Book Reviews and Notices : Freedom's Charter: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights. By O. FREDERICK NOLDE. (New York: Foreign Policy Association. Headline Service No. 76, July-August, 1949. Pp. 64. $.35. Pamphlet.)

• DOI: 10.1177/106591294900200411
• Date: 01 December 1949
• Author: Charles P. Schleicher
• Published date: 01 December 1949
• Subject Matter: Articles

629

The

book

was

written

before

the

negotiations

began

for

the

forma-

tion

of

the

Council

of

Europe.

It

does,

however,

supply

helpful

back-

ground

information.

For

example,

no

reader

of

the

book

would

be

sur-

prised

that

the

actual

Council

has

no

power

or

authority,

nor

would

he

be

surprised

that

the

first

meetings

of

the

Council

produced

resolutions

aimed

at

making

the

organization

into

something

more

than

another

discussion

group.

The

book

is

largely

factual

and

descriptive.

Some

of

the

hopes

and

difficulties

of

European

unity

are

noted,

but

brevity

permits

hardly

more

than

reference

to

their

nature.

If

one

wishes

to

pick

and

choose,

he

will

find

parts

of

the

book

of

considerable

value;

only

if

he

is

quite

unfamiliar

with

the

general

topic

will

he

need

to

read

the

whole

with

equal

care.

University

of

Oregon.

CHARLES

P.

SCHLEICHER.

Freedom’s

Charter:

The

Universal

Declaration

of

Human

Rights.

By

O.

FREDERICK

NOLDE.

(New

York:

Foreign

Policy

Association.

Head-

line

Service

No.

76,

July-August,

1949.

Pp.

64.

$.35.

Pamphlet.)

If

a

reader

of

this

pamphlet

by

the

Dean

of

the

Graduate

School

of

the

Lutheran

Seminary

at

Philadelphia

expects

pious

exhortation

he

is

in

for

a

surprise.

Only

a

person

thoroughly

familiar

with

all

the

facets

of

the

subject

could

write

such

a

comprehensive,

penetrating,

and

balanced

article

in

so

few

words.

As

a

consultant

to

ECOSOC

he

attended

every

session

of

the

Human

Rights

Commission,

and

we

can

well

believe

Mrs.

Franklin

Roosevelt’s

remark

in

the

brief

introduction

that

&dquo;he

sometimes

gauges

the

mood

of

the

members

more

accurately

than

we

do

ourselves.&dquo;

The

whole

problem

of

human

rights

is

placed

in

its

historical

set-

ting ;

the

newer

motive

for

concern

for

their

observance,

it

is

contended,

is

the

conviction

of

the

relationship

between

human

rights

and

peace.

The

Declaration

is,

of

course,

a

small

but

important

part

of

present

and

projected

United

Nations

activities

respecting

human

rights.

It

is

ad-

mitted

that

the

prospects

for

the

observance

of

human

rights

for

all

men

may

seem

meager;

this

is

&dquo;because

of

limitations

in

the

present

world

situation.&dquo;

Further

progress

depends

on:

(1)

completion

and

ratification

of

the

Covenant

and

Measures

of

Implementation;

(2)

understanding

of

the

content

and

meaning

of

the

document;

(3)

the

application

of

the

Declar-

ation

in

domestic

and

community

life;

(4)

and

its

effect

on

public

opinion

and

of

the

latter

on

the

conduct

of

sovereign

states.

University

of

Oregon.

CHARLES

P.

SCHLEICHER.