The Montgomeryshire Express and Radnor Times

THE CHURCH FINANCIAL. Searchlights on Welshpool Accounts. Handsome Subscriptions by the Poor. BY T. A. BENNETT. [Special for the 'Express.'] No, I was not present at the vestry meeting on April 14th, a filial duty and responsibility kept me away. Am I satisfied with the accounts ? Honestly I am not, and should have said so bad I been present. I consider the method in which they are presented early Victorian, not to say late Georgian, and I had heard so much dissatisfaction expressed about them that I fully expected half a dozen people would step into the breach and refer them back to the wardens for further considera- tion. Will I write a few words about them from my point of view for the 'Express'? Yes, and I can quite believo that there is a good deal of con- troversy going on about them at the moment. To begin with the accounts should be properly audited by a professional accountant, who should be prepared tu stand a cross-examination about them at our annual meeting. I never consider money wasted in calling in an expert, for he takes all responsibility off the shoulders of well- meaning amateurs and creates confidence. The Society of Chartered Accountants is becoming a more indispensable institution every day, and no business house would dream of being satisfied with its accounts until a member of this honour- able profession 'had gone through them. Audit- ing does not only mean seeing vouchers, examin- ing bank pass book, counting cash in hand, and adding figures, but ascertaining whether money given for one object is not inadvertently being applied to another, and I believe that the small fee charged is covered many times over by increased subscriptions. This matter I intended to bring forward, knowing that at our Welshpool Vestry no one would think I was imputing the slightest reflection upon those who work hard to make the best use of the funds committed to their care. Now for a little criticism. The "Alms account" has always puzzled me. Why is it not part of the wardens' statement? I take it it is money collected for the poor, the poor in general, not what you would call the church poor. The churchwardens shall receive the alms for the poor," is the rubric in our Book of Common Prayer. STARVATION NO QUALIFICATION. I find that in 1908 (the last available printed detail) £ 63 7s lOd was collected in the Welshpool churches for this fund. An accountant would of course grasp the idea that this money is the pro- petty of the poor and cannot be applied to any other purpose. How was it dealt with ? I see that .£19 Os 2d was distributed by ticket, but I hove failed to discover by whom and what are the the qualifications necessary to obtain a share in this .£19. I have, however, found out that starvation isn't a qualification. £ 8 5s Od is distributed by the clergy. I say nothing about this because if anyone should know where help is needed it is the clergy who theo- retically at any rate are day and night in and out amongst them, and the next time I come upon a family who haven't had a meal for two days I shall send them with a note to the clergy. X16 68 6d was distributed by District Visitors. They also should know where immediate help is needed, but unfortunately until recently, the very districts where help might be most likely to be wanted had no district visitors. I intended to ask some direct questions as to the mode of distributing, because I have heard of a parish where each visitor received a certain amount per week to give in relief and I cannot conceive any more disatotrous method of pauperising people than by leading them to expect something whenever they are civil to a district visitor. Some districts might not want a half-penny for weeks and then suddenly thirty shilling might be necassary. SOME MISSING LINKS. However, it is done, probably excellently, some JB43 10s 8d was distributed by the above three methods. What became of the balance, the property of the poor ? The Choir Fund received £ 1. Why should the poor pay this large amount towards the choir? Where is the balance sheet of the choir fund ? However, I have more to say about the choir later. The Sunday School fund received .£1 from this poor fund, but if you look for it in the Sunday School account you won't find it. I don't say it isn't there, of course, for a moment, but it isn't shown and it ought to be. The ringers received 103 from this poor fund, but no ringer's account is shown. The S.P.C.K. got .£1, but if you look for it under the heading of .subscriptions at the end you won't find it, although the S.P.G. has a place. Why shouldn't the poor's subscription to the S.P.C.K. be in ? Continuing the account Deficit from last year comes next. Did anyone ever see a deficit appear half way down a column of expenditure ? Surely this must be an Anglo Saxon or early Celtic way of doing things. PUTTY AND PAINT. Alms House is the next item, but as I shall have a good deal to say about the Alms House later, I will leave it now. Printing £ 3 12s Sd." Poor poor to have to incur such a bill, I presume it is for the tickets, however. The next item, however, I consider iniquitous Special Preachers £ 3 4s 6d." Of course special preachers require their expenses paid, but why should the poor have to bear the cost ? The above are some -of the questions I intended to ask at the w-estry meeting, but there are others. The sub- scriptions to the curates fund are shown in a most unsatisfactory way. For instance the subscription list adds up to .£56 6s 6d, the collections to .£25 lie 9d; total, .£81 18s 3d. But in the statement of curates fund (1908) the amount is given "subscriptions and collections, .£97 8e." Where did the .£15 9s 9d come from ? Of course, it is very satisfactory to have it in hand, but it should be explained in the account. How- ever I have more to say about the curates fund aad as I have already occupied a good deal of yoar I space I will keep it over until next week when I hope also to say a word or two about the choir and the churchwardens accounts including the lmtty and paint on the tower outside.

