The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1857-08-27

Bu", having inscribed on our DINNERS, fara-
dses on earth is before u.s."
sde died of starvation, after the-exhaustion of
an immense fortune; bat neithei,the travail of
his life nor the pangs Of death su':dued his SYM
pafhy or devotion. BE sank to rest with the
sublime words on his lips, "G}he future is
oars the language of defeat that will not
despair His few devoted fuendss rallied, prop
agated his doctrine, and organized family,
which was at once a church snd village.
Thsir motto was, To each according to his
capacity, aud to each capacity a. eording to its
work" The government was in the form of a
religious hiersrcy and its chief oliticsl princi
pie was the abolition of Inheritance.
The society soon fell into disstder; its phi
losophy Fren>hifed itself into satimentality
the caprice of opinion took the place of law
and its last days were stained wssh licentious-
ness. IL
BE had served in our war of Independence
under Washington he was a n smber of one
of the most illustrious families g France he
had been successful merchant Q debauchee,
a beggar, a religious and philar hropic enthu-
siast; and, he died a martyr otfbeaevolence
Something in all this to pausl upon-some-
thing not easily understood-ant something in
its effects not lost upon the W. I'D He and
his scaool have done more thai any other to
force upon the attention of Euro ,e the terrible
cos.dition of the laboring classes. # civilization,
an. as much as them all to ame crate it.
Colbert Owen has been well CO led the Apos.
tlse'f Circumstances. He WAS ths high priest
Of .Materialism, in the English Phase and tone
osssunbelef He was once the Spkilanthropist
Of Great Britain; but when b. seaohed the
dismal notion that God is mattAs. and matter
is God, and it is no matter whetter there be
God or not, which sufficiently veil describes
hi. opinions and teachings If religion, the
duses, lords, and gentry of Engli al, abandoned
him and he thenceforth fought with courage,
zel, and ability, scarcely ever e; ceeded in any
caiise, with his hand against es srS man, and
every mans hand against him. Bis criticism
of the Church, as usual in such cases, was re.
lentless, but he also assaulted The State with
equal ferocity. BE confronted OPTICIANS with
the increase of crime and paupe ism, under all
y
them with both ignorance and corruption.
He aimed at the organizations of labor !;
and he argued that all systems of reform,
except that which looked first AID only to the
reform of outward circumstances, must lead
to injustice and suffering. he held that
man is utterly irresponsible for. hia character,
and that society ought to be copstit ated on the
Principle of Communism. s philanthropy
as vehement as insanity could psaks it, and as
fruitless. he has filled up the easure of a
very long life, in devotion unfsS ,eriog, and eff.
forts unwearied, for the propags, Tor of his doc
trines. He founded numerouss cdamunities.
He spent above million of dolfsrs in this SER
vice, and, it is said, at one time .aun,bered half
million of disciples in EnglanJ alone-a ter.
rible commentary upon the cthdition of its
people, and severer criticism .apoa the men
and institutions responsible for 4she ,tate of So
ciety where such doctrines cosld have such
success, than all that he ever 'saii or wrote
against them in his life.
No people toleraby instructed, governed, or
cared for, could be led in such mmbers by ig-
norance, or driven by despair 10 the accept
ance of such doctrine of desperation and
His service TO the worId-for no earnest life
is unserviceable-is, that he has taught moral
lists and the world the immense importance of
outward circumstances upon inward well.beinp,
character, and happiness. he went too far ::
but the collision of errors ELECTS rath, and the
ostracised Robert Owen may be Traced clearly
enough in many of the valuablejtrsatises upon
the laws of diet, cleanliness, and the physical
and moral effects of different kids Of employ.
ment, which have done the public good service,
of the right kind.
Cross bearing, and Standardization, in the
service of others, and for their benefit, and self
denial for personal discipline, il commanded
but it is mistake of the great TEACHERS inten.
ton, to reconcile men to want, safering, power.
ty, disease, ignorance and all t 9 incapacities
of restitution. Poverty is in itss # curse, and
everybody knows it for it meap /, subsection Of
the soul to the body; it means Working fifteen
hours day with the hands, to seep the rest of
the animal alive; and the occ ,pation of the
mind in every waking hour witt the cares and
tolls of instructive existence.
1t was great thing to MIKE the world
think and feel the truth of this idea. It was
well to check the arrogance ala a.raign the
complacency of the comfortabsA classes, who
turned the suffering ones over 10 Providence.
and denied their own Stewardship in his house.
hold. Perhaps England will sd ne day get be.
yond the polite concet that E. ,ucation is the
cheap defence of nations" and see that it ia
the duty of the State to its pi ople, and will
then perform it.
But we must turn now to the test and most
distinguished of all the social arc ,ilects, Charles
Fourier
The author of the theory of Association, it
seems to us, was, within the limit of his special
study, equal to Bacon in Undue ion, and more
than his equal in analysis, and cot below New.
ton in the regulation and distribution of sys.
tematic details. In the same s1heres of men.
tai occupation, he might have .perforned the
work Of either or both. But his was not the
labor of serene contemplation ir the realms of
natural science. His enterprise embroiled him
in the conflict and disorder of human life, where
all men have erred and sinned, and suffered
aEd failed. DISCOVERIES and teachers of pbys.
lcSi science have the passive principles of mat.
ter and the regulative laws of mathematics for
their subject and instrument; these work no
mischief in or against their pkesthood; but
the audacious spirits who would explore the
laws OF vital and rational natsre, and under
take ita adn,;p;stro4;o, L.. ~ -L,, r