The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1903-07-03
FORCED TO LABOR.
Count Rumford's Method Of SUP
inc aenaarg.

There has been such frequent refer
ence OF late IN the English and Amer.
ican press 10 Count Rumford Ia con.
merton with the question Of dealing
with mendicancy, suggestions being
made editonalIy that It would be well
both In London AMI Tn this country 20
take some leaves out of his book ana
to follow his example. that q number
CT letters have been received frov
readers Of The Tribune asking for "a
formation about this nobleman. Tha
writer's In almost every case seem to
be ignorant Of Che fact that this dis
tinguished man, who flourish0d at the
beginning Of the 10Th century, and
whose reputation remains information
al, was an American, a native of New
England who prior 10 becoming Count
Rumford bore the name of Ben hin
Thompson. They also seem una gar0
that the methods which he devised for
dealing with mendicancy In Bavaria
are somewhat similar to those en-
ployed by the Salvation Army today in
its industrial branches, with this dis
tinction, that where Count Rumford.
by virtue Of the powers invested In
him by the Bayarian crown. was Fis
to use compulsion, the Salvation "
can only employ persuasion. vi
this exception, Count Rumford may Be
said to have been the originator Of
the Salvation Army's industrial ideas.
The counts story is indeed a
strange one. He was born a WobTn,
Mass, in 1853; was errand boy to
storekeeper at Salem, salesman in a
store in Boston, school teacher at
Bradford-ou-the Merrimack, and at 70
married a rich widow, a Mrs. RoIfe,
daughter CT minister Of the nama. OF
Walker, and was the first settle !.
Rumford, now called Concord in New
Hampshire. Governor Wentworth Of
that state made him major of militia,
and sent him in .T776, on the eyacua-
ton Of Boston by the royal troops, to
carry dispatches to England. There
Lord George Germaine, secretary of
state, took a fancy to him. gave him
an appointment and four years later
made him under secretary of state. In
/ I779 he was elected a fellow on the
Royal Society Toward the CLOSED OF
the War for independence he was nom
mated to a cavalry command in Amer
ica, bat in 1888 Quilted the British
army with the rank and half pay Of
Northumberland.
Travelling en- the Continent with
Gibbon, he was introduced by the Lat
ter to the Elector of Bavaria, who In
vited him to enter the civil and mil
tary service of that state. Having o
tanned the leave Of the British goyerJ
ment to accept the princes offer
after having been knfghted by
George Ill, he remained for II yea
at Munich as Minister Of war, minister
Of police and grand chamberlain. He
reorganized the Bavarian army, and
suppressed mendicity by much the
same means now employed by the Sal
walton army in its industrial BRAN
In enc day he caused no few,
! 5000 beggars in Munich and ies ,.-
rubs alone to be arrested by military
patrols and transferred to an indus
trial settlement prepared for their re-
ception, where they were both housed
and fed, and forced not only to support
themselves by their labors, bat were
also used for the benefit of the cleo
toral revenues. n
In 1871 he was created cou
tho Holy Roman Empire, and q
his title of Rumford from the name of
the American township of which his
first wife's family belonged. Toward
the close Of the 18th century he re-
turned to England to live, and founded
the Royal institution, which received
its charter of royal Incorporating from
King George III. in 1900. IND 8O4 he
transferred his abode to France, and
there married as his second wife the
wealthy widow Of Layoisier, the cele-
brated chemist. He died suddenly in
Paris in 1914, and his name is COM
memorated in this country, among
other things, by the Rumford profess
| sOrshin IF Harvard uuivorcitv