HC Deb 02 May 1894 vol 24 cc185-6

Order for Second Reading read.

MR. COLERIDGE (Sheffield, Attercliffe)

said, the Bill was promoted for the purposing of meeting a grievance felt in the cutlery trade. It was known widely that the result of there being no legislation of this kind was that frauds were constantly being committed upon the hand-cutters of files. Files which were hand-cut were considered to be superior to files which were machine-cut; but no person who was not an expert could tell the difference between files that were machine-cut and files that were hand-cut. Large orders were given for hand-cut files, and files which were machine-cut were supplied in their stead. The price of machine-cut files was lower than the price of hand-cut files. This measure had the support of the Trades Unions of the country. The file-cutters in the largo towns had petitioned the House in favour of passing the Bill, and inasmuch as the Hill had been brought in by himself, and was backed by his hon. Friend and Colleague the Member for the Hallam Division, the House would see that it was in no sense of a partisan character. It was a modest Bill; it would inflict no damage on any human creature, and had been brought in in the interests of honest trade, and to prevent hand file-cutters being constantly defrauded by the sale of machine as hand-cut files. Its provisions technically agreed with the recommendation of the Trades Council. It provided that the files which were machine-cut should be stamped as such, so that if anyone wanted to have a hand-cut tile he would be able to know it from a machine-cut file.

* COLONEL HOWARD VINCENT

joined with his hon. Friend and Colleague in saying that there was a very strong feeling on this subject throughout the five divisions of Sheffield. He was sorry his hon. Friend the Member for the Hallam Division, who took great interest in this matter, was not in the House, but he could hardly have thought that the Bill would be reached so soon, or else he would have been present. He hoped the Bill would have the support of his right hon. Colleague the President of the Board of Trade, and that it would be read a second time.

Motion agreed to.

Bill read a second time, and committed for To-morrow.