South Wales Weekly Post

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The Allied reply to the German peace i overtures has at last been given to theuorld, ill a document which lacks -nothing  vigour, clearness, dignity, and a pitiless marshlling of the facts conyicting Ger- many once more of the .?spcnsibdity foiGt?he inception of the war, and, besides, the bar- barities which have disngured ?course. Appended to it is a statement from the Bel- sian Government, a statement which is of deep pathos as coming from the o??V Government in the war which has, and never had, the least prospect of gain from it, how- ever it went, against whom Germany com- mitted her first h and what is still her most flagrant wrong. Belgium stands unalter- ably by her decision of August, 1914, and is prepared to drink to the dregs the cup of bitterness which has been her lot since she struck the keynote of the war by her stand for honour and fidelity. Alone of all the Powers in the war she had nothing to gain from it, no ulterior consideration to take part in it-and such is certainly not the case either with Rumania or I taly-nothing to gain except an eternal fame for fidelity amidst the sorest trials and temptations. The German Note is casually described as a "war manoeuvre" but that is a description which implies that the Germans have it in their power to prolong the struggle and that their straits are not so serious that they are forced by them to make the first oyer tare. In face of the presentment of the Allied case in irrefragable logic and completeness the effort to cast the onus foi- the prolongation fcof the war upon the Allies is destined to ailu-re; but Mr. Wilson obtains no satisfac- *ion for his request for some more precise and detailed definition of the Allied or of the enemy objectives, which have been .pre- viously outlined in what he terms as very similar language. He receives instead a con-1 elusive proof of German guilt and Allied innocence, and in ilic appendix from the Bel- gian Government he is reminded yet again of the cruel wrong that was done, and that has dominated the entire tenour of the strug- i gle. He had beei led already upon a false trail, and in the face of this clear statement of the origin of the war, and the evidence of the nature which it took upon itself, Mr. Wilson will find the entire question focugsed afresh upon its real basis. The point at issue is upon which side the guilt of unjustifiable action lies, and the Allies have answered that formally, as it has been answered informally a hundred times. To m into the details of the terms of the conclusion of peace, to enter upon a most complicated and uncertain tefsk, is futile at the mpment. It is for Mr. Wilson to take the next step. The Allies intend to pursue the quarrel relentlessly to its close, and they 1 decline to fall into the obvious trap of an 1, entrance into a discussion at a stage which mld throw ridicule upon all their profes- ? ??)?p "f deteniun?Hf-a to attain their end?. ?"N6t for a second has this barren c?rrespon- dence been permitted to stand in the path of the most vigorous and assiduous prepara- t.ions for the prosecution of the war in Britain, or in Germany for that matter, and in the face of the facts of the situation as they are at the moment all tall, of peace is simply mischievous. We trust that we have heard the last of negotiations until the time arrives, as it must surely do, when the enemy's surrender is made. Wetrustthatby that time his situation will be such that there will be no question of negotiations at all, but of uncompromising and prompt submission j to the demands then formulated by the Allies.

Sir Douglas Haig's dispatch on the battle ,oi the ^0mme—more correctly described as the battle,Of Picardv,. across which proi-iiiie-e they raged -cij>- re&ult o{ the year's fightmg■ m t"wL o vital E;entence The enemy's power has not sentences The enem j s p vet been broken, nor is it yet poss? i ?to form an estimate of the time the *ar ma„ last before the objects for which the A'?lie?', are fighting have been attained. BUT THE SOMME BATTLE HAS PLACED BE- YOND -DOUBT THE ABILITY OF THE ALLIES TO GAIN THOSE OBJECTS. In his relatively terse and lucid epitome of a struggle which could only be adequately de- scribed in detail in a work of many volumes, Sir Doughs sums up the conclusions with force, moderation and justice and his verdict, which has in .the main been anticipated, is all that, under the circumstances, we have the right to expect and the desire to hope ttM* In itself the struggle may, regarded 1t8 a self-contained operation, have been in- conclusive. But we must emphasise thHt it is the general drift of the contest which is the more significant than the immediate out- come. And Sir Douglas sums that up -in a. passage of incontes,ta,ble truth, full of good fcugury for us and pregnant with ominous meaning for the ei-temy The German Army is the mainstay of the Central Powers, and 'a. full half of that Army, despite all the advantages of the defensive, supported by the strongest fortifications, suffered defeat on the Somme this year. Neither victors nor the vanquished .li forget this: and, though bad weather has given the enemy a respite, there will undoubtedly be many thousands in his ranks who will begin the new cam- paign with little confidence in their ability to resist our assaults or to overcome our de- fence." We have for the first time an authorita- tive statement of the objectives for which the battle was fought by us. They were "(a) To relieve the pressure on Verdun; ib') to assist our Allies in the other theatres Of w? by stopping any further transfer of Cerman troops from the Western front; 'ear dow th ,h f ?) to wear down the strength of the forces ?P?.?- But it is important to ?ote that these ail al into the category of secondary and subsidiary objectives. The most stress is to be laid upon the second -.?? 'lTlS fnlnce the upon t e secon  launched in an attack would hav been launched in any case whether Verdun was impend or otherwj3e. That precipitated the ?,b attack: an d tf in some respects we were forced into a tf in some respes e ,Were forced"" t premature offensive It ISprohåble !n the light of what actually oc uried on th In t1 e hand, that a later onslaught w? have yielded much less results In one sense the Austrian offensive in the Trenti, also reacted upon the Western front as a factor forcing us into action carher than WOll otherwise have been undei -a sen. It can be claimed that all three objectIves were achieved; and it is pretty clear that ild- verse weather alone prevented far greater and even decisive results belllg attamèd from an operation commenced with the most Modest and secondary aims. Certain qualifications, how 61' jl e I- Certain qualiftcat?spite ?of the ?liowed The Germans, In spIte of the Sonn? did succeed in p??"P ?'