§ 585. In the interests of commerce and industry three Unions are in existence:—

(1) On July 5, 1890, the Convention of Brussels was signed for the purpose of creating an international Union for the Publication of Customs Tariffs.[976] The Union has an International Office[977] at Brussels, which publishes the customs tariffs of the various States of the globe. The members of the Union are at present the following States:—Great Britain, Germany, Argentina, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Chili, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Denmark, San Domingo, Ecuador, Egypt, France, Greece, Guatemala, Haiti, Holland, Honduras, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, Persia, Peru, Portugal, Roumania, Russia, Salvador, Servia, Siam, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the United States of America, Uruguay, and Venezuela.

(2) On March 20, 1883, the Convention of Paris[978] was signed for the purpose of creating an international Union for the Protection of Industrial Property. The original members were:—Belgium, Brazil, San Domingo, France, Holland, Guatemala, Italy, Portugal, Salvador, Servia, Spain, and Switzerland. Great Britain, Japan, Denmark, Mexico, the United States of America, Sweden-Norway, Germany, Cuba, and Austria-Hungary acceded later. This Union has an International Office[979] at Berne. The object of the Union is the protection of patents, trade-marks, and the like. On April 14, 1891, at Madrid, this Union agreed to arrangements concerning false indications of origin and the registration of trade-marks[980]; and an additional Act[981] was signed at Brussels on December 14, 1900. These later arrangements, however, are accepted only by certain States of the Union; Great Britain, for instance, is a party to the former but not to the latter.

(3) On March 5, 1902, the Convention of Brussels[982] was signed concerning the abolition of bounties on the production and exportation of sugar. The original parties were:—Great Britain, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, France, Germany, Holland, Italy, Spain, and Sweden; but Spain has never ratified. Luxemburg, Peru, and Russia acceded later. A Permanent Commission[983] was established at Brussels for the purpose of supervising the execution of the convention. An additional Act[984] was signed at Brussels on August 28, 1907.

§ 586. Three general conventions are in existence in the interest of Agriculture:—

(1) On June 7, 1905, the Convention for the Creation of an International Agricultural Institute[985] was signed at Rome by forty States. The Institute has its seat at Rome.

(2) Owing to the great damage done to grapes through phylloxera epidemics a general convention[986] for the prevention of the extension of such epidemics was concluded on September 17, 1878, at Berne. Its place was afterwards taken by the convention[987] signed at Berne on November 3, 1881. The original members were:—Austria-Hungary, France, Germany, Portugal, and Switzerland. Belgium, Italy, Spain, Holland, Luxemburg, Roumania, and Servia acceded later.

(3) On March 19, 1902, a general convention[988] was signed at Paris concerning the preservation of birds useful to agriculture. The parties are:—Germany, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, Spain, France, Greece, Luxemburg, Monaco, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland.

§ 587. Two general treaties are in existence with regard to the welfare of the working classes:—

(1) On September 26, 1906, was signed at Berne a convention[989] concerning the prohibition of the use of white phosphorus in the manufacture of matches. The original parties were:—Germany, Denmark, France, Holland, Luxemburg, Switzerland. Great Britain, Italy, Spain, and Tunis acceded later. To give effect to this convention in Great Britain, Parliament passed in 1908 the White Phosphorus Matches Prohibition Act (8 Edw. VII. c. 42).

(2) Likewise at Berne on September 26, 1906, was signed the convention[990] for the prohibition of night-work for women in industrial employment. The original parties are:—Great Britain, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, Spain, France, Luxemburg, Holland, Portugal, and Switzerland. Italy and Sweden, which had signed the convention, but had not ratified in time, acceded in 1910.

§ 588. One Union concerning weights and measures and two monetary Unions are in existence.

(1) In the interest of the unification and improvement of the metric system a general convention[991] was signed at Paris on May 20, 1875, for the purpose of instituting at Paris an International Office[992] of Weights and Measures. The original parties were:—Argentina, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, Brazil, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Peru, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Sweden-Norway, Switzerland, Turkey, the United States of America, and Venezuela; but Brazil has never ratified. Great Britain, Japan, Mexico, Roumania, and Servia acceded later.

(2) On December 23, 1865, Belgium, France, Italy, and Switzerland signed the Convention of Paris which created the so-called "Latin Monetary Union" between the parties; Greece acceded in 1868.[993] This convention was three times renewed and amended—namely, in 1878, 1885, and 1893.[994]

Another Monetary Union is that entered into by Denmark, Sweden, and Norway by the Convention of Copenhagen[995] of May 27, 1873.

