diff options
Diffstat (limited to 'old/69958-0.txt')
| -rw-r--r-- | old/69958-0.txt | 2271 |
1 files changed, 0 insertions, 2271 deletions
diff --git a/old/69958-0.txt b/old/69958-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 683607a..0000000 --- a/old/69958-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,2271 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of The factory, by Jonathan Thayer -Lincoln - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: The factory - -Author: Jonathan Thayer Lincoln - -Release Date: February 5, 2023 [eBook #69958] - -Language: English - -Produced by: Bob Taylor, and The Online Distributed Proofreading Team at - https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images - generously made available by The Internet Archive) - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FACTORY *** - - - - - - Transcriber’s Note - Italic text displayed as: _italic_ - - - - -By Jonathan Thayer Lincoln - - - THE FACTORY. - THE CITY OF THE DINNER-PAIL. - - - HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY - BOSTON AND NEW YORK - - - - -THE FACTORY - - - - - THE FACTORY - - BY - JONATHAN THAYER LINCOLN - - - [Illustration: decoration] - - - BOSTON AND NEW YORK - HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY - The Riverside Press Cambridge - 1912 - - - - - COPYRIGHT, 1912, BY JONATHAN THAYER LINCOLN - - ALL RIGHTS RESERVED - - _Published January 1912_ - - - - -TO MY FATHER - - - - -NOTE - - -This essay is based upon a course of lectures delivered before the -Amos Tuck School of Administration and Finance associated with -Dartmouth College. These lectures were subsequently printed in _The -Mediator_, a magazine published in Cleveland, Ohio, and devoted to -establishing a better social understanding between the man who buys -and the man who sells labor. - - - - -BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE - - -In preparing the historical part of this essay I have consulted many -authorities, and in particular I have made free use of the following -works. - -DEFOE, Daniel - - A plan for the English Commerce, London, 1728. - -BAINES, Edward - - History of the Cotton Manufacture in Great Britain. London, 1835. - -GUEST, Richard - - A Compendious History of the Cotton Manufacture. Manchester, 1823. - - The Theory and Practice of Cotton Spinning. Glasgow, 1833. - -URE, Andrew, M.D. - - The Philosophy of Manufactures. London, 1835. - -BABBAGE, Charles - - On the Economy of Machinery and Manufactures. London, 1822. - -CARLYLE, Thomas - - Essay on Chartism. - -TAYLOR, Richard Whately Cooke- - - The Modern Factory System. London, 1891. - -ABRAM, Annie - - Social England in the Fifteenth Century. London, 1909. - -Among the many articles printed in the periodical press the following -from the _Quarterly Review_ are especially helpful. - - Vol. XLI, 1829. Condition of the English Peasantry. - - Vol. LVII, 1836. The Factory System. - - Vol. LXVII, 1841. Infant Labour. - - - - -CONTENTS - - - I. The Industrial Revolution 3 - - II. Sir Richard Arkwright 16 - - III. Mechanical Inventions 30 - - IV. The Factory System 46 - - V. The Factory Towns 64 - - VI. Chartism 85 - - VII. The Factory and Social Progress 99 - - - - -INTRODUCTION - - -As you approach the City of the Dinner Pail from the west, the blue -waters of the harbor lie between you and the towering factories which -line the opposite shore. By day the factories are not attractive -to the eye, their massive granite walls, prison-like and unlovely, -suggest only the sordid side of toil,—the long day’s confinement of -twenty-seven thousand men and women amidst the monotonous roar of -grinding wheels. But should you thus approach the city late on a -winter afternoon the scene is marvelously changed; the myriad lights -of the factories shine through the early darkness, transforming -prison-walls into fairy palaces, castles of enchantment reflected -with mysterious beauty in the deep waters of the bay. There is -no suggestion now of sordid toil, the factory walls have become -ramparts of light and speak of some romantic story. - -Realism and romance lie very near together, and we shall find the -factory, when we come to study the history of it, something more than -granite walls and grinding machinery; the factory, indeed, has been -an important instrument in the upward progress of mankind. There is -an ugly side to the story, especially in the beginning, for when the -craftsmen of the world were transformed into factory operatives, -thousands suffered a degree of poverty never known before, and many -perished in the transition to the new system of manufacturing; but in -the end that system revolutionized the whole social order, gave to -toil its rightful dignity, and, creating a new loyalty to the cause -of labor, became an element in the development of modern democracy. -It is this brighter side of the story that we have now to consider. - - - - -THE FACTORY - - - - -THE FACTORY - - - - -I - -THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION - - -In the fifteenth century the wealth of England, which until then had -been made up chiefly of raw products, was greatly increased by the -introduction of manufactures, the most important being the making -of cloth. Previous to this first extension of industry, it had been -impossible for the toiler to rise out of his class except by becoming -a priest or a soldier; but with the increase of manufactures wealth -became a means of social advancement, and thus industry not only -tended to break down the feudal order by tempting serfs away from -their masters, but the wealth created by manufactures became an -important element in the creation of the middle class. - -The sudden and extensive introduction of machinery at the close of -the eighteenth century drove hand labor out of employment, and, for -a time, caused great suffering among the masses; but in the end it -created an ever increasing demand for labor—a new labor more skillful -than the old. Moreover, it concentrated the laboring population in -great centres of industry, thus creating a class consciousness which -demanded that attention should be given to the rights of labor, -created a new ideal of the dignity of toil and gave to the world that -vision of the inclusive cause of labor which was destined to advance -in a marvelous way to the social progress of mankind. - -Slavery had been abolished in England long before the Industrial -Revolution, and yet, in the first quarter of the last century men -in chains worked in the British coal-mines and were bought and -sold when the property changed hands. For generations before the -Industrial Revolution, the lord of the manor had ceased to demand -the labor of the villein as his due, but while serfdom had been -abolished, the traditions of it still remained; and it was not until -the establishment of the factory that labor became free in fact as -for generations it had been in name. - -The historical event, that great movement which led in our generation -to a complete reconstruction of the social order, we call the -“Industrial Revolution of the Eighteenth Century.” It was an -extremely complex event, originating in economic, political, and -social conditions; but while it was the consequence of many causes, -it derived its chief influence in the beginning from a series of -remarkable inventions in the art of making textile fabrics. - -This art is as old as civilization, originating when men, advancing -from barbarism, put aside the skins of beasts for raiment of their -own making; but from the days of the first rude distaff and the -simple bamboo loom until the time so recently past when, by a series -of the most brilliant inventions known to any craft, the art was -revolutionized, the implements remained unchanged. Up to the year -1769 the machines in use in the manufacture of cotton cloth in -England were practically the same as those which for centuries had -been employed in India. There were no factories as there are to-day: -the cotton was spun and woven into cloth by hand, and both the -spinning and the weaving were done in the cottages of the craftsmen. - -The first of these inventions was a simple one, but it made necessary -all that followed. From the beginning of the art, one man could -weave into cloth all the yarn that several spinners could produce. -Indeed, it was seldom that a weaver’s family, his wife and children -all working at the spinning wheel, could supply sufficient weft for -his loom; and this difficulty was increased by the invention of the -fly-shuttle in the year 1738. This invention, made by John Kay, -consisted in giving motion to the shuttle by a mechanical device -which saved time and exertion to the weaver and nearly doubled the -daily product of his loom. The increased demand for yarn led to -many experiments, and at last a machine was produced upon which -many threads could be spun by a single pair of hands: the water -frame commonly attributed to Richard Arkwright. With this important -invention came many others in the same field, making famous the names -of Hargreaves, Crompton, and Cartwright. - -The moment it became possible to accomplish by machinery what -formerly had been done entirely by hand, the first effect was to -increase the productive power of the workman and thus to add vastly -to the wealth of the nation, and secondly, to gather into the -factories the craftsmen who had formerly worked in their homes. - -In the beginning of the eighteenth century the textile manufacturing -of England was carried on by craftsmen dwelling in the rural -districts, the master clothiers living in the greater towns, sending -out wool to be spun into yarn which, returned to them prepared for -the loom, was re-distributed among other hand workers in other -cottages. The Lancashire weaver worked in his cottage surrounded by -a bit of land, and generally combined small farming with domestic -manufacturing. Sometimes a single family performed all the labor, -the wife and daughters working at carding and spinning, the father -operating the loom; sometimes other craftsmen joined the household -and worked as members of one family. The extent of mercantile -establishments and the modes of doing business were very different -from what they were soon to become. It is quite true that a limited -number of individuals had, in previous ages, made fortunes by trade, -but until the very end of the seventeenth century the capital in the -hands of British merchants was small. Because of the bad condition -of the roads and the lack of inland navigation, goods were conveyed -by pack horses with which the Manchester chapmen traveled through -the principal towns, selling their goods to the shopkeepers, or at -the public fairs, and bringing back sheep’s wool to be sold to the -clothiers of the manufacturing districts. - -In the writings of modern socialists we find the domestic system held -up for admiration as the ideal method of production. The dreamers -look back regretfully to the days when manufactures were combined -with farming, and they quote from Goldsmith’s _Deserted Village_. -Let us, however, turn to a more prosaic but more trustworthy -account, which is to be found in Daniel Defoe’s _Plan of the English -Commerce_. The author is writing enthusiastically in praise of -English manufactures, and, having pointed out how in the unemployed -counties women and children are seen idle and out of business, the -women sitting at their doors, the children playing in the street, he -continues: “Whereas, in the manufacturing counties, you see the wheel -going almost at every door, the wool and yarn hanging up at every -window; the looms, the winders, the combers, the carders, the dyers, -the dressers all busy; and the very children as well as the women -constantly employed ... indeed there is not a poor child in the town -above the age of four but can earn his own bread.” - -When we come to study the brutalizing social conditions which -obtained in the manufacturing towns following the establishment of -the factory, we shall do well to keep in mind these words written by -an eighteenth century student in praise of the domestic system; when -we hear the socialists declare that the factory created wage slavery, -let us remember this earlier and more monstrous slavery. - -Richard Arkwright, the inventor of the spinning-frame, was a man of -great genius. Endowed with the inventive faculty, and even more with -the ability to perfect the inventions of others, he possessed as well -extraordinary executive ability, and having brought his spinning -machinery to the point of practical efficiency, he organized the -modern factory system as the means of obtaining the highest results -from the new mechanisms. The spinning frame was too cumbersome to be -operated in the cottage, and, moreover, it required a greater power -to operate it than that of the human hand, so Arkwright built his -first factory which was run by horse power, and from this beginning -was evolved the factory as we know it to-day. But important as were -the inventions in cotton manufacture, the factory would never have -become the mighty power that it is, except for the steam engine; and -it is interesting to note that in the same year in which Arkwright -took out his patent for spinning by rollers, Watt invented his -device for lessening the consumption of fuel in fire engines, that -epoch-making invention by means of which the factory system as -perfected by Arkwright was to become the material basis of modern -life. - -Like the Renaissance, the Industrial Revolution was a movement -destined to change the very course of human thought. Mechanical -invention contributed to the force of the earlier movement—the -invention of printing and of the mariner’s compass—so that side by -side with the scholars restoring to the world its lost heritage of -learning, craftsmen and sailors played their parts in printing the -books by which the learning was disseminated, and in manning the -ships that discovered new continents. The Renaissance, however, was -essentially an intellectual movement to which mechanical invention -was merely an aid, while the Industrial Revolution was due in an -important measure to machinery. The movement began in the cotton -industry, but soon a similar expansion occurred in all other -manufactures. Machinery made possible a vast production; and the -steam engine, first applied to manufacture, later became the means of -distributing the commodities. - -The Industrial Revolution, thus springing from the sudden growth in -the use of machinery, occasioned not only economic but political -and social results. On the economic side, the effect was to extend -old industries and to create new ones, as well as to revolutionize -the methods of the production and distribution of wealth. On