The Merthyr Express

Rhymney Valley Echoes, [By -RECOIiDER."j The report of the Bcdweliry Msdical Officer of Health for the year draws c-eiious attention to the danger to heaith caused by tho refuse I'ps, the odours from which permeate the air In hot, weather, and tho small particles of dust from which are carried by the winds, in all dir- ectlons, this being, in his opinion, one of the contributory causes of diphtheria. The doctor urged the necessity cf providing a refuse de- Eructor, which should be at the lower part of e district, so that the carlo returned empty r the journey uphill. I am glad to Dote the humane thought of the doctor in tha latter part of his recommend#- tion. Consideration for dumb animais is not too manifest here. I was also glad that Sir March ant Williams, when at the Bargoecl Higher Elementary School, suggested that kindn-ass to dumb animals should be inculcated In the training of children. Here in H-in-oed some people chop off cats' tails for sport, and put cats on lins-v^sis to !row stones at. Surely it is tims that con- sideration for the creatures dependent, on man •iiou'.d be inculcated, and crueltv such as that .•-wanton, brutal cruelty—should be repressed with the styciig hand of the law. In advocating a rubbish destructor, Dr. Evans is not the first. But thsso necessary things are aho very expensive, and as Dr. Jones advocates the same thfng for Geilygaer, aurdy it ought to be ptcsible for Bedwellty and G«0yga«r to unite in this arrangement and work tb. thinH" jointly. The two are at logger- ^eads over their sewage, but surely, for the jnsereei of the ratepayers, they should combine 10 providing this destructor. At el,&,ion times, the representatives tell the |>eopl? they will stand for economy and all the rest of it, and yet, when joint action on eNn- tiai matters would ave expense, they aliow their own little prejudices and bickerings to prevent its realisation. The mistake is on the part of the people who vote for men capable of thus acting. Thay. have only got themselves to biame. Another point in the doctor's report worth Boting is that infectious disease is mostly preva- lent in overcrowded houses. This is not sur- prising, but it is worth noting because of the fact that the, is not enough enterprise in the building trade to provide -:ufEcicnt houses for the people, and so the Bsdwellty Council have instructed their Surveyor to draw up plans of workmen's dwellings after the manner of those built by the Risca Council. ■ir This ought to give a salutary and much-need- ed Iceson to house-owner# in the district in the matter of rents, which, possibly through the ncarcitv of houses, are exorbitiinrly high as com- pared with those obtaining in other parts of the country. Bedw<?l!ty'« sewerage has at last been brought to lia'ht. and whatever the result of the Local Government Board inquiry may be. ft will, no doubt, contribute to the understand- ing finally to be arrived at. The essence of Mr. Portsmouth's criticism of tho Geilygaer scheme is that it does not go far enough; that ir ought to fro below Bed was: the danger of subsidence; the high price of *ha 'land at Ty'nycoed the non-inclusion of the Ysgwyddgwyn and Cylla Valleys: and <t\H cost of management, in regard to which latter he gives wholesome advice to-the G-Gliytraer Onun- cil to follow the example of Caerphilly. '1-hen there is the question of the life of the filters, regarding which, byreascn cf the bacteriologi- cal treatment being a comparatively recent one, there is no data to guide. The sscond scheme, however, has, admitted- ly, the same danger of subsidenos in reaard to the sew«r to the Western Valleys, whi'.dt the estimated cost per head curing varying periods is det?rmined hypothetically on the increase of population being maintained and no fresh capi- tal expenditure being incurred. In regard to this scheme enabling the Gelly- I 11 Raer Council to deíeu their heavy expenditure, f it is obvious that such delay would increase the expenditure when it is decided upon by reason of the increased land values, whilst, during the intervening period the people are rated for the facilities enjoyed as far as Hen- I"o?d fer ming the Western Va.ileys--c-. rather, the Red-vellty sewer to the Western Vallevs. < An advantage to Bedwellty would, as stated, ro doubt be found in the uniform rate-ths. *s!'o!e of their district being by this fcnerae ftervsd by one system instead of two. One can Quite appreciate the value of thi« in regard to i #ucb a district in. which about Jiaif is in the i Sirhowy, and the, other half in the Rhymney Valley. There is not too much enthusiasm baing dis- played in the approaching County Council elec- tion. This may bs accounted for by the fact that the General Election is not long past, and it may also be partly due to the feeling that it matters little whether it is this man or that man who is elected—things will bo iha game, This is a fateful way of looking at and deal- 1 "0 ing with an important question. It does mat- ter. These things should not go by favour but bv merit. Electors should seek to elect men who embody as much a: possible their own personality in tha aggregatemen who speak the thoughts they think. Electors should be very selfish in this matter, and