NEATH, a municipal and parliamentary borough and market-town of Glamorganshire, South Wales, is prettily situated near the mouth of the Neath, and on two railway lines, 8 miles north-east of Swansea and 39 west-northwest of Cardiff. The older streets are narrow and ill-paved; but there are several handsome villas on the slopes bordering the town. The principal buildings are the parish church of St Thomas, a large and plain structure with an ancient tower; the new church of St David’s; the townhall, with corn exchange in the basement story; and the new market-house. There are slight remains of the castle of Jestyn-ap-Gwrgan, situated about a mile from the town, and rebuilt in 1111 by Richard de Granville. Of the Cistercian abbey—Abbaty-Glyn-Nedd—which he also founded, and which was at one time the finest abbey in Wales, there still exist the external walls, with parts of the chapel, vaulted chapter-house, refectory, and abbot’s house. The town is situated in the midst of an important mineral district, and possesses very extensive tinplate works, as well as blast furnaces, iron foundries, steam-engine factories, copper-works, and chemical manufactures. In the neighbourhood there are large coal-mines. Vessels of 300 or 400 tons can reach the quays at high tide, and parliamentary powers have been secured to erect new docks. With Abernant and Swansea there is water communication by means of canals. There is a large export trade in coal, copper, iron, and tin, the principal imports being timber and general merchandize. Neath is included in the Swansea parliamentary district of boroughs. The population of the municipal borough (1486 acres) in 1871 was 9319, and in 1881 it was 10,409. That of the parliamentary borough (1629 acres) in 1881 was 11,216....