Papurau Newydd Cymru
Chwiliwch 15 miliwn o erthyglau papurau newydd Cymru
9 erthygl ar y dudalen hon
A LOOK ROUND.
A LOOK ROUND. "A Hugger-Mugger Peace." [BY SENTINEL."] OVERY good workman prides him- self on finishing off his job so that it will stand the test of time and ^ear-and-tear. Only the bad and un- conscientious cabinet maker would send 'Ilt an article full of cracks and splits led up with putty and concealed with a lck of paint. It is sometimes done, we but it is shoddy, gimcrack work. b rrreatv-makina on which the future eace and happiness of nations depends, 13 certainly no less important than Cabinet making, and it does not speak ll for the workmanship of statesmen at there should be a saying among n I diplomatists that Treaties contain the seeds of future wars." What is the for this? Either that the treaties e unjust, or that they are just com- -Promises-putty and paint with which cover up difficulties which could not settled. When the Germans forced **ance to give up Alsace and Lorraine, compelled their beaten enemy to ,Il an unjust treaty, and there could J^Uld be no friendship between the two ?ations. When peace was made in 18.15 after Waterloo, the treaty was a iIlg of shreds and patches," because theAllied Powers were afraid of falling %t among themselves. It left all the 140st difficult questions unsettled—the Qestion of Italy, the question of Po- ^Ud, and so on—and every war which arisen since has been due to the ■rjovenly and unconscientious workman- F^ip of the men who made that Treaty ™ Vienna. As regards this war, if we ,,Ilsent to a "German peace" it will e an unjust peace if we consent to a v Weak peace" with an unbeaten "fussia, it will be a compromise which Mil leave all the important questions settled, and will of a certainty lead 'I) future wars. It will be, to use the Nc,rds of Mr. Lloyd George, a hugger- 0 zo bugger peace." In spite of the confession of Herr von ^■Uhlmann, the ex-Foreign Secretary Germany, that the Germans cannot Obtain a peace by victory, they started July 15th to attack the French ^Vagely on the Marne and in Cham- j^gne. They were out to destroy as jr^ch life as possible, and perhaps, if jjey could get near enough, to batter 3*ris with their guns, in the hope that Qe French would then consider it not |°°d enough to go on fighting and con- ^t to a hugger-mugger peace." The n Germans know quite well that they ^Unot get a German peace now; and J?ey know also that, if the British and Trench and Italians only stick it out gravely until the Americans are fully for battle, the war will end in an ^ilied peace on the lines laid down by "resident Wilson. That is to say, the sword by which Prussia hoped to rule "the world will be struck from her hands, and Right will reign in place of Might. That would not suit the Kaiser and Bindenburg and Tirpitz, so France must be given a bloody head again, zn though the process cost more thousands of German lives. It is a complete mistake to think that any chance of making a real peace haa yet been given. A "German I peace We could, of course, have by I chucking up the sponge, and a hugger- ITR U^6T • Peace the Russians got at ln,leSfl *tovsk. But we have not given n-ower of our manhood in order to ■purchase putty and paint. The Germans re trying all they know to get at the ■ )eople whom The Times calls the ■ otties. But very few British people ■ re softies," and we are not going to e taken in and spoil the whole future for our children. Even if the prospect of victory looked doubtful—which it does not-we know that it would be better to fight on to the last gasp for the right rather than compromise with evil. Better lose the whole world and keep our soul than gain a momentary breath- ing-space in exchange for it. But it is perfectly untrue to say that we cannot win. We can, and we shall, win such a victory that Prussianism will disappear from the face of the earth. That is assured by the fact that we have com- mand of the sea, that the Americans are supplying us with all the fresh troops we need to overthrow the tired armies of e^emy > that the German makes f10/6 hated every day in Russia, e beaten people are stirring to life again. We have only got to hold I °T1 our °ld bull-dog courage to win all we have fought for.
I "JACK CLYNES."
