[This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.]
C.O.
CONFIDENTIAL.
238(3495)
32464
[July 23.]
SECTION 1.
RECEIVED 1 SEP 36
No. 1.
593
Sir Edward Grey to Mr. Carnegie,
Foreign Office, July 23, 1906.
ON the receipt of Sir E. Satow's despatch No. 351 of the 26th October, 1905, relative to the Trade-mark Regulations in China, a despatch, copy of which is inclosed, was addressed to His Majesty's Ambassador at Washington on the subject.
The attention of Sir M. Durand has been called to the correspondence between American and German Ministers at Peking in which Mr. Rockhill has objected to a provision in the new draft Regulations by which applications for registration of trade-marks made before the new Regulations come into force are to be considered as having been presented on the day those Regulations come into force, and Sir Mortimer has been instructed to bring Sir E. Satow's explanation as to how the rights of owners of trade-marks may be affected by the exemption of such applications from the provisions of Article 25 to the notice of the United States' Government, and to express the hope that they would see their way to withdraw their objections.
In reply to the representations addressed to them, the United States' Government stated that twenty applications for the registration of trade-marks had been made by American firms in China, and it was feared that the interests of the applicants might suffer if section 25 came into force. The United States' Government therefore proposed an amendment to the section.
In informing the Board of Trade of the proposed amendment, it was pointed out then that it was not evident in what way it would safeguard the rights of parties who might have good ground for opposing the applications of the twenty United States' firms referred to. It was suggested for the consideration of the Board that the difficulty of protecting the priority of rights of those citizens and the rights of British subjects who wish to oppose their applications might possibly be met by making the period during which opposition might be made to the applications date from the time when the Regulations come into force.
On the 9th July the Board of Trade reported that they had been in communication with the Chambers of Commerce at Manchester, Glasgow, and Liverpool and with the China Association in regard to the amendment proposed by the United States' Government and to the alternative suggestion in the letter from this Office; and that the bodies named were of opinion that the interests of British subjects and trade would be best served by allowing Article 25 of the draft Regulations to remain in its actual shape, an opinion in which the Board of Trade concurred. No reference had been made by the Chambers of Commerce or the Association to the alternative suggestion, and the Board stated that they were themselves in some doubt as to its real effect when adopted.
I transmit herewith copies of the correspondence referred to,* and would be glad to be favoured with your observations before sending a reply to Sir M. Durand in regard to the proposal made by the United States' Government.
I am, &c.
(Signed)
EDWARD GREY.
Sir M. Durand, No. 5, January 10; Sir M. Durand, No. 31, February 22; to Board of Trade, and Board of Trade, July 9, 1906. 2081 z-1]