A tour in Wales. MDCCLXX: [pt.2]

IN this, the ſequel of my former tour, I directed my courſe weſtward from Downing, paſſed by Whiteford, our pariſh-church, and aſcended the hill of Garreg, or the Rock, a high and moſt conſpicuous part of the country. The Romans took advantage of it, and placed on its ſummit a Pharos, A PHAROS. to conduct the navigators to and from Deva, along the difficult channel of the Seteia Portus. The building is ſtill remaining. I hope my friends will not deem me an antiquarian Quixote, and imagine me miſtaking, in this my ſecond ſally, a building, hitherto ſuppoſed to have been a wind-mill, for a Roman light-houſe. It is tolerably entire; its form is circular; the height conſiderable; the inner diameter twelve feet and a half; the thickneſs of the walls four feet four inches. The doors, or entrances, are oppoſite to each other: over each is a ſquare funnel, like a chimney, which opens on the outſide, about half way up the building. On each ſide is a window. About four feet from the ground are three circular holes, lined with mortar, as is frequent in Roman buildings; and penetrate the whole wall, for purpoſes now unknown.

WITHINSIDE are the veſtiges of a ſtair-caſe, which led to the floors, of which there appear to have been two. Along ſuch part of the upper, which was conſpicuous from the channel, are eight ſmall ſquare openings, caſed with free-ſtone (the reſt of the building being of rude lime-ſtone, bedded in hard mortar) and each of theſe were ſeparated by wooden pannels, placed in deep grooves, the laſt ſtill in a perfect ſtate. In each of theſe partitions were placed the lights, which the Romans thought neceſſary to keep diſtinct, or to prevent from running into one, leſt they ſhould be miſtaken by ſeamen for a ſtar. Periculum in corrivatione ignium, ne ſidus exiſtimetur Plini • Hiſt. Nat. lib. xxxvi. c. 12..

To the building is very evidently a broad and raiſed road, pointing from the eaſt; and near its upper end are the marks of a trench, which ſurrounded and gave protection to this uſeful edifice. Deſcend, and near the foot of the hill leave on the left Maen Achwynfan, the croſs deſcribed in my former tour. Glol, an incloſed mountain a little farther on, has among the buſhes various circular foundations of ſtone unmortared building. About a mile from hence, NEWMARKET. viſit the ſmall town of Newmarket, almoſt the entire creation of its then owner, John Wynne, eſq of Gop, who died in the preſent century. The antient name of the pariſh is Trelawnyd, for which I can find no ſatisfactory reaſon. In the church-yard is a handſome old croſs. Here is fixed one of the charity-ſchcols, founded and opened in 1726, by doctor Daniel Williams, a diſſenting miniſter, with an endowment of eight pounds a year; a charity which he extended to every county in North Wales, diſtinguiſhing that at Wrexham, the place of his birth, by an annual ſalary of fifteen pounds. He alſo eſtabliſhed a fund, I believe, to each, from which the children are apprenticed, at five pounds apiece.

FROM the town I aſcended the hill, Cor. called Copa'r'leni, on whoſe ſummit is a moſt enormous carnedd, or tumulus, formed of limeſtones. It was probably the ſite of ſpecula, or exploratory tower, and memorial of ſome chieftain. If Roman, perhaps Paulinus gave name to it, Cop-Paulini. There is great uncertainty in theſe derivations: I may poſſibly as well abide by my former etymology of Cop yr Goleuni, or the Mount of Lights; for it might have been a place of ſignals by fire of the approach of an enemy by ſea Tour in Wales, i. 413., or a ſtation of the holy fires, the Coel Ceithie of the Druids, ſimilar to the Karn Gollewa, the carn of lights, and Karn Leſkyz, or carn of burnings, of the Cornish, ſuppoſed by the learned BORLASE Antiq. Cornwall, 131. to have been uſed for ſimilar purpoſes. The tract from hence to Caerwys was certainly a field of battle: no place in North Wales exhibits an equal quantity of tumuli; but all ſepulchral, as is proved by the urns diſcovered in them: they are of a far inferior ſize to the firſt, and covered with turf. It will not be too hazardous a conjecture to ſuppoſe, that in this place was the ſlaughter of the Ordovices by Agricola, when our gallant nation was nearly extirpated. Part of the brow of the hill is called Bryn y Saethiau, or the Hill of Arrows, from being the ſtation of the archers in the engagement.

RETURN along the ridge of the hill, marked its whole length with verdant tumuli, the tombs of ancient heroes. See beneath me the little church of Gwaen-yſkor, GWAEN-YSKOR. remarkable for its ancient regiſter.

DESCEND to the church and village of Llanaſa, the former dedicated to St. Aſaph, whoſe feſtival is kept on the firſt of May. LLANASA. Laurence Child, Biſhop of St. Aſaph, in 1385, procured the impropriation of this church to ſupply his cathedral with lights Willi's St. Aſaph, 56, App. No. xxi., and repair the ruins occaſioned by the wars. In my approach from theſe high lands towards the ſhore, obſerve the ruins of a ſmall chapel at the little hamlet of Gweſpyr, near Trelacre, one of the ſeats of Sir Pyers Moſtyn, Baronet, a branch of the houſe of Moſtyn. His adjacent quarry is noted for the excellence of the free-ſtone; and his vaſt and profitable warren beneath, noted for the delicacy of the rabbets, by reaſon of their feeding on the maritime plants.

PASS over Gronant-Moor. GRONANT. There is a tradition, that its extent was ſo great, that the people on this ſide could hold converſation over the channel with thoſe of Cheſhire. This may be exaggerated; but from authentic records, it appears, that this flat was formerly very extenſive, and that it had been reduced to its preſent ſcanty limits by the fury of the ſea, which ſtill poſſeſſes its antient place. Previous to that cataſtrophe, it was poſſeſſed by the ſee of St. Aſaph, by virtue of a grant made by Edward the Black Prince, ſon of Edward III. to Llewelyn ap Madoc, elected Biſhop of St. Aſaph in 1357. The inundation happened before the reign of Henry V. Previous to that time, the Biſhop paid annually into the exchequer at Cheſter, as an acknowlegement, the ſum of twenty marks: but Henry V. in 1414, and Henry VI. in 1445 and 1451, in conſideration of the misfortune, releaſed the ſee from that rentWillis's St. Aſaph, 65. App. No. xxxi. xxxii.. If this record did not remain an inconteſlable proof of the ravages of the ocean on this part of the country, there exiſt other natural ones, that would have given reaſonable grounds for ſuſpicion. The Hyle ſands, which run for twelve or fourteen miles parallel to the narrow hundred of Wiral, in Cheſhire, and divided from Wales by a narrow channel, were once, in all probability, part of the firm land of England. A few miles to the weſt of Gronant-Moor, under the pariſh of Abergeleu, in Denbighſhire, are to be ſeen at low water, very remote from the ſhore, bedded in the ſand, immenſe numbers of oak-trees, a foreſt before this event. Laſtly, in the church-yard wall of Abergelli is a dateleſs epitaph, in Welſh, ſignifying the perſon who was interred there lived three miles to the north of that ſpot, a tract now entirely poſſeſſed by the ſea.

ON approaching Preſtatyn, about two miles from Trelacre, the flat becomes extremely fertile in corn, eſpecially wheat, which is of diſtinguiſhed excellence; and continues equally noted through all the flat tract, as far as Ruddlan, where it is interrupted for a ſpace by the marſh, and is again continued along the coaſt far beyond Abergeleu. A little below Preſtatyn-mill, in a meadow, is the ſite of its Caſtle: nothing more than an elevated ſpace, with foundations conſiſting of ſtone and mortar, and a foſs at ſome diſtance from it, now remain. PRESTATYN-CASTLE. This little fortreſs was probably built by the Welſh, but wreſted from them by the Engliſh, who were poſſeſſed of it in 1167, the only time I find any mention of it, when it was deſtroyed by Owen Gwynedd, Cadwalader his brother, and Rees Prince of South Wales; and all Tegengle reduced to the power of its lawful ſovereign.

THE hamlet and village of Preſtatyn lie in the pariſh of Meliden. This place was granted by Richard I. to Robert Banaſter, who enjoyed it for three years and a half, and built the town; which was deſtroyed by Owen Gwynedd. Robert de Crevecoeur, in the ſeventh year of Edward I. laid claim to it in right of his anceſtor, Banaſter. An inquiſition was made, before a jury of twenty-four men Sebright's MSS.: their determination was in favor of Robert; ſince I find, by another record, that he died poſſeſſed of lands in Maelwr Saeſneg and Preſtatyn, which he held by the ſervice of one knight's fee.

THE road from hence to Diſerth is extremely pleaſant, at the foot of high hills, rich in lead ore, with a fine and fertile flat to the right. The white rock makes a conſpicuous figure on the left, and its ſides appeared deeply trenched by the miners in ſearch of ore. Near this place is the beginning of the vale of Clwyd, and the termination of the range of mountains, which bound it on the eaſt. At a ſmall diſtance from hence lies the church of Diſerth, in a pictureſque and romantic bottom, beneath ſome rude rocks: the church overſhaded with great yews, and the ſingular figure of ſome of the tombs, form a moſt ſtriking appearance. DISERTH CHURCH. A water-fall in the deep and rounded hollow of a rock, finely darkened with ivy, once gave additional beauty to this ſpot; but of late the diverting of the waters to a mill, has robbed the place of this elegant variation. The ſtream, which is little inferior to that of Holywell, flows principally from a ſingle well, called Fynnon Aſa, or St. Aſaph's Well, in a dingle in the pariſh of Cwm, about a mile diſtant. The fountain is incloſed with ſtone, in a polygonal form, and had formerly its votaries, like that of St. Winefrede.

ABOVE Diſerth church, on a high rock, ſtand the remains of its Caſtle. We cannot trace the foundation of this fortreſs, which went by the names of Din-colyn, Caſtell y Ffailon, and Caſtell Gerri Llwyd's Itin. CASTLE. It probably was Welſh, and the laſt of the chain of Britiſh poſts on the Clwydian hills. Henry III. in 1241, fortified it Powel, 307.; but its date was but ſhort, for in 1261 Llewelyn ap Gryffydd raſed both this caſtle, and that of Diganwy Same, 326.. It was at a ſiege of this place that Eineon, the ſon of Ririd Vlaidd, was ſlain Hengwrt, MS.. A croſs was erected on the ſpot, called Croes Eineon, the ſhaft of which, ornamented with ſtrange ſculpture, now is ſuppoſed to form the ſtile into the church-yard of Diſerth; in which is another croſs, of very curious workmanſhip.

THE caſtle occupied the ſummit of the rock, whoſe ſides are eſcarpée, or cut ſteep, to render the acceſs more difficult. On one part, beneath the top, is a ſquare out-work, with foſſes cut in part through the ſolid lime-ſtone. The fragments of the caſtle ſhew, that its ruin was not effected by time: they lie in vaſt maſſes, overthrown by mining, which was a common method of beſieging, very long before the uſe of powder.

IN a field a little to the ſouth of the caſtle, is a ruinous building, called Siamber Wen. This is ſaid to have been the ſeat of a Sir Robert Pounderling Llwyd's Itin. MS., once conſtable of the adjacent caſtle, SIR ROBERT POUNDERLING. a knight valiant and prudent, who had one of his eyes knocked out by a gentleman of Wales, in the rough ſport of tournament; but being requeſted to challenge him again to feates of armes, on meeting our countryman at the Engliſh court, declined the combat, declaring that he did not intend that the Welshman ſhould beat out his other eye Leland's Itin. vi. 23..

Moel Hiraddug, a Britiſh poſt, on a very ſteep and rocky hill, with an immenſe agger of looſe ſtones on the acceſſible part, ſtands to the ſouth of the caſtle, and forms the next to it in the chain of fortreſſes Tour in Wales. On the eaſt ſide, and on a place called Marion, are long deep trenches, out of which minerals have been dug, probably in the times of the Saxons: the ore appears, by the fragments, and color of the rubbiſh, to have been iron: and on the ſummit of the hill (which is in the pariſh of Cwm) is a great bed of beautiful red ſpar, which ſeems to take its tinge from the ore.

Cwn church, as the word ſignifies, is emboſomed with hills, and fronts the vale of Clwyd. CWM CHURCH. On a very antient ſtone in the church-yard is this inſcription, Hic jacet TANGWISTE, uxor LLEWELIN ap INIR; but whether of Inir of Yale is uncertain.

FROM Diſerth I rode to Bod-Rhyddan, long the reſidence of the Conways, a family derived from Sir Hugh Conway, ſon of old John Coniers, of Richmond, Yorkſhire, brother to Jevan Lord Coniers Mr. W. Mytton's Coll. Pedigrees.: his ſon Sir Henry, by marriage with Angharat, heireſs to Sir Hugh Crevecoeur, of Preſtatyn Salusbury Pedigree, p. 68. b. , probably acquired the ſettlement in this country. Preſtatyn continued poſſeſſed by the Conways till the death of Sir John Conway, Baronet, in 1721, the laſt of the male line, when the eſtate was divided.

ABOUT a mile and a half farther ſtands the ſmall borough of Rhuddlan, ſeated high on the red, clayey banks of the Clwyd, and above Morſa-Rhuddlan, a marſh celebrated for the battle in 795, between the Saxons and Welſh: our monarch Caradoc fell in the conflict Powel, 20., and, I fear, victory declared againſt us. We do indeed ſay, that Offa, the famous king of Mercia, was ſlain here; but the Saxon chronicle places his death Sax. ch. 65. the year before that battle. The fine plaintive Welſh tune, ſo well known by the name of Morfa-Rhuddlan, is ſuppoſed to have been compoſed on this occaſion: for victories are not the only ſubjects for the harp. How beautifully does David lament the blood of the ſlain on the mountains of Gilboa: HOW ARE THE MIGHTY FALLEN, AND THE WEAPONS OF WAR PERISHED!

THE caſtle had been a handſome building, in a ſquare, with two extremes placed at oppoſite corners, with a double round tower at each; and a ſingle one at the two other corners. CASTLE. The court forms an irregular octagon. The ditch is large, faced on both ſides with ſtone. The ſteep ſlope to the river was defended by high walls, and ſquare towers: one is entire, and there are veſtiges of two others: the firſt is called Twr-y-Silod; another, in the caſtle, was named Twr-y-Brenhin, or the King's Tower.

To the ſouth of the caſtle, at about a furlong diſtance, is a large artificial mount, the ſite of another fortreſs, of very early date; the whole ſurrounded by a very deep foſs (including alſo the abby) which croſſes from the margin of the bank, near the aſcent of the preſent road to St. Aſaph, to another parallel road; near which it is continued, then turns and falls nearly into the ſouthern part of the walled ditch of the caſtle: the whole forms a ſquare area, of very great extent. Theſe different works were formed at three ſeveral times. The mount, now called Tut-Hill, and its ſuperſtructure, (whatever it was) is thoroughly Britiſh, and is ſaid to have been built by Llewelyn ap Sitſylt, who reigned from the year 1015 to 1020 Cambden, ii. . It was a reſidence of our princes from that time: but Gryffyd ap Llewelyn, in 1063, having given offence to Edward the Confeſſor, by receiving Algar, one of his rebellious ſubjects, was attacked by Harold, who in revenge burned the palace at Rhuddlan Powel, 100. . It was ſoon reſtored, and as ſoon loſt. Robert, afterwards ſurnamed of Rhuddlan, a valiant Norman, nephew to Hugh Lupus, earl of Cheſter, conquered it from the Welſh, and, by the command of William the Conqueror, fortified it with new works Order. Vital. 670. , and made it his place of reſidence; from whence he greatly annoyed our countrymen. The ſquare towers are evidently of Norman architecture, and naturally adopted by the new owner. Robert received here a viſit from our prince Gryffydd ap Kynan, who came to ſollicit aid againſt his enemies, from the Norman warrior; which he obtained: but on ſome quarrel attacked him in his caſtle, took and burnt the bailey, or yard, and killed ſuch a number of his men, that very few eſcaped into the towers Life of Gr. ap Kynan. SEBRIGHT MSS..

Henry II. in 1157, added new ſtrength to the caſtle, and left a conſiderable garriſon in it before he quitted the country. Notwithſtanding this, Owen Gwynedd, in 1167, took and diſmantled it; but it was afterwards re-fortified by the Engliſh; for it appears that this fortreſs had, with two others, been beſtowed by Henry, with Emma his natural ſiſter, on David ap Owen, ſon and ſucceſſor to Owen Gwynedd. Here, in 1187, he entertained, very nobly, Baldwin archbiſhop of Canterbury, in his progreſs through Wales Girald Cambr. Itin. 872. . Poſſibly he reſigned it again to the Engliſh; for I find that in 1214 it was beſieged and taken by Llewelyn ap Jorwerth, his ſucceſſor in the principality Powel, 270..

I MUST not omit relating, notwithſtanding I am unable to give the year of the event, that Randle Blundeville, earl of Cheſter, was in this caſtle ſurprized by a body of Welſh, and lay in the utmoſt diſtreſs, until he was relieved by his lieutenant, Roger Lacy, alias Hell; who collecting ſuddenly a rabble of fiddlers and idle people, put the beſiegers to flight. In reward, he received from the earl, Magiſterium omnium Leccatorum et meretricum TOTIUS CESTRESHIRE Leiceſter, 142. This Earl of Cheſter held his earldom from 1182 to 1232..

I FIND it in poſſeſſion of Edward I. in 1277; who was ſo well convinced of its importance in the conqueſt of Wales, that he made it the rendezvous of all the forces deſtined for that purpoſe. It was the place d'armes, and the great magazine of proviſion for the ſupport of his army, in its advance into the country. The reigning prince, Llewelyn ap Gryffydd, knew the danger of leaving ſo conſequential a place in the hands of his enemy: but it reſiſted all the moſt vigorous efforts made on it in 1281, by Llewelyn and his brother David, juſt reconciled to him by the ſenſe of their common danger. Soon after, it proved the place of confinement to the letter, not long before his ignominious end at Shrewſbury.

IN order to ſecure it from any future attempts, Edward turned all his thoughts towards founding a fortreſs impregnable by any future attempts of the Welſh. He accordingly began with an act of juſtice, that of making recompence to Maſter Richard Bernard, parſon of Rhuddlan, for certain lands taken from him for the purpoſe of enlarging the caſtle Ayl • ff's Rot. Wall ••• . 75.; and again, in 1282, made an exchange with the ſame church, of ſix acres and a half, for the ſame uſes Sebright MS. : and on which he built the caſtle, whoſe ruins we now ſurvey. The finiſhing of it took a conſiderable time; for I find an order in 1291, for overlooking the works at the caſtles of Rhuddlan, Flint, and Cheſter Ret. Walha. 98.. I cannot but remark here, the ſtrong neceſſity of curbing the new-conquered country with powerful garriſons; for notwithſtanding all the ravages of long and barbarous wars, it remained ſo exceedingly populous, that Edward politically drafted out of it not leſs than fifteen thouſand men, in aid of his Scottiſh expedition Carte, II. 264. The conſequence proved almoſt fatal to him: for while he lay encamped near Linlithgow, a national quarrel enſued between the Engliſh and Welſh troops; and after great bloodſhed, the latter ſeparated themſelves from his army Da •• ym ••• 's Anna's, II. 257..

DURING the civil wars of the laſt century, TAKEN BY GEN. MYTTON., it was garriſoned on the part of the king; was taken by general Mytton in July 1646; and in the ſame year ordered by the parlement in the phraſe of the times) to be ſlighted, i. e. diſmantled, with many other Welſh caſtles Whitelock, 231..

IN reſpect to the civil hiſtory of Rhuddlan, I find, that in the reign of Edward the Confeſſor, it made part of the great territories of earl Edwin. It was then, by reaſon of the inroads of Harold, a waſte; and continued ſo when it was poſſeſſed by Hugh Lupus. It then became the capital of the diſtrict: and Hugh enjoyed a moiety of the church, the mint, and mines of the iron ore found in the manor Probably thoſe which we have mentioned in the pariſh of Cwm, to which this maner might have extended; for Diſſarch, or Diſerth, adjoining to Cwm, is cited in Doomſday-Book as belonging to it.; and a moiety of the water of Clwyd, i. e. of the mill and fiſhery on ſuch part which belonged to earl Edwin; a moiety of the foreſts on the manor, and of the toll, and of the village called Bren: and there were at this time in Rhuddlan eight burgeſſes. All this Hugh Lupus granted to Robert of Rhuddlan, with an addition of certain hamlets dependent on the place; and a new borough was erected, with eighteen burgeſſes, who enjoyed the ſame privileges with thoſe of Hereford and Bretril; and were exempted from all fines exceeding twelve-pence, except in caſe of manſlaughter, theft, and heinfare, i. e. the depriving a perſon of his ſervant Doomſday-Book. .

EDWARD I.A BOROUGH. made this town a free borough, appointed the conſtable of the caſtle for the time being to be mayor, and the bailiffs to be choſen annually by the burgeſſes on Michaelmas-day, who were to be preſented to the conſtable to be ſworn. The town was to have power of impriſoning, except in ſuch caſes which affected the life, or loſs of limb: when criminals of this nature were to be committed to the caſtle, burgeſſes only were permitted to bail. No Jews were to inhabit the town. The burgeſſes had a foreſt and free warren; a gild cum hauſa et loth et ſhoth, ſok ſak et theam et inſangentheſt et lib. per totam terram de Theoloniis, leſtagio, Muragio, Danegeld, Gaywite, &c.

THIS charter was given by the King at Flint, September 8th, in the twelfth year of his reign; Teſtibus, Rob. Bath & Wells, &c. and confirmed by Richard II. at Leiceſter, and again at Weſtminſter.

No conſtable has been appointed ſince the days of Oliver Cromwel.

THE burgeſſes contribute towards electing a member for the borough of Flint. Thoſe who are qualified inhabit the place, and that part of the pariſh called Rhuddlan Franchiſe, which extends above a mile from the town.

THE parlement ſaid to have been held here in 1283, JTS PARLEMENT. by Edward I. was probably no more than a council aſſembled by the conqueror, to divide his new conqueſts into counties, and to give ſalutary laws to the Welſh; to aboliſh any antient cuſtoms which the wiſe prince thought detrimental, and to introduce ſuch of the Engliſh as would prove of uſe. This was not done haſtily; for in the year preceding, a commiſſion had been appointed, with Thomas Beke, biſhop of St. David, preſident; who were to conſider and report upon oath the different laws of both countries. From their reſolutions were framed the famous STATUTE OF RHUDDLAN; in which, among many excellent inſtitutions, were introduced ſheriffs and coroners, their powers defined, and the principal crimes of the times pointed out: moſt of which were acts of violence, rapine, and theft; ſuch as might be expected to exiſt among people: an evil which reſulted more from the turbulence of the times, than the want of wholeſome laws See the Statuta Walliae paſſim..

A PIECE of antient building, called the Parlement Houſe, is ſtill to be ſeen in Rhuddlan; probably the place where the king ſat in council. From hence he actually practiſed the well-known deceit of giving them a prince born among them, who never ſpoke a word of Engliſh, and whoſe life and converſation no man was able to ſtain Powel, 376.: all which our diſcontented nobility eagerly accepted, little thinking the perſon intended, to be the infant Edward, juſt born at Caernarvon.

THE bridge conſiſts of two arches.BRIDGE. It appears to have been rebuilt or repaired in 1595: that date, with the arms of St. Aſaph, and the initials of William Hughes, the biſhop of that time, being cut in the battlements. The tides flow very little higher than this place; and bring up to the bridge ſlats or veſſels of about ſeventy tons. The port of theſe parts is about three miles further, at the vorryd, or great ford, where the river diſcharges itſelf into the ſea; and from whence much corn and timber is exported.

THE houſe called the Gwindy, or Wine Houſe, GWINDY. muſt not be forgotten. There are few towns in Wales which have not one of that name: but the uſe has long been loſt. In old times, moſt gentlemen's houſes had one in their neighborhood, where they met their friends and retainers, to ymgampio, or to exert feats of activity. Here the gentleman kept a wine cellar, which he retailed for his own profit. Here they paſſed the day in archery, wreſtling, throwing the ſledge, and other manly exerciſes. At firſt, the drinking was moderate: but at length the purpoſe was abuſed; and theſe places were made the ſanctuary for all ſorts of crimes, committed by the dependents or friends of the owner of the Gwindy, who were recommended to his care: and there Llawruddion, i.e. perſons who came red-handed from a murder, were protected till compoſition could be made for their crimes.

THE church is dedicated to St. Mary. CHURCH. It has nothing remarkable about it, except an antient grave-ſtone, with a flowery croſs and ſword; the laſt the mark of the gentility of the perſon interred. The patronage of this church was granted in 1284 to the ſee of St. Aſaph, in recompence for the loſs of that of Eglwysvach, which had been taken from it, and beſtowed on the abby of Conway Willis's St. Aſaph, 159. Rot. Walliae, 92..

THE priory of black-friers, ſtood about half a mile ſouth of the caſtle. There is a fragment which bears the marks of antiquity: the reſt is diſguiſed in the form of a farm-houſe and barn. We do not know the time of its foundation: but it was certainly before the conqueſt by Edward I. as Anian, or Eineon de Schonan, a friar of this houſe, was made biſhop of St. Aſaph in 1268. It ſuffered much in the wars between Edward and Llewelyn, but ſoon recovered its loſſes, towards which they were allowed 17l. 10s. Rymer, ii. 292. beſides a grant of a fiſhery on the Clwyd with one net, free from any obſtruction Rot. Walliae. 90.. On the diſſolution, the houſe was granted to Harry ap Harry, and now belongs to John Davies, eſq of Llanerch.

NEAR this place were certain lands, called Nunneland and St. Marieland Sebright MSS.: but whether they had reference to any houſe of female religious, I cannot ſay.

THE hoſpital, which exiſted in 1281, ſtood between the town and Bodyryddan.

As ſoon as Edward I. had finiſhed the fortifications of Rhuddlan, and filled his new town with inhabitants, he and biſhop Anian II. made different petitions to the pope, to remove the ſee of St. Aſaph to this place Rymer, ii. 245, Willis's St. Aſaph, 45.149.155. They urged the ſolitude and inſecurity of the former; its hazard from banditti; and the danger to which the body of the moſt glorious confeſſor St. Aſaph was continually expoſed: and the king in particular adds, the great ſafety of this place, by reaſon of the vaſt works he had completed. But theſe petitions never took effect: fruſtrated either by the death of the pope, or the exhortion of the archbiſhop of Canterbury, to rebuild the cathedral on its antient ſite.

A LITTLE beyond the priory I deſcended the bank, ST. ASAPH. and fording the Clwyd, ſoon came in ſight of St. Aſaph. The handſome extenſive bridge, the little town, and the cathedral mixed with trees, form a moſt agreeable view. The place is ſeated on the ſlope of a pleaſant eminence: the cathedral on its ſummit. The Clwyd runs on the eaſtern ſide: the Elwy, a moſt turbulent ſtream; on the weſtern: and from the laſt is taken the Britiſh name of Llan-Elwy. The townſhip in which it ſtands, is alſo called Bryn-Paulin; and one part of it, Bron y Wylfa, or the brow of the watch: from which circumſtances, as well as the great fitneſs of the ſituation, between two rivers, I cannot but think that it was a place of encampment of Paulinus, in his way; to or from Mona.

ITS eccleſiaſtical hiſtory may be ſpoken of with more certainty. When Kentigern, biſhop of Glaſgow, was driven from his ſee in 543, he retired into Wales, and eſtabliſhed here a monaſtery for nine hundred and ſixty-five monks, inſtituted on the ſame plan with that of Bangor; part for labor, part for prayer. SII. Here he built a church; and having won over the British prince Maglocunus, once his violent opponent, eſtabliſhed here a ſee, and was himſelf the firſt biſhop. Being recalled to Scotland, he nominated for ſucceſſor, Aſaph, or Haſſaph, a Briton of great piety and good family (being grandſon of Pabo pou Prydain). He died in 596, was buried in his cathedral, and gave name to the place.

THE church was firſt built of wood; but ſoon after, of ſtone. In 1247, during the wars of Henry III. the dioceſe was deſtroyed by fire and ſword Matthew Paris, 642., and the biſhop, who ſided with the Engliſh, obliged to live on alms. In 1282, CATHEDRAL. the cathedral was burnt down; but ample amends was made to the ſee, by the grant of Edward I. of lands in Newmarket, Nannerch, Dincolyn, Cwed y Mynedd, and a rich mineral tract in Diſerth: four hundred and nine acres were given, each of which appears at that time to be valued at only ſix-pence Sebright MSS.. In 1402, the church underwent new misfortunes: being burnt by Owen Glyndwr, together with the palace, and canons houſes; who, ſtrange to ſay! ſoon after brought over to his party, John Trevor, the injured biſhop of the ſee, who was deprived on account of his revolt. After this, the church remained in ruins for eighty years, when it was re-built by that worthy prelate, Richard Redman. The ſame building ſtill remains, handſome, plain, and neat. The preſent dean and chapter are now rebuilding (out of a fund veſted in them for that purpoſe) the choir, after the inevitable dilapidations of time in the ſpace of near four hundred years. The good imitation of the gothic, and the happy copy in the eaſt window, of the noble remains in Tintern abby, will add no ſmall beauty to the church, and credit to the idea.

THE tombs are very few.TOMBS. Here is one in an epiſcopal habit, ſuppoſed to commemorate that munificent biſhop, David ap Owen, who died in 1512; and in the church-yard, near the weſt door, is a plain altar monument of biſhop Iſaac Barrow, who departed in 1680: and whoſe pious addreſs I can read without any offence, howſoever papiſtical zealots may think it. Exuviae ISAACI ASAPHENSIS Epiſcopi In manum Domini depoſitae In ſpem letae reſurrectionis Per ſola CHRISTI merita, Obiit dictus Reverendus Pater feſti D. JOHANNIS BAPTISTAE. An. Dom. 1680. Aetatis 67. Et tranſlationis ſuae undecimo. O vos tranſeuntes in Domum Domini In Domum orationis Orate pro conſervo veſtro, Ut inveniat miſericordiam in die Domini.

IN the church-yard of the pariſh-church, is another tomb, ſingular enough, with foliage, a ſhield with a lion rampant, inſcribed around, Hic jacet Ranulſus de Smalwode; and beneath the ſhield paſſes a ſword, held by a hand. It is ſaid to have been brought from Rhuddian; but we are left unacquainted with the perſon whoſe memory it perpetuates An old drawing of this, and ſome other antient Welſh monuments, were moſt obligingly preſented to me, by that excellent antiquary, the Rev. Mr. William C • le, of 〈◊〉 , near Cambridge; a gentleman, to whom I have been frequently indebted for variety of uſeful information..

THIS church ſtands at the lower part of the town, and ſerves for the uſe of the inhabitants of the town and country, the cathedral not being uſed for that purpoſe.

THE members of the chapter are the dean, archdeacon, (who is the biſhop) ſix prebendaries, and ſeven canons. Beſides theſe, belong to the church, four vicars choral, four ſinging-men, four choriſters, and an organiſt.

THE preſent palace is not very magnificent. The walls are the ſame with thoſe built by biſhop David ap Owen, reſtorer of the houſe, in 1503, after it had lain in ruins a hundred years.

THE dioceſe comprehends all Flintſhire, excepting Hawarden; all Denbighſhire, but the deanery of Dyffrin Clwyd; all Montgomeryſhire, excepting ſeven pariſhes; and the hundreds of Mowddwie, Penllyn, and Ideirnion, in Meirionyddſhire: and treſpaſſes a little even on Shropſhire. The number of livings are a hundred and thirty; of which all, except ſeven Viz. Holywell, Flintſhire; Kevedoc, alias St. George, Denbighſhire; Kinnerſley, Oſweſtry, Knocking, Whittington, Selattin, Sal • p. , are in the patronage of the biſhop: as is the valuable deanery.

THE road from St. Aſaph along the common called the Row, is extremely beautiful: is watered by the Elwy, which runs beneath lofty banks, finely wooded: at its extremity is Pont yr allt Gôch, a noble bridge of one lofty arch, eighty-five feet in diameter. The Elwy here takes another direction, running weſt, and then north, along moſt romantic dingles, varied with meadows, woods, and cavernous rocks: neither is it deſtitute of antiquities. Y fynnon vair, or our lady's well, a fine ſpring, incloſed in an angular wall, formerly roofed; and the ruins of a croſs-ſhaped chapel, finely over-grown with ivy, exhibit a venerable view, in a deep wooded bottom, not remote from the bridge: and this, in days of pilgrimage, the frequent haunt of devotees.

THE moſt capital view of theſe pictureſque glens, PENCRAIG. is from Pencraig, on the grounds of Mrs. Jones, of Galt-vaenan; from whence is a ſight of three at once, together with an unſpeakable variety of other objects, extremely worthy a viſit from every traveller.

AT Llannerch, the chief ſeat of my kinſman, John Davies, eſq formerly called Lleweni Vechan, about half a mile to the eaſt of the bridge, I ſtopped a while to admire the charming view of the vale of Clwyd, with the magnificent boundary between it and Flintſhire. The intervening plain is of matchleſs fertility: incloſures creep high up the hills; the remaining part is divided into various ſummirs, in the ſeaſon, glowing to the ſetting ſun with the purple flowers of the heath. Churches and neat manſions enliven the ſcene. From Tremeirchion-Green, placed high above Llannerch, is a very fine view of the whole vale, of the weſtern • oundary, and the lofty tract of Snowdon. The middle, from end to end, is enriched with towns and caſtles; among which riſes ſupreme, the rock of Denbigh, topped with its great fortreſs.

IN Tremeirchion church is the mutilated tomb of Sir Robert Pounderling, before mentioned. By his croſſed legs, it ſeems he had attained the merit of pilgrimage to the holy ſepulchre.

UNDER a handſome gothic arch lies, DAFYDD DDU. in prieſtly veſtments, well executed, the image of Dafydd Ddu, or the black of Hiraddug. Underneath is inſcribed, Hic jacet DAVID AP RODERIC AP MADOC. He was vicar of this place, and dignitary of St. Aſaph: prophet and poet; and had a great concern in regulating our proſody. The Daroganen, or prophecies of Robin Ddu, ſo celebrated in North Wales, I believe properly belong to Dafydd, who flouriſhed in 1340, above a hundred years before the time of Robin.

IN this church ſtood a croſs, celebrated for its miracles, which are celebrated in an owdwl, or poem, about the year 1500, by Gryffydd ap Iſan ap Llen vychan. The croſs is now demoliſhed; but the carved capital is ſtill to be ſeen, in a building adjoining to the church-yard.

IN the bottom, not far from Tremerchion, lies, half buried in woods, the ſingular houſe of Bachegraig. It conſiſts of a manſion, and three ſides, incloſing a ſquare court. The firſt conſiſts of a vaſt hall, and parlour: the reſt of it riſes into ſix wonderful ſtories, including the cupola; and forms from the ſecond floor the figure of a pyramid: the rooms ſmall, and inconvenient. The bricks are admirable, and appear to have been made in Holland; and the model of the houſe was probably brought from Flanders, where this ſpecies of building was not unfrequent. The country people ſay, that it was built by the devil, in one night, and that the architect ſtill preſerves an apartment in it: but Sir Richard Clough, an eminent merchant in the reign of queen Elizabeth, ſeems to have a better title to the honor. The initials of his name are in iron on the front, with the date 1567; and on the gate-way that of 1569.

SIR Richard was a man of diſtinguiſhed character, who raiſed himſelf, by his merit, from a poor boy at Denbigh, to one of the greateſt merchants of his time. He was firſt a choriſter at Cheſter Puller's Br. Worthies. Flintſhire, p. 40.: then had the good fortune to become apprentice to the famous Sir Thomas Greſham; and afterwards his partner. His reſidence was chiefly at Antwerp, where his body was interred: his heart in Whichurch, a neighbouring church. He is ſaid to have made a pilgrimage to Jeruſalem, and to have been made knight of the holy ſepulchre: this is confirmed; for he aſſumed the five croſſes, the badge of that order, for his arms Saluſbury Pe •• gree, 17. His wealth was ſo great, that Eſe a aeth yn Glough, or He is become a CLOUGH, grew into a proverb, on the attainment of riches by any perſon. He left two daughters: one he beſtowed, with this houſe, and certain tythes in Llein, on Roger Saluſbury, a younger ſon of Llewenni: the other on a Wynne, of Melay, with whom he gave the abby of Maenan. Sir Richard meditated great things for the advantage of his country: he deſigned to make the Clwyd navigable from Rhuddlan; to have introduced commerce; and to have made the ſides of his court the magazines, from which he was to diſpenſe his imports to the neighboring parts.

IN front of the houſe, croſs the Clwyd on Pont y Cambull, and, turning to the left, croſs it again at Pont Gryffydd, in order to ſearch in the pariſh of Bodfari, for the antient Varis. Soon enter the deep paſs, formed by nature in the Clwydian hills, from the vales into the county of Flint. But neither my own examination, or that of ſome intelligent friends, availed any thing. The ſole remaining antiquity is Britiſh; a poſt on a hill to the left, called Moel y Gaer, or the hill of the camp. The beauty of the ride makes amends for the diſappointment. The vale is narrow, fertile, diverſified with groves, and watered by the cryſtal Wheeler. The part about Maes mynan is ſingularly fine, conſiſting of detached hills, cloathed with timber; a charming extent of meadows; and the lofty mountain Moel y pare, ſkirted with trees, contraſting; itſelf to the ſofter part of the ſcenery. This place is at preſent the property of Sir Roger Moſtyn, purchaſed by one of his family from the Meſſies, a name which repreſented the county of Flint as early as the firſt of queen Mary Williſ's Not. Parliam. ii. part and. 25.. This place has been called Llys Maes Mynan, or the palace of Maes Mynan, where Llewelyn ap Gryffydd, laſt prince of Wales, reſided in a houſe, whoſe foundations, till within theſe few years, were to be ſeen in an adjacent meadowHy • . Gwedir. 28. .

BUT there is no part of this vale that furniſhed me with the leſt veſtige of the Roman ſtation, Varis, mentioned by Antonine, in his eleventh Iter. and placed at nineteen or twenty-one miles diſtant from Conovium, or Caer-hên; for there appears an uncertainty in the reading.

QUIT the turnpike road on the left; ford the Wheler; and, after croſſing the Clwyd, reach Lleweni. On this ſpot is ſaid to have reſided, about the year 720, Marchweithian, one of the fifteen tribes or nobility of North Wales. At preſent it is the ſeat of the honorable Thomas Fitzmaurice, lately purchaſed by him from Sir Robert Saluſbury Cotton, baronet, of Cumbermere-Abby, in Cheſhire. That gentleman poſſeſſed this place by the marriage of his anceſtor, Sir Robert Cotton, with Heſter, ſiſter to Sir John Saluſbury, the laſt baronet of his name, in the time of Charles II. The Saluſburies were an Engliſh family, ſettled here before the time of Henry III. Several of the portraits were transferred with the eſtate, to the preſent owner, and preſerved in the magnificent old hall. Sir John Saluſbury the Strong, SIR JOHN SALUSBURY. is repreſented on board, a half length, with ſhort duſky hair, beardleſs, in a yellow figured jacket, a vaſt ruff, and one hand on his ſword: dated 1591: aet. 24. He ſucceeded to the eſtate on the execution of his elder brother Thomas, I. SIR THOMAS. who ſuffered in 1586, for his concern in Babington's plot. A picture, ſuppoſed to be his, is to be ſeen here; repreſenting him in a grey and black veſt, dark hair, ſhort whiſkers, buſhy beard, and with an ear-ring: his bonnet in his hand; his breaſt naked.

SIR Henry, SIR HENRY. the firſt baronet, is placed ſitting in his ſhirt; his boſom naked: over one arm is caſt a red mantle: his breeches red, with points at his knees; his ſtockings purple; his ſlippers rich in lace; his beard buſhy; his whiſkers ſmall: he is ſeated in a balcony, as if at his toilet. I have ſeen here a fine picture of his eldeſt ſon, Sir Thomas, II. SIR THOMAS. as much diſtinguiſhed by his pen as his ſword. He appears as if on the point of quitting his family, to join the army; for he was a diſtinguiſhed loyaliſt in the time of Charles I. He is taking leave of his lady and three children; is dreſſed in a buff ſurtout, brown boots, with a rich ſcymetar by his ſide; attended by two grehounds, a groom, dreſſed in a long canvas gown, holding a horſe, with the arms of the houſe on the man's ſhoulders, by way of badge. This gentleman was educated at Jeſus College, Oxford: and having, as Wood Athen, Oxon. ii. 25. ſays, a natural geny to poetry and romance, exerciſed himſelf much in thoſe juvenile ſtudies; and produced from his pen, the Hiſtory of Joſeph, in Engliſh verſe, in thirteen chapters. He retired to Lleweni; and died in 1643.

I MUST not omit the portrait of a lady,CATHERINE Y BERAIN. exceedingly celebrated in this part of Wales; the famous Catherine Tudor, better known by the name of Catherine of Berain, from her ſeat in this neighborhood. She was daughter and heireſs of Tudor ap Robert Fychan, of Berain: ſhe took for her firſt huſband John Saluſbury, heir of Lleweni; and on his death gave her hand to Sir Richard Clough. The tradition goes, that at the funeral of her beloved ſpouſe, ſhe was led to church by Sir Richard, and from church by Morris Wynne, of Gwedir, who whiſpered to her his wiſh of being her ſecond: ſhe refuſed him with great civility, informing him, that ſhe had accepted the propoſals of Sir Richard, in her way to church; but aſſured him (and was as good as her word) that in caſe ſhe performed the ſame ſad duty (which ſhe was then about) to the knight, he might depend on being her third. From this match I have the honor of ſome of Catherine's blood in my veins. As ſoon as ſhe had compoſed this gentleman, to ſhew that ſhe had no ſuperſtition about the number THREE, ſhe concluded with Edward Thelwal, of Plas y Ward, eſq departed this life Auguſt 27; and was interred at Llanivydd on the 1ſt of September, 1591.

HER portrait is an excellent three-quarters, on wood. The plate repreſents the dreſs. By the date, 1568, it ſeems to have been painted by Lucas de Heere; the only artiſt which I know of in that period, equal to the performance. I was told, that in the locket ſhe wore to the gold chain, was the hair of her ſecond and favorite huſband.

Lleweni, notwithſtanding it lies on a flat, has moſt pleaſing views of the mountains on each ſide of the vale: the town and caſtle of Denbigh form moſt capital objects, at the diſtance of two miles: and the nearer environs of the place, promiſe to animate die country by the commercial ſpirit of their active maſter.

David, brother of our laſt Llewelyn, makes great complaints of the havock made by Reginald de Grey, juſtice of Cheſter, in cutting down his wood of Lleweni Powel, 350.; which David probably held as lord of Denbigh.

ABOUT a mile and a half weſt of this houſe, viſit the church of Whitchurch, or St. Marcellus, the pariſh church of Denbigh. In the porch, a ſmall braſs ſhews, kneeling at an altar, Richard Middelton (governor of Denbigh caſtle under Edward VI. Mary, and Elizabeth) who, with Jane his wife, was interred beneath. Behind him are nine ſons: behind her ſeven daughters. He died in 1575: ſhe in 1565. His virtues are rehearſed in the following quaint lines: In vayn we bragg and boaſt of blood, in vayne of ſinne we vaunte, Syth fleſh and blood muſt lodge at laſt where nature did us graunte. So where he lyeth that lyved of late with love and favour muche, To fynde his friend, to feel his foes, his country ſkante had ſuche. When lyff did well reporte his death, whoſe death hys lyff doth trye, And poyntes with fynger what he was that here in claye doth lye. His virtues ſhall enroll his actes, his tombe ſhall tell his name, His ſonnes and daughters left behind, ſhall blaze on Erth his fame. Look under feete and you ſhall fynde, upon the ſtone yow ſtande, The race he ranne, the lyff he lead, each with an upright hand.

SEVERAL of the ſons were men of diſtinguiſhed characters. The third, William, was a ſea captain, and an eminent poet. His early education was at Oxford: but his military turn led him abroad, where he ſignalized himſelf as ſoldier and ſailor. He tranſlated the pſalms into Welſh metre, and finiſhed them on Jan. 4th, 1595, apud Scutum inſulam occidentalium Indorum; which, as well as his Barddoniaeth, or art of Welſh poetry, were publiſhed in London: the firſt in 1603, the other in 1593 Athen. Oxon. i. 284.. It is ſayed, that he, with captain Thomas Price, of Plâsyollin, and one captain Koet, were the firſt who ſmoked, or (as they called it) drank tobacco publickly in London; and that the Londoners flocked from all parts to ſee themSebright MSS.. Pipes were not then invented, ſo they uſed the twiſted leaves, or ſegars. The invention is uſually aſcribed to Sir Walter Raleigh. It may be ſo; but he was too good a courtier to ſmoke in public, eſpecially in the reign of James, who even condeſcended to write a book againſt the practice, under the title of The Counter-blaſt to Tobacco.

Thomas, the fourth ſon, became lord mayor of London, and was the founder of the family of Chirkcaſtle. It is recorded, that having married a young wife in his old age, the famous ſong of Room for cuckolds, here comes my lord mayor! was invented on the occaſionMyddelton Pedigree, MS..

Charles, the fifth ſon, ſucceeded his father in the government of Denbigh caſtle.

I NOW ſpeak of the ſixth ſon, Hugh; a perſon whoſe uſeful life would give luſtre to the greateſt family. This gentleman (afterwards Sir Hugh) diſplayed very early his great talents; and began, as we are told by himſelf, by ſearching for coal within a mile of his native place. His attempt did not meet with ſucceſs: his genius was deſtined to act on a greater ſtage. The Capital afforded him ample ſpace for his vaſt attempts: few readers need be told, that he planned and brought to perfection, the great deſign of ſupplying the city with water. This plan was meditated in the reign of Elizabeth; but no one was found bold enough to attempt it. In 1608, the dauntleſs WELSHMAN ſtept forth, and SMOTE THE ROCK: and on Michaelmas 1613, the waters flowed into the thirſting metropolis. He brought it, in defiance of hills and vallies, reckoning every winding, near thirty-nine miles; conveyed it by aqueducts in ſome places; in others pierced the high grounds, and gave it a ſubterraneous courſe. He was a true prototype of the later genius of ſimilar works; but he ſacrificed private fortune to the public good. Two thouſand pounds a month, which he gained from the Cardiganſhire mines, were ſwallowed up in this river Fodina Regales. 32.. He received the empty honor of ſeeing himſelf attended by the king, his court, and all the corporation of London, among whom was his brother (deſigned mayor for the enſuing year). The waters guſhed out in their preſence, and the great architect received their applauſe, and knighthood; and, in 1622, the title of baronet. His own fair fortune being expended on an undertaking, which now brings in to the proprietors an amazing revenue, he was reduced to become a hireling ſurveyor, and was eminently uſeful in every place where draining or mining was requiſite. I ſhall have occaſion to ſpeak of ſome other of his labors in the courſe of this book. He died in 1631Myddelton Pedegree MS.. Sir — Myddelton, the laſt baronet of this branch of the family, died a few years ago. The preſent repreſentative is a widow in diſtreſsful circumſtances: Sir Hugh left a certain number of ſhares to the Goldſmith's company, to be divided among the poor members; but, as the huſband of this poor woman happened not to be of the company, the repreſentative of the greateſt benefactor London ever had, is, I truſt through ignorance of her caſe, permitted to linger away her days in cruel penury.

A MURAL monument needleſsly attempts to preſerve the memory of that great antiquary,HUMPHREY LLWYD. Humphrey Llwyd. He is repreſented in a Spaniſh dreſs, kneeling at an altar, beneath a range of ſmall arches; above, a multitude of quarterings proclame his long deſcent. He derived himſelf from the Roſendales of the north, who ſettled at Foxhall, in this neighborhood, in 1297, by marriage with the heireſs of the place. He himſelf was of a branch, which fixed at Denbigh. He was educated at Oxford, a commoner of Brazen-noſe college, and maſter of arts. He returned to his native place, an accompliſhed gentleman. He ſtudied at the univerſity the healing art; but is celebrated as a perſon of great eloquence, an excellent rhetorician, and ſound philoſopher. After the panegyric paſſed on him by Cambden, it would be preſumptious to add any thing relative to his great ſkill in the antiquities of our country. He practiſed, for his amuſement, phyſic and muſic. The motto on his portrait, in poſſeſſion of his repreſentative John Lloyd, of Aſton, eſq expreſſes his liberal turn of mind: Hwy pery klod Nagolyd; FAME IS BETTER THAN WEALTH. In medicine, and the ſtudy of antiquities, he has left ſeveral proofs of his knowlege, which ſeems to have been quite unconfined. He made the map of England, for his friend Ortelius. For his brother-in-law, lord Lumley, (whoſe ſiſter he married) he formed a large collection of uſeful and curious books; which were afterwards purchaſed by James I. and now make the moſt valuable part of the Britiſh Muſeum Grainger, i. 270. For the hiſtory of his works, ſee Athen. Oxon. i.. In his laſt letter to the great geographer Ortelius Prefixed to his Commentarioli Britannicae deſcriptionis fragmentum. 410 edit. , he foreſees his own death, which happened ſoon after its date, in Auguſt 1568, aged 41. The very ſimple inſcription on the monument promiſes his character; but inſtead, appears only three lines of a pſalm tune.

THE CORPS AND EARTHLY ſhape doth reſt, Here tombd in your ſight, Of Humfrey Lloyd, Mr of Arte, a famous worthy Wight. By fortune's hapye Lore he Eſpowſyd and take hys wyfe to be Barbara, ſecond Syſter to the noble Lord Lumle: Splendian, Hare, Jane, and John, Humfrey, Alſo a Lumley, His Children were, of whych be dead Jane and eke Humfrey. His famous Monuments and dedes that luſteth for to ſee, Here in the Epytaph annext ſet forth at large they Be.

THE tomb of Sir John Saluſbury is altar-ſhaped: his image, and that of his lady, are placed in it, recumbent; he in armour; ſhe with a great ruff. Nothing is recorded of this good couple, except that Sir John died in 1578; and that ten years after ſhe erected this monument to his memory, and I ſuppoſe to her own, a blank being left for the year and day of her departure.

A LITTLE further ſtands Denbigh, placed, like Sterling, on the ſlope of a great rock, crowned with a caſtle. Its antient Britiſh name was Caſtell Kled vryn yn Rhôs, or the Craggy Hill in Rhos, the former name of the tract in which it is ſeated. The word Dinbech, the preſent Welſh appellation, ſignifies a ſmall hill, which it is, comparative to the neighboring mountains. The firſt time I find any mention of it, is in the beginning of the reign of Edward I. from whom David, in defiance of his brother Llewelyn, choſe to hold this lordſhip, together with the cantred of Dyffryn Clwyd R • tu • ae Walliae. 66.. He made it his reſidence till the conqueſt of our country; ſoon after which, he was taken near the place, and carried, loaden with irons, to the Engliſh monarch at Rhuddlan.

THE king politically ſecured his new acquiſitions, by beſtowing ſeveral of the great lordſhips on his followers. He gave that of Denbigh to Henry Lacy, earl of Lincoln, who built the caſtle, and incloſed within a wall the ſmall town he found there. Among other priveleges, he gave his vaſſals liberty of killing and deſtroying all manner of wild beaſts on the lordſhip, except in certain parts reſerved out of the grant; I ſuppoſe for the purpoſe of the particular amuſement of the lord Sebright MSS.; for I find, in the reign of Henry VI. the names of five parks in this lordſhip, viz. Moylewike, Careſnodooke, Kylford, Bagha ̄, and Poſey, of which the king conſtituted Owen Tudor, ranger. On the death of Lacy, the lordſhip paſſed to Thomas earl of Lancaſter, by virtue of his marriage with Alicia, daughter of the laſt poſſeſſor. After the attainder of Thomas, Edward II. beſtowed it on Hugh D'Eſpencer; who proved an oppreſſive ſuperior, and abridged the inhabitants of the priveleges granted to them by Lacy The ſame.. By the fatal end of that favorite, it fell again to the crown; and was given by Edward III. to another, equally unfortunate, Roger Mortimer earl of March; whoſe death enabled the king to inveſt with this lordſhip William Mountacute earl of Saluſbury. He died in 1333: and on the reverſal of the attainder of the earl of March, it was reſtored to his family, in the perfon of his grandſon Roger: and by the marriage of Anne, ſiſter to another Roger, last earl of March, with Richard Plantagenet earl of Cambridge, it came into the houſe of York, and ſo into the crown. Queen Elizabeth, in 1563, beſtowed it, as a moſt valuable gift, on her unmerited minion, Robert Dudley earl of Leiceſter; who ſoon made the country feel the weight of his oppreſſion. Notwithſtanding the tenants made him a preſent of two thouſand pounds at his firſt entrance into the lordſhip, he remained unſatisfied; he conſtrained the freeholders to raiſe the old rents of 250 l. a year, to 8 or 900 l. Secret Memoirs of Robert earl of Leiceſter, 89. and at his will incloſed the waſte lands, to the injury of the tenants; who, offended at his rapacity, aroſe, and levelled his encroachments. This was conſtrued into riot and rebellion: two hopeful young men, of the houſe of Lleweni, were taken to Shrewſbury, tried and executed there, for the pretended offence. He had the inſolence even to mortgage the manor to ſome merchants of London Strife's Annals, ii. 498.; and, I apprehend, tricked them for their credulity. The various diſorders which roſe from theſe practices, were ſo great, that Elizabeth interpoſed, and by charter confirmed the quiet poſſeſſion of the tenants, and allayed the diſcontentsBaron Price's Speech.. Theſe were again excited in die reign of king William, by the vaſt grant made to the earl of Portland. The ſame ferments aroſe, and the ſame means were uſed to allay them: at preſent, this, and the other great manors of Bromefield and Yale, remain in the crown, and are peacefully ſuperintended by a ſteward appointed by the king.

THE caſtle and incloſed part of the town, took up a very conſiderable ſpace, and were defended by ſtrong walls and towers: the laſt are chiefly ſquare. There are two gates to the outmoſt precinct: that called the Burgeſſes Tower, GATES. is large, ſquare, and built ſingularly, with ſmall aſhler ſtones. The other was called the Exchequer Gate, in which the lord's court was kept. Some few houſes, with moſt beautiful views, are at preſent inhabited in this part. Leland ſays, that there had been divers rows of ſtreets; but in his time there were ſcarcely eighty houſholders within theſe walls. Here ſtands the chapel, called St. Hillary's, formerly belonging to the garriſon, now the place of worſhip for the town. In old times, on every Sunday here were maſſes for the ſouls of Lacy and Percy Leland ITIN. v. 61.. Not far from it are the remains of an unfiniſhed church, a hundred and ſeventy-five feet long, and ſeventy-one broad, and deſigned to have been ſupported by two rows of pillars. This noble building was begun in 1579, as appears by the date on a foundation-ſtone. It was to this purpoſe; for at preſent it is much defaced: 1mo Martii 1579 Et Regni Re: Elizabethae 22. W.

ON the other ſide appeared,

Veritas, vita, via. Duo ſunt templa Dei. Unu mudus I. ein: eſt Pontifex primogenties ejus verbu Dei: Alterum rationalis anima: cujus ſacerdos eſt verus homo.

G. A.Copied from Dr. Foulk's Papers, among Mr, Mytton's MSS.

THIS church was begun under the auſpices of Leiceſter: CHURCH. but it is ſaid that he left off his buildings in Wales, by reaſon of the public hatred he had incurred on account of his tyranny Memoirs. . A ſum was afterwards collected, in order to complete the work; but it is ſaid, that when the earl of Eſſex paſſed through Denbigh, on his Iriſh expedition, he borrowed the money deſtined for the purpoſe, which was never repayed; and by that means, the church was left unfiniſhedDr. Foulk's Papers..

THE Caſtle crowns the ſummit of the hill,CASTLE. one ſide of which is quite precipitous. The entrance is very magnificent, beneath a gothic arch, over which is the ſtatue of Henry Lacy, ſitting in ſtately flowing robes. On each ſide of the gate-way ſtood a large octagonal tower. The breaches in it are vaſt and awful: they ſerve to diſcover the antient manner of building: a double wall appears to have been built, with a great vacancy between, into which was poured all forts of rubbiſh, ſtone, and hot mortar, which time conſolidated to a ſtony hardneſs. This part, as Leland ſays, was never completed, the work having been deſerted by the earl, on the loſs of his eldeſt ſon, who was accidentally drowned in the well, whoſe opening is ſtill to be ſeen in the caſtle-yard. Charles I. lay here on the 23d of September, 1645, after his retreat from Cheſter, in a tower ſtill called Siamber y Brenbin, or the King's Tower.

THE proſpect through the broken arches is extremely fine, extending in parts over the whole vale, and all its eaſtern hills, from Moel Venlli to Diſerth rock; a rich view, but deficient in water: the river Clwyd being too ſmall to be ſeen; and in great rains ſo furious, as to overflow a great ſpace of the meadowy tract.

LELAND relates a particular of this fortreſs, which I do not diſcover in any other hiſtorian: he ſays, that Edward IV. was beſieged in it; and that he was permitted to retire, on condition

DENBIGH CASTLE that he ſhould quit the kingdom for ever. The only time in which that prince was conſtrained to abdicate his dominions, was in 1470, when he took ſhipping at Lynn; not by reaſon of any capitulation with his enemies, but through the deſperate ſituation of his affairs at that period.

faſper Tudor, earl of Pembroke, had, in the year 1459, poſſeſſed this place, and ſeveral others in the principality, in behalf of his weak half-brother, Henry VI. Dugdale Baron, ii. 241 but they were wreſted from him by the Yorkiſts in the following year. In 1468 he returned, was joined by two thouſand Welſh, and burnt the townCarte. ii. 775.; meditating rather revenge than conqueſt.

IN the beginning of November 1645, the parlement army obtained, near this town, a moſt important victory over the royaliſts. The latter,BATTLE. under the command of Sir William Vaughan, had formed a conſiderable body of forces, Welſh and Iriſh, with a deſign of marching to the relief of Cheſter, then beſieged: Sir William Brereton had notice of the deſign, and immediately detached that able officer Mytton, and under him colonel Jones and colonel Louthian, with one thouſand four hundred horſe, and a thouſand foot, to fruſtrate the plan. Mytton did his duty, attacked the royaliſts with vigor, and after ſeveral hot engagements, totally routed them, took five hundred horſe and four hundred foot, killed one hundred, and ſo entirely diſperſed them, as not to leave a hundred together in one place Whitelock, 179..

In 164,SIEGE. we find the caſtle garriſoned by the loyaliſts: its governor was colonel William Saluſbury, of Bachymbyd, commonly called Saluſbury Hoſandu Gleiſiau, or Blue Stockings. The ſiege was begun under the conduct of major-general Mytton, about the 16th of July Whitelock, 216.; but ſuch was the gallant defence of the beſieged, that it was not ſurrendered till the 3d of November, and then only on the moſt honorable conditionsThe ſame, 226. For the Articles of Capitulation, ſee Appendix. . It is very remarkable, that notwithſtanding the orders of fallen majeſty, in June, for the general ſurrender of every garriſon in England and Wales, on fair and honorable terms, yet the firſt which yielded in North Wales, held out above two months longer than the laſt Engliſh caſtle.

THE priory of Carmelites, PRIORY. or White Friars, ſtood at the bottom of the town. It was founded by John Saluſbury, of Lleweni, who died, as appeared from a mutilated braſs, found in the conventual church, on the 7th of March, 1289 Collin's Baronets, Edit. 1720, i. 82.. Speed aſcribes the building to one John de Sunimore, in 1399; but the inſcription fixes the honor on Saluſbury. On the diſſolution, this houſe was granted to Richard Andreas and William L'Iſle. The church, now converted into a barn, is the only remaining building: it was the burying-place of the family of the founder, till the reformation; and ſome of their tombs were to be ſeen here within memory of man.

THE preſent town covers great part of the ſlope of the hill;TRADE. and ſome ſtreets extend along the plain. Its manufactures in ſhoes and gloves are very conſiderable; and great quantities are annually ſent to London, to the great warehouſes of the Capital, and for the purpoſes of exportation.

THE conſtitution of this borough, and its origin, will be fully explained by the following tranſcript, communicated to me by one of its burgeſſes. It begins with citing the laſt charter,CHARTER. which is that granted by king Charles II. which recites letters patent granted by queen Elizabeth, and dated at Weſtminſter the 20th of June, in the thirty-ninth year of her reign; in which the ſaid queen recites, "That ſeeing Edward I. by his letters patent, dated at Northampton the 29th of Auguſt, in the eighteenth year of his reign, hath granted to Henry de Lacy, earl of Lincoln, that all his men then inhabiting his town of Denbigh, or that ſhould for ever inhabit it, through all his territories, formerly belonging to the king of Wales, and alſo through the counties of Cheſter, Salop, Stafford, Glouceſter, Worceſter, and Hereford, ſhould be free and acquitted for ever from all toll, ſtallage, payage, panage, murage, pontage, and paſſage; and ſeeing alſo king Edward III. by his letters patent, dated at York the 27th of October, in the ſixth year of his reign, hath, for himſelf, and his heirs and ſucceſſors, then inhabiting, and afterward to inhabit, the ſaid town, ſhould, through the kingdom and dominions, be free and acquitted from all ſuch toll, ſtallage, payage, murage, pontage, and paſſage; and ſeeing alſo that Richard II. by his letters patent, dated at Weſtminſter the 22d of February, in the ſecond year of his reign, granted to the aboveſaid men, that the aforeſaid town of Denbigh, and half a mile compaſs about the town, ſhould be a free borough, and that the men inhabiting, and afterwards to inhabit, ſhould be free burgeſſes; and ſeeing alſo that Richard III. by his letters, dated at Weſtminſter the 10th of December, in the ſecond year of his reign, confirmed the aforeſaid grants, and by his ſaid letters patent did grant unto the ſaid burgeſſes, their heirs and aſſigns, being Engliſhmen, common of paſture for all manner of cattle, at all times in the year, in the common paſture of the town and foreſt of Lleweney; and that the burgeſſes aforeſaid, and their heirs and aſſigns, ſhould be free and acquitted, in all his dominions and territories in England and Ireland, ſoc, ſac, toll, and them, laſtage, ſtallage, payage, pannage, pontage, murage, and other cuſtoms whatſoever. And the aforeſaid queen Elizabeth, by her ſaid letters patent, did ordain, conſtitute, grant, and confirm, that the town and borough of Denbigh may extend, on every ſide, one mile and a half, according to the common acceptations of that place, from the high croſs ſtanding in the market-place of the ſaid town; and that the ſaid town and borough of itſelf, and the burgeſſes of the ſaid borough, now and hereafter in being, be, and ſhall be for ever hereafter, one body corporate and politick, in things, fact, and name, by the name of "THE ALDERMEN, BAILIFFS, and BURGESSES of the borough of Denbigh;" and it is alſo ordained, that there be a common ſeal for tranſacting of any cauſes or buſineſſes; and alſo ordained, that there be two aldermen, two bailiffs, and two coroners, and twenty-five of the better ſort and beſt reputed of the burgeſſes, to be capital burgeſſes and counſellors of the ſaid borough.

"THE aldermen and bailiffs are elected and nominated upon Michaelmas-day, yearly. There are two other officers, called ſerjeants at mace (or mace-bearers) for the execution of proceſſes and mandates iſſuing out of the court of the ſaid borough; they are appointed by the bailiffs of the ſaid borough for the time being.

"THERE is alſo a recorder of the ſaid borough, who is appointed by the aldermen, bailiffs, and capital burgeſſes.

"CONSTABLES, leavelookers, and other inferior officers, are likewiſe appointed by the aldermen, bailiffs, and capital burgeſſes.

"THERE is a council chamber, or guild, within the ſaid borough, for the purpoſe of holding and ſitting courts of convocation, before the aldermen, bailiffs, and capital burgeſſes.

"THERE is a court of record, to be held every other Friday through the year, before the bailiffs of the ſaid borough, or one of them; and in that court, by complaint made in it, they may hold all and all manner of pleas, actions, ſuits, demands of all ſorts of tranſgreſſions vi et armis, or otherwiſe; and alſo all and all manner of debts, accompts, bargains, frauds, detaining of deeds, writings, muniments, and taking and detaining of beaſts and cattle, or goods; and all contracts whatſoever, ariſing within the ſaid borough; and that ſuch pleas, ſuits, and actions, be heard and terminated before the bailiffs, or one of them.

"THE aldermen are juſtices, and hold quarter ſeſſions, in the ſame manner as county ſeſſions are held by ſtatute, to hear and determine cauſes; but not to proceed in caſe of death, or loſs of life or limb.

"No country juſtice to intermeddle with any matters or things whatſoever, appertaining to the office of juſtice of the peace, which ſhall ariſe or happen within the borough.

"RESIANT burgeſſes are to ſerve upon jury at the ſeſſions. "THE aldermen and bailiffs are commiſſioners of array. "THE reſiant burgeſſes are voters for a member for the borough."

I CANNOT but record the virtue of thoſe of the year 1572, who had the courage to withſtand the inſinuations, the promiſes, and the threats, of as unprincipled a lord as this kingdom was ever afflicted with; who had power to inflict, and will to execute, any vengeance that oppoſition to his arbitrary inclinations might excite. In that year it was his pleaſure that one Henry Dynne ſhould repreſent this borough in parlement; the burgeſſes were refractory, and choſe another perſon; which gave riſe to the following letter, which I print, as a ſans pareille.

A Lre ſent from the earle of Leiceſter to the bayliffe, aldermen, and burgeſſes, greatlie blaminge them for making choiſe of the burges of the parliament without his lordſhip's conſente, and commanding them to allter their electione, and to choſe Henrie Dynne.

I HAVE bene latlie advertiſed how ſmall conſideration youe have had of the Lre I wrote unto you, for the nomynaſion, of yor burgeſs, whereat as I cannot but greatlie mervayle (in reſpect I am yor L. and you my Tenaunts, as alſo the manie good tournes and comodities wch I have bene allwayes willinge to procure youe, for the benefitte of yor whole ſtate) ſo do I take the ſame in ſo —, and vill yte ſo unthankfullie, as yf youe do not uppon receite hereof preſentlie revoke the ſame, and appointe ſuche one as I ſhall nominate, namelie, Henrie Dynne, be ye well aſſured never to loke for any ffrienſhipe or favor at my hande, in any yor affayres herafter; not for any great accompt I make of the thinge, but for that I would not it ſhou'd be thought that I have ſo ſmall regard borne me at yor hands, who are bounden to owe (as yor L.) thus much dutie as to know myne advice and pleaſure; that will haplie be aleadged, that yor choice was made before the receipt of my Lres (in relie I would litle have thoughte that youe would have bene ſo forgetfull, or rather careleſſe of me, as before yor elecion not to make me privie therto, or at the leaſt to have ſome deſire of myne adviſe therein (havinge tyme ynoughe ſo to do) but as you have of yor ſelfes thus raſhlie proceded herein, without myne aſſent, ſoe have I thought good to ſignifie unto youe, that I mean not to take it in any wiſe at yor hands, and therefore wyſh you more adviſedlie to conſider hereof, and to deale with me as maye continue my favr towards you, otherwiſe loke for no favr at my hands: and ſo fare ye well. From the Court, this laſt day of Aprill, 1572.

R. LEYCESTER.

THIS doughty letter had no effect: the burgeſſes adhered to their own choice, and Richard Candiſhe, gent. ſtands as member for Denbigh in that year Willis Notitiae Parliam. iii. 98.. Leiceſter did but copy his miſtreſs in his contempt of privelege of parlements: Elizabeth thought them the mere inſtruments of giving ſanction to her will: for if they once preſumed to oppoſe it, ſhe without ceremony informed them of her diſpleaſure. Peter Wentworth, for the ſimple propoſition, that a member of parlement might, without controlment of his perſon, or danger of the laws, by bill or ſpeech, utter any of the griefs of this commonwealth whatſoever, touching the ſervice of GOD, the ſafety of the prince, and this noble realm, was ſent to the tower; and to the petition of the houſe for his releaſe, an anſwer was returned, that it was very unfit for her majeſty to give any account of her actions. Her prerogative was the rule of government: the great council was expreſsly forbidden to meddle in matters of ſtate, or in cauſes eccleſiaſtical Drake's Parliam. Hiſt. iv. 396.: and this was the GOLDEN REIGN of ELIZABETH!

FROM Denbigh I went to the hoſpitable houſe of Gwaenynog, about two miles diſtant, fronted by the moſt majeſtic oaks in our principality. The fine wooded dingles belonging to the demeſne are extremely well worth viſiting: they are moſt judiciouſly cut into walks by the owner, John Myddelton, eſq and afford as beautiful ſcenery in their kind, as any we have to boaſt. Moel Vamma ſuperbly terminates one view; and the ruins of Denbigh Caſtle burſt awfully at the termination of the concluding path.

IN rummaging over the family papers of this houſe, I met with an anecdote of it, too ſingular to be ſuppreſſed. It will prove at left, that private morals, and reſpect to the laws, were in that diſtant period but in a very low ſtate; for no notice ſeems to have been taken of ſo atrocious an offence. The criminal enjoyed the favor of the crown, in common with others its peaceful ſubjects.

David Myddelton, who is ſtyled receiver of Denbigh in the nineteenth of Edward IV. and Valectus Coronae Dni Regis, in the ſecond of Richard III. made his addreſſes to Elyn, daughter of Sir John Done, of Utkinton, in Cheſhire, and gained the lady's affections; but the parents preferred their relation, Richard Done, of Croton. The marriage was accordingly celebrated; which David having notice of, watched the groom leading his bride out of church, killed him on the ſpot, and then carried away his miſtreſs, and married her the ſame day; ſo that ſhe was a maid, widow, and wife twice, in one day. From Roger, the eldeſt ſon of the match, deſcended the Myddeltons of this place.

I MENTION Thomas Myddelton, another of his progeny, only to prove, that the cuſtom of the Iriſh howl, or Scotch Coranich, was in uſe among us; for we are told he was buried cum magno dolore et clamore cognatorum et propinquorum omnium.

HAVING made Gwaenynog my head quarters for this neighborhood, I one day viſited from thence Henllan, the pariſh church of theſe parts; remarkable for the ſchiſm between church and ſteeple: the firſt having retreated into the bottom, the laſt maintains its ſtation on the top of the hill. The church is covered with ſhingles; a ſpecies of roof almoſt obſolete. St. Sadwrn, or St. Saturnus, cotemporary to St. Wenefrede, has it under his protection. Here was interred Sir Peter Mutton, knight, deſcended from Richard Mutton, of Rhuddlan, and Elen, daughter to John (Aer Hên) Conway, of Bodrhyddan. Sir Peter, as his epitaph informs us, was chief juſtice of North Wales, a matter in chancery, prothonatory, and clerk of the crown. He died November the 4th, 1637. He had the honor of repreſenting the borough of Caernarvon; and once occaſioned much diverſion to the houſe, by aſſerting, in one of his ſpeeches, "that he remembered fourteen years before he was he was born, &c. &c." But he was a good judge, made a fair fortune, and by marriage acquired the eſtate of Llanerch, which paſſed with his daughter to Robert Davies, of Gwyſaney, eſq anceſtor of the preſent owner.

NOT far from Henllan church, in the pariſh of Llan-nefydd, on the bank of the brook Meirchion, are the remains of a ſeat of Mereddydd ap Meirchion, or Merach y Meirch, lord of Iſdulas. Part is now ſtanding, particularly the chapel, which ſerves for a farmhouſe; but ſome very extenſive foundations ſhew its former importance.

FROM hence, after a ride of a few miles, I reached Dyffryn Alled, or the vale of the river Alled, a very narrow tract, bounded by high hills, and of late ornamented by the magnificent ſeat built by Mrs. Meyric. At the head of the valley ſtand the village and church of Llanſannan, dedicated to St. Sannan, confeſſor and hermit; deſcended (for our very ſaints boaſt of their pedegree) from antient parentage, near the territory of the father of St. Wenefrede, with whom he maintained ſtrict friendſhip. Their remains were both enterred at Gwytherin; to which place, though unworthy, I reſolved on an immediate pilgrimage.

IN my way, I deſcended a very ſteep wooded dell, in the townſhip of Penared, to viſit the gloomy cataract of Llyn yr ogo, where the Alled tumbles into a horrible black cavern, overſhaded by oaks. Somewhat higher up is another, expoſed to full day, falling from a vaſt height, and dividing the naked glen. Llyn-Alled, the ſmall lake from which the river flows, lies at a ſmall diſtance, amidſt black and heathy mountains, through which runs much of the road to Gwytherin.

THAT little village and church ſtand on a bank, at the head of a ſmall vale, near the riſe of the Elwy. The church is celebrated for the honor of having firſt received the remains of St. Winefrede, ST. WINEFREDE. after her ſecond death. On the deceaſe of St. Beuno, ſhe was warned by a voice to call on St. Deifer at Bodvari; by St. Deifer ſhe was directed to go to St. Saturnus, at Henllan; and by St. Saturnus, to ſeek a final retreat with St. Elerius, at Gwytherin. Hither ſhe repaired, found a convent of nuns, received the veil from the ſaint, and, on the death of the abbeſs Theonia, ſucceeded to the high charge. St. Wenefrede died on the 3d of November, and reſted here in quiet, near the body of her predeceſſor, for the ſpace of five hundred years. By reaſon of a miracle, wrought, as was ſuppoſed, by her interceſſion, on a monk of Shrewſbury, the abbot determined on the tranſlation of her remains to their monaſtery.HER REMAINS TRANSLATED. Seven holy men were deputed: the inhabitants of Gwytherin refuſed to part with ſuch a treaſure: viſions determined the former to perſiſt in their requeſt: and at length, on the declaration of the will of heaven, by another viſion, to the parſon of Gwytherin, who declared to his flock the impiety of farther reſiſtance, the reliques were delivered up, and carried with triumph to their place of deſtinationThis, and much more, may be ſeen in the Life of St. Winefrede, pp. 38, &c. The prior at this time was Robert. Mr. William Mytton Antiquities of Shropſhire, folio MS. calls him Pennant. If he was of the neighborhood of Holywell, I do not wonder he was ſo anxious about the remains of his countrywoman, which he knew could not fail enriching his houſe, by virtue of the miracle-craft ſo frequent in that age.

IN the church is ſhewn the box in which her reliques were kept, before their removal to Shrewſbury. Here is alſo an antient graveſtone, with a flowery croſs and chalice (the laſt denoting the prieſtly profeſſion of the deceaſed) with Hic jacet Llowarch Mab Cadell, inſcribed on the croſs.

THE Saint's Chapel, Capell Gwenfrewi, is now totally deſtroyed: it ſtood on the ſouth ſide of the church; but nothing remains: except ſome ſlight ditches and foundations.

ON the north ſide of the church-yard ſtand four rude upright ſtones. On one is rudely cut an inſcription, for which I refer to the ſupplemental plates.

IN my return, I followed the courſe of the Elwy, by Havodynos, the ſeat of Howel Lloyd, eſq by the church and village of Llangerniew; by Garthewin, the ſeat of Robert Wynn, eſq commanding a moſt lovely view of a fertile little valley, bounded by hills covered with hanging woods; and by Llanvair Dôlhaearn, a village and church at a ſmall diſtance above the conflux of the Elwy and Alled. In this pariſh above the Elwy, was one of the reſidences of Hedd Molwynog, deſcended from RODERIC THE GREAT king of all Wales. YR HEN LLYS. A large moat, called Yr Hén Llys, marks th • place: as the field, ſtyled Maes y Bendithion, does the ſpot wher the poor received his alms Llwyd's Itin. i. 14. MS.. Molwynog was chief of one of the fifteen tribes of North Wales; was cotemporary with David a • Owen Gwynedd; and aſſiſted that prince to carry fire and ſwor • through England, even to the walls of Coventry. A deſcendant •• his third ſon, Gwrgi, peopled North Wales with Llwyds; ſo Bleyddyn, the ſon of Bleyddyn Vychan, aſſuming the addition •• Llwyd, or the Grey, founded the houſe of Havodynos. Among hi • good deeds muſt be told, that to him is owing the ſtone bridge 〈◊〉 Llanſanan.

I HOPE my countrymen will not grow indignant, when I expreſs my fears, that in very early times we were as fierce and ſavage as the reſt of Europe: and they will bear this the better, when they reflect, that they keep pace with it in civilization, and in the progreſs of every fine art. We cannot deny but that we were, to the exceſs, Jealous in honor, ſudden and quick in quarrel.

Two gentlemen of this houſe exemplify the aſſertion.RUDE TIMES. Meiric ap Bleyddyn, reſentful of the injuries which he and his tenants received from the Engliſh judges and officers) ſlew one of the firſt, and hanged ſeveral of the latter on the oaks of his woods; by which he forfeited to the crown the lands, ſtill known in theſe parts by the name of Têr Meiric Llwyd, or the eſtate of Meiric Llwyd Llwyd's Itin. i. 16.. As to his perſon, he ſecured it within the ſanctuary at Hulſton My Welſh Tour, i. 237.; and marrying, founded in that neighborhood the houſe of Llwyn y Maen.

Bleyddyn Vychan, another of this race, fell out with his tenants, and in a fit of fury chaſed them from his eſtate, and turned it into a foreſt Llwyd's Itin. i. 15.; a pretty picture of the manners of the times! The place lies in the pariſh of Llanſanan, and bears the name of Foreſt to this day.

RETURNED to Gwaenynog, and paſſing beneath Denbigh Caſtle, viſit Llanrhaider, a village in the middle of the vale, remarkable for an eaſt window of good and very entire painted glaſs, expreſſing a favorite ſubject of the time, the root of Jeſſe. The patriarch is repreſented ſprawling at the bottom, with a genealogical tree iſſuing out of him, containing all the kings of Iſrael and Juda, up to our SAVIOUR. The branches around the kings are in very beautiful foliage: at the top is a roſe of Lancaſter, and another with an eye in glory within it: the window being done in 1533, after the acceſſion of that houſe. Here, in a vaſt monument of Maurice Jones, of Llanrhaider, eſq may be ſeen Eternal buckle take in Parian ſtone. His figure is lying down, leaning on his arm, in his gown, with his wig in excellent curl, and ſurrounded by weeping genii, and much funebrial abſurdity.

IN the church-yard is a common altar-tomb of a gentleman, who choſe to build his fame on the long ſeries of anceſtors which diſtinguiſhed his from vulgar clay. It tells us, that HEARE LYETH THE BODY OF JOHN, AP ROBERT, OF PORTH, AP DAVID, AP GRIFFITH, AP DAVID VAUCHAN. AP BLETHYN, AP GRIFFITH, AP MEREDITH, AP JERWORTH, AP LLEWELYN, AP JERORH, AP HEILIN, AP COWRYD, AP CADVAN, AP ALAWGWA, AP CADELL, THE KING OF POWYS, WHO DEPARTED HIS LIFE THE XX DAY OF MARCH, IN THE YEAR OF OUR LORD GOD 1642, AND OF HIS AGE XCV.

ON an eminence to the north-weſt of the church, called Cader Gwladus, or Gwladus's A common Welſh name. Chair, is an extremely beautiful view of the vale between Denbigh and Ruthin, FINE VIEW. and the whole breadth chequered with wood, meadows, and corn fields; and almoſt the whole range of the eaſtern limits ſoaring far above it. Denbigh Caſtle from hence ſhews itſelf to great advantage, with its walls and towers extending along its precipitous baſe.

AT the foot of this riſing is Fynnon Ddyſnog, a fine ſpring, dedicated to St. Ddyſnog, one of our long pedegreed faints; formerly much reſorted to by votaries. The fountain is incloſed in an angular wall, decorated with ſmall human figures; and before is the well for the uſe of the pious bathers.

NEAR this are ſome comfortable alms-houſes for eight widows, founded by Mrs. Jones, of Llanrhaider (a Bagot) in 1729: and each has her garden, and two ſhillings a week.

HERE the dioceſe of Bangor encroaches on that of St. Aſaph, and takes out of it the beautiful pariſh of Llanrhaider, and all the upper end of the vale.

ON the road to Ruthin, on an eſtate of Sir William Bagot, are to be ſeen ſome very fine cheſnut trees;CHESNUT TREES. one of which is near twenty-four feet in circumference. The reader need not be told, that this ſpecies of trees is not a native of Great Britain, nor even of Europe. We are indebted for it to the Romans, who probably firſt planted it in Kent, where it has been fo fully naturalized, as to form, in certain tracts, great woods; in other parts of the kingdom, it every where appears cultivated; as ſparingly as it might have been originally in Italy, after it had been brought from Lydia, its native place Sardibus eae provenere primum. Ideo apud Graecos, Sardianos balanos appellant. Plin. Hiſt. Nat. lib. xv. c. 23..

REACH Ruthin, RUTHIN. and enter under Porth y Dwr, its only remaining gate. The town is pleaſantly ſeated, on the eaſy ſlope and ſummit of a riſing ground.CASTLE. The caſtle ſtood on the ſouth ſide, and in part ſunk beneath the earth: its poor remains impend over the fall of land fronting the weſt, where a fragment or two of a tower are ſtill to be ſeen, mixed with the native rock, which in parts ſerved as a facing to the fortreſs, whoſe lower part was formed out of it; a very deep foſs, hewen out of the live ſtone, with a portal at each end, divides it breadthways. Honeſt Church-yard, with great truth and ſimplicity, thus deſcribes the work: This caſtle ſtands on rocke much like red bricke, The dykes are cut with toole throughe ſtonie cragge; The towers are hye, the walles are large and thicke, The worke itſelf would ſhake a ſubject's bagge.

A DRAWING I diſcovered in the Britiſh Muſeum, ſhews that it ſoared high above the ground, and that its numerous towers well merited the poet's praiſe.

THE views from the ſummit of the ruins, are very well worthy of the traveller's attention. If he is fond of a more aerial one, I would by all means have him aſcend the heights of Bwlch pen y Barras, from whence is a full proſpect of our boaſted vale, and the remote hills of our Alpine tract.

