mention of mining royalties. No. We never mention that. Yet, will the
House believe it, it is estimated that mining royalties impose a toll
of 6 per cent., calculated on the price of coal at the pit's mouth, or
considerably more than half the total diminished production which
could result from this humane Act of labour legislation.

But we are asked: "Why stop here? Why don't your arguments apply
elsewhere?" and we are told of people whose conditions of life are
worse than some of those of coal-miners. Why stop here? Who ever said
we would stop here? I welcome and support this measure, not only for
its own sake, but much more because it is, I believe, simply the
precursor of the general movement which is in progress all over the
world, and in other industries besides this, towards reconciling the
conditions of labour with the well-ascertained laws of science and
health. If we are told that because we support this measure we shall
be inflicting an injury or injustice on other classes of the
population, I say there is a great solidarity among all classes of
manual labourers. I believe that when they consider this matter they
will see that all legitimate interests are in harmony, that no one
class can obtain permanent advantage by undue strain on another, and
that in the end their turn will come for shorter hours, and will come
the sooner because they have aided others to obtain that which they
desire themselves.

When the House is asked to contemplate gloomy pictures of what will
follow on this Bill, let them recur to the example of Parliaments gone
by. When the Ten Hours Bill was introduced in 1847, a Bill which
affected the hours of adult males inferentially, the same lugubrious
prophecies were indulged in from both sides of the House.
Distinguished economists came forward to prove that the whole profit