The Rhondda Leader

Pretnais Grenfell. '1\1). .—— {1la,?ml11and. of the British forces in Ho given to Sir Francis Gren- f ^P^rfo governor at Malta. Mili- Vs ka that Malta has never been ^tfiht6llbrm ,ndid state of defence as it cis ,,TeH's r_ P>ht under Sir Francis Wallace ^tp r^llacn f?16- Major-General Sir Fran- K-C B- O.C.M:O„ 6 Egyptian armies, was lwt >-he arm »ou -^Prii 29th, 1841; en- ugus>t 1859; became teh„' J87i 16th, 1865; captain Oct. nVUVcolonp?a^r Nov- 29th, 1879: lieu- isooV" 29th, 1879; colonel Sit'. 89.' fr major-general August Cv.6 servecl as aide-de-camp to ^rc. to C'olf.vf^ghame, and also as staff the t6 Gly»> commanding a field 3 s^, in th0 ran§kei in 1887-8, and was with the Gale- i^Dai^y 7tVi at Quintana Mountains on i-r (being mentioned in t&Uta^Jor • next obtained the rank of aQd ni,an5 Was deputy-assistant- of i tr7o master-general in the adiuf„ 7' and afterwards deputy- I Jlxtallt-general at headquarters tjip mentioned in dispatches), b^a,v,i' With m brevet-lieutenant- Mv.T^i'terr!; 1 and clasp. He was as- ^ve?.Wood^asier~general under Sir S-Vk11 the El^6 fioer War of 1881; te^ttle ^^np. larx War of 1882, being Nto^itirn, rele,lkhebir was' with the i°H nt aj. p. ln 1884-5, and at the en- j FrarJ6-8 lu command of a divi- liJto ^inff tv, 018 a^so. commanded the Ositj j an\j e operations near Suakim ii^ed < ^88, Air the combined forces at faHa>m E„vTa,,?r"General Grenfell re- Sv^PoinSS^111 APril> 1892, and in ?e W v0 deputy-adjutant-general goSranry "and Volunteers. NC9- fir T°r of ^lta since Janu- Q the i« a freeman of SR^eeini-c°IQ>feri'ori>111 borough hav- ol him in 1889 in in!!11'Wk hasS ^lstinguished military t(> i?1 hadSSCe iheu visited the ta?11 ftftP6 °f his fke Pleasure of listen- kVof fice cIosp^io^uent war lectures. htu Present dJti EvPptian cam" ISh ofiicpvc cfde he was enter- Si^d w^Qever iL —6 iocal Volunteer ii his Ltl Swansea, he a faat. Maesteg House, *v! °f w?, as the rt p rised to every W^ue^en, the laf A?ce of one the W JJn herseJf6 ^ufy **renfell, who -fc doubt Si,.W local charitable H inJ0rces acXn ? ^nd country in 0vetoo efy Land wr .Qatical Boxers ^ts with Dr'of !es wiii watch ^^foundinterest.

^tuna at ^raherbart- (Dy,ed)' Cardiff. ■Q? at Btacf Sre ,°B "J-'Jie Tr«i^ Csftt8 Comtry,; m °VitK 41 great ^day ,;fr- Chapel, Tre- 'int both haa tra- ,c°Jisequentlv aiestlue aud ita4»8va^e Kav ture from 0116 expected K85^e a aet^ 80 abie a iec- Ntte^he ^^alj aucl account of the Sc6^°ts. ^rs> Katii^6 ,? ony' aa well lJS>w^ad a nL ^men and a»er> Wine J011? ac(luam- vS°- Asv £ dmed with him B ^56nd Is interpsl^8 exPected, the itv throughout, jS chape] Wr en using his N>fc> and "«»ill ? V,S, ea by Mr of C ^hn Hughes^ ^dd> who has

CORRESPONDENCE. The insertion of a letter does not neces- sarily mean that the Editor agrees with the views expressed therein. We do not answer correspondents through the post. All correspondents must write on one side of the paper only, or their letters will be rejected. No letter will be published unless the writer sends his real name and address, not necessarily for publication, but as a guaran- tee of good faith.

