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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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rnD'S WORLD IS WORTHIER BETTER ° " ... MEX . Ti ' s all an idle tale they tell , but , then , who blames their telling it ? « ri !» roeues have got their cant to sell , the world ^ va vellfer selling it . < Thev say this world ' s a ' desert drear , ' cursed in their own stark blindness ! That we were sent to suffer here—what , by a God of kindness ? ^¦ fcat since the world has gone astray—it must be sc for ever , . jad we must stand still , and obey its desolntorsnever ! We'll labour for the better time
With all our might of press and pen ; Believe ns , tis a trnth sublime-God's world is worthier better men . 3 n Paradise the world began , a w orld of love and g ladness—Its beanty hath been marred by man , with all his ciime and madness j Yet , 'tis a bright world , —still love brings sunshine for spirits dreary , "With all our strife , sweet rest hath wings to fold our hearts a-weary . The sun , in glory , like a-God , to-day in heaven is brighting . Abloom of stars smiles on the sod , as love with flowers were writing ; Earth ' s heart throbs with immortal youth , Her Toice still rings of Eden—then Believe us , "tis a noble truth ,
God ' s world is worthier better men . Oh 3 they are bold knaves , over-hold—who say we are doomed to anguish , That men in God ' s own imago soul'd , like hellbound slaves must languish , Probe Nature ' s heart to its red core , there ' s more of good than evil , And man , down-trampled , still is more of angel than of deril , — < 'Prepare to die 2 " —prepare to live ! we Know not what is living . . And let us for the world ' s good give , as God is ever ( fire love , thought , action , wealth , and time , To win the primal age again ; Believe us " tis a truth sublime , God ' s world is worthier better men . Spirit of Freedom . Masset .
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The S pirit of Freedom . Conducted by "Working Men . 2 few Series . No . II . —February , London : J . Watson , 3 , Queen ' a-headpassage , Paternoster-row . This publication is pre-eminently the poetical propagandist of the principles of proletarian progression . Its very prose only needs to be cut up into longs and shorts , to make a description of blank Terse which would bear comparison with much that has emanated , in that shape from certain recogaised " poet * . " Such writers as our friends of the Spirit of Freedom have their mission— -a mission others could not so well perform . Young themselves , they address Che
young in those fiery words and trumpet-like tones whieh are the peculiar propert y of those en whom the morning of life yet shines . They do weD . A new generation of thinkers , workers , and leaders are growing up under their teachings—men who will at no distant day emerge from their present obscurity , and do good work in Liberty ' s warfare . Let usnot fce mistaken ; that our fiiends can be practical , in the ordinary sense of the term , as well as poetical ( which we have shown may also be practical and effective ) , may bo seen by the article * in this number of the Spirit on "Middle-class Expenditure , " " Clerical Eobiery , " "Ireland , " &c ., &c . The first-named of these articles we shall qnote nearly entire .
THE IQDDIH-CLASS EXPEDIENCY . il . Louis Blanc , in one of his eloquent Lectures 6 a Socialism , remarks , when leaders of the people say to them , "fellow us , " the people should question where they are being led to ; now , we tiling if the honest answer was always given , it would often be , « a forty years' journey in the "Wilderness ;" and , as one of the people , we fame , and ask the multiplicity of leaders , " "Where are you leading vsV' For , although we hold that we must conquer the State by political reform , thereby to work out the social cfiange , we question , whether there are two of
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The Frame Work-Knitters' Advocate . No . I . Nottingham : R . Sutton , Bridlesmith Gate . "We welcome this new advocate of Labour ' s interests We learn from the opening address , that "ihe Advocate will , on all occasions , be ready to assist the injured , and plead the cause of the oppressed ; it will expose the abuses , extortions , frauds , and deceits which are still practised in . so many and such various forms . The working men , however illiterate and unlearned , will here find space to express their thoughts and views , couched in their own terms , and clothed in their own language , providing it contains nothing that is unreasonable
or irrational . It will contain occasionally articles on all subjects connected with the interests of the trade ; such as its history , past and present ; wages , their rise and fall ; comparison between the present and past ; local customs in then- differentvarieties ; inventions and improvements in the manufacture of machinery . The laws that affect the rights of industry will meet with due attention , and the social and moral improvement of the working man will be our greatest object . In short , ft will be the fearless advocate of all the rights , privileges , and immunities of those who produce the wealth of this country . " It is almost superfluous to add , that our , best wishes are-given for the success ofthe JVame WorTt-Knitters Advocate *
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TKePuilidGoddam * ll ~ FebruXrY ; - Lon" : don : 'C ; Gilpin ; 5 , Bishopagate-street . The articles in thiB number of the PkMc Good are of the order previously indicated in our notice of number one . Perhaps the best in the copy before us is the second of a a series on " tiie undeveloped resources of England . " We quote the following from a letter by Yooloo-fou , on board the Chinese Junk at Blackwall , to his kinsman , Lang-fang , in China : — I have to inform thee , my dear Liang-fang , that I have visited London , which is the largest and richest city in ihe land of the barbarians . Since the arrival of our noble vessel , she has been
invaded by swarms of a peculiar class of barbarians called Cochties , together with a great number of the principal mandarins . But , if they were " so curious and inquisitive about us , I was still more so in my inquiries about them . Know , oh ! Ling-fang ' that the capital of this barbarian empire i . s , emphatically , a city of contiasts . Here uve jostled together , as if in hideous tnockery of the hopes we entertain of earthl y felicity—inexhaustible wealth , and the most squalid poverty ; the most sumptuous palaces , and the meanest hovels ; solemn temples of worship , and execrable dens of infamy ; noble scientific mental institutions for mental improvement , and gorgeous saloons dedicated to the demon
of intemperance for mental degradation . Yet they will tell thee , Oh ! Lang-fang ! that this is the centre of civilisation , the cradle of the arts , the mother of humanity , the home of truth , the nurse of wisdom , and the benefactress of the world . Though the inhabitants of this country pretend to be the most moral and enlightened people in tho world , yet there are perpetrated amongst them the most frightful atrocities , and unmitigated villanies . They believe their legislators to be wise , humane , and patriotic ; but the laws which they have enacted aroneither just nor judicious . . The rich man may purchase pardon , but the poor must suffer punishment . . I must not omit to mention , that there is a place of assembly for the barbarian legislators , denominated the House of Commons , in which the affairs of the nation are discussed and decided . Curiosity induced me to visit it ; but what was my surprise ,
Oh ! Lang-fang I to discover that instead of the deeds of patriots , and the words of sages , that tho time was wasted in frivolous debates , and the public money in superfluous expenses . Private interests Hicre , as well as in the most obscure nooks and corners of the empire , appeared to be the aim and end" of these persons selected by the public for the public good . Well may we boast of our great Confucius , and well may we be proud of the lessons of wisdom which he has taught us . What would our august Emperor say to those mandarins whom he has appointed to administer the laws throughout the length and breadth of the Celestial Empire , if they were to imitate tho example of these legislators of tho barbarians ? Would he not pluck the buttons from their caps , thereby degrading them before the eyes of his subjects , and command the bamboo to be vigorously applied to the soles of their feet ?
