The Cambrian

I FINANCIAL NOTES. The Directors of the Mazawattee Tea Co., Ltd., have declared a Dividend for the six i months ended June 21st at the rate of b per cent. per annum on the Cumulative Prefer- ence Shares.

GOLD FROM NEW SOUTH WALES. At the West End Branch Office of the Orient Royal Mail Line. 28, Cockspur-street, the New South Wales Government are showing a striking collection of Colonial photographs. There is also shown a fine lump of quartz from the Temora district, containing fine gold of the value of £ 1.250.

MEETING OF THE MONARCHS. KING ENTRAINS FOB MARIENBAD. (Reuter's Foreign Special.) Kronberg, Thursday.—Accompanied by the German Emperor, King Edward left Friedrichshof at 9.30 this morning for the station, where, after farewells and conver- sation, he entrained for Marienbad.

HON. 0D0. VIVIAN'S BRIDI-ELECT HON. WINIFRED HAMILTON'S VISIT I TO SWANSEA. Lady Holm Patrick, together with her daughter, the Hon. Winifred Hamilton, who is engaged to the Hon. Odo Vivian, are ex- pected to arrive at Swansea on Friday, on a &bort visit to "Glanrafon," Sketty, Mr. Odo Vivian's residence. The visitors will probably leave on Mon- day.

Mr. T. D. Jones, organist of St. David's Church, Morris ton, has been asked, and has kindly consented, to open the new organ at the Uransamiet Parish Church on August ,,0.

Cambrian. FRIDAY, AUGUST 17, 1906. NOTES ON MEN & THINGS The subject of a recent Swansea inquest had not, it was credibly stated, slept for 56 nignts prior to death. Our irreverent contemporary "John Bull" says "The Rhymney Choir sang the Na- tional Anthem in Welsh before the King. His Majesty is progressing favourably." Never better, in fact, Mr. Bottomley. One of the most beautiful items given by the Grenadier Guards' Band at the Mum- bias on Sunday was the "Cujus Animam, from Rossini's "Stabat Mater," the trom- bone soloist being Musician William Jones, who is a native of Gwaun-cae-Gurwen. Count Tolstoy, according to the Vicar of Aberpergwm, doesn't know of the existence of the Eisteddfod. His ignorance is not quite on a par with that of the professor of eoclesaastacad history in a certain college in Wales, who onoe asked a. student who Jones, of LkwxJdowrw, was. Now that Dr. GoodaJl is about to leave Carmarthen for Cardiff there will be a. keen fignt for the medical snperirrtendentsiiip of the asylum. It is probable that several un- successful candidates for the Cardiff post will figure in the voting, but as a. know- ledge of Welsh is looked upon as indis- pensable in West Wales, the chances (says a Cardiff contemporary) of Dr. Lloyd Jones, of Cohiey Haftch, who will probably be a oaaadidate, are considered rosy. Charles Dickens, in a speech which he made in 1865, alluded to a visit by him to Exeter, when he reported Lord John Russell in such a pelting rain, that two good- natured colleagues held a handkerchief over his notebook "after the manner of a state canopy in an ecclesiastical procession." The ineidtent has recently been the subject of a controversy in an Exeter newspaper, in the course of which the fact was elicited that one of the good-natured colleagues was the late Mr. Thomas Latimer, the father of Dr. H. A. Latimer, Swansea. Lady Brynmor Jones, who was Miss Florence Cohen, and the first cousin of the late Lady Rosebery, has been of the greatest assistance to her husband in his political career. At the time of her marriage to the county court judge she was a beautiful young widow with two children, her first husband having been Mr. A. Mocotta, a. member of the famous financial house of that name. Lady Brynmor Jones is a woman of wide interests and culture. She is one of the best miniature paintera in society, and her beautiful house, which occupies the top corner of Bryanston- square, contains many delightful examples of her skill. Sir David and Lady Brynanar Janes give delightful dinner-parties at the House of Commons, and the latter, together with her pretty daugbt-er-a. twentieth century debutante-is generally to be seen in the Ladtes* Gallery during important debates. What seems on the face of it to be an example of misguided zeal is reported from Gorseinon. Open air services have been conducted by the chapels of that place since the revival" and ore minister is alleged to have gone up to a travelling auctioneer and accoeted him in a most objectionably aggres- sive manner, whilst last Sunday an amateur missioner told the residents that they were going to a warm place aod that he would be a witness against them in the day of judgment. Whereupon the people of this particular locality dispersed the meeting and hustled the speaker. Incidents of this kind do not tend to enhance public respect to- wards ministers of various denomination im- plicated in them and for their own sake they would be well advised to restrain their language and their conduct within reason- able bounds. ,& Trew, the captain of the Swansea Football Club, has been interviewed upon the pros- pects of the team for the footJOOtt1 season, that in a ntocritjh's time, will be upon us. Trew does not pretend to be a r ival to "Old Moore" or "Raphael," and has ex- pressed more pious