The South Wales Star

SALE OF WORK AT BARRY DOCK. On Tuesday and Wednesday a successful sale of work was held at the Nursing Institute, Barry Dock. Many kind friends interested in the institute have been busy for several weeks past in making a considerable quantity of artistic knick- knacks, and the more useful garments for chil- dren, whilst fruit and vegetables have poured in in abundance the last few days from generous- hearted friends. The sale of work was opened on Tuesday by General Lee, the attendance at the opening ceremony not being very large. At later periods of the day, however, and on the following opening ceremony not being very large. At later periods of the day, however, and on the following day, large numbers attended. Amongst those pre- sent were — Major-General and Miss Lee, Mrs. Jenner. Wenvoe Castle Mr. and Mrs. Nell, Wenvoe: Miss Alexander, Bryneithin; ^ev. Mr. Usher, the Misses Edwards, the Misses Allen, the Misses Small, Mr. Sprent and party, &c. The front room downstairs had been arranged as a fruit and vegetable market, the stalls around being crowded with a fine show of autumn fruits and vegetables. Nurse Griffiths and Miss Jones showing considerable expertness as sellers. In the room behind was a tea and refreshment-stall, the domestics of the institute looking after the table with an assiduity which did them great credit. In the large room upstairs was arranged the large selection of fancy needlework articles of vertu, linen garments, toys, &c. Mrs. Robinson had charge of this department, and strenuous and successful were her efforts to obtain purchasers from the spectators. At one end of the room was stationed Mr. Morgan, harpist, of Barry Dock, with his harp, and at intervals during the sale he played selections of harp music. At the other end of the room Master Jack Robinson did a roaring trade as the presiding genius over a bran well. Far behind in the baek regions, shrouded in mys- tery, sat Professor Allen, professor of phrenology and palmistry, who for a modest sum felt bumps and inspected palms with an aÍI of wisdom which caused a feeling of awe to arise in the hearts of those to whom he imparted ideas of their capa- cities and fates. The Superintendent and Nurse Evans walked round and rendered all the assistance they could, and the arrangements for the sale were of a most excellent description. We sincerely hope that the funds of this most excellent and deserving institution will be largely benefited by the sale. The institution has done, and is doing, an extensive but quiet work, and supplying a long- felt want in the district, and subscriptions could hardly be given to a more deserving object than the funds of the institution.

Births, Carriages, Deaths., BIRTHS. WILLIAMS.—On the 2nd inst., at Vere-street, the wife of Mr. Williams (manager of Messrs. Oliver's boot establishment), of a daughter. HEAI-Y.-On the 27th ult., at 42, Regent-street, the wife of Mr. Wm. Heely, of a. son. FORD.—On the 3rd inst., at 14, Merthyr-street, Barry Dock, the wife of Mr. Robert Ford, of a daughter. DEATH. POWELL.—On the 30th ult., at 74, Morel-street, Barry Dock, Humphrey England, son of Mr. J. Humphrey Powell, coal merchant, aged 15 weeks.

THE DISMISSAL OF RAILWAY OFFICIALS. Thursday morning one of our representatives had interviews with Mr. Henry Davies and Mr. Alf. Hobbs, who were dismissed from the employ of the Barry Company a short time since. Mr. Harry Davies stated that up to the present, nothing had been heard from the general manager (Mr. Evans) in response to the letter which was sent by the chairman of the Sunday meeting. Mr. Davies em- phatically denies the statement contained in a report published in our contemporary's last issue of an interview with Mr. Hobbs. He also wonders at the prominence given to Hobbs' statement, after the very exhaustive enquiry held at the meeting on Sunday. Hobbs also states that he has heard nothing from the manager, and at present he is working with his father. On Sunday last a private meeting of railway employes was held at the Barry Hotel to consider the case. It is understood that it was decided to try to secure Mr. Davies're-instatement. The chairman (Mr. Nicholas) was instructed to write to the general manager, but no reply has yet been re- ceived. Mr. Davies' fellow-Trades' Unionists, it is said, are also prepared to agitate in his favour. This is all the information that we are as yet at liberty to publish.

