629


ITALY.


June 9, and September 20 of the current year, requesting the govern-
ment of the United States to be pleased, nuntilthe adoption of an inter-
national method of admeasurement, and b-yway of reciprocity, to ad-
mit into its ports Italian vessels admeasured according to the Moorson
system, or English method, without subjecting them to any new ad-
measurement, the net rýegister-tonnage given in the ship's papers
being
considered as equivalent to the net register-tonnage of American ves-
sels.
  Count Corti in his note f September 20 expressed the hope of seeing
his proposal definitively adopted, and requested your excellency to be
pleased to transmit to this legation a few copies of such instructions
as might be issued in relation to this matter by the Treasury Depart-
ment.
  Having since then received no reply on this subject, I am obliged, in
obedience to the orders of my government, to have recourse to your
excellency's extreme kindness, and to reiterate this request. The date,
on and after which Italian vessels may have been furnished with the
new certificate of admeasurement, is the same as that of the royal de-
cree, two copies of which Count Corti has already had the honor to
transmit to your excellency, and on which the proposition made by my
government is based.
   I offer your excellency my warmest thanks in advance, and I avail
 myself of this occasion to renew to you the assurances of my very high
 consideration,
                                                        ZANIiN IN.



                               No. 393.

                       Count Corti to Mr. Fish.
                              [Translation.]
                                    LEGATTON OF ITALY,
                    Washington, April 27, 1874. (Received April 28.)
   SiR: Your excellency is aware that public attention in the United
 States has for some time been seriously occupied with the subject
 of foreign vagrancy in this country, especially that of children, who
 are induced by false promises to leave their native land, and who are
 subsequently reduced to a condition of the utmost wretchedness. The
 Italian Parliament long since took this state of things into consid-
 eration, with a view to the complete sul~pression of this odious traffic,
 It has now just passed a law, which was promulgated December 216,
 1873, whereby a number of acts connected with the matter are made
 criminal offenses, and corresponding penalties are provided therefor.
 It hopes by this means to prevent, or at least considerably to diminish,
 the traffic in question.
   The efficacy of this law would, however, be considerably increased if
 foreign governments would co-operate in its execution.
   I am aware of the difficulties which present themselves in these States
 when it seems desirable to extend the powers of the central government.
 1, nevertheless, feel confident that your excellency will be pleased to
 give some attention to this subject, in order to see if there is any means
 of coming to an agreement in relation to the matter. The government
 of the King vwould be happy to take into serious consideration any