Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1912-12-12
JAMES P1ERPoNT GREAvES.
Forgotten Worthy-An Associate Of
Pestnloxsi-Commun Experiments.

tFrom the illustrated London News)
TO the most Of us the 10Th century rep
resents so exclusively an age of material
and practical views. Of steam and scertic-
ISM that We are inclined to ignore such
influences as those of Coleridr. and EN-
erson' even while We witness their re-
crudescence; and there is little doubt that
tho very name of James Grcavcs has,
save by the curious. been quite forgotten:
and yet his life makes a si1e-notc of some
interest on the history of modern Eng
lsh thought.
James Pierpont Grcavcs was originally
a London merchant, whose business was
ruined by tho French war in the first dec
ado of the last century. Leaving the
residue TO his creditors he set out for
Heidelberg. where his mind being of an
ethereal and mystical cast. he drank deep
of the waters Of German philosophy, and
became imbued with the aesthetic and
transc ndental views II Baungarten
Kant and Schiller Thence he made his
way to Yvcrdtn, on .ho Lake OF Ncuf-
chatcl. where Pestalozzi had set up his
last school, and became the great educa-
t.onist's right-hand man. Pestaiozzi
whose work, Leonard ana Gertrude"
on household life. and It's sequel How
Gertrude teaches her Children" had made
him famous throughout Europe for his
views on education, was. in his old age.
finding that it was hard task to har-
ness his principles to practice. There
were d!sscnsions among his masters,
though whether Creaves took part In
them we do not know and the school was
broken up
Grcaves. after eight years absence
abroad. returned to England and became
tho secretary Of the London Infant School
society; but ii seems that the views that
he had formed on education did not per-
nit him to hold the post long. lie was,
we know, a great admirer Of Amos Bron-
son Alcott. tho American cducationist and
philosopher. who at about this time open
ed a school at Boston, the most remark
able feature Of which was that. under
certain circumstances, the teacher re-
ccivcd punishment at tho hands OF the
crrinG pupil, so as to instill sense Of
shame into the offenders mind. Groaves
finally camc TO the conclusion that. as be-
ing is before knowing or doing education
could never repair the defects of birth
The proper beginning. he held should be
made before. and divine existence should
he developed and associated with man
and woman before marriage.
Retiring to Gloucestershiro Greaves
strove to introduce some communistic ex-
pertinent of farm-living and mental de-
velopmcnt among the rustics. which. like
Alcotts more ambitious scheme at Fruit
lands. soon came to an unttmely end
His restless spirit then drove him back to
London. where we hear Of his having
founded the aesthetic society," which
met at his house IN Burton street.A fire.
Qucnt visitor was Francis Barham. to
whom are indebted for the fullest
memoir of our author. Barham was the
originator of new religion which he
called Alism, Il word derived from A, AL,
or Allah, the most primitive name of the
Deity by Alism." he says, Il mean
that etcrnai divinity. pure and universal
which includes and reconcles all divine
truths whatsoever to be found in scrip
turc or nature. in theology. theosophy,
philosophy. science. or art
Barhams view of Greaves is enthu-
slastic: His numerous acquaintance,
he says OF him. regarded him as moral
phenomenon as unique specimen of
osity. and as an absolute undefinable. u
I3arham declares him to be superior 10
Colcridgc intellectually and spiritually,
hut his statement that Greaves professed
to him that he was an Alist may give
the reason for his enthusiasm In the com
parison. 'IIc professed," says Barham
| that he realized 1t (the divine spirio. as
actually present, as an element In life
more intense than any Imaginable cleo
tricity. and his faith in this spirit, by
which he felt himself inspired. always
preserved in him the most lively cheer
fulness and freedom from anxious care.
II was we'll for him that this was so, for
his carelessness of all mundane affairs
frequently brought him to the direct
stress OF poverty On one occasion we ars
told that a friend he was visiting OBJ
served that his feet were stockingless II
| his boots In contrast to his friend Bar
hams literary profusion, he made no use
of his ability as man OF letters. TIT
| articles I've wrote were thrown away oi
| obscure magazines. and II was not I'll
after his death that some were with diff
Guilty collected and thrown together in {
couple Of volumes, Barham adds: Thi
was tho more remarkable. as Greave
drank nothing but water and ate onl,
| fruit and vegetables for many years be
| fore his death. He said to those VIII
recommended him grosser style OF die
that the central spirit always burned
brighter and stronger in proportion to hi
abstinence from meats
| He was also a convert to hydropathy
In his latter years he established himself
at Ham I'm Surrey in a house which h,
named Alcott House, after Amos Aicot
or his brother Here he founded a schoo
In which to PROFOUND his philosophic ant
educational views.
| His philosophy was moro that of thu
mystic than the transcendentalist. H(
goes beyond Coleridge in expelling rea
son and enthroning Faith. while his ex
preston of his views is tainted, as !:
the case with all the school of mystics
with vagueness and uncertainty. The up
shot, so far as it can be gathered, is thus
| stated by orell in his Modern Philos
ophy."
His philosophy" no says, was spe
cies of spiritual socialism in which al
human natures were to be united an'
Ihsrmonized by the perfect submission o
every soul to the law Of love and tn
passive yielding itself to the impulse o
the spirit"
The vague beauty and the religious at
lmosphere of his philosophy gained 70
him sufficient followers to be called
sect, but there were far more who, with
out becoming converts. were won to al
lection and even reverence, by the man
devoted life and earnest conviction. II
hia own smaller spher0 ne came to b