Welsh Gazette and West Wales Advertiser

NOTES AND COMMENTS .*• Another break-up has beset Mr. Balfour's Cabinet. Mr. Wyndham has been made a scapegoat for the Ulster Unionists. ———— Mr. John Morley's speech at the Welsh National banquet, promoted by the London Cymru Fydd Society, is printed in another part of this issue. At a meeting of the Council of the Free Churches at Manchester this week it was decided unanimously, and with enthusiasm, to support the people of Wales in their fight against the Education Department. -/I- It will be seen by an official announcement in our advertising columns that the Cardi- ganshire County Council desires to draw at- tention to the chief provision of the Mid- wives Act, 1902, which materially affects the legal position of all midwives. -1/- Lord Milner has resigned, and will soon return to England. This is a great relief. Lord Milner, no doubt, has acted from a sense of duty to Great Britain, but he is en- tirely out of sympathy with the principles of freedom, and with what we believe to be the best traditions of the British empire. The battle now proceeding around Mukden is described as the greatest battle in the world's history, a million men, it is estimated being engaged on both sides. The Russian casualties up to Monday are reported to be fifteen thousand. The Japanese appear to be advancing, notwithstanding the strenu- ous resistance offered them. Mr. Morgan-Richardson, of Noyadd Wilym, knows how to turn grass into gold. Two hundred and fifty guineas is not a bad price for a shorthorn bull not eighteen months old. Number and quality considered, it is said there has never been a better all-round dis- play of Shorthorns in Bingley Hall. Out of 79 entries, Mr. Morgan-Richardson's fine roan bull was awarded the first prize. Other successful local exhibitors included Mr. R. S. Rowland, The Garth, and Mr. E. Lewis- Bowen. Clynview, Boncath. I A public meeting, presided over by Col- onel H. Davies-Evans, Lord Lieutenant of Cardiganshire, was held at Llanybyther on Monday to further the arrangements in con- nection with the forthcoming visit of Prin- cess Christian to lay the foundation stone of the Alltymynydd Sanatorium. -lI- The Aberystwyth Town Council on Tues- day agreed to make a grant of £ 1,000 to- wards the fund now being raised for the es- tablishment of a Welsh Library at that town, and to appeal to the local authorities to support the application of Aberystwyth for the location of the Welsh National Library at the Aberystwyth College. -/1- Sir William Anson ia believed to contem- plate "defaulting," as it is called, the Edu- cation Authority for the Isle of Wight, about the same time as he "defaults" the Educa- tion Authority of Merionethshire. This is to show impartiality as between Wales and England. The West Riding of Yorkshire Education Authority is also reported to be very near the point of "default.' -lI- The Earl of Cawdor, who succeeds Lord Selborne as First Lord of the Admiralty, is better known to many of our readers as Vis- count Emlyn, under which title he was a Welsh M.P., from 1874 to 1885. As Chair- man of the Great Western Railway he has, we think, invariably wielded his great in- fluence for good; and the extension of the line to Newcastle Emlyn is, undoubtedly, due to his efforts. -11- Mr. Winston Churchill, M. P., speaking en Saturday at the dinner of the Manchester Automobile Club, anticipated that the motor- car industry would develop into one of our greatest engineering trades. He suggested that instead of employing foreign drivers of cars we should take the opportunity which was offered for the training of English driv- ers. by apprenticeship or otherwise, and that promising smart lads from the elementary schools should be drawn upon for the pur- pose. -f)- It seems that the Board of Education is not disposed to precipitate unduly the fight in Merionethshire. Instead of immediately declaring the county in default, the heads of the Department have given the other side to understand that they are prepared to meet a deputation from the Merioneth Edu- cation Committee for the purpose of further discussing the situation. There is very little doubt but that this proposal will be accept- ed, and although it would be premature to attempt to indicate the result it is not im- probable that a satisfactory solution may be arrived at within the next two or three weeks. The "Daily Chronicle" observes that Mr. Balfour's Government is visibly tottering. The incidents of last week, even more than the divisions themselves with their attenu- ated majorities, prove conclusively that the Ministry has forfeited the confidence of its own supporters. It is the duty of the Op- position to accelerate the inevitable by spirited and remorseless fighting. There is dissatisfaction in the country as well as in the House at the want of vigour on the front bench. Ai Parliamentary situation almost without parallel gives to the Opposition a unique opportunity. '-11- One of Mr. Chamberlain's "dying" indus- tries-the Welsh tinplates—fully maintained its record of progress during February. De- spite the lamentations of the Tariff Reform- ers, the trade is going ahead with astonish- ing rapidity. The exports (for February amounted to 28,961 tons, as compared with 24,357 tons for February, 1904, or an in- crease in value of over £ 60,000, while the increase in value for January and February as compared with the corresponding months of last year is