The Sun.
London, England, 1844-03-16 00:00:00

tionary was now in communication with the Govern-
ment on the question of a change in the Ecclesiastical
Courts.

IDOLATRY IN INDIA.

Sir R. H. INGLIS said he would take that opportu-
nity of putting the, question of which he- had given
notice, in reference to the measures taken by the
.British Government, with respect to idolatry in India.
The House would recollect that he had put a question
in the latter part of the last session with .regard to the
separation and disconnexion of the European servants
of the East India Company from Mahommedan worship
-and Hindoo pagodas, and also whether steps had been
taken to stop the pension or allowance granted -to the
idol of Juggernaut.- - The answer *as- perfectly
satisfactory with regard to the Presidency of Bombay,
and all but satisfactory with regard to that of Bengal ;
but it was not at all so with regard to that. of-Ma-
dras. What he wished now to ask was, -whether all
connection of the European servants of the Com-
pany with this worship was to, be discontinued?--
Whether it was not correct that the subject had been re-
ferred to the authorities in India as regarded the pledge
Of continuing the allowance to the idol of Juggernaut,
and that the answer was, that no pledge, to continue
*that allowance had been given? He also wished to know
whether his Right Hon. Friend would have any, objection
to lay. On the table of the House the dispatch which had
been sent with the pamphlet •of Mr. Strachan to the
Governor-General ?
Sir R..PEEL said, the House, would recollect- that it
was stated in the pamphlet of Mr. Strachan that 60,000
rupees were paid by the Indian. Government for the sup-
port of the idol of Juggernautin consequence of a stipule--
- tion to that effect; and he also stated thatthepilgrimagesin
honour of the idol were sanctioned by. the Indian Go-
: ierpinent. A copy of, the pamphlet
„was• immediately
transmitted to the Governor-General. He had
.no objection to communicate the dispatch which
had. been- sent on the-. subject by the Court
of Directors. On: seeing the dispatch his Hon. -Friend
would be best able to judge how the matter stood as far
as regarded the British Government. With regard to.the
continuance of the assistance of the servants of the
Company at the pagodas, he, had, to state that-
in Bombay, a Committee was appointed, -which
took the Management of the funds out of the
hands of those who managed them before. The
same rule prevailed in the Government, of , Bengal.
He was enabled to state exactly what had been done in
the- GOvernment of Madras ; but he hoped that the
arrival of the next mail would enable him to inform the.
Hon. Gentleman of the. steps which had been taken by.
the Government of India on this subjeq. He should be
prepared to lay .on ihe tee all the correspondence re-
lating to the subject.
EXCLUSION OF ROMAN CATHOLICS FROM

JURIES. .
Mr. BELLEW rose to put the question to the Noble
Lord, the Secretary for Ireland, of which he had
given notice, .on the subject of the exclusion of
Roman. Catholics from juries in Ireland.
the recent trial in the county of Monaghan,
of the " Queen v. O'Halloran, IPKenna, and others;'
which was a charge of Bibbonism, there were twenty
jurors returned ;, of these eight Catholics. were
_challenged by the • Crown, and the prisoners had
no right of challenge. The result was, that
of le twelve jurors sworn, only one. was a
Roman Catholic, and the general impression on the.pub-
lic mind was, that the Catholic jurors had been chal-
lenged solely on account of their religion. In that case
there was noluestion of Repealer or Anti-Repealer, the
case was one merely of Ribbonism. He wished to ask if the
'Noble Lord: could state why the Catholic_ jurors had
been thus struck off. He also wished to put a question
respecting the empleyment of the,.,grown., witness.
It appeared that the Crown witness , had, been
employed as an approver._ before the late assizes.
He had been out on bail, and, during ;that time
and while he was in communication with the police,
he had continued to attend. Ribbon, Associations,
and, he had admitted that he had taken an oath
of secresy at a meeting.
.of a Ribbon , Asso-
ciation since he had been in comninnication
with the Law Officers of the. Crown. He ,wished to
ask the Noble Lord how happened.,.that the
Crown had excluded from the jury all Roman
Citholica except one,. and how they,could justify the
employment of such a person , as the approver and prin-
cipal witness for the .Crown, with a proper regard for
the due administration of justice ?
