The Sun.
London, England, 1852-01-19 00:00:00

TO THE EDITOR OF THE TINES.

Sir,—May I bog you to insert in your paper a letter
addressed to me by Lord Cranworth under the follow-
ing circumstances ?
I received on Thursday, the Bth, a letter asking me
whether I would act as an arbitrator between the opera-
tive engineers and their employers. I wrote in answer
that I should be ready to do anything which would tend
to produce a reconciliation, but I doubted whether arbi-
tration were the right issue at present. On receiving a
second letter on Saturday I hastened at once to Landon,
and proceeded to consult Lord Cranwortb, whom, as I
was told, the operatives had desired to place at the head
of a council of arbitration for the decision of the ques-
tions now unfortunately at issue.
I found him engrossed by the duties of his high
office, but on learning the object of my visit, he set
aside all other business to devote his whole mind to its
consideration. _ _ _

The result is best shown in the enclosed letter.
I received from him permission to make use of it at
my discretion.
My first act was to communicate it to the Executive
of the Ama►gamated Society; but I could not expect
them to give it publicity. It was not, indeed, without
some repugnance on my own part that I brought myself
to employ it in a manner opposed to the present views
of those who had induced me to act; but my doubts
were removed when I came to reflect what sufferings
the operative engineers were about voluntarily to impose
on themselves and their families, for the single purpose
of obtaining what they regard as justice for their class—
what Lord Cranworth pronounces to be injustice for all.
Before these sacrifices are actually made by a gallant
band of men, in a spirit of heroism, to what I cannot
but conceive to be a mistaken sense of right, I desire to
put before them the impartial and disinterested testimony
of one to whose enlightened arbitration it had been the
wish of their leaders at one moment to appeal.
It is with this view that I now request you to give it a
place in your columns.—l have the honour to be, Sir,
your obedient servant,
London, Jan. 15. ASHBURTON.

" 40, Upper Brook-street, Jan. 10.
" Daar Lard Ashburton,—Since I saw your Lordship
this morning. -I have been thinking more and more of
the. unfortunate matter to which our conversation re-
ferred. I confess it is one which gives me great pain,
and the mere so because I cannot but come to the con-
clusion that the men are in the wrong. The masters
have greater wealth, and perhaps, therefore, greater in-
struction if not greater intelligence on their side. I wish,
therefore, not unnaturally, that in talking over the mat-
ter with you I could take he part of the weaker body;
but I really cannot.
" The points on which the men insist are, first and
mainly, that the masters employ unskilled labourers, i. e.,
labourers who arc content to accept low wages, to do a
part of the work heretofore done by skilled, i. e., by com-
paratively expensive labourers; and, secondly, that they
get e portion of their work done by contract with per-
eons who perform their part of the contract by employing
the workmen to do by piece or taskwork what they have
contracted to get done; and, lastly, the men insist that,
unless on occasions of special emergency, the masters
ought not to get work done by employing workmen over-
time, i. e., at hours beyond the ordinary hours of work.
men
surely, to Now,
be at confess 4 liberty
tt
0, oenmallp
are entirely in the wrong. The masters ought,
whomsoever they may
please for each and every portion of the work. If it is
work only to be done well by skilled workmen,
they must employ skilled and unless
employyhesepoints, I thinkfl;
workmen,
they do so the
masters will be the work will be badly done, and the
skilled sufferers. If it is not work re-
quiringcan the masters be workmenecalld, on what possible principle
master ought to be at on to employ them? The
he may choose. Of
e liberty to employ whom
equally be left at liberty°u to the workman must
course,
by the master and work, or
accept the terms offered
and abstain from working. Botitf reject those terms
part
left at perfect liberty to do what they thtines ought to be
own interest. So as to piecework and
work
for their
overtime,—
all the relations between employer and employed
ought to be those of contract between two erfeotly are or
agents. The master may propose whatever terms re
chooses; the workmen may accept Or reject those terms.
In such a state of things, when there are no combinations*
on either side, the result must eventually be fair and just
to both sides. If the master proposes what is harsh and
unreasonable he will get no workmen to work for him.
on the other hand, a workman insists. on terms which
fetter the master, the master will not give employment,
and the workman will be unemployed.
" The misfortune is that in these disputes between
those who work and those who employ workmen things
never are left to take their natural course, i, e., the
course they would take if each dispute was merely an
individual dispute. Both sides avail themselves of the
privilege which the law gives them of combining.. I be-
lieve the law has done wisely in allowing these combina-
tions. It is never politic to prohibit by law that which
certainly will exist whether tolerated or not. But the
misfortune is, than
s the game (so to say) of combina-
tion, the workmen always eventually fail. They begin
with the fairest and most honest intentions. They
have not the least notion of putting in opera-
tion against their employers, or against any of
their own body, anything like physical force. They
tl,'sk the justice, or that which they consider to be the
justiep, of their cause will, by its moral influence, ope-
rate on the minds of the masters, or else that the- in-
ability to obtain workmen will drive the masters to ac-
cede to the proposed terms. But the truth is, that in
all such combinations the masters have an immense ad-
, vantage over the men. The worst 024 can happen to

