第17章

TakingitforgrantedthatanalliancemaybeformedbetweenEngland,France,andAmericaforthepurposeshereaftertobementioned,thenationalexpensesofFranceandEnglandmayconsequentlybelessened。Thesamefleetsandarmieswillnolongerbenecessarytoeither,andthereductioncanbemadeshipforshiponeachside。Buttoaccomplishtheseobjectsthegovernmentsmustnecessarilybefittedtoacommonandcorrespondentprinciple。Confidencecannevertakeplacewhileanhostiledispositionremainsineither,orwheremysteryandsecrecyononesideisopposedtocandourandopennessontheother。

Thesemattersadmitted,thenationalexpensesmightbeputback,forthesakeofaprecedent,towhattheywereatsomeperiodwhenFranceandEnglandwerenotenemies。This,consequently,mustbepriortotheHanoversuccession,andalsototheRevolutionof1688。*[32]Thefirstinstancethatpresentsitself,antecedenttothosedates,isintheverywastefulandprofligatetimesofCharlestheSecond;atwhichtimeEnglandandFranceactedasallies。IfIhavechosenaperiodofgreatextravagance,itwillservetoshowmodernextravaganceinastillworselight;especiallyasthepayofthenavy,thearmy,andtherevenueofficershasnotincreasedsincethattime。

Thepeaceestablishmentwasthenasfollows（seeSirJohnSinclair"sHistoryoftheRevenue）:

NavyL300,000

Army212,000

Ordnance40,000

CivilList462,115

L1,014,115

Theparliament,however,settledthewholeannualpeaceestablishmentat$1,200,000。*[33]IfwegobacktothetimeofElizabeththeamountofallthetaxeswasbuthalfamillion,yetthenationseesnothingduringthatperiodthatreproachesitwithwantofconsequence。

Allcircumstances,then,takentogether,arisingfromtheFrenchrevolution,fromtheapproachingharmonyandreciprocalinterestofthetwonations,theabolitionofthecourtintrigueonbothsides,andtheprogressofknowledgeinthescienceofgovernment,theannualexpendituremightbeputbacktoonemillionandahalf,viz。:

NavyL500,000

Army500,000

ExpensesofGovernment500,000

L1,500,000

EventhissumissixtimesgreaterthantheexpensesofgovernmentareinAmerica,yetthecivilinternalgovernmentinEngland（Imeanthatadministeredbymeansofquartersessions,juriesandassize,andwhich,infact,isnearlythewhole,andperformedbythenation）,islessexpenseupontherevenue,thanthesamespeciesandportionofgovernmentisinAmerica。

Itistimethatnationsshouldberational,andnotbegovernedlikeanimals,forthepleasureoftheirriders。Toreadthehistoryofkings,amanwouldbealmostinclinedtosupposethatgovernmentconsistedinstag—hunting,andthateverynationpaidamilliona—yeartoahuntsman。Manoughttohavepride,orshameenoughtoblushatbeingthusimposedupon,andwhenhefeelshispropercharacterhewill。Uponallsubjectsofthisnature,thereisoftenpassinginthemind,atrainofideashehasnotyetaccustomedhimselftoencourageandcommunicate。Restrainedbysomethingthatputsonthecharacterofprudence,heactsthehypocriteuponhimselfaswellastoothers。Itis,however,curioustoobservehowsoonthisspellcanbedissolved。A

singleexpression,boldlyconceivedanduttered,willsometimesputawholecompanyintotheirproperfeelings:andwholenationsareactedoninthesamemanner。

Astotheofficesofwhichanycivilgovernmentmaybecomposed,itmattersbutlittlebywhatnamestheyaredescribed。Intheroutineofbusiness,asbeforeobserved,whetheramanbestyledapresident,aking,anemperor,asenator,oranythingelse,itisimpossiblethatanyservicehecanperform,canmeritfromanationmorethantenthousandpoundsayear;andasnomanshouldbepaidbeyondhisservices,soeverymanofaproperheartwillnotacceptmore。Publicmoneyoughttobetouchedwiththemostscrupulousconsciousnessofhonour。Itisnottheproduceofrichesonly,butofthehardearningsoflabourandpoverty。Itisdrawnevenfromthebitternessofwantandmisery。Notabeggarpasses,orperishesinthestreets,whosemiteisnotinthatmass。

