The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1872-04-11
The Oneida Community.

extensive acquaintance with the various |
types of religious enthusiasm. 1 can |
truly say that never met with body |
of men and women in whom that en-
thusiasm seemed more genuine thing, |
or less alloyed by base motive. The |
very fact that some of their main prin- |
ciples seem to me false, and others ac-
tually repulsive, should give additional |
weight to this testimony.
As you approach the stately brick edi- |
flee of the Community on winter day |
YOU hear the voices of children, while |
little army of sleds outside the main en-
trance shows that outdoor happiness is
at hand for them. Entering you find |
yourself in sort of palace of plain COM
fort admirably warmed and ventilated, |
with spacious corridors, halls, parlors,
library, and natural history museum
You are received with as much courtesy
as in any private house. The men you
meet are well dressed, well hammered,
well educated. The women, though dis
figured by the plainest of all possible
bloomer dresses, look healthy and cheer
full. At table and in the dining-hall,
where the sexes meet, you see cordial
and inoffensive manners. Your food is
well cooked and served with homemade
wine if you wish, and the delicious
bread and butter and snowy table-cloth
of the Shakers. After dinner, perhaps,
they give you an improvised concert.
The family assemblies in the great hall.
The side door of the wide stage opens,
and half dozen little children from
two to three years old are let in as the
advance guard of the Juvenile depart
ment. They toddle about the stage at
their Willis edge being protected by
light partition for their beneft-and
shout and crow to their parents, who sit
below. The little ones are all rosy and
healthy, all about the same size, and all
neatly dressed in little frocks and fresh
white aprons. 1t is a pretty prelude for
an afternoons performance. Then
twenty of the elder children follow and
sing some songs. They also look happy
and well cared for, and are neatly,
though ungracefully dressed. Then you
listen to a really excellent orchestra Of
six or seven instruments, led by thor
oughly-trained leader-a young man
brought up in the Community and edu-
Gated at their expense-while a boy of
IL plays the second violin. They play
good German music, while the little
ones find their way down upon the floor
and are petted by their special parents
and watched with apparent admiration
and affection by men and women gener-
ally. This, at least, was what L saw
that day. Later 1 saw the machine
shops and silk factory but these can be
seen anywhere. But a family of 200
living in apparent harmony and among
the comforts which associated life Sc
cures-this is not to be seen every day,
and this is what one at least convinces
himself that he sees at Oneida.
Meanwhile the essential theories upon
which all this rests appear to the OBJ
server-to me at least-all wrong. At
Oneida they practice community of pro-
perty. disbelieve in it, and only be-
live in association and cooperation. AT
Oneida they subordinate all the relation
OF the sexes to the old Greek theory
held by them as Christians, that the
community has right to control par
entage, and to select and combine the
parents OF the next generation of the
human race, as in rearing domestic ami,
mails. Such theory abhor 1 believe
it must cause much suffering in its ap.
plication, and that it will defeat its owl
end by emitting from these unions al
deep personal emotion. Therefore ut
terly dissent from the essential theorie!
of the Oneida Community. All the
more reason for trying to do them jus.
tice. In the wonderful variety anc
complexity of human nature it otter
happens that theories which would bt
degrading in your hands or mine are
somehow purged of the expected i'll eff
tects in the hands which hold them
There is divine compensation that lin
its the demoralizing effects of bad prin
ciples when these are honestly adopted
l found good deal of such compensa
ton at Oneida.
1t must be remembered that the Who'll,
organization is absolutely based upon {
special theology, that none who do no
adopt this would in any case be admitted
to membership. AS matter of fact
they have for several years admitted N,
new members whatever, having NJ
room. This cuts off all floating ant
transient membership, and excludes al
the drift-wood of reform. Member
must be either very sincere proselytes t.
a religious theory, or else very consum
mate hypocrites. The Community re
jects the whole theory of attractive in
dustry" of Fourier, and accepts theor,
of self-sacrifice. In the same way it re
jects the whole theory of "affinities" il
love and marriage. 1t accepts instead
theory of self-control, and even wha
seems unlawful and repulsive indulgenc
must be viewed against this stern back
ground of predominant self-sacrifce.
The two things they most sternly re
sist in practice are, e,first-lawlessness, O
doing what is right in ones own eyes
and secondly-exclusive ownership
whether of property, or wife and child
All must be subordinated to the sup
posed good of the whole. They admi
that this theory would be utterly disas
trous to the world in its present stage
ii adopted without preparation. No
thing but religious enthusiasm woul
make it practicable, even in Commun
ity of two hundred, without its result
ing either in agony or degradation.
But now, as a matter of fact, how
it? am bound to say as an honest re
porter, that looked in vain for the Wis
ible signs of either the suffering or tn
sin. The Community makes an impres
sion utterly unlike that left by the pal
lid joylessness of the Shakers, or tn
stupid sensualism which impressed m
in the few Mormon households L hav
seen. saw some uninteresting faces
and some with that look of burnt-ou