USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Gardner > History of the town of Gardner, Worcester County, Mass., from the incorporation, June 27, 1785, to the present time > Part 19
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1835 .- Moderator, Martin Dunster : Town Clerk, Benj. F. Ileywood ; Selectmen, George W. Davis, Isaac Jackson, Nathan Green ; As- sessors. Timothy Heywood, Amasa Leland, Amasa Whitney ; Treasurer, Walter Heywood ; Representative, Timothy Heywood.
1836 .- Moderator, Martin Dunster ; Town Clerk, Benj. F. Heywood : Selectmen, George W. Davis, Isaac Jackson, Nathan Green ; As- sessors, Amasa Leland, Smyrna W. Bancroft, Asaph Wood ; Treasurer, Walter Heywood ; Representative, James Scollay.
1837 .- Moderator, Asaph Wood ; Town Clerk, Benj. F. Heywood ; Se-
. lectmen, George W. Davis. Nathan Green, Asaph Wood : Asses- sors, Amasa Leland, Smyrna W. Bancroft, Benj. F. Heywood ; Treasurer, Walter Heywood.
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HISTORY OF GARDNER.
1838 .- Moderator, Martin Dunster ; Town Clerk, Benj. F. Heywood ; Selectmen, George W. Davis, Nathan Green, Nathaniel Wright ; Assessors, Benj. F. Heywood, Amasa Leland, Smyrna W. Ban- croft ; Treasurer, Walter Heywood ; Representative, Timothy Hey- wood.
1839 .-- Moderator, Asaph Wood : Town Clerk, Theophilus P. Wood ; Selectmen, George W. Davis, Nathan Green, Joseph Wright ; As- sessors, Asaph Wood, James Scollay, Smyrna W. Bancroft ; Treas- urer, Walter Heywood.
1840 .- Moderator, Martin Dunster ; Town Clerk, Theophilus P. Wood ; Selectmen, George W. Davis, Joseph Wright, Smyrna Bancroft ; Assessors, Asaph Wood, Amasa Leland, John Edgell ; Treasurer, Walter Heywood.
1841 .- Moderator, Asaph Wood ; Town Clerk, Theophilus P. Wood ; Selectmen, George W. Davis, Joseph Wright, Smyrna W. Ban- croft ; Assessors, Asaph Wood, Charles W. Bush, Walter Hey- wood ; Treasurer, Walter Heywood ; Representative, Timothy Heywood.
1842 .- Moderator, Martin Dunster ; Town Clerk, *Theophilus P. Wood, Francis Richardson ; Selectmen, Joseph Wright, Amasa Leland, Mirick Stimpson ; Assessors, Thomas E. Glazier, John Edgell, Amasa Leland ; Treasurer, Benj. F. Heywood ; Representative, Joseph Wright.
1843 .- Moderator, Martin Dunster ; Town Clerk, Francis Richardson ; Selectmen, Thomas E. Glazier, Walter Greenwood, John Edgell ; Assessors, Thomas E. Glazier, Walter Greenwood, John Edgell : Treasurer, Seth Heywood ; Representative, Joseph Wright.
1844 -Moderator, Martin Dunster ; Town Clerk, Francis Richardson ; Selectmen, Thomas E. Glazier, George W. Davis, John Edgell ; Assessors, Thomas E. Glazier, John Edgell, Hubbard Kendall ; Treasurer, Seth Heywood ; Representative, Joseph Wright.
1845 .- Moderator, Asaph Wood; Town Clerk, Francis Richardson ; Selectmen, John Edgell, Smyrna W. Bancroft, Nathaniel Wright ; Assessors, Thomas E. Glazier, Smyrna W. Bancroft, Hubbard Kendall ; Treasurer, Seth Heywood; Representative, Joseph Wright.
*Resigned.
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HISTORY OF GARDNER.
