The contents of that notice were true. The hours of work of all young persons and females above eighteen years of age employed in the factory, are and were specified in the said notice, and the figures. under the words "morning," "forenoon," "afternoon,' evening," "total hours," denote the times of beginning and ending daily work, as well as the periods of work in each day, of the several persons whose names are in the same line, as well also as the total number of hours in which such persons are respectively employed each day in the said factory.

The said notice also contains the times of beginning and ending daily work of all persons employed in the said factory, and of the times of the day and amount of time allowed for their several meals..

An information was exhibited on the 26th of October last by Mr. Ryder against the defendant of which the following is a copy :

County of Lancaster. of the Township of Heap.

To the Constable

Lancashire, to wit. Whereas it appeareth to me, Thomas Dudley Ryder, sub-inspector of factories, that David Mills, of Heywood, in the county of Lancaster, hath offended against the act made in the seventh year of Her Majesty's reign, intituled 'An Act to amend the laws relating to labour in factories': forasmuch as he, the said David Mills, on the 19th day of October instant, in the year of our Lord 1849, at Heywood, in the county of Lancaster, did then and there not hang up or cause to be hung up, nor was there then hung up in the entrance of his said factory, where the same might be easily read by the persons then employed in the said factory, a notice written or printed in legible characters, and fixed on a moveable board, of the times of beginning and ending daily work of all persons then employed in his said factory, and any alterations thereof, and of the times of the day and amount of time allowed for the several meals of all young persons and females above eighteen years of age so employed in his said factory, as required and directed by the said statute, and in the form and according to the directions given in the schedule in that behalf to the

said statute annexed; but on the contrary thereof, on the said 19th day of October in the year of our Lord 1849, at the parish aforesaid, in the county aforesaid, he, the said David Mills, being then such occupier as aforesaid of such cotton factory did in the entrance to the said factory hang up a certain notice in written legible characters on a moveable board, and signed by him, the said David Mills, and so as to be easily read by the persons employed in the said factory, according to the tenour and effect following, that is to say [here was set out the notice as previously stated in the case], contrary to the form of the said statute and the other statutes in that case made and

provided.-[It then set out a direction to the defendant to appear and

summon

answer, &c.]

It being contended by Mr. Ryder that the said notice so hung up is contrary to that which is required by the 7 & 8 Vict. c. 15, inasmuch as it shews that young persons working in the said factory were employed therein during a space of more than ten hours in one day, reckoning consecutively (exclusive of meal-times) from the time when Sarah Taylor, a young person, first began to work in the morning to the time when Susannah Barlow, a young person, left off work in the evening of the same day whereas, it ought to have shewn that no young person was employed in the said factory after the expiration of ten hours, reckoning consecutively (exclusive of meal-times) from the time when any young person first began to work in the said factory on the same day.

On this information coming on for hearing, on the 31st of October 1849, the only evidence produced was a copy of the said notice, the contents of which were admitted to be true, but which was contended to be a violation of the said statute, no other notice being hung up in the factory. The Magistrates on this convicted the defendant in a sum of 5., and a copy of the conviction is hereto annexed and forms part of the case.

The question for the opinion of the Court was, whether it was an offence against the factory acts or any of them to employ a young person in a factory for ten hours and no more in one day, such

ten hours ending at a period which is more than ten hours from the time when another child or young person first began to work in the morning of such day in such factory, if such last-mentioned ten hours are counted consecutively from that time, omitting only the meal-times: if so, the conviction was to stand; if not, the parties agreed that a judgment of the Court of Quarter Sessions to quash the said conviction should be entered in conformity with the opinion of the Court.

Sir J. Jervis, Attorney General (with whom were M. D. Hill and Welsby), in support of the conviction (Jan. 28.)-This information is laid against the defendant, for not affixing a proper notice, pursuant to the statute 7 & 8 Vict. c. 15, and the alleged offence is exemplified by the times stated in the notice affixed, as the periods for working of Sarah Taylor and Susannah Barlow they begin work at the same time, but the latter leaves off work half an hour later than the former. It is contended, on the part of the Inspectors of Factories, that the mill-owner must reckon the ten hours from the time the first child or young person begins to work; and that the ten hours must be reckoned consecutively, only omitting the times allowed for meals; therefore that working by shifts or relays is not legal. On the other side, it will be contended that if each child or young person works ten hours only, the statute is satisfied.

[POLLOCK, C.B.-Do they go the length of saying they may work day and night by having different sets?]

[Martin (who appeared against the conviction)-No; the limit is between half-past five and half-past eight.]

