Thus, according to the latest international conventions, the merchandise of a nature to be confiscated by a cruiser are: First. Contraband of war under whatever flag. The cruiser need not recognize the neutrality of the vessel carrying wounded if any part of its cargo shall, under international law, be comprised in either of these two categories of goods. The faculty given by the paragraph in question to leave on board of vessels carrying wounded a portion of the cargo is to be considered as a facility for the carriage of freight, as well as a valuable privilege in favor of the navigability of merchant vessels if they be bad sailors when only in ballast; but this faculty can in no wise prejudice the right of confiscation of the cargo within the limits fixed by international law. Every ship the cargo of which would be subject to confiscation by the cruiser under ordinary circumstances is not susceptible of being covered by neutrality by the sole fact of carrying in addition sick or wounded men. The ship and the cargo would then come under the common law of war, which has not been modified by the convention except in favor of the vessel exclusively laden with wounded men, or the cargo of which would not be subject to confiscation in any case. Thus, for example, the merchant ship of a belligerent laden with neutral merchandise and at the same time carrying sick and wounded is covered by neutrality. The merchant ship of a belligerent carrying, besides wounded and sick men, goods of the enemy of the cruiser's nation or contraband of war is not neutral, and the ship, as well as the cargo, comes under the common law of war. A neutral ship carrying, in addition to wounded and sick men of the belligerent, contraband of war also is subject to the common law of war. A neutral ship carrying goods of any nationality, but not contraband of war, lends its own neutrality to the wounded and sick which it may carry. In so far as concerns the usage which expressly prohibits a cartel ship from engaging in any commerce whatsoever at the point of arrival, it is deemed that there is no occasion to specially subject to that inhibition vessels carrying wounded men, because the second paragraph of Article X imposes upon the belligerents, equally as upon neutrals, the exclusion of the transportation of merchandise subject to confiscation. Moreover, if one of the belligerents should abuse the privilege which is accorded to him, and under the pretext of transporting the wounded should neutralize under its flag an important commercial intercourse which might in a notorious manner influence the chances or the duration of the war, Article XIV of the convention could justly be invoked by the other belligerent. As for the second point of the note of the British Government, relative to the privilege of effectively removing from a city, besieged and blockaded by sea, under the cover of neutrality, vessels bearing wounded and sick men, in such a way as to prolong the resistance of the besieged, the convention does not authorize this privilege. In according the benefits of a neutral status of a specifically limited neutrality to vessels carrying wounded, the convention could not give them rights superior to those of other neutrals who can not pass an effective blockade without special authorization. Humanity, however, in such a case, does not lose all its rights, and, if circumstances permit the besieging party to relax the rigorous rights of the blockade, the besieged party may make propositions to that end in virtue of the fourth paragraph of Article X. 1875. INTERNATIONAL BUREAU OF WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. Concluded at Paris May 20, 1875; ratification advised by the Senate May 15, 1878; ratified by the President May 28, 1878; ratifications exchanged August 2, 1878; proclaimed September 27, 1878. (The treaty submitted to the Senate and attached to the proclamation is in the French language. The text here printed is from a translation made in the Department of State.) His Excellency the President of the United States of America, His Majesty the Emperor of Germany, His Majesty the Emperor of Austria-Hungary, His Majesty the King of the Belgians, His Majesty the Emperor of Brazil, His Excellency the President of the Argentine Confederation, His Majesty the King of Denmark, His Majesty the King of Spain, His Excellency the President of the French Republic, His Majesty the King of Italy, His Excellency the President of the Republic of Peru, His Majesty the King of Portugal and the Algarves, His Majesty the Emperor of all the Russias, His Majesty the King of Sweden and Norway, His Excellency the President of the Swiss Confederation, His Majesty the Emperor of the Ottomans, and His Excellency the President of the Republic of Venezuela, desiring international uniformity and precision in standards of weight and measure, have resolved to conclude a convention to this effect, and have named as their plenipotentiaries the fol lowing: His Excellency the President of the United States of America: Mr. Elihu Benjamin Washburne, Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of the United States at Paris; His Majesty the Emperor of Germany: His Highness Prince Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst, Grand Cross of the Order of the Red Eagle of Prussia, and of the Order of St. Hubert of Bavaria, &c., &c., &c., his Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary at Paris; His Majesty the Emperor of Austria-Hungary: His Excellency Count Apponyi, his Actual Chamberlain and Privy Counselor, Knight of the Golden Fleece, Grand Cross of the Royal Order of St. Stephen of Hungary, and of the Imperial Order of Leopold, &c., &c., &c., his Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary at Paris; His Majesty the King of the Belgians: Baron Beyens, Grand Officer of his Order of Leopold, Grand Officer of the Legion of Honor, &c., &c., &c., his Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary at Paris; His Majesty the Emperor of Brazil: Mr. Marcus Antonio d'Araujo, Viscount d'Itajuba, Grandee of the Empire, member of His Majesty's Council, Commander of his Order of Christ, Grand Officer of the Legion of Honor, &c., &c., &c., his Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary at Paris; His Excellency the President of the Argentine Confederation: Mr. Balcarce, Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of the Argentine Confederation at Paris; His Majesty the King of Denmark: Count de Moltke-Hvitfeldt, Grand Cross of the Order of Dannebrog, and decorated with the Cross of Honor of the same order, Grand Officer of the Legion of