Pontypool Free Press and Herald of the Hills

"w- PROHIBITION & TEMPERANCE NOTES. (From a Special Correspondent.) London, May 30th, 1893. THE demonstration which is to be held on Saturday, Juae 10th, in Hyde Park, in support of the Government Direct Veto Bill, already bids fair to be great, not only in its proportions but in its enthusiasm. At a well-attended con- ference of ministers and leading friends in Hackney, on Friday last, it was unanimously resolved that, with a view to further supporting the Bill, a demonstration should be organised to be held about the end of June, in Victot ia Pitt k. A great demonstration has also been arranged to take place in Manchester on Saturday afternoon, June 17th. Wbiting of the prospects of the Veto Bill, Sir Wilfrid Lawson, whilst admitting that the Bill could be improved, says, The business of the hour is to get statutory powers to localities to protect themselves from the liquor traffic, and that if you load the boat with all sorts of other good things it will go to the bottom." "Let us take the good the gods provide," says Sir Wilfrid, "and then go in for more." During the last week, the honourable baronet went on the stump on behalf of the Bill, and in each place was apparently very welcome. On Tues- aay he spoke at Redditch in VV oneestershire. iQa Wednesday, he spoke at Maryport, and on Thttffiday at Wolverhampton, where he declared that the signs of the times told him that they would have as large a majority for the Veto Bill as they had for the Home Rule Bill. IN the course of his speech at Redditch, Sir Wilfrid told them that the publicans used two inconsistent-arguments against the Bill. They -said that it would ruin them, and that it would aiever be acted upon. It was like a man say- ing that he was afraid of being shot by a gun that would «ot go off." At another point of his vigorous and happy speech, he assured his audi- ence that it was only a Bill for moving pabli- -cans on, just as a policeman 8aid 4 Move on.' The people in one parish or area would say, We do not want you,' and the publican would move into the next .parish. There the people would say, We,dori t want you heire we don't ■ want to pay rates and have paupers and cri- minals,' and-so he would be moved on to the next parish.; 'tnd the next parish would say 4Move on;' so that the publican would be moved on until he .got to the sea, ard then, like some creatures they read about in the Bible, he would run violently down a steep f>lace, and be■ heard of no more.' Mr Hesjbert Gladstone, though apparently not himself very sanguine about the usefulness of the Yeto Bill in its promotion of temperance, declares that the right of the people to the •powers proposed to be given by the Bill is unquestionable. No stronger argument can be furnished in-support of the Bill then that the people are entitled to the absolut3 controlling ■power of the liquor traffic, and admitting this, temperance men can afford to make Mr Herbert 'Gladstone a present of his doubts. Experts in these matters sincerely believe that the Bill will 1;;6 put into operation ie what jmnj consider unlifcely quarters, the. morat aense of the com- munitjrhaving of late become so very-susceptible with regard to the terrible evils drinking pro- duces. Capital is proverbially keen-soented, and Mr Bung would seem to prefer any kind of reform to this Yeto proposal, which has assumed such a practicable shape as to nearly.drive him frantic. OneCountry Brewer in the organ of liquordom last Saturday, says"I fear we aye relaxing our efforts far too much of late. The Yeto Bill k still on the orders of the House, and depend on it the greatest efforhs are made -by -the arch-enemy to force a tractable Govern- ment to pass the Bill, which they certainly will do if we slumber again. Amongst the other nicknames temperance men have been called, arch-enemy is .undoubtedly good; SpEAKiNa at the annual gathering of the Scottish Free Church Temperance Society, Dr Stalker spoke on the Government Veto Bill, which he described as a greatlti-iumph andirewara for two generations of earnest workers. The Government Bill was a ep in the right direction, and he thought the Temperance ,party had been wise in supporting it. The Evangelical Union Temperance Society, M^burgh paired a resolution in support of the Bill. The .Cal- vinistie Methodist Church of Wales, with the Rev Thomas Rees, of Merthyr Tydvil ag Moderator, also the ctber day memorialised Government in support of the Bill, hoped very mueh that it would be carried this Session, including for England if possible, but certainly for Wales, the distinctive provisions of the Welsh Direct Veto Bill which passed its second reading on March 15th by amajority of 35. HERE is a thorough-going example and a really useful object lesson: The Rev C. F. Aked's congregation at Liverpool have laid themselves out. to canvase the entire Parliamentary division of West Derby (which is at present represented fey a brewer) on behalf of the Direct Veto Bill. Already over 12,000 signatures have been obtained in its support. The recommendations of Archdeacon Farrar's Committee of the Lower House of the Convoca- tion of Canterbury which were made last week, short as they are, of prohibition must give the publicans and their employers a bad quarter of an hour. These recommendations probably indicate the general attitude of the Church of England to the Liquor Traffic. Summarized, they are as follows:—Sunday Closing; earlier closing all the week, and especially on Saturdays; reduction of licences; rigid enforcement of exis- ting law; compulsory registration of clubs; pro- hibition of music, dancing, and billiards in con- junction with the sale of intoxicants; local option; no sales to persons under sixteeen and compulsory sale of food as well as liquor; government regulation of tied" houses, and absolute closing on the days of Parliamentary elections. In South Carolina (U.S.A.) a novel experiment is to be tried in the shape of a new liquor law which comes into operation on July 1st. All licences are to terminate upon the last day in June. A State Board of Control takes the whole business in hand. A Commissioner is to pur- chase all liquors, and a chemist is to test them. The State Board of Control is to appoint a County Board, which in trun must appoint a County Dispenser whose character, like Caisar's wife, must beabove suspicion. The distributioiigf the liquor is to be hedged around with numerous restrictions, the chief of which are the sale to no persons unknown to the Dispenser personally, nor to those who are in the habit of becoming intoxicated. The profits are to go to the Counties, municipalities and general expenses of the system, they are not the private profits of Commissioners or Dispensers, who receive fixed salaries. Clubs are to receive no special treat- ment whatever; nor are the Drug Stores, which must get their alcohol like everybody else in the State, only somewhat cheaper. Finally, there is not a word in the Act as to compensation.