1846 .- Moderator, Asaph Wood ; Town Clerk, Francis Richardson ; Selectmen, Asaph Wood, George W. Davis, John Edgell ; Asses- sors, Thomas E. Glazier, Francis Richardson, Nathaniel Wright ; Treasurer, Seth Heywood ; Representative, S. W. Bancroft.
1847 .- Moderator, Asaph Wood; Town Clerk, Francis Richardson ; Selectmen, Joseph Wright, Thorley Collester, Stephen Taylor ; As- sessors, Thomas E. Glazier, Aaron B. Jackson, C. S. Greenwood : Treasurer, Seth Heywood ; Representative, S. W. Bancroft.
1848 .- Moderator, L. H. Bradford : Town Clerk, Francis Richardson ; Selectmen, Thorley Collester, L. II. Bradford, Alonzo Sawtell ; Assessors, Aaron B. Jackson, C. S. Greenwood, John Edgell : Treasurer, Seth Heywood ; Representative, Asaph Wood.
1849 .- Moderator, L. H. Bradford ; Town Clerk, Francis Richardson ; Selectmen, Thomas E. Glazier, Alonzo Sawtell, Jonas Pierce ; Assessors, Nathaniel Wright, S. W. Bancroft, Aaron B. Jackson ; Treasurer. E. S. Jackson ; Representative, Thomas E. Glazier.
1850 .- Moderator, Asaph Wood : Town Clerk, Francis Richardson ; Selectmen, Thomas E. Glazier, Thorley Collester, Elisha S. Jack- son ; Assessors, Austin Whitney, Rufus Newton, J. A. Whitney ; Treasurer, E. S. Jackson : Representative, John Edgell.
1851 .- Moderator, Asaph Wood ; Town Clerk, Francis Richardson ; Selectmen, Thomas E. Glazier, Thorley Collester, Elisha S. Jack- son ; Assessors, Austin Whitney, Rufus Newton, Alonzo Sawtell ; Treasurer, E. S. Jackson ; Representative, John Edgell.
1852 .- Moderator, Asaph Wood ; Town Clerk, Abel S. Wood ; Select- men, Aaron B. Jackson, Asa Merriam, Rufus Newton ; Assessors, Aaron B. Jackson, Asa Merriam, Rufus Newton ; Treasurer, E. S. Jackson ; Representative, Amasa Whitney.
1853 .- Moderator, Thomas E. Glazier ; Town Clerk, Francis Richard- son ; Selectmen, Alonzo Sawtell, Thomas E. Glazier, Smyrna W. Bancroft ; Assessors, Alonzo Sawtell, Thomas E. Glazier, Smyr- na W. Bancroft ; Treasurer, E. S. Jackson ; Representative, David Wright.
1854 .- Moderator, Thomas E. Glazier ; Town Clerk, Fraueis Richard- son ; Selectmen, Thomas E. Glazier, Alonzo Sawtell, Smyrna W. Bancroft ; Assessors, Thorley Collester, Hubbard Kendall. S. W. A. Stevens ; Treasurer, E. S. Jackson ; Representative, David Wright.
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HISTORY OF GARDNER.
1855 .- Moderator, John M. Moore ; Town Clerk, James H. Greenwood ; Selectmen, Asa Merriam, A. L. Greenwood, M. A. Gates ; Asses- sors, Abel Stevens, Edward Greenwood, Asa F. Smith ; Treasurer, E. S. Jackson ; Representatives, John M. Moore.
1856 .- Moderator, Thomas E. Glazier ; Town Clerk, James H. Green- wood ; Selectmen, Thomas E. Glazier, S. W. A. Stevens, Charles Thompson ; Assessors, Simeon K. Leland, Thorley Collester, Ivers Whitney ; Treasurer, E. S. Jackson ; Representative, Asa Mer- riam.