them is, that capital is for a season unproductive. The
reason for their insisting on perfsct freedom on the dis- ,
puted points is, that they think that without such free-
dora they could not make their capital adequately pro-
ductive; and so they are content to let it he altogether
fruitless for a time, in the hope of a brighter future.
There is no chance of any violation of the law on their
part, and they are therefore content to bide their time.
Bat how is it with the men ? With them what is left
unproductive is not a capital on which they can at a
pinch draw for subsistence •, it is the labour which is
their only wealth. When that is unproductice they can
only look for support from funds to be supplied by
others; and of necessity those supplies are in time tar-
nished grudgingly. Then come jealousies and alarms;
some are incited to acts of outrage towards their em-
ployers ; others are induced (forced, if you will) to
quit their own party and seek employment; this leads
to acts of injustice and even outrage among the work-
men themselves, and, in the end, the masters triumph.
" I feel most deeply for the men, for I believe in my
conscience, that, many, perhaps all, not only are most
fully persuaded they are in the right, but they would
scout the notion of offering or encouraging those who
should offer violence, either to master or man. But,
however pure and peaceable may be their intentions, I
know from experience what is the unavoidable result. It
has been my painful duty to try and punish for outrages
such as I have adverted to, many men who, I have no
doubt, when they entered into these trade combinations,
would have been indignant with any one who should have
suggested that what they wore engaging in could ever lead
to a violation of the law. So, however, it invariably
is. I cannot wonder that the masters refuse to agree to
any arbitration that is to impose on them any restriction
whatever as to the terms on which they are to contract
with their men. No one ought to presume to define such
terms, any more than to bind the men as to the terms
which they ought to submit to in favour of their masters.
The obvious duty and interest of the men is to treat the
matter as a mere question of bargain. If once they do
that—if once they allow that the master is at liberty
to propose his own terms, and the workman to ac-
cept or reject them, I should think the masters
would—l am sure they ought—to be quite ready
to listen to any suggestions of the men as to any
modifications of the system which should be more agree-
able to them, without infringing on the free agency of
their employers. I tear from what has passed that there
is too much heat now to expect that any temperate ad-
vice will be attended to. Sure I am that a time will
come when the workmen will deeply regret the steps
they have taken if they really are endeavouring by com-
buation to deprive the masters of their natural right of
managing their own business in their own way. I deeply
feel for the men, and I should have been very glad if we
could have seen our way to suggest any sort of arbitra-
tion which could solve the difficulty, but I really cannot.
"I recollect you said the men think there ought to be
some tribunal who should decide this question between
them and their employers, and that such is the case in
France. I cannot say what may be the state of the law
there, but I can hardly think it posaib!e that there can
be a law regulating what contract a master shall enter
into with his men; that is not a lit subject for a tribunal
or an arbitration, and for this obvious reason—the
master, after the decision given, has only to say, I
will not enter into such a contract;' no one can force
him to do se. When, indeed, the employed is not
free agent, not therefore an equel with the employer,
as, for instance, a child or a woman, there we know
the Legislatureitta reasonably enough interfered. But
I should be sorry indeed to think that the adult work-
, men of this country should claim protection on any such
I ground as that which has led to the legislative protec-
tion of women and children in their dealings with their
employers. I wish I could have written more satielac-
torily. I promised you to make any suggestions which
might occur to me, but in truth I can think of none. I
only heartily hope that the men may not take a step so
very injurious to themselves as that 'which the aspect of
affairs Seems to threaten.
" Believe me, my dear Lord,
" Yours very faithfully,
" CRANWORTII."

LAMENTABLE AND FATAL ACCIDENT AT
MATLOCK.
We record with much sorrow a most dreadful acci-
dent which occurred at Matlack yesterday (Friday)
afterneou, and by which a most respectable professional
man practising as a surg,:on at Buxton, and his son, a
boy ten or twelve years of age, lost their lives. Mr.
Cumming happened to he at Matlock for the day, and in
the afternoon took a pleasure-boat in order to indulge
his son with a row on the river Derwent; the recent
rains had much swollen the river, and the rowers seam
to have approached too near to the weir near Masson
Mill ; the force of the current carried the
boat over the fall, but Mr. Cumming and
his son appeared uninjured by the descent,
and the boat grounded at its foot: the only bridge by
which help could be aff.aded wa distant, as the boat
was nearest the Willersley bank, but men with ropes
were dispatched as quickly as possible, and hopes
were entertained that Mr. Cumming and his son
could be readily rescued ; but tee unfortunate
gentleman no doubt thinking he could breast
the stream got out of the boat, and, with his son in his
arms, attempted to pass by the foot of the cascade to the
alatlock shore; the boat relieved of their weight was an..
raediately washed down the stream; and then commenced
a series of struggles to save the lives of himself and
child, which it was most appalling to witness;
the spectators being able to afford no help under the
awful circumstances, the distance (about 60 yards)
from the Matlock shore being too great for any
immediate effort to be made to rescue them. The
unfortunate parent made the must desperate efforts
to save his child, and r(psatedly regained his feet
after being drawn down by the current, hut the
power of the stream proved too great for long resist-
ance, and the father and sod were washed away to
the depths below, before the eyes of the anxious spec-
tators. Our informant 146 at five o'clock, at
which time the efforts made with drags bad been
unavailing, and no traces of the bodies had been
discovered. Mr. Cumming had dined at the house of
Mr. Symons, paper manufacturer, whom he had only left
half an hour previously, and Mr. S. had the pain of wit-
nessing the unavailing struggles of his friend. Mr. Cum-
ming has left a wile and seven children,—Derbyshire
Courier.

LAW INTELLIGENCE‘

INSOLVENT DEBTORS' COURT, Jan. 17.