Two men were killed by a colliery explosion at Dnnston Colliery, near Gateshead The pot ato blight has already appeared on. the sea coast to the south of Skibbereen, co. Cork. Two Moravian village&-Starechowitz and Lecho have been destroyed by fire. Four of the inhabi- tants were burned to death. It is averred that 623 children have been bene. fited by the Infant Orphan Asylum at Wan. stead. The Corporation of the City of London has made a grant of tlO5 towards the funds of the Metropo. litan Hoeoital. Kineeland Road. N.E.

I PONTYPOOL LOCAL BOARD. TENDER ACCEPTK-D FOR THE NEW MARKET. The adjourned meeting of the above Board was heM at the Board-room. Club Chambers, on Wednesday morning. Mr W. Sandbrook pre- side i, and "the other members present were :— Messrs Thomas Williams, W. H. Haskins, E. B. Ford, W. Wood, J. Daniel, J. R. Essex, J. Burgoyne, J. Walker, D. Reid, G. Udell, W. H. Pitteo, W. Pegier, jun., F. Probyn, D. W. Simpson. W. H. Davies, G. A. Bevan, E. Fowler, Charles Davis, A. J. Stock, E. Jones (clerk and collector), and J. Powell (surveyor).

MARKET PURCHASE. On the motion of Mr W. H. Davies, seconded by Mr Ford, a cheque was ordered to be drawn for £.1:j() 5s 3d, in favour of Mr L. E. Webb to complete the accounts in connection with the loan for the purchase of the market.

GEORGE-STREET IMPROVEMENTS. On the proposition of Mr Probyn, seconded.by Mr Williams, a cheque was ordered to be drawn in payment of Messrs Bythway and Sen's accouit of £47 48 Id for Chancery proceedings ü: the George-street improvements. Mr Williams said that after paying this bill there would be a balance in hand of £ 84 Is 9d.

TENPl'KS FOR THll NEW MARKET. The following tenders for the erection of the neir market house and premises were opened John Linton, Newport, 1,5,999; Henry Parfitt, Pontilefl-ydd, £ (3.218 Morgan and Evans, Pont- newynydd, £ 5,3/7 'Js \v. Jones and Son, New- port". £ 5,887 Hayes- Brntoi, £ 6,167 Thomas Evan', Cardiff, £ 5,989; Jones and Company, Gloucester, £ 6,767 Hathevley and Curr, Bristol, £6,7i17. The architect, Mr Robert Williams, London, was called into the room, and gave his estimate as £ 6,012 8s lOd. After careful deliberation, and canipa,rison of the various items in the tenders, M r Kord asked what was their financial position in the matter. » Mr Thomas Williams replied that there was a balance i ■ hand on the loan account on March 25th of £ 5,564 13s 6d. Some discussion then ensued as to wliethertht, balance of the money could esily be obtained, it being felt by some members that the total cost of the market, including the Local Board offices (which had not been provided for in the tenders) would amount to between £ 6,000 and £ 7.000. Mr Daniel proposed that the consideration of ways and means of securing the extra moneys be left to a special meeting of the finance committee Mr W. H. Davies seconded, and the proposition was agreed to. Lap;. B 'van then proposed that the tender of Messrs Morgan and Evans at £ 5,877 9s be ac- cepted, subject to the signing of an approved contract, and any modification by the Board's ■ architect. Mr Burgoyne seconded. Mr Probyn moved as an amendment that Messrs Jones aad Son's tender be accepttdat £.i.¡887. Messrs Morgan and Evans had given them no time in which they weald completetbe work, and Messrs Jones and Son had undertaken to do the work ia 12 months. Mr Pegler seconded. Some discussion ensued, and it was decided to &dd to Captain Bevan's cesoluuion "Sutgect to the work beioag completed within 12 months fpom the date of signing the contract." Mr Probyn then withdrew his amendment, and the proposition giving the contract to Messrs Morgan and Evans was then T&Insuimously (Carried. The Clerk stated that -several of the firms which had tendered bad expressed th, -opiniori ,that the bills of quantiuea had been mere accurately prepared than any they bad ever ex- perienced. (Hear, hear.) This concluded the business of the meeting.

SOEATH OF Mit. THOS. DODD, CRUMIIN. We announce with regret the death of Mr IDodg, which event occurred on Friday last after. ,an illness ef about six weeks. Mr iÐodd was widely known and respected by all. His con- nection with Crumlin dates back to the time of iSennard, when the large engineering and bridge works were in fail float. Mr Dodd was born at Blackwood. He afterwards removed.to Risca where he lived for a number of years. He sub- sequently worked at Ebbw Vale, Ttlain^ and Abertillery, from which latter place he-came to -Drumlin. He was a very keen businessman, and when quite a young man took large contracts in truck bulld lor the Risca Collieries and Mr Powell (the Gaer). When the works-started at Crumlin he became the chief contractor and director of the Wiaduct during its building, and continued a contractor, under Mr Kennard, until the works came to a standstill. This works turned out some of the finest bridges both for this country and the continent. It was closed about 1A years ago. Mr Dodd had takert inactive part in all secial schemes for the good of the place. He was the owner of considerable property, and for a long time bad a private gas worl-, s. He built a large hall, known ag Dodd's Hall," for the place, and took a leading part in the Baptist cause at Crumlin, meetings being held at the Hall. Just (previous to his death he had given consent for a Baptist chapel to be built upon his property. Friendly Society work was ..a great pleasure to him. and his usefulness in that connection was very wide. He was treasurer of the Oddfellows' and T, oresters' Locl,-es, held at his own hotel, the Navigation," where he lived, and the business of which will be continued by his son, Mr Augustus Dodd. He leaves four sons—one of them, Mr Thomas Dodd, is in Derby at the structural works of the large firm of Messrs Eastbrook and Swingler another, Edward, ie in the -same line of business. The inhabitants of Crumlin and the district mouln the loss of a man of sterling character, who did many acts of kindness, never to be forgotten, during his 28 years residence in the place. Ths funeral took place .at Beulah, Newbridge, en Wednesday, when avvery large number of friends followed his mortal remains to the grave.

