No.515.
Mr. Voigt
to Mr. Fish.
Washington, June 24, 1874. (Received June 25, 1874.)
Mr. Secretary of State: As the next international telegraphic conference is to meet at St. Petersburg in the course of the year 1875, the imperial ministry of foreign affairs has just instructed me to address the Government of the United States in relation thereto.
At the last telegraphic conference, which was held at Rome, in 1871, two questions, among others, were raised, which are to be solved by the conference at St. Petersburg.
The first question relates to the necessity, which was unanimously acknowledged by all the members of the conference, of amending the convention and the regulations in such a way as to introduce into the regulations certain provisions which are now in the convention but which may be liable to modification. The International Telegraphic Bureau was instructed by the conference at Rome to prepare a draft for the amendment of the convention and of the regulations, so that they might be communicated to all the administrations about a year before the next conference.
The International Telegraphic Bureau having transmitted the draught of a convention prepared by it to the telegraphic administration of the empire, I have the honor herewith to transmit to you, Mr. Secretary of State, a copy of this draft, which is intended for the Federal Government.
At the same time, by order of the imperial ministry, I have to inform you that the government of Russia is of opinion that it would be preferable to confide to the next conference the discussion of the observations to which the draft prepared by the bureau may give rise, for the reason that the previous communication of the observations of each of the administrations might cause too extended a correspondence.
The imperial government thinks, moreover, in view of the modifications which the convention signed at Paris by the plenipotentiaries of the adhering states underwent at the conference of Vienna and at that of Rome, and in view of the still greater modifications which are to be introduced by the new draft, that this international instrument should be replaced by a new one of the same character, the latter to be signed, as was that of Paris, by special plenipotentiaries. As to this view, I have the honor to beg you, Mr. Secretary of State, to inform me whether it is shared by the Government of the United States.
The second question raised by the conference at Rome relates, to the division of the votes at administrative conferences. Should each state, [Page 1077] or each of the distinct administrations, even when there are several of the latter in the same state, be entitled to a separate vote?
The International Telegraphic Bureau having addressed the administrations of the different states, for the purpose of making inquiry as to their opinions, almost all of the administrations have expressed the opinion that it would be advisable to profit by the information and the special data which each of the various administrations may be able to furnish at the conference, and that each of these administrations is, moreover, the sole judge of the measures which may be adapted to it. The imperial government is disposed to accept these principles. The result of this would be that each of the telegraphic administrations acting independently would be entitled to a voice in the deliberations of administrative conferences, with the proviso that, in cases where different administrations, belonging to the same government, were concerned, each of these administrations should be specially represented, and that the communication relative to the persons selected as such representatives should be sent diplomatically, to the government in whose country the conference should meet, previously to the opening of its sessions.
In consequence of the foregoing, I have the honor to beg you, Mr. Secretary of State, to be pleased to communicate to me the views of the Government of the United States in relation to this matter.
Be pleased to accept. &c.,