Rhondda Leader Maesteg Garw and Ogmore Telegraph

To the Electors of the Rhondda Division of the County of Glamorgan. GENTLEMEN, A General Election having been thrust upon us by the unprecedented action of the House of Lords in rejecting the Finance Bill, I have once again to appeal to you for your suffrages. For close on quarter of a, century I have enjoyed the honour of being the Member for this important Constituency, and I take this opportunity of most sin- cerely thanking my Constituents for the continued confidence which they have shown in me from the date of my first Election. I have endeavoured by my actions as your Member to merit this con- fidence, and I hope when the day of the Poll arrives, to receive at your hands a renewal of the trust heretofore reposed in me. My views on the general political ques- tions of the day are well known to you all, and it is not necessary for me to deal with same in detail. Mr. WILLIAM ABRAHAM. This Election is dominated by two great issues, each of which vitally affects the interests of every man, every woman, and every home in the land. The first is whether the People or the Peers are to govern, and whether the supreme power in the State is to be transferred from the People's Representatives in the House of Commons to the House of Lords, an isolated and privileged body representing only themselves. To my mind the issue thus raised can only be determined in one way, namely, that THE PEOPLE'S: WILL MUST PREVAIL. The Lords' veto has been tolerated by the Democracy far too long, and I look with confidence to the Electors of this Constituency shew- ing in no uncertain manner on the day of the Poll that the Lords' power to restrict or even hinder the Legislative proposals of the People's House of Commons must come to a final and defi- nite end. The other issue—equally as important as the first-has relation to the principles upon which the Taxation of the Country j is to proceed. Are we to have Restrictive I Tariffs which will INCREASE THE COST OF THE POOR MAN'S FOOD, or are we to tax equitably the LUXURIES AND I. SUPERFLUITIES OF THE RICH? I unhesitatingly advocate the adoption of the latter policy, and unreservedly sup- port the proposals of the Budget, the details of which you have already been made familiar with by means of the dis- cussions on it, prolonged over many months, which took place in the House of Commona. The Budget is a great measure fraught with hope and large possibilities for the workers of fhis Country, and it is owing to its greatness that its opponents seek to destroy it. It taxes land and not food, luxuries not necessities, AND TAKES CARE TO LAY THE BIGGEST BURDEN UPON THE BROADEST BACK. It is the People's Budget, and it is because it is a Budget FOR THE PEOPLE that I have given it and will continue to give it my uncompromising support. As one who is therefore pledged to uphold in all respects the principles of the Budget and to secure the extinction of the veto of the House of Lords, I appeal to the Electors of this Division to give me their support in the forthcoming Election by recording their VOTES IN MY FAVOUR on the day of the Poll. I am, Gentlemen, Your obedient Servant, I WILLIAM ABRAHAM, Brynbedw, Pentre, (MABON). I •January, 1910. 017

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EDITORIAL NOTES. There can be no interest in any events these days but the great epoch of a General Election. It is not an ordinary appeal to the country. At last the great issue—Peers v. People—which has been threatened for many years, has come to be "the issue which the democracy of the country has urgently invited. Locally, we are glad to find that the stalwarts of Radicalism and the Labour leaders are surrounding the camps of the veteran Mabon. We regret that he is in such indifferent health and also so much absorbed in the anxiety of a great coal crisis. As was said by Mr. Watts Morgan, iviabon's mind is engaged upon a local problem fraught with the greatest and gravest of issues, and to him, who has always been so solicitous for the peaceful solution of all difficulties between Capital and Labour in the South Wales coalfield- the problem must transcend even a per- sonal triumnh such as re-election,to the British House of Parliament, in which he has represented the Rhondda for so many years with such dignity and tact for the public service. However, the field of battle has no depressing outlook in its situation for the leaders of the Progres- sive cause. Mabon is the embodiment in which we have clothed our political views for an House of Commons representative. He is the very inclusion of every quality of person, experience and capacity which has made for an ideal Welsh representa- tive. This Welsh mining area is Labour in every aspiration, but since man cannot live on bread alone, the Rhondda mining electors are Nationalists, they are Non- conformists to an overwhelming degree, and the whole gamut of social reforms, come within their ambition for a better Wales and a better living condition for the masses. We trust, therefore, that there will be no false sense of security on the polling day, and, through super- abundant confidence, to neglect to go to the ballot box and record the vote. It is necessary that the Tories should under- stand that the old Rhondda Radical fort remains as unassailable as ever, and also understand that, with the gathering: years, Mabon's claim to the Rhondda represen- tation has practically developed a divinity of right which the people of Rhondda fear to disturb. It is to our mind sheer unfeeling impudence that the seat should | be contested, particularly when we have, I in Mabon, one of the sovereign personali- I ties of the Labour propaganda. Liberalism has stood aside. It has paid its due homage to the veteran, but Tories, and, sad to think, the so-called Tory working men of the Tory Clubs, are exercising all the powers and machineries, and available as pawns for the agent in attempting to reduce the prestige of the very man who has fought, and is actually now fighting, their crucial industrial battle. If the Tory working men had any grit and an ordinary sense of gratitude, they would have made it emphatically plain to the professional politicians who rule their clubs that they would have no displace- ment of Mabon contemplated in a crisis like the present. But to allow a Tory candidate into the field, and more, to patronise his candidature, make us almost believe that, politically, they have no mind of their own, but prefer the mess of pottage in the social delights of the club before the liberties and rights of the people. If they think that an enter- prising lawyer from Cardiff can repre- sent their social and industrial cares more effectively than the great Mabon, then we are driven to think with pain and sorrow of such people. Ingratitude and benightedness cannot go much further. We are all glad to find that Mr. Edgar Jones is making excellent headway into popular favour at Merthyr and Aberdare. All Rhondda unites in wishing his suc- cess. After all, local patriotism is not an indifferent force, and in this case it

