Books, Etc., Recently Issued, and of Interest to Friends

BOOKS OF INTEREST TO FRIENDS.65 BOOKS, ETC., RECENTLY ISSUED, AND OF INTEREST TO FRIENDS. The Quakers in Great Britain and America. The Religious and Political History of the Society of Friends from the Seventeenth to the Twentieth Century. Two volumes in one. By Charles Frederick Holder, LL.D. Author of The Pioneer Quakers, The Life of Agassis, etc. The Neuner Company, New York, Los Angeles, London, 1913. 8vo. 669 pp. $6.00 net. The author of this portly volume states in his Preface that he has attempted to supply the need for " a popularly-written, well-illustrated, condensed history of Quakerism as a whole, from the birth of George Fox to approximately 1913, in one volume." It is scarcely possible to call a volume of 669 pages " a condensed history," but that misnomer could be overlooked, had not the volume serious faults. It is diffuse, has little continuity, and the narrative is interrupted by many digressions, especially relating to personal or family matters. Indeed, one is led to think that to give honor to the author's ancestors is one of the chief objects of the work.1 With the best intentions possible, the author has failed to produce either a clear or accurate picture of the character or the history of Quakerism. In the chapter on " Mary Dyer and Her Friends," he gives an account of the separation of 1827, of the Gurney difficulties, and the establishment of New England Yearly Meeting. This is simply one example of the lack of continuity. The book abounds in errors. He says, " The emphasis placed upon worldly matters and attire by George Fox resulted gradually in the assuming of what was practically a uniform as pronounced as that of his Lordship the Bishop of London to-day " (p. 242). He states that Sir Theodore Fry, Sir Edward Fry, and the M.P. "Mr. Louis [Lewis] Fry" were descendants of Elizabeth Fry (p. 270), whereas their father was but a cousin of her husband. Rufus M. Jones is not the son of Eli and Sybil Jones (p. 457), but their nephew; neither has he written the life of George Fox (p. 618). We are sure that much as the Library owes to our friend Norman Penney, he would disclaim the statement that the Library at Devonshire House "has been collected under the diligent and intelligent direction of Norman Penney." It is certainly new to most students of Quaker history that " The American Friends for seven years made every effort to induce London Yearly Meeting to 'silence' Gurney, but without avail" (p. 455). Jeremy Taylor is called " an intense Papist and follower of Laud " (p. 234) ; a more incorrect statement it would be hard to find. Again, " The Quakers were xThe reviewer counted 136 places where Christopher Holder is mentioned by name. 66BULLETIN OF FRIENDS' HISTORICAL SOCIETY. the first we have seen to allow women to speak in meetings " (p. 127) . There are also not a few sentences of which it is difficult to catch the meaning, such as : " Elizabeth Fry stands as the embodiment of the best type of the Quaker, a replica of hundreds of women in England and America who lent dignity and charm to the Quaker Society" (p. 247). Or, on the same page, " In these passing years came the Independence of the Colonies, the French Revolution, the establishment of the Women's Friends' Yearly Meeting, the war with France, and the wars against France and Napoleon, 1803-15, the introduction of the great reform bill, in nearly all of which the Quakers had a share or were influenced," etc. The number of typographical errors or of wrong spelling is great, the reviewer counted page after page with one or more on each page. This is particularly true of proper names, " Macauley " many times, "Eminott" for Emmott (p. 233), "Jordon" for Jordan (p. 240), "Redding" for Reading (p. 270), "Tange" for Tangye (p. 271), "Oberend" for Overend (Ib.), "Rivere" for Riviera (Ib.), "Ditchle" for Ditch (p. 283), " Foothergill " for Fothergill (p. 621), " Scathergood " for Scattergood (Ib.), "Eaton" for Eutaw (p. 622), "John" for Joan (Ib.), "Edmond" for Edmund (Ib.), "1898" for 1908 (p. 632), "Mufflin" for Mifflin (p. 634...