Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1888-02-09

TIE CHURCH OF THE ECONOMIES.
TO Rapp moved with him to Indiana,
where another Harmony was founded.
Disease attacked the new ,illage and
reduced the number of its inhabitants
30 greatly that the remaining ones fled
back to Pennsylvania. In 1925 they
bought 300 acres Of land in most
beautiful valley near Pittsburg, Here
they settled and here those of them who
are still alive, live to day. The mis-
fortunes that befelI them in the two
Harmony settlements caused them to
change the name. ; hey called their
new home Econory and themselves
Economics. The members who de-
serted the Harmonites either died out
or became as other citizens of the
globe. any of their descendants are
well known people in n d around Al
legheny City.
About one thousand members first
settled in Economy, but as their num-
Der was never increased by byth or by
adoption, and as death occasionally
invaded there homes, there remain at
the present time not more than eight
cen members, the youngest of whom is
sixty two years old When they first
took vows of eel ,bacy they believed
that the world was nearing It's end, and
so they lived simple lives, preparing for
the mysterious hereafter. George
Rapp Just before he died, told the
others the world would surely end
before the last member died. They
believe 1t.
On entering the village one sees plain
houses, wide, well-kept streets, lined
on either side with large shade trees
and ch .ckens nothing else. 1t is a
most unusual sight to see any people
on the streets. The thrifty appearance
alone prevents visitor from thinking
it a deserted village or imagining that
the inhabitants were aiting the
princes arrival 10 awake them from a
century long sleep. Tho houses are all
alike. They ore all built with the gable
end towards the stree and cannot be
entered except through the yards.
There are no front stoOps to fall over
in Economy rape vines are trained
10 cover the street ; dc Of all he houses
but they are pruucd 50 as not TO inter-
fere with the light of tie windows.
The men are housekeepcrs, and so
are the wo en-. They never mingle,
not even at work. The dress of ono is
the dress OF all. Everything is on an
equality / he men wear blue broad
cloth long-ta led coats, wide trousers
and broad brimncd black hats On
holidays the broadrioth is exchanged
for blue silk attire. The women wear
straight, full skirts, gathered on a
plain waist OF blue flannel, giugham or
silk. Their heads, indoor and out, are
always picture.quely attred in bright
blue silken Normandy caps.
The oldest citizen OF this part of
Pennsylvania still remember and speaks
of the wonderful broadcloth, llannels,
blankets. + onomy whisky and wine
they obtained from the Economics.
The factories are all silent and deserted
now, and the members have long since
grown too feeble for hard labor. It
was in Economy that silk culture and
manufacture ON "a large scale were frs
begun in the United States.
Everything in economy IS run by rule
and regulation much as at boarding
school. At 3 o'clock in the morning
the bell on the one church rings and
every one in the village rises. At
o'clock every dwoller sits down to
breakfast and what is ten in one house
is eaten in all. There is day for
milk soup" and one for swine soup"