Thinking with Both Hands: Sir Daniel Wilson in the Old World and the New ed. by Elizabeth Hulse (review)

726 The Canadian Historical Review· racier biographies may be disappointed that Evelyn Dick does not rate her own entry, but those in the know will soon tum to Paul Mercer's profile ofEvelyn's father, Donald Maclean, the only person convicted in the infamous Torso murder of1946. Those not in the know will find the index decidedly unhelpful; the listing for Evelyn Dick refers readers to . entries to two less central figures, including the local coroner, but not to the entry on her father. Like previous volumes in the series, this one has been modelled on the Dictionary of Canadian Biography, and the DCB's Robert L. Fraser even provided crucial editorial assistance. Some entries have been written by interested academic and amateur historians, while others come from summer students. Unlike previous volumes, volume 4 had to be produced in the face ofsignificant cutbacks in government assistance, and its publication is a tribute to a dedicated group of local Hamilton historians led by T. Melville Bailey. Not surprisingly, the biographies vary in quality and depth, depending greatly on the background and interest of the contributor. Religious, educational, and political. figures seem to have inspired good biographies , but the same cannot be said for the business community. Given his importance to the city, DOFASCO's Frank Sherman, for example, deserves more than a brief chronicle of his social activities. One exception among the basic business biographies is John C. Best's portrait of Ken Soble, a radio and television executive known for founding Hamilton's CHCH television station (now ONTV). One final point should be made about the volume as a reference work. Readers should not be led astray by the title. Although ostensibly deyoted to individuals whose careers flourished between 1940 and 1970, the volume can and should be consulted for information on individuals whose careers date anywhere from 1900 to 1970, particularly 1910 to· 1960. When the final volume (1971-2000) is complete, I hope some funding can be found to support the development of a strong index to · the entire series. Overall, volume 4 ofthe Dictionary ofHamilton Biography is a valuable pioneering effort that provides fascinating insights into the social and political development ofa Canadian industrial city. KEN CRUIKSHANK McMaster University Thinking with Both Hands: Sir Daniel Wilson in the Old World and the New. Edited by ELIZABETH HULSE. Toronto: University ofToronto Press 1999· Pp. xvi, 352, illus. $50.00 American-born Scottish historian Dr Marinell Ash (1941-1988) died before completing her research on the life ofDaniel Wilson. Judging by Book Reviews 727 her contributions to this impressive anthology, she was well on the way to crafting a splendid biography of Wilson, whose many accomplishments have been imperfectly understood on both sides of the Atlantic. At the behest ofthe executors ofthe Ash estate, Elizabeth Hulse carried forward Ash's project by engaging experts from various disciplines to reflect on the many facets of Wilson's life. The result is a volume of impressive multidisciplinary depth and breadth, extraordinarily rich in its layers of contextual analysis and interpretive insights. Wilson has been a difficult subject for any one scholar to master, largely because of his eclecticism. The difficulty has been compounded by the fact that Wilson spent the first half of his life in Britain, before emigrating to Toronto in 1853 to assume the chair in history and English literature at University College. Ash, who wrote the opening three essays in this volume, has grappled effectively with the Scottish halfofWilson's life. Her introductory biographical chapter presents Wilson as 'a child of Edinburgh' and details the formative influences on his thinking and the development of his myriad interests. The second chapter (written with Kitty Croft and Elizabeth Hulse) focuses on Wilson's antiquarian activities and establishes him as a founder of the modern historical conservancy movement in Scotland. Ash's third chapter focuses on Wilson's contributions to Scottish prehistory. His remarkable Archaeology and Prehistoric Annals ofScotland (1851) represented 'a profound shift in the methodology ofantiquarian thought,' as Wilson turned away from speculative sources and relied instead on new tools such as the Danish three-age (stone, bronze, and iron) system, as well as disciplines such as ethnology...