The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1818-09-09 00:00:00

HE BR UN S 11 PRES S.

LONDON,

WEDNESDAY. SLrremssa 9. ISIS.

MN OF CHARITIES.

A Pamphlet Iws hers, lately publioltid, in the
form of a Letter Irons Mr. BROUGHAM to Sir SA-
MUEL IticiMll.l.Y. respecting the abuses of Chi.
titles in England, or rather respecting the fate atill
treatment of a Bill which Mr. BROUGHAM, us
Chairman of the Elocution Committee, intro-
diced last Session lutn the Hons.. of Commons.
it all be rec•it:i vied, that the selbjeet to which
this Bill refers laid hues Asinisitteil to the conside-
ration of a Committee of the Houle of Commons
since the Session of the year Ibid. The iiitrochieti
tion ur the Dill wai, from Mr. BISOUGIIsH'S Hi-
nny and some other circumstances creditable to
the &clings and delicacy or the Committee, de-
ferred wild the list Session. It had been
prt-
viously aubmitted to Bit examination of prafis-
shinal men, had also been communicated to iti!.
M %.1 LiTY's Ministers roil die Law Officers of the
Crown. About ten weeks elarsed f its intro-
duclicui to the ionising of the Act, and ill earnestly
were the provisions of the measure eonsidered within
that time, and so ready were the Committee to ad-
mit every inipro%eimaiit it was possible to suggest,
that the Bill ow, within that short period actually
printed six him.. it might be. iniog:ised that in
this haw it of time every objection bud been urged
mid obviated. The Ministers had in private
expressed their satkriet• with the measure, and
the House of Commons no hostility was maiiilesird
towards it. The Cominittae had coileeded the ion-
portuot point of verotitting the A;;H•oitee, to 1111 l
nate the Cm laios,ere noder the Act; instead if

hating tbcu► upr\itittrd iu tl►e Act

. •
itstlf ; but it teems that even this sacrifice, to
which, its Mr. Brtunntivat observes, the Com-
mittee rather submitted than a...ruled, ilia nut
appear the violence of eppusteioo. The Bill was
furiously encountered in the Lords, awl there di-
vested of all its strength'; or, in the emphatic
words of Mr. littouctitm, ••wholly etn.isculatett."
The Commissioners were deprived of every power
of invcstigutioei, consistent with the, object of the
framers of the Bill. They were prevented from
examining Ilrrsuns, hilt with the consent of those
persons, and debarred front 'consulting papers and
doeninents, but such as !ire:Teri exclusively to
eliaritirs—and thus, by refusing all !sowers to the
Commissioners, the objects of the Bill appeared to
be elfettually defeated.
Hot as if this were not stAcient, the objects of
test` Bill, Mr. BitouhtiaM observes, were as mate-
rially limited us the powers of the Co 1111 l tissionern
116 a WelrO. crippled. First, they were prohibited
(ruin inquiring generally into the state of educa-
tion; and secondly, they were no longer to examine
abuses of all charities, bat only of those connected
with the educe • of the poor. Rut to show the
impropriety of this limitation, Mr. BROUGHAM
adduces some instances of abuses not connected
with education, with which the Committee of the
(louse of Commons bad accidentally been made
acriusinti-d.
" We found," observes Mr. Brougham, " that one
poraliou in Hampshire, intrusted with the maimgement
of estates worth above 2,01191. a sear for the use of
the pior, let them for 2 or 3001. on flues, and would
give no account of the usanner its which Ihuae lines w..ve ap.
plied. The same body, it was elated, employed a stun of
money confided to it for ebaritahl: purpuEts, in payment of
ib "was 411546. At Mere, iu Lincolnshire, is an endowment
fax isaxgadsm.,aad pour brethren of very ancient date. The
wardestai4bis leAsees mews to be well provided fur, what-
ever may isethe lot of the brethren ; the estate consists of
$lO acrec-Bie miles from l.inculu ; it is let for only half-s-
-pines all acre, 11100101 it pays neither tithe nor pour's-
rate ; sad 241. • year is the whole sum alloth d to the
poor brethren. The Bishop of the Diocese is both et.
trod sad visitor ; he bas given the wardembip to his
replies"; and the former warden resigned it upon being
promoted by the same Prelate to a living iu his gift. The
son of that Right Reverend Person is master of Spits'
Hospital, M the same county. Besides other landed
Property, be is in possession of one estate worth 6 or
7001. a year in right of his office; and all that he pays
to the poor is 27/. 4r. to four or Ave pensioners. At Wel-
lingborough, iu Northaniptuushire, there are lands belonging
to different charitia7, of which only our is connected with
teluestiou ; a short time ago they were let fur 621. although
worth near 1,100/. ; and the trustees enjoyed the leases. is
the perish of Yeovil, in Somerset hire, there are estates pus.
pencil by frailiai, and *Milted to four different charities,
one only ed which is a school. Limited as the Commis-
sinuere sow ttre, they may examine those trustees as
to one part of their trust ; but they must order them
to be silent as to the other three. They way hispete
the deeds and acciiiitits 'Mating to the school reveuue,
but they must suddenly shut the book when they perceive
toy mastiou of the other Charities. And yet all the four
weds to have been equally abused. All estate worth 7001.
• year only educates seven or eight buys; lards valued et
I,loal. or 1,200/. a year only afford a Wrettlied pittance
to sixteeen paupers; and property wattli 1501. a year is let
for 21. Is. 4,1. chiefly to the trustees themselves. There are
two estates lieloiteiim to the poor of CI oydou, whfch ought
lie bring between 1,000 sisal 1,5001 a year, and yet are worth
nothing, from being badly let on 90 years' leases; but into
this the Commissioners must slut look, when they go to exa-

