The Cairo bulletin., 1907-03-25
S|NCLA|RD[F[NDS .
COL0N|ESMORALS.
FATHER or BURNT OUT UTOPIA
REsENTs ASSERTIONS OF
COUNTY CORONER,
FREE LOVE WAS BARRED
In \, tielicon Hall, He Declares--Says
Ensiewood Residents Seemed
Hostile--Tclls Why Bills
Are Unpaid.

New York, March "a Upton Sin.
clair, father OF the burnt out Helicon
hall colon,sts, resents the imputation
made By the coroner's jury at Engle-
wood Thursday night to the effect
| that the moral ideas Of the colonists
iafe advanced over those OF the exclu
sive residents OF the suburban city. He
said tonight, in defense of his colony
and himself that the jury called to in
vestigate the death at the Helocin hall
| fire OF Lester Briggs had made IN.
warranted deductions from the an
swers he had given them. and had put
10 him questions assuming condi-
ton OF morals which did not exist
among the colonists.
Mi. Sinclair made his statement
from his bed. He was found in the
Hotel Cumberland under the care Of
trained nurse. and receiving the at.
tention OF Dr. William Fisher Grier
Mr.. Sinclair's foot, which had been cut
and burned by hot cinders the night OF
the fire, had become highly infamed
so the physician said, and these pre-.
cautiouary measures had been taken
against blood poisoning, The head col.
onfst had begun to use his foot too
soon. and now he. must remain In bed
for several days.
Resents Line OF Inquiry.
Il want 10 state this as emphatic
ally as | know how. that the Helicon
home colony was not free love com
munity,' said MIR. Sinclair when the
questioning of the coroner's jury was
recalled to him And you may add
that |. as we'll as the other members
of the colony. resent the imputation
cast upon us by the questions put to
some of us as witnesses last night
at the inquest in Englewood The line
OF questioning seemed to give the
board inference that our morals were
not what they should have been and
that we were living under a free.love
gegrime.
The members of the jury asked me
about the keys to the house and |
iold them We had no keys, simply
meaning to give information to show
thai any one might have entered our
place at any hour of the night. The
Jury took my statement to mean the |
while house was open and there was |
free communication between the |
rooms Of the coionists. don't know |
anything about tbs. don't suppose /
The people living in. Helcon hall turn.
ID the locks on them elves any more
han they would do If they had been
living In the house Of friend
Says Rooms Were Private.
The jury also seemed to find sig.
lificance IN the arrangement we had
made for the accommodation of the
workers. on the third floor We were
realty crowded for room. We made
title bedrooms by the big studio on
he top fcor by erecting partitions
about ten feet high, and then hung up
ong curtains screening the rooms.
here was as much privacy here as in
ny Pullman car. and certainly none
I rs ever gave thought to the pos
Ible wrong Interpretation that might
e given the method of our accommo.
aticn'
Mr.. Sinclair added that from the
me the Helicon hall colonists moved
up 10 the day of the fire there had
cen much curiosity among the Engle.
Food folk about the manner of their
wing. He had heard stories circu-
ated about town to the effect that the
olonis,s did not invite their friends
mong the townspcople because they
al something they wanted to con.
eal.
Last night when we were called up
n to face the coToner's jury we all [
'und distinct air Of hostility mani
saed toward us by the members of
lat body. Upon me in particular they
eemed to visit their displeasures. and
am afraid they thought they had
Jade fool of me. Maybe they did.
felt that they did. +
Why Bills Are Unpaid. In
They blamed us for running He'll Ie
IN hall as a hotel without obeyingI
Ie hotel laws for protection against a
re. Why that building housed a CO
'hool many years before we took It n
I'd when we entered we found no 1t
re protection at all. We Immediately tc'
'ught thee fire extinguishers and OF
RS. Hahn was in New York buying W
e escapes when the building burn ci
An apologist for the colonists said of
e inimical spirit Of the jury might tn
accounted for by the fact that sew. al
al q its members were tradesmen IL
10 held bills against the colony. The m
ancial aaffirs of the association had
en- badly muddled j1st about a pr
NTH before the FIRE. said Mr.. Sin u,
'ir, through the illness OF Supt Ran. th
u. He was forced 10 go to Havana Oh
iecuperaie and he TOOK somc OF the 10
count books with him. co
The colOnisis continued TO pay their 70
ard and lodging. but no settlement is
outstanding bills could be made &c
lie Nj Randall vas away with the II
'ks Of the financial department. ex