The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1853-12-30 00:00:00

THE PRESTON STRIKE.

MEETING OF MANUFACTURERS.
PRESTON, THURSDAY.
The adjourned meeting of the associated employers of
Preston and the neighbourhood, was held at the Bull Hotel,
in this town, at eleven o'clock this morning. After about
an hour's deliberation, the result was made known by pla-
card, of which the following is a copy :
" At a meeting. of the associated masters, held at the
Bull Hotel, Preston, on Thursday, the 29th of December,
1853—Thomas Miller, Esq., in the chair—it was unani-
mously resolved, that inasmuch as no disposition has been
yet shown by the operatives generally to resume work, this
meeting do adjourn to Thursday, the 26th of January, 1864.
Should it, however, in the meantime, be ascertained that
many of the operatives are desirous of returning to their
work, immediate steps will be taken by the manufacturers
to open their mills.—By order of the masters' association.
" JOHN HUMBER, Sec. pro tem."
The main street, in which the Bull Hotel is situated, was
thronged with operatives during. the time occupied by the
meeting, considerable interest being evinced as to the result.

REPLY TO THE MASTERS FROM THE WEAVERS'

ASSOCIATION.
The committee of the power-loom weavers' association
have this morning published the annexed reply to the ad-
dress of the masters' association, issued yesterday. It is on
the part of the Preston " lock-outs," and is signed by Mr.
James Whalley, secretary to the power-loom weavers' com-
mittee :

"In consequence of the various misrepresentations which
have been so unblushingly put forth by the masters'
association,' we, the weavers' association, feel it to be
a duty to ourselves and the public, to publish the following
answers:—

" Ist. In the document issued yesterday by the masters'
committee, they say, ' that the differences which in the
first instance existed, would have been arranged, and would
not have resulted in a general stoppage of the mills, had it
not been for the improper interference of strangers between
masters and their hands.' We beg to say distinctly to say,
that no strangers had, either properly or improperly,
interfered; in the disputes between the masters and their
hands, previous to a notice being given for a general
stoppage.

42n-d. We repeat, that we have been locked out, in
order to starve us into submission,' not because we objected
to the advances made upon the price paid in 1862, for the
great body of us were perfectly satisfied with the advances
given' but because we thought fit to give our own money to
support some four mills' hands that had disputes with their
employers, the primary cause of our sympathy being, that
these workpeople had been denied the opportunity of ex-
plaining, or coming to an arrangement with their employers.
It is false, and without any foundation, to say 'that these
firms were to be made the victims of an organised combina-
tion, whose avowed object was to take the masters in succes-
sion, and compel them to accept to the terms of the union-
ists.' We deny this statement, and challenge them to sub-
stantiate it. We, as a body, have never said or done any-
thing to justify such a conclusion.
" 3rd. They say we at once admit that, owing to the
depressed state of trade in 1847, a general reduction of
wages took place :' but with respect to the promise of re-
storing it when trade revived, they say, ' we deny, however,
that any such promise was made by the masters generally,
although this might have been done by some individual
firms.' We are prepared to admit that every employer in
the town di i not make that promise : there were several
firms where, had the hands, or any portion of them, raised
the shadow of an objection to the reduction, or solicited a
promise of any description, they would have received sum-
mary ejectment ; and such a process, in the state of the labor
market at the time would have been next to starvation and
death ; but the promise given at the firms where the mas-
ters allowed them some little freedom,' was justly consi-
dered applicable to all, and, consequently, to those firms
where the hands dare not ask at that time, to be other than
degraded slaves.'
4th.—They say, Being anxious to ascertain the diffe-
rence (if any) between the earnings of the various classes of
operatives in 1847, before the above-mentioned reduction
took place, and those in the summer of 1853, before the
10 per cent. was demanded, we find, from the returns fur-
nished us from the wages books of several large and influ-
ential firms, that, instead of any decrease, there has been an
actual increase, varying from 5 to 30 per cent., after making
due allowance for the difference in the hours of labour, from
69 to 60 hours per week.' Gentlemen, if your object had
been to furnish statistical data of the benefit and blessings
which have resulted from the passing of the ten hours' bill,
(that bill which you so long and so zealously opposed, and
which you so often prophesied would be followed by ruinous
and disastrous results—by the by, we are told at the present
time, that if you cannot succeed in reducing our wages 10
per cent., it will be followed by disastrous ruin) we could
have understood your motive ; but because, by our untiring
exertions, we have succeeded in doing as much work in 60
hours as we formerly did in 69 hours, you are so ungenerous
as to make this a justification for preventing us participating
in the general prosperity which has followed ; but you say,
that in a well-regulated spinning and weaving establish-
ment, the average earnings of all classes of hands is about
10s. each.' You forgot to tell us whose well-regulated
establishment this is ; but if all establishments, where the
average earnings are less than 10s. per week, are badly
regulated establishments, we are prepared to prove from
your own books, if you will furnish us with the facility, that
the great body of establishments are anything but well
regulated.' . _

"6th. We repeat that the wages paid in Preston are less
than what are paid in other districts, and this is the secret
cause of the determination of the workpeople to improve
their condition.

