Llais Llafur

Entombed Men. I. Cut Off from Bottom of Pit. A HUGE SQUEEZE. Imprisoned for 14 Hours at Aberdare. Exceptional features mark a fall which occurred early on Monday morn- ing at the Abercwmboi Colliery, Aber- dare, and which, for about sixteen. hours, retained, as if in prison, six* men named Benjamin Williams, labour er, Mountain Ash; G. Howe, labourer. Mountain Ash; John Lewellyn, labour- er, Mountain Ash; Llewellyn Jones, timberman, Abercwmboi and James Harries, fireman, Mountain Ash. When they were eventually released from their perilous position, they were found to be free from anything even in the shape of a scratch. The circumstances of the mishap are these: It appears that Llewelyn Jones and George Howe were engaged in put- ting up some timber as the result of a fall within about eighteen yards from the face of a main heading. The other men were further ahead. All of a sudden there was a huge "squeeze" of the roof; and the next moment, a second fall happened. Jones and Howe ran towards their companions with their lives in their nands..Thus they found themselves with the .face -of the heading within six yards in front of them while the fallen debris shut off their course towards the bottom of the the shaft. In this wise they could neither advance nor recede; and their only hope of escape lay in the removal of the rubbish or in the creation of a passage through the side of the road so arranged as to enable them to work their way back to the rear of the fall. Owing to the immense quantity of stone which had been dislodged, and, e;ed, an d in particular, to the great danger to the entombed men which would result from a further disturbance of a threat- ening roof, the officials of the colliery who were quickly informed of the acci- dent, decided upon the execution of the latter alternative indicated above. STRENUOUS WORK. In the?e circumstances Mr Bridge, ¡ agent for the PoweIl Dnffryn Company and Mr Trevor Jones, the manager of the pit gave instructions to drive a way off the "gob'' in a straight line for a distance of some yards. Then the course was taken in a forward direction, thus trying to make head- way beyond the inside of the fall and the spot where the imprisoned men were enveloped. Excellent progress, fortunately, attended the efforts of the rescuers, who, after several hours of strenuous activity, had the satisfac- tion of hearing the voices of those I whose safety depended upon the suc- < coss of their exertions. Presently the "pick" was hard at work on either side, and, as luck would have it, the workmen within the fall had divined the nature of the project which wa9 advanced for their recovery. The result was that both parties were working for a common end, which was reached, as already stated, after an interval of nearly sixteen hours, to the utter joy. needless to say. of the en- tombed and the rescuers alike. None of the six men bore a scratch. That they were more or less in an ex- hausted state may well be imagined after the startling experience through which they Had gone. Confined with- in such a small area—about 18ft. by gft.—the greatest precaution had to be exercised to preserve the air from becoming fouled. By way of conter- acting this eventuality, they ex- tinguished four of the six lamps. INTERVIEW WITH MANAGER. I In an interview with Mr Trevor Jones on his return to the surface after the recovery of t'he men, that gentleman said that the entombed workmen had not lost hope of being rescued. Their spirits were enlivened by the consoling fact that the sound of the pick was continually comin g nearer to them. It was the sound of salvation. Mr Llewelyn Jones and his mate had to sacrifice their clothes in their atempts to reach a corner -of safety when the second fall happened. Too high a tribute could not be paid to tho work of the rescue parties. HOW MEN WERE RESCUED. The entombed men were sareiy brought to the surface about three o'clock. With thd exception of Mr John Jones, who was rather exhausted, the other five were none the worse for their experience. Mr James Harris, interviewed after r ming to the surface, said that he tWVe,- hcaH better music in his life Wan w lion lit, firrfv hoard J. r-escuo party going. In an interview Mr Trevor Jones, M.E, the manager, said that in a few minutes he was on the scene, after summoning Mr G. B. Budge (the j, agent). "In a short time," said Mr I Jones, "we were able to hear signals from the entombed men. And from the sound of their signals we were ablo J to locate the position they were in. We ? at once decided to abandon the idea of clearing the fall and to drive a road- way through the gob, and after driving a distanoe of about nineteen yards the men were safely reached. ^('ontinved at bottom of "oxt oo^ ^-nl

