SMITHFIELD TRUST COMPANY BOOK REVIEWS

THE LIFE OF GENERAL ELY S. PARKER
By: Arthur C. Parker

This is a quirky biography and is probably appealing only to a quirky person like me.

First published in 1919 and written by Ely Parker’s nephew, this book tells the story of a full-blooded Seneca Indian who becomes General Ulysses S. Grant’s military secretary.

Born in 1828 on the Tonawanda Reservation in western New York State (near my birthplace), Parker straddled the white and Indian worlds. A gifted writer, Parker was also a civil engineer who graduated from Renssalear Polytechnic Institute. During the 1840s, Parker became the leader of the Six Nations, and in 1860 he became friends with Ulysses Grant while using his engineering talents to build a customhouse and hospital in Illinois.

When the Civil War began, Parker tried to join the Union army but was rebuffed, being told by William Seward that this was a “white man’s war.” Ultimately, however, Parker became Grant’s chief aid, was made a Brigadier General and played a significant role in Robert E. Lee’s surrender at Appomattox. Grant later appointed him as the first American Indian to serve as Commissioner of Indian Affairs. Parker’s efforts to help his people were undermined by unscrupulous politicians who unfairly forced him out of office.

At age 12, I remember attending a speech by the Chief of the Senecas, George Huron, who asked how the Federal Government could take Parker’s old reservation to build the Kinzua Reservoir in violation of George Washington’s solemn promise by treaty. I agreed with Huron then, and I agree with General Parker, that the treatment of the Senecas was deplorable.

General Parker was a beautiful and articulate writer, as evidenced by his letters. Unfortunately, Parker’s nephew did not inherit the General’s writing gene. Arthur Parker’s biography is disjointed and written in a mediocre fashion.

Since this book is now probably out of print, I will be happy to loan it to you upon request.

- Bob Kopf

THE FIRST TYCOON: THE EPIC LIFE OF CORNELIUS VANDERBILT
By: T. J. Stiles

Cornelius Vanderbilt, the son of a Dutch farmer and English mother, grew up on Staten Island in the early 1800s, became a steamboat entrepreneur and, ultimately, the richest man of his time. Incredibly, by 1877, the year of his death, Vanderbilt’s assets equaled one out of every 20 dollars in circulation in the United States. Tough, shrewd, but essentially uneducated, Vanderbilt was strongly influenced by his mother, Phoebe, who was equally tough. Dutch culture, unlike that of the English, allowed women to enter business. Phoebe became a small lender, and Cornelius watched her avidly. In one instance, a young and recently widowed Staten Islander was unable to meet her mortgage payments as a result of the death of the family breadwinner. As a consequence, Phoebe foreclosed on her residence. What says it all, however, is that the widow was Phoebe’s own daughter! Cornelius carried on this tradition, although, unlike the other robber barons like Jay Gould, with a basically honest value system.

T. J. Stiles writes well, and the book is researched to the hilt. Some readers may object to the detailed emphasis on Vanderbilt’s financial machinations, but I found it quite interesting that, according to Stiles, Vanderbilt was the first significant American businessman to understand the modern world of paper money and stock valuation based on revenue rather than book value.

I would prefer that Stiles lace his biography with more personal anecdotes about The Commodore, but perhaps they are not available for such a private person. I am also disappointed that Stiles devotes less than one page to Vanderbilt’s founding of my alma mater, Vanderbilt University, in a gesture of reconciliation between the North and the South after the Civil War. Aside from these quibbles, I enjoyed The First Tycoon and recommend it.

- Bob Kopf

HORSE SOLDIERS
By: Doug Stanton

Horse Soldiers is the thrilling story of how an outnumbered band of U.S. Special Forces liberated, at least temporarily, Afghanistan from the Taliban shortly after September 11th. The bravery of our men, attacking the Taliban on horseback, is truly incredible, and Doug Stanton’s beautiful writing style and ability to capture the individual personalities of our men and women produce a book which is difficult to put down.

Given our current difficulties in Afghanistan, the author also contrasts the successful tactics and methods of the horse soldiers with some of our subsequent blunders. Horse Soldiers is a gripping tale with some profound lessons.

