REVIEWS
COLUMBIA TRADING CD. BUY· SELL • Nautical Books FREE BOOK CATALOG
• Ship Models • Marine Art & Antiques
1 Barn stable Rd., Hyannis, MA 02601 (508) 778-2929 Fax (508) 778-2922 nautical@ capecod.net
MARTIFACTS, INC. lARI E COLLECTIBLES from scra pped ships a nd SS. UN ITED STATES. Lamps, blocks, linen, etc. Send $1 fo r brochure: Box 350190 Jacksonville FL 32235-0190 Phone/Fax: (904) 645-0150 www. ma rtifac ts.com
STEAMSHIP SALVORS A marine marketing firm , selling post 1941 ship' s furniture, brass, books and ephemera from vessels no longer in commercial service. Each item includes : Photo of vessel and salvor' s letter. Presently featuring the art-deco stateroom furniture seen on our weli-site and the c lassic "71 " chair. www.weatherdeck.com 504 Washingto n Pa rk_, Norfolk, Virginia 23517 757-022-9402
T he Visolette Lo upe is a uniqu e com bin atio n of co nd enser and 2.7X magnifier. Its ability to bun dle ambient light makes the readi ng within the glass easier. This 65mm (2.5") diam eter lens is precisio n gro und and polished , m o un ted in a solid brass rin g with anti-slip bottom and enclosed in a solid walnut case. It m akes a stunning addition to any cha rt table o r d esk and a beautiful and useful gift for any fl at piece co llecto r. S69.00 pl us S3.00 shipping pe r o rde r.
WESTCHESTER TECHNOLOGIES, INC. 8 John Walsh Blvd. Peel<Sl<ill, NY 10566 914-736-1034 • Fax: 914-736-1217
44
the fo undation of the British emp ire. It is incredible in this day and age to read of the travail to whi ch men will submit fo r something we take for granted. T he spi ce is incidental to the tale; the real story lies in the self dealings, do uble crosses, and chicanery not just men, but nati ons, parricipated in . And the principal player in the drama barely made the margins of history. W ell written, except for a few places where the detail becomes so mewhat tedious, and illus trated with contemporary images, this volume is a treat for anyone interested in the peri od and has the added benefit of being a good sea sto ry. W I LLIAM H . WHITE Rumson, New Jersey Ahab's Trade: The Saga of South Seas Whaling, by Granville Allen M awe r (S t. M artin's Press, New York NY, 1999, 393pp, biblio, ISBN 0-3 12-228 09-0; $29.95hc) Australi an maritime historian Allen Mawer has produced in Ahab's Trade not only a highly readable whal ing primer but a reminder of just why men once went to sea risking life and limb fo r leviathan blubber and bone. He recalls a time before, during and after the 1820- 1850 boom when whale oil was liquid gold, illuminating growing communities and lubricating indusuial machinery. Finally, in a brief epilogue, he brings the reader up to date regarding the state of the srocks and the geopolitics surroundi ng them. Mawer foc uses here on the So uth Seas sperm whalers, what he calls the "Brahmi ns" of the whaling hierarchy "who broke whaling out of the ice of the orth Atlantic and led it south to become the firs t tr uly global indus try. " H e goes on to trace the rise and fall of that enterprise. In doi ng so, he reco unts the stories of seago ing New Englanders and a British fam ily named Enderby. H e describes the economics of whale oil and bone, related international intrigue, and the influences of wo rld history on whaling and vice versa. In the grand sweep of history, Mawer doesn' t fo rget the polyglot of national ities and races sailing before the mast. T he men in the fo'c's le are examined for motives and abi lity to cope with each other alo ng with crude living conditions, long cruises, an often-brutal ship 's management and a hazardous occupati on . H ere, too, are recountings of the hunt, the mutiny aboard
the Globe and the sinki ng of the Essex. Historical foo tn otes beco me fascinating sidebars o n such to pics as the secret to maki ng sperm whale candles, origins and uses of ambergris, and recipes for discarded sperm whale body parrs . T he story is moved alo ng with m aps, line drawings and color plates. PETER SORENSE Mys tic, Connecticut Tempest, Fire and Foe: D estroyer Escorts in W orld War II and the M en Who Manned T hem , by Lewis M . Andrews, Jr. (Narwhal Press, Charleston SC and Miami FL, 1999, 463pp, illus, appen, index, biblio, ISBN 1-886391 -3 0-0; $49.9 5hc; ISBN 188639 1-3 1-9; $29.95 pb) T his book derails the individual histories of a class of563 warships designed and built under the clouds of W orld W ar II from 1939 to 1943 . The basic design was for a smaller rype of destroyer, intended to relieve destroyers of convoy dury, allowing them to re turn to fleet activity. T he vessels were highly m aneuverable and principally armed fo r anti-submarine warfare. T his is really a history, in great detail, of the war of the small ships in WWII. T he use of many personal references makes this most fascinating to D E sailors of the past. T he appendices list each vessel by class accompanied by a brief history and description of the power plant and armament, citations awarded to units, and the organization of Escorr Divisions. T he final appendix contains rhe names of more than 250 D E sailors who contrib uted material to the book. T he story of the famous D E England (DE-635) sinking six Japanese submarines in two weeks is among many notable events documented. T his book, a history oflitde sh ips in the big war, is very well written and will provide many hours of reminiscin g to those who served on the destroyer escorts. D AVI D E. PERKlNS Sebring, Florida A Unit of W ater, A Unit of T ime: Joel White's Last Boat, by Douglas W hynott (D oubleday, New Yo rk NY, 1999, 303pp, biblio, ISBN 0-38 5-488 12-2; $23.95hc) E. B. W hite's son, Joel, like his fa mous fa ther, was a n artist; only he chose wood and bro nze as the medi um in which to work his artis try. H e wrote some as well, as
SEA HISTORY 93, SUMMER 2000