? ?'a offen.ive and nnally arrestmg; ,It, rund ? overrunninO' Rumania and knockmg ?the v out of time, f ??ains of th? Rumanian AH*1- oa. tie, ?d this was done with the  assist- ?"e of troops partly drawn from the 'Vest-j em front. The success of the Somme offen- sive, unmistakable as regards the reaction upon the situation at Verdun, is arguable when we consider the reaction upon the Rus- sian and Rumanian fronts. In regard to the third objective, the wearing dewn of the enemy's strength, Sir Douglas Haig confirms all other evidence in his statement that the German losses were "considerably higher," ,HUl these of the Allies. The Germans, it is true, can apply the "attrition" theory as a perfectly valid argnmell-t to the case of the French; and it is. from the broadest standpoint, certain tha.t the French are by far the worst sufferers in the war from the loss of men, because they cannot replace the many hundreds of thou- sands of the fallen, on account of their stag- nant birth-rate. But the fact remains that at Verdun the Germans lost considerably more than the French, and on the Somme considerably more than the Allies; and even if the French Army were more seriously de- pleted than it is, little actual benefit would accrue to the enemy with the British armies continually growing and fed from an abun- dant source—abundant, if judiciously tapped. There is. of course, very much o.«-itted from the dispatch that the public \Y"ud be desirous of knowing. The first attack on July 1st was made"ivith a concentration of five British Army Corps, or ten divisions, of whom it is improbable that all were in action simultaneously. The reverses at. Serre, Beaumont, and Thiepval reduced the front of attack for a long time but it was gradually extensively widened. Whilst every enemy division on the West was sucked into the vortex of the Somme, we are not told whe- ther that was the cast with the British and French forces also; though we, like the enemy, appear to have fought the battle with relays of divisions brought from other parts of the line or the reserves, a-nd returned thither as they were spent. The dispatch, from various considerations, tells us nothing of the identity of the troops engaigied, very little even of the generals, except the three who were in the main command Rawlinson, Gough {a striking example of the hereditary soldier), and Allenby. Modest as Sir Douglas is in regard to the part he personally played, it is nevertheless due to him to record that upon him, and him alone, lay the entire re- spomsibility. The Somme could have made or broken him; he goes down in history, for this vear's work at least, as a. great com- mande;. Unstinted justice is done to the conduct i of the troops. Perhaps we would have ex- pected more stress to be laid upon the gener- ally admirable work of an improvised staff, in comparison with the enemy's experienced organisation of long standing, than upon the qualities of the troops, of whom a large number were at least as well trained and seasoned as a corresponding proportion of the enemy opposed to them. Their supe- riori^ ty in moral is due largely to their supe- rior freshness many of the German units thrown int-o the field against them had bn tried in the furnace of Verdun, and tHey showed it by thsir inferior tenacity, for there are limits to human endurance. Our supe- riority in numbers.- though not perhaps oil the aggregats very lairge, told here unmis- takably. The Gerniau defensive, in coin- parisou with that of the French at Verdun, wias b(*yo»d All quovtffimt inferior. They gave ground much more rapidly, sustained far more losses,, and inflicted relatively less punishment. The fortifications with which the enemy's front bristled a-Te described in such terms as to indicate that the science of military en- gineering exhausted all its devices. Yet within the first fortnight of a battle that lasted about eighteen weeks, a large breach wins made in the first and second lines, by far the most formidable. The battle was prolonged, and the hardest fought encounters took place--this is an important point- at a point where the defence was extem- porised as the battle raged. The enemv's permanent lines were actually mastered, though not to an adequate extent, in a com- paratively brief space of time-. It wi$.s made plain, in a sentence, that the brunt of the work of the defence fell upon the enemy's troops, in spite of all their armoury of weapons and defences. It is thus, after all, a plain issue ultimately between man and man, and the most elaborate systems of field fortification failed to magnify the power of the defensive to the old time and ortho- dox degree or to compensate for the inferi- ority of the troops which held them. Sir Douglas Haig shows that without any of the advantages which were supposed to lie essen- tial to the attacking side— a very-great su- periority in numbers—we could break any position that the enemy could make, and hit him the harder in doing so. Yet in theory our attack should have been shat- tered with disastrous and fatal losses. The courage. endurance an d reso- lution of the troops, their technical pro- ficiency. remarkable at the commencement, and bv the close of te struggh comparable even with that of such veterans a-s the French Arm v. receive full justice from Sir Douglas Haig, and without such qualities no generalship could have achieved much in circumstances where the capa-eity of the com- mander for shaping the struggle by his own ) devices and sti-tap-em i, Ic, strictly limitea. The battle of th/Somme, rich in achieve ment. Was even richer in promise. If 1 the weather created conditions against which the army struggled in vain. it. Oil the other hand, served us a good turn "by playing havoc with the enemy's crops, and what we lost on the battlefield v -o)' i,,pd in the har- vest field." The clear, vigorous and con- vincing survey of tll,, battle by Sir Douglas Haig renders it incontestable that we can look forward to the events of this year the fullest confidence in a radical altera- tion of the map, which the enemy is so fond of citing.

