INDUSTRIAL HISTORY.*
SPECIALIZATION is the chief feature of three new contribu- tions to industrial history. Mr. Salzmann, whose wide antiquarian knowledge has been so valuable in the series of the " Victoria County Histories," has devoted a volume to the mediaeval industries of England. Mr. Webb has developed out of University essays a history of industries localized in Dublin. Professor Lloyd, of Toronto, deals with a single industry, and has traced its story, which, again, is now mainly localized in Sheffield. Mr. Salzmann takes ten industries, such as mining, cloth-making, brewing, &c.: he excludes agriculture and building, and also wool, which he considers a commercial rather than an industrial subject. He gives the results of much research, illustrating in detail the changing methods or materials, the wages current in different periods, the hours of labour, and the relations of masters and journeymen. The last chapter on "The Control of Industry" is a more general survey of the efforts of the State and the Gilds to hamper the freedom of trade from various motives. It proves the length and bitterness, also illustrated in the two other books, of the struggle to emancipate industry from the shackles which Politicians of all parties are inclined to impose or reimpose, and which Trade Unions would blindly rivet upon their members, their employers and fellow-workmen. Mr. Webb's volume is some- what shapeless, being made up from one essay on ten industries and another confined to the silk manufacture. Portions have little more than a local historical interest, but the strong Protectionist spirit may be taken as an interesting • (1) English Industries of the Middle Ages. By L. F. Salzmann. London : Constable and Co. [6s. net.]—(2) Industrial Dublin since 1698 and the Silk Industry in Dublin. By J. J. Webb. Dublin: Maunsel and Co. [2s. 6d. net.] —(5) The Cutlery Trades. By G. L H. Lloyd. London: Lougmuus and Co. [12s. 65. net.] indication of Nationalist. opinion. Many.. episodes in this Dublin story offer admirable lessons upon the enervating effects of Protection, and the appetite which grows with feeding upon it. There is even direct evidence, here and there, of the harm done by Protection and bounties, yet to the writer's mind the main cause of stagnation or ruin is evidently the lack of protection against superior machinery or capital, particularly that of Great Britain. But not for long shall brewing, distilling, and poplin- weaving be the only survivors of competition in Dublin : an Irish Parliament shall remedy the evil in the happy days now dawning. Professor Lloyd's book is a full, illustrated account of the cutlery trade, tracing its gradual concentration in Sheffield, and describing the con- ditions there minutely. There are also chapters on the French industry and the Solingen factories, where cheapness and quantity have been the chief aims. The general reader may find the volume too long and detailed, but there is consider- able value in the author's study of the evolution from handi- craft to factory and machinery, and his reasoned opinions upon the advantages of the present over the intermediate domestic system. The special conditions of Trade Unionism in Sheffield are interesting. As elsewhere, the Unions have done good work, sorely needed, in ameliorating social con- ditions and in making collective bargaining possible. The notorious outrages in the middle of the last century were only eminent examples of the lawless and tyrannical side of the movement. On the whole, the story is a fine record of industry and energy.
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