30 NOVEMBER 1918, Page 23

South America and the War. By F. A. Kirkpatrick. (Cambridge

University Press. 4s. 6d. net.)—This is a most instructive little book on a large and important subject. The author points out that Germany has taken immense pains to cultivate her trade with South and Central America, and that though many of the Republics! severed relations with her or declared war, her position in Mexico has been unaffected, and her influence in Chile, Argentina, and Venezuela, above all, is still very considerable, owing to the large German mercantile communities in those States and to the very careful organization of the political and economic propaganda directed from Germany. America is making a vigorous effort to extend her trade with the Latin Republics, and Pan-Americanism, Mr. Kirkpatrick believes, has made progress during the war, owing in no small degree to the tact and restraint of President Wilson. The author thinks that Great Britain regards South America with a certain aloofness ; though much British capital is invested there, the personal relations between us and the South Americans are far from intimate. South America has sustained heavy losses during the war, but has learned to depend more on her own manufactures since the diversion of shipping to European war purposes produced a scarcity of foreign goods in South American warehouses. To that extent the war has been a benefit to her.