Dartmouth Authors

Charles B. Arthur '34 is the author of TheRemaking of the English Navy by Admiral St.Vincent Key to the Victory Over Napoleon (University Press of America, 1986). His book, the result of long years of research, seeks to correct a distortion of history, which traditionally gives Admiral Horatio Nelson the credit for the events leading up to Napoleon's defeat in 1814. On the contrary, Arthur writes, Nelson could have achieved nothing without "the great unclaimed naval revolution" effected by Sir John Jervis, Lord St. Vincent from 1795 to 1805. Prior to St. Vincent's taking command of the British Channel Squadron, the navy was made almost impotent by the profiteering and corruption of builders, agents, and government officials. St. Vincent stopped the corruption and went to work to improve living conditions, health, discipline, and morale aboard the British ships, and continued this reformation after he became First Lord of the Admiralty. His accomplishments made England the great sea power of the 19th century. Most importantly, this reformation made possible the naval triumphs at the Nile, Copenhagen, and Trafalgar which thwarted Napoleon, and also made possible the blockade of Brest which saved England from invasion.

Arthur reveals the crucial role of George, the Second Earl Spencer (ancestor of the present Princess Diana) in supporting St. Vincent and having him named as his suc cessor at the Admiralty. He also produces evidence that St. Vincent's remaking of the British navy was hidden from public recognition by the enmity of the British ruling classes and their government officials whose patronage and profiteering was curtailed by the Admiral's reforms. When as First Lord of the Admiralty, St. Vincent tried to end the timber monopoly and the building and repair of naval ships by civilian shipyards, he was driven from office. But both Wellington and Nelson had to admit that St. Vincent was the real creator of English supremacy at sea.

John R. Williams, professor of history emeritus at Dartmouth, has written: "Naval historians and scholars should be attracted to this work, which explains not only the resurrection of England from the depth of naval disorganization to the height of naval supremacy, victory over Napoleon, and the achievement of the maritime power which was of such historical importance to the 19th century. The majestic heights attained by this small island nation in international relationships must inevitably be attributed to her naval power, and Dr. Arthur's work establishes its hour of greatest triumph."

Francis Belcher '3B is the author of LoggingRailroads of the White Mountains (AMC Books, Boston, $12.95 paper) which has been put back in print by the Appalachian Mountain Club. The book re-creates the era when steam-driven railroads opened the White Mountains to full-scale logging, with devastating damage to the wilderness. Enlightened foresters, who practiced selective cutting, and the public outcry led to the formation of the White Mountain National Forest. Belcher's account, of interest to the general reader as well as specialists in forestry and railroad history, is profusely illustrated with 83 photographs and 20 maps. The author was with the law department of the Boston and Maine Railroad for 20 years and was the first executive director of the Appalachian Mountain Club. Sherman Adams '2O has written the foreword to the book.

Ralph W. Sleeper '49 is the author of TheNecessity of Pragmatism: John Dewey's Conception of Philosophy (Yale University Press, 1986, $21.50). In his preface stating the intent of his book, Sleeper writes: "Dewey argues that philosophy should have an impact on the world. He thought that the critical work of philosophy should have consequences in the conduct of our lives and in,the culture in which we live. He wanted us to see that philosophy has the power to influence social change through criticism and inquiry. It is this conception of philosophy that drew Dewey to pragmatism and that comprises his distinctive contribution to it. In my estimation it is a contribution so substantial as to constitute a radical reconstruction of pragmatism as he found it. It is the aim of this study to trace that reconstruction and to elicit its central characteristics and claims."

The author contends that standard interpretations of Dewey's work have neglected his differences with his pragmatist predecessors, Peirce and James, and the extent to which he reshaped pragmatism, anticipating many of the problems taken up by his younger contemporaries, Wittgenstein and Heidegger. In all, the book is a sharp reassessment of Dewey's philosophy. Sleeper is professor of philosophy emeritus at Queen s College of City University of New York.

Frank Gado '5B has edited The Teller's Tales (Union College Press, $14.75, $3.95 paperback), a selection of short stories by Sherwood Anderson. This was the first volume in the Union College Press series of short stories by major American authors. The 13 selections printed here cover almost the whole of Sherwood Anderson's career, the first story published in 1919 and the latest in 1947, seven years after his death. Gado's 20-page introduction, written especially for this volume, critically examines Anderson's revolutionary conception of the short story. It was praised by one critic as "possibly the best critical analysis of Anderson's fictional technique to date." Gado is Professor of English at Union College.

