SECOND READING. (Hansard, 4 April 1878)

§ LORD WALSINGHAM
, in moving that the Bill be now read the second time, said, he was far from claiming that the Bill which he was about to ask their Lordships to read a second time was as complete a measure as it might ultimately be desirable to introduce for the purpose of diminishing the risk of accidents to agricultural labourers by machinery of this kind. He was aware 517 that various accidents would occur from different kinds of machinery, and, perhaps, some even from threshing machines, which it was beyond the power or purpose of this Bill to prevent. But in recommending the Bill to their Lordships in its present form, he would urge its acceptance on the ground of an immediate and pressing necessity for some commencement of legislation in the direction indicated. The great majority of their Lordships were, probably, only too painfully aware of the dangers which attended the working of an ordinary unprotected threshing machine by young, unsteady, or inexperienced hands. He supposed there was scarcely a village, or, at least, scarcely a group of villages, in any of the corn-growing districts where an instance was not to be heard of in which some unfortunate labourer had not fallen a victim to the present system; and it was a significant fact that since the equivalent of the present Bill, owing to certain obstructive political tactics, failed to survive what was generally known as ''the Massacre of the Innocents," in "another place," last Session, at least 10 or 12 fatal or serious accidents had been added to the sad list. By far the greater part of these accidents occurred from the men on the drum of the machine, before leaving off work, pushing the loose corn towards the feeder with their feet, instead of sweeping it with a broom. The feeder himself, who stood in a sort of box provided for the purpose, was not, with ordinary care, exposed to much risk of accident; but those who stood on the floor of the drum, should they inadvertently approach too near the mouth, or attempt, as they often did, to kick the corn forward towards where the beaters were revolving, might in a moment be drawn into the machinery and fatally or fearfully injured. Now, their Lordships would be aware that several different degrees of protection might be afforded by means of the various inventions and appliances which had been devised for that purpose. Probably, the most perfect and complete safety would be insured by the adoption of some self-acting feeding apparatus—such as that of Mr. Wilder, which had been much exhibited and approved; and he, for one, would gladly see the use of some such protection made compulsory by law; but the cost of this apparatus, amounting to about £20 on 518 each machine to which it was applied, would be at once a heavy tax upon farmers, and would create strong opposition to the establishment of the compulsory system if insisted on in such a form; whereas, by some more convenient and less costly method, an almost equal protective result might be attained. He was assured that a very good and sufficient guard could be applied by means of a simple rail or fence, which could be raised when work was going on and lowered at other time, and that the actual cost of such a guard would not be more than from 15s. to 20s. Now, if the present Bill would only insure the invariable adoption of some such simple precaution as that, it would probably reduce the number of accidents by 60 or 70 per cent, and so far fulfil the best hopes of its promoters. It might be argued that the labourers ought to have sense enough to take care of themselves; but, unfortunately, among that class of men, too much familiarity seemed to breed a certain contempt for the dangers arising from momentary inattention or carelessness; and he need hardly remind their Lordships that there were many precedents for protective legislation—such as were to be found, for instance, in the Acts relating to factories and coal mines. He would gladly see the provisions of the Bill extended to several other kinds of machinery, such as steam saws and chaff-cutters; but if it should be found desirable to deal with this subject, a very short supplementary Act would easily effect the object; whereas, since this Bill had now obtained the unanimous assent of the other House of Parliament, it would be most unfortunate, by the introduction of any unnecessary Amendments, to run the risk of consigning so useful a measure to the fate which had befallen it on more than one former occasion in that "other place." Whether their Lordships concurred in that view or not, he would venture to express a hope that they would at least approve the principle of the Bill, and now read it a second time.

THE EARL OF MORLEY
asked why the Bill was not to extend to Ireland or Scotland?

§ LORD WALSINGHAM
said, he did not exactly know, but believed it to be 519 the result of the opposition which the proposal to include them had met with in the other House last year.