154

CREFELD.

The  ordinary  hours  of  labour  in  both  groups  of  factories  are  in  the  town
of  Crefeld  from  7  a.m.  to  7  p.m.  in  summer,  and  from  8  a.m.  to  8  pan.  in  winter,
with  two  hours  of  intervals.  On  Saturdays  work  stops  at  5'30  p.m.  Work  in
the  rural  factories  usually  begins  earlier—at  6'30  a.m.  in  summer  and  7  or  7  30
in  winter.  Night-work  does  not  exist  and  overtime  is  rare.  Employment  is
apt  to  be  very  irregular  as  the  trade  fluctuates  greatly  ;  the  velvet  industry  is
usually  busy  in  the  summer  months,  and  the  stuff  industry  in  the  winter,  but
lately  employment  in  the  velvet  branch  has  been  much  more  steady  throughout ­
  the  year.  Such  factories  as  were  visited,  both  in  the  town  and  outside,
seemed  clean,  light,  and  well  maintained,  and  the  sanitary  arrangements  were
fairly  good.  The  male  and  female  weavers  are  mingled  together  in  the  workrooms. ­
  In  velvet  weaving  the  one-loom  system  is  in  force,  whilst  in  stuff
weaving  the  two-loom  system  is  commonly  employed,  both  for  men  and  women.
Another  very  important  branch  of  the  silk  industry  in  Crefeld  is  dyeing.
The  following  Table  gives  the  number  of  factories  and  workmen  employed  in
the  town  for  the  three  years  1903-5  :—

No.  of
Factories.

36
36
37

No.  of
Workmen.

2,753
2,659
2,907

Year.

1903
1904
1905

The  hours  of  labour  are  10  per  day,  usually  from  7  a.m.  to  6  30  p.m.,  with
an  interval  from  12  noon  to  1*30,  and  no  other  pauses.
Other  important  branches  of  the  industry  are  silk  printing,  which  is  a
factory  occupation,  and  the  manufacture  of  silk  neckties,  which  are  made  up  by
women  working  in  their  own  homes  for  various  manufacturers.
Many  of  the  silk  stuff  manufacturers  employ  domestic  industry  in  various
degrees,  partly  in  Crefeld  itself  and  partly  outside.  This  is  sometimes  hand
weaving,  but  for  ribbons  it  is  frequently  mechanical  weaving,  and  a  short
description  of  the  small  commune  of  Anrath,  a  few  miles  from  Crefeld,  may  be
added  here.  Anrath  had  formerly  some  1,500  hand  weavers  (chiefly  of  velvets),
and  suffered  greatly  from  the  introduction  of  machinery  and  the  factory  system
in  the  late  eighties.  Large  numbers  of  able-bodied  weavers  had  to  be  given
poor-relief,  and  the  efforts  of  the  local  authorities,  both  municipal  and  other,  to
devise  occupations  for  the  workmen  were  for  long  unsuccessful.  Finally  an
attempt  was  made  to  establish  silk-ribbon  weaving  with  mechanical  looms  ;  the
municipality,  with  the  aid  of  a  loan  from  the  Central  Government,  established
in  1902  electric  power  works,  and  undertook  to  supply  the  power  for  the  looms
in  the  workers'  own  homes.  The  result  has  been  a  great  revival  ;  the  silk-ribbon
weaving  seems  to  be  firmly  established  as  a  domestic  industry,  and  the  commune
is  again  prospering,  as  was  recently  shown  by  the  opening  of  a  new  town  hall
and  an  infirmary.  The  electric  power  costs  to  the  worker  6s.  a  month  per
loom,  and  to  prevent  excessive  hours  of  labour  it  is  supplied  only  from
7'30  a.m.  to  12  noon,  and  from  1*30  to  8  p.m.  The  industry  in  the  commune
suffers,  of  course,  from  the  fluctuations  common  to  the  industry  as  a  whole,  but
otherwise  there  can  be  no  doubt  of  the  success  of  the  experiment.  In  October,
1906,  there  were  150  looms  at  work,  owned  by  about  104  workmen
Dr.  Heinrich  Brauns,  as  the  result  of  his  inquiries  in  1905,  estimated  the  cost
of  establishing  a  single  loom,  with  the  necessary  equipment  and  accessories,  at
about  £76  105.  Ihe  workman  usually  has  the  assistance  only  of  members  of
his  family—wife  or  children—even  when  he  has  more  than  one  loom  ;  the
employment  of  workers  who  are  not  of  the  family  is  very  rare.  The  «ross
earnings  with  one  loom  are  normally  about  £65  a  year  ;  in  rare  cases  £70  may
be  reached,  and  very  exceptionally,  when  the  trade  is  unusually  active,  even  £75.
But  the  general  rate  is  probably  not  above  £65,  and  when  allowance  is  made
for  interest  on  the  expenditure  incurred  for  the  loom  and  the  fitting  up  of  the
worXroom,  for  lighting  and  heating,  rent,  tools,  and  miscellaneous  expenses,
Dr.  Brauns  concludes  that  the  normal  net  earnings  do  not  exceed  £41  to  £45.
The  majority  of  the  workmen  are  strongly  and  actively  Homan  Catholic,  but
nevertheless  many  of  them  vote  Socialist,  and  a  good  number  of  Roman  Catholics