nsiue the abuses in the Hospital, because those estates art
unconnected with education. In that Hospital itself, they
will find but little within their jurisdiction; it is, indeed,
full of abuse; but only a small portion of the charity be.
'Cup to theechoul, and even that is protected from inquiry
by the appointment of a visitor."
Front the operate') of the Bill were exempted
all establishments subjected to a visitor, although
it is notorious that in no places are abuses more
frequent and inveterate; of these are given the fol-
lowing instances:—
" 1 Los l'ocklingtoo school, with a large revenue, had
been suffered to fall iutu decay, au that only one boy was
langht, and the room canverted into a saw-pit ; yet it has
visitors (St. John's College, Cambridge), who, probably from
iguor tnce of the evil, hail taken no step to correct it before
last winter. So, the property of the Huntingdon school is
grossly Misapplied; the land is let to accommodate the
trustees, and is made the means of supporting a political
'thereat in that borough; yet the charity has visitors in the
persuus of some of those very trustees, who are thus, by the
eiemptiou in the Act, seemed against all inquiry. It should
wenn too, that St. Bees school is equally exempted: but
that its affairs merit investigation, clearly appears by the
evidence; fur we there find that leases of its land were
granted at a remote period, for 1.000 years, at a very low
fisrel rent (about lOW the valtie of the tenements heittg
shove 8,0001. a yew); that at a more recent date the valn-
elk minerals were leased at a Were trifle (31. Its.), for the
term of 8 or 906 years, to one of the trustees; that one of
the precool trustees now enjoys the lease, and that a derided
majority of the others art clergymen, bolding livings nuder
him, and supporting bun in his ensuagesitent of the concern.
Certain estates devised fur the purposes of education at
Reading appear to have Ileitis let as late as 1811 fur marl,
the same rent that they feicell in Charles the Serval%
mei'. It is stow consideraft:y baked; but some of th•
I Inds seem still to be much anderlvt ; at any ►ale au is.
(ploy would be hi;;lsly benefictal where such negligenee sp.
pears so recently to have preiailed : yet all examinatiou is
precluded by the proviso ; fur there is a special visitor.
The Hospital at Croydon, founded by Archbishop Whit.
girl, is protected from inSestigatiou by a similar appoint-
ment; but the evidence plainly shewa that all :psi not
right there. The estates are valued by the sutveyor of
the I se itself at 2,6731. a year, yet they are let fur 8081.;
and down to 1812, they fetched no inure than Mt"

But the principal objection which Mr. BROUGHAM
seems to urgt is, mat Contuviisioners hove born
atwointed under the BM, olio, from their official
k.ink end professional duties, ;tie in is great mee-
surr fru•u pursuing the inti airy with
the diligctiee oittessary tot uttainius the object of