Lord ELlarregretted that he w!as not in a position
to give a, saas.faetory answer, to.. the Hon. Gentleman.
On the day On which the Hon, Gentlemanhacl given no,
tice of Ins intention 'of asking the question he (Lord
Eliot) had written to the Crown Solicitor on the North
Eastern Cirguit on the subject,.yeceived an
answer from that gentleman stating, that he was .still on
circuit. and had not the ,papers with him which
would enable him. to return a satisfactory an-
swer; but that he should return to Dublin op.:Wed-
nesday, when he would furnish, the necessary papers ;
but he deplored that no juror had. been set aside solely.
on the ground that he was a Roman Catholic, httt that
he Slould be able to assign good and valid reasons for
the rejection of every one that he.. had at aside. The
Honourable Gentleman must be aware, that
the instructions on this subject issued by Chief
Jtisilee v Brady in 1839, , and .which • had been
laid on the table of that House, were.still in existence,
and the Attorney-General for Ireland and
-the other Jaw
officers of the Crown in that country had addressed cir-
culars to the crown solicitors on the various circuits, re-
questing that those directions should be rigidly adhered to;
so that if there were any deviations from those
instructions the responsibility rested with the
Crown Solicitor and not—on the Government.
Mr.' Maxwell, the Crown Solicitor alluded to, had
been appointed in 1831 by the Marquis of Anglesey.
He had held the office ever` since, and had,given satisfac-
tion to all the different Governmcnts, since, and he would
not, believe that
,he had failed to exercise a judicious
discretion in the present instance. With regard to the
last question, as he had received no notice from the Hon.
Gentleman on the subject, he was not in a condition to
,return an answer.

the franchise of Ireland, of which some notice had been
already given. He wished to know if the Right Hon.
Gentleman would name a day for bringing it forward,
and whether the Bill would be printed before Easter.
Sir JAMES GRAHAM would on Monday next give
notice of the day upon which he meant to intoduce the
measure, and that day would be before Easter.
FEES AT QUARTER SESSIONS.

On the Order of the Day for going into Committee
-on the Factories Bill being read,
• Mr. ESCOTT wished to put a question, of which he
had given notice to the Secretary of State for the Home
'Department. Previous to putting the question, a few
observations were necessary. • The Right Hon. Gentle-
man would recollect that in the last session of 'Parlia-
ment he (Mr. _Escott) had, called the attention of the
House to a sytem -of certain illegal fees; which were
taken .by the Clerks of .the- Crown in Courts, and by
Clerks of Assize, and Clerks of the Peace, at Quarter
Sessions. The statements which were then made by his
Right Hon. Friend, and by the Noble Lord, the Mem-
ber for London, would, he thought, have put an end to
the practice, for. both stated, in the clearest possible
manner, their abhorrence of- the practice. At the end
of the session, he (Mr. Escott).moved for a return of the
number of those 'taken ,in the'. proceeding. year. That
return showed, that 20 counties had abolished the prac-
tice, hutthat 32_counties still retained it-to a greater or
less extent. Now, the practice was simply this :-The
Clerk of the Assize-or Clerk of the Peace demanded a
sum of money.from every defendant 'previous- to his
pleading guilty and taking his trial. It had
been contended -that this was legal, - because an
Act of Parliament gave to the Judges of Session
power to "settle the amount of fees ; it was therefore Con-'
tended„ that the clerks had a' right to demand • a. certain
amount of fees from defendants. He .was
.quite certain
that no 'Hon. Member in that House, acquainted with
the subject of criminal jurisprudence, could think that
the clerks were _on that ground entitled to take 'one
sixpence , from defendants. The practice never would
have endured, to the .present time 'had it been generally
known. He was sure when he introduced the subject
-last:session t 6 the House, there was scarcely an Hon..