- Bob Kopf

THAT OLD CAPE MAGIC
By: Richard Russo

While on vacation, I made a rare foray into fiction, and I am glad that I did.

Griffin’s problems stem, fundamentally, from his relationship with his divorced parents, both snobby academics who taught in a Midwestern university but loved Cape Cod. His mother is a royal pain in the ***, but she is also incredibly perceptive and cruelly funny. Griffin’s failure to accept the fact that he has “become his parents” gives rise to some wonderful comedic moments, coupled with good doses of pathos. The author’s deft and understated writing style prevents the story from lapsing into an excessive parody.

For me, an eerie aspect of the book is that Griffin’s mother reminds me in many ways of my own mother, although I am never a royal pain, am I?

- Bob Kopf

MELTDOWN: A FREE-MARKET LOOK AT WHY THE STOCK MARKET COLLAPSED, THE ECONOMY TANKED AND GOVERNMENT BAILOUTS WILL MAKE THINGS WORSE
By Thomas E. Woods, Jr.

Thomas E. Woods, Jr. is a disciple of Ludwig von Mises, the free-market Austrian economist. In Meltdown Woods makes, convincingly, a scathing attack on the Federal Government and Federal Reserve, showing why these bodies created the current crisis. In essence, Woods argues , the Congress, the Executive and the Federal Reserve, ruled by political and not economic principles, did not and do not let market forces operate to burst artificial bubbles in the housing and other sectors.

Although I am not an economist, I question Woods’ recommendation to abolish the Federal Reserve. The Fed, it seems to me, may be a necessary evil in a complex and intertwined global economy. Is not the better answer to keep the Fed and staff it with people like Paul Volker, rather than Alan Greenspan?

Please read this book.

- Dave Perkins

OLD SOLDIERS NEVER DIE: THE LIFE OF DOUGLAS MACARTHUR

By: Geoffrey Perret

Douglas MacArthur was, arguably, the most controversial soldier in American history. Well researched, Old Soldiers Never Die explodes many of the negative myths about MacArthur, but it also excoriates him for his many personal failings. The strength of the biography is its balance and highly readable prose.

Vain, brave (his exploits in World War I are amazing) and highly intelligent, MacArthur had very serious lapses in judgment. An example of the lapses is having a 16-year old mistress in the Philippines and then bringing her to Washington after returning to the United States. His insubordination regarding President Truman was inexcusable, although Truman is also portrayed by Perret as petulant and lacking in judgment.

MacArthur’s relationship with Dwight Eisenhower is explored in considerable detail, beginning with Ike’s role as MacArthur’s subordinate in the Philippines. MacArthur had political ambitions after World War II, and we can all be happy that Eisenhower, rather than MacArthur, realized his political goals. (See the review of Ike elsewhere).

Perret does a splendid job of describing the dominant figures in MacArthur’s life in a brilliant and colorful light: Pershing, Hoover, Roosevelt, Truman, Hirohito, Marshall and MacArthur’s immediate family. I recommend the book to you.

Sincerely,

Bob Kopf

IKE: AN AMERICAN HERO
By: Michael Korda

The son of pacifist Mennonites, Dwight D. Eisenhower ironically left Kansas for West Point in 1911 and, ultimately, commanded the largest expeditionary force in history. Michael Korda’s highly readable biography of Ike, focused primarily on his military career rather than his presidency, is arguably what my friend Dave Perkins calls a hagiography --- i.e., an overly worshipful depiction of a person. Having said that, I do think that there is so much to admire about Eisenhower that the praise is not misplaced.

Tough, shrewd and ambitious, Ike had the unique ability to handle difficult people like MacArthur, Churchill, Patton and Montgomery without straying from his long-term goals. He was an extraordinary administrator, and history has not given him his due as a military strategist.

Korda devotes a substantial part of the book about the strains on Ike’s marriage to Mamie and his relationship with his English driver, Kay Summersby. While the author lets the reader draw his or her own conclusions about whether Ike had had an adulterous affair with Summersby, the evidence certainly points to that.?

As I point out in an accompanying review in The Forecast, we were certainly fortunate that Ike, rather than MacArthur, emerged as our leader. Michael Korda’s insightful biography shows this brilliantly.?

- Bob Kopf