Basis for settlement of accounts. 458. Accounts between any two post departments shall be settled on the following basis, unless otherwise provided by special compact: from the total amount of international postages and registration fees, collected in each country on letters, added to the total amount of prepaid postages and registration fees on other articles sent, the dispatching office shall deduct the amount required, at the agreed rate for the intermediate transit thereof between the two countries; and the amount of the two net sums' shall be equally di vided between the two departments. Postal convention between the United States and See, also, the postal convention between the United States and Great Britain, Nov. 7, 24, 1868, Art. VI., 16 U. S. Stat. at L., (Tr.,) 76. 1 By the postal convention between the United States and the Swiss Confederation, Oct. 11, 1867, (16 U. S. Stat. at L., (Tr.,) 246,) the "two net sums shall be divided between the two offices in the proportion of threefifths (3-5ths) to the United States, and two-fifths (2-5ths) to the Swiss office." And a similar basis for the settlement of accounts is to be found in the postal convention between the United States and Netherlands, Sept. 26, 1867, Art. XI., 16 U. S. Stat. at L..(Tr.,) 272. In the postal convention between United States and Italy, Nov. 8, 1867, Art. VIII., (16 U. S. Stat. at L., (Tr.,) 228,) there is added the following: "There shall be excluded from the account all fines upon unpaid or insufficiently paid correspondence, and the deficient postages upon articles mentioned in the second subdivision of Article I., (class second, Article 447,) all of which shall be retained to the use of the administration which collects them." Dangerous substances. 459. No person shall post any thing containing explosive or other dangerous substances. 3 & 4 Vict. ch. 93, § LXII. Regulations for dispatch of correspondence. 460. Correspondence of the second class shall be dispatched under the following regulations, and such additional regulations as may from time to time be established by the dispatching post department: 2 1. No packet' shall contain anything which is closed against inspection, nor any written communication whatever, except to state from whom or to whom the packet is sent, and the number and price placed upon each pattern or sample of merchandise;" 2. No packet shall exceed two feet in length, or one foot in any other dimension; 3. No office shall be bound to deliver any article the importation of which is prohibited by the laws or regulations of the country of destination;' 4. So long as any customs duty is chargeable on any article sent to any nation, it may be levied for the use of the customs of that nation; and, 5. Except as above provided, no charge whatever, otherwise than is expressly provided by special compact, shall be levied or collected on the correspondence transmitted." Postal convention between the United States and V., 16 U. S. Stat. at L., (Tr.,)76. XII., 16 Id., (Tr.,) 146. Great Britain, Belgium, Netherlands, Sept. 26, 1867, " XII., 16 Id., (Tr.,) 272. And it is also provided in the convention with Italy, above, that “there shall be admitted no liquid nor other article which might injure the other correspondence." 1 1 By the postal convention between Great Britain and Sardinia, Dec. 12, 1857, Art. XIV., Accounts and Papers, 1858, vol. LX., (28,) "a book-packet may contain any number of separate books or other publications, prints, or maps, and (subject to the consent of the French post-office,) any quantity of paper, parchment or vellum; and the books or other publications, prints, maps, &c., may be (subject to the like consent), either printed, writ ten, or plain, or any mixture of the three. Further, all legitimate binding, mounting, or covering of a book, publication, &c., or of a portion thereof, shall be allowed, whether such binding, &c., be loose or attached; as also rollers, in the case of prints or maps, markers, (whether of paper or otherwise,) in the case of books; and, in short, whatever is necessary for the safe transmission of literary or artistic matter, or usually apper tains thereto; but no patterns, or books of patterns, (unless these consist merely of paper,) shall be allowed." ? Postal convention between Great Britain and Spain, May 21, 1858, Art. XI., Accounts & Papers, 1858, LX., (28.) Sardinia, Dec. 12, 1857, printed papers must not contain any writing, figure, or manual mark whatsoever, or they will be treated as letters, and charged accordingly. By the postal convention between Great Britain and Belgium, Oct. 19, 1844, Art. XXI., Accounts and Papers, 1845, LII., "courses of exchange, prices current, and such other printed papers as are allowed, in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, to pass by post at a reduced rate," must not contain any writing, figures, or manual