The Amman Valley Chronicle and East Carmarthen News

WORKMANSHIP GUARANTEED. R. DEWSBERRY, Monumental Sculptor, AMMANFORD.

RUSSIAN RECRUITS BEING MEDICALLY EXAMINED.

Ainas Puddings foroup Sobers Fcr the second year in succession a Fund raised in connection with The Daily News is undertaking the supply of tne armies at the front with a half-pound portion of Christmas pudding for every man. Last year the Fund amounted to 18.300, and over 500,000 men were supplied. This year the number to be supplied is about four times as great. This includes the troops in France and Flanders, in the Dardanelles, Egypt, and the Mediter- ranean. Last year the fund undertook the supply of consignments to particular regiments and other units at the instance of private donors and local subscrip- tions. This year, at the desire of the War Office, it has limited itself to the simple plan of presenting to the Army, as a whole, its Christmas pudding as a whole. In this way all overlapping and confusion will be avoided, and the task of the Army transport and distri- buting departments—vast enough in itself—will not be confused by over- lapping and duplicated supplies and special addresses. The Army Council has for the second time given the scheme its fullest sanction and benediction. The pud- dings are all to be made by con- tractors approved by the War Office; medical inspectors for the War Office will inspect the factories, the in- gredients, the process of manufacture, and the completed puddings; which, del ivered from the makers to the Army in hermetically sealed tins, will reach the men at the front with the utmost guarantee of wholesorrteness. The War Office will convey the pudding free of charge from the manu- facturer ot the front. That the puddings will be British Christmas puddings of the best is guaranteed by the fact that the con-, tractors' sample puddings on which the contracts. are placed are adjudicated upon by no less an expert than M. Escoffier, of the Carlton Hotel, who is the acknowledged authority on the British Christmas pudding. POINTS TO REMEMBER. hoery man must have his half-pound share. All must be in the hands of the A rmy authorities by the end of November Every sum, however small, will help a man to a helping. Sixpence supplies one man, 2s. 6d. six, £ l 50, 30s. a platoon, £ 3 all artillery battery, £ 5 a com- pany, 19 an artillery brigade, £ 12 a cavalry regiment, £ 20 a battalion of infantry. He gives twice who gives quickly. There is not a moment to lose. Nothing is so Chvistmassy*" as Christmas pudding. By no other means can every man at the front receive his message from home on Christmas Day so surely as by this. The task is great, but it will be easily accomplished by united effort. The A mman Valley Chronicle has decided to open a local subscription list in ,support of the movement, so that all in the district may have the oppor- tunity of feeling that lhey have sent their own men their share of pudding— a gift from the Home to the Man, from the Nation to the Army. Assuming the task h be as com- pletely performed as last year-a com- plete supply for the Army at the various fronts being hmded over to the War Office-it is pioposed to in- form the Officers Commanding the Welsh Regiment that I heir Christmas pudding is the special gift of subscribers to the Amman Valley Chronicle fund. But this can only be done if our readers take their part and see that the whole Army is supplied. Subscriptions should be sent to the Editor, Amman Valley Chronicle, and will be acknowledged in this column. Cheques and postal orders should be made payable to the Amman Valley Chronicle, and crossed. Treasury and bank notes should be sent by registered post.

Private Ben Wright, of the 1st Welsh Regiment, who belongs to Liansadwrn, has been reported wounded in France for the second time.

^^S f POWDER? K  ? I For ^HEADACHE,TOOTHA^EI AND NEURALCIA T? V The QUICKEST and MOST CERTAIN CURE I ??\/ 1 2,1 ?.ch'116 d at .11 Chemists & Stores 1 J.MORCAMJONMtCc??LAMELLY ??'? J.MORGAN JONES tCoTL&ANELLY. v JAMES'S' v  ir?/a &? Temperance Hotel, High St., Ammanford. Good Accommodation far Travellew. -MODERATE TARIFF.- Rees levies & Co., Wholesale & Retail Butchers, 42, College St., AMMANFORD, Beg to announce that they are going to Pay Dividend every Quarter to all their Customers on producing their Receipts, which will be given with every j Purchase.

