Pioneer

Work of National Importance SEE PAGE 4

Dan Sullivan's Thanks to Dowlais. THE EVE OF THE EXECUTION LETTER. I ALL THOUGHTS FOR LITTLE ONES AND i FRIENDS. HIS LAST BEQUEST. efollowing letter is probably the last :at Dan SullIvan, who last Wednesday paid the full penalty for the murder of his wife at ijowlais. It has been received bv Mr Dan riscoli, who worked so hard for a reprive for the man. and bears the date of the 5th of Sep- ,ember-Dan Sullivan's last day on earth. It IS a letter of resignation, and of quiet hope and gratitude thta must touch everyone who reads it. In particular does it impress upon the readeer the tender feelings of the father ho is going to leave his little ones a spirit whIch right through the latter days of his life sholt8 steadily through Dan Sullivan's sordid tragedy. It wil be a pity if now that the ft,ther has gone, the little ones cannot be placed WIth his people, as was his wiih-a wish as firmly implanted in him. that good Catholic though he was, he would not even consider the Proposal of the local Guardians that he should to their being placed in a Catholic home. 5th September. 1916. Dear Dan,—I really thought that you and McCarthy would have come to see me one day, but never mind, old boy. I suppose something happened, or perhaps you thought it best not to come; but I should have been so glad to have seen both of you. for vorl have been real friends to me. 1 Well Dan old boy. I suppose this will be my I I%st letter, and I want yon to know how grate- ipl I a. and how much I appreciate all you hare done for lllØ. Kindly thank the boys, ?y workmates, and the peaple of Dowlais for the great efforts they have made on my behalf; tà:v have worked very hard for me, and I can- not express how much and how deeply greatf-ul l.ami—.after all, it is good to latiow that I had so many friends. Father Green brought a paper for me to sign 01 the children to go home to Ireland, and I ?.nt vou to see that they go there. Tell !,m Hocley not to forget that he is little .ajI)/\ giidiat-liw, and to wi'ite my brother Dnnis to know how he gets on. Tell Timi Boyle to go to the Police Station and get rm,Y pipe and boots I should like him to have «&0iu—that is all I have got-I only wish I ya-d more. Ask Inspector Lamh aDmit the 13/9 I am told I had on me when I was locked up, and send it on to my Brother for the dear children. I am not writing to anyone else but You, old boy so I would be glacT if you would a nice letter to my poor mother. I am afiraid that this will be the death of her. I 1iver thougt that this would be my end. I Qftnnot remember anything of what kappsned on that unfortunate night. I do hope my case will be a warning for to avoid drunken women. I am bearing iii) ts we* as possible, and am Soing to make the best of it. I am pleased to !Ry I have been treated with every kindness and consideration while I have been here, and extremely grateful to all the officials. Well Dan, I will close now; remember me to <*Q«:s&ge, the timekeeper, and all the boys at the ooke ovens. You have all done your best '-1' but it was no good. All you have fiot to do now is to pray for me, and I do It°IJe vou will. Good night and God bless you «t&. Yours ever grateful, DAX SULLIVAN. P.S.—I should be glad if you will publish this letter and show it to all the boys. My fateful hour haft come at last. For death I must prepare. Before the Seat of Justice My soul will soon appear; Where the Virgin Queen of Martyrs Will be my Advocate For God to show me mercy On the great accounting day." In an interview with our representative Dan DriaeoM expressed regret that the whole of ahe •reprieve effort that he had headed for two Months should have failed, especially since all the workers had done their best on this un- 1 fortunate man's beaalf. "I feel," he said, "that in this ease it is better to have fought and lost, than never to have fought at all." What induced you to take up the work?" "\Vell apart from the special extenuating ^ircumstanees which seemed so apparent to me ft this oase, I wliave always opposed capital t»i»ishment. I should be pleased if you wowld thank all who joined with me in the effort to save Dan Sullivan's life for the unremitting Qnegy and enthusiasm with which they all ad- dresse d themselves to the task. Had they oeen Serving their own interests, instead of fighting for the reprieve of a man who. in many cases, Wa's comparatively unknown to them, they Ootild Not have worked harder, or more consis- tently; and though our cause failed owing to the nature of the legal machines wic we were Against, I myself am desplv grateful to the, fiaany workers who gathered round me; and I know that Dan. Sullivan, too. was most deeply affected by the efforts that were made in his behalf. No, I would not like to particularise Anyone for special mention, where all worked together, though I am personally very grateful to Mr Stausfield. whoe assistance in every di- rection was invaluable, and who never spared himself in any direction to bring about the re- sult that we desired. So far as Dan's children are concerned, I do hope that the Guardians will see to it that they get a good home. One in which they will be well cared for, and in which they can forget this terrible time that has dardened their lives. 3Tor their sake, if for no other, I trust that *iow the pqpr fellow has paid all that the law exacted of him. the bickerings and feuds that have unfortunately figured in the case in Oowlais will be laid to rest, and that from now on the only concern of all who have taken any interest at all in the case, on whatever side they may have been. will be for the little ones who have been so tragically robbed of both mother and father."

