Norwich bulletin., 1920-12-01
EARLY UTOPIAN SOCIALISM AND
 BIRTH. OF COMMUSIsT MANIFESTO

bolt, in his lecture course. is nov ap preaching the present form of socialism and in his next lecture to be delivered | next Tuesday evening will deal with The Three Great Theories Found in the Com munist Manifesto.
 Rev. Mir. Abbott started his lecture | promptly at s o'clock with brief rA- l view of the industrial revolution w!tl is attendant social effects. His lecture of Tuesday evening dealt with the Ctopisn socialists, Robert owen of England, saint Simon and Fourier or france ami w:;h | the scientific socialists, Lasalle, Marx and Engels.
 Owen particularly interests us. ga d Rev. MT. Abbott. These men were dot Utopians because of their imagination but because of the conditions existing m the period during which they lived
 Owen was the first individual to im- port into England American sea island cotton for experimental purposes. He did experiment and found means of making it much superior to the cotton then in
 use. Shortly after this he visited Glass gow where he met the daughter Of mill proprietor by the name of Dale. He | induced his partners to buy the New La-
 mack mills, near Glasgow, and married
 and settled there in 1s00. He found con- dtions there abnormal, enormous in filth l and badness. There were about 2,000
 people connected with the mill and about | 500 children had been brought, at the age of five or six, from Glasgow and Edinburgh, The first thing he did was to open schools for the children. He de- | cided that he must attack the problem from childhood. He opened a store in 1 which goods could be bought at cost. etc. l He was very much antagonized in this l work. There was opposition from his | partners who saw depletion of profits l and from the workers who were suspic-
 ious of his motives.
 In 1906 soms ching happened that
 changed their attitude toward him. In
 the interna tional rupture between Eng
 land and the United States an embargo
 land ceased and thousands were thrown
 out of employment. For four months the
 employees of the New Lanack mill were aided by Robert owen and his partner.
 at cost of S35.0o0. The attitude of the
 employees changed and he got their con i fidence.
 In 1917 Owen brought into the house
 of commons a report on poverty. Ina . report stirred England from top to bot
 tom and about this time he launched hi : community scheme. He planned the es tablishment of communities of about l, 200 population to 1000 or 15O0 acres The entire community were to live in on : large building in the form of a square
 with public kitchens and mess rooms Each family would have its privat apartments and would have the care o their children up to the age of thre, :. years when they would be cared for b, . the community.
 r He proposed the reorganization of so . ciety along these lines; the industr f would be mainly agricultural, but how k ever, the best of machinery would be SC l. cured 4 vaCety of employment woul = be offered. With the increase of thes
 townships in number. unions of ther 0 should be formed in circles of ten. hun s drds and thousands, till they should em e brace the whole world.
 0 His scheme continued to interest ey l. eryone until at a. large meeting in Lon e don he declared his hostility to all re e ceived forms of religion. From then o 0 he lost popularity, he was suspected an d discredited. His several experiment ' along community Hines failed for the fo 1t lowing reasons: His attack on histor
 form of religion, his attack on the. aC l. cepted views of marriage; too great 2 faith in human nature and too great t belief in the influence of circumstanc, If over character.
 # over in France about the same tin
 there were two men who had schem,
 somewhat similar These. two men We
 Saint Simon and Fourier. Saint SimC " was born in Paris in 176O. He was
 dreamer by nature. Among his ear le schemes were plans to unite the Atlant E and Pacific by a canal, another plan ld construct a-canal from Madrid to u Ill sea He amassed considerable of fo T. tune during the time of the French re n olution by land speculation, as he sai IS to facilitate his future prospects. At le he undertook a series of experiments Il clarify his views of things He becaT 7 impoverished and in 1923 attempted st ,n eide. He died in 1925.
 ry Saint Simon believed in the necessi ys of a new and positive reorganization ls society. So far was he from sdvocati !. social revolt that he appealed to Lot ne XNIII. to inaugura;e tue new order e things. He advocated an arrangeme ne by which the iBustrial chiefs should co TX trol society. in place of the medley -ic church, the spiritual direction of socie ns should fall to the men of science WI ,Ie- Saint simon desired. therefore, was is' industrial state directe4 by mode 1T science
 no In his book on The New Christian ,o Saint simon concerns himself with Il ne ology. He starts with a belief in Gt s He wants to reduce Christianity to 1 simplest element. The moral doctrine " considers most important. The div element in Christianity is found in .;u precept that men should act towards ( at, another as brethren. That became
 watchwofd of the entire school of Sa ct Simon; it was their religion and D e gramme. The school continued af ,I Saint Simon's death but the chiefs w @a+t @ tried and condemned and the school V broken up in 1892. The school sa ,,n amidst the laughter and indignation o scandalized society.
 Fourier was another individual V
 had the Utopian scheme. His sche
 was quite antagonistic to Simon Sin
 began with the state Fourier wanted MP great deal of individual freedom fhe was born in 1772. was an excellent s a.1 dent and was destined to become a co rge mercial traveller. He inherited 3, ere pounds from his father and started m. business in Lyons. His business V r,o destroyed during the reign of terror a od- like Simon, he became impoverished.
 After the decline of Simon. Four op- gained a little hearing. In 1882 he F. tempted, on lands near Versailles. to .ct- t- tablish what was known as a phalal md but his scheme failed. He died in Is md Fourier believed the world was to on- ist sO,00O years. The first 40,0OI ye 1ey to be period of progress to be follC inei ed by 10000 years of Ascline He
 lieved the world had at that time exis mi. only 1000 years 5000 of w.ich we h. her understood the intentions of the Crea -i+h He advocated free and healthy devel
 ment to our passions, radical, >sensit eraI and affective passions. His belief girl that these passions are harnoni rty, Dy great soctdl passion calSd harmo hcl He advocated new social arrangeEne ,o,r suitable' to human nature and. in l. V