“Kingswood Lodge, Lee Green, S.E. “August 7th, 1876. “My dear Mr. Ruskin,—It may interest your correspondent, ‘A Reader of Fors,’ and possibly yourself also, to know that interested persons have altered old John Wesley’s rules to suit modern ideas. “Rules of the Methodist Societies (Tyerman’s Life and Times of Wesley, p. 431). “Rule.—Leader to receive once a week what members are willing to give towards relief of the poor. “Altered to ‘support of the Gospel.’ “Going to law forbidden, is altered to ‘brother going to law with brother.’ “Original Rule.—The giving or taking things on usury, the words have been added, ‘that is, unlawful interest.’ “Mr. Tyerman remarks, ‘the curious reader will forgive these trifles.’ “I for one do not at all feel disposed to do so.” (Nor does St. George; nor has he either leave, or hope, to say, “God forgive them.”) FORS CLAVIGERA. LETTER LXX. I have been not a little pestered this month by the quantities of letters, which I can’t wholly cure myself of the weakness of reading, from people who fancy that, like other political writers of the day, I print, on the most important subjects, the first thing that comes into my head; and may be made immediately to repent of what I have said, and generally to see the error of my ways, by the suggestions of their better judgment. Letters of this sort do not surprise me if they have a Scottish postmark, the air of Edinburgh having always had a curiously exciting quality, and amazing power over weak heads; but one or two communications from modest and thoughtful English friends have seriously troubled me by the extreme simplicity of their objections to statements which, if not acceptable, I had at least hoped would have been intelligible to them. I had, indeed, expected difficulty in proving to my readers the mischievousness of Usury; but I never thought to find confusion in their minds between Property itself, and its Interest. Yet I find this singular confusion at the root of the objections made by most of my cavilling correspondents: “How are we to live” (they say) “if, when we have saved a hundred pounds, we can’t make a hundred and five of them, without any more trouble?” Gentlemen and ladies all,—you are to live on your hundred pounds, saved; and if you want five pounds more, you must go and work for five pounds more; just as a man who hasn’t a hundred pounds must work for the first five he gets.