Member, or at least not snore than one •or two, that was
kite pf the, practice. ‘ Neither -his Right Hon... Friend,
- thelirst Lord of the Treasury, nor the Attorney-Ge-
neral, nor the Solicitor-General, knew anything of the
:practice, nor of . the magistrates he had spoken to, ex-
cept one Chairman of Quarter Sessions.. The practice
was carried, on in ~secrecy, and in the dark. By those
secret means sums of money were extorted.- There was
no ease in which this extortion 'had been practised, that
an indictment -for extortion would not lie 'against the
nfficelS of the Court who made the charge: He wished-
to ask his Right 'Hon. Friend, 'the Secretary -of State. fir
the Home Department, who had Made a very strong'
declaration on the -subject last session, again to express
his opinion, so that this. abomina,blef-system-Might be
'put an end to. .He hoped the power of the Executive ,
would be exerted to, crush it.. • There. • was no need for'
,Airther, interferenceon.the part, of the Legislature. -The'
laws were quite strong enough if they were put in. force. •
.Sir -T. GRAHAM-agreed -with his Hon.: and Learned
,Friend in thinking this a very vile practice, and a state,
of things that ought to be. speedily remedied. He would:
not presume to•say that any bpinion expressed by • him
would have the effect'. anticipated. by the Hon. and
Learned Gentleman ; but he felt, bound to say that these
practices were at variance with the first principles of
law. 'He did not think the defendant should be. called
upon to, pay anything in: proving his -innocence, nor
should he be mulcted when a 'jury of hil countrymen
pronounced an acquittal. Such demands were onlyjusti-
fiable• when the:judges of the' Court hid sanctioned,them;
but the demands sanctioned bythe ' judges were 'not' at
variance with . the law. Those :observed upon .hy the
. ,
Hon. and Learned Gentleman were al) origine illegal.
FACTORIES. BILL. - . "
• The Order otthe,Day ass then read, and ~• -' :.
Alr.•- HINDLEYi -before going into Committee, wished
to present a petition in. favourof an eleven hours' fac-
tory' Bill from itho inhabitants of Bolton. ' - ' . •-, - . .
.-Lord-ASHLE-Y 'presented petitions from Birmingham,
Leeds, •and Stockport, in favour of ,a ten hours' Factory
Bill. . . , . , -
• MAI-SHARMAN CRAWFORD ptesented'a petition
from manufacturers and mill-owersinTewkesbury, in
Yorkshire, against the seventh - clause of the proposed
FactOriesßill; on the ground that ittvotild cause areduc-
On of wages. : . - ~ . ,
.- , . ', . • .
.qtr. M. GlBSONpresented several: petitions of a simi.•
lar nature. •:: i..-- . . • •
MA STRUTT. 'presented two petitions from Derby
againit the Bill. •. - • - • . • • •• • .
-11r.•WALLACE- said 'it had. been hiS 'intention to
move an instruction to the Committee-On the Factories
Bill, that- they' should' extend its operation: to. other
branches of industry -,' hut -as there was so strong .a de.
sire eXpressed to get the Bill passed into a law,"he should
06stpOne
,to a .future,oceasion; the _motion of which he
had given notice. .- • ? . • . . t
The House-then went into Committee, Mr. GREENE
in. the Chair. ,' - - - ,
-The preamble of the Bill was posponed, and Clause i
Was agreed to-withont-discitssion.- • • •
.. • - '
•, On Clause 2 being proposed, , . •
LOrd ASHLEY moved the amendment of which he
had giVen notice. • Ile'said,it required some preliniisery
eiplatiation; He meant that' the ‘wnia `onight" -in this
clause Should.be taken to Mean from six o'clock in the-
evening. till . six o'clock, in the morning.. During the
-mummer months the range of a Factory. Bill would then.
be fbutteen hours—twelve for-work, andtwo for meals
in the - winter months -it, would be twelve: hours.
With a view to Conciliate opposition,' he 'would
mpose to -take eleven hours till 'the' Ist Of Octo-
ber this. year, and ten '`hours in the year -:1845.-
lifowche would proceed to the subject under discussion.
