The Welsh Coast Pioneer and Review for North Cambria

fflbere are about twenty-one British birds which JP&y be heard singing in winter (says The jgPuntryside"), i.e., in November, December, and ygnuary, but only six of these are regular winter JUgHtera. These are the starling, robin, hedge- Jpzrrow, wren, skylark, and cornhunting. .The introdaction of Christmas cards date from 3$46- I _The first tegular English pantomime was "Harlequin Executed/' produced at the Lincoln's fcn Fiejfda Theatre, December 26th, 1717. The time limite having expired, there is no Voqpect of race in the autumn of 1909 for &• America Cup. Sir Thomas Upton hae mured no ohalleage., ) The nearness of the annual Christmas festival has le(d to the disoovery—one of special concern to decorative florists that berries are very scarce, and, indeed, in many localities where these fruits are commonly plentiful none is now to be seen.—"Garden." A workman employed on the Great Eastem Railway line near Epping picked up a pheasant which had been knocked down by an and laid it hy hie coat. When he refcunaeS[an hour later he was just in time to see the bird fly away. The craze for oounfcry cottages is an indica- tion th#, people are realising the need for re- gular periods of reet and quiet, away from the crewd and the bustle of life. .Quivar, A Royal Commission has been appointed to examine and report upon schemes to secure a mora representative character for popularjy- elected legislative bodies. The chairman ig Lord Richard Cavendish. During a marriage service at Hanover, a young man suddenly fainted. When he re- gained consciousness he explained that he had fasted for two whole days in order to do justice to the wedding breakfast. A Parliamentary return issued on Tuesday shows fiat there were 463 divisions in the House of Commons <lurpg last session, which 455 were on public, and eight on private lousiness.

"\1 LLANRWST COUNTY SCHOOL. DISTRIBUTION OF PRIZES. ADDRESS BY THE ORGANISER OF EDUCATION HOW THE CLAIMS OF WALES HAVE BEERA NEGLECTED. The annual distribution of prizes in connection with the County School, Llanrwst, took place at Church House, on Thursday evening, when the hall was packed to the door with an enthusiastic and appreciative audience. The lady scholars attired in white dresses, occupied a prominent position on the large stage, while the boys and the assistant masters and mistresses availed them- selves of the seats in the immediate proximity) of the stage. Col. Sandbach, J.P.,chairman of the School Gov- ernors, occupied the chair, and was supported by Mr J. C. Davies, M.A., organiser of education for Denbighshire, and the Rev. J. I. Farr, M.A., the headmaster. A LLANRWST SCHOOLBOY. Colonel Sandbach, in introducing Mr Davies, referred to the fact that he had been educated at the Llanrwst County School--(applause)-then a gra.mmar sohool-which still held its high reputa- tion in the educational world-(cheors)-and would no doubt be the means of helping many a scholar to attain similar positions as the one occupied bv Mr Davies (cheers). INCREASING NUMBER OF PUPILS. Mr Farr, who received quite an ovation, re- ferred to the steady increase in the number of scholars, and to the scholars who had left and manifested hopes of brilliant careers. Among them lie mentioned J. Lloyd Jones and W. Jacob Jones. The number of scholars at present was 62 girli and 58 boys, and he had every hope that this number would keep increasing, and that. the scholars, by devotion to their lessons, would be able to hold their own amongst the beat of the land (loud applause). THE PRIZE-WINNERS. Mr J. C. Davies then distributed prizes to the following :-Girls :-Form V.: Elizabeth Hughes., Form IV.: 1, Sarah Florence Roberts; 2, Nancy Jones. Form III.: 1, Louisa Jane Barnwell; 2, Annie Jones; 3, Annie Jane Owen, Form II.: 1, Catherine Louisa Keats; 2, Olwen Davies; 3, Katherine Williams; 4, Ellen Williams. Attend- ance: Annie Jones, Nancy Jones, Jenny Lewis, Jane Hughes Roberts, Sarah Florence Roberts, and Ellen Williams. Boys:—Form V.: 1, Allen Rawson Williams and Joseph Glynne Hughes. Form IV. 1, Wm. Arthur Jones and Henry, Tudor Williams; 3, David Austen Jones. Formi III.: 1, Robert