those who depend on trade to keep open their shops for a longer period? Are not those who uphold such a system, guilty of robbing tradespeople of those hours which should be devoted to rest, to recreation, to social and domestic intercourse, and to the improvement of their minds? Is

not that a complicated system of wrong which takes from them more hours than are paid for, and at the same time deprives them of that amount of relaxation to which they are entitled? And can those who, by their thoughtless disregard of the rights of others, acting from caprice, or their own convenience, keep the shopkeeper at his business for an unreasonable and unnecessary length of time, be said in this respect to obey the Christian injunction of doing to others as they would be done by?

Christian women! we appeal to you when you are about to make a purchase at night which might as easily have been made during the day, pause-think, does not the benign spirit of your religion condemn such unjust appropriation of another's time, such unwarranted aggressions on the comforts and enjoyments of your fellow creatures? Prove by abstaining from late shopping, that that religion teaches you to regard the rights of every human being, however humble and dependent he may be. Be just to all in the commonest affairs of life.

But this system is not only unjust -it is cruel, for it is destructive to health. Perhaps you are scarcely aware of the amount of suffering endured by those on whose behalf we plead, in consequence of prolonged confinement and application. Hundreds and thousands of young men and women have had their health impaired, and their constitutions broken in this way. Many severe and life-long diseases are the direct and inevitable result of late hours of business. How unjust then! How cruel must that system be! and how deeply responsible are those who uphold it, for much of the pain, and suffering, and disease, which would not exist under a better and more just arrangement!

But the late-hour system is not only unjust and cruel, it is also a direct promoter of vice, and a serious obstacle to the progress of religion. Young men who are subjected to the evils of this system have no more urgent complaint against it than its immoral tendencies; which, indeed, too frequently induce a line of conduct opposed to honesty, morality, and virtue. It shuts them out from all intercourse with well-conducted fami- • lies; it drives them from scenes of domestic happiness and purity, either to the solitude of their own chambers, there to brood with indignant discontent over their hard lot; or else it leads them to the tavern, the saloon, and all the alluring portals which gape wide with vice and profligacy, there to find the grave for every honourable and virtuous sentiment, there to lose their purity, their self-respect, and with them that honest ambition which seeks to rise in the esteem of the good and true. Many a young man has thus been ruined in prospects, in health, and in character, and yet (we blush to record the fact) there are Christian men and women who support such a system, by the inconsiderate practice of purchasing at unseasonable, because late hours.

We have a still graver charge to make against this system-it is positively inimical to the progress and influence of religion. How many are there of our rising youth who are, or ought to be, engaged in Sabbath schools, but who, in consequence of being kept at business until a late hour, have scarcely any time left to prepare themselves for the duties of the Sabbath, and who, fatigued and dispirited with prolonged and incessant application to business and the counter, lose all relish and energy for private and devotional exercises, and are only too glad when the day's labour is ended to snatch some repose, so as to resume the same round of toil with some degree of freshness and strength. We have known instances where young men and women have been so exhausted on the Saturday night as to be scarcely able to leave their beds on the Sabbath; who have frequently

arisen on that sacred day with body and mind so prostrated by excessive toil, as to find no enjoyment in its hours beyond lounging about, listless, fatigued, and unoccupied-to whom the Sabbath is a lost day serving only as a starting point from whence to brace up their wasted strength for the business of the week. Again we ask, will you uphold such a system, can you have any regard for religion, and yet support a system that deprives numbers of your fellow-creatures of the most precious means of grace, unfits them for the enjoyment of those hallowed opportunities which a merciful God has designed for their benefit, and which in its results has caused the

loss of immortal souls? Christian women! let us not appeal to you in vain. It rests with you, in a great measure, whether this system shall continue or not; for so long as the practice of late shopping is persevered in by the female sex, so long will this system continue with all its evils. But an enlightened public opinion, and a conscientious abstinence from the practice referred to, would at once put a stop to late hours of business, and emancipate thousands from its cruel and de structive effects. Be just, be generous, be pitiful, be courteous; do unto others as you would they should do unto you.

W. G. DENHAM.

PROVIDENT

THE enlightened regard now manifested for the social welfare of the working classes, constitutes one of the most pleasing characteristics of the age; and there is every reason to believe that, at no distant period, each member of the community, even the poorest, may secure to himself the respectability and comfort to which he is justly entitled. One of the most likely means for obtaining such an important object is the more general establishment of Provident Societies. It is to be deplored that a very large portion of the community make little or no provision against the necessities which arise in the events of inability to labour, sickness, and death; and the result is, that these persons are necessitated to ask relief in a way not comfortable to themselves or reconcilable with true dignity. Every individual, especially the young, should be induced to trust alone to his own exertions. Experience proves that the man who does this, generally succeeds, while he who depends on others as frequently fails. Mr. Neison says, "Under a scientific and amply developed system, Provident Societies would completely remove the cause of much of the poverty, distress, and misery which haunt our manufacturing towns and

SOCIETIES.

fill our workhouses." There can be no doubt that many of the industrious classes have it in their power to spare a little by way of providing for the future. Some do this, and others might certainly imitate the example, were they not prevented by intemperance and want of economy. Influenced by the foregoing considerations, and believing that the late unprecedented national distress will be succeeded by commercial prosperity, the present is thought to be a suitable period for the establishment of an additional Provident Society, and which it is proposed shall be organized on safe and advantageous principles.

