COMPOUND FREE LABOUR. 515 



tolls; and that, probably, lengths of a mile or so were as 

 signed to local contractors, who employed neighbouring 

 farm-labourers. That the gangs of men were composed of 

 such is implied by the fact that, as stated in the life of Mr. 

 Brassey, they were thus composed in recent days on larger 

 and later works: in the first place on canals. These being 

 originally called inland navigations, the men employed were 

 popularly known as &quot; navigators,&quot; abbreviated into &quot; nav 

 vies; &quot; and this eventually became the name for all men 

 who in numbers dig and wheel earth. 



In the early days of railway-making, portions of a line, 

 each a few miles in length, were let to separate contractors, 

 who undertook in some cases all the required works cut 

 tings, embankments, bridges, &c. and in other cases work 

 of one kind only. Some of these, making good profits, ac 

 quired wealth ; and then, very commonly, one of them would 

 undertake a whole line. But there continued in another 

 form the division of the work into portions: the chief con 

 tractor engaging with sub-contractors either for sections of 

 it, or for different kinds of work on one section earth 

 work, brick-work, &c. As we learn from The Life and La 

 bours of Mr. Brassey 



&quot;The sub-contracts varied from 5,000?. to 25,OOOZ. ; and ... the 

 number of men employed upon them would be from one to three 

 hundred the former number being more common than the latter. 

 There were also, occasionally, sub-lettings made by these sub-con 

 tractors.&quot; 



This organization was carried out in detail. Beyond divi 

 sion of the entire number of workers occupied in making 

 the line into great groups, under separate sub-contractors or 

 masters, and beyond the division of these again into groups 

 employed by sub-sub-contractors, there was division into still 

 smaller groups, which were the actual operative bodies- 

 clusters of men severally headed by one who was in those 

 days called a &quot; butty,&quot; and who would now be called a 

 &quot; ganger.&quot; The &quot; butty-gang &quot; system implied 



