"He was a very bad man - he was encouraged by the master in ill-treating all the hands, but particularly the children. Everybody was frightened of him. He would not even let us speak. He once fell poorly, and very glad we were. We wished he might die.

"There was an overlooker called William Hughes, who was put in his place whilst he was ill. He came up to me and asked me what my drawing frame was

"A little boy that was on the other side had stopped it, but he was too frightened to say it was him. Hughes starting beating me with a stick, and when he had done I told him I would let my mother know. He then went out and fetched the master in to me. The master started beating me with a stick over the head till it was full of lumps and bled.

"My head was so bad that I could not sleep for a long time, and I have never been a sound sleeper since.

"There was a young woman, Sarah Goodling, who was poorly and so she stopped her machine. James Birch, the overlooker, knocked her to the floor. She got up as well as she could. He knocked her down again. Then she was carried to the apprentice house. Her bed-fellow found her dead in bed.

"There was another called Mary. She knocked her food can down on the floor. The master, Mr Newton, kicked her where he should not do, and it caused her to wear away till she died.

"There was another, Caroline Thompson. They beat her till she went out of her mind.

"We were always locked up out of mill hours, for fear any of us should run away. One day the door was left open.