Heard in the Street.) A chiel amang ye fakin' notes, An' faith he'll prenf it." -BURNS. A man down on his luck was going along the street the other day, and bewailing his lot to a passer-by, said: I have been on the road twelve months. Well," was the sharp reply, come on the pavement, you fool. A member of the Ammanford Chamber of Trade states when he com- plained at Pontardulais Railway Station of the want of fire, was told by an official there to go to h-. The warmth of the remark touched the Secretary, who remarked: Well, you were Asking for it." A defendant at Ammanford Police Court this week pleaded half guilty to the offence with which he was charged. The Clerk was in a dilemma as to which half the plea referred to, so he coolly passed it over to the witness for the prosecution to prove" the. other half. An old fellow was airing his musical abilities to the annoyance of the rest of the company in a certain hostelry, when one of the audience got impatient and said: For heaven's sake, man, what key are you singing in? Cu," he said; I' ve never had a dog, only a bitch." There was a tall man in a certain village, not long married to a little woman, and he soon found out that what she lacked in height was made up in the length of her tongue. There happened to be a lecture in the village one night, and afterwards a friend met the henpecked man, who was going home rather late. He asked him: Have you been to the lecture to- night? No," was the doleful reply, I am just going to it." Two men came to work on a Car- marthenshire farm, in the heart of the country, and the farmer was too mean to allow them a candle to go to bed in the loft. As they were groping their way in the small room, one of them knocked his head on a beam in the low roof. Jawch he yelled, I' ve hit my head till I can see light." Well," said his pal. knock it again so that I can see to find my stockings." An old farmer renowned for his nearness went into a country public-house, and calling for a modest half-pint, asked the landlady if she could give him a bit of bread and cheese. The genial lady went to the kitchen, and brought back a loaf and a good round cheese. On seeing the d Do you latter the old man sai Do you mind where I start it? Oh, no," said the lady, whereupon the farmer tucked it under his arm and started off saying: Then I'll start it at home." Two Shonies from the country went up to London, for a tap, and having gone around the usual" sights," began to look at the shops. They saw a notice: Discount on every shilling's worth," and one said to the other: Let' s go in. What for; what are you going to buy? Oh, said the first, a cap." They went in and the cap was bought, whereupon the shopman asked the purchaser what he would like for discount. A mackintosh," was the modest reply. A well-known character was the late Ben Jones, Llandyssul, who kept the village emporium, and he was never at a loss in the way of smart repartee. One day a would-be clever customer entered the shop and said: Well, Mr. Jones, you sell everything but grace." Oh," he replied, I can sell you that, too." How much is it?" Fourpence," said Mr. Jones; and taking up the money, went into a back room. He returned with a small parcel neatly wrapped up, and the pur- chaser, on opening it, found inside a fourpenay Testament. Many people who know Carmarthen will remember Johnny Bogus, &R old fellow who hung about the Boar s Head doing odd jobs. He was quite a character, but in his young days had been a smart soldier, until fever took all the bair off his head, and there- after he wore a scrub wig ard told the youngsters of the town marvellous barrack-room tales. When he went abroad on a troopship, his mother went up to the barracks, and asked for news of her son, as she was sure she had heard his cries for help as the ship went down. Sure enough the report came about three weeks after that the ship had been sunk, but Johnny was amongst the saved, and it was said at the identical time had been shouting, Mother." After he returned fnim the wars, Johnny used to get into con- vivial company, with the result that quarrels often arose. In one of these Johany taunted his opponent with his uselessness, and the retort was: I' m as good as you; what can you do? Well," said Johnny, "f I' ve got what you haven't; a voice." You got a voice, sneered the other. Yes," shouted Johnny, I have; my mother heard irfe four thousand miles away." Printed and Published by Gwilym Vaughan, Limited, at their Offices, Quay Street, Ammanford, in the County of Carmarthen, October 21st, 1915.

