The Linen Industry in Ulster (pt4)

SOME EXTRACTS

FROM THE

RECORDS OF

OLD LISBURN

AND THE

MANOR OF KILLULTAGH.

-- -- -- --

 Edited by JAMES CARSON. 

-- -- -- --

CXXII.

-- -- -- --

THE LINEN INDUSTRY 

IN ULSTER.

by WILLIAM LARMOR.

(Continued.)

The Factory System.

Meantime, James Watt was struggling with the steam-engine. In the year 1765, by a flash, of genius, he discovered the error in the Newcomen engine, which was then in use for pumping purposes, and after a long struggle he was able to remedy the defect and to produce a new engine which performed its work satisfactorily. The discovery of the "rotative" motion shortly afterwards enabled it to be applied to drive machinery, and in 1785 the first steam-engine was introduced into a cotton mill at Popplewick.

All these discoveries taken together dealt a fatal blow to the domestic system. The output of cloth was enormously increased, and the cost no greatly reduced that a great increase took place, in the demand. In fifteen years the cotton trade trebled itself. Old barns, cart-houses and out-buildings of every description were repaired and converted into loom-shops. Means of communication had improved, the canal system had become developed, the money market was springing up, banking had increased and was providing the necessary, capital and credit, without which the revolution could not have been carried out. Hand-loom weaving in the cotton trade gradually ceased to be a paying trade. It could not compete against the power-loom. Gradually the weavers flocked to the centres of manufacture seeking employment. They had to sacrifice their independence and submit to the discipline of the factory system. Under the domestic system where journeymen were employed, there was a great deal of intimacy between master and labourers, which brought about a good feeling between them. Under the new system, workers were thrown together under very hard and rigid conditions. The hours were long, and the employers in the early days not very humanitarian. A great proportion of them were self-made ignorant men who did not understand the economy of good wages and shorter hours. The workers had not grown up to the new system and found it oppressive. Consequently from the evils of those early days there sprang up that antagonism between employer and worker which has caused so many strikes and lock-outs, which has caused combinations between capital and labour, and which has handed down to our time industrial problems, the solving of which will be one of the greatest difficulties of the future.

It now remains to trace what the effects of the establishment of the factory system in the cotton industry were on the linen industry of the North of Ireland.

The mechanical inventions which revolutionised the cotton industry must have excited a great deal of interest amongst the linen manufacturers who soon heard about them. For a considerable time afterwards it was not thought practicable to apply any of these inventions to the manufacture of linen, consequently the minds of enterprising men turned instinctively to the manufacture of cotton. There had been some manufacture of cotton goods carried on in the north of Ireland previous to this time, but it now made rapid headway.

Lisburn again came to the front, and it is on record that the first steam-engine applied to drive machinery was in a Lisburn cotton mill. The following is rather interesting extract from McCall's history of the Cotton Manufacture in Ireland:--

Steam Power.

In 1789, Mr. Wallace erected a cotton mill in a court off Castle Street, Lisburn, and had the concern filled with the most modern machinery. Job Ryder, a shrewd watchmaker of Belfast, offered his services as superintendent of works, and these were accepted; but when all had been nearly finished, some difference of opinion arose between the proprietor and his people as to what description of "power" would be most effective for driving the spindles. The building being situate in the centre of the town no one of all the local streams could have been brought to bear on the machinery, horse-power was out of the question, consequently the only course open to Mr. Wallace was to call in the aid of steam. He had heard much about the discoveries of Watt and Boulton, but he was also aware that several manufacturers of Lancashire and Lanark, who had great experience in the matter, were of opinion that, besides its great cheapness, the strength of a mountain stream, where it could be made available, was quite equal to that of the new agent. As it was, Mr. Wallace had no choice, he must try steam power; and, for the purpose of personally examining the principle and seeing it at work, he set oft for Glasgow -- a full week's run in those days -- and on arriving there, he visited several concerns in the cotton spinning trade, and in each of which that machinery was driven by steam. Having been convinced of the superiority of the new principle, he purchased a fifteen horsepower engine, engaged competent mechanics to set it up, and returned home. Many were the difficulties he had to contend against in the preliminary proceedings -- a well had to be sunk to obtain water for condensing purposes, and competent hands had to be engaged to work at the concern; but at length all arrangements were completed, and Mr. Wallace enjoyed the triumph of seeing the first steam-engine that ever whirled in the North of Ireland driving the spindles of the Lisburn Cotton Mill. The wonderful power of mechanism stirred up immense curiosity, not only in that town, but in several other places, and many scientific men from distant parts of the North visited Lisburn to see the new power at work. A venerable friend of mine, who lived to a patriarchal age, and was one of that race of gentleman-farmers which has few representatives in these days, told me that he recollected perfectly the erection of Mr. Wallace's mill, and he described with great interest the excitement which had been created about the steam-engine. Its construction was, of course very inferior to that of those manufactured in after days, the beam having been made of wood, and the inner work roughly finished, still, it worked well and was considered a marvellous invention.

In 1793 another cotton mill was erected in Lisburn by George Whitla and Robert Stirling. That concern was not so large as that of James Wallace; it gave employment to fifty hands, and the spindles were driven by an engine of twelve-horse-power. These cotton spinning mills were carried on successfully for several years, but death and other casualties brought "about many changes, and in 1812 not a spindle was in motion in Lisburn."

