[Home] [Databases] [World Law] [Multidatabase Search] [Help] [Feedback]
	Statutes of Northern Ireland
You are here: BAILII >> Databases >> Statutes of Northern Ireland >> URL: http://www.bailii.org/nie/legis/num_act/sta1885197.txt

[New search] [Help]

SUBMARINE TELEGRAPH ACT 1885

SUBMARINE TELEGRAPH ACT 1885 - LONG TITLE

An Act to carry into effect an International Convention for the
Protection of Submarine Telegraph Cables.
[6th August 1885]
Short title.

SUBMARINE TELEGRAPH ACT 1885 - SECT 1

1. This Act may be cited as the Submarine Telegraph Act, 1885.

SUBMARINE TELEGRAPH ACT 1885 - SECT 2
Confirmation of Convention.

2. The Convention of the fourteenth of March one thousand eight
hundred and eighty-four mentioned in the schedule to this Act as
set forth in that schedule is hereby confirmed, and subject to the
provisions of this Act the articles of such Convention (referred to
in this Act as the Convention) shall be of the same force as if
they were enacted in the body of this Act.

SUBMARINE TELEGRAPH ACT 1885 - SECT 3
Punishment for violation of Article 2 of Convention.

3.(1) A person shall not unlawfully and wilfully, or by culpable
negligence, break or injure any submarine cable to which the
Convention for the time being applies, in such manner as might
interrupt or obstruct in whole or in part telegraphic communication.

(2) Any person who acts or attempts to act in contravention of
this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanour, and on conviction

(a)if he acted wilfully, shall be liable to penal servitude for a
term not exceeding five years, or to imprisonment,... for a term
not exceeding two years, and to a fine either in lieu of or in
addition to such penal servitude or imprisonment; and

(b)if he acted by culpable negligence, shall be liable to
imprisonment for a term not exceeding three months..., and to a
fine not exceeding one hundred pounds either in lieu of or in
addition to such imprisonment.

(3) Where a person does any act with the object of preserving the
life or limb of himself or of any other person, or of preserving
the vessel to which he belongs or any other vessel, and takes all
reasonable precautions to avoid injury to a submarine cable, such
person shall not be deemed to have acted unlawfully and wilfully
within the meaning of this section.

(4) A person shall not be deemed to have unlawfully and wilfully
broken or injured any submarine cable, where in the bona8 fide
attempt to repair another submarine cable injury has been done to
such first-mentioned cable, or the same has been broken; but this
shall not apply so as to exempt such person from any liability
under this Act or otherwise to pay the cost of repairing such
breakage or injury.

(5) Any person who within or (being a subject of Her Majesty)
without Her Majesty's dominions in any manner procures, counsels,
aids, abets, or is accessory to the commission of any offence under
this section, shall be guilty of a misdemeanour, and shall be
liable to be tried and punished for the offence as if he had been
guilty as a principal.

S.4 rep. by 1886 c.3 s.3

SUBMARINE TELEGRAPH ACT 1885 - SECT 5
Application of law as to lights and signals for carrying into
effect Articles five and six of Convention.

5.(1) It is hereby declared that the enactments of the Merchant
Shipping Act, 1862, and the enactments amending the same, touching
regulations as to lights and to signals and for the avoiding of
collisions, shall extend to authorise regulations for carrying into
effect Articles five and six of the schedule to this Act, within
as well as without the territorial waters of Her Majesty's
dominions, and regulations may be made, applied, altered, and
revoked, and the contravention thereof punished accordingly under the
said enactments, and section six of the Sea Fisheries Act, 1883,
shall extend to the enforcement of the said regulations as regards
sea fishing boats within the limits of that Act.

(2) If any vessel engaged in the laying or repairing of a
submarine cable to which the Convention for the time being applies,
interferes contrary to the said regulations or articles with any
vessel engaged in fishing, or if the operations of any vessel in
connexion with any such submarine cable are wilfully delayed so as
to interfere with sea fishing, the master of the vessel, or the
owner thereof, if it appear that he was in fault, shall be deemed
guilty of a breach of the said regulations and may be punished
accordingly.

