The Cambria Daily Leader

THE NAVY THAT WAS READY. I Two years ago, Mr. Bonar La-r, in a speech dealing with currant pI litics, said that the First Lord of the Admiralty, when he assumed oiBce, made statements in the House of Commons aad oat M tLe House of Commons which mo-wed how clearly he realised the dangiir v i?li ts hichl we were confronted. A:id tho n I r. Bonar Law asked, some questions: Ha; he done everything in his power to be ready to meet those dangers? Has he risen to the height of his great respon- tihility? Does he realise that with this question no considerations of party advantage, no conaidera-tions of personal intert. shoald weigh even as dross in j the balance? After feix months of test- ing, an answer can be supplied to these ii questions; and indeed political opponents of Mr. Churchill, who give him scant mercy in normal times, have answered them with a generosity that deserves to be recorded. We have to beware when all men speak well of us; and happily for Mr. Churchill he does not stand in that category, for he still has his critics, bitter and un- sparing, a-s witness the speech by Mr. Falll", Unionist member for Portsmouth, the other night, which was received with a silence which showed how alien it was b the spirit of the House. But the critics who count have not been slow in stating their appreciation. The qizee- tions put by Mr.Bonar Law, in November, IflU, have, as i?e have said, been an- swered. Yesterday the Times paid the First Lord the following Trirure: Mr. Churchill was amply ilisfitied in j claiming that the outbreak of war found the Na.vy ready for its task. 1Ve cannot forget—?.nd the recollection serves to obscure minor points of difference—that if the first day of war saw the. Navy mobilised and stationed where it was most required, we owe it to the courage- ous promptitude of the First Lord." And Mr. Arnold Bennett, who confesses to a dislike of Mr. Churchiil, j stated ekewhere that England will nevpr forget his cooking of the German goose at the beginning otf the war." Even Lord Charlps Berosford, critic-in-general of the Admiralty, could not withhold the testimonial of a HeaT, b.e.a.r, when -Air. Churchill, dealing with the smallness of the losses we had sustained at sea-, said that" I am quite sure, if the noble lord, whom I see in his place (Lord Charles Beresford), who has always felt, and quite legitimate!;?, anxiety for tie trade routes and the great difficulty of defending them -it he had been oifered six months ago such a prospect he would have said it is i too good to be true Have we yet realised all that the N*?vy has done for the cause of the Allies? j Uutal .ths battle off the ra.lkJandf¡ a.nd the < triumph of the Dogger Bant, there was, it is impossible to disguise it, a prevalent sense of disappointment with the Fleet. We have been nourished upon great tradi- tions. but nur knowledge of Britain's eea. exploits, speaking generally, has been con- fined to outstanding events, with little understaJHling of the work of which they were the culmination. We glow with prid whcn we think of Trafalgar; and some have wondered why the' modern Trafalgar has not been fought and won: They forget that Nelson's victory was the I' perfect work of patience. There was a two years' W3,it off Toulon, with many mischAnces and a few deep disappoint- men?. Th?M ?<Te Goeben incidents oval in NeLson'p time. But Tr?aigar name. It trill be repeated if and when the Ger- mans put their fortunes to the test. Not two years, however, have passed, but just t ix months. The public is apt to lose sight of one he p'IJ.bh, IS 3pt to 10! sight t':>f one I important work done by the Na.vy; and it is to be excused in this, for the work i, necessarily, performed in silence. The Fleet is somew here in the grey mista of the northern seas, waiting it* opportunity, j but it has had other tasks than waiting j for the Germans to come out. tasts which, j strained even its mighty power. Mr. Churchill lifted the curtain a little the other evening when he dealt with the work of those anxious days. Tlii-- passage j in his speech, because the threat of the, Ii 18th for the moment holds tbe nation's attention, may not have sccured the notice it demands. There were tiixkw," Mid the I First Sea Lord, when the great Auotre- lian convoy of 60 ships was croeeing the; Indian Ocean, or the great Canadian C()Il- voy of 40 ships, with its proteetip squadrons, was crossing the Atlftntta, or when the regular flow of large Indian eon- t Vttjfc of IIJ UA' W- siiijpa ,:lJ,iDíi iu y was at its height both ways when there j was half'-a-doTOn minor expeditions being carried by the Navy, guarded, landed at different points, aud supplied after laud- ing; when there was a powerful German I cruiser squadron still at large in the Pacific or the Atlantic, which had to bo watched for or waited for in superior force in six or seven different parts of the world at once, and when all the time, within a, few hours' steam of OUJ shores. I there was concentrated a hostile fleet which many have argued in former times was little inferior to our own, when there was hardly a Reguhr soldier left at homo, and before the Terirtorial Force and the n,Iw armies had attained their present high efficiency and power-there were times when our nav-al resources, consider- able as they ar-, were drawn upon to their utmost limit, and when we had to use < Id battleships to give strength to cruiser squadrons, even at the cost of their speed, and when WP, had to face and accept risks with which wø did net trouble the public and which no one would willingly seek an opportunity to shave. Surely this picture conveys an idea of sea-power that: must strike the mind with awe. When the great deeds of the ISavy j come to be recorded, when. things are seen •in perspective, this feat, by which a million men were m4iie(i across waters full of perils, without one mishap, will stand out anxaig the greatest. One searches for some literary comment to apply; and but one seems to serve the occasion; the first, vert-o of Rudyard Kip- ling's Song of the English Fair is our lot—^ goodly is our heritage! (Humble ye, my people, and be fearf ul in your mirth!) i For the Lord our God Most High J He hath made the deep as dry, j He hath ^moth for us a pathway to th-ø ends of all the Earth It is indeed in humility, and purged of I the spirit of the boaster, that we must dwell upon the great work accomplished when the Navy brought the sons 01 Britain safely froan the ends of the earth, to tiglit. for her cause. Mr- Churchill ateo lifted the curtain a little to show -is another picture: the mali down below, Take," he said, "the j case of the Kent, at the FalHandE. The Kent is an old vessel. She was launched 13 veai-s ago, and has been running ever i since. The Kent was designed to go 2,31 knots. The Kent had to catch a ship which went considerably over 2g knots, They put a pressure and a strain on. the engines much greater than is allowed in times of peace, and th;v drove the lÙnt 25 knots and caught the Nurnlx'rg and sank her." A young sea-dog has already j told us what happened that eventful day in the engine-rooms of the old Kent! They are an amazing breed," it has teen written of the engineer* and their kin, "these quiet, rather pale men, in whose hands lie the strength and power of the fIDp. Creep into the stoke-hold— a boiler blistering either ear as you i stoop—and taste what finned air us like for a while. Faoe the intolerable white glare of the opened furnace doors; get into a bunker and see how they pass coal along and up and down; stand for the minutes with .bee and devil' to such labour as the stoker endures for four J hour«." -=.=j

