shall, himself, make oath or affirmation, instead of the said agent or attorney, touching his being a citizen, and the means whereby, or manner in which, he is so a citizen; in which case, if what the said master, or person having the said charge or command, shall so swear or affirm, shall not be true, the forfeiture aforesaid shall not be incurred, but he shall, himself, forfeit and pay, by reason thereof, the sum of one thousand dollars.
Oath to be taken on losing certificate of registry.Sec. 13. And be it further enacted, That if the certificate of the registry of any ship or vessel shall be lost or destroyed, or mislaid, the master, or other person having the charge or command thereof, may make oath or affirmation, before the collector of the district where such ship or vessel shall first be, after such loss, destruction, or mislaying, who is hereby authorized to administer the same, which oath or affirmation shall be of the form following: “I (inserting here the name of the person swearing or affirming) being master (or having the charge or command) of the ship or vessel, called the (inserting the name of the vessel) do swear (or affirm) that the said ship, or vessel hath been, as I verily believe, registered, according to law, by the name of (inserting again the name of the vessel) and that a certificate thereof was granted by the collector of the district of (naming the district, where registered) which certificate has been lost (or destroyed, or unintentionally and by mere accident mislaid, as the case may be,) and (except, where the certificate is alleged to have been destroyed) that the same, if found again, and within my power, shall be delivered up to the collector of the district, in which it was granted;” which oath, or affirmation shall be subscribed by the party making the same, and upon such oath or affirmation being made, and the other requisites of this act, in order to the registry of ships, or vessels, being complied with, it shall be lawful for the collector of the district, before whom such oath or affirmation is made, to grant a new register, inserting therein, that the same is issued, in the room of the one lost or destroyed. But in all cases, where a register shall be granted, in lieu of the one lost or destroyed, by any other than the collector of the district, to which the ship, or vessel actually belongs, such register shall, within ten days after her first arrival within the district to which she belongs, be delivered up to the collector of the said district, who shall, thereupon, grant a new register, in lieu thereof. And in case the master, or commander shall neglect to deliver up such register within the time aforesaid, he shall forfeit one hundred dollars; and the former register shall become null and void.
Vessels sold &c. to be registered anew.Sec. 14. And be it further enacted, That when any ship or vessel, which shall have been registered, pursuant to this act, or the act hereby, in part, repealed, shall, in whole, or in part, be sold, or transferred to a citizen or citizens of the United States, or shall be altered in form or burthen, by being lengthened, or built upon, or from one denomination to another, by the mode or method of rigging or fitting, in every such case, the said ship or vessel shall be registered anew, by her former Dame, according to the directions herein before contained, (otherwise she shall cease to be deemed a ship or vessel of the United States) and her former certificate of registry shall be delivered up to the collector to whom application for such new registry shall be made, at the time, that the same shall be made to be by him transmitted to the register of the treasury who shall cause the same to be cancelled. And in every such case of sale or transfer, there shall be some instrument of writing, in the nature of a bill of sale, which shall recite, at length, the said certificate, otherwise the said ship or vessel shall be incapable of being so registered anew. And in every case, in which a ship or vessel is hereby required to be registered anew,March 2, 1797, ch. 7. if she shall not be so registered anew, she shall not be entitled to any of the privileges or benefits of a ship or vessel of the United States. And further, if her said former certificate of regis-