Owen Roberts; 2, John Rowland Morris; 3, Richard Griffith L!oyd. Form H.: 1, David Henry Jones; 2, Griffith Trevor Jones; 3, Gwilym Jones; 4, Ivor Price Williams. At- tendance: Hugh Oswell Owen, David Howel Jones, Robert B. Wynne, Richard E. Roberts, David Henry Jones, Griffith T. Jones, Samuel Williams and George Wood. The following successes were gained by pupils during the yearCentral Welsh Board Certifi- cate Senior Certificate: Joseph Glynne Hughea and Alun Rawson Williams. Junior Certificate: David Austen Jones, David ITowol Jones, Mary Ellen Jones, Nancy Jones, Wm. Arthur Jones, Hugh Oswell Owen, John Ernest Owen, Richard Lloyd Roberts, Sarah Florence Roberts, and Henry Tudor Williams. Preliminary Certificate examination: Rubie Edwards (with distinction in history), and Janet Jonos. Preliminary Law Exa- mination David Howel Jones. THE ORGANISER'S SCHOOLDAYS. Mr J. C. Davies then addressed the gathering, a.nd said it gave him pleasure to be present at the prize distribution at his old school. But the! County School of the present day was very differ- ent from the Grammar School of the eighties. They saw signs of extension and growth on every, hand. A new generation of scholars had sprung up, and all the teachers, with one exception, hadi changed, but the headmaster was still present! with them and served as a connecting link be- tween the present and the past. If he differe4 at all from the Mr Farr of his days, it was be- causo he showed more signs of vitality and! buoyancy of spirit (hear, hear). Time in its march; seemed to leave but few traces upon him; in fact, he seemed to have discovered the secret of perren- nial youth (laughter). He (the speaker) hoped the present generation of pupils were of a lees; tumultuous and boisterous type than the boys of his time, and that if there were any preparation; lessons in the evening, the bells and the knockers) on the doors enjoyed more quiot when the pupils came out of the classes than they did in the good days of old. Lot them also charitably hope that fewer complaints were lodged at the police station against the grammar school boys than there were in the eighties (laughter and hear, hear). Some of them could never forget the gruff but kindly voice of Sergeant Hammond, which served effectively to recall all would-be mischief- makers from the error of their ways. But a slight comparison of the present with thei past enabled them to realise the great strideg that had been made in the county in the cause of education during the last quarter of a century or so. When he was there as a pupil there werci only some 35 pupils in school, an dhe believed the number of pupils receiving secondary educa- tion throughout the county would not be more than 500, wliilst at present there were some 1106 pupils receiving secondary education in the County Schools alone. A TRIBUTE TO MR BALFOUR'S EDUCA- TION ACT. In 1884 the University College at Bangor waa opened, whilst in 1899 the Welsh Intermediate. Act was passed, and a large number of county schools were opened during the subsequent nine or ten years. The opening of the college at Bangor and the establishment of the intermediate schools produced a vast change, the significance of which they were as yet scarcely in a position to appreciate, but he ventured to think that the Act of 1902 produced changes quite as momentous and quite as far reaching in their effect as either the opening of the college or the establishment of the intermediate schools. Whatever view they might take of that Act, it must be admitted that from a strictly educational point of view it marked a great step in advance (hear, hear). It enabled the County Education Committee to carry out three much needed reforms. In the first places it enabled them to put the county schools on a much more satisfactory financial basis. Out of monies provided by the Act, a block grant of about 21200 and a capitation of 30s per scholar, was provided for the county schools, in addition to the bet rate, and the Treasury grants secured under the Intermediate Act of 1889. In addition, they had the secondary school grants under the English regulations. He knew that at LIanrwst they had suffered