Merchant Shipping Act 1894

437 Marking of deck-lines.

(1) Every British ship (except ships under eighty tons register employed solely in the coasting trade, ships employed solely in fishing, and pleasure yachts, and ships employed exclusively in trading or going from place to place in any river or inland water the whole or part of which is in any British possession), shall be permanently and conspicuously marked with lines (in this Act called deck-lines) of not less than twelve inches in length and one inch in breadth, painted longitudinally on each side amidships, or as near thereto as is practicable, and indicating the position of each deck which is above water.

(2) The upper edge of each of the deck-lines must be level with the upper side of the deck plank next the waterway at the place of marking.

(3) The deck-lines must be white or yellow on a dark ground, or black on a light ground.

(4) In this section the expression " amidships " means the middle of the length of the load water-line as measured from the fore side of the stem to the aft side of the stern-post.