In the South African War the names and capers of the various British commanders were known from A to Z by the public. In this infinitely greater warfare, their bare names are hardly known, and many of them are total strangers to us. Sir Henry Raw- linson, promoted full general, who was in command of most of the battlefield on the Somme, will be recalled as a successful column commander in the South African War, and the leader of the SeveVith Divi- sion in its stand outside Ypres in 1914. Sir Hubert Gough, promoted lieutenant-general, who played the second most important role of the subordinate British commallder, will also not have been forgotten by a public which remembers the Ulster "pogrom" of 1914 and the incident at the Curragh. But Sir Henry Home, a conspicuous figure in the honours, is a stranger to the public, and little is known of Lieut.-General Milne except his command of the British contingent in Macedonia under General San-ail. The Earl of Cavan is equally little known to the public. Men who were privates at the commence- ment of the war are now commanding bat- talions, and others who led brigades or divi- sions now command Army Corps or Armies i.e, groups of Army Corps. So complete has anonymity been preserved, at least- m public, thrt more has been known of the names of the German leaders who were i, op. posed on the Somme to the British troops than of the "TCritish lerd-exz. One feature of the British Army has been the predominance of the old Regular Army officers in the higher commands, in spite of the immense influx of new men. In the American Civil War a similar phenomenon was observable. Though the regular United States'! Army was of insignificant dimensions, in comparison with the masses of civilians-who were enlisted by North and South, an ex- traordinarily high percentage of the higher commanders came from the handful of pro- fessional officers, of whom many seceded to the cause of the South. The same obtained in Napoleon's Army. The old French royalist army. wh ich provided the framework upon which the French revo- lutionary government founded its victorious legions, again furnished the bulk of the lead- ers. in most cases from the? ranks. Military ability seemed to be irresistibly attracted to the standing army, in these three great par- allels, in time of peace, and few great generals came from the enormous mass of civilians who, in France in 1776 onwards, in America in 1862, and in Britain in 1914, provided the huge hosts that were ultimately maintained.

b.. F 1'1 1 The next big push" m France is likely to be radically different from that of 1916. both in point of time and extent. The attack on the Somme was premature as far as our own plans went, and in certain events on July 1st may be traced the consequence of inevitable haste. The actual front of attack was comparatively narrow, and only afforded ?pace for the deployment at a given time of a number of divisions which probably formed only a fraction of the gross of the British forces in France. This accounts for the duration of the straggle. With a much larger force of artillery available now. permitting a preparation over a far wider front, it be- comes possible to launch an attack with a much more numerous force, the effect, how- ever, being to diminish the length of the (nsuing battle correspondingly as the attack- ing forces will he u'sed for a shorter period. The power to prepare an attack on a more extensive stretch of front is valuable, not only on account of the possibility of effecting a wider breach, but because it gives the at- tacking side the chance of striking suddenly at an unexpected spot, after the first blow has attracted to a different (area the enemy reserves. At the Somme we were tied down to an attack in one place and were not able to strike a blow against other sections of the enemy's front, thus losing, after the first few days, the advantage of surprise, and be- ing unable to utilise the opportunity of a heavy onslaught against a part of the enemy's line temporarily denuded of troops in reserve, beyond the small body I actually holding the lines. Once a breach is made there will be a magnificent opportunity of deriving some benefit from the masses of horsemen hitherto, kept idle and hardly ever contributing to the, casualty lists, which the devoted infantry fill by the thousand. ,—-

Pan-Germanism is the means adopted, under the patronage of the Kaiser's Govern- ment and with the full aid of its vast system of State machinery, to popularise Prussian militarism. That militarism in itself im- plies recurrent wars, iron discipline fAv the Genrum populace, the unmitigated doini- oance.of IhevPi'uesiqpteea oiUM.e of.. o-Sujejnj and of the bureatic-rats whom they support, and a degree of social servitude for t in- dustrial. commercial and unprivileged classes which is wholly inconsistent with self- respect. These requirements and exactions are not likely to appeal in their bare form to the German taxpayer who is heavily mulcted in order to make his own compliance with them secure for the benefit of his oppressors. Accordingly, the ingenuity of the German militarists and bureaucrats has been exer- cised to devise an effective means of popular- ising the Hohenzollern system among the masses of the people to whom it only offers in reality humiliation and oppression in times of peace at home and an opportunity to serve as "cannon-fodder" in foreign wars for the benefit of the most brutal oligarchy