are to send these representatives is to be made from time to time by the Assembly at its discretion. Until the Assembly shall have first made such a selection, the representatives of Belgium, Brazil, Greece, and Spain are to represent the minor Powers on the Council. However, it is only as a rule that the Council comprises no more than nine members, because in exceptional cases such States as are not represented in the Council have the right to send additional representatives. Paragraph 5 of Article 4 stipulates: Any member of the League not represented on the Council shall be invited to send a representative to sit as a member at any meeting of the Council during the consideration of matters specially affecting the interests of that member of the League.' And although at first the Council will comprise nine members only, the possibility of a permanent increase in the number of its members is provided for by paragraph 2 of Article 4, which stipulates: With the approval of the majority of the Assembly, the Council may name additional members of the League whose representatives shall always be members of the Council; the Council with like approval may increase the number of members of the League to be selected by the Assembly for representation on the Council.' It is obvious that this stipulation is meant to meet the cases of Germany and Russia when once they are admitted to the League, and are to be considered as Great Powers; but the case of China, or any other Power which might at any time become a Great Power, is likewise met by this stipulation.

Meetings of the Council (Article 4) shall take place from time to time as occasion may require, but at least once a year, at the seat of the League, or at such other place as may be decided upon. The Council-just like the Assembly-decides (Article 5) all matters of pro

cedure, including the appointment of committees, by a majority vote, but all other matters can only be decided by a unanimous vote, unless the contrary is expressly provided for, either by the Covenant or by another agreement.

As regards the sphere of action of the Council, the Covenant (Article 4)-just as in the case of the Assembly-says that the Council may deal at its meetings with any matter within the sphere of action 1 of the League or affecting the peace of the world, and it may therefore be stated that all such matters of international interest fall within the sphere of action of the Council as are not by the Covenant exclusively reserved for the sphere of action of the Assembly. However, the Covenant mentions that the following seven matters are particularly to be dealt with by the Council:

(1) Appointment of the Secretary-General of the League and confirmation of the appointments of the staff of the Secretariat made by him (Article 6).

(2) Formulation of plans for general disarmament, and for check of the manufacture, by private enterprise, of munitions and implements of war, and the appointment of the members of the Permanent Armament Commission (Articles 8 and 9).

(3) Advice to the members of the League with regard to the steps they shall take when any one of them is threatened with aggression (Articles 10 and 11).

(4) Inquiry into international disputes which the parties have not settled by other means, report on such disputes, and recommendations with regard to their settlement (Articles 12, 15, and 17).

(5) Formulation of plans for the establishment of a Permanent Court of International Justice (Article 14). (6) Recommendation as to what effective military,

1 The restriction of the sphere of action of the League by paragraph 8

of Article 15 and Article 21 of the Covenant is discussed below, § 167i.

naval, or air forces the members of the League shall severally contribute to the armed forces to be used to protect the Covenants of the League (Article 16).

(7) Drawing up of the special charters or mandates concerning such territories as are to be handed over for administration to Mandatory States; further, the establishment, at the seat of the League, of a Mandatory Commission to receive and examine the annual reports of the Mandatory Powers, and to advise the Council on all matters relating to the observation of the mandates (Article 22).

As regards the relations between the Council and the Assembly, they are not defined by the Covenant. It would seem that the Council is absolutely independent of the Assembly, just as the Assembly is absolutely independent of the Council. The only influence which the Assembly indirectly has upon the Council derives from the fact that, according to Article 4, the Assembly shall from time to time make the selection of those four minor States which shall have the right to send representatives into the Council side by side with the representatives of the five Great Powers. And the only influence which the Council has upon the Assembly derives from the fact that, according to Article 26, members represented in the Assembly can only make amendments to the Covenant provided that the States represented in the Council unanimously agree. So much is certain, that the relations between the Council and the Assembly are in no way comparable with the relations between the Cabinet and Parliament in a constitutionally governed State, because the Council does not depend on the Assembly as a Cabinet depends upon Parliament. And, if looked upon from a certain point of view, the centre of gravity of the League would seem to rest within the Council, and not within the Assembly, although the latter is the chief organ of the

League. This is the case, because the five Great Powers are predominant within the Council, with the consequence that the influence of the Great Powers within the League will be enormous. There would be no objection to this if the sphere of action of the Council were restricted to mere executive measures, and to measures of control, the appointment of officials, and the like. However, according to the Covenant, as it stands, the sphere of action of the Council is a much wider one, and the important task of the inquiry into, and settlement of, such international disputes as the parties cannot settle by other means, is entirely handed over to the Council.1

manent

§ 167g. The Permanent Secretariat of the League The Per(Article 6) is the body of secretaries and clerks who are Secre permanent officials in the service of the League for the tariat. performance of all secretarial business. The Secretariat is to be established at Geneva, the seat of the League. It comprises a Secretary-General, and such number of secretaries and staff as may be required. The Secretary-General, other than the first, is to be appointed by the Council, with the approval of the majority of the Assembly. On the other hand, the secretaries and staff are appointed by the Secretary-General with the approval of the Council. The expenses of the Secretariat are borne by the member-States of the League in accordance with the apportionment of the expenses of the International Bureau of the Universal Postal Union.2 As regards the duties of the Secretariat, the Covenant specifies some of them in three articles :

(1) According to Article 6, the Secretary-General shall act in that capacity at all meetings of the Assembly as well as of the Council. However, it is quite obvious that the Secretary-General need not in person act as secretary at all such meetings; he may at any time 1 See below, § 167s (2).

* See below, § 465.

Various other Organs of the

League.

delegate this duty to one or more of the secretaries who serve under him.

(2) According to Article 15, the Secretary-General is the intermediary between the Council and memberStates of the League involved in a dispute which has to be submitted to the Council for inquiry.

(3) According to Article 18, the Secretariat must register, and, as soon as possible, publish, every treaty entered into by any member-State of the League.

These are the duties of the Secretariat specified by the Covenant; but it is obvious that it has many other duties, which derive from the fact that it always acts as the intermediary for communications, not only between the Council and the Assembly, but also between the several members of the Council, between the several member-States of the League with regard to all matters in which the League is concerned, between the Council and the Court of Justice and the several Commissions which are to be set up according to the Covenant, and lastly between the Council and all the International Bureaux which, according to Article 24, are to be placed under the direction of the League. Moreover, it is in the discretion of the Council at any time to add to the business of the Secretariat.

§ 167h. Besides the Assembly, the Council, and the Secretariat, which are constitutional organs of the League, the Covenant provides for the establishment by the Council of various other organs.

(1) The Permanent Armament Commission (Articles 8 and 9) advises the Council with regard to the reduction of national armaments to the lowest point consistent with national safety and the enforcement by common action of international obligations.1

(2) The Permanent Court of International Justice2 (Article 14) is competent to hear and determine any

1 See below, § 1677.

2 See below, § 476b.