Taking into consideration that by Article XIX of that Convention the High Contracting Parties have. reserved to themselves the right of concluding Agreements, with a view to referring to arbitration all questions which they shall consider possible to submit to such treatment, Have authorized the Undersigned to conclude the following arrange ment: ARTICLE I Differences which may arise of a legal nature, or relating to the interpretation of Treaties existing between the two Contracting Parties, and which it may not have been possible to settle by diplomacy, shall be referred to the Permanent Court of Arbitration established at The Hague by the Convention of the 29th July, 1899, provided, nevertheless, that they do not affect the vital interests, the independence, or the honour of the two Contracting States, and do not concern the interests of third Parties. Considerando que por el Articulo XIX de dicho Convenio las Altas Partes Contratantes se han reservado la facultad de celebrar acuerdos con el objeto de recurrir al arbitrage en todos los casos que ellas juzguen posible someter á tal procedimiento, Han autorizado á los Infrascritos á convenir en las disposiciones siguientes: ARTICULO I Las diferencias de indole juridica ó relativas á la interpretación de los Tratados existentes entre las dos Partes Contratantes que llegasen á surgir entre ellas, y que no hubiese sido posible arreglar por la via diplomática, serán sometidas al Tribunal Permanente de Arbitrage instituido en el Haya por el Convenio de 29 de Julio, 1899, á condición sin embargo de que tales diferencias no afecten á los intereses vitales, la independencia ó el honor de los dos Estados Contratantes y que no conciernen á los intereses de terceras Potencias. Considérant que par l'article 19 de la dite convention, les Hautes Parties contractantes se sont réservé le droit de conclure des accords en vue d'en référer à l'arbitrage pour toutes les questions qu'elles considéreront comme susceptibles d'être ainsi solutionnées, Ont autorisé les soussignés de conclure l'accord suivant : ARTICLE I Les contestations d'un caractère juridique ou relatives à l'interprétation des traités entre les parties contractantes, qui viendraient à se produire entre elles et qui n'auraient pu être réglées par la voie diplomatique, devront être soumises à la Cour permanente d'arbitrage instituée à La Haye par la Convention du 29 juillet 1899, à condition toutefois qu'elles ne touchent pas les intérêts vitaux, l'indépendance et l'honneur des deux Parties contractantes et ne concernent pas les intérêts de tierces Puis sances. Dans chaque cas particulier, les Hautes Parties contractantes, avant d'appeler à la Cour Permanente d'Arbitrage, concluront une convention spéciale définissant clairement l'objet de la contestation, l'étendue des pouvoirs des arbitres, et les délais à observer, en ce qui concerne la constitution du Tribunal Arbitral, et les différentes phases de la procédure. ARTICLE III Le présent accord est conclu pour une durée de 5 ans à partir du jour de sa signature. Fait à Londres, en double exemplaire, le 27 février 1904. Convention concernant l'emploi de la main-d'œuvre chinoise dans les colonies et protectorats britanniques. (13 mai 1904) Texte original (') Convention between the United Kingdom and China respecting the Employment of Chinese Labour in British Colonies and Protectorates. Signed at London, May 13, 1904. Whereas a Convention between Her Majesty Queen Victoria and His Majesty the Emperor of China was signed at Peking on the 24th October, 1860, by Article V of which His Imperial Majesty the Emperor of China consented to allow Chinese subjects, wishing to take service in British Colonies or other parts beyond the Seas, to enter into engagements with British subjects, and to ship themselves and their families on board of British vessels at the open ports of China in conformity with Regulations to be drawn up between the two Governments for the protection of such emigrants: And whereas the aforesaid Regulations have not hitherto been framed, His Majesty the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and of the British Dominions beyond the Seas, Emperor of India, and His Majesty the Emperor of China have accordingly appointed the following as their respective Plenipotentiaries, that is to say: His Majesty the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and of the British Dominions beyond the Seas, Emperor of India, the Most Honourable Henry Charles Keith Petty-Fitzmaurice, Marquess of Lansdowne, His Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs; and His Majesty the Emperor of China, Chang Têh-Yih, Brevet LieutenantGeneral of the Chinese Imperial Forces, His Imperial Majesty's Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary at the Court of His Majesty the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and of the British Dominions beyond the Seas, Emperor of India ; And the said Plenipotentiaries having met and communicated to each other their respective full powers, and found them in good and due form have agreed upon and concluded the following Articles : ARTICLE I As the Regulations to be framed under the above-mentioned Treaty were intended to be of a general character, it is hereby agreed that on each occasion when indentured emigrants are required for a particular British Colony or Protectorate beyond the seas, His Britannic Majesty's (1) La traduction française de cette convention sera donnée dans la suite dans les Archives Diplomatiques. Minister in