Theism v. Secularism. To the Editor. Sir,-Il regret to see Mr Samuel at the commencement of his letter indulging in personal abuse, a practice that my religion prohibits me to acquiesce therein. He says too, that 1 sarcastically admired the work of Unitarians. You may drop the adverb, Mr Samuel. I sincerely appreciate the worthy elforts of Unitarians and others to rationalise Christianity. Religion, as advocated by some of them, stands divested of two-thirds of its hideous attire, and our only regret is that they do not go on fur- ther and cast aside entirely the rags of superstition. Mr Samuel asks for proofs that Christian- ity is in a state of decline. Well, I have it on scriptural authority that a divided house cannot stand. What is latter-day Chnstianity r A curious conglomeration of JÛO warring sects, all at daggers drawn with one another-all clinging to the Chris- tian name, which in fact is the only thing they all hold in common. Besides, the fact that the tackling of a ship is thrown over- board is a sure sign that she is in distress. One by one the dogmas that were wont to be regarded as the fundamental princi- ples of the Christian faith are being sacri- ficed to meet the inexorable demands of modern science and Biblical criticism. And is not the ever-increasing adoption of secu- lar methods to propagate religion a conces- sion to Secularism, and a testimony to the futility of spiritual functions. Mr Samuel, in reference to the Theistic idea, says that "before we attempt to dis- cuss the character of any person we must be satisfied that such a person exists." Certainly, my friend, hence our attitude of Agnosticism. He wants to know whe- ther we acknowledge any first cause. Well, men of science merely suggest the exis- tence of some inscrutinable cause, power, or force behind the phenomena of the uni- verse, "and in all earnestness" I ask Mr Samuel can he worship a vague cause, power or force. When he identifies this cause, power, or force with a personal, in- telligent Being, and when he further identifies this Being with the Christian Deity we will all embrace Christianity. Yes, Mr Samuel, that good tree Secularism has brought forth some good fruit. In- dividual Secularists have been among the world's greatest benefactors. Organised Secularism is only in its blossom. Give it 1900 years, the patronage of emperors, and kings, and state endowments, and it will do something. inevertheloss, some real work has been accomplished already. We have liberated platform and press to a great extent, thanks to the energy of Paine, Car- lile, Holyoake and others. We have wrest- led many Parliamentary and civil rights from the iron grip of bigotry, and, thanks to the secular methods of such men as Ro- bert Owen, Karl Marx, John Stuart Mill and Bradlaugh, our political and social structures have been placed on a better basis. Mr Samuel asks for a more definite statement of our beliefs. I will strive to give him an outline of our system, t space will not permit details. As the name implies, we believe in devoting our ener- gies to better this world, °we believe in a religion of humanity. Our church has no steeple, altar or priest. Our guide is reason, nat faith. We hold that character is better than creed, and work of more value than worship. We wage war with the hosts of ignorance and superstition, but our system is not entirely destructive and negative, it is constructive and posi- time as well. We strive, among other things, to obtain assolute secular educa- tion, to abolish the union of church and state, to apply humanitarian methods generally such as in the treatment of child- ren and of dumb animals. The Secular- ist's motto is "The world is my country, mankind are my brethren, doing gpod is my religion." It's aim is to secure the greatest happiness for the greatest number. Mr Samuel asks what proofs have I that Jesus of .Nazareth discarded secular topics, and yet with the same breath he admits that he taught that this life is but the fore- taste of a higher life. What proof! Why, the best proof possible, the only author- ised records of his teachings, viz., the four gospels. Did he not tell us to take no thought for this life, but to imitate the birds of the air in reckless improvidence ? Did he not say, "My kingdom is not of this world?" Did he not evade all questions of a legislative or political character ? Did he condemn the unjust system of taxation that, existed in the Roman Empire? Did he denounce the slavery that was rampant in his day ? Let Mr Samuel answer. lie asks further, did not Jesus Christ lay down the principles of all commercial en- terprise? Well, the sage of Nazareth has been assigned many a curious role ere now. He has been everything from a Communist to an Individualist, and from a Freethinker to a Ritualist, but never before have I heard of him as'the originator of the Stock Exchange. ngiuu, Mr Samuel asks it Christ did not law uown tne uoiuen jtvuie. iNu, lie did not. vAmiucius taugnt tnis precept nunureas 01 years oeiore Liie totar ot Bethieiiem snone III tne eastern sKy. When 1 say that Secu- larists respect Jesus in common with other great teacners, Mr oamuei exclaims," WHat inconsistency i les, 1 ask, what incon- slstency r We may admire a certain cnar- acter and accept moral maxims ascribed to mm, notwithstanding that a shade of sus- picion clings to the authenticity or his writings and to his personality. Take uuadlia for instance. We may admire hun and cull some of his precepts without be- lieving and accepting the records and tea- chings of the Vedas wholesale. No ad- vanced Christian nowadays accepts the New Testament teachings en toto, but Mr Samuel's policy appears to be "neck or no- thing." 1 am, etcv SECULARIST.

