Evening star., 1952-08-03
Saga of0ur
Submarines
Is q Thriller

Is q Thriller
1Subm0riner
BY Comdr. Edward L. Beach,
U. S. N. Henry Holt & Co.;
$780,
Reviewed by Rex Collier
This is the thrilling story of
submarine warfare in the Pacific
during World War II. told by a
veteran submariner who sur
vived some Of the more dan
gerous of the American Navy'S
undersea exploits.
It is a story that is too little
known by the public, because of
wartime security considerations.
Unfortunately, the Navy was
slow in lifting the restrictions
after the close of the war, with
the result that the full record of
our submarines accomplish
ments has not received the pub
licity 1t deserves.
Comdr. Beach has done much
to I'LL the void. Drawing on his
firSt-hand knowledge of the war
under the seas and on official
documents, he has written q
case history Of such raiders as
the Trigger (his own boat, the
Tang. the Wahoo. the Seawolf,
the Harder and other now-fis-
toric submersibles. With a fine
personal touch. he takes the
reader into the mine-infested
depths OF Japanese harbors, or
into the path Of Japanese
carrier about to meet its own
doom. or to the hot, humid
ocean bottom to sweat it out
while enemy depth bombs jolt
the ship almost beyond endur-
ance.
There are excitement, sus-
pense and glory in these au-
thentic tales-and there are
tragedy and Illustration withal.
The tragedy Is the kind that
comes when communication
with a submarine suddenly
stops in the midst of battle and
frantic efforts to regain con-
tact are futile. And there is the
bitter Illustration that comes
when a ."sure shot" is nullified
by defective torpedoes, with
which our forces had to con-
tend. with inexcusable fire.
quency. during the early part
Of the war.
Comdr. Beach is a good story
teller. He has proved himself
an eloquent spokesman for the
Navy's hitherto silent service. !"
Dance and SkyIork
BY John Moore. (Macmil-
lan;; $3J
There will always be an Eng.
lish novel so long as the English
cling to their custom Of staging
village plays. Come austerity.
come rationing. the passion for
amateur theatricals apparently
still fires their blood and in
spires their writer's. AS a We
hicle for the author to ride
jauntily into the face of the
disaster of forgotten lines and
civic apathy, swerving at the
last minute into the highroad
OF salvaged honor and civic
pride, it is apparently fireplace
able. Last week, we had Eric
Linklater's "Laxdale Hall" a
Highland fling at Euripides.
This week. it is Dance and
Skylarg," the story of a pageant
that nearly doesn't unfold and
which turns out to be based on
historical fabrication.
IN Naturally, it is peopled with
those eccentrics who seem to
thrive so harmlessly in English
villages. Chief among them is
a vicar who sinks what little
money he has into expen-
sive meteorological instruments
which fail to foretell q hurri-
cane. Then there is the girl
Communist in the balloon fac
tory who puts up signs reading:
I'VE don't want festivals, we
want houses, work and wages"
She is confounded by a fabu-
lous American who throws bombs
for fun. Naturally, after many
false starts and seemingly in
surmountable obstacles, the in
ept little play goes on, some
how transformed by spotlights
and other circumstances into q
smashing success.
It makes pleasant summer
reading. if bit heavily whimsi-
cal here and there.-M. Meg.
Words and Ways of
American English
BY Thomas Pyles. Random
House: $780,