CHILDREN POlSOFED AT PEXARTH. Last Saturday afternoon two little girls, the daughters of Mr John Morse, pilot, High-street, Penarth, aged 10 and 9 years, were playing near the quarry, where the board tips refuse, and, after. eating some berries or beans which were growing wild, were seized with violent pains and In this (condition they were found by some children playing close by, who fnlwri1 fu Mrs Morse. They were conveyed to the house, and the symptoms becoming alarming Dr Aitken was summoned, and found them in a very critical condition. He ordered poultices to be applied to the abdo- men and administered emetics, and the danger is now greatly minimised As this is not the nvet case, Dr Aitken took home some (d the berries, and purposes analysing them.

THE HEAVIEST COUPLE ON EARTH. The heaviest couple on earth" are now pay- ing this country a visit. These are Mr and Mrs Chauneey Morlan. now in Scotland, and between them they weigh 82st. Mrs Morlan is described as a pleasant-faced, bright-eyed, intelligent young woman, and a first-rate conversationalist. Born in St. Louis, she is, although twenty years of age, 6ft. 2in. in height, and turns the scale at 40st. Curiously enough, neither of her parents was stout. From her childhood she took on flesh to an alarming extent, but seelll to like it rather than otherwise. Mr Morlan is his wife's senior by one year only, 5ft lOin. high, and weighs the respectable total of 42st. He was born at Rockvifle, and when a lad he was as thick af he was long. He has been on exhibition for ten years, and sa. s he enjoys the life immensely.

A ghastly discovery was made on the beach at Walney, near Barrow, a few days since. Two boys were playing along the shore when tbey came across the remains of a man 80 decomposed and mutilated as to be absolutely beyond recognition. The Cambridge Town Council has approved of a draft bill whereby the Spinning House will be abolished, and the cases which hitherto came before the Vice-Ciiauceiior will be dealt with by the borough magistrates. At the Clevkenwell Sessions a man named Andrews, who was indicted with other men for having stolen articles of the value of Is from a woman's pocket, was sentenced to three years' penal servitude. Several previous convictions were proved against him. Thomas Barnwell, a salesman, was committed for trial at Southampton, on a charge of stealing pro- perty of the value of £ 3,000 from his employers, Messrs. Miller and Sou, shipping outfitters. The accused had been in the Bervice of the tirm for nearly forty years. Sir Edward Watkin, M.P. I has given his annual excursion to the police connected with the House of Commons. The party, to the number of about sixty travelled to Folkstone by special train, and then went for a trip across the Channel to Boulogne on the Mary Beatrice. The old, old Btory—drink," exclaimed coroner Wyatt, when enquireing into the circumstances of the death of a docker at Walworth. It aeeme that the man was found in his lodging on Sunday dead life having evidentally been extint for tome days 8.1 the corpse was an emptv trin bottle.

