98 THE BRITISH APPROACH TO POLITICS

far more foreigners read what the King of England is doing than
read the reports of Parliamentary debates. A treaty, once drawn
up, requires only the King's signature to become effective; it
need not, legally, be submitted to Parliament, unless, to bring it
into force, some change in the law is necessary; this will occur
frequently in treaties which regulate trade and require alterations
in import duties. Any treaty of first-class importance to-day i
would, however, be submitted to Parliament after it had been
made, even if no change in the law were required.

THE ARMED FORCES.

Behind the Police for keeping order at home, and behind the
work of diplomacy, stand the Armed Forces, the organised power
of the State. In Britain, the Navy—the "Senior Service"—the
Army, and the Air Force, the newest of the three, have each a
separate history and organisation. It will be convenient first to
state briefly the way in which each is controlled, and then to
examine certain features and problems common to them all.

The Navy. This was once under the control of the Lord High
Admiral. The office, like that of Lord High Treasurer, has been
put into Commission, and the Navy is now ruled by the Board
of Admiralty. Three of its members are politicians—The First
Lord of the Admiralty, who is responsible to Parliament, the
Parliamentary and Financial Secretary, and the Civil Lord.
Their colleagues on the Board are four Sea Lords, who are sailors
and not politicians. While the First Lord determines policy,
the Sea Lords are required to carry it out—to see to the building
of ships, the recruitment and discipline of men, and the disposition
of the Navy over all the trade routes it is intended to protect.

TJte Army. The controlling authority here is the Army
Council, which is organised on the same plan as the Board of
Admiralty. The political members are the Secretary and Under-
secretary for State, and a Financial Secretary. With them sit
four Military Members and a Director of MunitionsTroduction.
The Council controls both the Regular Army and the Territorials