PRIZE MONEY. I  DOCKYARD MESSRS MEAN £ 55 000 YEARLY INCMASt Tha H(t11e of Commons went into Com- mittee of Supply on the Navy Estimates yesterday on the vote of officers, seamen, and boys. Dr. Macnamara (Parliamentary Secre- tary to the Admiralty ) referred to the question of prize bounty and prize inoney-, He said prize bounty is money paid to officers and teamen who sink or capture enemy warships. It is to be calculated j at the rate oi t,) per man on hoard the enemy 6Mp a.t the beginning of 'the action. If, for matance. a Dr'?dnought with a crew of were slink, then a sum of £ 1,500 would be awarded as bounty money, according to a scale yet to be adjusted. Priae money is different from prize bounty. The phrase prize money means the money realised by the sale or dis- posal of enemy merchantmen captured by the Navy. In the past. the warship making the capture received the whole of the prize money, which plam gave an advantage to such warships as are patrol- ling the trade routes. In the preseni-, war th," prie money is to be pooled a.nd the whole Navy will receive a portion. Once more, the scales have to be worked out, and no grant must be expected until the end of the war. Where officers and seamen have lost their lives, the de-Hpnrlenfs will receive the share which would have been due if the man had been still alive. Dockyard Concessions. Certain dockyard increases have been I authorised, thus: Tncre&se a week, S- d- SMp-?ri?htp  1 0 JOŒ('n:, plumb?rc. and painters: Hired 2 0 Establishment 1 6 Engineering trades 1 0 Smiths Hired 0 Establishment. 1 fl Sailmakcrs I 0 J.1a 1'ourf'r 1. The above increases will cost < £ 9,),0n0 a ¡ vear, of which sum £ 40.000 will go to the lowest grade. Since 1903, tie labourers' wages have risen from 20s. to 24s- Conpes?oos costing ?13,WW are granted tn the yard classes, and the concessions to the storehouse cla?s will c?t .-8U')?. On the basis of the present staff the fon- cessions made in the Royal Dockyards have during the past- ten years equalled a year- I

