The inhabitant of the white duck trousers rose with an air of contained fury. He shook each stalwart fiercely by the hand.

'I'm infernally obliged,' he said. Constable Boultby 's told me all about it. Smart as daylight, both of you. But I always said your brains were much better than people thought. The wife hopes you'll go up to tea.'

It is not in our young ladies to suffer any form of social embarrassment. With complete friendliness and simplicity they beamed upon the gallant warrior.

'Did Police Constable Boultby show you his notebook?' inquired Muffin.

'I don't know about his notebook,' said the gallant warrior, 'but he showed me every silver spoon, and he says you young ladies found 'em, and I'm here to thank you, and '-here the gallant warrior paused, doubtless from motives of delicacy—' if there's anything you'd like I'll be obliged if you'll give it a name.'

Muffin looked at Goose and Goose looked at Muffin. There were a thousand and one things they might be said academically to covet, but having been specifically invited to make a choice, it was by no means so easy as it ought to have been.

'Anything,' said the Colonel. You have only to give it a name. I was thinking myself that perhaps a motor car, a small one, y' know

'My dear Ponsonby!' The Perpetual Curate of St. Euthanasius betrayed a suspicion of anxiety.

Or perhaps one of those new-fangled barrel-organ arrangements -pianolas, I believe they call 'em. Perhaps you might like that?' 'But, Ponsonby!' The Perpetual Curate was beginning to perspire.

Again Muffin looked at Goose and Goose looked at Muffin.

Oh, thank you so much, dear Colonel Ponsonby,' they chimed together.

'But, Ponsonby!' murmured the Perpetual Curate.

Or if you can think of something else and something better,' said the gallant warrior.

Here it was that Goose had her great inspiration. That she of all people should have indulged in such a luxury is truly remarkable. But quite irresponsibly and without any sort of premeditation the enormous orbs grew round and wide, and in her most ludicrous drawl she enunciated the interesting fact that St. Euthanasius might like a new organ.

Colonel Ponsonby, C.B., dealt himself a hearty blow on the knee. (This is not meant for poetry, although it may read as such.)

'Then, by Gad!' exclaimed the gallant warrior, 'I'm hanged if St. Euthanasius shan't have a new organ!'

It is scarcely necessary to say that, as became a gentleman and an officer on retired pay, Colonel Ponsonby, C.B., proved quite the equal of his word. Mrs. Colonel Ponsonby thought that seven hundred pounds was a lot of money, but her gallant spouse declared that he did not grudge a penny, and wished it had been double. Rather than be shorn of the plate that had belonged to his GreatUncle Mike who had rallied the Buffs at Albuera he would have voted Radical!

Sceptics there will always be in the world, however. Some may think that the Colonel used a mere figure of speech in making that assertion. But if any there are who doubt the responsibility of this present historian, the best thing they can do is to make a pilgrimage to Slocum Magna, North Devon, and see St. Euthanasius's new organ for themselves. In our humble judgment it will repay a journey. The key of the church is always to be had at the Parsonage; and if any female member of the Family is at home it is a hundred to one that she herself will show the inquiring stranger over the sacred edifice. Yes, St. Euthanasius's new organ will repay a journey!

In spite of the unparalleled exertions of Police Constable Boultby and other distinguished members of the Widdiford section of the North Devon Constabulary, the robbers were never taken. Yet to show what a halcyon world it is that we inhabit, and how everything invariably happens for the best if only our philosophy is ripe enough to have it so, Goose was very glad. Because,' proclaimed that idealist, if the robbers had been captured, she felt sure they would have had to go to prison.'

J. C. SNAITH.

VOL. XXVIII.- -NO. 167, N.S.

42

OLD AGE PENSIONS UNDER THE ACT OF 1908.

At the end of 1909 the number of Old Age Pensions being granted under the Act was 692,740, and the amount being paid per week £166,975. The expenditure for a year at this rate would be over 8 millions, and the average amount paid to each pensioner something over 4s. 9d. a week.