WereitpossiblethattheCongressofAmericacouldbesolosttotheirduty,andtotheinterestoftheirconstituents,astoofferGeneralWashington,aspresidentofAmerica,amillionayear,hewouldnot,andhecouldnot,acceptit。Hissenseofhonourisofanotherkind。IthascostEnglandalmostseventymillionssterling,tomaintainafamilyimportedfromabroad,ofveryinferiorcapacitytothousandsinthenation;andscarcelyayearhaspassedthathasnotproducedsomenewmercenaryapplication。Eventhephysicians"billshavebeensenttothepublictobepaid。Nowonderthatjailsarecrowded,andtaxesandpoor—ratesincreased。Undersuchsystems,nothingistobelookedforbutwhathasalreadyhappened;andastoreformation,wheneveritcome,itmustbefromthenation,andnotfromthegovernment。

Toshowthatthesumoffivehundredthousandpoundsismorethansufficienttodefrayalltheexpensesofthegovernment,exclusiveofnaviesandarmies,thefollowingestimateisadded,foranycountry,ofthesameextentasEngland。

Inthefirstplace,threehundredrepresentativesfairlyelected,aresufficientforallthepurposestowhichlegislationcanapply,andpreferabletoalargernumber。Theymaybedividedintotwoorthreehouses,ormeetinone,asinFrance,orinanymanneraconstitutionshalldirect。

Asrepresentationisalwaysconsidered,infreecountries,asthemosthonourableofallstations,theallowancemadetoitismerelytodefraytheexpensewhichtherepresentativesincurbythatservice,andnottoitasanoffice。

Ifanallowance,attherateoffivehundredpoundsperannum,bemadetoeveryrepresentative,deductingfornon—attendance,theexpense,ifthewholenumberattendedforsixmonths,eachyear,wouldbeL75,00

Theofficialdepartmentscannotreasonablyexceedthefollowingnumber,withthesalariesannexed:

ThreeofficesattenthousandpoundseachL30,000

Tenditto,atfivethousandpoundseach50,000

Twentyditto,attwothousandpoundseach40,000

Fortyditto,atonethousandpoundseach40,000

Twohundredditto,atfivehundredpoundseach100,000

Threehundredditto,attwohundredpoundseach60,000

Fivehundredditto,atonehundredpoundseach50,000

Sevenhundredditto,atseventy—fivepoundseach52,500

L497,500

Ifanationchoose,itcandeductfourpercent。fromalloffices,andmakeoneoftwentythousandperannum。

Allrevenueofficersarepaidoutofthemoniestheycollect,andtherefore,arenotinthisestimation。

Theforegoingisnotofferedasanexactdetailofoffices,buttoshowthenumberofrateofsalarieswhichfivehundredthousandpoundswillsupport;anditwill,onexperience,befoundimpracticabletofindbusinesssufficienttojustifyeventhisexpense。Astothemannerinwhichofficebusinessisnowperformed,theChiefs,inseveraloffices,suchasthepost—office,andcertainofficesintheexchequer,etc。,dolittlemorethansigntheirnamesthreeorfourtimesayear;andthewholedutyisperformedbyunder—clerks。

Taking,therefore,onemillionandahalfasasufficientpeaceestablishmentforallthehonestpurposesofgovernment,whichisthreehundredthousandpoundsmorethanthepeaceestablishmentintheprofligateandprodigaltimesofCharlestheSecond（notwithstanding,ashasbeenalreadyobserved,thepayandsalariesofthearmy,navy,andrevenueofficers,continuethesameasatthatperiod）,therewillremainasurplusofupwardsofsixmillionsoutofthepresentcurrentexpenses。Thequestionthenwillbe,howtodisposeofthissurplus。