——^ WHAT THE DOCTOR FOUND. How Montgomeryshire Children go to School. In his highly interesting and instructive report, Dr C. E. Humphreys, the County Medical Officer, describes the physical condition of the 1,550 (840 boys and 710 girls) school children who were inspected in the elementary schools of Mont- gomeryshire. 480 of these were in Urban and 1,070 in Rural schools. 900 of the children ex- amined were either in their first or last year of school life. The remaining 650 were those who were presented by the teacher to the examiner as having some physical defects calling for attention. From the report sheets sent to me by the Medical Inspectors, I found that while a considerable number of children suffered from slight ailments 1 or defects, there were 311 who required immediate treatment, to which the attention of the parents was called by means of the printed cards sent by post. I have not been able to ascertain as yet to what extent this advice was taken, but many instances have come to my notice that good has already been done by treatment. HALF-STARVED SCHOLARS. Of the 1,550 children examined, 1,293 are clas- sified as good." 145 as "below normal," and 73 as bad" (38 boys and 35 girb). There are thin, pale children, nervous and active, who are often ravenous eaters, in whose system the tood is ex- pended in nerve force rather than in building up tat and muscie. I find, however, that 70 per cent of the badly nourished are children of poor parents, and the presumption is that insufficiency or unsuitability of food is the cause of their low state of nutrition. 17 of these badly nourished children were found in Urban schools, and 56 in Rural schools-that is to say 3 5 per cent were town children, and 5"2 per cent country children. This greater preponderance of mal-nutrition in country children is not what one would have expected, but a large number of these children have long distances tc attend school; they start very early in the morning on a hurried breakfast, often consisting of tea and bread and butter, and they have no substantial meal until they arrive home in the evening. No MILK IN THE COUNTRY. I find that milk is actually scarcer for many months in the year in small country cottages than in the towns and villages. The staple drink is tea (generally stewed tea) with nearly every meal—milk and porridge being rarely seen on the ru I table. This faulty feeding and incessant tea- drinking has much to do with mal-nutrition and physical deterioration; and it is hopeless to try and convince parents of this. Such apathy or ignorance on their part only serves to emphasise the vital importance of teaching the elements of domestic economy, hygiene and cookery, and the care of infants to the girls in the upper standards; for these girls of to-day are the future mothers of the next generation. The damage done to grow- ing children by faulty feeding and tea-drinking, if allowed to go on, will be disastrous, while, on the other hand, well-nourished children fed rightly and in normal condition will be better able to resist the attacks of diseases, such as tuberculosis, etc. CLEAN MOTHERS WANTED. 28 children only were found to be badly off in clothing and boots, and these were, as one would expect, the children of poor parents. 25 children were stated to be dirty, many of these were motherless or boarded-out children. 65 children were reported to have verminous heads, and in 107 were found nits or the eggs in the hair of the head. 75 per cent of children with verminous heads were girls, whose long unkept hair provides a happy hunting ground tor these animals, and moreover tends to scatter them wholesale among the rest of the school. Girls should be required to tie their hair with ribbon when attending school. The younger ones would be much cleaner and healthier with their hair cut short. ONLY 14 PER CSNT WITH SOUND TEETH. Only 226 children have a perfectly sound den- ture 1,324 or 85 per cent have two or more teeth decayed. This number, of course, includes many who have the remains of decaying temporary or milk teeth in their mouths. 252 children had distinctly bad teeth 118 (63 boys and 49 girls) between the ages of 13 and 14 had more than five of their permanent teeth destroyed, which will not be replaced except by artificial means. After birth, the chief causes are want of cleanliness of the teeth, and the use of soft, sloppy, starchy foods. HOW TO GET A NICE SET. Soft bread made of white flour from which the bran has been removed clings to the teeth and undergoes this acid fermentation, whereas the rougher bread made from home-ground flour con- tains more fibrous particles, and acts as a mechani- cal cleanser of the teeth. Decayed teeth are potent factors in impairing the health of the child and retarding growth and development. Theii contents of decomposing matters, by being churned up with the food and swallowed, often produce symptoms of septic poisoning, anaemia, gastric catarrh, and numerous conditions which lower the bodily resistance to bacterial invasions. Proper attention to the teeth must play an important in the elimination of tuberculosis from the race. THE TOOTHBRUSH UNKNOWN. The examination of ancient skulls shows that the teeth of the present generation cannot bear comparison with those of the earlier inhabitants of Britain, and without a doubt this deterioration has been largely brought by the striking changes in the character of our food. The facts revealed by medical inspection will have to be followed up by treatment, part of which will consist in in- structing the children in our schools how to take care of their teeth. At the present time the use of the toothbrush is almost unknown amongst the majority of school children. This question is an urgent one. THE EYES OF THE CHILDREN. There are 12 per cent. of the children in the elementary schools with more or less defective vision, and of this number 48 are in need of immediate treatment. Bad eyesight is more pre- valent in urban than in rural schools and in children with light eyes than in those of a dark colour. The parents of these 48 children were notified, including those of six children with squint, which condition can often be corrected by means of appropriate glasses. The serious errors of refraction interfere with the educational pro- gress of the child in school, and may well affect its prospects in life. How far the advice given to the parents to take advice" has been acted upon I am not able at present to state, although several cases have come to my notice of their having been taken to a specialist. Serious mischief is often done and not discovered before it is too late by permitting children to wear spectacles which have been prescribed by persons not properly qualified and trained for such specialised work. THROAT, NOSE, AND EARS. Ninety-one children had enlarged tonsils and 23 suffered from adenoids to such an extent as to call for treatment. Adenoids are the result of an overgrowth of normal tissue at the back of the ncse which interferes with the passage of air through the nostrils, and, as a consequence, the child keeps his mouth constantly open. This gives the child a dull, stupid appearance, and often results in changes in thp form of the chest, defi- cient aeriation of the blood, deafness and mental dulness. Such a child cannot compete with those who are\bright, alert, and have sound hearing. Twenty-four children suffered from defective hearing, and fourteen from discharges from one or both ears. MISCELLANEOUS. Defects in speech were noticed in 19 children, and of these six were "stammerers." Sixteen children suffered from goetre ringworm, six chickenpox, three; scarlatina, one; rickets, nine; heart disease, six; deformity of spine, four; de- formity of hip, three; lung affections, ten. Six cases of goetre or enlarged thyroid gland occur- ring in cne school suggest a hard water supply in that neighbourhood. Six children were reported as suffeting from "weakness of the lungs" and four from chronic bronchitis. No distinct cases of tuberculosis were recorded, but those children who are said to have "weak lungs" must be looked upon with suspicion. There are sixty children in the schools with a family history of consumption. Head teachers would be doing good work by keeping their eyes on these children and weighing them from time to time to ascertain whether they are gaining or losing weight. HEIGHTS AND WEIGHTS. All the children inspected were measured and weighed and a record kept of the result. The following table gives the average height* and weights of Montgomeryshire children in the Urban and Rural schools, and the figures of the Anthropometric Committee:— TABLE III. URBAN SCHOOLS :— Boys. GIRLS. Heights Weights Heights Weights Age Inches Pounds Inches Pounds 5 41.3 41.0 41.5 39.0 G 43.0 43.0 42.2 42.7 13 57.1 82.0 56.3 79.0 RURAL SCHOOLS.-— 5 41.4 40.3 40.9 39.5 6 42.6 43.0 42.5 40.7 13 57.2 80.0 57.0 81.0 ANTHROPOMETRIC COMMITTEE :— 5 41.0 39.9 40.5 39.3 6 44.0 44.4 42.8 41.7 13 56.9 82.6 57.7 87.2 CHILDREN WHO KEEP THE CLASS BACK. I Some children ought to be excluded from schooL not only for their own sakes but for the sake of other children. They make no progress them- selves, they take up the time of the teachers, and tend to disorganise and disturb their class. There are others who are reported as dull, backward, etc." who are by no means mentally deficient; their backward condition being largely due to some physical defect such as adenoids, bad eye- sight, defective hearing, and who would well repay any increased attention to them by appro- priate treatment.

