676825-1883-Treaty-with-Italy- — Page 3

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THE HONGKONG GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, 15TH SEPTEMBER, 1883. 761

If any ship of war or merchant-vessel of one of the Contracting Parties should run aground or be wrecked upon

the coasts of the other, such ship or vessel, and all parts thereof, and all furniture and appurtenances belonging thereunto, and all goods and merchandize saved therefrom, including any which may

have been cast into the sea, or the proceeds thereof if sold, as well as all papers found on board such stranded or wrecked ship or vessel, shall be given up to the owners or their agents when claimed by them. If there are no such owners or agents on the spot, then the same shall be delivered to the British or Italian Consul-General, Consul, Vice-Consul, or Consular Agent in whose district the wreck or stranding may have taken place, upon being claimed by him within the period fixed by the laws of the country; and such Consuls, owners, or agents shall pay only the expenses incurred in the preservation of the property, together with the salvage or other expenses which would have been payable in the like case of a wreck of a national vessel.

The goods and merchandize saved from the wreck shall be exempt from all duties of Customs, unless cleared for consumption, in which case they shall pay the same rate of duty as if they had been imported in a national vessel.

In the case either of a vessel being driven in by stress of weather, run aground, or wrecked, the respective Consuls-General, Consuls, Vice-Consuls, and Consular Agents shall, if the owner or master or other agent of the owner is not present, or is present and requires it, be authorized to interpose in order to afford the necessary assistance to their fellow-countrymen.

ARTICLE X.

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All vessels which, according to British law, are to be deemed British vessels, and all vessels which, according to Italian law, are be deemed Italian vessels, shall, for the purposes of this Treaty, be deemed British and Italian vessels respectively.

ARTICLE XI.

The Contracting Parties agree that, in all inatters relating to commerce and navigation, any privilege, favour, or immunity whatever which either Contracting Party has actually granted or may hereafter grant to the subjects or citizens of any other State shall be extended immediately and unconditionally to the subjects or citizens of the other Contracting Party; it being their intention that the trade and navigation of each country shall be placed, in all repects, by the other on the footing of the most favoured nation.

ARTICLE XII.

It shall be free to each of the Contracting Parties to appoint Consuls-General, Consuls, Vice- Consuls, and Consular Agents to reside in the towns and ports of the dominions and possessions of the other. Such Consuls-General, Consuls, Vice-Consuls, and Consular Agents, however, shall not enter upon their functions until after they shall have been approved and admitted in the usual form by the Government to which they are sent. They shall enjoy all the faculties, privileges, exemptions, and immunities of every kind which are or shall be granted to Consuls of the most favoured nation.

ARTICLE XIII.

The subjects of each of the Contracting Parties who shall conform themselves to the laws of the country-

1. Shall have füll liberty, with their families, to enter, travel, or reside in any part of the dominions and possessions of the other Contracting Party.

2. They shall be permitted to hire or possess the houses, manufactories, warehouses, shops, and premises which may be necessary for them.

3. They may carry on their commerce either in person or by any agents whom they may think fit to employ.

4. They shall not be subject in respect of their persons or property, or in respect of passports, nor in respect of their commerce or industry, to any taxes, whether general or local, or to imposts or obligations of any kind whatever other or greater than those which are or may be imposed upon native subjects.

ARTICLE XIV.

The subjects of each of the Contracting Parties in the dominions and possessions of the other shall be exempted from all compulsory military service whatever, whether in the army, navy, or national guard, or militia. They shall be equally exempted from all judicial and municipal functions whatever, other than those imposed by the laws relating to juries, as well as from all contributions, whether pecuniary or in kind, imposed as a compensation for personal service, and finally from every species of exaction or military requisition. The duties and charges connected with the ownership or leasing of lands and other real property are, however, excepted, as well as all exactions or military requisitions to which all subjects of the country may be liable as owners or lessees of real property.