The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1826-06-01 00:00:00

DISTRESS IN THE MANUFACTURING

DISTRICTS.

An operative weaver from Blackburn says..—" Weave many of us
almost in a perishing state, notwithstanding the relief which has
been sent to us • and those that work well can only obtain 7s. a
week. lam reckoned a decent hand, yet I weave 23 yards of cloth
for one shilling, and am a day in performing the labour : comm.
quently I must work 2.703 years, 13 weeks, &c. days, to obtain the
same income as is paid to a foreign Prince (Saxe Coburg) for one
year. The quantity of cloth I must weave for eleven years of
this Prince's salary, would reach round the world exactly seven
times."

The following singular fact may be relied on, as being literally
true:—A few years ago, a tradesman of this town, having been un.
fortunate in business, went to reside in London, where he endea-
voured to commence business again, but one of his creditors
arrested and threw him into the King's Bench prison. His wife
was then left destitute, with a family of young children, and another
at the breast, and she was reduced to the greatest distress. After a
time, however, she managed to hire a little shop and parlour, as
those dark back-holes in London are called, in one of the lowest
streets in East Smithfield. Here she .tried to set up an eating.
house, and sometimes she managed to get a joint of meat of the
most ordinary kind, and dress for sale. At other times she was
unable to accomplish even this. It happened that one day an old
man, a common beggar, came to her door, and solicited alms, and
shepve him a crust of bread. A short time afterwards he came
again, with the same request, and she relieved him, observing that
she had but little to spare, but what she had he was welcome to. A
third time the old man came, and again asked for charity, and assha
was looking up the mouldy crusts, he said to her, " Mistress. it
seems to me that you are more in want of assistance than mself."
" Indeed I any" replied the poor woman ; none knows my distress
but myself. I have these poor children to support, and my hue.
band Is in gaol." " Then 1 will assist you, my poor woman,"
said the mendicant, and he pulled out a purse from beneath his old
tattered garments, and gave it to her, telling her, at the same time,
that he, notwithstanding his miserable appearance, had a great
deal of motley, and she might use what he had given her freely.
"I am old," said he, " and my days must be short ; promise me
only this, that I shall not be left forlorn and desolate on my bed of
death, and all I have I will leave to you ;" and the silent tear glis-
tened in his eye as his trembling lips added, " for I am alone in
the world." In what terms of gratitude and thankfulness the poor
woman expressed her feelings, I shall leave the reader to imagine.
It was a gleam of sunshine passing through the desolate mind. In
a few days the shop was painted and cleaned, and a jolly piece of
rout beef decorated the window. The old man lodged in the
house, and every attention was paid to his comfort by the good
woman. Her business increased, and she found herself getting
into comfortable circumstances, and, to add to her happiness, her
husband was released from gaol, and conducted the business with
spirit. One day the old man went out, and was seized with a fit in
the street. at a distance from his home. He was conveyed to a hos-
pital by the bystanders, in a state of insensibility. As soon as he
recovered, he raved for his landlady, and with considerable diffi-
culty he made some of the people in the hospital understand where
she was to be found. She was sent for, and, on her arrival, the
old mendicant addressed himself to her, and expressed his sense of
the kindness she had shown him. " Get a pen and ink," said he,
" for I will keep my promise, and all I have shall be yours." The
woman applied to the people of the place for ink and paper, but
they either had none, orrefused to give it her, and she left the hos.
ph
al for the purpose of obtaining it. During her absence, how.
ever, the old man expired, and, as she had nothing to show that
she had any claim to his property, she lost the whole, which the
trustees of the hospital claimed. But it Is some satisfaction to
know, that in consequence of his former bounty, the people are
doing extremely well, and are even becoming alftuent.—Brighton
Gazette.