warn" 8AFB at SPEEDY REMEDY tor Cough, Cold, Bronchitis, aa. f $) ,I It tuM the Congh, lpeuni the phlagm, ut «Iym Immediate t»« »n4 8lMP< iwn nil)

Death of Mr Griffith Thomas, M.E. A Prominent Mardyite gone. On Saturday evening last, Mr Griffith Thomas, mining engineer, and late general manager of the Maerdy Collieries, died at his residence, Afan House, Maerdy. Mr Thomas, who was 70 years of age, was ill for the last 12 months, and retired from his position as manager six years ago. He was a gentleman highly respected by all who came in contact with him, one of the noteworthy traits of his character being his straightforwardness. He came to Maerdy 21 years ago to manage the collier- ies, then only two in number, he having held the same position previousy at Trim- saran and Cwmaman. He was born at Pontrhydyfen, and was for many years a resident of Rhymney. He took unbounded interest in the furthering of Maerdy, socially and morally, and the few redeeming features of the place owe their existence to Mr Thomas. He was also very enthusias- tic on the education of the masses, and often was one of the adjudicators at eis- teddfodau on timbering and underground competitions. His heroic conduct at the Maerdy explosion many years ago is re- membered by Maerdyites, he being made the recipient of some beautiful presents by the Colliery and the place on that occasion. Mrs Thomas and he were presented, each occasion being a memorable one. He lived an exemplary life and was always ready to help young fellows who wanted to prosper in life, educationally and generally. The death of his daughters years ago smote him hard. He leaves behind him a widow and son and daughter. The funeral took place on Thursday, his remains being con- veyed from Maerdy to Pontrhydyfen per the 10 o'clock train for interment.

