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<DATE>2014-08-20</DATE>
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<NAME>Kate Allen</NAME>
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<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P>A <HI>Mode&s;t Propo&s;al</HI> For the more Certain and yet more Ea&s;ie Provi&s;ion for the Poor.</P>
<P>AND Likewi&s;e for the better Suppre&s;&s;ion of <HI>Thieves, Dimini&s;hers</HI> and <HI>Corrupters of the Coyn,</HI> and other <HI>Lewd Livers.</HI></P>
<P>Tending much to the Advancement of TRADE, E&s;pecially in the mo&s;t Profitable part of it, <HI>The Manufactures of the Kingdom.</HI></P>
<P><HI>LONDON:</HI> Printed for <HI>J. Southby,</HI> at the <HI>Harrow</HI> near the <HI>Royal Exchange</HI> in <HI>Cornhill,</HI> 1695/6.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="preface">
<PB REF="2" MS="y">
<PB REF="2">
<HEAD>THE PREFACE.</HEAD>
<P>_IT generally happens, that Projectors are &s;o Fond of their own Con|ceits, that they Overlook all the Weakne&s;&s;es of them. I will not therefore pre&s;ume, that my Pro|po&s;al is without many Exceptions; indeed, hardly any Thing is Per|fected at the Fir&s;t Heat; and, perhaps, had I allow'd my &s;elf Time, I might have brought <HI>This</HI> into a little better Form. But having &s;een the <HI>Votes of the Hou&s;e of Commons</HI> of the <HI>31&s;t</HI> of <HI>January,</HI> which, I believe, were by the Good Providence of GOD put into the Minds of that <HI>Honourable Hou&s;e,</HI> as a <HI>Ble&s;&s;ing</HI> on the <HI>Religious Fa&s;t</HI> they kept the day before; I made ha&s;te to &s;peak a Word in &s;ea&s;on, &s;ince Timely Hints
<PB REF="3">are better than the mo&s;t Con&s;ummate Works that come too late. And if I can but give the lea&s;t Hint from whence a <HI>Good De&s;ign</HI> may be formed, for the Compa&s;&s;ing the Ends I propo&s;e, I have done a <HI>Good Service</HI> to the <HI>Publick;</HI> for which, I hope, all my Faults may be Pardoned.</P>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="proposal">
<PB N="1" REF="3">
<HEAD>A <HI>Mode&s;t Propo&s;al,</HI> &amp;c.</HEAD>
<P>IT cannot be deny'd, but that We have already many good Laws for the <HI>Relief of the Poor</HI> in their la&s;t Nece&s;&s;ities; and likewi&s;e there are many Bounti|ful Donations, and a general good Inclination to Charity in the People of this Land (e&s;pecially when they think their Charity will not be abu&s;ed) whereby a more liberal and plentiful Provi&s;ion for the <HI>Poor</HI> is or might be made. There are al&s;o good Laws, if well executed, for the Correction of Idle and Riotous Per|&s;ons: And, for tho&s;e who&s;e Idlene&s;s and Riot ha h led them into the high Crimes of <HI>Robbery, Burglary, Clipping</HI> and <HI>Coyning,</HI> and the like, our Laws have provided the Puni&s;hment of Death, which being look'd upon as the highe&s;t Puni&s;hment, hath been thought the mo&s;t likely to deter Men from the&s;e Crimes, &s;o mi&s;chievous to the <HI>Publick Good</HI> and <HI>Safety.</HI> But yet it mu&s;t be confe&s;s'd, that in many places the Poor are not &s;ufficiently pro|vided for; That the Land is weaken'd and wa&s;ted by <HI>Sloth</HI> and <HI>Riot;</HI> and that the number of tho&s;e high Cri|minals, &s;uch as <HI>Robbers, Hou&s;e-breakers, Clippers</HI> and <HI>Coiners,</HI> and the like, doth daily rather encrea&s;e than di|mini&s;h. And indeed, it cannot be otherwi&s;e, while there
<PB N="2" REF="4">an Habit of Idlene&s;s and Luxury, out of which it is next to impo&s;&s;ible for them ever to deliver them&s;elves, tho' you provide never &s;o many Puni&s;hments to terrifie them. The great Defect then, as I conceive, of all the Remedies we have at pre&s;ent for the&s;e Evils lies in this, That there is no effectual cour&s;e taken to keep per&s;ons from getting into an Habit of <HI>Idlene&s;s</HI> and <HI>Luxury;</HI> or, when they are got into it, to pluck them out of it whether they will or no. To &s;peak more particularly, we are, as I apprehend, wanting in the&s;e Six things.</P>
<P N="1">1. That per&s;ons that cannot live without Relief have not been provided of &s;ome Work or other which they might be capable of doing, and al&s;o forced to do to help &s;omething towards their Relief.</P>
<P N="2">2. That Per&s;ons taking Relief have not yet been obli|ged to live on &s;uch cheap Provi&s;ions as they might be well &s;u&s;tained with.</P>
<P N="3">3. That per&s;ons living Idely and Extravagantly have not been &s;ufficiently enquir'd into, and oblig'd to live within the compa&s;s of what either their Labour or E&s;tate can well maintain.</P>
<P N="4">4. That there hath been no Care taken to maintain on the publick Charge the Children of &s;uch per&s;ons who have more than their hone&s;t Labour and Indu&s;try can &s;upport.</P>
<P N="5">5. That for tho&s;e per&s;ons who&s;e Idlene&s;s and Luxury hath led them into the afore&s;aid Crimes of <HI>Robbery, Clip|ping,</HI> and <HI>Coyning,</HI> and the like, there have not been the mo&s;t proper Puni&s;hments u&s;ed, either to amend them, or deter others from the &s;ame Wickedne&s;s. But,</P>
<P N="6">6. And chiefly, the great Defect has been in that the mo&s;t proper Over&s;eers, and &s;uch as would and could make it their Bu&s;ine&s;s continually to keep the Methods for the Relief of the <HI>Poor</HI> and Puni&s;hment of the <HI>Wicked,</HI> on
<PB N="3" REF="4">foot, and in perpetual execution, have not been con&s;ti|tuted.</P>
<P>I will therefore begin with this la&s;t Point: And it is my Opinion, That not only the <HI>Ju&s;tices of the Peace</HI> (who are oftentimes Men of con&s;iderable quality, and large E&s;tates, and, con&s;equently, call'd from their Homes by their Bu&s;ine&s;s, and &s;ome of them by long attendance up|on Parliament) &s;hould have the care of this matter; but that al&s;o there &s;hould be a great number of Magi&s;trates of an Inferiour Rank created for this purpo&s;e, who may be termed <HI>Fathers of the Poor, Correcters and Amenders of the Wicked,</HI> or by any other Name that Authority thinks convenient. The&s;e Inferiour Magi&s;trates I would have cho&s;en out of Men that are worth 1000 <HI>l.</HI> or there|abouts, and they may be cho&s;en by the Inhabitants of the &s;everal Pari&s;hes, and Approved and Sworn by the Ju&s;tices at the <HI>Quarter-Se&s;&s;ions.</HI> And of their Qualities and Offices I &s;hall &s;peak anon.</P>
