fornia ^^H Qal HH ly ^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^H ■ [HE :lastc OF THE Cnn PF p AT WW 1 Gi rieA I ASSOCIATI •■'*lf . )y^%h ^■^^^l "^,; jy .(,],. /■/ A^' - s,. v#- '':^-^-i. The Last Days OF THE Ruskin Co=operiitive Association Bv Prokf.ssor Isaac Broome. (Written at Ruskin, Tenn.) CHICAGO CHARLES H. KERR & COMF^ANY ■ 902 Copyrifjht 1902 liY Charles H. Kerr tV Uompant ^ 9. .hi SANiA xlAilUAliA COLLEGE LIBR> LIBRARY rUBLlSHEirS PREFACE. A few words of explanation may not be out of place in connection with the publication of this volume in the Standard Socialist Series. Some may object to classifying it as a socialist book on the ground that it portrays only errors in an attempted practical application of the prin- ci])le. ( )thers, with more reason, will object to the way in which the word socialist is used in the fol- lowing pages. The millions upon millions of workers in Eu- rc^pe and America who rally under the socialist banner have a better right than any obsolete lexi- cographer to define the word socialist to-day. They define the word, not as one with yearnings for an ideal social order and schemes for manu- facturing it, though this seems to be the sense in which all the Ruskin colonists, including the au- thor of this book, used the word. The Socialists of the world prefer to define it as one who, see- ing that the masses of men are moved mainly by their material interests, and that the laborers are oppressed by the fruits of their labor being taken from them by the owners of ca{)ilal, therefore struggles for the establishment of a collective system of production, through the united politi- cal action of the working class. The socialist, using the word as just defined, will find few of his own ideas in the remarks with which our author has interspersed his story, but by way of compensation he will find a mass of valuable testimony from an eye-witness as to the practical working of a scheme which sought to build a new social order without regard to the essential facts familiar to all socialists. Professor Broome may be quite correct in hold- ing that the colonists in devising a plan for self- government, devised a poor one. This, however, matters little. The Ruskin colony was an at- tempt on the part of a group of people to escape from capitalism and establish co-operation. America, like every other civilized country, had inevitably to pass through that economic stage which was accompanied by Utopian dream- ing and attempts at realizing the dreams by means of miniature experiments. Ruskin happens to be the most conspicuous of these experiments, and it is for that reason that even minute inci- dents attending its rise and fall afford valuable material for the social student. The whole story resolves itself into a striking example of the workings of that law of economic determinism which is the basis of international sociaHsm ami which the self-styled socialists of Kuskin never dreamed of in their philosophy. As a socialist publishing company we take no interest in the personal antagonisms engendered by the miserable state of things at Ruskin. The author's estimates of the personal traits of his associates may be just or not. At our request he has omitted names, and while some of the char- acters may be easil}- recognizable by those al- ready familiar with the facts, we do not think any one can be injured. The author, with all intent to be impartial, could not possibly write without partisanship about a strife in which he was engaged, and such jiartisanshiij cannot be avoided if we are to get an account of the colony by an eye-witness. It is indeed conceivable that the "charter element" may have been more entitled to the sympathy of the reader than the author and his supporters, but this if true could not affect the value of the book as an object lesson and a warning. In conclusion, it only remains to be said that we believe the author of this work to be, by all odds, the most competent historian of the Ruskin Commonwealth who could possibly be found. In- tellectually he stands in a class apart from the mass of the colonists, and his own personality, 5 whicli he has infused into the story, will make it acceptable reading even to those who approach the subject without previous interest. We believe that the book will thus find many readers and that it will tend to dissuade them from wasting any energy in future on miniature Utopias. This result is greatly to be desired, since the one important task of the present day is the building up of an International movement of workers, through which alone a better social or- der can be established. c. ii. k. CONTENTS. Cliaptcj-. rage. lntn>iliK'tioii to Riiskin Colony 'J 1. I'iiKuicial Methods !-• II. Management '"^^ III. Our I'atriarchs 50 IV. The Lyblan Civilization OS V. The Cuisine 'i''^ VI. Education «'J Vri. AnaiTliy and Free Love .lOo VIII. Injunction 1<50 IX. The Wrceli l^S X. The Last Gasp 15- XI. Babylon Is Fallen !(« ILLUSTRATIONS. General View of Temporary Site— 1898, facing title page. The Printery and Steam Laundry, facing page 1^ Laying the Corner Stone of Uuskiu College of New Kcou- omy, facing page -1 Month of the Grand Cave in Winter, facing page l-'8 Tlie (Jarden. facing page 50 Design of Uuskiu College of Now Economy, Isaac Hroome, Architect, facing page 00 A Wedding on the Stage at Ruskin, facing page 01 The Grist Mill at Mouth of Cave, facing page Ti! Ruskin Cuisine, facing page 84 Tlie Grist Mill and School Children, facing page W Entrance to Ruskin, facing page 100 Ruskin I'ants, facing page 131! Canning in the Grand Cave, facing page 150 Ruskin Band, 1897, facing page lOK The Flower Garden, 1S9S, facing page 174 Bust of John Ruskin, faclug page 170 INTRODUCTION TO RU8K1N COLONY, A two days' ride on the railroad and at last we were ncaring the region where the already fa- mous Ruskin Colony was located, west of Nash- ville, Tennessee. The unkempt and improvident appearance of the country through which we had passed south of the Ohio river was becoming discouragingly intensified — poorly cared-for, fenceless farms, with wretched buildings and a remarkable absence of the comforts which dis- tinguish the rural districts of the North. "Tennessee City," called the conductor, and we left the train. A barren looking spot, with a few houses at a distance answered for the so-called city. Later we learned that this pompous title was given by a syndicate of land speculators who had in imagination a future urban district with the splendors of a Paris or Vienna. "Where is the Ruskin Colony?" was asked of a placid-looking negro, who was idling about the station. "You can fine out ober dar," pointing to a long frame Iwrrack of a building at some distance, on which was painted, "Coming Na- tion." It was the printery, where v/e received hearty welcome. In a few hours "The v/agon's ready," v/as called, and a two miles' ride through a primeval oak forest brought us to famous Rus- IC LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN kin. The first sight of the thirty-two scattered shack houses along the gulley and over steep hills deepened the unfavorable impression received along the railroad. On a side hill was located the two-story hotel, thirty by seventy feet, con- taining twelve sleeping rooms, and the general dining-room and kitchen. It was just supper time as we entered the noisy dining hall and took our first meal in a socialist colony in March, 1896. It required but a glance to see that the colony was composed mostly of people who had never had any advantages and were contented with primitive surroundings. The conventionalities of society were abandoned and but little disposi- tion was shown towards maintaining the pro- prieties of cultured life. The salute of a "good morning" seemed a surprise. There was no pol- ishing up on Sunday. The men sat arouufl on logs, stones, or in the dirt smoking and spitting tobacco. Pigs roamed the streets when not in convention around the swill barrels in the rear of the kitchen. The place and the people were far from the ideal and presented a poor prospect for the development of a high social state. The unfertile soil of the one thousand acres on which Ruskin stood had a substratum of hard- pan through which the oaks sent no tap root. Wells dug with great labor showed that it ex- tended to considerable depth. In fact, it was really the mysterious gravel drift which puzzles geologists and has called out of late years such interesting literature about the fall of the planet INTRUlJb'CTlON II Lucifer, the parent of the asteroids, which, it is said, struck the earth in North America, sweep- ins^ its gravel over the continent to Patagonia and over Africa to Cape Colony, causing convul- sions and sinking Atlantis. The site of Ruskin had had a double dose, well pounded dovvu, for it was harder than rock clay, impenetrable to mois- ture, holding water as well as a tin 1)ucket. This unpromising soil, after twenty months' act|uaintance, had discouraged the colonists who had been looking far and wide for a new site, finally deciding on one six miles north called "Cave Mills," afterwards "New Ruskin." The colony idea had first originated in the brain of Wayland in 1893, shortly after he had started the "Coming Nation" newspaper at Greensburg, Indiana. It was to be a co-opera- tive village, backed up by the industry of the newspaper, which was rapidly growing in circu- lation through the interests and efforts of social- ists, and when Wayland located the Tennessee site it had reached a circulation of 60,000. During the previous twenty months much had developed in the character of the colonists of a fricdonal nature which had caused the founder, Wayland, to abandon the enterprise, newspaper and all, accepting $2,000 for four shares of stock, leaving the plant, lands and properties in the hands of the colonists Vvho had come in up to the fall of 1895. Of course a number of the colonists also left as soon as they coukl get away, and for a few months the strife considerably sul)sided to redevelop later on under l)a(l business manage- ) 12 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN ment au'l other causes which the reader will see in the account given of the "Last Days of the Ruskin Co-operative z-Yssociation," and the con- ditions leading up to the crash of its dissolution. In about a month after our arrival moving be- gan to the new site, the saw mill being the first, in order to cut lumber for the nevv' printery build- ing, which was erected by July on a larger scale, three stories high, the upper floor serving for dining-hall, ball-room, lyceum and theater. The rough board houses were torn down and re- erected at New Ruskin, and by Christmas all the people were transferred to the new site, winch proved to be one of the most attractive and in- teresting places imaginable. Old Ruskin, its hotel, machine shop and farm buildings stood silent and alone on the barren ridge. Three miles from this forlorn spot on which a group of inexperienced people were to set .the model for the regeneration of the world, the view suddenly opened upon a lovely scene rich in verdure, the very antithesis of the deso- late place we left. The wild grape luxuriantly festooned the giant trees an-d everywhere the eye turned over the charming perspectives of this ai)undantly watered valley endless varieties of fruit and flower rose thickly from the generous soil. We cross the ford of Yellow Creek and the mammoth building of the new printery stands l)efore us against a picturesque background of perpendicular limestone blufif. Rare mosses and wilrl plants gave the chromatic harmonies of THE PRINTERY AND STEAM LAUNDRY iNTRODUCTiON color aiul a delicate wilderness of form to its sur- face as they crept in patches, or rooted in the crevices of the rock at inaccessible heights. As- cending thirty or forty feet of the debris which has fallen during ages at the base of the clifif, we find ourselves in front of a gigantic cave, the smooth elliptical roof of which vanishes away to an interminable distance over a vast chamber and lake of purest water of great depth. A Hume directs a bubbling, crystal stream from its natural escape beneath the rocks to a water wheel near the entrance which forces it to a reservoir on the top of the cliff. Explorers for miles through the chain of caverns, of which this is the outlet, report vast chambers without end. This delightful retreat which has succeeded in its uses the home of the cave bear and the manmioth, the den of the savage and the conven- tion for festivity of civilized man, now furnishes cool storage to a Socialist colony. We pass out from the impressiveness of this giant rock archi- tecture to bright and l^eautiful nature so rich in foliage along the hills, the air redolent with odors and musical with birds. Changing scenes of pic- turesque beauty along the banks of Yellow^ creek embellished by its sparkling waters form a pleasant panorama on our route over the colony lands to another large cave at the end of tlie chain of hills. Here we witness one of the world's wonders in its profusion of hanging sta- lactites and colonnades that presents the idea of a fairy palace. Beyond this the new home of the Ruskin colonists stretches in an irregular manner 14 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN lor over a mile to the north and about the same distance up the valley along- Silver creek. Commanding a fine view down the rich valley, with prosperous farms, from a hill to the right, was located the site of Ruskin's hope, "The Col- lege of the New Economy." The extensive gar- dens, the cliff of the "Grand Cave" and the print- cry \\ere all in view looking southward, the val- ley narrowing as it stretched away in the dis- tance. Adjoining the college site was platted the ])ermanent town, the location on the gravel beds near the printery, where the shacks were erected being temporary. During the first and second year there was erected a steam laundry, bakery, wheelwright and blacksmith shop, the cereal cof- lec and the bachelor's buildings — the latter quite a ]>rctentious structure. inhere were many advantageous features con- nected with the new home of the Ruskin Social- ists in addition to the delightful and healthy cli- mate that would have enabled them to sustain themselves with moderate effort and carry out their ideal. But as the old hynm states "Every prospect pleases and only man is vile." THE LAST DAYS OF THE RUSKIN CO-OP EKATIVE ASSOCIATION. CHAPTER I. FINANCIAL METHODS. The disgrace of the faikire of the banner co- operative colony at Ruskin, Tennessee, will cer- tainly create an impression in the pnblic mind that sucli associations arc impracticable. It will also furnish a fine opportunity for a large class who are opposed to any improvement in the eco- nomic and social condition of industrial society, to deride attempts towards such progressive methods. The failure of Ruskin is perhaps of more importance as a lesson in co-operative man- agement at this time than her success would luive been. That lesson will be drawn from the story of "the last days of the Ruskin Co-opera- tive Association," as narrated in these pages. In the opinion of the author, no greater benefit could be conferred upon the industrial and co-operative movement of modern times than an expose of the facts, conditions and characters that figured in a movement that was defective in organization and personnel and might have been, under proper conditions, a great example of co-operative asso- ciation. 1 6 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIX^ The commendable spirit which inspires men to associate in colony enterprises in order to ex- hibit a model of their ideal of social and eco- nomic arranf^ements, must be regarded with in- telligent respect and admiration. What cannot at present be done in the greater world they seek and hope to do in a smaller world under their own control. To say that man cannot achieve an enjoyable, regenerated social state would be illogical and ridiculous. It would be ignoring the correspondences visible in his already ac- quired achievements. The story of the defects and ruin of so distinguished a colonial enterprise as Ruskin shows clearly the missing link in such enterprises past and present. A medley of un- trained people whose most prominent character- istic is ignorance, cannot reasonably be expected to achieve the hope of man's social and eco- nomic regeneration. This burning fact must be clear to every thoughtful mind. This burning fact is illustrated in the play of characters and business mismanagement told in these pages, the object of which is to show the qualities requisite to achieve correct social conditions and the de- fects to avoid. Men are not altered at once bv the change of conditions. There mu.st be an alteration in the man as well as his environ- ment. This can only be accomplished by his thorough and complete education in the higher knowledge. Otherwise you will find him dis- playing the vices of his low state in political cunning and star chamber processes as we had in Ruskin under Socialistic conditions. The FINANCIAL METHODS 1/ same vices can be witnessed even in the larger world of reform, where often pohcy is pursued and truth suppressed for fear of hiu'ting the movement. All this arises from man's imper- fect mental state. He has not yet reached the plane where resplendent truth can shine from pure hearts, fructifying- the Eden which he has lost through ignorance and its vices. Practical experience like that of Ruskin is of more value than any theory. The world will not believe such destructive ignorance possible. The fact is the story is not half told. Much is omitted because of public incredulity. With this explanation, the interested public will appreciate the manner and style in which the account of this co-operative organization is treated. The dignity of the modern movement towards industrial association, and the noble spirit which inspires the effort towards social arrangements, has been grossly insulted by the prominence of the crime committed at Ruskin. Hence the world of progress can be better served by laying bare the raw truth, than by any excuses or apologies to gloss the crime over for the sup- posed benefit of the movement. The author asks the public to consider the satire expressed in this story as not arising from any personal feeling, or animosity ; but rather from a desire to exhibit clearly the methods and characters which have forced forward the Ruskin association to ruin in spite of warning, good ad- vice and opposition. The headstrong managers and the ignorant and duped majority have for- l8 ' LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN feitc'fl in their huge crime ag-ainst the modern movement to better society all right to gentle treatment. Youth is frequently ruined by too much as- sistance. Self-reliance develops character and virtue. One of the kindergarten rules is to teach the child self-reliance. This goes even back to the nursery, where if a baby falls, let it get up itself. If it tries to walk, let it help itself. Teach it from the breast the habit of self-reliance. Unfortunately we have generations growing up who have been helped and pitied from babyhood to manhood, who have by this kind of education no self-reliance and look to others to help, or give them something. The old Wayland element in Ruskin, called the charter members, belonged to that class. At first they were thought to be sentimental reformers, who had been generally unsuccessful because they were reformers. Later and closer study of events showed that they were mendicants, willing to travel on reform and use it as a cloak for begging purposes. The Ruskinites who came in with the founder of the colony, Wayland, or on Wayland. inherited from him, when he left, the printing establish- ment and the "Coming Nation" newspaper — this had been acquired by begging the labor reform clement to increase the circulation. It was a find for the charter members ; the begging then went right on for the land fund. Habits grow. There is no habit stronger than that of begging, the passion of getting some- thing for nothing. This disgusting passion nause- FINANCIAL IMliTIIODS 19 atcs any one possessin<2^ manly principle. Its .ij^reatest field is worked by adventurers on relig- ion and morality. Rnskin has been a pretty close second for pioneering Socialism. Whoever read of Christ and the Apostles begging? <1s c 3 '^ . '^ 00 4j ti 1-1 4-. C pj J-, O N 4J > I — , C •' ^ 6X3 1) '.^^ D ~ rt < CJ 1- ^ (= lU r- ■t! an toO 2 .S 6ti. ■sU o i irt i m «D "^ 00 to -(J* CO 00 03 1 CO •rP IN IN - i^ CO in CO •^ ■* - - - — CO 5-1 00 M t- C'l - 2lN>fi •3 to > >> >> g CO ■* ■V u > > Ok ■n ■3 QJ 2 c ■^^ E E S a; .c « K K H 20 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN Ruskin started to beg for land — and got it. Glowing prospects and promised restful condi- tions brought in stock purchasers, who did not find the bliss ; fought about it and left to go back to the competitive state. Some few stayed. At the end of only five years three remained of the original 1894 members; four remained of the 1895 members at the end of four years outside of the injunctionists ; 14 of the 1896 members at the end of three years, and so on with the same per- centage nearly. The whole number averaged to stay m the Ruskin paradise just five years and four months, 19 per cent leaving annually. FINANCIAL METHODS 21 *-> 3 >-■ T1 x: _ U rt tOT3 4 z C rt CO o m ba < "c 42 ,^, o T3 nn o ^3 T* 3 < t/5 (U T1 < >-. -1 HJ c a! u > -r, ■•" W) •^ (1) 4_J S-i h- o o < S U > U Q. ^ O C7\ >> O ^ ON CO rt xT a, c o I ; ^ c ■ 1 .n ^ ^ ?? 8 o .C t- o " 'S 03 ?i ^ s a3 ' ""it C'S >^ a -t, ■^"^ oi 03 tn ►[ ^ - cc ^ a3 m iC « c's CO X; O— c 3 *-■ ►-: . .J. 9 ^ V n r-t IM IN 1 .o o-o ^ ■g 1 a; (N 1 «•» Q '" ♦3 ^ n -t< -1* t~ 1 trt ?1 '» > ^ ■^ •-"a OS CO •^ N •■o m O O !:» >n 1 }- 1 c '^ CO CO CO bi3 i •— ' 3 < •^ ■< Id (U ~i T s si 00 a 3 Q. 00 00 00 ?, "^ 1 1-1 tt • oc c - o 1 o td h 1 '5 S .t: w -ct: D— ' C 3 - !> 'i-c ^ t- o 7? to 5 c LO C A stream of new stock purchasers came in constantly. The passion for the Rnskni paradise spread. Tliis kept matters going on a grand scale, money was plenty, handled in thousands by men who liad never been accustomed to money, and it went flying into anything fancy suggested. When a new member was seen coming on the 22 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN mail wag'on, the president exclaimed : "Here com.es another $500. Thank God ! Ruskin is saved." A new member came to be regarded as a $500. In five years new members paid in $66,530. This, with the $17,040 plant and money . they started on with Wayland, made a capital of $83,570 on stock alone; $15,350 of this was paid back to withdrawing- members, leaving $68,- 220 to be represented in stock. Of course it was not in sight. All we had to show for it was the printery and bachelors' btiilding, a ruined and unprofitable printing plant, some other trifling machinery, a few farm implements, 22 horses, 24 cows, 21 calves, our cheap shacks to live in and a debt of $6,000 still on our land. (Our annual inventory of property taken Jan. 25th, 1899, was figured out at $94,072.19.) It must not be imagined that this was all tlic monev our brilliant officials had to handle. Oh no. it was really the snialler portion. The year 189S would be a good criterion to go by and that furnished the sum of $27,724.06 ; this added to the $17,011 stock shares sold that year made a total of v$44,735.o6, which went like smoke. But this is not all ; there v.'as $1,430.96 spent over this aniount ; over that again went flying v$8o2. 