BOOK NOTICE

Otago Daily Times, Issue 16666, 11 April 1916, Page 6

BOOK NOTICE

"War and Civilisation." By< tho Right Hon. J. M. Robertson, M.P. London: George Allen and (Jnwiii (Ltd.). (Cloth, 2s 6d not.) Professor StoH'eii, tho holder of a chair of economic and social science at Stockholm, has produced a book in which ho justifies tho policy of G«:rirui.ny, because of her Imperial need for expansion and' her superior "kultur," which appears to him to irm'ko utterly incredible tho charges brought against hex by- the Allies, even as regards her invasion of Hulgiuin. This book, hold by tho Gentians t<> bo a complete vindication of their conduct, was sent directly and unsolicited to Mr Robertson, who at once iiccepted , the challenge, and, in tho work before us, proceeds to demolish tho Swedish professor's statements, arguments, and deductions, (separately and as a whole, using for that purpose a singularly clear and unprejudiced mind, and well-trained powers of deduction. It iis impossible within the limits at our disposal to follow tho book, paragraph by paragraph, and clause by clause, but its work is so clearly and cleverly done that we may commend its perusal to those who are interested in the subject. And who is not? Although Mr Robertson , counters in set terms each separate allegation, pointing out ils weakness, falsehood, or want of logic, ho gives mast of hie attention to tho two chief counts--the Imperial need for expansion,' and the oft repeated statement that ''kultur" is an excuse for crime, or renders crime impossible. The material,' economic, and social position of Germany, as compared witlr other European powers, her vast acree.go and power of supporting her own population, is shown, • and the fact stressed that "it is not mere 'expansion' that will satisfy Germany, it must be expansion at the expense of other civilised ftates," especially those smaller ones, which, according to German authorities, are "doomed to absorption by their more powerful neighbours." That this may be done with greater safety tho first thing is to get rid of the British Navy, which guards, in cfleet, the civilisation and tho trade of tho wholo world, because "Germany is prepared to subordinate the aspirations and rights of all other people to those of Germany." On the "kultur" question tho causes, growth, and evolution of this "moral paralysis" are examined at great length, and the case of Belgium is discussed, Mr Robertson showing how, after generations of the highcet kultur, we have the inundation of bestial rapine in Belgium, the massacre of helpless civilians, the using of women and children as "shields," the bombarding and bombing of unfortified towns, the destruction of peaceful merchantmen "on sight," and other atrocities of the present war. Mr Robertson also considers very carefully tho inherent falsity of the doctrine propounded by Bernhardi and others of the "economic necessity" of war, and its effect on the "psychology" of nations. Such N psychology he shows by copious references to history to bo essentially different from tho psychology of the individual, eo that to give it the same name is practically a misnomer. In conclusion, Mr Robertson declares:—

The psychology of your friends is the psychology of tho bully and the bra-ggard. Tho science of war they mastered like the other physical sciences, and they took for granted that their mere barbaric instinct, their race pride, and their appetite to power yielded them a science of man in which their ascendency was deducible even.as might be the operation of an explosive shell in physics. That is to say, in tho most essential knowledge of all, in comprehension of the vast process of .international action and reaction, of the way of working of tho souls of nations and free men, they ate. tho most profoundly {insdentific of all the civilised * peoples,, and by consequence they ar'e tho most barbarous. That is my thesis.

