Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-06-01
Reviews of New Books
THE EDUCATION OF HENRY
ADAMS, An Autobiography. Bos-
ton: Houghton Mifi1in Company.


ton: Houghton Miffiin Company.
1T is the personality of Henry
Adams himself that SO completely
captivates the reader here. The
novel point of view, the original
attitude. the roominess of the mind
and it's curious furnishings. the un-
iIlusioned slant of the Investigations.
the characteristic droop of the spirit
these carry one along in tide of
excited association. To make ones
education the center of an autobio-
graphic view is a novel thing to do
but 1t is, after all. the only stand
point for a genuine appraisal. To look
upon education as never-ending
process-and a never achieved end
is an innovation also-but it is the
only means of actual portrayal. Mr.
Adams, in the course of this strange
and. by incidence, a theory of history
as well. But the absorbing interest of
the book lies in neither of these
theories of Complementary relation
by-page keenness of insight and OBJ
servation, in the frank avowal. the
fearless criticism, the startling COM
ment, the humor of grim feature. the
wit that plays like lightning here and
there, and the absolutely sound APP
praisal Of education as this has. so
far. manifested itself. Everything
turns out to be grist that comes to
the mill of Henry Adams. everything
is the pursuit of education-the life
at Quincy, Harvard. diplomacy, jour-
nalism. travel. new aspects of science
and general culture-and before each
of these Henry Adams sets himself in
a fresh quest of that which he says.
sadly, he never found. Nobody ever
finds 1t. but he is about the only one
who has been frank enough to admit
it. In each of these various terms of
schooling Adams is a pure Joy of in
dividual personality man of infinite
charm whose chief elements are sim
plicity-sophisticate simplicity = and
An unconventional frankness of
speech. The story is that Of suave
and waywise man. eminent in re-
. source and recognition. telling the
open truth where every one else is
desperately trying to conceal it.
more absorbing book cannot be mag
ined, nor more generally useful one
TO those who are wiling to accept it.
GEORGE WESTINGHOUsE.H Hi. Life
and Achievements. BY Francis E.
Leupp. Illustrated from photo
graphs. Boston: Little, Brown &
Co.
~> PioSS iOi THIS SlOTy OF GeOrEe
westinghouse - American, inventor,
leader of industry. man-is in the
hands of the young man. or, better
yet, on the shelves of school libraries
where certain kind of boy can get at
its fine substance at Just the right
moment. Its appeal in both substance
ana spirit is TO youth. for. through
out. it partakes of the vision and
fhoy, l,;e-
1t embodies the significant fact that
our democracy is losing it's cast of
pure politics and is entering upon its
career as an industrial democ-
new era with the benefits of expert
ence, with the wisdom of many ex-
periments in Industrial we'll doing.
Mr. Leupp approaches this study with
appSeclative sympathy. with a broad
comprehension of the general field in
which the work of Mr.. WESTINGHOUSE
stands out SO pre-eminently and with
clear understanding of the message
that the book contains for the present
nour OF enormous possibilities. pro-
all measures at his command to insure
an authentic story of this great Ameri-
can inventor. With a keen sense of
drama. too. he has stressed the high
points in this notable career. touched
them with the colors Of their own ro-
nance, embellished them with the
cnarm OF their own adventure, and
solicited them out Of their own SUBJ
stance. One leaves the book, re-
freshed and out-reaching. for this
Quaintance with an American of many
gifts-inventor. pioneer in many fields
of business development and admins
tration. true Industrial democrat.
And not the least of these inspiring
gifts is that of courage. able to stand
in adversely no less than in prosperity.
THE NAVY AND THE NATION; War
Time Addresses. By Josephus Dan
iels. Secretary of the Navy. New
York: George II. Doran Company
This volume gathers into a single !
compact body a group of addresses |;
given by the Secretary Of the Nav
upon various occasions and at vari- |
Gus times within the past two years. |
These essays serve 20 define, broadly, |
the function of the Navy during nor |
NAL times of peace in relation to the f:
government of which it is a part. and |
10 Point out, as wei. its particular |
function during the present abnormal
period of war. They serve, by the way, |
also. to objectify the aims and ideals |
under whose vital urge the Navy |
has made so spirited and patriotic a |
fronting upon war. and has achieved !
80 much of clean-cut military eff
cheney. A fund Of special Information
upon subject with which the gen.
eral reader is not over familiar lies !
within these addresses. This infor- |
nation deals, on the one hand. with |
naval matters in and of themselves
On the other hand. it describes, in |
formally, the partnerships set up by /!
the war between the Navy and fields !
Of allied industry, touching here upon !
the interests of labor and upon the
many instrumcn,aiities for social
well-being that the Navy has organ
lied and supported. Good, however,
as Is this international value, II is
the spirit of these addresses, it is
their active and efficient patriotism.
that gives them their prime import
ance- Addressed, in effect, to the
young men of the country, they sum, !
out Of finely practical accounting,
to stimulating urgency of appeal.
THE AMERICAN AIR SERVICE. BY
Arthur Sweetser. Introduction by
Newton D. Baker, Secretary of ;
War. illustrated. New York: d
Appleton & Co.
Teaching men how to fy and then ,,
how to wage warfare in the sky
maneuvering there for attack or de-
tense, operating with bomb or ma
chine gun. acting as intelligence arm
by camera. signal and message
for the direction of ground move
ments of battle-this is a field cal
culated to fire any imagination to
the production of myth and legend
rather than to hold plain observation
to a record of actual fact. 1t is, in
rescue the attested facts of our air
service from the legendary nimbus