in the several Ports of Our Kingdoms of Great Britain and Ireland do demand of the Masters of all Merchant Ships, so soon as they shall return into Port from a Foreign Voyage, all Passes granted as aforesaid, which shall be in their Possession, to be produced to the said respective Officers of Our Customs; and that if the same shall appear to be of an older Date than Twelve Months for Ships and Vessels trading on this side the Streights Mouth, or for Ships and Vessels trading to a greater Distance, in case the Voyages of such last mentioned Ships and Vessels shall be determined, then such Passes shall be delivered up to the said respective Officers of Our Customs, and be by them returned to the Office of the Admiralty of Great Britain; and in case the Master of any such Ship or Vessel shall refuse to produce or deliver up such Passes, according to the true Intent of Our said Order, then the said Officers shall certify the Name of every such Master, and of the Ship or Vessel, to Our Commissioners for executing the Office of High Admiral of Great Britain and Ireland, or to Our High Admiral of Great Britain and Ireland for the time being, to the end that Directions may be given for putting the Bond, entered into on the granting any such Pass, in Suit. And all Our Governors, Lieutenant Governors, and Commanders in Chief of any of Our Islands, Colonies, or Plantations, Consuls residing in Foreign Parts, and all other Our Officers and Ministers whatsoever, and all other Our loving Subjects whom it may concern, are hereby expressly required and commanded to yield due Obedience unto, and strictly to observe all the Orders, Instructions, Regulations, and Directions before mentioned, on Pain of Our high Displeasure.

Given at Our Court at St. James's the Thirty first Day of December, 1729. in the Third Year of Our Reign.

God save the King. London, Printed by the Assigns of His Majesty's Printer, and of Henry Hills, deceas'd. 1729.

1 p. folio. Copies in Dalk., and P. C. Entered in Privy Council Register, II Geo., vol. 2, p. 126. Printed in "London Gazette," January 3, 1730.

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