These are the figures of the matter. Is it possible to put life into them, to form some idea of what they really mean when translated from money into money's worth? It is clear that the Act has occasioned a very extensive re-distribution of wealth'; how far has it succeeded in making a corresponding addition to human happiness and well-being? No complete answer to this question can ever be given; the persons affected are too many too various to admit of that; but already certain points can be fairly well established.

and

In the first place, to begin with the happiest side of the question, there can be no doubt that experience confirms what everyone must have foreseen, i.e. that the pensions have brought joy and comfort to a very large number of dear old people. Whatever criticisms are made, all whom I have consulted are agreed on this point. Perhaps the happiest account of all comes from the Northern Highlands, whence a correspondent writes: 'I have not come across a single case in which the money was being squandered or put to an improper and unworthy use. Invariably there is a spirit of cheerfulness and an air of comfort in the homes which one does not find in the homes of the paupers. This may be due, however, not to any inherent virtue in the pensions but to their being more liberal than the out-relief allowances, to their being assured by Act of Parliament, and to the recipients having more grit in them than the paupers have. . . . I have also invariably found a deep and sincere feeling of gratitude on the part of the pensioners who frequently attribute their pensions to the merciful interposition of Providence rather than to the generosity of any particular political party.' Surely there could hardly be a better spirit in which to accept the gift. If political parties would all forgo their claims to gratitude in favour of Providence our trust

in the wisdom and disinterestedness of our legislators might be complete.

From a semi-urban district I hear: So far as our branch of the Civic Guild goes the experience is satisfactory. One old woman turned over quite a new leaf in her pride and joy. Several cases of great hardship were eased; our district nurse told me of several cases where the grannies were rejoicing in having their own bit to spend instead of feeling that their food was taken from the children.'

From a rural district in the Eastern Counties comes the following account: Just about here, I must say, they seem to have had the desired results. I think the relations make a great effort to subsidise the pension, as they feel it would be such a waste to let the old parent go to the workhouse, when he or she is entitled to 58. from the Government! But they have in these rural places let them go in, or have a wretched 28. from the guardians very freely hitherto; in the case of out-relief the old things feel they have one foot in the workhouse, I think, but with a pension quite safe outside. Also, of course, they love to feel that they are not "beholden" to any one for at any rate the amount of the pension.'

From another rural district in a more prosperous part of the country: 'I cannot deny that it has been a great comfort to some dear old people; but it has certainly planted a good deal of discontent and ill-feeling.'

A doctor of great experience in working London writes: The pensions are undoubtedly a very great and real help to many worthy old people who have had no chance of saving; but the Bill was passed in such a hurry and put into force without allowing time for discrimination. The officers were new to the work, so that the bulk of the pensions having to be decided upon at once there was no time for thorough and proper inquiries to be made, and the pensions have been grossly abused.'

The last two reports bring us to a less happy side of the question. I think that few people, whatever they may have thought of the wisdom or justice of the Act, can have anticipated that it would have caused any considerable amount of discontent and ill-feeling,' and yet even the slight amount of experience I have been able to bring together reveals so much as to be a serious item on the other side of the account. It is due to all sorts of causes. One of the most important is the extent to which voluntary charity has been checked or diverted into other channels.

This happens mainly, perhaps, in the towns; but very many old people have been bitterly disappointed to find that when they have received the eagerly anticipated pension their position has been little, often not at all, improved. It simply means that they derive their income from another source. To illustrate this point I may quote the case of one old lady known to me whose income was derived mainly from an endowed charity. She is over eight four, and had been receiving her pension for so long that she had come to regard it as inalienable, whereas it is really a periodical grant. Her disappointment when she found that it would be reduced and that she would receive only 18. more in consequence of the national pension was grievous. She doesn't seem able to get over it,' said her daughter, she frets about it all day, and talks about it in her sleep.' And yet she had always been one of the most contented and uncomplaining of old ladies. But she had counted so much on having a few extra shillings to handle, mere especially on being able to expatiate a little in underclothing.

In other cases the pension has merely replaced the gifts of private donors, who have therefore drawn the State pension & much as if they had signed the receipt for it. Nor was it always easy to avoid this. Mrs. A. is an old lady receiving an allowance from several sources, including B. and C. When the pension comes in she has 5s. a week over and above what is strictly necessary, and B. and C. can each reduce his gift by 2s. 6d. a week. C. has no desire to, would like the old lady to benefit by the whole pension, but finds that if he continues B. will reduce his contribution by the full amount of 5s. Sooner than endow B., C. consents to benefit to the extent of 2s. 6d. from the State, and the old lady is where she was.

Take another case. Mrs. D. has had an allowance for many years from a private donor, who again was anxious to continue. But she knew that Mrs. D. had impecunious friends and relations who would refrain from infringing on her necessaries, but would not hesitate to appropriate anything extra. In this case the difficulty was met by making a little trust fund of the private allowance upon which the old lady could draw for anything she wanted; but it would not often be easy to arrange this. At first I wondered whether these were exceptional cases which I had happened to come across; but further inquiries showed that similar cases were common, especially in places where the old people were already well cared for. In one list of nine pensioners sent to me from a provincial town only one pensioner benefited to the full