[2nd Peace of Paris. Private Claims on France.]

according to a scale fixed upon for that purpose, and with the least possible delay, and liquidate, if there be just cause, all Claims.

Each Commissioner shall be at liberty to unite in one Committee all the Commissioners of the respective Governments, and to lay before them and cause them to examine the Claims of the Subjects of his Government, or else to treat separately with the French Government.

Duties of Arbitrators.

3. The Arbitrators are to be instructed to decide definitively, and without appeal, on all cases referred to them in conformity to the present Article, by the Commissioners of Liquidation, who may not have been able to agree thereon. All the High Contracting Parties, or those interested, may name as many of these Arbitrators as they may think proper; but every one of these Arbitrators must make oath before the Chancellor of France, and in the presence of the Ministers of the other High Contracting Parties residing at Paris, to pass judgment, without partiality whatever for the parties, according to the principles laid down by the Treaty of the 30th May, 1814 (No. 1), and by the present Convention.

Appointment of Record Keepers and Clerks.

4. As soon as the Arbitrators named by France, and by at least two of the other parties interested, shall have taken this Oath, all the said Commissioners who may be in Paris shall meet, under the Presidency of the Senior Commissioner, for the purpose of arranging the Appointments of one or more of the Recorders or Record Keepers, and of one or more Clerks, who are to be sworn before them, as well as for the purpose of discussing, if necessary, a general system for the dispatch of business, the keeping of the Registers, and other matters of internal regulation.

Commissioners of Arbitration to Decide Cases in which Commissioners of Liquidation Disagree.

5. The Commissioners appointed to form the Commissions of Arbitration being thus ordained, whenever the Commissioners of Liquidation shall not have agreed on a Case, the Arbitrators are to proceed with the same in the manner hereinafter mentioned.

[2nd Peace of Paris.

Private Claims on France.]

Composition of Commission of Arbitration.

6. In those cases wherein the Claims are of the nature provided for by the Treaty of Paris, or by the present Convention, and wherein the question is merely to determine on the validity of the Demand, or the amount of the Sum claimed, the Commission of Arbitration is to be composed of 6 Umpires, namely, 3 French, and 3 appointed by the reclaiming Government.

The said 6 Arbitrators shall then draw lots, for the purpose of deciding which of them is to be thrown out, and being thus reduced to 5, are then finally to determine on the Claim referred to them.

7. In the event of the question being whether the contested Claim can be reckoned amongst those provided for by the Treaty of Paris of 30th May, 1814 (No. 1), or by the present Convention, the Commission of Arbitration is to be composed of 6 members, whereof 3 are to be French, and 3 named by the Government reclaiming. These 6 Umpires are then to decide by a majority, whether the Claim is susceptible of being admitted to liquidation; in the event of an equality of votes, the examination of the affair is to be suspended, and is to become subject matter of future regular negotiation between the Governments.

8. Every time that a case shall be referred to the decision of a Commission of Arbitration, the Government, whose Commissioner of Liquidation shall not have been able to agree with the French Government, shall name 3 Umpires, and France shall name as many; all of them chosen amongst those who shall have taken, or may take, previously to their acting, the stipulated Oath. This choice is to be made known to the Record Keeper, at the same time transmitting to him the whole of the documents. The Record Keeper will duly note this nomination and the deposit of the papers, and will enter the claim in the proper register, which shall have been opened for that purpose.

Arbitrators to be summoned by Record Keeper.

When the turn of a Claim shall come round in its regular order of entry, the Record Keeper is to summon the 6 Arbitrators above named.

When the case shall happen to be one of those specified in Section 6 of the present Article, the names of the said 6 Arbitrators shall be put in an urn; the last drawn shall of course go

[2nd Peace of Paris. Private Claims on France.]

out, in order that their number may be reduced to 5. The parties are, however, at liberty to abide, if they all agree thereto, by a Commission of 4 Arbitrators, the number of whom, in order to obtain an odd number, is to be in like manner reduced to 3.

In the cases specified by Section 7 of the present Article, the 6 Umpires, or the 4, if the parties have agreed to that number, are to enter into discussion, without previous elimination of one of their number. In either of these cases, the arbitrators convoked for the purpose are immediately to enter upon the examination of the claim, or class of claim in question, and are to decide by a majority of voices, without appeal. The Record Keeper is to attend all the sittings, and to act as minute clerk.

