The 1830s and 1840s were the decades when French people first became aware that a new urban and industrial society was emerging in their midst – and they were not a little alarmed by what they saw. Villeneuve-Bargemont wrote of the ‘English’ industrial and political system that was being introduced into his own country. He identified its key features as the concentration of capital, production that knew no bounds, competition that was equally unlimited and the replacement of human labour by machinery. The origins of this form of production could be traced back to the late eighteenth century, but as in Britain, it took a few years before the wholesale implications of economic development came into focus. Contemporary observers certainly appreciated the material advantages to be gained from mechanization and competitive markets, but some of them were more concerned at the heavy burden placed on the proletariat. In retrospect, the labour policy of entrepreneurs during the early nineteenth century does indeed appear extremely crude. In the words of Eric Hobsbawm, an ‘extensive’ exploitation of labour was the order of the day, with long hours and low wages being seen as the way to profitability. Mesmerized by the spectacular levels of output that could be achieved with their new machines, the first generation of industrialists never considered the further increases in productivity attainable through improving the quality and organization of their operatives.