THE TEXTILE FAMILY.

Evening Star, Issue 14003, 9 March 1909, Page 2

THE TEXTILE FAMILY.

, A REVELATION OF CHEAP LABOR. * ON THE HILL AND IN THE VALLEY. [Copyrighted.] [By Charles C. Reade.] /o. V. Although Bradford employs some 58,791 , workers iu its textile trade, it is only the centre of a. vast manufacturing area. It is surrounded by a cordon of towns and villages, and beyond these again lie fiercely busy communities like Huddcrsfiekl, Dewsburr, Keigbiey, and Halifax. The field of production, covered by Lho single word < textile, omhraces a very wide aggregation oi specialised labor, from wool-sorting and ' weaving down to the multifarious offices that appertain to dyeing and finishing. The ramifications of the woollen industry, in fatt, present a bewildering aggregation of skilled trades, that in the aggregate represent the livelihood or huiuheds of t.hou- . sands o t'the great- and historh; industry in ' -which Bradford leads.. Although Leeds is I the commercial capital of Yorkshire. Brad- \ ford stands ai#.rt in fis manufacturing and ■men-hant preeminence. Over these hills of foui.hc-rn Yorkshire has risen

—A Wonderful Romance of Industry.— materialised in miles of factories and long, lank chimney shafts, in a fabulous qtiiin- I : tily of machines embodying tha wonder* of ■| inventive genius, and an accumulation ot i werking-eiass communities that holds, one spci'i-'iMiimd. It all represents a vast and phenrmenal growth—a growth of men and I iii:;i:hi:it'.-'. c.| towns and cities, of wealth and poverty. of fvightiil disorder, conges- I t;on, and slams, fts turning point seems 'to be .the beginning of the twentieth ecni- tin-y. The .spasmodic efforts cf reformers, revolutionaries, doctors, divines, poets, jv-litic.iaiis, scientists, ar.d others that came with the closing decades of the nineteenth, bavp taken definite shape in leagues, associations, and other collective Ixxiies for the amelioration of the lot of the worker, his •'•wife, and his children. What indujiri.il sr-wth alone to Bradford repre.scnt-ed is ; Vn-wn !>'■' the following statistics of population:—

IP.OI 1i,264 1-BTt ... 115.827 1831 ... 4\5?,7 1391 ... ?An.7.b\ 1851 ... 105.778 1G01... 230.161 When I'hi-land deserted agriculture to >ieco:ive an industrial country, it necessarily meant that hundred.* of thousands left th" land for the towns a.nd cities. The heavy increases in population did not carry with them an expansion of residential areas, but resolved itself into downright overcrowding. The problem wa.s accentuated by the fact th.'.t the agricultural people carried •with them habits of personal unckanhness that in the congested atmosphere of town .and rit-v were productive of appalling re- j suits. ' Tlie unrestricted operations of speculative, builders, landlords, and agents who leased and sublet whole areas, precipitated the social disaster that followed. There, were also.other elements in the food sirpplv and iiabits of the people that had their" share. The workers were, equafy obliged i>v the conditions of industry to work long hours for poor wages. Thus it was that hundreds of thousands of peojne wero crashed by a. combination of social and economical 'conditions which only the few who had the ability and individual force of eh.inuter overcame. To-day that. in a few ientences. is the problem of the armies of textile workers in Southern Yorkshire, as mueh as it is the problem of anv ft'ier British industrial area.

