The Sun.
London, England, 1860-06-27 00:00:00

TIM I) 1-A_AMTION.

SUN OFFICE, Seven o'clock.

11\1PERIAL PARLIAMENT.

HOUSE OF COMMONS.—(Tars DAY.)
The SPEAKER took the chair at twelve o'clock.
PRIVATE_ BUSINESS.

The amendments of the House of Lords on the Buildings
Improvement Company Bill were agreed to.
The amendments of the House of Lords on the Dorset
Central Railway ,(Extension of Time) Bill were agreed to.
The Caledonian Railway (Branches to Lanark, &c.) Bill,
was read a third time. _ _

The Forest of Dean Central Railway Bill was discharged
from the paper.
ST. GEORGE'S. IN-THE-BAST.

Mr. KEKEWICH gave notice of his intention to ask
the hon. Home Secretary on Friday next, if he had received
any information relative to the disturbances which had re-
cently taken place at St. George's-in-the-East, and, if so,
whether he had taken any step to secure the prevention of
their recurrence in future ?

LABOURERS COTTAGES (SCOTLAND) BILL.
Upon the motion of Mr. HEWITT this bill, which pro
vides for the Improvement of the cottages of farm labourers
in Scotland, was considered and amended in committee.
BLEACHING AND DYEING WORKS BILL.
The house went into committee on this bill.

An amendment on•the first clause, excluding its operation
from the open air linen bleaching works in Ireland and
Scotland, having been moved,
Mr. CROOK opposed the amendment, contending that
such a bill as this was shown by the evidence before the
house on this matter, to be necessary in these bleaching
establishments as well as elsewhere.
Mr. PEEL DAWSON supported the amendment, on the
ground that the situation of the bleach works in Ireland
was extremely healthy. He contended that it would be
very injurious to force this act on the Irish dyers, as the
works were there set in operation by means of water wheels
and to enact that they should only be in operation at certain
times, would close them entirely, as the manufacturers
were obliged to work their machinery when the water could
be made available. He also pointed out that much of
the work was performed'in the open air, and was of a very
healthy character.
Sir H. CAIRNS supported the amendment, pointing
out that it only affected linen bleach works, the employ-
ment in which was clearly shown by the evidence
given before the committee of the house to be
of a healthy character. Moreover the operatives
had petitioned the house not to interfere. The
effect of this bill if extended to these open air works
would be to force the works to be carried on in
the morning when there was no sun which was absolutely
necessary to open air bleaching, and then close them when the
sun was shining. It was a great advantage to the bleach
work that they should be worked by water power, which
was paid for highly, and that being so must be made I
available at such times as it was possible, it was unlike I
steam power which would be put in operation by the light-
ing of the fire at any moment, in this respect also the re-
striction as to time would be injurious. He also pointed
oat that the works in which boys and females were em-
ployed was of a very light character, and far more suit-
able to them than other kinds of labour, and if this
bill were allowed to pass in the present form, these boys
and women would be discharged, and their places supplied
by fewer men, and thus the children would have to go to
work of a more laborious character, and far less suitable for
them. .

Sir G. LEWIS called attention to another amendment
to be moved by the hon. member for Bolton, to the effect that
nothing in the amendment should extend or affect any per-
son when employed in the open air. He thought the point
they were now considering should be taken as identical.
Sir H. CAIRNS did not think the amendment referred
to was identical with the one then before the house.
Sir G. LEWIS said the only difference was that the
amendment now under discussion included certain processes
which were only subsidiary to the process of bleaching in
the open air. That amendment appeared to him a very
fair one, and he should therefore support it.
Mr. ROE BUCK fully admitted that the process was
healthy. All bleaching was a healthy process. The
bleaching works he had seen were places where a man
might pass his time very comfortably if he were deemed to
labour there. He admitted that the master dyers desired
as much as possible to alleviate the condition of labour. But
the question was as to the length of time persons should be
employed. (Hear.) Why should persons be employed for
a greater number of hours in bleaching linen to that of
bleaching cotton. It was the being worked for 18 or 20
hours a day that was the mischief. A girl whom be saw
in one of the bleaching works told him that she came at six
and left off at ten o'clock at night, having two hours for her
meals. He asked her if it was hard work, and she said it was
not hard, but added, in a very expressive word, that it was
very "jading " work. (Hear, hear.) Most hon. gentle-
men would find it jading work to sit for the same number
of hours even in that house. He hoped the house would
not be alarmed at being told that the operations of trade
would be stopped by this bill. The very same language had
been used with regard to the factory act, which was passed
in spite of the doleful lamentations of the manufacturers,
and which had nevertheless done them no harm, but great
good. He trusted the bill would be passed in its integrity.
Mr. BAXTER said the hon. member for Sheffield had
asked why there should be a distinction between the bleach-
ing of linen and cotton. The reason was cotton and
woollens were bleached under covers, whereas linens must
be exposed in the open air.
Lord J. MANNERS considered that sufficient evidence
was produced before the select committee to show that an
exception might be given to linen bleaching in Scotland as
well as in Ireland. The amendment would affect that ob-
ject, and would not go on much further.
Sir G. LEWIS said it was difficult to understand the
exact effect of the amendment. _

