, 1873-02-22

The plurality Of planters preferred this latter
plan, and shortly after, viz on the 22nd Febru-
airy l849, it was established as q general rule,
but parties were allowed, il they chose, to
commence to work at sunrise subsequently all
the estates In the Island have adopted the plan
Of commencing work at 2 O'Clock. This rule
has therefore also been made the leading one in
the present organisation Of labour, while at the
same time it is made permissible TO adopt the
other plan. As it is considered desirable to re-
move all restrictions in the labour system that
are not necessary to preserve order and regular
itv or avoid waste of labour, and as at times
wishes have been expressed for liberty to be-
able to break of at an earlier hour in the after
noon, allowing only l hour for " uoon," a clause
in that direction has been embodied here. There
will then be four distinct regular working-hours
to choose between.
To the clause concerning the duty of the
Iabourers to be present in due time at the place
where they are to work, has been added a>prO-
vision, based on an older enactment, that tho
labourcrs are not required to leave their homes
earlier than a quarter of On hour before the time
for commencing work. This rule is already
followed in practice, aud is regulated according
to the time when the flag is hoisted on KingshilL
Station1 and by degrees as more and moro
Estates have been united with others, if often
happens that the spot where the labourers are
to work is SO far from their homes that they can
not reach there in IS minutes.
There will be no application for the provision
contained in the first part of s Z in the present
Labour Regulations but the clause concerning
the duty Of cart-mon aud crook people when
breaking off to attend to their stock, which
clause is still considered necessary, has been
tranSposed to this paragraph in the Draft.
Finally the enactment contained in the first
part of 10 Of the Regulations concerning work
on Saturdays being optional, has been embodied
as concluding clause of this paragraph of the
Draft. Saturday is the labourer's own day, and
even if the fact of his being engaged on a GER
tain Estate will not be considered as a proven
tative to his working for others on that day, still
the fact of the estate-work being based on year.
" contracts might serve as an impeachment or
objection against his working on other Estates
on that day, unless an exception be established
tor this special sort OF days-work. The now
existing clause recommending the labOurer to
give his own Estate the preference of his work
on Saturdays, is omitted in the Draft, as it is
useless.
ad 8.
AS regards the clause relating to such extra
work that must necessarily be required in crop
time and which, therefore, the lab0urerS are 10
duty bound to perform, it has been found ex-
pedient instead of the term Gas hitherto usual
employed in s S ofthe Regulations-from which
this 5 has been taken, only with the necessary
modification resulting from the enactments con-
tanned elsewhere in the Draft concerning the
ordinary working -hours-to embody the old sti-
pulation concerning the time the labourers are
to be allowed for eating their meals. By de-
grees it has grown out of memory what was
meant by the term Gas hitherto usual in this
connection and often times unpleasant dis
putes have arisen on that head. 1t cannot be
expected that the labourers could continue
working the whole day without being allowed
time to take their meals on the other hand,
the work at the mill and in the boiling-house
cannot be interrupted but it would of course
have to be interrupted if the labourers were to
take their meals all at one time therefore,
however trivial the provision in that respect
might possibly seem, it is of real practical i'm
port.
AS nowadays carts are employed to a much
greater extent than crooks for transporting
canes from the field to the mill, cart-men are
placed on the same footing as the crook-gang.
1t is not found necessary to take up the
clause prohibiting grinding and boiling later