Pontardawe Notes. Nun Nicholas Arrested As was long expected, Mr Nuh Nicholas was on Monday evening arrested as a deserter under the Military Service Act. He was on his way to Pontardawe in company with Mr Abra- ham Jones when. at Trebanos P.C. Davies ac- costed him, and stated he had a warrant for his arrest. Nun then quietly accompanied the policeman to the Pontardawe Police Station, where he was detained for the night. I was not informed until I reached Pontardawe at 10 o'clock that night, but by then Abraham Jones and Griff Davies had made provisions for Nun for the night in the shape of food, cigarettes, and clothing. They told me, after their visit to him, that he was quite happy in his cell, and was looking forward with confid- ence to the future. However. I decided to see him myself in the morning, and to travel with him as far as Swansea. Morning came, .and I walked to the Pontardawe Station. The train, entered a.s I was crossing the bridge. I hunted for him in each compartment, and I found him at the bottom- end of the train, smo- king and chatting heartily with the officer in charge. By his side sat David Evans who, like myself, had decided to make the journey with him, not to give him encouragement —-for Nun does not need encouragement but be- cause he possesses that personality which is irresistible. After reaching Swansea we walked together through tha town, to the staring of curious eyes, the possessors of which seemed to wonder how one policeman was capable of tak- ing three prisoners to "quod." We reached the station, and there left Nun for a while in order to get to the Western Miners' Office to agent. The agent (Mr D. R. Grenfell) was rather late in .arriving, so by the time we again reached the station Nun had been on and had been fined 20s. and handed over to the military. We again joined Nun, and he briefly stated what had happenefl. First of all, he said, lie ryapeajkxl for the indulgence of the bench for a possible breach of etiquette, as he desired to go over his case in detail. Under the Mili- tary Service Act every man under a certain age was "deemed" to hawe enlisted after a certain date. But there were provi&j.ms in the Act, under which it was possible for certain men to be exempted. He had. in accordance with those provisions, claimed exemption as a Oon- scientious Objector. The Local Tribunal, which he claimed was prejudiced against him, .had, after hearing his case, granted him exemption from combatant service. As this did not meet his case he appealed against this decision, and subsequently lie appea,red before the Appeal Tribunal. He found that this Tribunal was more prejudiced than the Local Tribunal, and lie therefore sought permission to appeal to the Central Tribunal. This permission was granted, and accordingly he submitted his case to the Central Tribunal. Before his ■ case was finally disposed of at this last Tribunal, his right to appeal was challenged, and it seemed afterwards that the Appeal Tribunal denied granting him permission. He therefore contend- ed that through this error on the part of the Tribunals, his trase had not received the proper- attention, and had Rot been finally disposed of He wanted to draw the atteaitioil of the magis- trates to this point, as the Appeal Tribunal had admitted his case to be an exceptional one. Tfien he dealt with the proceedings at the Mining Tribunal. His employers (the Glyn- coeh workmen) had claimed exemption for him as being indispensible, and as a legal right, being that checkweighers were exempted. The hearing, he contended, was unfair, as utterly irrelev nt questions were raised. The military representatives attempted to point out to him that lie had come under the Defence of the Realm Act, b-v acousiiig him of addressing Peace Meetings, etc., which had nothing to do with a Tribunal, much less a Mining Tri- bunal. He again pointed out that an error had been, made regarding the modification of his appeal. Later on, he said he received a written letter from Colonel Pearson aceusing him or exemplery conduct and warning him regarding refusal to report. This was followed by a- letter from the ,militttry threatening him with exemplary punishment. In conclusion Nun drew the Bench's attention to two errors that had been cornmit-t.ed--c-one during the procedure, of his case at the Mining Tribunal^, and the other, which he empha,siedas a deliberate" mistake, was made by a certain memBer of the Appeal Tribunal. This concluded the tearing, which was a, very interesting one. and referring to which a prominent military man said, in .reference to NH 11: He's very smart chap. indeed; the speech he made was quite a clever one; a very cute speech; and I can't help admiring the fellow." After reaching the recruitkig office, a great deal of time was spent in