Images de page
PDF
ePub

vote, as the rule provides. The Collocation Committee will have those amendments in print, although under the rule it is not necessary to have them in print until leave has been given to discuss them; we can then determine whether or not such amendments are to be reconsidered. After that, if we have time unoccupied, we can proceed with the reports in order, the first of which I apprehend would be the report next in number numerically, that is report of Committee No. 2. If, on the other hand, the discussion of amendments on principles should occupy until Wednesday, we should then proceed with the amendments which have been handed in to the collocation report with regard to the rules, and discuss them, until we have concluded our labors on the rules of the road at sea, leaving the reports and matter's not already dealt with up to that time to be dealt with after we have finished the rules of the road at sea. This order of business appears to me to be consistent with the rules which we have already passed.

Captain MENSING (Germany). Mr. President, I should like to point out that in order to take up the discussion of the amendment of the gallant delegate from Norway it will be necessary that the report of the Committee on Lights should be printed and should be distributed. I think the question may be raised again whether the report should not be for some time before the Conference. The committee have not met, although the report has been talked over. I do not doubt that our chairman will call us together as soon as the Conference is ended, but before that it is impossible to agree upon this report. It is not printed and it is not before the Conference.

Mr. HALL (Great Britain). Mr. President, of course it would be impossible to discuss it thoroughly until we have the report of the Committee on Lights before us, but if they meet this afternoon I apprehend that there will be no difficulty in letting us have the report by to-morrow morning.

Admiral KAZNAKOFF (Russia). I hope to have it ready to-morrow morning.

The PRESIDENT. Does the delegate from Great Britain make a motion to take up the amendment of the delegate from Norway to-morrow morning, in case the report of the Committee on Lights can be laid on the table?

Mr. GOODRICH (United States). Mr. President, I wish we could make the decision on that final. If to-morrow morning, when the report comes in, the delegates are going to say that they want time to look over this report and consider it before proceeding with the discussion of the amendment of the delegate from Norway, we might as well adjourn over until Monday at once. It interferes somewhat with the business of the delegates to the Conference to simply come here for the pupose of adjourning. We, of course, can not apprehend what the nature of that report is going to be, or whether it will be such a report as will require the consideration of the members for a time to-morrow. But if when we come here to-morrow to consider this amendment some member is going to say that he wants time to consider the report before the discussion of the amendment is proceeded with, we might just as well save our time and adjourn until Monday at once.

Mr. HALL (Great Britain). Mr. President, of course such a course might be adopted by some member, but such a course has not been adopted yet. We have referred matters from time to time to the Committee on Sound-Signals, and in some instances we have discussed their reports without their having been put into print. Of course, a long report dealing with a variety of matters requires time for us to consider it. But this is merely a report on an amendment with regard to a suggestion which has already been made by the Committee on Lights. I quite agree that if any delegate says that this is so involved a matter that he can not understand it without a short time to consider it that we ought to give way. But when we have merely asked the committee to report and advise us on one point, and we have that before us in print, I should hardly think that any delegate would suggest that he wants forty-eight hours to consider the matter. As I said before, if there was any reason to hope that this amendment could be dealt with in the ordinary time which the majority of amendments have taken which have been before the Conference, then I should say by all means let it go over until Monday. But we have bought our experience and we know how long it is likely to take. Under these circumstances there is all day to-morrow not provided for. Why not try to utilize that time? It is not as though we had a lot of committees at work. There is only one committee which has not finished its labor But are all of us to be idle except the gentlemen who constitute that committee? If I thought that by adjourning until Monday we could get the report of that committee in, then I would say by all means let us do so.

Mr. GOODRICH (United States). Mr. President, the learned delegate and myself are thoroughly in accord. I made the remark which I did for the purpose of forestalling any attempt to-morrow to adjourn the Conference for the consideration of the report. If any gentleman thinks that the nature of that report is likely to be such that the Conference should be adjourned to enable the members to consider it before voting upon the amendment of the delegate from Norway, I think it is just to the Conference that that opinion should be stated now and not to-morrow morning, after we have adjourned the Conference until that time.

The PRESIDENT. The question before the Conference is whether the amendment of the delegate from Norway shall be considered to-morrow morning, if the report of the Committee on Lights is made to the Conference by that time.

Mr. VERNEY (Siam). Mr. President, perhaps I may be allowed to remark to the Conference that we have in our hands the report of the Collocation Committee, which is the most important report, I should say, which comes before us. I do not think that any member of this Conference will be idle with that report in his hands; at least I do not ex

pect to be idle with it in my hands. Other members of the Conference have told me that they most decidedly wished to have what we understood we were going to have, not only two days but two clear days. When the learned delegate from the United States got up and proposed that we were to have two days I understood-perhaps I was wrongthat we were going to have two clear days, and not two days, taken up by committee work and Conference work. I thought we were going to have two clear days to consider this report, and I think that would have been enough. Perhaps I am more stupid than anybody here-I do not deny that-but I can not master this report in less time than that. I confess I am unable to do it and I get up and announce my incompetency to accomplish it.

Mr. GOODRICH (United States). Mr. President, my object is to get the ideas of the delegates. I am perfectly willing to do anything which the delegates want. If the delegates think they want until Monday without a session of the Conference, I am agreed to it. If you want to work to-morrow I will work with you from 9 o'clock until 7, if you desire it.

Mr. VERNEY (Siam). Mr. President, then I venture to propose that this Conference shall adjourn until Monday.

