couple suffers and is lowered. In the Amana church there are three
"classes," orders or grades, the highest consisting of those members who
have manifested in their lives the greatest spirituality and piety. Now,
if the new-married couple should have belonged for years to this highest
class, their wedding would put them down into the lowest, or the
"children's order," for a year or two, until they had won their slow way
back by deepening piety.

The civil or temporal government of the Amana communists consists of
thirteen trustees, chosen annually by the male members of the society.
The president of the society is chosen by the trustees.

This body manages the finances, and carries on the temporalities
generally, but it acts only with the unanimous consent of its members.
The trustees live in different villages, but exercise no special
authority, as I understand, as individuals. The foremen and elders in
each village carry on the work and keep the accounts. Each village keeps
its own books and manages its own affairs; but all accounts are finally
sent to the head-quarters at Amana, where they are inspected, and the
balance of profit or loss is discovered. It is supposed that the labor
of each village produces a profit; but whether it does or not makes no
difference in the supplies of the people, who receive every thing alike,
as all property is held in common. All accounts are balanced once a
year, and thus the productiveness of every industry is ascertained.

The elders are a numerous body, not necessarily old men, but presumably
men of deep piety and spirituality. They are named or appointed by
inspiration, and preside at religious assemblies.

In every village four or five of the older and more experienced elders