Congregationalists in Conference. A FINANCIAL CRISIS. The thirty-second annual assembly of the English Congregational Union of North Wales was held at Bangor under the presidency of the Rev Wynne Evans, Chester, last year's chairman of the Union. The Rev Thomas Lloyd, hon. secretary, ex- plained that owing to ill-health Mr John Rogers, Wrexham, was unable to attend, but sent a cheque for £ 5 as an expression of his interest in the Union (applause). The Rev W. Wynne Evans, at the request of the assembly, agreed to preside over the confer- once meetings during the week, and on his pro- posal a vote of sympathy and thanks was passed to be sent to Mr Rogers. The Hon. Secretary read the annual r?port, which, after an appreciative reference to the autumnal meetings at Barmouth, and the various ministerial changes during the year, expressed deep regret that the income of the Union was so inadequate. Appeals for a more liberal support from the churches had been made for some time, but matters had reached a crisis, and it had been found necessary to reduce some of the grants, and, in order to bring expenditure within income, a further pro rata reduction of 15 per cent. had to be made on all the granti recommended. The Church and Committee in London, after a sympa- thetic consideration of the Union's appeal, felt unable to make the grant of £ 366 asked for, but gave .£320. The whole financial position of the Union would have to be considered with a view to raising more money locally, to reducing the amount of grants asked for, and to the absolute requirement of grouping contiguous churches under one pastorate where at all possible. The decision two or three years ago to throw mre responsibility on the District Unions in the hope that some of the difficulties might be met had not justified expectations. There did not seem to have been any systematic effort on the part of the Unions to improve the finances. A DIFFICULT TASK. Mr F. L. Rowlands, Rhyl, presented his treasurer's report, from which it appeared that the total income during the year was .£499, and the expenditure Y-587, leaving a deficit of .£88. Mr Rowlands gave a detailed and very significant analysis of his financial statement, and dwelt on the great difficulty in raising funds. After the election of various committees and representatives, the Hon. Secretary read a list of grants to necessitous churches, many of which showed reductions. The Mayor of Wrexham protested against the list being sanctioned as presented, and moved that it be reconsidered with the assistance of a committee before it was finally adopted. The Hon. Secretary gladly agreed. The Rev J. E. Flower, secretary of the Church Aid Society, expressed satisfaction that the Mayor I of Wrexham's suggestion bad been adopted. They had been subjected to, a pessimistic report and statement which ought not to have been inflicted upon them (laughter). They had been told there was a deficit of £ 88. Aft a large pro- portion of that deficit had come in since the close of the financial year there was really only a deficit of X22, and he explained how easily that could be wiped off (applause). FINANCES OF THE UNION. On the second day a discussion on this subject took place. Mr Rowlands, the Union treasurer, at some length, amplified the views he had given expres- sion to at the previous day's sitting, and re- affirmed them. The Rev J. J. Poynter said he would try to, strike the happy medium between Mr Rowland's pessimist view of situation and the optimist veiw expressed the pievious day by the Rev J. E. Flower, and, in doing so, expressed his conviction that there must be a great improvement in the work of the churches if the funds were to be placed on a satisfactory hands. Councillor Savage (Mayor of Wrexham) said the finances of the Union were a disgrace to them (hear, hear). Had it not been for the generous help of the Church Aid Society, the Union would have been simply wiped out. The subscriptions last year from the whole of North Wales was .£153 —about a tithe of what was taken at one.football match in one town in one afternoon. He asked them if that was a creditable state of things. Again, the Church offerings for the whole of the churches of North Wales for one year was -650—a sum less than what many of their small churches paid as interest on money borrowed. He agreed with Mr Poynter that they should raise .£300. They could do it with ease. He was in favour of the grouping of small churches-a system which would at once place the pastor above financial, difficulties. He appealed to them as ministers to take a better and wider interest in the Union than they had done in the past (applause). The Rev J. E. Flower said if anyone concluded from the remarks he had made the previous day that there was nothing to worry about he was mistaken. They were face to face with a very grave situation. But the difficulty was that they did not collect their income within the year. If they did that their difficulties would be minimised. Referring to the principle of assessment, he gave it his approval, and pointed out that it was already in force in several unions, the grants in aid of which were made contingent on the churches aided raising a sum equal to the grant made. That was a principle which provided an excellent stimulus to the churches. After farther discussion the matter was referred to the Executive Committee. In the evening, to a crowded congregation, the Rev C. Sylvester Home, M.A., preached in the Pendref Congregational Church. At 8-30, the Rev H. N. Henderson presided at a United Communion Service, with which the Assembly closed.