THE Welſh name of the fortreſs is Caſtell Côch yn Gwernvor Llwyd's Itin. MS. iii. 61.. Poſſibly our countrymen had here a ſtrong-hold before the time of Edward I. who built the caſtle whoſe ruins we ſurvey Rotulae Walliae, 66., and beſtowed it, in 1281, with the cantred of Dyffryn Clwyd, on Reginald de Grey; for which he did homage, at Cheſter, to Edward of Caernarvon, then prince of Wales. The king added at the ſame time the townſhips of Maesmynnan, Pembedw, and Blowite, as dependencies on the caſtle; and I ought to add the land of Wenchal de Lacy. Out of this antient cantred was formed the preſent lordſhip of Ruthin, which comprehends ſeveral pariſhes. It remained in the family of the Greys till the time of Richard earl of Kent, who having diſſipated his fortune by gaming, ſold it to Henry VII. Queen Elizabeth beſtowed it on Ambroſe Dudley earl of Warwick: and it is now in poſſeſſion of Richard Myddelton, eſq of Chirk Caſtle. I muſt obſerve, this lordſhip was directed by Edward the Second, to contribute two hundred foot ſoldiers for his Scottiſh expedition, in 1309; but in 1325, only one man at arms and thirty footmen were required Rymer, iii. 157. iv. 137.

THE inhabitants, united with thoſe of Denbigh and Holt, ſend a repreſentative to parlement.

THE town of Ruthin was burnt by Owen Glendwr, BURNT BY GLENDWR. on September the 20th, 1400. He took the opportunity of ſurprizing it during the fair, enriched his followers with the plunder, and then retired to his faſtneſſes among the hills.

IN the laſt century, the caſtle was garriſoned by the loyaliſts, and ſuſtained, in 1646, a ſiege, from February to the middle of April; CASTLE TAKEN BY MYTTON. when it ſurrendered, with two months proviſions, to general Mytton, who received the thanks of the houſe for his ſervices; the commons ordered Mr. Fogge, his chaplain, fifty pounds for bringing the news, and confirmed the general's appointment or lieutenant-colonel Maſon to the government of the new conqueſt Drake's Parlement. Hiſt. xiv. 355.. The fortreſs was afterwards demoliſhed by an order of the houſe.

THE church is large,CHURCH. yet only a chapel to Llanruth. The roof prettily divided into ſmall ſquares, ornamented with ſculpture, and marked with the names of the workmen. The only monument of any note, is that of Doctor Gabriel Goodman, dean of Weſtminſter in the time of queen Elizabeth, whoſe figure is repreſented by a buſt. This illuſtrious divine was a native of Ruthin, and was greatly diſtinguiſhed by his various merit. As a churchman, he acquired great fame by his tranſlation of the epiſtle to the Corinthians, being aſſiſtant in the verſion of the bible into Engliſh: as a philanthropiſt, his foundation of a hoſpital for twelve poor people, and a warden (who is the clergyman of the place) perpetuates his benevolent turn: and his affection to learned men is evident, not only by his eſtabliſhing here a free ſchool for this pariſh, and that of Llan-Elidan, with a ſtipend to the maſter of ſixty pounds a year; but by his being the patron of the great Cambden Cambden Middleſex, i, 385., whom he enabled to take thoſe travels, which produced the fineſt collection of provincial antiquities ever extant.

THE church was originally conventual, and belonged to a houſe of Bonhommes Leland Itin. iii, 135., a ſpecies of Auguſtins, introduced into England in 1283: but the time of their continuance here could be but very ſhort; for, in 1310, John, ſon of Reginald de Grey, made it collegiate, and eſtabliſhed ſeven regular prieſts, with an endowment of two hundred and five acres of land, in Roſmeryon and Rue, beſides other lands, and woods, a mill, paſture for twenty-three cows and a bull; and pannage, or the free keeping of ſixty hogs in the woods of the lordſhip Dugdale's Monaſt. iii. pars ii. 57.. For theſe, and ſeveral other good things, the ſaid prieſts were for ever to celebrate daily a ſolemn maſs, for the ſouls of Edward I. queen Eleanor, Reginald de Grey and Matilda his wife, the founder and his wife, all their friends and relations, and of all the benefactors to this church Dugdale's Monaſt. iii. pars ii. 57..

John de Grey was poſſibly buried here; and his might be the tomb, which Churchyard calls that of an earl of Kent; which ſtood in the chancel, and in his days was placed on the right ſide of the choir.

THE apartments of the prieſts were connected to the church by a cloiſter; part of which is built up, and ſerves as the manſion of the warden. When John de Grey undertook this work, he obtained the conſent of Sir Hugh, then rector of Llanruth; to whom he allows this to have been ſubordinate, by cuſtom as well as rightThe ſame..

IN 1583, here were left in charge four incumbents, with penſions from ſix pounds to one pound ſix ſhillings and eight-pence each Willis Abbies, ii. 311.. The lands were granted by Edward VI. to William Winlove and Richard Fyld Tanner, 708..

Ruthin, and ſeveral other pariſhes, which formerly compoſed the cantref of Dyffryn Clwyd, form a deanery in the dioceſe of Bangor, bearing the antient name.

Leland mentions a houſe of white friers Itin, v. 45. in this town, but gives no particulars. It poſſibly ſtood in the ſtreet, to this day called Prior's-Street.

THE new jail does much honor to the architect,JAIL. Mr. Joſeph Turner; the contrivance comprehending all the requiſites of theſe ſeats of miſery, ſecurity, cleaneſs, and health. The debtors are ſeparated from the criminals by a very lofty wall, dividing their reſpective yards, which are airy and ſpacious, and are ſupplied with baths. The condemned cells are on a level with the ground; are dry, light, and ſtrong; an excellent contraſt to the ſad dungeons of antient priſons.

FROM Ruthin. I viſited the neat little mother church of Llanruth, dedicated to St. Meugan, a great aſtrologer, and phyſician to king Vortigern. In it is the monument of John Thelwall, eſq of Bathavarn, and his wife, kneeling at an altar: behind him are ten ſonsSeveral of their portraits are preſerved at Bathavarn, the ſeat of the reverend Mr. Carter. ; behind her, four daughters. Of the ſons, Sir Bevis is armed; the reſt are in gowns; and three carry in their hands a ſkull, to denote their early departure. The other ſeven lived to advanced life, and flouriſhed cotemporaries in the ſeveral profeſſions they had embraced.

John, the eldeſt, died aged 97, and left a poſterity, amounting to between two hundred and forty and two hundred and ſixty.

SIR Eubule became maſter of Jeſus College, Oxford. I will not tire the reader with the whole family hiſtory; but muſt not omit Ambroſe, the ninth ſon, who began life with being ſervant to Sir Francis Bacon; and ſo great a favorite was he, that in order to reward him, Sir Francis moved his royal maſter to knight all the maſters in chancery; for which Ambroſe was to have a gratuity of one hundred pounds a man. The affair was done, and the money paid, except by his brother, Sir Eubule, then one of the maſters, to whom he remitted the fees.

THERE is in the church a monumental buſt of Ambroſe, admirably cut: his hair ſhort; beard, peaked; and ruff, flat.

THIS family came from Thelwall, in Cheſhire, and took their name from the place. The founder was a follower of Reginald de Grey, and made a ſettlement in theſe parts. Notwithſtanding the numerous offspring of the family, and the other branches, only two remain of the name, my kinſman, Edward Thelwall, eſq of Llanbeder, a moſt beautiful ſituation, high on the ſide of the hills, two miles eaſt of Ruthin; and Simon Thelwall, eſq of Blaen-yâl.

FROM Llanruth the vale grows very narrow, and almoſt cloſes with the pariſh of Llanvair. If I place the extremity at Pont Newydd, there cannot be a more beautiful finiſhing; where the bridge, near the junction of the Clwyd and the Heſpin; and a lofty hill, with its cloathed with hanging woods, terminate the view.

Go over part of Coed Marchan, a large naked common, noted for a quarry of coarſe red and white marble. Deſcend into the narrow vale of Nant-clwyd; and for ſome time ride over dreary commons. On one is a ſmall encampment, with a ſingle foſs, called Caer Senial. Near this place, enter MEIREONEDDSHIRE. And, within ſight of the former, viſit Caer Drewyn, another poſt, in full view of the beautiful vales of Glyn-dwrdwye and Edernion, watered by the Dee. It lies on the ſteep ſlope of a hill; is of a circular form,BRITISH POST. and about half a mile in circumference; and the defence conſiſts of a ſingle wall, moſtly in ruins; yet in ſome parts the facings are ſtill apparent: in the thickneſs of the walls are evident remains of apartments. It had two entrances. Near the north-eaſtern is an oblong ſquare, added to the main works; and as the ground there is rather flat, it is ſtrengthened with a great ditch, and a wall: within are the foundations of rude ſtone buildings; one of which is circular, and ſeveral yards in diameter: the ditch is carried much farther than the wall; and ſeems part of an unfiniſhed addition to the whole. It is conjectured, that Owen Gwynedd occupied this poſt, while Henry II. lay encamped on the Berwyn hills, on the other ſide of the vale. Owen Glyndwr is ſaid alſo to have made uſe of this faſtneſs, in his occaſional retreats.

NOT far from hence, near Gwyddelwern, is a place called Saith Marchog, from the circumſtance of Owen having there ſurprized Reginald de Grey, and ſeven knights (Saith Marchog) in his trainMr. Thomas's MSS..

THIS poſt or faſtneſs of Caer Drewyn, is but one of the chain which begins at Diſerth, and is continued along the Clwydian hills into the mountains of Yale; for on the laſt are others; one on a Moel y Gaer, and another on Moel Forfydd; and Bryn Eglwys church ſeems to have been placed in the area of a third. Theſe were the temporary retreats of the inhabitants in time of war, or ſudden invaſions: here they placed their women, their children, and cattle, under ſtrong garriſon; or perhaps a whole clan or nation might withdraw into them, till the retreat of the enemy, who could never ſubſiſt long in a country, where all the proviſions were in this manner ſecured. It is alſo equally certain, that the inhabitants themſelves could not remain here for any long ſpace, as moſt of theſe faſtneſſes are deſtitute of water Tour in Wales, i. 414..

DESCEND, and finding the uſual ford of the Dee to Corwen impaſſable, get again into the Ruthin road, on a common marked with Tumuli, the frequent ſigns of ſlaughter. Theſe appear to me to have been the graves of the ſlain in ſome ſkirmiſh which the Welſh had with the Engliſh, about the year 1255; when Llewelyn ap Gryffyd, collecting all his power, recovered the inland part of North Wales, and all Merioneddſhire, from the uſurpation of Henry III. Powel, 320..

PASS near the houſe of Rûg. This place is memorable for the treacherous ſurprizal of Gryffyd ap Conan, king of Wales, ſoon after his victory at Carno, in the year 1077; having been enveigled hither by the treaſon of one Muriawn Goch. The mount (in all likelihood originally Roman) on which the caſtelet ſtood, is ſtill to be ſeen in the garden. Notwithſtanding his eminent ſucceſs, he fell into a long captivity, being here betrayed into the hands of Hugh Lupus earl of Cheſter, and Hugh Beleſme earl of Shrewſbury, and was conveyed to the caſtle of Chester, where he endured a twelve years impriſonment. At length he was releaſed by the bravery of a young man of theſe parts, Kynwric Hîr; who, coming to Cheſter under pretence of buying neceſſaries, took an opportunity, while the keepers were a feaſting, to carry away his prince, loaden with irons, on his back, to a place of ſecurityLife of Gr. ap Conan. Sebright MSS. .

IN after-times, this place became the property of Owen Brogyntyn, natural ſon of Madog ap Mereddydd, a prince of Powys. Such was the merit of Brogyntyn, that he ſhared his father's inheritance equal with his legitimate brethren. His dagger, curiouſly wrought, is, I am told, ſtill preſerved in the houſe. By the marriage of Margaret Wenn, daughter and heireſs of Jevan ap Howel, a deſcendant of Brogyntyn, with Pyers Saluſbury, of Bachymbyd Saluſbury Pedegree, 14. , were derived the Saluſburies of Rûg; a name exiſting in the male line till the preſent century.

I MAY mention here, as a ſequel to the life of Owen Glyndwr, that on his attainder, Henry IV. ſold the lordſhip of Glyndwrdwy to Robert Saluſbury Powel, 214., of Rûg.

CROSS the Dee, on a very handſome bridge of ſix arches, from which the river ſhews itſelf to vaſt advantage, above and below, in form of two extenſive channels, bordered by trees, and fertilizing a verdant tract of meadow.

REACH Corwen, whoſe church and ſmall town, ſeated beneath a vaſt rock at the foot of the Berwyn hills, form a pictureſque point of view, from various parts of the preceding ride.

Corwen is celebrated for being the great rendezvous of the Welſh forces under Owen Gwynedd Lord LITTLETON, iv. 99., who from hence put a ſtop to the invaſion of Henry II. in the year 1165. The place of encampment is marked, as I am told, by a rampart of earth, above the church ſouthward; and by the marks of the ſites of abundance of tents from thence to the village of Cynwyd.

THE church is built in form of a croſs. Within is the tomb of one of its vicars, Jorwerth Sulien. His figure, holding a chalice in his hand, is repreſented as low as his breaſt, over which the inſcription, "Hie jacet Jorwerth Sulien, Vicarius de Corvaen, ora pro eo," is continued. The whole is a very elegant piece of engraving, upon the coffin-lid, I fear not old enough to make it the tomb of St. Julien, archbiſhop of St. David; the godlieſt man and greateſt clerke in all Wales He died in 1089.: yet that ſaint has his well here, and is patron of the church.

ON the ſouth ſide of the church wall is cut a very rude croſs, which is ſhewn to ſtrangers as the ſword of Owen Glyndwr. A moſt ſingular croſs in the church-yard merits attention: the ſhaſt is let into a flat ſtone, and that again is ſupported by four or five rude ſtones, as if the whole had been formed in imitation of, and in veneration of the ſacred Cromlehs of very early time.

A MONUMENT of our ſuperſtition remains in the Carreg y Big yn y fach Newlyd, a pointed rude ſtone, which ſtands near the porch. We are told that all attempts to build the church in any other place, were fruſtrated by the influence of certain adverſe powers, till the founders, warned in viſion, were directed to the ſpot where this pillar ſtood.

IN the church-yard is a building, founded by William Eyton, of Plâs Warren, in Shropſhire; who, in 1709, left by will a ſum for the ſupport of ſix widows of clergy of the county of Merioneth only, and for the erecting ſix houſes for them to live in. In conſequence, this building was finiſhed, and lands, to the preſent amount of ſixty pounds a year, bought, which is equally divided among the widows reſident here.

LEAVE Corwen, and return as far as the bridge on the way I came. The vaſt Berwyn mountains are the eaſtern boundary of this beautiful vale. Their higheſt tops are Cader Fronwen, or The White Breaſt, and Cader Ferwyn. On the firſt is a great heap of ſtones, brought from ſome diſtant part, with great toil, up the ſteep aſcent; and in their middle is an erect pillar. Of him, whoſe ambition climbed this height for a monument, we are left in ignorance. Under their ſummit is ſaid to run an artificial road,FFORD HELEN. called Ffordd Helen, or Helen's Way; a lady, of whoſe labors I ſhall ſoon have occaſion to ſpeak further.

ON theſe hills, particularly about Cader Fronwen, is found the Rubus Chamaemorus,CLOUD BERRIES. Cloud Berries, or Knot Berries. Llwyd In Camden's Br. ii, 835. ſays, that the Welſh call it Mwyar Berwyn, Mora Montis Berwyn. They are frequently uſed for the making of tarts; and the Swedes and Norwegians reckon the berries to be excellent antiſcorbutics, and preſerve great quantities in autumn, to make tarts. The Laplanders bruiſe and eat them as a delicious food, in the milk of rein-deer; and to preſerve them through the winter, bury them in ſnow, and at the return of ſpring, find them as freſh as when firſt gathered Flora Scotica, i. 267. tab. xiii.. I have ſeen them in the Highlands of Scotland, brought to table as a deſert.

REACH Cynwyd, a ſmall village, formerly noted for the courts kept here by the great men of the neighborhood, to ſettle the boundaries of their ſeveral clames on the waſtes and commons, and to take cognizances of the encroachment; but they have been long diſcontinued, and the records deſtroyed.

VISIT from this place Rhaider Cynwyd, WATTER-FALL. or the fall of Cynwyd, which finely finiſhes the end of the dingle, that extends about half a mile from the village. The water of the river Tryſtion burſts from the ſides of the hill, through deep and narrow chaſms, from rock to rock, which are overgrown with wood. The rude and antient ſtocks, that hang in many parts over the precipices, add much to this pictureſque ſcene; which is ſtill improved by the little mill, and its inhabitants, in this ſequeſtered bottom.

PURSUE the journey to Bala. Go by the little church of Llangar. Obſerve ſomewhat farther on the left, in a field called Caer Bont, CAER BONT. a ſmall circular entrenchment, conſiſting of a foſs and rampart, with two entrances, meant probably as a guard to this paſs. My fellow-traveller, the reverend Mr. Lloyd, informed me, that in another tour he had aſcended a hill, above this place, called Y Foel, on whoſe ſummit was a circular coronet, of rude pebbly ſtones, none above three feet in height; with an entrance to the eaſt, or riſing ſun. The diameter of the circle is ten yards. Within was a circular cell, about ſix feet in diameter, ſunk a very little below the ſurface; and about a hundred yards diſtance, facing this, are the reliques of a great Carnedd, ſurrounded by large ſtones. The whole of this formed a place of worſhip among the antient Britons, and probably was ſurrounded with a grove. But what I have to ſay on the ſubject of Druidiſm, is reſerved till I reach Angleſea, its principal ſeat.

PROCEED to Llandrillo, a village with a church dedicated to St. Trillo. It is ſeated on the torrent Keidio, at the mouth of a great glen, which extends upwards of two miles, emboſomed in the Berwyn mountains, and leads to the noted paſs through them, called Milter Gerrig, into the county of Montgomery.

AT about a mile diſtance from Llandrillo, I again croſſed the Dee, at Pont Gilan, a bridge of two arches, over a deep and black water. Beyond this ſpot, the valley acquires new beauties, eſpecially on the right. The valley here contracts greatly: the road runs at the foot of a brow, of a ſtupendous height, covered with venerable oaks, which have kept their ſtubborn ſtation, amidſt the rudeſt of rocks, which every now and then ſhew their grey and broken fronts, amidſt the deep verdure of the foliage of trees, which ſo ſtrangely find nutriment amongſt them. The growth of the oak, in forcing its root downward, frequently rends thſe vaſt ſtrata, whoſe fragments often appear ſcattered at the baſe, of moſt amazing ſizes. The whole ſcenery requires the pencil of a Salvator Roſa: and here our young artiſts would find a fit place to ſtudy the manner of that great painter of wild nature.

A LITTLE beyond the extremity of this romantic part, in an opening on the right,ST. DERFEL. ſtand the church and village of Llan-Dderfel: the firſt was dedicated to St. Derfel Gadarn, and was remarkable for a vaſt wooden image of the ſaint, the ſubject of much ſuperſtition in ancient times. The Welſh had a prophecy, that it ſhould ſet a whole foreſt on fire. Whether to complete it, or whether to take away from the people the cauſe of idolatry, I cannot ſay; but it was brought to London in the year 1538, and was uſed as part of the fuel which conſumed poor frier Foreſt to aſhes, in Smithfield, for denying the king's ſupremacy. This unhappy man was hanged in chains round his middle to a gallows, over which was placed this inſcription, alluſive to our image: David Darvel Gutheren, As ſayth the Welſhman, Fetched outlawes out of Hell. Now is he come with ſpere and ſheld, In harnes to burne in Smithfeld, For in Wales he may not dwel. And Foreeſt the freer. That obſtinate lyer, That wylfully ſhal be dead. In his contumacye, The goſpel doeth deny, The kyng to be ſupreme heade Halle's Chr. ccxxxiii. .

THE prophecy was fulfilled, the image burnt, and the Foreſt conſumed, to the great content of the lord mayor, the dukes of Suffolk and Norfolk, the lord admiral, and lord privy ſeal, and divers others of the nobility, who honored this auto de fe with their preſence Stow's Annals, 573.; but unfortunately, the frier not having the inſenſibility of our wooden ſaint, on the touch of the flames ſhewed the natural horrors at approach of an agonizing death, and payed very little reſpect to the arguments of the pious Latimer, who was placed oppoſite to the ſufferer, in a pulpit, to preach him into a ſenſe of the crime of differing in opinion with his ſovereign in religious matters; for which the prelate himſelf ſuffered in a ſucceeding reign. Foreſt thought fit to deny that Henry was head of the church; and Latimer would force that honor upon Mary, who choſe to cede it to the Pope.

OPPOSITE to this church is Llandderfel bridge, of four arches. At ſome diſtance from it, the vale almoſt cloſes; and at Kalettur finiſhes nobly with a lofty wooded eminence, above which ſoars the vaſt mafs of the Arennig mountains, notwithſtanding they appear immediately after to be very remote. And I here ſtop a moment, to recommend to the traveller, who does not chuſe preciſely to purſue my ſteps, to follow the courſe of the Dee from Bangor, through the delicious tract it waters from thence to Llangollen, to follow it through Glyndwrdwy to Corwen, and thence, through the matchleſs vale of Edeirneon, to this ſpot, where, for a ſmall ſpace, it paſſes through a flat, an unpleaſant contrast to the preceding ride.

ON the left lies Rhiwaedog, or The Bloody Brow, noted for a battle between Llowarch Hên and the Saxons, in which he loſt Cynddelw, the laſt of his numerous ſons. A ſpot not far from hence, called Pabell Llowarch Hên, or the tent of that monarch, is ſuppoſed to have been the place where he reſted the night after the battle, and where he finiſhed that pathetic elegy, in which he laments the loſs of all his ſons. In it he directs the laſt to defend the brow of that hill, indifferent to the fate of the only ſurvivor. CYNDDELW, cadw dithew y Rhiu Arr a ddêl yma heddiw Cubeb am un mab nyd gwiu J. D. Rhys's Grammar, 103.. CYNDDELW, defend thou the brow of yonder hill. Let the event of the day be what it-will: when there is but one ſon left, it is vain to be over-fond of him.

THE houſe and eſtate of Rhiwaedog is now owned by Mr. Dolben, deſcended by his mother from the Llwyds, the very antient poſſeſſors. Eineon ap Ithel, of this place, a valiant anceſtor of his, articled with John duke of Lancaſter, in 1394, to attend him for a year in his expedition to Guyen, with one mam at arms and one archer; for which the duke rewarded him with twenty marks, iſſuing out of his manor of Halton Mr. Evan Evans's Notes..

PASS by the village and church of Llanvawr, and croſs the torrent Troweryn, beneath Rhiwlas, the antient ſeat of the Prices. In the houſe are the portraits of ſome of the family:RHIWDAS. among others, that of William Price, eſq member for the county in the long parlement, but ſoon diſplaced for his adherence to the king.

REACH Bala, a ſmall town in the pariſh of Llanyekil, noted for its vaſt trade in woollen ſtockings, and its great markets every Saturday morning, when from two to five hundred pounds worth are ſold each day, according to the demand. Round the place, women and children are in full employ,KNITTING. knitting along the roads; and mixed with them Herculean figures appear, aſſiſting their omphales in this effeminate employ. During winter the females, through love of ſociety, often aſſemble at one another's houſes to knit; ſit round a fire, and liſten to ſome old tale, or to ſome antient ſong, or the ſound of a harp; and this is called Cymmorth Gwau, or, the knitting aſſembly.

MUCH of the wool is bought at the great fairs at Llanrwſt, in Denbighſhire.

CLOSE to the ſouth-eaſt end of the town, is a great artificial mount,TOMMEN Y BALA. called Tommen y Bala, in the ſummer time uſually covered in a pictureſque manner with knitters, of both ſexes, and all ages. From the ſummit is a fine view of Llyn-tegid, and the adjacent mountains. On the right appear the two Arennigs, Vawr and Vach; beyond the farther end, ſoar the lofty Arans, with their two heads, Aran Mowddwy and Penllyn; and beyond all, the great Cader Idris cloſes the view.

THIS mount appears to have been Roman, and placed here, with a caſtelet on its ſummit, to ſecure the paſs towards the ſea, and keep our mountaneers in ſubjection. The Welſh, in after time, took advantage of this, as well as other works of the ſame nature.

THE town is of a very regular form: the principal ſtreet very ſpacious, and the leſſer fall into it at right angles. I will not deny, but that its origin might have been Roman.

THE mounts form a chain. I have obſerved one within ſight of this, on the mountain road to Ruthin, which is called Tommen y Caſtell; Caer Crwyni is a ſmall entrenchment, not remote from it, overlooking the vale of Edeirnion; the mount in the garden of Rûg is another; a third, much more conſiderable, lies within

VIEW FROM TOMMEN Y BALA. ſight of this, on the road to Gwyddelwern; and farther on, in the pariſh of Bettws, is a fourth, which goes under the uſual name of Tommen y Caſtell.

Bala takes its name from its vicinity to the place where a river diſcharges itſelf from a lake. Balloch in the Erſe language ſignifies the ſame. I know little of its antient hiſtory, any more than it ſeems to have been dependent on the caſtle of Harlech; and that, in the reign of Edward II. it was committed to the care of Finian de Stanedon, conſtable of that caſtleSebright MSS.; and in the time of Edward III. his great general, Walter de Manni, was rewarded with the fee-farm of Bala and Harlech, and was made ſheriff of this county for life Dugdale Baron ii 149.. I may add incidentally, that Edward I. gave one Hugo de Turbervill liberty of hunting through Meirionithſhire all kinds of wild beaſts Rotulae Walliae, 98, In P 97 is an order for him to have ſix ſtags out of the foreſt of Meirionith. , while probably the ſubdued natives were only his Chaſſeurs.

Bala Lake, Pimble Mere, LAKS. or Llyn-tegid, lies at a ſmall diſtance from the town; and is a fine expanſe of water, near four miles long, and twelve hundred yards broad in the wideſt place: the deepeſt part is oppoſite Bryn Golen, where it is forty-ſix yards deep, with three yards of mud; the ſhores gravelly: the boundaries are eaſy ſlopes, well cultivated, and varied with woods. In ſtormy weather, its billows run very high, and incroach greatly on the north-eaſt end, where, within memory of man, numbers of acres have been lost. It riſes ſometimes nine feet, and rains and winds jointly contribute to make it overflow the fair vale of Edeirnion.

ITS fiſh are,FISH. pike, perch, trout, a few roach, and abundance of eels; and ſhoals of that Alpine fiſh, the Gwyniaid, which ſpawn in December, and are taken in great numbers in ſpring, or ſummer. Pike have been caught here of twenty-five pounds weight, a trout of twenty-two, a perch of ten, and a gwyniaid of five. Sir Watkin Williams Wynn clames the whole fiſhery of this noble lake. It had been the property of the abby of Baſingwerk; for Owen de Brogynton made a grant to GOD, St. Mary, and the monks of that houſe, of a certain water in Penthlinn, called Thlintegit, or Pembelmore, and all the paſture of the ſaid land of Penthlinn. This was witneſſed by Reiner (who was biſhop of St. Aſaph from 1186 to 1224) and by Ithail, Owen's chaplainSebright MSS..

THE waters are diſcharged under Pont Mwnwgl y Llyn, a bridge of three arches. They ſeem inconſiderable in reſpect to the ſize of the ſtreams which feed the lake; for the Dee does not make in dry ſeaſons the figure I expected. Salmon come in plenty to this place, but neither do they treſpaſs into the lake, and the gwyniaids very rarely into the river. Report ſays, that the Dee paſſes through the lake from end to end, without deigning to mix its waters; as the Rhone was fabled to ſerve the lake of Geneva. But, in fact, the Dee does not aſſume its name, till it quits its parent.

NEAR the weſt ſide, cloſe to the bridge, and juſt oppoſite to Tommen y Bala, ſtood another caſtelet; not ſo high, but of a more extenſive form than that mount. It is now broke through by a public road, but is very apparent on both ſides. The mount, or keep, was on the lower, immediately above the river; and the veſtiges of a wall are ſtill evident. This was ſubſervient to the ſame purpoſes as the others; for there muſt have been, from the nature of the ground, a travellable road on both ſides of the lake. This I apprehend to have been the caſtle of Bala, which Llewelyn ap Jorwerth founded in 1202 Powel, 258..

THERE is no river in England which has been ſo much celebrated by our poets, for its ſanctity, THR DLF, SACRED as the Dee. Moſt countries had one, which they held in peculiar veneration. The Theſſalians paid divine honors to their Paeneus, on account of its beauty: the Scythians worſhipped their Iſter, on account of its ſize: the Germans the Rhine, becauſe it was the judge whether their offspring was legitimate; for the ſpurious ſunk, the lawful floated Cluverius Germ. Antiq. lib. i. 185.: and let me add to the liſt, the Ganges, out of whoſe waters no Indian of a certain ſect would willingly yield his laſt. breath. Our river foretold events by the change of its channelGirald. Camb, Itin. c. xi. ; and it often ſeemed miraculouſly to increaſe, without the uſual intervention of rains; therefore, in all probability, derived its name, not from Ddu, or black, becauſe its waters are not ſo, except in parts, by reaſon of the depth; nor from Dwy, two, becauſe it does not appear to flow from any two particular fountains; but from Duw, divine, by reaſon of its wondrous attributes. Our original ſtock, the Gauls, deified fountains, lakes, and rivers. They even had one, which in theirs (our primitive tongue) bore the ſame name, and was called (Latiniſed) into Divona. Salve fons ignote ortu, ſacer, alme, perennis Vitree, glauce, profunde, ſonore, opace. Salve urbis GENIUS, medico potabilis hauſtu, DIVONA celtarum lingua, ſons addite divis Auſonius Clarae Urbes, lin. 29.

Giraldus, who travelled through our country in 1188, gives the firſt account of the prophetic quality of the Dee; and the notion was continued to many ages after his. Spencer introduces it among the rivers attendant on the marriage of the Thames and the MedwayStanza 39, cant. xi, lib. iv.: And following Dee, which Britons long ygone Did call DIVINE, that doth by Cheſter tend.

BUT Draiton is ſtill more particular, and adds many of its preſaging qualities, delivered down to him from the more antient times. Again Dee's holineſs began By his contracted front and ſterner waves to ſhow, That he had things to ſpeak that profit them to know: A brook that was ſuppos'd much buſineſs to have ſeen, Which had an antient bound 'twixt Wales and England been, And noted was by both to be an ominous flood, That changing of his fords, the future ill or good Of either country told; of either's war or peace; The ſickneſs or the health, the dearth or the increaſeSong x. .

WELL, therefore, might the ſacred rivers be called URBIS GENII; and that ours was as deſerving as the beſt of them of that title, is evinced from the above. Finally, Milton, in the following line, beautifully alludes to the interpreters of the preſages among the Britons, the antient Druids, who dwelt upon its banks: Nor yet where DEVA ſpreads her wizard fſtreamLycidas. .

IT was long before we got clear of theſe ſuperſtitions. They were very prevalent in the time of Gildas, in the ſixth century, when our anceſtors ſtrongly retained the idolatry of the Druids among their Chriſtian rites: and, notwithſtanding the fulmination of many a monarchEdgar and Canute., it kept its ground; and hydromancy ſtill remains practiſed among us; of which I ſhall have occaſion to ſpeak of more than one kind.

I FOUND that I could here,KERRIG Y DRUIDION with greater eaſe than from any other place, digreſs to Kerrig y Druidion; a pariſh a few miles to the north, in the county of Denbigh, noted for certain Druidical remains, which gave name to the place. After a dreary ride, I found myſelf diſappointed; theſe ſacred reliques having been profanely carried away, and converted into a wall. It is therefore from the annotator on Cambden II. 813., and the drawings preſerved by him among the Sebright MSS. that I muſt form my deſcription.

THE largeſt was a fine ſpecimen of the Britiſh Kiſt vaen, or ſtone cheſt. It conſiſted of one ſtone at top, placed inclining to the north, and was, when meaſured by Mr. Llwyd, ten feet long, ſupported by a ſtone on each ſide about ſeven feet long, and near two and a half broad. Under one end was a ſtone, three feet long; at the other, one of the length of two feet. The hollow beneath was only ſeven feet long, three and a half broad, and only two and a half high; which ſufficiently ſhews, that theſe monuments had not been the cells of Druids; their uſes, therefore, muſt: have been ſepulchral, according to the conjecture of Doctor Borlaſe. The antient natives of our iſle did not always burn their dead. Skeletons have been diſcovered in ſimilar Kiſt vaens, at full length: in ſuch as this, they might lie commodiouſly, with all the parade of arms, often buried with them. Around this, was a circle of ſtones, incloſing an area of about forty paces in diameter; and the precinct might be formed with the intent of keeping people at a reſpectable diſtance from the remains, perhaps of ſome mighty chieftain. This monument went by the name of Karchar Kynric Rwth; not that it ever was uſed for that purpoſe originally; but there is a tradition, that in aftertimes, a little tyrant of that name, in the neighborhood, was wont to cram thoſe who offended him, into the hollow of theſe ſtones; which might ſerve for the purpoſes of torment as well as the little eaſe in the tower of London, or the iron cages of the Baſtille.

THE other Kiſt vaen was nearly ſimilar to the firſt; but no mention is made of the circle of ſtones: probably they were taken away before Mr. Llwyd viſited the place.

AT Giler, BARON PRICE. in this pariſh, was born that upright and able judge; Robert Price, eſq baron of the exchequer, and finally juſtice of the common pleas. His famous ſpeech in the houſe of commons, againſt the grant of the great Welſh lordſhips to the earl of Portland, will ever teſtify his love to his country. His ſpeedy promotion by king William, do equal credit to his majeſty, and Mr. Price; ſince the former, howſoever grievous to him might be the oppoſition to his will, yet no conſideration could induce him to permit his ſubjects to loſe the benefit of a magiſtrate capable and honeſt, as he knew our countryman to be.

RETURN to Bala, and continue my journey on the ſouth ſide of the lake, a moſt beautiful ride. Paſs by Llanyckil church, dedicated to St. Beuno; and ſee, on the oppoſite ſide, Llangower, dedicated to St. Gwawr, mother of the Cambrian bard Llowarch Hên. Beneath flows Avon Gwawr, the only feed of the lake on that ſide.

Go by Glan y Llyn, GLAN Y LLYN. an old houſe, near the water edge; which, as well as the following, had been the property of the Vaughans.

LEAVE on the right another antient ſeat, Caer Gai, placed on an eminence. Cambden ſays, it was a caſtle, built by one Caius, a Roman; the Britons aſcribe it to Gai, foſter-brother to king Arthur. It probably was Roman, for multitudes of coins have been found in different parts of the neighborhood; and it is certain, that it had been a fortreſs to defend this paſs, for which it is well adapted, both by ſituation, and form of the hill.

I PROCEEDED about two miles farther,CASTELL CORNDOCHON. to viſit another, ſeated a mile from the Dolgelleu road, on the ſummit of a high rock, which bears the name of Caſtell Corndochon, the origin of which we are equally ignorant of. Two ſides of the rock are precipitous. In the front of the caſtle is cut a deep foſs: the caſtle conſiſted of an oblong tower, rounded at the extremity; and its meaſure within is forty-three feet by twenty-two. Behind that, and joined to it by a wall, are the ruins of a ſquare tower; this lies in the main body of the fortreſs, whoſe form, as Cambden obſerves, inclines to oval. This had been very conſiderable; was built with mortar, made of gravel and ſea ſhells; and was faced with free-ſtone, ſquared, and well cut.

I RETURNED towards Caer Gai; LLANUWCHLLYN. and, not far from thence, to the village and church of Llan-uwchllyn. In the laſt is the figure of an armed man, with a conic helmet, and mail muffler round his chin and neck: on his breaſt is a wolf's head, and on his belly another; and in the intervening ſpace, three roſes. The firſt are the arms of Ririd Vlaidd; the others of Kynedda Wledig, or, The Warlike, a Cumbrian prince, whoſe ſons (after their father had been defeated by the Saxons, in the ſixth century) retired, and poſſeſſed themſelves of theſe parts of Wales: and from Meirion, a grandſon of his, is ſaid to be given the name of Meirionith to this ſhire. Ririd was lord of Pen-Llyn, which ſignifies the head of the lake, and forms one of the hundreds of Meirionithſhire. It had alſo its caſtle, which probably was that of Corndochon. Around the margin of the tomb is a mutilated inſcription, which, as far as I could diſcover, run thus: Hic jacet Johannes ap * * * * ap Madoc ap J—eth, cujus animae pr—etur. Deus amen. anno. D•i MCCC. V. 88.

CLOSE by this village runs Avon-y-Llan, Avon Llew, or Amlêw. The laſt riſes from two ſprings, and falls into the former. Thoſe who chuſe to derive the Dee from its double origin, may fix on theſe: but I met with a third, at the fartheſt corner of the lake, ariſing from the neighborhood of the lofty Aran, ARAN HI •• to which Spencer gives the honor of forming that celebrated river, I ſuppoſe after running through the lake, unmixed with the waters. The poet makes the foot of that mighty mountain the place of education of our renowned prince, Arthur; who, on his birth, being delivered to a fairy knight, is by him inſtantly conveyed to an antient hero, To be upbrought in gentle thews and martial might.

IT is evident that Spencer, who was deeply read in all the romance of his romantic days, had heard the tradition of Caer Gai, and its old inhabitant, Gai's father, to whom he chuſes to give the more claſſical name of Timon; for ſo prince Arthur is made to name his foſter-father.

Unto old Timon he me brought bylive, Old Timon, who in youthful years had been▪ In warlike feats the experteſt man alive, And is the wiſeſt now on earth, I ween: His dwelling is low in valley green, Under the foot of Rauran moſſie hore, From whence the river Dee, as ſilver clean, His tumbling billows rolls, with gentle rore: There all his days he train'd me up in virtuous lore Fairy Queen, book I. canto ix. .

THIS honored ſtream is now known by the name of Avon Twrch; is a fierce mountain torrent, precipitating itſelf from the Aran; and croſſes a road from whence I firſt begin my journey among the Alps of our country, and aſcend from hence, then ſink into very deep bottoms, bounded on each ſide by fields of ſuch ſteepneſs, as to put the inhabitants to great difficulties in the cultivation. Woods, eſpecially of birch, vary the ſcene. On the right, tower the vaſt hills of Aran; or rather, two heads, ariſing from one baſe.

ARRIVE at the foot of Bwlch y Groes, or the paſs of The Croſs, one of the moſt terrible in North Wales. The height is gained by going up an exceeding ſteep and narrow zig-zag path: the paſs itſelf is a dreary heathy flat, on which I ſuppoſe the croſs ſtood, to excite the thankſgiving of travellers, for having ſo well accompliſhed their arduous journey. The deſcent on the other ſide, is much greater, and very tedious, into the long and narrow vale of Mowddwy. VALE OF MOWDDWY. It is ſeven or eight miles long; and ſo contracted, as ſcarcely to admit a meadow at the bottom. Its boundaries are vaſt hills, generally very verdant, and fine ſheep walks; but one on the left exhibits a horrible front, being ſo ſteep, as to balance between precipice and ſlope: it is red and naked, and too ſteep to admit of vegetation; and a ſlide from its ſummit would be as fatal as a fall from a perpendicular rock. In one place on the right, the mountains open, and furniſh a gap to give ſight to another pictureſque and ſtrange view, the rugged and wild ſummit of Aran Mowddwy, which ſoars above with tremendous majeſty.

THERE is a beauty in this vale, which is not frequent in others of theſe mountanous countries. The incloſures are all divided by excellent quickſet hedges, and run far up the ſides of the hills, in places ſo ſteep, that the common traveller would ſcarcely find footing. Numbers of little groves are interſperſed; and the hills above them ſhew a fine turf to the top, where the bog and heath commence, which give ſhelter to multitudes of red grous, and a few black. But their conſequences to theſe parts are infinitely greater, in being the beds of fuel to all the inhabitants. The turberies are placed very remote from their dwellings; and the turf, or peat, is gotten with great difficulty. The roads from the brows of the mountains, in general, are too ſteep even for a horſe;TURF SLEDGES the men therefore carry up on their backs, a light ſledge, fill it with a very conſiderable load, and drag it, by means of a rope placed over their breaſt, to the brink of the ſlopeAt this time the turberies lie at a great diſtance from the brow of the hill; the natives are therefore obliged to bring a horſe by a round-about way to them, which aſſiſts in dragging the turf to the brink of the ſlope, where men ſupply its place.; then go before, and draw it down, ſtill preceding, and guiding its motions, which at times have been ſo violent, as to overturn and draw along with it the maſter, to the hazard of his life, and not without conſiderable bodily hurt.

AFTER riding ſome time along the bottom of the vale, paſs by the village and church of Llan y Mowddwy; the laſt is dedicated to St. Tydecho, ST. TYDECHO. one of our moſt capital ſaints. His legend Gywydd y DYDDECHO SANT yn amſer MEALGWIN GWYNEDD; i. •• the poem of St. Tydecho, who lived in the time of Malgwyn Gwynedd. is written in verſe, by Dafydd Llwyd ap Llewelyn ap Gryffydd, lord of Mathafarn; a perſon who had a great hand in bringing in Henry VII, by feeding his countrymen with prophecies, that one of them was to deliver Wales from the Engliſh yoke, by which means thouſands of them were induced to riſe, under Sir Rhys ap Thomas, and join Henry, then earl of Richmond, at Milford.

THIS illuſtrious bard informs us, that Tydecho had been an abbot in Armorica, and came over here in the time of king Arthur; but after the death of that hero, when the Saxons over-ran moſt of the kingdom, the ſaint retired, and led here a moſt auſtere life, lying on the bare ſtones, and wearing a ſhirt of hair: yet he employed his time uſefully, was a tiller of the ground, and kept hoſpitality. Malgwyn Gwynedd, then a youth, took offence at the ſaint, and ſeized his oxen; but wild ſtags were ſeen the next day, performing their office, and a grey wolf harrowing after them. Malgwyn, enraged at this, brought his milk-white dogs to chace the deer, while he ſat on the blue ſtone, to enjoy the diverſion; but when he attempted to riſe, he found his breech immoveably fixed to the rock, ſo that he was obliged to beg pardon of the ſaint, who, on proper reparation, was ſo kind as to free him from his aukward pain.

So far legend. That St. Tydecho might have lived, and that Malgwyn Gwynedd did live a prince of our country, I make no doubt; and that the former did receive from the prince the privileges it once enjoyed, of ſanctuary for man and beaſt, is equally probable: every offender, however criminal, met with protection here. Legend ſays, that it was to endure for a hundred ages; but, blind to futurity! the reformation was not foreſeen. This place was alſo exempted from all fighting, burning, and killing; nor was it permitted to affront any of the inhabitants, without making the moſt ample reparation.

THE lands of Tydecho were alſo freed from mortuaries, clames, oppreſſion, and that great duty, which moſt places were ſubject to, the Gobr Merched, the penalty of incontinence; which the ſaint, in tenderneſs to the poſſible frailty of his flock, wiſely took care to get it exempted from.

ABOUT four or five miles farther, I reached Dinas y Mowydwy, DINAS MOWDDWY. ſeated on the plain of an eminence, at the junction of three vales, beneath the rock Craig y Dinas; whoſe peat paths I now ſurvey with horror, reflecting on a frolick of my younger days, in climbing to its ſummit, to enjoy the pleaſure of darting down again in one of the peat ſledges. The foot of this eminence is watered by the Kerris and the Dyfi. The laſt, which retains its name till loſt in the ſea at Aberdyfi, riſes at the bottom of the rude rock Craig Llyn Dyfi, under Aran Mowddwy. It abounds with ſalmon, which are hunted in the night, by an animated, but illicit chace, by ſpearmen, who are directed to the fiſh by lighted whiſps of ſtraw.

THIS Mowddwy, notwithſtanding it is dignified with the name of Dinas, or city, conſiſts but of one ſtreet, ſtrait and broad, with houſes ill according with its title; but it ſtill preſerves the inſignia of power, the ſtocks, and whipping-poſt, the vag-vawr, or great fetter, the mace, and ſtandard meaſure. It is likewiſe the capital of an extenſive lordſhip, under the rule of my worthy couſin, John Mytton, eſquire.OWNERS. He derives it from William, or Wilc • cke, as he is commonly called, fourth ſon of Gryffyd ap Gwenwynwyn, lord of Powis. His grand-daughter and ſole heir married Sir Hugh de Burgh, ſon of the famous Hugh, juſticiary of England. His ſon, Sir John, left four daughters, married into the houſes of Newport, Leighton, Lingen, and Mytton; Alianor, the fourth daughter, having given her hand, and this ſeignory, to Thomas Mytton, anceſtor of the preſent lord.

THE powers of this capital over a diſtrict,PRIVILEGES. which comprehends this large pariſh, and ſeven out of the eight townſhips of that of Mallwyd, are conſiderable. The corporation conſiſts of a mayor, aldermen, recorder, and ſeveral burgeſſes. The mayor tries criminals; but, as the late worthy magiſtrate, a very honeſt ſmith, told me, that, for ſome years paſt, they have not adventured to whip; the ſtocks, or confinement in the vag-vawr, is the utmoſt ſeverity they have exerted: but then they retain the excluſive power of licenſing ale-houſes in their diſtrict, and are likewiſe juſtices of the peace as far as the limits of their little reign.

THE recorder (in abſence of the lord) tries all matters of property, not exceeding forty ſhillings; and the attornies, whoſe fees do not exceed half a crown, are choſen from the lettered part of the community, or thoſe who can read.

I WAS accommodated with entertainment at the manor-houſe, from whence I took a delightful walk of about two miles, along the vale, on the banks of the Dyvi. The valley expands, and the hills ſink in height, towards the weſt. After paſſing the Dyfi, croſs a bridge over the deep and ſtill water of the Klywêdog, black as ink, paſſing ſluggiſhly through a darkſome chaſm, into open day.

REACH Mallwyd, MALLWYD. remarkable for the ſituation of the altar, in the middle of the church; which Doctor Davies, author of the dictionary, then incumbent, in defiance of the orders of archbiſhop Laud, removed again from its imaginary ſuperſtitious ſite at the eaſt end.

ONE of the beautiful yew trees in the church-yard, is extremely well worth notice. It is a ſort of foreſt of vaſt trees, iſſuing from one ſtem, forming a moſt extenſive ſhade, and magnificent appearance. Another reaſon for planting theſe trees in church-yards, beſides thoſe uſually aſſigned, was a cuſtom in old times, upon Palme Sunday, to make this the ſubſtitute of the tree, from which that Sunday took its name; to bleſs on that day the boughs; alſo to burn ſome of them to aſhes; and with thoſe the prieſt, on the following Aſh-Wedneſday, ſigned the people on the forehead, ſaying. Memento, homo! quod pulvis es, et in pulverem reverteris. And of the branches, ſo bleſſed, it was cuſtomary to ſtick ſome in the fields, in rogation week, or at the times of proceſſions.

RETURN to Dinas y Mowddwy. CRUEL MURDER. On the road was informed of the place, not far from hence, where Lewis Owen, vice-chamberlain of North Wales, and baron of the exchequer of North Wales, was cruelly murdered in the year 1555, by a ſet of banditti, with which this country was over-run. After the wars of the houſes of York and Lancaſter, multitudes of felons and outlaws inhabited this country; and eſtabliſhed in theſe parts, for a great length of time, from thoſe unhappy days, a race of profligates, who continued to rob, burn, and murder, in large bands, in defiance of the civil power; and would ſteal and drive whole herds of cattle, in mid-day, from one county to another, with the utmoſt impunity. To put a ſtop to their ravages, a commiſſion was granted to John Wynn ap Meredydd, of Gwedyr, and this gentleman, in order to ſettle the peace of the country, and to puniſh all offenders againſt its government. In purſuance of their orders, they raiſed a body of ſtout men, and on a Chriſtmas-Eve ſeized above four ſcore outlaws and felons, on whom they held a jail delivery, and puniſhed them according to their deſerts. Among them were the two ſons of a woman, who very earneſtly applied to Owen for the pardon of one: he refuſed; when the mother, in a rage, told him (baring her neck) Theſe yellow breaſts have given ſuck to theſe, who ſhall waſh their hands in your blood. Revenge was determined by the ſurviving villains. They watched their opportunity, when he was paſſing through theſe parts from Montgomeryſhire aſſizes, to way-lay him, in the thick woods of Mowddwy, at a place now called, from the deed, Llydiart y Barwn; where they had cut down ſeveral long trees, to croſs the road, and impede the paſſage. They then diſcharged on him a ſhower of arrows; one of which ſticking in his face, he took out, and broke. After this, they attacked him with bills and javelins, and left him ſlain, with above thirty wounds. His ſon-in-law, John Llwyd, of Ceiſgwyn, defended him to the laſt; but his cowardly attendants fled on the firſt onſet. His death gave peace to the country; for moſt rigorous juſtice enſued; and the whole neſt of banditti was extirpated, many by the hand of juſtice; and the reſt fled, never to return.

THE traditions of the country reſpecting theſe banditti, are ſtill extremely ſtrong. I was told that they were ſo feared, that travellers did not dare to go the common road to Shrewſbury, but paſſed over the ſummits of the mountains, to avoid their haunts. The inhabitants placed ſcythes in the chimneys of their houſes, to prevent the felons coming down to ſurprize them in the night; ſome of which are to be ſeen to this day. This race was diſtinguiſhed by the titles Gwyllied y Dugoed, and Gwilliaid Cochion Mowddwy, i. e. The Banditti of the Black Wood, and The red-headed Banditti of Mowddwy.

LEAVE Dinas, and take the road towards Dolgelleu. Paſs by ſome deſerted lead mines; which, as yet, have never been worked with ſucceſs. I may here mention an earth, which this place is noted for,OCHRE. a bluiſh ochre, which the ſhepherds wet, and pound in a mortar, then form into balls, and uſe in marking their ſheep. An old proverb of the three things which Mowddwy wiſhes to ſend out of the country, ſhews their long knowlege of it.

O Fowddy ddu ni ddaw, dim allan A ellir i rwyſtraw, Oad tri pheth helaeth hylaw Dyn atgas, NOD GLAS, a gwlaw Deteſted people, blue-marking earth, and rain..

ABOUT three miles from Dinas, leave on the left the vaſt ſheep farm of Pennant-higi: a deep bottom, environed on three ſides by vaſt mountains, forming a noble theatre. This whole country abounds in ſheep and cattle; and the wool is manufactured in all parts into flannel and ſtockings.

ASCEND a ſteep hill, into the paſs Bwlch Oer-ddyrws; BWLCH OER-DDRWS. and the country beyond ſuddenly aſſumes a new face. Before us is a vaſt extent of dreary ſlope, bounded by vaſt rocky mountains; among which, Cader Idris ſoars pre-eminent.

THIS paſs is noted for being one of the three places,CONVENTION THERE. in which were aſſembled, ſix years after the wars of Glyndwr, all the great men of certain diſtricts, in order to enforce the obſervation of juſtice by their own weight, without any other legal ſanction. This, perhaps, was occaſioned by the mercileſs laws enacted againſt the Welſh by Henry IV. At each of theſe places, they entered into a compact to cauſe juſtice to be done for all wrongs inflicted, before and after the wars, but not during that turbulent period. Every one was to have his goods, or land, which had been forced from him, reſtored without law-ſuit; and any goods detained after this, were to be deemed as ſtolen: or if his lord ſold them, he was fined ten pounds, and the goods, or their value, to the owner. If the refractory perſon was hanged, or died a natural death, the demand lay good againſt the wife, heirs, or executors: but if they or ſhe denied the demand, the plaintiff muſt procure his compurgators, viz. ſix perſons with him, to ſwear to the right of his clame; but (like the Engliſh, in caſes of jury) the defendant had a right to challenge one of the ſix; and another was to be provided in his ſtead.

AFTER this, follow various regulations for reſtoring the government of the country in general; and ſeveral laws relative to waifs and eſtrays, vagrants, bail, recovery of debts, manſlaughter, thefts, duty of officers, &c. The code concludes with valuation of ſeveral goods and chattels, for which ſatisfaction was to be made. For example, a horſe and mare, on the oath of the owner and two neighbors, were valued at ten ſhillings; a foal at twenty pence; an ox at a mark; a cow at ten ſhillings; the hire of an ox, and the milk of a cow, were alſo valued; an ewe was eſteemed at ſixteen pence, her wool at four pence, her milk at two pence, and her lamb at eight pence.

As a proof of the high value of arms, and that we had few manufactures of that kind, a two-handed ſword was valued at ten ſhillings, a one-handed at ſix ſhillings and eight pence, and a ſteel buckler at two ſhillings and eight pence: but, what is very ſingular; a bow, which themſelves could make, was valued at ſixteen pence, and an arrow at ſix pence.

To all theſe laws, no penalty was annexed for the breach; except the forfeiture of the benefit of the compact, which, in thoſe unſettled times, was probably ſufficient, as it left the party unſupported and friendleſs.

DESCEND from hence,DOLGELLEU. along very bad ſtoney roads, to Dolgelleu; every entrance to which is barred by a turnpike, in imitation of other places; and every approach mended for a ſhort ſpace, by help of the ſcanty tolls. The town is ſmall; the ſtreets diſpoſed in a moſt irregular manner; but the ſituation is in a beautiful vale, fertile, well wooded, and embelliſhed with numbers of pretty ſeats, and watered by the river Onion; over which, on account of its floods, is a bridge of ſeveral arches. The town takes its name from its being placed in a dale abundant in hazels. It has nothing in it remarkable but the church, which, notwithſtanding it is pew-leſs, is a good building. Within is the monument of Meiric Vychan ap Ynyr Vychan, of the neighboring houſe of Nanney, fifth in deſcent from prince Cadwgan, ſon of Bleyddyn ap Cynvyn, who reſided there, and in whoſe poſterity it continues to this time; He is armed in a cloſe mail helmet and neck-guard, ſword in hand, and with a ſhort mantle over the reſt of his armour.

Cader Idris riſes immediately above the town,CADER IDRIS. and is generally the object of the traveller's attention. I ſkirted the mountain for about two miles, left on the right the ſmall lake of Llyn Gwernan, and began the aſcent along a narrow ſteep horſe-way, perhaps the higheſt road in Britain, being a common paſſage even for loaden horſes, into Llan-vibangel-y-Pennent, a vale on the other ſide. On gaining the brow of the hill, I found it to be a very extenſive paſture of coarſe graſs, mixed with a little bog. The hill ſlopes from hence upwards: the ſteeper part to the higheſt peak, or the Pen yr Cader, grows more and more rocky: the approach to the ſummit extremely ſo, and covered with huge fragments of diſcolored rocks, very rugged, and cemented by a ſemivitrified matter, which gives them a very vulcanic look, added to their diſjoined, adventitious appearance. I met with, on my aſcent, quantities of pumice, of the ſame cellular kind with the toadſtone of Derbyſhire, but of a green color. The day proved ſo wet and miſty, that I loſt the enjoyment of the great view from the ſummit. I could only ſee that the ſpot I was on was a rude aggregate of ſtrangely diſordered maſſes. I could at intervals perceive a ſtupendous precipice on one ſide, where the hill recedes inwards, forming a ſort of theatre, with a lake at the bottom; yet very high, in compariſon of the baſe of the mountain. On the other ſide, at a nearer diſtance, I ſaw Craig Cay, a great rock, with a lake beneath, lodged in a deep hollow; poſſibly the crater of an antient Vulcano. This is ſo excellently expreſſed by the admirable pencil of my kinſman, Mr. Wilſon, that I ſhall not attempt the deſcription.

IN deſcending from the Cader; I kept on the edge of the greater precipice, till I came near the Cyfrwy, another peak. The whole ſpace, for a conſiderable way, was covered with looſe ſtones, in the form of a ſtream, ſloping from the precipitous ſide. Multitudes of them were columnar,COLUMNS. but not jointed, ſquare, or pentagonal; none erect, but lying very diſorderly, in all directions. Some appeared hanging down the face of the precipice; the ends of others were peeping out at a vaſt depth beneath me, which ſhewed the great thickneſs of the ſtream. I wiſh the day had been more favorable; but I hope another traveller will ſurround the whole, and make a more ſatisfactory relation of this mountain, than I have been able to do.

IN reſpect to the heights of this mountain,HEIGHT. and thoſe of Aran Benllyn, and the Arrenig Vawr, I am enabled to give a very exact account, by the aſſiſtance of the ingenious Mr. Meredith Hughes, of Bala; who aſſures me, that the Pen y Gader is nine hundred and fifty yards higher than the green near Dolgelleu; Aran Benllyn, ſeven hundred and forty above Llyn-tegid; and the Arrenig, only twenty yards ſhort of the Aran; that the fall from the lake to Dolgelleu-Green, is one hundred and eighty yards; ſo that the real difference of height between the Cader and the Aran, is only thirty yards.

AFTER recovering the fatigue of this journey, I began another, in order to encircle the vaſt baſe of the mountain. I took the ſame road as I did before; and continued my ride beneath Tyrrau Mawr, one of the points of Cader Idris, the higheſt rock I ever rode under. Beyond, on the right, are the two pools called Llynian Cregenan; and not far diſtant, are ſome remains of circles of upright ſtones, with many carns; a vaſt ſtone, raiſed erect on the top of a neighboring rock; and ſeveral maeni hirion, or rude upright columns.

AT ſome diſtance beyond theſe,LLYS BRADWEN. near the river Kregennan, I ſaw the remains of Llys Bradwen, the court or palace of Ednowain, chief of one of the fifteen tribes of North Wales, either in the reign of Gryffydd ap Cynan, or ſoon after. The reliques are about thirty yards ſquare: the entrance about ſeven feet wide, with a large upright ſtone on each ſide, by way of door-caſe: the walls with large ſtones, uncemented by any mortar: in ſhort, the ſtructure of this palace ſhews the very low ſtate of architecture in thoſe times: it may be paralleled only by the artleſs fabrick of a cattle houſe.

Ednyfed ap Aaren, a deſcendant of this great man, had the honor of entertaining Owen Glyndwr, in one of his ſad reverſes of fortune; and is ſaid to have concealed him from the purſuit of his enemies, in the pariſh of Llan Gelynln, in a cave, to this day called Ogof Owain.

I MUST not lead the reader into a belief, that every habitation, of theſe early times, were equal in magnificence to that of Ednowain ap Bradwen. Thoſe of inferior gentry were formed of wattles, like Indian wigwams, or Highland hovels; without gardens or orchard, and formed for removal from place to place, for the ſake of new paſture, or a greater plenty of game. The furniture was correſpondent; there were neither tables, nor cloths, nor napkinsGirald. Cambr. Dejer. Walliae, 888. ; but this is leſs wonderful, ſince we find, that even ſo late as the time of Edward II. ſtraw was uſed in the royal apartment Anderſon's Dict. Com, ii. 112.. ANTIENT HOSPITALITY. Notwithſtanding this, the utmoſt hoſpitality was preſerved: every houſe was open, even to the pooreſt perſon. When a ſtranger entered, his arms were taken from him, and layed by; and, after the ſcriptural cuſtom, water was brought to waſh his feet. The fare was ſimple; the meal did not conſiſt of an elegant variety, but of numbers of things put together in a large diſh: the bread was thin oat-cakes, ſuch as are common in our mountanous parts at this time. The family waited on the gueſts, and never touched any thing till they had done, when it took up with what was left. Muſic, and the free converſation of the young women, formed the amuſements of the time; for jealouſy was unknown among us. Bands of young men, who knew no profeſſion but that of arms, often entered the houſes, and were welcome gueſts; for they were conſidered as the voluntary defenders of the liberties of their country. They mixed with the female part of the family, joined their voices to the melody of the harp, and conſumed the day with the moſt animated feſtivity. At length, ſunk into repoſe, not under rich teſters, or on downy beds, but along the ſides of the room, on a thin covering of dried reeds, placed round the great fire, which was placed in the centre, they lay down promiſcuouſly, covered only by a coarſe home-made cloth, called Brychan, or plaid, the ſame with the more antient Bracha; and kept one another warm, by lying cloſe together; or ſhould one ſide loſe its genial heat, they turn about, and give the chilly ſide to the fireGiraldus, 888. .

SOME vein of the antient minſtrelſie is ſtill to be met with in theſe mountanous countries.ANTIENT MINSTRELSIE. Numbers of perſons, of both ſexes, aſſemble, and ſit around the harp, ſinging alternately pennylls, or ſtanzas of antient or modern poetry. The young people uſually begin the night with dancing, and when they are tired, ſit down, and aſſume this ſpecies of relaxation. Oftentimes, like the modern Improviſitore of Italy, they will ſing extempore verſes. A perſon converſant in this art, will produce a pennyll appoſite to the laſt which was ſung: the ſubjects produce a great deal of mirth; for they are ſometimes jocular, at others ſatyrical, and many amorous. They will continue ſinging without intermiſſion, and never repeat the ſame ſtanza; for that would occaſion the loſs of the honor of being held firſt of the ſong. Like nightingales, they ſupport the conteſt throughout the night: Certant inter ſe, palamque animoſa contentio—victa morte finit ſaepe vitam, ſpiritu prius deficiente quam cantu, may almoſt be added. The audience uſually call for the tune: ſometimes only a few can ſing to it; and in many caſes the whole company: but when a party of capital ſingers aſſemble, they rarely call for a tune; for it is indifferent to them, what tune the harper plays. Pariſhes often contend againſt pariſhes; and every hill is vocal with the chorus.

CONTINUE the ride, as before, between high mountains, in a narrow glen. Quit the narrow paſs, and go along a good road, formed on the ſides of the hills, with a fine ſlope from it to the ſea, at this time ſtrangely mottled with black and green, varied by the light through the broken clouds. The road now paſſes between verdant and ſmooth hills, the great ſheep walks of the country; they are round at their tops, and covered with flocks, which yield the materials for the neighboring manufactures. From a place called Allt-Lwyd, have a very full view of the flat called Towyn Meirionydd, a mixture of meadow land and black turbery, watered by the Dyſynni, which falls into the ſea a few miles lower. On one ſide is the village and church of Tywyn, TOWYN. or Towyn. The rectory is an impropriation in the biſhop of Lichfield: the vicarage formerly belonged to the nunnery of Barking, in Eſſex, now in the patronage of the biſhop of Bangor. I neglected viſiting this place; but believe my trouble would not have been thrown away; for I find, among Mr. Llwyd's papers Sebright MSS., the drawing of the ſepulchral effigies of a churchman, another of a warrior, and two rude pillars, one ſeven feet high, with the figure of the croſs, and an inſcription on each ſide, in old characters. Another column, marked likewiſe with a croſs, but inſcribed with letters of a different form, is drawn in the ſame collection, from one in the church-yard of Llanvihangel y Traetheu, in this county.

FROM the place where I made this digreſſion, I deſcended a ſleep path through fields; and, croſſing the river, dined on a great ſtone beneath the vaſt rock Craig y Deryn, CRAIG Y DERYN. or The Rock of Birds, ſo called from the numbers of corvorants, rock pigeons, and hawks, which breed on it. At the foot is a prodigious ſtream of ſtones, which extend ſome hundreds of yards from the bottom of the rock, and is formed by the continual lapſe of fragments from it. Here the Towyn is contracted into a fertile vale, which extends about two miles further. Near its end is a long and high rock, narrow on the top. Here ſtood the caſtle of Teberri, TEBERRI CASTLE. which extended lengthways over the whole ſurface of the ſummit, and was a fortreſs of great ſtrength and extent. The moſt complete apartment was thirty-ſix feet broad, and was cut out of the rock on two ſides; for much of it is hollowed. In ſome parts, the precipices, ſkirted by a wall, formed the defence. The remaining walls are well built: the ſtones ſquared: the mortar, ſhells, and gravel, but at preſent very rotten. The whole of this place is ſo overgrown with buſhes, as to render the ſurvey very difficult. It lies in the pariſh of Llan vi hangel y Pennant, and is ſaid to have been once defended by a Coch o'r Pennant, or The Red, of that place.

THIS probably was the caſtle Bere belonging to our laſt Llewelyn, which was taken, not long before the final conqueſt of Wales, by William de Valence, earl of Pembroke Leland's Collect. i. 178.. This ſeems to have been likewiſe the ſame which was committed by Edward I. to the cuſtody of Robert Fitzwalter, who had, at the ſame time, the liberty of hunting all kinds of wild beaſts in this county Rotulae Walliae, 99.. It is fit to mention this, as there was another ſtrong fortreſs in Cardiganſhire, of a ſimilar name.

RETURN about half a mile,TAL Y LLYN. and ride ſeveral miles along the pretty vale of Tal y Llyn; very narrow, but conſiſting of fine meadows, bounded by lofty verdant mountains, very ſteeply ſloped. Went by Llyn y Myngil, a beautiful lake, about a mile long, which ſo far fills the valley, as to leave only a narrow road on one ſide. Its termination is very pictureſque; for it contracts gradually into the form of a river, and ruſhes through a good ſtone arch into a narrow paſs, having on one ſide the church, on the other a few cottages, mixed with trees. The church, and that of Llanvehangel y Pennant, are chapels to Towyn Ecton, 499..

ADJACENT to this valley,SINGULAR COFFIN. at a place called Llwyn Dôol Ithel, in the year 1684, was found, in digging turf about three yards deep, a coffin, made of deal, about ſeven feet long, carved and gilt at both ends. Two ſkeletons, ſuppoſed of different ſexes, were found in it, placed with the head of the one parallel to the feet of the other; the bones were moiſt; and tough, and of an uncommon ſize, the thigh bones being twenty-ſeven inches long. Within a yard of the coffin, were found two other ſkeletons, of the ſame dimenſions with the former, layed on the bare clay; and within two roods of them, a grave, with a ſkeleton of the uſual ſize. Along the graves and coffin were layed hazel rods, with the bark on, and ſo tough, as to be flexible Llwyd's Itin. MS. Another inſtance is related in Cambden, ii. 793.. The high preſervation of theſe rods, and the toughneſs of the bones, were owing to the bituminous quality of the turbery in which they were depoſited. The rods were placed for ſome ſuperſtitious purpoſe, perhaps to avert the power of witchcraft, ſince a double hazel-nut, in ſome parts of the Highlands of Scotland, is to this day ſuppoſed to have that virtue.

A FEW miles beyond Tal y Llyn church, the hills almoſt meet at their bottoms, and change their aſpect. No verdure now is to be ſeen, but a general appearance of rude and ſavage nature. The ſides are broken into a thouſand crags; ſome ſpiring and ſharp pointed; but the greater part project forward, and impend in ſuch a manner, as to render the apprehenſion of their fall tremendous. A few buſhes grow among them; but the duſky color of them, as well as the rocks, only ſerved to add horror to the ſcene.

ONE of the precipices is called Pen y Delyn, LLAM Y LLADRON. from ſome reſemblance it has to a harp. Another is ſtyled Llam y Lladron, or The Thieves Leap, from a tradition that thieves were brought there, and thrown down. I have no doubt but that ſuch a puniſhment might have been inflicted from this Welſh Tarpeian, by order of an arbitrary lord; but we formerly very rarely uſed capital puniſhments, for any crime; not but the gallows was in uſe for theft Leges Walliae, 221., but fines were accepted in almoſt all inſtances, even in caſes of murder; which gave riſe to private revenge, and brought on a train of endleſs feuds and bloodſhed.

ON the left, is the rugged height of Cader Idris, LLYN Y TRI GRAIENYN. paſs near a ſmall lake, called Llyn y tri Graienyn, or of the three grains; which are three vaſt rocks, the ruins of the neighboring mountain, which ſome time or other had fallen into the water. Theſe, ſay the peaſants, were the three grains which had fallen into the ſhoe of the great Idris, which he threw out here, as ſoon as he felt them hurting his foot.

PASS over Bwlch Coch, NANNEY. and, after deſcending a very bad road, again reach Dolgelleu; from whence I viſited Nanney, the antient ſeat of the antient family of the Nanneys, now of the Vaughans. The way to it is a continual aſcent of two miles; ſo perhaps it is the higheſt ſituation of any gentleman's houſe in Britain. The eſtate is covered with fine timber, which clothe all the ſides of the dingles for many miles. On the road ſide is a venerable oak, in its laſt ſtage of decay, and pierced by age into the form of a gothic arch; yet its preſent girth is twenty-ſeven feet and a half. The name is very claſſical, Derwen Ceubren yr Ellyll, the hollow oak, the haunt of daemons. How often has not warm fancy ſeen the fairy tribe revel round its trunk! or may not the viſionary eye have ſeen the Hamadryad burſt from the bark of its coeval tree?

ABOVE Nanney is a high rock, with the top incircled with a dike of looſe ſtones. This had been a Britiſh poſt, the ſtation, perhaps, of ſome tyrant, it being called Moel Orthrwm, or the hill of oppreſſion.

THE park of Nanney is remarkable for its very ſmall, but very excellent veniſon. I have before mentioned the ruins of the houſe of Howel Sele, within this park, and related his unfortunate hiſtoryTour in Wales, i. 324..

RETURN through Dolgelleu; and about a mile beyond, on a riſing ſpot, have a beautiful view of three vales, finely bounded by hills, and embelliſhed with gentlemen's houſes; finely watered by the junction of the Onion and the Maw, or Mowdach. I was diverted from taking the direct road to Barmouth, by the great deference I always found reaſon to pay to the judgement of a gentleman, who, a few years ago, honored our country with his remarksA Gentleman's Tour through Monmouthſhire and Wales, in 1774, printed for T. Evans, 1775., and has made a particular euloge on the caſcades of Glyn-Maw. Let me add, that the conſideration of ending this little excurſion at the hoſpitable houſe of Mr. Garnons, of Rhiw Goch was another ſpur to my deſign.

CROSS the bridge of Llan Elltyd. Below is a fine tract of meadow, wretchedly deformed by the neceſſity of digging into them for turf, the fuel of the country. The tide flows within a ſmall diſtance of this place; and on the banks I ſaw a ſmall ſloop, ready to be launched. On the left is the church of Llan-Elltyd: on the right, in a rich flat, ſtand the remains of the abbey of Cymmer. CYMMER ABBEY. Part of the church is ſtill to be ſeen, and ſhews its antient grandeur. At the eaſt end are three lofty, but very narrow windows, pointed at top; and over them three leſſer, mantled in a great and gloomy thicket of ivy. The great hall, and part of the abbot's lodgings, now form a farm-houſe.

THIS had been an abbey of Ciſtercians, founded (not by Llewelyn ap Jorwerth, as has been ſuppoſed, who only confirmed the donations, as prince of Wales) but by the two princes Meredydd and Gryffydd, the ſons of Conan and Howel, the ſon of Gryffydd, about the year 1198. In the charter of Llewelyn, in 1209, is mention of their benefactions, of his own, and of the boundaries of the abbey lands Sebright MSS.; which ſhew it had been founded by other perſons. This charter is moſt ample, over rivers, lakes, and ſea; birds, and wild beaſts and tame; over all mountains, woods, things moveable and immoveable; and over all things under and over the lands ſo granted; and gives liberty of digging for metals and hidden treaſures: all which was done in preſence of Eſau, then lord abbot, and others, religious of the houſe Dugdale Monaſt. i. 826; who, as well as Tanner, confounds this with Cwmbir abbey, in South Wales. . At the diſſolution, its revenues were valued at fifty-one pounds thirteen ſhillings and ſix pence, by Dugdale, at fifty-eight pounds fifteen ſhillings and four pence, by Speed. The only charge on it in 1553, was ſix pounds thirteen ſhillings and four pence, paid to Lewis ap Thomas, ſuppoſed to have been the laſt abbot Willis, ii. 313..

Uchtred ap Edwyn built a caſtle here,CASTLE. which was taken and overthrown, about 1116, by Eneon ap Cadwgan, and Gryffyd ap Meredydd ap Bleyddyn Powel, 183.; and its place is not at preſent even known.

CONTINUE my journey on a bank high above the Maw. The valley grows ſoon very contracted; the ſides of the hills finely covered with wood, almoſt to the top; and the river aſſumes the form of a torrent, rolling over a rocky channel.

ABOUT five or ſix miles from Dolgelleu, at Dôol y Melynllyn, I turned out of the road, meeting the furious courſe of the Gamlan, that falls, with ſhort interruptions, from rock to rock, for a very conſiderable ſpace, amidſt the woods and buſhes, till it reaches a lofty precipice, from whence it precipitates into a black pool, ſhaded by trees (which gives to the cataract the name of Rhaiader-ddu, RHAIADER DDU or The Black.) A noble birch, placed above, finely finiſhes this pictureſque ſcene.

CROSS Pont ar Gamlan, below which the river falls into the Maw. Not far from thence, the junction of the Maw and Eden forms another fine ſcene. A lofty hill, cloathed with woods, ends here, and forms the forks of the rivers, correſpondent to the ſteeps through which theſe torrents roll, and exhibits a view like thoſe of the ſhady wilds of America.

BEGIN a conſiderable aſcent, and find on the top ſome groves of handſome oaks: before me, a naked country. Deſcend, through ſome ſteep fields, to another ſet of wooded dingles, that wind along the bottoms, and join with the former. In various parts, Cader Idris appears in full majeſty over theſe ſloping foreſts, and gives a magnificent finiſhing to the proſpect. Soon after my arrival among the woods, another caſcade aſtoniſhes me with its grandeur. From the ſituation I was in, it formed a vaſt fall, bounded on one ſide by broken ledges of rocks, on the other by a lofty precipice, with trees here and there growing out of its mural front. On the ſummit of each part, oaks and birch form diſtinct little groves, and give it a ſort of character diſtinct from our other cataracts. After the water reaches the bottom of the deep concavity, it ruſhes in a narrow rocky chaſm, of a very great depth, over which is an admirable wooden Alpine bridge; and the whole, for a conſiderable way, awefully canopied by trees. This is called Piſtill y Kain, or the ſpout of the river Kain. At no great diſtance from it, is another (for nature is here profuſe in her beauties of this kind).PISTILL Y MAW. The Maw, for ſome ſpace, runs along a deep glen, finiſhed by a bare mountain, ſeen through viſtos, formed by the woods on each ſide. The water tumbles down a ſeries of ledges, of different heights, into a very black and ſullen pool, from which it re-aſſumes its violence, and is loſt among the far extending woods.

IN the nakedneſs of winter, there is a ſpot, far above, from whence theſe two cataracts may be ſeen at once, exhibiting through the trees a piece of ſcenery, as uncommon as it is grand. After emerging from theſe romantic depths, I reach a long extent of woodleſs tract, the vaſt pariſh of Trawsfynnydd, walled in on all ſides by lofty rugged mountains, of various forms.

IN a farm-houſe,BEDH PORUS. not far from this road to Rhiw Goch, I viſited Bedh Porus, or the grave of Porus. On a flat ſtone over it, is the following inſcription, copied ſomewhat differently by Mr. Llwyd, in the Britannia II. 791.: PORVS HIO IN TVMVLO IACIT, HOMO PIANVS FVIT.

SOME have ſuppoſed the P to have been an R, and the word to have been CHRISTIANUS FUIT; but, whatſoever the letter in diſpute might have been, there certainly never was room between HOMO and the next word, for the letters CHRIS.

NOT far from it, in another field, is a great upright ſtone, called Llech Idris. There is ſome ſilly legend about it, concerning the giant Idris; but it is no more than one of the monumental columns, ſo frequent in Wales, and many other parts.

AFTER a ſhort ride,SARN HELEN. ſee on a common, for the firſt time, the noted Sarn, or Llwybr Helen, the cauſeway or path of Helen; a road ſuppoſed to have been made through part of North Wales, by Helena, daughter of Eudda, or Octavius, and wife to the emperor Maximus Rowland, 165..

THIS road is now entirely covered with turf; but, by the riſing of it, is in moſt parts very viſible: beneath are the ſtones which form it, and extend in all its courſe, to the breadth of eight yards. There are tumuli near it, in various places, it being very uſual for the Romans to inter near their highways. Cloſe to the part in queſtion is one, in which were found five urns: the whole materials of it are compoſed of burnt earth and ſtones, with ſeveral fragments of bricks, which had been placed round the urns, to keep them from being cruſhed.

AFTER repoſing a night at Rhiw Goch, CASTELL PRYSOR. adjacent to this part of the journey, I continued it a few miles to Caſtell Pryſor, a very ſingular little fort, placed in a paſs between the hills, on a natural round rock, appearing, at firſt ſight, like the artificial mounts we had before obſerved. Around its ſummit had been the wall, whoſe remains are viſible in ſeveral places; and in one is the appearance of a round tower: the facings are very regular, but the work deſtitute of mortar. Notwithſtanding this, the caſtelet is probably Roman; for multitudes of coins and urns are found about it. The name explains the cauſe of the want of lime in the walls, Caſtell Pryſor ſignifying a caſtle made in baſte, ſo that there was not time to prepare the uſual cement. Around its baſe are the foundations of ſeveral buildings, which were placed there to enjoy the protection of the place.

FROM hence I took the track towards Feſtiniog, and ſaw, by the road ſide, Llyn Rathllyn, a ſmall lake, noted for a ſtrange variety of perch,CROOKED PERCH. with a hunched back, and the lower part of the back-bone, near the tail, oddly diſtorted Br. Zool, iii. tab. xlviii.: in other reſpects, they reſemble the common kind, which are equally numerous in this water. The ſame are found at Fablun, in Sweden.

NOT far from hence,ROMAN CAMP. within the incloſed country, I found a very fine Roman camp, moſt judiciouſly placed, in a ſituation over an extenſive view of the country, partly level, partly inclining from it, and commanding a number of paſſes to die leſſer poſts of this mountanous tract. It is ſurrounded with a ditch and bank, on the laſt of which are the veſtiges of a wall: near one end is a great mount of earth, broken and hollow in the middle, from the removal of the ſtones which compoſed the fort: round its baſe is a deep ditch. This camp is called Tomnen y Mur, or the mount within the wall. Coins and urns are as frequent about this place as the former. Sarn Helen runs into it at one end, and is continued to Rhyd yr Halen, in Feſtiniog pariſh, and by the ſide of Fannod Vawr, and over a farm called Cae Du, to Ffrydd y Dduallt, to the upper part of a farm called Croeſor, at the upper end of Cwm Croeſor, and through Cae Ddafydd, in Nanmor, and perhaps to Dinas Emrys. The branches are numerous: I cannot entertain a doubt but that one pointed, by Caſtell Dol Wyddelan, to Caer Hûn, or Conovium; and that by Pont Aber Glas Llyn, and y Gymwynas, or the work done in kindneſs, may be ſuppoſed to have been another, pointing to Segontium. I have before mentioned a Ffordd Helen, among the Berwyn hills; and let me add thoſe recorded by the annotator on Cambden, in Llanbadarn Odyn, in Caerdiganſhire; and from Brecknock to Neath, in Glamorganſhire; which paſs under the name of the ſame princeſs Cambden, ii, 790..

CLOSE by the road ſide,OVAL INCLOSURE. on the common, at a ſmall diſtance from the camp, is an oval incloſure, about thirty-ſix yards long, and twenty-ſeven wide in the middle, ſurrounded by a high mound of earth, but without a foſs. There were two entrances, one oppoſite to the other; and near one end, a part ſeemed to have been divided off by a wall, whoſe foundations ſtill remain.

I RETURNED out of the pariſh of Trawsfynnydd, along the beautiful road of the preceding day, till I reached Llan Elltyd, when I kept on the ſide of the hill, above the valley which leads to Barmouth. The ride is very pictureſque; the vale watered by the Maw (known here only by the name of Avon, or The River) which widens as we advanced: the ſides bounded by hills, chequered with woods. I found the little town of Barmouth, BARMOUTH ſeated near the bottom of ſome high mountains, and the houſes placed on the ſteep ſides, one above another, in ſuch a manner as to give the upper an opportunity of ſeeing down the chimneys of their next ſubjacent neighbors. The town is ſeated very near to the ſea, at the mouth of the Maw, or Mawddoch; and takes its name of Barmouth, i. e. Aber Maw, or Mawddoch, from that circumſtance. At high water, the tide forms here a bay, about a mile over, but the entrance hazardous, on account of the many ſand-banks. This is the port of Meirioniddſhire, but not ſo much frequented as it ought to be, by reaſon the inhabitants do not attempt commerce on a large ſcale, but vend their manufactures through the means of factors, who run away with much of the advantages which the natives might enjoy; yet ſhips now and then come to fetch the webs, or flannels; and I am informed, that a few years ago, forty thouſand pounds worth have been exported in a year, and ten thouſand pounds worth of ſtockings. Many of the webs are ſold into Spain, and from thence ſent to South America.

IN a former viſit July 18th, 1770. to this place, FASTING WOMAN. my curioſity was excited to examine into the truth of a ſurprizing relation of a woman in the pariſh of Cylynin, who had faſted a moſt ſupernatural length of time. I took boat, had a moſt pleaſant paſſage up the harbour, charmed with the beauty of the ſhores, intermixed with woods, verdant paſtures, and corn fields. I landed, and, after a ſhort walk, found, in a farm called Tydden Bach, the object of my excurſion, Mary Thomas, who was boarded here, and kept with great humanity and neatneſs. She was of the age of forty-ſeven, of a good countenance, very pale, thin, but not ſo much emaciated as might be expected, from the ſtrangeneſs of the circumſtances I am going to relate; her eyes weak, her voice low, deprived of the uſe of her lower extremities, and quite bed-ridden; her pulſe rather ſtrong, her intellects clear and ſenſible.

ON examining her, ſhe informed me, that at the age of ſeven, ſhe had ſome eruptions like the meaſles, which grew confluent and univerſal; and ſhe became ſo fore, that ſhe could not bear the left touch: ſhe received ſome eaſe by the application of a ſheep's ſkin, juſt taken from the animal. After this, ſhe was ſeized, at ſpring and fall, with ſwellings and inflammations, during which time ſhe was confined to her bed; but in the intervals could walk about; and once went to Holywell, in hopes of cure.

WHEN ſhe was about twenty-ſeven years of age, ſhe was attacked with the ſame complaint, but in a more violent manner; and during two years and a half, remained inſenſible, and took no manner of nouriſhment, notwithſtanding her friends forced open her mouth with a ſpoon, to get ſomething down; but the moment the ſpoon was taken away, her teeth met, and cloſed with vaſt ſnapping and violence: during that time, ſhe flung up vaſt quantities of blood.

SHE well remembers the return of her ſenſes, and her knowlege of every body about her. She thought ſhe had ſlept but a night, and aſked her mother whether ſhe had given her any thing the day before, for ſhe found herſelf very hungry. Meat was brought to her; but ſo far from being able to take any thing ſolid, ſhe could ſcarcely ſwallow a ſpoonful of thin whey. From this, ſhe continued ſeven years and a half without any food or liquid, excepting ſufficient of the latter to moiſten her lips. At the end of this period, ſhe again fancied herſelf hungry, and deſired an egg; of which ſhe got down the quantity of a nut kernel. About this time, ſhe requeſted to receive the ſacrament; which ſhe did, by having a crum of bread ſteeped in the wine. After this, ſhe takes for her daily ſubſiſtence a bit of bread, weighing about two penny-weights ſeven grains, and drinks a wine glaſs of water: ſometimes a ſpoonful of wine, but frequently abſtains whole days from food and liquids. She ſleeps very indifferently: the ordinary functions of nature are very ſmall, and very ſeldom performed. Her attendant told me, that her diſpoſition of mind was mild; her temper even; that ſhe was very religious, and very ſervent in prayer: the natural effect of the ſtate of her body, long unembarraſſed with the groſſneſs of food, and a conſtant alienation of thought from all worldly affairsShe was living in 1780, and in the ſame ſtate..

