and here, as in the Black Country, are found certain centres
especially noted for the production of an individual class of goods,
such as Sheffield for its cutlery. There is, further, a large engineering
industry in the London district; and important manufactures of
agricultural implements are found at many towns of East Anglia
and in other agricultural localities. Birmingham and Coventry
may be specially mentioned as centres of the motor and cycle
building industry. The establishment of their engineering and other
workshops at certain centres by the great railway companies has
important bearing on the concentration of urban population. For
example, by this means the London & North Western and the
Great Western companies have created large towns in Crewe and
Swindon respectively.
Certain other important industries may be localized. Thus, the manufacture of china and pottery, although widespread, is primarily identified with Staffordshire, where an area comprising Stoke and a number of contiguous towns actually bears the name of the Potteries (q.v.). Derby has a similar fame, while the manufacture of glass, important in Leeds and elsewhere in the West Riding of Yorkshire, and in the London district, centres peculiarly upon a single town in South Lancashire—St Helens. Finally, the bootmakers of Northamptonshire (at Wellingborough, Rushden, &c.), and the straw-plaiters of Bedfordshire (at Luton and Dunstable), deserve mention among localized industrial communities.
Occupations of the People.—The occupations of the people may be so considered as to afford a conception of the relative extent of the industries already noticed, and their importance in relation to other occupations. The figures to be given are those of the census of 1901, and embrace males and females of 10 years of age and upwards. The textile manufactures occupied a total of 994,668 persons, of which the cotton industry occupied 529,131. A high proportion of female labour is characteristic of each branch of this industry, the number of females employed being about half as many again as that of males (the proportion was 1.47 to 1 in 1901). The metal industries of every sort occupied 1,116,202; out of which those employed in engineering (including the building of all sorts of vehicles) numbered 741,346. Of the other broad classes of industry already indicated, the manufacture of boots and shoes occupied 229,257, and the pottery and glass manufactures 90,193. For the rest, the numbers of persons occupied in agriculture has been quoted as 1,192,167; and of those occupied in mining as 805,185. Among occupations not already detailed, those of the male population include transport of every sort (1,094,301), building and other works of construction (1,042,864), manufacture of articles of human consumption, lodging, &c. (774,291), commerce, banking, &c. (530,685), domestic service, &c. (304,195), professional occupations (311,618). The service of government in every branch occupied 171,687. Female workers were occupied to the number of 1,664,381 in domestic service generally. Tailoring and the textile clothing industries and trade generally occupied 602,881; teaching 172,873; nursing and other work in institutions 104,036; and the civil service, clerkships and similar occupations 82,635.
IX. Territorial Divisions, &c.
For various administrative and other purposes England and Wales have been divided, at different times from the Saxon period onwards, into a series of divisions, whose boundaries have been adjusted as each purpose demanded, without much attempt to establish uniformity. Therefore, although the methods of local government are detailed below (Section X.), and other administrative arrangements are described under the various headings dealing with each subject, it is desirable to give here, for ease of reference and distinction, a schedule of the various areas into which England and Wales are divided. The areas here given, excepting the Poor Law Union, are those utilized in the Census Returns (see the General Report, 1901).
| England and Wales; Areas. | ||||||
| County (ancient or geographical). | ||||||
| Parliamentary Areas | Division | |||||
| Borough. | ||||||
| Administrative Areas | Administrative County. | |||||
| County Borough. | (City, town) | |||||
| Municipal Borough. | ||||||
| Urban District (other than borough) | ||||||
| Rural District. | ||||||
| Civil Parish. | ||||||
| Poor Law Union. | ||||||
| Judicial Areas | County Court Circuit. | |||||
| County Court District. | ||||||
| Petty Sessional Division. | ||||||
| Ecclesiastical Areas | Province. | |||||
| Diocese. | ||||||
| Parish. | ||||||
| Registration Areas | Division. | |||||
| County. | ||||||
| District. | ||||||
| Subdistrict. | ||||||
The ancient counties were superseded for most practical purposes by the administrative counties created by the Local Government Act of 1888. The ancient division, however, besides being maintained in general speech and usage, forms the basis on which the system of distribution of parliamentary representation now in force was constructed. The Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 made a new division of the country into county and borough constituencies. All the English counties, with the exception of Rutland, are divided into two or more constituencies, each returning one member, the number of English county parliamentary areas being 234. In Wales eight smaller or less populous counties form each one parliamentary constituency, while the four larger are divided, the number of Welsh county parliamentary areas being 19. The number of county areas for parliamentary purposes in England and Wales is thus 253, and the total number of their representatives is the same. Outside the county constituencies are the parliamentary boroughs. Of these there are 135 in England, one of them, Monmouth district, being made up of three contributory boroughs, while many are divided into several constituencies, the number of borough parliamentary areas in England being 205, of which 61 are in the metropolis. Of the 205 borough constituencies, 184 return each one member, and 21 return each two members, so that the total number of English borough members is 226. Besides the county and borough members there are in England five university members, namely, two for Oxford, two for Cambridge and one for London. In Wales there are 10 borough parliamentary areas, all of which, except Merthyr Tydfil and Swansea town division, consist of groups of several contributory boroughs. Each Welsh borough constituency returns one member, except Merthyr Tydfil, which returns two, so that there are eleven Welsh borough members.
The administrative counties, created in 1888, number 62, each having a county council. They sometimes coincide in area with the ancient counties of the same name, but generally differ, in a greater or less degree, for the following reasons—(1) in some cases an ancient county comprises (approximately) two or more administrative counties, in the formation of which names of some ancient divisions were preserved, thus:—
| Ancient County. | Administrative County. | |
| Cambridgeshire | Cambridge. | |
| Isle of Ely | ||
| Hampshire | South Hampshire. | |
| Isle of Wight. | ||
| Lincolnshire | Parts of Holland. | |
| Parts of Kresteven. | ||
| Parts of Lindsey. | ||
| Northamptonshire | Northampton. | |
| Soke of Peterborough. | ||
| Suffolk | East Suffolk. | |
| West Suffolk. | ||
| Sussex | East Sussex. | |
| West Sussex. | ||
| Yorkshire | East Riding. | |
| North Riding. | ||
| West Riding. |
The Scilly Islands, which form part of the ancient county of Cornwall, without being ranked as an administrative county, are provided with a county council and have separate administration. (2) The administrative county of London has an area taken entirely from the counties of Middlesex, Kent and Surrey. (3) All boroughs which on June 1, 1888, had a population of not less than 50,000, boroughs which were already counties having a population of not less than 20,000, and a few others, were formed into separate administrative areas, with the name of county