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THE CONDITION OF ENGLAND QUESTION . ( Confessed from the Morning ChronicU . ) THE SILK WEAVERS OF MIDDLETOtf . Somewhat more than five miles from Manchester , and midway upon the high road to Rochdale , lies , in a pleasant hollow , surrounded by ridging hills , and watered by the stream of the Irk , the ancient village ef Middleton . Although near the centre of the charmed circle within which the steam-engine the threenlecked mule , and the power-loom are alone potent , and almost as it were beneath the heel of the cotton capital—still the prevailing spirit Standing on the gravestone-clad hill , beneath the antique balfry of the Norman church , you see in your immediate neighbourhood but a few scattered stragglers from the host of tall chimneys which muster on the horizon . Beneath you , perched upon
gardened banks or nestling m petty ravines , lie the scattered streets of an old-fashioned village , the high-gabled and irregular tenements built of wood which was leafy three centuries ago , interspersed with ranges of modern red-brick two-storied cottages . There is a gas-work rising , spick and span new , close to where the long grass is waving on the ruins of a brave hall ; and a Manchester omnibus stands at the door of a tavern which may have seen the esquire ride forth to fly his hawks . There is nothing of the suburban character about Middleton . The cits of Manchester do not resort there . The place has a stamp of its own . Some of the oldest and purest blood of the Lancashire yeoman keeps its current still unmixed by the hearths of this village . Keedwood and Charnwood sent forth no tougher bows iior longer shafts than twanged along the banks of the Irk , and amid the coppices of Birtle and Ashworth . On the northern window
of the church transept are emblazoned the effigies of the Middleton Archer ? , who , like Hubert ' s grandsire , drew good bows , not indeed at Hastings , but on Flodden Edge . There , upon the coloured glass , march , like the merry men of Robin Hood , the staunch Middleton Archers , nil of a row , with their long light Saxon hair , and their retainers' liveries of blue . Each carries his unslung bow upon his shoulder ; over each bow is painted , in antique letters , the name of its owner , and every one of these names is still borne by an inhabitant of Middleton . It was curious , indeed , after the multitude of brown brioken Sions , and Ebenezers , and Bethesdas , to which I have lately been accustomed , to find myself standing upon the brazen memorials of
buried Crusaders , amid mullions and quatrefeuils , carved by Norman chisels , and beneath mouldering standards and rusty spears , which were probably shaken and couched in the wars of the Roses . From what I have , stated the reader will be prepared for a population pursuing some distinct and ungregarious species of occupation . He is in the right . The " folko' Middleton , " to use their ovm vernacular , are almost all silk handloom weavers , pursuing their craft in their own houses , preserving an independent and individual tone of character , intermarrying to the extent of breeding scrofulous disease—clannish and prejudiced and peculiar as all such septs are—keeping up even amid their looms a great degree of the rural and patriarchal tone of
bygone times—a few of them handling the plough and the hoe as well as tho shuttle and the winding-wheel , and the entire community great favourers of the old English manly sports . " "When the Hopwood hounds pass the village ( says the Rev . Mr . Dunsford , the rector , ) there is always a goodly train of sportsmen , on foot , in attendance , " Having asked whether there was any weaver among them whom they thought especially a clever man , and one who knew the history of the trade , public opinion pointing with many fore-fingers to a certain door , I tapped thereat , and the latch was raised by a venerable old lady adorned with a pair of silver spectacles on her nose , and a pipe in her meuth ; she looked somehow like a nice indulgent grandmamma—she had such a kind old-fashioned
face ; but I could not help staring at it , for never in my life had I seen an elderly lady ' s countenance embellished at once with a pair of silver spectacles and a clay pipe . The master of the family was a very intelligent , chubby old man , with grey hair , a pair of twin spectacles , but no pipe . After ascertaining that Iwa 3 . " not in the trade , " aad that I knew as much about the secrets of "dent 3 " and " shute" as about the mysteries of Eleusis , he made me extremely welcome , and we had a long gossip together . In his workroom stood four looms , one of them the invention of the celebrated weaver of Lyons . " When I entered , the master of the house was instructing a girl in the management of the loom . He straightway left his pupil , and , having heard my errand , launched headforemost into a sea of silk-weaving reminiscences .
