Evening star., 1931-12-01
NEW BOOKS
AT RANDOM
/. C.. M.

/. C. M.
CHICAGO: A Portrait. BY Henry JUS
tin Smith. Illustrated by e. H.
Suydam. New York: The Century
HereNs a picture story. BY way Of
it Henry Justin Smith presents five city
generations Of Chicago. Not q history.
Better than that. For here are essences
and savors that no mere recording of
historic fact could possibly carry and
deliver Alongside the authors work
are the Suydam sketches. True Suy-
dams, sensitive, alive, communicable.
These serve to round and emphasize the
basic pictorial intent of Mr.. Smith HIM
self
Not much more than q century has,
so far, gone into the making Of Chi
cago.
The five generations of this period of
building stand like this: One, the
pioneer hamlet huddied sparsely around
fort Of questionable security and quite
unimposing aspect: The logical stop
ping place, this, for Westbound emf
grants and settlers following the easiest
and safest trail out Of the East on their
way to "the great open spaces" Next
came the small city of ordered, con-
ventional pattern. A bit prirn and more
than bit proud of its swift rise and
speeding march onward. Third In line
came the city that rose out Of the great
fire. A well conceived and projected
town for its day. A haphazard day,
however, In creating civic communities.
Chicago shows the distinct influence OF
professional skill-of art applied to
urban development. An outgrowth Of
"the Worlds Columbian Exposition"
where new contacts and new seizure
OF beauty as an essential element IN
city building took vigorous hold Of the
big town by the lakes. Fifth and last,
or latest, in this progression Of city
periods is the Chicago Of today, look
ing forward in high ambition Of scheme
and plan for the metropolis that will
greet the projected Worlds Fair OF
1888.
Such in marching file are the Chi
cago generations. A quite splendid
spectacle, it seems to me- A huge city
truly Gargantuan youth-built of the
vast grain fields and cattle ranges of
the whole wide West. Very properly,
and in real poetry of feeling, "the sign
of Ceres" is the emblem of this Great
Lakes City. X X
Happily for us, Henry Justin Smith
appears to be not the most orderly of
men. Not here. He wanders. about
the city pretty much at will, unmind-
full in large measure of those sequences
OF time, place and circumstance which
the notebook character clings to so
tenaciously. But yet, coming out from
the adventure, there spreads to the
mind huge and impressive person.
ality. A jagged skyline of arrogant,
thrusting shaftS-domes, spires, towers
and blocks Of skyscraping human pride
and daring and challenge Beneath,
quite In orderly array, are streets and
boulevards, parks and plazas. Michi-
gan avenue, opulent and proud, Is ex-
actly where It belongs. 1.-The Loop" Is
in its place, packed with industry and
behaviors. Over there Is the Negro
quarter, 100000 Of them And yonder
is the University of Chicago, actually
unafraid of the present and the fu-
ture, in its up-and-coming frontage
upon education as 1t should be, rather
than as 1t always has been.
I'd like to stop here, Just minute.
Henry Justin Smith is an indulgent
man when it comes to lettering. He
does it himself. I want to make q
little note on that BLACK Belt" of Chi
cago and Of other big cities. The Ne
gro must have been pretty well brought
up. Else he would not at so aptly
into the role Of political factor in our
of Reds" among them, nor BolshevikS,
agitators, rioters and the rest of the
breed. Sorry to have stepped in the
authors way, for minute even, since
he is so altogether enjoyable as pic
ture story man, doing the life Of Chi
cago. I simply had to thrust In this
tribute to the race.
Interesting, to be reminded that this
is a handmade, a man-grown city. In
the beginning only huge lake naoored
alongside featureless, fiat stretch Of
earth. Not much of invitation there.
Yet that lake was part of huge ex-
joined, and from the last Of these east
ward a river running straight to the
sea, to the Atlantic. Then, from there.
God knows where-all over the world
certainly. And back of that strip Of
lake shore where the old fort stood
about hundred years ago a vast do
minion spread, the realm of Ceres, god
dess of growing grains, fields of ripened
gold. Not for a days harvesting, nor
for a season's-but for year upon year
Of rich and yielding earth, rare earth.
No wonder that Chicago grew. Moth
ing else for it to do. Yet, to its vigor
anu pluck, W Ato SoOu Iuau-otuA NC"
longs high homage.
A true adventure going to Chicago
with Henry Justin Smith and Z. H.
Suydam. A genuine refreshment, too.
Here is a great and beautiful city, with
learning, culture, civic pride, true prog
ress, high endeavor its basic purpose
and intent.
If rumor were fact, If scandal-mon-
gering were as trustworthy as 1t is pop
ular, both Chicago and New York would
each make old Sodom and Gomorrah
look like 80 cents of preposterous claim
to evildoing such as would CLEAN even
a passing glance from an outraged
Deity, to say nothing Of their actual
destruction for sin.
But rumor is not fact. Chicago and
New York are, so far, very much alive
and, clearly, worth while.
\ \ \
CHARLESTON: HISTORIC AND RO-
MANTTC. BY Harriette K. Leiding,
author Of Historic Houses of South
Carolina" Illustrated. Philadel-
phia, ]. B. Lippincott Co.
A difficult task, which the author has
treated with clear skill. Either ap-
proach to Charleston would have been
Of scope and interest to suggest sep
arate consideration. While the "ro-
nance" is part Of the history" grows
out Of it. yet the atmosphere the
aroma Of this particular town" is Of a
quality so unusual as to require long
and deliberate association. It needs
poetry. Charleston does, for anything
like justice. However, the intimacy of
the author with the theme is Of highly
assuring effect upon the reader. One
loves it and wants more of it. Vaguely
one feels that the author herself wants
more Of 1t, too. Has more of it, much.
But. that in doing justice to the his
tory Of Charleston, to the later years
OF its history, Mrs. Leiding is urged to
give stress to the waking Of that lovely
city to the new industrial era, when
every town must join the procession Of
hustlers and go-getters.