have often sought to justify themselves by state's rights arguments. As a remedy for extreme individualism Mr. Vrooman argues that we should adopt what he calls the "new politics"-a phrase which he nowhere defines but which he implies to be a steering of governmental activities between extreme individualism and socialism, and a recognition of a power in the national government to deal with all problems which are national in scope; this proposed remedy the author puts forward with all the complacency of a first discoverer. There is something of value in the book in its advocacy of a closer correlation of ethics and politics, and in its contention that individualism as a philosophy does not fit existing conditions. But the author appears not to be sufficiently well trained for the writing of a book of generalization, and his book contains much declamatory matter which would be more in place if found in a high school oration.

Legal Doctrine and Social Progress by Frank Parsons (New York: Heubsch, pp. xvi, 219), was published after the author's death and this fact accounts for some minor errors which would undoubtedly have been corrected had the author seen the book through the press. The volume is in large part devoted to an elementary statement of constitutional and legal principles; its main thesis that law is an instrument of society which must change to meet new social conditions, is not made with sufficient clearness. The author properly speaks of law as almost necessarily a conservative force, but thinks that the courts themselves will adjust law to new conditions without the need of legislative action. But this is just what the courts are not doing, and legislation has usually been necessary to supplement judge-made law and to bring it into touch with new industrial and social conditions. The author seems not to have realized the force of a developed body of judge-made law in retarding an adaptation of legal principles to new conditions. But it is not to be denied that there is truth in his statement that: "Progress must always be secured at some cost and that cost consists of two things, the striving of the radicals under the impulse of ideals to carry new laws or to educate society to the point where it will enact new laws, and the cramping of society by outworn laws before it generates the energy to slough them off and create new forms. It is far better generally to secure progress at the expense of some cramping because not obtained fast enough, than to sacrifice it to the whims and passing passion of a great radical uprooting." But the courts alone have not proven adequate

instruments even for the conservative adaptation of legal principles to new social needs, and must be aided by legislation. The volume presents nothing that is essentially new either of fact or of point of view, and its value is weakened by the fact that in it the author took occasion to express his own views regarding practically all the problems which now confront society. The book lacks unity and whatever message it has is obscured.

Besides the work of Mr. Norman Bentwich, reviewed in this number, two other works dealing with the Declaration of London, by important writers, have recently made their appearance. The first, by the Right Hon. Arthur Cohen (The Declaration of London, London: University of London Press, 1911; 183 pages), is in substance a reprint of lectures delivered at the University of London by this distinguished authority on maritime law. His analysis of the existing international maritime law and his close reasoning as to the changes effected by the declaration, indicate a thorough mastery of the subject. Mr. Cohen approves the ratification of the Declaration. The appendix contains an English translation of the Report of the draft Commission, which is to be accepted as the authorized interpretation of the Declaration. This valuable document was omitted from Mr. Bentwich's book.

The other work, by Dr. Baty (Britain and Sea-Law, London: G. Bell and Sons, 1911, 112 pages) attacks the Declaration vigorously. It is distinguished from some of the other criticisms of the Declaration, such as that by Bowles, by the fact that it supports its arguments on legal grounds. The keynote to Baty's objection is that the Declaration seems to him to be "no attempt to gain a security which at present we [Great Britain] have not got, but an unnecessary surrender of established rights." He contends that there is no justification for the destruction of neutral prizes under any circumstances, that foodstuffs should never be considered contraband, and that the penalty for carrying contraband should be confiscation of the goods only. Mr. Bentwich in his work has dealt very ably with all these objections, and it is believed, has shown that they are not tenable. Dr. Baty's book is one of the best reasoned of the works which have opposed the ratification of the Declaration of London.

Report of an Investigation of the Methods of Fiscal Control of State Institutions by H. C. Wright with an introduction by Homer Folks

(New York: United Charities, 1911, pp. 353) is one result of a recommendation made by Governor Hughes to the New York legislature of 1909 for the establishment of a board of control over the finances of state institutions. The report consists of two parts, the first of which deals with the methods of control in New York while the second is a comparative study of the method adopted in New York, Indiana and Iowa. The investigation was made on the Russell Sage Foundation and under the supervision of the New York State Charities Aid Association. Mr. Wright had access to the records, accounts and other data of various New York institutions and to the records in the offices of the State Auditor and the Board of State Charities in Indiana and in the office of the Board of Control in Iowa. The result of the investigation is largely negative in character. Centralization

is found to make for cheapness, but not for economy. No suggestions for legislative enactment are formulated.

