Evening Express

TEMPERATURE AND RAINFALL. r>.T. —— Rainfall. M >x. Ivlin. Mean, Saturday 6 60 53 5b'5 O'OO Sunday 7 01 54 57.5 O'OO Monday 8i 60 62 61-0 O'OO Tuesday 9, 60 51 55-5 I oloo Wednesday 10: 61 54 57*5 O'OO Thursday Ill 63 57 60'0 0'16 Friday 12! 65 53 61'5 OO'O Th e Temperature represents extreme reading th thermometer for 24 hours ended 9 a.m., taken in the shade at Cwrt-y-Vil, Penarth. TheEainfall registered at Cwrt-y-Vil. P uarth, for th 124 hours ended 9 a.m.

HUNTING APPOINTMENTS. FOXHOUNDS. Cubbing. Pembbokeshire.—Friday, October 12, Tufton Arms; Tuesday, October 16, Efailwcn; Friday, October 19, Tufton A rms—9.30. HARRIERS. Crickhowelt,. — Saturday, October 13, Cwmdu Village—12 noon Tuesday, October 16, Aberhowy, T/laugruiider; Saturday, October 20, Cwmgufawr Farm—11 (weather permitting).

LLANDAFP CATHEDRAL SERVICES. Friday, October 12.— Wesley in F anthem, Send out Thy Light (Gounod). Saturday, October 13.-Cooke in G; anthem, Sing praises (Gounod).

Trlbi-honb National 502 Pest- office, 95. Tbmubams ".tffttt. Cardiff."