The Cotton Manufacture

now extended very rapidly, and it looked about the beginning of last century as if cotton would displace linen manufacture. In the year 1800 ten thousand bales of raw cotton were landed at Belfast, and in the year 1807 the imports amounted to 14,000 bales, worth about £420,000. Another important factor must have helped to stimulate cotton manufacture; the interruption of the supplies of flax and flaxseed which was practically all imported from abroad, during the Napoleonic wars. Prices of flax increased enormously and manufacturers were obliged to turn their looms on to cotton the supply of the raw material being available.

It was natural at this period that Belfast should become an important centre, owing to the growing facilities for importing the raw material and exporting the finished article. We find, therefore, that out of the fourteen cotton spinning mills started about this time, ten were located in Belfast and the immediate neighbourhood, and gave employment to over two thousand hands.

By the year 1810 cotton manufacture seems in have attained its zenith in Ireland. In the year 1776 there were about 500 linen looms at works in Belfast. In 1790 there were 158 linen and 500 cotton looms, and in the year 1810 there were 6 linen looms and 860 cotton looms. From 1812 to 1814, owing to the war with America about the right of search, raw cotton supplies were interrupted, and cotton spinning in Ireland received a check. During the years of financial disasters that recurred at regular intervals after the Napoleanic wars, owing to the great fall in prices, great losses were sustained and cotton spinning lost ground rapidly until it became practically extinct in the North of Ireland in the year 1828.

During this period the Lisburn market was still the most important centre for the sale of brown cloth and was celebrated for the superiority of its thirty-eight inch linens. The turn-over at each day's sales, in the busy season, about the year 1816, amounted to £5,200. After this a gradual transition seems to have taken place, other markets increased in importance, and Lisburn gradually lost ground, until at a late date Ballymena and Armagh were finally the only two places where brown linens were sold in the open market, and when the domestic system was displaced this method of selling cloth disappeared altogether.

Flax-Spinning by Machinery.

was first invented and developed in England and afterwards introduced into Ireland. Experiments had been going on for some years previous to 1788, but during that year John Marshall, the son of a Leeds shopkeeper, entered into partnership with two others and erected a small mill in Leeds. It was not very successful at the commencement, but in the course of a few years the machinery was improved and the undertaking commenced to be a success. Under this system coarse yarns could only be spun as the flax was spun in a dry state. In the year 1825 Mr. Thomas Kaye, who was a very ingenious manufacturer, discovered the method of "wet spinning" which enabled yarns of much finer counts to be spun. This was a great stimulus to flax-spinning in England, and machine-spun yarn rapidly gained ground.

The year 1828 marks a very important period in the history of the linen industry in Ireland, for during that year flax spinning by steam power was adopted and introduced by two firms -- Messrs. Mulholland Bros., of York Street, Belfast, and Messrs. James and William Murland, Castlewellan. Both these enterprises were successful and succeeded beyond expectations. In a short time yarns were produced which were superior to those produced by hand-spinning, and besides the cost proved much cheaper. A great demand sprung up for machine-spun yarns, and the linen industry was greatly stimulated. Meantime, other important changes had taken place which accelerated the development of the new system. In 1825 the Irish coinage was reformed. There had been important accumulations of capital, and through the operations of banking which was now being developed in Ireland this capital could be readily utilised for the extension of enterprise. The channel was being cleared, shipping was increasing, and regular services between Belfast and English ports were established. It was now possible to transport easily heavy and bulky machinery necessary for the development of the industry. Improvement in spinning machinery quickly followed. The development was pushed energetically, and by the end of the year 1840 there were thirty-eight mills working in Ireland, containing 245,000 spindles, and hand-spinning had practically ceased to exist. In 1845 there were sixty mills at work containing 290,000 spindles and in 1850 the number of spindles bad increased to 330,000. This rapid growth continued until in the year 1867 the number of spindles at work in Ireland was about equal to the spindles of England and Scotland combined.

The date of the introduction of power-loom weaving into the linen manufacture in Ireland seems uncertain. McCall states that power-loom production of linen goods was "little thought of by Irish manufacturers until 1848, and even then was looked on by over-cautious men as a risky speculation." It is evident that the cloth was practically all produced in hand-looms up to this time. Enterprising bleachers and merchants had established hand-loom factories for the production of cloth on an extensive scale, and even successful and pushing country hand-loom weavers who had accumulated a little capital, took advantage of the facilities that Belfast offered to come there and start small hand-loom shops which were afterwards greatly developed. After 1850 the power-loom manufacture greatly extended, and in the year 1867 there were 12,500 power-looms at work in Ireland.

A special feature which encouraged the development of the factory system in Belfast is worthy of notice, and may explain to some extent the rapid development of the industry there in comparison with its development in other cities in the United Kingdom. Between 1828 and 1840 most of the land on which Belfast now stands was let at low rents under leases for lives renewable for ever, and by the operation of the Renewable Leaseholds Conversion Act 1848, these leases were converted into grants in perpetuity subject to the same rents and other payments as were reserved by the leases. Some years after the Donegall Belfast Estate was sold through the Encumbered Estate Court, and in many cases the rents were redeemed at low cost owing to values being depreciated by so much estate being thrown on the market at once. Where they were not redeemed the grant in perpetuity operates to prevent any increase in rent. As the urbanisation of industry was a feature of the industrial revolution, the development of the industry in Belfast received a notable advantage in this way.

The progress of industry has been continuous, and since 1867 it has quickly outstripped the linen industry in Great Britain where it has rapidly declined, until to-day there are about 1,000,000 spindles and 40,000 looms engaged in the manufacture of linen in Ireland, and as well as Irish linens having the reputation of being the finest in the world, the industry in Ireland occupies the premier place amongst the world's rivals.

