The National Register.
London, England, 1819-08-02 00:00:00

MO►\DAY, AUGUST .2, 1319•

of our manufacturing population at the present mo-
ment. Five and twenty years ago, or the case it
'still stronger if we go a little further bad:, to the
diseentions of NVatts and Arkwright, •Agriculture
was.the great emplcyment of ocr people; at least
our husbasulmen constituted .tevo thirds of the lower
classes. Now, by the returns Of 1811, it appeared
that Agriculture was the calling of but one out c.f.
three, which, if Mr. Oaveu's cake:Lotion be correct,
the power of the machinery introduced end applied
to manufacture, is equal to the additional labour of
200 millions. Fur the almost cosiness quantity of
goods thus .wrought an adequate demand can now
be no longer found. A revulsion must necessarily
follow. Our Government has long -been actively
employed in miserable and wretched expedients, .in
bolstering up.a state of &moiety which is frecry-tity
-I:scorning more manifestly rotten, whilst the solid
property of-the lend hasbeenloaded with imposts,
rod its prodece depreciated by•t!te continued. depre-
cintion of money, 'till in limes of pressure the idle
ricr soils can le no longer cultivated r.t el!. Mr.
Owen's- remedy is to make e. 1.1 those erupiTerl
cndur him hushandmen, as well as artisans and ma-
nufacturers. He would have a large tract of land
attached to every establishment upen.his new Sys-
tem, to be cultivutcxl by the spade lonly, and en-
tirely kept in order, and all the work performed by
those who arc r,:le part of the day spindiug or
weaving, or employed in some ipeeitstof manufac-
ture. This may be very plausible, but it directly vio-
laic:, the doctrines of every former tilde writer on
political e,xmmly, who have all held the divisicn of
.labour to Ls the great and leading principle of so-
7cial ueitio, the best•road to perfection in • the works
e.of art, and without which very little progress could
be koked for. Indeed, we• cannot help thinking
that Mr. 'Owen would find his -cotton•spinners,for
he has not yet tried it, to be very moderate 'farmers,
and his farmer: very bad spinners of cotton twist.
With respect to Education, upon which Mr.
Owea lays• so ninth stress, we should entirely
agree with him, that it is both .a debt and a
boon of inestimable value to the rising generation.
But we domed exactly -see how many of its noblest
advantages are not lost by the system to which Mr.
'Owen would apply it. Ifthe) remain members ofhis
community it may benefit the possessors for private
edification, it may give a tone to their manners and
..elevate and expand their minds. 'Pelt tbe very
greatest objection we have to Mr. Owen's whole
scheme is, that it renders those under its influence
torpid to all those passions of the soul which are the
'sweets of whatever is great and dignified and noble
in the intercourse of life. There is no field for
emulation, there is no spirit of indeperdence ; it
may give the poor man much, but it takes much
from him ; it robs him even of the comforts of his
own fire-side. Ile is 1-.0 longer his own house•
keeper, and his wife is equally excluded from the
important discharge of most domestic duties. lie is
to be fed at a common table, to be clothed from a
common stock, to be the creature of restraint in
every habit and every motion of his life. We can-
not therefore help thinking that if Mr Owen's.
theory was fully tried, which it is not st Nen -La-
nark, as we must again remind our readers, both lit
and his protegees would find themselves greatly
disappointed,and that those of our own poor vt ho have
.1 been accustomed to tulle to.gether the cares and the