Coals in this neighbourhood were originally sold by measure, not by weight. A basket weighed about 2 cwt.; two baskets, therefore, weighed about 4 cwt. Now a donkey load in a sack thrown over the donkey’s back was a basket, or 2 cwt., and it seems a horse load in the same way – namely, in a sack on the horse’s back – was two baskets, or 4 cwts. When it speaks here of a horse load, it does not mean a cart load, but a load put on the horse’s back. Old men used to lead their horses to the pit with body prone and hands behind the back. A whip or switch often grasped in the right fist, just to let “Dobby” smell at what there was in store for him if he should falter in his path. Owd Jone Leach lived Glodwick, and I believe, kept an alehouse there. He was a friend of Joe Lees and Joss Ceawp, of Jone o’ Grinfilt fame, and a terrible wag. Scores of horses at passed his house every day, led by their owners on their way to the coalpit, somewhere about Lowside. He noticed that these leaders of horses seldom looked behind to see if the horse was following, but if the rein came tight they would simply slash out behind, and exclaim, “Choo, choo, gee up Dobby.” Jone, ever ready for a practical joke, one day followed one of these coal leader, and releasing the horse from its bridle unknown to its leader, whose back was towards the horse, and turning it adrift to graze by the roadside at its own will. Jone deftly donned the bridle on his own head, and followed the leader – faltering now and again to make believe he was the unwilling horse being led to his load of coals. Arriving at the pit, the leader would make a circle as if to back his horse to the place of loading, and coming full face to what he supposed was his horse, he found Jone grinning at him through his horse’s bridle. “Is t’at t’ee?” said the coal leader, and making as though he would switch Jone with his whip, Jone slipped off, leaving the old coal leader to find his horse as best he could. Jone had had his joke, and taught his friend, for whom he stood a drink the next time he called at his house, a lesson in caution and circumspection. Trade in general brisk; wages moderate; hatting very scarse; every appearance of provisions being still lower. This remark probably alludes to the cotton trade, which, during this year, as already noted, received a great impetus, though its effect was chiefly felt in the following two years. Mr. John Lees, great grandfather of Elliott Lees, Esq., present M.P. for Oldham, began to erect the first portion of Greenbank Mills in this year. We also find that King-street, Shore, and Croft Bank mills had been enlarged just at or previously to this time. Plenty of work and cheaper food were elements of prosperity calculated to make people thankful, and it was at this time when a general thanksgiving was held, as appears from the following annal:- Speaking of this John Lees, I think we may look on him as one of our first captains of industry in Oldham, especially so as the firm remains to us in colossal dimensions to this day under the style of Messrs. Lees and Wrigley, of Greenbank Mills. E Butterworth says of him: “Mr. John Lees” (commonly known as John o’ Sally’s, from the fact of him having a very excellent wife named Sally, who took an active part in her husband’s business, and earned the reputation among her neighbours of being a very excellent woman, both religiously and otherwise; and here we see the use of a nick-name, which, however odd it may sound today, served a good purpose then, and that was to distinguish John Lees from several other John Leeses then rising or risen to fame in Oldham). “Mr. John Lees, highly admired for his abilities in mechanics, as well as esteemed for his happy quickness of fancy, and who possessed a cotton spinning concern at Mount Pleasant Mill in 1816, died February 5th 1817.” He lived near to the mill, and was a putter-out of weaving. The house still stands in Cross-street. |
The following is from “Gems of Biography” by the late Joseph Bentley, who was brought up on Highmoor, and lived for a while near Waterhead Mill. The entry is interesting as being concerned with our early fustian trade in Oldham., great promoters of which were the grandfather and great-grandfather of Mr. Elliott Lees, our junior M.P.: - When I was nearly six-and-a-half years old, a pair of looms were bought, and I was actually set to weave strong fustian at that early age. My first piece of cloth was 55 yards long and it weighed 35 lbs., and my finishing of it was quite an event. I was allowed to go with father, five miles, to the house of the employer for whom we all worked (John o’Sally’s). By the way, there I saw many things that interested me as much as the strange sights I saw the morning I went to see from whence the sun came. Our employer was a burly bustling man, who was so busy carrying out his own fortune that he had little time to throw a sympathetic thought to others. I was feverishly anxious the whole time he was carefully looking over my work. He closely examined the whole piece fold by fold himself, while his eldest son (evidently James Lees, a smart youth of some two or three and twenty) stood at his elbow looking on. I breathed more freely when he handed the piece to his son, who folded it up and marked, it, while the father proceeded to pay for the work, the sum being, if I recollect right, about £2. When the money was paid my father said, “That piece is by a new weaver, and I have brought him with me to face up with his work if you should have found anything wrong with it.” The manufacturer turning his eye rather vacantly around the warehouse , as though his mind was abstractedly engaged in thinking about the contents of his cash-box before him, said gruffly, “Where is he? I don’t see the weaver.” “Yes,” said my father, “there he is,” pointing to me, who felt very much inclined to fall down or hide myself in a corner from the graze of so great a man as John Lees was considered to be. But neither he nor his son spoke for a moment, both looking intensely hard at me. The father at length said, “Do you mean to tell me that little boy has woven the piece I have just looked over?” “Yes,” my father replied, “every inch of it.” “And who wove the other piece I looked over first?” said the manufacturer. “I did,” replied my