Record Prices for Shires. At the sale of shires on Wednesday, the pro- perty of the late Earl Egerton of Tatton, con- ducted by Messrs Frank Lloyd and Sons, of Wrexham and Crewe. The first six animals realised 6,930 guineas, "Tatton Dray King" being purchased by Messrs Whitley at 3,700 guineas; Tatton Herald," a two-year-old colt by Tatton Friar," at 1,200 guineas by Mr Ainscough, and Tatton Friar," nine years old, realised 1,100 guineas. New Montgomeryshire Magistrates. The following have been appointed justices of the peace for the county of Montgomery Messrs Ebenezer Pugh, Penybontfawr, Robert Roberts, Penybontfawr, David Evans, Llandysilio, John Pentyrch Williams. Llanfyllin, Dr. R. D. Thomas, Welshpool, Messrs Wm. Robert Williams, Mach- ynlletb, Thos. Richard Morgan, Machynlleth, and Evan Jones, Henlbao;, Llanwnog. Wrexham Horse Sales. Messrs Frank Lloyd and Sons great April Hcrse Sales at Wrexham are advertised for Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday next with an entry of 700, the first day being set apart for high-class hunters and harness horses, principally 15-2 and over; Wednesday for small harness horses, hack- neys, cobs, and ponies, among these are many winners. Thursday, the last day, comprises 300 heavy town horses, lurry, van, and young horses. All descriptions are guaranteed and two days trial allowed for work. Cataloguef will be seat on application to the Auctioneers.

AN EXPENSIVE LUXURY. Professions! Football at Pool. A Merrie Public Meeting. Mr. Walter Evans as the Spokesman. I will just give ycu an instance of one case, where a man gets 18s a week. He not only said he would give 5s, but he would pay 5s down!—Mr WALTER EVANS. It has been a very expensive luxury to me.—Mr ALBERT TURNER. The Cavalry Deliot for Pool looks brighter every day. We must have Combination Football for the recruits.—A notice n the VICTORIA VAULTS window. The Welshpool team that has figured in the Combination Football Tournament during the past winter and spring contained one Welshpool man. From as far afield as Liverpool men were hired to play the jame, and up to a week ago the expc-nses of running this professional team totalled .£306. Whether the Welshpool Club should continue to take tuch a personal interest in the Combination was the topic that attracted about 17 members last Friday week to the White Lion Hotel, whither, snce the November municipal election, the official headquarters had been removed from tbt Victoria Vaults. Mr James Everall (of Powis Castle) presided, and Mr Wilcox (manager of Brown's Boot Stores) proposed that the Welshpool" team should continue in the Combination. This motion found no seconder, and no decision Wts made. The Executive Com- mittee had been criticised severely because they had paid too much for the team, but they had also been considerably out of pocket personally. During the week end a number of football devotees-popularly known as the Street Com- mittee"—took tie problem in hand, and summoned a public assembly at the Council Chamber last Tuesday night for eight o'clock. The Street Committee" had played the critic upon the actions of the Executive Committee, and those who had expected an interesting time were not disappointed. Over a hundred—tradesmen, workingmen, yoilths, and boys-attended the meeting, whereat Mr Walter Evans took a most prominent part, and contributed towards THF GAIETY OF NATIONS. The proceedings began about seventeen minutes after the appointed hour, and finished just after nine o'clock. Mr Albert Turner presided, with Mr David Rowlands and Mr W. M. Coxon sup- porting him on the right, and Mr David Gardner and Mr William Humphreys, J.P., on his left. The crowd included Messrs W. H. Watson, Edwd. Jones (Angel Inn), W. E. Smith, G. M. Parry, G. H. Bradley, Wm. Pryce (Powell's Row), T. A. Meredith, Tom Jones, Sidney Jones, Harold Jones, Ernie Ellis, Alfred Parry (Victoria Vaults), Walter Evans, Wilcox, A. H. Wallett, Stephen O'Hare, W. J. Stallard, Richard Evans (postman), Rd. Evans (Lledaa Crescent), James Powell (bill- poster), Walter Davies, Edwin Gwalchmai, John Eddowes, Fred Anderson, William Waring, Rd. Price,un. (Raven Inn), Alfred Hamer, David Wood, Alfred Crawford, Richard Griffiths, Bert Claffey, Herb Jones, Tom Parry, Hughie Sapple, and Harry Smith (Bull-street) The Chairman said the meeting had been called in the interest of football. The Combina- tion team that had been run this year had I certainly been a credit to the town and to the committee. A third place was very, very good, indeed. Last year they ran a Combination team which played consistent football. It started at the bottom of the table, and stopped there all the blessed season (laughter). But this year they had a different team, which had played well, and they stood in a good position (hear, hear). It seemed a great pity to see Combination football go out of Welshpool (hear, hear). They had to consider the financial question, if they could find sufficient money they had the nucleus of a splendid team, but, if they had to go long distances to play, the railway expenses were very great, and he did not think they could run this team under about £ 250. Last year the cost of running the team was .£306 up till last week, and then there were three matches to be played. It seemed a pity to let the Combination go away, and if everybody would put their shoulder to the wheel, and all pay to go into the field when there was a Combination match, instead of going down to the bottom, and WATCHING IT THROUGH THE HEDGE, they would do a great deal towards football. Mr Walter Evans: What is the financial position of the Welshpool Football Club at the present time ? The Chairman replied that there was a deficit of between X20 and .£30, but no doubt that would be wiped out by the old committee (loud applause). Mr Wilcox I don't think we can run the old team until this old debt is wiped out. The Chairman You can rely upon me that the old debt will be wiped off (more applause). Mr Wilcox: I go by what Mr Everall said the other night that it will be alright. The Chairman The committee will see to that. Mr Walter Evans: Mr Chairman- (laughter) since Saturday I've been around, and I've had promises of .£18 (applause). Not only that, I have great pleasure in saying the biggest part of that is by the working classe-(hear, hear),— but I can venture to say I can put it into £ 20 (hear, hear). They don't wish the Combination to fall through. The Chairman: .