The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1869-12-31
THE L4BORING PEOPLE ABROiD.
English Operatives and their wages
What Ale and Amusements Cost the
English Mechanics-English Servants
"A Glance ut Domestic Details.
A letter from Sheffield, England, to a Pitts

A Glance ut Domestic Details
letter from Sheffield, England, to Pitts
burg paper, says;
No part OF England is so rich In mechanlSal IN
terest as Birmingham and Shefheld. chelleiu is
TO the workshops OF Plttsburg what New Castle Is
to the coal mines At Pittsburg you are In the
habit or boasting OF three or hve million to";
The rich stores OF coal lying In the neig1b9rnood 70
of this CITY and Durham yield upwards OF sixteen
million tons annually the greater portlsn OF
which is conveyed away by sea. The WORKSHOPS
OF Shelield afford even q stronger contrast "
those OF Pittsburg. At least two tnousand HorA- @
men are employed in Shenelu IN tue y;
of spring knives alone. The life OF cutler Is
hard one The registry Of deaths shows thls. IL
is stated as a positive fact that the number sl
cutters in Sheflleld Is less now man IL was tmeIy
wears ago. When, with the curiosity natura! 70
my countrymen, | inquired INTO the cause vi tne
decrease. in the force, | was referred by IN In
tellgent workman to an extract from an Eng!su
"Blue Book bearing upon the condltlon ol tne
English working classes. From this was leu 10
believe that the causes operating 10 dlln,nisI tne
gcct, ignorance, and occasionally Tor the ls :k OF
the common necessaries OF life. IL IS only wltnlI
recent period, am informed, tnat luls u unu
been introduced to drive away the hhe pai .i.ies
of steel and stone dust which are so destructive
to human life. These were hrst put up oy the
workmen 4 great deal OF the grinding IS done
ON dry stones, and wherever THESE are useH runs
are essential prcventatives oil premature disease
and death Children OF all ages are to be FOUND
In the workshops Of Sheffield employed In the un'
healthy occupation OF grinding cutlery-poor,
wan sickly looking lads-who work FOR three or
foar shillings per week. for ten, twelve OF or
these lads one day, who was grinding seis-
sors, How long have you been at thls ou
siness?' IL don't know; ever SINCE can
remember "And how old are you :" mt3uI
m nf q
as pitablc as their poverty. Some OF them are SO
ignorant as 70 he unable TO answer questions such
us any schOolb0y in the United states woulu re-
spond TO promptly; as, for instance, the names OF
reiguing monarclls, the ruler OF their own coun.
try, the established religion, &C., &c: Boys sl
twelve and fourteen are unable to tell the name
ofther native country. Such In brel, Is tie extent
of the information possessed by some Oh tne
competitors OF American mecnshics' ot tne1i anI
pealing to the sympathes OF their employers,
In many instances only serves TO render IIe
task OF beating down their prices easier: Uhe
sees what material was at hand a. mere Ior 3uuing
up trades unions. Over-worGed, ill-fed and under
paid, it required no extraordinary talent TO eX-
cite the worst passions OF these pauper workinen
for the majority OF them to-day can Oarely earn
the necessaries OF life. Fancy the iather OF seven
children tOiling eleven hours day lor tnree
shillings and siXpcnce. The cutler VINO reallzes
eighteen shillings or pound per week, STEADY
wages. counts himself fortunate.
RATES OF LABOR.
One thing strikes ME as remarkable in my Jour
neyings:-thc variation IN the price or laOOr. Ill
some OF the cathedral towns, anu III uistrIcls ~
mote from the great commercial anu manulaG-
turing centres, carpenters, AMasSerers, painters,
bricklaycrs and maSOnS receive less tnan tnree-
fourths the amount paid in the great cltles.
This, am told is owing TO the hlgn prices pre-
yailinr in the business centres. On the other
hand, the mcchanic-say the carpenterIWho Is
EMPLOYED in a country village Is. entitled to Ger
tain perquistcs denied his brother In the CITY,
and not unGrequently quits his work wllen given
amount is accomplished. This Is common
occurrence especially in some OF the agricultural
districts When aborcr Tor with us HELD
hand) has accomplished what nc consiuers dalr
DAYS wor.s, he goes home or idles his time. me
nav of the farnl-hand Is scant, but as many vi
them have q patch OF ground adjoining their cot
tares. which is made ready for the seed 10y their
EMPLOYER, 80 that the only outlay Is the cost oi
the seed, they manage 10 gain comlortao!e Nv
ing when they are industrious ana lrugal.
WHAT ALE AND PORTER COST ENGLISH woRKMEN.
The great curse Of English operatives is ale and
porter, and the so-caled amusemenfs. ms Is
particularly noticeable in the manufacturing
towns The puddler roller or shingler, VINO
makes wages such as should suffice TO support
him in his Old age, s sure to be 1amlllar WIFI lhc
liveliest tap.rooms, and accustomed 10 running
IN q weekly sccrc that taxes his family with
Nth, perhaps fourth OF his earnings. The
amount Of ale and porter imbibed by the opera
tiyes OF the English rolling mills is absolutely
frightfu Every one drinks. Saturday afternoon
and Sunday Is given up to the H. systematic
swilling by Monday however, the bout Is over,
and the men are at work again. am inclined to
think that If II were not for the guzzling propen.
stiles Of English operatives, they would not iall
80 far behind American mechanics IN securing
comfortable homes The moment an English
workman leaves the mil, foundry, or forge, he
may be found, AZ rule, adding TO this score.
The passion for amusement Is surprising: What
with circuses, side shows, races, rat-pits, and
nondescript performances OF every description,
generally OF an Indifferent, though not positively
evil character the English operatives in the large
cities are never at loss where 10 uirect their
steps AS a rule, they live but for the day. giving
no heed 10 the morrow, careless What IL may
have in store for them.
NOVEL SYSTEM.
In number Of large cities, in every one in fact
including my present abiding place, my attention
was directed 10 o somewhat novel system pre-
vang among the sh0emaHers. tail0rs Gnd va
rious other sedcntary occupations. Take the lrst
mentioned as an Illustration. shoemaker VlSits
any large CITY in search Of employment. Having
secured nm employer lie next procures "slt-
iing.m /. {. shOp-rOOm III an apartment with ten,
twenty or fifty OF his felOw-craitsncn. say IN
garrct or upper room. lie pays Tor the sitting"
or bench, perhaps two shillings week. lie pays
six pence or nine pence for hls cooking, ana pro-
yides his landlady with Tie exact amount ncccs-
sary to purchase his morning, MONDAY and
evening meal. lie KNOWS TIE Cost 10 IaTthlnE,
orders his breakfast, dinner or supper 10 suit his
whim, pays over the amount: AMI has it set IN
before him.
LIVING RATES.
Prices of all kinds have advanced greatly in
England during the past few years. Tie rates ol
labor have advan ed, and living rates keep paco
with them. A sack OF -four (twenty stone, $50
poun,;s) varies according TO quality, from two
nounds 10 ,Yo rounds six shillings iSl2 and
s13 SOL ,iams range from ten pence TO a sllil-
ling per pound. am told that the best some
times brings thirteen and fourteen pence. Choice
steak nine and ten pence. Boiling meat from SIN
to seven. roast eight pence per pound. Tegela-
blcs are generally cheaper than with US. Butter
varies greatly. In this section OF the country 1t
is wortl! from fifteen 10 eighteen pence per pound,
which, converted into currency, is trine more
than the average prices in the States. Fish is the
sole cheap article, and these sometimes go to
waste. The high price OF meat IS doubtless su'
pcriaiuccd by The cattle disease.
T.. ln -stn