28 VICTORIA, An Act to Consolidate the Law relating to Licensed Theatres. [9th May 1865.] No. 252. Title of Act. Repeal of Act. Unlicensed stage entertainment. c. 68 ss. 2 & 23. BE E it enacted by the Queen's Most Excellent Majesty by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council and the Legislative Assembly of Victoria in this present Parliament assembled and by the authority of the same as follows: 1. This Act shall come into operation on the first day of June in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five and shall be called and may be cited as the "Licensed Theatres Statute 1865." 2. The Act mentioned in the schedule hereto shall be and the same is hereby repealed: but all proceedings commenced and all licenses granted and all offences committed and all penalties incurred under or against the provisions of the said Act before the coming into operation of this Act shall be continued and shall be and be deemed valid and shall be punished and enforced respectively as if this Act had not been passed. 3. From and after the coming into operation of this Act if any 6 & 7 Will. IV. person shall act represent or perform or cause to be acted represented or performed for hire gain or reward any interlude tragedy opera comedy stage play farce burletta melodrama pantomime or any stagedancing tumbling or horsemanship or any other entertainment of the stage whatsoever to which admission shall or may be procured by payment of money or by tickets or by any other means token or consideration as the price hire or rent of admission, or if any person shall take or receive or cause to be taken or received any money goods or valuable thing whatsoever by way of rent fee or reward for the use or hire of any house room building or place wherein any such entertainments of the stage as aforesaid shall be acted represented performed or exhibited or being the owner or occupier thereof shall knowingly permit or suffer the same to be so used and applied, every such person shall, in case the place wherein the same shall be acted represented performed or exhibited be without the written authority or license of the Chief Secretary of Victoria, upon being lawfully convicted forfeit and pay for every such offence any sum not exceeding Fifty pounds. Places for such entertainment disorderly. 4. Every house room building garden or place wherein any such entertainments of the stage as aforesaid shall be acted represented performed or exhibited, unless the same be authorised and licensed by the Chief Secretary as hereinbefore mentioned, shall be deemed a disorderly house room building or place; and it shall be lawful for any constable with such assistance as may be necessary being authorised by warrant under the hand of any justice [which warrant any such justice is hereby empowered to issue upon complaint being made to him on oath that there is reason to suspect that any house room building garden or place is used for the purpose aforesaid without being duly licensed] to enter into such house room building garden or place and to seize every person found therein; and every person so found shall be deemed to be a rogue and vagabond and shall be liable and subject to all such penalties and punishments as are inflicted on or are appointed for the punishment of rogues and vagabonds. No. 252. 6 & 7 Will. IV. 5. In any proceedings to be instituted against any person for 28 VICTORIA, having or keeping an unlicensed theatre or other house room building garden or place as aforesaid or for acting for hire in an unlicensed proof of being theatre or other house room building garden or place, if it shall be licensed. proved that such theatre or other house room building garden or c. 68 ss. 17 & 22. place is used for the public performance of entertainments of the stage as herein before described, the burden of proof that such theatre or other house room building garden or place is duly licensed or authorised shall lie on the party accused and until the contrary be proved such theatre or other house room building garden or place shall be taken to be unlicensed. Provided always that no person shall be liable to be prosecuted for any offence against this Act unless such prosecution shall be commenced within three months next after the offence committed. license. 