The CoiKlioions ot Labor — which surround t'-.e tc.dile industries are Pome ot the hard est that, outside of tiie e.weat"d i rides, exist in Kngland. the effect is to bo ootid in innumerable ways--the pallor of the faces, neglect of personal ;ipr*a,ru'.i-.e, ;■. certain dispirited air. and nieuial apathy that is in part the outcome ot sheer physical fatigue. In l>ot.h Yorkshire antl Unea.diirc there are some people who take a, pride in the " rnnd-wo,kirn: lads and .'assies " To an outsUle observer it is a sorry pride for all the physical unfitness it entails. When trade is voed.the woollen ;ind the cotton iniils hardly ever cease, iiiiiht or day. from six o'clock on the Monday moruinj,' til! the Saturday mid <]jj. The .tvera'je working hours are fiftyfive and a-haii hours a- week. It beiir: illegal since ISOI t-o employ women and iihildren <iiiriiri the niirht. they form practb rally the whole of the day fluff, work;p.: from 6 a.m. to 5. to p.m.. with h;ili ai hour's interval for breakfast and three quartern of an hour for lunch. The ni^h 1 shift .stint.; at 5.15 p.m. and ceases at ( a.m. Thcfe conditions ;ue .-tienuot;. enouu'h, hat there, aie other things tha tend to make them harder. Wool ivi! work faster in a. hot, moist atmosphere and since spee,d in production is one of th requirements of modern industry, the fat lories aro kept up to a fairly teni peratirre, that increases as the end of th

week approaches. Evidence given bsiV.c the Bradford Trades Hall showed that in tho combing awl drying processes the temperature of the rooni-s rises from lOCdeg to 120deg Fahrenheit. That there has been some improvement in the heavy hours of labor is shown by the fact thnt in 1850 the horn's of women workers in textile factories wen' limited to sixty hours per week, to which unrestricted ovortimo was allowed. But against the gradual curtailment in this direction, the speed of machinery has increased, so that for the. fiityfive ;uxl a-half hours per week to-day the "worker's labors are carried on at a. much greater pace. There ; s also the additional factor that he is allowed to work overtime, which ho often does. In Bradford it is not an infrequent thing for a. man starting on the Friday night at 6.15 o'clock to go on working *ill the Saturday one o'clock. Unfortunately, factory inspection in I'ingland is such as to he hopelessly inadequate to check such evils. —A Typical ILrustration.—

In order to grasp what these things entail to tho individual, I took the trouble in Bradford to inquire into the history of several families ot textile workers. Hero is an average ca.~o: The father is an unskilled ca.-ual worker, engaged at night on wool-combing. I lis wages average 15s per week. Tlis wife is a spinner earning 12s pc-v week. They married at tho ages of twanty-Uiree and twenty respectively. When the tirst child came, tho mother, who had worked in the mills almost up to the day of its birth, was incapacitated for three weeks or a month. The maintenance of tho family during tho time was dependent on the earnings of tho husband. Trade being anod, the mother returned to her occupation, and the child was <_'iven ov«t to a nurse—an elderly iemale pauper —ij;,t)tt whom the child was depen dent for training. When the second child '-ame, however, traido was bad. and the mother remained unemployed for over two months, whilst her husband was working short tim*». and out of work ■for over a ne>-k. one time. It wad under these conditions that additions to the family began to arrive a.t regular Intervals. With the inn-ease of children, the duties of the mother could not any longer bo relegated to a third party. The woman therefore gavo up her work as a spinner ar.d endeavored to meet the serious deficiency in the family income by doing charing, washing, or other domestic labors that were usually rewarded with poor rate* of pay. For a period of eight to ten years life for husband and wife, was a eontinuoo: struggle. When tho first child attained

the a?e of twelve he was permitted by law to enter the milla ar.d work half a dav (6 a.m. to 12.30 p.m.). Tho remainder of the day he devoted to schooling. The increase to the family income by his labors ■was 3s to Ze 9d per week, 'rhe boy left school at fourteen, and for four years after that earned Ss a wek as' a spimter. In the meantime the other children grew up. and became eligible for employment. Thua an increasing increment was brought to the family income. There had been six children, but two had died in their first yearinfant mortality heinc invariably heavy ■with thus class of people. The family income had grown to £3 to £3 Ss per week, hut it varied with trade, and did not last long. The eldest boy. when he reached •eighteen, woe turned off at the mill* b>

