Ohio History Journal

68                                          OHIO HISTORY

H. Siebert of Ohio State University,

through his writings based partly on un-

critical acceptance of abolitionist evidence

at a time when the psychological atmos-

phere lent itself to glorification of the

Underground Railroad, did much to per-

petuate the legend. An examination of his

writings and of many others that follow

the same line leads to the conclusion that

the sources used in producing them were

not entirely authoritative.

HENRY H. SIMMS

Ohio State University

THE MIDWEST: MYTH OR REALITY? Edited

by Thomas T. McAvoy, C.S.C. (Notre

Dame, Ind.; University of Notre Dame

Press, 1961. vii+96p. $3.50.)

This record of a symposium held at the

University of Notre Dame in April 1960

examines the Midwest from sociological,

economic, political, and cultural angles.

The six panel members deal with "the

chief criticisms of the Midwest in the

second half of the twentieth century"--

questions of the region's identity, its

attitudes, its problems and prospects.

Historically there has been a definite

and distinctive Midwest. It began as the

West, then it was the Northwest, and by

1850, when the West moved beyond the

Missouri, it became the Midwest. Under

all these names it was distinct and differ-

ent, newer, more energetic, and more

adaptable to change than the older sec-

tions of the United States. "Europe," said

Ralph Waldo Emerson in the 1840's,

"reaches to the Alleghenies; America

stretches beyond." Lord Bryce called the

Midwest the most American part of

America.

Is the Midwest, a century later, a sepa-

rate entity? To this underlying question

the panelists answer that it is less sepa-

rate but still an entity. Professor Russel

B. Nye finds the region still capable of

protest; Professor Jay Wylie, with the

help of statistics, demonstrates the integ-

rity of its economy; Father Thomas

McAvoy points out the melding of Yan-

kee, southern, and immigrant strains in

the Midwest mind, a melding which pro-

duced a combination of tolerance, indi-

vidualism, and practicality. This con-

siderable claim could probably have been

documented if Father McAvoy had had

more space than his twenty-two pages.

The liveliest essay comes from a journ-

alist, Donald R. Murphy of Wallace's

Farmer, who discusses the dilemma of the

Midwest farmer who tries to beat declin-

ing prices by increasing production,

which depresses prices further. He makes

a persuasive plea for the family farm, a

sociological aim which in the face of eco-

nomic realities is easier to agree upon

than to realize.

In his essay on midwestern literature

John T. Flanagan provides a balanced and

enlightening survey of a big subject. He

stresses the realism of Midwest writing,

its use of the vernacular--as in Mark

Twain, Kirkland, Eggleston, and Ade--

and its healthy criticism of the status quo

in both rural and urban life.

In a final brief comment John T. Fred-

erick brings the Midwest into the clearest

focus. He sees the region's diversity, its

continuing processes of change, and its

unawareness of its own identity. To help

people examine their society is the pur-

pose of a book like this.

WALTER HAVIGHURST

Miami University

THE WELSH IN AMERICA:LETTERS FROM

THE IMMIGRANTS. Edited by Alan Con-

way. (Minneapolis: University of Min-

nesota Press, 1961. 341p.; bibliography

and index. $6.00.)

AMERICA'S POLISH HERITAGE: A SOCIAL

HISTORY OF THE POLES IN AMERICA. By

Joseph A. Wytrwal. (Detroit: Endur-

ance Press, 1961. xxxi + 350p.; bibli-

ography, appendix, and index. $6.50.)

These two volumes illustrate the ex-

tensive research which is currently being

done on the contributions of various

immigrant groups to American life. In

each case the author has facility in the

BOOK REVIEWS                                          69

language used by the people involved,

an advantage not generally claimed by

present-day scholars.

