, 1885-07-11
The Draft with Motives reads as fol-
lows:
Translation.
D r Il f T
Of Ordinance concerning the punish
memt for damaging the electric
telegraph IN St. Croir.


s l.
Whoever shall Intentionally either do
injury to the electric telegraph or any part
of the apparatus belonging to the same, or
otherwise commit any act, by which the
telegraphic communication becomes damag-
ed or weakened, or the use of the apparatus
hindered, shall be punished with imprison-
ment on bread and water or simple
imprisonment or, under alternating circum.
stances, with a fine, not under 80 West
Indian dollars, provided the act is not
from its general character subject to
severer punishment. When the act arises
from carelesSness, it shall be punished
with fines not exceeding one hundred
dollars or simple Imprisonment not above
one month, thus however, that the punish
ment may be RENTED, if the party reports
the accident without delay to the police
authorities or to an official at the telegraph
station. The party committing the offence
will besides in all cases have to pay the
damage.
All cases in pursuance Of this ordinance
are liable to prosecution as public police
suits.
In regard to the grounds for bringing
forward the present draft of ordinance the
Government limits itself to the remark
that, since telegraphic communication has
been established between Christiansted and
FrederikSted, it. is considered necessary, in
similarity to what is the case i'll the
Mother Country and i'll st. Thomas, to
protect the telegraph line and the appAra.
tuS belonging to it by provisions for the
punishment of offenders who may be
guilty of injuring the same, and to the
fDpthnr pQnupE that tha npASQuf Aruft n
Ordinance is identical with the Ordinance
of 18th May 1871 for furnishing injury done
to the electric Observation-Disclosures at
st. Thomas, and i'll all essentials is In
conformity with the Common Civil
Penal Code of 10th February 1865
s 295.
The Governor introduced the Draft. and
referred to the remarks accompanying it;
he would further state, that of late it has
happened not u%nfrequently that the tele.
graphic line between the two towns has
been injured, and it has therefore been
found necessary to have legal enactmentS
for furnishing those who Intentionally
cause the injury. Hitherto the injury 10
the line has not been serious; it has chiefly
been an ENHANCEMENT of the wires which
would hardly happen without some out.
ward influence, without somebody causing
TUG C|IlduSliHS W10uoNct GHlS udS udI"
pened it has always been necessary to
send out men to repair the defect, which
causes some expense, while the telegraphic
communication suffers, telegraphing hither-
to being not affected by it. The present
Draft is identical with the enactnents on
this head existing in St. Thomas for q
number ofyears. 1t provides punishment
for the two cases where injury is done in
tentionaIly or by accident, in the first case
the punishment must be severer, i'll the
latter it may be RENTED, if the party at
once reports the mishap to the pr per
Authority, but in all cases the party must
pay the cost of repairs. In now recon
mending the Draft, he would ask the
Council to pass the Ordinance as quickly
as possible.
The chairman said he could not see
that there is any necessity to refer the
Draft to a committee, and he would re-
commend that the Draft be passed through
the requisite 3 discussions as soon as posi-
BILE; as His Excellency even seems to de.
sire to have the Ordinance passed to-day,
he the Chairman saw no reason why the
Council should not comply Herewith, and
he would later on bring in this question
for vote.
No one else requested the word LIST
Discussion was closed; and the Draft
passed 70 2nd Discussion.
2, Election of a Committee to confer with
Al r.