hopes than concrete opinions. No parrticfularty brilliant nf?w talent seems to be available, and the fixture list contains matches that would not be at- tractive at the best of times. It is also un- conscionably long, covering practically two- I thirds of the year. How the public are to maintain tberr interest in a season of sum inordinate length, and consisting of many games bound to prove of inferior interest, with long spells of matches away, is not explained. A short, crisp list of good eIl- I' gagements is infinitely preferable to the one at present provided. WTith socih. a prolonged season as has been arranged, it is very prob- able that we shall have good players in- jured and disabcljd in unimportant encoun- ters, just about the time wheal the reaily eerious meetings fail due, quite apart from th-9 sbalenes9 and exhaustion of players, which will bccome evident at the close. Dick Jones re-affirms that he is likely to turn out, but others do not consider that this brilliant half-back will ever play ail active part in football again. 'I Some additional interest attached to the 24th half-yearly meeting of the Port Talbot Railway and Docks Co. on Wednesday, in view of the rumours of the absorption of that concern by the G.W.R. reports which do not appear to have the slightest foundation in fact, and which may have been set on foot by interested persons, with a view to influenc- ing the stock market in their favour. The aeputy chairman., Col. Wright, was able to announce a dividend' of one per cent, on the ordinary shares, and the full dividend of four per cent. on the preference shares, whilst receipts had increased by JS5,600 and the working expenses had diminisised by some two per cent. The company, is, however, favoured by what amounts to a regula rsubsidy from Miss Talbot, who re- mitted land rent charges for the half-year, amounting to £1,719, for the benefit of the ordinary shareholdens. It was stated that during the six months 1,142,575 tons of traffic were carried ovor the railway, of which 767,125 tons of ooal and coke were shipped at the company's docks. On Wed- needay it was announced, moreover, that a steel company had been formed with a capi- tal of £ 100,000 to carry on business at the modrern steel works in existence there, which, to judge by the fact that the GloJ tester Railway Carriage and Wagon Com- pany is interested to the-extent of being abte to nominate three directors, will consist to a substantial extent of the manufacture of railway rolling stock. Evidently the gen- tlemen interested, and who include Col. Wright and Mr. W. C. Wright, and Mr. A. BaJdwin, M.P., have little trepidation regarding the competition that will be of- fered at Swansea by the branch works of Messrs. CammeJl, Laird and Co.—granting j that the latter materialise. In a Welsh weeHy, Micwing close on an eloquent appeal for the teaching of Welsh in schools is a cohnnn of "Celtic Notes" in English. Four steaiiKsre, named respectively the City of Stockholm, City of Malaga, City of Berlin, and City of Cadiz, all cleared fiwn Swansea on Tuesday. A "Kelt" man saw the following-raotice on the door of a closed grocery shop in a South Wales town the other mornings "Klosed for annuaU picknick." It is suggested tbat the Cambrian Aroh- ffiologists will investigate the history of the feud between Carmarthen, and Uanelly. It j is sufficiently ancient, and corotinly pazzling esiocgh, to merit attention. Alderman W. B. Trick, Stoke Newing- ton, who spent his youth in Neath, and who is tiie cousin of Alderman W. B. Track, J.P., of that place, has been added to the Commission of the Peace for the County of Essex. It will be remembered that Mr. Trick was instrumental in securing the an- nual visit of the Gentlemen of Essex Cricket XI. "Why does God make it rain all the time?" was the question put by a Swansea small boy as be pensively looked out of the window at the constant downpour. The worried mother explained that the rain was to help the flowers and trees and grass to grow. She collapsed under the retort, "Then why does God drop the rain on the pavements?" Richard Savage, the poet, once came to Swansea and resided for about 12 months in Barber's-court, where he wrote the tra- gedy of "Sir Thomas Overbury." Two poeti- cal epistles written at this time to Mrs. Bridget Jones, of Hanelly, and to John Powell, Esq., barrister, appeared in the "Gentleman's Magazine." Upon leaving Swansea for Bristol the poet was imprisoned for debt,, and died of gtei-fever. Here is a libel on the Welsh collier from a weekly contemporary :—lTA barge laden with ooal dust for a patent fuel factory sank off the Welsh coast, and a storm washed the coal up on the golden sands of a well-known resort. 'Dear me, where does all this coal come from?' asked a visitor, unaware of the foundering of the barge. There was a collier's excursion here yester- day,' replied an old boatman, "aod nearly all of 'em bathed Mr. Evan Roberts reappears, after months of retirement in seclusion, to be the princi- pal figure in the revival mission now being held at Llandrindod. Judging from the newspaper reports, a considerable measure of success is attending his efforts. One may seriously doubt, however, whether esneh a mission is likely to attain any enduring good conducted among the comparatively weU-to-do body of people who spend their holidays at the Welsh Spa. In any case, a repetition of the events of last year is very improbable; it is an exceedingly difficuit: task to revive the fires of a popular revival once they have been damped down. 