Has the “Country Curate” seen anything of the condition of the peasantry in other countries?--If not, let him ask those who have, and they will assure him that it is nearly every where inferior to that of the peasantry of England. We do not say this from any overweening national pride, or from any desire to make the people idly contented with their state as it is, and indifferent to future improvement. No! we would say to the peasantry, as to every other class, Keep your eyes ever open to your rights; strive to make what is indifferent--good, what is good--better; and persevere in that moral and intellectual improvement which can alone render you sensible of your rights, and fit you for their enjoyment! You are not now what you were a century or two ago, because you are better informed and more civilized than then; and a century hence your condition will be so much the better, as you will be more civilized than now. We would rescue the wealthier body from the insane jealousy and hatred which the verses of the “Country Curate” have a direct tendency to excite against them in the breasts of the poor; we would hint at the exertions now pretty generally made by that body to promote the welfare and instruction of the labouring classes, with which their own welfare is closely linked. But still we would not have the poor depend entirely on what the rich may bestow upon them, or assist them in obtaining. We would have the peasant or the artisan work out his own mental improvement, and then, most assuredly, will he find his moral dignity elevated and his comforts increased. --------------------- HEALTH AND LONGEVITY. [The Effects of Arts, Trades, and Professions, and of Civil States and Habits of Living, on Health and Longevity; By C. Turner Thackrah, Esq. Second Edition. Longman, 1832.]