THIS inſtance of the influence of diſeaſe (for ſuch only can it be called) ſtrange as it is, is not without parallel.

THE firſt is the caſe of a lady, a patient of the late doctor Gower, of Chelmsford, who was confined to her bed for ten years, during which time ſhe had an extreme and conſtant averſion to all kinds of ſolid nouriſhment. She drank a pint of tea daily; and once in three or four days chewed, without ſwallowing, a few raiſins of the ſun and blanched almonds, about four or half a dozen of each: ſhe ſeldom eat oftener than once a month, and then only a bit of dry bread, of the ſize of a nutmeg; but frequently abſtained from food for many weeks together. This lady recovered, by means of conſtant medical regimen; ſo that ſhe could walk two miles, without taking either reſt or refreſhment.

I REFER the reader to the Tour in Scotland of 1769, for the extraordinary caſe of Katherine Macleod, of the county of Roſs; and finally, ſhall mention that of Martha Taylor, of —, near Bakewell, Derbyſhire, who abſtained from food from December 22, 1669, for thirteen months, and took nothing the whole time, excepting a few drops of ſyrup, water and ſugar or the juice of roaſted raiſins. She was alſo very religious; was much emaciated; her palms moiſt; her other evacuations very ſmall Harleian Miſcel. iv. 41. 55. See London Magazine, 1762, p. 340, in which is another inſtance of long abſtinence..

I SHALL now mention another ſingular perſonage,EVANS THE CONJURER. but less innocent, a native of the ſame pariſh with Mary Thomas. This was the noted aſtrologer, and ill-favored knave, Ariſe Evans, a character and ſpecies of impoſtor frequent in the reigns of Elizabeth and James I. His figure is preſerved in the Antiquarian Repertory, and anſwers the deſcription given of him by his great pupil, William Lilly, of having a broad forehead, beetlebrows, thick ſhoulders, flat noſe, full lips, a down look, black curling ſtiff hair, and ſplay foot. He was a deep ſtudent in the black art; and Lilly aſſures us, that he had moſt piercing judgement naturally upon a figure of theft, and many other queſtions, he ever met withal; was well verſed in the nature of ſpirits; and had many times uſed the circular way of invocating. He then tells how his friend Evans, by means of the angel Salmon, brought to him a deed, which one of his cuſtomers had been wronged of, at the ſame time blowing down part of the houſe of the perſon in whoſe cuſtody it was: and again, how, to ſatisfy the curioſity of lord Bothwel and Sir Kenelm Digby, who wanted to ſee a ſpirit, he liked to have loſt his life, being carried over the Thames, and flung down near Batterſea, by the ſpirits, whom he had vexed at the time of invocation, for want of making In the life of Benevuto Cellini, is a moſt ridiculous tale of this nature. a due fumigation. Theſe ridiculous impoſtures were the faſhionable credulity of the times; and the greateſt men were the dupes of theſe pretenders to occult ſcience. To ſhew that Wales was fertile in geniuſes of every kind, we muſt lay clame to the celebrated doctor John Dee, or Dû, who. was born at Nant-y-Groes, Radnorſhire J. D. Rhys Cambr. Brit. Ling. Inſtitut. p. 60., and was ſought after by the greateſt princes in Europe. Ben. Johnſon, in his excellent comedy of The Alchemyſt, for a time, gave almoſt as fatal a blow to the black art, as Quevedo did in Spain to chivalry; but, ſince avarice and curioſity are paſſions moſt difficult of conqueſt, it roſe again with freſh vigor, and maintained its ground till the reſtorationSee Lilly's Life paſſim. .

ON my return to Barmouth, I proceeded for ſome time along the coaſt, among ſhifting ſands. Paſs near Kail Wart, by a ſtone, now ſerving as a foot bridge, on which was this inſcription: Hic jacet CALIXTUS Monedo Regi. There is no tradition of the place it was removed from.

ASCEND from the coaſt to Cors-y-gedol, CORS-Y-GEDOL. the antient ſeat of the Vaughans, where I was entertained by William Vaughan, eſquire, for ſome days, in the ſtyle of an antient baron. The woods near his houſe are extenſive, but affected by the weſt winds in a very ſurprizing manner: the tops are ſhorn quite even, and the boughs ſo interwoven, as to form ſeemingly a cloſe and almoſt impenetrable ſurface.

THERE are few places which abound more in Britiſh antiquities, than the environs of Cors-y-Gedol. CRAIG Y DINAS. I firſt viſited Craig y Dinas, the ſummit of a hill, ſurrounded with a vaſt heap of ſtones, the ruins of a wall, which, in many parts, retain a regular and even facing: this, and ſome others ſimilar, are the firſt deviations from the rude ramparts of ſtone, and prior to the improvement of maſonry by the uſe of mortar. Into this is an oblique entrance, with ſtone facings on both ſides; and near it are two ramparts of ſtones. The whole is on the ſteep extremity of the hill, near to which is a paſs into the country.

ABOUT a mile farther,LLYN BODLYN. is Llyn Bodlyn, a ſmall lake, beneath a lofty precipice, well ſtocked with char, which will take a bair, and afford good diverſion to the angler. Llyn Cwm Howel is another lake in this neighborhood, noted for a race of trouts (which I have ſeen) with moſt deformed heads, thick, flatted, and toad ſhaped; and which, probably, might give riſe to the fabled accounts of the monſtrous ſpecies recorded by Giraldus.

AFTER paſſing by Llyn-Irddin, a ſmall piece of water, on a plain, arrive amidſt a wondrous group of Druidical antiquities. On the flat appear two circles.CIRCLES OF STONES. The firſt is about fifty-ſix feet in diameter, formed of piles of looſe ſtones, with upright columns, placed at five yards diſtance from each other, in pairs, ſo as nearly to divide the circle into four parts. About thirty yards from this, is a leſſer, with ſeveral upright ſtones among the ſmaller, but placed with leſs regularity. Deſign, not chance, certainly directed the founders of theſe circles in the diſpoſition of the columnar ſtones; but I fear, when I come to ſpeak more fully of them, the cauſe muſt remain unaccounted for, by reaſon of the remoteneſs of the time, and the myſtery of the antient prieſthood.

HALF a mile fouth of theſe, on the ſide of a hill, are two carnedds, of a moſt ſtupendous ſize, containing an uncommon aſſemblage of druidical cuſtoms,CARNEDDEU HENGWM. or religion, in form of Cromleh, Maen Hir, and Kiſt Vaen. Both are of an oblong form, and compoſed of looſe ſtones: the largeſt is fifty-five feet, long, and twelve high, in the middle. At the eaſt end is a great Cromleh altar, compoſed of two ſloping ſtones, one placed over the edge of the other, upon five flat upright ſtones, ſeven feet high in one part, and four feet ten in the loweſt. About eight yards from this, is the upper ſtone of a Cromleh, lying flat on the carnedd, without the appearance of any other ſupport.

ELEVEN yards farther, is another great heap of ſtones, and in it a large Cromleh, ſupported with upright ſtones. It is now converted into a retreat for a ſhepherd, who has placed ſtone ſeats within, and formed a chimney through the looſe ſtones above. In the ſame carnedd, a little farther on, is another magnificent Cromleh, whoſe incumbent ſtone is twelve feet by nine; four vaſt columns, or maen hirion, three now fallen, and a third erect. The columns are from the height of ten feet four, to that of twelve feet eight; and each between four and five feet broad.

NORTH-WEST of theſe antiquities,CASTELL DINAS CORTIN. on the top of a hill, is a ſtrong poſt, called Caſtell Dinas Cortin, entrenched around, with an advanced work on one ſide. This, and Caſtell Craig y Dinas, were doubtleſsly formed as defences to the ſacred ground, the ſubject of the above deſcription. I may add likewife another object of protection, of the ſame nature, which I met with on my return to Corſegedol, two great Carnedds, placed on ſmall eminences, near to each other; and within one, the five ſquare flags of a Kiſt vaen, the top being deſtroyed. The place is moſt remarkable for the name, Bryn Cornyn JAU. The neighbors of this antiquity are fond of rendering it, The Hill of the Horns of JOVE. It more probably was a place of ſacrifice before or after the chace, and derived its title from the horned deity Cernunnos, CERNUNNOS. who was venerated by the Gauls, and applied to as a protector from the dangers attendant on the diverſionReligion de Gaulois, ii. • 85. Both the Gauls and Britons had one common religion; ſo that Cernunnos might as reaſonably be ſuppoſed to have a place here as in France.

THIS neighborhood alſo abounds with Cromlechs of very great ſize.CROMLECHS. I meaſured one, in a tenement called Bryn-y-Voel, which was ſixteen feet four inches long, ſeven feet four broad, and twenty inches thick. It lay about two feet above the ground, ſupported by ſmall ſtones, and was ſurrounded with a circle of looſe ſtones. Moſt of the Cromlechs of theſe parts lie very near to the ground, and in that reſpect differ from thoſe of other places. They lie likewife horizontally, which ſhews that their object was different, whatſoever it was.

THIS country is in the hundred of Ardudwy. The entrance into it from Trawsfynnydd is called Drws Ardudwy, DEWS ARDUDWY. or the door of Ardudwy, formed by nature through the ſterile mountains, which ſeparate the places. I was tempted to viſit this noted paſs, and found the horror of it far exceeding the moſt gloomy idea that could be conceived of it. The ſides ſeemed to have been rent by ſome mighty convulſion into a thouſand precipices, forming at their tops rows of ſhelves, which the peaſants, comparing to the ranges in a dove cot, ſtyle Carreg y Klommenod, or the rock of the pigeons. The bottom of this paſſage is covered with a deluge of ſtones, which have ſtreamed from the ſides; and along it is a narrow horſe-path, on the ſlippery rock, formed by the removal of a few of the fragments, which, in other places, are diſpoſed into form of moſt ſteep and hazardous flights of ſteps: and yet, as if the natural and artificial difficulties of theſe ways were not ſufficient to terrify invaders, there are, in one place, the veſtiges of a wall, which went acroſs the paſs, in which might have been the door which gave name to it.

ON my return, I viſited an ordinary houſe, called Maes y Garnedd, the birth place of the regicide colonel Jones; whoſe inſolence to the neighboring gentry is ſtill ſpoken of, even to this day, with much warmth. Actuated by enthuſiaſm, he went every length that the congenial Cromwell dictated; and was a brave and ſucceſsful officer in a cauſe, which, after a certain period, was the reſult of ambition, and the foundation of tyranny.

FROM ſome of the adjacent heights of this ride, I had a full view beneath me (it being low water) of the long range of ſand and gravel, which runs from this coaſt twenty-two miles into the ſea. It is deſervedly called Sarn Badrig, SARN BADRIG. or, more properly, Bad-rhwyg, or Ship breaking Cauſeway, from the number of ſhips loſt upon it. This ſhoal is dry at the ebb of ſpring-tides, and marked in ſtorms by horrible breakers. Tradition ſays, that all this part of the ſea had been a habitable hundred, called Cantréer Gwaelod, or The Lowland Hundred; and that it was overwhelmed by the ſea, about the year 500, in the time of Gwyddno Goronhir.

A SIMILAR accident happened, in ſome diſtant period, on the coaſt of Eſſex. The canons of St. Paul muſt be poſſeſſed of a prebend, before they can become reſidentiaries; and the one uſually given is, The Praebenda conſumpta per mare, which lay on the coaſt of that county.

FROM Corſegedol, I purſued my journey towards Harlech; but, on the road, was tempted, by my conſtant fellow-traveller, the reverend Mr. John Lloyd, to make a ſmall deviation to the right, to viſit a near relation of his, who lived a few miles to our right, in his antient territories of Cwm Bychan. We approached it through Glyn Artro, a little valley, watered by a river of the ſame name, and prettily wooded. The view upwards was extremely pictureſque, of a conic rock, ſkirted by a ſweet grove; and beyond ſoared the naked mountains, which bounded the object of our ride.

AFTER paſſing through the wood, and aſcending Dinas Porchellyn, had before us a wild horizon of rocks and rocky mountains. Even theſe tracts, unfriendly as they ſeem to vegetation, had once been covered with venerable oaks; and there ſtill remained a few, between eight and nine feet in circumference. We went under their ſhade, above a rapid torrent, with a delightful view before us of a true Alpine wooden bridge, and a ſmall mill; and, a little farther, an antient arch, flung from rock to rock, giving paſſage over a ſtill and black water, ſhaded by trees. Ford the river again near Llyn Sarph, or The Serpent's Hole. Wind up a rocky ſtair-caſe road, and arrive full in ſight of Cwm Bychan, CWM BYCHAN. emboſomed with rocks of magnificent height. After a ſhort ride, high above a lake of the ſame name, deſcend, and reach the houſe of the venerable Evan Llwyd, who, with his anceſtors, boaſt. of being lords of theſe rocks, at left ſince the year 1100. This, and the fortified paſs of Drws Ardudwy, were moſt probably occupied by the ſons of Cadwgan, in their conteſts with the ſons of Uchtryd ap Edwyn, whom they at laſt expelled the country.

The following, as it is the true deſcent of Mr. Evan Llwyd, and my fellow-traveller, who, being brother's children, are eighteenth in deſcent from Blyddyn ap Cynvyn, ſo it is a genuine copy of the form of a Britiſh pedegree:

Evan ap Edward, ap Richard, ap Edward, ap Humphrey, ap Edward, ap Dafydd, ap Robert, ap Howel, ap Dafydd, ap Meirig Llwyd o Nannau, ap Meirig Vychan, ap Ynyr Vychan, ap Ynyr, ap Meuric, ap Madog, ap Cadwgan, ap Bleddyn, ap Cynvyn, prince of North Wales and Powys Numbers of reſpectable families in this country, are of the ſame deſcent..

I WAS introduced to the worthy repreſentative of this long line, who gave me the moſt hoſpitable reception, and in the ſtyle of an antient Briton. He welcomed us with ale and potent beer, to waſh down the Coch yr Wden, or hung goat, and the cheeſe, compounded of the milk of cow and ſheep. He likewiſe ſhewed us the antient family cup, made of a bull's ſcrotum, in which large libations had been made in days of yore. The family lay in their whole ſtore of winter proviſions, being inacceſſible a great part of the ſeaſon, by reaſon of ſnow. Here they have lived for many generations, without bettering or leſſening their income; without noiſy fame, but without any of its embittering attendants.

OF this houſe was the valiant Dai Llwyd, to whom is ſaid to have been addreſſed the noted Welſh tune, Ffarwel DAI Llwyd, on occaſion of his going with Jaſper Tudor and Owen Lawgoch, to fight Riſiart Frawdwr, or Richard the Traitor, by which name the Welſh ſtigmatized Richard the Third.

THE manſion is a true ſpecimen of an antient ſeat of a gentleman of Wales. The furniture rude: the moſt remarkable were the Ciſtie Styffylog, or the great oatmeal cheſts, which held the eſſential part of the proviſion.

THE territories dependent on the manſion, extend about four miles each way, and conſiſt of a ſmall tract of meadow, a pretty lake ſwarming with trout, a little wood, and very much rock; but the whole forms a moſt auguſt ſcenery. The naked mountains envelope his vale and lake, like an immenſe theatre. The meadows are divided by a ſmall ſtream, and are bounded on one ſide by the lake; on the other, by his woods, which ſkirt the foot of the rocks, and through which the river runs, and beyond them tumbles from the heights, in a ſeries of cataracts. He keeps his whole territory in his own hands; but diſtributes his hinds among the Havadwys, or ſummer dairy-houſes, for the conveniency of attending his herds and flocks: he has fixed his heir on another part of his eſtates. His ambition once led him to attempt draining his lake, in order to extend his landed property; but, alas! he gained only a few acres of ruſhes and reeds; ſo wiſely bounded his deſires, and ſaved a beautiful piece of water. He found on one ſide a ſtratum of fine white earth, about half a yard thick, which I knew was what mineralogiſts dignify with the name of Lac Lunae, and Agaricus Mineralis. The Germans uſe it as an abſorbent in dyſenteries and malignant fevers Da Coſta's Foſſils, i. 83.; and it would prove a good manure.

STOOLS and roots of firs, of vaſt ſize, are frequently found near the lake. Mr. Llwyd found one, with the marks of fire on it, which he uſed to repair the Tyddyn y Traian, or jointure-houſe of his family; an ancient cuſtomary appendage to moſt of the Welſh houſes of any note.

AMONG the mountains which guard the Cwm, is one named Carreg y Saeth, on whoſe verge is a great Maen Hîr, and Carnedd. Saeth ſignifies an arrow; ſo probably the antient ſportſmen here took their ſtand, to watch the paſſing of the deer, which formerly abounded in theſe parts. Nor have they long been extinct; a perſon of the laſt generation informed my hoſt, that he had ſeen eighteen at once, grazing in the meadow.

THE Welſh had ſeveral animals,ANTIENT HUNTING. which were the objects of the chace; ſuch as, y Carw, or the ſtag; Kaid Wenyn, a ſwarm of bees; and y Gleiſiad, or the ſalmon. Yr Arth, the bear; y Dringhedydd, climbing animals, I ſuppoſe wild cats, martins, and ſquirrels; and Ceiliog Coed, or cock of the wood. And the laſt diviſion was, y Llwynog, the fox; Yſgyfarnog, the hare; and yr Ywrch, the roe. Some of the above come very improperly under our idea of hunting, yet were comprehended in the code of laws relative to the diverſion, formed, as is ſuppoſed, by Gryffyd ap Cynan Lewis's Hiſt, Wales, Introd. 56..

I SUSPECT alſo, that the otter was an object of diverſion; there being a Cylch Dyfrgwm, or an annual payment, by the Welſh, for the prince's water dogsRecord of Caernarvon, Harl. MSS..

THE three firſt were Helfa Gyffredyn, or the common hunt. The ſtag, becauſe he was the nobleſt animal of chace; and becauſe every body, who came by at his death, before he was ſkinned, might clame a ſhare in him. The next animals were, Helfa Gyfarthfa, or the animals which could be brought to bay, ſuch as the bear, &c. which were hunted with hounds till they aſcended a tree. The bird mentioned here, is the cock of the wood, whoſe nature it is to ſit perched on a bough, where they will gaze till they are ſhot, as they were, in old times, by the bow, or croſs-bow.

THE third diviſion was Helfa Ddolef, or the ſhouting chace, becauſe attended by the clamor of the ſportſmen; and comprehended the fox, the hare, and the roe. The method of hunting was either with hounds, or grehounds, which they let ſlip at the animals, holding the dogs in leaſhes. No one was to ſlip his grehound when the hounds were in chace, unleſs he had a hound in the pack, on penalty of having the grehound ham-ſtrung: neither was it allowed to kill any animal of chace on its form, or at reſt, on pain of forfeiting his bow and arrow to the lord of the manor. When ſeveral grehounds, the property of different perſons, were ſlipt at any animal, the perſon whoſe dog was neareſt the beaſt, when laſt in ſight, clamed the ſkin. A bitch was excepted, unleſs it was proved ſhe was pregnant by a dog which had before won a ſkin.

EVERY perſon who carries a horn, muſt give a ſcientifical account of the nine objects of chace, or elſe he will be looked on as a pretender, and forfeit his horn. The ſame penalty attends the Cynllafan, or leaſh; he is never again to wear it round his middle, on pain of forfeiture; but then he is ſuffered to wear it round his arm.

THE antient Welſh held the fleſh of the ſtag, hare, wild boar, and the bear, to be the greateſt delicacies among the beaſts of chace.

THE prince had his Pencynwydd, or chief huntſman. He was the tenth officer of the court. He had for his own ſupper one diſh of meat; and after it, three horns of mead, one from the king, another from the queen, the third from the ſteward of the houſhold. He was never to ſwear, but by his horn and his leaſh. He had the third of the fines and heriots of all the other huntſmen; and likewiſe the ſame ſhare of the amobr, on the marriage of any of their daughters. At a certain time of the year, he was to hunt for the king only: at other ſeaſons, he was permitted to hunt for himſelf. His horn was that of an ox, of a pound value. He had in winter an ox's hide, to make leaſhes; in ſummer, a cow's, to cut into ſpatterdaſhes.

THE king had liberty of hunting whereſoever he pleaſed; but if a beaſt was hunted and killed on any gentleman's eſtate, and not followed and clamed by the huntſman that night, the owner of the land might convert it to his own uſe, but was to take good care of the dogs, and preſerve the ſkin.

THE penalty of killing a tame ſtag of the king's, was a pound; and a certain fine, if it was a wild one, if it was killed between a certain day in November and the feaſt of St. John, the value was ſixty pence; but the fine for killing it, a hundred and eighty pence. A ſtag was alſo reckoned equivalent to an ox; a hind to a well grown cow; a roe to a goat; a wild ſow to a tame ſow; a badger had no value, becauſe in ſome years it was meaſled; wolves and foxes, and other noxious animals, had no value, becauſe every body was allowed to kill them; and there was none ſet upon a hare, for a very ſingular reaſon, becauſe it was believed every other month to change its ſexSee Leges Wallicae, xxxix. 256 to 260..

FROM Cwm Bychan, HARLECH. took the road to Harlech, a ſmall and very poor town, remarkable only for its caſtle, which is ſeated on a lofty rock, facing the Iriſh ſea, above an extenſive marſh, once occupied by the water. This fortreſs was antiently called Twr Bronwen, from Bronwen or The White-necked, ſiſter to Bran ap Llŷr, king of Britain. In after-times, it got the name of Caer Collwyn, from Collwyn ap Tango, one of the fifteen tribes o North Wales, and lord of Efionydd, Ardudwy, and part of Llŷn. His grandchildren flouriſhed in the reign of Gryffydd ap Cynan. He reſided ſome time in a ſquare tower in the antient fortreſs, whoſe remains are very apparent; as are part of the old walls, which the more modern, in certain places are ſeen to reſt on.

THE preſent caſtle was the work of Edward I. is a noble ſquare building, with a round tower at each corner, and one on each ſide the entrance, with elegant turrets iſſuing out of the great rounders, like thoſe of his other caſtles of Caernarvon and Conway. It was completed before the year 1283: at leſt, I then find, that a hundred pounds was the annual ſalary of Hugh de Wlonkeſlow, the conſtableAyloff's Welſh Calendar, 92. ; but it was afterwards reduced; for it appears, that the annual fee was only twenty-ſix pounds thirteen ſhillings and four pence, and in ſome accounts fifty pounds, which was ſuppoſed to be for both conſtable and captain of the town. The whole garriſon, at the ſame time, was twenty ſoldiers, whoſe annual pay amounted to a hundred and forty poundsDodderidge, 58. . The preſent conſtable is Evan Lloyd Vaughan, eſq with a ſalary of fifty pounds a year, payable out of the revenues of North Wales. It was impregnable on the ſide next to the ſea: on the other, it was protected by a prodigious foſs, cut with vaſt expence and trouble in the hard rock.

THIS place was poſſeſſed,BESIEGED IN 1468 in 1468, by Dafydd ap Jevan ap Einion, a ſtrong friend of the houſe of Lancaſter, and diſtinguiſhed as much by his valour, as his goodly perſonage, and great ſtatureGwedir Family, 77. . He was beſieged here by William Herbert, earl of Pembroke, after a march through the heart of our Alps, attended with incredible difficulties; for in ſome parts, the ſoldiers were obliged to climb; in others, to precipitate themſelves down the rocks Cambden, ii, The road is to this day called Lle Herbert. ; and at length inveſted a place, till that time deemed impregnable. Pembroke committed the care of the ſiege to his brother, Sir Richard, a hero equal in ſize and proweſs to the Britiſh commandant. Sir Richard ſent a ſummons of ſurrender; but Dafydd ſtoutly anſwered, that he had kept a caſtle in France ſo long, that he made all the old women in Wales talk of him; and that he would keep this ſo long, that all the old women in France ſhould talk of him. Famine probably ſubdued him: he yielded on honorable terms, and Richard engaged to ſave his life, by interceding with his cruel maſter, Edward IV. The king at firſt refuſed his requeſt; when Herbert told him plainly, that his highneſs might take his life, inſtead of that of the Welch captain; or that he would aſſuredly replace Dafydd in the caſtle, and the king might ſend whom he pleaſed to take him out again. This prevaled; but Sir Richard received no other reward for his ſerviceLife of lord Herbert. 7, 8..

Margaret of Anjou, the faithful and ſpirited queen of the meek Henry VI. found in this caſtle, in 1460, an aſylum, after the unfortunate battle of Northampton. She firſt fled to Coventry, and from thence retired to this fortreſsCarte, ii. 757.: after a ſhort ſtay here, ſhe went to Scotland, and, collecting her friends in the north of England, poured all her vengeance on her great enemy, duke of York, at the battle of Wakefield.

THE place more than once changed maſters,AND IN 1647. during the laſt civil wars. It was well defended by major Hugh Pennant, till he was deſerted by his, men. It was finally taken, in March 1647, by general Mytton, when Mr. William Owen was governor, and the whole garriſon conſiſted but of twenty-eight men. It had the honor of ſurrendering on articles, and of being the laſt in North Wales which held out for the king. Whitelock, 24 • .

Torques

Edward I. formed the town into a borough, and conferred on it grants of certain lands, and other emoluments.

NEAR this place was found the celebrated piece of antiquityIn poſſeſſion of Sir Roger Moſtyn. ,TORQUES. on which the learned have thought ſit to beſtow the name of Torques. It is well deſcribed in Cambden, as a wreathed rod of gold, about four feet long, with three ſpiral furrows, with ſharp intervening ridges running its whole length to the ends, which are plain truncated, and turn back like pot-hooks. Whether this was purely Roman, or whether it might not have been common to both nations, I will not diſpute. The uſe was that of a baldric, to ſuſpend gracefully the quiver of men of rank, which hung behind by means of the hook, and the golden wreath croſſed the breaſt, and paſſed over the ſhoulder. Virgil, in his beautiful deſcription of the exerciſes of the Trojan youth, expreſſes the manner in theſe frequently miſconſtrued lines: Cornea bina ferunt praefixo haſtilia ferro: Pars laeves numero pharetras, it pectore ſummo, Flexilis obtorti per collum circulus auri. Each brandiſhing aloft a cornel ſpear. Some on their backs their burniſh'd quivers bore, Hanging from wreaths of gold, which ſhone beforeA little altered from the tranſlation in Cambden, ii. 788..

THE Torch, or Torques, worn by the Gauls and Britons, was a very different affair, a collar of gold, or other metal, worn round the neck. Our heroine Boadicia had a great one of that precious metal; and Virdomarus wore round his neck another, faſtened behind with hooks, which fell off when the conqueror cut off his head. Illi virgatis jaculanti ex agmine braccis Torquis ab inciſa decidit unca gula Propertius, lib. iv. eleg..

Manlius acquired the addition of Torquatus, from a Torques which he won from a Gaul, whom he ſlew in ſingle combat, in ſight of the army; and Publius Cornelius, after his ſlaughter of the Boii, took, among other ſpoils, not fewer than four thouſand and ſeventy golden Torques Livij, lib. xxxvi. c. 40..

THEY were alſo in uſe among the Romans, who beſtowed them as military rewards; and, as Pliny pretends, the golden on the auxiliaries, the ſilver on the citizens Plin, lib. xxxiii. c. 2.. They probably were made in ſeveral ways: I have ſeen a very beautiful one (I think at preſent in poſſeſſion of the reverend Mr. Preſcot, of Cambridge) compoſed of ſeveral links of ſilver wire, moſt elegantly twiſted together: it was long enough to go twice round the neck, and had claſps, which faſtened it on.

THE cuſtom of wearing the Torques was continued from the more remote periods of Britain, to later times. Llewelyn, a a lord of Yale, was called Llewelyn aur Dorchog, Llewelyn with the golden torques, on that account; and the common proverb, Mi a dynna'r dorch a chwi, I will pluck the torques with you, ſignifies, to this day, a hard ſtruggle of a perſon before he would yield a victory.

FROM Harlech I aſcended a very ſteep hill, and on my way obſerve ſeveral maen hirion, and circles formed of large common pebble-ſtones, and of different diameters; ſometimes appears circle within circle; in other places, they interſect each other. I ſhould have doubted whether they had not been the foundations of Cytti'er Gwyddelod, CYTTI'ER GWYDDELOD. or the cottages of the wood rangers, a ſort of temporary hovels, erected for the purpoſes of hunting, by our remoteſt anceſtorsMona Antiqua., had it not been for their interſections. The learned Borlaſe gives inſtances of ſuch, in the circles of Botallek Antiq. Cornwal, 188. tab. xiv., which he ſuppoſes to have been formed for religious ceremonies; and that one rite might have been performed in one particular circle, and another again in a compartment allotted for it by the ſuperſtition of Druidiſm. Cluſters of circles were not peculiar to our iſland: baron Dahlberg Suecia Antiqua, &c. tab. 322. has given a plate of ſimilar aſſemblages, near the town of Wexio, in Smaland, in Sweden, which are on a flat, at the foot of a vaſt ſepulchral tumulus, with a high column, and great globe of ſtone on the ſummit. Some columnar ſtones, or maen hirion, appear in the ranges of ſtones compoſing the circles.

THE tumulus is called that of king Ingo: but ſince the three monarchs of that name were ſaid to have been ſteady chriſtians, and to have lived in the eleventh century, I do gueſs both tumulus and circles to have been of earlier date, and formed in honor 〈◊◊〉 pagan potentate; for the northern chriſtendoms old Wormii Mon. Dan. 4. , or 〈◊〉 of chriſtianity, aboliſhed all ſuch cuſtoms.

I MUST obſerve, that this place is called Bon-leff Hir, or the loud ſhout or cry to battle. Poſſibly it had been a field of combat, and a chieftain had fell here, for one of the maen hirion is of a diſtinguiſhed ſize.

FROM hence the road is intolerably bad and ſtoney,GLYN. till I reached Glyn, a houſe of my kinſman, Robert Godolphin Owen, eſq ſeated in a romantic bottom, well wooded. This had been the reſidence of the antient family of the Wynnes, from whom it paſſed to the Owens, by the marriage of Sir Robert with the heireſs of the place, in the laſt century.

PASS by the village of Llan Tegwyn, and near a ſmall lake, filled with that beautiful aquatic, the Water Lilly. Somewhat farther is Llyn-Tegwyn, LLAN-TEGWIN. which well merits the name of Fair and Lovely, a lake about a mile round, whoſe waters are of a cryſtalline clearneſs; its margin full; its boundaries neat and clean. The narrow path we rode on, impends over it, and is cut out of a hill, whoſe ſides are compoſed of ſhivering ſlate, ſtarting out at an immenſe height above, threatening deſtruction: they were much enlivened by flocks of milk-white goats, which ſkiped along the points, and looked down on us with much unconcern.

FROM one of the heights, a vaſt Alpine proſpect appears in view. The ſtupendous mountains of Caernarvenſhire, and thoſe of Merioneddſhire, not much inferior, form a tremendous ſcenery, and riſe divided into a multitude of craggy heads. The laſt are particularly barren, and appear quite naked, excepting where varied by a moſſy verdure, or whitened by the lichen tartaricus. The higheſt ſummit of Snowdon, called y Wyddfa, ſoars pre-eminent. From thence, the mountains gradually lower, to Lleyn, which ſtretches in view far to the weſt, and terminates on the point of Aberdaron. Deſcend into a deep glen, cloathed on each ſide with trees, with the Velyn-Rhyd, VELYN RHYD. or Yellow Ford, at bottom; notwithſtanding its name, a moſt inky ſtream; the fine cataract a little above, being moſt fitly ſtyled Rhaiader-Du, or The Black.

AFTER a ſhort ride, reach the village and chapel of Maen Twrog, dependent on the church of Feſtiniog, Near one end is a great upright ſtone, from which it takes the name. This ſtone is taken into the Welſh calendar, canonized by the name of St. Twrog. The place lies in the Tempe of this country, the vale of Tan y Bwlch, TAN Y BWLCH. a narrow, but beautiful tract, about three or four miles long, divided by the ſmall river Dwy'ryd, or The Two Fords, being formed by the Cynſael and another ſtream, which unite towards the upper ends. The vale is compoſed of rich meadows; the ſides edged with groves; and barren precipitous mountains cloſe this gem, as it were, in a rugged caſe. Here is a very neat ſmall inn, for the reception of travellers, who ought to think themſelves much indebted to a noblemanThe preſent earl of Radnor. , for the great improvement it received from his munificence.

ABOVE it is a houſe, emboſomed with woods, moſt charmingly ſituated on the ſide of the hill. This ſeat, from the quick ſucceſſion of owners by the fatal attachment to the bottle, has occaſioned many a moral reflection from the Engliſh traveller. A heavy glutinous ale has charms enough to debauch the ſenſes of the whole principality; and, let me add, after a certain ſtage, the fiery dram is called in, to effect the deſtruction the former had begun; yet I truſt that its charms do not faſcinate the ſenſes of the WHOLE principality; but that, after a fair ſcrutiny, there may be found ſome corner free from the Bacchanalian rout.

THE river hereabouts widens into a good ſalmon fiſhery; and, after ſome ſpace, falls into an arm of the ſea, called Traeth Bach, or the little ſands.

RIDE up the vale, and diſmounting, meet the courſe of the Cynfael, FALLS OF THE CYNFAEL. which tumbles along the bottom of a deep time-worn chaſm, ſided with ſharp and rugged rocks for a very conſiderable ſpace, darkened by trees that overſpread the whole, iſſuing both from the ſides and margin. Near Feſtiniog is one caſcade, remarkably fine, conſiſting of three great falls, the loweſt dropping into a deep pool, black, and over-ſhadowed by far impending rocks. Below, is a magnificent columnar rock, riſing out of the torrent, and called Pulpit Hugh Llwyd Cynfael. Hugh lived in the time of James I. was ſuppoſed to have been a magician, and from thence to have delivered his nocturnal incantations; a place, fit indeed for the purpoſe as the pit of Acheron.

ABOUT a mile from the Cynfael, is another comfortable inn, which has often received me, after my toilſome expeditions. Oppoſite to it lies Cwm Cwm̄orthin; CWM̄ORTHIN. a retreat much more ſequeſtered, and much more difficult of acceſs, than even Cwm-bychan. In my viſit to it, I deſcended through woods, along a ſteep road, into a very deep, but narrow valley, which I croſſed, and began a very hazardous and fatiguing aſcent up the rocky front of a loſty mountain: the path narrow and dangerous, and, I believe, very rarely attempted by horſes. After the labor of a mile, reached this ſtrange habitation of two farmers, in a hollow ſurrounded on three parts by the rudeſt of environs, and containing a pretty lake, and two tenements, which yield only graſs; ſo that, in caſe the inhabitants have any other wants, they muſt deſcend from their Cwm to get them ſupplied. The mountains which incloſe it, are the Moel-wyn yr Hydd, and the Moel-wyn Gwyn, and others equally rude. High in the firſt is the lake Du-bach, which affords perch; and another, called Llyn Trwſtyllon; and oppoſite to the laſt, a third, called Llyn Conglog; all of which, after hard rains, form noble cataracts down the fronts of the hills. We preferred another way out of this ſingular place, and wound up a narrow path at the fartheſt end, on part of Molwyn y Hydd, in order to deſcend through Cwm Croeſor; being then deſirous of getting by the neareſt road to Pont Aber Glâs Llyn. But in our deſcent we met with ſuch narrowneſs of path, ſuch ſhort turnings, and horrible precipices, that our poor beaſts, with much reaſon, trembled in every limb; and, in fact, had a wonderful eſcape in getting ſafe to the bottom. The traveller who chuſes to follow our ſteps, will find a narrow graſſy bottom in Cwm Croeſor, with a few tenements: he will paſs through a pretty wood, and ſoon after find himſelf on the high road from Tan y Bwlch to Caernarvon.

IN this journey, I went from Feſtiniog on a leſs hazardous way. Not two miles from thence, on the road from Trawsfynnydd to Yſpytty, I fell again into Fford Helen, which is here quite bare, and exhibits the rude ſtones with which it was made.

NEAR it,BEDDAU GWYR ARDUDWY. at Rhyd yr Halen, on the right, are the remains of Beddau Gwyr Ardudwy, or the graves of the men of Ardudwy. Theſe graves were about ſix feet long, marked at each end by two upright ſtones; but moſt of the ſtones are now removed. There are yet to be ſeen ſeveral circles of ſtones, the largeſt about fifty-two feet in diameter; a vaſt carnedd, with two upright ſtones placed on one part, as if to mark the entrance to the cell, which it probably incloſes; and near it a leſſer heap, and a ſmall circle; all of which had been ſurrounded with a larger circle, now incomplete by the application of the materials to the making of walls. The tradition relating to theſe monuments, is claſſical; nearly parallel with the rape of the Sabines. The men of Ardudwy, to populate their country, made an inroad into the vale of Clwyd, and layed violent hands on the fair ladies of the land: they carried them in ſafety to this place, where they were overtaken by the warriors of the vale: a fierce battle enſued, and the men of Ardudwy all ſlain; but the raviſhers had ſome how or other ſo gained the hearts of their fair prey, that, on their defeat, the ladies, rather than return home, ruſhed into an adjacent water, called, from the event, Llyn y Morwynion, or The Maiden's Lake, and there periſhed. That this had been the ſcene of a bloody conflict, there is a probability: the graves and carnedds prove it; and the circles evince, that it was in the time when the ceremonies of druidiſm exiſted.

FROM hence I deſcended the long and tedious ſteep of Bwlch Carreg y Frân, into the narrow vale of Penmachno; and, after aſcending another hill, turn to the right into the black and moory mountains, to viſit Llyn Conwy, LLYN CONWY. the ſource of the noted river of that name. It is a very large piece of water, moſt diſmally ſituated among rock and bog, and the ſides very irregularly indented. It is placed the higheſt of any large piece of water I have met with in theſe parts. In it are three iſlands, one of which is the haunt of the black-back Gulls, during the breeding ſeaſon. They are ſo exceedingly fierce in the defence of their young, that I knew of a man who was nearly drowned, in an attempt to ſwim to their neſts, being ſo violently beaten by the old birds, that he thought he eſcaped well, with the dreadful bruiſes he received on all the upper part of his body. The water iſſues out of the end of the lake, in form of a little rill; but in the courſe of a few miles, before it reaches Llanrwſt, becomes a moſt: conſiderable river, by the addition of the various mountain ſtreams.

DESCEND for two or three miles, and reach the village of Yſpytty Jevan, YSPYTTY. or the hoſpital of St. John of Jeruſalem; ſo ſtyled from its having formed, in the then inhoſpitable country, an aſylum and guard for travellers, under the protection of the knights who held the manor, and made its precincts a ſanctuary. After the abolition of the order, this privelege became the bane of the neighborhood; for the place, thus exempted from all juriſdiction, was converted into a den of thieves and murderers, who ravaged the country far and wide with impunity, till the reign of Henry VII. when they were extirpated by the bravery and prudence of Meredydd ap Evan.

AFTER a very long interval, another charity ſucceeded, in the alms-houſes for ſix poor men, founded in 1600, by captain Richard Vaughan, a poor knight of Windſor, and deſcended from the neighboring houſe of Pant Glâs.

IN the church are three alabaſter figures.TOMBS. The firſt is the valiant Rhys Vawr ap Meredydd, of the houſe of Plâs Yolyn; to whom, at the battle of Boſworth, Henry VII. entruſted the ſtandard of England, after the bearer, Sir William Brandon, was ſlain by Richard: a proper reſpect to the Welſh, who ſo highly favored the Lancaſtrian cauſe. The next is an eccleſiaſtic, his ſon, Robert ap Rhys, croſs-bearer and chaplain to cardinal Wolſey: and the third Lowry, the wife of the great Rhys. I may add, that he left ſeveral ſons, from whom were deſcended many familes, particularly thoſe of Rhiwlas, Pant Glâs, Giler, and Voelas.

FROM Yſpytty I made an excurſion to Voelâs, VOELAS. about two miles diſtant, remarkable for a great column, with an inſcription in memory of Llewelyn, prince of Wales, who was ſlain in the year 1021. Here is likewiſe a vaſt artificial mount, the ſite of a Welſh caſtelet, deſtroyed by Llewelyn the GreatSee the Poem addreſſed to him by Llywarch Brydydd y Moch, in Evans's Coll. Awdl. vii.. Mr. Llwyd confeſſes the inſcription to be very obſcure. It is part in Latin, part in Welſh. The laſt line ſays, Levelinus optimus princeps hic humatus; which, if meant of any of the actual princes of Wales, muſt intend Llewelyn ap Sitſyllt; he being the only one of the three of the name of Llewelyn, of whoſe place of interment we are ignorant Cambden, ii. 816..

TURN back, and again reach the river Conway. Enter CAERNARVONSHIRE, And, after a ſhort ride,RHAIADER Y GRAIG LLWYD. arrive at its celebrated falls, not very far from its junction with the Machno. The proſpect is very extraordinary, from the neighborhood of a fulling mill, where the channel of the rivers form a triangle of deep and doleful chaſms, worn by the water through the live rock. Not far below, begins the cataract, the moſt tremendous I ever ſaw, and whoſe roaring gives ſufficient notice of its vicinity. The rocks which bound it are of a vaſt height, and approach very near to each other, and want the pleaſing accompaniment of trees, attendant on moſt of our caſcades. One fall is of very great height; and beneath that, full in view, is a ſucceſſion of four leſſer. The deſcent is ſteep and dangerous, and not to be attempted but by thoſe who have ſtrength of body, and ſteadineſs of head. When down, I found myſelf environed with naked precipices, faced with angular columnar rocks, pointing in a ſloping direction towards the river, adding to the ſtrangeneſs of the ſcenery.

DESCEND a ſteep hill, and arrive in Nant Conwy, or the vale of Conwy, after paſſing over Pont-or-Lleder; beneath which, the river Lleder haſtens to join thar which gives name to the valley, Obſerve, in the courſe of the Conwy, a deep, wide, and ſtill water, called Llyn yr Afange, or The Beavers Pool, BEAVERS. from being, in old times, the haunt of thoſe animals. Our anceſtors alſo called them, with great propriety, Lloſt-Lydan, or the broad tailed animal. Their ſkin was in ſuch eſteem, as to be valued at a hundred and twenty pence; while that of the martin took no more than twenty-four pence; an ermine, twelve; an otter, wolf, or fox, only twelve Leges Wallicae, 260. 261.. They ſeem to have been the chief finery and luxury of the days of Hoel Dda.

THE vale gradually expands from this end, and extends about twenty miles, terminating at the town of Conway. It ſoon widens to about a mile in breadth, and improves in beauty, eſpecially in the neighborhood of Llanrwſt, where it is divided into the moſt beautiful meadows. The ſides of the hills finely cultivated: on the weſtern, the vaſt mountains of Snowdon riſe in a majeſtic range. The eaſtern conſiſts of low and broken hills, chequered with rich paſturage, corn fields, and groves. The river meanders through the whole, and before it reaches Llanrwſt, is of a conſiderable ſize.

VISIT the church of Bettws Wyrion Iddon, BETTWS WYRION. or the bead-houſe of the gran-children of Iddon. Within is the figure of Gruffydd ap Dafydd Goch, ſon to Dafydd Goch, natural ſon of Dafydd, brother to the laſt prince of Wales. He is in armour, recumbent, with this inſcription: Hic jacet Grufud ap Davyd Goch, agnus DEI miſere mei.

DOLWYDDELAN CASTLE.

A LITTLE farther, paſs by Pont y Pair, PONT Y PAIR. a moſt ſingular bridge, flung over the Llugwy, conſiſting of five arches, placed on the rude rocks, which form moſt durable piers. Theſe rocks are precipitous, and in high floods exhibit to the paſſenger moſt awful cataracts below the bridge. The ſcenery beyond, of rocky mountains, fringed wich woods, is very ſtriking.

THIS bridge was built on the following occaſion: One Howel, a maſon from Penllyn, having occaſion, about the year 1468, to attend the Merionethſhire aſſizes, then held at Conway, had his paſſage over the Lleder obſtructed by floods. This determined him to remove to the ſpot, where he built a bridge, at his own expence, and received no other gratuity than what reſulted from the ſpontaneous generoſity of paſſengers. He afterwards moved to the Llugwy, and began that of Pont y Pair, but died before he completed his work Llwyd's Itin. MS. i. The ſame authority ſays, that near this place is a great Cromleh, called Cromleh Hwva, ſo named from one Hwva ap Kyfnerth, at Rhyddon, who concealed himſelf under it, when the earl of Pembroke deſolated theſe parts..

I SOON left the bridge, and, after a ſteep aſcent, arrive at Dolwyddelan caſtle,DOLWYDDELAN CASTLE, ſeated in a rocky valley, ſprinkled over with ſtunted trees, and watered by the Lleder. The boundaries are rude and barren mountains; and, among others, the great bending mountain Scabod, often conſpicuous from moſt diſtant places.

The caſtle is placed on a high rock, precipitous on one ſide, and inſulated: it conſiſts of two ſquare towers; one forty feet by twenty-five; the other thirty-one by twenty. Each had formerly three floors. The materials of this fortreſs are the ſhattery ſtone of the country; yet well ſquared, the maſonry good, and the mortar hard. The caſtle-yard lay between the towers.

THIS had been founded by ſome of our princes; but we are ignorant of its origin. There were very few caſtles in North Wales, before its conqueſt by the Engliſh. They were needleſs; for Nature created in our rocks and mountains, fortifications (untill our fatal diviſions) quite impregnable. Had there been occaſion for artificial retreats, the wealth of our country could readily have ſupplied the means of erecting them. We had the balance of trade in our favor. This prevented our princes from ever making uſe of their third prerogative, that of coiningTertiam eſt, jus leges condendi, et MONETAM PERCUTIENDI. Wottou's Leges Wallicae, 71.. Our herds and flocks were the frequent reſource of the Engliſh, and brought large ſums into Wales. Witneſs the large ſums of money we too frequently were obliged to pay, as purchaſers of diſgraceful peace. Beſides, caſh was far from being requiſite, ſince, by our laws, every ſubject was bound to aſſiſt in building the royal caſtles, excepting the huſbandmen belonging to the kingLeges Wallicae, 165. .

Jorwerth Drwndwn made this place his reſidence; and here is ſaid to have been born his ſon, Llewelyn the Great Gweair Fam. 7. , who began his reign in the time of Richard I. If Dolinchalan caſtle is, as I ſuppoſe, the ſame with this, Gryffydd ap Tudor, in the reign of Edward I. had a fee of fifteen pounds as conſtableRotulae Walliae, 97. .

Meredydd ap Jevan, an anceſtor of the Wynnes, of Gwedir, in the reign of Henry VII. purchaſed the leaſe of this caſtle, and the incloſures belonging to it, from the executors of Sir Ralph Berkenet; it having been excepted among the places granted by Richard III. and reſumed by his ſucceſſor Gwedir Family, 137; a publication we are indebted for, to my reſpected friend, the honorable DAINES BARRINGTON.. Before that time, Hoel as Evan ap Rhys Gethin, a noted outlaw, reſided here. As ſoon as it came into poſſeſſion of Meredydd, he removed his habitation in Evionedd, a hundred in the county, to this caſtle; giving this excellent reaſon: I had rather fight with outlaws and thieves, than with my own blood and kindred: if I live in my own houſe in Evionedd, I muſt either kill mine own kinſmen, or be killed by them! The feuds among the gentry in Evionedd, occaſioned perpetual murders; and Nant-Conwy was filled with banditti.

THIS gentleman ſoon reformed the country: he eſtabliſhed colonies of the moſt tall and able men he could procure; till at laſt they amounted to ſeven ſcore tall bowmen, every one arrayed in a jacket or armolet coate, a good ſteele cap, a ſhort ſword and dagger, together with his bow and arrowes; many of them alſoe had horſes and chaſing ſlaves, which were ready to anſwer the crie on all occaſionsThe ſame. .

HE founded the ſtrong houſe of Penamnaen, PENAMNAEN. a mile diſtant from the caſtle. He removed the church, which before lay in a thicket, to a more open place, by way of ſecurity; for he never dared to quit his houſe, without leaving in it a ſtrong guard; and another of twenty tall archers to attend him, whenever he went to church; beſides a watchman, on a rock called Carreg y Big, to give notice of the approach of the banditti. He ended his uſeful life in 1525, and left behind him twenty-three legitimate, and three natural children.

THE church had been an impropriation of the abby of Beddkelert; is very ſmall; and has in it a monument, commemorating ſuch of the family who were buried here 〈…〉 pedegree of the Wynnes, See Appendix..

IN my return to Pont y Pair, digreſſed a little up the river Llugwy, to ſee a noted caſcade, called Rhaiader y Wenol, or The Water-fall of the Swallow. The river runs along a ſtrait ſtony channel, for a conſiderable way, amidſt narrow meadows, bounded by majeſtic Alpine ſcenery; then falls into an amazing hollow. The bottom is difficult of acceſs; but when arrived at, exhibits a wonderful ſcene of mountain and precipice, ſhaded with trees, which fringe the top, and ſtart even from the fiſſures of the ſides.

CROSS Pont y Pair, CARREG Y GWALCH. and go beneath a very lofty rock, cloathed with wood, called Carreg y Gwalch, or The Rock of the Faleon. Here was the retreat of a famous partizan of the houſe of Lancaſter, called, Dafydd ap Shenkin, who lurked in a cave, ſtill named, from him, Ogo Davyd ap Shenkin. The nobleſt oaks in all Wales grew on this rock, within memory of man. I remember the ſtools of ſeveral, which proved that they were equal to any which grow in the deepeſt ſoil; yet theſe rocks are totally deſtitute of all earth for a conſiderable way, ſo that the nutriment which the oaks received, muſt have been derived from the deep penetration of the roots, through the fiſſures of the ſtones, into ſome nutritive matter.

THE antient houſe of Gwedir ſtands near the foot of this rock.GWEDIR. It is built round a greater and leſſer court. Over the gate-way is the date, 1558, with I. W. John Wynne ap Meredydd, gran-father to the famous Sir John, author of the memoirs of the family. This ſhews 1553, the ſuppoſed time of the death of the former, to be a miſtake. The place takes its name from Gwaed-dir, the bloody land, from the battles fought here by Llywarch Hên See his Works., about the year 610; or perhaps from the cruel battle in 952, between the ſons of Hoel, and the princes Jevaf and Iago Powel, 60.; and a third may be added, between Gryffydd ap Cynan, and Trahaern ap Cradog, equally bloody Vide his Life. The ſuppoſition that it was derived from its being the firſt houſe in Wales which had glaſs windows, is not well founded, thoſe conveniences having been known long before. Sir John Wynne himſelf even mentions a date of 1512, on a window at Dolwyddelan, which is long before the building of Gwedir. But the following lines of a poet, who flouriſhed ſome centuries before, is ſtill a ſtronger proof of the antiquity of glaſs in our country: Trwy ffeneſtri Gwydir yd ym gwelentSee the poems of Cynddelw Brydydd Mawr, who flouriſhed about the year 1250.. They ſee me through the glaſs windows.

ON a rock, high above the Lower Gwedir, ſtood another, called The Upper, ſeemingly built for the enjoyment of the beautiful view it commands of the rich meadows watered by the Conwy, and their elegant boundaries. It was a ſort of Diaeta, or ſummer-houſe, erected by Sir John Wynne, in 1604, who had a claſſical taſte. The walls were covered with inſcriptions; and the ſituation well deſerved the panegyric beſtowed on it in the following Welſh lines, placed over the entrance: Bryn Gwedir gwelir goleu adeilad Uwch dolydd a chaurau Bryn gwiech adail yn ail ne; Bron wen Henllys bren hinlle. A conſpicuous edifice on Gwider hill, towering over the adjacent land; a well-choſen ſituation, a ſecond paradiſe, a fair bank, a palace of royaltyHiſt. Gwedir Fam. xii. .

THIS has been of late demoliſhed; but the family chapel, which ſtands near the ſite of the old houſe, is ſtill preſerved, and ſervice performed in it four times in the year. Among various papers belonging to Gwedir, communicated to me by my friend, Paul Panton, eſq is a curious one, drawn up by old Sir John Wynne, preſcribing the rules to his chaplain; an odd mixture of

SIR IOHN WYNNE BARONET. portrait of Sir John Wynne inſolence and pietyAppendix.. The inventory of his wardrobe, drawn up in his own hand, is alſo worth preſervation, as it ſhews not only the complete dreſs of a man of rank in thoſe days, but the great oeconomy of the times, among people of faſhion, when their wardrobe was beſtowed by will, and paſſed from generation to generationThe ſame..

SIR John was ſent to London in 1574, to ſtudy the law; was a man of abilities, and particularly attentive to the antiquities of his country and family. His conſequence made him to be taken notice of by the court; for he was made a baronet in June 1611.

THIS place continued in the family till the year 1678, when it paſſed into that of the late duke of Ancaſter, by marriage of Mary, daughter and heireſs of Sir Richard Wynne, with Robert marqueſs of Lindſey; and is now poſſeſſed by Peter Burrell, eſq in right of his wife Priſcilla, baroneſs Willoughby, eldeſt ſiſter to Robert, late duke of Ancaſter.

FROM hence to Llanrwſt is a pretty walk,LLANRWST BRIDGE. moſtly by the ſide of the river. The town lies in Denbighſhire, on the oppoſite bank. The approach is over the bridge, the boaſted plan of Inigo Jones. INIGO JONES. It conſiſts of three arches; the middle fifty-nine feet wide: two are extremely beautiful, and mark the hand of the architect: the third differs greatly, having been re-built in 1703, by a very inferior genius. I wiſh I could do more honor to my country, than ſuppoſe him to have been a deſcendant of this neighborhood: but he ſeems to have been by birth a Londoner, a ſon of a cloth-workerMr. WALPOLE'S Anecd. Painting, ii. 142., who, in all probability, was a native of this part of Wales; but our country is right to clame the ſon, which is done by univerſal tradition of the country. The turn of his countenance, and the violence of his paſſionsHis print, tab. at p. 142. Anecd. and his Life paſſim. , at leſt legitimate no diſtant deſcent. He was patronized by the earl of Arundel, and William earl of Pembroke; and by one or other ſent into Italy. His real chriſtian name was Ynyr, which he there changed into Inigo, or Ignatius. Thus, John Cooper, maſter of the Viol de Gambia to Charles I. after he had been in Italy, aſſumed the name of Giovanni Coperario Hawkins's Hiſt. Muſic, iv. 55.. It is in vain to give the life of a man, which has been ſo amply written by one of the ableſt pens in the fine arts. Let it ſuffice to ſay, that the firſt Sir Richard Wynne procured from Jones the plan of this bridge, of which he was founder, in 1636; determined to do his country all poſſible honor, by the beauty of the deſign, invented by an architect to which Wales had at leſt a near relationAmong all the family papers, there is not the leſt mention of Inigo, which muſt, have been the caſe, had he been an Eleve of the Wynnes, as has been popularly aſſerted..

THERE is one circumſtance attending this great genius, which deſerves mention, as it bears ſome relation to the country from whence he may have derived his origin. When he was employed to furniſh rare devices, and paint the ſcenery for the maſques of the feſtive year 1619, he painted the Creigie'r eira, or a ſcene in Snowdonia, for the maſque FOR THE HONOUR OF WALES. He did it with ſuch ſucceſs, as to excite the envy of the poet, Ben Jonſon; for the ſcenes were more admired than the entertainment, which might very well be: but Jonſon was ſo offended; as to give vent to his ſpleen in a copy of verſes, as imbecil as they were rancorous and ill-founded Ben. Jonſon's Works, vi. 294..

THE river here makes a handſome appearance, extending in a direct line far above the bridge, and often enlivened with the coracles, the vitilia navigia of the antient Britons, buſied in taking ſalmon; and in the months of February and March, numbers of ſmelt. The tide does not flow nearer than Llyn y Graig, a mile and half below the bridge, where, in ſpring tides, boats of twelve tons may come.

THE town of Llanrwſt is ſmall,TOWN OF LLANRWST, AND CHURCH. and ill built; and has nothing remarkable, except the church, which is dedicated to St. Ryſtyd, or Reſtitutus, archbiſhop of London in 361, preſent at the council of Arles in 353. The ground on which it is built, is ſaid to have been given by Rhun, the ſon of Nefydd Hardd, to expiate the foul murder of prince Idwal, a ſon of Owen Gwynedd, ſlain by order of his foſter-father, Nefydd, to whom he had been intruſtedXV. Tribes, of which Nefydd was one.. Some curious carving, ſaid to have been brought from the neighboring abby, graces the inſide. The Gwedir chapel, founded in 1633, by the above-mentioned Sir Richard Wynne, from a deſign of Inigo, would be another ornament, if not ſo ſhamefully neglected. On the wall is a ruinous marble monument, elegantly ornamented with trophies: it was meant to comemorate the anceſtors of the family; but ſoon promiſes to tumble into a heap of undiſtinguiſhable rubbiſh.

TRAMPLED under feet, are ſeveral braſs plates,BRASSES AND TOMBS. admirably engraven with the heads of ſeveral of the family, who reſt beneath. Among them is that of Sir John Wynne, compiler of the memoirs, who died in 1626. The country people have a tradition, that he was a great oppreſſor; and accordingly have ſent his perturbed ſpirit to reſide in the neighboring cataract of Rhaiader y Wenol. The head of his wife, Sydney Died in 1639., daughter of Sir William Gerard, chancellor of Ireland, is elegantly engraven on a plate near him: that of their daughter, Mary, wife of Sir Roger Moſtyn, on another. Theſe were the work of Sylvanus Crew. But a half-length of dame Sarah Wynne Died in 1671., daughter of Sir Thomas Middleton, of Chirkcaſtle, and wife to Sir Richard Wynne, by William Vaughan, is far the moſt beautiful piece of engraving I ever ſaw: yet neither the names of this, or the foregoing artiſt, are on the records of the fine arts. Her huſband was a gentleman of diſtinguiſhed merit, groom of the bedchamber to Charles I. when prince of Wales, and one of his attendants in the wild expedition into Spain, in 1623. He left behind him an excellent account of the journey, which was publiſhed by Mr. Hearne. He died the 19th of July 1649, and was interred diſtant from his country, in the church of Wimbledon. A fine head of him, by Janſen, is preſerved at Wynn-Stay; and the charming print from it, by that inimitable artiſt, Mr. Bartolozzi, lays me under very great obligations to Sir Watkin Williams Wynne, to whoſe

SIR RICHARD WYNNE portrait of Sir Richard Wynne

LLANRWST BRIDGE. ſpontaneous munificence I am indebted for ſo conſiderable an ornament to the book.

A VERY plain ſtone records the death of his eldeſt brother, Sir John Wynne, knight, who died at Lucca, on his travels, in 1614, and was buried there, in the pariſh of St. John. I have ſeen numbers of his letters, which ſhew him to have been a very obſervant man; ſome of which may, in the Appendix, be an amuſement to the reader.

ONE other tomb, of far greater antiquity than the others, remains to be mentioned; that of Howel Coytmor, whoſe figure, armed, is repreſented in ſtone. He was gran-ſon of the knight at Bettws; owned Gwedir, which was ſold by one of his poſterity to the family of the Wynnes,

IN this church is preſerved the ſtone coffin of Llewelyn the Great, with the ſides curiouſly cut into quatre-foils. That prince was enterred in Conwy abby; but at the diſſolution, the coffin was removed to this place.

I MADE from Llanrwſt two excurſions; one to viſit Maynan Abby, MAYNAN ABBY. tranſlated hither in 1289, from Conwy, by permiſſion of pope Nicholas Rymer, ii. 427., as he ſays, at the requeſt of Edward I. and the monks. The king beſtowed on them the townſhip of Maynan, in lieu of Conwy, and confirmed to them all the revenues and priveleges they before enjoyed, together with various immunities from taxes, tolls, and duties Dugdale Mon. i. 921. Steven's Tranſt. 106.; and beſides, gave them the patronage of their antient church at Conwy Rotulae Walliae, 90. The revenues of this houſe, at the diſſolution, were, according to Dugdale, one hundred and ſixty-two pounds fifteen ſhillings; to Speed, one hundred and ſeventy-nine pounds ten ſhillings and ten pence. The laſt abbot was Richard Kyffyn Willis calls him Richard ap Rhys. , who had a penſion of twenty pounds a year. The abby was granted, in the fifth of queen Elizabeth, to Elizeus Wynne; and it is ſtill poſſeſſed by his deſcendant, lady Wynne, widow of the late Sir John Wynne, of Glynllivon. A large old houſe, built from the materials of the abby, ſtill remains.

I RETURNED through Llanrwſt, TREFRIW. and, about two miles beyond, high over the Conwy, viſit the village of Trefriw, where numbers of ſmall veſſels are built, and ſent down the river at ſpring tides. It is ſaid that Llewelyn the Great had near this place a palace; and, as a proof, ſeveral hewen ſtones have been found, in ploughing a field called Gardd y Neuodd. The church of Trefriw was originally built by Llewelyn, for the eaſe of his princeſs, who before was obliged to foot it to Llanrhychwyn, a long walk among the mountains Sebright MS..

FROM hence I went back as far as Gwedir, and aſcend a very ſteep hill, leaving the park belonging to the houſe on the left. Go over an open ſpace, called Bwlch yr Haiarn, full of turberies, the providential fuel of the country. Some lead-mines have been diſcovered in theſe parts, but none of any conſequence. The Gale, GALE, OR BOG MYRTLE. or bog myrtle, abounds here, and perfumes the air with its ſpicy ſmell. It is a northern plant, but does not extend far. It is found in Lapland, Norway, and Sweden, and ſeveral parts of the Alpine ſituations of Great Britain. It is called Bwrli, or the emetic plant; and Gnwyrddling, or green plant. Our countrymen uſe it as a yellow dye. They lay branches of it upon and under their beds, to keep off fleas and moths; and alſo give it in powder or infuſion, and apply it to the abdomen as a vermifuge. It is beſides ſometimes uſed as a ſuccedancum for hops.

THE Sorbus Aucuparia, or mountain aſh, is frequent in theſe parts. The poorer ſort of people make a drink, called diodgriafel, by infuſing the berries in water. In former times, a ſuperſtitious uſe was made of the wood: a piece, made in form of a croſs, was carried in the pocket, as an infallible preſervative againſt all ſorts of faſcinations.

AFTER gaining the ſummit, viſit, to the right, Llyn Geirionnydd, a ſmall lake, noted for having had near it the habitation of the celebrated Talieſin, TALIESIN. who flouriſhed about the year 560, in the time of Gwyddno Goronhir, a petty prince of Cantre'r Gwaelod. The hiſtory of our famous bard begins like that of Moſes; for he was found expoſed on the water, wrapped in a leathern bag, in a wear which had been granted to Elphin, ſon of Gwyddno, for his ſupport. The young prince, reduced by his extravagance, burſt into tears, at finding, as he imagined, ſo unprofitable a booty. He took pity on the infant, and cauſed proper care to be taken of him. After this, Elphin proſpered; and Talieſin, when he grew up, addreſſed to him the following moral ode, ſtyled Dyhuddiant ELPHIN, or ELPHIN'S Conſolation; ſuppoſed to have been addreſſed to the prince by the infant bard, on the night he was found. I take the liberty of uſing the beautiful tranſlation, with which a fair countrywoman of mine hath lately favored the worldPrinted in M.DCC.LXXX. 410. and ſold by Dodſley and Elmſley. .

ELPHIN deg taw ath wylo Na chabled, &c.See Mr. Evan Evans's Collection, 150. I. ELPHIN! fair as roſeate morn, Ceaſe, O lovely youth! to mourn; Mortals never ſhould preſume To diſpute their Maker's doom. Feeble race! too blind to ſcan What th' Almighty deigns for man; Humble hope be ſtill thy guide, Steady faith thy only pride, Then deſpair will fade away, Like demons at th' approach of day, CUNLLO'S prayers acceptance gain, Goodneſs never ſues in vain; He, who form'd the ſky, is juſt, In him alone, O ELPHIN! truſt. See gliſt'ning ſpoils in ſhoals appear, Pate ſmiles this hour on Gwyddno's wear. II. ELPHIN fair! the clouds diſpell That on thy lovely viſage dwell; Wipe, ah! wipe the pearly tear, Nor let thy manly boſom fear; What good can melancholy give▪ 'Tis bondage in her train to live. Pungent ſorrows doubts proclaim, Ill ſuit thoſe doubts a Chriſtian's name; Thy great Creator's wonders trace, His love divine to mortal race, Then doubt, and fear, and pain will fly, And hope beam radiant in thine eye. Behold me, leaſt of human kind, Yet Heav'n illumes my ſoaring mind. Lo! from the yawning deep I came, Friend to thy lineage and thy fame. To point thee out the paths of truth, To guard from hidden rocks thy youth; From ſeas, from mountains, far and wide, GOD will the good and virtuous guide. III. ELPHIN fair! with virtue bleſt, Let not that virtue idly reſt; If rous'd, 'twill yield thee ſure relief, And baniſh far unmanly grief: Think on that Pow'r, whoſe arm can ſave, Who e'en can ſnatch thee from the grave; He bade my harp for thee be ſtrung, Prophetic lays he taught my tongue. Though like a ſlender reed I grow, Toſs'd by the billows to and fro', Yet ſtill, by Him inſpir'd, my ſong The weak can raiſe, confound the ſtrong: Am not I better, ELPHIN, ſay, Than thouſands of thy ſcaly preyIn the original, SALMONS.? IV. ELPHIN! fair as roſeate morn, Ceaſe, O lovely youth! to mourn. Weak on my leathern couch I lie, Yet heav'nly lore I can deſcry; Gifts divine my tongue inſpire, My boſom glows celeſtial fire; Mark! how it mounts! my lips diſcloſe The certain fate of ELPHIN'S foes, Fix thy hopes on Him alone, Who is th' eternal Three in One; There thy ardent vows be given, Prayer acceptance meets from Heaven; Then thou ſhalt adverſe fate defy, And ELPHIN glorious live and die.

FROM this lake I deſended a great ſteep,GLYN LLUGWY. into Glyn Llugwy, a bottom watered by-the Llugwy, fertile in graſs, and varied by ſmall groves of young oaks; very unlike the great woods which cloathed this place, Dyffryn Mymbyr, Llanberis, and other parts of Snowdon, in the time of Leland Litin v. 45. Go through a narrow paſs, high above a raging torrent, falling in broken caſcades from rock to rock. At a ſmall diſtance from hence, enter Dyffryn Mymbyr, a valley in which woods, and even trees, diſappear. The ſmall church of Capel Kerig, CAPEL KERIG. and a few ſcattered houſes, give a little life to this dreary tract. Snowdon and all his ſons, Crib Coch, Crib y Diſtill, Lliweddy yr Aran, and many others, here burſt at once full in view, and make this far the fineſt approach

THE SUMMIT OF SNOWDON FROM CAPEL CERIG to our boaſted Alps. The boundaries of this vale are, on one ſide, the baſe of the crooked mountain, Moel Siabod; on the other, that of the Gludar Bach, and ſeveral other hills of leſſer note. The bottom is meadowy; at this time enlivened with the buſy work of hay harveſt, and filled with drags, horſes, and even men and women, loaden with hay. The middle is varied with two ſmall lakes, along whoſe ſides we rode; and at ſome diſtance beyond them, near Pont y Gwryd, quitted our horſes, to viſit the ſummit of the Glyder, noted for the report the editor of Cambden had made, of the ſingular diſpoſition of the rocks. We directed our ſervants to go on to Llanberis, with our ſteeds. The aſcent was extremely long, ſteep, and laborious, wet and ſlippery; and almoſt the whole way covered with looſe fragments of rocks, beneath which was a continual roar of waters, ſeeking their way to the bottom.

OUR pains were fully repaid, on attaining the ſummit.GLYDER BACH. The area was covered with groupes of columnar ſtones, of vaſt ſize, from ten to thirty feet long, lying in all directions: moſt of them were of a columnar form, often piled on one another: in other places, half erect, ſloping down, and ſupported by others, which lie without any order at their baſes. The tops are frequently crowned in the ſtrangeſt manner with other ſtones, lying on them horizontally. One was about twenty-five feet long, and ſix broad: I climbed up, and, on ſtamping it with my foot, felt a ſtrong tremulous motion from end to end. Another, eleven feet long, and ſix in circumference in the thinneſt part, was poiſed ſo nicely on the point of a rock, that, to appearance, the touch of a child would overſet it. A third enormous maſs had the property of a rocking ſtone.

MANY of the ſtones had, bedded in them, ſhells; and in their neighborhood I found ſeveral pieces of lava. I would therefore rather conſider this mountain to have been a ſort of wreck of nature, formed and flung up by ſome mighty internal convulſion, which has given theſe vaſt groupes of ſtones fortuitouſly ſuch a ſtrange diſpoſition; for had they been the ſettled ſtrata, bared of their earth by a long ſeries of rains, they would have retained the regular appearance, as we obſerve in all other beds of ſimilar matter.

ONE ſide of this mountain is formed into a gap, beriſſce, I may call it, with ſharp rocks, pointing upwards, one above the other, to a great height. In the midſt of a vale far below, riſes the ſingular mountain Trevaen, TREVAEN. aſſuming on this ſide a pyramidal form, naked, and very rugged. A precipice, from whoſe ſummit I ſurveyed the ſtrange ſcene, forbad my approach to examine the nature of its compoſition; and whether it might not have been ſuſpected of being formed at the ſame time with the phoenomena on the top of its neighbor Glyder: for I have heard that inſulated mountains of this form often appear at the baſe of greater, which have been ſuppoſed to owe their origin to volcanic force.

FROM Glyder Bach I paſſed over a plain, above half a mile broad, called Y Waun Oer, The Chilly Mountainous Flat. Obſerve from the edge, in a tremendous hollow, Llyn y Boch Llwyd, or The Lake of the Grey Goat; and in the bottom of the valley, near the foot of the Trevaen, Llyn Ogwen, noted for its fine trout.

FROM Waen Oer we made a moſt hazardous deſcent to Cwm Bochllwyd, and from thence to Llyn Ogwen. The way from that place into the valley, or rather chaſm, of Nant Frankon, is called The Ben-glog, BEN-GLOG. the most dreadful horſe path in Wales, worked in the rudeſt manner into ſteps, for a great length. On one ſide, in a deep hollow, formed under fallen rocks, was once the hiding place of Rys Goch o'r Eryri, or Rhys the Red, of Snowdon; a mountain bard, patroniſed by Robert Meredydd, a partizan of Glyndwr, an outlawed chieftain, of whoſe fortunes he partook.I do aſſure the traveller, who delights in wild nature, that a viſit to it up Nant Frankon, from Bangor, will not be repented. The waters of five lakes dart down the precipice of the middle of the Benglog, and form the torrent of the Ogwen, which falls into the ſea a few miles lower. This bottom is ſurrounded with mountains of a ſtupendous height, moſtly precipitous; the tops of many edged with pointed rocks, I have, from the depth beneath, ſeen the ſhepherds ſkipping from peak to peak; but the point of contact was ſo ſmall, that from this diſtance they ſeemed to my uplifted eyes like beings of another order, floating in the air.

THE Trevaen, from this bottom, makes alſo a very ſingular appearance, reſembling a human face, reclined backward. Forehead, noſe, lips, and chin, are very apparent; and you may add, without any great ſtrain of fancy, the beard of an antient inhabitant, an arch-druid.

BEGIN another hard aſcent to Cwm Idwal, CWM IDWAL. infamous for the murder of a young prince of that name, ſon of Owen Gwynedd, by Dunawt, ſon of Nefydd Hardd, one of the fifteen tribes of North Wales, to whom Owen had entruſted the youth, to be foſtered, according to the cuſtom of the country. It was a fit place to inſpire murderous thoughts, environed with horrible precipices, ſhading a lake, lodged in its bottom. The ſhepherds fable, that it is the haunt of Daemons; and that no bird dare fly over its damned water, fatal as that of Avernus. Quam ſuper haud ullae poterant impunè volantes Tendere iter pennis.

NEAR this place is a quarry, noted for excellent hones, of which quantities are ſent annually to London.

A NEW and greater toil is to be undergone in the aſcent from Cwm Idwal, to the heights I had left. The way lies beneath that vaſt precipice, Caſtell y Geifr, or The Caſtle of the Goats. In ſome diſtant age, the ruins of a rocky mountain formed a road by a mighty lapſe. A ſtream of ſtones, each of monſtrous ſize, points towards the Cwm; and are to be clambered over by thoſe only, who poſſeſs a degree of bodily activity, as well as ſtrength of head to bear the ſight of the dreadful hollows frequent beneath them.

OBSERVE, on the right, a ſtupendous roche fendue, or ſplit rock, called Twll-Du, TWLL DU. and The Devil's Kitchen. It is a horrible gap, in the center of a great black precipice, extending in length about a hundred and fifty yards; in depth, about a hundred; and only ſix wide; perpendicularly open to the ſurface of the mountain. On ſurmounting all my difficulties, and taking a little breath, I ventured to look down this dreadful aperture, and found its horrors far from being leſſened, in my exalted ſituation; for to it were added the waters of Llyn y Cwn, impetuouſly ruſhing through its bottom.

REACH the Glyder Vawr, KLOGWYN DU. and paſs by the edge of Klogwyn Du Ymben y Glyder, as dreadful a precipice as any in Snowdonia, hanging over the dire waters of Llyn Idwal. Its neighborhood is of great note among botaniſts for rare plants, among which may be reckoned the Saxifraga Nivalis, Bulbocodium, and the Lichen Iſlandicus, The laſt is of ſingular uſe to the Icelanders. A decoction of the freſh leaves in water ſerves them in the ſpring as a powerful cathartic; and yet, when dried, changes its quality, and if grinded to powder, is a common food, either made into bread, or boiled with milk, or water. Haller and Scopoli alſo mention its uſe, at their time, in Vienna, in coughs and conſumptions, made into broth, or gruelLightfoot's Fl. Sectica, ii. 83. .

THE proſpect from this mountain is very noble.GLYDER VAWR. Snowdon is ſeen to great advantage; the deep vale of Llanberris and its lakes, Nant Frankon, and variety of other ſingular views. The plain which forms the top is ſtrangely covered with looſe ſtones like the beach of the ſea; in many places croſſing one another, in all directions, and entirely naked. Numbers of groupes of ſtones are placed almoſt erect, ſharp pointed, and in ſheafs: all are weather-beaten, time-eaten, and honey-combed, and of a venerable grey color. The elements ſeemed to have warred againſt this mountain: rains have waſhed, lightnings torn, the very earth deſerted it, and the winds made it the conſtant object of their fury. The ſhepherds make it the reſidence of ſtorms, and ſtyle a part of it Carnedd y Gwynt, or The Eminence of Tempeſts.

THIS mountain is connected to the leſſer Glyder by the Weyn Oer: the traveller therefore has his choice of ways to theſe wondrous mountains; but the moſt: preferable for eaſe, is the road I deſcend into the vale of Llanberis. In my way, paſs cloſe by a rugged brow of a hill, which I think is Rhiw y Glyder, recorded by LLWYD and RAY, for its variety of plants. From thence deſcend by Oleu Fawr.

SOON after, viſit the ſmall lake, called Llyn y Cwn, LLYN Y CWN. noted for the tale of Giraldus; who informs us, that in his days, the three kinds of fiſh it yielded, trouts, perch, and eels, were monocular, every one wanting the left eye. At preſent, there is not a fiſh in it to diſprove the relation. To make amends, the botaniſt will find in it the Lobelia Dortmanna, Sabularia Aquatica, and Iſoetis Lacuſtris; and not far from it, the Juncus Triglumis, common to this, and ſome of the Highland mountains. The Hieracium Alpinum, Ruhus Saxatilis, Solidago Cambrica, and other rare plants, are to be met with. In the courſe of this part of the deſcent, leave o • the right Llider Vawr and Llider Vach, two great mountains, part of the boundaries of Nant-Beris; and arrive in that vale by Caunant yr Eſgar, or The Dingle of the Enemy.

THIS is a very pictureſque vale,NANT-BERIS. bounded by the baſe of

VIEW in NANTBERIS Snowdon, Cefn Cwm Gafr, the two Glyders, and two Lliders, each of them firſt-rate mountains. It is ſtrait, and of nearly an equal breadth, filled by ſome meadows, and two magnificent lakes, which communicate to each other by means of a river. The venerable oaks, ſpoken of by Leland, are no more. Avarice, or diſſipation, and its conſtant follower, poverty, have deſpoiled much of our principality of its leafy beauties. Among the numberleſs errors of this performance, I fear the word is cloathed with trees, muſt be ſupplied by the traveller with WAS. But this ſhadeleſs tract is ſtill worthy his attention. A road, once a ſucceſſion of rude and ſtony ſtairs, made with much labor, ran on one ſide, high above the lake, and was often cut out of the rock, to form the way. This is, I am now informed, changed into a road, which too much facilitates the approach, and leſſens its propriety, and its agreement with the wild environs.

ON the loftieſt part,CASTELL DOLBADERN. over one of the lakes, ſtand the remains of Caſtell Dolbadern, conſiſting of a round tower, and a few fragments of walls. It was conſtructed with the thin laminated ſtones of the country, cemented with very ſtrong mortar, without ſhells. The inner diameter of the tower is only twenty-ſix feet. This ſeems to have been built to defend the paſs into the interior parts of Snowdonia; and it was likewiſe uſed as a ſtate priſon. The founder is unknown to me; but it was evidently a Welſh prince.

IN this valley are two groupes of wretched houſes. The fartheſt is near the end of the upper lake, with its church, dedicated to St. Peris, who was, as we are told, a cardinal. Here is to be ſeen the well of the ſaint, incloſed with a wall. The ſybil of the place attends, and divines your fortune by the appearance or non-appearance of a little fiſh, which lurks in ſome of its holes.

FROM hence I took a ride above the lakes, to their lower extremity. The upper is the leſſer, but much the moſt beautiful piece of water. It is ſaid to be in places a hundred and forty yards deep; to have abounded with char, before they were reduced by the ſtreams flowing from the copper mines, which had been worked on the ſides of the hills. The lower lake is about a mile and a half long, narrows gradually into the form of a river, called the Rythell, and flows in a diffuſed channel to Caernarvon, where it aſſumes the name of Seiont.

NEAR this end of the lake lived a celebrated perſonage,MARGARET UCH EVAN. whom I was diſappointed in not finding at home. This was Margaret uch Evan, of Penllyn, the laſt ſpecimen of the ſtrength and ſpirit of the antient Britiſh fair. This extraordinary female was the greateſt hunter, ſhooter, and fiſher of her time. She kept a dozen at leſt of dogs, terriers, grehounds, and ſpaniels, all excellent in their kinds. She killed more foxes in one year, than all the confederate hunts do in ten: rowed ſtoutly, and was queen of the lake: fiddled excellently, and knew all our old muſic: did not neglect the mechanic arts, for ſhe was a very good joiner: and notwithſtanding ſhe was ſeventy years of age, was the beſt wreſtler in the country, and few young men dared to try a fall with her. Some years ago, ſhe had a maid of congenial qualities; but death, that mighty hunter, at laſt earthed this faithful companion of her's. I muſt not forget, that all the neighboring bards payed their addreſſes to Margaret, and celebrated her exploits in pure Britiſh verſe.

ABOUT half a mile farther, I viſited the remains of Llŷs Dinorwig, a houſe ſaid to have been one of the palaces of prince Llewelyn ap Gryffydd: the walls high and ſtrong; the hall twenty-four yards long; and before the houſe is a deep ditch, over which had probably been a draw-bridge. Not very far from hence is a ſpot, called Rhiw'r Cyrn, or The Brow of the Horns; where, according to old uſage, an officer ſtood and blew his horn, to give notice to the houſhold of the approach of their maſter, or to ſummon the vaſſals to aſſemble on all emergent occaſions.

THIS country is part of the woodleſs flat,BRITISH POSTS. between the mountains and the Menai. Its want of ſtrength is ſupplied with ſeveral poſts, fortified in the Britiſh manner. Dinas Dinorwig, about half a mile ſouth of the church of Llandeniolen In the church-yard is an yew tree, twenty-ſeven feet in girth., is the chief. The area is very large, ſurrounded with an agger of ſmall ſtones, backed by another of very large ones: then ſucceeds a deep ditch, a rampart of earth, a ſecond vaſt ditch, and a third rampart: within the area is a circle of ſtones, the poſt probably of the commander in chief.

IN our way from hence, we paſſed by another, called Pen y Gaer; and ſoon after, by a ſmaller, called Bryn y Caſtrelau, ſurrounded with a ſingle wall; and on a riſing on the other ſide of the Rythell, is another, named Caer Cwm y Glo, or Caer Carreg-y-Fran, from which had been (as we were informed) a paved way to Llŷs Dinorwig. I may here add, that after the death of Llewelyn, Edward I. beſtowed that palace on Sir Gryffydd Llwyd, the ſame gentleman who firſt brought him the news of the birth of his ſon Edward of Caernarvon.

RETURN by the ſame road, and, after refreſhing myſelf with a night's reſt at Mr. Cloſe's, agent to the mines in Llanberris, early in the morning begin our aſcent to the higheſt peak, of Snowdon, under the guidance of Hugh Shone, whom I beg leave to recommend as a moſt able conductor. Keep upon the ſide of the lake for a conſiderable way; then turn to the left, and ſee, not far from the road, Caunant Mawr, CAUNANT MAWR. a noble cataract, precipitating over two vaſt rocks into two moſt horrible chaſms. Near this place were found ſeveral beads; ſome of glaſs, and one of jet.

ASCEND, above Cwm Brwynog, a very deep bottom, fertile in Gwair y Rhoſydd, which is compoſed chiefly of different kinds of ruſhes, particularly Juncus Squarroſus, the moſs-ruſh, Scirpus Caſpitoſus, the heath club ruſh, Schaenus Nigricans, the black bog ruſh, and Carexes, intermixed with few kinds of graſs. The hay which the lower meadows produce, is very different in quality,GRASSES. being remarkably fine and ſoft; and conſiſts in great part of the fine bent graſs, Agroſtis Capillaris. As we are on the ſubject of graſſes, it may be pleaſing to obſerve, how ſome of them wonderfully change their appearance, as they aſcend the higher hills: the turfy hair graſs, Aira Caeſpitoſa, ſheep's feſcue graſs, Peſtuca Ovina, Alpine meadow graſs, Poa Alpina, and ſome others, which, in the low countries, where they enjoy the due influence of the ſun, and length of ſummer, to ripen their ſeeds, are propagated in the common manner that graſſes are; as they reach a more exalted ſituation, where they want continuance of ſummer, and the neceſſary power of that enlivening body, to perfect their ſeeds, become viviparous; that is, the rudiment of the Germen vegetates, and ſhoots into blade in the cup, from whence falling, it readily takes root, and grows; a kind and providential diſpenſation, for the advantage of thoſe colder climates, which are leſs favorable to vegetation!

