Reformer, who feels indignant at the fraud and villainy, which is perpetrated around him."

The next class of persons we shall bring forward, as interested in this fraud on the poor, are the loyal, ministerial, and trashwriting parsons. In almost every part of England, there are erected what are termed Free Grammar Schools, for the instruction of poor children in Latin and Greek, gratis. These places are of very great antiquity, and the motives that led to their erection highly praise-worthy. Many of their founders were honest tradesmen, who, in their struggles through life, from poverty to affluence, had discovered the value of a little education, and to express their sense of it, as well as to smooth the difficulties of those who might be similarly situated, they endowed these schools. The revenues that were first attached to them were very small, but from the alteration in the value of land, they have subsequently risen to a very great amount. And what renders reform more necessary, is, that while their revenues have become more valuable, the number of scholars have become less. Latin and Greek, which used to be the most valued of all kinds of learning, is now the most despised and useless.

There can be no doubt but the manner in which these places are conducted at present, is contrary to the intentions of their authors. Their object was to instruct the children of the poorer classes in those branches of education that were likely to be useful and valuable; these branches of learning are now no longer valuable to those for whom they were intended; therefore the same benevolent motives which first gave rise to them, would dictate a change in the plan of instruction. Had the interests of the community, in this case, been in the least consulted, these establishments would have been reformed long since, and every child in the kingdom, rich and poor, might have been educated for nothing; but the same corruption which pervades all our establishments, has extended its cursed influence here, and their revenues are used as bribes to servility and meanness.

The trustees to the Free Schools are, in general, members of corporate bodies, the wretches whom we have described above. In their choice of masters, they are entirely guided by their zeal for the whole system of corruption, both in Church and State. The lot always falls on some swaggering, bullying parson of the Church establishment, who has distinguished himself by bawling against popular rights, or in drawing up addresses of congratulation or condolence, or some other dirty business of that description. After he has dropt into his sinecure, he becomes the fast friend of corruption on every occasion, and the oracle of the backbones in his district, as long as he lives.

We stated, at the beginning of this article, that the yearly value of the land bequeathed to the poor was two millions. Our readers will keep this in their minds, as we intend to make them completely masters of the subject. We have not yet given them any particular instances of the fraudulent management of these immense funds, but there are many with which we are personally

acquainted, and a great number more have been brought forward in the speech of Mr. Brougham. Of this gentleman we have already given our opinion; we set very little value upon him; but facts are facts, even out of the mouth of a chimney-sweeper; therefore we shall avail ourselves of his information.—In the county of Berks, in the year 1640, 4,000l. was bequeathed for the purchase of land, for the education of the poor. Before the close

of 1660, land was bought to the amount of 3,9007., which at that day yielded a rent of 1967. per annum or five per cent. What is remarkable in this case, is, that the rent, which ought at least to have been trebled, remained the same till the year 1790: no doubt the land had been held by some of the trustees or their friends, Another estate, in the same county, was let at 4507., although the surveyors had valued it at 1,000l. In Hampshire, instead of 2,000/. a-year the valued rent, the poor did not receive 3001. And in the hands of the same corporation was the sum of 10007., which had been left to assist decayed tradesmen, or to be applied to other charitable purposes; of this bequest 5001. has never been accounted for at all, and the remaining 5007., it is notorious, they applied to their own use, and impudently recommended their successors in office to do the same. In many places, there are no accounts kept of these charitable funds; and no one knows their amount, except the person who receives them, who is very careful to keep it a secret. In 1680, a school was founded in the county of Norfolk, for the education of forty boys, but from inquiry, it was discovered, that not a single boy was educated there, and the accounts had not been examined these thirty years. In some counties, school, funds, trustees, and every thing have disappeared, and there is not the least trace of their having existed. A noble lord, in the county of Derby, whose name we cannot make out, had seized the rent of one school for his own use. In other places, whole manors, capital messuages, and tithes of manors, have been left for charitable uses, and there are not the least traces of their application, to the objects for which they were bequeathed. There are nothing but bare walls and empty benches, in many places, to which there are attached snug incomes of 5, 8, or 1,2001. per annum. This is received by some lurking parson in the parish, whose existence we should never be aware of, did not there accidentally arise in his neighbourhood some talk of a Reform, an enquiry into abuses; he then breaks cover, tells the deluded people to be quiet, all is right-right, no doubt, for this lazy monk, who is devouring, in solitary gluttony, the funds that have been left for their sole use and benefit.

