Of books on the mandates there has been no dearth ever since this novel institution was established. But this impressive volume, well-documented and admirably planned, a work that shows on every page the evidences of years of study, is not to be compared to the innumerable ephemeral writings on the subject. The author has gone into the problem in a systematic way, digesting thoroughly the great mass of documentary material and supplementing it with personal investigations and interrogations. The reader will find here not only an authoritative account of the origin and organization of the mandate system, but also an extended analysis of the international law of mandates, their relation to accepted ideas of sovereignty and territorial rights, their bearing on problems of international administration and their achievements in furthering the political, economic and cultural development of the mandated peoples. The presentation is complete and impartial and should remain for some time the accepted authoritative treatment of one of the most interesting and instructive departures in international affairs.