THIS mountanous tract ſcarcely yields any corn. Its produce is cattle and ſheep, which, during ſummer, keep very high in the mountains, followed by their owners, with their families, who reſide in that ſeaſon in Havodtys, SUMMER DWELLINGS. or ſummer dairy-houſes, as the farmers in the Swiſs Alps do in their Sennes. Theſe houſes conſiſt of a long low room, with a hole at one end, to let out the ſmoke from the fire, which is made beneath. Their furniture is very ſimple: ſtones are the ſubſtitutes of ſtools; and the beds are of hay, ranged along the ſides. They manufacture their own cloaths; and dye their cloths with Cenn du y Cerrig, or Lichen Omphaloides; and another Cenn, the Lichen Parietinus; native dyes, collected from the rocks. During ſummer, the men paſs their time either in harveſt work, or in tending their herds: the women in milking, or making butter and cheeſe. For their own uſe, they milk both ewes and goats, and make cheeſe of the milk, for their own conſumption. The diet of theſe mountaneers is very plain, conſiſting of butter, cheeſe, and oat-bread, or Bara Cyrch: their drink whey: not but they have a reſerve of a few bottles of very ſtrong beer, by way of cordial, in illneſs. They are people of good underſtanding, wary and circumſpect; uſually tall, thin, and of ſtrong conſtitutions, from their way of living. Towards winter, they deſcend to their Hên Dref, or old dwelling, where they lead, during winter, a vacant life.

IN the courſe of our aſcent, ſaw on the left, above the Cwm, Moel y Cynhorion, or The Hill of Council. Paſs through Bwlch y Maes-cwm, and ſkirt the ſide of Snowdon, till we reach Bwlch y Cwm Brwynog, where the aſcent becomes very difficult, by reaſon of its vaſt ſteepneſs. People here uſually quit their horſes. We began a toilſome march, clambering among the rocks. On the left were the precipices over Cwm Brwynog, with Llyn du yr Arddwy at their foot. On our right were thoſe over the ſmall lakes Llyn Glâs, Llyn y-Nadroedd, and Llyn Coch. THE HIGH LAKES. The laſt is the higheſt on this ſide of the mountain; and on whoſe margins, we were told, that, in fairy days, thoſe diminutive gentry kept their revels. This ſpace between precipice and precipice, forms a ſhort, and no very agreeable iſthmus, till we reached a verdant expanſe, which gave us ſome reſpite, before we labored up another ſeries of broken crags: after theſe, is a ſecond ſmooth tract, which reaches almost to the ſummit,TOP OF SNOWDON. which, by way of pre-eminence, is ſtyled Y WYDDFA, or The Conſpicuous. It riſes almoſt to a point, or, at beſt, there is but room for a circular wall of looſe ſtones, within which travellers uſually take their repaſt.

THE mountain from hence ſeems propped by four vaſt buttreſſes; between which are four deep Cwms, or hollows: each, excepting one, had one or more lakes, lodged in its diſtant bottom The neareſt was Fſynnon Lás, FYNNON LAS. or The Green Well, lying immediately below us. One of the company had the curioſity to deſcend a very bad way to a jutting rock, that impended over the monſtrous precipice; and he ſeemed like Mercury ready to take his flight from the ſummit of Atlas. The waters of Ffynnon Lâs, from this height, appeared black and unfathomable, and the edges quite green. From thence is a ſucceſſion of bottoms, ſurrounded by the moſt lofty and rugged hills, the greateſt part of whoſe ſides are quite mural, and form the moſt magnificent amphitheatre in nature. The Wyddfa is on one ſide; Crib y Diſtill, with its ſerrated tops, on another; Crib Coch, a ridge of fiery redneſs, appears beneath the preceding; and oppoſite to it is the boundary called the Lliwedd. Another very ſingular ſupport to this mountain is Y Clawdd Coch, riſing into a ſharp ridge, ſo narrow, as not to afford breadth even for a path.

THE view from this exalted ſituation is unbounded. In a former tourAuguſt 25th Old Stile., I ſaw from it the county of Cheſter, the high hills of Yorkſhire, part of the north of England, Scotland, and Ireland: a plain view of the Iſle of Man; and that of Angleſea lay extended like a map beneath us, with every rill viſible. I took much pains to ſee this proſpect to advantage; ſat up at a farm on the weſt till about twelve, and walked up the whole way. The night was remarkably fine and ſtarry: towards morn, the ſtars faded away, and left a ſhort interval of darkneſs, which was ſoon diſperſed by the dawn of day. The body of the ſun appeared moſt diſtinct, with the rotundity of the moon, before it roſe high enough to render its beams too brilliant for our ſight. The ſea which bounded the weſtern part was gilt by its beams, firſt in ſlender ſtreaks, at length glowed with redneſs. The proſpect was diſcloſed to us like the gradual drawing up of a curtain in a theatre. We ſaw more and more, till the heat became ſo powerful, as to attract the miſts from the various lakes, which in a ſlight degree obſcured the proſpect. The ſhadow of the mountain was flung many miles, and ſhewed its bicapitated form; the Wyddfa making one, Crib y Diſtill the other head. I counted this time between twenty and thirty lakes, either in this county, or Meirionyddſhire. The day proved ſo exceſſively hot, that my journey coſt me the ſkin of the lower part of my face, before I reached the reſting-place, after the fatigue of the morning.

ON this dayAuguſt 15th, New Stile., the ſky was obſcured very ſoon after I got up. A vaſt miſt enveloped the whole circuit of the mountain. The proſpect down was horrible. It gave an idea of numbers of abyſſes, concealed by a thick ſmoke, furiouſly circulating around us. Very often a guſt of wind formed an opening in the clouds, which gave a fine and diſtinct viſto of lake and valley. Sometimes they opened only in one place; at others, in many at once, exhibiting a moſt ſtrange and perplexing ſight of water, fields, rocks, or chaſms, in fifty different places. They then cloſed at once, and left us involved in darkneſs: in a ſmall ſpace, they would ſeparate again, and fly in wild eddies round the middle of the mountains, and expoſe, in parts, both tops and baſes clear to our view. We deſcended from this various ſcene with great reluctance; but before we reached our horſes, a thunder ſtorm overtook us. Its rolling among the mountains was inexpreſſibly awful: the rain uncommonly heavy. We re-mounted our horſes, and gained the bottom with great hazard. The little rills, which on our aſcent trickled along the gullies on the ſides of the mountain, were now ſwelled into torrents; and we and our ſteeds paſſed with the utmoſt riſque of being ſwept away by theſe ſudden waters. At length we arrived ſafe, yet ſufficiently wet and weary, to our former quarters.

IT is very rare that the traveller gets a proper day to aſcend the hill;ATTRACTION OF CLOUDS. for it often appears clear, but by the evident attraction of the clouds by this lofty mountain, it becomes ſuddenly and unexpectedly enveloped in miſt, when the clouds have juſt before appeared very remote, and at great heights. At times, I have obſerved them lower to half their height, and notwithſtanding they had been diſperſed to the right and to the left, yet they have met from both ſides, and united to involve the ſummit in one great obſſcurity.

THE quantity of water which flows from the lakes of Snowdonia, RIVERS. is very conſiderable; ſo much, that I doubt not but collectively they would exceed the waters of the Thames, before it meets the flux of the ocean.

THE reports of the height of this noted hill have been very differently given.HEIGHT. A Mr. Caſwell, who was employed by Mr. Adams, in 1682, in a ſurvey of Wales, meaſured it by inſtruments made by the directions of Mr. Flamſtead: Wren's Parentalia, i. 253. I ſuppoſe; Caſwell was employed by Mr. Adams, author of the Index Villeris. ; and aſſerts its height to have been twelve hundred and forty yards: but for the honor of our mountain I am ſorry to ſay, that I muſt give greater credit to the experiments made of late years, which have ſunk it to one thouſand one hundred and eighty-nine yards and one foot, reckoning from the quay at Caernarvon to the higheſt peak.

THE ſtone that compoſes this,STRATA. and indeed the greateſt part of Snowdonia, is exceſſively hard. Large coarſe cryſtals are often found in the fiſſures, and very frequently cubic pyritae, the uſual attendants on Alpine tracts. Theſe are alſo frequented by the rock ouzel, a mountain bird; and ſome of the lakes are ſtocked with char and gwyniads, Alpine fiſh. The antient inhabitant, the goat, decreaſes daily in value, ſince the decline of orthodoxal wigs, to which its ſnowy hair univerſally contributed. Still large flocks are kept for the dairy, and milked with great regularity.

BOTANY is not within my province.BOTANY. I ſhall therefore ſay nothing more of the plants, than that thoſe ſpecies which LINNAEUS ſo very expreſſively ſtyles. Aethereae, are entirely confined to the higher parts of the mountains; and notwithſtanding the ſeeds muſt be blown downwards, they never vegetate in the lower parts, which are deſerted by certain plants, which are natives of a higher tract of the ſame hill.

THE animals of theſe regions are chiefly foxes. Stags were found here in the days of Leland, in ſuch numbers, as to deſtroy the little corn which the farmers attempted to ſow: but they were extirpated before the year 1626 Gwedir MSS.. A ROYAl FOREST. Snowdon being a royal foreſt, warrants were iſſued for the killing of the deer. I have ſeen one from the duke of Suffolk, dated April the 30th, 1552; and another, in the firſt year of queen Elizabeth, ſigned by Robert To • neſend; and a third, in 1561, by Henry Sydney. The ſecond was addreſſed to the maſter of the game, ranger and keeper of the queen's highneſs forreſt of SNOWDON, in the county of Caernarvon. The laſt extended the foreſt into the counties of Meirionydd and Angleſea, with the view of gratifying the rapacity of the favorite, Dudley, earl of Leiceſter, who had by letters patent been appointed chief ranger of the foreſt. In conſequence, he tyrannized over the counties with great inſolence. A ſet of informers immediately acquainted him, that moſt of the freeholders eſtates might be brought within the boundaries. Commiſſioners were appointed to enquire of the encroachments and concealments of lands within the foreſt. Juries were empannelled; but their returns were rejected by the commiſſioners, as unfavorable to the earl's deſigns. The jurors performed an honeſt part, and found a verdict for the country. Leland, who, no longer before than the reign of Henry VIII. had gone over this tract, as he did moſt of England, under the royal commiſſion; and yet reports, that all Cregery, i. e. Snowdon, is in Caernarvonſhire, and no part in Merionethſhire; though, ſays he, that ſhire be montanius Itin V. 43..

A NEW commiſſion was then directed to Sir Richard Bulkeley, of Baron Hill, Angleſea, Sir William Herbert, and others; but this, by the firmneſs of Sir Richard, was likewiſe ſoon ſuperſeded. But, in 1578, another was appointed, dependent on the favorite. A packed jury was directed to appear at Beaumaris, who went on the ſame day to view the marſh of Malltraeth, ten miles diſtant; and found that marſh to be in the foreſt of Snowdon, notwithſtanding it was in another county, and divided from the foreſt by an arm of the ſea; becauſe the commiſſioners had told them, that they had met with an indictment in the exchequer of Gaernarvon (which they had the year before broke open and ranſacked) by which they had diſcovered that a ſtag had been rouzed in the foreſt of Snowdon, in Caernarvonſhire, was purſued to the banks of the Menai; that it ſwam over that branch of the ſea, and was killed at Malltraeth INFRA foreſtam noſtram de Snowdon. The jury appeared in the earl's livery, blue, with ragged ſtaves on the ſleeves; and were ever after branded with the title of the black jury, who ſold their country.

SIR Richard Bulkeley, not the leſt daunted with this deciſion, continued ſteady in his oppoſition to the tyrant; and laid before the Queen the odiouſneſs of the proceedings, and the grievances her loyal ſubjects, the Welſh, labored under, by the commiſſion, inſomuch, in 1579, her highneſs was pleaſed, by proclamation at Weſtminſter, to recall it. Leiceſter, diſappointed in his views, purſued Sir Richard with the utmoſt inveteracy: he even accuſed him of a concern in Babington's conſpiracy. BEFORE GOD, ſays the Queen, we will be ſworn upon the evangeliſts, he never intended us any harm; and ſo ran to the bible, and kiſſed it, ſaying, We ſhall not commit him: we have brought him up from a boyFrom the communication of Paul Panton, eſq .

Snowdon was held as ſacred by the antient Britons, SACRED. as Parnaſſus was by the Greeks, and Ida by the Cretans. It is ſtill ſaid, that whoſoever ſlept upon Snowdon, would wake inſpired, as much as if he had taken a nap on the hill of Apollo. The Britons, in very early times, worſhipped mountains and rivers;Gildas. but that does not appear from the triambics quoted by our able antiquary, Mr. Rowlands Rowlands, 253. for the words Eiry Mynydd are applicable, not to this mountain in particular, but to all which are covered with ſnow. There are multitudes of theſe triambics, each ending with a moral reflection, the work of Llywarch Hêen; of which the following may ſerve as an example: Eiry mynydd gwangeus jâr; Gochwiban gwynt ar dalar; YN YR ING, GORAN YW'R CAR.Mr. Rhys Jones's Coll. of Welſh Poems, p. 13.. While the hill is clad with ſnow, Fowls for food ſcream out below, Fierce the winds on plough-lands blow. WHEN DEEP GRIEF AFFECTS YOUR MIND, BALMY CURE FROM KIN YOU'LL FIND.

THE Welſh had always the ſtrongeſt attachment to the tract of Snowdon. It was, ſay they the appertenance of the principality of Wales, which the prince and his predeceſſors held ſince the time of Brute. Edward I. was told by the inhabitants of Snowdon, in the treaty he held with our countrymen, in the year 1281, that even ſhould their prince be inclined to gratify the king, in yielding him poſſeſſion, they would not do homage to ſtrangers, of whoſe tongue, manners, and laws, they were ignorant Powel, 369.. Our princes had, in addition to their title, that of LORD OF SNOWDON. They had five hardy barons within the tract, who held of them. Such was the importance of this ſtrong region, that when Llewelyn was at the laſt extremity, he rejected the propoſal of Edward, of a thouſand a year, and ſome honorable county in England, well knowing that his principality muſt terminate with the ceſſion.

No ſooner had Edward effected his conqueſt,FAIR HELD THERE. than he held a triumphal fair upon this our chief of mountains; and adjourned to finiſh the joy of his victory, by ſolemn tournaments on the plains of Nevyn.

I SHALL take my leave of Snowdonia, NAME. with ſome remarks on the name, and the weather. The firſt is a literal tranſlationBy the Saxons firſt into SNAWDUNE. Sax. Chr. 203. of the antient appellation, Creigie'r Eira, The Snowy Mountains, from the frequency of ſnow upon them. Niphates, in Armenia, and Imaus, in Tartary, derive their name from the ſame circumſtance. Some have ſuppoſed it to be taken from Creigiau'r Eryri, or The Eagle Rocks; but that bird appears very ſeldom among them. The other circumſtance is conſtant: not that it is to be imagined that they are covered with ſnow in ſome part or other the whole year, as has been idly fabled; there being frequently whole weeks, even in winter, in which they are totally free.

THE earlieſt appearance of ſnow,WEATHER. is commonly between the middle of October, and the beginning of November: the falls which happen then, are uſually waſhed away with the rains, and the hills remain clear till Chriſtmas. Between that time and the end of January, the greateſt falls happen; which are ſucceeded by others, about the latter end of April, or beginning of May, which remain in certain places till the middle of June, in which month it has been ſeen of the depth of ſome feet. It has even happened, that the greateſt fall has been in April, or beginning of May; and that never fails happening, when the preceding winter has had the ſmalleſt falls. But the fable of Giraldus, concerning the continuance of ſnow the whole year, is totally to be exploded.

NEAR the end of Nant-beris, paſs beneath Glyder Vawr, and obſerve the ſtrata of a columnar form, high above our heads. At times, vaſt fragments of this tremendous rock tumble down, the ruins are ſcattered about the baſe, and exhibit awful ſpecimens of the frequent lapſes. One is ſtyled the Cromlech, for having accidentally fallen on other ſtones, it remains lifted from the earth, with a hollow beneath, reſembling one of thoſe Druidical antiquities. The length of the incumbent ſtone is ſixty feet: the breadth forty-ſix: the thickneſs ſixteen. The hollow is ſaid once to have been occupied by an old woman; but now ſerves for a ſheep pen.

THE aſcent from hence is either over looſe ſtones, or ſolid ſtair-caſe; and is exceedingly ſteep. It is a ſingular road, lying in a ſtupendous chaſm, bounded for above a mile by nearly equidiſtant precipices, of prodigious height; on one ſide belonging to the Glyders, on the other by the parts of Snowdon.

REFRESH ourſelves on a ſpot called The Gorphwysfa, GORPHWYSFA. or The Reſting-Place. At a ſmall diſtance from which is Bwlchy Gwyddyl, or The Paſs of the Iriſhmen; from whence is a ſingular view of Dyffryn Mymbyr, the chaſm we had left; and far below us, the pictureſque vale of Nant Gwynnan, the ſcene of many a bloody ſkirmiſh in the time of Edward IV. between William earl of Pembroke, and the Welſh Lancaſtrians, under Jevan ap Robert.

DESCEND a very ſteep road,CWM DYLI. into that part called Cwm Dyli; where we quitted our horſes, and began a moſt toilſome journey to viſit the hidden vales lodged in the boſom of the mountains. We began with clambering up the rugged face of a rock, broken into a multitude of ſhort precipices, and divided in the middle by a cataract, the diſcharge of the waters from the Alpine lakes. After about a quarter of a mile's labor,CWM DYLI UCHA. we reached Cwm y Cwm Dyli, a flat tract of hay ground, watered by a river, and filled with hay-makers; the farmer and his family being reſident here in his Havodtu, for the ſummer ſeaſon. After dining with them on curds and whey, we kept along the river's ſide, and found oppoſed to us another front, rugged as the former, and attended with a cataract. This was ſurmounted with equal difficulty. We found, on arriving at the top, a bottom a mile in length, filled with Llyn Llydaw, LLYN LLYDAW. a fine lake, winding beneath the rocks, and vaſtly indented by rocky projections, here and there jutting into it. In it was one little iſland, the haunt of black-backed Gulls, which breed here, and, alarmed by ſuch unexpected viſitants, broke the ſilence of this ſequeſtered place by their deep ſcreams. We continued our walk, aſcending along a narrow path above the lake, as far as the extremity; then deſcending, reached the oppoſite ſide, in order to encounter a third deſcent, as arduous as the preceding. This brought us into the horrible crater, immediately beneath the great precipice of the Wyddfa, in which is lodged Ffynnen Lâs. FFYNNON LAS. Its ſituation is the moſt dreadful, ſurrounded by more than three parts of a circle, with the moſt horrible precipices of the Wyddfa, Crib y Diſtill, and Crib Coch, with the vaſt mural ſteeps of Lliwedd, continued over the other lake and Cwm Dyli. In the Lliwedd was a ſtrange break, called Bwlch y Saethau, or The Paſs of the Arrows; probably a ſtation for hunters, to watch the wanderings of the deer.

THE margins of Ffynnon Lâs here appeared to be ſhallow and gravelly. The waters had a greeniſh caſt; but what is very ſingular, the rocks reflected into them ſeemed varied with ſtripes of the richeſt colors, like the moſt beautiful luteſtrings; and changed almoſt to infinity.

HERE we obſerved the Wheat-ear, WHEAT-EAR a ſmall and ſeemingly tender bird; and yet is almoſt the only ſmall one, or indeed the only one, except the Rock Ouzel, or Mwyalchen y Graig, that frequents theſe heights▪ the reaſon is evidently the want of food.

WE deſcended from this dreary ſcene, on the other ſide of the hill,CRIB COCH. above Llyn Llydaw, having the tremendous red precipices of Crib Coch high above us, riſing into a mere ridge, ſerrated, or rather heriſſee, its whole length. The face of many of the rocks were marked with large veins of coarſe white cryſtal; and others, eſpecially Crib Coch, were varied with the deep green of the dwarf Alpine juniper. On attaining the top of the hills, above the lower end of the lake, we deſcend to the Gorphwysfa, where we found our horſes, and returned once more into Nant-Gwinan.

THIS is the moſt beautiful vale in Snowdonia, NANT GWYNAR varied with woods, lakes, river, and meadows; beſides the moſt auguſt boundaries: being guarded on each ſide by vaſt mountains, ſuch as Crib Du, or part of Mynydd Nanmer, the Aran, Lliwedd, Dduallt, and Wenallt, extending about five miles to the church of Beddkelert. On the left, we paſſed by Havod Lwyvog, the ſeat of the late Meyric Meredydd, eſq ſurrounded with large woods. A little farther is the pretty lake Llyn Gwynan, about three quarters of a mile long, and near it are the ruins of a chapel of the ſame name. The chapel had been an eaſe to the church of Beddkelert, and was ſupported by a ſtipend of five pounds a year from the eſtate of Gwedir. It is ſaid to have been founded by John Williams, grandſon of John Coetmor, ap Meredydd, ap Jevan, ap Robert, of Keſelgyfarch and Gwedir, and goldſmith in London; the ſame who is reported to have furniſhed Michael Drayton with Leland's papers.

NEAR the end of the lake, the valley grows ſo contracted, as to form only a narrow ſtreight; but almoſt inſtantly opens again into a fine expanſe, chiefly filled with the beautiful Llyn Dinas. Beyond that, is a tract of meads, chequered with woods, and watered by the river created by the various lakes; but retains the name of Avon Glás-Lyn, from the lofty Ffynnon-Lâs, from which it originates.

AT the bottom riſes a vaſt rock,DINAS EMRIS. inſulated, and cloathed with wood; the famous Dinas Emris, from early times celebrated in Britiſh ſtory; for here Prophetic Merlin ſate, when to the Britiſh king The changes long to come, auſpiciouſly he told.

DINAS EMRYS.

WHEN Vortigern found himſelf unable to conteſt with the treacherous Saxons, ITS LEGEND. whom he had, in the year 449, invited into Britain, he determined, by the advice of his magicians, on building an impregnable fortreſs in Snowdon. He collected the materials, which all diſappeared in one night. The prince, aſtoniſhed at this, convened again his wiſe men. They aſſured him, his building would never ſtand, unleſs it was ſprinkled with the blood of a child born without the help of a father. The realm was ranſacked: at length, one of his emiſſaries overheard ſome boys at play reproach another, and call him an unbegotten knave. The child and his mother were brought before the king. She confeſſed he was the offspring of an Incubus; a ſpecies of being, now unhappily out of all credit. The boy, whoſe name was Merlin, was ordered to be ſacrificed; but on confounding all the magicians with his queſtions, and explaining the cauſe of the miſcarriage, got his liberty Nennius, c. xl. xlii. xliii., and to that mighty king, which raſhly undertook A ſtrong wall'd tower to rear, thoſe earthly ſpirits that ſhook The great foundation ſtill, in dragon's horrid ſhape, That dreaming wizard told, making the mountain gape With his moſt powerful charms, to view thoſe caverns deep; And from the the top of Brith, ſo high and wondrous ſteep, Where Dinas Emris ſtood, ſhew'd where the ſerpents fought, The WHITE that tore the RED; from whence the prophet wrought The Britons ſad decay, then ſhortly to enſue Draiton's Pel •• lb. SONG X..

THIS is the poetical tranſlation of the legend. Merlin, MERLIN. or Merd • il • Emris, or Ambroſius, was in fact the ſon of a noble Roman, of the ſame name. His mother, a Veſtal, to ſave her life and honor Powel's Notes on Giraldus Itin. Cambriae, lib. I. c. x., invented the fable of his father, which was ſwallowed by the credulity of the times. Merlin was an able mathematician and aſtronomer, and deeply read in all the learning of his age. The vulgar, as uſual, aſcribed all he did to art magic; and his diſcovery that Vortigern had begun to found his caſtle on a moraſs, was immediately ſaid to have been attended with moſt portentous circumſtances. Numbers of prophecies were attributed to him; the repetition of which is ſaid to have been forbidden by the council of Trent.

THREE ſides of this famous rock are precipitous. On the top is a large area; on the acceſſible part of which are two great ramparts of ſtone, and within is the ruin of a ſtone building, ten yards long: the walls are dry, but ſtrong. Since it is certain that Vortigern, after his misfortunes, retired to the Snowdon hills, and died not very remote from them, it is poſſible he might have ſelected this for his ſtrong-hold, as it is admirably adapted for that purpoſe, and nearly fills the ſtreight of the valley, and Merlin Ambroſius might have given to it the name of Emris. A place cloſe by, ſtyled Cell y Dewiniaid, or The Cell of the DIVINERS, alluſive to the magicians of Vortigern's court, is another circumſtance which favors the hiſtory of this celebrated ſuppoſed prophet.

FROM hence is a pleaſant,BEED KELERT. but ſhort ride, near the river, to the village of Bedd Kelert, ſeated in a beautiful tract of meadows, at

BEDDKELERT the junction of three vales, near the conflux of the Glâs Lyn and the Colwyn, which flows through Nant Colwyn, a vale that leads to Caernarvon. Its ſituation was the fitteſt in the world to inſpire religious meditation, amidſt lofty mountains, woods, and murmuring ſtreams. The church is ſmall, yet the loftieſt in Snowdonia. The eaſt window conſiſts of three narrow ſlips. The roof is neat; and there yet remains ſome very pretty fretwork. A ſide chapel is ſupported by two neat pillars, and gothic arches. I could diſcover no tombs, nor any thing worth tranſcribing, but the following epitaph: Infra jacet corpus Evani Lloyd, de Hafod Lwyfog, Armigeri, qui Inhumatus fuit paterno et avito Tumulo, ſexto die Idus Maiae. A. D. 1678. Annos Natus 72.

THIS church had been conventual,PRIORY. belonging to a priory of Auguſtines, dedicated to St. Mary. There is reaſon to ſuppoſe they might have been of that claſs which was called Gilbertines, and conſiſted of both men and women, who lived under the ſame roof, but ſtrictly ſeparated from each other by a wall. The cauſe of my ſuſpicion is, that I diſcovered a piece of ground near the church, called Dôol y Llein, or The Meadow of the Nun.

BEDD KELERT had been the moſt antient foundation in all the country, excepting Bardſey. Tanner aſcribes it to our laſt prince; but it muſt have been long before his days, there being a recital of a charter for certain lands beſtowed on it by Llewelyn the Great, Rymer, ii. 316., who began his reign in 1194. It was favored in the ſame manner by others of the ſucceeding princes. David ap Llewelyn beſtowed on it ſome lands in Pennant Gwernogan, belonging to Tudor ap Madoc, to which the prince had no right. This occaſioned a ſuit between the ſons of Tudor, and Philip, prior of the houſe, before William de Grandiſon and R. de Stanedon, at Caernarvon, when a verdict was given againſt the convent Sebright MS.. The prior had for his ſupport the grange of Llecheidior and part of a mill, the grange of Fentidilt and village of Gwehelyn, the grange of Tre'rbeirdd, one plough land, and a certain ſhare of the bees. The eſteem which theſe inſects were held in by the antient Britons, on account of their producing the nectareous Medd, was ſo great, that they conſidered them as created in PARADISE; that when they quitted it on the fall of man, they were bleſſed by God himſelf; and therefore, no maſs ought to be celebrated, but by the light of their wax Leges Walliae, 254..

THE prior had beſides, an allowance of fifty cows and twent-two ſheep. The expences of the houſe muſt have been large. It lay on the great road from England and Weſt Wales into North Wales, and from Ireland and North Wales into England. In order to enable this place to keep its uſual hoſpitality, after it had ſuffered, in 1283, by a caſual fire, Edward I. moſt munificently repaired all the damages; and biſhop Anian, about the year 1286, for the encouragement of other benefactors, remitted to all ſuch who were truly repentant of their ſins, forty days of any penance inflicted on them Rymer, ii, 317..

IN 1535, it was beſtowed, by Henry VIII. on the abby of Chertſey, in Surry; and in 1537, it was given with the laſt, as an appertenance to that of Biſham, in Berkſhire Dugdale Monaſt. iii. 21.. On the diſſolulution, the king gave to the family of the Bodvels, all the lands in Caernarvonſhire which belonged to this priory; and all thoſe in Angleſey, to that of the Prydderchs, excepting the townſhip of Tre'rbeirdd.Rowland's MSS.. The revenues of Bedd Kelert were valued by Dugdale at ſeventy pounds three ſhillings and eight pence; by Speed, at ſixty-nine pounds three ſhillings and eight pence. Edward Conway is mentioned as laſt prior. There are not the leſt reliques of the houſe.

IN order to complete the mountain ramble, as far as was in my power, I made an excurſion from this village up a narrow vale. Aſcend a ſteep road, amidſt a thin hanging wood; and ſee from the road multitudes of black cattle, deſending from all parts, on their way to a neighboring fair. The vale expands; is watered by the Colwyn, which flows from a ſmall lake we paſſed by, called Llyn Cader. LLYN CADER. Left on the right another aſcent to the Wyddfa, where its baſe extends to a conſiderable breadth, and is far leſs ſteep than that on the ſide of Nant-Beris. We ſoon reached the pretty lake of Cawellyn, noted for its Char. The mountains hereabouts approach near to each other. On the right, Mynydd Mawr forms a ſtriking feature: its top is ſmooth, but its front is formed into a moſt immenſe precipice, retiring inwards in a ſemicircular ſhape. Moel Eilio, is another mountain of a ſtupendous bulk, moſt regularly rounded, and of a beautiful verdure. At Bettus Garmon, a village with a church dedicated to St. Germanus, the ſcene changes into a range of beautiful meadows, watered by a rapid ſtream.

I HERE turn my back on the humble flats, and reſume my former road, till I had paſſed Cawellyn. Not far beyond that lake,LLYN Y DYWARCHEN. I turned to the right, to viſit Llyn y Dywarchen, or The Lake of the Sod, long ſince celebrated by the hyperbolical pen of Giraldus Itin. Cambr. lib. ii. c. ix. p. 871., for its inſula erratica, its wandering iſland, as he calls it. That little lake is ſeated in the middle of a turbery; and at this time actually exhibited the phaenomenon recorded by our romantic hiſtorian. It had on it a floating iſland, of an irregular ſhape, and about nine yards long. It appeared to be only a piece of the turbery, undermined by the water, torn off, and kept together by the cloſe entangling of the roots, which form that ſpecies of ground. It frequently is ſet in motion by the wind; often joins its native banks; and, as Giraldus ſays, cattle are frequently ſurprized on it, and by another gale carried a ſhort voyage from the ſhore.

CONTINUE our journey to Drws y Coed, DRWS Y COED. or The Door of the Wood, a paſs towards Clynnog. It is bounded by vaſt mountains: on one ſide by Tal Mignedd; on the other, by a great clift of Mynydd Mawr. Some years ago, here were conſiderable adventures for copper, of the yellow kind; and in the rocks were ſometimes found ſome very thin laminae of the native metal. I was tempted here to exceed a little the limits of my Alpine tour; for now the mountains deſcend faſt from their majeſtic heights, growing leſs and leſs as they approach the Iriſh ſea. My motive was to obtain a ſight of two fine lakes, called Llynnieu Nanlle, which form two handſome expanſes,LLYNIEU NANLLE. with a very ſmall diſtance between each. From hence is a noble view of the Wyddfa, which terminates the view through the viſto of Drws y Coed. It is from this ſpot Mr. WILSON has favored us with a view, as magnificent as it is faithful. Few are ſenſible of this; for few viſit the ſpot.

NEAR theſe lakes Edward I. in the ſummer of 1284, reſided for ſome days; and from hence iſſued out more than one of his edicts. I find ſome dated July the 17th and the 20th. Others are dated in the ſame year, from Bangor, Caernarvon, Mold, and Hope. One from Caernarvon Sebright MSS. Rymer, ii. 276 to 289. is dated as late as the 22d of October; which ſhews what attention he paid to the eſtabliſhment of government in his new dominions, by the long viſit he deigned to honor them with. The place he reſided at here, was called Bala Deu Llyn, or the place where a river diſcharges itſelf from two lakes: but at preſent all memory is loſt of the ſituation of the town, whoſe traces might perhaps be ſtill diſcovered, after proper ſearch.

I RETURNED by the ſame road; and again reach Bedd Kelert, where I made a coarſe lodging. The evening was ſo fine, that we were irreſiſtibly tempted not to defer till morning our viſit to Pont Aberglas Llyn, a ſhort walk from hence.PONT ABERGLAS LLYN. The firſt part is along the narrow vale; but in a very little time the mountains approach ſo cloſe, as to leave only room for the furious river to roll over its ſtony bed; above which is a narrow road, formed with incredible labor, impending over the water. The way ſeems to have been firſt cut out of the rock, and then covered with great ſtones, as uſual in ſeveral of our narrow paſſes. The ſcenery is the moſt magnificent that can be imagined. The mountains riſe to very uncommon height, and oppoſe to us nothing but a broken ſeries of precipices, one above the other, as high as the eye can reach. Here is very little appearance of vegetation; yet in ſpots there is here and there enough to tempt the poor goat to its deſtruction; for it will ſometimes leap down to an alluring tuft of verdure, where, without poſſiblity of return, it muſt remain to periſh, after it has finiſhed the dear-bought repaſt.

THE bridge terminates the paſs; and conſiſts of a ſingle arch, flung over a deep chaſm, from rock to rock. Above is a conſiderable cataract, where the traveller at times may have much amuſement, in obſerving the ſalmon, in great numbers, make their efforts to ſurpaſs the heights. Near the place is a ſalmon fishery. Here had been a royal wear in the reign of Henry IV. which was then rented by Robert ap Meredydd. It probably belonged in old times to our natural princes; for it ſeems to have been a moſt valuable privelege. We have ſeen before, that young Elphin was endowed with one by his royal father; and the effect of his diſappointment in miſſing his uſual revenues, by finding (which, I dare ſay, was in thoſe days a very rare inſtance) an empty wear. Salmon was the moſt uſeful and eſteemed fiſh among the Welſh: it was reckoned among the game; and, if I remember right, is the only ſpecies which was preſerved by law.

ON my return to Bedd Kelert, RHYS GOCH. a ſtone by the road ſide was pointed out to me, by the name of the chair of Rhys Goch O'ryri, the famous mountain bard, cotemporary with Owen Glyndwr. He was of the houſe of Havod Garregog at the entrance into Traeth Mawr, from whence he uſed to walk, and ſitting on this ſtone, compoſe his poems. Among others, is a ſatire on a fox, for killing his favorite peacock. He died about the year 1420, and was interred in the holy ground at Bedd Kelert, after eſcaping the vengeance of the Engliſh, for inſpiring our countrymen with the love of liberty, and animating them, by his compoſitions, into a long and gallant reſiſtance to the galling yoke.

CONTINUATION OF THE JOURNEY.

FROM Bedd Kelert I returned to Pont Aber Glas lyn; and ſoon reached Traeth Mawr, a large extent of ſands, between the counties of Caernarvon and Meirionydd, of moſt dangerous paſſage to ſtrangers, by reaſon of the tides which flow here with great rapidity. This forms the bottom of the vaſt bay of Cardigan. In the year 1625, Sir John Wynne, of Gwedir, conceived the great deſign of gaining this tract, and a leſſer, called Traeth Bychan, from the ſea, by means of embanking. He implored the aſſiſtance of his illuſtrious contryman Sir Hugh Middleton. Sir John's letter, and Sir Hugh's reply, will be the beſt account I can give of the affair; which never was carried into execution, as I imagine, for want of money. Sir John's is as follows:

Right worthie Sir, my good couſin, and one of the great honors of the nation,

I UNDERSTAND of a greate work that you have performed in the Iſle of Wight, in gaininge too thouſand acres from the ſea. I may ſaie to you what the Jewes ſaid to Chriſt—We have heard of thy greate workes done abroade, doe ſomewhat in thine own countrey.

THERE are too waſhes in Merionethſhire, whereon ſome parte of my being lieth, called Traeth Mawr and Traeth Bychan, of a great extent of land, and entring into the ſea by one iſſue, which is not a mile broad at full ſea, and verie ſhallow. The freſh currents that run into the ſea are both vehement and greate, and carie with them much ſand; beſides the ſoutherly winde uſually bloweth fulle to the havens mouth, carrieth with it ſo much ſand, that it hath overwhelmed a great quantitie of the ground adjacent. There, and alſo in the borderinge countreys, abundance of wood, bruſh, and other materialls fit to make mounds, to be had at a verie cheape rate, and eaſilie brought to the place; which I hear they doe in Lincolnſhire, to expell the ſea. My ſkill is little, and my experience none at all in ſuch matters, yet I ever had a deſire to further my country in ſuch actions as might be for their profit, and leave a remembrance of my endeavors; but hindred with other matters, I have only wiſhed well, and done nothinge. Now being it pleaſed God to bring you into this country, I am to deſire you to take a ride, the place not being above a daies journey from you; and if you do ſee the thing fit to be undertaken, I am content to adventure a brace of hundred pounds to joyne with you in the worke.

I HAVE leade ore on my grounds great ſtore, and other minerals near my houſe; if it pleaſe you to come hither, beinge not above too daies journey from you, you ſhall be moſt kindly wellcome—it may be you ſhall finde here that will tend to your commoditie and mine. If I did knowe the day certaine when you would come to view Traeth Mawr, my ſon Owen Wynn ſhall attend you there, and conduct you thence to my houſe. Concluding me verie kindly to you, doe reſt,

Your loving couſin and friend, J. WYNN. Gwydir, 1ſt September 1625. To the honored Sir Hugh Myddleton, Knt. Bart. Honorable Sir,

I HAVE received your kind letter. Few are the things done by me, for which I give God the glory. It may pleaſe you to underſtand my firſt undertaking of publick works was amongſt my owne, within leſs than a myle of the place where I hadd my firſt beinge, 24 or 25 years ſince, in ſeekinge of coales for the town of Denbigh.

TOUCHINGE the drowned lands near your lyvinge, there are manye things conſiderable therein. Iff to be gayned, which will hardlie be performed without great ſtones, which was plentifull at the Weight, as well as wood; and great ſums of money to be ſpent, not hundreds but thouſands— and firſt of all his Majeſty's intereſt muſt be got. As for myſelf, I am grown into years, and full of buſines here at the mynes, the river at London, and other places—my weeklie charge being above £200; which maketh me verie unwillinge to undertake anie other worke; and the leaſt of theis, whether the drowned lands or mynes, requireth a whole man, with a large purſe.—Noble Sir, my deſire is great to ſee you, which ſhould draw me a farr longer waie; yet ſuch are my occaſions at this tyme here, for the ſettlinge of this great worke, that I can hardlie be ſpared one howre in a daie. My wieff being alſo here, I cannot leave her in a ſtrange place. Yet my love to publique works, and deſire to ſee you (if God permit) maie another tyme drawe me into thoſe parts. Soe with my heartie comendations I comitt you and all your good deſires to God,

Your aſſured lovinge couzin to command, HUGH MYDDELTON. Lodge, Sept. 2d, 1625.

VIEW FROM THE SANDS.THE view from the middle of the ſands towards Snowdonia, is moſt extravagantly wild. Mountain riſes above mountain, expoſing the moſt ſavage and barren aſpect imaginable, naked, precipitous, and craggy. The Cyfnicht ſoars into a pictureſque rocky cone; and Y Wyddfa riſes in the back-ground pre-eminent among its companions.

ON quitting the ſands, arrive in a tract of meadows, ſprinkled with inſulated rocks riſing in various places, and emboſomed with woods, rocks, and precipices. On the road obſerved ſome poor iron ore, and groups of coarſe cryſtals, the reliques of an unprofitable mine-adventure.PENMORVA. The ſmall town of Penmorva lies at the head of theſe meadows. The church is dedicated cated to St. Beuno, and annexed to it is the chapel of Dolbenmaen. Here was interred that valiant knight Sir John Owen. Beſides his monument, is another ſmall one to Sir William Morris of Clenenney, who died Auguſt 11th 1622.

IN former times this neighborhood abounded with gentry. It lies in the hundred of Evionydd, in remote days poſſeſſed by two clans; one deſcended from Owen Gwynedd, prince of Wales, and conſiſted of four houſes, Ceſſail Gyfarch, Yſtym-cegid, Clenenney, Brynker, Glasfryn, or Cwmſtrallyn; the other was derived from Collwyn ap Tangno, and conſiſted of the houſes of Whilog, Bron y Foel, Berkin, Gwynfryn, Tal Hén Bont (now Plas Hén), and Pennardd. Gwedir family, in Mr. Barrington's Miſcell, octavo, 143. My curioſity once led me to make a tour of a few miles from hence to viſit theſe antient manſions. In the days I allude to, the feuds among the gentry filled the land with blood. The hiſtory of our country, during that period, is the hiſtory of revenge, perfidy, and ſlaughter. This conſideration induced Meredydd ap Jevan, anceſtor of the Wynnes of Gwedir Tour in Wales, ii. 137., to quit this his paternal country. "I had rather," ſays he, fight with outlaws and thieves, than with my own blood and kindred. If I live in my own houſe in Evionydd, I muſt either kill my own kinſmen, or be killed by them.

THERE was not a houſe in the hundred but had its dreadful tale. They would quarrel, if it was but for 'the maſtery of the country, and the firſt good morrow Hiſt. Gwedir family.!' John Owen ap John ap Mereddyd and Howel ap Madoc Vychan, fell out for no other reaſon. Howel and his people fought valiantly. When he fell, his mother placed her hand on his head, to prevent the fatal blow, and had half her hand and three of her fingers cut off by ſome of her neareſt kindred. An attempt was made to kill Howel ap Rhys in his own houſe, by the ſons of John ap Mereddyd, for no other reaſon but that their ſervants had quarrelled about a fiſhery.

ANTIQUETIES. THEY firſt ſet fire to the manſion with great bundles of ſtraw. The beſieged, terrified With the flames, ſheltered themſelves under forms and benches; while Rhys, the old hero, ſtood ſword in hand, reproaching his men with cowardice, and telling them be bad often ſeen a greater ſmoke in that hall on a Chriſtmas even. Theſe flagitious deeds ſeldom met with any other puniſhment than what reſulted from private revenge; and too often compoſition was made for the moſt horrible murders. There was a Gwerth, or price of blood, from the ſlaughter of a king to the cutting off of one of his ſubject's little fingers.

SEVERAL antiquities are ſcattered over this part of the county. Near Dolbenmaen is a large mount, on which might have been, as Mr. Rowland conjectures, a watch-tower. Near Yſtymkiged are three Cromlehs joining to each other, poſſibly memorial of three chieftains ſlain on the ſpot. And near Clenenney, on Bwlch Craigwen, is a fine druidical circle, conſiſting at preſent of thirty-eight ſtones: at a mile's diſtance, and within ſight of this, above Penmorva, is another. Before I returned, I viſited Brynkir, in my memory inhabited by a family of the ſame name. It lies beneath the great mountain Hedog, which, divides this country from the vale of Bedd Kelert. From hence the country gradually lowers to the extremity of the county.

DURING my ſtay at Penmorva, DWARFS. I was deſired to obſerve Dick Bach, a diminutive perſon, who caſually called there. He was ſervant to a neighboring gentleman, about the age of thirty, and only three feet eleven inches high. He was pointed out to me only for the ſake of deſcribing his ſiſter, Mary Bach o Cwmmain, or, little Mary of Cwmmain; a well-proportioned fairy, of the height of three feet four. Her virtues are ſuperior to her ſize: ſhe brews, bakes, pickles; in ſhort, does every thing that the beſt houſekeeper can do. Their parents live in theſe parts, have many children of the common ſtature of man; but nature choſe to ſport in the formation of this little pair.

IN the winter of 1694,A MEPHITIC VAPOUR. this neighborhood was remarkable for an amazing and noxious phaenomenon. A mephites, or peſtilential vapour, reſembling a weak blue ſlame, aroſe, during a fortnight or three weeks, out of a ſandy marſhy tract, called Morva Bychan Cambden, ii. 788. Ph. Tranſ. No 208. Lowthorp's Abridg. ii. 183., and croſſed over a channel of eight miles to Harlech. It ſet fire on that ſide to ſixteen ricks of hay and two barns, one filled with hay, the other with corn. It infected the graſs in ſuch a manner, that numbers of cattle, horſes, ſheep, and goats, died. One character of a mephites was wanting; for men went into the midſt of it with impunity. It was eaſily diſpelled; any great noiſe, ſuch as the ſounding of horns, the diſcharging of guns, or the like, at once repelled it. It moved only by night; and appeared at times, but leſs frequently, the following ſummer; after which this phaenomenon ceaſed. It may poſſibly ariſe, as the editor of Cambden conjectures, from a local caſualty, ſuch as the fall of a flight of Locuſts in that ſpot, as really did in the ſea near Aberdaron; which growing corrupt, might, by the blowing of the wind for a certain period from one point, direct the peſt to a certain ſpot, while others leſs remote might, for the ſame reaſon, eſcape the dreadful effects. Mouffet gives an account of a plague in Lombardy, about the year 591, which aroſe from the fall of a cloud of Locuſts, which corrupted the air to ſuch a degree, that eighty thouſand men and cattle periſhedTheatre of Infects, Engl. ed. 986..

I continued my journey along the ſhore,WRECK OF BIRDS. which is for the moſt part flat, except where ſome ſmall headland juts into it. On this coaſt the Reverend Mr. Hugh Davies, of Beaumaris, was witneſs to a very uncommon wreck of ſea-fowl, which had happened in 1776. He ſaw the beach, for miles together, covered with dead birds, eſpecially thoſe kinds which annually viſit the rocks in ſummer; ſuch as Puffins, Razor-bills, Guillemots, and Kittiwakes; of the laſt. there were many many thouſands. Numbers alſo of Tarrocks. And of birds which retire to diſtant countries to breed, were Gannets, Wild-geeſe, Bernacles, Brent-geeſe, Scoters, and Tufted-ducks. The froſt, from January 6th to February the 2d, had been in that winter uncommonly ſevere: a ſtorm had probably overtaken both the migrants and re-migrants, and occaſioned this havock; and the birds, which are perpetually reſident with us, underwent the ſame fate, unable to reſiſt the freezing gale.

Paſſed by Stymllyn, the ſeat of — Wynne, Eſq and ſoon reach Crickaeth, CRICKAETH. a poor borough town, contributory to Caernarvon.

CRICKAETH

Its caſtle is ſeated on a pretty round hill, jutting far into the ſea, and the iſthmus croſſed, by way of defence, by two deep ditches; on each ſide of the entrance is a great round tower. The court is of an irregular form, and has the remains of a ſquare tower; beyond is another court, and in it, on the verge of the rock, are two others, alſo ſquare. It is probable that all the towers were originally ſquare, for the inſides of the two round towers are of that form. They have ſo much the appearance of the architecture of Dolwyddelan caſtle, that I entertain no doubt but that this caſtle was founded by a Welſh prince, and that its ſuppoſed founder Edward I. did no more than caſe the towers, which at preſent are the two rounders. After the Conqueſt, Edward appointed William de Leybourn to be conſtable, with a ſalary of a hundred pounds a year; for which he was to maintain a garriſon of thirty ſtout men (ten of whom were to be croſs-bow men) one chaplain, one ſurgeon, one carpenter, and one maſon Sebright MSS..

OUR boaſted countryman,SIR HOWEL Y FWYALL. Sir Howel y Fwyall, was conſtable of this caſtle; a hero deſcended from Collwyn ap Tangno. He attended the Black Prince to the battle of Poitiers, and, as we ſay, was the perſon who took the French king priſoner; but hiſtory beſtows that honor on Denis de Morebeque, a knight of Artois Froiſſart, tom. i. ch. clxiiii. p. 195. Engl. Froiſſart, i.. Perhaps we muſt wave that particular glory; but he undoubtedly behaved on the occaſion with diſtinguiſhed valour: for the Black Prince not only beſtowed on him the conſtableſhip of this caſtle, which he afterwards made his reſidence, but knighted him, and, in perpetual memorial of his good ſervices, ordered that from thenceforth a meſs of meat ſhould be ſerved up before the pole-ax with which he performed ſuch great feats; for what reaſon he bore it in his coat of arms, and was ſlyled Sir Howel y Fwyall, or of the Ax: after the meſs had appeared before the knight, it was carried down and beſtowed on the poor. Eight yeomen attendants were conſtituted to guard the meſs, and had eight pence a day conſtant wages, at the king's charge; and theſe, under the name of yeomen of the crown, were continued on the eſtabliſhment till the reign of Queen Elizabeth. Some do not ſcruple to ſay, that the yeomen of the crown were grafted upon this ſtock. After the death of Sir Howel, the meſs was carried as before, and beſtowed on the poor, for the ſake of his ſoul; and probably as low as the period above mentionedSee XV Tribes of North Wales; and Hiſt, Gwedir Family in Mr, Barrington's Miſcelles; and Hiſt. Gwedir, octavo 143..

EIGHT miles farther is Pwllheli. In my way croſs over a pretty ſtream, on a bridge of three arches, at Llan Yſtyndwy, a church and village in a pretty wooded bottom. A little farther inland is Plâs Hén, a ſeat of Evan Lloyd Vaughan, Eſq by marriage of an heireſs of the name of Vaughan, a deſcendant of Colwyn ap Tangno: ſhe afterwards married William Lloyd, a younger ſon of Bod-idris. Croſs the little river Arch, at Aber-arch, or the port of the coffin, near a church dedicated to St. Cwrda. After another mile's ride reach Pwllheli, the beſt town in this country, and the magazine of goods which ſupplies all this tract. It lies cloſe on the ſhore, and has a tolerable harbour for veſſels of about ſixty tons. The entrance is by a high rock called The Gimlet, a mile from land, to which it is joined by a range of ſand-hills. This place was made a free borough by the Black Prince, by charter, dated in the 12th year of his principality, at Caernarvon, in compliment, to Nigel de Loryng or Lohareyn, one of the gentlemen of his bedchamber, on whom he had beſtowed Pwllheli and Nevyn, in conſideration of his great ſervice in Gaſcony, and particularly at the battle of Poitiers. He entitles him to Servitiis quorumcunque tenentium tam liberorum quam nativorum; by which it may be preſumed that he did not include the Welſh in the privileges. What thoſe were I do not learn; but they were the ſame which the burgeſſes of Rosfair in Angleſey enjoyed: and for them Pwllheli was to pay to Nigel fourteen pounds a year, and Nevyn thirtytwo. This borough and Nevyn he freely beſtowed on him, with all its appurtenances, together with four librates of land, towards the repair of his manors; and for all theſe he was only to pay an acknowlegement of a roſe, in lieu of all ſervices. If he died without iſſue, the whole was to revert to the crown. Edward III. afterwards confirmed theſe grants at Sandwich.

FROM hence I took a ride about five miles inland to Carn Madryn, CARN MADRYN. a lofty rocky inſulated hill, noted for having been a ſtrong hold of the ſons of Owen Gwynedd, Roderick and Malgwn, to whom this part of the country belonged. The bottom, ſides, and top, are filled with cells, oblong, oval, or circular, once thatched, or covered from the inclemency of the weather: many of them are pretty entire. The chieftains reſided on the top; the country, with the cattle, in times of invaſion, occupied the ſides and bottom. The whole ſummit was ſurrounded with a wall, ſtill viſible in many places. From the ſummit is an extenſive view of the country, with the bay of Caerncr •• on one ſide, and that of Cardigan on the other. Sarn Badrig Tour in Wales, ii 212. is ſeen extending from Meireonyddſhire its dangerous length, nearly parallel to the ſhore of Lhein. South Wales may be ſeen plainly, and in clear weather Ireland; and in front the whole tract of Snowdonia exhibits a moſt magnificent and ſtupendous barrier.

AT the foot of this hill is Madryn, formerly the ſeat of the Bodvels, deſcended from Collwyn ap Tangno; but on the death of the laſt male heir the eſtate was purchaſed by — Parry, Eſq of Wern Vawr. From Pwllheli I continued my journey near the ſhore to Llan Badrog, along the ſides of that noble bay the Tudwal's road, ſheltered by two iſlands of that name, ſo named from St. Tudwal; ſacred to whom was a ſmall chapel on the greater. Its preſent inhabitants are ſheep, rabbits, and, in the ſeaſon, puffins.

IN the promontory Penrhyn Du, PENRHYN DU. one of the points of this bay, have been conſiderable adventures for lead ore; and of late years attempts to drain the mines, by means of a fire engine: but the expences proved ſuperior to the profits. A little beyond this is another bay, called Hell's Mouth, dreaded by mariners, being the Scylla to the Charybdis of Sarn Badrig, whoſe extremity lies nearly oppoſite.

IN a ſmall time I reached Aber- • aron, ABER-DARON. a poor village, at the very end of Caernarvonſhire, ſeated on a ſandy bay, beneath ſome high and ſandy cliffs. The mouth of the bay is guarded by two little iſlands, called Ynys Gwylan, a ſecurity to the ſmall craft of the inhabitants, who are all fiſhermen. It takes its name from the ſmall rivulet the Daron, which empties itſelf here.

IN the church are two ailes, ſupported by four very handſome pillars. This being the place where devotees uſually took boat for Bardſeye iſland, was greatly reſorted to. It was dedicated to St. Hywyn, a ſaint of that iſland: was a ſanctuary Powel, 176., and alſo much frequented by pilgrims. Leland ſays, it was called Llan Engas Brenin, Fanum Niniani Reguli Itin. v. 51. Ninian died in 432.. Ninian is a ſaint, ſon of a Cumbrian prince, and whom legend might have ſent here to found the church.

FROM this port I once took boat for Bardſeye iſland,BARADSEYE ISLAND. which lies about three leagues to the weſt. The mariners ſeemed tinctured with the piety of the place; for they had not rowed far, but they made a full ſtop, pulled off their hats, and offered up a ſhort prayer. After doubling a headland, the iſland appears full in view: we paſſed under the lofty mountain which forms one ſide. After doubling the farther end, we put into a little ſandy creek, bounded by low rocks, as is the whole level part. On landing, I found all this tract a very fertile plain, and well cultivated, and productive of every thing which the main land affords. The abbot's houſe is a large ſtone building, inhabited by ſeveral of the natives: not far from it is a ſingular chapel, or oratory, being a long arched edifice, with an inſulated ſtone altar near the eaſt end. In this place one of the inhabitants reads prayers: all other offices are performed at Aber-daron.

THE iſland is about two miles in circumference, contains a few inhabitants, and is rented from Lord Newborough. It was granted by Edward VI. to his uncle Sir Thomas Seymour, and after his death to John Earl of Warwick Tanner, 703.. The late Sir John Wynn purchaſed it from the late reverend Dr. Wilſon of Newark.

THE iſland, whoſe ſpiritual concerns are at preſent under the care of a ſingle ruſtic, once afforded, during life, an aſylum to 20,000 ſaints; and after death, graves to as many of their bodies: well therefore might it be called Inſula Sanctorum, The Iſie of Saints. But, with Dr. Fuller, I muſt obſerve, that it would be more facile to find graves in Bardſeye for ſo many ſaints, than ſaints for ſo many gravesWorthies of Wales, 29. , But to approach the truth;S • . DUBRITIUS let it be ſaid, that Dubritius, archbiſhop of Caer-leon, almoſt worn out with age, reſigning his ſee to St. David, retired here, and, according to the beſt account, died in 612; was interred on the ſpot; but in after times his body was removed to Llandaff. The ſlaughter of the monks of Bangor, about the year 607, is ſuppoſed to have contributed to the population of this iſland; for not only the brethren who eſcaped, but numbers of other pious Britons, fled hither to avoid the rage of the Saxons.

THE time in which the religious houſe was founded,CONVENT. is very uncertain; it probably was before the retreat of Dubritius; for ſomething of that kind muſt have occaſioned him to give the preference to this place. It ſeems likely to have been a ſeat of the Culdees, or Colidei, the firſt religious recluſes of Great Britain; who ſought iſlands and deſert places in which they might in ſecurity worſhip the true GOD. It was certainly reſorted to in very early times; for our accounts ſay, that it flouriſhed as a convent in the days of Cadwan king of Britain, Rowlands, 137., coeval with Dubritius. It was an abbey dedicated to St. Mary. I find among the Sebright MSS. mention of a petition from the abbot to Edward II. in which he ſets forth the injuries he had received from the ſheriff of Caernarvon, who had extorted from him 68s. and 6d. contrary to his deed of feoffment: on which the king directed Roger de Mortimer, juſticiary of Wales, to make enquiry into the matter; who reported, that the abbot held his lands in the county of Caernarvon, in puram et perpetuam elemoſynam, without any ſervice or ſecular acknowlegement; and further, that David, lord of Lhein, and brother to the laſt Prince of Wales, had exacted the ſame ſum; as did his Pencynydd, or maſter of his dogs, poſſibly under pretence of maintaining them. The king therefore, by his ſpecial favor, and by advice of his council, does for ever remit the ſaid ſum, and all arrears; and directs that no one in future, either on his account, or that of his heirs, ever ſhould moleſt the convent.

THE houſe underwent the common fate of others at the diſſolution. Its revenues were, as Dugdale ſays, 46l. 1s. 4d. according to Speed, 58l. 6s. 2d. In the year 1553, only 1l. 6s. 8d. remained in charge to the ſurviving religious of this place.

THE Britiſh name of the iſland is Ynys Enlli, or the Iſland in the Current, from the fierce current which rages particularly between it and the main land. The Saxons named it Bardſeye, probably from the bards who retire here, preferring ſolitude to the company of invading foreigners.

THERE are great plenty of fiſh round the iſland, and abundance of lobſters: the ſpiny lobſter, Br. Zool. iv. No 22. is more frequent here than in moſt other places.

WE re-embarked from the rocks on the oppoſite ſide of the iſland to that on which we landed. Rowed through the rapid current called the Race of Bardſey, between the iſland and the great promontory Braech y Pwll, the Canganum Promontorium of Ptolemy: part of it is called, from certain yellow ſtones, Maem Melyn; the reſt is a vaſt precipice, black and tremendous. After landing at Aber-daron, I rid to its ſummit, and found the ruins of a ſmall church,CAPEL VAIR. called Capel Vair, the Chapel of our Lady; and I was informed, that at the foot of the promontory, below high-water mark, was a fountain of freſh water, to which devotees were wont to deſcend by a circuitous and moſt hazardous path, to get, at low-water, a mouthful of the ſpring; which if they carried up ſafe to the ſummit, their wiſh, whatſoever it was, was to be ſurely fulfilled. This was under the protection of our Lady, and called Ffynnon Vain. The chapel was placed here to give the ſeamen opportunity of invoking the tutelar ſaint for protection through this dangerous ſound, and I dare ſay, in old times, the walls were covered with votive tables. Not far from hence I paſfed by the ruins of Capel Anhelog, or, the Chapel without Endowment.

AFTER going through a fertile bottom, aſcended a lofty mountain impending over the ſea, called Uwch Mynydd; on which were ſeveral circular hollows, edged with ſtone, the temporary

VIEW OF BARDSEY ISLAND. habitations of perhaps ſome invader. Deſcend, and paſs by a large and antient houſe, called Bethelem.

NOT far from thence, about a quarter of a mile from the ſhore, riſes a high rock, called Maen y Mellt, or, The Stone of Lightning.MAEN Y MELLT. Ride by Cefn-amwlch, the ſeat of John Griffith, Eſq and ſoon after to Brynodol, that of Hugh Griffith, Eſq where I met with a moſt hoſpitable reception for two nights. From hence I viſited the neighboring ſhore, which is here low and rocky, opening into frequent little creeks, uſeful to the fiſhermen; who find in them, during the herring-fiſhery, a ſafe retreat from ſtorms. Among theſe are, Porth Towyn, Porth Colman, Porth Gwylan, and Porth Yſgadan. Near the laſt, about thirty years ago, a rock, which towered a great height out of the ſea, was ſuddenly miſſed, after a horrible night of thunder and lightning, ſuppoſed to have been ſtruck down by the reſiſtleſs bolt. I obſerved that the fields about Porth Gwylan were covered with y ddafad, or ſamphire, which ſheep and cattle eagerly feed on, and grow very fat. I was pleaſed here with the fine bloſſom of thrift glowing over numbers of the paſtures.

LLŶN or Lleyn is a very extenſive hundred: in general flat,LLŶN, PRODUCE OF. but interſperſed with moſt characteriſtic hills or rocks, riſing inſulated in ſeveral parts: none makes ſo conſpicuous a figure as Carn Madryn and Carn Boduon. The houſes of the common people are very mean; made with clay, thatched, and deſtitute of chimnies. Notwithſtanding the laudable example of the gentry, the country is in an unimproved ſtate, neglected for the ſake of the herring-fiſhery. The chief produce is oats, and black cattle. I was informed that above three thouſand are annually ſold out of theſe parts. Much oats, barley, butter, and cheeſe, are exported. The land is excellent for grazing, being watered by a thouſand little rills. It is deſtitute of trees, except about the houſes of the gentry.

THE herrings, about the year 1771, HERRINGS. were taken here in vaſt abundance, from Porth Yſgadan, or the Port of Herrings, to Bardſeye iſland. The capture amounted uſually to the value of about four thouſand pounds. They were ſometimes ſalted on ſhore; at other times bought from the fiſhers by the Iriſh wherries at ſea, and carried to be cured in Dublin. Theſe deſultory fiſh, about the period mentioned, appear in July and went away in October; in earlier times they came in September and went away in November. Dories are often taken here. The fiſhermen were wont to fling them away, on account of their ugly appearance: nor was this luxury known to the gentry, till one of their ſervants, who was acquainted with the fiſh, informed them of its being an inhabitant of thefe ſeas. The Atherine, Br. Zool. iii. No 157, is taken near Pwllbeli; and a ſmall lobſter is often found burrowing in the ſand; but differs from the common kind only in its place of reſidence, and in ſize. The traps for lobſters are made with packthread, like thief-nets, and baited with pieces of the leſſer ſpotted ſhark, Br. Zool. iii. No 47. The fiſhers remark, that the ſexes of theſe voracious fiſh confort, at certain times, apart; for at certain periods they take only males, at others only females.

THE churches in this country are of very antient foundation. Some cauſe or other prevented me from ſeeing ſeveral old inſcriptions; a few of which I have ſince picked up. In the church of Llangynodol is ſaid to be this; Hic jacet GWEN HOEDL, a holy lady, who lived in very early times. DERVORI hic jacet, is another inſcription, on a ſtone now placed over a door of Penprys ſtable, in Llannor pariſhSebright MSS.; and at Capel Yverach, in Aberdaron pariſh, is another, which I think better expreſſed by an engravingThe ſame.. They are cut on very rude ſtones, and were certainly the work of the early times of Chriſtianity.

BRYNODOL, by advantage of ſituation on the ſide of a hill, commands a vaſt view of a flat woodleſs tract, the ſea, and a noble maſs of mountains. The Eiſt hills, Boduon, and the vaſt Carn Madryn, riſe in the fore ground; and beyond theſe ſoars all Snowdonia, from thoſe alps which ſurround the Wyddfa, to the moſt remote in the county of Meireonydd.

ON quitting Brynodol I deſcended into an extenſive flat;PORTH YN LLŶN. reached Porth yn Llŷn, a fine ſafe and ſandy bay, guarded on the weſt by a narrow headland, jutting far into the ſea. On part of it are the remains of very ſtrong entrenchments; probably an out-poſt of the Romans: who, as I ſhall have occaſion to mention, had another between this place and Caernarvon.

SEPARATED from this bay by a ſmall headland, is that of Nefyn; and near it a ſmall town of the ſame name,NEFYN. a contributory borough to Caernarvon. This place had been beſtowed on Nigel de Lohareyn by the Black Prince, in the 12th year of his principality, and made a free borough: was allowed a guild mercatory, with every privilege attendant on other free boroughs, and all the liberties and cuſtoms granted heretofore to that of Newborough in Angleſey. He alſo gave it a grant of two fairs annually, and a market on a Sunday; to which the inhabitants of that part of the Commot y Llŷn, then called Dynthlayn, were obliged to reſort.

HERE Edward I, in 1284, held his triumph on the conqueſt of Wales; and perhaps, to conciliate the affections of his new ſubjects, in imitation of our hero Arthur, held a round table, and celebrated it with dance and tournament Ad rotundam tabulam juxta Snowdon praeonizatam in choreis et haſtiludiis ad invicem colludentibus. Annal. Waverleinſ▪ in Gale, ii. 239..

Where throngs of knights, and barons bold, In weeds of peace high triumphs hold, With ſtore of ladies, whoſe bright eyes Rain influence, and judge the prize Of wit or arms, while both contend To win her grace, whom all commend.

TOURNAMENT.The concourſe was prodigious; for not only the chief nobility of England, but numbers from foreign parts, graced the feſtival with their preſence.

THE cuſtom is very antient; for it may be derived even higher than the days of Arthur. We may allow that he held his round table on account of one of his victories; and that he had four-and-twenty knights who ſat at the feſtive board; which might have been deſignedly made of a circular form, in order to deſtroy all diſpute about pre-eminence of ſeat. But the Gauls alſo ſate at their round tables, and every knight had at his back a ſquire with his armour, in waiting Athenaeus, lib. iv.. This gallant aſſembly was held for many ages after. Beſides this held at Nefyn, another was preſented by Earl Mortimer at Kenilworth, where the knights performed their martial exerciſes, and the ladies danced in ſilken mantles Dugdale's Warwickſhire, i. 247..

VORTIGERN's VALLEY,THE firſt, I apprehend to have been performed in thoſe circular areae, which we ſtill meet with in ſome parts of England, ſurrounded with a high mound, a ditch in the inſide, and two entrances one oppoſite to the other, for the knights to enter at and make their onſet. One of theſe I have ſeen by Penrith, which bears the name of Arthur's round table Tour in Scotland, 1769, 3d ed.; others, which are far larger, I found on Thornborough heath, in Yorkſhire; of which I may in future time give ſome account.

ASCEND from Nefyn for a conſiderable way up the ſide of the high hill; and after a ſhort ride on level ground quit our horſes, in order to viſit Nant y Gwrtheyrn, or Vortigen's valley, VORTIGERN'S VALLEY. the immenſe hollow, to which Vortigern is ſaid to have fled from the rage of his ſubjects, and where it was ſaid that he and his caſtle were conſumed with lightning. Nennius Hiſt. Br. c. xlviii. places the ſcene near the Teivi, in Caermarthenſhire; but I believe that the hiſtorian not only miſtakes the ſpot, but even the manner of his death. His life had been profligate; the monks therefore were determined that he ſhould not die the common death of all men, and accordingly made him periſh with ſignal marks of the vengeance of Heaven. Fancy cannot frame a place more fit for a retreat from the knowlege of mankind, or more apt to inſpire one with full hopes of ſecurity from any purſuit. Emboſomed in a lofty mountain, on two ſides bounded by ſtony ſteeps, on which no vegetables appear but the blaſted heath and ſtunted gorſe; the third ſide exhibits a moſt tremendous front of black precipice, with the loftieſt peak of the mountain Eifl ſoaring above; and the only opening to this ſecluded ſpot is towards the ſea, a northern aſpect! where that chilling wind exerts all its fury, and half freezes, during winter, the few inhabitants. The glen is tenanted by three families, who raiſe oats, and keep a few cattle, ſheep, and goats; but ſeem to have great difficulty in getting their little produce to market.

JUST above the ſea is a high and verdant mount, natural; but the top and ſides worked on by art. The firſt flatted: the ſides marked with eight prominent ribs from top to bottom. On this might have been the reſidence of the unfortunate prince; of which, time has deſtroyed every other veſtige. Till the beginning of the laſt century, a tumulus, of ſtone within, and externally covered with turf, was to be ſeen here; it was known by the name of Bedd Gwrtheyrn: tradition having regularly delivered down the report of this having been the place of his interment. The inhabitants of the pariſh, perhaps inſtigated by their then miniſter, Mr. Hugh Roberts, a perſon of curioſity, dug into the carn, and found in it a ſtone coffin, containing the bones of a tall manKenne's Paroch. Antiq. Hiſt. Allcheſter, 698. . This gives a degree of credibility to the tradition, eſpecially as no other bones were found with it; no other tumuli on the ſpot: a proof at leſt of reſpect to the rank of the perſon; and that the place was deſerted after the death of the royal fugitive, about the year 465.

AFTER emerging out of this chearleſs bottom, I found fresh and amazing matter of ſpeculation. I got into a bwlch, or hollow, between two ſummits of the Eifl mountains;THE EIFL HILLS. a range that makes a moſt diſtinguiſhed figure, with the ſugar-loaf points, from various and diſtant parts of the country: they range obliquely, and ſeparate Lleyn from the hundred of Arfon, and jut into the ſea near Vortigern's valley.

ACROSS this hollow, from one ſummit of the Eifl to the other, extends an immenſe rampart of ſtones, or perhaps the ruins of a wall, which effectually blocked up the paſs. On the Eifl is the moſt perfect and magnificent, as well as the moſt artful, of any British poſt I ever beheld. It is called Tre'r Caeri, TRE'R CAERI. or, the Town of the Fortreſſes. This, which was the acceſſible ſide, is defended by three walls; the loweſt is very imperfect, the next tolerably entire, and has in it the grand entrance. This wall in one part points upwards towards the third wall, which runs round the edges of the top of the hill: the ſecond wall unites with the firſt, which runs into a point, reverts, and joins the higheſt, in a place where the hill becomes inacceſſible. The facings on the two upper walls are very entire, eſpecially that of the uppermoſt. They are lofty, and exhibit from below a grand and extenſive front. The ſpace on the top is an irregular area; part is ſteep, part flat: in moſt parts covered with heath, giving ſhelter to a few red grouſe. The whole is almoſt filled with cells. To be ſeen with advantage, the ſtation ſhould be taken from the ſummit, about which the cells are very diſtinct, and diſpoſed with much art. About the middle is a ſquare place fenced with ſtones; a ſort of praetorium, ſurrounded with two rows of cells: numbers are alſo ſcattered about the plain, and others again are contiguous to the wall all along the inſide.

THE cells are moſtly perfect: of various forms; round, oval, oblong, ſquare. Some of the round were fifteen feet in diameter; of the oblong, thirty feet in length, with long entrances regularly faced with ſtone. All of them, when inhabited, were well protected from the weather by roofs of thatch or ſod.

THE upper wall was in many places fifteen feet high on the outſide, and often ſixteen feet broad. It conſiſted of two parallel and contiguous parts, one higher than the other, ſerving as a parapet to the lower, which ſeemed to have had its walk, like that on the walls of Cheſter. There was in one place a cell in the thickneſs of the wall, or perhaps a ſally-port, in part ſtopped by the falling-in of the ſtones.

I was determined to trace every ſpecies of fortreſs of this nature which lay in the neighborhood. On deſcending from Tre'r Caeri to the ſouth,GARY GUWCH. I very soon ascended Moel Garn Guwh, a hill of conic form, on the ſummit of which is a prodigious heap of ſtones, ſeemingly a ſhapeleſs ruin; if it was not for the appearance of certain facings of a central cell ſtill remaining, to prove that it had been a large tower, and an out-poſt to the preceeding place. Theſe ruins are called by the country people A •••••• g • d y G •••• s, or, The apron-full of ſtones flung down by • he G •••••• s.

I MUST remark, that from the Eift ſaw ſveral other leſſer eminences fortified in a manner nearly ſimilar. I may mention Carn Madryn, before deſcribed; the hill of Boduan, above 〈◊〉 , covered with ſimilar cells; Meel ben Twrch, between 〈…〉 ; and Caſtell Gwgan, remarkable for a

CLYNNOG ſmall circular intrenchment; and to theſe I may add another fortified hill, called Pen y Gaer, on the other ſide of the paſs which leads from Arfon to Llŷn: all which makes it probable that this country was the retreat of multitudes of Britons, to eſcape the firſt fury of the Saxon invaders.

AFTER viewing the Arffedoged-y-Gowres, I deſcended to the village and church of Llan-Aelhaiearn, LLAN-AELHALEARN. the laſt dedicated to St. Aelhaiearn, or, the ſaint with an iron eyebrow, from a legend too abſurd to relate. Near it is a fine well, once much frequented for its reputed ſanctity. Continue deſcending: on the right are the high conic hills of Gern goch and Gern ddu, the extremity of the long chain which extends obliquely from Snowdon, beginning at Talmignèdd. Reach

CLYNNOG,CLYNNOG. ſeated in a ſmall grove near the ſhore, on a plain near the foot of the hills.CHURCH. The church is the moſt magnificent ſtructure of its kind in North Wales, built in form of a croſs; the length from eaſt to weſt is about a hundred and thirty-eight feet, from north to ſouth ſeventy. Near the altar are three neat ſtalls, divided by pillars ſupporting gothic arches, the ſeats of the officiating prieſts. The monuments are few: one to William Glynn de Lleiar, with his figure, and thoſe of his wife and ſeven children: another to his ſon-in-law George Twiſleton, Eſq of Aula Barrow in Yorkſhire, and in right of his wife, of Lleiar. I imagine him to be the ſame with Colonel Twiſleton, an active officer under Cromwell, and the ſame who had the honor of beating and making priſoner the gallant Sir John Owen Whitelock's Memorials, 311, and 454, 599..

ADJOINING to the church is the chapel of St. Beuno. The paſſage to it is a narrow vault covered with great flat ſtones, and of far greater antiquity than either church or chapel; which ſeem nearly coeval. Leland ſpeaks of the firſt as new worke, and the architecture verifies his account. He speaks alſo of the old church, where St. Beuno lieth, being near the new Itin. v. 13.. The paſſage is the only part left. The chapel was probably built after that traveller had viſited the place, in the room of the old church, which might have fallen to ruin. In the midſt is the tomb of the ſaint, plain, and altar-ſhaped.TOMB OF ST. BEUNO. Votaries were wont to have great faith in him, and did not doubt but that by means of a night's lodging on his tomb, a cure would be found for all diſeaſes. It was cuſtomary to cover it with ruſhes, and leave on it till morning ſick children, after making them firſt undergo ablution in the neighboring holy well; and I myſelf once ſaw on it a feather bed, on which a poor paralytic from Meirionyddſhire had lain the whole night, after undergoing the ſame ceremony.

I HAVE given ſome account of St. Beuno in the preceding volumep. 32..ST. BEUNO, ACCOUNT OF. After he had aſſumed the monaſtic habit, he here founded a convent in 616. Cadvan, king of North Wales, was his great patron, and promiſed him much land: his ſon Cadwallan performed the promiſe, and received from the Saint a golden ſceptre worth ſixty cows. The land was clamed in behalf of a little infant, and his title proved good: the king refuſes either to give other land in lieu, or to reſign the preſent. Beuno curſed him, and went away; but was appeaſed by Gwrddeint, firſt couſin to the king, who overtook him, and gave the town of Celynnog for ever to GOD and St. Beuno, for his own ſoul's ſake, and that of the wicked Cadwallan. Long after his time, the Carmelites, or white monks, had here an eſtabliſhment. They were ſuppreſſed, but I cannot learn the period. At the time of the Lincoln taxation, or the year 1291, the church was collegiate, conſiſting of five portioniſts or prebendaries; and it continued ſo to the diſſolution Tanner, 705.. The rectory is a ſinecure annexed to the headſhip of JESUS College, Oxford; the poor vicarage is the gift of the biſhop.

ITS revenues at the diſſolution are not recorded; but they muſt at one time have been very great: many of the kings and firſt: people of the country appear on the liſt of benefactors. Cadwaladr gave Grayanoc; Tegwared gave Porthamel; Cadel beſtowed Kylcourt; prince Mervyn, Carnguin; Cadwgan ap Cynvelyn, Bodveilion in Llŷn; Idwal endowed it with Penrhos and Clynog Vechan in Angleſey: and beſides theſe are numbers of others, for which I refer the reader to my authority Dugdale Monaſt. ii. 919..

AT preſent there are, I believe, no ſort of revenues to keep this venerable pile from falling to ruin. The offerings of calves and lambs, which happen to be born with the Nôd Beuno, or mark of St. Beuno, a certain natural mark in the ear, have not entirely ceaſed.OFFERINGS TO. They are brought to the church on Trinity Sunday, the anniverſary of the Saint, and delivered to the churchwardens; who ſell and account for them, and put it into a great cheſt, called Cyff St. Beino, made of one piece of oak, ſecured with three locks. From this the Welſh have a proverb for attempting any very difficult thing, You may as well try "to break up St. Beuno's cheſt." The little money reſulting from the ſacred beaſts, or caſual offerings, is either applied to the relief of the poor, or in aid of repairs.

THOSE who are curious in druidical antiquities,A CROMLEH. may ſee a very uncommon Cromleh on the tenement of Bachwen, about half a mile from this place. The inclination of the upper ſtone is to the weſt; on its ſurface are numbers of ſmall ſhallow holes, with two or three larger than the reſt, poſſibly for ſome purpoſe of augury. At thirty paces diſtance is an upright ſtone, placed, as is ſuppoſed, to mark the limits of approach to the people, while the rites were performing by the Druidprieſt.

THE diſtance from Clynnog to Caernarvon is ten miles; a continued plain: the mountains recede gradually from the ſea, ſo as to leave a conſiderable extent of level ground as we approach the capital of the county. The road is excellent, and the greateſt part has the merit of being made at the expence of the pariſhes. The ſhore is low, gravelly, or ſandy, and forms one ſide of the bay of Caernarvon.

CROSS the Llyfni, a rapid ſtream flowing out of Llyn Nanlle. I heard here of a ſtrong camp, called Carreg y Dinas; of which I find this note in the MS. travels of the late ingenious Dr. Maſon of Cambridge. He mentions it as being placed upon the Iſthmus of the Llyfni, oppoſite to the houſe of Lleiar. The three ſides to the river are very ſteep; the fourth is defended by two foſſes and two banks, made chiefly of ſtone, eſpecially the inner one, which is ſix yards high. In the middle is a mount, poſſibly the ruins of a tower. The entrance is at the eaſt end, between the ends of the banks.

ABOUT three miles,DINAS DINLLE. turn to the left, to viſit Dinas Dinlle, a vaſt mount of gravel and ſand, on the verge of a great marſh, upon the ſhore. On the top is a large area, ſurrounded by an amazing agger, ſeemingly formed by the earth ſcooped out of the ſummit. Within are remains of foundations of buildings, of an oblong form, conſtructed with earth and round ſtones; and in one part is a tumulus of the ſame materials. On the outſide of the agger, on one part, is a very deep ditch, with another high rampart; and the ground towards the baſe ſeems every where to have been ſmoothed by art. There is a regular entrance at one end; on the other, the ground ſlopes to the ſea, and is quite open, a defence being there needleſs. The waves have made great depredations, and worn one ſide into a cliff. I muſt attribute this fortreſs to the Romans; and am the more confirmed in my notion, as I am informed that coins have been found here, among which was one of Alectus. The Romans might poſſibly be induced to form this poſt, to ſecure a landing-place for any neceſſaries the country might want; for the entrance into the port Segontium ▪s often, even at preſent, very difficult; much more ſo in the earlier times of navigation.

THAT intelligent traveller and able botaniſt Mr. Thomas Johnſon An ingenious apothecary, the editor of Gerard's Herbal. He travelled through North Wales in 1639, to collect plants. He publiſhed his tour in 1691, a small volume, under the title of Mercurius Botanicus. He was ſlain in the defence of Baſing ſtoke Houſe, in 1644. ſpeaks thus of Dinas Dinlle, Stationem hie in ipſo littore Romani milites habuerunt, cujus adhuc ſatis clara veſtigia manent. Poſſibly there may be another of the ſame kind; for I find in the old maps, both of Saxton and Speed, the name Caer Ierienrode, a little lower down, at the mouth of the Llyfni; and by the addition of the word Caer, it muſt have been a fortified place.

WHEN I made my viſit to Dinas Dinlle, I was under the guidance of a worthy friend, and learned antiquary, the Reverend Richard Farrington (now deceaſed). He conducted me to his reſidence at Dines Dincethwy, about four miles diſtant. In the way he ſhewed to me Dinas y Prif, or, The Poſt of the Chieftain; a ſmall camp, about forty-four yards ſquare. Each corner is elevated above the ramparts; and withinſide are foundations of ſome ſtone buildings. By the name, it might: be the ſummer ſtation of the Roman commander in chief, reſident in winter at Segontium.

FROM Dinas I viſited Glynllivon, a houſe built by the late Sir John Wynn, ſeated near the little river Llifon, iſſuing from the Kilgwyn mountain. Cilmin Troed-ddu, or, Cilmin with a black foot, one of the fifteen tribes of North Wales, and nephew to Merfyn Fryeh, prince of Wales, ſlain in 841, had his reſidence on this ſpot. From him are deſcended the family of the Glynns, who took their name from the place. They bear, in alluſion to the name of their anceſtor, a man's leg, coupè a la cuiſſe, ſable. A ridiculous legend tells you, that Cilmin's leg became ſo diſcolored by eſcaping from a daemon, whoſe books he had aſſiſted a magician to ſteal. In leaping over a brook, which was to be the limit of the purſuit, Cilmin's left leg plunged into the water, and aſſumed its ſable dye. Our ſtories are abſurd; but not more ſo than an Eaſtern tale. Glynllivon came into poſſeſſion of the late Sir John Wynn, by the marriage of his father, Tho. Wynn, Eſq Afterwards created a Baronet. He died in April 1749. of Boduan, with Frances ſecond daughter to John Glynn, Eſq of Glynllivon.

CONTINUE my journey on a turnpike road. Croſs, at Pont Newydd, the Gwyrfai, which flows from Llyn Cwellyn; CAERNARVON. and ſoon after croſs the Seiont, and reach CAERNARVON.

