The Federalists of Jefferson's time have been described by historians as complainers and obstructionists. A very different picture evolves from this book, which the author calls "a reconsideration of American political conversation in the early national reriod." Mrs. Kerber shows that the rift between Federalists and Jeffersonians was caused by differences in ideology. The Federalists, according to the author, feared that an ordered world was disintegrating and that the sources of stability were being undermined by Jeffersonian concepts of science and education, of law and democracy, and by social arrangements founded on slavery. The book demonstrates how the rolitical differences of the two groups were reflected in all cultural forms and issues.

By a skillful use of quotations from varied sources—newspapers, letters, literary works, congressional debates—Mrs. Kerber lets her rrotagonists speak for themselves. The work has current significance because Federalist beliefs emphasized the rrecariousness of popular democracy and the difficulty of maintaining a stable social order-both widesrread concerns of Americans today.

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Convinced that the Federalists have not had a fair shake from Jefferson-worshipping historians, Linda K. Kerber has set out to refurbish their image by examining their rhetoric and ideology. Concentrating on the 'articulate Federalists' (mostly New Englanders) who published orations, essays, and satirical literature, she examines their attitudes toward the arts, science, education, law, and the contemporary American social order.... Her analysis will remain an indispensable introduction to Federalist thought.

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Kerber argues that the distinction between Federalists and Jeffersonians was as much cultural as political.... The well-documented study is based on a wide reading of contemporary pamphlets, newspapers, and correspondence.

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Students of the early American period, especially those with an interdisciplinary perspective, will be interested in Kerber's revision of the Federalists' image and encouraged by the volume and quality of the original material investigated.

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The Federalist thinking that Kerber explores helps to give greater depth to the more familiar history of Federalist politics, and, beyond that, she brings more of the country to life.