THE DISTRESS IN THE COTTON DISTRICTS.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume II, Issue 70, 30 October 1862, Page 5 (Supplement)

THE DISTRESS IN THE COTTON DISTRICTS.

In the manufacturing districts in the north, after a twelvemonth of difficulty and distress matters are, in every respect, worse than ever. Under this beautiful weather, when even a Lancashire operative must have a few more chances of irregular employment, there were 7UOO more “ paupers ” than the week before. Indeed, there never was a more gloomy prospect. "Work diminishes ; pauperism increases week by week ; the unmanageable mass of unsettled poor becoming enormous ; the patience and temper of the snlfereis arc giving way ; the mischievous men who rise up in such emergencies to aggravate and to mislead are becoming more prominent; savings arc consumed, charity cooled, rates pushed to the utmost ; winter is not distant, and there really seems not a chance of a timely supply of cotton from any source whatever. Everybody can understand what it is for a quarter of the entire population of a town to bo receiving relief from a charitable fund, besides more than 10,000 actual paupers. Preston is not the most distressed place in Lancashire, and this is the case there. The town, or rather the union comprising the township and its suburbs, contains about 110,000 persons. Rather less than a quarter of these—that is about 26,000 —are operatives connected with the cotton manufacture. Their wives ami children make up the best part of the difference between that number and the whole population. Of these 20,000 persons, hitherto supporting themselves and others, half are out of work altogether, and a quarter are only 7 just kept at work for such days and hours as will enable (hem to earn a small pittance necessary for life, The pressure on the rates and on private charity is, of course, overwhelming. Last week there were 13,2,00 paupers,” and 22,000 persons receiving assistance from the Charitable Fund. Of course the rates are collected witli ditllculty, and the fund diminishes. But tiiis is not the worst feature of the crisis. All the usual evils of a vast sy.-tem of relief are beginning to show themselves. It is found impossible to discriminate. There is plunder and waste. The persons relieved sell their meal and obtain drink, which, no doubt, many of them feel as necessary 7 as food They go strait from the fund to the ginshop, with the money of charity in their hands. Under the inilnence of agitators and the guidance of committees, the opertives are now beginning to refuse to work, tinless work can be found (hat they are aceu-tomed to. They cannot dig, they say, or use the pick ; they cannot walk miles ; they cannot stand rain and cold. Their pride will not allow them to take a broom and sweep the streets. Relying on their numbers, and the evident necessity of their condition, they arc standing out for terms. The Secretary of the Preston Operative Spinners and Self-acting Minders lias issued a circular protesting against the operative being compelled to work. He stigmatises the guardians as cruel and hard-hearted ; calls them wiseacres ; and finishes by recommending them to improve the present occasion by opening schools, in order to qualify the operatives, who can now do nothing else, for the elective franchise.