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Mr, Harold Lloyd at Pentre. A Fusillade of Questions. A meeting to support the candidature of Mr. Harold Lloyd was held at the Old Church Schoolroom, Pentre, on Wednes- day evening, Mr. Tom Jones presiding. The candidate proceeded to deliver his address, but before he could do so he was handed a series of questions on paper to answer. Questions continued to pour upon him from every part of the build- ing, an ordeal which occupied nearly an hour and a half, and which was not attended with the best of success to the candidate. In the course of his answers he made some amazing statements. In reply to a question as to why the German peasant was compelled to eat rye bread, Mr. Lloyd declared that he did so because he liked it!—an answer which drew forth considerable laughter from the rear of the building. Questioned with regard to the increase in exports and imports as dis- closed by the Board of Trade Returns for last year, the candidate asserted that these returns had not yet been published, although they were largely quoted by the Chancellor of the Exchequer during his Cornwall tour, reviewed in the daily Press, and published by Messrs. E'yre and Spottiswoode, the King's printers. Ques- tioned with regard to the utterances of his leader, Mr. Balfour, on the subject of Tariff Reform, Mr. Lloyd declared that lie could not be held responsible for the opinions of any man in his party what- I ever his position might be. In this the candidate has the sympathy of most men, as very few people can be found who really can state with any degree of cer- tainty what are the opinions held by the master wriggler in present-day politics. The meeting was an extraordinary one also in that no vote of confidence in the candidate was put to the meeting. As the candidate was leaving the building: to attend another meeting at Trealaw, three rousing cheers were given for Mabon, Lloyd George and the Budget. Mr. Gwilym Rowlands, Penygraig, pre- sided over a. meeting to support the can- didature of Mr. Harold Lloyd at the Judge's Hall, T'realaw, on Wednesday evening. The candidate arrived late from another meeting at Pentre. No vote of confidence was put to the meeting.

Support for Mabon. Progressives of the district rallied in large numbers to two meetings held to sunoort the candidature of Mabon at Tabernacle, Ystrad, and Siloam, Gelli, on Wednesday evening, although, owing to his continued indisposition, the candidate was not present at either of the meet- ings. Councillor Thos. Thomas, J.P., pre- sided at the Ystrad meeting, and Dr. W. E. Thomas, Llysygraig, at Siloam. Councillor Thomas expressed the great esteem and respect they all had for their tried and trusted leader, Mabon. ,They were as proud of him to-day as ever, and admired him for his excellent work for a quarter of a century both in and out of Parliament..The Rev. B. Evans roused the audience to a high Ditch of enthu- siasm by his advocacy of the Budget. Resolutions pledging support of and ex- pressing entire confidence in Mabon were passed with acclamation. Sir S. T. Evans, Solicitor-General, will speak on Mabon's behalf at the Judge's Hall. Trealaw, on Saturday night. An overflow meeting will be held at Soar, Ffrwdamos, Penygraig.

Motor Car for Mr Edgar Jones. Mr. Edgar Jones, the Official Liberal Candidate for Merthyr, has been presented with a Motor Car by his Wattstown friends, to assist him in his electoral campaign,

