84 



MY LIFE 



[Chap. 



superior suit for Sundays and holidays. Of course, if he 

 were of a gay disposition, he would spend more and save 

 less, but that would not be the indispensable outlay of a 

 working man. 



" In the case of a married man with a family, it would, of 

 course, be more difficult to save money, but I have known 

 men live well and respectably, bring up a family, and put by 

 regularly for the expected * rainy day,' and eventually build 

 their own house, and start in business, in a small way at first, 

 and become masters and gain a competence ; but these are 

 exceptional cases. 



" The generality of carpenters and joiners with a family 

 would live in lodgings of two or three rooms with their own 

 furniture (much of which the man could make in his spare 

 time in the evening), paying 5^. or 6s. a week, and with a 

 careful and industrious wife could live well on their wages, 

 clothe and educate their children, and still have something 

 to put by. I have never knoivn a carpenter in work, whether 

 married or single, that did not have a good dinner of meat 

 and vegetables every day, and on Sundays something extra ; 

 they always had beer for dinner and often at their work about 

 ten o'clock, and sometimes in the afternoon. 



" As near as I can recollect the prices of provisions were 

 for meat from 6d. to Zd. a pound, bread "jd, the four-pound 

 loaf, butter lo^., cheese %d.y and sugar 6d. to (^d. The brick- 

 layers had about the same wages as the carpenters, but owing 

 to lost time during bad weather, they were generally not so 

 well off, or generally so well housed and fed, but I never 

 heard or knew of any destitution or want among them. Of 

 the social condition of the plasterers, painters, and other 

 house finishers I know less, but all appeared well satisfied 

 with their condition, and, at all events, no general dissatis- 

 faction was expressed." 



It is, I think, quite clear from this statement of my brother's 

 that the standard of comfort of the skilled artisan was as high 

 fifty years ago as it is now, notwithstanding his somewhat 

 lower wages and his working ten instead of nine hours a day. 