43 depositors' money ; after that again went flying $682 difference in the yearly balance ; and in face of this army of dollars that constituted a deficit for the great R. C. A. Ai gild-edge, was $821.15 of hour checks outstanding to be redeemed in cash, or goods, and $88.45 of produce checks out among the farmers ready to come in on us at FiKANCTAL METTTOOS 23 any moment. These altogether made a deficiency over all the cash that was spent that year of $3,824.89. . , , If the money had gotten out uito such shape as to put us out of debt on our land, or build comfortable homes for the members, or purchase K:;eful machinery, we would not have cared. The fact was, out of this vast sum our charter mem- ber officials only managed to squeeze the petty sum of $2,396 for the whole year of 189S, to pay on the land. The Socialist colonization movement of which Ruskin is the type attracts the attention of good people. Naturally these good people want to do something to help Ruskin along. Consequently we are the recipients of many favors that count. A gift of $500 in purchase of tools was a notable one during 1898. People send us 'phones, tools and many things that show their kindlv spirit and count in the aggregate of our wealth and ad- vantages. All this helps to cultivate the depend- ent spirit and weakens our self-reliance and inde- pendence. The college fund is kept up as an additional bait for the educational element who have up to date contributed nearly $900. About $150 worth of foundation is put in, the rest has been spent long ago. Amounts still received are entered on cash book: College fund 50c, or $1, or $5, as the case may be, and spent with the balance. All goes into the pile, and all goes out of the pile. No management is needed. The former editor of the "Coming Nation" claimeti that business 24 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN methods were not needed. All we had to do was to ."bulldoze"' everything through by sheer force. It would come out all right. It takes an old member from Wayland times to exhibit this beautiful philosophy in all its wrecking fullness. Singular that not one of them varied a iiair from this destructive business standard. We depended on what would come in on sale of stock shares and the few industries : printing, coffee and suspenders. These last are made else- where cheaper by half than ours. We keep up the price, however. There are many sentimental Socialists who cannot sleep for anxiety to have the Ruskin paradise succeed, and who keep buy- ing Ruskin suspenders at 50c that can be pur- chased for 25c, and cereal coffee in the same way. It is a gift. Charity on their part. Ac- cepting charity on ours. Begging. The habit is confirmed. To satisfy the injunction and receiver suits at the final breaking up of Ruskin in the spring of 1899 (explained elsewhere), we decided to close out and reorganize. This means that the injunctionists must also get their pro rata of the sale. We have spent all our cash and $10,000 to $15,000 is wanted to pay them off. Begging is the natural resource. It is beg or let them buy the place in. The old veterans of the Wayland element, the President and our buyer, start in to beg. It is the first impulse. Our buyer is the master spirit. He prepares a begging letter. He, the President, and our Doctor push it along. They believe that FINANCIAL MF.TTIonS 2$ the whole world is waiting to throw bushels of gold dollars into the lap of Ruskin. In fact the world is dying to do it. It would he cruelty to men not to give them the chance to throw their money into our treasury. An injustice to the Socialist world. All that is necessary is to men- tion the fact and, as the Doctor says, "Whew ! Ruskin has friends," and with a wave of his hand in the air he adds "plenty of friends." A sturdy stand and insistence that it would be a suicidal policy to publish begging letters in our paper, and that no one ever did, or ever would obtain money by such a policy, had the effect of deciding the beggars to send out private letters to a host of friends and distinguished re- formers throughout the country. As was pre- dicted, no notice was taken of them, or polite ex- cuses were sent. Our buyer's tenacity was not to be balked by objections, or failures. The next thing we knew was that the begging letters were in type and ready to be published in the "Coming Nation." Our President, with our buyer behind him, was 1)ound to ])ublish the begging lette'rs in spite of the opinions of the wise and experienced mem- bers. When it was discovered that this old charter member method was adopted to push through the begging letters, a fairly healthy communi- cation was laid before the Board of Directors, hoping to stop it in time. We give it, as fol- lows : 26 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN To the Board of Directors of the Ruskin Co- operative Association. Gentlemen — We are at a point where the best judg-mcnt and abihty is required to manage the affairs of the association. What abihty and good judgment there may be existing among us can- not be brought forward because the principle of co-operation does not exist in Ruskin. Every- thing seems to be decided on and done by a few men, or one man. The association is prac- tically a despotism. One man put in motion a scheme for begging money from the public. It was all prepared and presented privately. Objections deferred its jniblication in the "Coming Nation" and the pol- icy of sending out private begging letters to friends and distinguished reformers was adopted. As was stated and urged by myself against the begging policy in any form, these letters have l.-rought no results, and never will. Any tyro in liusiness would have known that beforehand. The plan of begging through the "Coming Nation" by advertising the poverty of the great reputed v/ealthy R. C. A., quoted gilt edge Ai in fmancial standing, that was laid aside while the begging letters were tried and failed, is nov/ brouglit to the front and is to disgrace the pages of th.e "Coming Nation" this week. We are not only to be advertised to our friends privately l)y letter, but are also to be advertised to all the world by our own nev/spaper. The result of this will be nothing but injury. It cannot be otherwise. Such a business policy FlNANCtAI- ArnTTTOI)5? 27 has never l)ccn known to be other than disas- trous. Agahisi this poUcy I desire to enter my protest to' the Board, in the hope that yon will ])revent it i^o'mii; into the "Coming Nation,' to give us the fatal blow before the world. These praetiecs are entirely out of the line of good business judgment. They are not the way} of managing business by business men. It is sim- l)ly a world-wide extension of the. prodigality and begging financial policy that lias dragged us to th.c ])recipice of ruin. We are now to be hurled over the precipice unless this Directory inter- feres. So far as I am able to see this begging plan was originated and put forward by one man. The colony appears not to have l>cen consulted on this important matter* afifecting all. He has fas- tened himself on the executive officers with the the energy of desperation, and has carried both j)oints with them, the begging letters, and the I)egging advertisements. The wishes and opin- ibns of others are of no consideration. His wish must be and is carried by persistence, by. pol- itics and sirategv, by working the President's weakness and by avoiding, or circumventing others v^ho object to his one-man policy. 1/ That one great cause of the ruin of Ruskin, tl'c existence of an Executive Board, is the means liy which these individual and ring schemes can be effected. It is the Executive Board system that has brought us ail the great injuries from which Ruskin has suffered. It is the Executive Board system that has caused the 28 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN drawbacks, delays and failures of every industry in Ruskin. Probably the only two now paying a profit is the stalactite cave and the College of the New Economy (the begging fund). It was the Executive Board that ruined the "Coming Nation." It was through the Executive Board that the printery was looted of its machinery and paralyzed from doing business, in which this one man was the balance of power to destroy our I)rinting industry. It was the Executive Board who secretly worked the erection of the hog- breeding pens on the College campus, where pork costs us $i a pound. It was the Executive and this one man who bribed the postoffice poli- tician with $35 and paid the money out in viola- lion of the laws. It was the Execu1;ivc Board that spent $-46,- 166.02 in cash last year, being $1,430 over our cash income and all the united labor of the col- ony. It was the Executive Board that spent somewhere near $175,000 in five years and has about $18,000 to show for it as a paying invest- ment. Note. — At the receiver's sale our entire real estate sold for about $10,000, including mort- gages. All this is the result of irresponsible manage- ment. Now we are to be disgraced by begging ad- vertisements through the Executive Board, in- fluenced by one man. It is the Executive Board that is responsible for the discontent connected with the purchasing agent. They arc also responsible for the sus- ])icions so prevalent that he is robbing us tO the FINANCIAL M1:TI10US 29 extent of $1,700 a year through sliocUly goods and the buyer's commission. 1 1 was through the Executive that the College project was ruined and its funds sciuandered. It was through the Executive that the farm sunk $850 during McCoy's management. It is the Executive Board that does everything in the col- ony by its imperial will, and is not obliged to con- sult anyl)ody. It is the Executive Board who can interfere with the labor and arrangements of the departments and render them a loss instead (if a gain. It was the Executive Board who re- fused to issue stock to women and brought on the calamities we have had. It was the Executive who neglected our payments and brought the Sheriff on us. The same Executive was uncon- scious of a $900 payment on land last week up to the moment it was due and let it go unpaid. This institution of an Executive Board we must abolish under the new organization, or go on with the road to ruin. We all hoped that the association would have been able to close out its affairs and start the new organization without any further calamities brought on us by the old element which has been the curse of the Ruskin movement since it began, through incapacity and disregard of the common business interests of the people, and that the new organization would be started under better auspices with the more intelligent element that has come to us. This we hope and pray may be the case. But if the old element is to ruin us by advertising the reputed rich and famous 30 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN Riiskin Colony as a l)cgging institution, we will have no new organization by which we can real- ize our hopes for a regenerated future. I appeal to the Directory to stop this disastrous begging letter, and to protect the association un- til we can free it from the paralyzing incubus that has brought us to the verge of ruin. There arc more legitimate methods of managing finances than this antiquated and childish begging sys- tem, which never has and never can result in any- thing but disaster. Very Respectfully Yours, Isaac Broome. Ruskin, V^ay loth, 1899. Why, of course, this vigorous attack raised a storm. It was intended to do so. The circum- stances were so critical that something must be done on Wednesday night to stop the letter from going iiito the paper, or it would be too late and the damage would be irreparable. There was no attempt to answer the paper, its positions, or its charges. A personal attack was made on the author, who stood his ground. The Ijegging letter would have been stopped but for a man from v. horn we expected much in the col- ony, but who exhibited himself on this occa- sion in very bad light. He stated that he had great confidence in the judgment of "our buyer," and the President and also the editor — that they could act in such an important matter independ- ently, without advice, and as the letters were not produced here we must presume that the charges FINANCIAL Mi:Til()L)S 3I were wronji^ and therefore he moved to lay the coinmnnication on the tal)le. It was carried by his vote. The old element was victorious once more and the reign of blue ruin went on. These statements killed the director in the estimation of his friends. A man who publicly endorsed three men whom he constantly denounced in private as unprincipled and crooked, and who had worked with me for months to detect fraud in the pur- chasing- department, dropped at once in public esteem beyond the possibility of ever redeeming himself. Examination on the next morning proved the begging letters true and the language was much modified before they went to press. Sober looks and blue faces were universal after two weeks. The bankrupt begging letters result- ed just as were predicted. We were disgraced, 1)ecame the butt of ridicule in the newspapers and got little or nothing. An elected member who was moderately well off visited the colony with the expectation of helping with money. He had been worked by our buyer through corre- spondence, but investigation of the way business was managed decided him not to risk his for- tune. After all hope had gone from the begging let- ters, some old gentleman wrote us that he w^ould make us a small cash contribution and that he had made his will leaving Ruskin some $10,000 worth of property. His name was suppressed. I knew that that would be a new clue for our buyer and that he would never sleep until he had planned to hypothecate the old man's bones or 32 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN persuade him to die, or pawn his soul, so that the $10,000 could be realized upon. And so it proved. The thing never was given a rest until the old man was worked. He offered to trade lots for 3,000 acres in East Tennessee, if the colony needed a home ; but our mendicants informed him that it was cash that was wanted just now. Every !)egging scheme has failed so far, as it ought to. No attempt has been made towards any legiti- mate financial plans and arrangements. Indeed, the chances have now been spoiled, so that Rus- kin must strike bottom pretty soon. The next morning after the attack was made on the begging letters in the Board of Directors, a rough specimen of an Irishman, full of noise and ignorant prejudice, and who also had the merit of being one of the legacies of incompe- tency that came to us from Wayland's valiant band of colony wreckers, got out a gag law peti- tion to stop, not any one — Oh ! no — one man, mentioned by name on the petition, from annoy- ing or disturbing the serenity of the old charter heaven. 'The petition was boomed and signed by 46 persons who, for the most part, never saw or heard the communication. For the glory of the noble signers of the only gag law petition that has appeared in the world since the 12th cen- tury, we append it. These gaggers were com- posed of the heroes and heroines of the great model co-operative institution of Ruskin, where every virtue of justice, equality and fraternity was to center into one burning sun of Socialism and spread forth its brilliant rays to illuminate FINANCIAL METHODS 33 the whole benighted world. 'Here is the ininiortal document : J Ruskin, Tenn., May nth, 1899. To the Boafd of Directors of the R. C. A.- Gentlemen — We the undersigned request that all communications from Mr. Broome be acted upon by a committee before being read, or taken up as business by the Board of Directors, or any other public meeting. We ask this in order to prevent friction. Signed by twelve politicians, Twenty hangers-on to the politicians, Three dupes, And eleven women. Forty-six names in all. Twelve names were withdrawn on the next day. Note. — Ev addressing the author the names of these immortals can be had. Some of these persons signed thoughtlessly and were ashamed of their action afterwards. The balance constitute the most ignorant dupes of the old Wayland element, who are all on the petition except the President, who, of course, could not sign the petition because of his of^cial position. Three directors signed and had to vote against it when presented to tHe Board. Sober second thought show^ed directors and sign- ers that special legislation like this would be likely to strike any of them as occasion oiifered, and when the petition was refused every one of the signers had a hang-dog look over it for sev- eral days. With the exception of four persons and one green-horn who was trapped into it, these 34 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN characters have been the supporters of every in- jurious movement against Ruskin. One of them was on the injunction Ust, but left his friends w^hen he saw their game was a losing one. Nevertheless the document should be immor- talized as having originated in Ruskin, the model of the co-operative commonwealth that is to be. I /In Ruskin where there is to be no gag law, or oppression as in the outer world of wickedness, where everything is unfair and even virtue is cornered. In Ruskin, the great R-R-R-R-uskin, where the justice of the Gods was to flourish in all its purity. In R^^R-R-R-R-uskin, where an ignorant Irishman, led on with blatant roars of denunciation the gag law petition ; not for all, but for one man whose Cato-like censure of their crimes w^as too caustic because too true. One crime necessitates another. The defect of education of the child through being raised by ignorant, untrained parents, leads to looking to others for help, to begging, and as in the case of ^, the R. C. A., to the ruin of the colony by the spirit of dependence on begging. The destruction of the self-reliant spirit ended finally in a tigerish passion to exploit some one, any one, even the old man's bones and soul, who made his will in our favor. The bankrupt sales and begging let- ters that have startled the world through our own newspaper, the opposition to these crimes and public scandals, and the disgraceful gag law pe- tition, all result from the first crime at the be- ginning in the education of the child. FINANCIAL MICTIIOnS 35 'Tis education trains the youthful mind, Just as the twig" is bent, the tree's inchned. Contrast the gag law petition with the follow- ing sentiment expressed at the first meeting of the newly elected 15oard of Directors for 1899. Feb. 1st, 1899. Resolution by V. O. Clarke : Extract. "We therefore request all members of this association to remember that 'eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.' That it does honest men no harm to watch them and rascals need it." "That we believe the right of petition to be as sacred as the right of speech (in fact, a part of what the term 'free speech' implies). Wc there- fore request all members of this association to make their wishes known by initiating such measiu'es as they want adopted by this board, or referred to the stockholders.'' This same man and his wife signed the gag- law petition on May 11, 1899, in three months afterwards. Two directors who voted for this resolution also signed the gag-law petition. All ye who believe in govermuent by the sweet will of the proletariat, bourgeoisie or nobles, take a good long look at the heading of this gag-law petition gotten up in the model light of the world, Ruskin, and signed by 46 out of about 90 resident members. Of course there was much excited discussion, and the light thus thrown on the subject scared 36 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN some names off for fear that they might get the gag-law referendum apphed to themselves once the principle was established. Incredible ! Incredible ! I would not have be- lieved it possible had I been told, but I was an auditor of the books, codified the laws from the minutes, wrote the history of the R. C. A., kept a record of doings and events and have the docu- ments to prove what I say and a good deal more. CHAPTER II. MANAGEMENT. The only Forum wc had in Ruskin was the Ly- ceum. Ali other meetings were forbidden by vote of the stockholders, except once a year to elect of- ficers. ( )ur business was put up and arranged by those in the ring, or by the Board of Directors ; referred to us on a printed piece of paper on which we were to write yes, or no. That ended the matter, unless the same individuals got up an- <»ther phase of the question to suit them better, when we voted yes, or no, in the same manner. This was freedom. It was the great referendum. I suppose it was all right in its way, but there was something lacking which was attempted to be shown in our Forum, the Lyceum. The advan- tage of association as seen in a working lodge of Freemasons was discussed in the Lyceum, and also formally laid before the Board of Directors, as follows : To the Board of Directors of the R. C. A. : Gentlemen : We have arrived at a point in the history of the Ruskin movement where some se- rious considerations are imperative. Among these is our method of government. It must be evident to every observing and thoughtful mind that we have come to the parting of the ways between the old and the new state. Our movement towards the model democracy 38 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN is proceeding with painful slowness, often dis- couraging. While this has been foreseen by some and the dangers displayed, yet the lessons had to be learned before the model Ruskin could ad- vance towards the more perfect organic state. Re- cent events have made a review of our condition necessary, and also of the best thought and prac- tice existing, or indicated for our practical illus- tration of a perfected democracy. I submit a few remarks upon this subject and ovir relation thereto, and will in this connection consider the defect of the representative legislative system and its effects as concerning ourselves. The defect of the representative legislative sys- tem is, that it obstructs the free exercise of pub- lic business. It possesses the possibility of legis- lating against the interests of the people. It pos- sesses a means by which the selfish and cunning can gain personal advantage. And this is accent- ed by obstructions and tyrannical rules and regu- lations that have grown out of the system. These vices in the representative legislative sys- tem have been controlled and checked to a large degree by the bill of rights of the citizen. Not- withstanding these checks the representative leg- islature is obstructive in that its operations for the organic whole, is only the result of a few in- dividual minds, and not the result of the whole organic state. It is not only obstructive in its lim- ited capacity of a few minds, but so arranged that one mind, however criminal, can obstruct the interests of the organic whole, or control the will of the legislative body to serve the purpose of his MAXAC.KMEXT 39 own interests, prejudice, or ambition. He can defeat the operation of the bill of rights, and force legislation inimical to the interests of the organic state, or organic unit, and turn the interests of the state to his own advantage. In the representative body as a whole, action on subjects that might affect its popularity, or di- vide public sentiment, cannot be had. Of neces- sity the body must trim, be politic, careful not to give oft'ense, be neutral and consequently ineffec- tive to serve the organic whole. They become simply automatons and obstructions in the way of progress of the organic body. This is the uni- versal result of the representative legislature, and the cause of public strife is the barrier to progress in the form of the representative legislative body. For protection and security in its official position, spies, detectives, an army and navy, prisons, po- litical cunning and destruction by scandal be- come necessary against troublesome patriots, as in the cases of Sir Charles Dilke and Charles ParncU. A legislative bureau in Ruskin could not by any possibility be equal to a legislative bureau elsewhere. To achieve position in the represen- tative class, training and recognized ability is re- quired. In Ruskin these qualities are of neces- sity absent. Consequently the model of the co- operative commonwealth is inferior to the com- mon system it is supposed to correct, however antiquated, feudal, or obstructive that system may be. It may be argued that the representative indi- 40 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN viduals chosen by the organic body, are at least equal to the parts of that body. This may be strictly true when compared to an equal number of parts, but when compared to the whole or- ganic body the argument entirely fails. The defect of the representative legislative system does not lie in these comparisons, but in the fact that the organic body had delegated its powers and functions to a certain limited number of its parts. Its operations are entirely controlled by the judgment, fear or interests of those parts. There is little or no expression of the wisdom, or will of the organic body, hence the system by action, or inaction, becomes obstructive. This added to the rules of order and regulations which control the legislative system, gives even one man the povv^er to obstruct, or defeat the will of the legislature, or of the whole people. Under the open government of the organic body, without the intervention of the representa- tive legislature to obstruct its action, we have the opportunity for the full and free expression of the wisest individual units to guide the mentality of the organic body. We have the same oppor- tunity for the ambitious, wily and cunning poli- tician to advocate his schemes. This is right, equal justice. But the disadvantage is on the side of the criminal, because the wise and just cannot be obstructed from exposing criminal schemes, or dangerous measures as is done under the representative system. The organic body is not obstructed in its own active, legislative func- tion. It is solely responsible to itself for defects MANAGEMENT 4I and has always the iiiimedicile means of correct- ing them. L'ndcr the common legislative system, as it now exists in the United States, the defects of legislation have their checks in fundamental law controlling it in favor of the citizen, or unit of the organic state. These consist in the right of ])etition, the bill of rights, etc. An individual unit can only be prevented from being heard by arresting him for getting on the grass. There is no other way. His petition camiot be obstruct- ed, or tabled ; it must be acted on. The right of the citizen is sacred and has precedence over every other consideration. A further check has been partially instituted by the initiative and referendum. This is not of it- self a basic principle of government, but merely an additional check on the existing vices of the representative legislative system. It is certainly capable of framing and instituting law or meas- ures under a cumbersome and difficult method. The organic state is however under its burdens disintegrated to a large extent as it is vmder the re])resentative system without this check. The organic state under the added initiative and ref- erendum does not act as a unit for itself as it would without the representative legislature. This is powerfully illustrated in the unions and federations of workmen in the United States and Europe, where measures develop naturally, are decided by the common consensus and estab- lished, to be improved u])on, or changed as the 4^ LAST bAYS OF RUSKt>r organic state requires, without the obstruction of the legislative body. This very brief review of a subject which con- stitutes the most important thought of to-day for the correction of governmental defects, brings the subject forward to Ruskin for its advanced es- tablishment and the banishment of evils from which we as well as the whole world are suffer- ing. On ^.lay 8th, 1897, '^vhen the new By-Laws were adopted, I warned the association of the danger of discontinuing the stockholders' meet- ings and the management of their own affairs. The purpose was then to contract the legislature to seven persons. The danger of the organic body becoming disintegrated and subject indi- vidually to the wily influence of the politician and the demagogue, was then exposed and since has been fully realized. The organic units are, after eighteen months, entirely disintegrated, without unity of thought, or action, suspicious of each other and settling into a morbid state like the competitive world, from which thcv cannot be aroused, except by readopting their former pow- ers, with the more advanced improvement of re- moving the obstructive legislature as represented in the Board of Directors. The inertia of the legislative system in Ruskin has brought upon us congestion in nearly every avenue of business. In the very nature of things it cannot act. Building is choked. Improve- ments arc stopped, or retarded. Enterprises dead. Education utterly ignored. Our money wasted MANAGKMF.XT 43 ill the purchase of almost worthless goods. Our food frequently permitted to spoil. The produc- tive power of the printery ruined by looting its machinery to please or beneiit traitors. Elected members poorly treated with bad accommoda- tions. Treasury funds constantly depleted with- out progressive results. The various depart- ments suffering and general dissatisfaction. These defects could not exist under the general freedom and free speech of the organic body. The way would always be open for improvement without the obstructive legislature. Ruskin should set the example for all governments by instantlv abolishing this defect in the body po- litic. This can easily be done under our charter by expanding the board of directors to embrace ail the stockholders. \^ery respectfully, Isaac Broome. This lav out on government was too much for the Board of Directors of 1898. They were evidently bored at the reading of the communi- cation and, as usual, tried to get rid of it by laying it on the table. Poor creatures, they had their share in the crimes of omission against Ruskin. Two of these directors lapsed over into the new Board of 1899 and aided prominently in bringing on the crash which wiped out the R. C. A. on June 22d, 1899. The men who had been transferred from the free organic body by election into the legislative as directors, were changed into moral cowards, do-nothings, violators of fundamental law, and 44 LAST DAVS OF RUSKIN practically enemies of the organic state. They even, on one occasion, refused the right of peti- tion and on another objected to a member ad- dressing the Board of Directors. The moment they began to do business as legislators all no- bility and manhood seem to leave them. They l)ecame paralyzed and utterly helpless when matters of business were before them. They did not know, were afraid to act. The first thought that arose was, If I vote for this measure who will I run up against and incur enmity from? Or, how will it aiTect the interests of myself and friends? The natural outcome was to hedge, lay the matter over, or get rid of it somehow. Do nothing. Let all enterprise, all progress perish Ijecause of a legislative system that can do noth- ing but manufacture moral cowards and rogues. The last word was rogues. Yes, rogues. 