Hawking petroleum.—For the purposes of the Petroleum (Hawkers) Act, 1881, a person is considered to hawk petroleum if by himself or his servants he goes about carrying petroleum to sell, whether going from town to town or to other men's houses, or selling it in the streets of the place of his residence or otherwise, and whether with or without any horse or other beast bearing or drawing burden. Any one licensed under the Act of 1871 to keep petroleum may, subject to the enactments for the time being in force with respect to hawkers and pedlars, hawk such petroleum by himself or his servants. But he must observe the following regulations :—(1) The amount of petroleum conveyed at one time in any one carriage must not exceed twenty gallons; (2) The petroleum is to be conveyed in a closed vessel so constructed as to be free from leakage ; (3) The carriage in which the vessels containing the petroleum are conveyed must be so ventilated as to prevent any evaporation from the petroleum mixing with the air in or about the carriage in such proportion as to produce or be liable to produce an explosive mixture; (4) No fire or light or any article of an explosive or highly inflam mable nature may be brought into or dangerously near to the carriage in which the vessels containing the petroleum are conveyed ; (5) The carriage in which the vessels containing the petroleum are conveyed must be so con structed or filled that the petroleum cannot escape therefrom in the form of liquid, whether ignited or otherwise ; (6) Proper care is to be taken to pre vent any petroleum escaping into any part of a house or building, or of the curtilage thereof, or into a drain or sewer ; (7) The petroleum must be stored in some premises licensed for the keeping of petroleum and in accordance with the licence for such premises both every night and also when the petroleum is not in the course of being hawked ; (8) All due precautions are to be taken for the prevention of accidents by fire or explosion, and for preventing unauthorised persons having aCCCSS tO the vesels containing the petroleum ; and every person concerned in hawking the petroleum must abstain froin any act whatever which tends to cause fire or explosion, and is not reasonably necessary for the purpose of the hawking ; (9) No article or substance of an explosive or inflanunable character other than petroleum, nor any article liable to cause or communicate fire or explosion, can be in the carriage while such carriage is being used for the purpose of hawking petroleum. The expression " carriage " is always used in this connection as
including any waggon, cart, truck, vehicle, or other means of conveyance by land, in whatever manner it is drawn or propelled. In the event of any con travention of these regulations, the petroleuni, together with the vessels containing and the carriage conveying it, will be liable to forfeiture ; and in addition thereto the licensee by whom or by whose servants the petroleum was being hawked will be liable, on summary conviction, to a penalty not exceeding .e2o. But where some servant of the licensee or other person has in fact committed t'ne offence, that servant or other person will be liable to the same penalty as if he were the licensee. And whem the licensee is charged with a contravention, lie is entitled to have any other person whom he charges as the actual offender brought before the Court ; and if the licensee proves that he had used due diligence to enforce the regulations, and that such other person had committed the offence in question without his knowledge, consent, or connivance, that other person will be convicted, and the licensee will be exempt from any penalty.