Llais Llafur

PONTARDAWE POLICE COURT I On Friday, before Messrs. H. N. Miers (presiding); Si. Jenkins. H. J. Powell, E G. Benthall, J. G. Harries, and J, H. P. Lloyd. The permanent transfer of the Old Swan Hotel, Ystalyfera, and the Birch grove Inn, Biirchgrove, were granted. John Daniel was charged with keep- ing a shop open after 8 p.m. for the uule of swoets. P.C. Jones said that on the night of the 16th of last month he entered defendant's .<hop at 8.4o, and saw do- fendant's daughter serving a girl with two ounce's of sweets. The girl said "ler father and mother were out, and she did not know it was so late. A fine of Li was inflicted, and the ivoman cautioned. Rees Lewis, Birchgrove, WM chairged ? it.h being drunk and disorderly on .h?e 3st of last* month. P.O H.3? proved the c<?e. The wtf? of the man appeared, a?d a. &HQ of 15s. was in- flicted. COAL MINES OFFENCE. Morgan Jones, DI. Wm. Bees, John Jmes Jones, and Benjamin James, were summoned for offences under the Coal Minss Regulation Act. Mr W. Kenshole. Aberdare, was for the prosecution, and Mr T. J. Randall, Swansea, for the defence. Mr W. Kenshole in opening the case for the defence said' that the men were all colliers, and employed at the New Cwmgorse colliery- The •nine was one in which safety lamps wo used. The men were charged under a section of the Coal Mines' Regulation Act. James and J. J- Jones were summoned for being in ;.1, part of the min-c otherwi-io than the part in which tliey worked. Rees had two summoness against him, one for being in a part of the mine, other than Oi part authorised, and the other for lighting a fuse. Morgan Jones was summoned for, failing to bring ex- plosives out of the mine at the end of the shift, or too hand them over to a man in his place at the end of the shift. Mr Kensliole said that on the 6th of January, an explosion of powder occurred early in the morning in Mor- gan Jones' working place, end by the explosion the four men were severely hurned about.the hands and face. On fchn, management going into the work- ing place to subsequently investigate, four reels of powder were found con- oe^led in Morgan Jones' stall under the goh, a.nd under a clod, and it was in respect to this that Jones was summoned for failing to bring the explosive out of the mine. Jones was supplied with Gibs, of powder, and a fuse on January 3rd, and on January 5th he brought the empty can out. It was th, same can with 51bs. of power and fuse as that on, the morn- ing of the explosion. Mr Kenshole added that on further inquiries being made it transpired from statements made by the men, tha.t the defendant Rees had cut a piece of fuse, lit it, and threw it aside. It ignited some loose powder, and the can of 51be. of powder was also blown up, and the men were injured as stated. The manager of the mine, Mr Mor- gan Williams, said that the explosion itself was reported to him, and as a result he made arrangements to have the men attended o, and went into the mine with a. party. He bore out his advocate's statement. Witness later visited Morgan Jones' house, and was told by Jones that the four men were sitting at the mouth of the stall, and he was one of the four. Rees cut a piece of fuse and lit it. for a test, I' as he had had a mis-shot the previous day. The accident then happened as stated. John James Jones' working place was about 15 yards awav from Morgan Jones' place, and he had no right to be there at the place of the aeeddent. John James Jones told him he did not know anything aJhout what had occurred, but he was certain it was caused by gun powder. The two men told similar stories. Rees had no right to test the fuse underground. If he had had a mis-fire the day be- fore, he should have asked for an- other piece of fuse, and he would have had it without any further charge- The can and some spent fuse were found nea.r the place of the ex- plosion, The throe men had no right in Morgan Jones, place. Witness said :he had later examined Rees' place, and found no trace of a mis-fire. Men were not encouraged to stand in groups, as they were more open to danger from runaway trams, etc. Crass-examined, witness admitted that Rees was conveying a imessage to Jones asking him to go out to