New-York daily tribune., 1845-12-12
Associative Movements.

!
its subscription ic our Daily, Of which the burthen
was something ike this" We like The Tribune
very muca all bat is talk about Assocat'on-'hat
/ we wish you yvoald give up Several Associeuons
'have been started in this County al oil "hch nave
broken up or failed, running those VINO einoarkeo
therein. The schcme won't work, and should be
'discounenanced'
This letter reminds US Of our unfalhfulness to the
highest earthly interests ofthe Human Race in say
ing so title about Associa,ion-hardy mentioning
the subject once month The topics OF inferior
bat immediate interest pressing on the columns OF
a newspaper-mai,ers which won't keep TIL next
month or next week, perhaps not day-rnust be
our excuse Daily Newspapers are mainly taken
in order TO learn the prices OF Stocks the range OF
Markets the prospects of Crops or Business, &c &c
from day 10 day-or if any thing relating to Moral or
Intellectual advancement is tolerated, it must run e1
actly in the channel which the readers own prepos
sessions have indicated. To tell him that something
else is more important than his darling ho5by-that
he has overlooked some OF the dearest interests ana
most pressing needs Of our Race-thai ne has enter
tanned views not entirely correct on all points-is
offend and ALLEVIATE him. Men usually take news
papers not tina, they may imboe ne" IDEAS thele-
from-not that they may learn the Right rom Inc
Wroog-tler notion is rather that the Edltor Is
man tbev have hired to study out reasons collect
and arrange arguments in support of that which
they have determined beforehand is right and shan't
be any thing else. Such being the general truth,
we are deeply obliged to the mass Of our patrons
for the patience with which they have borne our
occasional presentation of considerations urging
the expediency and necessity of a thorough Social
Reform.
"A word now to our subscribing friends afore-
said II appears that in their County, (Ontaro) or
near it. there have been four attempts 20 found AS
sociations, three Of them with some Difference to
Fourers ideas and one on the antagonisiic basis OF
Robert Owen These they say have all failed,
and we admit it, for the arguments sake, though we
believe the fact is otherwise. What then ? Has
the obector ever inquired how they were constituted
and ahy they failed Does he know whether any
of them embodied any of the elements of success
according to the doctrine of Association? Docs he
understand that any one Of them fulfilled the funda-
mental conditions insisted on by Fourier and his
disciples? We can assure him that no attempt has
We, been made any where of which Fourier would
not have unqualiiedly predicted the failure from
the outset An Association such as he described
and commended consists of not less than 400 (prop
erly 500 persons, inhabting spacious, cornmo-
dious, well planned fre-proof, well warmed, lighted,
ventilated editice, in the midst OF q Domain three
miles square owned in shares by the members, sur
rounded by Mills Granarics, Store-houses &c pros
ecuting all the various branches of Industry by the
help of the most perfect Machinery under the most
agreeable circumstances, and with the most thorough
economy of means and efficiency Of results. This
Association would have its Schools, its Lyccum, its
Library it would be University not merely for
scholastic but for all industrial and practical acquire
ments Now, SO far from any thing like this having
failed we expec, TO labor many years yet before
one shall be commenced Meantime thousand
partial fragmen;ary efforts will be made, the greater
number under circumstances which render failure
inevitable. a huddle Of fifty or hundred human
beings without experience, business talent, iHdus-
trial organization pecuniary resources, on tract
OF land bought al credit prices and loaded with
heavy mortgage is moi an Association, nor is II likely
to grow into one. though it may. The early and
seadlast friends OF the Cause have usually endeav-
orcd 10 discourage such beginnings but when
menced they have done what they could to give
far been fewer than scientific Associeiionist would
have predicted yet there have been some, and doubt
less will be more. The history OF each experiment,
fairly written would be OF great value hereafter and
would rank with the history Of the first attempts TO
colonize the region which is now the United States.
the first experiments toward the Steamboat, &c.
These efforts, however obstructed and thwarted in
The outset, are paving the way for grand and benei
cent success.
So much by way of introduction 10 extracts
from two letters which have lately reached us-ths
one from the Associative experiment now some
eighteen months in progress in Fonddu-Lac county,
Wisconsin-the most Western attempt yet made;
known as the Wisconsin Phaanx
CEREsco, w. T. Nov. 13;h, 1Si5.
- Whilst writing TO you for the above pur-
pose will add few lines the prospects of the
Phaanx here. We are still! progressing, our crops
have done well and our improvements arc going on
as tas, as we can drive them. We will not be able
to get grist mill in operation until Summer,
us we could detach labor sufficient from the other
groups to complete it this Fall and we have no. the
means TO hire labor. We have however, excavated
for the foundation ald built n basement and the