NOTES. BY "OBSERVER." CARDIFF, Friday Morning China and Japan take a back seat—Siam is swallowed up—Egypt is no more seen—Mada- gascar fades into inniyniticance. The fact is, Whitchurch—great Whitchurch—has been 'in council! It was last night, and the delibera- tions were mammoth in their mightdness. The question of the liour-beside, which the most complicated items of foreign and domestic policy axe as mere sums i» simple addition— was the avoidance of a parish council con- test. The problem—according to a worthy I Whitchurch to wner to whom I have just been talking-is capable of being attacked either by arithmetic, algebra, trigonometry, or conic sections. Leaving the other methods to the united | intellects of Whitchurch, we humbly adopt the former. Know then all men by these prese-nts that thirties into fifteen won't go. That is what drow Whitchurch into confabu- lation last night. It was a great meeting a mighty gathering of the clans. Nay more, to parody Byron, There was a sound' of devilry by night, for it was a meeting of rivals—Tories and Radicals—and you know when Greek meets Greek then comes the tug of tar-I mean the tug of war. Dear, dear, I was up very late Last night at a jollification,, and feel quite un- equal this morning to discussing the policy of Whitchurch. Well, it is scarcely needful to add that, with the conditions I have just specified, there was a fearful wrangle-jangle, which resulted at half- time in the selection of, not 30, but 40, candi- dates, though whether this was the result of tackling the method by fluxions or the diite- rential calculus I'm really not in a position to say. However, it will be patent to my readers, as it was to some of the clearer brains of Whit- church, that if 30 couldn't be got into fifteen, the chancer of 40 doing so were very decidedly more remote. At this point burning genius got itself into evidence, resulting in the adoption of the ballot. But such a ballot! The brain of none but a. Whitchureh man could have con- ceived it. In the room adjoining that where the squibble-squabble was in progress was a black board. On this were chalked the names of the forty, and every lrum jack present had to go in turn into the room and chalk his chalk against his favourites. An enormous amount of time was thus expended, but in the result-- Hallo! I look up, and my man is gone! Why, this is coolness worthy of even Whit- church. Perhaps in a later edition I may be able to record the result of the ballot. Mean- while, the world—the small, mean, petty out- side world—will have to wait. What humbugs these poets are to be sure! Here is one from Gloucester c-hauting:- Oh! Autumn is a fair maid, With -treses brown and fair, Sixo comes in glowing colours, In tint. rich and rare. Wherer she treads, the blushes On Nature's face are seen, And leaves fall down in homage To honour her, their queen. Our own Poet, whom we keep chained up in the back yard, declares he's quite sick of senitimenit, and invites any unbiassed; person to come outside and look up at the sky and conscientiously recite the above, which is only the first of three stanza*. Our Bard says he prefers to put it this way (at any rate, this year) Oh, Autumn is a sulky wench, Wit.h dank, dishevelled hair, And where she moves the dismal stench Of fallen leaves pervades the air. The sky is leaden, not a trace Of .sun or moon or stars we see: Hence Autumn get thee gone, thou art A swindling jade of low degree! SIR,-It occurs to we that a suitable oppor- tunity presents itself for calling attention to the desirability of some means being; adopted by jewellers more particularly to protect their raluable stocks from such inroads as that which has just been made in tho centre of our town. A system of electric contact alarms, not neces- sarily of the common or window and door sort, could easily be arranged to gire notice at an adjacent police-station tha.t "something was going wrong' The details of such an arrange- ment will at once suggest themselves to our prac- tical local electricians. It is only after the occurrence of such robberies tha.t we wake up to ask why.the means of preventing them has not suggested itself, and if we can during the pro- gress of the next three or four robberies devise a means of preventing the fifth it will be pro- gress at any rate, even if only of Cardiff rapidity. Through the medium of your valuable paper the subject mis-lit. with your permission, be so pushed forward as to arrive P.t a practical solution in a reasonably short space of time, and I think the police, who deserve our warmest con- sideration in the discharge of their difficult duties, would be greatly assisted in mailltftining the excellent standard they strive to uphold.—I am, &c., ELECTRICITY. Cardiff. So far, it looks as though we were to have lively times at the forthcoming municipal elec- tion. In five wards contests appear likely, and in oae ward—Roath—there are three can- didates in the field, two of them Radicals. Even our good friend Ebenezer is not to have his seat unchallenged- A glance at the list which we publish elsewhere shows that the Radical element are mainly rejiiousible for the coming struggle. It is to their interest as a party to keep things humming on political lines. The municipal election is a conve- nient local arena for keeping the party organisa- tion bright and up to the mark. Hence it is that, though they lay the omis on the Tories, it is really our dear friends, the Radicals, who are determined to colour everything with the hues of party. Already the usual splits in the Radical and Home Rule mmp are beginning to show themselves. What a happy family they are, to be sure! Well, there are plenty of them to the front this year, for, out of a total of sixteen names, no less than nine are "advanced"—some of 'em very muoli so!

SERVANT FATALLY BURNED. Poured Paraffin an the Fuel when Lighting Fire. Alice Lavender, a servant girl, employed In Gloucester-street, l'eckham, in lighting a fire on Friday morning poured paraffin on the fuel to make it burn more quickly and the flames shot suddenly out, setting her clothes alight. She was terribly burnt, and died before medical ajcaigj.njnnn oould arrlvl I-

