Of Mother Country and Plantations: Proceedings of the Twenty-Seventh Conference in Early American History ed. by Virginia B. Platt, David C. Skaggs (review)

82 THE CANADIAN HISTORICAL REVIEW professors, at leastfor theirstudents, bothgraduate andundergraduate. It is a beginner's manualthatprovides thehistorians' counterpart toKenneth Janda's data processing handbook for politicalscientists. After brieflysurveying the literatureon computerized historical research in politicaland socialhistory, Shorter explains in patientdetailhowto codesuchdata,transfer it to punch cards, manipulate it withunitrecord equipment, or 'feed'it to computers. The nextsection provides an elementary introduction to socialstatistics, whichseriousstudents would do well to supplement with the new Dollar-Jensen text, Historian'sGuideto Statistics. Shorterconcludes with caveats against'orgasmic' (ie, unsystematic) programming, error-ridden data files,and too low project costestimates. Chapter 2, 'Designing the Codebook,' reflects the author'sown expertise in Frenchsocial historyof the nineteenth centuryand is the bestexplanationavailableon codingsocialdata. The excellenttreatmentof social history isoffset,however, by theneglect of economic historyand contentanalysisand the weak coverage of politicalhistory.For theseareasreadersshould consult, respectively, RobertFogelandStanley Engerman, Oli HolstiandRobert North,andV.O. Key andKennethJanda.Shorteralsogivesat leastonebit of questionable advice- that historians neednot acquaintthemselves with computerprogramming languages because of theavailability of 'canned' statistical routines(p. 73). Not to encourage serious students to undertake at leastan introductorycourse in programming and a heavydosage of socialstatistics is counsel that runscounterto the main thrustof the HistoryPanel'srecommendations . To try to win converts by removingbugbears from the path may produce short-run successbut ultimate disaster. In light of the problems of self-definition and opposition to social-scientific methodology within theprofession, theHistoryPanelhasproduced a morepersuasive apologia.Shorter's bookis over-written,extremelydefensive, and condescending to 'genteelhumanists.' Certainlysomehistorians are 'suspicious' of the 'shibboleth of the computer' andconfess 'a visceral fear of "numerology," ' but I doubtif a gentle'put-down'will win themover.Perhaps in thismatter thebestdefence isa goodoffence. AsAllanBogue hasaptlyobserved, 'theusefulness andintrinsic interest of thepublications of thebehavioral historians will determine whether quantification flourishes orwithers asa historical technique.' Implementing the panel'srecommendations will at leastgivethesehistorians a fair chance to compete. ROBERT P. $WIERIgNOA Kent StateUniuersity CANADA Of MotherCountry andPlantations: Proceedings of theTwenty.Seventh Con. feteneein Early American History.Editedby WROIN•A B. rL•TT and DAWD C. SKAGGS. BowlingGreen,Ohio, BowlingGreenStateUniversiv/Press,•97•. Pp.x, I27. $5.00. Leshistoriens, comme tousles autres universitaires, aimentvoyager etserencontrerpourdiscuter entreeuxde leurshypotheses de travail,de leursprojets de REVIEWS 83 recherches, deschefsd'eeuvre qu'ilsesp•rentpublier.A une 6poqueo/ales hornroes de science sesententoblig6s de recouriraux techniques publicitaires desmarchands desavonpoursefaire connaltreet reconnaltre, lessoci•t6s dites savantes, lescongr•s, lescolloques onttendance •tsemultiplier.Cettecollection d'artidesdisparates etdevaleurin,galeestle r•sultatdel'unedecesr•unions. L'artide du professeur JacobM. Price,c Capital andCreditin the BritishChesapeake Trade, •75o-•775 •, estle fruit d'uneminutieuse recherche qui ajoute•tnosconnaissances surlesrelations •conomico-financi•res entrela m•tropoleet sescolonies. Ceuxqui ont d6j• consult•leseeuvres de cethistorien connaissent sonsoucidu d•tail et la patiencequ'exigentles travauxsp•cialis•s auxquels il s'estconsacr•. Apresl'avoirlu en savons-nous beaucoup plussur lesforcesfondamentales qui ont influenc•la marchedes•v•nementsdansles colonies et en m•tropoleentrele Congr•sd'Albanyet le Deuxi•me Congr•s continental ? QuandJefferson accusait leshornroes d'affaires britanniques de favoriserl'endettement desplanteurset de manipulerles prix desmarchandises import•es etexport6es pourlestenirenservitude, il faisaitdela d•magogie. Et lui-mame lesavait! Une simple campagne •lectorale consomme beaucoup de d6magogie. Un changement de r6gimeen exige•t doses massives. L'historien doit-il s'en6tonner? En histoire,l'imageque lescontemporains ont desfaits estplusimportante quelesfaitseux-m•mes. L'auteuroubliede le rappeler. Sonarticleapporte,n•anmoins, unemasse de donn6es utileset s'appuiesur dessources quelessp6cialistes dela p•riodeconsulteront avecprofit. Dansune•tudequiseveutunetentativede renouveler l'histoire constitutionnelleet politiquedela p6riode,c The Incorporation of Quebecin the British Empire, •763-I774 •, le professeur Peter Marshall r•aliseun v•ritable tour deforce.I1r•p•te,ensenoyant damdesd•tailsinutiles, cequia •t6 6critmaintes foiset oubliedesfaitsessentiels. En particulier, il semble ignorerqueCarleton •tait enm6tropole d•sl'automne de •77oet y demeura jusqu'apr•s l'adoption de l'Actede Quebec.Cettepr6sence n'aurait-elle pasinfluenc•lesministres appel•s• faire ent•rinerofficiellement par le Parlement le statutspecial dont jouissait d•j• l'ancienne colonie fran9aise dansl'empirebritannique?La nominationd 'un •v•que (x766) et le r•tablissement du r•gime seigneurial ordonn• par lesinstructions additionnelles du • juillet x77•, & la r•dactiondesquelles Carleton, rendu &Londres, avaitlui-m•me contribu•, n'avaient-elles pasreconnu dans lesfaitsla situation particuli•re duQuebec bienavantl'adoption del'Acte deQu6bec? L'auteura •galementtort delaisser croirequelesautorites britanniques entretenaient une conception monolithique de l...