Weekly Mail

ALLEGED FRAUD ON NEW- PORT JEWELLERS. A SOLDIER WANTED. An extraordinary story of alleged fraud on a. couple of jewellers at Newport has just been reported at that town. A soldier who had enlisted in the Welsh Regiment at Coventry had been drafted to Cardiff, and subsequently to Newport. He was a. very intelligent man, who spoke one or two foreign languages, and amongst other acquirements, had the details of repairing watches and jewellery in a practi- cal way at his finger's ends. Being such an expert at this line of artisan ship he was given a lot of work by the officers and men at New- port Barracks, and used to be a good customer at two or three local watchmakers for little requirements in his trade, such as glasses and watch hands. He is, spoken of as being of very pleasant manner, of sober habits, and was a prompt payer for all his goods until the beginning of last week. He then, it is alleged. went to the sbops of Mr. Abrahamson in Bridge-street and Mr. Maurice Woolf in Com- meroial-stree/t, where he had dealt extensively before, and represented that he was entrusted by the offiors with getting articles for a presen- t.altion to a fellow-officer, and requested to have some gold watches on approbation. Mr. Woolf allowed him to have two gold watches, a silver- mounted dressing-oase, and a gold albert. Mr. Abrahamson allowed him on approbation to take three gold repeating watches. These, it was stated, were to be submitted to the officers at Newport Barracks, and also to the ofricera. at Cardiff. The man took the goods on Tuesday, and said he would wire from Cardiff the result of his negotiations. During that day Mr. Abrahamson received a. telegram in these terms:—"Sold f,40 watch; waiting for namo inscription presentation to night." Mr. Abrahamson wired back asking the man to wait till he arrived. and that he was bringing some wimple gold alberts which had been asked for. On going to Cardiff, Mr. Abrahamson failed to see the man or to elicit any information at the barracks about any presentation, but did not despair of the thing being bona-fide until a day or two afterwards, when no trace of the soldier could be found, and the adjutant assured him that he had no knowledge of any presen- tation. Under these circumstances a. warrant has been issued for the man's arrest, and in- formation of the alleged fraud has been circu- lated broadoast. To make matters worse it is stated that the man had in his possession when he left Newport for Cardiff a considerable number of the watches of his comrades at New- port Barracks. The value of the missing goods has been roughly estimated at J3400 to £ 500.

NATAL ARCHITECTS IN FRANCE. CARDIFF WELL REPRESENTED. The annual conference of the Institution of Naval Architects held in Paris last week proved to be one of the most interesting and important maritime events of the year, and wias attended by some of the most eminent i-aval constructors and engineers of the present day. Among the number may be cited M. Emile Ben-tin, director of the Naval Construc- tions of France; Sir William White, K.C.B., F.R.S.E., &o director of the Naval Construc- tions of the British Navy; Mr. Archibald Denny, M. V. Maynard, chief engineer of the Generale Transatlantique Compagnie; Mr. B, Martell, chief surveyor of English Lloyd's; Mr. Francis Elgar LL.D., F.R.S.E.: ML Augustin Nonnand.Mr. Mark Robinson, and Mr. Thorneycroft, our great torpedo construc- tor. Much attention wa.s evidently given to the expositions on modern naval im- provements, avi|d a friendly interchange of views by the celebrities of both nations took place, from which, it is needless to state, both countries will benefit. Nothing could exceed the hospitable preparations and practical generosity of the French friends on the occa- sion of this, the first visit of the British Insti- tution of Naval Architects to Paris. Not only were their distinguished g-ule.sts sihown over the principal engineering and marvellous works of the great and magnificent city, but they were entertained and feted in princely style by the chief functionaries of La Belle France. The English visitors, who were, by the bye, escorted almost throughout by the British Ambassador, Lord Dufferin, cannot but have appreciated in the highest degree the warmth of respect and lil>erality so magnani- mously bestowed upon them by the elite of France. Among the British visitors Cardiff was well to the fore in being represented by Mr. J. H. Hal let, F.V.E. Mr. Pollook, surveyor of Lloyds: Mr. Oberman, Mr. R. Williams. Mr. John Lowdon (of Barry), Councillor Trounce (ex-mayor), and Mr. T. A. Read.

