In Muggle fairy tales, Santa Claus rode a reindeer sleigh on Christmas Eve, climbed down chimneys into the homes of good children, and stuffed Christmas presents into the woolen stockings hanging by their fireplaces.
It was hard to imagine someone with Santa Claus's build fitting down a chimney. In fact, those who could fit were usually children under fourteen, sent by their parents to chimney sweeps as apprentices. It was an extremely dangerous job, because the flues designed for grand houses were often complex, and the children tasked with cleaning them sometimes died after becoming trapped inside the walls, unable to get out. Although a petition for legislation to protect child chimney sweeps had been submitted as early as 1788, and a law was indeed passed, its enforcement amounted to little more than an "act of charity." If parents were not short of money, they bought their children gifts instead of sending them down chimneys.
This law had caught Georgiana's attention because a wizard had also taken part in its legislative process. His name was Davy Potter, Harry Potter's great-great-great-grandfather. Like other laws, the bill had initially faced obstruction. However, Davy Potter might have used some "little tricks," allowing it to pass Parliament without any difficulty.
That was, of course, a violation of the International Statute of Secrecy, but no one had evidence to prove it. Besides, the law later became a dead letter, so even fewer people cared.
At the height of the Industrial Revolution, many countries, Britain in particular, made widespread use of child labor during industrialization. In the short term, this promoted economic growth and increased household income, but the "overexploitation" of children forced the nation, society, and the children themselves to pay a heavy price in the long run.
In London, nearly four hundred out of