Evening star., 1943-06-17
Albert Bushnell Hart
Funeral 10 Be Held
Al Harvard Saturday
Historian Was Authority
On George Washington;
Forecast World Events
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
CAMBRIDGE, Mass, June IT,
Harvard University today mournec
the death of one of its foremost
educators-Dr. Albert Bushnell Hart
historian, forecaster OF world events
and authority on George, Wash
ington.
A familiar figure with flowing
white beard and long black coat as
he strode briskly across the Harvard
yard, he was known affectionately
as "Bushy" to the thousands OF
students he taught in almost half
century of active service at Harvard
The professor emeritus in the sci
ence Of government died yesterday
at the age of 88. Although he re-
tired IN 1925 as chairman of the
universitys department of govern
ment, he maintained quarters atop
Widener Library. He had written
approximately $50 books, alone and
with collaborators.
Funeral Services Saturday.
Funeral services will be held Sat-
urday in the Harvard Memorial
Chapel.
DR.. Hart is survived by twin sons,
Albert Bushnell Hart, jr., of Peaks
Island, Me, and Adrian Putnam
Hart of portsr,,oufb NJ TT -. :
sister, Miss Mary J. Hart of Cam
bridge. His wife, the former Mary
Hurd Putnam, died in 1924.
A keen student of history, DR..
Hart predicted in 1914, few months
after the beginning Of the World
War, that the Allies would win, In
1916 he predicted the entry of the
United States into the conflict.
In March, 1898, he said another
European war was inevitable, de-
claring that Germany would annex
Poland and Czechoslovakia per
haps within four weeks"
On his 86th birthday, July l, 1910.
he asserted the Germans would in
wade the Western Hemisphere
Wlthln 1ve years. He once said
that "the United States must either
give up the Monroe Doctrine or else
make preparation to protect what it
believes to be its interests"
Predicted European War.
In 1885, when he predicted a gen.
eral European war within a decade.
he said: Whether allies or neutrals,
the people of the United States
cannot escape the very dangerous
conditions of the next European
war. 1t would be suicide for us not
to foresee that danger and to accept.
however unwillingly, new conditions
OF diplomacy, armament and en-
listment."
Born in Clarksville, Pa, July |,
1854, he was descendant of
freeman who came to Cambridge, in
the Massachusetts, Bay Colony, in
1884. He received his A. B. degree
from Harvard in 1880-he was a
clasSmate of Theodore Roosevelt
and then studied at the Ecole Des
Sciences Politiques at Paris and the
Universities of Berlin and Freiburg.
He became an instructor in history
at Harvard in 1889. From that time
to 1925 he was assistant professor.
professor of history, Eton professor
OF government, chairman of the di-
vision of history and government,
and chairman of the department of
government.
For many years he was a men,
Der OF Cambridge's School Commit
tee. He served as a member of the
Massachusetts Constitution conven-
ton from 1917 to 1919, and in 1926
was appointed historian of the Fed
eral Commission on the Bicenten-
nial of George Washington.
Reversed Views on League.
At first believer in the League
OF Nations, he reversed his views In
1925 when he termed the League a
failure.
At different times, he was ac-
cused of being pro-German and pro-
British. The pro-German charge,
which he denied before a Senate in
vestigating committee, came in 1918
when German propaganda was be-
Ing investigated. 1t was charged
that his name was included in list
OF important" names carried in the
diary of German agent.
The pro-British charges stemmed
from some of his historical writings.
Twice Boston school officials sought
to ban one of them. In 1927, his The
American Nation-a History" was
one OF the volumes that drew the
fire of Chicago investigating COM
mittee, appointed by the then Mayor
thompson, to ban from the library
books that were considered to smack
OF dlctation from Buckingham
Palace.
ON the Chicago matter-partic-
ularly a phase regarding a reported
proposal that books containing his
torical "heresies" would be burned
publicly-"Bushy" leaped into news
paper print.
He warned Chicago that in years
to come people would remember the
proposal as IAN attempt in a great
American city to punish and degrade
honorable writer's of history because
they differed in their Interpretation
from certain civil magistrates
Authority on Washington.
One of the greatest authorities on
George Washington, he had no pa
thence with worshippers of the
characters of history.
He would fume over the cherry
tree legend, and pray that God for
bid that the Nations conception of
George Washington should be an
impossible prig"
To him Washington was "one of
the most vital, active, eager, down.
right men in history"
But, while his humanizing of
Washington led him to say that the
Nations first President might cuss
little and that he wasn't any world
beater as speller, DR.. Hart would
fight with any one he thought had
maligned Washington's character.
Besides holding numerous homo
rary degrees, he was former presi-
dent of the American Historical As
sociation and of the American Po-
litical Science Association.