The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1822-01-10 00:00:00

MR.CARLETT'S PODR..BILL 1

[Pram Xio. LIII. of the Ildiseurgh Rioter.]

We see 'Timidly to the, mein principle of Mr. Srarietes
I Bill, hat are rather surprised at the ensairkomolike manner
In which he has set about it.
To ix a taeolaswee for the pounles, we should conceive
to he so opacities. of sulkiest dideulty and novelty for
goy one dill. Thee was so weed to provoke snore prejn•
tin, to reuse more hostility, and create more alarm, than
mob • Bill wield suturally do.
Mr Seselett's plies, two, we ire firmly persuaded, would
essapletelis defeat his own iaterstioes; sod would indict •
grata injury epee the poor than this eery Bill intended to
pram—their esprimas removal. His Bill is so powerful
▪ motive to proprietors for the depopnlstion rsd a villsge-o,
to prevails! the pow from Heine where Itiwish hi Ana.
that Nothing hut the conviction that such • *mad Waif
be offered to peso, has prevented those effects from shady
taking plate. Landlords watt!, is the euoteinplation of
such • Bill, poll dews all the eoltars of presoak* nal he.
legging to the parish, and eject thestenants ; the mat view.
twos muss.,, *mild be takes to prevent any our from re.
maisillig or Coos rag who was sot absolutely secant) to the
lord of the nail. At pretest, cottages are let le airy body;
Imam, if they are burdensome to the parish, the temente
ems be removed. But the impossaihility of duiug this would
ma the immediate, desnoletins of cottages, prevent the
meth* of fresh ones when they are really wanted, sad cheats
• poor mar fur ever to the place of his birth, without the
passibility of moving. Their priatot power of living where
they please, ad'etoing where thy please, entirely depends
spa the possitrily of theleassnovol when they heroine
chargeable. If say misteken friend were to take from them
this protection, the whole power sad jealousy of property
would be titre. d against their %emotive liberiy.
The remedy here proposed for these evils is really one of
the Most extraordinary we ever remember to have ban intro.
dead into an Act of Parlisesat.
[The clause provide., thet where owners, its order fo TO-
mm Oa residence of lobos:rimy poor, shall destroy their
Cottages. and where parishes are burdened with the main.
Massa of persons residieg, bat ant working there, and be.
fore the Act sot settled therein, she Justices at the Quarter
Sessioes, on complaint of theoverseers of the partsbes where
the nos are so mairrially increased, may order the overseers
of any other parish where theestes have been diminished by
the same noses, to pay to the complainants such sums as
they Mil think remoreable, net exceeding, together with the
existing rates, the ammo limited by the Act as the contd.
bonito of the parish for the relief of the pour : the order not
to be made without 14 days' entire, nor unless the Justices
are satisfied that no money has beets improperly or tontines.
eerily expended by the cumplai ll il ig parish!)
The clause, we cannot help saying, appears to us 10 be a
receipt for universal and interminable litigation allover Eng.
land—s perfect law.burriesse.—• conversion of all Seth into
plaintiffs and defendants. The purists A lass pulled down
houses, and burdened the parish B. B has demolished the
misery of C ; which has again misbehaved itself in the same
manner to the oppressios of other letters of the alphabet.
All on into parehareat, sod pant for eremite sad exonera.
lion. Though the feet may be certain enough, the asses
which gave rise to it may be very uncertain; sod assuredly
will not be admitted to have been those against which the
statute has denounced these penalties. h will be alleged,
therefore, that the houses were not pulled down to get rid of
the poor, but because they were sot worth repair—because
they obstructed the 'Squire's view—because rein sou not
paid. All these motives must gu before the Sessions, the last
resource of legislators—the uubsppy Quince Readouts—
robed to the estressity of their *it by the plump costradic.
liege of pariah perjury.
Another of the many sources of litigation in this clam
Is as follows :—A certeio bomber of workmen live Is a
pariah M, sot being settled Is it, anal not working i• it be-
fore the passing of this Art. After the passing of this Act,
they Meow eh 'mesh,. lo M, whose pooeseates are increased.
111.1 s to Ind out the periebre relieved from the burden of
these roes, sod to proserete st the Quarter fieesious fur
relief.—Bit suppose the hardened purists to he io Yoskelsire,
sad she relieved parish in Cornwall, are the Quarter Ses-
sions in Yorkshire to make an order of annual payment epos
• parish in Conrail ? sod Cornwall, in turn, Upon York-
shire ! How is the money to be transmitted ? What is the
easy cod cheap remedy, if neglected to be paid ? Aud if
an this could be effected, what is it, after all, but the pre.
sat eyebolt of removal reodeted ten times more iutricate,
confused, and expensive?
The real question totrodueed by his Bill is, whether or
sot • limit shall he put to the Poor laws; and not truly
this, hut whether their sinoont shall be gradually
abased. To this better and higher part of the law, we shall
M address ourselves. In this, however as well as in the
'WOW part of his Bill, Mr. &erten becomes frightened at
hie own enseteeeste, and repeals himself. Parishes are trot
to setleve every person actually resident within thews. This
is so sooner enacted, then • provision is introduced to re.
lieve them from this expense, tenfold more berdeusurne
than the presrist system of removal. is the same manner,
a inazistass is very wisely sod bravely enacted : and in the
following clause is immediately repealed.

