Evening star., 1923-07-15
Reviews of New Books
THROUGH THE WHEAT. BY Thomas
Boyd. New York: Charles Scrib-
neris Sons

.
Boyd. New York: Charles scrib-
neRs Sons.
"HE American soldier, the COM
mon fellow who really did
the fighting at Chateau
Thierry. Scissors and round
about, could take this story, one be-
lieves, as his own personal experience
in that part of the war. 1t is no more
than a straight account of what hap
pened to any group of young soldiers
in the battles of that time and To-
cality. No romance in the coloring OF
this account. No heroism talked about.
No glory gathered up here. Instead
slogging weighted marches in the
woods and through the wheat" of
France. And then more marches.
WEAKNESS unspeakable, hunger ap-
peased only when everything else had
been done, sleep falling upon one on his
feet or lying in a mudhole of a trench.
Curious hit-or-miss rushes upon the
Germans-or so il appears to the
reader. The movements bear no re-
semblance whatever to the orderly for
nations and sweeping advances that
the distant civilian pictures and calls
war. heavy, stodgy courage-more
like indifference misunderstanding now
and then into sort of demonic hatred
that drives the fellows forward into
strange and unaccusIomed brutalities.
Wet and cold and dirt and lice and
stinking dead men and horses provide
the setting here for these automatic
and mindless advances and retreats.
Good times? Yes, when one can find a
dry spot, or one of fair warmth. Good
times over a broken cigarette, or q
basin of slum,' or swig of hot cof-
fee-royal times these by contrast.
Understand, you never get even a sus-
picion here that there is any desire or
attempt to overstress the personal hard
ship in this war business. Rather Is II
wholly impersonal in ts effect, though
1t is, In the main. the story-if such an
existence can be named a story-of
young Hicks and few of his COM
panions. Too late for a war story?
Tired of them? Not too late, nor will
you be tired of them after reading this
undeniably straight story of the actu-
ality of war as it is pursued day by
day. Yes, some of the soldiers are ter
ribly grouchy-but they know more
about war than we do. Read this.
Great story. And who is this Thomas
Boyd, the writer? Now he is @ news
paper man and something else in the
way of business-lives in St. Paul. In
war time, however. he was a soldier,
not quite twenty years old, private in
the Marine Corps and then a member
of the 9Th Regiment. He fought with
the marines at Belleau Wood, scissors
and elsewhere roundabout. He was Sc
verely gassed and, finally, came home
by way of hospitals in both France and
Germany. Thomas Boyd appears to
have had something real to write about
in Through the Wheat" And he has
done II in way to give you new
heart tug over that young fellow, the
common soldier the man who did the
job.
THE DECADENCE OF EUROPE.
BY Francesca Nitti, former premier
OF Italy. author of ''Peaceless
Europe" Translated by F. Brit
tain. New York: Henry Holt & Co.
Probably not one of the many who
have written of the European chaos,
fered solutions of its tragic problem.
is better qualified for this task than
Signor Nitti, former premier of Italy
and member of the allied confer
lowing the end of the war. So
placed as to be in actual touch with
the condition of Europe as this was
acknowledged by members of the
conference, SO placed as to be able
to weigh at first hand the delibera-
tions tending toward a settlement of
the war. he here places this imme-
diate knowledge in the hands of the
American public for their informa-
ton and guidance. The various lines
traced from their sources to their
inevitable conclusion The failure of
the peace settlement is here set out
in courageous frankness that
reader as to the authors convictions.
supported here by a convincing array
of facts bearing upon this result
Out of ii all stands. square-footed.
I the statement that France is the
chief obstructionist in the rebuilding
of Europe. And at this point Signor
Nitti gives in adequate detail the
concrete evidence of French short
sightedness, not only for itself but
for Europe as a whole besides His
first conclusion is that the Treaty of
Versailles Is impossible of fulfill
ment and that therefore. no substan-
tial progress can be made till this is
revised. Turning away from the
author fronts upon England and the
United States as offering the only
means by which a constructive poll
icy can be made to supplant the GER
tain destruction for Europe which
now menaces it. The author claims
for the book only this-that it is
a relation of documentary facts"
that it is evidence from unquestion-
able sources. set out frankly for the
use of those who must finally put
rope.
IGENEyRA's MONEY. BY E V. Lucas.
author of "Verena in the Midst"
etc. New York: George H. Doran
Company.
Genevra died, leaving only some
money and a husband-these only.
save for flock of young nephews
and nieces. toward whom the mind
Of the husband Immediately turned.
Like most newly bereft people, he
was filled with a desire to carry for
ward the wishes of the beloved one
acting further in any earthly capac-
ity. To help these young folks would
have delighted Genevra. Therefore,
acting for her. he would hunt them
out and look them over. Then. ac-
cording to their respective needs and
deservings. he would distribute Ge-
nevra's money among them. This
project sets a situation of pure
Lucas brand. 1t provides plenty of
young folks to distill the spirit of
youth, without which no Lucas ro-
nance would attempt to sustain it
self. A judicious scattering of these
nephewS and nieces furnishes con-
stantly changing fields of adventure,
that change of scene" that freshens
romance as well as reality. Over into
France and down into Spain on the
trail of nephew who Is going to be
an artist opens the way for some easy
and clever talk about artists and art
touching upon the BarbiZon painters,
together with some very famous
French painters near to the Barbizon
group, but outside of it by virtue of
a fundamental difference. In Spain
the Prado continues this delightful
touch -and-go of talk. with Velasquez
Ell Greco. Murillo and the rest to in