By the President of the United States of
America.
A PROCLAMATION.
Whereas an Arrangement between the United States of America and Belgium,
Brazil, Spain, the French Republic, Great Britain, Italy, the
Netherlands, Portugal, Russia, Switzerland, and Egypt, providing for the
establishment of the international office of public health mentioned in
Article 181 of the International Sanitary Convention, signed at Paris,
December 3, 1903, was concluded and signed by their respective
Plenipotentiaries at Rome on the ninth day of December, one thousand
nine hundred and seven, the original of which Arrangement, being in the
French language, is word for word as follows:
[Translation.]
ARRANGEMENT.
The Governments of Belgium, Brazil, Spain, the United States, the French
Republic, Great Britain and Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal,
Russia, Switzerland, and the Government of His Highness the Khedive of
Egypt, deeming it expedient to organize the
[Page 494]
International Office of Public Hygiene, referred
to in the Paris Sanitary Convention of December 3, 1903, have resolved
to conclude an arrangement to that effect and agreed upon the
following:
Article I.
The High Contracting Parties engage to found and maintain an
International Office of Public Hygiene with headquarters at Paris.
Article II.
The Office will perform its functions under the authority and supervision
of a Committee composed of delegates of the contracting Governments. The
membership and rights and duties of the Committee, as well as the
organization and powers of the said Office are determined by the organic
by-laws which are annexed to the present arrangement and are considered
as forming an integral part thereof.
Article III.
The costs of installation, as well as the annual expenses for the conduct
and maintenance of the Office shall be covered by the quotas of the
contracting States determined in accordance with the provisions of the
by-laws referred to in Article II.
Article IV.
The sums representing the quotas of the several contracting States shall
be deposited by the said States through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
of the French Republic, at the beginning of every year in the “Caisse
des depots et consignations” at Paris, from which they shall be drawn as
needed against warrants of the Director of the Office.
Article V.
The High Contracting Parties reserve the right to make, by joint
agreement, in the present arrangement any change of which the usefulness
shall have been demonstrated by experience.
Article VI.
Governments that have not signed the present arrangement are, on their
request, admitted to adhere thereto. Their adhesion shall be notified,
through the diplomatic channel, to the Royal Government of Italy, and,
by the latter, to the other Contracting Governments; it will imply a
pledge to contribute to the payment of the expenses of the Office in the
manner referred to in Article III.
Article VII.
The present arrangement shall be ratified and the ratifications shall be
deposited at Rome as soon as possible; it shall be put into operation
from the date on which the deposit of ratifications shall have been
effected.
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Article VIII.
The present arrangement is concluded for a term of seven years. At the
expiration of that period, it shall continue in force for new periods of
seven years between the States that shall not have notified, one year
before the expiration of each period, their intention to terminate the
effects so far as they are concerned.
In faith whereof the undersigned, duly empowered thereto, have drawn up
the present arrangement to which they have affixed their seals.
Done at Rome, the ninth of December one
thousand nine hundred and seven, in one copy which shall
remain deposited in the archives of the Royal Government of Italy
and duly certified copies thereof shall be delivered, through the
diplomatic channel, to the contracting Parties.
- For Belgium:
- For Brazil:
- Dr. Lgydio de Salles
Guerra
- Dr. Henrique de Rocha
Lima
- For Spain:
- Manuel de Tolosa
Latour
- Pablo Soler
- For the United States:
- A. M. Laughlin
- R. S. Reynolds
Hitt
- For France:
- Camille Barrere
- J. de Cazotte
- Er. Ronssin
- For Great Britain:
- Theodore Thomson
- B. Franklin
- For Italy:
- Rocco
Santoliquido
- Adolfo Cotta
- For the Netherlands:
- For Portugal:
- M. de Carvalho E
Vasconsellos
- For Russia:
- For Switzerland:
- For Egypt:
- Ibrahim Neguib
- Marc Armand
Ruffer
ANNEX.
organic by-laws of the
international office of public hygiene.
Article I.
There is established in Paris an International Office of Public
Hygiene under the States which accept participation in its
operation.
Article II.
The Office cannot in any way meddle in the administration of the
several States.
It is independent of the authorities of the country in which it is
placed.
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It corresponds directly with the higher health authorities of the
several countries and with the Boards of Health.1
Article III.
The Government of the French Republic shall, on the application of
the International Committee referred to in Article VI, take such
steps as may be requisite to have the Office recognized as an
institution of public utility.
Article IV.
The main object of the Office is to collect and bring to the
knowledge of the participating States facts and documents of a
general character concerning public health and especially regarding
infectious diseases, notably the cholera, plague and yellow fever,
as well as the measures taken to check these diseases.
Article V.
