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----LETTERS TO THE EDITOR.…

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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR. POLICE PROTECTION AT BANGOR. Sir,—I learn from the columns of your paper that the ratepayers of the county town are considerably agitated owing to the alleged inadequacy of the police force to pro- perly protect the inhabitants and their pro- perty. In order to give a greater point to the grievance. I find that some' strong re- marks were made at the last meeting of the Carnarvon Town Council, and that the mat- ter is to be brought to the notice of the Joint Police Committee. I do not wish to question the reasonableness of the com- plaints that are so frequently ventilated in your columns. The Carnarvon ratepayers have a right to demand proper protection, but what I wish to call attention to is the tendency, both in letters and speeches, on this question to complain of the insufficiency of police at Carnarvon "as compared with the neighbouring town of Bangor." I trust that my Carnarvon friends will see from the perusal cf the following particulars that the Cathedral City is infinitely worse off than at Carnarvon. Let us compare matters. The estimated population of Carnarvon in June, 1898, was 9,479, and that of Bangor ,for the same period, 10,528. The. rateable value of Bangor is also in excess of that of Carnarvon by aboutJEoOOO. Bangor is ap- proachable, after the erection of the new pier, from Douglas, Blackpool, &c. During the last few years large and valuable schol- astic institutions have been erected, and the* town is increasing rapidly in importance and population. It is now an important railway centre, and the London and North Western Railway Company have recently built about 60 or 70 houses for their employees, and are' now arranging, I am given to understand, to build more. Despite all these' additions, the police authorities are content with the same amount of police supelrvision. Carnarvon complains that there are only three men on night duty, but. in Bangor, with a larger population and a heavier rateable' value, there are only two men to protect the citi- zens from fire and robbe'ry. Indeed, a few years ago a fire took place in the very heart of the city,and with fatal results,and it was not to be wondered at that the flames had been extinguished' before the solitary con- stable on duty made his appearance on the scene. There are also two canstables fewer in Bangor, as compared with Carnarvon, on day; duty. Two of thd seven constables sta- tioned at Bangor reside in the outskirts and patrol a good stretch of rural district. It is not a fact that all the recruits are trained at Carnarvon, as Bangor takes its fair share of this work. Bangor ra epayers and their re- presenatives on the County Council should take measures to secure a proper representa- tion on the Police Committee, and then the town would be policed according to its population and rateable value'. I also feel that it is time that the whole force should be brought more into touch with the modern developments. Why is the bicycle not utilized by rural sergeants for the purpose cf visiting their men? Why are police? sta- tions at Carnarvon, Bangor, and Llandudno not connected wiui the telephone. I have every confidence thet the whole matter will receive the attention it deserves a tthe next meeting of the Committee, and that as a re- sult Carnarvon and Bangor will cease to offer temptations to evil-doers.—Yours, &c., BANGOR TRADESMAN. THE RECENT SCHOOL BOARD CASE. Sir,—It is really amusing to read the letter cf "Caractacus" in your issue of the 9th inst. Of course we. all sympathize with our felow-beings in misfortunes, including even "Caractacus," but he sets forth such an argument that it is necessary! to take passing notice of his epistle'. I should hardly think that "Caractacus" means what he says, or he must be lament- ably ignorant of the procedure in connection with cases under the Education Act. The police had no more to do with issuing the summons than "Caractacus" had, except to serve it when handed over by the School Board authorities. With regard to the police summoning without adequate reason, it is not they who have to take proceedings it is the Attendance Officer, who receives in- structions from the School Board Com- mittee. Perhaps "Caractacus" does not know of the privileges afforded by section 24 of the Act, which provides that any member of the family, or any person authorised by the de- fendant on his behalf, may attend before the court, and,therefore,it was not necessary for Mr Seyers to do so; in fact, he appeared through his solicitor. Let all the possible credit be given to "Caractacus" when he states that the police ought to know that a man cannot be in two places at once, although they sometimes at- tempt it. Years ago, in the time of the "Charley's," an officer used to tell his men that they ought to know everything on their beats, even what they all had for breakfast. Why, "Caractacus," that seems about the old style, does it not ? I shall not venture to subscribe myself with anything like such a name as his, but am content to remain, as it was decreed my lot to be, simply a poor WORM. Sir,—Will you allow me to say that the re- marks contained in my last week's letter should have read as follows: — "Surely the rev. gentleman never thought nrhen he advocated that parents of children Should be mulcted in the proverbial fine of five shilling that the youthful truants would witness, in the petty sessional court, a pugilistic encounter," &c.-Yours, &c., L. W. W. SEYERS. 10, Eleanor street, Carnarvon. Sir,—Referring to the recent School Board cases in which iAr Severs has played a very prominent part, kindly allow me to con- gratulate him for the very mild and gentle- manly manner in which he has treated the great injustice inflicted upon him by those in brief authority. As Mr Seyers is so well informed, he may be able to enlighten us about the stone inserted in front of the new school, and say whether it was paid for out of the rates or by the person or persons who instructed the builders to put it up. If paid for by the ratepayers, I for one would strongly protest against the manner in which the rates are squandered'. Perhaps ere long we may here of a monument being erected by a certain gentleman to commemorate his services to the town c.f Carnarvon. If Mr Seyers will favour us with a little further information, it is difficult now to say what may be the outcome of it.-Yours, &c., A CONSTANT READER. THE MERCANTILE TRADE. Sir.