OYST ERMOUTHFINANCE. The monthly finance meeting of the Oystecrmouth Urban District Council was held on Tuesday, Councillor F. E. Beer I presiding. Tlie treasurer' statement showed a credit balance of £,31, 2s. 8d.. j and the rate collector's account showed; that the mim of was col- lected d?rir.? last month, iMvina: an out- J stacdir? las?l ?l.jl3 1Ss. Sel. J

A SO LDIE R F* M I LY. I Mr. George Cole, a gardener, of Bnrrv- port has three ""ons, three aon.-i-in-lav and a grandfon serving in the army, they arc, Private R. J. Golo (Army Service Corps), Private F. N. Cole (South Wales BorfU, Trooper V. J. Cole (Pembroke Yeomanry), sons; Private Henry James (Army Ser- vico Corps), Private ,1'. Montague (West Biding Regiment), Gunner A. Stephens (Royal Field Artillery) sons-in-law. Cor- poral B. J. Williams (Welsh Regime tin arandsQU.

SiRJOHN FRENCH'S! DISPATCH. A PACE OF ClORY. On Pag 3 ITS publish to-day a long dee- patch frm Sir John French, covering the operations ot the British and Indian expe- ditionary armies in France down to ?he end of January. This communication deals at considerable length with the severe fighting that took pla'?e in the La Bassee-Bet hune-Givenchy region in the second and third weeks of December. &i[ John French pays special tribute to the services of the Territorials, speaks highly of the Indian troops, and alludes once more to the splendid work of the British Regular Army. The Men are Splfnoid. The troops." Sir John French say! composing the Army in France have been. subjected to as severe a trial as it is possible to impose upon any body of m^n- The desperate lighting described in. my last despatch "—Sir John is referring to the iferce attempts of the Germans to break through the British lines near Ypres and Arment.iere., in the middle of November—" had hardly been brought to a conclusion when they were called upon to face the rigours and hardships of rI winter campaign. Frost and snow ha,ve alternated with periods of continuous rain. The men have been failed npon to stand for many hours together almost up to their waists in bitterly cold water, only separated by one or two hundred yards from a most, vigilant enemy." Yet they have borne it all with patience and good tamper. The First Bi-Weekly Report. The first, of the new bi-weekly com- muniques from Sir John French was issued on Tuesday evening. It stat.es that 1 the British troops have retnken at St, Eloi to the south of Ypres trenches cap- tured by the Germans the previous day. The marked superiority of our artillery continues to be maintained- Mr. Lloyd George's cheerful reference in the House of Commons to the strength I of the. Allied lines in France is supported by the view of a military expert who has just been at the front. He says that our i positions round La. Bassee, its canal, and. railway triangle are uow so strongly held ) "that the whole German Army, if if tried, could not break through." Air Raid on the Belgian Coast. The Allied airmen are giving the. Ger- mans on th? P?l§ian cca?t no rest. A force of forty British and French aero- planes yesterday droppm -40 bombs (J'n various points, and tb\ British bombs were formidable missiles, weighing 8Mb. The damage done is not yet ascertained, but the Admiralty report that bombs were dropped oil the Mole at Zeebmgge, to widpn th8 breach damaged in former attacks, and on the looks at. Zeebrugge, The Russian Position. The Russian position remains obscuro. As Petrogra-d warned 11!<>, there is very little news coming through. If is main- tained to-day that so long as our Allies' communications are maintained, the position in the north is of little moment. The distant. Carpathians are the poenc of operations of far greater interest and imijortane?. The German stroke in the north is probably, like the recent at- tacks on the Warsaw front, designed to a"t -j,i a distraction. The Russians can afford to content themselves with de- fensive action in the Polish area, and concentrate their efforts on their left flank, where the Germanic Allies are roost ^ulncrabl^. There are rumours of iresh German threes being in movement in tiiii direction, which, if true, is a further proof that they reeoguise the I' significance that the Hungarian region, hitherto secondary and neglected, has i assumed in connection with the ulti- mate defence of the Fatherland. Sublime Courage. Mr. M. H. Do no hoe, tow tith the Russian Army in the far cast cf At stria- Hungary representing the Daily Chronicle," sends details of the ticmon- dous onslaught from throe directions, by which the Austro-Germans have been aide to drive the Russians back towards their oven frontier. Wave ai'ter wave of grey-coated Austrians and Germans came on anew ( (says the correspondent), parsing over the bodies of their slain comrades,' and then wonld melt away to disintegrate as if they were so many men of snow suddenly exposed to tb.A calorific influence of the spring sunshine. The glistening white surface of tho valley was discoloured with gronps of inanimate objects which, a few hours before, had been living men. They lie there in thousands, annihilated by the Russian aUoIl fire. Some there wore who succeeded in crossing the shell-swept valley of death, and. cliMbin? the slope, f'onfronted the Russians, only to m?t their end by a deadly tire at short range I from the entrenched Russians. With His Back to the Wall. Isolated groups, of what onee had been I whole brigades, flung themselves against the parapets of the trenches, behind which was arranged the brovc-coat?d Russian line, nghtin? with the fierce and deadly desperation of men prepared to I face extermination in preference to yield- ing. In many wars I have teen soldiers of many couiitT* in bi-,f it was my urft experience of the Russian 4witing with his back to the. wall. Hie coolness, j dogged pluck, sublime courage and devo-J tion render him a eombatant. of which! Russia and her Allies may well feel j proud. I

