NAVAL PUBLICATIONS
BOOK REVIEWS
“The Problems and Lessons of the War.” Clark University Addresses. Edited by George H. Blakeslee, with a foreword by G. Stanley Hall. (New York, G. P. Putnam’s Sons.)
In this book of unusual depth and range, we have no less than twenty- five addresses by men whose average reputation is notable in their widely divergent pursuits, and whose opinions differ as night from day concerning the problems discussed—Preparedness, Economic Aspects of the War, Proposals for Restricting or Eliminating War, the German Theory of Militarism and of the State, Naturalized Americans, British and German Viewpoints, and Pan-Americanism. President Hall, in explaining the purpose of the book, says that “a nation so unprecedentedly composite as ours must regard a true impartial neutrality that hears and weighs all sides as part of its manifest destiny, and this gives us in some sense a judicial position above that of the warring nations of Europe, so that the verdict of this country about the war, if it ever reaches any degree of unanimity, ought to be the verdict of history.”
We should expect, then, to find a non-partisan spirit shown by the editor of the book, Professor Blakeslee, and this expectation is largely warranted. If Professor Blakeslee, on the one hand, savagely attacks the Navy League for certain passages in “ The Seven Seas,” its former official publication, on the other hand, he prints four addresses strongly favoring preparedness in policy” as well as in armament. “Neither military nor economic cedence. In other divisions or groups of essays he balances one side against the other in equal proportions. In his introduction he claims that “much of Europe’s .... suffering has been caused by a failure not so much of character as of intellect,” and he complains of the “ loose thinking so characteristic of those ” who believe in preparedness. “ One may sooner raise one’s self by one’s boot straps than maintain peace by world preparedness. Each navy cannot be the strongest.” he insists. Yet he admits that “to fight for our national policy is perfectly intelligible; if necessary, in most cases, we all intend to do so.” He believes our navy is large enough now, yet he makes no attempt to disprove Mr. Putnam’s statement in the same book—“We contend that to-day the safety of the United States depends upon the British fleet. . . . should Americans be willing to leave their safety and their liberty dependent upon the men and the resources of another state?” Professor Blakeslee contributes his most valuable comment when he deals with “the trend of history toward ever larger political units,” pointing out the peaceful unification of Scotland and England, of the north and south German states, of Italy, and of our own thirteen colonies, and the present three great units of the world—the Entente Allies, the Central Powers, and the Pan-American Union.
Perhaps the most striking and eloquent essay in the book, if not the most immediate in its importance, is Norman Angell’s plea for “preparedness in policy” as well as in armament. “Neither military nor economic strength,” he maintains, “can of themselves either protect your rights or insure your security. They can only do that if they are linked to a defined international policy known to yourselves, to the world at large, and to your prospective enemies.”
Of direct interest to naval officers are addresses by Ira N. Hollis, who contributes an illuminating discussion of “The Naval Lessons to the United States in the Present War”; by Rear Admiral F. E. Chadwick, on “The World-Wide Extension by International Agreement of the Principle of the Monroe Doctrine”; by Arthur Gordon Webster, on “The Functions of the Naval Consulting Board”; and by George Haven Putnam, on “The Defense of the Republic and the Maintenance of Our National Obligations.”
Two groups of essays deal with the clash of opinion between the British and the German viewpoints. Here we have a battle royal without quarter. Oil and water would mix as well as the opinions of Morton Prince and Stanton Coit for the British side, and those of Kuno Francke and John A. Walz for the German side of the controversy. Not the least interesting of these four essays is Professor Walz's “What a German Victory Would Mean to the World.” We are told that Germany can never hope to become mistress of the sea, since “every physical and geographical basis is lacking,” that no neutral nations of Europe need fear the consequences of a German victory, since the “five little nations” that are “the next-door neighbors of the German Empire .... if they really feared that a German victory would threaten their independence, would have joined the Allies long ago.”
Evidences of the “loose thinking” of which Professor Blakeslee complains are not altogether wanting in his own address, as well as in several others. He believes that each nation should be left to work out its destiny in peace, yet he is glad that the European status quo was not put into operation ten years ago, since “it would have given an international guarantee to the existence of European Turkey.” Why not let Turkey alone, too? One exception leads to others. Learned professors, diplomatists, statesmen, have much to say about “the status quo." Is there such a thing in Nature—in human nature? Two years ago we were told that a world war was impossible; now we are told that this is the last war. Professor Blakeslee thinks that war indicates “the world’s intellectual bankruptcy.” Perhaps it does, but it also indicates tremendous spiritual forces, of which the professor says nothing.