Ammanford Soldiers. I Ammanfor d So l d i ers.  TWO MORE DEATHS REPORTED. Information has been received by Mr. J. Thomas, of the Amman Stores, High Street, Ammanford, of the death, killed in action, on the 26th September, of Private Geo. Gowring, who had been for six years ia his employ. The gallant lad joined the 9th Welsh, but was afterwards transferred to the 3rd, and then the 2nd Battalion, going out to France with the latter. He was an adherent of Christian Temple, and was very well known, through serving in I the shop and soliciting orders. Before coming to Ammanford he was in Mellor's Orphanage School, Bristol, and has a sister living in Ashley Down, Bristol. Mr. J. Thomas has had five other of his employees enlisted, one Clement Banks, who joined in Bristol the Glou- cester Regiment. Another is Sidney Hicks, who left Ammanford to go to Canada, where he joined the Canadian contingent and came over. He has been wounded in the left arm, but is now again at the Front. John Jones, a haulier with Mr. Thomas when the war broke out, joined at Ammanford in August, 1914; Albert Richards, of Barry (who was at Liptons' when he joined), and Heatherage, a haulier, now in the 6th Welsh. Official intimation has also been re- ceived by Mrs. Jones, of 39, Harold Street, chat her husband, Corporal Maurice Jones, 4th Welsh, who had been reported missing, had been killed at the Dardanelles on August 10th. A letter has been received by his parents, at Ystradamman Farm, from Corporal J. Richards, 1st Welsh Guards, written on the 28th Septem- ber. He says:—" We have been on the move for a few days, but now our chaps are under fire. They started last night. You ought to be here to hear the shells whistling over our heads. But I am all right so far, as I am back behind the firing line, with the head- quarters staff, looking after the horses, shoeing and harness, dressing those which have been wounded, and serving I out oats and hay to the drivers. I ex- pect you will see the news in the paper this week about us." Corporal Richards was in the Gla- morganshire Police Force at Ferndale prior to enl isting. He is a great I athlete and footballer, and was one of the team selected to play for the county in France before the war. He stands 6ft. l? in., and first joined the Grena- dier Guards, but transferred to the Welsh Guards on their formation. Two other brothers are in the Army, both over 6ft. in height. One is a gunner in the Royal Horse Artillery, and the other, who has taken his degree at Aberystwyth, belongs to the Public Schools and University Battalion. His youngest brother, Morgan Richards, is I anxious to join as a drummer. AUSTRALIAN CONVALESCENTS PRACTISING BOMB I THROWING AT THE KAISER.

Last Call for Volunteers. I LOOK AT THE MAP." I Lord Derby, Director of Recruiting, on Tuesday further outfitted his recruit- ing scheme in an address to mayors, chairmen of Urban District Councils, and Parliamentary agents at the Man- sion House, London. Briefly the main features of the scheme as suggested by his lordship are as follow:— Men who enlist will be divided into 46 groups, the unmarried men into the first 23 groups, according to age, and the married into the next 23 groups, also according to age. The latter will not be called upon until all the un- married groups have been exhausted. Single men may be put in a later class and only called up when neces- sity arises in cases where they provide a valid reason, as, for instance, that they are the sole support of their mothers. They will, however, be asked to undertake voluntary drill, in case of emergency. Men are needed principally for the infantry. Preference for the Army Service Corps and the Royal Army Medical Corps will be given to mar- ried men. In the course of his speech, Lord Derby, answering those who are seek- ing information as to the position, said: Look at the map That would show the position. Look where we were now; look where we were a year ago. Was not that information enough to show the gravity of the situation? We were hearing of victories here and vic- tories there, but to all of those he said: Look at the map! That seemed to him a sufficient answer to those who were ckimouring for more information. I say this," said Lord Derby, "in no spirit of pessimism. I am perfectly certain the end will come right, but the end will come sooner, and the end will be more satisfactory, if every man in this country recognises that a portion of the Empire's duty rests upon his own shoulders. (Cheers) His Lordship concluded with the significant statement: This is the last effort on behalf of voluntary service. It is not the effort of an individual, but of a body of men representing all shades of politics and classes. It is an appeal to the people to recruit for the people—an appeal which, I hope and believe, will not be made in vain. It is the final appeal, and it gives every man a chance to give his services to his King and his country."

