The Sun.
London, England, 1833-07-04 00:00:00

FACTORY BILL.

LETTER to LORD ALTHORP on the PROPOSED
CHANGE in the HOURS of FACTORY LABOUR, &c.
MV LORD—Deeply interested as I am, in common with
many others, in the welfare of the operative manufacturers,
both from a feeling of anxious commisseration for their suffer.
logs, and from a conviction that a crisis is approaching, the
cotton trade, from the extensive and extending application of
machinery, aided by the gigantic, and yet but imperfectly
developed, powers of the steam-engine, and possessing an in.
timate knowledge of the moral and social conditions of this im-
mense portion of our industrious classes, I have taken the
berty of addressing to you the following remarks on the certain
consequences of the changes contemplated by Government in
the hours of labour of all individuals under 14 years of age, con
fleeted with the staple branch of our national wealth and in-
dustry.
It is proposed, my Lord, to reduce the time of working to
eight hours per day. This reduction appears to me, after the
most mature consideration, to be far too great, and must
inevitably lead to evils that will tend very materially to ac.
celerate the fate which is even now more than threatening them.

Li the first place—from the state of the cotton manufacture,
it is imperative that every mill should turn out its utmost
amount of production, in order to render an adequate return.
This has led, and must ever lead, to extended hours of labour.
In the second place—children, form an absolute and essential
constituent portion of labourers, many of the processes being
better adapted for them than for adults; as things now stand,
therefore, they cannot be dispensed with, being, in fact, the
only parties capable of performing certain divisions of mill
labour. These, I conceive, my Lord, are two great truths
which should be carefully kept in view, when legislating on this
most important subject.
By so far shortening the hours of labour, the two following
results must inevitably arise—the one, that two sets of children
will be required, each set working eight hours, and thus
making the day one of sixteen hours. Unhappily, the homes
of the factory labourers—their habits—their localities—the
utter want of domestic discipline—the scenes of depravity to
which the children are exposed—with the absence of any suf.
ficient counter-agent--of home education--of decent example
—to check these pernicious influences, must render the long
daily vocation extremely injurious to morals. The farther
result will be, that the working hours of the adult labourers
will be proportionately increased—a circumstance much to be
deplored, as already their physical organization is taxed far
beyond what it can sustain, compatibly with the due and
healthy performance of its proper functions.
Two sets cf children being wanted, to supply these, eaten.
sive immigrations will immediately pour into the manufactu.
ring towns and districts and a vast increase of population, of
which the junior ilembers can alone be employed, will be the
necessary consequence. Thus these districts will be crowded
with a surplus number of families—a suiplus which will go on
increasing very raridly, since tlvi children, as they grow up,
will be thrown into idleness, in order to give place to yot.nger
hands; and the result will be a mass of unemployed adults,
having no possible outlet for their labour. There c..n be no
difficulty in predicting the effects of this. An idle population
must be a turbulent aria burdensom..c one, and one ever prone
to mischief, and ready to lend itself to ary scheme for the over.
throw of social order This, too, would occur at a time when
there exists a superaly;ndance of adult labourers, and when
machinery is daily and hourly rendering human labour less
valuable.

It may be urged that the present unnatural system of labour
generated by factories—namely, that of children superseding
their parents, ought to be abolished. But the plan now pro-
posed will have just the opposite effect. That it is exceedingly
desirable that child and female labour should be, as far as pos-
sible, done away with, is freely granted. It should, however,
be understood, that this is a system which has grown up with
manufactures, and that society has to some extent accommo.
dated itself to it. By thepresent division of labour also, the
pauperism, which has involved in one common ruin the agricul.
tural labourers, has been shielded from the manufacturing po-
pulation. Whatever cause may disturb their present balance,
must be followed by misfortunes which human foresight in vain
endeavours to trace.

What I dread, my Lord, Is the extent of the proposed
alteration. If changes are carried into effect, they should, I
conceive, embrace all the hands. Twelve hours per day, with
an hour and a half for meals, would amply satisfy all reason.
able wishes, and the masters would soon be enabled to replace,
by increased excellence in their machinery, the immediate
loss of production. The report of the Commission, on which
the proposed change is founded, will from its very nature be
wanting in one essential condition—and that is, a knowledge
of the growth and bearings of the factory system ; and how-
ever valuable it may, and no doubt will be, in its details, the
above defect in some degree unfits it for being the ground.
work of a legislative measure, involving the comfort, happi.
ness, and ultimate fate of several millions of our population,
the stability and pre.eininence now enjoyed by our manufac.
tures.

Your Lordship's most obedient humble servant,
G.

THE ARMY.

REVIEW of the COLDSTREAM GUARDS.