We read of many “Proposals for Restricting or Eliminating War,” and when we have finished, they remind us of the old story about Sir Isaac Newton, who thought he had made an improvement in the construction of a kennel for his cats. For the big mother cat he provided a large door; for the kittens, a little door. He was greatly disappointed to find that the kittens followed the mother cat through the large door, and that in fact the kittens invariably shunned the little door. So it is with the Sir Isaac Newtons of pacificism. They plan new doors for the nations of the world to walk through, but the nations proceed to walk through the old door.
The addresses in the book not previously mentioned are as follows: “The Poison of Preparedness,” by Hon. Warren Worth Bailey, M. C.; “The Economic Position of the United States at the Close of the War,” by Hon. George E. Roberts; “ The Economic Road to Permanent Peace,” by William English Walling; “Eliminating the Economic Causes of War,” by Roger W. Babson; “Does Nationalism Answer Present-Day Needs?” by Edward Krehbiel; “ Federation or Inter-State Anarchy,” by George W. Nasmyth; “The League to Enforce Peace,” by Hon. Samuel J. Elder; “The British Union of Democratic Control,” by Hon. Francis Neilson, M. P.; “The ‘Wisconsin Plan,’” by Emily G. Balch; “ Some of the Rights and Obligations of American Citizenship,” by Hon. George W. Anderson; “ To What Extent is America Served by Suppressing the Racial Traditions of its Hyphenated Citizens,” by Camillo von Klenze; “The Effect of the War Upon Pan-American Co-operation,” by Senhor Manoel de Oliveira Lima; “The Influence for Peace in the Red Cross Work,” by Mabel T. Boardman.
No one of these addresses, except for a doubtful case which need not be mentioned, is lacking in discussion of considerable interest. It is obviously impossible to review such a monumental series in a page or two; sufficient to express the opinion that the contributions of Professor Francke, Dr. Elder, and Dr. von Klenze are of great interest. H. C. W.
“Aircraft in Warfare—The Dawn of the Fourth Arm.” By F. W. Lanchester. (London, Constable and Company, Limited.)
General.—In this book on the above subject, published in November, 1915, F. W. Lanchester, who is considered as one of the foremost authorities on aeronautics in England, describes the use of aircraft in the present war in Europe and gives a comprehensive view of their employment, together with interesting side-lights on their capabilities and short-comings.
This work is really a resume of the series of articles appearing in “Engineering,” beginning September 4, 1914, and carrying on to December 24, 1914.
Throughout these articles the author constantly refuses to consider the usefulness of dirigibles. In the course of the articles he initiates and develops a mathematical law in which he turns the n-square law and shows the tremendous advantage of superiority in numbers and thus the advantage of concentration of attack and the division of the enemy. He shows the application of this principle in the battle of Trafalgar, in which the coincidence of the n-square law is at least remarkable.
While assuming that in attempting to reduce the problem to mathematical form it becomes necessary to change these variables which are difficult of determination, he still makes an excellent case, particularly in the case of contact with similar military forces. He finally shows remarkable advantages to be gained by numbers in the use of aircraft.
The success of the Advisory Committee for Aeronautics in England, in securing the rapid development of aircraft, is clearly shown, as well as the very close relations existing between aircraft and naval defense.
Besides the use of aircraft as direct adjuncts of military forces, he shows the very great advantage to be gained by the employment of an independent air fleet.
Throughout these papers there is a strong trend toward the separation of the control of aeronautics from the Army and Navy, and the author shows need of a Board of Aeronautic Construction to secure the proper development of this new service. Although himself a member of the National Advisory Committee, he does not advocate the extension of its functions to cover this new work, but advocates the organization of a Board of Aeronautic Construction. The object of this is to provide for the aeronautic establishment in time of peace and for its rapid expansion to meet with the needs in time of war. In this respect he states as follows:
“The key to the whole situation lies in the proper organization and control of the manufacturing resources of the Government, as at present represented by the Royal Aircraft Factory. This must be based on a clear conception of the duties of the factory as the birthplace of new types and nursery for their development, also as the headquarters of full-scale experimental work, that is to say, tests and investigations engineering in character, or those in which actual flying is involved, as distinct from laboratory experiment.”
He particularly deplores the tendency to divorce the aircraft development of the two services, the Army and the Navy, and states that “to separate the experimental or developmental phase of construction appears to have nothing to commend it.”
