For the next few years the worsted trade remained in a state of great depression; panic followed panic, and failure succeeded failure, until the commercial affairs of the country seemed to have touched their lowest depth. But the wave of adversity appeared unable to reach to the remote heights of Queensbury; it washed and foamed with disastrous effect miles below, at the base of the hill, in the smoke-canopied valleys where the tall chimneys of Bradford and Halifax reared their heads, and swept away many firms of ancient standing and a host of smaller men. Still, during all this time of trial and anxiety, John Foster & Son kept themselves high and dry above the torrent, and largely extended their sphere of operations. It was in 1842 that they built a large new weaving-shed capable of holding 500 looms, and not long afterwards they added what is known as the Shed-mill to their already extensive establishment. That the firm were able to make these additions during a period when the general trade of the country was in a condition of stagnation is a great testimony to their business abilities.

There is no doubt the geographical position of the works at Blackdike had much to do with the firm's success. At first sight, the inaccessibility of the concern would seem to be a serious impediment to its progress; but to the strong-willed, hardy, and vigorous men whose fortunes were dependent upon the measure of success that attended the Blackdike enterprise, the presence of difficulties and obstacles, which by most people would have been deemed insurmountable, acted as incentives to exertion, and by incessant energy and application, and by the force of that hardheadedness which is the charac

VOL. XXXVII. NO. CCXVII.

teristic of the best type of Yorkshire business men, they built up a gigantic success on lines which had theretofore been regarded as impossible of amplification. No railway or canal could get near them, either for the bringing in of their raw material or the outward despatch of their manufactured goods. True, there was not any railway even to Bradford at the date when the Blackdike Works were established; but the country was busy with all manner of railway projects, and, although no one ever dreamed of planning a railroad to Queensbury, the Fosters were fully alive to the importance of promoting the railway system generally. So, although they had to be content, so far as they themselves were concerned, with a service of powerful wagons, strong horses, and sturdy drivers, for the conveying of their goods up and down the steep hill between Bradford and Queensbury, they saw the advantage of connecting themselves, even at a distance, with the improved means of carriage which was being established throughout the country; and thus it was that their names became prominent, from 1842 onwards, in schemes for the formation and advancement of what have proved to be the most successful of our lines. Entering upon their railway undertakings at a most critical time, they nevertheless escaped being drawn into the joint-stock whirlpool, which swallowed up so many fortunes during the existence of the railway mania. John Foster & Son were enterprising, but they were not reckless. Mr. William Foster was the moving spirit of the firm always in respect of the railway concerns that they ventured upon; and from 1842 down to the present time he has held a high position as director of some of the

G

leading Northern railway companies. He took a very active part in promoting the short railway from Leeds to Bradford, which line was opened some thirty years ago, and subsequently became absorbed in the Great Northern system. Both he and his brothers were also largely concerned in the organisation of the West Riding and Grimsby Railway, and assisted materially in the formation of the line between Halifax and Ovenden. Coming to more recent years, we find Mr. William Foster promoting the construction of a railway which has almost had the effect of connecting Queensbury itself with the railway system of the country. This railway is called the Bradford and Thornton Railway, and takes within its range a number of villages which stand at a considerable altitude; but it was too great a work, even in these days of astounding feats of engineering, to carry the line altogether to Queensbury: still it comes within less than a mile of this now famed colony, and must have proved of considerable advantage to the Fosters in the increased facilities of carriage that it must necessarily have given them. Of this railway company Mr. William Foster was the chairman. He is also a director of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway Company, and has, during the whole of his business career, identified himself closely with many other undertakings of this nature, in the working out of which he has, by his sound judgment and business tact, been of great assistance. As far as the legitimate and healthy employment of capital, and his own personal services and advice, are concerned, Mr. William Foster has always been ready to aid such schemes, and the good he has done in this direction will not go without recognition.