drive for the day. The mine was a naked light one a few years ago, and the mine wa eyen now satfer than 'it was then ,but gas could be rdleased with- out the knowled ge of the men. It was customary for the men to be to- gether in groups before starting work, but it was not allowed. The explosion happened near the entrance of the stalll. J. Griffiths, overman, gave evidence as to finding the men at the stall, and corrborated the ma.nager's evidence. He arrived at the stall soon after the explosion, but the men were then being attended to by others. The Test that t,he men were taking was a habit that was winked at. The men were not encouraged to take long rests. Wm. William, fireman at the col- liery, said he heard of the aooi,dent I a.t about 7.40. The men were three or four yards in- Two were lying on the ground, &nd other two sta.airg on their feet. He "? spoke to find- ing powder, aaid the boxes of powder. One of the boxes had been blown up, and th other was untouched. Cross-examined, witness said he was fetched by a Morgan Rees, and lie was about five minutes' walk from the scene of the accident. He was a first aid man. and it was quite proper to take the men into a byeway or sjall from the fresh air in the main It might be possible that man hearing of the aiccident would run to tile. scene with powder in hi6 hand, and put it down to assist the men. Mr Randall: Did you ever take a spell as a collier ?-- Y es, sir. Mr Randall: At the Cwmgorse col- Eery p- Y ee sir. Mr Randall: Why did you rest then? Witness: Ob, tired, I suppose, air. Mr Miers: Rather early in tho day to be tired. (Laughter). Witness in further cross-examination l said that it was a custom to rest, be- fore starting work. Rees had no right to test a fuse in the other man's stall. It was quite usual for a ,man to assist a fellow workman in a neighbour ing stall. Some of the powder was found under the olod. Wm. Hy. Kingdom, storekeeper, produced his a-ocount Showing when Morgan Jones had had powder. Men were in the haibit of borrowing powder from neighbours. The can was brought out empty on the Friday evening. He wa.s not awtre of the fact that Jones had bad to borrow powder on the Friday. Mr Randall, in opening for the de- fence asked that if their worships found the men guilty, they should not inflict a heavy penalty, as the men had suffered severe paiin, and lost work in consequence of the explosion. Mr Randall said that the fact that Jones had borrowed powder made it ridiculous to suggest that he should have left powder underground. The man had brought his can out on the Friday night, and would hardly have left his powder underground without a cover. It was quite feasible that the powder in the can, and the quan- tity under the clod 'had been conveyed there by one of the men who had ruehed to assist the others. He sub- mitted that so far as Rees was con- cerned, it was the danger from gas that was anticipated when the mine was converted into a safety light mine, and not from powder. If the mine was a n-nked light one, smoking would be permitted, aind the danger of powder Mould still be present. On the admis- sion of the witness, there was no danger of gas. So far as the ca.se I against the men for being in an authorised place, Mr Randall submit- ted there was no case to answer. One of the men was there consullti.ng with Jones as they were working towards oach other through the cowl. An- other man carrying an official message. Mr Randall further s;\Jid that regarding the practice of taking a rest, the men were entitled to have their spells provided they were not of too long duration. The overman had tried to say that he had never bioken a rule, and he asked their worships to believe hi-n so far as the rest was concerned. Mr Miers: We are asked to believe a lot of things that we can't swallow. (Laugh tc r). Continuing, Mr Randall sa.id tha,t fuse was tested by the igniter by ltees, and it was quitt proper, as the men had authority to fire thcCr own holes. Jones had placed his can in its usual position. Jones had left no powder in the mine the night be- fore. Had the ot her powder been in the stall, it would have caught fire. Defendants bore out their advocate's Rees, and it was quit proper, as