SECT. XXV.] RESULTS OF THE INQUIRY. 293 



SECTION XXV. 



IT appears from the evidence before us, that the poor who 

 have occasion to borrow small sums of money have in ge- 

 neral to raise them at exorbitant interest, and that when 

 they are obliged to purchase any necessaries they stand in 

 need of on credit, they are compelled to pay double, or 

 nearly double, the market price ; we therefore recommend 

 that there shall be a loan-fund established in each district, 

 and that it be administered according to such regulations 

 as the Commissioners shall approve. 



REMARKS. 



Nothing can be more humane and wise than the 

 proposal to lend small sums to the poor without 

 usury, and even without interest, to enable them 

 to purchase food at the current market price ; but 

 this measure is always regarded as a novel one, 

 and unsupported by any experience to ensure its 

 success ! A religious order in each district would 

 not sell the food which they gathered in at twice 

 the market price, nor even at its marketable value, 

 they would give it. This is a fact which has 

 been known for ages in the countries where these 

 orders have been supported. 