Deductions.

In making this brief survey of the history of the development of our staple industry, one cannot help being impressed by the fact that the development has been unfortunately lob-sided; that is to say, the spinning, weaving, and marketing branches of the trade have developed, while there has been practically no progress made for nearly two hundred years in the culture of the flax and the method of preparing the flax for the market. As a matter of fact, the growth of flax instead of increasing with the growth of the industry had actually declined so much that the industry was being carried on mainly by the supplies of flax that were imported from abroad. During the great European war when these supplies were cut off, when the fate of our Empire was hanging in the balance, and when linen was vitally essential for the equipment of our aeroplanes the sorry spectacle was witnessed of frantic efforts having to be made at the eleventh hour to stimulate the growth of flax at home in order to help to bring the war to a successful issue. It was only when foreign supplies failed, and such a contingency never seemed to have been reckoned upon, that any thought was given to the idea of stimulating the culture of flax in Ireland. The farmer, although in some measure responsible for the diminution in the production of home grown flax, cannot be blamed for the weakness of the position of our industry during the critical years of the war. He was rendered powerless by the economic conditions which had been at work during past years. Foreign flax was imported cheaper than could be grown at home, consequently Irish farmers, not being philanthropists, neglected its culture.

The outstanding feature in connection with the development of our industry is the fact that the cost of the production and handling of flax in the hands of the farmers has increased, while, on the other hand, the cost of production in the other branches of the industry has under the factory system been enormously reduced. This latter has always been the case in every other industry, to which science, ingenuity and organisation have been applied. It would appear that there is a missing link in the organisation of the linen industry. The farmer should not be asked to do more than grow the flax, and by the assistance of education and the application of scientific methods there is no reason why the flax crop should not be profitable under normal conditions. When the crop has been harvested the farmer's work should cease. He has neither the capital nor the labour at his disposal, nor can he grow the flax in sufficient quantity to undertake the retting and handling in an organised and scientific manner. Because no advance has been made in the, retting and handling of the flax crop for two hundred years, no person would be insane enough to say that a state of perfection had been reached, that the old method of steeping in bog holes under arduous and difficult conditions where nature, never in a hurry, is allowed to work out her own ways, is the only one. It is here that an advance in the development of the industry is essential in order to cheapen the cost of production. There is room for the growth of an organisation to buy the flax straw from the farmers, to discover and apply scientific methods by which the spinner will be supplied with flax at a cost that will check foreign competition.

Already a movement is on foot to establish a Research Association in connection with the linen trade. Such a movement should receive the support of everyone interested in the welfare of our trade, and it is to be hoped that their efforts will be directed to try and find a remedy for the weak parts of the organisation of the industry.

(This article was originally published in the Lisburn Standard on 14 February 1919 as part of a series which ran in that paper each week for several years. The text along with other extracts can be found on my website Eddies Extracts.)

The Linen Industry in Ulster (pt3)

SOME EXTRACTS

FROM THE

RECORDS OF

OLD LISBURN

AND THE

MANOR OF KILLULTAGH.

-- -- -- --

 Edited by JAMES CARSON. 

-- -- -- --

CXXI.

-- -- -- --

THE LINEN INDUSTRY 

IN ULSTER.

by WILLIAM LARMOR.

(Continued.)

Damask Manufacture in Lisburn.

Lisburn appears to have been associated with this important branch of manufacture from its earlier stages of development in Ireland. There are traces of the manufacture of fancy patterns in Lurgan about the beginning of the eighteenth century. In 1712 a man called Quinn, who appears to have been very ingenious in fitting up looms for fancy weaving, settled there, and with the aid of two or three families of Huguenots commenced the manufacture of damask on an extensive scale. At this time the style of design seems to have been diaper patterns, which could be produced by a certain number of needles, which were connected with treddles and operated by the feet of the weaver.

In 1764, when William Coulson, the founder of the Lisburn Damask Factory, commenced work with a small number of looms, there was not much variety of patterns, and it was his determination to produce more intricate designs, which lead to the development of damask weaving. He adopted the system of damask weaving by means of draw-boys. In order to make the pattern more intricate the heddles had to be increased to such an extent that it was impossible for the weaver to operate them. Under the draw-boy system, the heddles were attached to pulleys placed above the loom. These pulleys raised and lowered the heddles, and were operated by the draw-boy, whose duty it was to read the pattern and operate the heddles accordingly. By this means more elaborate patterns were woven, and it was possible to introduce pictorial designs. Mr. Coulson was the first manufacturer who successfully worked into his designs armorial devices, national emblems, and heraldic designs, and his success was recognised by British Royalty, to whom he became manufacturer of damask.

Some idea of the intricacy of the mechanism employed to weave a tablecloth of extensive design can be gathered from the following description of a loom mounted to weave damask for a Royal patron:--

"It has five thousand sets of pulleys, and is so wonderful as to preclude the possibility of giving an accurate description, particularly of the method made use of to show a pattern or picture upon a ground where the ground and pattern are equally colourless."

This tablecloth, which was fourteen quarters wide was woven in a loom which required twelve weavers and four draw-boys to operate it.