going through the usual rigmarole of military procedure. Nun, when asked to sign the papers, said, "No, I am not going to sign any papers at all." He was afterwards marched off to another part of the building, where he was asked to undergo medical examination. This again he refused. Then came the march to the station en route for Cardiff, About 20 new- recruitl5 were going with the same train, and amongst these walked myself, David Evans and Nun. After reaching the. station we had a stay of about 20 minutes, during which a batch of the Clydach boys ar- rived, who informed Nun that the ball had started rolling already; the workmen of Glyn- coch had come out on strike on his behalf. After hearty handshaking the train started out of the station, taking with it one of the staunohest. cleverest and most determined men in the British Army, who had that day begun a fight which had been so gallantly fought by such men as Morgan Jones and Emrys Hughes and the three Brothers Shepherd. The militarists had never made a greater mistake than to try and break the spirit of men such as these. T. E. I

A Merthyr Disgrace. I QUESTION OF THOMASTOWN BURIAL I GROUND. The question of the upkeep of Thomastown Burial Ground, which has been the subject of much controversy in and around Merthyr was brought forward in a new light, at Friday's meeting of the Merthyr Parks and Cemeteries Committee, Councillor Lloyd presiding. The Archdeacon of Llandaff (the Rev. James R, Buckley), iii a coi-ai-aiinication to the Town Olerk (Mr T. A. neuryn Rees) wrote that he had receivved a copy of the report of the Bor- ough Surveyor as to the condition of the cemetery, and containing the suggestion that he (the Acrhdeacon) should take the matter up with a view to remedying "the disgraceful state of affairs which exists." As a result he visited the burial ground on Monday last, and the letter coiit in tied: -"I was led' to expect I from your Surveyor's report" writes the Archdeacon) "that there had been neglect, but the actuel state of the ground was unfortun- ately worse than I had imagined. I confess that it is a mystery to me how such neglect of God's Acre would have been tolerated for a single day. What- is to be doneP" The obvious answer is to find out who are responsible and to insist that such a scandal shall not exist an v longer. I saw the Rector (the Rev. D. Lewis), who declared that he was no more responsible for it than the beggar in the street. I under- stood him to say that the burial ground was closed by an Order in Council, and that uilder the Burials Act the cost of keeping it in order falls upon your Corporation as the governing authority. He also stated—and this was con- firmed by the book in the overseers' offit-e that for many years until 1897 or 1898. the ex- penses were paid out of the rates, and a pre- cept issued by the church wardens. Sinee then, apparently* no precept has been issued, no money paid, and the burial ground has drifted _jro,iiji d has drifted into the condition described by your surveyor. You say that the attention of the Rector and the churchwardens has been called to it with- out avail. Am I to understand that your Cor- poration disclaim all responsibility and throw the onus upon them? If this is so, how was it that in 1897 or 1898, when Colonel Lewis was churchwarden, a sum of L70 was paid for dork done in the old burial around, The Deputy Town Clerk < "Mr J. Ernest Biddle) pointed out that iiasmum: as ,no Order in Council had "been made dosing the burial ground." the responsibility for keeping the same in repair rested upon the churchwardens. Although was true that the overseers had some years ago made a precept issued by the churchwardens, in his opinion "the public funds were used under a xi,iscLpl)rehension," as there was no authority under the Burial Acts authorising any payment out of public funds other than in respect of closed burial grounds It was decided that the Town Clerk and the Chairman of the Committee should draw up a reply to the Archdeacon's letter dealing with the questions raised. THE RECTOR'S STATEMENT. I The Rector of Merthyr (the Rev. D. Lewis), speaking at the last Easter Vestry on this question, said: "The Rector also referred to the question of the upkeep of closed consecrat- ed burial grounds, In that parish the expenses according to law had been derrayedouiJ of the poor rate for upwards of 70 years, but since the incorp-oration. of Merthyr the system had been stopped. There were three such burial grounds in that parish-the Parish Churchyard, Thomastown and TVynyrodyn-—and up till the time of the incorporation the repairs were executed by the ahurch wardens and paid out of the poor rate, but since then the ehurchward- ema. finding that they oould not recover the expenses, had not carried out the work."

