Licensing cabs, &c.

Gunpowder,

care of.

Fire companies, &c.

Medals and rewards to, &c.

Fires in

stables, &c.

Dangerous manufactories.

Stoves, chimnies, &c.

LICENSES. (e)

31. For regulating and licensing the owners of livery stables and of horses, cabs, carriages, omnibuses and other vehicles used for hire; for establishing the rates of fare to be taken by the owners or drivers; and for enforcing payment thereof.

GUNPOWDER. (f)

32. For regulating the keeping or transporting of gunpowder or other combustible or dangerous materials; for regulating and providing for the support, by fees, of magazines for storing gunpowder belonging to private parties; for compelling persons to store therein; for acquiring land, as well within as without the municipality, for the purpose of erecting powder magazines, and for selling and conveying such land when no longer required therefor.

FIRES.

33. For appointing Fire Wardens, Fire Engineers and Firemen, and promoting, establishing and regulating fire-companies, hook-and-ladder companies, and property-saving compa

nies:

34. For providing medals or rewards for persons who distinguish themselves at fires; and for granting pecuniary aid or otherwise assisting the widows and orphans of persons who are killed by accidents at such fires:

35. For preventing or regulating the use of fire or lights in stables, cabinet makers' shops, carpenters' shops, and combustible places;

36. For preventing or regulating the carrying on of manufactories or trades dangerous in causing or promoting fire; 37. For preventing and for removing, or regulating the construction of any chimney, flue, fire place, stove, oven, boiler or other aparatus or thing which may be dangerous in causing or promoting fire;

cemeteries, as well within as without the Municipality. (Sec. 259, subsec. 3.)

(e) The raising of revenue by the license of livery stables, horses, cabs, &c., is an old system. It has existed for many years.

(f) Erecting powder mills or keeping gunpowder magazines near a town has been held to be a nuisance at common law, punishable by indictment or information. (The King v. Taylor, 2 Str. 1167.) The English Act 12 Geo. III. cap. 61, reduces into one act and repeals all former acts relative to the making, keeping and carrying of gunpowder.

cleaning

38. For regulating the construction of chimnies as to di- Size and mensions and otherwise; and for enforcing the proper clean- chimnies, &c. ing of the same;

39. For regulating the mode of removal and safe keeping Ashes. of ashes;

40. For regulating and enforcing the erection of party Party walls. walls;

houses.

41. For compelling the owners and occupants of houses to Ladders to have scuttles in the roofs thereof, and stairs or ladders leading to the same;

and yards,

42. For causing buildings and yards to be put in other Buildings respects into safe condition, to guard against fire or other condition of. dangerous risk or accident;

43. For requiring the inhabitants to provide so many fire Fire buckets. buckets in such manner and time as may be prescribed; and for regulating the examination of them; and the use of them at fires;

premises.

44. For authorizing appointed officers to enter at all rea- Inspection of sonable times upon any property subject to the regulations of the Council, in order to ascertain whether such regulations are obeyed, or to enforce or carry into effect the same.

of fires.

45. For making regulations for suppressing fires, and for Suppression pulling down or demolishing adjacent houses or other erections, when necessary to prevent the spreading of fire.

46. For regulating the conduct and enforcing the assistance Enforcing of the inhabitants present at fires, and for the preservation of assistance at property at fires.

PROVISIONS APPLICABLE TO CITIES AND TOWNS.

fires.

sections 289

288.-The following sections, numbered from 289 to 291, Extent of apply to the following municipalities (h): 1. Cities; 2, Towns. to 291.

CORONERS.

289.-One or more Coroners shall be appointed for every Appoint incorporated city and town. (i)

(h) See note y to sec. 241.

(i) It is not said by whom the appointment is to be made, but it is understood by the Executive. The office of Coronor is of equal antiquity with that of Sheriff. (Mirror, cap. 1, sec. 3.) The authority of a Coroner is judicial and ministerial. Judicial where one comes to a violent death, or a house or building is destroyed by fire in a city, town or village, in which cases he is to take inqnest. (4 Inst. 371; 20 Vic. cap. 36.) Ministerial where the Coroner executes the Queen's writs on exception to the Sheriff, as by his being a party to a suit, or of kin to either of the parties, &c. (lb.) Coroners of Counties are however commonly called upon to act in a ministerial capacity.

ment of.

Licensing Intelligence offices.

Regulation

of.

Duration of license. Prohibition

of, without license.

Fees for.

Wooden buildings.

A police.

INTELLIGENCE OFFICES. (j)

290.-The Council of every city and town may respectively pass by-laws :

1. For licensing suitable persons to keep Intelligence Offices for registering the names and residences of and giving information to or procuring servants for employers in want of domestics or labourers, and for registering the names and residences of and giving information to or procuring employment for domestic servants and other labourers desiring employment, and for fixing the fees to be received by the keepers of such offices.

2. For the regulation of such Intelligence Offices.

3. For limiting the duration of, or revoking any such license. 4. For prohibiting the opening or keeping any such Intelligence Office within the municipality without license.

5. For fixing the fee to be paid for such license, not exceeding one dollar for one year.

WOODEN BUILDINGS. (k)

6. For regulating the erection of buildings and preventing the erection of wooden buildings and wooden fences in specified parts of the city or town.