ever organised in modern Europe. Envy, as Tacitus long ag10 noted, is am in- grained vice in the German national charac- ter, and envy is closely akin to that blind, insensate conceit which has gained complete sway in the ordinary German mind since the campaigns of 1864.: 1866 and 1870 led to facile victories. And the Prussian militar- ists and their confederates have astutely used pan-Gsi'manism" to bedeck the ugly fea- tures of Prussian militarism and popularise among the German masses the tyranny which abases them and the callous ambition that destines them to the slaughter. The mili- tarists and the bureaucrats and their hired pedagogues and pedants prepare the mind of the modern German in his childhood. soon as he is capable of comprehending the idea of nationality he taught to venerate Prussianism and serve it, and then his Vanity is carefully fostered. "We Germans are such fine fellows." he is everywhere told by those whom he is trained to regard as authorities: "we are so superior to all the other races on earth that it would be a sin and a shame, nay, it would be apostasy to our divine mission, if we did' not assume control and enforce our rule among the back- ward representatives of an obsolete era which must, pass away under the dawn of Kultur. Scieuice teaches us that we have a biological right to the principle of evolution. philosophy teaches us that we have a mysti- cal right by discernment of the purpose of the universe, history teaches us that We have a prescriptive right in virtue of the tradi- tions of German Empiry in the remote but evew glorious past, to conquer and seize and rule, imposing on those whom we tame by our irresistible sword, for their ultimate good, the Germanism which thev resist and! reject because they cannot vet mprehend what is higher than their own cramped life." This medley of nonsense bas made an al- most incredibly effective appeal to a boastful and gullible race singularly deficient in the wholesome corrective of a sense of humour. We in this country should commit a most dangerous, possibly a fatal mistake, if we allowed ourselves to believe that the self- conceit which the modern German cherishes fanatically as a beloved creed and the war- rant of his self-esteem has been eradicated by the experiences of the war. The modern German is still a pan-German, though he is being rapidly driven to seek the fruition of his schemes by diplomatic subtlety since the irresistible sword" has been blunted and has grown heavy in his hand. The imme- diate ideal of pMi-Germanism Is to establish fL empie ee'^mS from the North Sea to ? ??'r?' the training ground for fViA 66 gTeat move towards world dominion A glance at ?ma? shows u, that the of this Empire is already in ex- I fstence T;" ?rma*y has constructed it not by success in war but ? her alliances. The KoriTent f ™ ?n ?"?"'? Austria Hungary, Uif'Tri» T ey EuroP« and Turkey In  oro n 6 .?tinuous'-corridor," as the Germanscllf which connects ?m- Knrrr witV> + v. r minor States of the The ,ni""r pendent before the war; n?th? ruler. 7' ?sals 0? th? Hoheu?Den?, and the  ?"-?or" pa.?e. through terri?v that in fact comprises the outlving proving ji °'/J%, PM-Gwimb Umpire, -Th ere is OUIJ: ?hnS o? .??' the, permanent esS ? I | l'-hment of ,thus new terror for the world „j +1 *i the corridor for aJl time where it ™ finally bloÓdat Const?ti- nople and the D,,d,?ae?.

( I This .,e, 'Ji is costing the 'e- atlI¡r co! lng e 1 British lla;¡nea.}.)' six-millions sterling a dav.  jjio- A Sandnelds m<n? who hasn t any garden is doing his bit" iii the producing line. He has gyowiV-i-* rop of mustard cress on his kitc-Jj^- ( -sil1. ?  A ?,wa-iLe man who.-while M- ?-? ? his A F;waIlS' 1l1:1 W!ln, .whlle c.c-lh18 humble" bItter, watc r ker dispose of two brandies till pondering over the ir Sent. <'>- < Swansea Sunday trader, even with an "aider and abettor" thrown in, were not sufficiently numerous to form fours at Tuesday's Police Court parade. This is a nice thing. At the London ) Coliseum Wilkie Bard tp featuring a song, "The Welsh Stationtnaster." Now, what have our local entertainers to say about it? The "Daily Post." whist drive at the Hotel Metropole will last three evenings. la?t three even i n g s. No competitor will stand any chance of an aggregate prize unless taking part in each evening's play. Gower farmers do'not feel the times so bad after all. and iiotwitb-tanding war is on have decided to hold the ploughing matches as usual this year, the first at Killay, and as i-i-,tia l this -e f the second at Kittle, At the Swansea and- District Fanciers' Show on Thursday text, the proceeds of which go to the -'Daily Post" War j Prisoners' Fund, the judge of British birds will be Billy Bancroft Beg pardon, W. J. Bancroft. Esq. V  ?<3><? ?><<x? \? "My kilts told the ta.te When I go ?ut of the train at Lit-dafe a gentleman j Mfonday night. ervidcKi.y a Scotchman, put two packets of fags m nrv hand and said, Good on yo?, Jock.' I didnt like to tell e to t(.Il him my name was Pat, "I'm afraid," said the discontented look- ing man in the Port. Tennant car, "that a lot of women are regarding this home pro- duce business as a sort of addition., to their dress-buying income." Say not so! .