The first volume contains 197 letters,

most of them originally written in Welsh,

edited by a lecturer in American history

at the University College of Wales, Ab-

erystwyth, Wales. The letters are ar-

ranged chronologically and geographi-

cally, beginning with those which tell of

the voyage across the Atlantic. Additional

letters are from the farming areas of

New York, Pennsylvania, and various

midwestern states; from Welsh settle-

ments on the Great Plains; from the

coal mines and the iron and steel produc-

tion regions of Pennsylvania and other

states; from the mines of California and

Colorado; and from the Mormon com-

munities of Utah. Ohioans will be espe-

cially interested in letters from Granville,

Paddy's Run (Butler County), Van Wert

County, and other areas of Welsh settle-

ment. Many of the letters are written in

a tone of deep discouragement, but those

from Ohio are universally optimistic.

The volume on the social history of

the Polish-Americans fills a very large

gap. The author, who knows well the

Polish-American milieu, has his doctorate

from the University of Michigan and

during the past year has taught at the

University of Detroit. He has used li-

braries in Poland and in various centers

of Polish culture in the United States.

There are chapters dealing with the Old

World historical background, Polish mi-

gration in colonial times, migration

prompted largely by political motivation

before 1870, and that stimulated espe-

cially by economic causes after 1870.

Extensive treatment is also given to the

Polish National Alliance, to the Polish

Roman Catholic Union, to Polish-Ameri-

can participation in each World War, and

to other phases of Polish-American life.

The author states in his introduction:

"It is still correct that the history of

immigration in the United States, espe-

cially in its relation to other phases of

history, has been, comparatively speak-

ing, sadly neglected in detail and in

general" (p. xxvii).

In view of the vast amount of research

published regarding German, Scotch-

Irish, Swedish, Norwegian, and other

groups in the United States, this may

well be an overstatement, more true of

Polish-American groups than some others.

Indeed, the author's extensively docu-

mented chapters are revealing as to the

great strides which have been made in

research relating to Polish-American com-

munities and institutions. Ohioans will be

interested in the numerous references to

Ohio areas. The author exhibits a firm

intention to be objective, but he certainly

minimizes the importance of the Polish

National Catholic Church, which sepa-

rated from Roman Catholicism in the

United States. He states that this or-

ganization has about 75,000 members (p.

103), but the World Almanac, 1961 (p.

696) places the membership at 282,411.

FRANCIS P. WEISENBURGER

Ohio State University

SAMUEL ROBERTS: A WELSH COLONIZER IN

CIVIL WAR TENNESSEE. By Wilbur S.

Shepperson. (Knoxville: University of

Tennessee Press, 1961. xi +  169p.;

illustrations, appendices, bibliography,

and index. $5.00.)

The story of Samuel Roberts (1800-

1885) illustrates many of the problems,

frustrations, and rewards of European

immigrants in the last century. The

Welsh preacher, journalist, and reformer

decided in 1857 to move to the United

States, where his cousin, William Bebb,

had already been governor of Ohio. In

eastern Tennessee he established a colony

as a refuge for his oppressed fellow-

countrymen from Wales. Reluctance of

the Welsh to migrate, the preference of

those who did for Ohio, and other diffi-

culties too great to be overcome led

Roberts to return to Wales ten years later,

where he died. The experiment was a

failure. In Shepperson's account the first

70                                        OHIO HISTORY

chapter covers Welsh backgrounds, the

next three deal with conflicts over land

titles in Tennessee, Roberts' associates,

and his developmental and promotional

projects (among them vineyards, sheep

raising, mining, and railroads), the fifth

with his work as a journalist, preacher,

and political leader, and the sixth with

the final years in Wales. A brief con-

cluding chapter offers a balanced and

perceptive summary of the reformer's

career. The story contains far more about

the Welsh in Ohio than about the Civil

War in Tennessee, and the proportions

are a wholesome reminder that the im-

migrant's experience was often quite

different from the oversimplified "in-

terpretations" of the American past now

widely current. Failure rather than suc-

cess, repatriation instead of new founda-

tions, and a thorny, uncompromising

individualism rather than democratic

blending, leveling, reconciliation, and co-

operation are strikingly evident.

