Book Reviews : Woodrow Wilson: The Academic Years. By HENRY WILKINSON BRAGDON. (Cam bridge: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1967. Pp. xiii, 519.)

• Date: 01 September 1968
• Author: William C. Spragens
• DOI: 10.1177/106591296802100314
• Published date: 01 September 1968
• Subject Matter: Articles

BOOK REVIEWS
Presidential Greatness. The Image and the Man from George Washington to the
Present. By THOMAS A. BAILEY. (New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts,
1966. Pp. xi, 368. $3.95.)
Earlier, at the same time, and later, literally hundreds of books (and probably
thousands of articles) have been written on the same topic to which Thomas A.
Bailey addresses himself. I am persuaded that this is the definitive volume on &dquo;presi-
dential greatness.&dquo; I feel offended that the author did not mention Merriam’s
pioneer study on Four American Party Leaders, which reflected the interest the
eminent Chicago political scientist took in the matter of leadership in the 1920’s.
As a consequence of Merriam’s concern for leadership and &dquo;greatness&dquo; - which
is the historical response to the leader -
scores of studies were made of political
personalities by Merriam’s students -
too numerous to mention here.
The author suggests that what started him on his quest for the characteristics
of greatness were the two polls conducted by Arthur M. Schlesinger, Sr., published
in 1948 and 1962. Omitting the fact that Presidents Truman and Eisenhower
were included only in the second, the ratings of the experts showed remarkable
unanimity. In the second poll, Andrew Jackson was placed in the &dquo;Near Great&dquo;
category after he had been honored as a &dquo;Great&dquo; president in the first. The rest
of the categories, &dquo;Average,&dquo; &dquo;Below Average&dquo; and &dquo;Failure,&dquo; contain the same
names although the order is changed somewhat. Bailey could not help noting a
bias here, based, he believes, on the fact that &dquo;an overwhelming majority of those
who teach American history in our colleges and universities are Democrats.&dquo; He
also calls the business of naming the greatest a game; and the task of evaluation
&dquo;comparing the incomparable.&dquo;
Nevertheless, the author has produced a work indispensable for all social
scientists, whether their...