4. Rights of Master.—
He is entitled, of course, to have his wages paid according to his contract—though he has no lien for them on the ship—and such a contract is valid and enforceable although made without writing and for more than one year. He is also entitled to recompense for all money advanced for the ship within the scope of his employment and to indemnity against loss or damage which he may sustain therein without his own fault. He is also entitled to care and cure for injuries sustained in the service of the ship, irrespective of his own fault, like other members of the ship's company. He is entitled to extra wages for services outside of his line of duty.
He has a lien on the freight[10] for his wages, disbursements, expenses and necessary liabilities. This may be asserted by withholding from the moneys collected by him or by an attachment or garnishment. When the ship is in charge of a licensed pilot[11] the master should remain in command except so far as the pilot's duties are concerned and see that there is a sufficient watch on deck and that the men are attentive to their duties; he may advise with the pilot and even displace him in case of intoxication or manifested incompetence. By virtue of his general agency for the owners in relation to the ship, he may sue in his own name, in their behalf, to recover for collision or for breach of contract of affreightment or on any other account connected with the business entrusted to him.
5. Wages.—
His wages depend on the contract with the owner and, where that is not express, will be allowed in accordance with the prevailing usage of the place and trade. The fact that he is a part-owner does not affect his rights in this respect. He may pay himself out of freight-money which passes through his hands. In case of wrongful discharge he may sue for his wages for the balance of the term in one action for damages for breach of contract or bring successive suits for each installment as it falls due. He is bound, however, to reduce his damages as much as he can by other employment. It has been held that where there is delay in paying him without due cause, he may claim extra wages like other members of the crew.
6. Lien.—
As has been remarked the general rule is that the master has no lien on the ship for his wages. In the Orleans v. Phœbus, 11 Peters 175, wherein Phœbus sought to enforce a lien on the steamboat Orleans for his wages as master, the Supreme Court said:
By the maritime law the master has no lien on the ship even for maritime wages.
This is supposed to be for the reason that he contracts on the personal credit of the owner and also because it would tend to impair the owner's personal confidence in his integrity. Another ground is that where the master collects the freight he can pay himself directly and so needs no lien. But a lien may be given by the terms of his contract or by a statute of the state from which the vessel hails; if it is, it will be enforced in the admiralty.
He has no lien on the cargo belonging to the owner of the ship, and, according to the weight of authority, no lien upon cargo belonging to any other shipper. He has, however, as has been said, a lien on the freight earned by the vessel for his wages, disbursements and necessary liabilities. This may be asserted by withholding from the moneys collected by him or by an attachment or garnishment. In the Arcturus, 17 Fed. 95, the vessel had on board a quantity of telegraph poles owned by a shipper and intended for delivery at Sandusky, upon which the shipper was to pay freight in the usual way. Before the poles were unladen at Sandusky, the vessel was seized by the marshal under a libel filed by certain creditors, so that the master could not and did not unload the poles, and the owner was compelled to pay $70 to have them unloaded. In addition to this, before they were unladen the owner of the poles was compelled to pay into the registry of the court the entire freight which would have been earned had the vessel delivered the poles to him. The master filed a libel, asserting that the whole freight money should be applied to his unpaid wages, and claiming also a lien on the poles, the cargo, for his wages. The court found that the master had no lien on the cargo for his wages beyond the amount of the freight; that he was only entitled to the freight actually earned by the vessel, that being the freight less what it cost to unload at Sandusky, and that he was entitled to a decree for that part of the freight so actually earned, to be applied on his wages as master.