Sixty years after the first damask loom had been erected in Lisburn, Mr. Michael Andrews started a factory at Ardoyne, which was described then as "being near Belfast." This was the means of drawing to that neighbourhood skilled damask weavers from all parts, and particularly from Lisburn. This seems to have been the commencement of damask weaving in Belfast. Belfast manufacturers, when starting, were able to take advantage of the new invention of Jacquard, which displaced the old draw-boy system, and brought damask manufacture to a greater state of perfection. Gradually the centre shifted until at a later date Belfast became the most important centre of linen damask manufacture in the world.

Thread Manufacture in Lisburn.

The thread manufacture was introduced into the North of Ireland in the year 1784 by Mr. John Barbour, who came from Scotland, and settled, very fortunately for Lisburn, at Plantation. This important branch of the industry affords a striking example of the benefits a community can derive from the judgment, enterprise, and determination of a capable business man. As thread spinning was unknown, Mr. Barbour, by employing qualified instructors, and by paying a high rate of wages, soon put the industry on a sound basis. Progress seems to have been rapid, and soon an extensive industry was established which gave regular and profitable employment to vast numbers of people in the vicinity. The success of the enterprise was assured, and in 1823 a site for its extension was chosen at Hilden, on the Lagan, at the spot where more than one hundred years before Louis Crommelin had erected his first bleachworks in Ireland. This now became the headquarters of the business and under the able and energetic leadership of the founder's son and successor, Mr. William Barbour, the business made rapid progress. Machinery was introduced and applied to the manufacture in 1840, with successful results, and from that time, by able leadership, by keeping abreast of the times, by improving and introducing the most up-to-date machinery, by a liberal scale of wages, by organisation, and by extension of enterprise the progress of the firm has been continuous, much to the benefit of thousands of workers in Lisburn and the vicinity.

The Domestic System.

Before considering the causes which led to the establishment of the factory system, and in order to understand clearly how the domestic system developed into the factory system, it will be necessary to glance at the organisation of the domestic system of industry.

As mentioned before, the manufacture of linen was in the hands of the farmers. Another class of manufacturer grew up who could employ ten or twenty hands. These manufacturers were called drapers and it was considered that a great advance had been made in social status when the weaver rose to that rank. As there was a considerable export of linen yarn to England, to which it will be necessary to refer later, there were considerable quantities of linen yarn being put on the market, which were bought largely for export purposes. The drapers were able to but yarns which they gave out to farmers to weave for them at fixed prices. In this way the markets were kept supplied with brown webs by both drapers and farmers, who sold to the bleachers. The bleachers were the most important and interesting men in the trade. In order to carry on their business it was necessary for them to have command of a considerable amount of capital, as they paid cash to the manufacturers and drapers for the cloth which they bought. The bleaching process in those days was a very slow one, consequently from the time the brown cloth was bought until it was bleached and disposed of a considerable time had to elapse. We find, therefore, that the bleachers were wealthy men who generally owned a lot of land and took a considerable interest in the trade. Some drapers, when they had accumulated a sufficient amount of capital, became bleachers, and some became merchants, giving out their cloth to the bleachers to be bleached, which they then disposed of either by sending it to factors in London or Dublin, or else sold it at the Linen Hall in Dublin to English merchants and factors, who came in great numbers to purchase their requirements.

In 1783 the White Linen Hall was established in Belfast, which was a significant fact showing that the centre of trade had shifted, and that the export was going from Belfast instead of from Dublin.

It is well to remember that during this stage of the industry the means of communication were in a very backward condition. Communication with London, then the commercial centre, was very slow. Arthur Young, famous for his tours, describes the roads as being "atrociously bad" in England, but in contrast the Irish roads he describes as quite good. Goods were conveyed by means of pack-horses and it was only towards the end of the eighteenth century, after the canals were made, that bulky and heavy goods could be conveniently transported.

Under the domestic system, no orders were booked before the goods were made. There was a constant flow of brown cloth to the different provincial towns from the weavers in the neighbourhood of each. In the year 1784 markets were held for the sale of linen goods in thirty-four towns in Ulster. Lisburn still held the lead at this time, and the amount of money paid out for linen each market day averaged £3,000 for that year. Lurgan came next with £2,500, Armagh £1,800, Dungannon £1,500, Belfast £1,000, Ballymena £1,000, Newry £1,000, Cootehill £1,000, Derry £1,000, Stewartstown £800, and the lesser markets averaged from £300 to £700. As mentioned before, the bleachers and merchants sold the cloth when finished to factors in London or Dublin, or to London merchants who came to Dublin to buy. The London merchants either shipped abroad or supplied the home markets, or did both. When the home market was catered for these merchants employed droves of pack-horses to carry it their goods to all the fairs and market towns throughout England. In the market towns they sold to the shops, and in the country districts through which they passed they dealt directly with the consumers. Hence arose the name packmen or pedlars, who were an economic feature at this time.

As banking was little developed, ready cash was an absolute essential for carrying on business. It 1750 there were only twelve country banks in England, which increased to about 400 towards the end of the century. In Ireland there was, practically speaking, no banking system during the eighteenth century. When merchants had to make payments abroad it was necessary to buy London bills, for which as high a premium as 14 per cent. had to be sometimes paid. Consequently those who could afford to do so bought bills when cheap and locked them away until required. This was a great disadvantage, as it meant that merchants had to use part of their capital in this way, which could have been more profitably used in developing their industry, and was one of the main reasons why the factory system developed more slowly in the linen industry than in the other textile industries. The accumulation of capital came most of all to the bleachers and merchants, and this capital at a later date enabled enterprising men to take advantages of the mechanical inventions, which were introduced first in the cotton industry, which caused the industrial revolution in England, and which made the factory system inevitable in the linen industry.

