The Cardiff Times

-0- South Wales News. Funeral of the Vicar of Llandebie. The remains of the Rev. James Jones, vicar of Llandebie, were conveyed to Llandyssul on Friday, and the body lay in state overnight at the parish church. The interment was on Saturday, the chief mourners being Mrs Jones (widow), Mr D. T. Jones and Mr J. A. Jones (pons), Misses M. Grace Jones and Blodwen A. Jones (daughters), Dr. Jones, Aberkenfig (brother), Mr Evan Jones (Tvssul Castle) and Miss Jones, Mrs Jones, Drysgolgoch (cousin), and Mr .Tames Jones, Drysgolgoch. The Rev. J. R. Jones conducted the service, assisted by the Rev. Prebendary Jones, Penbryn. The clergy present included the Revs. Joshua Davies, vicar of Llanllwrii; B. Barry Griffiths, 1 vicar of Golden Grove J T. Hughes, vicar of Llanfihangel-ar-ath; Prebendary Jones, rec- tor of Pen'ooyr W. Powell, R.D., Newcastle Emlyn Prebendary Lloyd, Llanpumpsaint; T. Jones Llanddarog E- R. Enoch, St. Paul's, Llanelly Evan Jenkins, curate of Pencader S. B. Williams (Llandyssul), curate of Tenby D., A. Joues, curate of Llandyssul together with the Rev. T. A. Thomas, Llan- dyssul (U.). Death of Mr T. Mathews, Fontigary. On Sunday Mr Tom Mathews, Fontigary, a well-known figure in the Vale of Glamorgan, passed away at the Ship Hotel, Barry, where he had been staying for some time past. The deceased gentleman was a brother-in-law of Dr. George Neale, J.P., of Barry, and was a near relative of the late Rev. Edward Mathews, the great Welsh Methodist divine. The late Mr Mathews was an agent for an estate at St. Athans. Portlicawl Rates. Porthcawl district rate for the ensuing six months will be 4s in the E, The poor rate for the same period will be 2s. fpund Dead In Bed. An inquest was held at Ton Pentre on Tues- day on Mrs G. Matthews, Metexa-street, Ton, who was found dead in bed on Saturday after- noon last. Dr. Forsdyke said he understood Mrs Matthews had an apoplectic seizure 20 years ago, and her heart' had been weakened. Death was due to natural causes. Verdict accordingly. Newport Burglary. The Newport police yesterday morning were informed that the shop door of Mr H. S. Williams, boot and shoe factor, New Arcade, had been smashed, and two pairs of boots taken from the premises. The burglar left his old pair in the shop. The police have made an arrest. Funeral of Mr Evan Evans, Tredegar. The funeral of Mr Evan Evans, Park-villa, Tredegar, took place on Monday, the interment being at BedwelJty Churchyard. At the parish church the Rev. R- Morgan, curate, officiated, in accordance with the rites of the Established Church, whilst at the graveside the Revs. James Llewellyn and D. M. Rees (Tredegar), conducted a brief service. The chief mourners were Mr James Evans, barrister-at-law, Lon- don (son), and Mr H. M. Hughes, J.P.. Tredegar (nephew), Dr. Howell Evans, J.P., Black- wood, the eldest son, was unable to attend, owing to a serious illness. Among others pre- sent were Revs. Benjamin Lewis (Tenby), Evan Price (Ebbw Vale), H. Jeremy, B.A. (Blackwood), Ceitho Davies (Abercarn), Alder- man S.N. Jones, J.P. (Newbridge), Mr Roger Jones, B.A., J-P- (Pengam), Dr. Griffiths (Blackwood), Alderman Henry Bowen, J.P. (Tredegar), Mr Rees Edwards (Tredegar), and Mr Evan J'. Morgan (Cwrnsyfiog Schools). Rhymney Valley Miners The exam ination of Federation badge? and cards has been postponed from, the present week to the week commencing Monday, 25th May.