I.L.P.'s Activity. I ATTACK AT TRADES UNION CONGRESS I The Trades Union Congress closed on Salrr- day, A part gf the final sitting proved to be somewhat lively. Mr J. Sexton (Dockers) moved a resolution that in ordar teratoid any future misunderstandings of the political aimi and ob- jects of organised labour and to prevent over- lapping, the organised trade unions should take the necessary steps to effectively control and concentrate Trade Union political action through the Trades Union Congress only. Mr Sexton, amidst a running fire of inter- ruptions, spoke ironically of the mushroom or- ganisations, and occasionally evoked laughter by his strictures on the general policy of several of these bodies, particularly the Independent Labour Partylitlld the Fabians. He declared txmirade now often meant charlatan a.nd swash buckler. Mr J. H. Thomas, M.P.. led the opposition to the motion, and on a show of hands it was negatived.

lOur Appeal for Navvy Pat. (Week ending August 26, 1916.) s. a. Pi oneer .'# 2 6  P io 2 6 Bargoed Pioneer Committee I 9 Tonyrefail Pioneer Committee, per A. Huston •••••• 1 0 S3 Week ending September 2 1916.) Pioneer S 6 Bargoed Pioneer Committee 1 9 Tonyrefail -Pioneer Committee, per A. Huxton .I 1 0 5 3 .(Week ending September 9, 1916.) Pioneer 2 6 Hair goed Pioneer Committee 1 0 Touyrefail Pioneer Committee. 1 0 4 6

Navvy Pat's Views. Pat Was early this week; the first arrivals found him sitting in his corner scratching his head and looking worried, "What's bitin' ye. Pat?" shouted Sandy, ye look like a big school boy over a bigger sum." "An' faith, ye're just right," says Pat; "things eis movin' too quick for me to keep up wid 'em, an' they won't move right for all I say or do. I can't get no satisfaction about Conciliation Board affairs, but from what they won't tell me when I ax 'em I can see that unless the man take things into their own hands pretty quick. the tangled skein will be turned into a gordian knot requirin' the sword to untie it. An' the war; we get any amount of experts' opinions (every newspaper man is a war expert), an' the only chance of getting near the truth is to take what they don't tell us, an' we have a chance ov coming right. Mr Morel has given us "The Truth and the War," but you an' me an' the rest ov us can come just as near the truth as any wan ov our fillosyphers an' guides; for the truth won't be known till A.D. 2016; mebby a oupple ov munths or year, or decades earlier; it's always that way. Years ago Ramsay Macdonald towld that people who said that Germany was plannin' to blow up London with Zeps was pollytishans on the make; an' year; ago I used to say there was no fear ov Germany goin' to war wid Britain, for we were her best customers. Now there's two leading pollytikal authorities, both prophesyin' acoordin' to logical raisonin' an' both goin' wrong; an Morel will be in the same box as things cums out. Av coor.se, Ramsay an' me has this excuse —we cudn't possibly drame that the Kaiser wud be made enuff to think ov a world empire under German kultur; an' we reckon that he must have been reading his Bible an' clim across Psalm 37, verse 11, an' Matthew 5, verse 5, and fancied they both ment him. That's how he poses as a meek man, anxious for peace, wid Belgium an' a bit ov France thrown in, an' a open road to Egypt an' India." zl The war's a nuisance, Pat; who's to blame for it?" asked Jos-ie, "That's a puzzle," says Pat; an' ivrybody that knows all about is has differmit stories to tell us; an' if I answer ye, ye must onderstand that we can only judge by what has been published ov the palavers before the war, an' England, France an' Russia has published their share, and Germany hasn't. Austria behaved lik« rrullv to Servia, an' ) Servia., an' iflade demands no vttc at the last moment, when Russia had got Aus- tria to the point ov having another palaver for peace, Germany stepped in wid a ligo-oice, to Russia to demobilise in 12 heura an' to France asking her what she wud do if there was war between Russia an' Germany, an' giving her short notice to answer. She demand- ed ov Belgium free road icxr troops to France or be slaughtered, an' before the German Chancellor was done palaver in' wid Earl Grey the Germans were in Belgium. So it appears Germany an' Austria, under Germany's boot, are to blame for the war but