1857 .- Moderator, Thomas E. Glazier ; Town Clerk, James H. Green- wood ; Selectmen, A. L. Greenwood, Asa Merriam, M. A. Gates ; Assessors, Asa F. Smith, Rufus Newton, Edward Greenwood ; Treasurer, E. S. Jackson.
1858 .- Moderator, Asaph Wood ; Town Clerk, James H. Greenwood ; Selectmen, Asa Merriam, M. A. Gates, Amasa Bancroft ; Asses- sors, Rufus Newton, Francis Richardson, Ivers Whitney ; Treas- urer, E. S. Jackson ; Representative, Thomas E. Glazier.
1859 .- Moderator, Thomas E. Glazier ; Town Clerk, Francis Richard- son ; Selectmen, Asa Merriam, Amasa Bancroft, M. A. Gates ; Assessors, Francis Richardson, Ivers Whitney, Aaron Greenwood ; Treasurer, E. S. Jackson ; Representative, William Mayo, West- minster.
1860 .- Moderator, Thomas E. Glazier ; Town Clerk, Francis Richard- son ; Selectmen, Amasa Bancroft, Thorley Collester, Aaron Green- wood ; Assessors, Aaron Greenwood, Ivers Whitney, Francis Richardson ; Treasurer, Elisha S. Jackson ; Representative, Seth Heywood.
1861 .- Moderator, Thomas E. Glazier ; Town Clerk. Francis Rich- ardson ; Selectmen, Aaron Greenwood, Thorley Collester, Amasa Bancroft ; Assessors, Aaron Greenwood, Asa F. Smith, Ivers Whitney ; Treasurer, Elisha S. Jackson ; Representative, Joseph W. Forbush of Westminster.
1862 .- Moderator, Thomas E. Glazier ; Town Clerk, Francis Rich- ardson ; Selectmen, Amasa Bancroft, Thorley Collester, Jonas Pierce ; Assessors, Ivers Whitney, Thomas E. Glazier, Aaron Greenwood ; Treasurer, Elisha S. Jackson ; Representative, Thor- ley Collester.
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1863 .- Moderator, Thomas E. Glazier ; Town Clerk, Francis Richard- son ; Selectmen, Smyrna W. Bancroft, Thorley Collester, Marcius A. Gates ; Assessors, Aaron Greenwood, Thomas E. Glazier, Ivers Whitney ; Treasurer, C. Webster Bush ; Representative, Franklin Wyman of Westminster.
1864 .- Moderator, Thomas E. Glazier ; Town Clerk, Francis Richard- son ; Selectmen, Amasa Bancroft, M. A. Gates, John Edgell ; As- sessors, Marcus Wright, Ivers Whitney, Aaron Greenwood ; Treas- urer, C. Webster Bush ; Representative, Allen Folger.
1865 .- Moderator, Thomas E. Glazier ; Town Clerk, Francis Richard- son ; Selectmen,. Marcius A. Gates, Ezra Osgood, Asa Temple ; Assessors, Ivers Whitney, Benj. F. Kendall, Hiram Wood ; Treas- urer, C. Webster Bush ; Representative, Augustine Whitney of Westminster.
1866 .- Moderator, Thomas E. Glazier ; Town Clerk, Francis Richard- son ; Selectmen, Marcius A. Gates, Ezra Osgood, Asa Temple ; Assessors, Ivers Whitney, Aaron Greenwood, Hiram Wood ; Treasurer, C. Webster Bush ; Representative, A. A. Bent.
1867 .- Moderator, A. Allen Bent; Town Clerk, Francis Richardson ; Selectmen, Asa Temple, Ezra Osgood, Amos B. Minott ; Asses- sors, Ivers Whitney, Aaron Greenwood, Hiram Wood ; Treasurer, C. Webster Bush ; Representative, George P. Hawkes of Tem- pleton.
