Welsh Journals

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Industwm.. On November 3rd the miners' strike was declared off by the Miners Federation, although the (ballot resulted in a majority of 8,459 against the acceptance of the agreement arrived at between the Government and the Federation Executive. The figures for South Wales were For the Agreement 51,647 Against ··· ··· ·.· ··· 98,052 Majority against 46,405 The strike has left an aftermath of intense bitterness in South Wales between some of the leaders and some of the extremists. Both Mr. Brace and Mr. Hartshorn resigned their seats on the Federation. As for the public, it lost interest in the settlement of the strike by reason of its being engrossed in the Greenwood trial at Carmarthen-the Kidwelly solicitor who won a verdict of Not Guilty after a six days' fight for his life, with Sir Marshall Hall as leading counsel for him. Apropos of the Kidwelly case, one fact, in spite of all their vigilance, appears to have escaped most, if not all of the newspapers. The fore- man of the jury, owing to the sudden snap of the tension of six days, was not able to get further than the words Not Guilty." He held on a piece of paper in his hand the carefully considered, carefully worded statement of the belief of the twelve good men and true. It was to the effect that they were of the opinion that a dose of arsenic had played its part, but there was no evidence as to when given nor by whom. Immediately the spokesman of the jury got as far as Not Guilty," — which was their unani- mous verdict-there broke out such a tumult of excitement that the further expression of the mind of the jury was lost, and no trace of it may be found in the authentic record-if there is one -of the exhausting proceedings of the most talked of trial of the twentieth century. ART AND MUSIC. Councillor Morgan Jones, of Bargoed, has been warmly com- mended for the suggestion made by him at a meeting of the Glamorgan Education Committee. He advocated, and carried the Committee with him, that the Welsh National Museum be approached with a view to the promotion of a series of art exhibitions during the coming year. There was," he said, a quantity of work by the very best artists unpacked in the Museum, which the Museum Committee would be very glad to lend. The large schools and the central halls under the control of the Education Committee afforded an opportunity to bring those works before the children and adults, who would otherwise have no chance of seeing good art." The South Wales Art Society's Exhibition opened at 82, Queen Street, Cardiff, on November 12th. Many local artists were represented, among them being Mr. Evan Walters, of Swansea. The Hon. Secretary of the Society is Mr. A. T. Fisher, and the Chairman is Mr. A. K. Foy. Dr. Walford Davies spoke to a crowded audience at Cardiff on November 13th on Music in Wales Fifty Years hence." He thought that by 1970 almost everybody would be learning music. The cinema would be a great ally to music, and first-rank musicians would be writing music for the gramaphone, and especially for the cinema. RURAL. The Development Committee of the National Farmers' Union have agreed to the establishment of a Welsh Branch of the Union with a Welsh-speaking full-time secretary. 'The cost of the UNIVERSITY COLLEGES. UNIVERSITY COLLEGE, CARDIFF. The number of students at Cardiff this year is greater than ever, being no less than 1,050. A new hall of residence for women has been established outside the city at Llanishen. Mere male students have still to be content with lodgings scattered throughout the district. Although large numbers of students have come up direct from school, ex-service men still have predominant influence in college life. New departments of archaeology, of preventive medicine, and of social service have been instituted this session. The provision made by Major David Davies. M.P., for the establishment of a Chair of Tuberculosis has attracted public attention throughout the country. Welsh office is not to exceed il,000 a year. It will be probably located at Aberystwyth, so as to be in close touch with the Welsh Department ot the Board of Agriculture. The South Wales Sea Fisheries Committee met at Swansea on November 13th. Cockles and oysters came in for a great deal of discussion. The Clerk of the Committee is reported by The South Wales News to have made the following interesting contribution :— contrl Years ago an old woman used to decide when there should be fishing at Penclawdd and when there should not, and she was implicitly obeyed; now there was no such control, and the result was that cockles were gathered, the majority of which were no larger than one's little finger nail." At a meeting of the Agricultural Wages Board, in London, consideration was given to the very careful and exhaustive report from the Pembroke, Carmarthen, and Cardigan District Wages Committee on the subject of English boys on farms in Wales. The whole system needed, so the Board thought, care- ful reconsideration. As far back as 1913 the Welsh School of Social Service called the attention of the Home Office to this matter. PUBLIC HEALTH. The Welsh National Memorial Association have appointed Col. Lyle Cummins, Professor of Pathology at the Royal Army Medical College, Chief Medical Officcer of the Association. Still in the forties," writes a correspondent of the Manchester Guardian, Colonel Cammins has an intensely human outlook- cheerful, kindly, common-sense. He offers great promise as a research writer, and now that there is placed at his disposal the wonderful equipment, powerful organisation, and great experience of the Welsh National Memorial Association, big advances in the war against our most insidious disease may be expected TENDENCIES. On October 18th a Conference of the Women Magistrates of Glamorganshire (both County ard Borough) was held at Cadoxton Lodge by invitation of Mrs. Coombe Tennant, J.P., to meet Miss S. M. Fry, M.A., Hon. Sec. of the Penal Reform League. The following details are given in the hope that similar gatherings may be arranged, it having been the unanimous opinion of those present that the Conference in question achieved valuable results. The proceedings began with lunch, and the first session for discussion lasted from 2 to 5 p.m. An interval of three-quarters of an hour followed, to allow for tea, and the second session of discussion lasted from 5-45 to 7 p.m. Those present then had supper and travelled by evening trains to their homes. The subjects under discussion were those of great importance to women taking up this new work. Miss Fry opened the first session with a short account of the general theory of criminal administration. Police Court work was then considered. Juvenile Courts and juvenile delinquents, the working of the probation system, cases specially affecting women and children, the question of accorrmodation for persons detained on remand, and opportunities for useful work likely to arise immediately for Women Justices. The second session was devoted chiefly to the consideration of the working of our Penal System as it is, to the subject of Prisons and Prisoners, Borstal Institutions and Reformatory Schools, and of suggested reforms making for the more effective treatment of delinquents." The Diarist is indebted to The Woman's Leader of October 29th for this valuable report of an interesting tendency in Welsh national life. There is great activity amongst the musically gifted section of the College. The Choral Society is flourishing, and it is hoped that an Orchestral Society will be formed shortly. An innova- tion which must be successful is the holding of evening concerts on alternate Saturdays throughout each term. The concert on November 13th included a performance of J. O. Francis's The Poacher." The Welsh Society of the College is preparing for the pro- duction of ISsen's Ghosts, in Welsh. The Dramatic Society also is this year turning its attention to the modern drama. Debates are better attended and more seriously treated than they have b"en at any time within the memory of the present generation of students.