The Government shall inform the Office of the measures taken by them
towards the enforcement of the international sanitary
conventions.
Article VI.
The Office is placed under the authority and supervision of an
International Committee consisting of technical representatives
designated by the participating States in the proportion of one
representative for each State.
Each State is allowed a number of votes inversely proportioned to the
number of the class to which it belongs as regards its participation
in the expenses of the Office. (See Article XI.)
Article VII.
The Committee of the Office meets periodically at least once a year;
the length of its sessions is unlimited.
The members of the Committee elect, by secret ballot, a chairman
whose term of office shall be three years.
Article VIII.
The business of the office is conducted by a salaried staff
including:
A Director;
A Secretary General,
such force as may be necessary to perform the work of the Office. The
personnel of the Office shall not be permitted to fill any other
salaried office.
The Director and Secretary General shall be appointed by the
Committee.
The Director shall attend the meetings of the Committee in an
advisory capacity.
The appointment and dismissal of employés of all classes appertain to
the Director and shall be reported by him to the Committee.
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Article IX.
The information collected by the Office shall be brought to the
knowledge of the participant States by means of a Bulletin or of
special communications addressed to them either in regular course or
at their request.
In addition, the Office shall show periodically the results of its
labors in official reports to be communicated to the participating
Governments.
Article X.
The Bulletin, which shall be issued at least once a month, shall
Include especially:
- 1.
- The laws and general or local regulations promulgated in
the several countries in regard to contagious
diseases;
- 2.
- Information concerning the progress of infectious
diseases;
- 3.
- Information concerning the work done or measures taken
toward the sanitation of localities.
- 4.
- Statistics concerning public health.
- 5.
- Notices of publications.
The official language of the Office and Bulletin shall be the French
language. The Committee may order parts of the Bulletin to be
published in other languages.
Article XI.
The expenses necessary for the performance of the duties of the
Office, estimated at 150,000 francs per annum, shall be defrayed by
the States signatory to the Convention, their quotas being
determined according to the following classes:
- First class: Brazil, Spain, the United States, France,
Great Britain, British India, Italy, Russia, at the rate of
25 units;
- Second class, at the rate of 20 units;
- Third class, Belgium, Egypt, the Netherlands, at the rate
of 15 units;
- Fourth class, Switzerland, at the rate of 10 units;
- Fifth class, at the rate of 5 units;
- Sixth class, at the rate of 3 units;
This sum of 150,000 francs cannot be exceeded except by consent of
the signatory Powers.
Every State is at liberty to have itself entered into a higher class
at some future time.
The States that may hereafter adhere to the Convention shall select
the class in which they wish to be entered.
Article XII.
A sum intended to form a reserve fund shall be taken from the annual
resources. The total sum of said reserve, which cannot exceed the
amount of the annual budget, shall be invested in first class State
securities.
Article XIII.
The members of the Committee shall receive, out of the working funds
of the Office, an allowance for traveling and other expenses.
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They shall also receive an
attendance counter for each meeting which they attend.
Article XIV.
The Committee shall fix the amount to be set aside annually from its
budget for a fund intended to secure a retirement pension for the
Office force.
Article XV.
The Committee shall draw up its annual estimates and shall approve
the account of expenditures. It shall make the organic regulations
governing the personnel, as well as all the arrangements necessary
for the performance of the duties of the office.
The regulations as well as the arrangements shall be reported by the
Committee to the participant States and cannot be modified without
their assent.
Article XVI.
A statement of the financial management of the Office shall be
submitted annually to the participant States at the close of the
fiscal year.
| For Belgium: |
E. Beco |
| O. Velghe |
| For Brazil: |
Dr. Egydio de Salles
Guerra |
| Dr. Henrique de Rocha
Lima |
| For Spain: |
Manuel de Tolosa Latour |
| Pablo Soler |
| For the United States: |
A. M. Laughlin |
| R. S. Reynolds Hitt |
| For France: |
Camille Barrere |
| J. de Cazotte |
| Er. Ronssin |
| For Great Britain: |
Theodore Thomson |
| B. Franklin |
| For Italy: |
Rocco Santoliquido |
| Adolfo Cotta |
| For the Netherlands: |
H. de Weede |
| For Portugal: |
M. de Carvalho E
Vasconcellos |
| For Russia: |
Baron Korff |
| For Switzerland: |
J. B. Pioda |
| For Egypt: |
Ibrahim Neguib |
| Marc Armand Ruffer |
In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal
of the United States of America to be affixed.
[seal] Done
at the City of Washington, this
seventeenth day of November, one thousand nine hundred and
eight, and of the Independence of the United States of
America the one hundred and thirty-third.
Theodore
Roosevelt
By the President:
Elihu
Root
Secretary of State.
