tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2456802468539868519.post2202228129164510230..comments2023-10-12T02:21:40.102-07:00Comments on English Historical Fiction Authors: Child labour and Pick-pocketsDebra Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2456802468539868519.post-87248877820175375682012-03-21T18:48:27.245-07:002012-03-21T18:48:27.245-07:00Thanks Marie, and thanks to those who have added a...Thanks Marie, and thanks to those who have added additional information. It is a sadly interesting topic, and I would love to learn more in depth.Debra Brownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03256313302199653185noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2456802468539868519.post-57778196372456939552012-03-21T08:13:00.850-07:002012-03-21T08:13:00.850-07:00Great Blog Marie, As I have had a sneak peak at th...Great Blog Marie, As I have had a sneak peak at the Sweetest Touch, I loved that you chose to blog about pickpockets given the heroine's past. Very touching and sad, and an excellent book!Laurenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07986129906420811246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2456802468539868519.post-92097389259318397472012-03-21T08:09:12.351-07:002012-03-21T08:09:12.351-07:00Excellent blog, Marie! I really like delving into ...Excellent blog, Marie! I really like delving into history--even the dark parts. Thanks for sharing your wisdom. :)Lily Georgehttp://www.lilygeorge.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2456802468539868519.post-16456985185456539322012-03-21T06:45:45.864-07:002012-03-21T06:45:45.864-07:00Sorry, my typo. It was John Reeves, age 13, who g...Sorry, my typo. It was John Reeves, age 13, who gave evidence against Charles King, the 'thief-trainer'. Apologies.M.M. Bennettshttp://www.mmbennetts.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2456802468539868519.post-87065523440822729772012-03-21T06:44:13.623-07:002012-03-21T06:44:13.623-07:00The problem of poor children in London...well, as ...The problem of poor children in London...well, as late as 1750 at least half of the population was not expected to reach the age of four. The labour laws that governed England had not been reformed since their first writing, which was 1588 or thereabouts. <br /><br />Due to the increasing pressure by reformers such as the evangelical, William Wilberforce, however, in 1812, the Child Labour laws were reformed. These now stated that there must be no more than two children sleeping in a bed, children under the age of four could not be employed, they must have Sundays off and the employer must provide Sabbath school teaching for the morning. <br /><br />Bearing in mind that laws only ever reveal what the legislators can get passed, it gives a pretty grisly oversight into the lives of poor children before the laws were passed. However, this was a huge step forward and the chimney sweeps in particular railed against it, though it was not intended particularly for them but rather for the factory owners in the North.<br /><br />Nevertheless, the problem of child gangs and child thieves remained a constant. <br /><br />Famous fences over the course of the 19th century include Thomas Duggin of St Giles who taught boys to pick pockets and was caught in 1817; Jemima Matthews from the Flower and Dean Street Rookery sent eight children out daily to steal in about 1820; and Charles King, aged 32, was transported for 14 years in 1855--he'd been a former Metropolitan Police detective who'd recruited boy pickpockets and was known as a 'thief-trainer'. <br /><br />But, up against the sordid tales, one has to place the other side of the story. These pickpocketing children often lived well--and that was inducement enough. John Reeves, aged 13, earned some £100 a week in his best weeks. He'd begun stealing at the age of 10, stealing his daily bread in the Newport Market, but by age 13, was able to keep a pony and ride in the Parks. And it was he who gave the evidence against John Reeves.M.M. Bennettshttp://www.mmbennetts.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2456802468539868519.post-15344966471694807132012-03-21T00:24:25.895-07:002012-03-21T00:24:25.895-07:00To our shame, child labor continues. My journalist...To our shame, child labor continues. My journalist friend Anton Foek broke the story of children making Barbie dolls in China. In Indonesia children have been the preferred labor because they can be paid less and are more easily coerced. Regarding adults organizing gangs of children, the film "Slum Dog Millionaire" deals with this problem in India in such ghastly fashion one is left hoping it is fiction.<br /><br />But there is another side to the story. I had a neighbor who fled abusive parents when he was eleven years old. He found shelter in an upscale car repair garage and learned how to repair Mercedes, Rolls Royces and Bentleys. He was so good at it that he was able to buy a farm here when he was only twenty years old, and accepted repair work -- at a very high fee -- whenever he pleased. He has tired of the farm, sold it and now keeps his yacht in Fiji. Needless to say, he's a strong advocate for repeal of the child labor laws since the guys who sheltered him and taught him how to repair cars were breaking the law.<br /><br />My husband's uncle, John McCloy, fled a dangerous father, went to sea by lying about his age when he was only twelve. He became a great naval hero, with a ship named after him and a recent postage stamp commemorating him.<br /><br />Perhaps there are no answers that are right in every case.Katherine Ashehttp://www.katherineashe.comnoreply@blogger.com