fABIAN TRACTS, ~0 9· AK EIGHT HOURS BILL In the form of' an Amendment of the Factory Acts. vvith further provisions for the Improvement of the conditions of labour. l'UllLIHHBIJ HY THE F.._t1_BIAN SOCIETY. " Unfettered incliuidual cempetition is not(£ principle to which tlw nyulali., with fu'rthLr provisions for the improvement of the conditions of Labor. \'ery full notes explain the Trade Option clause and the principles and preccdento on which the Bill i, founded. A list of literature dealing with the question of the limitatiou of the hours of labor is appended. 20th thousand. 16 pp., I d.; or 9d. per doz. No. 10.-Figures for Londoners (a short abstract of No.8). roth thousand. 4 pp., 6 fOJ Jd. : I•-per 100. No. 11.-The Workers' Political Programme fully explains the politics of to-day from' the working class point of view, and gives questions to put to Parliamentary candirlate•, with reasons for askmg them. roth thousand. 20 pp., Id.; or 9d. per doz. No. 12.-Practicable Land Nationalization. A brief statement of prac. tical proposals for immediate reform. 20th thousand. 4 pp., 6 for rd., or Is. per 100. No. 13.-What Socialism Is. A short exposition of the aim of Socialists. 30th thousand. 4 pp., 6 for 1 d., or Is. per 100. No. 14.-The New Reform Bill. A draft Act of Parliament pro\iding for Adult SufTrage, Payment of \lunbers and their election expenses, Second Ballot, and a thorough syotem of Rcgi~tration, with full notes and precedents. 10th thousand. 20 PP· td. ; or 9cl. per dot. No. H~.-English Progress towards Social Democracy. An account of the evolution of English Society, with explanation of Socialism. 16 pp., rd., 9<1· per dot. No. 16.-A Plea for the Eight Hours Bill. A brief answer to objectors. 4 pp., 6 for I d., Is. per 100. LrsT, containing the names of sixty lecturers, s gratuitously, may be obtained on application ~0 wards of 1000 lectures were delivered by ~ ll).bers during. th ! r ended in March, 1890. -~f"l(,t~ll r ~ c-::> ,....1-.r coLLEcl'0 ~~' IJ IYa -tl 1~ '/:? INTI{ODUCTION. THE Bill submitted in this pamphlet was dn~fted by the Political Committee of the Fabian Society in November, 1889, with the object of embodying in precise and Parliamentary terms certain familiar demands for the democratic regulation of industry. The Committee expressed in its clauses only proposals for legislative reform which are plainly within the Hnmediate scope of practical politics. '!'heir aim was, first, to supply both "-dvocates and opponents of the limitation of the Working Day with a model of an Eight Hours Bill which might serve as a test for Parliamentaryc•andidates, and as an illustration of the method in which our existingpolitical machinery can be applied to enforce such limitation; and, secondly, to formulate amendments most pressingly required for the extension of the benefits of the Acts already protecting and ordering Labour for the common ~ood, and for ensuring their efficiency where their prO\·isions have been found to fail. The Bill, accordingly, is d1vided into two parts. ·rhe first, whioh is concerned exclusively with the regulation of hours, is largely (like the 4econd) a development and amendment of laws already in force. But while it enacts a limitation of hours in certain employments already rel,' llls.ted by the State, and enables such limitation to be imposed in all privileged undertakings and monopolies, it undertakes no more, with regard to other employments, than to guarantee to the workers the power to eoforce a similar restriction, without the need of any further law-making, as soon as they shall themselves desire to do so. The notes which are appended to the various clauses are confined for the most part to references to exi ting laws and precedents, and to explanations of the principles followed in novel provisions. No attempt has been made to develop the general arguments for the restriction of honra of hbonr, or for interference with the arrangements of employers. Such an nndertaking is outside of the scope of this pamphlet. Its intention will be lnlfilled if it supplies a formulation of this policy sufficiently precise and practical to render it impossible for " business men," officials, or politicians to evade the issues raised on the ground of their vagueness or Utopianism. The general arguments on the subject may be gathered from the publicationsnamed on page 16. ~o uniform Act of Parliament can deal with all occupations, and this Bill, if it became the law of England, would not of itself secure an eighthours day for every worker. But if this Bill proposes as much as can forthwith be done by law, and if what it proposes can all forthwith be done, ~egislation founded upon it might claim an honourable place in the file of mdustrial enactments, and, as with all such legislation, its actual workingonly can teach what is the best direction for further application of its principles. _The adoption, wholly or in part, by the London Liberal and Radical Un10n, the ::\fetropolitan Hadical Federation, the London Trades Cotmcil, and most of the London Workin<> llfen's Clubs of the general principle of this draft Bill, as well as the eno~mous " Eight Hours Demonstration" in Hyde Park on l\ffly 4 h. 1890, sufticiently indicate the progress of the m >ement. ( 4 ) A BILL E:\'f!TLED A~ ACT TO AMEND THE FACTORY A::\D \\"OlUi:~HOP ACT, 1 78, AND TO PREYENT EXCESSI\"E HOL.RS OF LAHOrR. ~ec:::4·- PRELDLINAllY. 