CARDIFF SCHOOLS. Teaching of Wetsh. Mr J. J. Jackson (Director of Education) at a meeting of the Cardiff School Management Committee read a reply he had received from the Board of Education regarding requested permission to teach Welsh in central halls and corridors. The Authority now stated that they could not allow such a system to become a permanency, but, were willing to sanction it in certain schools where the accommodation was insufficient, this to be only for a short time under specified conditions. Councillor Cbappell It is quite right. Central halls arc not intended for teaching. Councillor Robinson It will involve thou- sands of pounds expenditure. Mr Jackson said that it meant ultimately building additional class-rooms. Councillor H. M. Thompson favoured a system of reserv- ing certain schools for Welsh where provision would be made. This was the only way out of the difficulty. Considering that the matter was of great importance, the members decided to call a special meeting of the committee and to re- quest Mr Jackson and Mr I. V. Evans (In- spector) to present full reports in regard to the present position of affairs. Little Time for 3 R's. Arising out of the Government Inspector's reports on the Cardiff schools, a discussion took place on the time allotted to the teaching of the "Three R's." Councillor Robinson said that he was constantly meeting with young men who could not write. When they are in school," he said, they waste their time with brush drawing and snch like." Mr Jackson (Director of Education) said that the tendency had been to overcrowd the time-table, and the consequence was that only two or three hours a week were given respec tivey to reading, writing and arithmetic. On the motion of the Chairman, Alderman P. Carey, it was decided to communicate with the Board of Education on the matter, and to ask Mr Jackson to give a report. No "Empire Day." The committee decided on Tuesday to adhere to their resolution not to celebrate Empire Day at the various schools,of the city. Chance for Assistants. At their meeting on Tuesday afternoon- the Cardiff School Management Committee passed a vote of condolence with the family of the late MrG. Cook. headmaster of the Crwys-road Boys' School, who died of pneumonia on April 26th. In regard to the vacancy, it was decided, on the motion of Councillor Richards, to invite all certificated teachers to make application for the vacant, post, and to send intimation to the teachers that out of these applications, a short list of three will be selected, from which suc- ceeding vacancies will be filled, according to the position of the candidates upon the list. Prizes or Half Holiday. Mr 1. V. Evans (Inspector) reported on the prize scheme versus the half-holiday scheme aH aids to the attendance. The book prizes in 1907 cost nearly £800 he said. and as a result of conferring with the head-teaclit i^s ho had found that the scheme of giving the whole' school a half-holiday on attaining a certain percentage was much preferable. It was resolved to refer the report to the School Attendance Com- mittee with the endorsement of that meeting's approval.

CARDIFF. Banished Alien's Return.—Two charges were preferred at Cardiff Police Court on Tuesday against Reginald Madsen (20)- one of stealing a quantity of food from a weighing machine by the side of the Roath Basin, and the other with being an alien in whose case an expulsion order had been made and being found within the United Kingdom, in contravention of such order. He was sen- tenced to three months' imprisonment for each offence, the sentences to run concurrently..

CAERPHILLY. Altered Pay Ticket.—At Caerphilly on Tuesday Henry Hughes, 21, a labourer, of Abertridwr, was charged with attempt- ing to defraud the Lewis. Merthyr Col- liery Co., Senghenydd, of 20s, by altering his pay ticket by that amount. Mr Stanby Junes, Cardiff, appeared for the company. The de- fendant, in pleading guilty, said-he was en- gaged at the colliery at 2s 8d per turn, and on going to other work he expected to receive 3s 8d, but as this was not shown upon the pay ticket he altered it accordingly. The manage- ment denied any justification for this impres- sion, and the Bench imposed a fine of 20s incuding costs.

ABERAVON. Theft.—At Aberavon on Tuesday Arthur Philcox, seaman, no fixed abode, was charged with stealing 401 bs. of coal, value 3d, the pro- perty of the Port Talbot Railway and Docks Company. Defendant was sentenced to 14 days' imprisonment with hard labour.

MERTHYR. Married at SixteeL-At Merthyr on Tuesday the Stipendiary made an order upon Alfred Reed, IAaubradaeb, to pay 12a 6d per week towards the, maixxten«Ji.ce ,of hi* wife. Owen "Reed, Treharris. Mr Charges, tor the wife, said that the parties were married when the complainant was only 16 years of age. There had been three children of the marriage, and the wife was not yet 20 years of age. One of the children was dead. The married life had been very unhappy, and de- fenda.nt had driven his wife out of the house.