It will now be necessary to examine these causes which revolutionised the cotton industry, and which later had such a powerful effect in the linen industry.

The Cotton Industry

was in its infancy during the first part of the eighteenth century. As mentioned before, there was a large export of linen yarns to England during the century. At one period it was reckoned that three-fourths of the linen yarns spun in Ireland were exported, the reason being that cotton yarn could not be used for warp. Consequently there was really no cotton cloth manufactured, but only a union cloth, the linen yarns imported from Ireland being used for the warp and cotton yarns for the weft.

The first revolutionary impulse was the invention of the fly-shuttle by John Kay in 1738, by means of which the shuttle could be propelled from side to side of the loom between the warp threads by the weaver. Before the invention the weaver had to pass the weft through by hand and consequently a weaver could only weave narrow cloth. When the cloth was broad two or more weavers were necessary. By this invention broad cloth could be woven by one weaver. It also increased the speed of weaving, giving a greater output in a given time. This device does not seem to have been largely used until Kay's son Robert invented the drop-box in 1760. It then suddenly became popular, and caused a great increased demand for yarns owing to the speed of weaving. In fact, it upset the supply of yarns so much that a great shortage of yarns prevailed. More attention was then turned to spinning in order to increase the output.

In 1764 James Hargreaves, of Blackburn, invented the spinning-jenny, by means of which the treadle-driven wheel could drive a number of spindles. As very little power was required to work the spindles, it was not long before jennies were in use which spun twenty or thirty threads at the same time. Yarns became plentiful, and in a short time the supply increased so much that the weavers could not keep up, and spinners were soon short of work. The new machinery, was highly unpopular in consequence, and was frequently smashed by the workers.

In 1769 another invention had a very important effect. Richard Arkwright, who was a barber by trade, invented a machine called the water-frame. This machine was intended to be driven by a horse, and by means of successive pairs of rollers, each pair revolving at increasing speed, a thread was spun which was firm enough to be used for warp. In 1771 a mill driven by water-power was erected at Cromford, and in 1778 six small mills were put up at Oldham, three worked by horses and three by waterwheels. This invention was a very important one, because cotton yarn was now being spun strong enough to serve for warp. In a very short time linen warps were displaced, and all cotton cloth began to be manufactured. This fact caused a falling off in the export of linen yarns from Ireland, and in consequence must have stimulated the weaving trade in Ireland, as is evidenced by the fact that exports of linen cloth increased enormously from 1780 to 1795.

These inventions greatly reduced the cost of cotton yarns, and trade was quickly stimulated. A great demand arose for cotton cloth. The supply of yarns had increased so quickly that it looked as if sufficient weavers were not available to weave them up. Large quantities were being exported, but there were great discussions amongst the spinners as to what was going to be done with the output if yarns kept on increasing. In 1784 a minister of a very ingenious turn of mind, the Rev. Edmund Cartwright, hearing the gossip that was going on, conceived the idea of investing a weaving machine. He set himself to work, with the aid of a carpenter and smith, and constructed a machine which turned out very cumbersome. His reverence, however, persevered, it is to be feared much to the neglect of his spiritual duties, and finally improved on his first attempt, and produced the power-loom which eventually became a commercial success. The power-loom did not become popular for some time. This was owing to the fact that there had been no improvement in the method of dressing the yarn before weaving. There was not any advantage with the power-loom which it had to be stopped incessantly in order to dress the yarn as it was unwound off the back beam, which was a slow process. Consequently it could only be used where yarn-dressing was not necessary. This difficulty was overcome in the year 1803 by the invention of a dressing machine by Johnston, an employee of Messrs. Radcliffe & Ross, of Stockport, who had devoted much attention to the problem. By this invention the warp was dressed and wound unto the weaver's beam, which could then be placed in the loom and the yarn unwound as it was woven, continuously.

(To be continued.)

(This article was originally published in the Lisburn Standard on 7 February 1919 as part of a series which ran in that paper each week for several years. The text along with other extracts can be found on my website Eddies Extracts.)

The Linen Industry in Ulster (pt2)

SOME EXTRACTS

FROM THE

RECORDS OF

OLD LISBURN

AND THE

MANOR OF KILLULTAGH.

-- -- -- --

 Edited by JAMES CARSON. 

-- -- -- --

CXX.

-- -- -- --

THE LINEN INDUSTRY 

IN ULSTER.

by WILLIAM LARMOR.

(Continued.)

Many Huguenot refugees settled in Waterford in the south of Ireland. At this point it would be interesting to examine briefly why the linen trade made little or no headway in the south of Ireland, and why it became gradually localised in the North, although by the settlement of skilled artisans in Waterford a splendid opportunity was offered for developing the linen manufacture in the south.

The manufacturers of linen during its earlier stages of development were chiefly subsistence farmers, who had small holdings on which they grew a small patch of flax. This flax was spun and manufactured into cloth by the different members of the family for their own use, or to be sold at the best price it would fetch. The growth of Ulster tenant right and the friendly relations existing between landlord and tenant gave a sense of undisturbed possession. The Ulster tenant felt more or less secure so long as he paid his rent. This sense of security, long leases, and fair rents, encouraged the farmer to accumulate a little capital. This was the basis of prosperity in the north. Gradually the farmer was able to buy imported seed which gave a better crop of flax: As his capital increased, and as trade expanded he could buy another loom or two, and perhaps employ a journeyman weaver.

