14 SEPTEMBER 1929, Page 2

On Friday, September 6th, Mr. Henderson addressed the Assembly. He

promised support for the Finnish proposal to give financial help to any State threatened by an aggressor, but it is important to notice his two conditions —first, that there should he reciprocity among the signatories, and; secondly, that the benefits of the Treaty should be available only to those who had fulfilled the forthcoming General Treaty of Disarmament. The second condition seems to postpone the signing of a financial help Treaty for a considerable time ! Next Mr. Henderson discussed Articles 12 and 15 of the Covenant with a view to reconciling them with the Peace Pact. Article 12— to which M. Briand had already referred—makes war permissible after negotiations lasting three months, and Article 15 recognizes a freedom to go to war, which is, of course, expressly surrendered by all signatories of the Peace Pact. He moved that Articles 12 and 15 should be re-examined.