Legal regulation of _wages_ lasted much longer in England; and has reappeared in very recent years, at least in the Australasian colonies, with a beginning of such legislation in Great Britain and Ireland and the State of New York. The first Statute of Laborers merely provides that the old wages and no more shall be given. The next year, however, in 1350, the exact rate of wages was fixed; and this lasted for more than two centuries, to the reign of Elizabeth, the so-called "great" Statute of Laborers consolidating all the previous ones. It is apt to be the case that when a statutory system has reached its full development it falls into disuse; and that is certainly the case here. There is no later statute in England until 1909 fixing directly or indirectly the rate of wages; and it may be doubted whether the justices of the peace continued to fix them for many years under the Statute of Elizabeth. More than three centuries were to go by before this principle reappeared in legislation or attempted legislation; but in Australia,[1] New Zealand,[2] and England[3] there has been recent legislation for a legally fixed rate of wages to be determined for practically all trades by a board of referees, consisting, as such boards usually do consist, of one member to represent capital, one to represent labor, and the third to represent the public or the state. As such third representative almost invariably votes on the side of the greatest number of voters, this practically makes a commission hardly impartial. The working of the system in New Zealand will be found discussed in the _Westminster Review_ for January, 1910. There is an appeal to the courts from the rate of wages fixed by such commission; and it appears that out of four such appeals, in three the decision of the commission was confirmed, and in the fourth set aside; but the workingmen disregarded the judgment of the court and struck for a higher wage--contrary to the whole theory of such legislation, which is to _prevent_ strikes. This strike succeeding, there has, therefore, been no case so far where the increasing rate of wages was checked by any appeal to the courts. [Footnote 1: So. Australia, 1906, no. 915; 1900, no. 752; Victoria, 1903, no. 1,857; 1905, no. 2,008.] [Footnote 2: See New Zealand Law of 1900, no. 51; frequently amended since.] [Footnote 3: 60 and 61 Victoria, c. 37, 9 Edward VII.]