Faculty

Henry Terrie, Professor of English Emeritus, has edited Tales of Art and Life (Union College Press, $14.75, $4.75 paperback), a selection of short stories by Henry James. The volume is part of the Signature Series by Union College Press, presenting representative short stories by major American au- thors. The eight stories in Tales of Art andLife, including "Daisy Miller" and "The Beast in the Jungle," were chosen to show the evolution of James's writing during the course of almost half a century and to reflect his most characteristic themes. Terrie's introduction discusses James's short stories as a unique contribution to that literary form and as an achievement that stands favorably beside his more famous novels.

A New Hampshire Institution

Joe Dodge: "One New Hampshire Institution," by William Lowell Putnam (Phoenix Publishing, Canaan, N.H., 1986, 161 pp., $16.)

If ever the life story of a non-alumnus deserved space in the Alumni Magazine, it is this dynamic account of the life and times of Joe Dodge ('55 Hon.). John Dickey's master of arts citation would provide a suitable review of this book. His historic phrases are aptly reprinted on the back cover. "One New Hampshire Institution" provides an appropriate subtitle.

I met Joe Dodge back in 1922 during his first summer at the A.M.C. Pinkham Notch Camp in the White Mountain National Forest. Half-joking, he remarked that I might return some day. That I did, in 1924, to become his only assistant at "Porky Gulch" and to take the snapshot now immortalized on the front cover of this book.

Joe Dodge's contacts with various notables were many and significant, but his association with Dartmouth must be paramount in this review. During a quartercentury he timed all ski races at every Winter Carnival but one. When he succeeded Hannes Schneider as referee, there were no competitors from Dartmouth or any other college to question his decisions.

Dodge became an honorary member of the Dartmouth Outing Club and also Cabin and Trail. But his most tangible relation was the employment, exposure, and training of many Dartmouth students and alumni in the hut system developed by the Appalachian Mountain Club in the White Mountains.

There is further alumni interest in the fact that A. A. Paradis '31 of Sugar Hill is copartner of the publisher and Alexander A. McKenzie 32 of Eaton Center is a survivor of the first crew of three at the Mount Washington Observatory, which Joe Dodge guided until the day he died.

During the surge of interest in skiing in the thirties, Joe was always on the spot, whether accommodating groups of winter mountaineers or helping to organize various ski competitions and to test equipment. Joe had more than a passing interest in competitive skiing. His only son, Brooks '51 (Thayer '52), became the first U.S. skier to win points in an Olympic alpine ski event.

Hanover was always a welcome harbor to the Dodge family, especially to Teen, who had become a second mother to many a young Dartmouth student; to daughter, Ann Dodge Middleton, to whom the volume is most properly dedicated; and to her husband, Attorney Jack Middleton, longtime clerk of the Mount Washington Observatory.

The 1960 A.M.C. maps of the Mount Washington Range and Franconia Notch printed on the front and back end leaf are like two sandwich slices of tasty bread with a substantial nostalgic filling of the "Joe Dodge Story."

More than 50 photographs have been carefully selected to depict Joe's activities from his third trip to "the Hills" in 1920 to fishing the Swift River near the Dodge retirement home on Conway's West Side Road.

The appendices are unique the nicknames Joe invented for more than 50 listed associates; the genealogy of this eighth-generation Yankee; the classic interview by his Jackson neighbor, "Deacon" Bill Whitney; many landmark items lifted from Joe's file cards, any one of which deserves booklength coverage; and a chronology accu- rately listing the milestones of a truly remarkable lifetime.

"There are two voices; one is of the sea, one of the mountains; each a mighty voice." We are grateful that Joe Dodge, at an early age, forsook the lure of his birthplace at Manchester-by-the-Sea, Mass., for a glorious career in the White Mountains of New Hampshire.

Bill Putnam performed a lasting service in perpetuating the myths and facts of a notable institution. He has briefed the dynamic character, incredible memory, and dedication to public service of a colorful character gone but never to be forgotten.