who knows what may slip out la-ter P Wan thing is certain: neither Russia, Franee or Britain was ready for war; Germany had been preparin' for 20 years, so we may reckon we're right till we're proved to be wrong. When are we to have peace, Pat? We haven't time to drink our whack for tlao bloomin' war restrictions an' we're payin' two prices for it, an' if we sing Britons never,' etc., the temperance party laffs at us"— this from Tinker Frank. Well. me boy, the Peace Paxtw got sat on by the Trade Union Congress, and it's too small a party to do much harm. This wud almost make a. pacivist ov me. for I'm always on the side ov the minority, but ivry thing's tuther way abou now. The Kaiser wants peace, an' lie's tryin' ivry dodge he can think ov to get the meutrals o bargain for hm. but he's a beaten invader, an' a beaten invader gets no terms but unconditional surrender, an' we can't listen to any other terms. If he withdraws widin his own frontiers we'll listen, but we'll keep shooting while we listen, so he shan't steal a march on us. Hvell i his own oountry the bill for damages will be eumthin' fearful. The murder at a merchant skipper for tryin' to damage a submarine; Nurse Cavell; the horrors ov Rukleben an' other prisons; the ot h er prisons; the Lueitnia an' other ships, includin' peaceful fishin' boats; the Zep raids; all murder—not war; an' that's not mentionin' the nameless atrocities on women, girls an' the inhabitants ov the invaded ootintries; which some of the pacivists deny; an' the white flag tricks, the gas. an' liquid fire. It's hangin' for the Kaiser, Crown Prince, an' all the Prussian military directors, an' 20 years' denatinalisin' for the slaves that too willingly obeyed their orders. Now we've wasted enough time on the Germans; let's luk at home, an' we'll find plenty demandin' prompt attention. The biggest half ov the male population has volunteered, an' Labour is not alone in upplying fightm material; all ranks flew to the colours, as soon as the call was made known. But Labour is bein' taxed heavily by the high prices ov food an' clothin', not to mention beer an' tobacco. A commission was appointed to enquire into the matter an' two fax have been established: (1) that for the Guvernment to interfere wud antagonise some colossal interests that have been Co created by 'the situation; (2) that high prices ov necessaries is not a subject ov first importance. Now, cud there be a stronger call to arms than that for Soshalists ov all sorts? Not a subject of first importance that the bread for our childer shud he put beyond the reach ov thousands whose earnings have not been riz by the war. Guvernment to interfere would raise the dander ov sum ov them profiteers that's grown fat at our expense. Them's two statements by them above us that shud put us all in fighting trim; an' if we take 'em lyin' down we desarve kicking But the Guvernment have really inquired into the bizness. We heard ov great stores ov provisions being held back for highly prices, bein' cornered as they call it. The Guvernment went to the cornerers an' axed them plump an' square, have you got any goods cornered? An' the cornerers looked insulted an' told the Government 'No; we cudn't think ov such a thing; we are above playin' such a mean trick on the nation in its need'; an' the Guvern- ment was satisfied, an' towld us things was all right, an' there was no cornering, an' ordered us to work overtime. The Guvernment can buy meat, wheat an' provisions for the army much cheaper than the shop keepers that supply us; they can commandeer hay and wool for the army, but they can do nothin' for us; them colossal in- terests, ye see! They can commandeer ships for transports; can do what they like wid any one or anything if it's for fightin, the Huns in .France, but they daren't move a finger agin the Huns in Britain who are bleeding the wor- kers an' doin' more damage than the Huns that man the Zeppellins. An' they're taxin' earnings above £ 2 10s a, week although we have the high price tax, an' they're talking of makin' it a penny on ivry shillin' earned. O! I.L.P.! cross out that resolution ov yours agin war. offensive, an' de- fensive; give up tryin' to run Members for Parliament, an' declare war on the Government that helps people to rob you. By the powers I'll cum wid ye to clear out 10 Downing St.