1. This Act may be cited a<; the Hour~ of Labom .\ct, 18HO, and shall, except as regards the sixth section, be read and con· strued as one with the Factory !\nd Workshop Act, 1878, and th Acts amending the same. The whole Bill applies, like the cxi ting Factory Acts, to Scotlanc1 and lreland, as well as to England and Wales. The sixth clause, relating to mines, will more conveniently be incoq)oratedin the :IIines Regulation Acts, so as to be enforced by the 1\Iine Inspector'<. The definitions of terms are given in the Factory Act of ISiS. 2. This Act shall come into operation on the first of ,Tanna1·) , 1 91. PAl~T I. The Normal Day and lVeek. · 3 . In contracts for the hire of labour, or the employment of personal service in any capacity, a day shall, unless otherwise specified, be deemed to mean a period of eight working hours, and a week shall be deemed to mean a period of j01·ty-eight working hourc;. This i,; already law in various American !:Hates, ,uch as New York, Illinois, California, and Wisconsin. In others, such as Pennsyh-ania, Ohio, New Hamp, hire, Rhode I land, :\Iaine, 1\Iichigan, and Nebraska, ten hours is the normal day. (See Fi1·st Annual Report of Fecleml Gommissicmer of Labour, lSSG.) To these may be added Florida (ten hours), Indiana and Connecticut (eight hour~). (See Foreign Office Re1)ort, C-5886.) The clause would not prevent o.grecmenls to work for a longer 1)eriocl · hence it will, in itself, only be useful as declaring the public opinion as to the proper maximum hours of labour, and o,s a. means of thereby bringing about o. Yoluntary shortening of hours where they exceed this maximtm1. "Overtime" would therefore not be universally prohibited, but the remaining clau,es of the Bill make no distinction between "time'' and "overtimf·." and where they apply, "overtime" will hP forbidden, e-xcept in the emcrgencie• pro\'ided for in clauses 4, 5, and 6. For Gorermnent Sen· ants. 4 . No person employed under the Crown in the United King- Jom in any department of the pnblic service, other than military or naval, or by any county council, municipal corporation, vestry, local sanitary authority, chool board, board of guardians of the poor, dock or barbour trustees, district board of _,-orks, district co mcil, improvement commissioners, commissionPr"' of sew<'r'>, nf ( 5 ) public libraries, or of baths and wash-house , or by any other public administrative authority, shall, except in case of special unfore_seen emergency, be employed for a longer period than eighthours many one day, nor for more than joTty-eight hours in anyone week : provided that in cases of public emergency a Secretaryof State shall have power, by order published in the London Gazette, to suspend, for such employments and for such period as may be specified in such order, the operation of this section. Any public officer ordering or requiring any person in public employment to remain at work for a period in excess of either of those herein specified, except in case of special unforeseen emergency, shall be liable to a fine not exceeding ten p01mds. Any public authority, or the principal officer of any departmentof the public service, employing or permitting to be employed by reason of special unforeseen emergency, any person in excess of either of the periods herein specified, shall report the fact within seven days to Secretary of State, and a complete list of such cases shall be laid before both houses of Parliament once in each year. This is already ln.w in the States of New York and California ; but in the former case "overtime" is permitted. (First Anmtal Report of Federal Ccnnmissioner of Labou1·, 1886; see also C-5866.) united ::>tates Statutes, c. 43, sec. 3738, enacts it for labourers employed on Government works, in navyya.rds, etc. (seep. 56 of C-5866). Maryland law limits the working day in the State tobacco warehouses to ten hours (p. 55 of C-5866). The Royal Commission on Labour and Capital in Canada recommended that all Government work should be subject to n. maximum of nine hours per day. Eight hours is fixed by law for Government works in Victoria. (Sir C. W. Dilke's "Problems of Greater