Pioneer

CORRESPONDENCE.! I ECONOMICS AND THE BIRTH RATE. I c?.r. ?. r -I'VIITCR of the PIONEER.) I .l.r \V \JUt .ta struck- by the mconslstn- Siir,-Ilaving ? -?" the press I am taking cy of different articles m? ? subjects of ecoao- h l'b t f 'e SUJec 0 oo01!lO- the liberty of wntmg on j have o ften seen d th b' h hm ave 0 ön S9'en my an d the b?rth rate, w h i(,. cannot see how in the same paper. I reaUy ? the same time anyone is to economise, and Also I have continue to increase the family.these d th   1 i  en P,2Twhre ite t h ese noticed at it is always men men nej_ articles: the reason is obvious. • into tho ther have to suffer bringing children ,n^0 ad world, nor even to practice the economies :ufD ed in most cases to rear a family; but perhaps > the men who write belong to the class who delight in breeding life for sport, such as, for instance, rearing pheasants and other game so that at certain seasons they may drive them into the open and turn the guns on them. For my own part, I think that it would be wiser and kinder to keep the birth rate down by any and every possible means, so that there may be fewer men to slay and be slain when the next war comes. In fact, I consider it an insult to the human race to expect them to rear children in order that nations may hatch wars to get rid of them as soon as they become able to work for their living.—I am, Yours, etc., A COLLIER'S WIFE. FORWARD" SUPPRESSION. I (To the Editor of the PIONEER.) Sir,—You, and many of your readers, will prdoably have seen in the "New Statesman" of January 22, and in this week's issue of "Forward," certain statements and allegations. Apart altogether from the question of the Freedom of the Press, is it not necessary, in the Interests of morality and truth in public life, that this matter should be gone into tho- roughly ? sely we can win this war without resorting to trickery ancl deceit m our- national life? Should we not in public on eveirv Tnp- o 'Q .thïr "t:" ".1j's:"t.:) sible occasion to matter thrashed out in Parliament so as to give Mr. Lloyd George an opportunity to clear his character? — Yours faithfully. -_u_ A. Jf. MAUKliNTUSH. I 7 King's Crescent, Aberdeen.

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I The Spies in Our Midst? We have been puzzling our heads for a week or two now to discover the reason that has actuated the Munitions Parliamentary Com- mittee in sending down to South Wales Mr. C. B. Stanton, M.P., and his coterie of disting- uished and admiring friends to address the min- ers at pit-head meetings. An incidental puzzle, and one which we have no intention of doing more than mention, is why these half-hour pat- riots have so studiously avoided the pits in the Merthyr district of miners, when they came so close as Dowlais on the one eide, and the Aber- dare Valley on the other. Possibly the Mer- thyr miners do not need the spur? Possibly bwt time may give us the correct answer with- out troubling our brains with possibilities. We were always an admirer of C.B. 's oratory from the time he damned the" bloody" Russians with bell, book and candle, and we are pleased to find that however he may have emulated the chameleon in politics his oratory is as rugged as ever, and as informative. Wherever he has appeared in his new role as attache to the Mu- nitions Parliamentary Committee, we have fol- lowed him closely through the medium of our morning papers, yet it is only by inference that, we have been able to remotely gu'ess his mis- sion. One might epitomise all of his speeches, after removing the trillings of Huns.and Hell, and pro-Germans, to an appeal to the miners to dig more coal; and naturallv the inference is that the deputations are here to emphasise this request. The logical inference from this must be that the men are not digging so much coal as the experts at Whitehall think they should dig; that, in short, the South Wales miner is a slacker with, of course, the excep- tion of the Merthyr miner. But, somehow, to one who is constantly round and about amongst the miners of a wider area than that which proscribes the activities of the deputations from London, such reasoning lacks conviction. In Scotland or London one might draw these con- clusions, and whip oneself into white-hot pas- sion over the want of patriotism amongst the South Wales miners, but here amongst them it would require a virile imagination, and one un- correlated to facts. If such an assumption is removed from the field of probability, what, then remains? It has been suggested that the deputation came down for the purpose of per- suading the South Wales collier that though he did not know it, he was industrially within the four walls of the Munitions Act; but such a sug- gestion is not worth the breath it takes to speak it. Every pit-boy, nay every schoolboy in Wales, knows that by a lucky chance the South Wales miner is entirely removed from the operations of the Munitions Act; knows that no miner cam be brought before the Munitions Tribunal. There was only one thing which gave colouring to this fable during the early part of the cam- paign, and that a statement on the handbills edling the meeting that "the speakers will deal with the Government's Munitions Cam- paign, "and a reprint of Schedule II. of the Act on the back. But these were removed when the impression referred to was found to be ob- taining some credulity; and we may take it that the object of the mission to the miners is not to persuade them that they are numbered with the engineers as Munition Master George's fleeceless lambs. What, then, is the object? For we cannot believe that the sole object was to insult the miner by infering that the Govern- ment believed he was a slacker, since the Gov- ernment must have known that the miner would of necessity be called upon to work harder if he desired to maintain his pre-war standard of life by reason of the serious incursions of the food pirates. One reason, aajd ^one reason only, se-ern- T,r"i "L" .J' I -to" siimoSl Tne deputations have been sent down to feel the pulse of South Wales on the question of Compulsory Military Service. Wales has always been the hot-bed of industrial revolt, and has carried aloft with pride the Red Flag of political emancipation. Wales, there- fore was a danger zone to the militarist reac- tionaries in their campaign for the enslavement of Democracy, and Watas must be watched. Glasgow, too, was to be watched-it had its Commission appointed. A clear, calm, unbiassed examination of the case forces us to this conclu- sion. Drunkenness, we know on the authority of Brewster Sessions, is redused to an irreduci- ble minimum in South Wales; entertainment is restricted to the most ordinary forms of cinema and theatre, and all the other elements that could induce men to turn their backs on work are conspicuously absent. Food prices are act- ing as a stimulant to greater output; only two causes are operating against outputs-shortage of labour and material. For these the miner cannot be blamed; no preaching to him can remedy this. Why, then, the exhortations—if they do not cover a refined system of Govern- ment espionage ?