1868 .- Moderator, Thomas E. Glazier ; Town Clerk, Francis Rich- ardson : Seleetmen, Ezra Osgood, Asa Temple, A. B. Minott : Assessors, Ivers Whitney, Aaron Greenwood, Hiram Wood ; Treasurer, C. Webster Bush ; Representative, Charles Heywood. 1869 .- Moderator, A. A. Bent ; Town Clerk, Francis Richardson ; Se- lectmen, Charles Heywood, Allen Folger, S. W. A. Stevens ; Assessors, Ivers Whitney, Aaron Greenwood, Francis Richard- son : Treasurer, C. Webster Bush ; Representative, Calvin S. Greenwood.
1870 .- Moderator, Thomas E. Glazier ; Town Clerk, Francis Richard- son : Selectmen, Charles Heywood, S. W. A. Stevens, Thomas E. Glazier; Assessors, Aaron Greenwood, Ivers Whitney, Francis Richardson ; Treasurer, C. Webster Bush ; Representative, John M. Moore.
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1871 .- Moderator, Thomas E. Glazier ; Town Clerk, Francis Richard- son ; Selectmen, Thomas E. Glazier, Henry C. Hill, Marcus Wright ; Assessors, Aaron Greenwood, Ivers Whitney, Thomas E. Glazier; Treasurer, C. Webster Bush ; Representative, Levi Hey- wood.
1872 .- Moderator, Thomas E. Glazier ; Town Clerk, Francis Richard- son ; Selectinen, C. Webster Bush, H. C. Hill, Marcus Wright ; Assessors, Aaron Greenwood, Ivers Whitney, Asa F. Smith ; Treasurer, C. Webster Bush; Representative, William Stone of Templeton.
1873 .- Moderator, Thomas E. Glazier ; Town Clerk, Francis Richard- son ; Selectmen, Levi II. Sawin, Augustus Knowlton, Samuel Bent ; Assessors, Aaron Greenwood, Ivers Whitney, Asa F. Smith ; Treasurer, C. Webster Bush ; Representative, William N. Wal- ker of Templeton.
1874 .-- Moderator, M. R. Hunting ; Town Clerk, Francis Richardson ; Seleetmen, Levi H. Sawin, Augustus Knowlton, Samuel Bent ; Assessors, Aaron Greenwood, Ivers Whitney, Asa F. Smith ; Treasurer, C. Webster Bush ; Representative, Levi II. Sawin.
1875 .- Moderator, Asa Merriam ; Town Clerk, Francis Richardson ; Seleetmen, Ezra Osgood, A. L. Greenwood, A. B. Jackson ; As- sessors, Aaron Greenwood, Ivers Whitney, A. F. Smith ; Treas- urer, C. Webster Bush ; Representative, Edward Sanderson of Templeton.
1876 .- Moderator, John M. Moore : Town Clerk, Francis Richardson ; Selectmen, Ezra Osgood, A. L. Greenwood, Thomas Greenwood : Assessors, Ivers Whitney. Aaron Greenwood, Henry Hadley ; Treasurer, C. Webster Bush ; Representative, H. C. Knowlton.
1877 .- Moderator. Asaph Wood; Town Clerk, Francis Richardson ; Selectmen, Ezra Osgood, A. L. Greenwood, Thomas Greenwood ; Assessors, Aaron Greenwood, Ivers Whitney, C. Webster Bush ; Treasurer, C. Webster Bush ; Representatives, Simeon Merritt of Ashburnham, Wilder P. Clark of Winchendon.
1878 .- Moderator, John M. Moore; Town Clerk, Francis Richardson ; Selectmen, Ezra Osgood, A. L. Greenwood, Thomas Greenwood ; Assessors, Aaron Greenwood, Ivers Whitney, C. Webster Bush ; Treasurer, C. Webster Bush ; Representatives, C. Webster Bush, Artemas Merriam of Westminster.
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HISTORY OF GARDNER.