PONTYPOOL. Alleged Elopement.—At Pontypool on Saturday George Harries, ironworker, who now resides at Plymouth, was summoned by Blodwen Simmonds, a single woman, of Cwmffrwdoe, to show cause, etc. Amelia Wheeler, married, said that the defen- dant had admitted paternity. He had since, she alleged, runaway with another man's wife. The Bench made an order against de- fendant, who did not appear, of 2s 6d a week and 12s 6d costs. At Pontypoot Walter Becket Lewis (17), Joseph Williams and David Jones were charged with having matches in their possession in the Tirpentwys Colliery on April 2nd and 29th re- spectively. The Bench imposed a fine of 20s on Lewis, and Williams and Jones were fined 40s each. A lad, Henry Webb, also pleaded guilty to injuring a caution mark at the Tir- pentwys Colliery, and was fined 10s.

CARMARTHEN. No Light.—At Carmarthen (County) Ses- sions on Saturday for driving a horse and trap without a light in the parish of Llanarthney on the 29th ult., David Morgan, of Garnllwyd Fawr, Llanddarog, was GneaTls inclusive.

I BRIDGEND. Trespass.—Richard Jones, haulier, Pontyrhil, was on Saturday fined £ 2 and costs for tres- passing in pursuit of game on land belonging to Mr Onslow P. Traherne. Husband and Wife.—Margaret Ann Bray, Coity, claimed maintenance from her husband, Francis Bray, a railway goods clerk at Bridg- end, on the ground of desertion. Mr T. J. Hughes (Messrs Hughes and Lewis, Bridgend) defended. Defendant said he and his wife had been living with his mother-in-law at Coity. This proved an unpleasant mode of living, and he left and took a house at Bridgend, to which, however, his wife refused to go. He was still prepared to provide a home if she would leave her mother's. The case was adjourned for a month to give the parties an opportunity to settle.

LLANDILO. Permitting Drunkenness.—Edward Jones, of the Gin Shop, pleaded guilty at the Llan- dilo Police Court on Saturday to a summons for permitting drunkenness. He was fined £ 1 and costs.

NEWPORT. Old Man and Girl.—Mr Lyndon Cooper men- tioned to the Newport magistrates on Satur- day the caso in which Edward Birch (65), caretaker, Jeddo-street, Newport, was charged with assaulting a girl of 10. The charge, said Mr Cooper, was of a disgraceful nature, and all the more unpleasant because defendant was an elderly man. It was to be regretted that there were so many of these cases. This little girl, with a younger brother and sister, went to Belle Vue Park on Saturday last, and there they met the defendant. Dr. Walter Bassett said there were no marks on the girl showing that she bad been assaulted. De- fendant, who pleaded not guilty, admitted tnat he was in the park. The little girl came I up to him and said, Hullo I have not seen you for a long time." He took one of the girls up in his arms and kissed her. He had been a Trade Unionist for a large number of years, and if he was sent to prison his super- annuation money would be stopped. Colonel Wallis, who presided, said the Bench did not think defendant was responsible for his actions. They would remand the case for a week to see if two sureties could be found to be responsible for his good behaviour. Bail was granted. Horse Feed. Wm. Evans, haulier, was charged with stealing three-quarters of a hundredweight of horse feed at Machen on February 25th, the property of James Bargery, hay and corn merchant and con- tractor, value 5s 6d. Thomas Llewellyn, coal merchant, Machen, was charged with re- ceiving the same, knowing it to have been stolen, and, further, with stealing a similar quantity from the prosecutor on March 3rd. After a four hours' hearing Evans was fined 40s. The charge of receiving against Llew- ellyn was dismissed, but he was fined jE5 and a costs for stealing the feed on March 3rd. His Sporting Interest.—At Newport on Saturday a case was heard in which the Sarties were Miss Margaret Thomas and Irs Maria Haines, P6ntvwaun. the land- lady and lodger respectively. It appeared that lady and lodger respectively. It appeared that Thomas accused Haines of stealing money, and brought a policeman to the house. This was at Easter, and notice to quit followed. On Tuesday last Haines said she was passing through the door when Thomas banged it against her, crashing her. She then caught her by the throat, and also by the hair, and banged her head against the wall. Ilaines' husband, giving evidence of alleged assault, said. •• I waited to see how it would come out." (Laughter.) Thomas said the lighting was done by Haines. She wanted to leave the house, but she would not go. The Clerk There will be nothing of her left if she doesn't go soon. (Laughter.) Haines was fined 10s and costs, and the other case dismissed.