Temperance Reform, IMPORTANT SPEECH BY MR. CHAMBERLAIN. He Criticises the So-called Leaders and Condems the Local Veto Bill. Mr. Chamberlain, addressing a. meeting of his constituents at Birmingham OIl Tliursday night, after tome general remarks on the poli- tical situation, faid he was inclined to say that the most urgent social reform which could be submitted to us was a. reform in connection with the promotion of temperance. (Cheers.) Intemperance was the great blot upon our civi- lisation, and a. fruitful cause of misery, pauperism, and crime. What had struck him during his ^public life was tliat, while the evil was universally recognised, yet nothing had been done by legislation to remedy it. Why was that? Because we had been proceeding upon wrong lines. It was a great misfortune that the leadership c'f the temperance party had fallen into the hands of extreme men—(cheers)— into the hands of partisans more anxious to prohibit drinking than to prevent drunken- ness, and enger to puuish the publican, who, after all, was carrying on a legal trade— (cheers)—than to reclaim the drunkard. He (Mr. Chamberlain) believed the Local Veto Bill to be a bad Bill. ("No, no," and"Y es. ") Let them understand each other. It was not a bad Bill because it adopted the principle of Local Option. Nothing could be fairer than that a comunity, as a whole, should have the conduct of this trade. But the Local Veto Bill was not in any true sense a Bill for Local Option. It was a. Bill to restrict Local Option. Under the Local Veto Bill the com- munity would only have power to decide one question—whether there should be no public- houses or all that exist at present. If, as he believed would be the case, the vast majority of the community decided in favour of the continued existence of public-houses, but at the same time desired to regulate them. to con- trol them so as to prevent abuses, under the Local Veto Bill they would be powerless to give effect to that wish. The Local Veto Bill was also an unjust Bill, because, if it proposed to do good. wiiijli he very much doubted, it was going to do it by doing evil—(hear, hear) —by taking away the property of the publi- can, who was just as much entitled to con- sideration as any other respectable tradesman. (Continued cheering.) It was also an unequal Bill, because it would interfere with the convenience and enjoyment of the poor. but not with the pleasures or abuses of the rich. In the last place it was an impracticable Bill; because prohibition, which was all that it proposed, would be im- possible precisely in those places where regu- lation was most desirable. Upon this ques- tion he was in entire agreement with Mr. Gladstone. (Cheers.) He (Mr. Chamber- lain) believed that this policy which had been pursued, mistakenly no doubt, with so much carnestaiess by many misguided people was neither more nor less than an imposture, and that the only safe and tenable principle) to which they ought to adhere was to take the control of this particular trade into public hands, and deal with it in such a way that all idea of private property and personal gain should be eliminated from it. It stood to reason, if we were going to acquire this pro- PHiy, we must pay a fair price to the pub- lican, the same kind of compensation that was now paid if a house was taken for a public im- provement. BISHOP OF CHESTER MISREPRE- SENTED. The Bishop of Chester telegraphs as follows to the Press Association:—A paragraph circulated by the United Kingdom Alliance Press Agency on October 9 states that a leaflet emanating from the association formed by the Duke of Westminster, Mr. Chamberlain, and the Bishop of Chester has* seriously and designedly perverted Mr. Gladstone's letter to Lord Thring, calmly repeating that the ex-Prime Minister regards Local Option as an imposture." This statement is absolutely baseless. No leaflet published by the associa- tion has contained a single word of comment on Mr. Gladstone's letter.