£20 collected from the working men, who subscribe something like, perhaps, 2s or 2s 6d each, means a tremendous lot of them interested in football, and that £ 20 will be of more value to the Club than £ 60 subscribed by three men, because where you get each man to subscribe Is, Is ad. or 2s, that means he takes an interest, he probably comes to see the game, and probably brings another man to see it. Mr waiter zvans l will just give an instance of one case, where a man gets 18s a week. He said he would give 5s. He not only said he would give 5s, but WOULD PAY 5s. DOWN! He would pay the five bob down! (laughter and applause). To save time, I propose that the Welshpool Football Club- The Chairman: Before you propose anything, if you don't mind, I .should like an expression of opinion from the other gentlemen present. Mr William Humphreys: Will they start the Club free of debt ? Mr Ernie Ellis: Yes; that's been answered, Mr Humphreys. Mr Humphreys: I'm sorry; I came late. Mr Walter Evans To make a short story into a long one,—(laughter)—or a long story into a short one,—(more laughter)—I propose that Pool sticks in the Combination.—[A Voice: That's it, old boy !]. Mr Humphreys: Have you your collecting book with you ? Mr Walter Evans: Yes. Mr Humphreys: Will you please show it to the Chairman ? (laughter). Mr Walter Evans did so, and Mr Turner examined the entries, and then said that the "gates" last year were £ 105.—[A Voice: Good lor!—Mr William Humphreys: £ 109.] At this point Councillor John Pryce Jones came on the scene, and was greeted with cheers as he went to sit at the table alongside Councillor William Humphreys. The "gates" last year, continued Mr Turner, were £ 109; he did not think they could reasonably hope to run it under .£250, which would leave them to find £ 141 in subscriptions. Some circumstances last year in running the team added a few pounds to the expense. For instance, they lost a clean.25 in the guarantee of the charity match at Oswestry, and Y.1 15s in connection with the match at Wrexham. Again, in the Welsh Cup they were most untortunate. Me went to see tne match against Wellington St. George, and considered that their team was three goals better than the team that beat them by four—none! Their team seemed to him to have ABSOLUTELY THROWN THE GAME AWAY! On that gate they lost 29s, so they could not very well think of a much worse team. Mr Walter Evans: Well, Mr Chairman, we couldn't do worse, if we went on for another year than what we do at the present time. The Chairman: You couldn't be worse, Mr Evans, except that you would have to do what the committee have had to do this time-they had to find a lot of money (laughter). Mr Walter Evans: They did; I quite agree with that. The Chairman: It's been a very expensive luxury to myself. Mr Walter Evans; But if we run a Combination team on next year, gentlemen, we stand on a i better principle this time than we did last time. The Chairman said that last year when they started the club they were 12s 7!d in hand, but they had promises of something like £ 60, but they did not realize more than a quarter of it- (smiles)—for the simple reason that certain gen- tlemen didn't give the amounts that had been promised. At the last meeting of the football club something like £ 60 was promised in sub- scriptions. Mr Evans said he could not get £ 20, which would make £ 80. If that money could be handed in, his (Mr Turner's) advice to them would be to go on with the Combination. But, if they couldn't get it before they started the season he did not think they would have very much chance of getting it afterwards. Mr Walter Evans: That would be, Mr Chair- man, between now and A-ugust- [The Chairman That would be so J—because it says in my book BETWEEN NOW AND AUGUST." Mr David Rowlands: Any man who subscribes a guinea will have a free ticket for all the matches. How many would take a ticket ? Mr Hughie Sapple I suggest if a man collects cl X20 he gets a free ticket. Mr Ernie Ellis: He does that for the good of the club. Mr Sapple: If a man subscribes a guinea he can have a free ticket ?-Yes.-That's rather funny! The Chairman: I should suggest to whoever does form the committee that they should hus- band their resources as far as they can. If they start to pay collectors, that's the wrong end to begin it—(laughter)—and the collector is not giving his own money but is doing it for the good I of the club. Mr Walter Evans: My half-sovereign I pro- mised to give, that's alr!ght !-(laughter) and I'm quite willing to pay my "tanner t:) go on the field. What I've done is for the love of football (hear, hear and applause). The Chairman, with Messrs Humphreys, Gard- ner, Wilcox, and Stallard, now bad a consultation, after which the Chairman informed the meeting they would have to think among themselves a to whether they were going on with it or not. Five guineas had to be deposited with the Combination I Committee by the old club. If they decided to go on, that five guineas would have to be paid almost immediately to the committee in Welshpool, and then the Welshpool Secretary would allow the money to lie with the Combination Committee, and then they would be in the Combination with- out any election. But, if the old committee with- drew their five guineas they severed their con- nection with the Combination, and if they wanted to go on they would have to apply for re-election. Mr Walter Evans, having been assured that .£60 had already been promised in addition to the promises for X20 that he had secured, PROPOSED A SECOND TIME, amid applause, that the Welshpool Football Club go in for the Combination." Mr David Rowlands: Mr Chairman, you have .£109 in the gate and .£80 in subscriptions up to the present. That leaves .£60 more to be found. How are you going to do that ? Mr William Humphreys I have just had two half-guineas promised now. There's sure to be a lot about the room. Mr Rowlands: It's hardly safe, I think, to get into the Combination on this sum. A Voice Have a try, sir! Mr Wilcox: I think there was another concert mentioned. Mr Humphreys: I think Mr Alfred Jones pro- mised, and the Minstrels have promised some- thing to get up a concert (loud applause). That will surely bring in .