<P>Having thus appointed, as I think, proper <HI>Over&s;eers</HI> and <HI>Executers</HI> of my Methods, I proceed to the Methods them&s;elves: And, fir&s;t, I propo&s;e to have &s;ome Conve|nient and Certain Divi&s;ion made of the Kingdom, each Divi&s;ion to con&s;i&s;t of about Two or Three thou&s;and Fa|milies or Hou&s;holds; and &s;o the Divi&s;ion that is already of Counties, where the Counties are &s;mall, and not po|pulous, may &s;erve where they are larger. And likewi&s;e in the Great City of <HI>London</HI> the Divi&s;ion may be accord|ingly. In every &s;uch Divi&s;ion, I propo&s;e to have <HI>Two publick Hou&s;es</HI> erected, the one to be both an <HI>Ho&s;pital</HI> and a <HI>Workhou&s;e,</HI> and the other to be both a <HI>Work|hou&s;e</HI> and a <HI>Pri&s;on.</HI></P>
<P>For the <HI>Ho&s;pital Workhou&s;e,</HI> I would have it built as cheap as po&s;&s;ibly may be, that &s;o there may be the more Relief and Comfort afforded to the <HI>Poor;</HI> which is the
<PB N="4" REF="5">be&s;t End of all Charitable Works. I propo&s;e to have it built in this manner, <HI>viz.</HI></P>
<P>To have one very large Room built pretty high, with only an Earthen Floor, and a Hearth in the mid&s;t of it; and round about this great Room, I would have abun|dance of little low Rooms, as it were Cabbins opening in|to the great Room, where I would have all the Winter a con&s;tant Fire kept, Day and Night, that &s;o it might warm into the little Cabbins when their Doors were open, and might be as a Common Fire to all the Poor that lodg'd in them; and might likewi&s;e &s;erve to dre&s;s their Meat, (there being no need of Ro&s;t, and for boil|ing in little Crocks, or Pipkins, this Fire will &s;erve very well) and likewi&s;e to warm and dry their Clothes, and all other nece&s;&s;ary U&s;es. This Fire may be made of the Cheape&s;t Fuel in the re&s;pective Countries; and, certain|ly, One good great Fire can be kept much cheaper than a great many little ones. And, becau&s;e there may be an Inconvenience in keeping this place too hot and clo&s;e, I propo&s;e, That over the little Cabbins there may be Lattice-Windows into this great Room, to be quite open|ed when it is thought convenient. Without the little Cabbins that are round the great Room, I propo&s;e, to have &s;ome Ground, wherein every <HI>Poor Body</HI> may have a little Garden to his or her re&s;pective Cabbin, and a Door to open outwards to the Garden, as well as one to open inwards to the Common Room. &mdash; But, &s;ome of the Cab|bins I would have made opener and airier than the others, that &s;o in them Children may lodge; as &s;hall be &s;hewn.</P>
<P>Now, if to any Divi&s;ion one of the&s;e great Rooms, with the Cabbins about it, may not be &s;ufficient to contain the Poor, there may be two, or more, built in the &s;ame man|ner near together: But it will always be nece&s;&s;ary to have one of this &s;ort of Rooms kept di&s;tinctly for the Sick.</P>
<PB N="5" REF="5">
<P>But tho' there &s;hould be never &s;o many of the&s;e Rooms together, yet one Common <HI>Bakehou&s;e, Brewhou&s;e,</HI> and <HI>Wa&s;hhou&s;e</HI> will &s;erve them all, with &s;ome diver&s;ity of Ve&s;&s;els; and appointing different Days for different Works, in which the Labour of tho&s;e Poor that are able, is &s;till to be u&s;ed. For <HI>Brewing,</HI> that may be out of a Common Stock, and every one may have his fit proportion of Beer mea&s;ur'd out. For <HI>Baking,</HI> every one may Bake what he has occa&s;ion for in the Common Oven. I would have a kind of a homely Barn built, where they may work in the dry, tho&s;e Works that cannot conveniently be done either in their little Cabbins or the common Fire-room.</P>
<P>La&s;tly, I would have the&s;e Hou&s;es to be built in the mo&s;t barren places, except tho&s;e of the Cities of <HI>London</HI> and <HI>Westmin&s;ter,</HI> who know be&s;t where to place them. In all Divi&s;ions that border on the Sea, I would have the&s;e Hou&s;es built as nigh the Sea as may be, that &s;o the Poor may have Employment about the Fi&s;hery, and may be the cheaper fed by the Plenty of Fi&s;h.</P>
<P>Having thus contriv'd a Place of <HI>Being</HI> or <HI>Habitation,</HI> we are next to con&s;ider, Who are to be put into it; and then, What they are to do here. And,</P>
<P><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> I would have all Per&s;ons who receive Collection, or who cannot well live without Collection at lea&s;t, at tho&s;e times when they can do little or nothing at Home (which is to be judg'd of by the afore&s;aid <HI>Fathers of the Poor</HI>) to be &s;ent to this place.</P>
<P><HI>Secondly,</HI> I would have all Sick, Lame, Di&s;abled, and Bed-rid Per&s;ons to be &s;ent hither.</P>
<P><HI>Thirdly,</HI> I would have all the &s;upernumerary Children that are more than their Parents can Maintain by their Hone&s;t <HI>Labour</HI> and <HI>Indu&s;try,</HI> to be &s;ent to this place.</P>
<PB N="6" REF="6">
<P>And then, Secondly, For what they are to do in this place.</P>
<P><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> I do &s;uppo&s;e that there are no Per&s;ons &s;o Old or Decrepit, but that they may be able to do &s;ome Work or other which may gain &s;omething; and tho' this Gain be never &s;o &s;mall, yet if it be con&s;tant, it will help to|wards their Maintenance, and will al&s;o be an Ea&s;e and Comfort to the Poor Body, by amu&s;ing and diverting him from Thinking on his Poverty, or other Mi&s;ery; and by &s;eeing that he is able to do Something towards the Publick Good. For tho&s;e that are altogether Help|le&s;s, &s;ome of the Poor that are able, may have it for their Work to tend them, and &s;ome to tend and take care of the Children, e&s;pecially the &s;malle&s;t, who may be lodg'd in the wide&s;t or airie&s;t Cabbins, One or more, with the Poor Women that are fitte&s;t to tend them. And &s;ometimes the Mothers of a great many &s;mall Chil|dren may be taken into the <HI>Ho&s;pital</HI> to tend their own and other's Children. But, I &s;uppo&s;e that Children of Five or Six Years old may be capable of &s;ome Work that may give &s;ome little A&s;&s;i&s;tance towards their Mainte|nance. I do not pre&s;ume, That the Work of the Poor &s;hould be able to maintain them, but &s;o far as it helps towards it, &s;o far the Publick Charge is ea&s;ed; and, perhaps, it may go much farther than People do now apprehend, e&s;pecially in that Frugal way of Living that I propo&s;e for All in this <HI>Ho&s;pital-Workhou&s;e.</HI> For,</P>