LATE MISS OLIVE TALBOT. An Impressive Funeral Ceremony at Margam A obey. The concluding portion of the Burial Service ever the remains of the late M.i-8 Oiive Talbot was read at Margam Abbey Church at noon on Thursday- The sacred edifice was tilled prior to the commencement of the service with a sympathetic congregation. The choir and clergy, together with the Bishop of Llandatf, marched in procession from the vestry up the aisle of the church, the organist l iaving the "Dead MarchD in "Saul." After the choir, the clergy, and the bishop had taken up their positions in the chancel, thu hymn, "Let Saints on Earth in Concert iMng, &c., was very feelingly sung. The Burial Ser- vice was then proceeded with. The Rev. D. \V. Jenkins (rector of Oxwich) read an lmpres-ftv-e lesson from Corinthians. Another hyi.'n, "Pleasant are Thy Courts Above was next sung, after which the coffin was taken to its last resting-place—the family vault—where already the remains of the late Mr. C. 11. 1M. Talbot, M.l\, his wife, Lady Charlotte Talbot, Mr. Theodore M. Talbot, and three other relatives have been laid. Whilst the coffin was being removed from the choir to the vault the choir sang a Psalm to a plaintive chant. After the corpse had been laid to rest the Bishop of Llandaff read the collect commuting the hl;dy to the grave. The remaining portion uf the solemn ceremony was read by the vicar of Margam (the Rev. Z. P. Williamson). A hymn, "For Ever with the Lord." was next sung, and his lordship pronounced the Bene- diction. after which the choir and clergv re- formed into procession and vassed down the aisle of the church into the vestry. Mr. H. Seat on playing the solo (from "Elijah,'), "The Lord is Mindful of His Own." The following, amongst many others, sent wreaths :—Mies Talbot, with the touch- ing words, "From her Sister Emilv"; Mrs. Fletcher. Mr. and Mrs. Leightun, Miss Gwladys Fletcher, Lady Emily Hankev, the Countess of Stanhope, Mrs. Leighton Lord and Lady Swansea, a large wreath from the eight Churches i" the Parish of Llangynwvd, th1* Rev. T. and Mrs. Melville Jones (Pyle), st-rvr.r ts of 3, Cavendi-ih-terrace, London; officials and members of the Margam Institute, MJSS Holton. Lady Margaret Charteris. Mr. and Mrs. J. Muir, Mr. and Mrs. D. R. David, Mr. and Mrs. Seaton, the Rev. Z. P. and Mrs. Williamson, Mr. M. A. Wade, Mr. and Mrs. Preston, Cecil and Alice (Lady Char- teris's children), Mrs. Stecrfall, Miss Ealev, "FordDanimer," Miss Ethel Holton. Mr. Theodore Seaton, servants of Penrice Castle, &.c. Aniongsct the mourners present were Mjss Talbot (Margam Park), the Misses Evelyn, Kathleen, Gwladys, Ella, and Mary Fletcher (nieces of Miss Talbot), Mr. Fletcher, of Saltoun (brother-vlaw), Cantain Meaking (10th Tiussars), Mr. f-ayton. Sir J. T. D. Llewelyn (Swansea!, Colonel Franklen. Mr. T. M. Franklen. Mr- >T. Nicholl (Merthyr Mawr), Mr. William Llewellyn, and Count CcJman a^.d we noticed the following, amonp-^t otheis. who were! in the church:- Mr. Edward Knox, Mr. ,T. Muir, Mr. J. Ftltfiu, Colonel Wright- Mr. Benjamin Daniel, the Revs. C. R. Knight, Stephen Jiirkscn (Lla.ngy.'Hvyd), and Stephen Nicholl (1,lan- dnvgh), Major D. R. David (Rromhilll, Mr. .1. M. Smith (Aberavon), Mr..T. Preston (Taibnoh), and Mr. R. L. Merrendei; (Port Taibot).

PROPERTY EXCHANGE. RHONDDA VALLEY. On Wednesday evening at the Bailey's Assem- bly-room Mr. Thomas Lewis, auctioneer, Bnglan-cliambers, Penfcre, conducted a sale of 41 cottages situated at Gelly, Ton Pentre. the property of Mrs. James, late of the Bailey'a Hotel. The biddings were exceedingly brisk, and the lots were sold as follows :—Gelly-road Three houses, Mr .Hugh Rees, £ 445; five houses, Mr. T. Harris, grocer, Ystrad, £537 10s.; five houses, Mr. John Dalies. Maindy-road. Ton, £485; five houses, Mr. Hugh R^es, overman, £520; five lieuses, Mr. Jenkin Davies, Ton, £500; five houses, Mr. A. Beynon, £ 495; five houses, Mr. G. H. Smith, Bailey's Estate Office, £500; four houses, Mr. Jenkin Davies, Ton, £464, Four houses in Brickyard-row, Ystrad, Rhondda. sold to Mr. T. Harris, grocer, Ystrad, for £300. Total amount realised, £4,254 10s. The solicitors for the vendor were Messrs. Grover and Grorer, Pontypridd.