THIS town is juſtly the boaſt of North Wales, for the beauty of ſituation, goodneſs of the buildings, regularity of the plan, and, above all, the grandeur of the caſtle, the moſt magnificent badge of our ſubjecton. The place ſprung from the ruin of the antient Segontium; but it does not owe its name to Edward I. as is generally ſuppoſed. Giraldus Cambrenſis mentions it in his journey of the year 1188 Iter. Cambr. 865.; and Llewelyn the Great dates from it a charter in the year 1221This charter is to the Canons of Penmon. Sebright MSS. . I greatly ſuſpect the Caernarvon of thoſe times to have been no other than the antient Segontium, whoſe name the Welſh had changed to the apt one of Caer ar Fôn, or, The ſtrong hold oppoſite to Angleſey. But the preſent town was in all probability a creation of our conqueror. A judicious warrior, ſuch as Edward, could not fail profiting of ſo fit a ſituation for a curb on the new-conquered country. It had natural requiſites for ſtrength; being bounded on one ſide by the arm of the ſea called the Menai; by the eſtuary of the Seiont on another, exactly where it receives the tide from the former; on a third ſide, and part of the fourth, by a creek of the Menai; and the remainder has the appearance of having the inſulation completed by art. Edward undertook this great work immediately after his conqueſt of the country in 1282, and completed the fortifications and caſtle before 1284; for his queen, on April 25th in that year, brought forth within its walls Edward, firſt prince of Wales of the Engliſh line. It was built within the ſpace of one year, by the labor of the peaſants, and at the coſt of the chieftains of the country, on whom the conqueror impoſed the hateful taſkSebright MSS.. Henry Ellerton, or de Elreton, was appointed maſter maſon of the caſtle Sebright and Gloddaeth MSS. , and perhaps was the architect; and under him muſt have been numbers of other ſkilful workmen: for I dare ſay that the Welſh peaſants were no mare than cutters of wood and hewers of ſtone. It is probable that many of the materials were brought from Segontium, or the old Caernarvon; and tradition ſays, that much ot the lime-ſtone, with which it is built, was brought from Twr-kelyn in Angleſey;; and of the grit-ſtone, from Vaenol in this county. The Menai greatly facilitated the carriage from both places.

THE external ſtate of the walls and caſtle are at preſent exactly as they were in the time of Edward. The walls are defended by numbers of round towers, and have two principal gates: the eaſt, facing the mountains: the weſt, upon the Menai. The entrance into the caſtle is very auguſt, beneath a great tower, on the front of which appears the ſtatue of the founder, with a dagger in his hand, as if menacing his new-acquired unwilling ſubjects. The gate had four portculliſes, and every requiſite of ſtrength. The court is oblong. The towers are very beautiful; none of them round, but pentagonal, hexagonal, or octagonal: two are more lofty than the reſt. The Eagle tower is remarkably fine, and has the addition of three ſlender angular turrets iſſuing from the top. Edward II. was born in a little dark room in this tower, not

CAERNARYON CASTLE.

twelve feet long, nor eight in breadth: ſo little did, in thoſe days, a royal conſort conſult either pomp or conveniency.QUEEN'S GATE. The gate through which the affectionate Eleanor entered, to give the Welſh a prince of their own, who could not ſpeak a word of Engliſh, is at the fartheſt end, at a vaſt height above the outſide ground; ſo could only be approached by a draw-bridge. In his ſixteenth year, the prince received the homage of his duped ſubjects at Cheſter Powel, 382., inveſted, as marks of his dignity, with a chaplet of gold round his head, a golden ring on his finger, and a ſilver ſceptre in his handDodridge's Wales, 6. .

THE walls of this fortreſs are about ſeven feet nine inches thick; and have within their thickneſs a moſt convenient gallery, with narrow ſlips, for the diſcharge of arrows. The walls of the Eagle Tower are near two feet thicker. The view from its ſummit is very fine, of the Menai, Angleſey, and the nearer parts of the Britiſh alps.

THE firſt whom I find appointed by Edward to be governor of the caſtle, was John de Havering, with a ſalary of two hundred marks; for which he was obliged to maintain conſtantly, beſides his own family, fourſcore men, of which fifteen were to be croſs-bowmen, one chaplain, one ſurgeon, and one ſmith; the reſt were to do the duty of keepers of the gates, centinels, and other neceſſary officesSebright MSS..

IN 1289, I find that the king had appointed Adam de Wetenhall to the ſame important officeAyloff's Rotulae Wailiae, 98. .

THE eſtabliſhment for town and caſtle was as follows:

THE conſtable of the caſtle had ſometimes ſixty pounds, at others only forty.

THE captain of the town had 12l. 3s. 4d. for his annual fee; but this office was ſometimes annexed to the former, and then the ſee was 60l. for both.

THE conſtable and the captain had twenty-four ſoldiers allowed them for the defence of the place, at the wages of 4d. per day each. Surely this ſlight garriſon was only during peaceful times!

The porter of the gates of the town had for his annual ſee 3l. 10s Dedridge, 56..

I can diſcover no more than two inſtances of this place having ſuffered by the calamities of war. In the great insurrection of the Welſh, under Madog, in 1294, they ſurpriſed the town during the time of a fair, and put many Engliſh to the ſword Powel, 380.; and, according to Mr. Carte Carte, ii. 237., took the caſtle, that of Snowdon (Conway), and made himſelf maſter of all Angleſey.

In the laſt century, Captain Swanly, a parlementarian officer, took the town in 1644, made four hundred prisoners, and got a great quantity of arms, ammunition, and pillage. The royaliſts afterwards repoſſeſſed themſelves of the place. Lord Byron was appointed governor; was beſieged by General Mytton in 1646, and yielded the place on the moſt honorable terms. In 1648, the General himſelf and Colonel Moſon were beſieged in it by Sir John Owen; who hearing that Colonel Carter and Colonel Twiſſelton were on the march to relieve the place, drew a party from the ſiege, in order to attack them on the way. The parties met near Llandegay: Sir John was defeated, and made priſoner; and after that all North Wales ſubmitted to the parlement Whitelock, 87, 208.311..

THE quay is a moſt beautiful walk along the ſide of the Menai, QUAY. and commands a moſt agreeable view.

CAERNARVON is deſtitute of manufactures,TRADE. but has a briſk trade with London, Briſtol, Leverpool, and Ireland, for the ſeveral neceſſaries of life. It is the reſidence of numbers of genteel families; and contains ſeveral very good houſes; a very antient one, called Plâs Puleſdon, is remarkable for the fate of its firſt owner, Sir Roger de Puleſdon, ROGER DE PULESDON. a diſtinguiſhed favorite of Edward I, He had been appointed ſheriff and keeper of the county of Angleſey Ayloff's Rotulae Walliae, 89. in 1284. What office he held here, I am unacquainted with; but in 1294, being directed to levy the ſubſidy for the French war, a tax the Welſh had never been accuſtomed to, they took up arms, and hanged de Puleſdon and ſeveral of his people. This was a ſignal for a general inſurrection: Madoc, a relation of the late Prince Llewelyn, headed the people of this country. Edward marched againſt them in perſon, and with great difficulty reduced the country to ſubmit again to his yoke Matt, Weſtm. 423..

THE church is no more than a chapel to Llan Beblic; CHAPEL. and probably originally only a chapel to the garriſon.

EDWARD I. beſtowed on Caernarvon its firſt royal charter,CHARTER. and made it a free borough. Among other privileges, none of the burgeſſes could be convicted of any crime committed between the rivers Conwy and Dyfy, unleſs by a jury of their own townſmenSebrigbt MSS. It is governed by a mayor, who, by patent, is created governor of the caſtle.CORPORATION. It has one alderman, two bailiffs, a town-clerk, and two ſerjeants at mace. The repreſentative of the place is elected by its burgeſſes, and thoſe of Conwy, Pwllbeli, Nefyn, and Crickaeth. The right of voting is in every one, reſident or non-reſident, admitted to their freedom Willis's Notitia Parliam. iii. Part i. 76. FIRST MEMBERS. The firſt member was John Puleſton: and the ſecond time it ſent repreſentatives, which was in the 1ſt of Edward VI. it choſe Robert Puleſton, and the county elected John The ſame. Part ii. pp. 9, 10.; as if both town and county determined to make reparation to the family for the cruelty practiſed on its anceſtor.

The mother church of Caenarvon is about half a mile ſoutheaſt of the town; is called Llan Beblic, being dedicated to Sr. Peblic or Peblicius, (according to our hiſtorians) ſon of Maxon Wledic (Maximus the tyrant) and his wife Helen, daughter of Euddaf. It is ſaid that he retired from the world and took a religious habitRowlands' Mena denqua, 165. . Richard II. beſtowed this church, and the chayel of Caernarvon, on the nuns of St. Mary's in Cheſter, in conſideration of their povertySebright MSS. I find in the recital of another charter of the ſame prince, that his grandfather Edward III. had beſtowed on thoſe religious the advowſon of Llangathen in Caermartſoerſhire The ſame.: both which, on the diſſolution, were annexed to the ſee of Cheſter, and remain to this day under the patronage of the Biſhop of Cheſter. In the church is the tomb of a ſonThis ſon. (for the name is defaced) ſeems from the pedigree of the family to have been Sir Rhys Gryffydd. of Sir William Gryffydd of Per •• byn, who died in 1587; and Margaret, daughter to John Wynne ap Mereddyd. Their figures are in white marble, lying on a mat, admirably carved. He is in armour. She has on a ſhort quilled ruff, and quilled ruffles at her wriſts; in a long gown, and a ſaſh round her waiſt.

NEAR the ſteep bank of the river Seiont, ROMAN FORT. at a ſmall diſtance from the caſtle, is an ancient Roman fort. On two ſides the walls are pretty entire; one is ſeventy-four yards long; the other, which points to the river, is ſixty-four. The height ten feet eight inches. The thickneſs ſix feet. Much of the facing is taken away, which diſcovers the peculiarity of the Roman maſonry. It conſiſts of regular courſes, the others have the ſtones diſpoſed in zigzag faſhion. Along the walls are three parallel lines of round holes, not three inches in diameter, nicely plaſtered within, which paſs through the whole thickneſs. There are other ſimilar holes, which are diſcovered in the end of the wall; and ſeem to run through it lengthways. I can diſcover the uſe of neither one or other. Thoſe that run through the walls are ſuppoſed to be for the purpoſe of annoying an enemy with arrows; but from the ſmallneſs of the diameter, a compaſs of aim in directing the ſhot is wanting. Near the corner of one of the walls is a heap of ſtones, the ruins of a tower; for on digging, ſome years ago, the foundation of a found one was diſcovered. It was paved, and in it were found the horn of a deer and ſkeletons of ſome leſſer animals. This place ſeems intended to ſecure a landing-place from the Seiont, at time of high water; and I was informed, that in Tre'r Beblic, on the oppoſite ſhore, had been other ruins, the work of the ſame people.

AT a ſmall diſtance above this,SEGONTIUM. and about a quarter of a mile from the Menai, is the antient Segontium, to the uſe of which the fort had been ſubſervient. It forms an oblong of a very conſiderable extent, ſeemingly about ſix acres, placed on the ſummit of riſing ground, and ſloping down on every ſide. It is now divided by the public road; but in ſeveral parts are veſtiges of walls; and in one place appears the remnant of a building made with tiles, and plaſtered with very hard and ſmooth mortar: this ſeems to have been part of a hypocauſt. The mortar in all other parts is very hard, and mixed with much gravel and ſand. At preſent a public road paſſes through the midſt of this antient ſtation, beyond which the Romans had only a ſmall out-poſt or two in this county. A gold coin, of about ſeventeen ſhillings weight, was found here, inſcribed T. DIVI AVG, FIL AVGVTVS.

CAMBDEN ſuſpects that this might have been the Setantiorum Portus of Ptolemy, being willing to read it Segontiorum ii. 798.; but the ſituation of the former is certainly at the mouth of the Ribble. He may be right in ſuppoſing it to have been in after times named Caer Cuſtenin, or the Caſtle of Conſtantine Nennius., and that Hugh Lupus, who certainly invaded Angleſey in 1098, had here a temporary poſt. How far the relation of Matthew of Weſtminſter, that Cenſtantius, father of Conſtantine, was interred here, may be depended on, I will not ſay; nor whether, as the hiſtorian farther aſſerts, that Edward cauſed the body to be taken up, and honorably re-buried in the church, I ſuppoſe of St. Publicius Mat. Weſtm; 411. . Mr. Rowlands ſays, that Helen, the mother of Publicius, had a chapel here, which he tells us was in being in his days Mona Antiq. 163. Helen was born at Segontium. . A well, near the fort, bears the name of that princeſs; and ſome very ſlight remains of ruins are to be ſeen adjacent. Tradition ſays, the chapel ſtood on that ſpot.

THE traveller who wiſhes to viſit Snowdon, ROAD FROM CAERNARVON TO SNOWDON. from this town, may have a very agreeable ride. After croſſing the Fai, or Gwyrfai This river iſſues out of Llyn Cwellyn, and ſeparates the two Hundreds of Uwch-Gwrfai and Is-Gwrfai. , at Pont y Bettws, about four miles and a half from Caernarvon, he will find about the village of Bettws Garmon, or Is-Gwrfai, a beautiful caſcade fronting him, as he paſſes up a valley; which conſiſts of verdant meadows, watered by the ſame river, and bounded by hills riſing faſt into alpine majeſty. He will go under Moel Elian, a noble mountain of a ſtupendous bulk, cloathed with a ſmooth green turf, and moſt regularly rounded. He will paſs on the right near Caſtell Cedwm, ſaid by Mr. Rowlands to be one of the guards to the entrance into Snowdon: it is a great rock; which I did not aſcend, ſo cannot certify whether it had any works like thoſe of other Britiſh poſts. The lake Cwellyn here almoſt fills the valley; a water famous for its Char, which are taken in nets in the firſt winter months, and after that ſeaſon retire to the inacceſſible depths. In former times, this water was called, from the ſteepneſs of its banks, Llyn y Torlennydd. Above, on the right ſide of the lake, ſoars the magnificent Mynnydd Vawr, ſmooth on the top, but the ſides receding inwards in a ſemicircular form, exhibiting a tremendous precipice. Soon after this, the vale expands; y Wyddfa appears full in view. The traveller will paſs by LLYN Y CADER, and join in my former tour at Bedd Kelert.

FROM Caernarvon I croſſed in the ferry to Tal y Voel, in the iſland of ANGLESEY.

THE Menai is here two miles broad. In my paſſage had a view of Abermenai, ABERMENAI. the very narrow paſſage into the port of Caernarvon, and rendered more dangerous by the ſands both within and without. Abermenai has its ferry, and is one of the five over this ſtrait. They were originally the property of the crown of England; till Henry VIII. granted all of them to Richard Gifford, one of the ſewers of his chamber; who again ſet them to William Bulkely, in the 33d year of his royal maſter: but ſince that period, every one has been transferred to other hands.

I SOON reached Newborough, NEWBOROUGH. about three miles from the ſhore, a place greatly fallen away from its antient ſplendor. Here had been one of the reſidences of his princes. In Mr. Rowlands' time, the foundation of the Llŷs, or palace, was to be ſeen a little to the ſouth of the church; which is ſuppoſed to have been the domeſtic chapel. In its neighborhood, at Vrondeg, is a ſtone which I overlooked. I find it mentioned in the manuſcripts of Mr. ROWLANDS; who has given the following inſcription: CUR ..... FILIUS CUURICINI EREXIT HUNC LAPIDEM. The author of the Hiſtory of Angleſey P. 43. Printed for Dodſley, 1775. 4 to. alſo mentions it, but varies in the name of the founder, and his father. His reading is thus: FILIUS ULRICI EREXIT HUNC LAPIDEM. I am credibly informed that the inſcription is at preſent illegible; but the ſtyle of the memorial induces me to give it to a Dane: ſuch are extremely frequent in Scandinavia. STODINGUS fecit erigi lapidem in memoriam ARNONIS filii ſui qui profectus eſt in HARDALAMPeringſkioldi Monum. Suev-gothic, 289. —THORSTATUM & GURA fecerunt erigi ſaxum in memoriam LAFSONIS patris ſui The ſame, 301. —and the imperfect one, like this of Ulric, SAXO lapidem hunc poſuit Wormii Mon. Danica, 501. , are proofs of the cuſtom in the Baltic kingdoms.

THE Danes frequently invaded Angleſey, and between the years 969 and 972 Godfryd, the ſon of Harold, ſubdued the whole iſland Powel, 34. 62.: a pious ſon in one of the times might, according to the cuſtom of his country, have erected this monument to his father; but from the imperfect ſtate of the inſcription, we are at a loſs to know whether it was ſepulchral or votive.

NEWBOROUGH, or more properly Rhos-vair, the Britiſh name, was a manor of our princes. It was divided into two parts; the one conſiſted of officers of the houſhold under the prince; which were of two kinds, and had twelve gavels in land between them: part maintained the Maer-drefyrs, or perſons who overlooked his demeſn; the other was for the Garddwyr, certain perſons reſembling our cottagers, who poſſeſſed ſmall parcels of land called Gardds. Record of Caernarvon, in Biblioth. Litteraria, 23. . There were beſides eight gavels, which were the property of freeholders; the poſterity of whom enjoyed the ſame to the very time of my author, Mr. Rowlands. This was alſo the feat of juſtice for the whole commot of Menai, and continued ſo long after it became ſubject to the Engliſh. A reſpect to a royal ſeat was ſtill maintained by the new royal poſſeſſors. It became a manor of the princes of Wales. Edward I. erected the town into a corporation, and gave it a gild mercatory, and other privileges, which were confirmed by parlement in the firſt year of Edward IIIMr. Rowlands' MSS.. From this time it was called Newborough. In the latter part of that reign were found ninety-three houſes, thirteen gardens, one orchard, twelve cro • ts, and ſixty ſmall pieces of ground incloſed for the uſe of the houſes. The crown had its ſteward for this diſtrict, with a ſalary of ten pounds a year. The palace and royal chapel exiſted in the time of Edward III; for it appears by an inquiſition taken here in 1329, before William de Shaldeford, repreſentative of Richard Earl of Arundel, juſticiary of North Wales, that the tenants of the commot of Menai had been required to put thoſe buildings into repair: but, on their repreſenting that, if that duty was put in force, they would be of little or no advantage to the king, the juſticiary was directed to enquire into the truth; and whether it would not be better for him to take an annual ſum in lieu of the repairs, not only of the palace and chapel, but of all the other buildings on the royal manorSebright MSS. In after times it had the honor of ſending repreſentatives to the Britiſh parlement. Richard ap Rhydderch ap Myfyrian ſate in the third of Henry VIII. and John ap Robert Llwyd in the firſt of Edward VI; who in the next year transferred this honor to Beaumaris. The glory of Newborough is now paſſed away.

IT now ſubſiſts by a manufacture of mats, and Rhoſir morheſg ropes, made of ſea reed-graſs; a plant of which Queen Elizabeth, in tenderneſs to ſuch of her ſubjects who lived on ſandy ſhores, wiſely prohibited the extirpationSee the ſad effects of theſe moveable ſands in Mr. Cordiner's Letters, 86, 87. and my Tour Scotl. 1769, 4th ed. 144. 168., in order to prevent the misfortunes which have ſince happened, of having half the pariſh buried in the unſtable ſands by the rage of tempeſts.

SUCH is the caſe of Llanddwyn, LLANDDWYN. a pariſh which extends below into the ſea, and terminates in a narrow peninſula: almoſt the whole is at preſent covered with ſand-hills. We are told that in the time of Edward III. there were on it no more than eight ſmall houſes, or, as they were then called, weles Rowlands' MSS.; yet in the reign of Henry VIII. it was one of the richeſt prebends in the cathedral of Bangor. Its wealth aroſe not from the real fertility of the place, but from the ſuperſtition of the common people; from pilgrimages to croſſes, reliques, holy wells, ordeals, and what Mr. Rowlands calls 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 , or divination from fiſhesThe ſame. In the time of Owen Glyndwr, one Yerwerth Vychan, rector of Llanddoged, made pretenſions to the offerings, and ſacrilegiouſly ſeized on them; but Griffydd le Yonge, chancellor to our hero, interfered, and by a decree of his put a ſlop to the invaſion of the rights of the placeThe ſame, and Hiſt. Angleſey, 44..

ON the peninſula are the ruins of the church,CHURCH. dedicated to St. Deuwen, daughter of Brychan, one of the holy Colidei, or primitive Chriſtians of Britain. Near it are the ſmall remains of the prebendal. houſe. The firſt appears to have been no inelegant building. The laft is noted for the reſidence of Richard Kyſſyu, then rector of Llanddwyn, and afterwards dean of Bangor. He was a ſtrenuous friend to the houſe of Lancaſter, and here concerted with Sir Rhys ap Thomas, and other Welſh chieftains, a plan for the bringing in the Duke of Richmond, then in Britany; to whom they tranſmitted, by means of fiſhing-veſſels, all neceſſary intelligence.

FROM Newborough, I, ſeveral years ago, made an excurſion to Aherſraw, about ſeven miles to the north, in ſearch of another palace of our antient princes. They took one of their titles from this place, Princeps de Aherſraw, which preceded that of Dominus de Snowdon. I croſſed, at low-water, the arm of the ſea called Malltraeth; LLAN-GADWALADR. and rode by the church of Llan-Gadwaladr, ſaid to have been founded by Cadwalladr, laſt king of the Britons, and made one of the ſanctuaries of the iſland. Over the door is ſaid to be an inſcription in memory of Cadvan, grandfather to the founder, to this effect.: CATAMANUS Rex ſapientiſſimus opimutiſſimus omnium Regumſ Cambden, ii. Rawlands, 157.. The ſtone on which this is inſcribed, is ſaid to-be in form of a coffin; and probably in the former church had a more ſuitable place.

ABOUT a mile or two farther reach the ſite of the princely reſidence.ABERFRAW. It is now reduced to a few poor houſes, ſeated on the river Ffraw, near a ſmall bay. Not a veſtige is to be ſeen of its former boaſt. It was a chief ſeat of our princes, and one of the three courts of juſtice for the principality Leges Wallicae, 147.. Here was always kept one of the three copies of the antient code of laws; another at Dinevawr in Caermarthenſhire; and the third was kept by the Blegored, or doctors of laws, for their conſtant uſeLeges Wallicae, 6. . This place was of great antiquity, being one of the three fixed on by Roderic the Great, about the year 870, for the reſidence of his ſucceſſors. In 962 it was ravaged by the Iriſh Powel, 62.. An extent was made of Aberfraw in the 13th Edward III; from which may be learned ſome of the antient revenues of the Welſh princes. It appears that part aroſe from rents of lands, from the profit of mills and fiſheries, and often in things in kind; but the laſt were frequently commuted for their value in money. Thus one place payed XIIIs VIId inſtead of butter, milk, and ſervices in work; and another diſtrict rendered for CIV ſheep, IX hens, and XXXVIIs IId in lieu of the labor of a hundred and ſixty-one days.

BUT to return to the Menai. From Newhorough I viſited Llanidan, LLANIDAN. a ſeat of Lord Boſton's, finely ſituated on that arm of the ſea, commanding upwards a beautiful, proſpect of Caernarvon, and the Snowdon hills. The church, which is adjacent, was once belonging to the convent of Beddcelert. In 1535 it followed, the ſate of that houſe. Queen Elizabeth granted it to Edmond Downam and Peter Aſhton; who ſold it in 1605 to Richard Prytherch of Myfyrian, whoſe daughter married a Llwyd of Llugwy, on the other ſide of the iſland. On the extinction of that family all their eſtates were bought by Lord Uxbridge, who left them to his nephew Sir William Irby, the late Lord Boſton.

IN the church is a reliquary, made neither of gold nor ſilver, nor yet ornamented with precious ſtones; but of very ordinary gritſtone, with a roof-like cover. Whether it contained any reliques of the patron ſaint, a St. Aiden, of whom the venerable Bede makes ſuch honorable mentionDe vita Cudbercti, ,c. 4. , I cannot ſay. The church of Durham poſſeſſed his croſs, three of his teeth, his head, and two Griffin's eggsSmith's Beda, App. No XV. . The living is a rectory, but ſaddled with the churches of Llanedwen, Llan-ddaniel, and Llanvair y Cwmmwd.

I MUST not paſs unnoticed the celebrated ſtone Maen Mordbwyd, or the ſtone of the thigh, now well ſecured in the wall of this church. In old times it was ſo conſtant to one place, that, let it be carried ever ſo far, it would be ſure of returning at night. Hugh Lupus Earl of Cheſter, determined to ſubdue its loco-motive faculties, faſtened it with iron chains to a far greater ſtone, and flung it into the ſea; but, to the aſtoniſhment of all beholders, it was found the next morning in its uſual place Giraldus Itin. Cambr. lib. ii. c. vii. and Powel's note. Giraldus ſays, the ſtone took its name from its ſhape..

I NOW enter on claſſical ground, and the pious ſeats of the antient Druids; the ſacred groves, the altars, and monumental ſtones. A ſlight mention of what I ſaw muſt content my reader; who is referred to the works of the celebrated and learned Mr. Henry Rowlands, the former rector of this place, and to thoſe of my friend the late reverend Dr. Borlaſe, who hath added freſh illuſtrations of theſe obſcure remains.

AT Tre'r Dryw, TRE'R DRYW. or the habitation of the Arch-Druid, I met with the mutilated remains deſcribed by Mr. Rowlands. His Bryn Gwyn, or Brein Gwyn, or royal tribunal, is a circular hollow of a hundred and eighty feet in diameter, ſurrounded by an immenſe agger of earth and ſtones, evidently brought from some other place, there not being any mark of their being taken from the ſpot. It has only a ſingle entrance. This is ſuppoſed to have been the grand conſiſtory of the druidical adminiſtration.

Not far from it was one of the Gorſeddau, now in a manner diſperſed, but once conſiſted of a great copped heap of ſtones, on which ſate aloft a Druid inſtructing the ſurrounding people Mona Antiq. 92. tab. iv. multa de Deorum immortalium vi et poteſtate diſputare, et juventuti tradunt Ceſar. Bel. Gal. lib. vi. .

HERE were alſo the reliques of a circle of ſtones, with the Cromlech in the midſt; but all extremely imperfect. Two of the ſtones are very large; one, which ſerves at preſent as part of the end of a houſe, is twelve feet ſeven inches high, and eight feet broad; and another eleven feet high and twenty-three feet in girth. Some leſſer ſtones yet remain. This circle, when complete, was one of the temples of the Druids, in which their religious rites were performed. It is the conjecture of Mr. Rowlands, that the whole of theſe remains were ſurrounded with a circle of OAKS, and formed a deep and ſacred grove, Tam per ſe roborum elegunt lucos, neque ulla ſacra ſine ea fronde conficiunt Plin. Hiſt. Nat. lib. xv. c. 44. .

NEAR this is Caer-Lēb Mona Antiq. 88. tab. iii., CAER-LĒB. or the moated entrenchment; of a ſquare form, with a double rampart, and broad ditch intervening, and a leſſer on the outſide. Within are foundations of circular and of ſquare buildings. This Mr. Rowlands ſuppoſes to have been the reſidence of the arch-druid, and to have given the name, Tre'r Dryw, to the townſhip in which it ſtands.

AT Trev-Wry Mona Antiq. tab. iii. fig. 2. I ſaw ſeveral ſaint traces of circles of ſtones,TREV-WRY. and other veſtiges of buildings, all ſo dilapidated, or hid in weeds, as to become almoſt formleſs. To divert our thoughts from their preſent dreary view, let us change the period to that in which they Were tenanted by Bards, who nightly thence, Rob'd in their flowing veſts of innocent white, Iſſu'd, with harps that glitter to the morn, Hymning immortal ſtrainsMr. Maſon's Caractacus. Bod-drudan, or the habitation of the Draids, Tre'r-Beirdd, or that of the Bard, and Bodowyr, BODOWYR: or that of the prieſtsRowlands, 240. , are all of them hamlets, nearly ſurrounding the feat of the chief Druid, compoſing the eſſential part of his ſuite. At the laſt I ſaw a thick Cromlech, reſting on three ſtones.

THE ſhore near Porthamel, not far from hence, is famed for being the place where Suetonius landed, and put an end in this iſland to the Druid reign. His infantry paſſed over in flat-bottom boats, perhaps, at the ſpot ſtill called Pant yr Yſcraphie The ſame, 99., or the valley of Skiffs. His horſe croſſed partly by fording, partly by ſwimming. The deſcription of the conflict is ſo animated, that I beg leave to give it in the words of the Roman hiſtorian.

STAT pro littore diverſa acies, denſa armis viriſque, intercurſantibus faeminis in modum furiarum, veſte ferali, crinibus dejectis, faces preferebant; Druidaeque circum, preces diras ſublatis ad coelum manibus fundentes. Novitate aſpectus percutere militem, ut quaſi haerentibus membris, immobile corpus vulneribus praeberent. Dein cohortionibus ducis, et ſe ipſe ſtimulantes, ne muliebre et fanaticum agmen paveſcerent, inſerunt ſigna, ſternuntque obvios et igni ſuo involvunt. Praeſidium poſthac impoſitum vicis, exciſque luci, ſaevis ſuperſtitionibus ſacri. Nam cruore captivo adolere aras, et hominum fibris conſulere deos fas habebantTACITI Annales, lib. xiv. c. 30. ON the ſhore ſtood a motley army in cloſe array, and well armed; with women running wildly about in black attire with diſheveled hair, and like the furies brandiſhing their torches; ſurrounded by the Druids, lifting up their hands to heaven, and pouring forth the moſt dreadful imprecations. The ſoldier ſtood aſtoniſhed with the novelty of the ſight. His limbs grew torpid, and his body remaining motionleſs, reſigned to every wound. At length, animated by their leader, and rouzing one another not to be intimidated with a womanly and fanatic band, they diſplayed their enſigns, overthrew all who oppoſed them, and flung them into their own fires. After the battle, they placed garriſons in the towns, and cut down the groves conſecrated to the moſt horrible ſuperſtitions: for the Britons held it right to ſacrifice on their altars with the blood of their captives, and to conſult the gods by the inſpection of human entrails.

WHAT a ſcene was this! and how worthy of the pencil of an inſpired painter!

THERE are no traces of any Roman works left in this country. Their ſtay was ſo ſhort, that they had not time to form any thing permanent.BRYN GWYDRYN. At Bryn Gwydryn, behind Llanidan, are two or three dikes and foſſes of a ſemicircular form, each end of which terminates at a precipice, leaving an intervening area of no great ſpace. Both from its figure and name, Caer Idris, I ſuſpect it to be Britiſh.

I AM ſorry that it is not in my power to give a better account than the following of that prodigy of learning the reverend HENRY ROWLANDS, vicar of this pariſh. His account of the druidical antiquities of this part of the iſland, and his comments on them, is a moſt extraordinary performance, conſidering that he never enjoyed any other literary advantages than what he found in his native iſle. It is ſayed that he never even travelled farther than Conway; but I believe it is certain that Shrewſhury was the fartheſt limits of his travels. He died in 1723, aged 68, and was interred under a ſlab of black Angleſey marble, in the pariſh of Llanedwen. He was deſcended from Henry Rowlands, who died Biſhop of Bangor in 1616, and who in 1600 purchaſed from Robert Gryffydd of Penrhyn the eſtate of Plas Gwyn, in the fore-mentioned pariſh, which remains to this day in his poſterity. The inſcription on his tomb was of his own compoſing, and is as follows.

M. S. Depoſitum HENRICI ROWLANDS de Plâs Gwyn, Clerici, Hujus Eccleſiae Vicarii; Qui hinc cum hiſce Exuviis Per Spiritum JESU, Animam interea refocillantem, in ultimo die Se fore reſuſcitatum Pia fide ſperabat: Ac inde, TRIUMPHANTE MISERICORDIA, In eternum cum Chriſto gaudium Fore ſuſceptum, Quod maxime anhelabat; id eft Eſſe ſemper cum Domino. Obiit 21 die Novembris Anno Salutis 1723 Aetatis ſuae 68. Spiritus ubi vult ſpirat. Laus tota Tri-Uni. Omnia pro nihilo nisi quoe tribuebat egenis, Iſta valent cum artes pereant & ſcripta fatiſcant.

ABOUT three miles from this place is Moel y Don ferry.MOEL Y DON. It is ſaid; that Aeloedd, king of Dublin, and father to Racwel, mother of Gryffydd ap Cynan, built a caſtle here, called in old times Caſtell Aeloedd Frenin, but by the country people Bon y Dom Life of Gryffydd ap Cynen. Sebright MSS.. The army of Edward I. in 128,ENGLISH DEFEAT. made here an attempt fatal to many a gallant man. He landed his forces in this iſland, and, after reducing to obedience the few inhabitants who had not taken the oath of fealty to him, built a bridge of boats near this place, ſome ſay at the very ſpot where Agricola paſſed. The Welſh, aware of his deſign, flung up entrenchments to ſecure the entrance into the mountains. Luke de Tany, a gallant commander, who had lately come from Gaſcony with a number of Gaſcon and Spaniſh troops, raſhly paſſed over the unfiniſhed bridge at low-water, in contempt perhaps of the enemy: none appeared; but on the flowing of the tide, which cut off acceſs to the neareſt part of the bridge, the Welſh ſuddenly ruſhed on them with hideous ſhouts, flew numbers, and forced the remainder into the ſea. On this occaſion periſhed Tany himſelf, Roger Clifford the younger, thirteen knights, ſeventeen young gentlemen, and two hundred ſoldiers; William Latimer alone eſcaped by the goodneſs of his horſe, which ſwam with him to the bridge Powel, 372..

LET us ſuppoſe a panic at this time to have ſeized the Engliſh forces: yet, as that muſt have been unforeſeen by the Welſh, ANTIENT WEAPONS OF THE WELSH. let us pay due praiſe to the intrepidity of my countrymen, at a period in which (in compariſon of the well-appointed ſoldiery of other countries) they fought nearly unarmed. A poet of the latter end of the thirteenth century thus deſcribes the character and accoutrements of the army of antient Britons, led by our valiant prince Richard Coeur de Lion into France.

Gens Wallenſis habet hoc naturale per omnes Indigenas, primis proprium quod ſervat ab annis. Pro domibus ſylvas, bellum pro pace frequentat. Iraſci facilis, agilis per devia curfu, Nec foleis plantas, caligis nec crura gravantur. Frigus docta pati, nulli ceſſura labori. Veſte brevi, corpus nulli oneratur ab armis▪ Nec munit thorace latus, nec Caſſide frontem. Sola gerens, hoſti caedem quibus inferat, arma, Clavam cum jaculo, venabula, geſa, bipennam, Arcum cum pharetris, nodoſaque tela, vel haſtam Aſſiduis gaudens praedis, fuſoque cruoreWilliam Brito, as quoted in Camden's Remains, 10.

AT a ſmall diſtance from Moel y Don I entered into the fine woods of Sir Nicholas Bayley, WOODS. ſkirting the Menai for a confiderable way. The wooded part of the iſland is on this ſide. It commences at Llanidan, and recalls the antient name of Angleſey, Ynys Dywyll, or the Dark Iſland, on account of the deep ſhade of its groves: but at preſent it is (except in this part) entirely diveſted of trees; and the climate ſo averſe to their growth, that in moſt parts it is with great difficulty the gentry can raiſe a plantation round their houſes.

PLAS NEWYDD,PLAS NEWYDD. the ſeat of Sir Nicholas Bayley, lies cloſe upon the water, protected on three ſides by venerable oaks and aſhes. The view up and down this magnificent river-like ſtrait is extremely fine. The ſhores are rocky; thoſe on the oppoſite ſide covered with woods; and beyond ſoar a long range of Snowdonian alps. Here ſtood a houſe built by Gwenllian, a deſcendant of Cadrod HarddPlas Gwyn MSS.. The manſion has been improved, and altered to a caſtellated form, by the preſent owner.

IN the woods are some very remarkable druidical antiquities, Behind the houſe are to be ſeen two vaſt Cromlechs. CROMLECHS. The upper ſtone of one is twelve feet ſeven inches long, twelve broad, and four thick, ſupported by five tall ſtones. The other is but barely ſeparated from the firſt: is almoſt a ſquare, of five feet and a half, and ſupported by four ſtones. The number of ſupporters to Cromlechs are merely accidental, and depend on the ſize or form of the incumbent ſtone. Theſe are the moſt magnificent we have, and the higheſt from the ground; for a middle-ſized horſe may eaſily paſs under the largeſt.

DR. BORLASE has ſhewn the improbability of theſe ſtones ever being deſigned or uſed as altars. The figure proves the impoſſibility of making fires, or performing ſacrifices on their ſloping ſummits; and almoſt all which I have ſeen have an inclination. It is reaſonable to ſuppoſe them to have been ſepulchral monuments, and that the body might be lodged in the ſpace beneath; and near the monument divine honors might be payed, or ſacrifices performed to the manes of the deadSee what the learned author offers in ſupport of his opinion, Antiq, Cornwal, p. 210. and the following..

THIS ſpecies of monument is to be found in moſt parts of Europe; in Scandinavia Wormii Manum. Dan. 7. , in Holland Oudheinkundige Brieven, &c. tab. i. , and in France: in the laſt, the Pierre Levée, near Poitiers, is a ſtupendous ſpecimenBraunii Civitat. v. 18. . They extend even farther ſouth; for Mr. Armſtrong gives a drawing of one of this nature in Minorca Hiſt. Minorca. They vary in form: in many the ſpace between the ſupporters is cloſed up with ſtones of greater or leſſer ſizesExemplified in Monfaucon, Supplem. v. tab. lxv. higheſt figure. and thus formed ſecurity to the

CROMLEH AT PLA • SNEWYDD. remains of the deceaſed therein depoſited. Probably all thoſe which we ſee in our iſland might originally have been thus cloſed up; but in time deſtroyed, either through the ſacrilegious hope of finding wealth depoſited with the corpſes, or, as is the caſe often at preſent, for the ſake of applying the ſtones to oeconomical uſes. Others again are quite bedded in the Carnedd, or heap of ſtones; of which inſtances may be produced in Llan Faelog, in this iſland, in that of Arran Voy. to the Hebrides, 2d ed. 208. , and in the county of Meireonedd Tour in Wales, vol. ii. 110. 111..

NOT far from the Cromlech is a large Carnedd: CARNEDD. part has been removed, and within was diſcovered a cell about ſeven feet long and three wide, covered at top with two flat ſtones, and lined on the ſides with others. To get in I crept over a flag, placed acroſs the entrance. On the top of the ſtone were two ſemicircular holes, of ſize ſufficient to take in the human neck; it is conjectured, that above might have been another; ſo that both together might perform the office of a ſtocks. It is indeed conjecture, yet not an improbable one, that in this place had been kept the wretches deſtined for ſacrifice; as it is well known that they performed thoſe execrable rites, and often upon captives who had ſuffered long impriſonmentBorlaſe Antiq. Cornwal., perhaps in cells ſimilar to this.

A LITTLE below Plas Newydd, on the Caernarvonſhire ſide,VAENOL. appear the extenſive woods of Vaenol, with the old houſe of the ſame name. This place had long been the reſidence of the Williams, a branch of the family of Edneved Vychan, and which were honored with a baronetage June 15th 1622. Sir William Williams, the laſt of the line, was a man of profligate life; had been married, but had no iſſue. He got acquainted with Sir Bourchier Wrey of Trebitch, and a young man brought up to the law. In a drunken ſit he was prevaled on to make a will, and diſpoſe of his whole eſtate to Sir Bourchier for the terms of his life, and that of his brother the reverend Chicheſter Wrey, and the remainder to King William in ſee.LEFT TO KING WILLIAM. The young lawyer alſo leſt to himſelf 540l. annuity in ſee, the odd forty pounds towards the trouble and expence of collecting the reſt. He alſo purchaſed Sir Bourchier's life eſtates, which his repreſentatives enjoyed till the death of the reverend Mr. Wrey. On which the late Mr. Smith, of Tedworth in Hampſhire, took poſſeſſion of it by virtue of a grant from King William to his anceſtor, a commiſſioner of the ſalt office: and at preſent the whole, to the amount of upwards of 4000l. a year, is enjoyed by his great nephew Aſhton Smith, Eſq

FROM Plas Newydd I continued my journey within ſight of the water. At Craig y Ddinas I was irreſiſtably delayed by feaſting my eyes with the fine view of the noble curvature of the Menai. The annexed view is given with the utmoſt fidelity.THE SWELLY. Not far from hence I rode towards the ſhore, to admire the furious current of the Swelly, or Pwll Keris, a part where, by oppoſition of rocks, and the narrowneſs of the channel, are great over-falls and violent whirlpools, during the time when the flood or ebb makes ſtrong. At low-water the channel, for a conſiderable ſpace, appears pointed with rocks black and horrible. The fury of the tide amongſt them, at the times I mention, is inconceivable, unleſs by the navigator. I (when very young) ventured myſelf in a ſmall boat

VIEW on the MENAL. during the greateſt rage, and never ſhall forget the rapid evolutions between rock and rock, amidſt the boiling waves, and mill-race current. At high-water all is ſtill. This is a great obſtacle to the navigation of large veſſels, which muſt conſult the critical ſeaſon, and a good pilot. The reſt of this ſtrait is ſecure: its whole length is about fourteen miles; ten from Bay glâs, near Beaumaris, to Caernarvon, and four from thence to its entrance at Abermenai.

A LITTLE lower down, on a ſmall rocky peninſula, ſtands the church of Llandyſſilio, jutting far into the water; a moſt dreary cure. It is remarkable that moſt of the ſeventy-four pariſhes, which this iſland is divided into, have their churches not remote from the ſhores.

PORTH-AETHWY,PORTH-AETHWY. the moſt general ferry into Angleſey, is immediately below the church. The paſſage of cattle at this place is very great: I cannot enumerate them; but it is computed that the iſland ſends forth annually from twelve to fifteen thouſand heads, and multitudes of ſheep and hogs. It is alſo computed that the remaining ſtock of cattle is thirty thouſandHiſt. Angleſy, 6. . My ſame authority ſays, that in 1770 upwards of ninety thouſand buſhels of corn were exported. He reckons only barley, rye, and oats; but I have ſeen moſt incomparable wheat growing on the iſland. The improvement in huſbandry has greatly increaſed ſince the ſuppreſſion of ſmuggling from the Iſle of Man; before that time every farmer was mounted on ſome high promontory, expecting the veſſel with illicit trade: but ſince that period, he ſets in earneſt to induſtry and cultivation. Not but that the iſland was in moſt remote time famous for its fertility. Môn, Mam Gymry, Angleſey, the nurſing-mother of Wales, was a title it aſſumed even in the twelfth centuryGiraldas Itin, Cambr..

A BARBAROUS accident in the feudal ſyſtem prevaled in this iſland,A BARBAROUS CUSTOM. and poſſibly in many other parts. Here was exemplified the power of a lord to ſell his vaſſals and their offspring, as he would the cattle of his eſtate. It was done in the townſhip of Porth-aethwy, many years after the reign of our princesRowlands' Mona Antiq. 122. . The deed of ſale in this inſtance is not extant; but I find among Mr. Rowlands' three ſpecimens, of which the following is the full form of the cruel uſage.

EDNYFED Vychan ap Ednyfed, alias dictus Ednyfed ap Arthelw uz Davydd ap Gryffydd et Howel ap Davydd ap Ryryd, alias dictus Howel ap Arthelw uz Davydd ap Gryffydd, Liberi tenentes Dni Regis villae de Rhandir Gadog, &c. dedimus et confirmavimus Willimo ap Gryffydd ap Gwilim armigero et libero tenenti de Porthamel, &c. ſeptem nativos noſtros; viz. Howel ap Davydd Dew, Matto ap Davydd Dew, Tevan ap Evan Ddu, Llewelyn ap Davydd Dew, Davydd ap Matto ap Davydd Dew, Howel ap Matto ap Davydd Dew, et Llewelyn ap Evan Coke, cum eorum ſequelis tum procreatis tuam procreandis ac omnibus bonis catellis, &c. habend. &c. praedictos nativos noſtros, &c. praefato Willimo Giyffydd ap Gwilim heredibus et aſſignatis ſuis in perpetuum. Datum apud Rhandir Gadog, 20 die Junii, an. Henr. 6 ti, 27 moRowlands' MSS. .

THE country from hence, and quite to Holyhead (twenty-five miles) right and left, is dreary, woodleſs, hedgeleſs, riſing into ſmall hills, watered with numberleſs rills, and fertile in graſs and corn.

I CONTINUED my ride near the Menai, which now widens conſiderably. The oppoſite limits are inexpreſſibly beautiful, lofty, and finely cloathed with hanging woods.NOBLE VIEWS. Bangor opens on the Caernarvonſhire ſide; and in front is a magnificent bay, bounded by the great promontory Pen Maen Mawr, and the vaſt Llandidno, apparently inſulated; and the eſtuary of the river Conwwy flows at its bottom between thoſe noble headlands. This proſpect is ſeen to beſt advantage from that beautiful ſpot the Green, near the caſtle of Beaumaris: from whence may be ſeen, in addition, Prieſtholm iſland, and the ſemilunar bay from thence to the town; the fortreſs itſelf; Baron Hill, and its elegant improvements; nor muſt Red Hill, the houſe of Mr. Sparrow, ſeated at the head of a wooded dingle, directing the eye to great part of this delicious view, be left out of the deſcription.

THE town of Beaumaris is,BEAUMARIS. as the name implies, pleaſantly ſeated on a low land at the water's edge; is neat, and well built, and one ſtreet is very handſome. Edward I. created the place; for, after founding the caſtles of Caernarvon and Conway, he diſcovered that it was neceſſary to put another curb on my headſtrong countrymen.CASTLE. He built this fortreſs in 1295, and fixed on a marſhy ſpot, near the chapel of St. Meugan, ſuch as gave him opportunity of forming a great foſs round the caſtle, and of filling it with water from the ſea. He alſo cut a canal, in order to permit veſſels to diſcharge their lading beneath the wallsSebright MSS.: and, as a proof of the exiſtence of ſuch a conveniency, there were within this century iron rings affixed to them, for the purpoſe of mooring the ſhips or boats. The marſh was in early times of far greater extent than at preſent, and covered with fine bullruſhesSebright MSS. and Plâ Gwyn MSS.. There is even a ſtrong tradition that one Helig ap Clunog had great poſſeſſions, which extended even to Dwygyfyechau, and fair houſe where now the ſea flows; all which were ſuddenly overwhelmed: and it is pretended that there may ſtill. be ſeen, at very low ebbs, ruins of houſes, and a cauſeway from Prieſtholm pointing towards Penmaen Mawr plâs Gwyn MSS..

THE lands, on which Edward built the caſtle, were private property: and it appears he made them full ſatisfaction; and, among other recompences, beſtowed on Eneon ap Meredydd, Gryffydd ap Evan, and Eneon ap Tegerin, lands in the townſhip of Earianell, and Tre'r Ddôl, free from rent or ſervice. The caſtle itſelf being built on their groundRowlands' MSS..

EACH of Edward's, three caſtles differs in form. This has leſt clame to beauty, not having the height or elegance of Caernarvon or Conwwy. The exterior walls are guarded by ten ſtrong round towers. Theſe are the caſe to the caſtle, which ſtands within at a conſiderable equidiſtant ſpace; is far ſuperior in height to the former, and has alſo its round towers. Within is a ſquare of one hundred and ninety feet, or, as Mr. Groſe expreſſes it,HALL. a ſquare with the corners canted off. The great hall has five windows in front, is ſeventy feet long, and twentythree and a half broad. The approach ſeems to have been through a ſub-hall, by a flight of ſteps.

CHAPEL in BEAUMARIS CASTLE.

WITHIN, the walls on one ſide is a beautiful chapel,CHAPEL. in form of a theatre, the ſides ornamented with Gothic arches, and the roof ſupported by ribs ſpringing from elegant pilaſters; between each of which is a narrow window, and behind ſome are ſmall cloſets, gained out of the thickneſs of the wall, probably allotted to the officers, or perſons of rank. A narrow gallery runs within the whole ſpace of the caſtle walls.

THE entrance faces the ſea; and near it is a long narrow advanced work, called the Gunners Walk.

THE firſt: governor, was Sir William Pickmore, a Gaſcon knight, appointed by Edward I.CONSTABLE OF THE CASTLE. There was a conſtable of the caſtle, and a captain of the town. The firſt had an annual fee of forty pounds, the laſt, of twelve pounds three ſhillings. and four pence; and the porter of the gate of Beaumaris had nine pounds two ſhillings and ſix pence. Twenty-four ſoldiers were allowed for the guard of the caſtle and town, at four pence a day to each Dodridge, 58..

THE conſtable of the caſtle was always captain of the town, except in one inſtance: in the 36th of Henry VI. Sir John Boteler. held the firſt office, and Thomas Norreys the other.

THE caſtle was extremely burthenſome to the country: quarrels were frequent between the garriſon and the country people. In the time of Henry VI. a bloody fray happened, in which David ap Evan ap Howel of Llwydiarth, and many others were ſlain.

FROM the time of Sir Rowland Villeville, alias Brittayne, reputed baſe ſon of Henry VII. and conſtable of the caſtle, the garriſon was withdrawn till the year 1642, when Thomas Cheadle, deputy to the Earl of Dorſet, then conſtable, put into it men and ammunition. In 1643, Thomas Bulkeley, Eſq ſoon after created Lord Bulkeley, ſucceeded: his ſon, Colonel Richard Bulkeley, and ſeveral gentlemen of the country, held it for the king till June 1646,TAKEN IN 1646. when it ſurrendered on honorable terms to General Mytton, who made Captain Evans his deputy-governor. In 1653, the annual expence of the garriſon was ſeventeen hundred and three pounds.

EDWARD I. when he built the town,TOWN. ſurrounded it with walls, made it a corporation, and endowed it with great privileges, and lands to a conſiderable value. He removed the antient freeholders, by exchange of property, into other countries. Henllŷs, near the town, was the ſeat of Gwerydd ap Rhys Goch, one of fifteen tribes, and of his poſterity till this period, when Edward removed them to Boddle Wyddan in Flintſhire, and beſtowed their antient patrimony on the corporationPlâs Gwyn MSS.. It ſends one member to parlement. Its firſt repreſentative was Maurice Gryffydd, who ſat in the 7th year of Edward VIWillis's Notitia Parliam. iii. 23 .

THERE is very good anchorage for ſhips in the bay which lies before the town;THE BAY. and has ſeven fathom water even at the loweſt ebb. Veſſels often find ſecurity here in hard gales. The town has no trade of any kind, yet has its cuſtomhouſe for the caſual reception of goods.

THE ferryFERRY. lies near the town, and is paſſable at low-water. It was granted by charter to the corporation in the 4th of Queen Elizabeth. I find an order from Edward II. to Robert Power, chamberlain of North Wales, to inſpect into the ſtate of the boat, which was then out of repair; and, in caſe it was feaſible, to cauſe it to be made fit for uſe, at the expence of the baileywick: but if the boat proved paſt repair, a new one was to be built, and the expence allowed by the king. It appears that the people of Beaumaris payed annually, for the privilege of a ferry, thirty ſhillings into the exchequer; but by this order it ſeems that the king was to find the boatSebright MSS.. After paſſing the channel, the diſtance over the ſands to Aber in Caernarvonſhire, the point the paſſenger generally makes for, is four miles. The ſands are called Traeth Telaven, and Wylofaen, or the Place of Weeping, from the ſhrieks and lamentations of the inhabitants when it was overwhelmed by the ſea, in the days of Helig ap Clunog.

THE church is dependant on Llandegvan, CHURCH. which is in the gift of Lord Bulkeley. The former is called the chapel of the Bleſſed Virgin; yet in antient writings one aile is called St. Mary's chapel, and another that of St. Nicholas. In the firſt is a beautiful monument of a knight and his lady in white alabaſter, placed recumbent on an altar tomb. It had been removed to this place on the diſſolution, from the religious houſe at Llanvaes, and the memory and names of the perſons repreſented loſt. On the ſouth ſide of the altar is a ſtone with the following inſcription: how it came here, or for what purpoſe, I cannot diſcover.

HENRICUS SYDNEY, ordinis Garterii, miles, preſidiens ex conſiliis marchiis Walliae, Dominus deputatus in Hibernia. ANTONUS SENTLEGER, ordinis Garterii, miles, quondam deputatus in Hibernia. FRANCISCUS AGARD, armiger, ex conſiliis in Hibernia. EDWARDUS WATERHOWS me poſuit. GWILLIELMUS THWAYTES, armiger, obiit 20 die Januarii 1565. Noſce Teipſum.—Fide et Taciturnitate.

AT a ſmall diſtance from the town, on the ſhore,LLANVAES. ſtand the remains of Llanvaes, or the Friers. It was founded by Prince Llewelyn ap Jerwerth, and, according to the general tradition of the country, over the grave of his wife Joan, daughter of King John, who died in 1237, and was interred on the ſpot. Here alſo were interred a ſon of a Daniſh king, Lord Clifford, and many barons and knights who fell in the Welſh warsLeland's Collect. i. 65. and Henry V's patent in Sebright MSS. . It was dedicated to St. Francis, and conſecrated by Howel biſhop of Bangor, a prelate who died in 1240. The religious were Franciſcans, or minor friers. Their church and houſe were deſtroyed, and their lands waſted, in the inſurrection made ſoon after the death of Llewelyn, our laſt prince, by his relation Madoc. Edward II. in conſideration of their misfortunes, remitted to them the payment of the taxes due to him, which before the war were levied at the rate of twelve pounds ten ſhillings. Theſe friers were ſtrong favorers of Glyndwr Henry, in his firſt march againſt Owen, plundered the convent, put ſeveral of the friers to the ſword, and carried away the reſt; but afterwards ſet them at liberty, made reſtitution to the place, but peopled it with Engliſh recluſes. It poſſibly was again reduced to ruin; for Henry V. by patent, eſtabliſhes here eight friers, but directs that two only ſhould be Welſh Sebright MSS..

AT the diſſolution, Henry VIII. ſold the convent, and its poſſeſſions, to one of his courtiers. They became in later days the property of a family of the name of White (now extinct) who built here a good manſion. It of late became, by purchaſe, the property of Lord Bulkeley. The church is turned into a barn, and the coffin of the Princeſs Joan now ſerves for a watering-trough. I am informed, that on the farm of Cremlyn Monach, once the property of the friery, is cut on a great ſtone the effigies of its patron St. Francis; and that his head is alſo cut on the ſtone of a wall, in a ſtreet of Beaumaris, to which all paſſengers were to pay their reſpects, under pain of a forfeit.

ABOUT the year 818,BATTLE. a bloody battle was fought near Llanvaes: neither occaſion or parties are mentioned; but by the text Powel, 24. I gueſs it to have been between Egbert king of the Weſt Saxons, and the Welsh; for the former, in the reign of Merfyn Frych, carried his arms into all parts of North Wales.

A LITTLE farther is Caſtell Aber Llienawg, CASTELL ABER LLIENAWG. a ſmall ſquare fort, with the remains of a little round tower at each corner. In the middle one ſtood a ſquare tower. A foſs ſurrounds the whole. A hollow way is carried quite to the ſhore, and at its extremity is a large mound of earth, deſigned to cover the landing. This caſtle was founded by Hugh Lupus Earl of Cheſter, and Hugh the Red Earl of Shrewſbury, in 1098, when they made an invaſion, and committed more ſavage barbarities on the poor natives, eſpecially on one Kenred, a prieſt, than ever ſtained the annals of any country. Providence ſent Magnus king of Norway to revenge the cruelties. His coming was to all appearance caſual. He offered to land, but was oppoſed by the earls. Magnus ſtood in the prow of his ſhip, and, calling to him a moſt expert bowman, they at once directed their arrows at the Earl of Shrewſbury, who ſtood all armed on the ſhore. An arrow pierced his brain through one of his eyes, the only defenceleſs partTerfaei Hiſt. Norveg. iii. 423. The victor, ſeeing him ſpring up in the agonies of death, inſultingly cried out, in his own language, Leit loupe—Let him dance Girald. Iter. Cambr. 867. .

THIS fort was garriſoned fo lately as the time of Charles I; when it was kept for the parlement by Sir Thomas Cheadle; but was taken by Colonel Robinſon in 1645 or 6Plâs Gwyn MSS..

ABOUT a mile farther I viſited the Priory of Penmon, PENMON PRIORY placed, like the former, on the ſhore. The remains are the ruinous refectory, and the church; part of the laſt is in preſent uſe. Within is a ſmall monument, informing us that Sir Thomas Wilford, of Ildington in Kent (one of whoſe daughters married Sir Richard Bulkeley) died January 25th, 1645. About a mile from the ſhore is the little iſland of Prieſtholm, St. Seiriol, or Glannauch, which perhaps might have been the principal reſidence of the religious, for the priory goes under both names: uſually they were called Canonici de inſula Glannauch Dugdale Monaſt. ii. 338. . Probably part might reſide on the main land, to look after their property, and others be engaged in acts of devotion in their retirement. The only remains of their reſidence is a ſquare tower; but abundance of human bones ſcattered up and down, are ſtrong proofs of its reputed ſanctity, and the ſuperſtitious wiſh of people to have this made the place of their interment. The firſt recluſes of this iſland, according to Giraldus, were hermits; of whom (as uſual) he tells a ſuperſtitious tale, that whenever they diſagreed, they were plagued with ſwarms of mice; which quitted them as ſoon as they had layed aſide their animoſityGirald, Itin. Cambr. lib. ii. c. 6. p. 868. Their ſucceſſors were black monks, dedicated to St. Mary, endowed, if not founded, by Llewelyn ap Jorwerth, before the year 1221 Tavner, 699. The Prior was one of the three ſpiritual lords of Angleſey. At the diſſolution the revenues were valued at 47l. 15s. 3d. in the whole, or 40l. 17s. 9d. clear; granted in the 6th of Queen Elizabeth to John More.

THE channel,PRIESTHOLM. or, as it is called, the Sound, between the main land and Prieſtholm is very deep, and is the common paſſage for ſhips to and from the road of Beaumaris. On the other ſide is the Eaſt paſſage, which, at low-water, is between the iſland and the point of Traeth Telaven, little more than a quarter of a mile broad, and navigable for only very ſmall veſſels. The iſland is about a mile long, extremely lofty, and bounded by precipices, except on the ſide oppoſite to Penmon, and even there the aſcent is very ſteep. The land ſlopes greatly from the ſummit to the edge of the precipices. During part of ſummer the whole ſwarms with birds of paſſage. The ſlope on the ſide is animated with the PUFFIN AUKS,PUFFINS. Br. Zool. i. No 232. which inceſſantly ſquall round you, alight, and diſappear into their burrows; or come out, ſtand erect, gaze at you in a moſt groteſque manner, then take flight, and either perform their evolutions about you, or ſeek the ſea in ſearch of food.

THEY appear firſt about the fifth, or tenth of April; but quit the place, almoſt to a bird, twice or thrice before they ſettle. Their firſt employ is the forming of burrows; which falls to the ſhare of the males, who are ſo intent on the buſineſs as to ſuffer themſelves at that time to be taken by the hand. Some few ſave themſelves the trouble of forming holes, and will diſpoſſeſs the rabbits; who, during the Puffin ſeaſon, retire to the other ſide of the iſland.

THEY lay one white egg. Males, as well as females, perform the office of ſitting, relieving each other when they go to feed. The young are hatched in the beginning of July. The parents have the ſtrongeſt affection for them; and if layed hold of by the wings, will give themſelves moſt cruel bites on any part of the body they can reach, as if actuated by deſpair: and when releaſed, inſtead of flying away, will often hurry again into the burrow to their young. The noiſe they make when caught is horrible, and not unlike the efforts of a dumb perſon to ſpeak. This affection ceaſes at the time of remigration, which is moſt exactly about the eleventh, of Auguſt. They then go off, to a ſingle bird, and leave behind the unfledged young of the later hatches a prey to the Peregrine Falcon, which watches the mouth, of the holes for their appearance, compelled as they muſt ſoon be by hunger to come out.

THE food of theſe birds is ſprats,FOOD. or ſea-weeds, which makes

PUFFIN AUK. them exceſſively rank; yet the young are pickled, and preſerved by ſpices, and by ſome people much admired.

IT appears certain that the Puffins do not breed till their third year.THEIR BILLS. CHANGE IN. The proof ariſes from the obſervations made by the reverend Mr. Davies on the different forms of the bills, among the thouſands of this ſpecies which he ſaw wrecked, as I have mentioned in page 192. He remarked them in their ſeveral periods of life. Thoſe which he ſuppoſes to have been of the firſt year, were ſmall, weak, deſtitute of any furrow, and of a duſky color; thoſe of the ſecond year, were conſiderably larger and ſtronger, lighter colored, and with a faint veſtige of the furrow at the baſe; thoſe of more advanced years, were of the vivid colors, and great ſtrength. Among the myriads which annually reſort to Prieſtholm, not an individual has ever been obſerved which had not its bill of an uniform growth. Perhaps the ſame remark may hold good in reſpect to the RAZOR-BILL, Br. Zool. i. No 230, Mr. Davies having found multitudes with bills far inferior in ſtrength to thoſe which haunt the iſland; of an uniform black color, and without the characteriſtic white furrow, and black grooves.

The channel between Prieſtholm and Angleſey has produced ſome very uncommon fiſh.FISH. The Beaumaris SHARK, Br. Zool iii. No 50; the MORRIS, No 67; and the trifurcated HAKE, No 84, are new ſpecies taken in this ſea. I was indebted to the late Mr. William Morris of Holyhead, for that on which I beſtowed his name. The reverend Mr. Hugh Davies favored me with two others. The new Muſſel, called the umbilicated, Br. Zool. iv. No 76, is alſo frequently dredged up in the neighborhood of this iſle

THE Smirnium Oluſatrum, PLANTS. or Alexanders, almoſt covers the ſouth-weſt end of the iſland, and is greedily eaten (boiled) by ſailors who are juſt arrived from long voyages. The Iris Foetidiſſima, or ſtinking Gladwin, is common about the ſquare tower, and is frequently made into a poultice with oatmeal, and uſed by the country people with ſucceſs in the quincy.

I RETURNED to Beaumaris, and from thence viſited Baron-Hill. BARON-HILL. The ſeat of Lord Bulkeley, placed at the head of an extenſive lawn ſloping down to the town, backed and winged by woods, which are great embelliſhments to the country. The founder of Baron-Hill was Sir Richard Bulkeley, a moſt diſtinguiſhed perſonage of the nameI will not here break in on my Tour with his hiſtory; but, as it may merit the reader's attention, I refer him to the Appendix. . He built it in 1618: before that time the reſidence of the family was at Court Mawr in the ſubjacent town, and afterwards in another houſe, called Old Place. The preſent ſeat has of late been wholly altered, with excellent taſte, by its noble owner, by the advice of that elegant architect Mr. Samuel Wyat.

THE view is juſtly the boaſt of the iſland. The ſea forms a moſt magnificent bay, with the Menai opening into it with the grandeur of an American river. The limit of the water in front is a ſemicircular range of rocks and mountains, the chief of Snowdonia, with tops ſpiring to the clouds, and their bottoms richly cultivated, ſloping gently to the water edge. The great promontory Penmaen Mawr, and the enormous maſs of Llandudno, are rude but ſtrinking features, and ſtrong contraſts to the ſofter parts of the ſcenery.

I PROCEEDED on my journey,CROMLECH. and at Trevawr paſſed by a great and rude Cromlech, with the ruins of others adjacent. Reach Plâs Gwyn, PLAS GWYN. the ſeat of my friend Paul Panton, Eſq in right of his firſt wiſe Jane, daughter of William Jones, Eſq The houſe was built by Mr. Jones, and may be reckoned among the beſt of the iſland. Here are preſerved two portraits, heads of two prelates, natives of Wales. Humphrey Humphreys, who died biſhop of Hereford in 1712, aged 63. He was painted by Mrs. Mary Beale, when he was biſhop of Bangor; and is repreſented in lawn ſleeves, with dark hair, and a good countenance. The other prelate is Robert Morgan, who died biſhop of the ſame dioceſe in 1673, and is recorded to have been a conſiderable benefactor to his cathedral. He is dreſſed like the former; has ſhort grey hair, a cloſe black cap, and hard countenance.

FROM Plâs Gwyn I made an excurſion to Traeth Coch, or Redwharf, REDWHARF. a large bay covered with a firm ſand; which, on the weſt ſide, has ſo large a mixture of ſhells, as to be uſed as a manure in all parts of the iſland within reaſonable diſtance. On the eaſt ſide, about three miles from Plâs Gwyn, near the ſhore, are two rounded mounts on each ſide of a deep gully leading towards Llanddona church. Theſe ſeemed to have been the work of the Danes, caſt up to protect their veſſels in their plundering excurſions; a calamity to which, it appears from the writing of our poets, this iſland was much ſubject.

ABOVE Llanddona is a high hill, called Bwrdd Arthur, BWRDD ARTHURY or Arthur's round table: the true name was probably Din, or Dinas Sulwy; for a church immediately beneath bears that of Llanvihangle Din-Sulwy. On the top of it is a great Britiſh poſt, ſurrounded by a double row of rude ſtones with their ſharp points uppermoſt; and in ſome parts the ramparts are formed of ſmall ſtones. In the area are veſtiges of oval buildings: the largeſt is formed with two rows of flat ſtones ſet an end. Theſe had been the temporary habitations of the poſſeſſors. It had been a place of vaſt ſtrength; for, beſides the artificial defence, the hill ſlopes ſteeply on all ſides, and the brink, next to the ramparts, are moſtly precipitous. It is worth while to aſcend this hill for the ſake of the vaſt proſpect; an intermixture of ſea, rock, and alps, moſt ſavagely great.

ABOVE it, the reverend Mr. Hugh Davies pointed out to me the Hypericum Montanum; and beneath, on the weſt ſide, the Cyſtus Hirſutus.

I DESCENDED to the church of Llan-jeſtyn, LLAN-JESTYN. remarkable for the tomb of its tutelar ſaint, St. Eſtyn, or Jeſtyn, ſon of Geriant, a worthy knight of Arthur's round table, ſlain by the Saxons at the ſiege of London! The figure of the ſaint repreſents a man with a hood on his head, a great round beard, and whiſkers on upper and under lip. He has on a long cloak faſtened by a broche: in one hand is a ſtaff with the head of ſome beaſt on the top; in the other is a ſcroll with an inſcription: round his long caſſock is a ſaſh and long cord. This appears by the inſcription to have been a votive offering. I ſhall give it as copied by my worthy and ingenious friend, the honorable DAINES BARRINGTONArchaelogia, v. 146. Hic jacet Santtus Yeſtinus cui Gwenllian, Filia Madoc et Gryffyt ap Gwilym, optulit in oblacōem iſtam imaginem p. ſalute animarum S. By the cord it is evident, that the pious Gwenllian thought St. Jeſtyn to have been a Franciſcan; a piece of anachroniſm not at all uncommon in early times.

ANOTHER excurſion was to Penmynnydd, PENMYNNYD. about two miles ſouth of Plâs Gwyn, once the reſidence of the anceſtors of Owen Tudor, ſecond huſband to Catherine of France, queen dowager of Henry V; "who beyng," as honeſt Halle informs us, young and luſtye, folowyng more her owne appetyte than frendely conſaill, and regardyng more her private affection then her open honour, toke to huſband privily (in 1428) a goodly gentylman, and a beautiful perſon, garniged with manye godly gyftes both of nature and of grace,OWEN TUDOR. called Owen Teuther, a mā brought furth and come of the noble lignage and auncient lyne of Cadwalader, the laſte kynge of the Britonnes Halle's Chr. 41. . The match, important in its conſequences, reſtored the Britiſh races of princes to tliis kingdom, No more our long-loſt Arthur we bewail: All-hail, ye genuine kings; Britannia's iſſue, hail! Theſe reigned long, under the title of the houſe of Tudor; the mixed race having ceaſed on the acceſſion of Henry VII. grandſon to our illuſtrious countryman.

OWEN himſelf was unfortunate. He loſt his royal conſort in 1437, after ſhe had brought him three ſons and one daughter, Edmund, Jaſpar, and Owen; the laſt embraced a monaſtic lifeSandford's Geneal. 291. in the abbey of Weſtminſter, and died ſoon after: the daughter died in her infancy. It appears, that after the death of their mother, Edmund and Jaſpar moſt reſpectfully were placed under the care of Catherine de la Pole, daughter of Michael de la Pole Earl of Suffolk, and abbeſs of Berking. A petition from her, dated 1440, appears on record for the payment of certain money due to her on their accountRymer, x. 828. During the life of the queen, the marriage had been winked at, notwithſtanding a law had been made after that event, enacting that no perſon, under ſevere penalties, ſhould marry a queen dowager of England, without the ſpecial licence of the kingDrake's Parliam. Hiſt. ii. 211. On the death of Catherine all reſpects ceaſed to her ſpouſe: he was ſeized, and committed firſt to Newgate, from which he eſcaped by the aſſiſtance of his confeſſor and ſervant. On being retaken, he was delivered to the cuſtody of the Earl of Suffolk, conſtable of the caſtle of Wallingford Rymer, x. 685. , and after ſome time was again committed to Newgate The ſame. He made his eſcape a ſecond time. The length of his ſecond impriſonment does not appear. After a conſiderable period, high honors were conferred on his two eldeſt ſons, half brothers to the king. In the year 1452, they were both created earls; Edmund was made Earl of Richmond, and Jaſpar, Earl of Pembroke. Henry, about this time, was diſturbed by the open clame of the Duke of York to the ſucceſſion, and found it prudent to ſtrengthen his intereſt by all poſſible means. The Welſh, flattered by the honors beſtowed on their young countrymen, ever after faithfully adhered to the houſe of Lancaſter.

OWEN had beſides a natural ſon, called Dafydd, knighted by his nephew Henry VII. who alſo beſtowed on him in marriage Mary, the daughter and heireſs of John Bohun of Midherſt, in Suſſex, and with her a great inheritanceCambden, i. 204. Dugdale Baron, i. 187. Owen was taken no notice of till the year 1460, when, as the patent expreſſes it, in regard of his good ſervices, he had a grant of the parks, and the agiſtment of the parks in the lordſhip of Denbigh, and the wodewardſhip of the ſame lordſhipRymer, xi. 439. The year following, he fought valiantly under the banners of his ſon Jaſpar, at the battle of Mortimer's Croſs; would not quit the field, but was taken with ſeveral other Welſh gentlemenAmong whom were Dafydd Llovyd and Morgan ap Reuther. Holinſhed, 660., beheaded with them ſoon after at Hereford, and interred in the church of the Grey Friers in that cityLeland Itin. iv. 86. viii. 36. .

NOTWITHSTANDING the birth of Owen was calumniated, he certainly was of very high deſcent. Henry VII. early in his reign, iſſued a commiſſion to Sir John Leiaf, prieſt, Gutten Owen, and a number of others, to make enquiry into his paternal deſcent; and they, from our Welſh chronicles, proved inconteſtably, that he was lineally deſcended by iſſue male, ſaving one woman, from Brutus ſon of Aeneas the Trojan, and that he was ſon to Brute in fiveſcore degreesSee the return of the commiſſion, &c. in Wynn's Hiſt. Wales, 331. &c.. I ſhall drop a little ſhort of this long deſcent. Owen Tudor was aſſuredly of high blood. He was ſeventh in deſcent from Ednyfed Vychan, counſellor, and leader of the armies of Llewelyn the Great, and a ſucceſsful warrior againſt the Engliſh. His Of a noble race was Shenkin, of the line of Owen Tudor. origin was from Marchudd, one of the fifteen tribes. Ednyfed's wife was Gwenllian, daughter of Rhys, prince of South Wales: ſo that he might boaſt of two royal deſcents, and deliver down a poſterity not unworthy of the Britiſh empire.

OWEN muſt have been the inſtrument of his own advancement, and have owed it entirely to his perſonal merit. His grandfather Tudor ap Gronw was a man of great valour, a favorite of Edward III. and received from him the honor of knighthood. He died and was buried September 19th 1367, and was interred at the friery at Bangor. His fourth ſon Meredydd was in no higher ſtation than Scutifer to the biſhop of Bangor. Having committed a murder, he fled his country, and lived in exile; during which time his wife was delivered of Owen, the ſubject of theſe pages. By what means he introduced himſelf to the Engliſh court does not appear; moſt probable by military ſervices, the uſual road to honors in thoſe days.

THE remains of the reſidence of the Tudors are,HOUSE OF PENHYNNYDD. the door of the gateway: part of the houſe, and the great chimney-piece of the hall, are to be ſeen in the preſent farm-houſe. Some coats of arms, and dates of the building, or time of repairs, are to be ſeen, with the initial letters of the names of the owners. The Tudors, for a conſiderable ſpace before the extinction of their race, aſſumed the name of Owen. Richard was the laſt male of the family, and was ſheriff of the county in 1657. Margaret, heireſs of the houſe, married Coningſhy Williams, Eſq of Glan y gors, in this iſland, who poſſeſſed it during his life. It was afterwards ſold to Lord Bulkeley, in whoſe deſcendant in ſtill continues.

IN the church of Penmynydd is a moſt magnificent monument of white alabaſter, removed at the diſſolution from the abbey of Llanvaes to this place; probably erected in memory of one of the houſe of Tudor, who had been interred there. On it is the figure of a man in complete armour, a conic helm, and mailgaurd down to his breaſt. His lady is in a thick angular hood. Their feet reſt on lions. Their heads are ſupported by angels.

ABOUT a mile farther, I viſited Tre-garnedd, TRE-GARNEDD. a farm-houſe, in the pariſh of Llangeſni, once the ſite of the great Ednyfed Vychan, mentioned in a preceding page. His arms were originally a Saracen's head erazed, proper, wreathed or; but after defeating the Engliſh army, who were invading our frontiers, and killing three of their chiefeſt captains, whoſe heads he brought to his maſter Llewelyn the Great, the prince directed, as a reward, that in future he ſhould bear gules, between three Engliſhmen's heads couped, a cheveron ermin.EDNYFED VYCHAN. Directly deſcended from him were Henry VII. and VIII. Edward VI. Queen Mary, and Queen Elizabeth, and every crowned head in England ever ſince, beſides heroes not leſs illuſtrious in their degree. Among them was Sir Grayffydd Llwyd, SIR GRYFFYDD LIWYD. ſon of Rhys ap Grayffyd ap Ednyfed Vychan. This gentleman received from Edward I. the honor of knighthood, on bringing him the news of the birth of his ſon Edward of Caernarvon. He did homage, for his lands in Wales, to the young prince at Cheſter; but, indignant at the ſufferings of his countrymen under the Engliſh yoke, meditated a revolt. Between the years 1316 and 1318, his attempted to form an alliance with Edmund Bruce, the ſhort-lived king of Ireland. Letters paſſed between them, but without effectWynn's Hiſt. Wales, 311. At length, from the greatneſs of his ſprit, determined alone to endeavour to free his country from the ſlavery to which he himſelf had probably contributed, he took arms in 1322Powel, 383. , and for a while over-run the country with reſiſtleſs impetuoſity. At length was ſubdued, taken, and doubtleſsly underwent the common fate of our gallant inſurgents. I find that he had fortified his houſe at Tre-garnedd with a very ſtrong foſs and rampart, and made another ſtrong hold about three quarters of a mile diſtant, in the moraſs of Maltraeth, called Ynys Cevenni; which he inſulated, by bringing round it the waters of the river Cefni Rowlands' MSS.: both are ſtill remaining. The foſs is nearly perfect, and near four yards deep and eitht wide. His daughter Morvydd, one of his coheireſſesSebright MSS., conveyed by marriage this eſtate, being her protion, to Madog Gloddaeth; which followed the ſucceſſion of that houſe till 1750, when it was alienated by the late Sir Thomas Moſtyn to Mr. Owen Williams.

THE name of this place is taken from an immenſe Carnedd, GREAT CARNEDD. or heap of ſtones, ſurrounded with great upright ſtones, in an adjacent field. It ſeems to have beneath it paſſages formed on the ſides and tops with flat ſtones, or flags. Theſe were the repoſitories of the deadSee Borlaſe's Cornwal, p. 207. tab. xvii. fig. i. iii. and his Scilly Iſlands, 29, 30. tab. ii. at p. 19. Not that bones or urns are alſo diſcovered in them; for the founders, like thoſe of the pyramids of Egypt, appear often to be diſappointed in their hopes of having their reliques lodged in theſe labored Mauſoleums.

A FEW years ago, beneath a carnedd ſimilar to that at Tregarnedd, was diſcovered, on a farm called Bryn-celli-ddu, near the feat of Sir Nicholas Bayley, a paſſage three feet wide, four feet two or three inches high, and about nineteen feet and a half long, which led into a room, about three feet in diameter, and ſeven in height. The form was an irregular hexagon, and the ſides compoſed of ſix rude ſlabs, one of which meaſured in its diagonal eight feet nine inches. In the middle was an artleſs pillar of ſtone, four feet eight inches in circumference. This ſupports the roof, which conſiſts of one great ſtone, near ten feet in diameter. Along the ſides of the room was, if I may be allowed the expreſſion, a ſtone bench, on which were found human bones, which fell to duſt almoſt at a touch: it is probable that the bodies were originally placed on the bench. There are proofs that it was cuſtomary with the Gauls to place their dead in that form in cells; but they added to the head of each body a ſtone weapon, which ſerved as a pillowLa Religion de Gaulois, ii. 312. plate 42. : but nothing of the king was diſcovered in this ſepulchre. The diameter of the incumbent carnedd is from ninety to a hundred feet. This ſeems to be that which Mr. Rowland takes notice of in his Mona Antiqua P. 94. tab. vii..

I MUST not omit mention of the great patriarch of Tregaian, PATRIARCH OF TREGAIAN. a chapelry of this pariſh, who lived in the year 1580, and died at the age of 105; his name was William ap Howel ap Jerwerth. He had by his firſt wife twenty-two children, by his ſecond, ten, by his third, four, and by his two concubines ſeven; in all forty-three. His eldeſt ſon was eithty-four in 1581, and his eldeſt daughter ſeventy-two; and his youngeſt ſon then only two years and a half old: ſo that between his firſt child and laſt there was an interval of eighty-two years. Nor did there leſs than three hundred people deſcend from this ſtock in that interval, eighty of whom lived in this pariſh. He was ſmall of ſtatute, of a chearful convivial temper; but ſpare in his diet, living moſtly on milk. He paſſed his time in rural employments, and at his leiſure in fiſhing and fowling; and preſerved his memory and ſenſes to the laſt.

I RETURNED to Plâs Gwyn, CASTELL-MAWR. and from thence croſſed Redwharf, to the weſtern horn of the bay called Caſtell-mawr, a ſmall cape, flat at top, and joined to the land by a low iſthmus. It is compoſed of lime-ſtone, which is carried to diſtant parts in ſmall veſſels, which lie in a ſmall channel near the rock, and by their numbers frequently enliven the view. Roman coins have been found in this neighborhood; but there are no veſtiges of there having been any ſtation. Beyond Caſtell-Mawr, on the ſhore, I ſaw vaſt blocks of black marble filled with ſhells, corolloids, and fungitae.

Proceed near the ſhore.LLUGWY. On the left are the woods of Llugwy, extenſive for this iſland. This eſtate fomerly belonged to the Llwyds; at preſent to Lord Boſton See p. 5. Not far from the road, in the lands of Llugwy, is a moſt ſtupendous Cromlech, GREAT CROMLECH. of a rhomboid form. The greateſt diagonal is ſeventeen feet ſix inches, the leſſer fifteen; the thickneſs three feet nine; its height from the ground only two feet: it was ſupported by ſeveral ſtones. The Welſh, who aſcribe every thing ſtupendous to out famous Britiſh king, call it Arthur's Quoit. In the woods are ſome druidical circles, nearly contiguous to each other.

CROSS Llugwy ſands, and ſoon after ride over Dulas bay,DULAS BAY. likewiſe dry at low-water. It runs about a mile and a half deep into the country, and is frequented by ſmall veſſels, which take off the oats and butter of theſe parts. Off the mouth is Ynys Gadarn, a ſmall iſland. Go by Llys Dulas, the ſeat of Mrs. Lewis; and ſoon after within ſight of the church of Llan-Elian, LLAN-ELIAN. ſeated on the rocks not far from the ſea. It is handſomely built, and makes a conſiderable figure among the churches of this part of Wales. It is dedicated to St. Elian, ſurnamed Gannaid, or the Bright. He was formerly a moſt popular ſaint, and had a great concourſe of devotees, who implored his aſſiſtance to relieve them from variety of diſorders. To gain his favor they made conſiderable offerings, which were depoſited in the church in Cyff Aelian, or St. Aelian's cheſt. Theſe amounted to ſo large a ſum, that the pariſhioners purchaſed with it three tenements, for the uſe of the church, which belong to the living to this day.

NEAR this place, Caſwallon Law-hîr, or Caſwallon Longimanus, kept his Llys, or court. He had made a grant of lands and ſeveral privileges to this church, among which was that of a Nawddfa, or ſanctuary. This was one of the ſeven church-patron ſaints in Angleſey, which were entitled in Capite to ſeveral tenures; one of the conditions of which ſeems to have been the preſervation of theſe places of refugeRowlands' Mona Antiq. 133. 147. The other ſaints, or patron-churches, were St. Beuno, St. Kybi, St. Cadwaladr, St. Peirio, St. Machutus or Mechel, and St. Cyngar..

FROM hence I viſited Tryſclwyn mountain; on part of which,PARYS MOUNTAIN. called Parys mountain (probably from a Robert Parys, who was chamberlain of North Wales There was another of the ſame name in the reign of Edward III. in the reign of Henry IV.) is the moſt conſiderable body of copper ore perhaps ever known. The external aſpect of the hill is extremely rude, and riſes into enormous rocks of coarſe white quartz. The ore is lodged in a baſon, or hollow, and has on one ſide a ſmall lake, on whoſe waters, diſtaſteful as thoſe of Avernus, no bird is known to alight. The whole aſpect of this tract has, by the mineral operations, aſſumed a moſt ſavage appearance. Suffocating fumes of the burning heaps of copper ariſe in all parts, and extend their baneful influence for miles around. In the adjacent parts vegetation is nearly deſtroyed; even the moſſes and lichens of the rocks have periſhed: and nothing ſeems capable of reſiſting the fumes but the purple Melic graſsMelica Caerulea, Lightfoot, Fl. Scot. i. 96. Aira Caerulea, Hudſon, Fl. Angl. i. 33. , which flouriſhes in abundance.

I HAVE little doubt but that the ore had been worked in a very diſtant period. Veſtiges of the antient operations appear in ſeveral parts, carried on by trenching, and by heating the rocks intenſely, then ſuddenly pouring on water, ſo as to cauſe them to crack, or ſcale; thus aukwardly ſupplying the uſe of gunpowder See Tour in Wales, i. 52. Pieces of charcoal were alſo found, which prove that wood was made uſe of for that purpoſe. As the Britons improted all works in braſs, it is certain that the Romans were the undertakers of theſe mines; and it is very probable that they ſent the ore to Caerbén to be ſmelted, the place where the famous cake of copper was diſcoveredTour in Wales, p. 72. tab. ix. . They might likewiſe have had a ſmelting-hearth in this iſland; for a round cake of copper was diſcovered at Llanvaethlle, a few miles from this place. Its weight was fifty pounds, and it had on it a mark reſembling an L.