the -social side it created new classes of men, breaking down the barriers -of ancient feudalism, and on the political side it led to the -enfranchisement of the working classes. The Industrial Revolution -accomplished for England what the political revolution did for -France, but by more peaceful means. Yet not alone in France was -the event achieved in blood—for the Factory as well as the Terror -had its victims. The history of the factory is no dry summary of -patent rights and inventions, inventories of cotton and cotton -goods, abstracts of ledgers, journals, cash-books, and pay-rolls,—it -is a human story,—_laissez-faire_, over-production, enlightened -selfishness, were no abstract terms, but vital human problems. - -Because the Industrial Revolution profoundly influenced the social -and political life of England, and later of the whole world, the -history of the factory, which contributed so much to its influence, -becomes of vast importance. The first chapter relates to brilliant -achievements in the field of mechanical invention. Then follows the -dismal story of how a multitude of craftsmen were transformed into -factory operatives—the untold suffering of oppressed workingmen. -Later we see the English yeoman replaced by the master manufacturer -who soon became a force in the political life of the nation, finding -his way into Parliament and even into the Peerage. For the common -people the revolution began with great suffering, but ended in -opening new avenues for their social and political advancement. -Antagonistic in the beginning to the welfare of the masses, it aided -powerfully, in the end, the fulfillment of those ideals of liberty, -equality, and fraternity which at that moment had taken such a mighty -hold upon the thoughts of men. - - - - -II - -SIR RICHARD ARKWRIGHT - - -The _Shaving of Shagpat_, that remarkable allegory with the writing -of which George Meredith commenced his literary career, has been -given several interpretations; without seriously venturing another, -it has seemed to me that this fanciful story deals with the chief -events in the Industrial Revolution. - -“So there was feasting in the hall and in the city, and over earth”: -we read towards the end of the tale, “great pledging the sovereign -of Barbers, who had mastered an event and become the benefactor of -his craft and of his kind. ’Tis sure the race of Bagarags endured for -many centuries, and his seed were the rulers of men, and the seal of -their empire stamped on mighty wax the Tackle of Barbers.” - -Shibli Bagarag,—could he not well have been Richard Arkwright, the -barber, inventor of the spinning-frame, master of an event? In -Shagpat the Clothier, we discover the smug and comfortable British -aristocracy; in the Identical, that magic hair in Shagpat’s beard -which gave him a position of power greater even than the King, we -observe Feudal Privilege; the sword of Aklis, with the steel of which -the Identical was cut, may well stand for the factory, a weapon -gained after many trials by Arkwright, so that of him it might be -written as it was of Shibli Bagarag: “Thou, even thou will be master -of the event, so named in anecdotes, and histories, and records, to -all succeeding generations.” - -Richard Arkwright, who first saw the light of day at Preston on the -23d of December, 1732, was the youngest of thirteen children born -to humble parents, and he grew to manhood without education, being -barely able to read and write. At an early age he was apprenticed -to a Preston barber and when he became a journeyman he established -himself in the same business. - -Fate was in a jesting mood when she decreed that the chief actor in -that remarkable social drama, the Industrial Revolution, should be a -penny barber; and we may wonder if the governing classes appreciated -the irony, when twenty years later, in recognition of his genius, the -barber was raised to the honor of knighthood and his lady privileged -to walk before the wives of the untitled gentry. - -Richard Arkwright, at the age of twenty-eight, was not content day -after day to shave the stolid faces of lower class Englishmen, but, -having gained a knowledge of a chemical process for dyeing human -hair, he commenced to make wigs for upper class Englishmen—wigs -dyed to suit any complexion. This occupation took him away from the -barber’s chair and sent him traveling about the country. On such a -tour in 1761, he met a lady in the city of Leigh,—Margaret Biggins -was her name,—and he married her; and in the same city at a somewhat -later date he heard of certain experiments which had been made by a -man named High in constructing a machine for spinning yarn. He gained -this secret from a clock-maker named Kay, with whom he afterwards -formed a partnership, by getting Kay—so the gossips said—loquaciously -drunk at a public-house. Concerning his wife, history has little to -say except that she quarreled with him because of the interest he -took in High’s machine; and commencing to make experiments on his own -account he became so absorbed in his workshop that his lady, fearing -that they might be thrown upon the parish for support, begged him to -return to his razor, and because he refused smashed the first model -of the spinning-machine and thus precipitated a tremendous family -row. - -Arkwright is commonly credited with the invention of spinning by -rollers, but while to him is undoubtedly due the success of that -invention he did not originate it. The inventor of that ingenious -process was neither Arkwright nor High, but John Wyatt of Birmingham, -who in 1738 took out a patent in the name of Lewis Paul. In 1741 or -1742 these two men set up in Birmingham a mill “turned by two asses -walking around an axis,” and in which ten girls were employed; while -later a larger mill containing two hundred and fifty spindles and -giving employment to twenty-five operatives was built. Wyatt wrote a -pamphlet entitled, _A Systematic Essay on the Business of Spinning_, -in which he showed the great profits which would attend the -establishment of a plant of three hundred spindles. Wyatt’s factory, -however, did not prosper and it seems probable that his machinery -also passed into the hands of Arkwright. - -It was in the year 1767 that Hargreaves invented the spinning-jenny, -and two years later Arkwright took out his patent claiming that he -had “by great study and long application invented a new piece of -machinery, never before found out, practiced or used, for the making -of weft or yarn from cotton, flax, and wool; which would be of great -utility to a great many manufacturers, as well as to His Majesty’s -subjects in general, by employing a great number of poor people in -working the said machinery and in making the said weft or yarn much -superior in quality to any heretofore manufactured or made.” However -lacking in originality this famous invention may have been, however -great may have been the debt which Arkwright owed to Wyatt and Paul, -to John Kay and to High, nevertheless, to him belongs all the credit -of the first successful introduction of spinning by machinery. - -Having obtained this patent, Arkwright found himself without the -capital necessary for carrying out his plans; and he returned to -his native city of Preston and there applied to a friend, Mr. -John Smalley, a liquor merchant, for assistance. So reduced were -his circumstances at this time that going to vote at a contested -election, which occurred during his visit to Preston, his wardrobe -was in so tattered a condition that a number of his friends advanced -the money to purchase decent clothes in which he might appear in -the poll-room; and once during this period he having applied for -pecuniary aid to a Mr. Atherton, that gentleman refused to entertain -Arkwright’s plan because of the rags in which the inventor was -dressed. - -It was in Preston, then, that Arkwright first fitted up his perfected -spinning machine, in the parlor of a house belonging to the free -grammar school. Here Arkwright successfully demonstrated the -utility of his invention and first received financial support. In -consequence of the riots which had taken place in the neighborhood -of Blackburn on the invention of Hargreaves’s spinning-jenny, by -which many of the machines were destroyed and the inventor driven -from his native county to Nottingham, Arkwright and Smalley, fearing -similar outrages, also went to Nottingham accompanied by John Kay, -the loquacious clock-maker; so that Nottingham became the cradle of -the two great inventions in cotton spinning. Here, Arkwright also -applied for aid to the Messrs. Wright, Bankers, who made advances on -the condition that they should share in the profits of the invention; -but as the machine was not perfected as soon as they had hoped they -withdrew their support and he turned to Mr. Samuel Need, a partner of -Jedidiah Strutt, the inventor of the stocking frame. Strutt examined -Arkwright’s mechanism, declared it to be an admirable invention, -and the two men of wealth agreed to a partnership with the Preston -barber; and a mill was erected at Nottingham. - -It was an unpretentious establishment, that first little cotton mill; -it gave employment to not more than a dozen operatives, and the -machinery was turned not by a great steam engine, but by a pair of -patient horses harnessed to a treadmill,—yet it contained the germ of -the modern factory and the modern factory system. Later, Arkwright -built another and larger factory at Cromford in Derbyshire, driven by -water power—from which circumstance his spinning-machine came to be -called the water-frame. - -The cotton industry of England which Arkwright established developed -slowly; in the five years, ending with 1775, the annual import of -cotton into Great Britain was only four times the average import at -the beginning of the century. But when in the year 1785 Arkwright’s -patent was finally set aside and his spinning machinery became -public property, a great extension of cotton manufacture followed, -accompanied by a marvelous national prosperity. Arkwright, although -deprived of his monopoly, was by this time so firmly established in -the industry that he remained the dominant figure in the yarn market, -fixing the price of the commodity for all other spinners; and thus he -accumulated a great fortune. - -While Arkwright was without doubt perfectly familiar with the -experiments of both Wyatt and High, nevertheless it was the Preston -barber and not the original inventors who first produced yarn fit -for weaving. It is proverbial that inventors seldom reap the harvest -of wealth which they sow; they are the dreamers and their reward is -in beholding a perfected mechanism—their work of art. So it was with -Wyatt and High. They dreamed of spindles turned by power and saw -their spindles turn; but Arkwright dreamed of a nation made rich -and powerful by these same inventions, and he, too, lived to see his -dream come true. - -Sir Richard Arkwright possessed all the qualities essential -to success—tireless energy, enthusiasm, perseverance, and -self-confidence. He believed in himself and so he compelled others -to believe in him. His usual working day began at five o’clock in -the morning and did not end until nine at night; when he was fifty -years of age he lengthened this day by two hours, which he devoted -to acquiring the education denied him in his youth. He had unbounded -confidence in the success of his adventures and was accustomed to say -that he would pay the national debt—an interesting circumstance, for -surely by his genius the national debt was paid many times over. - -In the year 1786 he was appointed high sheriff of Derbyshire, and -when about that time the King narrowly escaped assassination at the -hands of Margaret Nicholson, Arkwright, having presented an address -of congratulation from his county to the King, received the honor -of knighthood. He died on the 3d of August, 1792, at the age of -sixty. The _Annual Register_ recording that event says not so much -as a single word concerning Arkwright’s masterful genius which even -then had set in motion a mighty social revolution. It mentions only -the great fortune which he had acquired as a manufacturer of cotton -yarn,—so difficult it is for the critic to place a true value on the -life work of a contemporary. - -As you approach the City of the Dinner Pail from the west and -gaze across the blue waters of the harbor, the eye rests upon the -towering factories which line the opposite shore. Within those -walls twenty-seven thousand men and women living in a degree of -comfort never known before to the spinners and weavers of the world, -earn their daily bread. Those towering factories are, every one, -monuments to the genius of Richard Arkwright, the penny barber of -Preston. If he appropriated the inventions of others, he perfected -these inventions and made them of permanent value to mankind; and -moreover, he arranged the machinery into series, organized the -factory system, and revolutionized industry. - -Says Carlyle: “Richard Arkwright, it would seem, was not a beautiful -man; no romance hero with haughty eyes, Apollo lip, and gesture like -the herald Mercury; a plain, almost gross, bag-cheeked, pot-bellied -Lancashire man, with an air of painful reflection, yet also of -copious free digestion;—a man stationed by the community to shave -certain dusty beards in the northern parts of England at halfpenny -each.... Nevertheless, in strapping razors, in lathering of dusty -beards, and the contradictions and confusions attendant thereon the -man had notions in that rough head of his; spindles, shuttles, -wheels and contrivances plying ideally within the same, rather -hopeless looking, which, however, he did at last bring to bear. Not -without great difficulty! his townsfolk rose in mob against him, -for threatening to shorten labor, to shorten wages; so that he had -to fly, with broken wash pots, scattered household, and seek refuge -elsewhere. Nay, his wife, too, rebelled; burned his wooden model of -his spinning wheel; resolute that he should stick to his razors, -rather;—for which, however, he decisively, as thou wilt rejoice to -understand, packed her out of doors. Oh! reader, what a Historical -Phenomenon is that bag-cheeked, pot-bellied, much-enduring, -much-inventing barber! French revolutions were a-brewing, to resist -the same in any measure, Imperial Kaisers were impotent without the -cotton and cloth of England; and it was this man who gave to England -the power of cotton.” - - - - -III - -MECHANICAL INVENTIONS - - -A distinction should be made between the factory and the factory -system. The latter was not new to England, having been employed -during the Roman occupation; and with the introduction of the -woolen industry under