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_The American Cavalryman._ By HENRY F. DOWNING. The Neale Publishing
Company, New York, 1917. Pp. 306. Price $1.50.

This is a Liberian romance written by Henry F. Downing, a colored man
who evidently spent some years in Liberia. The diction is good, the
style pleasing, and the story interesting, but it is not a sympathetic
portrayal of African character and customs. It is written from a white
man's point of view and shows a tendency to regard the white man's
civilization of today as the only true standard. He shows, however,
that he does not always approve of the European method of dealing with
the African. While describing an unequal contest between the
cavalryman and natives, he says: "But alas! in war, as in finance and
love, victory does not always smile upon the most deserving. She
usually favors the numerically stronger side; that is, unless the less
numerous party is armed with quick firing guns, dumdum bullet, and
other harmless weapons that Europeans think it criminal to employ
against one another, but cheerfully use to Christianize and civilize
the poor helpless black African."

The chief value of the work lies in its portrayal of native customs,
some of which are beautiful, some wholly barbarous and all more or
less tinctured with superstition. But, when we pause to think how rife
superstition still is among all so-called civilized peoples, we
conclude that it is a belief hard to eradicate from human nature. Even
in our own country people were hanged as witches a little over a
hundred years ago.

While cunning and shrewdness are shown to hold an exalted place in the
native character, still lying and cheating, when discovered, are
severely punished. Loyalty to friends and fidelity to pledges are held
in great esteem. Human life does not seem to be valued very highly
judging from the readiness with which a chief extinguished it by
having all disloyal or disobedient followers beheaded at a moment's
notice. It is evident throughout, however, that human nature is the
same in civilized and uncivilized peoples.

There is no attempt to portray the history of Liberia in these pages,
a thing which in my opinion would have made the work stronger and far
more valuable. It does give a fair picture of Monrovia, the capital
city, and presents, to some extent, the need for wise and just
administration and the necessity of funds to improve the city and
endow it with parks, li