not regard the opportunity afforded by an election to do hon- out to a candidate but to themselves. -Ii: Which man will do, honour to those who send him to the Council Chamber: this should be the question, and better would it be to elect a man from the ends of the earth who will do honour to those who elect him than one's v nearest relative who would fail to do so. The district that will not take interest and trouble to e:ft carefully for the best man and make an effort to put him in deserves all the conse- quences which may arise from an unwise selec- tioq. I hope the election day (Monday) will see every elector at the poll going 'at it with en- thusiasm, as though the fate of his parish was to ba determined by & certajn man getting in. The weal of the parish is affected by a poor representative. At the Bedwellty Council meeting, the Clerk i was instructed to write to the Western Valleys Sewerage Board, asking "to be taken in." Alas! many are m" without asking. There is a big order for Boards in the Rllym- neT Valley just now—Sewerage Board;, Water Boards, Boards of Guardians. Too many look as if the undertakers are at wotfe for tho corpse of Enterprise, making its coflin. The Water Board did not float well at last week's confernce, which was, to a large extent, fruitless. Rhymney tr,¡¡,g "mum"; Bedwellty re- presentatives were not there; St. Mel Ion's had nothing to say; and Gellygaec could hardly say less than its two representatives did say. It is all very well to say the water should be in the hands of the people. Some people's hands would be the cleaner if they were in the water There is very much dirty water this way-rlllll water, too, for that matter, and pcasibly water on the brain.

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County Council Nominations. M 0 N M OUTHSHIRE. Thit following nominations for seats on the Monmouthshire County Council were received at Blackwood, on Monday_ Mynyddislwvn Ward: *Mose$; W&ftfers, stone mason (Progressive), unopposed. Ahpsbargo^d Ward. — WTn>. Ssynuei N»sh, grOC4fc '^feirr-de-Lis (Progressive); Richayd Mof^ah ['Walters, agent, Fleur-de-^is (Progt^s- sive)l, ,.T'' Bepwelfty Ward.—Sidney Gfidtviri, clothier, Blackwood (Conservative); W. Hancock, miner, Blackwood (Progressive).' New Tredegar Ward.-Albert Thomas, min- ers' agent, New Tredegar (Labour), unopposed. The New Tredegar seat was held by Dr. R. T. E. Davies, J.P. (Conservative), who has now retired in favour of Mr. Albert Thomas, who is a new member. Rhymney Ward (Upper).—D. W. Davies, miner, Rhvmney (Labour): Rees Harris, ac- countant, Rhymney (Liberal). Rhymney ilower) lVara.Jolin Edwards, draper, Rhymney (Liberal), unopposed. GLAMORGAN. Bargoed Ward.-D. Leyshon Evans (Liberal) I minister of the Gospel. Bargoed; Walter Lewis, miners' agent, Bargoed (Labour). Hengoed Ward.—Wm. Benjamin Lloyd, min- ing contractor, Bargoed (Independent); David I Prosser, colliery owner. Treharris (Liberal). Pontiottyn Ward.—Win. Williams, grocer, Pontlottvn (Liberal): John Evan Jones, li- j censed victualler, Tirphil (Independent), I T-dica,te# old members. a

Tirphil and the County Council. A well-attandnd meeting of the electors of Tirphil, Bi-;Ii;Ilr, and Troedrhiwfuwch was held at the Council Schools. tin Thursday night, j to further con^'oer t [1:) quostion of selecting a I d_ candidate for the County Council lr Tom la5 Thomas presided, and explained that an im- portant mutter hod just come forward as effect- ing Tirphil. it appeared tinu :he Cviunty Coun- cil proposed erecting an ;i-c,ii ,chcol there. This, he said, was nothing more than a temporary Ffhool upon a permanent bu.is. Mr. Joseph organ had already protested ugilnit this at a meeting of the School Man- p;/crs, and somathing further sl:c,ld ii.» done. During the last General Election they were told by some of the speakers that the Tirphil school was absolutely the worst in East Glam- organ. CWWi. ance with the resolution of the Tirpllit iod^e-:of '&ho Federation ho liad written to Dr rl\Tàh.,I1, Dr. MartinY E. Jones (Dynevor). ahd; Mr. T. Tlvbmasf. thnÎ'o<ltJ:¡md;tt rfleet- ing for the County Coliticil. Tlirce of tho gentlemen were presr-nt, and a letter was received from Dr. Martin.—The Chairman read Dr. Martin's let- ter, in which he regretted being unable to at-I tend. Ho hoped the meeting* would select a; dircct Labour candidate. He would be most happy to render all assistance to the one se- lected provided he belonged to the party of progress. Tho Chairman added. "So far as ¡ I am concerned I withdraw with honours" (la.u,,hter). D r. Maunsell, whilst thanking them for the invitation, said that he had taken so very little interest in the doings of the County Council that he did not feel justified in stand- ing; neither had he had any desire for any- thing of the sort. He would, however, be pleas- ed to assist anyone who might, be appointed (hear, -N,lr. J. E. Joric- said he had! no particular desire for public honours, but under the circumstances, and in the nterests of the electors ho would not mind going to the fight— [cheers)—but he wanted the loyal sup-j port of the miners. port of the miners. The Chairfnan pointed out that it was neces- sary that the electors of the lower portion of the division should be loyal. They liad for a number of years given way to Pontlottyn in the selection of a County Councillor, and thought it was nothing"b:it fair that Pontiottyn should for onca in while let them have the selection from Tirphil (hoar. hear).