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influence, is appointed to or removed from his post by the Prefect, on the recommendation of the President. The Prud'hommes themselves are elected by masters, foremen, or workmen, in one of the trades or callings subject to the jurisdiction. The electors must be at least twenty-five years old, must have exercised their calling for five years, and must have lived three years within the district. All persons working upon materials owned by themselves, and not upon materials given out to them on piecework, are classed among masters, although employing no workmen or apprentices. Those who work up other manufacturers' or merchants' materials are classed among workmen, although working at home and employing others. Workmen of the classes who are required by law to carry a livret, or descriptive certificate, must produce it, or they are not registered as electors.

The Prud'homme must himself be a registered elector, qualified as above described, thirty years of age at least, and able to read and write. The honour of the office is fenced by excluding from the roll of electors and candidates all persons who have been convicted of crimes, misdemeanors, breaches of trust, offences against morality and decency, bribery and intimidation at Parliamentary and municipal elections; or who have been found guilty of commercial frauds, false weights, adulterations, usury, keeping disorderly houses or gaming tables, or who have been bankrupt without being purged as required by French law. The electoral lists are prepared by the Mayor, assisted by an employer and a workman as assessors, and are submitted to the Prefect for approval. Claimants may appeal to the Courts to be registered as electors without payment of fees. The elections take place at meetings specially called under the presidency of the Mayor, or one of his deputies. The actual voting usually takes place at separate meetings of masters and workmen; but the authorities may convene joint meetings, either preliminary or final, to give both sides the opportunity of talking over matters connected with the election. But the masters only elect Prud'hommes of and for their own order, as is the case with the workmen ; and the number elected must be equal for both classes. At the first voting an absolute majority of votes is essential; but if a second voting be required a relative majority suffices. Thus, if at an election for one Prud'homme, 100 electors record their votes, of which A receives forty, B thirty-five, and C twenty-five; A would not be elected on the first scrutiny, because he has not an absolute majority—that is, fifty-one votes at least. On a second scrutiny, if the same votes were recorded, A would be elected; having a relative majority. The Prud'hommes are elected for six years. Every three years one-half of the Council go out; but in case of a sudden vacancy, the Prefect can order an election. The members take the oaths of fidelity and obedience to the constitution and the laws, and swear faithfully to discharge their duties. The special laws under which judges can be proceeded against for collu

sion and breach of trust are applicable; and the Government can temporarily or permanently dissolve a Council. The members are not paid, although an effort was made to secure this at the time of the passing of the decree now in force. Each Council is divided into two Chambers, called respectively the Private Bureau and the General Bureau. The former consists of two members, an employer and a workman, and its sole duty is to conciliate, if possible, the parties who come before it. Failing this, they have to go before the General Bureau, which is composed of an equal number of workmen and masters, with the president and vice-president; five forming a quorum. Jurisdiction extends over all manufacturers, contractors, master tradesmen, sub-contractors, foremen, workmen, and apprentices working in any industrial establishment within the district assigned to the Council, provided that the persons belong to the trades named in the decree of appointment. The matter in dispute must be connected with the carrying on of the special trade or business of the parties, or arising out of agreements or contracts made in connection therewith. Disputes between one manufacturer or merchant and another are not cognizable, unless relating to trade marks or designs; neither are disputes between such and their customers. But disputes between one workman and another, in reference to trade matters, may be taken before the court; as may be the case with nearly all the above excluded matters, with consent of both parties. There is no limit as to the amount of the claim in dispute.

The parties to a dispute may voluntarily appear before the Council with a written declaration that they request its good offices; but it is far more usual for one of the parties to lodge a complaint. The secretary then writes a simple letter of invitation to the other party to present himself at a given time, and this invitation has all the force of a summons. In case of absence or illness a master may be represented by a clerk or a workman, and a workman may be represented by another, being also a relative. The law thus insists upon the presence of the principals, with the idea that conciliation may be rendered more prompt and easy. Some time ago it was urged on behalf of the workmen that they should be permitted to appear by their legal advisers; but this demand is no longer made. If the party invited to appear does not attend, a formal citation is served upon him by the usher of the Court. The costs of this form part of the costs in the suit; but if this citation be not obeyed, a second one issues at the cost of the recalcitrant party, who is further liable to have judgment go by default. the time of hearing, the disputants are not allowed to argue with each other; but each states his case, and gives only such further explanations as the Court desire. If the case turns upon different versions of facts that have occurred in the presence of witnesses, these may be called, sworn, and examined; a very low scale of payments being

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allowed. All parties must conduct themselves with respect, and the Court has power to protect itself from contempt by fines, not exceeding ten francs; by imprisonment, not exceeding three days (which, however, has not been resorted to in any case since 1871); and by publicly posting up the names of offenders. If one of the litigants undertakes to formally prove his case, or disputes the authority of documents, the President must allow of an appeal, sending the case before a competent legal tribunal. Either party may object to one or more of the Prud'hommes when they have a personal interest in the matter in dispute, or are nearly related to one of the parties, or have been at law with either during a year, or have prejudged the case by a written opinion. Any Prud'homme thus objected to, must in writing, either accept or refute the objection, and in the latter case the Council must, within eight days, sustain or refute it, and from this there is no appeal.