Britain," vol. ii., p. 286.) The hours are the same in the Portugue,e <.J:overnment tobacco factories. (Times, 3rd May, 18\JO.) Provision is made in the clause for "overtime " in case of" special unforeseen emergency," but every such case must be reported and published. In case more- ever of "public emergency," as in the existing Factory Act, a Secretary of State will be able to suspend the operations of the whole section, but the order must be published. At present he has power to exempt from the existing Acts Government factories (see sec. 93 of 41 Vic., c. 16); and this power is frequently exercised without the knowledge of the public. Besides preventing excessive hours in any one department, the clau~e will also put a stop to the practice which prevails in the Post Office, Inland Revenue and Customs Departments, of taking on, as casual workers or "glut men," or even for the performance of the regular work of the department, persons who have already done a day's work in one of the other departments. This re-eng:l{;c·. ment of exhausted workers is obviously a fraud on the public. The principle of this clause has been adopted by the London Li.beral an d Ha.dical Union, the Metropolitan Radical Federation, and by all part!Cs to the great "Eight Hours Demonstration" in London on 4th May, 1890. Fo1· Railwc£y Se?"Vcmts. 5. No person employed wholly or mainly to work rail\~'i1Y signals or points shall be employed continuously for more than etghthours, nor for more than forty-eight hours in any one week. No person employed as engine-driver, fireman, guard, o:· \Yhollyor mainly in shunting, on any railway, shall be employed.contmuous~yfor more than twelve hours, nor for more than jorty-ezght hours m a.ny one week. The General Manager of any railway company employing or permitting to be employed any person in contravention of this , section shall be liable on conviction thereof to a fine not exceedi11g one hlundnd pounds for each such contravention. Provided that in any case in which the employruent of person'l to work railway signals or point·, or as engine drivers, firemen, or guards, or in shunting, for longer periods than is permitted by thi>. section is by reason of some special and unforeseen emergency neces ary for the public safety, it shall be lawful for a Secretary of State, en a report made within seven days by the General Managet or Secretary of the Railway Company acting in contravention of this section, to direct that no legal proceedings should be taken in the case of the particular contravention so reported. A list of the ca es in which any such direction bas been issued by a Secretary of tate under this section shall be laid before both Houses of Parliament once in each year. The Amalgaml1.tec1 Society of Ra.ilway Sorntnts strongly >npports the immediate restriction by law of their pre ent excessive hours. The General !tailway Workers' Union has been formed mainly to secure this boon. Particulal:l> of their over-work a,re giycn in the official return, H. L. 33 of 1889 (6d.j. It i' generally admitted that considerations of public safety, especially in the case of signalmen nnd pointsmen, clea,rly warrant prompt public intervention; and the Ra.ilways' Regulation Act of 188!! (52 and 53 Vic., c. 57, Rec. 4) recognises thi~ principle by requiring an a1munl return of cases in which any man has been oontinuously employed for more thr~n a number of hours to be specified by the Board of Trade. This cl:1use will only apply to certain classes of railway senant , in whoso c·ases the considemtion of public safety is mo t prominent. Other railway servants can obtain a legal limitation of their hours of labour under clau~e 7 (trade option). A precedent for the legal limitation of the hours of railway servants ib givenby the State of Minnesota, whore the law forbids the employment of locomotive engineers or firemen for more than oighteen hours in one day! (First Amu~f Rt'p01't of Federal ('om missioner of Labo111·, 1886, p. 469.) For ].liners. 6. No person shall be employed under ground for hire in auymine f<;n· a longer period than eight hourR in any one day, nor than forty-e1ght hours in any one week. The period of employment under ground in a mine shall, for the purpose of thi section, be deemed to be the whole period from the time of leaving the sur:fa.ce of the ground to descend the mine, to the time of l'eturn to the surface of the ground after cessation of work The manager of any mine employing or permitting to be employed any person in contravention of this section shall, on conviction thereof, be liable to a fine not exceeding one hundTed pounds for each such contravention. In any cases in which, through accident or other unforeseen em~rgency, any person may be employed under ground for a longet p~n~d than is prescribed