Form and Scope of Commercial Treaties. —The most recent commercial treaty of the United States is that made with Japan and pro claimed in 1911, superseding that of 1894. In express terms, this treaty provides: . °The citizens or subjects of each of the High Contracting Parties shall have liberty to enter, travel and reside in the territories of the other, to carry on trade, wholesale or retail, to own or lease and occupy houses, manufactures, warehouses and shops, to employ agents of their own choice, to lease land for residential and commercial purposes, and generally to do anything incident to or necessary for trade upon the sap! terms as native citizens or sub jects, submitting themselves to the laws and regulations there established.
°They shall not be compelled, under any pre text whatever, to pay any charges or taxes other or higher than those that are or may be paid by native citizens or subjects.
°The citizens or subjects of each of the High Contracting Parties shall receive, in the terntories of the other, the most constant pro tection and security for their persons and prop erty, and shall enjoy in this respect the same rights and privileges as are or may be granted to native citizens or subjects, on their submit ting themselves to the conditions Unposed upon the native citizens or subjects.
°They shall, however, be exempt in the ter ritories of the other from compulsory military service, either on land or sea, in the regular forces or the national guard, or in the militia; from all contributions imposed in lieu of per sonal service, and from all forced loans or mil itary eicactions or conditions.° Other articles of the treaty provide that the dwellings, manufactures and shops of the citi zens or subjects of one country in the terri tories of the other, and all premises appertain ing thereto shall be respected . . . That there shall be no domiciliary search of prem ises nor examination of books, papers or accounts, except under conditions prescribed by law for the natives . . . Provide for the appointment of consular officers, with all the authority and immunity. accorded those of any nation, in all ports, cues or places opened to commerce to any nation. . . . That there shall be freedom of commerce, reciprocally between the two countries, the citizens of each, equally with those of the most favored nation, having liberty to come with their ships and cargoes to all places, ports and rivers opened to foreign commerce, subject to the laws of the country into which they come. . . . That
the import on articles imported shall be regu lated by treaty or internal legislation . . . That no export duties or charges shall be made nor prohibition of export or import imposed, except such as apply to all foreign nations, this not to apply, however, to prohibitions imposed as sanitary measures or to protect animals and useful plants. . . . Reciprocal enjoyment upon equal terms is accorded to the people of both countries in the territories of the other, in exemptions from transit dues and privileges relative to warehousing, bounties, facilities and drawbacks.
Limited liability and other companies and associations, commercial, industrial and finan cial, already or hereafter to be organized in accordance with the laws of either country and domiciled in the territories of such country, are authorized, in the territories of the other coun try, to exercise their rights and appear in the courts either as plaintiffs or defendants, subject to the laws of such other country. This stipu lation has no bearing upon the question of whether a company or association organized in one of the two countries will or will not be permitted to transact its business or industry in the other, this permission remaining always subject to the laws and regulations enacted or established in the respective countries or in any part thereof.
No discrimination is permitted by either country against the vessels of the other in the matter of import charges, reciprocal equality of treatment being accorded whether articles of import come directly from the place of origin or from any other foreign place. No discrimination of any sort as to either import or export is permitted. No duties of tonnage, harbor, pilotage, quarantine or other similar or corresponding duties, are to be levied except as applied to vessels of the most favored nation. Coasting trade is to be regulated by the laws of the respective countries, but each is to have 'the same treatment as that accorded the most favored nation. Rights as to trade marks, designs and patents are reciprocally the same as those accorded to natives; and the general declaration as to most favored nation is incorporated as a separate article of the treaty.