I Notes and Comments. TheSingteManandComputston. We have received several enquiries; during the past few weeks from single men of enlist- ment age, but non-militant disposition, as to the course they are to pursue now that the Act has becosae law. Advice is difficult, since the matter has become almost entirely a per- sonal one. The I.L.P. has always been, and is still a constitutional body, despite all that is said to the contrary, and no one possessing in full measure his senses lias ever questioned the fundamental loyalty of the Trades Union movement to the laws of the Kingdom. These are the forces, for the rank and file of which the "Pioneer" stands, and we feel that we should be betraying our trust to both were we to in any way advocate unconstitutional ac- tion. We hate the Act as virulently as any one, we shall both now and in the future fight Prussianism at home and abroad, wherever we find its baneful presence, but we shall fight constitutionally. Our sinoerest advice to all who have an objection to military service is to pre- sent yourselves before the Tribunals set up, and lay before these the grounds of objection. Whether you agree with the decision or not, you will be fulilling the laws of the land; and subsequent action will then depend upon your- selves, and your own feelings and circumstan- ces. We believe that the South Wales Council Against Conscription endorses this view. Woman and Compulsion. In this connection we would like to draw the attention of all who are opposed to the Act to the letter of "Miner's Wife" in this issue, in which our lady friend puts very clearly the casq for woman's active participation in any campaign which may be decided upon to miti- gate against the Act-either in the direction of its repeal, or its annulment by the provision of an adequate quota of new Derby recruits to render its operation unnecessary, and its exist- ence that of a statutory dead letter. Progress- ive as is South Wales genetally from a Demo- cratic point of view, we are more than com- monly prejudiced against the entry of the wife, the mother or the sweetheart into spheres that we have looked upon as belonging parti- cular to us as males. "Woman's place is the home" is a shibboleth we scoff at, yet secretly endorse, and that largely by reason, we suppose, of the fact that with the exceptions of a few confectioners, and a handful of milliners and dressmakers, woman does not enter into our industrial life. It is time we broke down the barrier, and allowed woman her rightfjil place in the Democratic movement; not as a spectator and applauder at our deeds, but as a Comrade, working for a common end. We are slow to I recognise the value of the feminine influence, backward in valuing woman's powers and en- thusiasm else this note and that of Miner's Wife" would have been impossible years ago. Let us at least be honest with ourselves, and practise the sex equality over which we are willing to wax so eloquent; and let us do it now. for the present offers an unique time for woman to enter the field for or against the great issues that effect her a.nd all she holds so dear, so nearly. Drunkenness in Merthyr. rnere are few members of Democratic orga- nisatious in Merthyr who will not have rejoiced over Chief Constable Wilson's report to the Licensing Justices, in which he stated that drunkenness had decreased so greatly that he did not think it could be reduced much lower. Most Democrats sit on the "water waggon" as Jack London puts it, though they might not advertise their abstinence by means of blme rib- bons, and anything that tends to loosen John Barle ycorn's hold on his votaries, we welcome; for John's castle is invariably a stronghold of reactionary conservatism. We do find it in us to regret the apparent cause of thjg conversion to temperance—-the war but largely because we believe that the cessation of hostilities will be but t,he signal for a bestial retrogression that will strengthen the hands of John Barley- corn and for that reason we are not going to rejoice prematurely over the apparent defeat of one of our arch-enemies. Of course, the Chief Constable frankly admits that the decrease in the number of cases brought before the magis- trates may be due to the depletion of the con- stabulary, and here one finds it possible to regret that steps were not taken by those re- sponsible to prevent the drain on the forces instead of, as was apparently done, trying to force the men into the army on pleas of econo- my and patriotism. We have never seen a town that presents so many policing difficulties as does Merthyr with its scattered area, and its plethora of holes and corners that seem posi- tively made for increasing the difficulties of the guardians of property and life. We should like to see some steps taken to bring the force more in keeping with its nominal strength, and less interference with the innocent places of amuse- ment by means of which it is intended to pro- duce a similar result. --——-

