990
(Extract.)
THE HONGKONG GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, 30TH OCTOBER, 1886.
No. 25.
Mr. Adams to Earl Granville.--(Received September 25.)
Berne, September 23, 1884.
THE International Copyright Conference which has been held this month in Berne, and which finally adopted the title of "Conférence Internationale pour la Protection des Droits d'Auteur," finished its labours on the 19th instant. My despatch of the 13th brings my Report of the proceedings up to
the 11th inclusive.
The full Committee held altogether six sittings, and two Sub-Committees of five members each were appointed, one a "Commission de Rédaction," and the other a special Committee with reference to the organization of the proposed International Bureau.
The result was that the Full Committee submitted to the Conference at its fifth sitting on the afternoon of the 17th the following five documents
I. Projet de Convention concernant la création d'une Union générale pour la protection des droits d'auteur.
II. Article Additionnel à la Convention précitée.
III. Protocole de Clôture.
IV. Principes recommandés pour une unification ultérieure.
V. Procès-verbal final de la Conférence.
A long discussion ensued which is fully recorded in the procès-verbal of the sitting.*
I wish more particularly to refer to the fifth of the above documents. It was agreed, in order to allow certain members of the Conference to leave Berne on the afternoon of the 18th, that this final procès-verbal should be signed on that day. By my telegram of the 17th to your Lordship, I expressed the hope that I might be allowed to sign this document, which simply submitted and recommended to the Governments the Articles forming a draft Convention, and which gave utterance to certain wishes, without binding the Governments in any way. Your Lordship was kind enough, by your telegram of the same day, to accede to my request, on the distinct understanding that Her Majesty's Govern- ment would not be bound by any conclusions arrived at in the Conference.
Both the Dutch Delegate and I have made it clearly to be understood on several occasions that we were present at the Conference with the main object of listening and reporting ad referendum, and that we had no power to bind our Governments. Our position has been all through accepted by the 'other members of the Conference, and, indeed, even those who have taken the most active part in the proceedings acknowledge that they can only submit the result of the deliberations for the approval of their Governments, and, as they hope, for their adoption by those Governments.
It was then agreed that, out of respect for the represented Governments, publicity should not be given to the decisions of the Conference before the 1st November. It was, however, allowed to the Bureau to make, for the use of the press, a succinct résumé of the principal Resolutions to be submitted to the Governments for their examination.
During this sixth sitting speeches were made by the President, M. Droz, by the French Ambas-- sador, M. Arago, by the German Delegate, M. Reichardt, and by M. Ulbach; and at a seventh and final sitting on the 19th the Conference was brought to a close, after discussion and adoption of the remaining procès-verbaux.
Inclosure 1 in No. 25. (Translation.)
IA.--Draft of Convention respecting the Formation of a General Union for the Protection of
**
the Rights of Authors.
(Enumeration of the High Contracting Parties.)
*
*
*
equally animated by the desire of protecting effectively, and in as uniform a manner as possible, the rights of authors in literary and artistic works,
Have resolved to conclude a Convention for this purpose, and have named as their Plenipoten- tiaries, that is to say:
Who, after having communicated to each other their respective full powers, found in good and due form, have agreed upon the following Articles :-
ARTICLE I.
The Contracting Countries are constituted into an Union for the protection of the rights of authors in literary and artistic works.
* Not printed.
7
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.