£10, I should say. Mr Walter Evans: Mr Harry Bushell would get up an entertainment, I'm sure. Mr Ernie Ellis: He said he would. Mr Rowlands: It seems very risky to start in the Combination with this proposal. But, if the members or those who have promised this money were to pay it in early, there might be some chance. I think it ought to be paid immediately we have decided to go on with the Club. Would tho&e who have promised be prepared to do that ? Mr Walter Evans: Well, no, air (laughter). I don't think they would, because I have half-a- guinea promised off a man and he WOULD PAY HALF-A-CROWN A WEEK (applause). You can't expect him to pay half-a- guinea. Half-S-crown a week he would pay. In my book it was "between now and August" (laughter). Mr John Eddowes: Ever so many members' tickets were taken last season, guinea tickets tickets and half guinea tickets. The Chairman: The amount promised, .£80, carries a certain number of tickets with it, of course, but not a great many. There would be a lot of these buying tickets. The Chairman then asked for volunteers to accept members' tickets, Messrs John Eddowes and Ernie Ellis were amongst the first to respond. Replying to Mr Eddowes, the Chairman said he should advise the Committee to entitle the half- guinea subscribers to admission to matches free of charge. Mr Edwin Gwalchmai: No, they get off cheaper then! The Chairman: Look here! my opinion, gen- tlemen, is this: I have heard it said in two or three places that a half-guinea ticket should not admit to matches free cf charge. My opinion is that it should. In many places where they run teams quite as good and better than here, the ticket of admission is very much less than half-a- guinea, I can assure you, and you want people to be there. You get a man, perhaps he is willing to take a ticket of half-a-guinea, and that ensures you for 21 matches at 6d a match. If you don't let him come in with a half guinea ticket, to how many matches will he come? To three, perhaps four, and you will be losing 4s or 5s. The meeting was then further canvassed for subscriptions. Come on exclaimed one enthu- siast to a young Poolonian. Give a guinea Q NOT HALF-A-GUINEA—YOU'RE NOT MARRIED At last this busy whispering over matters finan- cial was broken by Mr Fred Anderson, who called out,: I should like to point out that you are apt to get into a mess by some promising subscrip- tions twice over! And Mr Anderson pointed to a particular case in the room, but the Chairman replied We didn't put it down! At last the Chairman announced that promises had been given in the room to take tickets amounting to £ 11 Os 6d (hear, hear). I think," he continued, "if you form a good, honest, working Committee, and put your shoulders to the wheel, and do the collecting properly in the town, there is more money that can be got than has ever been got before! I know some of the districts have never been canvassed at all! «if that £ 11 Os 6d is added to what was previously promised," con- tinued Mr Turner, it totals £ 91 Os 6d. If you only get this money paid in you can start (applause). Now, gentlemen. I should like a proposition." Amid loud laughter Mr Walter Jones rose for the fouith time with his motion: I propose, Mr Chairman, that Welshpool goes in for the Combi- nation" (applause). Mr David Gardner: I have great pleasure in seconding it (loud and continued applause). This proposal was carried unanimously, and Mr John Pryce Jones moved a vote of thanks to the Chairman for so very ably presiding. He re- marked that he bad just been telling Mr Hum- phreys that he (Mr Pryce Jones) was on a football club committee many years ago, but they had never got up steam like what they had got it up that night (applause). It augured well for the football team and also for the town of Welshpool. Mr Coxon seconded the motion, which was carried amid hear, hears, and applause.

London Electoral Reform. The First Commissioner of Works asked leave to introdnce, under the ten minutes rule," the London Reform Bill, constituting London a single Parliamentry borough. The sole object, explained Mr Harcourt, was to relieve Parliamentary London of certain disabilities, and to put it on an electoral par with Birmingham and similar great towns. Indicating the results that would follow from this apparently simple change, he remarked that—as in Birmingham—there would be a successive occupation qualification for the whole metropolitan area, polling would take place on one day, and no man would be able to vote in respect of more than one of his qualifications within the new Borough. Finally, Mr Haroourt expressed the hope that the measure would receive almost unanimous assent. The bill was read a first time without a division.

East Edinburgh polled in wet weather, and by a majority of only 458 Lord Provost Gibson managed to retain a seat which was held by the I late member with the large balanee of 4,175 votea.

THE BOROUGH MEMBER ON INDIA. A BAD MORAL. Mr J. D. Rees had several fine innings in the House on Monday night during the discussion on the Indian Councils Bill, which is to give the native Indian some measure of self-government. The first time Mr Rees was on his legs was to give a slashing retort to an amendment by Mr Mackarness, by which the mover wanted to extend the vote to people who bad been deported from India without being convicted. Mr Rees hoped the amendment would not be accepted. In reading the report of proceedings in Committee in another place he found that the Secretary of State said the question of disqualifi- cation under regulations was under special con- sideration, but the hon member would rush in and fetter consideration by this amendment. The Secretary of State also said that it was not intended that taking part in a mischievous agita- tion when very young should disqualify a man for all time. No more mischievous amendment than this could very well be moved. Already an im- pression prevailed in India that the way to find favour and become distinguished was to oppose the Government. That was a bad moral anywhere but it was fatal in a country where a small number of Europeans had to hold their own among millions of Asiatics. Anything more likely to prejudice good government and the cause of reform he could not conceive. These persons whom the hon. member described as philanthrop- ists, educationalists, and as being in high respect were really distinguished among a small section of agitators for hostility to tho Government. To enable these men to be elected would be to take a fatal course. The Secretary of State bad not asked for such an amendment; he was trying, he said, to do what he could to meet the legitimate demand of the advanced section in India, but he said he would pari passu pursue sedition with un- faltering repression. The