In ordinary cases the judgments are definitive, when the amount in dispute does not exceed 200 francs. Beyond that amount an appeal lies to the Tribunal of Commerce; or, failing one of them, to the civil courts. The appeals, however, are extremely few in practice. Every appeal must be made within three months; but in ordinary French law this is not allowed until at least eight days have elapsed since the notification of the judgment; the object of this being to give time to the loser to recover from the first feeling of annoyance at his defeat. The rule, however, does not apply in the case of judgments given by Conseils de Prud'hommes. A further appeal lies from the Tribunal of Commerce to the Court of Cassation. The Council may give provisional judgments, ordering the finding of security, and the making of payments on account. It has power to hold sittings in the factory or workshop where the dispute has arisen, and it has a right of entry to all places. The costs of a suit are borne by the loser, unless the Court specially orders each side to pay its own costs. The following is the table of fees: :

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For each page of copies of papers sent.
For a copy of the minutes certifying non-conciliation.

To the Usher of the Council.

For each citation (void in case the letter of invitation
fails to secure attendance)

For the notification of a judgment

In case the parties live more than three miles from the Court, the usher is allowed for each six miles:

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When it is borne in mind that in at least three-fourths of all the cases that arise, the three-penny fee is all that is payable, and that

when judgment is given in presence of the parties, no formal notification by the usher is needful, it will be evident that costliness is not one of the evils of the Conseils de Prud'hommes. In cases where registration of judgment is necessary, and in certain forms of procedure, some stamp duties have to be paid, but these constitute the minority. Judgment is enforced by precisely the same means as those of all other law courts in France. In districts where there is no Conseil de Prud'hommes, and in cases arising between personз of other trades than those included within the jurisdiction, ordinary justices of the peace are charged with the settlement of disputes, which must be tried in the locality where the workshop is situate. These justices, however, follow the same procedure in trade disputes as in all matters brought before them. The costs are much greater; and, what is worse, the delays that arise are long and vexatious. Beside its mission of conciliating and judging differences between employers and their workmen and apprentices, or between the latter, the Conseil is charged with the execution of laws for protecting trade marks and registered designs, the inspection of manufactories, the execution of the laws upon the workman's livret or certificate, and the general laws and regulations affecting manufactures and trade. The Government can at all times call upon the Council for reports and replies to questions.

Some interesting statistics have recently appeared of the proceedings of the Councils, the scope of which has very much increased of late years. Since the establishment of the system the number of courts has largely increased, there having been 62 in 1844, and at the present time about 132. The cases heard in private sittings have fluctuated during different periods; but on the whole have had a tendency to increase, especially since 1880, in which year the figures were 39,429. Of these, 73 per cent. were disposed of in 12 manufacturing centres. Paris, with 4 Prud'homme Courts, had 16,757 cases; Lyons, 2,969; St. Etienne, 1,513; Roubaix, 1,414; Havre, 1,303; Bordeaux, 1,060; Lille, 812; Elbœuf, 737; Limoges, 782; Marseilles, 601; St. Quentin, 520; Besançon, 501; the total number of these cases being 28,969. Out of every 100 cases brought before the Court of Conciliation, 59 related to wages, 13 to dismissals, 10 to misbehaviour, 5 to disputes about apprenticeship, and 13 to various other points. On an average about a fourth of the complaints were withdrawn before hearing; but it is a subject of remark that the number of cases in which the efforts of the Court to conciliate have been successful are year by year becoming less. On the other hand there is a fair proportion of cases which are sent up to the General Court, but which are settled before they actually Between 1876 and 1880, out of a yearly average of 7,955 cases put down for hearing before the General Court, 4,789, or three-fifths, were withdrawn for private settlement.

come on.

We have nothing in this country exactly answering to these Conseils de Prud'hommes in France. True, we often hear of an arbitrator being appointed in disputes arising about wages or hours of work affecting a large district or an entire trade. But the arbitrator is usually chosen for his public position, not from any special knowledge of the points in dispute; and, in the absence of any technical acquaintance with the matters involved, the general result is that a compromise is effected which satisfies neither party, but leads to a revival of the contention on an early day. We have also Boards of Conciliation for the hosiery trade in the Nottingham district, for the iron trade in Staffordshire and in the North of England, and for a few other industries and places. These Boards consist of representatives of employers and workmen, usually presided over by some gentleman from outside, and their chief function is to determine the rate of wages, quarter by quarter, on a sliding scale of prices and cost of production. They have done a certain amount of good in averting strikes and lock-outs, but as at present constituted and worked, they do not meet anything like the whole of the difficulties which perpetually arise. The amendment of the Labour Laws which was effected in 1875, by the passing of the Employers and Workmen Act, and of the Conspiracy and Protection of Property Act, has simplified the legal proceedings in cases of disputes about wages and breaches of contract as between masters and servants. Yet there appears to exist some need for a quick and easy method of adjudication on all such matters, like the Conseil de Prud'hommes, but adapted to English feelings and habits. Each town or district might have its Arbitration Court, composed of employers and workmen conversant with the usages of the various trades, which might be more easily and appropriately grouped than is the case in France. The decisions should have the binding force of law, subject only to appeal on graver questions. These would be but few; so the workmen would come to be inspired with confidence in a tribunal composed partly of intelligent and upright men of their own order. The scale of fees should be fixed at a low rate, sufficient only to cover working expenses. The moral effect would be great and salutary, in the strengthening of mutual confidence and goodwill, and in checking the spirit of strife and jealousy which is so apt to break out between capital and labour under the existing condition of things. We are all members of the body politic, and while each has appropriate duties and functions, none can dispense with the help and sympathy of the others. Any proposal is to be hailed with pleasure and gratitude which is likely to diminish class animosities and suspicions, and to weld together all sections of the community in earnest efforts for the public good. W. H. S. AUBREY.

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