To George Murray

To the Master General of the Ordnance.

Sir,

Having been assured from various sources, that you have ever evinced a willingness to listen to the voice of complaint, when that voice was raised in a proper spirit, and had sprung from a just cause: we the Civil Assistants of the Ordnance Survey of England whose names accompany this, feel emboldened to come forward and crave your kind attention to the following remarks in connexion with our situation.

We have been employed on the Survey of Ireland for many years, and we would humbly state that our assiduous exertions contributed materially towards the furtherance of that great work, our pay in Ireland was so low as to render as in many places where we have been located ‘a proverb and a bye-word’¹ among the inhabitants: we however were induced to hope for an improvement in our condition when the Survey of England would be undertaken; this we imagined would offer a fair field for the exercise of talent. We do not say that our hopes in relation to this were grounded on any official statements made to us, these hopes were induced by many corroborative circumstances: we conceived, that the interest which it was natural to suppose our superintendents² took in those employed under them would induce them to rescue us from that state of poverty which had so long chilled our energies in Ireland, and which must form a striking contrast with the state of persons in similar situations in England, that we, filling situations in a highly important scientific undertaking would receive at least sufficient pay to enable us to support that appearance of respectability which would be expected from persons engaged in such an undertaking. We had seen men drafted from the Survey of Ireland to that of England who immediately after their arrival in this country had their wages considerably increased, (these instances occurred previous to the embarkation of the main body of the Irish Ordnance Surveyors). Considering these as precedents, we imagined that our treatment would be similar. – Our calculations on this matter proved false: during the past year we were all drafted to this country, while no individual whose pay in Ireland had amounted to twelve shillings per week received on his arrival here one farthing increase: Our hopes, though shattered by this circumstance were not altogether destroyed, we still anticipated better days, when the reproach under which our poverty compelled us to labour in a strange country would be taken away. The appearance of the accompanying District Order³ at once struck at the root of our anticipations, and reduced us to the necessity of either signing a document from which inferences may be drawn contrary to our sentiments, or else adopting a course which our present circumstances pronounce inimical to our interests.

We humbly beg to draw your particular attention to this Order, the fourth column requires the signatures of those who wish to remain on the Survey with no immediate prospect of an advance in their present rates of pay. Those, Sir, who now address you have placed their signatures in this column; we were induced to act thus from a fear of incurring the displeasure of the party from whom the order emanated;⁴ reflection however convinces us that this step was ill-advised, that we have incurred the risk of having our feelings misrepresented, by signing a document which would justify the inference that we were satisfied with our present wages. It is with considerable reluctance that we come forward to qualify those signatures, and were we not supported by an unwavering conviction of the righteousness of our cause we would not come forward at all.

The heading of the fourth and fifth columns taken conjointly may be resolved into this question, ‘Is it your wish to go to Ireland or to remain on the Survey without any immediate prospect of advance in your present rates of pay?’ We have chosen the latter, though for what reason we have been called upon to certify that choice we know not, inasmuch as our remaining on the Survey could be attested by our signatures in the pay-list. Many of us left our homes years ago to follow the fortunes of this employment; time, sir, affects materially the relation subsisting between a man and his home, it has placed us in such circumstances as render our continuance in our present situation preferable to returning to Ireland. But, sir, our signatures prove only the existence of such circumstances; we would by no means have these signatures regarded as proofs of contentment on our part, if this form afford arguments to support our being kept on our present rates of pay, we respectfully assert that these arguments are drawn immediately from our private circumstances and not from our merits as workmen – which latter we conceive to be the only just standard whereby our pay can be regulated.

You sir may have a desire to know what is the pay of the men who thus complain. For your satisfaction on this point we forward you a list containing our respective occupations, our time of service, and rates of pay. A glance, sir, will convince you that we have reason to complain, we wish not to descant on our own merits, we have no desire to fix the rate of wages due to our exertions, but sir we would appeal to our work; let that work be tested by competent judges, both as to its quality and as to the reward due to the producer. By the decision of such judges we will most willingly abide, being perfectly assured that it will remove every ground of complaint and dissatisfaction.

Our hours of working are from __ a.m. to __ p.m. with __ for breakfast, and __ for dinner,⁵ we receive pay for six days in the week provided sickness or some other untoward circumstance does not prevent us from working the due hours; when laid upon the bed of sickness we have no resources, our pay is then kept back; we wish not to enter into details, but sir we could unfold instances of distress resulting from this cause which we doubt not would call forth your warmest sympathies and which would prove the necessity of amending a system which subjects meritorious and talented men to such poverty and humiliation.

The whole tenor of this letter proves that our complaints are not referable to the decrease in the grants for 1843⁶ – the same grounds of complaint existed in 1842 and for many years previous – we knew not how to make known these causes of complaint without incurring the resentment of our superintendents, and for this reason we remained silent. At the present moment the example afforded us by other divisions of the Survey who have openly and respectfully laid before you a statement of their grievances, stimulates us to act in a similar manner – we do so sir praying that you will pardon whatever improprieties may exist in the mode we have chosen to lay before you the circumstances of our situation.⁷

RI MS JT/1/TYP/10/3893-3894

LT Transcript Only