BnlS3a. m&$77ti 0^>m7 *ii5_^____?0* YALE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY Gift of LOUIS M. RABINOWITZ AN ESSAY CHARACTER OF THE WELSH AS A NATION, IN THE PRESENT AGE. BY THE REV. WILLIAM JONES, CURATE OF LLANBETJLAn) ANGLESEY. (a moralist.) To this Essay, in the Welsh and English Languages, was awarded the First Prize at the Royal Gordovigion Eisteddfod, held in Liverpool, on the Wth, 18 ow a a ° o a - a»2a, m V ss-g§3|8 a a u i § ! o O i a ea If q S % I The Church of England Wesleyan Methodists 1000 600 315 385 30 69 840500 410 350400 26 6 No in formation. 14,400 72,000 36,00075,000 500 2,500 200,000 57,600 130,000 70,000 100,000 1,200 1,000 200,840 72,500 202,41 0, 106,350175,400 1,700 3,526 1,000 500 Roman Catholics (prob.num.) Quakers (probable number) . . 764,226 Monmouthshire, in which there may be twenty or thirty thousand people who speak the Welsh language, and are at- WELSH AS A NATION. 53 tached, either as members or hearers, to the different com munities, is not included. The rest of the inhabitants, which I estimate at from 700,000 to 200,000, must be regarded, I fear, as totally un concerned about religion in any of the modes in which it appears amongst us. In a very important sense, and to a very considerable ex tent, the Welsh are a religious people. In defending this position, it is necessary that some explanations be made. Religion has so pervaded Wales that the Bible is universally disseminated. Day-schools have answered the purpose of their institution, in reference to the wealthier classes of so ciety ; and as a powerful auxiliary, Sunday teaching has dif fused instruction in places and among families which the day- schools have not been able to affect. The inhabitants gene rally are able to read the Seriptures. Exceptions undoubtedly there are, but they are mostly confined to children under ten, and to old people who have passed seventy, years of age. The institution which has produced the greatest effect on the religious character of the people is that of preaching the gospel. The extempore method of instruction, adopted by all the dissenting ministers, appears ^peculiarly suited to the genius of the nation. The Welsh discourses are generally distinguished for the vivid style in which sentiments are clothed, and a very animated mode of delivery ; and by many a sort of chanting tone is used. All this is so grateful to the taste of the great majority of the people that they are not very attentive to instruction conveyed in a different manner. Nevertheless the sermons are frequently so full of matter that a change in that particular might very advantageously be made. Some of the most pious people ever known to the writer have been natives and inhabitants of the principality. Though the education of the middle classes is so deficient, that the grace and elegance which learning confers, seldom distinguish any of them, yet in the absence of these, religious principles and 54 THE CHARACTER OF THE common sense, have done much in forming their character and giving to it a high degree of excellence. At one time I well knew a man of this class, whose character exhibited a multitude of excellencies, rarely met in the same individual. He was naturally a shrewd and intelligent man, but his in telligence was derived not so much from books as from a knowledge of the world. In religious information, however, he had made considerable proficiency. His Bible and a few other books, composed his library ; but the contents of these he had carefully examined and well digested. His counte nance was open and cheerful, and his address very affectionate and commanding. He had a peculiar tact for managing per sons of all ages. The young revered him as a father, the middle-aged respected him as an oracle, and the old people felt conscious of his superior abilities. He was beloved and respected by all that knew him ; and wherever he appeared the weight of his character was duly felt. He took an active part in promoting the education of the people, in a district which had no regular day-school, and was eminently useful in disseminating religious truth, and promoting peace and good will among his neighbours. The name of this indivi dual was Mr. John Hughes, and he resided in a farm house called Yr Allt, in the parish of Llangaffo, in the county of Anglesey. In the same county there resided a man who was considered the father of the neighbourhood. The respect which was paid him arose more from his moral than intellectual qualities, and it is seldom that such a combination of moral excellencies are found in a person of the same grade in society. It could not be said that liberality, on an extensive scale, was the foundation of his good name ; for such a display of generosity he did not possess the means. But it was found that kindness and good will towards others were the ruling sentiments of his heart, and these discovered themselves in innumerable acts, on a small scale, which benefitted others. It has frequently been observed that character is made up of incidents which betray, WELSH AS A NATION. 55 unawares, the real disposition. In regard to the person we are considering, incidents of that nature, very favourable to his reputation, occurred almost daily. Sometime ago an ad joining neighbour of his, who held a small tenement of land, became so unwell that he could no longer cultivate it ; in order to secure himself from loss, he resolved to let it to some person who was likely to do it justice. In his difficulty he consulted the individual whose character we are considering, who demanded of him what a year he considered it worth ? The answer was fourteen pounds. " Well," said he, " I will give you fifteen for it " This is so contrary to the general hard-bargaining usage of the country, that it deserves to be recorded by way of example. The same man once in chang ing a bill of considerable value, at a bank, received one ten pound note instead of a five, which he did not discover until some time after he had reached home. As soon as the dis covery was made he returned to the bank and restored the money. Characters equally distinguished for real worth are fre quently found among the other sex. The author remembers one of singular excellence. It was a farmer's wife, who pos sessed good natural parts, and, without the help of education, had acquired very correct knowledge of men and things. She made a most affectionate wife, and displayed great skill, prudence, and economy, in the management of her domestic affairs, and submitted to many privations for the purpose of finding means to educate her children. This excellent woman appeared to advantage in all the relations of life. As a chris tian there never was a more unblemished character. She seemed to love God with all her heart, and her heart was capable of feeling and acting with considerable intensity. She would not tolerate sinful practices in her presence. Her rebukes were irresistible, as they always arose from the kind est feeling, and were administered under the guidance of a very enlightened reason. Though a saint she had no sancti- 56 THE CHARACTER OF THE moniousness. Her religion did not consist, like that of many, in groaning and disfiguring her countenance ; but in deep sentiment, well regulated affections, and constant propriety of deportment. She was not unfrequently service able to her neighbours, who sought her advice in difficulties. Her counsels were administered with so much prudence that she never gave a bad advice, nor was she ever involved in any unpleasant disputes herself. She bore the troubles of life without repining, and endured very severe trials without be traying a murmuring disposition. But though she seemed perfectly resigned to the will of heaven, her feeble frame oroke down before she reached old age, and she has been, for some years, numbered with the dead. Never was greater sorrow manifested, at the decease of a person in her station of life. Her death was regarded by all that knew her as a com mon loss, for every one felt that he had lost a friend. The late Mrs. Williams of Treddolffin, in the parish with which the writer is connected, was a most excellent woman. She was truly religious in her general habits, devising liberal things for the benefit of the poor that surrounded her. She has left behind her a name which is deeply revered by her relations, and highly respected by all that were acquainted with her. These portraits of character, taken almost at random, are pleasing proofs of fixed religious principles and moral integ rity. But they are only specimens, for multitudes of such persons are to be found in all parts of the principality. Two of the individuals, which we have described, have been selected from a parish considered to be the most depraved in the county in which it is situated. It is inhabited by persons of the most profane character. The profligate, the drunkard, the contemner of God, and the midnight robber, are to be found in that notorious place! There is no day-school of any sort in the parish; and had it not been for the labour of the Cal vinistic Methodists, both in preaching the gospel and in WELSH AS A NATION. 57 keeping a Sunday sehool, the whole place would have been involved in darkness and immorality. The living is a Rec tory of small value, in the gift of the crown. There is no glebe land, no parsonage-house, nor any other dwelling, except one newly built, and now occupied, fit to accommodate a clergyman. It is no matter of surprise therefore that there is no resident incumbent. One of the most indubitable proofs of the sound moral and religious state of society in Wales, is the devout and consci entious manner in which the Lord's day is observed. In no country upon earth is that day so strictly devoted to religious purposes. This is greatly owing to the labours of the Cal vinistic Methodists, and the prevalence of their sentiments amongst the great mass of the population. The other sects adopt the same views, and recommend a similar observance of the sacred day. Strangers may form an idea of the reve rence with which that day is regarded, by the middle and lower classes, from the following remark, once made in my hearing, by a very observing gentleman; "Sir," said he, " they make a god of it." The creed which regulates the custom of the principality, as regards the day of rest, is taken from some very ancient documents, to which the Welsh people pay the most profound deference. In those documents it is written, "Remember the sabbath day to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God, in it thou shalt not do any work," &c. In another place it is declared : " If thou refrain thy foot from the sabbath : From doing thy pleasure on my holy day : And shalt call the sabbath, a delight; The holy of Jehovah, honourable: And shalt honour it, not doing thine own ways; Nor seeking thine own pleasure, nor using idle talk: Then shalt thou delight thyself in Jehovah ; And I will cause thee to ride on the high places of the earth ; And I will feed thee on the inheritance of Jacob thy father: For the mouth of Jehovah hath spoken it." Isaiah lviii. 13, 14.— Tegid's Translation, 58 THE CHARACTER OF THE Charity is a virtue in busy activity in the principality. I do not mean, in the present instance, the charity described by St. Paul, " which suffereth long and is kind; which envieth not, and vaunteth not itself ; which is not puffed up, nor behaveth itself unseemly ; which seeketh not her own, is not easily pro voked, and thinketh no evil ; which beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things, and which hideth a multitude of sins." It cannot be denied, that this heavenly principle dwells in our country, for without it there can be no religion, and I have already shown that the Welsh nation is eminently religious. I could furnish some beautiful instances of the exercise of this great principle of Chris tianity; but it is my painful duty to record the existence of sentiments of an entirely opposite character, which are most actively plied in tearing up the foundations of society, and paving the way to universal anarchy. The agents in this unholy work, generally, are young demagogues possessed of some talents, but much more of ambition to distinguish themselves as the reckless disturbers of the community. But charity, in the sense of contributing for the relief of distress, or the furtherance of designs to benefit the family of man, is in a much more healthy state amongst us. I must caution my reader, however, lest he should connect with the term, when used in reference to Wales, the magnificent ideas which he may have been led to entertain, from exhibitions of charity in England. But to what country on earth shall we go, and have a view of Charity in all the glories of her bene ficence, as we behold her among the truly noble people that have England for their abode ? When one reflects on the institutions which have been founded, for the relief of distress of almost every character; the schools which have been erected to train up the children of the poor ; the societies which have been formed for the diffusion of knowledge abroad, and to disseminate the holy Scriptures in all parts of the habitable earth, and to send the heralds of mercy WELSH AS A NATION. 59 amongst the forlorn race of man, lying in darkness and the region and shadow of death — considering all that England has done, and is doing, one is compelled to acknowledge that Charity is the presiding Genius of the land, and that the nation is the pioneer of Mercy, in her progress through the world, for the purpose of ameliorating the condition and transforming the character of the human family. Go on, illustrious Britain, in thy career of glory! dispense thy gifts abroad to the 'deluded nations, without regarding the hue of their countenance, or the boundaries within which the various tribes are confined. Man is thy brother, whatever may be the colour of his skin, or wherever he may make his abode. Send him civilization; send him commerce and the arts; but send him a far better and more enduring treasure, send him the oracles of the divine mind, pour around him the light of truth, that he may see his God and worship him, see his Saviour and love him, see heaven before him, and walk in the way which leads thitherward. The whole celestial region is in motion, looking on thy labours of benevolence, and wiU shed upon thee its influence and benediction. The earth will do thee justice in due time, and all nations shall call thee blessed. Fear not the dangers that beset thy course ; fear not the storm which is gathering and lowering around the world, and which is sure to fall with awful fury; invoke the great helmsman of the universe on board, and he will guide the vessel clear of the dangers, though the face of the waters may be covered with the wreck of some other nations. See the prophetic description of the battle of Armageddon, Rev. 16 chapter, &c. The principle of charity, however, is not to be estimated solely by the amount of contributions, but by the ability of the people to give. Of this our Saviour furnished his hearers with a remarkable illustration in his observations on the widow's mite, cast into the treasury, which he represented as being more than was given by all the others, who contri- 60 THE CHARACTER OF THE buted out of their abundance, because she cast in all that she had, even all her life. The principality, when compared with England, is but a poor country, yet the amount of her contri butions to different charitable societies is very considerable. It is in large sums, contributed by rich people, that England appears to so great an advantage, for some of her wealthy classes exhibit a noble spirit of benevolence, and do honour to human nature. But the rich inhabitants of Wales have hitherto but very imperfectly understood their duty on this point, whereas the poorer sections of the community have done what they could. It is difficult to find a criterion by which to judge of the comparative liberality of the English and Welsh nations. The only one on which any reliance can be placed is the Bible Society. That excellent institution is universally advocated in the principality, aDd there is but one sentiment entertained in reference to it, and that sentiment is altogether in its favour. Many will contribute to its funds who are prepared with some excuse for withholding theii charity from almost every other. The contributions of Wales to this Society, from March, 1838, to the same month in the year 1839, amounted to £2,988, exclusive of what was collected in Mon mouthshire. The population of London is just double that of the principality, yet the amount of money raised in the metro polis, in the year alluded to, fell far short of the sum which Wales contributed. The population of Yorkshire is greater by 500,000 than that of our country, yet the subscriptions in Wales, for the Bible Society, are much greater in amount than in that large and wealthy county. I am not in possession of sufficient data to form a comparison in reference to other insti tutions, except I add that the number of benevolent institu tions in England is beyond calculation larger than in Wales. When cases of real distress are known in the principality, a very strong feeling of sympathy is excited, and means are im. mediately supplied to relieve the sufferers. Innumerable WELSH AS A NATION. 61 instances of this might be recorded. The following occurred recently not far from the neighbourhood in which the writer resides. As the Curate of the parish was on his way, on the Sunday morning, to Church, he received information respecting a family in great destitution, every member of which was unwell. When his public duties were over, he went to see this poor family, and found that the melancholy statement which had been made to him was but too true. The house was a wretched hovel, consisting only of one room, the floor of which was nothing better than damp earth. The walls were rude in their construction, and but very slightly plastered ; and the furniture consisted only of a few necessary articles. As some measure of protection from cold, it is the fashion of this country to have wainscoted beds, not unlike in shape to the wooden vehicles in which curiosities are conveyed about the country, only that the beds are of less size, and have posts to rest upon instead of wheels. One of the sides is open, on the top of which there is always a cornice, and sometimes a cur tain, which is generally a sort of checker-work, and is used, partly to complete the protection from cold, and as an orna ment to the dormitory. With these beds the dwelling is divided into two or three apartments. Nearly all the houses of the poor, and even many farm-houses, are without a loft, and the family live in one end, having the other divided into small compartments, in which they repose during the night. In the house which I am at present considering, nothing of a neat appearance was to be seen. The man of the house had been a labourer for many years, and by industry, sobriety, and carefulness, had saved a little money. This he laid out in paying a bonus to the previous tenant of the small farm, which he now held, for resigning in his favour, and the remainder was expended in buying stock. When this was done the family were left without any means to meet a contingency such as had now overtaken them. The hard labour and the privations, which the poor man had to endure, so much affected 62 THE CHARACTER OF THE his health, that at a time when he was wanted to cultivate his little farm, he was laid aside by indisposition, and confined to his bed. With him, in the same bed, were two of his chil dren, in a fever; and his wife, who had just given birth to an infant child, lay in an adjoining bed, in the lowest state of weakness. Another of the children, suffering like the rest of the family, and fit only for the bed, occupied a stool on the hearth. In this condition the family lay, when the Curate arrived, who did all he could to soothe their sorrows and re lieve their wants. On the following morning he sent informa tion to the Rector of the parish, who proceeded immediately to visit them, and administer to their help. At the request of the Curate they were visited also by the medical attendant of the district, and derived much benefit from his professional skill, though he was not bound to attend any patients, except such as were in the receipt of parochial relief. The neigh bouring farmers, on being apprized of their lamentable condi tion, sent them food, and articles of clothing, others contri buted a little money, and others sent their horses, ploughs, carts, and servants, to forward the work of tillage ; so that in a short time this distressed and destitute family were rescued from the deepest afflictions, and restored to a state of compa rative comfort. This instance of generosity is recorded as a specimen of the sympathy and benevolence displayed, on occasions of emergency, by the inhabitants of our country. The Welsh as a nation may well lay claim to the character of " honest Welshmen." Theft and fraud will ever be prac tised, to a certain extent, in every country, but in the prin cipality these are comparatively of rare occurrence, and generally confined to the worst portion of society. The very few cases of this kind, which have to be tried at our assizes, attest the innocence of the Welsh population. Hence young men from the principality find no difficulty in procuring re spectable situations in England ; and a preference is given to them, by many mercantile houses, in the towns in which they WELSH AS A NATION. 63 are best known. And if their education were more enlarged, and their training more effectual, they would succeed still better, and realize an independence much more frequently, and in a shorter time, than they usually do. It will not be denied by any one conversant with the Welsh nation, that they are an industrious people. Industry is neces sary in order to obtain a livelihood, for wag'es are low to the artisan and labourer, and profits are small to those who en gage in the higher branches of trade. Closely connected with this virtue is frugality, which equally belongs to the Welsh character. Luxuries, thank heaven, are not needful for human nature, and if they were, the greater number of the Welsh population would be unable to procure them. Nothing is allowed to be wasted or lost by the industrious classes in this country, but every thing is turned to some account. — It is much to be desired, however, that the lower orders would im prove in cleanliness, for which there is abundant room. Com pared with the Irish, and even the Scotch, our country-people are a good deal in advance, but they must yield to the pea santry of England. The inferiority of the Welsh peasantry appears in the arrangement of their houses, as well as in the approaches to them. The footpaths or roads leading to cot tages, are seldom subjected to the office of the scavenger, or repaired when worn into deep pits. The state of the by roads, except those occasionally used by the higher classes, is so bad as to be almost impassable. The Welsh nation has been represented as choleric, but the justice of this accusation, if made in reference to modern times, may fairly be questioned. Whilst we admit that there is a native warmth in the Welsh constitution, which too fre quently shews itself in the actions of many, we cannot allow the whole nation, nor even the majority of the people, to be characterized as choleric. Choler means " anger, rage, the humour supposed to produce irrascibility." The most re markable illustration of the word, that I remember, happened 64 THE CHARACTER OF THE in the town of Liverpool, in the case of a French merchant, who, on discovering an error committed by one of his clerks, got into so great a passion, that, to prevent self-combustion, he went and plunged his head in water. If ever the Welsh have been very passionate as a nation, I think the number that are so now, is but small. Religion, without extinguish ing their fire, has effectually subdued the feelings of the middle and lower classes ; and where religious principle is wanting, public opinion and example exert a considerable de gree of influence. The melancholy cast of preaching, used by a great number of the ministers of Wales, and the fre quent introduction of death, judgment, and eternal damna tion, as topics of discussion in the pulpit, have not been without their effect. Seriousness, in numerous instances, has exceeded its proper bounds, and degenerated into gloominess. Some may differ from me, but, from extensive observation, I feel confirmed in the opinion, that the English, to say nothing of other nations, is as deserving of the imputation of being choleric as the Welsh. That we are of too sanguine a tem perament is true, as appears from the hastiness with which things of importance are frequently performed. The edu cation of the young is an instance of this. Three or four years of imperfect instruction are considered amply sufficient to make the rising generation excellent scholars ; whereas at the expiration of so short a period, a youth only begins to open his eyes on the field of knowledge, and views only at a distance, without ever approaching, those attainments which constitute sound learning. The people will not be persuaded that it requires ten or twelve years of careful training, to subdue the mind and store it with the various elements of useful knowledge. The same impatience shews itself in the short term during which young people are apprenticed to the different trades. Hence their imperfect knowledge of arti- sanship, which operates most injuriously on the tradesmen, and keeps them in a low position to the end of their life. — WELSH AS A NATION. 