'II Mr. Hume Buckley Roderick, who played 60 well for LlaneHy at Cardiff Park, is the eldest son of Col. Btackley Roderick—himself a famous athlete in his young days. The Colonel was one of the most dashing three- quarters who ever donned the scarlet jersey, When the ball came his way he used to tuck it under his arm and make a bee-line far the goal, which, thanks to his great speed and strength, he generally managed to reach. He also distingudshad himself net a little as a crack cyclist. As a vocal- ist, Colonel Roderick wedded himself years ago to "Tomos Tomos," a pathetic ballad without which no banquet in the tinplate town can said to be complete. .t. Dr. Mitchell, medical officer for the Gorseinon district, refuses to be drawn into any controversy with Mr. Powell, inspector for the Glamorgan County Council, whose airy disposal of the grievances of Gorseinon parents in the matter of school accommoda- tion provoked the doctor's wrath. As medical officer, Dr. Mitchell, at the last meeting of the Swansea District Council, once more exposed the utter inadequacy the school accommodation at Gorseinon, and gave chapter and verse for an indictment which the county authorities can hardly a4- ford to disregard. The inertness of the lat- ter where the health of hundreds of children is oarweraed is in strange contrast to their activity in harrassing the managers 01 the voluntary schools. If it were not for the practice into which the General Committee of the National Eisteddfod has fallen of asking the repor- ters to leave out of their reports all refer- ence to certain discussions which have taken place, the public by this time, would be compelled to realise the truth that with far too many of the local eisteddfodwyr selt stands higher than the interests of the eis- teddfod. In fact, the spirit of self-aggran- disement manifesting itself in the eagerness to push one oneself and one's friends is so conspicuous as to jeopardise the success of the eisteddfod. Persons who oould and would render substantial service have been driven into indifference by it, and when too late the discovery may be made that an aggressively expressed patriotism has not risen superior to petty personal interests. The National Eisteddfod is a v»aay respomsibie undertaking, and success is possible only by an all-round united movement commanding general sympathy. This unity of purpose cannot be obtained unless a drastic altera- tion is introduced into the spirit which governs more than one of the committees. Mr. Alf. Baldwin, the chairman of the G.W. Co., at the half-yearly meeting, held last Friday, referred to the agreement en- tered into with the R. and S.B. Railway in terms which suggested that he was satis- fied, not merely with the terms of the bar- gain, but also with the prospects generally of Swansea. By dealing with the business o; the two companies as if by dealing with one concern various economies could be effected and better dispatch ensured, es- pecially at the ooal tips, which were now all available for the use of coal carried by either oompany. Mr. Baldwin prepared the shareholders for the possibility that dur- ing the first year or two the profits of the R. adm S.B. Co. might fall short of the sum required to pay the interest guaranteed by the Great Western. This temporary lose, he suggested, would, however, be aanpliy oompemtBated for afterwards. Ao. cording to hisn the public, including the freighters, had as much reason to be satis- fied with the arrangement as the share- holders. la saying this, the chairman woe doubtless right in one regard; the knding facilities will be greatly improved by bemg under a single direction, bat the freighters are by no meara agreed that in the matter of railway rates they will gain by the elimknation of the competing factor. Judge Bryn Roberts was told by a deb- tor's wife iliat, she had three daughters. "And what is the eldest?" be asked. "Oh, she's a gel," wac the «qsw«e» "I like to tell the troth," remarked a Swansea witness. "That's not the only thing you like," remarked Mr. Viner leeder. "I don't like you." promptly replied the witness. t The oboe player in the Grenadier Guards band at the Mumbles on Saturday and Mon- day was Mr. Jas. Hacker, a former mem- ber of the Swansea. Empire orchestra, in which be adso played the oboe. Mr. Trainer, the Socialist lecturer from Leeds, has a poor opinion of Lanckwe. "1 can quite imagine anything infernal hap- pening at Landora," he told his audience on the Swansea Sands. But why? There is no carpenter or joiner in tbe ranks of the looal Independent Labour Party. If there were, he wonkl find congenial occu- pation in the "Social service" of mending the bookstand from which light and learning is distributed, for