5 DECEMBER 1931, Page 24

Gallant Gentlemen, by E. Keble Chatterton (Hurst and Blackett, 10s.

6d.) is a popular book on the exploits of the Allied Arms at sea. It is written with probably more knowledge than most of them ; the episodes are well chosen, many of them being quite unknown to the general public and some of them reflecting credit on the navies of other Powers than Great Britain ; and there is an interesting final chapter on the suppression of piracy in Chinese waters after the War. The points of the various actions discussed are clearly explained without too much technical detail. The one serious blot on the book is the frequency of grammatical mistakes, and stilt more of clumsy constructions. It would have put an agreeable finish on a good job to have corrected them.

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