Question

to the parliament folk, yoll not object to telling em what a sore trial it is, this law o theirs, keeping childer fra factory work; whether they be weakly or strong. theres our ben; why, porridge seems to go no way wi him, he eats so much; and i han gotten no money to send him to school, as i would like; and there he is, rampaging about th streets a day, getting hungrier and hungrier, and picking up a manner o bad ways; and th inspector wont let him in to work in th factory, because hes not right age; though hes twice as strong as sankeys little riling (probably a corruption of
ickeling,\ a child that suffers from the rickets) - a weakling of a lad, as works till he cries for his legs aching so, though he is right age, and better.
ive one plan i wish to tell john barton, said a pompous, careful - speaking man, and i should like him for to lay it afore the honourable house. my mother comed out o oxfordshire, and were under - laundry - maid in sir francis dashwoods family; and when we were little ones, shed tell us stories of their grandeur: and one thing she named were, that sir francis wore two shirts a day. now were all as one as a parliament man; and many on em, i han no doubt, are like extravagant. just tell em john, do, that theyd be doing th lancashire weavers a great kindness, if theyd ha their shirts a made o calico; twould make trade brisk, that would, wi the power o shirts they wear.
job legh now put in his word. taking the pipe out of his mouth, and addressing the last speaker, he said:
ill tell ye what, bill, and no offence mind ye; theres but hundreds of them parliament folk as wear so many shirts to their back; but theres thou - sands and thousands o poor weavers as han only gotten one shirt i th world; ay, and dont know where t get another when that rags done, though theyre turning out miles o calico every day; and many o mile ot is lying in warehouses, stopping up trade for want o purchasers. yo take my advice, john barton, and ask parliament to set trade free, so as workmen can earn a decent wage, and buy their two, ay and three, shirts a year; that would make weaving brisk.
he put his pipe in his mouth again, and redou - bled his puffing to make up for lost time.
im afeard, neighbours, said john barton, ive not much chance o telling em all yo say; what i think on, is just speaking out about the distress, that they say is nought. when they hear o children born on wet flags, without a rag t cover em, or a bit o food for th mother; when they hear of folk lying down to die i th streets, or hiding their want i some hole o a cellar till death come to set em free; and when they hear o all this plague, pesti - lence, and famine, theyll surely do somewhat wiser for us than we can guess at now. howeer, i han no objection, if so be theres an opening to speak up for what yo say; anyhow, ill do my best, and yo see now, if better times dont come after parliament knows all.
activity options

1. writing for a specific purpose prepare a list of workers grievances that john barton might present to parliament. then share your list with classmates.
2. analyzing causes and recognizing effects make a cause - and - effect diagram to illustrate how workers in manchester were affected by an eco - nomic depression during the years 1839 to 1841.

Explanation:

1. To list workers' grievances for John Barton to present to Parliament, one could include long - working hours, poor pay (not enough to buy decent clothes like calico shirts), children being forced to work in factories despite not being the right age, and the overall distress of living in poverty with no food and harsh living conditions.
2. For the cause - and - effect diagram, the cause is the economic depression from 1839 - 1841 which led to effects such as lack of trade (no purchasers), workers not getting a decent wage, and having to live in poor conditions like on wet flags with no proper cover or food, and some having to hide in cellars.

Answer:

1. Workers' grievances: Long working hours, low pay, child labor, poor living conditions.
2. In a cause - and - effect diagram: Cause - Economic depression (1839 - 1841). Effects - Lack of trade, low wages, poor living conditions.