Les projets de loi sur la police médicale vous seront présentés de

nouveaux.

Le

La récolte paraît avoir été généralement très-abondante. produit des pêches maritimes et des rivières a été également satisfaissant.

Les progrès de notre industrie sont évidents.

Ou remarque avec plaisir l'extension des travaux pour utilité générale, entrepris soit par l'Etat, les provinces, les communes, soit par des sociétés particulières.

Le plan des travaux à exécuter dans le cours de l'année prochaine aux chemins de fer de l'Etat vous sera présenté. Grâces au réglement du mode d'exploitation, voté dans la dernière session, plusieurs lignes de chemins de fer pourront prochainement être livrées au service public. Des concessions sont ou seront accordées pour la construction des lignes destinées à compléter le réseau des chemins de fer de l'Etat.

Vous recevrez incessament les projets d'un nouveau Code d'Instruction Criminelle. Le projet d'un nouveau Code d'Instruction Civile est sur le point d'être terminé.

La situation des finances de l'Etat continuent à être favorable. Bien que les travaux des chemins de fer de l'Etat exigent des sommes plus considérables que celles allouées jusqu'à présent, on sera à même de pourvoir à ces dépenses, sans avoir besoin d'avoir recours à des mesures extraordinaires et sans suspendre l'amortissement de la dette publique.

Il vous sera présenté divers projets de loi formant l'ensemble d'un plan d'une révision graduelle de notre systême d'impôts.

Puisse l'accomplissement de la tâche qui vous est dévoulue tendre, sous la bénédiction du Ciel, au salut de la Patrie.

Je déclare ouverte la session ordinaire des Etats Généraux.

CONSULAR CONVENTION between Portugal and Brazil.— Rio de Janeiro, April 4, 1863.

[Ratified by the King of Portugal, July 11, 1863.]

(Translation.)

His Majesty the King of Portugal and of the Algarves, and His Majesty the Emperor of Brazil, being mutually desirous of drawing still closer the ties of amity which now happily subsist between the two nations, by developing as much as possible the commercial relations between their respective subjects, and being convinced that one of the means most conducive to this end is to determine in a clear and positive manner the reciprocal rights,

privileges and immunities of all Consular functionaries, as well as the duties which they are bound to fulfil in both countries, have to the resolution of concluding a Consular Convention, wherein the aforesaid rights, privileges, immunities, and obligations are to be clearly defined; and for this end, they have appointed their Plenipotentiaries, namely:

His Majesty the King of Portugal, his Excellency José de Vasconcellos e Sousa, Gentleman of the Royal Household, Councillor to His Most Faithful Majesty, his Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary, Grand Cross of the Orders of Christ, of Pius IX, of the Red Eagle, and of the Royal Crown, and Commander of the Order of Our Lady of the Conception of Villa Viçoza.

And His Majesty the Emperor of Brazil, his Excellency the Marquis of Abrantes, Senator of the Empire, Councillor of State, Chamberlain to Her Majesty the Empress, Grand Cross of the Imperial Order of the Southern Cross, Grand Dignitary of the Order of the Rose, Grand Cross of the Orders of Our Lady of the Conception of Villa Viçoza, and of the Constantinian Order of the Two Sicilies, and Minister and Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs;

Who, after having communicated to each other their full Powers, which were found to be in good and due form, have agreed to the following Articles :

ART. I. The Consuls-General, Consuls, and Vice-Consuls appointed by the Governments of Portugal and Brazil, shall be mutually received and recognized, on presentation of their Commissions, in accordance with the form used in each country. The exequatur necessary for the free discharge of their functions shall be given to them gratis, and the administrative and judicial authorities, at the ports, cities, or places where they are going to reside, shall allow them, on presenting the aforesaid exequatur, to enter immediately into the enjoyment of all the prerogatives which are inherent to their functions in the Consular district.

Each of the High Contracting Parties reserves unto itself the right of excepting, for the future, any places where the appointment of Vice-Consuls and Consular Agents or Delegates may not be deemed expedient.

II. Consuls-General, Consuls and their Chancellors, as well as Vice-Consuls, shall enjoy in both countries all the privileges which are generally accorded to their office, such as exemption from having troops quartered in their houses, and from all direct taxes, not only personal or assessed, but also on all movable or personal property, with the exception, however, that if they become landowners or temporary holders of real property, or in fine, if they carry on business, they will in all these cases be liable to pay the same rates, charges, and taxes as private individuals.

III. The Consuls-General, Consuls, and Vice-Consuls of both countries, shall further enjoy personal immunity, except for such facts or acts as are specified and punished as unbailable crimes either by Portuguese or by Brazilian laws.

In case they are merchants, the punishment of imprisonment cannot be imposed upon them, except for facts having reference to trade alone.

IV. The Consuls-General, Consuls, and Vice-Consuls will be allowed to place over the entrance door of their houses the arms of their own nation with the following inscription: "Consulate of Portugal," or "Consulate of Brazil," and on national fête days they will also be allowed to hoist their national flag at the Consulate. These external signs shall not, however, be in any way interpreted as giving the right of asylum; their principal object will be to point out the Consulate to sailors and other subjects.

V. The Consuls-General, Consuls and their Chancellors, as well as Vice-Consuls, shall not be summoned to appear before the courts of the country where they reside. Should the local courts of justice be under the necessity of receiving any judicial information from them, they must ask for it in writing, or otherwise proceed to their own house, in order to receive the same by word of mouth.

