Evening star., 1928-12-29
100000 IN WALES
NOW OUT OF WORK
Description of Coal Industr1
Makes Plight Acute-Re-
lief Hope Dim.
BY the Associated Press.

BY the Associated Press.
MERTHYR TYDFIL, South Wales,
December 29.-Two hundred thousand
men are wearily tramping the streets
of the mining villages of England and
Wales, without work and with little
hope of work. In the phrase of the Of
fetal statistician, they are the per-
manent surplus of the coal mining in
dustry.
There is no question of demand for
high wages, or an unwillingness to work.
They have been caught in the nip OF
a failing demand. The development of
hydro-electric energy, the conversion of
big passenger liners and warships to the
use of oil fuel and a reduced demand
for coal in other directions have left
the miners high and dry. Their saw
ings are gone and they are eking out
a meager existence on the So-called
dole of poor law relief or public charity.
They are rapidly approaching destitu-
ton.
Children Face Suffering.
Travelling through the mining dis
tricts one hears story after story of
mother sacrificing herself for her chill
dren. In South Wales the school teach
ers themselves are contributing part OF
their salaries to keep the children shod.
Yet, despite all this, despite national
appeals from the pulpit, through the
press and the radio, in some Welsh VIII
lages so per cent of the children are
facing the rude Winter of the noun
tains without proper clothes and shoes.
AS the writer drove over the mountains
near Glamorgan snow SW1rled down
into the mining villages, giving to the
idle collieries and added air Of desola-
ton and despair.
Glamorgan, in South Wales, is the
spearhead of unemployment. Its 28.6
percentage is the high. In Merthyr
Tydil are 10000 without work. In the
neighboring district, Mountain Ash,
which is devoted entirely to mining,
unemployment reaches 80 per cent.
$4,OOO,OO0 Is Advanced.
In the strike two years ago, the Mer-
thyr Board of Guardians advanced
$4,000, 900 to the distressed miners and
their families in vouchers for food and
clothing. Little has been repaid. In
addition the Merthyr Guardians owe
$2,500,000 to the ministry Of health
for advances which the Guardians, too,
cannot repay. The Pontypridd Guard
ians, who have the Rhondda Valleys
within their area, advanced 81, SOC, 900 to
miners families in vouchers during the
strike. Only $4,000 has been repaid.
The Pontypridd Guardians likewise owe
$2,500,000 to the Ministry of Health
xuI,ioh f11oyy unable tn nav
Meanwhile demands on poor law re-
lief itself increase. In the whole coun-
try of Glamorgan 1t is estimated $4,000
persons are receiving relief under the
poor laws which is totally apart from
government unemployment insurance.
And no able-bodied man Is entitled to
poor law relief. He can get 1t only
through necesSitous wife and children.
The single man, indeed, is caught be-
tween two fires. His claims for the un-
employment dole have to meet the most
difficult conditions. Unable to obtain
poor law relief, he tramps the country
for time, generally returning to his
own village. Some have adopted the
old expedient of getting married so as
to be able to claim poor-law relief
through necessitous wife. "It is bet
ter to marry than to starve," one such
observed to the writer.
Young Men Offered Aid. -
While women and children, suffer,
young men crowd the picture shows
nightly or parade the street, their
spirits and initiative rapidly dwindling.
Outside the employment exchange Of
Merthyr Tydf1l the writer observed
group of unemployed languidly reading
large announcement by the British
minister of labor that free farm train
ing was available to approved single
men between the ages Of 19 and IS, and
fares would be paid to the training CEN
ters of Great Britain.
The advertisement read, allowances
will be given and free passages to as
sured work at good wages in Canada." !"
Other advertisements, both Canadian
and British, stressed openings for farm
work in Canada.
But SO far there Is no evidence of q
widespread desire for migration. Some
Of the minor -harvesters who went to
Canada last Fall declared their inten-
ton to return the coming Summer and
then stay for good.
Free Passage Asked.
"But before there can be any great
development In migration" says George
Hall, miner, member of Parliament for
Aberdard, who toured Canada with the
empire parliamentarians last Summer,
there must be not only reduced pas
sages but free passages. These people
have no money. They have spent all
their earnings. Their houses can be
purchased for half or a third of their
rateable value. They cling to the hope
of possible revival of trade A num-
ber Of young men have expressed their
desire to go to Canada, but being struck
Off the unemployment benefit first
they have no money to CO."