The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1884-05-18
TIE BUN, SUNDAY, NAY ~ 1854 \

SUN. SUNDAY, MAY 10.
piosabis tAaa duriAs tAs ara dssaAs d ~
nlAstesnth esAtury. IN 90 insfsdibly short
time Henry managsd 10 souAAdsr the treas
ursa OF the suppressed religious houses. and In
the brief rsmsIndse Of hia life hs inflicted two
WRONGS on his people. the mischief Of which
wss ineaiculabis and whose effects endured for
nearly three hundred ysass. They were the
dsbasement OF the currency and the confisca-
ton Of tho guild rsvsnues. By the four suc-
osssivs debassmebts Of the coinage. which took
was reduced to about ons.ffth OF Ito former
value. and the prices Of the necsssaries
OF life rose In exactly the same ra-
Ito. After Elisabeth reformed the currency
there was some shrinkass Of prices. but they
remained permanently far above the old level.
and this TOO though there y no reason TO b.
lieve that the population OF England was any
larger In her reign than II had been 10 that OF
Horny ILL.,. three centuries before. Apparent
~ II remained stationary throughout the %.
riod named with the exception Of tho depls-
ton caused BY the Black Death. from which
tho recovery was speedy, at two and half mill
lions. When partial resdjustment Of prices
had been brought about BY = reformed curren-
oy we hnd that the money value Of meat main.
tains itself ct nearly three times the old rates.
that OF grain and dairy produce ct about two
and half times. On the other hand. the rise
In wages 10 but Q little more than one and half
times. and this ratio Of advance 10 not sus>
tainod. for while the price Of wheat goes ON
rising during the next two and half contu-
ries tho wages Of labor fall moro and more be-
hind. But this will b. presently made clear BY
showing the purchasing power Of laborer's
n ptnno NJ hla ANWnW n ri
| career.
The second injury which Henry VIII. indict.
Cd on his people was the destruction OF the
guilds and the conAscation OF their property
In every town and village Of England except
London. which was too powerful to be wronged
Thus tina English laborer In the sixteenth con.
| tury found himself simultaneously assailed on
two sides. Tho purchasing power Of his wages
was cut down. and he was robbed Of the assist
ance which his benefit society gave him In
times OF diffloulty. which allowed him loans
without interest apprenticed hls son. or PEN
| stoned his widow. He lost his insurance. the
| fund destined to support him and his during
| the period Of youth and age. whom work IL not
| open to the imperfect powers Of YOUTH and has
become impossible to the enfeebled powers OF
age" The sinister purpose OF controlling
wages which the Legislature had vainly cher
4 lshed for two centuries had now become posi-
ble The Justices In Quarter Sessions. that 10 to
soy. the large landowner are now empowered
to FIX the rate Of wages In husbandry
and In handicrafts. and they do not let their
powers lie idle. keeniy interested as they are
In assisting their tenant farmers. whom they
had begun to rackrcnt. to procure labor as
| cheaply a. possible. Rigorous measures are
taken to tic the laborer to his parish. and to
insure an adequate supply OF farm hands by
severe restrictions on apprenticeship to handi-
crafts. The agricultural laborer found him
| self once more adscripfus oleb0. chained to the
soil like the serf Of the thirteenth century but.
unlike him. he possessed no soil OF his own.
| The heirs Of tho former SORTS. transmitted into
copyholders. had either during the happy
epoch OF English labor developed into consid-
cradle landowners by the amslgamation OF
holdings. or had become tenant farmers. or.
tempted to soil their little properties. had gone
into trade or sunk once moro into the pro-
letariat The laborer Of the seventeenth GEN.
fury could hire hovel from the tenant farmer
for whom no toiled. but the old rights OF taking
timber aud fuel from tho immortal forest
and OF pasturing his COW or sheep on the
| common pasture were gone. All through the
fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. whom the
high wages Of labor had blinded men to the
consequences OF such encroachments. the en-
closure OF forest and pasture had been going
ON. and now. In the hour Of the workingman's
lmpovorishmsnt. the loss OF such poor privi-
leges was acutely felt. Nor was this all. Ths.
cooperation Of iaborers against oxaction. which
had been kept up throughout the fourteenth
| century. and which eliminated In tho effective
menace Of Tyler's instruction. was now put
down blythe strong hand. BY construction OF
law" says Mr. Rogers. the offence Of conspir.
acy. which Was originally . combination for the
| purpose OF bringing false evidence against
| others. or for the purpose OF subsequently COM
| hitting crime. was extended to those associa-
lions Of workmen whose purpose 1t was to raise
the rate Of wages BY such . combination" The
whole basis OF the judicial practice on this sub
ject for some two hundred years appears to be
inierential from certain clauses Of statute oil
Edward W. and OF IN act Of Elizabeth. which
must DO forced In order to bear such CON-
structlon. But on the threshold Of our own
times-the conclusion fthe eighteenth century
an act OF Parliament was carried which de-
clRres all contracts. except between master
and man. for obtaining advances Of wages
altering the usual time Of working. decreasing
the quantity OF work. and the like. illegal
Workmen who should enter into such illegal
combinations were to be punishable by impris-
onment." and o similar punishment Is inflicted
on those who enter into combinations to pre-.
won't other workmen from hiring themselves OF
to induce them to quit their employment This
act. It. should be remembered WAS passed when
wheat was Mt famine prices ranging from 100 To
$50 shillings quarter md when the ma:is.
trates were beginning to confess the atrocious
cruelty OF the Quarter Sessions assessment oil
wages by adopting the system OF Poor law
Allowances But while workinGmen are thus
prohibited from stretching forth tho hand u
one another. tho landowners md en- ployers Of
labor are empowered not only to fix wages but
to increase the hours OF toll. Up to the reign
OF Elizabeth the working day was eight hours
but afterwnrd It was never less than twelve
and sometimes fourteen and half. an allow
ance OF two hours and half for food and res
being sagaclously conceded. lest the boast O
burden should hsply drop exhausted In bill
tracks.
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