STATE LAND PURCHASE GREAT SCHEME FOR DIS- CHARGED SOLDIERS. MOMENTOUS PROPOSALS. The Central News political corres- pondent writes:—The problem of the man discharged from the colours is daily becoming more urgent as the discharge of men proceeds, and it will give rise to colossal difficulties on the disbanding of our vast armies at the conclusion of the war. The Home Office, the Board of Trade, and the Board of Agriculture, in consultation with the War Office and the Admiralty are each conducting separate inquiries on the subject, and so advanced are their deliberations, that the report of the committee, appointed by the President of the Board of Agriculture and presided over by Sir H. Verney, Bart, will be made public at an early jj I date. I am able to state with certainty that the Committee has arrived at momentous conclusions, pointing to- wards an extensive State acquisition of land by compulsory purchase, the establishment on a large scale of co lon- ies of small holders, employment of ex-service men, the development of co- operative buying and marketing, and of agricultural credit banks, and the provision of a large State grant to put the proposals into operation. MINOR ASPECTS OF PRODUCTION [ The Committee, the correspondent states, considered the problem largely from the point of view of the minor aspects of rural production—viz., poultry, pig, and calf-rearing, fruit cultivation, bee-keeping, home indus- tries, dairy farming, and mixed pro- duction on small holding The com- mittee had the advantage of having at their disposal the vast mass of material which emanated in such volume from the land controversy of the year immediately preceding the war, but they also examined evidence on the aspects of the problem arising out of the inference presented by many experts oil rural re-population in all its bearings. One of the most con- vincing pieces of evidence available to the. committee as to the difficulties of the problem they had to solve was the failure of the Small Holdings Acts of 1909, and of the Scottish Small Land- holders Act of 1910, to provide a means of land settlement on a substantial i scale. They had to seek a broader basis of action than either measure provided, and the modus vivendi they havo found is ihe?ate acquisition of the land. ?-.

—- SECRET ARMOTJRJ. DISCOVERY IN WELSH JjsNSION 1 OF HOARDED WEA??S. T- 1 in a secret cupooard in nmouth- shire mansion know as Pontypool Park there has been discovered a. store of arms consisting of 50 flint-lock mus- kets with bayonets attached, 100 spare bayonets, and five swords, all in ex- cellent condition. They bear dates from 1761 to 1764, and are marked "Glamorgan M." Apparently they were the secret armoury prepared in anticipation of riot and mob law. From 1734 till 1774 succeeding Hanburvs of Pontypool Park were members of Parliament for Monmouthshire, and at the period of riot and revolt which followed the efforts of George III. to put his heel on the neck of Parliament, Capel Ran- bury was one of those whom the masses seemed to have regarded as enemies of the people. It is surmised that it was Capel Han- bury who gathered together the mus- kets and bayonets for the arming of his retainers in the event of attack, and when the tide of popular fury ebbed, and Pontypool Park was spared, the arms lay in the cupboard neglected, and at last completely forgotten-to be unearthed when the old controversy between king and peaple is practically forgotten. ———

APPEAL FOR RUSSIAN JEWS. Speaking at the Pavilion Theatre, Whitechapel, for the fund for the re- lid of Jews in Russia, the Chief Rabbi said the Jewish sufferers num- bered millions, and the £ 40,000 given by British Jewry was hopelessly in- adequate. Nothing lesa. thann £ 50,000 would be adequate during 1916

PLAY THE GAME." MR STANTON AND "DIRTY SKUNKS. Mr C. B. Stanton, M.P., was the principal speaker on the pit-head of the Bargoed Collieries under the aus- pices of the Munitions Parliamentary Committee. Mr Stanton, who was cordially re- ceived by a large gathering, thanked the miners for the loyalty they had already demonstrated, and appealed to them to continue to do their best to help the boys in the trenches. There was a suspicion that they weI e coming there to ask them to smash up the Eight Hours Act and break some Federation resolution. That, however, was not their mission. He had been over a 100 miles of trenches at the front, and had seen the boys from the South Wales Coalfield, and their message to those working in the col- lieries at home was to continue to back them up. In times of peace they could fight for reforms, but the pre- sent was the time to play the game on behalf of the Old Country. (Hear, j hear). Unfortunately there were some who would stop the collieries and make the Navy so much scrap iron for the Ger- mans to pot shot at. Such people were absolute ar.d complete traitors, and underhand dogs. H-L) appealed to them in the name of the Government and Minister of Munitions to work to as- sist until they had driven the Ger- mans to Hell—where they were long overdue—(kuighter and hear, hear)— I and to show the pro-Germans, the paci. fists and the dirty skunks who tried to make the voluntary system a non-suc- cess, who would not fight themselves, and who opposed Cortscription, that j this was no country for them. (Ap- j plause). Let them join the Hunnish. crowd to which they belonged. If there were any such people present, Stanton was there to answer them. Let them have it out there. (Hear, j hear). Mr H. E. Pratten, Sydney, Austral- ia, and Mr A. H. Marshall, M.P., Wakefield, also addressed the meeting, and a resolution was unanimously pass- ed pledging the meeting to support the Government.