Sir S. T. Evans at Gilfach Goch. Mr. Balfour as "Mosse." Sir Samuel Evans addressed his con- stituents at Gilfach Goch last night. He was met at the railway station by a band, and a torchlight procession escorted him to Evanstown, where at Calf aria. Ohapel a large crowd had assembled an hour before the time of the meeting. A large number failed to gain adnÚæiolll to the building. The chair was taken by Coun- cillor Canning, and the Solicitor-General was received by prolonged cheering. A resolution calling upon the meeting to return him again to Parliament was moved by Mr. Samuel Thomas and secon- ded by Mr. Enoch Jones, amd carried unanimously. Sir Samuel, on rising, received a great ovation. In opening he complimented the people of Gilfach upon their fidelity to Liberal principles and their loyalty to him. He had been returned to Parlia- ment eight times; four timee he had fought and four times he had been re- turned unopposed, but this was the most grave contest of them all. The Lords and the Budget. The question was whether tie country should be governed by the peopla's repre- sentatives or by the House of Lords. He divided the issue into two points-(l) Ought the House of Lords to have the power to oppose the Commons ia finan- cial measures? (2) Was the Budget a good one or bad? The issue was clouded by opponents with bogeys. For instance, there was the Navy scare. Upon this Mr. Balfour tried to create a score on the Navy, but he could not have believed ia his own bogey. Those who were so unprepared for the late Boer War should be the last to try this scare on now (loud cheers). There was a difference between taxation and legislation. Taxation affected all, but legislation did not neces- sarily do so. All Parliamentary enact- ments that received Royal Assent were given into the custody of the Lord Chan- cellor, but Finance Bills were placed in the custody of the Speaker of the House of Commons. The right hon. gentleman then proceeded to deal with the Budget proposals, the alternative to which, he said, was a system called Tariff "Reform." The name was a misnomer, because in this country there were no tariffs, and therefore they could not be "reformed." Mr. Balfour was like Moses—his arms were held up by Aaron and Hur (laugh- ter). Mr. Chamberlain was Aaron and Mr. Chaplin was Hur—(cheers and laugh- ter)—and yet the Amalakites did not secure victory (laughter). Sir Samuel then referred to .unemployment, and showed how the £ 200,000 i>er year for labour exchanges would tend to decrease the evil. He also referred to Old Age Pensions, and stated that the Liberals intended to sweep away pauper disquali- fication. Mr. Balfour, lie said, was the man in the signal box. When the Trades Disputes Bill was introduced to the Lords it was a matter of Line clear." When the Education and Licensing Bills were introduced it was Line blocked," and when the Budget was introduced it was shunted to a siding. It was now left to the people to restore it from the siding to the main line (loud cheers).

Closing of Public Houses on Election Day. Appeal to Pontypridd Magistrates. A strong deputation—numbering about 40, and including public men, ministers, and prominent inhabitants of the Rhondda Valleys and Pontynridd—made represen- tations to the Pontypridd magistrates at Wednesday's sitting to close the public- houses on election days in these districts. £ Councillor Edward Jones (Ton) and Mr. J F. J. Hill (Treforest) acted as spokesmen, 'f The former said they were anxious to | prevent a riot taking place. ,They had heard a great deal lately about the Celtic temperament. In the Rhondda they were subject to that temperament, and adding the excite- ment of the election, they did not know what might take place. There was a pre- cedent for the Bench to act on the wishes of the deputation, as a former Stipen- diary (Mr. Ignatius Williams) issued an order for closing.' Mr. Hill quoted in- stances at previous elections where ex- citement ran high and great disturbances were threatened. Mr. Charles Matthews, solicitor, ap- peared on behalf of the Licensed Vic- tuallers, arguing that all the licensees were capable of conducting their houses properly, and would give every assistance the magistrates required. The Stipendiary (Mr. Lleufer Thomas) c said the Bench had anticipated the appli- cation and had considered the matter. He explained the limitations of the magistrates. It might be desirable that the electors should record their votetf after well-matured and sober considera- tion, but this phase of the question the Bench, owing to their limited juris- diction, could not take into consideration- Even though an order was made to close public-houses, this should not be regarded as a reflection on the licensed victuallers. for people who did not take intoxicating liquors got excited at election times. The Bench, on the evidence before them, could not grant the order, but would keep a careful watch on th| developments during the next week, a further application could be made them, either by an affidavit or personally' 1

is a matter of great encouragement that a young man from our own midst should so justifiably soar to the higher planes of political usefulness. It is an inspiration and an awakening to other young men. That a prophet may have honour in his own country is healthily confirmed in the relations of Mr. Edgar Jones and the Wattstown miners. It is really splendid to observe how their noble and generous support of his candidature has stimulated his campaign in the Merthyr Boroughs. After all, when a man carries with him the hearty and sincere good wishes of the neighbours among whom he has lived through the years of adolescence to the state of young manhood, the world wags well. His remarkable selection at Mer- thyr affords another lesson to young, men to give their thought to unselfish co- oneration with local duties. It returns unfailingly in appreciation in some form or another when the hour comes. Rhondda Nonconformists know what splendid work he did for the Free Church Councils in the preparation of statistics, and we ven- ture to declare, too, that in the matter of remuneration he had none but on the contrary incurred expenses which. lie has had to be responsible for, and as far as we know a responsibility which he has personally discharged. Such acts must bring in their train a recognition, though often belated. At Wattstown, Mr. Edgar Jones has always given his services to every movement which made for a better Wattstown and a better community there, and now, in the first great crisis of his life, he knows no more encouraging and no more compensating thought than that Wattstown folks are with him with their cheering unanimity. This fact has told immensely in the Merthyr Boroughs. Wattstown friends, who have old connec- tions in Aberdare and Merthyr, are re- I newing them for the sake of passing on a good word for him. We are glad to find also that many others outside Watts- town are doing likewise. Ami done a dyr y gareg."