Whoeverhasobservedthemannerinwhichtradeandtaxestwistthemselvestogether,mustbesensibleoftheimpossibilityofseparatingthemsuddenly。

First。Becausethearticlesnowonhandarealreadychargedwiththeduty,andthereductioncannottakeplaceonthepresentstock。

Secondly。Because,onallthosearticlesonwhichthedutyischargedinthegross,suchasperbarrel,hogshead,hundredweight,orton,theabolitionofthedutydoesnotadmitofbeingdivideddownsoasfullytorelievetheconsumer,whopurchasesbythepint,orthepound。Thelastdutylaidonstrongbeerandalewasthreeshillingsperbarrel,which,iftakenoff,wouldlessenthepurchaseonlyhalfafarthingperpint,andconsequently,wouldnotreachtopracticalrelief。

Thisbeingtheconditionofagreatpartofthetaxes,itwillbenecessarytolookforsuchothersasarefreefromthisembarrassmentandwherethereliefwillbedirectandvisible,andcapableofimmediateoperation。

Inthefirstplace,then,thepoor—ratesareadirecttaxwhicheveryhouse—keeperfeels,andwhoknowsalso,toafarthing,thesumwhichhepays。Thenationalamountofthewholeofthepoor—ratesisnotpositivelyknown,butcanbeprocured。SirJohnSinclair,inhisHistoryoftheRevenuehasstateditatL2,100,587。

Aconsiderablepartofwhichisexpendedinlitigations,inwhichthepoor,insteadofbeingrelieved,aretormented。Theexpense,however,isthesametotheparishfromwhatevercauseitarises。

InBirmingham,theamountofpoor—ratesisfourteenthousandpoundsayear。This,thoughalargesum,ismoderate,comparedwiththepopulation。Birminghamissaidtocontainseventythousandsouls,andonaproportionofseventythousandtofourteenthousandpoundspoor—rates,thenationalamountofpoor—rates,takingthepopulationofEnglandassevenmillions,wouldbebutonemillionfourhundredthousandpounds。Itis,therefore,mostprobable,thatthepopulationofBirminghamisover—rated。

Fourteenthousandpoundsistheproportionuponfiftythousandsouls,takingtwomillionsofpoor—rates,asthenationalamount。

Beit,however,whatitmay,itisnootherthantheconsequenceofexcessiveburthenoftaxes,for,atthetimewhenthetaxeswereverylow,thepoorwereabletomaintainthemselves;andtherewerenopoor—rates。*[34]Inthepresentstateofthingsalabouringman,withawifeortwoorthreechildren,doesnotpaylessthanbetweensevenandeightpoundsayearintaxes。Heisnotsensibleofthis,becauseitisdisguisedtohiminthearticleswhichhebuys,andhethinksonlyoftheirdearness;butasthetaxestakefromhim,atleast,afourthpartofhisyearlyearnings,heisconsequentlydisabledfromprovidingforafamily,especially,ifhimself,oranyofthem,areafflictedwithsickness。

Thefirststep,therefore,ofpracticalrelief,wouldbetoabolishthepoor—ratesentirely,andinlieuthereof,tomakearemissionoftaxestothepoorofdoubletheamountofthepresentpoor—rates,viz。,fourmillionsannuallyoutofthesurplustaxes。Bythismeasure,thepoorwouldbebenefitedtwomillions,andthehouse—keeperstwomillions。ThisalonewouldbeequaltoareductionofonehundredandtwentymillionsoftheNationalDebt,andconsequentlyequaltothewholeexpenseoftheAmericanWar。

Itwillthenremaintobeconsidered,whichisthemosteffectualmodeofdistributingthisremissionoffourmillions。

Itiseasilyseen,thatthepooraregenerallycomposedoflargefamiliesofchildren,andoldpeoplepasttheirlabour。Ifthesetwoclassesareprovidedfor,theremedywillsofarreachtothefullextentofthecase,thatwhatremainswillbeincidental,and,inagreatmeasure,fallwithinthecompassofbenefitclubs,which,thoughofhumbleinvention,merittoberankedamongthebestofmoderninstitutions。

