The Sun.
London, England, 1825-02-02 00:00:00

SHIPWRIG lITS' PROVIDENT UNION.

A Society under this name has recently been
formed among the Shipwrights of the Pon of London. It em-
braces already, we are informed, the whole of the shipwrights
employed in the merchants' yards, and several men belonging
to the King's yards are enrolled in. it. _.lt extends to beyond the
port of London, and die workmen at most of the out-ports of
the kingdom have already established a connection with their
brethren on the Thames, or haw-liad communication with them.
In some places they have applied for advice, in others they have
solicited assistance, and it seems not too much to say, that the
working shipwrights throughout the kingdom. either have
united, or will unite, to obtain a common object. The number
in London, exclusive of those employed in Ills Majesty's dock-
yards, is said to be considerably above 2,000 ; Messrs. NVigram
and Green alone employ upwards of 400 at Madman ; and
what the number at the outports may be, we have no means of
determining. Such a number of men united fora common pur-
pose might be alarming, if that purpose were not praiseworthy,
and it were not certain that all numerous associations to obtain

an improper object cannot possibly subsist fin any length of
time. The sh-pwrights in the port of London, we under-
stand, have long complained of the rate of their wages. We
believe, during the whole of the late long war, when every ar-
ticle of consumption had risen to double or treble its former
amount, there was only one rise in the rate of the shipwrights'
wages, and that was not obtained till after a hard struggle on
the part of the men. They do not seem, however, at that period,
to have complained, or to have suffered much, owing to the
great demand during the period of war for their labour. When
peace came, however, and commerce slackened, when that ge-
neral stagnation was felt which all classes complained of, the
shipwrights were particularly affected by the discharge of a
great number of workmen from the King's yards, who increase
the number of hands, while the quantity of work was very
sensibly diminished. From 1813, up to 1820, they are said to
have laboured under very serious hardships ; at the latter pe-
riod work became more plentiful, and has augmented from
that time till the present, so that now there is a greater demand
for men than can be supplied. On the eastern and northern
coast of England, we understand, enough shipwrights cannot
be procured, and applications have been made to workmen to
proceed to that part of the country. Under these prosperous
circumstances, not prompted by henger and discontent, but a
prudent foresight, they have resolved to form an extensive so-
ciety among themselves to relieve and support each other, to
uphold the price of their own labour, and prevent themselves
from again suffering in the same manner as they suffered be-
tween 1813 and 1820. Their object at present is to obtain a
book of prices, settling the sums they are to receive for their
labour. Hitherto this has been unsettled, and has varied in
different yards ; anti they have of late had reason to complain
of sonic masters not keeping their promises. By the exertion
of several leading men amongst them, a society, bearing the
name which stands at the head of this article, after several abor-
tive efforts, was finally established on August 16, 182-I;and
as we have already staved, now includes all the shipwrights in
the port of London, and has connection with all the out-ports.
They make no secret of their proceedings, as our admission to
their meeting proves, and seemed to be guided in their conduct
to their masters, as well as to one another, by principles of jus-
tice and reason. This Society, on Monday night, held one of
its quarterly general meetingsl at the Saint Helena Tavern, at
I )eptford. The room in which they met is capable of holding
800 persons, and it was crowded to excess. Most of the other
rooms of the house were also filled ; and great numbers stood
around the doors and in the gardens. There were not on the
whole, we should suppose, less than 1,500 men present. The
business of the evening commenced at six o'clock, and Mr. N.
G. Clark, the President of the Society, took the Chair. He
was apparently still a young man, that is, not upwards of 30
years of age ; and he needed no dignity to preserve order.—
Throughout the whole evening the greatest decorum and har-
mony prevailed. In truth we never saw so numerous and crowd-
ed an assembly better conducted, or in which the people were
better behaved. The speakers were all listened to with atten-
tion, as if the auditory were desirous of knowing what was to
be communicated. The President opened the business of the
night by stating, that the object of the Meeting was to receive
die Report of the General Committee.
The Report was then read.
It stated—" That, at the last general meeting, it was re-
solved, that ii book of prices should be formed, for all the ship-
wrights' work, on the Thames. The General Committee had
lowid it advisable to consign this work to the hands of a Sub-
rominittee, and had agreed- that these persons should be paid
is. a day for their labour. Consequently a Sub-committee had
been appointed ; it met on October 25 ; but owing to some
disputes which ensued at that period between the toasters and
workmen, the Sub-committee were obliged to transform them-
selves into a Committee of Management, and were compelled
to postpone the consideration of the price-book. After consi-
derable trouble, the dispute which then existed was honourably
settled, and the Committee resumed their labours. Shortly
afterwards, however, another dispute broke out at Blackwall
between the men and their employers, and Messrs. Wigram
and Green endeavoured to sow disputes among the men, but
did not succeed ; and it would be soon seen, whether or not
they were to be the sole judges of the price of work. The Com-
mittee reported, that in their opinion, Messrs. NVigram and
Green had been instrumental in procuring the discharge of the
men which had lately taken place from his Majesty s Dock-
yards, as all men so discharged were offered work by these
gentlemen.. Of the number of shipwrights discharged from
the Dock-yards, about thirty are now out of employment, who
receive each 21s. per week till they can get employment. The
most friendly relations are now formed betwixt the shipwrights
on the Thames and those of the outports, both in Scotland
and England. The Committee had ascertained in what part
of England most work was then to be had, that they might
direct those wanting employment to the spot where their
labours were most wanted. The Committee then entered into
a report of the probable expense of printing the book of prices.
This book of prices had, after considerable trouble, been laid
before the General Committee last week, and after some few
alterations, was approved of ; and in a short time the book,
100 copies of which were to be printed, would be submitted to
the Society. The Report concluded by saying, this was a brief
sketch of the labours of the Committee.''