<P N="1">1&s;t, For their <HI>Cloathing,</HI> I propo&s;e, That every one, in the Winter, have a Wa&s;tcoat, Coat and Breeches for the Men, and a Wa&s;tcoat, Petticoat, and Gown for the Women, the Gown being not open before, but coming down like an Upper Petticoat, and Lac'd before; and all this to be of coar&s;e white Cloth, that &s;o it may be wa&s;h'd when
<PB N="7" REF="6">there is Occa&s;ion. In the Summer the Men need not have Wa&s;tcoats, nor the Women Under-Petticoats; the Men may have a coar&s;e Linnen Neckcloth, and the Wo|men a coar&s;e Handkerchief about their Necks. For the Children, if &s;mall, they may be all cloath'd alike in one clo&s;e Gown lac'd before, of the &s;ame White Cloth: But, if the Males are big, they may have Breeches of the &s;ame Cloth, and a Clo&s;e-bodied Coat or Wa&s;tcoat: There may be added to every one &s;ome coar&s;e Linnen to wear next them. Of the&s;e Habits each Per&s;on &s;hould have two Suits, that the one may be worn while the other is wa&s;h'd and clean'd; and two Suits together worn alternately, will la&s;t as long as two new Suits given the one after the other. This for their <HI>Clothes,</HI> then for their <HI>Diet.</HI></P>
<P>It may be remember'd I propos'd a <HI>Garden to every Cabbin,</HI> which may be planted with <HI>Cabbages, Carrots, Turnips, Potatoes,</HI> and the like, by tho&s;e of the Poor that are able to do it; and a little Salt <HI>Beef</HI> or <HI>Bacon</HI> with the &s;aid Roots or Herbs, will go a good way. They may likewi&s;e have good boyling <HI>Pea&s;e</HI> provided for them, with <HI>Broth, Milk, Brown Bread,</HI> and the cheape&s;t <HI>Chee&s;e,</HI> and the like, at the Di&s;cretion of the <HI>Fathers,</HI> always contriving to have the <HI>Diet</HI> that is lea&s;t expen&s;ive, provided it be whol&s;om.</P>
<P>Having &s;aid as much as is nece&s;&s;ary of the <HI>Ho&s;pital-Workhou&s;e,</HI> I proceed now to the <HI>Pri&s;on-Workhou&s;e,</HI> about which there needs little more <HI>Contrivance,</HI> than to have it built &s;trong enough, and &s;o as to keep every Per&s;on apart hard at Work.</P>
<P>Several &s;orts of the <HI>Harde&s;t Works,</HI> and mo&s;t <HI>Benefi|cial,</HI> &s;uch as, if a <HI>Man</HI> or <HI>Woman</HI> be kept clo&s;e to them, they may earn con&s;iderably more than their Expence, are to be found out for tho&s;e that are detain'd in the
<PB N="8" REF="7"><HI>Pri&s;on Workhou&s;e:</HI> And, that they may be able to go through with &s;uch Works, they &s;hould be fed with cour&s;e, but hearty Fare.</P>
<P>And for their <HI>Clothing,</HI> there is no need of any more, at lea&s;t, for the great <HI>Malefactors</HI> but ju&s;t to cover their Shame. The&s;e <HI>Pri&s;on-Workhou&s;es</HI> I would have always to be in &s;ome City or great Town, that being &s;evere Pri&s;ons, they may be well guarded; and that the fre|quent Sight of them may deter the more from tho&s;e Vices that bring Per&s;ons into &s;uch Puni&s;hment. And al&s;o, that the <HI>Criminals</HI> being not &s;uffer'd to wag abroad, may be the ea&s;ier provided both of <HI>Food</HI> and <HI>Work.</HI></P>
<P>Into the&s;e <HI>Pri&s;on-Workhou&s;es</HI> I would have &s;ent,</P>
<P N="1">I. 1st, All <HI>Robbers on the Highway, Hou&s;ebreakers, Clippers</HI> and <HI>Coiners, Pickpockets,</HI> and the like, there to be kept till by the Overplus of what they gain by their Labour, they have made ample Satisfaction to all whom they have wrong'd; till they have paid for their Taking; and till they have acquir'd &s;uch a Habit of Indu&s;try and Faring hard, that they may be tru&s;ted again among <HI>Hone&s;t People.</HI> And, after all that, the Correctors ought to make them either work there till they have given &s;omething to the&s;e Hou&s;es, that have done them &s;o much good, or to take an Obligation of them to do &s;o when they have got Something in the World; the forfeiture of which Bond &s;hould be to return to tho&s;e <HI>Pri&s;on-Workhou&s;es.</HI> And in this Method it is ob&s;erva|ble, that <HI>Clippers</HI> and <HI>Coiners,</HI> who have done the <HI>Na|tion</HI> &s;o much Injury, that they can never make it Re|paration, will be kept here in <HI>Hard Slavery</HI> as long as they live: As, indeed, it is &s;it &s;uch <HI>Mi&s;chievous Bea&s;ts</HI> &s;hould be ever kept up in Clo&s;e Durance.</P>
<PB N="9" REF="7">
<P>But becau&s;e in <HI>Robbing</HI> and <HI>Hou&s;e-breaking</HI> there often happens <HI>Murder,</HI> and by the Law of God, <HI>He that &s;heds Man's Blood, by Man &s;hall his Blood be &s;hed;</HI> I would have this Horrible Wickedne&s;s puni&s;h'd with <HI>Death.</HI> But yet I do not know but it might terrifie &s;ome Men, more e&s;pecially &s;uch as are of Athei&s;tical Opinions, or &s;uch as through a Habit of <HI>Idlene&s;s</HI> and <HI>Luxury</HI> dread|ed <HI>Work</HI> and <HI>Hard Fare</HI> more than <HI>Death;</HI> to put them fir&s;t in this <HI>Pri&s;on-Workhou&s;e,</HI> and there u&s;ing them much harder in all re&s;pects than any other <HI>Criminals,</HI> every day Scourging them till the Blood comes, and reproach|ing them with their Villainous Murder; and in this man|ner to keep them till by their Labour they have made &s;ome &s;ort of <HI>Re&s;titution</HI> for the Damage that happen'd to any one by that Murder, or to the Publick, by the Lo&s;s of two Members of the Commonwealth; that is, of the Per&s;on murder'd, and of the Murderer, who there|by forfeited his Life. And when he hath paid the&s;e Debts, let him al&s;o pay the Debt that he oweth the Law of his Blood.</P>
<P N="2">II. 2dly, I would have &s;ent into this <HI>Pri&s;on Work|hou&s;e</HI> all Pro&s;titutes, of one or the other Sex, and all that live upon <HI>Bawdery.</HI></P>
