The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1874-10-03
CORRESPONDENCE.
FROM IOWA.
ICarian Community.


Icarian Community.
Third Letter-Iaterestia Account Of a
French Colony-Con.m,u,isxn aud H.
fidelity.
CORNING, September IS, 1874.
EDITOR ADVANCE: About three
miles from this village is the old French
colony: bearing the above name. TWAS
founded by NJ. CADET, who aspired to
the Presidency of France but was de-
feated by Napoleon Third. Humiliated
and chagrined, he, with hundred or so
of French families, came over to Louis
lana, then up to Illinois, where they
bought out the Mormon interest III
Nauvoo. But this point was not adap-
ted to their proposed plan of life and
NJ. CADET came here and purchased sew
eral hundred acres of land-a very fine
tract. A portion of the community
then left and went to St. Louis, the
remainder came here and settled and
haye been at work for twenty years. ION
the Fourier plan. We rode out to see
them a few days since. Their location
is very romantic, on the border Of Il fine
forest. On an elevation they have a
large commodious hall, around which
are clustered about 80 cottages: The
principal room on the ground floor is
the dining hall, the basement is devoted
tothe culinary department. Thsupper
story is divided into two rooms, q
large audience room where they have
their dancing, parlor theatrica1s, &c.
The other contains their library-a
rare collection Of old books, large por-
ton of them inGdel works of the old
French school. The furniture can
scarcely be called sucl. Rude benches
are the only seats, no carpet on the floor,
and plain, uncovered tables, but on the
walls are some fine old paintings and
some new ones by amateur artists
among themselves. Their theatrical
scenery, some of it very good, is of their
own getting up.
They have no religion and of course
no church or religious services. The
Sabbath is holiday with them. They
have small school house and an &C.
complished teacher, Miss Montaldo.-
The hall is centre round which the
small cottages are built, each enclosed
in it's own little yard, few flowers
adorn the doorways Of some Of them,
grape vine OF two and few fruit
trees in some. Each family occupies
a house but all take their meals in the
community dining hall. Plain, unpre-
tentious meals they are. The tables
are laid with plainest of dishes on the
naked board, no knives, only forks are
put on, each person is supposed to have
a knife in his or her pocket and not
very much attention is paid to table
etiquette. AS to the arrangement of
their gardens not the slightest evidence
! is seen Of taste or regard for beauty
Their yard fences are old and dilapida-
ted; the yards themselves are very
small. No fine barns are seen, only
long sheep sheds and immense stacks
of hay. They have at little distance
from the village steam Touring and
saw mill. They grind their own wheat
and sell the flour, which is said to lie of
excellent quality. AS we rode along
through their only street we noticed a
fine thrifty orchard, some of the trees
hanging full of nice looking apples,
and quantity of wild plum trees load
ed with fruit. A little farther on we
passed their fields, one Of them contain
ing six hundred acres. Between two of
these is lane half a mile long between
two hedges of Usage orange, very thick
and even and about fifteen feet high
We rode round field Of corn, that I
should think contained twenty or per-
haps forty acres, and passed field
which had yielded it's thousands of
bushels Of wheat. All these broad,
handsome, well-tilled acres lie on gen
thy undulating table: land, and are beau
tiful to look upon.
They are said to be a happy people,
but think jolly would be more suit
able word for it. l could see nothing
to Indicate rational enjoyment. They
live a sort of animal life-eating,
drinking, sleeping and working, NOV
ing i'll onelittle routine year after year;
aspiring to nothing higher in this life
and to nothing at all in the hereafter.
When one of their number dies they
carry him to the grave and one Of them
pronounces eulogy over him and he
is buried. Very little intercourse is
cultivated between them and the outer
world. Some families have withdrawn
from them, taking out their proportion
of property according to what they ill.,
vested in the colony, and have bought
farms and are to-day wealthy. The
reason given for leaving was that there
was no religion in the community.
am told that in the twenty years or
more that they have been here, their
numbers have increased only about
enough to keep their original number
good. There are, I should say, about
thirty houses, 50 [ should think it safe
estimate the number Of souls at 200.
It is supposed that they have accumu-