1 ARTICLE 246.

NUISANCES BY OFFENSIVE TRADES.

2 [Every one commits a common nuisance who, for the purposes of trade or otherwise, makes loud noises, or offensive or unwholesome smells, in such places and under such circumstances as to annoy any considerable number of persons in the exercise of rights common to all her Majesty's subjects.

ARTICLE 247.

NUISANCES TO HIGHWAYS.

Every one commits a common nuisance who obstructs any highway, by any permanent work or erection thereon or injury thereto, which renders the highway less commodious to the public than it would otherwise be; or who prevents them from having access to any part of it by an excessive and unreasonable temporary use thereof,* or by so dealing with the land in the immediate neighborhood of the highway as to prevent the public from using and enjoying it securely.

Illustrations.

Each of the following acts is a nuisance to a highway :

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(1.) Digging a ditch, or making a hedge across it, or ploughing it up.

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(2.) Allowing waggons to stand before a warehouse for an unreasonable time, as, to occupy great part of the street for several hours by day and night.

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(3.) Keeping up a hoarding in front of a house in a street for the purpose of repairs for an unreasonable time.

1 S. D. Art. 188.

2 [1 Russ. Cr. 419.]

S. D. Art. 189. R. v. The Mayor & St. John, Chipman, 155; R. v. Brittain, 2 Kerr 614.

4 As to use of the streets by the Salvation Army, see R. v. Brice, 15 Q. L. R. 147, 152.

5 [1 Russ. Cr. 485.

6 R. v. Russel, 6 East, 427.

7 R. v. Jones, 3 Camp. 230.]

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[(4.) Excavating an area close to a footpath, and leaving it unfenced. (5.) 2 Blasting stone in a quarry so as to throw stones upon the houses and road.

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3 ARTICLE 248.

NUISANCES TO BRIDGES.

Every one is guilty of a common nuisance who, being bound by law to repair a bridge, leaves it unrepaired.

5 ARTICLE 249.

6 NUISANCES TO NAVIGABLE RIVERS.

Every one is guilty of a common nuisance who wilfully diverts or obstructs the course of any navigable river' so as appreciably to diminish its convenience for purposes of navigation, even though the alteration may, upon the whole, be for the convenience of the public; but the owner of a vessel wrecked in a navigable river is not guilty of a common nuisance because he does not remove it.]

1 [Barnes v. Ward, 9 C. B. 392.

2 R. v. Mutters, L. & C. 491.]

3 S. D. Art. 190.

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[1 Russ. Cr. 530-57, where the whole law as to the liability to repair different classes of bridges is discussed.]

5 S. D. Art. 191.

61 Russ. Cr. 520.]

7 R. v. Randall, C. & M. 496; R. v. Russel, 3 E. & B. 942.

8 R. v. Watts, 2 Esp. 675; White v. Crisp, 10 Ex. 318; Brown v. Mallett, 5 C. B. 599. White v. Crisp and Brown v. Mallett are not altogether consistent on the further question as to the duty of the o ner to buoy his vessel, or otherwise provide against other vessels striking on it.] See R. S. C. c. 91, ss. 1-6, as to the duty of the owner or master to provide signals in such a case and as to their liability to remove the obstruction; and s. 7 as to the offence of throwing rubbish into navigable rivers.

CHAPTER XXI.

VAGRANCY-LOITERING NEAR SHIPS.

1 ARTICLE 250.

IDLE AND DISORDERLY PERSONS.

2 ALL persons are loose, idle or disorderly persons or vagrants who,

(a.) not having visible means of maintaining themselves, live without employment,—

(b.) being able to work and thereby or by other means to maintain themselves and families, wilfully refuse or neglect to do so,

(c.) openly expose or exhibit in any street, road, public place or highway, any indecent exhibition, or openly or indecently expose their persons,

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(d.) without a certificate signed, within six months, by a priest, clergyman or minister of the gospel, or two justices of the peace, residing in the municipality where the alms are being asked, that he or she is a deserving object of charity, wander about and beg, or go about from door to door, or place themselves in any street, highway, passage or public place to beg or receive alms,—

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1S. D. Arts. 192, 193, 194. These Articles include some offences not defined in the Act from which the text is taken, part of which are founded on 5 Geo. 4, c. 83. I have not, however, thought it necessary to add anything to the text, although the latter Act might be held to be in force in British Columbia, Manitoba, and the North-West Territories so far as applicable thereto.