POLICE. (2)

7. For establishing, regulating and maintaining a police, but subject to the other provisions of this Act on that head.

(j) The powers given are to license intelligence offices, to regulate them, to limit the duration of the licences, to prohibit the opening of any such office without license, to fix the fee for a license,-each of which has a distinct meaning.

(k) As wooden structures are more combustible than stone or brick, the power to regulate the erection of them in Cities and Towns is conferred. For the word "specified" the word "populous" is probably intended; otherwise the expression might as well have been "any part" as "specified parts." The word "populous" was used in the bill as introduced to the Assembly. It is not certain where or by whom it was changed.

(2) The word "police" is generally applied to the internal regulations of Cities and Towns, whereby the individuals of any City or Town, like members of a well governed family, are bound to conform their general behavior to the rules of propriety, good neighborhood, and good manners, and to be decent, industrious and inoffensive in their respective situations (See 4 Bla. Com. cap. 13); but the word, as here used, has a still more restricted meaning, for it is intended to apply to those paid men who in every City and Town are appointed to execute police laws, and who in many respects correspond with

INDUSTRIAL FARM-EXHIBITION. (m)

farm.

8. For acquiring any estate in landed property within or Industrial without the city or town for an industrial farm, or for a public park, garden or walk, or for a place for exhibitions, and for the disposal thereof when no longer required for the purpose; and for accepting and taking charge of landed property, within or without the city or town, dedicated for a public park, garden or walk for the use of the inhabitants of the city or town.

9. For the erection thereon of buildings and fences for the Buildings purposes of the farm, park, garden, walk or place for exhibi- thereon. tion, as the Council deems necessary.

10. For the management of the farm, park, garden, walk, Managing or place for exhibitions, and buildings.

CHARITY. (n)

the same.

11. For establishing and regulating within the city or town, Almshouses. or on the industrial farm or ground held for public exhibitions, one or more almshouses or houses of refuge for the relief of the destitute, and for granting out-of-door relief to the resident poor, and also for aiding charitable institutions within the city or town..

SNOW, ICE AND dikt. (0)

12. For compelling persons to remove the snow, ice and Removing dirt from the roofs of the premises owned or occupied by them,

Constables of Rural Muncipalities. The powers given to Cities and Towns are-1. To establish. 2. To regulate; and 3. To maintain a police.

(m) The jurisdiction of a Municipal Council is in general local, that is, confined to the Municipality which it represents. For some purposes, the jurisdiction extends beyond the locality. The acquirement of land for a cemetery is one such purpose. (Sec. 258, subsec. 3.) Land for an industrial farm, &c., is another. Power is given1. To acquire any estate, &c., for a farm, &c. 2. To erect buildings thereon, &c. 3. To manage the same.

(n) Every Township Council may also make by-laws for raising money for the support of the poor resident in the Township. (Sec. 269.) The poor taken notice of by the English law, which is a complete system, are-1st. Poor by impotency; as the aged or decrepid, fatherless or motherless, poor under sickness, and persons who are idiots, lunatics, lame, blind, &c. 2nd. Poor by casualty; such as able-bodied persons decayed or ruined by unavoidable misfortunes, or otherwise out of employment and unable to procure employment. 3rd. Poor by prodigality and debauchery; also those called thriftless poor, as idle, slothful persons.

(0) The power is to compel "persons" to remove snow, ice and dirt, &c. This means persons resident within the jurisdiction of the Municipal Council of the City or Town; for over persons resident without such jurisdiction the Council can have no authority.

snow, &c.

Numbering

and also to remove the same from the sidewalk, street or alley in front of such premises, and for removing the same at the expense of the owner or occupant in case of his default.

NUMBERING HOUSES AND LOTS. (p)

13. For numbering the houses and lots along the streets of houses, &c. the municipality, and for affixing the numbers to the houses, buildings or other erections along the streets, and for charging the owner or occupant of each house or lot with the expense incident to the numbering of the same.

Record of streets and numbers.

Levels of cellars.

Deposit of plan of buildings.

Cellars, privies, &c.

Filling up certain places.

14. For keeping (and every such Council is hereby required to make and keep) a record of the streets and numbers of the houses and lots numbered thereon respectively, and entering thereon (and every such Council is hereby required to enter thereon) a division of the streets with boundaries and distances, for public inspection.

DRAINAGE. (2)

15. For ascertaining and compelling owners, tenants and occupants to furnish the Council with the levels of the cellars heretofore dug or constructed, or which may hereafter be dug or constructed, along the streets of the municipality, such levels to be with reference to a line fixed by the by-laws.

16. For compelling to be deposited with an officer, to be named in the by-law, before commencing the erection of any building, a ground or block plan of such building, with the levels of the cellars and basements thereof with reference to a line fixed by the by-law.

17. For regulating the construction of cellars, sinks, waterclosets, privies and privy-vaults, and the manner of draining the same.

18. For compelling or regulating the filling up, draining, clearing, altering, relaying and repairing of any grounds, yards, vacant lots, cellars, private drains, sinks, cesspools and privies; and for assessing the owners or occupiers of such grounds, yards, or of the real estate on which the cellars, pri

(p) In Cities and Towns, this is a very great convenience. It causes an expense which in amount is trifling and cheerfully borne. (2) Drainage, as applied to Cities and Towns, is for sanitary purposes all important. An explanation of the principles of drainage cannot be expected to find a place in this work. A popular treatise on the subject, written by G. Drysdale Dempsey, civil engineer, and published by John Weale, London, England, is recommended to the Municipalities.