Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-09-22
Reviews of New Books

STAKES OF THE WAR. BY Lothrop
Stoddard, A. NJ, PHI. o., author Of
"Present-Day Europe: Its National
States of Mind" and Glenn Frank.
b. A. New York: The Century
Company.
TINS book fronts sauarely upon
the peace deliberations that
Will follow the war. 1t is,
moreover, a singularly COM
potent fronting upon this approach
Ing event. This competency rests.
in part, with the substantial char
acter of the material that these
writer's bring to the peace table. In
other part 1t depends upon their
attitude toward this material and
upon the form in which they present
it to. the general reader The ma
terial itself consists of studies of the
European and near east states that
from time immemoral, have consti-
tuted points of dispute and warfare
between the great European powers.
Holstein, Finland, the Baltic prov
tnces, Poland, Lithuania. the Czecho-
Slav and Ukraine districts, the Bal
kans, Constantinople and other points
OF the near-east make up the speclai
parts of this material The attitude
of the authors toward this subject Is
solely that of giving information.
No line of argument appears here
This information is presented IN
concise and uniform plan, plan that
is easy to seize and hold. A page
of historic background for each Of
nomic survey, half a page for It's
geography and allied facts, its con-
troll before the war. its control dur
ing the war. It's interest to this one
or that among the great powers. with
q sketch Of the particular problem
that each presents for peace delibera-
tions-this Is the outline under which
each OF these states Is considered
An excellent book list follows each
study. One cannot conceive of bet
with which it deals than 10 this AL
thoritative, up-to date, readable, COM
- pact and we'll ordered study.
THE WITCH: And Other Stories. BY
Anton Chekhov. Translated by
Constance Garnett. New York: The
Macmillan Company.
Each Of these amazing tales Is Rus
sfa-the great country of Russia IT.
self-embodied in a solid gloom. A
sinister and illimitabie landscape is
here; skies that weep. inconsolable:
trees that drip in weary monotony;
leaves that moan and whisper in evil
intent; mists that rise in mysterious
and menacfng barriers: cavern. cow
ardly. cold. that attacks at every I'M
armed point; monstrous ice giant
that freezes the blood and congeals
the spirit itself. This Is Russia, some
thing In the way that Chekhov saw It.
And 1t puts spell upon some. For
how scatters lonely groups-twos and
threes-of ptgmy men, dwarfed by M
stinctfve fears, and a niggardly soil,
and the engulffng misery OF their lives.
three Of these bits of Russian life. and
then he puts the book away. The Won
der Of the writing-tts transcriptive
quality Of keen intellectually, OF
drama. Of economy, Of crystal clarity.
of atn>osphere-this. 1T is that lifts
this place and these people eohi'y m.o
the aching confederation of the read
err. 1t is the masterfulness OF the
work that makes one claim respite
from the sensations that 1t produces.
And 1t puts spell upon one. Fol-.
after q brief quarreling by ones self
over these sordid tales OF superstition ION
and dull animal behavfors one goes
back to them unable to resist any
I writer. who can make mere words de-
| liver over to one such unmistAkaole
products Of q special environment a.
these Russian peasants prove here to
| be.
THE FREEDOM OF THE SEAS. BY
Charles Stewart Dawson, Nj. A..
LII. b. New York: Moffat, Yard Il
Co.
At the outset of.this discussion Mr..
Dawson very properly reminds the
reader that there is. in reality. no
such thing as 1.-The freedom of the
seas: and that. in the very nature of
things, there can be no such thing so
long Al human and social evolution
continues along the lines hitherto es-
tablished. 1t IL. rather. the regula- :
tion Of sea transit that must direct
international councils, since freedom
itself in out Of the question. In this
clear and compact survey of the regu-
latton Of the worlds seafarings the
writer brings tho matter into imme-
dtate and concrete interest by a re-
view Of the general use of the seas IN
the present war. Tho Limitations Of
old maritime laws stand clear from
this near point of view The need for
different and larger interpretations
becomes Immediately obvious. A
summary of tho nature and POSSIBLE
ties Of tho submarines. of mines. of
hydro-asroplanes. OF wireless tefeg-
raphy, demonstrates the sharp neces-
Views and measures. Tho little book
working out from tho facts in the
case as the present exigency makes
than clear 10nk4 fnrw a I'd IN the time