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NOTES OF THE WEEK.

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NOTES OF THE WEEK. THE GUARDIANS' CHAIRMANSHIP. We congratulate the Haverfordwest Board of Guardians on having re-elected Mr S. W. Dawkins to the chair. During the three years he has acted as chairman, Mr Dawkins has been most regular in his attendance, has shown a familiarity with Poor Law procedure and that desire to help the deserving poor which we might expect from one of Mr Dawkins's sympathetic imagination and wide outlook on life. It is most essential that the Chairman of a Board of Guardians should be one who is familiar with the general principles of Poor Law Administration, and for work of such a specialised nature we are strongly of opinion that it would be unwise and injudicious to change the chairman every year. The Inspector of the Local Government Board has con- gratulated the Guardians on retaining the same gentleman in the chair so long as his services are available, and this is a sound principle in a case where expert knowledge is of the highest impor- tance. Some of the Guardians talked of this sinecure of the chair," but to apply the word sinecure" even to a perpetual occupancy of the thair of a public body is a gross abuse of the English language. The arguments against a con- stant change in the chairmanship does not apply to the various councils, urban and rural, and as we have pointed out on a previous occasion every councillor who does his duty conscientiously and well should look forward to occupying the chair of the body of which he is a member. There is an outside honour attached to that position, too, which does not apply to the one who presides at the Board of Guardians. SOME PREVENTIVE MEASURES. The Haverfordwest Town Council naturally show some anxiety as to the procedure to be adopted in future with a view to adequately safeguarding the public health and at the same time preventing the wrongful seizure of meat with the consequent heavy bill of costs for the ratepayers to pay. The position is admittedly difficult, and it is aggravated and intensified by the fact that meat is taken to the market not only from the public abattoir, but from several private slaughterhouses in the rural districts. Some members of the Council are believed to favour surprise visits by experts, but this strikes us as an expensive, without having the merit of being an effective, precaution. Some method must be devised to protect the public from the far-reaching dangers of diseased meat and at the same time the respon- sible official must act on such knowledge as will prevent local butchers, who may be entirely innocent, having to suffer the loss of meat seized and destroyed which was perfectly free from disease. So far as the beasts killed in the public slaughter- house are concerned, the Council can easily prevent diseased meat being exposed for sale. We understand that if the internal organs of a slaughtered animal are examined, any medical officer can tell whether it had suffered from tuberculosis or any other deadly disease. So far as we can see there is no excuse for this not being done, because it would entail little labour and no expense, and although as we have said, it would not be a complete safeguard to the public, it would redaee risks to a minimum. It would seem that some risks must be faced by the public, but surely those risks should be narrowed down to the smallest possible limit. SOME REFLECTIONS. To be a member of the Haverfordwest Town Council is not a very enviable honour at the present time. In fact it is said that a Town Councillor is about as unpopular now as was a pro-Boer a few years ago. The public have shown some perturba- tions of anxiety for some time past, and the combined effect of all the worries and anxieties, disappoint- ment and expense is absolutely formidable. The unreformed Corporation which existed prior to 1834, and which are popularly supposed to have played ducks and drakes with corporate property, of which they were trustees, did not arouse half the hostility as has gathered round the unfortunate heads of the present day occupants of the office. Bridge Street is in a state bordering on open rebellion; the butchers are sullen; Portfield has many grievances over its water supply; Prendergast is, as a place apart, seldom condescending to concern itself in the pre- dominant partner which annexed it and destroyed its old privileges; while the milkmen are threaten- ing direful things against the men who imposed the milk tax. It has been suggested that they should cut off milk supplies to every town councillor by way of revenge, and this is a line of attack to be con- sidered hereafter. Ladies are already beginning to speak of a councillor as "a horrid creature," because they live in dread daily of an explosion somewhere or other in their locality. Every trench that is dug in the streets-and there are several just now-is believed to have some connection—mysterious and esoteric perhaps-with gas, and elaborate precau- tions are taken to be on the safe side when the fate- ful hour arrives. Structures such as the Japanese erect to lie harmless in bed during an earthquake would not be a bad idea, but perhaps when we have just nestled into these and imagined ourselves safe for ever afterwards Halley's comet will come out of the black depths of space and finally put an end to us LICENSING TRANSFERS. The attention of the Haverfordwest justices was called on Monday to the frequency with which applications are made for licensing transfers. The police represented this course as highly inconvenient, and the justices, whose powers are restricted in the matter, supported the police, although they did not go to the extent of refusing to grant the temporary transfer, which it was quite competent for them to do. The Bench, however, cannot refuse a permanent transfer. If they did so, that would be taken as tantamount to a decision that the house was not required and would be referred for compensation. No doubt many owners of licensed houses, both in the town and in the rural districts, would be only too pleased to have their licenses so referred, but in the Borough the compensation fund has been exhausted, and owners of licensed property will perforce have to wait some little time longer before they can be rewarded for closing decadent houses. UNDER FAVOURABLE AUSPICES. I The first public meeting of the Haverfordwest branch of the League of Young Liberals was held last night under the most favourable auspices. The League was able to celebrate the passing of a Budget which is not only a personal triumph for our most illustrious Welshman, but heralds the dawn of a new democratic era. With the passing of the Budget and the firm stand taken by the Government on the limitation of the Veto, Liberals have reason to be in jubilant mood. There is useful work to be done by the League in Haverfordwest, and we are looking forward to a period of strenuous political activity. A MILFORD HAVEN MISSION. I We are glad to notice tnat at the annual meeting of the Royal National A of the Royal National Mission to Deep Sea Fisher- men, Mr C. E. Newbon, the chairman of the Milford Docks Co., paid a high tribute to Miss Cooper for the splendid work she is accomplishing at Milford Haven. During the last year the Marie" Mission Hall on the Docks was used by 12,520 persons; the number of first-aid cases was 356; 1,525 letters were written, and no less than five tons of literature were distributed on 1,022 vessels. In addition to this, surgical and medical aid was supplied to 427 cases: while 4,381 beds were occupied. As resident head of the Mission, Miss Cooper has been able to rally round her a band of Christian fishermen, and her influence for good over all the men with whom she comes in contact is one of the most gratifying features of social life at Milford Haven. We wish Miss Cooper every success in her undertaking.

4TH BATT. WELSH REGIMENT,

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LOCAL AND OTHER NEWS.

"A LOW LEVEL." !

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