It is not necessary or desirable to confine the advantages to be derived from such an Institution to the industrious classes, as there is no reason why other parties should not avail themselves of the benefits proposed. How many families have been reduced from a respectable position in life to indigence, by commercial disasters over which they had no control. Had these individuals during the time of their prosperity secured a provision against such contingencies, the contributions necessary would have been so trifling as not to have inconveniently interfered with their domestic expenditure.

This paper is intended to trace the origin and set forth the erroneous principles on which the generality of existing Benefit Societies are founded, and the advantages to be derived from an Institution established on a sound, economical, and comprehensive basis.

Friendly Societies, or Institutions proposing to accomplish similar benevolent objects, have existed from a very early period of our national history. Mr. Ansell states, that copies of the rules of some Associations, which had for their object to provide for the necessities of the few by the contributions of the many, were numerous, long prior to the Norman Conquest, in 1066. One was established at Cambridge among noblemen and gentlemen, the rules of which are curious, and show how nearly in principle the Institution assimilated to modern Friendly Societies.

Sir Henry Ellis remarks, that "the guilds or social corporations of the Anglo-Saxons seem on the whole to have been Friendly Associations for mutual aid and contribution, to meet the pecuniary exigencies which were perpetually arising from burials, legal exactions, and other payments or compensations." The oldest Benefit Society in London dates back its origin from 1715; but for the most part those now in existence are of comparatively recent date. In 1773, a Bill for the Regulation of Friendly Societies passed the House of Commons, but was thrown out in the Lords. In 1789, a second Bill shared the same fate. The first Act relating to these Institutions passed both Houses in 1793, and from that time to the present, thirteen others have received legislative sanction. The number of Benefit Societies returned to Parliament in 1802 was 9,672; and in 1815, the number had become 925,429; and since that time it has probably greatly increased. It is, however, very questionable, whether any advantage has been gained (beyond the simple fact of legalization) by Parliamentary interference. For although Committees of the House of Commons have had these Societies under their consideration, it is notorious that our Legislators have not understood the extent of risks to

which they were exposed. This omission on the part of Government to provide data by which a secure basis might have been formed, has led to the most serious results. Who can estimate the amount of suffering diffused amongst an immense portion of our poorer brethren by the failure of so many thousands of these Societies? The accumulated savings of the most important portion of life swept away, and the prospects of relief in sickness and declining age blighted, and all this distress occasioned by the adoption of erroneous principles, the founders, doubtless, being ignorant of the laws which govern human sickness. The causes which have led to such frequent insolvency are various, but the following may be regarded as the principal.

First. The adoption of an uniform rate of contributions for all ages. It cannot be matter of surprise, that Societies adopting such uniformity should have ended in disappointment and failure. The wonder is, that a scale of payments so palpably unjust should ever have been sanctioned.

It is a fact borne out by universal experience, that the tendency to sickness and disease increases with our years. Mr. Neison, who has scientifically investigated the subject, asserts that a person at the age of 20 is liable to only 5 days 21 hours sickness per annum, while one at 35 is liable to 6 days 21 hours, and at 60 to 4 weeks, 1 day, 4 hours; and as there is a graduated scale in the probabilities of sickness, it follows as a matter of course that the rate of payment should rise in the same propor tion.

As a further illustration of this point, Mr. Neison in his tables affirms that a person aged 20 should pay fortnightly

being 8d. per fortnight more than the person aged 20.

From these illustrations it is seen, that to require the person of 20 to pay the same as one of 35, is to tax the prudence of the former for the benefit of the latter It is equally clear, that on an extensive scale this unjust rate of contributions could only lead to insolvency, as the increasing years and infirmities of the members would absorb all the funds and leave the survivors destitute How lamentable the case of the individual who has entitled himself to support in sickness and declining years, to discover, when too late to remedy the evil, that his hopes have rested on a delusive foundation!

Second. The use of public houses for meetings and business.

A very numerous class of Benefit Societies hold their meetings at public houses, and numerous instances have occurred of men, of steady and religious character, contracting habits of intemperance which have occasioned the loss of reputation, and led to a premature grave.

The following instances, out of a multitude which might be adduced, are given as confirmatory of the views here expressed.

