80 



Mr. Guthrie: Yes, he has. 



Mr. Powell: Not in the language of the dictionar\'. It is a 

 highly technical use of the word "free." 



Mr. Guthrie: I certainly think that "free" would not permit 

 the building of a dam across the water. 



Mr. Powell: Is not this the case, that the free and uninterrupted 

 navigation of a river would not prevent the owner, if the owner had 

 such a right of soil in the bed of the river, from erecting therein the 

 pier stretching out, so long as it did not unreasonably interfere with 

 navigation, and that question of unreasonable right to navigation 

 will be tried out in a suit for what? For a nuisance. And the thing 

 would be whether it was reasonable or not. 



Mr. Guthrie: I grant you that all things must be reasonable; 

 otherwise they would be a farce. 



Mr. Powell: If you go back to the Ashburton Treaty, you may 

 restrict the word "free" and adopt it as a highly technical term which 

 does not mean free as given by lexicographers; yet you cannot 

 restrict it to the point of absolute prohibition. 



Mr. Guthrie: It has been argued that that word "free" means 

 untaxed or without charge, but the word "open" was put in to extend 

 it, and you have both words to deal with. So, if one foot is not on 

 strong ground the other foot is. 



Mr. Migneault: The word "open" with the word "free" shows 

 that navigation should not be restricted. 



Mr. Powell: In the United States there was an island in the 

 centre, and the railway company was building two bridges — the 

 right of free and uninterrupted navigation was invoked, and it came 

 before the Supreme Court of the United States in the way of getting 

 an injunction against the railway company for putting the bridge 

 over one branch of the stream and absolutely closing it. The 

 Supreme Court of the United States held that, inasmuch as there was 

 an ample and sufficiently capacious alternate route, the injunction 

 would not lie. 



Mr. Guthrie: They did not have a treaty with another nation 

 that said both routes shall be open. 



Mr. Powell: If you had not the Ashburton Treaty the other 

 principle might come in. 



Mr. Guthrie: I am making no suggestion of that kind at all. 

 We are relying upon the Ashburton Treaty. 



