davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
New-York tribune., 1919-05-24

Every pilot who served on the other
side will be glad that Captain Ricken-
backer has said these things. No one
who knows the truth can deny his
charges, and certainly no one will dare
say that Rickenbacker, with his twenty
six victories, does not know what he
is talking about.
The story he tells of his squadron,
the oath, is thrilling, though many
readers will find the repetition of
thrills eXhausting. After all, one flight
in the air is very much like another,
except for the pilots engaged 1t is
regrettable, since this book must serve
as the great authentic story of our
aviation corps, that it is not better
written. There are too many traces
in it of a borrowed journalistic hand
"a rather heavy hand that tries hard
to move nimbly. Perhaps the highest
praise that can be given it for it's
literary quality is that Captain Rick
enbacker has told his story with some
humor. That, after ALL is better than
small praise in these days, when war
books are being thrown at us with
such deadly seriousness.
The cover of the book is an il
lustrator's dream of warfare in the
air. Of course, the American machine
is decorated with the star insigne,
which was never used in Europe.
AUSTIN PARKER.
New-York tribune., 1919-05-24
Bv Haywood Broun

novN IN MALICE. BY Gerald Cum
sIh.rland. Published by Brentano's. 2st
wages Price So 80.
Gerald Cumberland, the author Of
acct Down in Malice seems to us a
-. of q cad and good deal of an ass
and we like his book of biographical
catches. A certain lack of fineness is
:, admirable thing in one who would
,,rite biography. 1t enables him to
-, down those things about people
,h;ch nobody should tell, but which
.rorvbodv wants TO know There are
.;,,es when the folly, or rather what
sasp,s 10 us folly, of Mr.. Cumberland
i annoying. He throws off snap and
disparaging judgments about good
s,onv neople who deserve better treat
ment-Synge, for instance, and Stan
isr Houghton. On the other hand he
4, an excellent observer and writes
most entertainingly when he keeps his
.un remarks out of the copy and sticks
~ the lions. He seems to have met
almost every literary and musical per-
sonace in England, some of them by
dint of great persistence, and some in
tho course of his work as special
writer for newspapers. Again and
srain he is snubbed terrifcally, but he
,scords the details without any editing.
The fun of the snubbing was marred
for rs a little because of the fact that
{. never seemed to disturb Cumberland
in the least.
Although a close observer, Cumber-
land is not always shrewd in his obser-
vation. Certain famous men seem to
have acted up for his benefit and he
details their doings without any ap-
psrent suspicion that the picture is
not entirely characteristic. 1t is diff
cult to believe, for instance, that G.. X.
Chesterton was altogether unaware of
the effect he was creating on an i'm
pressionable young man in the follow
ing scene:
zone Friday afternoon l went to
The Daily Herald Office to call on a
friend. AS | entered the building a
taxi stopped at the door and found
G. K. C. by my side.
"I have half an hour for my article
said he, rather breathlessly. Wait
here until l come back
"The first sentence was addressed to
himself, the second to the taxi-driver,
but as we were by now in the Office
the driver heard nothing. Chesterton
called for a back file of The Daily
Herald, sat down, lit cigar and began
to read some of his old articles.
watched him. Presently, he smiled.
Then he laughed. Then he leaned
back in his chair and roared.
"'Good-oh, damned good!' ex-
claimed he. He turned to another
article and frowned little, but third
pleased him better After while he
pushed the papers from him and sat
while in thought. And as in uffish
thought he sat, he wrote his article,
rapidly, calmly, drowsily. Save that
his hand moved he might have been
asleep Nothing disturbed him
New-York tribune., 1919-05-24
Orient Made Grim
Miss La Motto Finds
Horrors in the E. ast