1 hat is exactly what is manufactured in spite of any other social conditions that may be established. ■J The idea that rogues could not exist under a state of economic equality is entirely erroneous. The spirit of villainy is not obliterated by a change to economic equality. There is no place on earth where the meanness of the human spirit exists in a more intense degree than right here in Ruskin. Where, of all places in the world, it is imnecessary. This is what Humphrey Noyes, in his account of the Oneida Community, calls "total depravity." There- is a great deal to say on this point, more than any one could say without writing hun- dreds upon hundreds of volumes. That of course MANAGEMEXT 45 cannot be done. Could not be read if they were written. It is better to keep on tellinj;^ what has happened in a desnUory way and leave the rest to the reader's intuition. When a man is placed in the position where he has to legislate for his fellows, he finds at once that he has to deal with people who are mentally in a poor state, ignorant and prejudiced. He can- not make a move in any direction without clash- ing against some one's interests or dislikes. Af- ter a few collisions, he becomes careful, begins to run slow, and keeps a constant watch ahead. He finds that nothing practical can be done in the way of progress, and makes bargains with his fellow legislators to give things the go-by for the sake of ease, and to work the people for all they can get out of them. Nothing can be done for the common benefit at any rate, and they might as well feather their nests wdiilc they have a chance. In Ruskin there is no chance to make money out of the ofBce. The victim who is elected sim- ply finds that he cannot do anything without raising a fuss somewhere, drops into a moral cow- ard, becomes cunning, or mulish, and adopts the do-nothing policy. This is death to business, be- cause there is no other system of doing business except through the legislature (directory), and if nothing progressive is done here, decay and ret- rogradation sets in. Waste, prodigality, care- lessness, indifference follow and hence the result we have in Ruskin. It was held that the mob could not do busi- 'V 46 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN ness. Their operations were too cumbersome. It took too long to get down to business. Every man came loaded, cocked and primed with his own ideas, based on nothing but his ignorance and prejudice, and was ready for an endless argu- ment, or a fight. Business simply could not be done by the mob. Hence it was better for the mob to delegate their power to a few men and put the referendum on them to pull them up if they did anything unsatisfactory to the mob. This was done. Blue ruin was the result. Was it the mob, the delegated few, or the system ? Which ? Think over this, don't toss it aside, or shuffle ofif because it is a tough question ; face it right up, no matter how hard it hurts your brain, and an- swer it. The dodger is a mental coward. If you cannot answer it you have the merit of trying, and, as Burns once said, "If you do the best you can, maybe you can do a little more." It must be admitted that the stockholders' meetings were not as dignified as the United States Senate. At a long table in full view at the left front was always seated a bevy of coarse women, whose jaws were worked incessantly with chewing gum. But, on the whole, the rules of propriety were fairly well observed ; better than could be expected. Discussions were sincere and honest ; under the open meeting the politician had the minimum chance to carry forward schemes. The people were attentive and became informed on affairs. Much that was crude and amusing occurred, of course. The open meeting was a imifying school far superior to the disin- MANAGEMENT -I7 lc\qrating- star chamber and in(|iiisition of the lc.c^islativc l)oar(l and useless referen(hun. Strange lliat the Anarchists who pretended to beheve in individual liberty were the very men who worked the political trick to get the stockholders' meet- ings abolished and who unsuccessfully tried to contract the directory to seven persons. Let us be serious for a moment or two. Let us think back over the idea attempted to be thrown out to the people of Ruskin. It would be un- reasonable to consider the whole of society on a par with the thirteen wooden clothes-pins, as the directors were called by the wags. Let us see exactly if there may not be a germ of reason in this idea of government that might grow to be a great tree and cover the whole of society. The endless discussions and opinions on the question of Social Democracy, and all the inter- mediate steps between it and Caesarism, are, we think, fully met in the time-honored and demon- strated Masonic organization and the lodge. Here the foolish have the advantage and benefit of the presence and wisdom of the wise. The lodge is not unwieldy in its parts. Its will is expressed through its delegates to the grand lodge. The whole system is governed by law. Its executive head has the powers of the Czar. So that in this system all others are embraced and the good in all systems exists in perfection. First, the law. Second, the democracy. Third, the representa- tive Congressional system, through delegates. And, lastly, the executive Czar. In spite of all confusion of ideas, the world is 48 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN marching straight to this form of organization through labor unions, with the various industrial lodges of trades, where the will of the democracy is developed and expressed. Nothing can impede its progress towards a world-wide federation, that cannot by any possibility be otherwise than as harmonious in its economic and social interests and as well cemented as the Masonic order. In the stormy discussion which followed one of the directors took an able stand. He claimed that a pure democracy was the only true government, as advocated by Jefferson. He referred to the New England town meetings as a practical illus- tration of the preservation of liberty by the peo- ple managing their own affairs. And that system had developed the most marked characters and was the school for the ablest statesmen. The op- ponents sulkily growled "that if the stockholders' meetings had not been abolished Ruskin would have been closed out a year ago. That the people could not do business, but would only quarrel and abuse one another." To this the director re- plied: 'Tf that is so, we had better know it at once. If the people cannot do business then our movement is a failure. If the people have intelli- gence to elect thirteen directors to transact their business for them, why have they not intelligence to transact their own business without an inter- mediary?" To all of which the only answer was, "Because they can't." I am asked the question whether if ignorance is the barrici to harmonious life and economic suc- cess (ignorance being a relative term), it does not MANAGEMENT 49 become necessary to inquire, how ignorant? What is the standard of intelligence re(|uired to enalde people to co-operate ? 'i'his is one of the leading question in connec- tion with the subject of getting groups of people together in colonies, or anywhere else, either to co-operate industrially or socially. If you ask whether an answer can be given to the question or not, the reply would be an emphatic yes. But if the answer was involved in one brief, concen- trated statement like one of the proverbs, it would have no effect. It would attract no more atten- titjn than the choicest jewel in the entire work- manship of the great l)uilder, Sol-om-on. Christ had to do a good deal of talking and tell a good many first-class stories, to shape the ideas of the people to this point and that point, until they could receive a good healthy statement of the concentrated essence of the whole subject. "to love one another." But if he had appeared on the earth and said this one sentence and then died or left, it would have fallen on dead ears and dead souls. The life and works were necessary to produce the desired efifect, to establish the doctrine, and so it is with the co-operative principle. We had to go through the life and work so as to be able to make others realize the experience. We can- not give it to the world in the divine shape that the great life is portrayed in the four gospels, and with all the splendors of the literature of the Golden Rule, but we can tell the story of the co- operative experiment at Ruskin to the best of our 50 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN ability, and each mind will formulate the sum- mary of the effort, and fix for itself the standard of ignorance to avoid, and the standard of intel- ligence essential. There is no difificulty in esti- mating correctly after you read this exhibit of the virtues and vices of the Ruskin effort. There are so many avenue of illustration in the life of Ruskin Colony that one cannot go amiss. You can begin anywhere. It all shows up the same ignorance with its horrid brood of evils. And wherever you strike it it comes from the same source directly, or indirectly, the old char- ter element, and those whose minds they have been able to poison. You will always find the evils from which Ruskin suffers come (as one of our members says) from "some of the same links' of the same old string of sausages." In this account you will frequently hear of our wonderful "buyer." He was the author of all the bookkeeping, buying and mercantile transac- tions in the colony. Coming in during Way- land's time he fastened himself in that depart- ment. "Our buyer's" idea of bookkeeping and business was "toss everything into the pile and draw on it whenever you want anything." We always wanted something. And no mat- ter how big the pile was we were like the dog who was chasing the bear, the dog was just a leetle ahead. We kept just a leetle ahead of the pile. That was the reason why our financier was al- ways running around the colony borrowing money from this one and that one to meet some jviaxagrment 51 cnicr£^ency. No matter how big the pile was, and it was something enormous, yet we ahvays had an emergency. Emergencies came around as regular as our meals, and the prominence of our great financier was steadily maintained. Indeed, it was a matter of pride to the colony that we had so great a man, who could run around the colony and gather up five hundred or a thousand dollars to meet the chronic emergency caused by bad managers, who were kept in office by the Ruskin majority. We will illustrate and make clear all these statements directly. There are no apologies to make to the public for the style of the literature. It is (as an able member who has been a jour- nalist says) "either to tell the truth right out in a way that people can understand, or sugar-coat it with apologies and lies." We are trying to keep as far as possible from the father of liars, and I guess the truth will have to be taken — raw. People who come to Ruskin have ideal expec- tations. Reading the "Coming Nation" and Uto- l)ian dreams, lead them to expect that every one attracted to such a place would be ideal charac- ters, with ideal culture and ideal manners. It would be natural to expect of the citizens of such a community a depth and research of thought and conversation that would rendei the social life paradisaical. Imagine the shock to this idyllic when expec- tation is wrecked by finding within this magic circle characters so deficient in manners as to be repulsive. Characters so deficient in moral prin- 52 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN ciple as to be outlaws. Characters so besotted in ignorance as to be beyond hope. The wonder becomes, what brought us here? Before we came, all were beautiful idealisms, and around every soul gathered under the holy ban- ner of Ruskin, there was in our minds a saintly halo. Imagination cannot picture the shock to such spiritual ideals, to find the colony a prison. Ruled by the despotism of ignorance. A place where the reign of terror exists for want of manage- ment. A place where the hell of dissatisfaction exists in every nook and corner. A place where the executive is the Czar ruling without law. If you don't keep quiet, dance to our music and vote to our wishes, you will be discriminated against in work and favors ; put to the most dis- agreeable labor and kept there, with the object of disciplining you into silence. It is Siberia over again. Just the same, no dif- ference. Never can be different until the human heart is changed by education and grace of the spirit. Ignorance and the graceless animal is the same here as where McKinley or the Czar reigns. Only here it is on a contemptibly smaller and niore disgusting plane. It even lacks the intel- lectual qualities that would give the brutality some dignity. If this thought and feeling were mine alone I would doubt its correctness. But I find it uni- versal among the people. They feel something repulsive, some unsatisfactory condition, and act and talk as though — like Chi'lde Harold : I\l ANA CI': J I EXT 53 "E'en for the sake of chani;c, would seek the shades l)elo\v." 'J'he beautiful surroundings, good healthy loca- tion, generous soil and climate, opportunity for haj^piness and improvement, together with the valuable properties, all fail — all go for nothing in the general distaste. We have a character here who is an imperson- ating reader. Humor is visible in every linea- ment of his face. He is the image of the laugh- ing portrait of Rabelais. He does some imi)cr- sonations equal to the best. Has been trained professionally, dug coal and farmed for the money to pay for it. A man every inch of him, and a good colonist. One of the kind through which our ideal Ruskin could have been realized. He tells me that he has never been in such a despotic hell anywhere. He soon foimd after joining that he dare not open his mouth, (hu-ed not be seen by the dominating gang spcakmg to certain persons whom they feared, and whom he foimd were persons of the highest integrity and courage, hated by the gang and their tools, be- cause they were opposed to the ruinous policies and business management of the incompetent of- ficials, who had managed to get to the front and control this institution. The same thing has been told to me by many others. In many ways discrimination can be made. If you vcanted anything done of a personal nature and did not stand in with the gang, you would not get it. Shilly shallying excuses would be 54 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN made to put you off. For these slick and cunning kind of people never act openly and straightfor- ward in anything. If there was any straining or over-taxing job, the officials could hold you to it until you were dead — or better, disgusted or driven away, leaving your $500 fee behind you. The people working in the gardens inform me that they are treated insultingly and lorded over to an unbearable degree. From this incompetent department we are getting no vegetables. A few gushed upon us at the first of the season and then ceased. There are none in sight for a long time and we are consuming with internal fires. The manager doesn't care. His friends in office don't care. The ignorant tools who follow tJiem don't care. And the crushed Siberian exiles of Ruskin dare not criticise. We must burn up be- cause of the indifference of an incompetency which we are powerless to correct. This prison system. This hell of espionage. Hell of tattle. Hell of isolation. Hell of igno- rance. Hell without a system. Hell ruled by a majority. Hell of hatred to intelligence. Hell for swindling people in with $500. Hell for slash- ing money right and left without results, was brought about and maintained by the old charter element. They managed to persuade the people to destroy their common meeting ground. Ac- tually got the great model intellects of the model movement of the world to pass a law that they should not themselves meet. Should not come together in communion. Should not transact any business. In this way the old element escaped MANAGKMIlNT 51^ the crilicisni of ihcir acts by the patriots of the coloncy, by cutting ofT all chances of their mcet- inj:^ tog-ether. They did all in their power to pre- vent the Lyceum on Sunday evenings, and tried to establish a rule that no subjects of a practical nature should be discussed in the Lyceum. The Lycetun, the only forum Ruskin had left, was fortunately protected until the injunction forbade it. Since then there is no protraction left between the people and the demagogue. You can see at any time the old gang around the corners of the printery, huddled with the rifT-rafif who have votes and who constitute the majority. These inject the poison of hate and prejudice into their weak brains and there is no way of contradicting or counteracting it through the public meeting. Even what might be accomplished privately is extremely small, because their mouths are never closed long enough to listen to an}' sense. CHAPTER III. OUR PATRIARCHS. Patriarchs were not scarce around Ruskin. Good taste requires that we must say nothing" about them. Good taste shuts off the public from ever reaHzing the subhmities of these immortals. It might be instructive to study them, but the conventionalities of society forbids. Even where they are on record we must not mention it. The Ruskin smash up must be told from incidents. People did it, but we must say nothing about the people. It would not be polite. Like Shakespeare's Bottom, the weaver, "we must roar as gently as a sucking dove," so as not to scare the ladies. I would not for the world, no indeed, not even for the hope of mankind. If the millennium could be brought on in five minutes by the lesson of Rus- kin I would not wound the sentimental "Haut ton" by a personality. Oh ! no, never fear, I shall keep away off in the clouds and merely mention a few generalities softened down so as not to scare the male ladies. The tides ebb and flow on the sea of Ruskin. A remarkable charac- ter has gone out with the tide. He came in on Wayland at the very beginning of Ruskin Col- ony. His stock in trade was a couple of small printing presses, type and paraphernalia, such as would belong to a scrub shop in New York, where he was competing with heavily capitalized and 0L;K I'AIKIAKCIIS S7 wcll-aiuippccl concerns. These traps were to a degree usel'ul in Ruskin and were inventoried to swell the capital stock of that concern at $2,000. This placed him as the wealthiest contributor next to the founder of the colony, and conse- quently contributed to his standing in the com- munity as a substantial man and benefactor of the great Ruskin movement. It was a good prestige to travel on, atid the active brain of our hero did not fail to utilize it. He became secretary, treasurer, director, never was out of office as a Father of the colony ; finally rising to the vice presidency, would have been president but for a mistake in his calculations. There was no legislation, or business plans dur- ing all this time which he did not control; no thought or idea proposed by any one but wdiat he was acquainted with. Like Jay Gould his voice was exceedingly gen- tle. His whole manner unassuming. He always said that he was only for R — R — R — uskin, and did not want anything. Heaven favored him, however, and he got all that was going. Ai)pear- ing always not to care for himself, or his opinion, he would lay his head on one side and gently say, "A great many people advocate this, or that." In some way or other the founder of the col- ony, Mr. Wayiand, was done up. All the results of his enterprise, newspaper included, were taken from him, and he was paid off with a couple of thousand dollars. Our hero and his wife claim to have been the bottom factors in ousting him. We will take their word for it. Others sav so, 58 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN too, and that helps our conviction that it was true. Wayland's great newspaper and the whole Riiskin movement fell into the hands of the col- onists, our interesting- hero included. When I sighted the horizon of Ruskin, this distinguished figure head in the affairs of the col- ony was living in the printery building at Ten- nessee City. He was transactor of all business, director and steerer of everything, corresponding secretary, treasurer, and care-taker of the prop- erty. He knew every five-dollar bill in the col- ony and who had it. Had borrowed it so many times. A kitchen was arranged in the building and his able wife cooked for the printery force, who lived at old Ruskin and were obliged to cat dinner at the printery in Tennessee City. I did not then realize much of his character be- cause every energy was bent in the direction of changing from Old Ruskin to Cave Mills, which had just been purchased. Being ordered to make the plans for the new printery, and occupied with the activities of the great change before us from the Ridge to the Valley, there was no time to study characteristic peculiarities. Time is the revealer of all things, right or v/rong. No one need be uneasy about things set- tling themselves right if you give them time. Every action has its Karma. He had had it all his own way for over five years, but it came at last, like a thief in the night, and as usual in a way least expected. His height of ambition had been reached. He was King. Had the under grip on everything. Posed as the benefactor of OUR I'ArkiAUciis 59 the colony and was in the front rank as vice presi- dent, steerer and director of the president. And also of the second vice president, who was nick- named the "echo." A speculator had heaved upon the scene who wanted to buy Old Ruskin. A meeting of the Directors was called to receive his offer. Jupiter ! No pen could describe the mob that crowded into the office. The man was like "the stag at bay." lie acquitted himself pretty well, however, under the embarrassing pressure and retired gracefully, Init much Hushed. The whole of the stockholders had to be called together to decide on selling Old Ruskin, and it was so decided. Only eight of us voting against it, because we knew the $5,000 he ottered would be quickl}- spent and do us no good. Well, that passed off all right. It w-as getting close to the annual election and things were a lit- tle uncertain. Although the old element threw out their chests and were living on impressions, still underneath there was considerable weakness. Some time before that a popular preacher had honored us with his nervous presence. It was a great event. Quite marked. He took to the young people right away, sat around with them nights, sang songs and got right into the swim with them. A progressive league had been or- ganized by the young people which he fell in with and boomed. The preacher was everything. The fniancier had his eye on him. He knew that if edticated people ever got into Ruskin, his name would be Dennis, and so would all the old stock 6o LAST DAYS OF KUSKIN who were posing before the world through the medium of the "Coming Nation" as the fuh- bloodcd prize benefactors of the race, red card, bhie ribbon and all. It was quite important to head off anything of that sort. The college movement had been tricked for over three years. The money spent and be- yond recovery, but it might revive again. Then there were four educators who had swelled Rus- kin's population in 1898, and if the "Bishop," as the boys called him, was to join it, things would become dangerous. The strictly industrial system of Ruskin based on main strength and ignorance, might take a turn to an educational industrial system, with skilled people, professors, schools, etc., and then the old shams would have to occupy the social sphere where they belonged. This would never do. The Bishop was just the right type to work. He quickly became his meat, and in three weeks after his arrival wrote a magazine article, in which he said that the only impractical dream we had in Ruskin was the idea of the "College of the New Economy." Pretty clever for the young tyro, after we had been before the public for over three years with the college as one of the lead- ing movements of Ruskin, to which the innocent, good-hearted public had contributed nearly $900. The Bishop had his brief little career and this was part of it. The first move on the chess board was brought about by the People's University folks of Chicago visiting us ; they made a propo- sition to unite our forces, Thev would come into 2 "■J. 