due consideration, on the Swansea SandsJ Beet thanks, Sir George, for what you've done. We Tories grateful are to you, And though the seat from us you've won, Still we must pay the praise that's due. Now had you of our corner been, The moire yoa voted, more we would Have praised you. Easily 'tis seen That things had then been as they should. Bat as you're Liberal, then the less You vote of course the less yoo gall, Our party—nac yooT cause we'd bless If you were not to vote ait alii K. Mr. John Williams, M.P., has frankly thrown in his lot with the L.R.C. It is only just to add that he never ooajceaiod his sympathy with the latter during the canvass of the Gower constituency. In this respect be occupies a very different position from either "Mabon," or Mr. Tom Richards, who are openly resisting the L-R.C., or Mr. Brace, who is discreetly silent-as to his-sen- timentB at this critical juncture in the his- tory of miners' organisations, .t. Swansea First Eleven were beaten once more on Saturday, this time by Neath. In batting, only Billings (42), Horspool (52), and Ardaeeer (13)., got into double figures; the veterans failing badly. There is this, however, to be said in extenuation of the failure, that with Bancroft, Creber, and R. H. Johnson away the side was very unre- presentative, Curiously enough, whilst Neath had three professionals engaged, Swansea, had not a single one available. Swansea side was dismissed for 127 runs whilst Neath made 155 with the loss of five wickets. Mr. William Law, the General Mamasger of the Swansea Docks, has substantial rea- son for believing tlhtat whatever hostile criticism, is directed at the management from outsi<i3, hie command's tihe confidence of the Harbour Trustees. The latter ha.ve just given convincing evidence of this by voting him an increase in salary, which in three years will place it at £1,500 a year, which is not bad pay to attach to such a position. Before Mr. Law to Swansea, fourteen years ago, his safeay was £400 a year, the Swansea position doubled this amount, and before the increase voted on Monday it was J31.200 a year; since his cottBoection with the Harbour, this trade of the latter has doubled, and presumably the work of supervision has increased in pro- portion, in importance and responsibility. It is curious how some reports get into circulation. Some weeks ago the passenger ship Normandy, in entering the Swansea, Dock Channel when the tide was low, grounded on a mud bank. The Brighton, which followed a short time later, in a sp'rit of commendable camaraderie, pulled off her rival, and both, without damage, got into their berths. On Monday a Swansea evening paper announced that for this ser- vice the proprietors of the Brighton had set up aclaim of JE2,000, and that the matter was to be fought out in the Courts. Upon inquiry at the office of the Brighton the as- scuranee was received that there was not a word of truth in the report, and this was confirmed upon reference to the proprietors of the Normandy. It is somewhat singular that before the false report was published no attempt was made to verify it. t The Band of the Grenadier Guards, the last, and in a sense the greatest of the famous bands engaged for the Mumbles Pier this summer, gave concerts on Satur- day and Sunday last. Musically, the en- terprise was eminently successful, and, the finanial results would doubtless have been of the same character, but for the bad weather which set in on Sunday afternoon. The company has been most unfortunate m regard to weather. The Grenadiers gave a brilliant programme and the instrumenta- tion was by general consent declared to have been never excelled and probably not equalled in this district before. Mr. A. Williams, the conductor, it is gratifying to know, is a Welshman, and .a native of New- port. He has attained his present position by sheer merit. A comparatively young man, he is regarded as about the most gifted musician and conductor in the Army. In this connection it is interesting to know that so highly esteemed is Mr. W. Jones, a recruit from Gwaun-cae-Gurwen, as a player, that his trombone solos aare made a dis- tinct feature of every concert. The extraordinary number of drowning .fatalities in and around Swansea during the last week has given the coroner a. good many busy ball hours. As a sequel to the drowning of the two lads, Joseph and Lewis, off the Pil3I' or. Thursday last, a blacksmith also lost his liie. He is sup- posed tf:" have gone to sleep on the sands after the search for the bodies, and to have been drowned by the tide whilst stumJber- ing. Which is almost as remarkable a as that of the disaster at Celli, in which two Ehondda men who had been mushroom picking lay down upon the: rail- way at a spot where there was little traffic, in the confident expectation that DO train would pass for several hours, a.nd were cut to pieces in their sleep. At Laugharne, two men lost their lives in a boating disas- ter, and doubtless the season ior fatalities in th-* water has now set in. The theory is advanced, by the way, that many drowning accidents which have, usually been attributed to the swimmer