Mr. Roosevelt gives a fair account to both sides, I feel, and accomplishes his stated objectives: 1.) Find the lessons that can be extracted from these historical events. (Good planning and superior training pay off.) 2.) Use the performance of the officers and crews to credit bravery and good decisions, and discredit the opposite. Roosevelt does the best job I've seen in explaining examples of good leadership and good crew performance in a way that serves as an example and motivation for future generations of sailors (and actually members of any organization). Much credit is given to the quality of crewmen when deserved. and 3.) Correcting the inaccuracies in previous naval histories of this conflict, both American and British. In this effort Mr. Roosevelt explains his sources and basis for calculations. He even apologies for the repetitious nature of this documentation: "It is monotonous work to have to supplement a history by a running commentary on James' mistakes and inventions; but it is worthwhile to prove once for all the utter unreliability of the author who is accepted in Great Britain as the great authority about the war."



Theodore Roosevelt's writing style is entertainment in itself. By simply reading a few chapters of this work one can easily see why we elected him president of the USA. His vibrant use of the language is refreshing. Some additional excerpts from the book:



"having already erred either from timidity or bad judgement, Captain Cardin decided to add rashness to the catalog of his virtues."



"She was well handled and bravely fought; but her men showed a marvelous ignorance of gunnery."



"Meanwhile the British land forces attacked the militia, who acted up to the traditional militia standard, and retreated with the utmost promptitude and celerity, omitting the empty formality of firing."



"Most of the other American "histories" of that period were the most preposterously bombastic works that ever saw print. But as regards this battle, none of them are as bad as even such British historians as Alison;"...



"All combined to produce so terrible a noise and tumult that it maddened the coolest brains."



"The republic of the United States owed a great deal to the excellent make and armament of it's ships, but it owed still more to the men who were in them."



"It must be but a poor spirited American whose veins do not tingle with pride when he reads of the cruises and fights of the sea-captains, and their grim prowess, which kept the old Yankee flag floating over the waters of the Atlantic for three years, in the teeth of the mightiest naval power the world has ever seen."



Recommended (and free !!!)