#:
41.
Trial in this Colony
of misdemen- nours at offences under Merchant Shipping Act. (i)
(2-(2) Every offence declared by The Merchant Shipping Act, 1894, or by this Ordinance, to be a misde- meanour may, if tried in this Colony, be tried by the Supreme Court in the same manner as other misdemeanours are triad, and may also, unless otherwise expressly pro- vided, instead of being prosecuted before the Supreme Court, be prosecuted summarily in accordance with the procedure provided by The Magistrates Ordinanec, 1890, or any Ordinance amending the same, but if so prosecuted shall be punishable by the Magistrate with imprisonment only for a term not exceeding six months with or without hard labour, or with a fine not exceeding $1,000.
(b) Every offence made punishable by The Merchant Shipping Act, 1891, by imprisonment for any period not exceeding six months with or without hard labour or by a fue not exceeding £100 may be prosecuted summarily before any Stipendiary Magistrate and may be punished by imprisonment not exceeding six months with or without hard labour or by find not exceeding $1,000.
(c.) The provisions of The Magistrates Ordinance, 1890,
with regard to appeal shail apply to all summary convic tions under this section.
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It is doubtful also whether sections 8 and 41 sub-section 2, which purport to
impose on British ships greater penalties than those provided by the Imperial Act
(sections 200 and 711) should be allowed.
There are a few points, which are mentioned in the Secretary of State's despatch
of the 12th April, which I should like to refer to.
As regards paragraph 5 of that despatch the penalty in section 8 of Ordinance It is submitted that it is unnecessary 36 of 1899 is reduced by the present measure.
to reduce the penalty of $1,000, which is enacted by sub-section 2 of section 41 of Ordinance 36 of 1899, inasmuch as the dollar being worth less than 2s., the penalty of $1,000 is even less than the penalty of £100 which is prescribed by section 680 of the Merchant Shipping Act.