be known by some such title as the Commonwealth Insur- 

 ance Commissioner, and that every company at present 

 transacting, or which may at any time commence to trans- 

 act, the business of life assurance in the Commonwealth, 

 should be required to effect a registration with the Insur- 

 ance Commissioner;" and No. 5 recommends ''That upon 

 the fulfilment by any company of the requirements of the 

 Commissioner with respect to its registration, a license to 

 transact the business of life assurance in the Common- 

 ircaltli should issue to the company, and remain in force 

 until such time as it is cancelled by the Commissioner." It 

 would appear from these recommendations that the Royal 

 Commission has arrived at the conclusion that the proposed 

 Insurance Commissioner could authorise any company to 

 transact business in each and every individual State. With 

 a view to avoiding any proposed Federal legislation being 

 based upon any apparently imperfect view of the existing 

 legal situation, the following remarks are now offered for 

 your consideration. It is not necessary for this purpose to 

 consider in detail the other various proposals of the Com- 

 missioners. If the basis be incorrect, it can be adjusted at 

 the outset, and the proposals recast before any Federal 

 Bill is prepared for submission to the Commonwealth 



The student of Commonwealth enactments and suggested 

 legislation cannot proceed very far without being brought 

 up face to face with the fact that much of the suggested 

 legislation has consisted of proposals which come only 

 partially, if at all, within the circuit of the Federal Con- 

 stitution, of which the High Court is at once the exponent 

 and the sole guardian. Any curtailment of the sovereign 

 powers of the individual States must be in consequence of 

 the specific authority of the Constitution ; or else achieved 

 by an amendment of that Constitution. The aim of some 

 at least of our legislators has been elsewhere described as 