AdmittingEnglandtocontainsevenmillionsofsouls;ifone—fifththereofareofthatclassofpoorwhichneedsupport,thenumberwillbeonemillionfourhundredthousand。Ofthisnumber,onehundredandfortythousandwillbeagedpoor,aswillbehereaftershown,andforwhichadistinctprovisionwillbeproposed。

Therewillthenremainonemilliontwohundredandsixtythousandwhich,atfivesoulstoeachfamily,amounttotwohundredandfifty—twothousandfamilies,renderedpoorfromtheexpenseofchildrenandtheweightoftaxes。

Thenumberofchildrenunderfourteenyearsofage,ineachofthosefamilies,willbefoundtobeaboutfivetoeverytwofamilies;somehavingtwo,andothersthree;someone,andothersfour:

somenone,andothersfive;butitrarelyhappensthatmorethanfiveareunderfourteenyearsofage,andafterthisagetheyarecapableofserviceorofbeingapprenticed。

Allowingfivechildren（underfourteenyears）toeverytwofamilies,thenumberofchildrenwillbe630,000,thenumberofparents,weretheyallliving,wouldbe504,000

Itiscertain,thatifthechildrenareprovidedfor,theparentsarerelievedofconsequence,becauseitisfromtheexpenseofbringingupchildrenthattheirpovertyarises。

Havingthusascertainedthegreatestnumberthatcanbesupposedtoneedsupportonaccountofyoungfamilies,Iproceedtothemodeofreliefordistribution,whichis,Topayasaremissionoftaxestoeverypoorfamily,outofthesurplustaxes,andinroomofpoor—rates,fourpoundsayearforeverychildunderfourteenyearsofage;enjoiningtheparentsofsuchchildrentosendthemtoschool,tolearnreading,writing,andcommonarithmetic;theministersofeveryparish,ofeverydenominationtocertifyjointlytoanoffice,forthatpurpose,thatthisdutyisperformed。Theamountofthisexpensewillbe,ForsixhundredandthirtythousandchildrenatfourpoundsperannumeachL2,520,000

Byadoptingthismethod,notonlythepovertyoftheparentswillberelieved,butignorancewillbebanishedfromtherisinggeneration,andthenumberofpoorwillhereafterbecomeless,becausetheirabilities,bytheaidofeducation,willbegreater。

Manyayouth,withgoodnaturalgenius,whoisapprenticedtoamechanicaltrade,suchasacarpenter,joiner,millwright,shipwright,blacksmith,etc。,ispreventedgettingforwardthewholeofhislifefromthewantofalittlecommoneducationwhenaboy。

Inowproceedtothecaseoftheaged。

Idivideageintotwoclasses。First,theapproachofage,beginningatfifty。Secondly,oldagecommencingatsixty。

Atfifty,thoughthementalfacultiesofmanareinfullvigour,andhisjudgmentbetterthanatanyprecedingdate,thebodilypowersforlaboriouslifeareonthedecline。Hecannotbearthesamequantityoffatigueasatanearlierperiod。Hebeginstoearnless,andislesscapableofenduringwindandweather;andinthosemoreretiredemploymentswheremuchsightisrequired,hefailsapace,andseeshimself,likeanoldhorse,beginningtobeturnedadrift。

Atsixtyhislabouroughttobeover,atleastfromdirectnecessity。

Itispainfultoseeoldageworkingitselftodeath,inwhatarecalledcivilisedcountries,fordailybread。

Toformsomejudgmentofthenumberofthoseabovefiftyyearsofage,IhaveseveraltimescountedthepersonsImetinthestreetsofLondon,men,women,andchildren,andhavegenerallyfoundthattheaverageisaboutoneinsixteenorseventeen。Ifitbesaidthatagedpersonsdonotcomemuchintothestreets,soneitherdoinfants;andagreatproportionofgrownchildrenareinschoolsandinwork—shopsasapprentices。Taking,then,sixteenforadivisor,thewholenumberofpersonsinEnglandoffiftyyearsandupwards,ofbothsexes,richandpoor,willbefourhundredandtwentythousand。