65 The warmth of the Welsh constitution, partly subdued, but imperfectly directed, leads many of the people to an irregular course of action, prompting them to undertake works of im portance, which, when the feeling has subsided, are suffered to proceed at a most unaccountably slow pace. At other times, works are undertaken by a sudden impulse, and finished in an immoderately short time In my own neighbourhood a house is frequently put together in the space of a few weeks ; and families have been known to occupy premises, on a site which, two months before, was a part of a bare field, to the great injury of their health and danger of their lives. The short work, bestowed on such a building, is not owing to the number of hands employed, but to the rudeness of the con struction, and the necessity of having it ready for the occu pants at the time they quit their previous dwelling. But it is worthy of remark that the Welsh population, with all the warmth that has been supposed to belong to them, have not, to any great extent, given reception to views, in religion, which may be considered very fanatical. There is occasion ally a great deal of enthusiasm excited, but Wales has not one fifth the number of the sects and parties found in England, some of whom are wedded to opinions and addicted to prac tices, which we should blush to own. It is to be feared that there are some infidels amongst us, but they are indebted for their infidelity to their connexion with England, that is, they are become infidels either in consequence of having formed an acquaintance with such men, whilst residing in England, or of having read English publications which advocated in fidelity. Tbere may be a few insignificant pamphlets, in the Welsh language, of an infidel character, but I have never seen them, and am persuaded that it would be very difficult to find any of them on sale. Of all the fruits of enthusiasm, yea even of fanaticism, it appears to me that Roman Catholicism is one of the most remarkable instances. Here reason is overthrown and credulity assumes the sway over the mind ; F 66 THE CHARACTER OF THE superstition is substituted for the simple worship of Jehovah, and the dictations of fallible and sinful men make void, and assume the place of the Oracles of God. But, as was before stated, not many of the Welsh population are members of the Church of Rome. I do not speak of individuals, for it is credible that a few who speak the Welsh language, in Flint shire, and in two or three other places in South Wales, have allied themselves to that church, but the general feeling of the country, in reference to Popery, is that of unmingled horror. Since Christianity came amongst us, history does not give information of any thing so wild, unfounded, and truly ridiculous, as the theory of the unknown tongues, advocated by Irving and his associates, having been embraced by any of our nation. In the present day we have nothing of the kind. We have heard of but one individual, belonging to Wales, that was ever deluded by the fooleries of Joanna Southcote. There are some fanatical sects in England, whose designa tions are not known in our country ; and if their sentiments and practices were attempted to be propagated here they would meet with no encouragement. Many years ago, the writer witnessed a scene at a meeting-house, in a town not many miles from Leeds, which, for its fanatical character, exceeds every thing that he has ever known in his native country. In passing the chapel, his ears were assailed with so much noise, that he was induced to go in and see what the people were doing. Having entered his attention was drawn to a spot, opposite the pulpit, made in a circular form, which would accommodate fifty or sixty people. In that place he saw about twenty human beings, male and female, on their knees, and in the centre a female, with two men, one on each side of her, all in the attitude of prayer. Occasionally the two men would engage, one after the other, in a kind of ejaculatory petitions, such as, * Save her ;' ' drive him (the Devil) out,' and that close to the poor woman's ear. The words were repeated, with a loud, sharp voice, by the persons WELSH AS A NATION. 67 composing the circle. At length the candidate was con sidered as released from bondage, and from the dominion of Satan, on which account great rejoicing took place. This outrageous affair was called a process of conversion ! But no such proceeding has ever disgraced the principality. It seems to me that the Welsh are not to be compared with the English, either for great excellence or for great absurdity. We never had a Newton, a Bacon, or a Locke in philosophy ; and though we have had some very superior poets, we cannot boast of a Shakspeare, a Milton or a Young; neither have we had a a tenth of the absurd sects which good-natured England has brought forth and fondled in her lap. The only practice of a fanatical character, in the princi pality, with which I am acquainted, is a turbulent manner of praising the Almighty, consisting of loud shouting, clapping of hands, and sometimes of jumping. This practice has been encouraged, I believe, by all the religious communities of Wales, to a certain extent ; but it is getting very much into disrepute in the present day, and very few are now bold enough to defend it. The practice prevails among the less cultivated portion of the peasantry, whose feelings are strongly acted upon by addresses, on the most momentous subjects, from the pulpit. This sort of proceeding is called by some a revival in religion, but I have not been able to discover in what way it benefits the cause. In my opinion, most of these turbulent revivals have done much injury to religion. That revival is mostly to be desired, which begins in knowledge of God, which is carried on in a deep and serious feeling, and which ends in holiness of life and conversation. A revival of this kind took place, at one time, in the Parish Church of Llangeitho, whilst the minister and people were engaged in offering up the petitions contained in the litany. It com menced with the words, " By thine agony and bloody sweat; by thy cross and passion ; by thy precious death and burial ; by thy glorious resurrection and ascension; and by the coming 68 THE CHARACTER OF THE of the Holy Ghost." The reading of the litany produced a similar effect at St. Dogmell's, in Pembrokeshire, whilst the late Rev. William Jones, the vicar of the parish, was engaged in performing the service. It commenced with an unusual solemnity and general sobbing through the whole congrega tion ; and he ascribed it to the outpouring of the Spirit, in answer to the prayers that were, at the time, offered up. But the extraordinary mode of praising God, which I have considered it my duty to censure, is not confined to Wales, It has been witnessed frequently among the English Metho dists, and amongst various denominations in America. Nor is it peculiar to Christians, for some Mahometans have adopted a similar mode of conducting public worship. A celebrated painter has drawn the scene, at a meeting-house full of re ligious jumpers, with a Turk half-way through one of the gallery windows, enjoying the sight, and evincing his pleasure 6y grinning in a most picturesque and animated manner. This statement was made, about twelve years ago, by Sir D. K. Sandford, in his class in the University of Glasgow. The insurrectionary proceedings of some misguided men called chartists, which took place at Llanidloes in the spring of 1839, and at Newport, Monmouthshire, in the ensuing November, cannot with any show of reason, be charged against the Welsh character. The hydra-headed monster called chartism, is not an offspring of Wales. It was England that gave it birth. There it was nursed and brought to matu rity. In its sojourn it came to the hills of Monmouthshire, travelled onwards to Llanidloes, in Montgomeryshire, and then visited Merthyr, the Gehenna of Wales, where black beings dwell, amidst fire and smoke, who dive into deep caverns, where opportunities are afforded them to concoct their trea sonable designs against the inhabitants of this upper world. The whole of Wales must not be charged with the disloyalty, and revolutionary intentions, of a few mixed and discontented workmen, led on by a Vincent and a Frost, whose names de- WELSH AS A NATION. 69 signate them as Englishmen. The great mass of the Welsh people, since the days of Owen Glyndwr, have been quiet, though they have had to endure much oppression, and to pro cure their subsistence by hard labour. The natives of Wales have a strong feeling of nationality. Tracing their descent from the remotest antiquity, and con scious of their divine right to the country as first heirs of the soil, a feeling of exultation pervades the whole mass. To exist after so many and persevering attempts at their ex tinction, and to retain the vernacular use of their primitive, nervous, and enchanting language, after so many revolutions in their civil and religious circumstances, are, facts in which they will ever glory ; and no good reason appears why our English neighbours should deny us the consolation of these facts, or laugh at us, with so much sarcastic malevolence, when the matter is discussed in their society. It must, how ever, be confessed that many of our countrymen set too high a value upon these things, and provoke the ridicule and envy of their English neighbours by too frequent a reference to them. It is truly amusing to hear some of our rustic wise ones, who have dived a little into antiquities, talk of what the ancient Britons have been, the magnificent figure they have cut in the world, and the mighty achievments in war for which they have been celebrated ; forgetting altogether our present insignificant position among the nations of the globe, and inducing those who will not take the trouble to inquire into the merits of our claims, to remind us of a certain Em peror in Africa, who dines on a few fruit, under one of the trees of the forest, after which he commands his herald to proclaim, with the sound of trumpet, that all the kings of the earth may take their dinner ! His national attachment accompanies a Welshman whither soever he goes ; and if there be any truth, in the description given of his feelings, in the poems entitled ' The longings of a Welshman for his country in a foreign land,' their intensity 70 THE CHARACTER OF THE is very melancholy and distressing. This feeling seems almost peculiar to the Welsh, for the inhabitants of none of the other parts of Great Britain appear to have so great an affec tion for the land of their fathers. A Scotchman leaves his country, and if he can help it will not return ; but a Welsh man pants for an opportunity to return, and spend the evening of his life among his native hills. The few natives of the principality, who are settled in different parts of Yorkshire, have manifested the greatest solicitude for the welfare of Wales, by repeatedly petitioning the legislature forthe redress of those grivances under which they have considered their countrymen-to labour. The Welsh in London have particu larly distinguished themselves by their zeal in behalf of the land which gave them birth. It was in the Metropolis that Mr. Owen Jones, (Myvyr,) resided, a man who stands fore most in the list of modern revivers of Welsh literature, and who laboured with great assiduity, for a long series of years, in collecting valuable manuscripts, and in publishing a most comprehensive repository of antiquarian lore. He was the founder of the Gwyneddigion Society, which has, for a great number of years, been watching over the literary interest of Wales, and doing as much good to the inhabitants as lay within its power. In conjunction with Owen Myvyr laboured the indefatigable Dr. W. O. Pughe, who spent more than twenty years in making himself complete master of the Welsh language, and in compiling his very valuable Dictionary. These men devoted their time, their talents, and their money, for the benefit of their countrymen, without any prospect of remuneration. Another gentleman, resident in London, (Mr. Thomas Edwards,) who is well versed in Welsh literature, and a man of very acute penetration, has compiled a Dictionary, as a counterpart to that of Dr. Johnson, in which he has en deavoured to give corresponding words, in Welsh, to all, even the technical terms, in that work. The author has had to coin, or rather to compound words, from roots already existing, for WELSH AS A NATION. 71 the purpose of achieving his design. Judging by the speci men which has appeared, he has executed his work in a very able manner, and it is much to be regretted that he has not obtained sufficient encouragement to proceed with the publi cation of it. By a new arrangement of the work, with a more economical plan, and a little zeal excited in its behalf, the object might still be accomplished. As long as the Welsh language is used, it is only by means of such a Dictionary that science can ever become general in Wales. The people cannot and will not acquire useful knowledge, through the medium of the hard and learned words which English writers use in their treatises. Technical terms from Welsh roots, combined according to the genius of the language, assist not only the memory but the understanding. And if we had scientific works, written with as much plainness as possible, and taught in schools to the rising generation, we should soon have an intelligent population in this country. If something of this kind be not done, the sooner the Welsh language is allowed to expire the better. But as it exists, in common use, it is nothing but fair that the people should be supplied with the means of moral and intellectual improvement in that lan guage, that their ignorance be no longer an obstacle in the way of their advancement in the paths of wealth and honour. The literary character of our nation claims a place in this Essay. Before that subject is discussed, however, it is proper to notice, in a prominent manner, the peculiar means which have acted, with so much power, to revive the litera ture of the principality, in the present age, I mean THE EISTEDDVODAU. Originally the Eisteddvod was designated a Gorsedd, pro bably because from a gorsedd, which means a throne or supreme seat, degrees in bardism were conferred. It was a triennial assembly of the bards, to preserve bardism in its purity, to contest for the pre-eminence in the art of poetry, 72 THE CHARACTER OF THE and receive new disciples into the order. The places at which it was anciently held were, Aberffraw, formerly the royal seat of the Princes of North Wales ; Dinefawr, in Carmarthen shire, the royal seat of the Princes of South Wales; and Mathrafel, the royal palace of the Princes of Powys. In the reigns of Henry VIII. and Queen Elizabeth, Eisteddvodau were held in Caerwys in Flintshire, being chosen for this purpose, in compliance with the ancient custom of the Welsh, because it had been the princely residence of Llewelyn the last. These congresses were revived in the year 1819. The gentleman who took the lead in the work was the late patri otic and eminent Clergyman, the Rev. John Jenkins, Vicar of Kerry, in Montgomeryshire, the native place of whom was Cilbronau, near Cardigan. During the last twenty-one years, more than a dozen Eisteddfodau, of a splendid character, have been held, besides a great number on a smaller scale, which gave encouragement to the talents of persons in par ticular localities. The design is the preservation of ancient British literature, poetical, historical, antiquarian, sacred, and moral ; the encouragement of the rising genius of the natives of Wales, in the departments of poetry, history, and general literature ; also the cultivation of pennillion singing, and, in an especial manner, the encouraging of performers on the harp. Proclamation is made, a year and a day before the Eisteddvod is held, by one or more chaired Bards, and subjects are given out for competition. In the mean time qualified persons are appointed to decide on the merits of the compo sitions sent for adjudication, and to determine who are the ablest singers, and players on the harp. The Eisteddvodau are patronised by the nobility and gentry, who contribute their money to defray the expences incurred, and to reward the successful candidates with medals and premiums. These meetings appear to be the only relics of the Olympics of ancient Greece that exist in the present age. Those held at Denbigh in 1828, and at Beaumaris in 1832, were probably WELSH AS A NATION, 73 the most magnificent festivals that ever took place in the prin cipality. His Royal Highness the Duke of Sussex being at the former, her Majesty, then Princess Victoria, and her August Mother being present at the latter. It is time that these national congresses should give greater encouragement to the sciences, keeping in view their application to the busi ness of life. In regard to the department of poetry, may I be allowed to recommend that the highest prizes be awarded to compositions in a free metre, rather than to those constructed in the shackles of the Cynghanedd ? Considerable activity exists, among our population, in the department of literature. The press sends forth information of various kinds, in great abundance. Our Antiquarian Re searches are being published, in a new form. Some things are about to be made public, that have never appeared before. A good deal of discernment however is requisite in separating the anthentic records of the bards, the real chroniclers of Wales, from the fabulous inventions of the monks. Some go to extremes by rejecting too much, for by so doing they undermine the validity of evidence, whilst others err on the contrary side, by giving credence to the wild fables that were invented in the middle ages. A very intelligent and able man, the Rev. Thomas Price of Cryghywel, has com menced a ' History of Wales,' in the language of the princi pality. He endeavours to sift with care our real history, and to distinguish it from the unfounded tales with which it has been mixed up. When completed this work will be a pro duction of considerable value. The only fault which is found with it is a want of simplicity in the style, a fault of no trifling character in a work of that nature ; still it will be a standard production, to which we can refer with confidence. The labours of the late lamented Professor Rees, of St. David's College, and those of some others who preceded him, have done much towards clearing away the rubbish which had, in a great measure, concealed the real annals of the Welsh 74 THE CHARACTER OF THE nation, and induced strangers to think that we possessed no authentic data for constructing a history which would be en titled to credibility. But a brighter period, in regard to this matter, now dawns upon us, and we may hope, that, ere long, as general a unanimity of opinion, on the subject, will prevail as can reasonably be expected. This department of literature has suffered great loss by the premature death of the said Professor, who was possessed of very extensive acquaintance with the antiquities of our country and nation, who had suffi cient candour and integrity to reject every unfounded fable, however much it might flatter our national vanity, and whose patriotism was a guarantee that every fact, honourable to his native country, would be faithfully recorded, regardless of the censure and incredulity of critics belonging to other nations. But alas! this most amiable man has been cut off in the prime of life ; ' he hath given up the ghost, his sun hath gone down while it was yet day.' The Bards of the present age are as numerous, and pos sessed of as much poetic genius, as those of any former period. Indeed the writer is inclined to think that the present is the golden age of Welsh literature in all its departments. The field of improvement is, certainly, very extensive, and it is to be hoped that progression will be the principle which will continue to actuate the nation. The favourite metres, in which the bards of Wales delight to sing, are exceedingly rigorous and peculiar, but the nature of the language is such that a poet of genius does not experience all the difficulty which some might imagine, in composing his poems in these metres. To assist a stranger in forming an idea of the most peculiar of them, I shall lay before him several imitations of an Englyn, the first of which was composed by the learned and venerable Archdeacon Pryse. They will illustrate the principle of the twenty-four metres , which were, for a long period, considered the test by which to distinguish genuine poetry from that which was spurious. WELSH AS A NATION. 75 Engilnicus, seu kythmus, Bri- English Imitations. — On the tannico more concatenate : rainbow. Vellem a carne viii, —qua preraor Love benign thy sign has sent — we Cum primis dissolvi; . hail it, Cupio a te capi How wholly resplendent! Salvator, amator mi. Attend ! in grace transcendent, Pryse. God we know his bow has bent. T. ab Iolo. Sopor Mariam cepit; — in lectum Yes! I heard but yesterday, A luctu recessit : In a loud and solemn lay, Ast tuba hanc cxcitabit, Thrice a great and hideous groan ; TJt Maria salva sit. O, the doleful, mournful moan ! Davis, Castle Hywel. Davis, Castle Hywel. It will be perceived that alliteration of consonants, at certain distances from each other, is one of the rules of this metre. The distance is fixed by laws, and those laws may not be transgresse 1. Then the vowels are varied in a peculiar manner, and the syllables are required to be of a fixed num ber. An Essential part of the metre, likewise, is rhyme; so that the whole stanza jingles, and echoes, and rhymes, in a way not found in any other language. I confess that, for a long time, I entertained a strong prejudice against Welsh poetiy; but having read nearly all the best productions in the language, and many of the inferior ones, I feel much more reconciled to it, and candidly own that there is a much greater quantity of genuine poetry composed in the peculiar metres than I ever expected to find. At the first revived modern Eisteddfod, which was held at Carmarthen in 1819, the bards were released from the shackles of the old rules, and now compositions are allowed to be made, in the heroic or any other free metre which a man may choose to use. If all tbe scattered pieces of good Welsh poetry were collected and published, they would form several volumes. Such a work is a desideratum in furtherance of Welsh literature. The poets of the present age, belonging to Wales, are nu merous, and the productions of many of them display the genuine inspirations of the Muse. I shall mention the names 76 THE CHARACTER OF THE of a few, more at random, in point of arrangement, than in regard to poetical merit. Several must be recorded, who have, within the last twenty years, departed from this scene of existence. The late Dr.W. O. Pughe was a poet of some eminence; but though he composed in so unshakled a metre as blank verse, yet his poetry, like all his other Welsh writings, is very ob scure. His translation of ' Paradise Lost' is a masterly per formance; only few, however, can enter into its merits and discover its .beauties. He translated, in like manner, the 'Palestina' of Bishop Heber. He was an amiable gentle man, of simple and unassuming manners; and justice requires that I should state, that his labours as Lexicographer, Gram marian, and Poet, have been productive of great effect, of a beneficial character, upon the literature of Wales. Mr. Edward Williams of Glamorganshire, (Iolo Morganwg,) was, by occupation a stone mason, and a purely self taught scholar. He obtained considerable celebrity in that part of Wales, because very few, during his career, were competitors with him for a place in the temple of fame. It is said that he was a profound antiquarian. His poem designated ' Gor- ymbil Heddwch ' — Entreaty for Peace, is highly commended. He published two small volumes of lyric and pastoral poems, in the year 1794, in English, which contain very valuable notices of the laws, maxims, and theology of ancient bardism. Some years ago, I remember seeing a Hymn book, either wholly or in part, composed by him. They were of a moral kind, and adapted for singing in Arian and Unitarian con gregations. The Rev. John Blackwell, B.A., Rector of Manerdivy, Pembrokeshire, the news of whose death has just reached me, was an author of high poetical merit. He was a native of Mold in Flintshire. It is much to the credit of Mr. Black- well, that he obtained the patronage of the Clergy and others, in his native neighbourhood, solely on account of his WELSH AS A NATION. 77 talents, which were of a high order. He entered Jesus College, Oxford, in 1824, and was ordained Curate of Holy well in 1828, which post he continued to occupy till the spring of 1833. The most useful part of bis life as a Christian Minister was spent at this place. The Church, which was well attended before, became crowded under his ministry, and even when the attraction of novelty had ceased, a large con gregation continued to attend. In the delivery of his sermons Mr. Blackwell was in the habit of using his manuscripts, but not to confine himself to what he had written ; this was especially the case during his ministry in South Wales. He greatly excelled as a composer of sermons, but did not possess equal talent in delivery. His voice, when used in its ordinary key was clear, though rather harsh ; when he was a little animated, it failed, and became a suppressed squeak. To avoid this he frequently modulated it into a tone, and conti nued it so to the end of the sermon. Of four discourses which the writer heard from him, three possessed no particular excellence, but one of them was most beautifully composed and tolerably well delivered; and, what is much better, it was admirably calculated to benefit the hearers. The text was Gen. xix. 14 : — ' But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons-in-law.' This sermon would read well in print; and, no doubt, he has left behind him many others that might be joined with it, so as to form a volume, which would be an important acquisition to Welsh literature. Sometime before Mr. Blackwell left Holywell, he announced, in an advertise ment, his intention of publishing a volume of Welsh sermons ; if his manuscripts were entrusted to some friend, who would undertake to select as many as are fit for the press, prefixing to them a short memoir of the author, and adding all his poetical pieces, as well as some of his prose compositions which have already appeared in print, a monument, as im perishable as the Welsh language itself, would be constructed in memory of this excellent man. 78 THE CHARACTER OF THE But Mr. Blackwell is to be noticed here, particularly, as a poet. The productions of his Muse were, in several instances, rewarded with medals or premiums, by different societies. His stanzas, to suit the truly national air, Ar hyd y nos, are exquisite pieces. His translation of Pope's Mossiah is very well executed. The premium offered for the best translation, was divided between him and the Bard of Nantglyn, which Mr. Blackwell considered a higher honour than to have had a medal awarded to him, without such a competitor. But his masterpiece, and what will inevitably transmit his name to posterity, is his ' Elegy on the death of Bishop Hebsr,' to which was adjudged the prize at the Denbigh Eisteddvod in 1828. This Elegy we consider the finest composition in our language, and we are not acquainted with anything, of the kind, possessed by other nations, which equals, certainly nothing that surpasses it. Mr. Blackwell was a very sociable man and fond of con versation. When he happened to be in company, he was generally the life of it, being possessed of much humour, and a fund of anecdotes. But he never went beyond the bounds of propriety, nor would he tolerate in others, anything which tended to injure sound morals. A man of unchaste hubits, the father of several motherless daughters, was, at one time, in the same company with the poet ; and some severe obser vations being made on the vices to which the former was addicted, he, as an apology for his conduct said, that, ' As the Creator had implanted certain propensities in our nature, it could not be criminal to indulge them.' But Mr. Blackwell effectually silenced him by simply asking, ' Do you teach such sentiments to your daughters V "In the year 1832 he was presented to the Rectory of Manerdivy, by Lord Brougham, then Lord High Chancellor of England. The living was given to him unsolicited. His Lordship, ever ready to patronize men distinguished for their talents, having heard of Mr. Blackwell's fame as a Welsh WELSH AS A NATION. 