Form of Oaths to be taken by the Owner and Master of any Vessel permitted to sail

v3:561

The Committee appointed for that purpose delivered in their Report, which was read and filed, and is in the words following:

Your Committee do report, that they conceive it will be proper that the Owners and Masters of all Vessels sailing out of this Port, with any kind of Provisions, should give security to this Congress that they will proceed to the place for which they shall report such Vessels to be destined, and that no security less than an oath of such Owners and Masters ought to be accepted of. Your Committee therefore do propose, for Vessels bound to Europe, the following Oath, to wit:

"I, A B, do promise and declare that the ˙ ˙ ˙, now bound to ˙ ˙ ˙, and laden with ˙ ˙ ˙, shall proceed directly on her voyage to the said place of her destination; for which purpose I will strictly order the master of the said ˙ ˙ ˙ to sail from the Hook into the latitude of thirty-five degrees north, and keep in or to the southward of that latitude until she shall reach the fiftieth degree of west longitude from London, and thence proceed with all dispatch to the said Port of ˙ ˙ ˙, thereby to avoid a caption by any of His Majesty' s Vessels of War; the unavoidable accidents of the seas only excepted. So help me God"

"I, A B, Master of the ˙ ˙ ˙, do swear, promise, and

v3:562

For Vessels bound to the West-Indies , the following Oath, to wit:

"I, A B, do solemnly and sincerely swear and declare that I will take every precaution in my power to prevent the ˙ ˙ ˙, now bound from New-York to ˙ ˙ ˙, from falling into the possession of or being taken by any Vessel of War belonging to His Majesty; and for this purpose I will direct ˙ ˙ ˙, the Master of the said Vessel, to proceed immediately from the Hook to the aforesaid place of his destination, without delay, the danger of the seas only excepted. So help me God."

"I, A B, do promise and swear that I, the Master of the ˙ ˙ ˙, now bound on a voyage to ˙ ˙ ˙, will immediately proceed with the said Vessel to the said place of destination, with the utmost despatch in my power, the danger of the seas only excepted, and will take every precaution in my power to prevent the said Vessel from, being taken by any Armed Vessels belonging to His Majesty. So help me God."

All which is humbly submitted.

ALEXANDER MCDOUGALL,
GOUVERNEUR MORRIS,
RICHARD YATES.

Resolved, That the Owner or Owners and Master of each Vessel, for the lading and sailing whereof application has been made to this Congress, and a permit ordered, do respectively take such Oath as above directed, that is to say: the Master and Owners of such Vessels as are bound to the West-Indies, the Oath for that purpose directed; and the Master and Owners of the other Vessels the Oaths for that purpose abovementioned.

Mr˙ Morris, Mr˙ Kissam, and Mr˙ Thomas Smith, are appointed a Committee to report to this Congress the mode to supply the Ship Asia with Provisions, that will be least inconvenient to the inhabitants of this City.