Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-07-13

J" !: !: :. !. J !. !.
SGi.& TSN the millennium as
EEA "A will ever come on
XSi Nkn earth. At all events,
vi 4 WIN l have seen this-I
LE& have seen In Shaker
xN%S ism the answer of the
gkANNENElw labor question, the
woman question, the
marriage question, the servant question, of
all questions pertaining to war. of all hnan-
cial questions involving credit, and of the
" hole religious question. Mind you, too, I
have seen the answer to these questions
not written down in speculative theory,
but operating in a system of life that has
stood over hundred years of trial.
Probably you know as little of Shakers
as I did when set out to visit them. I
knew a kind of queer straw sunbonnet
that was worn years ago, and an extra fine
quality of flannel by that NAME and I
knew on the authority Of idle gossip that
the Shaker village was sufficiently unique
to pay for the strain of a forty-five-mile
drive 10 see 1t. Along the way the native
driving me lightly passed over the facts
tfat Shakers live in community, neither
marry nor give in marriage, dress in queer
fashion, conduct their farms and houses
with marvellous order and neatness; but
he dwelt with all the force of New Eng
iander's appreciation of the mighty dollar
on the fact that the Shakers are wealthy
The community at Alfred own land to the
extent or 2,OOO acres, which is traversed
from end to end by the Rochester and
Portland railroad. This is rich in timber,
and contains water power, turned to ac-
count in the operation of a lumber mill
which the Shakers own in addition to their
extensive farm arrangement-an arrange
n-ent that is peculiarly extensive in it's
PROVISIONS Tor community life. 1t includes
dwelling houses for two families MANY
great barns for the Stock shops for the
trades of The men and women, Offices for
the governing members, and a meeting
mouse; BESIDES all this, the native told
me the Shakers have large property in
bonds and banks. Then. with as much en-
thuslasm for soft things as rock bound
man OF Maine Is capable of manifesting
he told me further that the Shaker girls
are awfully pretty, and that by the rightly
OF the faith that controls them they are
doomed to live life incompatible with
the worlds ideas Of the proper sphere for
women.
Some Unpleasant Antfcipntions.
They care very strict about letting
worlds people, as they call us, in among
them" said my driver; "they say the sight
Of us makes their young folks disconnected
with the sober life they lead, and 1 calcu-
late just as likely as not you won't be able
to see much after you get there"
Perhaps it was this dscouragem and
perhaps 1t was something in the Shaker
atmosphere that made me feel Weakened
and powerlesS as the horse climbed the hill
on the top of which the village or COM
munity is located. The view to be had of
rugged land beautifully. green. and en-
bracing a small lake known as Shaker
pond-not the sight of this nor the smell of
the fragrant pines was any consolation to
my senses that in some subtle way appre-
hended strange experiences in the unknown
human life l was about to try to force an
entrance.
The road led down between a score or
more of plain old-fashioned houses grouped
on either side. In the yard of the first
We're the women in plain gowns with ker-
chiefs about their shoulders and Shaker
bonnets on their heads, from the depths of
| which forbidding headgear I caught my
first glimpse of the wonderful spirituality
that marks the Shaker face-man's wo-
mans With nunlike composure, neither
raised her eyes, though they must have
heard the man driving me exclaim: There's
some of the girls! Amt they pretty?"
We stopped at a two-Story frame building
marked Trustees Office, and an old lady.
" no had followed us down the road came
| up to await a declaration of our business.
The head of the community is called
elder-and of this community is Elder John
B. Vance. Accordingly, l asked to see
Elder Vance, and we We're asked into the
house, which has fixed me in despair OF
ever now attaining my ideal of good house.
keeping. Simplicity that anywhere else
might have been baroness of furnishing
was here made to bloom with loneliness
/ cannot yet analyze, though in my heart
I believe that by some occult means
cane bottomed rocking chairs, hair cloth
sofa, white walls, mating and spindle
legged tables are made to reflect the beauty
of the Shaker character.
The Head of the. Community.
Elder Vance, in the strength and dignity
of his bearing, recalled ones dreams OF the
patriarchs Of the old dispensation, and by
the depth of gentleness in his voice breath
ed forth the spirit of the new. Large and
powerfully built, clad in suit Of old blue
cloth Of severe cut and finish, his high
white collar and shirt front, that was but
toned on to his undergarment, free from
the frivolity Of any sort OF necktie, his
superb head thickly covered with silvery
hair that flowed to his shoulders in the
back a moderately long beard completing
the silvery frame Of his rudy face, that
was not stern in expression, and yet some
thing more forbidding still, the old man
greeted me kindly, but remained somehow
with such undesirable distance between
us, l at once almost despaired OF ever
reaching him with the curiosity of wo-
mana newspaper woman-that had called
him into my presence.
However, when l said that had journey
ed all the way from Washington to learn
about the Shakers, he babe me be seated
and gave himself up to satisfy my travel.
stained spirit of inquiry.
Shakers said Elder Vance, may be
defined as religious communists. There
| are seventeen Shaker SOcleGeS OF COIN
! munes, in the United States, all. like this
one holding property in common. There
are three in New York state one in Con-
necticut three in Massachusetts. two in
| New Hampshire. two in Maine four In
| Ohio and two in Kentucky. These vary
| in numbers from 80 to 800 individuals. The
| first gathering into a community was In
| 1887. Our community here took form in
| 1893. Thus, you see, the Shakers for more
than 100 years have successfully accom-
plished what Pythagoras. Fourier. Robert
owen and all modern socialists have failed
| to do in establishing and maintaining a
pure communal form Of government
| "Our success is due to the fact that the
purpose of our organization is not political
| nor social, but religious. We are not a
| democracy. but a theocracy. The basic
| principle Of our institution Is the belief
| that though Christ's kingdom is to be es-
| tahlshed in this world, it cannot possibly
| be of and made conformable to the selfish
| and narrow aims and ends of a merely
| worldly life Therefore we abolish the in
| stitution of marriage. individual property
| and every provision for worldly pleasure
| and perpetuty, and consecrate ourselves
our thoughts, words, acts and all our world
| ly possessions-to God for the advance
| rlent of our spiritual natures. We believe
| our institution to be the kingdom of
Christs second appearing upon EARTH and
| in support Of this kingdom Shakers live
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