The author, a graduate of Western

Reserve University and long a student

of British emigration to America, has

searched a wealth of records in Wash-

ington, London, Wales, Huntsville,

Tennessee, and elsewhere and produced

a narrative (not a biography) that is

readable, impressively detailed, clear,

and illuminating. Although it does not

center on a major topic, it will be of

much interest to all who are seriously

concerned with Ohio and Tennessee

history, the Civil War period, the Welsh,

and the story of immigration.

HARRY R. STEVENS

Ohio University

REMEMBER THE RAISIN! KENTUCKY AND

KENTUCKIANS IN THE BATTLES AND

MASSACRE AT FRENCHTOWN, MICHIGAN

TERRITORY, IN THE WAR OF 1812. By G.

Glenn Clift, with a prologue by E.

Merton Coulter. (Frankfort: Kentucky

Historical Society, 1961. xiii + 281p.;

end-paper maps, appendix, bibliog-

raphy, and index. $6.00.)

On the eve of the sesquicentennial of

the War of 1812, it is fitting that the

Kentucky Historical Society has pub-

lished this account of the role of Ken-

tuckians in the prelude, battles, and

massacre at Frenchtown on the River

Raisin, the present site of Monroe,

Michigan. Glenn Clift, assistant director

of the society since 1950, has compiled

an interesting, oft-times fascinating record

of what was once optimistically styled the

"Army of Canada" from its departure

from Georgetown, Kentucky, on August

19, 1812, to its destruction in the snows

of the Raisin Valley, January 18-23, 1813.

Preceded by a lengthy prologue dealing

with the causes of the war, the story of

this ill-fated expedition has been skill-

fully pieced together from such letters,

diaries, and memoirs as have survived.

From these accounts, valued insight is

afforded for such figures of controversy

as William Henry Harrison, James Win-

chester, and Henry A. Proctor. Harrison

emerges as a general who could do no

wrong in the estimation of his men. In

striking contrast, Winchester appears as

a bungler bent on achieving success at

Frenchtown in order to further his own

advancement. How detested he was by

some of his troops is evidenced by the

following humorous excerpt from the

diary of Private William B. Northcutt

(p. 31):

I always had some misgiveings about

Winchester's Success with his Army,

Knowing that he was not loved by his

men, for they all despised him, and

were continually playing some of their

tricks of[f] on him. At one Encampment,

they killed a porcupine and skined it

and stretched the Skin over a pole that

he used for a particular purpose in the

night, and he went and sat down on it,

and it like to have ruined him. At an-

other Encampment they sawed his pole

that he had for the same purpose nearly

in two, so that when he went to use it

in the night it broke intoo and let his

Generalship, Uniform and all fall Back-

wards in no very decent place, for I seen

his Regimentals hanging high upon a

BOOK REVIEWS                                         71

pole the next day taking the fresh air.

Somehow it seemed almost fitting that

Winchester's "Regimentals" would end

up on the person of his captor, a drunken

Indian known by the sobriquet of

"Brandy Jack," who subsequently strut-

ted about the battlefield at Frenchtown

garbed in the general's cocked hat, coat,

and epaulets.

As for Henry Proctor, his culpability

for the Indian massacre of the wounded

prisoners left behind by his departing

troops at Frenchtown on January 23,

1813, while not diminished by the evi-

dence of his prior assurance of protection

for these prisoners, is at least made un-

derstandable in terms of his fear that

Harrison's army was about to attack

and that his return to the safety of Fort

Maiden and Detroit would be hampered

by the wounded Kentuckians in his

custody.

Genealogists will be pleased with the

biographical sketches of the key figures

of the campaign as well as with the troop

rosters of the Kentucky companies in-

volved in the debacle at la Riviere aux

Raisins.

PHILLIP R. SHRIVER

Kent State University

THE ST. LAWRENCE WATERWAY: A STUDY

IN POLITICS AND DIPLOMACY. By Wil-

liam R. Willoughby. (Madison: Uni-

versity of Wisconsin Press, 1961. xiv

^{+ 3}81p.; illustrations, bibliography,

and index. $6.00.)