'Mi Mr ^4 ;■'• OUU I'A'lRlARClIS 61 Ruskin with $12,000 and pay oil all our laud in- debtedness, build the collcg-e and put us on our I'eet. We to consider the adoption of the univer- sity system by the following September, and if not agreeable to separate. The financier and the llishop, with about a dozen other persons, took a stand against this project, and balked it thor- oughly. The proposition went to a referendum vote and was badly beaten. This gave great con- fidence to the opponents of education. The Bish- o]) was for the present secure in his seat as the meteoric editor of the "Coming Nation," his stepping stone to greatness, and his star was ])assing on its brilliant career towards the zenith. It would culminate some day soon and it did, it struck the zenith suddenly with a thud tliat jarred things loose around Ruskin. A second attempt of the friends of education in Ruskin to get the People's University located near us in an abandoned college and village, l;rought its advocates back to visit the place. Their reai:)pea ranee was worse than a red flag to ■ a bull. The financier ran around the colony re- ])eating, "The skunks are back again." The skunks are back again." The Rishop was pale with rage. He posted "No admittance" on his door. We will draw a charitable veil over his manners for the sake of Ruskin. Well, to our astonishment and to the credit of our president he favored this educational inno- vation from first to last. When these })eople re- turned he tried to get a petition signed inviting them as neighbors. Our ])uyer and our "shop- 62 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN herd," as a former sheep raiser was called, were consulted by him as a hoped-for offset to the financier and the Bishop. But it would not go. They did not want an educational colony along- side of us, or near us anywhere. No reasons given, they simply did not want that kind of at- mosphere around. Whether they felt a latent sense of shame be- cause the breeding pens for pigs were built on the campus of our proposed college, or because the foundation was somewhat weatherworn, or because the lumber had warped and split and rotted, I do not know. They did not want the People's University ; that was all the reason we could get out of them. Our shepherd let one lit- tle thing slip towards the last that might give a clue. That was "that our people would go over to Edgewood and visit the university people. Thev would see them all fixed up. their houses painted and things nice around there, and come home dissatisfied with their surroundings at Rus- kin." Brilliant reason. Better not to know that you are a hog and be happy. Particularly so when you are posing as the light of the world. The model to the nations for the co-operative com- monwealth. 'The village where labor is king." Tra-la-la. It is all right. The socialistic world will get more benefit out of this lesson, with these characters than if things went on in a passably respectable fashion, so that you could not say anvthing. You w'on't be surprised when you get to know our shepherd. Fll introduce him again. f)t'R I'ATRTARCirS 63 Well, this incident was the hrst great hit for our financier to knock the educational movement flat. Now that the Uishop was captured success was assured. He turned his back square on his old friends. It was Ig'norance vs. Education. Its doom was sealed forever. All was not serene, however. The annual elec- tion was near at hand and things were not abso- lutely certain. There was no evidence of a can- vass on the part of the great number of dissatis- fied new^ people who had come in during the last year, and it was hard to tell whether they could jjc counted on. The old element conceived the idea of calling an informal meeting of the stockholders a day or so before the election. The idea was to discuss informally who would make the best ofticers. It was a great trick. The first man on the floor was our redoubtable buyer. He came at the su]> ject from away off. The proposition was "that the time had arrived when Ruskin should take up some broad subjects, on broad lines, such as matters and plans of government, forms of organ- ization," etc. He was no sooner down than Prof. Eroome was up. He complimented the young man on his intellectual grasp. That it i)romised well for Rus- kin when such ideas were advanced. But first of all it was necessary to have a Ruskin. We had no Ruskin to broaden out on. Ruskin owned not a foot of land on this earth. The thousand acres at old Ruskin were mortgaged. The Rog- ers' tract had yet $4,000 due. The Adams' tract 64 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN $1,900 and we were at the eve of a $3,000 mort- gage on the Smith tract falHng due and not a dollar of provision made for it. The professor went on to show how it looked as though every possible means had been used to prevent the payments on land. Nearly $50,000 had been spent in the last year and a little over $2,000 paid on land. This was criminal. It im- perilled the safety of nearly 300 souls in Ruskin, who had staked their all. Propositions to post- pone these payments made the peril greater. It piled up liabilities for the future that were ex- tremely dangerous to the interests of the peo- ple, and might wreck them totally. * About all our food products were on Smith's farm (our financier's brother-in-law held the mortgage). If we lost this farm by failure to pay, our people would be cut ofif from food. In six weeks they would scatter and their interests bought out for ten cents on the dollar. Who is interested in bringing about such a catastrophe? Who would be benefited ? Does it not look suspicious when we look over the field and see how every effort has been made (systematically to all appearances) to balk these payments ? A party comes to us and offers $5,000 for old Ruskin. Our financier instantly holds the man up to pay spot cash and gives him two weeks to decide. Was this unusual method intended to balk the sale? The man did not back out on tliis demand and when it was feared that the money Vv'ould be paid it was planned to pay it all out to withdrawing members, to get it out #>■ ofR I'xiRiARcns 6s it" the way, so llial llic iiKjilgaj^c could not \)v |)aiy the time the dish got around iliere was usually left the bones and the fat of meat for the rest. This was Libert)', Equality, I'raternit), for God Almighty me, and to the devil with the other Socialists. The same prac- tice was common all over the dining-room. Well, large-minded and large-hearted i)eople don't mind these little things. Like Christ they say to themselves, all right, let them have it. If they want to act the hog, let them act it. How beautiful this doctrine and practice seems when you keep it up for about eight to ten thousand times, but when it gets to be a perpetual thing and you have given up all hope of ever getting anytiiing to eat again during the lifetime of these grabbers, then there begins to creep into the sweet, angelic paradise of the heart a burning desire to get them out of the way, and if a dyna- mite bomb would help them to the happv hunting- ground, the last nickel you owned in the world would be gladly contributed to purchase the bomb. We called them Brother and Sister. The male member of this admirable pair had been elected a director, through a schism, by par- lies who wanted to root out the old, worthless charter stock. He was a good meat for the poli- 82 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN ticians, and they used him as a tool to stab the honest and intelhgent Sociahsts who elected him. At the end of his term he was leveled, receiving- only three votes, our financier and his wife and his own. His downfall, like all of his kind, caused him to sink into silence and adopt the part of cunning. At our table there are three families. One fam- ilv of hogs. Another family of good, modest people, very religious and soft. This family will take any injury and indignity, even be starved and not say anything. The last family, myself and wife, with a little motherless colony girl whom we are caring for, are the ones who fare the worst. We are old people with an orphan child, but that makes no difference to the hogs who grunt and snicker with pleasure when they see others injured. I have to touch upon these different characters as I go along. They illustrate the condition of affairs. The social state. And with them is in- volved that spirit of the history most important to know. It would be a sorry condition of things if there were none who were generous and good. At an- other table where the whole of the people are of a different stamp, they are at great pains to di- vide the food equally. In a pleasant way they share out the fat and the lean of the meat, and if one has the bone to-day the next one takes it to- morrow, and its turn goes aroimd regularl}-. And so it is with the other dishes. Careful considera- THE CUISINE !^3 tion for each other, even with the disadvantage of communal dishes, makes the meal a pleasure. This is, however, exceptional, with the aver- age Colonist 1 would not advise the adoption of communal dishes as a system. If each one bought and i)aid for their food on the restaurant plan, there could be no room for the wretched feeling <{ dissatisfaction that takes possession of every- body three times a day, and contributes perhaps more than any other cause to discontent under the communal dining-room system. All writers on colony life and experience claim the extravagant cost of the communal cuisine ; on sugar alone there is a saving of two-thirds by adopting the restaurant system. With us, at any time you can see a child, and grown person, too, for that matter, piling in six, seven, eight and nine spoonfuls of sugar in tea, or coffee, and pil- ing it up on any other dish where it can be used. At their own homes they could not afiford it. Singularly enough the angel parents regard the extravagant darlings as being all right, the asso- ciation pays for it. When we downed the Free Lovers in 1898 and put Socialists in office the practice was intro- duced of having music at dinner time. The cf- k'ct was excellent for a while, but soon wore off. The players wanted dinner before it was all grabbed up and performed reluctantly. Besides, the noise and racket at the tables increased, and destroyed the well-bred quiet thai should have reigned as a compliment to those who sacrificed on the altar of music. So in 'a brief period we 84 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN relapsed again to Caliban brutishness and the meal became a coal and water tank station. The Rnskin waiter on table arrives five min- utes before meals, goes to the slide in ranks for the food. Places it on the table anywhere, gen- erally on one end. Brings coffee if she does not forget it. Stands looking all over the dining- room ; cannot get her attention, or else sits down, helps herself and begins eating, blissfully uncon- scious that }ou are sitting with empt\- plate and everything out of reach. If you succeed in get- ting attention and have anytljing handed to you, it is passed over with head averted looking in some other direction, or set down right, or left, at the handiest place. After you make your meal as best you can, the waiter rushes to get the dishes washed, which is done up in quick order. Then the job is over. One hour to each meal and the day's work is done. Pay drawn each week the same as every other laborer. The waiter is independent, no servant. Resents it if you ask her for anxthing. Too ignorant to know the pride, or pleasure, of being obliging. She is a Socialist. As good as anybod\'. Better than any- body. Besides the awful waste of bad management, dense ignorance and indifference of these great lights of reform who are posing before the world as models of perfection, to bring the nations up to their sublime ideal, we have under the method of the ]\uskin cuisine an o])])orlunity for the dis- play of all the meanest traits of character promi- nent, or latent in the low bred and untrained. r. THE CUISINE 85 Uiuler no uther circuinsiaiiccs can llic vileness of the ignorant human heart he so spectacularly ex- hihited as at a tahle where food is chstributed ac- cording- to the Ruskin method. Hie revolting- exhibitions seen at Ruskin are only paralleled in the steerages of ocean steamships carrying- the degraded scum of Europe to our shores. These aggregations of wretches bottled in the steerages of steamships, exhibit more demonstration and ferocity than is seen in Ruskin, but not a whit less meanness, sly cunning, or hoggishness, to in- tercept others in the pick and quantity of food, which they through depraved, greedy appetites gormandize themselves with, until the excess rots in their overpowered stomachs. The practice of using individual dishes with each one's portion private, would be a great im- ]jrovement on the present system of the whole of the food being placed in a large disli, and grabbed at by the quickest and most audacious for the best and largest quantity. While the modest and refined are in every instance forced to wait for the scraps, bones, or be told that there is no more and must go without. In Ruskin some of us have a saying. "God bless the hogs, for they shall inherit the earth." .-\nd they certainly do, with- '•ui fail. The effect of Ruskin's common dining room was to destroy all the dignity and charm which attaches to the repast and makes it so prominent a feature in civilized life. There was no more -entiment of humanilv about the life of tliu dining 86 LAST DAYS OF RUSK IN rcjoni than there was about a coal and water tank. Under all tiiese inlluences the children lost [heir manners, became the prominent feature for rudeness and noise, to which the parents seem to be insensible, and acted as though it was a blessing to be in a place where children could maintain pandemonium without restriction. All were free to do as they pleased. As they pleased was crude and disagreeable. Some parents told me that in the general influence they had lost all control of formerly tractable children. I would not dare to tell you that a lady who was a highly cultivated and superior vocalist, with a gifted voice, raised in one of our largest cities and a very pleasant, agreeable woman, used to put butter on her bread and hold it in her hand higher than her head while she was eating it. Her husband did the same, but I would not tell it, because no one would believe such a thing could exist in cultured Ruskin. The hope of the ages. The place where all was in an ideal state. A dream of paradise. Xo, indeed. It would not be wise to mention such a fact. One would be subjected to the suspicion of exaggerating. It would have to be told to very intimate friends, who had absolute confidence in your statements. Really, one ought to give the public an idea of the dining room at old Ruskin, say. in the beginning of 1896, but it cannot be done. The live, real thing would have to be seen. How to describe the beer saloon noise, the hawking and spitting on the floor, sitting in the dining room TiiK cnsrxR 87 with hats on. women whispering behind their hands about one another, the Hies on tlie iHshes, doi;s at Hlxn'ty to walk around the tables, and an oecasional pig^ break in and tear around for a whde, is beyond all literary skill. I saw a younj^^ touf;h reach with his hand for the dish of fried eg-gs. give a yell, grab a fistful of eggs and scjueeze them through his fingers, out of an abandoned spirit of devilishness. Nothing was done about it. nothing could be done. There was no discipline. There was no outcome for the better, from thi^ low state of social life. This class of people know no better. They have no conception of any other .state. On their faces is the discontented, hope- less look. Dissati-sfied and feel mean, but do not Icnow what is the matter, and do not realize that life could be otherwise. You cannot work in any other idea on them even by strategy. They don't want it. They are used to this hog-way of living and it will do. Tt is good enough for them. Oh ! God, manners ! They never conceived of sucli a thing as manners. Elbows, props, shovelling it in, eating out of hands, handling pancakes with fingers and slinging them on the plates. Ti takes a good deal of Socialism to be obliged to sit at table day after day, three times a day, and be compelled to look at grown men pour cofifee out in the saucer, then with elbows propped on the table, hold it to their mouths, sucking it in gradually and breathing cliannels in the cofi'ee through their nostrils, besides all the other rough ways of eating. Rut then we must do and sufTer OS LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN anything for Ruskin, and after all the doing, all the suffering, these same insensible people will drag Ruskin and you too down into a low state which ends in animalism. The effect of loathsome manners upon refined people is something terrible. It is torture. They prefer death. On the ignorant themselves it is irritating, although they are insensible to the cause. I have observed that this class does not like to have attention called to defects of their own kind by a superiof bred person, and resent it from a feeling that they themselves are in- cluded in the criticism. One of their own kind can do it with impunity. This is evidence of class consciousness. It is painfully apparent that a heterogenous lot of people from the lowest Dago up to the well bred, cannot by any possibility exist in forced contact, in a place like a communal dining room, or under other communal interests, where things, f^an be and are made disagreeable. It is to educa- tion that we must look for hope. CHAPTER VI. I'.DL'CATKJN. ■"Wheii ii:,aioranoc reigns in society and dis- order in the minds of men, laws are mnltiplied ; each fresh law being a miscalculation, men are continually led to demand from it what can pro- ceed only from themselves, from their own edu- cation and morality." — Dallo\ . Three and a half years ago a I'me opportunity to open an industrial college and workshops on an extensive scale in Ohio was laid aside for what was believed to be a greater opportunity for spreading industrial and art knowledge under the co-operative system of Ruskin. Alas ! how sad a disappointment. To-day there is not a dollar's worth of anything contributed towards this foun- dation stone of society. The money sent in by the public to build the college has been squan- dered in the reckless management that has oblit- erated Ruskin and all our hopes for an educated industrial community. in the spring of 1896 the effort was made in the rough shack schoolhouse at old Ruskin to start educatiiin. A lot of untrained, self-willed cliildren of untrained, self-willed parents, were gath- ered in. That is to say. provided they wanted to come. If they did not, there was no way of en- forcing discipline, or of compulsory education. The children were the product of the animalism OO LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN .jI i iicir parents in the first place. The history of their parents' lives could be read in the constitu- tions and physiognomies of the children. They had since the colony began (then twenty months) been running the woods like rabbits, and so far as orderly, civilized life went, there was no per- ceptible difference between them and the droves of pigs that constituted the most distinguished feature in the streets of Ruskin. This medley offspring of parents, who showed ::i their lineaments, their actions and expression, physical and mental imperfections, were gathered into the smair uninviting shack of a schoolhouse to educate. A few odds and ends of school books constituted the material for class work. One teacher was to handle all students from a. b. c. to the high school grade. Of course there was no way of organizing under the district school sys- tem, to accomplish systematic work along that line, so the objective plan of instruction was in- troduced. The elements of things were taught largely by drawing and modeling. To attempt to describe the scenes among this medley of children during school session would subject the experienced teacher to the suspicion of incompetence. The disorganized character and spirit of the youth was beyond all belief. They had no respect for their work, the school, or the teacher. No re- spect for order or any of the civilized rules and conditions of life. They were a bedlam of wild maniacs, impossible of control. The parents did not believe in control. Thev were one and all THE GRIST MiLL AND SCHOOL CHILDREN.. ICniHATTON 91 pliilosophers of al)solnle freedom. Do as you please, and we had it. are iiaviiitj- it, and are l)e- iiij;- wiped out of existence l)y it. I am now sitting alone in the shack of a school- house at new Ruskin appropriated to the arts during vacation. Some of the desks are taken up and piled to make room for the easels and a weaving loom wdiich I am constructing in order to introduce the art of weaving into tiie col- ony. Last vacation I modeled the bust of John Ruskin to get up an interest in the fine arts. The pupils of the painting class, improvised to con- tinue the interest, have not arrived. Their own feelings and wishes are the sole regulations con- trolling study in Ruskin ; consequently the un- formed mind of youth squanders opportunity and rapidly drifts back to the indifferent, or savage state. My time is valuable, work waiting for me in all directions, but I must fretfully waste a por- tion of it on the untrained children of untrained parents, who compose this aggregation of people engaged in demonstrating the working qualities of a Socialistic colony. I naturally look from one easel to the other at the work of the pupils, landscape, animals, marine and flowers engage the attention in rapid succession. My mind is swiftly carried back to the societies of cultured aesthetics in the various cities of the Xew and Old World where I have lived ; to the gatherings of amateurs before the splendid productions of artistic thought; contrasting the elegance of life imder such conditions with the present crude so- 92 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN cial elements we have here in Ruskin, and I won- der what will be the outcome of the unorganized social state at present existing with us. Strenuous efforts had been made during the first year to bring order out of chaos. A schism between two factions interfered greatly by affect- ing and influencing the children. The success of one of the factions deposed the superinten- dent. In his place was substituted a redoubtable individual Vv'ho had been President twice and had tilled numerous positions, all of which turned out failures. He had run a newspaper and been Mayor of a wild and wooly Wyoming oil town. A shrewd splitter of parties, who turned up on everv occasion. This brilliant educator of the youth of the world's model example in Co-opera- tion wanted to know "What the new education was?" Being a shrewd politician he knew thai order and discipline were not wanted by the Ruskin youth. So he established the principle of allowing each pupil to select their own studies and to take, or not take them, as they pleased. His career as an educator was brief. Finding that he had to discipline some of the intractable pupils, collision with parents was the result, and through direct process he would soon become the most unpopular man in Ruskin. So he cutely slid out of the job into another. The anarchistic method he established in the schools could never be corrected again, and to- day some of the pupils bring novels and red-hot stuff' to read in the school room. Tliey do not studv at all, do not recite, and never intend to. EDUCATION 93 The teachers have quit wearing their soul cases out and let thcni come and go unnoticed. A party of half grown boys that I see from my window are figiiting in fun with bags. It is a rough amusement and they are covered with dust and dirt from the bags. Here we have force ex- pended by these fine }oung fellows that could be ap])lied to a far more attractive amusement, that of building a city. These boys are growing up without education. Presently they will shally off over the farm, or to the woods, to idle the rest of the day away and get into some evil or other. Under these conditions they will eventually be- come a pack of hounds, perhaps villains. Being- hounds they have to be villains to live. For they cannot live honestly without being trained in some occupation and in morals. These unfortunate boys have been brought on the planet by their ignorant parents. These parents are the only obstacles in the way of the noble boys becoming gentlemen. With them in the way it is impossible to get a shanty built to educate the boys in. In their opinion the girls don't count for anything. Under Co-operation, the ignorant parents have all to say about a shanty for teaching the children something use- ful and civilized. That is the reason we do not get it. Individually the shanty could have been built long ago, with one hand. Under the col- lectivity there are too many ignorant opinions to get six boards towards it in sixty years. Sixty years are mentioned for modesty's sake only, and not to impress the public with the idea that wc 94 '-AST fJAYS f)K l pr^lite c'-rs, and would be stark cruelty to disturb the d-eamcrs with the heavenly smile u|)on their faces. In looking around upon the wfjrld of peojjlc .iiid sludyinj^ matters and tliinj^s we notice that indivifltials are created with special abilities. I licy know how to handle what they were created for. 