VIII. Seven Epitaphs

73 CHAPTER VIII. SEVEN EPITAPHS. WE have passed the most notable monuments of the Owen epoch,.and come now to obscurer graves. Doubt less many of the little Communities that followed New Harmony, and in a small way repeated its fortunes, were buried without memorial. We have on Macdonald's list -the names of only seven more, and their epitaphs are for the most part very brie£ We may as well group them all in one chapter, and copy what Macdonald -says about theIn, without comment. EPITAPH NO. 1. COOPERATIVE SOCIETY, 1825. "Located at Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. Founded on the principles of Robert Owen. Benjamin Bakewell, President; John Snyder, Treasurer; Magnus M. Mur ray, Secretary." EPITAPH NO. II. FRANKLIN COMMUNITY, 1826. ., Located somewhere in New York. Had a printed Constitution; also a 'preparatory school.' No further garticulars." EPITAPH NO. III. BLUE SPRINGS COMMUNITY. 1826-7.

"A gathering under the above title, existed for a short time near Bloomington, Ind. It was said [by 74 AMERICAN SOCIALISMS. somebody] to be 'harmonious and prosperous' as late as Jan. I; 1827; but as I find no trace of it in my re searches, it is fair to conclude that it is numbered with the dead, like others of its day." EPITAPH NO. IV. FORRESTVILLE COMMUNITY. (INDIANA.) "This Society was formed on the I 6th day of Decem ber, 1825, of four families consisting of thirty-one persons. March 26, 1826, the constitution was printed. During the year their number increased to over sixty. The business "vas transacted by three trustees, to be elected annually, together with a secretary and treasurer. The principles were pllrely republican. They had no established religion, the constitution only requiring .that all candidates should be of good moral character, sober and industrious. They declared that' a baptist, a meth odist, a universalist, a quaker, a calvinist, a deist, or any other 'ist, provided he or she is a genuine good moralist, are equally privileged and equally esteemed.' They occupied 325 acres of land, two saw-mills, one grist-mill, a carding machine, and a tannery, and carried on wagon n1aking, shoemaking, blacksn1ithing, coopering, agri cuIture, &c."

EPITAPH NO. V. HAVERSTRA \V COMMUNITY. "This Society was formed in the year I 826 by a Mr. Fay (an attorney), Jacob Peterson and George Houston of New York, and Robert L Ginengs of Philadelphia. It is probable that it originated in Gonsequence of the lectures which were at that time delivered by Robert Owen in this country. "The principles and objects of the Society, as far as I can learn, were to better the condition of themselves EPITAPHS. 75 and their fellowmen, which they conceived could be done by living in Community, having all things in com mon, giving equal rights to each, and abolishing the terms 'mine and thine.' "They increased their numbers to eighty persons, including women and children, and purchased an estate at Haverstraw, two miles back fronl the Hudson river, on the west side, about thirty miles above New York. There were 120 acres of wood land, two mansion houses, twelve or fourteen out-buildings, one saw-mill, and a rolling and splitting-mill: and the estate had a noble stream of water running through it. The property was owned by a Major Suffrens of Haverstraw, who de manded $ I 8,000 for it. On this sum $6,000 were paid, and bond and mortgage were given for the remainder.

To raise the $6,000 and to defray other expenses, Jacob Peterson advanced $7,000 ; another individual $300; and others subscribed sums as low as $ 10. Money, land, and every thing else were held as common stock for the equal benefit of all the members. " Among the meln bers, were persons of various trades and occupations, such as carpenters, cabin~t-makers, tailors, shoe-In akers and farmers. It was the general opinion that the society, as a whole, possessecl a large amount of intelligence; and both men and women were of good moral character. I was acquainted with two or three persons who were engaged in this enterprise, and must say I never ·saw more just aI1d honorable old men than they were when I knew them. " It appears that they formed a church among them selves, which they denoininated the Clzurch of Reaso1l,; and on Sundays they attended Ineetings, where lectures were delivered to them on Morals, Philosophy, Agricul76 AMERICAN SOCIALISMS.

ture and various scientific subjects. They had no religious ceremonies or articles of faith. "They adrnitted members by ballot. The details of their rules and regulations were never printed. I have reason to believe that they had an abundance of laws and by-laws; and that they disagreed upon these, as well as upon other matters. "While the Community lasted, they were well supplied with the necessaries of life, and generally speaking their circumstances were by no means inferior to those they had left. "The splitting and rolling Inill was not used, but fanning and ill echanical operations were carried on; and it is supposed (as in many other instances) t~at if the offic.ersof the society had acted right, t~e experiment would have succeeded; but by some lueans the affairs soon became disorderly, and though so much money had originall y been raised, and assistance was recei ved from without, yet the experiment came to an end after a strug gle of only five months.