In the old days it was no uncommon thing for the senior partner of the firm to do a business journey from Queensbury to Leeds and back on foot, a distance of nearly thirty miles; and, though the roads were rugged and the hills were steep, he was well able to accomplish the task, being a man of almost herculean build, and capable of almost any amount of physical endurance. As time moved on, however, the strain upon Mr. John Foster was much lightened, his eldest son, and afterwards his other sons, taking upon themselves the main responsibilities of management. Mr. William Foster followed in the footsteps of his father in regard to planning and superintending the erection of new buildings, as well as in other matters, and it came to be a saying at Blackdike that there was not a single beam, shaft, machine, pipe, or drain, of which he did not know the whereabouts. Especially did Mr. William Foster turn his attention to sanitary matters, and to him in a great degree is due the admirable sanative arrangements which have made the Blackdike Works one of the most healthful industrial establishments in the country. Every building was projected on a liberal scale as to light and air; the old notions of cramming as much labour as possible into a given space were discarded; and the fresh mills and warehouses which were successively added to the Blackdike establishment in 1842, 1850, 1858, 1865, and other years, were model buildings, and as substantial as they were healthy and convenient.

It would be an injustice to the firm not to attempt to give some description of the works as they now stand. Let us, therefore, suppose a visitor arriving at Queensbury, and let us look with him at the busy scenes that would

genitors. A little distance beyond is to be seen a more modern and more handsome building, in the Tudor style, enclosed in a somewhat extensive park. This is Harrowins House, the Queensbury residence of Mr. William Foster, and is now some quarter of a century old. Then there is the church of Holy Trinity, which was built in 1842, and is largely supported by the Foster family; there is a 'Hall of Freedom,' a commodious public lecture-hall; there are the National Schools; and there are also many good shops and miscellaneous business premises scattered about on the most advantageous sites that the hill affords.

there greet his vision. He will He will probably be a little tired on reaching the Queensbury summit, and will like to rest a while and take a general survey of the place. He will doubtless stop somewhere near the Gothic fountain which Messrs. Foster raised in 1863 to commemorate the virtues of the late Prince Consort. This fountain, which is forty feet high, stands at the junction of the Bradford and Halifax and the Brighouse and Denholme Gate turnpike-roads; and as the visitor halts here and looks around him he sees some hundreds of substantial stone-built cottages fronting the highways, or ranged in convenient well-paved streets which branch off at right angles therefrom, and seem well able to bear the brunt of wind and weather which they are constantly subjected to. On making inquiry of one of the stalwart villagerseverybody is stalwart and strong at Queensbury; it is no place for weaklings; they have to betake themselves to the valleys belowthe visitor will be told that some four hundred of these cottages have either been built or are owned by the firm, who, as regards their cottages as well as their mills, have mostly been their own architects. If he allows himself still further to extend his survey he will see Prospect House, the solid stone mansion which Mr. John Foster erected in the early part of his career, and which has come to be regarded by his descendants with all the affection of an ancestral home. Short as the history of this house has been, the associations connected with it are of a character well calculated to inspire the men whose fortunes have been linked therewith with feelings akin to those cherished by the possessor of an ancient name and title for the halls of his pro

All these things, however, are but supplementary to the factories that have led to their creation, which from morn to night keep up a continuous buzzing and rumbling in the Blackdike hollow. The works do not burst upon the visitor's sight all at once and fill him with surprise, for as he approaches them from the road he finds a considerable portion of the establishment shut out from his view. When once he has penetrated the entrance- gates, however, he discovers that he is hemmed in on all sides by huge far-stretching factory walls, which, with their myriads of windows, look down upon him from the four sides of an immense yard or quadrangle. To the right stretches the long façade of the Victoria and Shed Mills, now merged into one building, one portion of which is six stories and the remainder five stories in height, having altogether a frontage of 473 feet. In a line parallel to the Victoria Mill can be seen some of the original factory buildings, looking venerable and time-honoured indeed beside the newer and more commodious erections which now rear their lofty walls around them;

beauty or to adorn the figure of the most fashionably attired Parisian belle. To what an extent Messrs. Foster go in the direction of assisting the world to dress is evidenced by the fact that their production of materials averages more than one piece per minute, equal to 4500 miles of manufactured goods in a year. To follow the wools and the yarns from their entrance into the works to their exit is an instructive and interesting task for the visitor. He sees the wool piled up as it first comes in, having travelled in bales from the plains of South America, the valleys of Asia Minor, the snowy regions of Iceland, the swelling uplands of Africa, the wilds of Australia, or the more peaceful pastures of our own country; he sees it afterwards 'sorted' into different qualities, according to fineness of fibre; then sees it washed and made clean and lustrous by machines which consume 8000 lbs. of soap per week, the said soap being made by Messrs. Foster at their own soapworks; he sees it subsequently carded and combed by ponderous machines; and finally, he sees it combined with cotton and other warps and woven into mohair, alpaca, stuff, or fancy fabrics, and rendered pleasant to the eye and delicate to the touch. It is worth while mentioning, too, that the offices belonging to the establishment contain a telegraph-room, which, by the aid of ten miles' length of wire, is connected with the residences of the different members of the firm, with their warehouse in Bradford, and with the general telegraphic system of the country. In fact, all that science and enterprise, skill and energy, have been able to do in the way of promoting a commercial undertaking seems to have been done by Messrs. Foster.