rather heavily through the loss of endowments, but he ventured to think they had been more than compensated by the addition- al grants which they had received. In the second place, the Act of 1902 enabled the county com- mittee to spread a network of evening schooJa over the whole county. This should prove a valuable adjunct to the ordinary educational ma- chinery of the county, but he regretted to state that, especially in that end of the county, they had not fulfilled the hopes conceived with respect to them by their promoters. He trusted that at no distant date evening continuation schools will be oompulsory throughout the whole country -(hear, hear)—and that they would contribute as much to the commercial development and pros- perity of this country as they had done on the Continent (applause). In the third place, the Act of 1902 had enabled the county committee to put the education of rural districts on a much more satisfactory basis. The school buildings had been in many cases greatly improved, and the staffs considerably strengthened, both as regards quality ana quantity, iuucn had Been aone to put me rural child on the same footing as the urban child, but much remained to be done before ho could compete on terms of equality. The neces- sity of bringing up the rural schools to a higher standard of efficiency was absolutely essential to the success of the rural secondary schools. In looking over the reports of the Central Welsh Board on the Llanrwst County School for the year 1908, he observed that out of 108 pupils in school, all but two came from elementary schools. If the Llanrwst Secondary School was to compete successfully against schools in the other end of the county—and they probably knew of the brilliant successes this year secured both by Ruabon and Wrexha-m Oounty Schools, the former winning an open schola-cehip of B100 at Brazenose College, Oxford, and the latter an open scholarship of £ 90 at Balliol College, Oxford—the elementary schools from which the material was almost exclusively drawn must be put in the same state of efficiency as the large schools in the Wrexham end. At present they were not, and this was due partly, no doubt, to the fact that industrial centres took more kindly to education than agricultural dis- tricts; it was also probably true that the country child developed more slowly (though he believed be went further) than the urban, child. But the main and primary cause was that the schools at the other end had been far years past far BETTER STAFFED AND EQUIPPED than the schools in this end. It was but bars jus- tice to admit that the teachers in this end were quite as capable and conscientious and hardwork- ing as the teachers in the other end, but the number of qualified teachers was far less in pro- portion to the number of scholars in the Den- bigh end than in the Wrexham end. He was glad to-day that the difference between the two ends was getting smaller every year, and be rather expected that before long the "first shall be last, and the last first" (applause). In any cam now that they had an equality of rating throughout the Bounty, they;

T I L OLD AGE PENSION ORDER. NOT Tit f 11.G-e ¡'N:810N .1) IS o To the Postmaste)* GenerO lt Wi H ¥>€nS20ner named on the cover of this Ttook ^sSllillP || .11 /7'Aree Calendar Months from tAe flue date on t *1 w production of this Tjook Sy the said 'Pensioner j gj| M[|f Ticcctyai the 9dove-nfit)xtd r&(Oif K CT W "r — 3jj> HOW OLD AGE PENSIONS WILL BE PAID. The above is a reproduction .of one of the forms which are being supplied to the persons entitled to a pension under the new Act of Parliament. The words upon it explain the method which will be adopted. A book of such forms will be handed to every applicant whose title is approved by the Pension Officers. The orrfer is not to be detached from the book, which must be produced intact on each application for payment. In the space at the right-hand bottom corner the date will be filled in showing when the respective payments are due, and from these dates each order will be valid for three calendar months. Except in special circumstances, only the pensioners themselves will be able to receive the cash.

