The Sun.
London, England, 1847-03-18 00:00:00

eirmmit

LONDON, THURSDAY, MARCH 18, 1847.

The Commons met at Twelve.
On the order of the day being read for the second
reading of the rating of Tenements Bill, several Mem-
bers expressed a wish that the Bill should be postponed,
in order to enable the House to go into Committee on
the Factories' Bill ; ultimately Mr. BRIGHT moved the
adjonratrent of the debate, which was carried by & ma-
jority of 48, the numbers being—for the adjournment
87, against it 39.

Mr. \VAKLEY moved that the second reading of the
Juvenile Offenders Bill should be postponed fur a fort-
night.

The House divided, when there appeared—
For the motion 93
Against it
Majority

On the motion that the order of the day for going
into Committee on the Factories Bill be read,
Mr. DENNiSTOUN called upon the House to delay the
measure for a fortnight, in order that time might be given
to consider a proposition which the Masters had made,
which was to the effect, that they should work twelve
hours for four days, and eight hours the succeeding day,
so that each person would only work fifty-six hours dur-
ing the week, and that they should be permitted to have
relays, so as not to trench upon the productive powers of
the country. He concluded by moving that the Bill be
committed that day fortnight.
Mr. Risen hoped that the Bill would be carried as a
Ten Hours Bill.

Mr. A GLIONIZY thought the principle of the Bill had
been already sufficiently debated.

Lord J. RUS:ELL trusted the Hous© would go into
Cornrnittce at once.

Mr. F. MAULE thought it most desirable to secure the
co-operation of the masters in carrying out the measure,

Mr. BnowNE was of opinion that the injury which
would be inflicted on England by this measure would be
equal to that inflicted upon France by Louis XIV.,
when he revoked the Edict of Nantes, and banished
skill and labour from the country.
Mr. BORTEMICK opposed the amendment.

Mr. Baicirr said a great change had taken place since
nr. Iitt:TIIERTON had been a factory labourer. At the
present moment children under 13 years of age could
not be employed in factories more than six hours a day,
and there were more persons in shops under the age of
14 than there were in factories.

After a few words from Mr. lIINDLEY, Mr. FIELDEN
said ho would not consent to postpone the Bill for a
single hour.

Sir R PEEL corsiderid the motion,
.as brought for-
ward incr,ly to delay the Bill, and could not support it.
Lord Joins RUSSELL considered that the principle
of the measure was god, au.d he should therefore sup•
port it, without consideriug whether it would limit the
hours of adult labour generally or not. Seeing the
great advantages cotton manufacturers had obtained in
,he remission of the d-ity on the raw material, and the
saving they would effect in light and fuel, by limiting
the hoer: of labour to eleven hours, ho thought they
could well afford this boon to tl.e labouring chases.
The Homo then went into Committee.

The lint clause, limiting the hours of working in fac-
torics to elevun per day, al ttr the Ist of May next, w:is
agreed to.

The second clause, enacting that the limitation of
eleven hours should continue until May, IS iB, was &so
agreed to.

The third (dame, enacting that after the Ist of May,
1848, the hours shall be reduced to ten, was carried, on
a divisinr, hy a majority of 78, the numbers being—

For the ciao °
Against it

144
66

Alicj.rity fur the clause -78

The announcement of the numbers was received with
loud chveritur. The remaining clauses were agre'ed to,
:he House resumed, aid the report was ordered to be
taken into considEration cn the 21st of April.
The th:u-e then adjourned.

Every fresh discussion upon the Ten 11ours' Factory
Bill advances the cause of the hitlerto neglected °pc-
_ ratives. The more the arguments e.mployed against
• the diminution of diurnal labour are sifted the more
dues tl:tir sophistry bc•come visible. The specious
tinsel of economy, with which the question has been
t.rivelope.l by the manufacturers, has glittered only fur
a period, i; has only for a time deceived the eye by
its dazzle. Bit by bit the spangles have dropped
away, and the true worthlessness of the reasons ad-
vanced against this measure revealed, showing that,
of the twelve hours' advocacy, " all tie rest is
leather and- prunella !" Lord JOHN RUSSELL has
manfully grappled with the difficulties thrown
in his way by the opposers of Mr. FIELDEN.
the Noble Premier has more than satisfied our cu-
riosity ; he has by his unanswerable speech of
yesterday evening ensured the victory of this benevo-
lent campaign. Fagh a Beattch! was practically the
text of his observations, and the sickle of his logic
effectually reaped down the objections to the Factory
Bill. Nothing now obstructs the triumphant
passage of this measure through Parliament—no-
thing, at least, deserving a moment's consideration.
Aind the popular representatives have avowed their
readiness to hasten its progress in every available
manner, by immediately following up the address of
the First Lord of the Treasury by a division of 144
against 66, being a splendid majority of 78 in a
House of 210. Lord J. RUSSELL rest: icted his argu-
ments to the consideration of a decrease to eleven hours'
employment, but his keen and masterly reasoning is
as Applicable in reference to the minimum time de-
manded by Mr. FIELDEN. Not, however, that the
Noble Lord expressed even by inuendo his disincli-
nation to legislate for any diminution of labour upon
the time specified in his harangue. On the contrary,
he expressly and distinctly affirms as follows ;—" If,''
says he, after this reformatory interference is carried
into operation, " it be desirable that more time should
he allowed to the children to improve and enlarge
their minds, lam content to give them Mat time, in
order that it may be so applied !" Regarding the
matter as one spiritually of a sanatory character, and
looking to the mental vigour and moral soundness of
our industrial classes, as one of the surest means of
conducing to the national prosperity and happiness,
Lord JOIIN RUSSELL iS prepared to make every
reasonable concession to satisfy the social wants, and
to advance the individual interests of the manufac-
turing labourer*, and especially of the women and
children. As Prime Minister of the country, and
therefore as the guardian and conservator of all our
strength as a people, Lord JOHN RUSSELL declares
his willingness to consent to the proposed reduction.
But the manufacturers will have to make enor-
mous sacrifices ! Well, the Noble Lord seizes
that counter-statement. He examines it in its
integrity. Supposing, he argues, supposing the
manufacturers were required upon the acceptance of
this Bill by the Legislature to make sacrifiOes—
enormous sacrificeg,
that could never be regarded as
a valid objection. Under those circumstances he would
be prepared to demand those sacrifices from the:very
men who paraded them as their protection. He vrould
demand those sacrifices in gratitude for the boons
very recently gr[pned to them by the abolition of the . I