This timely volume is concerned with

the history of the improvement of navi-

gation on the Great Lakes--St. Lawrence

River system from the period of its

earliest improvement to the end of the

¹⁹⁵0's. Professor Willoughby devotes

some sixty pages to the years before

1900, another seventy or so to the period

from 1900 to 1930, and the balance

(some 150 pages) to the years from

1930 to 1960. This obviously means that

earlier developments have to be treated

rather cursorily, but on the whole Pro-

fessor Willoughby skillfully summarizes

the early progress on the improvement of

the waterway system. His greatest con-

centration, however, is on the long strug-

gles that finally led to the carrying out

of the St. Lawrence Seaway project in

the 1950's.

As the subtitle of the work indicates,

Professor Willoughby is concerned pri-

marily with the political and diplomatic

discussions and arguments on this con-

troversial subject, and he deals with

economic questions only in so far as they

affect the political and diplomatic de-

velopments. The author succeeds in pre-

senting the many ramifications of the

struggle with clarity. He successfully

demonstrates how the obvious problem of

the cost of improvement has been com-

plicated at least since 1783 by national

and sectional rivalry. A major problem

was that the successful struggle for

American independence meant that the

Great Lakes--St. Lawrence system was

artificially divided by the Canadian-

American boundary. The uncertainty of

British-American relations in the nine-

teenth century considerably complicated

the task of those who wished to establish

an improved and unified water route to

the sea. Even when British-American

relations ceased to be a major obstacle,

the task of agreement was complicated by

American and Canadian nationalism, the

Americans fearing dependence on a route

that would pass through a foreign coun-

try, and the Canadians fearing domina-

tion by their powerful southern neighbor.

Professor Willoughby shows the sensi-

tivity of opinion in both Canada and the

United States, and traces with care the

tortuous and at times seemingly intermin-

able negotiations that made the seaway

possible.

He also delves perceptively into the

internal disagreements in both Canada

and the United States, and shows how the

difficulties posed in Canada by the prov-

inces of Quebec and Ontario were

matched in the United States by the

72                                        OHIO HISTORY

problems posed by the state of New York

and by many special interest groups.

Even the politicians who generally favored

the seaway were limited by the difficulties

of gauging popular support. Professor

Willoughby's examination of the role of

the various pressure groups has an in-

terest that transcends the particular sub-

ject with which he is concerned.

In short, this is not a work hastily

produced to take advantage of the current

interest in the St. Lawrence Seaway. It

is a carefully prepared and thoughtful

book, and it deserves to reach a wide

audience.

REGINALD HORSMAN

University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee

TRIMMERS, TRUCKLERS, & TEMPORIZERS:

NOTES OF MURAT HALSTEAD FROM THE

POLITICAL CONVENTIONS OF 1856. Edited

by William B. Hesseltine and Rex G.

Fisher. (Madison: State Historical So-

ciety of Wisconsin, 1961. xiv + 114p.;

index. $3.50.)

Historians long have profited from

Murat Halstead's Caucuses of 1860, which

Hesseltine and Fisher correctly describe

as "a basic source book." Perhaps be-

cause of preoccupation with Lincoln and

the Wigwam intricacies, fewer scholars

are familiar with Halstead's 1856 con-

vention notes. By assembling the jour-

nalist's earlier reports in this attractive

little volume, the editors have performed

a valuable service. Henceforth there will

be less excuse for ignorance about

maneuvers preceding James Buchanan's

election.

Whether written in '56 or in '60, Hal-

stead's appraisals were partisan. The

Ohio newspaperman made no secret of

his allegiance to Republicanism or of his

devotion to the antislavery cause. Over-

simplifying complex issues as a propa-

gandist to the manner born, he hoped

for the nomination of candidates who

would fight for fundamentals. In a sense,

he was more disappointed by the Repub-

licans' selection of John C. Fremont than

by the Democrats' choice of Buchanan.