TROEDYRHIW. SEND-OFF SMOKEK.—A send-off smoking con- cert was given Gunner Harry Evans on his re- turn to France at the Dynevor Arms on Tues- day night, February 1st, under the able chair- manship of Mr. Gabb Rees, Abercanaid. Mr. Frank Williamson proved an admirable accom- panist and a really sparkling concert programme was contributed by the following artistes: Messrs. Evan Evans, Dan Jones, the Picton Brothers, and others. The evening was a most convivial and jolly one. The usual whip-up for comforts en route was presented by Host Griffiths. The meeting closed with the usual hand shakes and good wishes, to which the Gun- ner suitably responded.

SUPPRESSED NEWSPAPER. I i The Glasgow Police have arrested three per- sons who are alleged to have been concerned in publishing the "Worker," which was sup- pressed last Thursday.

I Sad Railway Accident at Dowlais. BROKEN COUPLING RESULTS IN DEATH OF DRIVER. The breaking of a soupling on a Caeiiar-i-ic,- Cwmbargoed train on Monday was the cause of an accident late on Monday night, which re- sulted in the death of a Rhymney Railway dri- ver—Mr. Win. Henry Comley, 7 Queen's St., Pant, Dowlais, as the result of injuries received. It appears that a Great Western Railway goods train, composed of some 24 empty wag- gons was proceeding from Caeharris to Cwm- bargoed, when one of the coupling chains broke. The engine and front portion of the train continued its journey for some consider- able distance, leaving the guard's van and sev- eral empty wagons stationary. A light engine and van, the property of the Rhymney Rail- way Company, which were following the Owm- bargod train, crashed into the trucks which had been left behind, seriously damaging the guard's van and smashing, a couple of .the empty wag- gons. The guard of the Great Western Railway train, Mr. Wm. Jones, Penydarren, who has oeen employed on the Great Western for up- wards of 25 years, was thrown against the desk of the van, and sustained injuries to his back, but he was later able to walk home with assist- ance. The driver of the Rhymney Company's en- gine Mr. Wm. Henry Comley, of 7 Queen's Street, Pant, Dowlais-si-ista,ined serious inju- ries to tie head and died on Tuesday morning. :1"h8 fireman escaped uninj ured. The deoeased, who was 51 years of age, had been in the employ of the Rhymney Railway Company all his life, and was a most experi- enced and careful workman. He leaves a widow three sons and one daughter. One of his sons- William Henry—is with the R.A.M.C. at Dover. v A breakdown gang was .immediately despatch- ed to the scene of the accident, and soon had the line cleared for traffic.