CURED BY A DREAM. WOUNDED SOLDIER RECOVERS POWER OF SPEECH. Another curious story of a wounded soldier recovering his lost power of speech during a dream whilst in hos- pital has been reported. Corporal Ernest Welsh, of the Loval North Lanes Regiment, was badly wounded and struck dumb at Neuve Chapelle. For 11 months he has been nursed at Morden Hall, Mitcham. Sur- rey, and was gradually recovering the u&e of his limbs. One night this week he experienced an alarming dream and shouted aloud, waking all his comrades in the ward. Next morning a special breakfast was provided in the hospital to celebrate the glad event. In a letter to his wife, who lives in Liverpool. Welsh writes that he is afraid to sleep agan lest his articula- tion should fail him once more. ———— o

DRUMMER BOY LEFT A HUGE FORTUNE. FAMILY BIBLE PROVES TITLE TO LEGACY OF £ 600,000. One a drummer-boy in the British Army but now a dog-breeder and J.P. in the United States. Mr Frederick P. Kirby has come into a. huge fortune of £ 600,000, says the "New York World." He is an Irishman from County Kil- dare, his present home being at Glou- cester, New Jersey. This lucky le- gatee was discovered after an exhaus- tive search by an English firm of solicitors, and proved his claim chiefly by producing a bible presented to him by the testatrix, on the fly-leaf of which was inscribed his name. It was an aunt named Mary Fry, County Kil- dare, who left him her fortune. He will not give up dog breeding, however, in spite of his accession to great wealth.

WEST WALES BUTTER STRIKE. Llangwm women attended Haver- fordwest market in large numbers on Saturday, and made a. determined stand against the high price of butter offered for sale by the wives of Pem- brokeshire farmers. During several weeks past ls.9d. and Is. 10d. per lb. had been paid for fresh butter in the Haverfordwest market, a,nd on Saturday ls.ldd. was asked. This greatly incensed the Llangwm women who went on strike, that is they refused to buy. I The movement "caught on" rapidly. Other women purchasers seized the op- portunty which presented itself and compelled a reduction. The effect. was at once seen in the fall of prices, and by midday plenty of butter was available at ls.6d. and even ls.4d. peq lb.

.It.\4.L_4:r.7t".rr. SWANSEA BOYS RISE. FROM SMITHY TO COMMAND OF A DREADNOUGHT. A Swansea blacksmith's son is now commander of one of the largest of his Majesty's battleships. The gentleman in question, Mr Arthur Walters, of Siloh road, Lan- dore, son of Mr J. Walters, plumber and blacksmith, has been commander of H.M.S. Hannibal, and is now act- ing in a similar capacity on H.M.S. Hercules, one of the earlier Dread- noughts of the British -NTavv. In his youth he learnt his trade with his father, but he showed marked ability and zeal, entering the Navy, passed examinations with great suc- cess. and, after being in China during the Boxer rising, on H.M.S. Orlando, ho became commander of the Hannibal, and then of the Hercules.

-———— ABSURD FUNERAL EX PENSE?." STRICTURES BY JUDGE LLOYD MORGAN AT LLANELLY. "I have often said, and it is no good my saying any more, that if people like to spend a lot of money on funer- al expenses, it is of no use their ask- ing me to help them," declared Judge Lloyd Morgan at Llanelly County- court on Monday during the applica- tion by Mr Saunders for the appor- tionment of £ 300 compensation money paid into court by the Gwendraeth Colliery Company in respect of the death of applicant's husband. It was pointed out that the. funeral expenses, etc., to i The company had advanced £20. which ap- plicant would have to j-e-pay. His Honour: I would not make an order for anything like that amount. Mr Saunders explained that twenty- one weeks had elapsed s ince the death and there were fonr children. His Honour: We need not trouble ourselves any further about the matter since £ 20 has been advanced, but you had better tell the colliery company not to do the same thing again. In ordering the payment out of court of C25 and 13s. a week, his Honour said that when £ 300 had to last for years to spend a large sum of money on funeral expenses was absurd. All this money on mourning was quite unnecessary.