Ton-Pentre Police Court. MONDAY.—Before the Stipendiary (Mr Ignatius Williams), Messrs T. P. Jen- kins, E. H. Davies. D. W. Davies, Dd. Thomas, J. D. Williams, and Alderman Richard Lewis. Overloading Benjamin Todd Treherbertrwas fined 10s. for disorderly conduct at Treherbert. For overloading his brake, Wm. Cory, Treherbert, was fined £ 1- Wm. Cory, junior. Treherbert, was sum- moned for a similar offence and fined lOs, Swine Fever Order. Thomas Jones, Cwmparc, was summoned for committing a breach of the Swine Fevet Order. He had a license to remove 12 pigs, and was seen conveying offence was committed on the 14th «JW> previous to the'recision of the Drder. uu- fendant was fined PI. Drunks. The following were fined for being and disorderly: Wm. John Hillman, herbert, 10s.; Giles Hudd, Pentre, John Phillips, Pentre, l^->Wm- Wfc Treorchy, 15s.; John Jenkins, J°siah James, Evan Perkins and Darnel, 10s. each; Wm. Llewellyn, Ystrad, » John Thomas, Pentre 10s.; and Wm. Thit- ford, Gelli, 5s. A Treherbort Woman's Lament. Mary Jane Nelson, a marned from Treherbert, was summoned for wang drunk and disorderly on two acensions- Defendant said "they" were down on her because she was married to a coloured man. it. Stipendiary: I should not think that is Defendant: Yes. that's what it; ifc husband beat me cruel that mght went home, and when the brought the summons he told my to "leather" me. I will leave the • They are down on me because my is coloured. „„„ j, Stipendiary: Oh, nonsense, y° band is a very good man. B«me Defendant: Yes, sir, he »• day the policeman wanted to beetue, he beat me cruelly. He kicked me like^ ball about the place. I must off or else I'll be in the asylum- »sWo much having two summonses at, mB time. They'll soon hang me, not prison. We had a meeting at it last night, and I took an oath to off. Mr T. P. Jenkins: What meeting ww it? Sfj-etfns ASKS&& » "SSS, fined fc. for each Another Soorcher Fined. Anthony Gardner, Tynewydd, was s moned for furiously riding a bicy rate of from 12 to 14 miles an hour. policeman shouted to him to stop, j fendant only increased the P^> &e^r. knocking a child down, re- wards "followed'' him and said he ^Defendant alleged that he had oafr a bicycle a fortnight, and » £ £ £ 12 miles an hour. He was going at tJie tm of five or six miles an hour. A fine of £ 2 was imposed. John Walters, Trealaw, a pay the costs for keeping a < ng license.. For this Relief, much T-hoLnks, An tteUif have hams, 4. Hill-side lerrace, w « gainst reduced a maintenance ord jenI1et, him in June in support of his wire whom he married four years ]^r then a widower with two c nlicant, Thos. Phillips appeareu for the appti and put in pay tickets shewing we€fc. dant's earnings averaged 33s. P • Since the order was made he h tradesmen's bills, incurred by > for £ 24, the existence of which be was no aware of when the order was niade- Williams alleged fchat her husband^ all about the debts, and that his daug was in service and his son *'or^,11^ V? naV ground, so that he could well afford to p y the 10s. per week, which was the amount of the order. Mrs Williams kept a running fire of comments when anything was sai y the Bench or witness, and the Stipendiary, in reducing the order to 7s. 6d. per week, remarked that Williams was well out 01 nis wife. Hark The whole Valley rings and re-echoes again and again, that Fran* Thomas, "My Hatter,^ Pontypridd, sella the best 3s. 9d. Hat. 6a the best 3s. 9d. Hat. 68

MR. DESMAflE Disease Specialist, Commercial Temperance Hotel, staSKU YSTRAD. OW TUESDAYS from 2 till 7 p.m. N. B. -Ladies or Gentlemen may consult me on any complaint or Disease whatever, and if I cannot cure I will say so at once; but if I say I can, I will give a guarantee to do so. Since 1893, 26,000 persons have received my treatment with success. Wonderful cures after years of suffering My Motto is Aotiom Speak Loader than Wordi." During the last twelve months 2697, were successfully treated for DEAFNESS and WEAK EYES Advice and Cousultation ENTIRELY FREE Central Address:— 23, STATION TER., PONTYPRIDD Where Mr. Desmane can be seen Daily (including Sundays, all day). If you cannot call, do not be afraid to write and state your case. All Communications honourably kept private, and attended to immediately. Artificial Teeth Supplied. Teeth Extracted Free. OLD SETS BOUGHT OR REPAIRED. Best Quality at Lowest Prices. Mr Full Particulars on application. NOTICE TO FEMALES. MADAME DESMANE attends in Speci. Cases (when desired)* Her Special Preparation should be ow fill*