E. Smith, Esq., M.D., in a paper read before the Baptist Union, states that he received from a minister this affecting incident: “A very clever mechanic expressed his wish to be baptized and join my Church: after several meetings with him and close examination of his religious experience, I felt satisfied of the reality of the change in his views and state being such as justified his application; I inquired concerning his habits, and found he sat every fortnight as out-side guardian or door keeper at a public house lodge. I told him of the danger, advised him to quit it, but he felt strong in his resolution against drunkenness, and feared no evil from his position. He was accepted, baptized, and joined the Church, and was consistent and useful for a considerable time. At last his office seduced him; he became drunken, and we were obliged to cut him off; the same week his master dismissed him from his

A minister of our own has communicated the following instance. "The person referred to was a husband and father, and had been a member of our religious community for some years. Possessing fervent piety and other suitable gifts for the office, he became a class leader. His scriptural knowledge and readiness in conversation greatly endeared him to his associates, and, after holding with him delightful and improving intercourse, I regarded him as a guide of my youth in matters of Christian experience. He was then happy, useful, and respected. But in an evil hour he united himself to one of these public house societies; and such voluntary contact with temptations to excess led insidiously to the very worst results. The Church saw his downfall, and lifted up the warning voice; but having already lost much of his spiritual-mindedness, he spurned the interference, and withdrew himself from its fellowship. His subsequent conduct has been characterized by intemperance, profligacy, and irreligion, with their bitter fruits; and his descent in this downward course has been accelerated by mental aberrations from the truth, terminating in socialism and confirmed infidelity. So frightful a fall, and brought about by such means, powerfully enforces the direction, Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away.'

In addition to the moral evils resulting from this practice, may be mentioned the great and unnecessary expense incurred. In many societies every member is compelled to spend a certain amount for the profit of the landlord. Mr. Ansell, the celebrated actuary, says, "The positive waste of money arising from this very frequent but objectionable practice, is greater than, without examination, will be believed. It is thought that

there are not fewer than one million members in this kingdom, and probably each person does not on an average spend less than five shillings per annum at the monthly meetings and yearly feasts. The annual expenditure for what is, in many cases, a worse than useless purpose, will therefore not fall short of £250,000. A sum of five shillings per annum, for each member of a Friendly Society, is vastly more than sufficient to defray the society's ordinary and necessary expenses of management."

Mr. Anseli adds, since the above remarks were written, "An instance has come to the author's knowledge, which exemplifies in a very forcible manner the evil here spoken of. It is that of a society in which each member has to contribute 4d. for spending money, on every monthly night of meeting, whether he be pre sent or absent; and the aggregate of the spending money is always drunk out by those who may chance to attend. The society alluded to consists of 250 members, and the spending money is therefore £4 3s. 4d. per month. At the meeting held in July, 1833, 26 members only were present; so that each had to consume drink costing 3s. 23d. After a large quantity of beer had been consumed, ardent spirits were drunk, and ultimately beer was thrown out at the windows; because the whole of the money was to be expended for the good of the house."

Dr. Beard, of Manchester, states, "That in the club of the Manchester Engravers and Calico Printers is a member who bears the disreputable title of drink steward,' and whose office, namely, to serve round the drink in just and equal proportions, excites very painful reflections. In the so-called 'Prosperous Sick and Burial Society,' held at the Crown and Cushion, Long Millgate, Manchester, it is provided, that the friends of every deceased member

shall take from the house where the society is held, liquor in the following manner: if the claim be eight pounds, eight shillings' worth; if six pounds, six shillings' worth; and others four shillings' worth.' And in the Salford Independent, holden

at the sign of the Dog, the sum required to be spent at a funeral amounts in one instance to one-fifth of the entire sum paid.

Similar regulations are found in the rules of other societies, and they are the cause of intemperance and outrage at funerals; which are most unworthy and discreditable accompaniments of the last farewell paid to deceased relatives and friends. These evils invade even the sanctity of the day of rest! Among the "Rules and Regulations to be observed by the Sick and Burial Society, held at the Three Tuns, Smimothy-door, Manchester," is this one:-"That if any members think proper to meet with the officers on a Sunday evening, they are at liberty to do so, provided they pay for their own liquor, and come in a state of sobriety!" There is no provision regarding the state in which they are to leave.

Third. Insufficient rates of contributions in proportion to the advantages offered.

A numerous class of societies have failed, the founders of which were men of respectable and religious character, and the subsequent management unexceptionable, the insolvency having in these cases been caused by the inadequacy of the rates to secure the benefits offered.

The following facts will illustrate and confirm this view of the subject:-A society of 100 members, in Leeds, after having existed about twenty years, has recently become extinct from this cause. And at a_public meeting, recently held at Halifax, the following instances were related:-"A resident in Liverpool, now just sixty-three years of age, has subscribed from the commencement of his insurance to six different societies, from none of which has he received a penny. All have broken up-he is now too old to join one." Another case in Staffordshire could be identified, where the insurer, who became a member of several clubs at the same time, very early in life, had paid in all, for subscriptions, fines, extrasubscriptions, and so forth, £240,