I shall not attempt to classify the topics which feund scribbled in my note-book . In conversations with working men it is almost impossible to keep them to the point , and perhaps a more vivid idea is given ol the colloquy , and especially of the principal interlocutor , by putting on paper his chat , rambling and disjointed as it was uttered . "Remember better times ? That do I well . Twenty-six years ago we had 13 d . a yard for what we have Sid . now . It ' s the machinery—the machinery as has done it—for see that Jacquard , and the silk in it ( there are many hundred Jacquards hereabouts)—well , the weaving of that silk used to be 3 s . a wd . "What is it now ? "Why , Is . 3 d . About thirty years ago we were mostly cotton
weavers hereaway . But the power-looms flung us out of work , and we were nigh starved . Then , sir , there came gentlemen from Lunnon , from Spitalfields ( of course as you co from Lunnon you know Spitalfields ) , and they took down silk here and they set us to work on it . We was very glad to got the chance . But the masters was using us to bate down the Spittflfields weavers . Some of them , sir—the weavers I mean—came down here , but their ; old masters wouldn't employ , no , not never a man on them , because they * rould want their old wages and old rules . That waa the way , sir , that silk weaving became so ceneral hereaway . Well , but we was
soon served just as wq had served the Spitalnoifls folk . There's a place called Leigh , not far from here , where there was then a heap of hand-loom weavers as wrought cottons and such like . Well , after some time , our masters didn't g ive us our due , and so we combined arid had a strike . What did the masters do but took the work to Leig h from Middleton , just as they did from Spitalhelds to Middleton , and the weavers at , Leigh ; wrought at one ha ' penny a yard less than we did . To be sure they wa s . glad to get . the work at almost any price . The wages are not very different now , but there are grievous arid unjust abatements . The masters are some of them honourablo good men—but some of them are Yery ^ tyraunous , They were very tyrac-
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nous mthis way ' at Leighrahd-a-committee of the weavers collected information as to abatements , and printed it in a book . ' . [ Ihayethe pamphlet before me . ] Very often , air , therb was one-and-sixpence and ^ two-and-aixpenoe unjustly 'bated out of a week ' s work . The poor people could not live under it , <( They couldn't . , , .: ¦ . " ^ Sopie folks live in their own houseH—but I don t . This better nor factory work . Aye , that it is . You see you keep your children at home about you , and you don ' t lose control over them . We live very friendly like . There be all sorts hero , but we re good folk the ' gether . When the children are ten or twelve years old wo put them , to the loom , put wo must attend them , you know , and teach themIt
. . takes long to make them perfect in the trade . ' There ' s many drawbacks to a weaver ' s worlr . ' Sometimes it takes a week to gate a loom . " ( Prepare it for a web of particular fineness ) . I heard say that in Spitalfields all that is done at tho master s but here wo do it ourselves . How do we Jii Well ; there ' s not much fleah meat eaten . There would be a deal more if we could get it . But there s tay , ( the Lancashire peasant invariably pronounces the word more Hibornico ) , there ' s tay , and oread and booter—that's ready cooking . In this family we only have an ounce of tay a week ; but 111 just tell you how we live in homely Lancashire sort . Well , we have tay and bread and booter morning arid afternoon . At dinner we have potatoes , and perhaps a little meat . Hero ' s in this heuse a family of four or five , as it may be . Well , at the end of the week wo bu v two or three Dounds of beef .
and that ' s all the flesh meat we have tuTnext week . So we make it into as many dinners as wo can scheme . We cook may b » half a pound at a time , to give the potatoes a flavour like . But what ' s that for eating ? Why , my share at meal times is not bigger nor my thumb . So I often tn'fbw it in and take a . fried ingan and two or threodrops of vinegar to relish the potatoes . That's about our general way of living . To be sure we may get a living in spring time when the spring fashions come ; but very often we ' ve been getting into debt in the winter ; and first ,. you know , we must keep bur credit ; and then there ' s clothes want renewing . Teatotallers here ? Ay , there be few on em ; but we ' re all very moderate . I like my glass of alemyself , and I like good company , and a good joke , and soom'mut to laugh at , I do . I like to sing a song too . " now the conversation turned rounu I do not
remember ; but the next entry I have upon my note book is , that the old gentleman was fond not only of a good song , but that he was especially fond of reading the " Skootchings " which Cobbett used to give to people he didn't Tike . Then we got back to convivial matters , and so gradually to . the subject of the morale of the village . ' " We ' ve got a rural police here . But , Lord ! we hav ' nt no more use for them nor you have for water in your boots . There ' s three policemen , and the devil ft thing they have to . ido but walk about with their hands in their pockets , like gentlemen . Why , they hav ' nt had a job this three months ; except , may be , when a chap gets droohk-like . The sergeant , as they call him , thinks it quite ridiculous .
He lays he never saw such people . If ho offends one he offends all . We like each other so well , and we turn out after dinner and have a great talk about politics , and what they ' re doing in Lunnon , " and smoke our pipes . We have long discussions—we ' re great chaps for politics—and we just go into each others houses and talk . I like to be idle myself sometimes—I dare say you do , too . Yes , of course you do . W eH » then , when I feel idle , I go and walk about in the fields may be , and work harder to make up for it after . " The hand-loom system here appears , so far as family is concerned , to exercise exactly the opposite effect of the factory system . The Middleton weaver keeps not only his sons and daughters , but often his
sons and daughters in law , long about him ; while the children who are too old for the heavy labour of the loom , turn the winding wheel , and prepare the glistening silk for the frame . They are great politicians the good folks of Middleton , and occasionally given to lazy fits , during which smoking , sauntering , and chatting listlessly aro the amusements most in vogue . The women very frequwitly smoke , but it is always with some pseudo-medical excuse . They feel a " rising " or a " sinking , " or a headache , or a toothache , or any ache , or no ache at all . A curious indication of the prevailing shade © f radical politics in the village is afforded by the parish register , the people having a fancy for christening their children after the hero of the
minute . Thus , a generation or so back , Henry Hunts were as common as blackberries—a crop of Feargus O'Connors replaced them—and latterly they have a few green sprouts labelled Ernest Tones . A very small proportion of the weavers only labour in the fields ; but in many farm-houses around there , are looms which the women work during the long winter evenings . The Spitalfields hobby of pigeon fancying . is not uncommon , particularl y among the young men ; and pigeon matches , which give rise to a good deal of gambling , are frequent . The birds are taken some miles away , and then flown back to their homes . Respecting the abatement system , the Chronicle's correspondent observes that , in a pamphlet
published by the Leigh weavers committee upon the subject , one fact most damning to the masters , if true , is broadly asserted—viz ., that the weavers who are abated the most , and who , consequently , were the abatements justly made , must be the worst workmen , received , by far the greatest . share of labour from the employers . Many of the cases reported by the committee in question seem harsh and cruel to the last degree . As regards the amount of these abatements , I may mention , quoting at random from a great mass of tabular statistics , that out of £ 265 10 s . 8 d . of wages nominally earned by 171 weavers , < £ 45 12 s . 3 d . was abated on account of real or alleged imperfections in the fabrics , being an average of 5 s . id . clipped from each man ' s pay .
