provisions of this Article. In the case of any doubt arising as to the interpretation of the rules concerning the liquidation of the bank, whether laid down in these Articles and Annexes or in the Statutes of the bank, the decision of the Reparation Commission or any arbitrator appointed by it for that purpose shall be final.
8. The currency notes issued by the bank subsequent to October 27, 1918, shall have a claim on the securities issued by the former or existing Austrian and Hungarian Governments and deposited with the bank by those Governments as security for these notes, but they shall not have a claim on any other assets of the bank.
9. The currency notes issued by the bank on or prior to October 27, 1918 (in so far as they are entitled to rank at all in conformity with this Article), shall all rank equally as claims against all the assets of the bank, other than the Austrian and Hungarian Government securities deposited as security for the various note issues.
10. The securities deposited by the former or existing Austrian and Hungarian Governments with the bank as security for the currency notes issued on or prior to October 27, 1918, shall be cancelled in so far as they represent the notes converted in the territory of the former Austro-Hungarian Monarchy as it existed on July 28, 1914, by States to which territory of that Monarchy is transferred or by States arising from the dismemberment of that Monarchy, including Austria and Hungary.
11. The remainder of the securities deposited by the former or existing Austrian and Hungarian Governments with the bank as security for the currency notes issued on or prior to October 27, 1918, shall be retained in force as security for, and in so far as they represent, the notes issued on or prior to October 27, 1918, which on June 15, 1919, were outside the limits of the former Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, that is to say, firstly, all notes of this description which are presented to the Reparation Commission in accordance with paragraph 4 of this Article, and secondly all notes of this description which may be held elsewhere and are presented to the receivers of the bank in accordance with the Annex hereto.
12. No claims on account of any other currency notes issued on or prior to October 27, 1918, shall rank either against the general assets of the bank or against the securities deposited by the former or existing Austrian and Hungarian Governments as security for the notes, and any balance of such securities remaining after the amount of securities mentioned in paragraphs 10 and 11 has been calculated and deducted shall be cancelled.
13. All securities deposited by the former or existing Austrian and Hungarian Governments with the bank as security for currency note issues and which are maintained in force shall be the obligations respectively of the Governments of Austria and Hungary only and not of any other States.
14. The holders of currency notes of the Austro-Hungarian Bank shall have no recourse against the Governments of Austria or Hungary or any other Government in respect of any loss which they may suffer as the result of the liquidation of the bank.
15. Nevertheless, if any difficulties should arise owing to the date of the signature of the present Treaty, the dates at which any of the operations laid down by this Article are to be carried out may be altered by the Reparation Commission.
Annex.
1.
The respective Governments, when transmitting to the Reparation Commission all the currency notes of the Austro-Hungarian Bank withdrawn by them from circulation in accordance with the terms of Article 189, shall also deliver to the Commission all the records showing the nature and amounts of the conversions which they have effected.
2.
The Reparation Commission, after examining the records, shall deliver to the said Governments separate certificates stating the total amount of currency notes which the Governments have converted
(a) within the boundaries of the former Austro-Hungarian Monarchy as it existed on July 28, 1914,
(b) elsewhere.
These certificates will entitle the bearer to lodge a claim with the receivers of the bank for currency notes thus converted which are entitled to share in the assets of the bank.