being seized with a sudden attack of cramp, are really attributable to the paralyzing effect of the sting of a oertain kind of jellyfish. Bathers were long acquainted with the aervare poinfulness of a meeting with this species of fish, but it is rather surprising to' find it credited with these venomous properties, and the likelihood is that the paralysing influence of tihe sting on the nrusdes of the victim rather than .the actual poison are responsible. I, >. Amongst the subscribers to the recent loan of the Swansea Harbour Trust was Princess Louise, who applied for £5,000 worth of bonds. A foreign .prince was an- other subscriber to the loan. The current "Welsh Leader" contains a history of OyBtectnoufh Castle by Mr. C. J. Evans ("Cristar1"), Cardiff. The writer ob- serves that "in eeweral parts are gioosny and narrow passages, horribly suggestive of the evil deeds associated with such appur- tenances of the strongholds of the middle ages." It is suggested €hat the wrecked Montagu, in her preset position., could be used as a target both for torpedo and gunnery prac- tice without the least danger to the inhabi- tants of the island-, Pnsnnably, it is the intention of the Admiralty to sell the stranded battleship for scrap iron. Sir DavidBrynmor Jones, who is now very much in the public eye as the Chair- man of the Royal Commission on the Lon- don Potioe, is described by "M.A.P." 138 a tall, thin, dfetrngnished looking man. He is dark, as becomes so passionately patriotic a Celt, and has whole appearance is exactly what old-fashioned people would describe as "elegant." No one can mistake the meaning of a man who says he is going to give somebody beans. Sir Alfred Jones has introduced a new significance into the act of handing a man a banana. As becomes the Banana King, Sir Alfred Jones always has a dish of ripe bananas on his desk, and when he offers one of these fruit to a visitor it is a gentle hint that the interview is at an end. Some- times the banana, is taken, but not the hint. Of Hon Odo Vivian's "intended" the "Worid" says:—She is, of course, very well known in Dublin society, and has also been out a good deal in London, "where she and her sister spent the season that has just come to and end. Mr. Odo Vivian was also in town a good deal, staying with his mother, Lady Swansea., whose four daugh- ters have all been married within the past few years; and now her only son is pre- paring to follow their example. Swatosea bench said on Wednesday in a case against a Brook-street labourer, charged with using abusive language, that they were astounded that men could use such language. If that is so, the Bench must be living in a state of Arcadian simplicity. Language of the most disgusting profanity and obscenity is very frequently heard in public, and, un- fortunately it is not confined to adults, but is often heard emanating from boys and girls of hypotbetically tender ages. Expres- sions as objectionable are indeed part of the every day vocabulary of the lower classes, and the excitement produced by a football match produces a flow of expletives, fre- quently blasphemous, which would put to the blush even that army whose chief claim to glory is that it swore terribly in Flan d-ers. A little more activity upon the part i of the police, who should be assisted by public-spirited and respectable individuals would be welcome in the suppression of this particular vice. Through the enterprise o<f the Mumbles Pier Company, Swansea people have been psr- msttod to enjoy during the season, perform- ances of music which introduced into the locality many works of composers, that would otharwisia. never have been heard ait all. The) band emgaged included the BDatck Dikes champions the 19 Hussars— the good typical, cavalry band—the RoyaJ Marines Devonport Band, an organisation of still greater merit, and a contingent of the Grenadier Guards Band (which at full strength numbers 60), under the conductor- ship of Mr. A. Williams, MTIS. Bac. The GreniadSers diispute with the Co Id streams un- dtftr Lieut. J. MacKenzie Rogan, 4ftie claim to pre-eminence amongst army band's. Cer- tainJy they aire a remarkably fine organiza- tion, challenging comparison with the re- nowned Black Dikes, and it is a very satis- factory sign that Welshmen have found their way into such exclusive and accomplished company. Tihear programiwa included selec- ,tions from Wagner's Tannhausar, Lohen- grin, the Pathetique symphony, and 1812 overture of Tschairkowsky, Grieg's Peer Gyfot suite, minor works by De-tiber, Gotuiod, Mendelssohn, Guamajit, Weber., Liszt, Elgar, and last, but foremost of all Bnathoven's First Symphony, which was performed by the Grenadier Guards on Sun- day afternoon. This, the first public performance in the neighbourhood of Swansea of one of the im-1 mortal nine works which bear to Music the' relation that Shakespearian dramas bear to Drama, is an event of far more musical im- portance than the production for the tenth or twentieth time of a Mendelssohn oratorio. Unfortunately an adequate performance of all these works is only .possible with an orch- estra 50 to 60 strong. The arrangement