Edward III, we again find the factory system -established on an extensive scale. - -John Winchcombe, commonly called Jack of Newbury, who died about the -year 1520, made use of the factory system on a very extensive scale. -In Fuller’s _Worthies_ you may read how he “was the most considerable -clothier without fancy or fiction England ever beheld,” and how “his -looms were his lands, whereof he kept one hundred in his house, -each managed by a man and a boy.” Jack of Newbury was celebrated in -a metrical romance, and the following lines taken from it contain an -interesting description of his famous industrial establishment. - - “Within one room, being large and long, - There stood two hundred looms full strong: - Two hundred men the truth is so, - Wrought in these looms all in a row; - By every one a pretty boy - Sat making quills with mickle joy. - And in another place hard by - A hundred women merily - Were carding hard with joyful cheer - Who, singing sat with voices clear; - And in a chamber close beside - Two hundred maidens did abide, - - * * * * * - - These pretty maids did never lin - But in their place all day did spin: - - * * * * * - - Then to another room came they - Where children were in poor array, - And every one sat picking wool, - The finest from the coarse to cull: - The number was seven score and ten - The children of poor silly men, - Within another place likewise - Full fifty proper men he spied, - And these were sheer men every one, - Whose skill and cunning there was shown: - - * * * * * - - A dyehouse likewise he had then - Wherein he kept full forty men: - And also in his fulling mill, - Full twenty persons kept he still.” - -Here, indeed, we have the factory system—in which the division of -labor is a conspicuous feature—employed with all its modern details; -but not the steam-driven factory, building great cities and changing -the whole social life of the kingdom. - -The original mode of converting cotton into yarn was by the use of -distaff and spindle, a method still employed in the remote parts of -India. The distaff is a wooden rod to which a bundle of cotton is -tied loosely at one end, and which the spinner holds between the left -arm and the body while with his right hand he draws out and twists -the cotton into a thread. This simple process is the basis of all the -complicated spinning machinery in use at the present time. - -In a modern cotton factory there are three departments of labor, -carding, spinning, and weaving; and we have now to consider briefly -these three processes. The purpose of carding is to clean the -cotton and lay the fibres in a uniform direction. This was at first -accomplished by hand, the implement employed being little different -from an ordinary comb; later an improved device was used consisting -of a pair of large wire brushes. This, we must observe, was a -primitive operation, and the amount of cotton which one person could -thus prepare for spinning was very small. - -We have already seen that the invention of the fly-shuttle so -increased the demand for yarn that ingenious men were induced to -make mechanical experiments for the purpose of supplying this -demand—experiments which, in the end, led to the invention of the -spinning-frame. The spinning-frame, in turn, increased the demand for -carded cotton and skillful mechanics again set about to meet this new -requirement, and the result was the building of the carding-engine. -This invention was not made at once, nor by any particular -individual; but was the result of a number of improvements made -at different times and by different persons. One of these men was -Thomas High, the inventor of the spinning-jenny; another was James -Hargreaves who so improved the jenny that he is commonly called the -inventor of it; and finally, Richard Arkwright himself took the crude -machine devised by these men and perfected it. Thus it came about -that the modern carding-engine as well as the spinning-frame, was -made of practical value by this much-enduring, much-inventing barber. - -The invention of the fly-shuttle, as we have seen, led to an -increased demand for yarn, and this demand was further augmented -about the year 1760 when the Manchester merchants began to export -cotton goods in considerable quantities to Italy, Germany, and the -North American colonies. It was then no uncommon thing for a weaver -to walk three or four miles in the morning, and call on five or six -spinners, before he could collect yarn enough to serve him for the -remainder of the day. - -Ingenious mechanics set about the task of producing more yarn. The -first of these was Thomas High, a reed maker, residing in the town of -Leigh, who engaged one Kay, a clock-maker, and this is the same Kay -who was afterwards employed by Arkwright to make the wheels and other -apparatus for a spinning-machine. This machine was set up in the -garret of High’s house. Now, Thomas High had a daughter who watched -with keen interest the progress of his experiments—her name was -Jane—and in honor of her he called the machine the spinning-jenny. -It is commonly stated—even in so authoritative a history as Baines’s -we find the error—that the credit for the original invention of -the spinning-jenny is due to Hargreaves, he having made the first -machine in 1767. But Guest has shown quite conclusively by the sworn -statement of one Thomas Leather, a neighbor of High, that the latter -completed a similar machine in 1764. - -However this may be, James Hargreaves, a weaver of Stand-Hill, near -Blackburn, perfected the original jenny and made it a practical -working machine so that history has quite justly named him the -author. From the first Hargreaves was aware of the value of his -invention, but not having the ambition to obtain a patent he kept the -machine as secret as possible, using it only to spin yarn for his own -weaving. An unprotected invention of such importance, however, could -not remain long the private property of a single weaver, and soon -a knowledge of his achievement spread throughout the neighborhood; -but instead of gaining admiration and gratitude for Hargreaves, the -spinners raised the cry that the invention would throw multitudes out -of employment and a mob broke into his house and destroyed his jenny. - -After this, Hargreaves moved to Nottingham, where, with a Mr. Thomas -James, he raised sufficient capital to erect a small mill; here he -took out a patent in 1770,—one year after Arkwright had patented the -water-frame. Before leaving Lancashire, Hargreaves made and sold to -other weavers a number of jennies; and in spite of all opposition the -importance of the invention led to its general use. - -A desperate effort was made in 1779, during a period of distress, -to put down the machine. A mob scoured the country for miles around -Blackburn demolishing jennies and with them all carding-engines, -water-frames, and other machinery; but the rioters spared the -jennies which had only twenty spindles, as these were by this time -admitted to be useful to the craftsmen. Not only the working classes, -but the middle and even the upper classes entertained at this time a -profound dread of machinery. The result of these riots was to drive -spinners and other capitalists from the neighborhood of Blackburn to -Manchester, increasing the importance of that rapidly growing town -which was destined to become the world centre of the cotton industry. - -The story of this early opposition to the introduction of machinery -deserves attention not only as an interesting episode in the history -of the factory, but because even to-day a similar opposition comes to -the surface with each new improvement in the method of manufacture. -It is also an interesting fact that Lord Byron made his maiden -speech in the House of Lords in opposition to the Nottingham Riot -Bills, introduced into Parliament for the protection of owners of -machinery. There were two of these bills, one “for the more exemplary -punishment of persons destroying or injurying any stocking- or -lace-frames, or other machines or engines used in the frame-work -knitting manufactory, or any articles or goods in such frames or -machines”; the other “for the more effectual preservation of the -peace within the county of Nottingham.” - -These two bills were the result of rioting among the lacemakers of -this county and their object was to increase the penalty for breaking -machinery, from transportation to death, to permit the appointment of -special constables in times of disturbance, and to establish watch -and ward throughout the disturbed parts. These bills and the debates -upon them throw a strong light upon the extent of the disturbances, -and indicate the attitude of the government, at that time, toward the -laboring poor. - -The important inventions in carding and spinning led to a rapid -advance in cotton manufacture; the new machines not only turned off a -greater quantity of yarn than had been produced by hand, but the yarn -was also of a superior quality. The water-frame spun a hard, firm -yarn, well adapted for warps, while the jenny produced a soft yarn -suitable for spinning weft; but the yarn produced on neither of these -machines could be advantageously used for making the finer qualities -of goods. - -This defect in the spinning-machinery was remedied by still another -device called the mule jenny, but now termed simply the mule, -so named because it combined the principles of both Arkwright’s -water-frame and Hargreaves’ jenny. The mule was invented by Samuel -Crompton, a weaver living at Hall-in-the-Wood near Bolton. He -commenced his experiments in 1774, but it was five years before -he completed the machine. Crompton took out no patent and only -regretted that public curiosity would not allow him to keep his -little invention for himself. The mule was first known as the -Hall-in-the-Wood wheel, then as the muslin wheel because it made yarn -sufficiently fine for weaving that fabric, and finally by its present -name. - -As the inventor made no effort to secure a patent, the mule became -public property, and was generally adopted by manufacturers, but -Crompton himself received no other reward than a grant of five -thousand pounds voted him by Parliament in 1812. Although his means -were small, he was always in easy circumstances, until the latter -part of his life, when, being no longer able to work, he was reduced -to poverty. Certain manufacturers who had profited by his invention -then subscribed for the purchase of a life annuity, to which fund -foreign as well as English spinners contributed. Crompton died on -January 26, 1827. - -Having considered the inventions in the art of spinning, we now turn -to the power loom built in 1785 by the Reverend Edmund Cartwright, -of Hollander House, Kent. A loom moved by water power had been -contrived as early as the seventeenth century by one De Gennes, and -described as “a new engine to make linen cloth without the help of -an artificer.” But the machine never came into general use; and in -about the middle of the eighteenth century there is record of another -power loom, also a French invention, which suffered a similar fate. -Describing his own loom Cartwright says that in the summer of 1784 he -fell in company with some gentlemen of Manchester who were discussing -Arkwright’s spinning-machinery. One of the company observed that, as -soon as Arkwright’s patents expired, so many mills would be erected -and so much cotton spun that hands could not be found to weave it. - -To this observation the ingenious clergyman replied that Arkwright -should set his wits to work to invent a weaving-mill. But the -Manchester gentlemen unanimously agreed that the thing was -impractical. Cartwright argued, however, that, having seen exhibited -in London an automaton figure which played at chess, he did not -believe it more difficult to construct a machine which would weave. -He kept this conversation in mind and later employed a carpenter and -a blacksmith to carry his ideas into effect. Thus he built a loom -which, to his own delight, produced a piece of cloth. The machine, -however, required two powerful men to work it, but Cartwright, who -was entirely unfamiliar with the art of weaving, believed that he had -accomplished all that was required, and on the 4th of April, 1785, -he secured a patent. It was only then that he commenced to study the -method by which the craftsmen wove cloth, and he was astonished when -he compared the easy working of the hand loom with his own ponderous -engine. Profiting by his study, however, he produced a loom which in -its general principles is precisely the same as the looms used to-day. - -Thus was invented the machinery of the cotton mill; but there -remains to be considered the one other contrivance without which the -vast extension of manufactures would have been impossible and the -manufacturing towns, which we are about to consider, would never have -attained the size and importance which enabled them to become factors -in the political life of England. I refer to the steam engine. - -In 1763, James Watt was employed in repairing a model of Newcomen’s -steam engine, and, noting certain basic defects, undertook to remedy -them. He perceived the vast possibilities of a properly constructed -engine and, after years of patient labor he gave to the world the -mighty power of steam. Previous to this time, and indeed until the -year 1782, the steam engine had been used almost exclusively to pump -water out of mines, but with Watt’s improvements it became possible -for the engine to give rotary motion to machinery. - -The first cotton mill to install a steam engine made by -Boulton and Watt was the one owned by the Messrs. Robinson in -Nottinghamshire—this was about the year 1785. Two years earlier, -Arkwright had made use of an atmospheric engine in his Manchester -factory, but it was not until 1789 that an improved steam engine was -set up in that city and it was a year later when Arkwright adopted -the device. - -The invention of spinning-machinery created the cotton manufacture of -England, but the industry would never have reached the proportions -which it presently did except for the genius of Watt. - - - - -IV - -THE FACTORY SYSTEM - - -When the cotton manufacture was in its infancy, all the operations, -from dressing the raw material to folding the finished fabric, were -completed under the roof of the weaver’s cottage. With Arkwright’s -invention it became the custom to spin the yarn in factories and -weave it by hand in cottages. With the invention of the power loom, -it again became the practice to perform all the processes in a single -building. - -The weaver’s cottage, then, with its rude apparatus of peg warping, -hand cards, spinning-wheels, and wooden looms, was the steam -factory in