Fine Smoking Concert at Pentre. Helping the Needy." During the last few weeks smoking con- certs seem to have been the order of the day (or, to be more correct, "the night") in the upper parts of the Valley, an each succeeding smoker seems to have done all it could to outrival the others, both in the quality of its artistes and in the amount of money raised for some deserving object; however, the palm as regards smoking con- certs must be awarded to "the smoker of smokers" that was held at the Griffin Hotel, Pentre, on Thursday night. The large and comodious long-room at the back of the hotel (which, by the way, is most suitably adapted for gatherings of this kind), was filled to its utmost capacity, even standing room being at a premium^ and we predict that a very substantial sum will be handed over to Mr James Williams, of 5, (Jarne Street. Pentre, for whose bene- fit the smoker was promoted, and who has been indisposed anil unable to follow his employment for the last three years. We have nothing but the highest of praise to pay for the charming hostess, Miss Lewis (who was also ably assisted by her brother, Mr D. Lewis, and Mr Willie Phillips) ior the most excellent preparations made by them. A large amount of time and labour must have been expended in getting every- thing in tip-top order; and they are to be most highly complimented on the brilliant success attained. Mr Ben Hopkins, Tre- orchy, made an ideal chairman, he keep- ing the large crowd in the best of humour and temper, until even the last item of the programme. The accompanists were Miss Dontini of Abercynon, and Mr Brin Wil- liams, Ton; both of whom performed their duties to the entire satisfaction of all con- cerned. After a few short remarks by the chairman, Miss Dontini opened the pro- ceedings with a brilliantly played overture on the pianoforte called "March past of the Rifle Regiment" at the conclusion of which she was greeted with an. outburst of cheering. Following this came Mr Ben HopkinSj who gave an exquisite rendering of "The Last Watch," for which he was de- servedly encored, and responded with "The Death of Nelson." The next item was the soul-stirring song "Soldier of the Queen," which was sung with thrilling effect by Miss Dontini, she receiving round after round of applause. Mr Tom Wil- liams next gave. "Swinging to and fro'' in his usual capable manner, and was loudly applauded. The next item was the rollick- ing song, "What Ho! she's bumping," which was given in fine style by Mr J. Granfieldj he having to respond again to an encore. Mr Morgan Lewis now gave a good render- ing of "The Sailor Boy's Dream," and was loudly applauded. "llueen of the Earth" was the next item, and was splendidly ren- dered by Mr Fred Rees. The famous Tre- orchy comedian, r Bill Goldman, now came iorward and gave Coborn's famous song, "Four little fingers and a thumb," and fairiy brought the house down and was loudly encored, following this came an- other comic song, "we're all doing a ntue bit of it'' by Mr Billy Williams of Penarth. Mr David J. Davies rendered a serio-comic and was very well received. The pqjpuiar Welsh comedian, Mr Tommy Rees, now gave a few comic items and received round after round of applause. At this' junc- ture it was announced that Mr phiilips, Colliers' Arms Hotel, loiltypri(ict, sub- scribed 5s. to the company, and the genial landlady, not to be outdone, also subscribed tHe same amount, it is needless to add that this announcement was received with the loudest ot cheers j. three times three being given for both subscribers. Mr Er- nest urew now sang a very popular song and was loudly applauded. After this came the best item oi the evening, namely, "lis hard to say good-bye," which was most excellently rendered by that favour- ite singer, Mr Yv yndnam J eniiins, harpist of the Commercial Hotelj istrad, who at the conclusion of the song was received by a perfect outburst of cheering and loud cries of encore. He responded by giving an- other splendid rendering. Mr Harry John, the champion whistler, gave a splendid exposition on his favourite instrument, he playing the "Belphegor March" in inimitable style. The boy soprano of the Rhondda, Master Tommy Greenwood, gave a good rendering of "1 don't know what she's doing now,) and received loud ap- plause. "A laughing song" by Mr Morgan juewis. Following this was the comic song, "A little bit off the top" by Mr D. Jeremiah, who was most loudly applauded. Mr Fred Rees now closed the concert by singing the solo of "God Save the Queen," the whole crowd upstanding and taiang on their hats and caps most loyally and join- ing in at the second verse. Thus ended as stated at the beginning, one of the best smokers ever held in the Rhondda.

