“Improvement of habits by the influence of numbers upon the individual character of members of the Community.
“Great advantages of the close union of a variety of talent by the collection of a number of persons, and their intimate organization and knowledge of each other.
“Facility for bringing the whole strength of the Community to bear upon one point when needful.
“Increased opportunities of producing extensive good.
“(Improvements in machinery, farming, &c., may be introduced without producing even temporary distress, if the Community can execute its own labour.)”
The “great advantages of the close union of a variety of talent” were seen by a man who had been trained in a widely different school. In the year 1836, Rowland Hill received the following letter from his friend Mr. John Lefevre.[76]
“My dear Mr. Hill,—It has frequently occurred to me that if eight or ten individuals of average intellect were to direct their attention simultaneously and in concert on any specific object which it might be desirable to invent, or any particular subject which it might be useful to explain, their joint efforts might produce a more satisfactory result than the unaided powers of a single person, although such person might be considerably superior to any one of the parties to the combination. I am anxious to try this experiment, and it would give me great pleasure if you would join me in it.
“I would propose that you and Coode[77] and I should each choose two associates, to be approved of by us all, and that the nine associates should meet once a month about seven in the evening.
“Each should furnish two questions for the consideration of the association, and out of these we would fix on two or three for the subject of each meeting.