Gallery

place on October 23rd, 1922, the Senate of Danzig received on
November 20th a statement of the Polish standpoint which was
alleged to be compatible with the High Commissioner\'s decision of
May z5th, 1922. Danzig in her reply-dated December ~zth,
~gzz-to this note regards the Polish claim for a sorting office as
indicative of a desire to make it possible for the public to despatch
letters from the Polish office at the station; that is to Say, to
extend the sphere of operation of the Polish postal service.
This aspect of the debates leading up to the decision of December 23nd, 1922, connects them with the discussion regarding
Article 168 of the Warsaw Agreement.
The Court is not in possession of any documents by which the Parties may have expressly sought the High Commissioner\'s decision
on the point at issue, that is to Say, the decision of December 23rd,
1922.
In the statement of reasons for the decision are included certain
considerations to the effect that the installation of a sorting office
would constitute an extension of the Polish postal service and that
such an extension is not admissible because \"it might cause serious
loss to the postal service of Oanzig and thence to the State\" ; it is
also said that the office granted to the Polish service, namely that
at Heveliusplatz, vas intended for the despatch of mails by the
Polish authorities in Danzig and oversea mails in transit.
Poland appealed against this decision on March 20th) 1923. No
decision was however taken in regard to this appeal as an agreement
was concluded between the Parties on Apri! 18th, 1923, and confirmed 1
on the following day by the Council of the League of Nations.
This agreement sanctions the establishment of a Polish sorting
office at the main railway station, subject to certain restrictions,
one of which is that the office should remain closed to the public.
This agreement states in terms that it replaces the decision of December ~3rd) 1922, but expressly lays down that \"this practical settlement of the question shall in no way affect the position in law\". ,
Many documents have been placed before the Court to assist it in
forming an opinion as to the meaning to be attached to this passage :
the Parties to the agreement maintain different views on the point.
For reasons which are interpreted differently by the two Parties,
the Heveliusplatz building, which was allotted to Poland on