THE NEWEST BOOKS.

Otago Witness, Issue 4029, 2 June 1931, Page 68

THE NEWEST BOOKS.

A CLASSIC OF SUBMARINE WARFARE. “ The German Submarine War, 19141918.” By R. H. Gibson (author of “ Three Years of Naval Warfare,”) and Maurice Prendergast (editor of “Jane’s Fighting Ships, 1916-1921.”) With a foreword by Admiral of the Fleet Earl Jellicoe, G.C.8., 0.M., G.C.V.0., LL.D., D.C.L. (Cloth; with 35 illustrations and ten graphs and charts; 36s net.) London: Constable and Co., Ltd. Don’t look at it, and don’t touch it. If we take it up, other nations will, and it will be the greatest blow at our supremacy on the sea that can be imagined. This definite opinion expressed by Admiral Earl St. Vincent in 1804, upon hearing of the proposal, made by the American inventor Robert Fulton, that

the British should build a submarine for use against the French fleet, is quoted on the fly-leaf. Many a time during the dark days when ships were disappearing beneath the waves this prophecy must have recurred to the minds of those familiar with the history and development of maritime weapons. Some of us have forgotten that in April, 1917, this under-water campaign had brought us within measurable distance of defeat, and few remember that in the four years 5554 vessels totalling 12,191,996 tons of shipping were destroyed by the Germans. In the circumstances there was ample reason for the gravest fears, and only the heroism and resource of the British Navy saved the situation. This book tells the epic story of the success and failure of the German submarine during the war.

In his foreword Earl Jellicoe points out that the authors mention the fact that German naval officers in pre-war days had not realised the influence that submarines would exert upon naval warfare, as the capabilities of the new arm to undertake oversea operations at long distances from their bases, and unescorted by surface vessels, had not been fully appreciated. Similarly, the Royal Navy had looked upon the submarine as a vessel dangerous to surface craft, but possessed of but a limited range of action. The possibilities of the submarine as an offensive weapon came, therefore, as somewhat of a surprise to both sides after the commencement of the war. “It was only the splendid work of the Royal Navy, with the invaluable assistance of the small craft attached to it, manned by fishermen and R.N.R. and R.N.V.R. officers and men, and in combination with the devoted courage of officers and men of our Mercantile Navy, whom no dangers could daunt, that enabled us to tide over the period during which our anti-submarine measures came into fruition.” These words from the Admiral of the Fleet are more than deserved.

The authors of the epoch-making book have performed a Herculean task. Reading it produces varying emotions. The loss of brave men, the maiming of proud ships, the horrors of war are made very plain. It is as complete in its details relating to one side as to the other, for the writers have striven to present an accurate historical record of the losses of the combatants. We are thus assured that the facts and figures are accurate, especially-when checked, as they have been, by so careful and well-informed a student of naval affairs as Mr F. E. M'Murtrie. “To take the authors’ way of it (says the Aberdeen Press), to relate with a high degree of graphic force the occurrences from period to period, the actual sinkings in hundreds of cases, the cruises of the U-boats, the combats, the methods of retaliation, is to make a moving story of it, and to bring to the reader a realisation of the grimness of the struggle. In the carefully accurate pages of this volume are events which stir the passions of anger, horror, despair, and also of pride and joy.” Here is a typical paragraph which justifies the eulogy of the reviewer quoted above which deals with U 22 (Hoppe), which sank 11,000 tons in the Irish Channel, and had a narrow escape from being rammed by a cruisei- off Belfast:—

“This boat was notoriously unsafe and difficult to handle submerged. Her commander had a hair-raising experience when the cruiser loomed out of the mist and compelled an emergency dive. First bows up, and next with stern raised, dropping all the while, U 22 sank to 200 ft; water began to seep through the seams; chlorine gag started to generate; still, the pressure-hull stood the immense strain. The only course was to blow tanks at high pressure. “ At first there was little response to the drastic remedy; then the sweep of the pointer-needle around the dial of the manometer began to slow down, crept on a little, and then stopped. The dive at last was checked. U 22 began to rise. Faster and faster she moved upwards; finally, her rate of ascent became so rapid, she went out of control and shot to the surface. Close by lay the cruiser, but never sighted the submarine on its rocket-like projection upwards from the depths. U 22 crept away, with both boat and crew shaken by such submarine acrobatics.”

