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NOTES AND JOTTTINGS. 0.

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NOTES AND JOTTTINGS. 0. Rhos and National Eisteddfod. The work of preparing for the Nation- al Eisteddfod at Wrexham has commen- ced in good time, and much enthusiasm and interest has been displayed in the first stages. It is evident that Rhos is going to play an important part in the 1912 meeting. The musical committee Jias a large number of Rhosites serving upon it, and a Rhos man, Mr J. T. Ed- ward's, has been appointed secretary The literary committee has for its secre- tary Mr I D Hooson, Rhos, and the pav iiion committee secretary is Mr G. M. Griffiths, Rhos. Mr Morris KdEn, Rhos, bas been selected chairman 'of the Gor- sedd committee, and three Rhcs men are on the Executive. Chapels and Houses. On Tuesday last, one of the speakers at Capel Maivr referred to the splendour of the places of worship in Rhos, adding that during the time of the revival, when strangers visited Rhos for the first time, they were all struck by the magnificence of the chapels. This characteristic of Rhos is quite true, as also was the infer- ence that the chapels of the district held a high place in the affections of Rhos people. It is, however, none the less true that in the very shade of many of the chapels, are to be seen huddled many mis- erable houses of the hovel description. The very splendour of the chapels seems to accentuate the wretchedness of the houses within sight of their portals. Surely beautiful structures like ours should have a better setting Is not a clean love-it hearth ever, a more beau- tiful sight than a splendid chapel ? ? Beantifal Wales. Notwithstanding the natural beauty of Wales, it is felt that there is considerable scops for the working tv advantage of the Town Planning schemes. Mr G. R. Sims once made a tour through England and Wales, and afterwards wrote that two of the worst instances of siumdom were to be found in beautiful Wales. —We ere giad to notice that a conference in connection with the and Town Planning question was held at Wrexham on Mono ay, when a resolution calling f r immediate and collective action on the J'art of house and land owners ard occu- piers to support any Society to fully in- quire into the conditions affecting the 4homes of the people of Wales, aud to pro- mote the phvMcai, skiciali and m,,ra! weil- freing of the inhabitants of Wales so far as health), borne*can secure such. Jffud or Stones ? Now that winter is corrmjg on apace, all men's thoughts turn heavily towards mud- The alitlicr-Ities t,e ii,e giad td no- tice have begun to grapple with the Rhos Strests quet;on in good time. By way cf a preliminary experiment they have Strewn the streets with long streaks of small stones. Small verv ser- viceable in the upkeep and repair of stieets in conjunction with a steam roHer. But when you get smail stores flung loosely on the rniddis of the sfreet, and left there to be kicked about by horses' hoofs and fjlaying children, they are WC-ise than use- less. The traffic of Rhos is hardly heavv I enough to sink the stones, and the wary pedestrian prefers to pick his way along the sides than help in the work of steam- rolling them. By and by however, the Stones will be slowly crushed, and in a couple of months' time they tvill be chang- ed into the oozfest, slimiest mud imagina- bit". Then more stones will come, to un- dergo the same endless process. I < -1 The Surveyor's Opsaisa, That the Surveyor is not to be biamed -for the present state of affairs can be seen -from the follcr/ing report of Mr T. Rees Uvans to the i..Nie,-nbers of the District A;ouncil I agam respectfully beg to aitan" tion to the followiIlg facts iome of the roads in my division. I am fa Ij corviieed that it wouid nndoDbtedly pay the Council £ 0 par- or hire ^tearn rollers sod watering carta for the populous parts o: my diyisioa. ° Under the preeeci system we expend entirely .00 the traffic to consolidate ity" Macadam, and bav,3 been compelled to redoee the t'it) of Meca- jlam from 2 inch cube to Ij incheB to meet the wifches of rubber-tyrej refaicira. motorists aud cycliMtd. The loose. Michdain on the roads without belDg ?oiied Pooti becomes grotind into dust, which is blown into fti shops Anid houses, and no doub* this jh :W)t iJiiuiious to health, with considerable waste of Weeadam. Iu Rhos 2,31 8 tons of Macadam have j,pen used daring tie last three years, 31)d in my opiliío: mere than half of this quantity has been A,roTiL.ci p into dust or scraped away in rand be- fore being consolidated. The steam' roiiliig of a •road results in economic maintenance, because ftaoh roads will laat from fonr to fiva ■> sars, and *nl! no doubt show a mring iu the mtern if the 0hs" of iiacatifim is !.•(; eaced 8ay inch cobe 0n<y tr.o TOH(1« iefac*t *i>d 1*0! It*}." OW(I tia) TOH(1« iefac*t rapti Variety in Talent. More than once we have mentioned the endless variety of talent to be found in Rhos. There is of course musical talent in abundance, and also a good sprinkling of other well-recognised talents. But Rhos has one talent in particular-the talent of humour or wit. And now comes the latest Welsh novelist (Through Welsh Doorways) who says that Welsh people are altogether lacking in wit- that they appreciate a funeral, but cannot see a joke. What a huge mistake If Rhos is typical of a Welsh village, and Mr Lloyd George typical of Wales, which and who more ready to see even the most subtle point of humour? Did not Mr David Rees once say upon a Rhos plat- form that there was enough wit displayed in a single political meeting in Rhos to fill an issue of Tit-Bits ? It is palpable on the face of it that the latest Welsh nov- elist but gives the crudest caricature when she attempts to depict Welsh life. Mr Hemmerde and Subscriptions. There appeared in the Manchester Guardian recently a paragraph which stated that a storm had been raised among the members of the Young Liber- al League at Rhos, owing to Mr Hem- merde's failure to comply with a demand for a subscription. The secretary, Mr E. S. Price, drew Mr Hemmerde's attention to the paragraph, and Mr Hemmerde re- plied by the following letter which was published in the columns of the same pa- per :—" You state in your issue of Mon- day last that certain societies and leagues in East Denbighshire have been inundat- ing me with applications for subscriptions and donations, and that my failure to comply with a demand for a subscription from the Young Liberal League at Rhos has raised a storm among its members. In fairness to the Young Liberals of Rhos who are among my keenest supporters and workers, will you permit me to say that so far as I know they have never asked me for a subscription. The mat- ter upon which I had a difference of opin- ion with them was not in regard to any subscription which they expected from me. My remarks at Rhos had reference to a statement which had appeared in the Press to the effect that I had had a differ- ence of opinion with the Young Libhral League, and I took the opportunity of emphasising the position which I have al- ways taken up—namely, that i would subscribe to nothing in the division so long as I was a member. The only sub- j scriptions I ever give are to bodies like the Young Liberal League it Rhos and other places in my constituency, to assist them in the work of political education and organisation. This attitude has met with the approval of the large majority of my constituents, and I have had very few applications for subscriptions. Curious- ly enough, the only persons who show any disapproval of my ruie are a few sup- 2rior persons who never approved of my candidature, and who try from time to time to make mischief between my con- stituents and myself upon this subject. They had been a little more active than usual just before my Rhos meeting, and I took the opportunity of telling them what I thought of their tactics. "Attitude." Although th6 relationship between Mr Hemmerde and the Young Liberal Club is not quite so strained now as it was some time ago, there is still a good deal of undesirable feeling existent among the members. There should not be allowed to remain the slightest misunderstanding between Mr Hemmerde and the League. If a personal visit of Mr Hemmerde to the Clubroom was made, we feel sure the air would be cleared, and the old feeling of whole-hearted support would follow. ? A Bloodthirsty EssoIts, We wonder if Mr Ormsby Gore, when a boy, used to revel in tales of mighty deeds-and of the times when the flash- ing scimitar and the pirate junks on the Spanish main, used to delight the juven- ile imagination. It is to be feared he has judging by his latest utterance. One sen- tence in his speech has sent us hurtling back to the cockade days when the sword leapt from its scabbard to defend a prin- ciple with a life. To hear such a refresh- ing sentence in a political speech brings back to us the days when scalps adorned the Indian's wigwam, or the historic moat and drawbridge held sway. What ro- mantic days they were, but how out of joint with the spirit of the age. The old blood-curdling oaths and resolutions in former days could truly raise a shud- der, but uttered to day they reek of the astrakhan collar and travelling dramatic society. Mr Gore's famous utterance was to the effect that if landlords were compelled to suffer much longer owing to the imposition on them by a Radical Gov- ernment of extra taxes the time might come when they would have to fight lor themselves, and he would not hesitate, whenever the time came, to use once more the sword presented to Sir John Owen, on ancestor of his, for risking his life for principles." Local Politics. In his excellent address to the Young Liberal League on Thursday night, the Rev Wynn Davies touched upon the topic of local politi4. He declared his amaze- ment at the fact that a 12,000 population was content to continue to gioan under the burden of a heavy rate, with a deplor- able lack of improvements. Every word Mr Wynn Davies said upon the subject was undoubtedly true. We are indeed to blame for not continuing to kick and bite and protest. We have in the past made feeble attempts to get out of the rut, but have always sank back disheartened. As a community perhaps, we want more of the Englishman's push. The Englishman has head and chin, if he does lack the mysticism and poetry of the Celt. He has the head to conceive and the chin to carry it out. And when one comes to grapple with the question of a drain, the more prosaic virtues of the Saxon comes out on top. Rhos is fast becoming the home of Lost Causes, as witness the num- erous projects such as the Nurse, Urban Powers, Recreation Ground, Library, Morgan Memorial, and other movements to numerous to mention, which have at different times had their day and are done. We are beginning to wonder in earnest whether there is any sort of a future for Rhos at all.

IRHOS.

RHOS YOUNG LIBERAL CLUB .■

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