IN the year 1762, one Alexander Frazier came into Angleſey in ſearch of mines. He viſited Parys mountain; called on Sir Nicholas Bayley, and gave him ſo flattering an account of the proſpect, as induced him to make a trial, and ſink ſhafts. Ore was diſcovered; but before any quantity could be gotten, the mines were overpowered with water. In about two years after, Meſſrs. Roe and Co. of Macclesfield applied to Sir Nicholas for a leaſe of Penrhyn ddu mine in Caernarvonſhire; with which they were, much againſt their wills, compelled to take a leaſe of part of this mountain, and to carry on a level, and make a fair trial. The trial was accordingly made: ore was diſcovered; but the expences overbalanced the profits. They continued working to great loſs: and at length determined to give the affair up. They gave their agent orders for that purpoſe; but he, as a final attempt, divided his men into ten ſeveral companies, of three or four in a partnerſhip, and let them ſink ſhafts in various places, about eight hundred yeards eaſtward of a place called the Golden Venture, on a preſumption that a ſpring, which iſſued from near the place, muſt come from a body of mineral. His conjecture was right; for in leſs than two days they met with, at the depth of ſeven feet from the ſurface, the ſolid mineral, which proved to be that vaſt body which has ſince been worked to ſuch advantage. The day that this diſcovery was made was March 2d 1768; which has ever ſince been obſerved as a feſtival by the miners. Soon after this diſcovery, another adventure was begun by the reverend Mr. Edward Hughes, owner of part of the mountain, in right of his wife Mary Lewis of Llys Dulas; ſo that the whole of the treaſure is the property of Sir Nicholas Bayley and himſelf.

THE body of copper ore is of unknown extent.THE ORE. The thickneſs has been aſcertained, in ſome places, by the driving of a level under it, ſeveral years ago, and it was found to be in ſome places twenty-four yards. The ore is moſtly of the kind called by Cronſted, Pyrites cupri flavo virideſcens; and contains vaſt quantities of ſulphur. It varies in degrees of goodneſs; ſome of it is rich, but the greater part poor in quality.

THERE are other ſpecies of copper ore found here. Of late a vein of the Pyrites cupri griſeus of Cronſted, about ſeven yards wide, has been diſcovered near the weſt end of the mountain: ſome is of an iron grey, ſome quite black; the firſt contains ſixteen lb. of copper per clb. the laſt, forty. An ore has been lately found, in form of looſe earth, of dark purpliſh color; and the beſt of it has produced better thatn eight in twenty. Some years ago, above thirty pounds of native copper was found in driving a level through a turbery; ſome was in form of moſs, ſome in very thin leaves.

IT is quarried out of the bed in vaſt maſſes; is broken into ſmall pieces; and the moſt pure part is ſold raw, at the rate of about 3l. to 6l. per ton, or ſent to the ſmelting-houſes of the reſpective companies to be melted into metal. Mr. Hughes has great furnaces of his own at Ravenhead, near Leverpool, and at Swanſey, in South Wales. An idea of the wealth of theſe mines may be formed, by conſidering that the Macclesfield company have had at once fourteen thouſand tons of ore upon bank, and Mr. Hughes's, thirty thouſand.

THE more impure ore is alſo broken to the ſize of about hen's eggs; but in order to clear it from the quantity of ſulphur with which it abounds, as well as other advantitious matter, it muſt undergo the operation of burning. For that purpoſe it is placed between two parallel walls of vaſt length: ſome kilns are twenty, others forty, and fifty yards in length; ſome ten, others twenty feet wide, and above four feet in height. The ſpace between is not only filled, but the ore is piled many feet higher, in a convex form, from end to end: the whole is then covered with flat ſtones, cloſely luted with clay; and above is placed a general integument of clay, and ſmall rubbiſh of the work, in order to prevent any of the fumes from evaporating. Of late ſome kilns have been conſtructed with brick arches over the ore, which is found to be the beſt method of burning. Within theſe few years, attempts are made to preſerve the ſulphur from flying away; and that is done by flues, made of brick, whoſe tops are in form of a Gothic arch, many ſcores of feet in length: one end of theſe opens into the beds of copper which are to be burnt. Thoſe beds are ſet on fire by a very ſmall quantity of coal, for all the reſt is effected by its own phlogiſton. The volatile part is confined, and diredted to the flues; in its courſe the ſulphurous particles ſtrike againſt their roofs, and fall to the bottom in form of the fineſt brimſtone;BRIMSTONE. which is collected, and carried to adjacent houſes, where it is melted into what is called in the ſhops ſtone brimſtone.

THE beds of copper, thus piled for burning, are of vaſt extent. Some contain four hundred tons of ore, others two thouſand. The firſt require four months to be completely burnt; the laſt, near ten. Thus burnt, it is carried to proper places to be dreſſed, or waſhed, and made merchantable. By this proceſs the ore is reduced to a fourth part in quantity, but conſiderably improved in quality: and by this means the water is ſtrongly or richly impregnated with copper, which is diſſolved by the acid quality of the ſulphur; and is collected or precipitated again by iron in the above-deſcribed pits. The iron is all diſſolved.

BUT a far richer produce of copper is diſcovered from the water lodged in the bottom of the bed of ore,PRECIPITATED COPPER.which is highly ſaturated with the precious metal. This is drawn up, either by means of whimſies or windmills, to the ſurface, and then diſtributed into numbers of rectangular pits thirty-ſix feet long, ſome pits more ſome leſs, twelve to fifteen feet broad, and twenty inches deep. To ſpeak in the language of the adept, Venus muſt make an aſſignation with Mars, or this ſolution will have no effect. In plain Engliſh, a quantity of iron muſt be immerſed in the water. The kind of iron is of no moment; old pots, hoops, anchors, or any refuſe will ſuffice; but of late, for the convenience of management, the adventurers procure new plates, four feet long, one and a half broad, and three quarters of an inch thick. Theſe they immerſe into the pits; the particles of copper inſtantly are precipitated by the iron, and the iron is gradually diſſolved into a yellow ocher; great part of it floats off by the water, and ſinks to the bottom. The plates, or the old iron (as it happens) are frequently taken out, and the copper ſcraped off; and this is repeated till the whole of the iron is conſumed. The copper thus procured differs little from native copper, and is prized accordingly, and ſold for prices of 25l. to 45l. a ton.

THIS diſcovery is far from new; it has been practiſed long in the Wicklow mines in Ireland, and above a century in thoſe of Hern-grundt in Hungary, where it is called Ziment Copper Brown's travels, 68. Keyſler's travels, iv. 70. The waters of the Hungarian mines are much more ſtrongly impregnated with copper than thoſe of Parys mountain. The firſt effects its operation in twelve or about twenty days; the laſt requires two months. Horſe-ſhoes, iron made in ſhape of hearts, and other forms, are put into the foreign waters, and when perfectly tranſmuted, are given as preſents to curious ſtrangers.

THE ore is not got in the common manner of mining, but is cut out of the bed in the ſame manner as ſtone is out of a quarry. A hollow is now formed in the ſolid ore open to the day, and extends about and hundred yards in length, about forty yards in breadth, and twenty-four yards in depth. The ends are at preſent undermined, but ſupported by vaſt pillars and mignificent arches, all metallic; and theſe caverns meander far under ground. Theſe will ſoon diſappear, and thouſands of tons of ore be gotten from both the columns and roofs. The ſides of this vaſt hollow are moſtly perpendicular, and acceſs to the bottom is only to be had by ſmall ſteps cut in the ore; and the curious viſitor muſt truſt to them and a rope, till he reaches ſome ladders, which will conduct him the reſt of the deſcent. On the edges of the chaſms are wooden platforms, which project far; on them are windlaſſes, by which the workmen are lowered to tranſact their buſineſs on the face of the precipice. There ſuſpended, they work in mid air, pick a ſmall ſpace for a footing, cut out the ore in vaſt maſſes, and tumble it to the bottom with great noiſe. In ſuch ſituations they form caverns, and there appear ſafely lodged, till the rope is lowered to convey them up again. Much of the ore is blaſted with gunpowder, eight tons of which, I am informed, is annually uſed for the purpoſe.

NATURE hath been profuſe in beſtowing her mineral favors on this ſpot; for above the copper ore, and not more than three quarters of a yard beneath the common ſoil, is a bed of yellowiſh greaſy clay, from one to four yards thick, containing lead ore, and yielding from ſix hundred to a thouſand pounds weight of lead from one ton; and one ton of the metal yields not leſs than fifty-ſeven ounces of ſilver. Mixed with the earth, are frequently certain parts of the color of cinnabar: whether theſe are ſymptomatic of the ſulphurous arſenical ſilver ores, or of quickſilver, I will not pretend to decide. Something interferes with the ſucceſsful ſmelting of this earth in the great: inſomuch that it has not yet been of that profit to the adventurers, which might reaſonably be expected from the crucible aſſays of it; and they have at this time about eight thouſand tons on bank undiſpoſed of. This place has been worked for lead ore in very diſtant times. In the bottom of the pool was found an antient ſmelting hearth of grit-ſtone, and ſeveral bits of ſmelted lead, of about four inches in length, two breadth, and half an inch thick.

THESE works have added greatly to the population of the iſland; for about fifteen hundred perſons are employed, who, with their families, are ſuppoſed to make near eight thouſand perſons, getting their bread from theſe mines. The little village of Amlwch, the port of the place, is encreaſing faſt, and the market grows conſiderable. At the ſeaſon of the greateſt work, Mr. Hughes's men alone receive, for many weeks, two hundred pounds in one week, and a hundred and fifty in another, merely for ſubſiſtence. The port is no more than a great chaſm between two rocks, running far into land, and dry at low-water; into which ſloops run, and lie ſecure to receive their lading.

FROM Parys mountain I viſited the north-weſt parts of the iſland, and paſſed over a ſandy plain country, fertile in grain. See to the right, the Middle Mouſe; and farther on is the third ſmall iſle of that name, called the Weſt Mouſe. Between theſe, on the coaſt of Angleſey, is Kemlyn bay, where there is ſafe anchorage for ſmall veſſels. Not far from hence I ſaw the noted quarry of marble, common to this place, ſome parts of Italy, and to Corſica, MARBLE QUARRY. and known in the ſhops by the name of Verde di Corſica. Its colors are green, black, white, and dull purple, irregularly diſpoſed. In different blocks one or other of the colors are frequently wanting; but among the green parts are often found narrow veins of a moſt elegant and ſilky white aſbeſtos. It is a compound ſpecies of marble; part is calcareous, and may be acted on by aqua fortis. The green parts partake of the nature of jaſper. It is apt to be interſected by ſmall cracks, or by aſbeſtine veins, therefore incapable of taking a high poliſh. This quarry lies on the lands of Monach-ty, in the pariſh of Llan-Fair-Ynghornwy; and it is found again in the iſle of Skerries, off this pariſh.

NEITHER the quarry not the aſbeſtos are at preſent in uſe. The antients ſet a high value on the laſt, a price equal to that of pearls. They wove napkins of it, and at great feaſts diverted themſelves (in order to clean them) to fling them into the fire, from which they returned unhurt, and with improved luſtre. They likewiſe made of it ſhrouds for the bodies of great men, before they were placed on the funeral pile, and by that means preſerved their aſhes pure from thoſe of the wood. The antients believed that it was found only in India, in places where ſhowers never fell, and the reſidence of dire ſerpentsPlinii, Nat, Hiſt. lib. xix. c. 1. .

FROM hence I veſited Carreg-Lwyd, CARREG-LWYD. then the reſidence of that worthy and convivial gentleman Jobn Griffith, Eſq From thence I made an attempt to ſail to the Skerries, THE SKERRIES. called in Welſh Ynys y Moel Rhoniaid, or the iſle of Seals, diſtant about a league from this place, and about half a league from the neareſt part of Angleſey: a turbulent ſea made us return with ſpeed. The iſland is very rocky, but affords food for a few Sheep, Rabbits, and Puffins. The light-houſe, placed on it about the year 1730, is of great uſe to ſhips ſailing between Ireland and the ports of Cheſter and Leverpool. The produce from the tonnage, about the year 1759, was 1100l. a year; of which Ireland contributed 400l. Britiſh veſſels pay 1d. per ton, aliens 2d. Fiſh ſport about the rocky ſides in moſt amazing multitudes, and appear even crowding their backs above water; theſe are chiefly the Cole-fiſh and Whiting Pollacks: Cod-fiſh lurk beneath in abundance, and the beautiful Wraſſes, &c. are frequently caught.

THIS iſle formerly belonged to the cathedral of Bangor, which clamed an excluſive right of fiſhing on it. The right of the prelates of that ſee had been, by ſome neglect, invaded; and the Griffiths of Penrhyn had uſurped the privilege, by having in the iſle what was called a Wele, a bed or ſmall poſſeſſionRecord of Caernarvon, in the Bibliotheca Litteraria, 20. About 1498, biſhop Dean exerted himſelf, and in perſon reſumed the fiſhery, and on the 8th of October took twenty-eight "fiſhis called Grapas;" when Sir William Griffith ſent his ſon and heire apparante, with dyvers men in harnes, wiche ryetowſely in the ſeid countie of Angleſey, within the ſeid biſhope's dioceſe, took the ſeid fiſhis from the ſervants of the ſeid biſhope. But the honeſt prelate cauſed him to make reſtitution, and eſtabliſhed his right as lord of the fiſheries of the iſlandWillis's Bangor, 245. A ſucceſſor of his, Nicholas Robinſon, was not ſo tenacious; but, according to Mr. Willis The ſame. The biſhop calls it Seynt Danyyel's Iſle. , alienated the iſle to one of his ſons. Between forty and fifty years ago, William Robinſon, Eſq of Monach-ty in this county, and of Gwerfillt in Denbighſhire, the laſt male deſcendant, periſhed in a ſtorm in his return from this dreary ſpot, with about a dozen people who had unfortunately attended him. Monach-ty, MONACH-TY. or the houſe of the Monks, had been part of the poſſeſſions of the abbey of Conway, and alienated by the ſame prelate to his ſon.

FROM Carreg-Lwyd I rode to Holyhead, about eleven or twelve miles diſtant. Paſſed by Llanfachreth and Llanynghenedl to Rhyd-Pont bridge, where a very ſmall river-like channel inſulates the great promontory. Go over Towyn y Capel, a low ſandy common, bounded on one ſide by rocks, which in high winds the ſea breaks over in a moſt aweful and ſtupendous manner, and are juſtly dreaded by mariners. In the middle of the common is an artificial mount, on which are the ruins of Capel St. Ffraid. I have no kind of doubt but that, prior to the chapel, it had been the ſite of a ſmall fort; for I never ſaw atrificial elevations given to any but works of a military kind. This common abounds with the ſhells called the FASCIATED WREATH,LAND SHELLS. Br. Zool. iv. No 119. and the ZONED SNAIL, No 133.

NOT far from hence, between Bodior and Rhyd-Pont, in Rhoſcolyn Pariſh, is a foſſil not frequently found. A green amianthus,AMIANTHUS. or brittle aſbeſtos, is met with in great plenty, in a green marble, ſimilar to that at Monach-ty; but by reaſon of the inflexible quality of its fibres, not applicable to the ſame uſes.

WITHIN two miles of Towyn y Capel is the town of Holyhead, ſeated on a noted and ſafe harbour, guarded at its mouth from the winds by Ynys GYBI—the iſland of St. Gybi—ſurnamed Corineus, ſon of Solomon Duke of Cornwal; who, after ſtudying ſome years in Gaul, returned to Britain, and fixed his ſee at the place called now Caer Gybi, and Holyhead Creſſy's Ch. Hiſt. 149. In honor of his inſtructor, St. Hilarius, biſhop of Poitiers, he beſtowed his name on one of the headlands; the ſame which goes alſo under that of St. Aelian's.

THE town is ſmall,TOWN. but greatly reſorted to by paſſengers to and from the kingdom of Ireland; and is the ſtation of the pacquets, five of which are in conſtant employ; are ſtout veſſels, and well manned.

THE church is dedicated to St. Gybi. CHURCH. Is an antient ſtructure, embattled, with the inſide of the porch, and the outſide of part of the tranſept, rudely carved. On the outſide of the laſt is a dragon, a man leading a bear with a rope, and other groſs repreſentations. St. Gybi is ſaid to have founded a ſmall monaſtery here, about the year 380Tanner, 699. Maelgwyn Gwynedd, who began his reign about the year 580, is ſaid to have founded a college hereHiſt. Angleſey, 29. This prince was ſtyled Draco Inſularis; perhaps the dragon, engraven on the church may allude to him. Others aſſert, that the founder of this college was Hwfa ap Cynddelw, lord of Llys Llivon, in this iſland, and one of the fifteen tribes of North Wales, and contemporary with Owen Gwynedd The ſame, 699. The head of the college was called Penclas, or Pencolas, and was one of the ſpiritual lords of Angleſey: the archdeacon of the iſle was one; the abbot of Penmon the other. His Latin title was Rector, as appears by the antient ſeal, inſcribed Sigillum rectoris et capituli Eccleſia de CAER GYBIThe ſame, 30. I am not acquainted with the number of prebendaries; but they were twelve at leſt, that number being found on the penſion liſt in 1553Willis's Abbies, i. 303. , at 1l. each. Before the diſſolution, I find that the rector, or provoſt, for ſo he is alſo ſtyled, had thirty-nine marks; one chaplain had eleven, and the other two the ſame between themWillis's Bangor, 201. The whole value, in the 26th of Henry VIII. was eſteemed at 24l. The Engliſh monarch had the gift of the provoſtſhip. Edward III. beſtowed what was called the provoſtſhip of his free chapel of Caer-Cube, on his chaplain Thomas de London; for which the king, in 1351, diſpenſed with him for his ſervices to himſelfNewcourt's Repertorium, i. 453. James I. granted this college to Francis Morris and Francis Philips. It became afterwards the property of Rice Gwynne, Eſq who beſtowed on Jeſus college, Oxford, the great tithes, for the maintenance of two fellows and as many ſcholarsTanner, 699. and Hiſt. Angleſey, 31. ; and ſince that time the pariſh is ſerved by a curate nominated by the college.

NEAR the church ſtood,ECLWYS Y BEDD. in old times, a chapel called Eglwys y Bedd, or the church of the Grave; and Capet Llan y Gwyddel, or the chapel of the Iriſhman. Sirigi, a king of the Iriſh Picts, invaded this country, and was here ſlain by Caſwallon Law Hir, or Caſwallon the long-handed, who reigned about the year 440Powel, Preſ. 15. Sirigi was canonized by his countrymen, and had in this chapel a ſhrine, in high repute for many miracles. This place had diſtinct revenues from the collegiate church. At length it fell to ruin, and was diſuſed for ages. In removing the rubbiſh, not many years ago, a ſtone coffin was found with bones of a ſtupendous ſize; but we muſt not ſuppoſe theſe to have been the reliques of Sirigi; which had been carried away by ſome Iriſh rovers, and depoſited in the cathedral of Chriſt Church in Dublin Hiſt. Angleſey, 34, 35. .

THE precinct of the church-yard clames a far higher antiquity than the church.ROMAN FORT. It is a ſquare of two hundred and twenty feet by a hundred and thirty. Three ſides are ſtrong walls, ſeventeen feet high, and ſix feet thick; the fourth ſide is open to the precipitous rocks of the harbour, and never had been walled, being intended for ſhips to retire to, and receive the benefit of protection from this incloſure. At each corner of the wall is an oval tower. The maſonry of the whole is evidently Roman: the mortar very hard, and mixed with much coarſe pebble. Along the walls are two rows of round holes, about four inches in diameter, which penetrate them. They are in all reſpects like thoſe at Segontium, p. 220, and nicely plaiſtered within.

THE uſe of this harbour to the Romans, in the paſſage from various places to the ports of Lancaſhire and that of Cheſter, is very evident. They could not find a better place to run into, in caſe of hard weather, than this, as it projected fartheſt into the Vergivian ſea; ſo that they could make it with leſs danger of being embayed than in any other place. If (as is very probable) they had commerce with Ireland, no place was better adapted. The Romans, it is true, never made a ſettlement in that country, but they certainly traded with it, even in the time of Agricola, when its ports and harbours were better known, from the concourſe of merchants for the purpoſes of commerceTacitus, Vitae Agricola..

I TOOK a walk from the town to the top of The Head, THE HEAD. in ſearch of other antiquities. In my way, ſaw the ruins of Capel y Gorlles, one of ſeveral which are ſcattered about this holy promontory. On the ſide which I aſcended, my courſe was interrupted with a huge dry wall, in many places regularly faced, and ten feet high in ſome of the moſt entire parts, and furniſhed with an entrance. On the Pen y Gaer Gybi, or the ſummit of the mountain, are foundations of a circular building, ſtrongly cemented with the ſame ſort of mortar as the ſort in the town. It ſeems to have been, a Pharos, A PHAROS. a neceſſary director in theſe ſeas.

FROM the top of this mountain I had a diſtinct view of the iſle of Holyhead: it being at that time high-water, and the channel filled on each ſide of Rhyd-Pont bridge. The iſle is of unequal breadth, and greatly indented.

THE part of the Head fronting the ſea, is either an immenſe precipice,BIRDS. or hollowed into moſt magnificent caves. Birds of various kinds breed in the rocks; among them are, Peregrine Falcons, Shags, Herons, Razor-bills, and Guillemots. Their eggs are ſought after for food; and are gotten by means of a man, who is lowered down by a rope held by one or more perſons. Within memory, the perſon let down, by his weight overpowered the other, and pulled him down; ſo that both periſhed miſerably.

I RETURNED over Rhyd-Pont bridge, and along the great road (which is excellent) towards Bangor. A little on the left is Preſaddfed, PRESADDFED. the ſeat of Mrs. Roberts, formerly of the Owens. On the ſite ſtood the manſion of Hwfa ap Kynddelw, before mentioned. He held his eſtate in ſee by the attendance at the prince's coronation, and bearing up the right ſide of the canopy over the prince's head at that ſolemnity. The biſhop, who was firſt chaplain, alſo held ſome land by the office of crowning him.

NEAR the comfortable inn called the Gwindy, in the middle of the iſland,BODYCHAN. on the great road, is Bodychan, an antient building, once the ſeat of Rhys ap Llewelyn ap Hwlkyn, firſt ſheriff of this county, and a potent man in the time of Henry VIII. The family afterwards took the name of the place, and flouriſhed for many generations. The founder, Rhys ap Kemlyn ap Hwlkin, went to Boſworth field to aſſiſt Henry VII. with a company of foot. In return, was ſworn ſheriff of Angleſey for life. He made his houſe (now converted into a barn) the county jail, the dungeon whereof is ſtill to be ſeen. In the laſt century it paſſed to the Sparrows of Red Hill, by the marriage of the heireſs of this place.

BEFORE I leave the iſland,POPULATION OF ANGLESEY. I beg leave to communicate a brief account of its population, in the manner I received it from Paul Penton, Eſq whoſe remarks on the ſame ſubject have before appeared in a far more reſpectable place Phil. Tranſ. lxiii. Part i. p. 180..

BY an account given on the 13th of Auguſt 1563, there were 2010 houſholds, or families, in Angleſey Willis's Bangor, 51. : allowing five to a family, the whole number of inhabitants in that period was 10,050. In 1776, the number of houſes in Angleſey was about 3,956: allowing five perſons to a family, the whole number of inhabitants was at that time 19,780; which wants only 340 of doubling the number of inhabitants in the intervening ſpace.

CONTINUE my journey from Porth-aithwy Ferry up a ſteep road,BANGOR. and ſoon deſcend another to BANOOR, a ſmall town ſeated between two low hills, in a valley opening to the bay of Beaumaris. This is the epiſcopal ſeat. The prelate is very indifferently lodged, in a palace near the cathedral; which, from an inſcription, appears to have been rebuilt by Biſhop Skeffington, who died in 1533, at the abbey of Beaulieu, of which he had been abbot. He directed that his body ſhould be interred there; his heart at Bangor, before the image of the patron ſaint, St. Daniel.

ST. DANIEL, ſon of Dynawd, abbot of Bangor ys Coed in Flintſhire, firſt eſttabliſhed here a college for the inſtruction of youth, and ſupport of the clergy of thoſe partsThe ſame, 53. Creſſy calls it a monaſtery, and ſays it was filled with monksChurch Hiſt. 233. probably fugitives from the other Bangor, from which it might derive its name. About the year 550, Maelgwyn Gwynedd, one of thoſe gentry who, growing virtuous in their old-age, make a ſacrifice to God of the Devil's leavings Swiſt. , converted the college into a biſhoprick, and appointed Daniel to be firſt biſhop. We know not the extent of his dioceſe. That of the preſent, comprehends all Angleſey; Caernarvonſhire, except Llyſvaen, Eglwys Rhôs, and Llangyſtenin, which belong to St. Aſaph, and Llanbeblic to Cheſter. In Denbighſhire it has fourteen pariſhes; in Montgomeryſhire ſeven.

The cathedral was deſtroyed by the inſurgent Saxons in the year 1071.CATHEDRAL. It was afterwards rebuilt; for we find that in 1212Annal. Menev. in Goodwin, ii. 650. King John invaded the country, forced the biſhop, Robert of Shrewſhury, from before the altar, and obliged him to pay two hundred hawks for his ranſom. In the year 1402 it was reduced again to ruin by the rage of Glyndwr, and lay unreſtored uring ninety years; when the choir was reſtored by Biſhop Dean, or Deny: the body and tower were built by that liberal prelate Thomas Skeffington, in 1532. The tower was to have been raiſed to double its preſent height; but the death of the biſhop prevented the execution of the deſignWillis, 21. The windows were made, or glazed, according to the cuſtom of the times, by the piety of different perſons, among whom may be reckoned Dean Kyffin, and ſome of the Gryffydds of Penrhyn Willis, 17, 18. .

THERE is nothing remarkable within,TONES. except a few tombs. That wiſe and valiant prince Owen Gwynedd lies beneath an arch, with a flowery croſs cut on a flat ſtone. He died, regretted by his countrymen, and feared by his foes, in 1169. On the floor is a mutilated figure in braſs, deſigned for Richard Kyffyn, the active dean of this church in the reigns of Richard III. and Henry VII. He died the 13th of Auguſt 1502. The place of his interment ſtill bears the name of Bedd y Deon du, or the grave of the Black Dean, I ſuppoſe from his complexion. Several of the biſhops are buried here; but, excepted the headleſs buſts of the prelates Rowlands and Vaughan, mutilated in the fanatical times, no remarkable memorials of any of them at preſent exiſt. Of the ſhrine on the left ſide of the great altar, beneath which, in 1137, was interred the brave and wiſe prince Gryffydd ap Cynan Vita Gryffydd ap Kynan in the Sebright MSS., not a veſtige is to be ſeen.

IN antient times here was a parochial church dedicated to St. Mary, which ſtood behind the palace. It is ſaid to have been founded by King Edgar, in the beginning of the reign of Howel ap Jevaf; who at the ſame time confirmed the privileges of the ſee, and endowed it liberallyWillis, 46. 183. Wynne's Hiſt. Wales, 59. .

THE houſe of friers preachers ſtood a little way out of the town.FRIERY. It was founded as early as the year 1276: Biſhop Tanner gives the honor of it to Tudor ap Gronw, lord of Penmynnydd and Trecaſtell in Angleſey, who enlarged or rebuilt it in 1299, and was interred here in 1311. Edward VI. made a grant of the place to Thomas Brown and William Breton. Soon after, it was converted into a free ſchool by Jeffry Glynn, LL. D. an advocate in Doctors Commons, and brother to Biſhop Glynn. By his will, proved July 21ſt 1557, he left the conduct of it to his brother, and to Maurice Gryffydd biſhop of Rocheſter. They dying before the ſettlement could be completed, left their power to Sir William Petre, and others; who agreed on the ſtatutes for the maſter and uſher, with the concurrence of the biſhop, dean, and chapter, and of Alexander Nowel, dean of St. Paul's, who is ſaid to have compoſed themWillis.. Over the chimney-piece is a fragment of an antient monument to one Gryffydd with a long ſword carved on it. On the ſtair-caſe is another ſtone, with the words ap Tudor, probably part of the tomb of the founder Tudor ap Gronw ap Tudor Saliſbury Pedigree, 126. .

HUGH Lupus, in his barbarous inroad into Angleſey, CASTLE. founded a caſtle at Bangor, in order to carry on his ravages with greater ſecuritySebright MSS. in vita Gryffydd ap Knan.. The ſite was wholly unknown, till it was pointed out to me by the reverend Mr. E. R. Owen, a gentleman to whom this part of the work is under frequent obligations. It lies nearly a quarter of a mile eaſtward of the town, on the ridge of hills which bound the ſouth-eaſt ſide of the vale, and nearly the ſame diſtance from the port. The caſtle ſtood on a rocky, and, in many parts, a precipitous hill. Three ſides of the walls are eaſily to be traced: on the ſouth-eaſt ſide they extended a hundred and twenty yards; on the ſouth-weſt, ſixty-ſix, ending at a precipice; the north-eaſt may be traced forty yards, and ends in the ſame manner. On the fourth ſide, the natural ſtrength of the place rendered a farther defence uſeleſs. Mounds of earth tending to a ſemicircular form, with rocks and precipices, connect the north-eaſt and ſouth-weſt walls. We know not the time of its demolition: probably as ſoon as the earl had effected his deſign, it was ſuffered to fall to ruin.

ON leaving Bangor I took the road towards Conway. At a ſmall diſtance from the former, croſſed Aber Cegid, ABER CEGID. a ſmall creek, fordable at low-water; from whence are annually imported many millions of ſlates. A little farther, on the ſummit of a hill commanding a moſt charming view, ſtands Penrhyn, PENRHYN. an antient houſe, once beautifully emboſomed with venerable oaks. The houſe is ſaid to have been built on the ſite of a palace of Roderic Mwlwynog, prince of Wales, who began his reign in 720. It continued long in our princes. In 987 it was levelled to the ground by Meredydd ap Owen; who, in that year, invaded North Wales, and ſlew Cadwallon ap Jewaf, the reigning prince. In the time of Llewelyn the Great, it was beſtowed, with the whole hundred of Llechwedd Ucha, on Yarddur ap Trabaiarn, a man of rank at that period. Eva, or as ſhe is called by ſome Enerys, one of his deſcendants, who had, by the cuſtomary diviſion of the lands by gavel-kind, Penrhyn to her ſhare, beſtowed it, with her perſon, on Gryffydd ap Heilin ap Sir Tudor ap Ednyved Vychan, originally lord of Bryn Ffanigl. The family flouriſhed for many generations. William Vychan, ſon of Gwilim ap Gryffydd, and Jonet, daughter of Sir William Stanley of Hooton, and relict of Judge Parys, chamberlain of North Wales and Cheſter, ſucceeded, in the 18th of Henry VI. to the eſtates of his father and the Judge, and alſo ſucceeded the laſt in his important office of chamberlain of North Wales; an honor continued to ſeveral of his poſterity, and at this time poſſeſſed by lord viſcount Bulkeley.

IT is remarkable, that in his time the ſeverity of the laws againſt the Welſh were ſo rigidly enforced, that he was made denizen of England, on condition that he ſhould not marry a Welſh woman; and accordingly he married a daughter of a Sir William, or Sir Richard Dalton.

IN the reign of Queen Elizabeth, Piers Gryffydd He married Margaret, daughter of Sir Thomas Moſtyn, of Moſtyn, knight, and had by her three ſons, all of whom died young. It is ſaid that he built, or repaired, his ſhips in Aber Cegid; where there was, till of late years, on the gable end of a houſe, his initials, P. G. and the date, 1598., PIERS GRYFFYDD. lord of the place, diſtinguiſhed himſelf as a naval officer; He ſailed from Beaumaris on the 20th of April 1588, and arrived at Plymouth on the 4th of May, where he was moſt honorably received by that gallant commander Sir Francis Drake. He ſhared with the other men of rank and gallantry in the honor of defeating the Spaniſh armada. After that diſtinguiſhed victory, he joined with Sir Francis Drake and Sir Walter Raleigh in their different expeditions againſt the Spaniards in the Weſt-Indies; but in the reign of James I. continuing his depredations againſt the Spaniards after peace was proclamed, he was called to account, and ſo harraſſed by perſecutions, that he was obliged to mortgage his eſtate to defray the expences; part to ſome citizens of London, and part to Jevan Llwyd, Eſq of Yale: the laſt of whom, in conjunction with Sir Richard Trevor, bought the whole in 1616, and ſold it to the lord keeper Williams in 1622; and the archbiſhop bequeathed it to Gryffydd Williams, ſon of his eldeſt brother, created baronet June 17th 1661. His ſon Sir Robert, the laſt owner who inhabited Penrhyn, left three daughters; Frances, firſt married to Robert Lloyd of Eccluſham near Wrexham, afterwards to Edward lord Ruſſel, third ſon of the firſt duke of Bedford; Anne, married to Thomas Warburton of Winnington Cheſhire; and Gwen, to Sir Walter Yonge of Devonſhire. Lord Ruſſel having no iſſue, generouſly reſigned his part of the eſtate to the ſurviving ſiſters. Sir George Yonge, grandſon of the former, ſold his moiety to the late John Pennant, Eſq whoſe ſon Richard Pennant, Eſq poſſeſſes the whole by virtue of his marriage with Anne Suſannah, daughter and ſole heireſs of the late General Warburton of Winnington.

THE preſent buildings ſtand round a court, and conſiſt of a gateway, chapel, a tower, vaſt hall, and a few other apartments. By ſeveral ruins may be traced its former extent. The houſe was rebuilt, in the reign of Henry VI. by Guilim ap Gryffydd. The Stanley arms (thoſe of his wife) empaled with his own, were to be ſeen in the hall windows, till the year 1764: by the initials R. G. and date 1575, it appears that Sir Rhys Gryffydd repaired it in that year. It gives me great ſatisfaction to find, that the place will ſoon be reſtored to its former luſtre, under the auſpices of the preſent worthy owners, and on the plan of that able architect Mr. S. Wynt.

THE only furniture left to this houſe, which ſavored of antiquity, was the drinking-horn of its hero Piers Gryffydd; DRINKING-HORN. out of which I have made libations, in the hoſpitable reign of the agent Mr. Richard Hughes. It was a large bugle, or horn of an ox, enriched with ſculptured ſilver, and with a chain of the ſame metal. At one end are the initials of his own name, P. G. and thoſe of his father and mother, R. G. K. or Rhys and Catherine Gryffydd. Such horns were in uſe with Danes, Saxons, Scots, and Welſh. We had in old times three ſpecies in our royal court, which, by uſage, were to be made of thoſe of the ox. The firſt was Y Corn ydd Yfo y BRENIN, or that allotted for the ſole uſe of the king; the ſecond was Corn Cyweithas, or the horn with which the domeſtics of the palace was to be called; and the third was y Corny y Pencynydd, or the horn of the chief huntſman. Each of them was to be worth a poundLeges Walliea, 311. . To drink out of the royal cup, at great entertainments, was a privilege of the officers of the palace. Thus the governor was to receive a cup of metheglin by the hand of the high ſteward. The ſame officer was alſo diſpenſer of horns of drink to ſeveral others; among them, to the royal porter; who at certain ſeaſons had, beſides his horn from the king and queen, another from the maſter of the horſe, which was ſtyled Gwirawd i'r Ebyſdyl, or the Waiſſail cup of the apoſtle The ſame, 17. 47., whom they probably invoked at the time of drinking. This cuſtom was in frequent uſe in old times. The Danes invoked the higheſt powers to aſſiſt the mighty draught: Help GOT unde MARIAJourney to London, 179. . And the Saxon Ulphus, when he conveyed certain lands to the church of York, quaffed off the horn, DEO et St. Petro Archaelogia, iii. S. . On leſs ſerious occaſions, on feſtive days, the horn was emptied at one tip, and then blown to ſhew that there was no deceit. The jovial horn was a ſubject of poetry. Thus Owen Cyveiliog, the princely BardHe was prince of Powis, and flouriſhed about the year 1160. See the reverend Mr. Evan Evans's Collections, p. 7., celebrates the Hirlas, or drirnking-horn uſed at feaſts in his palace. He writes in a more exalted ſtrain, as the poem was compoſed immediately after a great victory over the Engliſh in Maelor. I lay a tranſlation before my reader, by the ſame elegant pen to which I have been ſo frequently obliged.

HIRLAS OWAIN; Or, The DRINKING-HORN of OWEN. 1. UPROSE the ruddy dawn of day; The armies met in dread array On Maelor Dre • red's field: Loud the Britiſh clarions ſound, The Saxons, gaſping on the ground, The bloody conteſt yield. 2. By Owen's arm the valiant bled; From Owen's arm the coward fled Aghaſt with wild affright: Let then their haughty lords beware How Owen's juſt revenge they dare, And tremble at his ſight. 3. Fill the HIRLAS HORN, my boy, Nor let the tuneful lips be dry That warble Owen's praiſe; Whoſe walls with warlike ſpoils are hung, And open wide his gates are flung In Cambria's peaceful days. 4. This hour we dedicate to joy; Then fill the HIRLAS HORN, my boy, That ſhineth like the ſea; Whoſe azure handles, tip'd with gold, Invites the graſp of Britons bold, The ſons of Liberty. 5. Fill it higher still, and higher, Mead will nobleſt deeds inſpire. Now the battle's loſt and won, Give the horn to Gronwy's ſon; Put it into Gwgan's hand, Bulwark of his native land, Guardian of Sabrina's flood, Who oft has dy'd his ſpear in blood. When they hear their chieftain's voice; Then his gallant friends rejoice; But when to fight he goes, no more The feſtal ſhout reſounds on Severn's winding ſhore. 6. Fill the gold-tip'd horn with ſpeed, (We muſt drink, it is decreed.) Badge of honour, badge of mirth, That calls the ſoul of muſic forth! As thou wilt thy life prolong, Fill it with Metheglin ſtrong. Gruffudd thirſts, to Gruffudd fill; Whoſe bloody lance is us'd to kill; Matchleſs in the field of ſtrife, His glory ends not with his life: Dragon-ſon of Cynvyn's race, Owen's ſhield, Arwyſtli's grace. To purchaſe ſame the warriors flew, Dire, and more dire, the conflict grew; When fluſh'd with Mead, they bravely fought, Like Belyn's warlike ſons, that Edwin's downfall wrought. 7. Fill the horn with foaming liquor, Fill it up, my boy, be quicker; Hence away, deſpair and ſorrow! Time enough to ſigh to-morrow. Let the brimming goblet ſmile, And Ednyfed's cares beguile; Gallant youth, unus'd to fear, Maſter of the broken ſpear, And the arrow-pierced ſhield, Brought with honour from the field. Like an hurricane is He, Bursting on the troubled ſea. See their ſpears diſtain'd with gore! Hear the din of battle roar! Bucklers, ſwords, together claſhing. Sparkles from their helmets flaſhing! Hear ye not their loud alarms? Hark.! they ſhout-to arms! to arms! Thus were Garthen's plains defended, Maelor fight began and ended. There two princes fought, and there Was Morach Vorvran's feaſt exchang'd for rout and fear. 8. Fill the horn: 'tis my delight, When my friends return from fight, Champions of their country's glory, To record each gallant ſtory.— To Ynyr's comely offspring fill, Foremoſt in the battle ſtill; Two blooming youths, in counſel ſage, As heroes of maturer age; In peace, and war, alike renown'd, Be their brows with garlands crown'd; Deck'd with glory let them ſhine, The ornament and pride of Ynyr's antient line! 9. To Selyf fill, of Eagle-heart, Skill'd to hurl the fatal dart: With the Wolf's impetuous force He urgeth on his headlong courſe. To Tudor next, great Madoc's ſon, They the race of honor run Together in the tented field, And both alike diſdain to yield: Like a Lion in the fray, Tudor darts upon his prey. Rivals in the feats of war; Where danger call'd, they ruſh'd from far; Till ſhatter'd by ſome hoſtile ſtroke, With horrid clang their ſhields were broke; Loud as the foaming billows roar, Or fierce contending winds on Talgath's ſtormy ſhore. 10. Fill the horn with roſy wine, Brave Moreiddig claims it now, Chieftain of an antient line, Dauntleſs heart, and open brow. To the warrior it belongs, Prince of battles, theme of ſongs! Pride of Powys, Mochnant's boaſt! Guardian of his native coaſt!— But ah! his ſhort-liv'd triumph's o'er, Brave Moreiddig is no more! To his penſive ghoſt we'll give Due remembrance, while we live; And in fairy fiction dreſs'd, Flowing hair, and ſable veſt, The tragic Muſe ſhall grace our ſongs, While brave Moreiddig's name the mournful ſtrain prolongs. 11. Pour out the horn, (tho' he deſire it not) And heave a ſigh on Morgan's early grave; Doom'd in his clay-cold tenement to rot, While we revere the memory of the brave. 12. Fill again the HIRLAS HORN. On that ever-glorious morn, The Britons and their foes between, What prodigies of might were ſeen! On Gweſtyn's plain the fight began; But Gronwy ſure was more than man! Him to reſiſt, on Gweſtyn's plain, A hundred Saxons ſtrove in vain. To ſet the noble Meyric free, And change his bonds to liberty, The warriors vow'd. The God of day Scarce darted his meridian ray, When he beheld the conquerors ſteep'd in gore, And Gweſtyn's bloody fight, ere higheſt, noon was o'er. 13. Now a due libation pour To the ſpirits of the dead, Who, that memorable hour, Made the hoſtile plain their bed. There the glitt'ring ſteel was ſeen, There the twanging bow was heard; There the mighty preſs'd the green, Recorded by the faithful Bard. Madoc there, and Meilir brave, Sent many a Saxon to his grave. Their drink was Mead; their hearts were true; And to the head their ſhafts they drew; But Owen's guards, in terrible array, Reſiſtleſs march along, and make the world give way. 14. Pour the ſweet tranſparent Mead, (The ſpear is red in time of need) And give to each departed ſpirit The honor and reward of merit. What cares ſurround the regal ſtate, What anxious thoughts moleſt the great, None but a prince himſelf can know, And Heav'n, that ruleth kings, and lays the mighty low. 15. For Daniel fill the horn ſo green, Of haughty brow, and angry mien; While the leſſ'ning tapers ſhine Fill it up with gen'rous wine. He nor quarter takes, nor gives, But by ſpoils and rapine lives.

LLANDEGAI. Comely is the youth, and brave; But obdurate as the grave. Hadſt thou ſeen, in Maelor fight, How we put the foe to flight! Hadſt thou ſeen the chiefs in arms, When the foe ruſh'd on in ſwarms! Round about their prince they ſtood, And ſtain'd their ſwords with hoſtile blood. Glorious bulwarks! To their praiſe Their prince devotes his lateſt lays.— Now, my boy, thy taſk is o'er; Thou ſhalt fill the horn no more. Long may the King of kings protect, And crown with bliſs, my friends elect; Where Liberty and Truth reſide, And Virtue, Truth's immortal bride! There may we all together meet, And former times renew in heav'nly converſe ſweet! R. W.

FROM Penrhyn I viſited the church of Llandegai, about a mile diſtant from the houſe. It is finely ſituated on a lofty, bank above the Ogwen, and commands a beautiful view. It is a ſmall but neat ſtructure, in form of a croſs; with the tower in the center, ſupported within by four arches. Here is preſerved an alabaſter monument of an armed man, and his lady, recumbent. They probably belonged to the neighboring houſe; but on the diſſolution were removed from the friery of Llanvaes, where the perſons repreſented had been interred. A mural monument, with the figure of archbiſshop John Williams in his epiſcopal dreſs,ARCHBISHOP WILLIAMS. kneeling at an altar, is placed above the remains of that great prelate. He was born at Conwy. His father Edmund was ſixth ſon of the neighboring family of Cwchwillan, a branch of that of Penrhyn. His mother Mary, daughter of Owen ap John Owen Pedigree of the family, MS.. The archbiſhop was fifth ſon. In his childiſh years, with other play-fellows, he was diverting himſelf with leaping from part of the walls of Conwy down to the ſhore. The fall was on ſo critical a part, as ever to ſecure him from all reproaches of unchaſtity. I mention this merely to reſcue him from the reflections flung on him by that ſatyrical hiſtorian Sir Anthony Weldon Memoirs.. At ſchool, which was that of Ruthin, he was a compound of alternate truantry and induſtry. His great abilities were ſoon taken notice of. He entered on public life as chaplain to lord chancellor Egerton; and preaching before the king, ſo pleaſed the royal ear, that in 1610 James made him dean of Saliſbury; and on farther diſcovery of his great abilities, in 1620, dean of Weſtminſter; and in 1621, lord keeper, in the room of the illuſtrious Lord Bacon; and in leſs than a month, nominated him to the ſee of Lincoln. Now placed above reſtraint, his character began to unfold. His ſpirit grew beyond the controul of miniſters; for, with undaunted courage, he perſiſted in all that was right: and, being ſubject to the failings of his country, (great paſſion, pride, and vanity) ſometimes in what was wrong. He diſcharged his office, foreign as it was to his profeſſion, with diſtinguiſhed credit near five years. Soon after the acceſſion of Charles I. by the influence of the favorite Buckingham, he was ſuddenly diſmiſſed: for he always had reſiſted the unreaſonable demands of that minion.

IN two parts of his conduct I muſt conſider him as a wife but not as a good man:—His advice to his diſtreſſed maſter, in the caſe of the earl of Strafford, had too great a ſhare of duplicity to be vindicated; perhaps of reſentment, for he hated the devoted miniſter. The ſpirit of Machiavel aroſe ſtrong in him, when he ſpoke of a public and private conſcience; and ſtill more ſtrongly when he adviſed Charles, in caſe the king could not gain Cromwel by promiſes of fair treatment, to catch him by ſome ſtratagem, and cut him ſhort. He may appear in theſe inſtances a great miniſter, but a bad divine. The infirmity, the inequalities, which may be met in men even of firſt-rate abilities, may be exemplified in his attempt to defend himſelf from a frivolous accuſation; for he fell into the diſgraceful crime of ſubornation of perjury, was cenſured in the ſtar-chamber, and ſuffered impriſonment from 1637 to 1640. On his releaſe, irritated againſt the court, he for a time joined the popular leaders. Let me attribute this (and candor may admit the cauſe) to the natural violence of his temper; for on all trying occaſions he ſhewed his zeal for the liberty of the ſubject, and his ſincerity to his order. Soon after this, he was, according to an old promiſe, promoted to the ſee of York. He was a firm friend to the petition of right Drake's Parliam. Hiſt. viii. 146. , foreſeeing that he ſerved both king and people in the ſupport of it. As a friend to the church, he was ſo ſucceſsful an advocate, and ſhewed ſuch eloquence and ſtrength of reaſoning, in the debate in May 1641, on taking away the votes of biſhops in the houſe of lordsThe ſame, ix, 334., as to cauſe the affair to be dropped for that ſeſſions. In the latter end of the year, when popular fury ran high, he was attacked in Weſtminſter abbey; and with great courage repelled the violence of the mob. This gave riſe to the firſt ſatyrical political print I know. The prelate is repreſented in his epiſcopal dreſs, a muſket on his ſhoulder, reſt in his hand, helmet on his head, and mitre on the ground. The rage of the common people increaſed, even ſo far as to ſeize him in his way to the houſe of lords, and to tear his robes from his back. Incenſed at this, he returned to Weſtminſter abbey (the deanery of which he had been allowed to hold three years in commendam) and, in a fit of paſſion, induced eleven biſhops to join him in a phrenetic proteſt againſt all acts that ſhould be done in the houſe of lords during their forced abſenceClarendon, ii. 350. . This brought an impeachment of high-treaſon againſt them, impriſonment of eighteen months, and in the end a releaſe upon bail, in which the archbiſhop in particular was bound not to go into his dioceſe during the diſturbances in the county of York Drake's Parliam. Hiſt. x. 483. . He inſtantly diſobeyed the injunction, followed the king into the city of York, was enthroned there on June 27th 1642; but immediately driven away by the Hothams. He then retired to his native country, where he finiſhed his days on his birth-day, March 25th 1650, aged 68. He died at Gloddaeth, the ſeat of Sir Roger Moſtyn, an eminent loyaliſt; whoſe lady warned him of the approach of death, the ſtroke of which he received with exemplary piety, courage, and reſignation Philips's Life of archbiſhop Williams, 305. His chaplain Hackett, afterwards biſhop of Lichfield, compoſed his epitaph. His memory is more pleaſingly preſerved in an elegant little poem on the fight of his monument, preſerved in vol. vi. of Dodſley's Miſcellanies. .

FROM Llandegai I deſcended, and croſſed the wooden bridge over the furious torrent Ogwen, which, a little lower, diſcharges itſelf into the ſea at Aber-ogwell; and near which is the ruin of the old chapel, Capel Ogwen, and certain entrenchments, defences of this part of the country. I ſoon quitted the great road to viſit Carnedd Llewelyn and Carnedd Dafydd. In my way, near a field called Car Gwilim Ddu, is an artificial cave, in which (tradition ſays) was interred William de Breos, executed, by Llewelyn the Great, on ſuſpicion of too great familiarity with his royal conſort. From hence I begin a ſteep aſcent, and leave on the left the vaſt mountain Moelwynnion, and the ſtrange ferrated rocks Bere Mawr and Bere Bach. The Gern appeared on our right, and Trwſgwl in front. On the right, farther on, projected into the bottom the lofty peaked Moel yr Elain, or the naked hill of the Fawn, ſeeming like a buttreſs to Carnedd Llewelyn; and between it and Carnedd Dafydd lies the little vale of Cwm Penllafar, fertile in graſs. We proceeded on the ſloping ſides of the Trwſgwl, and near Carnedd y, Filiaſt and Carnedd y Lladron; and paſſing over Clogwyn y Heliwr, or the rock of the Hunters, and aſcending the ſteep and ſtoney ſide of Carnedd Llewelyn, reach the broad and flat ſummit, and quickly decide its height to be far inferior to that of its rival Y Wyddfa. The view is amazingly great. At ſome diſtance are Y Wyddfa, and its neighboring alps. The Glyders, Trevaen Tour in Wales, vol. ii. , and Carnedd y Filiaſt, or rock of the Bitch Gre-hound, appear immediately beneath. The front of the laſt is an even ſlope of rock, ſmooth and uniform; and ſo ſlippery, that if the fox, in extreme danger, takes over it in wet weather, it falls down and periſhes.

NANT FRANKON is a tremendous glen,NANT FRANKON. or rather chaſm, bounded by theſe and other lofty rocks. In the bottom is a narrow tract of meadowing, watered by the Ogwen, which at the end tumbles out of Llyn Ogwen down the rude front of the Benglog. In one part it is called Sarn yr Afange, or the Beavers Dam, another proofTaur is Wales, vol. ii. of the former exiſtence of thoſe animals in our country. Over part of this vale impends Yr Oleu Wen, with its front torn into amazing gullies, through which torrents of ſtones were ſome time before carried into the Nant, by the ſingle colliſion of a cloud which burſt againſt it, diſcharging an ocean of water. The ruins of the hill looked like a ſtream of lava; which providentially divided above a houſe, and by that means gave ſafety to the inhabitants. Among the ruins were ſtones filled with innumerable ſmall braſſy cubic pyritae. I muſt not omit, that the paſſage through this dreary bottom was once defended by a fort, about a mile from the Benglog, called Ty'n y Twr, cloſe to a bridge called Pont y Twr; but at preſent there is not a veſtige to be ſeen.

THE Menai, Angleſey, and the river Conway, afforded a diſtinct and fine proſpect. The high hills eaſt of Nant Conway appeared a mere undulated tract; a proof of our lofty ſituation. Our near view was very diſagreeable, of dreary bottoms or moory hills, and of no waters of any conſequence, except Llyn Llyphaint, LLYN LLYPHAINT. or the lake of the Frogs, diſtinguiſhed only by a ridiculous tale. About the year 1542, ſays Dr. Powel, two vaſt ſtones, one of which a thouſand yoke of oxen could not have moved, in a certain night marched out of the bottom of the lake, up part of the foot of Carnedd Llewelyn, the ſpace of at leſt a bow-ſhot; from whence they have not ſtirred to this day. Henry VIII. doubting the truth, ſent a perſon to enquire into it; but was fully ſatisfied of the fact by the mouth of his meſſengerPowel's Notes on Girald. Cambr. Iter. Cambriae, lib. ii. c. 9..

CARNEDD DAFYDD,CARNEDD DAFYDD. the companion ſummit, is connected to Carnedd Llewelyn by a ſemilunar iſthmus, which, on the ſide over Cwm Penllafar, is called Yſgollion Duon, or the black ladders; and forms the moſt horrid precipice that thought can conceive. The height of Carnedd Dafydd equals that of Llewelyn. We deſcended through Cwm Penllafar, which ſignifies the Vale of Melody; perhaps that of the hounds, when in full cry over the rock of the Hunters. A few peaſants, who have ſufficient ſtrength of head, ſometimes attempt to paſs the tremendous iſthmus, as the ſhorteſt way to Dyffryn Mymbr and Llanrwſt. A ſafer way, through variety of bog and ſtoney tracts, may be found up the Benglog, and along Nant y Benglog and Bwlch Oleuni, over which is a narrow path into Dyffryn Mumbr.

IN my return from this ſublime ride, I called at Coytmor, COYTWOR. or more properly Coed Mawr, ſeated in the midſt of lofty trees, every now and then opening ſo as to admit ſight of the exalted mountains and rocks ſoaring above with miſty tops. This had long been the reſidence of a family of the ſame name; and of later years, by the marriage of the heireſs, the property of the Pughs of Penrhyn in Creuddyn. In the houſe is a remarkable picture, by Sir Peter Lely, of the diminutive painter Richard Gibſon, PICTURE OF GIBSON THE PAINTER. and his fairy wife, hand in hand: neither of them exceeded three feet ten inches in height. He was diſtinguiſhed for his ſkill in water-colors; and was excellent in his copies of the portraits of Sir Peter Lely. He had the honor of being drawing-maſter to the princeſs of Orange, and her ſiſter Queen Anne. He died in 1690, aged 75. His little widow ſurvived him till 1709, when ſhe quitted life at the great age of 89Mr. Walpole's Anecdotes of Painting, iii. 64. . They had the honor of being married in the preſence of Charles I. and his queen, and the ſtill greater honor of having their epithalamium compoſed by Mr. Waller. It is ſo beautiful that I doubt not but the reader will excuſe me for giving it at full length.

Of the MARRIAGE of the DWARFS. DESIGN, or chance, make others wive; But Nature did this match contrive. Eve might as well hare Adam fled, As ſhe deny'd her little bed To him; for whom Heav'n ſeem'd to frame And meaſure out this only dame. Thrice happy is that humble pair. Beneath the level of all care! Over whoſe heads thoſe arrows fly Of ſad diſtruſt and jealouſy: Secured in as high extreme, As if the world held none but them. To him the faireſt nymphs do ſhow Like moving mountains top'd with ſnow; And every man a POLYPHEME Does to his GALATEA ſeem: None may preſume her faith to prove; He proffers death who proffers love.— Ah CHLORIS! that kind Nature thus From all the world had ſever'd us; Creating for ourſelves us two, As love has me for only you!

CONTINUE my ride towards the ſhore, towards Aber, ABER. a ſmall village with a church, in the gift of Lord Bulkeley; ſeated at the mouth of a deep glen, which runs ſtraight a mile and a half between the mountains, and bounded on one ſide by a magnificent rock, called Maes y Gaer. One part is hid with trees; on the other they only ſprinkle its grey ſurface. At the extremity of this glen a mountain preſents a concave front, in the center of which a vaſt cataract precipitates down a double fall.CASCADE. The loweſt is of a very great height, and forms partly a broad white ſheet, partly a ſnowy dew, not unlike the Staubhauch, or duſty caſcade, in Switzerland.

AT the entrance of the glen, cloſe to the village, is a very large artificial mount, flat at top, and near ſixty feet in diameter, widening towards the baſe. It was once the ſite of a caſtle belonging to Llewelyn the Great. Some foundations are yet to be ſeen round the ſummit, and in digging, traces of buildings have been diſcovered. In this place was detected the intrigue of William de Breos (ſon of Reginald, a potent baron in the reign of Henry III.) with the wife of Llewelyn. It ſeems that William, by chance of war, had before fallen into the hands of our prince, at which time probably the familiarity with the princeſs commenced; but was not diſcovered till after he was releaſed on a large ranſomDugdale Baron, i. 419. . The vindictive Llewelyn, in the following year (1229) inveigled Breos into his power, by an invitation to celebrate the feaſt of Eaſter; when, after an elegant banquet, the prince reproached him with his crime, and cauſed him to be dragged from his preſenceKnyghton in Hiſt. Angl Script. ii. 1439. Cambden in Brecknockſhire, ii. 710. , and hung on an adjacent hill. The tradition of the country is, that a Bard of the palace accidentally meeting with the princeſs (who was ignorant of the fate of her lover) accoſted her in the following manner; and on receiving her anſwer, ſhewed him to her, hanging on a tree.

Diccyn doccyn, gwraig Lhewelyn, Beth y roit'i am weled Gwilim?

The princeſs anſwers,

Cymry, Lloiger, a Lhewelyn Y rown'i gyd, am weled Gwilim. BARD.

—Tell me, wife of Llewelyn, what would you give for a ſight of your William?

PRINCESS.

—Wales, England, and Llewelyn to boot, I would give them all to ſee my William.

I CONTINUED my journey from Aber along the rich receſs, enjoying a fine view of the entrance into the Menai, with its wooded ſhores of Angleſey and Prieſtholm iſle, and the great expanſe of water between them and Llandudno, or Ormſhead: the vaſt cape riſing, like the rock of Gibraltar, high out of the waves. Before me ſoared the great promontory of PENMAEN MAWR, protruding itſelf into the ſea, and exhibiting a fine contraſt to the fertility which it interrupts, by a rude view of grey weather-beaten ſtone and precipice. I paſſed by Bryn y Neuodd, a houſe late the property of Humphrey Roberts, Eſq now of his daughter and ſole heireſs, relict of Robert Wynne, Eſq of Plâſnewydd, near Denbigh. A little farther is the ſmall village and church of Llanvair Vechan; from whence is a very ſhort ride to the once tremendous road over this celebrated rock.

IN paſt times it was juſtly the terror of the traveller;PENMAEN MAWR. extremely narrow, bad, and ſtoney; and what added to his fears, for a conſiderable way the danger encreaſed with his progreſs, by reaſon of the precipice gaining additional height. Generally it was without the protection of a wall to ſecure him in caſe of a falſe ſtep; which might in the loftieſt place precipitate him ſome ſcores of yards, either on ſharp rocks or into the ſea according to the ſtate of the tide. A vein of a crumbling ſtratum, in one part ſo contracted the road as to excite new horrors. The Britiſh parlement eaſed the fears of the travellers by a generous aid; which, by means of the judicious employment of JOHN SYLVESTER, about the year 1772, effected what was before thought beyond the reach of art to remedy. The road is now widened to a proper breadth, and near the verge of the precipice ſecured by a ſtrong wall. The deſcent towards Penmaen Bach, or the Little Penmaen, which before was hardly practicable, is now deſtroyed; and the road is brought on a level for two or three miles, at a vaſt height above a return of rich ſlopes, and the deep bottom of Dwygyfylchig, till we arrive at the rude back of that leſſer promontory; when we labor up the ſteep aſcent of Sychnant, with a horrible and almoſt precipitous mountain on one ſide, and hills, with tops broken into moſt ſingular crags, on the other. From the top of Sychnant, the road is continued about two miles on a perpetual deſcent to the town of Conway.

THE breach occaſioned by the crumbling ſtratum, is now effectually repaired by a ſeries of arches; a work the juſt admiration of travellers, and a high credit to the ingenious contriver. One danger yet remains, which muſt for ever baffle the art of man: the ſide of this great rock, above the road, breaks into millions of vaſt maſſes, depending often on precarious tenures; which, looſened by the frequent torrents, ſometimes (though rarely) deſcend in ſtoney ſtreams.

Two or three accidents,ACCIDENTS THERE. which have happened on this road, will remain as miracles. An exciſeman fell from the higheſt part, and eſcaped unhurt. The reverend Mr. Jones, who, in 1762, was rector of Llanelian, in the iſle of Angleſey, fell with his horſe, and a midwife behind him, down the ſteepeſt part. The ſage femme periſhed, as did the nag. The divine, with great philoſophy, unſaddled the ſteed, and marched off with the trappings, exulting at his preſervation.

I HAVE often heard of another accident, attended with ſuch romantic circumſtances that I would not venture to mention it, had I not the ſtrongeſt traditional authority, to this day in the mouth of every one in the pariſh of Llanvair Vechan, in which this promontory ſtands. Above a century ago, Siôn Humphries of this pariſh had made his addreſſes to Anne Thomas of Creyddyn, on the other ſide of Conway river. They had made an appointment to meet at a fair in the town of Conway. He in his way fell over Penmaen Mawr: ſhe was overſet in the ferry-boat, and was the only perſon ſaved out of more than fourſcore. They were married, and lived very long together in the pariſh of Llanvair. She was buried April 11th 1744, aged 116. He ſurvived her five years, and was buried December 10th 1749; was buried cloſe by her in the pariſh church-yard, where their graves are familiarly ſhewn to this day.

I HAVE more than once viſited the ſummit of this noted rock, to view the fortifications deſcribed by the editor of Cambden, from ſome notes of that ſenſible old baronet Sir John Wynn of Gwedir, and have found his account very juſt Cambden, ii. 804, & ſeq. Before Sir John Wynn, a Sir Thomas ap William, medicus, M. A. had deſcribed it; but his account never appeared in print. He was eighth ſon of one of the family of Cochwillan. Lived in the year 1594, and is ſaid to have reſided at Trefriw. . The aſcent is laborious. Soon after leaving the inn, I met with the ruins of St. Seiriol's chapel, or, as it is here called, his Gweli, or bed; and after paſſing a conſiderable way amidſt ſmall trees and bruſh-wood, attain the bare and ſtoney part, or the Braich y Ddinas, (i. e. the arm of the city) which riſes in form of another hill out of this promontory. A Mr. Caſwel, ITS HEIGHT. at the requeſt of Mr. Flamſteed the great aſtronomer, meaſured the height, and found it to be from the ſands 1545 feet.

AFTER climbing for ſome ſpace among the looſe ſtones, the front of three, if not four,AN ANTIENT FORTRESS. walls preſented themſelves very diſtinctly one above the other. In most places the facings appeared very perfect; but all of dry work. I meaſured the height of one wall, which was at the time nine feet; the thickneſs ſeven feet and a half. Between theſe walls, in all parts, were innumerable ſmall buildings, moſtly circular, and regularly faced within and without; but not diſpoſed in any certain order. Theſe had been much higher, as is evident from the fall of ſtones, which lie ſcattered at their bottoms; and probably had once the form of towers, as Sir John aſſerts. Their diameter in general is from twelve to eighteen feet; but ſome were far leſs, not exceeding five feet. The walls were in certain places interſected with others equally ſtrong. On the north-weſt and ſouth-eaſt ſides are the plain marks of two roads, of a zig-zag form, with the remains of walls on both ſides, which lead to the ſummit. On the ſmall area of the top had been a group of towers, or cells, like the former; one in the center, and five others ſurrounding it. Three are ſtill diſtinct; of the two others are only faint veſtiges. Near this had been, I believe, a ſimilar group; but at preſent reduced to a ſhapeleſs heap of ſtones. Near one of theſe groups is a well cut in the live rock, and always filled with water, ſupplied by the rains, and kept full by the frequent impending vapours.

THIS ſtrong hold of the Britons is exactly of the ſame kind with thoſe on Carn Madryn, Carn Boduan, and Tre'r Caeri, deſcribed pp. 194. 206. 207. This was moſt judiciouſly founded, to cover the paſſage into Angleſey, and the remoter part of their country; and muſt, from its vaſt ſtrength, have been invincible, except by famine; being inacceſſible by natural ſteepneſs towards the ſea, and on the other parts fortified in the manner deſcribedSee a plan of the top and one ſide of this ſtrong hold in the Archaelogia, iii. plate xxix. p. 352..

THE white beam, or Aria Theophraſti, ARIA THEOPHRASTI. is frequent on the ſides of this rock, and in many ſimilar places in Wales. No uſe is made of it in our country. The Swiſs procure from the berries a good ſpirit. The wood is very hard, and excellent for flutes: and the wood, from its great ſolidity, was eſteemed to make the beſt charcoal.

I DESCENDED from the ſummit into a hollow between the Penmaen and an adjacent mountain. Got upon my horſe, and directed my courſe on a good ſheep-walk towards Conway. In my way obſerved, above Gwdhw Glâs, in the pariſh of Dwygyvylcheu, a long ſeries of antiquities, ſome of which are mentioned in the account of Penmaen Mawr preſerved in Cambden. For a very conſiderable length of way I ſaw circles of ſtones of various diameters, and great Carneddau. CIRCLES AND CARNEDDAU. The principal circle conſiſts at preſent of ten upright ſtones, at unequal diſtances from each other; the largeſt of which is eight feet three inches high: on the ground is another, eleven feet two. The circle is completed by a low bank of looſe ſtones placed between the greater. The diameter of this circle is eighty feet. Near this are four other circles, far inferior in ſize. In the center of one is a flat ſtone, the remains of a Cromlech; probably the reſt might have had thoſe memorials before they were removed for the purpoſe of walling, or the like. About a quarter of a mile from theſe is a large Carnedd, compoſed of ſmall ſtones, and near it another of large ſtones; and not far from theſe, a circle compoſed of ſmall onesAn aſſemblage of antiquities of this nature may be ſeen in plate ii. book iii. of Mr. THOMAS WRIGHT'S Louthirna. That book is a ſmall ſpecimen of his great abilities. The vaſt treaſure he poſſeſſes of drawings of Iriſh antiquities, in the higheſt degree merit publication, and clame the aſſiſtance of ſome diſtinguiſhed patron, to enable a perſon of his merit to enrich the literary world with more of his labors.. Near the laſt is a great rude ſtone ſtanding upright, called Maen y Campiau, MAEN Y CAMPIAU. or Stone of the Games; and almoſt contiguous is a Carnedd, and a ſmall circle of twelve ſtones. This tract had certainly been much inhabited; for all around are the foundations of ſmall buildings, made of rounded ſtones, ſuitable to the rudeneſs and ſimplicity of diſtant ages. Small upright ſtones, and numbers of ſmall Carnedds, are ſcattered in various places; and the veſtige of a formed road is to be ſeen pointing from hence towards the Conway.

WHATSOEVER purpoſe the leſſer circles might be deſigned for, there is great reaſon to ſuppoſe that the greater, eſpecially that near to the Maen y Campiau, were the Britiſh circus for the exhibition of antient games; probably the Eiſteddfods, or ſeſſions for deciding the merits of rivals in our Britiſh Olympics, might have been originally held here, or in ſimilar places. Of Britiſh games,THE ANTIENT GAMES. we had twenty-four, Pedair CAMP ar hugain, whoſe names, as preſerved by Dr. Davies in his Dictionary, I ſhall give, with their explanation, as far as in my power. Of theſe, ten were called GWROLGAMPAU, or manly games; of theſe, ſix depended on bodily ſtrength alone, and were ſtyled Tadogion, i. e. Father games, becauſe no inſtrument whatſoever was neceſſary to perform them: for they depended on the man, naked as he was born. The Greeks had their Pentathlum. We had one more. I. Strength to raiſe weights; II. Running; III. Leaping; IV. Swimming; V. Wreſtling; VI. Riding. I imagine that the word Marchogaeth extends farther than the common acceptation, and that the game intended was a conteſt between charioteers; for no people were more ſkilled in the uſe of chariots in war than the Britons: it is therefore improbable that they would not, in time of peace, exert their art in mimic combat, or in competitions of ſpeed in the feſtive field. And theſe ſix were undoubtedly original games of this iſland, and from the earlieſt of times: of others, ſome doubt may be made.

THE remaining four manly games were, O Rym-arfau, or what depended on ſkill in arms. I. Archery; II. Playing with the ſword and buckler; III. Playing with the Cleddyf Deuddwrn, or the two-handed ſword, the antient weapon of the Britons, as exemplified in a ſtatue of a ſoldier, found in digging among the ruins of London, after the great fire in 1666 Monfaucon's Antiq. iv. 16. tab. ix.; IV. Chwarau Ffon Ddwybig, or playing with the two-end ſtaff; which ſeems to correſpond with the more modern quarter-ſtaff.

AFTER theſe were the ten Mabolgampau, or JUVENILE games. Among them, three ſpecies of the chare: I. Courſing with the gre-hound; II. Fiſhing; III. Fowling. The remaining ſeven were of the domeſtic kind: I. Bairddoniath, or poetical competitions, of which I have before ſpokenIn my account of the Eiſteddfoddau Caerwy, Tour in Wales, i. 427 to 446, ſome light is thrown on this and certain of the following articles.; II. Playing upon the harp; III. Reading Welſh; IV. Singing a Cywydd with muſic; V. Singing a Cywydd between four with accents; VI. Drawing of coats of arms; VII. Heraldry. Theſe two ſeem ſo congenial, as to be unneceſſarily ſeparated.

AFTER theſe were four Go-gampiau, or Sub-games. I. Chwarau Gwydd-bwyll, a game like that of Draughts, played with men, and probably the game of Fox and Gooſe, Gwydd ſignifying a gooſe, and Gwerin y Wyddbwyll the men of that game.

II. CHWARAU Tawl Bwrdd, is probably Back gammon: words of Britiſh origin; bach little, and gammon a battle, the ſtrife of gameſters: and Tawl bwrdd is literally the caſt on the table.

III. CHWARAU Ffriſteal, or the games of the dice-box; of which we know no more than that dice had a concern in it. And IVthly, Cyweiriaw Felyn, or the tuning of the harp.

AFTER leaving the antiquities of Goddw Glâs, I joined the turnpike road above Sychnant. On the left, was pointed to me a lofty hill, impending over Conway March. On its ſummit is Caſtell Caer Lleion, a Britiſh poſt, ſurrounded with ditches, and ſtrong ramparts of ſtones; an additional defence to the country, beſides that of Penmaen Mawr. The view of part of Conway, and a large bend of the river, with its rich and wooded banks, are ſeen from the deſcent to them to great advantage.

I ENTERED CONWAY at the upper gate.CONWAY. A more ragged town is ſcarcely to be ſeen, within; or a more beautiful one, without. The ſituation is on a ſteep ſlope to the verge of the river, here a mile broad at high-water. The form is nearly triangular, ſurrounded with lofty walls, guarded by twenty-four round towers. The lower face of the triangle borders on the river. A caſtle of matchleſs magnificence riſes on a lofty rock, at one corner; and from near each end of the town-walls, fronting the Conwy, a curtain terminated with a round tower ran ſome way into the river, the more effectually to prevent the approach of an enemy from the water. Only one of theſe curtains exiſts; the other, with both the towers, have long ſince periſhed.

IN front is an extenſive quay, from which is a delightful view up and down the river. The oppoſite ſide is hilly, varied with

CONWAY CASTLE.

CONWAY CASTLE. woods and gentlemen's ſeats, and the bifurcated hill of Diganwy, a fortreſs. The ground called Arcadia, laid out by my worthy friend and old ſchool-fellow Owen Holland, Eſq and Plâs-tyrion, the houſe of the reverend Mr. Owen Jones, well merit a viſit from the traveller.

THE caſtle was built by Edward I. in the year 1284; who, I believe, employed the architect who built Caernarvon. All his ſkill ſeems to have been exerted here. A more beautiful fortreſs never aroſe. Its form is oblong, placed on all parts on the verge of the precipitous rock. One ſide is bounded by the river; another by a creek full of water at every tide, and moſt beautifully ſhaded by hanging woods. The other two ſides face the town. Within are two courts; and on the outſide project eight vaſt towers, each with a ſlender one of amazing elegance iſſuing from its top, within which had been a winding ſtair-caſe. In one of the great towers is a fine window, in form of an arched receſs, or bow, ornamented with pillars. This, in antient times, was an elegant part of architecture, called the oriel, uſual in the houſes of people of rank; and appears, from a poem of the very age in which this was built, to have been the toilet of the ladies, and probably might have been that of Queen Elinor. In her ORYALL there ſhe was, Cloſyd well with royal glas; Fulfullyd it was with ymagery, Every windowe by and by, On each ſide had ther a gynne Sperde with manie a dyvers pynnePart of the poem of the SQUIRE OF LOW DEGREE. See Mr. WARTON'S Hiſt. Poetry, i. 175.—The gynnes were the faſtenings of the caſements, which were often ſecured with pynnes of yvere. .

THE great hall ſuited the magnificence of the founder.HALL. It is of a curved form, conformable to the bend of the outward walls, including one end with a large window, which ſeems to have been the private chapel. It extended a hundred and thirty feet in length, was thirty-two broad, and of a fine height. The roof once ſupported by eight noble arches, ſix of which ſtill remain. A great fire-place at one end, and another on the ſide, warmed it: and ſix windows to the country, and three to the court, gave light to this ſpacious apartment. Beneath were vaſt vaults, the magazines of all that contributed to the convivial mirth above.

THERE were two entrances into this fortreſs,ENTRANCES TO THE CASTLE. both contrived for ſecurity. The one from the Conwy, up a ſteep rock, once a winding narrow ſtairs, ending in a ſmall advanced work before one of the gates of the caſtle, and protected by ſmall round towers. At the other extremity is a ſimilar work, from which had been a draw-bridge, occaſionally dropped into the town, over a great foſs. This entrance is expreſſed in the vignette, p. 1. of this volume.

THE town contains but few inhabitants,TOWN. a conſiderable ſpace being vacant of buildings. It has four entrances: the upper gate; the lower, or that next to the water; a portal between that and the caſtle; and another to the creek, called Porth y Felin, or the gate to the mill.

EDWARD I. made Conwy a free borough, and ordered that the mayor, who was the conſtable of the caſtle for the time being, ſhould preſerve its privileges. William Sikun was appointed firſt to that honor. At preſent it is governed by one alderman, a recorder, coroner, water-bailiff, and two ſerjeants at mace,

HALL in CONWAY CASTLE. choſen annually. The privileges extended from Caernarvon to the river Clwyd; for none could be convicted of any crime, within that diſtrict, but by a jury collected within that tract. Such was the caſe with all the other Engliſh garriſons in North Wales.

THE ferry is at preſent the property of the owner of Marle. FERRY. An order was iſſued by Edward II. for either the repairing the boat, or building a new one: for the uſe of which the inhabitants were to pay eight marksSebright MSS.. At low-water the river is not fifty yards broad, nor above eight feet deep. The ſpring-tides riſe twelve feet; but the aproach to this port is unſafe, by reaſon of the ſand-banks.

THERE are ſome remains of the Ciſtercian abbey,ABBEY. founded in 1185 by Llewelyn ap Jorwerth, prince of North Wales, in honor of the Bleſſed Virgin and All SaintsDugdale's Monaſticon, i. 918. . A long vaulted room of good maſonry, worked with clay, but plaiſtered with lime; and a Saxon door, are ſtill to be ſeen. He endowed it with lands, to a vaſt extent, in Caernarvonſhire and in Angleſey The ſame, 918. 919., and with privileges of great value: among the lands are mentioned Caput Wedva Vawr, and Caput Grybcoch, and Morva Dinllin. It was exempted not only from the maintenance of all men, horſes, dogs, and hawks, and even of thoſe of the prince. No one was to interfere in the elections, or affairs of the houſe. They were to enjoy all benefits of wrecks on the ſhores of their property, in the ſame manner as the prince did on his; but no advantage was to be taken of ſimilar misfortunes to the religious men, but all their goods, ſo wrecked, were to be reſtored. They and their ſervants were to be exempt, in all parts, from tolls, pontage, and the like; and their free paſſage over the Menai, Conwy, Barmouth (Abermaw) and Dyni (perhaps Dyfi) is particularly provided for. Numbers of other privileges are mentioned, the charter of which is dated from Aberconwy, and witneſſed by Yorwerth Gam, Gwin ap Ednewein Ydon, the prince's chaplain, and by Madog ap CadorDugdale's Monaſticon, 920. . This ſhews that Conwy was a place of ſome note before the Engliſh conqueſt. It probably had ſome ſort of fortreſs before the exiſtence of the preſent, its antient name being Caer Gyffin, Gyffin being that of the ſtream that flows into the creek beneath the caſtleMS in the poſſeſſion of his grace the Duke of Beaufort. . Cambden, in vol. ii. p. 803, tells us that Hugh Lupus had fortified the place, I ſuppoſe on his march into Angleſey in 1098.

EDWARD I. did not chuſe to truſt within his new walls religious of the principality, but immediately removed them to his new foundation at Maynan See p. 145 of this work., REMOVED TO MAYNAN. a few miles higher up the river. He acted with tenderneſs towards the monks, and left them all their lands and privileges, and preſerved to them the preſentation of their conventual church at Conway, now made parochial, provided they found two able and worthy Engliſhmen as chaplains, and a third, a Welſhman, for the benefit of thoſe who did not underſtand Engliſh. One of the Engliſh was to be perpetual vicar, to be named by the convent on every vacancy, and preſented by the dioceſanDugdale Monaſt. i. 921. .

AMONG the illuſtrious perſons buried in the church,TOMBS. was Cynan ap Owen Gwynedd, who was interred in the year 1200, in a monk's cowl; becauſe, ſays Powel, it was then made to beleeve by the moonks and friers, that that ſtrange weed was a ſure defenſe betwixt their ſoules and hell, howſoever they diedPowel's Hiſt. Wales, 252. . Its great founder was alſo buried here; but on the diſſolution his coffin was removed to Llanrwſt, and is ſtill to be ſeen.

A VERY rude figure, cut on ſtone, preſerves the memory of Mary, mother to Archbiſhop Williams, who died of child-birth of twins, October 10th 1585; and a ſingular epitaph on a Mr. Hookes, proves the remarkable ſecundity of the family. Here lyeth the body of NICHOLAS HOOKES of CONWAY, Gent. who was the 41ſt child of his father WILLIAM HOOKES, Eſq by ALICE his wife, and the father of twenty-ſeven children; who died the 20th day of MARCH 1637.

IN the ſtreet not far from the abbey, is a very old houſe, with a ſingular window, with ſeveral coats of arms ſculptured beneath; ſome relative to the Stanlies. This houſe is called the College.COLLEGE. As it is ſaid that Edward I. took this abbey into his hands, he poſſibly might eſtabliſh here a place for the inſtruction of youth.

THE Plas Mawr is a vaſt houſe built by Robert Wynn, PLAS MAWR. Eſq of the houſe of Gwedir. Over the gateway is inſcribed 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 , Suſtine abſtine; and on the houſe, the pious letters I. H. S. X. P. S. and the date 1585. Within is a great quantity of rude ſtucco, with various arms of the founder's allies or patrons. Scattered over the walls and ceilings are ſwans, owls, cranes, oſtriches, and bears and ragged ſtaves; the laſt, the badges of Robert Dudley earl of Leiceſter; a piece of flattery paid to him by the founder of the houſe.

FEW of the remarkable events which have befel this place,EVENTS. are preſerved in hiſtory. When Henry III. made his calamitous encampment under Diganwy, oppoſite to this town, he diſpatched three hundred renegado Welſhmen of the borders, with ſome other troops, to reſcue a ſhip of proviſion which had been ſtranded on this ſide. They ſucceeded; but, inſtigated by avarice, ſacrilegiouſly plundered the abbey, and burnt ſeveral houſes belonging to it. The loyal Welſh grew deſperate, attacked the banditti loaden with ſpoils, ſlew numbers, and hung or beheaded every priſoner whom they tookPowel, 311. .

RICHARD II. before his return from Ireland, directed that the rendezvous of his forces, deſtined to oppoſe the uſurping Bolingbroke, ſhould be here. Forty thouſand loyaliſts, out of Cheſhire and Wales, had aſſembled under the banners of the earl of Saliſbury. Wearied by the delays of their ill-fated prince, numbers diſbanded themſelves: yet ſufficient remained animated againſt the uſurper, and determined to follow their king through all his fortunes. Richard, ſeized with a panic, ſtole from Conwy in the nightHelinſhed, 499. , was betrayed by the earl of Northumberland, and ſoon after periſhed in the hands of his enemyIn the Tour in Wales, i. 45, is the ſequel of his ſtory..

THE town was almoſt depopulated by the plague, in 1607, and numbers of people were buried in the ſtreets. It was obſerved to break out here within three weeks of the time it appeared in London, probably brought here by ſome ſugitives.

IN mention of the tranſactions in this place during the civil wars, the laſt active ſcene of the life of Archbiſhop Williams muſt be related, eſpecially as it was a part for which he underwent the greateſt, but perhaps unjuſt, calumny. As ſoon as he retired into Wales in 1642, he was reſorted to by all the loyaliſts, being the perſon on whoſe prudence and ſpirit they could fully rely. He had received in charge from his majeſty all North Wales, and in particular the caſtle of Conway Philip's Life of Archbiſhop Williams, 287.. He began with fortifying his houſe at Penrhyn; and was at conſiderable expence in ſtrengthening this fortreſs. In the perilous ſtate of thoſe times, multitudes of the country gentlemen requeſted the archbiſhop to receive into the caſtle their writings, plate, and moſt valuable moveables. He undertook the charge, and gave to every owner a receipt, by which he made himſelf liable to the loſs; and put his nephew, William Hookes, in poſſeſſion of the place, in January 1603-4Philips, 289. . His Grace, from that time, was the protector of the country, not only from the violence of the enemy, but from the oppreſſion of his own party. In May 1645, Prince Rupert unfortunately ſuperſeded the prelate in his command, and cauſed Sir John Owen to take poſſeſſion of the caſtle. This he did with moſt blameable violence, and with a conſtant evaſion of giving the archbiſhop any ſecurity of the valuables he had in chargeThe ſame, 295, 296..

AFFAIRS were in this ſtate till June 1646; when Williams, foreſeeing ruin to himſelf, irritated by injuries from thoſe who had embarked in the ſame cauſe with himſelf, and in the critical time (when the king's affairs were deſperate) invited by General Mytton to put himſelf on the favor of parlement, accepted his offer, and aſſiſted him in the reduction of the placeGeneral Mytton's Letter, in Drake's Parl. Hiſt. xv. 3. .