In the south, on the other hand, owing to the operation of the Penal laws, leases were very short, so that there was no encouragement to accumulate capital for to try to improve the land. Rack-rents and tithes kept the farmers in poverty. Attempts were made at several times to establish the moderate modus, which was in operation in Ulster, instead of the tithe on flax. This proposed change invariably met with relentless opposition from the ecclesiastical authorities and could not be established in the South, to the disadvantage of the flax grower. The crop was unprofitable and was only grown in small patches.

The farmers in the North were in a position to make use of all the improvements that were introduced in linen weaving by Crommelin and his countrymen. The farmers in the South were not so fortunately fixed. Consequently the North drew ahead of the South, and linen weaving found its chief centre in Lisburn and neighbourhood. The knowledge of the markets abroad and the quality of cloth suitable for these markets, together with the technical skill of manufacture and the new capital that was introduced by the Huguenot settlers, were all powerful stimulants to the extension of enterprise. In a short time linen weaving extended so that Armagh and Lurgan became important centres of manufacture. The export of linen in the year 1727 amounted in value to £338,444, having increased by £[201],332 since 1701. This is sufficient evidence to prove the economic importance of the Lisburn settlement at a critical period in the history of the trade.

The English policy in accordance with the promise made by William III helped to stimulate the manufacture of linen. An Act was passed by the English Parliament to allow the export of coarse white and brown linens to the colonies, but this benefit was hampered by the working of the Navigation Laws. No colonial products could be imported direct into Ireland on the return voyage without being first landed in England. The system of bounties granted by the British Parliament on the export of linens operated in favour of English and Scottish manufacturers, because the Irish manufacturers who exported their linens to British ports with the idea of re-exporting them to obtain the bounty, had to undergo an expense amounting to 7 per cent, for freight, factorage, and loss of time incurred. In spite of all these disadvantages, the Irish linen manufacturers increased enormously during the eighteenth century. Between 1745 and 1771 the exportation from Great Britain of Irish linens entitled to bounty increased from 101,928 yards to 3,450,224 yards. This increase, however, was partly caused by the import duties which were levied on the importation of foreign linens. The Irish trade was certainly stimulated by these measures. In 1773 the total quantity of Irish linens imported into Great Britain amounted in value to £1,787,617.

The Linen Board.

The Irish Parliament also did much to stimulate the industry. Early in the 18th century premiums were granted to farmers for the cultivation of flax. In 1711 the Linen Board was set up to encourage and supervise the manufacture. The Board met every year in the White Linen Hall in Dublin, and was entrusted with the disposal of the Parliamentary grants, which varied from £10,000 to £33,000 a year, for the purpose of keeping the manufacture abreast of modern technical improvements, securing the best flax-seed providing the best markets and otherwise encouraging the industry. In 1710 an effort seems to have been made by them for the standardisation of cloth. Particular titles were to be given to each description of goods. These were arranged according to the length and width of the webs. "Ulsters" was the name applied to linens of forty-three inches wide and twenty yards long. Linens twenty-eight inches wide and twenty-eight yards long were to be called "Dungannons"; those of the same' length and thirty-one inches wide "Coleraines"; thirty-six inches wide "Lisburns;" thirty-six inches wide and twenty yards long were to be sold as "Lurgans."

It is interesting to note here that the first piece of fine cambric produced in Lurgan was woven by a weaver named Brown in the year 1714. Although it was only a "sixteen hundred" all who saw the wondrous fabric were astonished at the fineness of its texture. Immense curiosity was stirred up about this web all over the country, and many bleachers and drapers travelled long distances to see it. The weaver of this web was presented with a prize of £10 by the Grand Jury of the County, and had the dignity of "Master Weaver" conferred on him. It is stated that he made a tin case for it and carried it about for exhibition in several towns in the North.

Under the Mercantile system there were minute and manifold regulations of industry which in some cases gradually became unworkable and were allowed to lapse. The inspection of linen previous to sale had been established by law for nearly a century before the existence of the Linen Board. This law, like others, was carelessly carried out, and consequently in nearly every market the evil effect of badly-made reeds, short measure, and deficiency in breadth of goods was in evidence. An effort was made by an Act passed in 1719, authorising the trustees of the Board to appoint fit and proper persons in all the market towns to examine linens which were offered for sale. When the goods were found correct in make, length, and breadth, they were to be stamped by persons appointed, called lappers, with their official seal.

These lappers had permission to charge the manufacturer the sum of twopence for each web they examined and stamped. Where goods were disposed of without being examined the seller was liable to a heavy fine. Stringent as this law was, it did not prevent lappers, from accepting bribes to certify as correct, webs which were imperfectly woven and of false measure. In 1723 a new Act was passed for the better protection of buyers but it was also a failure. In 1734 a more penal code received the Royal assent, and like the other it was systematically evaded. In 1757 the seventh Act was passed for stamping and regulating the sale of linens in public markets which also shared the fate of the others.

The matter now appeared hopeless. A great deal of fraud was going on, and in consequence a serious reaction took place in the home and foreign markets against Irish linens. Another effort was made in the year 1762. Mr. John Williamson, who is described as a very energetic and intelligent bleacher, then carrying on a business at Lambeg, had been taking considerable interest in linen manufacture for some years. A meeting of merchants was held in Lisburn, and a committee, with Mr. Williamson at its head, was appointed to proceed to Dublin to lay their case before the Duke of Bedford, then Chief Governor of Ireland. The idea was that lappers should be abolished and inspectors should be chosen from the ranks of manufacturers. As a result a new bye-law was to come into operation on 11th August, 1762, and previous to that date, the trustees were to appoint "fit and proper persons, manufacturers and others" to inspect linens about to be sold in public markets. These officers were to be called "Sealmasters," and they had to produce good securities that they would faithfully discharge their duties.

