The first impression that we obtain upon opening this book is one rather of surprise at the extraordinarily wide range of subjects which Mr. Root has treated in the course of his addresses and speeches on international questions, to which the volume is confined, — a range that covers the ground and sets forth the essential facts as well as the arguments which have served to build up American public opinion and to direct the international thought of this country for almost a generation. The relations with Japan, the Panama Canal, the Conferences at The Hague, the rights and duties of nations, and the protection of citizens residing abroad, have filled a large part of public attention during the last quarter of a century; indeed, some of the questions included here, like the intercourse with Mexico and the Monroe Doctrine, have held the public interest since long before our own time.