But the heaviest indictment against the 10-hour day comes from the Trade Union representatives. Many of these declare that the girls are utterly worn out at the end of the day and are generally incapable of any serious work, which accounts for the small proportion of girls who attend Workers' Educational Association and other evening classes. The strain of most of the work in cotton factories, both on the preparing and on the manufacturing sides, is considerable, and the competition to increase output is very great. Girls and women are indirectly set to emulate one another and to compete with men and boys. Some observers say that the girls are tired out by 4.30 P.M., and that if the hours were reduced the output would be more regular, as at the present time girls are unconsciously forced to "slack." The Sick Visitors of one of the large Weavers' Unions in north-east Lancashire state that "shorter hours are far more important for the well-being of the weaver than either weavers or manufacturers realise," and they point out that the girls look much brighter and better when they are away from work with minor ailments, and certainly the sickness returns show that fewer are ill when "short time" is general as in the latter half of 1914. This is confirmed by the experience of other Unions. The weaving master in one of the technical schools, who had been a working weaver for years, was convinced that the hours are too long for all operatives, but especially for growing girls, and he said, "One has only to live in a household of weavers to notice the extreme weariness and lassitude with which they sink into chairs as soon as they get home in the evening." As a proof of the evil effects of the long working-day my attention was frequently drawn to the physical differences between the girls attending the secondary schools and those who work in the mills. In the majority of cases, particularly in north-east Lancashire, both groups come from the same class and from the same type of home, but the former are tall, well-built, and rosy-cheeked, while the latter are often short, always thin, and generally pale and anaemic. The comparison between the different effects of weaving and winding is instructive. The latter process is of itself more tiring and monotonous, and the strain is continuous; yet winders are said to be in better health and to be much more cheerful and energetic out of work hours. This apparent inconsistency is explained by the fact that the winders seldom work a full week; they frequently start after breakfast, and generally "play" on Saturday and one other morning every week. One witness emphasised her conviction that the long hours were mainly responsible for the very prevalent ill-health of girls and of older women by declaring that no reform of factory conditions can be effective until the hours are shortened.