The first seal was issued under the new law was granted to Mr. W. Dawson, a manufacturer of Hillsborough.

A great outcry was raised all over the country by the weavers. Meetings were held and the following proclamation was issued:--

"This is to give nation to all gentlemen, manufacturers and weavers to meet in a body, like valiant and honest men, at Lisburn, on Tuesday next, that we may oppose the imprudent and oppressive means which are to be used against us by the merchants, and to bring them to reason by fair means, and if that will not do other means will be used, and let us like Demetrius and his craftsmen, stand valiantly up for our Diana, for our craft is in danger."

On the following Tuesday, and for many weeks after on market days, hundreds of weavers paraded the streets of Lisburn armed with blackthorn sticks, obstructed the market, made business impossible, and all the drapers or merchants they could lay their hands on were made to swear that they would not recognise the use of seals for stamping linen webs. No business could be done until Lord Hillsborough took the initiative, and in October in his own town he set the example of personally inspecting and sealing the webs offered for sale, general spirit of conciliation followed, and in a short time the duties of the Sealmaster were found to be of equal advantage to the weaver, the draper, and the bleacher.

This settlement was only shortlived, however. In a short time the same old difficulties cropped up. Weavers evaded the regulation, and the Sealmasters were also accused of accepting bribes. Eventually the whole system became a nuisance and was finally abolished in 1823.

The prosperity of the linen trade in Ireland towards the end of the 18th century is particularly noticeable. This can in some measure be accounted for owing to the modification of the English Commercial olicy. After the American colonies had secured their independence it was evident that the Colonial Policy must undergo a change, and Ireland shared in the benefits of that change. In 1779 some of the principal commercial restrictions were removed, with the result that a thriving trade was opened up with the American States and British Plantations, and exports of linen cloth increased from 18,764,242 yards in 1780 to 53,616,908 yards in 1796, which was enormous.

Although the industry made immense progress during the century it did not increase as rapidly as in England and Scotland, and although some encouragement was given for its development, it was fostered far less than the linen manufacture in England and Scotland. It was a great achievement, therefore, that it should have prospered to such an extent in spite of difficulties and hindrances.

The Irish Parliament had given large premiums for the cultivation of flax, but in spite of all the encouragement given to the growth of flax and the raising of flaxseed, a large sum had annually to be paid away for imported seed, which became a serious drain on the resources of the industry at a time when the accumulation of capital was essential for its development. In 1779 it was calculated that nearly all the seed sown was imported and that it cost the country between £70,000 and £80,000 yearly. Later on flax farming gradually, and imperceptibly became a losing trade owing to competition, caused by the importation of foreign flax from abroad. This gradually became accentuated until at a later date the industry had to be carried on mainly by the importation of raw material from abroad.

(To be continued)

(This article was originally published in the Lisburn Standard on 31 January 1919 as part of a series which ran in that paper each week for several years. The text along with other extracts can be found on my website Eddies Extracts.)

The Linen Industry in Ulster

SOME EXTRACTS

FROM THE

RECORDS OF

OLD LISBURN

AND THE

MANOR OF KILLULTAGH.

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 Edited by JAMES CARSON. 

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CXIX.

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THE LINEN INDUSTRY 

IN ULSTER.

by WM. LARMOR.

As Lisburn has been closely associated with the linen industry from its earliest stages of development in Ireland down to the present time, the history of our staple trade will always provide much interest for the people of the town and neighbourhood. The subject has been rather neglected in the past, and as it affords great scope for research work, it is to be hoped that at some future time an historian worthy of the task will trace with unerring hand the history of the growth and development of the industry in Ireland.

In order to show intelligibly the importance of the part played in this locality during the development of the industry under the domestic system it will be necessary to make a short survey of its history in general in Ireland.

First of all one must examine briefly the commercial policy of England, and the commercial relations existing between England and Ireland during the early stages of the industry. Next, it will be necessary to trace its growth and development under the domestic system, and which have substituted instead the factory system of manufacture.

It is not known when linen was first manufactured in Ireland, but it is assumed that linen making was practised from the earliest times. It is known to have existed during the thirteenth century, and in the fifteenth linen cloth was exported to England and to Antwerp. In the sixteenth century there are more evidences of the industry, but it was during the seventeenth century that the manufacture of linen first came into prominence.

Suppression of Irish Trade.

At that time England was under the sway of the Mercantalist Policy. Under the Mercantile system, in order to have a stock of gold and silver in the country, the immediate object aimed at was to have a favourable balance of trade. To accomplish this and every encouragement was given to the importation of raw materials, but the purchase of foreign manufactures was for the most part prohibited. Unfortunately, this policy was extended to the colonies, and the Mercantalist attitude of mind towards them was that they were to be treated as sources of raw materials which must be manufactured in England and then resold to the colonies. They were not allowed to compete in foreign markets against the mother country and any industries that showed signs of developing were suppressed. It was intended that the colonies should remain in this condition, and that England should reap all the benefits in return for their defence, etc.