"An informant asserts that dishonesty of the man agers and want of good measures were the causes of failure, and expresses hinlself thus: 'We wanted men and women of skillful industry, sober and honest, with a knowledge of themselves, and a disposition to command and be comlnanded, and not men and women whose sale occupation is parade and talk.' " In this experiment, like many others, several indi viduals suffered pecuniary loss. Those who had but a home, left it for Community, and of course were thrown back in their progress. Those who had money and in vested there, lost it. Jacob Peterson, of New York, who advanced '$7,000, never got nlore than '$300 of it EPITAPHS. 77 back, and· even that was lost to him through the dis honesty of those with whom he did business." EPITAPH NO. VI. COXSACKIE COMMUNITY. "This experiment also was commenced in I 826, and mem bers from the-Haverstraw experiment joined it on the breaking-up of their Society.

"The principal actors in this attempt, were Samuel Underhill, John Norberry, Nathaniel Underhill, Wm. G. Macy, Jethro Macy and Jacob Peterson. The objects were the same as at Haverstraw, but in trying to carry them out they met with no better success. It appears that the capital was small, and the estate, which was located seven miles back from Coxsackie on the Hudson river, was very much in debt. From the little informa tion I am enabled to gather concerning this attempt, I judge that they made many laws, that their laws were bad, and that they had many persons engaged in talking and law-making, who did not work at any useful employ ment. The consequences were, that after struggling on for a little more than a year, this experiment came to an end. One of my informants thus expresses himself about this failure: 'There were few good men to steer things right. We wanted men and women who would be willing to live in simple habitations, and on plain and simple diet; who would be contented with plain and simple clothing, and who would band together for each others' good. With such we might have succeeded; but such attempts can not succeed without such people.' "In this little conflict there were many sacrifices; but those who survived and were still imbued with the prin ciples, emigrated to Ohio, to fight again with the old system of things."

AMERICAN SOCIALISMS. EPITAPH NO. VII. KENDAL COMMUNITY. " This was an attempt to carry out the views of Mr. Owen. It was located near Canton, Stark County. Ohio. The purchase of the property was made in June 1826, by a body of freeholders, whose farms were mortgaged for the first payment, and who, on account of the difficulty of realizing cash for 'their estates, were under some embarrassment in their operations, though the property was a great bargain." Of this enterprise in its early stage the Western Courier (Dec., 1826,) thus speaks: "The Kendal Community is rapidly on the increase; a number of dwellings have been erected in addition to those previously built; yet the increase of families has been such that there is much inconvenience experienced for want of house-room. The members are now em ployed in erecting a building 170 by 33 feet, which is intended to be temporarily occupied as private dwellings, but ultimately as workshops. This and other improve ments for the convenience of the place, will soon be completed; "Kendal is pleasantly and advantageously situated for health. We are informed that there is not a sick person on the premises. Mechanics of various professions have joined the Community, and are now occupied in prosecuting the various branches of industry. They have a woolen factory in which n1any hands are em ployed. Everything appears to be going on prosper ously and harmoniously. There is observed a bustling emulation among the members. They labor hard, and are probably not exempt from the cares and perplexities incident to all worldly undertakings; and what society EPITAPHS. 79 or system can claim immunity from' them? The ques tion is, whether they may not be mitigated. Trouble we believe to be a divisible quantity; it may be softened by sympathy and intercourse, as pleasure may be in creased by union and companionship. These advantages have already been experienced at the Kendal Commu nity, and its members are even now in possession of that which the poet ihath declared to be the sum total of human happiness, viz., Health, Peace and Competence."

"Several families from the Coxsackie Community," says Macdonald, "had joined Kendal when the above was written, and the remainder were to follow as soon as they were prepared. The Kendal Conlmunity. then numbered about one hundred and fifty m,embers includ ing children. They were engaged in manufacturing woolen goods on a small scale, had a few hops, and did considerable business on the farm. They speak of their ,choicespirits;' and anticipate assistance to carry out their plans, and prove the success of the sosial system beyond all contradiction, by the disposal of property and settlement of affairs at Coxsackie. In their enthu siasm they assert,' that unaided, and with only their own resources and experience, and above all, with their little band of invincible spirits, who are tired of the old system and are determined to conquer or die, they 1nust succeed.' I conclude they did not conquer but died, for I can learn nothing further concerning them.'"

A re'cent letter from Mr. John Harmon, of Ravenna, Ohio, who was a member of the Kendal Community, gives a more definite account of its failure, as follows: "Our Community progressed harmoniously and pros perously, so long as the members had their health and a hope of paying for th.eir domain. But a summer-fever 80 AMERICAN SOCIALISMS. attacked us, and seven heads of families died, among whom were several of our most valu~d and useful members. At the same time the rich proprietors of whom we purchased our land urged us to pay; and we could not sell a part of it and give a good title, because we were not incorporated. So we were compelled to give up and disperse, losing what we had paid, which was about $7,000. But we formed friendships that were enduring, and the failure never for a monlent weakened my faith in the value of Communism." We group the three last Communities together, because they were evidently closely related by members passing from one to another, as the earlier ones success ively failed. This habit of migrating from one Com munity to another is an interesting characteristic of the veterans of Socialism, which we shall meet with frequently hereafter.