CIVILIZATION: Tales of the Orient. By
ELLEN NJ LaMotte. Published by the
George II. Doran Company. 267 pages.
Price, sl50.
They went to China, these white men
in Miss LaMotte's collection of short
stories, and they all represented CIV
ilization. One was a minor clerk who
could not shake off his inherited ideals.
SO he took to himself a Chinese girl.
He was fastidious, so he didn't marry
her. When he tired of her he packed
her off to the provinces with due al
lowance. He even provided for the
education of their son. And the son
grew up an Eurasian - despising the
Chinese of his mother, despised by the
whites of his father.
Another man was an English bishop
in India whose salary came from the
revenue on opium sold to natives, who
smoked and degenerated to worse than
beasts. The Bishops nephew, due in
India on a certain boat, fails to ap-
pear, and in searching for him the
Bishop finds a dead youth lying dis
graced upon bench in one Of the
lowest dives in the colony
THANK God" said the Bishop fer
vently, "it was not my nephew." And
he returns in peace, to draw another
salary
Still another man, whose energy and
vitality are sapped by the climate of
the Orient, sees the fourteen-year- old
daughter of an English couple who
have lived too long in China. The
man becomes infatuated with her
though she is immature. Worse than
that, though, she is mentally deficient
He meets her on the roadside every
morning, attended by an old Chinese,
a paroled prisoner. In time, of course,
the man had enough. He had had
quite enough. "She was a stupid fool,
half witted, anyway" He grew quite
satiated. Also he grew alarmed-very
much alarmed. SO he resigns his post
the girls parents goodby and advising
them to put no trust in paroled pris-
oners. And the next morning the Chi
nese servant is hanged for the white
mans crime.
There are twelve stories in all-and
all are sordid. Disgustingly sordid, and
disgustingly true-in fact, are the in
cidents which the author chooses to
point the tragedy of that thing we call
civilization when it comes into conflict,
either with the ideals or the baseness
of the Orient. An ironical humor tends
to tighten some of the darker pictures
presented. But there is no spark of
decency let into the collection All men
who seek the Orient either for bust
ness or pleasure, are not base. All
Western minds are not baffled by the
mystery Of the Chinese or Indian brain.
And In the East are formed many close
friendships between the natives and
the Westerners. Although Miss La
Motto wildly describes the enervating
effect of the Eastern climate on white
men, the oppressive heat and heavy
scent Of its blooms, the horror of its
winged creatures that fly by night, and
the depressions that more often than
not assails the man who comes there
from colder climate-she has allowed
the land and its many tragedies to
warp her vision. And though her
stories are we'll and brutally told, her
desired effect is blunted by too much
baseness. Unlike Burke, she can see
no spark of goodness against which to
draw her poignant contrasts. Nm.
New-York tribune., 1919-05-24
Freedom of the Seas

THE FREEDOM OF THE SEAS Ry
Louise Fargo Brown. Published by f.
+. Dutton n. Y. Price So.
This is a short history of the con-
troversies between the nations over
what is called, with various meanings,
the freedom of the seas. From the
time of Antoninus to that of Lloyd
George-and then on a little way into
the future Miss Brown carries the
narrative of wars and diplomatic
squabbles. At the end of it all she
comes to this conclusion:
"1f the worlds peace is to prevail
upon the worlds highway, so that they
who so down to the sea in ships may
ply their business on the great waters
in safety and tranquility, there must
be international machinery for enforce
ing the law of the sea, and an interna-
tional tribunal to judge transgres-
sons of it. Not until that day comes
can it be said with truth that the law
is lord of the sea. And not until the
men of all nations meet in perfect
equality in the markets of the four
corners OF the earth shall we know
that the world has seen the end of
wars for the freedom Of the seas"
New-York tribune., 1919-05-24
By Harold ]. Laski

At the. booksellers convention in
Boston last week ventured the
suggestion that too much emphasis
was laid on books recently published
and not enough on books which,
though they had been for some time
before the public, were yet full of i'm
portance for the present time. Mr..
Haywood Broun thereupon asked me
to draw up such list as might be of
lnterese to the average reader who
cares about the political problems of
the present age. The books tha. fol-
low are all of them at least ten wears
old, but none of them with one excep-
ton is more than twenty-five wears
old. None of them is a classic in the
sense that the average educated man
must be presumed to have read it. but
all OF them occupy permanent place
in political literature. All of them are
in print.
I. HENRY SIDGwICK. THE ELE-
MENTS OF POLITICS, 1891. The
Macmillan Company
This is the best general introduction
to politics with which I am acquainted.
1t discusses the fundamental notions
state, government, liberty, soverei ignty,
in an incisive and clear way, and ex
plains the theory underlying the
structure of medern states.
II. T. H. GREEN. THE PRIN
CIPLES OF POLITICAL OBLIGA-
TION, 1899. Longmans, Green.
This is still the best discussion of
the grounds of political obedience in
the English language. Particularly
valuable at this time are its discus
sions of whether the citizen has rights
against the state, what power the
state ought to exert in war, the DOW
ers OF the state as the guardian of
morality, the atmosphere in which pub
lie opinion works.
III. J. N. FIGGIS. FROM GERSON
TO GROTIUS, 1907. Cambridge Uni
versity Press.
DR.. Figgis was the most brilliant
of Lord Acton's brilliant pupils, and
this, his ablest work, is a historical
study of the way in which, at certain
great crises in history, very like that
which we now confront, ideas similar
to those of our own time have been
born. DR.. Figgiss critical analysis of
those ideas was a work of which the
high Importance was recognized by
every student of politics. The book
seems to me indispensable for an
understanding of our age.
". JAMES F. STEPHEN. LIBERTY
EQUALITY, FRATERNITY, 1874,
Henry Holt & Co.
On the whole the best criticism of
democratic principles. Particularly
valuable are its discussions of liberty
of thought and Of the relations be-
tween the church and politics
V. c. F. G. MASTERMAN. THE
CONDITION OF ENGLAND. 1909
Methuen & Co..
A brilliant picture-still true in its
essential elements-of the political
New-York tribune., 1919-05-24
A Boswell at Large
Cumberland Writes of Literary
and Musical Lights in England