MYTTON, by the advice of the archbiſhop, took the town by ſtorm on Auguſt 15th: the latter aſſiſted perſonally, and was wounded in the neck Ruſhworth, iv. part i. 297.. With the ſeverity uſual at that time towards the Iriſh, Mytton ſeized on all that were found, and cauſed them to be tied back to back, and flung into the riverWhitelook, 219. . The caſtle ſurrendered on the 10th of November; and Mytton, who is repreſented as a generous character, more haughty than covetousPhilips, 300. , reſtored to every individual the property intruſted to Williams. For theſe ſervices the parlement granted him a general pardon, and a releaſe from all his ſequeſtrations.

THE beauty and grandeur of this fortreſs ſeemed to have induced the governing powers to forbear offering any violence to its walls: that impiety was reſerved for loyal hands. A grant had been made of it by the king to Edward Conway, earl of Conway. In 1665, the earl employed his ſervant, Milward, to take down the iron, timber, and lead, and to tranſport it to Ireland, under pretence of its being for his majeſty's ſerviceThe Earl's Letter in the Appendix.. Thomas Bulkely, Eſq Colonel Wynn, and ſeveral of the principal gentlemen of the country, oppoſed the deſign; but their remonſtrance was over-ruled, and this noble pile reduced to nearly its preſent condition. At preſent it is held from the crown by Owen Holland, Eſq

SEVERAL years ago, the folly of ſome of the inhabitants, by getting ſtones from the rock beneath one of the great towers, brought down a vaſt ſegment. The ruins are the moſt awful I ever beheld; lying in ſtupendous fragments on the ſhore, ſome ſo unbroken as to preſerve both the grand external rotundity and inward concavity: a hardened cement of ſtone and mortar eleven feet thick. The proſpect of the upper part of the tower remains entire, ſuſpended at a vaſt height above our heads, exhibiting in the breach ſuch a ſtrength of walling as might have given to the architect the moſt reaſonable hope that his work would have endured to the end of time. When I image to myſelf the gay appearance of this fortreſs, filled by the feſtive court of Edward, his beloved Elinor, and all the train of gallant nobility, who paſſed a Chriſtmas here, exulting at the conqueſt of my hardy countrymen; and when I ſurvey its preſent ruins, my mind naturally falls into melancholy reflections, ſuitable to the ſcene around me. Let me only change the rock on Towy's flood for that of Conwy, and a favorite poet will expreſs the ideas that muſt ariſe in the mind, of its paſt and preſent ſtate.

Deep at its feet, in Conwy's flood, His ſides are cloath'd with waving wood; And antient towers crown his brow, That caſt an awful look below. Whoſe ragged walls the Ivy creeps, And with her arms from falling keeps: So both a ſafety from the wind On mutual dependence find. 'Tis now the Raven's blank abode: 'Tis now th' apartment of the Toad: And there the Fox ſecurely feeds, And there the poiſonous Adder breeds, Conceal'd in ruins, moſs, and weeds. While ever and anon there falls Huge heaps of hoary moulder'd walls. Yet time has ſeen, that lifts the low, And level lays the lofty brow, Has ſeen this broken pile compleat, Big with the vanity of ſtate; But tranſient is the ſmile of Fate! A little rule, a little ſway, A ſun-beam in a winter's day, Is all the proud and mighty have, Betwixt the cradle and the grave. DYER'S Grongar Hill.

FROM Conway I took the road towards Caer Hên, BATTLE OF KYMRYD. the Conovium of the Romans. In my way paſſed near Kymryd, a place noted for a bloody battle in 880, between Anarawd prince of Wales, and the Saxons under Edred duke of Mercia. The Britons were victorious, and drove the invaders back into their own country. Anarawd ſtyled the battle Dîal Rodri, or the Revenge of Roderic; for his father Roderic the Great had the year before been ſlain by the Saxons Cambden, ii. 802, 3. Powel, 38. .

PASSED by the ferry of Tal y Cafn. At a ſmall diſtance from it is a large artificial mount, called Bryn y Caſtell; probably the ſite of a watch-tower belonging to Conovium, and judiciouſly placed in a very contracted part of the vale, to obſerve the approach of an enemy from this ſide.

CAER HĒN,CARE HĒN. the old Conovium, lay in a low ſpot near the river. There are ſtill to be ſeen remains of Roman bricks, and a ſunk building divided into two parts, probably the remains of the hypocauſt from which the hollow brick, or funnel, preſerved at Gloddaeth, was taken. On one of the common bricks was inſcribed LEG. X.—the Legio Antonianus—which ſerved in theſe parts under OſtoriusCambden.. Here alſo was found the cake of copper mentioned in the 63d page of my firſt volume. Near the church are ſome remains of walls, which are all that are left of this once noted place. The Itinerary places it twenty-four miles from Segontium, and nineteen from Varis.

I PROCEEDED a little farther, and turned up a very ſteep road, by the church of Llanbedr, to the ſummit of a very lofty hill, called Pen Caer Helen, PEN CAER HELEN. to try to diſcover more of Helen's noted road; but my ſearch was fruitleſs. Yet my pains were rewarded by the ſight of a Britiſh poſt of great ſtrength, and in ſome parts ſingularly guarded. It had the uſual foſſes, and vaſt ramparts of ſtones, with ſome remains of the facing of walls, and the foundations of three or four round buildings: but what ſtruck me much, were two conſiderable ſpaces of ground thickly ſet with ſharp-pointed ſtones, ſet upright in the earth, as if they had been to ſerve the uſe of chevaux du frize, to impede the approach of an enemy. From this hill is one way a wild and barren proſpect of Carnedd Llewelyn, and a long tract of rude hills and ſtoney bottoms; and on another, the whole extent of the fertile Nant Conwy. Deſcended: returned the ſame road, and paſſed the river in the good ferry at Tal y Cafn.

FROM hence I continued my journey through the wooded pariſh of Llanſaintfraid, beautifully ſloping to the water's edge. The rout I took was towards Llandudno, the grand boundary of the entrance of the Conwy. From the road, in many parts, are moſt auguſt views of the vaſt: expanſe of the river, and the majeſtic towers of Conwy. Similar views, and old fortified towns, I have ſeen frequent on the Rhine, but in magnificence far inferior to theſe, our Britiſh glory. After a ride of about three miles, deſcend to a flat. Paſs by Marle, a houſe of fine appearance, but now little more than a caſe, having ſuffered by fire about forty years ago. It is pictureſquely ſeated under a lofty rock, almoſt covered with wood; and oppoſite to the town of Conwy. It had been originally the property of the Hollands. It fell afterwards to Sir Hugh Williams, ſecond ſon of Sir Gryffydd Williams of Penrhyn; and on the death of his grandſon, Sir Robert, devolved to Sir Thomas Prendergaſt of the kingdom, in right of his lady, Anne, ſiſter to Sir Robert.

HIGH above Marle, BODSCALLAN. is Bodſcallan, the property of Sir Roger Moſtyn, in right of his wife Margaret, daughter of the reverend Hugh Wynne. I find Richard Moſtyn, ſecond ſon of Thomas ap Richard ap Howel, in poſſeſſion of it; and that he had one daughter, Margaret, married to Gryffydd Wynne, ſecond ſon of John Wynne ap Mereddydd of Gwedir, and who had his ſettlement at Berth Du near Llanrwſt. It is a fine ſituation, environed with woods. From a neglected terrace is a moſt beautiful view, over the tops of trees, of Conwy, part of the river, and the vaſt mountains the back ground of the proſpect. It is a place of great antiquity, being mentioned in the record of Caernarvon; but was inhabited in far earlier times, as appears by the ruins of a ſmall caſtlet, now hid in woods, on the top of a ſmall hill near the preſent houſe. Bodſcallan ſignifies the dwelling-place of Scallan; in all probability a word corrupted from Caſwallon, the owner in ſome diſtant period. It was one of thoſe townſhips called Tre' Welyog, not entirely free. The tenants were originally poſſeſſors of hereditary eſtates, which were divided and ſubdivided among their poſterity to the fourth deſcent, after which they became poſſeſſed by branches independent of each other; every one of whom paid for their own land Record of Caernarvon, Bibl. Litt. 19. . This poſſibly might have been one of the three Gwelis, or eſtates of children from a common ſtock, originally belonging to Gloddaeth The ſame, 22.. In the preſent houſe is a good portrait of old Sir John Wynne of Gwedir. A ſmall head, on board, of Robert Wynn, founder of the Plas Mawr in Conwy. He is painted in black, with a book in his hand, and with ſhort grey hair and beard. But the moſt remarkable is that of Dr. Ellis Pryſe, of Plas Yollin in Denbighſhire, dated 1605; a creature of the earl of Leiceſter's, and devoted to all his bad deſigns. Pryſe's dreſs is a white jacket, with a broad turnover; his hair yellow, and his beard thin, and of the ſame color; his viſage very long, lank, and hypocritical. He was the greateſt of our knaves in the period in which he lived; the moſt dreaded oppreſſor in his neighborhood; and a true ſycophant; for a common addreſs of his letters to his patron was, O LORD, in thee do I put my truſt!

FROM hence is a ſmall walk to GLODDAETH,GLODDAETH. a ſeat of Sir Roger Moſtyn's, placed on the ſlope of a very extenſive hill, or lime-ſtone rock, cloathed with ſucceſsful plantations by Sir Roger, grandfather of the preſent poſſeſſor. Part of the plain below the houſe was planted, by the ſame gentleman, with foreſt-trees; and laid out, according to the taſte of his time, in ſtraight walks, interſecting each other, or radiating from a center, diſtinguiſhed by a ſtatue.ITS WALKS. The upper walks, having fortunately a ſteep and ſtubborn rock for their baſis, checked the modiſh propenſity to rectitude; ſo there was a neceſſity to deviate from it; but in no greater degree than the flexure of a zigzag would admit. Notwithſtanding ſome blemiſhes, corrigible at an eaſy rate, theſe walks may be conſidered among thoſe of the firſt rate of this iſland, for ſuch beauties of view which nature can beſtow; and, from thoſe ſpots favored by the ſight of Conwy, FINE VIEWS. I may add the majeſtic ones of antient art. Every flight of path preſents new and grand objects: at firſt, of the great windings of the river towards Llanrwſt, the lofty towers of Conwy, and the venerable walls of the town; and beyond, a long extent of alps, with Moel Siabod, the Drûm, and Carnead Llewelyn and Dafydd, appearing with diſtinguiſhed height. From a little higher aſcent is opened to us the diſcharge of the Conwy into the ſea, ſublimely bounded by the leſſer Penmaen, and the immenſe Orm's Head, or Llandudno; between which appear, a fine bay, the vaſt promotory of Penmaen Mawr, the iſle of Prieſtholm, and the long extent of Angleſey. After gaining the ſummit, beneath is ſeen a conſiderable flat, with the eſtuary of the river Conwy falling into the Irish ſea on one ſide, and the beautiful half-moon bay of Llandudno on the other: one of whoſe horns is the great head of the ſame name; the other, the lofty rock Rhiwleden, or the little Orm's Head. A little farther progreſs brings us in ſight of a great bay, ſweeping ſemicircularly the ſhores; and beyond are the diſtant hills of Flintſhire, and the entrances into the eſtuaries of the Merſey and Dce, frequently animated with ſhipping.

BESIDES the adventitious trees and ſhrubs,RARE PLANTS. theſe walks afford great amuſement to the botaniſts, by their variety of rare plants, all within a very ſmall compaſs. Among them, that able botaniſt, my fellow voyager through the Hebrides, the reverend Mr. Lightfoot, enumerated the Veronica Spicala, or ſpiked ſpeedwell, Fl. Angl. i. 3; Geranium Sanguineum, or bloody craneſbill, Fl. Angl. i. 305. Fl. Scot. i. 372; Cyſtus Marifolius, Sp. Pl. i. 741; Cyſtus; Hirſutus, Fl. Angl. 432, or hoary thymeleaved Cyſtus; Silene Nutans, or Nottingham catchfly, Fl. Angl. i. 188; Rubia Tinctorium, or wild madder, Sp. Pl. i. 158; Scilla Verna, or vernal hyacinth, Fl. Angl. 142; Potentilla Verna, or vernal cinqueſoil, Fl. Scot. 270. Fl. Angl. i. 224; Thalictrum Minus, or leſſer meadow rue, Fl. Scot. i. 285. Fl. Angl. i. 238; Arenaria Verna, or vernal mountain chickweed, Fl. Angl. i. 191. Fl. Scot. i. 231Tour in Wales, i. p. 19. tab. ii. ; Scrophularia Vernalis, or yellow figwort, Fl. Scot. i. 330. Fl. Angl. i. 275. And near the gate, in the lane leading to Conwy, the Polypodium vulgare var. Cambriciem, or Welsh or jagged polypody, Fl. Angl. ii. 455. Fl. Scot. ii. 668.

GREAT part of the preſent houſe was built by Thomas Moſtyn, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth. On the dais of the great hall are painted the arms of that princeſs, thoſe of the houſe, and of the profligate earl of Leiceſter; the laſt, a proof of the general flattery paid to his power.

HERE is, in a poor room, an excellent collection of books and manuſcripts: among the laſt is a moſt beautiful copy of the firſt and ſecond books of Froiſſart, a manuſcript on vellum, with moſt elegant illuminations. The frontiſpiece repreſents the author on his knees, in a blue mantle, preſenting his book to Edward III. A king of France, diſtinguiſhed by the fleurs de lis on his robes, holds a queen by the hand, who, from the arms of England, the lions on her robe, ſeems to be Queen Philippa, to whom Froiſſart was clerk of the cloſet. She holds by the hand a little boy, whoſe robe is alſo marked with the lions. This muſt have been Richard of Bourdeaux, her grandſon, afterwards Richard II. A lady, and ſeveral other figures, appear in the piece. This book was given by Lord Buckburſt to Sir William Cecil, and by him to his cotemporary of the houſe of Moſtyn.

GLODDAETH came into poſſeſſion of the family of Sir Roger Mostyn by the marriage of his anceſtor Howel ap Evan Vychan, in 1460, with Margaret, daughter and heir of Gryffydd ap Rhys ap Gryffydd ap Madoc Gloddaeth ap Madoc ap Jerwerth Goch of Cryddyn, the hundred in which the houſe lies. The tenure of this place was perfectly free, and the tenant owed only ſuit and ſervice to the county and hundred courts; and when they went to attend the prince in war, they went at his expence.

EGGLWYS RHOS,EGGLWYS RHOS. the pariſh church, is in a flat, at a ſmall diſtance from Gloddaeth, near a precipitous rock, cloathed with wood, called Bryn Maelgwyn. Painted in the eaſt window is the figure of a man kneeling, dreſſed in a herald's mantle, with the arms of Englefield. From the maimed inſcription I collect that he muſt have been Howel ap Tudor of Moſtyn Saliſbury Pedigree, 37. , and that he had beſtowed this window on the church.

BUT this church is celebrated for the death of the prince of Maelgwyn Gwynedd, who had taken ſhelter here to avoid the Vâd felen, or yellow peſtilence, which at that time raged through Europe. The Britons, like the Romans, perſonified diſeaſe. In this inſtance, it was to aſſume either the form of a Baſiliſc, or the powers of one, under the form of a fair woman, who ſlew Maelgwyn with a glance, as he incautiouſly looked out of the window; according to the prophecy, Pan ddelo y'r pry rhyfedd i forfa Rhianedd, os gwel MAELGWN GWYNEDD FEFYD farw. Whenever a ſtrange creature arrives on the marſh of Rhianedd, if Maelgwn Gwynedd looks at it, he will die.

THE ſmall remains of Diganwy, DIGANWY. or, as it is called by the English, Gannoc, are on two ſmall hills, near the ſhore of the Conwy, at ſmall diſtance from Egglwys Rhos. The walls croſſed the ſpace between the hills, and ran up their ſides; on the ſummit of one is a veſtige of a round tower, and here and there a few foundations of walls on the acceſſible parts. Dr. Powel, from the authority of the Welſh hiſtoriansHis notes on Giraldus Cambr. Itin. lib. ii. c. 10., ſays, there had been a city here, which, in 810, was deſtroyed by lightning; and Cambden adds, that he believed it to have been the antient Dictum, from its having been the ſtation of a party of Nervii Dictenſes, under the later emperors. I cannot diſcover the founder of the fortreſs, on whoſe ruins I contemplate. Poſſibly it might have been Robert of Rudland. We are told this country was parcel of the poſſeſſions of the earls of Cheſter; and that Robert was in it when he came to his fate. On July the 3d, 1088, our brave prince Gryffydd ap Cynan, with three ſhips, entered the Conwy; and landing under the caſtle at high-water, left the ſhips on ſhore at the receſs of the tide. He ravaged the neighboring country, and drove towards his veſſels a great booty of men and cattle. Robert, indignant at this, deſcended from his fortreſs, attended by a ſingle ſoldier, Oſbern de Orgar, and without any defenſive armour except his ſhield. The Welſh attacked him with miſſile weapons, and, filling his ſhield ſo full of darts that it fell under their weight, the enemy ruſhed on him, cut off his head, and, faſtening it to the maſt, failed off in ſavage triumphOrdericus Vitalis, lib. viii. p. 670. . Llewelyn the Great deſtroyed this caſtle; but it was rebuilt, in 1210, by Randle Blondevil, earl of CheſterPowel, 262. . King John lay for ſome time encamped under its walls, in the year 1211, and was reduced to great ſtreights by the policy of Llewelyn: he came between him and England, and cut off his reſourcesThe ſame.. Henry III. fared even worſe on the ſame ſpot, in 1245, at which time John de Grey of Wilton was conſtable. One of his courtiers moſt pathetically deſcribes their miſeriesThe ſame, 311.. At length Diganwy was, in 1260, totally diſmantled by our last prince Llewelyn ap Gryffydd.

NOT far from hence,ANTIENT TOWER. on the top of a low hill near Bryniau, is an antient tower. Its form is circular; its height about twenty feet, the diameter twelve. Its walls compoſe only two thirds of a circle, the reſt is open to the top; and the finiſhing of the walls complete, without any appearance of there ever having been a door; and this opening is to the land. Within are the marks of two floors. Round the inſide are three rows of ſquare holes, none of which paſs through the building. Its walls are of great thickneſs, and the mortar appears very antient. I can make no conjecture about the uſe; but deſcribe it in order to exerciſe the talents of others.

CONTINUED my ride along the ſhore by the flat iſthmus which connects the high land of Gloddaeth with the great promontory Llandudno. Ride along part of the laſt, on a narrow road above the ſea, having on the right ſteep hills and precipices. Reach Gogarth, GOGARTH. a long but narrow tract of great fertility. It had been an appendage to the abbey of Conway, of which there remains part of a very ſtrong building.

I ASCENDED on a very long and ſteep path to the top of Llandudno, LLANDUDNO, OR ORM'S HEAD. a beautiful ſheepwalk, conſiſting of a fine turf, except where the rock appears, extending near four miles in length, and one in breadth. It lies in the manor of Gogarth, belonging to the ſee of Bangor. The weſtern extremity is a vaſt precipice, the haunt of various ſea-fowls in the ſeaſon of breeding.SEA-FOWLS. The Gulls poſſeſs the loweſt part; above them the Razor-bills and Guillemots have their quarters; over them croak the Corvorants; and Herons occupy the higheſt regions; and ſcattered in different parts are a few Puffins, and black Guillemots. The Peregrine Falcon builds in theſe rocks.FALCONS. The kind was in the days of falconry ſo excellent, that the great miniſter Burleigh ſent a letter of thanks to an anceſtor of Sir Roger Moſtyn, for a preſent of a caſt of Hawks from this place.

FALCONRY was in high eſteem among the Welſh. ANTIENT FALCONRY. Our prince had his chief falconer, who held the fourth rank among the officers of his court. He held his lands free; had a double portion of provender for his horſe: the prince ſupplied him with woollen cloaths, the princeſs with linen. He brought his cup with him into the hall; but was not allowed to drink more than would quench his thirſt, leaſt he ſhould get fuddled, and neglect his Hawks. He was allowed the hearts and lungs of all the animals in the royal kitchen, and ſometimes a barren ewe to feed his birds. Whenever his Hawks killed any of the three moſt noble ſpecies of game, the Heron, the Bittern, or the Crane, he received from the prince three ſervices; that of holding his ſtirrup when he deſcended from his horſe, of holding his horſe while he was taking the Hawks from the game, and of holding his ſtirrup again when he mounted his horſe: and at night the prince honored him with ſerving him thrice at table with his own hands. In caſe the falconer took any of the royal birds in the prince's abſence, he was to bring it into the hall, and ſhew it to him: on that the prince was to ariſe, or if he did not, he was to beſtow on him the robe which he then wore. During the time that the Hawks were in their mew, the falconer was not bound to anſwer any ſuit. If he killed his horfe in the exerciſe of his office, the prince was to find him another. The fine for an injury to the chief falconer was vi cows, and cxxvi pence. His ſlaughter was not to be atoned for leſs than cxxvi cowsL • ges Wallicae, 23 to 26. . Let me conclude with ſaying, that there was a peculiar tax for the ſupport of this office, called Cylch Hebog Yddjon Record of Caernarvon, in Bibliotheea Litteraria, 25. , which fell on the vaſſals; for the prince contributed little or nothing to the expence of his amuſements.

THE northern ſide of this promontory is broken into precipices of various heights; and the baſe of both theſe ſides is waſhed by a very deep water. It is well worth the labor of aſcending to the higheſt point, to view the extenſive and various proſpects.

ON the ſame ſide are the remains of ſeveral rude walls without mortar, called Llety Vadog, or the houſe of Madoc, a ſuppoſed anceſtor of Gloddaeth: and not far from it is a ſtrait narrow path, with ſtones on each ſide, probably the remains of two walls; a watch-place for Deer, as the name Wylfa yr Ceirw ſignifies.

ON a great eminence, called Dinas, is a large encloſure. The edge of the hill is ſurrounded with a rude wall; and within are multitudes of ſmall circular hollows, about twelve feet in diameter, environed with walls; ſuch as are found on Tre'r Caeri, and ſimilar places, the rough habitations of our diſtant anceſtors. Near this place is a Maen Sigl, rocking-ſtone, a great one, whoſe point of contact with the ground is ſo ſmall as to make it moveable with the left touch. The country people call it Crŷd Tudno, St. Tudno's Cradle. This is ſurrounded with a foſs, and has a formed road to it. It is the conjecture of the learned, that the Druids made theſe ſtones an inſtrument of impoſition on their votaries; and in caſe of any judicial determinations, pretended that none but their holy hands could move them: and probably they were ſurrounded with a foſs, and had their preſcribed road to keep off the vulgar, and give greater ſolemnity to the miraculous deciſion. The ingenious Bernier relates a ſuperſtition not very foreign from this. At Sendbrary, in the kingdom of Cachemire, the Bramins, the Druids of India, ſhewed him a ſtone which the ſtrongeſt man could not lift, yet eleven of thoſe holy men, with the tip of their finger, could effect it, on praying to their ſaintBernier's vojage of Cachemire, 112. .

FROM hence I paſſed by the church,LLANDUDNO CHURCH. on the bleakeſt of ſituations, above the ſea, and remote from all dwellings. It is dedicated to St. Tudno of Maes Gwyddno, the country now overflown by the ſea, between Meirionyddſhire and Llein. In deſcending from this promontory I paſſed by ſeveral copper works, which at times are worked to advantage. The ride from hence along the ſide of Llandudno bay is extremely pleaſant. I aſcended to Gloddaeth, near the foot of Rhewledin, a vaſt rock, which ſwarms in the ſeaſon with Razor-bills and Puffins; and with Rock Pigeons, abundance of which regularly breed here, in preference to the dove-houſes, which they conſtantly quit at their laying-time.

I DESCENDED from Gloddaeth to the ſea ſide, about two miles diſtant. Saw, cloſe to the ſhore, the ſingular little building called St. Trillo's Chapel. It is oblong; has a window on each ſide, and at the end; a ſmall door; and a vaulted roof, paved with round ſtones, inſtead of being ſlated. Within was a well. The whole building is ſurrounded with a ſtone wall.

ON a hill, about half a mile diſtant from this chapel, is the church of Llandrillo, LLANDRILLO. dedicated to the ſame ſaint. Near it is a large ruined houſe, called Bryn Euryn; formerly called Llŷs Maelgwyn Gwynedd, who had a palace on this ſpot. About the twelfth century it was inhabited by the great Ednyfed Vychan; and ſome time in the laſt was poſſeſſed by a family of the name of Conwy, of Welſh deſcent, derived from Gryffydd Goch, lord of Rhos and Rhyfoniod.

KEEP along the ſhore, and paſs by Rhos Vynach, RHOS VYNACH. or the Marſh of the Monks, having been the property of Conwy abbey. The church ſtill keeps ſhare in a conſiderable wear, which runs from this point; the biſhop, and the vicar of Llandrillo, having the fiſh of every tenth tide between them. At times they have a good chance of a profitable capture; for in two ſucceſſive tides forty pounds worth of mackrel have been taken.

FROM Rhos Vynach the land recedes inwards, and forms a pretty bay. The country ſlopes to the water edge, and is varied with woods and cultivation. Penmaen Rhos, PENMAEN RHOS. a great limeſtone rock juts into the ſea at the end of the bay. In my memory the traveller went along a narrow path cut on its front, like the road on Penmaen Mawr, but infinitely more terrible and dangerous: a fine coach-road has of late years been formed far behind this precipice. From thence I deſcended to Llanddulas, a ſmall village and church. In one of the deep bottoms of this neighborhood was betrayed the unfortunate prince Richard II. who had been deceived by the earl of Northumberland to go along with him from Conwy to meet Bolingbroke, to ſettle amicably the quarrel between them. Hereabouts he ſuddenly found himſelf ſurrounded by a large band of armed men, placed there by the treacherous earl, who ſeizing on Richard, delivered him captive to the uſurper in Flint caſtleSee the whole ſtory, agreeably expreſſed by ſuitable prints from old illuminated MSS. in Mr. Strutt's Regal Antiquities. .

A LITTLE farther on the right hand, high above the road, is Cefn Ogo, CEFN OGO. a lofty precipice; white, unleſs where darkened by the ivy which ſpreads along the front. In the middle is the moſt magnificent entrance into a cave which Britain can boaſt. It ſeems like the portal of a noble cathedral, arched, and divided within by what has the appearance of a great column.

FROM near this place begins the rich arable flat, which extends over Rudland Marſh, and beyond Preſtatyn in Flintſhire. The ſmall town of Abergeleu lies near the ſea,ABERGELEU about a mile from Cefn Ogo. It lies near the clayey cliffs which impend over the ſea. Tradition ſays, that in old times that element had overwhelmed a vaſt tract of inhabited country once extending northward; a dateleſs, nameleſs, epitaph on the church-yard wall is called in as evidence. Yma mae'n gorwedd yn monwent mihangel, gwr oeddai annedd dair miltor yn y gogledd. In this church-yard lies a man who lived three miles to the north of it. But, as better proof, I have obſerved, at low-water, far from the clayey banks, a long tract of hard loam, filled with the bodies of oak trees, tolerably entire; but ſo ſoft as to be cut with a knife as eaſily as wax.

OF this pariſh was Marchud ap Cynan, MARCHUD AP CYNAN. cotemporary with Roderic the Great, and one of the tribes of North Wales whoſe poſterity gave princes to the Britiſh empire. His ſeat was Brynffanigl, where likewiſe his deſcendant, the great Ednyfed Vychan, ſometimes reſided.

ABERGELEU is bounded to the right by high limeſtone hills, at times productive of lead ore. On one of them, projecting from the reſt, called Coppa yr Wylfa, COPPA YR WYLFA. or the mount of the watchtower, is a very ſtrong Britiſh poſt. The front is a great precipice; out of whoſe interſtices grows the Aria Theophraſti; and acroſs the acceſſible part are defences of ſtone and earth. In a glen beneath is a ditch, called Ffôs y Bleiddiaid, or the ditch of the Wolves; poſſibly from the frequency of thoſe animals in theſe parts. Mr. Llwyd, in his Itinerary, ſpeaks of a mount near Abergeleu divided in two, on which formerly ſtood a caſtle, called Pen y Pīl, PEN Y PĪL. poſſibly a reſidence of the antient lords.

FROM Abergeleu I aſcended to the neighboring pariſh of Cegidoc, or, as the Engliſh call it, St. George. It was formerly annexed to St. Aſaph, and the pariſhioners were obliged to repair the ſtreet wall of the church-yard.

HIGH above this place, on the top of a hill called Pen y Parc, is a very ſtrong poſt, ſaid to have been occupied by Owen Gwynedd after his fine retreat before Henry II;CAMP OF OWEN GWYNFDD. whom he kept here at bay, and politically ſecured his dominions from further invaſion: for it was on this ſpot, not among the Snowdon hills, as Lord Lyttelton ii. 385. 3d ed. octavo. ſuppoſes, that our gallant prince made a moſt effectual ſtand, and ſtopped all further progreſs of the invader. On the acceſſible ſides are double and treble ditches and ramparts, the others are ſufficiently guarded by precipices. The area is near three quarters of a mile round, and, near the edge of the ſteep part, facing Rudland, is ſmoothed into the form of a terrace.

ST. GEORGE had in this pariſh his Holy Well, SUPERSTITIONS. at which the Britiſh Mars had his offering of horſes; for the rich were wont to offer one, to ſecure his bleſſing on all the reſt. He was the tutelar ſaint of thoſe animals; all that were diſtempered were brought, ſprinkled with the water, and this bleſſing beſtowed: Rhad DUW a Sant SIOR arnat. The bleſſing of GOD and St. George be on thee.

THE well of St. Aelian, a pariſh not far from Llandrillo in Caernarvonſhire, has been in great repute for the cures of all diſeaſes, by means of the interceſſion of the ſaint; who was firſt invoked by earneſt prayers in the neighboring church. He was alſo applied to on leſs worthy occaſions, and made the inſtrument of diſcovering thieves, and of recovering ſtolen goods. Some repair to him to imprecate their neighbors, and to requeſt the ſaint to afflict with ſudden death, or with ſome great miſfortune, any perſons who may have offended them. The belief in this is ſtill ſtrong; for three years have not elapſed ſince I was threatened by a fellow (who imagined I had injured him) with the vengeance of St. Aelian, and a journey to his well to curſe me with effect.

I SHALL here bring into one point of view the ſeveral religious cuſtoms uſed among us in former times;RELIGIOUS CUSTOMS. which have been gradually dropped, in proportion as the age grew enlightened. Several were local, ſeveral extended through the whole country: perhaps ſome, which were expreſſive of their hatred of vice, or which had a charitable end, might as well have been retained, notwithſtanding the ſmack of folly that was often to be perceived in them.

IN church, at the name of the Devil, an univerſal ſpitting ſeized the congregation, as if in contempt of that evil ſpirit; and whenever Judas was mentioned, they expreſſed their abhorrence of him by ſmiting their breaſts.

IF there be a Fynnon Vair, the well of our Lady, or any other ſaint, the water for baptiſm was always brought from thence; and after the ceremony was over, old women were very fond of waſhing their eyes in the water of the font.

PREVIOUS to a funeral, it was cuſtomary, when the corpſe was brought out of the houſe and laid upon the bier, for the next of kin, be it widow, mother, ſiſter, or daughter (for it muſt be a female) to give, over the coffin, a quantity of white loaves, in a great diſh, and ſometimes a cheeſe, with a piece of money ſtuck in it, to certain poor perſons. After that they preſent, in the ſame manner, a cup of drink, and require the perſon to drink a little of it immediately. When that is done, all preſent kneel down; and the miniſter, if preſent, ſays the Lord's Prayer: after which, they proceed with the corpſe; and at every croſs-way, between the houſe and the church, they lay down the bier, kneel, and again repeat the Lord's Prayer; and do the ſame when they firſt enter the church-yard. It is alſo cuſtomary, in many places, to ſing pſalms on the way; by which the ſtillneſs of rural life is often broken into, in a manner finely productive of religious reflections.

To this hour, the bier is carried by the next of kin; a cuſtom conſidered as the higheſt reſpect that filial piety can pay to the deceaſed. This was a uſage frequent among the Romans of high rank; and it was thought a great continuance of the good fortune which had attended Metellus Macedonicus through his whole being, that when he had, in the fulneſs of years, paſſed out of life by a gentle decay, amidſt the kiſſes and embraces of his neareſt connections, he was carried to the funeral pile on the ſhoulders of his four ſonsValer. Max. lib. vii. c. 1. ; and, let me add, that each one of them had enjoyed the greateſt offices of the commonwealthPlinii, Hiſt. Nat. lib. vii. c. 44. .

AMONG the Welſh it was reckoned fortunate for the deceaſed if it ſhould rain while they were carrying him to church, that his bier might be wet with the dew of heaven.

IN ſome places it was cuſtomary for the friends of the dead to kneel, and ſay the Lord's Prayer over the grave, for ſeveral Sundays after the interment; and then to dreſs the grave with flowers.

Manibus date lilia plenis. Purpureos ſpargam flores; animamque nepotis His ſaltèm accumulem donis, et fungar inani Munere. Bring fragrant flowers, the faireſt lilies bring, With all the purple beauties of the ſpring. Theſe gifts at leſt, theſe honors I'll beſtow On the dear youth, to pleaſe his ſhade below. WARTON.

IT is ſtill uſual to ſtick, on the eve of St. John the Baptiſt, over the doors, ſprigs of St. John's wort, or in lieu of it the common Mugwort. The intent was to purify the houſe from evil ſpirits; in the ſame manner as the Druids were wont to do with Vervaine, which ſtill bears with the Welſh the ſignificant title of Cas gan Gythral, or the Daemons averſion.

UPON Chriſtmas-day,PLYGAN. about three o'clock in the morning, moſt of the pariſhioners aſſembled in church, and after prayers and a ſermon, continued there ſinging pſalms and hymns with great devotion till broad day; and if, through age or infirmity, any were diſabled from attending, they never failed having prayers at home, and carols on our SAVIOUR'S nativity. The former part of the cuſtom is ſtill preſerved; but too often perverted into intemperance. This act of devotion is called Plygan, or the Crowing of the Cock. It has been a general belief among the ſuperſtitious, that inſtantly,

at his warning, Whether in ſea or fire, in earth or air, Th' extravagant and erring ſpirit hies To his confine.

But during the holy ſeaſon, the Cock was ſuppoſed to exert his power throughout the night; from which, undoubtedly originated the Welſh word Plygan, as applied to this cuſtom. Accordingly, Shakeſpear finely deſcribes this old opinion:

Some ſay, that ever 'gainſt that ſeaſon comes Wherein our SAVIOUR'S birth is celebrated, The bird of dawning ſingeth all night long: And then, they ſay, no ſpirit walks abroad: The nights are wholeſome: then no planets ſtrike: No fairy takes: no witch hath power to charm, So hallow'd and ſo gracious is the time.

SOON after leaving St. George, KINMAEL. I paſſed by Kinmael houſe and park, in a lofty ſituation on the left. This place had been, during four generations, the property of the Hollands, of a noble Engliſh deſcent, long ſettled in this part of Britain, and branched into ſeveral reſpectable families. The pedigrees derive them from a Sir Thomas Holland, who, tradition ſays, came, with another brother, into Wales in troubleſome times. I have reaſon to ſuppoſe them to have been William and Thomas, the two younger ſons of John Holland, duke of Exeter; who died in 1446, and left to each of them an annuity of forty poundsDugdale's Baron, ii. 81. . They were of a moſt unpopular family, therefore probably retired to ſhun the miſeries they might experience in that age of civil diſcord. Pierce Holland, eleventh in deſcent from Sir Thomas, made his ſettlement at Kinmael by his marriage with Catherine, daughter to Richard ap Evan ap Dafydd Vychan and Alice his wife, heireſs of the place, daughter of Gryffydd Lloyd Ap Evan ap Rhys ap Gryffydd Lloyd ap Rohyn ap Rhys ap Robert.. In the laſt century, one of his deſcendants had two daughters. Colonel Carter, an officer in the ſervice of the parlement, made choice of Catherine, the youngeſt, and took the eſtate with her. A wag ſaid, that he had choſen the beſt piece of Holland in the country. He left the eldeſt ſiſter Mary to Colonel Price of Rhiwlas, a royaliſt. About fifty years ago, a deſcendant of his, John Carter, Eſq alienated the place to the late Sir George Wynne, Bart.

IN a very wet ſituation,VAENOL. beneath Kinmael, is Vaenol; one of the beſt old houſes in the county of Flint. It was built in 1595, by John Lloyd, a younger ſon of Wickwer, and regiſter of St. Aſaph in the reign of Queen Elizabeth; a place extremely profitable, before the powers of the church were abridged. At this place, Brynpolin, and Wickwer, had been chapels of eaſe to St. Aſaph, and three out of the four vicars did duty at them in turn. A fine ſtone coffin, from that of Vaenol, lies in the garden of this houſe.

IN my way from Kinmael, BODLE-WITHAN. ſee Bodle-withan, the ſeat of John Williams, Eſq a purchaſe of his father, ſecond ſon to Sir William, ſpeaker of the houſe of commons. Previous to that, it had been for many generations the property of the Humphries, deſcended from Rhys Goch, brother to Gweryd ap Rhys, one of the fifteen tribes of North Wales, and cotemporary with Owen Gwynedd.

Deſcend to Pengwern, PENGWERN. the ſeat of Sir Edward Lloyd, Bart.; an excellent new houſe, built by him on the ſite of the old one, which had been built by Elen, ſiſter to Archbiſhop Williams, for the ſon of her firſt huſband, Evan Gryffydd, owner of the place. Her ſecond huſband was Sir Peter Mutton. The portrait of her brother, in a clergyman's dreſs, with the ſeals and arms of Lincoln, of which ſee he was poſſeſſed during the time he was lord keeper, is preſerved here. Another, of Sir Peter Mutton in his ſcarlet robes, a ruff, and great hat; and another of Lady Mutton, a handſome woman, in a black gown, high hat, and with a feather fan, and great kerchief, aet. 45, 1631. From hence I paſſed through Rudland and Newmarket to the comforts of my fire-ſide.

FROM DOWNING TO MONTGOMERY AND SHREWSBURY.

ON Wedneſday, July 4th 1776, I left home; breakfaſted with the reverend Mr. Lloyd at Caerroys, and with him deſcended into the pretty little vale, which leads from Mold to Denbigh; and immediately on croſſing it aſcend the ſteep and lofty ſide of Bwlch Coed y Mynydd, a great hill, the laſt of the Clwydian chain, before it is broken by the ſtreight of Bodvari. On the ſide of this hill, at Llys Coed y Mynydd, towards the left, lived Ednowain Bendew, or Ednowain the Strongheaded, lord of Tegengl in 1079, and one of the fifteen tribes of North Wales.

THESE Llwythau, TRIBES OF NORTH WALES. or tribes, were the nobility of North Wales. They commenced extremely early; and, at different times, were lords of diſtinct diſtricts, and called to that honor by ſeveral princes. The lateſt were about the time of Dafydd ap Owen Gwynedd, who began his reign in 1169. We are left ignorant of the form by which they were called to this rank.

All we know is, that each of them enjoyed ſome office in the court of our princes, which ſeems to have been hereditary, and probably to be attendant on the honor.

AFTER reaching the ſummit of the hill, a rich and extenſive view preſented itſelf, of the fertile vale of Clwyd beneath, and the great range of our alpine country, at length jutting into the ſea at the bold promontories of Llandudno and Penmaen Mawr. The deſcent into the vale is gradual, along a beautiful terrace, for a conſiderable ſpace far above it. Vron-yw, the ſeat of John Madocks, Eſq commands a delightful proſpect. Its maſter adds to the many illuſtrious proofs we have at this period, that the modern Welſh are as eminent in perſuaſive rhetoric as our Gauliſh neighbors were in days of yore.

PASS by the ſmall churches of Llan-Gwifan, Llan-Dyrnog, Llan-Gynbafal, and Llan-Rhychan, dedicated to the Saints Gwyfan, Tyrnog, Cynhafal, and Rhychan, all in the county of DENBIGH, and dioceſe of Bangor. Beneath the church of Llanbeder, reach nearly the bottom of the vale; and continue my journey through Ruthin, and along Nantclwyd, by a good old houſe of the ſame name.

AFTER reſting one night at Corwen, proceed as far as Llandrillo, on the road to Bala; and near that village turn to the left into a narrow glen, much wooded, watered by a rude torrent, and bounded by high hills. At its extremity, near a farm called Blaen y Cwm, MILLTIR GERRIC. begin to aſcend Milltir Gerrig, or the Stoney Mile; a Bwlch, or paſs amidſt the Berwyn hills, about a mile in length, with the mountains, black with heath, ſoaring on each fide to a ſtupendous height. It is the great paſs in theſe parts from Meirionyddſhire into and divides the counties: the latter is called by the Welſh, Sir Tre Faldwyn, or the ſhire of the town of Baldwin, lieutenant of the marches in the time of the Conqueror, who built the town; the name of which was afterwards changed to that of Montgomery, derived from Roger de Montgomery, the founder of the caſtle: which name it gave to the county when it was formed into one by Henry VIII. The firſt member that appears on record was Edward Leech, Eſq who ſat in 1542. Humphry Llwyd juſtly celebrates the fertility of its vallies, the ſtature and beauty of its inhabitants; but ſtigmatiſes them with the character of idleneſs, and of being addicted to uſeleſs amuſementsCommentariolum, 92. .

The deſcent from this paſs is very ſteep; but a fine road was then forming, with the great view of giving the Iriſh a ſhorter way into their country, through Oſweſtry, and over the Bwlch, through the county of Meirionydd. This is one of the vaſt deſigns of the preſent age, which will effect communications with places before almoſt inacceſſible.

ON arriving at the bottom, I again found myſelf in narrow vales, loftily bounded. After about three miles riding reached Llangynog, LLANGYNOG. a ſmall village, in the pariſh of the ſame name, in the dioceſe of St. Aſaph. This place was the ſource of ſhort-lived wealth to the maternal relation of the preſent earl of Powys. LEAD MINE. A lead mine was diſcovered here in the year 1692, which was in moſt parts a vein of three yards and a half thick, and was worked to the depth of a hundred yards, when the water became too powerful. It continued in a flouriſhing ſtate during a period of near forty years; yielded about four thouſand tons annually: was ſold at 7l. a ton, and ſmelted on the ſpot; and brought in a clear revenue to the family of twenty thouſand pounds a year.

A SLATE quarry has been diſcovered of late years in the pariſh. About 904,000 were ſold from November 1, 1775, to November 1, 1776; which ſell at the rate of from 6s. to 20s. a thouſand; but the want of water carriage is a great loſs to the work.

AT about two miles diſtance from Llangynog I turned up a ſmall valley to the right, to pay my devotions to the ſhrine of St. Monacella, ST. MONACELLA. or, as the Welſh ſtyle her, Melangell. Her legend relates, that ſhe was the daughter of an Iriſh monarch, who had determined to many her to a nobleman of his court. The princeſs had vowed celibacy. She fled from her father's dominions, and took refuge in this place, where ſhe lived fifteen years without ſeeing the face of man. Brochwel Yſcythrog, prince of Powys, being one day a hare-hunting, purſued his game till he came to a great thicket; when he was amazed to find a virgin of ſurpriſing beauty, engaged in deep devotion, with the hare he had been purſuing under her robe, boldly facing the dogs who retired to a diſtance, howling, notwithſtanding all the efforts of the ſportſmen to make them ſeize their prey. Even when the huntſman blew his horn, it ſtuck to his lips. Brochwel heard her ſtory; and gave to God and her a parcel of lands, to be a ſanctuary to all that fled there. He deſired her to found an abbey on the ſpot. She did ſo, and died abbeſs, in a good old age. She was buried in the neighboring church, called Pennant, CHURCH OF PENNANT MELANGELL. and from her diſtinguiſhed by the addition of Melangell. Her hard bed is ſhewn in the cleft of a neighboring rock. Her tomb was in a little chapel, or oratory, adjoining to the church, and now uſed as a veſtry-room. This room ſtill is called Cell-y-bedd, or the Cell of the Grave; but her reliques, as well as her image, have been long ſince removed: but I think the laſt is ſtill to be ſeen in the churchyard. The legend is perpetuated by ſome rude wooden carvings of the ſaint, with numbers of hares ſcuttling to her for protection. She properly became their patroneſs. They were called Mwyn Melangell—St. Monacella's Lambs. Till the laſt century, ſo ſtrong a ſuperſtition prevaled, that no perſon would kill a hare in the pariſh; and even later, when a hare was purſued by dogs, it was firmly believed, that if any one cried God and St. Monacella be with thee, it was ſure to eſcapeSee her life..

IN the church-yard is a ſtone with the figure of an armed man, which now ſerves as a common grave-ſtone, but once covered the remains of the eldeſt ſon of Owen Gwynedd, Jorwerth Drwyndwn, TOMB OF JORWERTH DRWYNDWN. or Edward with the broken noſe, who was put aſide of the ſucceſſion on account of the blemiſhPowel's Hiſt▪ Wales, 227. . Hither he had fled for refuge from the cruelty of his brother Dafydd ap Owen Gwynedd, this place having been one of our moſt celebrated ſanctuaries. On his ſhield is inſcribed Hic jacet Etwart. Tradition ſays, he was killed not far from hence, at a place called Bwlch Croes Jorwerth.

THIS valley is exceedingly pictureſque: incloſed by hills on all ſides, except its entrance; watered by the Tanat, which ſprings not far off. The upper end is bounded by two vaſt precipices, down which, at times, fall two great cataracts; between them juts out the great and rude promontory of Moel ddu Mawr, which almoſt divides the precipices into equal parts: and all together formed a fine and ſolemn retreat for devotees. On the ſide of this valley is the houſe of Llechweddgarth, the property of Thomas Thomas, Eſq Continue my journey for ſome time along the valley, then aſcend and deſcend a ſeries of graſſy hills of a moderate height, and obſerve in many parts the narrower paſſes croſſed by entrenchments, in old times deſigned to interrupt the inroads of an invader. It is ſaid, that a Roman road goes near this place towards Aberyſtwyth. BODFACH. Deſcend to Bodfach, the ſeat of my friend Bel Lloyd, Eſq by virtue of his marriage with Miſs Price, heireſs of the place. This and ſeveral other eſtates, even as far as the borders of Shropſhire, belonged to the Kyffins, ſo named from being Kyffiniad, or borderers. They were deſcended from Eneon Evell, or Eneon the Twin, brother to Kynric Evell, illegitimate ſons of Madoc ap Meredydd ap Blyddyn ap Cynven, prince of Powys; who gave Eneon his portion in this country, and Kynric his in Moleſdale and its neighborhood. Owen Brogynton, eldeſt of his natural children, was ſettled in Edeirnion.

THE valley about Bodfach expands, is admirably cultivated, is watered by the Cain, and prettily bordered by low hills finely wooded. The town and church of Llanvyllin happily fill one angle, and vary the view.

FROM Bodfach I made an excurſion to Llwydiarth, LLWYDIARTH. a large old houſe in the pariſh of Llanwddyn, ſeated in a hilly naked country. It was formerly the property of the great family of the Vaughans, deſcended from Aleth Hên, king of Dived, or Pembrokeſhire. The eſtate was conveyed to the late Sir Watkin Williams Wynn, by his firſt wife, daughter and heireſs to the laſt owner. From one part of the ride had a view into Cardiganſhire, and of the great naked mountain of Plynlimmon, covered with heath, or moory graſs.

I CANNOT omit in this place mention of an excurſion formerly made to Llanrhaiadr yn Mochnant, a neighboring pariſh, partly in this county, partly in Denbighſhire. LLANRHAIADR YN MOCHNANT. The church is ſeated in the laſt, dedicated to St. Dogvan, ſon of Brychan. Dr. William Morgan, who firſt tranſlated the Bible into Welſh, was vicar of this. He was rewarded by Queen Elizabeth with the biſhoprick of Llandaff, in 1595, and was removed to that of St. Aſaph in 1601, where he died September 10th, 1604, and was interred in the cathedral.

THE facetious but learned preacher Dr. South, was the laſt rector of the pariſh. On his deceaſe, the rectorial tithes were appropriated by act of parlement to the maintenance of the choir and repair of the cathedral church of St. Aſaph.

I MUST ſpeak with due reſpect of the memory of the late worthy vicar,PISTILL RHAIADR. Dr. Worthington; to whoſe hoſpitable houſe I was indebted for a ſeaſonable reception, the wet evening which fortunately preceded my viſit to the celebrated cataract Piſtill Rhaiadr. It terminates the precipitous end of a very narrow valley, and, as it were, divides a bold front of the Berwyn mountains. After ſliding for ſome time along a ſmall declivity, it darts down at once two-thirds of the precipice; and, falling on a ledge, has, in proceſs of time, worn itſelf a paſſage through the rock, and makes a ſecond cataract beneath a noble arch which it has formed; on the ſlippery ſummit of which, a daring ſhepherd will ſometimes terrify you with ſtanding. The ſecond fall reaches the bottom, and aſſumes the name of the Rhaiadr, or the caſcade. The deſect of this noble fall, is the want of wood. When I viſited it, the approach was very bad; but that is not only effectually remedied by the late benevolent vicar, but, as I am informed, he has beſides erected a cottage, as a retreat to the traveller from the fury of a ſtorm.

THE abundance of ſheep, which enliven theſe hills, brought, at the time I viſited the country, great wealth into it. The flannel manufacture, and that of a coarſe cloth for the army, and for the covering the poor negroes in the Weſt Indies, is manufactured in moſt parts of the county. It is ſent and ſold in the rough to Shrewſbury; a practice very contrary to the intereſt of the country.

LEAVE Bodfach; and, for the ſake of a beautiful view, am led by Mr. Lloyd, a little out of my way, to the top of a hill, from whence is a proſpect of a rich expanded vale, with the church of Llanvechan in the midſt. Part is bounded by low and fertile hills. The great rock of Llan y Mynach, the magazine of limeſtone for a vaſt tract of country, cloſes one ſide; beyond them extends the great flat of Shropſhire, with the Wrekin hill riſing inſulated in the diſtant ground. I returned through Llanfyllin, LLANFYLLIN. a ſmall town, which had a charter beſtowed on it by Llewelyn ap Gryffydd ap Gwynwynwyn, in the reign of Edward II. and confirmed by Edward de Charlton, lord of Powys. This gave the burgeſſes exemption from tolls, Theam throughout his territories, Gileam, and Hampſum. They could take, impriſon, and try, any thieves or malefactors; and, ſhould ſuch eſcape, they had liberty of purſuing them for a league round the town. Any ſtranger reſiding in it, and paying ſcot and lot for a year, became free. It is governed by two bailiffs, choſen annually; who, among other privileges granted it by Charles II, were made juſtices of the peace within the corporation, during the time of their officeCambden, ii. 783. .

RIDE for ſome time on the Oſweſtry road. Aſcend to the right; go near Bryn Gwyn, a ſeat of William Moſtyn, Eſq above which is a circular Britiſh poſt. Numbers of them front the low country, on the hills which jut into it, as if guards to protect the internal parts from invaſion. Acroſs the road, in one place, I met the veſtiges of a very ſtrong rampart, to defend a paſs into the vale of Meivod, which ſoon after appeared in view. The church and village are ſituated in the middle of the valley,VALE OF MEIVOD. which is quite flat; extends in length more than five miles, and about half a mile broad. Three parts are bounded by low hills, prettily wooded; one end opens into the plain, and is finely terminated by the Freiddin hills, a vaſt maſs, and conſpicuous feature in this county, and part of Shropſhire. The Vyrnyw, called by Dr. Powel, Marnovia, a beautiful river, winds along the middle of the vale. Its borders rich in wheat, rye, and graſs.

THE church is dedicated to St. Tyſſilio, a prince of Powys, the ſupporter of the Britiſh churches againſt Auſtin the Monk. In old times it belonged to the abbey of Strata Marcella, Yſtrat Marchell, in this county. It is the mother church to Pool and Guildsfield; all which, in the 17th of Henry VII. the biſhop of St. Aſaph had licence to appropriate to himſelfNotitia on St. Aſaph dioceſe, MS.. The vicarage of Meivod is now appropriated to Chriſt-church, Oxford. It is a place of great eccleſiaſtical antiquity. There is reaſon to ſuppoſe, that it took its name from its having been, in the very early ages of Chriſtianity, the reſidence of a hermit or recluſe; for Meudwyfod implies a hermit's habitation, and Lan is frequently added to many Welſh words, to imply them to have been incloſed places; ſuch as Gwinllan, a vineyard; Corlan, a ſheepfold; Ydlan, a ſtackyard: ſo that Meudwylan would ſignify the precinct of the hermit, and, by the aſſiſtance of a Roman termination, become Meudwylanium; and that, readily, more latinized into Mediolanum, the name we find it bears in the ItineraryIter Britanniarum., where it is placed between Bovium Bangor and Rutunium Rowton. We find it again in the Chorography of the Ravenna's, and in Ptolemy Horſely, 374. 492. . If thoſe periods are ſuppoſed to have been too early for the inſtitution of monaſtic life in this iſland, I muſt defend my opinion by that of the learned Tanner, who reaſonably ſuppoſes it to have been nearly coeval with Chriſtianity in Great Britain Preface..

THE Roman antiquity reſts upon the authority of one of our older writers Girald. Cambr. Itin. Dr. Bowel's note, c. iv. lib. ii.; who mentions that in his time there were conſiderable remains of venerable antiquity; that ſeveral foundations, floors, and cauſeways, have been dug up; but whether any coins, arms, or inſcriptions, have been met with, does not appear. Cambden also mentions a field, called Erw'r Porth, or the field of the gate, where he concludes might have ſtood one of the Portae, or gatesCambden, ii. 781, 782. .

To revert to the Chriſtian antiquities: Meivod is ſaid to have been the archdeaconry of all Powyſtand, and that it had two churches beſides the preſent. Whether the chapel, whoſe ruins were ſtanding in no very remote period, and was called Eglwys Gwyddfarch, from a Britiſh ſaint of this country, might not have been one, I cannot ſay; the other was named Eglwys Vair, or the church of the Virgin, which was built in 1155Powel, 205. .

IN the chief church were interred the princes and great men of Powys; among whom may be enumerated Madoc ap Meredydd ap Blyddyn ap Cynvyn, prince of Powys, who died in 1160, at Wincheſter, and was conveyed here; and the noble Gryffydd Maelor, lord of Bromefield, who died in 1188Powel, 210. 242. .

THE church-yard of the preſent is not leſs than nine acres,CHURCH-YARD. and yields to the miniſter as many pounds, as a paſture.

NOT far above Meivod is an union of two rivers, both of the name of Vyrnyw: both of them diverge conſiderably from each other, and take their riſe remote from one another. The poetical topographer Draiton therefore very juſtly ſtyles the river FORKT Vurnway, bringing Tur and Tano • : growing rank, She plies her towards the pool Canto vi.. Both are large ſtreams, in many places black and deep. Soon beyond their junction the ground riſes. On a ſteep bank, above one of the rivers, ſtood Mathraval, once the ſeat of the princes of Powis; the name at preſent preſerved only by a farm-houſe. I could eaſily trace the ſite of the antient caſtle: it occupied the ſpace of about two acres. One ſide was guarded by the ſteep over the river; the other three ſides by a vaſt rampart of ſtone and earth, and a very deep foſs: a high exploratory mount, on which perhaps had been a caſtelet, fills one corner; from which is a clear view of all that paſſes up and down the vale.

AFTER, this place was deſerted by its princes, the caſtle was poſſeſſed, or, as Dr. Powel ſays, built by Robert de Vepont, a potent baron, high in favor with King John. It is moſt probable that he only reſtored, and ſtrengthened it with new works. In 1112, Llewelyn ap Jorwerth laid ſiege to it; but the king coming with a potent army, obliged Llewelyn to retire, and after that cauſed the caſtle to be demoliſhedHiſt. Wales, 267. .

IN Gwern Ddu, a wood oppoſite to Mathraval, beyond the river, is a circular entrenchment; and in a field, beyond the other branch, is a round mount; both which certainly had reſpect, in early times, to the fortreſs at Mathraval. I muſt therefore agree with the learned Burton's conjecture, that this might have been the Mediolanum of the Romans; it having been cuſtomary with Britiſh as well as Saxon princes, to have their palaces where formerly Roman ſtations had their ſituation and beingBurton's Com. 132. Let me add alſo, that this might have been the winter ſtation; and the low Meivod, ſubject to overflowings from the river, the ſummer ſtation.

THE country beyond Mathraval grows hilly, clayey, and barren. Paſs by the church of Llangyniw; to the left is Dolarddyn, where Henry VII. is ſaid to have lodged a night.

A FEW miles farther I rid through the village of Caſtell Caereneon, ſeated on the Vyrnyw. A caſtle was built here in 1155, by Madoc ap Meredydd, prince of Powys Powel, 205. . I had not leiſure to enquire whether there were any remains.

THE country for ſeven miles more continued hilly,CRYGYNNOG. and full of unpleaſant commons. Reach Crygynnog, the ſeat of Arthur Blainey, Eſq whoſe hoſpitality I experienced for two or three days. Under his conduct I ſaw every thing in the neighborhood which merited attention. The very worthy owner is deſcended from Brochwel Yſchythrog. The elder branch of the family has been ennobled in Ireland, ſince the year 1620, by the title of Lord Blainey of Monaghan; an honor well earned by Sir Edward Blainey, Knight, by ſervices in Ireland in the reigns of Queen Elizabeth and her ſucceſſor.

ONE evening I was conducted to Caſtell Dolforwyn, CASTELL DOLFORWYN. a caſtle on a high ridge of a hill, very ſteep, and almoſt ſurrounded by wooded dingle. At the bottom runs a ſmall brook, which falls into the Severn about a mile diſtant. This fortreſs is very ruinous, being built with the ſmall ſhattery ſtone of the country, and reſembles much, in its maſonry, Caſtell Dinas Bran. On the two more acceſſible ſides are deep trenches, cut through the rock. It commands a fine view of the rich vale of Severn. According to Dugdale Monaſt. ii. 223. , it was built by Dafydd ap Llewelyn, a prince who reigned from 1240 to 1246; but I prefer the authority of John Dafydd Rhys, quoted by the reverend Mr. Evan Evans Diſſertatio de Bardis, 92. ; which aſſures us it was founded by that worthy prince Bleyddyn ap Cynvyn, between the years 1065 and 1073. Roger de Mortimer obtained a grant of it, together with the caſtles of Kedewen and Keri, from Edward I. in 1278, to hold to himſelf and his heirs, by the ſervice of three knights feesDugdale Baron, i. 142. .

WHAT is the origin of the name of Dolforwyn, or the Meadow of the Maiden, I cannot with any certainty pronounce; but from ſome legendary tradition of the country, I ſuſpect that it has alluſion to the ſtory of Sabra, or Sabrina, of which our poets have made ſo beautiful an uſe.SABRINA, HER STORY. She was (ſays Jeffry of Monmouth) daughter of Locrine king of Britain, by Eſtrildis, one of the three captive virgins of matchleſs charms, which he took after he had defeated Humber king of the Huns, to whom they belonged. Locrine had divorced his former queen Guendolen in her favor. On the death of the Britiſh monarch, Guendolen aſſumed the government, purſued Eſtrildis, and Sabra her daughter, with unrelenting cruelty, and cauſed them to be drowned in the river; which, with a ſlight alteration, aſſumed the name of the innocent-victim. Milton, in his brief and elegant deſcription of our rivers, ſpeaks of The Severn ſwift, guilty of maiden's death. But in his incomparable maſk of Comus, he enters fully into her ſad ſtory, and makes her the goddeſs of Chaſtity, and calls her from the deep To undo the charmed band Of true virgin, here diſtreſt, Through the force, and through the wile Of unbleſt inchanter vile.

No reader of taſte will, I am ſure, be diſpleaſed with me for relating the hiſtory of the goddeſs in the beautiful numbers of our poet.

SABRINA is her name, a virgin pure; Whilome ſhe was the daughter of Locrine, That had the ſcepter from his father Brute. She, guiltleſs damſel, flying the mad purſuit Of her enraged, ſtepdame Guendolen, Commended her fair innocence to the flood, That ſtay'd her flight with his croſs-flowing courſe. The water-nymphs, that in the bottom play'd. Held up their pearled wriſts, and took her in, Bearing her ſtrait to aged Nereus' hall; Who, piteous of her woes, rear'd her lank head, And gave her to his daughters to imbathe In nectar'd lavers, ſtrow'd with aſphodil; And, through the porch and inlet of each ſenſe, Dropt in ambroſial oils, till ſhe reviv'd, And underwent a quick immortal change, Made Goddeſs of the river. Still ſhe retains Her maiden gentleneſs, and oft at eve Viſits the herds along the twilight meadows, Helping all urchin blaſts, and ill-luck ſigns, That the ſhrewd meddling elſe delights to make; Which ſhe with precious vial'd liquors heals. For which the ſhepherds, at their feſtivals, Carol her goodneſs loud in ruſtic lays; And throw ſweet garland wreaths into her ſtream Of panſies, pinks, and gaudy daffadils. And, as the old ſwain ſaid, ſhe can unlock The claſping charm, and thaw the numming ſpell▪ If ſhe be right invok'd in warbled ſong; For maidenhood ſhe loves, and will be ſwift To aid a virgin, ſuch as was herſelf, In hard beſetting need.

NOT far from Dolforwyn is Abervechan, ABERVECHAN. an old houſe; which, after being owned by the Blaineys, the Prices, and the Lloyds, is now poſſeſſed by Sir Gervaſe Clifton, Baronet, by virtue of his marriage with the heireſs of the place, daughter of Richard Lloyd, Eſq

FROM hence, we deſcended into the vale of Severn, and croſs the river on a wooden bridge. It is the misfortune of this part of the country to be deſtitute of ſeveral moſt neceſſary materials. The rich are obliged to burn wood inſtead of coal; and the poor, a wretched turf. Lime is extremely remote; and ſtone fit for maſonry at a vaſt diſtance. From the head of the Severn, as low as Llandreinio, there is not a ſtone bridge. Should it happen, in any remote period, that timber ſhould fail, the better ſort of people muſt probably be reduced to diſtreſs for want of fuel; and at times one part of the country become inacceſſible to the other for want of bridges. The moral of this is, PLANT, and PRESERVE YOUR WOODS!

VISIT Tre' Newydd, NEWTOWN. or Newtown, a neat ſmall town, with a good market, on the banks of the Severn. In a pretty park, near to the town, is the ſeat of the Pryſes. The family derives itſelf from Elyſtan Glodrydd, one of the five royal tribes of Wales, prince of all the country between Wye and Severn, and earl of Hereford in right of his mother Rhiengar, daughter of Grono ap Tudor Trevor. It became poſſeſſed of this place about the time of Henry VI.SIR JOHN PRYSE. The late owner, Sir John Pryſe, was a gentleman of worth, but of ſtrange ſingularities. He married three wives; and kept the two firſt who died, in his room, one on each ſide of his bed; his third declined the honor of his hand till her defunct rivals were committed to their proper place.

DURING the ſeaſon of miracles worked by Bridget Boſtock of Cheſhire, who healed all diſeaſes by prayer, faith, and an embrocation of faſting-ſpittle, multitudes reſorted to her from all parts, and kept her ſalival glands in full employ. Sir John, with a high ſpirit of enthuſiaſm, wrote to this wonderful woman to make him a viſit at Newtown Hall, in order to reſtore to him his third and favorite wife. His letter will beſt tell the foundation on which he built his ſtrange hope, and very uncommon requeſt. EURYDICES oro properata retexite fila.

Purport of Sir JOHN PRYCE'S Letter to Mrs. BRIDGET BOSTOCK. 1748. MADAM,

HAVING received information by repeated advices, both publick and private, that you have of late performed many wonderful cures, even where the beſt phyſicians have failed; and that the means uſed appear to be very inadequate to the effects produced; I cannot but look upon you as an extraordinary and highly-favoured perſon. And why may not the ſame moſt merciful God, who enables you to reſtore ſight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, and ſtrength to the lame, alſo enable you to raiſe the dead to life? Now, having lately loſt a wife, whom I moſt tenderly loved, my children an excellent ſtep-mother, and our acquaintances a very dear and valuable friend, you will lay us all under the higheſt obligations: and I earneſtly entreat you, for God Almighty's ſake, that you will put up your petitions to the Throne of Grace on our behalf, that the deceaſed may be reſtored to us, and the late Dame Eleanor Pryce Widow of—Jones, Eſq of Buckland, Brecknockſhire. be raiſed from the dead.—If your perſonal attendance appears to you to be neceſſary, I will ſend my coach and ſix, with proper ſervants, to wait on you hither, whenever you pleaſe to appoint.—Recompence of any kind, that you could propoſe, would be made with the utmoſt gratitude; but I wiſh the bare mention of it is not offenſive to both God and you.

I am, Madam, Your moſt obedient, and very much afflicted humble ſervant, JOHN PRYCE.

THE following day our ride was directed towards Caer Sws, a place of Roman antiquity. Our way lay over ſome high graſſy lands.ROMAN ROAD. On Gwyn Vynydd was eaſily traced the Roman road, called Sarn Swſan. It runs from Caer Sws, points towards Meivod, and is diſtinctly traced as far as the banks of the Vyrnyw, near Llyſſin. I am not able to purſue it either to or from Meivod; but the late Dr. Worthington aſſured me, that it was met with in his pariſh, at Street Vawr, near Coed y Clawdd; that it croſſed Rhôs y Brithdir to Pen y Street, and from thence to Llam-jwrch, to Caerfach, which is ſuppoſed to have been a ſmall Roman camp. Dr. Worthington ſuppoſed, that this road tends to Cheſter.

NOTWITHSTANDING it is rather out of its place, let me ſpeak of another road in the ſame pariſh, and mentioned to me by the ſame gentleman. This ſeems to lead from Rutunium, Rowton in Shropſhire. It croſſes the Tanat at Gartheryr; from whence it paſſes through Street y Planirau to Maen-gwynedd, and winds up Bwlch Maen Gwynedd, and retains the name of Ffordd Gam Elen, or the winding road of Helen Dr. Worthington's Letter, on his pariſh, addreſſed to me, Nov. 29th 1774..

To return to Gwyn-vynydd. CAER SWS. I obſerved, on the ſide of the Roman road, a ſmall ſub-oval camp. The road conducts us to Caer Sws, a hamlet with a few houſes, on the ſide of the Severn. The adjacent fields are divided, to this day, from each other by lanes, which interſect each other, as it were to point the very places which had formed the antient ſtreets. On the north-weſt ſides are hollows, which poſſibly were part of the foſſes of the old precincts. Bricks have been found; one was preſented to me, with letters that baffle my gueſs. The figure of them is given, for the conjecture of the more profound antiquary.

As to coins, I have heard of only one being met with; and the owner could not aſcertain to me the emperor. This ſtation is unnoticed by every Roman writer.

OPPOSITE to it,RHOS DDIARBED. at ſome diſtance from the river, is Rhos Ddiarbed, or the common where no quarter was given. The reaſon is now loſt. In an adjacent field is a camp of a very uncommon form. At the ſouth is a vaſt exploratory mount, of a conic form, ſurrounded with a foſs of a vaſt depth. On the north part of the foſs is an oblong area, about ſeventy yards wide in the greateſt diameter; guarded by a very high rampart, and on the outſide by a ditch. In the lower part is a porta, opening into a great rectangular camp, about two hundred yards long, and above one hundred broad. Oppoſite to the other porta is a ſecond, placed at the extremity; but there are no others, as uſual in Roman camps, which this certainly was, but an eccentric one, prout loci qualitas aut neceſſitas poſtulaverat. The whole is encompaſſed with a rampart and ditch. In a field oppoſite to Caer Sws are ſome trenches, perhaps relative to the camp. The former I ſuppoſe to have been the winter, this the ſummer ſtation.

FROM hence I returned into the road. On the right opens another vale, watered by the Carno. The mountains of Carno, like the mountains of Gilboa, were celebrated for the fall of the mighty.BATTLE OF CARNO. The fierceſt battle in our annals happened, in 1077, amidſt theſe hills; when Gryffydd ap Cynan, ſupported by Rhys ap Tudur, prince of South Wales, diſputed the ſovereignty of North Wales with Trahaern ap Caradoc, the reigning prince, followed by Caradoc ap Gryffydd and Meilir, ſons of Rywallon ap Gwyn, his couſin-germains. After a moſt bloody conteſt, victory declared itſelf; in favor of the firſt; Trahaern and his kinſmen, diſdaining flight, fell on the ſpot; and Gryffydd ap Cynan was put into poſſeſſion of his rightful throne, which he filled during fifty-ſeven years with great dignity.

The church of Carno belonged to the knights of St. John of Jeruſalem, CHURCH. who are ſaid to have had a houſe near it. As one part of their buſineſs was the protection of their fellow-creatures from violence, it is very poſſible that they might have had a ſtation in theſe parts, which were long filled with a lawleſs banditti.

IN view is Park, the reſidence of — Herbert, Eſq I have been informed that Queen Elizabeth kept here a ſtud of horſes. Poſſibly the famous breed of Spaniſh horſes, introduced into the country by Robert earl of Shrewſbury Willis's Bangor, 291. , might render theſe parts diſtinguiſhed for an excellent kind, even ſo late as the reign of that great princeſs.

REACH Llanddinam, LLANDDINAM. a church, prettily ſeated on a little headland jutting into the vale. This is a vicarage belonging to the chapter of Bangor; and the comportions were veſted in the dean and chapter in 1685, for repairing the cathedral, and augmenting the vicarages thereofGirald. Itin. Cambriae, lib. ii. c. 12. . Oppoſite to Llanddinam, on the ſummit of a high mountain, is a Britiſh poſt, called Y Caer Vychan, Y CAER VYCHAN. or the Little Fortreſs, ſurrounded with a number of foſſes, from one to five, according as the ſtrength or weakneſs of the parts required.

MY journey was continued along a moſt beautiful road. The vale grows narrow, is bounded by lofty hills, whoſe bottoms are in many places ſkirted with beautiful hanging woods; thoſe of Berth-Lwyd are far the moſt conſiderable.BERTH-LWYD. The poor remains of the antient houſe of that name ſtand in the valley; its maſters were the old family of the Llwyds, deſcended from Dyngad, ſecond ſon of Tudor Trevor. Dafydd, ſeventeenth in deſcent from Dungad, firſt took the name of Llwyd, and probably gave the additon of title to the houſe. It continued in the family ſeveral generations after; and of late years paſſed, by purchaſe, to Sir Edward Lloyd, Baronet.

ABOUT a mile farther is Llanidlos, LLANIDLOS. a ſmall town, with a great market for yarn, which is manufactured here into fine flannels; and ſent weekly, by waggon-loads, to Welſh Pool. The church is dedicated to St. Idlos. Within are ſix arches: the columns ſurrounded with neat round pillars, ending in capitals of palm-leaves. The inhabitants aſſert, that they were brought from the abbey of Cwm Hîr in Radnorſhire. A date on the roof is 1542, which ſoon followed the period of monaſtic ruin in this kingdom.

THIS is a country of ſheepwalks. The flocks, like thoſe of Spain, are driven to them from diſtant parts to feed on the ſummer herbage. The farms in the vallies are only appendages,SLATE. for winter habitations and proviſions. A coarſe ſlate is found in the neighboring hills; but there ſtill remains, in many parts, the antient covering of the country, ſhingles, heart of oak ſplit and cut into form of ſlates. This was introduced by the Saxons, as the word is derived from Schindel, which ſignifies the ſame thing.

A LITTLE beyond Llanidlos the vale cloſes. The Severn here dwindles into an inconſiderable ſtream. By wonderful inſtinct, Salmon force their way from the ocean, higher up even than this diſtant ſpot, for the ſake of depoſiting their ſpawn. The other fiſh are Trouts, Samlets, Graylings, and Pike. The river runs in a hollow to its ſource, fifteen miles diſtant, in Plynlimmonis ardua moles, the vaſt hill of Plynlimmon. PLYNLIMMON. I was diſſuaded from making it a viſit, being informed that it was an unintereſting object: the baſe moſt extenſive, the top boggy, and the view over a dreary and an almoſt uninhabited country. THAT part lay in the county of Montgomery, and part in Cardiganſhire; and that, beſides the Severn, it gave riſe to the Ridal, which flows to the ſea near Aberyſtwyth; and the Wye, which, precipitating from its fountains down ſome moſt romantic rocks, continues its courſe till it falls into the Severn below Chepſtow I was told, that the road to it from Cregynnan was by Caer Sws, Park, and Treveglws; and that from the laſt it is neceſſary to get a guide to conduct the traveller over the mountains..

AFTER a moſt pleaſing ride, return to Cregynnan with my good hoſt, the beſt ſhewer of a country I ever had the good fortune of meeting.

ON the morning I took leave of Cregynnan, and, attended by Mr. Blainy, ſkirt the hilly country. Our ride was chiefly through narrow lanes. Stop to ſee the church of Bettws, BETTWS CHURCH. ſeated in a bottom, dedicated to St. Beuno, and formerly belonging to the nunnery of Llanlugan, in this county. The ſteeple makes a figure in theſe parts. It was built by one of its miniſters; whoſe figure, in prieſtly veſtments, carved on a braſs plate, is faſtened to one of the walls. He thus relates his ſtory.

orate pro anima Johannis ap Meredyth de Powiſia Quondam vicarius hujus eccleſiae de Bettws I. In cujus tempore aedificatum eſt campanile: Ibidem ſicut emptae ſunt tres campanae, Et facta ſunt in dicta eccleſia multa alia Bona opera. Ipſo vicario pro poſſe auxiliante Cujus animae propitietur DEUS. Amen.

Dat ipſo vivente, A. D. 1531.

This braſs was originally fixed on a great ſlab of oak, ſtill in its place on the floor, which alſo is covered with oak: ſo ſcarce was ſtone, ſo plentiful wood! The great cheſt is made of a ſingle trunk of oak.

A LITTLE further, on the top of a hill on the left, is a great exploratory mount; and I was informed that on the ſame range is a poſt, called Pen y Gaer, PEN Y GAER. ſurrounded by three trenches.

FROM a hill, called Cefn Uppol, is a moſt delightful view of the vale of Severn, the river; and beyond appear the long extent of Cerri hills, even on the top, Corndon hill, Longment, the Tetterſtones, and the rugged maſs of Freiddin.

ON the left is the houſe of Vaynor, VAYNOR. once the property of the Prices; but, by the marriage of the heireſs, in the laſt century, to George Devereux, Eſq was transferred to the Viſcounts Hereford. But on the death of Price Devereux, tenth of that honor, was, by will, alienated to perſons foreign to the name and blood.

DESCEND into the vale. Croſs the Severn. Ride along the road through the midſt of a Roman camp,ROMAN CAMP. called the Gaer, ſeated in the pariſh, or rather chapelry, of Fordin. It is of the uſual rectangular form. A little beyond, near the houſe of Nantcribba, the ſeat of Lord Viſcount Hereford, riſes a great conoid rock. A few years ago, on taking away the top, were diſcovered the remains of a little fort;A SMALL FORT. and on paring away the rubbiſh, it appeared to have been ſquare, with a round tower probably at each corner: one is tolerably entire, and is only nine feet diameter within; the walls ſeven feet ſeven inches thick. There had been ſome ſmall ſquare rooms, with doorcaſes of good free-ſtone: the reſt of the building is of rough ſtone, cemented with clay. This place was probably ruined by fire; for I obſerved ſome melted lead, mixed with charcoal, and ſeveral pieces of vitrified ſtuff. There is no hiſtory relative to it. It muſt be very antient, for on the top is the ſtool of a vaſt oak. The baſe of the rock is ſurrounded with a ditch, cut through it, leaving only a narrow paſs to the ſort. At a diſtance is another trench. Offa's ditch lies about two hundred yards from the rock. Enter a part of SHROPSHIRE, at Walcot; and, keeping ſoutherly, ſoon reach Chirbury, CHIRBURY. a church and village, which give name to the hundred, and title to the celebrated flower of chivalry Edward Lord Herbert, in whom madneſs and abilities kept equal pace. This hundred did, in old times, belong to the caſtle of Montgomery, which was then reputed to be in it. In the 7th of Edward VI. Chirbury hundred was given by the crown to Edward Herbert and his heirs; but Charles I. in the 3d year of his reign, permitted Sir Edward Herbert to alienate it to William Neye and Thomas Gardiner, Eſqrs

NEAR this village ſtood a priory of Benedictines, PRIORY. founded in the reign of King John. The church was given to the priory with all the lands along the road ſide, as far as Merebroc. By a compoſition between Prior Philip and the parſon of Montgomery, the right of burials and chriſtening was reſerved to the church of Chirbury. The ſame year the Prior had a grant of the tithes of Montgomery wood, and the mill. Hubert de Burgh was a benefactor to this houſe. In 1280 the prior and convent removed to Snede, the place of their firſt conſtitution and abode, it being repreſented that Chirbury was not ſo proper a place for celebrating divine myſteries; but this removal was not to affect the ſouls of thoſe buried at Chirbury, to whom they were bound to do the ſame ſervices as before the removal: neither were the religious to loſe any of their rights at Chirbury Halſton MSS..

THIS houſe maintained a prior and five or ſix monks. Its revenues 66l. 8s. 7d. according to Dugdale; and 87l. 7s. 4d. according to Speed Tanner.. The laſt prior was Oliver Middleton. (probably of the old family of Middleton Hall in this pariſh); who had a penſion for life of 8 l. per annum Willis, ii. 190. Two miles farther is the town of MONTGOMERY, A ſmall neat town,MONTGOMERY. partly built on the ſlope, partly on the ſummit of a hill, beneath the ſhadow of a much higher. It owes its foundation to Baldwyn, lieutenant of the marches to William the Conqueror, from whom the Welſh called it Tre Faldwyn. That he alſo built a caſtle here, or ſome kind of defence, is probable; for we are informed, that in the year 1092, Roger de Montgomery, earl of Shrewſbury, entered Powiſland, and won the town and caſtle of Baldwyn; I ſuppoſe at that time poſſeſſed by the Welſh. Roger fortified the place, and called it after his own name, Montgomery; but in 1094, the Welſh took the caſtle, put the garriſon to the ſword, and carried deſtruction through the neighboring parts. The king, William Rufus, aſſembled a vaſt army, and repoſſeſſed himſelf of the low parts of the country. The earl of Shrewſbury rebuilt the caſtle, which the Welſh had deſtroyed. It was again ruined; but we are not informed of the period: only we are told that Henry III. built a new caſtle there in 1221Powel, 280. . Henry granted it to his great juſticiary Hubert de Burgh, with two hundred marks annually, and a greater ſalary in caſe of warDugdale Baron. i. 695. . During the time it was poſſeſſed by Hubert, it was beſieged by the Welſh; but ſpeedily relieved by the Engliſh. Many bloody ſkirmiſhes happened about this time in the neighborhood; in one of which was taken by the Welſh, William de Breoſe, a potent baron, who was obliged to pay a conſiderable ſum for his ranſom. In 1231, Llewelyn aſſembled a great army, and ſo terrified Hubert that he evacuated the caſtle, which was ſeiſed and burnt by the exaſperated princePowel, 287. .

ON an inquiſition taken on the reverſal of the attainder of the famous Roger Mortimer, earl of March, in 1354Dugdale Baron. i. 147. , he was found to have been poſſeſſed of it at his death, and alſo of the hundred of Chirbury; in which, at that time, the caſtle and manor of Montgomery were reputed to lie. It continued in the family at the time of the death of his grandſon Roger; for it formed part of the jointure of his widowDugdale Baron. i. 147. , and probably remained in his deſcendant Edmund, who died without iſſue.

I LEAVE a long interval before I diſcover any thing more of this place. Lord Herbert ſpeaks of it as the habitation of ſome of his anceſtorsHis Life, p. 5.; I ſuppoſe, holding it from the crown, as ſteward of the caſtle, and of the hundred of Chirbury.

IN the civil wars it was ſeiſed for the uſe of the parlement,SIEGE IN 1644. by Sir Thomas Middleton, in 1644; who, on the appearance of the king's army, was obliged to make a ſudden retreat to Oſweſtry, and leave it ill provided both with garriſon and proviſions. The royal forces, under Lord Biron, laid ſiege to it; but Sir Thomas, being joined by Sir William Brereton, Sir John Meldrum, and Sir William Fairfax, returned, under the command of Brereton, with about three thouſand men, to the relief of the place. The king's army was five thouſand ſtrong; who, on approach of the enemy, took poſſeſſion of the hill above the caſtle.BATTLE SEPTEMBER 18TH. The caſtle was relieved, and a moſt bloody battle enſued. The king's army deſcended from their poſt, and, making a moſt vigorous attack on the forces of the parlement, at firſt gained conſiderable advantage; but the laſt, actuated by deſpair, made the moſt violent efforts: at length, obtained a moſt complete victory. The purſuit was continued, near twenty miles. Above five hundred were ſlain, and fourteen hundred taken priſoners. The loſs on the ſide of the parlement only forty ſlain, and about ſixty woundedDrake's Parl. Hiſt. xiii. 285. Whitelock, 104. . The caſtle met with the fate of all others, being diſmantled by order of the commons.

THE remains impend over the town.CASTLE DESCRIBED. They ſtand on a projecting ridge, of a great height and ſteepneſs, and, towards the end, quite precipitous. The reliques of this fortreſs are very ſmall. It had been divided by four foſſes cut in the rock; each perhaps had its draw-bridge. Between the end of the buildings and the precipice is a level ſpot, the yard or parade of the place.

AT the bottom of the hill, in the vale, is a ſmall fortification, of the ſame kind with thoſe uſed by the Saxons, and by the Welſh alſo, having in it a high mount.

ON a hill,BRITISH POST. not far from the caſtle, is a ſtupendous Britiſh poſt. The approach is guarded by four great ditches, with two or three entrances towards the main work; where two or three foſſes run acroſs the hill, the end of which is ſufficiently guarded by the ſteepneſs.

THIS, and the preceding pieces of military antiquity, ſhew the importance of this place in early times: the firſt was probably in being when Baldwyn made himſelf maſter of this country, notwithſtanding the original name has totally periſhed.

FROM the ſummit of the Britiſh poſt is a fine view of the vale of Montgomery, which is very extenſive, and bounded by the hills of Shropſhire.