If the Commission of Arbitration have not decided upon the class of a claim, though it has on a claim itself, such decision terminates the affair. If it has decided on the class of a claim, the case, provided that class be acknowledged as admissible, goes back to the Commission of Liquidation, for that Commission to determine on the admission of the individual claim, and the amount thereof, or refer it anew to a Commission of Arbitration of 5 or 3 Members.

Notification of Judgment to Commission of Liquidation.

Judgment being given, the Recorder is to notify to the Commission of Liquidation every such sentence, for the purpose of being inserted in their proceedings; as the said decisions are to be considered and acted upon as precedents by the Commission of Liquidation.

Limit of Duties of the Commissions.

It is to be well understood, that the Commissions appointed by virtue of the present Article, are not to extend their labours beyond the liquidation of the obligation specified by the present Treaty, and that of 30th May, 1814 (No. 1).

Reimbursement to France of Debts in Countries no longer belonging to France.

ART. VI.* The High Contracting Parties, desiring to see the full performance of Article XXI of the Treaty of Paris of 30th May, 1814 (No. 1), and, accordingly, determinate the mode of crediting France for such Debts, specially secured in their origin * See Convention of 25th April, 1818.

[2nd Peace of Paris. Private Claims on France.]

by mortgages upon countries which have ceased to form part of France, or otherwise contracted by their internal Administration, and which have been converted into Inscriptions in the Great Book of the National Debt of France, have agreed that the amount of the Capital which each of the Governments of the said respective countries may have to reimburse to France, shall be determined by the price which the funds may bear, on an average, between the day of the signature of the present Convention and the 1st January, 1816. This capital is to be made good to France, according to the statements which the Commission appointed by Article V of the present Convention shall draw up and settle every two months after the titles have been duly verified, on the strength of which the inscriptions have been made.

France to pay Dividends on Inscriptions for Debts on Mortgage on Immovables.

France is not to be reimbursed the amount of the Inscriptions arising from Debts secured by Mortgage on Immovables which the French Government have alienated, whatever be the nature of the said immovables, provided the purchasers thereof have paid the amount into the hands of the agents of the French Government, unless the said immovables should at present be (otherwise than by possession obtained unfairly during the continuance of the French Administration) in the hands either of the present Government, of public establishments, or of the former possessors. The French Government remains charged with the payment of the dividends on those Inscriptions.

Countervailing Accounts to be settled by Mutual Consent.

The Countervailing Accounts of what may become due to France in inscriptions, and the payments to which she has engaged herself by the present Convention, cannot be settled but with mutual consent, excepting for what follows in the succeeding Article.

Reductions from Countervailing Accounts.

ART. VII.* From these reimbursements shall be deducted:

1. The Interest on Inscriptions in the Great Book of the State, till the period of the 22nd December, 1813; also, the Interest which France may have paid subsequently to that period, shall, in like manner, be made good to her by the respective Govern

ments.

*See Convention of 25th April, 1819.

[2nd Peace of Paris. Private Claims on France.]

2. The capitals and interest secured by mortgage on immovables alienated by the French Government, although the said capitals have not yet been converted into Inscriptions in the Great Book of the Public Debt; provided, however, that on account of the present stipulation, nothing shall be done contrary to the laws or orders of the Government, which decreed forfeitures, &c., or in virtue of which the Debts were to become extinct to the benefit of France by way of "confusion," or of compensation.

Commission of Arbitration to be Appointed to settle Claim of Netherlands to Interest of Debt of Holland.

ART. VIII. The French Government having refused to recognise the claim of the Government of the Low Countries, relative to the payment of the Interest of the Debt of Holland, which may not have been paid for the half years of March and September, 1813, it is agreed to refer to a Commission of Arbitration the decision of the principle of the said question.

Composition of Commission.

This Commission is to be composed of 7 members, two of them to be named by the French Government, two by the Government of the Netherlands, and the three others to be chosen from the States decidedly neuter, and who have no interest in the question, such as Russia, Great Britain, Sweden, Denmark, and the Kingdom of Naples. The choice of these three last Commissioners is to be made in such manner, that one of them is to be named by the French Government, another by that of the Netherlands, and the third by the said two neutral Commissioners.

Oath to be taken by Commissioners.

The Commission is to meet at Paris, on the 1st of February, 1816. The members thereof are to take the same Oath to which the Commissioners of Arbitration are subject, as stated in Article V of the present Convention, to be administered in the same

manner.

Commissioners of Liquidation to submit their Opinions to the Arbitrators for Decision.

As soon as the Commission shall be constituted, the Commissioners of Liquidation of the two Powers shall each submit in