870 THE FEDERATIONS AND THE UNION [part IV 
in the coasting trade even if the isolated transaction were 
otherwise within the words of the section. The words 
“taken on board’ and ‘ to be carried * imported a contract 
of carriage made on behalf of the ship, and did not include 
a promise made by a Passenger or any other person not 
authorized to bind the owner to carry on board the ship 
goods as to which the owner did not incur any responsibility. 
The Court, although they considered that the matter could 
be disposed of on that ground, decided, as the Commonwealth 
had intervened by permission, to give a decision on the 
general question of the validity of the Act. Two objections 
were made to its validity. First, that provisions for com- 
pensation to seamen could not under any circumstances. fall 
under the trade and commerce power of s. 51 of the Constitu- 
tion; second, that if they did the particular Act was invalid for 
wnother reason. The first question the Court declined to 
deal with on the ground that it was abstract, but the second 
uestion they dealt with in detail. S. 4, subsection 1, pro- 
vided that the Act applied in relation to the employment of 
seamen (a) on any ship registered in the Commonwealth 
when engaged in the coasting trade, and (b) on any ship 
(whether British or foreign) engaged in the coasting trade 
if the seamen had been shipped under articles of agreement 
entered into in Australia. 
It appeared, therefore, that the law applied to all trade 
between different Australian ports, and not merely to trade 
between ports of different states ; if there were any doubt 
about this as regards subsection 1 it was made clear by the 
terms of subsection 2, which expressly declares that a ship is 
to be deemed to be engaged in the coasting trade if she takes 
on board passengers or cargo at one port in a state to be 
carried to and landed at another port in the same state. 
Now it was not open to argument that the power to make 
laws with respect to trade and commerce with other countries 
and among the states given by the Constitution extended 
to authorize the Parliament to legislate with respect to the 
internal trade of a state. It followed that the provisions 
of 8. 4 of the Act went beyond the powers of the Parliament