348 LAND AND LABOR. 



is paid 3s. Id., and the little half starved, stunted girl 

 of twelve, with her brown arms and steady, unerring 

 aim, will hammer out half a bundle, Is. 6d. Total 

 earnings of an industrious and hard working family, 

 three at the forge, for the entire work, $5 13. 



" But out of this pittance must come 3d. for car- 

 riage of iron from the 'foggerV and returning the 

 nails, Is. for the smithy fire and 3d. for the wear of 

 tools. Net earning, $4 77 per week the united 

 earnings of three industrious sober persons. I stood 

 in the 'foggers" shops of these nailing districts and 

 saw the pale, emaciated women drag their weary limbs 

 up the narrow black hills to the ' gaffers/ and eagerly 

 watch the weighing of the heavy sacks of nails. The 

 c foggers ' do not ( claim ' that a woman, who has no 

 family to attend to, and who goes to the forge every 

 morning and works all day as a man, can make more 

 than 8s. a week less than two dollars. But the 

 truth is they do not make anything like that amount. 



" ' How many nails have you there/ 1 said to a pale 

 faced, half starved looking woman, with a fresh look- 

 ing lass of sixteen at her side. The nails had just 

 been turned into the ' fogger's ' scales. 



" l There should be forty-six pounds back/ she re- 

 plied. l They are a small nail and it is a bundle of 

 rods of sixty pounds made into nails/ 



" ' How much do you get for them ? ' 



" ' Ten shillings, sir/ 



" c How many days steady work/ said I, taking up 

 one of the well shaped hob nails ? 



" ' Six days, late and early, sir/ 



"< Alone?' 