SUBMARINE TELEGRAPH ACT 1885 - SECT 6
Powers of British and foreign officers.

6.(1) For the purpose of carrying into effect the Convention, a
person commanding a ship of war of Her Majesty or of any foreign
state for the time being bound by the Convention, or a ship
specially commissioned for the purpose of the Convention by Her
Majesty or by the government of such foreign state, may exercise
and perform the powers and duties vested in and imposed on such
officer by any article in the Schedule to this Act.

(2) If any person obstructs any such officer in such exercise or
performance, or refuses or neglects to comply with any demand or
direction lawfully made or given by him in pursuance of this Act,
such person shall be liable, on summary conviction, to a fine not
exceeding fifty pounds, or to be imprisoned for a term not
exceeding two months....

Subs.(3) rep. by 1964 c.29 s.8(2)

(4) In any such action tender of amends before the action was
commenced may, in lieu of or in addition to any other plea, be
pleaded. If the action was commenced after such tender, or is
proceeded with after payment into court of any money in satisfaction
of the plaintiff's claim, and the plaintiff does not recover more
than the sum tendered or paid, he shall not recover any costs
incurred after such tender or payment, and the defendants shall be
entitled to costs, to be taxed as between solicitor and client, as
from the time of such tender or payment.

(5) Every such action shall be brought in one of Her Majesty's
superior courts in the United Kingdom (which courts shall have
jurisdiction to try the same wherever the matter complained of
occurred)...

SUBMARINE TELEGRAPH ACT 1885 - SECT 7
Incorporation of Part X of 1854 c.104.

7. Part X of the Merchant Shipping Act, 1854 (which relates to
legal procedure), and the enactments amending the same, so far as
unrepealed, shall have effect as if enacted in this Act, and
offences under this Act may be tried, and fines under this Act
recovered accordingly, save that nothing in the said part shall
authorise the award of any punishment not authorised by this Act,
or the summary prosecution of any indictable offence under this Act.

SUBMARINE TELEGRAPH ACT 1885 - SECT 8
Evidence.

8.(1) Any document drawn up in pursuance of Article seven or
Article ten of the Schedule to this Act shall be admissible in any
proceeding, civil or criminal, as prima8 facie evidence of the facts
or matters therein stated.

(2) If evidence contained in any such document was taken on oath
in the presence of the person charged in such evidence, and such
person had an opportunity of cross-examining the person giving such
evidence and of making his reply to such evidence, the officer
drawing up such document may certify the said facts, or any of
them.

(3) Any document or certificate in this section mentioned purporting
to be signed by an officer authorised to act under the Schedule to
this Act for carrying into effect the Convention, shall be
admissible in evidence without proof of such signature, and, if
purporting to be signed by any other person, shall, if certified by
any such officer to have been so signed, be deemed until the
contrary is proved to have been signed by such other person.

(4) If any person forges the signature of any such officer to any
such document as above mentioned, or makes use of any such document
knowing the signature thereto to be forged, such person shall be
guilty of a misdemeanour and liable on summary conviction to
imprisonment for a term not exceeding three months....

SUBMARINE TELEGRAPH ACT 1885 - SECT 9
Liability of masters of vessels.

9. Where any offence against this Act has been committed by means
of a vessel, or of any boat belonging to a vessel, the master of
such vessel shall, until some other person is shown to have been
in charge of and navigating such vessel or boat, be deemed to have
been in charge of and navigating the same, and be liable to be
punished accordingly.

SUBMARINE TELEGRAPH ACT 1885 - SECT 10
Savings.

10. The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to and not in
derogation of any other provisions existing at common law or under
Act of Parliament... for the protection of submarine cables; and
nothing in this Act shall prevent any person being liable under any
Act of Parliament,... or otherwise to any indictment, proceeding,
punishment, or penalty other than is provided for any offence by
this Act, so that no person shall be punished twice for the same
offence; and nothing in this Act, nor any proceedings with respect
to any matter, shall exempt a person from any liability in any
action or suit with reference to the same matter so that no person
shall be required to pay compensation twice in respect of the same
injury.

SUBMARINE TELEGRAPH ACT 1885 - SECT 11
Extent of Act.

