Page 350 - The_story_of_the_C._W._S._The_jubilee_history_of_the_cooperative_wholesale_society,_limited._1863-1913_(IA_storyofcwsjubill00redf) (1)_Neat

The Story of the C.W.S.
Various sites were visited, and in December, 1906, sanction was asked
for a purchase of four and a quarter acres, for £719, at HucknaU
"Huthwaite, near Sutton-in-Ashfield, in Nottinghamshire. The
intention to go outside both Leicester and the county aroused
protests at the old centre, but the Committee asserted a need of
extending the production to include the finer manufactures of the
Nottingham district, and of having room to provide for the processes
of dyeing and finishing, not undertaken at Cranbourne Street.
Delegates from the Nottinghamshire district combated the statement
that Huthwaite was an unsuitable locality for the works; and the
proposal was everywhere approved.
The new factory began operations on February 4th, 1908.
Ideahsts of all kuids and varieties unite nowadays to advocate the
taldng of works into the country. For well-to-do people who can
afford frequent visits to the nearest city, or for those whose business
takes them into the full stream of human life at tolerable intervals,
certainly it is delightful to work amidst fields and trees. But people
of limited means have reason for sharing Charles Lamb's genial love
of streets and crowds ; and it is doubtful whether any removal of a
C.W.S. works from a city or large town to a comparative village,
however healthful, has been wholly appreciated by the employees.
Nevertheless, forty-two of the forty-eight male operatives employed
at Cranbourne Street followed the factory to Huthwaite, but only
sixteen out of forty warehousemen, and fourteen among 208 girls. At
the London Quarterly Meetmg, where these figures were given by the
chairman, it was stated that a lower trade union rate at Huthwaite
affected the latter body; at the same time the coming of the C.W.S.
increased the local rates; and, temporarily, at least, the loss of so
many sldlled workers created a difficulty. In some of the C.W.S.
factories some of the work done by feminine fingers is so simple that
any normal girl can learn it in a short time, and do it quicldy and
well. It is different with knitting machines, which, although almost
as Ught for women's handling as a pair of needles, still are extremely
intricate. Capacity in this industry usually is sure of reward,
being clearly worth paying for. And, although skilled hosiery
workers already were to be found in the Huthwaite district, much of
the C.W.S. work differed from theirs; and a good deal of training
became necessary. Again, to admit of supplies during removal, the
stocks at the end of 1907 had been allowed to reach the figure of
£62,000; and subsequently the price of yarn unexpectedly fell,
leaving the stocks difficult to clear. Under the pressure of these
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