Page:The Green Bag (1889–1914), Volume 17.pdf/661

 THE GREEN BAG good merchantable rye or rye-meal, at fiveshillings per bushel." . . . Likewise, the price of other grains, salt, rum, sugar, molasses, shoes, beef, cotton, tow-cloth, flannel, wool, leather, cloth, flour, and many other commodities is prescribed. This act was supplemented by another in the same year which empowered selectmen and com mittees of correspondence of the several towns to fix in the respective towns once in two months the prices of labor and com modities. A person having in his posses sion any more of a commodity than was necessary for the support of his own family and dependents, was required to sell the surplus to such as needed it at the lawful prices. This statute was repealed the same year (Province Laws, 1776-77, c. 46). In 1778 New York passed a statute (ch. 34) which fixed the wages of farm laborers, mechanics, and others. It also prescribed the prices of hemp, wool, various manu factured articles, woolen cloth, rum, sugar, and numerous other articles. It also regu lated the profits of traders, retailers and vendors. This act was repealed during the same year. In 1786 there was also in New York a statute requiring authors of books to furnish them at reasonable prices (Greenleaf's Laws, p. 275). As an essential part of the state regulation of wages and prices was the regulation of the hours of labor. Whatever affects the hours of labor also affects the wages, and whatever affects wages necessarily involves prices, so that it is impracticable to legislate on one subject without becoming concerned with the other. The modern legislation attempting to fix the hours of labor will logically lead to similar attempts at fixing prices and wages. As early as 1562, a very extensive regulation of hours of labor is found. In 5 Eliz., c. 4, it is provided "that all artificers and labourers, being hired for wages by the day or week, shall betwixt the midst of the month of March and September be and continue at their work before five of the clock in the morning and

continue at work and not depart until betweixt seven and eight at night (except it be in the time of breakfast, dinner or drink ing, the which times at the most shall not exceed above two hours and a half in a day, that is to say, at every drinking one half hour, for his dinner, one hour, and for his sleep, when he is allowed to sleep, the which is from the midst of May to the midst of August, half an hour at most, and at every breakfast one half hour); And. . . between the midst of September and the midst of Marcli shall. . . continue at their work from the spring of the day in the morning until the night of the same day, except it be in time afore appointed for breakfast and dinner. " The hours of labor, for tailors was fixed by i. Geo. I, c. 13 (1720) at from six o'clock in the morning until eight at night, with one hour for dinner, and the wages from Marcli 25, to June 20, were not to exceed two shillings per day, and for the remainder of the year, one shilling and eight pence. The first statute was not formally repealed until 1875 (3& & 39 Viet. c. 86, §17). Thus for over three hundred years the legal day's work for a large class of workmen, as fixed by statute, was from eleven to thirteen hours. When the law was finally repealed no one suggested as a reason for so doing that it deprived Englishmen of their "liberty" or "property." The English and the early American, laws fixing the prices of labor and other commodi ties in private businesses were never suc cessfully enforced, and either became obso lete soon after their passage or were repealed, and the whole scheme of governmental regulation of prices was abandoned as economically inexpedient. There are few instances in the United States of direct regulation of prices in business of a strictly private nature. There is a strong and prevalent feeling that a general legislative power to regulate private business, to pre scribe the conditions under which it may be carried on, and to fix the price of com modities and services would be a deprivation