—An old Irish proverb says that there te other ways to kill a dog than by chok- ing him with butter; and I may say that there is a better way of supplying the needs of our mercantile navy, in the shape of having it manned by British sailors, than by subjecting the few there are of them to insult and comparing them to a lot of for- eigners, whose very presence on board our vessels denotes cowardice and treachery. Ninety-nine out of every hundred of these have deserted1 their country and broken all the ties most dear to every true citizen to avoid doing their duty to their country as soldiers and sailors. Our forefathers al- ways discountenanced foreigners in our navies, because they were dangerous to the country. The great question is, how is this state of affairs to be remedied, and what can be done to induce the youth of Great Britain and Ireland to look more favourably upon a seafaring life? Well, there are many ways, but not by deputations from the Army and Navy League to wait upon the man whom the country's evil genius has placed at the head of its naval affairs, and who spouts so glibly of his 100,000 fishermen with whom he would fill the ranks of the navy and navail reserve. If the right honourable gentleman placed his estimate at 5000 drinkers and gluttons, who are neither fLh nor flesh, nor yet gocd red herring, and who can never be reckoned upon as good mate- rial for sailors, he would be nearer the mark. Another thing that is fatal to the up- holding of the supremacy of the British merchant sailor is the way that a respec- table man has to associate and live, with those annually discharged into his ranks from training and reformatory ships. When freed from their slavish thraldom, many be- come a disgrace to the country and a curse to those who have the misfortune to have them in the same ships with them. Though the aims of the Army and Navy League are much to be commended, and are the out- come of a, patriotic feeling, still I cannot see that th'eir proposed system of training boys in training ships would answer for the merchant shipping, as all those establish- ments are run on naval principles, and might afford a very suitable preparation for the Royal Navy. It is well known that you can never make a merchantman out of a man of war'sman. A Navy man does what he is told, and has his food and drink regu- larly, while his duties are light, and as regu- lar as his dinner. The poor merchant Jack, on the other hand, is often thrown upon Ihis own resourses, which helps to make him confident, quick, and intelligent. He is, as a rule, strong and agile, and able to turn his hand to almost any kind of unskilled labour. But the pity of it is, that this class is getting less numerous year by year, and the country is non-plussed, as to the remedy. I, therefore, as an old sailor will propose for your consideration a few of my own ideas, based mostly upon my own experience and observation. As it is well known that the best of our merchant sea- men come from the small towns and ports on our coast and the adjoining districts, I would 1. Establish in all shipping towns and ports an office to serve as a depot and regis- try, where any boy living in the district could, with the consent of one or both of his parents, register his name for employ- ment by showing a voucher of good conduct from the schoolmaster, or any reputable person "in his district. And as one of the chief causes of keeping many a likely lad from going to sea is the lack of an outfit and the poverty of his parents, he should be enabled to obtain an outfit to last him twelve months, for which the authorities would be empowered to draw his wages until they were paid for. 2. I would abolish premium apprentices, and provide that all apprentices should live together in a part of the ship set apart for them; that their rate of pay be equal to that of boys who are not apprenticed that a small bonus be given for ability and good conduct at the expiration of each year, so as to encourage boys to join as apprentices, and that they all be given equal chances and treatment on board ship and ashore. 3. I would provide for the grading of all seamen as boys ordinary and able seamen; all boys to serve four years either before the mast or as apprentices, and one year as probationer, before passing as able seaman -which should be made compulsory-before two or more qualified merchant officers, and a certificate given. 4. Elementary teaching of navigation should be free in all towns and ports nearest to a seaman's home. This should be made one of the subject? v- the Board School curriculum. 5. The age at which candidates are at present enabled to pass is ridiculous, and is one of thle prime causes of so much of the reputed insubordination on board British ships, as well as of the contempt in which many of our officers are held by the men. Therefore the ages at which officers pass, instead of being 17, 18, 19, and 21, should be raised to 24, 26, and 28, the only mate's age of eighteen being abolished. 6. There should be better \IOks and greater variety in the scale of provisions. This improvement would prove beneficial to shipowners and seamen, as shown by Ameri- can, German, and Dutch vessels, where the ship's company live much' better than on our vessels, but at very much less cost to the owners. 7. Old age pension fund should be es- tablished, but not at the shipowners' or the public cost. It could be maintained by the seamen themselves, and would be available in about three years from its starting. That foreign seamen be admitted to the benefits of the fund upon paying twice the amount that a British seaman would pay, but that every foreigner paid the same amount monthly as a British seaman, whether he benefitted or not, and that, if a foreign sailor wished to become a British subject he should be allowed at a minimum of cost, and be given the same benefit and rights as other British subjects upon passing a medical ex- amination as to his fitness for the Royal Naval Reserve, and his willingness to join, and he should also be able to read and understand English, and not to be over 28 years of age. I think that several, if not all of the foregoing points, could very easily be put into effect. They would create a better feel- ing between employers and employees, and tend to the welfare and security of the country. This is but a rough sketch of what could be done, and if our energetic young M.P. should be able to devote some of his timie to such problems he should be serving his constituency, in which live so many seafaring men, and many more who are interested in maritime matters in some way or another, and his country at large, better than by stroking the two religious cats the oposite way.—Yours, &c., MARINER.

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