—Mr. Jns. Evans en- dorsed this view, and in the absancc of a La- bour candidate hopfid they would select a repre- sentative who would get the hearty support of all classes.—Coun. Rees Davies said that so far as he was aware, there was no one coming out for Brithdir.—Cotui. J. Morgan said they had never had a chance before at Tirphil to select I a candidate. He referred to the discussion which took place at the School Managers Com- mittee iii reference to the proposed corrugated I iron building, and ridiculed the action of the County Council in putting such a structure at Tirphil, when they spent £ 7,0CC at Bargoed, and other places for schools.—Coun. W. Hllm- monds said they should send in a etroqg protest to the County Council against the proposed iron building. In some places they pnid as much as a £ 1,000 for the site for a school, and they should have something substantial at Tir- phil. If Mr. Jones would declare himself an advocate of the Labour and Liberal principles he would support him.—Mr. J. E. Jones said he was a Progressive. It was hjs intention to fhrht upon non-political lines. He had never nriven any attention to polities, and never declared himself in favour of any political carty. Ho believed in the principle of doing the greatest gopd to the greatest number (hear, hear). He was a Trades Unionist, and as such would be most pleased to serve the ratepayers of that parish. He was one of the heaviest individual ratepayers in the division. After some further discussion Mr. Jones was almost unanimously chosen as the candidate, and a committee appointed to further his can- didature.

Infectious Diseases in Bedwellty Area. MORE HOUSES NEEDED. Tlle Medical Officer of Health submitted his annual report of the health of the district. The report estimated the population at 18,759. The births registered were 839 equal to a birth-rate of 44.72 per 1,OQO per annum. The deaths num- bered 298, equal to a death rate of 15.87 per 1,000 per annum. The deaths under one year, were 93. giving a deotli rate of 116 per 1,000 births registered. This showed an improve- ment on last year, when the rate was ISO. The zymotic death rate was: Measles, 23; scarlet fever. 9; whooping cough, 3; diph- theria, 9. The deaths from phthisis were 114. During the year 627 notifications of infectious diseases were received, viz., diphtheria and membraenous croup, 182; erysipelas, 18; scar- let fever, 420; enteric fever, 4; puerperal fever, 3. Diphtheria was chiefly prevalent in the Rock District, more especially in the Argoed and Blackwood portions, also at Hollybush. Scarlet fever had .also been very prevalent, es- pecially during the second and third quarters, and was mainly at New Trodogar and Aber- bargoed. Measles were chiefly at Aberbargoed and Pengam, 17 of which at Aberbargoed had been fatal, 4 at Fleur-de-Lis and 2 at Pen- gam. The reason for the severity of measles was the high proportion of the juvenile popula- tion, and it was the first visitation Aberbargoed had had since it bad grown out of being a small village. In conjunction with other au- thorities, tne Council were considering the ad- visability of providing additional accommoda- tion for the isolation of infectious diseases. This, the report stated, was most desirable, hav- ing regard to the fact that these diseases were most prevalent in overcrowded houses. Houses were being erected all over the district, but the demand was far greater than the supply, and this led to overcrowding. The report briefly referred to the present position of the question in regard to sewage disposal, which has not been definitely settled. In regard to refuse disposal the doctor said that the refuse tips were mul- tiplying in various parts and becoming offensive and would possibly become a source and danger in the near future. He recommended the Coun- cil to consider the advisability of erecting a destructor, and also the provision of a steam disinfector. Tho report complained also of the quality and the intermittent supply of water. The quality had been below the standard of former years, and some places had been with- out a supply for days. Great improvement had taken place in the dairies, cowsheds, and milk- shops, of the district, the owners having com- plied with the requests of the Council, but the doctor regretted that one owner bad not com- plied, and it was necessary to request the tec- ants to carry out the necessary alterations. It was decided7 to call a special meeting to con- sider this report, more particularly in regard to the refuse destructor. A good deal of discussion took place in regard to the housing question, several members com- plaining that the action taken by the Council in the past had been stultified by reason of the landowners and other interested parties refus- ing to support them. The Surveyor was in- structed to prepare plans, Mr. Bufton suggest- ing that the Risca model would be a good one to copy. Mr. J. Jones said that the Council were to blame for not proceeding with the scheme before.

