FORTIa’s TRAVELS in SWEDEN.

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a bed to themfelves ; the rooms are very decent, and the widows appeared to us wellcontented with their lot and the treatment of the houfe, a peculiarity we never met withany where but in this eftablifhment; they have four large wafhes annually; they are notfeparated in cafe of ficknefs, except when contagious. The afylum has ten adini-niftrators, whofe functions are for life; they are either merchants or opulent tradef-men.

Afylum for the orphans of free-mafons , near the north place fquare. This has beenfounded about thirty years; occafionally it has contained five hundred children, andfometimes more ; when we faw it there were no more than four hundred and ninety,fifty-five of which only in the houfe itfelf, the reft being in the country : thofe in thehoufe are at an expence of three copper dollars a week, and are cloat’ned twice in theyear ; ordinarily they quit the afylum at twelve years of age, and are bound to trades.Before the war the children were admitted gratis, but now (in confequence of the addi-tional charge it has occafioned) 25 rix-dollars are paid on entrance. Children of bothfexes are received, but mull not be more than one year old. They are diftinguifhedbymarks the fame as in Foundling hofpitals. They lay two together ; their bedheads areof wood. The only employment taught in this houfe is to knit tricotu : the chambersare neat ; the children have a change of linen once' a week, the ihirt they fleep in beingdifferent to that they wear by day : in feveral rooms there was a difagreeable fmell, not-withftanding they had ventilators, their number being too fmall. The children havefour meals per day, two plates at dinner : they are allowed as much beer as they candrink, and have r.o fait meats. The houfe is but one liory high, and has a very prettycourt in front. In the fchool room are lifts of donations. This houfe has nine di-rectors, named by the auxiliary lodge of St. John, the moll ancient in the country ;that is to fay they felect one out of three perfons recommended by the other directors.The expence of this eftablifhment is annually from 7 to 8,000 rix-dollars. Formerlythere w r as an arrangement between this and the grand afylum for orphans, hereafter tobe mentioned, which was ufed to fend to the other the children it knew not what to dowith, as pofleffing greater facility of difpofing of them.

The grand afylum for orphans. This is fituated in Oueen ftreet, has a large court,furrounded by irregular buildings. It maintains two thoufand two hundred children,of which forty to fifty and not more than eighty are in the houfe. They are receivedat every period of age, without regard to whence they come : for urgent cafes there isa wet-nurfe or two ; otherwife they are carried to the office, where the children are putout to them at the rate of fix copper dollars pdr month. Such as are kept in the houfeare equally well attended, and furnifhed with food in addition to the breaft. The chil-dren do not remain above twelve months with the nurfe, after which they are placedwith farmers in the country at fix rix-dollars per annum : this arrangement is followedwith one thoufand of the children, the other one thoufand two hundred are placed inhoufes in the city, at fix rix-dollars per annum : the utmoft oeconomy is ufed. Greatnumbers remain with their relations, who on account of their being-poor receive haha rix-doiiar monthly. When the children are firlt feat to farmers in the country theyare cloathed, but this only once : they are not maintained at the expence of the efta-bliflmient after they become fourteen years of age. Ihe farmers may however, if theypleafe, keep them untii eighteen, but they no longer are paid the fix rix-dollars ; allthey ob f ain is an exemption for three years, that is from their becoming fifteen to eigh-teen, from the i'mpoft they would have to pay for them ; and an obligation on the partof the children to remain lb long with them. The farmers are overlooked to fee thatthey take proper care of the children, who have a mark given them which their parents

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