I "JACK CLYNES." The New Food Controller. The new I Food Con- troller, Mr. J. R. Clynes, is a short frail figure, quite unlike the typical man of the trade union of which he has been a me'nber and an official for so many years. liis lace bears the trace 01 hard living and thinking. He never wastes words. On committees he never "goes off at half- cock," but waits until he has all the facts before him. He then enters into the deliberations, and never fails to add some- thing both wise and weighty to the discus- sion. On the platform both at public meetings and conferences, in spite of his physical limitations, he is an impressive speaker and debater. He carries his audience with him not by robustious eloquence, but by his close and persuasive logic and power of reasoning.
AN APPRECIATION.
AN APPRECIATION. [By VICTOR GRAYSCN.] Forty-nine years ago, in one of the mean streets of grimy Oldham, there was ) born to poor labouring parents a feeble child. The chances of his surviving the age of one year were exceedingly small, but by dint of saving and sacrifice the feeble flame of his life was kept burning, and the ripe age of ten found him eking out the family income as a half-timer in an Oldham mill. There is no need to point out here the conditions that pre- vailed in the Lancashire mills of those days: I often heard the man of whom I write relate the hardships of that bitter school of realities. Poverty, squalor, hunger, over-work, a crippling legacy of ill-health—these constituted the original soil out of which grew the remarkable personality of our present Food Con- troller. His own history is the best guarantee that he will discharge his task with the fullest sympathy for the poor and needy Laying the Foundation. At twelve years of age young Jack Clynes was a full-fledged wage-earner, working full time and doing literally a man's work, though, alas! not receiving a man's wage. Still, out of his meagre earnings he managed to scrape and save enough to buy books—for he had deter- mined to give himself the education which poverty and social conditions had denied him. With tired body and jaded brain he would wend his way eagerly to the evening- school—paying the fees out of his grim savings; or he would be found poring over grown-up books which he had obtained j from a co-operative library. Thus, in the I very early mornings and the late evenings, I the future statesman was laying the,. foundation of that wide knowledge, level judgment, and clear, concise diction which have made Mr. Clynes such an asset to the Empire. Lord Rhondda's Wisdom. It was because the late Lord Rhondda was instinct with the real spirit and dis- cernment of statesmanship that he chose as his right hand the man fra' Owdham." The making of a great fortune in the realms of industry and finance had taught the late Food Controller that ability and genius are not the monopoly of rank, class, or caste. He realised that genuine worth could, and would, prevail against the mightiest social handicap, and in choosing Clynes as his lieutenant he gave still another proof of his rare sagacity and insight. Of course, it would be wrong to imagine that Mr. Clynes lacked the technical training and hard experience which even genius could not do without. As a mere youth he had attained to the position of organiser to the Gasworkers and General Workers Union, and for twenty-one years he was the valued and industrious secretary to the Oldham Trades and Labour Council. In addition to these vastly educative offices, he was for some years delegate to the Oldham Cham- ber of Commerce, a position which enabled him to understand the inner workings of the employers' mind. He has also held the offices of president of the National Union of General Workers and of the National Federation of Labourers Unions. In the interests of labour he has travelled over a large portion of the globe, and his experiences of motley international con- ferences have whetted his natural and acute sense of humour. I have heard him relate with great gusto his experience of one conference where the foreign delegates were so full of brotherly love that they threw knives at one another. Looking Ahead. Clynes has before him a tremendous responsibility in succeeding such a man I as the late Lord Rhondda; but the great- ness of his task is the measure of his opportunity. I have not the faintest (Continued, at foot of Column 5).
COMRADES IN FRANCE.
COMRADES IN FRANCE. < [British Official. An Indian soldier and his horse.
WEAPONS OF PEACE AND WAR.
WEAPONS OF PEACE AND WAR. IBritUh Official Bringing 18 fodder for their horses.
[No title]
[British OjgUiaL A tree hit by m shell la Franc*, I
A SHEAF OF WAR STORIES.
