New-York tribune., 1907-12-11

ii5as aSaa' from PhotogTaphss, by the AutF,r and
StiIers. Svo, pp. NJ, - Charles Scribner's
soHs.
=, is I familiar complaint against the latter
- maker of books of travel that he spins a
,o,,- narrative about Il country he has raced
,,ro,,el,- IN a few short weeks. Sometimes he
~ at least retort that his flying visit has
s.lsed him more material than has been gath
.-sd by lazier tourists and that. in any case
h has learned all of his subject that il was
,soessfry foT am to know Mr. Davis. fer OK
or,pIe. d6 net by any means make an heroic joo
80 his African travels, but in these brief chap
,ars OF his he manages somehow to cut 10 the
hone and 10 give the reader 4 more vivid i'm
nression tu,A is always to be got from the much
more ambitious record He has never written
better book in the field which he has 50 often
exploifed. the field of actualities. We gather
that this is because his sympathes have never
bAen more closely engaged. This is not series
of sketches Of unfamiliar country, written
fcr the sake of the pictuTesQueness in the scenes
described Mr.. Davis went to the Congo to get
an idea of the situation there one of the most
poignant situations in the history of the Dark
. Continent. and his book is a tract as we'll as
collection of travel notes. What he shows
rs is Of interest because of its grim implica-
tions.
The actual atrocities in the Congo Of which
the world has heard so much We're not unrolled
before the eyes of this author. u did not see
them" he frankly admits. The word had gone
forth from Brussels to smooth over the bad
places some time before he reached the coast
But If he did not see the horrors in question.
neither as he says, last year, did a great
many people in the United States see the mas
sacre Of blacks in Atlanta But they have rea-
son 10 believe occurred And after one has
talked with the and women who have seen
the atrocities. has seen in the official reports
that those accused of the atrocities do not deny
having committed them but point out that they
were merely obeying orders. and after one has
seen that even at the capital of Bona all the
conditions of slavery exist one is assured that
in the jungle away from the sight of men, al
things are possible The effect of this book
slight ii is, is give the reader d sharp
sense Of the sinister drift of that administrative
policy which rules in the Congo. In a nutshell
this is the policy established by the King of the
Belgans:
.The only possible 10 obtain rubber is through
man cannot work and live OF ever, Chinese coolies
imported here tof build railroad 50 per died.
So. with stroke cf the pen, Leopold declared All
the rubber in the country The property of tne
would work it ordered that taxes be paid in rub
Der. II. once a month tin order 10 keep the
re SH d nor nto binl seda n % o1 9Se q Ie' faTn & F
the Kings canni6ai soldiers faded il carried off
the women as hostages and made prisoners, OF the
rubber 6Tonsht IN N excess Of me gu9J the Kings
warded it down the river. was paid commission
or was paid by results" Another bonus was given
bbeT r If On e paid he al a Mtc ohy en if o
sS G so sTG 10 e ae ne g But oes of per
bur II he paid the natives u cents for every two
in word. the more rubber the agent collected the
2 @ 6T or 9na Is I By ne Rne 66s Il
ages making prisoners, by the whip Of -, hippo d
1ne, so much richer. Leopold.
Few schemes devised have been more cynical,
man to cruelty and abuse To dshPnesty 4Sis il was
p psymeni by re5uits evolved by Leopold sooner
that led TO the atrocities
Evil as the system is in its essence. it is the
evil IN its operation, since it is badly man
aged. The Congo is run not only without
humanity, but without business sense Mr.
Davis has given in this book lightly touched
but intensely realistic and convincing picture
Of the state he saw it. and though his
narrative has the air of swift observers sum-
mary jottings it makes for grave reflection 1t
is none the worse for being eniivened with the
casual episodes Of every day travel, the anus
ing ODDS and ends OF experience which fall to
the lot Of one who is always wide awake and
.or,fck 10 see the characteristic element in
strange lands. Altogether Mr. Davis has made
his book an entertaining and illuminating souVe-
mir Of his African excursion.
picture of life in the United States from the
Gallo point of view is about 70 be published IN
Paris The book. which is to be profusely Illus
.ra-ed Is called "I.'Oncle Sam Chez Lui." and
Is the work OF NM. Rayond Gros and FRANCOIS
Bournaud.
Nj George Moore is ruthless editor OF his
own work He has been rewriting his novel
Evelyn Innes" and he will probably 1t Is sald'
rewrite its sequel, Sister Teresa"
"The American" is the title of a new story
by the German novelist, Gabrielle Reuter- lt IS
described by The Berlin correspondent OF the
London Tribune a modern study with
deal Of kindly humor and sympathetic good
nature:
You shall oonjure Up old North German vii
dusty archives and mot1-eaten arras. About the
burg IS serene peace, the peace Of lofty ana
Junkerg home in its very best form. The long
days pass peacefully over hall and viIiaGe, inc
sra wall and the making of apple squash is an
incident of week In brief il is home life
the preseaee sa Of !Tesure and Madam Piacid-
a prose-poern for d German Tyre There enters
VITA s s ePsnzee TePDss mind and neothic manners
"a prodigal. who for his bane has absorbed the
late il With ths peace Of New England home
sieads There is drama enough In this. and IL
must mus be said that Gabrielle Reuter- avoids with
skh the ritfail Of too much 'up-to-dateness
When the great Napoleon went into exile at
St Helena he remained for two months at THE
Rriars." the pleasant home OF John Balcombe
British ofhciai-dreary Longwood House not
,hen being ready for his occupancy. John Bal
conbe kind-hearted man and endeavored
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