2 $6 ON THE PRICE OF LABOUR. 



It does not appear that the workmen's employment was" 

 interrupted by the necessity of keeping many Church holidays. 

 A mason and boy are engaged in 1 290 at Waleton for a year, 

 and are paid for 312 days. On the other hand, two under- 

 masons are engaged for a year of 235 days, and those days only 

 are reckoned as the working days of the year. It is probable 

 that in the latter case some of the days omitted are those on 

 which the work could not be carried on. Similarly at Oxford 

 in 1354 three carpenters are engaged for ten weeks, and, with 

 but one exception, work six days in each of the weeks. In 

 the sixth week, however, one of the two chief carpenters works 

 five days only, the other two. It is hardly possible, had the 

 custom of compulsory idleness on Church holidays prevailed 

 at that time, that ten weeks would have elapsed without the 

 occurrence of more than one of these days, even supposing 

 this single day of leisure were taken out of work on religious 

 grounds. At Oxford one mason works for 270 days in the 

 year on the buildings of Queen's College. In 1377 Merton 

 College engages one William Humbervyle, who is styled 

 cc magister operis," and a free master mason, at 41. a week in 

 the summer, and 40^. a week in the winter. Such an ar- 

 rangement implies continuous occupation. An allowance of 

 beer was often made to workmen, and called c Nonschenes,' 

 a word in which we may detect the original of our modern 

 luncheon \ 



Employers reckoned halves of days. They exercised also 

 careful supervision over the effectiveness of the work done. 

 Every person of average intelligence possessed information on 

 the simple elements of labour and life, and consequently could 

 undertake the business of superintendence. The fellows of 

 Merton College were its architects. It may be that head work- 

 men were competent to carry out all the details and very often 

 to plan the work they had to do. We have no record of the 

 persons who piled up those vast and magnificent churches, 



& Walter de Henley reckons 308 working days in the year, which will only give five 

 holidays besides the Sundays. 



