Preservation of Archaeological Sites-Canada— J enness 63 



they will be available for study or the Commissioner may 

 otherwise dispose of them as he thinks fit. 

 (4) The Commissioner may allow the holder of a permit to retain 

 the specimens collected under a permit during such period 

 as the Commissioner may approve for the purposes of pre- 

 paring a scientific report before they are submitted for 

 examination and disposal under this section. 



And, finally, Section 16: 



A person who violates the provisions of this Ordinance or the 

 regulations is guilty of an offence and is liable on summary convic- 

 tion to a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars or to imprisonment 

 for a term not exceeding six months or to both fine and imprison- 

 ment. 



Just as important as the wording of any ordinance is the spirit 

 that actuates it, and the manner in which it is administered. I 

 need hardly state that the Canadian government has never 

 wished to discourage archaeological work in any way, but only 

 to ensure that it is carried out scientifically and the specimens 

 preserved where they can be examined by other archaeologists. 

 Foreigners are as welcome to dig in its northern territories as 

 Canadians, but both alike must be accredited by recognized 

 museums or other scientific organizations. Up until 1941, when 

 I was detached from the National Museum of Canada for war 

 work, the North West Territories administration used to con- 

 sult me whenever it had any doubt about a man's credentials. 

 At the present time it seeks the advice of Dr. Alcock, the Curator 

 of the National Museum. 



Some of you may regard as unnecessarily severe those clauses 

 of the ordinance that require every investigator to present a 

 detailed report of his discoveries to the Canadian government 

 at the end of each field season and to submit for its examination 

 all his specimens. In actual practice, however, they have oper- 

 ated quite smoothly and created little or no vexation, apart 

 from one or two exceptional cases. The administration, under- 

 standing that it takes an archaeologist months and sometimes 

 years to digest his material and prepare a full report, has been 



