102 Of Poor- Laws, cantinued. Bk. iii 



gress of the population, and combined with the 

 increasing wants of Europe and America from 

 their increasing riches, and the adaptation of the 

 supply of commodities at home to the new dis- 

 tribution of wealth occasioned by the alteration 

 of the circulating medium, will again give life and 

 energy to all our mercantile and agricultural 

 transactions, and restore the labouring classes to 

 full employment and good wages.* 



On the subject of the distresses of the poor, 

 and particularly the increase of pauperism of late 

 years, the most erroneous opinions have been cir- 

 culated. During the progress of the war, the in- 

 crease in the proportion of persons requiring 

 parish assistance was attributed chiefly to the 

 high price of the necessaries of life. We have 

 seen these necessaries of life experience a great 

 and sudden fall, and yet at the same time a still 

 larger proportion of the population requiring parish 

 assistance. 



It is now said that taxation is the sole cause of 

 their distresses, and of the extraordinary stagna- 

 tion in the demand for labour; yet I feel the firmest 



* 1825. This has, in a considerable degree, taken place ; but 

 it has been owing rather to the latter causes noticed than to the 

 former. It appeared, by the returns of 1821, that the scarce years 

 of 1817 and 1818 had but a slight effect in diminishing the num- 

 ber of marriages and births, compared with the effect of the great 

 proportion of plentiful years in increasing them ; so that the po- 

 pulation proceeded with great rapidity during the ten years ending 

 with 1820. But this great increase of the population has pre- 

 vented the labouring classes from being so fully employed as might 

 have been expected from the prosperity of commerce and agricul- 

 ture during the last two or three years. 



