AT the International Life-boat Con- ference the proposal was made by Count Yoshii, President of the Imperial Japanese Life-boat Society, that steps should be taken to form an International Life-boat Organization.

COUNT YOSHII spoke as follows.: I suggest that the Conference declare : (1) That it is desirable to have some organization for saving life from sea casualties in all the maritime countries of the world.

(2) That, in order further to improve the means and methods of saving life from sea casualties, an inter- national association be formed like the Red Cross Society, with all the Life-boat Institutions or similar organizations of each country as its members. This international co- operation, in this great humane undertaking, will foster better feel- ing and goodwill all over the world, and bring peace and happiness to mankind.

(3) That the declarations, resolutions, etc., of the Conference be sent to the League of Nations at Geneva, the League of Nations Unions of all countries, and the Governments and the Press Associations, etc., of all countries.

With regard to the first point I think it is most desirable that every maritime country in the world should have an organization similar to those repre- sented by the members at this Confer- ence. Sea casualties occur on the coasts of every maritime country, and we could do much to bring home to those countries which have not a Life-boat Service the necessity of immediately taking up the matter. The very nature of our work is international, and if this Conference declares its opinion that all maritime countries should have a Life-saving Association, and sends that declaration to the countries concerned, I think the people of those countries would at once organize such an Institution.

Then as regards the second point, this Conference is already an inter- national one. We have such a unique occasion given to us by the British Institution. This is the first, and we can all see how instructive and how useful, and almost how necessary, it is that we should meet now and then to discuss the questions affecting this Life- saving Service. So with that purpose it would be very important to have some * Obtainable at Life-boat House, 22, Charing Cross Boad, W.C.2. Price 18.

international association. It would help to unify the Service in some ways by a discussion of the system and the methods of work of all countries. If even in certain points we could unify the work it would be most valuable. It would also be helpful in many other ways.

For instance, if any association discovers or invents new means and methods they could be made known to the societies of other countries. In this kind of work, if we had a central bureau somewhere, I think it would be very useful and very good for the progress of life-saving. I include in those to be communicated with the League of Nations because this work is essentially a humane work.

The League of Nations is the greatest humane-work bureau of the world, and it would attract]the attention of the world.

These are my reasons for submitting to the Conference the formation of such an association, and if the Conference approves it would, I think, be best to appoint a committee or ask some organization to take up the question, and to report in, say, one month or six months' time. It is, however, only a suggestion.

SIE GODFREY BARING, Bt., the Chair- man, said : We have listened with the utmost interest to the speech of Count Yoshii, and it has raised a matter of first-class international importance. We have ventured to draw up a resolution in the hope that it will commend itself to the Conference, and I should like to read it, and then to move it, " That this International Confer- ence on the saving of life-from ship- wreck, representing the Life-boat Services of Great Britain, Holland, the United States, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, France, Spain, and Japan, desires to urge upon all maritime countries which have no organized Life-boat Service, the importance of forming such a Service, both because of the need for protecting the sea- farers and ships which visit or pass their shores, and because the countries which already possess such Services have found in this common task for humanity an enduring link of good- will and friendship ; that an inter- national Life-boat organization be formed on the lines of the Red Cross Society, with all the National Life- boat Societies as its members, and that copies of this resolution be sent to all maritime countries, the headr quarters of the League of Nations at Geneva, and the League of Naiious Unions of all countries." (The names of the countries in this resolution are in the order in which they, respectively, established a Life-boat Service.) MR. EDVARD LJTHANDER, representing the Swedish Government, seconded the resolution in the following speech : There lies a lot in the proposal made by Count Yoshii. I agree with his desire to unify—I would not say make uniform because it is most necessary that the individuality of each country and of each Society should be guided by those conditions under which each one has been built up and found suitable to that particular country. I should not like it to be aimed at as being uniform in this respect all the world over. But it is undoubtedly most desirable that the experiences which have been gained by those who are devoting their life to solving these problems, and that what has been found to be best in one country, should be handed on as knowledge to the other countries. There are sand- banks alike, rocks and heavy seas alike, all round the world. What is found in one country to be the means of over- coming these dangers is bound to be useful to other countries.

There is one point in the proposal which makes a special appeal, and that is that the work done by the nations which already have a system shall be communicated to those countries which have not. Personally I believe that this proposal for an International Life- boat Service is a matter on which a real League of Nations could be formed with a practical purpose to the benefit of the whole world, and on which, apart from all differences and points of view in politics, mankind for once could unite.

I beg, Mr. Chairman, to be allowed to second the resolution.

The resolution was carried unani- mously, and copies of it have been sent, to the Ambassador, Minister, or other chief representative in this country of the following States with a request that he should forward it to his Government: Albania, Argentine, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Denmark, Ecuador, Esthonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Mexico, The Netherlands, Nicaragua, Norway, Persia, Peru, Por- tugal, Rumania, Russia, Salvador, Siam, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, The United States of America, Uruguay, Venezuela, Yugo-Slavia, Copies of the resolution were also sent to the High Commissioners of the British Dominions, to the League of Nations Union at Geneva, to the International Federation of League of Nations Societies at Brussels, with a request that the Federation would forward it to the individual societies, and to the Under Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs with a request that it might be brought officially to the notice of the League of Nations Council by the British Govern- ment, in order to ensure its fullest possible consideration..