Opinions of the Press. "We cordially recommend the work to our readers. There can be no better preparation for the twentieth century than this brief glance back at the great reformers of the nineteenth A very bright and readable series of short sketches, and the narrative is often extremely vivid."-Ethical World. ... "An interesting contribution to the literature of social reform. It is excellently written, and those who agree with its outlook will find it instructive in the facts of their own faith, while students of social questions generally may take it as an able presentment of the mood of that large class of enthusiasts to which Mr. Balmforth belongs, and in its statements of fact, accurate withal, and singularly free from that exaggeration which generally characterizes writing of this particular kind.-Review of the Week. "What he succeeds in doing is what he set out to accomplish, viz:—to give his readers at a glance, so to speak, the course of the great progressive movement of the century, but in doing this Mr. Balmforth has really done more, for he has laid down the plan of a greater work that some day, we hope, will be written, which will do justice to the great army of devoted and faithful pioneers, who have made possible the greater movements, which the new century will certainly witness. We heartily recommend this book to all students of social reform."-New Age. "An interesting little book he has made of it, with concise biographies and appreciations of such very different reformers as Cobbett, Place, Owen, Shaftesbury, Carlyle and Morris."-Spectator. "He writes thoughtfully and moderately; he has read much, and has kept company with best authors; his estimates of the notable men he passes under review seem generally sound, with the honourable fault of being now and then too generous."-Guardian. GEORGE ALLEN & Co., LIMITED, LONDON. SOME SOCIAL AND POLITICAL PIONEERS OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY BY RAMSDEN BALMFORTH Author of "The New Reformation," "The Evolution of GEORGE ALLEN & CO., LTD. RUSKIN HOUSE: 44 & 45 RATHBONE PLACE 1912 [ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.] Apr. 19, 16. M.A.J. PREFACE THE following chapters, with the exception of the one on William Morris, originally appeared in the Co-operative News. They are now reprinted in a permanent form in the hope that they will be of service to those who are interested in social questions, and especially to those who wish to make themselves acquainted with some of the most important social and industrial movements of the nineteenth century. An attempt has been made to give not merely a series of short, detached biographies, but to connect, with each person and movement dealt with, a sort of historico-biographical narrative, showing the development of social and political ideas during the course of the century. The reader will thus be enabled to estimate, to some extent, the vast change in thought and outlook which has taken place during the past eighty years. I have to thank my brother Owen for kindly undertaking the tedious task of correcting the proof-sheets of this book. R. B. Reclass. 4-17-30.TIEN 290302 |