Directory_and_Chronicle_1879 — Page 775

RULES FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF BRITISH SUBJECTS IN SIAM.

RULES AND REGULATIONS FOR THE PEACE, ORDER, AND GOOD

GOVERNMENT OF HER BRITANNIC MAJESTY'S

SUBJECTS IN SIAM.

285-

Art. I.-Her Britannic Majesty's Consulate-office shall be open for the transac- tion of public business from 10 o'clock A.M. to 4 o'clock P.M. daily, excepting Sundays and those holidays upon which offices in England are closed.

Art. II.-British subjects intending to reside within the dominions of the Kings of Siam, are required, in conformity with the 5th article of the Treaty concluded between Her Majesty and the Kings of Siam, to enrol themselves in the register of British residents kept for that purpose at the Consulate. Failing to do so within fourteen days after their arrival, without there is valid reason to account for the omission, they are not entitled, conformably to the Order of Her Majesty in Council, dated at the Court of Osborne House, Isle of Wight, the 28th day of July, 1856, to protection under the Consul's authority.

British subjects on leaving Siam as a residence are equally required to report themselves at the Consulate, at least forty-eight hours before their departure.

Seamen borne on the muster-roll of a British vessel are exempt from this obligation. Art. III.-In compliance with the Order of Her Majesty in Council, dated the 1st of May, 1858, a register of all births and deaths occurring amongst British subjects in Siam is kept at the Consulate. The registration fee of each case is two shillings and sixpence.

The period in which such registration can take place after the occurrence of the event in foreign countries has been fixed by Her Majesty's Government to be seven years; this being the utmost limit that can be allowed for such registration.

Art. IV. In the event of a sudden death, either by accident or otherwise amongst the subjects of Her Majesty residing here, it must forthwith be reported at Her Majesty's Consulate, in order that such measures may be taken as the circumstances require.

Art. V.-British subjects in Siam desiring to trade beyond the limits stipulated by the Treaty, must apply for a passport to the Consulate a reasonable time before their intended departure; as that document must be countersigned by the proper Siamese authority.

Persons travelling without a pass render themselves liable to be treated as de- serters, and will be detained at the government stations in the interior until the case having been reported to the Consul, instructions on the subject have been received.

Art. VI. In all cases of loss of British property by theft or fraud, assault or felony, whether committed on shore or on board of a British vessel in harbour, the occurrence must be forthwith reported at the Consulate-office, and in cases of theft, peculation, or assault where British and Siamese subjects are both concerned, a Siamese, if guilty of any criminal act, may be conveyed to Her Majesty's Consulate, provided there is no responsible officer of his country at hand to whom the offender might be delivered. But British subjects will not be permitted to use violence to Siamese offenders, or take steps for the redress of their grievances, under peril of rendering themselves liable for the prosecution of an assault.

Art. VII.-It is strictly forbidden a British subject, whether permanently or temporarily residing in Bangkok, or in any other part of Siam, to enter the precincts of a Wat or Siamese Temple for the purpose of shooting pigeons or other birds; nor is it permitted to injure the edifices, or the symbols of Siamese worship of their tombs, or to damage any of the trees and shrubs within the last. Any infringement of this rule will subject the offender to a fine not exceeding twenty pounds, or in default of such payment, to imprisonment in the Consular gaol for a period not exceeding one month, with or without hard labour.