and a little further down there is a long range of warehouse buildings. Then there come boilerhouses, engine - houses, greaseworks, dye-works, and what not; and on the side of the square nearest to the high-road there is a handsome suite of offices. Going further afield, and exploring the ground that lies on the other side of the Victoria and Shed Mills, the visitor sees stretching before him two gigantic sheds, one of which is given up to the processes connected with woolcombing, and covers an area of 5866 square yards; while the other is devoted entirely to weaving, spreading over 5144 square yards and affording accommodation for 1000 looms. The extent and capacity of the works may perhaps be best illustrated by a few statistics. As has already been stated, the works comprise thirteen acres of flooring. Some 3000 work people are employed in the various departments, and they absorb little short of 100,000l. a year in wages. In creating the steam-power necessary to carry on this extensive establishment not less than 10,000 tons of coal are consumed every year, or about 200 tons per week. A large proportion of this coal, it may be stated, is obtained from the firm's own collieries. The engines required for the running of the machinery represent a total indicated horse-power of over 1600. The consumption at Blackdike in the way of raw material is something marvellous; about 15,000 packs of alpaca, mohair, English and other wools are manipulated there during a twelvemonth, and, after being wrought up into beautiful fabrics, are dispersed over all the countries of the world, lending new charms to female loveliness wherever they are seen, whether it be to form a chastely flowing garment for an Eastern

They have built up a business of great magnitude, have been the means of establishing a thriving industrial village, and have used the immense wealth which has rewarded their endeavours with a generous regard for the welfare of their servants no less than a due observance of the obligations which wealth enjoins upon its possessors generally.

Having now traced in rough outline how the Blackdike manufacturing business came to be established, and how, as the years went on, it expanded until the present high state of development was reached, it may be as well to devote a little more space to the subject of the personnel of the firm.

liar to the frequenters of the Bradford market, and for a still longer period he was a well-known figure in and around Queensbury, both in the works which he established and in the village itself. At all times anxious to advance the well-being of his workpeople, still he did not spoil them either by unduly petting them or by affecting too much patronage. He taught them the value of self-reliance, while amply supplying them with the means of helping themselves; and this system of unburdensome guardianship has been continued by his sons, with a result that must be highly gratifying to employers and employed. Queensbury contains probably more well-to-do workmen than any other industrial community of the same size in the country. Here, again, the geographical position of the place has been an advantage. The Queensburyites have been away from the general current of those smaller pleasures and amusements which are the means of wasting so much of the time of the working population of our large towns; and, with such examples of thrift and steady plodding as were constantly before them, it is hardly surprising that they should have settled down to ways of wisdom and economy. Mr. Foster studied his workpeople's needs much more than his own in periods of depression, and was glad that the largeness of his means enabled him to afford to work to stock' for their benefit, while many others were compelled to yield to the pressure of the times. The efforts that were thus made were, it need scarcely be said, duly appreciated, and are gratefully remembered. Mr. Foster used to familiarise himself with his people to an extent that few manufacturers of the modern stamp would ever

Of Mr. John Foster very little remains to be added. He had no ambition apart from his business. For the rest, he lived a quiet homely life, and never aspired to the position of a public career, often as he must have been solicited, as his wealth and years increased, to allow himself to be brought into prominence. Taking broad views of the many social and political problems which arose during his day, he was tolerant in regard to any opinion that was sincerely and honestly advanced, and never identified himself with any kind of faction, or with any narrow party contentions. He had great clearness of perception, was a good reader of character, and always held in kindly remembrance those by whom he had been served. He was gentlemanly in appearance, and in his manner showed a happy combination of the brusque, outspoken, healthyminded Yorkshireman and the thoughtful, unaffected, undemonstrative English gentleman of the more refined type. For some thing like half a century his tall form and cheery voice were fami