79 Scholar, and also of his being an able, eloquent, and powerful preacher, was delighted in having it in his power to confer this benefice upon him. On receiving the presentation, Mr. Blackwell wrote a letter of thanks, with which his Lordship was so pleased that he used frequently to speak of it, among his friends, with much delight. Few could excel Mr. Black- well as a letter writer ; and it was no wonder that shortly after writing to Lord Brougham, his Lordship fixed upon him, and afterwards engaged him to undertake the editorship of the Cylchgraivn, a publication on the plan of the Penny Magazine, published by tbe Society for Diffusing Useful Knowledge. The Cylchgrawn was conducted with great ability, and it will remain a lasting monument of Mr. Black- well's great command of the Welsh language. His transla tions from the English are perfect models worthy of being imitated. They contain the purest Welsh ; and in them is not lost the spirit and vigour of the originals. In no modern publication is to be found language superior as to elegance of style, or purity of diction.* There is, it must be confessed, about his manner of writing, a kind of bewitchery that capti vates the reader. Having formed a clear and correct idea himself, Mr. Blackwell could convey the same to others in words the most simple and appropriate, that could be found. His sentences flowing like a strong majestic stream, carry the reader along with delightful pleasure. Mr. Blackwell was afflicted with long illness, first occasioned by too close an ap plication to the Cylchgrawn, which, in addition to his paro- * This paragraph came from the pen of the Rev. John Jones, Christ Church, Oxford. But will the writer of this Essay be excused if he appropriate to himself some portion of the commendation bestowed upon the Editor of the Cylchgrawn, for he prepared a great number of the articles which appeared on the pages of that periodical ? He has, likewise, been a contributor to five or six other publications ; and if all his papers were collected together they would form au octavo volume. His remuneration for his labours was, generally, u demand for more contributions, postage paid ; occasionally very high praise, and more than once, a good share of abuse. Such is poor human nature ! SO THE CHARACTER OF THE chial duties, gave him no time for recreation. Under his heavy afflictions, however, he expressed perfect submission to the will of Heaven ; and evinced throughout great Christian resignation." Mr. John Howell of Llandovery, (loan ab Hywel) was a poet of some eminence. He edited a volume of poems, en titled, ' The Flowers of Dyved.' Mr. Robert Davies, Nantglyn near Denbigh, held a high place, for a long period, among the poets of the principality. He was the author of a plain and useful Grammar of our lan guage. To him was awarded the bardic chair of Powys, at the Wrexham Eisteddvod, in 1820, for the best ' Awdl ' on the ' Death of his Majesty King George the Third.' He triumphed over many competitors, though the composition, which I have just read over, does not exhibit any extraordinary poetical merit, except in so far as the honour of the Cynghanedd is well maintained. There is a happy line in this poem, which is frequently quoted in Bible meetings in Wales, which I have seen also given as the subject of a theme at St. David's Col- ege. It expresses the desire of George the Third that every man should have a copy of the holy Scriptures : ' Beibl i bawb o bobl y byd.' Among the poets who have lately died, I may be allowed to mention a young man, whose productions are among the finest in our language, — I mean Thomas Lloyd Jones, known by the bardic name of Gwenffrwd. He was born in Holywell. His education was not of a liberal kind, for he never received instruction either in Greek or Latin ; but the defi ciency of his education was made up by the excellency of his genius. He was brought up to the law. At a very early age, he began to exercise his talents by translating some of the finest things he met with in English authors. Very soon he dived into poetry, and his Muse took fire. In his leisure hours, he formed a small selection from different works in the Welsh language, and composed several original WELSH AS A NATION. 81 'pieces, all in free but various metres. He also translated some very excellent poems from the English language, among which were 'The Deserted Village,' 'Thomson's Hymn on the Seasons,' ' Gray's Elegy,' &c, and having laid them before a friend, he was desired to arrange and publish them. This he did in the year 1831, under the title of ' The Beauties of Welsh Poetry.' His preface to that publication is quite a specimen of prose writing ; the only fault of any moment, with which it can be charged, is brevity. At several of our Eisteddvodau, premiums were awarded to him, his composi tions being judged the best, on the different subjects pro posed for competition. Not being able to find employment suitable to his disposition in this country, he went to Liver pool, where he staid a few months, but the occupation as signed him not being congenial with his taste, he determined to cross the Atlantic, in quest of one more agreeable to his mind. On his passage, he composed a beautiful Ode on the Sea, of which a very able judge, himself a poet, said that, in his opinion, it is the best production in the Welsh lan guage. Ultimately this young man settled in Mobile, a country washed by the majestic waters of the Mississipi, and there he died in 1834, in the twenty-fourth year of his age. STANZAS PROPOSED FOR HIS TOMB-STONE. " Bardd mawr dan bride? yma orwedd, — claw Naw Duwies Cynghanedd, Er ei vwyn gwnant ar ei vedd Gan alar yn gynnilwedd." "Gwel veddrod mawrglod Vardd mwyn, — awen fraeth, Gwen-frwd, O mor addvwyn Ei Iais oedd, — ond yn lie swyn Pereiddgerdd, — y mae prudd-gwyn." Mr. David Thomas of Waenvawr, near Carnarvon, \D. Ddu Eryri,) was a superior poet and antiquarian. The ap pearance of this author was very prepossessing, his counte- nance indicating, in a remarkable manner, much benevolence •of heart. He has left behind him many pieces of real merit. S2 THE CHARACTER OF THE One of his best is on ' Gardening.' Even the Carols, com posed by this poet, are good, a commendation which does not always belong to such compositions, Mr. Thomas was the editor of an edition of the Poetical Works of the Anglesey Bards, which is called ' Diddanwch Teuluaidd,' that is, Family Amusement. Mr. Rhys Jones, Blaenau, near Dolgelley, was a good poet. He published, before his decease, a small volume of his poetical works. The Rev. D. Davies, Castle Hywel, Cardiganshire, was a man of considerable learning and poetical merits. He kept a classical school or academy, for the instruction of the better class of society. In poetry he preferred clear and simple compositions, to an unintelligible jargon, however correct it might be in point of versification. His translation of ' Gray's Elegy,' is very plain and beautiful ; and, though swelled out to nearly double the size of the original, yet it has so much merit, that, as long as the Welsh language endures, it will remain a monument of Mr. Davies's talents. He be queathed to his countrymen a small volume, containing some original compositions, of various degrees of merit, but the greater number of the pieces are translations. Though our poet was not of orthodox sentiments, yet it appears he was no admirer of Dr. Priestley, as the following Epitaph attests : " Here lie at rest, In oaken chest, Together pack'd most nicely, The bones and brains, Flesh, blood, and veins, And soul of Doctor Priestley." The Rev. Thomas Jones of Denbigh, was a man of some poetical talents, and of extensive information. His poetical productions are not numerous. He composed one of the four poems, on the ' Death of his Majesty George the Third,' which was sent to the Eisteddvod at Wrexham, in 1820, but WELSH AS A NATION. 83 lie died a short time before that congress was held. His poem has been inserted among the other productions which were received on the occasion. It was in prose that Mr. Jones excelled as a writer. He supplied his native country with excellent translations of Fox's Book of Martyrs, and Gurnall's Christian in full Armour. He also compiled a very useful English and Welsh Dictionary, but it is on too confined a plan to answer all the purposes required by the present state of knowledge in the principality. He prepared a short memoir of the Rev. Thomas Charles of Bala, and appended an elegy on his death, which is more remarkable for its faith ful representation of the character and labours of his friend, than for poetical merit. Of Mr. Thomas Jones, who assumed the bardic name of Bardd Clof, I know but little, except that he was consi dered an eminent poet, and, at his death, was lamented by the bards of Wales. Mr. Thomas Williams, who assumed the name of (Gwilym Morganwg,) was born in the parish of Llanthetty, Breck nockshire ; but when he grew up and discovered that his native county was not celebrated for men of eminent poetic genius, he renounced it and adopted Glamorganshire, hence his bardic designation. His parents were poor, and could afford to give but very imperfect education to their son. He was obliged to work in a mine which his father had taken, even when he had only just completed his seventh year ! Whilst thus employed under ground he forgot all he had learnt in school except the alphabet. About twelve years of age his poetic genius began to exhibit itself, and he acquired in the course of his life, some eminence as a poet. He is called by Mr. Taliesin Williams the Welsh Burns, his songs bearing considerable resemblance to those of tbe Scotch poet. He was a man of considerable genius ; and by persevering study he became a proficient in many of the sciences. He excelled as a dadgeiniad, his performances in that capacity 84 THE CHARACTER OF THE having obtained for him some distinction. On several oc casions he received premiums as the second best author of poetical compositions, and more than once he came in for the highest rewards. He died in the year 1835. " Mor syn yw Telyn Glan Tav — wylovus ! Gwyl Evan droe'n auav ! Awen werdd, na cherdd, ni chav ! Marw y gwr mawr rhagoraf !" — Cawrdav. Mr. David Richards of Dolgellau, (Davydd Ionawr,) was one of the greatest contributors that Wales ever produced, to the poetical department of its literature. This is the man of Wales who may dispute the palm with some of the first geniuses of Europe. If he must yield, in point of invention and general magnificence, to the most celebrated of them, he claims superiority in regard to the truth of his matter, the purity of his sentiments, and the hallowed effects of his work. The very genius of ancient British Bardism repudiates such fabulous inventions as are contained in the Iliad, the JEneid, and the Paradise Lost. The motto of Welsh poetry is ' Truth against the world.' It has been transmitted to us from the remotest antiquity, and is still enforced in the principality, when bardic degrees are conferred. This is the guiding prin ciple, by which the poetry of the Cymry is to be judged. It does not reject ornament, but fiction ; for Welsh poetry abounds in embellishments of all description. Even allegories and hyperboles are not forbidden, and incidents may be ima gined. But the groundwork must be true, and the super structure conformable to nature. A different account of poetry in general, is given, in a first rate article on Milton's ' Treatise on Christian Doctrine' &c, which appeared in the Edinburgh Review for August 1825. The theology of Milton is soon laid aside, and the writer takes occasion to discuss the poetry of the immortal bard. In one part of the article, the Reviewer says: " Perhaps no person can be a poet, or can even enjoy poetry, without a certain unsoundness of mind, ii WELSH AS A NATION. 85 anything which gives so much pleasure ought to be called unsoundness. By poetry we mean, not of course all writino- in verse, nor even good writing in verse. Our definition ex cludes many metrical compositions, which, on other grounds, deserve the highest praise. By poetry we mean, the art of employing words in such a manner as to produce an illusion on the imagination, the art of doing by means of words, what the painter does by means of colours. Thus the greatest of poets has described it, in lines universally admired for the vigour and felicity of their diction, and still more valuable on account of the just notion which they convey of the art in which he excelled : " The poets eye, in a fine frenzy rolling Doth glance from heaven to earth, from earth to heaven ; And as imagination bodies forth The forms of things unknown, the poet's pen Turns them to shapes, and gives to airy nothing A local habitation and a name." " These are the fruits of the ' fine frenzy' which he ascribes to the poet, — a.fne frenzy doubtless, but still a frenzy. Truth indeed is essential to poetry ; but it is the truth of madness. The reasonings are just but the premises are false. After the first suppositions have been made, every thing ought to be consistent ; but those first suppositions require a degree of credulity which almost amounts to a partial and temporary derangement of the intellect." This is not a correct description of the poetry of Wales, in general, nor of Davydd Ionawr's poetry, in particular. The laws of bardism will allow the poet to ascend to the highest heaven, or descend to the deepest shades of hell ; he may take the wings of the morning and fly to the uttermost part of the sea ; h? may visit worlds in distant parts of the vast creation of God, and sing of doings there; he may ex plore the wonders of nature as displayed on our globe ; he may cull its finest flowers, or select its greatest beauties and sublimest scenes, but he must tell the Truth. 86 THE CHARACTER OP THE Davydd Ionawr has left us three poems of considerable length. One on 'The Trinity;' another on 'Joseph the Governor of Egypt ;' and the third, which possesses extraordi nary poetical merits, is on ' The Deluge.' There are also several other compositions of his, to be found among his works, but they are not of great length. The greatest pro duction of our author is that on the Trinity. This he calls an ' Heroic poem,' the subject of which is the Trinity in action. The work which the Deity performs is the redemption of man, and the restoration of the world. The author carries on his story to its consummation, by selecting the choicest incidents recorded in the holy Scriptures, and giving them a poetical dress. He abounds in episodes, but they contribute to the main design of the poem. His descriptions are very well ex ecuted ; many of them are splendid ; and he has frequent instances of what Homer is so much celebrated for, that is, the sound of his words agreeing with the sense. Do we find, in Homer, such lines as the following, which have elicited so much applause ? And Also , ' Br) S'&xkwv irapd. Siva TroXvfXoustoto SaKaaaiig.' ' Silent he wander'd by the sounding main.' ' Tog uifiouyiv 'iywv a.fiipr]pt(psa re fapirpriv.' ' Bent was his bow, the Grecian hearts to wound, Fierce as he mov'd, his silver shafts resound.' — Pope. ' Aeivr) Sk Kkayyr) ysver apyvpsow /81010.' ' Clang'd the cord Dread sounding, bounding on the silver bow.' — Cowper. Let the reader carefully examine the following examples, from the Welsh poet, and I am persuaded he will discover a similar agreement of the sound with the sense. In describing the state of the sea when the deluge came on the world, he says : * A'r mor yn adruaw, A mawr drwst yn y mor draw.' WELSH AS A NATION. 87 How beautifully do the following lines sound, which describe the sea and wind when Jesus had commanded them to be still ! ' Gwastad yw'r mor mewn gosteg Pob awel sydd dawel deg.' At the last day, when the mountains leap, he says, * Dan flamio, dan ruo 'r & Yr Andes i v6r India.' How well the sound agrees with the sense in the following couplet. One might fancy he heard the stone whirling past him from the sling of David ! ' Yn chwern yr ae dan chwyrnu Yn bellen i'w dalcen du.' The compositions of this poet abound in pithy couplets which are full of wisdom, well calculated to improve the heart, and direct the conduct of his readers. There are in Cywydd y Drindod some close imitations of Milton, and many things of which Milton himself would have been proud. In point of length the great poems of these two authors are nearly the same; the Paradise Lost being 10,565 lines, and the Cywydd y Drindod, in ten parts, is 1 1,005 lines. But the latter poem differs materially from the former. The space of time em braced by the Paradise Lost is not long, except that it relates events which where to come, whereas Cywydd y Drindod conducts us along, historically, and sings of the doings of providence from the beginning of the creation to the con summation of all things. This makes the poem to resemble, in an important point of view, ' The Course of Time,' by Pollok. This fine poem of our author would have produced greater effect, and afforded much more rational pleasure, by relieving the reader from the monotony of his lines, if he had varied his metre, which he might have done, to a certain extent, without transgressing the laws of Welsh bardism ; but if he had trans gressed them, posterity, who ivill be emancipated from the tyranny of the Cynghanedd, would have justified him. The 88 THE CHARACTER OF THE speeches of his personages might have been in the heroic, ot some other free metre, and many of his descriptions would have sounded well in the ' long and soft ' metre, (hir a thoddaid .) But, with the exception of a few stanzas, the whole is composed in a measure called Cywydd deuair hirion, which, it must be confessed, is full of magic power, and is the simplest and sweet est of the twenty four close metres. Its principal qualities are, that every line consist of seven syllables, the last word of each couplet rhyming- ; but if one of the rhyming words be of two or more syllables, the other must be a monosyllable. Another imperfection in the poem is the too frequent use of epithets. They are not devoid of meaning, but are frequently unnatural, and brought into the lines, more to fill up the pro per quantity of syllables and to alliterate, than to improve the sense and heighten the colouring of the descriptions. Labouring as the Cyiuydd does, under the disadvantage's which I have pointed out, and being marked with some im perfections, still it will ever be appreciated, and that the more in proportion as the world improves in piety and virtue. It is nearly as simple as prose, and requires but little labour to be understood, by all classes of society. Strangers may form an idea of its great merits, when the Rev. Daniel Evans B.D, one of our best living poets, could write of it in the following terms : " Cywydd y Drindod is a masterly performance, of equal merit with The Paradise Lost. The spirit which it breathes, is truly religious, and the poetry of it is beautiful be yond comparison, I have perused it, I think, fifty times, and the more frequently I do so the more am I pleased and grati fied. I wish the poem were in every family, as it is so truly orthodox and edifying." The author was a poor man, but had, from his youth, con ceived a design of composing a poem that would tend to give glory to God, and check the licentiousness of his time. He laboured diligently at his work, for several years, under many disadvantages and discouragements. He was cheered on in WELSH AS A NATION. 89 his undertaking by the venerable Patriarch of Wales, the Rev. Thomas Jones of Creaton, who subscribed for twenty copies; and the expense of publication was borne by another gentleman of the name of Thomas Jones. The first edition appeared in 1793, which was printed at Wrexham, but a great number of copies remained unsold, and were consigned to the flames. Nevertheless, a second edition came out of a Carmarthen press, since the death of the venerated author, which event took place on the 1 1 tb May, 1827. The living poets of Wales deserve to be recorded next. I shall mention those with whose productions I happen to be most conversant. The Rev. Walter Davies, M.A., Rector of Llanrhaiadr yn Mochnant, whose bardic designation is Gwallter Mechain, is now venerable in years, and venerated for his talents and his usefulness. He is an eminent antiquarian, poet, and critic, and has done more than any man now living, to purify our poetical literature, and save us from having worthless compo sitions inflicted upon us. Mr. Davies obtained the bardic chair of Dyfed, at the Carmarthen Eisteddvod, held in 1819 ; the subject of his poem was, ' The Victories of Sir Thomas Picton.' He is also the author of an excellent Essay on ' Liberty.' Mr. Robert Williams of Bettws, in Carnarvonshire, (R. ab Gwilym Ddu,) is a masterly composer of Englynion, which are distinguished for their smoothness, point, and elegance. The following Englyn, by him, on Hell, is remarkable for its power, and the terrible truth which it unfolds : " Fwrn eirias, wynias, annuw, — hull beiriant, Lie bwrir pob didduw ; Llyn diwaelod, llawn diluw, Dyna le tost, dan lid Duw." Mr. David Owen, (Dewi Wyn o Eivion,) claims a place amongst the first class of poets in the principality. He is possessed of uncommon poetic powers, and had his muse not 90 THE 6HARACTER OF THE been imprisoned within the adamantine walls of the Cyng- hanedd, it is probable that he would have produced works of the highest order of poetical merit. He himself, however, thinks otherwise, and is a stern defender of the rigorous metres of Wales. He is the author of several poems, and three of them are of high merit. The first is entitled ' The Praise of Great Britain ;' the second is on ' Agriculture,' and the sub ject of the third is ' Benevolence,' In a few lines of the first he describes flowing water, with inimitable beauty, the sound and the sense agreeing in a remarkable manner : " O'r creigiau, drwy'r parthau pur, Ymdreiglaw mae dwr eglur, Eiven deneu, ysblenydd, Lyvndeg yn rhedeg yn rhydd, Rinweddol, o lesol Ian, Loew, oeraidd, o liw arian.'' Immediately after, the hoarse rushing cataract roars in his verses, and it is impossible for even a foreigner, when he hears the lines, not to be impressed with the truthfulness of the description: " Uchelgadr raiadr, dwr ewyn, — hydrwyllt, Edrych arno 'n disgyn, Crochwaedd y rhedliv crychwyn, Synu, pensyvrdanu dyn." Many passages in his poem on Benevolence are highly poeti cal. Mr. Owen is a man of strong mind, uncultivated man ners, and eccentric habits. Nature conferred on him a genius for poetry, and had he received early cultivation the pro ductions of his Muse would have been more simple and chaste, consequently would have produced greater effect, of a bene ficial character, on the minds of his countrymen. Mr. Peter Jones of Liverpool, (Pedr Vardd) is a good judge of versification, and his poetry is held in high estimation. He published, in the year 1823, a small volume of his com positions, which he called 'The Honey of the Muse,' which contains a great number of Odes &c, of a religious and WELSH AS A NATION. 91 moral character. He has likewise published a small hymn book for the use of Sunday Schools. Many of his hymns are good. His best poem is that 'On the Giving of the Law on Mount Sinai,' for which he obtained the bardic chair of Gwent, at the Eisteddvod held at Brecon, in the year 1826. This poet is distinguished for correct, pithy, chaste, and beautiful composition, but is wanting in energy, invention, and poetic fire. The Rev. Edward Hughes, M.A., Bodfari, has produced some good poems. His works have more of the polish of learning in them than those of most of his contemporaries. He composed poems in ' Memory of His Majesty King George the Third ;' on ' The Longing of a Welshman for his Country,' ckc; on 'Benevolence;' on a 'Shipwreck,' &c. &c. The last of these has many poetical beauties. To his poem on Benevo lence was awarded the medal, at the Denbigh Eisteddvod, in 1819, when Mr. Dewi Wyn was a competitor, and Dewi got into a very unhappy mood, in consequence of his disappoint ment, forgetting that a production containing a libel, however great its merits in other respects, was disqualified from re ceiving a reward. Mr. Hughes obtained a medal at the Denbigh Eisteddvod, in 1828, for the best poem on 'The Struggles of Boadicea against the Romans;* and another for his poem on ' Agriculture.' The Rev. Daniel Evans, B.D., and Fellow of Jesus College, Oxford, a native of Cardiganshire, is the most voluminous poet now living. The title of his book is ' The Orchard of the Bard.' His versatile Muse has sung in all kinds of metres, and on a great variety of subjects. There are in the volume about 140 pieces, a great number of which are hymns. The first poem is on 'The Erection of St. David's College,' which obtained for its author the bardic chair of Dyved at Car marthen, in the year 1823. It is accompanied with notes, explanatory of the references, in the poem, to places and persons of celebrity in ancient times. The poet predicts that the College will be instrumental in raising characters of equal 92 THE CHARACTER OF THE excellence in succeeding periods, and fancies that he beholds a second Goronwy, among the groves on the borders of the Tivi, holding converse with the Muses. The poem on ' The Winter,' in blank verse, and another on ' The Spring,' in a different metre, are delightful pieces. His ' Praise to Jesus' is excellent. He has also pleaded the cause of ' Dumb Crea tures,' in a manner which does credit to his principles and talents. Mr. Owen Williams, Waen Vawr, near Carnarvon, (Eryri Vychan) whose occupation is that of a cooper, is a succesful disciple of the Muse. He obtained the chair at an Eisteddvod held at Carnarvon in 1 824, for the best ' Elegy on the Death of Baron Richards.' He is deeply versed in the antiquities of the Cymry, and is quite enthusiastic in his patriotic feelings. Mr. W. E. Jones of Dolgelley, (Cawrdav,) now sojourns in South Wales. He is, by occupation, a printer, and has distinguished himself as a poet. The only composition of his, of any length, in my possession, is on the ' Longing of a Welshman for his Native Country,' &c. The close of this poem is beautiful and affecting. The poor broken-hearted Welshman is supposed to die in a distant part of the earth, an Englyn, prepared by himself, is put on his tombstone, and, in the course of time, an old acquaintance happens to visit his grave and reads the inscription ! Reader, conceive the effect ! This poet won the bardic chair of Gwent, at the Brecon Eisteddvod, in the year 1822, for the best poem on ' The memorable period during which His Majesty King George the Fourth exercised, as Regent, the powers of government over the United Kingdom.' The adjudicators in giving their opinion on the merits of the production said, " The plan of the poem is good, and displays poetic fancy in the conception of it. There is not, perhaps, in the Welsh language, any poem extant that displays greater genius in various respects." Nevertheless Cawrdav is not a first rate poet, but is generally successful for second prizes. The Rev. John Jones, B.D., Precentor of Christ Church, WELSH AS A NATION. 