THE TECHNOLOGIST. [May 1, 1864. 



454 ON THE STRAW PLAIT TRADE. 



is generally conducted by an elderly dame, who receives from each 

 scholar 2d. or 3d. per week. The children are some time before they 

 can plait so as to earn anything, but after a year or two they contrive 

 to obtain 6d. to Is. 6d. per week, after their plait is disposed of by their 

 parents. They remain at school the usual school-hours ; afterwards, 

 during the time they do not play, they plait a little till sent to rest. 

 They continue working at school till they can plait sufficiently well, and 

 when they are above eight or nine years they earn 2s. to 3s. per week. 

 On leaving school, they earn 4s. to 5s. if expert plaiters, and after they 

 become skilful they may obtain as much as 7s. Many learn to sew if 

 near Luton or Dunstable, and then leave their cottage-home for the 

 greater attraction of hat and bonnet sewing, a sewer being considered a 

 step above a plaiter , and one who may exhibit an amount of personal 

 adornment, to which a simple plaiter w T ould not dare to aspire in her 

 village-home. 



Plait is made all the year round, except during the interruption of 

 harvest time. The plaiters do but little then, especially when the time 

 of gleaning arrives. In winter plait is made indoors, and as the splints 

 have to be worked in a partially wet condition, it is cold work for the 

 fingers. When plaiting near the fire, the straws are liable to injury ; 

 winter-made plait is never so good as when it is done in spring and 

 summer, away from the fire or in the open air, at the cottage door, or 

 along the green lane. 



The earnings of plaiters vary much according to the time devoted to 

 it. Unmarried women, who are skilful and quick, earn the most, but 

 some married women contrive to do pretty well ; and a well-ordered 

 family will obtain as much or more than the husband who is at work on 

 the neighbouring farm ; in this respect plaiting far exceeds lace-making. 

 The earnings of a good plaiter, after the straws are deducted, will be from 

 5s. to 7s. 7d. per week, in a good state of trade. 



The plaiting districts are now wide spread ; each district has a plait 

 market as its centre. The chief markets are Luton, Dunstable, Hemel 

 Hempstead, and Hitchin. There are nine lesser markets, and they all 

 begin at a fixed hour in the morning, a bell being rung to announce the 

 commencement. The districts do not all produce the same descriptions, 

 plain plaits being the product of one locality or district, fancy of another. 

 It is computed that the number of females engaged in plaiting, and 

 boys up to eight years of age, would now be near to 50,000, and the 

 number of yards annually made 200,000,000, or 10,000,000 scores of 

 plait of every description. 



Plait is sold by the score of 20 yards, at from 2d. to 3s. per score, and 

 is done up in double links of 17 inches in length,* 20 such forming the 

 score. One week's work is generally disposed of at a time by the 



*An additional inch at each end is taken up in the bend, making 36 inches 

 in all. 



