Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, Transmitted to Congress, With the Annual Message of the President, December 3, 1888, Part I

No. 43.
Mr. de Bounder de Melsbroeck to Mr. Bayard.

[Translation.]

Legation of Belgium,
Washington , February 29, 1888. (Received March 1.)

Mr. Secretary of State: The King of the Belgians has offered an annual prize of 25,000 francs, the object of which is to encourage intellectual effort, and I have the honor to transmit to your excellency the inclosed notice, which summarizes the conditions on which the prize for 1893 will be awarded. The award will be made to the best work on the means of procuring, in abundance and at small cost, the best quality of potable water for large cities, especially for Brussels and its suburbs.

As citizens of the United States are invited to compete for this prize, I take the liberty to beg your excellency to cause this matter to be widely made known.

I avail myself, etc.,

Th. de Bounder de Melsbroeck.

[Inclosure.]

Notice.

By an order hearing date of December 14, 1874, His Majesty the King of the Belgians offered an annual prize of 25,000 francs, which was designed to encourage intellectual effort.

The prize for 1893 will be open to international competition and will be awarded to the best work on the means of procuring, in abundance and at small cost, the best quality of potable water for large cities, especially for Brussels and its suburbs regard being had to the future increase of population.

Both manuscript and printed works will be received.

New editions of printed works can not be received unless they contain considerable changes and additions and have appeared, like the other works, during one of the years 1889, 1890, 1891, or 1892.

Works may be written in one of the following languages: French, Flemish, English, German, Italian, and Spanish.

Foreigners desiring to compete for the prize must send their works, either printed or in manuscript, before January 1, 1893, to the ministry of agriculture, industry, and public works, at Brussels.

If a work in manuscript obtains the prize it is to be published in the course of the year following that in which the prize shall have been awarded.

The award will be made by a jury appointed by His Majesty the King of the Belgians. The said jury will be composed of seven members, three of whom will be Belgians and four foreigners of different nationalities.