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THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



was certain, that if they wished to improve the lahoiirer, 

 they must begin witli his dwelling. Where this was in- 

 sufficient for decency and health, it was not likely 

 that education, or any kind of religious instruction, and 

 other means, woiild produce the desired result. Again, 

 while putting down heer-shops and fairs, farmers should en- 

 deavour to provide wholesome recreation and decent places 

 of resort in the irstead, otherwise farmers would deserve 

 a character which they very much dreaded, that of mere 

 radicals and destroyers (laughter). Tlie labourer, like 

 other men, required to be amused, and some provision 

 must be made for that pui-pose. In some villages reading- 

 rooms, with fire, and light, and books, and newspapers, had 

 been provided ; but they were generally spoiled by over- 

 regulation. In some, smoking was forbidden ; in others 

 none but religioi;s works of the most serious and often 

 dull description were admitted ; and in others, and worst 

 of all, the patrons were continually intruding, making the 

 poor people uncomfortable. He fully appreciated the in- 

 valuable services of the clei-gy in promoting education and 

 encouraging phUauthropic and mutual benefit associations ; 

 but parsons, from their high class education, often did not 

 understand the laboiU'er as well as the farmer does. He 

 (Mr. Sidney) was much struck with the discussion on the 

 condition of the laboxirer that had recently taken place at 

 Warminster, reported in the " Journal of the Society of 

 Arts." There it was stated that the book-hawkers, who 

 are helping village schools, by can'ying the means of edu- 

 cation to the door of every cottage, sold chiefly religious 

 books. If that was the case, they had not found their way 

 to the real labourers. Farmers or squires would not fill 

 up their bookshelves with religious books, or go to an 

 hotel or a club where every movement was under regu- 

 lation, and every book under a censorship. Then, again, 

 as to education, fiirmers had not taken enough part 

 in its direction ; it had thei'efore been made too dis- 

 cursive — a smattering of everything, and the foundation of 

 education taught very imperfectly. There was no reason 

 to despair of tlie condition of the labourer; it had im- 

 proved and was improving ; but it was essential that far- 

 mers, instead of trying to burke discussion, and taking 

 every statement of facts as a personal oflence, should 

 grapple with the question of cottage accommodation, and 

 make landlords understand that lodgings for labourers 

 were as essential to profitable cultivation as the farm- 

 buildings on which capital was often so freely expended. 

 Without cottages within an easy distance, or with over- 

 crowded cottages, the farmer loses the labour wasted in 

 waUiing to work, loses the strength exhausted in foul 

 huts, and pays in parish rates for the immorality and the 

 premature decrepitude prodiiced by putting half-a-dozen 

 of both sexes to sleep whei'e there is only air and space for 

 two or three. Labour was scarce, and likely to be scarcer. 

 Farmers must make up in quality for want of quautitj'. 

 They must have the rising gen-cration well housed, usefully 

 educated, and provided with temperance substitutes for the 

 beer-house. As regarded Scotland, he must say that 

 the gentleman who immediately preceded him spoke 

 as if everj'thing was right there, or, at any rate, that 

 the evils were slight and much exaggerated (laughter). 

 Against that opinion, however, must be set the 

 fact that drunkenness and illegitimacy prevailed 

 in Scotland to a fearful extent, and the only source to 

 which the second of these evils could be traced were the 

 abominable and disgusting arrangements of the labourers' 

 dwellings (Hear, hear, hear). It could not be for want of 

 education — Scotland was famous for the education of its 

 working classes — nor for want of religious instruction ; no 

 nation was more observant of the ordinances of their reli- 

 gion. The marriage law was not, as in France, a difliciilty ; 

 it was the easiest thing possible to be married, in Scot- 

 land. Illegitimacy was not encouraged by the poor laws ; 

 the poor laws of Scotland were merciless to a fallen woman. 