mark whatsoever." By the postal convention between Great Britain and France, July 2, 1861, Arts. I., II., Accounts and Papers, 1861, vol. LXV., (32,) “patterns of no intrinsic value, photographs, commercial and legal documents, printed, engraved or lithographed works, bearing either corrections or manual notes, and all other papers in manuscript," shall enjoy the privileges of printed papers bearing no manual mark, provided that the postage thereon is prepaid to destination, that they may be easily examined; and that they contain no letter, or note of the nature of a letter, or which could serve as such; otherwise, they will be treated as letters, and charged accordingly. The postal convention between the United States and Prussia, July 11, and Aug. 26, 1852, Art. V., (16 U. S. Stat. at L., (Tr.,) 184,) provides that newspapers are to be subject to the laws and regulations of each country, respectively, in regard to their liability to be rated with letter postage when containing written matter, or for any other cause specified in said laws and regulations. 3 The postal convention between Great Britain and Belgium, Oct. 19, 1844, Art. XXXI., above, provides that courses of exchange and prices current shall merely give the name and prices of goods, without any mention of the name and residence of the vendors. 4 Postal convention between Great Britain and France, 1845, Art. I.; France, 1856, Art. XVIII.; Spain, 1858, Art. XV.; and Sardinia, 1857, Art. XVIII., above. 5 It is expressly agreed by the postal conventions between Great Britain and France, 1855 and 1856, above, that printed papers which each of the two offices shall deliver to the other as paid to destination, shall not, on any pretext, be charged with any rate or duty whatever to be paid by the receivers. And by the convention between Great Britain and Spain, 1858, above, books, prints, drawings, maps and music sent separately, are to remain subject to the regulations and duties of the customs. 6 Postal convention between the United States and Venezuela, July, 1865, June, 1866, Art. V., 16 U. S. Stat. at L., (Tr.,) 312. Postal convention between Great Britain and Spain, 1858, Art. XV.; Sardinia, 1857, Art. XVIII.; Portugal, 1859, Art. XI., above, excepting the case of insufficiently paid correspondence. Transit of closed mails through each nation. 461. The post department of each nation shall-grant to the post department of every other nation the transit through its territory,' and conveyance by its usual means of mail transportation, whether by land or sea, and at the usual cost of transportation, of the closed mails exchanged in either direction between the latter and any country to which the former may serve as intermediary. Postal convention between the United States and X., 16 U. S. Stat. at L. (Tr.,) 77. XIV., 16 Id., (Tr.,) 147. Great Britain, Belgium, 1 By the convention between the United States and the Swiss Confederation, Netherlands, and Venezuela, above, such territorial transit shall be reciprocally free of charge. By the convention between the United States and Mexico, above, territorial transit in closed mails shall be reciprocally free from any postage duties, imposts, detention or examination whatever. By the convention between the United States and Italy, 1863, above; Mexico, Dec. 11, 1861, Art. VII., (16 U. S. Stat. at L., (Tr.,) 307;) Venezuela, July, 1865, June, 1866, Art. VII., (16 Id., (Tr.,) 317;) and the convention between Great Britain and France, Sept. 24, 1856, Art. XXIX., Accounts and Papers, 1857, vol. XVIII., (11,) the privilege is also accorded to each administration, of sending an agent, at its own expense, in charge of the mails in transit. Transfer of closed mails without charge. 462. The transfer of a closed mail from one ship to another, without expense to the post department of the place, is not to be deemed a territorial transit, nor subject to postal charges by such department. Postal convention between the United States and Official correspondence free. 463. Correspondence between a government and its public ministers, and their official families abroad, and between the post departments of different nations, is free. Postal convention between the United States and Venezuela, July, 1865, June, 1866, Art. IX., 16 U. S. Stat. at L., (Tr.,) 312. Postal convention between Great Britain and Portugal, April 6, 1859, Art. XXIII., Accounts and Papers, 1859, vol. XXXII., (18.) And these further provide that such correspondence shall be conveyed with all the precautions which each government may find necessary for its inviolability and security. Postal convention between the United States and Great Britain, Nov. 7, 24, 1868, Art. XVIII., 16 U. S. Stat. at L., (Tr.,) 78. Aug. 21, 1867, Belgium, XVII., 16 Id., (Tr.,) 147. 464. Letters, and all registered correspondence, misdirected or missent, or not delivered for any cause, |