HEADTEAGHEffS FAREWELL J Old Scholars' Tribute to I Miss C. Michell. A farewell I-ea was given at he St. Helen's School, Swansea, on Tuesday, to Miss G. ALichell. headmistress of the infants' department, who has retired after upwards of 40 years'" service. Miss Michcil has won the highest respect and admira- tion of both teachers and scholars, testi- mony to which is shown in the handsome prM.<mhs of which she was made the re- cipient. Th? nr?cnts took the form of a beanti- ful Ch?t?r&eld in Old English tapestry, a, dresaiug-cas? in Morocco and solid si her, and a pretty Eiderdown quilt, these being I the gifts of the staffs and scholars ?a?.t and present) and irMnds. Another in- teresting gift was an afternoon tea service I from Mr. and Mrs. Jones, who have been caretakers of the school for 2S years. I Brief speeches were delivered during I the evening by some of the senior mem- I bers of the staffs. Mr. T. Chegwidden I was. r&miniscent, and referred to his old school days as an infant under Miss i Michell, whom he referred to as his [ *v. school mother." a remark which called forth the rejoinder, And a good boy you were, ioo:" )!r. T. H. Hopkins also spoke in eulogistic terms of Miss MicheIL Miss Jessie Jones, another old pupil, said that Miss Micheil taught her to love school, and this was a sure test of a suc- cessful teacher. Mr. Fred Da?jes said that most heads had two side-; ?) their character, the school side and the i-d tila?t h(-?ids li-,id t-% o t,, tht-it, '?he ?.(,booi P(,rs,)i!al ] ide, I)eaiici- M MitcheU suitably returned thanks. J

