At a recent meeting of the Executive Committee it was
Resolved:-That notices and reviews of professional books may be inserted in the proceedings; but that no American book shall be reviewed unless a copy be sent to the Corresponding Secretary, to be deposited in the Library of the Naval Institute, and that all reviews shall be signed by the reviewer.
C. Belknap. Secretary.
The Life and Letters of Admiral D. G. Farragut, D. Appleton & Co. The Service, as well as the country at large, is indebted to Mr. Farragut for the excellent life he has given us of his father. The work is almost an autobiography, the greater part of the volume being extracts from the Admiral's journals. The days of pirates, of boarding, and romantic adventure are linked, in the simple narrative of the great sailor, to the stern realities of the late war.
Between the lines one reads of the development of the man, and the Navy from the days of the earlier combats to the latest victories; while a spirit of steadfast devotion to duty, and a knowledge of the exact means to bring about a desired end, show how fixed purpose, and not chance, gained the admiral's commission.
Mr. Farragut deserves great credit for the literary ability displayed in the book and the tact with which he has avoided the temptation of allowing his filial pride to mar the historical value of the biography.
He has let his father tell his, own story, and when the author appears it is with an unassuming modesty which shows how deeply he has felt the obligation upon him.
A Text Book of Naval Ordnance And Gunnery, by A. P. Cooke, Commander, U. S. N. Second Edition. John Wiley and Sons, New York.
The science of gunnery is so constantly changing that it is almost impossible for a text book on the subject to keep pace with the rapid improvements. The latest edition of "Cooke," however, has embodied in it all the innovations of the past few years. The new processes of making cannon metals, and the recently constructed guns of the United States and Europe have taken the place of the almost obsolete methods and ordnance given in the first edition.
The numerous fine engravings and lucid descriptions of the Siemens-Martin steel, the Lowell Battery, the 8 inch M. L. R., the 100 ton gun, and 80 pdr. rifle are especially deserving of mention, and reflect great credit upon Commander Cooke and his collaborator Lieut. J. C. Soley.
J. W. Miller.