<P N="3">III. 3dly, All <HI>Fraudulent Debtors,</HI> who are as bad, if not wor&s;e than <HI>Robbers.</HI> It &s;hould be in the Power of <HI>Creditors,</HI> who can prove their Debts, to ca&s;t their Debtors that will not pay into this Pri&s;on; and there, when the Correctors have examin'd the Ca&s;e, if they find a Man to be in Debt meerly through <HI>Misfortune,</HI> they &s;hall move the Creditor and others to be Charita|ble to him, and do what they can to Compound his Debts, and to put him again into a way of Living: And if they cannot do this, they &s;hall order him to be u&s;ed kindly, allowing &s;ome &s;mall matter to his Credi|tor
<PB N="10" REF="8">out of his Labour. But if, upon Enquiry, they &s;hall find the Debtor contracted tho&s;e Debts with a purpo&s;e to cheat his Creditor, then &s;uch a Debtor is to be u&s;ed in all re&s;pects as a <HI>Thief,</HI> he being &s;uch a <HI>Thief</HI> as a Man cannot be aware of.</P>
<P N="4">IV. 4thly, To this place &s;hould be &s;ent all <HI>Wandering Beggars,</HI> all <HI>Petty Chapmen, Pedlers, Tinkers,</HI> and the like, who may be, and often are, of a very lewd and wicked Life, being under no Bodies In&s;pection, nor being to be found to be puni&s;h'd for their Cheats and Thefts, by rea&s;on of their Wandering Life, and bearing likewi&s;e no publick Burdens or Taxes; and &s;o are no way bene|ficial, but very injurious to the Commonweal.</P>
<P>In like manner, after the <HI>Ho&s;pital-Workhou&s;es</HI> are &s;etled, if any pretend to Travel with Pa&s;&s;es, among whom there are now many Cheats, they may be clap'd up into the&s;e <HI>Pri&s;on-Workhou&s;es,</HI> becau&s;e that there may be Care taken, that tho&s;e that have truly need to pa&s;s from one place to another, &s;ub&s;i&s;ting upon Charity, may be reliev'd, and &s;ent from one <HI>Ho&s;pital-Workhou&s;e</HI> to ano|ther, doing Something for their Living, during their &s;tay in each <HI>Ho&s;pital-Workhou&s;e.</HI></P>
<P N="5">V. 5thly, All <HI>Notoriou&s;ly-Idle</HI> and <HI>Riotous Per&s;ons,</HI> who Spend much beyond their Earning or Income, &s;hould be &s;ent to the&s;e <HI>Pri&s;on-Workhou&s;es,</HI> there to be kept to Hard Labour and Hard Diet, till it may be rea&s;onably hoped they are Cured of that <HI>Idlene&s;s</HI> and <HI>Extravagance.</HI></P>
<P>All the&s;e Per&s;ons are to be us'd better or wor&s;e, with Regard to their <HI>Lodging, Clothing, Food, Correction</HI> or <HI>Time of durance;</HI> according to their different Crimes, and what may tend be&s;t to their effectual Cure: And &s;o much mu&s;t re&s;t upon the Ju&s;tice and Di&s;cretion of the <HI>Corre|ctors,</HI> who, as you will &s;ee by what follows, are to give an Account of what they do.</P>
<PB N="11" REF="8">
<P>Having thus &s;poke of this <HI>Pri&s;on-Workhou&s;e,</HI> and who are to be put into it, and how they are to be <HI>Fed, Cloth'd</HI> and <HI>Handl'd,</HI> there is one thing yet remains, which may be thought &s;trange; that is, I would have all the&s;e wic|ked Men and wicked Women, that are in the&s;e places, married together, if there be enough of each Sex, and they are not married before. But here I except the <HI>Murderers,</HI> of whom I would have no Offspring: For the re&s;t, let them be brought to Marry one with ano|ther; which will be no hard matter. And, that their Matching may be little or no hinderance to the Work either of the Men or of the Women; and al&s;o, that they may produce &s;trong and healthy Children, I propo&s;e, That they may accompany together but once in a week, every <HI>Saturday,</HI> about Three of the Clock; the Man and his Wife may cea&s;e their Labour, and be brought toge|ther, and &s;o Sup and Lodge together, and the next day be parted again; where both Men and Women, in &s;eve|ral Divi&s;ions of a Room where they cannot &s;ee each other, may be brought to hear Divine Service and a Sermon; then being had to their re&s;pective little work|ing Rooms again, they may lodge by them&s;elves, and the next Morning early return to their Work.</P>
<P>As for the Women that prove with Child, they may neverthele&s;s be held to their Work, tho' in &s;ome de|gree abated; and when they are brought to Bed, the Children &s;hall be remov'd to the <HI>Ho&s;pital Workhou&s;e,</HI> there to be &s;uckl'd by &s;ome poor Women, or brought up by Hand; and the Mothers, as &s;oon as they are able, &s;hall be forced to return to their hard Labour. But when the Man and the Woman have wrought them|&s;elves out of the <HI>Pri&s;on-Workhou&s;e,</HI> they &s;hall have their Children &s;ent them, if they are able to keep them.</P>
<PB N="12" REF="9">
<P>I am &s;en&s;ible it will be objected, That in the Contri|vance of both the <HI>Ho&s;pital</HI> and <HI>Pri&s;on-Workhou&s;e</HI> I bring a needle&s;s and mighty Burthen upon the Publick, in loading it with the Charge of &s;o many Children. But I think it a Fault in any Con&s;titution, not to encourage the encrea&s;e of Lawful Children, e&s;pecially when they are like to be train'd up in all Frugality and Indu&s;try, as the&s;e will be. And it may be &s;o contriv'd, that in a little time this may be no Burthen at all to the Publick; for, the <HI>Fathers of the Poor</HI> may have Power given them &s;o oblige every one that hath been brought up in In|fancy in the <HI>Ho&s;pital-Workhou&s;e,</HI> after they can get more than is nece&s;&s;ary for their own Maintenance, to pay to the <HI>Ho&s;pital-Workhou&s;e,</HI> the Men as much as will train up two Infants, and the Women as much as will train up one, in like manner as they had been trained up them&s;elves; and that under pain of being &s;ent to the <HI>Pri&s;on-Workhou&s;e.</HI> And then, con&s;idering how frugally Children will be kept in the <HI>Ho&s;pital-Workhou&s;es,</HI> how &s;oon they will be able to get their own Living, or Something towards it, and how many Charitable Gifts will be &s;ent to tho&s;e places, where People will be &s;ati&s;|fied 'twill be &s;o well employ'd. This training up of a numerous company of Children will be found to be lit|tle or no Charge, and yet a mighty Advantage to the Publick. It will al&s;o prevent a great deal of <HI>Sin,</HI> en|courage <HI>Marriage,</HI> and encrea&s;e a <HI>healthy</HI> and <HI>well|nurtur'd People.</HI></P>
