By George F. Shee, M.A., Secretary of the Institution.IT will be remembered that at the Inter- Comnational Life-boat Conference, held in London on 1st and 2nd July, 1924, in which representatives of nine nations took part, a resolution was proposed, at the suggestion of Count Yoshii, Presi- dent of the Imperial Japanese Life-boat Institution, in favour of the establish- rnent of an International Life-boat Organization, on the lines of the Red Cross Society, with all the national Life- boat services, whether maintained by private Institutions or by the State, as state its members.* This resolution was unanimously ap-} proved, and, at the direction of the Con- ference, the Institution brought it to the notice of all countries with a sea-' Organizaboard through their Ambassadors or other chief representatives in London, It was also sent to the League of Nations Union at Greneva and to the International Federation oi the League of Nations Societies at Brussels, -with a Navirequest that the Federation would for- ward it to the individual societies.

Finally, a copy was sent to the Under- Secretary of State for Foreign. Affairs, Subwith a request that it might be brought, Naviofficially to the notice of the League of' Nations Council by the British Govern- ment.

Thus everything was done to ensure' the widest publicity and consideration for the proposal, and I am very glad to represenbe able to record that it has now bee/ given the general support of the League of Nations. It was referred by the; League to its Advisory Technical Committee for Communications and Transit, Internawhich, in turn, referred it to its Sub- Committee on Ports and Maritime Navigation.

* See The Lifeboat for November, 1924.It so happened that this Sub-Comnational mittee was holding its meetings in London from the 21st to 24th July, 1924, and that they therefore received the resolution too late for it to become a subthe 1 ject of discussion at their meetings. The Sub-Committee, therefore, decided to postpone any action in the matter until their next meeting, which was due to be (held in 1925. Meanwhile, the Secretary j of the Advisory and Technical Cornboat j mittee for Communications and Transit J asked the Institution to prepare a statement with regard to the actual condition of the Life-boat services of the world, so j that the Sub-Committee might be better able to envisage the resolution in favour of an International Life-boat Organizaboard tion when it came before them, j A. Memorandum was accordingly pre- i pared by the Institution and forwarded to the League of Nations. This was cir- ciliated by the Secretary of the Snbof i Committee on Ports and Maritime Navirequest gation to all the nations represented on I tkat Sub-Committee. Subsequently, the i Institution was asked to send a repre- i sentative to attend a meeting of the Subwith Committee for Ports and Maritime Naviofficially gation to be held in Paris on the 28th 1 No vember, 1925, in order to assist the Sub-Committee in its deliberations, and the Committee of Management authorised me, as the Secretary of the | Institution, to attend as their represenbe iftative.

j At this meeting I was asked to introduce the subject. In doing so I described the circumstances in which the resolution came to be passed at the International Conference ; pointed out that the object of the International Organization would be both to improve the existing Life-boat Services by facilitating the exchange of experience, ideas, and technical designs, and to induce those resolucountries with a seaboard which have' estabuot yet established a Life-boat Service to do so. I also pointed out that some Life-boat Services were voluntarily main- tained ; some were voluntarily main- tained, but with the help of grants from the State ; while a few were entirely maintained by the State ; and suggested that this difference in the method of control might possibly make it difficult to unite ail the services in the same International Organization.

After a full discussion, lasting the greater part of the day, the following resolution was eventually adopted : " The Sub-Committee suggests that the League of Nations should draw the attention of the Governments of those States which have no organized Life-boat Service to the work done in many countries, either by voluntary or State organizations, in saving those shipwrecked on their coasts. The Sub- Committee lays great stress on the need for the creation of such services in countries where they do not already exist.

" The Sub-Committee is of opinion that the best means to encourage the promotion, of Life-boat Services is to ask the Governments to induce their national) organizations (voluntary or official) to keep in constant touch with each other, and to decide from time to time on the best policy to follow for improving existing services and for obtaining the establishment of new services.

" This Sub-Committee and its Secre- intertariat will be willing to assist in realizing these aims."! It will be seen that, while the resolUtion does not in itself carry the establishmeNT of an International Life-boat j Organization any further, it does con- j form to the spirit of Count Ybshii's j resolution, in that the League of Nations j will itself draw the attention of the , Governments of those States which have j no organized Life-boat Service to the desirability of creating such services; and the second part of the resolution carried with it a further request to " , . • -, . , . „ . .

Governments to induce their National Organizations, whether voluntary or official, to keep in constant touch with each other, and to decide from time to time on the best policy with a view to improving an existing Service and obtaining the establishment of new Services.

This part of the resolution, would seem to suggest the desirability of holding International Conferences from time to time on the lines of the one held in July, 1924.

Finally, the League of Nations Sub- Committee expresses its readiness to further the general purposes of the original resolution by placing the services of its Sub-Committee and its Secretariat at the disposal of existing Life-boat Organizations, national) This promise is, I feel, of very real i value, for even though no International Life-boat Organization properly so-called is yet established, we have, in fact, in this Sub-Committee of the League of Nations and its Secretariat, a permanent body which, we may hope, will come to fulfil the same function and to be the international organ and " clearing house " of the Life-boat Services of the world..