The Report was unanimously approved of.
lir. Purim E then explained to the Society the principles on
which the price-book had been drawn up, and moved two re-
solutions—the first was in substance, that the price-book could
not be too much discussed, nor too well known, and that 100
copies be printed for the use of the members of the Union.-
2d, That a copy of this book of prices be immediately sent to
every master-builder. These resolutions were unanimously
agreed to.
lir. CLARK then entered into a statement of what the Com-
mittee had done, and the present state of the Union, which
was heard by the people with much satisfaction.
Mr. GusT, the Secretary, then gave an account of the funds
of the Society, and pointed out to the Meeting the necessity
they would be under of making a small additional contribution
to meet the expences of printing the price-book and other extra
ex pences.
Mr. Gamy r. gave a short history of the causes which led to
the tbnnation of the society. These w ere principally the exer-
tions of the masters to beat down their wages at the season of
slack work, and their refusal to augment them as work because
plentiful, so that the men did not share in the general pros-
perity of the country. lie entered into some technical explana-
tions as to the prices er different sorts of work, and at differ-
ent yards, and mentioned sonic particular disputes which had
taken place between the masters and workmen. After these
things bad led. to the establishment of the union, a deputation
had been sent up from Sunderland, to ascertain what were
their sentiments as to binding boys seven years, as the masters
at Sunderland wish to bind them for three ; they advised
their Sunderland brethren not to concede the point, and
the masters again consented to seven years apprenticeship.
—lie recommended them to respect their employers, and re-
spect themselves. Their former proposals to the masters to
regulate prices had been scornfully rejected, but he hoped the
present proposal would be agreed to. At least he was sure
they must gain the only object they had in view, a decent re-
ward for their labour, so that they might support their families
and themselves respectably, if they preserved their present
unanimity,.
Mr. LOMAX congratulated the members on the flourishing
the Society. lie had been frequently asked where it
was, and did it succeed ? Ile could now proudly reply—it is
here, a
(a)ai.nd that it flourished rapidly. The Shipwrights were a
most s, n
important body to the nation, and were once deemed of
state
much more importance than at present. Without their labours
the State could not be successfully defended, and on them de-
pended the lives and safety of many persons. Their occupa-
ts.trn
nons made it necessary for them to be well educated, moral
men. lie was sorry to say, though, perhaps, his auditory
might not be pleased with it—he was sorry to say, shipwright.;
had
a hda ldno
on
btgeke wenpa
a war. .
pgarce During
withr
were not so well informed as they ought to be. The cause of
thein
le
tul de-
mand sn,wdhheoflo ershipwrights, thought,
our 25 gyt
ei might be found
their wages
our
there late
increasing prices, and they had been obliged to work very hard
to support themselves anti their families. They had no time
left for improvement. At the peace, when employment be-
ca.ne scarce, the competition among them for work was re-
doubled, and so eager were they for employment, that they
accepted it at any price. It was a subject of contention amongst
them ; they flew at every thing; they undersold each other;
and there was no sympathy even left amongst them for the
sufferings of one another. They became poor and degraded.
Their bodies and minds were both enslaved ; one inde.al en.
slaved the other; for whenever the physical wants of man were
his masters, he had neither time our inclination fur improve.