$$" In the weekly lecture to special con- stables at Swa-nsaa on Tuesday night eulo- gistic reference was made to the Pofi B-ag of Tuesday i,-nent the unnecessary flasning of flashiights in the streets. It is to be hoped warning will be taken. Anti-Humbug" (Swansea) writes:—"1 echo the query of another of your correspon- dents recently when I ask why the number of aiders and abettors fined in connection with Sunday tra.ding do not coincide with the number of trade's so fined. What sort of a game is this ? 4- The removal by death of Mr. John Roberts marks the passing from the Swansea Bench of Magistrates of one who brought to h:s duties a keen business mind, and one who tempered justice with mercy, for he was en- dowed with that inestimable gift, the milk of human kindness." A Canadian homo from the front, staying with some Swansea relatives, tells of an ad- vertisement he saw before leaving Canada, "The only reliable rat-trap—the Verdun rat-trap. Anyone monkeying around the business end ot this trap has no more sense than the Clown Prince." Gower Guardians meeting was much de- pl.ete.dat their first gathering for the New ,fl-ir owing to illnesses and other causes. The iniaster w I The Master was laid up with influenza, two of the principal members attended a "b'g" funeral domestic affairs kept another valuable member home, and a bad cold affected Miss Dillwyn's voice. Little was done.  The m ignificent prices cNered for competi- tion at the grand patriotic whist drive for the Dailv Post" War Prisoners' Fund next Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday are now attracting a dead of attention in the" Daily Post office window. Some of the prizes are worth three guineas ach, and this popu !<aT event should materially- help along the provision of food to our needy boys in enemy hands. Tickets should be secured at once. Mr. Charles Gregory Wade. who has been oitered the post of Agent-General of New South IVales, was the renowned three- quarter back of Tristram's Oxford team, and the English XV. that met Wales at Swansea in the early eighties contained Wade, Evanson, Tristram, and Potherham in the back division. Those who recall the match Will always regard Wade as the most powerful three-quarter back who ever Participa-ted in the game of Rugby. "And there were giants in those days." «a> Germany's Boast. Has Geonajiy aught to boast about, Can she proudly lift her head? And gaze across the Empire great Upon the tombs of innocent dead. Souls gone to their too early rest Through deeds of the foulest kind; God, thou mighty redeemer and cleanser of icll sins, Would'st thou let go unpunished the vilest of all Kings? I hear the solemn caution oome forth by day and night, It speaks when gallant soldiers are going forth to fight; It rings front dawn to darkness, mountain to shore, Destroy the day of battle from now for evermore. I CAPT. ALF. THOMAS, 1 (Chief Constable, Swansea.) Allotment Yes. a-lot-moant. It is, too. Jimmy Wilde is now a soldier. Going to make "rings" round the Huns. This lis the third year of the war. The third time pays for all. Victory in 1917. A publication, entitled "Holiday Haunts," still haunts the reading-room table of a local club. <! Will Neath hold the 19IS "National" in the grounds of Neath Abbey? A fine his- toric, setting. What about Singlet* n grounds (asks a correspondent)? A lot of "lots" could be allotted on that convenient site. Tire Uotta^w fioines children at Studt's treat oui Monday gave one the impression of being excellently clad and well fed. The Sketty allotment promoters spent their Christmastime going round the houses and ascertaining the tenants' views. The Swansea, man who visited a chiropo- dist with a view of having the bumps of his head "told," came away dissatisfied. The fw,- disonssed Welshmen of ly different spirit— and Cai iuoc rtans, one -lid one at home. The British field-marshals, by the acces- .,n of Sir Douglas Haig, now number seven. Lord Grenfell of Kilvey is one of the number.  >-  < >? >   The end of the year is usually a bad time or the Allied navies. The Formidable, Natal and Gaulois disasters all occurred about that time. $ 18 Never too late to make a New Year' s re- solution. Make up you* mind to buy a ticket—or two or three—for the great whist drive next we.ek. r It means more food for the Huns' captives. Anropos of the German "submarine post" to the U.S.. a Swansea lady possesses a let- ter which was in a mail-bag saved by a diver i from the wreck of the German liner Eider, sunk many years ago. S.$$$" Irene Sanderson," author of the "Welsh Heroine." and formerly "Daily Post" cor- respondent at the Mumbles, has written a new book. "In Times of Peace," to be published by a New York firm. Heard, outside a butcher's shop in Oxford- street, Swansea —Lady in fur coat (to man in toil-stained clothes, evidently her hus- band) "Bill. go in and buy a pound of pig'.s liver; I don't like to go in, in this coat. ?-  -< ><  >0< $ Swansea's rates are 9s. 4d. in the £ com- pared with Cardiff's 7s. lOd. The difference is explained by the low ratable value of Swansea, as compared with Cardiff. Swan- sea's ratable value is £ 613,000, and Cardiff's £ 1,219,197 Hence the d'?'-er?. '?? '?-<?' ?.?'n ■ -T-rb w ft?O? France (asks Cydiste") w?o sMmtered into-a Swansea "fish and chip establishment, smiled a winning smile at the damsel "behind the counter, and demanded to be accommo- dated with Pom de t-air freet avec cafelay toots weet "? Is there no sense of humour in Swansea I "8 there,!1O sef!'se ofhu11!or Íl.SwalJS-8a cfficialdom?" 