! neither the noise of the office nor the
faint throb of his taxicab rapidly
ticking off two pcnces in the street
below. He finished his ar
ticle and rolled dreamily away"
There is an interesting glimpse of
Shaw in an early chapter. Cumberland
decided to write a life Of Shaw and
gained the authors consent. Later the
publishers decided that Shaw was not
important enough for whole book
but that he might be teamed with
break the news of this new arrange
mont to Shaw.
"And the title?" he asked gently.
"Why? What do you mean? ?"
"Well, don't you think The Two
Mad Irishmen' would go rather we'll"
However, Shaw withheld his consent
to the publication, and said, referring
to Moore: ooh, George has worked
awfully hard. l don't suppose there
is more conscientious artist living.
He has dug out of himself everything
there was to be got. No one could have
tried more. AS a worker, George is
magnificent. But, really, when you sug-
gest a book
AS usual Shaw had something to say
about his own methods of writing and
advertising:
"a writer of originality must expect
to have to wait. If a writer is ac-
claimed immediately mean writer
on social and artistic subj jects-he may
be pretty sure that he is saying things
that have been said before. He may
be saying them better than anybody
else; nevertheless, they are the same
things. My own success has been
gained, and is very largely maintained,
by the force of my personality and by
the tradition about myself that has
gradually grown up in the mind of the
public. For example, if l were to
write an article and give it to you to
copy out and offer to editors III your
own name, you being the professional
author, I doubt very much if a single
editor. would look at it twice. A good
deal, you see, is in name"
Now and again Cumberland shoves
the various celebrities aside and ap-
pears in his own magnifcence. He i'm
pressed us most in an account Of a
dinner to Lord Derby, which he and
other "pressmen" attended. "Some of
US collected signatures on the backs
of our menus" he writes, "but when
Lord Derby had written his name on
the top of mine, left it there alone.
not caring to see other names mingling
with his, perhaps feeling that no other
name of those present was worthy to
stand beneath his name"
New-York tribune., 1919-05-24
The Story Of Rickenbacker
American Ace Tells the Virtues
And Faults of Our Air Service

FIGHTING THE FLYING CIRCUS Rv
Captain Edward " RicKenbacker. Pub
hshed by Frederick a. Stokes Co. Illus
trated. 37l pages. Price $3.50.
Captain Eddie Rickenbacker's story
OF his war experiences, "Fighting the
Flying Circus" is the first compre
hensive, ineligible account of the
work done by our air forces on the
front. The public has had to sift
many stories to get few facts. and
then, for the most part, the facts thew
got were unimportant. The main
point is that out of our thousands Of
aviators, every one of them keen for
active war service, a few finally
managed to get to the front. These
few rendered brilliant and heroic
service, flying machines that were not
fit to be flown, because there we're no
others.
The story that our "Ace of Aces"
tells will make a good many men in
the aviation headquarters squirm un-
easily. The pilots who knew the facts
were in France while a number of
things were being deftly explained
away to a public ignorant of all mat
ters connected with aviation. But
now, with the censorship ended, the
same public will turn to this book for
enlightenment. They will find en-
lightenment; they will find many
to make them proud of American
pilots, and they will find many
things that will make them-there is
no other adequate express on-damned
mad.
Captain Rickenbacker did not intend
to make an expose. He passes over
things Of that nature with a few brief
sentences. For instance, "The French
had already discarded the Neuport
for the stronger, steadier Spad and
thus our government was able to buy
from the French a certain number of
these out date Nieuport machines
for American pilots-or go without
Consequently, our American pilots in
France were compelled to venture out
in Nieuports against far more expert
enced pilots in more modern machines.
None Of us in France could understand
what prevented our great country from
furnishing machines equal to the best
in the world. Many a gallant life
was lost to American aviation during
those early months of 1918. the re-
sponsibility for which must lie heavily
upon some guilty conscience"
Later in the book he says, speaking
of one Of his many combats, From
every side Fokkers were piquing upon
the clumsy Liberty machines, which,
with their criminally constructed fuel
tanks, offered 80 easy target to the
incendiary bullets Of the enemy that
their unfortunate pilots called this
boasted achievement of our aviation de-
partment their flaming coffins.' Dur
ing that one brief flight over Grand
Pre- l saw three of these crude ma
chimes go down in flames, an American
pilot and an American gunner in each
flaming coffin dying this frightful
and needless DEATH"
New-York tribune., 1919-05-24
Stories by Pinsky
Yiddish Author Not at
Best in Temptations