MOO' Years' had elapsed since- he 'made* proposition
lea similar nature to the House, which he would now
renew. But - not at that time did he approach the sub-
ject with, half the anxiety . which, he now did, notTfrom
any.fearof any personal pique, because, •
" Disappointment is the badge dell our tribe,"
,but from fearlest;lhroiigh 'any inabilitY-on his part,' he
'would not be:able io.discharge his duty towards those
!whorhad cotifided their • interests -to his keeping. ' He
:wislYed,. hou'e'ver; • to ' anticipaie- an -accusation made
'against him of.being hostile to the owners of mills. 'This
charge -was altogether unfounded. ' It was a .prominentquestion before the ' public eye in 181'5, when he first
undertook "'the subject .It was a.subjeetpainful ,for
many reasons, tint it was. one uppn•which he thought an
inquiry ought to "take place. Ten years' experience
proved to him, even if he doubted it. before, which he
did not, that avarice and cruelty were not peculiarly in-
herent in any class of men, or in any one occupation:
They would ever be found where means of profit were
cembined•with a virtually irresponsible power, whether
landlords or manufacturers. And where men possessed
such knower,. there ought to be a close supervision—
(Hear, hear)—some supervision—some public control
some restraints on -the indulgence of those .passions,
Which otherwise-might be indulged with safety and-im-
punity. - How many evil things were connived at when
they adivinistered to our profit or even our convenience!
They Might take as example -the awful sufferings of the
dressmakers and milliners of -London. For whom were
they 'working out .their lives night and day ? Was it
not to meet the sudden caprices of fashion ? Here were
no manufacturers, no. landlords.—(Hear, hear.) They
Must ascribe it in many -instances to the in-
. .
difference of, the tender sex, and he was ' ashamed
to say that amongst them were many of his own
intimacies and his own connexions.. There , were many
instances-of kindness among the manufacturers. If there
were many bad-men amongst them there were .likewise
Many good men, who went even to considerable expense
for the comfort-of theirworkers; he would even admit
that many of them were the victims of a bad system.,
He•knew that in what he would now state, and lay be-
fore the House, he would excite a spirit of hostility; but
he would -say now, as he said before," strike me, but hear
me." He would not go into the commercial part of the
subject-not' because he was unwilling, or, perhaps,:
unable to do so--but would Confine himself to the dura-
tion of the hears of, labour. In other European coun-•
tries the hourS of labour .were less than they were in this
country. - In Russia, in. Austria, and in Switzerland, the
hours.ofkibour were less than they were in England.
In France he knew that a law, founded on the provisions
of our Factory Bill, was' in-operation.; but there were
a great, number of inspectors in that country, whose duty
it was to enforce the provisions of the law, and who
were inspectors by virtue of the offices which they held.
In Prussia, no child under sixteen years of age could be
employed more than ten hours a day, and proper pro-
visions were made for their education. In all countries
of Europe, provision was.made that persons employed in
&dories should not be overworked, and that proper pro-
visions should be made for their education.; and surely
it was the duty of this country to make proper provi-
skips for their welfare, when they considered how their
nuMbers were annually increasing. In. 1818 the
number of persons, of both sexes, who were
employed in. ' the ~ cotton factories was 57,327.
Since - that period 'they 'had no return, until
, 1835, when.it appeared that the number of persons em-
played in the cotton and woollen-manufactures amounted
to 354,682. In 1839 they amounted to 419,591, and of
these- the nuMber of .persons undereighteen years of
age employed .in manufactures amounted to -192,880.
Simultaneously with this great increase in their num-
bers, a vast increase had taken place in their labour.
The labour which these persons -were now compelled to
undergo was three times greater than it, had been in the
-year 1818. A few thousand persons now performed the
work.. of several millions, owing to the, introduction of
machinery. He had several-returns which would show
that labour at the present day was three times greater
thanit was in the year 1815. , It had be-en-progressively
increasing from that time up to the present year. In
1815 the distance travelled by a person following a pair
of mules in the spinning of cotton yarn was about-eight
miles per day, calculating twelve hours to the day. . In
1832 the ; distance travelled by a person following a pair
of 'mules, calculating twelve hours to the ~ day, was
r twenty:
mmp
i4i miles,.
t: ssu,
p-
ua
panbd.