At Newport County-court on Thursday Ibe- fore Judge Owen) Thomas Meek, pig dealer and innkeeper, Rogerstone, claimed £5 5s. as damages from Mrs- Mary Williams, St. Bride's. Mr. W. L. Moore appeared for plaintiff, and Mr. Frank Lewis represented defendant.—The case for plaintiff was that in August last he agreed to purchase from defendant .1 litter of ten pigs, at £1 each, and paid 5s. on account, lie agreed to fetch the pigs away nine or ten weeks later, but at the expiration of the time Mis. Williams refused to let lwm have them.— Evidence was given to show that during the ten weeks the pigs had increased in va111e £5, and the claim was for this amount and the 5s. depo- sit.—Mrs. Williams contended that plaintiff agreed to fetch the pigs away when they were eight weeks old, and she had incurred extra cost in keeping them ten weeks.—His Honour gave judgment for £2 15s. (including 5s. paid Juto court) and cost*

Welsh Wit and Wisdom, II) GOSSIP AND CHATTER OF GWALIA, Paragraphs of Persons and P.'aces of Interest to all Who Sojourn in the Principality. Treorky made a profit of £200 on its recent eisteddfod. What's that? No, sir; Treorky is only a few miles from Pontypridd. In his early days Sir John Astley went to a school near Chepstow, and he often spoke in uncomplimentary terms of the master. O,yen Glyndwr, it is said, was a noted Italian scholar and a friend of Dante. Glyndwr rendered into Welsh the poems of Petrarch. It is said that no one in this wide world has such transcendant capacity for mispronouncing Welsh words as Mr. Abel Thomas, Q.C., M.P. The date of the induction of the new rector of Canton has not yet been definitely fixed. It may take place in the middle of this month or the beginning of next. Since its advent to Aberavon the "Celt" haf made a bold departure in journalism. Under the heading "Editorial Notes it publishes a sermon five columns long'. Mr. Marchant Williams says that the reason Mr. Abel Thomas does not consort with the Cymru Fyddites is that "lie sees through them, and that for him suffices." On the last day of July there were relieved in Wales 6,170 indoor and 48,541 outdoor paupers, total 54,711 paupers. The total for the same day of last year was 54,159. The new Balfour Constitutional Club at' Haverfordwest will be opened before very long, and efforts are being made to get Mr. Balfour himself to take the principal part in the opening. In a moment of weakness a Neath man pro- mised his wife that he would abstain from all strong drinks, except during sickness. It is a remarkable thing tliat that man has never been well ever since. A WTelsh curate read out his own banns last Sunday week, and he says the experience v as so terribly awful that he declares that !If he ever getsi married again he will get his banns published at the Parish Church by the vicar. At a recent Swansea dinner the chairman was reminded by his left-hand supporter tc say "grace before meat." He turned round and opened his eyes in consternation. "Say grace?' he ejaculated; "why, it's only a lun- cheon Freemasons who want a record of what took place at the recent installation of Lord Liang-attock at Cardiff can have fourteen pagea of it in this month's "Craftsman." The por- traits, of which there are many, are very good ones, and the get-up is beyond reproach. ° Such names as those of Charles KLr.gsley, Tom Taylor, and the author of Tom Brown s S< liooldays ara entered in the visitors' book at Penygwryd. Charles Kingslev's last recorded visit was in 1873, when he was accom- panied by Dean Howson and some members, of his family. Welsh turnips are safe. A Bridgend cor- respondent says that the farmers i» his dis- trict are perfectly satisfied with Wednesday's rain. They wanted it, and so did the turnips, which were becoming mildewed and required washing. The downpour will avoid their utter destruction. Mr. Daniel Jenkins, of Canton, has given, "Morien" a hard hit under the belt. "Morien" endeavours to pass for a gay young spark of 37, and here is Mr. Jenkins saying he knows the archdruid has been writing Welsh for at least 40 years! That "at least" suggests another fifteen. W he, Sir Edward Reed made las first bow to the electors of the Pembroke Borought there was :i, manifest difference of opiniot among them as to whether he was a Libera/ or the other thing. So says Mr. Marchant Williams in his new book, and we only wanfc to add that the doubt