The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1903-01-26

THE book on the New Harmony communi-
ties appeals especially to students of the
community experiments In the United
States. but Its appeal is hardly less
strong TO those interested I'm educational
methods, womens suffrage and the social
history OF the Mississippi valley. Readers
and held by the variety and reality of the
life that crowds the pages and by the bio
graphical sketches of the men and women
of romantic ideals and original. independ-
ent and unconventional lives who gathered
at New Harmony In the early days OF the
nineteenth century.
Making his one central subject the So
cialistic community founded by Robert Ow-
en- at New Harmony, the author gives IL
proper perspective by describing a num-
Der of other interesting social movements
which bore some relation TO this one. First,
in order of time are the Rappites. a re-
ligious sect which arose at time when a
wave of reform was felt among the peas
antry OF Wurttemberg, and whose leader,
Rapp. founded a community i'm southern In
diana onsthe very site where later the New
Harmony experiment was tried. The Ger
success, and attracted the attention of the
reformers that were dreaming of new So
ciety based on communistic principles
THE next step in the chain of events
was Robert Owens reform among his
factory operatives in Scotland. This Incl
dent Is we'll known to students of socialism.
AS result of his success in paternal gov
eminent Robert Owens social plans be-
came more wide-reaching. His judgment
evidently was unbalanced by the attention
his experiment had attracted. and by the
success it had attained. He did not recog-
nize the difference between the paternal-
istic reforms he had accomplished i'm his
own factory and the democratic experiment
he proposed in his scheme Of community
life
He attempted to realize this ideal in his
community founded at New Harmony on
lands purchased from the Rappite society.
The material conditions We're most favor
able, but the social and human factors OF
the problem were, as our author most con-
vincingly shows. such as to make success
not even remotely possible. Nothing is
more striking I'm the history of social
movements than the contrast between Rob-
ert Owen the business man, practical and
successful the shrewd judge OF human ma
ture, and Robert Owen the social dream
er, shutting his eyes TO realities that al
most any human intellect could appre-
bend. Long after everyone else had recog-
nized the inevitable failure Of his expert
ment he refused to admit it
Not alone the communistic experiment.
but the striking social and educational
ideals of Owen attracted number OF men
of advanced and somewhat cratic views.
The little village of New Harmony I'm south
ern Indiana was for time the center of
the educational and scientific activity of the
Western States. The presence and activ-
ity of these able men had. the author
clearly shows, an influence on the intellec-
tual life not only of the West but Of the
whole Nation. Not least interesting among
these characters is Josiah Warren, a re-
markable American, as John Stuart Mil
called him. His ideas of extreme individ-
ualism, his labor note stores and his re-
markable intellectual activity are the SUBJ
jects Of interesting chapter contrib
uted by another author.
1.-The subject of this volume is perhaps
the most important social experiment ever
tried in this country Its history is full
OF instruction to the thoughtful. The moral
lessons are not. however. thrust by the
author upon his readers. He tells his
story in a remarkably clear, judicial and
entertaining way. He writes with a facile
and skillful pen An Indiana man. writ
ing of one OF the epoch-making events in
the history OF his native State. he finds in
terest and joy in the subject and makes his
readers share the same feelings. The book
represents much careful research and the
use of all available sources of information
IL is an admirable contribution TO a SUBJ
ject that will grow. rather than diminish in
interest as time goes on"