forward to help them. At present, the princely sum of 10,000 pounds
is annually disbursed from the corporate funds in contributions to
various hospitals, asylums, schools, dispensaries, and local
charities; but even this large sum of money would be inadequate to the
purpose, were it not supplemented by the individual munificence of the
citizens. The Lord Mayor, the Sheriffs, the Aldermen, and the other
civic dignitaries vie with one another in an open-handed liberality,
which asks no other condition than that the recipient shall actually
stand in need of aid, and be worthy of relief and assistance. It is
much to be feared, however, that with the declining influence of the
Corporation, the stream of private charity will also dry up.
The continued payment of the 10,000 pounds a year may, indeed, be
secured by Act of Parliament; but no Act of Parliament can alter human
nature. Proud of their position as the chosen delegates and
representatives of their fellow-citizens, among whom they and their
fathers have lived for generations, the City potentates have, of their
abundance, contributed lavishly and without stint to every local
institution deserving of sympathy and support. And not only these,
but the livery companies likewise have given lordly amounts to
charitable establishments both within and without the City liberties,
and have founded schools in many distant parts of the kingdom.
But if the Corporation is to be "reformed" after the manner of
Sir George Grey and his coadjutors--if the esprit de corps, which is
now so beneficially and beneficently exhibited, is to be suppressed,
what reasonable hope remains that men who have been arbitrarily
deprived of all real interest in City matters will still devote their
time, their energies, and their fortunes to purposes which only
remunerate them with toil, anxiety, and personal discomfort?
The inevitable tendency of the proposed Bill is to reduce the entire
administration of the City to a dull, heartless routine. Step by step