REVIEWS 91 biography submitted was reviewed by one or more specialists and many were revised before being approved for inclusion by the Editorial Board. Among the biographic sketches are those of John Shaw Billings, Librarian of the Surgeon-General's Library and first Director of the New York Public Library; Sarah C. N. Bogle, library educator and Director of the Paris Library School under the auspices of the American Library Association; Melvil Dewey, creator of the Decimal Classification and founder of the world famous Lake Placid Club; Carl Milam, Executive Secretary of the American Library Association and later Director of the United Nations Library; Anne Carroll Moore, famous Children's Librarian of the New York Public Library; Isadore G. Mudge, Reference Librarian, Columbia University, and, during her lifetime, editor of Guide to Reference Books; Mary Wright Plummer , Director of library school programs at Pratt Institute of Technology and, later, at the New York Public Library; William F. Poole, Librarian of the Chicago Public Library and editor of the famous 19th century Poole's Index; Ralph Shaw, identified by many as a "genius in librarianship," founder of the Scarecrow Press, Librarian of the University of Hawaii and first Dean of the Graduate School of Library Studies, University of Hawaii; and Justin Winsor, Librarian of Harvard University, historian, and first President of the American Library Association. Andrew Carnegie, whose philanthropic contributions have made an enduring imprint in the annals of American librarianship, is prominently identified as one among those who have influenced and affected library growth in America. Patterned after the Dictionary of American Biography (DAB), the Dictionary of American Library Biography (DALB) is the most comprehensive biographic reference book ever attempted for any one profession . Sarah Vann University of Hawaii Harold F. Peterson, Diplomat of the Americas: A Biography of William I. Buchanan (1852-1909). Albany: State University of New York Press, 1977; 458 pp. In commenting on United States diplomacy a distinguished British diplomat, Sir William Hayter, in his book, The Diplomacy of the Great Powers, has the following to say about how we choose ambassadors: "Generally speaking, the whole system of diplomatic appointments is a remarkable example of a habit the Americans have of imposing ob- 92 biography Vol.1, No. 1 stacles on themselves and then successfully overcoming them. The spoils system, which still continues to be widely applied to major diplomatic posts, ought by all expectations to give the United States the worst diplomatic service in the world. . . . But the fact remains that the United States diplomatic service, instead of being the worst, is in fact one of the best in the world." While the spoils system is not as widely applied to diplomatic appointments today as in the past, it certainly was so applied during the years William Buchanan was active. He was one of the exceptions and was given diplomatic assignments by four Presidents, one Democrat and three Republicans, not because of financial contributions or special service to a political party, but because of his special talents and experience. There is much more in this book than a record of diplomatic activities at the turn of the century, although the account of the trials and tribulations of American diplomats at that time makes interesting reading. But we also learn much of the development of America's interest in Latin America, of differences in the outlook of Americans and European businessmen and industrialists, of the effect the SpanishAmerican War had on the way Latin Americans thought about the United States, and of the early history of the Panama Canal, which makes it easier to understand why all the nations of Latin America today are so eager to see the United States ratify the newly-signed Panama Canal treaty. Mr. Buchanan never seemed satisifed to hold only one job. In 1889, still in private business in Sioux City, Iowa, he was also full-time manager of the Peavey Opera House and Chairman of the Executive Committee of the annual Corn Palace celebration. It was in connection with his duties at the Corn Palace celebration that he first came into contact with Latin American officials. The first Pan-American Conference was to meet in Washington and, before the...
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Nov 1, 1981
James M Enelow 
Open Access