Thepersonstobeprovidedforoutofthisgrossnumberwillbehusbandmen,commonlabourers,journeymenofeverytradeandtheirwives,sailors,anddisbandedsoldiers,wornoutservantsofbothsexes,andpoorwidows。

Therewillbealsoaconsiderablenumberofmiddlingtradesmen,whohavingliveddecentlyintheformerpartoflife,begin,asageapproaches,tolosetheirbusiness,andatlastfalltodecay。

Besidesthesetherewillbeconstantlythrownofffromtherevolutionsofthatwheelwhichnomancanstopnorregulate,anumberfromeveryclassoflifeconnectedwithcommerceandadventure。

Toprovideforallthoseaccidents,andwhateverelsemaybefall,I

takethenumberofpersonswho,atonetimeorotheroftheirlives,afterfiftyyearsofage,mayfeelitnecessaryorcomfortabletobebettersupported,thantheycansupportthemselves,andthatnotasamatterofgraceandfavour,butofright,atone—thirdofthewholenumber,whichisonehundredandfortythousand,asstatedinapreviouspage,andforwhomadistinctprovisionwasproposedtobemade。Iftherebemore,society,notwithstandingtheshowandpomposityofgovernment,isinadeplorableconditioninEngland。

Ofthisonehundredandfortythousand,Itakeonehalf,seventythousand,tobeoftheageoffiftyandundersixty,andtheotherhalftobesixtyyearsandupwards。Havingthusascertainedtheprobableproportionofthenumberofagedpersons,I

proceedtothemodeofrenderingtheirconditioncomfortable,whichis:

Topaytoeverysuchpersonoftheageoffiftyyears,anduntilheshallarriveattheageofsixty,thesumofsixpoundsperannumoutofthesurplustaxes,andtenpoundsperannumduringlifeaftertheageofsixty。Theexpenseofwhichwillbe,Seventythousandpersons,atL6perannumL420,000

Seventythousandpersons,atL10perannum700,000

L1,120,000

Thissupport,asalreadyremarked,isnotofthenatureofacharitybutofaright。EverypersoninEngland,maleandfemale,paysonanaverageintaxestwopoundseightshillingsandsixpenceperannumfromthedayofhis（orher）birth;and,iftheexpenseofcollectionbeadded,hepaystwopoundselevenshillingsandsixpence;consequently,attheendoffiftyyearshehaspaidonehundredandtwenty—eightpoundsfifteenshillings;andatsixtyonehundredandfifty—fourpoundstenshillings。

Converting,therefore,his（orher）individualtaxinatontine,themoneyheshallreceiveafterfiftyyearsisbutlittlemorethanthelegalinterestofthenetmoneyhehaspaid;therestismadeupfromthosewhosecircumstancesdonotrequirethemtodrawsuchsupport,andthecapitalinbothcasesdefraystheexpensesofgovernment。ItisonthisgroundthatIhaveextendedtheprobableclaimstoone—thirdofthenumberofagedpersonsinthenation。—

Isit,then,betterthatthelivesofonehundredandfortythousandagedpersonsberenderedcomfortable,orthatamillionayearofpublicmoneybeexpendedonanyoneindividual,andhimoftenofthemostworthlessorinsignificantcharacter？

Letreasonandjustice,lethonourandhumanity,letevenhypocrisy,sycophancyandMr。Burke,letGeorge,letLouis,Leopold,Frederic,Catherine,Cornwallis,orTippooSaib,answerthequestion。*[35]

Thesumthusremittedtothepoorwillbe,Totwohundredandfifty—twothousandpoorfamilies,containingsixhundredandthirtythousandchildrenL2,520,000

Toonehundredandfortythousandagedpersons1,120,000

L3,640,000

Therewillthenremainthreehundredandsixtythousandpoundsoutofthefourmillions,partofwhichmaybeappliedasfollows:—

