father died 28th March
1792, dividing his property equally between his sons. Jeremy's share
consisted of the estate at Queen's Square Place, Westminster, and of
landed property producing L500 or L600 a year. The father, spite of the
distance between them, had treated his son with substantial kindness,
and had learned to take a pride in achievements very unlike those which
he had at first desired.[274] Bentham's position, however, was improved
by the father's death. The Westminster estate included the house in
which he lived for the rest of his life. There was a garden in which he
took great delight, though London smoke gradually destroyed the plants:
and in the garden was the small house where Milton had once lived.[275]
Here, with the co-operation of his brother and his increased income, he
had all the means necessary for launching his grand scheme.

The Panopticon, as defined by its inventor to Brissot, was a 'mill for
grinding rogues honest, and idle men industrious.'[276] It was suggested
by a plan designed by his brother in Russia for a large house to be
occupied by workmen, and to be so arranged that they could be under
constant inspection. Bentham was working on the old lines of
philanthropic reform. He had long been interested in the schemes of
prison reform, to which Howard's labours had given the impetus.
Blackstone, with the help of William Eden, afterwards Lord Auckland, had
prepared the 'Hard Labour Bill,' which Bentham had carefully criticised
in 1778. The measure was passed in 1779, and provided for the management
of convicts, who were becoming troublesome, as transportation to America
had ceased to be possible. Howard, whose relation to Bentham I have
already noticed, was appointed as one of the commissioners to carry out
the provisions of the Act. The commissioners disagreed; Howard resigned;
and though at last an architect (William Blackburn) was appointed who
possessed Howard's confidence, and who constructed various prisons in
the country, the scheme was allowed to drop. Bentham now hoped to solve
the problem with his Panopticon. He printed an account of it in 1791. He
wrote to his old antagonist, George III., describing it, together with
another invention of Samuel's for enabling armies to cross rivers, which
might be more to his Majesty's taste.[277] In March 1792 he made a
proposal to the government offering to undertake the charge of a
thousand convicts upon the Panopticon system.[278] After delay