In his proposed Board of Aeronautic Construction he would provide a board whose existence would insure continuity of policy and whose members would be advocates of and responsible for the efficiency of the constructional program so far as the developmental side is concerned, and secure the necessary appropriations. This Board of Aeronautic Construction, in which both the Army and Navy would be represented by the responsible heads, respectively, of the two branches, namely. Director General of the Military Aeronautics, and the Director of the Air Department of the Admiralty, would have in addition a strong civilian contingent selected for their learning or attainments in such direction as aeronautic, or mechanical, engineering, manufacturing, naval architecture, business management, organization, finance, etc., including the superintending of an aircraft factory. He also considers that it would be very desirable that certain cabinet officers, such as Minister of War and the First Lord of the Admiralty, should be members of this board.
He reaches one conclusion that appeals at least debatable, and that is, the dirigible from a military standpoint is a complete failure. In concluding the work he claims that a clear case has been made out for an immediate and thorough-going overhaul of the program and administration as touching the future of the Aeronautic Arm, and to this end urges for immediate consideration the following:
(1)That in view of the potentialities of the Aeronautical Arm, a comprehensive scheme of construction should be forthwith prepared, in which provision shall be made for organizing, utilizing and developing every available source of manufacture and supply.
(2) That if possible certain of our present types of aeroplane be virtually adopted “for the duration of the war,” and existing manufacturing facilities should be utilized for their uninterrupted production to the utmost of their capacity.
(3) That where it is decided that new types are required, new sources of production should so far as possible be tapped or new works equipped, in order that output should not be made to suffer. In other words, the policy should tend in the direction of establishing each new type with the factory for its production as a complete proposition.
(4) That more adequate provision be made for the development of improved models and new types, both as regards initial manufacturing facilities and finance.
(5) That a Board of Aeronautical Construction be formed on the lines adumbrated in the present work, to deal with the needs of the service and to settle specifications and approve the designs for new types, and generally to assume control and responsibility for our national aeronautical program, both as to sufficiency and otherwise.
“The Diplomacy of the Great War.” By Arthur Bullard. Macmillan Company, 1916, 333 pages.
This could well be an introductory text-book on European diplomacy, though it purports merely to serve as an aid to understanding the moves on the diplomatic checker-board that will follow when the terms' of peace are being settled. For several reasons it deserves to rank high among hooks called forth by the war.
In the first place, it is written by an American, and, although the author frankly prefers a victory for the Entente Allies, it is little tainted by hostile prejudices and rancorous epithets. For another thing, it is written in an entertaining style. The humor and dramatic interest of international relations are excellently suggested by the author’s allusions to the “mervousness” of the British after the Russians had occupied the Oasis of Merv, and by his references to the wooing of Princess Salme of Zanzibar by a handsome German youth. His account of Prince Gortschakov’s Caucasian frontier also is worthy of comic opera. Besides a high degree of journalistic skill, the author has, in the third place, an unusual grasp of the subject. It would be difficult to find a better sketch of diplomatic currents from 1878 to 1914; and Book II, on “New Elements in Diplomacy," including the growth of public opinion, is extremely suggestive.
If, however, the reader is particularly interested in the ideal of Das Deutschtum or the “religion ” of war, he can find more in Cramb and Slater, and if in the principle of nationality, he should read Toynbee. But it is only fair to state that Mr. Bullard makes no pretense of being exhaustive, and to reiterate that he is never exhausting.
A full critical bibliography of diplomatic publications adds to the value of the book. C. F.
“A Diplomat’s Wife in Mexico." By Edith O'Shaughnessy (Mrs. Nelson O’Shaughnessy). Published by Harper Bros., New York and London. One volume, 356 pages. Price $2 net.
The title page describes the book as “Letters from the American Embassy at Mexico City, covering the dramatic period between October 8, 1913, and the breaking off of diplomatic relations on April 23, 1914, together with an account of the occupation of Vera Cruz”; and a better description of the contents of the book cannot well be given. The book thus consists of portions of the many most interestingly written and human letters that were sent by Mrs. O’Shaughnessy to her mother, Mrs. Elliott Coues, during this tense period. Mexico, during the entire period covered, was in an unsettled condition in its relation with the United States, which had not recognized the government under the dictatorship of Victoriano Huerta, a man who held the reins of the government because of the force of rapid changeable circumstances. It will be remembered that Huerta first came into prominence abroad when he escorted Porfirio Diaz to Vera Cruz after the latter’s resignation on May 25, 1911. Huerta then defeated the opponents of Francisco Madero, the President of the Republic, under Pascual Orozco at Rellano on May 23, and again at Bachlumba on July 3, 1912, thus firmly establishing the Madero Government. On February 9, 1913, there was a sudden revolt in Mexico City under the leadership of the pupils of the military college who released from prison Felix Diaz and General Reyes. These men demanded Madero’s resignation. Thus hard pressed, Madero sent to the North for General Huerta to come to his succor, with the result that after a nine days’ battle in Mexico City order was restored and Madero made secure in his position. Later, Huerta, then Minister for the Interior, believed that his life was threatened by Madero’s jealousy, and so seized the power from Madero, becoming President according to the sequence provided by .the Mexican Constitution, Madero and his vicepresident, Pino Suarez, being shot on February 23, 1913.