miniature; but the amount of labor performed in a single -factory was as great as that which formerly gave occupation to the -inhabitants of an entire district. A good hand-loom weaver could -produce two pieces of shirtings each week; by 1823, a power-loom -weaver produced seven such pieces in the same time. - -A factory containing two hundred looms was operated by one -hundred persons who wove seven hundred pieces a week, and it was -estimated that under the domestic system at least eight hundred and -seventy-five looms would have been required to weave this amount of -cloth, because the women of the household had their home duties to -perform while the men were required to devote a considerable portion -of their time to farming. It was therefore further estimated that -the work done in a steam factory containing two hundred looms would, -if performed by hand, give employment and support to a population of -more than two thousand persons. It is interesting here to note, that, -whereas a hand-loom weaver could produce two pieces of shirtings -a week, an ordinary weaver is now able to turn off eight or ten -pieces of equal length every ten hours; so that a modern weave room -containing two hundred power looms operated by twenty-five weavers -represents the labor of a community of sixty thousand craftsmen, -their wives and their children. A population of thirty million would -be required to perform by hand the work now produced by the Fall -River factories alone. - -“Watt,” said a celebrated French engineer, “improves the steam -engine, and this single improvement causes the industry of England -to make an immense stride. This machine, at the present time [about -1830], represents the power of three hundred thousand horses or -of two million men, strong and well fitted for labor, who should -work night and day without an interruption and without repose.... -A hairdresser invents, or at least brings into action, a machine -for spinning cotton; this alone gives the British industry immense -superiority. Fifty years only, after this great discovery, more than -one million of the inhabitants of England are employed in those -operations which depend, directly or indirectly, on the action of -this machine. Lastly, England exports cotton, spun and woven by an -admirable system of machinery, to the value of four hundred million -francs yearly.... The British navigator travels in quest of the -cotton of India, brings it from a distance of four thousand leagues, -commits it to an operation of the machines of Arkwright, carries back -their products to the East, making them again to travel four thousand -leagues, and in spite of the loss of time—in spite of the enormous -expense incurred by this voyage of eight thousand leagues, the cotton -manufactured by the machinery of England becomes less costly than the -cotton of India, spun and woven by hand near the field that produced -it, and sold at the nearest market. So great is the power of the -progress of machinery.” - -Two distinct systems of production preceded the factory. First, -the system of isolated handicraft labor, and second, the system of -cottage industry, which we have already considered and in which the -several members of a family participated,—this, too, was handicraft. -The craftsman, as we have seen, worked with his family in his own -cottage; he owned his loom and the other simple machinery necessary -for the production of cloth, and either he owned his raw material or -received it from the master manufacturer to be returned in the form -of finished fabric. But in either case, the craftsman was his own -master and sold cloth not labor. - -With the establishment of the factory, these conditions were -completely changed. The master manufacturer not only owned the -factory building and the machinery, but he owned the raw material. -Moreover to him the operative sold his labor which thereby became -a commodity quite as completely as the cotton he wove into cloth. -This latter circumstance is important because it became the source -of the vast social discontent which, in the end, aided powerfully in -revolutionizing the structure of British society. - -To the consideration of this event we shall soon return. For the -moment we must consider briefly the most characteristic distinction -in the process of manufacture under the new system—the extension of -the principle of division of labor. - -The principle itself was in no wise new, for the first application -of it was made in a very early stage in the evolution of society. At -the very dawn of civilization it must have become apparent that more -comforts and conveniences could be acquired by one man restricting -his occupation to a single craft—and the development of independent -arts was in itself a division of labor. The same principle was then -carried into the different trades, and at last we find it fully -developed in the cottage system of industry. Thus we find carding, -spinning, and weaving carried on by separate members of the family. -Carding and spinning, which required less bodily strength, was -performed by the women, while the more laborious work of weaving was -given over to the men. With the establishment of the factory and the -introduction of machinery, means were supplied by which this system -could attain its highest development. - -The advantages resulting from the division of labor are evident. When -the whole work in any art is executed by one person, that person -must possess sufficient skill to perform the most difficult, and -sufficient strength to perform the most laborious, of the processes; -but by employing a division of labor several persons may be kept at -work executing that part of the whole for which he is best fitted. - -The further advantages may be most briefly stated in the familiar -words of Adam Smith: “The great increase in the quantity of work, -which, in consequence of the division of labor, the same number -of people are capable of performing, is owing to three different -circumstances: first, to the increase of dexterity in every -particular workingman; secondly, to the saving of time, which is -commonly lost in passing from one species of work to another, -and, lastly, to the invention of a great number of machines which -facilitate and abridge labor and enable one man to do the work of -many.” - -It should be noted that the factory was, in the beginning, not the -creation of capital, but of labor. The early master manufacturers -were risen workingmen. Sir Richard Arkwright, the creator of the -factory, the man who dominated industrial activities in the first -great period of expansion, was a penny barber; but he died a Knight -Bachelor with an income greater than that of many a prince. The -process of social elevation by means of trade began back in the -fifteenth century with the first extension of manufactures. By the -beginning of the eighteenth century it was possible to name five -hundred great estates within a hundred miles of London, which, at -no remote time, had been possessions of the ancient English gentry, -but had later been bought up by tradesmen and manufacturers. The -ancestors of these new landed proprietors had been, less than three -hundred years before, not soldiers, but serfs. - -Moreover, generations before the establishment of the factory, -important towns had been raised by manufactures—towns of which -Manchester and Birmingham were examples, in which there were few or -no families of the gentry, yet which were full of families richer -by far than many a noble house. And side by side with this process -of tradesmen rising to the gentry had gone the other process of -declining gentry placing their sons in trade. So, as Defoe pithily -said, “Tradesmen became gentlemen by gentlemen becoming tradesmen.” - -The successful artisan under the domestic system became in time -master clothier, and when the factory became the means of further -increase to their fortunes the capital which this class had already -amassed was utilized in building mills and machinery. To this class -belonged the grandfather of Sir Robert Peel, a resident of Blackburn, -who supported himself from the profits of a farm in the neighborhood -and devoted his spare time to mechanical experiments. From this he -came to operate a print-works, and later commenced the manufacture of -cloth. - -His son, the first Sir Robert,—the father of the Prime Minister,—was -apprenticed to the trade and came to manhood at the time when the -impulse given to manufactures in England, through the introduction -of machinery, led to a more rapid accumulation of wealth than -had been known in any previous period of history. It is said that -in his youth Robert Peel entertained a presentiment that he would -become the founder of a family. By means of the factory, he amassed -a fortune, was raised to the honor of knighthood, and realized his -presentiment—for in the next generation no name is more famous in the -annals of government than that of Sir Robert Peel, the grandson of a -domestic manufacturer. - -As the number of factories increased it became possible for -operatives to rise, first to positions of trust within the factory, -and later to the rank of master manufacturer—so that many a bobbin -boy became a cotton lord. - -Within the factory the effect was to intensify that spirit of -discontent which presently arose among the workers—for risen -workingmen are apt to prove the hardest task masters. A graphic -picture of this aspect of factory life as it existed in Manchester -in the first half of the last century, when discontent had become -articulate and the great Chartist movement reached its height is to -be found in Dickens’s _Hard Times_. In that story Josiah Bounderby -of Coketown is typical of this class of risen workingmen—the early -employers of labor under the factory system; Josiah Bounderby, who -learnt his letters from the outside of shops and was first able to -tell time from studying the steeple clock at St. Giles’s Church, -London; Josiah Bounderby, vagabond, errand boy, laborer, porter, -clerk, chief manager, small partner, merchant, banker, manufacturer. -There was very little in the training of Josiah Bounderby, or any -of his class to make them humane employers of labor—and among the -several causes which made the early relation of employer and employee -under the factory system one of bitter strife, this cause, so -strictly social in its origin, is one of the most important. - -The establishment of the factory altered completely the relation -between employer and employee. Indeed in the modern sense these -relations were then first established. Labor became a commodity which -the master manufacturer, who was also the capitalist, bought and -which the workingman sold. When in the year 1785 Arkwright’s patents -were set aside and the use of his perfected spinning machinery became -free to all manufacturers, a great extension of the cotton industry -followed. Factories were built throughout Lancashire and about these -factories important cities sprang up in which the modern problem of -the relation of employer and employee had its beginning. - -The factory produced cloth more cheaply and in far greater quantity -than was possible under the domestic system. Hand workers sought -employment in the factories. Vast numbers of purely agricultural -laborers left the rural districts for the manufacturing towns. And, -augmenting this great supply of labor, came thousands of children—for -an eight-year-old child was capable of operating a spinning-frame, -in which, for this very reason, the spindles were set near to the -floor. With an unlimited supply of labor, the cotton masters had -only the cost of production to consider, and so it came about that -they thought only of their profits and forgot the human hands -which operated the machinery. England had fallen under the sway of -a book—Adam Smith’s _Wealth of Nations_, which, as Southey said, -“considers man as a manufacturing animal, estimating his importance -not by the goodness and knowledge he possesses, not by his virtues -and charities, not by the happiness of which he may be the source and -centre, not by the duties to which he is called, not by the immortal -destinies for which he is created, but by the gain that may be -extracted from him or of which he may be made the instrument.” - -The crowding of this vast laboring population into great industrial -centres, however, gave rise to a class-consciousness which -demanded that attention should be paid to the human element which -distinguished labor from all other commodities, demanded that the -cotton masters should no longer regard the workingman as a slave, -or as merely a part of the machine, but as a free man, and which -demanded further that this free man should be recognized as a citizen -and given the right of suffrage. - -It would be interesting for us to follow the history of the factory -where we now leave it, firmly established as the cornerstone of Great -Britain’s wealth, down to the present time, and trace its development -not only in England and America but throughout the civilized world. -It is a surprising story of industrial progress, an important chapter -in the social progress of mankind. But enough has already been -said to prepare us for the consideration of the way in which the -establishment of the factory affected England’s laboring poor. The -actual development of the cotton industry surpasses any dream that -even the barber of Preston could have imagined when he exclaimed that -he, unaided, would pay the national debt. - -Less than a century and a half ago, Richard Arkwright built his -first little mill at Nottingham which gave employment to a dozen -operatives. To-day there are one hundred great cotton factories in -the city of Fall River alone, operating three and one half million -spindles, nearly one hundred thousand looms, and giving employment -to twenty-seven thousand operatives. There are more than twenty-five -million spindles in daily operation in the United States, and even -a greater number on the continent of Europe, while Great Britain -contains over fifty million; and when to these we add the spindles of -India, Japan, and China, we have a total of one hundred and twenty -million spindles giving employment to an army of workers as great as -the entire population of England when Arkwright took out his patents -for spinning by rollers. Nor is this all. The factory system first -applied to the cotton industry has been applied to all manufactures -as well as to agriculture and has become the central fact in modern -industrial life. - -We are now to take up the question of how the establishment of the -factory affected England’s laboring poor, and to study a little -more in detail the social effects of the Industrial Revolution. In -preparing