MacArthur: A Definitive Statement

In the preface to his book, MacArthur: His Rendezvous with History, (547 pp., Alfred A. Knopf, $6.75) Major General Courtney Whitney uses a quotation from John Ruskin: “The only history worth reading is that written at the time, seen and heard, out of the mouths of men who did and saw.” Trained lawyer that he is, Whitney might have added that it is also an ancient jurisprudential principle to admit no hearsay evidence but only direct witness. From the viewpoint of orthodox historical research, the “appraisal quality” of documents depends almost entirely on the official situation of the writer.

Whitney’s book, a complete rebuttal of the growing collection of anti-MacArthuriana, falls into the impeccable category of historiography by Caulaincourt or de Bourienne or Lewis and Clark. The intrinsic value of these works lies in the eyewitness opportunities of the authors. However, Whitney does not stand alone; his position is strengthened and confirmed by a series of other eyewitnesses’ reports (although he may Well become the final figure, and his the final statement).

CW

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Charles A. Willoughby

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In the preface to his book, MacArthur: His Rendezvous with History, (547 pp., Alfred A. Knopf, $6.75) Major General Courtney Whitney uses a quotation from John Ruskin: “The only history worth reading is that written at the time, seen and heard, out of the mouths of men who did and saw.” Trained lawyer that he is, Whitney might have added that it is also an ancient jurisprudential principle to admit no hearsay evidence but only direct witness. From the viewpoint of orthodox historical research, the “appraisal quality” of documents depends almost entirely on the official situation of the writer.

Whitney’s book, a complete rebuttal of the growing collection of anti-MacArthuriana, falls into the impeccable category of historiography by Caulaincourt or de Bourienne or Lewis and Clark. The intrinsic value of these works lies in the eyewitness opportunities of the authors. However, Whitney does not stand alone; his position is strengthened and confirmed by a series of other eyewitnesses’ reports (although he may Well become the final figure, and his the final statement).