TEMPTATIONS. BY David Pinski.
Translated by Isaac Goldberg, Pub
lished by Brentano's. 325 pages. Price,
$3.50.
David Pinski has written some brill
liant dramas, but we find it impossible
to agree with the estimate of Isaac
Goldberg as to the worth of the short
stories in the volume called "Tempta-
tions." Of the first story in the vol
ume, "Beruriah," Goldberg writes that
he considers it zone of the greatest
short stories ever written" To US it
seems mechanical and labored With
the exception of "Drabkin," all the
stories are too tight in form. Pinski
does not realize that he is working
outside the stern restrictions of the
theatre. He never lets story have
its head and gallop. With one excep-
tion all are directed to death.
Then, too, we find a curious unhu-
morous quality in Pinski which some
times betrays him into bringing seri-
Gus stories to the verge of broad bur-
lesque. There is the tale about the
ascetic Rabbi Akiba who forswears all
earthly lusts and glories in his
strength for self-denial until one day
in journey across a lonely bit of
country he is surprised to find "a
wondrously beautiful naked girl at the
top of palm tree"
"He could not believe his eyes. but
there was the girl looking down at him,
smiling so enticngly, intoxicating him
with the pearly whiteness of her teeth"
Some descriptive wsitng follows and
then Rabbi Akiba begins toaclimb the
tree. "He climbed higher, ever higher"
says the author. but when half way up
the rabbi realizes the unworthincss of
his position and without taking time
to climb down lets go of the tree and
falls kerplunk out of temptation
Nor, were we able 20 take Johanan,
the High Priest, altogether seriously,
"For a savage fury befell the High
Priest; he desired 60 enjoy the pleas
ures of the senses more and more, and
he changed his mistresses every day,
intoxicated with lust and wine. Then,
to the great horro, of his people. he
also took to drinking"
Pinski may have graces Of style in
Yiddish, which are denied to him in
translation, although Isaac Goldberg is
an exceedingly successful worker in
this field. Probably, the fault is Pin
skis. He tries to make words shout
too much. In "a Tale of a Hungry
Man," there is a character who is al
ways crying for Food, food. food!"
and the author explains that che
wanted something to eat, eat, eat"
We were not all surprised to find that
at the end Of the story he died, died,
died!
"Drabkin'" however, is very notable
short story of proletarian backslider.
1t is much more simple and sincere
than any Of the others and is fine
enough to show that Pinski's best is
nothing like his worst. H.B.
New-York tribune., 1919-05-24
Life on French
Cruiser in War


vAGABoNDs OF THE SEA. By Rene
Milan. Translated by Randolph Bourne.
Published by E. p. Dutton. PAS pages.
Price, $3.50.
Milan is probably young French
man, although he served in an i'm
portant post on the cruiser Waldeck-
Rousseau. He is quite swanky
youngster. but this is never unpleasant
because he is so exceedingly naive.
Whenever the Austrians decline an en-
counter Milan complains bitterly of
their cowardce, but when French
naval vessels retire he speaks judi
cously of sound prudence. Indeed, ne
seems a little over severe about his
adversaries and one of the counts on
which he assails them is that the Aus
trian submarines give no certain indi-
cation of their destruction when they
are sunk.
On the whole the Waldeck- Rousseau
has little opportunity for action, al
though there is a thrilling description
of q short encounter in which the
cruiser fights simultaneously with
enemy destroyers, submarines and sea-
planes. There are also one or two
vivid passages about brushes with sub
marines in one Of which the cruiser
narrowly escapes destruction.
Still, Milan's fancy has an op-
portunity to roam. He writes pleasant
descriptive passages about scenery,
and upon one occasion when he rescues
a pet dog for young lady in Malta
he grows romantic. The young lady
smiled at him, it seems, and that is
worth a chapter.
New-York tribune., 1919-05-24
I en- Books Which Last
Harold ]. Laski Makes List of
Books Which Remain Important

