1214 ADMINISTRATION AND LEGISLATION [PART V 
If the Peninsular and Oriental Steamship Company engage 
in that trade they must pay coastal rates, but as long as 
they do not engage in that trade they cannot be forced to 
do so by New Zealand legislation. Strictly speaking, it is 
true New Zealand could legislate to provide that coastal rates 
should be paid while the vessel was within the three-mile 
limit, but such legislation would be of infinitesimal impor- 
tance and if not repugnant, as it probably would be, to 
8. 166 of the Act of 1894, could be evaded by the company 
with the greatest possible ease. 
Further, with regard to allships whose first port of clearance 
and whose port of destination are in the Commonwealth, the 
Commonwealth law applies under s. 5 of the Commonwealth 
of Australia Constitution Act, 1900, and it does not seem that 
the New Zealand Parliament can override the Commonwealth 
law, which thus has Imperial validity.* Of course, if the 
term ‘trading from New Zealand to the Commonwealth ’ 
is interpreted only to include vessels which are registered in 
New Zealand or in some sense are domiciled there, no conflict 
might arise, but it is very doubtful whether New Zealand 
Joes not intend to regard the Huddart-Parker vessels as 
falling within its sphere of activity. 
More serious is the position with regard to s. 3 of the Bill, 
which is avowedly an attempt to exclude Asiatics from 
trading with New Zealand. It should, however, be noted 
that the attempt is not absolute; that is to say, that no 
attempt is made to interfere with vessels manned by Asiatics 
which merely trade with New Zealand or some other foreign 
country, or some British possession, and which do not trade 
from New Zealand to Australia or the Cook Islands. It 
should be noted further that the legislation cannot be said 
to be ulira vires the Dominion Parliament, and that it 
therefore does not stand on the same footing as s. 2, the 
objections to which are legal as well as political. The 
discrimination in s. 3 is directed by name against Asiatics, 
and is avowedly, by the admission of the Government in 
t It may seem reasonable that New Zealand should be accorded like 
powers with the Commonwealth as to merchant shipping.