The Yankee version iri — He that by his trade would rise, Must either bust or advertise. Franklin wrote He that by the plough would thrive, Himself must either noid or dr»re.

The Mining World. Meeting of the No. 2 District. The monthly meeting of the No. 2 Ponty- pridd and Rhondda District was held on Tuesday at the Greenmeadow Hotel, Ponty- pridd, Mr Alfred Bibey presiding. Votes of condolence were passed with Mr W. Ab- raham, M.P. (Mabon), and the family of the late Alderman David Morgan. The agent, Mr Ben Davies, reported that five fatal accidents had occurred in the district during the last month, and that he was negotiating for the settlement of several minor disputes. Mr Noah Thomas, the senior district auditor, reported that the total receipts for the six months ending June 30th last were £2,655 12s. 8d., the total amount in hand including £931 16s. 6d. credit balance last January being R2,665 12s. 8d. The expenditure for the same period ,including £lffi9 10s. 6d. paid to the Central Fund was P,1,276 9s. lid., leaving a balance in hand of £ 1,389 2s. 9d. The auditors expressed satisfaction with the manner in which the books, were kept, and a vote of thanks was accorded the secretary and treasurer. The contribu- tions received at the meeting were £ 295 8s. 2d.

Royal Treorchy Choir. Sued in the County Court. At Pentre County Court on Tuesday (before his Honour Judge Gwilym Wil- liams), Mr Edward Quigley* manager of the Grand Theatre. Cardiff, brought an action against Mr T. Lawrence, Treorchy, secre- tary of the Traorchy Male Voice Party, to recover zClO 16s. 3d. balance alleged to be due to him for services, etc., rendered at three "grand performances" of Dr. Eben- ezer Prout's opera, "Damon and Phynteas," at the Drill Hall, Pentre, in the latter part of April. There was a counter-claim of £ 2_4s. 6d. Mr Henry White, Cardiff, represented the plaintiff, while Mr W. D. Jones, Pentre, appeared for the defendant Lawrence. It seemed that the plaintiff had agreed to supply the Royal Party with a fit-up, scenery, and all the accessories re- quired in the production of the piece. Mr Quigley visited Treorchy and entered >nto a verbal agreement as to the amount. «rn his evidence he stated that he had paid t12 10s. for scenery to Mr Price, theatrical caterer, Cardiff, and a receipt was pro- duced. Plaintiff's total charges were t33 10s. 3d. The society paid to Mr Quigley zC22 14s., but disputed the remainder of the sum claimed. Mr Lawrence and Mr W. Thomas, leader of the choir, deposed that the plaintiff had agreed to let them have the scenery for zC,5, and not £ 12 10s., and also stated that for that amount it would be fitted up for them. His Honour said he believed both the plaintiff and the defendant, but thought there must have been a misunderstanding between them. He, however, disallowed 97 10s. in regard to the scenery and 10s. 6d. in the claim for attending rehearsals, reducing the amount of travelling expenses by 5s., and struck out the El 14s. 3d. claimed for men's labour. The judgment for the plain- tiff was therefore for 17s. With respect to the counter-claim, judgment was given for j61 Is. 8d., the sum paid by the society under protest for carriage of scenery.

CRICKET. Rhondda Teachers v. Yetrad. On Saturday the Rhondda Taechers mustered a team to play against the'Ystrad team. As is seen from the result, it is evi- dent that the men of practice win the day. The teachers were a fairly strong team, but this did not in the least show the vast talent existent among the teachers. There are a number of teachers of the Valley forming, as it were, the "back-bone" of other teams. Why not pick a team them- selves RHONDDA TEACHERS. T. J. Davies b T. Thomas 2 E. G. Thomas t) Wight 5 H. Jones run out B. Jones b Wight B. Gabe b Wight 0 H. Prosser b Wight 2 S. Royall b Wight 0 R. W. Airdrie c and b Thomas 6 C. Thomas b Thomas .0 D. S. Eynon b Wight 2 Llew Thomas not out 2 Extras 12 Total 39 YSTRAD. A. Thompson b H. Jones 0 E. Thomas c Royall b B. Jones 2 M. Thomas b B. Jones ••• 3 J. Thomas run out ••• 7 L. Wight not out 62 T. Thomas st. H. Jones b Prossei; 9 D. Walters b Prosser 0 A. Thomas b Prosser 3 J. Watkins c and b Prosser 3 Ivor Thomas l.b.w. b Gabe 5 T. Collins c and b Gabe 4 Extras 11 Total 109

Cory's Officials v. Gelli Colliery. Taking advantage of the general holiday on Monday last, Mr Louis White captained a team representing Gelli Colliery to try conclusions with the clerks at Gelli Col- liery on the Cardiff Arms Park. The Colliery won by 16 runs. After the match the colliers were entertained to tea at the Barry's Restaurant at the expense of the Company. After the tea, a most enjoyable evening was spent in the form of a smoking concert. I think this was too much of a good thing, for the Rhonddaites. It is likely that this will gecome an annual affair and next season we shall have an appor- tunity of introducing the officials to the Rhondda and showing our welcome and hospitality. CORY'S OFFICIALS. Rees b Wight 3 Price b Williams 0 Foulkes b Williams 1 Davies b Williams 11 Gibbon b Williams 0 0. Brelski b Wight 4 Jenkins b Wight Philips not out Harrison l.b.w. o Wight 0 Leal run out 0 Sutherland b Williams 0 Extras 10 85 COLLIERY. E. Thomas b Rees ••• ••• ••• T. R. Thomas c and b Davies ••• J. Thomas b Rees 4 Harding run out 9 Thompson run out ° Williams b Davies Wight c and b Rees ••• T. Jones c and b Rees ••• ••• O O. Royall c smd b Rees Hyde not out W. Jones st b Rees u Total IU 61

QUOITS. Merthyr Vale v. Ton-Pentre. The annual "friendly" match between the above teams was played at Merthyr Vale on Monday. After an even game, the homesters ran out winners by nine points. Score:— Merthyr Vale. B. Francis, 14; T. Morton, 11; W. Richards, 21; G. Warrtn, 21; J. Davies, 15; J. Homer, 9; D. Collins, 21; J. Wil- liams, 21;—total, 133. Ton-Pentre. J. Pate, 21, I. Thomas, 21; T. Moore, 9; R. Kursey, 3; Joe Pate, 21: D. Davies, 21; W. Jones, 15 W. Thomas, 15 i-total, 124.

Rhondda Hairdressers' Associ- ation. A meeting of the above association was held at Porth Hotel on Thursday, Mr Coole, Pentre, presiding. There was a large at- tendance of members. The meeting was specially convened for the purpose of hear- ing an address by Mr Jeffries of Swansea on the question of amalgamating the differ- ent hairdressers' unions of Wales into one fcolid body for the purpose of bringing stronger force to bear on a few blacklegs who still remained outside the unions and who, in most cases, were colliers doing hairdressing in their spare time. He also spoke on the question of raising a siek and benevolent fund for the purpose of assist- ing sick members and members suffering from blackleg opposition. At the close of the meeting a vote of thanks was accorded him for ills speech. Other business was a discussion on the action of the two hair- dressers of Blaenllechau who were still out- side the union. It was resolved to adopt measures to bring them to see that they were fighting against their own interests when they opposed unionism in a district where they depended for a living upon trades unionists of all branches of trade. The chairman proposed, and the vice- chairman seconded a heartfelt vote of con- doelnce and sympathy with Mr Abraham, M.P., and family on the loss of his wife. It was unanimously carried, all members standing.