<P>I come now to &s;peak of the Privileges, Powers, and Duties of the <HI>Fathers of the Poor,</HI> and <HI>Correctors of the Wicked,</HI> who are to be the Over&s;eers and Executers of the&s;e Methods, and upon who&s;e Di&s;cretion, Care, and Fidelity all the Succe&s;s of the De&s;ign will depend.</P>
<PB N="13" REF="9">
<P>And, 1&s;t, of their <HI>Privileges.</HI> It is but rea&s;onable that &s;uch Per&s;ons who are &s;o beneficial to the Publick, &s;hould have &s;ome Privileges, and therefore I think it fit that they be excus'd from the Burthen of any other Office, from Serving on <HI>Juries,</HI> and the like; and that, as Ma|gi&s;trates of a lower degree, they have Precedence, and their Wives likewi&s;e, of all of their Rank and Condition, that at their Election they have pre&s;ented them at the Publick Charge a Walking-&s;taff with a Silver Head, with the Pictures of <HI>Ju&s;tice</HI> and <HI>Charity</HI> engrav'd upon it, for a Badge of their Office and Authority.</P>
<P N="2">2dly, For their <HI>Powers.</HI> They &s;hould, I think, have the Power of perpetual Con&s;tables, tho' not obliged to act any of the Con&s;table's Office, but when their Du|ties hereafter mention'd oblige them. They &s;hould al|&s;o have Power and Authority to enquire and demand of any Per&s;on who appears to live Idley and Riotou&s;ly, and to &s;pend more than he or &s;he can have hone&s;tly coming in, how it is that they maintain &s;uch Expence: And if they do deny or refu&s;e to give an Account, that then the <HI>Corrector of the Wicked</HI> have Power in him&s;elf to &s;end &s;uch a Per&s;on immediately away to the <HI>Pri&s;on-Workhou&s;e,</HI> and that all Per&s;ons be aiding and a&s;&s;i&s;ting to him in &s;o doing. But if the &s;aid Su&s;pected Per&s;on &s;hall offer &s;ome Account of the An&s;wering of his Income to his Expence, and that Account be not &s;atisfactory, to prevent the Effects of Private <HI>Malice,</HI> the <HI>Corrector</HI> &s;hall have the Per&s;on before a <HI>Ju&s;tice of Peace,</HI> who with the A&s;&s;i&s;tance of another Ju&s;tice, may examin him; and, if they &s;ee cau&s;e, may by their Joint-Warrant &s;end him to the <HI>Pri&s;on-Workhou&s;e.</HI></P>
<PB N="14" REF="10">
<P>In like manner each <HI>Father of the Poor</HI> &s;hall have Power to Examin, how any Poor man &s;upports his Fami|ly of Children; and if he find that &s;uch Poor man hath more than he can &s;upport by his hone&s;t Labour, he &s;hall take from him &s;o many as he thinks &s;it, and &s;end them, whether the Man and his Wife will or no, to the <HI>Ho&s;pital-Workhou&s;e;</HI> and when he &s;eeth convenient, &s;end the Mo|ther al&s;o with the Children, where the Father may &s;ee them every <HI>Sunday,</HI> provided he bring enough to feed them and him for that day.</P>
<P>And in ca&s;e, by rea&s;on of this Dependance, any La|bouring man &s;hould turn Idle or Sotti&s;h, he may be for|ced to work, by the &s;ame Remedy that is provided for all other idle Per&s;ons; that is, by being &s;ent to the <HI>Pri&s;on Workhou&s;e,</HI> if nothing el&s;e will reform him; for it is not de&s;ign'd, that any man &s;hould be eas'd of any more Burthen than what he cannot by his hone&s;t Indu|&s;try &s;upport.</P>
<P>As to the Apprehen&s;ion of the&s;e <HI>Hou&s;e-breakers, Cor|rupters of the King's Coyn, Pickpockets,</HI> all &s;uch as live on <HI>Bawdery, Gyp&s;ies, Walking Beggars, Wandring Petty-chap|men,</HI> and the like, this may &s;till be left to the U&s;ual Con&s;tables, and by a Ju&s;tice's Warrant they may be &s;ent to the <HI>Pri&s;on-Workhou&s;e,</HI> where they will be&s;t be Corrected; that is, both puni&s;h'd and made bet|ter.</P>
<P>But, becau&s;e this Duty is too often neglected by the Ordinary Officers, the Correctors may be impower'd fir&s;t to complain to the Ju&s;tices, and, if that will not do, by their own Authority to &s;eize the above&s;aid Cri|minals, and &s;end them to the <HI>Pri&s;on-Workhou&s;e,</HI> where &s;uch Criminals &s;hall remain, only paying double for their <HI>Diet,</HI> till at a General Court the Truth of their
<PB N="15" REF="10">Ca&s;e be known, and then &s;uitable Di&s;ciplin &s;hall be ap|pointed them.</P>
<P N="3">3dly, For the <HI>Duties</HI> of the&s;e <HI>Fathers of the Poor,</HI> and <HI>Correctors of the Wicked.</HI></P>
<P>The&s;e will be very <HI>many</HI> and <HI>great;</HI> and therefore none &s;hould be cho&s;en into this Office but Ancient, Grave, Sub&s;tantial, Prudent, and Pious Men; and when they are elected, they &s;hould take a Solemn Oath, That they will Faithfully Di&s;charge, to the be&s;t of their Skill, the Great Office they have undertaken, and make it their Study and Endeavour to promote True Ju&s;tice and Cha|rity.</P>
<P>I propo&s;e, That the Whole Body of the&s;e <HI>Fathers</HI> and <HI>Correctors</HI> meet the Fir&s;t Day of every Month, unle&s;s the Fir&s;t Day happen to be <HI>Sunday,</HI> and then they may meet the next Day, which meeting &s;hall be call'd their <HI>Gene|ral Court:</HI> Let them meet in a full Body one Month at the <HI>Ho&s;pital-Workhou&s;e,</HI> and the next Month at the <HI>Pri|&s;on-Workhou&s;e.</HI> When they meet at the <HI>Ho&s;pital-Work|hou&s;e,</HI> they &s;hall chu&s;e out a Committee of Ten, and gi|ving them nece&s;&s;ary In&s;tructions, &s;end them to the <HI>Pri&s;on-workhou&s;e,</HI> who &s;hall be term'd <HI>The General Court at the Pri&s;on-workhou&s;e</HI> for that Month: And &s;o, in like manner, when they meet all at the <HI>Pri&s;on-workhou&s;e,</HI> &s;hall they do by the <HI>Ho&s;pital-workhou&s;e.</HI></P>
<P>Now, at the meeting of the&s;e General Courts, either of the Whole Body, or of the Committee of Ten, which &s;hall be always taken as a General Court, there &s;hall be a &s;hort Sermon or Exhortation on the Subject of <HI>Ju&s;tice</HI> or <HI>Charity,</HI> made by &s;ome Mini&s;ter of the Divi&s;ion: And let it be ob&s;erv'd, That every Par&s;on or Vicar in each Divi&s;ion &s;hall have Power to come, if he plea&s;es, into every General Court of that Divi&s;ion, and may Advi&s;e,
<PB N="16" REF="11" MS="y">Act, and Vote in the &s;aid Court, as any other <HI>Father</HI> and <HI>Corrector</HI> may; but &s;hall be obliged to no other Of|fice, be&s;ides making his Exhortation in his turn.</P>
