It should be recalled that the Committee of Jurists that drew up the draft Statute of the Permanent Court of International Justice provided for general compulsory jurisdiction. But when that draft Statute was laid before the Council of the League, the Great Powers of the day were unwilling to accept compulsory jurisdiction, and the optional clause came forth as an inadequate substitute. There were high hopes for its expansion, and it did expand over the years. By the outbreak of World War II, there were more states adhering to the compulsory jurisdiction of the Court than there are now. In the 1930s, President Roosevelt made a strong effort to have the United States ratify the Statute of the Court, which was a separate instrument from the League of Nations Covenant. He got a majority in the Senate, but not a two-thirds majority.