6. It shall be lawful for the Chief Secretary, whenever he shall Revocation of be of opinion that it is fitting for the preservation of good manners decorum or of the public peace so to do, to forbid by writing under his hand the acting or presenting any stage play or any act scene or entertainment of the stage as hereinbefore mentioned or part thereof or any prologue or epilogue or any part thereof in such theatres or other places for which an authority or license may have been granted by him in pursuance of the authority vested in him by this Act. And every person who shall for hire act or present or cause to be acted or presented any stage play or other entertainment as aforesaid or any act scene or part thereof or any prologue or epilogue or part thereof contrary to such prohibition as aforesaid shall for every such offence forfeit and pay any sum not exceeding Fifty pounds; [and every authority or license (in case there be any such) by or under which the theatre was opened in which such offence shall have been committed shall become absolutely void. 7. All offences against this Act may be heard and determined Proceedings. and every forfeiture and penalty in respect thereof be awarded and Ib. ss. 19 & 20. imposed by or before any two justices in a summary way according to the law in force for the time being regulating summary proceedings before justices; and any person feeling aggrieved by any summary Appeal. judgment or conviction under this Act may appeal therefrom in the manner provided by any law in force for the time being in that behalf. penalties. 8. All fines forfeitures and penalties imposed by this Act shall Application of be paid one moiety to the consolidated revenue of Victoria and the other moiety to the use of the informer or party prosecuting. Ib. s. 21. actions. 9. No action at law shall lie against any constable or other Limitation of peace officer for or on account of any matter or thing whatsoever done by him in the execution of his duty under this Act against any person offending or suspected to be offending against the provisions of this Act, unless there be direct proof of corruption or malice and unless such action be commenced within three months next after the cause of action or complaint shall have arisen; and if any person shall be sued for any matter or thing which he has so done in the execution of this Act, he may plead the general issue and give the special matter in evidence. Title of Act. Repeal of Acts. An Act to Consolidate the Law relating to the ВЕ [9th May 1865.] E it enacted by the Queen's Most Excellent Majesty by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Council and the Legislative Assembly of Victoria in this present Parliament assembled and by the authority of the same as follows: 1. This Act shall come into operation on the first day of June in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-five and shall be called and may be cited as "The Thistle Prevention Statute 1865." 2. The Acts mentioned in the schedule hereto to the extent to which the same are in and by the said schedule expressed to be repealed shall be and the same are hereby repealed. Nothing herein contained shall affect any act or thing lawfully done or any right acquired under any of the said Acts before the coming into opera No. 250. tion of this Act, and all offences committed and penalties incurred 28 VICTORIA, and proceedings commenced against or under any of the said repealed Acts before the coming into operation of this Act shall be prosecuted enforced and continued respectively as if this Act had not been passed. terms. 3. In the construction of this Act the word "thistle" shall be Interpretation of held to mean and include the plants known by the botanical names of "Carduus Marianus" "Carduus Benedictus" "Carduus Lanceolatus" "Onopordum Acanthium" and "Xanthium Spinosum "Bathurst Burr." destroying thistles after 4. If any owner lessee or occupier of land) within Victoria Penalty for not upon which land or upon the half of any road adjacent thereto thistles shall be growing shall not within fourteen days after any notice. notice in writing signed by any justice and containing a description() of the land intended to be affected thereby that such thistles are growing upon such land or upon such adjacent half of any road. shall have been served upon such owner lessee or occupier or left for him at his usual or last known place of abode effectually destroy all such thistles then growing and being upon such land or upon such adjacent half of the road, every such owner lessee or occupier being convicted thereof shall be liable to a penalty not exceeding twenty pounds and not less than five pounds; and such penalty may be recovered and the matter thereof heard and determined by two or more justices in a summary way. Provided that it shall be lawful for any such justices to suspend any conviction upon its being proved to their satisfaction that the person so receiving such notice has used and is using reasonable exertions to destroy such thistles. Provided further that no information shall be laid against any owner of lands until the provisions of this Act shall have been enforced against the occupier or lessee of such land upon which such thistles may or shall be found. Provided further that no second information against such owner occupier or lessee shall be laid within thirty days after any previous conviction. notice may be conspicuous 5. If there be no occupier or lessee of any land or such occupier where no occuor lessee or the owner of such land shall be unknown or absent from pier of land Victoria and such occupier lessee or owner shall have no known affixed in some agent resident in Victoria, then such notice as aforesaid may be place on land. affixed in some conspicuous place upon such land and shall also be published in some newspaper circulating in the neighborhood thereof, and every notice so affixed and published shall be deemed and taken (a) This includes an equitable mortgagee in possession.