<P>As &s;oon as the Court is &s;ate, they &s;hall chu&s;e a <HI>Chair|man</HI> and a <HI>Clerk</HI> out of their own body, for that time, that &s;o all may under&s;tand the Methods of proceeding, and to avoid multiplying Officers, who are always a Charge, and often an occa&s;ion of Corruption and In|ju&s;tice.</P>
<P>The fir&s;t thing the Court &s;hall proceed in at the <HI>Pri|&s;on workhou&s;e</HI> &s;hall be, to call before them all the Per|&s;ons that have been &s;ent thither &s;ince the la&s;t Se&s;&s;ion; and they &s;hall hear their re&s;pective Ca&s;es, and award them Ju&s;t Di&s;cipline: But, if the Ca&s;e &s;eem difficult, and there be only the Committee of Ten &s;itting, they may de&s;er the Condemning to Di&s;cipline till the next Court, when the Whole Body will meet there, keeping the &s;u&s;pected Criminal only upon the Charge of pay|ing double what his Diet co&s;t, for the benefit of the Hou&s;e, which is no more than Men pay in Inns; And he may be obliged to pay either out of what he hath, or out of his Labour.</P>
<P>The next thing to be con&s;ider'd by the Court is, To contrive the mo&s;t proper and beneficial Works to be done at that time by the Criminals: And, for this rea&s;on, the Correctors of the Wicked &s;hould be cho&s;en, at lea&s;t a great part of them, out of &s;everal Trades, that they may the better know how to find out and pre&s;cribe &s;uch Works.</P>
<P>I think it no Objection to &s;ay, That perhaps the Cri|minals will not do the Works as they &s;hould be done; &s;ince <HI>Scourging,</HI> and <HI>Pinching with Hunger</HI> will tame the highe&s;t Spirit, and make them do even what you plea&s;e. And if &s;ome &s;hould dye under the Di&s;cipline, this, in
<PB N="17" REF="11" MS="y">re&s;pect of the high Criminals, who are to be us'd the mo&s;t &s;everely, is no more than when they had de&s;erv'd by our pre&s;ent Law. But yet, by the Prudence of the Correctors, this may always be avoided.</P>
<P>Before the breaking up of the Court at the <HI>Pri&s;on|workhou&s;e,</HI> if the whole Court Sir, there &s;hall be cho&s;en out of the Body Ten Per&s;ons to be <HI>Stewards</HI> for the en|&s;uing Month. If only the Committee of Ten Sit, they &s;hall be the Stewards them&s;elves.</P>
<P>The Duty of the&s;e Stewards &s;hall be as followeth.</P>
<LIST>
<ITEM>Two of them &s;hall buy in Provi&s;ions for the Hou&s;e.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Two &s;hall &s;ee the Work brought in and carried out.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Two &s;hall &s;ee Due Correction executed.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Two &s;hall Pay the Inferiour Officers, that inflict the Di&s;cipline, or carry the Provi&s;ions or Work to and fro, and to take an Account of what is laid Out and Earn'd.</ITEM>
<ITEM>The other Two to draw up the whole Account brought them by their Eight Brethren, and to con&s;ider it, and make their be&s;t Remarks upon it; and pre&s;ent it, with their Remarks, to the next full Court. And, at lea&s;t, two of the&s;e Stewards &s;hould lodge in the <HI>Pri&s;on|workhou&s;e,</HI> in &s;ome convenient Room &s;et a&s;ide for that purpo&s;e.</ITEM>
</LIST>
<P>The like Cour&s;e is to be taken for the <HI>Ho&s;pital-work|hou&s;e,</HI> Ten <HI>Stewards</HI> are to be cho&s;en monthly.</P>
<LIST>
<ITEM>Two to &s;ee Provi&s;ions collected and brought in.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Two to provide proper Work.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Two to &s;ee any Irregularity corrected.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Two to pay Nece&s;&s;ary Officers, and make a &s;tate of the Receipts and Disbur&s;ements.</ITEM>
<PB N="18" REF="12">
<ITEM>And Two to take an Account of all that hath been done by their Brethren; to make their Remarks, and to give them in to the next full meeting.</ITEM>
</LIST>
<P>And this Burthen will not be great upon any man, becau&s;e in a Hundred and twenty <HI>Father-Correctors,</HI> which is the lea&s;t number I propo&s;e for every Divi&s;ion, it can come to a Man's Turn but twice in a Year.</P>
<P>In <HI>Ho&s;pital-workhou&s;es</HI> that are in Inland Counties, the Fathers of the Poor need only breed up the Children to be fit for Servants to Husbandmen, or to be Appren|tices to Handicraft-Trades; and to be taught to Read is Learning enough for them: But in <HI>Ho&s;pital-workhou&s;es</HI> that are near the Sea, tho&s;e Boys that are capable, &s;hall be in&s;tructed in all the Art of Navigation; and All &s;hall be taught the Skill of Catching and Ordering Fi&s;h; Boats and Fi&s;hing-Tackle, and able Per&s;ons to a&s;&s;i&s;t, being pro|vided at the charge of the Hou&s;e.</P>
<P>To every <HI>Ho&s;pital-workhou&s;e</HI> there &s;hall always belong an ea&s;ie Waggon, with two or three Hor&s;es, to fetch the Sick and Decrepit Poor to the Hou&s;e, or to carry &s;uch from <HI>Ho&s;pital-workhou&s;e</HI> to <HI>Ho&s;pital-workhou&s;e,</HI> in their pa&s;&s;age home; which will free the Country of a great deal of Charge and Trouble.</P>
<P>In every <HI>Ho&s;pital-workhou&s;e</HI> I would have &s;ome private place appointed, to be vi&s;ited at certain times by the Women of the Hou&s;e, to which any young Children may be brought, and none &s;hall take notice or enquire who brought them, or from whom they were &s;ent; but all &s;uch Children &s;hall be taken in, and brought up by the Hou&s;e. This may prevent many Execrable Mur|ders, and be a Benefit to many poor Infants, who, ei|ther through their Parents Shame to make their Ca&s;e known, or De&s;pair of Relief, might &s;uffer very much
<PB N="19" REF="12">or be lo&s;t. It can't be objected, That this will encou|rage the begetting Unlawful Children; &s;ince care is ta|ken before, that Lewd Per&s;ons be &s;ent to the <HI>Pri&s;on|workhou&s;e,</HI> and there married to tho&s;e of their own &s;train; which will prevent &s;uch Wickedne&s;s much more than any Means now us'n. As to the Charge this will bring upon the Publick, that hath been an&s;wer'd alrea|dy: And indeed, it is demon&s;trable, that the Encrea&s;e the Publick Stock may have from the Labour of One from ten to twenty five years old, will more than dou|ble or treble pay for the Charge &s;uch a one &s;tood the Publick in, in the time of Infancy: And it is all the Rea&s;on in the World that &s;uch a one &s;hould be oblig'd to pay this Debt to the Publick.</P>