Afteralltheabovecasesareprovidedfortherewillstillbeanumberoffamilieswho,thoughnotproperlyoftheclassofpoor,yetfinditdifficulttogiveeducationtotheirchildren;andsuchchildren,undersuchacase,wouldbeinaworseconditionthaniftheirparentswereactuallypoor。Anationunderawell—regulatedgovernmentshouldpermitnonetoremainuninstructed。Itismonarchicalandaristocraticalgovernmentonlythatrequiresignoranceforitssupport。

Suppose,then,fourhundredthousandchildrentobeinthiscondition,whichisagreaternumberthanoughttobesupposedaftertheprovisionsalreadymade,themethodwillbe:

Toallowforeachofthosechildrentenshillingsayearfortheexpenseofschoolingforsixyearseach,whichwillgivethemsixmonthsschoolingeachyear,andhalfacrownayearforpaperandspellingbooks。

TheexpenseofthiswillbeannuallyL250,000。*[36]

Therewillthenremainonehundredandtenthousandpounds。

Notwithstandingthegreatmodesofreliefwhichthebestinstitutedandbestprincipledgovernmentmaydevise,therewillbeanumberofsmallercases,whichitisgoodpolicyaswellasbeneficenceinanationtoconsider。

Weretwentyshillingstobegivenimmediatelyonthebirthofachild,toeverywomanwhoshouldmakethedemand,andnonewillmakeitwhosecircumstancesdonotrequireit,itmightrelieveagreatdealofinstantdistress。

ThereareabouttwohundredthousandbirthsyearlyinEngland;andifclaimedbyonefourth,theamountwouldbeL50,000

Andtwentyshillingstoeverynew—marriedcouplewhoshouldclaiminlikemanner。ThiswouldnotexceedthesumofL20,000。

Alsotwentythousandpoundstobeappropriatedtodefraythefuneralexpensesofpersons,who,travellingforwork,maydieatadistancefromtheirfriends。Byrelievingparishesfromthischarge,thesickstrangerwillbebettertreated。

Ishallfinishthispartofthesubjectwithaplanadaptedtotheparticularconditionofametropolis,suchasLondon。

Casesarecontinuallyoccurringinametropolis,differentfromthosewhichoccurinthecountry,andforwhichadifferent,orratheranadditional,modeofreliefisnecessary。Inthecountry,eveninlargetowns,peoplehaveaknowledgeofeachother,anddistressneverrisestothatextremeheightitsometimesdoesinametropolis。Thereisnosuchthinginthecountryaspersons,intheliteralsenseoftheword,starvedtodeath,ordyingwithcoldfromthewantofalodging。Yetsuchcases,andothersequallyasmiserable,happeninLondon。

ManyayouthcomesuptoLondonfullofexpectations,andwithlittleornomoney,andunlesshegetimmediateemploymentheisalreadyhalfundone;andboysbredupinLondonwithoutanymeansofalivelihood,andasitoftenhappensofdissoluteparents,areinastillworsecondition;andservantslongoutofplacearenotmuchbetteroff。Inshort,aworldoflittlecasesiscontinuallyarising,whichbusyoraffluentlifeknowsnotof,toopenthefirstdoortodistress。Hungerisnotamongthepostponablewants,andaday,evenafewhours,insuchaconditionisoftenthecrisisofalifeofruin。

Thesecircumstanceswhicharethegeneralcauseofthelittletheftsandpilferingsthatleadtogreater,maybeprevented。Thereyetremaintwentythousandpoundsoutofthefourmillionsofsurplustaxes,whichwithanotherfundhereaftertobementioned,amountingtoabouttwentythousandpoundsmore,cannotbebetterappliedthantothispurpose。Theplanwillthenbe:

First,Toerecttwoormorebuildings,ortakesomealreadyerected,capableofcontainingatleastsixthousandpersons,andtohaveineachoftheseplacesasmanykindsofemploymentascanbecontrived,sothateverypersonwhoshallcomemayfindsomethingwhichheorshecando。

