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of paupers and criminals to the United States; to look after sick and indigent citizens of their own country; and to take charge of the property of those who die. They are given police jurisdiction over the merchant marine of the United States, and have power to decide disputes between shipmasters and members of their crews, to arrest deserters from ships, to investigate shipwrecks, and send home discharged, disabled, or shipwrecked seamen. They are also required to investigate and report upon all arrests of American citizens charged with crime; to see that their interests are properly protected in the courts, and that the stipulations of treaties covering such cases are complied with.

A consul is also required to certify in triplicate to the accuracy of the invoices of all goods shipped to the United States. He not only takes the oath of the merchant or manufacturer who ships them, but must have an accurate knowledge of the value of the goods in order to prevent perjury and fraud in undervaluations. Of these triplicate invoices, one is filed in the consulate; one is forwarded to the collector of the port to which the goods are sent, and the third is given to the shipper, who sends it to the person for whom they are intended, for use in securing their admission through the custom house and in paying the duties assessed upon them. For this service he charges certain fees which are fixed by law. He must keep an accurate record of all invoices also, with the fees collected, and at the end of each quarter forward a copy to the secretary of the treasury at Washington.

He must register and report the arrival and departure of every ship that visits his port, inspect and sign the manifestoes of their cargoes; forward a list of passports issued or vised; a list of the marriages and deaths of American citizens within his jurisdiction; and at stated times furnish the Department of State with a list of such citizens residing in his consular

district. He must furnish quarterly, too, a report covering all the transactions of his consulate, his receipts and expenditures of money, etc. He must frequently inform the secretary of the treasury of the sanitary condition of the port at which he is located, notify him by cable of the departure of vessels infected with contagious diseases, and certify to bills of health.

He is required to keep pace with the progress of industry and commerce in his district, report promptly all important inventions and discoveries, all improvements in manufactures and agriculture, changes in tariff laws and regulations, tonnage and harbor dues and regulations, changes in lighthouses, buoys, beacons, shoals, and such other information as may be useful to those engaged in commerce and navigation.

At stated periods he must forward full reports and statistics concerning commerce, navigation, finances, immigration, agriculture, mining, fisheries, forestry, manufactures, population, the prices of merchandise, wages of labor, and such other matters as may be of interest to the people of the United States. At intervals the Department of State issues circulars to the officers of the consular service calling for specific information of importance to the various branches of industry and commerce in this country. This information and the regular reports of consuls are published by the Department in pamphlet form for free distribution to the public. Briefs or proof sheets are first furnished to the news agencies at Washington, and then the publications are issued in permanent form. They have proved to be of the greatest value.

There are thirty-four consuls general, who receive salaries varying from $2,000 to $6,000, one consul at Liverpool receiving $6,000, one at Hong-Kong receiving $5,000, eight receiving $3,500, twenty-one receiving $3,000, twenty-eight receiving $2,500, forty-eight receiving $2,000, eighty-two receiving $1,500,

and the remainder $1,000 each. There are also 378 consular agents receiving fees limited to $1,000 a year.

The compensation of a consul, however, is not limited to his salary. He is authorized to collect two kinds of fees, official and unofficial. The services for which official fees may be charged are defined in the consular regulations and must be reported to the treasury. Consuls who receive fixed salaries may deduct the amount from the official fees they collect, and also whatever is allowed them for the expenses of their office. A consul whose compensation depends upon the fees of his office must report all his collections, but is not required to report his expenditures. Unofficial fees may be collected for services not enumerated in the consular regulations, and need not be reported. The amount of such fees is variable and depends upon the location. They are derived chiefly from notarial acts: for preparing papers, attesting documents, witnessing signatures, taking depositions and other testimony, for collecting debts, managing estates, and for performing other service not strictly within the line of duty. In the larger cities of Europe these fees amount annually to a considerable sum, often greater than the salary of the consul.

The allowances to consuls for office expenses are very moder-ate, and are made under fixed regulations, dependent, however, upon the appropriations by Congress.

The salaries paid consuls by other governments are much larger than those allowed by the United States. Our consuls at London and Paris receive $6,000 a year, while the British consul at New York receives $12,500, and the French consul $12,000.. Our consul at Berlin receives $4,000 and the German consul at New York, $10,000. Our consul at St. Petersburg receives $3,000 and the Russian consul at New York, $10,000. Our consul at Frankfort receives $3,000 and the German. consul.at Chicago, $5,000.

The consul, after his appointment, is allowed thirty days to close up his private affairs and to receive instructions, and a certain number of days, fixed by the regulations according to distance, for reaching his post. He is also allowed thirty days each year, or sixty days every two years, when he may be absent from his post. He cannot enter upon his duties until he has received what is called an exequatur from the government under which he is to reside. This is an official document given him by the Department of Foreign Affairs, acknowledging his appointment and recognizing his authority. Sometimes the exequatur is refused, perhaps on account of the personal character of the consul, or because he has said or done something offensive to the people among whom he is to reside.

His first duty upon receiving his exequatur is to receive the records and property of the consulate, and sign a duplicate inventory and receipt, for the protection of his predecessor. One copy is left on file in the consulate and the other is forwarded to the Department of State. He then makes calls of ceremony upon the officials of the city and upon the other members of the consular corps, and sends official notifications of his arrival to the other United States consuls in the vicinity of his post.

The social position of a consul depends entirely upon his personal character and attainments, exactly as it would at home. He receives invitations to participate in official ceremonies, but, unlike a diplomatic agent, he is not expected to entertain unless he cares to do so, and his social relations with the people where he resides are not governed by his official position.

CHAPTER III.

THE FOUNDING OF THE SOUTH AMERICAN REPUBLICS.

TO UNDERSTAND properly the history and growth of diplomatic relations between the United States and the other nations of America, some knowledge of the events which led to the separation from Spain of her colonies on this continent is necessary. For nearly two and a half centuries the whole of South America, except Brazil, was governed by a viceroy residing at Lima, and the Spanish colonies in North America by a viceroy at the City of Mexico. Courts of justice, called Audiencias, were established in the several provinces, and their presidents, with the title of governor, or captain-general, exercised executive authority subject to the central power in Peru and Mexico. The Audiencia of Upper Peru, or what is now known as Bolivia, sat at Charcas; that of Chile at Santiago; that of Ecuador at Quito; that of Colombia, or New Granada, at Bogota; that of Central America at Guatemala; that of Venezuela at Carácas; and that of the United Provinces of the Rio de la Plata (Paraguay, Uruguay, and the Argentine Republic), sometimes at Asuncion, and often at Buenos Aires. Brazil, while under Spanish domination, from 1582 to 1640, was ruled by an Audiencia at Rio de Janeiro, but became a viceroyalty when the authority of Portugal was restored.

The policy of Spain was to restrain rather than to promote the development of her colonies in America; to strip them

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