Sir H. CAIRNS explained that according to the tech-
nical interpretation of the words to the amendment it would
apply to works in which the bleaching. was commenced
upon the bleaching ground in the open air.
Mr. ROEBUCK said his objection was not yet answered.
Sir H. CAIRNS said this was a bill declaring that the
factory act should be included in it, which act said that the
work people should work from six o'clock in the morning
until six at night, and that system was not applicable to
the bleaching of linen.
After a short discussion, in which Mr. 'W`lia.LLEy and
Lord C. HAMILTON took part.
Sir C. LEWIS said he desired to know exactly what
they were going to vote upon. The bleaching of linen
from brown to white was carried on in the open air, but
subsidiary operations took place afterwards under cover.
He understood that the amendment only applied to pro-
cesses carried on in the open air.
Sir H. CAIRNS said the amendment was not confined
to the conversion of the colour of the linen, but included
the subsidiary process.
The committee divided—
For the amendment. ...
Against it 4B
Majority
The amendment was therefore carried. _ _

Mr. A. EGERTON moved in line 18 of the same
clause to leave out from the word " that " to
the end of the clause, and insert the following :
"It shall be lawful to employ females and young persons
in bleaching and dyeing works as follows (that is to say) :
from six of the clock in the forenoon until eight of the clock
in the afternoon on every working day except on Saturdays,
and on Saturdays from six of the clock in the forenoon
until half an hour after four of the clock in the afternoon :
provided, that there be allowed for meals half an hour at
any time of the day between the hours of six and eleven of
the clock in the forenoon, one hour between eleven of the
clock in the forenoon and four of the clock in the afternoon,
and (except on Saturdays) half an hour between the hours
of four and eight of the clock in the afternoon."
Mr. CROOK opposed the amendment, which he said
was decidedly opposed to the Factory Act. The effect of
the amendment would be to annul and reverse the decision
the house came to on the second reading of this bill.
Lord J. MANNERS trusted the house would not accede
to the amendment.
Mr. ROEBUCK expressed his'entire concurrence in the
wish of the noble lord that the house would not accede to
his amendment. He wanted to know what gentlemen
would think if they themselves were pnt in the position in
which they wished to place women and children. They
went to work at six o'clock in the morning, and they did
not leave these bleaching works except for twe hours, when
they took their meals, until eight o'clock at night. That
was 14 hours' labour, which was too much for any woman.
(Hear, hear.) Rather than submit his countrymen to such
horrible atrocity—(hear)—he would rather see the bleach-
ing works altogether done away with. He sincerely hoped
the house would not accede to the amendment.

•JA., V • V WY V •••••..,...s••
Mr. J. B. SMITH and Mr. C. LEGH supported the amend-
ment.

Mr. BUTT said if the house had duo regard to health
and higher considerations, twelve hours labour was more
than they could really impose upon young rersons. He
should decidedly vote against the amendment:
Mr. COBBETT opposed the amendment. If it was
passed they would fix twelve hours a day as the time dur-
ing which young people might be worked in bleach works.
It had been said that the work was light, but he thought
that assertion had been sufficiently answered.
Sir G. LEWIS thought it was quite open to the com-
mittee to consider any special exemptions or limitations as
regarded time, and he thought the committee on the last
question had come to a right conclusion. But that, how-
ever, did not at all trench upon the general principle under
consideration, and therefore he. could not assent to the
principle involved in the amendment.lf it could
be shown clearly that the transition was too rapid,
it might be a question whether a longer time
should g
not be accorded to the trade, and the hour of work
be maintained for a somewhat more lengthened period of
time than was proposed by the provision in the first clause
of the bill.
Mr. CROSSLEY said that the objections which had been
raised to the bill were that dyeing and bleaching were only
executed to order, and these orders came in frequently so
fast or at such a push as to compel bleachers and dyers to
make extraordinary exertions on certain occasions. lie
contended that these very circumstances furnished
the grounds why the present law should be passed,
because the ''merchant frequently postponed the pur-
chase of goods until the last moment, in order perhaps
to obtain another month's credit, and then pushed the
dyersand bleachers to get the orders done as quickly as
possible, thereby forcing the working people to labour at
unseasonable hours.
Mr. A TURNER. considered the limitation of the hours
of labour to 12 very reasonable. The demands were so
fluctuating. that it would be quite impossible to keep
the bleach works continually in operation for 12
hours a day, but a 12 hours' bill did not necessitate
working for that period continuously day after day, and he
believed that for many mouths, et least for many weeks
the average would not be, more than six hours a day. In
reply to the hon. member for the West Riding (Mr. Cross-
ley) he remarked that no prudent merchant gave orders
until he himself had received orders from abroad,
and therefore it was not on the merchant that
the time when orders were given depended. He
complained that the Board of Trade had not ex-
pressed an opinion upon this subject any more
than upon the proposal made by Mr. Wilson in his finan-
cial scheme for India, and that in addition to laying a tax
on unbleached calico going out to India, there should also
be imposed a duty of 2s. 9d. placed en it when bleached.
Mr. PALK thought the amendment completely contra-
dicted the principle of the bill, and therefore he felt bound
to oppose i •
After so:no further discussion, the committee divided
For the amendment 42

Against
Majority

Col. W. PATTEN proposed to add the following proviso
to the clause :—Provided also that nothing in this act con-
ta'ned shall extend or apply to any premises, either open,
inclosed, or covered, or to be used bona fide for the purpose
of carrying on the process, occupation, trade, or business o