the way for this discussion we should remember that the -factory was not the sole cause of the Industrial Revolution, although -it was a very important one. Other elements besides the introduction -of machinery had gradually made possible production on a large scale. -Chief among these was the decline of state regulation of industry, -the development of rationalism quickening the scientific spirit, -the growth of the empire and prestige of England which opened great -export markets for the goods of British manufacture, the extension -of banking facilities, and the construction of roads and canals. -All these were elements in producing the Industrial Revolution. But -what gave the movement force to revolutionize the social life of -the common people was the factory, which gathered great masses of -the population into industrial centres in which became possible the -development of class consciousness. - - - - -V - -THE FACTORY TOWNS - - -The dictionary contains the history of the race, if you search deep -into its mysteries; every word tells its own story and bears its -present meaning because men, at different times, thought precisely as -they did and not otherwise. - -Servius Tullius made six divisions of the citizens of Rome for the -purposes of taxation and these divisions were called classes. A -seventh included the mass of the population, those who were not -possessed of any taxable property—that is to say the laboring -poor. It is from this circumstance that our word “class” derives -its peculiar meaning. Now it is significant that before the great -extension of manufactures occasioned by the factory, we find no -reference in our language to the working classes. The laboring -poor belonged to no class; but when great cities grew up about -the factories, populated by toilers whose interests in life were -identical, the masses suddenly became conscious of their common -life, their common needs, their common hopes. Blindly at first, and -then more surely, they struggled for recognition as a class, and at -last the struggle found expression in the language of their time. -The arousing of this class consciousness amongst the workers I take -to be the chief contribution of the factory to the social progress -of mankind; and for this reason the rise of the manufacturing towns -becomes a subject of great importance. - -In the town hall at Manchester there is a fresco by Ford Maddox -Brown which bears the title of “The Establishment of Flemish Weavers -in Manchester,” and shows Queen Philippa visiting the colony which -she founded in 1363. Mr. George Saintsbury, in his history of -Manchester, questions the historical accuracy of the event portrayed; -“but,” he adds, “Queen Philippa did many things which we should -all be sorry to give up as art and literature and which, yet, are -somewhat dubious history.” - -No one knows when Manchester first became a manufacturing town, -and the introduction of Flemish artificers in the reign of Edward -III is rather a probable than a certain starting-point. Nothing -is distinctly known of the progress of woolen manufacture, until -the reign of Henry VIII, at which time it had evidently grown into -considerable importance. In the statute of the thirty-third year of -his reign it appears that the inhabitants of Manchester carried on -a considerable manufacture both of linens and woolens by which they -were acquiring great wealth; but no mention has yet been found of -cotton manufacture in that city earlier than the year 1641. By this -time, however, it had become well established. - -The labor was entirely handicraft; and it was not until the -establishment of the factory by Arkwright that Manchester and the -other manufacturing towns of England came into prominence in the -political life of the nation; indeed it was not until the nineteenth -century was well advanced that the inhabitants of these cities were -represented in Parliament. - -It has been held that the factory is an episode, not an element, in -modern sociological development, and in a strict sense this is true. -But because the factory led to the growth of great manufacturing -towns and caused the migration thither of a vast population from the -agricultural districts, and because it was among this population -that the social discontent, which for a long period had existed in -the lower classes, first became articulate, the factory directly -contributed to the development of modern democracy. - -The factory transformed not only craftsmen into operatives, but -agricultural laborers as well, the latter becoming for the first -time free to dispose of their own labor; for while serfdom had been -declared illegal long before the establishment of the factory, yet -the peasant remained dependent, in a large measure, upon the good -will of his employer and he was bound by custom if not by law to the -soil he tilled. The migration of this vast laboring population from -the fields to the towns led to far-reaching social results. - - “Meanwhile, at social Industry’s command - How quick and fast an increase! From the germ - Of some poor hamlet, rapidly produced, - Here a large town, continuous and compact, - Hiding the face of earth for leagues—and there, - Where not a habitation stood before, - Abodes of men irregularly massed - Like trees in forests—spread through spacious tracts, - O’er which the smoke of unremitting fires - Hangs permanent, and plentiful as wreaths - Of vapor glittering in the morning sun.” - -Thus Wordsworth in _The Excursion_ describes the rise of the -manufacturing towns. - -Our first concern is with the social conditions existing in these -great manufacturing cities. The factory system was first applied -to the spinning of yarn; but weaving continued, for a time, as a -handicraft. This period was one of great prosperity to the hand-loom -weavers. Before the invention of spinning-machinery, several spinners -were required to furnish one loom with yarn; and one half of the -weaver’s time was spent in waiting for work. This time was employed -in farming. But with the establishment of the spinning-mills the -situation was reversed, and the weaver, plentifully supplied with -yarn, ceased to cultivate the soil and devoted his whole time to the -loom, a far more profitable occupation. - -Villages of hand-loom weavers sprang up throughout the country -adjacent to the manufacturing towns, and hither the master spinners -sent their yarn and received back the finished cloth; while sometimes -the weaving was done in “dandy” shops containing eight or ten and -often as many as twenty looms. These little factories were usually -owned by a single weaver who hired others to assist him in his work; -but whatever the method, the profits from the business were always -great. - -“One of the happiest sights in Lancashire life at this time,” writes -a contemporary historian, “was the home of a family of weavers.... -There could be heard the merry song to the tune of the clacking -shuttles and the bumping of the lathes; the cottage surrounded with -a garden filled with flowers and situated in the midst of green -fields where the larks sang and the throstles whistled their morning -adoration to the rising sun. The weaving thus carried on at home, -where several persons of the same family and apprentices were -employed, made them prosperous small manufacturers and a proud lot of -people.” This was about 1800. - -“The trade of muslin weaver,” says a Bolton manufacturer of the same -period, “was that of a gentleman. The weavers brought home their work -in top boots and ruffled shirts; they had a cane and took a coach -in some instances, and appeared as well as military officers of the -first degree. They used to walk about the streets with a five-pound -Bank of England note spread out under their hat-bands; they would -smoke none but long churchwarden pipes, and objected to the intrusion -of any other craftsman into the particular rooms of the public-houses -which they frequented.” This abnormal prosperity, however, preceded -their downfall. Two events were preparing it,—the invention of the -power loom and the application of steam power to all the processes of -manufacture. - -Before considering the condition of the laboring population after -the establishment of factories for weaving as well as for spinning, -we should glance backward into the previous history of the laboring -poor. During the prevalence of the feudal system the population -of England was purely agricultural. The chief landed proprietors -possessed a certain number of slaves who were employed generally in -domestic service, but who also manufactured the wearing apparel and -household furniture. “Priests are set apart for prayer,” says an -ancient chronicle, “but it is fit that noble chevaliers should enjoy -all ease, and taste all pleasures, while the laborer toils, in order -that they may be nourished in abundance—they, and their horse, and -their dogs.” This class of laborers, however, was never very large. - -The great body of the peasantry was composed, first, of persons who -rented small farms, and who paid their rent either in kind or in -agricultural labor; and secondly, of cottagers, each of whom had -a small parcel of land attached to his dwelling, and the privilege -of turning out a cow, or pigs, or a few sheep into the woods, -commons and wastes of the manor. During this whole period the entire -population derived its subsistence immediately from the land. The -mechanics of each village, not having time to cultivate a sufficient -quantity of land to yield them a sustenance, received a fixed annual -allowance of produce from each tenant. The peasantry worked hard and -fared scantily enough, but still there was never an absolute want of -food; the whole body was poor, but it contained no paupers. - -During the fourteenth century the demand for wool not only to supply -the markets of the Netherlands, but also the newly established -manufacture of England, rapidly increased and the owners of the land -found sheep-feeding more profitable than husbandry; and the sudden -extension of manufacture in the fifteenth century greatly increased -the demand. This circumstance led to an important change in the -distribution of the population and the peasants previously employed -in tillage were turned adrift upon the world. The allotments of -arable land which had formerly afforded them the means of subsistence -were converted into sheep walks and this policy greatly accelerated -a social revolution which had already commenced. It eventually -led to a complete severance between the English peasantry and the -English soil; and with the exception of those employed in domestic -manufacture, the little farmers and cottiers of the country were -converted into day laborers depending entirely upon wages for their -subsistence. - -Thus when we come to consider the pitiable condition of the working -classes, following the establishment of the factory, we must remember -this underlying cause of the poverty and suffering, holding in mind -the fact that from the beginning the increase of English poor rates -kept pace visibly with the progress of the enclosure of the common -land. Complaints against vagrancy and idleness, and the difficulty of -providing for the poor increased proportionately with the progress of -the system of consolidating farms, and abstracting from the English -cottager his crofts and rights to the common lands. Upon the factory -has fallen the blame for social conditions which had their source -in causes long antedating its establishment—but the factory has -sufficient misery for which to answer. - -Arkwright’s inventions, as we have seen, took manufactures out -of the cottages and farm houses of England and assembled them in -factories. Thousands of hands were suddenly required especially in -Lancashire, which until then was comparatively thinly populated. -A great migration of population from the rural districts to the -manufacturing towns was set in motion, thousands of families leaving -the quiet life of the country for the intenser life of the city, but -still the new demand for labor was unsatisfied. The custom sprang -up of procuring apprentices from the parish workhouses of London, -Birmingham, and elsewhere; and many thousand children between the -ages of seven and fourteen years were thus sent to swell the numbers -of the laboring population. Beside the factories stood apprentice -houses in which the children were lodged and fed; and it was also the -custom for the master manufacturer to furnish the apprentice with -clothes. - -The work required of the children was exacting. The pay of -the overseers was fixed in proportion to the work produced, a -circumstance which bore hard on the apprentices. The greatest -cruelties were practiced to spur the children to excessive labor; -they were flogged, fettered, and in many cases they were starved -and some were driven to commit suicide. We have it on the authority -of Mr. John Fielding, himself, a master manufacturer and member of -Parliament for Oldham, that the happiest moments in the lives of many -of these children were those passed in the workhouse. - -The profits of manufacturing were enormous and so was the greed of -the newborn manufacturing aristocracy. Night work was begun, the day -shift going to sleep in the same beds that the night shift had just -quitted, so that it was a common saying in Lancashire that the beds -never got cold. Although the master manufacturers were unmoved by -the dictates of humanity, they were not proof against the malignant -fevers which broke out in the congested districts and spread their -ravages throughout the manufacturing towns. - -Public opinion was soon aroused which led to the institution in -Manchester of a board of health which in the year 1796 made an -interesting report. It appeared that the children and others working -in the cotton factories were peculiarly disposed to the contagion of -fever; and that large factories were generally injurious to those -employed in them even when no particular disease prevailed, not only -on account of the close confinement and the debilitating effect of -the hot and impure air, but on account of the untimely labor of the -night and the protracted hours of the working day. - -These conditions with respect to the children not only tended to -diminish the sum of life by destroying the health and thus affecting -the vital stamina of the rising generation; but it also encouraged -idleness and profligacy in the parents, who, in many instances, -lived upon the labor of their children. It further appeared that the -children employed in factories were debarred from all opportunities -of education as well as from moral and religious instruction. The -investigation produced this report and nothing more—“when the dangers -of infection