Before taking charge, an officer about to relieve the deck shall make himself thoroughly acquainted with the position of the ship with reference to vessels in sight and to any land, shoals, or rocks, which may be near; with the general condition of the weather, the course, speed, main engines and boilers in use, condition and amount of sail set, all unexecuted orders, and the orders of the Commanding Officer of the night; with the condition of running lights and any other appliances required by law to be in operation or at hand in order to prevent collisions; and with the condition of the force on deck available for duty and the general conditions of the ship.
Before taking charge, when the ship is in squadron, he shall see that she is in her station; if out of her station he may decline to take charge until he has reported the fact to the Commanding Officer and received his orders.
When at sea he may decline to relieve the deck until there is a watch up ready for duty. If the ship be in a perilous position he may also decline to relieve the deck until he has reported the facts to the Commanding Officer and received his orders.
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He shall remain in charge until regularly relieved, and shall not engage in any occupation which may distract his attention from duty.
He shall see that the junior officers and the watch are at all times alert, at their stations, attentive, and ready for duty; that every necessary precaution is taken to prevent accidents; that a boat is always ready for lowering and life buoys ready for letting go; that the lookouts are in place and vigilant and that they understand their duties. He shall exercise great care that the ship is skillfully steered and kept on her course and shall keep a correct account of the courses, the speed, and leeway made. He shall see that the running lights are kept bright from sunset to sunrise and their condition reported every half hour; that during a fog, when approaching vessels, and at all other times the precautions required by law to prevent collision are fully complied with; that when in pilot waters the leads are kept going or other means to ascertain the soundings are at hand and are frequently used; and that nothing is placed near the compasses that will charge their errors.
When in company with other ships he shall be very careful to keep in station; if unable to do so he shall report at once to his Commanding Officer.
When the Commanding Officer is on the navigating bridge, the officer of the deck shall not change the course; alter the speed, nor perform important evolution without consulting him.
He shall promptly report to the Commanding Officer all land, shoals, rocks, lighthouses, beacons, buoys, discolored water, vessels, or wrecks discovered; all changes in the weather or shifts of wind; all signals made; all changes of sail, speed, formation or course by the senior officer present, or the ships in company, any marked change in the barometer, force of the wind, state of the sea, or marked indications of bad weather; the display of storm signals on shore; all serious accidents; the winding of the chronometer; the hours of 8 a.m., meridian, and 8 p.m.; when at sea, the latitude at meridian, if obtained; the movements of men-of-war, mail steamers, and all other large vessels; and, in general, all occurrences worthy of notice.
He shall not, unless to avoid immediate danger, change the course without directions from the Commanding Officer, and then he shall report the change to him as soon as possible. When on sounding he shall regard advice from the navigator as sufficient authority to change the course, but he shall at once report this change to the Commanding Officer.
He shall have such lookouts stationed as are necessary in accordance with the best practices of seamen, having in mind the special conditions, the results to be accomplished, and the physical limitations for personnel and materiel. When under way during low visibility, or when approaching or traversing congested traffic lanes or areas, he shall maintain at least one lookout stationed in the bow as far forward and as near the water as feasible under the circumstances. He shall take steps to insure that lookouts are proficient in their duties.
