At first regarded with suspicion, Owen soon won the confidence of his workers. The mills continued to have great commercial success, but some of Owen's schemes were very expensive, which displeased his partners. Tired of the restrictions imposed on him by men who wanted to conduct the business on the ordinary principles, Owen arranged in 1813 to have them bought out by new investors. These, including Jeremy Bentham and the well-known Quaker William Allen, were content to accept just £5000 return on their capital, allowing Owen a freer scope for his philanthropy. In the same year, Owen authored several essays in which he expounded on the principles behind his education philosophy.
Owen had originally been a follower of the classical liberal and utilitarian Jeremy Bentham, who believed that free markets (and in particular, the right of workers to move and choose their employers) would free the workers from the excessive power of capitalists. Owen moved toward a more socialist outlook. At an early age, he had lost faith in the prevailing religion and thought out a belief system of his own, which he considered a new and original discovery. The chief points were that human character is formed by circumstances over which individuals have no control, and so cannot be properly praised or blamed. These principles lead to the conclusion that the secret behind the correct formation of people's characters is to place them under proper influences – physical, moral and social – from their earliest years. The principles of the irresponsibility of man and of the effect of early influences are the key to Owen's system of education and social amelioration, embodied in his first work, A New View of Society, or Essays on the Principle of the Formation of the Human Character, the first of four essays to appear in 1813. Owen's views theoretically belong to a very old system of philosophy, and his originality is to be found only in his benevolent application of them.
Robert Owen's house in New Lanark
For the next few years, Owen's work at New Lanark continued to have significance throughout Britain and even in continental Europe. His schemes for the education of his workers moved to something like completion on the opening of the institution at New Lanark in 1816. He zealously supported the factory legislation, culminating in the 1819 Cotton Mills and Factories Act. He had interviews and communications with the leading members of government, including the premier, Robert Banks Jenkinson, Lord Liverpool, and with many of the rulers and leading statesmen of Europe.
Owen also adopted new principles in raising the standard of goods produced. A cube with faces painted in different colors was installed above each machinist's workplace. The colour of the face showed to everyone the quality and quantity of work completed. This provided incentives to workers to do their best. Although not in itself a great incentive, the conditions at New Lanark for the workers and their families were idyllic for the time.
New Lanark became much visited by social reformers, statesmen, and royals, including the later Tsar Nicholas I of Russia. According to unanimous testimony from all who visited it, New Lanark appeared singularly good. The manners of the children brought up under his system were beautifully graceful, genial and unconstrained; health, plenty, and contentment prevailed; drunkenness was almost unknown; and illegitimacy extremely rare. Owen's relationship with the workers remained excellent, and all the operations of the mill proceeded with smoothness and regularity. Furthermore, the business was a commercial success.
At first regarded with suspicion, Owen soon won the confidence of his workers. The mills continued to have great commercial success, but some of Owen's schemes were very expensive, which displeased his partners. Tired of the restrictions imposed on him by men who wanted to conduct the business on the ordinary principles, Owen arranged in 1813 to have them bought out by new investors. These, including Jeremy Bentham and the well-known Quaker William Allen, were content to accept just £5000 return on their capital, allowing Owen a freer scope for his philanthropy. In the same year, Owen authored several essays in which he expounded on the principles behind his education philosophy.Owen had originally been a follower of the classical liberal and utilitarian Jeremy Bentham, who believed that free markets (and in particular, the right of workers to move and choose their employers) would free the workers from the excessive power of capitalists. Owen moved toward a more socialist outlook. At an early age, he had lost faith in the prevailing religion and thought out a belief system of his own, which he considered a new and original discovery. The chief points were that human character is formed by circumstances over which individuals have no control, and so cannot be properly praised or blamed. These principles lead to the conclusion that the secret behind the correct formation of people's characters is to place them under proper influences – physical, moral and social – from their earliest years. The principles of the irresponsibility of man and of the effect of early influences are the key to Owen's system of education and social amelioration, embodied in his first work, A New View of Society, or Essays on the Principle of the Formation of the Human Character, the first of four essays to appear in 1813. Owen's views theoretically belong to a very old system of philosophy, and his originality is to be found only in his benevolent application of them.Robert Owen's house in New LanarkFor the next few years, Owen's work at New Lanark continued to have significance throughout Britain and even in continental Europe. His schemes for the education of his workers moved to something like completion on the opening of the institution at New Lanark in 1816. He zealously supported the factory legislation, culminating in the 1819 Cotton Mills and Factories Act. He had interviews and communications with the leading members of government, including the premier, Robert Banks Jenkinson, Lord Liverpool, and with many of the rulers and leading statesmen of Europe.
Owen also adopted new principles in raising the standard of goods produced. A cube with faces painted in different colors was installed above each machinist's workplace. The colour of the face showed to everyone the quality and quantity of work completed. This provided incentives to workers to do their best. Although not in itself a great incentive, the conditions at New Lanark for the workers and their families were idyllic for the time.
New Lanark became much visited by social reformers, statesmen, and royals, including the later Tsar Nicholas I of Russia. According to unanimous testimony from all who visited it, New Lanark appeared singularly good. The manners of the children brought up under his system were beautifully graceful, genial and unconstrained; health, plenty, and contentment prevailed; drunkenness was almost unknown; and illegitimacy extremely rare. Owen's relationship with the workers remained excellent, and all the operations of the mill proceeded with smoothness and regularity. Furthermore, the business was a commercial success.
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