'Ilic fact that they are bui]t that way natural- ly, and know how, is the best reason in the world that they should be let alone to hanrlle the job. The collectivity cannot tell them how, because tlicy dr^n't know liou. They were not created that way. Ivlurators are born, not made. Tluy can be ir;iiiu-d. The crowd cannot instruct, or run the educator. The crowd can wreck him ; and the more ij^noranf the crowd is, the .sooner he is \vrc'l:('l. If the crovvd is densely '\^nnriii. , liko Rnslsiii, lie cannot bej^in. Cannfjt start. .All prcparat ions fall lo j>ic(n-s, rot, (lcca\' betorc put r,j)(jrATif)N 95 to use. Like the Irifjiu, spinnin;^ machinery, UxAs, potters' wheel aiul thinj^'s we have managed to j^et together to see if we ccAiIrl not coax, or force ,-m infhistrial schr^ol into cxistcmce in Ruskiii. Ii was all oi nme parts of the United States. 1 have luflied clo.S"ly "V /icole Centrale de f'aris" anrl elsewhere as' United States Conmiissioner, and know what f am talkinj;^ about. The Eastern rities and srjme of the Western, also, arrld of per)pl(! will snjjplant tli'- present world, no better, 90 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN perhaps worse. Ability — less people not trained in anything. Ruskin cannot get a shanty up to train them on an income of $50,000 a year. All spent on tom foolery. These children of Ruskin, trained in industrial arts, could easily produce in skilled work $100 a day. This, under good management, would as- sure highly civilized improvements, current com- fort and enjoyment. Now, then, taking this lesson in connection with the ignorant management that has brought everything to ruin, what does it show? Is not the lesson as clear, if not clearer than the noon-day sun ? Does it not say that you cannot organize, or conduct a colony with ignorance? That the only thing ignorance can do is to balk every ave- nue of progress or destroy what others create, like Ruskin. The question is plain. Have noth- ing to do with ignorance. I have just been to visit a sick woman. She is the mother of three sturdy little children. An athlete and swings the clubs beautifully with her gymnast husband, who often gives exhibitions on our stage. She has been under the care of our ancient specimen of a doctor, of the old orthodox school of medicine. The kind that give chemicals to put into the stomach. A quart for a horse and a pint for a man kind of doctor. "Now. take a teaspoonful of this every hour; don't forget to shake up the bottle well, and if this don't help you, I'll give you something that will," sort of a doctor. Well, the line young woman is going all to pieces. Between the disease and the doctor EDUCATION 97 there is going to be a wrecked life, and perhaps a lot of orphan children, and so it happened. It's of no use saying, "that's a pity ;" the same thing -is going on everywhere in the world. People are (lying by inches from troubles that could be easily ciH-eti. Indeed, they would not have had the troubles had they known anything in the shape of common sense. They do not and won't listen to it. So we have to stand off and see them rot out and die by inches. Leave orphan children to grow up in neglect, jierhaps in crime. All be- cause of ignorance. Returning from visiting the sick woman, I met a sweet young girl, one of my best pupils in ])ainting. She was also a good violinist, well trained by a talented young member of Ruskin. With open, honest face, beaming with smiles, she ran to meet me. "Oh, professor, have you met the new people just in on the mail wagon ?"' "No. What kind of people are they?" "Oh! nice, re- fined people, too nice for this place." Even the child had the class consciousness. Probably the most dangerous menace to Rus- kin is from the laxity of home training of the youth. The class of people who compose the societv of Ruskin, and most likely all other col- onies of people under the same conditions, are those who have no conception of the value and importance of this vital subject. With but very few exceptions these people are from low, indus- trial districts, or farms remote from the pro- ]:)rieties of cultured society. The guards that are especially thrown around young females by the 98 LAST DAYS Ol" RUSKIN well-trained and prudent are utterly ignored by the ignorant and careless. If their children are clotlied. fed and housed, and sent to school to learn the three R's, they feel as though their whole duty is performed. This constitutes the sum total of their ideas of raising children. The laws of propriety as re- gards their hours, their associates, their amuse- ments, or their spiritual development are a dead letter, if they have ever been considered at all. The consequence of these defects in the par- ents' education is that the laxity in training of the children when young, grows with their develop- ment, and by the time maturity arrives, they are beyond control, and fall into sensuous crimes through obstinacy and inexperience. Too late the parent sees the fault and rushes blindly to oppose the result of their own crime, but all to no purpose ; and another generation of the vicious is launched upon the world. The tendency to publicity and indelicacy in both male and female conduct, subjects the females to the suspicion of being public women. Frequently strangers have expressed this sus- picion of Ruskin ladies, particularly of the grown girls, whose unrestrained freedom loses by its rudeness what would otherwise be admired. Neighbors are shocked to see our people go in bathing. Men and boys are as nearly naked in tights as thev can be. Young females are famil- iarized with nakedness and indelicac}-. This shows itself in loud, boisterous and forceful con- versation and in some cases a certain shameless- EDUCATION 99 ucss of conduct, which had hctltr not be en- larged upon. To this painful picture of our ideal Ivuskiu, we are obliged to add in this place the growing haliit of swearing among the young children, wdio have become as proficient as old hands. The total absence of any training, or standard of manhood, or virtue to the minds of children has the same effect upon the youth as it has upon the elders. It leaves the mind to drift to a lazy sensualism, ihat is content with the comforts of its back and belly. Razor-back (hog) three times a day, cloth- ing and shelter, rough life and maiuiers, no edu- cation or refinement, with a constant lowering towards the animal plane, until noble Ruskin, with all her aims and ambitions, are leveled to a Caliban brutishness. Ruskin had a good, large library. Well pro- portioned in light literature, modern classics, his- tory, science and even the occult. Magazines and papers were abundant as exchanges. We had matter to suit all shades of intelligence that could read. The whole library and even engrav- ings enough to cover the walls were generously contributed by members and friends. The ele- gant gifts we had were astonishing and it grew amazingly. It had been used in a poor u^ay until after the I'ree Love fight when an enterprising lady took charge and opened it six nights in the week, noon hour and Sunday afternoons. The ri'fccl was good, many came to look at the p'\c- iures and read the magazines arid papers. Some took out novels and a few higher literature, but lOO LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN the great mass of members continued to sit around at nights, smoke, gossip and spit tobacco. The outlook for improvement was cheering for a while until the spirit was knocked out of the people by the President hob-nobbing with the injunctionists and joining them in crippling the printery by trading ofif the book press, when the library flattened out with the general discourage- ment aikl became practically dead. Although the proposition to introduce a kin- dergarten into the barren educational desert of old Ruskin in 1896 was met with considerable opposition, it carried. A trainer was brought. Two ladies put in training. This brought more opposition. Xearl}- every woman in the colony was jealous because she thought the kindergarten teachers had an easy job. The kindergarten held on, however, through persistence. Assistant teachers came and went and Ruskin did not suc- ceed in getting a good one. These experiences cooled the ardor of the col- ony women to become kindergartners. The common idea was that any one could walk in and plav with the children. After three years of struggle the Ruskin women began to realize that there was something in the work that ordinary mortals could not achieve without great labor, and consequently let it alone. The tax on the teacher all this time between the foolisli ambition of the adults and the chil- flren, who were totally deficient in home train- ing, was verv great, leaving her exhausted at the EDUCATION TOT close of each season, recjuiring a sea sliore recu- peration during tlie summer nionlhs. \\ ithout exception the kindergarten children were brought under control. The parents soon learned that the kindergartners would not hurt I heir tender brood, and the children soon learned that there was no escape from discipline. So love and kindness, mixed with discipline, was sub- mitted to willingly as an innexil)le law. against which the little darlings ihoroughl\- trained in self-will by their loving ni;imnias could make no ojiposition. When the little tots crossed the threshold to enter the kindergarten all was order, obedience, love and politeness. Entertained and instructed with a change every twenty minutes, the time went rapidly and happily. When they crossed the Icindergarten threshold to go to their own disorganized homes, as marked a spirit took pos- session of them. Kindergarten manners were forgotten and the spirit of contention and strife su])i)lanted the generous and loving disposition used in the kindergarten. The children under these circumstances were like two different beings, one characterized by ihe saintly aura of the kindergarten, and the other characterized by the very spirit of hatred and strife. The first was from the spirit of the refined, educated teacher. The second was from the knock-down and drag-out, or don't-care si)irit of the ignorant parents' home. It is said that no good (\ec(\ is ever lost. Possi- bly the sweetness of the kindergartner's soul may TTXMv-i.-pfTTY OF rA.i.ir<'OK.Nr.^ T02 LAST DAY 5 OF RUSKIN have sown some seed, or made an impression in these crude, little minds that will hear fruit some da}-. At least, it is a first impression preparing" the way for a second and a third, that may strike them here and there along the pathway of life, until some keen thrust of Karmic law shall awaken their souls to the perception of the high.cr life. Let us hope so, at least. To all appear- ances the kindergartner's anxious labor on their little natures bore poor fruit outside of the sacred circle. It was like letting go a rubber string'; it went back to its original position. Such is the effect of a lack of home training, upon which all educators lay so much stress, as the supplement to the school room. For the credit of Ruskin it should be stated that the work of her kinder- garten was not surpassed by the best training- schools, if indeed equaled. Msitors were so charmed with the beauty of the work of the little children, the interest and spirit of love and kind- ness which pervaded that sacred abode that even strong men often became overcome with sym- pathy and emotion and wept tears. During the change to new Ruskin tlie kinder- garten was sadly interrupted for months. Hous- ing the people took every place, even the school house. The teacher became desperate and ap- pealed strongly to the officials of the new faction who were in the Ruskin saddle. "Our .Shepherd" was \^ice President and opposed the kindergar- ten. Education would do later on. The children could wait. ( He had two fine, grown daughters who had waited on a remote \\'estern shee]) EDUCATION TO3 ranch. They were in bad educational shape.; The teacher fought hard for the children, and the President, who was a bachelor, said finally : "You shall hof dot schule house." There was great joy among the mothers whose little tots would by this means be kept from drowning in the creek, where our poor President later on lost his life. A woman's meeting w^as held to consider the employment of children during vacation. The meeting passed off comfortably until it came to the question of whether the children would work or not. And what to do in case they re- fused. It was proposed that their maintenance be taken off. This raised a storm among the mothers who had the largest and worst families. I'hese held forcefull}' to the plan of letting the children do as they pleased in the matter — to work if they wanted to or not. They would not listen for a moment to the maintenance being stopped for dereliction of duty, and these being the noisest and most demonstrative, carried the day. It would be unreasonable to expect a hetero- geneous lot of people, such as we have in Ruskin, to understand or appreciate the wonderful works of genius in literature, the useful or fine arts that have been done, are being done, or that are among the unsolved or unexecuted problems to be done. There is one thing that might be rea- sonably looked for in Ruskin, where the strain and anxiety of the daily competitive struggle is removed, and that is a calm, quiet disposition. 104 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN favorable to the appreciation and reception of knowledge. Sociologists of the ideal type would be sure to reason that way. I have not seen one who was an exception to that rule. We find that blessed expectations along this line are not realized. In spite of every effort that has been conceived or put into execution so far, the same stone wall of ignorant prejudice stands as a barrier in the way to prevent the first educational steps towards the ideal social state. It cannot be that educators are mistaken about the means or the method, because these work wherever they can be applied. It must be the condition of the kind of people whom we find en- gaged in socialistic colonial enterprises, are of too low a standard mentally to conceive the dig- nity and importance of organizing a society prop- erly, or the qualities to be achieved. CHAI'TJlR \'11. ANARCHY AND FREIi LOMl. riic •'Coming Xation" newspaper was the foundation of Ruskin, The genius of Wayland created it at Greensburg, IncHana, cultivated it to fruition, transferred it to Tennessee City as the base and support of the Ruskin Colony, and in eleven months' time he was driven out of the en- terprise and the paper, printing plant, and book business, fell into the hands of the charter mem- bers, what we now call Injunctionists. excepting only three who are wreckers. ( )ur editor, who had been with Wayland at Greensburg, and had had a dissension there and an unsuccessful suit to obtain a share of the prop- ert\' of the "Coming Nation," became the suc- cessor of Wayland. From the day Wayland left, the circulation of the paper steadily declined. The hcavv and pompous articles fell like a funeral pall upon the readers and their solemnity were its burial service. The paper was destined to a nomadic exist- ence ; less than a year afterwards saw it trans- ferred to Cave ?*Iills. now Xew Ruskin. There, in a grand building appropriately fitted for the printing plant, the "'Coming Nation" and its editor were installed. These advantages brought no improvement in the circulation of the paper. T06 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN wliicli cuiUimied to decline for some mysterious reason, which no one could explain. The old \Va3dand element, as those were called who came in with Wayland and constituted the charter members, were solely and supremely in charge of everything about the colony. The printing plant was sacred to them and they were distrii^uted in various positions wherever it was most comfortable. Politics seemed to be the prin- cipal industrial occupation in and about the pur- lieus of the printing establishment. One of them was planted in the office, with the sole charge of the business of the paper and books. This he controlled exclusively, with none to examine, look into, or question, until the beginning of 1899, five long years. It was thought that the miracle of handling this mysterious position could he performed by no other mortal yet created. Nevertheless, his successor, who was a method- ical man, found it a nest of confusion, without beginning or end. Another year passed in the peaceful shades be- side the limpid waters of Yellow creek. Could \\i have pierced the womb of time and have seen what was in store for us, it would have appalled the stoutest heart. A schism broke out. Little did we dream of the infamies that were locked up in the bosoms of the worshiped founders of the Ruskin colony, the hope of the world. Truth is stranger than fiction, and so w^e realized. It woke us up, and kept us awake; there was no nonsense about the schism. It was in earnest on ANARCHY AND FREE LOVE IO7 both sidos, aiul was maintained up to the sticking point for over a year. In October, 1S97, a quiet, secretive man by the name of Cowell, n(,)t a member, but who had come to Ruskin to work as a printer about a year before, posted in our dining-room a subscription paper for money to defend in the courts ah anar- chistic and Free Love newspaper, caUed the "Fire Brand ;" which the United States government had forbidden the use of the mails, because of immoral articles. A few of our people under- stood the character of this suppressed paper and had the subscription list taken down and returned to Cowell. The incident raised a storm among the old ele- ment about the printery, including the editor, who declaimed loudly in favor of the "Fire Brand," and also hi favor of the doctrine of an- archy and I'ree Love. This surprised the Social- ists, who never dreamed that we had such philos- ophers in Ruskin. Of course there was a division into two hostile camps, and to the credit of the Anarchists and Free Lovers be it said that once their hands were shown, they did not play the hypocrite after- wards, l)nt defended their doctrine with a vigor worth}- of a better cause. Unfortunately the Anarchist and Free Love element comi>osed the f)fhcial force of the colony. They were a majority on the Board of Directors and controlled the Executive Board. In fact, we could count only six anti-Free Lovers who were of the Wayland period. I08 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN Poor Wayland ! God help him ! He was alone with these people. His little boy let it out that pop and ma-am had an awful time about let- ting them have the charter stock shares. Poor Mrs. Wayland saw with the woman's in- stinct what would come from giving that rough, senseless mob the whole power by their superior numbers, to sink the brilliant conception of a co- operative village, with all its possibilities into the degraded depths of a besotted sensualism under the titles of Anarchy and Free Love. We had the whole force of the old lot against us except these six. I say six, because our buyer was anything and would be anything, so long as he could hold the ofihce of buyer. He did not like the titles of Anarchy and Free Love, because he had been a Sunday school superintendent of the old orthodox type. But he would be willing to live under that, or any other title, so long as he could hold on to the office of buyer. He had a passion for buying. Would buy anything. Would make a trade for the sake of making a t' ade, if there was not a cent in it. Indeed, it was thought that he would do so even if he lost a little. I know that he sold our wheat after we •vorked a whole season to get it. Figured out a profit of ^2y on the car. He managed to get the power to sell it, the old lot alwa}"s do. The re- sult was after it reached Xashville elevator and was' cleaned, it brought us $6 profit to the car. That was all we had for hauling it six miles to the railroad. So you can see where we came out on this diseased passion to specidate on the stafif ANARCHY AND I'RICR LONE ICX) of life, after we once got it. I may as well men- tion the beauty of this transaction ; it will give a clue to understand some of the financial splendors of the Ruskin Co-operative Ignorance Associa- tion, ruled by the old element and submitted to by the most densely ignorant set of j^eople that this or any other planet has even witnessed. Now listen to the brilliant dash of our great buyer. The wheat was sold at 70 cents a bushel, and in a few weeks we started to buy our own supply for the season at 90 cents and upwards. Was not this great business judgment? Is it any wonder Ruskin went to the demnition bow-wows? You will hear worse than that about our buyer and the old charters who ruled the great Ruskin hope of the ages. Well, "our bu}er" hung on to the Anarchists and Free Lovers a long time. He would persist- ently argue right in the face of the facts (he did not care for facts) that there was nothing in it. That it was a harmless little schism that did not mean an\thing, and that we all thought alike, but did not know it, and things were all right. Bring along the whitewash bucket and give the whole thing a coat and everything will be lovely, and I can hang on as buyer. He always watched the fence pretty closely and managed as usual to get down on the winning side in time to save his bacon. You need to know these fellows. They figured in the great movement of the Ruskin Co-opera- tive Association, and that was a famcms institu- tion. It made a big stir in the world, that was no LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN seriously considered by people, whose attention and concern would be a compliment to any move- ment. We might as well take a cursory glance at these fellows, get a fair idea of them. But not spend too much time on them ; the general story of the association, the lesson and moral we can draw from it is the all important thing. Besides we must not be personal. It would not be polite. We must talk about things in "away off" style. Not come at it straight and rough as they do with criminals in the court room. So we will be as "Miss Nancy" over this story of Ruskin as possible. The Anarchists and Free Lovers composed the official force of the colony. Whatever measures we were obliged to adopt in opposition to the theories of Anarchism and Free Love, that had sprung upon us so unexpectedly, through the Cowell incident, we were obliged to take through them, the very friends of the crimes. The only way to do was to beard the lion in his den, and that is exactly what we did do. It took a hard fight and lots of awful roars and growls, but he went into the corner at bay at last. The first thing we did — I say we, a poor little corporal's guard at first, and the corporal's guard were very weak-kneed and as timid as rabbits for a while — bracing up gradually as they saw one man stand out and fight these