“For our railways, the effects of a most critical half-year can scarcely be forecast. Increased expenses have not, it is to be feared, been met by increased rates and traffics, and the public may not have fully prepared themselves for diminished dividends. With the Erie and the Great Western of Canada undergoing the ordeal of investigation, and the Atlantic and Great Western on the verge of insolvency, it is not surprising that American and colonial railways are at the moment out of favour. If, however, they have not made satisfactory returns to their shareholders, they have been the media of great profit to operators on the stock exchanges; and some day we shall, perhaps, learn the connection existing between the well or ill doing of a railway per se, and the facility for speculation in its stock.”—Liverpool Commercial News, of this year. I have not kept the date. III. A young lady’s letter about flowers and books, I gratefully acknowledge, and have partly answered in the text of this Fors; the rest she will find answered up and down afterwards, as I can; also a letter from a youth at New Haven in Connecticut has given me much pleasure. I am sorry not to be able to answer it more specially, but have now absolutely no time for any private correspondence, except with personal friends,—and I should like even those to show themselves friendly rather by setting themselves to understand my meaning in Fors, and by helping me in my purposes, than by merely expressing anxiety for my welfare, not satisfiable but by letters, which do not promote it. IV. Publishing the subjoined letter from Mr. Sillar, I must now wish him good success in his battle, and terminate my extracts from his letters, there being always some grave points in which I find myself at issue with him, but which I have not at present any wish farther to discuss:— “I am right glad to see you quote in your July Fors, from the papers which the Record newspaper refused to insert, on the plea of their ‘confusing two things so essentially different as usury and interest of money.’ “I printed them, and have sold two,—following your advice and not advertising them. “You wrong me greatly in saying that I think the sin of usury means every other. What I say is that it is the only sin I know which is never denounced from the pulpit; and therefore I have to do that part of the parson’s work. I would much rather be following the business to which I was educated; but so long as usury is prevalent, honourable and profitable employments in that business are impossible. It may be conducted honourably, but at an annual loss; or it may be conducted profitably at the expense of honour. I can no longer afford the former, still less can I afford the latter; and as I cannot be idle, I occupy my leisure, at least part of it, in a war to the knife with that great dragon ‘Debt.’ I war not with flesh and blood, but with principalities and powers of darkness in high places.”