The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 75, July 1971 - April, 1972 Page: 256

Southwestern Historical Quarterly

mine to J. Frank Dobie, "The only ore that was there to mine was
that provided by the skill of the writer."
In his effort to achieve a balance the author included several well-
researched articles on narcotics, smuggling, and the pachuco youth
groups along the Texas-Mexico border. While of social importance,
these articles may not be compatible with the expectations of the
average reader of western collections.
The book is of limited value to the professional historian. The works
concerning Pancho Villa and the Pershing-Villa encounter seem mere-
ly to replace older myth with newer myth. Braddy's essay on the Mex-
ican revolution provides nothing that is not found in standard texts
and monographs. Mexican historians from both sides of the border
will find his reference to the revolution as "that tragedy" somewhat
unusual since most Mexicans see the revolution in a positive light-
an event which has provided the impetus for today's dynamic growth.
The author has met his literary commitment and the book is rec-
ommended to those readers with an interest in western folklore.
Purdue University WILLIAM COLLINS
A History of the Indians of the United States. By Angie Debo. (Nor-
man: University of Oklahoma Press, 1970. Pp. xvii+386. $8.95.)
Angie Debo's preface contends that whites have very little knowl-
edge of Indian history, and she proposes to help alleviate the problem
by providing a general survey of the subject from the pre-Columbian
period to the present. Her credentials for the task are impressive. She
has authored several previous volumes on Indian history and for many
years edited The Chronicles of Oklahoma, a journal which features
many articles on native Americans. Thus the present study is by an ex-
perienced scholar who, in a sense, is summarizing a long and produc-
tive career.
Much of Debo's narrative will be familiar ground to students of
Indian history. Her chronological organization defines Indian linguis-
tic groups and their original geographic locations, discusses the coming
of the white man and the impact of colonial rivalry on Indians, and,
in the bulk of the book, traces Indian affairs from the American
Revolution to recent years.
Although the general outlines of Debo's book are well known, she
draws on primary sources and recent scholarship to present a fresh
treatment which both novices and experts will find rewarding to

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