248 REPORT OF THE No. 3 



the Crown to enforce payraent of such outstanding dues at any time the 

 Commissioner of Crown Lands may think proper. 



These regulations were amended by Order in Council dated the 18th of 

 May, 1899, by the substitution for Sec. 10, as given above, of the following 

 provision : 



10th. Occupants, locatees or purchasers of public lands shall not unless 

 under settlers' licenses or for clearing, fencing or building purposes on the 

 said land, be permitted to cut any description of timber or logs thereon, or 

 to dispose of it to others until they have gone into the actual hona -fide 

 occupation of the said land, have built a habitable house thereon 16x20 

 feet at least, have resided thereon actually continuously for at least six 

 months, and cleared and put under cultivation two acres at least of the 

 said land. Persons contravening this regulation shall- be subject to the 

 penalties established by law for cutting timber on the Public Lands with- 

 out authority. This regulation shall not be construed as in any way affect- 

 ing the regulations respecting pine and cedar trees of the 27th day of May, 

 1869, and the 3rd April, 1880. 



Timber Marks. 



A measure of some importance to the lumber trade was passed by the 

 Dominion Parliament during the session 1870. "An Act Respecting the 

 Marking of Timber" provided that every person engaged in the business 

 of lumbering or getting out timber and floating and rafting the same on 

 the inland waters within the Province of Ontario or Quebec, should be 

 subject to a penalty of fifty dollars for failure or neglect to select a mark 

 or marks to be put in a conspicuous place on each log or piece of timber 

 floated or rafted. A timber mark register was to be kept in the office of the 

 Minister of Agriculture, where all marks were to be registered, giving the 

 party registering the same the exclusive right to use such mark. Provision 

 was made against the duplication of marks, or the adoption by one lumber- 

 man of any mark bearing such a close resemblance to another previously 

 registered as to cause confusion, and a penalty of not less than $20 or more 

 than $100 was imposed for the use of any registered mark by any other 

 person than the proprietor. 



Stream Pollution. 



The practice of throwing sawdust and other mill refuse into navigable 

 ^streams a!tid rivers was at this time very general among the owners of saw 

 mills, with the frequent result of obstructing navigation by the accumula- 

 tion of debris, as well as of destroying the fish in water where they formerly 

 abounded. On February 20th, 1871, Mr. Cartwright introduced a bill for 

 the better protection of navigable streams and rivers, into the House of 

 Commons, by which this practice was prohibited. It was referred to the 

 Committee on Banking and Commerce, who reported the bill back to the 

 House on the ground that they were entirely without evidence as to the neces- 

 sity of such legislation and recommended the subject to the consideration 

 of the Government with a view to enquiry by Commission or otherwise. A 

 Commission was accordingly appointed consisting of Hon. Hamilton H. 

 Killaly of Toronto, John Mather of Chelsea, and R. W. Shephard of Mon- 

 treal. Their report strongly favoured the proposed legislation, the need of 

 which was plainly indicated by the testimony adduced, showing the serious 

 impediments to navigation which in many instances had resulted from throw- 

 ing saw mill refuse intp the water. The measure when introduced in 1873 

 became law. Its principal clause provides that — 



17a L. M. 



