Evening star., 1937-09-04

SetJlemenG ne mad acquired q SUI
ficient knowledge of what Indian war
fare meant to take 4 leading part
in resisting the sale of guns to the
tribes.
Mr.. Swanson strains good taste
sometimes In his efforts to identify
the early sale Of guns to the savages
with the munitions trade today; as
much Of = resemblance as exists is,
OF course, apparent to any reader
without sermon. The book, how
ever, is in the main a readable record
OF a highly interesting pioneer life.
For its quality as picturesque mar
rative it can be recommended.
HE SWUNG AND HE MISSED. BY
Eugene O'Brien. New York: Rey-
nal 4, Hitchcock.
THIS is curious, minor sort of
novel which just misses being un-
important. but does, somehow, def
nitely miss it. 1t is the story of an
Illinois farm boy, who enlists in the
Navy because he believes that enlist
ment offers him chance to get a
first-rate education. He means to rise
from the ranks, to enter the Academy
and become an officer. But this op-
timistic intention came to nothing, or,
il you wish, good deal worse than
nothing The young man finds that
the enlisted personnel are not angels
and that officers are not immune to
mistakes. A doctor wrongly diagnoses
him as infected with venereal disease
and the course OF treatments which he
is forced to undergo wreck his health.
His plan for educating himself goes
1t is a depressing little tale, to put it
truthfully.
Yet the work has certain arresting
quality. 1t seems designed to carry
no significance beyond the brief story;
it is devoid Of any quality OF attack
upon the Navy as an institution; in
stead, it seems to be very directly the
tale OF young fellow who swung and,
through no fault OF his own, missed.
1t is story Of accidents, in other
words. Young Brent might very we'll
have succeeded, but something hap
pened that was beyond his control.
1t was perfectly good bet, but he
lost it.
The arresting quality of the book
would seem to be in that picture OF
the boy in his farm environment with
which the author opens the work. The
youngster is shown there with a de-
fenseleSs unmawkSh kind OF inno-
cence that inclines the reader TO be-
lieve in him as reality When he
so arbitrarily Is made to hit his snag
it is impossible not to be sorry There
Is not much in the book. however,
besides that power to arouse sympathy.
Whether that is the fault Of the au-
thor's inexperience. or whether he is
just feeling his way in this, his first
novel. remains to be seen. He Swung
and He Missed" can be said to have
something, but to have it very slightly.
ZEPPELIN. BY Capt. Ernst A. Leh-
, mann. Translated by Jay Dratler
With Foreword and Final Chap
ter by Comdr. Charles E, Rosen-
dahl, U. s. N New York: Long
mans, Green & Co.
AN ABIDING faith in the future
= of the rigid airship as an agency
for the commercial transportation Of
the peoples OF the world animates the
pages of this valedictory of the late
Capt Lehman, who died In the
burning of the Hindenburg
No man is equipped to speak more
authoritatively than is Lehman of
the airship and its place in modern
civilization. He learned Airship pilot
ing from DR.. Hugo Eckener in the
Spring of 1918 and that Fall as
sumed command of the commercial
airship Sachsen, which made many
passenger flights prior to the be-
ginning Of the World War in the
following Summer. He was an air
ship commander throughout the war
After the armHtice he became direc
tor Of the Zeppelin Co.'S construc-
ton department and as early as 1921
came to the United States to nego-
tiate for commercial airship service
He became vice president in charge
of engineering for the Goodyear Zep-
pelin Corp, Akron, Ohio. Lehman
was second in command Of the LIZ
126-the Los Angeles-on its flight
to the United States in October, 1924.
He commanded the Graf Zeppelin
on 272 OF her flights and had COM
manded airships during a total Of
more than ! 1000 flights.
To those who may have been puz-
Fled by Lehmann's dying words, Il
don't understand it," after the de-
struction of the Hindenburg by fre
At Lakehurst, N. j., last May, this
book will come as an explanation.
lehman felt that the airship was
immune from lightning. He tells of
countless trips through thunder
storms in airships which were struck
by full discharges.
Thus he says, "as long as the
airship pilot himself-and it lies en-
tirely within his power-takes care
that no innammable gas forms be-
tween the cells and the outer en-
velope, lightning is no danger at all
for a Zeppelin"
And again
With the transition to she heavy
oil engines, the LZ-120 now avoided
the fre hazard which, although it
never once Appealed during a quar-
ter Of a century OF airship operation,
nevertheless still played An important
part in the imagination of the travel
ing public"
Zeppelin" is an entertaining, color
full. frequently exciting history OF the
rigid airship and Of the men who
have built and operated this type of
aircraft in war and peace. There are
vivid descriptions of notable flights
to the far parts Of the world.
Lehman left in his book clarion
call to his fellow countrymen to con-
tinue the development of che trans
port airship, rs they are doing by con-
Structing = successor to the linden
burg, with others planned to follow.
Rosendahl. outstanding United
State airshin commander! tells of