From the archive: Yearly Meeting 1918
Janet Scott describes an ‘ever-memorable’ gathering
On 31 May the Friend reported on the fourth wartime Yearly Meeting. There was a reduced attendance, because more and more Friends were away on war or relief service either overseas or at home, although a few of these were on furlough. Also, railway restrictions were in operation. Nevertheless, the Friend said that this Yearly Meeting would be ‘ever memorable in our annals’. The report continued:
…the uniforms of the FAU [Friends Ambulance Unit] and War Victims’ Relief workers were generally in evidence. Pleasant also it was to see men recently in prison able to take part in our annual gathering, even though… in many cases their release implied an impaired constitution. The strain of the present times was evident on many faces, perhaps most of all on those of the mothers of sons in danger in the fighting forces or in prison; but there was uplift in the sense of solidarity with which we were again and again able to feel that we were going forward together, even though the path prove dark and difficult.
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