Edwin B. Bronner

Moderates in London Yearly Meeting, 1857-1873: precursors of Quaker liberals

The Religious Society of Friends, or Quakers, which originated in England in the middle of the seventeenth century, has gone through many changes. After the exuberant, expansive early years, most Friends entered a period of quietism, in which they waited patiently for divine direction and largely withdrew from the society around them. At the beginning of the nineteenth century the majority of Friends on both sides of the Atlantic embraced the evangelical movement which had taken hold in both the Anglican church and the newer Methodist denomination. While some Quakers were caught up in such ultra-evangelical activities as revivals and the holiness movement, others turned away and accepted the new liberalism which appeared in Protestantism.

PETER BROCK. Pacifism in the United States: From the Colonial Era to the First World War. Pp. xii, 1,005. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1968.

prohibiting slavery. Lincoln agreed and called for new antislavery state constitutions. Lincoln’s December 1863 Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction (the famous 10 percent plan) was more radical than conservative, for it insisted on emancipation as a condition for reconstruction and on a loyalty test for all who would participate in the government, whether consistent Unionists or not. The accord between Lincoln and the radical Republican congressmen disappeared in early 1864 (an election year) when Lincoln moved to reconstruct Louisiana under its old constitution-revised to

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gration has been remarkably constructive, generous and steady.&dquo; The formulation and effective pursuit of that policy he correctly credits to &dquo;a remarkably small group of men, mainly in the Department of State.&dquo; He refers to support as &dquo;broad and often rather instinctive,&dquo; neglecting the Departments vigorous campaigns in educating public opinion and similar efforts of private agencies. Official statements of American policy, Mr. van der Beugel finds, often exhibit deplorable confusion of concept with reality. The official line that De Gaulle’s veto on Britain’s membership in the Common Market &dquo;had no consequence for the pursuit of American policy&dquo; presented a distorted view. The concept was not affected but giving it concrete form was made impossible. The author harbors misgivings about the Atlantic Partnership. He rejects the slogan &dquo;a partnership of equals,&dquo; showing the great predominance of the United States in