THE WORLD'S GOSSIP. if There is only one Queen in Europe who pre- serves the national costume of her country in her own toilet. This is the Queen of Italy, who wears the red petticoat, sleeveless corsage, white muslin chemisette, coming up high in the neck, and the short black jacket with which the pictures of Italian peasantry have familiarised the world. Only in her headgear does her Ma j estv deviate from the national rule of dress. Instead of the handkerchief knotted about the head, she wears an ordinary veil. She appears in this pretty costume on all occasions during her holiday season in the Italian Alps, and on Sundays she may be seen in it kneel- ing on the floor of the little church at Gressoney, hardly distinguishable from her humbler sisters, It is curious how many of the reigning monarchs of the world are,in more senses than one, strong men. The Czar heads the list. Alexander of all the Russians is literally a Royal Samson. His Imperial Majesty's favourite feat is to bend a silver coin in Mis fingers but he has been known to lift one of the Imperial Guard, over six feet in height, and fully accoutred with metal helmet and brass plate, with one hand, without any difficulty. The King of Italy is also possessed of a fair share of muscle: and in his younger days the King of Greece was very fond of displaying his skill in the peformance of feats of strength. The Kaiser is said to have sent a formal request to the Queen, through his mother, the Empress Frederick, to stand god-mother to his little daughter. He has also expressed a strong desire that his grandmother should pay a visit to Berlin in order to be able to stand sponsor to the little one. Leo XIII. who will celebrate his episcopal jubilee this month, has made a very excellent successor to Pius IX. He has satisfied Catholics of all grades by his uncompromising attitude towards the Italian Government, while he has very wisely allowed the much debated question of the personal infallibility of the Pope to drop into oblivion. He has always shown the utmost interest in the branch of the Roman Church in England, and has exhibited the utmost care for the ancient rights in connection with the Papacy. The Pope is, per- haps, the most frugal eater and simple liver among the potentates of Europe. Although £ 20,000 a year is devoted to the payment of his household expenses, including his table, private servants, and other personal and domestic matters, the actual cost of his living never exceeds £ 2 10s. per week. At this rate two or three of the Imperial banquets on which the temporal sovereigns of Europe are wont to indulge would last His Holiness about five years. The Lord Mayor elect, Alderman Stuart Knill, was born at Camber'.veil sixty-eight years ago, and was educated first at Blackheath Proprietary was educated first at Blackheath Proprietary School, and afterwards at the University of Bonn, where he graduated. He is now head of the firm of Messrs. John Knill and Co., wharfingers and warehouse-keepers. Alderman Stuart Knill is, all the world now knows, a Roman Catholic. In politics he is a conservative. He is a member of several of the City companies, and, despite the scheming and plotting which there has been to de- prive him of the chief civic honour, he has always been held in the highest respect among his fellow- citizens. Intellectually he is superior to many of the City Fathers, and he will bring to the duties of the office to which he succeeds in November qualities which have not always distinguished his predecessors. Alderman Knill is a large employer of riverside labour. The clever volume, Gossip of the Century." contains the true account of the one woman who was ever admitted into the secret-s of Freemasonry. The lady in question was the only daughter of Lord Doneraile, and she herself told the tale to her grandson, Colonel Alcock Stoweil, so that this version may be regarded as authentic. Hitherto the place of her concealment has been given as either a clock case or an organ loft. As a matter of fact, it was neither, for she found herself—by accident—shut in a small inner room divided only by a door (which happened to be open) from the apartment in her father's castle where the lodge was being held. In endeavouring to. make her escape unnoticed she was captured by a mysterious person called a "tiler." and brought before the Lodge for judgment. It was at her father's sug- gestion, and to save complications, that she was initiated into further mysteries, and sworn. Probably many people have often wondered what becomes of the numerous presents of which Mr. Gladstone has been the rcceipicnt in his sixty years of public life. A glance around the walls of the entrance hall at Ha warden Castle will, to a certain extent, give the information required. Mr. Gladstone's favourite recreation of felling trees is responsible for the array of presentation axes which line the wall on either side. There you see them, big axes and little ones, of all shapes And kins, quite sufficient to stock a fair-sized iron- monger's establishment. A number of caskets of various woods, containing addresses and parch- ments representing the freedoms of the cities and towns which have been conferred upon him are place in a long row upon a shelf. One is put to a useful purpose, as a hall letter-box. The most imposing casket of all was presented to him by his American admirers. It is of silver, and stands two feet high. On the top is a bust of Mr. Gladstone himself, with a laurel wreath round his 'neck. and on the balle is a figure of Erin, clad in a star-spangled mantle.

