Excerpts from the Polish chronicles in the magazine 'News from Poland'. This issue briefly mentions living conditions in Montceau-Les-Mines, housing issues in this coalfield, as well as issues relating to education. In addition to this, we find a note on the monument erected to General Bem in Hungary (Source: "Wieści z Polski", Warsaw 1930, R: 3, no. 1, pp. 26-27, after: Jagiellonian Digital Library).

A modernised reading of the text

POLISH LIFE IN MONTCEAU-LES-MINES.

Mr Kowol writes in the Narodowiec in an article entitled "Montceau-les-Mines":

"Finally Montceau-les-Mines. The capital of the coal basin, known to every Polish exile. The town, beautifully situated in a mountainous area, makes a generally favourable impression.".

Some of the streets are reminiscent of our Douai in northern France. Only the traffic is much lighter.
There are no warehouses, or Polish inscriptions at all. There is a Polish bookshop somewhere hidden away, but it is not much. Such a highly developed Polish commercial life as can be seen in some cities in northern France is apparently not to be found anywhere.

But Polish life is there. In the whole of the Montceau-les-Mines basin, belonging to the Blanza mining company, there are about 10,000 Poles. Namely in La Saule about 100 families, in Blanzy 250 families, Bois de Verne 300 families, Magny 260 families, in Baudras-Essarts 200 families. Apart from that, a whole lot of single people.
Working and pay conditions? Not good. - Even less good than in northern France in general. First of all, wages are much lower.

Miners are often forced to work in water, which causes rheumatism even among the younger ones.
The coal deposits are high, much higher than in northern France; therefore, in some places there is a robbery economy, which again has a negative impact on the miners' safety. The situation of the workers, as we can see, is also extremely difficult here.

School conditions for Polish children are better than in the north. At present, there are already 17 Polish teachers in the district, who work devotedly and with great enthusiasm for the children and, for the most part, do not shy away from social cooperation with the exiles. The work of the teachers is similar to that in Eastern France. The teachers' work, as in Eastern France, of which we shall write, bears beautiful fruit here and is supported by all.

The teachers work hand in hand with the priests, of whom there are two in the area. In Gautherets there is the sympathetic and zealous Father Dean Ryba, in Montceau-les-Mines Father Mieczkowski.

The housing conditions of the workers are not good everywhere. Some still live in cramped and inconvenient barracks, such as in Magny, although it must be admitted that a new colony is currently being built here, which will somewhat prevent the lack of housing.

In La Saule we visited the "Ste Marie" shelter for the elderly, where two Polish sisters work. Polish services, meetings etc. are held here. In the reception room, there is an image of Our Lady of Czestochowa. The Sister Superior, a Frenchwoman, assures us of her great friendship for the Poles. There is beautiful evidence that this friendship is indeed sincere.
We drive towards Gautherets. The colony is truly exemplary. The houses are clean, white, with gardens, the streets are well maintained, the colony itself is in complete harmony. - It's just a pity that it's so far from the town and the railway station.

We enter some of the flats. That it is Sunday, so everywhere the mood is festive, everywhere exemplary order.
Miner Szymanowski, with his great and deep knowledge of things, gives us information about the working conditions in the local mines. They are tough. He explains exactly why. You can see that this is a man who is interested in his work and who has read and learned a lot.

There are, as we said, about 500 Polish families living in Gautherets. Maybe even more. In any case, at least 80 per cent of the inhabitants, are Polish. The settlement is a completely new one. Ask a Frenchman where Gautherets is: he won't know. But ask where "La ville polonaise" - "the Polish town". He will show you the way straight away.
Gautherets has a Polish priest, Polish teachers, it has an orphanage, a "Kropla mleka" establishment, there are four Polish sisters, a Polish clinic with a doctor who knows Polish well and connects with Poles.

A MONUMENT TO THE GRATITUDE OF HUNGARIANS TO GENERAL BEM.

The Hungarians decided to commemorate General Bem's service by erecting a monument to him in the Hungarian capital, Budapest, where a special committee was formed to build the monument.

A meeting of the monument building committee was held at the Feszek club in Budapest, where Baron Dr Albert Nyary gave a speech in front of a large audience, pointing out the great role of General Joseph Bem in Hungarian history.

Impressed by this speech and several others that followed, it was decided to raise sufficient funds to erect a bronze figure of the hero in the heart of Hungary, which would be a monument to the gratitude and resurrection of Hungary.