were removed the precautions of mercy were forgotten.” - -Later, in the Parliamentary debate of 1815, Mr. Horner, one of the -early factory reformers, graphically described the practices of the -apprentice system. He told how, with a bankrupt’s effects, a gang of -workhouse children were put up for sale and publicly advertised as a -part of the property; how a number of boys apprenticed by a parish -in London to one manufacturer, had been transferred to another and -in the process were left in a starving condition; how an agreement -had been made between a London parish and a Lancashire manufacturer -by which it was stipulated that with every twenty sound children one -idiot should be taken. - -Among the master manufacturers who had been incredulous concerning -these conditions until the alarm of contagion arose, was the -first Sir Robert Peel. He made a personal investigation and saw -the abominations of the system; he declared his convictions and -introduced into Parliament the first legislative measure for the -protection of children. This was in the year 1802, and after many -reverses he ultimately obtained the act known as the 42d Geo. III, -“for the preservation of the Health and Morals of Apprentices and -others, employed in Cotton and other mills.” - -This act is chiefly interesting because it established the principle -of factory legislation, a principle which later in the century -was greatly to promote the welfare of the masses. His first bill, -however, referred only to apprentices and after its enactment -children instead of being imported from the workhouses as formerly -were nevertheless hired from their parents. Their services were -dignified by the name of free labor, but because they were not -accorded the protection given to apprentices their condition was -little better than that of actual slavery. - -The next step in the progress of factory legislation was to extend -the protection to young persons engaged in manual employment whether -apprentices or not. Time does not permit us to follow the interesting -history of factory legislation, under the devoted leadership of Mr. -Horner, Sir John Hobhouse (afterwards Lord Broughton), Mr. Saddler, -and Lord Astley (afterwards the Earl of Shaftesbury). But the -evidences of the social condition of the toilers brought out by the -Parliamentary debates of 1816, 1818, 1819, and 1832, are all of the -same nature and reveal a state of human misery without a parallel in -history. - -We turn now from child labor to the sanitary conditions of the -manufacturing towns. The report printed by Doctor Kay in 1832, -is an astounding document; it shows that out of six hundred and -eighty-seven streets inspected, more than one half contained -heaps of refuse or stagnant pools; and of nearly seven thousand -houses inspected, more than one third were out of repair, damp, or -ill-ventilated, and an equally large proportion lacked all sanitary -conveniences, even of the most primitive kind. - -The population lived on the simplest diet. Breakfast consisted of tea -or coffee with a little bread, while sometimes the men had oatmeal -porridge; dinner consisted generally of boiled potatoes heaped into -one large dish over which melted lard was poured and sometimes a few -pieces of fried fat bacon were added. Those who obtained higher wages -or families whose aggregate income was large added a greater portion -of animal food to this meal at least three times a week, but the -quantity of meat consumed by the laboring population was not large. - -The typical family sat around the table, plunging their spoons into -the common dish and with animal eagerness satisfied the cravings of -their appetite. The evening meal consisted of tea, often mingled -with spirits and accompanied by a little bread. The population -thus scantily nourished was crowded in one dense mass in cottages, -separated by narrow, unpaved streets, in an atmosphere loaded with -smoke. Engaged in an employment which unremittingly exhausted their -physical energies, these men and women lacked every moral and -intellectual stimulus; living in squalid wretchedness and on meagre -food it was small wonder that their superfluous gains were spent -in debauchery. With domestic economy neglected, domestic comfort -unknown, home had no other relation to the factory operative than -that of a shelter. At this period the number of operatives above the -age of forty was incredibly small. - -In a pamphlet printed during a great turnout in 1831, we find -certain very interesting statistics concerning 1665 persons whose -ages ranged between fifteen and sixty. Of these 1584 were under -forty-five years of age, only fifty-one between forty-five and -fifty were counted as fit for work, while only three had lived to -be sixty years old. Such figures make it evident that large numbers -of workers, prematurely unfitted for labor, came to live upon the -toil of their own children. Nor was this all, for “puny and sickly -parents gave birth to puny and sickly children, and thus the mischief -continued its progress, one generation transmitting its accumulated -evils to the next.” - - - - -VI - -CHARTISM - - -Such was the condition of the manufacturing population of England -in the early days of the factory system. It is evident that these -conditions must inevitably give rise to a deep social discontent -which sooner or later must become articulate, and we find from the -very beginning of the factory system the records of innumerable riots. - -The history of these disturbances begins with the opposition to the -introduction of new machinery. Rebellious craftsmen bound themselves -by fearful oaths into secret organizations, the members of which were -known as Luddites, from the name of their legendary leader—Ben Ludd. -His name was the password to their secret meetings, at which plans -were made for the destruction of property, plans afterwards carried -out with open violence. Then followed innumerable riots arising -from that growing social discontent which led in the beginning to -factory legislation, and later to Parliamentary reform. It must not -be thought that only the factory folk were discontented. The unrest -was general throughout the lower classes; it was felt, moreover, in -the ranks of the rapidly growing middle class, and the justice of the -demand for better conditions was admitted now and then by individuals -in the governing class—men of the broader vision. I have in my -possession an interesting pamphlet containing the proceedings in the -trial of indictment against Thomas Walker, a merchant of Manchester, -and others, for a conspiracy to overthrow the constitution and -government and to assist the French, the King’s enemies, should they -invade the Kingdom. The case was tried at the Assizes at Lancaster, -in 1794, and the account throws light upon the true state of the -public mind in Manchester at that time. - -Thomas Walker, so it appeared to his accusers, was a pernicious, -seditious, and ill-disposed person, greatly disaffected to the King, -and who did in the hearing of divers liege subjects utter the words: -“What are kings! Damn the King!” Moreover, Mr. Thomas Walker was a -member of the Manchester Reformation Society, a body composed chiefly -of working people. They met at a public house—the Old Boar’s Head, -where the works of Tom Paine were read aloud over innumerable pots -of ale; and a correspondence was carried on with the Society of the -Friends of the People in London and with other more questionable -organizations. The publican, warned by the magistrates that he must -no longer give entertainment to this society, turned the reformers -into the streets, whereupon they sought shelter in the warehouse -of Mr. Walker. Here it was alleged they were trained in the use of -firearms; and here one night they were attacked by members of the -Church and King Club, and a riot ensued. The Reformation Society, -however, maintained that the sole object of their meetings was to -obtain, by constitutional means, an adequate representation of the -people in Parliament. - -Discontent continues rife in Manchester, increasing with each year, -and at last we come to an event which typifies to all time this -upward struggle of toiling humanity—the massacre on St. Peter’s Field -which occurred on the 16th of August, 1819. Throughout the whole -preceding summer, on account of the distressed condition of trade, -discontent had been rife in the manufacturing towns; agitation was -at white heat; and the voice of the demagogue was heard with that of -the conscientious reformer. It was proposed to hold at Manchester on -the 9th of August an immense meeting to consider the election by the -unrepresented inhabitants of Manchester of a Parliamentary delegate; -but the purpose of this meeting was declared illegal and it was -prohibited by the authorities. Then another meeting was advertised to -take place on the 16th of August, the stated object being to consider -the most legal and effectual means of obtaining Parliamentary reform. -It was said that this meeting was attended by over one hundred -thousand persons. - -Several of the divisions that composed the assembly came upon the -field in regular military formations, accompanied by bands of music -and preceded by banners bearing such mottoes as “Equal Representation -or Death.” Many of the marchers were armed with bludgeons. Most of -the columns, however, marched in silence; and except for the loud -shouts of defiance on the appearance of the yeomen cavalry, sent to -disperse the meeting, there was no disturbance on the part of the -populace. - -The assembly was in charge of Henry Hunt, the famous radical, who, -mounting the platform which had been erected upon a cart had just -commenced his opening speech when the civil authorities attempted -to arrest him. This the mob resisted, whereupon the yeoman cavalry -shouting, “Have down with their banners!” charged upon the field, put -the crowds to flight, and in the disorder which followed, a number -were killed and many were wounded. - -Says Carlyle: “Who shall compute the waste and loss, the obstruction -of every sort, that was produced in the Manchester region by Peterloo -alone. Some thirteen unarmed men and women cut down—the number of the -slain and maimed is very countable; but the treasury of rage, burning -hidden or visible in all hearts ever since, is of unknown extent. -‘How ye came among us, in your cruel armed blindness, ye unspeakable -County Yeomanry, sabres flourishing, hoofs prancing, and slashed us -down at your brute pleasure; deaf, blind to all our claims, and woes -and wrongs; of quick sight and sense to your own claims only. There -lie poor sallow, workworn weavers, and complain no more now; women -themselves are slashed and sabred, howling terror fills the air; and -ye ride prosperous, very victorious,—ye unspeakable: Give us sabres -too and then come on a little!’” - -The treasury of rage burning hidden became visible to all. -Chartism—the demand of the people for equal political rights—sprang -into being; the outward and visible sign of inward suppressed -discontent filled the manufacturing towns with unrestrained -murmurings, and government felt the castle of privilege trembling at -its foundation. Some days later Sidmouth, writing from Whitehall, -congratulated the yeomanry in the name of the Prince Regent for -their effective services in preserving public tranquillity. Public -tranquillity indeed! The cries of those stricken weavers shall yet -shake the empire of Britain. - -Peterloo was typical of the discontent which had spread throughout -the laboring population of England. Parliament was assembled in -special session to consider the state of the country and to enact -measures for the suppression of disorder. Lord Grenfell in a -brilliant speech discussed sedition, declaring that the whole nation -was inundated with inflammatory publications intended to stimulate -the multitude to acts of savage violence against all who were eminent -for birth or rank, for talent or virtue. Mr. Canning placed the blame -entirely upon discontented radicals, underrating the wide-spread -demand for parliamentary reform, and advocated the acts which were -passed prohibiting meetings like the one held in Manchester, and in -other ways restricting the liberties of the masses in discussing -social conditions. All of these acts tended to increase the -discontent and hasten forward that reform which alone could save -England from revolution. - -All famous Englishmen, however, did not view Peterloo with the eyes -of Lord Grenfell or Mr. Canning. Writing to Thomas Love Peacock, -Shelley said: “Many thanks for your attention in sending the papers -which contained the terrible and important news of Manchester. These -are, as it were, the distant thunders of the terrible storm which -is approaching. The tyrants here, as in the French Revolution, have -first shed blood. May their execrable lessons not be learnt with -equal docility.” Inspired by the Manchester massacre, Shelley wrote -“The Masque of Anarchy,” the spirit of which is summed up in these -stanzas:— - - “Men of England, heirs of Glory, - Heroes of unwritten story, - Nurselings of one mighty Mother, - Hopes of her, and one another; - - “Rise like Lions after slumber - In unvanquishable number, - Shake your chains to earth like dew - Which in sleep has fallen on you— - Ye are many—they are few.” - -And in the same year he wrote:— - - “Men of England, wherefore plough - For the Lords who lay ye low? - Wherefore weave with toil and care - The rich robes your tyrants wear? - - “Wherefore feed, and clothe, and save, - From the cradle to the grave, - Those ungrateful drones who would - Drain your sweat—nay, drink your blood? - - “The seed ye sow, another reaps; - The wealth ye find, another keeps; - The robes ye weave, another wears; - The arms ye forge, another bears. - - “Sow seed,—but let no tyrant reap; - Find wealth,—let no impostor heap; - Weave robes,—let not the idle wear; - Forge arms,—in your defense to bear.” - -Fortunately the appeal to arms was unnecessary. The working classes -of England were destined to exemplify Shelley’s lesson,—but by -peaceful means,—were destined to teach the world the great truth that -the many, if accordant and resolute, can always control the few. And -this peaceful conquest is recorded in the history of Chartism. - -I have known many labor agitators living in the City of the Dinner -Pail, and almost without exception these men were the sons of English -Chartists. From them I had learned to honor the early British -labor agitator, and to give to the name of pothouse politician -something more than a contemptuous meaning. At the Old Boar’s Head, -in Manchester, and at many another less famous public house in the -manufacturing cities, groups