The National Register.
London, England, 1819-07-25 00:00:00

tutions of Manchester or Glasgow. Such was the
picture of New Lanark when Mr. Owen first un-
dertook its management, anti such the materials
upon which he had to set to work. What it is now,
the description we gave lust week, from a most re-
imuktdite and intelligent eye-witness, tears abun-
dant testinemy ; and surely it will not be denied
that a system capable of effecting suck &thane, and
producing such practical results, oughtnot either to be
treated with indifference or hastily condemned. Now
any fair and unprejudiced view of such a subject
we think may be best taken—first, by considering
the principles—secondly, the practice--and thirdly,
the tendency of the whole. The first great foundation
then upon which Mr. Owen rests his theory, and
proceeds to build up his practice, is this " That any
general character, from the lest to the worst, from
the most ignorant to the moat enlightened, may be
given to any community, even to the world at large,
by the application of proper means; which means are
to a great extent at the command, and under the
controul of those who have. influence in the affairs of
men.' Such a printiple, it may not be easy to admit
as far as Mr. Owen would insist, when we contem-
plate what the world now is, and what it always has
been ; but it is yet one which it is not only difficult
to disprove, but which it is the bounden duty both
of Governments and of individuals to act upon, as
if they did admit it. Perfection should always be
our aim, whether in art, in science, in morals, or in
legislation. So long as an error exists, it should be
our of jest to correct it ; so longoisit.sinzle vice eon.%
tismes unsubdued it should be diligently and boldly
grappled with. Those may, perhaps, even justly, be
deemed visionary theorists who flatter themselves
with the hope of banishing both sin and misery from
amongst mankind ; but they are at least entitled to
our gratitude, if they wisely and prudently set
about the accomplishment of such an utulertaking.
Mr. Owen is one of those who has dauntlessly
buckled on his armour for this conflict, and he is
happy, in his own mind, from the total absence of
all apprehension us to the issue of' the struggle. He
has boldly stated in one of his essays, that "on the
experience of a life devoted to the subject, he hesi-
tated not to say, that the members of any com-
munity may by degrees be trained to live without
idleness, without poverty, without crime, anti with-
out punishment. Ibis next great principle is to
implant in all those under the influence of his system,
this single motive of action, viz. " the happiness of
self, clearly understood anti uniformly,pursued.wltich
is only to be attained by conduct that tnust promote
the happiness of the community." This principle
we cannot either blame or deny. We have been
taught by generations:now long past away the very
same doctrines. The . illustrious sages of antiquity
informed us, that virtue is its on n reward ; that no
bad man is happy ; that public good was but the
aggregate of individual merit, and in short that
self love anti social were the same. The other,
and less abstracted principles of Mr. Owen are,
that population well-governed is wealth and
strength ; that more titan trehle the amount of in-
habitants we now have might be easily supported
and renderA happy by judicious management.
—That eni4::rAt ion is a positive evil which
deserves to L, rather checked than encouraged,
that we ar, become a people too decidedly
11 of manufacturers and mereltants—that the
ge-
neral effect of such a character is to teach deeet