93 Oxford, (Tegid), is a native of Bala in Merionethshire, and sustains a high rank among the scholars and poets of the present age. He has carried on a warfare, for years, against a system of Welsh Orthography, which encumbers the lan guage with unnecessary consonants, which, in some instances, involve in obscurity the etymology of words, and in all tend to disfigure the language to the eye of strangers. Mr. Jones pleads not for a new system, but, in regard to the matter in dispute, advocates the mode of spelling adopted in the first edition of the book of Common Prayer, printed in the year 1586. And though he and others have, to a very great extent, succeeded in effecting a reformation, and in bringing to their views a great part of the nation, yet the unhappy perverse- ness of many of our countrymen, disposes them to adhere to a plan which has not the shadow of reason for its support, except the authority of a few great names. Mr. Jones is also an excellent Hebrew scholar. His translation of different parts of the Scriptures, the Hebrew parallelisms being pre served, are executed with exquisite skill, and are allowed to be very correct. The fifty-third chapter of Isaiah, as ren dered by him into Welsh, is so plain that no commentary upon it is required, and so beautiful that the writer has been in duced to give it repeated perusals. The Rev. Evan Evans of Chester, (Ieuan Glan Geirionydd,) claims a place among the first order of poets, as well as writers in prose, of the present age. He was the first editor of, and the principal contributor to, the ' Patriot Magazine,' (Gwlad- garwr,) one of the best conducted periodicals in the Welsh language. An edition of the Bible, with numerous plates and extensive critical and explanatory notes, is now in course of publication, under his editorial care. His poem on 'The longing of a Welshman for his country,' &c, obtained the silver medal awarded by the Eisteddvod held at Wrexham, in the year 1820. This production brought him into notice, and obtained for him the patronage of the Clergy and Gentry. &4 THE CHARACTER OF THE After a course of preparation at St. Bees, he obtained orders in the Church. His stanzas, on the ' Slaughter on Rhuddlan Marsh,' are beautiful and affecting. The ' Lowland Hun dred,' (Cantrev y Gwaelod,) is a poem of considerable merit. But Mr. Evans's best production, and one of the best things in the Welsh language, is his poem on ' Belshazzar's Feast,' which obtained for him the bardic chair of Gwynedd at the great Eisteddvod held at Denbigh in the year 1828. This poem is distinguished for the excellency of its plan, and the correctness of its versification. Every thing is natural. It has a beginning, a middle, and an end, which cannot be said of many things that go by the name of poems. The imagery is beautiful and arranged with taste, the characters are well sustained, and the feelings and passions of human nature make their appearance in an impressive manner. Daniel is represented as a calm and dignified character, but proud Belshazzar, as a terrible wretch. O, how he trembles! and dies ! ! The Rev. Wm. Williams of Carnarvon, (Gwilym Caled- vryn,) is another of our most successful poets. He has been rewarded with medals and premiums at many of the Eistedd vodau. Some years ago, he published a small volume of Odes, Englynion, Carols, &c, which he titled ' GrawnAwen,' the meaning of which is, either the Berries or the Grapes of the Muse. The taste of the fruit disposes me to consider them to be grapes ; and indeed they are not of a sour quality. Since this volume was published, Mr. Williams obtained the bardic chair of Gwynedd, at the Royal Eisteddvod held at Beaumaris, in the year 1832, for the best poem on the ' Wreck of the Rothsay Castle,' on the Dutchman's bank near Conway. This production was very highly commended by the judges, and is deservedly ranked among the finest pieces in the Welsh language. This author published, last year, a small volume which he calls *'A Mirror of Poetry,' or a treatise on the nature of poetry. He discusses, very briefly, the various WELSH AS A NATION. 95 kinds of poetry, such as the Pastoral, Lyrical, Heroic, &c. The hints which he has given on these subjects are taken from some of the best English writers. On the poetry of Scripture he has treated rather largely. His principal design, however, was to explain Welsh poetry, and this task he has ably executed. He has done considerable service to Welsh literature, by distinguishing between poetry-and the language of poetry, a distinction of which many rhymsters and allitera- tors, in this country, are profoundly ignorant. He exposes bad compositions with due severity, but does justice to those which possess merit. This production has been severely cri ticised in the pages of the Protestant. Time will show whether it have sufficient intrinsic merit to recover the blow inflicted upon it by the hand of Amphion. Mr. Williams is frequently called upon to judge of the relative merits of poetical compositions that are sent to Eisteddvodau, and deserves commendation, not only for distinguishing the best from the better, and the better from those in the lowest degree of comparison, but for refusing to reward even the best when they happen to be bad. Mr. Ebenezer Thomas of Clynog, in Carnarvonshire, (Eben Vardd,) is a poet of true genius and correct taste. He has of late carried away the best laurels of the Eisteddvodau. He obtained the bardic chair of Powys, at the Welshpool Eisteddvod in the year 1824, for the best poem on the ' Destruction of Jerusalem.' This poem is rich in thought, beautiful in expression, and full of poetic fire. What a pity that such a genius, aye, a gentleman and Christian too, should be suffered to remain a mere schoolmaster ! O Cambria blush ! [Since writing the above, this man of genius has been pro moted to the bardic chair a second time, an event of which we have no other instance in modern times. And what con fers additional lustre on his fame is the fact that he was the first to be installed in the new ' Chair of Gordovic,' lately 9t3 THE CHARACTER OF THE erected under the auspices of Prince Albert in the town of Liverpool. The subject of the poem was the ' Afflictions, Patience, and Restoration of Job.' Respecting the merits of this production the judges have spoken in the strongest terms of commendation.] The Rev. D. James, of St. Mary's Kirkdale near Liverpool, (Dewi o Ddyved,) a native of Pembrokeshire, is a poet of sound judgment and correct taste. His profession, however, is the Christian ministry. As a preacher and public orator, he has a claim to a very high place indeed. Having carefully studied the English and Welsh languages, he speaks with fluency and correctness in both, an attainment of very difficult acquisition, and in which very few excel. When at Cardigan school he obtained a silver medal from the Cymmrodorion Society of London, for the best Essay on ' Patriotism;' and a second the following year from the same society for the best Essay on 'The cultivation of the Welsh language.' He has published several sermons, in the English language : one on ' Confirmation,' and another on ' The Conduct of the Romish Church with regard to the Bible.' His Lecture on ' The Doctrine of the Trinity, proved as a consequence from the Deity of our Lord Jesus Christ,' is very profound in thought and powerful in argument. He is', likewise, the author of a treatise on 'Ancient British Druidism,' or the Patriarchal Religion of Britain, which displays great research, and if the sources of his information be genuine, he has made out a very strong case in favour of our ancestors. It would be well for those who describe the Ancient Britons as a horde of uncivi lized savages, observing cruel and superstitious rites, and destitute of knowledge and art, to give this pamphlet a perusal. The Rev. Wm. Rees of Denbigh, (Gwilym Hiraethawg,) is a good poet and an excellent preacher. He was rewarded at the Denbigh Eisteddvod, in the year 1828, with a medal, for the best poem on 'The Lowland Hundred.' WELSH AS A NATION. 97 Mr. Richard Jones, Llanwnda, near Carnarvon, (Gwyndav Eryri,) is by occupation a stone mason, but has obtained some distinction as a poet. His productions, however, do not appear to deserve any very high commendation. In a small volume of his, which now lies before me, entitled ' The Melody of the Muse,' there are about eighteen pieces of various lengths, but none of those that my patience has allowed me to peruse, dis play poetic genius. He composed several Carols, which are not positively bad ; they contain good divinity and some little poetry. He seems to have mastered the Cynghanedd, and his lines are like so many bells, which give abundance of sound, but the sound of those instruments is not poetry. This individual obtained the bardic chair at the Eisteddvod held at Garnarvon, in the year 1821, but I have not been able to learn what was the subject on which he composed. He was also rewarded with a silver medal, by the Gwyneddigion Society, at an Eisteddvod held at Llangevni, in the year 1816, for the best poem on 'A respectful Remembrance of the Ancestors of the Cymry, who struggled for the Freedom of their Country." The termination of this Awdl refers to the land of perfect liberty: "Gwlad nad oes oerloes erlid, — waith arvau, Na thervyu ar ryddid, Ond seiniaw goruwch Haw Hid, "Vwyn awen ddigyvnewid." Mr. D. Grufydd of Carnarvon, (Clwydvardd,) is a poet of some merit. Mr. Taliesyn Williams, (Taliesyn ab Iolo,) the son of Iolo •Morganwg, is a native of Glamorganshire, and a man of some literary distinction, as a Welsh scholar. His poetic composi tions are generally obscure, and encumbered with expletives and redundant words. His poem on ' The Druids of the Isle of Britain,' for which he was placed in the bardic chair of .Morganwg, at the Cardiff Eisteddvod, in the year 1834, is not jee from these faults. But his superior knowledge of tb« 98 THE CHARACTER OF THE subject, combined with correct versification, must have easily secured for him the palm of victory. Mr. Wm. Edwards of Llanberis, (Gwilym Padarn,) has* published a collection of Odes, &c, on various subjects, which he has called 'Eos Padarn;' the meaning of which is The Nightingale of Padarn. He is a sensible old man and a good poet. Mr. G. W. Edwards of Trinity College, Dublin, son of the last mentioned individual, is a young man of promising abi lities, both as a poet and a writer of prose. He is the editor of the ' Protestant,' a paper which comes out every fortnight at Mold. Some of his compositions in that paper, display much talent and considerable learning. The Rev. John Williams of Aberduar, in Carmarthenshire, is a native of Llanrwst. He published, a short time since, a volume of poetry, the title of which is ' Llofyn y Prydydd/ &c, that is, The Poet's Gleanings. There is much good poetry in this volume ; the pieces, generally, are very simple and very pretty ; they are well adapted to please and improve the rising generation. There are two gentlemen residing in London, possessed of much poetic merit; I refer to T. Edwards, Esq., (Caervall- wch,) and Mr. Wm. Williams, (Gwilym Twrog.) The Rev. Morris Williams, M.A., of Bangor, is engaged in preparing a metrical version of the Psalms. Several of his pieces have already appeared in different periodicals. The versification is good, and runs smoothly, and the ver sion as faithful as the nature of the work requires it to be. Those which have appeared are well adapted for congregational singing, a commendation which cannot be given to the whole of Archdeacon Pryse's version, however much, in other respects, it claims to be admired. The Rev. John Williams, M.A., Curate of Llanvor near Bala, is a poet of good taste, but is better known as a writer of prose. His Welsh style is of the purest kind, and has WELSH AS A NATION. 99 much of the idiom which the language peculiarly requires. He is the author of a small volume, which was originally pub lished in Welsh, and afterwards in English, entitled ' The Church of England independent of the Church of Rome in all ages." The Itev. Daniel Jones of Liverpool has been rewarded for the labours of his Muse. The Rev. Richard Parry of Conway, but a native of Llan- erchymedd, (Monwysiad,) obtained the bardic chair at the Eisteddvod held at Llanerchymedd, in the year 1835. The subject of his poem is ' Commerce,' and the production dis plays considerable poetic talents." The Rev. Samuel Roberts, Llanbrynmair, has published a tery pretty and sweet little volume of Odes, &c. His excel lent Essay on ' The necessity of law to maintain good manners,' obtained the premium at the Denbigh Eisteddvod in 1828. The Rev. Wm. Ambrose of Port Madoc in Carnarvonshire lias produced some superior pieces of poetry. He composes well both in the English and Welsh languages. Mr. John Hughes, Bodedern, Anglesey, has some of the inspirations of the A wen in him. He is, at the present time, preparing a small collection of his productions, for the press. This Island has several other bards, now living, some of whom have obtained medals or premiums for their productions, but I am not able to say anything very definite in regard to their merit. And here my catalogue of the living poets must be closed. I entertain no doubt that a great many more, connected with «very county in the principality, might be mentioned, who possess poetic talents, which they frequently exercise. Many of them, it maybe, are poets of merit, but the writer not having had the opportunity of perusing their compositions cannot venture to express an opinion of their character. It is much to be regretted that our best bards so much 100 THE CHARACTER OF THE neglect the department of sacred poetry, adapted for congre gational singing. Weare in possession of some very excel lent hymns, which would bear comparison with anything of the kind in the English language ; but there is not sufficient variety, of a superior kind, to answer the demand of public worship, and to satisfy the general taste. The psalms of Archdeacon Pryse, and the hymns of the sweet songster of Wales, the Rev. W. Williams, of Pantycelyn near Llandovery, are held in high estimation. In theology we have a large collection of works, many of which are valuable. As far as we know, the late Rev. Peter Williams was the first that ever favoured Wales with explana tory notes on the Bible. They are full of sweetness, very sound in regard to doctrine, and are of a practical tendency. The Bible of this divine, with notes and marginal references, has passed through many editions, in a large quarto, and is the family Bible of the peasantry throughout the principality. Another Commentary, in three quarto volumes, was completed, a few years ag'o, by a Baptist Minister of the name of Mr. John Jenkins, near Merthyr Tydvil. It is the humble pro duction of a sensible man, without any pretensions to learn ing. The Rev. Thomas Jones, late of Carmarthen, wrote very excellent. Expositions on the five books of Moses, Job, the Canticles, and the Epistle to the Hebrews. A Bible, with short notes, was published, not long ago, by the Rev. Mr. Davies of Swansea. And the Rev. Joseph Harris, of the same place, issued from his press a duoglott Bible, the Eng lish and Welsh being in collateral columns. A few Exposi tions on the whole of the New Testament, have also been prepared and published by natives of the principality. The one by Dr. Lewis has already been mentioned. Dr. Phillips of Neuaddlwyd, Cardiganshire, completed another, but not having seen it, I cannot speak of its merits. The following have been translated from the English language : — WELSH AS A NATION, 101 The Commentary of Samuel Claike, and that of Dr. Coke on the whole Bible : Matthew Henry's, in like manner, has been recently finished. Some parts of a critical Exposition, have just been sent forth, from the press of Mr. John Jones, Llan idloes. The work is a selection from the Commentaries *of Coke, Clarke, Benson, Watson, and Suttcliffe, and is well executed. A kind of a Pictorial Bible, with critical notes, has been noticed in another part of this Essay. On the New Testament, Burkitt's Exposition has been completed ; and Dr. Gill's came out, many years ago, as far as the second Epistle to the Corinthians. Those of Dr. Guise and John Wesley, have been rendered into Welsh. The ponderous work of Dr. Adam Clarke, comes out, at the present time, in parts, being well translated by a very able scholar, the Rev. Isaac Jones, Curate of Llanddaniel, Anglesey. Nevertheless it is to be feared that, when all the works now in progress will be completed, the Welsh language will still be in want of a Commentary of standard excellence, combining critical examinations of difficult texts, with lucid exposition of doctrinal subjects, so as to edify the church, and promote practical religion, in the principality. We have had, in the present age, a few Dictionaries of the Bible. The one by Mr. Charles of Bala, has been already mentioned. The Rev. Isaac Jones translated, not many years ago, the Dictionary of Gurney ; and a Theological Dictionary, of great merit, has appeared, under the editorship of the Rev. W. Jones, Bridgend, Glamorganshire. A body of divinity, under the title of ' The Silver Palace,' was published, some years back, by an individual already mentioned, as an Expo sitor of the Bible — the Rev. John Jenkins near Merthyr. It has but few qualities that entitle it to commendation, as it, as well as the Exposition, advocates a very tight system of Cal vinism. In sermons the literature of Wales is very deficient. A dozen or fifteen volumes, of various sizes and qualities, are all that we possess. A kind of an Introduction to the study 102 THE CHARACTER OF THE of the Scriptures, selected from T. H. Home, Dr. Roberts*, Stockhouse, Burder, Gleig, and others, has been compiled by Mr. David Owen, Llandovery; it is a large octavo volume. Of smaller treatises, on a great variety of subjects, both ori ginal and translated, we are in possession of a very large number, many of which have considerable merit. In general knowledge we are very deficient. A thick quarto volume, of the nature of a Cyclopaedia, by Mr. Owen Williams, Waen Vawr, and others,~has just been completed, and contains, as far as it extends, very useful information. The History of Great Britain, by the late Rev. Titus Lewis, of Carmarthen, is an able performance, but on too confined a plan. Mr. R. Roberts, of Holyhead, published, many years ago, a large volume on Geography ; and another is about to issue from the press, by Mr. Thomas Jones of Amlwch. Josephus has been rendered into the language of the principa lity by a Mr. Hugh Jones, near Dolgelley. A beautiful volume has, this year, made its appearance, entitled " The English Works of the late Rev. Eliezer Williams, Vicar of Lampeter, &c. ;" with a ' Memoir of his life,' by his son the Rev. St. George Armstrong Williams, Perpetual Curate of Bettws Garmon, Carnarvonshire. This volume is, in my es timation, one of the most interesting productions that has appeared during the present age, in connexion with the prin cipality. The author of the works was a man of eminent talents and extensive knowledge, well versed in classical learning, and deeply acquainted with the antiquities of the Welsh nation, on which he has thrown some important light. " Possessing a character brightened with every distinguishing quality, he lived respected as an historian, a scholar, a poet, and a divine ; unassuming and modest in every action of his life, he was dignified without pride, and charitable without ostentation. His time and thoughts were devoted to the general benefit of mankind ; and the advantage which his pupils derived from him in the capacity of a teacher, will be WELSH AS A NATION. 103 remembered with gratitude as sincere as it is ineffaceable/' Such were the expressions of commendation used, in regard to Mr. Williams, when his death was announced through the press. I shall close my notice of this distinguished Welsh man, by quoting 6 Lines/ composed in memory of him, by a celebrated poet, who had himself been one of Mr, Williams's pupils. The excellency, both of the subject and the lines, will be a sufficient apology for their insertion. " Art thou forgot, our guardian and our friend ? Did, with thy life, thy name and raem'ry end ? And has the darkness of the tomb set free Our hearts* affection and our love from thee ? No, gen'rous father, no— we Btill can trace The beams of friendship playing in thy face, And view those eyes whose vivid lustre glow'd To mark that there. Intelligence abode. The tear that rolled in silence o'er thy cheek, Thy admonitions and thy precepts meek, Each tale rehears'd our bosoms to inspire, And wake to noble deeds our young desire: We still remember, — while affection binds Our souls to thee, and sorrow fills our minds. To thee, fair science oped her ample store, Yes — and to thee for kindness look'd the poor. That mighty mind on eagle-wings (hat soared, The darkest paths of learning that ixplor'd, Was still attentive to the orphan's cry, The peasant's mournful tale — the widow's sigh. Thine was that humour which bade sadness smile, And thine the Christian heart that knew no guile : Like God's true Shepherd, thy incessant aim Was, the poor wandering sinner to reclaim- To preach Christ crucified — disarm all strife, And feed the hungry with the bread of life. If here thou trod'st affliction's gloomy way, If cares and sorrows mark'd thy cloudy day — Now thy blest spirit rests in that domain Where death is nam'd not — and where pleasures reign. Adieu, kind master — best of friends, adieu ; God will again our intercourse renew, — When, no more sever'd from thy fond embrace, We'll praise th'eternal God — the God of grace.'' The Rev. Daniel Evans, See Gwinllan y Bardd, p. 40S. 104 THE CHARACTER OF THE The ' Mabinogion,' Or Juvenile Tales, under the editorial care of Lady Charlotte Guest, make their appearance, at the present time, being most elegantly printed by Mr. William Rees of Llandovery. An Essay on Agriculture, by Aneurin Owen, Esq., which obtained the prize at the Beaumaris Eisteddvod in 1832, deserves to be mentioned on account of the valuable matter which it contains, and the genuine Welsh in which it is exhibited. Some of the monthly periodicals have reached to a great number of volumes. Many that have now ceased to appear were carried on for periods of from five to fifteen years. A publication, conducted by the Wesleyan Metho dists, called yr 'Eurgrawn,' has been in existence for thirty years, and is yet in a prosperous condition. Two or three more, which have been in circulation for a long period, con tinue to receive the support of the public ; and one called * Seren Gomer has completed its twenty-second year. There are at present in the principality eight or ten monthly perio dicals, and four newspapers, all in the Welsh language, besides six or seven English journals, published weekly in the larger towns. I must not omit to mention the ' Chronicle and Observer,' a duoglott periodical which came out in the town of Liverpool, in the year 1828, under the editorial care of Mr. Joseph Davies, a solicitor. This gentleman was a native of Builth in Breck nockshire ; but I am not able to describe him except in his connexion with the publication which he edited, and to which he was nearly the sole contributor. His mind appears to have been of the most expansive character and stored with im mense information. Judging from the papers which he has transmitted to us by means of his periodical, he seems to have closely studied nearly every branch of science. Astro nomy, metaphysics, natural and moral philosophy, political economy, philology, and law, appear to have been equally familiar to him. In several of his papers he has combated WELSH AS A NATION. 105 some of the most difficult positions in the philosophy of Newton. On some points, in mental philosophy, he also dis agreed with Dugald Stewart, whom, nevertheless, he re garded as the greatest philosopher of his age. He maintains, in opposition to the views of Dr. Reid and Professor Stewart, that but very few of our ideas are simple, and proceeds to show, by a process of analysis, that many of those alleged to be so, are of a compound character. In order to form tbe most perfect system of knowledge of which the nature of man is capable, he maintains that a new process of inquiry must be adopted. Language, he thinks, is the instrument by which the most simple elements of knowledge are to be dis covered. The principles, which seem to have influenced his mind, appear to be the following : that God inspired the first man with a perfect system of knowledge, and a perfect medium of communicating that knowledge ; that the most ancient languages now existing are fragments of the original one, and that the original language is capable of being re stored. He does not assert that the ancient British is the parent language of mankind, but he does maintain that it is capable, and that without great difficulty, of being made a perfect language, by means of which the simple and perfect elements of science would be recovered. He pleads, more over, that the Welsh, by the significancy of its letters and syllables, is the best instrument of education that can be de vised, as, by skilful management, it would awaken the atten tion of children ; would assist the understanding to arrange and classify its ideas in the most orderly manner ; and, lastly, would impress what the mind acquired, most effectually, on the memory, so as to be available for practical purposes. He commenced a 'Technological Dictionary,' in which he in tended, in the first place, " to give the meaning of each letter of the alphabet by a strict definition and illustration. Then the meaning of compounds of two letters ; and, lastly, under 106 THE CHARACTER OP THE another alphabet, compounds of those with single letters, or with each other. More compound words to be noticed only in particular instances. A few general rules and illustrations to be given, for further compounding words with the prepo sitions and grammatical affixes, and with each other. The etymological signification of the lette'rs, and all the com pounds, to be applied to the arts and sciences. He says also, that " the rules of syntax peculiar to the language, are equally simple." The following are short specimens of the Dictionary which Mr. Davies announced to be his intention of publishing : " Wl, an object of perception : — Dwl, an idea, or notion of an object : — Meddwl, the faculty of conceiving an idea, the mind : — Enddwl, reflection, or the spontaneous operation of the mind on an idea perceived : — Arddwl, a principal idea, or subject of thought : — Cyn-ddwl, the first idea." — " Awx, convergence of light, illumination, literally and figuratively : — Iawl, the glare of convergent light ; figuratively, glory. AddawI, the reflection of light from the convergent focus : figuratively, the recurrent sentiment of an illumined mind ; worship. Iolva, place of glory : Addolva, place of worship." — Chronicle and Observer, p. 222, &c. It appears that Leib nitz, after some attempt of the kind by Bishop Wilkins, had " conceived the possibility of aiding the powers of invention and reasoning, by the use of a more convenient instrument of thought than vulgar languages, and spoke of an alphabet of human thoughts, which he had been employed in forming, and which probably had some relation to his universal lan guage." But this design was not matured. Of the other design, Professor Stewart says, " The failure of Wilkin's very ingenious attempt towards a real character, and a philo sophical language, is not perhaps decisive against such a project ; for not to mention some radical defects in his plan, the views of that very eminent philosopher do not seem to WELSH AS A NATION. 