of workingmen gathered, evening after -evening to discuss their wrongs; and over many a pot of ale, and -through many a cloud of tobacco smoke, there emerged at last certain -definite demands for reform. - -Workingmen and radicals joined hands; liberal leaders combined with -working-class leaders, and presently there was issued the famous -Charter with its six points,—manhood suffrage, annual parliaments, -the ballot, abolition of property qualifications, payment of members, -and equality of electoral districts. A very sober programme this, but -popular leaders like Fergus O’Connor and Ernest Jones with incendiary -oratory gave it a revolutionary aspect. - -So the discontent grew year by year, and year by year it gathered -force. Events in France and elsewhere on the continent excited the -imagination of the governing classes, and every meeting place of -workingmen appeared to be bristling with firearms, but still the -movement grew, and at last the workingmen were ready with their -petition to Parliament. When, on the morning of the 10th of April, -1848, bands of Chartists began to gather on Kennington Common, -carrying red banners and tricolors, all London was astir with -excitement. Government had taken precaution for its defense; the guns -of the Tower were manned and loaded; the employees of the post-office -were supplied with two thousand rifles; the bank was surrounded with -artillery; and behind sand-bags piled upon its roof stood a regiment -of infantry. The bridges and approaches to Westminster were defended -by an army of ten thousand horse, foot, and artillery, while the six -thousand police of London lined the streets, supported by an army of -special constables. And in command of this elaborate defense of the -city against four thousand unarmed workingmen assembled on Kennington -Common to bear a petition to Parliament, was none other than the Iron -Duke himself—Wellington. Surely the voice of the pothouse politicians -had been heard throughout England; it had penetrated the halls of -government—what need had the reformers for powder and shot? And -must we not believe that when five years later the great reform -was enacted, credit for that event was in some measure due to the -resolute and accordant factory folk? Yes, the wheels and spindles of -which Arkwright dreamed brought something more than material wealth -to England; his vision made the nation rich and powerful and his -vision likewise gave to the masses equal political rights. - - - - -VII - -THE FACTORY AND SOCIAL PROGRESS - - -We have now traced the history of the factory, from its beginning -with the inventions of Arkwright down to its permanent establishment -in the first half of the last century, and we have noted its -influence upon the social life of England. We have seen how, as early -as the fifteenth century, the introduction of manufactures assisted -in breaking down the feudal system, and how, by making possible the -accumulation of wealth by men of humble birth, it contributed to the -rise of the middle class. We have further seen that at the close of -the eighteenth century the introduction of machinery intensified -these tendencies and exerted a powerful influence on the development -of our modern democracy. - -We have, however, confined our attention to a single industry as it -developed in a particular nation,—we have taken the cotton factory as -typical of all factories and its growth in England as typical of its -growth throughout the Western world. But the factory has developed -differently in each industry and its social influence has never been -quite alike in any two nations. When, for instance, Samuel Slater -introduced cotton manufacturing into America, he set up in Rhode -Island an exact counterpart of the English factory. When, later, -other factories were built in New England there took place the same -transition of a vast laboring population from the rural districts -to the manufacturing towns;—but this population was very unlike the -manufacturing population of England. The American factories were -operated by the sons and daughters of Yankee farmers, reared in the -atmosphere of democracy and springing from a race unaffected by the -traditions of feudalism; for them political equality had been already -won, yet even in America the factory became an instrument for social -progress. In the rapidly growing manufacturing towns these country -folk found a new life of opportunity for social advancement; they -did not remain operatives long, but advanced to higher callings; -and to take the places which they left, thousands of workers came -from Lancashire here to enjoy that civic freedom for which their -brothers in the Old World were still contending. To-day in our -Southern States we see a similar process at work,—another race of -men advancing in the social scale by means of the factory; from the -mountains of the Carolinas thousands of young men and women, reared -in a civilization almost unbelievably primitive, are flocking to the -manufacturing towns, there to enjoy the advantages of modern life. -But however varied have been the phases of the development of the -factory in different parts of the world there has always been this -common phenomenon—the concentration of the laboring population in -manufacturing cities and the development of social discontent leading -to social progress. - -The nineteenth century was the age of Power Discovered; mechanical -inventions, the concentration of industry, the extension of the -factory system, new means of transportation destroyed the last -vestige of the feudal world and left the democratic ideal triumphant -but unfulfilled: a new century dawns,—the age of Power Humanized. -The industrial world in which we live, with all its peculiar -characteristics, has been built upon the ruins of the feudal order, -and in due time will give place to a newer and better civilization. -Radicals of to-day see visions of to-morrow; reformers fired by the -visions seek to make them real; while conservatives, clinging to the -traditions of a dead past, strive to stay the inevitable progress of -mankind. Truth never changes, but the knowledge of truth grows deeper -with each age; no political institution, no social institution is -sacred unless it is founded upon some eternal truth, and all human -institutions must change with the increasing knowledge of mankind. -Everywhere in the Western world the condition of the laboring -population is vastly better to-day than when, a century and a half -ago, the factory was established; vastly better than when, sixty -years ago, the governments of Europe trembled before a working-class -revolt,—when British Chartism triumphed in reform; when Karl Marx, -exiled from Prussia, called upon the workingmen of the world to -unite; when Mazzini, another exile in London, preached to the toilers -of Italy the gospel of God and humanity, of progress through -education. But the evolution is incomplete, and the discontent of -the laboring population still remains a vital force in the upward -progress of mankind. - -To-day we in America are confronted by the amazing spread of -Socialism; Socialism which the radicals preach, the reformers seek -to establish, and the conservatives fear. We cannot evade its -issues, for Socialism is something more than a political creed,—it -is the modern expression of that same spirit of human progress which -destroyed slavery in the ancient world, serfdom in the middle ages -and, creating modern democracy, cannot rest until it has guaranteed -to all men not only equal political rights but equal social rights. -Two men, smoke-room companions of mine during a Pacific voyage, stand -for the contending ideals of the feudal and the modern world. One -was a noble earl, the other a British tea merchant; both were men -of wealth,—the one of large but unproductive estates, the other of a -great business giving employment to thousands of men. Of the two, the -tea merchant, though lacking in fine manners, was the more important -person; yet he would not have exchanged those hours of familiar -gossip with the noble earl for more chests of tea than would fill the -hold of the ship. And there was a reason for this feeling, because -the Groom of the Bedchamber stood for that aristocracy of culture and -good manners which has an important value in any society. Under the -militant structure of society this value belonged to the few; in our -present democracy it has become increasingly the privilege of the -many. Public education, public libraries, public art galleries, the -perfected art of printing have opened the highest culture to children -of the humblest birth. May we not, then, look forward to the time -when “the best that has anywhere been in the world shall be the lot -of every man born into it”—that is to say, the lot of every man who -desires the best? - -Every thinking man must admit that there is something wrong in our -present industrial régime. The progress of avowed Socialism and -the more rapid progress of particular socialistic ideas indicate -quite clearly that we Americans are alive to the unequal social -conditions which now exist and are anxious to find a remedy. But -whatever may be the utopian dreams of the reformers, all immediate -progress must be made in the industrial world as we find it to-day; -the industrial state of the Socialist is too remote in time,—our task -is with social conditions as they now exist. The splendid machinery -of production created during the last century must not be destroyed, -but utilized for the benefit of mankind. The question which we have -now to ask ourselves is this: What is the ultimate purpose for which -the business of the world is conducted, what the real purpose -of all this planting and reaping, this mining and manufacturing, -this exchanging of commodities? Is it not, primarily, to furnish -each human creature with food, shelter, and clothing,—the means of -supporting life? Men require something more than the mere means of -subsistence; but before the individual can cultivate his mind and -soul his body must be made comfortable, and this, after all, is the -whole end of our complex commercial régime. The test of right and -wrong conduct in business refers to this fundamental purpose,—that -conduct only is praiseworthy which advances the time when every man -capable of industry shall be rewarded for his labor, not only with a -loaf of bread, but with hours of fruitful leisure. - -Captains of Industry! that was a noble title Carlyle gave to the -prosaic business man, when gazing beyond the squalid turmoil of -his day with its dominant industrialism, triumphant mercantilism, -doctrines of _laissez-faire_, overproduction, surplus population, -he with clear vision foresaw the future freedom of the masses won -through their own strength and the ability of their leaders. Until -Richard Arkwright was born, the leaders of men in their progress -towards human freedom had been soldiers; henceforward they were to -be men of affairs. Great soldiers won their victory by the loyalty -they inspired in their followers; no adventurer seeking personal -glory ever won a lasting victory, but only those heroes, forgetful -of themselves who consecrated their service to the cause of freedom. -In such wise must Captains of Industry win their victories; the -adventurer can but for a time prevail; fame is secure only to those -leaders who see in wealth accumulated a treasure held in trust from -which they are to feed and clothe the armies that they lead to -peaceful conquests. Social reformers of sentimental temper have -deemed the comparison between the modern employer of labor and the -feudal lord as ill-chosen, but history seems to justify it. Yet we -have, indeed, gone far since the Middle Ages. When the feudal lord -demanded loyalty from his retainers the demand was alone sufficient, -but the Captain of Industry, in order to obtain the loyalty of the -toilers, must not only demand but deserve it; he too must be loyal to -the great cause he serves—the eternal cause of human freedom. - - -THE END - - - - - The Riverside Press - CAMBRIDGE · MASSACHUSETTS - U · S · A - - - - - Transcriber’s Notes - - pg 54 Added period after: three hundred years before, not soldiers, - but serfs - pg 72 Changed who paid their rent either in kind or in agicrultural - to: agricultural - Many hyphenated and non-hyphenated word combinations left as written. - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE FACTORY *** - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the -United States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg™ electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG™ -concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, -and may not be used if you charge for an eBook, except by following -the terms of the trademark license, including paying royalties for use -of the Project Gutenberg trademark. If you do not charge anything for -copies of this eBook, complying with the trademark license is very -easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose such as creation -of derivative works, reports, performances and research. Project -Gutenberg eBooks may be modified and printed and given away--you may -do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks not protected -by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the trademark -license, especially commercial redistribution. - -START: FULL LICENSE - -THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE -PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK - -To protect the Project Gutenberg™ mission of promoting the free -distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work -(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase “Project -Gutenberg”), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full -Project Gutenberg™ License available with this file or online at -www.gutenberg.org/license. - -Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project -Gutenberg™ electronic works - -1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg™ -electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to -and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property -(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all -the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or -destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works in your -possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a -Project Gutenberg™ electronic work and you do not agree to be bound -by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the -person or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph -1.E.8. - -1.B. “Project Gutenberg” is a registered trademark. It may only be -used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who -agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few -things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg™ electronic works -even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See -paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project -Gutenberg™ electronic works if you follow the terms of this -agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg™ -electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below. - -1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation (“the -Foundation” or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection -of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works. Nearly all the individual -works in the collection are in the public domain in the United -States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the -United States and you are located in the United States, we do not -claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing, -displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as -all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope -that you will support the Project Gutenberg™ mission of promoting -free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg™ -works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the -Project Gutenberg™ name associated with the work. You can easily -comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the -same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg™ License when -you share it without charge with others. - -1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern -what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are -in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, -check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this -agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, -distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any -other Project Gutenberg™ work. The Foundation makes no -representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any -country other than the United States. - -1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg: - -1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other -immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg™ License must appear -prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg™ work (any work -on which the phrase “Project Gutenberg” appears, or with which the -phrase “Project Gutenberg” is associated) is accessed, displayed, -performed, viewed, copied or distributed: - - This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and - most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no - restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it - under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this - eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the - United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where - you are located before using this eBook. - -1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg™ electronic work is -derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not -contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the -copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in -the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are -redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase “Project -Gutenberg” associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply -either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or -obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg™ -trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. - -1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg™ electronic work is posted -with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution -must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any -additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms -will be linked to the Project Gutenberg™ License for all works -posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the -beginning of this work. - -1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg™ -License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this -work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg™. - -1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this -electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without -prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with -active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project -Gutenberg™ License. - -1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, -compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including -any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access -to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg™ work in a format -other than “Plain Vanilla ASCII” or other format used in the official -version posted on the official Project Gutenberg™ website -(www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense -to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means -of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original “Plain -Vanilla ASCII” or other form. Any alternate format must include the -full Project Gutenberg™ License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1. - -1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, -performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg™ works -unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9. - -1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing -access to or distributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works -provided that: - -• You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from - the use of Project Gutenberg™ works calculated using the method - you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed - to the owner of the Project Gutenberg™ trademark, but he has - agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project - Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid - within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are - legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty - payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project - Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in - Section 4, “Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg - Literary Archive Foundation.” - -• You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies - you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he - does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg™ - License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all - copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue - all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg™ - works. - -• You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of - any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the - electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of - receipt of the work. - -• You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free - distribution of Project Gutenberg™ works. - -1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project -Gutenberg™ electronic work or group of works on different terms than -are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing -from the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the manager of -the Project Gutenberg™ trademark. Contact the Foundation as set -forth in Section 3 below. - -1.F. - -1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable -effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread -works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project -Gutenberg™ collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg™ -electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may -contain “Defects,” such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate -or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other -intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or -other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or -cannot be read by your equipment. - -1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the “Right -of Replacement or Refund” described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project -Gutenberg™ trademark, and any other party distributing a Project -Gutenberg™ electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all -liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal -fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT -LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE -PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE -TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE -LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR -INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH -DAMAGE. - -1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a -defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can -receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a -written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you -received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium -with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you -with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in -lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person -or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second -opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If -the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing -without further opportunities to fix the problem. - -1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth -in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you “AS-IS”, WITH NO -OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT -LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE. - -1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied -warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of -damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement -violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the -agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or -limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or -unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the -remaining provisions. - -1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the -trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone -providing copies of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works in -accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the -production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg™ -electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, -including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of -the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this -or any Project Gutenberg™ work, (b) alteration, modification, or -additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg™ work, and (c) any -Defect you cause. - -Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg™ - -Project Gutenberg™ is synonymous with the free distribution of -electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of -computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It -exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations -from people in all walks of life. - -Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the -assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg™'s -goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg™ collection will -remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project -Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure -and permanent future for Project Gutenberg™ and future -generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see -Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at -www.gutenberg.org - -Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation - -The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non-profit -501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the -state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal -Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification -number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by -U.S. federal laws and your state's laws. - -The Foundation's business office is located at 809 North 1500 West, -Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up -to date contact information can be found at the Foundation's website -and official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact - -Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg -Literary Archive Foundation - -Project Gutenberg™ depends upon and cannot survive without -widespread public support and donations to carry out its mission of -increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be -freely distributed in machine-readable form accessible by the widest -array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations -($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt -status with the IRS. - -The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating -charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United -States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a -considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up -with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations -where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND -DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular -state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate - -While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we -have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition -against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who -approach us with offers to donate. - -International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make -any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from -outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff. - -Please check the Project Gutenberg web pages for current donation -methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other -ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To -donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate - -Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg™ electronic works - -Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project -Gutenberg™ concept of a library of electronic works that could be -freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and -distributed Project Gutenberg™ eBooks with only a loose network of -volunteer support. - -Project Gutenberg™ eBooks are often created from several printed -editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in -the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not -necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper -edition. - -Most people start at our website which has the main PG search -facility: www.gutenberg.org - -This website includes information about Project Gutenberg™, -including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to -subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. |