duties being supplanted by a younger child. During the- whole of his labor in the mills he hail only learnt to do one operation at the spinning frame. He had therefor© to depend for his ununtenance on unskilled casual labor. By the time the youngest—a girl—had reached twenty-one the whole family had married and settled into domestic surroundings of their own. .and were undertaking the of life under almost identically the same conditions afi I their parents. The father, who had been steady and industrious, as unskilled laborers go, died at forty-five- from pneumonia. The mother had to be supported by the family, and was ardently awaiting the. arrival of the old age pension. Thns it can be seen that the process which determines the existence of a textile family engenders sufficient domestic and intellectual privations as to make it hopeless for tho average individual to get away from them. 'Heredity and environment hold them down,, whilst other elements make for their demoralisation. —The "Half-time" Evil.— The half-timer—the child who works half ;< d:iy in a mill and spends the rest in school—it a survival of early Victorian

days, when juveniles from five years of age and women were harnessed to the untiring I machines, and had to toil from fourteen to eighteen hours in an atmosphere poisoned with dust- and bad air. Tht> age at which a child could he employed was, gradually raised till 1901. when the limit went up from eleven to twelve. _ To-day the testimony of teachers and sociological students is all against the system. The whole question is whether the manufacturer in tik> face of international competition and hostile tariffs is to he allowed to use the child for the purpose of cheap production. The opinion of the employers is) reflected in a dismission by the Yorkshire- section of tlu> British Association of Manatiets of Textile Works on November 14, 1807. A summary of the discission was given i:i pamphlet form in an official publication by the Association. The document is marked "strictly confidential.*' The following extracts are of interest :

It was agreed that the conditions prevailing in meat factories wore superior to the conditions prevailinir in the school. . . . In schools the cla.s» rooms were notoriously crowded, and possibly unhealthy, thus largely accounting for the drowsiness on the part of the half-timvir, complained of by the school tea.rh-e'.;'. Opinion wan divided as to the etfei t upon the children having to be at the mill by 6.30.a.m., although the "early to bed ami early to use'" advocates were very staunch as to its having no injurious effect. The opinion was fully expressed that as a whole hejt-tiniers were qv.itc equal to the full-tiniei-s in educational attainments., some of the members contfudin;- that they were brighter and possessed of more " true knowledge." . Tlie rjuesti")] of the moral training of the half-timer w;is very iserious'y diselided, and the dilliculty freely recognised. It was contended, however, with much reason, that the sources of contamination were outside the mill, and tiie"truth was that the mill over-lookers wore not rceponiblo for much provailir.f,' depravity. X-cvcrthelrfs, it was considered that hetter example ar,d eoutio! mifilit lie exercised. 'the economy of half-time labor was mentioned, but it was contended that this, to individual firms, was of little practical advantage. The last statement provokes one to th"

inquiry that if it is no advaniag.-> to imii- ! viilual firms to get the benefit of a child's i labor between the ajre.s of twelve ;uxl | eirhto.cn for 3k to 3i, 9d per wee.k, why is j the abolition of the half-timer so strenuously j opposed by the manufacturers'' The man- j agens make out a very poor case, and their j statements are sufficiently obvious to r<-- j quire no answer here. This subjection of undeveloped and immature children to in- ! clustrL.il needs, without any regard for !

their future welfare and moral and inti I-* leetue.l betterment, is on-<> of the most sor- I did features of Knulisli life. It has be n j .sjoiii'j; on for years, and it in not too much to say it is one of the tragedies of our | civilisation. The relation of the subject to colonial inquirers is only to show that jit is one of the lompouent pails of the great industrial system of Kure.pe and America which offers so many ]>otent and traffic examples to younger countries lint are, in turn, seeking to develop thvir roGources. —A Hive of Industry.— There is another side to the picture in Bradford, and on;: which shows that despite all the economic considerations jrove riling international industry 10-d.iy, despite th-j existence of hostile turiife ar.d relentless ] competition for the world's markets, a woollen mill can be a factor for the production of nation d wealth without no^lectiu^

to secure to its thousands of workeis the

conditions requisite to bodily ho;i,lth and j mcr.tal and (social well-being. High up on the hills above Bradford, away fioni the