hon. member spoke of the indignity involved, but was the dignity of the British Government of no account? (hear, hear). The references to members who had after under- going imprisonment been allowed to return to the House were beside the mark; it was of no use trying to find such analogies. The Secretary of State had declared he was not attempting to introduce Parliamentary government. THE UTMOST CONCESSION. Following upon an amendment on the part of Dr Rutherford, who did not want the number of members on the Legislative Councils who were nominated by the Viceroy to exceed the number of elected members, Mr Rees submitted that the first part of the amendment displayed a superfluity of naughtiness, and the second an abysmal misunderstanding of the whole matter (hear, hear). He took very serious exception to the way in which the hon. gentleman had spoken of Tory administrators. One of the most beneficial acts of this kind ever passed for India proceeded from a Conservative Administration and passed through the House by Lord Cross. It was much to be deprecated that anything should be said of a character which would encourage those unfriendly to us in India to set off one side of the House against the other, and which showed so grpss a misunderstanding of the spirit which should prevail with regard to the Government of India. He also objected to the hon. member's reference to Lord Curzon as the Imperial peacock of reaction. It was most unde- sirable that officers who had deserved well of their country should be spoken of in this contemptuous manner (hear, hear). The hon. gentleman was endeavouring day by day to take hold of the ends cf the earth in order that the wicked might be shaken out of it. There was nothing that did not come within the hon. gentleman's comprehension. He would seek to bind the sweet influences of the Pleiades and loosen the bands of Orion" (laughter). He thought the hon. member's description of the Viceroy's Council working with an official majority as being no better than a ventilating chamber was extremely' unsuitable. Although worked by an official majority, matters were threshed out in a thorough and able manner and it was not by any means the case that the strings were pulled and members treated as puppets. The hon. member had said that if the Legislative Council of the Viceroy were defeated the places would be taken by other political parties. But there were no political parties in India in the sense we understood them, and he could iaot understand where the hon. member obtained his information. If the official majority in the Viceroy's Council were defeated the conse- quence in India would be of the most disastrous description. It was not the same thing with the provincial councils, because they did not deal with matters of so much importance and because it was known there was a Governor of India above them. He had with difficulty come to accept the abolition of the official majority for the provincial councils, and it should be distinctly understood that that was the utmost concession in this direction they could make at present. LIKELY TO HAVE A GOOD TIME. Speaking on a clause in the Bill which would make it lawful for the Governor-General to create a Council in any province under a Lieutenant- Governor for the purpose of assisting that Lieutenant-Governor, Mr Rees said it was very agreeable to hear the view of this matter expressed by an hon. member having business interests in the East. He hoped the hon. member for Roxburghshire did not let the cat out of the bag when he said that the object of these reforms was to provide appoint- ments upon these councils for native gentlemen. They all knew that the reason why the Governor- in-Council constitution was so pressed for Bengal by the Congress party was because a Governor from home who knew nothing was extremely plastic material, and if they placed on his council two Hindu gentlemen they were very likely to nave a very good time. Whether that was equally advantageous for the mass of Bengal, who were very hostile to the Baba class, and had shown it repeatedly, was quite another question. He 'had never heard anybody assert that the Government was as efficiently carried on under a Governor-in-Council triumvirate as it was under the sole rule of a strong and capable Lieutenant- Governor. He thought it was necessary that somebody should express gratitude, as he now did, on behalf of the Civil Service of India at the action of the Secretary of State in putting from him the recommendation of the Decentralization Commission to take away the Lieutenant-Govern- orships from the Civil Service and to give them to more inexperienced Governors from England. He did not rise to oppose the introduction of this clause, because he realised that, unless the whole spirit of the Government of India was to be changed, there must be some advance, and because he was profoundly impressed by the opinions expressed by the Viceroy, the Lieutenant-Governor of Bengal, and by other officials who called out loudly for these reforms. In support of the clause the argument might be advanced that it would be more difficult for a Lieutenant-Governor by him- self to resist a resolution of a legislative council than it would be if he were possessed of an execu- tive council: that the system of one man govern- ment had its limits; and that a great deal of extra, and, as he thought, unnecessary work would be thrown upon Lieutenant-Governors in conse- quence of this Bill. That the proposal had the support of the 'Times of India' and of the Pioneer,' and that it was recommended by the Decentralization Committee, weighed with him in its favour, and an additional argument on that side of the case was that the Lieutenant-Governors would be more free to continue those patriarchal tours which were so useful. A valuable provision was that enabling a Lieutenant-Governor to overrule his oouncil. It was a strong reason in favour of the clause that it was an enabling clause J 1 J L.1_- O A a DJ 1_ 1 auu wouiu save tne oacrelary or ocate ana the Governmant of India from bringing forward another Bill of this sort, upon which much was said that would have a mischievous effect. Very strong objections to the proposal might be found in the cost of the extra councils, and in the delay which, he thought, was involved in the system. Upon the whole, he should be doubtful how to vote if it were not that the Secretary of State had put this forward as an essential part of) his system.

