USA > Massachusetts > Suffolk County > Boston > The memorial history of Boston : including Suffolk County, Massachusetts. 1630-1880, Vol. IV > Part 41
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1 The question here naturally occurs, how much Mr. Ripley owed to the theories and writ- ing of Charles Fourier, who had written so largely on the subject of associated life and industry. So far as we learn, it would seem he was ac- quainted with Fourier's theories through the writ- ings of Albert Brisbane, one of his zealous disci- VOL. IV. - 40.
ples and expounders in this country, but not with the works of Fourier himself till sometime later, and after being settled at Brook Farm. At any rate he did not at first adopt in their full extent the ideas or system of Fourier, his own notions on the subject being far less systematic and doc- trinaire, so to speak.
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THE MEMORIAL HISTORY OF BOSTON.
another man's loss, and the necessities of which make it the interest of each to get away from others, and to appropriate to himself as large a share as possible of this world's goods, - a condition of things seemingly so con- trary to the spirit of Christian brotherhood. Consequently a mode of life was desired, and even anticipated with more or less confidence by different persons, according to character or mental bias, in which this evil condition of the relations of society might be corrected.
The views and feelings we have thus attempted to indicate, and which so readily suggest themselves to the thoughtful and humane, seem to have lain at the bottom of the movement, and most of those attracted to it shared more or less in them; but, besides these, there were various other consid- erations inciting to an interest in the enterprise and a wish to take part in it. The idea of a pleasant social life, with congenial society, somewhat free from burdensome conventions, moved some. Then there was the idea of a life of mingled physical and intellectual labor, as more proper and health- ful, combined with the notion that exclusive occupation in one or the other is unfavorable to mental and bodily health, and that the alternation of the two, as it is the duty and benefit of all, is also the right and privilege of all. Other considerations were those of the economies of a united house- hold of several families, - economies of fuel and labor, and of the appa- ratus for cooking, washing, agricultural uses, etc. Among those drawn to it there were some, who, willing to work, were yet indisposed to the struggle for existence in civilized society, or who in the struggle had been unsuc- cessful. Young women, too, who had found no sphere suited to their taste, culture, or capabilities, hailed the opportunity of a home and a support, in return for work they were willing and glad to give, in conditions of society agreeable to their tastes and character. Some were mainly attracted by the agricultural feature, to whom the cultivation of the soil, as the most primitive and natural, seemed also the most innocent and agreeable, form of industry, and Mr. Ripley himself took much interest in this aspect.
These various considerations and feelings were mingled in different pro- portions in the different individuals, and had their influence; and they were perhaps more or less shared as motives by all who came with thought and reflection to the enterprise. If it may seem that most of the thoughts and feelings adopted and proclaimed with so much enthusiasm and empha- sis are quite commonplace, indeed mere platitudes, it should be considered that since then the mind of society has made progress in democratic ideas; and may we not believe that this, too, is due in some degree to the zeal with which they were adopted and proclaimed at that time? It should be considered, too, that this was an attempt to give substantial form and em- bodiment to these thoughts and feelings. Mr. Ripley, who was of a sanguine temperament, with remarkable power of quick perception and rapid appre- hension, when this matter of associative industry as a remedy for the ills of society was brought to his mind, was seized with the idea of some form of community, some mode of life in association and of co-operative industry,
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which might secure better conditions for humanity. Finding a number of persons disposed to sympathize, either practically or theoretically, with his views and hopes, he went forward with an ardor very inspiring to those who came in contact with him. He threw himself with enthusiastic and disinter- ested zeal into his plans and schemes, worked long and generously, amid many discouragements, with unselfish and never-failing devotion for their accomplishment and success. While under these influences the opportunity of securing a farm which seemed to offer various advantages for trying his experiment induced him to take it. This property was situated in West Roxbury, now a part of Boston, and touched on the towns of Dedham and Newton. It consisted of about two hundred acres, part of it rocky and not very fertile land; part an extensive meadow, reaching to and border- ing on Charles River, which was mainly its Dedham boundary. There was on the farm a pleasant old family mansion, on rising ground or sort of knoll, along which, and winding through the meadow till it reached the river, was a lively brook, whence the farm had its name, and which to the younger people was a source of amusement and pleasure, as they wandered along its banks or trapped the wild game of its neighborhood. The near- ness of the farm to the city was an advantage in several ways, as for instance affording a market for its products. It was, too, an attraction to some not yet entirely emancipated from the benefits and charms of that civilization which, theoretically, seemed so full of evils ; for it should be considered that of those who were early members of the family there were quite a number who had enjoyed many of the advantages and luxuries of civilization and high culture. There was the hope, however, that in time it would not be necessary to go so far to seek those delights of music, art, etc., which on the true theory of life in association were to find place and cultivation among themselves.