of these compositions for military bands proved very acoeptabble substitutes for the "real thing," however, and the various pro- grammes heard at the Pier have included nearly all the items which form the main- stay of the concerts given by such world- famous bands as the Queen's Hall Orchestra, though still of rather inferior artistic merit, due to the necessity for introducing many works designed, to appeail to popular tastes, which have not reached a very high level of education. Nevertheless, the reproach has been lifted from the town that, despite its musical pretensions, it has remained in blank ignorance of three-fourths of the music most appreciated nowadays. Developments in instrumental music in WTales will probably be in the cultivation of brass bands, of which there exist many ad- mirable organisations., deficient only in num- bers, experience, and general musical know- ledge. It has been justly remarked that in this sphere Welshmen have no inherited re- serve of skill to aid them, and that they are pioneers, with all the difficulties of the pioneers' task hindering them. There is a very perceptible difference between the best of local Welsh bands—such a combination ,as the Aberaman Band is exoepted from this —and even the 19th Hussars, who lack the ia- cilities for acquiring the finish that is possible for the Marines and the Grenadiers, with their large number of public engagements and the semi-professional status of the in- strumentalists. But there are signs al- ready that if the task is once seriously at- tacked in the future Welsh bands may be found avenging the triumphs of ^nglish choirs in Wales, and of ac.knowled.^P equal status to the fine combinations of Yorkshire, Lancashire, and the Midlands. The Aber- aman Band proved a very agreeable surprise in this respect. Such a development will also react beneficially upon the general pub- lic taste, which is atrophied for lack of hear- ing exactly such music as composed the pro- grammes of the Grenadier and Marine Bands, though it must alwjays be admitted that a turning from the chorus to the orchestra. cO- presents the most desirable reform. Losal Socialists wdxe giving an open-air lecture. "We shall ecoa have the 12th of August here," said the speaker, "when grouse shooting commences. What right harvo they to these birds? They fly wild on the moors. Why can't they be taxed for the benefit ol alli" A voice: "They are tax- ed." Socialist: "What tax do they pay?" A voice: "The gun-tax." Thus the ""Syren" of this week:—"Do the Swansea Harbour Trustees know whence the coal is coming for their new dock? is it from that 'undeveloped coalfield'? And where is the field? Does it adjoin that bit of new Great Western line at the back ot Swansea which provides a way to Port Tal- bot docks for coal raised -at the west of Swansea?" The much-travelled Vicar of Aberpesrgwm is back, fechmg tired after his hurried journey 01 8,000 mates in less than five the Volga, and was, naturally, delightful and restful. The vicar had an anxious hour on the frontier when crossing mto Austria, for he was told not to be surprised if he was sent back to Moscow (1,000 miles away) if his pa.per5 were not satisfactory. For- tunately, he got through. A Swansea gentleman who has been long identified wfth eisteddlfodau oonsadjars it evident of the change of spirit in which Welshmen approach the Na- tional Institution, that officials of the Swansea eisteddfod all expect to be paid their expenses for attending at Carnarvon next week. Whereas on the last occasion. the National Eisteddfod was here no one thought of putting forward such a claim. The pollution of our rivers by our indus- tries is, unfortunately, exceedingly common and now complaints are being revived that the Loughor river is being ruined for pis- catory uses by the poisonous chemicals dis- charged into it from tinplate and other works, which kill both the fish and their spawn. The-suggested remedy is that works should discharge their waste liquids into tanks or that it should at least undergo some purifying process. Vegetation along the banks of rivers also sneers, being brown, dead and stunted, causing the stream to re- semble the fabled styx, and there is a reluctance npon the part of the authorities responsible for the condition of our rivers to take action against influential offenders, whilst they are ready enough to prosecute poachers whose havoc is by comparison paltry. Surely it is not beyond the re- sources of science to devise some method of neutralising the deleterious influence of li- quid works refuse, if not to turn it into profitable account. The court martial into the loss of H.M.S. Montagu opened on board the Victory at Portsmouth on Wednesday, when Ca.pt. Adair a.nd Navigating-Lieutenant Dathan were placed upon their trial. The delay in holding the inquiry is unusually long, for Navy methods, and it has been considered that tine officers, whose management of the vessel previous to her stranding is being investigated, have a distinct grievance in having a charge hanging over their heads for such a period. The Admiralty wished, however, to learn definitely the fate of