Much emphasis was placed in colonial Queensland on the role of immigration and the indigenous population in introducing and sustaining prostitution, while organisations such as the Social Purity Society described what they interpreted as widespread female depravity. Concerns led to the "Act for the Suppression of Contagious Diseases 1868" (31 Vict. No. 40), part of a widespread legislative attempt to control prostitution throughout the British Empire through incarceration in lock hospitals. Brothels were defined in section 231 of the "Queensland Criminal Code" in 1897, which explicitly defined 'bawdy houses' in 1901. A further act relating to venereal disease control was the "Health Act Amendment Act 1911" (2 Geo. V. No. 26). Solicitation was an offence under Clause 132E, and could lead to a fine or imprisonment. Other measures included the long-standing vagrancy laws and local by-laws.