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free, and shall not, in respect of commerce, be prohibited to anyone, it being, however, understood that the regulations established with regard to the police of this navigation shall be respected, as they will be framed alike for all and as favourable as possible to the commerce of all nations.”
These regulations are annexed, as act No. 16, to the General Treaty of the Congress of Vienna; and by articles 117 and 118 of that Treaty, act No. 16 is declared to have the same force and validity as if it were inserted word for word in the General Treaty.
Treaty of Vienna.
Articles 108 to 118 (inclusive).
In October 1815, the Netherlands became a party to these Act of October 30, engagements, by the act of accession to the General Treaty.
On the 19th April, 1839, treaties for the separation of Belgium from the Netherlands were concluded by the five Great Powers of Europe (a) with the Netherlands and (b) with Belgium. In pursuance of these treaties the Netherlands and Belgium concluded, on the same date and under the guarantee of the Great Powers, a treaty which is still in force, and of which article 9 (extract) is as follows:-
"Les dispositions des articles 108 jusqu'au 117, inclusivement, de l'Acte Général du Congrès de Vienne, relatives à la libre navigation des fleuves et rivières navigables, seront appliquées aux fleuves et rivières navigables qui séparent ou traversent à la fois le territoire Belge et le territoire Hollandais.
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•En ce qui concerne spécialement la navigation de l'Escaut et de ses embouchures, il est convenu que le pilotage et le balisage, ainsi que la conservation des passes de l'Escaut en aval d'Anvers, seront soumis à une surveillance commune, et que cette surveillance commune sera exercée par des commissaires nommés à cet effet de part et d'autre [viz., by Holland and Belgium]. Des droits de pilotage modérés seront fixés d'un commun accord, et ces droits seront les mêmes pour les navires de toutes les nations..
The article further contains stipulations regarding the tolls to be levied by the Dutch on the Scheldt; and the final section of the same article is as follows:-
"Si des évènements naturels, ou des travaux d'art, venaient par la suite à rendre impraticables les voies de navigation indiquées au présent article, le Gouvernement des Pays-Bas assignera à la navigation Belge d'autres voies aussi sûres et aussi bonnes et commodes, en replacement des dites voies de navigation devenues impraticables."
By the boundary treaty between the two States of the 5th November, 1842, it was stipulated that the Thalweg of the Scheldt should form the boundary between the Belgian province of Antwerp and the Dutch province of Zealand.
In 1863 (July and September) treaties were concluded between Belgium and certain maritime Powers, and Belgium and the Nether- lands, providing for the redemption of the Scheldt toll : in article 1 of the treaty concluded on the 16th July, 1863, it was expressly laid down that the suppression of the toll in no way affected the validity of the other arrangements of the Treaty of the 19th April, 1839 (vide supra).
1815.
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