INDIANA HORROR. STILL DIGGING FOR BODIES. The diggers at La Porte, Indiana, murder farm found one more body on Saturday, which brings the list of the murderess's victims now up to 21. This body was cut up as the others were, and apparently had been buried for some time. The New York correspondent of the Tele- graph says :—It is not disputed now that the widow Gunness stands a good chance of being ranked not with the greatest criminals of America-and we have had our share on this side—but with the greatest criminals of the world-Lucrezia Borgia for choice. This arch-priestess of murder has obsessed the country iu just the same way as Jack the Ripper obsessed London—a trifle more so, perhaps, because the tales of horror emanating from La Porte have not lost in the telling in the American Press. Twice the polics blundered badly. The first case, when they routed out Mrs Cora Belle Herron, the handsome widow of a prominent Chicago business man, from her s'e 'pin^-berth on a New York Central train at Syracuse early on Saturday morning, was particularly flag- rant. Mrs Herron resembles the description of the widow Gunness about as much as Edna May, for example, resembles the late Charles Peace of burglarious fame. Mrs Gunness had several gold teeth set on a gold bridge. Mrs Herron's teeth were almost perfect. Mrs Gunness spoke with a decided accent. Mrs Herron spoke perfect English- Mrs Gunness was an Amazon, and is de- scribed as rough in manner. Mrs Herron was graceful and possessed of charming manners. On arriving here last night Mrs Herron said her arrest was a great outrage, and that she will sue the police for £10,000 damages. Matrimonial Bait. Only three of the bodies have been identi- fied with any certainty. The first is that of Andrew Heldgren, a middle-aged Norwegian, who was lured from his home at Aberdeen, in South Dakota, by the expectation of marriage with a wealthy widow, and whose body was the first to be unearthed. The second is that of Mr Budsberg, iin elderly farmer from lola, Wisconsin. The same bait had brought him to his death. The last of the three identified bodies is that of Jennie Olson, a fifteen-year- old girl, the adopted daughter of Mrs Gunness. All the remaining seven, whose bodies this terrible garden yielded up, were those of men, with a single exception, and when that is said all that is known of them has been written. That all ten of these were murdered there is no doubt. As to the four whose corpses were found beneath the ruins of the house on the morning of April 28th there is some doubt. Three of them were the children of this Norwegian arch- fiend—two girls and a boy, viz., Myrtle. aged 11, Lucy, aged 9, and Philip, aged 5. In the identity of the fourth body lies the solution of the problem. Nobody ever saw Heldgren again, until his lime-eaten body was dug up last Tuesday. In the meantime, Heldgren had deposited in the bank of La Porte the £600 he brought with him from his home at Aberdeen. Late in Janu- ary, the bank records show that he drew out all this cash, but not a dollar of it has ever been accounted for. Nobody doubts that Belle Gunness got it all right. Budsberg Came Wooing. Mr Budsberg's body has been identified by his two sons. They say that he got into cor- respondence with Mrs dunness by means of a matrimonial advertisement in a Scandinavian paper, just as Mr Heldgren did, though when Mr Heldgren began his gruesome courtship his1 predecessor's body had been for months rotting amid the quicklime in that garden of horror. Budsberg finally succumbed to the seductive letters of Belle Gunness in the month of March, 1907. Him, too, the neighbours saw driving to Mrs Gunness's farm behind the same dapple grey marc. Him, too, they saw a number of times wandering about the farm with his sinis- ter sweetheart, and once or twice they observed the strange pair drive by on their way to the town. But presently thevsaw him no more. The only trace of Mr Budsberg left on the town of La Porte was, as in the case of Mr Heldgren, a financial transaction. He and Mrs Gunness went together to the local savings bank, and arranged through that bank and the Farmers' Savings Bank of lola, Wisconsin, that a mortgage collection of £200 should be made. The collection was made. the money came, and the local bank placed it to Mr Buds- berg's credit. On April 6, 1907, Mr Budsberg drew. out the whole sum, and the account was closed. That was the last that La Porte saw of Mr Budsberg. To-day what is left of him reposes in another pine box beside the one that en- closes the remains of Mr Heldgren. Unsolved Mystery. Murder for revenue only was, apparently, the pMgion that eonsunxed widow (fuzuoeas j but whether she su.tosfcit.ufed fcho body of another woman to represent her own in the burning of her farm, or whether Iiamphere or somebody else is guilty of incendiarism, and the Nor- wegian woman, with all her drea.d secrets, was actually killed in the flames, remains as much a mystery to-day as ever. There are many cir- cumstances to support either theory. As to the absence of the head, those who believe that Mrs Gunness was burned to death say that the upper part of the woman's body found in the ruins was in an exceedingly hot place. One arm was crooked about the body of the youngest child. Both corpses were almost incinerated, as far as the backs were con- cerned, the spines being exposed and the shoulder-blades partly consumed. A finger ring, a buckle for a money belt, and a safe deposit vault key, all identified as personal belongings of Mrs Gunness, were found in the rnins near the body of the partly-incinerated woman. Sheriff Smutzer announces that be will en- deavour to procure additional evidence regard- ing the identity of the corpses found in the basement of the bumed house. With this object, he has employed a miner to sluice the ashes in the cellar, in the hope that addi- tional metallic relics of Mrs Gunness will be found. The gold filling which she is said to have had in several of her teeth is to be the especial object of this search. The New York World's correspondent telegraphs :—Everyone except the police is becoming convinced Mrs Gunness died in flames which destroyed three children. Ring and keys which were found on the adult body have beyond doubt been identified as belonging to Mrs Gunness, though this fact does not necessarily prove that the victim of the fire is the murderess. More than fifteen thousand persons paid a visit to the farm yesterday, and the railway which serves La Porte gave special excursion rates to visitors from the surrounding country. Trunk with Documents. The police have been tracing the doings of the arrested farm hand, Ray Lamphere, who was employed by Mrs Gunness, and they found in a barn six miles away a trunk belonging to him filled with documents. The precise nature of all the documents is withheld, but among the papers in the trunk are sixty letters from Mrs Gunness to Lamphere. One has been made public, which contains this sugges- tive line :—Bring your sweetheart to the farm if she has got money enough to be interesting. Probably one of the urudentified female bodies.represents this sweetheart. Lamphere, when told of the discovery of this shrunk, became wildly excited and almost swooned. When he recovered his calmness he demanded to have a lawyer sent to him at once. It is believed a confession will be forced from him before long. It was one of the famous Pinkerton detec- tives who found this trunk, and the documents have started a score of clues which are now being energetically followed.

