ACTION AGAINST LAUNCH OWNER

Colonist, Volume LVI, Issue 13455, 29 April 1914, Page 3

ACTION AGAINST LAUNCH OWNER

USING FISHING/VESSEL FOR

PLEASURE

INFORMATION DISMISSED

{United Peess Association•]

Auckland, April 28

A judgment.of pal-ticular interest to owners of registered fishing launches was given this-morning, by Mr Frazer, S.M., in the case against James Carroll, master.of the fishing launch Hero. Carroll was charged that on .Sunday, January 18th, being the master of a steamship under the Shipping and Seamen's Act, he -took that steamship on an excursion without the boat having; a certificate of survey. " ■ It was admitted that the launch -\v_as a registered fishing boat, ami that on the date in question the d-efendant.took a party of friends tin a fishing excursion to Waiheke, the party .subscribing 15s to pay for the benzine. After traversing the contention of the prosecution, that a boat registered as a fishing boat, and incidentally exempted from the necessity of a survey certificate, could not change her status to that of a pleasure boat so long as thoj registration subsisted; His Worship held that a registered fishing boat of less than ten tons is regarded as a fishing boat for the purposes of the Fisheries Act, so long as her registration subsists, no matter for what purpose she may he used. Still she may temporarily be divested of that status for the purposes of the Shipping and Seamen's Act, and become a pleasure boat, and be entitled to the exemption allowed to pleasure yachts by the latter Act, so long as she retains that character. It otherwise would be equivalent to ruling that the owner of a registered fishing launch is for no apparent reason debarred from the privilege of entertaining his relatives and i'riends. which is granted freely to owners of similar vessels which are not so registered. . The information was dismissed.