SERIOUS CHARGE AGAINST A LLANRWST BARBER. COMMITTED FOR TRIAL. ALLEGED ATTEMPT TO ESCAPE FROM THE LOCK-UP. At a special Court at Llanrwst, on Monday, before Dr. Jones (presiding), Messrs 0. Isgoed Jones, L. W. Jelf-Petit, and L. 0. R. Ashley, a local barber named Moses Davies was charged in custody with being in possession of house- breaking implements, at 1.30 a.m. on Sunday morning, in Market-square. Mr J. E. Hum- phreys defended. P.C. M. E. Roberts said he was standing in the recess near the Albion Hotel, about 1.10 a.m. on Sunday, when he observed a man coming up the street from the /direction of Station-road. Instead of coming straight on, however, he turn- ed near the North and South Wales Bank, and went as far as London House, where he sudden- ly stopped. The Square was in darkness at the time, so that witness could not see the man pro- perly. When he heard the man stop, witness stepped into the road, and walked towards him. Thereupon, the man walked in his direction, to- wards Denbigh-street. Witness wishe/d him "Good-night," but the man made no reply. Witness then called upon him to stop, which ilia did. He then recognised,the man as the defen- dant, Moses Davies, a barber, of Denbigh-street. He asked defendant what he was doing out that time of the night, and ho replied, "You have no business to ask me such a question." Witness repeated his question, and defendant, after some hesitation, replir/d that he had been to Dr. Lloyd Williams. Witness enquired what he wanted with Dr. Williams, and be replied, "That's my business." Witness, noticing that the defendant's loft hand coat pocket was very bulky, asked to be shown the contents. Defendant replied, "You have no right to ask me to show the contents of my pocket except at the Police Station." De- fendant then took out of his pocket a handker- chief and some letters, but as the pocket still presented a bulky appearance, witness felt it. Ho then searched him and found the implement produced in the pocket, part of it having passejd through a hole in the lining of the pocket. He asked defendant what was the "rasp" (or1, ftnd he replied, "It is used by shoemakers." He then asked the defendant to accompany him to the Police Station, and on the way the defen- dant volunteered the remark, "I wanted to see the doctor for mysøU, as I had a pain in my aide." On the way to the Police Station, wit- ness CSW upon P.C. Holgate, who asked the defendant why he wanted to see the doctor, but he made no reply. Holgate then enquired whether anyone had seen him ringing the bell at Dr. Williams' surgery, and he replied that Arthur Owen, of Hazel Bank, had. The defen- dant was then removed to the Police Station. Witness subsequently accompanied the Superin- tendent and the defendant to the tatter's shop where he was left by the superintendent in charge £ PurinS the absence of Knpt. Wooliam the defendant opened a drawer and produced a screwdriver, now in oourt. There was also a smaU hammer. When Supt, Woonam returned he showed him the implement, and the superintendent asked defemdant bow it waa i that the handle had been split. Defendant reo 1 plied that it was his father's oM tool, but gavit no explanation of the split. Defendant: It is a shoemaker's tool, and waS split before I was born. CONSTABLE CROSS-EXAMINED. Cross-examined by Mr Humphreys: He did not know that the defendant combined umbrella. mending with his work as barber. He had known him for about six months. During his night duties witness often saw men walking in the streets at all hours of the night, but only suspected men under certain circumstances. He did not know when defendant closed his shop. Witness stootd in the recess by the Albion Hotel from 12.40 p.m. until 1.10 a.m. He could not say whether the defendant was engaged at hia shop until 12.30 a.m. Supt. Woollam: We know that he was in fact. Further cross-examined: Witness said the Square was in darkness at 12.40 a.m. The de- fendant's movements roused witness' suspicions. He could not say whether it was his face or back that was turned towards London House, owing to the darkness. He could not swear whether there was a light near Regent House or not. The defendant stated that while on the way to Dr. Williams' he spoke to Arthur Owen anid Tommy Roberts, a butcher. Witness had seen the two men mentioned that night, but found nothing suspicious in their movements, and both answered him when he said "Good night" to them. Re-examined by Supt. Woollam: The fact that the defendant stopped near London House aroused his suspicion. He had no idea then who the man was, but it was his duty to find out who he was, and what he was doing. P.C. Holgate (deposed that P.C. Roberts called at his house about 1.30 a.m. on Sunday with the defendant in charge. Witness asked defendant what he was doing out at that time of the morning. He replied that he had been to see Dr. Williams. Witness enquired why he went there, but he offered no reply. Witness then asked him if he had seen the Dr., and he re- plied that he had not, as he had failed to hear him ring. He then asked him if anyone haJd seen him near the Dr.'s house, and he replied that Arthur Owen had. He also asked him why he carried the implement produced in his pocket, and he replied that he had been mending his boots with it. SUPERINTENDENT'S EVIDENCE. Supt. Woollam stated that P.C. Roberta brought the defendant to the police station about 1.30 on Sunday morning. Witness ask the defendant what he wanted with the "rasp," arii he replied that he had been using it to re- pair his boots. The pair of boots on his feet showed signs of having undergone repair a few days before. Witness examined the" rasp," and found that it was made of the best steel, sharpened at one end, and bent in such a way as to make it a powerful jemmy strong enough to open a door, window, or a toox. Supt. Woollam then gave the defendant's replies to a series of questions which corroborated the evi- dence of the two constables. When witness, the constable, and the defendant reachejd the shop, witness left the constable in charge and left, with the shop key, to find out whether it fitted another door, which it did not. On his return the oonstable showed him the s-rew-i driver which the defendant said he utilised to r pair umbrellas. But he only saw an old umbrella rib in the shop amongst a pile of papers. Wit- ness proposed to give evidence to connect, as he alleged, the Defendant with a recent attempt at housebreaking. Mr Humphreys: I object to any evidence being offered which is not connected with last Sunday morning. Supt. Wooliam maintained that he could provt that the two implements produced had been re- cently used in an attempt to break into a build- ing. Mr Humphreys: I formally object to such evi- dence being offered. The Bench, however, decided that the evidence should be hearld. Supt. Woollam proceeded to say that on Mon- day, December 14th, it was reported to him that an attempt had been made to break into Mr Bradley's lock-up shop on the previous night, December 13th. He thereupon visited the pre- mises, and found that three doors had been tampered with. The first door leading from the passage into the shop showed marks of a jemmy upon it. A second door lerfling to the room at the back of the shop showed similar marks, while the third door leading from the kitchen at the back of the house to the room, where the second door opened into had the lock forced open, while part of the door post had been wrenched off. An entrance would have been effetted but for the fact that it was bolted from the inside. On gaining possession of the tools (produced) on Sunday last he com- pared them with the marks on the different doors, and found that they corresponded exactly. Both the email tool and the wrench fitted the marks. He had, therefore, cut pieces of the woodwork from the doors, and now produced one piece of wood which the justices would see bore two heavy marks, one of which exactly fitted tha wrench, while the other fitted the screwdrive. Supt.' Wooliam added that the mark on the piece of wood produced was the only one made by the small tool, so that most likely the handle had been split at the first attempt. Supt., Wooliam then produced the lock on the socket, which, he said, also bore the marks of a jemmy or wrench, and fitted the defendant's implement exactly. John Arthur Owen, of Hazel Bank. deposed that he was going home from his work about 12.30 a.m., when he stopped to talk to Tommy Roberts. The ^defendant passed them, and made some remark about a light in the Town Hall, and went in the direction of Dr. William^* surgery. He returned in about five minutes, but offered no remark in passing back again* He did not see the defendant ring at Dr. Wil- liaIru!' house as ib was out of sight. Mr Humphreys remarked that if the Superin- tendent prefered no further charges against tha defendant he would not trouble the Bench with an address at that juncture. Supt. Woollam replied that if the Bench con24 mitted the defendant on the present charge ha would not proceed with the other. Mr Humphreys: Then I reserve our defence. In answer to the charge the Defendant pleaded "not guilty," and reserved his defence. He was oommitted for trial at the January Quarter Sessions. The Defendant applied for bail. Supt. Wooliam objected, remarking that that was a serious charge. The Chairman: We will hear the next case against him first. Mr Humphreys applied for legal assistance for the prisoner under the Poor Prisoners' Act. on the ground that he could offer a goqd defence.. The application was granted. ANOTHER CHARGE. Supt. Woollam then said he would proceed with the second charge, "that the defendant had not complied with his licence as a probationer." P.C. Holgate said he was present at the Ruthin Quarter Sessions last January, when the defend* ant was realised as a probationer for two years for another offence. Defendant hajfd since re- sided at Llanrwst, and witness saw him almcst daily. While on his official visit to public-houses he had often seen the defendant drinking in- toxicating liquors and singing. He had also seen him in company with the two men waiting their trial for alleged housebreaking at Gwydr Isaf. In reply to the charge the Defendant pleaded "not guilty," and said he reserved his Jlefence. He was committed for trial at the Quarter Sessions next January. Mr Humphreys repeated the application for bail. ALLEGED ATTEMPT TO ESCAPE. The Superintendent: If you allow bail I hope it will be a heavy one. The defendant yesterday made a desperate attempt to escape by trying to climb over the yard wall, and very nearly succeeded. The Chairman said that the Bench had decidejd to allow the defendant bail, himself in £40 and two sureties for B20 each. POLICE COMPLIMENTED. The Chairman, on behalf of the Bench, thanked and complimented Supt. Wooliam and the constables on the smart way they had acted, not only during the present case, but also in the other cases recently heard. It was a great comfort to the public to feel that the town waa so well looked after.