Estate of a Mynyddislwyn Lady. Miss Lucv Mary Davies, of Frome, Somerset, formerly of Penner House, Mynyddislwyn, who died on the 4th September last, left estate of the gross value of £ 10,779 12s. lid., with net personalty £ 8.066 15s. 2d., and probate of her will, dated 9th March, 1902, has been granted to Mr. George Augustus Davies, of Alexandra- road, Clifton, surgeon; and Mr. Francis Joseph Davies, oi Godalming, surgeon, her brothers. The testatrix left certain shares in the Great Western Railway Co. and the Midland ii4i!- way Co. and New South Wales Stock upon trust for her aunt, Eliza. Watson, and the resi- due of her estate she left to her brothers, George Augustus, Francis Joseph, and William Henry Davies, and her sister Margaret Blanche Thompson.

Proposed Water Board for the Rhymney Valley. ANOTHER CONFERENCE OF LOCAL AUTHORITIES. GELLYGAER'S CAUTIOI.'S. ATTITUDE. Mr. C. S. Goodiellow. of C\>. rph :iy, presided. on Thursday afternoon at tuo conference of leprt'sfniatives of. ithymr:«>y V.;l.cy Councils at 11ngc.¿ù. The G-cllygacr i were re- i<ro:enfce<i by Dr, J. l{.ci:;n-ds.- Mr. H. Hughes, and Mr J. Edwards. 'i'iifMB vyero also present: —Rhymney, \1r J. EvL;,¡; ic-hairmar. Mr. f) S. Isfcance (vice-chairmau), Mr.- -,V Lloyd Marks (surveyor), Mr. L! Reynolds, (ct< -ck); Mynydd- is.wyn, Mr. W. S.„ Na^h, S> Welion's, Mr. Samu2LW4mhiijU,at)d Mr. E. vV^jon iCtte^ftiyy-,i i|x;J.Ui!{.t.<Lo^h j Hubert. JenkihB"; Mr/ j, -Xujnn (deputy, clerk"). Mr.,i 3C. J. Griffiths, clerk to the Mynyd^J^yA j Council,. a)id Mr,. Gohiec S.Morgan. ,?n?fi!;e»'r .witlf Mr, T.. J. Jhpiuas..{?'eri> to the Bedwclify Council). I r. C. S. Goodiellow, in opening the pro- c&3ding.s, said that cons'deraion of a Water Board for the Rhymney Valley was adjourned last time because of some misunderstanding he tween Gellvgaer and Bedwellty.. Bedwellty, he said, were not represented theie that afz--rioou (Mr. T. J, Thomas not having tiiei2 arrived). They knew the position of Mynyddislwyn, St. Mel Ion's, and Rhymney, and he would like to know what the Geilygaer representatives had to say. Dr. J. Richards Hlid th? Geilygaer Council I had not tackled the question, and he hAd no power to express their views, but he would like to knolv the terms and cost. STILL IN EMBRYO. The Chairman said the whole thing was yet only in embryo, and what was desirable in the first pla.c was to ascertain whether ther-a was unanimity as to a Water Board being foimed, ] and if .there were such unanimity in regard to the principle, then'a joint, committee of the var- ious interested authorities would have to be Iforriit-d to go into ways sjid means.. The bug- bea.r -e-emoi.io be the Rhymney and Aber Gas and Water Company. He was not interested cither directly or indirectly in that Company, but he was anxious to see some- good and prac- ticable scheme propounded, and so carried out that they could look forward to the future without, misgiving. If it were decided to buy out the' Water Company, the terms would prob- ablv have to be submitted to arbitration. It mIght be that by holding out, the purchase would be made on more favourable terms, but that was a matter' entirely out of the province of that 'conference then. He desired only to adopt the principle. Everything was in an initial stage, and there would be a tremendous amount qL work connected with tho undertaking before they reached a position to carry the 1thing through. There wou'd be also a. question as to whether a clerk would bo appointed inde- j pendent of the Council, or whether of the Council's clerksshould also be clerk to the Water Board. But questions of this kind be- Ionced to ths future. I Dr. Richards said that Geilygaer had an open mind on the subject, and if they were con- vinced that the scheme would be l»eneficial, they would fail in with it. He saw no excuse for the way in which the district was being treated at the present time. Owin?» to a break- age in the main at Bargoed. he had been without Water to mix his medicines, and the Company ought, certainly to bo made to carry out its obligations. He thought that Caerphilly had 1 ess to complain about than Geilygaer. The Chairman referred to the Rhymn-ey Council as being in more favourable circum- stances owing to the arrang-ementaenter.ed into and tha position of Rhymney would command preferential treatment under the Board, but