The Sun.
London, England, 1822-01-02 00:00:00

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PRICE SVENPENCE

karth. But, owing perhaps to a remnant of that
disposition which, when a boy, made me to listen
to tales of terror, though at the cost of a night's
rest, I resolved not only to read, but to study
Mr. Malthus.

every was very faint at the further extremikb
and on reaching it we turned, on the left, into
one rather narrower and daiker, and on the de-
scent. This last passage opened upon some field,i,
in which I observed several persons very ac-
tively employed in endeavouring to cultivate gad
improve the ground, and in repairing the walls
and fences of some small houses, the occupant's
of which appeared to look on unconcerned, while
vast numbers of children were running about.; and..
I distinctly heard the rocking of cradles in the
dwellings. Those who were tho busiest in this
place were men of a benevolent aspect, sa,
much so, that I felt strongly inclined to enter
into conversation with them : but whenes or
I made a forward step, my Guide pulled me by
the sleeve, and I observed his countenance
lour. The persons whose looks had so much
pleased me also regarded my companion with in
eye that indicated a feeling b2tiveen fear and
contempt. On • quitting these grounds, we
turned down a path which had been screened by
a thick hedge, and which brought us to the
backs of the small houses, which I now under-
stold were, called " Matrimony Row." But what
was my dismay, on observing that I had now be-
fore me a part of the vile swamp which envi-
roned the large. building, the view of which had
been concealed by lofty trees. I started back,
and.woultf have tied from the accursed spot,. but
my companion held me fast.—" Now," said he,
" you •shall learn my reason for keeping aloof
from the gentry with whom you seemed so well
inclined to make acquaintance. The site of this
Row was., as you perceive, a morass, and so 'it
would have remained to this day, if a set of
blockheads had not taken upon them to erect
the said Row, and thus,. as they thought, to.
wrest from vice and misery a part of their lawfni.
domains. • They persuaded, my. friend Capital, or
rather one of his junior partners.who had been his
clerk, to countenance the project ; and the Lord
only knows how many more such Rows would
have been built, upon the like rotten foundation,
if I had not interfered. You will observe that
the houses have no windows at the back ; the
good people look on what ,they call their field ;
but which, in spite of all the exertions of the wise-
acres, who, to give them their due, work hard
all the year round, are continually melting
into. bog. 4tit wait a little, and . you shall
see a sight. Although there are no -windows,
you will observe that, in many places, the?oun-
dations have crumbled,. and that there are holes
large enough for a child to fall through." He
had scarcely said the word, when, sure enough,
down rolled a child, about four years old ; and it:
no sooner reached the mire, than a wretch
of a fiend-like form sprang from behind a
lump of filth, seized the child, and ran away
with it to the den of misery. This, said I, is
past bearing; let us away. Well, resumed my
companion, such scenes as these are passing con-
tinually, as Geometrical Ratio would tell you.
Oh !—d--n Ratio, said I, pray never name him
to me. Nay, be not so angry with him, replied
my Guide, he cannot help these accidents : they
are solely attributable to the fouls who built that
row of houses, and which, please God, shall be
pulled down in due time. I believe, however,
these men, with their smiling countenances,
mean well ; but they are, unknowingly, the
agents of vice and misery, those grim, gaunt
gures who range about the morass ; and hence my
aversion to them. They resemble the simple
bird who, when pursued by the hunters, thinks
to conceal himself by running his head in h bush.
Instead of turning their backs upon vice and mi-
sery, they ought to face them boldly, with pro-
per weapons. My friend Moral Restraint is the
only man who is able to make the least head
against them. We (for I am, in concert with
him), have, as I hinted before, taken measures
for gradually assimilating the-whole of the build-
ing to the part which is under his immediate su-
perintendence : but I have no hope of seeing
much done in my days ;—it must be the work of
many ages. Ages! said 4—no—of a few years.
—Ages ! he repeated, if ever ; and, with these
words in my ears, I started from my reverie.—
It was well I did; for my fire Was dying out,.
and my candle-wicks had' grown into cauli-
flowers.—And thui, said I, (snuffing them) Eras
my metaphor run into an allegory, and, with pre-
cisely the same effect—that of casting a shade of
obscurity over my meaning.
On the whOle; however, the train of reflection
into which 'I had fallen had so far removed say
prejudices, that I entered with alacrity, and a
pleasing'sort of melancholy, upon the perusal 'of
the succeeding volumes of the Essay.— My
waking thoughts on this celebrated work must
be reserved for a future opportunity.
I am, dear Sir, very truly your's, -
December 31, 1821. INDEX.
A

His first volume was truly appalling. It spewed
me a set of fools for ever breeding and multiply-
ing their species, in order to supply the insatia-
ble maws of two grim giants, vice and misery. 1
quaked for. th' system; it appeared scarcely
worth a week's purchase. I closed the book and,
as is not unusual with me, fell into a reverie.
Methought Mr. Malthus conducted me to a huge
massy building, whose broad foundations were
laid in a noxious swamp, over which its battle-
ments frowned horribly; on every side nothing
struck the eye but images of woe; women and
children starving amidst skulls and bones, while_
the furies ran about screaming and cracking their
whips.—Oh ! exclaimed I, thou geometrical ra-
tio ! thou prolific source of evil! what havoc bast
thou made of all Utopian schemes. Thou art
worse " than fables ever feigned, or fancy
feared." The gorgons, the hydras, and chime-
ras of ancient story, were, in comparison with
thee, mansucte, domestic creatures. The seven
champions of Christendom, though they slew
their dragons, and all sorts of monsters, would
have been no match for geometrical ratio.
Here's a law of nature !—here's a grand Mo-
dern discover y !

