THE MENNONITE BROTHERHOOD IN RUSSIA (1789 - 1910), P. M. Friesen, 1911

itude toward my Mennonite comrades according to the flesh as well as the faith is readily apparent in the book. Nevertheless I wish to add that I have acquired a measure of love and— if the expression is appropriate— patriotism for the “brotherhood” throughout the entire world I had not dreamed possible before. It is true that I have remained the same “Alliance Christian” that my life style and Christian experiences led me to become. But my soul is full of sympathy and interest for “our” little flock spread over the whole world. And during twenty-five years I would have answered the question, what I was doing with: “I seek my brethren!” in a very special sense. Nor did I wish to leave even the most meager, the most distant, the most insignificant, or the most estranged member of our Menno family unmentioned or unknown. Hence my widespread statistical researches in Russia, Europe, and America. And so I urgently request critiques, corrections, and reports so that I may provide corrections and fuller information in my supplemental volume. As to the language! It was a particularly bitter disappointment that the hoped-for review of every printed sheet by an especially esteemed master of the language with regard to purity of style did not materialize. Conditions under which corrections were made difficult aggravated the situation even more so that much that is irritating with regard to style leers back at me from the printed page. To that I wish to add that, over a period of forty years as a consequence of my profession, the German and Russian languages have vied for supremacy with one another in me, and there was a time when my German did not want to flow properly. Add to that twenty-five years of work with literary sources nine-tenths of which can truly be said not to be classical! Nor is the outward appearance enhanced by the large sections in fine print. But it was my passionate desire to present the reader, especially the researcher, with as much material as possible so that he could see how matters stood and stand. Without this book much would probably have been lost. The purchaser will, I think, be thankful to the publisher above all for the many pictures which he has inserted in response to my never-ending requests. Where the text is inadequate, the pictures are often an excellent supplement. In this regard I hope to provide a few new things in my supplemental volume, especially with reference to Holland, Switzerland, South Germany, and America. XXX 111 I alone am responsible for the opinions expressed in this book. The publishers very magnanimously stipulated that I was free to express my personal opinion at all times. They may well have desired to change many a presentation. But absolute independence was a sine qua non I took for granted. As far as the great question regarding the origin of the Anabaptist movement is concerned, I have personally attempted to remain as neutral as possible