LORD ABEBDABE MEMORIAL. An influential meeting of the townspeople of Mountain Ash was held at the Town-hall on Thursday evening. The chair was oocupied by Mr. W. Little (chairman of the district council), who convened the meeting with a view to con- sidering the best means to adopt towards fur- thering the county scheme for establishing a. national memorial to the late Lord Aberdare. Very good reports were receive from the work- men's representatives to the effect tha.t they had unanimously agreed to assist in the move- ment. Mr. W. Little was appointed treasurer and Mr. S. Shipton hon. secretary, all those present forming themselves into a local com- mittee. The town was divided into districts and collectors appointed, and it was decided that all subscriptions should be paid in at the next meeting, to be held five weeks hence.

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THE COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF. RESIGNATION OF THE DUKE OF CAMBRIDGE. Upon the House of Commons going into Com- mittee of Supply on Friday on the Army Esti- mates, and on the first vote proposed of J £ 257,300 for War Office salaries and miscel- laneous charges, Mr. CAMPBELL-BANNERMAN (Secre- tary for War) said he had an annovmcement to make of great importance and interest. On the 1st of October next, a date which was regarded as markintr the close of the active military year, H.R. H. the Duke of Cambridge would relin- quish the position he had so long held of chief in command of the Army. It would be hardly possible for anyone who had followed with inte- rest the history of the Army for many years past, and still less for anyone who had been engaged in the actual work of the civil adminis- tration of the Army, to make that announce- ment without the greatest emotion. His- Royal Highness had been at the head of the Army for the unexampled term of 36 years, and during that time he had devoted the whoile of his energies, and the whole of his life in fact. to its service. He had become identified with the Army, and the Army saw in him a faithful ser- vant. Recognising in him some of the most cha- racteristic qualities of our countrymen, it had become proud of the duke and fond of the duke. (Meers.) His Rioya.1 Highness would be followed in his retirement by a sentiment throughout the Army of gratitude, sympathy, and regret. (Hear, hear.) He said nothing of the duke's extraordinary familiarity with all the details of the military profession, and of his un- flagging industry even at the advanced age he had reached, but wished, rather, to speak of his possession of those two great qualities of common sense and knowledge of the worM in which he was a past-master, and the exercise of which endeared him to the Army. He was a respecter of Parliamentary authority, and always desired to follow the general opinion of the country, and if Providence had called upon him to rule some country the duke would have displayed in a conspicuous degree all the quali- ties that we considered necessary in the constitu- tional head of a State. It had been stated that his Royal Highness was an impediment in the way of all reform?, but when reforms had been recommended by Par- liament he had frankly accepted them. and of late years had never shown himself opposed to changes which were likely to be of advan- tage to the Army, and he was now making way by his retirement for the introduction of changes which Ministers had recommended to her Majesty as for the benefit of the Service. (Hear, hear.) The t-vent imposed upon the Government, and, he feared, upon the Secre- tary for War in particular, a serious and diffi- cult task. With common accord it was agreed that the Commander-in-Chief could not be succeeded by another officer with such large powers, and that the administration of the Army ought to be adapted to the latest ideas of efficiency, and the Government accepted, and would proceed upon the main principle of, the recommendations of the Ilartington Com- mission. (Hear, hear.) Tliey maintained the appointment of general officer commanding-in- chief, but his functions would be greatly modi- fied as compared with the duties now performed by the person holding that office, and the office would be held for the usual term of years, but that term would be eaJxthle, of course, of extension. The Commander-in-Chief would be the principal military adviser of the Secretary of State, and lie, with the other heads of mili- tary departments, who would eaoh be responsible directly to the Minis- ter, would constitute a military council; so that the Secretary of State, when he gave a decision, would be guided by the opinions of the military officers by whom he was surrounded. There would be five general officers, each directly responsible to the Secre- tary of State, but constituting together a mili- tary council. He firmly believed that when this new configuration was given to military administration, when a system had been intro- duced which would be less centralised and more elastic, great advantages would result to the Army. (Hear, hear.) But lie should not be honest if he did not deprecate the too sanguine view. He had heard it sometimes expressed as to the prospect of vast economies from a redis- tribution of duties. He trusted that improved administration would follow, but at this moment no patriotic man need look upon our military force with misgiving. (Hear, hear.) If the country was year after year getting more value for its money, the main factor in that result- was not the co-operation of distinguished officers at headquarters, but the full freedom and justice seemed for the. devotion to duty of all ranks in the Army itself. (Cheers.) Mr. BALFOUR observed that the changes to which the Secretary for War had pointed in his interesting speech must, no doubt, necessi- tate in the future anxious discussion, but the announcement had been made in terms obviously general and vague, and until they heard in detail what was proposed lie should be going beyond his functions if he commented upon the pro- posal. They must all feel that the severance of the long connection of the Commander-in- chief with the Army was an event which moved them and the country, and must exclude from consideration those practical questions which could not. he feared, be long deferred. The Commander-in-chief had served his Queen and country for nearly 40 years, and during that time lie ha dthe privilege of being tolerably freely criticised from time to time. But even those who had taken most advantage of their powers of criticism would admit that the Commander- in-Chief had afforded a great example during all that long period of single-minded devotion to the public service and to the great duties entrusted to him. (Cheers.) It had never been his fortune to be brought into direct official relations with the duke, but it was not MOMsary to have had that privilege in order TO be assuiect that ne had shown a power ot continued and strenuous work given to few, wI ich few could imitate, and of which they could hardly find a parallel in the public ser- vice. (Hear, hear.) His Royal Highness had probably no rival in his knowledge of the detaals of Army work. He had always been able to keep abreast of each new condition of Army affairs, and, as the deserved result of his public service, he had the gratitude and affection of the whole Army. (Cheers.) It was owing to the exertions of the duke that the private soldier IxfS under- gone so great an improvement in the last gene- ration, and everybody must feel that no man had more correctly realised than he had done the spirit which ought to animate an Army in a free and constitutionally-governed country. (Hear, hear.) Members of the Legislature owed a double debt of gratitude to the head of the Army, who had made the reforms required by Parliament. After some remarks by Sir CHAS. DILKE and Sir H. FLETCHER, the House proceeded to the discussion of the Vote.