4'Nine-Thirty-). Friday morning last happy dustmen pro- ceeded along Oxford-street whilst a strong sou' -westerly wind blew the microbe-laden contents of their carts over all and sundry. Nothing mattered." It will interest Swansea, Hugby foot- ballers of some decades since to learn that I W. McCutcheon has been paving a Christmas visit to his native town for they will recall that the departure of Dai Gwvkne and Billy McCutcheon "t'.Owdham" provided a full- blooded football sensation in those spacious days* S: Complaints are frequently made about youhg fellows fla.shing lights in people., iace.s. Wh-ilst there is no objection to people usi;i^ fla^lilights to see their way in dark places, it. becomes a nuisance if used to in- convenience other pedestrians, and as such will be ■ regarded by the authorities in future. A- word oi advice in time here may save many subsequent regrets -!>-«-- The New Zealand team which drew with Wales at Swansea a week ago, though not so strongly represented as on their visit here, only lost to the unbeaten A.S.C. Rugby Club in London last Saturday by five. points to four. Prior to that the A.S.C. had scored 63-7 points against 17 and had piled up an average of 50 points a match. This is further proof of the cleverness of the "All Blacks." < M. Gaston Morawiecki, whose appoint- ment as French Consul fbr Cardiff and New- port has just been announced, was at Swan- sea when war broke out, and immediately responded to his country s call. He fought in France until the' commencement of the Gallipoli campaign, when he left to ta.ke part in that epic struggle. Then he saw ser- vice in Salonika, and later fought in France j a.gain, finally being employed at the French tj Foreign Office. He ha* seen Consular ser- vice in many parts of the world, and before going to Swansea had had eight years in the French Foreign Offic?. .<i> In the old days, when elementary educa- tion in Welsh villages was in the hands of anybody who cared to hire a room and in- vite pupils, there was generally the bitterest rivalry between neighbouring academies. In the Cwmllvnfell district a bootmaker who kept a school had as rival a man named Thoma.s Thomas, popularly known as "Twm Scwl." The bootmaker, who was a practised rhymster, turned his art rather ingeniously to the purposes of advertisement in this wise — I wit;e Os am aros bvth vn ffwl Ewch i ysgol-Tw?i v Scwl; I Os am ben a ch?on iach ¡ Ataf fi i'i- Fglw- Fach. About this time—back In the fifties-there was another and better school in Cwmllynfell kept by Levi Rees. who received the princely salary of L15 a year. Rugby in Swansea since the war appears to Have died down entirely, and all the junior teams (most of the members of which arc ineligible, many being under age, etc., and others employed on very important munition work) play under the Association cede. The other day, however, a few old Swansea schoolboys combined and raised a very fair Rugby team, and at their first j game defeated a strong Intermediate School i team from Llanelly. Later they met a team from the same town, only a much morel I robust combination, and after a very strenuous tussle defeated them also. Ilushed with success, they decided on keeping to- gftiier a* a permanent side, Liid- issued chal- lenges to all oi the junior Association teams broadcast, but without result. It is a pity that the approved Welsh game should die such a slow death after all the years of suc- cos*; but the young fellows we mention are not giving Up all in despair, as they are pre- pared to play all matehei; awav we long < they can procure the dates." i The bread prosecutions apparently do not pay the authorities. Are they "kneaded"? -<?<:x  -x-> "Like the New Cut when the tide is out, says a .Swansea soldier of the mud at the front. An excellent simile. Three witnesses at a recent Swansea in-  ree witnesses at a i-eceiit Swansea in- quest could only speak Welsh. And some folk say the language is dying out TJio Swansea cinema manager who sends us a." prel irn about a motor-car picture, and adds, "You auto see it," is hereby warned off! <  x?-x!x! Surprising what a large crowd congregated on Constitution-hill the other evening just to bear a special having a few words with M)me rowd.y J, I ¡ -<'?' $ An Uplands gentleman who keeps fowls says that one of the hens la'8 regularly in the dog's kennel, and adds that the dog seems to like it..Knowing dog. By the misreading of a word in a report of" a supper to wounded soldiers at Swansea, the word "beer" occurred instead of "ham. The "Tommies" who read it sighed wistfully. Who was the Swansea constable who sat alone in his glory on the top of an open 8ett,y tramcar on Friday noon when the, I rain wm-well, worse than cats and do"" The price of milk at Swansea is gradually causing discontent, and. indeed, the house- invite j? in a.