The Express.
London, England, 1852-01-17 00:00:00

MANCHESTER.

The employers have not succeeded, so far as we
can learn, in inducing say of the large Arms at Bury to
close their establishments, but the Bury employers nave
resolved to discharge any man who ranee, to work over-
time when required. In one caw, a smith was discharged
fur refusing overtime, and it was feared that a strike of the
whole of tea smiths in the establishment would have taken
place, which must have resulted in stopping all the ether
hands; but the affair has been arranged, and at a meeting
held on Weduesday evening, a resolution was agreed to,
urging the masters not to require the men to work over-
time, except in cases of necessity or of breakdowns.
On Thursday evening, a public meeting, called by a pla-
card, headed " Employers' Strike," and inviting the at-
tendance of the "employers the public, and the press,"
was held in the Carpenters' Hall, Brook-street, Manchester,
which was quite full. The chair was taken by Mr. YUAN.
CIS DOMON, engineer.
Mr. T. NORLO:ItY, in moving the first resolution, said
that the opposition to systematic overtime on the part of
the operatives was not a sudden thought. They hail seen
its evil fur twenty years, and had some years ago paid 61.
for a lecture on its injurious effects. The employers com-
plained that the men had not couched their request in pro-
per language. They had used plain language such as they
understood, but if the employers would submit a form in
which their requests should be made, he ventured to say it
would have an impression upon the men. So convinced
were the men of the evils of overtime, that rather than
work a complete miserable time for a number of years, they
had agreed to suffer a little now. The object of the invest-
ment of the 10,0001.' which had frequently been spoken of,
was not to provide for the wants of those who were now
idle, but to lay the foundation stone, not of a Feargus
O'Connor's land scheme, but of a means of sending men to
wok at trades which they understood. It had been said that'
the adjustment of prices was perfectly mutual. la Nome
eases it was; but all employers were not alike. In one
instance, a number of men had engaged to make twenty
machines fur 601., and when they had made ten, the muter'
said that they must make the other ten for 1.51. less. In
another Cast, a man had 41. 10s. due to him; but, on the
settling day, the master took back 21., and paid him only
2!. 10*. In other eases, some of the best workmen, after
working as hard as they could for sin weeks, had, on the
settling day, been told that they were 81. or 101. in debt,
and had to take more work to work this off. These were
some of the evils, though they could bring many more in-
stances, of which the men complained, and which they
could bear no longer. Ile concluded amidst loud ap-
plause by moving, " That this meeting considers piece work
and overtime, as at present conducted, gross evils, and
regrets the conduct of the emyloyers in persisting in the
continuance of such practices."
Mr. GEORGE SWINGLEUURST seconded the me-
tics. Ile said every man who was for education should raise
his voice against overtime. The editor of one of the news-
paperpanews-
shad said they had no right to combine ; that corer
nations were unnecessary. Ile would like that gentleman
to point him out one object that was ever gained without
elmbin ition. (Cheers.) lle hoed the day was not distant
when there would be a national trades' union formed.
(Cheers.) The resolution was agreed to without a dissen-
tient vote.

Mr, JOHN MILLER, pattern maker, in proposing the
wood resolution, gave a brief sketch of the history and
objects of their trades' societies, which he said were
designed to meet those oft recurring commercial panics,
Irani which their own branch of trade suffered so much, by
great numbresof their workpeople being thrown nut of work.
The mechanics were willing to work ten hours a-day, and
he thought that a reasonable time—though for such a pro-
position they were to have misery and famine entailed upon
thew Awl when they objected to piece work, it was not
that they wished to take work easy: they were quite willing
that their employers should place over them an intel-
lectual and able workman to see that they did n fair day's
work. If they 111.1 not do a fair imantity of work, indeed,
the employer had his remedy, for he could discharge them.