about
uooftenttBh2i
:IT
ysotfrseee.tvcehnlens
onlßB But
t each
ti
that
rangedatofw a
§ap
a notfi rr o,
allom f ,
steiee:nlahelPar..tlie ,Men, had to go through. In 1815 a
mules, being 1,640 stretches in the course of a-day. In
1832 a spinner put up 2,200 stretches on one of a pair
of mules, making, on a pair o4from r
mules, inettuhrenscwouhriscehohfada
day, 4,400 stretches.4g,4iovoenhimon . that-
In
tl
1844,
morning. from a most' expe •
rienced and practicelmill-owner in Lancashire, a spinner
put up in the same period 12,400 stretches; or on a pair
of mules 4,800 stretches., This calculation had been
made, as he had said before, by one of the most expe-
rienced arithmeticians in--England. - At 'his (Lord
Ashley's) request., he went down to Manchester and
made the measurements and calculations himself. He
took a number of yarns in five different mills, viz. the num-
bers 14,15, 30,38, and 40',and on these he made the calcula-
tions. On N 0.14, die least distance possibly travelled was
17 miles a day, and the'greatest distance was 27 -miles.
On No.' 15, the least distance . travelled was 19 -miles,
and the greatest 29. .0n NO. 30, the least distance was
,24 miles, and the greatest was p 7., On•No..3§,._the least
distance was 15'iniles,"the-greatat 26-; 'and, otflgO. 40;

the least distance traVelledwas 17, and the greatest 21
miles a day. It mutt be borne in mind, that these cal-
culations were made when the machines were being
driven at moderate speed. During their work, the
labourers had to turn round from four to five thousand
times a day. The calculations which he had just read
were partly made in the mills of a gentleman of the
name of M'Connell, of Manchester. This gentleman
also made calculations, and afterwards. compared them
with the calculation§ of the arithmetician he (Lord
Ashley) had sent down. The two .sets •of calculations
were found- to materially differ,`Mr. M'Connell's mea-
surement being much less ; but, upon examination, it
was discovered that Mr.-M'Connell had made no allow-
ance'for the diagonal Movements. This made the dif-
ference between the -two statements. The HoneMernber
for Oldham (Mie Fielden) hfidpublished a paniphleted
this subject, and from his calculations it appeared that
the average distaneelhat the men travelled in the course
of a day, working at a pair of mules, was 22 miles. He
(Lord Ashley) had also consulted a number of operative
spinners, and they stated that the average at least was
20 miles per day. They also.stated that although there
was more work performed than there ever was, yet there
were fewer men made to do it. They further stated
that an inferior kind of cotton was now used, and this
increased-the difficulty of spinning: Now the measure-
ments he (Lord Ashley) had read to the House had been
disputed by Mr. Greg, a gentleman who was well known.
In consequence of this, he (Lord Ashley) had written to
the-arithmetician who made the calculations,--and his
answer was, that either Mr. Greg's statement was eicli-
culous blundering, or a gross perversion of observed
facts. He (Lord Ashley) believed that 'one man now
did the work which was done by two a few yeare-ago.
In the year 1819-the number of picks per minute in a
pair of mules was 60, and in 1842 the number amounted
to 140. They had had the evidence of several eminent
physician' and surgeons to show the fearful consequences
which resulted front this excessive labour. Dr. Hawkins
bad stated that diseases of the feet, legs, arms, and other
parts of the body were of frequent occurrence amongst
the factory people. Dr. Souden -had stated the same
thing. Dr-Hawkins had, given it as his opinion-that no
person under the age of 18 ought to be engaged in la-
bour more than ten hours of the day. He (Lord Ashley)
had visited. the infirmary in Manchester, and he found
that it was filled with persons affected with. scrofulous
diseases, and these persons Were labourers who had been
employed in the factories. The medical gentleman
who was attending this establishment stated that
the majority of these , diseases - had been caused
by excessive labour, heated:* rooms; aid -.low diet.
lhe same evils were found, to prevail in other countries,
and a very admirable work had been'Published a few
years ago by a French physician named Billerin6. He
stated that various diseases, which he .(Lord Ashley)
had.enumerated, were prevalent among the persons en-
gaged in the manufactures of the Continent. It -was la-
mentable to find the dreadful effects this .labotir had on
the constitutions of the persons engaged in it. It had
frequently effectually destroyed the visual organ. Dread-
ful accidents were continually occurring, and those -
itcci-
dents consisted of loss of fingers, hands, &c.,. generally
occurring at a late hour of the evening, when these per-
sons became so tired as to be almost regardless of
danger. He would next direct the attention of the
House to the early period at which-superannuation com-
menced among persons of 'this class.. It was very sel-
dom that persons above the age of 40 were found la-
bouring in factory employments. He held a return in
his hand of the number of persons engaged in 42 mills
in Moseley, Ashton, and other ports of Lancashire, who
turned out in the year 1831. the number was 1,665,
and out of that number there were only 51 persons who
were above the age of.from 45 to 50. :le had another
return of the number of persons engaged in certain mills
in Scotland, and out of 1,600 pereons there were only
10 ebove the age of 45. He also had a return made in
1839 of the number of persons engaged in 42 mills in
Stockport, and Manchester; the number was 22,094, and
out of that number only 143 had pasied the age of 45,
and 16 of those were retained 'as a special favour.