THE SLOPWORKEllS OF LONDON . My first step was to introduce myself to one of the largest " slopsellers" at the East-end of the town ; and having informed the firm that I was about to examine into the condition and incomes of the slopworkers of London , I requested to know whether thoy would have any objection to furnish me with the list © f prices that they were in the habit of paying to their workpeople , so that on my visiting the parties themselves—as I frankly save them to understand I purposed doing—I might be able to compare the operatives' statement . 8 as to prices with theirs , and thus be able to check the one with the other . Indeed , I said I thought it but fair that the emnlover should have an opportunity of having his
say as well as the employed . I regret to say that I was not met with the candour that I had been led to expect . One of the firnyvished to know why 1 had singled their house out from the rest of the trade . I told him I did ao merely because it was one of the largest in the business , and assured him that , so far from my haying any personal object in my visit , I made it a point never to allude by name to any employer or workman to whom I might have occasion to refer . My desire , I said , was to deal with principles rather than persons ; whereupon I was informed that the firm would have no objection to acquaint me with the prices paid by other houses in the trade . " If you merely wish to iirrive at the principle of the slop business , this , " said one of the
partners , " yuU he quite sufficient for yow purpose . " Though I pressed for some more definite and particular information from the firm , I could obtain nothing from them but an assurance that a statement should be written out for me immediately a 9 to the general custom of tho trade . * * We entered a dirty-looking houso by a side entrance . Though it was noonday , the staircase was so dark that we were forced to grope our way by the wall up to the first floor . Here , in a small back room , about eight feet square , we found no fewer than seven workmen ! with their coats and shoes off , seated cross-legged on the floor , busy stiching the different parts of different garments . The floor was strewn with sleeve-boards , irons , and snip 3 of
various coloured cloths . In one corner of the room was a turn-up bedstead , with the washed-out chintz curtains drawn partly in front of it . Across a line Which ran from one sidffof the apartment to the other were . thrown the coats , jackets , and cravats of the workmen . Inside the rusty grate was a hat , and on one of the hobs rested a pair of old cloth boots ; while leaning against the bars in front there stood a . sack full of cuttings . Beside the workmen on the floor sat two good-lookirtg girlsone cross-legged like the men—engaged in tailoring . My companion having acquainted the workmen with the object of my visit ; they one and all expressed themselves ready to answer any questions that I might put to them . They , made . dress and
frock coats , they told me , Chesterfields , ' fishing coats , paletots , . Butler ' s monkey jaokets ^ bdavers , shooting coals , trowsers , vests , ' sacks , Cbdririgtohs , ' Trinity cloaks , and coats , and indeed every , other kind of woollen garment . They worked for the ready-made houses , or " slopsellers . " . "One of us /' said they , " gets w . ork from the warehouse , andgives it out to others . Tho houses pay different prices . Dress coats , from . 5 s 6 d . to os 0 d . ; frock coats the same ; shooting coats , from 2 s . 6 di to 2 s . 9 d . In the summer time , when trade is busy , they pay 3 s . Chesterfields , from 2 s . , 6 d . to 3 s ., some are made for 2 s . ; paletots , from 2 s . 6 d . to 3 s . ' < •« Ay , and two days work for any man , '' nriod nnn nfthn * ; in » c with < i wit-. hovfld letr . ¦ " and whw vb vuiivi ii
— —«— uuv u * y «» , »—» .- — ——— —qj buy his own trimmings , white arid black cotton , gimp , and pipeclay . " " Yes , " exclaimed another , " and we have to buy wadding for dress . coats ; and soon , I suppose , wo . shall have to buy cloth and all together .- Trowsers from Is . Cd . to 3 s ; waistcoats , from Is . Gd . to Is . 03 . Dress and frock coats will take two days and a half : to make each , calculating the day from six in the morning'til ) seven at night ; but three days is the regular time . Shooting coats will take two days ;< : Chesterfields take the same time as dress ; and freck .. coats ; paletots , two days ; trousers , one diyi 11 Tho master here " ( said one of them scarcely
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distinguishable from ; the rest ) 'f gets-work ; from th warehouse at the before-mentioned prices he cives it out to us at the same price , - paying us when he repeirea the money . We are never seen at the shop . Out of the prices the master here deduots ' 4 s . per week per head for our cup ; of tea . or coffee in the morning , and tea in tho evening , and our bed . We sleep two in a bed here , and some of us three In most places tho workmen ent , drink , and sleep in one room ; as many as ever the room will contain . They'd put twenty in one room if they could . " " I should like to see the paper this' 11 be printed in , " cried the man with the withered leg . " Oh , it'll be a good job , it should be known . We should be glad if the whole world heard it , so that
the people should know our situation . I ' ve worked very hard this week , as hard as any man . I ' ve worked from seven in the morning till elven at night , and my earnings will be 13 s this week ; and deducting my is . out of that , and my trimmings besides—The trimmings comes to about Is . Od . per week—which makes 5 s . Sd . altogether , and that will leave me .. 7 s . 3 d . for my earnings all the week , Sunday included . It ' s very seldom we have a Sunday walking out , We ' re obliged to vrorK on Sunday all the same . We should lose our shop if we didn't . 8 s . is the average wages take the year all through . Out of this 8 s . wo have to deduct expenses ' of lodging , trimmings , washing , and light , which comes to 5 s . 9 d . We can't get a coat to our backs . "
I inquired as to the earnings of the others ' Well , it ' s nearly just the same , take one with another , all the year round . We work all about the same hours—all the lot of us . The wages are lower than they were this time twelvemonth , in 1848—that they are , by far , and heavier work too . I think there ' s a fall of 6 d . in . each . job at the lowest calculation . ' ; ' Ah , that there is , ' said another ; ' a 3 s . job we don ' t have 2 s . 6 d . for now . ' ' Yes , it is causing half of the people ., ' cried a third , ' io be thieves and , robbers . That ' s true . Wages were higher in 1847—they ' re coming down now every year . The coats that they used to pay
5 s . for this time two year ? , they are making for 38 . 6 d . at present—the very same work , but a deal heavier than it was two years ago . This time twelvemonth we made coats for 7 s ., and 5 s . this year is all we have for the same . Prices have come down more than a quarter — indeed about half , during these last ten years . I ' m sure I dont know what ' s the cause of it . The master first says , I can ' t give no more than such a price for making such an article , Then the man objects to it , and says he can ' t live by it ; as soon as he objects to it , the master will give him no more work . We really are the prey of the master , and cannot help Ourselves .