father. “Well,” said the employer, “I see little difference in them. You may get richer than your master if your son gets on this way.” He then called me to him, patted me on the head, told me to mind my work and be a careful, good boy, and he had no doubt but I should get on in the world. He then gave me twopence, a most wonderful thing for him to do. His son, who had been looking on this while, then took the piece of cloth as it was rolled up ready to send to Manchester, and, placing it on end, said laughingly, “Why, you have made a piece almost as big as yourself.” Nor must we omit the name of James Lees, of Greenbank, grandfather of the member for Oldham, who stepped in his father’s shoes and really carried his father’s aims to success as a captain of industry. January 20th -Thursday was observed as a day of general thanksgiving for the return of peace. January 17th -Manchester Sessions commenced, when thirteen received sentence of transportation, of whom one was John Taylor, late of Hollinwood. January 23rd -Died Joseph Ogden, of Maygate-lane, age betwixt 60 and 70 years. A truly worthy man. February 1st -One Howard, a boy of 16 years of age, was killed by a quantity of clay falling on him as he was casting up brick earth near Hollins. |
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A few days since three boatmen, for stealing wool out of a boat on the Rochdale Canal, and James Pennington, landlord at Cut Bridge, Whitegate End, for receiving the same, all committed to the New Bayley for tryal. February 9th -James Clegg, of Burnley-lane, commited to the New Bayley for three months for poaching. February 17th - Died at Manchester Infirmary, of a wound he received by a cart weel, James Hall, carter to Mr. Jacob Radcliffe, of Bank, Oldham. February 17th - Died Ann Kershaw, of St. Hellens, Northmoor; her age, 37 years. Trade is very bad, especially hatting. A very great deal of hatters are without any work at all, consequently them and their familys are in a state of starvation. Weaving of all kinds is dayley decreasing in the price of labour. Factory business is very brisk, having great orders for twist for exportation. A deal of country banks have of late stopped payment, which has caused a great fermentation amongst the trading part of the people. These poor hatters seem always to have been living on the edge of their cake. Trade could not have been long bad since the last revival, and yet we now read of them as being in a state of starvation. It shows how different must have been the condition of the people then to what it is now. People in these days can withstand a siege almost without starving. Then it seems as if they had but very little beforehand even taking into account their credit with the shopkeepers. Now-a-days ready money must be paid at the store. Cotton spinners must have been doing well as regards supply and demand, “twist for exportation” being a special feature in the trade. Our system of finance, however, was sadly defective. Country banks were stopping – Old Cobbett’s prophesies were coming true. Paper money was the chief means of exchange, and the strongest bank in England was not safe. March 9th -Sauterday, this day, the Royal Lancashire Militia 1st Regement, where dismissed at Lancaster. March 2nd -Died, William Nicinson, of Hanfield-row, Oldham. Age 54 years. March 15th -Friday the 2nd Regement of Lancashire Militia where discharged at Liverpool. March 17th -Nancy, wife of John Holroyd, a blacksmith, of Bent, Oldham, in a fit of despair, hanged herself. |
William Townley, of Townley, High Sheriff for Lancashire. March 24th -was intered at Heigh, Mary, widdow of the late Jonathan Lees, of High-nows. She was daughter of the late James Clegg, of Wood. Age 65 years. Was intered at Oldham, Anna, widdow of the late Abraham Wild, of Broadway-lane, collior., Her age 85 years. March 30th -Was intered at Oldham, Briget Mills, formerly of Cowhill. She died in Chadderton Workhouse. She was upwards of 70 years of age. April -This month commences with extreme cold weather, as it has been for a long time. The winter set in as early as the beginning of November and as continued excessive cold ever since. The spring is very late, not the least appearance of vegetation. Everything seems to be loc(k)ed up with the chilly cold frosts. Trade, by the emence number of failures is very flat, especially the different weaving branches and hatting. The factory business was never better. The orders for weft for twist and exportation are numerous. There would appear to have been almost three winters for one summer these two years, as we shall see there was hardly any summer at all in 1816. “Factory business never better.” This annal quite agrees with the official returns for that year. Weft and twist for export evidently found a good market. I quote the official value returned to government for 1816 and for two previous and two succeeding years, of yarns and twist exported from the United Kingdom, showing an increased value in 1816.:- 1814, £1,119,850; 1815, £808,853; 1816, £1,380,486; 1817, £11.125.258; 1818, £1,296,776. Oldham must at that time have been a land of Goshen, as other parts of the country seem to have been in great distress. We have need to thank God for our factories. The extreme jealousy with which the factory system was viewed by outsiders may be judged from the fact that a commission sat in London this year for the purpose of examining into the evils of the factory system. The attenuated forms of poor factory operatives had been surveyed, and harrowing accounts were being circulated that the factory system was ruining the constitution and morals of the people. Certainly poor children were working too long, some say as long as fifteen hours a day. This must be condemned if it were so, but to lay the blame of all this emaciation on the factory system was, to say the least, the height of impudence. What had the years of famine done for the people? What about the barley times and all those clembelly years intervening? Had not these reduced the condition of the people? To blame the factory system, therefore, because certain lean and ungainly creatures were found working in the factories, was equal to blaming a mousetrap for catching a lean and hungry mouse! |
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