-Haworth v. Hebbard, A.J.R., 28. (b) This description should be full and sufficient to enable a person unacquainted with the land to find it.-Lithgow v. Summers, 4 A.J.R., 90. One notice is sufficient for an entire farm in the occupation of one tenant, irrespective of its size or of its being intersected by roads, and the offence is one.-Reg. v. Dowling, ex parte Laby, 5 A.J.R., 74. (c) For service of notice on a Waterworks Commission its office is the "usual place of abode."-Reg. v. Gaunt, ex parte Drummond, 4 A.J.R., 79. (d) The defendant was summoned for neglecting to effectually destroy thistles growing on land in his occupation, as required by this section. He admitted that thistles were growing, but proved that he had used, and was using, some exertion to destroy them. The magistrates decided that the case came within the proviso; but instead of convicting and suspending the execution of the conviction, dismissed the case with costs. Held, on appeal, that the magistrates were wrong in dismissing the case.-Metcalfe Shire Council v. Mitchell, A.R., 6 April 1869. A statement to this effect should be recorded in the magistrates' books, and conviction suspended.-Dugdale v. Martin, 5 A.J.R., 28. No. 250. 28 VICTORIA, to be sufficient notice to the occupier lessee or owner of such land from the time of its being affixed and published. Provided that it shall not be necessary for any such last mentioned notice to specify the name of any person as lessee or owner of the land therein referred to; and no owner of any land shall be liable to any payment beyond the expense of and occasioned by the destruction and eradication of the thistles growing and being upon such land and upon such adjacent half of the road as hereinafter provided together with costs by reason merely of any notice having been so affixed as aforesaid. If thistles not destroyed within seven days parties may enter for the of destroying them. Persons authorised may enter upon land to search for thistles. Justices to act upon complaint duly made. If owner of land unknown or sold to defray 6. If the owner lessee or occupier shall for the space of seven days refuse or neglect to destroy the thistles referred to in any such notice, it shall be lawful for any person authorised in writing in that behalf by any justice to destroy and eradicate the same and for that purpose with sufficient assistants to enter upon any lands in respect whereof any such notice shall have been given as aforesaid; and every such person shall be entitled to recover from such owner lessee or occupier the expense of and attending such destruction and eradication (such expenses to be assessed and allowed by two or more justices) together with costs by action or plaint in any court of competent jurisdiction or by proceedings in a summary manner before two or more justices as if such amount had been a pecuniary penalty awarded by such justices; and which action plaint or proceedings may be commenced instituted had and taken in the name of such person or in the name of the justice by whom such person was authorised as hereinbefore mentioned. 7. It shall be lawful for any person authorised in writing in that behalf by any justice without notice to enter upon any lands whether enclosed or not for the purpose of ascertaining if any thistles are growing thereupon; and no such person shall be deemed a trespasser by reason of such entry or be liable for any damage thereby occasioned unless the same was occasioned by such person wilfully and without necessity. 8. Upon complaint duly made to any justice that any thistles are suspected to be growing or are growing upon any land, such justice shall make an order in writing for the person complaining or for some other person to enter upon such land to search and ascertain if there are any thistles growing thereupon or (as the case may be) shall sign such notice to the owner lessee or occupier of any land as hereinbefore provided; and also upon being satisfied that thistles are growing upon such land and that such notice has been served or left or affixed and advertised as herein provided shall make an order for the destruction and eradication of such thistles as aforesaid growing upon any land by some person to be named in such order the expense of which shall be recoverable as herein before provided. 9. If the owner of any land of which there shall be no occupier absent from Vic- as aforesaid shall be unknown or shall not reside within Victoria, it toria land may be shall be lawful for the Supreme Court or any judge thereof upon expenses upon petition addressed to such court or judge by any justice or person so as aforesaid entitled to recover the expense of and attending the months' notice in destruction and eradication of such thistles (which petition shall order of the Supreme Court after eighteen |