Secondly,Toreceiveallwhoshallcome,withoutenquiringwhoorwhattheyare。Theonlyconditiontobe,thatforsomuch,orsomanyhours"work,eachpersonshallreceivesomanymealsofwholesomefood,andawarmlodging,atleastasgoodasabarrack。Thatacertainportionofwhateachperson"sworkshallbeworthshallbereserved,andgiventohimorher,ontheirgoingaway;andthateachpersonshallstayaslongorasshortatime,orcomeasoftenashechoose,ontheseconditions。

Ifeachpersonstayedthreemonths,itwouldassistbyrotationtwenty—fourthousandpersonsannually,thoughtherealnumber,atalltimes,wouldbebutsixthousand。Byestablishinganasylumofthiskind,suchpersonstowhomtemporarydistressesoccur,wouldhaveanopportunitytorecruitthemselves,andbeenabledtolookoutforbetteremployment。

Allowingthattheirlabourpaidbutonehalftheexpenseofsupportingthem,afterreservingaportionoftheirearningsforthemselves,thesumoffortythousandpoundsadditionalwoulddefrayallotherchargesforevenagreaternumberthansixthousand。

Thefundveryproperlyconvertibletothispurpose,inadditiontothetwentythousandpounds,remainingoftheformerfund,willbetheproduceofthetaxuponcoals,soiniquitouslyandwantonlyappliedtothesupportoftheDukeofRichmond。Itishorridthatanyman,moreespeciallyatthepricecoalsnoware,shouldliveonthedistressesofacommunity;andanygovernmentpermittingsuchanabuse,deservestobedismissed。Thisfundissaidtobeabouttwentythousandpoundsperannum。

Ishallnowconcludethisplanwithenumeratingtheseveralparticulars,andthenproceedtoothermatters。

Theenumerationisasfollows:——

First,Abolitionoftwomillionspoor—rates。

Secondly,Provisionfortwohundredandfiftythousandpoorfamilies。

Thirdly,Educationforonemillionandthirtythousandchildren。

Fourthly,Comfortableprovisionforonehundredandfortythousandagedpersons。

Fifthly,Donationoftwentyshillingseachforfiftythousandbirths。

Sixthly,Donationoftwentyshillingseachfortwentythousandmarriages。

Seventhly,Allowanceoftwentythousandpoundsforthefuneralexpensesofpersonstravellingforwork,anddyingatadistancefromtheirfriends。

Eighthly,Employment,atalltimes,forthecasualpoorinthecitiesofLondonandWestminster。

Bytheoperationofthisplan,thepoorlaws,thoseinstrumentsofciviltorture,willbesuperseded,andthewastefulexpenseoflitigationprevented。Theheartsofthehumanewillnotbeshockedbyraggedandhungrychildren,andpersonsofseventyandeightyyearsofage,beggingforbread。Thedyingpoorwillnotbedraggedfromplacetoplacetobreathetheirlast,asareprisalofparishuponparish。Widowswillhaveamaintenancefortheirchildren,andnotbecartedaway,onthedeathoftheirhusbands,likeculpritsandcriminals;andchildrenwillnolongerbeconsideredasincreasingthedistressesoftheirparents。Thehauntsofthewretchedwillbeknown,becauseitwillbetotheiradvantage;

andthenumberofpettycrimes,theoffspringofdistressandpoverty,willbelessened。Thepoor,aswellastherich,willthenbeinterestedinthesupportofgovernment,andthecauseandapprehensionofriotsandtumultswillcease。—Yewhositinease,andsolaceyourselvesinplenty,andsuchthereareinTurkeyandRussia,aswellasinEngland,andwhosaytoyourselves,"Arewenotwelloff？"haveyethoughtofthesethings？Whenyedo,yewillceasetospeakandfeelforyourselvesalone。

Theplaniseasyinpractice。Itdoesnotembarrasstradebyasuddeninterruptionintheorderoftaxes,buteffectsthereliefbychangingtheapplicationofthem;andthemoneynecessaryforthepurposecanbedrawnfromtheexcisecollections,whicharemadeeighttimesayearineverymarkettowninEngland。

Havingnowarrangedandconcludedthissubject,Iproceedtothenext。