Elmore bulletin. [volume] (Rocky Bar, Idaho) 1889-1906, 1899-09-14

county, Mo. Several years ago DR.. d..
r. McAnally (now deceased), the cru
dite editor of the st. Louis Christian
Advocate, In an editorial on the sub
ject OF communism, asserted that the
Oneida community in New York, the
Bethel Colony and its off-shoot, the
Aurora (Ore.) Colony, were the notable
instances of the application OF the
theory of communism upon American
soil. Aside from this slight mention
the fame of this singular experiment
has been confined to fireside narra-
tives. as the historian Of its achieve
ments seems to have been omitted from
its caravan, or left behind in the long
Journey
Like nearly all modern cooperative
schemes Of similar character this was
conceived and planned in the brain of
a religious enthusiast who doubtless
dreamed that he was a chosen power
to usher In a brighter day for human
kind. Dr. William Keil, the founder
prophet priest and king of this west
ern Utopia, was a Methodist preacher
of German descent, who labored among
his race and kindred in portions OF
Pennsylvania and Ohio; how long he
continued in the ministry or how sue
oessful were his labors can not be as
certained, but for some reason, pre-
sumably that of preaching strange doc
trine, he was hauled upon the car
pet" by his ecclesiastical superiors, by
whom he was deprived of his minis
terial authority. He then formulated
this communistic scheme, organized
this society and with his followers en-
igrated westward and founded this col
ony, which survives its wreck so far as
appearances are concerned, in the pres
ent town of Bethel, where the quaint
buildings of the early colonists are
still pointed out to the inquisitive
traveller.
! These colonists secured by entry or
purchase a large tract Of valuable land,
LOO acres of which was iEcosed as
the common field where the individuals
labored under the direction of over
seers appointed by DR. Keil. A com
mon boarding house was erected, where
the unmarried male members of the
community resided and a common
storehouse was kept where the fami-
lies were supplied with their allotted
portions Of provisions. the storekeeper
managing the accounts and supplying
the necessaries according to the com
munal regulations. The attention Of
those frugal people was directed to-
ward manufacturing, and in the palmy
/ and prosperous days Of the enterprise
/ Bethel was a miniature Lowell; cloth
was spun from the wool Of the csSony
sheep, which roamed in vast herds over
/ the virgin prairies, attended by the
designated shepherds, and the skin OF
Wild deer, which had not then dlsap-
peared from our horizon were made
Into hats and gloves.
Distlleries and breweries were in
operation. where the bloom of the
| fields Of rye and corn was preserved in
the translucent glow of red liquor and
lager beer. the influence Of which can
yet be traced upon some Of the de-
scendants Of the temperate dreamers
Of former days.
Perhaps the GROWING work Of these
Industrious people, from an architec.
lural standpoint, was the erection Of
The colony church, which until recently
stood in simple grandeur as memory
nj better daya This edifice was con
ttructed Of brick and stone, after tn,
type Of churches in the fatherland. /
was paved with thing, provided witt
m organ loft 1t was crowded eacl
Sunday with the colonists, who, in tn
zenith OF their power, numbered per
haps a thousand souls The type o
religion can not be we'll defined o
classified, as Or. Keil was the leade
In things spiritual as well as tempo
raj From the information that is at
talnable he seems to have preached
sort of polyglot unitarian doetrin
difficult to describe, but If all account
are true there were many pious soul
among them, even though their leade
held and preached tenets Of faith tina
must have been a cross between tn
apostles creed and the teachings Of tn
Koran. DR.. Keii claimed to be IN
spIred, like the Apostle Paul and III
older colonists acquiesced in thu, az
sumption and rendered him the HON