Carmarthenshire Teachers. WAR BONUS DEMANDED. The quarterly mealing of Carmar- thenshire Education Committee- was held at Carmarthen last Thursday. Mf. W. N. Jones, Ammanford, presiding. An application was received from the elementary school teachers for a war bonus of i 10 per annum. The Chairman proposed that the matter be referred to a committee. Mr. John Lloyd, Abergwili, said they heard officially at the last meet- ing that the maximum of the new scale of salaries recently granted would mean an expenditure of 15,000 a year more than under the old scale. That meant a rate of 21,d. or more in the i, so that the scale of salaries prevailing in the county for elementary school- masters compared very favourably with the scales of other counties in Wales. The maximum for assistant masters, if they took the superannuation premium the Committee paid for them into con- sideration, amounted practically to £ 135 a year, while the maximum for teachers in their bigger schools amounted to 1225 a year. It seemed to him ridiculous to suggest a war bonus to people drawing salaries vary- ing from 1135 to S-225 per annum. It seemed rather unfair that one section of the community drawing taxable in- comes should be relieved of their obligations to their country at the ex- pense of the other section by drawing a war bonus. We had all got to sacri- fice at the present time. They had 18 teachers in the county who had nobly responded to the call of their country and joined the forces. He did not know whether that was a very great record when they remembered that they had 700 teachers in the county. The enlistment wosked out at a little less than 3 per cent. They had a large number of eligible young men of mili- tary age and ability remaining. It was to be hoped that this record would be greatly improved upon in the near future. They knew of the action of thousands of young men in various walks of life who had given up their educational and professional training and career and sacrificed everything for the sake of their country. He did not think this was an opportune time for any class of people to ask for a wai bonus. He moved that the committee take no steps in the matter. This was carried. The following letter in relation to this matter appears in a contemporary:— Sir, It seemed rather unfair that one section of the community drawing, taxable incomes should be relieved of their obligations to their country at the expense of the other section by draw- ing a war bonus." Such is an extract from the speech of Mr. John Lloyd, Abergwili, delivered in his reply to the demand of the teachers of Carmar- thenshire for a war bonus. Super- ficially, its argument seems unanswer- able, but in making it surely Mr. Lloyd must have been asleep for many months, for during these months nearly every other section of the community has been granted a war bonus. Nearly every Trades Union has made this 1. unfanr demand and been granted it; nearly every police force har, been granted it. But, unluckily, the teachers of Carmarthenshire are not so powerful an organisation as a Trade Union, and therefore their claim must be refused and their patriotism must be suspected. Their patriotism did not commence with the war, and it would have been a sad day for our beloved country if it had. I do not wish to cause strife, but at the next meeting of the Carmarthen- sh ire E ducation Committee I should like Mr. Lloyd to state the average weekly salary of the assistant male and female teachers of the county, ir- respective of qualifications. I feel con- vinced that the average salary of the assistant male teachers will not be any- where near practically £ 135. Why? Because the authority has always been economical; the ratepayers must be saved at the expense of the children. I should like in conclusion to draw attention to the same subject as Mr. Lleufer Thomas. Money spent on education is not waste, but is decidedly an investment for the future prosperity of the Empire. Cheap and niggardly education is a poor preparation for the great commercial struggle that will take place after the war.—I am, &c. I PROGRESS.

A former butler at Abermarlais Park, Private Kenniston, has, it is reported, been killed in action in the Dardanelles. The Secretary of the War Office made the following announcement on Tuesday:— Two prisoners who were charged with espionage, and tried by General Court Martial in London on September 28th, 29th, and 30th, were both found guilty. In one case sen- tence of death was pac.;ed, and in the other sentence of penal rrvitude for five years. The findings and sentences have been duly confirmed, cad the prisoner who was sentenced 80 death was executed ihis morning.