by this section, a special report may, w1thm scL·en days thereof, be made to a Secretary of State by the manager of the mine, and a Secretary of State may, if he thinks fiL, thereupon direct that no prosecution shRll be instituted in respect of the pa.rticula.r offence so reported. A list of the cases in which such direction hat. been isrpecial code of law, dating L:urn 1842; bnt boys of twel\"e work under grotmd (half-time), and youths and men are not protected from having to remain at work under ground for long hours. The coal hewers in Northumberland, Durham, and the East of Scotland htwfl already brought down their working hours; but elsewhere they still often work much longer than eight hours tmder ground; and the accessory workers in tho mine are usually even less forttmate. It is computed that less than a fourth of the coal miners yet enjoy an Eight Hours Day. They are practically unanimoth in favour of the "eight houl"s movement": their National Conference at Birmingham in October, 1889, passed the resolution in its favour by 93 to 13 (see Time~ report, October 12, 1880), and was cordially in favour of :\Ir. Cunni.nghameGraham·s Bill. A clatlSe limiting the hours of work tmder ground to eight p<·rtlay was proposed in Committee of the House of CommorlS on the " Coal Mines Regulation Act, 1887," and was only rejected by 10.:i votes (see Hansard, vol. 319, pp. 809-912), although the "labour members" declined to vote in tile absence of a "manda.te." Since then the Tra.des Union Congress has voted by a large majority "an Eight Hours Bill for :\Iiuors" (Times report of Dunde'' meeting, 7th September, 1889). 'rhe Miners' Nationa.l Conference agaiH afthmed their demand for legislation at their meeting in February, 1890, and at their April meeting they censured the Pa.rlia.menta.ry Corumittee of the Trade-; Union Congress for its neglect to n.ct on the Dundee mandate. The cl11use will not apply to Conush or other miners not employed for hire, who work a,, "adventurers " on their own accotmt. The lego,llimitation of the hours of adult la.bour in mines i~ not withou t precedent. In Austria no shift may exceed tw~lve hours; in France the 184:3 legal mn._'Cimum of twelve hours is fully effective as regards mines (see C-5866, pp. 2 and 17); in the United St."'tes the :\Iarylo,ll(l Act of 1886 fixes the maximum hours of miners at ten per children under fourteen, apply also to tho e under .fifteen. It al o abolisbc~ the exception rocogni eel by. sec. 26 of tho Factorv Act of 1878, by which "hildren between thirteen and fourteen can go w work·" full time," and other \\isc escape the protection of the Act, provided they ba\·e pa.ssed a. pre;;onbo J educal.iono.l standard (at pre~ent Standard IY. eo tho First Schedule to tb 1 Act 43 and 4! Vic., c. 23). The l'epc!l.l of this exception, and the ra.ioiug of the •· half. time·· age, a.m ,t1-ongly urged by medical and educational authorities. France, the Colony of Victoria., and the States of Maine o.nd New Jerbey require, at any rate, partialeduco.tion up to fifte~>n: Massachusetts, Now Ha.mpshire, and Penn.sylva.nia. up to sixteen yearb of age (see note to clau.oe Vl\. T 1e T11'rl'"' L~hn•1r ('cmfer'lnc} emph::ttico.lly o.uop do. qimilor p1inciple. . P.-I.HT II. 11. The Council for the ~-ldministrati,·e Uounty of Londou, and elsewhere the sanitary authority, ball have po·wer, if deemed by them necessary for the proper enforcement of the laws relating to the employment of labour or to public health, to make and from time to time amend, bye-lawo providing for any of the followintS objects, viz.:( 1) The cowpulsory registration of all premises in which persons are employed for hire, otherwise than exclusi- vely in domestic service. (2) The inspection of all such premises by any medical officer of health, sanitary officer, or any inspector either appointed under any Act relating to the employmentof labour, or specially for the purpose. ( :i) The prevention of over-crowding in premises in which persons are employed for hire. (4) The provision of proper ·anitarY arrangemeuts in such premises. (;; ) The prevention of excessi ,.e homs of la.bour in occupationsin \Yhich the provisions of Part I. of this Act may not be applicable or effective. (6) The prevention of pnblic injury or inconvenience in connection with the employment of la.bour in or about docks, harbours, rivers, tramways, telephones, establishments for electric lighting or for the supply of electric or hydra.ulic power, gasworks and water\\"orks. Any bye-la\YS made in pursuance of this section shall be submitted for confirmation to a Secretary of State, and shall, when confirmed by him, be deemed to be incorporated in this Act. The Council for the administrative county of London, and elsewhere the oani.tary authority, shall have power to appoint local inspectors, clerks, and servants for the enforcement of any such bye-laws, and any iuspecto t so appointed shall possess the same rights and powers as an·'. 