[The clause provides that if by scarcity, epidemic disease,
or other cause of a local or temporary nature, it shall
be deemed expedient to make sir additive to she sum assessed
beyond the samosa limited by the Act, it may be dose at a
Vestry Meeting.]
it would really mom, frees thew sad other qualifyieg
firovialoas, as if lifr.llvaslets had rem reflected spoil the
cosaequiestees of his leaders/ eneetments till he bad peewit
Them ; and legal be the., set oboes Mediae bowie could pro-
vekt himself doing what he eleieni Iv do.
The (huger of isrerreelion is a circumstance worthy of
the must serious cromideratine ho dimming the propriety of
a meziensm. Mr. fleasheit's Bill Is as infallible receipt for
tumult end agitation, wherever cora is a little dearer lbs.
ronimon. Repeal the esesfastrat,' will be the clamour in
'welly village; sad woe he to those members of the village
vestry who oppose the measere. Whether-it was really a
year of scarcity, and whether it wee a proper semen. for
ezpandiag the tragedy of the law, would be a question coo.
steady acid fiercely agitated betwee• the (stains mad the
pour. If the maziams is to be quietly sebniiited to, its
repeal must be rendered impossible but le the Legislature.
We object to ritartmarin which is out rendered • decrees.
leg maxiinsee. if driest/ sews were Axed for each
winch they maid pot rogosik thee Darn wooed, is • very
few years, become • aseitimma, sod au established claim. If
1101. were the sum slleetsed bar- a particular hamlet, the poor
would very soon come to imegiae that they were entitled to
that greets. sum, and the 'farmers that they were compelled
to give it. Any asorimeas. established should be a decrees.
fog, but a very slowly deereastag maziasam—perhope it
should mot decrease at a greater rate thee Ios. per cent. per
swm.
It may be doubled also, whether the Int Bill should aim
at repealing more than 40 per cent. of the present euremat in
the poor rates. This would be effected hi forty years. Loh,
before that time the good or bad of of she measure would
be fai.ly estimated : if it is wise that it should proceed, let
posterity du she real. It is by No Pleelle• areemary to de-
stroy, in one waviest, opera paper, a payment which canwit,
without violas's' every principle of justice, and every roost.
&ratios of /area, sad besaarsity, be cattagaisbed is leas Asa
twirenieries.
It is important fee Mr. Searlett to considers whether
will make the operation of his Bill immediate, or imerpose
Iwo or three year between its enseteneut aad ars& opera-
tion.
We entirely object to the followieg claims; the whole or
which ought to be expunged:—
" And he it further evicted, that it shall not be lawful fee
any cherchwardea, overseer, or guardian of the poor, or say
other person bombe" wither•ity to administer relief so lbe
poor, to allow or give, or fur any Justice of the Peace to
order, say relief to any person whatsoever, who be mar-
ried after the peeving of this Act, for himself, herself, or soy
part of his or her family, wiles@ such poor person shall be
actually, at the time of asking sorb relief, by reams of age,
sir:knees, or bodily iairmity, usable to oblate a liodilused,
and to support his or her family by work.'
Nothing is lie while Bill will •ceasioe we meth abuse
sad asiarepreeeetstive as this Maier. It is upon this that
the Radicals will Seat fasien. la will, of coarse, bee:phis-
al isle a prohibitive ut marriage to the poor; sad will, le

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aid