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1926. NEW ZEALAND.

THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS. REPORT OF THE REPRESENTATIVE OF THE DOMINION OF NEW ZEALAND ON THE SIXTH ASSEMBLY OF THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS, HELD AT GENEVA IN THE YEAR 1925.

Presented to both Houses of the General Assembly by Command of His Excellency.

SIXTH ASSEMBLY OF THE LEAGUE OF NATIONS. New Zealand Government Offices, Sir, — Strand, London W.C. 2, 28th October, 1925. I have the honour to state that on Friday, 4th September, I left London in order to attend the Sixth Assembly of the League of Nations at Geneva. On this occasion I had the advantage of the presence and help of Mr. J. I). Gray, Secretary, External Affairs and Cook Islands Departments, and I also took with me the two members of my personal staff, Mr. C. Knowles and Miss E. M. Hannam, who have accompanied me on previous occasions. Opening of Proceedings and Election of President. The Assembly was opened on Monday, 7th September, by M. Painleve, the Prime Minister of France, who was acting as Chairman of the Council then in session. His speech, in the original French and in an English translation, will be found in No. 2 of the Journal. The proceedings followed the normal course. A small committee was appointed to examine the credentials of the delegates. It was expected that Senator Dandurand, first delegate of Canada, would be elected President of the Assembly, and this expectation was fulfilled. The choice was a good one, for Senator Dandurand has the advantage of being a bi-linguist, speaking both English and French, and it is gratifying to note that the first British Empire representative to be chosen as President was a delegate from one of the Dominions. Arrangements for the Conduct of Business. The arrangements for transacting business were similar to those made at previous Assemblies. The delegates were asked to form themselves into the following six committees : — No. 1. Juridical Questions. No. 2. Technical Organizations. No. 3. Security and Disarmament. No. 4. Finance of the League. No. 5. Humanitarian Questions. No. 6. Political Questions, including Mandates and Slavery. Representation of New Zealand. With the additional help secured this year I was able to make better arrangements for the representation of New Zealand. I nominated myself for all committees, but at the same time arranged for Mr. Gray to represent New Zealand on Committee No. 6, and to take my place on Committee No. 3 or No. 4 as circumstances required, whilst my Private Secretary, Mr. Knowles, was nominated to act for me on Committees Nos. 2 and 5. Election of Officers of Assembly. On the Bth instant the committees met to elect their Chairmen. The delegates had already made their choice, and the elections were in accordance with the agreement arrived at. The following were elected : No. I—M. Scialoja (Italy) ; No. 2—Jonkheer van Eysinga (Netherlands) ; No. 3 —Dr. Nintchitch (Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes) ; No. 4—Dr. Augusto Costa (Portugal) ; No. 5 —M. lilowinckel (Norwegian Prime Minister) ; No. 6 —Dr. Guerrero (Salvador).

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