and improvements in agriculture would become a fashionable amusement; the ladies even would take pleasure in viewing from their carriages the busy and most interesting scenes of rural industry, and it would no longer be thought vulgar to understand the mysteries of Ceres.

Why should not Parliament purchase, or rent such a farm in the neighbourhood of London, and put it under the direction of the Board of Agriculture? The expence would be but a mere trifle, if any thing, and the institution would not only be useful, but extremely interesting; and it would be an inexhaustible source of rational and innocent amusement, as well as of improvement to vast numbers of the most respectable inhabitants of this great metropolis.

In former times, statesmen considered the amusement of the public as an object of considerable importance, and pains were taken to render the public amusements useful in forming the national character.

An Account of the Measures adopted for putting an End to USURY at MUNICH.

Another measure, more limited in its operations than those before mentioned, but which notwithstanding was productive of much good, was adopted, in which a part of the treasure which was lying dead in the military chest was usefully employed for the relief of a considerable number of individuals, employed in subordinate stations under the government, who stood in great need of assistance.

A practice productive of much harm to the public service, as well as to individuals, had prevailed for many years in Bavaria in almost all the public departments of the state, that of appointing a great number of supernumerary clerks, secretaries, counsellors, &c. who, serving without pay, or with only small allowances, were obliged, in order to subsist till such time as they should come into the receipt of the regulated salaries annexed to their offices, to contract debts to a considerable amount; and as many of them had no other security to give for the sums borrowed, than their promise to repay them when it should be in their power, no money-lender who contented himself with legal interest for his money would trust them; and of course they were obliged to have recourse to Jews and other usurers, who did not afford them the temporary assistance they required, but upon the most exorbitant and ruinous conditions; so that these unfortunate people, instead of finding themselves at their ease upon coming into possession of the emoluments of their offices, were frequently so embarrassed in their circumstances as to be obliged to mortgage their salaries for many months to come, to raise money to satisfy their clamorous creditors; and from this circumstance, and from the general prevalence of luxury and dissipation among all ranks of society, the anticipation of salaries had become so prevalent, and the conditions upon which money was advanced upon such security was so exorbitant, that this alarming evil called for the most serious attention of the government.

The interest commonly paid for money, advanced upon receipts for salaries, was 5 per cent. per month, or three creutzers, for the florin; and there were instances of even much larger interest being given.

The severest laws had been made to prevent these abuses, but means were constantly found to evade them; and, instead of putting an end to the evil, they frequently served rather to increase it.

It occurred to me, that as any tradesman may be ruined by another who can afford to undersell him, so it might be possible to ruin the usurers, by setting up the business in opposition to them, and furnishing money to borrowers upon more reasonable terms. In order to make this experiment, a caise of advance (Vorschuss Cassa), containing 30,000 florins, was established at the military pay-office, where any person in the actual receipt of a salary or pension under government, in any department of the state, civil or military, might receive in advance, upon his personal application, his salary or pension for one or for two months upon a deduction of interest at the rate of 5 per cent. per annum, or one twelfth part of the interest commonly extorted by the Jews and other usurers upon those occasions.