Evening star., 1948-09-19
PotFronkN
Sotirizes State
Department
AN AFFAIR OF STATE
BY Pat Frank. (Ltppincott; s2.75.
Reviewed by
CARTER BROOKE JONES

Mr.. Frank, a former Washing
ton neWspaperman who stirred
up no little amusement over the
country year before last with his
first novel, Mr.. Adam" a satire
on the atomic age, writes in his
second novel of the cold war" in
Europe and of young State De-
partment career man thrust into
the middle Of it.
jeff Bakers father had been g
clerk In the State Department
rather more than that in the ole
days when a veteran had the con-
fidence of superiors and sometimes
Influenced policy. jeff grew up with
the idea of entering foreign service
He got the education his father had
been denied-Harvard and travel
abroad. Then came World War II
and jeff ended up leading platoon
in an important offensive in Italy
Finally, with an uneasy peace re-
stored, he was appointed foreign
service officer and sent to Budapest
By that time his father was dead.
Two Armed Camps.
Jeff found as minister OF the spe-
cial mission at Budapest an admiral
who spent his time planning naval
strategies for the war with Russia
soon to come. The Russians and
the Americans were like. two armed
camps: they had no contact, and
their secret agents watched one an
other. The Americans had super
secret project called atlantis, j." a
plan to organize an anti Communist
underground to help the Western
democracies when war came. Jef1
had been through war and not
found it attractive; he was, further,
a Young man of good will. He didn't
like this assumption that war was
inevitable, but he tried to carry out
his assignment with Atlantis"
When he encountered Russian
ma jor who had been liaison off1cer
In Italy and his good friend, jeff
had a drink with him in a cafe
The American found himself under
suspicion at the Embassy for fra
ternizing with an enemy. He had q
hard time explaining. Later the
Russian met jeff secretly and tolo
him he was part of an underground
resistance movement against the
Soviet dictatorship. At their final
interview, as the Russian was fleeing
Hungary in civilian clothes, ne
warned jeff that Soviet agents knew
of Atlantis" and all the Hungarian
friends the Americans were using
would disappear. jeff told his su-
periors. They scoffed. The admiral
accused JEFF of everything from bao
Judgment up to treason. A blister
ing complaint about the young man
was cabled to Washington. A re-
turn cable demanded his resignation
Back to Washington.
While jeff was trying to decide
what to do. an old friend of his
fathers in the State Department
got to the Secretary and persuaded
him at least to give the young man
a hearing. So Jeff few back to
Washington and saw the Secretary
But there was not an ounce of proof
that Jeff's fantastic story was true.
The Secretary reluctantly decided
the new career man had better re-
sign, So he did. Then something
unexpected happened.
1t is to be hoped thatsthe State
Department is not as filled with
warmongers and men of i'll will as
N1r. Franks young man discovered
A forlorn hope also might be adoed
that the cold war will not go on into
1880 still promising something
worse. as the narrative has it.
But Mr. Frank has told an in
teresting story that moves swiftly
and he knows the background thor
ouehly. 1t seems a little too con-
venient that jeff happens to fall in
love with a department girl who is
the Secretary's confidential secre-
tary, or one of them, and who is
able at a crucial moment to help
him. But a novel has to have at
least one romance-or does it?