2 R. S. C. c. 157, s. 8; 5 Geo. 4, c. 83, ss. 3, 4; 1 & 2 Vict. c. 38, s. 2; 3 Hist. Cr. Law, 266-275.

8 A person cannot be convicted of the offence defined in this clause unless he has acquired in some degree a character that brings him within its terms. R. v. Bassett, 10 Ont. P. R. 386.

4 See Art. 217.

5 [The wandering, &c., must be as a habit of life. Persons who go about collecting alms for a specific purpose, and not as a way of life, are not within the statute; Pointon v. Hill, L. R. 12 Q. B. D. 306.]

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(e.) loiter on any street or highway, and obstruct passengers by standing across the footpaths or by using insulting language, or in any other way,

(f) cause a disturbance in any street or highway by screaming, swearing or singing, or by being drunk,2 or by impeding or incommoding peaceable passengers,

(g) by discharging firearms, or by riotous or disorderly conduct in any street or highway, wantonly or maliciously disturb the peace and quiet of the inmates of any dwelling house near such street or highway,—

(h.) tear down or deface signs, break windows, doors or door plates, or the walls of houses, roads or gardens, or destroy fences,

(i.) 3 being common prostitutes or night walkers, wander in the fields, public streets or highways, lanes or places of public meeting or gathering of people, and do not give a satisfactory account of themselves,—

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(j) are keepers or inmates of disorderly houses, bawdy houses or houses of ill-fame, or houses for the resort of prostitutes, or persons in the habit of frequenting such houses, not giving a satisfactory account of themselves,—or

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(k.) having no peaceable profession or calling to

1 A licensed carter who, contrary to a city ordinance, loiters on the street near the entrance of a hotel in the City of Montreal and solicits passengers to hire his cab, but who does not obstruct passengers, is not within this provision; Smith v. R., 4 M. L. R., 325.

2 Being drunk is not an offence within clause (f.). The offence consists in causing a disturbance by being drunk Ex parte Despatie, 9 L. N. 387; R. v. Daly, 24 C. L. J. 157.

As to the necessity of there being evidence of place or circumstance to such impropriety of purpose and failure to give a satisfactory account of herself, see R. v. Arscott, 9 O. R. 541.

4 See R. S. C. c. 176, ss. 3(ƒ), 11, and as to whether or not a substantive offence is thereby created; R. v. Clark, 2 0. R. 523; R. v. Flint, 4 O. R. 214. A husband and wife may be jointly convicted of keeping a house of ill-fame. The keeping has to do with the management of the house, not the ownership thereof; R. v. Warren, 16 O. R. 590. As to evidence of keeping, see R. v. Newton, 11 Ont. P. R. 101.

The words "not giving a satisfactory account of themselves," do not apply to the keepers of disorderly houses, but to the frequenters thereof; Arscott v. Lilley, 11 0. R. 181; R. v. Remon, 16 O. R. 560, over-ruling R. v. Arscott, 9 0. R. 541.

6 It will not be inferred from the fact that the defendant has no peaceable profession or calling, and that he consorts with thieves, that he maintains himself by crime; R. v. Organ, 11 Ont. P. R. 497.

maintain themselves by, for the most part support themselves by gaming or crime, or by the avails of prostitution.

Every loose, idle or disorderly person or vagrant is liable, on summary conviction before two justices of the peace to a fine not exceeding fifty dollars or to imprisonment, with or without hard labor, for any term not exceeding six months, or to both.

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ARTICLE 251.

LOITERING NEAR SHIPS.

Every one who is found loitering near any ship, and who does not give a satisfactory account of his business there, is liable, on summary conviction,

(a.) to a penalty not exceeding one hundred dollars and not less than fifty dollars, and to imprisonment, with hard labor, for a term not exceeding twelve months and not less than three months, if he is unarmed at the time he is so found loitering; and

(b.) if at such time he is armed to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years and not less than two

years.

1 R. S. C. c. 74, s. 87.

2 Armed with or carrying about his person any pistol, gun or other firearm or offensive weapon.