infamous, disgust- ing theories, that were committing all of us be- for the world, through the pro])aganda that was l)eing made from Ruskin, in which our paper was taking a guarded part. They stiffened up, how- ANARCHY AXn TRICE L()\K III ever, and as one vigorous blow after another was struck at the Anarchists and Free Lovers the great passive, do-nothing mob liegan to be inter- ested, and close up somewhat to the back of the patriot Socialists. The slothful thinking, indif- ferent people even during the Free Love and An- archy excitement and schism, did not realize the facts and dangers ; at any moment they were likely to desert the brave patriots who stood in front of the fight. It was only by the finest strategy that the fight was conducted to the dis- advantage of the Anarchists. They were all- powerful m prestige and position, it has been the same with every reform and improvement brought about. Many of the great wiseacres to- da}- who brag al:)Out what they did w^cre the most arrant cowards at the time of the conflict. They stood ofif and even objected to the fuss and also signed a petition to suppress it. When success was certain they joined in the hurrah. The first thing we did, I say, was to get out a petition to lay before the Board of Directors, de- claring for Socialism and against Anarchy. The editor was running in the "Coming Na- tion" a good deal of matter of an anarchistic character. Some of us did not like it, but the great mass of the people did not know whether it was right or not. The paper came out each week and ronndly abused the monopolists and ]joli- ticians and also stepped a good deal out of its way to abuse the clergy. The peoi)l(' read it. Tra-la-la. Words, words, words, any kind of words, with hate and fight in them, stirred the 112 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN sluggish brain of ignorance, and it was all right. However, a number of our readers did not like the anarchistic style that our paper was being drifted into, and they told us so. So we got out the petition to publicly declare for Socialism, and with a hard struggle managed to get 26 names on it. that was 25 per cent of the members at that time. It was met with fierce opposition in the Board of Directors, of course, and "our Shep- herd," who was a sympathizer moved to table the petition. Ye gods ! It was tabled, and stays tabled until this day, and will forever now. It's a fact, the people's petition was tabled in Ruskin. Just pay attention to this. Observe the passivity of the people. They let it go. They did. Let it go ! There was no revolution, no re- bellion, no blood shed over the right of petition, magna charta and all that ; nothing of the kind. They just sat down and took it as a spaniel dog would take a kick and crawl at the feet of the kicker. Outside in competition you might look for rebellion and a big noise throughout the land if Congress treated a people's petition in that style; but in Ruskin, noble Ruskin, R-R-R-R-uskin, the model government of the \vorld, where everything was so far ahead of common affairs that they were clean out of sight in the beautiful clouds ; everything was at peace, sublime peace, dead, maggoty peace, where the petition of the people was tabled by our Shep- ANARCHY AXn l-RF-K LOVE T F^ herd' and llic Anarcliisis and I-"rcc l.ovcrs in -real K-K-K-R-R-uskin ! Tabling- the petition was an iinporlant part of the prog-ram. Everything has its uses. The fortress of .Anarchy and Free Love was attacked again. The Sociahsts after this first knock-out came U]) smihng. They came up with another pe- tition for a referendum vote, with the question, "Uo you, or does your wife, lieheve in Anarch \- or I'Vee Love?" This we wanted on the appHca- tion blank for new members. We were bound to find out if we could the sentiments of new appli- cants for membership on the Anarchy and Free Love question. We suspected also that Co well and the old members were working secretly t(i get the colony filled up with that kind of people. At the same time was put in a counter petition opposing the introduction of this question on the application blank, and wanting to leave the blank as it was. This whitewashing- petition was got- ten up by our buyer and the editor and four of the old cha-fter members canvassed the colony two days for signatures. It was equal to any po- ♦Eightoon nioiuhs aftorwanls. in a LyciMim spoocli, •■our slupht'id" i-x pressed a rojjrct that comlitions in linslcin cuni- pellod a ni.m to a<-t tlip part of the liypocritc. At tUP trial and oxjiiilsion of one of the in.junctionists on Oct. I'l, IS'iS, '•our sheplierd" was cbairnian. H(> announci'd that one min- ute would bo ix'wcn each nienilier to speak. On ]iinn-^ clial- lenucd for his authority, he replied. "Tliat was his ruliuj,' and the objector's time was up." .-Vn appeal was taken .ind tlie d»-si)o'tic chairman was s-.istaiued. Some explained afterwards that the chairman was wron^'. but they were afraid of a wi-:;nj.'le among themstdves. I'lie chairman in- formed the writer after the meeting that, if there had been any disorder he would have <'losed the meeting until to-mor- row uight and brought a pcdiceman to keep onler. So you see the mob will do anything for either prejudice or pottage. 114 l-^^^T DAYS OF RUSKIN litical liustiiigs ever seen in the competitive world. They were desperate, and bound to keep that question off the application blank. On the vote they came within one of doing it, and fought us tooth and nail, but we made it in spite of every opposition, and it is on the blank to-day. To fortify and augment the question before the people a communication was laid before the Board of Directors. This had to be read and something done with it. "Our Shepherd" came again to the rescue of the Anarchists and Free Lovers and tabled it. He did, indeed. But then ail you folks who understand business and know a thing or two, I'll just give you the wink. We played with these devils and made them hang themselves. Although it is wonderful how our shepherd held on like our buyer to the last, The principal thing in this world in any move- ment is to get an idea out before the people ; once you get it out, you need no longer worry your- self about it. Nothing on earth can stop an idea once it gets out. You might as well try to stop the sea. It simply cannot be done. You may go to bed and rest, the idea will take care of itself, never fear. So it was with the fight with the Anarchist and Free Love schism ; it brought for- ward the whole subject, for discussion and an- alysis, woke up and educated the people along that line who were in a dead, apathetic and im- movable condition before. But I must not forget to give you the com- munication, because it will help you to under- stand the whole situation at that point of its his- ANARCrii' AXn l"RKE I.()\'R II5 li»r\. The hislor\' widened and brcjut^lil sad re- sults afterwards; luil let us read the couiuuiuica- tiun : To the Lioard of Directors of the Kuskiu Co-oj)- erative Association : LJentlemen — In all Socialistic movements the great obstacle has been Anarchy. In every na- tional, international and local organization of Socialists, they have been forced to stamp out Anarchy for their preservation. The two systems are diametrically opposite. Socialism claims evolution and j^erfcction through the law^ Anarchy claims its perfection in the al)rogation of all law. Socialism has alwaws existed as a perfected philosophy, and in Aristotle's economics we find the data now accepted in accordance with the best thought. All tribes and associations called governments and nations have always had their base in Social- ism. It is as old as time and the fundamental l)rinciple of every collective efifort of man. There is but one obstacle to its full practice, viz. : The Competitive system. That we have come here to avoid. To practice Socialism in its integral form. The failure of Anarchists to control Socialism has driven its supporters to secret methods. In- troducing themselves under various guises into Socialistic institutions, the}' privately" sow the Il6 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN seed of their doctrine in ihc hope of breaking up SociaHstic efforts. This experience we have had in Ruskin. The patient, dehberate Cowell has effectively done his work ; until within one year all propaganda of this association, including the "Coming Nation," is largelv in the hands of declared Anarchists, who boldly avow the doctrine of Anarchy and Free Love, the doctrine of Voluntary Co-opera- tion in opposition to Socialism, marital purit\- and Integral Co-operation. This petition opposing the question in refer- ence to Anarchy and Free Love being placed on the application blank, claims that no attempt has been made to commit the Ruskin Association to Anarchy, and that a declaration of our Socialistic princii)les is not necessary. We think dift'erently. The struggle between Anarchy and Socialism is on. It has to be settled here as it has everywhere else, either by destruction of this institution, or by stamping out the enemy of Socialism. Let us see if the claim of this petition is true, "That no attempt has been made to commit the R. C. A. to Anarchy." Cowell came to Ruskin ; quietly disseminated Anarchistic literature, drawing attention to it, and finally tried to force it on our book list. (V\'e all know that he is a writer for yVnarchistic pa- pers.) Surreptitiously introduced Anarchistic matter into the "Coming Nation." and publicly posted a subscription list in our dining hall in de- fense of a suppressed Anarchist and Free Love newspaper. ANARCHY AND FREE LOVE 1 1/ The Socialists of Ruskiii. aware of the silent campaign of Anarchy in our midst, decided that Cowell should not use our walls for its propaga- tion, and had the list taken down. A movement was begun against this assumption by the Anar- chist Cowell (who was not even a member of Ruskin Colon\ ), which created a great commo- tion among the few members of the R. C. A., w'ho were Anarchists, manifesting itself in abuse and insult to those active in opposing Anarchy. This conmiotion brought out the following acknowd- cdgements on the part of the Anarchists: J. To Lillygren's wedding being made a legal marriage in Ruskin "as an absurdity 400 years behind the age." This by two of ihe Uvavd of Directors, wdio now sit in judgmenj; on this matter. 2d. "That married people have the right to sex relations with wdiom they choose." 3d. "That a nian has a right to have sex rela- tions with any unmarried female, if they choose to make it an act of \'oluntary Co-operation." This bv a Director who sits in judgment on this matter. 4th. "That Anarchy is superior to Socialism in theory and practice. That because it is not ap- preciated is because Socialists are ignorant." 5th. "That Anarchy is the stuff and anything else is not worth talking about." 6th. That the printing ofifice of the R. C. A. has been rendered almost entirely Anarchistic. /th. That the library of the R. C. A. possesses literature of an Anarchistic and Imtc Love char- Il8 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN acter, which is being" in{Kistriousl\- circulated and read by the old and young of both sexes. Litera- ture objectionable to parents, who have been obliged to take it from their children. 8th. That the "Coming Nation" is edited by an Anarchist, who has introduced into its i)ropa- ganda the theory of Voluntary Co-operation in- stead of Integral Co-operation, as taught by So- cialists.* 9th. That the interpretation given to Volun- tary Co-operation by one of the Board of Direc- tors, who is an Anarchist, is as follows: "What is Voluntary Co-operation but Anarchy."- loth. The threat that if the cjuestion, "Do you or does your wife believe in Anarchy or Free Love?" is put upon the application blank, the An- archists will have the Christians in Ruskin re- stricted also. nth. That literature teaching how to prevent conception is issued from our library and read by young persons. I2th. That the "Coming Nation'' was surrep- titiously made a medium of defense for an An- archist and Free Love newspaper, which was suppressed. Is this not an attempt to commit the R. C. A. to Anarchy ? Or are we to wait until the "Com- ing Nation" puts at its head what was declared last Wednesday night in this hall, viz., "Anarch\- *Thp oditor in ji loiifithy spoocli Ijcfore tlip Hi»iir(l of Dirpf'lors clMinifd tli:it I he ••('oiiiini;- X.itidn" li:iil hrcii :Hl\(Pi-a(inj; vnlunlai'.v fo-oiioiMt ion foi- scvcr.-il nlnulll^;, .ind that it liad ionic to l)e a .'settlod policy. AXARCllV AM) IKKK I.OM'. 119 is the stuff and anything' else is not worth talking ahout ?" i'hc (|ucstion is between Anarchy and Social- ism. All attempts to evade this question arc use- less. The contentions in international, national and local Socialist organizations with Anarchy have been settled by its complete downfall. Rus- kin has come in for its share of the battle. With us it is now Anarchy or Socialism. All the propaganda forces of Ruskin are largcl\ in the liands of Anarchists (supinely placed there by our indifference), who are trying to evade this issue by the claim of this petition, "That no overt act has yet committed this association to An- archy." What is our dut\- to Ruskin and to Socialism in this case? Is it not to openly declare ourselves for Socialism and law? Unquestionably yes. What is the common sense practice in all insti- tutions when an enemy is found hostile to its in- terests or principles? The enemy is removed at once. ( )ur famous "Coming Nation"' newspaper is ^ dited b\ an Anarchist. What is the duty of this association ? Unquestionably to clearly define and ]>roclaim our position as Socialists. That we arc in every respect opposed to Anarchy. What is our duty to protect the young of Rus- kin from the philosophy of self-will and sensual- ism, by the spread of Anarchistic literature from the association's library? Is it not to stop it at once ? How can we evade, gloss over, or wdiitewash I20 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN tliis issvie by the claim that no overt act has been committed ? It cannot be done. We must decide for Ruskin and SociaUsm or Anarchy and a desert. (Signed.) Isaac Broome. Oct. 2^, 1897. This communication raised a storm, and no mistake. It was hke pulHng a mean's nose. The storm moved its center from the Board of Direc- tors in session to the adjournment, when we had it hot and heavy with the editor and the barber. The author had to fight them all. It was a circus for the rest. But on this as on every other occa- sion, they came out a httle worse than they went in. As I told \"ou before, "our Shepherd" was choking to table it. He did say that it was a question we would have to face sooner or later, but he did not want to face it now ; put it off for some other time — anything to get rid of it. So he tabled it. The petition could not be disposed of so easily without high treason. Four of them risked the treason and voted to refuse the referendum. One refused to vote to make a tie. It was decided by the President in the affirmative. So in spite of the four voting .Vnarchists and one not voting, the petition which could not legally be refused under the By-Laws, was granted. Every effort was made afterwards to ex[)unge the minutes of the Directors' vote to refuse the ANARCHY AND FKliE LOVE 121 rcferciuluin. It was even embodied in the white- washing- petition. But the expunging failed in both the directOKy and the rcferenchuu. So the vote stands on the minutes in its subHme, monu- mental infamy until this day. Ah ! those were red-hot da}'S. When we look- back over the fierce contest at the breaking out of the Anarchy and Free Love schism, and the spirit shown by these advocates of sensualism, for that's exactly what it means when you push their argument to its last analysis, as will be seen later on, when the curtain is drawn a little more. You could not describe it; that's impossible. It never let up. I have lived in Rome in the days of Pio Nino, ^vhen every other man was a priest, a beggar or a soldier. When you could not speak to a man without his first looking around to see if a spy was listening before he would answer. When no man's liberty was safe for a moment. When some of us had to go and report to the Consul every morning, fearing to be taken away in the night to Ancona without trial or notice. 1 have seen religious fanaticism in its keenest shape and have been under the horses' heels when the cav- alry sabers were whizzing over my head, cutting down unbelievers. I have seen the deadly effects of secret persecution. But never have I wit- nessed such fanatical ferocity as is possessed by the devotees of Anarchism. Tt may be interest- ing as a sociological study, but I would not care to go through another siege like that one again. After the Directors' meeting adjourned, the 122 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN Steam went up to blowing-off point. Attempts to challenge some jjoints in the communication were met by an offer to prove before an investigating committee. The offer was not accepted for pru- dential reasons. The editor threatened to take the new members and beat us on the vote. He also threatened to give a series of lectures this winter on the subject of Anarchy and Free Love, lie also threatened to black-ball applications for membership of orthodox Christians, and subse- ([ucntly he, with two others, who were the exam- ining committee, wrote "not recommended" on such applications. We then tried to abolish the Examining Com- mittee, but failed to get votes enough. It may be mentioned here that previous to the adoption of the new By-Law^s last winter, an effort was made to have the question, "Define Anarchy,"' placed upon the application blank. This, for some mysterious reason, was opposed 1»\- the old element, and after quite a struggle, the ((uestion, "Define Competition," was substituted in its stead. A large portion of the members did not see the motive of the opposition to this ques- tion on the blank, unlil the Cowell incident re- \ealed the secret. We do not like to profane these pages further llian necessary. So much has been already said in language that those who do not realize the depth of infamy all through this old element would suppose was exaggerated. We who have drunk the bitter cup to its dregs, we who share tlie burning shame and mortification of the en- AXAKCIIN AND IKi;i-: 1--ou did or how easy the berth you made for him, he became discontented, would get up a schism, join any side for a change. You could never tell u here he was. We did not want him verv badlv I 111-: w Ki'.cK T39 Tor 1 'resident, but elected him for fear he \v(juld ll\ olT at a taii.i;ent, get up a spHt in tlie niajorit}', and tlien hold the balance of power. We did not want him as Secretary, because we had a steadier man for that position, and had tried him before. Well, ai the end of a couple of months or so, lie began to hob-nob with the [njunctionists. These latter were thick in the printing office. He evidently feared that they might interfere with the getting out of the paper. This was part of it, and the other part was his inconstant nature. -As soon as this was perceived by the other iifncials and the members of the colony, a wet blanket of discouragement fell on everybody at ' oct from the reform world. It lum- bered along until a wandering telegraph operator cp.lled Pilgrim addod his growl and slang to its columns. Then came a period of vacanc\- until our FJishop turned up to give it an impulse, in 144 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN which the reform movement was largely lost' in the prominence of himself. Now that he was gone, the "Coming Nation" was again vacant, without motive or purpose. The whole situation was laid before the Execu- tive Board. It was shown why the "Coming Na- tion" declined from its great circulation under ^^'ayland. It was urged that the time was ripe for a great convention to unite all reformers and that the "Coming Nation'' should take the initia- tive and vigorously support such a movement. That such a movement would place Ruskin back again in a respectable position. The proposition commended itself to the Exec- utive Board. They ordered a call to be prepared and also private communications to leading re- formers by letter asking to aid the movement. The call was written, set in type and the letters mailed. Wyoming had been sent from the chicken farm to set type at the printery. He evidently had his eye on the job of editing the paper. He saw the article set in type and also imagined that there was danger to his hope of the editorship. He gathered up two more of the old obstructionist element and contrived to get up a referendum to stop the call for the convention, under the plea that it would swamp the Secretary with corre- spondence and break up the association. This bait took well with the mob imder the influence of the old element. The fact was that the Sec- retary would not have been troubled. Another plea was that a call for a convention Till': W'KF.CK T45 had jusi been issued U) meet at Buffalo, June 28th to July 4llt. This unknown call for a convention was not hrtMii^hi lorward opeul\. hui a referen- dum petition to stop our call was privately cir- culated and signed by the regular followers of this trio of the old element. The first thing the Executive Board knew was a hold-up of the call to prevent its going into the paper, by these three fellows getting 25 per cent of the members (mostly hard scrabble) to -ign the petition. It was a mortifying position lor the executive offtcers w-ho were at that time running tlie paper, who were also committed through private correspondence to many of the Ijest people in the reform movemcr.t. It dis- gusted them wiiii attempting to manage the pa- l)er, and they turned it over to wily Wyoming, just what he wanted, and as soon as he secured the position of editor, the referendum petition disappeared and was never heard of more. The very next week he pretended to be sliort of matter and called on the author of the article proposing to simply change the heading and end- ing of the call and use it for the Buffalo conven- tion, ft made no difference to the author. So the ca'l that \\'yoming condemned when not ed- itor was approved when he secured the editor- ship. Headed differently to cloak his position. The difference was that the call as a "Coming- Nation" movement was not sustained, because the man wdio had the political cunning to inter- fere and stop it, had not the abilitv to carry it out. A nonentity among men, but an effective 14^ LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN ])olitician anioni^" the siniple-niindcd people of Ruskiii. By mere accident (it could not have been oth- erwise) an auditing board was elected that year who looked into the books with a microscopic e\e. They took nothing for granted. Their strict methods had been vmknown in Ruskin before. They counted the cash and looked after the balances. The young Treasurer's cash bookkeeping was not quite up to date, each month showed too much money or too little accounted for. It was profit and loss on one side or the other, from a couple of dollars up to $20, $30. $40 or more. The auditors had to report it. They could not cover it up. The people did not care much. Did not kn(jw the difference between a del)it and. credit. The auditors could not help that ; they kept doing their duty. \A\^ had an Irish Secretary who got out of temper one night over the auditors' report. This thing of reporting defects in the accounts every month was "hurting the party." Pie resented the auditors' report ; got quite angry ; said that there was nothing wrong about the accounts ; that we were short $20 last month and this month we were $20 over and the one balanced the other, and it was all right, sure, and so it was. The argument was great fun for a few who under- stood business. The bad bookkeejDing by the Treasurer v.