Columbia Reviews

This book is a bit of an oddity. Mt. Rainer is such a presence, both on the horizon and in the coffee table book market, in the Northwest, that it's surprising that the writing in this book, treating a very large but so far as I know otherwise untouched topic, the early ascents of the mountain, is so unpolished. The original text was published some forty years ago, though, and writing styles have changed somewhat. I found the first chapter especially difficult, where you have to read pretty closely to keep track of which apocryphal climb is being discussed. I would have liked a bit more authorial opinion on how much validity to give the accounts of the pre-Stevens climbs. Dee Molenauer gives credence to the account of the two climbers guided by Saluskin, and it would be nice to hear Haines' opinions.

The book is laid out pretty strictly chronologically, which makes it a little difficult to follow the different threads of narrative: the story of the establishment of the national park, and the stories of the formation and collapse of the various climbing clubs, appear and disappear through the book.

The book is heavily footnoted, and the footnotes are pretty strange. Sometimes they contain information that really belongs in the text, other times they are the bibliographic references that you'd expect, other times, they are just odd. In some places, Indian guides' words are printed in their native language, and the English translation is saved for the footnote. In another place, a passage involving an uncomfortable bivouac around Camp Misery is footnoted with a passage from The Bible.

There is a lot of quite interesting information in here. Over the course of the book, we see climbs evolving from two-week expeditions into the unknown to comfortable travel along well-maintained roads up to the trailhead, followed by a predictable (often guided) ascent to a summit increasingly littered with artifacts of previous ascents.

The story of the "first ascent" of Stevens and Van Trump is well known, of course, including the fact that they had to take refuge in a summit steam cave to survive the night. But I had no idea that overnighting on the summit was a normal part of the climb for decades after.

Another aspect that emerges is the glaring difference between the physical fitness of everyday people then and now. The folks who climb Mt. Rainier these days are athletes. RMI and the park climbing rangers emphasize the difficulty and the need to work long and hard to get into first-class shape before attempting the climb. But the climbers of a century ago were apparently just everyday folks. There was an early climb by a group of newspaper reporters, there were climbs by doctors, and soldiers, and there is no indication that people spent six months at the gym working on the stairmaster to prepare for their climb, they just hiked in there, slogging up much more altitude than today's climber with much heavier and poorer quality gear. Imagine a climber of today hauling firewood up to Camp Muir! You're left with the impression that in a world without elevators and cars and power lawnmowers, climbing a 14,411 foot mountain isn't a tremendous feat of athleticism, it's just a slightly eccentric pursuit for people with some free time and a taste for adventure.

I enjoyed the book immensely, on balance. If you're interested in climbing Mt. Rainier, or have already climbed it, this is a book that will greatly enrich your experience.

Good photographs, but these alone are not adequate to allow identification of many of the species described. Since most distinguishing characteristics of related species are described in terms of "less than" or "more than" the species photographed, and since you often can't see those characters in the photograph, it is often difficult to use this field guide to distinguish between related species. The key is only to the family level

