·noun Stubborn perverseness; pertinacious resistance to authority.
II. Contumacy ·noun A willful contempt of, and disobedience to, any lawful summons, or to the rules and orders of court, as a refusal to appear in court when legally summoned.
The not appearing to the three calls of the admiralty court, after the allegation has been presented...
The Sailor's Word-Book