11. This Act shall so far as such extension is consistent with the
tenor of this Act extend to the whole of Her Majesty's dominions,
and to all places within the jurisdiction of the Admiral of
England, and to all places where Her Majesty has jurisdiction.

SUBMARINE TELEGRAPH ACT 1885 - SECT 12
Definitions.

12. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,

The expression "vessel" means every description of vessel used in
navigation in whatever way it is propelled; and any reference to a
vessel shall include a reference to a boat belonging to such
vessel:

The expression "master" includes every person having command or
charge of a vessel:

...

The expression "person" includes a body of persons corporate or
unincorporate.

S.13 rep. by SLR 1898; 1964 c.29 s.8(2)CONVENTION for the
preservation of telegraphic communications by means of submarine
telegraphs made on the 14th of March, 1884, between Her Majesty the
Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Empress
of India, His Majesty the German Emperor, King of Prussia, His
Excellency the President of the Argentine Confederation, His Majesty
the Emperor of Austria, King of Bohemia, &c., and Apostolic King of
Hungary, His Majesty the King of the Belgians, His Majesty the
Emperor of Brazil, His Excellency the President of the Republic of
Costa Rica, His Majesty the King of Denmark, His Excellency the
President of the Dominican Republic, His Majesty the King of Spain,
His Excellency the President of the United States of America, His
Excellency the President of the United States of Colombia, His
Excellency the President of the French Republic, His Excellency the
President of the Republic of Guatemala, His Majesty the King of the
Hellenes, His Majesty the King of Italy, His Majesty the Emperor of
the Ottomans, His Majesty the King of the Netherlands, Grand Duke
of Luxemburg, His Majesty the Shah of Persia, His Majesty the King
of Portugal and the Algarves, His Majesty the King of Roumania, His
Majesty the Emperor of all the Russias, His Excellency the President
of the Republic of Salvador, His Majesty the King of Servia, His
Majesty the King of Sweden and of Norway, and his Excellency the
President of the Oriental Republic of the Uruguay.

The following is an English translation of the Convention with the
omission of the formal beginning and end:

The present Convention applies outside territorial waters to all
legally established submarine cables landed on the territories,
colonies, or possessions of one or more of the High Contracting
Parties.

It is a punishable offence to break or injure a submarine cable,
wilfully or by culpable negligence, in such manner as might
interrupt or obstruct telegraphic communication, either wholly or
partially, such punishment being without prejudice to any civil
action for damages.

This provision does not apply to cases where those who break or
injure a cable do so with the lawful object of saving their lives
or their ship, after they have taken every necessary precaution to
avoid so breaking or injuring the cable.

The High Contracting Parties undertake that, on granting a concession
for landing a submarine cable, they will insist, so far as
possible, upon proper measures of safety being taken, both as
regards the track of the cable and its dimensions.

The owner of a cable who, on laying or repairing his own cable
breaks or injures another cable, must bear the cost of repairing
the breakage or injury, without prejudice to the application, if
need be, of Article II of the present Convention.

Vessels engaged in laying or repairing submarine cables shall conform
to the regulations as to signals which have been, or may be,
adopted by mutual agreement among the High Contracting Parties, with
the view of preventing collisions at sea.

When a ship engaged in repairing a cable exhibits the said signals,
other vessels which see them, or are able to see them, shall
withdraw to or keep beyond a distance of one nautical mile at
least from the ship in question, so as not to interfere with her
operations.

Fishing gear and nets shall be kept at the same distance.

Nevertheless, fishing vessels which see or are able to see a
telegraph ship exhibiting the said signals shall be allowed a period
of twenty-four hours at most within which to obey the notice so
given, during which time they shall not be interfered with in any
way.

The operations of the telegraph ships shall be completed as quickly
as possible.

Vessels which see, or are able to see, the buoys showing the
position of a cable when the latter is being laid, is out of
order, or is broken, shall keep beyond a distance of one quarter
of a nautical mile at least from the said buoys.

Fishing nets and gear shall be kept at the same distance.

Owners of ships or vessels who can prove that they have sacrificed
an anchor, a net, or other fishing gear in order to avoid injuring
a submarine cable shall receive compensation from the owner of the
cable.

