The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-02-05
UToPIAS IN CALIFORNIA.
v,xy COLONIES FORMED 10 CARRY
our PET THEoRrEs OF LIFE

,rrri.JTho Success of the Dunkards.
povos,. Cal, Jan. 30.-The golden State OF
c.,Ifornia has long been n favorlte home for
~. colonies OF ~various phases Of philosophy
"oommunIsttc, religious. aesthetic, dietetic.
.oonomic. cooperative. The mild. semi.trop-
i.,l climate Of a large part of the State. the
49,, u,ds variety OF horticultural and aRri-
,nitpr,l pursuits possible. the inspiring
.o.rsry OF sea and rugged mountains. tho
.omp,r,tive isolation from all the world to DO
,orrd In its fertile valleys among the foothills
and mountain ranges. and. particularly. the
,heapness OF tracts OF land In some Of the val
avs. have made the State suitable for the pro-
posed Utopias.
from Europe 10 California to live on their own
net plans for higher religious work, remote
rom their more materialistic and degenerate
,.Ilov men. Several large colonies OF New
.nolnnders haze settled in southern California
and the lower end OF the San joaquin Valley
and have made courageous attempts to work
ant socialistlc problems. A half dozen colo
n,es Of large means.have come from the East
arm States and have tried to demonstrate In
IN. st. Helena. Napa. Eureka and Santa Clara
valleys OF central California how civilization
NAV be advanced by the adoption Of their
theories concerning commercial and indus
trial conduct. Allow Oh Ino COIOuleh SClli o1l6L.
hut most havo been abandoned. In 1885 six
eolonies formed on widely different ideas OF
mans duties and on theories OF cooperative
rights and tho proper mode Of dress. diet and
labor. were established in as many different
localities Of California. None OF them re-
manned when the census of 8 was taken.
The pecuniary losses in some Of these colonies
o, good. refined men and women. who sought
to help the world by proving their Ideas.
amount TO hundreds Of thousands Of dollars.
The Fruit Vale Colony alone lost more than
100000. Pathetic stories OF sacrifices that
some excellent families have made and heroic
lives they have led in the hope OF making
colony life successful are told everywhere in
California.
Still new colonies are constantly appearing
in this State. AS long as man thinks there
will be constant attempts to reach Utopia One
or two colonies settled IN California last year.
Four were started in Mexico. and a very large
one, including about 1000 souls. came from
Nav York. Pennsylvania and Ohio. went down
into Chiapas. in the southernmost part Of Mex
leo. and settled among the coffee and pine
apple plantations for the purpose Of initiating
as closely as possible the life Of the frst Chris
tians in Palestine. Several Germans are in
California at this writing looking for a favor
able location for a colony OF suRar-beet farm
ers. who want to demonstrate a new sooialistic
Idea taught by q Bavarian philosopher. With
in the last six months another new COM
munistic colony has been started In Califor-
mia 1t is the Jacob Strahle colony ct Kelsey.
FL Dorado county. where a slate quarry 10 to
be workel /. the fields titled and the orchards
cared Tor on novel cooperative ideas. The
other day a despatch in the daily newspapers
said that a colony. that had a vegetable and
nut diet and NEUROLOGICAL Worship as the basis
Of its ideas Of the better life. was being formed
at New London. Conn. to locate in the Dial
Valley in Ventura county. Cal.
One OF the earliest large communities that
came to California was the Schlaeeel colony.
which settled In an almost inaccessible part Of
San Luis Obispo county. in 1864. The colo
nistS comprised rural families from Ohio. In
diana and Now York. who believed that the
civil war had proceeded so far that peaceable
living in that region:of the United States could
never come again. They were people who
wanted peace with the Confederate Govern
ment at any price. When the year 1884 ar
rived and they saw no prospect Of the termi-
nation OF the war. they formed plans for re-
moving to some locality far from warfare.
where they might live contentedly and have no
sorrows from bloodshed and the destruction
Of property. A wealthy doctor named Otto
schlaegel OF Cincinnati. o.. gave his time and
money to forming the colony. He had been
In California in the gold mining days Of the
hfties. and in San Luis Obispo county.
The colony. some 100 strong. sailed from
New York for the Isthmus Of Panama in Sep
tember. 1864. Several trustees for the COL
ony had gone ahead to California during the
previous month. Each male colonist of fam
lily had deposited 81 900 with the common
fund. and each bachelor or wide wer $500.
Otto SchlaeGel had put $4,000 into the coll
ony's treasure box and he was elected diroc-
tor-general OF the colony. Several poor men
and women. who had no money. gave certih-
Gates that they would do work to the value OF
the money deposit OF the other colonists when
they reached California. A code OF laws had
been drawn up. and among other curious pro-
hibittons 1t provided that no ono in the colony
was ever to speak Of the civil war or any other
war; that no work for a period OF more than six
consecutive hours. nor for 4 total OF moro than
eight hours out Of twenty-four was permiBsi-
Bile; that Sundays and several fast days
distributed through the year should be
passed In silence. except when absolutely nee
essary to speak, and that after tho first six
months OF the cdony's existence. or when tho
COLONY buildings had been constructed and
the cooperative industries had been started.
no money was to be used. A code Of religious
duty. drawn up by a Huguenot minister
named De Veaux. In 1904. was adopted by tho
schlsegsl colonists.
Inc c~olonists went away up among the
mountains along the coast of San Luis Obispo
county near what has since become the set
uement OF Champion. In six months the COL
onltts numbered moro than 200. and things In
Fidelity. tho colony town. went along beauti-
rulT' saWmills. farms and shops were start
o. AT first all the men received the Same
wages. Brains or skill did not count. Soon
those who shirked lived at the expense OF the
active toilers and the colony was compelled to
Nart a scale OF wages. A few months later the
leaders In the colony ceased to exercise their
Drains; the necessity did not exist. There
was no spur to ambition. no competition. Then
~ was discovered that the work done in the
shops and mills MAS so inferior that it was not
marketable outside. The prohibition OF talk
on sunday was entirely disregarded. Many
shareholders In the community asked for their
money back. but did not get It. Some desert
~ inc common eating housesa and the herd
Tag OF families In big dwellings led to bicker-
inks and jeAlousiOs among the woman The