REVIEWS.
A Short History of Oregon. By Sidonia V. Johnson. Chicago, A. C. McClurg and Co. 1904. 329 pp.
A History of the Pacific Northwest. By Joseph Schafer. New York, The Macmillan Co. 1905. xvi, 321 pp.
The interest in the Pacific Northwest aroused by the recent Lewis and Clark Exposition attaches to the history of the region as well as its resources and scenery. This renders timely the appearance of several new books upon Oregon and the Northwest which should properly receive attention in a historical quarterly published by a historical society which desires to encourage the study of the history of a section which has much of interest and importance to offer to the student and reader. These new books deserve mention also because there has been nothing satisfactory in brief enough form to be of utility to the general reader or in literary style suitable for the young reader.
A Short History of Oregon by Miss Sidonia V. Johnson of Portland was published by A. C. McClurg of Chicago in 1904. This firm has already become known for its interest in books connected with the Northwest. This book is a neat volume, of size suitable for the general reader. The text is accompanied by attractive illustrations. The author professes to have written only a compilation and resume" of the subject-matter contained in other books of larger scope. It is her purpose to make what has already been written more accessible to the general reader. This is a worthy purpose and the book will prove a useful one in that it accomplishes its purpose. It must be remembered, however, that a compilation is of less value than a book written directly from the sources, and that it is a difficult matter to preserve a thoroughly logical arrangement of material and subordination of detail. The book necessarily suffers somewhat from the fact that it is a compilation. The story, however, is well told, the essential incidents are included. The reader feels that the author, though not a trained historical writer, is enthusiastically interested in the subject. It is a book that may be read with profit and will awaken an interest in the history of the Northwest.
A History of the Pacific Northwest by Professor Joseph Schafer of the University of Oregon has been published by the Macmillan Co. This is the first book connected with this region published by that
