Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 16.djvu/1014

 980 CONVENTION WITH THE NORTH GERMAN UNION. OCT. 21, 1867. Bute ofpro- The rule of progession shall always be an additional single rate for g°°s°l°°' 6R0h additional standard weight or fraction there0£ The werght stated fny the despatching office shall always be accepted, except in case of ms.n1· est mistake. Th¤W¤><1¤iv- It is, however, understood that to long as the Germtm office employs Elrgzgggsis the Zcth as ith standard for the single weight of letters which It despatches, it shall also be accepted by the United States office as the equivalent of 15 grammes, in respect to the mails which it. receives from the German 0Hice. R°*°“°*`Y°°°‘ Axmcnm V. The single rate of postage on the direct correspondence ·8°` exchanged between the two administrations shall be as follows: lst. On letters from the United States via direct line of steamers to Hamburg and Bremen, (conditioned that the sea. rate in such case shall not exceed live cents for single letter rate and ten cents per kilogram for other correspondence,) ten cents. , 2d. On letters from the North German Union via said direct line, (subject to same condition.) four silber roschen. 3d. On letters from the United gtates via England, fifteen cents. 4th. On letters from the North German Union via England, six silber groschen. 5th. Of the international letter postage via England, the ocean single letter rate shall not exceed eight cents, nor shall the English and Belgian single letter transit rates exceed one cent each. 6th. It is further agreed, that whenever any other regular line of steam communication, acceptable to the two offices, may be employed directly between any port of the United States and any port of the north of Europe at such rates that the entire cost of transportation between the two frontiers shall not exceed for each single letter rate five cents, and for each kilogram of other correspondence ten cents, in that case the international single rate of letter postage by such line shall be reduced to ten cents. 7th. On all other correspondence mentioned in paragraph two of the tirst article, the rate shall be, for the mails despatched, that which the despetching office shall adopt, adapted to the convenience and habits of its interior administration. But each office shall give notice to the other of the rate it adopts, and of any subsequent change there0£ Prepayment of Amicus VI. The prepayment of postage on ordinary letters shall be P°°'·'B°· optional, subject to the conditions in Article VII., mentioned; but on registered letters, and on all other correspondence mentioned in paragraph two of the first article, it shall be obligatory. Proc¤edmgs_ Amicm VII. If; however, the postage on any correspondence shall
 * ':‘:;({’g:‘Ql§:u;f be prepaid insufficiently, it shall nevertheless be forwarded to its destinaticmitly paid. tion. but charged with the deficient postage.

Upon the delivery of any unpaid or insufficiently paid letter, or of any other insufficiently paid correspondence, there shall be levied in the United States a fine not exceeding five cents, and in the North German Union an additional charge not exceeding two silber groschen. This fine, or additional charge, as well as the deficient postage on all other correspondence than letters, shall not enter into the accounts between the two offices, but.A shall be rptailiied to the use of the collecting 0H:\ce. Regulations 1:1*101.2: II. The correspondence mentioned in ara a b two of mfwm °f the Erst article shall be despatched under regulations topbe gsrtalhlished by the despatching office, but always including the following:-. First No packet shall contain anything which shall be closed against inspection, nor any written communication whatever, except to state from whom and to whom the packet is sent, and the number and price placed upon each pattern or sample of merchandise. Second. No packet may exceed two feet in length, or one foot in any other dimension. Third. Neither office shall be bound to deliver any article the importa.