BRITISH, COLONIAL ANt) OTHER CORRESPONDENCE, ETC. 327 



fishermen for their fishery, and (formerly) for exportation to St. 

 Pierre for the French, and for sale to United States' and Canadian 

 fishermen, a large business has for years past been done in our waters 

 in catching and exporting " fishes " of the same kind, particularly 

 herring, for market in the United States and Canada, for consumption 

 as food. 



The Acts of 1887 and 1888 applied no restrictions, limitations, or 

 conditions to this business. 



It followed, as a matter of experience, that in many cases evasions 

 of the Act took place, and prosecutions failed on account of the 

 inability on the part of the prosecution to prove that the exportation 

 in question was for " bait purposes," or rather that the statement of 

 the accused, that it was for food purposes, was untrue. 



It was therefore considered necessary to put the business of catch- 

 ing, buying, &c., these " fishes " for food purposes under some restric- 

 tions or conditions, in order to prevent its being used as a pretext for 

 evading or defeating the object of the Act. 



On the other hand, one of the provisions of the Acts of 1887 and 

 1888, in relation to the exportation for bait purposes, viz., that which 

 required a licence for every sale or purchase for bait purposes, was 

 attended with great difficulty in its application and enforcement. 



In order to provide for the determination in any given case of the 

 question of fact as to the purpose for which the exportation was 

 intended, it was considered necessary to devise a complete system of 

 regulations, applying to all the various classes of cases of shipping, 

 conveying, exporting, &c., " bait fishes," known or practised in the 

 Colony, in order that the particular kind of business against which 

 the Act was directed might not be carried on under pretext or cover 

 of a pretended other business. 



Section 11 of the new Act applies to the various purposes for which 

 bait fishes are usually taken, shipped, &c., and the various methods 

 of dealing with them necessary to be placed under Regulation, in 

 order to prevent the main object of the Act from being evaded or 

 defeated. 



The shipment, exportation, &c., being, as already stated, in all cases, 

 for either one or other of two purposes, viz., for bait, or consumption 

 as food, one general provision was first made applicable to every case, 

 viz., that a licence must be obtained, setting forth and adapted to the 

 kind of business in which the licence purposes to engage- (sections 

 5 and 6). 



The next practical difficulty attending the enforcement of the 

 former Acts, especially as regards vessels belonging to other countries, 

 arose from the want of power or jurisdiction over an offender, the 

 offence of " exportation " not being complete until the offender had 

 got beyond our jurisdiction, i. e.. outside the limit of our territorial 

 waters. This difficulty it is intended to meet, as far as possible, by the 

 provisions, under section 7, relating to bonds with sureties, and, in 

 cases of exportation to a foreign country, to proof of the landing of 

 the cargo in such country. 



The present Act also contains certain ne\y provisions relating to 

 evidence, the onus of proof, &c., rendered necessary by the peculiar 

 nature of the business. The intention to " export," and to use the bait 

 fishes for bait purposes, are facts as to which in any given case there 

 would be no reasonable doubt in the mind of the Court, but as to 



