He was "a good man, with
true, honest eyes." He "always labored against selfishness, and to serve
the brethren and the Lord." He appears to have abhorred ostentation and
needless forms and ceremonies, for he sat while preaching; never
prescribed any uniform dress or peculiar form of speech; and neither in
their worship nor in their daily lives taught the people to make merely
formal differences between themselves and the world at large. That he
did not feel the necessity of such outward protests against "the world,"
and relied for the bond of union in the community so entirely upon the
effect of his teachings, seems to me one of the surest and most
significant proofs of his real power.
Such is the report of their founder and guide from the older men now
living, who knew him well. That he was a man of great force and high
character it seems to be impossible to doubt. It has often been reported
that he was tyrannical and self-seeking; and that he chose his people
from among the most ignorant, in order to rule them. But the present
members of the Harmony Society cannot be called ignorant: they are a
simple and pious people, but not incapable of taking care of their own
interests; and their opinion of their founder is probably the correct
one.
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