Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, With the Annual Message of the President Transmitted to Congress December 3, 1901

Mr. Buck to Mr. Hay.

United States Legation,
Tokyo, Japan, July 29, 1899.

No. 338.]

Sir: I have the honor to inclose herewith translations of various new regulations and notifications issued by the Japanese Government recently, which are of interest as relating to foreigners.

I have, etc.,

A. E. Buck.

[Inclosure 1.]

imperial ordinances.

The chairman of the international committee has forwarded the following translations by Dr. Lönholm for publication.

Imperial ordinance No. 329, of July 7, 1899.

1. If aright in an immovable which might be set up against third persons has been duly acquired by an alien or a foreign juridical person before the time fixed in the imperial ordinance, No. 251, of the thirty-second year of Meiji,^a but has not been registered before the said time, it can not be set up against third persons registered within one year from such time.

2. For the immovables mentioned in article 1, special registry books shall be opened and kept at the respective registry offices within whose jurisdiction the places are where such immovables are situated.

3. Each folio of a registry book mentioned in the preceding article is divided in a column for the number of registration, a division for the designation of the immovables, and four sections headed respectively Kō, Otsu, Hei, Tei.^b The division for the designation contains a column for the description. Each of the four sections contains a column for the subject-matter of the registration and a column for the number of the order.

In the column for the number of registration as to each piece of land or building is entered the order in which it has first been registered in the registry book.

In the column for the description the land, buildings, or out-buildings are described and alterations of the same are entered. In the column for the number of the description the order of priority of the matters entered in the column of description is entered.

In the column for the subject-matter of section Kō are entered:

(a) In the land registry book-matters relating to superficies.

(b) In the building registry book, matters relating to ownership.

In the column for the subject-matter of section Otsu are entered matters relating to preferential rights, pledges, and mortgages.

In the column for the subject-matter of section Hei are entered matters relating to leases.^a

In the column for the subject-matter of section Tei are entered matters relating to rights not mentioned in the three preceding paragraphs.

In the column for the number of the order is entered the number indicating the order of priority of each matter registered in the column for subject-matters.

4. When an application for registration is made, all facts which can be set up against third persons must be mentioned in the application, and the documents necessary to prove such facts must be annexed.

5. A copy of the registry book of a foreign consulate relating to an immovable, mentioned in article 1, has the same effect as the registry book.

When an application for registration as to an immovable-registered in a foreign consulate is made after this ordinance takes effect, the provisions of article 163^b of the law concerning the registration of immovables apply correspondingly.

The minister of justice may make necessary rules in regard to matters mentioned in the foregoing two paragraphs.

6. As to matters not provided for in this ordinance the provisions of the law concerning the registration of immovables apply correspondingly.

additional provisions.

This ordinance takes effect on July 17, 1899.

Imperial ordinance No. 333, of July 7, 1899.

1. When a Japanese subject or Japanese juridical person acquires a superficies or lease intended to be perpetual, which has been created for an alien or for a foreign juridical person, in land which belongs to the Government, such person acquires the ownership of the land.

2. If in the case mentioned in the preceding article the land does not belong to the Government, the superficiary or lessee may acquire ownership of the land on paying a proper sum to its owner.

If a superficiary or a lessee, on the demand of the owner, gives notice of his intention not to acquire the ownership as above provided, or if he does not within one year after such demand proceed as specified in the foregoing paragraph, the owner may apply to the court to have the duration of the superficies or the lease determined in accordance with the provisions of the civil code on paying a proper indemnity.

3. The provisions of the preceding two articles shall not affect any rights which third persons may have in such land.

additional provision.

This ordinance takes effect on July 17, 1899.

[Inclosure 2.]

notification no. 41 of the judicial department.

July 10, 1899.

The following procedure is established for dealing with registration of immovables which are subject to the rights of foreigners or foreign judicial persons.

(Signed)

Kiyoura Keigo,
Minister of Justice.

• Article I. The provisions of the detailed regulations for carrying out the law of registration of immovables shall, except when there is a special provision to the contrary in this notification, apply, mutatis mutandis, in the case of registration governed by the provisions of Article I of imperial ordinance No. 329, of 1899.
• Article II. The local courts shall prepare land registers relating to the rights of foreigners or foreign juridical persons in accordance with the forms Annex No. 1, and registers of buildings relating to the rights of foreigners or foreign juridical persons, in accordance with the forms Annex No. 2.
• Article III. Copies of the registers of foreign consulates shall be bound together and kept separately, according to each country, by the local courts, and the president of a local court shall note on the back of the covers the number of pages they contain and write thereon his official title and name and affix his seal of office; and having also sealed keiin, shall transmit them to the registration office, which has control in the matter.
• Article IV. The local courts shall make translation of the copies of the registers of foreign consulates, and the procedure laid down in the preceding article shall also be followed in the case of these translations.
• Article V. The local courts shall annex, in the copies of the registers of the foreign consulates, numbers to all the registrations, according to the order of the registrations in the various volumes, and shall also affix the same numbers to translations of copies of registers.
• Article VI. When the certificate to be attached to an application in accordance with the provisions of Article IV of imperial ordinance No. 329, of 1899 is written in a foreign language, the applicant shall attach to it a translation thereof.
• Article VII. In transferring the registrations of foreign consulates to the registers, in accordance with the provisions of the second clause of Article V of imperial ordinance No. 329, of 1899, it shall be made according to translation of them.
• Article VIII. When the registrations of foreign consulates have been transferred to the registers, the fact that they have been transferred to page No. ----- of volume No. ----- of the registers, the numbers of the registrations and the dates shall be noted on the copies of the registers of foreign consulates and on the translations of them, and they shall be sealed by the registrar.
• Article IX. In the case of registration made in accordance with imperial ordinance No. 329, of 1899, index books of registrations of land and of registrations of buildings shall be specially kept. Matters relating to the registrations of foreign consulates shall also be inserted in those index books.
• Article X. In cases where Japanese subjects or juridical persons acquire rights of superficies or rights of lease, which were established with the intention of their continuance in perpetuity for foreigners or foreign juridical persons, the registrar shall, when he registers them in land registers relating to the rights of foreigners or foreign juridical persons, close the entries of registration relating to those rights.
• Under the circumstances mentioned in the preceding clause, when there are among those registration entries registrations relating to other rights, which have as their subject rights of superficies or rights of lease registration of cancellation of such, registration shall be effected and the registration entries shall be closed after the registrations relating to other rights have ceased to appear among the registration entries.
• Article XI. In cases where Japanese subjects or juridical persons acquire rights of ownership of land in accordance with Article I or II of imperial ordinance No. 333 of 1899, when there are among the entries of registration of the land registers relating to the rights of foreigners or foreign juridical persons, registrations relating to other rights which have as their subject rights of superficies or rights of lease, and when those registrations remain uncanceled, registration of such rights of ownership only shall be effected in the general register.
• Article XII. In cases where there are registrations relating to the same land in the general register and in the land register relating to the rights of foreigners or foreign juridical persons, or in the copies of the registers of foreign consulates, the registrar shall, in a convenient manner, put marks of mutual reference in suitable places among the registration entries (including, in the case of copies of the registers of foreign consulates, the translations) of each register.

1. That is the time fixed for the taking effect of the new treaties, either the 17th of July or the 5th of August, 1899.
2. That is A, B, C, D.
3. Properly “hiring,” chintaishaku.
4. That article relates to the forms on which registrations are to be made in the registry book.