The London Welshman

Notes from South Wales. (From our Special Correspondent.) The Broken Reed. Mr. Joseph Chamberlain was supposed to hold the world's record for quick change per- formances, but it looks as if Sir E. J. Reed has broken all previous records, and the member for Cardiff can now be classified as the premier political quick change artiste of modern times. To quote the report of the Cardiff Liberal Associa- tion :—" At the end of November, Sir Edward said, I have been a Liberal all my life; I am a Liberal still. How could I go back upon my whole life?' Yet, on March 8th, 1905, he accepted the invitation of the Conservatives and Unionists to become their candidate, thus coming into the forefront as an antagonist of Cardiff Liberals, fighting against thousands who for many years have been his loyal supporters; and he has even gone so far as, whilst the chosen repre- sentative of Cardiff Liberals, to vote with the apology for the Government. Roman Catholics and Welsh. Whatever criticisms may be levelled at the Roman Catholics they have shown a commend- able attitude towards the Welsh language at any rate. The Roman Catholic Bishop of Minevia (which includes the whole of Wales, barring Glamorganshire) has issued his pastorals in both Welsh and English, and several of the young Breton priests who have been stationed in North Wales within recent years, have mastered Welsh so well that one of them was able to carry on a correspondence in a Welsh vernacular newspaper, with a local critic. And now comes the further news that the Pope himself has Personally expressed satisfaction that Welsh is an obligatory subject for all candidates for the priesthood at the new Roman Catholic College at Holywell." A Magnificent Steamer. During a visit to Cardiff Docks the other day I had the pleasure of seeing Messrs. W. J. Tatem and Company's magnificent new steamer, "Wellington." She is the largest Cardiff owned boat, and, probably, the largest registered at any Welsh port, having a carrying capacity of 9jOoo tons. The "Wellington" has since sailed for Venice, this being her maiden voyage, with a cargo of Welsh coal. The Welsh Capital. I quite agree with Sir John Williams, that the Welsh National Library ought to be located in Aberystwyth, but when Sir John says that "in So far as he could now see, no other place than London could be the capital of Wales, and he believed that Welshmen desired no other capital," he can depend upon it that he does not voice the sentiments of the majority of Welshmen. ^lr John is a Unionist in politics, and one can quite understand why he does not wish Wales to have a capital of her own. But we do certainly Want a capital, and it is pretty generally under- stood that the town which secures the Welsh National Library will be looked upon as the capital of Wales in future. And having secured a capital every true Welshman will subsequently at the establishment of a Welsh National Council, to sit in that capital and settle all questions relating to Wales.

EVAN ROBERTS' STRANGE MESSAGE. Mr. Evan Roberts addressed two large meet- ings in Liverpool on Tuesday. In the afternoon he was at the Grove-street Welsh Congregational Church at a meeting for ladies, and as a result of his appeal for a greater manifestation of the missionary spirit, three ladies declared their readiness to undertake mission work at home or abroad. The evening meeting was held at Mount Zion Welsh Wesleyan Chapel, which was packed, and 2,000 persons remained outside, although over- flow meetings were held in three other places of worship close by. A sensation was caused by Mr. Roberts declaring that he had a message to deliver that night direct from God. He made several attempts to make the announcement, but was overcome by emotion. The message he had to deliver was with regard to the Free Church of the Welsh. The foundation of the Church was not on the Rock. He had felt the tension of the message throughout the day. He would rather not have said it, but it had to be said by someone. The Rev. John Williams disclaimed having influenced the missioner, and said he thought the dawn of better times had arrived.

LONDON WELSH CONSERVATIVE ASSOCIATION. Colonel the Hon. C. E. Edwards presided at the monthly meeting of the London Welsh Conservative and Unionist Association on Monday. The subject of discussion was Trades Unions," upon which a paper was read by Mr. W. F. Pennant. In the course of his remarks Mr. Pennant said that it had been urged that workmen should settle their disputes by direct negotiation with the masters. It was forgotten, however, that that was not always possible, as the employers so often took the form of limited liability companies. If the State allowed a com- bination of capitalists it should also permit a combination of the workmen, but these Trades Unions must take their place under the law. It was not fair that they should be beyond the reach of the law. In the course of a discussion that followed, several speakers advocated compulsory audit or examination of Trades Union accounts for the purpose of preventing fraud.

The Children's Column. My DEAR NIECES AND NEPHEWS, It seems to me that some of you have not quite understood what I told you a fortnight ago about the Welsh idiom clywed. I did not say, nor did I mean that you should say in English "I hear it cold," nor "I hear myself ill either; but I did mean, and I do mean still, that when you speak or write about those things in Welsh, if you desire to do so correctly, you should use clywed and not teimlo. Teimlo in such a connection is a mere adaptation of the English idiom, and the way in which ignorant teachers have misled young Welshmen as to what is idiomatic Welsh and what is not is deplorable. Let me give you one good rule that will help you to acquire correct knowledge of Welsh idiom— Watch how Welsh people talk. The spoken language cf people who talk natur- ally is always idiomatic, their written language is not very often. I am glad so many of you take interest in these notes on language, and if t, ZD there be any questions you wish to give send them on, and your Wncwl" will endeavour to answer them. But let them be sensible questions. These are the answers to the questions given you on April 1st :— 1. Numerical Charade :— Afon. Hef. .*■ Aaron. Cor. Caernarfon. 2. A Welsh Diamond- ■- G ■■ DWG GWAETH GEM TH 3. "John a ddywedodd "—" It was John that said." Dywedodd John "—" John said The first phrase emphasises the fact that it was John and not somebody else who said what was said. The second emphasises what John said. Never use the first form unless there is a danger of it not being clear who said something. In repeating or recording a statement made by another person, always use the second form. I know that it is a risky thing to criticise even the language of the holy Welsh Bible, but such phrases as Job a atebodd ac a ddywedodd" are not correct. The proper form would have been, Atebodd Job a dywedodd." The prize this week goes to Dewi. Now for a new set of questions i. Translate the following into idiomatic English Beth fedri di wneyd 1 Fedri di wneyd clawdd ? Mi ges i ngwneyd gan yr hen Shon; Mae Evan wedi ei gwneyd hi heddyw Mae nhzv'n gwneyd ffordd haiarn i Lanfair Sut y mae gwneyd y sum yma ? 2. Give a list of as many Welsh interjections as you can. 3. Numerical charade :— My 1, 5, 8, is destruction. My 4, 2, 10, 7, 6, is wonder. My 1, 9, 6, 3, is attached to a handle. My 2, 4, 6, 3, is a craving. My whole, composed of 10 letters, is the name of a lake in Wales. Send your answers, by Thursday, addressed to Wncwl Huw," c/o. the LONDON WELSH- MAN, 45, St. Martin's Lane, W.C.