Llais Llafur

COAL CONTROLLER REFUSES TO I INTERFERE. The Right Hon. T. Richards, M.P., general secretary of tho South Wales Miners' Federation, on Wednesday morning, received the followiiig. tele- gram from the Coal Controller regard- ing the position of Gwauncaegurwen Colliery, where 750 men were under notice to terminate contracts when the railway strike stopped operations:— "The Controller of coal mines re- grets cannot instruct owners G.C.G. to recommence work at oolliery. Full investigation h-aa been made at the oolliery by a member of staff of Coal Controller, and it was impossible t* carry on colliery except at consider- able financial loss, unless oertain te- oommendation, made by Mr Cooke, were agreed to by owners and .Vork- men. The owners were willing, but the workmen declined. I suggest that Mr Cooke meet the Executive at an early date, and fully expla-in matters. Controller. Mr Riohards promptly communica- ted this message to Mr D. J. Morgan and Mr J. James,, the miners' agents for tho Anthracite district, and Mr David iMorgan, the district secretary, states that a Council meeting will be held at Cardiff on Saturday to oon- scler tho matter.

PONTARDAWE UNION. I Increase in the Local Rates. At the last meeting of the Pontardawe Guardians, the clerk (Mr. Wyndham Lewis) submitted the following report in connection with hie estimates for the coming half-year:— County rates (Glam.).-Tlie general county rates are increased from 87d. to ls.O^d. in the E, and the education rate from ls.2 £ d. to ls.9d. in the £ > thus giving an increase in the county rates alone of 101d. for t.he half-year. The county rate for Breconshire shows a de- crease of ld. in tli(, C, and this came as a pleasant surprise. Relief of the poor has increased very considerably in institutional relief, main- taining the insane poor and outdoor re- lief. Indeed, every branch of the Uuar dians' expenditure has increased in ac- count, including war bonuses on salaries and wages. The increase in the expen- diture of the Board of Guardians amounts to about 61d. in the £ for the hal f-year, and this will be the county rate estimate giving an increase of about ls.4-Jd. in the £ in the poor rate. The following comparative statement shows the growth of the poor rate in the Union :— 2yei r.9 ending 31 M'ch, 30 Sept. 1920. 1919. E'tnnate. Purpose. £ £ Relief of the poor and other expenditure by rht-Guardians. 8241 12398 Cost, of collecting rates 770 8G4 County rates 16745 21881 £ 25,766 £ 35,143 It has also been necessary to revise the annual estimates of the Pontardawe Rural District Council by increasing for the half-year ending 31st March, 1920, tho general expenses by 3d. in the .2., and the special expenses by 2d. in the £ The reason for this is the increased cost of materials, haulage, public light- ing and other contracts, as well as the increased war bonus on salaries and

I NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON INFANT WELFARE. I e. I' Local Delegatc's Rcport. Local Delegate's Report. At the Pontardawe Council on Thurs- day, the following report was submitted by Mrs. Evan Davies, the Parsonage, Gwaun-Cae-Gurwen, on the National Conference on Infant Welfare, held in London in July. The conference, which was organised by the National Association for the pre- vention of infant mortality, was held at the Kingsway Hall, London, on July 1, 2, and 3. It was acknowledged to have been the most successful conference held in this connection. The attendance was excellent, over 800 delegates being ap- pointed by local authorities and other voluntary organisations. All the papers read during the conference were authora- tative, as each one had not only a theo- retical knowledge of the subject that he or she was interested in, but the majori- ty gave the conference their own practi cal experience. Dr. Addison, the Minister of Health, gave the inaugural address. He laid great stress upon the part that the Ministry of Health recognised that one of their first, steps was to use every legi- timate means within the power of the law to bring about effective means of reducing infant mortality, which to-day stands at the high figure of 50 per 1,000 births. The Infant Welfare* Centres must have a wider scope of dealing with ante-natal as well as infant care, and the State would give every facility that this should be given a practical effect throughout the whole kingdom. With re- gard to populous centres, maternity homes must be established, and mid- wifery services must be improved, and the housing conditions must be put in order without anv further delay. In our large provincial towns where the statistics go to prove that the higher per centage of mortality amongst infants occurs in over crowded tenements, the only remedy is to do away with over- crowded hovels and tenements. At the mornings sessions of July 2nd, an instructive and interesting paper was read by Dr. G. Fairbairn in connection with the darily duties of midwives in re- lation to ante-natal and neo-natal mor- tality. He laid great stress that the midwife was the only person—inasmuch as she was in daily contact with the prospecti ve mother—that could be of in- valuable service to tho lowering of the percentage of deaths during pregnancy and immediately after confinement. He held that a very close co-operation should exist between the clinics and midwife, because the latter is a professional worker. These remarks were follov od by a mass of practical suggestions by Olive Haydon on the subject of a close co- operation between the midwife and the medical profession. She shewed how re- cent developments in health and welfare work had provided a stimulus to the mid- wife to raise the standard of equipment for the work. Midwives looked to the medical profession for further education and for support in their efforts to main- tain a high professional standard. It must be acknowledged that inid wivea are specialists in the management of or- dinary pregnancies. The intelligent oil! "'1"W:¡" ('S: midwife, though deprived of theoretical training, is an invaluable asset to every J' weKure centre and should be given every I encouragement to perform her arduous I duties. Another ppeaker discussed the prob- lem of the rural midwife. It is general- ly admitted that it is most difficult to attract the thoroughly good midwife to the rural area, for there the economic conditions make it difficult for her to earn a livelihood by her practice alone. She should, therefore, be provided with additional duties so as to enable her, from a financial point of view, to remain in a rural district. In rural districts, owing to the long distances that have to He covered it is impossible for a mother 1v attend a clinic and under the cir- aanes there is r.o one but the mid- ,i41,, to cive advi. e at the home. It should remembered that the midwife is re- sponsible for the mother and infant dur- ing confinement and subsequent ten days so that a great deal ot responsibility rests on her shoulders as to the success of a large number of confinement cases. The midwife will always remain a per- son of high status, and deservedly so amongst mothers and prospective mothers, so advisedly the midwife should take the closest interest in the Infant Welfare Centre of the locality where she resides. A very able paper was read on the destitute unmarried mother. The speaker referred to the manv difficulties in her wav, especially to those connected with provision for her confinement, provision for the care and maintenance of her child, and with securing a contribution from the father by means of an affilia- tion order. The workhouse does not as a rule make at all a satisfactory haven for these destitute girl mothers. The law ougKi"(o bl& emended to the extent that the mother should have a claim on the reputed father to provide for her period of incapacity and also for the expenses of her eoufinement. A very significant fact was thought to light by producing statistics from the report of the Regis- trar General, namely, that the death- rate among unmarried mothers in child- birth is double that of married mothers, therefore the deduction is that the un- married mother and her child need the care of the State twice as much as the married mother, but it was unanimously agreed that all children should be wards of the State. The illegitimate child, as a rule, is unwanted bv the mother, and in the majority of cases is disowned by the father, and has no home or at any rate an undesirable home only. Board- illgut sometimes answers -veil, but such homes arc extremely scarce and the charges are prohibitive. Unfortunately, when these children grow up they mani- fest. the characteristics which lead to their origin- -dishonesty, untruthfulness, and sensualitv, thus revealing their in herited handicap. The remedy is in the hands of tho State to provide the ne- cessary home for the girl mother during pregnanev, so as to save the life of the child and n No to make provision as to its beine brought up in such a way as to enable it to be placed in the same circumstances as the child who has been brought up in a respectable parental home. Other incidental matters bearing on the work of infant welfare were discussed by able and qualified speakers, all with the same object of reducing the percent- ag e of infant mortality.

The wages of the workmen under the Brecon Town Council have been ad- vanced by 4s. a week. ''N, "r;"¡"