In order to establish a claim to such compensation, a statement,
supported by the evidence of the crew, should, whenever possible, be
drawn up immediately after the occurrence; and the master must,
within twenty-four hours after his return to, or next putting into
port, make a declaration to the proper authorities.

The latter shall communicate the information to the consular
authorities of the country to which the owner of the cable belongs.

The tribunals competent to take cognizance of infractions of the
present Convention are those of the country to which the vessel on
board of which the offence was committed belongs.

It is, moreover, understood that, in cases where the provisions in
the previous paragraph cannot apply, offences against the present
Convention will be dealt with in each of the Contracting States in
accordance, so far as the subjects and citizens of those States
respectively are concerned, with the general rules of criminal
jurisdiction prescribed by the laws of that particular State, or by
international treaties.

Prosecutions for infractions provided against by Articles II, V, and
VI of the present Convention shall be instituted by the State, or
in its name.

Offences against the present Convention may be verified by all means
of proof allowed by the legislation of the country of the court.
When the officers commanding the ships of war, or ships specially
commissioned for the purpose of one of the High Contracting Parties,
have reason to believe that an infraction of the measures provided
for in the present Convention has been committed by a vessel other
than a vessel of war, they may demand from the captain or master
the production of the official documents proving the nationality of
the said vessel. The fact of such document having been exhibited
shall then be endorsed upon it immediately. Further, formal
statements of the facts may be prepared by the said officers,
whatever may be the nationality of the vessel incriminated. These
formal statements shall be drawn up in the form and in the
language used in the country to which the officer making them
belongs; they may be considered, in the country where they are
adduced, as evidence in accordance with the laws of that country.
The accused and the witnesses shall have the right to add, or to
have added, thereto, in their own language, any explanations they
may consider useful. These declarations shall be duly signed.

The proceedings and trial in cases of infraction of the provisions
of the present Convention shall always take place as summarily as
the laws and regulations in force will permit.

The High Contracting Parties engage to take or to propose to their
respective Legislatures the necessary measures for insuring the
execution of the present Convention, and especially for punishing, by
either fine or imprisonment, or both, those who contravene the
provisions of Articles II, V, and VI.

The High Contracting Parties will communicate to each other laws
already made, or which may hereafter be made, in their respective
countries relating to the object of the present Convention.

States which have not signed the present Convention may adhere to
it on making a request to that effect. This adhesion shall be
notified through the diplomatic channel to the Government of the
French Republic, and by the latter to the other Signatory Powers.

It is understood that the stipulations of the present Convention do
not in any way restrict the freedom of action of belligerents.

The present Convention shall be brought into force on a day to be
agreed upon by the High Contracting Powers.

It shall remain in force for five years from that day, and unless
any of the High Contracting Parties have announced, twelve months
before the expiration of the said period of five years, its
intention to terminate its operation, it shall continue in force for
a period of one year, and so on from year to year.

If one of the Signatory Powers denounce the Convention, such
denunciation shall have effect only as regards that Power.

The present Convention shall be ratified, and the ratifications
exchanged at Paris with as little delay as possible, and, at the
latest, at the expiration of a year.

The stipulations of the Convention concluded under to-day's date for
the protection of submarine cables shall be applicable, in conformity
with Article I, to the colonies and possessions of Her Britannic
Majesty, with the exception of those herein-after mentioned, namely:

Canada

Newfoundland

The Cape

Natal

New South Wales

Victoria

Queensland

Tasmania

South Australia

Western Australia

New Zealand

Provided always, that the stipulations of the said Convention shall
be applicable to any of the above-named colonies or possessions on
whose behalf notice to that effect shall have been given by Her
Britannic Majesty's Representative at Paris to the French Minister
for Foreign Affairs.

Each of the above-named colonies or possessions which may have
acceded to the said Convention shall be at liberty to withdraw from
it in the same manner as the powers parties to it. In the event
of any of the said colonies or possessions desiring to withdraw
from the Convention, a notification to that effect shall be made by
Her Britannic Majesty's Representative at Paris to the French
Minister for Foreign Affairs.