Hands Off: A History of the Monroe Doctrine. By Dexter
Perkins.
Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1941. Pp. xii, 455. Illustra-
tions, index, bibliography. $3.50.

The volume under consideration is the most inclusive of all
the myriad of books on the Monroe Doctrine. It begins with
the evolution of the fundamental principles underlying the doc-
trine and ends with a cautious prediction of its probable role in
the years which lie ahead.

Dexter Perkins, the author of the book, and definitely an
authority on the Monroe Doctrine, incorporates many features
to stimulate and delight the reader. First, as fairness would
seem to demand, he gives full credit to John Adams for the
non-colonization clause and for the final form in which Monroe
issued the statement. Second, to Richard Rush and John Quincy
Adams he assigns joint responsibility for vigorously opposing
a co-declaration with England, and upholding an independent
course for the United States. In connection with the initial
issuance of the doctrine Adams said, "It would be more candid
as well as more dignified to avow our own principles rather
than to come in as a cock-boat in the wake of an English man-
of-war." Third, he develops in masterly fashion the negative
character of the doctrine prior to the Civil War. He gives
evidence sufficient to convince the most skeptical that there
was a real determination on the part of all, including Monroe,
not to allow the diplomatic statement of 1823 to involve the
United States in outside affairs, either in Europe or in South
America. Fourth, he shows with clarity how the so-called Roose-
velt corollary gave the doctrine some unpleasant implications,
and thus retarded the growth of Pan-Americanism, and pro-
moted apprehensive misgivings in the relationships between
the Americas.

In the treatment of the Monroe Doctrine, which itself is a
controversial subject, Perkins expresses his own personal opin-
ions without reservation. As a matter of fact, the subtitle of
the book might read An Invitation to Controversy, for it is
replete with controversial statements. I cite only a few: "It
is very likely," he says, "that the development of the period
from 1865 to 1895 would not have been materially different"
if the doctrine had never been issued. In referring to the same
years he says that "for this period of thirty years we must, in
the first place, rule Germany entirely out of the picture." Again
he asserts, "There is not the faintest similarity between the
policies of Conquest pursued in Eastern Asia by Japan, in
Europe by Germany, and the policy of international coopera-
tion and common defense pursued by the United States toward
the States of Latin-America." Such statements will no doubt
evoke many controversies.

The format is attractive, the type is readable, the pages are
not cluttered by notes, and, throughout the book, there is a
remarkable absence of mechanical imperfections. There are
ten illustrations, including four very clever cartoons repro-
duced from Punch, Lustige Blätter, and the Cleveland Plain
Dealer. The style is lively; in fact, one wonders if it is not
too lively at times for historical precision. All in all, the book
is a fine piece of craftsmanship and historical writing.

Southiuest Texas State Teachers College.

Claude Elliott.

How to cite:
"Hands Off", Volume 45, Number 4, Southwestern Historical Quarterly Online, http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/publications/journals/shq/online/v045/n4/review_DIVL6935.html
[Accessed Mon Nov 23 13:21:25 CST 2009]