Evening star., 1918-07-14

Japanese. The debt OF Japan to
China for the beginnings of its civiu-
cation Is recounted here in a pretty
complete reckoning. incidentally.
this accounting gives one also a fair
view of China when 1t was calcu-
to the other civilizations Of history.
By its inclusive grasp. its compact
structure and its mode Of emphasis.
this study stands as one OF the text
book type. Reference lists for fur
ther investigation add also to its
history.
CASTLE THREE. BY Gertrude NJ
Shields. Frontispiece by Florence
Gardner. New York: The Century
Company.
A realistic picture Of the things
that interest and engage a small town
in its daily life. By way Of q group
of people. Just such people as one
recognizes in towns both large and
small. the writer carries forward the
days doings Of the place with a keen
sense of the actualities and a neat
hand at setting these out The ac-
tion takes on focussin the person Of
a young man of dreams. Something of
the poet Is tangled up in these dreams.
Hard times and a parent unsympa-
thetfc to- the visions of an unpractf-
cal son take hand in developing the
future Of the youth. In bright array
OF the commonplaces Of social life the
boy touches here and there In pursuit
of that finer thing which he is SO ten
derly cherishing. Gradually the pur-
the ideal grows cloudy in its outline.
The moon, elusive and hard to reach.
is supplanted by the pleasing little
href1ieS OF the average. 1t is an ap-
pealtng theme. in one or another OF
whose corners the great majority OF
people have tucked away their early
idealisms and ambitions. The writer
handles 1t with restraint and pre-
cision. keeping well within the be-
lievabflities and at the same time con-
tributing a good substance of inter-
esting human outlook and action.
THE POINT OF VIEW. By Martha
Gilbert Dickinson Bianchi, author
of "A Modern Prometheus," etc.
New York: Dufiield & Co.
Mra Bianchrs new novel follows
the course of a man and woman-an
introspective and somewhat ex-
hausted pair-around the circle that
begins and ends at the common point
Of their love for each other. These
are New England folks Of rather inn
pressive background. They have trav-
eled and lived in England Com
ing back to America, sthOroughly
soaked In the romantic airs Of Medi-
terrenean Europe. they appear. to
themselves at least, as pure exotics
in their native land. They talk end
lessly, In a social lightness. about
life. the conversation tfnged always
with the esthetic favors that they
have absorbed. To the reader these
long talks prove bit tiresome. But.
the man and woman never appear
happier than when they are summing
and airing their delicate and refined
notions about society and places and
ideals. Young and splendid America
makes no great impression upon
them. though the author goes to the
pains Of transporting the man to an
exciting manufacturing place in the
west. just to see what this may do
to his exclusive point of view. There
are interesting and near-dangerous
incidents in that experience for the
man. but nothing happens, and he
goes back east. After a long stretch
of indecisive action. which serves
only to accent the particular points
Of view Of these and other characters
in the story, the war gives everybody
a. chance to find gout whether he
really has or has not anything
reckonable in his makeup. The war
concludes the story with a fair show
Of promise to this couple Of hitherto
indeterminate and unimportant be-
haviors.
THE HISTORY OF EUROPE FROM
1862 TO 10l4s From the AceeAsion
of Bismarck to the Outbreak Of the
Great War. BY LuciuS Hudson
Holt. Phi. D. (Yale), lieutenant colo
mel. o. s. A.: professor Of English
and History, U. s. Military Acad-
emy, and. Alexander Wheeler Chill
ton. captain of infantry, U. s. A..
assistant professor Of history, q. s.
Military Academy. New York: The
Macmillan Company.
A necessarily brief review can give
no adequate impression Of the i'm
portance Of this work. The reader. ad-
mittedly ignorant of the historic pro-
logue to the world war. will find in
its presentation of the chief European
events Of the last half century a COM
pelHngly strong and honestly fair rec
ord of the causes leading to the con-
f1ict of today. For the student al
ready familiar with every move ON
the European checkerboard, the au-
thors have invested accuracy with an
Illuminating freshness which gives
news zest to every advance step by
which Prussia, the least of the FIVE
great powers. fifty years ago, should
at this time be fighting all civiliza-
tion because tt refuses to yield her
more than her fair share of SUN"
Col. Holt presents the political, diplo-
matte and economical history and