Our ambassador having been recalled, the representing of this government in Mexico City devolved upon Nelson O'Shaughnessy, the American Charge d Affaires, who had no easy task and accomplished much through his own personality and friendly relations with General Huerta. The character sketches that the book contains of this famous descendant of the old Aztecs are vivid and make interesting reading, the writer evidently appraising him as a strong man.
A fine portrait of the late Rear Admiral Sir Christopher Cradock is included among the well chosen illustrations that the book contains, and Mrs. O’Shaughnessy thus speaks of him: “ We had such a friendly talk with Sir Christopher, who said—and we quite concurred—that he didn’t see any cause for feeling about British action in Mexico, adding that he had no politics, no idea in the world except to save British lives and property, and that he and Admiral Fletcher were working together, he hoped, in all sympathy and harmony. There is something so gallant about him but with a note of sadness, and I am conscious of a certain detachment in him from the personal aims of life.’’
The whole book is written in this easy style that creates an atmosphere of Mexico for its readers. The characterizations of the many prominent individuals met are penned in few words with unusually keen perception mixed with an occasional bit of humor. There is no trace of malice against any one to be found in the book, but only a deep current of sympathy for the down-trodden Mexican people with a love for the beautiful scenery of rich Mexico that runs throughout its pages.
Naval officers of Mexican experience will enjoy reading this vivid story of the American colony and the diplomatic life that represents the side of events that are always obscure to them. They will find in its pages many of their acquaintances, including Mr. Lind and a large number of their brother officers in the Navy and Marine Corps.
Such nearly forgotten incidents as the forced loan obtained by Huerta, the appearance of the periodical “Mister Lind,” as well as the ever-present northers, the groups under the ‘portales’ of the Cafe Diligencias—all rendered the more enjoyable because they belong to the past—are brought freshly to one’s mind in a narrative way. The many who, while on duty off the long dreary stretch of the Mexican coast, enjoyed the reading of Flandrau’s “Viva Mexico!” and Schroeder’s “The Fall of Maximilian,” should add this book without fail to their reading list. R. E.
“Ian Hardy, Senior Midshipman.” By Commander E. Hamilton Currey, R. N. (J. B. Lippincott Company, 1916.)
This is the third of a series of boys’ hooks depicting the career of a lad in the British Navy. It is a narrative of the days of the old sailing frigate when the Argentine and Uruguay were a wild, unorganized country requiring an occasional chastisement such as a single ship might impose, and when England maintained a squadron on the West African coast to repress the slave trade. Racy yarns by petty officers, scenes at Gibraltar, an adventure with a shark, and a voyage up the Uruguay ending in a fierce hand-to-hand conflict with the local authorities—it is with such materials that the author has built up his story.
Commander Currey shows his intimate knowledge of the sea, the old sailing ships, and the life at Gibraltar. His midshipmen are robust, healthy- minded, fun-loving lads, fond of adventure, and jammed full of courage. If the reader feels something of disappointment in the book, it is because the author has not devoted himself more fully to the real life, the daily routine of the midshipmen, where he is unquestionably good, instead of introducing so often the unusual and the romantic, and occasionally the absurd. C. S. A.
“Ocean Shipping” (The Basic Principles of Marine Transportation with Particular Reference to the Foreign Trade of the United States). Published by the National Foreign Trade Council, 64 Stone Street, New York. 179 pages. Price 25 cents.
A valuable handbook for reference and desk purposes. Its scope is outlined in the Foreword, an extract from which follows:
“Discussion of national shipping policy, particularly since the outbreak of the European War, has been marked by conflicting claims, obscurities relating to the simplest elements of the question, fallacious arguments and advocacy of uneconomic curatives; all thriving upon the lack of knowledge referred to.
“In the hope of shedding light upon little understood principles of ocean transportation, your committee has caused to be prepared a monograph, entitled “Ocean Shipping,” describing in simple language basic phases of the shipping question which, almost without exception, have been subjects of controversy and misunderstanding in public discussion and in the press. It is the belief of your committee that the publication of this monograph and its distribution throughout the United States will be a valuable aid to public knowledge and clearer thinking.”