PONTYPRIDD FAILURE. Registrar and a Debtor. Illness, neglect of business, and losses by betting and specula ting." were the chief causes assigned by Albert Henry Fussell, wholesale confectioner, Pontypridd, who underwent his public examination at the local Bankruptcy Court on Tuesday, before Registrar Spickett. Debtor (who was represented by Mr Charles Matthews) returned his gross liabilities at £70610s 6d, with a deficiency of £602 Is 2d. The Official Receiver (Mr Ellis Owen) intimated that, whilst debtor's accounts showed that he had purchased £375 of goods from the 1st No- vember to the 17th March, it now transpired that for a less period—December 1st to Feb- ruary-goods ad heen ordered to the extent of at least £427153 ld. The debtor had admit- ted that he really had no idea as to how much the purchases amounted to, nor could he give any idea as t o the money he had lost by bet- ting transactions. The Official Receiver The case is a very serious one. Deb or is not disclosing his affairs at all, and can give no account of his betting and speculations. The Registrar (to debtor) As far as I can see, there is something like £600 of goods re- ceived by you from creditors between January and March. It would be very hard for me to believe that you don't know anything about JE600 worth of goods. The Official Receiver remarked that debtor did not seem to have any difficulty in meeting his creditors last year, but all the JE600 worth of goods had disappeared, and there was JE600 deficiency. The case was adjourned for an amendment of accounts.

