on the Mind of Youth._

The letter of the _Times'_ correspondent referred to contained an
account of one of the most singular cases of depravity ever brought
before a criminal court; but it is unnecessary to bring any of its
details under the reader's attention, for nearly every other number of
our journals has of late contained some instances of atrocities before
unthought of, and, it might have seemed, impossible to humanity.
The connection of these with the modern love of excitement in the
sensational novel and drama may not be generally understood, but it is
direct and constant; all furious pursuit of pleasure ending in actual
desire of horror and delight in death. I entered into some fuller
particulars on this subject in a lecture given in the spring at the
Royal Institution.

[Any part of the Lecture referred to likely to be of permanent
interest will be printed, somewhere, in this series.]

APPENDIX IV.

Page 76.--_Drunkenness as the Cause of Crime._

The following portions of Mr. Dixon's letter referred to, will be
found interesting:--

"DEAR SIR,--

"Your last letter, I think, will arouse the attention of thinkers more
than any of the series, it being on topics they in general feel more
interested in than the others, especially as in these you do not
assail their pockets so much as in the former ones. Since you seem
interested with the notes or rough sketches on gin, G * * * of Dublin
was the man I alluded to as making his money by drink, and then giving
the results of such traffic to repair the Cathedral of Dublin. It was
thousands of pounds. I call such charity robbing Peter to pay Paul!
Immense fortunes are made in the _Liquor Traffic_, and I will tell you
why; it is all paid for in cash, at least such as the poor people buy;
they get credit for clothes, butchers' meat, groceries, etc., while
they give the gin-palace keeper _cash_; they never begrudge the price
of a glass of gin or beer, they never haggle over _its_ price, never
once think of doing that; but in the purchase of almost every other
article they haggle and begrudge its price. To give you an idea of its
profits--there are houses here whose average weekly takings in cash at
their bars is 50_l._, 60_l._, 70_l._, 80_l._, 90l_._, to 150_l._, per
week. Nearly all the men of intelligence in it, say it is the curse of
the working classes. Men whose earnings are, say 20_s._ to 30_s._ per
week, spend on the average 3_s._ to 6_s._ per