WELSH GUARDS MAYOR SUGGESTS SWANSE/ HEADQUARTERS. ■ C i 81 TERMS OF REGRUITIN j At the recruiting offices in | eligible men can now enlist for Welsh Guards unit. XT* ieh is beim g hy the gracious permission of his as a recognition of the Princ loyal response to the call for met war. It has been suggested that any Welsh regiment who are u required standard should be 31 ioiù. the Welsh Guards, instead of recruiting confined to the Guar ments. Major Anderson, the chief re officer in Swansea., informs us t terms of service are the normal >c;r)rs with the colours and 9 v reserve. In other words, recrn not tor the duration of tl only. The age is 18 and height 5ft, 8in. and above, t as in other 4}nurds regiments, present when a man gives in his will be at'tesi^'d ana sent to h until the authorities are ready 1 receiving pay from the date of tion. The Headquarters. The Mayor (Aid. Dan Jones) c'?mplimentad on the prompt ? is faking with a view to ;TIa¡ selected as the venue For thf quarters of t he Welsh Guards. will be the pride of the Principa has written a long letter to Gen Francis Lloyd pointing out th advantages the town would offei location of the headquarters regiment, and the unique posi Swansea as a recruiting '-entre,. In the letter the Mayer observe alia,:— "It is with feeling? of grea that the people of Swansea heard Majesty the King had been gT; pleased to sanction an addition Brir^de of Guards by the format- battalion of Welsh Guards- It b which I feci sure has touched th of eveiy Welshman, and Wales w come the event with true Celtic Weare áho yery pleased th Majesty bas approved of the that greatly respected ind t:m-ro officer. Lieut.-Colonel Murray I and, as the officer authorised to r -i battalion. The. qiipsi-in-n is probably at under consideration as to where t regiment will be quartered, und as of Swansea I now respectfully al » you with a view to your favmiral sidering the claim1; of Swansea honour. Battalion of Its Own. Aftl-r pointing out wan<:> ages, the Mayor proceeds: I wot particularly to draw attention fact that Swansea was the first I Wales to ra.ise a battalion of ifc respectfully suggest, that Swarsei excellent, recruiting ground, an been found that the best and 1 men come from the industrial re The Mayor then suggests an in --to discuss the matter fully-— deputation of the council- "Yo rest assured." he says, "that Guards come to Swansea, WP T everything that is required of i more, to ensure the regiment bt to full strength in the shortest time, and as I understand it is i1 to hold recruiting meetings thv Wales, I would ftf-i: that the firs ing be held in Swansea. I cat dently say it will bo a thorough s* Tho letter was despatched on and th-2 Mayor is now awaiting a Permanent Headquarters, There however, little hop*- Guards bemg permanently static Swansec, judging by Sir Francis reply to an interviewer:— u Being the King's Guards," h "the Welsh Battalion must, he in London. The headquarters Guards are always in the precir Buckingham Palace, and it is TW useless to talk of headquatrtr where. Of course, it is very ef speak of "after the war," but the just, possible there may be a d- tdon of temporary qu&rtt"!?. but t mauent ?eadquartoi'? must remi (j London.

RESERVIST'S WIFE. Committal in Pontardu Assault Case. At. Swansea County Petty Sessi Wednesday, Alan Steward Anger labourer, of Pontardulais, was c on remand with alleged rape or, Ft tith. Mr. Laurence Richards prof and Mr- Henry Thompson defend M r, Hiehardt, said that the cot ant, Mrs. Lilian Chipp, lived at Cambrian-place, Pontardnlais. H. hand was a reservist in the ne-ers at present at the front, and dant had lodged at the house for two yearg-. At. about 6 o'clock on ary titb. Mrs. Chipp was getting ready for Anger when he rushed ) and after a struggle committed leged offence. Eventually the complainant, got from him. She said she would the police, and he said that if she she would find his body in the mar. the morning. He then took a rase the mantelpiece and threatened his throat. Mrs. Chipp persuade not to do 6o. Mrs. Chipp, giving Avidence, sai Anger was mad drunk at the 1 The complainant's little girl wa railed for the prosecution- She ga was in the kitchen when she 6aW catch her mother by the mouth. Bench at this point stated that thought it would not bl"l advisab such a young child to give evident Sergt. Watkins soict that at the station, in reply to the charge, dant said. What did I say to her- assaulted her 1 am willing to apol He was committed for Stria I a Assizes. Bail was renewed, hixrus £ 40, and two sureties of £ 20 each.

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At a special meeting of the (in, of the Port. Talbot County School on Tuesday. Mr. Ernest Tennant appointed clerk in succession to hi father. Mr. Daniels (manager o local branch of the London and I i,ial BankJ nas appointed treasurer