Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, Transmitted to Congress, With the Annual Message of the President, December 7, 1874
No. 39.
Mr. Jones
to Mr. Fish.
Brussels, December 28, 1873. (Received Jan. 15, 1874.)
Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your dispatch of the 10th instant, No. 148, and to inclose herewith copy of a bill introduced by the government relative to the transportation of emigrants.
Very respectfully, &c.,
Bill respecting the transportation of emigrants.
Article 1. No one shall undertake to engage or transport emigrants without the authorization of the minister of foreign affairs.
Art. 2. Such authorization shall be granted only on the condition that such security be previously furnished as shall serve as a pledge for the fulfillment of the obligations entailed by the contract for transportation, and for the payment, with assignment, of the insurance premium.
Art. 3. Emigration-agents shall cause to be insured, at their own expense, in the interest of the emigrants, the price of the passage and the provisions, all losses and damages which may result from the total or partial execution of the contract for transportation, or else shall place a sum equal to the amount of the insurance in the deposit-fund.
Art. 4. A special government regulation shall regulate:
[Page 55]The conditions of the previous authorization;
The cases in which the authorization granted may be withdrawn;
The amount of security to be furnished and the manner of furnishing it;
The method of inspection and of survey of every thing relating to emigration;
The management and provisioning of vessels;
The amount of space to be reserved for passengers, their reception on board, and their departure;
The obligations of agencies which have been duly authorized, as likewise those of the captain during the voyage:
The conditions of the insurance-bond, or the amount of the deposit which, may replace it;
The manner of examining vessels before their departure, which examination shall be substituted, in the case of Belgian vessels, for that which is provided by the commercial code;
The manner of delivering the certificate showing that the provisions of the laws and regulations have been complied with;
And, in general, everything relating to the police of emigration.
Art. 5. Any emigrant who may be prevented from sailing by reason of a severe or contagious disease, of which he can furnish proper proof, shall be entitled to have the amount paid for his passage returned.
The passage-money shall likewise be returned to the members of his family in a direct line indefinitely, and in a collateral line to the third degree inclusive, who remain on shore with him.
Art. 6. If the vessel shall not leave the port on the day fixed by the contract, the responsible agency shall be required to pay to each emigrant, for each day’s delay, for expenses on shore, an indemnity, the amount of which shall be fixed by the governmental regulation.
If the delay shall exceed ten days, and if, during the interval, the agency shall not have provided for the departure of the emigrant by another vessel, and according to the terms of the contract, the emigrant shall be at liberty to repudiate the contract by a simple declaration before the maritime commissioner, and the passage-money shall be returned to him. This shall not affect the amount which may be allowed to him as damages.
Nevertheless, if the delays shall be caused by vis major, and if this shall be proved before the maritime commissioner, the emigrant shall not be at liberty to repudiate the contract, nor to claim the indemnity for his detention on shore, the return of the passage-money, or the damages, provided that he shall have been boarded and lodged at the expense of the agency.
Any stipulation contrary to the provisions of the foregoing, and of the present article, is hereby declared null and void.
Art. 7. The shipper shall be responsible for the conveyance of the emigrant to the place of destination fixed by the contract.
The conveyance shall be direct, save in the case of stipulations to the contrary.
In case of the vessel’s making a stay in any port, either voluntarily or of necessity, the emigrants shall be fed and lodged on board, at the expense of the vessel, during the whole of such stay, or they shall be re-imbursed for their expenses on shore.
In case of shipwreck, or of any other accident at sea, which may prevent the vessel from continuing on its course, the shipper shall be required to provide, at his own expense, for the conveyance of the emigrant to the place of destination mentioned in the contract.
Art. 8. In case emigration-agencies shall not have fulfilled their engagements with emigrants, the minister of foreign affairs, or such officer as shall be designated by him, shall proceed to fix the amount of the indemnities and to cause payment thereof to be made; but an appeal may be made, in case of dispute, to the courts.
Art. 9. Any infraction of the provisions of articles 1 and 3 of this law shall be punishable by a fine of from 50 to 5,000 francs.
Any infraction of the provisions of the governmental regulation which is to be made in pursuance of this law, shall be punishable by a fine of from 26 to 500 francs.
In case of a second offense, the maximum amount of the fine may be doubled.
In case of extenuating circumstances, the fine may be reduced to less than 26 francs; but it shall in no case be less than the police fine.
Art. 10. Evidence regarding violations of this law may be taken in Belgium by maritime commissioners, and in default thereof, by any police justice; in foreign ports on board of Belgian vessels, by consuls, assisted by experts if necessary.
Official reports of proceedings shall be considered as evidence until the contrary shall have been proved.
By the King:
Count
d’Aspremont-Lynden,
Minister of
Foreign Affairs.