However life wasn’t that bad as it seems. There were some good reasons why children worked and they were treated with care. Some factory owners agreed to employ orphans and children living on the streets as Apprentices. They agreed to give them a place to live and give food in return for them working for them. An example is Samuel Greg. In 1782 Greg became a manger of a cloth company. His company was worth £26,000 and he had 150 men working for him. However Greg wanted to extend his company and after marrying Hannah Lightbody in 1879 he owned another mill worth £10,000. This mill had not had any workers at the time so therefore he employed 90 children (60 boys and 30 girls) from a work house in London. He also built cottages worth £100 for them and spent £300 for accommodation for the 90 apprentices. Furthermore Greg also paid them £2-£4 and gave them 2 shifts, 2 stockings and 2 aprons. In addition to, children were well looked after. Their health was taken care of and they worked for a decent amount of time. For example a source written by William Dodd, a former factory worker in 1841 said “At the Bradford factory of Mr John Wood, workers looked healthy. Their hours of labour are not more than eleven each day. A surgeon id provided by the firm. If he notices anyone looking ill, he enquires about the cause. Should it be anything requiring rest or medicine, they are ordered home immediately. During the time they may be off work, their wages are sent to them, the same as if they had been at work.” This source explains how children were taken care of. It tells us that they have a surgeon who gives professional advice. It also says that their wages are sent to them while they are off and that they still get paid when they are off so that they do not concentrate on earning money. There is also another source written by Andrew Ure, a factory owner in 1835. It says “I have visited many factories and I never saw a single instance of corporal punishment inflicted on a child. The children seemed always to be cheerful and alert. The work of these lively elves seemed to resemble a sport. Conscious of their skill, they were delighted to show it of to any stranger. At the end of the day’s they are well fed, clothed and educated. The apprentices have milked-porridge for breakfast, potatoes and bacon for dinner, and meat on Sundays.” This source majority backs up the source written by William Dodd. It talks about workers looking healthy and their hours of work. However it also says that the children had good meals to eat and had a house to live in. Reading from all of these sources and information we can say that life was good for children and they were treated with care with food and clothes supplied like an ordinary child.
During the Industrial revolution of 1750-1900 there were many improvements to laws and machinery which made it easier for workers and managers. These especially helped children from hard work. The most basic example of improvements is the factory acts. For example before the factory act of 1802 children were hold responsible for there own essentials such as: buying their own clothes; learning to read and write; and practising their religion. However after the factory act of 1802 it quotas “Every Apprentice is to be supplied with two complete suits of clothing with suitable linen, stockings, hats and shoes.” It also quotes “They are to be instructed every working day during the first four years of apprenticeship in reading, writing and arithmetic” and “On Sunday they are to be instructed in the principles of the Christian religion.” These acts were some of the improvements that helped children with every day needs. Every child was supplied with clothes and got a free education as well as being able to practise their religion. Furthermore after the factory acts of 1844 there were also improvements in working hours, working conditions and health issues. life in Britain was completely changed. For example “The Act reduced the hours of work for children between eight and thirteen to six and a half a day, either in the morning or afternoon, no child being allowed to work in both on the same day, except on alternate days, and then only for ten hours. Young persons and women (now included for the first time) were to have the same hours, i.e. not more than twelve for the first five days of the week (with one and a half out for meals), and nine on Saturday.” This act explains the improvement in working hours and the hours children could take off for lunch. If we compare it with the factory act of 1802 which say “The hours of work of apprentices are not to exceed twelve a day, nor commence before six in the morning, nor conclude before nine at night” and the factory act of 1833 which says “The working day was to start at 5.30 a.m. and cease at 8.30 p.m. A young person (aged thirteen to eighteen) might not be employed beyond any period of twelve hours, less one and a half for meals; and a child (aged nine to thirteen) beyond any period of nine hours.” We can see that working hours gradually began to shorten which improved for young children. There were also improvements in health issues. For example the factory acts of 1844 say “Certificates of age were to be granted in future only by surgeons appointed for the purpose. Accidents causing death or bodily injury were to be reported to these surgeons, who were to investigate their cause and report the result to the inspector. The factory was to be thoroughly washed with lime every fourteen months. A Register was likewise to be kept; in which were to be entered the names of all children and young persons employed, the dates of the lime-washing, and some other particulars. Certificates of school attendance were to be obtained in the case of children.” This information suggests to us that surgeons were appointed and children’s health were monitored. Improvements in health issues also left improvements in the death rate. For example during 1813 and 1830 53% of children aged between 0-5 died in Leeds. In addition to research by Engel show that 1842 to 1844, 330 children died before reaching the age of 5 that worked in mills. However after the factory act of 1844 12 people died averagely every year which was an improvement from 150 people dieing a year. In addition to there were many inventions that were invented which helped workers. On of which was “The Power Loom” The power loom was invented in 1785 by Edmund Cartwright, a vicar from Leicestershire. It was powered by water and steam and speeded up weaving. For example before the power loom was invented in 1780 £355, 060 of cotton was exported from Britain but after the invention in 1800 £5,406,501 of cotton was exported. The fast production of cotton produced by the power loom left thousand of hand loomed workers unemployed. Over all there is a lot of evidence that show us that life was improving for workers and especially children.
