At this Convention it was decided to have such International Conventions/Congresses every five years and these quinquennial Congresses were held regularly until 1911.

In 1906 it is reported:
"An important matter decided at this meeting was the arrangement of permanent machinery for the series of International Congresses. Heretofore the officers elected with the exception of the Permanent-Secretary, served only during the life of the Congresses. Under the organisation plan adopted on the opening day, two sets of officers were elected, acting and honorary, the acting officers to serve only during the session of the Congress, while the honorary officers are to serve during the interim between this and the succeeding Congress." (Homeopathic World, 1906, p. 450).

At the 1911 Congress held at London, the President, Dr. Burford, reviewed this matter in great detail in his Presidential Address. He said, "Every fifth year this vital organism undergoes rejuvenescence, and is re-breathed into life, now in this Continent and now in that. Spring is in its veins; its pulses throb with vernal activity; in a brilliant hey-day of existence summer and autumn rapidly succeed, followed by a prolonged hibernation of as many years as the phase of active existence occupied days. Five years, you will agree, is an unduly long hibernating period after even a strenuous life of six risings and settings of the sun. I propose to rectify this disproportion, not by way of making the active phase longer, or its incidence more frequent, but by ensuring that the hibernation is less profound.

"The interval between the Congresses is occupied in reading the biography of each resuscitation, which, like all biographies, deals only with what the moving finger has writ. A congress or any other organism that does not busy itself with regard to altering environment, will ultimately have naught but biography to mark its erstwhile place and power."

At the First World Convention in 1876, "the idea took shape that the isolated settlements and movements of Homeopathy in the countries of the world should be linked up for a few days at long intervals by an International Congress. From that date . . . the international idea has moved on to some purpose. Its inception was by way of International Congress. Its unfolding has brought us up to international concerted action."

Now, "We want an Inter-Congressional Council whose organisation will link up the essential interests of Homeopathy over the globe . . . Such a limited committee, appointed by this Congress, should have as a chief instruction to bring every practical aid of the Homeopathic World to those settlements where Homeopathy is being squeezed out of existence. An annual meeting of such an Inter-Congressional Board-and this is entirely practicable in these much traveling times-would at least fill a great gap in Pan-Homeopathic organisation. Even if it did nothing more, it would maintain during the five years' interval the active influence of International Congress on International Homeopathy . . . Such an Inter-Congressional Council would create a solidarity as between all the countries of the Homeopathic World . . . It would give us the picked brains of the Homeopathic body in each country-men of affairs, men of experience, the Cabinet of this Homeopathic Parliament, by whom the world affairs of Homeopathy would be put on the lines of most momentum and of least resistance."

*Senior Vice-president, International Homeopathic Medical League; Hon'y. Homeopathic Physician to the President of India; Chairman, Executive Board (Homeopathy), C. C. Research, I.M.&H., President of Honor, L.M.H.I.

"Such a passage from academic conference to practical co-operation is suggested for the decision of this Congress. First and foremost, wherever Homeopathy once established is struggling against odds, it deserves all the interest and support that the most powerful establishments can lend it. To develop and maintain the international function of this Congress, I put to you my suggestion of an International Ministry, representing every nation where Homeopathy is established, constituted as an Inter-Congressional Council. We want a never sleeping, many-sided council of plenipotentiaries, that thinks out the problems of World-Homeopathy and coordinates the movements. The Council need not always be in session, but its distinguished members should be always in cooperation."

Further steps were thus taken to have a continuing liaison and have a permanent organisation to carry on the activity in the years between the Congresses. Eight Quinquennial Congresses were held up to and including 1911. The organisation consisted of one permanent officer, a secretary authorised to take the initial steps in making arrangements for the regular holding of the Congresses. "With the death of that faithful and efficient officer there was no organisation."

Thus, the idea of the International Homeopathic Council was born with "the aim to safeguard interest in the advance of Homeopathy and advice with regard to politics. It is the permanent representative of the Quinquennial International Homeopathic Congresses and its authority was conferred upon it by the International Congress of 1911. However, it was at a special meeting held in London in September 1914, that the "International Homeopathic Council," was actually organised. This was to meet annually and to guard and represent international Homeopathic interests, and convene a Congress when the time was opportune. The Council, however, during its meeting in Rotterdam, in 1925, decided that the time had come for the formation of an organisation with a wider scope and greater powers than were vested in the Council, and so the "International Homeopathic League" came into existence. "Many topics of vital importance to Homeopathy are frequently brought up for consideration and there should be some authorised administrative body to which such subject might be referred. Such a body is the League."

However, I might give here a list of those that set the ball rolling and helped in the initial establishment of the League in different parts of the world. Before 1927 this illustrious band was composed of the following:

At this Congress, it was proposed that, "In future international business would be entirely in the hands of the International Homeopathic League. In order to regularize that position, Congress must formally pass a resolution. Hitherto there has been no authority to the League from the Congress, because no Congress until now had had the power to say that it definitely approved of the activity. The League grew out of the Council, and the Council was responsible for the Congress. It was hoped that the Congress would express its strong approval of the League and its desire to hand over the business in future to the League."

Thereafter, the following resolution was proposed and unanimously passed: "The International Homeopathic Congress approves the constitution of the International League as formulated at the meeting of the League in 1925 and as discussed and modified yesterday afternoon, July 22, 1927."

The organization of the Quinquennial Congress, as hitherto existing, now ended.

The League was thus given the stamp of approval and recognised as a representative body to meet annually and "carry on," officially, during the interim between the assembling of Congresses and was formally handed over charge of all international activity and the Congresses.

The aims and objects of the League were summarised as:

"First of all, every Homeopathic physician should belong to the League affiliation of his own country. The aim of the League was to unify under one nominal head all the Homeopathic institutions of the world.

As to the method, it was considered advisable that there should be a League meeting every year for business purposes, and a Congress meeting every fifth year for scientific as well as business purposes . . . A League representative was needed in every country all over the world. In that way, the strong countries could help the weak; the weak could give one or two suggestions to the strong, and Homeopathy could be made a world institution."