-as like Banquo's ghost, it would not down. It made no dififercnce to the thirteen men called THf-: WRRCK 147 clircL-lors. E\or_\lliini^ was all rii:;!!! with iIk'iii. Indct'd, ihcv liatcd any one who offered a criti- cism on anything that disturbed their serenity. It could not be helped, the auditors had to do it, under the by-laws, and they kept ri^ht on with their duty. The next month (December) after Mike scold- ed the auditors about the $20, over $5,000 had been paid out by the Treasurer on unsigned or partly signed vouchers. It had to be reported. To some extent this same thing had been done on the previous inonth ; it was not reported, but orders given to not do it again. In December the wdiole thing had gone wild and it had to come out. Whew ! didn't the ring get mad. Not at the crime. Oh ! no, but because it got out. Had it been after election it would have made no dif- ference. The Treasurer was reported to be the one who was to be elected President. The ring could then do as it pleased. This exposure of business incapacity smashed the slate. It was too bad. No fault of the auditors. A'ery sorry. Might just as well elect one as another. The chances then switched around to our finan- cier. His combination with the Bishop and the mortgage story, told elsewhere, smashed his slate. So the reigning President sw-ung back into the Presidency on a bare majority vote. The rest of the sad, sad story is known to you. Would you believe it, the Treasurer was re-elected. Is it any wonder we broke up ? The year 1899 opened up with the blast about "eternal vigilance being the price of libertv" — in I4S 7.AST DAYS i )F KUSKIN ihc hoard of Directors. Lt wcnl along smoothly so long" as the new menil)ers kej)! cimiing in with their $500. I'lfteen of them came in during 1899 before the presence of the receiver stopped the stream. Poor fellows! they are here now — wrecked. They and their families are crammed into the printer}- and other holes, with the rats running over them at night. (Charlotte Perkins Stetson got a dose of these rodents when here on a visit and wrote us a poem on rats.) They stand it pretty well, but you can see that they are bleeding inside. Some with big families hang- ing to them. This compels them to pull in v/ith the newlv organized Commune called "The Rus- kin Commonwealth,"' controlled l)y the old lot. which is to them a possi1)le straw to save in the sea of despair. Things went on for a few months in a desul- tory wa\'. tlie I'resident running back and for- ward to the county seat in the injunction cases, which never let up. When at home he signed vouchers and, being a heavy man, held down the office chairs. Our First Vice President was a fine man, a new comer who. at the last, apolo- gized for his stupidity in not seeing the drift of affairs towards wreck and ruin. His duties as h'irst \'ice President kept him outside trying to bring the large plant into some orderly shape, for it seemed to him that it had not received attention from any of his predecessors (which was strictly true). His mind was so engaged with the business and, being a new man, he did not get enlightened on mside affairs until it was Till': WRECK 149 too laic. To which wc ini^iit add the rosy niis- slatcMiicnts made b}- the President and otu- hnycr with regard to the advancement and tlourishing condition of the law cases. It is only necessary to mention a fact here and there to connect the mind of the reader to the conditions existing' in Ruskin. After live years' lioodlumism in finances some people be- gan to get uneasy. Wc investigated the l)Ooks and made a paralyzing report on receipts and ex- penses. It was received and filed by the apathetic directors and the holocaust went on just the same. It was as late as May 13th before the stock hioldcrs could be interested enough in the dangerous situation of the executive spending the money to the point of ruin. A meeting was then called to consider taking control of the finances out of the hands of the Executive Board. The meeting lasted until 1 1 o'clock. The ancient element held for the Plxecutivc Board to continue spending the money. The new people advocated the control by the directory and a business sys- tem. The meeting- was quiet and orderly, but feeling was deep. We were near the edge of tlic precipice. Every efifort was made to hold the purse strings by the Executive Board. Thev were outclassed in argument and facts. "Our Shepherd"' advocated the one-man power and management, whenever we found one capable man to do it. ( )p. Monday c\'cning- cruue the slruggle on the referendum (piestion. "Shall the Ireasin-v be con- trolled bv the I'>oard of Directors?" TJie Presi- 150 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN dent and "our Imyer" clement had every vote out they could get. Their women had votes, few or none of the wives of new members had votes yet. Nevertheless they were beaten — 48 to 35 — a full test vote of strength. So the directory took charge of the finances and brought some order out of chaos until the receiver took ttie job out of their hands. I forgot to mention the argument of our doc- tor at the stockholders' meeting of May 13th. He opposed any of the business methods in vogue in competition. Bookkec])ing, check systems, or departmental accounts. He said that v,^e had come here to get away from everything in the wav of business. The principle was characteristic of everything connected with the doctor. It was the same old argument — just do as you please. This story has been held back for two years because its publication might have hurt the new organization. "The Ruskin Commonwealth," that went to Duke, Ga., after we were sold out. That Commune has continued in strife and ended in an ugly quarrel, our old doctor being the head of the quarreling faction. The last number of the "Coming Nation" has published the story of their woes, which the writer (a new man) claims thev inherited from old Ruskin. The Commune was composed of the politicians and the ignorant clement described in these pages and their failure corroborates the fact that ignorance is incapable of self-government. One half of the members have gone to work for a contractor of convict 'abor. The same as they did at Cumberland fur- 'I' I IF, WKICCK r^i nace after the Ruskin smasliup. Could not live under favorable conditions without fighting. Could not do business and have gone to pieces $6,000 in debt. CHAPTER X. THE LAST GASP. A month ago the court had given us permis- sion to sell the place out ourselves and settle pro rata with the members. Our lawyer had charged us to keep the new organization we pro- posed to have a dead secret. To elect a buyer to buy the place in and then meet to elect a trustee and organize. Our officers ignored the advice of our lawyer and met in three hours after they returned, elected a buyer, trustee, committee and began to organize, started a system of forcing and bulldozing the people to turn over their R. C. A. stock shares, and on top of all this pub- lished the whole thing in the "Coming Nation," with bragging comments and denunciations of tlie injunctionists. In addition the neighbors were solicited to not bid against the new organi- zation for the property. The injunctionists took our published state- ments of what we were going to do with them to the judge, who appointed a receiver to see tliat justice was done. That is the whole truth of liow the receiver sold us out. Our lav.}cr was mad at our disobedience of his instruction:- and the wild way that we blazed everything before the world, and made an able effort to get us out of ihe .sx:ra])e, but all of no avail. Tiie injunctionists' lawyer made no plea. He simply handed our pub- •11 II', L.\s'i' (1 \sr 153 lislicd statements to the judge and stated that they answered every argument. He won, of course. The judge could not ignore what we i)urselves had put in print. ']1ie injunctionists had been previously dis- lieartened and would have accepted any settle- ment. The politicians on our side had taken control of the victory and wanted all the honor. We were watching them, however, and saw them '^ailing Ru.skin on to the rocks, with every sail set. The writer of this book went to ex-President Dodson, of the injunctionist side, privately, and -eriously discussed the subject of a disastrous finale to both the injunctionists and Ruskin. He tried all that was possible to get a proposition to settle from the injunctionist side. They consid- ered themselves the aggrieved party and thought it should come f'^om the majority side, but would agree to compromise and settle. Here was a stick in the arrangements. The writer went be- fore the Board of Directors and told the whole story, making a proposition as an intermediary, of a basis of settlement which had substantially been agreed upon with the injunctionists, and asked for the appomtment of a conmiittee. Whew ! The storm that was raised. One old fellow had a fit ; he yelled straight ahead. You could not tell what he was trying to say. A lot more had fits of various grades. A few sensible l)eo])lc tiied to stem the tide of lunacy and hate, bin tlu'\- were overwhelmed. Xo ! Xo ! Xe-e-c-v- c-v- ! Aiul the no ! nevers ! had the dav — wouldn't 154 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN settle with injunctionists, no indeed — I guess not. All right, thought the writer, go on with the funeral. After the receiver for the injunctionists was appointed a change came o'er the spirit of the dream. The boot was on the other leg. The no ! n-e-v-e-r-s had time to think. It was their ox that was being gored now. That made a great difference. So they appointed a committee of five to see if a compromise could not be effected with the injunctionists. As usual, a majority of the committee was composed of those whom the injunctionists would not do business with. The committee, after all the disgraceful brag and bluster, had to unsuccessfully go on their knees to the injunctionists. The committee was told that they could have settled the difficulty at the time the writer made the proposition. That then they were disheart- ened and would gladly have taken the half of old Ruskin and a little help to start, to have dropped the fight, but now it was too late — too late — the receiver would have to settle it. As a forlorn hope the old committee was abol- ished and a new one of all new people except "our buyer" was appointed. He was put on to steer the crowd — the ignorant new people were not to be trusted to do business. "Our buyer" was put on as the rudder. This met no better fate. When the committee told the injunction- ists that they would lose all the same as we would, they replied that it made no difference, that the receiver would settle it now. That thev Till': LAST GASP 155 were in a litilc better shape than before. On top. And so the thini;- stands, the receiver is boss and the injunctionists arc foremen. We have nothing- to say. We cannot use our own prop- erty. Have nothing- to say about it. We are only boarders, and not very saucy ones at that. All' our gatherings and property are being sold out before our eyes and we dare not cheep about it. ^'ou ought to see how the impudent fellows and fellowesses have been cooled off. The swag- ger is gone. They are as quiet as rnice. Let us go back a little to the court trial by the injunctionists for a receiver. There was and had been an awful suspense. It was evident from the looks and actions of our ['resident for some days past that he was un- easv. He had come back from Nashville for papers and showed nervousness, something un- usual for him. What looked more suspicious and dangerous was the fact that "our buyer" had been left in Xashville. constantly with out law- yers and the court. This demon of ill-luck we feared would supplement the crushing disaster of his begging letters by overdoing things in Nashville and thus prejudice the mind of the judge in favor of the injunctionists. June 2 1st, 1899, "^""'^^ ^^^^ ^""^^ *^''"-' l'<'tu- of TO arrived. The telephone rang. Hello ! Hello ! It was om- officers. 'AVe have lost. Ilie receiver for the injunctionists is appointed." It fell upon the colony like a funeral pall. Yes. it was leaden. At 1 1 o'clock our officers drove in, the most woe- 156 LAST DAYS 3F RUSKIN begone, wilted lot of people 1 ever saw. They were gone, completely knocked out, without a vestige of pluck left. The President had main- tained a great front of confidence. He was backed up by "our buyer."' That was all on earth he had to lean on. "Our buyer's" brains were all that there was between Ruskin and the pit of ruin, and if they failed we were gone. Nothing could keep us from striking bottom. We had struck. The buyer's face showed too plainly that he had played his last card and had lost. He real- ized that he had to face three himdred ruined pe(3- ple, w^ho had supinely let him and the President run them into perdition. His eyes met the glance of those who had opposed his methods and who previously showed what the result would be. The result had come. He felt it. He knew also the reproach in other hearts. His look was haggard and awful. At dinner time we were notified that there would be a meeting of the members of the pro- posed new organization held in the cave. Wh.cn I say cave, do not get an idea that we went into pits or dismal caverns — the cave meant a struc- ture on the level of the ground like a vast depot, or hall, with an elliptical roof of stone, well- lighted, with a lake of the purest water in the rear, 20 or 30 feet deep. It was a magnificent structure, formed by nature, that would have been wortii an inunense sum if near a large city. We gathered iherc, not knowing what for. The n m THE LAST GASP 15/ people knew lliat iliey luul to get together. Inn had no dehniie object in view, and many asketl wIkii are we here for? It showed np after a Httle while. The officers who had been to court at Xashville and had lost our case, were called upon to give an account of the affair. One after an- tjther gave us their version of "how the judge came to make such an unusual ruling against the law and the evidence." It was all very nice and pretty, the way they put it, and went down the throats of most of the people. The women broke down and cried. The buyer, pale and serious, was equal to the emergency. He claimed that it was the best thing that could have happened, tliat good would come out of it some Ikmv. Did not see how just >'et, l)ut was satished it would come. La-de-da. This went down the throats of the people, too. It was all right, you could tell gudgeons that some wonderful thing would come out of the sky to save them, and thev would l>e- lieve it. One and all advised hanging together. Xot to scatter. Xot lo abandon the ship Ruskin, as a hopeless wreck. The sentiment was all right, but there was no way in sight how it was to be done. There was nothing said about that. The people liad to live. Three hundred mouths had to l)c fed. The receiver had two months before he sold the place, and might put it ofif indefinitel}- until the place was eaten up. How to hang to- gether was a financial problem beyond the ca- pacity of any one yet seen at the helm of affairs in Ruskin. If these self-sufficient officials coukl 158 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN jioL manage the finances of the R. C. A., w ith its magnificent income, without being hard up all the time, how were they to hold this great mass of people together, without income, was beyond the comprehension of any ordinary mortal. Some kind of a thing-a-my might come out of the air somehow and accomplish this great feat of financial prestidig;itation. Ruskin was dead, wiped out, she was no more. There was no Ruskin. Xo officials. No any- thing but the receiver. There was of course our property, and extensive lands under cultivation that were to be sold and divided. The secret plan of the old crowd to get the land debt paid by fees of new members, make them uncomfort- able so that thev w'ould leave, then start a brew- ery with the grand cave as a storage vault, be- come rich and let the Socialist movement go, w-as knocked in the head by the premature breaking out of the I^^ree Love schism. Co-operative Rus- kin was wiped out by the few loyal incompetents who afflicted us by remaining. The result to Ruskin was the same. The receiver has been in possession of l^uskin for six days. At the first flush of his introduction he appointed the injunctionists to take charge of all the important positions in the ditiferent de- partments. That at the start was pretty good evidence that they w^ere the ones to be favored, ft went pretty tough to have seven of these peo- ple placed as lords over hundreds of people by the court, against whom we dare not even offer an objection. For six days our store has been THR LAST GASP I 5Q cIoschI. opened iKJW aiitl llu'ii at short iiUervals. C)ur business office is locked, mail received 1)}' receiver and his aids, money taken in charge and we have nothing to say about it. On our own property, without a claim for debt, or any business difficulty, we are in the position of interlopers and tramps who have no rig-hts what- ever. The dining; hall is largely deserted, many Ijoarding- themselves at home at their own ex- ])en.se. We ajx charged for board now. the pay to be taken out of our pro rata when Ruskin is sold. Sober faces are universal, even on the children. The vulgar swagger of proprietorship •and the impudent bravado of personal rights is gone. Even the mouthy Dago has shut his eter- nal noise and his pre-eminent, personal promi- nence has agreeably sul)sided. Something has come upon the scene that leveled these bravados and left the atmosphere less offensive. That something is the State. It is the great regulator, the great police. Before than invincible power all social nuisances break down. I am watching its effect on the co-operators closely. .Six days ago society was intolerable from the domination and arrogance of the politician, bull- dozer, liar, slanderer, haters of education, haters of justice, anti-progressionists, and their train of ignorant fools poisoned through and through with the virus of the old element. To-day they have subsided, something bigger has over- whelmed them, our ear^ are no longer afflicted with their insane ravings, insults and disgusting l6o LAST DAYS OF RUSKlN lial)ils and manners ; tlie presence of the Stale lia;> silenced iheni. The pubHcation of the sale of Ruskin fur June 22d has nearly closed off all our income from out- side business. It is now postponed to July 26th. Feeding the people, animals and general expenses burns the candle at both ends. Provisions are nmning low. A cow was sold to buy a barrel of sugar. The members are taking what things they can use from the receiver: hats, shoes, cloth, dry goods, provisions, or anything that may be of utility in the future. There is a general impres- sion that this is all they will ever get. I met a bright, intelligent member in the tailor shop. He was stocking up with cloth for a suit. His residence in the colony has not been over six months and this cloth is all he will ever get for his $500. He looked into my eyes with great earnestness and said, 'T am going now to look for the fellow who has the money, and I must work for him until the end. There is no longer any hope. This is the third colony I have been Ijitten with : Puget Sound, Kaweah, and Ruskin. I have come to the conclusion that man is not yet ready for co-operative life. If I am permitted to come back a thousand years from now and hu- manity is in- shape by that time I may be induced to try it again." It is the seventh day of the receiver. The col- ony is sinking deeper and deeper into gloom. Most of the men and women are unoccupied and listlessly walking about. These people are not THE LAST GASP 1 6 1 creative, and when their ordinary work stops, thev stop. That is the end of them — thev arc dead. Rusk'n has ended in hollow mockery. A travesty on.' socialism. The tale of an idiot that was told, y t money contributed for education by the people wac tossed into that common pile of "the buyer's" and spent by the gang of con- centrated ignorance without the slightest com- punction of conscience. It is well on in the afternoon. Brother Jackson passes. He walks with his head down, very sad and thoughtful. He has lain on a bench m the ])ark since morning without eating, or speaking. He looks haggard. I respected his agony and did not salute him. What an awful review must have passed through his soul. It is impossible to offer consolation to one in his mental state. It would be sacrilege to disturb the sanctity of the deathbed of his hopes. Sympathy would be mock- ery. And so it is all over the colony. The most trivial character is sobered. The swagger of ig- norant impudence has vanished under the sol- emnity of the receiver's overpowering grasp. While every one is serious enough, yet no cal- amity will take the duplicity and cunning out of the politician. I can see those well known indi- viduals drifting together, talking of their differ- ent schemes and plans in undertones. They all have the slink of low cunning in their makeup. These fellows have taken the blind people over the precipice. They are trying to scheme some way out, but it seems too much for them. 1 62 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN I see just now a group of four of these poli- ticians squatted in a fence corner. There are a number of soft-brained fellows standing around hanging on their every look and gesture as though they were gods. The politicians trim their language so as to steer the dupes the way they want them to go. These politicians are plan- ning for some outlook by which they may be able to work the public for more members and more money and drag these simpletons over the precipice again. Will they go with them? Why, yes, most assuredly, as often as they w^ant them. They seem to like to be ruined, because I do not see them consulting or hanging around the wnse men of the colony. The Jeremiahs wdio have warned them in time and prophesied exactly what would come to pass, are ignored. The de- graded wretches who have been representing So- cialism before the world under the banner of Rus- kin. gravitate naturally to their own kind, the disreputable politician. His slimy hyprocrisy is more valued than the golden precepts of God's anointed. We had a meeting of the new organization to try and bring our women into membership. Th€ afternoon w^as spent in discussion with the matter deferred to another meeting. Groups of men and women stood around the cool front of the blufif after the adjournment dis- cussing the matter persistently, but good natur- edly. In the group where 1 stood the conversa- tion turned on the dif^culties of any one carrying out a line of work, or accomplishing anything Till': LAST GASP 163 without being objected to, or having fanh hmntl by some one wiio knew the least about it. The group turned over the various attempts to install industries in Ruskin and found them about all failures. None were succeeding, none paying. "Our shepherd" had been a western sheep- raiser, and a successful one. He said that he could take the thousand acres we have up at old Ruskin, commence with 100 sheep, and make in a short time a paying industry, that would fur- nish us much that we need. He would guarantee to care for 500 sheep with the assistance of his two daughters at lambing time. That would be all the aid he would need. The reason why he does not propose it to the association is because he knows that he would not be allowed to do it without being interfered with. That some one or a committee would un- dertake to direct him in the management of the business, and then he would say, here is your sheep ranch, run it your way. So that it is of no use trying to do anything, because you would not be allowed to carry it out. Another member of the group, collected and looked after the fertilizer for the farm. He was an especially valuable man, and took a great and constant interest in his work, which showed to his credit. He claimed also of being interfered with in many ways. Well, T too have had the same experience. On my introduction to the colony I saw at once thai nothing could be done with the people we had. If anything was accomplished in the way of man- 164 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN ufacturing some legitimate staple articles, as soon as the factory was in working order, it would be taken out of my hands by those who knew noth- ing about the industry, but who had plenty of ig- norance and conceit, and the whole enterprise would be ruined. A number of our people are packing up to go away. They will not stay. They will not join the new Ruskin Commonwealth. They say it is use- less to longer stay here. We have been deluded fools. Have sunk our money, lost our time, are sick with disappointment. Ruined. Have to start again against every disadvantage, are dis- graced, have lost our honor by sharing the crime of permitting the "Coming Nation" to publish those lying colony notes, and deceiving all these people who have come in here to be wrecked with us. We will no longer prostitute our honor by refusing to publicly condemn this infamous practice. We thought that we could down the old corrupt incompetents, but we failed to do so, because of the indifference and apathy of the peo- ple. The deadness of the public mind was what the Grand Old Roman Gracchus feared. That deadness cost him his life. History repeats itself ; we have it here, the people have become insensi- ble, mercenary. Tiiey look for the $500 mem- bership fee now and care nothing about the man. The ethic of life may be classed under the term "ability." What is here meant by ability is, that fjualitication I may possess to do something for you, and you to do something for me. If we THE LAST GASP 1 65 liave no ability \\c can do nothing- for each other and suffer by poverty, misery and obhteration. The idea of abihty carries with it the sense of (hity. Duty to one another. It sup^gests the moral that no one should permit themselves or permit others to reach maturity without acquiring ability to perform the object of our lives on this earth. The more ability we acquire the better we can perform our duties to one another, and the greater satisfaction we can get out of our lives. The idea of ability embraces the whole subject of education from the nursery to the last moment of our existence. In youth every opportunity should be given to build up the ability in as many ways as possible, so as to qualify the indi- vidual's usefulness and to increase civilization. This necessity of possessing abihty brings us into the educational field. We cannot escape it. From birth to death our lives become a school to increase our ability. It involves proximity to the university. The university must be general ; must exist everywhere. No branch of study can be omitted. It embraces the ethic of life in its curriculum. The ethic is, I must accjuirc ability to do my duty to my neighbor. I must c\o unto him as I would have him do unto mc. I must fulfill the object of my being here on this planet by acquiring ability to help my neighbor get the very best satisfaction out of his life that is possi- l)le. and he must acquire ability so as to do the same to me. Although this presentation of the subject is without limit, it is unnecessary to enlarge upon 1 66 I..