39. Lieut-Colonel HODGEasked the Prime Minister whether he will consider as to the advisability of immediately submitting the Turkish question to the League of Nations for settlement in accordance with Article 17 of the Covenant?
§ The PRIME MINISTERArticle 17 of the Covenant of the League is intended to apply to cases where it may be possible to prevent the outbreak of hostilities, and not to a war actually engaged. A conference of the belligerents concerned is now being held at Lausanne, with the object of bringing to a final conclusion the negotiations for a settlement in the Near East which were begun at the general Peace Conference. I fear that at present no useful purpose could be served by the intervention of the League of Nations.