land is 5.5d. per
yard, and therefore every time a man drinks a quart of ale he engulphs at
the same time a yard of solid earth." Nor is Mr. Taylor alone in his
testimony. A correspondent of the _Freeholder_ at Leominster stated,
that instead of money being spent in drink it was devoted to the society
there. In a late report of the Committee of the Coventry Society we read
that "one of the most pleasing results of the society's operations is the
improved moral habits of many of its members." The North and East Riding
Society also reported "The society's operations produce the best effects
on the habits of its poorer members by encouraging them to save money
from the public house." Similar testimony was also borne by the
Newcastle Committee, and at Darlington we learn that the society has been
the means of converting many of its members into steady members of
society, and instead of finding them at the ale-bench, wrote a
correspondent, a few months since, "you may now see them at our
Mechanics' Institution, gaining all the information they can." Thus,
then, the Freehold Movement is creating everywhere a great moral
revolution. It teaches the drunkard to be sober and the spendthrift to
save. It comes to man in his degradation and strikes away the chain and
sets him free. To the cause of Temperance it has been a most invaluable
ally. For the money saved from the public-house it has been the most
suitable investment. No wonder, then, that most of the leading men
connected with the movement are also connected with the Temperance
societies, or that it originated with them. It was born in a Temperance
Hotel. Its founder was the Secretary of a Temperance society. Did the
Temperance societies effect no other good, for this one fact alone would
they deserve lasting honour in the land.
VII.--HINTS FOR THE FORMATION OF FREEHOLD LAND SOCIETIES.
There are many counties yet to which the movement has not extended. For
the sake of those who may wish to extend it to them, we state that the
first step to be taken is to procure a copy of the rules of some society
already in operation. For this purpose, the Birmingham, the National and
the Westminster Societies' rules, which have been prepared with care, and
under the management of practical men, should be procured. They are
virtually the same as the rules of an ordinary building society, and are
certified by Mr. Tidd Pratt. The next step is the appointment of
tru
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