The Sun.
London, England, 1845-01-04 00:00:00

chairman, a clerk, the relieving officers, the governor,
the surgeons, the taskmaster, the schoolmaster, the
nurse, the porter.
The following would be dispensed with :—The auditor.
the removal officer, the assistant overseer and settlement
officer, the collector of poors'-rate, the treasurer.
The chairman would be the general officer of a dis-
trict comprising at the least five unions. He would be
able to attend to five unions, leaving Saturday and
Sunday at his own disposal. He would be removeable
at pleasure by the head department from one district to
another district ; and as be would be a superior officer,
he would efficiently control the clerks, the relieving
officers, the surgeons, and other officers of each union
under his superintendence. The duties of the surgeons
and relieving officers and clerk would remain as they are
at present ; and this paid chairman would be in place of
the present board. Now, as under a general system,
statistics would be everything, this paid chairman would
be sufficiently controlled—
lst. As to the granting sufficient relief ; and,
2d. As to an effectual check upon the expenditure.
The local authorities, the coroner, the magistrates, and
the public press, would be ample means to ensure suffi-
cient relief being granted to distress ; more ample than
what is ensured at present ; because, with a local board
of guardians (irresponsible as it is), its local influence has
power over local authorities, over the coroner, the ma-
gistrates, and the press—a power and influence which a
paid officer would not possess. The proposed plan
would, therefore, not lose in comparison with the pre-
sent system. Any alteration, therefore, must be in
favour of sufficient relief being immediately granted to
distress.

And now as to the second head:—An effectual check
upon the expenditure would arise from the authorities
in the head office, or Government department. If a paid
chairman's district presented an unfavourable compari-
son with the results arising from the statistics of relief
in similarly situated districts, information would be re-
quested ; if not satisfactory, the chairman would be re-
moved to another district, and some other chairman
tried with his district. If a chairman proved himself
incompetent, the statistics of office or the complaints of
the local authorities would discharge him.
And now as to the saving. This in a national point
of view I cannot exactly determine, but I can at once
determine it as regards my own union. It is as follows:7
The entire cost of the union establishment at present is
as follows:
Clerk
Relieving officers 320
Surgeons
Governor ... 100

Auditor.
Removal officer SO
Expenses of removal

incidental

Taskmaster, School-
master, Nurse, and

charges 827
Law expenses
Collectors and Assis-
tant Overseers
!Treasurer 4O
!Assessing property

Porter

.6998 i £2,648
The •erage expenditure of our union is I,,,tusat
The save; would be 2,6401., or nearly one-sixth el the
whole expenditure.
Surely such a saving alone, especially when combined
with greater efficiency and humanity, ought to be suffi-
cient to call for the change.
But it is impossible to say what the exact saving
would be to the community at large. The poors'-rate
being entirely abolished, the losses incurred in collection,
the misery caused by distraint warrants, the peculations
of local officers, the large amount of bookkeeping at
present required, and the difficulties attendant on the
superintending the collection of the rate, would be
avoided. I cannot estimate these as regards the com-
munity at large at less than 20 per cent.
As to the numerous objections whieh may be raised
against the abandonment of poors'-rates on account of
the county rates and other charges, which at present are
paid from these sources ; such objections are best an-
swered by stating that the inclination of the Legislature
has been already evinced to throw these payments on
the Consolidated Fund. One-half of the criminal prose-
cutions is now paid by the Government ; and crime being
$ national curse, prevention ought to be a national care and
expense. It is already deemed right for the country to
pay half, it must be equally right to pay the whole. These
objections I will not further notice—their answer is ob-
vious if they are rail. d.
The 2d objection :—That at present the comparuive
expense t. some townships is light, and why should they
lose their present advantage ?
The answer to this is, that every township will par-
ticipate in the national advantage derived from a more
systematic relief and cure of pauperism. It cannot cost
the lightly-charged-at-present township more than it
does at present ; whereas, it will be. a great and season-
able relief to the heavily-at-present-charged township.
The present advantage of the lightly-charged township
is merely an advantage when compared with another
township more heavily charged ; and the inequality of
such local charges is a very great blot upon the pre-
sent system. Efficiency, economy, and humanity will
all be served by abolishing settlements ; and the general
taxes of the country are the only proper sources from
whence relief for national evils should be taken.
In Ireland and Scotland difficulties in poor-law relief
and management exist; and why? Because there is no
national cure for national distress. Would not the pro-
posed plan enable the Government to avoid all the dif
tieulties of the present system? Ireland and Scotland
are integral portions of the kingdom, and ought to be
equally dealt with, as regards pauperism.
Not being a financier, it is not part of my duty to
show the " ways and means;" but a national tax for
pcor-law purposes, I apprehend, would have all the
difficulties of the present system, and be little or no
improvement. The only improvement in that case being
the more systematic giving of relief. The same st of
offieers for collecting such a tax would have to be kept
up. The whole charge should therefore be placed upon
the " ways and means" of the country; and the land-
owners would reap a rich reward for their support to
this measure, by their entire freedom from pcors'-rates.
The poor man would, from his consumption of taxed
articles, be indirectly paying towards the national purse,
;from which in case of want his relief would be supplied;
arid as reigards the fairness or unfairness of legis;ative
taxation, I am quite prepared to leave that question to
be decided by the Legislature, acted upon as it may be
by our free constitution.

