Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1933-03-04
THE LIBRARY TABLE
BY SARAH C.. BOWERMAN.
ARGENTINE TANGO. BY Philip Cue
dalla. New York: Harper & Bros.

Inc Gays seem remote when the tango
first fascinated the dancing world and
shocked conservative onlookers. Philip
Guedalla, on vacation tour to South
America, possibly to recuperate from
the effort over his wellington" which
showed a vast amount Of study has dis
covered in Argentina and some of the
that Is symbolized by the tango and
other dances of the same family, which
he thinks could not have been inspired
by jazz. Those tinny rhythms have
10 power to prevail against the lift and
march OF .Argentinas tango or the
dancing gayety of the Brazilian maxixe."
Impressions of the country. which he
did not find quite the lone vast bird
sanctuary w. H. Hudsons books would
lead one to expect, and of the people
are casual, but penetrating. Mad
Metropolis" is his idea of Rio, whose
air is heavy with unreality, and eau
tious travellers, habituated to land
scapes couched in a more normal idiom.
justiflably refuse to believe a word Of
it." In Buenos Aires, he says, you do
not know what gossip is until you have
spent a month. 1t is a gay CITY,"
which carries dignity in architecture to
impressive lengths" Almost any one
of twenty monumental buildings might
be the general post office; potential
Law Courts abound on every hand, and
the solemn frontage of the opera might
be the National Assembly, while by a
natural compensation the Assembly
looks very like palace Of the arts-an
expensive palace of the more solemn
arts"
Mr.. Guedalla finds considerable Brit
ish satisfaction in the fact that Ar
gentina was once, very briefly, British
colony and that Canning, convinced OF
Frances intentions in Spanish Amer
lea, recognized Argentina when she flew
a rebel flag. Canning's boast that he
called the New World into existence
to redress the balance of the Old" was
fairly well justified There is much to
make an Englishman feel at home in
Argentina-English newspapers, an Eng
fish club, Harrods, an English colony
which holds itself slightly aloof, and
a clock tower, which was a birthday
present from Great Britain to the
new republic Mr. Guedalla sadly but
tactfully shakes his head over the
big brother irritation, almost COM
pick, which South Americans feel
toward the United States on account
Of the Monroe doctrine. But what
President Monroe cast the United
States for the commanding role of
guardian. and, since guardians can
hardly function without wards, his doc
trine contemplated that the pretty part
of helpless infants would be played by
the young republics of the South" An
argumentative reader might like to
have a chance to tell Mr. Guedalla that
the loose, protective relation implied in
the Monroe doctrine is perhaps less
creative of completes than Great
Britain's relation to India. There is
an interesting comparison, very general.
Of course, of North and South Ameri-
can characteristics. Differences pre-
dominate. for Argentina is not Span
ish-speaking Illinois. nor BuenoS Aires
a brunette Chicago" Though "Argen-
tine Tango" may have more style than
meat, it has enough of both to make
it pleasant and informative book Of
the lighter sort.
A life which has combined romance
and unusual usefulness is that of an
American woman who has lived for 80
years in France, where she has through
her friendship and philanthropies
promoted international fellowship. Her
story is told ia the handsome volume,
privately printed for friends. Grace
Whitney Hoff: The story of an Album
dant Life" by Carolyn Patch Cam
bridge: Riverside Press. Mrs. Hof S
home was originally in Detroit, where,
soon after her first marriage, she be-
came interested in friendly work with
women and girls, and later accepted the
presidency Of the new Y. w. c. A.
oyrio To
Hof, took her to France, where MI.
Hoff's business interests were. and
without intermisSion she continued
there her interests already begun and
plunged into many new ones. Her per-
sonality has always been one Of tireless
and unSelfish energy. In Paris she Or
ganized the first British-American
Y. w. c. A: converted an old house in
the Latin quarter, on the site OF an
eighteenth century monastery, into a
student hostelry,. where British and
American students have for long found
a home and club; and in 1928 gave a
seven-story building in the Latin quar-
ter for the use OF students OF every
country. During the World War Mrs
Hoff did much hospital work in the
south of France. while her husband was
active in the American Relief Unit in
Paris. In addition to their Paris home,
the Hoffs own two ancient chateaus,
the Chateau du Breau near Paris and
the Chateau de Peyrieu in the south Of
France. On the widespread grounds of
the latter chateau she has built num-
Der of rest homes for war widows. work
ing girls and members of the Y. w.
c. A, where they are her guests for a
months holiday. Carolyn Patch, who is
q or fiy,1o
secretary of the British-American Y. W.
c. A. in Paris and was later Mrs. Hoff S
personal secretary. The book is pro-
fusely illustrated with reproductions
from photographs and maps.
Measure" is the title of the attrac-
tive journal of the Gerard Manley Hop
kins Poetry Society of Georgetown Uni
versity of which Vol. l, No. l has
recently appeared. Its editors are
James c. Hendrickson, Theodore May
narG and john Shields. Its honorary
members are Paul Claudel, Padraic
Colum, G. K. Chesterton. Jacques Mari
ton Robinson. The brief editorial at
the beginning of this initial number
tells of the organization of the society,
in 1892, by three professors of the
College of Arts and Sciences-Dr. Theo-
dore Maynard, head of the English de-
partment; Mr.. Thomas A. Sulkie, S. j.,
of the English department, and Rev.
Francis Burke, S. j., of the department
Of philosophy. The first of these. a
vice president of the Catholic Poetry
Society of America, wished to have that
society represented at Georgetown; the
second had in mind to bring students
and faculty together for poetic discus
sion and creation, and the third wished
to present an aesthetics based upon
Augustine and upon Paul Claudel." In
the production of Measure" under
graduates. graduates and professors are
associated. 1t is devoted entirely to
poetry and will appear twice a year, at
Christmas and at Easter. The first
poem in this number, st. Peter" is by
Paul Claudel and is rendered from the
French by Hugh de .Burgh. 1t repre-
sents, in verse with a strong dramatic
quality, Peter denying Jesus. then de-
claring his love and loyalty and becom-
ing the first Pope" and with chained