On November 22, 1892, the International Monetary Conference[996] met at Brussels, where the following States were represented:—Great Britain, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Holland, Italy, Mexico, Portugal, Roumania, Spain, Sweden-Norway, Switzerland, Turkey, and the United States of America. The deliberations of this conference, however, had no practical result.

§ 589. On March 15, 1886, Belgium, Brazil, Italy, Portugal, Servia, Spain, Switzerland, and the United States of America signed at Brussels a convention[997] concerning the exchange of their official documents and of their scientific and literary publications in so far as they are edited by the Governments. The same States, except Switzerland, signed under the same date at Brussels a convention[998] for the exchange of their Journaux officiels ainsi que des annales et des documents parlementaires.

§ 590. In the interest of public health as endangered by cholera and plague a number of so-called sanitary conventions have been concluded:—

(1) On January 30, 1892, Great Britain, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, Denmark, Spain, France, Greece, Italy, Holland, Portugal, Russia, Sweden-Norway, and Turkey signed the International Sanitary Convention of Venice.[999]

(2) On April 15, 1893, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, France, Italy, Luxemburg, Montenegro, Holland, Russia, Switzerland signed the Cholera Convention of Dresden;[1000] but Montenegro has not ratified. Great Britain, Servia, Lichtenstein, and Roumania acceded later.

(3) On April 3, 1894, Great Britain, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, Denmark, Spain, France, Greece, Italy, Holland, Persia, Portugal, and Russia signed the Cholera Convention of Paris; an additional declaration was signed at Paris on October 30, 1897.[1001] Sweden-Norway acceded later.

(4) On March 19, 1897, Great Britain, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, Spain, France, Greece, Italy, Luxemburg, Montenegro, Turkey, Holland, Persia, Portugal, Roumania, Russia, Servia, and Switzerland signed the Plague Convention of Venice; an additional declaration was signed at Rome on January 24, 1900;[1002] but Greece, Turkey, Portugal, and Servia do not seem to have ratified. Sweden acceded later.

(5) For the purpose of revising the previous cholera and plague conventions and amalgamating them into one document, Great Britain, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, Brazil, Spain, the United States of America, France, Italy, Luxemburg, Montenegro, Holland, Persia, Portugal, Roumania, Russia, Switzerland, and Egypt signed on December 3, 1903, the International Sanitary Convention of Paris.[1003] Denmark, Mexico, Norway, Sweden, and Zanzibar acceded later. It is, however, of importance to mention that the previous sanitary conventions remain in force for those signatory Powers who do not become parties to this convention.

(6) For the purpose of organising the International Office of Public Health contemplated by the Sanitary Convention of Paris of December 3, 1903, Great Britain, Belgium, Brazil, Spain, the United States of America, France, Italy, Holland, Portugal, Russia, Switzerland, and Egypt signed at Rome on December 9, 1907, an agreement[1004] concerning the establishment of such an office at Paris;[1005] but it would seem that Holland and Portugal have not yet ratified. Argentina, Bulgaria, Mexico, Persia, Peru, Servia, Sweden, and Tunis acceded later.

§ 591. On November 29, 1906, Great Britain, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Spain, the United States of America, France, Greece, Italy, Luxemburg, Norway, Holland, Russia, Servia, Sweden, and Switzerland signed at Brussels an agreement concerning the Unification of the Pharmacopœial Formulas for Potent Drugs.[1006]

§ 592. In the interest of humanity two Unions—although the term "Union" is not made use of in the treaties—are in existence, namely, that concerning Slave Trade and that concerning the so-called White Slave Traffic.

(1) A treaty concerning slave trade[1007] was already in 1841 concluded between Great Britain, Austria, France, Prussia, and Russia. And article 9 of the General Act of the Berlin Congo Conference of 1885 likewise dealt with the matter. But it was not until 1890 that a Union for the suppression of the slave trade came into existence. This Union was established by the General Act[1008] of the Brussels Conference, signed on July 2, 1890, and possesses two International Offices,[1009] namely, the International Maritime Office at Zanzibar and the Bureau Spécial attached to the Foreign Office at Brussels. The signatory Powers are:—Great Britain, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, Congo Free State, Denmark, France, Germany, Holland, Italy, Persia, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Sweden-Norway, the United States of America, Turkey, and Zanzibar. Liberia acceded later.