'lf parties will first ascertain the cheapest, most
humani , and efficacious method of dealing with pauperism,
':hey mi•,-; .Iq)end upon it that method will be the best
tfor :i.ture interest-, ; and that the question of
greatigr : loss expenditure to their own localities will,
•when coaTired with ultimate results, sink into utter
insirrniaa c..ee.
Ihave, now stated the suggested plan, I think suffi-
ciently'fin. the purposes of your request ; I have had
considerabla experience in poor-law affairs, and am con-
vinced that few plans could be devised worse for the
leypayers than the present law and practice of settle-
.ment. But when ,treating a malady, cut* it. This
evn only be done by a complete change ; and if
this sketch is at all instrumental in such a result, it will
be s gratifying recollection that I have been in the
slightest degree instrumental therein.
It may be added, that this letter has been laid before
a Committee of the Stockport Board of Guardians, and
received its unanimous approval.
I have the honour to be, yours faithfully,
HENRY COPPOCK, Clerk to the
Stockport Uuion.
.Stockport, November l6, 1844.

Manchester, Nov. 16, 1844.

At a meeting of the Society of Clerks of Unions for
the Not them District of England, John Latham, Esq.,
in the chair, the above letter being read and arrovoi,
was ordered to be recerred to a special Comtdttue, con-
sisting of :Yrr. Gardiner (Manchester), Mr. Latham
(Chariton-upon-Medloek), Mr. Woodhouse (Bolton).
and Mr. Coppoek (Stockport), with instructions to print
the same, and forwardcopies to the clerks of the Society,
with a view that the same should be laid before their
boards of guardians, for their consideration.
JOHN LATHAM, Chairman.
Nov. 22, 1844.
NER GARDINER.
JOHN LATHAM.

Approved on reference,

SPIRIT of the PUBLIC JOURNALS%
tsoM THE EVENING PAPERS OF YESTERDAY.
GLOBE.—The style in which Mr. Gladstone (if
the Quarterly article on Ward's Ideal Church is cur-
rectly attributed to that Right Honourable ecclesias-
tical politician) sets aside, without argument, the
views of those who consider the existing Church as
having been founded by the Reformers of the six-
teenth century—receives an appropriate commentary
in the resolutions at the great meeting in Exeter It
neither belongs to Mr. Gladstone, nor any other
ecclesiastical politician, by virtue of the mere idea
which he and other High-Churchmen entertain of
the original titles, and apostolic succession, of the
Church—(which idea he rather cooly assumes as the
one held by the " instructed members generally" of
that Church)—it does not belong to such statesmen,
to follow out the shadowy motives of polemLs in
public action. Indeed, Mr. Gladstone has good
reason to know this. Robespierre told the Jacobin
Club he was obli4ed to come to them for consolation,..
and open his heart, eted by the want of civism
of the Cenvention and ae
:•nßittees. In like manner
Mr. Gladstone rushes to 'tl4,, from a Cabinet
dead to his Churchism. Mr. Reviews
would no
longer knowliehiismselilkf,eifDiatmwe'rTer not for the Tri-
mestrials. Trot, pitifully shorn
of her nether integuments by Pedlar (or
Peeler), whose name was Stout—and the
his last
chance of self-recognition is, that his little
dogs" the press still " lit :le
tails" i welcome to him. It egmutstleibr
finitely .isolatory to Gladstone, as inerrtur-
of a G. • • .anent that is positively getting
.scrape • •••: love of endowing Roman Catholicism,il4 4'a
to be ..utfered to do the indignant in the Quar
terly at poor Mr. Ward, for " laying down in the
clearest terms, that the rival communion of the Papal
,church in England is not schismatical!!" Take
rx:.,•, choice, Mr. Gladstone. Either the " rival
comm,:lnion" is not schismatical," or else your
GovernOent—the Government graced with your all-
guaranteeing orthodoxy—is going out of its way to
encourage schism, and help it to endowments ! But,
ilia It:aqua:a tabs fides! While Mr. Gladstone, in
one article of the Quarterly, is predicating " schism"
of the " rival communion,"—Mr. Croker, in another
article of the same Quarterly, after intimating, in no
obscure terms, the policy of " a direct State provi-
sion for the Roman Catholic clergy of Ireland," pro•
ceeds to recommend to Lord Roden, and other such
pillars of Mr. Gladstone's exclusive churchism, the
extreme propriety of carrying out the Charitable Be-
914uesta Act by endowin4 the rival Church themselves!