The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1818-04-28 00:00:00

live way of preventing such combination; was to re-
medy their just complaints. He also assented ge.
ornate to the danger of interfering between labour.
ersaira their employers; but he could not extend that
principle to two points. which were perfectly lime= 4
Me and distinct. monely, the age of the worker§ and
the time of employment; and he thought the House
ceuld with stfety and propriety prevent elnlifrra -
tinder the age of ten yenta from bring employed at
work fur mare than eleven hours. Ile was willing
VI concur with Ins Ilou. Friend on the advantage
of giving childreu, even of tender years, a certain
occupation, but he could tint consent to have them
confined to labour for a greater time than was OP.
signed to adults in any trade, or even in agri-
culture, the most healthful employment of any.
The evil now complained of, it had been said,
might be remedied by the parents of the childreil ;
but to disprove this assertioii, lie read an extract
from the evidence before the House, shewing that
the masters had in this respect combined so
strongly against their work-people, that it was im-
possible for them to correct the evil. He then al-
luded to the siiihealtlifuluess of such extended oc-
cupation. and said, that the theories entertained
by physicians upon that ',Hint, which had been
exposed to so much ridicule, were ouch as had
been fOunded upon the expetience of centime-,
and held by all physicians, from Machaon to
Dr. Solomon.—(4 laugh./—.They were formed
on the plain prior:tide that air and exercise were ne-
cessary for the enjoyment of health. The manu-
facturers of Manchester had. however. to prove
the healthfulness of their employment, stated
that out of a working populatioit, amounting to
surly 1%000 people, the average annual deaths
were not more than eo. But what credit could be
attached to such a statement, when it was known
that in the Pays de Vaud, reputed the moat salu-
brious country in the world, the deaths ore averaged
at seven per annum iu every thousand He conclud-
ed by praying the Hour to sanction the measure.
Mr. FI N LAY said, that if the Goddess of Health
alluded to by the Right Hon. Gentlemen (Mr.
Peel) were to cast her eyes over the Report on the
table, he would make bold to say that the divinity
would make choice of no place for her residence in
preference to certain of the cotton manufactories,.
He was indeed ready to admit that the slumber of
hours consumed by children in labour was too
great (Hear, hear)—sad he would even acknow-
ledge that it was tulle competent for the Legisla-
ture to interfere in correcting the evil ; but lie fear-
ed that the remedy proposed would not be attend-
ed with that salutary effect. He was convinced
that if the Bill were pelted into a law, it would
have the effect of driving children from a state of
comparative eerie and happiness to one of severity
and hardship. The measure had been supported
by some petitions, and these were in favour of it—
in particular from the workpeople in Mr. Owen's
manufactory. Mr. Owen, it appears, had, probe-
bly with a good view to his own interest, consented
to reduce the hours of labour to ten and a half.—
ft was very natural that the labourers in diet ma-
nufactory should desire that their brethren else•
where should share an equal advantage, and no
leas so, that Mr. Owen should desire to have other
manufacturers equally limited; but if the hours
of labour were thus abridged, he could uanre the
Haase, that this country could uo longer enjoy leer
present superiority in manufactures in the foreign
markets. He hoped they would not, by meting on a
principle of mistaken huastinity, and without having
sufficiently investigated the subject, endanger the
national prosperity. Ou such a principle the Poor
Laws were originally founded, and the results have
heeu distress and confusion wholly unparalleled.—
There was one consideration which appeared to him
as au inconsistency in the Hon. Baronet's conduct,
which was, that in limiting the time of labour fur
free children, he made no provision for apprentices,
whom he still left, wider the provisions of his own
former Act, to work 12 hours a day ; so that while
the present measure was endeavouring to limit
the time of work for free children to 11 bouts, the
I matters or parrots had only to bind them as appren-
tices, and they coold then, under the Apprentice
Act, compel them to work for twelve hours a•day.
He could not conceive the motive of the present
Bill, unless, indeed, the Hon. Baronet's own maim-
factories were all worked by apprentices. Alter
having given the subject his fullest consideration,
and being convinced that the measure not only
would not produce any advantage, but would ab-
solutely create a great mischief, he should vote
I for the Noble Lord's motion.

Mr..l. SMITH said, be bad a right to doubt the justice of
the arguments adduced by the opponents of this Bill, since
precisely the mime objections were made against one of the
meal important measures ever submitted to Parliament,
the Abolition of the Slave Trade.—(f/ear./—His Hon.
Friend had alluded to a Petition presented by the only body
of manufacturers who appeared to bare considered this
subject. He referred to the Petition from New La-
nark. That Petition was put into his baud, by the
iultltviduals who had drawn at up—and a more modest
or respectabk body of men he never saw. With respect
to some of the allegations contained in it, he should
like, if it were possible, that those Gentlemen who opposed
the present measure, should give an answer to them. it was
there stated, that the hours of labour had been decreased
by the kindness of their master—but that they nevertheless
did a greater quantity of work in the shorter' this, they used
to perform in the longer periud.—(Hear,hear.)—He
quired into the cause of this, and was informed, that the
workmen, having no more labour allotted to theirs than
they could conveniently execute, they went through it with
cheerfulness and spirit.--(Hear, hear.)

Mr. Flu LAY explained.
The Hun. E. Rostrums observed, that every feeling of
humanity was necessarily enlisted in favour of this measure.
The wily doubt he bid tan the subject was, that if they
passed the present Hill, they would be obliged to extend
the mune principle to every branch of trade. Hut, boweier
unwilling lie might be to sanction legislative interference,
generally, in mailers of this kind, yet he conceived such a
case had been niaile out in this instance, as called for the in-
terposition of the House. Of course, tliatssse depended more
or less ou the correctness of the statements that had berm
made with respect to the effect of !Axon- on the children.
Hut, lie contrived, it could scarcely be supposed, that
children could work fur so many hours, without hex tilling
their health. What struck !um, as a most pregnant fact,
was, that, ou looking at the hat of those who were em-
ploycd iu cut son factories, nut one appeared above rutty
years of age. How could this circumstance he accounted
foe, except by soppusisig that their strength was exhausted
by their youthful labours ?—(llear.,/—Trie Right HOlll. Gent.
concluded by stating, that he would vote for the measure.
The House then diviik hen there appeared—
Fur gulag iutu the Commit tee
Against it.....

Majority OA'
The Homo. thee •eut unto the Comeau
nee.
Mr. 1124 LAS., on account of the LtirJlC3l of the hour,