\ST DAYS OF RUSKIN it. Any mind capable of tliinking at all can see the importance and vast scope of the idea of placing- the ethic of life on our duty to acquire abilit)-, so as to fulfill the object of our existence. It lays the whole moral code open to the compre- hension of the simplest mind. The idea of ability as being the fundamental base by which our relations of duty may be ex- pressed to one another, involves all that can come from education, as well as all that can come from the highest code of ethics. Whatever may be achieved in the attainment of the highest wis- dom, is brought into direct relation to the world more swiftly and permanently by a general edu- cation, which has in view the object of increasing usefulness through ability. From the contemplation of possible, practical methods by which a sensible regeneration of so- ciety can be achieved, we drop thousands of feet into crude Ruskin, where there was no ability except among a helpless few. Where every efifort to accomplish anything intelligent was studiously circumvented by the dominating ignorance^ whose onlv plan v/as to wait for another victim' with $500 and eat him up. Ability patiently wailed, pleaded for opportunity to lay its golden treasures before the brass idol, Ruskin, with feet of clay. Ability was spurned, cast aside, treated with slander and vituperation. Nothing in the way of education and ability could live in Ruskin. There were noble souls who tried it with a Spartan fortitude beyond all comprehension. They beat out their beautiful THE I,AST GASP T67 lives ill trying to do the impossible. Those who eontrolled the destinies of Ruskin were incapable of any improvement. Like the howling mob who killed the great hearted Jesus, these hends in hu- man shape murdered their saviors. In this cold- blooded, snaky community there were no regrets. No sorrow at lost opportunities. The devils part- ed with the feelings of hell in their hearts. Hat- ing themselves and every one with whom they were associated. Hating Ruskin. Hating So- cialism. Hating the beautiful world, sun. moon and stars. All nature was detestable, a night i.f blackness, because they had no ability to live virtuous lives. CHAPTER XI. BABYLON IS FALLEN. And enterprises of great pith and moment, With this design is turned awry, And lose the name of action. — Shakespeare. Riiskin is breaking up. A number of our members have left to work at Cumberland fur- nace. They are to become the wage slaves of a contractor to the furnace company. The job is gettmg out wood for charcoal iron. Many of these men have never done hard manual labor before. One has been twenty-five years at school and five years at bookkeeping.'' Another is a tailor, another a silk weaver, another a pattern- maker, and so on. Not one of them a profes- sional axe man. A perfect rush to get work un- der a contractor. The great, proud co-operators of Ruskin rushing for a miserable chance to slave. They have to walk eighteen miles to get to the job. There are no houses to live in. A tent has been secured. Dugouts and other bunking places may be made in the woods among the ticks and jiggers. vSome boys have gone to cook for them ; a baker has also gone ; they can get waste brick bats at the furnace to put up a bat and mud oven. The comfortable homes are left behind for this BAP.YI.ON TS FALLEN 169 rotigli demoralizing- life. The women and chil- dren are here alone. Fortunately Southern neigh- bors are generous and humane. They are safe here. There is no longer a Ruskin dining room, with its three meals a day. No chance to grab or waste food. No waiting for a new victim with $500. No time to malign and slander noble peo- ple. It is now down to hard-pan and scratch for a living on the barrenest soil of competition. Quite a sudden change. I notice that the leaders did not go. They are not on the warpath for slavery in the woods. These are still in Ruskin lying back comfortably. I5v staying they can receive the benefits of the monev the poor wretches earn, which is to be sent in to the treasury of the new Ruskin Com- monwealth, to be spent by the same old wreck- ers. No more free plays ; brass band concerts in the park ; no dances, lectures, despised schools and insulted professors. The little children will never more see the devoted lady of the kindergarten from whom only they learned manners, skill and the sweet spirit of love and kindness to one an- other. From this on all will be brutality, knock- down and drag out. For amusement, drunken- ness and sensualism. The Iseauty of life tliat of- fered itself freely. The devoted, holy ones \vho offered their lives and talents on the altar of co- operation will no more be seen in the wretched desert of their future lives. Fierce struggle and fatigue will leave no moment for reflection or re- 170 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN gret. It will be the sea of despair until the bitter end. A tithe of this struggle would have brought peace and comfort at Ruskin. The easily ob- tained food and comforts enabled the ignorant and vicious Ruskinites to devote their time to villifying and slander. To abusing others who were trying to do something and to pulling down the temple on their own heads. The receiver had generouslv given the people who have formed the new organization (that is to be) permission to carry on the 4th of July cele- bration at the caves. The largest crowd ever known here was present. Over $500 was cleared. This went into the treasury of the new Ruskin Commonwealth. "Our buyer" is to take a trip at once to St. Louis, from that to Chicago, to look up new sites. This will get rid of some of the $500. He is trving to issue bonds. Bonds for the Socialists. Oh ! "Coming Nation," where are your objections to bondholders now? This, the rest claim, is his own independent move. Not authorized. That makes no difference to him. Go ahead and bond the Socialists, anyhow. We learned this from a party who was nearly victim- ized for one thousand dollars. Well, it's sickening, the quiet of our little cot- tage with the gurgling brook at the door, and the sweet throated birds and cooing doves that v,'elcome us at break of day. will last a few days longer. Then the shark, the speculator, will buy up our grand plant and we must grieve for that P.ARYI.ON TS FATJ.EN T7T saddest of all sad lliin.i;-s. "what nii-lu luivc been." We think uf how the industries were retarded and destroyed. How the printery was wreckefl by the sale'of the job press. Our principal indus- try killed. How we had to refuse work because we had no press. How it hurt us with our friends and customers. No reason ever given, no excuse for looting the printery. No reckoning ever de- manded by the poor simple people, who took everything as being all right ; even ruin was all right. And you could tell them (as "our buyer" di-I) that the receiver was a great blessing, and they would believe it. We think of how the power house was botched. How the boiler furnace was erected, that devas- tated the vv'ood of the whole country and cost thousands of dollars to keep it going. Of the waste, extravagance and dead expense of the steam-heating and machine plant. Enough spent in clumsy guesswork, ignorance and folly to have inaugurated one of the finest outfits. When we think of the botches of buildings, the waste of labor and material and see the broken- backed, cut and fit results, it makes us sick. When we look at our suspender business and our cofTee business run down to nothing, about dead, while more enterprising people have taken the trade from us. Our expensive chicken plant and business failed, did not pay, sold out, all gone but the buildings, it makes us heave a sigh. When we think of the spinning machinery given us, lying rusting, no place to put it, no en- 172 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN terprise to put it in motion; of the planing mill outfit costing $1,500, going to ruin at Old Rus- kin, for over four years. Of the steam laundry failure. The loom I built last year to coax the weaving industry to start, lying rotting, also dead. Of the lime kiln idle while we suffer for lime. Of the dead enterprise of the brick vard. Of the expensive improvements, gardens and or- chards. Of the dead college buildings. The foundation of one wing incomplete, the lumber l}'ing warped and rotting on the site. What vis- ions of the past, what visions of the hoped for future rise in my mind. The anticipated bril- liant center of learning that was to have shed its light by this time, another failure. The polished corner-stone laid with such solemnity by the ^lasonic order, exposed, and strangers playing with the deposits and records at pleasure. When we think of the nearly $900 the good people con- tributed to the college fund, that was thrown into the cash pile as it came in, and spent at random with- the rest of the pile, ^\'llen we think of how "the financier" schemed and planned to prevent the college ever maturing; did not want educa- tion ; Ruskin must be an onion-raising colony. How "our preacher" joined him in a crusade against education. Of the impossibility of intro- ducing that saving grace "par excellence," the industrial school, with its arts and trades, and endless blessings, that is making many communi- ties and whole cities a paradise of industry and happiness. It makes us sick — sick — sick. When we think of the attempt to make a road I'.AHYl.ON IS FALLEN 173 along the solid limestone blnff, out of debris and solid quarrying ; it is left unfinished ; never will be now. It might be made a good road if the United States government would put the money into it. Our persistent buyer was told that at first. He plunged ahead, being one of the old element he was allowed to do it. There it is, an- other monument. A petty store clerk, handling an engin.eering job. The solid men who did know had to stand back and look at the ruin go on. Another illustration of small men trying to do big business. When wc think of the extensive gardens from which we get no vegetables, planted in nursery slock largely, flowers and late vegetables ; the foreman doing as he pleases while three hundred people are suffering now in the middle of July, and scarcely a green in sight, while the natives and negrofes have had them since February and March. None for us under co-operation ruled by the old charter stock. The poor creatures of people growl, but the thing goes on just the same, and whatever these incompetents say or do, the driveling majority endorses. It is better to stop the endless list here, and omit the wrecked lives of youth that have missed this golden opportunit}' for education. It is bet- ter to draw the veil over the infamy of the poli- ticians who worked with the cunning of serpents against all advancement, all improvement, and who at last l:)rought Ruskin to wreck :\u(] niin in five years and four months. We shall soon have a deserted villag"e. A scene 174 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN of desolation. Serpents and wild animals will inhabit the homes of the foolish Ruskin people. "Our shepherd's" house was the first one built on Lhe hill. 'It is occupied by his family. He is working away somewhere. He was one of the principals in alienating the people. Of produc- ing that estrangement. That stand-off. That separation which ended in suspicion, gossip and lying about one another. He believed in a Caesar. He had no use for the people. He possesed great depth of cunning and held office from first to last under all administrations and all parties. He was badly raked once or twice on his record, which was tainted with defense of anarchists and free-lovers. It hit him hard. So he just kept quiet until it blew over, when he was as solid as ever with the poor, simple people. A sample of his cunning is appended in the report on temper- ance. Observe the dodger: "In regard to members of the association found intoxicated, your committee is a luiit in wishing to suppress the evil * * * but '■' * ''' knowing that all past legislation along this line has been a failure, we do not care to recommend the usual methods, and not being able to suggest new or better ones * * * we recommend that a meeting be called at an early date to consider this important question, and see if the combined wisdom of the new civilization cannot find a new and better way to attack this great evil than any yet advanced. Respectfully, "Committee." BABYLON IS FALLEN 175 When \vc think of the children's Httlc flower and vegetable garden. It stands empty. Not a plant, not a flower put in it by the little tots this year. The spring was wet and late, but it could have been dug up with a little management. The new school superintendent was a very impracti- cal man, no ideas of executing work, or of plan- ning it. The kindergarten ladies could not do it themselves and repeated applications to the exec- utive officers failed of practical results. Poor children, they are running wild, like rabbits. We are now by the court forbidden to run the schools, and their little garden that was last year a place of interest and beauty, is a desert of weeds. Every thing going — going — gone to the dogs. Again — small men trying to run a big business. Two years ago we had the theater and the ball- room in fine shape. A good brass band and an orchestra. No visitor who ever came into Rus- kin danced as well as our young people. The physical development classes helped them won- derfully. Things were working up in good shape towards culture and improvement, and hope for our ideal was burning brightly. A little while before the smash-up the ignorant majority had culminated the decadence that set in after the Free Love fight. The dance had become a mob of howling dervishes. The orchestra was broken up. A country fiddler furnished the music. A tough was in command. Some of the native toughs were worked in. Floor battering and yelling drowned the fiddler. The girls were swung oflf their feet and men fell on the floor in 176 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN the wild melee. Terrible would be a mild term to describe the disorder. The ignorant majority could not be better than its parts. When left to itself it only increases its disorder and vulgarity. The large portrait of Shakespeare looked down from the proscenium above the stage on this maniacal co-operative joint and John Ruskin from the other end of the hail. A dream of sub- tropical landscape, with banks of flowers that glowed with light. Ideal palaces and cultured people painted on the large drop curtain that shut off the stage, richly decorated bronze columns that doubled up the proscenium supporting a lovely Corinthian architrave and embracing art trophied panels with damasked grounds, looked sadly incongruous with the disgusting scene on the waxed floor of the great hall. These elegant attractions, produced by the hands of one man animated by a pure Socialist spirit, had great influence on visitors to the col- ony who sought the man's acquaintance and, find- ing his manners and conversation attractive, paid him unusual attention. In time this created a feeling of jealousy among those who lived by pretence and politics. These adopted the natural plan of secretly undermining the man who had so generously used his accomplishments to sur- round them with the only embellishments of re- finement they had ever seen or possessed. Their devilish policy was carried out with the ignorant majority to the complete destruction of them- selves and a return to the horrors of their desolate BUST OF JOHN RUSKIN. BABYLON IS FALLEN 1 7/ original state, where no ray of civilized lite will ever again penetrate the desert of their lives. "Our buyer" has returned from the crowd of wrecked Ruskinites who are working at Cumber- land furnace. Things were getting hot for him around here, so he struck out for the furnace. Did not stay long. A large group of members who are going to Georgia are gathered in the park. "Our bi.yer" joins them. Soon a commo- tion begins. He is being accused by the peo- ])le. They are mad. Seriously mad. They call him "a thief." He backs out from the crowd, saying, "If I am a thief, I had better leave Rus- kin." He did next morning. Abandoned the hope of the ages. "Sic transit gloria mundi." When Mark Twain wrote "Innocents Abroad" the New World laughed at the civil and religious absurdities of Europe. Many of us who knew them more intimatelv than Mark laughed be- cause he did not tell them fully. Mark feared being considered a Baron Munchausen. The psyschological state of the public mind requires the truth to be fixed into what Greelev used to call "a fl^p daddle for fools." Many prefer a po- litical, or religious lie. If T was to tell the pub- lic that our injunctionist editor and an iron moulder who wished to discredit the fine por- trait of John Ruskin which hung in our hall and was painted by their enemy, by circulating a re- port among the ignorant mob that it had five fin- gers and a thmnb on one hand ; that the mob be- lieved it and never looked at the portrait that hung over their heads to find out the truth, t!ie 178 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN public would nut beliexc it. il would not go down. Shut thcni up in Ruskin for a few years and they won't need telling. "Experience is the best teacher." Those who still think that the hu- manity of the post tertiary epoch can be harmon- ized with the humanity of the reptilian, era would resent such a statement as a rude shock to their idilliums. The women have turned in to bring har- monious conditions in the colony by mental sci- ence meetings, which they keep up persistently every evening. "When the devil was sick, the devil a monk would be, When the devil got well, the devil a monk was he." How like a church service it is in the school- house. Even the mockers at religion treat it re- spectfully. They open with singing, then a long silent sit, concentrating the mind on our miseries more than brotherly love. So one of the ladies informed me. It is like a quaker meeting. They close with singing the ''golden rule," to the tune of "Auld Lang Syne." Very nice indeed. Quite different to sitting around the stoops of the vari- ous headquarters for scandal and each one trying to run everybody's business and their own too. The effect is good. It is a pity we did not have a receiver all along for the last five years. We would have been monks and nuns by this time. I wonder if we would be good if fear was abol- BABYLON IS FALLEN 1/9 ished. If out of punislmicnl we must get our evo- lution, it would be well to organize a department of government eomposed of receivers. We would then be scared into singing the '"golden rule'' all the time. Queer they did not think of mental science before Ruskin burst up. Before the An- archy and Free Love schism. Before the print- erv was looted. Before the begging letters and the blaze in the "Coming Nation" of how we were going to do up the injunctionists at the sale. The judge would not then have had the evidence of our periidy, and have put on the receiver. It would have been a good plan to practice mental science on the Executive Board before they spent our money. To have given the Presi- dent a dose to remind him to pay the v$i,500 we lost on the planing mill law suit and not have had the Sheriff on us. To have worked it on them so that the mortgage on the Smith farm would not have to be extended. We might have worked it on building the college and the industrial school for the unfortunate children. Stables are generally locked after the horse is stolen. Old Janus had two faces — one looked behind on what had been done — on the experi- ence of the past ; the other looked ahead for breakers. His mental science was of a good kind, it kept receivers ofif him. The colony is awfully quiet. There is no one here to make a noise except the women and chil- dren. No one is annoyed with work. There is the peace of deadness. Nothing to disturb us. No one to upset things. No one to burst our pile I So LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN except the receiver. We dare not fuss with him. ]\Iental science will get the credit of the quiet condition. Let it have it. That's all right. The women have quieted down with mental science and singing the "golden rule"' for har- mony. This song they learned from the heavenly little kindergarten and the refined lady who had their little tots like little angels when within its sacred influence. The children are now running the gravel beds and woods by day and spanking around wild at nights, learning no good. They don't need mental science. It will be time enough when they grow up to be sturdy, dangerous Anarchists and Free Love fighters. Regular pen- itentiary birds. Then the mothers can meet nights and practice mental science to reform them. We have to go by the conditions. These are the conditions. We make them. After we have made them, in our grief we shed tears and huddle together to cure the trouble by mental science. The most prominent mothers at the mental sci- ence job just now have the worst children. Well, better that than nothing, I suppose. The receiver goes on all the same. It doesn't stop him a bit, and the injunctionists are helping him to get our stuff together to sell it out next week. I hope the women will be on hand at the sale to practice mental science on the bidders and get us a good price, so that we will get some- thing out of it for next winter's food, clothing and fuel, for they won't take mental science around here in the stores for groceries. BABYLON IS FALLEN l8l God bless the women ! They are doing the best they know. Do not for a moment imagine that our women are noi up to the standard of' other women of their type. They, on the average, outclass the men. There arc people here sharing this disgrace, whose personal virtues command the highest respect and admiration. Unfortu- nately, they are in a small minority. One of the most important lessons, after show- ing the incapacity of the uneducated proletariat to organize or sustain a condition of society giv- ing any security or advancement, is : Do the mis- fortunes that happen to this class of people result in any beneficial lesson by which they may profit ? This point has been watched closely in the socio- logical study of Ruskin, and the conclusion is positively, no ! They do not. There is not suffi- cient intelligence to realize the seriousness of the disaster. The pinch is felt, like a starved animal ; but- the least variation in it in the way of relief, brings forward the same traits of impudence, tyranny and cruelty as before, as shown in the new organization that went to Georgia. Two years wiped them out. Educated minds make the mistake of attribut- ing virtues to the uneducated which they do not possess ; which they cannot possess ; virtues de- veloped only by education. Tolstoi says that Christ's teachings have been turned away for political ])urposes, so as to keep the toiling masses trained in superstitious obedi- ence, the better to exploit them. He is ratlier late in the day with this annotmcement. Social- 1 82 LAST DAYS OF RUSKIN ists and pure religionists have been preaching that for a long time. The "new conscience" is rile best evidence that an extensive change has come in social ideas. Society is turning. Tolstoi thinks that no economic arrangements such as we had in Ruskin will turn it. That we must go back to the original Christ and mdividually im- prove each heart and conscience. Who is to blame for the stupidity of the masses? If th^y were not stupid no one could exploit them, or would they wreck a first-class chance such as they had in Ruskin, or fight like fiends in the new organization that went to Duke, Ga., until the last vestige was destroyed and then go to work making berry crates for an employer of convict labor alongside of convicts — a fate worse.'than the Cumberland furnace slavery, after the srtiashup in Tennessee. Poor Tolstoi is ex- communicated. As Burns says of Tarn O'Shan- ter : "In hell they'll roast thee like a herring."' No wonder that the church is dead. The wreck of individual lives and whole families that fol- lowed the tragedy of Ruskin cannot be given here. A Zola could not picture its horrors. Dis- persement, moral debasement, death and insanity resulted. Many of the survivors maintain a pre- carious existence worse than death. Disease in the swamps of South Georgia swept them awav. or to the grave, like flies. Homes exist no more. The cherished ideal of restful conditions is a fading dream and the idealists are Boating like BARVr.ON IS FALLEN T83 bubbles on ihe ocean of life, soon "to rise and break and to that sea return." As 1 was leaving the sad scenes of Ruskin's downfall, where the ignorant, self-destroyed vic- tims were standing around in groups, cursing their unhappy fate and accusing one another, a group of little kindergarten children were play- ing on the platform of the abandoned photograph gallery. With a different spirit than their elders, they ran to bid me good bye, with dozens of arms about my neck they kissed me and left their sacred tears upon my face. —FINIS— University of California SOUTHERfJ REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY 305 De Uewe Drive - Parking Lot 17 • Box 951388 LOS ANGELES. CALIFORNIA 90095-1388 Return this material to the library from v/hich it was borrowed. ll|l|lll|llll|lll||IMIIIIlllllllllnii,i, 3 1205 00198 7609 :^^ UC SOUTHERN REGIONAL L AA 000 791 808