-quandary. With sugar scarce and other commodities at such a high price, I her lot is not a happy one. I ■-What with the weather and the shortage of labour the winter sowing in the country is woefully behind. In some plots potatoes j from last season's harvest are rotting in the ground—the wet s??ason made them not worth collecting. < >-<Sx 4 A farmer Llandilo • way sells butter to his neighbours at Is. 6d. a. lb. He disposed of his produce to a shop a few miles away for the same price, but,, learning that the -shop price for it was 2s. he raised the price to Is. 9d. In this case the public could not blame him. The average soldier at the front is what the American would call a cigarette fietid" and a Swansea man tells a tnle of a chum in a dug-out who. falling to sleep with a lighted "fag" between his lips, presently awoke with a piercing yell—the smouldering end having dropped on his bare chest. Ebenezer. Swansea, has always been asso- ciated with congregational and choral sing- ing of a very high order (writes "Musicti?"). and, possessing a very fine instrument and an accomplished organist in Mrs. Arthur M. I James ("Megan Glaiitawe"), Sunday night's concert on behalf of the War Prisoners' I Fund is an event of considerable musical interest. story is told of a well known Swansea vwMj at A iarty ksld a, fumiy r atbry, the niteietw 01 which mainly lay in t.'e tact, that life was n« -er known to ha>v told a tale before. The company were much amusfed, btit when the same gentleman told the same story ag-ftin within an hour to the same audience they laughed heartily. Just I' before they departed they were again regard -with the sa.me story, and theii-Nvell "Common Sense" (Swansea) writes: — When will the Swansea housewife realise the cheapness of tripe and similar prime 'meat "bye-products"? I have seen women buving expensive beefsteak and lamb chops (ill-able to afford it), and ignore the nourish- ing. easily-cooked, and cheap tripe, chitlings, mucket, etc. Our French friends visiting the port are not so foolish, and many a sigh of mystification do they give over our in- sular British prejudice which enables them to take unlimited quantities back to their ships for many a, savoury stew." The word "Anzac" is popularly supposed to be a kind of acrostic composed of the ini- tial letters of the principal words in the mili- tary designation of the Australasian Forces i ,when operating at the Dardanelles-" Ail, tralian and New Zealand Army CQrps." It would appear, however, from inquiries made by the Au.,Ltraliai-. Commonwealth Depart- 1 ment in London that- the word is Ara,bi, and that its attribution to the above-men- tioned source is merely coincidence or the result of association of ideas. It is said that the. nearest approach to the correct, spelling word in English would be "Anzak." and that as it means "to cause to jump," it! may have been suggested by the nickname j "Kangaroos," sometimes applied to the Aus-I tralian troops when first quartered in Egypt. The Australian papers announce that the use of the word is not only forbidden in the Com- monwealth for trade purposes, but it may not be used as the name of a residence, vehicle, jl or boat. Pte. Joseph Bateman, R.W.F., Basrah (or Bussorah), sends from that corner of the Persian Gulf a copy of the "Basrah Times," published (like the "Balkan News") for the Utter mformation of our troops in Mesopo- tamia, for whom Baorah is a base. The \ad-I vertisements are perhaps the most interesting feature to folks at home. Thev deal chieny with the supply of food ?nd drink, kit ana machinery. We observe an advertisement of "the Allies' Refreihment Saloon," in "Church-street, Ashar," which retails tea, coffee, pastry, etc. Abdul Kerim, of Ashar, offers to "pull soldiers' faces" for them other merchants supply driak and tobacco of various kinds—including Turkish cigarettes i var;ou?i kin d s-B; i l c Iu d ,ii and "Pilsener Beers"how the latter are obtained is not disclosed. The Persian Gulf j is supposed to be the hottest place under the sun, but a weather note reports on Nov. 15, 1916, a maximum temperature of 87.4 and a minimum of 62—a year before the same date the minimum was only 49 degrees, showing a trying range. The Farmers' Girls. I (Tune—" The Farmer's Boy.") The girls are working on the land, For-country and for King; Such pretty girls, a joyous band, Who la.ugh and dance and sing. With touch like silk, they deftly milk, « And toss their golden curls; They ploughand drill, take corn to the mill, And are first class farmers' girls; And are first class farmers' giris sBeneath the summer's brilliant sun, No leisure hours they take Ne'er resting tiif their work is -done, 'Tis all for England's sake. In a winsome way they rake the hay, They are the farmers' pearls From dewy morn they bind the corn, And are first class farmers' girls And are first class farmers'* girls And when the boys come home once more From battle's thrilling whirls; !J They'll find old England's "Farmers' Corps" Wa? ^England's lovely girls. In a. gallant way they worked all day. They were the farmers' pearls They watched the sheep, could mow and reap, 'I And were first class fanners' girls; 'J And were first class farmers' girls Pitnvaitf C.L.J." A Happy and Hopeful New Year to all our readers. Bhvyddyn Newydd Dda i'n holl darllen- wyr, a gobeithion am Heddwch buan. wyr, a (,obeithion am H--ddxvch buan. So Neath is to have the 1918 National. Be calm, "Hotspur," be ca.lm! You dc'?s lice/we is due to-day; a?so the__[ Lic&n&e for your armorial bearings. -j|H <!>? ? ? ? Ot- .??t The dominating thought this New Yea ) not how the old vear has flown, but how it "flu." 0 ?<!><?«"" One of the inscriptions on a Sketty war shrine bears th.' line old 9 xon name oi "Hereward Wake.' Turkeys at Is. per lb., laverbread at 6d., cockles 50 a penny, mussels six a penny, oysters 15 for a shilling. Not bad as priceJ for New Year's market. Lieut.-Colonel Bullock, at the Unitarian Church, Swansea, on Sunday, was about t4 recite a parable. He ""llid, drily: "Those w ho want to sleep, sleep on." 11 There have been no cases for hearing ai Swansea Bankruptcy Court for the past threl months. People who are owed money locally, ho.vever, are most eloquent on th< subject In the spirit of the times. A Swansea tramcar drawn up at a loop, the driver (an old "s-waddy") came rigidly to the salute, most. gCTupulously acknowledged by th* ». passing officer. I have met men. sometimes brought up in the wilds of Wales, who have gone td London for a few years and come back foT" getting their Wel?b-a verv, vet'. sma 11 people. people."