107 have extended much farther, than to promote and extend literary intercourse among different nations." — Stewart On the Mind, vol. 1. chap. 4, sec. 4. Mr. Davies asserts that a philosophical language, or a language of thought, cannot be constructed, until simple ideas are first discovered. "But the question is," he ob serves," what aid can we have to discover those simple ideas." Then he proceeds to show that, the ancient languages, now existing, (and he instances the Welsh,) though they have suffered much from time, yet are capable of being restored, and they would be proper media for discovering and com municating simple ideas, and so of laying the foundation of perfect knowledge. The following character of the language of China, leads one to conclude that the Chinese are in possession of that very philosophical language which the subject of this sketch as serted might be obtained by restoring the ancient British. "It appears that the theory of a universal medium for the com munication of ideas, as conceived by Bishop Wilkins, has been realized by the Chinese. While the letters of our (the English) alphabet are mere symbols of sounds, the Chinese characters or written words are symbols of ideas, and alike intelligible to the people of Cochin-China, Japan, Loo-choo, and Corea, with those of China itself. As the best practical illustration of a written character, common to several nations who cannot understand each other's speech, Mr. Davis " (not the Editor of the 'Chronicle and Observer,) "adduces the Arabic numerals common to all Europe. An Englishman, who could not understand what an Italian meant if he said venti-due, would comprehend him immediately if he wrote down 22. This advantage, which belongs to our numerals only, pertains to the whole language of the Chinese. Its roots or original characters are only 214 in number, and might indeed be reduced to a much smaller amount by a little dis section and analysis. These are combined with each other to 108 THE CHARACTER OF THE form other words, or express other ideas, very much in the same way that the individual Arabic numerals are combined to express the infinite varieties of numbers. By a species of analogy they may be called the alphabet of the language ; with the difference that exists between an alphabet of ideas, and an alphabet of sounds." — Penny Cyclo. Art. China. The 'Chronicle and Observer' continued to circulate only for nine months. Sufficient. encouragement not being given, it was discontinued, and Mr. Davies suffered by it a loss of more than a hundred pounds. With the failure of his peri odical the whole of Mr. Davies's plans, for improving Welsh literature, were dropped. The disappointment was most bitter to his generous mind, and affected, in no small degree, the state of his health. Soon after the failure of the ' Chronicle,' a beloved child of his died, which increased the virulence of his complaint so much, that consumption ensued, and he died in the year 1831. Having entered into the arcana of Nature, and made himself acquainted with her mysteries, which he intended to have brought to public view, she closed the door upon him, and consigned him prematurely to one of her dark chambers. His physiognomy bore a striking resemblance to that of Dr. Thomas Brown of Edinburgh, if the portrait of the latter, prefixed to his philosophical lectures, be a faithful representation. In each of the learned professions, Wales has persons of respectable standing, though not many very eminent. Of the department of divinity I have already given a description, but something more is required, on the general character of public speaking, as it is in so much requisition in this country. Wales may emphatically be designated, The land of poets and preachers ! In no country upon earth, of the same extent and number of inhabitants, are so many to be found. The Welsh language, most undoubtedly, is favourable to the cultivation of poetry and the practice of extempore speaking. But not being professedly cultivated, it is frequently used in a manner which WELSH AS A NATION. 109 transgresses the rules of propriety. The qualifications of most „of the preachers, who are encouraged to exercise their abilities among the Dissenters, are, that they distinguish themselves, among their brethren, for their common sense, acquaintance with the Scriptures, and their aptness to teach. And though a large portion of them follow some secular employment, yet as they are not statedly fixed with a congregation, but change their scene of labour, they are well able to prepare the ser mons that are required. And this habit of moving, and using the same discourse, very remarkably improves their style of preaching, and promotes expansion of thought and fluency of speech. It is to be regretted, however, that there is so much, of an objectionable character, delivered from their pulpits. Some of the preachers are boisterous, and many .are very low, both in their language and illustrations. Wit and humour are very agreeable to the general taste, and it not un frequently happens that by their use, whole congregations are thrown into convulsions of laughter. The apology for this is, that the Meeting-house must be made attractive, in order to draw the subjects of Satan from his service; so that, by the amusements afforded by religious teachers, the Prince of darkness is to he spared the trouble of providing entertain ment for the people. But I cannot discover that there is any connexion between amusement and conversion to God. If we make religion a subject of amusement, &c, the process of spiritual improvement will, at least, be suspended, if actual deterioration do not take place. On the other hand, it is surprising what a quantity of use ful matter, well expressed, and most effectually delivered, is frequently to be heard, from men who have had no advan tages of education. Many of them are mighty in the Scrip tures. The Bible, and a few books that illustrate its contents, constitute their library ; and with what they learn in these, they feed the unlearned peasantry of Wales with as much knowledge as their minds can retain. i 10 THE CHARACTER OF THE The Clergy, who are almost the only liberally educated men in Wales, generally defer the cultivation of the Welsh lan guage until they are about to engage in the ministry ; and when they commence, having a dread of inaccuracy or impro priety, they, for the most part, deliver written discourses. In the northern division of the principality this has been particularly the case, for extempore speaking has, till of late, been regarded here as a disqualification ; but in the South there has been, for a long period, a succession of Clergymen who have excelled as preachers of the Gospel. The late excellent Bishop Burgess gave a strong impulse to such a practice, by encouraging men of popular talents, and preferring them to important stations. The consequence is that a large number of the Churches there, even in country parishes, have at the present time, from two to five hundred communicants ! I shall close this article by giving a brief sketch of two Clergymen, of the first order of talents as preachers, whose ministry produced the most extraordinary effect on their parishioners, as well as on the population of a wide extent of country around. The first that shall be noticed is the Re verend William Grey Hughes, late Vicar of Mathry in the county of Pembroke. This extraordinary man was. born at Sychpant, in the parish of Nantcwnlle in the county of Cardigan, and educated at the old and justly celebrated Grammar School of Lampeter, in the same county, under that distinguished master the late Eliezer Williams. It was re marked that Mr. Hughes, whilst at School, displayed very little taste for languages, and no great aptness for learning. His class-fellows considered him rather dull than otherwise ; but he was always consistent, affable, and inoffensive. He was generally inclined to be grave, and gave decided proofs of sound piety, but he held out no promise of future eminence except that he carried with him his Bible, or some book on theology, as a constant companion. He was ordained, I WELSH AS A NATION. 1 1 1 believe, in the year 1815 to the parish Church of Newport, a small town on the western coast of Pembrokeshire. The con gregation at that Church, previous to his appointment as Curate, averaged about a score, but he had not been three months in the place before he gave a powerful impulse to the religious feelings of the inhabitants, and drew crowded au diences to his Church. He commenced his ministry on a plan from which he never subsequently departed. He bestowed all the time he could afford on the preparation of his sermons, and carried with him to the pulpit, short notes, containing only the heads and divisions of his subject, with all the scriptural references marked, to relieve his memory. Ex cepting the previous preparation, his mode of preaching was in every respect extempore. The ability which he displayed in the critical examination of the phraseology of his text, in the laying open of its hidden treasures, in the luminous ar rangement of his matter, and in the comprehensive view which he took of every subject, combined with free utterance and very energetic delivery, rendered him a preacher of no ordinary character. He rose to the highest pitch of popula rity before the time had arrived for him to apply for Priest orders. — To the rich and to the poor, to the learned and to the unlearned, he was equally acceptable. He never, for the sake of captivating the poor, descended to any vulgarities of manner or speech, so as to offend the taste of the educated and the feelings of the refined; nor did he, for the purpose of securing the admiration of the latter, soar in scholastic argu ment or language, above the comprehension of the former. He steered a middle course, and trod the old beaten path of sound doctrine, avoiding eccentricity on the one hand, and startling innovation on the other. He was earnest at all times but seldom vehement. His sermons were calculated to in spire his audience with awe rather than joy — his appearance, as well as the tone of his ministry, was altogether in favour of the former impression. On many occasions, especially when 112 THE CHARACTER OF THE preaching from home, his eloquence in describing the suffer ings of tbe Redeemer, or the doom of the ungodly, has thrown the whole congregation into tears, and sometimes into actual weeping. This bright luminary of the Church in South Wales was promoted by his own Diocesan, the late Dr. Burgess, to the Vicarage of Mathry ; but he survived his promotion only a few years. His strength had been exhausted, and his con stitution worn out by his too frequent preaching, in conse quence of which he sunk rapidly to a premature grave. The vacancy created by his death, in the ranks of the Clergy in that part of the principality, has not yet been filled up. May a double portion of his spirit rest on those who are annually sent forth, by the Church, to the great work of the ministry! The Rev. David Griffiths Vicar of Nevern, in the same county, who died in the year 1834, claims a distinguished place among the eminent characters of the present age. The subject of the preceding article was taken away from the Church, before he had reached the prime of life, and in the midst of his great usefulness, but Mr. Griffiths was spared until he had arrived at a good old age. He was one of the connecting links that joined the times of Rowlands of Llan- geitho with the present period. In the early part of his mi nistry he was a fellow-labourer of that great man, and it is said he very much resembled him in many of his qualities. This was the opinion of the Rev. Thomas Jones of Creaton, who was much struck with the resemblance, when he heard Mr. Griffiths, some years ago, at Llanddewibrevi in Cardiganshire. From all I have been able to learn respecting him, as a public character, my impression is, that he possessed extraordinary greatness, combined .with perfect propriety. A gentleman, who cherished no partiality, either to Mr. Griffiths, or the Church of which he was a minister, told me that in his opinion, Wales never produced so great a man. He gave a vivid description of a sermon of his, which he had heard at St. Dogmells near Cardigan, the effects of which, on the WELSH AS A NATION. 113 congregation, were most overpowering. Another person, an aged Christian in humble circumstances of life, belonging to a dissenting community, but who had often heard Mr. Griffiths preach, gave me, very pithily, his opinion of him, by saying, that " a better man never stood up to address an audience." The mental powers of this gentleman were of the highest order. He was designed by providence to take the lead, and would have excelled in any profession whatever to which his mind might have been directed. Having closely studied human nature, he could penetrate most keenly into men's character. His fine powers had also been well cultivated by education, and his mind was stored with every information requisite to make him a man of God, thoroughly furnished for his work. His appearance in the pulpit was imposing, his voice clear and commanding. The matter of his sermons was always sound and scriptural. He seemed to delight in illus trating his subjects by making use of some incident or cha racter, recorded in the sacred volume, around which he would throw a brilliant flood of light, and apply it to explain the subject under discussion. Though he used all the action of an impassioned orator, it was never offensive, but came so naturally that a deficiency would have been perceived if it had not been used. He frequently dramatized the characters described in the Scriptures, but never introduced anything low or humorous. In this he very much excelled the late Mr. Christmas Evans. When Mr. Griffiths described thepharisee going to the temple to pray, the people entertained the idea that they saw him proceeding to a conspicuous place in the temple, and that they heard him lauding himself before the God of heaven, and were filled with horror at his presumption and self-righteousness. The poor, contrite publican, was placed, in a humble attitude, by one of the large pillars of the temple, almost out of sight. The afflicted state of his mind, his short, expressive, penitential prayer, were depicted with 114 THE CHARACTER OF THE such effect, that each one of the hearers seemed to feel the necessity of saying, " O God be merciful to me a sinner." But what distinguished him, in a remarkable manner, were, the overwhelming bursts of eloquence which he poured forth upon the people, insomuch that every opposing thought and feeling were swept away by their power. These were made repeatedly, in the course of a sermon, and came after clear, deliberate, and sound reasoning, in the Socrating mode, by which he enlightened the minds and convinced the judgment of his hearers. His eloquence, was distinguished for its unction, pathos, and force, which overpowered the heart, and his preaching was like the attacks of an army on a fortified place, which, after battering down the walls, rushes in through the breach and takes possession of the citadel. In medicine there is a good deal of quackery encouraged, still the profession, throughout the principality, may be con sidered respectable. Occasionally there are men to be found whose labours are attended with much success, which seems to indicate that they are masters of their profession. I have known some men of most excellent character, in different parts of Wales, belonging to this class of society. A general charge, however, is made against them, that they are very much given to intemperance, and I am sorry to say not with out some foundation. Wales, like other parts of the kingdom, has a larger number of men, connected with the legal profession, than is desirable or necessary. Owing to the depravity and ignorance of man kind, this class of people are reaping a very abundant harvest, and many of them are making large fortunes. They are by far the most thriving part of the community. It does not appear that lawyers must necessarily be devoid of integrity, because they are not bound to take a bad cause in hand. It is their duty to see that their clients have good reasons for commencing a lawsuit, and if not, to dissuade them from it. But an opinion unfavourable to their character prevails in the country, and it is to be lamented that there are abundant WELSH AS A NATION. 115 reasons for such an opinion. Many a poor man has been re duced to beggary by the unrighteous dealings of these gentle men. Many a widow has been deprived of all the means of subsistence, which she supposed had been provided for her by the natural protector to whom she had united herself, but alas ! when her affairs have been settled, after the decease of her husband, she has found herself penniless. What misery has been entailed on orphans through the unfeeling and un principled rapacity of these monsters of the law, who, under the pretence of protecting, have effected the ruin of their clients, reminding one of a certain representation of death, with smiles on his countenance, embracing a man with so much eagerness as to squeeze the breath out of his body. The following anecdote, which I have seen in print, and headed * Land Sharks,' is very characteristic. " Sergeant D was once accused of having disgraced the bar by taking silver from a client. I took silver, he replied, because I could not get gold ; but I took every farthing which the fellow had in the world ; and I hope you do not call that disgracing the profession." I have been informed that some of the fagend of the profession, in Wales, go to fairs and markets, for the purpose of exciting feuds, and fomenting discords, among the simple peasantry, that they themselves may come into requi sition, to settle their differences, and relieve them of a portion of their money. Whilst the foregoing is, I fear, the general character, it is but justice to state that some have been known to act with considerable disinterestedness and feeling, advising persons not to proceed in lawsuits, when it appeared that they would be the sufferers. It is remarkable how great a contrast the legal profession presents to the medical, in regard to tempe rance. Many persons, belonging to the latter, as was before observed, are given to intemperate habits, whereas very few instances have come to my knowledge, of lawyers who have been under the dominion of that vice. The reason may be, 116 THE CHARACTER OF THE that they find it necessary to preserve a clear intellect, in order to dive into the complexities and glorious uncertainties of the law. All must have observed that every country, and it may be every village, has one or more persons, noted for singularities. There is a great number of such characters in the principality. Singularities being deviations from the general habits which regulate society, it is not often that a singular person, in a virtuous age, is himself virtuous. Such a being may appear, in enlightened times, as a man of singular probity, or a man of extraordinary liberality, displayed in an extraordinary way. Sometimes a singular mode of proceeding may be observed, which cannot be regarded as being either excellent, ingenious, or virtuous ; at other times we witness eccentricities of very reprehensible character. The following anecdotes, though in themselves of no value, will exhibit some of the peculiar habits of our countrymen ; and they are selected as showing a state of feeling and conduct of no uncommon occurrence. Not many months ago a commercial gentleman accidentally dropped a pocket-book, containing a large sum of money, in or near the shop of a man who bears an irreproachable cha racter for honesty. The accident was witnessed by the shopkeeper, who took up the pocket-book, and put it aside in a place of safety. Very shortly after, the gentleman disco vered his loss, and made inquiries of all around him, concern ing his property, but to no purpose. He was left in a state of anxiety and suspense for a day or two, and then the shop keeper, with considerable glee, produced the pocket-book, and delivered it to its owner, who very naturally complained of this unkind treatment, and blamed the good man for occasion ing him so much uneasiness. But the man defended himself by stating the reasons on which he had acted. One was, that it might act as a warning to the gentleman in future, lest he should drop his property where it might fall into dis honest hands and disappear for ever. Another was, that he WELSH AS A NATION. 1 1 7 might experience the great joy of recovering what he had fully considered as lost. Whilst we smile at the man's attempt to philosophize on the subject of an accident, we must not forget to admire his sterling honesty. This exposure is made, be cause a similar part is frequently played, under similar cir cumstances, by many persons in the principality. Sufficient care has not always been exercised, in the ap pointment of those who guide the minds of the rising generation, and teach the young idea how to shoot. The difficulty of obtaining competent teachers, has often led the friends of education to acquiesce in the appointment of indi viduals, very deficient in point of scholarship, and objection able as regards moral qualifications. This has been productive of most serious consequences to the moral and social state. A case occurred, not long since, the facts of which deserve to be recorded, as they illustrate the character of parties who form a considerable part of Welsh society. A teacher was appointed to a small school, in a rural district, in a county of North Wales. Some time afterwards a stranger came to reside in the parish, whose business it was to see that the duties of the school were properly performed. For some months he did all in his power to encourage the schoolmaster, and to promote Jiis comfort, perceiving all the while that he was a person unfit to he entrusted with the care of children. He had often to exclaim, ' Hie niger est' — this is a black one; still it was his intention to put up with his numerous imper fections, had the conviction not forced itself upon his mind, that he was countenancing a very depraved and worthless character — one who did nothing to improve the minds, but did much to corrupt the morals of the valuable beings com mitted to his charge. The school was generally in a state of confusion when visited by the superintendent. On such oc casions, the pedagogue would endeavour to assume authority, by getting into a passion, and threatening signal vengeance on the children. His language was both too mean and too 118 THE CHARACTER OF THE horrible to be recorded. In addition to his other faults, he was so given to scandalizing that no one escaped the venom of his tongue. Occasionally he would get intoxicated and neglect his duties. During one such fits of intemperance, he went to the school, and commenced playing with the chil dren, with which the little people were delighted, and they began to pull him about and mount on his back, reducing him to the attitude of a quadruped. He was the most notorious character in all the country for telling untruths. All these things combined made the duty of the superintendent plain. No course was left him, but to inform the gentleman who pa tronised the school and paid the stipend of the master ; the gentleman gave him notice to quit, which threw him into great confusion, but set his tongue more on fire than ever. He however immediately wrote a character of himself, represent ing himself as very unworthy of blame, and fully competent for* the discharge of the duties incumbent on a schoolmaster. This document he took to the neighbours around, whom he earnestly implored to sign it, and he succeeded in persuading a great number of farmers and others to comply with his wishes. His object was to counteract the influence of the superintendent with the gentleman who had given him his discharge. The simple, good natured people, took compassion on him, and petitioned in his favour, though he was fast cor rupting their children ; but the gentleman, much to his credit, remained firm, and informed the teacher that if his testimonial had been signed by all in the county, of the same class in society as those who had subscribed their names, he would not regard it as worthy of any attention. Again, the sequel of this affair, brings to light some of the singularities of the Welsh character. The expelled teacher applied to his parish for relief, threatening to leave his family and abscond, and saying many more fierce things, with a view of inducing the parishioners to interfere on his behalf. A lead ing man amongst them took the business in hand ; and there WELSH AS A NATION. 