A small company, - the pioneers in the work, -first planted them- selves on the ground early in April, 1841. Among those who thus began the work were Mr. and Mrs. Ripley, and Miss Marianne Ripley, his sister, who had had a school for young children in Boston, some of whom she brought with her. She made a separate family with them in a small house near the farm; and, in the rather fanciful nomenclature adopted, this was called the Nest, as the principal house was named the Hive.1
Mrs. Ripley, who was of an energetic and enthusiastic temperament, entered very heartily into the views and plans of her husband, and was always a prominent person in the conduct of affairs. She threw herself with zeal and efficiency into the various departments in which she could
1 Mr. Warren Burton, who had been a cler- gyman, and an author of some small books, accompanied them. He however did not remain long. Hawthorne also came at the beginning, or very early. There were a few who had had some experience in farming, and whose knowl- edge and skill were highly esteemed in the gen- eral lack of this accomplishment. Mr. William
Allen, a young farmer from Vermont, had in some way become interested in the idea. This was one of the pet phrases. He afterward married, and brought his wife, and continued some time at the farm. Mr. Frank Farley, who is still liv- ing, had had also some experience in farming at the West. Several young women were also there, of marked character and intelligence.
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THE MEMORIAL HISTORY OF BOSTON.
take part; especially that of teaching, for which she was so well qualified by her knowledge and previous experience.1 Besides the principal persons and workers, there were a number of young persons who were here mainly for education, but who sometimes took part in the farm and other work, not always in the most efficient way. There were in the community first and last a large number of such young persons, as many of the principal mem- bers were well qualified to give instruction by previous experience, or by their knowledge in different departments. There were also, much of the time, a number of boarders, attracted by the agreeable society, by the pleasant situation, or by sympathy with the idea and mode of life. This appendage of the school and boarders, though not strictly in accordance with the idea of the community life, was taken advantage of to furnish the necessary means for the first starting of the experiment and carrying it on in its early stages, toward which the proceeds of the farm would not have gone far.
And we may here say something of the ways and means of meeting the expenses, and providing for the wants of the company. The food was fur- nished either from the products of the farm, or was purchased. The neces- sary funds came from the sale of the farm products, or from other sources indicated above. The clothing of those properly to be reckoned members was also provided for in a similar way, and set off against services of one kind or another. This for the most part could be afforded at a somewhat reduced rate, the material being purchased in quantity, and made up among themselves by those who brought the requisite skill and practice with them, -for in this microcosm a considerable variety of occupations and in- dustries was represented. The school was an important source of income; and this was continued till the end, or nearly so, of the existence of the association. Some of the pupils took part in the work, and thus defrayed a portion of the expense of board, etc. There were always a large number of young persons, scholars, boarders, etc., and this led to a considerable mingling of amusement of various kinds. Moreover, some of the company had a special skill in arranging and directing this element. We may in this connection remark that a prominent feature of the life was the opportunity given for the exercise of divers gifts and faculties; and the way in which
1 She has recently been very favorably and justly noticed in some articles on Brook Farm in the Atlantic Monthly, by Miss Amelia Russell, since deceased, who was herself a long time a member of the association, and was a zealous, active, and valuable co-worker. There were also some young women who were there partly for education, or drawn there by some other con- sideration. Later than this, but in the course of the first summer, came Charles A. Dana, now editor of the New York Sun. With the ardor of youth, and bringing fresh from Harvard, where he had been a student, the latest improvements in scholarly lore, he embraced the ideas and
modes of operation of the enterprise with zeal and systematic energy, and long filled an impor- tant place as teacher, worker, counsellor, and director. In the course of the first summer, too, came Minot Pratt, with his family. He had been a printer, but was attracted by sympathy and interest in the mode of life, as well as by a taste for agriculture, which he retained until his death, a few years since. He was a man of singular purity and uprightness of character, simplicity of taste, and great intelligence. He was in many ways a valuable member, and for a long time had the chief direction of the farm- ing operations.
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PHILOSOPHIC THOUGHT IN BOSTON.
they may be easily and naturally brought into play is one of the claims of the theory of association. There were amusements suited to the different seasons, - tableaux, charades, dances; in the winter, skating and coasting, for which the knolls, wide meadows, and river afforded favorable opportu- nities ; in summer, rural fêtes, masquerades, etc., in the charming localities, rocks, and woods around the place.
A great charm of the life was the free and natural intercourse for which it gave opportunity, and the working of the elective affinities, which here had more full play; so that while a kindly feeling was the general spirit of the family, little groups of friends, drawn together in closer relations by taste and sympathy, soon declared themselves. By most who were there the life was felt to be very charming. The relief from the fetters and burdensome conventions of society, from the
" greetings where no kindness is, and all The dreary intercourse of daily life,"
was a constant delight to those who had suffered from them in the artificial arrangements and forms of society. At the same time the relief and pleas- ures of solitude were not wanting, as the taste that might lead any to with- draw to the solitude of the woods or of their own rooms was respected. There was for a long time a large infusion of romantic feeling and enthusiasm, es- pecially among the younger and more inexperienced, who knew nothing of the embarrassment of providing ways and means. Nor was this enthusiasm confined to these. There was something of the " tête montée " pervading to a great extent the company, and of the feeling expressed in the verse of Virgil, -
" Magnus ab integro sæclorum nascitur ordo."
And if in some instances there was a slight falsetto tone, at the same time there was a great deal of genuine faith in the idea; and a conviction ob- tained that such a life was in many respects a truer and better as well as a happier one than that of the unfortunates who, according to the current phraseology, were still in civilization, - which was a word of somewhat sin- ister import in the Brook Farm community. Among the less wise and thoughtful there was indeed carried to a silly exaggeration a pity for the civilisées. Notwithstanding all this, justice should be done to the feeling of the more wise and thoughtful in entering upon and going through the enter- prise. This, we think, those well acquainted with them would bear witness was for the most part simple; and, though colored with an enthusiasm which seemed exaggerated to many, was without that special consciousness and pretension with which they were charged.
The agricultural feature was always a very important one, and of great interest to many of the company, to whom its various aspects and phases were a novelty. Hawthorne, who was there during most of the first summer, and also part of the following winter, was an efficient and stalwart worker in this department, and found amusement in his apprenticeship to some parts
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THE MEMORIAL HISTORY OF BOSTON.
of the farm work, - as milking, etc., and especially, for a long time, in the pleasant operations of hay-making, which was an important part in conse- quence of the extensive meadows. He was attracted thither, as we under- stood, by the hope of an opportunity of leading a life more in conformity with his tastes and feelings than was possible in the common arrangements of society, and also of uniting successfully manual with intellectual work. But we think he was disappointed in this, and found it not easy to combine writing with severe bodily toil; and as the former was so manifestly his vo- cation, he gave up the farm work in the course of the first summer, and though he remained there for some time longer, it was as a boarder, not a worker. The younger people had, as usual, their admirations and worships; and Hawthorne was eminently fitted to be one of these, partly by the pres- tige of his reputation, but more in consequence of a real appreciation of his genius as a writer, as well as from the impression made by his remarkable and fine personal appearance and by his whole bearing. He was shy in his ways; and though he mingled with the rest of. the company in the even- ing gatherings in the hall or parlor of the Hive, he was silent and apparently self-absorbed, but no doubt carefully observing as was his wont, and finding material for his writing.1 There was something about him, however, that attracted, notwithstanding this reserve.