all they wanted to know was whether the idea of forming a board was favourably entertained. GELLYGAER NOT UNANIMOUS. Mr. B. Hughes said that at Geilygaer they were not unanimous on the question. He would like to know what would be the benefits derived by Geilygaer in joining the Board. Would the Board be able to supply the water better than the Company were doing-? The Company's main at Troedrhiwfuwch had burst five times in a few days, but he bolieved they were doing everything in their power to supply the valley with water, and he: could not see any benefit to the ratepayers in buying the Com- pany out. The time had gone by for that. It ought to have been taken in hand at the start., instead of which the idea seemed to be to relieve the shareholders of the Company from their obligations. Mr. W. S. Nash said that Rhymney rated themselves very heavily to secure their water rights years ago, and it was through their own efforts and foresight that they occupied their present unique position. Not only were they protected by' law, but had the opportunity of getting the first-supply of water from tho reser- voirs of that district. Althougji, perhaps, no benefits were going to accrue from taking oyer existing, concerns, yet a lopa! authority oould borrow large gums of money for lonaer periods, I and at lower interest than limited liability com- panies, and th<3 Local Government. Board ad- vocated that the water supply should be in the hands of the people. A company tried to save ,d the money possible, which in itself was a primary reason for the formation of Water Boards, but it was realised that the. main con- sideration of alocal authority was the health of the people, of which -qn adequate water supply and an efficient .sey^rage were of the greatest importance. Ine Chairman, in endorsing Mr. Naah's re- marks, said that although they might not. pay more to a company than to a water board for their water, yet in the latter case they were purchasing and making the concern their own property, whilst they would be no better off in twenty years' time in the former caae, and the supply would still beldng to the company. Mr. T. J. Thomas (Bedwellty), when appeal- ed to by the Chairman, said he was not in a pcfeition to say anything, but his Council thought that Tredegar and Merthyr might be inclined to join in those conferences. The Chairman said Mr. Hughes had coim- plant'ed that they were' too late in this thing, but he (the Chairman) thought tho longer it was delayed now the worse it would be. In ten or fifteen years' time, the vaJley would be thickly populated, and they would have to go outside the coalfield for their supply. He was of opinion that it would be well to h$ve some ar- of opinion that it would be well to hve some ar- rangement with the Abercarn and Abertillery Water Board to see whether their needs could not be met from the same soiiroes. Mr. B. Hughes said he had not much faith in the No. 1 Reservoir on the Brcoonsjiire hills, as there were fissures in the land. The Chairman: My brother-in-law. the late Mr, William Thqmas^ entertained the same opipion. COST OF THE SCHEME. Mr. Hubert Jenkins said that so far asawer- taining what the cost of the scheme was likely to be, they would have to go into it jointly; but nothing oould b9 doto uatil they knew whether.411 the Councils were anxious for such a Board. The Geilygaer Council was the most important authority in' the whole area of sup- ply, and he was sorry they did not seem to be ripe for having the water supply in the hands of the people. He did not think they would ever have an adequate supply of pure water until the people controlled it. The Chairman: We at Caerphilly have decid- ed that, and if one 91" more authorities will join us, we will go on with the forming of a Board, and leave the other authorities to make the beat case they can for not joining us. We do not want to do that, and prefer to work in harmony, if possible. With regard to Gelly- gaer, I don't think they have taken the matter up as seriously as they should have done, as it pertains to the comfort and health of the dis- trict, and there is no valley more physically adapted for a Water Board than this. Those who attended before the committee on the Gla- morgan Water Bill will, knQNv. that. The Chair- man then suggested a resolution should be passed approving of the principle of forming a joint wa-ter board for the Rhymney Valley. This, b said, if passed, could form the subject of discussion at the next meetings of various councils. He urged that they should not merit the opprobrium from futurei generations as the past had merited from themselves in this mat- tar Councillor Leigh Thomas, in seconding this resolution, heartily endorsed the remarks of Mr. Huber* Jenkins, and expressed regret that Geilygaer had "of reach 2d the initial stage. Iue details of co;t could only b;?