WOMEN'S NATIONAL ANTI- SUFFRAGE LEAGUE. (To the Editor of the "Pioneer.") Sir,—Will you allow us in your valuable oolumns to make known to those who sympathise with us that the Woemn's National Anti-Suffraget League is now issuing petition forms for signature* against the granting of the Parliamentary suff- rage to women. Each sheet holds 25 signatures; and as many copies may be required will be seat free, application to the Secretary, Woman's Nafckmal Anti-Suffrage League, Cox ton House, Toth3]-«t., Westminster, S. W. Until now we have made no public announcement of the petition; but a8 letters are being constantly received at our offices, asking what we are doing in this way, we tnum it will save time to acquaint with these factq those of your readers who are interested in th< advancement of the objects of our League.—I am* yours faithfully, (Signed) 8. WEARDALE (Chairman of Petition Sub-Committeet

should insist upon an equality of oppor- tunities also. When that stage was reached, he had no doubt that the successes of the Llanrwst County School would be greater than any achieved in the past, great even though those be. Unless he was mistaken the next great step in the his- tory of education in the county would be the differentiation of the county schools-(applause)- but he hoped that their leaders would move cautiously and circumspectly in the matter. In Wales they were too apt to go from one extreme to another. What they needed was evolution in the true sense of the term, so that all the energy and efforts of the past might be assimilated and conserved in the present. But it would appear quite practicable, without any revolutionary change, to adapt the county schools more to the needs of the locality, so that the studies of tho pupils might have a more direct bearing upon their daily life (applause). As a matter of fact, provision was being made in the amended scheme for such differentiation. The teaching market was at present over-stocked, and so were most of the professional markets, but there were plenty of other spheres in which Welshmen as yet have hardly figured at all, e.g., the Civil Service, in which they would find Irishmen and Scotchmen galore, but comparatively few Welshmen. Again. very little had been done in the schools for the encouragement of THE SCIENTIFIC SIDE OF AGRICULTURE. He was assured by people who ought to know that agricultural science is in a very backward state indeed in Wales. Of course, he recognised that the land question was an exceedingly com- plex one, and that the economic aspect of the question was a most important one; but few people would deny that the educational aspect was almost, if not quite, as important (hear, hear). But he hoped before long to see at least one county school in this county fitted and equipped to give advanced instruction in agriculture; an- other adapting its curriculum specially to suit tho needs of Civil Service students (applause). And he saw no reason why there should not be a mili- tary side attached to one of the schools, so that pupils might be prepared direct for the great military colleges. But one or two would cer- tainly be required to do work on the same lines as the English public schools, and prepare their pupils for the older Universities. By a system of inter-school scholarships, a pupil would be able to pursue to the higher stages whatever branch of study ho might desire. Such a system would, no doubt, conduce not only to efficiency but also to economy. It would be objected that this broad- ening of the curriculum involved great additional expenditure, and he admitted that he rather agreed that the rating process had gone to its furthest limits. There was always a danger of going too much in advance of public opinion; no movement, however good it might be, could hope to achieve much success unless it had a firm back- ing of public opinion behind it. The absence of such a backing generally resulted in a reaction. But most people would admit that this broaden- ing of the curriculum must inevitably take place, and the question that suggested itself was where was the menev to come from? NEGLECTED WALES. He contended that Wales did not get anything like its fair share of contribution from the Im perial Exchequer-—(hear, hear)—and he would quote some figures in support of the contention. First of all, with respect to grants towards tho oolleges: England got E117,000, Scotland £ 73,000, Ireland f;102,000, Wales 216,000. He urged them to specially note the contributions to Wales &nd Ireland. In Wales there were 200 more Univer- sity students than in Ireland ("Shame"). In ad- dition to that, in Scotland and Ireland schools of science and art are being maintained by the Go- vernment. Those two countries had also had large building grants. So far Wales had only had' £ 30,000. Under the Irish University Act of 1908, Ireland got C230,000 building grants. That anomaly in the matter of building grants to- wards the colleges became still more patent when they considered that in Wales there were twice as many secondary school pupils in proportion to the population as there were in any of the other three countries, and the demand for oolleges and, grants towards oolleges was consequently pro- portionately greater (applause). He believed Glasgow had a building grant of £120,000 from the Government when they were rebuilding the University in 1868. Taking again the case of libraries and museums; in the other countries. such institutions had been built, and were being maintained by the Government. Not-so in Wales. The only contribution that had been promised by the Government so far to Wales was half the oost of maintenance. Again in Ireland, Scotland, and England they would find public parks, bofeumc gardens, geological survey offices, observatories, royal colleges of science, etc., all maintained by the Government. There were no such public buildings in Wales except perhaps the Inland Revenue Offices, which took away as much re- venue as possible out of the Principality, ("Shame"). The cost of educating a child in an elementary school in Ireland was practically de- frayed by the Government, in Scotland about 60 per cent. of the oost was defrayed by the Government, in Wales only be- tween 40 and 50 per cent. To put it still more. shortly, the amount contributed per head towards education out of the rates in Wales is. 5s 8d, 4 Scotland 4s 10d, England 3s, Ireland practically nothing-it worked out at about lgd per head. What had Scotland and Ireland. done to merit that preferential treatment? or, perhaps, he should ask what had Walee done to merit such an injustice. How were matters to be remedied? How were we to get larger grants from the Trea- sury to defray the costs of instruction in subjects which were at present defrayed out of the rates, e.g., forestry, training of teachers, agriculture and similar subjects. He quite agreed with the Chair- man that tho oost of those subjects should not be borne out of the rates. Perhaps the Chairman would reply "by altering the political representa- tion of Wales and sending to Parliament other and more competent members" (laughter). He (Mr Davies) cared not bow it was to be done provided it was done—(cheers)—and it would appear that in the interests of justice and fair-play the mat- ter should receive attention at once (loud ap- plause). He was convinced that before justice was done to Wales they must have a Minister for Wales who would continually press the claims of Wales upon the Treasury, and whoso pride and pleasure it would be to secure as large a contri- bution as possible from the Imperial Treasury for the Principality (loud applause). The Treasiqy, like the Kingdom of Heaven, must be taken by violence, and it is the APPLICATION OF PERSISTENT VIOLENCE— if be might use the expreffiion--that had secure3 the huge grants for Ireland and Scotland. He trusted that the day was not far distant when they should ss-e a Welsh Council established. Ita establishment was as neoeesa.ry to secure justice in financial matters to the Principality as it was to give unity and completion to the educational edi- fice already reared in the country (applause). It was one of the best signs of the time that men of all shades of political and religious opinions were heartily co-operating in the matter. What they wanted above all things in Wales was to rise the edueation question out of the political ruts (applause). May I, before ooncluding (said Mr Davies), with the greatest respect and deference address one word to the parents of the pupils. It appears to me—and I speak, not without tfiinirmg and not without enquiries, for during the last four or five years I have seen and visited many of the best primary and secondary schools in the Kingdom, including some of the large English public schools —that there is a great danger of over pressure in our seooridaty schools. The cult of the ficate has become far too proiriinent, a.nd break- down, in health is a matter of comparatively fre- quent occurrence, especially amongst the girls. No amount of learning !s worth having at thp