The Sun.
London, England, 1844-02-28 00:00:00

FACTORIES.

" Bill for Regulating the Employment of Children,
- Young Persons, and Women, in, Factories."
Brought into the House of Commons by Sir
James Graham and Mr. Manners Sutton. Or-
dered to be printed 6th February, 1844.
This Bill, in its present shape, consists of seventy.:
seven clauses, with four schedules of certificates,
forms, &c., connected with its various enactments.
The first clause repeals the 42d Geo. 111. c. 73, the
3d and 4th Will. IV. , c. 109, and the 4th and sth
Will. IV., c. 1, entitled respectively, " An Act for
the Preservation of the Health and Morals of
Apprentices and others employed in Cotton and other
Mills and Factories ;" " An Act to Regulate the
Labour of Children and Young Persons in the Mills
and Factories of the United Kingdom ;" and " An
Act to explain and amend " the last recited Act.
Clause 2 is one of interpretation, determining
the legal signification and extent to be attached
to these words whenever they occur in the
Bill, namely, any word denoting a " male person,"
shall be taken to mean a " female" as well as a
male ; and " one person," or thing, any number of
persons or things • " child," to be construed a " child
under the age of thirteen ;" "young person," a person
of thirteen and under eighteen, &c. &c. " Month,"
is to mean a "calendar month ;" "night," to imply
from eight o'clock in the evening till six o'clock on
the following morning. The application of the word
" factory" is also carefully defined, together with the
exceptions thereto which are to be noted as to such
parts thereof, for instance, as are used solely fora the
purposes of a dwelling-house, or during the packing
of finished goods ; and from this and other parts of
the Act are to be exempted young persons, being me-
chanics, artisans, or labourers working only in making
and repairing the machinery, or any parts of the
factory. Clauses 3 to 5 enact that no child
under eight years of age be employed in any factory ;
no young person under sixteen to be employed
without a surgeon's certificate ; but children and
young persons may be employed seven or thirteen
days without such certificate. Clauses 7 and 8—
Children not to work more than six hours and
thirty minutes daily, and young persons and women
not more than twelve hours daily. Clauses 9 and 10
enact, that children and young persons shall not be
employed in more than one factory, and are not to
work in the night (i. e. after half-past seven in the
evening). Clause 11 directs in what manner it shall
be lawful for employers to make up and recover, by
the additional labour of children, young persons, and
women, time lost from drought or floods. Clauses
12 and 13—Work to cease on every Saturday after-
noon at half-past four; one hour and a half to be
allowed for meal-times.

Subsequent clauses provide precautions to ensure
regularity in the observance of time ; eight half-
holidays to be allowed in every year ; children to
attend school, and occupiers of factory to obtain
school certificates, and to pay school fees. . Factories
to be lime-washed, yearly; protection to be provided
for workers in net-spinning flax mills ;
not to be cleaned while in motion ; machinery to be
inclosed or guarded ; inspector or sub-inspector to
give notice of dangerous machinery; notice to be
given of any accident ; certifying surgeon to examine
into cause and extent of accident, and report thereon.
All these clauses (from 14 to 24 inclusive) are ad-
mirable, both for the spirit which has dictated and the
details which develope their application. Then next
follow various clauses requiring a registry to be kept,
after a form in the schedule, in every factory ; and
providing for the appointment of inspectors and sub-in-
spectors, their meetings and reports, legal exemptions
(as, from serving on juries) attaching to them, and
arrangement of their offices. Notices to be given to
them by persons beginning to occupy factories ;
certifying surgeons to be appointed by them--duties,
&c., of surgeons in their connexions with factors and
mill owners, and inspectors ; proofs of age as to
youths and adults ; inspectors authorised to annul
certificates ; certificates of real age may be claimed,
and to serve for one factory only ; prosecutions for
compensation by inspectors; and application of such,
compensations when recovered.—(Clauses 25 to 49.)
Clauses 50 to 54 enact that occupiers of factories
shall be liable in the first instance ; but all eom-
plaints for infractions of the Act must be preferred
within two months of the date of the offence. Sub-•
sequent clauses regulate the proceedings under this
Act ; power to be exercised for recovery of penalties
under it ; authority to judges to compel the
attendance of witnesses, &c. Clauses 58 to
71 set out several offences as infractions of
the Factories Act, assign the penalties respec-
tively attaching thereto, and direct the mode of
their application; 72 and 73 direct that convictions
be filed among the records of the county, and that
there be no appeal from such convictions allowed ;
74, burgh magistrates in Scotland to exercise same
powers as justices of peace in England; 75, exception
as to silk mills ; 76 to 78, exemption of all deeds,
proceedings, &c., under this Act from stamp duties.
Act to commence October 1, 1844, but may be pre-
viously repealed by any Act for that purpose to be
passed in the present session of Parliament.