BOOKS—NEW AND OLD
NEW STUDY OF LINCOLN
“Honest Abe,” by Alonzo Rothschild (A Study in Integrity Based on the Early Life of Abraham Lincoln. 374 pages. Illustrated. Houghton Mifflin Co., Boston & New York, 1917. Price, $2.00), is in a measure a sequel to the author’s earlier study of the great liberator, “Lincoln, Master of Men” (Houghton Mifflin, 1909). Mr. Rothschild’s premature death prevented him from completing the present study; nevertheless the book shows no sign of abrupt ending. Those who found pleasure and profit in “Lincoln, Master of Men” will be repaid by the careful reading of “Honest Abe.” It is interesting to note that Mr. Rothschild, for whose biography as an appendix to this present volume we are indebted to his son, belonged to the present generation of those who knew Lincoln as a great hero of the past. Yet, the Lincoln of his portrayal is as living and real as the Lincoln known to his contemporaries, without the halo of legend or myth. Of great value to the student are Mr. Rothschild’s notes and Lincoln bibliography. How is it, one may ask after reading Mr. Rothschild’s biography, that he, a German Jewish immigrant, was attracted to Lincoln and the study of his character? How is it too, that the late Solomon Schechter, Rabbinic scholar, sprung from a Roumanian Yeshibah, studied Lincoln and wrote a pamphlet on Lincoln, taking time from his theologic writings to do so? The answer is: Lincoln, or rather: “Honest Abe.”
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NATIONALISM
Mr. Tagore writes with fluency and feeling of his conception of nationalism, in this little volume (Nationalism, by Rabindrath Tagore, Macmillan Co., N. Y. 1917. Price, $1.25), giving expression to an idealism in national aspiration which is refreshing. There is a note of resentment in his analysis of the British administration in India, and a note of warning in his address to the Japanese. To him, the cultural nationalism of a people is of greater importance and ethical significance than the political nationalism which aims to conquer by use of the machinery of government. He sees a little bit too much of the mechanics of government, and too little. of the cultural values that government expresses.
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"SACRIFICE" AND OTHER PLAYS
The plays collected here (“Sacrifice” and other plays, by Rabindrath Tagore, Macmillan Co., New York. 1917. Price, $1.50) written by Mr. Tagore in a vein of Indian mysticism, are refreshing for their unusual vision of life. The style is simple, the stories unassuming but suggestive of universal law, and the tone lofty and impressive. At first, one is confused by the strange allusions and the colloquialisms that seem out of place, but the cumulative effect is reassuring and at times highly tonic. Of course, few of the plays could be acted, but that is of no consequence. L. L.
NOTABLE ARTICLE ON RESTORATION
The daily press and periodicals in England are now naturally paying much attention to the great events pertaining to the Jews and Palestine which have been so momentously shaped by English policy. A new chapter is thus being added to the splendid literary productions which have drawn upon Jewish inspiration and which form so integral a part af Enslish literature.
Perhaps the most notable contribution to the new literature of Jewish restoration appeared in the Palestine number of “The London Times History and Encyclopaedia of the War,” issued on January 15th. The first part of the magazine is devoted to a comprehensive illustrated article on the military campaign in Palestine while the second part presents an exhaustive, sympathetic, and splendidly-written study of Zionist aspirations and achievements under the title of “The Jews in Palestine.” The article is unsigned and is clearly written by a non-Jew. Beginning with a description of Jewish conditions in the Diaspora, the writer traces the Zionist movement from its very inception in the time of the Chovevi Zion, follows with accuracy and unusual understanding all the important developments of the Zionist organization, dealing at considerable length with the colonies, congresses and later Palestinian institutions and down from the occurrences of the war and to the dramatic climax furnished by the British declaration. Especially notable is the writer’s clear comprehension of the struggle between the Zionists and the Assimilationists. After stating the position of the Assimilationists, he goes on to say: