Columbia (BmbnSiiu 
 
 i n tb r flip uf Jl pui Pi>rfc 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
 1084 Congress ot Advanced 
 Day, Friday, May 15th [1857] : Address of 
 Robert Owen to the Advanced Minds of the 
 Statesmen of ^the World, a long narrow 
 broadsheet, with accompanying broadsheet 
 of Resolutions, 2 sheets, very rare, 15a 
 __ f i [1857] 
 
 1083 Congress of Advanced Minds, Seventh 
 Day, Tuesday, May 9th [1857] : Address of BRARY OF ECONOMICS 
 Robert Owen to tne various Distributors of 
 Wealth, from the most tp the least extensive 5Y the UNIVERSITY 
 in Business Operations,^'a broadsheet, double 
 columns, demy folio, rjire . [1857] 9 2 9 
 
 1076 Address of Robert Owen to the Pro¬ 
 ducers of Wealth, Employers, and Em- 
 ldyed, a broadsheet, demy folio, 12s 6d 
 fc [1857] , 
 
 One of tfte rare broadside addresses to the Con* I 
 gress of Advanced Minds. 
 
 075 Address of R. Owen to the Advanced 
 Minds pf those who desire to Change Govern¬ 
 ments tp become Republics of the Individual 
 Principle of Society, printed on two demy 
 folio sheets, 4 columns, 12s 6d [1857] 
 
 One of the rare broadside addresses to the Con¬ 
 gress of Advanced Minds. 
 
 1079 Announcement to the Population of the 
 World, or that which is to arise gradually 
 ^ by the Natural Progress of the Development 
 s of the Rational Fa&lties of Mankind before 
 the Termination of the Present Century, a 
 long folio broadsheet Address, ending with 
 the words “My Mission is ended,” rare, 
 
 15s / . 
 

 / 
 
 / 
 
 ft 
 
 I 
 
 / 
 
 I 
 
 % 
 
 I 
 
 
 
 \ 
 
 I 
 
 
 
 
 r •/ 
 
 
 \ 
 
 / 
 
 V 
 
 
 
 
 I 
 
 f «* 
 
 ! 
 
 
 
 ft 
 
 ft 
 
 V 
 
ROBERT OWEN’S CONGRESS OF ADVANCED 
 MINDS. 
 
 Third day. Friday , May \M. St. Martin's Hall. / 
 11, a.m. 
 
 ADDRESS OF ROBERT OWEN TO THE AD¬ 
 VANCED MINDS OFTHE STATESMEN OF 
 THE WORLD, &c. 
 
 Gentlemen, 
 
 I have requested your presence here to-day, to hear 
 from me an explanation of my experience in solving 
 the problem “ How the human race can be most 
 u easily the best governed, to secure the permanent 
 u happiness of our race.” 
 
 The result of this experience is, that the population 
 of the world, in its present divisions, or as a whole, 
 can never be made good, wise, or happy, on the base 
 on which, to this day, the human-made part of men’s 
 character has been formed, and all society, past and 
 present, has been constructed— that foundation being 
 an ignorant falsehood, directly opposed to all facts, 
 past and present. 
 
 The ignorance and the falsehood have been made to 
 pervade the character of man, and every variety 
 of society which he has yet tried in order to become 
 good, or to create happiness in practice; and were this 
 base to be maintained, such must be the result to the 
 end of time. 
 
 Sec the confusion of intellect and of practice at 
 this day in all the nations of the world, not excepting 
 . -.-those deemed the most advanced. In all these nations, 
 
 a false spirit, principle, and practice, has been made 
 to reign triumphant. And to attempt to solve the 
 problem upon a false base would be vain, useless, and, 
 now, a sad waste of most valuable time. 
 
 All who have any pretensions to rationality will at 
 once abandon this satanic foundation ;—for it is the 
 father of all lies and of all evil. 
 
 It is therefore full time that a new dispensation 
 should arise and a new life commence. 
 
 But while it is impossible to solve this problem on 
 a false base, it will be most easy to solve it upon the 
 true base for forming character and constructing and 
 governing society. With the knowledge that the 
 immortal and mortal character of man is formed for 
 him, and that the means exist, ready for use, to well 
 form the character of everyone, by making the practical 
 surroundings such as are calculated to form that 
 character, and which, through the aid of the advanced 
 sciences, will be now easy of execution, the problem 
 
how to attain universal happiness for our race will be 
 
 solved; and the incalculably beneficial results will be 
 
 witnessed as soon as this principle and practice shall 
 be extended to all nations and peoples. 
 
 The adoption of immediate measures for this exten - 
 tion should now be the all-absorbing object of all 
 governments and peoples. For it is impracticable to 
 devise surroundings to form a good and superior cha¬ 
 racter for all, physically, intellectually, morally, 
 spiritually, and practically, without those surroundings 
 include the means of creating and distributing wealth 
 in the best manner for all, and of uniting the human 
 race as one family, superior in mind and manner, and 
 pervaded with the pure spirit of universal charity, 
 love, and kindness ; the interest and happiness of one, 
 
 > 9 1 ,} bring the interest and happiness of all. For isolated 
 individual selfish happiness is and ever will be 
 unattainable. 
 
 This new dispensation, built on the foundation of the 
 universal fact, “ that the divine and mortal character 
 “ of man is, and ever must be, formed for him,” opens 
 a new path to the statesmen of the world, by which, 
 with the certainty of a law of nature, wdien rightly 
 pursued, the race may be permanently made intelligent 
 in mind, rational in conduct, and through life may be 
 compelled, by the irresistible combined influences of 
 mental and material surroundings, to be good, wise, 
 and happy. 
 
 You have therefore a new and delightful lesson to 
 learn, and a new practice to adopt, which will secure 
 to you and your children’s children, to the latest 
 posterity, an unceasing enjoyment, of which now r you 
 can have no adequate conception. 
 
 
RESOLUTIONS. 
 
 I 
 
 
 [ 
 
 I 
 
 
 Besolved 
 
 1st.—-That at length the cause of evil and 6f good 
 to man has been discovered, and that the evil may 
 he now overcome and superseded by good. 
 
 2nd.—That the cause of evil is the undeveloped 
 imagination of all past ages to the present, that man, 
 contrary to every known fact, forms his own qualities, 
 powers, and propensities, physical, intellectual, 
 moral, spiritual, and practical; and that this error is 
 the cause of all falsehood Ond deception. 
 
 3rd.—That the caiisfe of all good to man is tJik 
 knowledge that God creates in the germ all the 
 qualities, powers, propensities, and faculties of 
 humanity, and that maffired society cultivates thesfe 
 qualities, pow ers, propensities, and faculties, from the 
 germ in each individual for evil or for good. 
 
 4th.— That when the germ is placed before and 
 after its birth within inferior, injurious, or evil sur¬ 
 roundings, so must the individual become, with very 
 few exceptions; and that tvhen placed within superior 
 and good surroundings, the individual will become 
 good and superior. 
 
 5th.-i—'i’hat in Consequence of the training and 
 education of all past generations on the cause which 
 has necessitated falsehood and evil, the surroundings 
 in which the human race has been and is now placed 
 are inferior and most fatal to the happiness of all. 
 
 6th.—That the British government now nossess 
 the most ample means to gradually supersede these 
 inferior and injurious surroundings by good and 
 superior, in which to place all the subjects Of tile 
 empire at home and abroad, including our Indian 
 
 on s l ____ ^ 
 
 7th.—That in consequence of these discoveries it 
 hoiv becomes the first and highest duty of the govern¬ 
 ment to investigate these subjects to their foundation 
 and through all their ramifications, that it may learn 
 
to know how to begin the great work of superseding 
 
 the present evil surroundings in which all are placed, 
 by good and superior. 
 
 8th.—That as such immense permanent interests, 
 affecting all classes, are involved in these matters, 
 that this meeting address Her Majesty, memorialize 
 the lords of the treasury, and petition both houses of 
 parliament to take these subjects into immediate 
 consideration. 
 
 That the following be the address to Her Majesty. 
 
 ADDRESS OF A PUBLIC MEETING, HELD 
 
 ON THE I 4th OF MAY, 1858, IN ST. 
 MARTIN’S HALL, LONG ACRE, LONDON; 
 ROBERT OWEN, ESQ., IN THE CHAIR ; 
 
 TO HER MAJESTY, VICTORIA, QUEEN 
 
 OF THE BRITISH EMPIRE. 
 
 We, Your Majesty’s faithful subjects, have now ascer¬ 
 tained that the discovery has been made of the Cause 
 of the Origin of Falsehood and Evil among the human 
 race, and also the natural means by which that Cause 
 can be removed, and Falsehood and Evil made to ter¬ 
 minate for ever, 
 
 That the Cause of the Origin of Truth and Good 
 has been discovered, and at the same time the natural 
 means by which Truth and Good may be made uni¬ 
 versally to supersede Falsehood and Evil. 
 
 lhat the means to effect this change throughout 
 the British dominions, in peace and order, and with 
 wise foresight, are at the command of Your Majesty’s 
 government. 
 
 AVe therefore pray Your Majesty to use your 
 powerful influence with the chief officers of the 
 government to begin to apply the means with the 
 
 may be relieved from the many severe sufferings which 
 they now most unnecessarily experience. 
 
 And, wishing Your Majesty a long, prosperous, and 
 happy reign, w'e will for ever pray, &c. 
 
ROBERT OWEN’S CONGRESS OF ADVANCED 
 MINDS. 
 
 Fifth day. Sunday, May \lth. John Street. 11, a.m. 
 
 ADDRESS OF ROBERT OWEN TO THE 
 PRODUCERS OF WEALTH—EMPLOYERS 
 AND EMPLOYED. 
 
 Friends and Fellow Workmen,— 
 
 You are the substantial substance ,—the bone of 
 all society. 
 
 Without your active exertions society must die, or 
 only a few exist upon the scanty uncultivated pro¬ 
 ductions of the earth. 
 
 At this period, society, through want of know¬ 
 ledge, has placed employers and employed in a grossly 
 false position, a position most injurious to each other, 
 and yet more injurious to the entire of society. 
 
 To place you in your true position is now one of 
 the first duties of the statesmen and legislators of all 
 nations, and until this shall be done, there cannot be 
 peace on earth, common sense, or security for the 
 safety of any government, or for the happiness of any 
 class. 
 
 But what is wealth, and wherein does it consist ? 
 The things which constitute wealth are— 
 
 1st.—The necessaries of life. 
 
 2nd.—The comforts of life, and 
 3rd.—The beneficial luxuries to give health and 
 varied pleasureable sensations to all of the human 
 race; for without the happiness of all none can be 
 truly happy. 
 
 In what do the necessaries of life consist ? 
 
 In food, clothes, and shelter, of ordinary qualities. 
 In what do the comforts of life consist ? 
 
 In good food, clothes, and shelter, with good in 
 struction. 
 
 In what do the beneficial luxuries of life consist ? 
 In having at our pleasure the best food, clothes 
 
 and shelter, and the requisite surroundings to form 
 
 ffSttllLUp il—II rym*r-p« - 
 
f ,. f ° bf 8 ln tlle great work of -v 
 
 the Best character from birth for all, so as to remove 
 all bad and inferior surroundings from us, and to pre¬ 
 vent any such coming to us. And every bad or in¬ 
 ferior person is an evil surrounding. 
 
 Is it practicable for society, with the means now at 
 its disposal, to attain these three kinds of wealth for | 
 the human race, in peace, and with permanent bene- 1 
 fit to all ? | 
 
 Yes,—by foresight andcommon sense, rightly applied, j 
 these three kinds of wealth may be gradually attained, 
 most beneficially for all of our race. But they can¬ 
 not be attained under the present false principle on | 
 which society ever has been based, and with the mal¬ 
 formation of society consequent on its erroneous 
 foundation. ,- 
 
 The Producers of Wealth, to effect this change in 
 a short time, in peace, and most advantageously for ' 
 all, must unite, employers and employed, to abandon 
 the false foundation and mal-formation of society, and 
 must agree among themselves to make arrangements, | 
 first to secure for all the necessaries of life without 
 contest or competition. 
 
 This may now easily be accomplished if the pro¬ 
 ducers of wealth can agree to abandon the jalse 
 principle on which society has been based—a princi¬ 
 ple, or rather notion of the imagination, opposed to 
 all facts ; and if they will openly, fairly, and fully de¬ 
 clare their fixed determination to adopt and act con¬ 
 sistently on the true system, on which alone all so¬ 
 ciety, for the interest and happiness of all, should be 
 based. And this is the only real difficulty which 
 you, the producers of wealth, have to overcome, to 
 constitute a true, ever-prosperous, and happy state of 
 existence upon earth; for whatever you, the produ¬ 
 cers of wealth, shall determine to adopt, on princi¬ 
 ples in accordance with nature, (the only right princi¬ 
 ples to govern the actions of men,) all society 
 must adopt; for society exists only by your exertions. 
 
When yon have on this principle made your ar¬ 
 rangements to secure the necessaries of life for all 
 without contest or competition, now so easily to be 
 effected, the arrangements to secure for all the com¬ 
 forts of life will be more easily attainable for all; and 
 ' then, by this arrangement, good instruction, which 
 includes good training and education for all, shall be 
 given to all. And without that instruction from birth 
 which can insure a good, useful, and valuable charac¬ 
 ter for all, there can be no claim to common sense in 
 the whole business of life; for it is now practicable 
 to form arrangements of surroundings, by which 
 through means unperceived by the individual, to give 
 with the certainty of a law of nature a good physical, 
 intellectual, moral, spiritual, and practical character 
 to everyone bom with a natural healthy constitution 
 or organisation. 
 
 And if these new combinations of surroundings 
 shall not now be made by the union of the employers 
 and employed in producing wealth, it will be evident 
 that they have not attained sufficient common sense 
 to understand their own interest, or how to pursue 
 the plain path to permanent ^ prosperity and happi¬ 
 ness. 
 
 With the .aid no^v to be obtained by society from 
 the practical sciences, to make new surroundings to 
 ; have a perpetual supply of superior wealth for all with 
 the certainty of the seasons, will be an easy and plea¬ 
 sant task for a rationally trained and educated popu¬ 
 lation. And this wjll be obtained with so much sys¬ 
 tem and foresight, that no one will have any occasion 
 to waste time or talent, or to be in any way anxious 
 to consider’ how ijhey shall be fed, clothed, sheltered, 
 trained, educated, employed, placed, and governed, in 
 the best manner for each and all of our race in per¬ 
 petuity. 
 
 By the new combinations of superior surroundings, 
 based and constructed on the laws of nature, all these 
 
 
liHOW how io o.- - ' : - nirth will 
 
 essentials of a future happy existence upon cartn w in 
 
 be provided for all, as all requisites are provided for 
 the flowers of the field and for the other innumer¬ 
 able kinds of life, by nature from the earth. 
 
 And this might have been done long ago for the 
 human race in perpetuity, if its rational faculties had 
 been sooner developed, and especially the faculty of 
 common sense. 
 
 For if this faculty had been developed at an ear¬ 
 lier period, it would have occured to all to enquire, if 
 man in the infant state of his existence and progress 
 in knowledge, when so little aided by the powers of 
 the sciences and arts, could maintain himself and his 
 family, and most wasteful ignorant governments,— 
 what could he not do by the aid of these sciences, 
 when rightly applied by society for the benefit of all ? 
 
 In this country at this day, were common sense 
 used in the right application of scientific power, the 
 natural powers of each man would be increased more 
 than one hundred fold, and the increase to this scientific 
 power is illimitable. In my lifetime it has increased in 
 these islands from one to one compared with the work¬ 
 ing population at the commencement of this century, 
 to much more than one hundred to one. Or as though 
 each workman had more than one hundred hardy, 
 w illi ng, well-taught slaves to work for him. 
 
 And if the faculty of common sense had been fully 
 developed in our population, instead of this enormous 
 new power being wasted in most irrational wars, and 
 mis-applied in individual injurious indulgences, each 
 workman would now be living in a palace, with more 
 healthy and superior surroundings than any monarch 
 now possesses, or than any prince, king, or emperor 
 can possess under the existing false or insane system. 
 
 Open your eyes—examine, and reflect upon the 
 facts around you ; and then ask—where is the com¬ 
 mon sense of the British population ? 
 
 When you can use common sense, happiness will 
 be easily attained in perpetuity for all. 
 
ROBERT OWEN’S CONGRESS OF ADVANCED 
 MINDS. 
 
 Seventh day. Tuesday, May 19 th. St. Martins 
 Hall. 11 a.m. 
 
 ADDRESS OF ROBERT OWEN TO THE VA¬ 
 RIOUS DISTRIBUTORS OF WEALTH, FROM 
 THE MOST TO THE LEAST EXTENSIVE 
 IN BUSINESS OPERATIONS. 
 
 A false base and construction of society in principle 
 and practice has placed you in a false and most inju¬ 
 rious position for yourselves and the population of 
 the world. 
 
 This false base and consequent false construction 
 of society have of necessity produced an inferior and 
 miserable fighting era, of long duration in the history 
 of the human race 5 of repulsion, opposition, compe¬ 
 tition, contests, and wars ; and which may be consi¬ 
 dered the infancy of humanity, in which, by these 
 apparently injurious means, man has been forced into 
 strong action to acquire knowledge, through experi¬ 
 ence, to fit him by great contending exertions for a 
 much higher and more perfect state of existence— 
 a new existence of attraction, peace, goodness, wisdom, 
 union, and happiness. 
 
 The period for the commencement of this new era 
 or dispensation has arrived, and this will gradually 
 and naturally supersede the infant period of hu¬ 
 man life. 
 
 During this first period of existence, all the ar- 
 rangments and proceedings of society, although neces¬ 
 sary for the infant state of humanity, have been, and 
 they still are, calculated to divide man from man, to 
 repress real knowledge of our nature, and to keep all 
 greatly demoralized. While the new dispensation, 
 which nature is everywhere providing for its general 
 introduction, will cordially unite man to man, give 
 great accession to his knowledge of humanity, and 
 make him to become through life good, wise, and 
 
 happy. _ 
 
 nature, wnen tne (ireat Creator of all things in the 
 
In this new dispensation none will be instructed to 
 endeavour as a business of life “ to buy cheap and 
 sell dear but all will be taught the true essential 
 business of bfe, that is, to aid in giving a good charac¬ 
 ter to all, and in creating the best wealth in the best 
 manner for the free use and enjoyment of all, without 
 the necessity of buying with money or price to be 
 fixed for it; for under wise arrangements superior 
 wealth will be produced with pleasure to all, so abun¬ 
 dantly that there will be everywhere a supply beyond 
 the wants or desires of all. 
 
 No real Christian can be a buyer or seller for 
 money profit. Jesus of Nazareth, the first prelimi¬ 
 nary Christian, and the founder of Christianity, 
 turned the money exchangers and buyers and sellers 
 for a money profit out of the temple. He taught that 
 there should be no private property among his fol¬ 
 lowers, and he and his immediate disciples had no 
 private property. 
 
 Buying and selling for a money profit, whatever 
 may be the apparent sanctity of the buyer and seller, 
 demoralise the man, and unfit him to become a 
 Christian, or to acquire and practice the essential 
 qualities of Christianity, of universal love and charity, 
 or to “ love their neighbours as themselves.” In a 
 truly formed Christian society, these essential qualities 
 
of Christianity will be the unassuming and unpre¬ 
 tending character of all. They will be given to each 
 from their birth, without merit to the receivers of 
 them. And upon this principle—“ that any cha- 
 u racter (Jew, Christian, or Mahomedan,) may be 
 “ forced from birth upon anyone,” orthat of a producer, 
 a distributor, a fighting man, an idler, or an useless 
 person, as well as that of a true Christian. 
 
 You cannot be blamed, but are to be pitied, for the 
 useless and demoralized character which society, by its 
 erroneous and injurious surroundings, has made it ne¬ 
 cessary that you should acquire. In a society based 
 on its true principle, constructed and governed by 
 sound reason or common-sense, there will be no ne¬ 
 cessity for a class of mere distributors of wealth. 
 Other arrangements will be adopted, and new sur¬ 
 roundings will be made, to save all this talent, falsely 
 directed industry, and misapplied capital, and to give 
 them a much more valuable, moral, and pleasant 
 direction, for the individual and for society; and by 
 which all motives to deteriorate the quality of any 
 kind of wealth will be for ever removed. 
 
 Be assured that a buyer and seller for a money 
 profit must be demoralised in his general character, 
 
 | and cannot be a Christian, except in mere name. There 
 will be no buying and selling among true Christians. 
 
 Do you ask why the early Christians ceased from 
 being associated and from living on public without 
 private property. It is because Jesus and his imme¬ 
 diate followers had a mission, to introduce a knowledge 
 of the principles of real Christianity, and to foreshadow 
 some of its practices. But he said, “ this is not the 
 “ full coming of truth or real Christianity, the time is 
 “ not yet come for it in all its beauty and glory in 
 “ practice. My mission is to introduce it by declaring 
 “ its essential principles for practice ; but the time is 
 “ not yet for that full practice.” In the due order of 
 nature, when the Great Creator of all things in the 
 
 - T^7Tr7Tm hnft nomt (Ti me WOiru runnu xw wiroir 
 
Universe shall have made the necessary pre¬ 
 requisites, there will he a second coming of truth, 
 or of Christianity, in the fulness of time, when will be 
 declared, not merely to the Jew and Gentile, as then 
 known, but to all the children of men, how those 
 first announced divine virtues of love and charity 
 are to be given to all without exception, and the 
 means, through the progress of science, by which 
 they will become the every-day practice of all. The 
 announcement to the world of these great and glorious 
 results, and of the means by which they can he and 
 will be applied to universal practice, overcoming and 
 conquering all previous error and evil, is the coming 
 of the Messiah, promised to the Jews, and the second 
 coming of Christ, foretold by Jesus of Nazareth, the 
 most advanced medium, or mediator between man 
 and the Great Creating Power of the Universe, or God, 
 that has appeared among men. 
 
 “ What! then,” you will naturally ask, “ is now our 
 “ duty?” 
 
 It is to assist with all your heart, mind, soul, and 
 means, to change the false, cruel, and wicked system 
 of society, now existing over the earth, for the true, 
 merciful, and good system, for the government of the 
 human race. And to effect it by reason and in peace, 
 and not by abuse and violence. 
 
ROBERT OWEN’S CONGRESS OF ADVANCED 
 MINDS. 
 
 
 Ninth day , Thursday , May 21s/. £*. Marfin’s #a//. 
 11. a,w». 
 
 ADDRESS OF ROBERT OWEN TO THE 
 ADVANCED MINDS OF THOSE WHO 
 DESIRE TO CHANGE GOVERNMENTS 
 TO BECOME REPUBLICS ON THE INDI¬ 
 VIDUAL PRINCIPLE OF SOCIETY. 
 
 J 
 
 | 
 
 r 
 
 r! 
 
 Brother Reformers,— 
 
 Of your good intentions to your fellow men, in 
 desiring to change Monarchies into Republics, I have 
 no doubt. You strongly perceive and feel the many 
 evils produced by the present system of society under 
 despotic monarchies, and you think many of these 
 evils would not exist under a republic constituted as 
 you desire, and in which there should be what you 
 call equality. 
 
 Now, all old republics have become so venal and 
 corrupt, that they could not sustain power of such 
 character. 
 
 “ True”—-you will say—“ but we do not look to old 
 ' 4 ‘ but to the latest modern republics. See ”—you will 
 add—“ the new Republic of the United States, with 
 “ its rapid increase of population and growth of ma- 
 “ terial prosperity.” 
 
 The people under this republic have all the parts 
 of the charter for which you contend, and its consti¬ 
 tution was framed by men of high aspirations, and 
 considerable experience and endowments for'the task, 
 as far as political knowledge was then known; for 
 when they made it they had no ideas respecting two 
 systems for the government of the human race—one 
 false in its foundation and through all its ramifications 
 most ignorantly selfish, leading continually to evil and 
 misery from one point of the wo rid round its whole 
 
surface; the other, to be based on now self-evident 
 truths or universal facts, and consistent with that truth 
 throughout its entire formation and perpetual govern¬ 
 ment. 
 
 These talented and disinterested men did the best 
 possible, with the limited knowledge then known of the 
 formation of character, construction and governing of 
 society, or of the means by which ail could be united 
 and made to love their neighbours as themselves, and 
 by which the unchanging government of charity, love, 
 and wisdom could be established over the world. 
 
 This all-important knowledge, when they were con¬ 
 sidering and when they completed the constitution of 
 that Republic, was hidden from these high-minded 
 and wise men for their day and time. 
 
 The two men who took the lead in concocting and 
 bringing into practice the constitution of the United 
 States, since so shamefully misconstrued and aban¬ 
 doned in its most essential principles, were Thomas 
 Jefferson and John Adams—the latter of whom was 
 the second, and the former the third president of the 
 United States. 
 
 It so happened that I visited these old colonies 
 of our empire, but fortunately no longer colonies of 
 despotic power, as they were under George the Third, 
 who obstinately treated them not as men, but as slaves 
 to his power and influence with parliament. I was de¬ 
 sirous to acquire the most advanced political know¬ 
 ledge that could be gained from men of wisdom and 
 experience, and my first visits were to John Adams, 
 to Thomas Jefferson, to James Madison, and to James 
 Munroe,—the two latter, the fourth and fifth presi- \ 
 dents. General Washington, the first president of 
 the republic, had died before my first visit to the 
 United States. ^ 
 
 At this period John Adams, with his mind clear ; 
 strong, and distinct, was ninety years of age ; Thomas 
 
Jefferson equally so, was eighty-two years of age; 
 
 i ««* j ““ M r~ 
 
 sixty-six ; the last was the acting president wien 
 
 arrived. , . 
 
 These men were honest, and had the permanen 
 
 good of the Republic deeply implanted in their hearts 
 
 and minds. ' 
 
 Owing to my antecedents, better known and far 
 more highly appreciated in the United States than at 
 home, I was at once admitted to the unreserved con¬ 
 fidence of these men, when they had attained the 
 highest pinnacle of their ambition, and when t leir 
 minds were calmed from political contests, and could 
 therefore reflect with advantage upon past events, and 
 make the best use of their experience. 
 
 To these may be added Chief Justice Marshall, and 
 all the then judges of the Supreme Court of the 
 United States. These were men selected for their 
 high attainments and sound judgments, to whom the 
 first president had entrusted the full legal power of the 
 constitution. 
 
 It was with these men (one of the latter of whom 
 was a near relation of President Washington,) that I 
 delighted to commune, mind to mind and heart to 
 heart, on the great destinies of the human race through 
 future generations. 
 
 These men, all advanced in years, had lived suffi¬ 
 ciently long to see some of the early effects of their 
 own deeply hazarded and well-considered work. Pre¬ 
 sidents Adams, Jefferson, Madison, and Munroe, ad¬ 
 mitted to me that they were greatly disappointed with 
 the working of the constitution which they had risked 
 their lives to establish. The young of the most 
 wealthy and influential families were acquiring habits 
 of luxury and intemperance to an alarming extent; 
 and they said with great feeling, that if this wealth, 
 luxury, and intemperance should go on increasing, 
 
 1 attaining the oh- 
 
jects which they had in view when framing the con¬ 
 stitution for it. 
 
 These men were all straightforward in their minds, 
 simple in their manners and habits, and devoid of all 
 ostentation. They possessed to a great extent the 
 kind of character which society, for its own interest 
 and happiness, should now make arrangements to give 
 to the whole of the human race. They were men of 
 advanced minds, as well as advanced in age, and of 
 great experience in those eventful times. 
 
 When I told them that I had anticipated their well- 
 founded disappointment in the character of the rising 
 young republicans, they enquired upon what grounds 
 I had founded my anticipations. I said that the for¬ 
 mation of their characters had been false and errone¬ 
 ous, and the construction of society, or the surround¬ 
 ings in which they had been placed, had been most in¬ 
 jurious to them, and that these will continue as long as 
 society shall be founded on the false base on which it 
 has hitherto through all time been constructed and 
 governed. 
 
 This statement greatly surprised each in succession, 
 as I visited them ; especially John Adams and Thomas 
 Jefferson, to whom I made my first confidential visits 
 in the United States, being desirous of first knowing 
 the extent of their knowledge and experience, and the 
 circle or expanse of their minds under the existing 
 system of society ; concluding (as I found,) that they 
 were politically the most advanced minds which it had 
 produced. 
 
 I then explained my views of an entirely new state 
 of human existence, in spirit, principle, and practice, 
 as I have so often endeavoured without success to 
 make it understood by the general or ordinary mind of 
 the world. 
 
 But it was not so with these men. Their former ex¬ 
 perience of contending for new principles and measures 
 with other strong minded opponents, had prepared 
 
them to listen to and reflect upon any new principles, 
 opposed to their former views. They (as was the case 
 at an earlier period with the Rev. Mr. Turner of New¬ 
 castle, Mr. Wellbeloved of York, and Dr. Marsh, then 
 Regius professor at Cambridge, and afterwards Bishop 
 of Peterborough,) could not resist the truth of the 
 laws of nature on which the new dispensation which I 
 have advocated, and which I now again proclaim to the 
 world, is founded, and is built up in perfect accordance 
 with those unchanging laws of nature. 
 
 Alter a full explanation of my views to the four 
 Presidents of the United States, they regularly, one 
 after the other, admitted the truth of the fundamental 
 principle on which the new dispensation must be 
 raised. But one and all said, we do not see how these 
 principles, true and beautiful as they are, can be ap¬ 
 plied to practice. 
 
 I then stated in what manner I had then for thirty 
 years applied them to practice partially in Manchester 
 and at New Lanark, with a success far exceeding my 
 most sanguine expectations, and that the practice 
 when fully introduced without the interference of anv 
 part of the old dispensation, no doubt necessary for 
 the early and undeveloped state of society, could be 
 far more easily maintained in practice than the present 
 can now be much longer continued. 
 
 They said you have had so much practical knowledge 
 of the application of these new principles to practice, 
 that our want of experience must yield to your ex¬ 
 perience. 
 
 A singularly fortunate event occurred on my visit to 
 the second President, John Adams. I had taken with 
 
me Robert Watson, as my travelling servant. Hehad^ 
 been employed at New Lanark, from a boy, upwards 
 of twenty years, and had witnessed the changes I bad 
 made in the whole establishment, and knew the perfect 
 state in which I had left it in 1824, when we set out 
 for the United States, and during part of that year in 
 Washington he had been frequently at the President’s 
 residence, called the White House, and had seen Mr. 
 Munroe, and had been with me on a visit of many 
 days at Ex-President Jefferson’s, and also at Ex-Pre- 
 sident Madison’s. He was intelligent, and this 
 journey had much enlarged his knowledge, and he was 
 very desirous to increase it. 
 
 Mr. Adams, while I was with him, was confined to 
 his own room, in which he received his visitors, who 
 at meals went below to partake with the family. Mr. 
 Adams had an old superior confidential man servant, 
 
 4 ^ 
 
 who appeared to be on the best fferms with his master. 
 Robert Watson had made friends with this fine old 
 servant, and had told him that he had seen all the 
 Presidents then alive, except Mr. Adams, and he 
 should very much like to be able to say on his return 
 home that he had also seen Mr. Adams. The old ser¬ 
 vant communicated this conversation to Mr. Adams, 
 who said — (< I shall have pleasure in seeing him,— 
 bring him to me.” Watson was thus introduced to 
 the President who, as Watson afterwards told me, shook 
 hands with him frankly, requested him to be seated, 
 and then began to enquire into all the particulars re¬ 
 specting the practical proceedings at New Lanark, 
 which Watson was too happy to communioate. The 
 President took great interest in the details which 
 Watson gave in reply to the many questions which he 
 asked, and the interview continued for two hours, when 
 I returned to the President’s room, and MTatson 
 retired. 
 
The President then said to me—“ I have been 
 v. much gratified by this visit of your servant. He 
 “ has given me the full details which I wished lor from 
 “ an actual receiver of the benefits of your wonder- 
 “ working system, and I cannot but approve of your 
 “ system, both in principle and as applied to practice.” 
 
 There was at this period a friendship established be¬ 
 tween the Ex-President, the existing President, Mr. 
 Munroe, and his successor John Quincey Adams, the 
 son of President Adams; and I hadevery reason to sup¬ 
 pose that the Ex-President, whom I had thus visited, 
 communicated his ideas and impressions to all of them; 
 for from that period I had the full confidence of the 
 United States government, through the administra¬ 
 tes q£ Mr. Munroe,. Mr* John Quincey Adams, 
 General Jackson, and Mr. Van Buren; the interesting 
 particulars of which will be given in detail in my life 
 which I am now engaged in writing. 
 
 I am therefore well acquainted with the Republic of 
 the United States of North America, and in some mea¬ 
 sure also with those of South America; and I hesi¬ 
 tate not to declare that they are incompetent to govern 
 society for the benefit of any population over the earth. 
 There must be a new principle and a new practice, be¬ 
 fore any form of government whatever can produce 
 unity, goodness, wisdom, and happiness, permanently 
 among men. 
 
 1 therefore recommend you to apply your minds to 
 acquire a full knowledge of these new principles, and 
 of their consistent application to practice for the 
 government of the population of the world. 
 
BOBERT OWEN’S ANNOUNCEMENT TO THE 
 POPULATION OF THE WORLD, OF THAT 
 WHICH IS TO ARISE GRADUALLY, IN 
 PEACE AND ORDER, BY THE NATURAL 
 PROGRESS OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF 
 THE RATIONAL FACULTIES OF MAN¬ 
 KIND, BEFORE THE TERMINATION OF 
 THE PRESENT CENTURY. 
 
 All nations and peoples will be federatively united 
 on principles of justice and equality. 
 
 Great Britain and the United States of North 
 America will first federatively unite ; the innumerable 
 advantages that will arise from this union will induce 
 all other nations and peoples to partake of them, by 
 federatively uniting with this first great united power; 
 and then peace over the earth will be permanent and 
 universal. 
 
 The existing evil surroundings of the human race 
 will be superseded by new combinations of surround¬ 
 ings, of a divine heavenly character, which will trans¬ 
 form the earth into one City, composed of superior 
 dwellings, gardens, groves, fertile fields, and pleasant 
 retreats from the extremes of heat and cold. Yet a 
 City without the evil surroundings of streets, lanes, 
 courts, or alleys. This universal city, or New Jeru¬ 
 salem, to be divided into districts of townships, no one 
 of which will exceed three thousand inhabitants; 
 each township having its proportionate surroundings 
 of gardens, groves, fertile fields, and pleasant retreats. 
 
 These townships to be federatively and socially 
 united over the entire city, and their productions, free 
 to all. 
 
 Each one in every township over the city of 
 the earth, or the New Jerusalem, to have their physi¬ 
 cal, intellectual, moral, spiritual, and practical faculties, 
 propensities, and powers, trained and educated from 
 birth in a superior manner, so as to make all, according 
 to their natural organized constitution, to become good, 
 united, wise, and happy, through life; and all to 
 exercise their physical and mental natures in bene- 
 ficial and pleasant occupations, up to the point of 
 temperance for each faculty, propensity, and power 
 which nature has given to them. 
 
There will be one language, one religion, one interest, 
 and one feeling throughout this city. 
 
 The Anglo-Saxon language, improved to the utmost, 
 will be taught to all in its purity from birth, and the 
 language will also be the language of truth only in 
 look, word, and action. 
 
 The religion will be that of Christ, or Truth , of 
 love and charity through the every-day practice of 
 everyone. 
 
 The interest will be the equal benefit of all 
 throughout the City, and the never ceasing desire, 
 applied actively to practice, to promote the highest 
 permanent happiness of each and all. 
 
 The City will be free to all, and the citizens may 
 change their locality to benefit their health or please 
 their taste. 
 
 The English /and Irish channels will be crossed on 
 dry land. 
 
 The seas and oceans will be navigated on islands 
 instead of in ships. ( 
 
 The arts and sciences, especially mechanism and 
 chemistry, will be\ the willing, faithful, and talented 
 slaves and servants of the human race, performing 
 whatever is unhealthy or disagreeable for men to do. 
 
 Old things will pass away, and all the surroundings 
 emanating from the satanic system of selfish indivi¬ 
 dualism, falsehood, and deception, will be superseded 
 by entirely new surroundings, emanating from the 
 true and good divinely selfish system, which seeks to 
 promote the high permanent happiness and progress 
 ifi excellence of each. ( 
 
 The earth will remain its Creator’s, and the rent 
 wall b6 paid by the rationality, industry, and harmony, 
 of its principal tenants or occupiers. 
 
 These results will arise of necessity, by the change 
 of the false base on which society has been hitherto 
 founded, on which to form character, produce and 
 distribute wealth, devise surroundings, and govern 
 the human race, for the true base, on which alone a 
 rational and happy life for man can ever be attained, 
 
 My mission is ended. 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . 
 
 I 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 .. • 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 . .. 
 
 * 
 
 
 
 
 ' 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 **) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 : 
 
 . 
 
 \ 
 
 
 . 
 
 . 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 , 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ■