UNPROMISED LAND

by Burton E. Martin'33. Ives Washburn, Inc., 1948. 400 pages;$3.50.

The roguish Winston Churchill, on seeing Sir Stafford Cripps, is reported to have said, "There but for the Grace of God, goes God." On thinking of displaced persons, "Illegals" seeking the promised land, we all, with humility, might say. "There but for the Grace of God, go we." What we do say is very little, turn to more cheerful things, and send a tendollar check to CARE and dismiss these wandering hordes from our minds.

Burton Martin has written a serious and sincere novel about a group of wanderers located in Santa Cesarea, "clinging to the Adriatic coast on the boot heel of Italy." He has chosen to tell his story through the eyes of Taub Hugo, a former Hungarian soldier, instead of through the eyes of the American commandant, which would have, perhaps, been easier. Instead of using a BAR to quell revolt, the American, under the watchful and sympathetic eyes of Hugo, uses persuasion and understanding. The results are not as melodramatic as if force had been used but perhaps Mr. Martin is telling us that the world better get used to using peaceful methods for survival.

I think the novel would have been better for a little judicious cutting, but Harold G. Rugg tells me that he read the book in two evenings, and disagrees with me. All I can say is that I think Mr. Martin has written a very respectable book, far better than those ballyhooed by the bookclubs, but I fear its appeal will be limited. This is generally true of the best these days.