" Now the rotten diseases of the Smith, the
gripings, ruptures, catarrhs, loads o' gravel
the bask, lethargies, cold palsies, raw eyes,
dirt-rotten livers, wheezing lungs, bladders full
of imposthume, sciaticas, limekilns the 'palm,
incurable bone-ach, and the rivell'd fee-simple of
the letter, take, and take again such preposterous
discoveries !" The vehemence of feeling with
which I uttered this execration half woke me :
but 'I fell again into reverie, and observed
the author of the Essay eying me with
a mixture of surprise and pity., He con-
descended to ask what ailed me ?—What ails
me, said I ; why you are bent upon destroy.
ing a beautiful Castle, which I have built.—A
Castle ! what, in the air, I suppose. - Ah; such
castles are easily demolished ; but, unfortu-
nately, as easily reconstructed, and I warrant me
you will soon erect another. Pray have you sur-
veyed this place ?, The question re-kindled my
wrath, and I began to swear a prayer or two.—
But the worthy Gentleman, preserving the ut-
most complacency, begged of me to tranquillize
my spirit, and to follow him. I could not well re-
fuse ; and he accordingly led me round an angle
of the building, by a narrow rough path, which!
had not befo-re-perceivetL Having ascended
few paces, we came to a place which really
looked very pleasant ; the grounds were laid out
in good taste, the air moved nimbly, and " smelt
wooingly." He now pointed to an elegant struc-
ture, which he said was an appendage of the hi-
deous edifice which had first offended my sight.
To say the truth, said he, I detest that place as
much as you do.. It is quite out of proportion to
this part of the building, and I hope to prevail
upon the proprietors to make some alterations.—
Thus saying, he advanced towards the portico,
where stood a respectable middle-aged person, of
a rather severe aspect ; but who received us
with a smile. Mr. Malthus whispered to me
that he was the superintendent of the place, and
that his name was Moral Restraint. He left us
rather unceremoniously to pursue some young
folks who, while his hack was turned, had glid-
ed towards a passage, which Mr. Malthus told
me communicated with the main structure.—On
coming up with them (for the majority did • not
try to escape him) he gave most of them some
sharp pinches, which must have left marks in
their flesh. He then rejoined, and politely ee-
-1 coMpanied us to another erection, which had a
more splendid appearance than any I had before
seen, and here he left us. These were the Oar--
ters of Mr. Capital, a portly Gentleman, Who
greeted Mr. Malthus most cordially. The inte-
rior displayed a happy union of elegance and com-
fort. We were introduced into a room in Which
were a great number of models of curioutmachineS,
and from the windows were to be seen immense
quantities of merchandize, the overflow of -spa-
cious warehouses. In short, every description
of wealth was under our view, a portion of which
I thought was in danger of being spoiled for
want of use ; and, on further observation, it was
evident that much had been wasted on some
things, while, at a greater distance, I discerned
many unsightly -and shabby objects, and •espe
cially some extensive fields overgrown with this-
tles, where it would have been better bestowed.
Refreshments having been handed to us by a
well-fed servant in a rich livery, we made our
bow. A fter we had left Mr. Capital's mansion,
I communicated to Mr. Malthus the idea which
had struck me, that much of:the wealth which
Mr. Capital seemed not to kbow what to do with,
might be beneficially devoted to the reconstruc-
tion of the huge, old, ugly building. He replied,
that this was a very common but erroneous opi-
nion : for that all attempts of the sort had gene-
rally failed. Mr. Capital, said he, is a Wiser
man than you suppose, and it is quite unlike's-
sary, or rather, I shotild say; mischievoUS' to in-
terfere with him, Leave Capital to find out his
true interests; hnseldem or ever makes a mistake.

I was now in a temper to liste:► submissively
to my Guide, who led me towards the passage
which Mr. Moral Restraint was so careful to
guard. He made no attempt, however, to checki
our progress. As far as the eye could reach,
which was a considerable distance, its width and
height, and the evenness of the pavement, gave
one the idea that it led to apartrn,.nts of ccrres-
ponding magnitude and beauty : the light, how.

clerk, confidentially employe in a respect-
able commercial house in the City, lately ab-
sconded with property belonging to his employers,
amounting to between three and four-thousand
pounds. lie has been traced t 0 il.ayre de Ciricf,
and there apprehended; but the constituted
authorities object to: giving hi;n pp, as, by the
French law, they haVe 'the imwer of confining
him for five years in prison for travelling under;;
false name. When taken, abort 251. was fOund
upon Ms person, and the lady' who 'accompanied
him, we understand his wife, had jewellery to
the amount 0f.1001.' abouther. She is under the
surveillance of the police, and he is committed to
prison. lie had been living_sinCe.Jnly last with,
the female that accom-panied him, in the first
style of fashion, and is reported to have since
married her. lie was A frecAtient visitor of a
noted gaming-house in Si. Janies4i-street.—
(Morning Paper.)