In 1857, the State Constitution was so amended that the House of Representatives should consist of two hundred and forty members and no more, and for this purpose the state was divided into districts of one or more towns; Westminster and Gard- ner forming one district, and entitled to one Representative each year. In 1867, the state was districted anew, Templeton and Gardner forming a district, and entitled to one Representative yearly. In 1877, the state was again redistricted and Gardner, Winchendon, Ashburnham, Westminster and Princeton were made a double district, and entitled to two Representatives, each year. It seems necessary to make the above statement, in order to show why this town has been represented some years by men not belonging here.
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HISTORY OF GARDNER.
CHAPTER IX.
CARE OF THE POOR.
" For the poor shall never cease out of the land : therefore I command thee, saying, Thou shalt open thine hand wide unto thy brother, to thy poor, and to thy needy. in thy land."-Deut. 15 : 11.
" For ye have the poor with you always, and whensoever ye will, ye may do them good."-Mark 14 :7.
" True is it that we have seen better days, And have with holy bell been knoll'd to church; And sat at good men's feasts ; and wiped om eyes Of drops that sacred pity hath engender'd."
-As You Like It, Act II., Scene VII.
" Oppress'd with two weak evils, age and hunger." -- As You Like It, Act II., Scene VII.
" Give him a little earth for charity !" -Henry VIII., Act IV., Scene II.
" Children of wealth or want, to each is given One spot of green and all the blue of heaven."
-O. W. Holmes. " My equal he will be again, Down in that cold oblivions gloom, Where all the prostrate ranks of men Crowd, without fellowship, the tomb."
-J. Montgomory. " Want is the only woe God gives you power to heal !" -- Mrs. Caroline E. Norton.
C ARE for the poor and needy is a plain dictate of humanity. We learn, from the oldest records extant, that this was regarded as a prominent and commendable practice among nations of the greatest antiquity. For instance, in the book of Job, so much admired by Daniel Webster, for the beauty and sublimity of its language, we have frequent mention of this sort of charity, for the poor, the widow and the orphan, as evidence of a righteousness meriting the approval of all good men, while he, who neglected this duty, was denounced as worthy of se- verest reprobation, upon whom, was invoked the punishment
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of the Almighty and the deserved disapproval of all mankind. The man, destitute of this virtue, whose conduct is actuated by supreme selfishness, is described, as manifesting this selfishness in his treatment of the poor and the oppressed ; " they violently take away flocks and feed thereof. They drive away the ass of the fatherless, they take the widow's ox for a pledge. They turn the needy out of the way ; the poor of the earth hide themselves together. They pluck the fatherless from the breast, and take a pledge of the poor. They cause him to go naked without clothing, and they take away the sheaf from the hungry. The murderer, rising with the light, killeth the poor and needy. Because he hath oppressed and hath forsaken the poor ; because he hath violently taken away an house which he builded not ; surely he shall not feel quietness in his belly, he shall not save of that which he desired. In the fullness of his sufficiency he shall be in straits ; every hand of the wicked shall come upon him."
While on the other hand, Job appeals to a directly opposite course of conduct in himself, as affording the clearest evidence of his integrity and righteousness, in the sight of God and men. " When the ear heard me, then it blessed me ; and when the eye saw me, it gave witness to me : because I delivered the poor that cried, and the fatherless, and him that had none to help him. The blessing of him that was ready to perish came upon me : and I caused the widow's heart to sing for joy. I was eyes to the blind, and feet was I to the lame. I was a father to the poor : and the cause of which I knew not I searched out. I break the jaws of the wicked, and plucked the spoil out of his teeth. Did not I weep for him that was in trouble ? was not my soul grieved for the poor? If I have withheld the poor from their desire or have caused the eyes of the widow to fail ; or have eaten my morsel myself alone, and the fatherless hath not eaten thereof; if I have seen any perish for want of cloth- ing, or any poor without covering ; if his loins have not blessed me, and if he were not warmed with the fleece of my sheep ; if I have lifted up my hand against the fatherless, when I saw my
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help in the gate : then let mine arm fall from my shoulder blade and mine arm be broken from the bone. The stranger did not lodge in the street ; but I opened my doors to the traveler."