congestion and the smoke of the city. iKissw John Foster and .Sons' Black Dike Mills cover a floor area exceeding fifteen acres, and employ 2,000 workpeople. The business was founded in 1819, and it has sir.ee grown into a large concern conducted fur the production of the highest class of aroods. Attached to the works is an estate of 1.2G0 acres, and the Borough of Queensborough, with a population of 6.000, of whom half are dependent directly on the nulls. The majority of the workers' homers I are- built and let by the firm at nominal rents, after the manner of other mode! industrial communities in Fjigland. The. firm have provided a very fine building for tlie use of their workpeople. It contains 9. large conceit hall, theatre, library, billiard room, lecture and technical instruction clacSks, swimming batlus for men and women, kitchen for instruction of cookery, steam laundry, etc. There is a ritle range and recreation grounds on the estate, whilst amongut the various organisations amongst the workpeople for the promotion of social intercourse and intellectual betterment is the Black Dike Mills Band, winch has since 1856 won 154 first prizes, 62 seconds, and other distinctions.

—A Model Community.— Queensborough, in fact, is a model community. Its splendid mills are considered to be" one of the finest properties in the district, whilst its thousands of workers labor and live in an environment that ensures health and the highest industrial efficiency. In all departments of the factory there ia light and air. The workrooms, are whitewashed, clean, well lighted. I and ventilated. The workmen are above the average in appearance and health. Where in most mills one finds a certain

dull, hopeless look from many of tho workers, there teems to be at Queens-

borough only alertness and vitality. In all these things is the demonstration that whore- reasonable hours of labor arc >m ;«**!, combined with healthy conditions, the employer gels a higher rate of produc tion and a better quality nf work. 'Hiifi was tho testimony of Major Foster himself, the managing dhectoT of the whole concern. The cottage homes of the workers, each wi'h a plot of ground and garden where sturdy youngsters- romped, fitted in aptlv to the radiant hills and vales that fcurround them. Amid this industrious environment, where hundreds of machines whirled daily, and the clanging looms were never still, the landscape beauty remained. I It was the realisation of Nature and inj dustry moving in harmony to the needs of man and his works.

—Quite Another Picture.— But here is tho contrast that speaks »o bitterly for tha mass in Bradford and ;d! its adjacent black, dingy, throbbing centres. In the quarterly report of the Chief Woman Inspector, dated March 31, 1908, the following appears: A one-bedroom£d house was occupied by a married couple and a woman lodger, beside the tenant, wife, and child. One house, on being inspected, presented a wretched appearance. Tlio grate was choked with ashes \ email table and two dilapidated chairs constituted tho furniture. From upstairs came thy Bounds of an infant wailing ; otherwise, but for a. puppy dog, thero wera no sigus of life. After ;i time the grandmother was discovered preparing the infant's food in a neighbor's house, this preparation consisting of bread and water only, the famik being so poor that they could not pro vide milk. In one case the mother, daughter, ilk' i gitimate infant, and two young men ap * jjeared, to he one tt*

condition of which was deplorable; ticks, mattresses, coverings, were all black with grease and dirt. The- baby lav on this bedding during the day, coy-ered by the flock bed itself. One infant suffering from indigestion was'being dosed with gin and water by its mother, who, fearing discovery, hurriedly thrust the tin cup containing the mixture into the oven. The doctor had ordered the mother to wean the child, and as she was very poor, a neighbor kindly offered her a long-tubed bottle. Thia was in an unwashed, filthy condition, just as it had been left when the friend's child had last used it during an attack of diphtheria. There were two small children in the home, tho younger being just under ono year of age, the c.kleT two yearn old. The infant, in physique and weight, wasi about equal to the. average child of three months. Although noon at the time of visiting, it had not been wathed or dretsod. and lay on the lxxl uncovered, with nothing on but a small dirty chemise. It was screaming violentiv, and by its sido lay the long-tubed bottle from which it ha'd been feeding. On examining this the contents could not be seen for the thick coating of curd on the inside of the glass ; the tube wa.s almost completely choked, and the teat rotten. The whole- feeding bottle was in a horrihle condition, calculated to poison the child. .That is the grim, staring revelation of poverty at the heart of industry itself. Is it not "a tragedy for civilisation that these I things should lie, whilst away on the hills there is only the- song of labor and love in a cottage 'I