VI. Should any Consul or Vice-Consul be prevented from acting, be absent or dead, the Chancellors or other persons who may have been previously appointed by the holder of the Consulate to act in his stead, will be allowed to exercise the Consular functions ad interim, with the sanction of the proper local authority, and to enjoy during the temporary discharge of their functions, all the rights, privileges and immunities which belong to their office.

VII. It is specially understood, that if one of the two High Contracting Parties should select for its Consul or Consular Agent, at a port or city of the other Contracting Party, a subject of the latter, the same Consul or Consular Agent shall still continue to be regarded as a subject of the nation to which he belongs, and consequently subject to the laws and regulations which are in force for the natives at his place of residence, but this subjection is not to restrict him in any way in discharging the duties of his office.

VIII. The archives and all the official papers in general, belonging to the Consulates, shall be held to be inviolable, and they shall not be on any account or pretext either seized or examined by the local authority.

It is, however, understood that the books and papers belonging to those archives must always be kept separate from other books. and papers having reference to the trade or industry in which the Consuls or Consular Agents may happen to be engaged.

Should any Consular functionary die without having appointed a substitute, the local authority shall immediately take steps to seal up the archives, in the presence of two subjects of the country, whose interests were intrusted to the said functionary; and should these be wanting, in the presence of two of the most notable persons of the place, as well as, if possible, of a Consular functionary of another nation, who may reside in the district.

All those who may have been called to witness the act, shall also affix their own seals, conjointly with those of the said authority. The notarial deed of this Act shall be drawn up in duplicate, and one of the copies shall be delivered to the Consul under whom the vacant Consular agency may be placed.

When the new functionary shall wish to take possession of the archives, the breaking of the seals shall take place in the presence of the local authority.

IX. The Consuls-General, Consuls, and Vice-Consuls, or any other persons acting in their stead, shall be allowed to correspond with the authorities of the place where they reside; and in case of necessity and in the absence of the Diplomatic Agent of their own country, they may have recourse to the Supreme Government of the State where they reside in order to complain of any violation of the existing Treaties or Conventions between the two countries, coinmitted by the authorities or functionaries of the aforesaid State, or of any other abuse to the prejudice of their fellow-subjects, and they shall have the right to take any steps which they may consider necessary in order to obtain prompt justice.

X. The respective Consuls-General and Consuls shall be allowed to appoint agents, Vice-Consuls, or Consular Agents, in the different cities, ports, or places in their Consular district, where the good of the service committed to their charge may require it, but of course subject to the approval and exequatur of the Government of the country.

These agents may be selected not only from amongst the subjects of both countries, but also from amongst foreigners; and they shall be provided with a commission signed by the Consul-General or Consul who may have appointed them and under whose orders they are to serve. They shall also enjoy the same privileges and immunities, stipulated in this Convention in favour of Consuls, with the exceptions mentioned in Article III.

XJ. The Consuls-General, Consuls, and Vice-Consuls of both countries shall have the right to receive either in their own chanceries, or in the houses of the parties, or on board of the ships of their own country any statements or other writings made or drawn up by the captains, crews, or passengers, merchants, or other subjects of their own country, including wills or testamentary

wishes, or any other notarial deeds, even in the case of deeds made for the purpose of granting a mortgage.

Nevertheless, if these deeds have reference to real property situated in the country where the Consul or Consular Agent resides, a notary or a proper public officer shall be called in to be present when the aforesaid deeds are drawn up, which are to be signed by him conjointly with the chancellor or agent, under pain of nullity.

XII. The Consuls-General, Consuls, and Vice-Consuls shall also have the right to draw up in their own chanceries any contracts, either between their fellow-citizens, or between one or more of the latter and other persons of the country where they reside, as well as any other contracts concerning the interests of subjects of the latter country only, provided those contracts have only reference either to property situated in the country of the Consul or Agent before whom they are made, or to any business that must be conducted in that same country.

The copies of the aforesaid contracts, duly certified by the Consuls-General, Consuls, and Vice-Consuls, and stamped with the official seal of their Consulate or Vice-Consulate, shall be considered authentic either in a court of law, or out of the same, in Portugal as well as in the Brazils, and they shall have the same force and validity, as if they had been made before notaries or other public officers of either country, provided such contracts shall have been drawn up in accordance with the laws of the State to which the Consul belongs, and that all the formalities such as stamping, registration, insertion in notary's books, and any others that may be in force with respect to the subject in question, in the country where the contract is to be carried into execution, shall have been previously complied with.

XIII. In the event of the death of a subject of one of the two High Contracting Parties in the country of the other, the competent local authorities shall immediately report the same to the Consuls-General, Consuls, or Vice-Consuls of the district, and the latter, should they get the information first, must on their part communicate the same to the local authorities.

When a subject of one of the two nations shall have died without leaving any heirs or without having appointed any executors, or whose heirs are either unknown, absent, or incapable, the ConsulsGeneral, Consuls, and Vice-Consuls shall proceed to take the following steps:

1stly. To put the seals ex officio, or at the request of the interested party, upon all the furniture and papers of the deceased, giving notice beforehand of this act to the proper local authority, which will be allowed to be present at the same, and even to affix