—(Rev. H. J. Stewart, Sketty.) | A rag-'md-bone me-jhmt was seen trud? ing along the Strand. Swansea, with hI' faithful moke, all smiles, in the pouring rain. He had jgit bought iin old bedstead for nine* pence. "Iron is iron these days mate." h< exclaimed to the en,-ions driver of a pa«sinj ash -cart. x $ x { .-< > '$» The new lvziter supply at Mumbles is prow mg to a very mixed blessing. Whilst in certain places there are thousands of gallon* running to waste, in others the residents « have had no water for a week. Under tht old regime (writes a correspondent) one wat at least practically csitain of a. Furp] vdurini a portion of the day. "I have found out" (said Lieut.-Colonel Bullock at the S\vans?a Unitarian Church on Sunday) that the story of God making women from the rib of man is a mytfh. I believe God made women out of the bick- bone of men; that is how some men have no backbone to face the question of liberty or li-ondage! A well known St. Thomas boy, in the person of Cyclist Edgar Lacev, of the XI. i Corps Cyclist Battalion, arnved itome on Thui'sdiiy from France after thirteen months in tho field. Cyclist Lacey will be bfred Cf the Divisioti M one of tlie star ;¡,t.is1\II the. fanvjTv-. Division#! Cyclist Co. Panto. Party, ex. tiixt since the Fommn offensive commenced. i The announcement by Capt. Fi-aiicis (t to fisheries inspector), and endorsed by Mr. Molyneux, that "there was more fish in Swansea Bav than had been the case for th# past forty years." carries with it a serious reflection upon the activities and capabili- ties of the members of t-be Swansea Bay Angling Club, and casts a doubt upon many "fishy" yarn (thinks Lug Worm. ") <?-<  -< $ >  <  < > Swansea has a pathetic interest in the v Daily "Telegraph Musical Notes review of the pa.8t year, in which the writer states J "Quite early in the year the loss was mourned of one of the most gifted and promising of our young singers, one, more- over, who had particularly distinguished i himself in the domain of nati_ ve opera we, refer to Williti-m Samuell, a Welsh baritone whose work with the Beeoham Company won for him the warmest praises. "A standing grievance imong I playgoers I m general" (writes Musicus ) "is that, the necessary intervals between acts are more than often occupied by the orchestra playing a harmless waltz or a hideous rag- time. In striking contrast one would like to compliment Mr. W. F. Hulley, the musical director of the Swansea Grand Theatre, for the taste and propriety displayed in his entrwte music for "Romance," especially "The Barcarolle'' and "The Intermezzo." An amusing refere.nce to the last Pbrlia- meaitary contest in the district was made at a concert held at the Congregational Chapel, Tycroes, the other evening, when a speaker, moving a vote of thanks to the chairman, Mr. Mervyn Peel (who fought Mr. Towyn 'Jones, M.P.), remarked thrt they were pleased to "see the lion among the, Daniels." Responding, Mr. Peel said he was much struck with the simile, for during his visit to the neighbourhood at election time he found himself like Daniel in the lion's den." Lieut. Dick Player, who was welcomed on Swansea 'Change on Saturday morning, has the national distinction of being counted among the Swansea young docksmen to first "move off." At the outbreak of war he was local manager for Messrs. Lindsay, German and Co. Additionally he has the persona l distinction of having received his commis- sion on the field of warfare. And it is all most gratifying to those of us remaining of the Swansea detachment of that joyous company, the Royal Naval Artillery Volun- teers, of which his father, Mr. Osmond Player, was the writer's chief petty officer.- (" Pro Patria.") '«  <  -<  < x x $ > Swansea will miss Poole's" this year. They were at Xmastide for very many years at Swansea as regular an institution as. plum pudding or Xmas trees. Formerly ex- j hibiting at the old Drill Hall in Singleton- street—long since replaced by th.e Grand Thea-tre-- thev moved to the Albert Hall, and have\ been there at Xmas-time for more years than most people can remember. Originally presentinrr a series of panoramic view of scenes in ■ ign lands, etc., lat- terly variety turns, hod a good deal modified an entertainment which was, of its kind, unique. For the first X mas for many sea- sons, Poole's and the Rev. Oscir Snelling are seen no more at the Albert Hall. The spirit of our boys at y,ill ront is simply wonderful The folLowtag;!? ?e copy of a pantomime contents bill, not, far behind the Firiit,, 'ine:—"The greatest show on earth. Patronised by all the nobs and toffe in Europe. Jim Slow, the Sleeping Man, will appear—the only living man ever known to sleep on the platform of a 15-inch howitzer in action. Tack Slugger had offered to box any living C.O., no matter what, weight, and, to prove that no advantage will be taken, x Slogger will use two bricks, and the C.O. can use what gloves he likes. Wonderful trans- formation scene—the dash of the Tanks, ac- companied by cavalry, followed by infantry, through the lines of Huns,*a«d the crushing of the German army. Price of admission-* fags, rum, cakes, and tobacco."