ment. There was at present, he was glad to say, symptoms of
improvement, and he hoped they would go on till they regained
that station they formerly held. There was now not that great
demand for employment; they were not supplanting one ano-
ther, but acting in union. They had been much degraded
but there were amongst them still a few of the old school, who
would, he hoped, instruct the rest to regain their former situa-
tion. This Gentlemen concluded a very sensible speech, by
expressing a hope that their union would extend to every part
of the country, and be every where felt.
The PnEsiDENT now entered into an explanation of some
recent dispute the men had had with a Dl r. Johnson, and
pointed out the advantage the masters would derive from the
men having all agreed, that they would not work for ship-
owners, but only for regular master shipwrights.
Mr. GasT, the Secretary, moved two Resolutions, signify-
ing that it was for the interest of the masters to unite with the
men in fixing a scale for their work, or in adopting a price-
hook, and in their other exertions to promote harmony'
amongst both classes. Ile observed, that he had heard it was
the intention of some Members of the House of Commons to
move for the re-enactment of the Combination Laws ; but he
was sure, that in the peaceable, orderly, and decorous conduct
of the Meeting that night, the enemies of the workmen would
seek in vain for any pretext to re-enact these restrictive statutes.
Ile was glad to see them all there, and so unanimous. Ting
arose from the spread of information which, like the electric
fluid, had extended itself in an instant round the large circle of
their sympathies. lie meant to go further back, in tracing the
causes of the differences between them and their masters, than
his friend Mr. G. had done, and he would say, in the language
of their rules, " that they had been for a series of years in a
state of disorganization, Lavin.. no general intercourse of soci-
ality with each other." He then entered into some explana-
tions as to the state of the shipwrights prior to 1811, and ad-
verted to a former attempt the operatives had made to get the
masters to agree to a scale of prices. Of the Resolutions of
the men then communicated, the masters had taken no notice
whatever. He hoped they would not neglect in the same way
• the present proposal. Ile then read the following Circular,
which had been sent in the name of the Committee to the
' master shipwrights :

" Limehouse, 1825.
"Stn—The salutary measures which the operative ship-
wrights of the River Thames are so desirous of adopting, a.!1,1
which they consider of equal importance to the master-ship-
wrights, imperatively call for the mutual co-operation of all
parties interested. We are fully convinced, that without this,
the general interest of the trade can be but partially attended
to. Interested men will always find means to evade the most
scrutinizing attention of the operative classes. They look only
to themselves ;—the good of the trade or the pressing necessities
of the numerous families depending on the industry of the
working shipwrights, weighs nothing in the scale of competi-
tion with their personal interest. It is not likely that the oper-v,
ative classes can correctly ascertain by whom, and for whom,
many ships are fitted and repaired afloat and in canals ; but we
consider it more than probable that every master-shipwright
must know the condition and state of that vessel he is about to
dock ; and we only wish to impress on his mind the necessity
of adopting, on his own part, those measures he was so streno. -
ous to enforce on the operative shipwrights, when working for'
owners. We are sorry to say that in many instances it has not
.
been the case; we certainly did expect a more cordial and 4
more social intercourse with the master-shipwrights; and a*
our views were clearly set forth in the circular, addressed to
you, entitled—" An Introduction to the Shipwrights' Provident
Union," nothing can be laid to our charge on the score of dis-
, simulation ; for we there point out the necessity of ships being
repaired in proper places, anti by proper persons; and, to con-
solidate the connection as much as possible, a select Commit:.
tee have been sitting a considerable time for the purpose 0'
forming a book of Prices, collected from numerous documerts,
anti the most experienced persons on the River Thames, which
will in a short time appear, formed on a new system, containing
every minute part of work performed on a ship, with tables anti
scales attached thereto, which we most sincerely hope will be--
approved of by the master-shipwrights of the River Thames.
With this flattering anticipation, the whole body of working:-
shipwrights most cordially join, whilst we beg, in the name "'
the Committee, to subscribe ourselves
"Your obedient servants, N. G. CLARK, President-

