Miss Murcutt

Waihi Daily Telegraph, Volume VII, Issue 2029, 28 August 1907, Page 2

Miss Murcutt

"Sweated System of Britain"

At the Miners' Union Hall last evening Miss Murcutt delivered a highly interesting aiul instructive address entitled "The Sweating System of Britain." Mr. J. Murdoch occupied the chair, and the hull was packed with an appreciative audience.

Miss Murcutt introduced her subject Mi a number of humorous stories. She tlicnivent on to describe the conditions of life and tho environments which existed in tlic London slums. As a representative of certain papers she had spentabout.six weeks'' in tho slums, studying the various modes of living winch came under her notico. Referring to the amount of wages earned under the sweating 'system, she stated .that nimibors of women worked 9G hours per week at-iecework dress-making and artincinl (lower work, and earned the miserable pittance of 6s per week, In one room, which measured 12 by 13 tliore were living together no less than 14 pel sons of both sexes and all ages: washing and drying of clothes wa's also earned out in the same room. In this connection a remarkable story was told°l bow, on ono occasion, a lady had presented a Christinas card to a little slum g l i,' ) t ) (,lll s llCTto '' lm,i e it "l'O" the wall. The answer revealed the conlirl?" once— 't was as follows: Please, mum, we have no wall; wo live in the middle." The extreme poverty, the degradation, which was evidenced in tho squalid surroundings of slum life, was then faithfully described by the speaker, who went on to show that it was from, this class that emanated those unfortunato women who lived practically on tho streets, It was only a natural result, when the'early life of those poor creatures was, taken into consideration. The speaker considered that the only remedy to'reliove the suf-, I'erings of the people in the slums was to have th?m removed,out to the country, or to other lands away from their degrading surroundings. Those who generally nttempled to solve the problem commenced at. the wrong end. Charity and'the adoption of other such measures were of little effect; the real cause lay in the land question, and urftil that wa's regulated the same condition of life would continue to exist.' It was simply Impossible, said the speaker, for those unfortunate people to live clean and moral lives. The Duke of Bedford received an income of £365,000 from his landed estate, included in which was property in tho slums; and the Duke of Westminster had an income from tho same 'source of' double that • amount,' Some startling figures were produced to show the lack of accommodation in the slums. There vwero practically 990,000 people in London'who had really no home, and it would take 50,()00 more rooms to accommodate tliem. Miss

Murcutt related her curious experience as regards the sort of food which some of those people live upon., At the house where she stopped during her stay in tk slums they had kippordd herrings for breakfast, dinner, and tea. pn Ano occasion the husband brought' lioma from a pawnbroker's sale a sack of boots for which he had' paid 2s. An amusing scene followed when an effort was made to get them to match. During the evening an appropriate solo, entitled "The.Cry of the Children," was rendered in a pleating manner by Mrs Holmes, the accompaniment being played by Miss Itodgerson.' • At the conclusion of v the lecture Miss Murciitt proposed a vote ,of thanks to the two ladies and to the chairman, which was. carried unanimously. To-night Miss Murcutt will deliver an addres'i on "Russia and its Island Prison. Saghalien," at the Miners' Ull- - Hull, at 8 o'clock, Tliu price of »(!■» mission is Is.