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THE legislature of New York, by concurrent resolution of May 27-29, 1873, directed the State Board of Charities to examine into the causes of the increase of crime, pauperism, and insanity in that State. In compliance with this resolution, an examination, which occupied the Secretary of the Board, with the assistance of various commissioners, for the greater part of two years, was made into the antecedents of every inmate of the poorhouses of the State, and the result submitted to the legislature in the Tenth Annual Report of the State Board of Charities. Even a casual perusal of that report will convince the reader that one of the most important and most dangerous causes of the increase of crime, pauperism, and insanity, is the unrestrained liberty allowed to vagrant and degraded women. The following are the records of a few only of the women found in the various poorhouses, -- women who from early girlhood have been tossed from poorhouse to jail, and from jail to poorhouse, until the last trace of womanhood in them has been destroyed: --

"In the Albany County poorhouse, a single woman, forty years old, of foreign birth, and nine years in the United States, the mother of seven illegitimate children; the woman degraded and debased, and soon again to become a mother."

"In the Chautauqua County poorhouse, a woman, fifty-five years old, admitted when twenty-two as a vagrant; said to have been married, but the whereabouts of her husband is unknown; has been discharged from the house, and returned repeatedly, for the past thirty-three years, during which time she has had six illegitimate children."

"In the Cortland County poorhouse, an unmarried woman, twenty-seven years old, with her infant child; has been the mother of four illegitimate children, and four of her sisters have also had illegitimate children. The woman fairly intelligent and educated, but thoroughly debased and vagrant."

"In the Essex County poorhouse, a black woman, widowed, aged forty-nine years, and her daughter, single, aged twenty-four years, and her grandson, a mulatto, four years old, illegitimate, and born in the house. The first has been the mother of ten children, seven illegitimate; the second has had three illegitimate children. Both women are intemperate and thoroughly depraved, and quite certain to remain public burdens, each having already been nineteen years in the house. A widowed woman, twentyfour years old, and two children aged respectively four and five years, both illegitimate and feeble-minded and born in the poorhouse, the latter being a mulatto. The woman was sent to the house when six years old, was afterwards placed out but soon returned, and has spent most of her time in this and other poorhouses; has also had three brothers and one sister who were paupers, and is soon again to become a mother; is thoroughly debased, and will probably remain, with her children, a burden through life."

"In the Green County poorhouse, a vagrant unmarried woman, forty years old, and first an inmate when twenty-one years of age; goes out from time to time, but soon returns, and will doubtless continue a public burden through life; has five illegitimate children. An unmarried girl, eighteen years of age, having two illegitimate children, the youngest of whom, an infant, was born in the house; was early orphaned, and entered the poorhouse when only seven years of age; her mother a pauper, and she has had one brother and two sisters also paupers; is thoroughly debased, and offers but little hope of reformation."

"In the Genesee County poorhouse, a single woman, aged twenty-six years, admitted when eighteen years old; has three illegitimate children with her, aged respectively seven years, three years, and eight months, all of whom were born in the house; and also another child, bound out; was orphaned in early life, and, being neglected, soon became vagrant and idle, and will probably continue to be a public burden."

"In the Herkimer County poorhouse, a single woman aged sixty-four years, twenty of which have been spent in the poorhouse; has had six illegitimate children, four of whom have been paupers. "

"In the Montgomery County poorhouse, a woman twenty years old, illegitimate, uneducated, and vagrant; has two children in the house, aged respectively three years and six months, both illegitimate, and the latter born in the institution; recently married an intemperate crippled man, formerly a pauper, and the county will doubtless be further burdened with additional progeny."

"In the Oswego County poorhouse, an unmarried woman, twenty-nine years of age, born in the poorhouse of a neighboring county; has had five illegitimate children, one of whom only is living; the father, mother, and five sisters have been paupers; is ignorant, shiftless, and vagrant, and gives no hope of reformation."

"In the Otsego County poorhouse, a widowed woman aged thirty-five years, three times married (first when only thirteen), a vagrant, and has spent twelve years in poorhouses; has seven living children, three of whom have been paupers, and she seems likely to burden the public with additional progeny."