nearly £ 100,000. A remark- able fact is that the United States during February nearly trebled her importation of British plates as compared with her impor- tation in February, 1904. -11- A Bill of considerable interest to a large class of farmers was read a second time in the House of Commons last week. This was the Compensation for Damage to Crops Bill, which provides that when damage is caused to crops, hedges, or plantations by fire arising from sparks or cinders emitted from a locomotive engine on railways the rail- way company owning the engine shall, not- withstanding their statutory powers or the provisions of any special Act, be liable to pay the amount of the damage. Mr. Mount, who moved the second reading, stated that a person whose crops had been damaged is, under the present state of the law, unable to obtain compensation unless he is able to prove that the engine had been worked neg ligently or that the railway company had not adopted the best means of obviating danger. Apart from the difficulty of identi- fying the particular engine, this state of the law virtually prevented the farmer obtain- ing any compensation for the damage he had suffered. -1/- Mr. A. Fell owes, speaking on behalf of the Board of Agriculture, stated that the Board had received more representations on this subject from the farming classes than on almost any other. The danger chiefly arose from the express trains. One of the com- panies at least had to his knowledge used improved appliances for preventing the emit- ting of sparks, and since then had not had a single complaint, and another company used oil as fuel, which also had removed any cause of complaint. What these companies I had done could, of course, be done by others. It was desirable, he thought, that the ques- tion should be settled on a friendly basis, and he was sure the House would not desire to do anything that would not desire to do anything that would give the companies ground to complain of a breach of faith. On behalf of the Board of Agriculture he fully admitted the principle that agriculturists ought to be protected from fire, and that under the present state of the law they were practically unable to prove negligence. It seemed to him that if the onus of proof were thrown on the railway companies there could be no possible ground to complain of a breach of faith on the part of Parliament on the subject of the powers granted to the companies when they acquired the land. .zr-

All letters must be written on one side of the pape awtt accompanied by the nantie an 1 address of the writer, as a guarantee of good fnith.

THE PROPOSED ABERYSTWYTH ISOLATION HOSPITAL. To the Editor of the "Welsh Gazette." Sir,—Once more I must ask your indulgence with what I most sincerely hope will be my last com- munication on the subject of the erection of an Isolation Hospital at Llanbadarn Fawr—this time at the earnest solicitation of a number of the inhabitants of Aberystwyth. Since my last letter to you on the subject events have moved rapidly though with intense secrecy. I am told on one hand that there is not the most remote chance of its erection, involving as it does the ultimate ruin of the town .that as the Local Gov- ernment Board must have an enquiry before sanc- tioning the loan, that they will recognise the danger to the town and will refuse to do so. On the other hand I am told, on very good authority, though I confess I can scarcely believe it pos- sible, that the sanction of the Local Government Board to the site, has actually been obtained, secretly, behind the backs of the District Council and all parties directly interested. If such can really be the case, will not the enquiry before that Board, merely to grant the loan, be more or less a farce If the inhabitants of Aberystwyth will not move in the matter, they will find the whole thing rushed on them, when it is too late. It was (nly last Thursday that I was asked by an Alderr n, if I would not try and save the town by gettir;5 up a petition against the scheme, as it would > o al- most universally signed. Now, Sir, what is at the bottom of this scheme which must involve. the town in ruin? Is it to save the amour propre of the two or three of its originators or is it merely to save the two or three hundred pounds required for the purchase of a site free from all danger? The town of Aberystwyth stands unrivalled in consequence of the unassailable purity of its water supply, tamper with that supply and where will Aberystwyth be? Will rival seaside resorts conceal the fact that there is a fever hospital in close proximity to the entire water supply of the town? Once let a watering place go down can it ever be reinstated in public estimation. The pro- moters of the scheme state that the objections to it are purely sentimental, though evidence can be adduced that the danger is very real; but are visitors to Aberystwyth devoid of any sentiment? What will their sentiments be, when taking their favourite walk by the Reservoir, to see the death trap prepared for them by the combination of a Fever Hospital in the very next field to the Re- servoir containing the water they are obliged to drink ? I have no doubt it will be thought that I am stating the case extravagantly, I do not think so, when the thing is done and the town irretrievably ruined, it will be too late. Will no one move in the matter. I have done by best. I can do no more. GEORGE WEIR COSENS. Bronpadarn, 6th March, 1905.

