Mr. Crowe enquired why the Manchester Chamber would prefer no convention at all to the draft convention, without adequate protection for unregistered marks. Sir F. Forbes Adam answered that without this protection the remaining provisions of the convention would probably place Great Britain at a greater disadvantage than at present, since it would naturally be inferred that, as a convention has been executed ( without reference to "user" marks, this country attached no importance to them.
Mr. Crowe pointed out that, in the event of either Japanese or British subjects seeking the aid of the consular courts in China for the protection of registered marks, it must be predicated that the Japanese owner had registered in Great Britain, in which event the case would be tried in the British consular court and vice versa that the British owner had registered in Japan, in which event the case would be tried in the Japanese consular court.
Mr. Crowe explained why it was unlikely that Sir F. Lugard's draft convention would be accepted by the Japanese Government. He said that it was a matter of some delicacy to urge the Japanese to provide for protection for unregistered owners in China, seeing that in all our other arrangements and in the arrangements between Japan and America and Japan and France, only registered marks were protected. The inference drawn would be that we could not trust the Japanese as far as we were prepared to trust other nations, or even as far as other nations trusted the Japanese.
Anglo-Japanese Commercial Treaty.
With reference to the provision in the Japanese tariff that "the number of threads constituting the tissues shall be counted by elementary threads in the part where the greatest number of threads are used," Mr. Crowe said that he understood that a selvedge would not count, but a border would.
The committee agreed to Mr. Crowe's suggestion that, in the event of the Japanese consumption tax being officially discussed, the most equitable method of assessment would be as follows:-
1. As regards imported goods, to add two-thirds of import duty where the import duty was equivalent to 15 per cent. ad valorem to invoice value of the grey goods (before addition of import duty).
2. As regards Japanese productions, to add an ad valorem tax of 10 per cent.
Vote of Thanks.
On the motion of the chairman, seconded by the president, a cordial vote of thanks was passed to Mr. Crowe for his attendance and advice.
0
C O
JAPAN.
33739
[June 19.)
CONFIDENTIAL.
RECR
REGS 19 OCT 11
SECTION 1.
[23440]
Sir,
No. 1.
Foreign Ofce to Board of Trade,
43
AS the Board of Trade are aware, an informal meeting was held at the Colonial
Foreign Office, June 19, 1911. Office on the 26th July, 1910, to discuss the question of a convention between this country and Japan for the mutual protection of trade-marks in China,
As a result of this meeting, and with the concurrence of the Board, signified in their letter of the 15th October, 1910, a letter was addressed to the China Association, enclosing two drafts of the proposed convention for their observations. Since then the various Chambers of Commerce, with whom the association communicated on the subject, have expressed themselves as opposed in a convention other than that suggested by the Governor of Hong Kong at the meeting more or less degree to any of the 26th July already referred to. In this opinion the China Association have expressed their concurrence in the letter forwarded to you by this department on the 26th April last.
Before taking further action in the matter it was considered advisable that Mr. E. F. Crowe, commercial attaché to His Majesty's Embassy at Tokyo, should take advantage of his visit to the different Chambers of Commerce in this country to discuss the matter further.
The result of his interviews will be found in the enclosed memorandum,* upon which Sir E. Grey would be glad to receive the observations of the Board. seen that Mr. Crowe suggests the alteration of the proposed counter-draft by the It will be addition of certain words to article 1 and by the omission of articles 3 and 4.
I am, &c.
F. A. CAMPBELL.
* Mr. Crowe, June 7, 1911 [22440],
[2068 -1]
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