working life of women seventeenth century - School of Economics ...

120 TEXTILES TEXTILESthe cloth made thereof but to their intolerable losses,and are enforced to pawne theire clothes to keepetheire people in work, which they are not able toindure. . . . that there are at the least 1500loomes within the County of Gloucester and in . .. the Citie and that xxs. in money and sixteeneworking persons and upwards doe but weekly mainteyneone loome, which doe require I 5ooli. in money,by the weeke to mainteyne in that trade 24000 workingpeople besides all others that are reieeved thereby,and so the wages of a labouring person is little abovexiid. the week being much too little."'In June of the same year the Justices of Gloucesterwrote to the Council : " The distress of those dependingon the Cloth trade grows worse and worse. OurCounty is thereby and through want of money andmeans in these late tymes growne poore, and unableto releeve the infynite nomber of poore peopleresidinge within the same (draane hither by meanesof clothing) . . . therefore very many of themdoe wander, begg and steale and are in case to starveas their faces (to our great greefes) doe manifest. . . .The peace is in danger of being broken."'The distress was not limited to the rurd districts ;the records of the Borough of Reading describe effortsmade there for its alleviation. " At this daye thecomplainte of the poore Spynners and Carders wasagayne heard etc. The Overseers and Cldthiersapoynted to provide and assigne them worke apearedand shewed their dilligence therein, yett the complaintfor lacke of worke increaseth ; for a remedye is agreedto be thus, viz : every Clothier according to his pro-. . .shall weekly assigne and put to spyn-portion ofning in the towne his ordinarye and course wooffewooll, and shall not send it unto the country and if1 s.P.D., CUVL ,49, March 13> 1622.s.P.D., cxxxi., 4., June 1, 1622.I21sufficient be in the towne to doe it1." At anothertime it is recorded that " In regard of the greatof divers poore people lackinge worke andemployment in spynninge and cardinge in this Towne,yt was this daye thought fitt to convent all the undertakersof the stocke given by Mr. Kendricke, and uppontheir appearaunce it was ordered, and by themselvesagreed, that every undertaker, for every 3001i. shallput a woowf a weeke to spyninge within the Towne,as Mr. Mayour shall apoynt, and to such spynners asMr. Mayour shall send to them2 . . . 7 7In these times of distress and in all disputes concerningwages and the exactions of the employers,men and women stood together, supporting each otherin their efforts for the improvement of their lot.Thus the Justices of the Peace of Devonshire reportedthat " complaints were made by the most parte ofthe clothiers weavers, spinsters and fullers betweenPlymouth and Teignm~uth."~. and the Council isinformed that at the last Quarter Sessions in Wilts,many " weavers, spinners, and fullers for themselvesand for manie hundreds more. . . complainedof distress by increasing want of work. . .Clothiers giving up their trade, etc."'Sometimes the petitions, though presented on behalfof spinners as well as weavers, were actually signedonly by men. This was the case with the Weavers,Fullers and Spinners of Leonard Stanley and KingStanley in Gloucestershire, who petitioned on behalfof themselves and others, 800 at the least, young andold, of the said parishes, " Whereas your poore petitionershave heretofore bene well wrought and implayedin our sayd occupations belonging to the trade of\'Guilding, Reading, Vol. II., p. 159, 1623.'16id, Vol. III., p. 7, Mar. 3, 1629-30.a S.P.D.,xcvii., 85, May 25, 1618. J.P.s of Devonshire to Council.cm., 20, May 11, 1620. J.P.s of Wiltsllire to Council.