Then again, dealing with the period when Lord Carson served as First Lord of the Admiralty, his statement is given that “soon after the opening of the new campaign, 40 fights with enemy submarines had taken place during the first 18 days. One U-boat had been captured; another had been rammed and sunk; two had been attacked by patrols and one sunk; a fifth had beep rammed by a destroyer; a sixth had likewise been rammed; a seventh had been hit in her con-ning-tower and was believed’destroyed; an eighth had been bombed; and a ninth spotted by a seaplane and bombed. Actually, only four enemy under-water pests were exterminated; but the great difficulty in establishing a loss'is illustrated in the case of UC 44.

“ She was depth-charged by two destroyers, with the result that her electriclight fittings were smashed. But, by discharging oil and even ejecting chairs from the after torpedo-tube, she deceived her hunters into believing their attack had attained ■ decisive results. Too readily was it assumed that oil, papers, and even fittings rising to the surface were certain evidence that a submarine had received her final quietus.”

There is a touch of humour at times. Referring to the laying of mines and the work of the mine-sweepers, the authors write:—

“ So regular had the mining of certain spots become, that a little ruse is said to have been planned. Fresh fields were discovered in certain areas with such punctuality that the approximate date and place, when and where new mines would appear, could even be forecast with accuracy. Off Waterford, one day, sweepers put out; sundry explosions far out to sea were heard, as if countermining were in progress. The sweepers then returned to port. “ Presumably, submarines off the Irish coast received advice from ashore as to the recent activities of the sweepers. In any case, at 10.30 p.m., on August 4, there was a loud explosion out at sea off Waterford; patrols rushed to the scene, and picked up out of the water the commander of UC 44 (Tebbenjohanns), and a very angry man was he. It appeared that lie had already laid eight mines, when his boat blew up on other German mines, laid previously to his arrival. Bitterly did he complain about British carelessness in not clearing the area properly and rendering it safe for his operations. “ The mine-sweepers had actually made a ‘ dummy counter-mining sweep ’; they had not cleared away the last-laid patch of German mines, but had left it in situ, knowing full well that by a certain date another layer would appear in those very waters to replenish the field. It was a practical joke, admittedly grim, and Tebbenjohanns, perhaps excusably, failed to find any humour in it. Still, his idea that British Sweepers toiled unceasingly to keep British waters safe for German submarines exhibits an impudence that approaches the sublime.” After detailing some hundreds of happenings, for the doings of practically every German submarine is recorded, the authors, in their final summing up, say:—

“The U-boat weapon had broken in the hands of Germany; it had brought ruin and disaster instead of swift and decisive victory. . . . The U-boat was the weapon which indirectly caused her own doom. It ranged the whole of the civilised world against her; the victory promised to the German nation by its agency had not been gained. “ Hope deferred broke down the civil morale of the Central Powers. Upon a fertile ground of disillusionment and war-weariness the communistic theories sowed their unwholesome seed. From the mutiny of the High Seas Fleet on October 28, the weeds of rebellion spread until they choked the good wheat of the German nation and strangled the lilies of the monarchies of Prussia, Bavaria, and Saxony.” It is quite impossible to praise this great work too highly. It is a monument of industry, complete in every detail relating to the subject. References are given, the boats concerned are described, tabulated, and the record leaves nothing untouched. Tables, charts, and index are presented with the same thoroughness. The illustrations are unique and striking, and the book is worthy’ of the firm of Messrs Constable and Co. We do not, indeed, expect to see any book dealing with the submarine war which will be comparable to this volume, which has all the qualities of a classic. A BIG STORY. “Albert Grope: The Story of a Belated Victorian.” By F. 0. Mann. (Cloth; 10s 6d.) London: Faber and Faber. Ltd. I had no idea that I was born and bred in such a wretched hovel. ... It seems ' to me barely credible that I could ever have been the poor, despised little boy who lived in Strawberry place. . . . The companions and associates of my earlier life have necessarily grown to seem even more remote and unreal.

This is the long story of a poor Cockney boy who becomes a rich man. His mother was a London charwoman whose poverty and squalid surroundings are depressing. Mr Mann takes this son of the slums, timid and shy to the point of absurdity, describes in 600 large pages every step in his life, and all the impressions during the process of material advancement, his love affairs, his business enterprises, and the epilogue. The publishers have no hesitation in stating that “Albert Grope” should become as much a classic in this period of literature as “ Joseph Vance ” was in the last.