- got at by hard work by a joint corntuiUei). It was a good principle to .oolc before they leaped, bat they should at the sam-3 time have some iitcle coui- ag.?, and be prcpar-d to go as far as they could until they met with an insuperable difficulty. Mr. N.ii IL had great pleasure 111 »up- porting ti.e r'-toluili. which was cf a no; ] co'mn'ital chnri'r-Usr. li •• •• Mr. Huc-lves Ivad .j •said about the tt-jf-sres in I lies.-rvoir was corrt-cl", i mm thai s-.ti-mo was impossible, and showed it \<as bsst to clear out of the present situation It the district was not ex ,c^uin;r'.y sharp, they would find all the sources' i:t. hills appropriated: by oihc,r j for ovei- twentyvyearsr .-•••••.sj Gliairn1»ii »a-lso added that years hs j advocated "ihu€=h,'the aiiij -dwngr- •• rsysrrd'Jaa-i .tji £ Gas CV>n*JT;ffty'^ {jatr^hiily. wheJT iis-xapi-fl &I \tini iiSfftOJ v* in.it the Couns.l let the dppor-' "j tunitv slip by because they were enamoured with the idea of electric lighting. Had they embraced the opportunity, they would have had the of the 'lighting' of their •district in their hands at the present time. Mr. 13 Hughes: As we do not commit our- selves. I will .support the proposal. Mr. T. J. Tho ma. We are not represented. I cannot do anything.—Tho Chair man: Did you appoint a deputation?—Mr. T. J. Thomas: Yes. jlyj wrote thorn. Mr. Si Windmill: St. Mellon's is neither an urban nor a rural district. We don't know what we arc to.-cre.Tlia Chairman: N- I fish, flssh, nor fowl (laughter).—Tho refiolutioi was then put and carried. Mr. Nash then proposed that the Councils h:- 3i2k-êd to act as a committee of ways and mf-ans, and Mr. J. Edward;, seconded the motion, which was car-rie(J.Cn the Chairman's sugges- tion, it was decided to hold another conference on April 7th. The Chairman then made a brief reference to the death of Mr. Ivor Thomas, of the St. Mel- ton's Council, who was present at their last meeting, and moved a vote of sympathy with deceased's family.—This was passed, and Mr. Windmill thanked tho conference, and said he would convey the vote to the family. ATTITUDE OF BEDWELLTY. At the meeting of the Bedwellty Council, on Monday, Mr. T. J. Thomas, the clerk, reported on the conference at Hengoed, in referenco to the formation of a Water Board for the TIhym- ney Valley: Mr. Thomas mentioned that the representatives of tho Council appointed to attend the conference did not turn up. Refer- eace was made by the Clerk and one or two members to the Abertillerj scheme, and it seemed to be the impression of members that it would be possible for the BedweUty area to participate in the results of that undertaking. Mi*. S. Godwin expressed himself in favour of a county scheme with a uniform rate all over the county, but said that the county scheme proposed did not do anything for the supply of agricultural places. Dr._ Evans asked what the Rhymney Valley authorities proposed to do, and the Clerk said their object was to buy up the Rhymney and Aber Water Company and form aboard of their own. Dr. Evans said the district was short of water now. Mr. Buf- ton said it would be some years before they could get a supply, and their first business should 1)e to consider what they were point to do for the summer. The Clerk said the Tre- degar people would be willing to discuc-s the matter in conference with them. Mr. Bufton thought it would be wise to call a special meet- ing to go into the matter, and gave in a notice of motion to this effect to be put on the agenda of the nett meeting.

[ Home Rule is not possible unless provision is made for satisfying the lady of the house as well as her lord and master." This can best be done by supplying her with Berwick's Gold Medal Baking Powder, which makes all kinds of light and dainty Cakss and Pastries, &c, and is the best and purest in the world.