"The Individual." By Muriel Hine. London: John Lane. (3s 6d, 2s 6d.) The hero of this novel. Orde Tavener, is abrilliant young surgeon, who-hae devoted himself with special enthusiasm to the cause of eugenics. The mass of human suffering, especially the suffering of children, arouses in him a passionate protest against that ignorance of, and indifference to, those laws of Nature which are intended to safeguard tho. purity of the race; and he devotes every spare moment to the propagation of what he considers to be the only sure remedy. Miss Hine's book shows the working-,out of tho theory in Ordo Tavener's hVe; and the title is taken from one of his own statements: "Wo can't afford exceptions. It is too vital a matter; the future of tho race. If it comes to a choico between them, the individual must go. He is only a means to an end-r-a link in the chain." Of course such a statement provokes discussion. What would the doctor do if the casa were his own; if he fell hopelessly in love with an (eugenically) impossible person? Tavener things that he could! and would, stand tho test; but of course no one can be perfectly sure of what ho would do under any given circumstances until he is tried. By an ironical stroke of fate Taverner, at the height of his career, falls a victim to his own theories, and , is faced with the choice of making good his contention at tho risk of estranging tho young wife he adores, or of proving false to his own teaching and becoming a renegade' in his"' owir eyes, as well 'as in the eyes of others. The difficulty is intensified by the fact that he is already married, arid that before declaring his passion he had made every possible jriquiry concerning the heredity of the girl with whom he had fallen deeply in love. He believed that he knew all that was to be known, but life is full of surprises, and one of these is sprung, fullarmed, on the unsuspecting- doctor. The story is ■ told with great skill, and a very delicate subject is carefully handled. Tho author's. touch, like that of the true surgeon, is , firm, yet tender. She does not shrink from the serious issues involved,which are greatly increased in this, case by the peculiar temperament of Mrs Taverner, who is of a passionate, artistic, selfwilled nature, with groat prido of race and a vehement devotion to family tradition. She finds it impossible to understand, her husband's -position, much less sympathise with it. She has been brought up on oldfashioned lines, and has none of the modern woman's breadth of view and sane outlook on the great and complicated questions of the day. For lier love is entirely a question of sentiment: "If you consider that I am not fit to be the mother of your children —I refuse to bo any longer a wife." And from this pos : tion he cannot move her. The solution of tho probl<jgi ; , in this particular case, is not unexpected by the ex-, porienced novel reader, and, it enables tho book to end on n strong note of hope, which stands out clearly against tho lurid background of tho present war. Of course tho main problem is not, and cannot bo, definitely decided. It must ever bo a question for the " individual." .This book, can bo obtained from Messrs Whitoombo and Tombs (Ltd.), Princes street; price, 3s 6d.

"The Pearl Fishers." By H. de Vero Stackpoole. London: W. Heinemann. (3s 6d, 2s 6d.)

The spoil of the Southern Seas has taken possession of Mr de Vere Stackpoole, and once more he translates it into a delightful volume of light, life, and colour. Somewhere—it is just as well not to particularise too closely—in the South Pacific is an atoll island, consisting- of a wide ring of coral, thickly planted at intervals with tropical trees, enolosing an exquisite lagoon of still water, full of all those wonders of colour and form, which the author compares to " the ruins of a Paradise," more beautiful than any dreamers of temperate zones can imagine. This island is reached in a tiny boat by Floyd, a shipwrecked sailor, second mate of the s.s. Cormorant, burnt at sea. On the island Floyd finds another shipwrecked mariner, one Schumer, and a native girl, called from the place of her birth, Isbel. Schumer receives Floyd kindly, and, in ma-king a tour of the lagoon in Floyd's boat, they discover a large bed of pearl oysters, which, upon being tested, proves to be fairly rich. How to work this treasurenow becomes a pressing question. Two men can do but little in such a case. Fortune plays into their hands. A schooner appears off the island, and the manner in which she is handled arouses the suspicions of tho two sailors. They put off to meet her. pilot her into the lagoon, and find that she, is manned only by natives, who state that their white officers have died from ptomaine poisoning. Tho falsehood of this story is soon proved, the ringleader of the. mutineers is hanged, and tho remainder qniokly submit themselves to Sehumer, who proves capable and masterful, but utterly selfish and pitiless. The adventurers are now supplied with plenty of labour and a fin* boat, which, in due course, iSchumei , fcalos back to the owners in Sydney. Ho obtains their financial help in his venture. From this point the story becomes extrenHy thrilling. Dunn? nbs'Mic.o tho labourers attack and Isibol. and at the wry moment whnn all seems lost, the schooner returns to the rescue, and onco again tho mutineers arn discovered and punished. Tho working of the pearl fisheries is continued, with many interesting details oonwrninsr tho pearls themselves, the method of obtaining them. <ind their value. The next time tho schooner is sent tn Sydney Floyd gors in command, and he then discovers a nefarious plot between Schumer and the shipowner

to make away with him and grab his share of the pearls and tho island. How this scheme is frustrated and turned on the scoundrels who devised it proves most exciting, and holds the reader's attention spellhound to tho end of one of the best South Sea stories which we have read for some time. This book may be purcliaaed from Messrs Whitcombo and Tombs (Ltd.), Princes street; price, 3s 6d.