Law as written, continued;
SEC. 6. And be it further enacted, That the produce of prizes taken by the ships of the United States, and bounty for taking the ships of the enemy, be proportioned and distributed in the manner following, to wit:--
1. To the captain actually on board at the time of taking any prize, being other than a public or national vessel, or ship of war, three twentieths of that proportion of the proceeds belonging to the captors.
2. If such captain or captains be under the immediate command of a commander in chief, or commander of a squadron, having a captain on board, such commander in chief, or commander of a squadron, to have one of the said twentieth parts, and the captain taking the prize, the other two twentieth parts.
3. To the sea lieutenants and sailing-master, two twentieths.
4. To marine officers, the surgeon, purser, boatswain, gunner, carpenter, master's mate and chaplain, two twentieths.
5. To midshipmen, surgeon's mates, captain's clerk, clergyman or schoolmaster, boatswain's mates, gunner's mates, carpenter's mates, ship's steward, sail-maker, master at arms, armorer, and cockswain, three twentieths.
6. Gunner's yeoman, boatswain's yeoman, quartermasters, quartergunners, cooper, sail-maker's mates, sergeant of marines, corporal of marines, drummer and fifer and extra petty officers, three twentieths.
7. To seamen, ordinary seamen, marines and boys, seven twentieths.
8. Any officer on board having more posts than one, is only entitled to the share belonging to his superior office, according to the regulations aforesaid.
9. Whenever one or more ships of the United States are in sight, at the time of any one or more other ships as aforesaid are taking a prize or prizes, or being engaged with an enemy, and they shall all be so in sight, when the enemy shall strike or surrender, they shall share equally, according to the number of guns and men on board of each ship so in sight--but no privateer or armed ship, being in sight of a national ship of war, at the taking of any prize, shall be entitled to any share in such prize or prizes.
10. Commanders of ships of war taking any prize, are to transmit, as soon as possible, to the naval department, a true list of the officers and men actually on board at the taking of such prize, inserting therein the quality of every person's rating; and the department aforesaid is to examine the said list by the ship's muster book, to see their agreement, and is to grant certificates of the truth of such list transmitted, in order that the agents appointed by the captors, make payment of the shares, agreeably to this act.
11. In order to define the rights and privileges of commanders in chief, commanders of squadrons and captains, in relation to captures--No commander in chief, or commander of a squadron, shall be entitled to receive any share of prizes taken by the ships of war of the United States that are not put under his immediate command, nor of such prizes as may have been taken previous to such ships being placed under his command, and until they have acted under, his immediate orders; nor shall a commander in chief, or commander of a squadron, returning home from any station where he had the command, have any share in prizes taken by ships left on such station, after he has got out of the limits of his, said command.
12. Captains, sailing specially under orders from the navy department, are clearly to be understood as acting separately from any superior officer.
13. The bounty given by the United States on any national ship of war, taken from the enemy and brought into port, shall be for every cannon mounted, carrying a ball of twenty-four pounds, or upwards, two hundred dollars; for every cannon carrying a ball of eighteen pounds, one hundred and fifty dollars; for every cannon carrying a ball of twelve pounds, one hundred dollars; and for every cannon carrying a ball of nine pounds, seventy-five dollars; for every smaller cannon, fifty dollars; and for every officer and man taken on board, forty dollars; which sums are to be divided agreeably to the foregoing articles.
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