Y.M.C.A. WORK FOR SOLDIERS. To the Editor, Amman Valley Chronicle. have been thinking that the people of Ammanford may like to hear how I am going along these days. Since my discharge from the Army, at- the beginning of this year, I have been in London. I came up to train for a commission I was offered, but owing to my late illness was found not strong enough. I then offered my services as a voluntary worker to the Y.M.C.A., London Headquarters, and was sent to work among the mea of the Royal Naval Division. I have been here 7i months, and have had complete control of the sports and entertainment depart- ment of the social side of the R.N.D' I have, through my post, come in con- tact with a number of the leading people of the musical and theatrical world. I have been fortunate enough in getting artistes such as Madam Clara. Butt, David Ellis, Madam Amy Sherwin, Ben Davies, Fred Wildon, Helen Marr, and many others, besides well-known choirs and orchestras and concert parties, to come and entertain the men at the Palace. The men who are drafted here from time to time are a very fine body, the pick of our man- hood, both of Scotland, England, Ireland, and gallant Wales. The last has a Welsh Battalion of her own, and of which I am naturally proud. The commander is Lord Tredegar, of New- port, Mon., and he is very much liked by his men. On Bank-Holiday I arranged sports, in which great interest was displayed by both officers and men, and there was great competition to gain the prizes. The Welsh Bat- talion were the prize-winners in the tug-of-war, and a fine team they were, chiefly composed of sturdy collier lads, who pulled well and won great ap- plause. If any young man of the Valley wishes to join up and help his country, he could not do better than join the Welsh Battalion of the Royal Naval Division. We shall need all the men. we are told by all the great leaoers of the day, and any men join- ing this Division will not regret it. They have comfortable sleeping quar- ters, good food, plenty of drill and exercise, and a very sound physical training. Then, after duty, they have provided for them concerts by the Y.M.C.A., also billiard tables, and the Crystal Palace BaRd plays daily from 6.30 to 9 p.m. It is a very happy sight to see the boys in blue dancing round the bandstand. The Scotch bovs are vevy fine dancers, and the reels are very well danced. We. workers of the Y.M.C.A. staff, rise at 6 a.m. and retire at 10.15 p.m., so we have a iong day; but the work is very interesting, and by helping to make the new recruits comfy we are riolne » hit to- wards the war, although unable to- follmv the guns. We have had air raids, a good many just of late, but it is a tribute to British pluck that the people of London remain wonderfully calm. We are engaged in war, and we will bear the price nobly and bravely, and await the day of peace with a calm spirit. It will be a perfect victory for the Allies, only we must wait patiently. I am sorry to read of the death of Jack Williams, and my deepest sympathy goes out to all the many town folk at home who are suffering the loss of loved ones, and also to tkose who are anxious for the safety of their lads at the front. My brother has been in France for three months, and was brought badly wounded to Gharing Cross Hospital. He is progressing very well, and has now gone to a Rest for Wounded at Harrow. I have given three concerts to 400 men wounded from the front; a friend of mine gave the tea, and these men are so brave and uncomplaining, they are7 heroes every one. Please remember me to all the friends at home. I hope to be back shortlv, as I feel the need of a rest, when I hope to find everybody keeping smiling on. although the clouds are dark at times.— Yours, &c., BEN JOHNSON. I CWMAMMAN BAND. To the Editor, Amman Valley C hroniete. Sir,-Adverting to the letter pub- lished in your last issue respecting my notes on the action of the Band Com- mittee in choosing an adjudicator. I would have willingly refrained from carrying this matter any fuither, had the writers shown more con- sistency and Jess effrontery in asking me some open questions, and before- the same dip of the pen had run dry, to beg of me to give them consideratiort in allowing their words to be final and decisive. They stated that they had no know- ledge of the heated controversy until they saw it in print. I cannot help their deliberate deafness. It was discussed not only by outsiders, but by members of the Committee as well. I am at a loss to understand the- meaning of their words ulterior motive," other than that I see persons. taking a prominent part in certain move- ments, not to do service to the public" but solely for personal benefit and self- aggrandisement; and I am confident that I voice the general opinion in say- ing that such persons should be vigilantly garded. I do not want to do the Band dis- service; I shall give it every support. such as is proved in the first issue of the Amman Valley Chronicle; but I do say that it should guard itself against a repetition of this deplorable business.— Yours, &c.. j CORRESPONDENT.