Readings in Political Science, selected and edited by Raymond Garfield Gettell (Boston: Ginn & Co., pp. xli, 528), is designed to accompany the same author's Introduction to Political Science, although, as Professor Gettell suggests, it may equally well be used in connection with any other manual covering the general field of political science. The volume is made up of brief extracts, averaging about a page in length, taken "from books the majority of which will be found in every well appointed college library." There are, for example, about five pages devoted to the initiative and referendum, and here there are five extracts, one from Lowell, dealing with the origin of the referendum in Switzerland; one from Oberholtzer on the extension of the principles of the initiative and referendum; an extract from Beard's American Government and Politics on the initiative and referendum in the United States; an extract from the Arena containing arguments for the referendum; and another extract from Beard summarizing the arguments against the initiative and referendum. Here as elsewhere throughout the book the editor's selections have been made with care and have been skillfully classified and arranged, but within the scope of one volume it is impossible to cover the subjects with sufficient thoroughness. Professor Gettell's work on this account suggests the question whether the general field of political science is one which lends itself satisfactorily to treatment in a book of Readings.

Outline of the Organization and Work of the Department of State. Prepared by direction of the Secretary of State. (Washington, Government Printing Office, 1911. 92 pages.) This is an interesting account of the duties and functions of all the more important divisions, bureaus and officials of the Department of State. It was prepared principally to report the activities of the Department since the appropriation for "foreign trade and treaty relations" under the Act of August 5, 1909, and to show how the reorganization of the Department under that Act was effected. Some account is given of the personnel called to fill the new positions created under the reorganized plan. One of the many interesting features of the report is the statement of the diverse kinds of questions which have come before the various officials, particularly the Office of the Solicitor. There is a brief history of the Department and a concluding statement on the operation of the merit system in the appointment of consular officers. The various executive orders which carried this new system into effect are briefly described. The recent difficulties before the House Committee on Expenditures in the State Department probably account for an admission in the report that there is room for improvement in the Bureau of Accounts. The blame for certain cumbersome practices still in use is laid to the survival of archaic methods due to certain statutes which are mandatory upon the Department. The report will probably be followed by a recommendation to Congress for new appropriations for the Department and new legislation to increase its efficiency. The report constitutes a useful supplement to the series of articles by Gaillard Hunt on the history of the Department of State, now appearing in the American Journal of International Law.

The recent book by Carl S. Vrooman on "American Railway Problems in the Light of European Experience, or Government Regulation versus Government Operation of Railways" (Henry Frowde, Oxford University Press, London, 1910, pp. xii, 376) is by no means a profound study, nor indeed does it pretend to be so. It is thoroughly readable, however, and, though it contains errors and defects which the specialist on railway problems will readily detect, it nevertheless will prove of some assistance to many desiring a brief and not too technical account of how Europe has attempted to meet problems with which we are now contending.

The present activity in our states with respect to the initiative and referendum has produced a corresponding activity in the production of books. A second edition has just appeared of Dr. E. P. Oberholtzer's Referendum in America, "together with some chapters on the Initiative and the Recall" (New York: Scribners, pp. xii, 533). Instead of revising his work throughout Dr. Oberholtzer has adopted the plan of adding four supplementary chapters, which cover the years from 1900 (the date of the first edition) to 1911. These supplementary chapters deal with the initiative and referendum in the states, the local referendum, the recall, and the referendum vs. the representative system. The chapter on the initiative and referendum. in the states is an excellent summary of the development of these institutions since 1898, but equally high praise cannot be given to the other three chapters. In all of his supplementary chapters the author's statements of fact are in the main correct, but three of the four are too much devoted to declamatory utterances against the initiative, referendum and recall. The author does not show the soberness and impartiality which characterized the first edition of his work. The new edition of his book will, however, be of great use to all students of the initiative, referendum and recall. The H. W. Wilson Company of Minneapolis has issued a second and enlarged edition of its Selected Articles on the Initiative and Referendum. (Pp. xxxi, 164.) This volume is in the "Debater's Handbook Series" and does not seek to add anything to the discussion of the subject, but it has a useful bibliography. Mr. B. E. Schultz and Prof. Charles A. Beard have published through the Macmillan Company a volume of Documents on the State Wide Initiative, Referendum and Recall, which includes all of the constitutional amendments adopted or now pending, and also some of the most important statutes elaborating the constitutional provisions. Prof. W. B. Munro is editing a series of selected papers on The Initiative, Referendum and Recall for the National Municipal League Series being published by D. Appleton & Co. In the near future a number of the Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science will be devoted to the same subjects.1

Several of the book notes in this department of the REVIEW were prepared by Messrs. E. M. Borchardt and J. M. Mathews.