The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1917-08-28


lished in the very heart of Quakerism.
said recently that the Quaker protest
was against the killing Of men. and
| that the assignment of Friends to non
combatant service in the army camps
| tory to them.
Only Half Truth.
That the protest Of Friends to war
| is against the killing OF men is stating
only a half truth Their protest is
against the entire military system, and
| the conscientious Quaker can no more
| help other people to light than he can
fight himself. The wording of the
army statute, relative to exemption
from combatant service. as distinguish.
ed from non-combatant service, will
probably have to be interpreted ulti-
| mately by the supreme court, but con-
scientious Friends, perhaps universal
ly, will regard assignment to camps by
local boards and consequent duty on
the field as "combatant" service, even
though they be actually relieved from
carrying a gun or saber.
To say that service Of any kind at
the training camps or the digging Of
trenches and the carrying Of ammunit
ion on the field is not an essential part
of war is like saying that the man who
carries the hod is not z part Of the con-
struction Of a building because he does
not actually lay the brick, or that the
thousands of clerks at Washington are
not an essential part of the administra-
ton of government because they do
not actually make the laws or execute
them.
Many Will Refuse.
There are hundreds Of Quaker young
men, who, in order to be true to their
convictions and their church history
and teaching, will accept with cheer
fulness the penalties. for refusing to
report for service 1t The training
camps or upon the field, and do 1t too
with no feeling Of q traiSorous spirit.
and with a readiness TO serve the coun-
try and government IN other ways, that
will mean far more to the country and
government than their Imprisonment
can possibly mean. =
ment now falls into the same error
which governme nts jim the mast fell
into, when they sought to discipline
the Quaker by punishment, and he
multiplied tremendously on their
hands The Quaker is not traitor,
nor can he be cfassed as an ''undesir-
able citizen" even by theh most siren
uous Rooseveltian type Of thinking.
On the contrary, while deploring
war and protesting against 1t by refus-
ing conscientiously to engage in 1t, he
is spending thousands Of dollars in
order to send the very flower OF our
Quaker youth across the seas to
France to help bind up the wounds of
a broken and sorely distressed nation.
If the Quaker could be forced to vio-
late his conscience, he would become,
if not bad citizen, at least worth
less one.
"Frend Is Not Stacker"
The Friend is not a Stacker. On the |
contrary his whole demeanor as cit
izen is one of constructive and uplift-
ing service to the government. His at
titude toward war and his conception
of obligation to civil government is de- |
rived from such teaching as is found in |
the Friends Declaration of Faith"
found in our Book of Discipline.
That conscience should be free, and
that in matters Of religious doctrine |
and worship man is accountable only
to God, are truths which are plainly
declared in the New Testament; and
which are confirmed by the whole
scope of the Gospel, and by the
example of our Lord and His disciples.
To rule over the conscience, and to
command the spiritual allegiance of
His creature man, is the high and
sacred prerogative of God alone. +
We have ever maintained that 1t Is
the duty of Christians to obey the en-
Of civil government, except
those which interfere with our alleg-
lance to God. We owe much to its
blessings Through it we enjoy liberty
and protection, in connection with law
and orde. =
No Way To Release.
We feel bound explicitly to avow
our mistaken persuasion that all war
is utterly incompatible with the plain