ex- pense of health. I afraid that far too little emphasis is laid, especially in the rural schools, upon two ccunter-actmg agents to this high pressure, viz., good food—J am making no apology for referring to this, for I know of many brilliant pupils who have suffsroo for life through neglect of this most important matter. The physical factor is being recognised daily as being more and more important in the struggle for life which is daily becoming keener. In spite of our boasted democracy and socialistic legislation, the struggle for existence shows no signs of abate- ment anywhere. Another point I should like to call attention to, though perhaps it may not be necessary h-re, is the importance of every child having an abundance of physical exercise. If I had my own way, I would make it compulsory upon every able bodied pupil to take part in the games. The moral value of games is not to be overlooked. In playing football or cricket the boy in playing with might and main for his side, and subordinating the interest of self to the in- terest of his school or team, learns a valuable lesson in combination and discipline which may serve him in good stead in after life (applause). There is nothing that a Welshman requires so much as the power of combination, and nothing has proved so destructive in the past as this lack of combination. Lastly, I would urge all parents to inspire their children with a firm faith and profound respect for their teachers, and to take pride and pleasure in their school. In order to derive the greatest benefit from any teacher whe is worthy of the name, the pupil must have faith in him and surrender himself completely unto his power. Faith in a teacher is even more neces- sary than faith in a doctor, and I would very respectfully impress upon every parent the need of co-operating with the teachers in every way, and of giving them every assistance in their power, both as I said before by endeavouring to inspire respect for the teachers in the pupils and by impressing upon thent the absolute necessity of carrying out their instruction (hear, hear). As parents, we all desire to leave our children as well off as we can, and to make their path in life a little easier than it proved for us; but under modern conditions, it is but a truism to say that a healthy well disciplined mind, in a healthy and well disciplined body, is a far better legacy than any pecuniary legacy that we can bequeath them (loud applause). ENTERTAINMENT. ( The following scholars then sang very sweetly, "A merry Welsh maid," accompanied by Miss Holt, B.A., the senior mistress, and assisteal in the chorus by the others:—Annie Lloyd Jones, Blodwen Jones, Dilys Jones, Eurolwen Jenes, Jane Elizabeth Jones, Grace Price Evans, Phyllis Wynne, and Megan Williams, all attired in charming Welsh costumes. The comedy, "Lady Elizabeth Poole Gibbons," was capably enacted, "Connie" especially distin- guishing herself. The characters represented were: "Matid" (a young vicar's wife), Sarah Florence Roberts; "Connie" (her friend Laxly Constance Poole), Elizabeth Hughes; "Sarah" (the house parlour maid), Olwen Davies. The comedy "When woman rules a ladies' court of law," created great amusement, the characters being faithfully represented by young actresses, who had been admirably trained by Miss Holt, assisted by Miss Jones. The characters were :—"Lady Dorothy Lynde" (judge), Elizabeth Hughea; "Muriel Harding" (counsel for the defence), Sarah Florence Roberta; "Cecilia Gray" (counsel for the prosecution), Catherine L. Keates; "Ethel Norris" (clerk of the court), Annie Pierce Jones; "Margaret Lucas," Dilys Williams; "Katherine Cartwright," Nancy Jones; "Margaret Cartwright," Madge Jenkins; "Isabel Watson" (the jury), Katherine Williams: "Maud Raynor," Enid R. Jones; "Frances Gray," Olwen Rowlands; "Molly" (a milkmaid), Ellen Williams; "Miss Frodhead" (a lady_ lecturer), Lucy A. Roberts; "Miss Leslie," Louisa J. Barnwell; "The Cook," Jane Catherine Jones. The song "When I was a girl, you know," was well rendered by Ellen Mary Jones, Annie Jane Ow-en, Norah Lloyd Jonas, Annie Jones, and Catherine M. Williams. On the motion of the Chairman, seconded by the Rev. J. Gower, a hearty vote of thanks WM accorded Mr J. C. Davies; and on the motion of Mr Farr, a warm vote of thanks was accorded Miss Holt, the head mistress, and Miss Jones, the assistant mistress, for their splendid work in training the children in the parts they had ex- acted so weil during the evening. The proceedings terminated with the National Anthem.