It will be contended that during the whole of that time the work may be continuous, by shifts. The question mainly depends upon the true construction of the 7 & 8 Vict. c. 15. s. 26, aided by reference to other sections and previous statutes. That section

under the hand of the inspector or subinspector of the district." Young persons are those between thirteen and eighteen, and by the 9 & 10 Vict. c. 29. s. 3, females above eighteen are subject to the same rules as young persons. Are then the hours of work to be reckoned from the time any one child or young person begins to work? If section 26. authorizes working at any intermediate period, why was section 36. inserted? (1) In order to work continuously, different times must be fixed for meal-times; thus, one set will take their dinner from twelve to one, and another from one to two. The terms of section 36. prohibit this, and shew the correctness of the interpretation put upon sect. 26.

[ALDERSON, B.-You have not referred to the latter part of sect. 36, which requires the whole mill to be stopped during mealtimes, as far as young persons and women are concerned.]

The rule for construing statutes is, that the words are to be followed if a reasonable interpretation can be given, and no section is to be rejected. It would be a mere truism to say that A. B.'s work is to be reckoned from when he begins.

[POLLOCK, C.B.-Do they contend that the hours of work are to be reckoned from the time of the children respectively begining to work?]

[Martin.-Certainly I shall not contend for that construction.]

Perhaps they will say that, admitting all must begin at the same time, after they have begun they can diverge and alter during the

(1) The 7 & 8 Vict. c. 15. s. 36. enacts "that the times allowed for meal-times, as provided by the Factory Act, shall be taken between the hours of half-past seven in the morning and half-past seven in the evening of every day, and one hour thereof at the least shall be given, either the whole at one time or at different times, before three of the clock in the afternoon; and no child or young person shall be employed more than five hours before one of the clock in the afternoon of any day, without an interval for mealtime of at least thirty minutes; and during any meal-time which shall form any part of the hour and a half allowed for meals, no child or young person shall be employed or allowed to remain in any room in which any manufacturing process is then carried on; and all the young persons employed in a factory shall have the time for meals at the same period of the day, unless some alteration for special cause shall be allowed in writing by an

course of the fifteen hours, by shifts. In their construction, the word "reckon" is disregarded. You do not reckon from the time of beginning if, after working half an hour, one child may stop for two hours, and then work for another half-hour, so as to spread the ten hours over the day. There is no straining of the words to carry out the construction against the system of relays, and this is in accordance with the whole object of the act. The object of the act is to prevent children going from a heated atmosphere into a different temperature, loitering about the mill, or being exposed to idleness and contamination. There is nothing so fatal to children as taking them there at six o'clock, working some of them half an hour, turning them out, letting them loiter an hour or half an hour in the neighbourhood of the place, exposed to corruption and contamination, and then bringing them back again. The object was, to have them all there together, under the inspection and superintendence of a proper person, and to terminate their work at a given time, so that they should have no excuse for loitering about the mill and exposing themselves to contamination. It would be infinitely preferable to let children work even the whole fifteen hours than to turn them out half an hour or an hour at a time, exposed to idleness and the corruption of those of the other sex who may be turned out in the same shifts about the mill. The whole policy of the statute is to protect these children against themselves, to compel them to be in a place where they can be overlooked while at work, and to be sent to their homes where they will be under the inspection of their parents. The literal construction and the spirit will therefore both be followed by supporting the conviction. The 28th section further illustrates this (2).

(2) That section enacts, "That it shall not be necessary to hang up in any mill or factory any copy of any abstract of the Factory Act, or of any regulations made in pursuance of the said act, other than is hereinafter provided; and that such abstract of the Factory Act as amended by this act as shall be directed by one of Her Majesty's Principal Secretaries of State, shall be fixed on a moveable board, and be hung up as soon as received by the occupier of the factory, or his agent, in the entrance of the factory, and in such other places as the inspector or sub-inspector of the district may direct; and notices of the names and addresses of the inspector or sub-inspector of the district in which the factory

The passage as to meal-time cannot mean meal-time allowed to each person respectively, because the inspector is to make regulations, not for A, B, and C, but generally for all. Then schedule C. is referred to (see ante, p. 83); but the notice they have adopted contains an additional description. It should have been thus:-"Monday. People to work from a given time, and to work such and such time."

[ALDERSON, B,-The form as to meals, where the same time is to be allowed, is in exactly the same form.]

So also it is as to the entries of time lost and time recovered. It does not refer to the loss of time by one person by an accident and its subsequent recovery, but where the whole mill has been stopped (3). But where the stoppage has been partial by

is situated, of the name and address of the surgeon who grants certificates of age for the factory, of the clock by which the hours of work in the factory are regulated, of the times of beginning and ending daily work of all persons employed in the factory, and any alteration thereof, of the times of the day and amount of time allowed for their several meals, of all time lost which is intended to be recovered, and of all time which shall be recovered, together with every other notice required by this act, written or printed in legible characters, and fixed on moveable boards (each particular notice being signed by the occupier of every factory or his agent), shall be hung up in the entrance of the factory, where they may be easily read by the persons employed in the factory, and in such other places as the inspector or sub-inspector of the district may direct, and whence they shall not be removed while the factory is at work; and in case any such abstract of the Factory Act as amended by this act, or notice shall become illegible in any part, the occupier of the factory shall cause a new copy thereof to be provided and hung up as aforesaid; but the notice of lost time need not remain after the whole of the lost time intended to be recovered shall have been recovered; and every notice required to be hung up shall be in the forms and according to the directions given in the Schedule (C.) hereunto annexed."

