Tur Revita oF Eunore. By Ht. G.
Alexander. (G. Allen and Unvein, Ssu met)
Since few people in Europe ani America give to the League of Nations a tithe of the thought that it deserves, we would draw their attention to this book, whose subtitle is Can the League of Nations Help? "The accounts of the League's constitution and methods the record of its work are satisfactory, and the facts are stated accurately enough. It must be admitted that Mr. Alexander does not approach the subject with an attractive ardour, He seldom raises without some cold criticism, and his expressions of satisfaction with each piece of work done seem to be grudged and only due! because worse would have happened but for the League. He gives little credit for obstacles overcome and does not mention the chief difficulty of a League of 50 and more nations, many with no great interest in any one question, namely, the danger of log-rolling. His earnest plea for Germany and her admission are mainly based on the demerits of the Allies, and do not include the one that' appeals most to us, that the poacher should have been turned into a gumekeeper as soon as possible. The author's trouble is explained by his chapter on "The International Spirit." He is an internationalist and pacifist without an understanding sympathy with the weaknesses, amiable or otherwise, those who cannot go so far." He wants us to subordinate patriotism to international good, and we are not all ready for that wider outlook. To urge us to give up Gibraltar,, Malta_and Cyprus to prove that we are not aggressive in the Mediterranean only shows that he thinks we hold them for aggressive purposes, which is not the whole truth, nor the half of it, Let Mr. Alexander continue to ex-ress reasonably the cause of the League as the best hope of. the world against self-destruction, The more it is studied and taught, as it is in the greater part of this book, the better.
With knowledge support will grow outside the League and will increase that self-confidence within it which is needed for still better work than it has yet done—The "Spectator." literary gods but this (and that of proof correcting). He is very intelligent, very. competent, very, observant of amusing details character. He can write 10 or 20, Pages as if they belonged to a first irate story; his tools are excellent, Unfortunately his story is quite uninteresting for some reason or. Jother, and one knows that here is another bright book written to be forgotten, another novel about "Africa" written because its author has something to say about that country rather than a story to tell. "Africa" in this case is England just before. and during the War. On this Mr. Ford has a good deal to say that is interesting If when one reads a' novel' and
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.