1 19 being a school vacant within three miles' distance, he made application for it, and recommended this very individual. The committee of management, though fully aware of his ex pulsion, and the circumstances which led to it, yet were induced to disgrace themselves by giving him the appoint ment. In recording this instance of outrage on morality and common sense, it is not intended to convey the impression, that cases of quite so bad a character frequently occur, but it does illustrate the heedless- and criminal disposition of the middle and lower classes in our country, not only to bear with, but to encourage persons of depraved principles. Some years ago, a person holding a situation of importance became obnoxious to the people with whom he was con nected. So much were they dissatisfied with him, that they agreed together to petition for his removal. The case was considered by the proper authority ; and the person against whom complaint had been made, was summoned to appear before his superior. Previous to his doing so, he invited the people to meet, and represented to them that certain ruin awaited him, which, he was convinced, they did not wish to see effected. He stated that another situation was vacant to which he might be appointed, if he could prevail on them to sign a testimonial which he had prepared, in which an honourable character of himself was drawn. The good- natured people immediately relented, and all agreed to sign the document, which he carried before the authority to which he was responsible ; in consequence of which the complain ants, in their turn, were summoned to account for laying accusations against a man, to whose character they had borne so favourable a testimony. The case was effectually quashed, and the poor people have had to reconcile themselves, in the best manner they have been able, even to the present day, with their functionary. If these sketches, and others which I consider it my duty to make, tend to lower our national character, it does not ap- 120 THE CHARACTER OF THE pear that other nations have any reasons for boasting, as similar, and even greater imperfections and follies, are to be found amongst them. Take the following account as an example, which belongs to the first nation on earth — the English : "A clever Jury. — At the Kirton-in-Linsey sessions, on monday last (a day in April, 1840,) a man was tried for stealing a quantity of pig-iron from an ironmonger at Gains borough. After the chairman had summed up, the jury returned a verdict of manslaughter against the prisoner! The chairman explained to these wise men that the prisoner was indicted for stealing, and that they must say whether he was guilty or not. The jury put their heads together again, and said, we bring in a verdict of six months on the wheel. Ul timately these Solons returned a verdict of Guilty." This precious sketch has just gone round all the newspapers in the kingdom, but I question whether twelve such thick-headed jurymen could be found in any county in the principality. The Defects of the Welsh as a nation are many. Though possessed, to a great extent, of the means of improvement, yet many reprehensible habits, and deep blemishes attach to the national character. Of these I am bound in faithfulness, however disagreeable the task, to give a brief outline. I own I approach this part of my subject with considerable regret. I begin by charging the Welsh nation with the want of an enterprising spirit. This in times so remarkable as ours for the onward movement of every civilized nation in the world, in opening up new sources of national wealth, and acquiring additional rights and privileges, falls little short of a national sin. Nevertheless, so far as regards measures of public im provement, and the attainment of national rights, a deadly apathy pervades the principality. The unhappy religious and political divisions which exist, make a simultaneous movement, for the attainment of any valuable object, a matter of impossibility. No new plan, of any importance, is devised, WELSH AS A NATION. 121 for the improvement of the country, either in a physical, an intellectual, or a moral point of view. Nearly all the mea sures of any interest, except those of a religious nature, ori ginate with persons that are not natives, though the princi pality presents an immense field for improvement. Does it not arise from a want of enterprising spirit that nearly all the articles of dress, of a superior kind, are manufactured in other countries? All fine woollen cloths are made either in York shire or in the West of England. No hats of a superior con struction, nor boots and shoes which the wealthier classes will use, are manufactured in Wales. And why should this be the case ? The purchasing of them drains the country of its wealth, and keeps the population poor. Will it be said that England, and other parts of the kingdom, take our copper, lead, and iron ; and that we export our coals and slates, for which we receive cash payments ; and that our cattle are sold to supply the English markets? But England has sufficient wealth and generosity to take whatever we can export, with out requiring that we should have no manufactures of our own, and especially without expecting that the wealthier classes of Wales should be under the necessity of procuring all their wearing apparel from her trades-people. If some men of capital were to apprentice a few clever youths, in Exeter and Leeds, where the best woollen cloths are made; and others in one of the districts of Ulster, where the best linens are manufactured, these, having returned, and being in possession of capital and a knowledge of trade, might com mence business as manufacturers, and succeed in improving their own fortunes, as well as in conferring lasting benefits on their country. But alas ! generally speaking, our numer ous brooks and rivers flow in their course, from age to age, without conferring any other benefits than watering cattle, and occasionally turning a corn-mill ! Another serious charge which lies against large sections of the Welsh community, is the want of strict adherence to 1 22 THE CHARACTER OF THE truth. The higher classes are as free from his detestable vice as any people on earth. But there are others, of the middle and lower ranks, who but too justly deserve the reprobation of the public for "speaking lies." This custom takes its rise from imperfect family discipline, and the frequent temp tations to equivocate in self-defence. When children or ser vants do anything for which they are liable to be reproved or punished, they hesitate not to represent the matter in a light so favourable as to escape all blame. And this depraved habit is not considered deserving of much censure ; nor does a person feel himself much insulted, if he be represented as not speaking the truth except when he is speaking on oath. Then indeed all the people think they are bound to declare the truth and nothing but the truth. No greater insult can be offered to any man than to charge him with perjury. Another fault frequently committed by the people, is that of giving a favourable character to an undeserving individual, in order to enable him to obtain a situation. This is done occasionally to get rid of a troublesome man from a neigh bourhood in which he is disliked. But mostly the practice arises from an easy mind, or good-natured disposition, which makes a man feel averse to give offence ; not considering that it is better to bear the reproaches of an unworthy person, than to violate principle and offend against God. Another crime of too frequent occurrence in the princi pality is slander, practised by opposite parties in politics and religion. It is dreadful to reflect on the extent to which this habit prevails, even among those who make very great pre tensions to religious purity. The custom of asking more, and of offering less, than the proper value of articles exposed to sale, in the markets and in the shops, is another bad habit that betrays a great want of fixed principles, and operates very injuriously on the Welsh cliaracter. Of all bad habits there can be none more contemptible than this. It evidently originates with the seller, WELSH AS A NATION. 123 who, in order to leave room for bating, and hook the buyer without sustaining any loss himself, asks more than the real value of an article, and the buyer, aware of the trick, and knowing that he who can afford to bate, must ask an exor bitant price to commence, in self-defence is induced to bid very low, neither knowing the real value of the article, nor consequently how low the seller intends to come, and after talking abundance of nonsense, on both sides, they come at last to the terms, which ought to have been at first proposed and accepted. This is a matter of such grave importance, both in its own character and in its consequences, that it de serves the serious consideration of all tradesmen. The writer hopes that this habit, which, some years ago was universal, is beginning to give way to a more honourable and straight forward mode of dealing. An amendment, in this respect, deserves all the efforts which can be made for its attain ment. Connected with the moral defect which has just been pointed out, and arising from the same inattention to correct principles, is the want of punctuality, for which most of the artisans in Wales are notorious. In the larger towns there may be less cause for complaint. Competition amongst a great number of men, of the same trade, exercises a salu tary influence, and compels them to be a little more regular in the fulfilment of their engagements. But in the country, where the population is thin, and the artisans are few, a want of punctuality is a grievance everywhere felt. A man will undertake to finish a piece of work by a certain day, but when the appointed time arrives, it frequently turns out, that he has not commenced it, and in some cases that he has forgot the whole affair. In some instances other applicants have come to him, with very pressing requests to have a cer tain article done forthwith ; and he has attended to their wishes and deliberately violated his former engagement. And what is still more galling and disgraceful, the promise which 124 THE CHARACTER OF THE he first made and violated, is repeatedly made and violated, before the business is completed. Much intemperance prevails in the principality. This vice was on the increase, and beginning to acquire a very general ascendancy, until some check was given to it by the esta blishment of temperance and total abstinence societies. I am of opinion that many people ought not to be teetotallers, owing to "their often infirmities;" it would, therefore, be very tyrannical in any society, to insist on their conformity to a principle which would be injurious to their health. It ap pears very plain that taking wine or other fermented liquors, is perfectly lawful, and even scriptural ; but neither reason, law, nor Scripture, sanctions a man in taking such liquors to excess, nor requires him even to use them at all if he chooses to do without them. Whilst temperance is a virtue founded in reason and enforced by holy writ, the only ground on which total abstinence can stand is expediency, arising from the obvious necessity of making some great effort to rescue the country from the destructive influence of drunkenness, and the conviction that nothing short of total abstinence will ever effectually reclaim the drunkard. As a reason for total abstinence, it is urged with great justice, that temperate drinking, without the greatest caution, leads to habits of intemperance, and that no drunkard can be found in the world who did not commence with moderate drinking. But it is objected that the disciples of total abstinence make too much noise and parade, holding processions and having banners flying, and hymns sung as they move along the streets and high roads. Surely all this is very harmless, and infinitely more agreeable than the fiend-like noise of a drunken party, returning from their midnight revels. And it should be borne in mind, that an alluring mode of proceed ing, is altogether necessary, to induce some of the classes intended to be benefited, to unite themselves with the society. Another charge, brought against those who are zealous in WELSH AS A NATION. 125 behalf of these societies is, that they enlist women and children in their cause ! This ought to be considered a feature of excellence rather than a cause of censure. Does not intoxication gain ground, very rapidly, among the female sex ? An effort therefore to rescue this most interesting part of society ought, in all fairness, to be regarded as very praiseworthy, and deserving of all encouragement. Children cannot be too early initiated in sober habits, especially as thoughtless people are very apt to entice them to take in toxicating drinks, at an age when they must be not only unnecessary, but highly injurious to their tender frames. A remarkable instance of this occurred a few years ago, in a town in Carmarthenshire. In that town, as in many others in South Wales, it is the custom, on new year's day, for families to give some pence to the children of the poor, who are seen in groups at the doors of the more wealthy people, expecting this annual donation. A large number of children applied at the shops of two gin-retailers in the town, who, instead of giving them copper, treated them all with spirits, thus encouraging a habit which might be most destructive to the poor children in after-life. This infamous work was ex posed by the Curate of the parish, at a temperance meeting, which was held soon after; but instead of receiving the sympathy and the approbation of the public, he experienced so much trouble from-all parties that he was glad to take his departure from the place. How awfully depraved must be the moral state of such a people ! At the time when this occurrence took place, there were about sixty public houses in that small town, which contains only seventeen hundred inhabitants ; hence the outcry of Bacchus and his votaries. — It is not irrelevant to state here, as a further instance of the intemperate character of that town and neighbourhood, that, from inquiries made, by a medical gentleman in the place, of all the shopkeepers, he found that they paid three thousand pounds, annually, for that pernicious drug tobacco ; 126 THE CHARACTER OF THE to which must be added four or five hundred pounds more, at least, as the profit of the retailers ! — If many people have satisfactory reasons for not joining temperance and total ab stinence societies, we presume they can find none for shewing hostility towards those that have joined them, and are pledged to advocate their cause ; and I should consider the heart of that man in a very unenviable state, who could feel inclined to employ tbe press, as an instrument, to impede the progress of their views, or the enlargement of their number. It has been calculated that intoxicating drinks, in all the points of view which may be taken of them, cost Great Britain and Ireland, every year, nearly a hundred millions of money ! There were, some time back, one hundred thousand persons who had signed the pledge of total abstinence in North Wales. Superstition has many disciples; in the principality. There are some who believe that a bird, which they call a ' corpse bird,' comes to the window of a person who is about to die, and that he flaps his wings against it, or at least that he passes near the house, and shrieks two or three times. That such an event frequently takes place, cannot be doubted, but we think it may be easily accounted for. When any person happens to be seriously ill, it is always the case that some of his friends attend him during the night, and a candle is kept burning, for purposes of convenience and comfort. It also frequently occurs that birds are disturbed in their places of rest, and fly off; and observing a light in the window of the room where the sick man lies, they proceed directly towards it, and coming suddenly and unexpectedly in contact with the glass, they very naturally utter a shrill note which pro duces superstitious awe in the minds of those who hear it. Should the sick man be so unfortunate as to catch the sound, he gives up in despair every hope of recovery, and from that moment sinks rapidly, and is soon consigned to his grave. WELSH AS A NATION. 127 In some parts, especially of North Wales, the owl, a bird which makes its excursions at night, is a very terrible corpse bird. In its flights in search of food, it happens that the bird passes near a house where a short time after the mor tality of one of its inmates takes place. Some one who may have heard the doleful shrieks of the creature, reports the circumstance to his acquaintances, and so the superstition is kept alive. Occasionally an owl is attracted by the light in the window of a sick chamber, and having come close by, it sends forth its deadly note, till all the attendants on the sick person are petrified. It is generally believed in the Diocese of St. David that a corpse candle in some particular instances, precedes a funeral, of which it is supposed to be a fatal and monitory sign. The individual whose death it is intended to predict may be well at the time, but in most cases he is known to be lying ill. His corpse candle, which is described as a small blue light, is said to leave the room in which his death will occur, and to proceed out of the dwelling, and along the road to the Church, marking precisely the course which the funeral will take. After remaining in the Church, the time which the service for the dead generally occupies, it leaves the sanctuary and pro ceeds to the grave, into which it drops and is lost. Some of the neighbours having observed it, the fact is reported, and the death of the sick person is daily expected. He dies ! and the prediction is fulfilled. Whilst there are large classes who believe in these very ridiculous superstitions, it is but just to say that the greater part of the people repudiate them; and it may be safely main tained that the notions respecting them are fading away. In the counties of Flint, Denbigh, and a part of Carnarvonshire, the efficacy of St. Elian's well was, till lately, considered very powerful. This well is situated in the parish of Llan- drillo, not a great distance from the road which leads from Conway to Abergele. It contains but a very small spring of 128 THE CHARACTER OF THE water. At one time it was encircled with a wall, and a bush grew within the enclosure ; but these have now disappeared. To this place people who considered themselves injured, were, for centuries, in the habit of repairing, for the purpose of obtaining a curse upon the person or persons who had done them any wrong. The ceremony used on the occasion was of the following nature: — When the conjuror had received his fee, he wrote the name of the individual to be cursed, on a little parchment, which he folded up in a piece of thin lead, to which he attached, by a string, a small slate, on which he wrote the initials of the name. The whole was then thrown into the well, by doing which he repeated the curse to be inflicted, taking up, and letting down again, some portion of the water. In the meantime the poor devoted object was sure to hear of the circumstance, and was recom mended to go and have his name taken out of the well. He having inquired of the conjuror if his name had been put in, was always answered in the affirmative, and it would surely be there before the company- came to it, that the wretch might have his fee for taking it out. In doing that, the following ceremonies were used : — In a house, in the vicinity, he that had been cursed read, or had read for him, two Psalms; then he walked round the well three times ; after which he read again some portion of the Scriptures ; then the well was emptied of its water, and the slate, together with the lead inclosing his name, was given to him. When this was done the individual was dismissed, and recommended to read large portions of the book of Job and the Psalms, for the three succeeding Fridays. How awful it was to mingle religion with such a genuine piece of Satanic work as this ! Sometimes farms as well as men were conjured, either for good or for evil. So great were the effects of the curse of the well, on the minds of a great multitude, among the lower ranks, in Gwynedd and Powis, that many have fallen to a premature grave, being terrified to death under the continued WELSH AS A NATION. 129 apprehension of some awful calamity befalling them. But thanks to the firmness of the magistrates in the neighbour hood, this cause of national disgrace has been wiped away, and at present St. Elian's well yields nothing but a blessing. I am inclined to think that believers in dreams are the largest class of the votaries of superstition. Many of these endeavour to interpret their own dreams ; but there are pro fessors in the art, to whom the credulous classes resort for the purpose of having their nocturnal visions interpreted. These fortune-tellers are, generally, o!d women, whose term of exis tence is drawing to a close. It is to be hoped that their mantles and their wands will be buried with them, and that no portion of their spirit will rest on their survivors. A belief in the appearance of ghosts also is very prevalent in Wales. Two men of no common reputation, belonging to a dissenting body of people, declared themselves, in the hearing of the writer, converts to this belief. The reason which one of them ventured to adduce, in support of his opinion was, that the Almighty allows disembodied spirits to appear, to confirm the disclosures of Revelation respecting a spiritual world. But this seems to me a very serious reflection on the evidence in favour of the divine inspiration of the holy Scriptures ! What ! is it necessary that ghosts and goblins should come and frighten poor mortals into the belief that the Bible is the word of God ? If it be, how is it that they appear so very seldom ? and that there are a thousand be lievers, who have not seen such beings, for every one who . pretends to have had a view of them ? But away with such trumpery ! we want no messengers from the regions of the dead to convince us that the Bible is an inspired book — it carries with it its own evidence. " If they hear not Moses and the prophets neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead." One of the greatest crimes, with which our country can be charged, arises from the improper manner in which young people associate together previous to their entering the matri- K 130 THE CHARACTER OF THE monial state. Whilst adultery is a crime seldom heard of, instances in which parties preparing for marriage forestall the privileges of that sacred state are shamefully numerous. The fault lies principally with the masters and parents, who, from a mistaken notion of their duty, arising from inattention to the laws of our nature, deny the female part of their household the opportunity of associating at proper hours, and in proper places, with their future husbands. The truth is that the preliminaries to matrimony are a good deal under disgrace, among some sections of the community, so that young people are much bantered when it is known that they associate to gether for the purpose of courtship. To avoid all the unplea santness, as much secrecy as possible is observed by them, and no time is found to answer their purpose so well as the dead of night. It requires no observations of mine to expose the improper and dangerous character of this custom. The comment supplied by the unhappy state in which so many fe males are found, before their marriage, is a practical demon stration of the evil. The following table shows, to a certain extent, the consequence of the custom which it is my object to discourage by exposure. An Account of the Illegitimate Children, horn in the several counties of Wales, in the year 1830, with the proportion of such children, to the average num ber of other children born in that year, taken from the Official Tables of Revenue, Population, &c. Counties. Anglesey , . . . Carnarvon ... Denbigh Flint Merioneth . . . Montgomery.. Brecon Cardigan . . . . Carmarthen . . Glamorgan . . . Pembroke .. . Radnor Totals . The same Totals for England are . Illegitimates. Total. Males. Female 33 28 61 36 44 80 55 52 107 44 37 81 8 13 21 76 65 141 38 44 82 58 58 116 89 76 165 158 117 275 110 100 210 52 48 100 757 682 1,439 9,390 9,310 18,600 Proportion of Illegitimate to other Children. One iu 20 202123 34 12 II1313 10 8 7 Averaging I for every 13 Legi timate Childr. 20 WELSH AS A NATION. 131 In all France, the proportion of illegitimate children to the legi timate, is as one to 13, but in Paris alone as one to three. In Denmark the proportion is one in ninety-six ; in Norway one in fourteen ; and in Hamburgh one in five. — Report of Poor Law Com. Pekny Cyclo. Art. Bastard. England can have no right to make a handle of this state ment against Wales. Let her first count the houses of ill fame in her large towns, and tell the number of those that frequent them. Such places are comparatively few in the principality, and in many towns entirely unknown. If all the police reports, and all the statements of the London press be true, and there can be no reason to doubt them, there is more crime committed in the metropolis alone, in three months, than in the whole of Wales in twelve. The only way in which the foul disgrace, which has been exposed, can be rolled away from our country is, by more prudence, consideration, and resolution, on the part of parents and masters. It is said that young people find the method of proceeding which has been censured, the surest way of obtaining the consent of their parents to their mar riage, and that if it were not for the unfortunate condition to which the female is brought, her parents would, in numer ous cases, treat the suit of the young man with indifference, if not with decided opposition, but when the pregnancy of the daughter is discovered, to palliate the disgrace, they find it necessary to hasten the marriage. Marriages cannot be con tracted without previous communication between persons of both sexes. If inspiration itself has pronounced marriage ' honourable in all,' I assert that tbe previous intercourse, properly conducted, is equally honourable. It is high time that more prudent regulations should be made in every house ; and if, when such regulations are known, young people will not abandon their present very improper habit, let any stranger found in a house at improper hours, and without the consent of the parents or masters, be punished, and let the punish ment increase in proportion as the crime is repeated. ' O ! 