(2) On May 18, 1904, an Agreement for the Suppression of the White Slave Traffic[1010] was signed at Paris by Great Britain, Germany, Belgium, Denmark, Spain, France, Italy, Holland, Portugal, Russia, Sweden-Norway, and Switzerland. Brazil and Luxemburg acceded later. A further Agreement concerning the subject was signed at Paris on May 4, 1910, by thirteen States, but has not yet been ratified.

§ 593. Two general treaties are in existence for the purpose of preserving certain animals in certain parts of the world:—

(1) In behalf of the preservation of wild animals, birds, and fish in Africa, the Convention of London[1011] was signed on May 19, 1900, by Great Britain, the Congo Free State, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, and Spain; Liberia acceded later. However, this convention has not yet been ratified.

(2) In behalf of the prevention of the extinction of the seals in the Behring Sea, the Pelagic Sealing Convention[1012] of Washington was signed on July 7, 1911, by Great Britain, the United States of America, Japan, and Russia, but has not yet been ratified.

§ 594. Various general treaties have been concluded for the purpose of establishing uniform rules concerning subjects of the so-called Private International Law:—

(1) Already on November 14, 1896, a general treaty concerning the conflict of laws relative to procedure in civil cases was concluded at the Hague. But this treaty was replaced by the Convention[1013] of the Hague of July 17, 1905, which is signed by Germany, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, Denmark, Spain, France, Italy, Luxemburg, Norway, Holland, Portugal, Roumania, Russia, Sweden, and Switzerland.

(2) On June 12, 1902, likewise at the Hague, were signed three conventions[1014] for the purpose of regulating the conflict of laws concerning marriage, divorce, and guardianship. The signatory Powers are Germany, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, Spain, France, Italy, Luxemburg, Holland, Portugal, Roumania, Sweden, and Switzerland.

(3) Again at the Hague, on July 17, 1905, were signed two conventions for the purpose of regulating the conflict of laws concerning the effect of marriage upon the personal relations and the property of husband and wife, and concerning the placing of adults under guardians or curators. The signatory Powers are Germany, France, Italy, Holland, Portugal, Roumania, and Sweden.[1015]

§ 595. The first Pan-American Conference held at Washington in 1889 created the International Union of the American Republics for prompt collection and distribution of commercial information.[1016] This Union of the twenty-one independent States of America established an International Office at Washington, called at first "The American International Bureau," but the fourth Pan-American Conference, held at Buenos Ayres in 1910, changed the name of the Office[1017] to "The Pan-American Union." At the same time this conference considerably extended[1018] the scope of the task of this Bureau to include, besides other objects, the function of a permanent commission of the Pan-American Conferences which has to keep the archives, to assist in obtaining the ratification of the resolutions and conventions adopted, to study or initiate projects to be included in the programme of the conferences, to communicate them to the several Governments, and to formulate the programme and regulations of each successive conference.

§ 596. In the interest of scientific research the following Unions[1019] have been established:—

(1) On October 30, 1886, Great Britain, Germany, Argentina, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, Denmark, Spain, the United States of America, France, Greece, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Norway, Holland, Portugal, Roumania, Russia, Sweden, and Switzerland signed a convention at Berlin for the purpose of creating an International Geodetic Association. Already in 1864 a number of States had entered at Berlin into an Association concerning geodetic work in Central Europe, and in 1867 the scope of the association was expanded to the whole of Europe, but it was not until 1886 that the geodetic work of the whole world was made the object of the Geodetic Association. The convention of 1886, however, was revised and a new convention was signed at Berlin on October 11, 1895.[1020] The Association, which arranges an international conference every three years, possesses a Central Office at Berlin.

(2) On July 28, 1903, was signed at Strasburg a convention for the purpose of creating an International Seismologic Association. This convention was revised on August 15, 1905, at Berlin.[1021] The following States are parties:—Great Britain, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Chili, Spain, the United States of America, France, Greece, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Norway, Holland, Portugal, Roumania, Russia, Servia, and Switzerland. The Association, which arranges an international conference at least once in every four years, has a Central Office at Strasburg.

(3) On May 11, 1901, a convention was signed at Christiania for the International Hydrographic and Biologic Investigation of the North Sea.[1022] The parties are Great Britain, Germany, Belgium, Denmark, Holland, Norway, Russia, and Sweden. The Association possesses a Central Office.

INDEX