<P>For the In&s;truction of poor Children in Religion, the <HI>Fathers of the Poor</HI> &s;hall take care that all be taught the <HI>Church-Catechi&s;m;</HI> and that the Children, as &s;oon as they can learn it, &s;hall con&s;tantly &s;ay the <HI>Lord's Prayer</HI> and <HI>Creed,</HI> ri&s;ing and going to Bed; at Noon the <HI>P&s;alms</HI> for the Day, and the <HI>Chapters,</HI> &s;hall be read by the Children, and the <HI>Letany,</HI> with the <HI>General Thanks,</HI> giving the Prayer of St. <HI>Chry&s;o&s;tom,</HI> and the <HI>Ble&s;&s;ing,</HI> &s;hall be read by one of the grave&s;t men in the Hou&s;e, all making the Re&s;pon&s;es. At night, &s;ome &s;uch grave Per&s;on (which if there be none other fit, may be one of the Fathers that is then Steward in the Hou&s;e) &s;hall call the Youth, and appoint &s;ome of them to read the <HI>P&s;alms</HI> for the Day, and the <HI>Chapter,</HI> and then he &s;hall reverently rehear&s;e the <HI>Lord's Prayer,</HI> and the <HI>Collect</HI> that follows it in the <HI>Communion Service,</HI> and &s;o proceed to the <HI>Ten Command|ments,</HI> after every one of which <HI>All</HI> pre&s;ent &s;hall make that Prayer, to beg Forgivene&s;s of God for any Tran&s;|gre&s;&s;ion again&s;t that Commandment, and His Grace to enable them to Keep it better for the time to come, &s;ay|ing
<PB N="20" REF="13" MS="y">aloud, <HI>Lord, have Mercy,</HI> &amp;c. I advi&s;e the Com|mandments at Night, that &s;o, by them, every one may examin his Actions of the Day pa&s;t. After the Com|mandments, I would have the two Prayers in the <HI>Com|mination</HI> us'd, the fir&s;t of which begins. <HI>O mo&s;t mighty God, and merciful Father,</HI> &mdash; and the &s;econd, <HI>Turn thou us, Good Lord,</HI> &amp;c. only leaving out the word <HI>Fa&s;ting.</HI> Then &s;hall follow the Prayer for Ab&s;olution in the <HI>Com|mination;</HI> then the Prayer for the whole Church-mili|tant, and one or two of the Collects in the Communion Service; with <HI>The Peace of God,</HI> &amp;c. On <HI>Sundays</HI> all that can &s;hall repair to the Pari&s;h-Church; and for the Sick and Decrepit, the Mini&s;ter of the Pari&s;h may be de&s;ir'd at convenient times to vi&s;it them.</P>
<P>At the Court held at the <HI>Ho&s;pital-Workhou&s;e,</HI> there &s;hall be a &s;trict Enquiry made into the &s;tate of the Hou&s;e, what hath been earn'd in it, what hath been gi|ven to it, what hath and mu&s;t be expended, and what is wanting in the Income to an&s;wer the Expence. And in my Opinion, they ought always to have a Months Provi&s;ion ready beforehand.</P>
<P>Now, if neither the <HI>Gifts</HI> nor <HI>Earnings</HI> will an&s;wer the nece&s;&s;ary Expence, what is wanting is to be levy'd on the whole Divi&s;ion, of Two or Three thou&s;and Fami|lies, by the Court, in as equal a manner as may be.</P>
<P>It is my Opinion, That the Poor &s;hould not be kept to exceeding hard Labour, but that within an hone&s;t Indu&s;try they may live Comfortably; the Charity of their Brethren &s;upplying what That cannot obtain.</P>
<P>Exceeding Hard Labour is to be the Puni&s;hment of the Other Hou&s;e; but <HI>Poverty,</HI> which is no Fault, ought not to be puni&s;h'd. In the Levies that are made on the Di|vi&s;ion, it may be order'd, That Men &s;end in their <HI>Quota's</HI>
<PB N="21" REF="13" MS="y">either in Money or Provi&s;ions, at a rea&s;onable value; but the <HI>Fathers of the Poor</HI> are not to be charged there|in, becau&s;e their Care and Attendance on this Charity is &s;ufficient for their Part, they being neither to have any Stipend, or to make any &s;ort of Gain by their Office; only the Charge they are at in conveying the Poor, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> to the Workhou&s;es, is to be allow'd them. And while they &s;tay at the <HI>Ho&s;pital-workhou&s;e,</HI> they &s;hall only lodge in &s;ome of the be&s;t Cabbins, and have the &s;ame Diet that the mo&s;t-favour'd of the Poor have.</P>
<P>As to the <HI>Pri&s;on-workhou&s;e,</HI> I do &s;uppo&s;e it will more than maintain it &s;elf; it mu&s;t be very negligently look'd after if it doth not; for this is to be a place of Pain and Mi&s;ery, there being few, or none, to be long kept here, but what de&s;erve not to live; and &s;urely, if they be kept to the Harde&s;t Labour, working almo&s;t naked, they mu&s;t Earn much more than they Eat.</P>
<P>And indeed, by rea&s;on of this &s;tate of the <HI>Pri&s;on-work|hou&s;e,</HI> I do pre&s;ume, there will ever be a good Stock of Money beforehand, out of which I would have lent to Poor Indu&s;trious People &s;mall Sums to follow their little Trades with, but obliging them&s;elves either to pay the &s;ame in a little time, or to render them&s;elves in the <HI>Pri|&s;on-workhou&s;e,</HI> to &s;atisfie their Debt by their Labour.</P>
<P>Out of this Stock al&s;o I would have paid to every one that di&s;covers and cau&s;es to be apprehended any <HI>High|wayman, Hou&s;e-breaker, Dimini&s;her of the King's Coin,</HI> or <HI>Pickpocket,</HI> 10 <HI>l.</HI> for one that lives in <HI>Bawdery</HI> 5 <HI>l.</HI> for every Wanderer, whether <HI>Beggar, Gyp&s;ie,</HI> or <HI>Pedler, &amp;c.</HI> 50 <HI>s.</HI> Which Money &s;hall be Reimbur&s;ed to the Hou&s;e, out of the Work of the &s;aid Criminal.</P>
<PB N="22" REF="14" MS="y">
<P><HI>La&s;tly,</HI> For the keeping all in due order, I propo&s;e, That the <HI>Fathers-Correctors,</HI> at every Quarter-Se&s;&s;ions of the Ju&s;tices of the Peace, pre&s;ent a true &s;tate of the Hou|&s;es to the Ju&s;tices, who may in&s;pect their Books, and overlook all their Proceedings, and amend what they find ami&s;s. And from them al&s;o there may be an Appeal to the Judge of the A&s;&s;ize; and, if need be, to the King and Council.</P>
<P>Having now fini&s;h'd my de&s;igned Propo&s;al, I &s;hall fir&s;t repre&s;ent &s;ome Conveniencies of it, which are not men|tion'd in the Body of the De&s;ign; and, &s;econdly, An&s;wer &s;ome Objections that may be made again&s;t it, and &s;o leave it to take its Fate.</P>
