Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1849-03-30
I.EQCT UR T.
On the North and the South, delivered before
the Young Mems Mercantile Library Asso-
tiation. of Cincinnati, Ohio, January is,
l849, BIZ ELwooD FISHER. -

CONCLUDED
In determining the condition of civilized
communities, il is generally considered essen
tial to inquire into the state of their pauper.
ism not only because the paupers themselves
because their number affects vitality the condi-
ton of the entire lahoring class.
In the State of New York. the progress Of
pauperism has been rapid In 1890. the num-
her supported or relieved was 1896 In
1885, il was SO, 362-according to Chapin's
United States Gazetteer for 1914. In l643 or
the number had increased 10 about $4,000
permanent, and the same number OF occasion
al paupers, making total of $4,000, as ap-
pears from the Journal of Commerce. These
were for the whole State, and there was thus,
one pauper to every seventeen Inhabitants
In 1847, .there were received at the principal
aims houses for the city of New York 1882
persons, and out door relief was given out of
public funds TO 34572 persons. making TO-
tai of 1924. So that about one person out
of erer-y fue in the city of New York was de-
pendent, more or less, on public charity. The
| total cost, that year, of this pauperism. was
$3l9, 1893 So For this present year Of l849,
the estimate is 100000, according to the
Mayors message.
In Massachusetts, it appears by the returns,
that there were, in 1886, $3.50 paupers, and
in ls4S, 1858. These were all in the aims
houses. Those relieved out OF the aim houses,
were 9.8l7, making total of 2s, $40. accord
ing to the report of the Secretary OF State OF
Massachusetts. And the returns from forty
one towns are omitted. II allowance be made
for these, il will be seen that in Massachu-
sets. one person out OF every twenty is con-
slant or occasional pauper. II thus appears
that in these two States, pauperism is advan-
cling ten times as rapidly as their wealth or
population. II has become so great rs to in
clude large numbers of able bodied men, who
II appears cannot, or what is woree, will not,
earn subsistence, and if such be the case,
what must be the condition of the great mass
OF people hanging on the verge of pauperism,
hut withheld by an honorable pride from APP
plying for public charity
Now, throughout the greater part of Viz
GINA and Kentucky, pauperism is almost I'M
known. passed, some time ago, the poor
house OF Campbell county, Kentucky, on the
opposite side of the river, and there was not a
solitary inmate. And have known popu-
lous county in Virginia TO have but one.
1t has generally been supposed that the pau.
pers OF Massachusetts, and New York are
principally foreign emigrants. But this is a
mistake. In the $3.50 paupers of Massachu-
setts in 1886, only 1892 were of foreign
brth-but little over -ffth-which does
not probably exceed the proportion then of
| 0l6 persons admitted into the alms-houses of
were Irish; but that was the year of Irish
| for In 1T ya0
into the aims houses of Massachusetts, 7,413
were foreigners We do not know what pro-
portion of that people of the State are foreign
ers; in Boston there is about one third.
| When pauperism extends 10 the class that
are able to labor, it is evident that the wages
OF labor are reduced to the cost of subsistence.
| And hence the whole class must be subjected
! to the melancholy and terrible necessity Of
working, rather to avoid the poor-house, than
OF lettering their condition. And the pauper
in an aims house is slave He works under
master, and receives nothing but a subss-
| tence. And there are already in New York
and Massachusetts, about one hundred thou
sand persons in this condition about an equal
number occasionally so and they are increas-
! ing at the rate of 200 per cent, whilst the
whole population does not increase 20 per
cent in ten years. In Cincinnati, the number
OF paupers, permanent and occasional, already
amounts 10 two thousand
Whilst the property of the North is thus
compelled TO contribute TO the support of this
great and growing burden, and the labor of
the North must not only assist in its support
also, but must work in competition with it,
they are subjected to another mighty evil,
which springs from, or al least is aggravated
by, the same causes, and that is crime
The number of convicts in the three peni
tentiaries of New York, Auburn, Sing Sing,
and Black wells Island is about two thousand
In the penitentiary of Virginia, there are only
Ill whites, SO blacks. This indicates four
times the amount of crime in proportion to the
white population in New York as in Virginia.
In the State Of Massachusetts, there were, in
1847. 2ss persons in the State prison, which
indicates more than twice the crime in that
State as in Virginia. Taking all the New
England States together, their penitentiary
convicts are twice as numerous in proportion
10 population as in Virginia, as will be seen
by consulting the American Almanac for
l849. 1t contains sketches of the criminal
statistics of the several States, and is New
England authority. In Ohio, there are 40
persons in the penitentiary in Kentucky $780,
Ohio being IS per cent. the most, according TO
population. According to the returns of the
Kentucky penitentiary, one half of her con-
vIcts, for the last ten years, came from the
single county in which Louisville, her prin.
cipal town, is located, and one-third of the
whole number were born in free States. Sc
much for the States OF the North, agricultural
manufacturing, and commercial, old and new
as compared with those of the South in crime
The results are uniformly and largely in favor
Of the South.
II we turn to the official reports of crime in
the great cities of the North, we behold state
of society exhibited, at which the mind is ap.
palied. In Boston, the number of persons an
nually arraigned for crime exceeds four thou.
sand, and, of this number, about one third are
females. So that one person out Of every IA
males, and one out of every % females, is ar.
rested annually for criminal offences. There
may be some who are arraigned more than
once year, but, on the other hand, there
must be many who escape detection altogether
In New York the proportion of crime is a
bout the same, some eighteen thousand per
sons having been arrested there last year Oh
these, it is said, six thousand were for drunk.
enness. twelve thousand were committed tc
the tombs for examination, of whom Ten thou.
sand were committed for trial OF these, there
were sentenced 10 the State prison 1l9 men
and II women; to the penitentiary, 700 men
and ITO women 10 the city prison, 1862 men