REVIEWED BY PHILIP GOLD http://www.washtimes.com/books/

The Congressional Research Service, part of the Library of Congress, is filled with people who do fine work. Among the best is Louis Fisher, legal scholar and CRS senior specialist in Separation of Powers. Mr. Fisher combines a plain, effective style with a mature analytic sense. The result has been over three decades of books and studies that - blessings upon the taxpayer - actually inform and affect the real world. "Nazi Saboteurs on Trial," which Mr. Fisher intends as a prelude to his definitive history of American military tribunals, is only the latest example.
This short, meticulously researched monograph assesses one of the stranger legal escapades of World War II. The facts of the case are not in question. What matters is how the military and civilian court systems performed, the interaction of the executive and judicial branches, and whether that episode should or could serve as precedent for the trial of terrorists and other "unlawful combatants" by military means.
Mr. Fisher's answer: While such types do not and should not enjoy automatic access to the U.S. civilian court system and its protections, the use of military tribunals raises questions that cannot and should not be ignored.
The facts of the case are these.
In the 1941 "Sebold Affair," the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with the help of William Sebold, a German turned American counterspy, rolled up over 30 Nazi agents. Adolf Hitler, perturbed, demanded that English-speaking saboteurs be dispatched to America, there to smash factories and railroads and Jewish-owned department stores, spread panic, and generally make themselves a nuisance. German intelligence, the Abwehr, didn't think much of the idea, but deemed it prudent to keep the Fuhrer happy.
So they went out and recruited the original Gang that Couldn't Shoot Straight: eight Germans who had lived in the United States (two of them naturalized citizens), but had returned to Germany in the '30s for various reasons. None was the brightest tree in the forest; group cohesion and mutual trust might be described as negative, at best. Still, the eight were given a few weeks' training, then toted aboard two submarines.
In June, 1942, one group landed in New Jersey, the other in Florida. They came ashore in German uniforms, which would give them combatant status in case of immediate capture. They then changed into civvies, buried their tradecraft, and walked off with not much more than their ample moneybelts and orders to win one for the Fuhrer.
They were apprehended quickly, mostly because one of their number, George Dasch, called the FBI to let them know they'd arrived. Perhaps none of the men intended actually to commit any sabotage. None did. But that didn't keep six of them from the electric chair that August, and two others from life sentences.
Justice, such as it was, came swiftly and questionably. President Franklin Roosevelt, taking a grim special interest in the case, determined to try them by secret military tribunal. He appointed the members and decreed himself the sole reviewing authority. Further, the tribunal would not be a standard court martial, governed by the Articles of War and other legislation. It would be an ad hoc commission, governed by the "laws of war" (a nebulous category) and empowered to make such procedural changes as it deemed expedient.
Among them: Although civilian and military courts could not impose the death penalty for actual acts of sabotage, this tribunal could, and did, for acts that were never committed, and may never have been intended.
Clearly, this setup raised numerous questions regarding the separation of powers, military jurisdiction in time of war, and of fundamental fairness. One of the defense attorneys petitioned the Supreme Court, which effectually evaded the issue until after the executions, then issued its opinion in Ex Parte Quirin - a document that did nothing for the luster of the Court, then or since.
In essence, concludes Mr. Fisher, the Supreme Court functioned as "an arm of the executive." It reaffirmed that enemy combatants have no constitutional right of access to civilian courts; that the two citizens had forfeited their citizenship by taking up arms; and that when they took off their uniforms, they became "illegal combatants" who could have been shot out of hand, but who were graciously afforded a trial.
Finally, the Court held that it could not assess the trial itself, since that was secret.
In sum, a mixed set of precedents, ranging from common sense to dereliction of duty. And the question arises - will we be able to learn from the affair to make the handling and disposition of terrorists and other "illegal combatants" both more effective and more just?
Or will we be fortunate even to do as well?

"Dude" Lavington captured my imagination and sympathy for the settlers of this harsh country. It is incredibly descriptive in its entirety. I am amazed at the accuracy of this book. I recommend it to anyone who would like to know more about our heritage and hardships.

This is a guide book for diving the Puget Sound (Seattle area and more), the San Juan Islands, and British Columbia (Vancouver, Victoria and More). Each site includes Skill level, Why go, Access, Bottom and depths, hazards, Facilities and other comments. Also each has a map, and some sort of photo (surface or U/W). The maps are just NOAA duplications and I would think they would be better in a larger scale. Overall you can't really miss with this book. It has 141 good ideas about where you might try diving in the Northwest. Some of the information may be a little dated now, but I can't find many examples of that. I am also not sure how this book meshes with her other books that seem to be more specifically aimed at individual areas: that is, more narrowly focused. Good book, well worth the price for any northwest diver.

Bruce Roberts is one of the best lighthouse photographers working in the U.S. today. In this book, he and his partner Ray Jones give you an excellent photograph of each lighthouse featured, a short historical story from Jones and directions of how to get to the lighthouse. Lighthouse lovers could scarcely ask for more.

Have been to numerous lectures given by the couple architects. Very creative structural design for one thing. Beauty at where they arrive between what's progressive & what was and is indigenous. Amazing models made after projects being built for furthur analysis. Too bad the photos are small and not in color. Light & shadow & materials can say a lot about a building & color photos would be very helpful for their next book. Still a must have, professional and all alike.

No.. seriously, this is an extensive, well organized, accurate and well designed field guide.

Includes medicinal uses and history for many prairie plants.

THIS IS A KEEPER

A challenging but interesting and ultimately rewarding read. Christophers develops his theme with an almost lyrical style, the evolutionary passages setting the scene for his later analysis with his trademark deconstuctionist prose. His insights carry one successfully to a level of understanding which makes one almost embarrassed to have become so involved in such a remarkably obscure topic - but perhaps not for much longer! If this remarkable literary and research talent never writes again at least we shall have Positioning The Missionary as both a stunning debut and worthy legacy.

Transportation in southern British Columbia faced some formidable obstacles. So why bother? Well it seems the region was also blessed with mineral deposits.

Early developement started with trails, steamship and a few miles of tracks. By the turn of the century, the railroad developed a complete second (CPR) mainline through the Rockies. Other companies also added to the network. Much of this southern route eventually found itself abandoned.

Railway Mileposts (there are two volumes)documents the southern British Columbia routes (Vol. 1 documents the mainline). Author Burrows gives a brief history of the various operations, along with interesting features (tunnels, bridges, grades and stations). Each operation shows maps, some of which are in great detail.

Today, there is a growing rail to trail movement. Many hiking enthusiasts are well aware of the many special abandoned rail segments available to them. This book will provide them with a great overview of the past and present rail lines.

I recommend this book to rail enthusiasts and to those interested in hiking these old abandoned lines within the southern British Columbia wilderness.