“IX. By giving existence to man, God accords to him a right to what is necessary for him in the resources which nature every day affords to humanity, as well as the right to profit by the progress of society. “XI. (The) perpetual and gratuitous assistance from nature proves that man, by the very fact of his birth, acquires, and should never lose, a certain degree of natural right in the wealth that is produced. “Hence it follows that the weak have the right to enjoy what nature and the public property place at the disposal of men. “And that it is the duty of the strong to leave to the weak a just share of the general product.”[86] The products are divided according to this socialistic—not communistic—scheme between labor and capital. It has existed upwards of twenty years thus far, and has prospered. This may have been due to the talent of M. Godin, its founder. Whether it will be able to maintain its existence after his death remains to be seen.[87] M. Godin has described his views on social problems and his endeavors to benefit the laborers in a valuable work entitled “Solutions Sociales,” which should be read carefully by those who contemplate founding co-operative or other establishments for the benefit of the masses. Fourierism was brought to America about 1840, and soon found numerous advocates, including many names of which America is proud. Prominent among the leaders were Albert Brisbane,[88] the head of the movement, Horace Greeley, and Charles A. Dana. In his “History of American Socialisms,” Mr. Noyes mentions thirty-four experiments made by Fourierists in this country, all of which failed for some reason or other. The most remarkable of these experiments was Brook Farm. At first it was not called a phalanx, although from the start it combined many of the features of Fourierism, but it shortly fell in line and became a Fourieristic experiment. When it is mentioned that its leading spirits were George Ripley, Charles A. Dana, Margaret Fuller, and others of like character, it is needless to add that its moral basis was sound. Others, more or less connected with the experiment, were George William Curtis, Horace Greeley, Dr. Channing, and Nathaniel Hawthorne. Its exceedingly interesting and pathetic history is to be found in Frothingham’s “George Ripley.”[89] CHAPTER VI. LOUIS BLANC.