Art. 1st. The signatory States constitute themselves into a Union for the purpose of recognizing and protecting the rights of literary and artistic property, in conformity with the stipulations of the present Convention.
Art. 2nd. Under the term "Literary and Artistic works," are comprised books, manuscripts, pamphlets of all kinds, no matter on what subjects they may treat of and what may be the number of their pages; dramatic or melodramatic works; choral music and musical compositions, with or without words, designs, drawings, paintings, sculpture, engravings, photographic works; astronomical and geographical globes; plans, sketches and plastic works relating to geography or geology, topography or architecture, or any other science; and finally, every production in the literary and artistic field, which may be published by any method of impression or reproduction.
Art. 3rd. The copyright to literary or artistic work, consists in the exclusive right to dispose of the same, to publish, sell and translate the same, or to authorize its translation, and to reproduce the same in any manner, either entirely or partially.
The authors belonging to one of the signatory countries, or their assigns, shall enjoy in the other signatory countries, and for the time stipulated in art. 5th., the exclusive right to translate their works, or to authorize their translation.
Art. 4th. In order to obtain the recognition of the copyright of a work, it is indispensable that the author or his assigns, or legitimate representative, shall address a petition to the official Department, which each government may designate, claiming the recognition of such right, which petition must be accompanied by two copies of his work, said copies to remain in the proper Department.
If the author, or his assigns, should desire that his copyright be recognized in any other of the signatory countries, he shall attach to his petition a number of copies of his work, equal to that of the countries he may therein designate. The said Department shall distribute the copies mentioned among those countries, accompanied by a copy of the respective certificate, in order that the copyright of the author may be recognized by them.
Any omissions in which the said Department may incur in this respect, shall not give the author, or his assigns, any rights to present claims against the State.
Art. 5th. The authors who belong to one of the signatory countries, of their assigns, shall enjoy in the other countries the rights which their respective laws at present grant, or in the future may grant, to their own citizens, but such right shall not exceed the term of protection granted in the country of its origin.
For the works composed of several volumes, which are not published at the same time, as well as for bulletins or instalments of publications of literary or scientific societies, or of private parties, the term of property shall com-
