Retrofpe? of Dometic Literature—Political Economy, 
entrufied to inferior officers; fome of 
whom are too indolent, and others not 
fufficiently/honeft, for fo bufy and confi- 
dential a fituation. On detection of the 
abufes which prevailed, a thorough re- 
form was immediately determined on ; 
and it is fincerely to be wifhed, that the 
new regulations which are adopted will 
prevent their recurrence: although it is- 
much to be feared, that the complex fyf- 
tem of employment which is purfued 
may yet open a way to fraudin many of 
the departments. Mr. Wood, in com- 
mon with moff perfons who have attend- 
ed to the fubje€t*, is of opinion, that 
the poor laws are extremely defective, 
and that there do exift fome radical de- 
feéts in the prefent parochial fyftem : 
thefe defeéts Mr. Wood conceives to be, 
§* the indifcriminate provifion made for 
all the’ parochial poor; the vefting an 
overfeer with full powers to acminifier 
that provifion, confiding to them to ap- 
point the whole management of the pa- 
rochial fund, and negleéting to furnifh - 
employment for the poor.” That Mr. 
W. is tolerably correét in this ftarement, 
will, we believe, very evidently appear 
to thofe who read the interefting account 
which we noticed in our laft compen- 
dium of the proceedings of the acting 
governors of the Houfe of Induftry in 
Dublin; the expences of which eftablith- 
ment inftantly funk, when the fuperin- 
tendance of its concerns was taken out of 
the hands. of inferior officers, and de- 
pofited in thofe of aéting governors. The 
anonymous writer of ** A parochial Plan 
for ameliorating the Condition of the 
Poor,”’ propofes to infufs into that clafs 
of people, a fpirit of decency, a love of 
ceconomy, a defire of knowledge, and 
a regard for charaéter. All thefe things 
may poflibly in time be effected: bur we 
muft BEGIN by making them comfortable. 
Comfort is the ground-work on which 
almoft any fupertiruéture may be railed : 
but without this bafis our labour will all 
be in vain, When men are treated like 
beafts, they foon become beafts—wild 
beafts too: but man is as docile and kind 
a natured animal as any, if treated with 
kindnefs and careffes. 
Several Pamphleteers have offered to 
the public their opinions on the high 
price of provifions, and fuggefted fome 
f{cheme or orher which they fancy is re- 
medial : however they may be deceived, 
they are entitled to the thanks of the 
FI re 
* See our lal Rettofpect, page 637, 
593 
public for their benevolent exertions. 
An author figning himfelf ‘ Homo,’ has 
publifhed fome * Confiderations on the 
prefent High Price of Corn, witha Pro. 
pofition for the effectual Regulation of 
the Prices of all the Requifites of Life.” 
Homo advifes us to petition Parliament 
to ix a maximum on the price of bread 
corn, which he recommends to be four 
guineas per quarter; and to empower 
certain perfons, whenever wheat fhall at~ 
tain this price, to afcertain the. ftock im 
hand, in order to encourage an importa 
tion equivalent to the necellity. We 
cannot but think that fuch an interfe- 
rence on the part of thelegiflature would 
be impolitic and unjuft: it is impolitic to 
lay any reftraint on the freedom of trade, 
and particularly to offer any difcourage- 
ment to the growth of corn: it would, 
moreover, be highly unjuft, to fix a maxe 
imum on the faleable commodity of an 
individual clafs of people, witnout alfo 
fixing a maximum, on the various com. 
modities which that clafs of people are 
under the neceflity of buying, which 
would be a palpable abfurdity.. ‘* Dear- 
nefs not Scarcity, its Caufe and Remedy, 
by a Commercial Man:”’ the author at- 
tributes the prefent dearnefs of pros 
vifions not to the fcarcity of them, bat 
to the plenty of the circulating medium, 
and the facility of money accommoda- 
tion, by which farmers, as weil as traders, 
are tempted to fpeculate. We have been 
told by very high authority, thar there 
is a real fearcity in the kingdom. The 
Committees appointed by the houfes ef 
Lords and Commons, to inveftigate the 
caufes of the high price of corn, would 
{carcely have made fuch an affertion, and 
have taken fuch pains to circulate the 
diftrefiing intelligence, on light grounds, 
or witbout an affurance, almoft amount- 
ing to certainty, that this information 
was correct. The immenfe circulation 
of paper, by facilitating exchanges, may 
probably in fome meafure add to the 
dearnefs of corn, but is by no means fuf- 
ficient of itfelf to account for it: fup~ 
pofing, what, however, is far from being 
true, that the population of this king~ 
dom has ftood fill for the laft ten years ; 
the mode of living among the lower 
claffes has materially changed : ever fince 
that period (till within the laft year), the 
confumption of oat-cake and barley bread, 
has, we believe, regularly and progref- 
fively declined, and the confumption of 
wheat proportionably increafed : of late, 
moreover, meats of every defcription, 
and 
