What Multitudes of Coffee-houses are there in London and other places, who keep lusty Servants, and breed them up to nothing whereby they may be profitable to the Kingdom?

What swarms of Youth go off to the Law, who being the Sons of Yeomen and Handecrafts Trades had been more useful to the Nation if bred up in their Father's Imployments?

Besides those who live only by Buying and Selling, wherein wanting Success they have no way to maintain themselves or their Families.

But above all, our Laws to put the Poor at work are short and defective, tending rather to maintain them so, then to raise them to a better way of Living; 'tis true those Laws design well, but consisting only in generals, and not reducing things to practicable Methods, they fall short of answering their Ends, and thereby render the Poor more bold, when they know the Parish Officers are bound either to provide them Work, or give them Maintenance.

Now if England delighted more in improving its Manufactures, ways might be found out to imploy all its Poor, and then 'twould be a shame for any Person capable of Labour to live idle; which leads me to the second consideration, what must be done to restrain this habit of Idleness from growing farther; Here I find that nothing but good Laws can do it, such as will provide work for those who are willing, and force them to work that are able.

To begin with Manufactures; Here I should think Work-houses very expedient, but then they must be founded on such Principles as may employ the Poor, which can never be done on any thing I have hitherto seen; nor will such Work-houses take effect till the Poor can every Week make Returns of their Stock, which might be contrived did the Genius of the Nation set in earnest about it; they must be fitted for the Poor and the Poor for them; Imployments must be provided in them for all sorts of People, who must also be compelled to go thither when sent, and the Work-houses to receive them; the Stocks whereby they are maintained must likewise turn often, for to put the Poor on ways of Traffick is too dilatory for the Ends intended, they must be rather Assistants to the Manufacturers than such themselves.

Now the Materials which seem most proper for these Work-houses are Simples, such as Wool, Hemp, Cotten, and many others, which might either be sent in by the Manufacturers on such equal Shares as the Justices should think fit, or be bought up on a stock raised for that end, in both cases to be taken off and paid for when brought to such a perfection as the Rules of the House should direct, and that every week, or so often as the Stock should require to let the Poor have their Wages to serve their Occasions; these things would employ great Numbers of People, of both Sexes, and all Ages, either by beating and fitting the Hemp for the Ropemaker, or dressing the Flax for the Shops, or more especially by Carding and Spinning the Wool and Cotten, of different finenesses, which would be used in the various sorts of Manufactures we make; and if a reward were given to that Person who should spin the finest Thread of either, to be adjudged yearly, and paid by the County, 'twould very much promote Industry and Ingenuity, whilst every one being prickt on by Ambition and Hopes of Profit, would endeavour to exceed the rest, by which means we should grow more excellent in our Manufactures.

Nor should these Houses hinder any who desire to work at home, or the Manufacturers from imploying them in their own, the design is to provide places for those who care not to work any where, and to make the Officers of Parishes industrious to find out such Vermin, when they shall know where to send them, by which means they would be better able to maintain the Impotent.

It seems also convenient that these Work-Houses when setled in Cities and great Towns should not be Parochial only, but one or more in each place as will best suit it, which would prevent the Poor's being sent from Parish to Parish as now they are, and provided for no where.

Oakham also is a fit Material for them, which might be beat there, and for that end Old Junk be bought up, and those who caulk Ships be obliged to take it off at a certain Price.