Samuel
Plimsoll,
the son of Thomas Plimsoll and Priscilla Willing,
was born in Bristol on 10th February,
1824. Plimsoll became involved in shipping coal to London
and soon became one of Britain's leading experts on trading in this
community. By 1862 he had written two books on the subject, The
Export Coal Trade of England and The
Inland Coal Trade. His research into the coal trade made
him aware of the dangers faced by sailors. He was particularly concerned
with the negligence of some shipowners and the indifference of government
to the issue of marine safety.
While working in London Plimsoll lived
in one of the model lodging houses for working men established by
Lord Shaftesbury. Aware of the role that
Shaftesbury had played in persuading Parliament to pass protective
legislation, Plimsoll decided to try and become a member of the House
of Commons.
In the 1868 General Election, Plimsoll was
elected as MP for Derby. He immediately
began to campaign for government legislation to protect seamen. To
support his case he published Our Seamen
(1873), a book that provided documentary evidence about the scale
of the problem. This included information that nearly 1,000 sailors
a year were being drowned on ships around British shores. As part
of his campaign, a copy of Our Seamen
was given to every member of the House of Commons.
Plimsoll was particularly critical of the 1871
Merchant Shipping Act. As a result of this legislation
seamen were obliged, subject to imprisonment and fine, to go to sea
and complete a voyage once they had signed a contract. This made it
difficult for sailors to leave a ship once they realised it was unseaworthy.
In March 1873, The Times joined Plimsoll's
campaign by printing a story about fifteen seamen who had been imprisoned
for three months after they refused to go on board the ship Peru.
When the ship finally left Cardiff with
a new crew, it sunk in the Bay of Biscay and three men were drowned.
Ship-owners had powerful supporters in the House
of Commons and it was argued by them that the government should
not pass legislation that restricted the freedom of employers to run
their companies. Gradually, other politicians, such as Lord
Shaftesbury, became involved in Plimsoll's campaign. In 1875 Benjamin
Disraeli, the Conservative prime
minister, changed his mind on the issue and in 1875
gave his support to an Unseaworthy Vessels Bill.
The following year Samuel Plimsoll managed
to persuade Parliament to amend the 1871 Merchant
Shipping Act. This provided for the marking of a line on a ship's
sides which would disappear below the water line if the ship was overloaded.
A further amendment in 1877 imposed a limit on the weight of cargo
which vessels were permitted to carry and created rules governing
the engagement of seamen and their accommodation on board ship.
Plimsoll retired from the House of Commons
in 1880. Although no longer in Parliament he continued to campaign
for reform and in 1890 published Cattleships,
a book that exposed the cruelties and dangers
of cattle-shipping. Samuel Plimsoll died in 1898.
Available from Amazon Books
(order below)
