Evening star., 1935-05-18

May l.
THE REPORTER AND THE NEWS.
BY Philip w. Porter and Norval
Neil Luxon. New York: D. Apple
Century Co.
Newspaper reporting is an art, not
Just something to be picked up casual
ly by any one who can read and
write and has a pleasant manner.
This book, by the day city editor Of
the Cleveland Plain Dealer and the
assistant professor Of journalism In
the Ohio State University, is intended
as a text book In courses in Journal
ism, but will be helpful to many a
young reporter and interesting to all
readers Of newspapers. The authors
suggest that there are many things
the reporter needs to know before he
Is competent to start of on the trail
Of news. They know, because they
have been through it all themselves.
Background information Is important,
as 1t is In everything from plumbing
to college professorships. "A reporter
whose knowledge Is narrowly limited
is a poor reporter" The best way to
develop background Is by reading, and
the authors give list Of helpful read
ings for this purpose. Another way
Is by research through clipping files
Of libraries and by keeping a personal
clipping file Other subjects discussed
fully and in lively style are getting
the news, writing the news, the police
beat, general assignments, miscellane-
Gus beats, governmental offices, news
photography, the courts. features, in
| terviews, politics, out-of- town corre-
| spondence, sports, libel and publicity
and press agents.
BY George Bronson Rea. New
York: D. Appleton-Century Co.
The claims Of Manchoukuo to the
recognition denied 1t by the nations
of the world are presented by the
counselor to the ministry of foreign
affairs of the government Of Man
chukuo 1t is not to be expected
that both or all sides of the question
will be thoroughly scrutinized, with
absolute impartiality, but most dis
cusSions Of the Far Eastern question,
Hitler's Germany, Soviet Russia,
Mussolini's Italy, the British policy
| in India, and the New Deal need an
extra weight placed in one side of
the scale to balance the authors bias.
Mr. Rea is convinced of the justice
of the japanese viewpoint and to
support it draws on international law
and history. Some Of his arguments
| for Japanese protection" of Man
| choukuo are the chaotic condition of
China, the menace of Communist
Russia, riyalries in Europe, Japan's
economic situation, and the best in
terest Of the United States He out
lines a policy which, If followed by
the United States. would, be believes,
avert war and settle the problems of
the Pacific. 1t includes dissolution of
the four-power financial consortium,
/ an ultimatum to Chinese war lords
from all the great powers. giving them
/ six months to settle their differences
/ and establish a centralized govern
ment; If they fail to do this, splitting
the Chinese tribes into independent
states, with responsibilities, recogniz-
ing Manchoukuo, stopping competition
in navy building, recognizing that "the
natural path of American commerce
| to the ports of the Asiatic mainland
passes through the heart of Japan:
establishing a guarantee that Japan
will never be attacked from the sea,
in exchange for a guarantee of the
freedom Of world commerce in the
Orient. Some of these recommended
tions sound like conversation at the
Mad Hatter's tea party, especially the
six months ultimatum to China, but
the last one would seem to a layman
very sensible.
SOVIET JOURNEY. BY Louis Fischer.
New York: Harrison Smith &
Robert Haas.
Because Russia is now changing so
rapidly, books and articles about it
are out Of date almost as soon as they
are printed. Louis Fischer writes of
his own recent journey there and says
that his only aim is to make Russia
concrete (there has been so much
theorizing about it,, to make the
reader see, hear, feel and smell Rus
sia." He continues: II want him to
travel with me on trains and boats,
go with me into homes and factories,
probe with me the private thoughts
and private life of various kinds of
Soviet citizens" That final probing
would seem incapable Of producing
full and sincere results, If we are to
Judge by the reports Of many who
have had contacts with the G. P. U.
In fact, Mr.. Fischer does not make
many revelations in connection with
private thoughts and lives. He does
write informatively of the fortunes of
the old and the young under the
| Soviet government, aristocrats at
work, propaganda and privilege, ma
chimes and men, health, labor and
rest, children, women and politics and
culture, liberty so-called, mailed fist
in kid glove" and everyday life in
the cities and country. He finds the
Russian people both bad and good
material for revolution to work with:
bad when culture, technique. skill
and a high-minded relationship be-
tween individuals are demanded; good
when the situation requires it to live
on a shoestring requires it to
lay sacrifices of comfort and free
dom on the altar of hope"
II X
ARGENTINA, BRAZIL AND CHI Z
SINCE INDEPENDENCE Argen-
tina by j. Fred Rippy. Brazil by
Percy Alvin Martin. Chile by
Isaac Joslin Cox. Edited by A.
Curtis Wilgus. Washington, D. c.:
The George Washington University
Press.
This is volume 3 of the George
Washington University Studies in His
panic American Affairs" all edited by
DR.. 'Wilgus, who is director of the
Center of Inter-American Studies. He
writes the chapter in the introduce
ton to this volume on Colonial
Antecedents of the A. B. c. Coun-
tries" and another preliminary chap
ter, on THE Political Heritage Of
Spanish America" is by N. Andrew
N. eleven Of the University of
Pittsburgh. Although the so-called
r = rOlIpfriaS ora ,ipi5ed