, 1891-04-29

~ NS'P WoFAA 8 IA N0C ~ suit dllQ
will any body attempt, for instance, to 60 as
a t4uarterofieer, and lay hold of people?
WI en- have I'VE heard Of these enactments
having had practical application, and do they
benefit IN the way the benefit is needed?
The broad and short of the whole thing is,
hat the Island has not Sufic i cnt Policeforce
to meet the first requirements the force on
the Island is inadequate to afford protection
Of property. He has oftentimes here spoken
Of the fact, that in the Centredistrict proper
ty is entirely without protection the force
at Kingshill is positively insufficient to do
any thing and it might Just as we'll be on
Spltsbergen, His Excellency seems to think
that the old Ordinances of which he spoke
could answer; but to a man living and work
ing under the laws, it is beyond q doubt
clear that those laws have never been
anything else but paper laws and there
fore they grow so soon into oblivion and can
do no good in the direction where wcnetd
protection. There is the Servants Act : no one
is now working under it. not at all then
the Vagrancy act, why, it is quite o number
of years since il was given, and now it is
almost forgotten that it eve~ existed what ia
the use to have such laws and to refer to them.
when they have never been put in force? 1t
would ne quite interesting to know the number
OF cases OF that kind prosecuted in all these
years. Still he blamed no one; the police force
is inadequate. But we do really require a re-
vision of those laws. They are mostly antigua
ted paper laws mad it is strange that when.
ever anything nov is proposed, we are
sure to hear some quotations from old
slave law as soon as we endeavour
to get something new, we are told to stick to
the old laws. There can be no doubt. but
that the renters of land do much harm to land
owners and to property still, no measures are
taken to counteract the mischief and are we
to keep on the old useless trodden paths for
ever, when now we see the extent to which the
mischief of having firearms does lead It is
necessary now to control the possessing of
firearms and the using Of them it is no
earthly use to refer to the present laws they
have been insufficient to prevent things COM
ing to what they are, and they will be less ade-
quate to meet and stop the evil. If there were
proper laws, the Police would have to act, but
now nothing is done it seems as if everything
is about to collapse. After His Excellencv's
remarks it would seem Of little use to have a
Committee on this Draft the Committee might.
AS his Excellency in nice terms said, confer
with the Government, but not much use will
come out of this. 1t is here again so, that any
thing coming from the Councils Members
must not be eountepanced everything from
Government must pass and if any thing is to
be carried. it must wait TO come from Govern
ment, Still here are many useful points in
the Draft, and it would be a pity to let it
drop.
3rd Member for Christiansted's Country
District (SuttEer) could not otherwise than
agree with the last speaker, that as long as this
Draft has not come from Government it cannot
reckon upon any furtherancs or countenance,
He would be inclined to take it back it
you'd seem as if there is 40 nse to send it in
to a Committee, a. His Excellency says Gov
eminent can not entertain anything of what is
proposed, We have then nothing else to do,
than to grin and bear the evils which we must
endure. On the other hand it would be better
to let the Council decide what is to be done
with the Draft,
The Acting ViAe Govern0y; The two homo,
rable Members (syitzer and Hewitt) had been
rather hard in their expressions, he had Just
recommended to refer the Draft to q Commit.
tee, because although there are Serious obtec.
tions to it as it is now, there might perhaps be
SOM points in it that might 1bezus3d. If the
Committee be appointed, be would consider
Whai Ipight be done and honorable Members
must not understand him as though. he wanted
TO kill the Draft at once. -
3rd Member for .Frederiksted's Guaaai V
District (Hsuiul would suggest that the
Government takes hold of the Draft and ad, pts
it as1ts eBn. and then bring it in q shape in
which the C0uQcil might ADOPT il.