THE town was once defended by walls,TOWN. ſtrengthened by towers. It had alſo four gates; Chirbury, Arthur's, Keri, and Kedewen gateLeland Itin. vii. 16. . There was a grant of Edward I. to Bogo de Knouill, conſtable of the caſtle, giving him leave to ſell certain wood on Corndon foreſt, for repairing the walls and foſſes round the town and caſtle; and another, for the ſame purpoſe, from Edward III. permitting a toll for ſeven years on ſeveral articles which were brought there to be ſold: among others, are enumerated Squirrel ſkinsSebright MSS..

HENRY III. granted by charter, that the borough of Montgomery ſhould have the privilege of a free borough, with other libertiesCambden, ii. 780. . The firſt burgeſs that was ſummoned to parlement was in the 27th of Henry VIII. The firſt who appears to have ſat was William Herbert, in the year 1542. The town is governed by two bailiffs, and twelve burgeſſes, or common-council-men. The member is elected by the burgeſſes, and returned by the bailiffs. The electors are about eightyWillis, Notitia Parl. iii. 78. and part ii. 9. . Llanidlos, Welſh Pool, and Llanvyllin, were contributory; but are now excluded from any ſhare in the election.

WHETHER, in old times, this town abounded, more than is uſual, with ladies of free lives and converſation, I do not pretend to ſay; but very early the free burgeſſes had the privileges of the Gogingſtoole, Cuckingſtool, or Cokeſtool, GOGINGSTOOLE. or, what the Saxons called the Scealfing-ſtole. Quia, ſays my authority, per objurgatrices et meretrices multa mala in villa oriuntur: and theſe were to have the judgment de la Goginſtoole; and therein to be placed, with naked feet and diſheveled hair, as an example to all beholdersBlunt's Tenures, 150. . Probably this was not found to anſwer the end intended; therefore immerſion, or ducking, was in after times added, as an improvement, and to effect a radical cure.

THE church is dedicated to St. Nicholas; CHURCH. is in the dioceſe of Hereford, in the gift of the king; and formerly a chapel to Chirbury. Within is a handſome monument of Richard Herbert, Eſq father to the famous Lord Herbert. He is repreſented in armour; and by him lies his lady, Magdalene, daughter of Sir Richard Newport of High Arcol. In front are their numerous progeny. He died in 1597. The monument was erected by his lady, who ſurvived him ſeveral years; and, after diſcharging, with exemplary care, her duty to their children, married, at the end of twelve years, Sir John Danvers, brother to Henry earl of Danby; and died in 1627.

THE houſe called Blackhall, BLACKHALL. once the hoſpitable reſidence of the family, ſtood at the bottom: a foſs marks tha ſpot; for it was conſumed by fire. The lodge in Limore Park, at a ſmall diſtance from the town, was enlarged on this occaſion • is ſtill kept up, and ſhews a venerable wooden front.

ON leaving Montgomery, MYNYDD DIGOLL. I took, for four or five miles, nearly the ſame road as I did in coming to it. Paſſed under Mynydd Digoll. On this mountain may be ſaid to have expired the liberties of Wales; for here, was the laſt conteſt againſt the power of our conqueror.BATTLE. After the death of Llewelyn, the northern Welſhmen ſet up Madoc, couſin to our ſlain prince; who aſſembled a great army, and, after ſeveral eminent victories, at Caernarvon, near Denbigh, Knockin, and again on the marches, was here overthrown, in 1294, by the collected power of the lord marchers, after a well-fought, and long-conteſted engagementPowel, 380, 381. .

I MUST add, that on this mountain Henry VII. muſtered the friends who promiſed to join him from North Wales and Shropſhire, and did not find one who had failed of his appointment. On which account the Welſh call it Digoll, or Without Loſs: the Engliſh name it the Long Mountain.

CROSS the Severn, near Llanlafryn, the ſeat of Price Jones, Eſq Soon after gaining this ſide of the river, I turned a little out of the road to POWYS CASTLE,POWYS CASTLE. the ſeat of the earl of Powys, placed on the ridge of a rock, having ſcarcely any area; which, in common with moſt manſions ſprung from caſtellated origin, are far from deſireable ſituations. This retains a mixture of caſtle and manſion. You enter between two rounders: there are alſo remains of round towers in other parts. Near the caſtle is a long gallery, a hundred and ſeventeen feet by twenty. It was once a hundred and ſixty-ſeven feet; but an apartment has been taken out of one end. This is of a later date than the other building, and was detached from it by a fire, about fifty years ago.

IN the parlour, within the dwelling-houſe, is a full-length of Roger Palmer, earl of Caſtlemain; PORTRAIT OF EARL OF CASTLEMAIN. who owed his peerage to his wife, a royal miſtreſs, and afterwards dutcheſs of Cleveland. He is repreſented dictating to a ſecretary; and dreſſed in a black wig, a cravat, and red mantle. James II. ſent him on an embaſſy to the Pope, to reconcile the church of theſe kingdoms to the holy ſee, after their long lapſe to herefy. The politic pope ſaw the folly of the deſign, and never received the embaſſador without being ſeized with a moſt ſeaſonable fit of coughing, which always interrupted the ſubject of his errand. At length, wearied with delay, he was adviſed to take pet, and threaten to leave Rome, His holineſs, with great ſang froid, told him, that ſince ſuch was his reſolution, he affectionately recommended him to travel early in the morning, and to reſt at noon, leaſt he ſhould endanger his health: and ſo ended this ridiculous buſineſsA full account is given by Miſſion, iii. p. 176 to 207..

THE great ſtaircaſe is adorned with paintings, by Lanſcroon, complimentary to Queen Anne.

THERE are two large rooms, above ſtairs, hung with old tapeſtry. The ceiling of one is ſtuccoed with moſt ridiculous paintings of the zodiac.

NEXT is a long narrow gallery, filled with bad portraits. The (titular) duke of Powys, a poſt-abdication creation, is repreſented in his great wig and robes. He followed the fortune of James II. and died at St. Germain's in 1696. His wife, Elizabeth, daughter to the marquis of Worceſter, is painted in blue and ermine.

IN one ceiling is much incenſe to the ladies of the family, daughters to William, ſecond marquis of Powys. One is repreſented as TRUTH; Lady Throgmorton appears as another Virtue; Lady Mary as Minerva; and juſtice is ſeen driving away Envy, Malice, and other Vices. Few ladies have made ſo conſpicuous a figure as Lady Mary. She was engaged deeply in the Miſſiſipi ſcheme, and dreamt of millions; aimed at being royal conſort to the late Pretender: failed in her plans, and, with another noble adventurer, retired to Spain, in ſearch of the gold in the mines of Aſturias.

The crown of Poland, venal twice an age, To juſt three millions ſtinted modeſt Gage: But nobler ſcenes Maria's dreams unfold; Hereditary realms, and worlds of gold. Congenial ſouls! whoſe life one av'rice joins, And one ſate buries in th' Aſturian mines.

THE views from this height, of Welſh Pool, the vale, and Freiddin hills, are very fine; but, from the ſituation, experience the horrible viciſſitudes of cold and heat. GARDENS. The gardens are to be deſcended to by terraces below terraces, a laborious ſeries of flights of ſteps, covering rock, which one De Valle had blaſted away in former days. The gardens were filled with waterworks: the whole in imitation of the wretched taſte of St. Germains en Laye, which the late family had a moſt unfortunate opportunity of copying.

THE firſt notice I find of this place is about the year 1110; when the renowned Briton, Cadwgan ap Bleddyn ap Cynvyn, ſought here an aſylum from the perſecution of his kindred; and began a caſtle. At that time it was called Y Trellawng. While he was intent on the buſineſs, his nephew Madoc came on him unawares and ſlew him Powel, 170. The building was continued, perhaps by Gwenwynwyn; SIEGES IN 1191. for in 1191 it was beſieged by Hubert archbiſhop of Canterbury: who met at firſt with a moſt vigorous reſiſtance. At length, the prelate ſent for a company of miners, and proceeded ſo ſucceſsfully, that the beſiegers, ſeeing the walls undermined, and the enemy three to one, ſurrendered on the moſt honorable terms. The archbiſhop fortified it more ſtrongly, and placed a ſtrong garriſon in it; but ſoon after Gwenwynwyn attacked it in his turn, and had the good fortune to reduce it on the very terms which his own garriſon had received. At this time it was called the caſtle of Gwenwynwyn at the Pool Powel, 248. .

HIS ſon Gryffydd probably took part with the Engliſh; SUCCESSION. for in 1233 Llewelyn ap Jorwerth overthrew this fortreſs; which now aſſumed the name of Caſtell Coch, or Red Caſtle, from the color of the ſtones The ſame, 288..

HIS grandſon, Owen ap Gryffydd ap Gwenwynwyn, remained in poſſeſſion of the place. He left a daughter, called Hawys Gadarn, or Hawys the hardy. Four of her uncles The ſame, 215. diſputed her title to her father's land, alleging, that a female was incapable of inheriting. Hawys wiſely made a friend of Edward II; who married her to John de Charlton, born near Wellington in Shropſhire, in 1268, and ſtyled Valectus Domini Regis The ſame, 217. It continued in their poſterity ſeveral generations. The barony and title were afterwards conveyed to Sir John Grey of Northumberland, by his marriage with Jane, eldeſt daughter of Edward Lord Powys Dugdale Baron. ii. It remained in their deſcendants till the reign of Henry VIII; the title became then extinct by the death of Edward Grey. I cannot trace the ſucceſſion of the eſtate, till I find it in poſſeſſion of Sir William Herbert, ſecond ſon of the earl of Pembroke; who got it by purchaſe in the reign of Queen Elizabeth. He was created Lord Powys and was anceſtor to the marquiſſes of Powys. In 1644, in the time of Piercy Lord Powys, the caſtle was taken by Sir Thomas Middleton, his lordſhip made priſoner, and the place pillaged Whiteleck, 106. George earl of Powys is the preſent owner, in right of his mother, Barbara, daughter and ſole heireſs of Lord Edward Herbert, brother of the laſt marquis of Powys. Seventeen manors are ſtill dependent in the county on this caſtle.

WELSH POOL, WELSH POOL. a good town, is ſeated in the bottom, not far from the caſtle. Great quantities of flannel, brought from the upper country, are ſent from hence to Shrewſbury. The Severn begins to be navigable at the Poole ſtake, about three quarters of a mile from the town. This place owned the ſame lord as the caſtle. Gryffydd did homage for the lordſhip of Powys at Cheſter, in 1355, to Edward prince of Wales, by the title of Lord of Poole Powel, 382. : his title was alſo frenchified into de la Pole Ayleff's Calendar, 102. .

BELONGING to the church is a very fine chalice of pure gold, containing a wine quart. GOLDEN CHALICE The following inſcription on this rich donation, fully confutes the vulgar ſtory of its having been the penitential gift of a ſucceſsful tranſport, and ſets the relation in the true light.

THOs DAVIES Anglorum in Africa plagā Occidentali procurator generalis Ob vitam multifariâ DEI miſericordiâ ibidem conſervatam Calicem hunc è puriſſimo auro Guiniano conflatum C.LX.VIII. minis valentem, DEI honori et eccleſiae de Welch Poll miniſterio, perpetuò ſacrum voluit. A quo uſu S. S. ſi quis facinoroſus eundem calicem In poſterum alienaret (quod avertat DEUS) DEI vindicis Supremo tribunali poenas Iuat. Cal. Ap• ix. M.DCLXIL.

ALMOST oppoſite to Poole, on the other ſide of the Severn, is Buttington, BUTTINGTON. the Butdigingtune of the Saxons; where, in 894, the Danes, under Heſten, after traverſing great part of England, took their ſtation. The generals of king Alfred inſtantly blocked them up, and that ſo cloſely,. that the Pagans were obliged to eat their horſes for want of ſubſiſtence. At length, actuated by deſpair and famine, attempting to force their way through the Saxon army, were defeated with ſuch ſlaughter, that a very few eſcaped to their own country Sax. Chr. 94, 95. .

THE country from Poole towards Llanymynach is moſt beautifully broken into gentle riſings, prettily wooded. GILESFIELD Gilesfield church and village are prettily ſituated under the hills. The church is dedicated to St. Giles; formerly it belonged to the Ciſtertian abbey of Yſtrat Marchell, or Strata Marcella, Alba domus de Marcella, vall. crucis, or Pola, ABBEY OF STRATA MARCELLA. ſeated between this place and Poole. There is no doubt but it was founded by Owen Cyveiliog, and, as Tanner ſays, in 1170 Tamer, 716. His ſon Gwenwynwyn, in 1201, gave to GOD, the glorious Virgin his mother, and the monks of Strathmarchel, for the repoſe of his ſoul, all the paſturage in the province of Cyveiliog A copy of the charter is in my poſſeſſion. As it eſcaped Sir W. Dugdale, I print it in the Appendix. Tanner ſuſpects that Madoc ap Gryffydd Maelor refounded this monaſtery; but by his charter it ſhould ſeem, that he only gave to it a piece of land, on which to found a cell, or ſome appendage to it: and this, he ſays, was done at the requeſt of four abbots; among whom is mentioned Philip himſelf, actual abbot of Strathmarchel Dugdale Monaſt. i. 896. ; a proof that the houſe was then exiſtent. In the beginning of the reign of Edward III. the Welſh monks were removed to Engliſh abbies, and replaced by Engliſh monks; and this monaſtery made ſubject to the viſitation of that of Buildas, in Shropſhire. Its revenues at the diſſolution, according to Dugdale, were 64l. 14s. 2d. to Speed, 73l. 7s. 3d. Queen Elizabeth granted it to Rowland Hayward and Thomas Dixon.

PASS by Garth, the ſeat of Devereux Mytton, Eſq Go by the ſmall church of Llandyſilio, LLANDYSILIO. a chapel in Llandrinio pariſh; and ſoon after ford the Vyrnyw, and deviate a little from my intended route along the banks of the Severn, to viſit the public-ſpirited Mr. Evans, of Llwyn y Groes, near Llanymynach; who, in a moſt diſintereſted manner, at his own hazard, is undertaking a beautiful map of North Wales. Continue at his houſe till morning, and, in his company, LLANYMYNACH. viſit Llanymynach. The church and village ſtand in a pretty ſituation, on a bank above the Vyrnyw; and very advantageous for trade. It lies at the opening of three vallies, at the interſection of two great public roads, and on a river navigable into the Severn, (which runs only three miles from the place) for ſome months in the year, for barges of fifty tons. Great quantities of ſlates are ſent from hence to Briſtol; and, of late years, up the Stourport canal, to Birmingham, and other places.

ASCEND Llanymynach hill, HILL. a vaſt rock, with the ſurface covered with a verdant turf; beneath which is a pearl-colored marble, beautifully veined with red, and ſtreaked with white, and capable of a good poliſh. This is the limeſtone of the place. GREAT LIMEWORKS. The quantity burnt on this hill is inconceivable, and the increaſe is ten times greater ſince the improvement of the Montgomeryſhire roads; for it is carried even for manure thirty miles into that county. The ſeaſon of carriage begins in March, and ends in October. The hill is of a conſiderable length and breadth: ſlopes upwards from the ſide next to the village, and on the upper part ends in a vaſt and long precipice. Its bowels are probably replete with minerals.MINERALS. Copper, lead ore, and calamine, have been found there of late years; but there are undeniable proofs of its having been worked by the Romans. WORKED BY THE ROMANS. In a great artificial cave, formed into ſeveral meanders in ſearch of the ores, have been diſcovered Roman coins; among them, an Antoninus and a Fauſtina. Near the coins were found the ſkeleton of a man at full length: on his left arm a bracelet, and by his ſide a battle-ax. Burnt bones and aſhes are often found on the hill; and near the north-weſt part of the precipice are numbers of large pits, in form of inverted cones, ſuppoſed to have been the work of the Romans.

ON the ſlope of the hill, ANTIENT DIKES AND FOSSES. in the more acceſſible part, runs, from top to bottom, a ſtupendous rampart of looſe ſtones, with a foſs at the foot of it; and at certain, diſtances beyond are two other parallel foſſes, in many places cut through the rock with vaſt labor. It has been thought that the Romans were the people who made theſe works; but I rather think them to have been Britiſh, as they are ſo ſimilar to thoſe which conſtitute the ſtrength of the Britiſh poſt. Offa's dike may be traced on this hill; but is plainly different from the others. The wall of the church-yard is placed on the former.

FROM the ſummit of the hill is a moſt delightful view: one way, of the vaſt flat of Shropſhire, with its various riſing boundaries. The Freiddin hills form a noble group oppoſite to this eminence; which together riſe moſt magnificently, like two great capes, at the entrance into the vale of Severn; which, from hence to Llanidlos, is between thirty and forty miles in length.

THE view to the ſouth is into Montgomeryſhire; and is a ſeries of little vales, lodged between ſmall wooded riſings. A plain lies immediately beneath the precipice of the hill, finely watered, by the Tanat and the Vyrnyw, there uniting. Immediately beneath the rock is Blodwell Hall, BLODWELL HALL. a deſerted ſeat, once the property of the Tanats; conveyed to the Matthews by the marriage of Jane, daughter and heireſs of Maurice Tanat. The property was again transferred, by the marriage of Urſula, daughter and heireſs of Roger Matthew, to Sir John Bridgeman, Baronet, grandfather to the preſent owner.

NOT far from hence ſtood the caſtle of Carreg Hwva, a place of which I know nothing more, CARREG HWVA CASTLE than that it had been taken and pillaged, in 1162, by Owen Cyveilioc and Owen ap Madoc ap Meredydd Powel, 219. It was ſoon reſtored; for in the year 1187, the laſt was ſlain here in the night, by Gwenwynwyn and Cadwallon, the ſons of his former collegue The ſame, 241. .

FROM Llanymynach I rode to the New Bridge, NEW BRIDGE. a bridge of ſeven arches, over the Vyrnyw, about three miles above the ford. The river is kept confined by a dam, for the ſake of a mill, and forms a fine reach. The overflowing makes a pretty caſcade; and the views upwards, of ſmall vallies and hanging woods, are exceedingly beautiful.

THE river merits the title of Piſcoſus Amnis, as much as any I know. FISH OF THE VYRNYW AND TANAT. The number of fiſh which inhabit it, animate the waters, and add greatly to its beauty. Auſonius does not neglect that remark, in his elegant poem on the Moſel. Intentos tamen uſque oculos errore fatigant Interludentes examina lubrica piſces, I have not examined whether the Moſel affords more than is contained in the following liſt. Fiſh. Salmon, * Trout, * Samlet, Grayling, * Minnow, Perch, Rough, or Pope, Carp, Tench, Roach, * Dace, Gudgeon, Bleak, * Chub, * Loche, Bullhead, or Miller's Thumb, Shad, *Eel, Lamprey, Flounder, When in ſeaſon. Chriſtmas to July. March to September. Ditto. March to November. April to September. May to the end of September. April to September. April to July. April to September. Ditto. Ditto. June, July, Auguſt. April to June. March to September. April to September. March and April. June, July, Auguſt. May to September. Of theſe, only the ſpecies marked which * frequent the Tanat; which falls into the Vyrnyw near the ſpot where this enumeration was made: ſuch preference do fiſh give to certain waters.

PASS again by Llandyſilio. Go over Dongay common; and, near the ſeat of Francis Lloyd, Eſq ride through the village of Llandreinio, and by the church of the ſame name. Croſs Llandreinio bridge, of three arches, a new and handſome ſtructure. Near it is the ſeat of Clopton Price, Eſq an uſeful and active promoter of all public deſigns within his ſphere.

AFTER croſſing the Severn, my road lay at the foot of that great maſs of rocky mountains, diſtinguiſhed by the names of Freiddin, Moel y Gollfa, and Cevn y Caſtell. Their baſes are prettily ſkirted with woods; above which the mountains ſuddenly preſent a moſt tremendous and precipitous front. On Crew green, far to the left, ſtarts up Belin Mount, a round inſulated rock, remote from its congenial hills. See beneath me a vaſt extent of flat and wet country, the great plain of part of Shropſhire. The village and pariſh of Melverly lie on the oppoſite ſide of the Severn, near the place where the Vyrnyw is diſcharged into it. The ſpot is called, from that circumſtance, Cymmerau, or the Conflux.

WITHIN ſight of the vaſt mountains I have juſt mentioned, Gwalchmai, the ſon of Meilir, compoſed a moſt beautiful poem. His genius was equally formed for poetry and war. After being under arms the whole night, charmed with the approach of day, and the beauty of the ſurrounding proſpect, the melody of birds, and the murmurs of the waters, he forgets all care, and, deſpiſing the danger of the imminent foe, thus burſts out into the ode called Gorhoffed GWALCHMAI, or the Favorite of GWALCHMAI; beginning

Mochddwyreawg huan dyffeſtiſt Maws, &c.A fragment preſerved in the reverend Mr. Evan Evans's ingenious Diſſertatio de Bardes, p. 83. The hero was of the houſe of Trefeilir in Angleſey.

Riſe, Orb of Day! the eaſtern gates unfold, And ſhew thy crimſon mantle fring'd with gold. Contending birds ſing ſweet on ev'ry ſpray; The ſkies are bright;—ariſe, thou Orb of Day! I. Gwalchmai, call; in ſong, in war renown'd, Who, Lion-like, confuſion ſpread around. The live-long night, the Hero and the Bard Near Freiddin's rocks have kept a conſtant guard; Where cool tranſparent ſtreams in murmurs glide, And ſpringing graſs adorns the mountain's ſide; Where ſnow-white Sea-mews in the current play, Spread their gay plumes, and frolic through the day. R. W.

RAINALDUS Warin Comes held Meverlei in the manner in which every thing was held in theſe parts, from the lord paramount, Roger earl of Shrewſbury. In the time of the Confeſſor it was held by one Edric. Soon after the conqueſt it was poſſeſſed by the Fitz-alans, till the 9th of Queen Elizabeth; when it was alienated, by Henry earl of Arundel, to Thomas Younge, archbiſhop of York; who ſold it to — Willaſton Halſton MSS. The Warin here mentioned, was of a different race from the family of the Fitz-warins. .

NEAR a ſmall brook, quit Montgomeryſhire, and enter the county of SALOP, OR SHROPSHIRE. Viſit, a little to the right, Wattleburg caſtle, an old houſe, with a ſquare tower of far more antient date. It lies on the Roman road from Llanrbaiadr yn Mochnant See p. Mr. William Mytton conjectures, that the ſite might have been a ſtation of a party of the Vandals, ſent into Britain by the emperor Probus; and that the word is corrupted from Vandelſburgh, a name given it by the Saxons; there being a rampart of that name in Lincolnſhire, and derived, as is ſuppoſed, from the ſame cauſe. At the time of the conqueſt, Edric poſſeſſed it. Roger Corbet, ſon of Corbet a noble Norman, ſucceeded him. Afterwards it was given to a younger ſon of the Corbets of Caux caſtle. It continued long in that family. At length fell into the line of Gwenwynwyn, lord of Powys, and his deſcendant, called Fulk Mowddwy, died in poſſeſſion of it, but without children, in the ſecond of Henry V. Sir Hugh de Burgh ſucceeded, by virtue of his marriage with Elizabeth, ſiſter to Fulk. By the marriage of Angbarad, one of de Burgh's four grand-daughters, it devolved to the Leightons; and is now the property of their deſcendant, Sir Charlton Leighton, Baronet.

A LITTLE farther is Loton, LOTON HALL. the ſeat of the family; which is of Saxon origin, and takes its name from Leighton, a pariſh in this county. Not far from the houſe are the remains of the antient manſion or caſtle of Alberbury; ALBERBURY. ſmall, but very ſtrong: a ſquare tower, and ſome walls, yet exiſt. Leland ſays, it was the caſtle of Fulk Fitzwarine, (on whoſe father, Guarine de Metz, a noble Lorainer, William the Conqueror had beſtowed this manor) founder of the abbey of Alberbury, ABBEY. which, ſtood at a ſmall diſtance from hence, on the banks of the Severn. It was founded in the time of Henry I. and was a cell of the Benedictines of Grammont in France. Being an alien priory, Henry Chichley, archbiſhop of Canterbury, begged it of Henry VI. towards the endowment of his new college of All Souls Goodwin Praeſul. Angl. 181. ; to which it has ever ſince belonged, together with the preſentation to the vicarage. This religious houſe was alſo called Album Monaſterium Leland Itin. v. 89. .

A LITTLE to the eaſt of Alberbury is Routon, ROUTON. the ſeat of the Liſters, a family long reſident here. Prior to their poſſeſſion, it belonged to the lords Strange of Knockin, who had here a caſtle; which was demoliſhed in 1266, by Prince Llewelyn ap Gryffydd; but was rebuilt very ſoon after by John Lord Strange Dugdale Baron. i. 665. Near this ſpot is ſuppoſed to have ſtood the Roman Rutunium: but not a trace of it is to be ſeen. The modern name preſerves part of the antient.

FROM hence I turned towards the Severn; and, on a lofty bank above the river, at Little Shrawardine, ſaw a vaſt artificial mount, the former ſite of ſome caſtelet. From this place I deſcended to the Severn, and, croſſing the river, at this time fordable, I viſited the caſtle and village of Great Shrawardine, SHRAWARDINE. ſeated on the oppoſite bank. Rainaldus held it at the conqueſt. It fell afterwards to the Fitzalans, and continued many centuries in their family; excepting for a ſhort time, on the attainder of Edmund earl of Arundel, in the reign of Richard II. when it was given to Roger de Mortimer, earl of March; and again, in the ſame reign, when it was beſtowed on William earl of Wiltſhire, after the cruel execution of Richard earl of Arundel. But in the next reign his attainder was reverſed, and his fortunes reſtored to his ſon. Henry, laſt earl of the family, ſold it to Sir Thomas Bromley, lord chancellor of England; who, in 1582, with the queen's licence, ſettled it on Sir George Bromley, Knight, and his heirs. He was of an antient family in this county. John, an anceſtor of his, had the hoſpital of Molay Bacon, in the county of Baieux, in France, beſtowed on him by Henry V. on what was called the rebellion of Alan de Beaumont, the prior poſſeſſor. John, and his lawful deſcendants, were to hold it of the crown by the tenure of doing homage, and preſenting to the king and his ſucceſſors a girdle, in the caſtle of Baieux, annually, on the feaſt of St. John the Baptiſt Herald's Viſitation of Shropſhire, 1584, &c. in HALSTON library, p. 44. By another grant, of his kinſman Hugh de Stafford, Dominus de Bourghchier, he had forty pounds a year, during life, charged on his lands in Staffordſhire and Warwickſhire, for his gallant behaviour in a ſkirmiſh near Corbie, in Normandy, where he reſcued the royal ſtandard of Guienne The ſame., which had been committed to the care of Hugh de Stafford. The grant is dated from Madely, on March 10th, in the fourth year of Henry V.

ONLY three or four fragments of the caſtle remain.CASTLE. It had never been conſiderable; was placed on a low mount, and deſtitute of outworks. The property of the caſtle, and the eſtates belonging to it, were of late years ſold to the late Lord Clive.

THE river, from the neighborhood of Shrawardine, begins to grow very beautiful. The banks are elevated, and often cloathed with hanging woods. In places, they recede from the verge of the channel, and leave a verdant ſpace of intervening meadow.

REPASS the river, and go through the village of Forde. Leave on the right Dintle, the property of Leighton Delamore Griffith, Eſq and Onſlow, the property of Rowland Wing field, Eſq.ONSLOW. The laſt gave name to the noble family of Onſlow, who were ſettled here as early as the time of Henry III. On the north ſide of the river, on a delightful bank, are ſituated the church and village of Montford; MONTFORD. which gave title, in 1741, to Henry Bromley, Eſq.BRIDGE. A little farther is Montford bridge, conſiſting of four arches. There had been one at this place before the year 1291; for at that time the ſheriff of the county ſummoned the executors of John de Hegerwas to appear at the aſſizes, to give an account of what materials had been gotten, and what money was in the teſtator's hands, who had died before it was finiſhed. In 1374, or the 48th of Edward III. it was found to be out of repair; which induced the king to grant it pontage, or a toll for three yearsParochial antiquities of Shropſhire, by Mr. William Mytton, MS. in folio.— I beg here to give ſome account of my worthy uncle, to whoſe labors I am ſo much indebted. He was a younger brother of the houſe of Halſton, ſee vol. i. page 234, of this Tour. He was deſigned for the church; but, by reaſon of certain political ſcruples, declined the purſuit of the profeſſion. He then totally gave himſelf up to the ſtudy of antiquity, chiefly that of his own county; conſulted all the records he could get acceſs to; and, with vaſt pains and accuracy, formed the volume I refer to. But his deſigns extended to the giving a moſt complete hiſtory of Shropſhire: for which purpoſe he had made immenſe collections, which he left behind undigeſted; beſides a numerous and elegant collection of drawings of monuments, &c. done by an artiſt he kept for that purpoſe. Death prevented the execution of his plans. He died on the 8th of September 1746, aged 51, at Habberly, an antient eſtate of his elder brother's, where he had retired for ſome years, to enjoy, at leiſure, the purſuit of his favorite ſtudies., to effect the reparation.

SHREWSBURY is four miles, in almoſt a direct line, from this place; but I preferred following the courſe of the river, tempted by the extreme beauty of the ride. I croſſed Montford bridge, turned to the right, and went over the Perry, not far above its junction with the Severn. MITTON. The hamlet of Mitton, i. e. Middle Town, lies in the midſt of the narrow neck of land between the two rivers. The Severn here makes a great bend, and forms, on the oppoſite ſide, a peninſula, with ſo very narrow an iſthmus, as to occaſion it to be called the Iſle of Up Roſſal; THE ISLE. being encompaſſed by the river for the ſpace of five miles, except at the entrance, which forms a neck of only three hundred and eighty yards in breadth. The iſle is a moſt compact eſtate of Humphrey Sandford, Eſq and lies in the pariſh of St. Chad. This place formerly belonged to Sir Francis Englefield, Knight, a gentleman zealous for the old religion at the time of the Reformation, and a principal officer about the perſon of the Princeſs Mary, afterwards queen. At the acceſſion of Edward VI. he was ſent for (with others of her houſhold) by the Protector and council, to forbid them hearing of maſs in the princeſs's houſe. They refuſed obedience, and, in conſequence, were impriſoned for ſeveral months. On the acceſſion of Mary, he received the ſtrongeſt proofs of her gratitude for his fidelity. In the very firſt year of the following reign, he quitted the kingdom, with many other zealots, and was indefatigable in promoting the intereſts of Mary queen of Scots. He was attainted in the year 1585, and all his eſtates confiſcated; but ſome legal difficulties ariſing, in 1593 a new act was paſſed, which fully confirmed the former Ruffhead's Statutes at Large, ii. 653 676. Sir Francis died in 1592, at Valladolid, and his body was interred there in the Engliſh college. This eſtate of his was granted by Queen Elizabeth to Richard Sandford, Eſq an officer of the crown, and anceſtor to the preſent owner; a family long before poſſeſſed of other eſtates in the neighborhood.

FITTES, FITTES. the pariſh church of Mitton, is ſeated at a ſmall diſtance, on an eminence, with a large exploratory mount not remote from it. From a field, not far from the church-yard, is a moſt beautiful view of the Severn, which lies far beneath, at the foot of the ſteep banks, clothed with hanging woods, or darkened with yews of enormous ſize. The river is ſeen winding round the iſle; and the iſle itſelf, a tract of rich land mixed with trees, ſlopes gracefully to the margin of the water. A long and narrow wooded iſland diverſifies the view, by dividing the river into two channels; which re-unite, and run under Leighton ſhelf, a high cliff, which forms a noble finiſhing on that part. Above the fore-ground of this rich proſpect are numberleſs mountains of different forms; all together forming the fineſt view this country can boaſt.

IN the courſe of my ride, paſs by the upper and lower Berwick; one the ſeat of — Betton, Eſq the other of Thomas Powis, Eſq both commanding moſt delicious views of the river and town of SHREWSBURY. They are both in the pariſh of St. Mary, Shrewſbury. SHREWSBURY. My entrance into the town was through the North Gate; which, for greater ſecurity, in reality conſiſts of two gates, at a ſmall diſtance from one another, with a round tower on each ſide.

THE caſtle ſtands on an eminence on the left.CASTLE. Only one part with two rounders remain, and the walls of the north and eaſtern ſides. The keep was on a large artificial mount; which ſhews this fortreſs to have been of Saxon or Britiſh origin, notwithſtanding the foundation is aſcribed to the great earl of Shrewſbury, Roger de Montgomery. The inſide is cleared from buildings, excepting one houſe. The whole caſtle-yard is a garden; and the mount is at preſent admirable only for its beautiful view.

THE town of Shrewſbury is ſeated within a peninſula, with the ground finely ſloping, in moſt parts, to the river. The caſtle was judiciouſly placed on a narrow iſthmus, two hundred yards wide, which connects it to the main land. Roger de Montgomery, FOUNDED BY ROGER DE MONTGOMERY. on whom almoſt the whole county was beſtowed by the Conqueror, beſides a hundred and fifty-eight manors in other parts of the kingdom, made this his principal ſeat. In order to extend his fortifications, he demoliſhed forty-one houſes; for this part of the town, at that period, was very populous. Theſe houſes paid taxes; yet no remittance was made to the owners, notwithſtanding the greatneſs of their loſs. The firſt conſtable was Warine the Bald, a man of ſmall ſtature, but great courage. This place continued in the poſſeſſion of the two ſons of Roger de Montgomery: Hugh, who was ſlain in Angleſey, and that monſter of crueltySee Dugdale Baron i. 31. Robert, ſurnamed de Beleſme; who, after various ſtruggles, was at length obliged to ſurrender this place, his honors, and all his mighty poſſeſſions, into the hands of his ſovereign, Henry I. As ſoon as it became a royal fortreſs, the lands and demeſnes, which followed it, were parceled out into ſerjeanties for its defence. Thus Robert, the ſon of Adam de Leyton, was obliged by his tenure to continue in this caſtle fifteen days, cum una baliſta, with one croſs-bow; and William de Wichard held the manor of Cold Hatton, to keep ward in this caſtle, at his own expence, twenty days, in time of war, cum uno equo, lorica, capello ferreo, et lancea. The conſtables were uſually men of the firſt note; and very often it was committed to the care of the ſheriff of the county. After it had been diſmantled in the civil wars, it was granted by Charles II. to Francis lord viſcount Newport, afterwards earl of Bradford. In our times, it got into the hands of Pulteney earl of Bath, and is now in thoſe of William Pulteney, Eſq

THE firſt attempt towards the walls of this town, WALLS. was made by Robert de Beleſme; who, to defend it againſt the king's forces, then marching againſt him, drew a wall from each ſide of the caſtle acroſs the iſthmus to the water-ſide. One is ſtill remaining, and, as I have been informed, terminated with a ſquare tower: both theſe walls are preſerved in Speed's plan of the place. The town was not defended by walls till the year 1219; when Henry III. ſtrongly urged the inhabitants to conſider of ſome means of defence againſt an enemy. At firſt he made them a grant of various ſmall tolls; but at length, finding thoſe inſufficient, was obliged to aſſiſt them: but the work went on ſo ſlowly, that they were not completed in leſs than thirty-two years. The town was paved in the next reign, by the aſſiſtance of certain cuſtoms granted for that purpoſe.

IN almoſt every part, the original walls were at a diſtance from the river. Thoſe on the ſouth-eaſt ſide of the town are kept in good repair, and form pleaſant but interrupted walks, by reaſon of flights of ſteps. Thoſe on the north-weſt ſide are entirely covered with houſes. Beneath them is a narrow field, extending from the School to the Welſh Bridge; along the verge of which, cloſe to the river, in 1645, ROWSHILL WALL. was built another wall, called Rowſhill wall: the materials of which are ſaid to have been brought from Shrawardine caſtle.

THERE are many hiſtorical evidences of the antiquity of the town.TOWN. It had been, for many ages, the capital of Powis-land, and the ſeat of the princes. Brochmail Yſcithroc, who lived about the year 607, is ſaid to have had his palace on the ſpot where St. Chad's church now ſtandsPowel, 22. The Welſh called it Pen-Gwern, or the Head of the Alder-groves; and Ymwithig, or the Delight, I ſuppoſe, of our princes. The period in which the town aroſe, is not certainly known; but it is ſuppoſed to have been on the ruin of the Roman Uriconium, the Vreken Ceaſter of the Saxons, and the modern Wroxeter, a ſmall village, about four miles from hence, upon the Severn; where may be ſtill ſeen a large fragment of the antient wall.

IN the time of Edward the Confeſſor, IN SAXON TIMES. Scrobbes Byrig, as the Saxons called it, was a conſiderable place. At that period there were two hundred and fifty-two houſes, and the burgeſſes paid yearly 7l. 16s. 8d. in exciſe. Whenever the king lay in the town, twelve of the chief inhabitants kept watch about his perſon; and if he came there to hunt, the better ſort of burgeſſes, who kept horſes, rode armed as his guard, and the ſheriff ſent thirty-ſix footmen for their ſupport, while the king was reſident among them. When the king left the town, the ſheriff ſent twenty-four horſes to Lenteurde, to conduct him to the firſt ſtage in Staffordſhire.

WHEN the ſheriff went againſt the Welſh, which he had frequent occaſion of doing, it was cuſtomary to ſummon thirty-ſix men at Marſeteley park, to give their ſervice for eight days. Thoſe who neglected to go, forfeited forty ſhillings.

THE king had here three maſters of the mint, who, like the other coiners of the county, were obliged to pay him twenty ſhillings at the end of fifteen days, while the money was out of the mint, and while it was current. The town paid in all twenty pounds yearly: the king had two-thirds, the ſheriff one. As ſoon as the Norman reign commenced, it paid to its new earl forty pounds.

THE firſt charter extant (for that of Henry I. is loſt) was one in 1189, CHARTERS. from Richard I. It confirms all its antient cuſtoms and privileges; for which the town was to pay forty marks in ſilver, including ten for the purpoſe of providing a brace of hunters for the royal perſonage. It likewiſe grants to the burgeſſes the town and all its appurtenances, which had been ſeized by Henry I. on the forfeiture of Earl Robert. King John, in 1199, enlarged their charter, permitting the citizens to elect two ſubſtantial diſcreet perſons of their body as bailiffs for the government of the town; and that the common-council might chuſe four others, to determine all pleas of the crown in the corporation, and to be a check on the bailiffs themſelves. Various other charters, with additional privileges, were granted by ſucceeding princes, till Queen Elizabeth made it a body corporate; and Charles I. confirmed and enlarged her royal charter. It now conſiſts of a mayor, twenty-four aldermen, and forty-eight aſſiſtants, who are called the common-council. They have alſo a recorder; two chamberlains, annually choſen by the mayor, aldermen, and aſſiſtants; a ſteward, a ſword-bearer, and three ſerjeants at mace.

THIS town ſent members from the beginning. The right of voting reſts in burgeſſes living in the town, and paying to church and poor, according to a reſolution of the houſe in 1709; but in 1714, it was reſolved that foreign burgeſſes had a right to vote.

THERE is in this town no manufacture conſiderable enough to merit mention; but it draws very great profit from thoſe of Montgomeryſhire. This place is the chief mart for them. About 700,000 yards of Welſh webs, a coarſe kind of woollen cloth, are brought here annually, to the Thurſday market; and bought up and dreſſed, that is, the wool is raiſed on one ſide, by a ſet of people called Shearmen. At this time only forty are employed; but in the time of Queen Elizabeth the trade was ſo great, that not fewer than ſix hundredAnderſon's Dict. i. 405. maintained themſelves by this occupation. The cloth is ſent chiefly to America, to clothe the Negroes; or to Flanders, where it is uſed by the peaſants.

FLANNELS, both coarſe and fine, are brought every other Monday (except when fairs intervene) to Welſh Pool; and are chiefly conſumed in England, to the amount of about 7 or 800,000 yards. The Shrewſbury drapers go every market to Welſh Pool, for the ſake of this commerce.

THE diſpoſition of the ſtreets in Shrewſbury is extremely irregular, STREETS. as is the caſe with all antient towns not of Roman origin. Many of the buildings are old; but the modern buildings are in general ſcattered in various places.

THE free-ſchool ſtands near the caſtle, in a broad handſome ſtreet.FREE-SCHOOL. It was founded by Edward VI. in 1552; who endowed it with tithes, at that time amounting to 20l. 8s. and empowered the bailiffs, burgeſſes, and their ſucceſſors, to appoint one ſchoolmaſter, and one under-ſchoolmaſter; and, with the conſent of the biſhop of Lichfield, to frame ſtatutes for its government. Queen Elizabeth added conſiderably to the endowments, ſo that at preſent the revenues are very large. The building was originally of wood; but in 1595, a beautiful and extenſive edifice of ſtone aroſe in its place, which contains the ſchool, houſes for the maſters, and a library filled with a valuable collection of books, and ſeveral curioſities; among them are three large ſepulchral ſtones, diſcovered by ploughing at Wroxeter.

The firſt has on its ſummit a pine-cone between two lions, and beneath the pediment, a roſe. The firſt is taken from the Picea, what Pliny calls Feralis Arbor Picea—Feralis Arbor, et funebri indicio ad fores poſita, ac rogis virens. Hiſt. Nat. lib. xvi. c. 10., expreſſive of the melancholy ſubject, and not infrequent on memorials of this kind. Such was the great braſs cone, five yards high, which ſtood on the top of the mauſoleum of Adrian, now the tower of St. Angelo, and is ſtill preſerved in the garden of the Belvedere Flaminius Vacca, in Montfaucon's travels, Engl. ed. 322. Wright's travels, i. 273. The inſcription denotes the death of C. MANNIVS SECUNDUS, of the town of Pollentia, a Beneficiarius or veteran in the xxth legion, who had ſerved his time, and was called again into ſervice by the entreaties of a chief legate.

THE ſecond ſtone has on the upper part a human face, two dolphins, and two ſerpents. Beneath are three pannels. In the firſt is commemorated, by her huſband, Placida, aged fifty-five, and thirty years his wife. In the next is an inſcription to Deuccus, a boy fifteen years old, ſon to the ſame perſon: Cur. agente patre. The third pannel is a blank; ſo it is probable (as was hinted to me by a moſt ingenious friend) that the man, who had erected this monument, deſigned to have been buried in the ſame place with his wife and ſon; but dying elſewhere, this pannel remains unfilled.

The third ſtone is inſcribed to M. Petronius, ſignifer, or ſtandard-bearer to the Legio quatuor decima gemina, or the fourteenth double legion; or a legion in which two had been formed into one. As this legion never was in Britain, the learned Dr. Ward See his account of theſe three ſtones in the Ph. Tr. xlix. part i. 196. gueſſes, that Petronius only came for his health, and died here.

A PRETTY wooden model of a hypocauſt, diſcovered at the ſame place with the ſtones, is alſo preſerved here.

THE public buildings of this town are not of note ſufficient to be mentioned.PUBLIC BUILDINGS. Among the hotels of the great men of paſt time, Charlton-houſe, now the theatre, was the reſidence of the Charltons, lords of Powys. This was probably founded by John de Charlton in 1326, when he fortified it by the permiſſion of Edward IIPhilips, 145. Vaughan Place is another antient houſe, the property of John Mytton of Halſton, Eſq derived from the marriage of his anceſtor Reginald Mytton, about the year 1376, with Elinor, ſole heireſs Haymon, ſon of Sir Thomas Vaughan Mytton Pedigree. of this town.

The infirmary was, INFIRMARY. within my memory, a private houſe. It was opened on April 25th 1747. Since that time, to June 24th 1782, have been admitted 14,040 in-patients; of which 8,453 were cured, 1,459 relieved. 17,693 out-patients; of which 13,234 were cured, 864 relieved. The annual ſubſcription of the laſt year amounted to £. 909.

Two bridges connect this peninſula with the country. WELSH BRIDGE. The Welſh Bridge is a very antient ſtructure, of ſix arches; with a very handſome embattled gateway at one end. On each ſide is a round tower, and over the entrance a ſtatue of a prince in armour, generally ſuppoſed to be intended for Richard duke of York; for beneath his feet is a roſe-ſprig, a device uſual on the ſeals of that great prince Sandford's General. p. 386. tab. 374. This probably was a favorite town of the Plantagenets; for Elizabeth, queen to Edward IV. found an aſylum here during her huſband's conteſts for the crown; and here was delivered of her ſecond ſon, Richard duke of York, and her third, George duke of Bedford The ſame, pp. 415. 417. This was not the original ſite of the ſtatue; it having been fixed here after it had been removed from another place in 1695 Philips, 148. At the Welſh end of the bridge formerly ſtood another tower of great ſtrength, calculated to repel the inroads of my countrymen.

ON an eminence above Frankwel, MILLINGTON'S HOSPITAL. a ſuburb beyond the bridge, ſtands Millington's hoſpital, a handſome brick building, founded in 1734, by the will of Mr. James Millington of this town, Drapier. It maintains twelve poor houſekeepers of Frankwel (ſingle perſons) and a charity-ſchool for twenty boys and twenty girls of the ſame diſtrict, if to be found there; and if not, to be taken out of the neareſt part of the pariſh of St. Chad: there to be inſtructed, and fitted for trades ſuitable to their ſtations; to have prayers conſtantly read, morning and evening, on ſchool-days, (for which the chaplain is to have twenty pounds a year); and finally, they are to be decently cloathed twice a year. The poor houſekeepers are to receive 3l. 10s. a year apiece, a load of coal, and a new coat, or gown, annually. Theſe poor people are to be, on vacancy, elected out of ten others, properly qualified; who, till their election, are to receive likewiſe, annually, a new coat, or gown, apiece. Mr. Millington beſides founded in Magdalen college, Cambridge, two exhibitions of forty pounds a year for two ſcholars, to be elected from his grammar-ſchool; and when in orders, one of them is to be elected chaplain of the ſchool, in the room of the clergyman who happens not to be ſo qualified, and who muſt, in that caſe, reſign. The founder was a true churchman; for all diſſenters, and all perſons not truly orthodox, are to be excluded.

THE new bridge is on the ſide of the town, NEW BRIDGE. and is a very handſome building, of ſeven arches. It was begun in 1769, and built by ſubſcription, under the direction of Mr. Gwyn, architect, a native of Shrewſbury. This ſucceeded a very antient and incommodious narrow bridge, with the uſual obſtruction, a gateway. It conſiſted, in the time of Leland, of four arches, beſides the draw-bridgeLeland, Itin. iv. 99. It formerly was called the Eaſt bridge, and the Stone bridge.

NOT far from hence, ABBEY. on the ſide of the river, ſtood the great mitred abbey of St. Peter and St. Paul, founded in 1083 by Roger earl of Shrewſbury, and his counteſs Adeliſſa. It was built on the ſite of a timber church, erected by Siward; who exchanged it, and probably the ground about it, with the earl for the village of Langafielda; which Siward, at his death, bequeathed to the new foundation. It was peopled with Benedictine monks from Seez, in Normandy, who arrived hungry and naked. Roger himſelf, with the permiſſion of his lady, was ſhorn, and became a monk of his own abbey, and enriched it with the coat of St. Hugh, of the monaſtery of Cluni; which he ſometimes wore himſelf as a moſt precious relique. He endowed the houſe largely, and encouraged every body who held under him to do the ſame. Among the after endowments, I ſmile at theſe good men receiving from earl Hugh the tithe of all the veniſon in Shropſhire, except ſuch which ranged in the woods of Wenlock. The founder died in 1094, and was interred here, as was his ſon Hugh, ſlain in Angleſey. Fulcheredus, a man of great eloquence, was firſt abbot. Robert, the fourth abbot, whom Mr. William Mytton names Pennant, procured with infinite difficulty, and, as I have in p. 47 related, enriched the abbey with the reliques of St. Wenefrede, and enſhrined them, much to the emolument of his houſe. William Beauchamp, earl of Warwick, by will dated Auguſt 8, 1437, ordered foure images of gold, everich of them of the weight of twenty pounds of gold, to be made after my ſimilitude, with myn arms, holding an ancre between his hands, to be preſented to the ſhrines of four different churches; one of which was to be that of St. Wenefrede in Shrewſbury Hearze's Collections. The Earl's Will; . I have, in vol. i. p. 34, of my Tour, given an account of the fraternity eſtabliſhed here in honor of the ſaint, about the year 1396. Thomas Butler was laſt abbot. At the diſſolution, Dr. Lee, and Maſter Henly, were ſent down. They convened the abbot and monks to the chapter-houſe; cauſed ſome deeds to be ſigned with the common ſeal of the houſe, then ordered an officer to break it, and declared the convent to be diſſolvedMr. W. Mytton. Butler was allowed a penſion of eighty pounds a year, and leſſer ſums to the monksWillis, i, 171. The revenues at the diſſolution are reckoned by Dugdale at only 132l. 4s. 10d. Speed, with more probability, ſays they were 515l. 4s. 3d. The ſite was granted by Henry VIII. to Edward Watſon, and Henry Herdſon Tanner, 445. Queen Elizabeth made the church parochial. This church was called St. Crux, or the Holy Croſs, in the abbey of Shrewſbury, and ſtill retains the name.

IN ſo great a length of time the church underwent great alterations. Some of the round arches are to be ſeen within, and ſome of the doors are of the ſame ſpecies of architecture; moſt of the other parts are more modern. The weſt window is an elegant piece of ſharp-pointed Gothic, and above is a ſtatue. The tomb of the founder is preſerved in the church; on which is repreſented his figure in mail and a mantle, and in the attitude of drawing his ſword.

IN the garden is a moſt beautiful ſtone pulpit, open on all ſides. I refer the reader to the print as the beſt deſcription.

THE Grey Friers, FRANCISCANS. or Franciſcans, had a houſe a little to the ſouth of the new bridge, not far from the town-walls. It was founded on the motion Hawyſe, daughter of Owen ap Gryffydd, prince of Powys, and wife to John Charleton, lord of Powys Leland, Itin. Charleton died in the year 1353; Hawyſe before him, and was interred in this convent. At the diſſolution it was granted to Richard Andrews and Nicholas Temple. The remains are fi •• ed up into a private houſe.

A LITTLE farther is that beautiful walk the Quarry, bordering on the river, and planted with rows of trees. It is the property of the corporation, and the paſturage part let to the inhabitants, and the profits diſtributed to the burgeſſes. In 1569 this ground was ſet to three perſons for ten years, for the annual acknowlegement of a red roſe, on condition they brought water in leaden pipes, as high as it would run, for the uſe of the town, from Brodwel near Crow Meole; which was effected in 1579.

ON a lofty bank, ORPHAN-HOUSE. oppoſite to theſe walks, is ſeated the Orphan-houſe, a fine brick building, with thirteen windows in front, and two ſmall wings. It was begun in 1760, and deſigned to receive part of the foundlings from the great hoſpital in London. They were firſt to have been put out to nurſe in the neighborhood, and at a proper age to have been brought into the houſe, and under proper maſters and miſtreſſes to be taught ſuch arts as would make them uſeful members of ſociety. On the decline of the capital hoſpital, this great building became uſeleſſ and is at preſent no more than a place of confinement for priſoners of war.

BEYOND the quarry, AUGUSTINES. cloſe to the river, ſtood the houſe of Auguſtine friers. Leland Itin. iv. 100. ſays, it was founded by one of the Staffords; and that ſeveral perſons of note, ſlain in the battle of Shrewſbury, were interred here, and in the church of the Black friers. The friers of this houſe lay under a very bad fame; it is even ſaid, that a neighboring lane took its name from their nocturnal amours. Dr. Powel ſeems to think, that the celebrated Incubi were nothing more than mendicant friers; who might encourage the notion, in order to remove ſcandal from themſelves, and their religious paramours. Hi, ſays the zealous annotator, Incubi daemones ita religioſas virgines illis diebus opprimebant, ut nulla eos crucis ſignatio, nec aqua benedicta, nec ipſum corporis CHRISTI ſacramentum, abigere valeret Girald, Camb. Itin. lib. ii. c. 8. .

The houſe of the Black friers, or Dominicans, DOMINICANS. ſtood near St. Mary's, Water Lane. It is ſaid that Richard, a burgeſs of this town, by the king's licence, built them a church in 1264; but the foundation of the friery is aſcribed to Maud Lady Genevil, wife of Jeffry Lord Genevil, who lived in the reigns of Henry III. and Edward I. They had confirmation of what they held here from Edward III. and likewiſe were permitted to make an aqueduct in the ground belonging to their houſe.

MOST of the parochial churches are of great antiquity.CHURCHES. That of St. Chad was probably founded by the Saxons ſoon after the expulſion of the Welſh. At the Conqueſt it was found to be collegiate, and to have a dean and ten prebendaries. In 1393 the old church was burnt down by the careleſſeneſs of a workman. The fellow ſeeing the miſchief he had done, ran home, put ſome money in his pocket, and attempting to eſcape, was drowned in fording the river, near the ſtone bridge. In this church is the monument of Richard Onſlow and his wife, with their figures recumbent: he dreſſed in a bonnet and gown. This gentleman was of the law; was twice member for Steyning in Suſſex, and was anceſtor to the honorable Arthur Onſlow, ſpeaker of the houſe of commons, and the preſent Lord Onſlow. The former, in 1742, paid ſuch reſpect to his memory as to cauſe this memorial of him to be repaired. Richard Onſlow died of a peſtilential fever in 1571.

ST. MARY'S, and St. Alcmund's, are remarkable for their handſome ſpire ſteeples. The firſt is ſaid to have been founded by King Edgar Philips, 90. ; the laſt, by the heroine Elfleda Tanner, 445. : each of them had been collegiate. But the church which is ſaid to be the moſt antient, is that of St. Giles, ST. GILES. ſeated at the ſkirt of the ſuburbs, beyond the abbey. It is ſmall, and only remarkable for the vaſt ſize of one ſide of the roof. It had the honor of receiving the bones of St. Wenefrede before they were depoſited in the ſhrine in the abbey. It is called in Doomſday book, the pariſh of the cityPhilips, 84. ; which gives it ſtronger clame to antiquity than any of the others. It is now annexed to the church of the Holy Croſs, or the abbey.

AMONG the more remarkable civil tranſactions may be reckoned the parlements held in this town. The firſt was ſummoned formally by writ. By the firſt, the lords to appear on September 13th 1283; the ſecond writ directed the commonalty of every county to chuſe two knights; the third, to the cities and boroughs; the fourth, to the judges. At this auguſt aſſembly was tried and condemned David, brother to Llewelyn, laſt prince of Wales: his perfidy to Edward, and his treaſons to his country, before his reconciliation with his brother, rendered him an object of deteſtation. Eleven earls, and an hundred barons, were commiſſioned to try himDrake's Parl. Hiſt. i. 89 , as a ſubject of England; for he had received from Edward a barony, and a conſiderable penſion. He was the firſt who ſuffered the death of a traitor, in the form of the ſentence now in uſe; which he underwent in its fulleſt extent.

ANOTHER parlement was held here in 1397; it was called the Great Parlement, on account of the number of people aſſembled in it. Here the unfortunate Richard, by this obſequious ſenate, obtained a ſtretch of power unknown before; and, by a ſtrange conceſſion, obtained that the whole power of the nation ſhould devolve on the king, twelve peers, and ſix commoners. The Pope's bull was thought neceſſary to confirm ſo irregular a proceedingRapin, i. 469. .

THE military tranſactions relative to this place were numerous; but ſo brief, and ſo rapid, that I ſhun mention of all, except three. BATTLE OF SHREWSBURY. The firſt was the important battle on St. Magdalene's eve, July 22d 1403, which is beſt known by the name of that of Shrewſbury, between Henry IV. and the brave Henry Percy, ſurnamed Hotſpur. It was the deſign of the northern inſurgents to make themſelves maſters of this town, and here to ſtrengthen their forces by a junction with the great Glyndwr and his countrymen. They made rapid marches through Lichfield and Stafford; but the active Henry, ſtimulated by the advice of the earl of Dunbar, a Scotch nobleman, then in his army, advanced with a ſpeed which ſaved his crown, and proved the deſtruction of his enemies. He flung himſelf into Shrewſbury, as ſome aſſertSto •• , 329, , at the inſtant that the inſurgents were going to ſcale the walls. He immediately quitted the town, and encamped before the gates. The high ſpirit of Percy would not ſuffer him to wait till the arrival of Glyndwr, who was no farther diſtant than Oſweſtry: ſo that only four thouſand of the Welſh were able to join the northern forces. Percy ſent that night Thomas Kaiton and Thomas Salvaigne, two of his eſquires, with a moſt reproachful manifeſto, concluding, in the romantic manner of the times, with hurling defiance in his teeth. WE defy thee, DEFIANCE. thy fautoures and compliers, as common traytours, and deſtroyers of the realme, and the invadours, oppreſſours, and confounders of the verie true and right heyres to the crowne of Englande; which thing we entende with our handes to prove this daie, Almyghty GOD helpyng us Halle, fol. xxii.

THE fight began early in the morning, and very near to the town; for the ſpirited Percy had made his advances much ſooner and nearer than the king expected. The onſet was made in Oldfield, or Bulfield, at a ſmall diſtance beyond a little brook, north of the north-gate; and the battle raged towards Berwick Carte, ii. 659., and as far as what is now called Battlefield. Let the old hiſtorians paint the conflict in their plain but animated language.

THE kyng perceivyng that the battayll was nerer than he either thoughte or loked for, leaſte that long tarryinge mighte be a miniſhyng of his ſtrength, ſet his battayles in good ordre; likewyſe did his enemies, whiche bothe in puiſſaunce and courage were nothing to hym inferior. Then ſodaynly the trumpets blewe: the kynges parte cried St. George upon them; the adverſaries cried Eſperaunce Percie; and ſo furiouſly the armies joined. The Scottes, whiche had the forwarde on the lordes ſide, intending to bee revenged of their old diſpleaſures done to them by the Engliſhe nation, ſet ſo fierſely on the kynges forward, that they made them drawe backe, and had almoſte broken their arraie. The Welſhemen alſo, whiche ſithe the kynges departure out of Wales, had lurked and lien in wooddes, mountaignes, and marſhes, heringe of this battayl towarde, came to the aide of the earles, and refreſhed the wery people with new ſuccours. When a fearful meſſenger had declared to the kynge that his people were beaten doune on every ſide, it was no nede to bid him ſtirre; for ſodaynly he approched with his freſhe battaill, and comforted, hartened, and encouraged his part ſo, that they toke their hartes to theim, and manly fought with their enemies. The Prince Henry that daie holpe muche his father; for thoughe he were ſore wounded in the face with an arowe, yet he never ceaſed, either to fyghte where the battaill was moſte ſtrongeſt, or to courage his men where their hartes was moſt danted. This greate battaill continued thre longe houres with indifferent fortune on bothe partes. That at laſt the kyng, crying SAINCT GEORGE, VICTORY! brake the arraie, and entered into the battaill of his enemies; and fought fierſely, and adventured ſo farre into the battaill, that the Earl Douglas ſtrake him downe, and ſlewe Sir Walter Blonte, and three other, appareled in the kynges ſuite and clothyng, ſaying, I marvaill to ſee ſo many kynges ſ ſodainly ariſe again. Others ſay, that the earl of Dunbar withdrew the kynge from the place that hee flood in; which was a good turne for him; for the aforeſaid Henry Percy, and E. Dowglas (then whom was never man more ſtout) raged ſo that the K. ſtandert was overthrowne, and thoſe about it ſlaine; among whom was ſlaine Edmund E. of Stafford, Sir Walter Blunt, the K. ſtandert-bearer, Sir Nicholas Langford, Sir John Cokayne, Sir John Calverley, Sir John Maſſy, baron of Podington, with manie other knights and gentlemenStow, 329. According to Halle's account, the kynge hymſelf ſlewe with his hande, that day, xxxvii perſones of his enemies. The other of his parte encouraged by his doynges, foughte valiauntly, and ſlewe the Lord Percie, called Sir Henry Hotſpurre, the beſt capetain on the parte adverſe. When his death was knowen, the Scottes fled, the Welſhmen rann, the traitours were overcome. Then neither wooddes letted, nor hilles ſtopped the fearfull hartes of them that were vanquiſhed to flie; and in that flighte the Erle Douglas, which for haſt falling from the cragge of a mountaigne (Haghmond Hill.) was taken; and, for his valiauntneſs, of the kynge frely and frankely delivered. On the kynges part were ſlain xvi c. perſones, and above v thouſand on the other; and as to the Scottes, few or none eſcaped alive Halle, fol. xxii..

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THE body of gallant Percy was found among the ſlain, and delivered to Thomas Nevil, Lord Furnival, to be interred; but the next day the king ungenerouſly ordered it to be taken up, placed between two mill-ſtones in Shrewſbury, and guarded by armed men; after which he cauſed it to be beheaded and quartered, and hung in different parts of the kingdomStew, 329..

HENRY, after ſlaughtering five thouſand people in his bad cauſe, moſt piouſly returned thanks to the Giver of all victories; BATTLEFIELD CHURCH. and erected, or permitted to be erected, on the ſpot probably ſtained with moſt blood, the collegiate church of Battlefield, in the pariſh of Albrighton, about three miles from Shrewſbury. The royal licence permits Roger Ive, rector of the chapel of Albright-Huſee, to erect, on a piece of ground he had obtained from Richard Huſee, a chapel, to be dedicated to St. Mary Magdalene; of which the ſaid Ives and his heirs were to be maſter. There was alſo to be five chaplains, who were to pray for the good ſtate of the king while he lived, and after death, for his ſoul, and thoſe of Richard Huſee and Iſolda his wife, and thoſe of their heirs, and finally, for the ſouls of all that fell in battle on that fatal ſpot Dugdale Monaſt. iii. pars ii. 185. Its clear revenues at the diſſolution were 54l. 1s. 10d Tanner, 456. .

THE church had been a ſmall but handſome building of ſtone, with a tower ſteeple. The weſt part is unroofed; but the chancel is neatly fitted up, and ſerves as a chapel to the pariſh of Albrighton. Over the outſide of the eaſt window is the ſtatue of Henry IV. armed, and crowned. In the windows is ſome painted glaſs with ſeveral arms, chiefly of the Corbets, to whom the place belongs; among them are thoſe of Richard Corbet, who died biſhop of Norwich in 1635. It appears by the arms of the ſee of Oxford joined with his own, that he enjoyed that ſee when they were painted. He was a celebrated poetTwo editions of his poems were publiſhed after his death. See his Life in the Britiſh Biography, ii. 1472, as well as an eloquent preacher; which recommended him ſo greatly to James I. that he made him one of his chaplains, and in 1620 beſtowed on him the deanery of Chriſt-church.

IN Auguſt 1485 the town made ſome ſhew of reſiſting the paſſage of the earl of Richmond, EARL OF RICHMOND'S PASSAGE THROUGH, IN 1485. afterwards Henry VII. in his way to meet Richard III. and give him battle. My authority ſays, that The head bailey, Maiſter Myttoon, being ſtoute royſte gentilman, on demand being made of entrance; anſwered, ſayinge, that he knew no kynge but only Kynge Richard, whoſe lyffetenants he and hys fellows were; and before he ſhould entir there, he ſhould go over hys belly, meaninge thereby, that he would be ſlayne to the ground, and that he proteſted vehementlye on the othe he had tacken; but on better advice, Maiſter Myttoon permitted the kynge to paſs; but to ſave hys othe, the ſayd Myttoon lay alonge the grounde, and hys belly upwardes, and ſoe the ſayd erle ſtepped over hym, and ſaved his othePhilips, 41.

IT is affirmed that Henry brought with the army which landed in Wales, BRINGS THE SWEATING SICKNESS. that dreadful peſtilence, the ſweating ſickneſs, or Sudor Anglicanus, which for above ſixty years after infeſted this kingdom, at different periods. In many places it ſwept away a third of the people. It begun with a ſweat, which never left the patient till it deſtroyed him, or rill he recovered. It had many of the ſymptoms of the plague; reſtleſſneſs, anxiety, ſickneſs, ravings, drowſineſs, faintneſs, palpitations; but it never was attended with eruptive ſpots, buboes, or carbuncles, attendant on the other ſcourge of heaven. It always began with the affection of one part, the ſenſe of a hot vapor running through the whole limb. The criſis never exceeded twenty-four hours; Dr. Caius, on that account, calls it Ephemera Britannica: but oftener death enſued in three or ten. There were places in which ſcarce one in a hundred eſcaped infection. Towards the latter end of the viſitation the malignancy abated; for in 1528, out of forty thouſand who were ſeized in London, only two thouſand died. The patient was to wait the event, juſt as he happened to be ſeized, whether in bed or in his cloaths. It is a miſtake to ſuppoſe, as many have done, that it was a diſeaſe peculiar to England, and that Engliſhmen only, let them have been where they would, were ſeized with it. It certainly originated neither in England, nor among Engliſhmen; but among the foreign levies of the duke of Richmond, raked out of hoſpitals and jails, and buried in filth, and crowded on board the tranſports, ſo as naturally to generate a diſtemper among ſubjects ſo admirably pre-diſpoſedSee the ingenious and pleaſing Biographical Memoirs of Medicine in Great Britain, by Mr. John Aikin of Warrington, p. 119 to 127. Let me add, that it ended in this town in 1551; but not with that mildneſs as was obſerved in the later viſitations in other places: for not fewer than nine hundred and ninety died in a few daysThe ſame..

IN the civil wars of the laſt century Shrewſbury was garriſoned by the king, TOWN TAKEN IN 1644 BY GENERAL MYTTON. many of the works greatly ſtrenthened, and a ſtrong ſort erected above Frankwell, to prevent the town being commanded from the adjacent heights. Sir Michael Earnly was left governor, and Captain Crowe lieutenant of the caſtle. General Mytton, who lay with a ſmall garriſon at Wem, and was repreſentative for this town, determined to ſurpriſe it. He made two unſucceſsful attempts; but on February 21ſt, 1644, with ſuch forces as he could collect, he renewed his enterprize. He ſent the foot along the Severn ſide, and by the help of ſome carpenters, who cut down the paliſades between the caſtle and the river, formed an entrance. Forty diſmounted troopers ſcaled the walls in a low part near the council-houſe, ſupported by the muſqueteers, and three hundred and fifty foot ſurpriſed the main-guard in the market-place, and killed the captain. The caſtle fore-gate was next ſecured, and the draw-bridge let down for the admittance of the horſe. At one in the afternoon the caſtle was ſurrendered, on condition that the Iriſh ſhould be given up, and the Engliſh march to Ludlow. Crowe was ſoon after hanged for his treachery, or cowardice. The governor, and great numbers of people of rank in the county, were taken priſoners; and the town was plundered, notwithſtanding the general had offered his ſoldiers a great bounty to forbear all acts of violence. Much booty was found in the town, a conſiderable magazine, and the baggage belonging to Prince Maurice. Mytton was made governor of the town, and received the thanks of the houſe for his good ſervices.

I DETERMINED to conclude my tour by a journey to Caer Caradoc, a poſt of the celebrated Britiſh hero Caractacus. I went over the new bridge; paſſed by Condover, CONDOVER. a remarkably handſome and commodious houſe for its time, built by Sir Thomas Owens, who died in 1598, one of the judges in the King's-benchHerald's Viſitation of Shropſhire. It is ſeated at the edge of a fine park; from which are variety of beautiful views. This place paſſed to my eldeſt maternal uncle Richard Mytton of Halſton, Eſq by virtue of his marriage with Miſs Owen, heireſs of the place. The eldeſt of the two daughters of the match conveyed it by marriage to the late Sir Charlton Leighton; and it is now poſſeſſed by Nicholas Smythe, Eſq in right of his wiſe, Anna Maria, daughter to Sir Charlton.

NOT far from Condover is Pitchford, PITCHFORD. the ſeat of Adam Ottley, Eſq an antient and venerable timber houſe, with a hall ſuitably furniſhed with helmets, cuiraſſes, and broad ſwords. Here is preſerved a portrait of my reſpected predeceſſor in the line of natural hiſtory, FRANCIS WILLUGHBY, Eſq painted in 1659, at the early age of thirteen, when he was a member of Trinity college, Cambridge. His complexion is very fair, his hair very long and flaxen; he has a book in his hand; is dreſſed in the academic habit, and has on a very large turnover. He was heir to the magnificent houſe of Wollaton near Nottingham. After paſſing his ſhort but amiable life in inſtructive travels, and the ſtudy of nature, and at the time of meditating a voyage to explore the productions of the new world, he was ſnatched, in 1672, at the age of thirty-ſeven, by a fatal pleuriſy.

NEAR the houſe is a moſt remarkable pond, which flings up in hot weather a vaſt quantity of ſtrong bitumen, greatly reſembling pitch, which gives name to the place. It ſerves all the uſes of that commodity; and an oil, moſt efficacious in many diſorders, has been for a conſiderable time paſt extracted from it.

NEAR the eight mile-ſtone from Shrewſbury, I reached Longnor, LONGNOR. the houſe of my reſpected old friend Joſeph Plymley, Eſq Near it is Longnor Hall, the ſeat of Robert Corbet, Eſq bequeathed to him by his relation, the late Sir Richard Corbet, Bart. It is a good brick houſe, built in 1670 by Sir Richard, a predeceſſor of the late owner. It is ſeated in a pretty vale, and commands a fine view of Caer Caradoc, and Lawly Hill. The portrait of the founder is in the houſe. He had been chairman of the committee of elections in the reign of Charles II. and died aged 43, in 1683.

HERE is an admirable portrait of Margaret, widow of James earl of Saliſbury, and daughter of John earl of Rutland; the countenance dejected, but extremely beautiful. She is dreſſed in very pictureſque weeds: a three-quarters, by Sir Godfrey Kneller.

HER daughter, Lady Margaret, firſt married to Lord Stawel, afterwards to Lord Ranelagh: extremely beautiful; an half-length, by the ſame hand. A portrait of this lady is among the beauties at Hampton Court: a picture of her huſband is in this houſe.

LADY Mildred, youngeſt daughter of Margaret counteſs of Saliſbury, and wife to Sir Uvedale Corbet, ſon of Sir Richard, is painted in half-length; a fine ſpirited figure. Here is alſo a very pleaſing picture of her daughter Elizabeth, painted in France, by Le Garde. She died unmarried, of a cancer in her breaſt, in 1724, and was buried in St. Margaret's, Weſtminſter; and had the honor of an epitaph by Mr. Pope inſcribed on her tomb.

AMONG other pictures, is a moſt exquiſite one, by an unknown hand, of our SAVIOUR raiſing Lazarus. Two perſons ſupport the body; one is exerting all his ſtrength, the other ſeems at the moment ſenſible of the returning life of the object of the miracle. Amazement appears in various forms in the ſpectators: in ſome is a fulneſs of conviction, mixed with wonder and thankſgiving; in others, ſurprize unmixed with any other paſſion: but in a high-prieſt appears a high degree of vexation. The body is a fine compoſition, of the re-animation of putridity.

A LARGE picture of St. Peter denying our Lord, is a fine performance, by Gerard Honthurſt: confuſion of face, fear, and conſciouſneſs of falſehood, are ſtrongly expreſſed in the viſage of the frail apoſtle; which ſeems perceived by a girl, who is (with a candle in her hand) queſtioning him, and in whoſe countenance are the ſtrongeſt marks of her being convinced of the falſeneſs of his aſſeverations.

FROM this vale I formerly viſited Acton Burnel, ACTON BURNEL. about three miles diſtant, the ſeat of its reſpectable owner Sir Edward Smythe, Baronet; whoſe family came poſſeſſed of it in the 1ſt of Charles II. CASTLE. Not far from the houſe is the caſtle; a ſquare building, with a ſquare tower at each corner. Its founder, or perhaps reſtorer, was Robert Burnel Leland's Itin, viii. 107. Fuller's Br, Worthies Shropſhire, 4. , biſhop of Bath and Wells, treaſurer, and afterwards chancellor of England; who in 1292 was ſent to the marches of Scotland, where he was employed on no leſs an affair than to demand of the Scots, what they had to object to the clame of his maſter to the right and exerciſe of the ſuperiority and direct dominion over their kingdomDrake's Parl. Hiſt. i. 100, 101. In this office he died, and was carried to be interred in his cathedral at Wells. He was of a very antient family, dignified with barons, or knights, from the time of the Conqueſt; but he had acquired great wealth, which he laid out with true munificence. By certain monuments with the arms of the family, in the church of Burnel in Normandy, it is ſuppoſed that they came originally from that country. The caſtle was honored by a ſeſſion of parlement in 1284: the lords ſate in the fortreſs, the commons in a great barn, the gable ends of which are ſtill to be ſeen. The Statutum de Mercatoribus, enacted here, is, from the place, known by the name of the ſtatute of Acton Burnel. It is probable that it was by the influence of the prelate, that his habitation was ſo diſtinguiſhed.

HIS ſucceſſor in the caſtle was Sir Edward Burnel, who ſerved in many actions in Scotland, under Edward I. and appeared with great ſplendor. He was always attended with a chariot decked with banners; on which, as well as on the trappings of his horſes, were depicted his arms. He married Alice, daughter of Lord Deſpenſer, by whom he had no iſſue. On his deceaſe, in 1315, his ſiſter Maud became ſole heir. She married firſt John Lord Lovel of Tichemerſh, ſurnamed The Rich; he died in 1335. Her ſecond huſband was John de Handlow, who died in 1346, and left by her one ſon, named Nicholas Lord Burnel, the ſubject of much conteſt in the court of chivalry with a Robert de Morley, CURIOUS TRIAL ABOUT A COAT OF ARMS. on account of the arms which Nicholas bore, in right of certain lands of the barony of Burnel, beſtowed on him by his mother. Theſe arms de Morley had aſſumed without any juſt pretence; but becauſe, as he declared, it was his will and pleaſure ſo to do, and that he would defend his ſo doing. Probably he had no arms of his own, having been the firſt of his family who had appeared in a military capacity. He had ſerved as eſquire to Sir Edward Burnel, without any other domeſtic than one boy; and ever ſince the death of his maſter aſſumed the arms in diſpute. It happened that they both were at the fiege of Calais, under Edward III. in 1346, arrayed in the ſame arms. Nicholas Lord Burnel, challenged the arms as belonging to the Burnels only, he having at that time under his command a hundred men, on whoſe banners were his proper arms. Sir Peter Corbet, then in his retinue, offered to combat with Robert de Morley in ſupport of the right which his maſter had to the arms; but the duel never took place, probably becauſe the king denied his aſſent. The ſuit was then referred to the court of chivalry, held on the ſands before Calais, before William Bohun, earl of Northampton, high conſtable of England, and Thomas Beauchamp, earl of Warwick, earl marſhal. The trial laſted ſeveral days; when Robert, apprehending that the cauſe would go againſt him, took an opportunity, in preſence of the king, to ſwear by God's fleſh, that if the arms in queſtion were adjudged from him, he never more would arm himſelf in the king's ſervice. On this the king, out of perſonal regard for the ſignal ſervices he had performed in thoſe arms, and conſidering the right of Nicholas Lord Burnel, was deſirous to put an end to the conteſt with as little offence as poſſible. He therefore ſent the earl of Lancaſter, and other lords, to Nicholas, to requeſt that he would permit Robert de Morley to bear the arms in diſpute for the term of his life only; which Nicholas, out of reſpect to the king, aſſented to. The king then directed the high conſtable, and earl marſhal, to give judgment accordingly. This they performed in the church of St. Peter, near Calais; and their ſentence was immediately proclamed by a herald, in the preſence of the whole army there aſſembled.

ROBERT de Morley was ſeized with his laſt illneſs in Burgundy, in the year 1360, when the Engliſh army was on its return from the blockade of Paris. Feeling the approach of death, he directed that his banner, with the arms of Burnel, ſhould, upon his deceaſe, be delivered to Nicholas Lord Burnel, in purſuance of the judgment before paſſed in the court of chivalry; and accordingly his banner-bearer, having in his hands the banner rolled up, delivered it to Lord Burnel, in preſence of numbers of the nobility, convened as witneſſes of the ceremony. Lord Burnel died in the year 1382, and was interred in Acton Burnel church, under an altar tomb, with a braſs inlaid in it of the figure of an armed man, and a braſs label, inſcribed, Hic jacet Dominus Nich Burnel, miles, dominus de Holgot, qui ob. 120 die Jan. A.D. 1382. Cujus animae propitietur Deus. Amen.

AMONG the witneſſes in this cauſe were ſeveral lords and knights, and many very antient people, ſome of them above a hundred years of age; one of a hundred and forty, and one of a hundred and twenty, probably of Shropſhire, as may be collected from their names, and the teſtimony they gave relative to the deſcents of the Burnels, and ſeveral private affairs of the family, which were likely to be beſt known in the neighborhood of their reſidenceThis account is from a curious MS. I had the pleaſure of receiving from Sir Edward Smythe. .

FROM Longnor I viſited Caer Caradoc. After a ride of about three miles, I fell accidentally on the ſteepeſt aſcent, and, after a laborious clamber up a green and ſmooth aſcent, now and then mixed with ſmall fragments of lava, I reached the ſummit, impeded a little by the firſt ditch and rampart, in a place where, from the exceeding ſteepneſs, they ſeemed totally unneceſſary. A little higher is the ſecond ditch, with a vaſt agger of ſtones, now ſodded over. The area is irregular, of pretty conſiderable extent. On the more acceſſible ſide are three foſſes and ramparts. The entrance and approach are very conſpicuous, and may even at preſent be eaſily travelled on horſeback. The area ſlopes upwards, and ends in a peak.

NOTWITHSTANDING this place is ſtyled Caer Caradoc, it certainly was not that which was attacked by Oſtorius, and ſo admirably deſcribed by Tacitus. It agrees only in this part of the deſcription, which is common to moſt Britiſh poſts, Hinc montibus arduis, & ſi qua clementer accedi poterunt modum valli ſaxa praeſiruit; but it wants the following, Et praſluebat amnis vada incerto. The learned editor of Cambden Cambden, i. 646, 647, In Rocque's map of Shrcpſhire it is called Caer Car • de • . places it at Gair Ditches, about three miles ſouth of Clun, on the left of the road to Knighton; and gives, as I am informed, a faithful deſcription of the trenches and ramparts. I never ſaw the place, therefore am uncertain on what river it ſtood, the fords of which were ſuch matter of difficulty. No ſuch river is to be ſeen near the poſt I aſcended; it therefore could not have been the ſpot on which our hero was defeated: yet it is highly probable that it had been a poſt occupied by him, and that it was named from that circumſtance. It has from very remote times been traditionally conſidered as a ſtrong hold of his; and, within no great number of years, a ſociety of gentlemen, ſtruck with admiration of his virtue, met annually on the hill to celebrate his name in proſe or verſe. In one year a gentlemanThe reverend Mr. SNEYD DAVIES., diſtinguiſhed as much by his modeſty as his great ingenuity, inſpired with the ſubject, almoſt inſtantly delivered the moſt brilliant part of the hiſtory of Caractacus Taciti Annal lib. xii. in the following lines; which, I flatter myſelf, will relieve my long-ſuffering readers after the ſatiety of my Welſh pen, now hung up for ever.

ALL ROME was ſtill, and nations ſtood at gaze; Forth came the mighty Chief auguſt in chains, Unbroken, unſubdued; his dauntleſs brow Loſt not it's conſcious grandeur: round he look'd With ſteady glare, a lion in the toils; Yet, mindful of his fate, to Caeſar's throne He bow'd majeſtic, and thus calmly ſpake: "Had moderation ſway'd my proſp'rous days, "Rome had beheld me Caeſar's gueſt and friend, "Nor bluſh'd; deſcended from a ſcepter'd race "That rul'd Britannia's independent iſle "Beyond all annals of recording fame. "If Rome commands, muſt vaſſal worlds obey? "What, not reſiſt! Who not defend their rights "Deſerve not. Cowards only ſhould be ſlaves. "Yes, I had arms, and wealth, and friends, and fame. "What, tamely give them up? Diſgrace indeed! "That I ſo long withſtood your baffled pow'rs, "Forgive me, Roman Virtue, that offence. "Had I a cheap and eaſy conqueſt prov'd, "My ruin and your glory had been leſs. "Oblivion ſoon had veil'd my daſtard name, "Unworthy Caeſar's pity. Death or life "Are at his dread diſpoſal. That, or This, "I neither fear to meet, nor ſcom to aſk." Yes, noble Captive, ſaid the lord of Roms, Thy life is ſacred, and thy freedom ſeal'd. My ſole ambition, ſoaring high, requires. Amid my banners and triumphal arcs. To bear thy valiant country's glorious name. He ſpake, loud thund'ring acclamations rung, And ſhouts that tore the Capitol, proclaim'd Imperial mercy to the gallant foe. All eyes are fixt in wonder! Some admire His front erect, broad limbs, and martial port; All praiſe the unwearied valour that durſt cope With Roman proweſs, and well-nigh prevail'd. Not bold Jugurtha, nor the Syrian king, Nor Perſius reſt of Alexander's crown, Attracted more regard and gazing awe. E'en Claudius, in his radiant ſeat ſublime, The world's great maſter, with his legions fierce, His glitt'ring eagles, all his trophied pomp And pride begirt, look'd little on his throne. Brave CARADOC, applauded by thy foes, What ſhall thy friends, thy grateful Britons ſay? What columns, and what altars rear of fame? Thrice told five hundred courſes of the ſun, Thy age is green, thy laurels freſhly bloom. Yet on thy well-fought hill, whoſe ſtony brow O'erlooks the ſubject plains, the gen'rous youth Gladſome repair with annual flow'rs and ſong, And feſtal muſic, to record thy praiſe. O for more ſparks of thy heroic fire! If aught regarding this dull orb of earth, Boils not thy rage, and thy great ſpirit chaſes, To ſee the rivals of all-conquering Rome, Thy hardy Britons, foil'd by tinſel France? Imagination, frowning, pictures thee With featur'd variations, ſcorn and ſhame. Heuries and Edwards thunderbolts of war, Where is the lion-heart, the ſweeping ſword, That purpled Agincourt's and Creſſy's fields? Aſſit, inſpire our hoſt! But chiefly thou, The champion, guardian-genius of this iſle, Hover around our tents; thy airy lance Direct, and ſpread thy viſionary ſhield! Call, rouſe thy countrymen! To arms, To arms. Ye antient Bards, ye myſtic Druids, hail! Prophetic tranſport ſeizes me; I ſee, Tho' dim the proſpect, from this craggy height Unrolling clouds that ope a beauteous ſcene Of joy and triumph. Hark! they ſhout.I ſee Britannia's Lion Gallia's enſign ſeize; Britannia's Trident vindicate the main, Her colours waving in Columbian ſkies Victorious. Peace returns, and Albion ſmiles. Proceed, ye Britons; lo! the kindled fire In this unwarlike breaſt! My veteran Muſe Shall march along; in ſpirit-breathing ſtrains Sound her Pierian trumpet, to awake Her ſleeping country; in her laurel'd hand A chaplet bear to grace the victor's brow.