Whatever he offers we are obliged to accept , or elsf go starve . ' ' Yes , yes , ' said they all , ' that ' s the real fact . And if we don ' t take his offer , somebody else will , that ' s the truth , for we have no power to stand out against it . The workhouse won ' t have us—we must either go tbieve , or take the price in the long run . There ' s a standing price in the regular trade , but not in this . The regular trade is 6 d . an hour . The regulars work only from six in the morning till seven at night , and only do ' bespoke' work . Rut we are working for the slop shops or warehauses , and they keep a large stock of ready-made goods . We ' re called under , the-bed workers , or workers for the ' sweaters , '
AH the persons , who work for wholesale houses are ' sweaters . ' Single workmen cannot get the work from them , because they cannot give security— . £ 5 in money , or a shopkeeper must be responsible for that amount . Those who cannot give security are obliged to work for sweaters . ' The reason for the warehouses requiring this security is , because they pay so badly for the work they are afraid to trust the journeyman with it . But in the regular trade , such as at the West-end , they require no security whatever . In the slop trade the journeymen do
not keep Monday—they can't do it , Sunday nor Monday either—if they do they mutt want for food . Since we ' ve been working at slop trade we find ourselves far worse off than when we were working at the regular trade . The journeymen of the slop trade are unable to earn 13 s . where the regular journeyman can earn 30 s ., and then we have to find our own trimmings and candle light . I'd sooner be transported than at this work . Why , then , at least ; I'd have regular hours for work and for sleep ; but now I ' m harder worked an worse fed than a cab-horse . ' ( To be Continued . )
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DRURY-LANE THEATRE . On Tuesday night Fiesco was repeated at this theatre , when it was more favourably received than on the first night . The performance was brought within three hours' duration , and the applause throughout was frequent . It was due to the great reputation of Schiller that one of his tragedies should have tho benefit of a full trial . The piece is extremely well put on the stage , and the richness of the costumes and decorations , and the beauty of some of the scenic representations and of the
general imseen scene , evince a desire on the part ot the management not to spare expense in what is technically termed " mounting" new pieces . At the close of the performance Mr . Anderson was called for . lie briefly thanked the audience for having shown more indulgence than on the first night ; and expressed a hope that in his future exertions he would better deserve encouragement Mr . Vandenhofl was also called before the curtain . The play has received some further judicious alterations ; and it is certainly worth a visit to the theatre . .
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ROYAL POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTION . Some very splendid specimens of crayon drawings have just been added to the wonders in this institution , and certainly surpass all hitherto exhibited in that department of the art . They are the productions of Mons . Isidore Magu 6 s , a French artist , lately arrived in this country . This gentleman ' s stylo ot producing effects is quite new , the finish being more perfect thun any we have seen ; resembling more the fresco than any other drawing , so highly is the finish , and life-like the effect . The female portrait is a most charming production . It represents a celebrated dancer , Mudam Michaux , and is no doubt a most faithful likeness—if wo may judge by the portraits of several of our
friendsalso productions of this talented artist . The portraits are five in number , but wo understand they will be changed till the whole have been exhibited . It is the intention , we have been informed , of this gentleman to open an academy for ladies , this style being preferable to oil painting , as drawings of this class may be executed in a drawing-room , where the former would be prohibited from its disagreeable odour , and dirt occasioned by its use . We trust out friends will lose no time in visiting this temple of art and science , and view these beautiful productions—for they : muat be seen to be appreciated ; and we are well assured they will not be disappointed by the treat thut awaits them .
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Juvenile Offenders . —According to a Parliamentary return issued on Saturday last , ( obtained by Mr . Monckton Milnes , ) there were in' 1847-as many as 11 , 195 juvenile offenders ( 11 , 100 in England , and 95 in Wales ) committed to prison , and in the next year 11 , 756 ( 11 , 651 in England , and 105 in Wales ) , making in the two years 22 , 951 . The offenders were all under seventeen years of age . It appears from the document that there aro seventeen places in England in the nature of charitable
institutions for affording temporary refuge to young offenders when discharged from prison . In the county of Chester there are three ; in Devon one ; in Gloucester one ; in Lancaster two ; in Middlesex two ; in Norfolk one ; in Nottingham one ; in Somerset one ; in Surrey two ; in Sussex one ; in Warwick one ; and in York one . When the returns were made in July last there were 1 , 176 juvenile offenders undergoing sentence . The returns extend to thirteen pages , and contain a good deal of information as to the conviction . of juvenile offenders .
Cheap Law . —Petitions to both houses of parliament have been numerously signed in Lincoln praying that the jurisdiction of the County Court 9 may be extended to causes involving larger amounts than £ 20 , including suits determinable in the Common Law , Equity , and Ecclesiastical Courts , Charities , &c . - ; Another set of petitions , represents that wheretheCourts of Bankruptcy are distant from the residence of the debtor and his creditors , evils occur of the samo nature as presented themselves in the instance of debts under £ 20 previously to the establishment of the new County Courts ; and the petitions suggest that an appropriate remedy may be found in the extension of the iuriediction of the County Courts to all cases whore the probable assets of the bankrupt shall not amount to £ 300 or £ 400 , and whero the residence of the bankrupt is at an inconvenient distance from a court .
