James C. Morton to Frederick T. Frelinghuysen, November 10, 1883

No. 146. Mr. Morton to Mr. Frelinghuysen.

Sir: Referring to your telegram of September 26, authorizing Mr. Vignaud and myself to attend the conference for the protection of submarine cables, and also to your No. 359 of October 1, inclosing our formal powers to negotiate, conclude and sign the same subject to the ratification of the President of the United States, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, I have the honor to send herewith a joint report of Mr. Vignaud and myself reporting our action in the conference, and transmitting a copy of the convention as signed on the 26th of October.

I have, &c.,

Draft-convention.

preamble.

The high contracting parties, desiring to insure the maintenance of telegraphic communication by means of submarine cables, have resolved to conclude a convention for the purpose, and have named, &c.

Article I.

The present convention applies outside territorial waters to all legally established cables landed on the territories, colonies, or possessions of one or more of the high contracting parties.

Article II.

It is a punishable offense to break or injure a submarine cable willfully or by culpable negligence, so as to interrupt or obstruct telegraphic communication, either wholly or partially, such punishment being without prejudice to any civil action for damages.

This provision does not apply to cases where those who break or injure a cable do so with the lawful object of saving their lives or their ship, after they have taken every necessary precaution to avoid so breaking or injuring the cable.

Article III.

The high contracting parties undertake that, on granting a concession for landing a submarine cable, they will insist upon proper peasures of safety being taken, both as regards the track of the cable and its dimensions.

Article IV.

The owner of a cable who, on laying or repairing his own cable, breaks or injures another cable, must bear the cost of repairing the breakage or injury, without prejudice to the application, if need be, of Article II of the present convention.

Article V.

Vessels engaged in laying or repairing submarine cables shall conform to the regulations as to signals which have been or may be adopted by mutual agreement among the high contracting parties, with the view of preventing collisions at sea.

When a ship engaged in repairing a cable exhibits the said signals, other vessels which see them shall withdraw to or keep beyond a distance of one nautical mile at least from the ship in question, so as not to interfere with her operations.

Fishing gear and nets shall be kept at the same distance.

Nevertheless fishing vessels which see or are able to see a telegraph ship exhibiting the said signals, shall be allowed a period of twenty-four hours at most within which to obey the notice so given, during which time she shall not be interfered with in any way.

The operations of the telegraph ships shall be completed as quickly as possible.

Article VI.

Vessels which see or are able to see the buoys, showing the position of a cable when the latter is being laid, is out of order, or is broken, shall keep beyond a distance of one-quarter of a nautical mile at least from the said buoys.

Fishing nets and gear shall be kept at the same distance.

Article VII.

Owners of ships or vessels who, can prove that they have sacrificed an anchor, a net, or other fishing, gear in order to avoid injuring a submarine cable, shall receive compensation from the owners of the cable.

To be entitled to such compensation a statement, supported by the evidence of the crew, must, whenever possible, be drawn up immediately after the occurrence, and the master must, within twenty-four hours after arriving at his destination, or on next putting into a port, make a declaration to the proper authorities.

The latter shall communicate the information to the consular authorities of the country to which the owner of the cable belongs.

Article VIII.

The tribunals competent to take cognizance of infractions of the present convention are those of the country to which the vessel on board which the offense was committed belongs.

It is moreover understood that in cases where the provisions in the previous paragraph cannot apply, offenses against the present convention will be dealt with in each of the contracting states in accordance, so far as the subjects and citizens of those states respectively are concerned, with the general rules of competence prescribed by the municipal laws of that state or by international treaties.

Article IX.

Prosecutions for infractions provided against by Articles II, V, and VI of the present convention shall be instituted by the state or in its name.

Article X.

Offenses against the present convention may be verified by all means of proof allowed by the laws of the country of the court of competent jurisdiction. When the officers commanding the ships of war, or ships specially commissioned for the purpose by one of the high contracting parties, have reason to believe that an infraction of the measures provided for in the present convention has been committed by a vessel other than a vessel of war, they may demand from the captain or master the production of the official documents proving the nationality of the said vessel. The fact of such document having been exhibited shall then be indorsed upon it immediately. Further formal statements of the fact of any offense may be prepared by the said officer whatever may be the nationality of the vessel on board of which the offense has been committed. These formal statements shall be drawn up in the form and in the language used in the country to which the officer making them belongs; they may be considered as evidence in the country where they are adduced in accordance with the laws of that country. The accused and the witnesses shall have the right to add or to have added thereto, in their own language, any explanations they may consider useful. These declarations shall be duly signed.

Article XI.

The proceedings and trial in cases of infraction of the provisions of the present convention shall take place as summarily as the laws and regulations in force will permit.

Article XII.

The high contracting parties engage to take or to propose to their respective legislatures the necessary measures for insuring the execution of the present convention, and especially for punishing by either fine or imprisonment, or both, those who contravene the provisions of Articles II, V, and VI.

Article XIII.

The high contracting parties will communicate laws already made, or which may hereafter be made, in their respective countries, relating to the object of the present convention.

Article XIV.

States which have not signed the present convention may adhere to it on making a request to that effect. This adhesion shall be notified diplomatically to the Government of the French Republic, and by the latter to the other signatory powers.

Article XV.

The present convention shall be brought into force on a day to be agreed upon by the high contracting parties.

It shall remain in force for five years from that day, and unless any of the high contracting parties have announced twelve months before, the expiration of the said period of five years, its intention to terminate its operation, it shall continue in force for a period of four years, and so on from year to year.

If one of the signatory powers denounce the convention, such denunciation shall have effect only as regards that power.

Article XVI.

The present convention shall be ratified, and the ratification exchanged at Paris, with as little delay as possible, and, at the latest, at the expiration of a year after the signature thereof.

Additional Article.

The stipulations of the present convention shall be applicable, in conformity with Article I, to the colonies and possessions of Her Britannic Majesty, with the exception of those hereinafter mentioned, namely, Canada, Newfoundland, the Cape, Natal, New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Tasmania, South Australia, Western Australia, New Zealand: provided always, that the stipulations of the present convention shall be applicable to any of the above-named colonies or possessions on whose behalf notice to that effect shall have been given by Her Britannic Majesty’s representative at Paris to the French minister of foreign affairs.

Each of the above-named colonies or foreign possessions which may have acceded to the present convention shall be at liberty to withdraw from it in the same manner as the powers parties to it. In the event of any of the said colonies or possessions desiring to withdraw from the convention, a notification to that effect shall be made by Her Britannic Majesty’s representative at Paris to the French minister for foreign affairs.

recommendations.

The conference recommends that the different Governments should decide in what case or under what conditions the persons guilty of breaking or of injuring submarine cables either on the high seas or within territorial waters shall be punished or surrendered if they have escaped from the jurisdiction of the competent authorities.

The conference further recommends that the powers should agree as soon as possible upon the adoption of signals to be exhibited by vessels laying or repairing submarine cables, with a view of avoiding all doubt as to the nature of their operations.

The conference recommends finally that the different Governments should take measures to cause the direction of submarine cables to be indicated by beacons placed on the coasts, and that, by international agreement, a uniform type of beacons and buoys should be adopted for the submarine telegraph service.