SOME BOOKS OF THE WEEK.
teaties in this column does not nee-snail," preclude subsequent rsetessJ
An Introduction to the Study of International Relations. (Macmillan and Co. 2s. 6d.)—This is a small book upon big subjects. Though the contributions to it may be called sketches, they do not deserve the depreciating epithet " sketchy," for each writer is a well-informed student of his subject, and the Council for the Study of International Relations will de good service if it stimulates further thought upon these lines. Professor A. J. Grant gives an historical resume of " War and Peace since 1315." He shows how the dream of the Holy Alliance came to nothing, first because England through Castlereagh would not consent to a policy of stagnation, and secondly because the Alliance could only impose its will by the force that it was formed to obliterate. The definite purposes that urged men like Bismarck and Napoleon
to lead their countries into war may recur in other forms, and if European wars are to be avoided a Court of Arbitration is not enough ; there must be some kind of European Directorate. Mr. F. Urquhart analyses the causes of wars of conquest or of principle. Ho shows how impossible it is that all nations should ever be content with a status quo, and writes with common-sense about democratic, control of foreign policy : " As a rule wars have been ' popular' " " nationalities have proved as self-assertive and acquisitive as the old kings " : the higher the standard of public opinion and the wider the comprehension of international problems, the better for the honest diplomatist, but " in knowledge of facts the professional will always have an advantage, and in moments of crisis secrecy is inevitable." Mr. Kerr's essay upon " The Relations between Advanced and Backward Peoples " seems remote from the immediate interests of to-day, but we would not wish it away, nor is it outside the scope of the book's title. It is full of strong sense and high principles. He takes the British Empire, and India in particular, as texts for his advice. He believes in the geographical segregation of the masses of races standing at different levels of civilization for the sake of both parties, but ho sees the advantages, and even necessity, of the higher nations taking the place of trustees in raising the lower races.
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