Unfortunately the policy towards Ireland was the same as the colonial policy. In the 17th century at the time of the plantation the natives were regarded in the same way as the Indian natives were regarded, and the idea was to plant colonies and civilize the Irish. Ireland was not allowed to develop and compete with English industries. A series of navigation acts were passed which were aimed primarily against the Dutch, who a- that time were a great carrying power. The principal act passed, in the year 1651 stated that "no goods of the growth or manufacture of Asia, Africa, or America were to be imported into England, Ireland or the Plantations, except in ships belonging to English subjects, and manned by an English captain and by a crew, three-fourths of whom were English; while no goods of any country in Europe were to be imported except in English ships, or ships belonging to the country from which the goods came." This measure was ultimately successful in excluding the Dutch from the carrying trade, but rather unfortunately for Ireland it crippled her shipping, and was hurtful to the linen industry, as we shall see later.

The effect of the English Mercantile Policy on Irish industries will now be noticed, and will see why the linen industry was partially encouraged whilst other industries were crushed.

After the Restoration in 1660 Irish cattle farmers, breeding live stock and shipping them to England to be fattened, for a short time carried on a thriving trade. Soon afterwards English breeders raised a great outcry against the increasing importation of Irish cattle. As England was governed at this period by the land owning classes whose interests were bound up with English farmers, the Cattle Act of 1663 was passed prohibiting the import of Irish cattle. The Irish farmers then turned their attention to sheep farming. Large tracts of land were turned into sheep walks, with the result that wool became very plentiful. The manufacture of woollen goods then became considerable, as the raw material was so cheap, and as the cost of living was so much below that of England wages were low. English clothiers began to feel the competition, so a great outcry was raised against the importation of woollen goods into England, which was said to he ruining their trade. The argument was that as the cost of manufacture was much cheaper in Ireland countervailing duties should be placed on Irish cloth to equalise the prices. As a result of the agitation, and in accordance with the English policy then existing, the famous Act of 1699 was passed placing import duties on Irish cloth, but they were fixed so high as to make the Irish trade impossible; and the result was the ruin of the Irish woollen industry.

This restriction had a most important bearing on the Irish linen industry. It was realised by the English statesmen that in crushing the woollen industry an injustice was being done to the Irish, and that if the manufacture of linen could be encouraged it would in some measure recompense the Irish, and at the same time serve the interest of both countries, for at this time England was importing linen goods from the Low countries and the idea was that the Irish linens would take their place. Accordingly, in 1698 we find that when the English Parliament petitioned William III for the suppression of the Irish woollen trade, his reply contained the following:-- "I will do all that in me lies to discourage the woollen manufacture of Ireland, and to encourage the linen manufacture there."

This clearly marks a very important period in the history of the linen industry, and we shall now consider its effect under the domestic system of manufacture.

Hand Loom Weaving.

Earlier in the century Chief-Governor Stafford had tried to promote the manufacture of linen in Ireland. The extent of this trade at that time can be measured from the fact that in a letter to the King he mentions that he has sent to Holland for £100 worth of flax-seed as he considered the soil good for growing flax, that he had brought some skilled workmen from the Low countries, and that he had already established six or seven looms.

After the Restoration under the administration of the Duke of Ormonde, another attempt was made to establish the linen trade. Messengers were sent to see how the Flemish manufacture was carried out. Some progress was made and when Ormonde returned to England in 1669 two flourishing linen manufacturing centres were in existence, one near Dublin and another at Carrick.

The result of these efforts was swept away during the revolutionary war that followed. In 1698 when the country had slightly recovered, the amount of manufactured linen for export was practically negligible.

The kind of linen manufactured before this period was what is called bandle linen. It was coarse cloth, of narrow width, manufactured without any system of regularity of texture, and only according to the imperfect knowledge and crude ideas of the weaver.

Another very important event happened about this period (1698) which had a very powerful and beneficent influence on the development of linen weaving.

Owing to the revocation of the tolerating Edict of Nantes, a number of Protestant linen weavers fled from France and established themselves, some at Waterford, and some, who preferred to live with their co-religionists, at Lisburn. Amongst those who established themselves in our town was the famous Louis Crommelin. It appears that he came at the invitation of William III, to superintend the linen manufacture.

Crommelin's family had carried on the industry in France for more than four hundred years, and he himself had been head of an extensive linen manufacture in Picardy. The King had appointed him "Overseer of the Royal Linen Manufactory of Ireland," and granted him a patent. He was also given £800 a year for ten years as interest on £10,000 advanced by him for starting the business, an annuity of £200 for life, and also £120 a year for his assistants who were to help him to Superintend the cultivation of flax, and instruct in the latest methods of bleaching. Crommelin on his side agreed to advance sums of money without interest to workmen and their families coming from abroad to enable them to embark on the industry, and also to local workmen destitute of means and anxious to work at the trade. Once Crommelin had started his linen industry at Lisburn he invited over Protestant artisans from France and the Low countries. As a result, a great settlement of weavers was made in Lisburn. Although it had been burnt in the civil wins, the establishment of Crommelin and the other Huguenot refugees soon made Lisburn one of the most flourishing towns in Ireland.

Crommelin faithfully carried out his part of the bargain and did marvels to improve the industry. Under his direction a thousand looms and spinning wheels were imported from Holland, and he gave a premium of £5 on every loom at work. He introduced improvements of his own and was the means of finer linen being made in our neighbourhood than had ever been made in the King's dominions.

(To be continued.)

(This article was originally published in the Lisburn Standard on 24 January 1919 as part of a series which ran in that paper each week for several years. The text along with other extracts can be found on my website Eddies Extracts.)