The London Welshman

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Football Chat. [By PEL DROED.] Last Saturday's Matches. — Saturday was another day of surprises. Penarth, after decisively beating Newport on the previous Saturday, "went under" to Penygraig, the Rhondda team. Llanelly, who gave Cardiff such a hard game on the previous Saturday, were easily beaten by Treherbert-another Rhondda club. Swansea just scraped through in the match with Devonport Albion a draw would have been the truest criterion of the merits of the two sides. Cardiff, playing against Newport, gave their best performance of the season and won a great victory. A feature of the game was the smart play of the Cardiff captain-Percy Bush. To-day's Matches.-To day (Saturday) the most important fixture in Wales is the one between the Cardiff and Swansea teams. In the first meeting of the season between the sides at Cardiff, last month, the Cardiffians won well, but the Swanseaites state they are determined to turn the tables to-day at St. Helen's. It will be a match worth seeing, and a 20,000 "gate is confidently anticipated. If Cardiff play as well as they did last Saturday, they ought to win but, unfortunately, their play is not con- sistent. Newport, who are playing Bristol, ought to just manage to win. The Trial Match.—The trial match at Cardiff on Monday, Probables v. Possibles, was a very unsatisfactory one. Several of the players selected to take part were absent, and so dis- satisfied were the selection committee, that a second trial match has been arranged for on December 2nd, after which the Welsh team to play New Zealand on December 16th, will be definitely selected. The spectator:; of Monday's match are agreed on one point at any rate, viz., that J. F. Williams, Harding, and J. C. Jenkins, all of the London Welsh, were in good form, and the selection of J. F. Williams and Harding to play in the Welsh team is practically assured. The football critic of one of the South Wales daily papers wrote: J. F. Williams was the best forward on the field." And as one who witnessed the match I thoroughly concur. Willie Llewellyn, last season's captain of the Welsh International team, is playing far below his usual form this season, and although Gwyn Nicholls, of Cardiff, has been a splendid player in his time, it would be a doubtful policy to play him against New Zealand. R. T. Gabe (Cardiff), and Pritchard (Newport), two of last year's Internationals, are as clever as they ever were, but Winfield (Cardiff) has quite his equal in Dyke (Penarth), last year's International reserve full-back. The London Welsh. Except perhaps the London Welsh, there is no club pack in town to equal that which the Blackheath committee can place in the field." So writes a well known football critic in one of the leading London dailies. A Wise Policy.-r notice that the Park Hatch Football Club, at Godalming, has passed the following resolution That this club never request a subscription from any Member of Parliament or candidate for Parliamentary honours, considering that it would only tend to embarrass them or their constituents." With the spirit of that resolution, I, for one, heartily agree. The N.Z's.—The New Zealanders are still going strong, but although they succeeded in vanquishing Scotland, it was only after a titanic struggle. They had to go all the way, and the Highlanders proved themselves to be the toughest nut that the All Blacks have had to crack up to the present.

The Barry Railway Company are about to seek powers to take over the working of the Brecon and Merthyr Railway. The agreement between the two companies was signed last Friday afternoon, after a prolonged conference in London between the directors of the two companies. The Barry Company will not purchase the line outright, but lease it for a long term of years. Adjoining lines have sought alliance with the Brecon and Merthyr Company, but the balance of advantage lay with the Barry, and, finally, almost at the eleventh hour, the Brecon and Merthyr directors accepted the terms offered, although they held out for a long while for a much higher rental. Sir Alfred Thomas, chairman of the Welsh Parliamentary Party, addressing his constituents at Pontypridd on Friday, referred to the attack made upon him by the Rev. Thomas Law, secretary of the National Free Church Council, for advocating secular education as a solution of the education difficulty. He would take an early opportunity to reply at length to other criticisms, but he considered that Mr. Law should show at least some little elementary knowledge of the Welsh position before Wales could accept him as its prophet. The circumstances indicated that the sooner Wales established a federation of Free Churches for Wales and Monmouthshire independent of England the better. MERIONETH. The experiment made at Bala and Corwen Show of entrusting the refreshments to the Temperance Association proved a financial success, and the same course will be pursued in the future. The death took place on Monday morning, at his residence, Dolwelynllyn, Ganllwyd, Dolgelley, of Mr. C. R. Williams, at the age of 94. Mr. Williams, who was chairman' of the governors of Dolgelley Intermediate School for many years, took great interest in all educational matters throughout the country. For over 40 years he was the chief supporter of the Church school at Ganllwyd, and when the Education Act was passed Mr. Williams handed over the school to the Merioneth County Council, and in addition pre- sented them with a plot of land on which to erect a new building. His care for the poor and his generosity towards every good cause, whether Church or Chapel, were proverbial. Mr. Williams was a Conservative, but for many years he had taken no active part in politics. The difference between the Rector of Corwen (the Rev. D. Griffith) and the local Board of Guardians, with regard to the latter's demand for fees for burying non-parishioner paupers in the graveyard, was again mentioned at the guardians' meeting on Monday. A deputation waited upon the reverend gentleman, but, according to their own report, were treated contemptuously, and there was nothing agreed upon. The rector asks for a fee of five shillings for each pauper buried, whether a parishioner or not. The guardians on Monday refused to pay this, but decided to give the paupers who attended the funerals a penny each to put in the offertory for the clergyman's benefit. If the latter refused permission for non-parishioners to be buried in the graveyard, the master was empowered to send the bodies to their own parishes for burial. The guardians also emphasised the necessity of a public burial ground for the district. MONMOUTH. The Rev. H. Elwyn Thomas, who has been pastor of the Victoria Road Congregational Church, Newport, for the past ten years, has received a unanimous call to Norwood, the largest Congrega- tional Church in Liverpool. Norwood's last minister was the Rev. Thomas Yates, who recently went to London to succeed the Rev. Sylvester Home. Twice refused an exemption certificate from vaccination by the Newport County Bench on the ground that he did not produce a doctor's certificate showing that vaccination would be injurious to his child's health, a Cross Keys assistant schoolmaster wrote to the Home Secretary complaining that the magistrates were using the Act to give vent to their personal bias. He pleaded that the magistrates had no right to demand such certificate, and in reply Mr. Akers-Douglas stated that the matter would be inquired into. The magistrates were asked by the Home Secretary for their grounds of refusal, but evidently the justices have been reminded of their duties, for when a third appli- cation was made for an exemption certificate it was readily granted. MONTGOMERY. The oldest woman elector in Wales is Mrs. Elizabeth Davies, of Trewern, near Welshpool. She is 97 years of age, and exercised her right to vote at the Municipal election on the 1st of November.