social and intellectual background Of
modern English life.
VI. 0. G. RITCHIE. NATURAL
RIGHTS. 1894. The Macmillan Com
pany.
This is still the best general account
of the conceptions which underlie the
structure of American life. The chap
ters on toleration, property and the
right to liberty have q special appli-
cation to our own problems.
VII. J. A HOBSON. IMPERIALISM.
1905. Constable & Co.
Mr.. Hobson's book is the most pow
erful polemic in existence against the
most fashionable philosophy of the
present generation.
VIII. L. T. HOBHOUsE. DEMoC-
RACY AND REACTION. 1904. T.
Fisher Unwin.
A brilliant analysis of the difficulties
confronted by democratic states and
the need for the avoidance of the dam
gerous implications of the Hegelian
philosophy
TX. E. BERNSTEIN. EVOLUTION
AIRY SOCIALISM. 1909. B. w.
Huebsch.
The best criticism OF the orthodox
MARKHAM socialism, by the leader of the
Minority intellectuals during the pres
ent war.
X. ]. RAMSAY MACDONALD. So
CIALISM AND GOVERNMENT. 1909.
Independent Labor Party.
This is by far the best account Of
political institutions from the stand
point of socialism. 1t has in it the
best modern defence of the party-sys-
tenn in politics. In England it has
been generally recognized as the best
recent defence of representative de-
mocracv
New-York tribune., 1919-05-24

Rider Haggard never wrote more thrill
ing story of love and adventure than the
reader will find in this delightful book. Sc
cure the story and read it if you want to
know about it. You could hardly find
better investment.-Los Angeles Express.
In his latest Mr.. Chamberlain tells the
thrilling story of man and woman drawn
together in the heart of Africa-vivid writ
ing and considerable amount of humor
which was not so evident in Mr.. Chamber
lain's other books, carry the reader unsus
pectingly through the mazes of tangled
series of adventures. White Man is sure
to be much read.-Boston Sunday Record
New-York tribune., 1919-05-24

If While Man is not menu for the gods,
where could one be found Pittsburgh
Dispatch.
# you enjoyed Nedro by George Barr Nc
Cutcheon and The Wings Of the Morning
by Louis Tracy you will simply devour this
new novel by George Agnew Chamberlain.
White Man is the same fascinating froth
of love, adventure and bizarre contrasts that
never fails to excite the appetite of the most
Jaded fiction devotcc, the kind of book that
will be read at one sitting and with smile
of real enjoyment. If you confess to low
ing a rattling good yarn you will have no
regrets when you close this book. 1t abounds
in thrills, not the least of which is an eIe-
phant hunt.-New York Times.
New-York tribune., 1919-05-24
Woman, Be Warned

"a woman who hanks with doubts
the man she marries, and limits him
with the tyranny of her affections, can
do more toward depriving him Of his
freedom than an invading army" from
From Sunup to Sundown," by Cora
Harris and Faith Harris Leech, recent
ly published by Doubleday, Page & Co.
New-York tribune., 1919-05-24

A moro thrilling. throbbfns. romantic story
than George Agnew Chamberlain's While
Man is seldom offered. The tense moment
at the theatre when the orchestra starts its
tremulous accompaniment is maintained
throughout the book. So much ecstasy and
excitement may leave the susceptible reader
weak and shattered but he should be happy
-Ncw York Evening Globe.
New-York tribune., 1919-05-24

Here's book which blazes new trail for
readers of fiction, full of vivid descriptions
Of delightfully."- unexpected advenlures.--SaIt
Lake Herald.
We think it must be generally admitted that
White Man is distinct departure in narra-
tive conception. 1t is alive with incident.
1t includes the story Of an elephant hunt told
as the mghtiest hunter might be proud to
tell 1t and it offers something of the poetry
as well as the strenuous stir of the wilds~
Mem York World.
New-York tribune., 1919-05-24

Many Of the great inventions which
have revolutionized human life have
been prophesied by spinners of tales,
i. e.. Jules Verne with "Twenty Thou
sand Leagues Under the Sea-; Kipling
with "The Night Mail" and William
McFee with Aliens" which reaches it's
flight.
New-York tribune., 1919-05-24

White Man i. book for those who want
novelty in plot and swiftness in action.-
Philadelphia Enquirer.
A romance that holds the readers close
attention straight through to tho end.--Los
Angcle, Examiner.
White Man i. certainly ono Of the most
interesting books have read in long
time-PHlsburgh Sun