the tin was slack, and it might have -fallen off in putting it down. The fuse caught some loose powder in the side. The air was going in to the working place, and the flame would he carried forward. He had stopped at the entrance of his road. Cross-examined, defendant admitted that he had never seen loose powder on the road. He WlMentitled to 51b s. of powder a. day, if he wanted it. D. W. Rees sa:id he had gone to his stall by the lower road, 'and con- veyed a message to Jones. So far as gas was concerned, the 'mine had been reported free., He had tested the fuse and it had caught some loose powder, The men had been accustomed to take spells,, genrally together. He had not been warned against the prae tico, and he had never heard of a prosecution for resting a.t the com- mencement of their work. Cross-examined, witness said men often tested their fuses underground. He had taken his fuse home to dry it. He was at the entrance of the stall when the accident happened. I Benjamin Jones said he had been a collier for about twenty years. He j had gone to Morgan Jones* stall he- cause the roof in his ox-n stall was cracking. He had lent powder to Morgan Jones on the previous day. Cross-examined, witness said lie had hung his coat up on the road, as his stall was not in far enough. Morgan Jones' clothes had caught fire, but were extinguished. The powder box was between hiniseirf and Rees. John Jas. Joses, said he was the first to get to Morgan Jones stan. i He had gone the lower road, and tihey met together at road. He 1-.sA bad 51bs. of powder that morning, but that did not go off. The first thing ho saw was a flame filling the place. He ran out to get away from t, fire. The other men's lamps had been blown out, but he was supplied with an electric lamp, as lie suffered on account of his eyes. All the men said that they took spells. Cross-examined, witness said they ware aill on the rooo. a.bout two yards in. The bench inflicted a fine of a in ) the oaSe of Morgan Jones for not taking powder out, and P,5 in the ease of D. W. Rees for lighting a fuse. The other charges of being out of their places were dismissed. Time was allowed in which to pay the fines. Mr Miers said that he hoped that the management would make a mote of the fact that one of the witnesses had said that it was usual to test fuses underground, and take steps to prevent its continuance. Mr Kenshole: We will see to that, si'3". MILK CASES. Oliver Evans, Ystalyfera, was charged with selling milk which was certified to contain twelve parts of added water. Mr Morgan Davit-s was for the defence. Inspector David gave. evidence of purchasing milk for analysis from de- fendant's wife. W Mr Morgan Davies submitted the fact that there was snow on the ground on that morning, amd that had affected the yield. The Inspector should have given the defendant the chance to explain the deficiency, thereby infringing the Board of Agriculture Orders. The man had been summoned three weeks before on a simdlar charge, when the case was dismissed. It was presumptious for the analyst to say that the water was added, as there was 80 per cent. of wa-ter in milk already. Mr Davies demonstrated the fact that morning milk was be-low the standard of even- ing milk. The farm was the highest in Alltygrug, and the recent severe weather partly aocountd for tne de- ficiency. Evidence was given to the effect that th milk was purchased from an- other farm, and that no water was added. Mrs. Thomas, wife of the farmer, who had supplied the milk, said that no water had been added. A fine of £ l was inflicted. Thoma.s Jones, Alltygrug farm, Ystalyfera, was also charged on a similar offence on February 19th. The certificate showed that there was 23 per cent. deficiency in butter fat. In- spector David proved, the case, and Mr Morgan Davies defended. This de- fenda-nt had not been warned. The Tnilk was only in a small can for one ) house. Defendant had been prosecu- 1 ted four yea-rs ago, and had sa;d then that he would not sell more nrjk. but had now done so for this one customer. Mr Davies showed that the millk was only decanal 7 short. The case took or; a complex feature, and it was dismissed. Supt. Letheren said in future the analyst should