1 32 THE CHARACTER OF THE there must be some chosen curse, some hidden thunder, in the stores of heaven, red with uncommon wrath,' to blast the men who trample on the laws which forbid impurity, and who tempt the ruin of themselves and their country, to gratify their unhallowed passions ! The more respectable part of society in the principality, set themselves against the habit, and allow nothing of the kind, to their knowledge, in their houses. Expulsion is the im mediate consequence when servants are found to indulge in the practice. The Calvinistic Methodists as a body have, for years, carried on a war against it; but will they allow me to say, that I fear they have mistaken the best method of eradicating the evil ? They, as parents and masters, must reform their sentiments in regard to the intercourse previous to marriage, and must reform the regulations of their house hold. If the whole community of virtuous people do this, the foul disgrace which at present hangs over us as a nation will soon be taken away. Frequent complaints are made of the prejudices fostered by religious parties in Wales against one another. How much brotherly affection may be cherished by persons be longing to the same communion, towards their own brethren, I cannot undertake to state. It is to be hoped that most of those who enlist themselves under the same banner of religion, cherish that esteem and kindly feeling for their fellow-travellers to eternity, which the Christian Legislator commands. But the facts are notorious, that much civil dissention, and frequent divisions of single congregations into opposing parties, occur, among the various sects in the principality. The ebullition of passion, of folly, and of narrow-mindedness, indulged on these occasions, forces upon us the opinion that religion is at a very low ebb indeed among these pugnacious tribes. Contentions of this kind are carried on chiefly by those parties who advocate a republican form of church government. The two bodies of Methodists, owing to their more aristocratic system, are comparatively WELSH AS A NATION. 133 free from civil commotions, but of these the one which has hitherto kept most compactly together is the Calvinistic party. A strong feeling of prejudice is entertained, by each reli gious party, against all the others which coexist. And though this feeling may not be so fierce in its operation, at the present time, as it was in former years, it is very evident that the evil principle is still at work. When one denomina tion erects a place of worship in any neighbourhood, another body, having a few members in the same locality, will build a sort of opposition house, and that frequently close to it. Who that has travelled from Machynlleth to Aberystwyth, has not observed, on the road side, two meeeting-houses, at furthest not more than fifteen or twenty yards apart from each other ? It may well be supposed that the bickerings, the unchristian reflections, and the bigoted practices of those who frequent such places, must be of very general occurrence. Political strife, likewise, is in a state of great activity in this country. Much injury is done to the feelings, the tem per, and the social circumstances of the community, by the unreasonable modes of proceeding adopted by the different political partisans. Generally speaking the higher classes drop their hostility, when the occasions which excited them have passed away, and they act with that gentlemanly conduct which their station in society and their education prescribe. But rancorous feelings are harboured, for a long time, by the lower functionaries connected with elections. The spirit of strife is kept up by the periodicals and journals, which, in scurrility, misrepresentation, and uncharitableness, may vie with those of England or any other country. But such as profess to be of a religious character leave those of England very far behind in the race of discord. All these contain a mixture of religion and politics, accompanied by a great num ber of anecdotes, which are prejudicial to other parties, especially the Church of England. The Editor of one of these 134 THE CHARACTER OF THE publications, a short time ago, after inserting articles which tended to disorganize the universe, all the year round, at the close of it, thanked his correspondents for the Christian spirit which they had displayed ! The causes which have acted in producing the faults and defects which we have pointed out, in the Welsh character, deserve to be briefly considered. They are undoubtedly various and complicated, and more space would be required to trace them, even imperfectly, than the limits of this Essay will allow. I can therefore only glance at a few of them. The natural depravity of the human heart must be assigned as the principal source, whence flow the imperfections of every cha racter, whether individual or national. Other agencies con tribute their influence, but the root of all the evil must be sought in the fallen condition of man. A sound education does much to improve the character of mankind, and to save individuals and communities from many of the unfortunate habits which lead to shame, and call for humiliation. The kind of education which the Welsh people have been receiving could hardly be more defective. This arose, in a great measure, from the scarcity of competent teachers, and this again was occasioned because of the very inadequate remuneration generally given to persons engaged in tuition. No situation requires more genuine qualifications than that of an instructor of children, but no class of men have fewer pretensions to those qualifications than the majority of the schoolmasters employed in'our country. An improvement is evidently taking place in this interesting class of persons ; but the character of the nation has been formed by the training received in days that are gone by. It may be hoped that the next generation will far surpass the one now existing, both in intellectual attainments and moral excellence. The reflections which I have felt it my duty to make, on the schools of Wales, are not intended to be applied to the few Grammar schools, established in different parts of WELSH AS A NATION. 135 the country, at which the wealthier classes are educated. We have to do, at present, chiefly with those institutions which produce their influence on the mass of the people. In many of the towns, and I might mention Bangor, Carnarvon, and Beaumaris, the national schools are conducted with great care, being superintended by competent teachers. In addition to what I have stated, several causes appear, why these valuable establishments, generally, are not more productive of benefit to the community. The first is that the scholars are, in some instances, too numerous for the efficient superintendence of one man ; and, in the next place, the children are taken from school after so short a stay, that the training loses its effects amidst the powerful influences, of a deteriorating kind, which act on the youthful mind. This second cause seems to be, by far, the greater grievance. In villages and rural districts, the first grievance is seldom felt, but it is to be lamented that a premature removal from the school, in conjunction with other influences, prevents the children from deriving that benefit which otherwise they might. In all the day-schools instruc. tion is communicated in inaccurate English, but the language spoken by the lower classes, even in towns, and by all in the rural districts, is the Welsh. This unnatural state of things is the giant difficulty with which education in Wales has to contend. The understanding is not engaged and enlightened, because instruction is given in an unknown tongue. A very small part indeed of the tuition is devoted to the explanation of the meaning of English words; so that, in truth, neither Welsh nor English is taught, to any purpose, in the schools of the principality. The consequences are many, and are most injurious to the honour, and even to the prosperity, of the inhabitants. The auditor of a union, in one of the counties of North Wales, could pass the accounts of only two parishes, out of about fifty two, at an audit which took place, I believe, last year. Such accounts are amongst the simplest things which a man may be called upon to make up, and yet such is 1 36 THE CHARACTER OF THE the defective state of scholarship in our country that, in about . fifty parishes, persons appointed to fill parochial offices could not make the statement of their receipts and payments so intel ligible as to pass the usual examination. I received this information from a man who was present, when the business was transacted, and who was himself a parish officer at the time. Much has been done, of late, in the diocese of Bangor, to advance the cause of education, and to improve the character of the National Schools, by the zeal and activity of the Very Reverend the Dean ; and it may be confidently expected that the additional measures which have been just adopted, for the purpose of training competent teachers, will infuse new vigour into the whole national system of education. The following is a tabular view of the state of education in Wales ; which is, as far as I know, the only one that has been published by authority. It is taken from the Penny Cyclo paedia, Art. Great Britain : — Infant schools ... . 53 Scholars 1,866. Daily schools 1376 Do. 52,944. (Of these 192 are endowed.) Sunday schools . . 1899 Do. 173,171. The want of fixed and active principles, of a virtuous nature, is a sure consequence of inefficient training ; fickleness of mind, indecision of character, or brutal obstinacy, will be the result. In circumstances of some difficulty, the man who has no sound view of the principles which ought to guide his conduct, will act at random, and most likely will act wrong. As to the confined sphere within which people have generally to move, the common-place views which they have received from their parents and neighbours, may answer their purpose tolerably well. But in new and untried situations, an acquaintance with general principles, and the possession of a steady mind, are of the greatest importance. Some attention to these sug gestions, by the adoption of measures to remedy the defective WELSH AS A NATION, 137 state of discipline, over youthful minds in Wales, and to ground them in enlarged and correct views of sound principles, would, in process of time, greatly improve the national cha racter. It is of the utmost consequence that the powers of reflection should be trained to the habit of thinking, for then mankind would at all times be able to derive pleasure from their own resources, as rational as it would be exalted, and would be in a fair way of answering the purposes for which they have been placed on earth. Next to the want of efficient education we have to lament the imperfect state of parental discipline in the princi pality. What is seen and heard at home is sure to act on the minds and hearts of youth, so as to give a bias to their dispositions, and create a habit which is likely to remain with them to the end of life. Every house with children is a sort of moral manufactory in which mankind are apprenticed to the trade of acting. An efficient discipline at home would act as a powerful auxiliary to the salutary lessons and course of training pursued at school, and in cases of entire exemption from the latter, would, in a great measure, estab lish the habit of correct acting, counteract the influence of bad example, and save many a child from ruin. Having shown that Wales, generally speaking, contains a virtuous population, it is clear that parents make some efforts to teach their children what is correct in theory and upright in con duct. But the discipline is not sufficiently enlarged and vigorous. It wants energy of mind, and the direction of sound and enlightened principles, to assist its operations. Too much severity must be avoided as equally injurious with too great a laxity. Long periods of laxness, occasionally in terrupted by fits of severe correction, cannot fail to be not only ineffectual for good but highly productive of evil. Pa rental discipline should be a continual course of explanation and of reasoning. The more simple the whole process the 138 THE CHARACTER OF THE better will it answer the purpose. Fathers are forbidden to provoke their children to wrath. Objects of choice, of an innocent and useful kind, should be presented to children, and they ought to be allowed to select those that are most agreeable to themselves. But improprieties of conduct ought not to be passed over without correction. " Plato, reproving a young man for playing at some childish game, the youth remarked, you chide me for a very trifling fault. Custom, replied the philosopher, is no trifle. And, adds Montaigne, he was in the right, for our perversities begin in infancy." Parental discipline in Wales seems to suffer more from laxness than from undue severity, of which there is abun dant proof in the self-will and waywardness of the rising generation. Children should be subdued and trained to obe dience from their earliest infancy, if not, they will most probably have to suffer much themselves, and will be very troublesome members of society. The following anecdote is very illustrative, and conveys a significant admonition. A woman, residing in some part of England, had a little girl, of about five years of age, whom she was quite unable to control. A lecturer on education happening to come to her neighbourhood, she applied to him for advice. He inquired the age of the child, and on being informed that she was about five, told the mother that she was too late in her appli cation, and that he could give her no advice. It is dangerous to allow young people to form their own views of men and things, as such views are generally imperfect and inaccurate. Children are often suffered to persist in a course of conduct, framed by themselves, though very unsuitable to their station and capacity ; it cannot therefore be a matter of surprise that they frequently make a shipwreck of their comfort, and ruin their character. Defective parental discipline, and an in efficient course of education, have reduced to degradation and misery many families, which might otherwise be moving WELSH AS A NATION. 139 in the highest circles of society. Some branches of them are outcasts, who neither have respect for themselves, nor are respected by others. A few years back, the writer happened to be in the society of two intelligent men, in one of the counties of South Wales, when their conversation turned on the importance of a collegiate education, in forming the mind and manners of the higher classes. One of the persons observed that, " set ting aside the peers, there was only one accomplished lay gentleman to be found in the whole county. The other, mentioning the names of several wealthy people, demanded what his friend thought of Mr. G ? Why, replied the other, he is a fop. And what think you of Mr. L ? He is a cox comb. And what is your opinion of Mr. R ? Why, judging from his conversation and habits, he seems more nearly allied to the brute creation than to reasonable beings. And do you suppose, added he, that Mr. would have ruined his patrimonial estate, and annihilated a family which can trace its pedigrees for twelve centuries, if he had received a col legiate education?" Most probably he would not, especially if that education had been aided by a vigorous parental dis cipline. But a departure from propriety commenced with the head of the family, and he, having involved himself in diffi culties, found it necessary to sell some portion of his pro perty. The consent of the heir was necessary, and in order to obtain it, the father was obliged to allow him a large sum of money for his own use. Having commenced the race of dissipation, it was found difficult to stop. Onward the heroes of the tale proceeded, with a recklessness which is truly astonishing. In the course of a few years, it is reported that the younger member of the family expended above eighty thousand pounds, in gratifying his follies, and pampering his vices ; and the patrimonial property, worth some thousands a year, has become alienated for ever from the family. As parental discipline, in this instance, did not produce the in- 140 THE CHARACTER OF THE fluence which it might, if a virtuous example had given its aid, it is not improbable that a sound education would have done much to sober the mind of the son, and made him, in temporal affairs, the saviour of his family, instead of which he is now both an outlaw and an outcast from society. Another case, illustrative of the same subject, is well known in a county of North Wales. The heir of a property, of some hundreds of pounds annual value, by a mad career of dissi pation and gambling, scattered to the winds from twelve to fifteen thousand pounds, and at the present time performs the duties of one of the meanest and most objectionable offices in order to obtain a livelihood. The training which education, and a wise exercise of parental discipline, would have effected, in the case of this individual, might have saved a numerous family from proverty and its attendant evils. About twelve years ago, the writer happened to be con versing with a gentleman farmer, residing in the principality, on the subject of education. Both of us agreed as to the importance of it to the well-being of the rising generation. This farmer had a son, about fourteen years of age, to whom a handsome fortune, amounting to several thousand pounds, had lately been bequeathed by a relative of the family. The father observed that he should be glad to find a private tutor for his son, who would be satisfied with his board and lodg ings as a remuneration for his trouble ! Had a thousand pounds of the money, belonging to the youth, been devoted to procure a liberal education for him, the benefit might have been immense. Instead of which, parental discipline and education were neglected, and the young man grew up in ignorance and dissipation ; and the property at this time, if report speaks true, is nearly all wasted. It is lamentable to think how much more money is valued by many than know ledge, or I should rather say, than a course of vigorous and efficient training of the mind. The Demon of avarice has a numerous class of worshippers in the principality ; on his WELSH AS A NATION. 141 altar intelligence, morality, and religion, are sacrificed, for the purpose of obtaining his smiles, and be blessed with the riches that perish. But Mammon can impart no happiness ; though, in the present age, he confers more power than know ledge. It should be remembered, however, that wealth, unless properly used, becomes a most corrupting agent, alienating the heart from virtue, and assisting the ignorant and undis ciplined in their downward course to ruin and death ! It may well be questioned whether any part of the world has finer looking females than Wales ; but their education is so much neglected that, though reading and needlework are considered indispensable, yet the practice of writing and the knowledge of arithmetic are so imperfectly acquired as to answer very little purpose. I fear the opinion held by many is too true, that not twenty females in Wales are acquainted with the grammar of their native tongue. The higher class of young ladies are educated altogether on the English sys tem, and many of them are unable to speak the Welsh lan guage. In some few towns this interesting portion of society make themselves useful, by visiting the cottages of the poor, and reporting their state to the minister of the parish, and by acting as collectors for the funds of missionary and other charitable institutions. But this practice is only in its in fancy in any part of Wales, and in rural districts such a thing is hardly known. In this praiseworthy conduct, there fore, there is abundant room for improvement. The means which would tend to raise the religious, moral, and intellectual character of the principality, have been repeatedly though briefly alluded to in the course of this Essay, but they deserve a further consideration. As I have already intimated, an efficient ministration of the word of God must be brought to bear on the various classes of society. We must not attempt to reform the world without the Gospel of Christ. This is the grand instrument, ordained by heaven, for the recovery and transformation of the human family ; and 142 THE CHARACTER OF THE that which is designed to effect a change in the whole must needs produce the desired improvement in our beloved native land. Other means are not to be contemned, but to be brought into play as powerful though subordinate agents. The manner which will best recommend the reception of divine truth deserves the serious consideration of those who minister in holy things, especially those who are appointed by law to instruct the people. The peculiarity of the Welsh character should be remembered, a peculiarity which no Welshman can fail to understand, and value, though strangers may ; and to which it is of importance that some deference should be paid, by all that are united with us under the same crowned head. But as far as this national peculiarity is un derstood, by those who have not been born and bred in the principality, it is strenuously opposed, in all its parts, with the view of effecting its destruction. It is not recommended, in this Essay, to consult the bad taste or vulgar predilections of the inhabitants so as to lower the style of the Christian ministry, but adaptation is recommended for the purpose of raising the character, and improving the taste, of the people. Of what use would it be to the angler, to have a golden hook attached to his rod, if it were so constructed as to disqualify it for performing its intended purpose. Catching fish is the great object which the angler has in view when he prepares his instruments and goes to the river side. A closer union of the various religious communities of the principality would remove many obstructions to its improve ment — would secure general co-operation in carrying into effect any beneficial plans which might be devised — would lay low some of the barriers which prevent many people from attaching themselves to any denomination of Christians — people who are living in a state of indecision, irreligion, and almost practical atheism. The union pleaded for is a complete outward amalgamation. It does not appear necessary that there should be an entire agreement on all points of inferior WELSH AS A NATION. 143 importance, however desirable such an agreement might be ; but on fundamental truths it is indispensable that unanimity should exist, else no outward union can take place. Indeed, such a unanimity does exist, amongst the greater religious sections into which the principality is divided ! It is not on essential points, but on those that are circumstantial, that a difference prevails. A state of religious division must be sin ful. The guilt of schism rests with those who make unimpor tant things matters of great consequence, and on their ac count separate. But schism has been struck out of the cata logue of sins, in our country, and most of, if not all the secta rians, consider the peculiarities, on account of which they are distinct parties, as their distinguishing excellences. And one periodical publication, belonging to a numerous body of Dis senters, has stated that the dissensions and the quarrels which occur in their congregations are their glory ! Why do we not all rally round the standard of the Church which, of all the sections of Christendom, has the most comprehen sive and liberal creed, which honours the holy Scriptures in the most eminent manner, and makes most use of them in the service of Almighty God, and in her endeavours to reform the world ? Greater attention must be paid to the education of the young. The plan just commenced in the city of Bangor, for the purpose of training competent teachers, deserves the highest commendation and the most liberal support. It might be taken as a model for the establishment of similar insti tutions, if not in every county, at least in every diocese of the principality. This is commencing an improvement at the fountain-head ; and, if carried out throughout the whole country, we might, in the course of time, expect to see the happiest results. The schools in Wales are very inadequately supported. In many places they languish for want of funds to pay the teachers and to meet other necessary expenses. Some of 144 THE CHARACTER OF THE the great landed proprietors do but little to assist the onward course of improvement, even in regard to the children of their own tenants. How different is the conduct of some gentle men, connected with the parish of Llandwrog, in Carnar vonshire. Sensible of their obligations to provide for the spiritual good of those who labour to increase their temporal possessions, they have done much to encourage the excellent Rector of the parish, to erect a schoolroom, a house for the teacher, and a new Church, in the part of his parish which is most thickly populated, but which is several miles distant from the parish Church. The proprietors of some quarries, in that parish, have taken up the matter with zeal. Sir J. Kennaway is one of them ; but I have not been informed of the amount of his contributions. Mr. Kingscote has sub scribed £300 towards building a schoolroom. These gen tlemen have also promised £50 towards erecting a new Church, on a spot of ground given by Lord Newborough. For the furtherance of this object, his Lordship the Bishop of Bangor, with his usual liberality, contributes £50. Mr. Garnons £100. And the Rev. D. Williams, the Rector, subscribes £50. Others have promised to come forward, and it may be hoped that the important objects will soon be achieved. At Carnarvon education is progressing. A new school room, on a superior plan, is about to be built there, which will do much to circulate sound principles among the rising generation. These undertakings, it may be hoped, will be adopted as patterns by others who have been blessed with temporal means. Such means have been entrusted to us as media of testing our character. The use we make of them, speaking generally, exposes the principles which regulate our hearts ; if our own indulgence and aggrandizement be the purposes to which they are principally applied, it must be evident that selfishness is the grand power which is allowed principally WELSH AS A NATION. 