The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1891-10-28
sOC|AL|sIIc SCHEME.
failure OF the Theory IS Put in
Practice by the Kaweah
Colony. ;
bivsrse Causes That Contributed
to the Collapse OF That
Enterprise.
tulIsbllity and willingness 70 Advance
Cash Were Qualifications for Msm-
bership--Their Lands.

Socialism or cooperation a. delineatsd
y the pen OF ethical thinkers and social
eforners looks captivating and plausible.
j IN image In the mind Of the disciplined
hinker IL sasily carrics conviction to tho
cad and persuasion to the heart. Al an
dea il ID on the whole faultless. Al . real
led fact, however, IL il full Of blemiahes.
demonstration Of the latter 10 now being
furnished by the collapse Of the sooialistic
cooperative enterprise at Kawsah? 1t viii
be interesting at this iunsture, a. we'll as
instructive, to inquire into tho causeso Of this
allure, writes IA Victim in the San Frsn-
DISCO Chronicle.
Lot Ms premise an inquiry with the re-
mark that the collapse Of cooperation at
his place il no evidence OF the impractica-
bility Of the idea elsewhere under more
Euspicious circumstances. The conditions
n Kawsah have not boon favorable, and the
kailurs was hut natural; nay, ii was the in
bvitable result Of the operation Of natural
AZ. Plants and organisms can live and
thrive only in congenial surroundings. Pro-
bisely the same law obtains in societies or
,ocial organisms. The principles Of coop
~bration, like the seed OF a plant, demand
.~ongenial environments as a necessary CON-
lition Of growth.
Socialistic or democratic corporation,
Luch a. Kaweah WAS presumed to be, i'm
plies the presence OF at least three indis-
pensable main factors in order to achieve
EVEN partially the md in view. % Ample
resources, an appropriate basis OF opera
kion, means to meet immediate wants As
we'll as a reasonable basis for q future sue
cess; (2) a wise selection Of members en-
lowed with the requisite qualifications to
put in practice the principles inherent in
ths theory; 49, men Of wide experience, OF
~undoubtsd int egrity and possessed Of cool
heads and of business habits. 40 managers,
Ind mon of broad views, moral elevation,
as educators and counselors. All these
elements are involved in the idea. In the
actual experiment under consideration
they have all been absent, and deficiency
in the last of the three requisites has IN
this instance undoubtedly. been the cause
the persons at the helm men fitted for the
post, they would surely have taken the
necessary precautions to see that the re-
sources were both ample and secure before
the start and would have kept q vlRllsnt
watch over the admission of members. But,
De1nR themselves UNIV, ~ Vic no4uSA W ouO
enterprise has clearly shown, the character
and fate Of the institution could not have
been other than what they actually are.
A to resources n poEsesBions, the In
~stitution after five years of existence has
scarcely any that 10 worthy Of the name.
For several years IL bas been puollsnlng
abroad to the world that it had upward of
20. eco acres of land we'll adapted to farm
ing, grazing and fruit culture, with extern
sive tracts of timber land. the timber alone
being valued at 10000, 600. The title to this
land was claimed to have been secured
partly by purchase from the owners and
partly by the provisions OF the homestead.
prescription and timber land acts"
whereas, az a notorious fact, not one acre
was ever got by either of these means. The
truth is, the institution has from the first
been built upon falsehood and fraud, and
fraud of the cruelest kind. as it was not
only perpetrated upon innocent victims as
usual. but perpetrated JUROR them IN the
name OF truth and humanity.
Many good people-people with minds
acutely sensitive to the many errors,
wrongs and sutferings. the accumulated
heritage of centuries of civilization to man.
and imbued with the sentiments of human
itv, Justice and truth-the foundation
principles of a civilization that is to be-
many of these, induced by the captivating
and seemingly truthful representations of
things at Kaweah, broke up their homes,
severed the ties of association and friend
ships that had cost = half a lifetime to
form, came hither, surrendered their little
all to the common stock Cor was it to the
bosses?) in order to begin life anew on a
sounder basis, as they thought, the basis of
equality and justice, where abora s we'll as
its products was to be sha,ed by all impair
TALLY, and where want and fear Of want
we're to be forever banished from the
grounds.
Coming here with these high ideas and
noble aspirations what q shock they exper-
fenced on their arrival in the Garden OF
Eden of their fancy. the chosen spot
whereon their ideals we're to be realized and
their hopes fulfilled. Thor anticipated
life in Kaweah proved to be purely imagin-
airy. There was nothing there from which
to derive a bare living. Subsistence was to
be had only through contributions from
without, and doled out at the will of the
bosses. In return for which they expected
submission, loyalty and votes. True free
dom of opinion or of speech under such con.
ditions was hopeless, and if even attempted
it was always discouraged, and it persisted
in il was Immediately squelohed by adroit
manipulation of votes. But whenever a mem
her left this was no loss to the institution,
that is TO tho bosses; it was rather a gain,
for his place wal soon filled up by q new.
conner, who paid in at least 500, and some
even rs much as $500. But no sooner wa.
the money paid in than the interest Of tbs
bosses in the man was at an end, except
only to tho extent OF his vote, and when
that could not be controlled 1t was soon in
timated to him that his absence was prefer
able to his presence.
This sort of game was successful,
played for wears, till finally tho list of new
members or recruits was nearly exhausted
The game ig now Mt an ent for the good
reason that those who had been duped and
discovered the swindle outnumber those
who have been dipped, but have not YET
found it out.
Then, again, as to the selection Of mem
hers, IL WIS given forth that the society
was the picked of the t~arth-morally ane
intellectually disciplined, as well as physi.
cally adapted to the needs of the place
None that failed to come up to tbs standard
WEI to be admitte d. AS q fact, however
the only condition for admission was gull
bility and Willingness TO advance read,
cash. Hence there came IN with the gooG
%colonists tie indifferent and even tho bad
in fact all conditions of men indiscrimi-
Eately, the lame, tho Taralytic, the cripple
the very old az woll ms the young. the UNI
sound in min M we'll as the unsound II
body, and men ill-adapted for the places
carpente.s S; nor was the drone or the loafe
absent. The latter, indeed, soon discov
ered that he was needed and found con
genial occul alton in doing Rmal
services for the bosses, in the way o.
electioneorinR, spying, ~wite-pulling and il
performing whatever other odd Jobs in gen
ernl ~ofieious modelling. ! havo known
about u score OF elderly people in the vioin.
ity of 70 years of nse who hpd paid in theil
all, and to-dny feel themselves helpless OF
are dead. / also knew of at least three in.
1s-s - n $500. .ggA --tn ~ -.--4-t