Churchill (Liberal) 7,079
        Baxter (Conservative) 4,370
        Stuart (Socialist) 4,014
        Scrymgeour (Prohibitionist) 655
                                                -----
          Liberal majority 2,709
          
                                      -----

FOOTNOTES: 

[9] March 30, 1908.

II

SOCIAL ORGANISATION

PAGE

MINES [EIGHT HOURS] BILL (July 6, 1908) 173

UNEMPLOYMENT (Oct. 10, 1908) 189

THE SOCIAL FIELD (Jan. 13, 1909) 211

THE APPROACHING CONFLICT (Jan. 30, 1909) 225

THE ANTI-SWEATING BILL (April 28, 1909) 239

LABOUR EXCHANGES AND UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE
  (May 19, 1909) 253

THE SECOND READING OF THE MINES [EIGHT HOURS] BILL

HOUSE OF COMMONS, July 6, 1908

Whatever arguments may be urged against this measure, no one can say that the Government have acted with precipitation in bringing it before the House and the country.  It has been debated for twenty years.  Parliaments, Tory and Liberal, have affirmed the principle, and I do not suppose there ever was a similar reform put forward in this House upon a greater volume of scientific and accurate information, or after more prolonged, careful, and sustained scrutiny.  If the debate on the Second Reading has thrown very little new light on this question, it is because it has been fully and thoroughly explored on former occasions; and not only has it been fully explored, but it is now illuminated by the admirable Report which has been presented by the Departmental Committee appointed last session.

This Report, while exciting approval on all sides, gives no complete satisfaction to any.  It balances, and weighs, but it does not finally pronounce.  It aims less at deciding this controversy, than at defining the limits within which its economic aspect may be said to lie.  I think any one who reads the Report with attention will feel, after careful study, that the limits of the economic controversy are moderately restricted.  We have to consider on the one hand the gross reduction of one-tenth in the hours of labour of underground workmen, taking the average over all classes of men and all sorts of mines.  And on the other hand we have as a set-off against that gross reduction certain very important mitigations which are enumerated in the Report, to which I shall briefly refer.

The first economic question which the House has to settle is, whether these mitigations which are enumerated will have the effect of overtaking the reduction which is to follow the curtailment of hours, or, if not, how far they will fall short in overtaking that reduction.