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state of extreme poverty and wretchedness, so as tocompel them, at least to the extent of their abilities,to assist themselves. The want of appropriate regu-lations, under an accurate and correct management,as it applies to this very difficult branch of politicaleconomy, is one of the chief causes of the numerouscriminal offences which afflict society in Europe.It is one of the greatest nurseries of crimes, from whichyou are already not exempted in the larger societiesin America, perhaps from this scene of turpitude;this gangrene, not having as yet sufficiently attractedthe notice of your government. Upon this important branch of political economy,much useful information will be found in the reportsof the society of the poor, exhibiting a vast scope forthe exertion both of public and private benevolence,particularly the latter; as it respects the former, thepreliminary sketches on the poor, by Jeremy Bentham,Esq., furnish much curious and important matter,which will be read with great interest by the philo-sopher, the statesman, and the philanthropist. Periods of scarcity are not so likely to happen inAmerica as in Europe: yet as the food of man risesto an enormous price in the United States, as oftenas extraordinary demands are made upon you, thecondition of your poor, in the large cities, must, in acertain degree, claim the occasional attention of thebenevolent; and therefore, as it may be interesting to know what has been accomplished in this country,and particularly in this great metropolis, during therecent periods of scarcity, I have taken the libertyto send you several tracts, and other papers, upon thissubject, which have been chiefly compiled by myselffor the use of the public, and the various societieswith which I was connected, where I generally hadthe labouring oar. These papers are the more inte-resting, as they tend to prove how much may begained by an economizing system, and at how smallan expense, under proper management, it is possible