Meeting of the Shareholders of the Ferndale Co-operative Society. The shareholders of the above society held their quarterly meeting at the Tre- rhondda Vestry on Wednesday evening. The meeting was well attended, and the proceedings were very enthusiastic through- out. Mr Lewis Watkins, chairman of the society, presided, and in submitting the report for the quarter's trading stated that their last three months trading was one of the most successful they had ever had. There was a substantial increase in all of the departments, and the sales were a record for the period. The question of membership was getting serious as the premises were at present inadequate for the amount of trade done. The sales for the quarter were £ 26,792 Is. 7d., an increase of zL2,500, and the membership stood at 1,423 or an increase of 86 from last quarter. The dividend to be declared in the grocery and drapery was 4s. 2d. in the t, and in the butchery 3s. 3d. in the E. He congratu- lated all concerned upon the admirable results obtained, and t hat the members could well be proud of the flourishing con- dition the society was in at present (cheers) The statement of accounts and balance sheet were read by Mr G. Kidd from the firm of Messrs Jenkins and Jones, char- tered accountants, Cardiff, in English, and by the secretary, Mr J. J. Jenkins, in Welsh. The following are the chief items on the balance sheet. Value of buildings, rolling stock, etc., £5,243 8s. 4d.; cash in bank and in hand, P,10,998 18s. 6d.. sundry debtors, £28 10s. 8d.; stock, grocery, drapery and butchery, £ 4,413 Is. 7d.; share capital of members, zCll,158 4s. 6d. j sundry debtors, k402 Is. 2d'i reserve and sinking funds, zC4,038 9s. 3d.; profit, gro- cery, drapery and butchery departments, zC5,344 4s. 2d. An appeal was made by some of the Maerdy members for a branch shop, so as to relieve some of the pj^ssure on the stores at Ferndale. Several Maerdy members spoke on the matter, and it was ultimately resolved to defer it until a most convenient time and to call a special gener- al meeting for that purpose only. The election of officers was then produced with and Messrs James Scare and Tom Bowen were re-elected, and Messrs Tom Morgan and Jno. Reynolds were also elec- ted to act on the committee f or the ensu- ing year. The meeting terminated after the customary votes of thanks. Great credit is due to the managers, Mr Henry Davies and F. W. Scott for the good re- sults obtained.

The Hopkinstown Suicide Again. Wm. MintoUj Hopkinstown, was again brought up at the Pontypridd Police Court on Wednesday on the charge of having at- tempted to commit suicide. At the last Quarter Sessions he was convicted of hav- ing tried to commit suicide and was then bound over in the sum of L20 to bg of good behaviour for 12 months. P.C. Bodger having repeated his evi- dence, Llewellyn Llewellyn, a fellow lodger of Minton's, said he had the same night prevented defendant from using a knife on himself Evidence was also given by Mary Gomer, a servant at the Royal Oak, to the effect that he had caught her by the throat and had also drawn a knife across her throat. Defendant was bound over m two sureties of £ 50 to be of good behaviour for six months, or in default, one month's imprisonment.

LAWN TENNIS. Last Thursday the Llwynypia teanis team journeyed to Aberdare to play the return fixture. The Aberdare team this season is very strong, the having beaten our locals at Llwynypia rather cheaply. This match was also registered as a win for them, although some of the games were very close and exciting-one especially so, that between T. Orsman and T. Morgan. This was voted as the best game seen on the Aberdare courts. The final results were Aberdare, 100 games and 6 events Llwynypia, 86 games and 3 events. The scores are;-Singles; T. Orsman (L) beat Tom Morgan (A) 6-2, 7-5; Ted Hughes (L) lost to A Cameron (A) 3-6, 2-6; W. D. John (L) beat Reynolds (A) 6-1, 6-3; Morgan Rees (L) lost to W. Phillips (A) 6-1, 2-6, 4-6; J. T. Lewis (L) lost to J. M. Griffiths (A) 4-6, 6-4, 4- W. Phillips (L) lost to D. E. Morgan (A) 0-6, 2-6. Doubles Orsman and Hughes (L) lost to D. Morgan and Cam- eron (A) 3-6, 2-6; Lewis and Rees (L) lost to Phillips and Morgan (A) 6-8, 3-6; John and Phillips (L) beat Reynolds and Grif- fiths (A) 7.6, 7-5.