The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1877-03-10

and paupers who had been such for
| years, with an earnest desire to make
them industrious and self-supporting
They rendered small stream (the AS
running through their land navigable to
the sea and to other parts of the coun-
try, that the settlers might have commu-
| nication by water with the whole neigh
borhood. Not less than 10000 persons
! finally subscribed to the enterprise, each
paving two forms and sixty cents about
$1.10 of our money annually for its
maintenance.
Each adult, if able and willing to
work, is given small cottage, two
acres of land, pig, IA COW. and occa-
sionally some sheep The land is to be
titled and the labor and management of
the colonist are carefully supervised
If he be ignorant Of agriculture, as he
frequently is (most of his class having
lived in town, he receives daily in
struction until he has learned whatever
it is necessary for him to know His
children are sent to schools established
there, and for which competent teachers
are furnished by the society. The
women are employed in sewing, spin
ming, and weaving, and everybody is
kept busy, the inf1exible rule of the
colonies being that nobody shall be idle.
At the close of each days labor the
laborer gets card with an exact state
ment of his earnings, for which he re-
ceives from the public stores an equiva-
lent in food and clothing. Whatever
he needs for the first year is furnished;
but he is expected after that to repay
the price of his equipment, and most of
the colonists have done so. The great
majority are self-supporting, and some
of them have laid by considerable money,
for whatever they earn beyond their
daily requirements and the advances
made to them by the society belongs
to them. Subject to strict rules and
under severe discipline while they
remain, they are permitted to 60 away
if they wish to after they have dis
charged their Indebtedness and gathered
the first harvest. Some of them are so
incorrigibly lazy that they return to
their vagabondage; but most of them
stay, and are benefited in every way by
their new life. Those who prove them
selves industrious and trustworthy have
the land they have titled placed at their
disposal and assume to the society the
relation of tenants.
The colonists who are disorderly or
refractory, idle or dishonest, are sent TO
Ommerschauf, designed as penal col
ony and a reformatory for beggars. 1t
is decayed fortress on a fertile spot in
the midst of barren moor, and was ar
ranged for its present use in 1921.
Divers mechanical trades, such as
weaving tailoring, and carpentering,
are carried on there under the strict
supervision of overseers. The place is
surrounded by broad canal, and vigi-
lantly watched by number of guards,
to prevent the escape of the in mates.
In connection with the colonies is an
agricultural school, where superior
education is given to the best behaved
and most promising of the colonists'
children. In addition to the clement
airy branches they are taught botany,
chemistry, mathematics, and the modern
languages, and are thus fitted to fill Off
cial posts in the settlement.
For some while after the philan-
thropic undertaking its failure was
generally predicted, and its progress
was sometimes far from encourage
ing. But as the years have gone on
it has redeemed the highest expecta-
ton and demonstrated the wisdom of
the original plan. In all the colonies
there are at present, We believe, II 600
persons, and the annual average cost
per head is seventy-fve fiorins-about
thirtytwo dollars. The number of sub
scribers has greatly declined of late
years, and the Government of the Meth
erlands now partially supports Freder
ick's Cord and its connections. On the
whole, it has been a remarkable sue
cess-much more so than any attempt
of similar kindin Europe Toronto
Globe.