The Sun.
London, England, 1859-11-12 00:00:00

THE STRIKE IN THE .BUILDING

TRADES.

ABANDONMENT OF THE NINE HOURS'

CLAIM.

The conference of the building trades, finding
from the feeling which pervaded the meeting of the
delegates held. at Shaftesbury-hall, on Tuesday
evening last, that the other trade societies were
disposed to support them in opposition to the docu-
ment or declaration as required by the employers,
but did not look with much regard upon the demand
made by them for the reduction of the time of la:
bour to nine hours a day, came yesterday, after
two days' deliberation, to the resolution to abandon
their claims in that respect, but still to hold out
against signing the document. The strike at Messrs.
Trollope's has been accordingly abandoned, and tha
men employed by those gentlemen waited on them
yesterday evening to announce their willingness to
return to work on the same terms as formerly.
They were very favourably received, but the
Messrs. Trollope declined to accept their labour
until they had consulted the Committee of Master
Builders upon the subject. Should the masters
now withdraw the document as the men have re-
tired from their ,demand of short time, both
the strike and the " lock out" will be at an end.
It is likely that the masters will take this course,
as the negotiations for the settlement of this dispute,
promoted by Mr. Ayrtou, M.P., failed by reason of
the men refusing to abandon the strike at Messrs.
Trollope's.

Witll respect to the rules of the six trades' socie-
ties, they have been printed by the Master Builders'
Association, as proof of the alleged illegality of the
laws and regulations by which them) societies are
governed.
The operatives on the other hand have submitted
these rules to Mr. Edwin James, Q.C., and Mr.
Gordon Allan, for their opinion, together with the
rules of the Amalgamated Engineers, which the
Builders' Societies offered to adopt. The conduct
of the ;mailers in combining to lock out their work-
men has also been submitted to the learned counsel,
the case for opinion having been drawn up by Mr.
W. P. Roberts, solicitor, of Manchester, and the
following is the opinion of these two learned gen-
tlemen on the case so submitted :
OPINION.

Ist, We have carefully perused the rules and
by-laws of the six societies which are contained in
the pamphlet circulated by the executive commit-
tee of the Central Association of Master Builders,
and, with the exception of one rule amongst
those regulating the Metropolitan Society
of Operative Bricklayers—viz., the rule 20 (a),
headed Members' objection to work with a
' black,'" we are of opinion that the rules are
legal, and do not contravene the statute law or com-
mon law of England. We are not prepared to say
that the rule referred to is in itself positively
illegal, but as an attempt on the part of a number
of workmen to carry into execution its spirit might
lead to injurious consequences, we would recom-
mend that it should be either erased, or at least
modified.
2d. We are of opinion that the rules of the Amal-
gamated Society of Engineers, which have been
proposed to be substituted for the rules of the six
societies before referred to, are strictly legal. They
do not, in our opinion, infringe the provisions of
any Act of Parliament, nor can any danger result
from their adoption. We are confirmed in this view
by the opinion of Sir Alex. Cockburn, the Attor-
ney-General, alluded to in the case now- submitted
is us, and also by the provisions of the Act passed
during the last session, which clearly indicates the
policy of the Legislature to mitigate the severity of
the statutes against combination, and to protect
workmen in the exercise of their right to meet and
act in union for th• purpose of fixing the rate of
wages at which, and the hours of labour they should
work, and peaceably and in a reasonable manner
persuading others to cease or abstain from work, in
order to obtain the rate of wages agreed upon, so
long as no threats or intimidation be resorted to.

3d. The law relating to conspiracy is so vague
and unsettled that we feel reluctant to offer a de-
cided opinion on this question ; but we are inclined
to think that the conduct of the masters, in corn.
bining and agreeing to lock out from their several
yards the workmen employed, and who had
taken no part in what had occurred at Messrs. Trol•
lope's factory, until the workmen who had struck
there had returned to their employ, was such a
combination by the employers as amounted to a
conspiracy at common law, and might be made the
subject of an indictment.

Every master has a perfect right, individually, to
discharge any or all of the workmen whom ho may
have employed, as every workman has the right to
refuse to work for any particular master ; but the
combination of masters to dismiss and deprive of
their labour and means of subsistence a number of
workmen, for the purpose of compelling or inducing
those workmen to effect an object which it may not
be in their power to accomplish—appears to us to
come properly within the definition given in the
cases, and to amount to a criminal offence.

EDWIN jAMES. .
Temple, Nov. 10, 1859. GORDON ALLAN.
Fortified by the-se opinion.q, the Conference have
resolved that a memorial to her Moje. ty, which had
been previously prepared, shall new be completed;

and if the employers persist in a course which
amounts to a " criminal offence," they will ask that
her Majesty instruct the law officers of the Crown
to institute a prosecution for illegal conspiracy. It
is to be hoped, however, that the surrender by the
men of the original caase of the dispute will pre-
vent the farther continuance of this deplorable
contest.

SPORTING INTELLIGENCE.

LIVERPOOL AUTUMM MEETING.-TIIURSDAYS

RACES CONCLUDED.

The Helier Skelter Stakes.—As was stated yesterday, all
the horses, except Irish Emigrant and Miss Eleanor started
for this race, Bourgeois coming in first easily by about a
length. The judge was not in the box when the horses
passed the winning chair, ar:l declared that he never saw
the horses, and therefore that he could not tell which had
won. Mr. Gill, the owner of Bourgeois, entered a protest
against Miss Eleanor and Irish Emigrant starting, "be-
cause they had not run the first heat." Bath horses ran,
however, and Miss Eleanor won in a canter. Capt. Little,
one of the Stewards, refused to act in the matter, and it was
arranged on Friday that the objection should be withdrawn.
Tho stakes and bets therefore go with Miss Eleanor.

The Scurry Corinthian Handicap of 5 soya each, with 25

added. One mile.
Mr. Howard's Donizetti, 3 yrs, 9st 81b (Mr. Thomasi) 1
Mr. Blanton's Broadlands, 4 yrs, list llb (inc 71b ext)
(Mr. Blake) 2
Mr. Merry's Riseber, 5 yrs, lOst 71b (Mr. Roberts) 3
The following also ran :—Malton Messenger, Sobersides
Lady reel, Adelaide, and Helwith.

Betting—Even on Broadlands, 4 to 1 agst Riseber, 6 to
1 eaeli agst lielwith and Donizetti.
Won by a head ; a bad third.