416 



JAPAN. 



233,000 were effected 163,000 of which was 

 taken in London, and 70,000 in China. A treaty 

 of commerce and navigation between Italy and 

 Japan was signed on the 25th of August, and 

 was to go into operation on January 1, 1867. 



On June 25th the Japanese Government made 

 the following commercial convention with the 

 governments of the United States, Great Britain, 

 France, and Holland : 



The representatives of Great Britain, France, the 

 United States of America, and Holland, having re- 

 ceived from their respective governments identical 

 instructions for the modification of the tariff of im- 

 port and export duties, contained in the trade regu- 

 lations, annexed to the treaties concluded by the 

 aforesaid powers with the Japanese Government in 

 1858, which modification is provided for by the 7th 

 of those regulations : 



And the Japanese Government having given the 

 said representatives, during their visit to Osaka in 

 November, 1865, a written engagement to proceed 

 immediately to the revision of the tariff in question 

 on the general basis of a duty of five per cent, on 

 the value of all articles imported or exported : 



And the Government of Japan being desirous of 

 affording a fresh proof of their wish to promote 

 trade and to cement the friendly relations which 

 exist between their country and foreign nations : 



His Excellency Midzuno Idzumi no Kami, a mem- 

 ber of the Gorojiu and a Minister of Foreign Affairs, 

 had been furnished by the Government of Japan 

 with the necessary powers to conclude with the rep- 

 resentatives of the above-named four powers, that is 

 to say: of Great Britain, Sir Harry S. Parkes, 

 Knight Commander of the most honorable Order of 

 the Bath, her Britannic Majesty's envoy extraordinary 

 and minister plenipotentiary in Japan ; of France, 

 Monsieur Leon Eoches, commander of the Imperial 

 Order of the Legion of Honor, minister plenipoten- 

 tiary of his Majesty the Emperor of the French in 

 Japan ; of the United States of America, A. L. C. 

 Portman, Esq., chared? affaires, ad interim; and of 

 Holland, Monsieur Dirk de Graeff vail Polsbroek, 

 Knight of the Order of the Netherlands Lion, politi- 

 cal agent and consul-general of his Majesty the 

 King of the Netherlands. The following convention 

 comprising twelve articles : 



ART. 1. The contracting parties declare in the 

 names of their respective governments that they ac- 

 cept, and they hereby do formally accept as binding 

 on the citizens of their respective countries, and on 

 the subjects of their respective sovereigns the tariff 

 hereby established and annexed to th e present conven- 

 tion. This tariff is substituted not only for the origi- 

 nal tariff attached to the treaties concluded with the 

 above-named four powers, but also for the special 

 convention and arrangements relative to the same 

 tariff which has been entered into at different dates 

 up to this time between the Governments of Great 

 Britain, France, the United States, and Holland on 

 one side, and the Japanese Government on the other. 

 The new tariff shall come into effect in the port of 

 Kanagawa (Yokohama) on the 1st dav of July next, 

 and in the ports of Nangasika and Hakodate on the 

 first day of the following month. 



ART. 2. The tariff attached to this convention, 

 being incorporated from the date of its signature in 

 the treaties concluded between Japan and the above- 

 named four powers, is subject to revision on the 1st 

 day of July, 1872. Two years, however, after the 

 signing of the present convention, any of the con- 

 tracting parties, on giving six months' notice to the 

 others, may claim a readjustment of the duties on 

 tea and silk on the basis of five per cent, on the 

 average value of those articles during the three years 

 last preceding. On the demand, also, of any of the 

 contracting partiss, the duty on timber may be 



changed from an ad valorem to a specific rate six 

 months after the signature of this convention. 



ART. 3. The permit fee, hitherto levied under tho 

 sixth regulation attached to the above-named treat- 

 ies, is hereby abolished. Permits for the lading or 

 shipment of cargo will bo required as formeily, but 

 will hereafter be issued free of 'charge. 



ART. 4. On and from the 1st day of July next, at 

 the port of Kanagawa (Yokohama), and on and from 

 the 1st day of October next, at the ports of Nangasaki, 

 and Hakodate, the Japanese Government will be pre- 

 pared to warehouse imported goods, on the applica- 

 tion of the importer or owner, without payment of 

 duty. The Japanese Government will be responsible 

 for the safe custody of the goods, so long as they re- 

 main in their charge, and will adopt all the precau- 

 tions necessary to render them insurable against fire. 

 When the importer or the owner wishes to remove 

 the goods from the warehouse, he must pay the du- 

 ties fixed by the tariff; but if he should wish to re- 

 export them he may do so without payment of duty. 

 Storage charges will in either case be paid on deliv- 

 ery of the goods. The amount of these charges, to- 

 gether with the regulations necessary for the man- 

 agement of said warehouses, will be established by 

 the common consent of the contracting parties. 



ART. 5. All articles of Japanese production may be 

 conveyed from any place in Japan to any of the ports 

 open to foreign trade, free of any tax or transit duty 

 other than the usual tolls, levied equally on all traffic, 

 for the maintenance of roads or navigation. 



ART. 6. In conformity with those articles of the 

 treaties concluded between Japan and foreign powers, 

 which stipulate for the circulation of foreign coin at 

 its corresponding weight in native. coin of the same 

 description, dollars have hitherto been received at 

 the Japanese custom-house in payment of duties at 

 their weight in boos (commonly called Itchiboos), 

 that is to say, at a rate of 311 boos per 100 dollars. 

 The Japanese government being, however, desirous 

 to alter this practice and to -abstain from all inter- 

 ference in the exchange of native for foreign coin, 

 and being also anxious to meet the wants both of 

 native and foreign commerce, by securing an ade- 

 quate issue of native coin, have already determined 

 to enlarge the Japanese mint so as to 'admit of the 

 Japanese government exchanging into native coin of 

 the same intrinsic value, less only the cost of coin- 

 age, at the places named for this purpose, all foreign 

 coin or bullion in gold or silver that may at any time 

 be tendered to them by foreigners or Japanese. It 

 being essential, however, to the execution of this 

 measure, that the various powers with whom Japan 

 has concluded treaties should first consent to modify 

 the stipulations in those treaties which relate to the 

 currency, the Japanese government will at once pro- 

 pose to those powers the adoption of the necessary 

 modification in the said stipulations, and on receiv- 

 ing their concurrence, will be prepared from the 1st 

 of January, 1868, to carry the above measure into 

 effect. The rates to be charged as the cost of coinage 

 shall be determined hereafter, by the common con- 

 sent of the contracting parties. 



ART. 7. In order to put a stop to certain abuses 

 and inconveniences complained of at open ports rela- 

 tive to the transaction of business at the custom- 

 house, the landing and shipping of cargoes, and the 

 hiring of boats, coolies, servants, etc., the contract- 

 ing parties have agreed that the governor at each 

 open port shall at once enter into negotiations with 

 the foreign consuls, with a view to the establishment, 

 by mutual consent, of such regulations as shall effect- 

 ually put an end to those abuses and inconveniences, 

 and afford all possible facility and security both to 

 the operations of trade and to the transactions of in- 

 dividuals. It is hereby stipulated, that, in order to 

 protect merchandise from exposure to weather, these 

 regulations shall include the covering in at each port 

 of'one or more of the landing places used by foreign- 

 ers for landing or shipping cargo. 