<P>And, <HI>First,</HI> This will be a certain Means of making all Manufactures very cheap among us, when all Hands that are capable of doing any thing are continually employ'd: And how great an Advantage it mu&s;t be to our Foreign Trade, to have our Manufactures cheap, no body can be ignorant.</P>
<P><HI>Secondly,</HI> Out of the <HI>Ho&s;pital-workhou&s;es,</HI> that is, of the Poor Children that are grown up, and likewi&s;e out of the <HI>Pri&s;on-workhou&s;es,</HI> of tho&s;e that are brought to a Ha|bit of Indu&s;try and Frugality, our Plantations may be plentifully and well furni&s;h'd; which will likewi&s;e tend to the Advantage of the Foreign Trade, and much en|crea&s;e the Riches of the Nation.</P>
<P><HI>Thirdly,</HI> Out of both &s;orts of Workhou&s;es the King may be furni&s;h'd with able Souldiers; and out of the Hou&s;es near the Sea, with good Seamen: But then I think it rea&s;onable, that when Per&s;ons are taken out either for the Plantations, or for Sea and Land-Service, &s;ome Com|pen&s;ation be made to the Hou&s;es; to the <HI>Pri&s;on Workhou&s;e,</HI> to &s;upply what the Per&s;on taken forth had been condem|ned to earn; and to the <HI>Ho&s;pital-Workhou&s;e,</HI> for the train|ing
<PB N="23" REF="14">up more Infants: But, I think, it ought to be ob&s;er|ved, that none be taken out of the <HI>Pri&s;on-Workhou&s;e</HI> till they may rea&s;onably be &s;uppos'd to be brought to a Ha|bit of <HI>Frugality</HI> and <HI>Indu&s;try,</HI> le&s;t they do them that take them forth more Harm than Good.</P>
<P><HI>Fourthly,</HI> Out of the <HI>Ho&s;pital-workhou&s;e</HI> any Per&s;on that wants a good Servant, either for <HI>Husbandry,</HI> for the <HI>Harve&s;t,</HI> or any other &s;ort of Work, may be &s;upplied with one for his purpo&s;e, becau&s;e that he may there have certain information of &s;uch Servants Conditions and Qualifications.</P>
<P><HI>Fifthly,</HI> In the <HI>Pri&s;on workhou&s;es</HI> no Unhappy Pri&s;oner will Suffer more than he hath de&s;erv'd; as poor <HI>Debtors</HI> now often do in Jayls.</P>
<P><HI>Sixthly,</HI> Any Per&s;on that wants Work at any time, may find it in the <HI>Ho&s;pital-workhou&s;es,</HI> where the <HI>Fathers of the Poor</HI> are to take care that the Poor never want Work, tho' they Earn never &s;o little; which will always be &s;ome help towards their Maintenance, and Ea&s;e the charge of Collections.</P>
<P><HI>Seventhly,</HI> In the <HI>Ho&s;pital-workhou&s;e</HI> the Children of Souldiers and Seamen in the Service of their King and Country, may be provided for; which will be a great Encouragement to their Fathers to behave them&s;elves Valiantly.</P>
<P>And now to the <HI>Objections.</HI></P>
<P>The <HI>Fir&s;t</HI> and Main <HI>Objection</HI> will be, <HI>Where will you have Money to build the&s;e</HI> Workhou&s;es? To which I An|&s;wer, Fir&s;t, As to the <HI>Pri&s;on-workhou&s;es,</HI> they will co&s;t no|thing at all, becau&s;e the Pri&s;ons and Hou&s;es of Correction may be turn'd into them: And whereas the Jayls now co&s;t the Country Money, the&s;e <HI>Pri&s;on-workhou&s;es,</HI> if well look'd after, will <HI>more than maintain</HI> them&s;elves, and cau&s;e &s;uch as have injur'd the Publick, to make &s;ome Re|paration
<PB N="24" REF="15">to it by their Labour; whereas now Rogues live very Idely and Wickedly in Jayls, and when they are hang'd, can do no more good. And it is pity that a Man &s;hould be rear'd up to do the Publick no Service, but only Mi&s;chief.</P>
<P>As to the <HI>Ho&s;pital-Workhou&s;es,</HI> in the <HI>Plain way</HI> I have propos'd to build them (for certainly Poor People have no need of Palaces) One Years Collection paid before|hand, would certainly do it, and the Collections for the Poor will ever after be abated: Be&s;ides, it may very rea&s;onably be expected, that there will be <HI>many Bounti|ful Contributions</HI> to &s;o Good and Certain a Piece of Cha|rity; and, perhaps, many of the Charitable Donations that are up and down in the Kingdom, may be better employ'd in this way, for the advantage of the Poor, which was the De&s;ign of the Donors, than in the Ways they now are.</P>
<P><HI>Secondly,</HI> It may be Objected, That <HI>This, as all other Good De&s;igns, may in time grow cold, and be neglected.</HI> But again&s;t this Danger, I think, the chu&s;ing &s;uch Over|&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">ers as are neither too High to look after it, nor too Low to have any Intere&s;t, or however, is a Sufficient Provi|&s;ion; for, by this very means, that is, by chu&s;ing a great many <HI>able Citizens</HI> for Governours, the Ho&s;pitals in <HI>London</HI> are taken better care of than any other <HI>Charitable Works</HI> I know in the Kingdom: And, from them, in part, it was that I took my Model.</P>
<P><HI>Thirdly,</HI> It may be Objected, That <HI>This takes the Judging of Criminals out of the hands of the Judges of A&s;&s;ize.</HI> That it doth not wholly, becau&s;e that to them there is always an <HI>Appeal;</HI> and be&s;ides, the Sentencing of any great Offender to the afore&s;aid Puni&s;hments, may, if it be thought be&s;t, &s;till be re&s;erv'd to them; and &s;o this Method that is propos'd will only alter the Puni&s;h|ments
<PB N="25" REF="15">for the better. As to the Damage <HI>Keepers</HI> and other Officers may receive hereby, that may be Reme|died, by putting them, if they are hone&s;t, into like Offi|ces in the&s;e Reformed Pri&s;ons.</P>
<P><HI>La&s;tly,</HI> It may be &s;aid, That <HI>it will be difficult to find enow Per&s;ons &s;ufficiently hard-hearted, to execute Nece&s;&s;ary Di&s;ciplines upon all Criminals.</HI> To which I an&s;wer, That great part of this Work may be done by one Criminal upon another, e&s;pecially where any Criminal complains, That One in the &s;ame Pri&s;on &s;educed him; he may be put to Execute the Di&s;cipline upon that his Seducer. And then <HI>Debtors</HI> that are u&s;ed favourably, and tho&s;e that have been amended by the <HI>Pri&s;on-Workhou&s;e,</HI> and are ready to be manumitted, will not be unwilling to u&s;e the &s;ame means on others, for <HI>Their Amendment;</HI> which is not <HI>Hardheartedne&s;s,</HI> but <HI>True Charity.</HI></P>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