In process of time new arrangements were found necessary to accom- modate the increasing numbers. The original mansion-house, the Hive, was enlarged by successive additions; and then, with the further increase of numbers, the Eyrie, and afterward the Cottage and the Pilgrim House, were added. Later, some workshops for the exercise of several new branches of industry were erected, - among these, shoemaking, though never on a large scale; the manufacture of Britannia ware, lamps, teapots, etc .; carpenters' rules; carpentry; sash and blind making. The most profitable work, we are informed, was that of the farm, and branches connected with it, - like the nursery, and the business of the trees and greenhouse.
As to compensation, the principle was to apportion it in general to the number of hours, and also to the difficulty and disagreeableness of the kind of work. This was received in the form of board, clothing, and divi- dends on labor. Compensation was also allowed for extra work.
At the beginning the arrangements were quite simple, and the organiza- tion slight; but the tendency was constantly to a more scientific form, according to the principles of Fourier, especially after the scheme had attracted some of his professed disciples and students. It was the aim and hope to have it eventually organized and conducted wholly on that system ; though (perhaps from want of sufficient numbers) this was never thoroughly
1 In his Blithedale Romance, which was the fruit of his experience here, in order to deepen the shadows of his picture he avails himself of a most painful and tragic incident, which did not
occur here, but elsewhere. Some of the Brook Farmers were sorry to have anything so ghastly connected with what for them had, for the most part, pleasant and beautiful associations.
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PHILOSOPHIC THOUGHT IN BOSTON.
carried out.1 The last building, the Phalanstery, was arranged in some measure in conformity with these principles. It was on a large scale, and had many suites of apartments for different families, but was destroyed by fire before completion. The institution thus suffered a loss from which it never recovered, and finally came to an end in the fall of 1847, about
1 There had been at earlier stages some state- ments of the plan, but the final formulating of their intents appears in a constitution dated May 1, 1845, in the introduction to which are these words, which show a more sanguine con- fidence, after about four years' actual experience, and more hope of realizing their expectations, than is commonly supposed to have existed : " We have laid the foundation, and now stand ready to rear the superstructure, which will ap- proach more nearly the ideal of human society than any that has ever existed, -a society which will establish justice between all interests and all men; which will guarantee education, right to labor, and the rights of property to all; and which, by actual demonstration of a state of things every way better and more advantageous, will put an end to the great evils which at pres- ent burden even the most fortunate classes. What we have already been able to accomplish ought to give weight to our words. We speak not from abstract conviction, but from experi- ence; as men of practical common-sense, hold- ing in our hands the means of escape from the present conditions of society, and from that more frightful state to which in all countries it is hurrying."
The preamble reads thus : "In order more effectually to promote the great purposes of human culture, ... to substitute a system of brotherly love for one of selfish competition, . . . to guarantee to each other forever the means of physical support and spiritual prog- ress, etc., we unite, etc."
Its principles may be thus summarized : " The Government. - It shall be vested in a Gen- eral Council which shall consist of four branches, viz .: first, a Council of Industry ; second, a Council of Finance; third, a Council of Science; fourth, a President, who together with a chair- man of each of the foregoing councils shall constitute a General Council. Organization of Labor .- The labor of the Phalanx shall be ar- ranged in Groups and Series, as far as practica- ble, according to the system of Charles Fourier. Groups. - A group is a little company of from three to twenty persons, engaged in some special division of labor or study. In this sphere it gov- erns and is responsible ; it makes its rules, and decides upon the management of its own opera- tions. In it the highest talent of its members for its particular duty is called out. Series. - The different groups, engaged in divisions of the same employment, are united into a higher
combination called a Series, which, through its proper officers, governs and is responsible in that department. These again are concentrated in the Councils of Industry and Science, which have a like power and responsibility .* Division of Profits. - The striking features of this, and which are especially in contrast with the usual arrangements of civilized society, are, first, that the net profits after all general expenses are paid are to be divided, one third to Capital and two thirds to Labor ; second, that the two thirds allotted to Labor shall be distributed so that the labor of the Class of Necessity shall receive the highest dividend, labor of the class of Use- fulness a medium dividend, and labor of the Class of Attractiveness the lowest dividend, - i.e., that the necessary and important, which at the same time may be the most disagreeable and repulsive, shall receive the highest dividend. The General Council. - This shall classify all labor, according to its necessity, its usefulness, or its attractiveness, and with reference to the promotion of Social Harmony; and this classifi- cation may be varied from time to time, so as to prevent an excess of laborers in any branch of industry, and secure the performance of the labor required."
