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TMI Blog1928 (10) TMI 2X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... is to say) : for cleansing the sowers and drains, for cleansing and watering the streets, and for supplying any public hospital or charitable institutions or any public pumps, baths and wash-houses that may be established for the use of the inhabitants and paid for out of any city town or borough rates; and such supply shall be provided in such quantities and upon such terms and conditions as may be agreed upon by the council of the city, town or borough to which such water is supplied and the Board : Provided that no baths or wash-houses shall be entitled to be supplied with water under the provisions of this section unless the charges for the use thereof by the inhabitants shall be approved of and shall not exceed the amounts fixed by the Board. 2. In the County Court this defence was upheld; but, on appeal, the full Court of the Supreme Court of Victoria reversed that judgment and held the defendants liable. The sole issue is whether or not The Lost Dogs' Home, conducted by the defendants as trustees, is a charitable institution within S. 94. 3. This legislation, it was stated by counsel, was introduced in the Colony of Victoria in 1853 by the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... dment was made no attention was paid as to the method to be adopted for regulating the charges to be made for supplying hospitals or charitable institutions. But supposing an omission has been made for regulating the costs and charges, 1 do not think it would be right to hold that the obligation of supplying water to hospitals was thereby completely defeated. 5. In the Full Court the view prevailed that the construction of the statute contended for by the plaintiff resulted from the decision of the High Court of Australia in Swinburne v. Federal Commissioner of Taxation [1920] 27 C.L.R. 377 The later decision of this Board in Ghesterman v. Federal Commissioner of Taxation [1926] A.C. 128= 42 T.L.R. 121= 35 L.J.P.C. 39= 134 L.T. 360 was regarded as distinguishable from, and was treated as not having overruled, Swinburne's case [1920] 27 C.L.R. 377, notwithstanding that in a later Australian case, Young Men's Christian Association v. Commissioner of Taxation [1926] 37 C.L.R. 351, members of the High Court had expressed the view that it might be necessary to reconsider the decision in Swinburne's case (supra) in the light of the Ghesterman judgment. In Swinbur ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e... that words must be taken in their legal sense unless the contrary intention appears.' 8. Lord Wrenbury then proceeds to consider whether from the context an inference can properly be drawn that the word charitable is used in the Estate Duty Act in its popular and not in its technical legal meaning and, failing to find in the context any sufficient ground for giving to it the former rather than the latter meaning, the conclusion is reached that the technical legal meaning must prevail. 9. From this statement of the effect of the two judgments it is obvious that, although Swinburne's case (supra) is not expressly adverted to in the report of the Chesterman case (supra), it must be regarded as having been overruled by that decision. Indeed, the principle of construction upon which the Swinburne case (supra) rests is directly opposed to that which forms the foundation of the judgment of this Board in Chesterman's case (supra). Moreover, their Lordships would observe that it is always unsatisfactory and generally unsafe to seek the meaning of words used in an Act of Parliament in the definition clauses of other statutes dealing with matters m ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... succeeding clause and such supply shall be provided, etc., to every item of the supply dealt with in the section admits of no doubt. The reference by the word such, preceding the word supply, to the sufficient supply of water mentioned in the first member of the section is clear. It is, therefore certain that the entire supply of water dealt with in the section, and each item thereof, is required to be: provided in such quantities and upon such terms and conditions as may be agreed upon by the council of the city, town or borough to which such water is supplied and the Board. 12. This latter provision would seem to put beyond doubt the municipal character of all the works and institutions intended to be benefited. The agreement as to quantities, terms and conditions is to be made by the council of the municipality to which such water is supplied. 13. Their Lordships are unable to assent to the view of the learned County Court Judge that it may be assumed that the legislature, when introducing, in 1865,' into S. 216, Public Works Act, the words any public hospitals or charitable institutions, had overlooked the qualifying ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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