The Peacemaker: an Australian venture in reconstruction [29 issues] - 1948

Melbourne, 1948. Twenty-nine issues of the four-page newspaper, 10x15 inches, all with horizontal fold, paper toned, some with "Australian Pacifist" penciled in the corner, otherwise generally very good. Issues present are vol. 6 nos. 9-11, vol. 7 nos. 1 (with old tape repair), 2, 3, 6, 7, 10, 11; vol. 8 nos. 1, 3, 4, 6-8, 11, 12; vol. 9 nos. 3-5, 8, 9, 12; vol. 10 nos. 2, 4-6, 8. Frank Coaldrake, a Christian Pacifist, established the newspaper in 1939. As a warden at the Brotherhood of St. Laurence's hostel for destitute boys, he saw the poverty of forgotten men, and equated it to the exploitation of men in war. In addition to more theoretical and theological criticisms of war, the paper examines specific instances of the waste of resources and the violation of human dignity. The fate of Conscientious Objectors in other countries including the US and Germany is also discussed whenever Coaldrake could find information. Despite several close calls with the censors, The Peacemaker continued publication through WWII. In early 1946, Coaldrake went to Japan to train for missionary service, and the Federal Pacifist Council took over the management of the paper. In 1948 the editor, G. Anthony Bishop, traveled to postwar Europe and published articles describing harrowing conditions.