Cymro a'r Celt Llundain

SUNDAY CLOSING IN WALES. Sir Herbert Roberts has introduced a Bill into the House of Commons which, if it be- comes law, will remove most of the objection- able features that are attached to the present Sunday closing system. In asking leave to introduce the Bill, he said that if the House carried in its mind something of the history of this Bill, and the strength of feeling behind it in Wales, it would understand why Welsh members took every possible opportunity of placing the facts before Parliament. The purpose of the Bill was to deal with certain practical difficulties which had arisen in connection with the administration of the Welsh Sunday Closing Act. The Bill dealt with two of the main points of difficulty, i.e., the so-called bona-fide travellers' question and the club question so far as it related to Sunday closing. It sought to deal with the traveller difficulty by providing that in the case of Wales there should be as in Scotland, a special Sunday licence, and also for the inclusion of the county of Monmouth within the district of the Act. The club difficulty it was proposed to deal with by empowering the licensing justices in Wales, if they deemed it necessary in the interest of public order, to prohibit the supply of liquor in clubs within the areas. The Bill had a long history. The original Act was passed thirty years ago. He himself had introduced this particular Bill eighteen times. It had be- hind it in the first place, the unanimous support of the Welsh Sunday Closing Com- mission, the recommendations of both the majority and minority sections of the Licen- sing Commission, and no measure probably had behind it such a united expression of public opinion in Wales. Every county council had more than once passed resolu- tions in its favour, and so had every public authority, and the great majority of the Parliamentary representatives had for thirty years been pledged to its support. The Bill was not only important in itself, but a vivid object lesson of the necessity of doing some- thing along the lines of reasonable extension in dealing with these two problems. He hoped the House would grant him leave to introduce the Bill. (Cheers.) Mr. Horatio Bottomley was the spokesman on behalf of the Trade to oppose the intro- duction of the Bill, and he said that if it succeeded, and further restrictions were put upon the freedom of the people in these districts, they would immedistely migrate to the nearest area of freedom. The result would be ultimately that the people of England, for whom Mr. Bottomley begged to speak—(laughter)—would be inflicted with the residual of Welsh inebriety. The only Welsh member who voted against the introduction of the measure was the Hon. W. Ormesby Gore, the young M.P. for Denbigh Boroughs. In defence of his action this promising Conservative writes to the local press that he voted against it because I think it is tinkering with the problem of Sunday closing. I have never yet been able to understand the sort of logic that makes one law for Holt and another for Fardon in a matter which, if it is a matter for Imperial legislation at all, should apply equally everywhere. It reminds me of the Budget and the small whisky bottle. It was alleged to be a virtue that north of the Tweed you could buy a small bottle of whisky at the grocers but it was alleged to be a vice and a dangerous incentive to drunkenness to buy the same-sized bottle south of the Tweed. But apart altogether from the merits of the BilJ in question, why should it be necessary to bring in Sir Herbert Roberts's Bill under the ten minute rule, which prevents adequate discussion, but promotes twenty minutes' discussion, just enough to make you want more time to think the matter over and discuss it at length. As it is, a proposer and an opposer each speak for ten minutes about generalities without getting into grips with the Bill at all; then eomes the closure, and you have to make up your mind, aye or no, or else funk the division. Lord Morley once said that it was much harder to say yes or no than to make a speech about many a political question."

Builth Wells has been much better adver- tised these last few seasons, and the result is to be seen in the increased number of visitors from England. Hitherto the bulk of Builth's visitors had come from Glam- organ. Mr. H. R. Williams, the Welsh Local Government Board Inspector, is making himself very popular with Boards of Guard- ians. At the meeting of the Tredegar Board of Guardians, for instance, Mr. Williams was cordially thanked by the members for issuing a Welsh translation of an important circular recently sent out by the Local Government Board. Some of 1he members said they could understand the English circular, but they enjoyed it much better in Welsh." South Wales visitors who lately visited the Coliseum in London were delighted with the singing of Mrs. Hudson (nee Miss Eleanor Jones). It was Mr. Dan Davies, the veteran Merthyr Choir leader, who first dis- covered this gifted Welsh vocalist. It was at the time when Mr. Davies's choir was creating much sensation because of its frequent victories. Maindee Private Commercial School, Rosslyn Road, Newport, gives first-class tuition in shorthand, typewriting, &c. Principal, B. W. Bathe, Dipl. Teacher.

Y DYFODOL. Boed i Ysgrifenyddion y gwahanol Oymdeithasau anfon ar fyrder restr o'u cyfarfodydd arbennig, i'w gosod yn y Golojn hon. &if" Gosodir y Cyfarfodydd, dc., a hysbysebir yn y CELT, yn rhad yng ngholofn Y Dyfodol," ond codir tdl o Is. yr un am y rhai na hysbysebir. Hydref. 5-Ealing. Cyngerdd BIYDyddol. 6-Wilton Square. Te a Chyngerdd Blynyddol. 19-Battersea Rise. Cyngerdd Blynyddol. 20-Shirland Road. Annual Concert. 26-Clapham Junction. Grand Evening Concert. Battersea Town Hall. Tachwedd. 3.—St. Benet. Cyngerdd Blynyddol yn St. Bride's Institute. 3-Mile End, Grand Evening Concert, Shore- ditch Town Hall. 6 a 7-Cyfarfod pregethu blynyddol Capel Brunswick. 17-Eisteddfod Stratford yn Shoreditch Town Hall. 17-Ilammer,iniith Cyngherdd Mawreddog yn y Town Hall. 24-Eisteddfod Flynyddol Jewin. Rhagfyr. 1—Cyngerdd Blynyddol Cymdeithas y Tabernacl. Chwefror. 18—Eisteddfod Flynyddol Cymdeithas y Tabernacl Cymreig, King's Cross. 1911. 28-Nos Fawrth-Gwyl Gene llaethol yn St. Paul

SHOREDITCH TOWN HALL, Thursday Evening, November 17, 1910, ————————— A GRAND ——————————— musial Eisteddfod: Under the auspices of the STRATFORD WELSH C.M. CHAPEL. ADJUDICATOR CARADOG ROBERTS, ESQ., Mus.Bac.(Oxon), F.R.C.O., A.R.C.M., L.R.A.M.(Piano). CHORAL COMPETITIONS: 1. Mixed Voice Choir (60 to 80 voices)-" Be not afraid" ("Elijah,") Mendelssohn. Prize £ 20. If less than 5, £ 115 2. Male Voice Choir (20 to 28 voices)—"The Rider's Song," Cornelius. Prize 25 5s. If less than 2, 23 3 s. Publishers of 1 and 2, Novello & Co., London. For Programmes and further information apply* enclosing halfpenny stamp, to one of the Hon. Sees., Miss Margaret Evans and Mr. Llew O. Morgan, Welsh Chapel House, Romford Road, Stratford, E. Bydd yn hyfrydwch gan y Golygydd dderbyn Gohebiaethau ac erthyglau i'w hystyried, ond nis gellir ymrwymo i ddychwelyd ysgtifaa gwrthodedig.