BOOKS OF THE DAY

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 39, 9 November 1918, Page 11

BOOKS OF THE DAY

A History of Samoa. What - is tn bo the future'of Saiiion, thai beau!iful and stiategicaily inroorInnt island, on which, in August, )b<J, the New Zcnlnnd Expeditionary J.;.:.--.'i proudly hoisted the British Fldk? Are bormnny's lost pKKs-.'iuns, in &'mo;i, i:i New Giiiuen, and c!r«\v;ierc in the Pacific, to be bunded bo.ci: to her. to rarrft bs buses for inbmariao nnd otliev forms of uavnl warfare by the Huns in yc«rs to come? Thoso arc questions of itei/ost moment to .the people, of New ZciLvnd, questions v>;hioh invest with a special and timely interest a book just published by Messrs. Vv'hitconibe iiiul Tombs. "The History of Samoa," by Kobert MacKengio Watson, LL.B.. a clever young es-'Wellingtoninn who for , fiorae time occupied tho petition of AcfingJu'stico of tho' District Court of Samoa. Tho author reminds Us, iu his preface, that New Zealand's concern in Samrran affairs u. of long standing, and so far from being destitute of historical interest, Samoa's record .shows ptohiitianee altogether beyond her desert. "Sho was long," he eay's, "thq eceiio and the subject of.repeated strifes, to which.many individuals and three great nations—England, .France,■ uhd .Germany—wore- parties, _ strifes . hot invariably creditable, and involving frequent and oi times ngitated terms of control." It is good that the threads of earlier as well as later history should now be gathered together, for- a, study of past events in Samoa •'; is, essential <to a ; clear understanding of the necessities of tho future, •llr. Watson ; lias now provided a' compact,: comprehensive,: ..and. sufficiently well documented record '.pf-'Samoan his.tory. No one who reads this book can fail to.perceive'the wisdom pf Mr. Massey's contention tliat.' , tho, islands should not be placed' , under,, a jpiut control. Joint control has in-the , .past resulted in Samoa in constantly recurring' misuuderstandings, jealousies; and disputes. Mr. Watson; advances the - theory that Great Britain withdrew from tho Samoau Broup in 1893 : because of her desire to conciliate Germany in connection with the Boer War. The compensation paid to Great 'Britain was, says Mr. Watson, "tho surrender of certain islands in the Solomon group," but as a matter of :-fact Britain was also accorded a. free hand .in Tonga and received in addition the.-Vavaii group and Savage : Island. Compared, however, with Samoa, these 1 acquisitions, were .of. small. Value; tho Huii certainly got the best'of'the deal. To-day, through his inordinate and criminal ambition, tho Hun has lost Samoa, to which, we may rest assnred- whatever State or States may exercise control over ■the group, he will never be permitted \to return as master., Mr. Watson is just to tho Germans, especially Dr. Solf, giving them credit if or establishing "an oflicient and stable government," but it is •npticeablo that Solf "first visited Fiji -and, studied British methods of colonisation there"! The book is written in a /straightforward, unpretentious way, and constitutes a very valuable contribution to the historical , literature of tlie Pacific. ! (Price 55.) ■ ■ ■ . '"The Way of Honour." An eloquent and permanently vnluablo :tribute to tho heroism with which Belgium'has barno her national sufferings, MilferinKS duo to it passionate regard for her honour and her pledged word, and ,to the courage and patience with which sho has endured her trials, is to he found in Mr. 11. Carton do Wiarfs "The Way of Honour" (George Allen and Unwin). In its original French version, this fine-ap-preciation of Belgium's proud and determined ( o Gerniaily's attempt to rob her of both the semblance ■ and roality of independence and liberty, has had an immense circulation. The author, tho Belgian Minister of Justice, traces ill successive chapters the history of his country's relation to the war. He deals 1 with tho' great aggression, by her resistauco to which Belgium became, to use the-words, of that eminent Frenchman, M; Paul Deschanel, "the pledge of International Ei?hteou.sness";'with the herpic part played by the Belgian Army; with the equally heroic endurance of the Belgian people; with the fundamental causes of the nation's resistance—causes tho roots of which lie deeply embedded in the past history and traditions of tho Belgians; and with a. vhrietv of'Vichls , ami lessons of tho war." M. do Wiart writes as a patriot and a.-statesman, but he has the soul, of, a inoet, and at.times his record rises to heights of eloquence not usually reflected in works of this kind. A valuable feature of (he. book is the account jjiven by the author of tho laudable activities of Kin? Albert'and his leading statesmen' and generals in carrying on their executive work,in exile, ;w6rlc ivlncli bus always been (lone with an underlying confidence that, sooner or later, the day of victory for the Allies and of restored liberty for Belgium would arrive. , • Somo War- Drawings. From the offico of the "British-Aiistra-lasinii," Loudon, comes a rollection of sketches/of scenes and incidents iu the Great Wau , , from the pen. and pencil of an Australian artist, Sergeant Pcnlcigh Boyd, of.the Electrical and Mechanical Mining Company, A.I.P. The collection which 'bears the title "Ralv.ige," is prefaced by a foreword by Brigadier-General T. H. Dodds, C.M.G., D.5.0., who commends Mr. Boyd's work for il.s irealism and truth. • Tliu sketches r.re vigorously, drawn and reflect many ])hases of life in' the trendies and of incidents in the field. Some.of Mr. Boyd's figure studies, notably those of a typical Australian soldier and of somo French civilians, are excellent. Each drawing !s prefaced by a ehort note of explanation, by Hie artistauthor. "Salvage" is a very interesting war souvenir, '