Fbbetjabt 17, 1922] 



SCIENCE 



167 



general problem of an international auxiliary 



(6) That the committee be authorized to co- 

 operate in its studies with other organizations 

 engaged in the same work, provided that nothing 

 in these resolutions shall be interpreted as giving 

 the committee any authority to commit the council 

 to adhesion to or approval of any particular 

 project. 



The activities of the committee appointed 

 under these resolutions have thus far been 

 devoted chiefly to awakening interest and 

 securing cooperation through the national 

 scientific, academic, educational, technical and 

 commercial organizations of the individual 

 countries, it being felt that a broad and intelli- 

 gent interest in the subject within these 

 national academies, societies and associations is 

 a necessary prerequisite to any effective inter- 

 national action toward practical results. 



Since the creation of the above-named com- 

 mittee a number of other important public 

 bodies have taken definite action looking in 

 the same general direction. Thus, on Septem- 

 ber 13, 1921, the following resolution was pre- 

 sented in the Assembly of the League of Na- 

 tions by delegates representing twelve states :* 



The League of Nations, well aware of the lan- 

 guage difficulties that prevent a direct intercourse 

 between the peoples, and of the urgent need of 

 finding some practical means to remove this 

 obstacle and help the good understanding of 

 nations ; 



Follows with interest the experiments of official 

 teaching of the international language Esperanto 

 in the public schools of some members of the 

 League; 



Hopes to see that teaching made more general 

 in the whole world, so that the children of all 

 countries may know at least two languages, their 

 mother tongue, and an easy means of interna- 

 tional communication; 



Asks the Secretary General to prepare for the 

 next Assembly a report on the results reached in 

 this respect. 



2 Lord Eobert Cecil (South Africa), Jonnesco 

 (Rumania), Emir Zoka-Ed-Dovleh (Persia), La 

 Fontaine (Belgium), Benes (Czeeho-Slovakia), 

 Restrepo (Colombia), Tsai Fou Tang (China), 

 Enekell (Finland), Fan Noli (Albania), Adatei 

 (Japan), Esealante (Venezuela), Maharajah 

 Knengarje (India), Askenazi (Poland). 



The special committee^ dealing with the 

 inclusion on the agenda, of motions submitted 

 to the Assembly reported to that body on 

 September 15, 1921, with regard to this mo- 

 tion, as follows : 



The above-mentioned delegates have proposed 

 the introduction of Esperanto, as an auxiliary 

 international language, into public schools, in 

 order to facilitate direct intercourse between all 

 nations throughout the world. 



The committee are of opinion that this ques- 

 tion, in which an ever increasing number of great 

 states are interested, should ie attentively studied 

 before it can be dealt with by the Assembly. The 

 question was referred to a committee last year 

 and a short report was submitted, recommending 

 that the Secretariat of the League should inves- 

 tigate the experiments already made and ascer- 

 tain the actual results attained. 



The committee proposes that the question should 

 be placed on the agenda of the next Assembly 

 and that the Secretariat of the League should in 

 the meantime prepare a complete report, accom- 

 panied by the necessary documentation, on the 

 lines indicated in the draft resolution. 



In accordance with the wishes of the siguito- 

 ries, the Report of Committee No. 2 (document 

 253, of December 17, 1920) and the Report of 

 the Under-Secretary-General upon his mission to 

 the Congress at Prague will be transmitted to 

 the members of the League in due course. 



This report by the Under-Secretary-General 

 (Dr. I. Nitobe) referred to above, consists of 

 three sections, viz.: (I) An Account of the 

 Thirteenth International Congress of Esperan- 

 tists at Prague, July- August, 1921; (II) Ob- 

 servations on the Esperanto Movement; (III) 

 The Language Question and the League of 

 Nations. Nearly the complete text of the last 

 section was printed and distributed to delegates 

 during the last Assembly, as document A 72, 

 1921, XII, 14 Sept., 1919, copy of which is 

 hereto attached as Appedix A.* The whole 

 report will undoubtedly be available later. 



The first national scientific body to take up 



3 Lord Eobert Cecil (South Africa), chairman; 

 Restrepo (Colombia); Schanzer (Italy); Tang 

 Tsai Fou (China); de la Torriente (Cuba); 

 Trygger (Sweden); Viviani (France). 



* Copies of these appendices may be secured 

 through the National Research Council, 1701 

 Massachusetts Avenue, N. W., Washington, D. C. 



