The Short Title of this Act is “The Cattle Act, 1890.”

It shall come into operation on the first day of January, in the year one thousand eight hundred and ninety-one.

Nothing in this Act contained shall he deemed to amend, alter, or override—

Any of the provisions of “The Diseased Cattle Act, 1881,” nor of “The Impounding Act, 1884;” nor

Any by-law from time to time made by any local authority for regulating the driving or landing or shipping of cattle.

In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—

Every Chief Inspector and Inspector respectively appointed under that Act shall be a Chief Inspector and Inspector respectively under this Act, and shall have and may exercise all the powers, duties, and authorities under this Act in respect to cattle which he has in respect to sheep under the first-mentioned Act.

The Governor by Order in Council from time to time may prescribe such regulations as he shall think fit for the more efficient administration of this Act.

Any person about to drive any herd of cattle through or across any lawfully occupied land or run, or through or across any hundred, shall give to the occupier of the land or run, or to one of the Wardens of the hundred, at least twenty-four hours’ previous notice in writing of the day on which such cattle are so to be driven, either by delivering such notice to him personally, or by leaving the same at the principal house or station on such land or run, indorsed with the words “Cattle Notice” on the cover or outside of such notice, with an adult inmate of such house or station, or, if no such inmate be found, leaving the same either within the said house or station if open, or below or affixed to the door thereof; and such notice shall set forth the brands on such cattle, as also the name of the owner; and such notice shall be renewed unless the cattle shall be so driven within the time above specified.

Every person offending against the provisions of this enactment shall be liable to a penalty not exceeding fifty pounds, and such penalty shall be incurred and may be levied over and above any penalty incurred in virtue of any other provision herein contained: But nothing in this section contained shall apply or extend to working cattle or to milch cows.

Every person who, by himself, his agent, or servant, drives, depastures, or suffers to stray any diseased cattle across or upon any land not being the property of nor being rented by such person, and not being land of which he has the right of pasturage, or upon or along any highway, such highway not being within the boundaries of the run occupied by the owner of such cattle, is liable, for every day during which such cattle shall be so driven, depastured, or suffered to stray, to a penalty not exceeding fifty pounds nor less than two pounds.

If any diseased cattle are found on any land not lawfully in the occupation of the owner of such cattle, or on a public road, or within the limits of a hundred, or in any public yard or auction-yards, or in any slaughterhouse or yards attached thereto, any Inspector, if he shall think it necessary so to do, may cause such cattle or any of them to be destroyed, and such Inspector shall keep a correct account of the number and description of cattle so destroyed, and the expenses incurred by him in destroying them; and the amount of such expenses may be sued for and recovered by such Inspector from the owner of the cattle so destroyed in any Court of competent jurisdiction.

If any diseased cattle are found on any land lawfully in the occupation of the owner of such cattle, any Inspector may require such owner to destroy so many of the said cattle as the Inspector shall think necessary.

If any such owner shall dispute the Inspector’s opinion as to the necessity of destroying any cattle, he may call in the evidence of any expert he may think fit, and the question of the necessity of destroying such cattle then shall be determined by a Resident Magistrate or by two Justices of the Peace upon the evidence of the Inspector who may have directed such cattle to be destroyed, and such other evidence as may be brought before him or them; and, in the event of the decision being given against the owner, the Magistrate or Justices shall order the cattle to be destroyed, and may award the costs of hearing the case, together with the amount of the expense incurred in destroying such cattle, to be paid by such owner.

Every person who feeds pigs, or suffers or allows pigs to be fed, on the meat of any diseased cattle, or wilfully leaves the carcase of any diseased cattle, or any meat or offal therefrom, to lie about in any place where pigs may feed thereon, is liable to a penalty not exceeding fifty pounds.

Every owner who fails to consume by fire or to bury at least three feet underground, within twenty-four hours after death, the carcase of any cattle, or horse, or calf, or foal of any age which shall have died within half a mile of any road or thoroughfare is liable to a penalty not exceeding five pounds nor less than ten shillings for each carcase not so buried or destroyed.

Every person who, by himself, his servant or agent, casts or causes to be cast the carcase of any cattle, or calf, or horse, or foal of any age into any stream or pond or other water is liable to a penalty not exceeding twenty pounds nor less than five pounds.

Any occupier of land or other person interested, and also any Inspector, may, and, any such occupier or person interested not prosecuting, such Inspector is hereby required, to prosecute for any fines or penalties incurred by any breach of this Act, and no abandonment of any such prosecution or compromise made by any private party shall affect the Inspector’s power to prosecute for and recover any such fine or penalty. And every information under this Act may be laid before and a summons thereupon issued by one Justice of the Peace, but the same shall be heard and determined by any Resident Magistrate or two Justices of the Peace.

Over and above any other penalty imposed by this Act and to which any person convicted of infringing the same shall be subjected, he shall also be liable to pay to the owner of any cattle to which any disease has been communicated by his unlawful act or omission such sum or sums of money, if demanded by the owner, as in the judgment of a Resident Magistrate or any two Justices of the Peace may be sufficient to reimburse such owner for any expense, loss, or damage which he may have in consequence incurrred or sustained, so that such sum or each of such sums shall not in any such case exceed the sum of one hundred pounds. But nothing in this Act shall be construed to limit or deprive any person suffering any such loss or damage of any remedy which he might have had at law or otherwise for recovering the same if this Act had not been passed.

All penalties under this Act shall be recovered in a summary way before any Resident Magistrate or two Justices of the Peace, and when recovered shall go and be distributed, as to one moiety thereof, to the informer or person other than an Inspector who shall sue for the same, and, as to the other moiety, it and all other moneys received under this Act shall be paid into the Public Account and form part of the Consolidated Fund.

The Act of the General Assembly and the several provincial ordinances mentioned in the Schedule to this Act to the extent therein particularly mentioned are hereby severally repealed.