1ector under n.ny of the Acts relating to the employment of labour. The power to make bye-laws, subject to c:onfinnation Gy the Home Office. Local Government Board, or Board of Trade, is already widely exercised bY nen.rly all local authorities. It affords a means of meeting the dh·erse neces~ ities imposed by local circumstances, without the objections often felt to u.nduo interference from a central go,-ernment office. Each locality can, within certain limits, legislate for itself as it pleases. Hardly any of the preceding clauses will practically aiiect East London, where the extension of the Factory Acts is most needed. The special circumstances of this and other densely crowded aggregations of small workshops, require special treatment, which it would be incom·enient and unnecessary to n,pply to the whole kingdom. Hence it i · proposed to allow the County Cotmcil to make bye-laws and provide its own additional impectors. The kind of bye-laws which should be made would be such regulations as are proposed by l\Ir. Charles Booth (Life and Labour in E ast London, p. 498-9) for the compulsory gratuitous registmtion by the owners of all premises where labour is employed for hire, :mel of n.ll employers ; rules against overcrowdi.llg :mel iu~o..nitary concl.itions such as already exist in tlw u:;ual bye-laws for dwcllin,.(houses, and provisions in,uring frequent n.nd systematic visitation of ever.\" "·ork~ hop and place where ·• home-work" is done. Dra.~tic amendments of the lu w m theqe clirceti0n• are recommended in the Heport of the Hon>-e of Lorcl-· ( 12 ) ( 12 ) Committee on lhe Sweating System (H.L. G2, ::\Iay, 1890.) See article in the Nineteenth Centu1·y, June, 1890, by ::\Iiss B. Potter. In the case of monopolies such as tramways, the conditions imposed by the C; lasgow Corporation in lea~ing their lines might be taken as a guide. They arc as follows : ''Only such persons as can satisfy the l\Iagistrates' Committee lhat they' ·have a thorough knowledge of the city and of the duties of a car conductor ~hall " be licensed as such. The working clay of conductors and drivers shall not ex,' ceed an average of ten hours. The conductors of cars shall be prO\ ided with " proper uniform, consisting of tunic, trousers and cap, and no conductor shall be "permitted to be on duty without uniform. Auniform grea.tcoat shall bo provided'' for the winter months. No conductor, dri\·er, or other officer shall be permitted" on a car unless his clothing is in good order and his whole person clean a.ncl "tidy. The lessees shall provide proper sa.n.itary oouyen.iences for the drivers "and conductors at places where these are requigite, and as may be agreed on "with the corpora,tion." The "sanitary authority" which would ha,ve, oubide London, the power to make such bye-laws, is, in mw1icipal boroughs, the town council, and in rural districts (where the power would hardly be needed), usua,lly a. committee of the Boa.rd of Guardia.ns. But the power would, in the latter cases, be tmmfcrrecl to the new electiYo " district cow1cil" as soon as they a.re csta.blished. 12. It shall be the duty of the occupier of any factory or workshop in which any labour 't'l'hatsoever is employed for hire, to specify in a notice affixed in a prominent position in the workshop or factory the time of beginning and quitting work on each clay of the week, the time allowed for meals, and if children or ~·oung persons under fifteen are employed, whether they are employed on Lhe system of morning and afternoon sets, or of alternate days. A copy of every such notice, ana of every alteration thereof, shall be sent by post in a regi;ltered letter, or delivered by the employer to an inspector within seven days of its publication, and shall be open to inspection at the Home Office by any person at any time when that office is open for official business. A factory or workshop in which no such notice is affixed as herein specified, shall be c1eemec1 not to be kept in conformity with this Act. Pro,·ided that nothing in this section shall affect the provisionsof Section 19 of the Factory and Workshop .