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In the same wav the conditions of labour in the worsted-spinning mills of Yorkshire and the “stuff goods” weaving-millsof Bradford are far below those in Lancashire . The female opera-tives in the spinning-mills do not earn above 10s. per week, andthe weavers in Bradford between 7s. and 16s. The operatives’houses which I visited in Bradford , as well as in other places ofYorkshire, are far behind those in Lancashire . Especially fre-quent are the so-called hack-to-back houses, which have no backyard, and often enough have only two rooms, one above the other—the older type of English operatives’ houses, which in Lanca-shire are dying out more and more. But, remarkably enough,these houses are not only relatively, but frequently absolutely,dearer than in Lancashire , since the operative here did not under-stand, by means of co-operative building societies, to press downrents in general (1).
The operatives are less organised, and remarkably enough Brad-ford is the only place where, for the coming Parliamentary elec-tions, special Labour candidates are in the field, whilst otherwise,as is well known, the operatives in England attend to their in-terests within the political parties. The relation between em-ployed and employers is extremely strained, and reminds one ofthe conditions of those German mill districts in which the labourmovement has severed the relations of olden times. But especiallyhated is the relation, in those gigantic concerns above mentioned,which outwardly kept up the old patriarchal dominion.
A peculiar light flashes upon the state of affairs if we considerthat it does not hero by any means depend upon a staple industryfostered by export, which, like that, of Lancashire , dominates in itsbranch the world’s market.
As is known, there exists between the German and English worsted industries certainly a far-reaching division of labour,which prevents them in many respects from being close and imme-diate competitors. We shall not, however, be far wrong, lookingat everything all round, if we view the German and English in-dustries in this branch as equally important in economical de-velopment. Therewith there are similar social conditions between
1. Thus the operatives’dwellings in Manningham, near Bradford , are notonly far worse, hut in fact dearer, than those in Oldham—4s. fid. to os. fid. perweek, against 3s. fid. to 4s. fid. A better-class dwelling-house, which inOldham or Hyde would cost fis. per week, cannot be got in Bradford under 8s.