THE PROBABLE SUCCESSOR TO THE DUKE. The general idea is that the choice for the new Commander-in-chief lies among ^ireenuk0 —Lord Wolselev, Lord Roberts, and the of Connaught. There is the very r ,?{ to believe (says the London yjfr the "Manchester Guardian' that if the »W^.0rii- ment is to be made while the present tfilL ment is in office the Duke of COlluang I der' not be selected. Something like an 11 011 taking on this point has been forthcoming- the whole, Lord Wolseley is supposed jjyjd safe of an offer of the post, though Roberta will have, of course, a warm 1111 tliusiasiic backing. it is The Exchange Telegraph Company ^?3iselef stated among Army offioials that Lord pj,i^ will probably be the new Commander-*11"' and the Duke of Connaught in place of Sir Redvers Buller, who wu* 9]3o over the command at Aldershot. It is Lord j stated that Lord Roberts will succeed Wolseley in the command in Ireland. -p,jfc0 The true story of the resignation of the v of Cambridge of the office of Comnian^j-ll Chief of the British Army (says the "Pall j Gazette") throws an entirely new light 0,1 jp j incident. There has been for some ti^ | certain charters a strong agitation rll- Duke as Commander-in-Chief, and the M.? lCy, ment, acting on the principle of expedi caused it to be known that it would niat^r^y, j assist them in their Army administration P~^ 0l and would thus tend to promote the £ ,ollli tha Army, if the Commander-in-Chief vV jjd offer to resign. The Duke of Cambridge not. for one moment hesitate. Where ^ie-fe[p of the Army was concerned personal tions, especially his own personal consiclera„ ,^1 did rot enter into the contract. His ijje Highness immediately sent his papers in Queen, and her Majesty at once handed over to the Government, of course w Jb« ft impression that they would be returned. Government, however, took the matter seriously, accepted the papers as a definite ijj nation, and Mr. Campbell-Bannerman the public announcement to the House of mons, which was the very last thing of desired, or deserved by either her M-1 'I Ills Royal Highness. An interesting ooni volf on this story is that the Minister for War 0f finds himself in a similar position to t." ^1- the Commander-in-Chief. He virtually lenged the House in a huff to move the re^^lSiotI of his salary, and the House by the di e^- virtually accepted his resignation, when peeted that his papers would certainly D | turned.