THE DAY FOR ACTION. CRIMINAL TO DISCUSS "DOWN TOOLS." I Appeal to Welsh Miners. STRONG SPEECH BY MR W. BRACE AT ABERTILLERY. There was some very plain speaking in a speech made by Mr Wm. Brace, M.P., Under-Secretary for the Home Depart men, at Abertillery. The oc- casion was the unveiling of a big gun captured by British Troops from the Germans in France. An effort was also made at the same time to wipe off the deficiency in respect to the expenditure on the Abertillery ambul- ance car which is to be sent to the front. Mr J. T. Boots, J.P., chairm m of the council, presided, and said A ber- tille"r- was the first town in the county to have a German gun. They had al- ready collected C430 out of the £ 500 for the abulan;ce from outside sources, without touching the colliers at all. Mr Wm. Brace, M.P., said the Government had selected Abertillery for this unique honour because of the splendid record of the town in recruit- ing and of other assistance in these days of stress and trial. The gun was also sent there so that it micht be an inspiration to the young folk of recruit able age who had not yet volunteered. He hoped that, despite the fact that there was on the Statute Book of the country an Act of law which would call up legally and by compulsion men between the ages of 18 and 41 years who had hitherto withheld from coming forward, there would be no necessity for putting the Act into operation. He supported the Bill in the House of Commons not because he agreed with compulsion, either for military pur- poses or industrial. Be had a violent and fundamental objection to any form of compulsioii. and would not be a. party to any shape of industrial com pulsion for the country. But they were at war. His friend Lieutenant I Edward Gill. of Abertillery (an ex- member of the Welsh Miners' Council) writing from his duc-out a few davs ago, said: "It is no use arguing with I a German gun." These were not the days for argument, but for men to do their duty. It was the duty of some -38 thousands from that town had done—to go to the trenches and plains of France and Flanders; but there was no less duty on those who were left to carry out their civil obliga- tion. Let them as workmen talk less about "down tools." (Applause). It was criminal to discuss any such thin^ lis that when their own flesh and blood were calling for all the assistance they I could give them. In that gun they had a demonstration that the men lacked neither courage nor heroism; what they lacked was sufficient num- bers of comrades and munitions of war to beat back the foe, who would rather be fighting in these Monomouthshire Valleys than in France or on the other frontiers. Continuing, Mr Brace said: "Don't, I beg of you, lightly discuss industrial upheaval or abstract questions of com- pulsion. Miners, of all man, ought not to be so complaining when a little pressue is brought on men to do their duty who otherwise would not do it." When he was at Abertillery doing his ordinary daily work he did not hesi- < tate to bring pressure to bear and com. pel some t-v carry their responsibilities as well as enjoy the privileges. Why should not a man be compelled to do his duty in this war in the same sense. as in the industrial war? If compul- sion was necessary to win the war, and if there were people among them who would not do their dutv, it was better to compel the few than that the whole fabric of democratic govern- ment should be swept away bv the power of a mighty State which wished to drive away any such thing as in- dividual liberty. The least thing the men at the front had the right to ex- pect was that they at home should put the last ounce of effort into their work "Let us do our part" should be their guide. He appealed to his audience to sink all differences. indus- trial, political, and social, and work 4 to the common end. (Applause). Mr Brace, in responding to a vote of thanks, called for three cheers "for the boys in the trenches," which were heartily given.

FORTUNE IN OLD "TUBS." While practically all the modern traw- lers which were the pride of the go-ahead tisliing comunity of Grimbsy are now on war work, the owners of ancient, storm- battered craft, with leaky sides and out- worn pngines, have been left alone to take the chances and rewards of a very risky but very remunerative calling. In I consequence of the high prices these old tubs are making golden voyages. Similar- ly, a one-eyed trawler skipper has a great commercial advantage over a skipper with no physical defect.. For whereas the one t would be taken into the naval service, with modest rates of pay, the other would be left free to go to sea, and would be able to see well enough with his one j eye to bring back a catch of fish of which h:s share might amount to as much as a | hundred pounds for a single voyage. (