THEFT OF GOODS AT BARRY DOCK. THE CONSEQUENCES OF A i HOLIDAY. Peter Page, seaman, was charged by John Donovan, boarding house-keeper, of 27, Station- street, Barry Dock, with stealing from him on the 27th September three shirts, a sailor's bag, eight pawn tickets, two gold pins, opera glass, a clock, boy's suit of clothes, rug, a fiddle, and other things. Prosecutor said prisoner came to live with him last Saturday fortnight. Prosecutor went away from home last Saturday week and came back on the Monday, but found prisoner and his bag gone. Everything was then all right, and he and his wife then went to Cardiff until the follow- ing Wednesday evening. When they returned they found a pane of glass in the back kitchen broken, and a lot of his and his wife's things gone. He communicated with the police, and told a friend of prisoner's to tell him to come down and see him. The next morning prisoner cam-a down and asked him what he wanted of him. Prosecutor asked him about the clock, and prisoner replied, They are all right." Prosecutor told him he had better go to the police-station with him. When there he gave him in charge for stealing the things, and he made no reply. He estimated the value of the goods at £5.-Joseph Bumford, 28, Station-street, Barry Dock, labourer, said that he saw the defendant and a lad outside the house on the evening of the 27th September, at about 7.30, when witness had left work. Prisoner told him that Mr. Donovan hadn't come home from Cardiff, and had given him nothing to eat. He had given him some money to keep him, and he (prisoner) had been obliged to take some things to sell to get some food. The back-door was open. When he saw him he had a large sailor's bag on his back, and a. little lad, Richard Mahoney, was carrying a bundle on his head.-Richard Mahoney, 12 years of age, said he lived with his step-mother at 10, Gueret-street, Barry Dock. On the 27th Sept. he met defendant at the top of Gueret-street about 7 o'clock. He asked him to come to some house with him. He went with him to 27, Station- street. Prisoner got into the house through the back window, a pane of which was broken. He came out and gave him (witness) two rugs and a quilt. Prisoner afterwards brought out a big bag. When they had gone some way prisoner took away his parcel and sent him home.—Questioned by the Bench, prosecutor denied that he owed prisoner any money, on the contrary, he had lent prisoner a sovereign.—Prisoner, at this stage of the business, was taken ill, and was taken from the court for a short time, and on. returning the Bench informed prisoner that he would be remanded for a week.

ST. NICHOLAS PETTY SESSION. WEDNESDAY.—^Before Mr. Tudor Crawshay (in the chair), General Lee, and Mr. Valentine Trayes. APPLICATION.—Mr. William Thomas, Trehame Arms, St. Lythans, applied for an occasional licence on the occasion of a ploughing match on the 13th at St. Lythans.—Granted.—An extra hour was also granted to Mr. Thomas on the occasion of the annual ploughing match dinner. DRUNK.—William Jenkins, St. Athans, was charged with being drunk in the parish of Bonvil- stone, on the 27th September.—PoIice-constaMs Charles Lane proved the case. and defendant was fined 5s. and costs. NONPAYMENT OF RATES. — James Russell, printer, of Cardiff, was summoned by the overseers of St. Nicholas for rates amounting to £ 2 10s. Owing to an informality on the part of the assistant overseer, the Bench could only make an order tor £1 Is. 8d., which they accordingly did. DAMAGING FENCES.—Thomas Bye and George Beaver, of Cadoxton, were charged with damaging a fence near the Goldsland Wood on the Wenvoe Estate to the extent of Is. on the 4th September.— Police-constable Peacock and the steward, Mr. Evans, gave evidence, and the Bench fined de- fendants Is. 6d. including costs, and the damage Is.

BARRY RAILWAY.-TRAFFIC RECEIPTS. Week ending 1st October, 1892 £ 6,147. Accountant's Office, Barry Dock, 5th October. 1892.

