COAST. I ARTILLERY JOURNAL, - Air Defense Artillery

BOOK REVIEWS 499
the white, between a receding and an advancing race, the red men had the victory
because they exhibited that day a greater proficiency in the art of war than did
the chosen representatives of the white race .•.. It was a bitterly contested
combat to the death between the armed representatives of two civilizations, each
of which fought after the manner of his kind .. Warfare, however it be
savage, is not massacre when the conquered go to their deaths with arms in
their hands."
To add to the interest of the book, there is an historical introduction by
General Charles King, which gives a brief biography of General Custer and an
account of the cavalry campaigns against the Indians, with special reference to
the hard.fighting Seventh Cavalry. The foreword is written by General W. S.
Edgerly, retired, one of the surviving participants in the Little Big Horn fight.
-E. L. B.
Airmen and Aircraft. By Major H. H. Arnold. Ronald Press Company, New
York. 1926. 5lh"x 8%". 216 pp. $3.50.
- This volume covers in general the entire field of aircraft. The author begins
with an outline of mythology and early history of aircraft development. Ftom
that he proceeds to a study of what makes aircraft fly, covering the general types
of aircraft and the elementary principles involved, dynamic and static. Two
chapters are devoted to army methods of training aviators, followed by chapters
recording some of the famous flights in history and paying tribute to some of the
outstanding fliers to date. This brings us to the latter part of Major Arnold's
book, where he makes an enthusiastic study of the dependability of aircraft and
its possibilities in the commercial world. The book is closed with a chapter on
"Aircraft of the Future."
The subject matter is covered in nontechnical language and in only an elementary
manner. It is not a learned treatise on the subject, but it is quite readable
and instructive insofar as it goes. Apparently it is written primarily for the young
man who may contemplate aviation either as a sport or vocation.-C. S. H.
The Writing of History. By Jean J. Jusserand, Wilbur C. Abbott, Charles W.
Colby, and John S. Bassett. Charles Scribner's Sons, New York. 1926.
51,4"x8". 143pp. $1.50.
In recent years it has appeared that the writing of history in the United States
has not been in a satisfactory state, and the American Historical Association appointed
a committee to analyze the situation. This book is a report of the investigation;
and as such it is merely an expression of the views of the individuals
composing the committee.
Lnquestionably many of the earlier histories pussess a fascination which is.
lacking in most of the more recent books; but at the same time it must be admitted
that the older histories, for the most part, lack the accuracy which is found today.
It appears to the committee that several things combine to bring about the existing
sitwUion. Lnti! late in the last century, when historians like Bancroft and
Pres("oa were accepted among great "'Titers, history was decidedly in the realm.
of literature; style was perhaps more important than accuracy; historians spent
a great deal of time in studying the matter of presentation before they took up
historiography. :.\Ioreover, most of the more distinguished historiographers, as
Bancroft. Prescott. ~Iotley, Parkman, .. ere men of independent means, who couId
well afford to spend years in preparation.