 We were therefore compelled to trace the degrading fact 

 to whisky drams, crowded cottages, and bothies, which 

 were hovels often only fit for cattle of a coarse breed. Of 

 course this assertion would be termed an exaggeration ; 

 but there was an evil attached to land attacked, but some 

 one rose to call it an exaggeration because he could not 

 deny it. Public opinion on the subject of cottage accom- 

 modation was in a very low state in Scotland; it was low 



enough in prartice, although not in theory, in many parts 

 of England. To illustrate the low state of public opinion 

 in Scotland on that subject, he might remark that not long 

 since one of the most distinguished benefactors of Scotland, 

 Mr. WiUiam Chambers, having buUt a model-cottage, a de- 

 scription of it was circulated throughout the country in 

 order, he (Mr. Sidney) presumed, that other cottages of 

 the same kind might be erected. That model cottage 

 consisted of what ? Why, of two rooms, with cupboard- 

 bedsteads, in which the family were to be born, and laid 

 out when dead, 



Mr. E. TATTEES-iLL Said, having read the letter in the 

 7'imc.s of that day, he did not agree ^vith Mr. Edmonds 

 that it was an attack on farmers. If it were an attack, 

 that evening's discussion was the best answer it could 

 possibly receive, for it showed that in coming to the 

 metropolis to exhibit their animals farmers had not for- 

 gotten those who assisted to improve them. (Cheers). He 

 was quite sensible that the laboui-ers generally in the 

 agi-icultural districts were not housed as they ought 

 to be. But with whom did the blame rest ? He certainly 

 agreed with preceding speakers that it rested in the first 

 instance with tlie landlords ; but, then, it should be recol- 

 lected that tenants were hound to use their influence to 

 induce landlords to discharge their duty towards the 

 labourer. (Hear, hear). He concurred also in the opinion 

 that good cottages might be erected for ^70 a-piece, and 

 he believed tenants would be willing to take to them, 

 receiving only 4 or 5 per cent, for their money, in order to 

 acquire a salutary control over their labourers. Although 

 education was not to be lightly estimated, although the 

 clergyman and the school-master might do much to im- 

 prove the condition of the labourer, it must be recollected 

 tliat education did not consist merely in reading and 

 writing .-' (Hear, hear). It commenced with the cradle ; 

 and if the first ten years of the child's life were spent 

 amidst dirt, disorder, and indecency, it was scarcely pos- 

 sible that the character in after-life would be what they 

 must all desire that it should be. The foundation of all 

 virtue amongst agricultural servants was the possession of 

 a decent home. With regard to France, he must say that 

 what he had seen there showed him the disadvantages of 

 the land being cut up into such small farms. Ho was con- 

 vinced that a great many of the farmers in France were 

 below the English labourer in education, talent, and every- 

 thing that constituted tlic man, and this was one great 

 reason why, in spite of all the arguments of radicals and 

 others, we ought to rejoice that England still possessed a 

 class of large landowners who had tlie power and the means 

 of improving the condition of the labourer, who was best 

 cared for on large well-managed estates. 



Mr. T. F. Wilson (Allthorne, Essex) said, having had 

 a good deal of Scotch labour, he had no hesitation in 

 affirming that the Scotch labourer's education and his 

 comparative freedom from the temptation to drink made 

 him the superior of the English labourer. Education 

 constituted the main difterence. As the twig was bent the 

 tree inclined, and it was education only that could provide 

 farmers with honest, skilled, and intelligent labourers. 



Mr. Walton (Alton) concurred in the condemnation of 

 the practice of jiaying good and bad labourers the same 

 wages. Jlany of them must, he said, often have felt that 

 one man was better worth 15s, than another was worth 6s., 

 and yet both pci'haps received the same amount. 



Mr. Baddinoton (Sutton Coldfield) contended that land- 

 lords could not fairly be expected to build cottages without 

 the expectation of a reasonable return for their outlay. 



Mr. W. CoTHER (Middle Aston, Woodstock) did not 

 believe the remedy for existing evils was to be found in 

 any one thing : it was not to be found in education or in 

 improved dwellings alone, hut in a combination of causes 

 tending to ameliorate the general condition of the labourer. 

 One source of depression was the fact that labour was not 

 free ; it could not be free so long as the law of settlement 

 continued in operation. 



After a few words from Mr. W. Bennett, 

 Mr. Burn replied. 



On the motion of Mr. Skelton, seconded by Mr. J. 

 Thomas, of Bletsoe, thanks were voted to Mr. Burn for 

 his introduction ; and a similar compliment having been 

 paid to the Chairman, the meeting separated. 



