§ MR. DEVLIN (Belfast, W.)I beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he can state the number of boys and girls employed as half-timers in mills and factories in Belfast, their ages, wages, hours, and days of work; whether any, and if so, how many, are employed on three consecutive days of the week; and 812 whether any, and if so, how many, are employed for part of each of the six working days in the week.
§ MR. GLADSTONEAccording to the latest statistics, which are those for 1904, 711 boys and 1,289 girls (2,000 in all), between the ages of twelve and fourteen years, were employed as half-timers in Belfast factories. I have no official information as to the wages of such persons, but I understand they are usually from 3s. to 4s. per week. Practically all are employed from 6.30 a.m. to 6 p.m., with two intervals for meals amounting to one and a half hours (i.e., in addition to the half hour allowed from 6 to 6.30 in the morning), on three alternate days in the week.