Halstead thought that liberty would be

served well if the people were given an

opportunity to be disillusioned by "Old

Buck."

Halstead's characterizations suggest his

lack of reverence for prominent politicians

--or should we call it realism? Buchanan

was an "experienced and veteran camp

follower"; Millard Fillmore, "a mere

consequent"; Franklin Pierce, "com-

mander-in-chief of office holders";

Stephen A. Douglas, "a dishonest truck-

ler" and "an ill-conditioned ape." Per-

haps by coincidence, the Cincinnatian

enjoyed identifying northwesterners with

denizens of the animal kingdom. "Imagine

a bull frog played upon by a steam

whistle and you have" John Pettit of

Indiana. As for Henry S. Lane, he was

"a man about six feet high, marvelously

lean, his front teeth out, his complexion

between a sun blister and the yellow fever,

and his small eyes glistening like those of

a wild cat."

The editors say that Halstead "made

no pretense of objectivity" but had "a

skepticism that bordered on objectivity."

There are typically partisan tricks in his

different attitudes toward Douglas before

and after Buchanan's nomination, and in

the altered reaction to John C. Breckin-

ridge between June and September.

Halstead made a fine contribution in

covering the second Know Nothing con-

vention. He missed the significance of

John Slidell and Slidell's Democratic inti-

mates in Cincinnati. Cynicism, color,

controversy, humor, accurate and mis-

leading predictions, "Colonel" Abraham

Lincoln, and at least one prevarication

are included in these reports. It is re-

grettable that Halstead did not attend the

Whigs' Baltimore convention in Septem-

ber 1856.

HOLMAN HAMILTON

University of Kentucky

FROM HUMBLE BEGINNINGS: WEST VIR-

GINIA STATE FEDERATION OF LABOR,

1903-1957. By Evelyn L. K. Harris and

BOOK REVIEWS                                       73

Frank J. Krebs. (Charleston: West Vir-

ginia Labor History Publishing Fund

Committee, 1961. xxv+⁵⁵³p.; illustra-

tions, appendix, and index. $5.00.)

Professors Harris and Krebs have pre-

sented social scientists with a carefully

written and well documented history of

the West Virginia State Federation of La-

bor from the date of its formation, with

an uncertain future, in 1903 through

1957, when the organization stood as a

symbol of the new AFL-CIO. From Hum-

ble Beginnings supplies the kind of in-

formation that will enable historians of

the labor movement to give a better em-

phasis to grass roots developments. Al-

though this project was subsidized by the

federation, the authors have been especi-

ally fair in their treatment of moot ques-

tions.

The volume is admirably organized.

The titles of the twelve chapters literally

give the reader a synopsis. By way of

illustration the first chapter is entitled

"Organization and Dissolution, 1903-

1907." The title of the fifth chapter, "The

Fight for Survival, 1905-1929," is equally

suggestive.

Many labor histories stress only to-

getherness. The story of the West Vir-

ginia Federation of Labor also demon-

strates the presence of schisms, jealousies,

internal rivalries, and the conflicting goals

found in the world of labor.

The federation was brought into exist-

ence primarily through the efforts of old-

time leaders. In fact, some of the spon-

sors and founders had been members of,

and were greatly influenced by, the de-

funct Knights of Labor. On many occa-

sions the federation was reduced to a

skeleton membership. Certain craft un-

ions, however, were determined to give

the organization life. The entire story

reveals the importance of experienced

craft unions, such as the typographical

and carpenters unions, in guiding the for-

tunes of the federation.

What were the accomplishments of the

federation? Basically it cooperated with

other groups in demanding social legisla-

tion. It helped bring about a sound work-

men's compensation act and woman's

suffrage. It fought to strengthen the role

of the West Virginia Labor Commis-

sioner. There is, however, another ser-

vice that has been so frequently over-

looked. The federation aided in the

organization of new unions, and it as-

sisted small unions engaged in long

strikes.