ROUND THE TOWNS. [BY MR. GAD-ABOUT.] "v The rateable value of the Barry district is £ 96,000. Six new members to the Hibernia Benefit Society have been enrolled at Penmark. ■Y The Wolf Tone branch of the I.N.L. was re- formed on Sunday last at Cardiff. 3 It is said that there will be 1,500 names on the next School Board register of voters. Mr. T. Ellis, M.P., who is now enjoying a holiday in the Tyrol, will visit Barry in December. # Round the Town," a magnificent bailee, was produced at the Empire, London, last week. Mr. Jeremiah Driscoll has a tale to tell. There's an assault and a mark that wasn't seen in it. Jk One of the local Churchwardens has lately expressed his belief in the existence of a God. An insurance company is being formed in Lon- don which will pay its premiums upon the births of twins. Church and State at Cadoxton, Two policemen in uniform attended the Cadoxton Parish Church on Sunday night. The Local Board on Tuesday was regularly on the jaw. and Mr. Jewel Williams, therefore, found himself in his element. # # li Don't put too much on the shoulders of willing hands," said the chairman of the painters' meeting on Monday night." The opening meeting of the Barry Congrega- tional Improvement Society on Wednesday even- ing was in every way a success. #, The Cowbridge and Aberthaw Railway was opened on Saturday. Three trains will be run daily on it by the Talf Vale Company. G reat surprise was evinced at the fact that Mr. Edward Phillips did not accompany the deputation that waited on the Local Board on Tuesday. Mr. Blackmore, the newly-appointed librarian, was on Friday lust appointed agent 'for Cadoxton to the Merthyr and Dowlais Building Society. I hear that there will be a good crowd of candi- dates for the Local Board at the next election, and that there will be at least four medical men among them. I hear there were lively times at the Starr-Bowkett meeting the other day. and that several of the directors and ex-directors came in for some scath- ing Mcrr. itGiceiosrmge Thomas was at great pains to de- fend himself at the Local Board meeting on Tues- day, and ended by making almost an uncondi- tional surrender. # The Sage of Barry-road was in great form at the Young Wales meeting on Tuesday night. He was evidently whetting his weapons for Friday night's encounter. Among the applicants for the post of Resident Engineer under the Barry Company is a local man who has done good work under Mr. John Robinson. I wish him luck. Mr. Lamplough spoke of the non-unionist at the painters' meeting more in sorrow than in anger. I work against him," said Mr. Lamplough, in his own interest." Jp And this is fame A weekly contemporary calls Mr. Keir Hardie the M.P. for Mid-Lanark. Since when has the member for West Ham succeeded Mr. Wynl'ord Phillips Last week a staunch Nonconformist, Mr. John Cory, opened a Church Mission Hall at Barry Dock. What it is to have a broad-minded Christian like Canon Allen as vicar of a parish The Rev. Hugh Jones made a curious slip in his lecture on Wednesday night, when he said that the Welsh martyr, John Penry, had been burned. As a matter of fact. Penry was hanged. p The Joneses and the Williamses had a high old time of it on Wednesday night. At a meeting held at Barry Dock there were five speakers. Two were Williamses and three were Joneses. If an insect were crawling over me," said a z, speaker at the painters' meeting, "I would, without remorse, put my foot on it and crush it." But suppose it was crawling on his nose ? The Young Wales party are determined to show that they are fit to have a Gas and Water Home Rule Bill granted to them, for they displayed remarkable grasp of the subject at the last debate. # General Lee said that by acting as they did with regard to the flushing question, the members were stultifying themselves, which is, being inter- preted, making. fools of themselves. And so say I. Mr. Lamplough paid a high compliment to the loeal press on Monday night. Never, he said, had the Trades' Union been so well served by the press as it had been at Barry during the late painters' strike. There are 175 names on the register of the Roman Catholic School at Barry Dock, as against 120 about five months ago. Still the average attendance at the Board Schools last month was 82 per cent. A correspondent writes :—It is a pleasing duty to glaziers to think that the inhabibants of one street of the district study their best interests by window smashing—viz., the Little dears of Holme-street. • Which is right ? should the 11 Local Board be used as a plural, or singular, noun ? The clerk of the School Board in his recent letter to the Local Board, says it is a plural, but others say it is a singular, body. Let's go in here, ma," said a little boy to his mother at Cadoxton station, pointing to a carriage reserved for trimmers." No, dear," was the gentle reply, That's reserved for the members of the Local Board." # Quite an improvement is noticeable in the T.V.R. train running between Cadoxton and Car- diff. The whole of the coaches have been over- hauled and re-seated, and now present a. very neat and comfortable appearance. There are six brothers employed as trimmers at the Dock. The lightest of them is over 13 stone in weight, while their father only scaled nine stone. They inherit their physique from their mother, who was well-known in old Cadoxton. The Trades Council collecting-box has been re- turned from the Ship Hotel with only one penny in it! All the members of the Council wonder I whether it was one or two gentlemen who contri- buted towards this sum, as it was made