The Secretary of the Army is authorized to make such rules and regulations for the navigation of the South and Southwest Passes of the Mississippi River as to him shall seem necessary or expedient for the purpose of preventing any obstruction to the channels through said South and Southwest Passes and any injury to the works therein constructed. The term "South and Southwest Passes", as employed in this section, shall be construed as embracing the entire extent of channel in each case, between the upper ends of the works at the head of the pass and the outer or sea ends of the jetties at the entrance from the Gulf of Mexico; and any willful violation of any rule or regulation made by the Secretary of the Army in pursuance of this section shall be deemed a misdemeanor, for which the owner or owners, agent or agents, master or pilot of the vessel so offending shall be separately or collectively responsible, and on conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine of not less than $100, nor exceeding $500, or by imprisonment for not exceeding three months, or by both fine and imprisonment, at the discretion of the court.