the warship before proceeding with the court martial. For the general public the exact circumstances of the stranding will remain enveloped in a fog as thick as the haze which overhung the waters around Lundy on t-lie fateful night, but though no very intelligible explanation oi the disaster will be afforded by a perusal of the technical details of soundings, courses, alterations of the helm and revolutions of the propeller, confidence at least will be created by the knowledge that the facts will be examined thoroughly by a competent tribunal. There is a feeling in some circles that navigation in the Navy has been rather neglected of late years, when the Admiralty has re- served its chief rewards and approbation for gunnery work. This sentiment was dis- closed during the incident in which a cap- tain and several other officers of a detach- ment of the Mediterranean Squadron were liauled over the coals for hazarding the safety of their vessels by a neglect of or- dinary seamanlike precautions. If one were to believe half the reports that were circulated, Swansea would be preparing in 1907 for a Cambro-American invasion of competing choirs a.t the eistedd- fod. Apart from the expense of competing, which for the minimum of 200 singers at J350 a head would be JB6,000 or so, there is no Welsh colony in the States which could afford that outlay, whatever might be done bjlimited action amongst the Welsh exiles in the land of the free who might subscribe towards the expenses of a representative choir. It would be interesting, by the way, to have a visit arranged to Franoe or Ger- many by a Welsh choir, on the lines of the Sheffield choir's visit to Paris recently. Germany would be the more suitable, as the home of music, and along the Rhine there are numerous fine choral societies. A con- trast of Welsh and Continental styles of sieging would be instructive. The expenses would not be very serious, and if the mat- ter could be taken up in earnest and in the right hands the financial difficulties would be easily disposed of. A Yorkshire choir has, indeed, arranged to visit Dusseldorf and other Rhinelond centres. Apart from the educative aspect of such a visit, there would be an agreeable international side to it, which would be not the least noteworthy. Every step to convince the inhabitants of one country by personal acquaintance that the inhabitants of another country are only human beings after all, are curiously alike, would be an additional guarantee for peace and fraternity, and the homage thus paid to a country's geniuses tickles national vanity in its most tender spot. Having been singing German musicians works for a. century, it is time. there should be some recognition of the fact. An uneasy impression prevails in Swan- sea commercial circles that the diplomacy of the Port Talbot Dock authorities has con- sistently proved superior to that of the Swansea. Harbour Trust, and the ascertained facts appear to justify it. The latest dis- covery is that when the G.W.R. Bill, for powers to construct a railway to Garnant, was under consideration, the Port Talbot people received as an inducement not to offer any opposition to the measure, the undertaking that the railway rates for the G.W.R. for all coals to the westward would not be more for Port Talbot than for any other port in the Channel. The prac- tical result of this is that distance is al- lowed to operate as an advantage helpful to Port Talbot in regard to coal east and north of the place, whilst Swansea and Llanelly are to be deprived of the advantage. of their geographical position in respect of J coals westward of Port Talbot. When the Garnant railway is constructed, the result of such preferential treatment may prove quite disastrous to Swansea, and it is almost inconceivable that the Harbour Authority could have permitted itself to he out- mancBUvred in this way. By the way, steady progress is being made with the Garnant railroad, and during the past year between JB8,000 and J39,000 WM spent upon constanietiona! work,; .J. Trade at the port, of Swansea dnring Julf established yet another record. There-WM an increase of 48,000 tons in ooal exports and 2,000 tons in tinplate and galvanised sheets, and the result of the month's work- ing was a. profit of JM.017, the largest that has ever been made in a. single month. The chairman announced that the increase o4 trade for the seven months of 1906, aa against the corresponding period of last year was 489,589 tons. Patent fuel exports bad gone up by 40,000 tons. On the present showing the new dock will be required long before it can be constructed. Much indignant correspondence has Been appearing in the local evening papers re- garding the nuisance caused by dogs in the Walter-road district, who bark and howl :.4; night. One gentleman suggests as a remedy that the police constable should call at each house where a dog is creating a. distur- bance and warn the householder. It is very duobtful, however, whether a constable has any authority whatever to act upon this suggestion. The only legal remedy appears to be a police court prosecution by the persons aggrieved of the owner