-== ( COURT MARTIAL AT j CARDIFF. BARRACK WARDEN SENT TO P#10 {j,0 The court-martial which was opened *^v|iiclj Cardiff Barracks on i ridav week, a'n _cliS^ on account of the high position that the a t)i* held, has created considerable interest town, was -concluded ou Saturday nl°eV-er^ when the verdict was given. The s t''e charges of misappropriation on whic: prisoner, Barrack-warden John W m. was arraigned were as follows:—( c° of military discipline and negligellt^^ere^ ducting the receipt and issue of stores, causing a loss to the Government °, jyjw > 6s. 10^d., between the 23th of April an 2 last; (2) illegally disposing of t Clop0I'tJ 1 blankets, of the value of 12s. 9d., the p | of the Government, to the late Alrs, fajlipg, Applegate, Heath Hotel, Cardiff; (3) gjiH1. on April 16 last, to enter a load of to be delivered to John Applegate, °f j"i. Hotel, who paid the sum of £ 1 5s. f°r to whom the prisoner catused the same øe¡1' coal to be delivered. The case, as 115 before tioned above was heard last Friday. t Colonel Allen, R.A., and, aeeordi^ martial usages, the finding of the ex> gd > J transmitted to General Harrison, s '-pisti'i'v Devon port, commanding the Western j On Saturday morning the papers arrlv^ecedlJ^ I from Devonport, and immediately P 03 -v* the eleven o'clock parade Sergeant Hep V0*' I read out" in the officers' mess-room y. tenant Howe. The verdict was as The Court sentences the prisoner, n$i°il A warden James William Howes, a. Perjg0n £ t employed in military service, to be pi1 with hard lalxmr for one year, and to | under stoppages of pay until he si1* made good the sum of £ 72 6s. lOad. 11 of loss sustained by her Majesty's f through his negligently conducting the ,i and issue of stores." This was the the Ccurt that had been referred to Harrison. That officer despatched hl*)>onfir,.1J on June 20. It read as follows:-— rt'nllc the finding and sentence of the Court- six calender months of the imPrl I awarded."

CARDIFF FREE LlR^iJl^' CHARGE OF DAMAGING BOO#3' At Cardiff Police-court on Friday a^ego^|! Henry Rosser Taylor, aged 12, View, Tongwynlais, was charged (bet. vf ulw stipendiary, Air. T. W. Lewis) with Ui?o £ )ic, ancl maliciously damaging a certain b rjy 0 a titled "By Pyke and Dyke," the Pr"P >ri t'' ( the Cardiff Corporation, some iime bet pr i 12th of April and the 11th of May ? eent year. Mr. Andrews (deputy to t1 appeared to prosecute, and defendant presented by Mr. T. H. Belcher. tf>* Mr. Andrews, in opening the rase, sta gecti £ the proceedings were instituted un i.:0g -AC|t 39 of the Malicious Damage to Prop''1"1^ Je*1 and, that being so, the case could not with summarily. .[ with summarily. Of p'J Mr. Belcher objected to this view j case, and argued that the offence cOr u of was one of misdemeanour. Hie think the authorities were desirc>us ° to the boy sent for trial. id The Stipendiary said that he had no e^e do with the authorities, but if the P?f 0u* Jue come to a settlement, he would strik^, case; if not, it must be proceeded v>rl case could not, as Mr. Belcher sugg^s .j, taken under the First Offences Acy Act only applied to cases that could with summarily. Rall'lCpV Mr. Andrews consulted with Mr- e 0 the Cardiff librarian, as to what co^ co^La| should adopt, and, on being pressed yjd a decision by the Stipendiary, who s. J the business of the court was being "e' ;.ctecl 1tl0 Andrews said that he had been abandon the summons on payment & !l of the book and expenses. Vieaf The Stipendiary: I don't want to _seg thing about expenses. Both sum111 struck out.

STJBDMAN'S Soothing Powders for cutting their teeth have now been in uSlt years. They relieve feverish heat, Pre75lV vulsions, &c., and preserve a hea c tee %,gd the constitution during the period 0 g0jd s Jj1 Manufactured only at Walworth, Sun' Jjc* where. Please observe the BE in St ceding A.s k for Tyler and Co's Yarns.