The Proposed Lampeter to Aberavron railway. [By Diwlais.] As stated in my letter last week, the fate of this scheme depends almost entirely upon: 1(1) Reduction of proposed Capital. < (2) Grants from Public Bodies. Mr. Jonathan makes it clear that doubts exist in the minds of Mr. Peter Jones and of other leading members on the County Council in regard to the financial prospects of the undertaking. Such doubts, presumably, arise from no antipathy towards the scheme itself but rather from a desire to protect the public interests; and it is the bounden duty of the promoters and supporters of the Railway to dispel this uncertainty before huge sums of the public money is voted by the Council towards the project. With the Capital of the Railway fixed at JE100000. it would be interesting to know from what source the Company will derive sufficient revenue to pay its working expenses and yield interest on the loans of the County Council, so as to pay a dividend of 3 per cent., the profits must reach £3,000 per annum In anticipation of their falling short of this, sum, the Council should be offered a sub- stantial security against the total loss of the sum invested. The authorities of a neighbouring Railway recommend the Light Railway as a sound financial venture, but since that particular Railway pays no dividends with much larger traffic at its command, their advice, although well-conceived, can carry but little weight. To prove the paying prospects of the Rail- way, Mr. Jonathan says the four fairs at Llanarth and the two at Aberayron will con- tribute to the ordinary traffic 140 loads of live stock per annum. Each of these, he says, will bring in a sum of JEo 10s. Od., mak- ing a grand total of C770 a year. This is an unpardonable miscalculation. Railway Com- panies generally charge only a shilling) a mile for a cattle waggon whatever number of beasts it may contain. At this rate, the charge for hauling each load from Aberayron to Lampeter would only be 12s. and the six fairs would therefore add only zC84 per an- num to the receipts instead of £ 770. It is not necessary to further dilate upon Mr. Jonathan's statistics except to state that his estimates concerning coal and mer- chandize are equally over-stated. An amusing item in the prospectus of the Railway is the seemingly generous but well- conceived offer of the M. and M. Railway to work the traffic on the line at actual cost. Such an open agreement, would allow the owners no control over the expenditure and it is possible to conceive that it might serve some useful purpose to make the expenses greater than the receipts. This would lead the little line into debt, and be ultimately aeized by its creditors as a mortgage for the balance due. In other parts of the country standard Railways guarantee to work traffic on Light Railways tor a term of years at about GO per cent of the gross receipts. If a similar arrangement were made in this instance, and if the capital were substantially reduc- ed the County Council and others could re- gard the scheme with greater favour. That the capital is abnormal may be guag- ed from the fact that a standard railway-16 miles long—was recently constructed from Porthywaen to Llanrhaiadr in North Wales with a total capital of £ 45,000. It passes through a tract of country which has enor- mous geographical difficulties, as bad if not worse than that between Aberayron and Lampeter. At tlhe distance between these towns is only 12 miles it seems unreasonable that its capital should be twice that of the Tanat Valley Railway. There can be no doubt that railway com- munication through the Vale of Ayron ia sadly needed, but this result will never be accomplished unless the prospective schemes rest on a sound financial foundation. If this Railway were embarked on a capital of R40,000, and the traffic thereon worked at a cost of GO per cent of the gross receipts, residents along the line would soon find that the County Council and the Treasury would lend hearty support to their Railway.