¦ Launch op okb of xhb 'North Asiebican ; Mais Steamers . —At Greonock ,.. on tho Slat ult ., there was launched from the building-yard of Messrs . Robert Steelo and Co ., the British and North American mail steam-ship Asia . This is the -larges vessel belonging to the company , or thn . t has yet been launched from any building yard * n the Clyde . Her lengthia 265 feet , breadth thirty-seven teet , and tonnage 2 , 226 tons , n . m . Her model is , much idmired by competent judges , and sho _ is cxpecte < fully to ' sustain the reputation which tnejessels o tho Cunard line have achieved for tho rapidityj and puactualitv of their voyages across the Atlantic , ;
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The-Future hereafter , perhaps , the native of those countries whom Europeans have long tyrannised over , may grow . strongcr as those of Europe may grow weaker , and . the inhabit / ints of all the different quarters of the' world may arrive at that equality of courage and force , which , by-inspiring mutual foar , oan alone overawe the injustice . of independent nations into some sort of respect for the rights of one another . But nothing seems more likely to establish this equality of force than that mutual consummation of knowledge , and of all sorts 01 improvements which an extensive . commerce from all countries to all countries , naturally , or rather uecesbanly , carries along with it .-Adam ctmth , A Tragedy . —That one man should die ignoranfc Ir ^' c ^ " ^^ ^'^ ^
TjiKi-oiLowiNG was a puzzle to the best readera in the Post-office for some time : — " Serum Pridavi Londres : " when , by reading the address aloud ' with tho French as well as the English sound of the vowles , it was solved iu— " Sir Humphry Davy London . " ' How the Lawyers came by tiieir Patron Saist . —And now because I am speaking of pettyfogers , give me leave to tell you a story , I mett with when I lived in Rome . Goeing with a Romnne to see some Antiquityes , he showed me a ch . ipell dedicated to one St . Evona , a lawyer of Biittanie , who he said came to Rome to entreat the Pope to give the lawyets of Brittanie a patron , to which the Pope replied , That he knew of no Saint but whatwas
disposed of to the other professions . At which Evona was very sad , and . earnestly begd of the Pope to think of one for him . At last the Pope proposed to St . Evona that he should goe round the church of St , John do Latero blintfould , and after he had said so many Avo Marias , that the first Saint he layd hold of should be his patron , which the good old lawyer willingly undertook ; and at the end of his Ave Maryeshe stopt at Saint Michels altar , where ho layd hold of the Direll , under Saint Alichels . feet , and cryd out . This is our Saint , let him be our Patron . So being unblindfolded , and seeing what a patron he had chosen , he went to his lodgings so dejected , that in a few moneths after he die d . —Notes and Qiierics . T . hb Paris papers state that Madame Geor « e Sand has , sold , the copyright of her " Memoirs" to a publisher for rather more than £ 5000 .
It has been learned that there is high poetry in commonlife , and , betorelong , dignity will be discovered in labour . —Electric Review . Time in tho long run will give the victory to Truth . Be not therefore afraid to enlist under her banner : the conflict may be fierce and long , but the laurel wreath will be won at the close . Every one to jus Taste . —Lately , at a publichouse at Gotham , a party of " wise men" sat down to supper , the dainty dishes before them being two largeratpiea . The " game" was caught and supplied by the Gotham rat-catcher . Among ) this > arty of epicures wore three butchers of Nottingham . At the conclusion of tho repast , there' was not even a bone left for the cat to pick . A few
days ago one of the same party , having his hands jed behind him , worried a largo rat in two minutes , for the small sum of sixpence . —JVb ^ HoW Journal . A Dumb Woman . —It is said that a girl in" Pittsfield , Mass ., was struck dumb by the firing of a cannon . Since then it is said that a number of married men have invited the artillery companies to come and discharge their pieces on their premises . Is Loch-Shieldaio , in the Highlands , there is a small rock island , a crevice in which affords a home for three very incongruous companions—a hawk , a rock pigeon , and an owlet—which have lived there , in the greatest harmony , for years , , Active Woman . —As a general rule , noisy woman do much less than they seem to do , and quiet
women often do more . But does not follow that all quiet women are active ; on the contrary , six out of ten are indolent ; and work only on compulsion . Indolent women hare their good points , anil one Of the most valuable of these is their quietness ; it is a great luxury in domestic life ; but , perhaps , it is a luxury which is too expensive for a poor man , unless he can get it combined with activity . The wife of a poor man , no matter what his profession or position , ought to be active in the best sense of the word . She ought to rule her house with dilligence , but make no boast of it . Her managing powers ought to be confined to her own house , and never be sent out to interfere with her neighbours . Her activity should be kept healthy by being exercised upon important matters chiefly , though the trifles
must not be disregarded . A woman who will make herself uuhappy because the usual custom of cleaning the house on Friday is , on a particular occasion , inevitably infringed , is inadequate to perceive the difference between the lesser and Jhe greater . Some activo women , whopiidothems ' elvesoii their housekeeping , seem to forget that the ^ dbiecV ^ Pk ' eeping a house is , that human being ? - ' may' ; bF ^ aecbirimodated in it ; their sole idea seems to be this , that the . object of keeping a house , is that the house may be kept in a certain form and order , and to tha maintenance of this form and order they sacrifice the comfort the house was established to secure . Such active woman are pests to society , because they want sense to direct and control their energies .
THE IRISH CnURCir ESTABLISHMENT . " The longer one lives the more one learns , " Said I as off to sleep I went , Bemused with thinking of tythe concerns , And reading a book by the Bishop of Ferns On the Irish Church Establishment . But lo ! in sleep not long I lay When Fancy her usual tricks began , And I found myself bewitch'd away To a goodly city in Hindoostan : A city , where he who dares to dine On ought but rice , is deemed a sinner ; Where sheep and kine are held divine , And , accordingly , never drest for dinner . " But how is this , " I wondering cried , As I walked that city far and wide , And saw in every marble street , A row of beautiful butchers' shops" What means for men who can ' t eat meat , This grand display of loins and chops ?" In vain I ask'd— 'twas plain to soe , That nobody dar'd to answer me . So on from street to street I strode : And you can ' t conceive how vastly odd The butchers look'd : a roseate crew Inshrined in stalls with nought to do t While some on a bench half dozing sat , And tho sacred cows were not more fat . Still posed to think what all this scene Of sinecure trade was meant to mean , " And pray , " asked I , "by whom is paid The expense of this strange masquerade ?" " The expense—oh , that ' s of course defray'd " ( Said one of those well-fed hecatombers ) " By yonder rascally rice-consumera . " " What ! they who must ' nt eat meat ?' — " Ko matter , " ( And while he spoke his cheeks grew fatter , )
" The rogues may munch their Paddy crop , But tho rogues must still support our shop : And , depend upon it , tho way to treat , Heretical stomachs that thus dissent , Is to burden all that won't eat meat With a costly meat Establishment . " Lord Hosse ' s Telescope . - Tho naked eye can see twelve times farther into space than the distance of the stars of the first magnitude . These stars arc at a distance so great that the light of them has to travel ten years before reaching the earth , so that we can perceive stars without a glass whose light required 120 years to travel here . Lord Itosso ' s telescope , which is 500 times more powerful , enables us to descry a single star at a distance so tremendous , that , - notwithstanding the marvellous velocity with which light travels , its light before reaching us would require 00 , 000 years to cross the intervening gulf !
