Corporation to mark out channel by buoys and beacons. Tonnage duty imposed, and how collected. How tonnage duty shall be applied. sixteen feet; And to aid the Corporation in performing the said work, it shall be lawful for the Commissioner of Public Works to place at the disposal of the said Corporation all steamers, dredging vessels, machinery, tools and implements constructed or acquired for the purpose of carrying on the work connected with the improvement of Lake Saint Peter, which shall be in the possession of the said Commissioner of Public Works, and the said Corporation shall, for the purpose of carrying on the said works, have the same powers and facilities as the Commissioner of Public Works would have if the same were carried on under his management and control. XXVIII. And be it enacted, That it shall be the duty of the said Corporation to mark out the Channel of the said River Saint Lawrence from the said Harbour through the deepened Channel of the said Lake Saint Peter down to the mouth of the River Richelieu, by such and so many buoys and other beacons or land marks as may be deemed necessary, and to provide the said buoys and beacons or land marks out of any moneys which it may have in hand not otherwise specially appropriated. XXIX. And be it enacted, That it shall be lawful for the Governor on the application of the said Corporation, at any time after the passing of this Act, to impose a tonnage duty not exceeding one shilling per ton of the registered tonnage of all vessels drawing ten feet of water or upwards, and passing through Lake St. Peter, such duty to be payable for each time of passing the Lake; and the said duty shall be payable to the said Corporation, and may be collected, recovered, and payment thereof enforced in the manner provided by this Act, with regard to the Harbour dues payable to the said Corporation, and no vessel upon which such duty shall be payable shall be entered or cleared at the Port of Montreal, or cleared at the Port of Quebec if she has left Montreal without being cleared, until the Collector or other Officer granting such Clearance shall be satisfied that such duty has been paid. XXX. And be it enacted, That the proceeds of the said tonnage duty shall be applied by the said Corporation : First. To the payment of all reasonable expenses incurred in collecting the same. Secondly. To the payment of the expenses of managing and keeping in efficient repair the said improvements and works on Lake St. Peter, and the said channel of the River St. Lawrence and at Isle Platte, made and to be made, performed and managed by the said Corporation. Thirdly. To the payment of the interest of the sums borrowed under and by virtue of this Act and the Provincial Act thirdly above cited and of the principal thereof, at the periods when the same shall respectively become due. Fourthly. Fourthly. To the payment of not less than two per centum per annum on the sum to be borrowed as last aforesaid, for the purpose of forming a Sinking Fund towards paying off the principal of the sum so borrowed, the amount to be so paid, the officer to whom it shall be paid, and the mode of paying, managing and investing the same, to be from time to time determined by the Governor: Provided always, that if the Proviso. proceeds of the said tonnage duty, added to the surplus remaining out of the proceeds of the dues and other moneys coming into the hands of the Corporation, after paying all prior charges thereon, shall not at any time be sufficient to meet the charges imposed by this Section, then it shall be lawful for the Governor to add such per centage to the said tonnage duty (above the rate of one shilling per ton), and to the said Harbour dues, as will, in his opinion, be sufficient to enable the Corporation to meet all the charges imposed by this Section, out of the duty and surplus hereby directed to be applied to the payment thereof. accounts of all XXXI. And be it enacted, That the said Corporation shall Corporation to keep separate accounts of all moneys borrowed, received and keep separate expended by them, under the authority of the next preceding moneys borsix Sections of this Act, and shall annually account for the rowed. same in the manner provided in Section twenty-four of this Act, such accounts being rendered to the Governor in such manner and form as he shall from time to time direct, and being accompanied by a full and particular statement of the proceedings of the Corporation for the same space of time. XXXII. And be it enacted, That any person wilfully remo- Penalty for ving or destroying, or procuring to be removed or destroyed, removing or any buoy, light, beacon or land mark placed by the said Cor- destroying buoys, beaporation for the purposes of navigation, either in the said Har- cons, &c. bour or in the said Lake Saint Peter, or in the Channel of the River Saint Lawrence between the said points or elsewhere, shall, upon conviction, before any competent tribunal or Magistrate, for every such offence (of which he may be convicted by the testimony of one competent witness, and any one of the Members of the Corporation, or of their officers and servants, and any persons appointed by virtue of this Act shall be competent as such witness,) incur and pay to the said Corporation a penalty not exceeding One Hundred Pounds, with costs of suit, and in default of payment shall be committed to the Common Gaol of the District of Montreal, until the same be paid. XXXIII. And be it enacted, That the Members and Officers Exemptions. of the said Corporation shall be exempt from serving on Juries or Inquests whatsoever, or as Assessors or Constables. XXXIV. And be it enacted, That the words " By-Laws," Interpretation "Vessels," "Goods " and " Dues," in the provisions of this clause. Act, to price of land. Act, wherever the same occur, shall severally be construed to mean and shall mean as follows: the words "By-Laws" shall mean and include all By-Laws, Rules, Orders and Regulations made by the said Corporation or other competent authority; the word "vessels " shall mean and include all Ships, Vessels, Boats, Barges, Steamboats, Scows, Rafts, or other craft whatever; the word. "Goods" shall mean and include all Merchandize, Wood, Animals, articles and things whatever landed from or taken on board of any vessel; and the word " Dues " shall mean and include all Rates, Tolls and Duties, Tonnage and Wharfage Dues, payable by any vessel or upon any goods, as mentioned in the said Schedule appended to this Act. Appointment XXXV. And be it enacted, That whenever the said Corof arbitrators poration shall desire to acquire any land for the purposes of agreement as this Act, and an amicable arrangement with the proprietor shall not take place, the price to be paid for such land shall be determined as follows: the said Corporation and the proprietor, shall each appoint a disinterested arbitrator, and the two arbitrators shall name a third, also disinterested, and the three arbitrators after being sworn by or before any legally qualified person to fulfil their duty honestly and impartially, and having reciprocally given notice of the time and place of their meeting, shall determine the price to be paid by this Corporation for such land, and their decision shall be final. Proprietor neglecting, Judge to appoint arbitra tors. Corporation may take the land at price fixed by arbi trators. XXXVI. And be it enacted, That if the proprietor of the land shall, after being notified by the said Corporation, refuse or neglect to appoint an arbitrator to fix the price thereof, or if the two arbitrators appointed by the two parties interested shall not agree upon a third, one of the Judges of the Superior Court shall name an arbitrator for the proprietor, or, as the case may be, the third arbitrator; and in case of the death of an arbitrator, or his refusal to act, the party who shall have appointed him, or the Judge, as the case may be, may appoint another in his place; and the three arbitrators being respectively sworn by any legally qualified person shall decide finally on the price to be paid by the said Corporation for the land. XXXVII. And be it enacted, That when the arbitrators shall have determined the price of any land, the said Corporation may take the same and become proprietor thereof, by paying the price so fixed either to the proprietor or into the hands of the Prothonotary of the Superior Court at Montreal for the proprietor, and the price agreed upon or awarded for any land taken or kept by the said Corporation, shall be in the place and stead of the land, and all claims to or upon the land shall be converted into claims to or upon such price; and if the said Corporation have reason to apprehend that any claims may exist to or upon the price on the part of any third party, it may pay such price into the hands of the Prothonotary of the Superior Court at Montreal, filing at the same time a copy of the deed of purchase or of the award, and the Court after having caused due notice to be given for the calling in of all claimants, shall make such order for the distribution of the price and with regard to interest thereon and to costs as to law may appertain. XXXVIII. And be it enacted, That this Act shall be a Public Public Act. Act. SCHEDULE A-TARIFF. Tolls, Rates and Wharfages to be levied in the Harbour of On Steamboats measuring fifty tons and upwards, per ton of their Burthen per Register, for each day of twenty-four hours they remain in port, reckoned from the hour of their arrival to that of their departure........ ..d. On all other Vessels measuring fifty tons and upwards, per ton of their burthen per Register, for each day of twenty-four hours they remain in port, reckoned from the hour of their arrival to that of their departure..... .... ...id. On Steamboats measuring under fifty tons per day as aforesaid..... ..2s. .... On all other Vessels measuring under fifty tons per day as aforesaid... ..6d. And on the following Animals, Articles, Goods, Wares and ..3d. Peas, Beans and Corn or Grain of all kinds, except Merchandize, to wit: Ashes, Pot or Pearl, per Barrel.... Wheat, per hundred minots.. Wheat, per hundred minots Malt, per hundred minots..... Salt, per hundred minots...... Flour, per Barrel of one hundred and ninety-six pounds. ¿d. Flour, per Half Barrel..... Preamble. And upon all Goods, Wares and Merchandize whatsoever not enumerated in the foregoing list, there shall be levied and paid a rate of one half penny on and for every pound currency of the value of the same. CAP. XXV. An Act for the relief of sufferers by the late fire at Montreal, by facilitating the negotiation of Loans to enable them to rebuild the property destroyed by the said fire. [10th November, 1852.] THEREAS by the disastrous conflagration which has buildings in the City of Montreal, a large amount of property was destroyed; And whereas the greater number of the persons who suffered upon that occasion have lost all they had, and are unable to re-build the property so destroyed without assistance; And whereas the Corporation of the said City of Montreal, has expressed its willingness to become surety to the extent of a sum not exceeding one hundred thousand pounds for such of the said persons as may borrow money for the purpose of enabling them to re-build their property so destroyed; And whereas the loans contemplated by this Act can be obtained with greater facility and on easier terms, if the payment of the sums borrowed and the interest thereon be guaranteed by the Government of this Province in the event only of the said Corporation refusing or neglecting to make good the security which may be given by the said Corporation: Be it therefore enacted by the Queen's Most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council and of the Legislative Assembly |