The Ist battalion of the Coldstream Regiment of Guards
(the 2cl battalion being in Dublin), was reviewed this morning,
in Hyde Park, by General Rowland Lord Hill, G.C.B. and
G.C.H., Commanding-in-Chief.
The battalion arrived on the ground at ten o'clock, and took
up its ground, in close column, at quarter distance.
At half-past ten o'clock, the column deployed to the left,
formed line, and took open order.
General Lord Hill, attended by his staff, and accompanied
by several general officers, arrived on the ground at eleven
o'clock, and took his station in front of the centre of the
battalion.

The General, after being received with a general salute, rode
to the right of the line, accompanied by several General MI.
cers, passed down the front and up the rear of the battalion,
and subsequently took post in front of the centre of the bat-
talion.

The battalion then took close order, wheeled back into open
column, the right in front, marched past in review order, in
slow and quick time, and on its an ival on its original ground,
proceeded to go through a variety of manoeuvres and evolutions.
Ist. The battallion formed close column, took ground to the
left, deployed, and formed line. The line advanced.
2d. The battalion, wheeled by companies, the quarter dis-
tance, took ground to the right, advanced, and on the march,
wheeled back into line, and advanced in line.
3d. The light company was ordered to advance to the front,
as skirmishers ; the line advanced, covered by the light com-
pany ; the skirmishers were driven in, the line advanced and
charged.
The battalion, after performing a variety of movements with
great precision, took open order, and gave the general salute.
Lord Hill advanced to the front, and expressed himself
highly pleased with the performances of the battalion. Lord
Hill then left the park.
The undermentioned services, which became due on the
30th ult., will be in course of payment on Monday the 22d inst.
viz.:—

Retired Full Pay; Half Pay, and Military Allowances;
Pensions for Wounds ; Foreign Half Pay ; Foreign Pensions
for Wounds ; Widows' Pensions ; Unattached Pay to General
Officers ; Royal Bounty ; Adjutants, &c., of Local Militia :
Adjutants, &c., of Militia and Yeomanry.

A MAIL BAG LosT.—On Tuesday even-
ing list the riding post between Wakefield and Dewsbu:•y
lost the bag, containing the letters and newspapers for the
village of Ossett. When he left the post-office in Wake-
field, at about half-past 4, the b. .g was in his possession ;
and he did not discover his loss until he reached Ossett.
Of course the circumstance has caused great anxiety to the
inhabitants of that place, as they are uncertain what their
loss may be, for the bag contained all the communications
from London and the midland counties.—Sheffield Iris.
GREAT MEETING OF THE WEST RIDING
ttoahre
tYllesitßiognfsvniJtja:tlyiE,,:t hNoi
fps utghsreel'tEsNbm.- TEN
—HOUR
e
West Riding of Yorkshire, on With,ty Low Moor, about
three miles from Bradford, and on the line of the new
mil from that pl ice to Halifax. Although the morning
was peculiarly in.impi,:ious, and from nine to ten o'clock,
more particul: •Iy, the rain fel! in torrents, yet large bodies
of men, with appropriate banners and bands of music,
were seen proceeding at a very early hour to Wibsey from
Leeds, Keightley, Bradford, Halifax, Huddersfield, and
almost every village within the limits of the manufacturing
districts. The proceedings of the meeting were appointed
to commence it ten o'clock, and a little before that hour
the scene at Wibsey assumed au appearance of the greatest
pos,;nle interest. The immense ekvation of the ground,
which aff‘rds an almost boundless nrospeet from the
Craven hills on thL one side, to the Peak of Derbyshire
on the other, allowed each approaching group to exhibit
their full line of march, as they advanced to the site
prepared for the transactions of the day. A little to the
not th-east of a considerable mound, composed of the dross
from a coal-pit, and breaking the force of the w,n.t,
wwons were placed, so as to form a very convenient
hustings. The number of persons assembled was esti-
mated, by those best qualified to forma a calculation, to
amount to 100,000 ; and those who were present at the
great ref aura meeting at Wakefield, held last summer,
declared that the assembly was equally large on the present
occision. About half past ten o'clock, the gentlemen
who were to take the most prominent parts in the pro.
ceedings of the day, assumed their places upon the bust
ings. Among them we observed WILLIAM BOUSFIELD,
Esq., the chief constable of the division ; Captain Wool)
of Sandal ; the Rev. G. S. But,t.; G. CONDI", Esq ,
barrister, of Manchester; W. STOCKS, Esq., constable of
Huddersfied ; R. OASTLER, Esq. ; Mr. PERRINO, of
Leeds, and a considerable number of the most active
members of the Short-time Committees. At a quarter
past eleven o'clock, upon the motion of Mr. OASTLER
seconded by Mr. PERRINO, Captain Woon, of Sandal
took the Chair. After several animated speeches (which
we regret we havo nut space to give) had been delivered
particularly one by Mr. OASTLER, which was receive,
with enthusiastic cheers, the meeting quietly dispersed.