Evening star., 1937-06-12
MOTIVES BEHIND A THRONE
New Attitude Toward Abdcadon Appears in Book Written With
Attention to Government Traditions as Well as
Sentiments of Sections of Population.

flcial It would seem to have about
the standing Of an advanced high
school or freshman underHraduate
text. 1t informs the reader engagingly
that England was settled BY Celts,
Angles. Jutes and 6axons, conquered
by Romans, overrun by Danes and
Normans, converted from paganism
to Christianity. and always given to
preferring democratic institutions, in
30 far as those institutions existed.
And then 1t goes into the kings. II
you have forgotten your History XII
that u what 1t was in the reviewers S
college, you can brush up here very
pleasantly. M. Maurois Is not In the
least hard to read. In fact, he Is
practically painless.
He comes right down to the coro-
nation Of George VI, mentioning the
abdication Of Edward VIII as an emo
tional drama" rather than q political
intrigue" This book gives you a flne
chance for reviving your memory Of
the succession during the Wars of the
Roses and similar complicated mat
ters.
MIDNIGHT ON THE DESERT. BY
J. B. Priestley. New York: Harper
IL Bros.
THIS work. for some weeks now on
the best-selling list, is described
by its author as an excursion into
autobiography" That is q most mis-
leading phrase. The clever Mr..
Priestley is not telling US about him
self at all here. He Is, instead, tell
ing us about ourselves. Are we Ameri-
cans? Well, then, Mr.. j. B. Priestley
will tell us about America.
For how many years has the visit
ing English writer, OF the type who
kindly puts us right as to our history,
ourselves and our future, been a con-
stant figure among us? 1t would be
hard to say onhand, but 1t would
make an interesting bit Of research
to determine just how few years OF
our past have been without this benefi-
cent presence. The reviewer feels safe
In estimating that 1t would be very
few. indeed. Beginning with Mrs.
Trollope-but why begin with her?
Ever since America was discovered
some enterprising lad from the
motherland has been making good,
profitable copy out Of us. For long
decades ut . time we have been so
accustomed to their activities that
We have not even noticed them. The
visiting English interpreter became,
a. 1t were, just one of those things.
But here Is Mr.. Priestley running
through the old performance once
again, under guise Of telling us about
himself
There is, to be sure, some reason
for Mr.. Priestley to do this, apart,
that Is, from the inescapable racial
itch to patronize. His American pub
lie has been immensely profitable to
him and, on one historic occasion at
least. he did not hesitate to reveal that
he considered US . Nation Of suckers.
That WAS the time when, arriving in
. New York that was blissfully watt
ing to take him to its heart, he gave
out what might be considered an un-
complimentary interview on our native
mores. There was considerable up
roar following his frankness, and, if
the reviewer remembers, it took q
subsequent interview with his wife to
calm the infuriated natives down to a
state Of profitable purchasing once
again. This deplorable occurrence Is
now some years in the past, but, a.
Is clear in the first few pages OF Mid
night on the Desert" Mr.. Priestley
has not forgotten it. On the contrary,
he seems to retain it as q memory that
Is about equally resentful and guilty.
He merely touches on 1t, to be sure,
but the inference cannot be missed.
American reporters, he says, have
sometimes taken advantage OF his
bookish innocence, but they are good
fellows at heart, he Is sure. The trou-
Die that time was that he and they
simply didn't know each other yet.
A misunderstanding. That was all.
Wen. all right.
Mr.. Priestley now tells US how. on
the Arizona ranch where he Wintered
year ago, he went one night to the
hut where he worked to burn up some
pages Of = novel he was writing, and
sat down and got to thinking. And
the thoughts that he had make al
his present book. They may be, to
his mind. An autobiography. But to
most OF us they are going to be one
more effort to interpret our long
suffering land, for the book has much
America -Priestley -sees-it in it.
and very little plain Priestley.
America. this interpreter finds, Is
. large country full Of people Of many
races, and as such it has problems
that are peculiarly It's own. It Is not
going to have . political revolution
Its thinking shows 4 great drift to-
ward socialism. It's scenery Is large
The Grand Canyon u very large. The
desert OF America Is peculiarly Ameri-
can. The people OF America are
American. too. The Indians Of the
Southwest seem to be happy. New
York is fun Of high buildings. Amer
lea Is not foremost in music, poetry
or painting. Hollywood is in America
and moving pictures are made there
but European pictures are better
Americans are jolly, nervous, demo-
cratic, devoid Of interest in the arts
given to having small families, and
in America there are gangs OF crimi-
nals carrying on their criminal activi-
ties. Well-well-well.
What can one say to . performance
like that? Now, really? One caa only
say that maybe. In that unhappy in
terview Of his, Mr.. Priestley was right
after all. Maybe We are . Nation Of
suckers. Az has been said. this bril-
liant analysis of our land has beer
selling tops now for weeks. Mr.. Priest.
ley, unquestionably, is in the position
TO laugh last. No matter what he says
one cannot but feel that he knows u.
well. Or our reading public, anyway
A MIND M1sLAID. BY Henry Collins
Brown. New York: E. P. Duttor