Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 55 Part 2.djvu/267

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1138 TREATIES LiO MTAT. ARTICLE II Composition of The International Commission shall be composed of five members, Commssion. to be appointed as follows: One member shall be chosen from each country, by the Government thereof; one member shall be chosen by each Government from some third country; the fifth member shall be chosen by common agreement between the two Governments, it being understood that he shall not be a citizen of either country. The expenses of the Commission shall be paid by the two Govern- ments in equal proportions. Appointment. The International Commission shall be appointed within six months after the exchange of ratifications of this treaty; and vacancies shall be filled according to the manner of the original appointment. ARTICLE III Immediate reference of dispute. Facilities to be fur- nished. Report. Right of independ- ent action reserved. In case the High Contracting Parties shall have failed to adjust a dispute by diplomatic methods, and they do not have recourse to adjudication by a competent tribunal, they shall at once refer it to the International Commission for investigation and report. The International Commission may, however, spontaneously by unani- mous agreement offer its services to that effect, and in such case it shall notify both Governments and request their cooperation in the investigation. The High Contracting Parties agree to furnish the Permanent Inter- national Commission with all the means and facilities required for its investigation and report. The report of the Commission shall be completed within one year after the date on which it shall declare its investigation to have begun, unless the High Contracting Parties shall limit or extend the time by mutual agreement. The report shall be prepared in triplicate; one copy shall be presented to each Government, and the third retained by the Commission for its files. The High Contracting Parties reserve the right to act independently on the subject matter of the dispute after the report of the Commission shall have been submitted. ARTICLE IV Ratification. The present treaty shall be ratified by the President of the United States of America by and with the advice and consent of the Senate thereof, and by the President of the Republic of Liberia in accordance with the constitutional laws of the Republic. Effective date; du- The ratifications shall be exchanged at Monrovia as soon as possible, and the treaty shall take effect on the date of the exchange of ratifica- tions. It shall thereafter remain in force continuously unless and until terminated by one year's written notice given by either High Contracting Party to the other. r-l C cs.·