41G Of the Necessity of general Bk. iv. 



universal, there can be no reason assigned why 

 they would not be subject to suifer as much from 

 a scarcity of grass and a mortality among cows,* 

 as our common labourers do now from a scarcity 

 of wheat. We should be extremely cautious there- 

 fore of trusting to such appearances, and of draw- 

 ing a general inference from this kind of partial 

 experience. 



The main principle, on which the society for 

 increasing the comforts and bettering the condi- 

 tion of the poor professes to proceed, is excellent. 

 To give effect to that master-spring of industry, 

 the desire of bettering our conditiont is the true 

 mode of improving the state of the lower classes; 

 and we may safely agree with Sir Thomas Ber- 

 nard, in one of his able prefaces, that whatever 

 encourages and promotes habits of industry, pru- 

 dence, foresight, virtue and cleanliness, among the 

 poor, is beneficial to them and to the country; and 

 whatever removes or diminishes the incitements 

 to any of these qualities is detrimental to the state, 

 and pernicious to the individual.^ 



Sir Thomas Bernard indeed himself seems in 

 general to be fully aware of the difficulties, which 



* At present the loss of a cow, which must now and then hap- 

 pen, is generally remedied by a petition and subscription j and as 

 the event is considered as a most serious misfortune to a labourer, 

 these petitions are for the most part attended to ; but if the cow 

 system were universal, losses would occur so frequently, that they 

 could not possibly be repaired in the same way, and families would 

 be continually dropping from comparative plenty into want. 



t Preface to vol. ii. of the Reports. 



\ Preface to vol.iii. of the Reports. 



