These naval laws were first established in the time of Artel and are yet upheld by the Free Merchants’ Guild.

ART. I. No master shall undertake to build a ship unless they are assured that their owners and undertakers are agreed upon what model she shall be built, and on everything relating to the building of her; which undertakers and owners shall be burghers and inhabitants of one of the Artel Allods or Towns, and no others. However, if the master will go through with the building at their own expense, they may do it; otherwise they must always have the consent of those burghers who are concerned with them, on pain of forfeiting half a chervonets a ton.

ART. II. No master shall begin to build a ship, after they and their joint owners or partners have resolved upon it, until they have agreed among themselves of what size, height, and depth she shall be, how broad and how long; and this agreement shall be taken in writing, on pain of forfeiting 12 altyns a ton.

ART. III. The master, in like manner, shall not repair the ship, sails, or cordage without the owners’ consent, on pain of bearing all the charge of it themselves, unless in case of necessity, when they are in a strange allod.

ART. IV. The master may not buy anything whatsoever for their ship unless it is in the presence, and with the consent, of one or two of the partners; if they do, they shall forfeit 30 altyns. Nor shall the master, or any of the owners, buy anything for the ship’s use upon the credit of the other owners, who would pay ready money for their part of the disbursement.

ART. V. An inventory shall be taken of everything the ship wants, that it may be bought by the master and owners jointly.

ART. VI. The master ought to buy everything at the cheapest rate, without fraud, on pain of corporal punishment; and they shall enter in their account the name of the person of whom they bought the goods, and where they live.

ART. VII. If a master or sailor keeps back any of the merchandise they took in on freight, they shall be apprehended and punished as a robber, unless it was in case of necessity.

ART. VIII. Nor may they give above the market price for any provisions; and what they buy shall be carried to the ship’s storehouse, and be kept there till she is ready to sail.

ART. IX. All masters are forbidden to sell any of the ship’s provisions, on pain of being punished as thieves, except it is at sea, when they meet with other ships in distress and danger of perishing for want of them; for which they shall, however, be accountable to the owners.

ART. X. The master, when the ship is returned, is obliged to deliver up to the owners the remains of their victuals and ammunition.

ART. XI. The master is obliged to set sail within three days after their ship is laden, if the wind is fair, on pain of forfeiting a whole chervonets; and in case any one of the owners has not paid their quota of the charge of the ship’s outset by that time, they shall forfeit as much; and the master may besides borrow money on bottomry for the deficient owner’s quota. The merchants are bound to load the ship by a prefixed time, on pain of paying the whole freight, notwithstanding the ship proceeds in her voyage light only.

ART. XII. When the master gives in their account, they shall summon all their owners together, on pain of forfeiting half a chervonets.

ART. XIII. The master shall not take any merchandise aboard on their own head, or by the consent of one of their owners, without the approbation of them all; if they do, the penalty is confiscation or other punishment.

ART. XIV. The owners, having lawful cause, may turn off a master, paying them for what share they have in the ship at the price it cost them.

ART. XV. All owners are forbidden to entertain any master unless they produce a certificate of their honesty and ability, and that they quitted the service of the merchants they served last with their consent; if they do, they shall pay a penalty of 25 chervonets.

ART. XVI. Before the master hires any sailor or pilot, they ought to acquaint the owners with what wages they are to give them, and have their allowance of it, under penalty of 25 chervonets.

ART. XVII. If several ships are in company on the same voyage, they are obliged to stay for one another, or be liable for all the damages that may happen to the others by an enemy or pirates.

ART. XVIII. No master shall hire a sailor before they have seen their pass or certificate of their faithful behaviour in the service of their last master, on pain of forfeiting 10 imperials, unless they are necessitated to do so in a strange country.

ART. XIX. Masters are obliged to give sailors certificates of their faithful service; and if any one refuses or delays, they shall forfeit 10 imperials.

ART. XX. On a ship being forced to stay in a strange allod, the sailors are not to go out of her without the master’s permission, on pain of losing half their wages.

ART. XXI. If the master maintains the sailors throughout the stay in a strange allod, they cannot oblige them to give them more wages; but if they endeavour to do so, they shall forfeit half of what they were to have had, and be punished further according to the circumstances of their offence.

ART. XXII. No sailor may go ashore without the consent of the master, pilot, mate, or clerk of the ship, under penalty of 15 deňga for each time.

ART. XXIII. The sailors who are ashore with the master are obliged to look after the boat, and return on board as soon as they are commanded; and they who stay or lie ashore shall pay a forfeit or suffer imprisonment.

ART. XXIV. If the master changes their voyage, and steers another course than was intended, they ought to have the consent of their sailors, or pay them what the major part of them shall adjudge to be due for their changing of the voyage; and if then any one of them will not obey them, they shall be punished as a mutineer.

ART. XXV. If any sailor sleeps on watch, they shall pay 2 altyns forfeit; and whoever finds them asleep, and does not discover it, 1 altyn.

ART. XXVI. All sailors are forbidden to moor any skiffs or boats to a ship’s side, on pain of imprisonment.

ART. XXVII. They who shall be found incapable of discharging their duty as a pilot or sailor, for which they have received wages, shall forfeit all that was promised them, and be besides punished according to their demerit.

ART. XXVIII. Masters shall pay their sailors in three payments: one third when the ship sets sail outward bound; one third when she is unladen; and the other when she is returned home.

ART. XXIX. A master may at any time turn away a sailor who rebels against, or is unfaithful to, them.

ART. XXX. If one sailor slays another, whether death ensues or not, the master is bound to seize them, and keep them in safe custody till they arrive at their port, and then to deliver them up to justice to be punished.