A distinction should not be overlooked be- tween the earlier and later periods of this experi- ment. The first was one of much generous enthusiasm, with somewhat vague feelings of humanity, and of hope for better and more humane conditions of life; and this was com- bined with the undefined and unsystematic way in which it was attempted to carry out the ideas that prompted the movement. The later was a more mature period, when the more scientific and systematic forms of organization were gradu- ally approximated and introduced. The first phase was more agreeable to some of the zeal- ous first-comers.
* We would remark, for the information of those un- acquainted with the subject, that the groups and series, etc., are important and characteristic features of the system and nomenclature of Fourier. [Octavius B. Frothingham's Transcendentalism in New England, Boston, 1876, gives at full length, p. 159, the constitution of the Brook Farm community. The literature of the subject is somewhat scattered. See the paper on their "Home-Life" in the Atlantic Monthly, 1878 ; also the number for May, 1866, p. 565. Other estimates and glimpses can be found in Greeley's Recollections of a Busy Life ; the various sketches of Hawthorne, including M. D. Conway's intro- duction to the English edition of Hawthorne's Note-books, and in general the reviews of The Blithedale Romance ; Dixon's New America ; Noyes's American Socialisms. -ED.]
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THE MEMORIAL HISTORY OF BOSTON.
six years after it began. Pecuniary difficulties in conducting it, we pre- sume, may be stated as the main cause of its failure and of the necessity for its abandonment.
Most of the time there were no religious observances by the association as such,1 as many of the inmates attended Theodore Parker's church, or others in the neighborhood, while some went to Boston. At one time, however, there were religious services conducted by William H. Channing, or other clergymen who may have been present. Also for a considerable period meetings were held in Boston on Sunday; and these, too, were gen- erally conducted by Mr. Channing, and often had reference to the doc- trines of association, in which he was much interested.
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An important point to be noted in the history of this movement was the publication of a journal called the Harbinger, to advocate the principles of association. The first number is dated June 14, 1845. It was contin- ued for several years, and was first printed at Brook Farm, afterward at New York. In the manifesto of the first number we find its object thus stated : " It is proposed to publish a weekly newspaper for the examina- tion and discussion of the great questions in social science, politics, and the arts which command the attention of all believers in the progress and elevation of humanity, . .. and to be devoted to the cause of a radical, organic social reform, as essential to the highest development of man's nature. .. . The principles of universal unity, as taught by Charles Fourier, in their application to society, we believe are at the foundation of all gen- uine social progress; and it will be our aim to discuss and defend these principles. ... The social reform, of which the signs are everywhere visi- ble, comprehends all others." This journal, which was conducted with zeal and ability, is important as showing the faith, earnestness, and seriousness of purpose, as well as hopeful confidence, which the advocates of associa- tion had in the truth and ultimate success of their principles. Besides the special subject of association, the Harbinger embraced a variety of other topics, particularly in relation to matters of art. The musical articles occupy much space, and were mainly written by John S. Dwight; and these were in · the sense and spirit of his other writings on the subject, characterized by warm and discriminating zeal in advocating and expounding the highest forms of musical art, and instructing and elevating the public taste. Mr. Dwight was himself, with other members of his family, a long time at Brook Farm, and had direction of the musical department.2
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