Socialist Colonies.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 2 April 1910, Page 4

Socialist Colonies.

SOME UNFORTUNATE E&

PERIENCES

Socialists sigh for > a Utopia. Give us, they say, a colony or city where equality reigns. Let cook's son and son of a belted oarl work for their living and for equal wages; and' when those wages have been paid, and the expenses of administration settled, let the balance lie pooled and an equal division take place amongst the members of the colony whose industry has named the money. Such is the Socialist's ideal existence. Now and then it has.been tried and found wanting. Experiments in a small way have been made to build up communities on these lines, but judging from their failure, it is to bo feared that nothing but chaos would be the result of any attempt made on a large scale. AN T ENGLISH SETTLEMENT. The only experiment which seems to have met with even a fair measure of success is that of the Tolstoy Settlement, Ghristchurch. near Bournemouth. This settlement was founded eight years ago by an exile, and .attracted not only a considerable number of Russian refugees, but also English people and those of other nationalities who found they were in sympathy with Tolstoyan ideas. It has numbered at'times between forty and fifty people, who live on the linos of a large and united happy family. They have their meals and recreations together, work at various'industries, and endeavour to live on true. Socialistic principles. _ In this case, however, the enthusiasm of the experiment seems to_ be maintained by the earnest desire on the part of the members to spread the teachings of Tolstoy. AN ANARCHTST COL^-iY.

Similarly, the Anarchist colony at Stockel," near Brussels, founded four years ago by Emile Chapelier, practically exists because its members are unanimous in their desire to spread the teaching of Anarchism throughout the world. "Do as thou wilt" is the motto of the colony, which includes idealists, moderates, and active workers. No one has anything he can call his own, not even his wife or children; for it is claimed that children belong to society, and it is out of private ownership that so much trouble comes to the world. Love is recognised, but it is the platomc and impersonal love of "brotherhood." , , , , . In 1893, J. A. Wayland, who had become fired with the co-operative idea from reading Bellamy's "Lookino- Backward," rounded a colony Tenn. The name of this colony was a tribute to John Ruskin, whose views about the immorality of interest and profits have endeared him to all anti-oapi-talists. Poor Wayland found that others were not so self-sacrificing as he was, and his visionary scheme ended in a fizzle.

AMERICAN EXPERIMENTS. Many similar experiments have been tried on the other side of the Atlantic as well as in Great Britain, but, although the communities have been organised and _ conducted by men of brains at_ times, they have invariably ended in failure. Take, for instance, Brook Parm Colony, established near Boston in 1841. Men like Albert Brisbane, Horace Greeley, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Charles A. Dana, George William Curtis, and W. H. Canning helped in its organisation. The Socialistic theory of paying every member the same amount for his 'labors was tried, but after thy novelty wore off it ceased to work. Jealousies developed, and after the usual financial difficulties a fire put the finishing touches on this remarkable venture in 1846.

The Brook Farm Colony was founded on the theories of Charles Fourier, which were based' on the advantages of co-operation. He did not believe, however, that a whole nation could co-operate successfully; therefore, ho hit upon the idea of dividing society up into groups, consisting of about 800 persons, who worked together as one big family. But the experiments failed sooner or later. In 1824 Robert Owen, an Englishman of high ideals, started a colony at New Harmony, Tnd.,' which had many strong points in its make-up. Liberty of thought and action was part of Owen's scheme, but it was not long before there was a clash between the members on matters of religion, and the wdiole thing split up and went smash. Miss Frances Wright, fired by Owen's theories, launched a colony at Nashoba, Tenn., in 1825. Equality for all was the keynote of her plan, and this included equality of the negroes with the whites, this institution also had a short life.

AN IRISH SETTLEMENT. One of the most remarkable Socialist colonies exists at the little village known as Crocknacrieve, in County Fermanagh, where about 1000 people have established themselves and live according to the most severe Socialistic principles. The colony is composed ot men and women of various nationalities, ana they are known throughout the North of Ireland as "Coonoyites, ' on account of the association with "tho movement of Mr Edward Cconey, a large farmer residing at County Farmanagh. The Coonoyites insist on . the strictly literal interpretation ot Scriptures, in so far as they refer to the care of the poor and to the virtue of poverty. Christ wfR poor, they say, and they believe m being poor. Christ had -mob a dwelling-place, and they believe that it is wrong for men to -waste monev, which they should divide with 'the poor, on erecting mansions and equipping them with costly furniture.