Evening star., 1932-06-28
NEW BOOKS
AT RANDOM
/. G.. NJ.

| AFRICA SPEAKS: A Story of Adven-
ture. BY Paul L. Hoef1er. F. r. G..
S.. producer of the motion picture
Africa Speaks" Illustrated. Phila-
delphia John G. winston Co.
Lucky you. already to have seen the
| film Africa Speaks" before coming
upon this book Both are derived
equally from Paul Hoefer's trail across
equatorial Africa, east to west, Nom
, basa to Lagos.
The picture brings back to trail alive.
Pattern and color of its scenery. Look
| and habit of it's animal life. The feel
of night time and of day. Tribal va
| RANTS in look and habit. Striking
events to show human ways and animal
ways, developed by time and climate
| throughout the uncounted centuries.
! The high spots of the hot trail does the
moving picture bring to life.
! The book is something different
! though sourced in the same adventure,
IT amplifieS impressions drawn straight
| from the film. Long stretches of his
| tory spread for explanation of event,
Tor theory of tribal distribution, for the
| general economy of life, human and
| animal, within this region. Stories Of
strange people, the pygmies, and their
! skllltul hunting of the elephant. A
passing view of "saucer-lipped" women
| on, no, not according to our standards
| Ihese probably not of the tribe that
| tnlnks well of companionate marriage,
that practices it. Here are stories of
, tribal wars and of the hunting of big
game. Elephants, lions, tigers, the
antelope and many another valiant
creature that so Stirs the white man to
ARTIFICIAL primitive savagery. However,
raul Hoef1er is not of that breed. With
no weapon more hostile than a motor
truck loaded with the photographer s
| necessities. he makes his lusty way
through the interior of the Dark Con-
| tlnent, watching its native life in every
possible circumstance of getting a liv-
ing; These he gathers up in picture
ana story and plain record, all animated
equally by the guSto of his own spirit,
py the thoroughness of his own en-
oeaVor. The book alone carries about
lou Illustrations which, with the print
ana him, constitute Mr. Paul L.
Hoeher authority, delightful authority,
upon the region of Africa lying between
Momoasa and Lagos.
FIGHTING MEN OF THE WEST. BY
Dane Coolidge author of War
PANT" etc. Illustrated. New York:
| Z. P. Dutton & Co.
| According to this writer. the time to
save man to the truth about himself,
Whether 1t be to his glory or to his
dafnnatlon, is while he is still alive or
instantly following that state For, at
ueatn, Immediately the age of fable
SeIS IN, turning to saint or devil that
winch, but moment before, had been
merely a man.
| Ihe West in particular is famous for
us legendary bad men," Not so wholly
PAD IN any proper use of that word, as
that they have been overfictionized. So
mere he sets out, in a measure, to rescue
from hopeless ill-repute the memory of
more tnan one who, in pursuit of his
proper business, made use of methods
that TO another locality and time have
taken on heavier load than they can,
by right, be made to carry.
Going about the West on quite an
other errand, Mr.. Coolidge filled in
leisure minutes with collecting from
every reliable source accounts of one
and another of the Western heroes of
which much has been heard. Scouts,
rangers, cattle kings, border outlaws,
man killers, Mexican bandits, are
among these with whom this scientific
expert searched out in odd hours. He
listened to fireside tales and grocery
gossip. He followed responsible guides
to this point and that one. He made
collections of newspaper clippings and
other records. Out OF these he finally
constructed the stories of this book,
Trail Maker" John Chisum-Cattle
King" Tom Horn-Scout and Man
Hunter" with a handful, besides, all
equally personal and adventurous in
character.
Some told me the stories themselves,
fighting their battles over; others
chatted of old pardners. passed on
others, again, sat close -mouthed, guard
ing some secret which will never be
known" These stories were not written
to be ''sagas of the West" but, instead
to make as accurate records as possible
| of the lives of famous fighting men. Not
all of them are heroes. They represent
the two extremes of outlaws and officers
of the law. But every man was a ware
rior-ready to fight, right or wrong-a
man who made his marx upon the
West"
Today the situation throughout the
country is of a character to produce a
new stripe of crime fiction. Indeed
that new order is already in full swing
1t Is time, so Dane Coolidge thinks, to
round up the "bad-man fiction" of the
West Time to clear it of its chief sins
against either fact or acceptable fiction
1t is in some such spirit that he has
constructed, upon good foundations of
truth and plausibility, these tales OF
certain outstanding men of the West. A
good deed. A set of fine adventures
that reflect much of the development OF
the great West as they move forward.
| K x X
BEFORE THE COVERED WAGON. BY
Philip H. Parrish. Illustrations by
George A. Dowling. Portland: Met
ropolitan Press.
/ Much in debt are We to one and