We shall only trouble the reader with two more instances, and then offer our remarks. At Wolverhampton there is a Free School for the use of the poor, at which there are only twelve boys, although the yearly income is 1,500. The master thinking this too small for his support, takes a number of day scholars at very high premiums, to make up the deficiency. In the reign of Philip and and Mary, a School was endowed at Leeds in Yorkshire, for the

instruction of poor children in I atin and Greek. At first the funds were small, but they now produce about 7007. yearly, which is paid to a loyal parson for hearing five poor lads say hic hoc hæc hæc hoc hic three times a-week. We remember, some few years ago, application was made to the Court of Chancery, to modify the plan of this School, and render it more serviceable to the inhabitants by teaching some useful branches of learning. With the result of this application we are not acquainted; very likely his lordship has not yet been able to come to any result, and never will, we dare say, in our time. Sending things to Chancery is like sending them to the lion's den, their foot-steps may be traced in entering, but never in returning.

We shall now close our statement of the abuses of Public Charities; and we contend, there never was exhibited a stronger case of gross negligence, fraud, and robbery than has been practieed in the management of these funds. The best of institutions have been prostituted to the worst of purposes. Two millions of real, solid, substantial revenue, belonging exclusively to the poor, have been expended, not in clothing the naked, not in feeding the hungry, nor in providing education for destitute children, but in maintaining a set of scoundrels, to mislead and oppress the people, to act as spies and informers, to be the willing and servile tools of despotism, in every town and village of the kingdom. What will be the result of the enquiries that have commenced on this subject we cannot tell, but one thing we foresee clearly-that corruption will soon be at work with all her artifices, to ward off the meditated blow. The whole tribe of parsons, from the humblest curate to his grace the arch-bishop, will be in motion. The Church will be proclaimed in danger-innovation, revolution, will be trumpeted forth; and the whole host of bugbears, raised by knaves, and believed in by fools, will be again conjured up. Our corporation gluttons too, will be in a terrible fright. They will complain of their charters being invaded, of property violated, and of the labouring classes growing independent of their masters. At head-quarters we shall have pretty work. Upstart Canning will be set on to play the buffoon, to make old Curtis laugh, and to make some "barren spectators" laugh too. Vansittart will propose an amendment. Old Wilberforce will thrust forth his canting visage, and tell the House "that he believes, that great abuses prevail in the management of charitable funds, and he will readily give his support to an investigation, but he is afraid the thing is going too far, and in his opinion it had better be let alone altogether." The Scott family, that leviathan of corruption, which has swallowed more of the public money than would build cities, will oppose an enquiry with all its might and cunning: the Lord Chancellor, who is a Scott, has a control over all charitable donations throughout the kingdom. But we will give our readers the first act of the farce, as it has just come out.