up of two half-pennies. Mr. Alfred Jackson, solicitor, is to be married next week to a Llanelly lady. and will take up his residence at Romilly-road, Barry. I am glad to see Mr. Jackson setting such a good example to his brethren of the quill, and I wish him every joy and prosperity. The Rev. Hugh Jones, of Liverpool, who has been addressing crowded audiences at Barry Dock on Wednesday and Thursday, is a native of Bangor, and shares with the Rev. John Evans, Eglwysbach, the distinction of being the best preacher among the Welsh Wesleyans. ::fie Mr. William Thomas de Barri thoroughly enjoyed himself at the Local Board on Tuesday. He never said so little at any meeting of the Board before, but he egged on the combatants with infinite zest, and when the fun began to flag, he discreetly fanned the expiring flame. I regret exceedingly to hear that Mr. W. E. Da vies is leaving Cadoxtou. Mr. Davies has been prominently connected with several social institu- tions whilst he has been in the district. I hope he will have every success in the high calling to which he ia about to devote himself. At the meeting of the Local Board on Tuesday a specimen of the tree-guards which will be used on Holton-road was exhibited. One of the officials of the Board suggested that a violent member of the Board should be confined in it but the only use it was put to was by Mr. Barstow, who hung his hat on it. # General Lee found the task of cycling from Dinas Powis to St. Nicholas on Tuesday a rather warm one. Ah," said another magistrate present, with inward satisfaction, as he gazed on the veteran's perspiring countenance, "I am very pleased I rode over. Riding is much more com- fortable than cycling." A son of the Rev. Hugh Jones was a contem- porary of Mr. Llewellyn Williams, Aelybryn, at Oxford. Mr. J. Arthur Jones was the" arch- sonedydd of the Dafydd ap Gwilym Society, took a third class in classical moderations, and a third class in the final school of modern history, and is now the sub-editor of the Bristol Mercury. Mr. William Thomas, of Sully, only spoke once at the Local Board meeting, and that was to ex- plain that a weighing scale was dearer than a steelyard.—Other members would do well if they did likewise, and confined their remarks to that which they understand. Only, I am afraid, some of them wouldn't be able to speak at all in that case. I am sorry to hear that" good old Doctor Gore is about to leave us in December. It is pleasant to know, however, that he is leaving because lie has had an excellent medical appointment at Chester. We shall all miss the pleasant face and cheery manner of Dr. Gore. and everbody will wish him and Mrs. Gore long life and happiness in their new sphere. Cadoxton on Saturday night last became almost a counter-part of the Promised Land. The contents of a large milk-can was upset on the station platform; and if the milk had only con- tained half as much honey as it did of the liquid wherein the trout do sport," the thing would have been complete, and Cadoxton would be I literally flowing with milk and honey. A short time ago it was reported that Archdeacon Howell had been consulted by Mr. Gladstone as to the provisions of the Welsh Disestablishment Bill by the present Government. Archdeacon Howell lately gave this report an emphatic denial. I now hear on excellent authority that the prominent I ecclesiastic who was consulted by Mr. Gladstone is the Rev. E. Hughes, M.A., the rector of Bar- mouth. I should very much like to hear of the proposed complimentary banquet to Mr. W. M. Douglas on the occasion of his departure from this district to Penarth come to a definite issue. If some kind gentleman would at once broach the subject by convening a meeting, he would. I am sure, receive the most hearty support and co-operation of the many friends and admirers of the above-named gentleman. This is Morien's" definition of the art magic," with which Owen Glyndwr drove back the "vile politician, Bolingbroke" :—"The art magic," says Morien, in Saturday's Western Mail, was in the blood of the descendants of the pioneers of Europe, namely, the Royal Welsh-the Cimbri of Plutarch, whose march, he states, was like that of a devouring flame." It is satisfactory to know that the art magic still survives in the blood of the Seer of Treforest. One of the old inhabitants of Cadoxton had never seen a bath. A few days ago one was put up in a house in the Old Village, and the old lady was given permission to use it to see what it was like. After making careful preparations, the old lady entered the bathroom and shut the door. Presently, however, screams and gurgies and gasps were heard in the bathroom the door was burst open and the old lady was rescued in a half-drowned condition. She says now she will only wash in a tub. s i This is how a Cardiff contemporary speaks of the result of the Revising Barrister's visit to Llan- trisant:—" The Liberal gain on the day was eight votes, and this was arrived at by agreement by the Liberal and Conservative agents, and so obtained by the former in consequence of the ridiculous statement that there had been a Conservative gain at Bridgend." Even the dullest must see the superb beauty of this syllogism. The Liberal gain of eight votes was arrived at" by agree- ment, but obtained" in consequence of the ridiculous statement that there had been a Con- servative gain at Bridgend." What may be the exact shade of difference between arrived at" and obtained," and why Liberals gained at Llan- trisant because the Tories made a ridiculous statement" at Bridgend, is, however, entirely be- yond me.