BLOATED ARMAMENTS LESSENING THE BURDEN. IT is satisfactory to learn that a decrease of three and a. half millions has been made in the Naval Estimates for the coming year. Let us hope that it is a real and not a merely apparent decrease. There would have been good cause for rejoicing could we be satisfied that this decrease is a sign of repentance on the part of the Government. But when it is borne in mind that this Government has carried its extravagencies to such abnormal lengths, has swollen the expenditure to a degree without parallel in the history of the country, and has increased the taxpayers' burden until it has become intolerable, it should not be counted a great virtue to it that it is now dropping an item or two from its bloated programme. It is stated that the reduction of 3l million 2 is due to some extent to sheer inability to spend the excessive allowance of a pro- digal Parliament, and to the fact that 11 2 million should be written off the Estimates on account of the bargain in the Chilian cruisers. Again, the apparent decrease of 3 million is still further discounted by the 2 new policy of laying down fewer ships at a time, and completing them more rapidly. Still, we should not be none the less grateful for retrenchment under the present circum- stances, to whatever cause or causes it may be due. But there remains ample room for further and much larger measures of reform in this direction and the next Parliament should resolutely apply itself to the re- trenchment of the national expenditure upon armaments)* We have before us the spectacle of what had been possibly the greatest military empire in the world declining in power; while near at hand we have our neighbour France heartily and sincerely pledged to us in friendship. France, more- over, has already given a serious blow to militarism by reducing at one bold stroke its army-in number and cost-by some- thing like a third. Such a reform should affect us profoundly, for it is a pledge of sincere devotion to the ideals of peace and a Liberal Government in Britain ought to know how to utilize such a, tendency in France. Of course, no country can be ex- pected to reduce her means of defence to such an extent as would threaten her honour or compromise her security. What is wanted is a joint action between the Great Powers. The continuous and un- checked growth of European armaments has reached a point which has become intoler- able to all, and a concerted action is necess- ary in order to secure relief. The pressure of military and naval expenditure threatens States with bankruptcy, cripples the in- dustries, and impoverishes the homes of the people, and diverts to wasteful preparation for slaughter funds that would otherwise be available for purposes of social amelioration and reform. To bring this ruinous era of international anarchy, with its suicidal com- petition in armaments, to a close, we must send to Parliament more men of the stamp of the late MR. HENRY RICHARD, and less of those who love war, and are imbued with the spirit of militarism. It is, we think. pretty well agreed that the present religious revival is, to a great extent, a protest against the encroachment of materialism, and a rebounding of the wave of warlike frenzy which swept over the country in the mad mafficking days a few years since. Would thatithe revival were to spread and take such a deep and lasting hold upon the people that they would return to power at the next Gen- eral Election -and that cannot be very far off —only those men who will pledge themselves to further the ideals of disarmament and arbitration, and to pursue a policy com- mended alike by patriotism, common sense and Christianity.

MACHYNLLETII Obituary.—The death took place on Satur- day last of Mrs. Campbell, formerly of the Wynnstay xlrms and Unicorn Hotel, Mach- ynlleth, at the age of 72 years. Mrs. Camp- bell had resided for some years with her brother at West Bromwich, and it was there she passed away. She had resided with her husband at the Wynnstay Arms for about 30 years. Mr. Campbell died eleven years ago. After his death Mr.s. Campbell went to reside at Bodlondeb, and she left Machyn- lletl about eight years ajfjo. It may be mentioned that she was an aunt of Mrs. Tho- mas, wife of the popular Aberystwyth sta- tion master. Mrs. Campbell was well-known at Aberystwyth, which place she visited every summer. The funeral took place on Tuesday, the interment being made at the family vault in the Machynlleth churchyard. The chief mourners were Mr. Beasley, West Bromwich, brother; Mrs. Boardmanj Aber- ystwyth: and 3Vljrs. Dan Campbell, Leices- ter, sisters-in-law); Mr. Thompson and Mr. Johnson (nephews), etc. The funeral was also attended by a large number of deceased's friends from Machynlleth and district. The coffin was covered with wreaths df choice flowers sent by sympathetic relatives and I friends. URBAN DISTRICT COUNCIL. I The monthly meeting of the Urban District Council was held on Tuesday, when there were) present: Messrs Henry Lewis, chair- man. R. Gillart. J. Pugh, D. Smith, D. C. Davies, T. Parsons, W. R. Williams, J. Mi- cah, E Reese, H. R. Humphreys, J. M. Breese and Rd. Owen, with Mr. J. Rowlands (clerk), Dr. Davies (medical officer), and Mr. Thomas (inspector and sanitary surveyor).— A letter was read from Lord Herbert Vane- Tempest, regretting his inability to be pre- sent. It was resolved to support the application -of Aberystwyth for tho Welsh National Museum and Library. Letters were read from the Plas estate office granting temporary use of water from Cwmrwden brook, whilst the reservoir is being cleaned out. The Clerk reported that the election had been fixed for April 1st, the hours of polling to be 12 to 8. Letter read from the Marchioness (D)., of Londonderry and the Marquis of Londonderry acknowledging the vote of condolence on the death of Lord Henry Vane-Tempest. Medical Officer presented this annual re- port. The birth-rate was 20.1. the lowest with the exception of one year for the past ten years. The death-rate was 26, an in- crease of 9.9 on previous years. It was de- cided that the report should be circulated and that the medical officer should draft simple rules for dealing with tuberculosis and the rearing of infants. Mr. Evan Morgan and Mr. J. A. Evans machinist, were appointed overseers for the ensuing year, and Mr. Rhys Lewis was ap- pointed assistant overseer at a salary of £15. It was resolved to engage Major Tulloch io assist the Council in selecting a. sewage dis- posal scheme for the town.

