Evening star., 1931-05-31
y IDA l5IIRBI MYER
AnEpic Of the North Count,y-P1ze Fiction.
.''W1hat This Country Needs'-
Conflict in Palestine.

WHAT THIS COUNTRY NEEDS. BY Jay
Franklin. New York: Covici-FTiede.
h IATURAILY, every American desires, great
" ly, to know what this country needs. And
here seemed TO be the straight means to such
an end. Yet. for several weeks passed the
book by on its shelf. Somehow, it looked dis
concertingly sure of itself, had q shade Of the
pontifical in Its bearing. Was 1t Solomon?
Yes, 1t was Solomon. And nobody could stand
the "wsest man in the world" Then, one day,
curiosity overbores the shade of Apprehension.
And here What This Country Needs" lies,
wide-open, at hand. thoroughgoing book. set
ting OF with "A New Constitution" and there
after presenting about as complete q program
of house-cleaning as the most energetic OF
Yankee housewives could set up before an
envious neighborhOod. The statesmen are
silenced THAT is what they need. Talk too
much. Say too little. >Do-just nothing at all
The two co political parties are rescued from
the ash pile. These are shaken and aired and
examined to see II they worth repairs.
Certainly not So this man, all fire and fury.
makes his way through the high points Of
American public lfe-taxes, imperialism, big
bankers, less preaching (not half bad. that,
health, lower education distinctly good thisJ
and. finally the hard luck upon which cur
long-favored country Is directly headed and
which will prove to be the best thing that ever
came its way. For then, and only then, will
all the shilly-shalIy Of political pretense. Of
oficial hypocrisy, be brought to the place where
these are willing to quit making believe WILL
ing 10 get up and 60 to work. Now much Of
this study is so distinctly good that the pity
OF its total lack Of restraint becomes more un-
fortunte than as If 1t were ALL quite all, Of the
pattern Of diatribe that stamps much the
larger part Of it. Nothing in the world is
totally bad, nor completely good. A slight
concession toward that fact would have in
creased greatly, the wholesome effect so clear
ly pointed upon by this writer. vigorous
way with him that Is good clear use Of
words that is fine. Speaking of his use Of
words, one single idiom recurring over and
over suggests that the writer-whose name Is
not Jay Franklin-is English and not Amer
1can However, no matter. The man has over
played his hand. I wish he had been q little
more temperate. For, with . grain Of such
abstemiousness, he might have done Us q lot
Of good For, without question, there are places
IN the body polite THAT need treatment.
MORNING TIDE. BY Neil NJ. Gum. Illus
trated by Maitland de Gogorza. New York
Harcourt, Brace & Co.
DOTH artists. The one who made the pictures
- and the one who strung the words together.
Under such union Of craftsmanship that Scotch
village OF their concern becomes q beautiful and
Turing matter to any one who may have the
good luck to enter Morning Tide" boy car
ries on most Of the time. That no doubt. &C.
counts largely for the rampant curiosity, the
quick shift. the fresh invention that so delight
and hold US.
Inside the first paragraph you viii know
yourself captive to that boy. But, though it
was the sea after . Storm it was still sullen and
inclined to smooth and lick itself. like Q black
dog bent over its paws: Is many black dogs
as there were sea boulders; black sea animals.
their heads bent and hidden, licking their paws
In the dying evening light down by the secret
waters edge"
A beginning like this, . true boy-start, is
sure to draw willing companions for any ad-
venture that may come. And so, In the COM
pany Of that lad-a poet Is Sure's you're born
/ go up and down the hills behind that Scotch
fishing village. Adventures that sometimes tin.
gle the blood with scariness befau me- All Of It
is so vivid that every move-quiyer of leaf
rustic Of birds for me to feel and see. 60
to school with this boy. Rather dull stun
Much better to plan . runaway to Australia
with the big brother or to tiptoe around his sis
teris nearing wedding Not 50 very much, you
see. in the way Of happenings. No high ad-
venture. No great doings with swords and
things. Instead. just the beauty Of everyday
ness. Shared with this Nell Gunn who has
the gift Of making beauty out Of the usually
dull pattern Of the days run.
More enthusiastic than staidly critical?
admit 1t. What Of It? Beauty Is to feel, mot
to weigh. Such q chance comes rarely. where
as the call 70 appra1Se dull books comes about
once minute Charming, indeed, Is Morning
Tide"
THE RIM OF THE WILDERNESS. The Con-
f1ict In Palestine. BY Maurice Samuel New
York: Horace Liyeright
CVEN in these esnaodern short turns Of distance,
l. Palestine is long way on. and the Arabian
desert. And besides not many are much in
terested in what Of moment may be going on
over there, half around the world. However,
some are interested. Many people around us
have an acute concern racial and political, in
fhaa NJ k1an