Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1882-01-19
Space, Nv. m. m. m. lyr,
An Expose of the Oneida Community.

Half column.... 20 90 SO OIl0O OU l5O COl225 CO
One column...... 35 O IS 0UI loo 0O 200 0030l 20
An Expose of the Oneida Community.
James s. Vail, former member cf the
Oaeida community, 10 an interview with a cor.
respordant Of the New York Herald recently,
gave the following among other incidents Of the
internal economy of the oommuniiy:
My earliest recoeclions xtend back TO the
Chlldren's Houss-so called at the Oneida
Community. The children were kept here By
| themselves uoder an oVerseer and mattoo. And
We were put to bad and whipped mighty resu
lar, you better believe. The boys and girls
We're mixed up like 80 many tenpins-played
together, eat together aud slep. 10 pairs. |
occupied tie saue bed With girls nysslf til I
vas twelve years cd. We ware sent to bad at
o'clock. Ia the garrett, aud dark. louesoms
plico 1t Was, too. IF the overseer heard the
least noise, saca IS whispering and gigsling
amorg Tho children. uo they d come with the
SWITCH ct braided wire sud lay it on the FIST
pair CT bare le2s they'd o0ms to after strippiop
luooc,ot and fast asleep. twas all the sams to
| tht m | tell sou Tvs been stripped naked
wheu bu, a1d years Old 81 d fl ,ggcd awfuIly.
Back OF tho childreD's building WIS yard en-
c. .,sed by q high borrl feIc,, .il fashion. Ad-
joining this yard was pig siye, and orc,
agans. the fenc, We piled BIKES till the whole
Us climbed into the pigpen. Here We tun-
o'ed about 10 The sriW aud fpaly took to imi-
! tatltg the immoral prsc:ic,s IF the grown pee
pls. for, dreadful as it VS.. va had many oppof-
| uotlos OF witnessing thsir obsc ns conduct.
We lad 10 idea OF wrong. of ou,so, but We
thought We mts initiate ihem. We caiIGr,u
were detected and then W, had trouble. We
Wirs stripped aud hogsed 10 sec onS-sisht and
ten at 3 time, The knowle1g, wo had of III,
lnm rral pr4c ices of grown people Was gained
~ perplug through the cracks OF doors and
kePhOles. TIE terms scientific propagstiou,'
male coo;ioeaco. breeding 10 sod TO- &C.,
were familiar to US from bearing them used by
she grown folks every day, though We didn'.
know thsir meaning. NoYes used to say the
~ousn must c.ll all things p,ranirg 70 the
s.xlaI relations BY their o,mmon Dsme. The
most ob:c ne and vulgar terms he spoke out in
full b tore the womeu, as; such dirly lar guaQe
| as you'll hear 90 the Streets and 10 the luwest
plsces used by tha worst boys. Sometimes
| there be oDe huodr d and fifty women pressuf,
aui be would make them repeat thoso terribl,
filthy s1u,diuQ names alter him 10 loud voc
This be called 'shaming The devil Ga one o.
bis g. ytrg that imorcprIety between the sexes
wash'G bit moro harm than shakirg hands.
| was hardly more than twelve years old when
| was lDltla.ed into Immoral prso ices OF N vas.
| Was Iu. to sleep with first oue old woman and
then nnother-sl of them ovsr six years of
age. As became older and larger [ was al
lowed the societv of yonger women of thirty
five ard forty. NJyes told us boys that when
| We desired the soolety OF particular female to
apply to this committee for sdvic,. Trey would
| Interview the woman OF our choice and arrsr 60
be meetiog for u. Certain rooms knoWn 1s
| apsre rooms we're kept for the Use f visitors,
bat these rooms we're Gitener used for the pnt-
poss 10 which | baV, sluded. Noye's own
daughter sol me when she was shout seventeen
that ho had repeatedly tried to have children
| by her. Fipsl'y her mother interfered and
saved her. N.Y. eva sister told me that when
bu! tioe years old she and five other children
1cru forc,d into a room together and assaulted
| by the old mons'er, and she knew of girls of
ten and twelve who wsro taken from their beds
| at Eight and carried to his room to satisfy bis
horrid appetite. O.her young girls sud grown
Vomen have been made to walk about the fields
10 summer and uudar trees forced to sui
nit TO him. There ere women now mar
ried 10 outsiders, whom cou'd nsme, who
have experienced ths most unbeari Of and
disgusting treatment ffcm his hands.
A Deigbbor. Mr.. Hubbard, who lives near the
| Ooeida Community told me last summer that
he ooce came upon Noyes in swimming with
half dsz,n women. 10 q creek running through
the fID. The Whole party we're entirely nude.
Two years ago the O,eida Community had q
miles away. 10 the summer Noyos would
spend season Of fishing there. To this plac,
be would take half doz 10 youug girls ranging
from ten 10 sixteen years old, and would compel
them all 10 sleep 10 lis room With him, My
sister Vss once with him at this place. and she
told me of the dreadful scenes she witnessed
there. They can better ba inagioed than
described. Like Guie.u Il description Of
who's, eos 10 the c;mmuoi'y The depopeut
| giyss) b. claimed 10 do every hIng by ipspirl-
tion. He wss Intensely jealous of any youug
mau &ho hsoame tbvorte with the youog
women. Hs waited to pu. off old women on
to tho young men aud bsv, all the youcg girls
to himself Fsi5g 10 love Was gtievous
offancs with N1yes md was called The mar
ri,ga sp;ri', worldly love and lots q
other names Bat if their iutercouree
Vas Only casual then twas all right
| Noyes professee 10 do everything By Inspiration,
| and regular church ssr9ices ara held in the
| building IN Wnlcn any onels emitted to speak.
What have told you about the Oneida Com
nunity is not inspired by malice. Someti n es
young men woald call on US aDd order . room
and so many women 10 occupy 1t with them
actually supposug they could do this like or
drlDg up dinner. I caa refer you to men and
won en- now outside who were brought no with
me in the OGeit Co m nuniy and VINO will 81 p
port me in whist have said about it. The ds.
| pravi,y and iniquity o. that institution will
| never be fully understood only by those who
have lived there Tha besstly social practices
OF Foyes and his followers with innoce4t and
dafenceess children if known would have in.
cited the people to tear down the buildings and
cut up the whole tbi'g foat ard branch.
~4Ns ,..sSp ~" 4