THE INQUEST. SIGNALMAN'S ILLNESS AND THE ACCI- DENT. The inquesb on the body of Comley was held at Dowlais on Thursday by Mr. R. J Rhys, coroner. Ernest Francis Reynolds, signalman at Dow- lais Junction, said on Monday night he saw the engine and first few wagons of the train pass his signal box. As he was unwell he left the box without waiting to see the remainder of the tram pass. If he had waited he would have noticed that there were no rear lights, and would not have accepted the engine and van driven by deceased. John James Carpenter, brakesman of the ttst train, said he did not know that the train had parted until they had been standing for about three minutes after the signal was given for them to proceed. Before he could give warn- ng, the other engine and van crashed into them. Wm. Lewis Morgan, fireman on Comley's en- gine, said neither of them saw anything ahead until they crashed into the train. Reynolds, re-called, said he knew it was the rule to watch the whole of the train pass. The nCoroner said it occurred to him that there had oeen a series of misfortunes in con- nection with the accident. He took it that it was sheer had luck that after the couplings broke the signalman was compelled to leave his box without seeing the whole of the train pass. He thougnt if a. good look out had been kept and deceased or his fireman had seen the tail light of the train ahead the collision might only have been slight. Reynolds broke the rule, but ,)"nvp, a reason for doing so. The jury returned a verdict of "Accidental death," ami added a rider reeommendinsr that accommodation be provided in signal boxes to enable the signalmen to keep a continuous watch without leaving the box.

Electric Theatre. There have been eHnntLOUS erowdi; at the I i. .otis crow d g at the Electric Theatre this week. All records have been ÎJroken- the house ,I;¡eing packed from 2.W p.m. "The, Rosary" was responsible for such attraction, and leaves no doubt as to Mr. Bowen's ability in catering for the public. Never before have we witnessed such scenes outside the pay box in any place of amusement' hundreds being turned away daily. On Thursday night "The Angel of Mons" and the r ace at the Telephone" were the two ex- clusive subjects, and merited loud applause af- ter projection. Both these pictures are "win- ners, and should certainly be seen by all. We briefly dealt with these subjects in our last is- sue. There is an excellent variety of dramas, comics, and interest subjects also shown; in fact, the programme cannot be beaten in any respect—every item being pleasing and enter- taining. We have pleasure in announcing a wonderful production on Monday next, entitled "Hypoc- rites." It is a startling film, and, we are in- formed surpasses "The Rosary" in all res- pects. If so, picture goers are in for a good time. The scenario is wonderfully constructed and has a twist at the finish that brings you up short—like a blow in the face. It is all so very true to life. The film is daring in that it strikes at things many do not like to discuss, and it tells "truth," which, the old adage says, hurts. Nevertheless, it stands to-da3, as one of the greatset scenarios and one of the most powerful films ever presented on the scieen "Be not ashamed to show what God was not ashamed to make." Truth, indeed, came into the world with her Divine Master, and was a shape most glorious to look upon, but afterwards there arose a set of people up- on the earth who took the virgin truth, hewed her lovely form into a thousand pieces, and scattered them to the winds. This is the theme of Hypocrites." Mr. Bowen wishes us to an- nounce the importance of attending early, as a great crowd is expected. On Thursday next another terrific picture, produced by D. W. Griffith, which has reached the high mark of this well-known producer's work. The beauty of the settings is only one of the several features in which the hand of this genius of the screen is obvious. One feels, for instance, that the early scenes with their humorous, pathetic picture of a childish rom- ance could have been conceived by no one but Griffith. Those who had the privilege of viewing this picture privately at the trade show pro- nounced it as the best yet produced. Apart from exercising careful judgment in selection of star pictures, each other subject is booked upon merit of open market productions. It is essen- tial that every picture should be entertaining, and in this respect Mr. Bowen excels in his selections. All productions are new and up- to-date, and do not show any item which has hitherto been in the town. "The Eternal City" is coming shortly, and will be a treat of a lifetime. The Orchestra at the Electric is special, and is alone worth the admission paid.;