Geilygaer Lease Dispute. CURIOUS TANGLE IN CHANCERY. In the Chancery Division last Friday, Mr. Justice Warrington, the case of James v. Jack- son came on for hearing. Mr. Upjohn, K.C., and Mr. Holland Schwann (insrtuct-ed by Messrs. Beamish, Hanson, Airy, and Feilding, agents for Messrs. Gwjlym James, Charles, and Davies, of Merthyr) appeared for the plaintiffs; Mr. George Cave, K.C., M.P., and Mr. W. Llewelyn Williams, M.P. (instructed by Messrs. L!oyd George, Roberts, and Co., agents for Messrs. G-ee and Edwards, of Swansea), repre- sented the defendants. Mr. Upjohn said the action was a somewhat curious one. On the 17th September, 1870, Mr Charles Herbert James, the predecessor ip title of the plaintiffs, made a lease to Mr. William Jackson, the predecessor in title of the defend- ants, of two pieoes of land at Y sgwyddgwyn Mill Farm, in the parish of Geilygaer, for 99 years froni 1865. There was a licence to build, and what happened was this: The lessee built on on,9 of the plots, but not on the other. Tlie result of that was that the other plot, which was open to the road on both sides, unfenoed and unoccupied, and treated in the early part of this- oentury by the plaintiffs, the executors of Mr Charles Herbert James, as being unlet and unoccupied. The agent negotiated with a person named Ward to build upon it. Unfor- tunately tor the plaintitts, on the lath or De- cember, 1903, they, as trustees of Mr. Charles Herbert James's will, cnterd into an agree- ment to lease/the plot to Mr. Ward, who built three houses upon it. At this time there was no interference on the part of the defendants, who were claiming as the repre.sentativee of Mr Jackson, the original lessee.' They said they were away from the pJaoo, and did no* know what was going on. In January, 1908, they issued writs against the persons in actual pos- session of the houses huiJt upon the land, and the matter oazne on for tria) before Mr Justice Channel] at Swansea. The case on which the defendants went for trial was that the parties had sat by and knowingly allowed them to build. They could not produce evidence show- ing that the representatives of the original lessor did not know of what was going on and Mr. Justice Channell held there was no defence, and the action collapsed. The present action was brought by the representatives of the orig- inal lessor, making a case very much like the case attempted to be made at Swansea. They had done their best to get evidence in support of the issuee raised, but having considered the materials before him, counsel said hq did not see his way to put the parties to any further expense with no reasonable hope of succeeding. Accordingly, on the 19th of the month, they gave notice to the gentlemen instructing coun- sel for the defence, that plaintiffs would con. sent to the dismissal of the action on the terms of paying the costs of the action to be taxed, and that was the order he proposed to submit to, the property having been improved to the extent of £1,500 by the erection of the houses. There was a counter-claim against the plaintiffs as representativee of Charles Herbert James for damages for quiet enjoyment. That was the msue he would leave his friend to open. Mr. Justice Warrington asked Mr. Cave what damages he had sustained. 1\lr, Cave first claimed that he was entitled to sqme damages because he was unable to get possession for over a year after the judgment .at Swansea. After consulting with Mr. Upjohn, he gave up the point, and the matter came to an end.

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Roman Remains at Geilygaer. The Rev T J. Jones, Rector of Geilygaer, gave an interesting lecture-which was illus- trated by lantern slide,.i-on the Roman remains at Geilygaer, on Friday evening, at the llan- bury-road Bapt'st Lecture Hall. The lectu e was in connection with the Literary and Do- bating Society, and as a climax to its winter session. Mr. J. Evans, solicitor, pre«i4s<J. agd in a few woll-chosen sentiments, expressed the 'pleasure the Society h&d ip haying the Hector iitnonsst them. There was a gcocl attendance, but the hull was freezmgly cold. Much time was spent in explaining the foun- dations of the building excavated two or three years ago as the key to the super-structure, from the plan thrown on the screen. The lec- turer drew attention to the way in which the stone! were placed one upon another as show- lihtr the ijjkilful workmansh^Si0t?t!l:e RoJftians-ill. building. He also explained.. nature qf thq rnortar ipsed, and its superiorita); pvfcr Jjbat "orally deployed in the bM!tli»|frtrtifcra«Aika8ft> Ub-dav. v' The Rector went back to the time w!>.en he first settled at Geilygaer, in 1890. and showed how the fa^t that the existence of Ro- man remains at Geilygaer was established. when he first settled at Geilygaer, in 1890. and showed how the fact that the existence of Ro- man remains at Geilygaer was established. The rectory garden beinjr at the time in a some- what, dilapidated state, he set the gardener to work to remove old and non-fruitful currant bushes and to dip- the garden. Soon he received complains from tho gardener that the rock was tco near the surface for digging. This led the Rector to investigate the nature of the rock, and he found that the "rock" was red, and that the pieces unearthed were chippings and frag- ments of red tiles. His curiosity was aroused, and he determined to investigate the matter uriher, when one of tho first things brought the surface was a Roman urn like those used placing the crcmatcd remains of human i beings it). More urns still were brought out by the spade—urns containing cremated remains, and the people who had been buried there were people from Italy—Romans. The attention of the late Mr. G. E. Clark, formerly of Dowlais —(applause)—who had written many things about the county, and of the Cardiff Natural- ist's Society,was called to Geilygaer. and at his (the lecturer's) invitation the members came up there for a clay's outing—one hot day in July-but although he showed them some of the discoveries, they seemed to pay far more attention to the "^berries than to the Roman remains (iaiiglitr In 1897, whilst preparations were-being to celebrate the late Queen's Jubilee, a really beautiful specimen of Roman earthenware wa3 discovered, and he again wrote to the papers. By and by members of tho Naturalist's Society came up there again. Ho showed Mr Webb the old garden, and they began shovelling away, and the first thing they came to was an old Roman tiie. The lecturer then dealt at considerable length on the plan of the fort as drawn tip after the excavations in the first field had been completed. Later on, he explained the plan of the baths and granaries which the excavations last year in the field ad- joining Geilygaer Church had brought to light, and from the foundations thus laid bare an im: aginnry description of the super-structure as it. stood some 1300 years ago. He computed that about 600 men were quartered at the fort, and pointed out what he thought mighf have been the barracks, the officers' quarters, the gran- aries, the streets with verandahs—suggested by the indented street—the two ends of which were slightly narrower than the rest of it. Round the fort itself was a ditch 27 feet wide. The entrance to the fort was by means of draw- bridges. Out of the ditch arose a wall banked by a rampart 21 feet wide at the base, and the top probably contained a parapet for the sol- diers to walk on, and to keep watch. Thore were four gateways, and each gateway had two towers. At each corner of the fort was a tur- ret, and between each corner and gateway was another turret—20 turrets in all. '.Ilije turrets did not project as they wore made to do in castles and forts of later date, and gave the watchmen, therefore, only a frontal view. The stone of which the walls were built was blue pennint, the roofing was of red tiles, and the walls were faced with a soft kind of limestone called tufa—the earliest combination ai the col- ours red, white, and blue which he knew of in this country. One of the pictures showed the socket holes in which the great gateways moved on theit own gateposts. Another picture show- ed what the lecturer thought might have been the place of worship, and another the beginning of the main road from the fort to Cardiff. Stones were shown on the screen in which .the Rector pointed out the marks of chariot wheels. < Attention was called to a well in the fort. The baths were described, and pointed out as cold and hot water baths and hot 4ir baths: The heating apparatus was also shown. Pieces of charcoal, he said, had been found there. A stone bearing an inscription to the Emperor, Caesar Germanicus Dainis Trajan—which pro- bably adorned the principal gateway—enabled them to trace with certainty the date of the building to be somewhere between A.D. 104 and A.D. 112, so that the building was practi- cally 1800 years old. The Rector made a patri- otic reference to Caractacus, the Welsh chief- tain, who so bravely defended the country, and who, when taken to Rome, was awarded special privileges by the Emperor. Caractacus foug-hti for the honour and protection of the weaker sex. These forts were erected in various places, a.nd the block-house system adopted by General Kitchener in South Africa was to serve practically the same purposes as these Roman forts served in their time. The ravages of time had destroyed the super-structure, and the foundations had long been covered by the work of worms, but the Christian region, against which the raiffhty Roman Empire so long con- tended, was flourishing atill-the Kingdom of Christ would remain for ever A hearty vote of thanks was accorded to the lecturer at the close for his interesting lecture.

MANY PRAISE CUTICURA. I have many times planned to write you about the Cuticura Ointment but since the thrity-fourth person has come along to thank me for recommending it I think it about time I did write. Until foor years ago my face used to be (for months at a time) covered with a dreadful rash. It was most painful especially after I washed or if I went out in the least bit of wind. A friend of mine came to stay with me and she had With her a tin of Outicura Ointment. She asked me to try a little op my face but I said it was no use as I had tried several remedies without any effect. However, I put a little on my face before going to bed and (ound the next morning that the nasty rash had disappeared. Any of my friends whom I have recom- mended it to have been delighted with the results and they have recommended it to their friends. I must mention one particular case which I and everybody else thought never could be cured. A friend had the most awful hands anyone ever saw. They were actually like a piece of raw beef and made one feel bad to look at them. I asked her to try the Cuticura Ointment. I gave her some and she used it, and is more than grateful to me for the results. Her hands now are white as anow and smooth as velvet. Miss Bride Walshe, 63, Waldemar Ave., Fulham, London, S.W., Sept. 28, 190$.

ABERBARGOED. Fibb STATXO-V. -Further discussion took place at the Bedwellty District Council meeting on Monday in regard to the proposed fire station at Aberbargoed, and it was decided to invite tenders for the work, and that the cost should not exceed 500, and also to apply for per- mission to borrow the sum required. DiaTBlCT Council VACANCy,-At the meet- ing of the Bedwellty Distriot Council on Mon- day, the seat of Mr. James Acreman on the Council WM, on the motion of Mr. Lloyd, declared to be vacant, he having left the place and failed to attend for six months.

The impending resignation of Colonel Rees Banfield, C.Ba the popular brigadier command- ant of the South Wales Brigade of the Terri- torial Force, is announced. Colonel Banfield has had a distinguished career with the Welsh Regiment dating back to 1871.

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