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20 SANITARY CHRONICLES, 1898.
FACTORY AND WORKSHOPS ACTS.
The details in relation to these important Acts have
been since 1895 under the special superintendence of Mr.
Philips. No sanitary duty requires more tact and
common-sense; trade being the very life of the country,
any vexatious and oppressive action by a Local Authority
is to be strongly deprecated. So far as this district is
concerned, in no single case have the officers of the
department been convicted of exceeding their duty or
carrying out the delicate and often irritating inspection
under the Factory Acts in an improper manner. At
the present time, there are 580 distinct businesses on the
register, representing over 1,000 work-rooms and 7,000
employes. Of these, 300 work-rooms are lit by electricity,
101 lit by lamps, the remainder by gas. The
trades are mainly in connection with dressmaking and
tailoring, and the female employees predominate over
the males, the males representing about a seventh of the
total number.
Out-Workers.
Under the Factory and Workshops Act of 1891,
Sect. 27, it is enacted:—"The occupier of every factory
or workshop (including any workshop conducted on the
system of not employing any child, young person, or
woman therein), and every contractor employed by any
such occupier in the business of the factory or workshop,
shall, if so required by the Secretary of State, by an
Order made in accordance with Section 65 of the principal
Act, and subject to any exceptions mentioned in
the Order, keep, in the prescribed form and with the
prescribed particulars, lists showing the names of all
persons directly employed by him, either as workman or
as contractor, in the business of the factory or workshop,
outside the factory or workshop, and the places where
they are employed, and every such list shall be open to
inspection by any inspector under the principal Act, or
by any officer of a sanitary authority."
Under this Section an Order has been made, dated
October 31st, 1892, It applies to the manufacture of