ART. XXXI. The sailors may not feast and carouse in the ship without the master’s leave, on pain of losing half their wages.

ART. XXXII. The master is bound, when they return home, to give an account before the magistrate of what forfeitures they received, and for what, under penalty of 25 chervonets.

ART. XXXIII. The sailors are obliged to defend the ship against rovers, on pain of losing their wages; and if they are wounded, they shall be healed and cured at the general charge of those concerned in a common average. If any one of them is maimed and disabled, they shall be maintained as long as they live by a like average.

ART. XXXView. If the sailors, or any of the company, refuse to assist on the like occasion, and the ship be taken or lost, they shall be condemned to be whipped as cowards and rascals.

ART. XXXV. If the mariners resolve to defend the ship, and the master is afraid and against it, they shall be turned out of their post with infamy, and declared incapable of ever commanding a ship afterwards.

ART. XXXVI. If any sailor is wounded in the ship’s service, they shall be cured at the charge of the ship, but not if they are wounded otherwise.

ART. XXXVII. If any one of the sailors goes ashore without leave, and the ship happens to receive any damage in the meantime, or to be lost for want of hands, they shall be kept in prison upon bread and water for one year; and if any sailor dies or perishes with the ship for want of the assistance of the absent sailor, the latter shall be punished corporally.

ART. XXXVIII. If a sailor behaves themselves ill, the master may turn them off; but if they discharge them for no reason before the voyage begins, they shall pay them a third part of their wages, but shall not charge it in the ship’s account.

ART. XXXIX. If the master discharges a sailor during the voyage for no lawful cause given, they are bound to pay them their whole wages, and defray the charge of their return; but if the sailor desires the master’s leave to quit the ship, they shall be bound to restore all the money they received, and pay their own charges.

ART. XL. If an officer or sailor quits a ship, and conceals themselves, and afterwards is apprehended, they shall be delivered up to justice to be punished; and they shall be stigmatised in the face with the first letter of the name of the allod to which they belong.

ART. XLI. If a ship is lost, the sailors are obliged to save as much of the goods as they can, and the master ought to reward and satisfy them for it, and pay the charge of their journey home; if the sailors refuse to assist the master, they shall have neither wages nor reward.

ART. XLII. If any sailor falls sick of any disease, they shall be put ashore and maintained in like manner as if they were on shipboard, and be attended by another sailor. However, the master is not obliged to stay for them; if they recover their health, they shall be paid their wages as much as if they had served out the whole voyage; and in case they die, their heirs shall have what was due to them.

ART. XLIII. If sailors mutiny, and force the master to enter into any harbour or port, and the ship or cargo is lost, either in whole or in part, for which the sailors run away; if afterwards they are taken, they shall be corporally punished.

ART. XLIV. The master shall not give the sailors any cause to mutiny, but supply them with what is convenient, and pay them what is their due punctually and faithfully.

ART. XLV. The master who shall debauch a sailor, and hire them after they had hired themselves to another master, shall pay half a chervonets; and the sailor shall pay to the first master for damages half the wages the second had promised them.

ART. XLVI. If a ship is stopped in a strange allod, or the sailors are forced to stay there for her freight or on another account, they shall all that time be maintained as is usual, but shall not pretend to demand any extraordinary wages; and what is due to them shall be paid to them or their assigns when the ship is discharged. If any sailor is so bold as to leave the ship because of her stay, they shall be corporally punished according to their demerits.

ART. XLVII. If a master takes any coin or gems or other merchandise of great price, which obliges them to have more than ordinary care of it, a fourth part of the freight of such rich goods shall be allowed them, and the owners shall have the other three fourths.

ART. XLVIII. The master ought to put a sailor in each boat or lighter that is to carry salt to land, as well to take care of it as to see that a right account is kept of its measure.

ART. XLIX. Sailors hired aboard ships bound for the sectors under the Hadaganian Empire shall not be maintained by the masters when they are outward bound, but shall live on their own provisions; but when they are homeward bound, the master shall maintain them; and if the master advances or lends them any money, they may pay themselves by deducting it out of their wages. If the ship is not laden home, the master is not obliged to maintain them.

ART. L. The masters may not alienate or sell any part of their provisions or furniture until the voyage is made; and when they do, the owners shall be preferred to any other in the sale of them.

ART. LI. The sailors shall not take any of the ship's merchandise for personal use, on pain of being severely punished.

ART. LII. The master or the pilot may each load 12 barrels on their particular account; the other officers six each, and the sailors four each; the cook and the gofers two each.

ART. LIII. If a master, to displease their owners, sells their part of a ship for more than it is worth, the said part shall be appraised by men of experience; after which the owners may take it or leave it at the price it was appraised at, as they think fit.

ART. LIV. If a master, fraudulently, borrows money upon bottomry, and mortgages their ship for it, or stays with her in any port for a long time, and sells her, together with the merchandise, the said master shall be incapable of having the command of a ship afterwards, and never be admitted into any city, but shall be punished without mercy.

ART. LV. A master, being at home, may not borrow any more money on bottomry than their own part of the ship is worth; if they do, the other shares of the ship shall not be liable for it; neither shall they take any freight without the knowledge and consent of the owners.

ART. LVI. If the owners are at variance, and cannot agree about the freight of their ship, that opinion shall carry it which has the majority on its side by two or three. The master may also, in such case, take up money upon bottomry, as well on their shares who do not consent as on theirs who do.

ART. LVII. A master, being in a strange allod, if necessity drives them to it, may take up money on bottomry, if they cannot get it otherwise, and the owners shall bear the charge of it.