I « To buy your own house— Nty wilt To farm your own land S J 8 A SMALL income will not cover the purchase of a house or land, or even a motor car or pony and trap. Things like these, if you wish some. day to possess them, must be saved for now. Whatever portion of your weekly or monthly earnings you do not feel obliged to spend for every-day purposes represents future wealth. Spent week by week the little sums which you might save will buy you nothing worth having—in all probability your surplus money will be merely frittered away. Let those small sums accumulate. Invest them in Savings Certificates where they will grow rapidly bigger, and a time will come when you will find yourself with sufficient capital to buy the big things you really want. Every 5/6 you invest ?row. year ? -? ?Mn? m(o very 1 you Invest grows year ?' ?..—.— • byyeer.lnSyear.you¡et£l back A J ^_r_ Evory 15/6 you invest get 10 yehaoarns s « (CW fr J[J[ £ ^AT,r~c £ 1 6.. A clear profit of 10/6 each 15/6 and no Income Ta? has /"» Jr??v.rF-'F? Tv'?? to be paid on it ————————— ?? W Cc?TTyyC?ACJ ju B \Me. Buy them regularly and they will pave utiiyJBl the way to prosperity. Th(IfJ are ob- tamable at any Bank, Money Order T^inwh ■ rtwCrH Folt or Shopkeeper acting as — Official Agent. Or you can get them C. through your Savings Association. BiM.i'n ■ I! II III |»—K»cai^gg=

OUT-OF-WORK PAY. GOVERNMENT SCHEME. I PAYMENT THROUGH EMPLOYERS. f The Ministry of Labour on Tuesday evening made an important announce- ment relative to the outof-work dona- tion. The donation, it is explained, was in- stituted for the benefit of those un- avoidably thrown out of work owing to the di'location of industries caused by the transition from war to peace con- ditions, and was not designed, nor was its administrative machinery sufficient to deal with the present extraordinary position. Certain of its details, and in particular the steps which have to be taken in connection with the payment of allowances for dependent children, involve difficulties for administration, which can only be handled if relatively small numbers are concerned. These difficulties become insuperable when very large numbers such as are involved as the result of the railway strike have to be dealt with. Moreover, the general scale of payment is greater than the State could possibly contemplate if the whole trade of the country is brought to a standstill. FULL ALLOWANCE TO EX- SERVICE MEN. The Government have now arrived at the decision :— First, that the full claims of ex- Service men to the donation cannot, oven under these conditions, be in- terrupted, and. Secondly, that hardship would be in- flicted upon many of the civilian popu- lation if at this time of confusion, and before the upheaval of war had subsided, they were cut off by no fault of their own from all means of sup- port. They have, therefore, resolved to con- tinue the payment of out-of-work dona- tion, but with certain modifications:— 1.—Ex-Service men, whether, their claim to out-of-work donation becamo operative before or after the commence- ment of the railway strike, will be paid the full amount of donation to which they are entitled in accordance with the existing scheme. 2.-All persons actually claiming out- of-work donation immediately before the commencement of the railway strike, and who are continuously unemployed during the strike, will be paid out-of- work donation at the ordinary rate and according to the ordinary rules. 3.-All civilians thrown out of employ- ment after the commencement of the railway strike, provided that they them- I selves Me not on strike, nor identified with the strikers either through working in the same establishments or being members of any organisations giving active Hupport to the strike, will receive the donation at the following raW- Married men and widowers with a child or ohildren under 15, 25s. weekly. Single men or widowers with no children under fifteen, 15s. Women. 12s. Bovs, between fifteen and eighteen, 7s. 6d. .n. t- L £: Girls between hlteen ana eignteen. V". Any donation paid at these special rates during the continuance of the strike. Suitable employment in the cases of people fit to undertake it will be held to cover the giving of assistance other than on the railways in the distri- butions of food and fuel and rendering necessary services in connection with the administration of public health. EMPLOYERS' CO OPERA 1 ION I In view of the very large numbers in- volved it is obviously impracticable for payment of the donation to be made at the employment exchanges to all work- people unemployed. This difficulty can be overcome if employers generally will undertake to pay the donation on behalf of the Government to workpeople entit- led to it who become unemployed after the Government appeal with confidence for the assistance of employers in this respect. All employers whose works or estab- linhments are wholly or partly stopped ow ing to the railway strike must com- municate immediately with the nearest Employment Exchange to make the iie- cessary arrangements, and workpeople will not have u> make separate applica- will not liftvc, to mnke separtie applien- Workpeople on donation immediately before the commencement -of the strike will, of coure, attend at the Exchange. Should the railway strike continue. the administration of the donation scheme even as thus modified will im- oose a very heavy burden on the ad- ministrative machinery of the Labour Ministrv. but the Government are con- fide lit that in the national emergency thpv may rely on receiving the fullest measure of co-operation.

