THE WINTER OF DISCONTENT. 107 



one were to put down the number of hours worked by men 

 in charge of live stock one would probably find that the rate 

 worked out at less per hour than the wages earned by the 

 ordinary labourer. " In the neighbourhood of London," 

 he adds, " the rate of wages is higher by two or three 

 shillings a week. On the other hand, in the counties 

 away from London the rate is lower, ios., us., I2S. per 

 week, with similar perquisites being paid in several English 

 counties." 



The official summary of the situation was that " the lab- 

 ourer was better fed, his education and language improved, 

 his amusements less gross, his cottage generally improved, 

 though generally on small estates there were very bad 

 ones still left." 1 



Weekly wages ranged from ics. in Wilts and Dorset to 

 iSs. in Lancashire, and averaged 133. 6d. for the whole 

 country, 2 and Mr. W. C. Little, the Senior Assistant Commis- 

 sioner in 1893, put the hours worked at 10 and io| a day 

 for ordinary labourers, and at 12 1 hours a day in summer 

 and nf in winter for horsemen and cowmen. 



In contrasting the conditions of the northern and eastern 

 counties Mr. Wilson Fox 3 summed up the position thus : 



" The wages paid in the eastern counties are nominally much 

 lower than those in the three northern counties I visited, but 

 the actual wages received by an eastern counties' labourer, 

 greatly depend on whether he is in the service of a farmer who 

 employs him in wet weather, and gives him work to do by the 

 piece. If he is so fortunate, his nominal cash wages of us. or 

 I2S. a week are frequently converted into 153., i6s., and 173. a 

 week, harvest of course being included. He may also be living 

 on a large estate, where he gets a good cottage and garden for 

 2 ios. or 3. Thus, under favourable circumstances, a Norfolk 

 or Suffolk labourer is in receipt of a wage which reaches that of a 

 married man in Cumberland, but, owing to the uncertainty and 

 irregularity of the payments, the possibility of earning such a 

 wage is seldom recognised by the men or credited by the public. 



" On the other hand, a man in the service of a farmer who 

 sends him back in wet weather, employs him irregularly in the 



1 Royal Commission on Labour, 1893-4, XXXV., Index 5, et seq. 



2 Parliamentary Reports ,' 1897, XV., 31 



3 Royal Commission on Labour, C. 6894, III. 