\ct relating to the employment of women or children. This proYision merely ex lends lite requirement of lhc cxi~ting Factory Actq to all workshops. Jt does little more than aiTord a means of bringing public opinion efiectively to bear on tho. e employers who make their men work OKces ' ive hours. Incidentn.lly, howe\·cr, it Will cause the regi lration of all workshops, a reform often called for by the inspectors. At preocnt all factories, n,nd all workshops eJnploying women n,nd children, haYc to he rcgi~terccl, but not workshops employ ing men only. 13. Notwith tanding anything contained in the Sections 61 and 93 of Lhe Factory and Workshop Act, 187 , such provisions of that Act, ancl of any Acts amending the same, as relate to the cleanliness, or Lo the freedom from effiuYia, or to the overcrowding, or yentilation of a factory or workshop, or to the sending notice of accident , shall apply to all workshops oLher than those specified in clause (a) of Section 61 of the said .\.ct. At present the sanita.ry proYisions of tho Factory Acls do not apply to work~ hops where only adult men n,re employed; and the Factory Inspector i~ there \ lH ) f nc• not able to euforce them. Simil::tr ptO\ i'iOlts already exi~t. however, i11 the Public IIen.lth .\ct, 1875, which applie~ to all workshops (by sec. 101 of 41 Vic., e. 15) ; but these are enforceable only by the local sanitary authority, whose dut) i~ oft of the family only. This hardly permits of n.ny other reguln.tion tlmn those n.pplied by the Publie Hen.lth Acts and tho Elementary Educn.tiou Act;, prodded that the premises an· duly regi,tcred n.ncl inspected. ;see note to clan-c 11.) 14. ~o child under flceh·e ye;m; of , so ef1ectiYe are the exceptions that children over ton work a' soon as they haYe been five years at school or ha1·e passed an educational standard fixed by th local school board or school attendance committee. In order to pro. vide chen.p child labour, this is usually fixed at Standard IV., or even III., which children often pass at nine years old. The only restriction in force is the "halftime., for children tmcler thirteen or fourteen. Further prohibition of child labour is urgently cn,lled for on educational and medical grounds. England has, on this point, lost her lead in labour legisln.tion. Gem1any and Hw1gary absolutely forbid it under twelve ; Switzerland forbids it (in factories) under fifteen (Act of 1877) ; n.nd France under fifteen, unless the child has receiYed sufficient primary education. (Report of Royal Commission on Education. lRRR, p. 391). In Victoria the law (-!9 \' ic., No. 86:.:1, sec. 30) is >imilar to that of France; iu New Zealand no child under twelve may be employed in a factory (Act 23 of 18H1, '"c. 4.); in Ontario and Quebec no boy under twelve anclno girltmder fourteen may work in a Iactoq (47 Vic., c. 39, sec. 1; Quebec Code, sec. 3,026). In the United States, the employment of children un.'ler twelve is pt·ohibited in Pennsylvania (p. 57 of C-5,866) (for textile and paper factories tho minimum is thirteen) ; in Indiana (as regards six specified industries); in Kansas ; in :llas:;achu. etts "during the days when public schools are in session"; in New Jersey (where the mimmum age is even fomteeu for girls a.s regard any work ,hop or manufa.ctory) ; a.nd in Ohio. In nearly all the States further restrictions are imposed unless the child i well educated. Thus in Colorado and Kansas, no boy under sixteen may work in a mine unles> he can read n.nd write; in Main<> 1\Ud New Jersey, no child under fifteen; in 1\Ias achusetts, New Hampshire, Pennsylntnia, no children under sixteen may be employed unlc s they haYe been to school during a certain portion of the preceding yea.r. (First Annual Report nJ tht Pcdcral Commissioner of Labow·, 18 G.) Up to the age of twelve, at any rate the futw:e citizen should be protected. from toil. '£he Berlin Labour Conference has now afflm1ed thi principle. , 15. ~o per<.;on under ~i.~;lce/1 years of age ~hall be employed for hire in an) of the occupations or places specified in the First Schedule to the Factory and Workshop .\.ct, 1878; but nothing in this section shall be deemed to permit the employment in such occupations or places of young persons over sixteen years of age where such employment is now probibited. The dangerous or unhealthy occupations bpecifiery grinding in the melal trade ; dipping of lucifer matches. (No child under fourteen may now be employed.) ·• fn any grinding in the metal trades other than dry grinding, or in "fustian cutting, a child uncler the age of eleYen years sha,ll not be "employed.'' II these occupations were founcl so bad in tho effects on young perbons as t{) lea.d to the impo.ition of special prohibitions, it is suggested that all young per~ ons under sixteen should be protected from being forced into them. •.=::,Precedents already exist for prohibition up to eighteen years of age, for the Hl.me schedule forbids the employment of any person under that age in "the "process of silvering of mirrors by the mercurial process, or the process of making white lead." Moreover, as already stated, no girl lmder eighteen mayhe employed in connection with the melting or annea!i11g of glass. When the Colony of Victoria copied this section of the English Act, the ages were raised all rotmd, to fourteen or eighteen (49 Vic., No. 8G2.) 