Aberystwyth Local Govern- ment Board Enquiry. A Local Governftaejat Board enquiry into the Provisional Orcfer relating to the Har- bour now being applied for by the Corpora- tion was conducted at the Town Hall ou Wednesday morning by Mr. P. M. CrosHi- waite, M.Inst. C.E. The notice convening the inquiry stated that "whereas there had been submitted for the consideration of t Local Government Board the draft of a Pro- visional Order promoted under the General Pier and Harbour Acts, for authorising the Mayor, Aldermen, and Burgesses of the Borough of Aberystwyth to levy rates ati their existing harbour in accordance with a new schedule, to borrow money for the pur- poses of works, and to charge certain funds under their control for securing the repay- ment of such money with interest, and for other purposes. And whereas it is'proposed that the said Mayor, Aldermen, and Bur gesses should bo empowered by the said Pro. visional Order to charge their Corporate pro- perty and the rents and profits derived from Corporation lands as a security for moneyJr to be borrowed under the powers of the ss A* Order. TV" There were present: The Mayor (Mr Thomas), Ex-Mayor (Mr. Isaac Hopijfj, Aldermen Peter Jones and E. P. W le Councillors C. M. Williams, R. DoUtt o Captain T. Doughton, Captain David Jaives, m V Jonc*, Mr. J. Watkins, Mr T Griffiths J P., Mr. Lester, Mr. A. J. Hu^he« Vn C- Massey (assistant bor- ough accountant), Mr. Rees Jones (borough surveyor), Dr. Thomas (medical officer) Mr, Ashmore, and Mr. Taylor. r|^° p^Pector entered in detail into the lancial position of the Corporation In. hw ft0i the Il1!S^ctor Town Clerk said £ ]«8?8 overdraft at the end of 1904 ras LT 'I 1 was included £ 10,647 Haibour loan account. A sum of £ 100rt annually had been transferred from the bor ough fund to the Harbour aCcount.l-l?; nspector: What do you pay for your over- d att?—Town Clerk: 3* per cent. The Clerk Sh\°f £ W'6f7 had been <« account of harbour works in anticipation of the loan now asked for. They wera Xw for a loan of £ 14,000 from the Public Workf Loan Commissioners on account of this work wiShnavnat<>r; Wiea 3™ get^at yom win pay back what you have already uaid • Town Clerk: Yes and that at Dnee knocks 3-iu,uuu off the overdraft.—The In«T^o Cterk l7 VK6 £ 14'Q?° paid.—Town imT fund WrL bV'ePaid by means of a sink- ng lund. The harbour revenue is a Souritv CorI»™te in means of these two revenues an?t?r„ hTf meet and the annual interest. A provisional T rangement had been made that +i i fh^r ie?aid Within a term of Mty% £ £ Corpot ation m recent years had oaid bt^veon £ 2,700 and £ 4 4QO W n, the last SIX seven yeans, and tW tion of*0 PaKl towards the redemp' paid fhe Inspector remarked ESK2? S3 AS & tT"?,11 cji-nft u-.u • time their total over the harf^WoZZt^^ « coun WNe concerned there had not been any Their Anancial pœitio. w-as thoroughly sound, and they had consider- able nulrin in their borrowin{¡ powers undert colorable pSrS™ "tfX, 40 Vr:ilb?? ?an7in« from tli continue the grant of £ 1,000 a year nom the borough fund The Clerk said tillE last year there had been an exceptional expenditure over the thow „a8 I bala2el"dhLn<i.Certam ari vJv?