A.S.R.S. EXECUTIVE DECISIONS. Negotiations to Proceed. At a full meeting of the provisional com- mittee of the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants held at the offices, Acton-street, London, on Monday, it was decided to request the North-Eastern Committee to enter into negotiations with a view of arranging a satis- factory scheme of conciliation. The committee also reaffirmed the resolution in regard to Barry and also the special resolu- tion passed a few months ago. which practic- l ally £ ivwi the men power to hand in their notices, but before that is done certain negotia- tions have to take place. These will he "11- tered into at once. The gist of the special re- solution was that overtures to bring about a satisfactory settlement of the matter in dis- pute should be made. 1

LLANISHEN PARISH CHUR CONSECRATION OF THE NEW CHA The Seating Accommodation Doubled. There was a large gathering at Parish Church on Tuesday on the occasion of the consecf^j of the new chancel and other | tions to the church, and dedication nf | new organ by the Bishop of Llandan- j accommodation of the church was taxed to uttermost. The clergy present included deacon Edmondos, Canon Beck, Canoo^'j Buckley, 1 he Rev. Launcelot Lewis, &aa,jt Rev. W. I)ovey (vicar of Llanishen)- ancient church of St. Isau has undergo* terations previously. Originally it chancel, nave, and tower, and thus it reill for many generations. In 1871, when the way was constructed, the then vicar, th" Thomas Rees. increased the accomnaod^j to 182 by buildding an aisle on the nortb j In 1893, by rearranging the seating, IJ1 accommodation was provided, but of rey years the large increase in population,, j £ necessitated further extensions. In tblS, JB quote the words of the present vicar. \tf preserving intact the original buildingi has come down to these days, and faith^ adhering to the style of the old ^'01 < former aisle has been converted into the a chancel added thereto, and another built on the north side to correspond vvitb old portion, thus restoring the syinnle of the building, which, while on the 9°u^ still retains its ancient appearance, i'rorn aspects, with its many gables and their tiful finial crosses, presents a most 8v'f^c and harmonious combination." The c a( has also been lengthened and a new built, and there is now accommodation Cl- 's over 400. The cost, including furmshiife uf amounted to £ 2,4^0, towards which £ l,55y jl been promised, leaving about £ 850 still I raised. The architect for thet- exteisioll Mr Douglas Blessley. During the ment a beautiful east window lias been P'?r^ in the chancel by Mr George Tinker anJ Tinker, and a, fine organ is being present^J Mr S. Y. Knight. A screen for the old ch» has been promised by Mrs W. H. Lewis Jl family, and an oak pulpit by Mr E England. J The Bishop, attended by hs officers chaplain, was met at the entrance tOf church by the vicar, clergy, and c ch dens, who presented to his Lordship a peil praying him to consecrate the new cbaJJ and other additions to the church. A petition was then read by the Registrar, j the Bishop and clergy proceeded up the repeating the 24th Psalm. The jl preached by the Bishop, who took as his the words from St. John's Gospel, 11 I am CO that ye might have life, and that ye C" have it more abundantly."

INEXPERIENCE PENALlSEÐ. Ystradmynach Grocer's Affairs. Pontypridd Bankruptc y Court was held Tuesday before the Registrar, Mr J Spic kett. The examinations were c ondu*j a by Mr Ellis Owen, Official Receiver. Ba Henry Hier, grocer and baker, terrace, Ystradmynach, returned his gross j, bilities at 15lg Os 2d, with an estimated cicncy of £ 425. Debtor, who was by Mr J. T. Jones, Dowlais, attributed j failure to having to manage a grocery b. ness without experience (his partner ha left him), illness, competition, bad dehts, heavy expenses.—The Official Receiver I did you take the business over ?-It was Oll partner's advice.—The examination closed. Innkeepers' Affairs. j David John Mortimer, an ex-innkeeper. Pontypridd, had iE401 15s liabilities, witIJ. deficiency of S391 15s. Debtor had bee. business at the Taff Vale Hotel, PontyPr and Farmers' Arms, Trebanog. At the for place he estimated his weekly profits at £4 1 but the outgoings exceeded that sum by A 10s a week. The rent was £ 65," licence £ 30 6s i and rates and taxes about E39. Debtor w solvent when he took over the Farmers' but he was prevailed upon by his motherit law to do so, as she owned the house. n mother-in-law had lent him V,200 and a Lewis Z90 to. pay the ingoings and depoSl Examination closed. j In the case of George Meredith, victualler, Upper Boat Inn, Pontypridd',JB liabilities amounted to £ 545 4s 6d and the ciency X404 18s 2d. Debtor, who attribtl failure to illness and pressure by creditors, previously been licensee of the Fox 1* Hounds. Meredith said he became surety j had to pay over L90. Debtor stated th3lt kept a pony and trap for five years. "*> examination was closed.

