Book Reviews: Ex-Italian Somaliland. By E. SYLVIA PANKHURST. (New York: The Philosophical Library, Inc. 1951. Pp. 460. $7.50.)

AuthorHoward Mcgaw Smyth
Published date01 December 1952
Date01 December 1952
DOIhttp://doi.org/10.1177/106591295200500436
Subject MatterArticles
699
that
&dquo;correct,
adequate
and
up-to-date
statistics
are
almost
unknown
to
South
Africa&dquo;
(p.
86).
In
examining
the
origin,
policy,
and
organization
of
the
mining
in-
dustry,
particularly
the
Chamber
of
Mines,
the
author
indicates
the
almost
unchallengeable
influence
of
the
industry
on
the
nation’s
economic
and
social
development.
Attacking
the
well-entrenched
migratory
and
closed-
compound
labor
systems
which
assure
a
continued
flow
of
cheap
native
labor
into
the
mines,
Mr.
Sachs
suggests
in
their
stead
a
system
of
free
labor
supplemented
by
more
machines,
more
skilled
workers
and
more
modern
organization.
On
the
thesis
that
neither
mining
nor
the
debilitated
agriculture
of
the
Union
can
provide
a
permanent
foundation
for
a
healthy
national
economy
the
author
looks
instead
to
revitalized
and
expanded
secondary
industry.
In
a
critical
appraisal
of
the
status
of
native
workers
in
both
urban
and
rural
areas,
full
rights
and
opportunity
as
free
citizens
are
forwarded
as
requisite
to
industrial
efficiency
and
increased
pro-
ductivity.
Of
the
greatest
interest
is
the
third
section
of
the
book
dealing
with
the
South
African
trade-union
and
labor
movement.
It
is
a
contribution
to
a
field
where
little
serious
writing
has
been
attempted.
Following
the
trade-union
movement
since
its
inception
the
author
traces
its
trials
and
tribulations
to
the
present
day.
Mr.
Sachs’
own
experiences
as
secretary
of
the
South
African
Garment
Workers
Union
vis-a-vis
Nationalist
party
and
Nationalist
government
attacks
on
his
Union
and
his
personal
in-
tegrity
are
intertwined
in
the
account.
To
those
believing
that
the
present
Nationalist
administration
is
bringing
the
Hitlerian
police
state
to
South
Africa
this
book
will
be
welcome
as
further
confirmation
of
their
views.
To
those
of
opposite
persuasion
the
book
may
be
found
trying.
To
those
who
cannot
remain
indifferent
to
controversial
issues
and
personalities
the
book
is
recom-
mended.
T’&dquo;
’no
r-.
EUGENE
P.
DVORIN.
University
of
California,
Los
Angeles.
Ex-Italian
Somaliland.
By
E.
SYLVIA
PANKHURST.
(New
York:
The
Philo-
sophical
Library,
Inc.
1951.
Pp.
460.
$7.50.)
Miss
Pankhurst’s
current
position
as
editor
of
the
New
Times
and
Ethiopia
Nea.~s
has
enabled
her
to
garner
much
information
regarding
the
native
peoples
of
the
former
Italian
empire
in
East
Africa.
Her
book
is
neither
an
academic
work
nor
a
dispassionate
study:
she
writes
with
strong
feelings
and
as
a
champion
of
the
native
peoples.
Yet
the
facts
which
she
has
assembled
and
documented
cannot
be
ignored.
The
thesis
is
as
follows.
Italy’s
colonial
record
is
thoroughly
bad.
The
Italian
imperialistic
urge,
which
long
antedated
the
rise
of
fascism,

To continue reading

Request your trial

VLEX uses login cookies to provide you with a better browsing experience. If you click on 'Accept' or continue browsing this site we consider that you accept our cookie policy. ACCEPT