Dictionary of American Biography by Allen JohnsonReview by: A. M. SchlesingerThe American Historical Review, Vol. 35, No. 3 (Apr., 1930), pp. 624-625Published by: Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Historical AssociationStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1838450 .

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624 Reviews of Books

BOOKS OF AMERICAN HISTORY

Dictionary of American Biography. Edited by ALLEN JOHNSON.

Volume III., Brearly-Chandler. (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. i929. Pp. ix, 6i8. $250 for the complete set.)

IT is sufficient praise to say that the third volume of the Dictionary of American Biography maintains the high standard set by the first two. The present volume contains 676 biographies from 3II different pens, bringing the number of memoirs thus far presented to a total of 2033,

and carrying the list of American notables through "Chandler, Zacha- riah ". Of the men and women treated in the third volume the Browns carry off the prize for frequency of mention, being allotted 70 biographies (not counting the ii Brownes), and thus easily outstripping the 42

Adamses and an equal number of Allens in volume I. Other names ranking high in numerical importance are Campbell, 26 entries; Brooks, 20; Butler, 20; and Carter, I5. As in the earlier volumes, the writing is characterized by succinctness, clarity, and accuracy. While, in general, the contributors have not altered the accepted conception of the better known figures, yet they have, in numerous instances, corrected long- standing errors as to detail and they have performed an important service in rescuing many minor characters from unmerited obscurity. In a grati- fying number of cases the authors have used source materials, manuscript as well as printed, in preparing their sketches, though there are some surprising exceptions.

The volume reveals again the breadth of conception which guided the editor in making his selection of names for inclusion. It is possible, for example, to learn from this latest installment of biographies who invented the detachable collar, when small letters first appeared on the typewriter keyboard, who devised standardized patterns for women's clothes, and what playwright first perpetrated the sentiment, " Rags are royal raiment when worn for virtue's sake ". At the same time the number of out- standing Americans appears to average as high as in either of the earlier volumes. With ample riches to select from it is difficult to choose the sketches of exceptional merit, but in this category belong Carl Van Doren's " Charles Brockden Brown ", Allen Johnson's "John Browns' (stressing the insanity theory), E. S. Bates's " William Crary Brownell ",

Allan Nevins's "William Cullen Bryant", Vernon Kellogg's "Luther Burbank ", Charles Moore's " Daniel Hudson Burnham ", Isaac J. Cox's "Aaron Burr" (including an unusually excellent bibliography), Merle E. Curti's " Elihu Burritt ", Norman Foerster's " John Burroughs ", C. A. Dinsmore's " Horace Bushnell ", Kenneth B. Murdock's " Mather Byles ", and Samuel Eliot Morison's "George Cabot". Special mention should also be made of certain writers who contributed series of articles on rela- tively minor characters in particular fields, notably E. M. Coulter in Southern biography, Louise P. Kellogg and W. J. Ghent who dealt with explorers and frontier figures, H. W. Howard Knott in legal biography,

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Dictionzary of Amiierican Biography 625

and Carter G. Woodson who supplied most of the memoirs of negroes. It would be easy in many instances to quarrel with the editor in regard

to his apportionment of space among various biographies. Why, for ex- :ample, is Vernon B. Castle, the dancer, allowed nearly as many words as John Carver, first governor of Plymouth? In general, however, it seems to the reviewer that Dr. Johnson has solved such problems as well as could be humanly expected. The editorial practice of making cross references does not always seem to be consistent. In the present volume, for in- stance, under " Buffalo Bill " we are referred to " Cody, William Fred- erick ", for a biography, while the memoir of another well-known scout, whose real name was Moses E. Milner, appears under his frontier nick- name of "California Joe". Typographical errors are relatively few, though it may be worth while to note that the initials V. K. signed to ,one of the articles (p. 270) have no exact counterpart in the list of contributors at the beginning of the volume.

Of the names omitted from the volume, the following would seem to be as worthy of inclusion as many of those that are given space: Carl Brenner (i838-i888), artist; August Brentano (I829-I886), bookstore entrepreneur; Eloise Bridges (I832-1902), actress; Harriet Brittan (d. I897), missionary; David Brooks (i820-i89i), inventor and electrical engineer; Felix Brown (i826-i899), inventor; Charles Benjamiin Brush (i848-i897), hydraulic engineer; Caspar Buberl (I834-I899), sculptor; John Chester Buttre (I82I-I893), steel engraver; Douglas Campbell (I839-I893), lawyer and historian; James E. Campbell (I843-I924), lawyer and governor of Ohio; John Lyle Campbell (i8I8-i886), chemist and geologist; Anthony Cannon (I855-I89I), the "Tony Hart" of the theatrical team of Harrigan and Hart; Francis L. Capen (I8I7-I889), astronomer; and Hamilton Young Castner (I859-I899), inventor of im- portant chemical processes in industry. Misstatements of fact are not frequent. It is incorrect to call Douglas "the author of 'squatter sove- reignty "' (p. 15). The claim that Buchanan was responsible for Polk's two messages on the Monroe Doctrine (p. 210) is highly dubious and should not have been made without reference to supporting evidence- some rather clear evidence to the contrary may be found in Polk's Diary (M. M. Quaife, ed.), I. 64-65. The tariff of I857 was not an act of the Buchanan administration (p. 2I2), having been adopted in the closing weeks of Pierce's presidency. The Civil War governor of Massachusetts bore the name of Andrew, not Andrews (p. 357). The Anti-Monopoly party of I884 did not denounce, but demanded, " national control of inter- state commerce and the eight-hour day " (p. 359). When Nahum Capen wrote his Republic of the United States of America, Buchanan was Secre- tary of State, not President (p. 482). By the "Dallas tariff of I847 " (p. 488) is evidently meant the Walker tariff of I846. The silver-pur- chase law repealed during Cleveland's second term dated from I890, not I878 (P. 489). Senator Cattell voted for the conviction, not the impeach- ment, of President Johnson (p. 577).

Harvard University. A. M. SCHLESINGER.

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