°CT:- ?ULt the net r^ult is you Th« M indebted to the bank. Ihe Clerk replied.that they were not wil- to avoid"g 1Ut° iebt' Their P01^ beexn to a o l as much as possible going to the B-d o They had spent thousand^ out Of revenue on capital account. Ihe Inspector: Do you think that a eood cariying on businessP Would overdraft ? to pay off ^hat dent? y°U yourself it is pru- Town Clerk: No, I think the proper way is that capital expenditure should be defrayed now. S' at what k bein« The Inspector: I don't think anybodv bSinJS7 ltlS a g(K>d Way of carryiQg °a ^Town Clerk said the income from the borough fund, which was now about £ 3,000,. would in the course of ten years, be in- creased by £ 1,000. men^ r<;marked that for the mo- ment he could not see enough new works carried out to warrant the increase in the capital account overdraft. The Town Clerk said he would get the nec- oseary information on this point. The Clerk then explained how the Harbour came to be taken over by the town. In reply to further questions put by the Inspector it was stated that the depth ofi water at t'he Harbour would now be ten feet at neaps and 15 at ordinary spring tides. The estimated cost of the new works at the, date5 wis £ X13,375e °f engineer'8 **». «P to The Surveyor stated the roads of the town, were m a good condition, although not aa satisfactory as he would like to see them owing to the frequent pulling up of the streets by the Gas and Electric Light Cos. The Mayor remarked that Mr. Birchain Local Government Board inspector, informed him on Monday that he considered Aberyst- wyth the best paved town in Wales.

Earl Cawdor. FIIiST LORD OF THE ADMIRALTY. The Earl of Cawdor has been, appointed First. Lord of the Admiralty. He has been chairman of the Great Western Railway Corupany since 1095, but has not hitherto held any position in the Gov- ernment. In the present day Earl Cawdor is beet known as the chairman of the Great Western Railway, but in the near past he was well known politically. He sat in the House of Commons from 1874 to 1885, and before he entered the House of Lords in 189& he had contested South Manchester in 1892 against Sir H. Roscoe, and the Cricklade division of Wilts in 1898 against Lord Fitzmaurice, both unsuccess- fully. For the nine years in Parliament, the ablest Tory in Wales, as he was called, sat for Carmar- thenshire. The family have a seat there, Golden Grove, in the valley of the Towy, and another in Pembrokeshire, Stackpole Court, from which county the late Earl Cawdor, as Viscount Emlyn. was five times sent to Parliament unopposed. The most famous possession of the historic fam- ily is the old Cawdor Castle, at Nairn, the sub- ject of many a curious legend and ghost story. which has for centuries been in the possesion of the Campbells of Cawdor. The present earl (Frederick Archibald Vaughan Campbell. J.P., D.L.. A.D.C., to his Majesty the King) was born in 1847, and aftor a course at Eton and Christ Church entered on a political career soon after he left the University. In 1880 he was appointed one of the Ecclesiastical Commissioners and from 1886 to 1893 he acted as honorary Com- misioner in Lunacy. He became chairman of the G.W.R. in 1895, in the following year the Queen made him Lord Lieutenant of Pembrokeshire. In 1868 he married Lady Caroline Tumor, the daugh- ter of the ninth Earl of Winchilsea. Vv- ,-<. -0_ V

The marriage of Captain Price, sou and heir of Rhiwlas, Bala-the largest landed estate in Merioneth.-to Miss May Brassey, Heythrop, Chipping Norton, daughter of Mr. Thomas Brassey, AI.P. for Banjbury and niece to Lord Brassey, took place on Thursday at the parish Church at Hey- throp. About 300 relatives and friends at- tended. The event will be celebrated at Bala on their return from their honeymoon in May, when the townspeople will present an address and the school children and old people of the district will be entertained to tea.