Peking shall notify the Chinese Government, stating the name of the particular Colony or Protectorate for which the emigrants are required, the name of the Treaty port at which it is inteded to embark them, and the terms and conditions on which they are to be engaged; the Chinese Government shall thereupon, without requiring further formalities, immediately instruct the local authorithies at the specified Treaty port to take all the steps necessary to facilitate emigration. The notification herein referred to shall only be required once in the case of each Colony or Protectorate, except when emigration under indenture to that Colony or Protectorate from the specified Treaty port has not taken place during the preceding three years. ARTICLE II On receipt of the instructions above referred to, the Taotai at the port shall at once appoint an officer, to be called the Chinese Inspector, who, together with the British Consular Officer at the port, or his Delegate, shall make known by Proclamation and by means of the native press the text of the Indenture which the emigrant will have to sign, and any particulars of which the Chinese officer considers it essential that the emigrant shall be informed, respecting the country to which the emigrant is to proceed, and respecting its laws. ARTICLE III The British Consular Officer at the port, or his Delegate, shali confer with the Chinese Inspector as to the location and installation of the offices and other necessary buildings, hereinafter called the Emigration Agency, which shall be erected or fitted up by the British Government, and at their expense, for the purpose of carrying on the business of the engagement and shipment of the emigrants, and in which the Chinese Inspector and his staff shall have suitable accommodation for carrying on their duties. ARTICLE IV 1. There shall be posted up in conspicuous places throughout the Emigration Agency, and more especially in that part of it called the Depôt, destined for the reception of intending emigrants, copies of the Indenture to be entered into with the emigrant, drawn up in the English and Chinese languages, together with copies of the special Ordinance, if any, relating to immigration into the particular Colony or Protectorate for which the emigrants are required. 2. There shall be kept a Register in English and in Chinese, in which the names of intending indentured emigrants shall be inscribed, and in this Register there shall not be inscribed the name of any person who is under 20 years of age, unless he shall have produced proof of his having obtained the consent of his parents or other lawful guardians to emigrate, or, in default of these, of the Magistrate of the district to which he belongs. After signature of the Indenture according to the Chinese manner, the emigrant shall not be permitted to leave the Depôt, previously to his embarkation, without a pass signed by the Chinese Inspector, and countersigned by the British Consular Officer or his Delegate, unless he shall have, through the Chinese Inspector, renounced his agreement and withdrawn his name from the register of emigrants. 3. Before the sailing of the ship each emigrant shall be carefully examined by a qualified Medical Officer nominated by the British Consular Officer or his Delegate. The emigrants shall be paraded before the British Consular Officer or his Delegate and the Chinese Inspector or his Delegate, and questioned with a view to ascertain their perfect understanding of the Indenture. ARTICLE V All ships employed in the conveyance of indentured emigrants from China under this Convention shall engage and embark them only at a Treaty port, and shall comply with the Regulations contained in the Schedule hereto annexed and forming part of the Convention. ́ ARTICLE VI For the better protection of the emigrant, and of any other Chinese subject who may happen to be residing in the Colony or Protectorate to which the emigration is to take place, it shall be competent to the Emperor of China to appoint a Consul or Vice-Consul to watch over their interests and well-being, and such Consul or Vice-Consul shall have all the rights and privileges accorded to the Consuls of other nations. ARTICLE VII Every Indenture entered into under the present Articles shall clearly specify the name of the country for which the labourer is required, the duration of the engagement, and, if renewable, on wat terms, the number of hours of labour per working day, the nature of the work, the rate of wages and mode of payment, the rations, clothing, the grant of a free passage out, and, where such is provided for therein, a free passage back to the port of embarkation in China for himself and family, right to free medical attendance and medicines, whether in the Colony or Protectorate or on the voyage from and to the port of embarkation in China, and any other advantages to which the emigrant shall be entitled. The Indenture may also provide that the emigrant shall, if considered necessary by the medical authorities, be vaccinated on his arrival at the Depôt, and, in the event of such vaccination being unsuccessful, revaccinated on board ship. ARTICLE VIII The Indenture shall be signed, or in cases of illiteracy marked, by the emigrant after the Chinese manner, in the presence of the British Consular Officer or his Delegate and of the Chinese Inspector or his Delegate, who shall be responsible to their respective Governments for its provisions having been clearly and fully explained to the emigrant previous to |