Trade , legislation , philosophy , and literature , are all getting more and more imbued with element which , whilst they are in motion , wiirnever suffer despotism either in the shape of oligarchy or monarchy . Colleges in Russia . —Every now and then wt receive fresh intimations of the disfavour in whioR every means of culture not connected with military science is held in Russia . The last few days have brought in a report that by a stroke of the pen two of tho best schools in St . Petersburg—the Alexander Lyceum and the School of Jurisprudence
—have been converted into military academies . Hencejbrth , tho professors must bo officers in the imperial army , and arc to receive their appointments from tho Prince of Oldenburgb . The virtues are all parts of a circle . Whatever is humane is wise ; whatever is wise is just ; whatever is wise , just , and humane , will be found to be the true interests of states , whether criminal or foreigirenemios are the objects of their legislation . —4 « American Essay . „„ ,. Truth is the daughter of Time . — -Lord Bacon . The Italians refuso to mingle withtheiiv Austrian invaders throughout the penirisuhi .
" TnERis are three things that never become rusty : — The money of the benevolent , the shoes of the butcher ' s horse , and the woman's tongue . — Welsh saying . The Press . —The press sends forth in the daily papers a printed surface which amounts in the year to 519 , 308 , 000 superficial feet ; and it' we add to theso . all the papers that . are printed , weekly and fortnightly , in the metropolis and , the provinces , tho whole amounts to l , 46 G , 150 , 0 ( M ) square feet , upon which the press has left , in legible characters , tho proof of its labours . Of the newspapers ; tbereforej that have been published m the United Kingdom during tho year 18 i 9 , ' we may say , " that ' they would cover a Burface of 33 , 058 acre , s , or . would ex » tend , if joiitod one to another to 138 , 843 miks ; that is , they would near ' y six times encircle' the wrth at the CQuator ., ¦ . " . ' . '' U ' ' !¦ '" . ¦ ' "
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fl sBBiURY 9 , 1850 . - THS ^ MOJlf flBRN jSTAR , 3
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SOXG OF THE FUTURE . 'JCdst all the storms and cares of life , I see a brighter day , Bnrsfing through the clouds of strife , To chase our wrongs away . The advent of that day may seem As though it ne ' er ¦ would dawn , And better times nought but a dream , From Fancy's empire drawn . But knowledge sows the seeds of right , Which grows in every mind , And teaches men that moral might
Will freedom ' s beauty find . The future opens with a smile , And justice seem 3 to caU Upon the toilers of our isle , To watch their tyrants falL The past has been the age of woe , "Where reason never dwelt ; -And men were wont to make a show Of what they never felt . Oh ! England ' s sons ! may glory crown Tour acts and deeds with fame ; To conquer base oppression ' s frown , And inn a glorious name . A Glovx-maker .
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THE PEOPLE'S REVIEW OF LITERATURE A 35 D PROGRESS . Edited by FMENDS in Cotjkcil . No . I . February . London : C . ifitchell , Red-Lion Court , Fleet-street . From both principle and personal feeling vre lad hoped to have been able to have given a iiearfcv ¦ welcome to this new publication . Anjiounced as the "People ' s Review" we naturally expected to have met , nnder such a title , with , a zealous exponent of the people's claims , and a determined assertor of their lights ; and such a " Review " -would have
lad our most earnest good -wishes . As regards personal feeling—although we have never allowed that to mislead ns so far a 3 to move us to vote black white—we have always been anxious to employ the language of praise , rather than censure ; and , in the present instance having a personal regard for , at least , one of the conductors of the People ' s Review , ¦ we should only lave been too lappy could we have conscientiously praised the work of our friend , and his coadjutors . But we cannot do
SO . The People ' s Review , as a whole , has disappointed our expectations . We question not the integrity , nor the talent of the writers ; the one is as above suspicion , as the other is aboTe qnestion . 2 f or do we dispute that those sections of the " people ** who constitute the population of the " Mechanics * Institutions , " " Manchester Athenaeums , " and " "Whittington Clubs , " may find this JKertea ? suited to their tastes ; but the proletarians—the masses >^ a re not verv likely to recognise it as the « People ' s . " *
To say nothing of the peculiar-views of the writers , their manner © f " reviewing" finds anything but favour in our eyes , The ability displaved in the articles contained in the present number cannot be disputed , but the articles are rather essays than reviews ; and , with all respect for the essayists , we would rather have lad less of their writing , and more of the Ijooks they undertook to " review . " It wonld be an ungracious task to single out particular articles or particular passages for hostile comment Instead of so disagreeable a performance , we have pleasure in stating , that at least portions of the contents deserve public approbation . The article headed " History of the Taxes on Knowledge , " cannot be too warmly praised .
