AGY-1180 | Naval Officer

Full description

John Harris Esq., surgeon of the New South Wales Corps was appointed as Naval Officer for the Colony of New South Wales on 27 July 1801. (1) The Naval Officer's (or in Sydney Captain of the Port) duties consisted of giving Masters of Ships the Port Orders, receiving their Bonds, and enforcing the Orders relating to shipping, plus the collection of assessments. (2) By 1826 the Naval Officer had become responsible for three separate functions the collection of customs duties, the supervision of the harbour, and the prevention of smuggling. Payment of the Naval Officer, however, was not by salary but through a 5% commission on all duties collected. In 1826 reforms to the collection of custom duties plus the suspension of then Naval Officer John Piper led to the abolition of the position . A new office - the Collector of Customs - replaced it on 9 April 1827. (3) FOOTNOTES (1) Historical Records of Australia, Series I Volume 3 Acting Governor King to Under Secretary John King 21 August 1801 Canberra, Library Committees of the Commonwealth Parliament 1915 p.260. (2) Ibid. Governor King to Lord Hobart 9 November 1802 p.650. (3) McMartin, Arthur Public Servants and Patronage: The Foundation and Rise of the New South Wales Public Service, 1786-1859 Sydney University Press, Sydney 1983 p.186.