23 JULY 1932, Page 34

Federalism

Trus book prompts a passing reflection onthe meagre attention devoted to political science in this country. It has been left to a Japanese to make the first important survey in English of the theory and practice of federalism, and three-quarters of the authorities that he quotes are German. This proportion certainly does not correspond, however, to the magnitude of practical achievement. The constitutions of the United States of America and of the two oldest British Dominions may be said to mark out the Anglo-Saxon as the most suc- cessful exponent of federalism ; and among the might-liaVe- beens of political history must be reckoned the strong move- ment, which reached its zenith in the 'eighties of last century, for bestowing a federal constitution on the British Empire. Having traced the course of these Anglo-Saxon experiments, succeisful and unsuccessful, in federation, Mr. Mogi turns to Germany ; and we are indebted to him for the first serious study in English of the constitutional ideas which formed the background of the revolution of 1918. In his concluding chapter he leaves the past for the future, and briefly discusses the possibilities of federalism in the international field. Of existing attempts to apply the federal principle in this sphere, he cautiously regards the International Labour Office as the least unpromising. The book represents a thorough and valuable piece of research.