s of one town into those of another.
Moreover, there was a deeper and more interior reason against the
passage of such repressive laws; to his thinking it behooved society, if
it would root out this evil, to seek first the radix from which it drew
existence; it behooved them first to very thoroughly diagnose the
disease before attempting a hasty cure. "So let us now," said he, "set
about searching for this radix, and then so drive the spade of reform as
to remove it forever."

The discussion that followed opened a wide field for investigation, and
the conclusion finally reached during the winter was not unlike that so
logically deduced by Mr. Henry George at a later date. The East Haven
Lyceum, however, either did not think of or did not care to advocate
such a radical remedy as Mr. George proposed. They saw clearly enough
that, apart from the unequal distribution of wealth, which may perhaps
have been the prime cause of the trouble, idleness and thriftlessness
are acquired habits, just as industry and thrift are acquired habits,
and it seemed to them better to cure the ill habit rather than to upset
society and then to rebuild it again for the sake of benefiting the
ill-conditioned few.

So the result of the winter's talk was the founding of the East Haven
Refuge, of which much has since been written and said.

Those interested in such matters may perhaps remember the article upon
the Refuge published in one of the prominent magazines. A full
description of it was given in that paper. The building stood upon Bay
Street overlooking the harbor; it was one of the most beautiful
situations in the town; without, the building was architecturally plain,
but in perfect taste; within, it was furnished with every comfort and
convenience--a dormitory immaculately clean; a dining-room, large and
airy, where plain substantial food, cooked in the best possible manner,
was served to the inmates. There were three bath-rooms supplied with hot
and cold water, and there was a reading and a smoking-room provided not
only with all the current periodicals, but with chess, checkers, and
backgammon-boards.

At the same time that the Refuge was being founded and built, certain
municipal laws were enacted, according to which a tramp appearing within
the town limits was conveyed (with as little appearance of constraint as
possible) to the Refuge. There for four weeks he was well fed, well
clothed, well cared for. In return he was expected to