Of 131 spinners in Manchester, seven only were beyond
the age of forty-five, and these were refused employment
on account of age. -He held in his hand a letter -from
Bolton, from &gentleman. employed to make returns by
the- Governthent, from which it appeared that Of fifty_
reduced Spinners. who were out of employment, two were
more than fifty, and,the rest did not average-forty: One-
man, at Oldham, Who- had worked at a factbry for six-
teen 'years, and was now, only fort Y-three years of ,age,
had frequently.aPplied for work, but was often refused
it on the ground of old age. The same evil prevailed in
Franee, as appeared in the report of Doctor Billorme.
It was found -more economical; both in England and on
the Continent,: to employ younger workmen.' IV letter
had been addressed to him, in 1833, by Mr: Ashton, a
large millowner in Lancashire, and it contained this re-
markable , passage You will, naturally inquire about
the old men, who are said to die, or to be unfit for work,
when .they, 'attain the age of forty. As all . cotton,
spinners, whether, young or old, are allowed-ehe same
price per pound, the produce of the old man is a greater
expense,:-,because there is a.diminished quantity c and
this fact sometimes occasions their discharge." - Now-he.
(Lord -Ashley> would ask what agricultural labourer was
superannuated at forty-years ? Old men of every de-'
scription adhered to the habits contracted in early life ;
and these -who were .'dis'charged erten the factory were
almost unfit' for any other kind' of labour. The letter
went on to say that .the old men, " men of. forty," (said
the Noble Lord), frequently disagreed With their younger
fellow-labourers, and preferred living at home when the
earnings of their' children were sufficient to maintain-,
them. There was mot a more alarming feature
in. the dismal history of factory labour than that
men of forty were commonly maintained in idleness by
the labour ofeheivehildr.e.—(Hetir, The Re-
port of the dotrimissioners appointed in 1833. stated that
it was difficult to believe the ages of the men employed
in factories from their.appearance, so coinpletely had a
premature old age come upon them. lie placed great
confidencein the Report of these Commissieners, asehey
wereenews selected by the Government of 1e33. foritheir
judgment and intelligence. He would next read a Re-
port which wouldconvey to the House some idea of the
difference between - agricultural and manufacturing- la-
bour.. On an estate in Worcestershire, where forty agri-
culturalchliotwers were employed, twenty-three exceeded
the, age of forty-five years: On an estate in Lincolnshire,
Where: tidily agricultural labourers were eniPloyed,.
ereven, '4xceeded. that age. On an estate in' Wales, on
which sixty-two labourers were, emPlmyed, thir,ty 'ex-
ceeded:the age of fortye On.anotherestete in tie same
principality, on which forty-two labourers. were, ,en-
gaged, twenty-seven exceeded.theeage of •forty. In the
Isle-of Wight, on a -small farm, on which eighteen la-
bourers were employed, ten -exceeded the age-of forty.
On another estate in the same island; where_seienteen-
were employed, -seven` were beyond that teem. -On an
other, out *of fifteep labourers,' six were
.beyond forty.
On a calculation of several small farms .there, on which
.
thirty men were employed,. 'every one exceeded the, age
of' forty years. 'Thus, in a total 01,341 agricultural ,la-
bourers, employed in different parts of the kitvgdona, 180
were ..ahnve -the7 age of forty.