Dr. SIEVEKING (Germany). Mr. President, I desire to support the proposition made by the delegate from Siam. I think that would be the best way to save time. I am quite sure that it is very important to consider the report of the Collocation Committee and the time is very short until Saturday night at 7 o'clock. I think it is but fair to give the members of the Conference an opportunity to look very carefully over the report of the committee so that nobody will be idle, and then the committee which has not yet finished its work will have time to go on with the work and prepare the committee report. I am sure that if we now adjourn until to-morrow morning only in order to consider the amendment of the delegate from Norway, that the report of the Committee on Lights will come before us for the first time and somebody will want time to consider it.

Mr. HALL (Great Britain). Mr. President, like my learned friend, the delegate from the United States, I only want to propose what is for the convenience of the majority of the delegates. Certainly all of us want to meet the views of the majority, and that is the only course which ought to be pursued in a conference of this nature. I shall therefore not oppose the proposition, but I will move to add a rider to it according to the suggestion of the gallant delegate from France and the gallant delegate from Russia, and that is that we meet at 10 o'clock on Monday and sit until 5 o'clock, and that we do so on each day during the week.

Mr. GOODRICH (United States). Mr. President, before the question is taken on that motion, may I ask the gallant chairman of the Committee on Lights whether that report will be ready to-morrow morning!

Admiral KAZNAKOFF (Russia). Mr. President, we hope to have it ready to-morrow morning. The Committee on Lights will sit after the Conference adjourns. The report is all drawn up, and I think it will be adopted in a few minutes and be printed this evening.

Mr. GOODRICH (United States). Mr. President, I call the attention of the delegates to the fact that this report will be ready for them at 11 o'clock to-morrow morning at the Secretary's desk. As I have stated before, Appendix B of the report of the Collocation Committee will be printed and the delegates can get it here. It will not be sent out to them, but it can be obtained at the desk of the Secretary. May I ask the delegates to send in as early as possible to the. Secretary these amendments, which will be sent to the printer not at 7 o'clock on Saturday night, but just as rapidly as they can be sent, having due regard to sending a proper number at once. So that if the delegates have any amendments to make they will send them in to the Secretary early. They are not thereby precluded from sending other amendments which they may see fit to make.

The PRESIDENT. The question is upon the amendment of the delegate from Great Britain on the motion of the delegate from Siam that the Conference adjourn until Monday, to meet at 10 o'clock and sit until 5. Is the Conference ready for the question?

Mr. HALL (Great Britain). Mr. President, and on each day thereafter. I move as a substantive resolution that we adjourn until 10 o'clock Monday morning and sit until 5 o'clock on that and on each succeeding day.

Mr. VERNEY (Siam). Mr. President, can we not omit " each succeeding day?" Can we not see how many of us are alive at the end of the first day before we provide for the whole week?

The PRESIDENT. The delegate from Great Britain moves that the Conference adjourn to meet on Monday at 10 o'clock and sit until 5 o'clock on that day and each succeeding day thereafter. Is the Conference ready for the question?

The question was put to the Conference upon the motion of the delegate from Great Britain, and it was carried.

The PRESIDENT. The Conference has not yet adjourned. There was a motion that when it did adjourn it adjourn until Monday.

Lieutenant BEAUGENCY (Chili). Mr. President, I wish to ask whether we are to sit from 10 till 5 during the whole time or only to consider the report of the Committee on Collocation?

The PRESIDENT. That has already been voted upon and it is determined that the Conference sit from 10 o'clock till 5 o'clock on Monday and each day thereafter.

Mr. GOODRICH (United States). Mr. President, I move we adjourn. The Conference thereupon adjourned till Monday, December 16, 1889, at 10 o'clock a. m.

WASHINGTON, Monday, December 16, 1889, 11 o'clock a. m.

The Conference was called to order at 11 o'clock a. m., Rear-Admiral Franklin in the Chair.

The PRESIDENT. The first business in order this morning will be the additional report of the Committee on Lights with reference to the amendment of the delegate from Norway in regard to the position of the side lights and the mast-head light The Secretary will please read the report.

The additional report of the Committee on Lights is as follows:

"WASHINGTON, D. C., December 12, 1889.

"To Rear-Admiral S. R. FRANKLIN, U. S. Navy,

"President of the International Marine Conference, etc.

"SIR: In accordance with the resolution passed by the Conference on the 9th inst., your committee have again considered the question whether it would be advisable to assign a certain position to the side lights, as has been done by extra amendment No. 41 to Article 3, which has led to the rule adopted by the Conference, viz:

"The said green and red side lights to be placed in steam-vessels not forward of the mast-head light, and in sailing vessels as near abreast the foremast as practicable.'

"Doubts have been raised by the Collocation Committee on the advisability of this rule, on the ground that it involves a radical change and leads to great expense by compelling a very material alteration of the present construction of many ships, consequences which are said to outweigh the slight advantage of the introduction of the rule in question. "Your committee after having most carefully considered the subject are unanimous in reporting that in their opinion the rule passed by the Conference ought to be maintained.

"In the report dated November 4, 1889, the reasons have been given why in principle it would be advisable to have the side lights of all steamvessels so placed, that a vertical plane through the line drawn from them to the mast-head light would form a certain known angle with the keel. It has at the same time been acknowledged to be practically impossible to give the side-lights a certain fixed position in regard to the fore-mast light, but it has been thought practicable and, therefore, has been recommended to introduce a rule by which steamers are compelled to carry the side lights abaft the fore-mast light, the connecting line forming an angle of six points with the keel, or as nearly so as possible. "The considerations which have led to this recommendation appear to your committee to be sound, and whilst confirming what has been said in the former report, we beg to add the following remarks:

"The rule as adopted by the Conference does not, it is true, go quite so far in assigning to the side lights a certain fixed position with regard

« PrécédentContinuer »