tory powers have agreed to enforce the provisions of Articles XCI, XCII and XCIII within a zone extending from the 20th degree of North latitude to the 22d degree of South latitude, and bounded on the west by the Atlantic Ocean and on the east by the Indian Ocean and its dependencies, including the islands adjacent to the mainland within 100 nautical miles from the coast.
Article XCI
In the districts of this zone where it shall be ascertained that, either on account of religious belief or from some other causes, the use of distilled liquors does not exist or has not been developed, the powers shall prohibit their importation. The manufacture of distilled liquors shall be likewise prohibited there.
Each power shall determine the limits of the zone of prohibition of alcoholic liquors in its possessions or protectorates, and shall be bound to make known the limits thereof to the other powers within the space of six months.
The above prohibition can only be suspended in the case of limited quantities intended for the consumption of the non-native population and imported under the regime and conditions determined by each Government.
Article XCII
The powers having possessions or exercising protectorates in those regions of the zone which are not subjected to the regime of the prohibition, and into which alcoholic liquors are at present either freely imported or pay an import duty of less than 15 francs per hectolitre at 50 degrees centigrade, engage to levy on such alcoholic liquors an import duty of 15 francs per hectolitre at 50 degrees centigrade, for three years after the present general act comes into force. At the expiration of this period the duty may be increased to 25 francs during a fresh period of three years. At the end of the sixth year it shall be submitted to revision, the average results produced by these tariffs being taken as a basis, for the purpose of then fixing, if possible, a minimum duty throughout the whole extent of the zone where the prohibition referred to in Article XCI is not in force.
The powers retain the right of maintaining and increasing the duties beyond the minimum fixed by the present article in those regions where they already possess that right.
Article XCIII
Distilled liquors manufactured in the regions referred to in Article XCII, and intended for inland consumption, shall be subject to an excise duty.
This excise duty, the collection of which the powers engage to secure, as
