12 MAY 1928, Page 33

Two books which cover a great deal of the same

ground are Powers and Pillars, by Herr Rudolf Kircher (Collins, 25s.) and Westminster Voices, by Mr. James Johnston (Hodder. and Stoughton, 12s. 6c1.). Herr Kircher's is pure journalism but has the great interest of telling English people how our outstanding men strike this clever correspondent of the Frankfurter Zeitung. He deals with all sorts of persons, finan- ciers, pressmen, and Mr. Jack Hobbs ; but it is chiefly a study of the rulers. He says many shrewd things and sums up our attitude towards the Jewish question in an excellent and highly sympathetic sketch of Lord Reading. The photographs are excellent. —Mr. Johnston is presumably. an observer of. Parliament from the Press gallery : nohow else could he be so documented on Parliamentary speakers, who will find his dis-

cussion stimulating. On the whole, he puts -Lord Hugh Cecil the highest of them all ; but his characterization of every leading exponent of the art at Westminster is baseZ on thought and observation.

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