A SHEAF OF WAR STORIES. Great Deeds Performed by all the Services. I America in the Battle Field. In the new battle of the Marne the troops of America have been fighting not as green'' battle material by any means, but with splendid valour and endurance. The Germans aimed their great blow pre- sumably against the French, but Mr. Cameron Mackenzie tells us (in the Daily Chronicle") that a large part of the new Army of the United States was caught in the operation, and the eager, intrepid lads making up America's counterpart to Kitchener's Army are, by the tens on tens of thousands), taking their first actual les- son in modern warfare, as England and France have long since come to know it. On all three positions the enemy artil- lery fire was directed in full violence, and then at daybreak appealed the Hun infan- try in reckless and overpowering profusion of numbers. Without much difficulty the Americans beat off the charge, and the German unit, probably an inferior lot, re- tired seemingly with a kind of weak des- pair. Not so. however, both to the east and west of Rheims; and there are stories to tell of the "doughboys at least in those sections of the line. West of Rheims the Germans piled over in heavy force against the strictly American positions between Chateau Thierry and the small village of Reuilly. Their objectives lay six, seven, or eight kilometres to the south, and divi- sions of the first order were despatched for the task of achieving them. The creeping barrage which the enemy used in this operation was five miles deep, and every variety of gas shell was employed without stint Inevitably, under the shock of such a desperate effort, the Americans were com- pelled to give ground somewhat, but for every inch they gave they took a merciless toll. Their machine-guns and artillery literally de,luged the Germans with death. American boys lying in field hospitals are amazed at themselves for the havoc of lives that they managed to extort. A Sample of American Crit. After hours of ruthless, ceaseless attack and counter-attack, tke Germans succeeded in crossing the Marne at three points. These crossings were remarkable (Mr. Mackenzie says) chiefly for the manner in which, according to all reports, the enemy troops effected them. It seems that the Germans had provided themselves in ad- vance with light, portable boats of canvas and wood-canoes if you please-an,d that at the proper moment these were rushed forward and launched. Into them there then clambered a small army of strangely inhuman figures--men clad in gas masks— and beneath the hail of a stiff American barrage the advance across the river was begun. There were many tales of Ameri- can heroism in the fighting in this sector. One such concerns a number of boys be- longing to an artillery unit which, as a result of constant fire, found its,elf short of ammuition. The lads had volunteered to make a three-mile trip down a road, every inch of which was being shell-swept, in order to bring back a fresh supply. Before the return trip had been completed the horses attached to their caisson wagons had all been killed. That circumstance, however, did not deter the Americans from laboriously dragging in the caissons them- selves. The Parson V.C. The military record of the Rev. T. B. Hardy, who has been awarded the V.C. for most conspicuous bravery and devo- tion to duty on many occasions," is truly remarkable Mr. Hardy is fifty years of age and the Vicar of Hutton Roof, Kirkby Lonsdale. In August, 1916, he joined the Forces as a chaplain. He won the D.S.O. nine months ago for rescuing wounded after his wrist had been broken and put in splints, crawling to within 70 yards of the enemy lines, and remaining with the wounded under heavy fire. He was later awarded the Military Cross for finding and carrying wounded over ground which was
AN APPRECIATION.
(Continued from Column 2). doubt that "the little statesman" will make the most of his chance. He has enemies in his own household of faith- some of them envious of his success, and others who would keep organised labour in a wilderness of ineffectual strife and class rancour. I have been amongst those who have protested violently against the leaders of Labour joining the Cabinet of either of the political parties. But the fine work of the Labour Ministers during the world's crisis has completely changed my point of view. When the War is over, the real task of our statesmen will but have begun. There will be intricate problems to unravel, perilous pitfalls to avoid, and the huge work of Reconstruction to be carried out. The man fra' Owdham has clear vision, strength, solid judgment, breadth of view, passionate sincerity, ex- ecutive capacity, administrative ability, and love of his kind. I, for one, will not fear to trust my destiny to his guidance. heavily shelled and where the casualties
A SHEAF OF WAR STORIES.
