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A.—7,

(3) In all matters not contrary to the provisions of the present Convention or the regulations made thereunder, the subjects and citizens of the two Signatory Powers and the subjects and citizens of other Powers shall, within the New Hebrides, remain subject to the fullest extent to the laws of their respective countries. (4) The two Signatory Powers undertake not to erect fortifications in the Group and not to establish penal settlements of any kind. Article 11. Local Authorities. — Police. (1) The Signatory Powers shall be represented in the Group by two High Commissioners, one appointed by His Britannic Majesty's Government, the other by the Government of the French Republic. (2) The High Commissioners shall each be assisted by a Resident Commissioner, to whom they shall delegate their respective powers, in so far as they consider it expedient, and who shall represent them in the Group when they do not reside there. (3) The High Commissioners or their Delegates shall be provided with a police force of sufficient strength to guarantee effectively the protection of life and property. (4) The force shall be divided into two divisions of equal strength. Each of these two divisions shall be under the orders of one of the two Resident Commissioners, and shall in no case be employed otherwise than in conformity with the principles laid down by the present Convention. (5) When it is necessary to employ some or all of both divisions of the force in conformity with the present Convention or of the regulations framed for its execution, the force shall be under the joint direction of the High Commissioners or their Delegates. Article 111. Seat of Government. (1). The head-quarters of each Government in the Group and the Joint Court provided for in Article X. shall be at Vila, in the Island of Efate. (2) The two Signatory Powers undertake respectively to provide their Representatives with houses, and shall jointly erect quarters for the members of the Joint Court, together with a court-house, and offices for the public services to be undertaken in common. (3) The land required for these buildings shall be acquired by the two Powers jointly either by agreement or, if necessary, compulsorily. Article IV. Public Services undertaken m Common. (1) The following public services shall be undertaken in common : police, posts and telegraphs, public works, ports and harbours, buoys and lighthouses, public health, finance. (2) These public services shall be organized and directed by the High Commissioners and their Delegates jointly. (3) Special postage stamps shall be issued for the New Hebrides, in conformity with the International Postal Convention. (4) English and French money and bank-notes authorized by either Power shall be legal tender in the Group. Article V. Financial Provisions. (1) Each of the two Signatory Powers shall defray the expenses of its own administration in the Group. (2) The expenses of the Joint Court and of the public services undertaken in common shall be defrayed out of local taxes, to be imposed by the High Commissioners jointly, the receipts from fines and from the postal service, and all other revenue of a joint character. In the event of the revenue from the above proving insufficient, the two Signatory Powers shall each pay one-half of the deficit. Article VI. Joint Naval Commission. (1) It shall be the duty of the Joint Naval Commission established by Article II of the Convention of the 16th November, 1887, to co-operate in maintaining order in the Group. (2) Except in case of urgency, it shall only act on the joint request of the two High Commissioners or their Delegates. (3) The Convention of the 16th November, 1887, the Declaration signed in Paris on the 26th January, 1888, between the British and French Governments, and the Regulations adopted on the same day by the two Governments as instructions for the Joint Naval Commission, shall remain in force, except where contrary to the present Convention. (4) The Joint Naval Commission shall send copies of the reports on its operations to each of the two High Commissioners and to each of the two Resident Commissioners.

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