(3) Section 33. enacts, "That no time lost by accident or otherwise in any factory shall be made good or worked up by extension of ordinary hours of labour, save as hereinafter provided; and that in any factory in which any part of the machinery is moved by the power of water the time which shall have been lost by stoppages from want of water, or from too much water, may be recovered in manner following, within six months next after the stoppage, between the hours specified in the Factory Act as those within which the time lost by drought or excess of water may be recovered; and in order to recover time so lost, any child or young person may be employed one hour in each day more than the time to which the ordinary daily labour of children and young

drought or floods, and is to be recovered during the following night, the form gives a column for the names of the individuals who are to work the entire hours; whereas Schedule C. shews that it is to be the same time for all, to be measured by a particular clock, and as that would be inapplicable, the other schedule is given.

[PLATT, B.-Why should there be a column for hours of work, if they are all to be the same?]

They may work different times on different days.

[ALDERSON, B.-If they do not work together, the inspector in order to protect

persons respectively is restricted by law, except on Saturday; but it shall not be lawful so to recover any lost time until a notice shall have been sent by post to the sub-inspector of the district in which the factory is situated, stating the intention so to recover time that had been lost, nor unless a notice according to the form and directions given in the Schedule (C.) to this act annexed shall have been previously fixed up in the entrance of the factory, and in such other places as an inspector or sub-inspector may direct, and such notice shall be kept so fixed up during the whole time while the lost time is in course of being recovered; and such notice shall be kept in a book as directed in the said schedule (C), nor shall lost time be so recovered on two successive days, unless the amount of time recovered on any one day shall be inserted before nine of the o'clock in the morning of the following day in the last-mentioned notice."

And section 34. enacts, "That in any factory in which any partofthe machinery is moved by the power of water, when the stream is so diminished by drought or swollen by flood during any part of the day, that any part of the manufacturing machinery driven by the water-wheel has been stopped by reason of such drought or flood, the young persons who would have been employed at such machinery may recover such lost time during the night next following the said day, unless the said day be Saturday; provided always, that no such young person shall be employed during any twenty-four consecutive hours for a greater number of hours than that to which the ordinary daily labour of such young persons in factories is otherwise restricted by law, and that no young person so employed in the night shall work more than five hours without an entire cessation from work of at least thirty minutes; but it shall not be lawful to recover any such lost time unless a notice according to the forms and directions given in the Schedule (C.) to this act annexed shall have been previously fixed up in the entrance of the factory, and in such other places as an inspector or sub-inspector may direct, and unless such notice be kept so fixed up during the whole time while the lost time is in course of being recovered, and such notice shall be kept in a book as directed in the said schedule (C.)."

the women and children would have to know the identical faces of each. It would be impossible for him to do that, and there would be perpetual cheating and shuffling. Nobody would know which child worked.]

The previous statutes confirm the view now urged. In the 3 & 4 Will. 4. c. 103, the object is stated to be to secure due regard to the health and means of education of children and young persons, and the hours were restricted to twelve, between halfpast five A.M. and half-past eight P.M., with an hour and a half for meal-times. It was found, however, that this enactment interposed no obstacle to working them by shifts, and so the children were kept loitering about at intervals, and no definite time was fixed for their work. The 7 & 8 Vict. c. 15. was intended to remedy this, yet by the construction contended for by the defendant inspection would be utterly impossible, and the whole object of the act would be defeated. Therefore the literal construction is the correct one, and the time is to be reckoned alike for all.

[ALDERSON, B.-If not, how can they secure any time for going to school?]

Martin (with him Hugh Hill), for the defendant. The present question is of more importance than any the Court has for a long period had to decide, as will be seen from an examination of the statutes, and the effect of a decision against the defendant. By the 7 & 8 Vict. c. 15. s. 73, the word "factory" includes "all buildings and premises situated within any part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, wherein, or within the close or curtilage of which, steam, water or any other mechanical power shall be used to move or work any machinery employed in preparing, manufacturing, or finishing, or in any process incident to the manufacture of cotton, wool, hair, silk, flax, hemp, jute or tow, either separately or mixed together, or mixed with any other material or any fabric made thereof." It includes therefore three-fifths of the manufactures of the country, probably seven-eighths of the manufactures of the West Riding of Yorkshire and Lancashire; and the question is whether, by torturing the words of a section in an act of parliament, one-sixth of the