MAGISTRATES AND JUVENILE. J I AI,8,Gls, A' DRUNKENNESS. At the Pontardawe Police-court on Fridav. Mr. J. H. P. Lloyd, J. P. (pre- siding magistrate), deplored the fact that drunkenness appeared to be on the ine-reast" amungst the. youths of the dis- trict. No less than four lads, under 21 years of age, were convicted for being drunk. Mr. Lloyd said they appeared to be getting such good money that they did not know what to do with it, and spent on drink. It was a great pitty that (CvUviiiiiwd ca bottom of next col-1

I BURIED UNDER FALLING WALL. I Godre'rgraig Fatality. A sad accident occurred at God re "r graig, Y stalyfera, on Monday last, as the result of which Mr. Wm. Griffithf. of 13, Owen's-lane, lost his life. The unfortunate man was a brother of ex- County Councillor John Griffiths, Foun- tain Hall, Ystalyfera, whom he assisted in the butchery business. On Monday morning at about 10.30 deceased was engaged with his brother, 11; Joseph Griffiths" in demolishing a six loot wall at Fountain Hall, when the wall collapsed without any warning, burying the deceased. Dr. Lewis was soon on the spot, and found that lie had received fractures to both legs, injuries the back and head. Dr. Lewis advised his removal to Swansea Ilosuital, expired on the way down.

Compensation Act. INTERESTING AMENDMENTS SUG- GESTED. At a resumed sitting of the Work- men's Compensation Committee at the Home Office, Mr. John Whittle, the well-known Trade Union solicitor, gave evidence. He said it was of great impor- tance to workmen that the payment cf compensation to them should be fully and adequately secured, and he did not think that under the present system of insurance in Great Britain full aDd ample security was achieved. It did sometimes happen taht employers be- came insolvent, or were otherwise un- able to meet their pecuniary obligations and, not having insured their work- men, were left without redress. The State should exercise a greater super- vision ovr companies undertaking work- men s compensation insurance. In order to stimulate accident prevention and to promote justice between employers in the same industry, he thought a system of inc-rit rating could be devised in which the employer would receive a cre- dit or debit upon the basis rate in ac- cordance with the physical condition of his plant. The State should undertake- the training of men disabled in indus- trial strife for work they would be able to do in their disabled state. Referring to the amount of compen- sation payable to dependants on death, he said that the basis should be a wate percentage, extending over a specined period and varying with the number of dependants. He favoured weekly sums rather than lump sums in payment of compensation. The maximum amount of compensation ought to be a great deal more than was allowed under the pre- sent Act. The expenses of medical at- tendance and burial should be paid by the employer. 3rlr. \Y k. Appleton, secretary of the General Federation of Trade Unions, in giving evidence, said that any Compen sation Act should apply to all wage earners in all occupations or callings, and to industrial diseases as well as in- dustrial accidents. Compensation Inax" mums should be more in conformity with the present day rate of wages, and the administrative machinery should en- sure prompt payment for any awarded compensation. Contracting out of the Act should be mde impossible, and any Act would be imperfect which entailed recourse to the Law Courts. Mr. Appleton said the new Act, be suggested, ought to be administered cen- trally by Commissioners representative of the Ministry of Health, and th8 upon all administrative authority the employers and the employeö shoukl be equally represented. Locally, the Act could be administered bv the organisa- tion now entitled to' administer the National Health Insurance Act. Theve should be no reference to courts of law. and the decisions of the State Commis- sioners ought to be final and binding. He suggeted that contributions to cover all liabilities should be paid to a com- mon fund, in a manner similar to thai adopted for National Health nsuranco hut that the various trades be °"roup*.i for the purpose of levy. III the event of lOtal disablement, whether tem* oorarv or permanent, a sum equalling not less than tour-hfths of the average earnings of the men engaged in that occupation s.iou t be paid, and the bsvsis of com- pèo"ati"n (n fatal accents should be tcur-hfths of the e?rnu? ca!Hwity tor a "Xcd pc'riad, say three vears. In the of partial disablement, compensa- tion could be assessed by a panel of emp ,'rs and the workmen' s repvresen- tatives.

i algarih's lighting cost is to be dt- rrayed by public subscription. To keep down expenses the public- lamps at Barmouth are not to be lit this winter.

the younth of the country were letting themselves go in this fashion. lIe hoped the Press would make a note of the matter. He also said that iu future the bench would inflict a much heavier penalty in such cases. He hoped these lads would take the lesson to heart,