CHURCH DEFENCE MEETING AT GRIFFITHSTOWN. ADDRESS BY THE REV. G. BISHOP- On Wednesday evening a meeting underthe auspices of the Eastern Valleys Confederation was held at the Drill Hall, Griffithstown,whea an address on "Tithes" was delivered by the Rev. GL Bishop, of Nottingham,who it will be repem be red some five years ago championed theause of the Church in a two-nights' debate at Jonty- pool with Mr J. Howes. There was a good audience, over which Capt. D. E. Willame presided, and the proceedings throughout were highly successful. The Chairman, in introducing Mr Sishop, delivered an appropriate address. Mr Bishop, who was warmly receive. after preparatory remarks, said that objection had been taken to payment of the tithe notonly for the Church, but for educational purpose- (Hear, hear.) The tithes were voluntary in their origin, and not enforced by law. It was never settled as a matter of law that the tithe shoull be given to the churches in which the tithes were raised until the year 1200. Principal Edw<fds's pam- phlet—and he was surprised that Principal Edwards shewed so lutle information on the subject of which he wrote-quoted a statement by Mr Miall to the effect that Otft, king of Merck, gave the Church the civl right to the Lithe, in order to salve his contcience for a murder which he committed about the year 780. What an curious story (Laughter.) Offa did give a tenth of his own property, which be had as much right to do as any other person had to give away his property. The Liberation Society themselves admitted that Offaoiiy gave a tenth of his own property. Even if be had made his subjects give tithe, it would not apply to the other countries then existing. IVbat was stated in the pamphlet as to Ethelvulf was also a fable, as was proved by Bishop Stubbs, of Chester, an antiquarian who had studied the subject. Even the Liberation Society had also given up that contention. It as much open I io doubt that anyone could prove #ny connection between the payment of tithe aid Offa. If the Church really had her tit.e to tithe from 780, it seemed to him that he could not have a better title. Thit held good in regard to *11 other pro- perty. Their Nonconformist brethren held their property by a 25 years title-for so the Act of Parliament ran—and if that was enonli for them, surely going back to the year 780 ought to be long enough for the Church. He had a notion that the.Church had her rights as well as anybody. He was not fond, as a rule, of talking about the rights of the Church, but he thought in these times -they did well in doiag so. (Ap- piause ) Mr Miall said that the paesingof the Enclosure Act io the reign of )Edoard VI. was the origin of the greater part of the land in too hands the clergy, and that it was then that the, greater part -.1 the tithe system came inoo existessoe. The Enclosure Bills did nothing-of the s>Qtrt. They did not gi-ve lands or tithe to anybody. Aofce of Parliament existed for the regulation of the payment-of the tithe, but they did give 'origin to tit&e. Such an Act eould not fee lirotight forwae £ and never had been. (Applause.) Tithe owed their ing to volun- tary origin. 'The owner of the land who-for-, feited a teeth of his rent was the person who; re»% tpaid the tithe, nottfche tenaiit who paid the tenth. When persons bougntarented land; sttigject to-tithe, they -did not .pay the sanee-prioe for it as if it bad not been subject to that<charge. j Aqy person who bought that land subjects that chasge, and did not pay it, was simply a die- honest man. (Hear, *hear.) If any man was a loser by the transaction, it -was the man.,whe voluntariiy gave up his tenth;at the beginning, and not ifae man who simply paid the charge. The law simply compelled people to stick to their haigains, and not to byeak their bargains. A man who said his conscience would :not »ermit Jhim to pajr tithe ought not to have sought.it or rented it at all. A man who had money,>e.nd could pay, but would not pay, and simply pleaded religious ^scruples, was flimply "dishoiwet. Tithes were not State ,property, -aild never were so. Principal Edwards said the tithes were State property. The farmers who ,*aid the tithes belonged-to the State-ehouldipay the money to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, IOthenwise they were robbing the Ipublic. He challenged the production of the Act of Parlia- ment which recogaised tithes aa national pro- perty. In a boot frequently quoted by Non- confojciists, J&he iHistory of Protestant Nonconformity in Wales^1 by theilsts 'Dr Roes, they would find a reprint ot an Act of Parlia- snent settidg fortil that tithes werenot national >propeaty, but the property of the insambentsof the various parishes throughout the length, and <br«adth of the land. (Applause.) The allega- tion was that the Church had roboed the poor.of the tithe and behadno doubt that in the yoar IS85 election that«ry, in the agricultural districts, did the cause of the vChurcb a gcsnt deal of L haem. Tbey wore told that £ ke beginning tithe was Sividedinto fbur parts, tSe first being for the bishop, the second for the parson, the third far the repair of the church, and the fourth for the poor. Even the Liberation Society, in-a book they had issued, said no one seemed to know at what time or EEder what conditions the poor were robbed of their inheritance in the tithes of this country." Lord Selborne, the greatest living lawyer, who had been engaged for 20 .years upr>n a Wok on the subject—and be was -supported pi-ofessor Freeman, a Gladstonian Hadical&id that, in England the fourfold or even the threefold division of tithe had never ha<j any existence at all, and ,there was not the slightest documentary proof to be brought forward. it wftÆ a fable. and the pity was shat those who shouid teach others did not teach themselves fir-st of all. There were thousands -cf clergy who brought more to the Church than.ever thev got-out of it. (Cheers.?) Wherever the*e was a parson who was able to drive a carriage and pair and keep up a fine establishment—and there w€Je-&ome— in every case without exception they would find that the man would de the if he was not a parson, the fact being that be did it, not(ut of ius stipend, bm out of his fortune, and from the fact that his father liv-ed bei'ore bid- It was not prqeosed to abolish tithe-it was to be perpetuated. No disostablkhment and dasen- dowmentweuld do away witu the payment of tithe. Mr Kisher, the secretary of the Libera- tion Society, tiefied anyone to quote anyone in authority on that side It+; s a-y'll" that the tithe was to be abolished. Tithe Wvw. ot a tax but a property, and .was subject to taxation. Dissen- ters in some cases held tithe, and he did not blame them, at being a property. St Bartholo- mew's Hospital and many other institutions were supported by tithe. fie maintained that after disestablishment tithe would be paid as before, and that, he believed at a higher rate. They were told that the country would be more prosperous If that so. the price of corn would be raised, and con- sequently the .tithe woaid be higher. Tithe was paid in Iceland now the sauce as before disestablishment. He had tried to deal with the matter dispassionately, and he said that the agitation against the payinent of tithe was un- Christian and a disgraceful agitation altogether. Honest men should pay the debts they had con- tracted, if they had the money to pay- The talk of conscience in the matter was mere cant. The conscience should come in at the beginning of the contraet as well as at the end. He did not purpose to speak at greater length, as he desired to give them the opportu lJtv of asking q uestions. They believed their case was so strong and so good that they need not fea.r discussing it in any way or with anybody. (Applause.) The only thing they wanted was that people, and especially Church people, should tiiake themselves acquainted with those things aud not allow mis- representation^ to pass unchallenged. Let them love their old Church, which had been gov'd for their fathers and good also for them. Let them hold to it, and hand it on to those who would come after them. (Loud applause.) A gentleman in the audience asked the lec- turer whether he was aware that the late Mr W. H. Smith, M.P., once alluded to tithes as national property. Mr Bishop replied that, he was aware of it, and WIW also aware that Mr Smith a week later explained why he had used the term. (Hear, hear.) It was common enough for a per.-on to use catch phrases for the sake of convenience and even if Mr Smith—who, he would remind them, was a busy man of bu.,ines-used the ine"- 11 term, they as Church people were not bound to any parrot-like expressions that mi°ht fall from the lips of the public orator. = The questioner asked the lecturer whether he thought the State shou;d have the power of appointing archbishops and bishop*. The lecturer replied Lilat the subject of his lecture that evening had hien tithes not di>es- tablishment. He could not undertake to answer a question which ran away from the subject of the evening, and must therefore respectfully decline to answer. He would b speaking on the subject of disestablishment at Blaenavon on the following night, and would make a note of the gentleman's question. No other questions were asked. Mr A. A. Williams, J.P., lose to move a vo:e of thanks to the lecturer for r is able address. He had listened with very great pleasure to the very clear Statement Mr Bishop ha 1'made as to the origin of tithe, and was sure they would be able to LIO away from the meeting with a better knowledge of the subject. (Applause.) Mr Hartley Feather seconded the proposition, which wa tanled with acclamation. The Rev G. Bi-hep. after thanking the audience, not only fo, Uien vote of thanks, but for the patient and attentive hearing they had I firen him, said that, in reference to Mr Joseph Lowes, there had been some talk again about & debate between that gentleman ana himself, but it had fallen through. The reason of that was that the Liberal Association at Blaenavon, not that they were sure Mr Howes would come out the conqueror-as far as he (Mr Bishop) was concerned he did not seek to be conqueror in a personal seuse—but because the Welsh Suspen- V sory Bill had passed its first reading by a large majority, and they considered a debate woukI not be of material advantage to their side. (Laughter, and hear. hear.) The Bill had certainly passed its first reading, but not its second or its third or its sixth, which it would have to do before it would go through the Honse of Lords. (Hear, hear.) Another reason assigned was that a debate such as he referred to would cause ill-feeling in the town. Well, be was very glad their opponents were waking up to the importance of not Causing ill-feeling. (Applause.) The Rev R. W. B. Sanderson, in proposing a vote of thanks to the Chairman, said they had to congratulate themselves that evening for many reasons. First of all, they bad met together to defend a cause which lad such a power for good in the country, and was doing such a spleudid work, a cause which was so good that it was considered worth attacking, and a cause whose best defence was the plain, unvarnished truth. (Applause.) They might also congratu- late themselves that such men were raised up, and had the power given to them to defend their cause. for them, and teach them how to defend that cause. as their lecturer that night, Mr Bishop. (Applause.) His opinion was that the present attack upon the Church, like all things that for a time soemed to be evil, would result in nothing but a very great gain indeed to the cause they were championing that night. (Applause.) If the attacks had done nothing else, they had done this-they had raised up defenders of their dear old Church, aroused the enthusiasm of her members, and had shewn who her true friends in this country were. (Hear, hear.) As vicar of that parish, he had been extremely pleased with that meet- ing. He was not acqaainted with half,.or even quarter of those present. He did not know whether they were Jew, Gentile, Infidel, or Turk-(Iaugiiter)-and it was therefore the more gratifying to find that they kad listened so attentively to the lecturer, and had observed so proper a decorum, as befitted the consideration of a great question, such as that of the Church and her history. (Applause.) Mr StiuchcoDtbe (the gentleman who ques- tioned the lecturer) seconded the proposition, whiafc was carried with acclamation. The Chairman in acknowledging the compli- memat, expressed the pleasure it afforded him to be present toot evening. This was the first occasion on which he had been able to ideatify himself closely with the work of the defence of their Church, and he felt amply repaid for any little trouble to which he might have beea-sub- jected in taking the chair. He saw- befom him nei.ghbours and friends, who had come there and oscidncted themselves in such a fashion that he was sure every Churchman would feel pleased and gratified. (Applause.) The mooting then terminated.

