Indenture of Apprenticeship between Victor Ernest Hutfield and Edward Lee, Motor Engineer, of Gosport, 26 June 1901

Description

A printed indenture on a sheet bearing the Royal Arms and a two-shillings-and-sixpence embossed revenue stamp, completed in manuscript and dated 26 June 1901, by which Victor Ernest Hutfield of 5 Mell Lane, Gosport, bound himself as apprentice to Mr. Edward Lee of North Street, Gosport, motor engineer, for a term of five years, to learn the art, trade, or business of a motor engineer. The standard covenants oblige the apprentice to serve faithfully, keep his master's secrets, do no damage, and neither absent himself nor trade unlawfully on his own account, while the master agrees to instruct him in the trade and to pay wages of six shillings per week in the first year, rising by two shillings yearly. Signed and sealed by Edward Lee in the presence of V. Cooper, the document is printed by Warrington & Co., London, and shows fold-creases consistent with having been kept folded for filing. As an early apprenticeship for the then-nascent profession of motor engineer, it is a notable document of the early motor trade in Gosport.