Persian Anarchy. The situation of Tabriz is extremely critical. Thousands of women and children are clamouring for bread, and so threatening became the excite- ment of the desperate population that an attack on the Russian and British Consulates seemed imminent. In response to urgent messages from the Russian Consul-General and representatives of the British colony, a detachment of Russian troops was despatched to the beleaguered city, and [ the Ministers of the two Powers at Teheran in- I duced the Shah to grant a mix days' armistioe. I

DISESTABLISHMENT OF THE CHURCH IN WALES. Introduction of the New Bill. On Wednesday Mr Asquith introduced the Bill fer the Disestablishment of the Church in Wales. in a speech irresistible in argument, admirable in phrasing, and flawless in temper. The Prime- Minister is a great master of the art of exposition. He has a mind of luminous clearness and an unequalled faculty for presenting the details of an elaborate and complicated Bill, He had the advantage to-day of approaching a subject with which he was already familiar. He is known to cherish a warm sympathy with the aspirations of the Welsh people for religious equality. The most enduring influences on character are those which belong to the malleable period of youth. Mr Asquith derives from a sturdy Yorkshire Nonconformist stock, and as a young man in London was associated with Congregationalism in Islington. No Prime Minister in our history has bad either his knowledge of. or his sympathy with Nonconformity. He is knoftn also to held in grateful regard the fidelity of Wales to the Liberal party His speech on Wednesday had the ring of genuine conviction. The case for Wales could not possibly have been more powerfully presented. Until the rising of Mr Balfour the debate lacked animation. Sir Alfred Thomas, as leader of the Welsh party, spoke effectively; Sir George White voiced the sympathy of the English Noncon- formists with their co-religionists in Wales, and on the other side Lord Robert Cecil opposed the Bill with all the fervour to be expected from his zealous churchmanship. But the debate as a whole lacked fire. The House was listless and apathetic. Future of the Bill. Mr Balfour roused it from its torpor by a vehement speech. Very characteristically he taunted the Government with abandoning social reform in order to despoil a religious institution. This, he said, is not a bill to do good to the com- munity. It is a Bill to do harm to a section of the community and it has its origin in historic jealousy of a particular communion. He reproached the Government with having insulted the Royal Commission on the Church in Wales by introduc- ing the measure before the Commission had pre- sented its Report. The Archbishop of Canterbury listened to the debate from the Peers' Gallery, as also did the Bishop of St. Davids and the Bishop of St. Asaph, the Earl Cawdor, Lord Glantawe and Lord Wolverhampton. What the fate of the Bill will be it is not easy to forecast. The Government are sincerely anxious to pass it into law; but were it to go to Committee of the whole House it is difficult to see how it can be carried through all its stages in a Session whose time will so largely be taken up by the Budget. The alternative is to send the Bi!l to a Standing Committee, a course which is warmly advocated by some of the Welsh Members. Generous Provisions. As for the provisions of the Bill it cannot be said that they are ungenerous. The Church is left in undisturbed possession of the four cathedrals, of all the parish churches, all the parsonages, all chapels of ease, all benefactions dating from 1662. In addition, all existing interests are scrupulously protected. Every Bishop and every incumbent will enjoy their present position and emoluments undisturbed during life. Compensation will be paid to the owners of advowsons, and incumbents who desire to retire from their benefices will be able to get an equivalent annuity. On its disendowment side the Bill is little more than a measure to apply the tithe to public pur- poses. The tithe rent-charge will continue to be subject to the payment of the stipend of existing clergymen, and it will only be available for public purposes when the life interest of present incum- bents is exhausted. Obviously, therefore, many years must elapse before the total funds affected ¡ by the disendowment clauses of the Bill-and estimated in the aggregate at £ 250,000 per annum—are released for the national benefit. The tithe is eventually to be applied to benevolent and educational objects in the parishes from which it r is derived under schemes authorised by the countfY1 council; but it provided that one-tenth of the jytf proceeds of each parochial fund shall be contri- buted to the Council of Wales," to be applied to the purposes of higher education. This Council of Wales," a body created under the Bill, will be a central authority consisting of members appointed by the county councils, county boroughs, and the urban districts of the Princi- pality. Two other bodies are created in the Bill (1) A Commission of Three, whose function it will be to act as a conduit pipe for the transfer of buildings and funds from the Establishment in Wales to the Council of Wales, and (2) the Repre- sentative Church Council, this last being the authority in which the cathedrals, the churches, the ecclesiastical residences, and the post-1662 endowments will eventually vest. It was notable that the Prime Minister in hi& speech ungrudgingly acknowledged that the Church in Wales is to-day fully alive to its great responsibilities, but, he said, you cannot re-write the history of an institution. The neglect of past; centuries, the unnational character of the Church, in the Principality, its readiness in the past to- subserve the interests of England at the expens& of those of Wales, have left indelible traces which no amount of contemporary zeal can obiliterate. Mr Asquith had no difficulty in showing that the, Church in Wales is the Church of a minority of the people. Some of the figures he -quoted wer& very striking, and made a visible impression on the House. ——.— I Wales was represented in the division on theo introduction of the Welsh Disestablishment Bill. All the Welsh members were accounted for. As many as twenty-eight, including Mr David Davies and Mr J. D. Rees, recorded their vote& with the Government, the remaining six being paired on the same side. The six who were un- avoidably absent owing to sickness or other causes were Mr D. A. Thomas, Mr W. Brace,. Mr L. Haslam, Sir G. Newnes, Mr Llewelyn Williams, and Mr M'Kenna.

Welshpool Pauper's Coffin. "A LITTLE UNPLEASANT TALK." At the Forden Board of Guardians last Wednes- day Relieving Officer James Fortune reported the death of an outdoor pauper, and Mr A. E. Bond asked had there been any complaints respecting; the man's coffin. Relieving Officer James Fortune: There has been a little unpleasant talk in the town about? the coffin and about the way this man has been buried. They say-it is a certain man in Welah- pool, who told Mr Humphreys the grocer about it,_ and Mr Humphreys kindly told me. He said in the first instance about the time that was arranged for the funeral, that it should have been arranged for four o'clock, and didn't take place until after five o'clock. The funeral was arranged for five o'clock, and it was in the Churchyard at five minutes to five. He has been going about the,- town saying this— The Chairman (Mr W. Pritchard) How about the ooffin ? Relieving Officer Fortune: It's the best parisl), coffin I have ever seen in my life (hear, hear). The best! And it was said it was more like bury- ing a dog—he made that remark to me. Mr Bond: I think these remarks should be corrected. Some people say the coffin was not up to the standard. Others say it was an excellent coffin, but no lining in it, neither was there any- thing to support the head. Relieving Officer Fortune: There's never any lining in a parish coffin. I suppose that's what he meant by burying it like a dog." A Guardian Who was the man who said this P- —David Gardner, who lives in Powis Arms Yard. Mr Bond: I hope you will bear this in mind about the lining in the coffin when we are placing our contracts. A matter of 6d or 9d would lina-, tho coffin. Mr John Davies: Has he anything to complain- of ? Relieving Officer Fortune: No, there's nothing to complain of. He (the coffin-maker) had no parish boards in at the time. and he put in other- boards. It'a the best pariah ooffin I've ever seen. I wouldn't mind being buried in one like it (laughter). Mr Bond; I wouldn't mind beiag buried in wicker backet 1