16. Where it appears to an inspector under tbis or any other Act or local bye-law relating to the employment of labour, that any act, neglect or default, by any person whatsoeyer, in or in connection with any place in which any person is employed for hire, is punishable or remediable under the laws relating to publichealth, it shall be the duty of the inspector himseli, without reference to any local authority, to take such action as he rna) deem fit for the purpose of enforcing the law, and every such in~ pector shall possess more rights or powers of instituting legal proceedings for this purpose which are or may be possessed by anyl'a.nitary authority, sanitary oflicer, or medical officer of health. Provided that nothing in this section shall relieve any sanitaryauthority or officer of such authority from any duty in connection with the law relating to public health. Under the existing Act (41 Vic., c. 16, sec. 4), when a factory inspectordiscovers a.n infringement of the sanitary law, he can only report it to the local a.nitary authority, a procedure which oJways causes delay and frequently rcsulb in no action being taken to enforce the law. This clause (coupled with claus< 13) will enable the factory inspector himself to proceed against the ofTcnding <:mployer. 17. The provi~ion of ection 7 of the .Factory and WorkshopAct, 1 7 , hnll apply to any vat, pan, or other structure which is so dangerou as to ~e likely to be a cause of bodily injury to an} person employed m the factory or work»hop, whether a chilrl or young person or not. Thib cln.u"e Jt,t.rO)'b a hktorical burvi\ al. ln the earlier Fact{)ry Aclb the 1rovisions ngain"t dangt•rou-; mad1inery, de., were re,tricted to •uch aq wns ( 15 ) do.ngero·us co women and children. In the oxt:Jting law this limitation is generally removed, and all dangerous machinery, for insta.nco, must be fenced, whether the danger is to men or tO women (H Vio., c. 16, sec. 5, (i, 8), But Meo. 7, which provides for the protection of workers from danger from " a vat, pn.n, or other structure,•· only applies to women or children. If the " vat, pan, or other structure" is also dangerou<; to men, surely it ought to be made safe. 18. Notwithstanding anything contained in the 17th section of the Factory and Workshop Act Amendment Act of 1883, an inspector shall be required and empm...-ered to inspect all bakehouses jn which persons are employed for hire, and shall, concurrently v.ith the officer of the sanitary authority, possess for the purpose of enforcing the provisions of any of the laws relating to publichealth, the same rights and powers as they at any time possess. Bakebou-es already come under the provisions of the Factory Acts, espeually as regards sanitation (see sees. 34, 35, 45, 61, 93, and Fourth Schedule, of 41 Vic., c. 16). But by a most unfortunate provision of the amending Act (4Gand 47 Vi<:. , c. 53, sec. 17), which gave 'the local sanitary authority jurisdiction over them, the Factory Inspector was ousted from his power to enforce these sn.nitary provisions. As a consequence the bakehouses are most imperfectly in- epect-ed ; and the sanitary Jaw not well enforced. The clau~e (compare also clauses 13 and 16) restores the power of the Factory Inspector, concurrentlywith that of the local sanitary authority. 19. The provisions of the Factory and Workshop Act, 1878, and of this Act shall apply to any laundry in which persons are employed for hire, and in which washing is performed for payment for persons other than those resident in the premises on which it is situated. Women in laundries nre often shamefully overworked, and exposed to insanitary conditions. 20. It !>hall be the c1ut~ of ever; inspector appointed under auy Act relating to the emplo\ ment of labour to execute and procure the enforcement also of the Truck Act, 1831, the Shop Homs Regulation Act, 18 6, and the Prevention of Cruelty to Children Act, 1889 ; and any rights or powers possessed by such inspectorsunder any Act, shall be deemed to be possessed and to apply for the purposes of the execution and enforcement of all the nJoresaid Acts. No inspectors exist for the enforcement of the Act named, u.nd evasions of them are therefore frequent. The Factory Inspector ma.y as well ha.vc power to ~mforce the la.w wherever be discovers a.n infringement of it. 21. It i hereby declared that women are eligible to be appointed inspectors, clerks, and servants for the execution of this or anyother Act relating to the employment of labour, upon the same tenns and subject' to the same disqualifications as men. This clause doLs not require women to be appointed Factory Inspectors, buL only makes it clear that they are eligible, in case it