In the Poor Education Bill, which has been read a third time in the House of Commons, and is now in the Lords, there is a clause

which directs the appointment of a special commission by the Crown, to enquire into the abuses of charities. From the speech of Castlereagh on the 8th of May, we learn of what sort of materials this commission will be constituted. He quotes a case from Ireland, a country from which he dearly likes to draw precedents,when in 1806, a commission was appointed for a similar purpose. Of these commissioners, six had been named by the Lord Lieutenant, and the remaining five by the corporation of charitable donations. So it will be here-members of corporations will be selected to enquire into abuses and frauds, which they themselves have committed. But it is always so in this country; the very men who have committed crimes are appointed to discover them, and then pass sentence on their own misdeeds. At least, continues this noble lord, they must be gentlemen of high rank and consideration-arch-bishops, bishops, and aristocrats, we presume. Exactly the fellows who are daily plundering and deluding the people; who are consuming in shameless luxury and debauchery, the fruits of the poor man's toil; whose very lives are identified with the present infernal system of corruption, and who, at this very hour, are devising plans to perpetuate their country's disgrace and slavery. Brougham thinks 1,000l. per annum to each of the said commissioners would be a fair remuneration for his trouble; the arch fiend, Castlereagh, thinks that would be too little, and by all means their expences must be paid in addition to it.

But why spend so much time in unravelling this new juggle. Of what consequence is it to the People what Brougham thinks, or Castlereagh thinks, or the House of Commons enacts. We know what Boards and Commissions are-vile jobs, intended solely for the benefit of lawyers and titled sharpers. If Brougham really wished to serve his country, by au enquiry into the abuses of charitable funds,-why give the entire management of it to such wretches as Canning and Castlereagh. Did they ever correct any abuse! Are they not the authors of the most shameless abuses?the very gods of Corruption. But it is always thus with our Whig Reformers. They love corruption to their heart's core-aye, as well as those who are now wallowing in it. All they dread, is, that their plans of reform should be taken in earnest, and sometimes adopted. Not to be deceived in their own cunning, their schemes are so artfully contrived, with such true lawyer-like subtlety, that there is always some defect in the head or the tail, in the conceiving, the amending, or the execution of them; they are sure to terminate in nothing but expence. They are impatient after the places of their opponents. They wish to embarrass them by their opposition, to render them unpopular by a pretended zeal against abuses; but if once they finger the emoluments of office, they will be as good political optimists as their predecessors.

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As the House of Commons is constituted at present, it is of little consequence to what conclusion it comes in this business as a legislative body, it cannot legally do any thing; but we cannot help reflecting, what a wide field it would open to the exertions of

a reformed parliament :-an House of Commons, that really represented the People, and which had no interest but in promoting the general good. In the hands of such a body of men what a resource our charitable funds would be, for a national plan of education; for relieving the burden of poor-rates; or applying them to the exigencies of State. But our spirits sink, when we consider into what villainous hands they have fallen; and the still greater villains, who pretend to restore them to the People. From that quarter we have neither hope nor consolation. Every thing, in passing through this sink of corruption, must be polluted, perverted, and misapplied. All that we anticipate from making the state of our public charities known to the humblest individual, is, to let the People know how much they have lost, into whose hands it has fallen, and what they might expect from a different state of things. We wish to teach them too, in what manner to look upon those holy poltroons, those pious hypocrites, who strut in every village with the appearance of honest men, but who are "faring sumptuously every day" on what ought to be yours, who are wasting in extravagance that which would preserve you in old age from the workhouse, and your children from the gallows. To the members of corporations too, you will know in what manner to demean yourselves. You will perceive the secret of their opposition to public meetings and parliamentary reform. You will know at whose expense they are guttling and drinking daily; and finally, you will know what value to place upon yourselves, when contrasted with such a race of miscreants.

TO CORRESPONDENTS.

Since our first publication we have had a variety of communications from different quarters; some requesting an explanation of "certain parts" of our first Number, others for insertion, and not a few loading us with abuse. To Correspondents generally, we have to remark, that no communications can be admitted into this work, unless under very peculiar circumstances. We shall feel honoured and grateful for any hints or suggestions that may be transmitted to us, and will avail ourselves of them; but our limits are circumscribed, and the sole and special object of our undertaking is to communicate the most important and valuable information, in the smallest compass, to all classes of people. Should any one feel himself aggrieved by our remarks, he may, by leaving his address at the publishers, expect all reasonable explanation.

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