HOW THE CAT IS GIVEN- Home Secretary Explains Proof In addition to a coiuila. --rait- the number of floggings anff the nSmes of* judges who had ordered them. Mr S MacNeill on Monday enquired of the Secretary what was the weight of the ■» nine-tails used on prisoners, and whether e i stroke of the" cat" inflicts at least, tl atripes on the person -Hogged. He also for particulars as to who inflicts the flogC11^ what is the payment, whether those are immediately removed to hospital, forth. Mr Gladstone's reply was The vvo("FI-bt the cat is nine ounces, of which the weighs 61 ounces and the tails 2t. Nine strip would be inflicted if each of the tails str separately. The sentences are carried prison officers, who receive 2s 6d, extra^ muneration on each occasion. They carried out in their entirety and not PÝ. stalments, as soon as possible after the ef tion of the time within which notice 0 appeal or an application for leave to ap may be given under the Criminal Appeal of 1907. A prisoner who has been flogg^ not conveyed to hospital unless there is s°a special reason for so doing, which is very r^^j the case, but is kept in t he separate cell the medical officer thinks him fit to |l Work, a period which varies from half a d»? three days.

COLLIERY SHAKEN. SEQUEL TO AN ABERSYCHAN GRUM^ MrM. Roberts Jones (coroner) conducted^ inquest at Abersychan on Tuesday on Marshall Horlor (17), Garndiffaeth, who y killed at the Abersychan Coliery by a fa^ Friday night last. if John Pritchard, a collier, sai'l he sa^J ceased and his brother, Oswald Horlor, aby half an hour before the accident. LaterJl heard a heavy fall in their stall, and Horlor shouted, Come a,nd pull me 0" He went to the spot, and found both buried, but Oswald was got out alive. William Dawkins, who rescued the e brother, said he believed the fall was c-A by a grump," which shook the whole ings. The timbers seemed to snap under t Thomas Jones, fireman, said he had J amined this place earlier in the evening. fpund it satisfactory. Mr Winstone, miners' agent, submitted the firemen's reports stating that the, w"rlcl were safe were not reliable, unless they tested the top with a mandril in each viro ingplacc.. The jury returned a verdict of Accid-O death."

GREAT BELFAST FIRE. All through Sunday night the Belfast gade staff were fighting one of the biggest which have occurred in the city. The cOtI gration broke out shortly before midnight workshop for the -blind. between the gctle post office and the Grand Central Hotel- /j biggest hotel in the city. The chief effor the brigade were directed towards saving telegraph .and telephone department sorting office, in addition to the hotel. t were many exciting scenes, for the men st J ing on the adjoining roofs were ag»i° again almost swept away by flames p smoke. Extensive damage ha3 been don property, and all the blind men of the will be out of employment. A big educate institution was also destroyed. The da11 is difficult to estimate as yet, but will into many thousand pounds.

-# H JDD j Steedman's SOOTHING Powders Relieve FEVERISH HEAT. Prevent FITS, CONVULSIONS. etc. Piesetve a healthy state of the constitution IN .1"" CHILDREN f Please observe the EE in STEEDMANjI loa I CONTAIN | f VV NO I |71? I JLh? i POISON J J Printed and published by tn> t'ropnetMjri. uU.SCAN and SJ.Vi, atUi..it. ^eabgale-3tr436, 111 wo wuy 4A C-aclUitdi, wo 'H.. M )