sbou.ld be deemed well that some should be appointed. The present Home Secretary has expressed a doubt whether he"bad power under the exi•ting law, to a.ppoint a. woman. G. ATUfDRING, Print.r, 7 &!1. Fi.n•hnry Rtred, E.C. Literature relating to the existing Factory Legislation &the Eight Hours Bill. The main l11w now in force i contained in the Act of Parliament 41 Yic., c. Hl, "Th Factory o.nd Workshop Act, 1878." Copies can be obtained from Eyre and Spotuswoode, o.ml elsewhere, price 2/6. An edition with note~. by 1\Ir. A. Hedgrave, C. B. is publi•hcd by . haw and Sons, price 5/-. Sufficient abstract of its provisions can be obtained 11t the s11me publishers in sheet form, price Gd. (textile ancl non-textile industrie' being distinct and 3d. each). The law relating to lo.bour in coal mine · will be found in the Act 50 and 51 Vic , L'. 58, "The Coal )fines Regulation Act," 1887; and that relating to other mines iu the Act 35 and 36 Yic. , c. 77, "The !IIetalliferous !\lines Regulation Act," 1872 "Tkc Agricultural Gangs Act," 18G7 : •· The Canal Bon,ts Act," 188J; and "The 11Ierch , aut Shipping Acts," n,lso minutely regulate the employment of labour. The labour of persons under eighteen in shops is regulated by the Act 40 and 50 Vic., c. 55, "Tho Shop Hours Hegulation Act. 1886." The other Acts in force, such as 4G and 47 Vit , (' . 53 (Factories) ; 38 and 30 Yic., c. 30; .JA 11ml 4::> \'ic., c. 26; and 45 and 4G Yic, c. 3 (~Iineo,) effect only minor alterations. The chief Parliamentary Heports are the ~elect Committee'~ Heport of 18W, and tho>e of the Royal Commissions of 1834, 1840-3, 18G2-G, and 187G. All but the last two 11re summo.rized in Engels' "Condition of the Working Cia s in England '• (Heeves) a.nd Karl :IIarx's " Capital'' (Sonnenschein). 11Iore recent information will be found in the Report of the House of Lords Committee on the Sweating Syste11t (H.L. G2, 1800). The laws of foreign States arc given limporfectly) in Foreign Office Report, "Co111 mercial No. 2.i," C-58G6, price 5c1. Other pn.rticulars o.rc given in the Report of tho Berlin Labom-Conference (:~Io.y, 1800). The first Annual Rej)Ort of the Fedeml Cow missioner of Labour(Washington, 188G) gives a valuable summary of American lo.bour law,. The History of Engli h factory legislation is best found in E. E. von Plener·~ "English Factory Legislation·· (Chapman and Hall, 1873). Alfred's ''History of the Factory l\Iovcment" is a pmctic11lly contemporary chronicle of the movement down to 1847. Lord Shaftcsbury's work is described in his "Life and Work," by E. Hodder (Cassell, l88G), and "Speeches" (Chapman and Hall, 18GB). Besides Lord Shafte, bury's speeches, those of Sir Robert Peel (Houtledge, 1853), John Bright (Macmillan), Fawcett ()facmillan, 1873), o.nd Lord Macaulay (Longm11n ·, 1854) arc historicallyintere ting, and Lhe great speech of the latter on the Ten Hours Bill rebuts tho nrguments 11gainst regulation of adult labotu· with great oratoric11l force. Colonial pro cedents arc described in Sir C. W. Dilke's "Problem~ of Greu.ter Britain" (Macmillan 1800). Th.. arguments in favour of factory legislation are well gi\cn in W. S. Jcvons' "The ~tate in Relation to Labour,'' ch. iii. (Macmillan, 1882); John Morley's "Life of Cobden,•· vol., ch. xviii., pp. 20 , 303; H. Ll. Smith's "Economic Aspects of Stato f;ocialism,'' ch. iv., sec. ii. (Simpkin, 1887) : J. S. Mill's "Principles of Pol itica.l l ;conomy," bk. v., ch. xi., 0 anc112, and essay "On Liberty," ch. v.; Duke of Argyle's .. Reign of L11w," ch. vii. (Stro.han, 18G7); and especially in nunton's " Wealth and Progress" (:IIacmillan, 1888). The latter work gives the be.t summary of the cnbc for an Eight Hours llill, but Tom )frum's pamphlet, "The Eight Hours l\Io,·ement" (?.Iodern Pross, 13, Paternostot Row, 18 0, price ld.) presents it in a form more popularly accessible. See also " Tho Eight Hours Work Day'' by A. K. Don11ld (Labour Press, 57, Chancery La.ne, E .C., lJ.). The difficulties of a w1iversal compulsory eight hours dn,y are stated by M1·. llraecembt.'l, )K.~\J •• H. ll. Ba!Jane, M P., "The Eight Hours (Juc,tion •· (('unlt mJ.ortu·y Jleciet•, February, 1E901. l . Brn.dlfwgh, M.P .. •• Tho Eight flour:-, Question,. li?Orlnightly l:evitu·, March, 1890) . II .r. :\lnrray Macdonald, '!he ca~e for an Eight Hours Day ' (Ninttttnth Ctlltltry , April , 18HHI. John -"'· Ilobson, .. 'Ihe Cobt of ;.l Shorter J>ny ,, (.'\'aHOIIll l Revittll, April. 1890). [Since the preceding, the most import11nt contribution'i to the discus~ion are ~he " 1-\.eport of the Trades l'nion Congre s" a.t Liverpool, in eptember, 1800 (Co·Ol)era.tn·e Printing Society, Mo.nchester), and John Burns' "Speech on the Liverpool Congres " (Ort"cn, 'f<'Alhm , & Co., :·), Ludgate Circu~. KC., lcl. .-December, 1800.