In the Hebrew nation, under the Mosaic law, there were special divine enaetments in favor of the poor and needy ; the following are some of these enactments :-
"And when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shall not wholly reap, the corners of thy field, neither shalt thou gather the gleanings of thy harvest. And thou shalt not glean thy vineyard, neither shalt thou gather every grape of thy vine- yard ; thou shalt leave them for the poor and the stranger."*
" When thou cuttest down thine harvest in thy field, and hast forgot a sheaf in the field, thon shalt not go again to fetch it; it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow : that the Lord thy God may bless thee in all the work of thine hands. When thou beatest thine olive tree, thou shalt not go over the bows again : it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow. When thou gatherest the grapes of thy vineyard, thou shalt not glean it afterward : it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow. And if a man be poor, thou shalt not sleep with his pledge : in any case, thou shalt deliver him the pledge again when the sun goeth down, that he may sleep in his own raiment and bless thee. Thou shalt not oppress a hired servant, that is poor and needy. At his day thou shalt give him his hire, neither shall the sun go down upon it; for he is poor and setteth his heart upon it ; lest he cry against thee unto the Lord and it be sin unto thee. Thou shalt not pervert the judgment of the stranger ; nor of the fatherless ; nor take the widow's raiment to pledge."t
The poor and the stranger were to have their portion, from the produce of the land, in the seventh or sabbatical year. "And six years thou shalt sow thy land, and shalt gather in the fruits thereof; but the seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie still ; that the poor of the people may eat : in like manner thou shalt deal with thy vineyard and thy oliveyard."#
*Levt. 19 :9, 10. +Deut. 24. #Ex. 23 : 10, 11.
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The lands of the poor, were not allowed to be permanently alienated, but the original owners had the right of re-entry upon these lands, at the expiration of fifty years, or in the year of jubilee, with certain limitations.
There was also the prohibition of usury, and of the retention of loans, without interest. "And if thy brother be waxen poor, and fallen in decay with thee ; then thou shalt relieve him : yea, though he be a stranger, or a sojourner ; that he may live with thee. Take thou no usury of him or increase. Thou shalt not give him thy money upon usury, nor lend him thy vietuals for increase."*
Permanent bondage was forbidden, and the emancipation, of Hebrew bondsmen and bondswomen, was enjoined in the sab- batical and jubilee years, even when bound to a foreigner. "If there be among you a poor man of one of thy brethren within any of thy gates, in thy land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thy heart, nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother ; but thou shalt open thine hand wide unto him, and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need, in that which he wanteth. Beware that there be not a thought in thy wicked heart, saying, The seventh year, the year of release, is at hand ; and thine eye be evil against thy poor brother, and thou givest him naught ; and he ery unto the Lord against thee and it be a sin unto thee. Thou shall surely give him, and thine heart shall not be grieved, when thou givest unto him : because that for this thing the Lord thy God shall bless thee in all thy works, and in all that thou puttest thine hand unto. For the poor shall never cease out of the land : therefore I command thee saying, Thou shalt open thine hand wide unto thy brother, to thy poor, and to thy needy, in thy land. And if thy brother, an Hebrew man or an Hebrew woman, be sold unto thee, and serve thee six years, then in the seventh year, thou shalt let him go free from thee. And when thou sendest him out free from thee, thou shalt not let him go away empty : thou shalt furnish him
*Levt. 25 : 35, 36, 37.