Individualism the Test of Barbarism." BRITISH ASSOCIATION ECONOMICS DIS- CUSS SOCIALISTIC PROGRAMME. While it is true that this war has riven the Labour movement-in many directions, it is equally true that the stress which war has brought has forced many of our erstwhile dis- tinguished cnties into an admission of the validity and neceesitv of the doctrine of scientific Stae tCo-operation, which is the bed- rock upon which Socialism is founded. Of course, many of the experimenters in the direction of piece-meal Socialism, hampered by an entirely antagonistic competitive system, on to which they are trying their hand at will renounce their creeds of expediency when times are normal (?) after the war; amd by sophistical verbal somersaults will iTv ?o argue a definite difference between s?ate Seientilk; Co-operatior. tuid "Socialism. That is to be /• .7>ecet" it sut^ v; *:h workers will rememoer that in fcue .t-iiri1 oi gravest tiange.- known in the history of this nation, the funda- mental of Democracy was conceded The latest exponents of the Socialists' rural programme is the Eeollomio Section of the British Asso- ciation, which at Newcastle last Thursday ad- dressed itself to the problem of rural depopu- lation. Mr C. Turner, the initiator of the discussion., st,a,ted that a mere three months' supply of food stood between us and absolute and irret- rievable defeat. In order to increase OUT agri- cultural population we muse secure to the labourer a reasonable living wage, provide a sufficient supply of good cottages and more attractive surroundings, and devise a eolnpre- heneive scheme of scientific land settlement. Earl Grey, ex-Governor of Canada, who fol- lowed, said that this island was no loliges secure owing to the submarine menace, which was only in its infancy, and it was essential we should increase our home food supplies. Scientific farming would greatly increase the output. The test of civilisation was oo-opera- tion the test of barbarism was individualism. The question of land settlement was con- sidered, and suggestions made with a view to discharged soldiers becoming small holders. A report was presented by a conimittee on the replacement of men by wqjnen in industry in which the view was taken that after the war the problem of a, large surplus of womea might not be so serious as it was feared.

Swansea Labour Astooiation PROTEST AGAINST RESTRICTIONS ON MeftS. EFLESANT. A general meeting of the above Association was held at the Dockers' Hall, High Street, on September 7) the President (Mr Hallett) in the chair. National Council for Civil Liberties. The President (Brother Hare) reported en the proceedings of the conforenge held in Swansea in August. Home Rule for India League. A communication from the above laeague, complaining of the restrictions placed upon the works of Mrs Annie Besant in the Indian Empire, especially in the Province of Bombay which she is not allowed to visit. A resolution strongly condemning the author- ities on their summary action was unanimously passed, and ordered to be forwarded to the proper authorities. Increase in Food Prices. This subject has been before the Association on a previous occasion, but pending the possible action of the Committee appointed by the House of Commons, to investigate and report, no further action for the time being was taken. The delayed report of that Committee and the continued rise in the price of commodities is such that immediate action is absolutely neces- sary. Labour Members' Report. Alderman G. Colwili reported upon the work of the Borough Council, dealing especially with —(1) the water supply: and (2) the electric lighting station. Guardian G. H. Peacock gave an outline of the work of the Guardians,

TREHARRIS TRBHABRIS PRIVATB WOUNDED—Private C. O. Evans, a broth-er of Mrs. Lewis, 4 Prosser Street, Treharris, has been wounded in action, and is now in hospital.