Washington sentinel. [volume] (City of Washington [D.C.]) 1853-1856, 1855-10-11

spinners at Tyldesey are perpetually in jeopardy,
and by which (some of them inconsistent, others
contradictory the poor peoples earnings are ex-
tracted before they receive it. One poor sick
man was stopped As, because he could not work.
BoitonensiS may laugh at these matters, and call
them lfes; because he tells the public, when
averaged, they are but strife. The public do
not inspect the books; if they did, they would
find that the earnings exaggerated, and the
fines depressed by him, the following few
cases, out of many others, will show distinctly:
"A person, who shall be naneless, about the
end Of 1921 or beginning OF % span set OF $50
hanks, weighing 10 pounds, for which he received
nothing; another person, about same time, span
set of 80 hanks twist, which was wefted, with
loss TO the said person of PAS. and upwards; an
other, about same time, was served in the same
manner, and suffered the same loss; another suf-
fered in the same manner, with ~ hanks twist,
but his loss was only 2ls., or rather better.
must 90 on--but the next person, who span GO
hanks twist, was fined Dos; but, rather than pay
it, he left, and so obtained it; the next span 10
hanks twist, and was abated for roller-aps los. !;
my next example is curious-a person was fined
for roller laps, by MIR. -, U.s., and the officer,
who was III another room, consequently did not
see the said roller-aps, was fined IS; last, but
not the least sum- poor carder was fined lOs
Next comes the poor engineer, who was lined
Dos. but the poor man, who knew he had done
cordingly he packed up his triles, and was about
to decamp; but his triies were stopped, and he
subjected, at last, TO the fine.
.Boiioniensis, the advocate for abuses, men
tions shop, respecting which false reports had
been circulated; but he does no more than say,
the whole of the hands have been uniformly paid
in cash every fortnight, without the least re-
straint. This is perhaps true; except as to fines,
&c. But this does not say there rcas no shop.
''That Mr.. s. keeps shop is undeniabe; that
he is tenant to the employer is as true; and pays
ESQ per year rent for shop five yards square,
and kitchen and house part six yards square.
The other parts of the house are warping-room
parlor furnished, and bedroom with two
beds The warpiDg-room, parlor, and bedroom,
the landlords or master :, who also lets the
cellar for 2s 3D. per week; and that no avenue
of gain may be Missed the very passage is appro-
priated to butcher of West Houghter, who al
lolss the master fifteen per cent Of his gun by sell
ing flesh to the work-people. As to the shop,
the articles sold dear at any small retail
shop in the neighborhood, and dearer than they
can be had at many places; particularly wearing
apparel. As to the proprety Of this shop, it is
not SO easy to say but facts will speak for them
selves. The master of the factory does not force
his acorkmen TO bay at the shop; but if any buy at
another shop he is challenged and threatened TO be
turned of. Ii any workman s wife purchase but
a tritling matter at another shop, (Which they
would not do if this afforded equally cheap and
good,) MIR. 5. tells the bookkeeper, and the lat
ter says to the workmen, that the master tciH not
allop such icoyk, and they must tell their wives
neither to go to another shop nor gire sauey Ian
guage to the shopkeeper, for the master will not al
low it.
s'That persons are sent from Bolton regularly,
at stated times, TO inspect, overhaul, and take
stock, at this shop, is certain; which common
sense would call propriety, but. at any event,
into
rent. The public will judge for themselves, but
much more might be added.
Amongst the many reports circulated, false or
true, BoltonienSis has not taken notice of one,
which is pretty common, and no less true; name
ly, the extravaganza charge made for house rent,
at the healthy, plentiful, and cheap district al
ready quoted; and the public will see that what
ever is cheap there, rents not Cottages of ex-
ceedingly small dimensions are let to the work
men at the factory. at 60 IS. per year; but they
have the rent stopped, or rather, they pay il each
fortnight. A cellar is IS. Cd and if~a house
cellar be empty, and a workman comes to work,
if he have another house or cellar, he must pay
rent for the empty one, whether he occupy it or
not; and they have also to bear every species of
imposition trith0a grunbling; or if anything like
that be heard, they are discharged. 1t may seem
strange, yet it is true, that one spinner had TO
pay rent for one of these habtations a whole year
before he saw the key, or had possession; he had
ii afterwards but let it to another for six months
longer. Sometimes spinner may be i'll, as all
men are by times; if person come from Bolton
or elsewhere. TO occupy those sick wheels as they
are termed, though the sick person has an habi-
tation, yet the person who spins for him must pay
for one, if there is any empty. People bear with
these impositions for the sake of employ; who
then can suppose them idle, or that they seek to
crave exorbitant wages; Their earnings go from
whence they came, and enrich those who employ
them. From the account already given, il will
be seen that they have no time to make away
their earnings in eKtravagance. Why then should
they not live; Why should masters muzzle the
mouth Of the that treadeth ont the corn;
"All that was wanted by the Tyldcsley spin
ners was 10 be paid other spinners were for the
same kind Of work; their peculiar heavy charges,
on many accounts, as has been already shown,
required II; and, as TO the concluding observation
of Boitoniensis, respecting whether, il there were
any room for an advance of wages, it should be
given to the spinner or the weaver To this il
may be proper to observe, and every weaver of
sense will observe it. that the insnuation is more
ly TO cajoe the weavers, and no more. They are
aware that no good ever came from that quarter,
therefore the idea Of robbing Peter TO pay Paul is
insignificant, like its author; advance of wages
is not the argument, but an uniformity with other
masters.
"To close the whole subject, which is merely
done TO give the impartial public accurate view
OF the case and its bearings, IL is hoped that the
peculiar hardshps which spinncrs have to under
60 in their employ, cooped up in factories heated
by steam for fourteen hours in each day, (save
the nominal dinner hour,) during which they are
subject to such rules as have before been related,
and at night in winter they have to inhale with
every respiration the efluuia Of The norious gas
mired rih steam; and the whole day the dust and
cotton fyngs, which, with ncessant labor, renders
them old men when others are hale and strong;
then, unless they have been peculiarly careful,
they can turn 10 no business, but pine in a work
house.
"The spinners wish well TO their masters, they
grudge them not their gains; but IL the golden
rule Of DO TO others as You would wish them TO
do unto you, had been observed, then these would
not have appeared"
That, then, Wilberforce, is the state Of your
Stree British laborers." Look at the fines See
the crafty invention for mulcting the poor crea-
lures oftheir earnings. Think Of the horrid state
Of things when a fine can be thought Of as
thing necessary 10 be imposed Think Of fine,
amounting to large part Of week 5 wages, for
a man s opening window to get breath Of cool
air, after having been shut up for many hours in
heat Of from eighty 10 eighty-four degrees
Look at the regulation to prevent the thirsting
creatures from drinking even the rain water
Look at the SHOP: in short, look at all the arti-
fees, all this ingenious mixture Of force menace,