DISABLED SOLDIERS AS COOKS. DEMONSTRATIONS BY MEDICAL OFFICERS' SOCIETY. That a soldier or sailor without an arm and with two legs missing might be trained to earn his living as a cook was proved at a remarkable demonstra- tion in the rooms of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Mr William Lawton, the secretary, had his right arm bound up before he started demonstrating. Then, with his left arm, he showed how a disabled warrior could sit a,5 a little table and cook a capital meal for my lady of Mayfair. With the aid of a few ingenious con- trivances Mr Law ton cooked a four- course dinner for six persons, without leaving his chair. The actual cooking was performed in a specially-construc- ted gas stove; which provides not only for open-fire roasting, but for simul- taneous baking and boiling. When folded up the oven weighs only 5lb. The..meal prepare 1 \oonsisted of soup, fish, fowl (with sausages, bacon, gravy and bread sauce), mince pices, and lemon cheese cakes. Mr Lawton also made a savoury and an omelette. The most difficult task is to break an egg and to draw a fowl, but with the aid of specially made, but simple, contri- vances the problem is overcome. "With the increase of female lab- our in every direction the badly crippled warrior," said Mr Lawton. could find both amusement- and profit in the preparation of food for the benefit of his own household, thus giving his womenfolk an opportunity of adding to the family income." Mr Lawton is organising a series of lectures and demonstrations with a view to training disabled men to act as cook s.

I MR FORD AGAIN. I NEW PEACE CRUSADE TO BE OPENED WITHIN A WEEK. Mr Henry Ford, the motor manufac- turer, whose peaci., crusade proved such a fiasco w-her his peace party croosed the (>"E!I3.J1 --)n tho steamship Oscar II., told a eoresspondent that he intends to resume his peace efforts. "Within a week," said he, "I pro- pose to renew the agitation that cer- tainly exists the world over for peace. The world must have peace, and I in- tend to make stronger attempts to bring this about than ever. I admit that the voyage of the Oscar was not even a good beginning, but it did wipe off from the front pages of our news- papers talk about America's prepared- ness and' a good dcil of war report. This time I propose to enter more sys- tematically into the matter, as I have learned by experieroe. That voyage was worth all it cost me for the ex- perience I gained by it. I now know what not to do." 'L .1 I JiU»

DEARER MARMALADE. HOW SHORTAGE OF ORANGES I AFFECTS HOUSEWIVES. Housewives will have to pay more for marmalade, that favourite English breakfast preserve, owing to the short- age of bitter oranges from both Paler- mo and Seville. Inquiries made in Pudddrig-lane showed that last yevr, even with war prices reigning, Palermo bitters were sold at 9s. for 200. Now, at the be- ginning of the niaru liade making sea- son Palermos have advanced to 128.6d. and 13s. for the sam-t- quantity, and the proposed Government embargo on bulky cargies of frui, is likely to make prices still higher. Even at the increased prices the Pudding-lane broken could only secure about 50 boxes of Palermos, while Sevilles, the traditional marmalade orange, were unobtainable. Only a few Sevilles have &0 far arrived, and were quickly bought up. The absence of the Seville will be a bitter disappointment to the home marmalade maker, who has a prefer- ence for the Span sh fruit, though manufacturers on thA other hand are said to regard the Palermo orange as more suitable. The housewife who buys Palermos, moreover, will have to pay ls3d. to ls.6d. t. dozen for them, as against lOd. to Is last season.

j M t U f LAST APPEAL TO SINGLE KEY. "WILL YOU MA3CH TOO OR WAIT UNTIL MARCH 2 P" I A vigorous poster campaign bv the Central Recruiting authorities will be a feature of the doting days of the voluntary ey-iUsiu. „ « "}.HÜ:Tj, oopies of a new poster are being dis- tributed in London, and others of a striking character a.re being prepared. A new edition of taxicab screens is to be issued. The object of the authorities is to obtain as many enlistments or attests tions as possible before March 2. when it will be too late for the single man to join as a volunteer. Married men are also asked to enlist. One of the new posters which haR been issued reads:— SINGLE MEN. WILL YOU MARCH TOO, or WAIT UNTIL MARCH 2?