For seven years I suffered from Asthma, tried all known remedies, and LEWIS'S PECTORAL BALSAM is the best of all.—Is. I id. per bottle.

for the general body of Ratepayers when he is only speaking for a section of them. Mr. William Thomas, of Barry, kept a discreet and linusual silence. Mr. Jewel Williams resorted to a quibble. He was glad, he said, that among his sins was not that of being a '-large property- owner." We never accused him of such a thing. We said that he was largely interested in house property in the district. This we said on the authority of Mr. Seward, Mr. George Thomas' partner, who declared on oath at the Barry Dock Licensing Sessions, that Mr. Jewel Williams was a member of the Barry Dock Town Syndicate, of which Mr. George Thomas is managing director. UNFAIR CRITICISM. In his criticism of us, Mr. George Thomas acted unfairly in quoting promiscuously from two separate articles that have lately appeared in our columns, without informing the Board of the fact. After quoting our article on the enforcement of the bye-law, he passed on in a -way that speaks more for his astuteness than for his sense of fairness, to an article which our contributor, Darius Dare," bad lately written. Mr. Thomas objected to the phrase that certain members of the Board sub- ordinated the good of the district to their own selfish interests. The context in which this phrase was used by Darius Dare was quite different from that to which Mr. Thomas sought to apply it. It had not the remotest connection with the question then under dis- cussion. 'Mr. Thomas waxed very indignant that such an aspersion had been thrown on the immaculate Local Board. It was disgraceful," he said, that such a charge should have been made." If the charge is not true, then, indeed, it is disgraceful that it should have been made. But we have no less an authority than Mr. George Thomas himself -who has made the disgraceful charge more than once at meetings of the Board-for saying that some of the members are inclined to subordinate the good of the district to their own selfish interests." THE BOAKD'S DECISION. We do not look upon the possession of pro- perty, either in houses or in docks, as a crime I and we leave it to Mr. Jewel Williams to call it a sin. But we consider it a crime that the health of a great and growing distriat .should be sacrificed at the bidding of property-fomnere. We are sorry that the Board should have once more shown signs* of that fatal vacillation, which has more than once brought it into diffi- culties. We would be the last to advise the Board to resort to harsh or arbitrary methods but, as General Lee and Dr. Treharne well remarked, the Health Committee could have taken into consideration individual cases where it would be advisable not to proceed at once, without passing a resolution which has the effect of putting the Board entirely in the wrong, and of stultifying the Board's bye-law. There are many property-owners in the district -and several wealthy syndicates who can afford to proceed at once with the work of com- plying with the Board's bye-law, while others who are not in a position to do so could be ex- ,ceptionally treated, and allowed some time. However, the mischief is now done, and we only trust that next spring the Board will see that this, its very last resolution, shall be faithfully carried out. THE PROPOSED ACQUISITION OF GAS AND WATER. The Local Board has, as was previously announced, decided to promote a Bill in Parlia- ment to acquire the undertaking of the Gas and Water Company. Before it can, however, do this it must first of all obtain the consent of the ratepayers, and in order to obtain that con- sent a public meeting will be held to-night -(Friday) at the Public-hall, Thompson-street, Barry Dock, where the ratepayers will have an opportunity to make their voices heard, and their opinions respected. The Local Board is practically unanimous in the desire to buy up the company. The Chairman, who was at one time opposed to the scheme, has now, it is un- derstood, decided to support it. The Board, however, has no wish to proceed arbitrarily in the matter. Powers to promote a Bill in Parlia- ment are only sought for in case the amicable advances which have been made by the Board ^are rejected by the company. Even in that case, the Board wishes to deal fairly with the company. It is willing to give the company every credit for what it has done, and to buy up the undertaking only on fair and equitable terms." WHAT HAS BEEN DONE ELSEWHERE. The tendency of modern legislation is to put a stop to the acquisition of articles so necessary to our daily life as gas and water by private -monopolists. It is seldom that Parliament has been known to refuse to allow the