still exillts in a mag- nified degree in Cardiff- When the Parliamentary representation of Cardiff was mentioned at a recent meeting or the Splott Liberals a prominent politician wanted to know who waa member for Cardiff "We hear so much of Mr. Maclean," said he. "and so little of Sir Edward Reed, that. I really begin to think that Mr. Maclean is «n r man." And so he is, if you bide a wee. A correspondent asks if it isn't about time for lay-aigerats and local preachers to 9> Trades Union. At a Nonconformist mee^B|f a few days ago the suggestion was considered of raising the salaries of two ministers respectively JB15 and £10, and paying a sum of £20 a year* for a lay-agent. The latter outlay may seem extravagant at first, but you can't get a really' first-class lay-preacher and pastor much undee eight shillings a. week. A dear old gentleman was speaking to a. young lady at a. down-line town the other even-> ing, and, noting her freshness and good looks, he said, "Ah, my dear Miss Jones, may you long retain them. Yours is a happy period of life. You know nothing yet of the jealousies, the heartburnings, the contentions, the rival- ries that beset the rough pathway of exis- tence." "Oh, don't T, though," she inter- rupted, "I belong to our chapel choir, sir." A member of the Cardiganshire Standing Joint Committee complained at the meeting on Thursday that the room in which the petty sessions were held at Penrhiwpal, near Newcanrt.le-Emlyn, had direct communication with the publio-house adjoining. Another member pooh-poohed the matter, and sa.id, "Why, we hold the main roads oommittee in a publio-house." "That accounts for the numerous resolutions to widen the roads, said another, and someone remarked that he hit the nail on the head. A Welshman, who is now minister to at Nonconformist congregation in London, announced from his pulpit that he had arranged, to give a ballad concert in the hall behind the chapel. There was a rumpus at the next meet- ing of the deacons, and the minister came in for a warm time. When things cooled down it was found that one deacon had confused ballad with ballet, and that music-haJl singer* in tights had been engaged, while another dear- con, who knew the right word. found in the dictionary that ballad was a. low song sung in the streets. As a child, Madame Adelina Patti is said to have been very wayward and hot-tempered. Whenever she could not have her own way by any other means (says "CasselVs Saturday Journal") she would threaten she would not sing, and her demand was then conceded. Patti never went to school, but was excellently taught at home, and at a very early age could speak English, French, and Italian perfectly. In New York the child is remembered by several persons as having often sung in the garden, the children in the gardens of the neighbouring houses forming an appreciative audience. It is a marvel the borough engineer of Car- diff doesn't strike. When a subject beconw a nuisance to any committee, the members refer it to the borough engineer io report upon and then to make a plan. Yesterday the canal bridge came up again, and when the member* had talked themselves out they asked the en- gireer to report on the matter. Tn the mildesfc manner possible Air. Harpur said he "had re- ported on the matter" last June, and had nothing to add! We don't mind betting an apple that in a month, when the committee will haTe forgotten enough about the canal bridge to take up the subject again, they wiU once more ask Mr. Harpur to make a repot# on it. The scene of the curious accident near Mer- thyr, where the ground opened and swallowed up a valuable horse, is not far from a spot that figured extensively years ago in coal working— Cwmglo—and between it and that pJaoe numerous levels abound, some of which hav# bCPIl re-opened of late. and found to yield large quantities of good coal. For a honey- combed district accidents have been remarkatny rare, thanks to the care shown by timers ia fencing off openings. Upon the Do'ais Hill,; in the direction of Rhvmney, there have beat more casualties, and one of these has been; brought to mind by the recent accident. A tinman, who was also an umbrella-mender, crossing the mountain in the dark, suddenly disappeared, and nothing except his hat wna ever found of him. He waa, known to have been on the way to cross the mountain, and is supposed to have fallen down one of the ni t«. J