As I wrote to you on the 11th January of this year, the question of the precise extent of the authority of Congress to deal with the regis tration and protection of trade-marks, and the exact effect of the statutes enacted by that body, is by no means free from doubt. Similar doubts extend to the question of the power of the treaty-making branch of the Government to deal with the subject. The Supreme Court of the United States, when the question was before it in 1879, took pains to state that it left untouched "the whole question of the treaty-making power of the General Government over trade-marks and the duty of Congress to pass any laws necessary to carry such treaties into effect." It has been the general expectation that there might be some further expression of opinion by that tribunal upon the subject which was thus left open by it in its former decision; but since 1879 the Supreme Court, so far as I am aware, has not been called upon to lay down any further rule upon this subject. In the mean time, however, the question came before the Senate whether it should advise and consent to the adhesion of the United States to the Paris convention for the protection of industrial property. As you are aware, the Senate, after considerable hesitation, advised adhesion to that convention on the 2d of March, 1887. The accession of the United States to the union for the protection of industrial property was then announced by the minister resident and consul-general of the United States at Berne to the federal council of Switzerland on May 30, 1887, and the President issued his proclamation accordingly upon June 11 of same year. The Patent Office, a branch of the Department of the Interior, which is charged with the registration of trade-marks, receives, as I am informed, applications from inhabitants of Switzerland without discrimination, and upon the same terms as from residents in the United States. For your further information as to the practice of that Department, I inclose herewith two copies of the laws and regulations concerning trade marks, edition of November 1, 1886. * Upon a careful review of the federal legislation of the United States, as expressed in the act of March 3, 1881, and the provisions of the convention just referred to, I have been unable to perceive that there would be any advantage to citizens of the United States or of the Swiss Confederation in the ratification of the treaty of February 14, 1885, or in the conclusion of any similar engagement. The law of March 3, 1881, as already pointed out, provides for the registration and protection of trade marks used in foreign commerce or in commerce with the Indian tribes, whether the owners of such trade-marks are domiciled in the United States or in any foreign country or Indian tribe which by treaty or law affords similar protection to trade-marks of citizens of the United States. Article 2 of the convention of March 20, 1883, provides that the subjects or citizens of each of the contracting states shall enjoy in all the other states of the union, for the protection of industrial property, the advantages the respective laws thereof accord to their own subjects or citizens, and that they shall have the same legal recourse for an infringement of their rights. Whether these statutory and conventional provisions are in all respects within the constitutional competence of the Federal Government, is a question which, as I have already stated, has not been decided by the Supreme Court. But as they stand and are now applied, they are * Inclosures not printed herewith. unambiguous in their terms and are ample for the purpose for which they were devised. To enter, therefore, into a new engagement, such as is proposed in the convention now under consideration, might work a positive disadvantage by complicating the present situation with new questions as to federal power. Therefore, as previously stated, after an attentive examination of the whole subject, and after awaiting some authoritative expression of opinion from the judicial branch of the Government upon the point which it had left untouched in its former decisions, the President has decided not to recommend to the Senate its advice and consent to the ratification of the treaty signed February 14, 1885. Accept, etc., No. 1051. T. F. BAYARD. Mr. Rives to Mr. Kloss. DEPARTMENT OF STATE, SIR: I have the honor, in reply to Colonel Frey's note of the 31st of January last, inclosing a note dated 13th of January, addressed to the Secretary of State, by the President of the Swiss Confederation, on the subject of placing under one management the international bureau for the protection of industrial property and the bureau of literary and artistic works, to say that it is understood by this Government that in charging the Swiss Government with the administration of these bureaus, the details of their organization and management within the terms of the convention and final protocol were left entirely to the discretion of your Government. There is no doubt that this trust will be discharged with due regard to the interests of all the members of the International Union, and since the President and Chancellor of the Swiss Confederation in their communication of January 13 declare that the step in question has been taken with a view to economical administration, this Government cordiaily approves it. Accept, etc., G. L. RIVES, No. 1052. Mr. Bayard to Mr. de Claparède. Acting Secretary. DEPARTMENT OF STATE, Washington, November 28, 1888. SIR: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your note of the 27th instant, in which you convey the sad intelligence of the death of His Excellency President Hertenstein on the preceding day. I instantly communicated by telegraph to the Chancellor of the Swiss Confederation the sorrow experienced by the people of the United States in the loss of the honored head of the Swiss Republic. Accept, etc., T. F. BAYARD. No. 51.] TURKEY. No. 1053. Mr. Bayard to Mr. Straus. DEPARTMENT OF STATE, SIR: I inclose for your information, and with a view to a report upon the subject, a copy of a dispatch from the consul at Jerusalem, No. 26, of the 28th ultimo, covering a copy of a communication from the gov. ernor of Palestine relative to the expulsion of Jews therefrom. I am, etc., [Inclosure 1 in No. 51.] Mr. Gillman to Mr. Porter. T. F. BAYARD. No. 26.] CONSULATE OF THE UNITED STATES, SIR: I have the honor herewith to inclose copy, with translation, of a communication which I have received from his excellency Raouf Pasha, governor of Jerusalem and Palestine, relative to the expulsion from Palestine of Jews who are foreigners, in our case, of course, having reference to citizens of the United States who are Jews. This has been followed by a notice through the police department of Jerusalem, given verbally, but of the same tenor. It appears this decree (Iradeh) does not apply to all American citizens in Palestine who are Jews, but only to those who have recently come here. Asking for your instructions in regard to this decree, that I may govern myself accordingly, I am, etc., HENRY GILLMAN. [Inclosure 2 in No. 51.