INDEPENDANT CHAIRMAN- I MINES' CONCILIATION BOARD. Air F: A. Gibson, secretary of the South Wales Coal Owners' Associa- tion, and Mr Thomas Richards. M.P., the secretary of the South Wales Miners' Fedieration, have been in- formed by the Lord Chief Justice that he has appointed Lord Muir Macken- zie, G.C.B., Independant Chairman of the South Wales Conciliaton Board in succession to Earl St. Aldwyn. Lord Muir Mackenzie is best known to the larger public as having been principal Private Secretary to a suc- cession of Lord Chancellors from 1880 until last year. He was born in 1845, was educated at Ctu-tor-house and Balliol College, and called to the Bar in 1873. He is a Civil Service Commissioner a member of the Standing Committees for the Revision of Statute Law. He was raised to the peerage in 1915. He is the father-in-law of the well-known pianist, M. Mark H&mbourg.

NEAT! BREWSTER SES- SIONS. THREE LICENSES REFUSED. The annual licensing sessions of the borough of Neath were held on Monday. Mr. Matthew Arnold presiding. The Chairman announced that the justices were prepared to grant renewals, except in the following cases:- The Anchor Hotel, Green-street the Market Vaults, Charlesville-plaoe, and the Royal Oak, Orchard-street. The justices had in- spected licensed houses in a defined area, and they objected to the renewals of the licences of the houses mentioned because they considered them unnecessary. The justices directed the chief-constable to serve notices on the licensees, -whose at- tendance is requested on March 6 at the adjourned sessions. In the case of the Angel Hotel, in connection with which there was a conviction las. tyear, the licence would be held back for a month. With regard to the Oxford Inn, where the chief-constable had served notice of <'bj<'<'tion, thf justice reserved ther de- cision until after hearing the objection. Th.e justices called attention to the in- creased drinking among women in the town. They regarded this as a very serious matter and urged all licensees to exercise the greatest care as to the extent of drinks supplied to females. Mr. A. Jeetyn Jeffreys (acting on be- half of the Neath Licensed Victuallers' Association) drew the attention of the justices to the Licensing Order, directing earlier closing, now in foroe, and was proceeding to make an application when The Chairman said that the matter could not be dealt with by the justices at present. Ile Order was in force until May. Mr. Jeffreys said he knew that was so, but he asked their worships before they made any fresh order ,to hear him and some members of the trade on the subject. The Clerk That is aJwayfl done by communication with the clerk.

———- a ——— In S WEBB ON INCOME TAX Speaking at the School of Economics Mr Sidney Webb said that the money spent in the war oould have built the Panama Casual twice over. A small fraction to build all the workmen's cottages neoeaftory from the Ural Mountains to St. Kilda. He did not mention these facts as opposing the war, which he believed to be necessary and just. Among the immediate re- sults of the war we must look for a lowering of the physique of all the belligerent nations, a ooarsening of the moral character, for the world could not look on at wholesale butcheries with impunity, and a falling off in population. He rather believed that doctrinal Christianity had suffered, and the close of the war would see a re- version too some vaguer religion. The most economic way of paying the cost of war would be for the Government to fix the income-tax at 15s. in the f, but this would be un- popular, and so recourse was had to borrowing, which entailed the pay- ment of interest. Thus the rich who could afford to lend became actually richer through war. The effect of the issue of paper money was the immed- iate cause of the rise in commodities, which left the poor relatively poorer. It was to the credit of the richer classes that they had opposed the issue of paper money.

SWANSEA BATTALION'S DEATH- ROLL. The five men of the Swansea Bat- talion killed (as already reported) by a shell in the trenches are now ascer- tained to be:—Privates Lumsdaine. Smethan, Gilchrist, Jones, and Paddi- son. The latest news was received by Mrs. Gilchrist, of 10 Midland terrace, Morriston, that her son Private Levi Gilchrist waA among the slain. Mrs. Gilchrist had four soijs and a son-in- law with the colours, three sons being with the Swansea Battalion. Private W. Roes, of 6, Chapel-et., Swansea, and Private D. Rattenbury were wounded at the same time.

(Continuing from preceding column). The knocking of the entombed men | came quite audible after the rescue party had driven in about six yards. They were able to speak to the men two hours before they were liberated. This gave encouragement to the rescuers, who worked with double energy after they found that the men were all safe. In Mr Jones's opinion the cause of the fall was the breaking in of water. Mr Jones spoke in high terms of the men who worked so hard with the res- cue party, and there were., plenty of volunteers. The only difficulty he had with the men was that they were afraid to be sent away when a re- lieving party would turn up, as they were so anxious to see the thing through. All the officials ana men when they came to the surface looked pretty well done up. Work was resumed at the cilliery on Monday night.