The Express.
London, England, 1852-01-27 00:00:00

been rejected. The masters thought that they might trust
to the poverty of the men. The muter*, however, were
greatly mistaken. They would find that next month, aye,
or at the end of six months, the funds of the men would be
the same as they ware at this moment. (Cheers) Those
out would trust to those who remained in employment. So
far they had not leant on • broken reed ; and the last
farthing would be spent rather than that the masters should
be allowed once for all to ruin the cause of the labourer.
w(Cailsoiebrse.Amo) Thgeatinalatedgazicaitedety
SeiZiicehty twhealy "wetacrekdedefienadnidegit.
The speaker concluded by expressing an opinion that
spies in the hire of the employers were watching the move-
ments of the men, and by warning his fellow•workmen
not to offer env pretext fur env complaint whatever.
Mr. BROWN seconded the resolution.
Mr. NEWTON then addressed the meeting. The cheer-
ing with which he was greeted on rising lasted fur a con-
siderable time. lie said—lt was not often that they saw
gatherings of this description for the purpose of supporting
the labourer; and whatever might be the result of the con-
test in which they were engaged, they would undoubtedly
have done this good —that by calling the workmen togi Cher
they had enabled them to arrive at sound and satisfactory
conclusions as to what their rights and privileges really
were. (Hear, hear.) Re countered that, fur several rea-
sons, this meeting was of a more important character than
the last; and, for one reason, because they hail now before
them a document in respect to the matter in dispute issued
by the einployers, and bearing the signature of their secre-
tary, Mr. Smith. (Much hissing.) Phis document opened
up the whole question of capital and labour. ft contained
the views and the principles of the employers of operative
engineers, and it represented, he believed, to a great
extent, the ideas of the employers of this country
generally ; and, therefore, he would deal with it
as involving the whole question of capital versus, labour.
They were told by the employer* in this document, and
they had been told that day by the Times, that they had no
right to combine. The employers said they would not
deal with the men •s an ussotiation, and that they would
not acknowledge, meaning the Amalgamated Society, an
irresponsible arbitrator. Irresponailile arbitrator! Any
body which represented the feelings of any class of men
could not be deemed an irreaponsible body. The Xniulga-
mated Society represented nut only it. own members, but
many thousand. who were nut its members, but who were
dependent un the trade of which the Amalgamated Society
was the mouthpiece; and it was talking palpable nonseuse
to speak of such an association as otherwise than a
i most responsible and very important body. (Cheers.)
But while the employers were denying to the men
the right to combine, they themselves were combined
and were governing one another by one combination. If
you now met an employer in the streets and asked him the
reason why lie would not open his manufactory, std allow
his men to work six days fur six days' wage., the answer, in
nine cases out of ten was, that he knew very well that
the work wanted to be done, that lie knew his men wanted
to work, and that he himself would like to set to the work,
but that lie had pledged himself to a certain course in the
employers association, and that until some use gave way
with him, he could not be the first. (lieu, hear, mid
laughter.) This was combination with its evils ; and a pro-
test against combination came with an exceeding ill grace
from men, or from the organ of men, who had entered into
such a untederecy. (Cheery.) I u the document he held
in his hand tho employers said that on the 10th of,lanuary
the honourable pledge which they had made 'to each
other was Jellified, and all their establishments were closed.
Why this must be combination. (Cheers and laughter.)
And it was exactly that species of combination whirls the
men had been in the habit of formiug. The employers
even used the very terms which the men had always used—
the men having always considered that the resolutions they
came to :at their meetiags were honourable pledges, and
that when those pledges were broken the ieerties breaking
them behaved dishonourably. The master., then, were
unionists. (Cheers.) The masters had imitated tho men.
(Cheers.) But, worst of all, they had imitated the worst
examples of the men. He was not there to by trades
unions had never done wrong. He confessed that they had
dune much to repent of, that they had often been
guilty of tyranny and persecution; and he was
even ready to admit that their own association, in
times past, had duce thing, which it had pot been
reasonably justified in doing. But of late years they had
become more intelligent ; they had taken into considera-
tion the claims of others when deciding on their own in-
terests. In making the fair demands which they now
made for the abolition of systematic overtime and piece-
work, they had acted in an equitable and with. an intel-
ligent spirit. They had adopted nu tyrannical measures
—they had not spoken in any dictatorial spirit: they
had, in fact, displayed au advanced moral feeling. They
had declared at the outset that they would abide by
,jun-
tice, and that they would use no intimidation. 'I They
had intimated that the workshops should not be guarded
by picquets. They had in their meeting defined the com-
mon daty of all—of society men, and of nun-moiety men—
to stick together to the last ; but they had made it as
clearly understood that Wane man among them was of
opinion that he would be doing wrong in uniting
with his fellow-men, or in refusing to accept
the conditions of the employers, he was free to 4o so, and
would not meet either with opposition or persecution
from those who remained in an attitude of resistance.
(Hear, hear.) The employers knew very well that
the men understood what were the gains of the capitalist
by this system of overtime. By overtime, the em-
ployers made 1,0001. do the work of 2,0001. With the same
premises, the same rent, the same plant, with the same
money, they could by working overtime produce double
what they could produce if they did nut work overtime,
supposing them to employ the same number of hands. The
public remarked that the capitalist would not resort to
overtime unless it was an absolutely necessary system. But
the public must see that these gentlemen were too grasp-
ing, and that systematic overtime was the • expedient
of men who wanted more per cvntage than their capitol
entitled them to. The answer of the employers to the men
was that they could not do away with overtime, because it
would involve exorbitant expenses in increasing the plant.
So that when they could not draw on their bankers they
drew on the life-blood of the working man. (Cheers.)
When they could not get money they got labour. (Cheers.)
Overtime threw out of employment some hundreds of
men, who in a natural system would be fully work, d;
this produced a redundancy of' labour in the market ;
and as wages were regulated by the number out of
employment the general earnings were reduced: and in
the end, if the employers did pay 50 or 30 per cent.
extra to the men for overtime work, they still gained
immensely in consequence of maintaining the general re-
duction. (Cheers.) These reasons were adequate to justify
the attempt of the men to get rid of overtime ; and to these
reasons they added the higher moral and social reasons, in
respect to the necessity of giving to the artisan the oppor-
tunities which he required fur improving his intellect, and
rendering him a better citizen. (Cheers.) And
this was certain, that unless this concession was made,
they would not return to the establishments. (Cheerr.)
In respect to pieetwork, the men did not complain of it in the
abstract. They pointed out its abuses; and as they could
not induce the muter* to do away with tho
evils which sprang from the system they were com-
pelled to demand the abolition of the system it-
self. (The speaker here referred to many instances of
apparently great injustice perpetrated on the men in con-
sequence of the price for piece work being arbitrarily fixed.)
Piece-work did not exist in London. It did not exist in
London, because, from the :Were of the work no two ma.
chines were ever made in the same way ; and no master, or
foreman, or man could fix upon a certain price. But in
Manchester piece-work did exist, and inflicted unendurable
evils. There, and in other places, the cotton and flax ma-
chines were the same over and over again ; and the prices
being fixed, the penalty for refusing a price being_ dis-
missal, the man was ground into the dust. (Hear,
hear.) Maws. Hibbert and Platt, employing 1,500 men,
made a return to the income-tax commissioners of an in-
come of 45,0001. • year. This was equal to 301. per man
per year. Why, what right, with such results, had Messrs.
Hibbert and Platt to complain of so called restrictions ?
(Cheers.) This showed the value of British industry, and
it taught • lesson to the men as to what they might do if
they would subscribe the capital to employ their own labour.
(Cheep.) The Amalgamated Society, by a majority
of nine-tenths, had voted 10,0001. fur the purpose of esta-
blishing co-operative workshops ; and if the 10,000/. was
backed by 40,0001. it would be invested in an establishment
in Lancashire, in which 1,000 men would find employment.
and do the work hitherto done by Messrs. Hibbert and
Platt. (Cheer-.) That accomplished, a great example
would be set to the working-clones of this country ; and
those classes, he knew, would wen set about their own
emancipation. (Cheering.) The employers might give in
to-morrow, but this great work would still be done. It
was commenced, and it would not be left unfinished.
(Mr. Newton resumed his seat amidst loud cheep.)
The resolution was then put, and carried unanimously.
Mr. HOSKING moved the second resolution—" rho
employers of operative engineers having closed their esta-
blishments, and refused all mediation in the settlement of
the dispute between them and their workmen. and having
further asserted their determination to treat with men in-