Honor, &c., &c., &c., his Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary at Paris; His Majesty the King of Spain: His Excellency Don Mariano Roca de Togores, Marquis de Molins, Viscount de Rocamora, Grandee of Spain of the First Class, Knight of the Renowned Order of the Golden Fleece, Grand Cross of the Legion of Honor, &c., &c., &c., Director of the Royal Spanish Academy, his Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary at Paris; and General Ibañez, Grand Cross of the Order of Isabella the Catholic, &c., &c., Director General of the Geographical and Statistical Institute of Spain, Member of the Academy of Sciences; His Excellency the President of the French Republic: The Duke Decazes, deputy to the National Assembly, Commander of the Order of the Legion of Honor, &c., &c., &c., Minister of Foreign Affairs; the Viscount de Meaux, deputy to the National Assembly, Minister of Agriculture and of Commerce; and Mr. Dumas, Perpetual Secretary to the Academy of Sciences, Grand Cross of the Order of the Legion of Honor; His Majesty the King of Italy: The Chevalier Constantino Nigra, Knight of the Grand Cross of his Orders of St. Maurice and St. Lazarus, and of the Crown of Italy, Grand Officer of the Legion of Honor, &c., &c., &c., his Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary at Paris; His Excellency the President of the republic of Peru: Mr. Pedro Galvez, Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of Peru at Paris; and Mr. Francisco de Rivero, formerly Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of Peru; His Majesty the King of Portugal and of the Algarves: Mr. José da Silva Mendes Leal, Peer of the Realm, Grand Cross of the Order of Saint James, Knight of the Order of the Tower, and Sword of Portugal, &c., &c., &c., his Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Pleni. potentiary at Paris; His Majesty the Emperor of all the Russias: Mr. Gregory Okouneff, Knight of the Russian Orders of St. Anne of the first class, of St. Stanislaus of the first class, of St. Valdimir of the third class, Commander of the Legion of Honor, Actual Counselor of State, Counselor of the Embassy of Russia at Pairs; His Majesty the King of Sweden and Norway: Baron Adelswärd, Grand Cross of the Order of the Polar Star of Sweden, and of St. Olaf of Norway, Grand Officer of the Legion of Honor, &c., &c., &c., his Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary at Paris; His Excellency the President of the Swiss Confederation: Mr. Jean Conrad Kern, Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of the Swiss Confederation at Paris; His Majesty the Emperor of the Ottomans: Husny Bey, Lieutenant-Colonel of Staff, wearer of a fourth-class decoration of the Imperial Order of Osmania, of a fifth-class decoration of the Order of Medjidie, Officer of the Legion of Honor, &c., &c., &c.; His Excellency the President of the Republic of Venezuela: Doctor Eliseo Acosta, Who, after having exhibited their full powers, which were found to be in good and due form, have agreed upon the following articles: ARTICLE 1. The high contracting parties engage to establish and maintain, at their common expense, a scientific and permanent international bureau of weights and measures, the location of which shall be at Paris. ARTICLE 2. The French Government shall take all the necessary measures to facilitate the purchase, or, if expedient, the construction, of a building which shall be especially devoted to this purpose, subject to the conditions stated in the regulations which are subjoined to this convention. ARTICLE 3. The operation of the international bureau shall be under the exclusive direction and supervision of an international committee of weights and measures, which latter shall be under the control of a general conference for weights and measures, to be composed of the delegates of all the contracting governments. ARTICLE 4. The general conference for weights and measures shall be presided over by the president for the time being of the Paris Academy of Sciences. ARTICLE 5. The organization of the bureau, as well as the formation and the powers of the international committee, and of the general conference for weights and measures, are established by the regulations subjoined to this convention. ARTICLE 6. The international bureau of weights and measures shall be charged with the following duties: 1st. All comparisons and verifications of the new prototypes of the meter and kilogram. 2d. The custody of the international prototypes. 3d. The periodical comparison of the national standards with the international prototypes and with their test copies, as well as comparisons of the standard thermometers. 4th. The comparison of the prototypes with the fundamental standards of non-metrical weights and measures used in different countries for scientific purposes. 5th. The sealing and comparison of geodesic measuring-bars. 6th. The comparison of standards and scales of precision, the verification of which may be requested by governments or by scientific societies, or even by constructors or men of science. ARTICLE 7. The persons composing the bureau shall be a director, two assistants, and the necessary number of employés. When the comparisons of the new prototypes shall have been finished, and when these prototypes shall have been distributed among the different states, the number of persons composing the bureau shall be reduced so far as may be deemed expedient. The governments of the high contracting parties will be informed by the international committee of the appointment of the persons composing this bureau. ARTICLE 8. The international prototypes of the meter and of the kilogram, together with the test copies of the same, shall be deposited in the bureau, and access to them shall be allowed to the international committee only. ARTICLE 9. The entire expense of the construction and outfit of the international bureau of weights and measures, together with the annual cost of its maintenance and the expenses of the committee, shall be defrayed by contributions from the contracting states, the amount of which shall be computed in proportion to the actual population of each. ARTICLE 10. The amounts representing the contributions of each of the contracting states shall be paid at the beginning of each year, through the ministry of foreign affairs of France, into the Caisse de dépôts et consignations at Paris, whence they may be drawn as occasion may require, upon the order of the director of the bureau. ARTICLE 11. Those governments which may take advantage of the privilege, open to every state, of acceding to this convention, shall be required |