This uncommon book is written by Mr Grope himself, and it is indeed a revealing document. Here we get the good with the bad, but in such a person there is really very little that is very bad. He narrates what other people think of him and what thinks of himself. “No more sociability in him than a dead cat! —shy and nervous as a little kitten: frightened at his own shadow, let alone a woman.” That is a feminine appraisal. Another describes him,as a “long, thin,

cadaverous-looking gentleman in a tailcoat gone rather green and shabby; a high collar, black choker, and large white shirt-cuffs that extruded far over his wrists and seemed about to drop out on to the floor. His complexion was bilious; he had sparse red moustaches and hair, and pale fishy eyes, over one of which the lid drooped permanently.” His abiding friendship was with his mother—they were bound together in the kinship of poverty. He was a butt for the full-blooded boys of the school, and becomes only a little less to his first employer. But before lie is 30 he is becoming a “ prince of industry.” Ho realises the blessings of advertisement, and with the help of an eccentric old bookseller who passes from the position of employer of Mr Grope to hig underpaid servant, he achieves wealth. With the death of his mother, Albert is alone. His accumulating riches do not compensate for the loss, but he goes forward on the road to fortune. He seeks other friendships, generally with indifferent success, and in the hands of a less skilful writer this part of the book would become tedious. The art of Mr Mann converts this narrative of the com-. monplace into something quite arresting, and right on until Mr Grope meets his affinity in the person of a Frenchwoman who senses his need for mothering, his book has no dull pages. For those who desire a full-course novel, “ Albert Grope ” will prove satisfying in every way. FINDING GOLD. “ Getting Gold: The ABG of Prospecting ip Australia.” By “ Fossicker.” (Stiff covers;. 2s fid.) Melbourne* Robertson and Mullens, Ltd. Hard times and dearth of employment, coupled with the prevailing note of depression, have served to create a “ gold sense ” in the community. Every unemployed man or youth, indeed every schoolboy about to leave the shelter of school life, has felt, or now feels, the call and thrill of the master lure, gold. This publication, explaining in simple, non-technical language the methods of getting gold by means of panning, cradling, puddling, dollying, sluicing, etc., will undoubtedly be welcomed by many whose dreams of wealth go back to mother earth. Primarily written for Australian prospectors, there is a large portion of its contents applicable to every country where the precious metal is found. For the novice it cannot fail to be of value, and even the experienced may find in it something helpful. It is well supplied with drawings of goldsaving apparatus, and a glossary makes plain *’ie use of terms which are current coin in the diggers’ phrasology. There is a map of auriferous arpas in Victoria, and a summary of the law relating to mining' in that State. A WELCOME REUNION. “Shadow Shapes: A Sheaf of Human Documents.” By Robert Blatchford. (Cloth; 65.) ’ Edinburgh and London: William Blackwood and Sons, Ltd. “All good writing,” says Lafcadio Hearn, “ has my soul.” Certainly Robert Blatchford’s phrases have soul. They are fascinatingly alive. They march, they glide, they sing! They have external loveliness and internal power. The noljility of cathedrals, the majesty of the sea, the grandeur of a mountain range—these things one feels in reading Robert Blatchford’s prose.

In these and similar words of high praise Mr Herbert Youens introduces Mr Blatchford to readers who know him not. One of the old brigade, who 'wrote “ Merrie England,” which reached the million mark, and too many others to record here, Mr Blatchford has a wide circle of admirers. He has long held advanced views, and made sacrifices for his convictions, but he has had a happy and full life. In the evening of his days he presents some old favourites which will be new to many readers, and some new stories which will be welcomed by old friends. He has been described by the editor of a literary weekly as “ one of the three best living writers of English prose.” Though that opinion will not by any means be universally endorsed there is no question that he. is one of ' the world’s leading writers of vigorous and clean Anglo-Saxon. Moreover, he has the qualities which make great writers—elegance of phrase, human feeling, insight, a balance of values, and humour. In the book before us there is much good work. Some of it is old—“ The Scrumptious Girl” was a favourite perhaps thirty years ago. It will be enjoyed with equal gusto thirty years hence. And that 'is the only test of good work. In the twenty-six stories and sketches which make up “ Shadow Shapes ” the whole gamut of human life is traversed. Some are good and some are better, but