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liberally out of thy flock, and out of thy floor, and out of thy winepress : and that wherewith the Lord thy God hath blessed thee."*
Under this theocratic government, the severest woes were pronounced upon the oppressors of the poor, in the ordinary transactions of life, or in judicial proceedings unfavorable to them. " Woe unto them that decree unrighteous decrees, and that write grievousness which they have prescribed ; to turn aside the needy from judgment, and to take away the right from the poor of my people, that widows may be their prey, and that they may rob the fatherless !"t
" For three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not turn away the punishment thereof; because they sold the right- eous for silver and the poor for a pair of shoes ; that pant after the dust of the earth, on the head of the poor, and turn aside the way of the meek."#
" Execute true judgment, and show mercy and compassions, every man to his brother : and oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the poor; and let none of you imagine evil against his brother in your heart."§
Under this government, mendicants were divided into two classes, the settled poor, and the vagrants. In the light of the enactments of the Jewish theocracy, above adduced, and the various instances of assisting the poor referred to, it is made sufficiently clear, that poor and needy humanity has been, from the earliest ages, an object of divine and human sympathy and charity.
That this evil, of mendicancy, continued to be prevalent, in the Eastern nations, is evident from the repeated instances re- corded in the New Testament, in the tinies of Christ and of his apostles, who, out of their common and scanty purse, made frequent provision for the poor. The observance of this duty of caring for the poor, was regarded as an essential qualification in any one who would go forth as a representative of the Chris-
*Deut. 15 : 7-15. +Is. 10 : 1, 2.
#Amos 2 : 6. 7. §Zech. 7 :9, 10.
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tian religion. " Only they would that we should remember the poor ; the same which I also was forward to do."*
Notwithstanding, the care of the poor and necessitous, is a natural outcome of humanity and religion, nevertheless, the best methods to be adopted for the management of this class, es- pecially the vagrant poor, must ever be a question of gravest importance, surpassing, sometimes, the ability of our wisest legislators to solve. Hume, referring to this, as a matter of great importance, in the reign of Henry the VIII., 1509-1547, says, "Some laws were made with regard to beggars and vagrants ; one of the circumstances in government, which hu- manity would most powerfully recommend to a benevolent leg- islator ; which seems, at first sight, the most easily adjusted, and which is yet the most difficult to settle, in such a manner as to attain the end, without destroying industry."t
For many centuries, previous to the reign of Henry the VIII., the care of the poor was chiefly committed to the monasteries, which, for a long time, continued to fulfil honestly the inten- tions for which they were established ; but, according to Froude, as early as the reign of Richard II., 1377-1399, " it was found necessary to provide some other means for the support of the aged and impotent; the monasteries not only having then begun to neglect their duty, but by the appropriation of bene- fices having actually deprived the parishes, of their local and independent means of charity. Licenses to beg, were, at that time, granted to deserving persons; and it is noticeable that this measure was, in a few years, followed by the petition to Henry the IV., 1399-1413, for the secularization of ecclesias- tical property. Thus early, in our history, had the regular clergy forgotten the nature of their mission, and the object for which the administration of the nation's charities had been submitted to them. Thus early, while their houses were the nurseries of dishonest mendieancy, they had surrendered to lay compassion, those who ought to have been their especial care. At the open-
*Gal. 2: 10.
¡Hume's History of England, vol. 3, p. 317.
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ing of the sixteenth century, before the suspension of the mon- asteries had suggested itself in a practical form, pauperism was a state question of great difficulty.
" For the able bodied vagrant, it is well known that the old English laws had no mercy. When wages are low, and popu- lation has out-grown the work which can be provided for it, idleness may be involuntary and innocent; at a time when all industrious men could maintain themselves in comfort and prosperity, ' when a fair day's wages for a fair day's work' was really and truly the law of the land, it was presumed that if strong, capable men preferred to wander about the country, and live upon the labor of others, mendicancy was not the only crime of which they were likely to be guilty ; while idleness itself was justly looked upon as a high offense and misdemeanor. The penalty of God's laws against idleness, as expressed in the system of nature, was starvation ; and it was held intolerable that any man should be allowed to escape a divine judgment by begging under false pretences, and robbing others of their honest earnings."
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