Penarth Chronicle and District Advertiser

Correspondence. THE BIBLE AND TOTAL ABSTINENCE. To the Editor of the Tenarth Chronicle. SiR -In the current issue of the Penarth Tem- perance Monthly there is an article written by the Rev H. Harding on the above-named subject. It is not necessary to state whether I hold antagon- istic views to the rev and esteemed gentleman, but the writer is evidently begging the question and arro- gating to himself rights which he denies to others. He says "It has been said that the Bible may be made to prove anything even what is clearly known to be wrong." This may be so if we are going to take out certain portions from their setting, and isolate them, so that they may accord with our own feelings and desires. Just so. Then this is an axiom. Mr Hard- ing afterwards selects twc passages Wine that makes glad the heart of man" and "Wine is a mocker, without giving their contexts, and pro- *■ ceeds to explain these paradoxical dicta, not only that they may accord with his own feelings and desires, but also miribile dictu, by saying that the Psalmist and Solomon were apeaking of entirely different wiles. Truly, the Bible may be made to prove anything after this, unless Mr Harding will be good enough to state what his premises or data were for making such a bold and bald assertion. What proof has he that the wines he refers to were respect- ively unfermented and fermented? I am, etc. ) SYLLOGISM.

Workmen's Outing. The workpeople employed by Mr J. S- Shepton, Contractor, Station Road, Penarth, had their third annual outing on Saturday latt, the ) 3th insL Mine- head was the place selected, and the party were photographed before starting:. After a sharp run across in the steamer Ravenswooi, most of the party visited Dunster Church, the Castle and village, return- ing by train to Minehead- Dinner was provided by Miss Percifull, at; the Beach Hotel, and was well served and enjoyed. Mr J. S. Shepton presided- After dinner brakes were engaged and manv paid a delight- ful trip to Pollock. The steamer called at Mmehead on her return trip from Ilfracombe, and Penarth wa.s reached abont 10.15 p.m., after having had a most enjoyable day.

Shocking Accident at Cogan. A FRACTURED SKULL. A singular accident befel a labourer named Edward Scrum, residing at 37, Pill Street, Cogan, on Monday afternoon. As the unfortunate fellow was wheeling a barrow of bricks across a plank at the Brickworks, be fell and the barrow and its contents falling upon him fractured the base of his skull besides inflicting other injuries. Be wae conveyed to the Cardiff Infirmary, where he was detained. He still remains in a critical condition.

Supposed Sunday Shebeening at Cogan. The Cogan branch of the Workmen's Club, having been under' suspicion was at 8 o'clock on Sunday night, raided by Sergt. Lewis, and a number of Con. stables, who seized 5 barrels of beer, partially full, 6 cases of bottles, a quantity of spirits and conveyed them to the Penarth Police Station. Besides the manager of the club, Mr John Duffey, there were found 13 men on the premises, whose names were taken by Sergt. Lewis. Subsequently another club in Arcot Street, Penarth, was visited by the Police, but upon examination of the club's books it was decided to make no confiscation.

QUICKLY CORRSOT ALL IRB*OXn,ABITIBS, KXXOTB ALJ, I OBSTRUCTION'S, and relieve the distressing symptom* to Iprevalqit wit" the sex. Boxes, 2/9 (the latter contains | three times the quantity), of all Chemists, or will be sent {anywhere, on receipt of 15 or 34 stamps, by the Maker— [E. T. XOWLE, Chemist, Nottingham. (1 Beware of Imitations, injurious amd worlMtts. BH-EA^rAST—SXTFI»BSL p S S GRATEFUL—COMFGMIIfG. A COO A, ..i-OIINqJ'4.lt 08

