The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1901-02-17

II would have been n great thing to nave
| loaned II to all the ambitious youngsters
| throughout the country who since then
| have gradually built up libraries both
great and small. He follows this chapter
by one on book buying-almost If not quite
| as important. Book binding comes next
| then preparation for the shelves, a few
| pages on the enemies of books, and in Sc
! quence the restoration and reclamation
| OF books, periodical literature. the art of
reading, aids to readers, access to library
| shelves, and the faculty of memory.
| Thenceforward hts work is devoted to IL
| braries librarians, library buildings, and
| a mass of most valuable information that
| 1t would be difficult to find in so compact
| form or so well expressed anywhere else.
1t is to be regretted that every young man
| who contemplates forming a library dur
| ing his life does not possess this volume.
| IT would repay him its cost many times
| before he reached the age of twenty-five.
| To book lover there is not Gull page
in the book. Certainly every public and
! private library should possess it. New
York and London, 1900: G. p. Putnam's
Sons. s1.50)
'Eastover Court House. by Henry
| Burnham Boone and Kenneth Brown, is a
| story of modern life in Virginia, and is
| the first of a series of novels to be issued
monthly, during the coming year. If they
| are all as good as this they will be some
| thing of an addition 10 American litera-
| ture.
The hero of this particular book is
! young Virginian. the son of a spendthrift
| planter. and while he has all the virtues
of his class he has also most of their
| faults, and is presented with no attempt
TO idealize either. The strong point of the
| whole book is its absolute realism, and
| the weak point is certain inexplicabilty
| in the character of the hero. which makes
| the element of mystery in the plot. a
| mystery is very good thing to have in a
| novel If II Is satisfactorily explained at
| the end, but this is not There are. It may
| be said, two heroines. one a married
woman and one young girl; and the hus-
| band of the former General Tazewell, is
| one of the finest bits of characteristic in
| the book. There were certain Virginians
| who, after the final settlement of the war.
hastened to make themselves careers in
| politics by the simple expedient of posing
| as apostles of the, Old South The char
| acter is a difficult one to define, nut most
Southerners will recognize General Taze-
well as one of the consummate political
fakes developed On both sides by the con-
ditions of reconstruction Another capital
bit OF work is to be found in the young
Engiishman, Maude, and there are several
minor characters, black and white who
are wildly lifelike. The pictures of negro
life are not the conventional ones common
to dozens of books by Southern authors.
| but have a raciness and individuality OF
haty
| book have done good piece of work.
tNew York: Harper q Bros. si5O)
The Philippines; the War and the Peo-
pie by Albert O. Robinson, is a book
made uD of war correspondence which
originally appeared in the New York
Evening Post together with some new
matter. The author gives some vivid and
graphic pictures of the islands and the
people, and seems TO think very well of
both.
He makes some tohrably frank criti-
cisms on the course Of American troops
officers, and diplomats in the Philippines
He candidly states that General Merritt
failed utterly in his work in the islands
and that the American soldier. while an
admirable fighting man, does not shine as
diplomat, especially in such regions as
our new colonies. Mr.. Robinson adds:
He carries the innate sense OF an Anrlo-Saxon
race superiority and he often manifests it in a
most offensive way. ! speak from my own onser.
Walton during two ye.Us Of almost continuous
NiG with the American army. The great mass
Of the soldiers are oi rather rough and tumble
class, hearty, boisterous and quite too much dis
posed to regard those whom we have encounter
ga IN our expanding as in their own Lam
gtisge, either "-niggers,' or "-Dagos"
The Filipinos resented the American way
pf fha sfffr ion IN,
country which he felt was his and it is wholly
probable that he often showed it, The brawny
American pushed the little off the narrow
sidewalk in Manila. Very likely the little man
expectorated on the big American. Very likely.
also. the little man got kick or a cuff for doing
so. That sort OF thing does not tend toward
friendly international relations
This is obviously sensible view of the
case, and things are probably so. There is
a considerable amount Of interesting infor-
nation in regard to General Otis, and the
press censorship, among other things re-
port of an interview with some newspaper
men, in which Otis is said to have asserted
that the hospitals Were full of perfectly
well men who were Sinking, and that the
figures as TO the number of sick were
therefore misleading.
The style OF the book, as can be seen
from the above extract, is picturesque.
Here is another spicy bit:
Men and officers of newly arriving regiments get
here 10 find that most OF their dreams OF glorious
war and triumphant victory look much bigger
under quarter Of column Of spread head
than they do in the Island OF Luzon They find
that most of their work Is monotonous and drearv
garrison duty wifi! perhaps an occasional hike
which has far more to offer in the way of mud
and respiration than il has in the way of glory
or distinction, even excitement In spite
Of all that has been written many are rather
surprised To ind that the enemy is still within
fifteen miles OF Manila. They have read Of long
marches into the PARKWAY interior and have
lost sight Of the fact that Mr. Filipino is still
in very considerable force sitting ON the side
door steps and the back fence
The views of Mr.. Robinson are, TO say
the least, not optimistic as to either the
military or the commercial future of the
Philippines. He Is of the opinion that IL
will take some time for the people to get
over their natural disirust of American
soldiers. and for any commercial enter
prise TO get under Roadway. On the lat
ter point ne says:
Sound business develops normally along normal
lines. The Philippines are new territory 10
Americans, but they are not new territory to
nations that have known them and traded with
and on them for decades England, SPAIN France
Germany, and little Portugal and Holland
have been in business i'm the Orient for a number
OF years. II is my opinion that the Philippines
will find such development may come to them
through foreign rather than through American
capital The investors Of England and the Com
tinent must go abroad for their investment
They and not the Americans, have developed
Australia and BOTneO, India and CeyIon lava
Sumatra. and all else in the East.
OF the wood-sawing industry. he says:
snppose the wood being cut to be cedar for the
making Of cigar boxes Hundred, OF thousands
NtN