"J. GAST, Secretary."
He concluded, after several pertinent observations, by re'
minding the people, that though the Union might cost thew
something, it had already obtained them a good deal, in havillg
compelled their masters to pay them docking money ; and when
they put their hands into one pocket to pay the expences of the
union, they ought to put them also in the other, to ascertain
how much they had already obtained by its means. This gentle-
man concluded a speech far better than we expected to hear, bY,
expressing his hope that the Union would prosper, and exteuu-
to every part of the empire.
Mr. Pit r Li. IPS moved the thanks of the 'Sleeting to the Cora'
mittee. The masters, he said, had all turned husbandman,
and had planted a tree, the root of which was oppression ; they
had grafted it with deceit, injustice, heavy work, and at the
very top they had grafted the means of discord among thenbi
The growth had ben speedy, and the fruit abundant. PI:,
mighty as the tree was, it extended only from now-creek ul'
London-bridge. Now the workmen had planted their tree--
its root was honour; they had grafted it with honesty, truth,-
proper reward for labour ; there was concord at top, and con'
cord at bottom, and its mighty trunk was justice. He saw
fibres all around him—it was spreading too in every direction*
and even the bleak northern blast had only made it more hardy
and vigorous, for it had shot out even there. Mr. Phillips con"
tinued his simile by recommending the members to lop off
dead and useless branches, that it might nourish for ever. I'
concluded by moving, that the thanks of the Meeting be gic',l
tt oo
dtheo Commit ts
we ea
was tee
cr
ownbi
ea
tti theyno
nhial
ntto
usdone,ly. and
Greatw h aotptphleoyo
se fol-
lowed, and then the Meeting broke up without either noise el'
confusion.
We transcribe at full length the name of the Society. " Thtei
Shipwright's Provident Union ache River Thames ; institute
ou'i
the 16th day of August, 1824, for the mutual support of i'e
other on the just right of a Seven Years Servitude, and a Scu
of Prices founded on the Principles of Equity between Master
and Men. Union of Sentiment is the Strength of Society.",
We cannot conclude without observing, that there 0154
among the shipwrights a strong, but we should hope, e'er
~;(
unfounded opinion, that the discharge of shipwrights wl"';1
lately took place from his Majesty's 1)ock Yard, since svbie'i
they say, apprentices have been entered, was intended to bred'
up the Union. They point to the circumstance in confirmatloll
of their opinion, of these shipwrights having only been utiz
charged from the dock-yards in the river, or at Chatham, o'll ,
none have been sent away from either Plymouth, Portsmout2e
or Sheerness. They say openly, indeed, but this cannot u,
true, that the plan was suggested by Mr. AVigram to Sir 11°1h'
Seppings, and acceded to by him ; we will never believe,.oo
any mere assertion, that a government officer, of such 11*„,
rank as a Surveyor of the Navy, would lend himself to Pr;)
mote the purposes of a rich monopolist, and enable hint be
beat down those hard working and honest men who have t
good sense and courage now, when a favourable opportun'v
offers itself, to exert themselves to recover their lost station
society.