-Translation.] Raouf Pasha to Mr. Gillman. MUTESSARIFlik of JeruSALEM. SIR: It has been represented to me in a memorial from the police department that the consulates do not lend the necessary assistance to cause the foreign Jews (literally people of Moses) to return to their countries after the expiration of the temporary period assigned to them to perform their pilgrimage, viz: one month, in conformity to the decision of the Government based on a special iradeh prohibiting foreign Jews from coming to reside and settle in Palestine; that, as thereby this decree is infringed, the police ask that the necessary steps be taken at the different consulates to the end that on the expiration of the above-mentioned term the necessary facilities should be afforded by them, both here and on the embarkation at Jaffa, for the return of the said Jews to their homes, and that the needful instructions on the subject be given to the various vice-consulates at Jaffa. I have addressed communications to this effect to all consulates, as now to yourself, to which I request a reply. I avail myself of the opportunity, etc., The 22' Zi El-Hidjah. August 29 (September 10), 1887. MOHAMMED RAOUF, Governor of Jerusalem. No. 53.] No. 1054. Mr. Bayard to Mr. Straus. DEPARTMENT OF STATE, Washington, November 2, 1887. SIR: I take pleasure in inclosing for your information and for the files of your legation a copy of a letter from the secretary of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions, dated Boston, the 26th ultimo, expressing appreciation of your own and the Department's efforts in behalf of American missionaries in Turkey. I am, etc., Inclosure in No. 53.] T. F. BAYARD. Rev. Dr. Clark to Mr. Bayard. BOSTON, October 26, 1887. MY DEAR SIR: In behalf of the prudential committee and executive officers of the Board, I beg to express to you their high appreciation of your kindly offices in behalf of missionaries of the American Board in Turkey, as well as in Micronesia. Attention was called to this service at the annual meeting at Springfield. Reference is also made to the same in the Missionary Herald of November. I send you a half dozen copies, and beg to call your attention to what is said on page 426, 430, 432, 434, and 442. Your instructions to Mr. Straus, the present minister of the United States in Turkey, were all that could be desired, and Mr. Straus has commended himself to the confidence and respect of the missionaries acquainted with him. It is quite unusual for us to receive such favors from the United States Government and they are on that account the more highly appreciated. Yours, etc., No. 46.] Mr. Straus to Mr. Bayard. LEGATION OF THE UNITED STATES, Constantinople, December 5, 1887. (Received December 20.) SIR: I have the honor to inclose a copy of a note verbale, received from the Porte, requesting me to instruct the consul-general to assist the competent authorities in entering the house of a certain Handji, an American citizen, for the purpose of enabling them to seize certain copies of a book on Mormonism, published without authorization. Under the provisions of paragraph No. 181 of the Personal Instructions, I felt empowered to render the assistance asked for, as will be seen from my dispatch to the consul-general, a copy of which I inclose. I likewise inclose a copy of Mr. Pringle's reply, in which he informs me. that the pamphlets have all been surrendered to the Turkish authorities. I have, etc., O. S. STRAUS. [Inclosure 1 in No. 46.] The ministry of foreign affairs to the legation of the United States. SUBLIME PORTE, MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS, October 29, 1887. NOTE VERBALE.-At the request of the department of public instruction the ministry of foreign affairs begs the legation of the United States of America to kindly invite its consulate-general to lend its assistance to the competent authorities for the seizure of a work on Mormonism, published by Mr. Handji, an American citizen, in a printing office opened without authority at Conlé-Capoussi, the copies of which have been deposited in the abode of the editor, situated at Coum-Capou, in the vicinity of the Armenian patriarchate. [Inclosure 2 in No. 46.] Mr. Straus to Mr. Pringle. No. 22.] UNITED STATES LEGATION, SIR: I herewith inclose a copy of a note verbale (October 29, 1887) received from the Sublime Porte, wherein, as you will observe, I am asked to invite you to aid the competent authorities so that they may enter the domicile of a certain Handji, an alleged American citizen, for the purpose of seizing a publication propagating Mormonism, and which was printed without authority. I deem it my duty, in the interest of good order and morality and under the instructions issued by the State Department to its ministers abroad in respect to the polygamy of Mormonism, to authorize you to give your assistance, by virtue of the powers in you vested, to enable the competent authorities to enforce their laws in this matter, provided always that the facts are as stated in said note verbale. I have, etc., [Inclosure 3 in No. 46.] Mr. Pringle to Mr. Straus. O. S. STRAUS. No. 59.] CONSULATE GENERAL OF THE UNITED States, SIR: With reference to your No. 22, of October 31, 1887, inclosing copy of a note verbale from the Sublime Porte, I beg to inform you that I also received a letter from the minister of public instruction in which he repeated his request that I should lend my assistance to aid in seizing a pamphlet on Mormonism, published by an alleged American citizen. I replied that I would lend all the assistance in my power consistent with my official duty. An inspector of public printing called upon me by direction of the minister, and I found that his idea was that I should arrest or seize the pamphlet. This I declined most peremptorily to do, and told him I was only authorized to assist |