In any history of labor in West Vir-

ginia, obviously, the miners play an im-

portant role. The relations between the

craft unions and the industrial mining

unions are discussed in some detail.

From Humble Beginnings is not dra-

matic. No one individual is singled out

as the hero. In a sense the authors play

the role of reporters--but very good re-

porters. Professors Harris and Krebs

have digested their materials and have

told their story well and honestly.

The illustrations have been chosen with

some care. The great body of information

relegated to the appendix should be help-

ful to many specialists. The very com-

plete index leaves the reader with a good

taste.

SIDNEY GLAZER

Wayne State University

OLD GENTLEMEN'S CONVENTION: THE

WASHINGTON PEACE CONFERENCE OF

1861. By Robert Gray Gunderson.

(Madison: University of Wisconsin

Press, 1961. xiii+168p.; illustrations,

appendix, bibliography, and index.

$5.00.)

The secession of the six cotton states by

February 1, 1861, stemmed from fears

that the election of the Republican Lin-

coln on a platform opposing the extension

of slavery would end the political domi-

nation of the national government by the

slave states and that the eventual extinc-

tion of slavery impended. Lincoln, along

with many in the North, believed that se-

cession was a temporary crisis, and the

general policy of northern moderates be-

came one of retaining the border states in

74                                    OHIO HISTORY

the Union and providing additional time

for the gulf states to reconsider their

hasty action. Attempts at compromise

were made to achieve this goal but were

rejected by Republicans in the "lame

duck" congress as yielding to slavery by

permitting its extension into the terri-

tories, a cardinal point demanded of con-

ciliators by the South. Although the 1860

election results indicated that moderation

was approved by the majority both north

and south, "radicals" in one section and

"fire-eaters" in the other managed to

nullify all compromise endeavors and thus

precipitated the Civil War. The Wash-

ington Peace Conference, which met from

February 4 through 27, 1861, was one

such effort at conciliation. It was insti-

gated by Virginia, one of the border

states that stood to lose the most in a

North-South struggle.

This volume is a distinct contribution

to the understanding of the purposes and

achievements of this assembly, which de-

rived its title from the age of the dele-

gates. Most of them were the elder states-

men of the nation, endeavoring to com-

promise sectional differences once again.

The author's theme is the necessity of

these mediators to organize the nation's

moderate majority into cohesive action

to offset the activities of the more radical

controlling minorities of both sections and

thus avoid conflict. In an age that vener-

ated and was influenced by elocution, the

old gentlemen utilized their oratorical

abilities in a sincere effort to alleviate the

sectional strife. The extremists of the two

sections, unwilling to yield, were not

represented. Wisconsin, Minnesota, and

Michigan refused to arbitrate with "trai-

tors," and the seceded states sent dele-

gates to Montgomery instead, where,

meeting on the same day as the Washing-

ton Conference, the Confederate States of

America was formed. But the delegates

from the twenty-one states that responded

to Virginia's call were successful in nego-

tiating a settlement quite similar to the

Crittenden proposals, which they sub-

mitted to congress as a proposed thir-

teenth amendment to the constitution. But

the principal point, like Crittenden's, was

the extension of the Missouri Compromise

line. Congress was controlled by a Re-

publican minority and, already having re-

jected the Crittenden plan, refused to sub-

mit the amendment to the states for con-

sideration.

The major contributions of the confer-

ence were, as Professor Gunderson as-

serts, its support of moderate forces in

the February elections held in some of

the border states on the question of se-

cession, and its assistance in holding the

border states in the Union until Lincoln

was inaugurated. This latter point should

have received more stress as it was the

major objective of Seward's strategy dur-

ing this period. Seward, Lincoln's spokes-

man in congress, was bending all his

efforts toward delay in secession in order

to retain the border states and to make

certain that Lincoln could be inaugurated

peacefully. Lincoln and Seward believed

that the seceded states would soon realize

their folly and that the Union then could

be reconstructed peacefully. But the pos-

sibility that Seward initiated the peace

conference as part of his plan of delay,

as declared by Henry Adams, is categori-

cally rejected by Professor Gunderson,

and the fact that this convention contrib-

uted much to Seward's success with his

policy does not receive the emphasis it de-

serves. And although the author rejects

the "irrepressible conflict" doctrine, the

book is studded with speeches and actions

of the more radical spokesmen of both

sides, leaving the impression that the con-

ference was futile from the beginning.

