The General who never was by Strome Galloway, Hero: the Buzz Beurling Story by Brian Nolan (review)

244 THE CANADIAN HISTORICAL REVIEW Americansecretary of state:'Agoodsolidier doesnotplaypolitics in uniform. A reallygoodstatesman isaserious full-timestudent of histrade.A politician is a politician.' This isall goodstuff,yet for the navalhistorianand defencespecialist this volumeisof limitedvalue.Firstly, Brockwastoojunior duringWorldWarii to beinvolved withnavalpolicy andserving atsea withtheRNheisunable toshed muchlightonCanadianwartimenavalissues. Secondly, theauthorpointsout thatinsome cases names ofindividuals andships havebeenchanged - presumably to protectthe guilty and innocentalike. Consequently, the useof the memoirsasoralhistoryis,atleasttosomeextent,circumscribed. In a veryrealsense the purposeof thisfirstvolumeisto setthestagefor the second: thatis,Brock's unsuccessful struggle topreserve theformandidentity of the RCN against Hellyer'sunificationproposals. In theforewordBrockindicatesthatinVolumeix 'I shallrecountmydisappointment anddistrustof the Ministerresponsible for thisdebacleand my continuingdisillusionment asI watchedwithdismaythedisintegration of service moraleastheintegrationof theservices progressed.' In sodoing,itwillbeincumbent uponBrocktoensure thatnonames orevents arechanged asthesecond volumeshould constitute an importantcontributionto themajordefenceissues of themidto latex96os. It mayevenforcePaulHellyertotellhissideof thestory. Beingastudentof such issues, I eagerlyawaitBrock's recounting of theunification debate. R.B.BYF. RSYork University TheGeneral who never was. STROME GALLOWAY. Belleville, Mika Publishing, 198 x. PP-295. Hero:theBuzzBeurling Story. BRIAN NOLAN. Toronto,Lester& Orpen, Dennys, 198i. Pp.xiv, Canadians do notknowverymuchaboutthe menwhofoughttheir battlesin twoworldwars. Wellington's smallandilliteratearmyinthePeninsular Warleft about asmany publishedpersonalmemoirsasthe million-and-a-halfCanadianswhoserved inthiscentury's wars. Onepossible reason for scarcity isthatmenlikeGeorgeBeurlingandStrome Galloway donotfit manyCanadianstereotypes. How manyyoungCanadians in the 193os devoted themselves heartandsoultopreparingfor aroleinwar? Warin x939released agoodmanyyoungmenfromhopelessness; for veryfew wasit thefulfilmentof a passionate desire.Eventhen,bothmenhadto enter battleunder Britishauspices; Beurlingwith the RoyalAir ForceoverMalta, Galloway withaLondonterritorialbattalioninAlgeria. A decadeagothelate GeneralGuy Simonds soughtto persuadethe architectsof our unifiedarmedforcesthatfighterpilotsandplatooncommaders had nothingmore in commonthan an officer'srank. ColonelGalloway's war memoirsand Brian Nolan'sbiographyof Canada'smostsuccessful air ace REVIEWS 245 wouldhaveconfirmedthe argument.Beurling'sdeadlyscoreowedmuchto superbmarksmanship and evenmoreto the innatemathematical talentthat allowedhim to calculatedeflectionangleswith the precisionof an on-board computer.Beurlingwasa lonetechnician. He could,for a time,endureand evenexploitthecelebrity status devised bythe Mackenzie Kinggovernment and the RC^F; under no circumstances couldBeurlingendure disciplined teamwork. Nothingelsewouldhavebeenpossible forasuccessful regimentalofficerlike StromeGalloway. Hisautobiography depicts him asthearchtypeandperhaps eventhecaricature ofallthefightingofficers onehasknownorevenimagined. Novelists, accused of exaggerating their officer-characters beyondcredulity, should refersceptics toColonelGalloway's autobiography. Whatitdepicts isthe wholerepertoireof militarydevices, from shiningbrass to brass bands,from common jokestoremembered traditions whichmakearegimentthefamilyin whichsoldiers liveanddietogether. Galloway's themeisnotoriginal. ThroughouttheItaliancampaign hisRoyal CanadianRegimentwasa closeneighbourof the unit recordedby Farley Mowatin TheRegiment and,morerecently, inAndNoBirds Sang. ThoughColonelGalloway mustbeoneof thefewauthors to makemoneypublishing his ownpoetryinthe•93os,hecanlaynoclaimtoMowat's artorstyle. Whathehas doneisdepictwar at thelevelwhich,asthe lateS.L.A.Marshallinsisted, it shouldbedescribed. Galloway maybenarrow,anachronistic, andlimitedand oneneednotbe GeneralCharlesFoulkes to understandwhyhe wouldhave beenan unsuitable generalin peaceor war.At the sametime, Gallowaycommunicates hisownoutrageatthecold,ambitious officerswhohelpedsendan exhausted, pulverizedbattalionintoa hopeless, needless attackat Lamonein December•944 and then sneeredat the troopsfor lossof nerve. Professional historians will havelegitimatecomplaints aboutboth books. Professor Nolan'sclaims thatBeurlingisthestuffof legends isjacketcopy,not substance. If he had added the Public Archives of Canada to his exhaustive list of sourceshe might havediscovereda gooddeal to his advantage.Colonel Galloway wasprobably nottobedeflected fromhisopinions bythejudgments of officialhistorians buthispublisher owedhimthekindof editingthateliminatesnear -verbatim repetitionon adjacentpages.Surelya few mapscould havejoined hissnapshots. Neither bookwaswrittento satisfy scholarly critics.If ihe dayevercomes whenhistorians turn from theirotherlaudableconcerns to wonderwhyCanadiansin battlefoughtor ran away,bookslike thesewill contributepart of the raw materialsfor an answer. Veteransare becoming old men. Like Colonel Galloway, theyshould beencouraged tobringtheirmemories downfromtheir atticsto be preserved. Suchworksmaybe imperfect;theymaysoonbecome unavailable. I•ESMONI• MORTON University ofToronto ...