—— — ,~J II Should'nt do it if I Were Ion. Nathaniel Davies, a wine merchant's manager, and traveller sued Messrs Stevens and Son, wine and spir- it merchants, Cardiff, for f50 for summary dismissal, the amount being made up of arrears of salary in lieu of notice. Mr Sankey (instructed by Mr T. n. Bel- cher) appeared for the plaintiff and Mr Bailliache, (instructed by Mr narry Cousins) defended. Plain- tiff, in course of his evidence, said that he entered the service of defendants in June last year, and was engag- ed to open a branch at Penarth at X125 a year. The licence was simply a wholesale wine and beer license and the least quantity he could sell was six dozen half- pints. After the first month or so a clerk came from Mr Weaver, the Cardiff manager, examined the books weekly, and took the money. On January 23 he sent out an order for half a dozen bottles of beer he had sent out various small orders prior to that. On the 23rd a policeman desired an explanation. Plaintiff heard nothing of the affair for some tisre after when he received a telephonic message to attend the office of Mr Cousins. He told him the facts of the case as he subsequently did to the directors. The manager had previously told him, "I should'nt do it if I were you." He was later on dismissed summarily. Cross-examined: Plaintiff was aware that in selling the small quantity he was acting illegally. He admit- ted altering the entry in one of the books afterwards to six dozen, the object of which was to satisfy the Excise authorities. Mr Bailhache stated that there was no doubt this entry was not made for plaintiff's benefit. The director and manager, Mr Weaver, was called, and^s^id that he had not the least idea of the selling of small quantities of beer. When summonses were issued he questioned Mr Davies about if. As one of the directors he (witness) had to go before the Magistrates about it, and he considered as the other director did, that they could not keep plaintiff on. He tendared him the salary due, but it was rejected. Mr Britton, a clerk, deposed that he did not know small quantities were being sold prior to the instance in question. Mr Harry Cousins said he was solicitor to the company, and spoke to having had a conversa- tion with the plaintiff. The latter told hiai that after the policeman had seen him he had gone to the pur- chaser and got him to alter his order to half a dozen bottles. When the case was heard it was submitted successfully that the directors did not know of the action of their servants- His Honour thought that the plaintiff had been ill advised in bringiug torward the case, and gave judgment for the defendants with costs. Defendants agreed to pay the wages due to plaintiff-

Church Defence (?) leeting, An alleged open-air meeting in defence of the Church, was held on Monday night, on the Queen's Bench. Whether it was the unpropitiousness of the weather or the laxity of the Church champions, history so far deponeth not, but the fact nevertheless remains- that only Mr Fisher and Mr R. Boyer turned up at the advertised hour of. commencement. kfter a fruit- less half-hour expectation that something or somebody might turn up, the town crier was requisitioned to announce that the meeting would be held in Andrews' Small Hall. Thither the two dejected speakers tren- ded, whipping up the laggards on the way. At last a dozen came up to scratch, th 3 major portion of these being hobble-de-hoys, who occupied the rear part of the hall, and sat cachinating and brimming over with pure "cussedness." Mr Boyer elected himself chairman, and proceeded to announce to the beggarly array of empty benches, the object of the meeting, Mr Fisher amid a painful huih led off with his defence extempore, but was soon compelled to have recourse to his notes. Where the speech ended and the notes came in, or vice versa one cannot truthfully say. But the defence was a pitible inspired and, wishy washy rechauffe dish spoilt in the preparation and done to death in the cooking. In response to an invitation for questions a running fire of interrogations was kept, the questions and answers being painfully puerile and ofttimes nonsensical. One question, how- ever, deserves particular notice. In answer to Has a priest of the Church of England power to forgive eins ?" Mr Boyer said "Yes" This point was sub- sequently warmly and generally discussed the same evening by those standing outside Mr Wail's magic- lantern room, Mr Boyer's pronouncement being round- ly combated. A local feature of the election has been the enor- mous and enthusiastic crowd that asern bles nightly next to the St. Fagan's, to await results which are flashed upon the window of Mr Wall's A action room, by means of a lime-light. The cheeriag and counter cheering are fairly indictive of party feeling, but these manifestations of political partisanship niur-t have considerably interrupted the slnmberers within a mile's radius of this nocturnal rendezvous. A geiieral or even a local election is always weleerae im Peftarth if for nothing else than to break the prosiness of the sad, slow, solemn. ea.side soughing suburb. Apart from this it is amusing and invariably intei esting to listen to alleged discussions aud arguments of knotty points into which are imported an ardour and vigour which have perchance estranged many a friend who will not speak as they pass by for some- time at least-