local authority to acquire gas and water. All over the kingdom the local authorities of great towns have acquired them and except in one or two instances, the action of Parliament has been fully justified by the success which has attended the management of gas and water by the autho- rities. If the ratepayers, therefore, determine to back up the Local Board in this matter, it is practically certain that the Board will acquire the undertaking of the Gas and Water Com- pany. At present the company makes a profit of about 5 per cent. on the capital, while we believe the directors draw a salary besides. If the Board can manage the business as efficiently as the company, it is contended that the profit will be reaped, not by a private company, but by the ratepayers at large. That a Local Board can manage such a business efficiently has been effectually proved in other towns and there is no reason to believe that the members of our Local Board are worse business men or less efficient administrators than the members of the local authorities elsewhere. THE CASE OF CARDIFF. At Cardiff the water and gas are owned by the Corporation, and the gas rate is much lower ,than it is at Barry. Of course, Barry is a newer town than Cardiff but there seems to be no immediate prospect of a reduction in our heavy gas rate. The capital of the company is well nigh exhausted, and last year the company sought Parliamentary powers to increase their borrowing powers. Had the company succeeded in passing their Bill, there would be no hope for a reduction in the gas rate, and every prospect of a speedy increase. The water, also, that is supplied is not as good as it might be. It is so full of lime that it is very destructive to machinery and no great industry will ever be started in the district till we are supplied with better water. The company, in the Bill they promoted last year, proposed to give to the dis- trict an additional supply of the bad water that is already supplied. There would, therefore, be no chance for many years to come to get, better water, unless the Local Board itself undertakes to supply it. We trust, therefore, that the ratepayers will awake to their responsi- bility in the matter, and attend the meeting to- night to strengthen the hands of their represen- tatives. THE PAINTERS' MEETING. The painters of Cadoxton and Barry held a very successful meeting on Monday night at the Witchill Hotel, and excellent speeches were delivered by Messrs. Thomas, Lamplough, Howells, and Copp. The meeting was called more to keep intact the organisation of the society than for any other purpose. "Thrice armed is he that hath his quarrel just said the poet. The irreverent American humourist has improved on this, and says that Still better he that gets his blow in fust." It is in times of peace that preparations for war should be made, not so much for the purpose of war, but in order to ensure the continuance of peace. The Painters' Society owes a debt to the Executive which cannot easily be repaid. The Executive stood loyally by them during the late strike and it would be. as was pointed out, most ungrateful on the men's part to desert the society now There is no doubt that the existence of a Trades' Union does tend to raise and to maintain the price of labour. It is therefore unfair that men should refip the benefits which have been sown by Trades' Unionism without paying for its support. We trust, therefore, that the local society will have a prosperous future. THE STARR-BOWKETT. We have lately been hearing a good deal—and a great deal too much—of the mysteries of Building Society Finance. The alarms and ex- cursions of the past few weeks, have, we fear, carried misery and desolation into many a humble home. The winding up of the local branch of the Starr-Bowkett Society will not hit any one very hard, but it will serve to point a moral. We have no wish to blame anyone in particular: but it must be evident that no society ought to have been allowed to drag on its rotten existence for so long a period as the Starr-Bowkett has done. It shows how iniquitous, nay, how criminal, it is for men to undertake the work of managing a society or a business, when they cannot afford the time and energy necessary for efficient management. The directors of the Starr-Bowkett seem to have adopted a policy of drift, until at last affairs have been brought to a point where nothing can be done to save the society. The most gross instance of this carelessness was the way in which they allowed their secretary's security to lapse, and their failure to get it renewed. Had the society been properly managed, there seems to be no reason to doubt that, with the large number of shareholders, it would have been a prosperous concern.