That our readers may not hastil y or illadvisedly condemn anew candidate for popular support , we recommend all who are curious in such , matters , and can afford to expend sixpence , to purchase this first number and judge ibr themselves . We should add , thatthe work is neatly pr inted , and more than ordinary taste 13 evident in the getting up of the wrapper . "We trust that on a ftture occasion we shall be able to speak in termff of unalloyed approbation of the " People ' s Review . "
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I he Chartist leaders who know where they are ] ea ( ng us too , of how they would apply political reform for the betterance of the poor , and the extinction of : misery . Brothers , it is a vile iraud intended to be practised upon a large portion of our suffering order , by the Parliamentary and Financial Reformers . Have you read the anecdote of the Rentuckian and Indian , who went shooting one day , the produce of whose sport was a turkey and a crow ? on the division of which the Kentuckian plied his sophistry to bewilder the Indian in the following terms : "Now , " said the Kentuckian , " I will , have the turkey and you shall take the crow , or you shall take the crow and I will have the turkey !" "Well , " said the Indian , "it sounds very well ; but , somehow , you always get the turkey , and I always
get the crow ! " This seems to me to illustrate the position of the middle and working classes in the apportionment of the results of reform ; they get the turkey and we the crow . The language of the Financial Reformers is this : " Join us , for your own sakes ; go with us for the suffrage in part , not because it is an universal right , but because it is the wiser course ; it is an instalment—a movement in the right direction , irhich must merge into universal enfranchisement 1 " This was the language of Brougham , Russell , and Burdett— -that was a step hi the right direction ; that was a guarantee for the farther extension of the franchise , and yet that very measure enabled the treacherous and bloody Whtes , in ISiS , to pass their infamous Gagging and muster
Alien Acts , in support of which they could 100 , 000 middle-class special constables ! And these were the same men that agitated and clamoured for the Kfiform Bill , but having obtained their measure , and acquired power , they were at once the sworn enemies of the unenfranchised , they had become respectable monopolists ; they had got the turkey and we the crow ! Had there been no Reform Bill these men would have been with us in ' 48 , and at such a time , when the heart of society was yearning for change , and the spirit of revolution stirred the face of the deeps—they , like the bourgeoise promoters of the reform banquets in Palis , must have been hurriec further than was originally intended , and we could
have swept away any government founded on oppression and bolstered by bullying wrong ! We might now have had a government built on the suffrages and hearts of tlie people , instead of being bamboozled and insulted by the miserable trickery of class legislation . If the middle class have become more honest and . sincere , let them come forward boldly and lend a hand for the attainment of our rights ; and cease this sneaking policy of advocating brick and mortar schemes—cease haggling for pennyworths of that Reform which must eon more than a crown . ' for if they willed it fully and unoquivocally , we could have Universal Suffrage next session , or revolutionise England ! but , they do not ¦ will that we should be enfranchised . "We claim the
Suffrage as a birthright ! we ask to be recognised as human beings ! to be looked upon as the sons of the same God , and brothers of the same human family , that each shall have room for the full development of his own nature J We do not work for a change of tyrants , but for the regeneration of society ! we wish to have this branding mark of slavery effaced from us , and lift- up our brows in human nature's nobleness , and the acknowledged equality of mankind ! The middle classes on the contrary , say it is expedient to enfranchise a portion of the peop le , on this qualification , if they are utterly selfish , which selfishness means , ( as the world wags ) sense , that is the sense of taking care of oneself at the expense of everybody else ! it is
expedient to enfranchise four millions because they would be sufficient to carry Cobden and Co . into power , and Cobden and Co . know very well that it amounts to this , by giving the vote to four millions , they let in four feet of democracy which they could swim in gallantly ! but by giving the vote to eight millions they would let in eight feet of democracy , in which they would be swamped inevitably , and it Universal Suffrage would not carry them to power , as most assuredly it would not ! it is not likely that when in power they would open the flood-gates to swamp themselves , no , we and the middle class are opposed in interest ; they know it , and we must learn it ! When capital and labour are combined in action they are one in interest , but separated and pitted against each other they are opposite in interest . Our interests are opposed to the men of capital . Therefore they hold out to us saying "Get ! get ! " " become one of us , " " become i * s-
pectable ! and by so doing we strengthen their tarty , and render the slavery of a large portion of our own class all the more effectual ! and who does not foresee that a middle ' class despotism is far worse than the tyranny of feudalism ? Feudalism only crushes humanity in the gross mass , this despotism will crush us in detail—man by man , woman by woman , and child by child . By giving unlimited sway to capital in its killing competition with labour , labour must suffer eternal loss ; again , under the iron rule of feudalism , the crushed slaves could make common cause in their misery , and unite to overthrow their oppressors ; but this is impossible under tho reign of the tyranny we are bending our necks to , for , with unlimited competition , which is tie beau-ideal of middle clas 3 liberty , every man ' s hand is against his brother , and every man ' s interest antagonistic ! it is the cut-throat course of everv one for himself , aud the devil take the
hindmost ! We may not be able to frustrate this movement , for the middle classes will inevitably precede us to power , yet they will not solve the problem of labour : th ey will not abolish slavery by destroying proletariat or speculation in man by man ; they will not legislate to fetter human misery , and it is this for which we combat ; therefore , supposing we stood on apolitical equality to-morrow , our interests would le at issue immediately , for , while they seek a apolitical change in order that they may prevent the cowing social revolution , we work for 7 i political revolution , thereby to wnsumate the social one , which must follow ; but , as we have not this political equality , we have to fight a double battle , and it behoves the workers to cling together , and if leaders stand in the way they must be sacrificed at the shrine of principles . _ T . Massky .
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The Champion , $ c . E . Hobson , A 3 htonunder-Lyne ; A . Heywood , Manchester . This faithful champion of the rights , and able exponent of the claims of the factory workers , continues its useful though unpretending career . From the number for February 2 nd , we extract the following notice of THE FACTORY ACT BEFORE THE JDDOE 3 . It is impossible to overrate the importance of the question submitted to the judges in the Court of Exchequer , on Monday last , and now awaiting their decision . It involves not merely the physical , social and moral well-being and happiness of many thousands of our factory population , chiefly children and young persons of both sexes , especially of
females , which of itself is a sufficiently serious consideration ; but relatively , from the points likely to be raised in the judgment about . to be delivered , it will be found to involve certain principles in the politico-industrial faith of the nation , upon the practical adoption or rejection of which very much of the future fate of England will depend . We listened attentively to the arguments of the learned counsel who conducted the case on each side of the question , and watched most anxiously the various turns of mere law , which the discussion appeared to take . There were several sentiments expressed in the course of the argument , as well by the judges
as by the learned counsel , which appeared to us to be both novel and dangerous , and to which we shall take an early opportunity to revert . For the present it would be premature and ill-advised to make any remark upon the dicta to which we refer . In the mean time , without at all anticipating the final decision of the bench , we would exhort the friends of the Ten Hours Bill to preparo to receive and act upon that decision , whatever it may be , with all the earnestness and zeal which-the nature of the case imperatively demands . Events , we believe , will confirm the opinion we recently expressed—that a new crisis in the Factory Question is at hand .
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Citation
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Northern Star (1837-1852), Feb. 9, 1850, page 3, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1560/page/3/
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