SHOCKING CRUELTY TO HORSES. At Teddmgton, a few-days ago, William Hickey, 10 Toun, ef Deptford, was sentenced to three ODCLHS! 42ard laboar for shocking cruelty tp two horses. 5Wio animals were attached to a waggon, and prisoner beat thear-over the head and body with tha!butt end of a heavy whip, strnck them with a heavy pole, nd a long jiron bar, and then punched-them in thevose and eyes. The animals' eyes were nearly blocked up. The nose-bone was smaehedfto a pulp and the bodies covered with abrasions. The magistrate r egretted -being unable to givequ-iioner tbe faaah.

THE CSOP PBOSPBCTB. -1 Brief report 8 jiMtspublisbed as to the condition-, and prrppects of tihe grain crops in the United) Kingdom, most of the European countries, India, and tke United States are generally to tbe effisofc that wbeat will be 4boutan average crop in quality, though in the United Kingdom and ^generally on though in the United Kingdom and generally on the continent the roage will be under an average ¡ on account of the drought. The condition of other' j crops'ia less satisfactory, but much will depend on* the weather of tbenexc few weeks. The accounts j fromilndia are favourable as regar&-all the princi- I pal cuops. ¡

A SERVANT GIS.L'8 CRIME A'Vienna correspondent telegraphs that the ser. vat: t girl in tbe suburb of Wabring swbo tried to 1 poison her master, lierr Lowy, and-all his family, consisting of five persons, by opening the gas-taps, in order to concealiaer theft of jewellery and money, has made a full confession of her guilt. Her lover was waiting outside the honse, and she threw the stolen amictesont-of the window to Mm, so that nOne, of the miiising, property vat: fonnt on the girl. It was only by accident thnt Herr Lowy awoke and thus frustrated the intended crime. The case haa1 created an unusual sensation in Vienna. i ====== J

PE^AL SERVITUDE WELL DESERVED. 1 George Harris, 20, and Richard Chadwick, 21, pleaded gnit ty at the Old Bailey to stealing Z50 worth of property from the Wheatsheaf;public house Clnre-rnarket, which they had burglariously entered Chndwick had beeD nny times convicted and had undergone six months' hard labour for violently assaulting his mother. Harris aleo had been con- victed,.and shortly before this occurence >he threw assaulting his mother. Harris also had been con- victed,.and shortly before this occurence he threw his mother, a sempstress, and rifled her pockets, -stealing fonrpence, all the money she wae possessed -of. The Common Serjeant sentenced Chadwick to five years' penal servitude and the other prisoner *.o thi.-ee years.

CYCLOSfE IN INDIA. A Calcutta telegram -says Sixty-four nwn were drowned while lightening the ship Germania dur- ing the recent cyclone in the Bay of Bengal. The Rydal Mere is lying high and dry, having gone ashore m a storm wave. The Glengary was abandoned at sea, her crew being rescued. by the French,packet Erigen. There are no fur the- de- tailsi. A later telegraansays accounts continue to at-tit-e of the damage caused by the cyclone in the By of Benga1. The chief officer and a parw of men of the Anchor Line steamer Nubia hcroicaily rescued the crew of the brig Shaw, which was in a position of great danger. The lightship in the eastern chauael is missing, and great an xiety pais, vails in consequence.

LARKING WITH A REVOLVER. A forty-shilling fine was inflicted upon Joseph Nellist, a learlw-orker of Piough-rd., Rotherhithe, by the Greenwich magistrate a few days since, for dis- .charging a revolver in the public street. What Joseph s object was in causing this little diversion is not quite clear, but a policeman hinted that it was through a girl that the prisoner purchased the weapon. Her parents, it seems, would not let her have anything to do with the man, who said that she should not have anyone else if she did not have him. Nellist was asked by the magistrate whether he WAS going to shoot the girl., No, air," replied the man, "it was more in a spirit of mischief." Mr. Kennedy said the Inland Revenue authorities would be down upon the prisoner, and that would be a prosaic ending to the adventure.

