In 1843, 75 per cent, of the families
lived in " one-roomed houses," five to ten persons living in a
single room. In 1883, not 5 per cent. of the families live in
such confinement, and very many of the houses are the workpeople's..
The social habits have much improved; now there are free libraries,
reading-rooms, and other attractions besides the public house.
The population is higher in self-respect, intelligence, and comfort
; as different as night to day in 1883 to what it was in 1843.
From the West of England my report is "that men, women, girls,
and boys are 40 per cent, better off than they were in 1843. Machinery
and steam supply the power which enables women to do work now
for which they receive men's wages - work they would not have
the strength to do unaided by modern invention."
The President of the Manchester Chamber of Commerce May, 1883,
stated that lie had privately obtained returns from leading firms
of the wages of different classes of workpeople in the employment
of those firms at different epochs, from 1850 to 1883. They showed
the following total average advance from the first date to the
last: Cotton spinning and weaving, 744 per. cent; calico printing,
50 per cent.; bleaching, 50 per cent.; mechanical engineering,
102 per cent.; coal mining, 43 per cent.; building trades, 39
per cent.; hookers, makers-up, and packers in warehouses, 34 per
cent. The 74 per cent, being disputed, the President explained
the rate of progress as follows: From 1850 to 1860, 17 per cent.;
in 1870, it had risen to 43 per cent.; in 1877, to 641 per cent.;
in 1883, to 74 j per cent. In August, 1883, he was prepared with
additional returns of the payment of mills in different districts,
four of which showed increase of 48 per cent., 58J per cent.,
734 per cent., and 793 per cent. respectively; or, taking weaving
separately, as some of his critics had desired, the increase was
in one instance as high
