Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1852-1859, 1859-08-12
WE have whiled away some of these snltru

hlely ISSUED from the Par1s preSS-"Ld TEe de
Claude Henri COmte de .Saint.Simon," the
founder Of the great modern system of social
reform. It occurred to US that brief resume
of the contents of this sprightly volume might
not be nninteresting to our readers, partly, be-
cause of the unique life of the man, but more
especially because the doctrines which origin.
ated in his cloudy brain have already exerted so
deep, though silent, an influence on American
politics. His private life was one so utterly
bizarri- as to makei appear,-isolated;
an anomaly in the history of human nature
Without the aid of circumstances, endowed
with neither genius nor its equivalent--slow,
persistent enemy,-he reached the highest
point of success at which his vaulting ambition
aimed. The desire for notoriety mot fame) was
the soul of the man. It possessed him us the
demons did the bodies of men in olden time.
Through all the groupings, failures, successes of
his tragical life, this was the secret passion that
drove him on with hungry, tiger.like ferocity,
almost horrible to witness. In his youth his
attempts to gain distinction were but lily
schemed. A descendant of Charlemagne, be.
longing to one of the proudest families, of the
French noblesse, he surrendered his position,
ton. Failing to find the bubble reputation in
the cannons mouth, he returned to France, and
before the age of seventeen had submitted to
the governments of France and Spain, we'll d.
gested plans for connecting the two oceans
across the isthmus of Panama, for uniting Mad
rid to the sea by canal, and for opening the
mountainous regions of Andalusia for public
traffic. At this time he laid down the plan for
model human existence, which, from that Pc
Rod, he undeviatingly pursued, and which now
is the commonest doctrine. "1st To spend
the youth in gaining knowledge of all human
theories. 2ndly. To sacrifice middle age to ex.
perience, placing ourself in every possible stu
alton, and creating those which do not exist
and lastly, to devote old age to resuming obser-
vations and establishing principles" Until the
age of thirty eight he devoted himself to intense
study, pursuing in England, Germany and
France, the sciences of inorganic matter and of
mind. He then began the second part of his
career. With cool forethought he abandoned
himself to the widest excuses, in order that he
might experience every human sensation
Then, dissolVing his relations as a peer Of
France, he placed himself in different positions,
until he reduced himself voluntarily to abiect
poverty. He crushed into few years the ex-
peTience Of many lives; old age was artficiully
produced by mendicaments; he even inoculated
himself with loathsome diseases. At the age of
fifty he thought himself educated as a reformer
Henceforwsrd, we see him poor man, driven
by hunger and disease almost to death, but
never to desperation; the founder not only of
new political code, but new religion; the pro.
mulgator of doctrines which Tesounded through
Europe with resistless force. silent, grave
man, he wrote and spoke but seldom But he
reminds US of SCOTS wolf-hound. 'Maida,"
said his master, 'seldom opens his mouth, but
when he does, he shakes the Eildon hills"
The socialist system, originating with him,
and modified by LIE Compile and Fourier, has
influenced the democratic element in Europe to
an nnestimated extent. It's two ruling ideas, us
we can perceive, appear to be, first, The most
rapid possible amelioration Of the condition of
the poorer classes, and secondly, to ensure to
each man vocation:suited to his capacity and
to each capacity recompense according to its
work. For the inquiry which has tainted the
Socialist belief its infdelity and excuses,
Saint Simon is not responsible. His last great
work Lie NOuUean 0hriStianisme, proves his
faith in the religion of Christ to be pure Sur.
rounded by band of his disciples men of the
profOundest minds in France, in a garrett, thirty
years ago, this strange man submitted his soul
to the last great experiment-Death. Yet
lying there, the old man was inspired by the
same dominant idea which made him; when
boy of ten, cause his valet to wake him each
morning with the summons "Arise N. lie
Comte, you have great things in life to do" His
dimmed eyes seemed to take prophetic glance
into futurity. 81 have succeeded" he cxclaim-
ed, with his last breath. az have ensured to
mankind the freest possible development of their
faculties. The future is ours" he said, after
pause, and stretching out his hand, he died.
a strange history, of which we have only
limited at the outlines. Strangest of all in
this; that this man, worshipped by thousands
as the purest philanthropist, since our Savior,
should have been at heart intensely cold and
selfish; that with.al his terrible experiments
upon his own nature in soul and body, he should
have only succeeded in making himself of all
men the most miserable, as he confessed