should be very cautious in admitting the devices and schemes of people
who have no connection with this body; that there are, no doubt, many
inventors and many people who have plans and schemes which they wish
to press upon the Conference, and that it was probable that the
Conference would be subjected to very great inconvenience if they took
upon themselves even the burden of acknowledging the receipt of these
communications.

The PRESIDENT stated that he had received several Communions of this
character, one proposing that Jerusalem should be taken as the prime
meridian.

Mr. LEFAIVRE, Delegate of France, proposed that the Conference should
appoint a committee to examine the different papers submitted by
outside parties, and to make such suggestions as they might deem
proper after examining the papers.

Mr. VALERA, Delegate of Spain, said that it seemed to him the proper
course of proceeding for the Conference was to take up the subject
article by article, and treat it in that order; that there were
presented to the Conference certain well-defined propositions, and
that besides these there were the resolutions which had been adopted
by the Conference at Rome, which could be used as a basis for the
discussions of this Conference; that in that way the Delegates would
have before them some precise subject-matter, and after discussion, if
any proposition needed to be altered or amended it would be in the
power of the Conference to do so, but that unless some regular method
of proceeding were adopted the sessions would be prolonged
indefinitely, and the Conference would be confused by a multitude of
irrelevant propositions that might be presented to them.