Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1879-08-11
NO.. 1872.
miscellaneous.
A SHAKER VILLAGE.
(Charles Dudley Warner in Midsummer liol-
lday SCRIBSER.

The grassy street we entered was silent
No person was visible there was no sign
of life in the plain gaunt buildings on eth
| er side. These buildings. of the archtec-
ture of New England barns, but painted
white and pierced with windows, made no
offer OF hospitality. One on the right ap-
peared to he a salesroom and storehouse
Next was the great Meeting house, "a tab
ernacle of simplicity, with hooded door
way. Opposite were workshops, and
there were other buildings of which we
could not de ise the use but ut the end oi
the campus rose the high-roofed dwelling
house, called The Home, :" ornamented
with the only vanity of the PREMISES
low >teeple containing II bell. Why was
the bell on the meeting house ? If we could
ring it, would any life be evoked?
The great buildings stared at It's with
closed doors and windows. For any evil
dence OF humanity, we might as we'll have
been in Pompcii. Had some sudden ca
lamity swept away the community. or was
it perhaps The hour of meditation? We
waited, we watched. we listened. The
silence was profound. 1t was afternoon,
and all the place was flooded with sun
light. Summer had not vet come, but
sky flecked with blue-the veritable color
of Caesars eyes-and in the wandering
wind that moved the low grass gently and
had IN it yet a shiver Of spring. 1t was
day when the south side of friendly barn.
where the hens are burrowing in the warm
soil, is the most comfortable place in the
world
Had we come this long way merely To
see a reed shaken in the windo Nay, we
had come to see Shaker, and behold, no
Shaker, not eventhe least that is. was Wis
ible. 1t occurred to us to return to what
appeared to be the store and seek in
formation. II was closed fast like the 9TH
or houses as if the customers were de-
slred and it was only after persistent
knocking that tie door opened part way
and gave to our view the vision of thin.
tall, angular female in scant. plain skirts.
whose severe face was neither an invita-
ton to the monastc life nor promise OF
information. We were put in the position
of intruders upon something holy and un-
attractive But what right had we (child-
rem stained with the world) to expect civ
ilty and an angelic face in person set to
guard the portals of ceibacy and non-re-
siStance,-a woman who for fifty years
had been hardening into the attitude of
setting her face against the world? Words
were not wasted on us Could we enter
the house?
Nay"
And we felt that we were not worthy to
do 50. Could we have the KEY to the
meeting-house
"Nav.''
And the refusal seemed lust Could we
90 into any of the houseso
Nay"
The door was now only crack open.
Could we see anybody?
Find the Elder ~
And the door shut decidedly. Even a
sweet virgin may get sour by standing too
long.
The advice TO find the Elder was good
but elders were as scarce as youngsters
No person was in sight. We lOunced
down by the wash-house, alongside of
which ran sparkling brook. noiseless be-
twccn tits grassy banks. In the next building
we heard Il hanmering. Here. then, was
life. Ii seemed to be some sort Of work
shop. We entered. Nothing on the first
floor. Above, we Mt last found door
that would open 1t opened into shoe
makers shop occupied by single man.
Brother, we said, ''can yol,--?''
~ amt no BROTHER
on are not a Shakero'
Not much I'm "a shoemaker. Hired
Where. then, are the Shakers -.
II dunno; in the fields, may be-" and
the goddess man slammed away on his lap
stone to the utter destruction of further
conversation.
We went down discounted. This. we
thought, is Il strange communi V, where
nobody will commune suppose we
wanted to JOIN. how could We ito it? Since
one cannot be born into it. how does it oct
in? The great barns behind the houses
were inyitingly open, but they were as
empty as the houses appeared TO be. Not
Il moo, nor "baa. nor u bleat 10 be-
heard. think We should have given up
the quest of truth. and gone away con
vinced that the shakers had all been alb
sorbed into the ground sunk down and
not left even a broad brm above the place
of their Disappearance As monument, -
if we had not at the moment espied little
school-house hidden in the trees. and two