Letters Written Author:Jonathan Swift Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: I really think this is a very ufcful precaution, confidering how you have been treated by thefe fort of fellows. The duke is faft afleep, or he would add a li... more »ne. LETTER CCCXII. Sir WILLIAM FOWNES to Dr. SWIFT. DEAR SIR, Ifland-Bridge, gth Sept. 1732. T has been the obfervation of travellers (as I have been frequently told) that, in all the countries they have feen, they never met with fewer public charitable foundations than in this kingdom. Private charities, no doubt, will have their reward; but public are great incitements : and good examples often draw others on, though grudgingly; and fo a good work be done, no matter who are the workmen. When I was lord mayor, I faw fome mi- lerable lunatics expofed, to the hazard qf others, as well as themfelves. I had fix B 4 ftrongftrong cells jnade at the workhoufe for the moft outrageous, which were foon filled $ and by degrees, in a fhort time, thofe few drew upon us the folicitations of many, till by the time the old corporation ceafed, we had, in that houfe, forty and upwards. The door being opened, intereft foon made way to let in the foolifh, and fuch like, ag mad folks. Thefe grew a needlefs charge, upon us, and had that courfe gone on, by this time the houfe had been filled with fuch, The new corporation got rid of moft of thefe by death, or the care pf friends, and came to a refolution not to admit any fuch for the future; and the firft denial was to a requeft of the earl of Kildare, which put a full ftop to all farther applications. As I take it, there are, at this time, a number of objects which require affiftance; and probably many may be reftored, if proper care could be taken of them/ There is no public place for their reception, nor private undertakers, as about London. Friends and relations h...« less