The Baltimore Sugar Refinery has been burnt jown. The loss is estimated at 900,000dols. A messenger living in the New Town, Hamburgh, has just died of cholera. Immense hosts of English sparrows have invaded the World's Fair. They are a terrible pest aud drive away all other species of birds. A party of non-commissioned officers of the Houssa Constabulary, from the West Coast iof Africa, has arrived in England to be attached to the Guards at Wellington Barracks for instruc- tion. Sir Charles Hall, Q.C., M.P., Recorder of London, is said up at Cowes with an attack of mataria. The New Zealand Government is taking steps to place the friendly societies of the colony on a proper basis. The Goldsmiths' Companyjhave made a grant of £ 50 to the Royal Albert Orphan Asylum, Bagshot, Surrey. j At a Gaiety matinee on the 9th June there is to be presented a new four-act play called 11 The Younger Son." A ti-avestie on "I Pagliacei," by Sir Augustus j Harris and Mr. James 11. Glover, is going into iminedin.te rehearsal at the Palace Theatre. 11 r. Wilson B-srretthas added another week to his American visit, but most of the members of his company have already sailed for En^laud. The Bishop of Winchester has appointed the R^r. Canon Eliot, vicar of Holy Trinity, Bournemouth, to be Rural Denn of Christchnrch, Hants. Au enterprising type-writist in Cambridge 3ms designed and procured amaciiine for Greek charsc- ters (accents included) which ought to be very use. ful. ° During levelling operations of a recreation, ground at Driffield, loikshii e, a pagan Anglo-1 Saxon burial-ground Las been discovered, and in it many skeletons. M. Baudin appeared a few days since before a magistrate on the charge of fomenting disorder in Paris, on May 1, but refused to say anything when interrogated. At the Seine Assize Couft, Pari*, an Anarchist named Foret was condemned to death for an attempted homicide, committed in Jauuaiv last.

ODDS AND ENDS. About the smartest drum-major I ever saw was he who headed a brass bind in Ponty- pool on Monday evening. He had a pipe in his mouth, one hand was behind his back, and he marched in blissful ignorance of the proper step. The Llantarnam School Board had a very quiet meeting on Tuesday evening. The chief discussion was as to the "blind" business (win- dow-blind), the only other matter of surpassing importance being the decision of the Board to give books and toys to deserving scholars. Two well-known Pontypool cyclists intend opening a cycle store in the Hanbury Arcade shortly, having taken one of the shops fronting Osborne-road for the purpose. This will be the first real cycle store ever opened in Pnntvpool, and the M boys "unite in wishing their comrades success. The public are probably not aware that cricket matches are being played Oil Thursday and Saturday afternoons at the new recreation grounds in Pontypool. As the charge for admis- sion is only threepence, and as there is a com- fortable grand stand, it is to be hoped that the matches will be patronised, and the local cricket club supported. The Rev George Bishop, Nottingham, who it will be remembered had a b:g tussle with Mr Joseph Howes at Pontypool some 3-ears ago, spoke on the tithe question at the Di-ili l Hall, Griffit bstown, on Wednesday evening. Mr Bishop had a large audience and an attentive bearing, and his address was characterised by all h's old fluency and vigour. I regard the nuisance Inspector of the Ponty- pool Local Board a.s a zealous and conscientious official, and I am sure he will pardon me for venturing to suggest that the tminntr in which local butchers display meat outside their shops should have attention. For my part, I would rather rub shoulders with a bale of calico or drapery than come in contact with the carcase of a lamb or other slaughtered animal. { 1 hear that the young men at Varteg go upon courting expeditions to the qaiet little village of Llanover. There was what an American boy would call a regular pio-nic last Thursday even- ing. One of the amorous swains lost his way, and was chased by a policeman for trespassing and another lost the heel of one of his boots. Rumour hath it that they wre walking the side of thp. canal until the small hours of the morning. At last a tender for the new market has been accepted, and operations will be commenced al- most immediately. It is satisfactory to find that the architects, in preparing the specification, &c., have exercised the greatest care. Several of the tenderers informed the clerk that they had never seen sach accurate bills of quantities. The s»c- cessfal tenderers, Messrs Morgan and Evans, were less than ilO below a well-known Newport firm. There were eight tenders altogether, and the lowest six were marvellously close, only lis separating the highest of them from the winning tender. It is to be hoped that the work will now be proceeded with expeditiously. A certain little dog from Cwmavon was the caese of mech amusement at Abersychan on Tuesday last. It had come down accom- panied by its owner, and while she was engaged in a well-known tradesman's shop, strayed out of the shop into the house, found its way upstairs, through a bedroom window, and en to the ledge over the shop window. Finding It could not turn round to come back, it began to howl, attracting all the people to their door- steps to see what was the matter. After a deal -of trouble a ladder was procured and the .flog rescued. From time immemorial, the members of the ■weaker sec are supposed to have practically a monopoly of the power of talking, and although in a good many cases the men kuow how to use (and abuse) the red rag," there can be no doubt that the women of the poorer class can give them points, and a good licking into the bargain. An inhabitant of George-street, PontnewyHydd, is prepared to back the women of that locality to < talk any similar number in creation. He says that dating the day time, wben he seeks to have a little rest (being a night worker) he is con- tinually troubled with the chatter of these females, who appear to have nothing better to do than tand at the street doors and gossip, and gossip, and gossip. Probably few people are aware that we have a Joker-A' Club in Pontypool. Its headquarters are not far from Crane-street, and its members consist of a small but select school of spirits who are unanimous in their appreciation, not only of a joke, a lark, or a debate, but also of mine host's celebrated home-brewed. I suppose I ought to be grateful to the members of this club, as they are always ready to supply me with material for a par. The latest from them has reference to a member, who, being a sufferer with his pedal extremities, was advised to wear regularly & certain etove-pipe "hat which he sometimes affects, in order that its "magical effects might" draw"" the complaint from his feet to the crown of his hat. My paragraph of last week about Sower steal- ing on the Osborne-road evidently put the constabulary on their mettle, as since It appeared in print two lads have* been arrested for stealing roses at W-ainfelin, and duly punished. With regard to the kind of punishment imposed in ,these cases,.it does seem to me, with all respect jto the gentlemen who decreed judgment, that in •imposing a .fine, the real offenders were not ,punished. It is the parents who hate to pay the ,piper, and when these parents are widows, as ^unfortunately is the case in both instances, it .beeomes a real hardship to them to have to pay a fine for their sons' offences. The alternative punishment, a birching for the delinquents, would, I should say, be the fairest and most effective method of dealing with youthful law- breakers. Little boys who read "penny dreadfuls usually get impressed with ideas of a valiant nature, and frequently imagine themselves to be Deadwood Dick, the terror of the plains," or some other equally mysterious and non-existing personage. With some such notion in their heads, six little pot-boys from a workshop not far from Pontymoil took a walk along the turn- pike road between one and two o'clock on Wed- nesday morning. Each was armed with a stick, and as they started on their tour, the conversa- tion turned to robbers and highwaymen, the daring deeds of Dick Turpin and the bold adventures of Jack Sheppard. When near the Turnpike House, one of the company fancied he heard footsteps, whereupon the two biggest volunteered to lead the way. If anybody says a word to us." quoth they, "well knock 'em down." The other lads bravely acquiesced, but suddenly a gruff voice at his elbow said, 44 Hullo, there J" so sharply as to cause the bold crew to scatter in all directions and flee for their lives. They had not gone far before the smallest of the party fell down, and was in a dreadful plight when he felt someone picking him up, until he felt that the someone was a friendly peeler. It afterwards transpired that two of the party in their flight fell into the canal, another lost his clogs, and another fell and scratched his nose. With these trifling excep- tions, the whole of the bold gang of adventurers reached the shop safe and seund.

NEW WATERWORKS FOR TREDEGAR dong"- LETTlNGlOlf THE CONTRACTS. At a special meeting of the Tredegar Local Board, held on Tuesday night, nuder the presi- dency of Alderman Benjamin Phillips, tenders were opened for the construction of new reser voirs and, the laying of about 2 £ miles of piping. For the construction of the reservoirs and the excavating work six tenders were received, as follows :—Mr F. C. Caffin, Broadway, Worcester, £21.1433s Id Messrs Linton and Co., Newport, £ 21,000; Mr John Preece. Hereford, £ 22,549 6s 5d; Messrs Gardner and Co., Newport, 120,800 6s; Mr Thomas Evans, Cardiff, X19,679 14s 6d Mr T. Goldsmith. Newport, 1:18,951 3s. The last-named and lowest tender was accepted. There were ten tenders sent in for the supply- ing of about 410 tons of cast-iron pipes. Messrs Spittle and Co., of Newport, was selected to supply all the four specified sizes of pipes required at f4 2s 6d per ton, and for special Sipes, &c., at £ 8 las per ton. Thert; was a full ioard, and the tenders were opened in the pre- sence of Mr Te^arman Rees, C.E., who has been engaged by the Board as waterworks engineer.

Telegrams from New York report that the pro. duction of The Prod'gn! Daughter there, v\-Wh Mr. Leenard Boynn in his original part as the iievo has been an unqualified gnccps=. Mr. Foli has sailed for the Capp, having t.cpn engaged to silix in the principal towns smth Africa. Mr. Santley is said to have a trip to the Cape in view. The statistical table just presente ] to shfl vearly meeting of the Society of Friend< shows iba* the official membership increased in ;he iasa <!<»**• mtsi.a- tional veni- by 143. Lord Roberts, who holds the nppo;n7111.>w ot honorary colonel of the 2nd London Hi He Volunteers, has accepted an invitation to dine with the batta- lion at headquarters nn Jnne 15. An alarming epidemi- cf measiep 111'" broken out at Westbourne, Kmsworth. and oth««i x in the vicinity of Ponamoinb. Several <}e.v.hs oc- curred, ssd th", schools have been closed.