,Contrast- this. with .the
manufatturieg-returnse whichstated that, out of a num.
ber of 22,000 employed in factories, only 1-80 .tvete
beyond the age of forty:. On different- estates in Dorset-
shire, on which '427 labourere were employed; 1 lie were
beybnd• the. age of forty-five. Why he would appeal to the
experience of Hen. Members, if it were not a usual thing
to see_agricUlturel 'labourers working daily who were
fifty, 'sixty, and' even seventy years of
age.
hear.) ,Thee employmentc at the factories- seemed *have
entirely debilitate the constitution of the operatives,
fore when discharged, unless supported by their families,
they generally sauk.down into hopeless destitution. The
education of male and female. wee most deficient, if there
were'anynt all, and their physical conditiOn- was sur-
passed by their moral -deeridation. The- practice of
thrift and economy was a -virtue altogether unknown to
thege people. They scarcely .ever had, an accumulation
.of eavings. to meet, old age. The Noble Lord then
cpietect from returns,- showing the* state, of employment
'in Manchester. Those, returns showed,. that out, ,of
11 jobbers, or casual porters,. 9 were cast-off factory la-
bourers. :Of -37- hawkers of nuts and .oranges, 32ewere
the same description of persons.. Of 9 sand-sellers, 8
were cast-off factory labourers. Of '2B -hawkers of
-boiled Sheeps' feet, , 92. Of 14 rush-sellers, 11 ;
of 25 comb-sellers, 16—making a total of 113 persons
.in the leWest employments of life, and out of these as
were .dischatged factory labourers. Of 341' unemployed
operatives in the same town, 217 were factory labotireri
who were maintained by their ownschildren. In Bolton,
of .60 rag-gatherers,to had been factory labourers.. In
1842, in Manchester, of 246:cast-off-cotton-spinners; 108
were living ientirely on the earnings of their family; the
remainder were following the occupations-he had already
mentioned. The Commissioners had inquired how many
,of . these unemployed labourers had- been engaged
on the revival of' trade, and the answer was—scarcely
one. Dr. Hawkins observed upon the :extraordinary
state of things in Manchester; he said the order of things
,was reversed,- for the children- of tender years were sup-
-porting their parents,.whose age should .place them in
the prime of -life.. The evils which he had enumerated

were_not peculiar to England, they prevailed on the Con-
tinent, and had engaged the serous attention of the Go-
vernments and• crowned heads of Europe. The laws of

nature could not be violated with impunity—those 'in-
fringements would cause a. bitter retribution in reduced
physical condition and gonsequent moral inferiorilyi In
1830, a Commission had been appointed by the French
Chamber of Deputies, for the purpose of inquiring into the
condition.of thereanufacturiag population. ,The Noble
Lord quoted frem the report of this Commission,, the
, effect of which was, that out of 10,000 men engaged in
agriculture in France, 4,09 were rejected as unfit. for
military service ; out of 10,000 men engaged in manu-
factures, 9,930 were rejected because of unfitness. .The
report went on to recommend a different system in.the
manufacturing diStricts, and stated. that the amount Of
individmil suffering there was horrible to conteni.;
plate, and should be at once remedied.—(Hear, hear.)
A report had been presented to the liing of
Prussia by a General „an ..the, Prussian .service, which
lamented the ineificiency of those engaged in the mann
faeturing districts of_Prussia; for military service,,,and
declared that if a reformation. did .not take„place, the
the present generation would grow up more crippled and
enfeebled than the former one: He (Lord Ashley)
lamented to observe upon the number of females that
were employed in the manufacturing districts. in Eng-
land, netwithstanding'that it had been stated by phy-
sicians' Of the greatest eminence; such- as DoCtOrs 131un-
dell, Elliotson, and Sir. Benjamin Brodie, that factoiy
labour was particuldrlyinjurious to the female coestitu-
tion. In the West jliding Of Yorkshire, a gentlethan
wrotetwtoelvheim,hotaora a d
say that,
a. seven years ago, 1,000 fe-;
males, who were then
supported in their own homes,.
were now all engaked in the factory, and work:-.
ing'
seemed •to be in especial reqlnuiSifaction fem
the ale labour
an
manu-
facturing districts, d. male labour was fre-
quently displaced to employ women and girls.
The Noble Lord next entered into a number of statisti-
cal details, to prove that the result of the present os7
tem, which prevailed throtighoutthe.facties‘ ogen.Araij y
in England, tended in the ' Wong* degree to =7