The title of the last chapter, "Better Now

Than Later," is taken from a letter from

Lincoln to William Kellogg in response

to a request for Lincoln's views on com-

promise. The president-elect is quoted as

saying, "If the tug has to come, better

now than later," but Lincoln was refer-

ring to the extension of slavery and not

to the inevitability of conflict as implied.

BOOK REVIEWS                                       75

And Lincoln's words were more positive

than the citation indicates, for he actu-

ally declared, "The tug has to come &

better now than later."

But this short volume, including only

one hundred pages of narrative, accur-

ately recreates the political atmosphere

of this turbulent period in a very read-

able style. Using primary sources, the

author manages to convey to the reader

the tense situation that existed between

Lincoln's election and his inauguration

and the compelling need for compromise

if belligerency was to be averted. Al-

though it is questionable whether this

topic can be treated adequately with such

brevity, this is a book that will attract

the general reader and add to the knowl-

edge of the expert.

R. ALTON LEE

Central State College,

Edmond, Oklahoma

HISTORY OF SOUTH DAKOTA. By Herbert

S. Schell. (Lincoln: University of Ne-

braska Press, 1961. xiii + ⁴²⁴p.; maps,

charts, supplementary reading list, and

index. $5.50.)

The history of a state is always in-

teresting because it brings to light sig-

nificant details which have not previously

been easily available, and, if the work

has been done by a competent scholar, it

provides a valuable source of material

for writers on the national level. The

History of South Dakota is both interest-

ing and scholarly. The author, Herbert S.

Schell, dean of the graduate school and

professor of American history in the

State University of South Dakota, has

been engaged in research on the history

of his state for thirty years. Besides

numerous articles, he has previously pub-

lished three books about South Dakota.

This book contains a comprehensive

account of the development of the state

to the present time. Chapter 1 deals with

the natural setting and Chapter 2 with

the Indians who inhabited Dakota. Then,

beginning with the first appearance of

French explorers in the region, the au-

thor relates the history of South Dakota

chronologically, except in the last four

chapters, which are summaries of special

subjects. Entitled in general "Reap-

praisal," they deal respectively with the

Sioux, the farm and ranch economy,

manufacturing and mining, and social

and cultural aspects of the state.

After having made two constitutions,

in 1883 and 1885, and without an ena-

bling act of congress, South Dakota was

admitted to the Union in 1889. As was

the case in other territories, discontent

with control from Washington spurred

the people to demand self-government.

Politically, the state has been Repub-

lican except for brief periods. In 1912

the electoral vote was cast for Theodore

Roosevelt, and in the following years a

broad progressive program to promote

social and economic welfare was carried

out under the leadership of Governor

Peter Norbeck. In dire straits as a result

of the depression, the people in 1932 gave

a majority to Franklin D. Roosevelt and

elected Democrats to every state office.

Although Roosevelt won again in 1936,

Republicans regained control of the state

government.

In spite of attempts at industrialization,

South Dakota is primarily agricultural,

with farms east of the Missouri River

and stock-raising ranches to the west.

Flour milling and meat packing are the

principal industries, and the production

of metals and non-metallic materials is

important in the state's economy.

There are a number of maps and charts,

and the end paper is a map of South

Dakota. Unfortunately, so few towns are

shown that the reader is often puzzled

about the scenes of action in the text.

A headpiece for each chapter is an

attractive feature, and thirty-two pages

of photographs are inserted in the center

of the book. A section of "Supplementary

Reading" and an index follow the text.

F. CLEVER BALD

University of Michigan