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which, he pointed out, had under New Zealand administration already made much political and financial progress, and had increased in population by no less than 80 per cent. Finally, he affirmed that New Zealand had no ambitions, either national or financial, with regard to the territory. The delegate of the United States announced the intention of submitting a draft trusteeship agreement for the former Japanese mandated islands to be administered by the United States. The terms of the proposed agreement were not announced in the Committee, but were communicated to the four other permanent members of the Security Council and to the Governments of the Philippines and of New Zealand and also published in the press. As it was proposed that the whole of these islands be designated a strategic area, approval of this draft agreement was to rest not with the General Assembly, but with the Security Council. In reply to comment by the representative of the Soviet Union that trusteeship agreements had not been proposed for certain of the former mandates —viz., Palestine, Nauru, and South-west Africa—the delegate of Australia affirmed the declaration made in London that a trusteeship agreement for Nauru would in due course be presented to the Assembly, but pointed out that the restoration of the island after enemy occupation, and consultation between the three Governments who shared the mandate (United Kingdom, Australia, and .New Zealand), had naturally to receive first attention. Sub-committee I: Trusteeship The examination of the eight draft agreements by this sub-committee occupied twenty-nine meetings between 15 November and 11 December. The sub-committee comprised the five Governments which had submitted the agreements, together with Canada, China, Czechoslovakia, India, Iraq, Mexico, the Netherlands, South Africa, the Soviet Union, the United States, Uruguay, and Yugoslavia. Dr MacEachen (Uruguay) was appointed Chairman. The Chairman proposed that the agreements be considered one at a time, commencing either with the draft concerning Ruanda-Urundi or the draft relating to Western Samoa. The Belgian delegate advanced the alternative suggestion that there might be good reason for taking together those clauses more or less common to all agreements. When it appeared that this course did not find general favour, the New Zealand delegate (Mr C. G. R. McKay) indicated that if the Committee should wish to take the Western Samoan draft first the New Zealand delegation would not demur. It was clear that the favourable reaction already created by the contents of the draft agreement for Western Samoa was strengthened by this co-operative gesture. It may be doubted, however, whether, if it had been fully realized all that was involved in this wellmeant offer, it would ever have been made. Though the result was, in