dividually only, and not as a society, this meeting is of opi-
nion that all trades arc interested in the issue of the contest
and that all should support it to the best of their ability."
Mr. BRADDON seconded the resolution.

intrcCitai;:d as an old mem-
ber returned from the United States), briefly addressed the
meeting. He concluded by saying that he wished them
success in the struggle, and he hoped that when he got
back again to the other side of the water he would soon
hear that they had given the employers a jolly good
licking. (Great cheering.)
The resolution was then put and carried with enthusiastic
unanimity.
After three cheers for the chairman, and three cheers for
the reporters, the meeting broke up.
SOUT HA M PTON.
Messrs. Summers, Day. and ltaldock, engine-
' makers, at Southampton, have closed their establishment
in conbequence of the unhappy disputes originated by the
Amalgamated Society of Engineers, and upwards of 200
men are thrown out of employment. Many of these men
ars son-society men. All the engineering work required
by the Peninsular and Oriental, South Western, and Isle
of Wight Steam Navigation Couspsnics is done at Messrs.
Summers, Day, and Baldoek's establishment. Their men
have had meetings daily since they have halt thrown out
of work, and they have made a proposition to their late
employers, which is to resume work immediately, and their
future position to be governed by the ultimate arrangement
that may hat effected by the masters generally and the
Amalgamated Society. Messrs. Summers and Co. have
however declined to re-open their establishment upon such
terms. The Royal West India Mail l'aeket Company's
lengine factory, situated in the Southampton Docks, and at
which about 300 men are employed, has not closed, nor is
there any probability at present of its being so.