The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1848-01-11 00:00:00

is a monopoly of good preaching, so to speak, _
they can pay for a better article, and while men of science
and distinguished linguists, familiar with the ways of

Wankind, are ordained for foreign service, the poor at
home are often handed over to men who are sometimes
their own inferiors in intellect. A clerical friend charged
a poor woman with imposture a few days since, and was
about to send her begging letter to one of the newspapers
as a forgery, though signed by a scripture reader—of what
sect we do not know. On making inquiry, however, it
turned out to be genuine, though containing several vio-
lations of orthography. We are glad to find, however,
that in London, i►► Leeds, in Liverpool, and in the other
populous districts the new parishes are, in many instances,
undertaken by men of great ability and distinction. One
of the best known is Mr. David Laing, F.R.S., of Trinity,
St. Pancras London.
There is a close connexion between the different columns
of a newspaper which many of our readers fail to notice.
One column reports the neglect of the poor in morals and
religion, and another reports the assizes or quarter ses-
sions. One paragraph notices fines for uncleanliness, or
is a letter from a correspondent ; another gives the num-
ber of deaths in a ward from the registrar's report. We
announce, in the faithful performance of our duty, in one
number of our paper, the lamentable destitution of the
people in one district of the town, and the same number
conta►ns the reports of footpads and burglars, of additional
police, of violence and plunder. What has happened in
one district may happen with equal readiness in several ;
what has happened last week will occur again. Let us
neglect the people who are springing up in thousands on
every side of us, and the moral retribution is at hand.
There is a close connexion of cause and effect in these
matters. and it seems childish to say we must remove the
former if we would avoid the latter.

If we do not make provision for the people in one form
we must do it in another ; if we refuse to do it at one
time it will be exacted at another. To get rid of it is im-
possible. If we spare our pence to feed the hnngry boy,
we will lose shillings by his depredations. If we spare
shillings in his education, he will cost us pounds in provi-
ding additional police with sabres and horses, in providing
jailors, inspectors, watchmen,—in providing the convicts'
bed and board, or the felons' fetters at Kirkdale or the
'Borough Prison. Be assured that it is a wise economy
to act in time ; for the formation of evil habits destroys
the tendency to learn anything good or useful. The en-
joyment of plunder is to the thief what the taste of blood
is to the tiger : to wean him off the habit is all but an
impossibility. Besides, the first depredations are usually
committed under superintendence; so that to return to
virtuous habits, without the permission of the witness, is
impossible. Like Jonathan Wild, the aged thief holds
the youth in an iron chain by the few words, " You know

I could transport you." With facts and circumstances
like these constantly before us, we cannot feel lukewarm
or apathetic respecting the efforts to reclaim Vauxhall
district, or any similar portion of the town.