TOPICS OF THE WEEK. ♦_ — aill ICvilyjj Wood, in the scheme which he hnii presented to the War Offioe in reference :o o working of atnmnnition columns, has laid emp'^s-s on the fact that it is absolutely neceetarv to at once reorganite this branch of the servuv. Sir Evelyn has in his sheine insisted on \'9 fact that the com minder of every unit Irov, general to the comp. 117 officer, must know v. ht ,-e to look for amniMiition sn pply, and that boa. o whereabouts of the ammu.r.K-n and the p- which it is required 111 lift Le cciis.ai- and Bpeedily conunuircated by signals. Majok-Ges. Simon- FuAsr.K. who claims the for. feited title at,(i L, nours 01 the Earldom of lb is an interesting pe-5-onngp. Ho fit all e,-(., as gallant a 6"idici ever foug!<t w.th the k As a young officer l.e was present at the i.a-"f St. Jean d'Acre.«n'I the Admiral highly prataod perfect practice il)on the enemy." At»h ?'■ u. itr- ing of Sid >u in the Syrian campn'gn of 1M0 b-j if-ft three companies in the attack n the c;tautL cleared the streets of the enemy. He was the f:<t. officer—p-'i'hap.s tbe only order uteLr-ttsh reveille be. Bounded on L. heights of Lct.cnon. He and his men 'jjnl.sV.r.vii the moon tains to pre- vent the passage- ■; tin- r-aau Army. PaoFBSFot Bivcn, of Mnnii-h, who has makiu" iu 6<ime of '-he most an ient tombs of Aci.nrn, ii;; i como "port ?»Hte nnif-lved-for resulta ain.ing ti" rt'jmtuies of "erulin Egypfna Princ-ess These discoveries art. r o. less than ceVtain via Is containing cosnu-ucs and beautify tuu lotions :,y e sulo of their dead and gone whom those precious be ong. ings were not s(., even in c.eath. But while the ladies (lied, and their beauty depart-d, the lotions which beautified them lived on, ami Pro. fessor Baver is now making an analysis of the con- tents of the pret'ioitn via's, the results of which are te be published for the benefit of the feminine world of to-day. A MEDITATIVE keeper of a New York restanrant has been turning his at terttiou to tlle effects of Oertain kinds of music on the appetite of his cuil. tomero. When Wagnerian music is to the front five times more lager beer is consumed thannsual. When Mendelssohn's music is performed there is an immediate cett-a'ion of the demand for ham sandwiches. Wile,, tile hand F-ti-ikes up a Stranss waltz wine is in vogue, and champagne flows like water. Fluids of a more potent character are in demand when the heavenly Irish jig er Scotch strathspey bursts from the orchestra. There is no music known to this genial restaurateur which pro- Tokes a longing for water or lemonade, or at all evoi3to it is never played on his premises. GONDOLAS are no longer a novelty on the Thames and it has been left to Mr. Knowles, of Riverdale Honse, Hampton, to create a fresh sensation by importing a Jangada" from Pernambuco for use on onr own river. Tbe jangada i e the fishing-boat of the natives of Northern Brazil. It is constraeted of six or more logs, curved slightly at either end, and fastened together with wooden pegs. Thelogs are peculiarly buoyant from the fact that the hard wood and pith grow in concentric layers. The eraft haa no keel, and is steered by a broad blade jammed between the logs, a centre-board being fitted in similar fashion. The sail is of the latest type. The appearance of the craft in Hampton Beach has aroused no little curiosity. A CORRESPONDENT writing from Kazenlyk, the chief centre of the Yallev of Roses, in South Bulgaria, says The extraordinary cold of the past winter has seriously injured the rose bushes, all, over the district. Some are frozen to the roots and are quite destroyed. Others have suffered severely from the masses of snow that retarded their devolopmont, so that it is estimated that the crop of this year will not be equal to more than half of that of last year, if so much, and it will also be of poorer quality, besides being a month later. The price of the precious essence Las already risen considerably, but as the greater part of last year's production had already been disposed of, this will bring Tery little benefit to the pro- ducers." Out Consuls in Chinacontinuetc report an increase in the habit of opium.smoking among the Chinese people. Consul Warren, at Tainan, Lowe-, er, observes that the drag ischiefty consumed in the urban districts. The country people smoke com- paratively little, but the rural population has de- creased considerably in some parts of the country whereas the urban population is steadily increasing. The habit of opium-smoking, too, is tteco m:ng more common among all classes in the towns, and iseven said to have become hereditary, children of a very tender age, whose mothers have been opirtm. smokers taking to it naturally. The almost universal pre. Ovailenoe of the habit is accounted for by the com. parative cheapness of the Persian drug, which is now used to the nearly complete exclusion of India, and which when mixed with either native opium cr sesamnm cake, is well within the means of all bat the very poorest. THE concentration of the Russian Biaclt Sea Fleet for manoeuvres, together with rntnonrs of considerable military activity in the Odessa com- mand, have been the cause of pome tinoasiness in Bulgaria, and have furnished the text for an article in the Svoboda," the official organ of 3L Stam- buloff, the President of the Council. It is quite probable, writes onr Sofia correspondent, that there is nothing to be alavmed about in the reported Russian activity, but all the same the strabi of the situation is severely felt in Bulgaria. This year the progress of the country has received a check through the unfavourable weather which has pre- vailed throughout the spring. No later than the 20th, after a morning of excessive heat, the roofs of the houses at Sofia were covered with a coat of half-frozen hail. The reports from the provinces place the deficiency in the winter wheat at 30 per cent. of the area sown. It is a question whether Bulgaria can long maintain her present military expenditure. Ix the community of Parabita. in Southern Italv. a shocking crime was perpetrated the other dnv. A certain Angela Pespico, a married woman, fa in love with a man named Cagginla, who was be- trothed to a highly respectable young woman. Pespico vowed the marriage should never be solemnised. On a recent feast day, CngiruTa, his betrothed, and a relative of Pespico, with Irs child spent the day in the best of spirits, and in the evening made for the dwelling-house of Angela Pespico. After the usual greetings Angela produced a flask of wine and all ate and drank save Angela who only sipped. A short time af: e-vra;d^ :Le visitors were seized with terrible pnins, and Angela bei-self was ill, though her attacks W(,i,e,,f a ]:er kind. In the morning of the next day the neigh- bours found four persons on the floor, of vrhotn thi-ee-Caggiul- his betrothed, and the child— were dead, while Fannizzi, Pespico'6 relative, breathed. Angela and her husband are in the hands of the police. ENERGETIC book-canvassers and gent-lemr>n who cannot be persuaded to depart from the threshold of their unfortunate victim's house until thev have purchased from him a ligbtning.coiulncr-or or a patent boot-jack have long been one of the staples of American humour. To judge by the cotu uia. dtg vibieb have been reaching trie papers it wor-ol eeem as if England was rapidly developing the same plague which appears to trouble onr American cousins. Canon Ainger's plaint respecting the book canvasser is already ancient history, bnt now another gentleman writes to inform the worid thai he also was called out from his lunch to interview a gentleman who had called oil important business. The visitor stated tLat he had already called twice and was glad at last to have the oppm* v of placing before the interrupted luiwher the advan- tages of a certain American in mi ranee conrtinv The gentleman's disgust may be intn^'npf! 111H he mastered his indignation and bowed ill,, victor ont But surely this is an affliction C( mmon to all the world. Why write to the pnpe s about it ?

Altogether 120 persons tnoir lives bv the landslip at Vaerdale, in Norway. Daniel Davies, secretary to i, Unity of OOdfellows, SwanRen, has been seMievice;] 10 pix weeks' imprisonment for embezzling email tunas of money. Mr. J. T. Grein has secured the Comedv Theatre for the next performance of the Indepe ndetu Theatre Society early in Juue, and will open with a y in three acts by Mrs. Browne-Mees. translated In the Dntch bv Mr .Alex:wdp!, }'p;xe:a.:o he preced-d by a one-act play hy Mr. U, 1\1. Pau1. An Australian named Boyd, who is now in ]:d:n, has invented a new explosive calied ri|>pl«-r«» which the War Office reiusr-d 10 have nnv:h:n<_r to do with. The Siamese (jovernmen: the-e-p I Oll'ered to purchase ir, and an agent has- ott Calcutta for S;am with a sample of t he -wiro. sive. Tbe report that -Mr. I.ane. Q.C. wn< to Judge Paters ra in the (Jonnt v Court i' o- to i,e staple is saul to Vie incorrect. 1.:11:(> II: i Jieved to be uuwiilmi? t,) resign police trateship until a County Court 'Judgeship ill neigh no;irhcod of London is vacant and placed at his disposal. Since the opening ceromor. v and the reception at the Imperial institute there has oeen n stendv f-Vw of to tile be nntubers t have been registered during :i;o las: few davs will perhaps, wbe, '.¡P novelty has worn In the grounds t he r>nv < ,1.:<>ur n I,e crowded wiili vin. tors throughout the day. A married woman named M Oahey has been burned t" death it? Re:< was F" ing from I,,¡¡¡t!<a in 'vhicti she lived in Snvwce-st. and on some s going Inside tbev-i;v rtrt the untortn:mr« at lviog over the I<t. i er hcfcd and shoulder* having reduced to a cir.d»y.