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United States may extend its protection as it shall judge wise to it when it may feel sanctioned and warranted by the public or international law."

The provisions of this article would seem to have been rendered obsolete by reason of the subsequent development of other established means of communication between the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of the United States, and this Government readily agreed to the request on the part of the Government of Mexico that it relinquish such unexercised rights as the Gadsden treaty may have conferred upon it to send its troops and munitions across Mexican territory and to extend its protection to a work which, although originally expected to be built by United States citizens, was actually undertaken and completed by the Government of Mexico after the concession of these citizens of the United States to construct a plank and railroad across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec had lapsed.

The provisions of the Gadsden treaty other than those contained in article VIII are not affected and remain in full force and effect.

Nicaragua

HUMANITARIAN

ASYLUM

CONVENTION ON POLITICAL ASYLUM 1

The American Minister at Managua transmitted to the Secretary of State with a despatch dated April 21, 1937, a copy of La Gaceta for April 13, 1937, which publishes a decree, dated February 9, 1937, by which Nicaragua ratified the convention on political asylum signed at Montevideo December 26, 1933.

EDUCATION

CONVENTION FOR FACILITATING THE INTERNATIONAL CIRCULATION OF FILMS OF AN EDUCATIONAL CHARACTER

Iran

With a despatch dated March 30, 1937, the Secretary General of the League of Nations transmitted to the Secretary of State a copy of a telegram received by him from the Iranian Government concerning the reservation which the Government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics desires to make in regard to its adherence to the convention for facilitating the international circulation of films of an educational character, signed October 11, 1933. The telegram states that as the convention contains no clause providing for adherence subject to reservation of article 11, and as the convention has been approved by the Iranian Parliament as a whole, the Government is unable to express its views regarding the Soviet Government's reservation at the present time and reserves the right to do so later.

Switzerland

The Secretary General of the League of Nations transmitted to the Secretary of State with a circular letter dated March 19, 1937, a copy of the reply which he had received from the Swiss Government concerning the reservation which the Government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics wishes to make in regard to its adherence to the

See Bulletin No. 90, March 1937, p. 11.

2 See ibid., p. 14.

convention for facilitating the international circulation of films of an educational character, signed October 11, 1933. The letter is quoted below:

SIR:

BERNE, March 12, 1937.

By a letter of May 11th, 1935, you informed us that the Government of the U. S. S. R. proposed to accede to the Convention for facilitating the International Circulation of Films of an Educational Character, of October 11th, 1933, subject to reservation of Article XI that is to say, on condition that it should not be bound by any obligation concerning the judicial or arbitral settlement of disputes arising out of the application or interpretation of the said Convention. You enquired of the Federal Government, as of the other signatory Governments, whether it was prepared to accept the reservation.

As most of the Governments had not replied to that question, the Federal Government felt justified in assuming that the reservation in question had not been favourably received. In the absence, however, of any opinion to the contrary explicitly expressed by the Governments, it would seem that the reservation submitted by the Government of the U. S. S. R. might be regarded as tacitly accepted.

We have the honour to inform you that the Federal Council has very serious doubts as to the propriety of supporting an accession which would, in fact, be tantamount to the suppression of a clause of essential importance in any international Convention. Switzerland, as you know, is attached to the principle of the pacific settlement of international disputes. She has never deviated from that policy, and, on the occasion of the Conference at which the abovementioned Convention was negotiated, the Swiss delegation spared no effort to ensure the adoption of the principle of compulsory and unconditional arbitration. It was against its will that Article XI of the Convention was accompanied by reservations which considerably restrict the scope of the Convention. In the message addressed to the Federal Chambers on January 12th, 1934-that is to say, long before the U. S. S. R. had announced its intention of acceding to the Convention-the Federal Council referred, inter alia, in the following terms to the reservations introduced into that diplomatic instrument:

"The operation of the reservations would nevertheless have been limited in practice by the possibility, open to every injured State, of resorting, if necessary, to procedures for pacific settlement. Certain delegations pointed out, however, that they could not agree to arbitration on the legitimacy of the reservations relied on. Accordingly, notwithstanding the opposition of the Swiss delegation, supported by other delegations, the Conference decided, by a very small majority, to introduce restrictions to the principle of compulsory arbitration which will be found in Article XI of the Convention."

The Federal Council would be reversing its judgment were it now to adopt a contrary opinion; it regrets accordingly that it cannot accept the reservation which has been submitted to it.

I have the honour to be [etc.]

MOTTA

Federal Political Department

To the SECRETARIAT OF THE League of NATIONS.

ESTABLISHMENT

TREATY OF ENTRY, ESTABLISHMENT, AND RESIDENCE BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND GREECE 3

The American Minister to Greece transmitted to the Secretary of State with a despatch dated March 17, 1937, a copy of the Official Gazette (no. 36) of February 5, 1937, which publishes the ratification (decree law no. 427 of Jan. 13, 1937) by Greece of the treaty of entry, establishment, and residence between the United States and Greece, signed on November 21, 1936.

EXTRADITION

EXTRADITION TREATY BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND
LIECHTENSTEIN 4

On April 27, 1937, the Senate gave its advice and consent to the ratification by the President of the extradition treaty between the United States and Liechtenstein, signed on May 20, 1936.

SUPPLEMENTARY EXTRADITION TREATY BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND RUMANIA 5

With a despatch dated March 13, 1937, the American Chargé d'Affaires at Bucharest transmitted to the Secretary of State a copy of the Monitorul Oficial (no. 59) of March 12, 1937, which publishes the promulgation by Rumania of the supplementary extradition treaty between the United States and Rumania, signed on November 10, 1936.

On April 27, 1937, the Senate gave its advice and consent to the ratification by the President of the above-mentioned treaty.

HEALTH

Rumania

VETERINARY CONVENTIONS

6

With a despatch dated March 14, 1937, the American Chargé d'Affaires at Bucharest transmitted to the Secretary of State a copy

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of the Monitorul Oficial (no. 60) of March 13, 1937, which publishes the law of ratification dated March 8, 1937, by Rumania of the convention for the campaign against contagious diseases of animals, the convention concerning transit of animals, meat, and other products of animal origin, and the convention concerning the export and import of animal products (other than meat, meat preparations, fresh animal products, milk, and milk products), all signed at Geneva on February 20, 1935.

SIXTEENTH SESSION OF THE JOURNÉES MÉDICALES DE BRUXELLES

This Government has accepted the invitation of the French Government to participate in the sixteenth session of the Journées Médicales de Bruxelles, which will be held at Brussels from June 19 to June 23, 1937. The following have been appointed official delegates:

Lt. Col. Edgar Erskine Hume, Medical Corps, United States
Army;

Dr. Claude C. Pierce, Medical Director, United States Public
Health Service.

The purpose of the annual sessions of the Journées Médicales de Bruxelles is to bring to Brussels representatives from the medical profession in other countries with a view to facilitating the exchange of information concerning recent developments in the science of medicine. An international exposition of sciences and arts applied to medicine, surgery, pharmacy, and hygiene is always held at the same time as the Journées Médicales de Bruxelles.

NATIONALITY

CONVENTION ON THE NATIONALITY OF WOMEN (TREATY SERIES, No. 875)7

Nicaragua

The American Minister at Managua transmitted to the Secretary of State with a despatch dated April 21, 1937, a copy of La Gaceta for April 16, 1937, which publishes a decree signed by the President of Nicaragua on February 5, 1937, by which Nicaragua ratified the convention on the nationality of women signed at Montevideo on December 26, 1933.

49 Stat. (pt. 2) 2957; see also Bulletin No. 86, November 1936, p. 14.

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