were very heavy. Now he gets the highest distinction King George has to give for z;' not one but a succession of feats of valour. An infantry patrol had gone out to attack a previously located enemy post in the ruins of a village, Mr. Hardy being then at company headquarters. Hearing firing, he followed the patrol, and about 400 yards beyond our front line of posts found an officer of the patrol dangerously wounded. He remained with the officer until he was able to get assistance to bring him in. During this time there was a great deal of firing, and an enemy patrol actually penetrated between the spot at which the officer was lying and our front line, and captured three of our men. On a second occasion, when an enemy shell exploded in the middle of one of our posts, Mr. Hardy at once made his way to the spot, despite the shell and trench-mortar fire which was going on at the time, and set to work to extricate the buried men. He succeeded in getting out one man who had been completely buried. He then set to work to extricate a second man, who was found to be dead. During the whole of the time that he was digging out the men Mr. Hardy was in great danger, not only from shell fire, but also because of the dangerous condition of the wall of the building, which had been hit by the shell which buried the men. On a third occa- sion he displayed the greatest devotion to duty when our infantry, after a successful attack, were gradually forced back to their starting trench. After it was believed that all our men had withdrawn from the wood Mr. Hardy came out of it, and on reaching an advanced post asked the men to help him to get in a wounded man. Accompanied by a sergeant, he made his way to the spot where the man lay, within ten yards of a pill-box which had been captured in the morning, but was subse- quently recaptured and occupied by the enemy. The wounded man was too weak to stand, but between them the chaplain and the sergeant eventually suoceeded in getting him to our lines. Stopping a Dribble. Lieut.-Colonel C. E. Hudson, V.C., of the Notts and Derby Regiment, has won his place on Fame's Bede Roll by magnificent work in stopping an enemy attack which threatened a portion of our lines with grave danger. The shelling had been very heavy on the right, a trench destroyed, and considerable casualties had occurred, and all the officers on the spot were killed or wounded. This enabled the enemy to penetrate our front line. The enemy pushed their advance as far as the support line, which was the key to our right flank. The situation demanded immediate action. Lieut.-Colonel Hudson, recognising its gravity, at once collected various head- quarter details, such as orderlies, servants, runners, etc., and, together with soma Allies, personally led them up the hill. Driving the enemy down the hilI towards our front line, he again led a party of about five up the trench, where there were about 200 enemy, in order to attack them from the flank. He then with two men got out of the trench and rushed the position, shouting to the enemy to surrender, some of whom did. He was then severely wounded by a bomb which exploded on his foot. Although in great pain, he gave directions for the counter-attack to be con- tinued, and this was done successfully, about 100 prisoners and six machine gullS being taken. Mopping up the Enemy. The Australian Imperial Force is natur- ally very proud of their new V.C., Sergeant W. Ruthven. During an advance Sergt. Ruthven's company suffered numerous casualties, and his company commander was severely wounded. He thereupon assumed command of this portion of the assault, took charge of the company head- quarters, and rallied the section in his vicinity. As the leading wave approached its objective it was subjected to heavy fire from an enemy machine-gun at close range. Without hesitation he at once sprang out, threw a bomb which landed beside the post, and rushed the position, bayoneting one of tho crew and capturing the gun. He then encountered some of the enemy coming out of a shelter. He wounded two, captured six others in the same position, and handed them over to an escort from the leading wave, which had now reached the objectivei. Sergt. Ruthven then re- organised the men in his vicinity and established a post in the second objective. Observing enemy movement in a sunken road near by, he, without hesitation, and armed only with a revolver, went over the open alone and rushed the position, shoot- in two of the enemy who refused to leave their dug-outs. He then single-handed mopped up this post and captured the whole of the garrison, amounting to b thirty-two, and kept them until assistance arrived to escort them back to our lines.