"We beg to say, that in this struggle the masters are the
aggressors ; we were (with the few exceptions referred to)
satisfied with the wages given us before the 'lock-out ;' we
understand that we must not resume work unless we will
submit to a reduction of ten per cent. ; we have offered to
have the question settled upon reasonable terms, but 'no
concession' is the terms of our employers ; they have forced
us to rely for an existence upon aid from other towns, and
now tell us, that we can only resume work upon condition
that we will degrade ourselves in the eyes of the world, by
accepting of a reduction, which must naturally be followed
by a reduction in the wages of those who have so generously
saved our children from starvation : are these the only terms
of honorable men ? will it be the interest of the employers
of Preston to see their workpeople both degraded and dis-
honest ? we think not ; but if it be, we tell them that we
will suffer much before we will submit to such depravity.
"In conclusion, we again reiterate, that we are prepared
at any time to bring this dispute to an honorable and
reasonable arrangement."

Dr. Gilbert, Inspector-General of army hospitals, died in
London on Christmas-day.____.

SCOTCH BANKRUPTS =William Angus and Co., engi-
neers, ironfounders, and millwrights at Itoysyth, empty
Fife.—Late Messrs. Isabella M'Kerracher or Craig, carry-
ing on business under the firm of Mrs. I. Craig, house and
sign painter, Glasgow.—Edinburgh Gazette
THU CHRISTMAS RAILWAY TRAFFIC. —The amount of
the Christmas traffic on all the leading metropolitan rail-
ways would appear from the usual return to have consider-
ably exceeded that of any previous year. On the London
and North-Western, during the period nominally called
" Christmas week," extending ever seven days, there passed
"down" the line 27,000 parcels and Christmas presents,
and " up" 12,250, for distribution throughout London,
this being exclusive of many thousands of parcels coming by
goods trains. Last year on this line the " down" parcels
were 26,000, and the " up" 12,000. In the passenger
traffic there was a corresponding increase. The Great Wes-
tern conveyed, exclusive of large consignments by the goods
trains, 16,000 parcels and presents by their down passenger
trains to all parts of the west, and 13,000 from the west up
to the metropolis. The Great Northern disembogued from
their depots at King's-cross 10,000 parcels up, and about the
same number down, exclusive of goods trains consignments ;
and the Eastern Counties in four days carried 15,000 par-
cels up from the agricultural districts, and about half that
number down, besides a large tonnage to and fro of agric il-
tural and dead stock. In each case special arrangements
had to be made on a large scale for the safe and speedy trans-
mission of these Christmas cargoes, and a large additional
staff was in requisition.
THE GIRVAN MURDER. —The Ayr Observer furnishes
further particulars of this deliberate murder. On the even-
ing of Thursday last, Janet M'Culloch or Cunningham,
wife of a man named Alexander Cunningham, a laborer in
Girvan, was sitting weaving in the house of a man named
Hamilton, in Piedmont-road of Girvan, when, about seven
o'clock, a rattling noise was heard as eigravel being thrown
against the window near where the woman was working.
She naturally turned round to see what it was, when a gun
was fired through the window at her, and shot her right
through the heart. She uttered one cry, and fell dead ou
the spot ! Some men were weaving in the shop with her,
and they immediately gave the alarm ; but as the night was
pitch dark, and the shot came from the back of the house,
the murderer was not then seized. Suspicion at once at-
tached to the woman's husband, from whom she was sepa-
rated, who was on bad terms with her for some time, and
had been heard to threaten her shortly before, unless she
came back to live with him. Cunningham himself came
into the house where the body of his wife was lying, about
an hour after the murder, and demanded to see her body.
He was apprehendel on the spot, and on his house being
searched a gun was found in it which he had borrowed that
morning to shoot a hare, as he said. He was seen in the
neighbourhood of the house in the evening, and from a num-
ber of circumstances which have since come to light, the
strongest suspicions attach to him. The deceased was a
quiet, well-behaved woman, and had to leave her husband
for continued bad usage, in consequence of which be has
been once or twice punished. It is thought he was angry
at her for not living with bin, and supporting their chil-
dren; and he is also said to have been jealous of her. The
sheriff and fiscal from A.Tr were on the spot next morning,
and a diligent investigation was made into the affair ; and
Cunningham was transmitted to Ayr jail, where he now
lies. The murderer must have rested his gun on the ledge
of the window and taken a deadly aim, as the poor woman
was not above two yards from him when he shot her.- Alto-
gether, it is one of the most cold blooded murders that has
disgraced Ocotfish annals ter many part.