A. —sb.

Estonia, and Hungary ; but the second section is devoted to the development of international trade by abolishing exchange control, a matter which was raised by the Second Committee of last year's Assembly. The Finance Committee's remarks under this heading will be read with interest. There was no discussion and the Council passed the resolution with which the Rapporteur's report closes. (See Document C. 40.) Raw Materials. This is a matter of considerable importance. It was raised during the second Assembly, and I am given to understand that the Italian delegation was then very active in connection with it. Some years elapsed before it was dealt with again, in 1933, when it was considered by the Monetary and Economic Conference in a limited way. New impetus was given to it in 1935, when it occupied a prominent place in the speech which the United Kingdom's Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs delivered to the Assembly. Last year it was discussed at length by the Second Committee of the Assembly which requested the Council to appoint a committee to undertake a study of the question. The Rapporteur to the Council was the representative of Poland. In his report he dealt with the appointment of such a committee, offered suggestions regarding procedure, and furnished a list of persons who he suggested should be asked to serve. This list, which is on page 4of the report, was approved by the Council, but it is incomplete, and the President of the Council was authorized to make one or two other appointments after consulting the Rapporteur on Economic Questions. (See Document C. 66.) At a private meeting of the Council held on the 27th January a letter was read from the accredited representative of South Africa regarding the standing of the members of the committee. On the invitation of the President, the Rapporteur on the question made a statement to the effect that the members of the committee had been appointed not as representatives of their Governments, but because of their eminence and experience. It was true that their nationalities had been appended to their names, but this was a mere incident. He requested that full publicity should be given to his statement. At the private meeting which preceded the public meeting on the 27th January the President suggested the adjournment to the next session of items : — 21. Treaty of Mutual Guarantee between Germany, Belgium, France, Great Britain, and Italy : 3. (d) Composition of the Financial Committee. The following items of the Agenda were then taken into consideration : — Composition of the Health Committee. The constitution of the Health Committee has undergone drastic revision with a consequent reduction of membership. It now consists of twelve members, of whom one must be the President of the Permanent Committee of the Office International d'Hygiene Publique. Although the remaining members must include representatives of the principal national health administrations, it is understood that they need not be Government officials, nevertheless the persons appointed should have the full confidence of their respective Governments. As Rapporteur on the question it was my task to receive representations from certain delegations and from others, and I know from experience that the selection of the committee was not made without considerable difficulty. Indeed, when the matter came before the Council I was not in a position to nominate by name citizens of India and Poland, and I had to ask the Council to authorize me, in consultation with the Secretary-General, to obtain suitable nominations from these countries and to make the necessary appointments. Then there are countries, members of the League and nonmembers, whose interests in health questions is such that they would gladly seize the opportunity of taking an active part in this important work ; and it should be possible by taking advantage of an article in the general regulations of committees to make provision for countries whose nationals have not already been selected as members by the appointment of associate or corresponding members and assessors. After consultation with the Director of the Health Section, I had the following paragraph inserted in the draft report : — " If, therefore, far distant countries in particular would desire a more frequent liaison with the Health Organization than would be provided by attendance at the General Assemblies . . . their technical representatives might be permitted to attend the sessions of the Health Committee as associate members, at the expense of their Governments." The loss of the services of eminent men which is a consequence of the reduction of membership could be overcome under such an arrangement, the claims of South Africa, which was a candidate for membership, might be met, and countries which are no longer members of the League might be represented if it were their desire. It is m the region of hea'th that the League has shown positive results, and it should receive every possible encouragement to proceed with the work. The Council accepted my report (Document C. 92), to which I refer you. Investment Committee of the Staff Provident Fund. The mandate of' this committee having expired in December, it became necessary for the Council to take action. The Rapporteur (the President of the Council himself) proposed the reappointment of one member and the appointment of two new members. The Council accepted the Rapporteur's suggestions (Document C. 87).

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