Number of
establishments.		Number of operatives
and clerks.
No hired operatives520,7001,084,700
From 1 to 10 employees539,4491,134,700
From 11 to 50 ”28,626585,000
From 51 to 100 ”3,865268,000
From 101 to 500 ”3,145616,000
From 501 to 1000 ”295195,000
More than 1000 ”149313,000
575,5293,111,700
Total (with first division).1,096,2294,196,400

These figures speak for themselves and show what an immense importance the small industry has in France. More details, showing the distribution of the great, middle-sized and small industry in different branches will be found in the Appendix, and there the reader will also see what a striking resemblance is offered under this aspect by the industry of France and that of the United Kingdom. In the next chapter it will be seen from a similar census that Germany stands in absolutely the same position.

It would have been very interesting to compare the present distribution of industries in France with what it was previously. But M. Lucien March tells us that “no statistics previous to 1896 have given us a knowledge of that distribution.” Still, an inquest made between 1840 and 1845, and which M. March considers “very complete for the more important establishments which employed more than fifty workmen,” was worked out by him, and he found that such establishments numbered 3,300 in 1840; in 1896 they had already attained the number of 7,400, and they occupied more than fifty-five per cent. of all the workpeople employed in industry. As to the establishments which employed more than 500 persons and which numbered 133 in 1840 (six per cent. of all the workpeople), they attained the number of 444 in 1896, and sixteen per cent. of all the workpeople were employed in them.

The conclusion to be drawn from these facts is thus worded by M. March: “To sum up, during the last fifty years a notable concentration of the factories took place in the big establishments; but the just-mentioned results, supported by the statistics of the patents, permit us to recognise that this concentration does not prevent the maintenance of a mass of small enterprises, the average sizes of which increase but very slowly.” This last is, in fact, what we have just seen from our brief sketch for the United Kingdom, and we can only ask ourselves whether—such being the facts—the word “concentration” is well chosen. What we see in reality is, the appearance, in some branches of industry, of a certain number of large establishments, and especially of middle-sized factories. But this does not prevent in the least that very great numbers of small factories should continue to exist, either in other branches, or in the very same branches where large factories have appeared (the textiles, work in metal), or in branches connected with the main ones, which take their origin in these main ones, as the industry of clothing takes its origin from that of the textiles.

This is the only conclusion which a serious analysis permits us to draw from the facts brought to light by the census of 1896 and subsequent observations. As to the large deductions about “concentration” made by certain economists, they are mere hypotheses—useful, of course, for stimulating research, but becoming quite noxious when they are represented as economical laws, when in reality they are not confirmed at all by the testimony of carefully observed facts.

FOOTNOTES:

[129] This is why the German economists find such difficulties in delimiting the proper domain of the domestic trades (Hausindustrie), and now identify this word with Verlagssystem, which means “working either directly or through the intermediary of a middleman employer (or buyer) for a dealer or employer, who pays the small producer for the goods he has produced, before they have reached the consumer.”

[130] For more details about this subject, see an article of mine in the Nineteenth Century, August, 1900.

[131] The Chief Inspector, Mr. Whitelegge, wrote to me in 1900 that the workshops which did not enter into his reports represented about one-half of all the workshops. Since that time Mr. Whitelegge has continued to publish his interesting reports, adding to them new groups of workshops. However, they still remain incomplete to some extent as regards this last point. In the last Report, published in 1911, we see that 147,000 workshops were registered at the end of 1907, and returns were received from 105,000 of them. But as in 32,000 workshops no women or young persons (below 18) were employed, their returns were not published. The Report for 1907 gives, therefore, only 91,249 workshops in which 638,335 persons were employed (186,064 male and 282,324 female adults, 54,605 male and 113,728 female young persons—that is, full-timers from 14 to 18 years old—and 863 male and 751 female children under 14).

[132] From the curve that I computed it appears that all the textile factories are distributed as to their size as follows:—Not less than 500 operatives, 200 factories, 203,100 operatives; from 499 to 200, 660 factories, 231,000 operatives; from 199 to 100, 2,955 factories, 443,120 operatives; from 99 to 50, 1,380 factories, 103,500 operatives; less than 50, 1,410 factories, 42,300 operatives; total, 6,605 factories, 1,022,020 operatives.—Nineteenth Century, August, 1900, p. 262.