for keeping animals Which, by their conduct, became a public nuisance. A very reasonable protest lias been made respecting the accommodation for and treat- ment of bodies at the Swansea mortuary. A matter-of-faot view of the grievance is of course that with the poor dead it is im- material whether their bodies are decently covered are not, but a deeply implanted human sentiment demands that respect, if not reverence, should be paid the bodies even of those, who in Iffe may have com- manded neither. It is in accordance with this that the public oense of propriety is shocked by the disclosures made, and be- cause of it the sanitary authorities should lose no time in putting the mortuary in order, if only to spare the lacerated feelings of the friends and relatives of the victims brought there. Twelve thousand colliers in West Wales have been instructed to tender notices to terminate contracts as a means of compel- ling the non-unionists to enrol themselves in and subscribe to the labour organisation of their class. If the non-unioiwste formed a considerable body, acting with a definite purpose with the covert or open support of the employers, this step taken by the Fed- erationists would imply a critical situation. But fortunately for the industrial peace of the district the great majority of the non- unionists are simply thoughtless, negligent persons, who do not join because they wish to avoid the contributions which otherwise they would have to pay. There is, however, very little likelihood of a stoppage of the collieries when the notices expire. The decision by the Court of Appeal that Local Education Authorities are under no compulsion to pay teachers in the non-pro- vided schools for the time given to definite religious instruction, will, unless set aside by the House of Lords probably bring about a fresh complication at Swansea where the Education Committee neglects no chance of harassing the voluntary schools. It is virtually certain that at the next meeting action will be taken to deduct a proportion of the teachers salaries. In the majority ol educational areas, however, probably no change will be made or action of any kind taken until time has been given to allow the point in dispute to be decided in the House of Lords, the supreme legal tribunal of the land. ■» » » When Mr. C. W. Laird, after actively promoting for a short period his candida- ture in Swansea as a prospective nominee of the Unionist party somewhat suddenly left the district and abandoned his campaign, comments offered in the local Liberal press suggested that having surveyed the ground, he had been convinced of the utter hope- I lessness of his effort, and suddenly "thrown up the sponge." To people in a position to judge, this was known at the time to be a false interpretation to place upon his retirement, for Mr. Laird was a candidate who whilst recognising the difficulties, was satisfied with the prospects. A law suit in the Divorce Court last week threw a suggestive light upon the counse of political events of the borough a couple of years ago. Mr. Laird, in announcing his with- drawal, confided to one or two friends that he was about to marry and leave with his wife for a tour of the world. It fcas trans- pired that the lady whom he married had previously gone through the ceremony with a Dr. John Williams, who was granted a decree nisi on Friday last. The secretary of the Swansea Socialist Society has committed himself publicly to the expression of opinion that when the next Parliamentary contest takes place locally the Liberal candidate will be at the bottom of the poll. Mr. Giles does not say which candidate will be at the top, but presumably he thinks the Socialist will heacl the list. And more improbable events than this have happened. The Socialists are prosecuting a most vigorous propaganda in Swansea just now, meetings are being held almost nightly on the Sands or at some other public place, a.nd speakers from a dis- tance are being imported to supplement the oratory of the local leaders of the party. It would ve idle to pretend that this con- tinuous speaking is without effect. Social- ism, as propounded by spokesmen, possesses a plausibility which is attractive to men whose knowledge is not extensive, and who co not do much thinking for themselves. With the organisation and resources at the disposal of the Socialists, the latter repre- sent a force not to be disdained, especially in towns like Swansea, where the working class overwhelmingly predominates.

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LOCAL YACHT RACE. SEVEN OR EIGHT BOATS TO 0014- PETE. Although Swansea cannot boast of a. re- gatta this year, nevertheless a determina- tion exists that the interest in yacht railing, shall not be lost. A few local gentlemen have arranged another race, which will take place next Saturday at the Mumbles, starting at 4 p.m. In all probability seven or ciglrt boats will compete. Captain Naerup and Mr. S. Burgess have consented to act as handicappers. The race will be open to all comers, and entries must be sent in not later than Fri- day next to Mr. John Hodgens, hon see., Swansea.