Circular No. 428

Admiralty 15th June 1860

My Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty having established a "Record of Conduct " Book for the Crews of Her Majesty's Ships, according to the form prescribed in the Watch, Station, and Quarter Bill Book, are pleased to direct that the entries which from time to time are to be made in such Record Book, shall be publicly read to men in the presence of their officers and shipmates every three months, by the officers of their respective divisions; in order that the knowledge of the character the men have earned may induce them to conduct themselves well, and that they may know the exact dates at which after completing two years " very good " conduct, their will severally become entitled to Good Conduct Badges.

The Commanding Officers of Ships will observe that my Lords are desirous that every opportunity should bet afforded to men of indifferent or bad character to amend, and they and they therefore direct that great care and attention shall be given to the correct and regular filling-up of the columns in the "Record of Conduct" Book more particularly with regard to the date aft which a man, by any change of conduct, either for better or worse may become entitled or liable to a change of character and the Commanding Officer must examine, every six months, the entries which he has been directed to be made subscribing his initials and the dates of such examinations.

Half a page, or a whole page, of the book should be allotted to each man's name and every six months a notation is to be made on a man's parchment certificate of any change of character which may have been recorded in the book, with the date of such change.

Two columns are to be added in the " Record of Conduct" book, one to be headed "Six-monthly Record of other Drills" and the other for "General Remarks".

Larger parchment certificates will in future be issued which will have columns to show the men's ability in Gunnery and Small Arm Drills as well as in Seamanship and notations on these points are to be made on the certificates now in use.

The corner of at certificate is only to be cut off when the character of a man has been so bad as to make it desirable to prevent his re-entry into the Navy, and when such cases occur with regard to continuous service men they are to be specially reported by Commanding Officers of Ships to Commands-in-Chief

C Paget

To all Commanders-in-Chief, &c

Source: Navy List 1860 Page 285

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