Pacific. Presented to both Houses of Parliament by Command of Her Majesty. 1847. LONDON: PRINTED BY T. R. HARRISON. CONVENTION BETWEEN HER MAJESTY AND THE KING OF THE SANDWICH ISLANDS. Signed at Honolulu, March 26, 1846. Presented to both Houses of Parliament by Command of Her Majesty. February, 1847. LONDON: PRINTED BY T. R. HARRISON. BETWEEN HER MAJESTY AND THE KING OF THE SANDWICH ISLANDS. Signed at Honolulu, in English and in the language of the Sandwich Islands, March 26, 1846. IT being desirable that a general Convention should be substituted for the various Instruments of mutual Agreement at present existing between Great Britain and the Sandwich Islands, the following Articles have, for that purpose and to that intent, been mutually agreed upon and signed between the Governments of Great Britain and the Sandwich Islands; and it has been determined that any other Treaty or Conventional Agreement now existing between the respective parties shall be henceforward abrogated, and considered null and of no effect. ARTICLE I. There shall be perpetual peace and amity between Her Majesty the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and the King of the Sandwich Islands, their Heirs and Successors. ARTICLE II. The subjects of Her Britannic Majesty residing within the dominions of the King of the Sandwich Islands, shall enjoy the same protection, in regard to their civil rights as well as to their persons and properties, as native subjects; and the King of the Sandwich Islands engages to grant to British subjects the same rights and privileges which now are, or hereafter may be, granted to or enjoyed by any other foreigners, subjects of the most favoured nation. ARTICLE III. No British subject accused of any crime whatever shall be judged otherwise than by a jury composed of native or foreign residents, proposed by the British Consul, and accepted by the Government of the Sandwich Islands. ARTICLE IV. The protection of the King of the Sandwich Islands shall be extended to all British vessels, their officers and crews. In case of shipwreck, the chiefs and inhabitants of the different parts of the Sandwich Islands shall succour them, and secure them from plunder. The salvage dues shall be regulated, in case of dispute, by arbitrators chosen by both parties. ARTICLE V. The desertion of seamen embarked on board of British vessels shall be severely repressed by the local authorities, who shall employ all the means at their disposal to arrest deserters; and all reasonable expenses of capture shall be defrayed by the captains or owners of the said vessels. ARTICLE VI. British merchandise or goods recognized as coming from the British dominions, shall not be prohibited; nor shall they be subject to an import duty higher than five per cent. ad valorem. Wines, brandies, and other spirituous liquors, are, however, excepted from this stipulation, and shall be liable to such reasonable duty as the Hawaiian Government may think fit to lay upon them; provided always that the amount of duty shall not be so high as absolutely to prohibit the importation of the said articles. ARTICLE VII. No tonnage, import, or other duties shall be levied on British vessels, or goods imported in British vessels, beyond what are levied on vessels or goods of the most favoured nation. ARTICLE VIII. The subjects of the King of the Sandwich Islands shall, in their commercial or other relations with Great Britain, be treated on the footing of the most favoured nation. H. B. Majesty's Consul-General for the Islands of the Pacific Ocean. (L.S.) R. C. WYLLIE, His Hawaiian Majesty's Minister of Foreign Affairs. (L.S.) JOANE JI, Member of the Treasury Board. |