per- sonally attend the Court. Mr Miers thought the n.'iik should be examined fresh from the cows. G.W.R. THEPP CA.SE. Thomas Jone-s was charged with I stealing doors, etc., from a cottage owned by the G.W.R. Co. The tenant last autumn left- the house in good condition, but new the house was a, wreck, as it ha.d been ransacked. De- fendant had been employed by an- other man to erect a shanty, and this material had been stolen by defend- ant, so it wa« alleged, for hUIMing. Mr Rupert Lewis was for the prosecution, and Mr Morgan Davies for the defence. Mrs. Ann Evans, former resident at the cottage at Rhvdyfro, said she -I -fx- k e d left the house iii Sept., 1916, locked, and in good condition. The goods she had seen ii-ei-c sot similar to those at Ynisboten. The shod was removed by defendant. Edgar Francis, collier boy, of j Rhydyfro, said he saw defendant a.bout two 'months ago, carrying a ^late-coloured door and planks from, the direction of Ynis boton. The door and planks produced were not similar to those he saw with Jones. Inspector David said that on March 12th, in consequence of in- formation received, lie found the cot- tage in question a. wreck. In com- pany with P.C. Jones lie visited the wooden shop at Rhydyfro, and inter- viewed the tenant Phillips. He took possession of the doors and windows. The windows and doors, produced, fitted the house a.t Ynisboten. Cross-examined, the Inspector ad- mitted that one of the Iiihges, pro- duced, was on the door three weeks ago. Joseph Huxtable, chief clerk at tho G. W.R. Neath, said he found Ynis- boten cottage badly damaged. The shed was removed on or before Sept. 29th. W. Henry Morris, a detective in- spector employed by the G.W.R. said that ho had risiited the house with Inspector David, and found that the window, produced, fitted. P.C. Jones also gave evidence to the effect that the prqperty valued at about L5, had been missing from the house for some months. He arrested the defendant, who said, he did not know anything about 'it, he had made a door for the shanty. Mr Davies submitted that there was no case to answer, and it was dis- missed for lack of evidence. Mr Davies asked for a certificate of dis- missal, but it was pointed out that the man had not been charged. STOLE MONEY. FROM HIS FATHER W. J. Skidmore, son of Eli Skid- more, Quarr road, Pontardawe, was charged with stealing about £10 from his parents' home on March 28th. Defendant's mother said that on March 28th she saw that the money was safe. Inspector David called in the evening, and in consequence of what he told her, she went upstairs, .and found the money missing. The boy was about the house all day. P.C. Roach, Morris ton, said be-re- ceived information from Inspector David, and arrested prisoner at Morriston. He charged the boy, and he replied, "I took the money from the drawer in my mother's bedroom. He searched the boy, and found £ 0 in notes, and ten shillings in silver on him. The boy wasaPrested in a. 'bus going to Swansea. The boy elected to be dealt with summarily, and pleaded guilty. He said he was 22 years of age. and had a deformed a-rm. He was worried be- cause he could not get work, and wanted to join the Army. Tho mother said he had been troublesome. but had not taken money before. Tho boy was not quite sound. He was placed under the supervis- ion of the probation officer, ancT was bound over. Tunbridge Wells licensed victuallers have decided to buy no more beer from the brewers unless they sell it. at a price which will enable the public- ans to retail it at 4d. and 6d. a pint. Mr Leonard Llewellvn, Deputy Direotor-Generai of Munitions, and formerly general manager of the Cambrian Combine Colliery, has been invited to become Conservative can- didate for Monimoutih Boroughs.

JOHNSTON For NEW VEGETABLE AND FLOWER SEEDS FLORAL DESIGNS AND EVERYTHING FOR THE GARDEN. ALEXANDER JOHNSTON. 227 OXFORD ST, SWANSEA Telephone: 567 Central NOTE CHANGE OF ADDRESS. DAVID REES JONES, F.T.S.C., (Organist of Bethlehem Chapel, A'bercrave) Teacher of Pianoforte, Singing, Harmony, Counterpoint and Theory of Music. ANWYLFAN, ABERCRAVE. M10— W. A. WILLIAMS, Phrenologist, can be consulted daily at the Victoria Arcade (near the Market), Swansea.