In conclusion I will like to sum up what life really was like for children working in the mills.
Although there is many pieces of evidence that suggset that life was good and life was bad but overall I believe that life was improving. There is more evidence that suggest this and more relible information and other information to back it up. For example research collected during 1813-1830 tell us that 53% of children aged between 0-5 died. This information is reliable because research by Engle tells us that during 1842-1844 330 children died. Thiese two pieces of information are reliable bacause if we change 53% into a number we would get a similar answer. However evidence that suggest that life was good has some sources which are explained that contradict us. An example is a source from a book published in 1835 written by Edward Baines, a news paper editor who defended mill owners and how they ran their mills. However this source contradicts us because it shows a clear factory with nice machinery which makes us believe that life was easy but if we compare it with the report published in 1833 ,which says factories are“dirty: low roofed, ill-ventilated, ill-drained, had no conveniences for washing or dressing, had no contrivance for carrying off dust and other effluvia”, there is not a trace of similarity. This evidence is contradicting us so therefore we can not trust this source or any information from evidence that suggests that life was good. However although there is not much evidence that contardictcs telling us that life was bad there is more evidence that makes me conclude that life was improving. For example there is a lot of information which says that the deathrate was improving. A lot of different topics all like togather about the death rate. For example after the Powere loom was invented thouasands of workers lost their jobs. some of these were scavengers. Due to new machinary there was a less likely chance of children being deformed or dieing .However evidence that suggest that life was bad does not back each other as much as evidence that life was improving. For example a source which is a report that was published in July 1833 stated that most factories were “dirty: low roofed, ill-ventilated, ill-drained, had no conveniences for washing or dressing, had no contrivance for carrying off dust and other effluvia" does not back up the source written by Robert Owen, a mill owner, in 1816 wrote a letter to parliament explaining why he did not employ children under the age of ten. It said “seventeen years ago a number of individuals, with myself, purchased the New Lanark establishment. There were 500 children. The hours at the time were thirteen a day. Their limbs were very generally deformed, their growth was stunned and they and they made very slow progress learning the common alphabet. I came to the conclusion that the children were injured being taken into the mills at the early and employed foe so many hours.” The first source talks about working condition and the second talks about coparol punishement. Overall I have discussed pieces of evidence from each of the paragrahs and conncluded that life for children working in the mills was improving.
Acknowledgments and Sources:
Book: Think History- Modern Times 1750-1900
Source G - Page 24
Source A - Page 27
Source B - Page 29
Source G - page 30
Source E - Page 30
Source J - Page 31
Source L - Page 33
Websites:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Condition_of_the_Working_Class_in_England_in_1844
http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/IR1844.htm
http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/TEXgreg.htm
http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/IR1802.htm
http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/IR1844.htm
surrounding countryside, and mortality from convulsions was ten times as high as in the countryside. The overall death-rate in Manchester and Liverpool was significantly higher than the national average (one in 32.72 and one in 31.90 and even one in 29.90, compared with one in 45 or one in 46). An interesting example shows the increase in the overall death-rates in the industrial town of Carlisle. Prior to the introduction of mills (1779-1787), 4,408 out of 10,000 children died before reaching the age of five. After the introduction of mills the figure rose to 4,738. Prior to the introduction of mills, 1,006 out of 10,000 adults died before reaching 39 years old. After the introduction of mills the death rate rose to 1,261 out of 10,000
