AbstractsLaw & Legal Studies

In the early part of the nineteenth century many children were employed in the coal mines of England and Scotland. By the early twentieth century this was no longer true. Between 1842 and 1920 several acts were passed by Parliament which regulated the work of children in mines. Before examining this legislation is is necessary to inquire how the children happened to be working in the mines in the first place. During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries the use of coal for various purposes greatly increased. This demand for coal increased the demand for workers in the mines. Since there was little movement of population to the mining centers this demand was met partly by the employment of children. In the early nineteenth century this employment of children was taken for granted, just as it had been for centuries. [TRUNCATED]