145 to govern us ; consequently our character is set down in the great records of heaven as selfish beings, and we must be treated as such at the great assize, when the Judge of All will adjust the affairs of the universe. But after erecting schoolrooms, education must not be suffered to languish for the want of support, which, I am sorry to say, is the case in too many instances in this country. A good teacher of children ought to be well remunerated, for his work is both laborious and irksome ; yet few people are worse paid than schoolmasters. What therefore can be ex pected but that they should engage in their avocation without spirit, and perform its duties with indifference. Some receive only from seven to eight shillings a week ; but the average stipend is from ten to twenty shillings. In the larger towns I know that the teachers of the National Schools are more liberally remunerated. The patrons of such establishments, in those places, do not adhere to the bad policy of paying a public functionary wages which would keep both himself and family at the starving point. When such a thing is done, much is lost to the employers and nothing is gained. Is it ANY THING BUT REASONABLE, THAT THE LANDED PRO PRIETORS SHOULD TAKE CARE THAT A SCHOOL BE ESTA BLISHED IN EVERY PARISH, WHERE THEY HAVE PROPERTY, BY THE PRODUCE OP WHICH THEY ARE ENABLED TO LIVE IN EASE AND SPLENDOUR? The education of the lowest class of the people ought to comprise reading, writing, and arithmetic. To which the grammar of the language, in which they are to converse through life, ought to be added, as it teaches accuracy of thought and expression. Geography is very useful. I would likewise have the fundamental principles of natural philosophy, and their application to practical purposes, as well as the ele ments of revealed religion, taught, in a very plain manner, from small treatises on these subjects. The best of books 146 THE CHARACTER OF THE must not be neglected. A treatise on morality, and on the economy of life, containing a few short chapters on the nature and necessity of a regular government, pointing out the duties of subjects to their rulers, would be very useful. The rest of the book might explain, very briefly, the nature of truth, and show its essential importance as a regulator of the heart, and the promoter of general order and happiness. Then the duties which we owe to ourselves, our kindred, our neighbours, and the whole human family, might be explained. A small treatise on some of the laws of the kingdom, which particularly affect the middle and lower classes, and an explanation of the punishments to which a breach of those laws subjects an individual, would be of great service. Such a course would expand the mind, tend to lessen the selfishness of our nature, and facilitate a general union of all mankind in the bonds of peace and love. The books might be prepared under the sanction of government, or of Ecclesiastical authority. And I consider it of the highest importance that they should be both in the English and Welsh languages, in opposite columns or pages ; this plan would meet the wishes of all parties, and is the only one likely to answer any good purposes in Wales. I am happy to find that the preceding suggestions are sanc tioned by the authority of all enlightened men, who claim liberty for themselves, and love to see it enjoyed by their fellow-creatures. Baron Cuvier very forcibly says : " Give schools before political rights ; make citizens comprehend the duties that the state of society imposes on them ; teach them what are political rights before you offer them for their enjoy ment : then all amelioration will be made without causing a shock ; then each idea, thrown upon good ground, will have time to germinate, to grow, and to ripen, without convulsing the social body. Imitate nature, which, in the development of beings, acts by gradation, and gives time to every member to grow to perfection. The infant remains nine months in its WELSH AS A NATION. 147 mother's womb ; man's physical perfection only takes place between twenty and thirty, and his moral completion from thirty to forty. Institutions must have ages to produce all their fruit ; witness Christianity, the effects of which are not yet accomplished, notwithstanding eighteen centuries of existence." The question whether the Welsh language should be per petuated, or that means should be adopted to produce its rapid decline and death, deserves the grave consideration of all that are concerned in the welfare of the principality. Who does not see that, in point of knowledge, the introduction of Eng-- lish, into general use in Wales, would enable a man to become acquainted with the best kind of books in infinite variety, and that mechanics and labourers would have almost the wide world before them, to which they might go in quest of employ ment, if a deficiency should occur at home ? The consequence of doing away with the Welsh language would be, that the nation would become amalgamated with the English, and would form one people, distinguishable only by the names of the two countries. On the other hand, it is a question of importance whether the extinction of our language be practicable, and, if prac ticable, whether, upon the whole, such a thing would be beneficial. It must be allowed that it is a most ancient lan guage, and possessed of considerable power of expression. If it is deficient of much that is good, on literary subjects, it is likewise exempt from nearly all that tends to corrupt the mind. The most objectionable part of the mental food administered to the common people appears to be contained in some of the monthly periodicals, which are conducted in a very unfair and scurrilous manner. But infidelity and popery, two of the greatest foes of human nature, have found it difficult to pene trate among our hills. There is, throughout the country, an ardent, even an enthusiastic attachment to our native tongue. Since I commenced writing this Essay, I haye asked the 148 THE CHARACTER OF THE opinion of a great number of my friends on the point under consideration, and no one has given the least encouragement to the idea of extinguishing the language. A gentleman- who is in respectable circumstances in society, declared that he would resist such an attempt even to the last drop of blood in his veins. One of the toasts always proposed, at anniver sary dinners of Welsh societies is, ' The age of the world to the Welsh language.' The prophecy of Taliesin has had very great power in continuing the determination to give it perpe tuity, and he is considered to have spoken almost under the influence of inspiration. His words are to the following purpose : — " Eu NER a volant ; Eu HIAITH A GADWANT ; eu tir a gollant, Ond gwyi.lt Waha." Latin version by Dr. Davies. Usque laudabunt Dominum creantem ; Usque servabunt idiotna linguee ; Arvaque amittent sua cuncta, prater Wallica rura. English version by the Rev. J. Wallers. Still shall they chant their great Creator's praise ; Still, still, retain their language and their lays ; But nought preserve of all their wide domains, Save Wallia's wild, uncultivated, plains. On the whole I am inclined to the opinion that the extinction of the language is impracticable ; consequently, the discou ragement of it must be both impolitic and wicked. Another thing I may say, in favour of cultivating the Welsh is, that the progress of the English will by no means be impeded by so doing ; and the reason seems to be that an acquaintance with the scanty literature of Wales gives a taste for know ledge, but does not satisfy the cravings of the mind. A desire for more is excited, and our rising population strive to acquire a knowledge of the English, that they may drink WELSH AS A NATION. 149 from the abundant streams which flow in that language. Facts bear me out in this statement. Never has the Welsh lan guage been more encouraged than during the last twenty-five years, and never, in the same compass of time, has the Eng lish spread itself so much over the principality. How very desirable it is to see innocent recreations intro duced among the people in general ! Greatly is it to be lamented that many teachers of religion, possessed of more zeal than knowledge, have kept up a regular thunder against almost all innocent amusements, and have succeeded in creat ing a prejudice against them, and banishing them from use in society. For my part I am very anxious to see instrumental music restored to a respectable position, and becoming gene rally cultivated. I plead for no abuse, but for the rational use, of various instruments. The following remarks by Dr. Channing will illustrate my own views and ably defend them : " In every community there must be pleasures, relaxations, and means of agreeable excitement, and if innocent ones are not furnished, resort will be had to criminal. Man was made to enjoy, as well as to labour ; and the state of society should be adapted to this principle of human nature. France, especially before the Revolution, has been represented as a singularly temperate country ; a fact to be explained, at least in part, by the constitutional cheerfulness of that people, and by the prevalence of simple and innocent gratifications, espe cially among the peasantry. Men drink to excess very often to shake off depression, or to satisfy the restless thirst for agreeable excitement ; and these motives are excluded in a cheerful community. A gloomy state of society, in which there are few innocent recreations, may be expected to abound in drunkenness, if opportunities are afforded, The savage drinks to excess because his hours of sobriety are dull and unvaried, because, in losing the consciousness of his condition and his existence, he loses little which he wishes to retain. The labouring classes are most exposed to intempe- 150 THE CHARACTER OF THE ranee, because they have at present few other pleasurable excitements. A man who, after toil, has resources of blame less recreation, is less tempted than other men to seek self- oblivion. He has too many of the pleasures of a man to take up with those of a brute. Thus the encouragement of simple innocent enjoyments is an important means of temperance. These remarks show the importance of encouraging the efforts which have commenced among us, for spreading the accom plishment of music through our whole community. Public amusements, bringing multitudes together to kindle with one emotion, to share the same innocent joy, have a humanizing influence ; and among these bonds of society perhaps no one produces so much unmixed good as music. What a fulness of enjoyment has our Creator placed within our reach, by sur rounding us with an atmosphere which may be shaped into sweet sounds ! And yet this goodness is almost lost upon us, through want of culture of the organ by which this provision is to be enjoyed." Establishments, on a simple plan, for the training of servants, would be of essential benefit to the lower classes of our people. England has many such establishments, and why may not Wales have a few dispersed over the country ? Com plaints are made, in all parts of the kingdom, of the troubles experienced by families from inefficient, unfaithful, or disor derly servants. Wales bears an ample share of those troubles. At the same time it is but just to state that, in England, most of the Welsh servants sustain a good character, and are doing well. It is easily accounted for : the most able of them leave their native country, and enter into service in England. The absolute necessity of preserving an irreproachable character, and the pecuniary encouragement afforded to good behaviour there, act as motives with them to do all they can to give satisfaction to their employers. In gentlemen's families in the principality also some very excellent servants are to be found. But how frequently it happens that an English house- WELSH AS A NATION. 151 keeper is appointed to superintend the Welsh servants, owing to their own incapacity. A remedy for this and other serious grievances would be found in establishments for the training of young people, of both sexes, to habits of industry and cleanliness, as well as to a careful performance of their duties. Plans of such institutions have already appeared before the public. The good which society in general, and young people in particular, might derive from them, would amply repay for the expense and trouble. Friendly Societies, though in a prosperous condition in many parts of Wales, have not yet been encouraged to the extent they deserve, or joined by so large a portion of the working classes as from their merit might have been expected. There ought to be no labourer or mechanic unconnected with a Friendly Society. He that neglects this prudential duty is guilty of great, if not criminal indifference, and may well be suspected of a want of due reflection, in regard to the for tuitous circumstances by which human life is encompassed, and the frail tenure by which it is held. But of all the establishments which might be devised, having a tendency to improve and benefit the community, the writer can think of none that is more wanted, or that would be of greater service, than a Reform Asylum for those classes of intemperate characters, who corrupt society by bad example, and ruin their families by prodigality. This would be a new thing, it must be confessed, at least in our country ; but the only surprise is that it was not thought of and esta blished many centuries ago. I have already given short sketches of characters that would have been most fit inmates of such an institution. Thousands might be found in Wales, who would derive most important advantages from confinement in such a place. As to the restrictions which it would impose on the liberty of the subject, I maintain that no man who corrupts society by his example, and who, at the same time, ruins many members of it, by wasting the substance which 152 THE CHARACTER OF THE belongs to them, in common with himself, has a right to the full enjoyment of liberty. At any rate, no man can demand the liberty of corrupting others, nor of injuring them, in any manner, whilst gratifying his passions, or pampering his vicious propensities. But I contend that such an Establish ment would, in an eminent manner, promote liberty^ in the most important sense of the word. There is no bondage so terrible as that of the passions, no tyranny that can be com pared to that of sin. The Reform Asylum is intended as a powerful and an extreme remedy, to certain classes of character, to emancipate them from tbe horrors and the slavery of im morality. Three or four such institutions would be sufficient for the necessities of Wales. The affair should be undertaken by government, for no other power can bring such a design into execution. The Asylum ought to consist of a substantial building, capable of accommodating a reasonable number of inmates. Connected with it there should be an inclosure of land, for the purpose of conducting business of various descrip tions. Those whose means would allow might be permitted to obtain the advantages of the Asylum without engaging in manual labour. But all others should be compelled to earn their livelihood by the work of their hands, and the ' sweat of their brow.' The proceeds to be appropriated to support the Institution. The business of it should be conducted under the authority of the magistrates, and nothing like the agency of lawyers should be allowed to form a part of the system. The plan ought to direct that the friends of any person, who was wasting his substance, should bring an accusation against him before a magistrate, and a bench of those honourable persons ought to take evidence in the case. If they should be satisfied that the charge was well founded, they would issue their order for the apprehension of the accused, and send him to the Reform Asylum, there to be accommodated till better prin ciples might be engraven on his mind, and better habits practically acquired. The whole expense of such a process WELSH AS A NATION. 153 would be only a trifling sum. Institutions of the nature which I have described would, by their very existence, produce most beneficial effects on society, by the warning they would give ; and what multitudes of wives and children would be saved from ruin by their means ! Greater attention, given by the gentry, to the state of the country, and to the Conduct and morals of the people, would be productive of much benefit to the community. The follow ing observations, on this important subject, by a writer whose name I am not able to give, but which lately appeared through the press, seem to me very judicious, and deserving of serious consideration : — " In the agricultural districts of the country, one of the greatest evils is the want of the superintending care and interest of the proprietor of the estate. This has occasioned an habitual want of deference on the part of the poor to the authority of the laws and nation, as the former concern them selves only with the work of the labourer, not with his con duct or habits ; and before things can be brought right again proprietors must live at home, where they can live cheaply ; they must interest themselves in the conduct and welfare of the people, and their estates must not be left to the care of others. The common people must learn to love, to obey, to fear, to copy, their superiors, and not as now, to do their work as their fellow labourers the horses and oxen work, and then think themselves as free of all restraint and all duty, as their wiser four-footed companions do. We know parishes that have been brought into a happy and healthy state in this manner, and what has been done in one parish may also be done in the whole kingdom. Acts of Parliament, laws, sta tutes, speeches, associations, will not effect it; it must be done through personal sacrifices, and through personal attention. No parish can be in the state it ought, when its head, and protector, and proprietor is ' At Paris, London, or the Fates know where.' 154 THE CHARACTER OF THE A man who owns an estate must learn that land is not Bank stock, and men are not five pound notes ; that he has in his purchase (although his Attorney did not mention it) entailed on himself the moral care of the inhabitants of the soil, and we say that a proprietor is, morally and conscientiously, just as much bound to residence as the Clergyman of the parish." No man has a right to stand neuter when his country is in danger. We have arrived at a momentous crisis in the period of our history, and onward we must proceed, forthe wheels of society have not been made to roll backwards ; and who can tell what destiny awaits our land ? Are we to rise in the scale of improvement, of virtue, and of usefulness, or is the deteriorating principle of human nature to act, without that control, which is nceessary to save us from ruin ? The most vigorous efforts are demanded to contend with this principle of giant power. Are we to behold our beloved country and kingdom torn by factions, and desolated by civil commotions ? Is one portion of society, in a state of elevated dignity, to maintain a haughty indifference to the wants and the sufferings of another portion of their fellow countrymen ? And must it be that the latter will become Chartists and incendiaries, to revenge themselves on their superiors for the more fortunate circumstances in which they have been placed ? And whilst we are thus carrying the firebrand through the land, and blasting the beautiful and magnificent appearance of our country, are we to become a prey to the Eagle, who looks with a keen eye on the feast which our possessions would afford him ? or is a Northern Vulture to perch on the pinnacle of our glory, and descend at his pleasure, to glut his barbarian and savage nature on our kingdom and our colonies ? Forbid it reason ! Forbid it nature ! Forbid it providence of heaven ! Then let strife cease. Let dissensions, and the tumult of civil discord, be hushed into everlasting silence ! May a humble individual be permitted to address the various classes of his fellow countrymen, on subjects which WELSH AS A NATION. 155 relate to the good of all the community ? On you who move in the higher walks of life, in a very important sense, depend under God, the well-being and prosperity of our native land. You ought to consider that it is not by accident you have been placed in your elevated position, but by the decree of the Most High. He has committed to your care property of great value, and you have not the power to do what you please with that property, but to use it for the diffusion of good among your less favoured brethren. It is with the utmost delight that we witness your acts of benevolence, and the interest you take in any enterprize which tends to improve the country, to make your tenants more efficient cultivators of the soil, or to promote their comfort at home and their respectability abroad. Much has been done, by you for the general weal ; but it is a question, which deserves your grave consideration, whether you have, to the extent of one half of your abilities, striven to advance the natural comfort and moral condition of the country to which you belong. Many of you are considerate landlords ; but some of you are unreasonable and unfeeling. You are entitled by law to the property which is under your care, and it is to be hoped that a hair of your head will not fall whilst you enjoy its produce.J But let me beg most respect fully to remind you that Locke, one of the greatest intellects that England ever produced, contends that no man had origi nally a right to more than he could use, of the good things of this world. He limits the original right of property by two considerations : the first is that a man can claim possession of only what he has appropriated to himself by labour, and the second is, that he has no right to appropriate more than he can use. See his Treatise on Government B. 2. C. 5. It is ti"ue that in that place he only discusses the original right to property, and his reasonings must be allowed to be con clusive. But there are other principles laid down, in his -treatise, on which the subsequent right to property is said to depend. See Locke id § 50. The one by which most property, in our country, is claimed, is that of inheritance. 156 THE CHARACTER OF THE By this title, our constitution secures to lawful descendants, the property left to them by a deceased relative. Nothing surely can be more equitable than this ; and the arrangement cannot be disturbed without producing a convulsion which would overthrow the constitution, and terminate in the ruin of our country. This is not the place to discuss the principles by which claims to property can be supported. As long as the world is in a state so depraved, property will remain in a condition similar to that in which it is at present, and great inequality must continue to oppress the human family. The same great philosopher, however, says that every man who is horn into the world has a right to be supported. It would require an immense degree of effrontery and perverseness to deny the validity of this principle. It may be asserted farther, that every human being, brought into existence, has a right, not only to subsistence, but to that training which will make him a proper member of society, and a fit candidate for immortality. This is no less a dictate of reason than of Revelation. Consider the broad basis on which the Bible puts the matter : ' Train up a child in the way he should go : and when he is old, he will not depart from it.' You will perceive that it is not your own children only that ought to be the objects of your care, but any child whom it may be convenient for you to train up. The denunciations of holy writ against the wealthy, who are unfeeling towards those who move below them, are truly awful. You cannot be unmindful of the parable of the rich man and Lazarus. This rich man does not seem to have been noted for immorality. His principal crime was unmercifulness, which appeared in his neglect of a poor man who lived in his neighbourhood. Nothing can be more opposed to the conduct of the Deity than such a trait of character. ' He maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.' ' God is good unto all, and his tender mercies are over all his works.' Many of the hardships endured, by the small farmer and the labourer, are owing to a want of con- WELSH AS A NATION. 157 sideration, not to say feeling, on your part. The tenants of small farms suffer woful privations, and endure hardships of which you have no conception. Large farmers realise so little profit from the capital which they embark, the vigilance they exercise, and the toil which they undergo, that they are unable to pay their labourers that amount of wages which is a fair remuneration for their work. Is it more than what reason dictates, that a cultivator of the soil, who pays two or three hundred pounds rent, should be able to devote fifty or sixty pounds, annually, to educate his children, or lay them by to meet contingencies ? But it is confidently stated that very few, except leaseholders on advantageous tenures, can lay aside even ten or fifteen pounds a year, for such purposes. It is even said that the tenantry, in general, find it exceed ingly difficult to procure decent maintenance for their families, on account of the high rents and taxes, which they have to pay. There is too much truth, it may be feared, in the anec dote that appeared lately, in some of the Newspapers, which stated that a Landlord informed one of his tenants, that he had Some intention of raising the rent on his farm; when the tenant replied, ' I am glad of it, for I myself am quite unable to do so.' Much instruction may be derived from the conduct of a Chinese Emperor, whose name was Tehou, who, one day, went in company with his eldest son as far as a field in which there were several men working very hard. ' I have brought you here,' said the father, ' that you might be an eye-witness of the laborious occupations of these poor workmen, that the sight of their painful condition might dispose you not to load them with taxes.' It is true that tenants are much to be blamed for out-bidding one another in their avidity to obtain any farm which may become vacant. But the fault of letting to the highest bidder is yours, the evil therefore commences with you, and it is an evil which you ought never to en courage. You know the value of the tenement ; and you ought to let your property for what it is worth, to some person 158 THE CHARACTER OF THE who will cultivate it well, and pay his rent with punctuality. Oh ! what a happy land ours would soon be, if the landed pro prietors would but adopt the proper measures which are within their power, to improve the condition of the farmer, and raise the character of the lower classes. Those of you who move in the middle walks of society have most important duties to discharge. You are in possession of the comforts of life, and are able, to a considerable de gree, to assert your independence. On you, and on others in the same station throughout the kingdom, depends, in a very great measure, the stability, the prosperity, and the orderly state of the community. Be vigilant as watchmen over the public welfare, and be determined to oppose every policy that may tend to undermine the foundation of order, the autho rity of the law, or the influence of pure and undefiled re ligion. Do not entertain the erroneous opinion that wealth, in itself, is desirable. Property, apart from the uses to which it is capable of being applied, is not of any real value. With all your power encourage education ; and especially take care that your own children receive that discipline which will give expansion to their minds, and solidity to their judgment. Give no encouragement to unskilful workmanship. Look not on vicious practices, or on anything which tends to vice, with a smile of approbation. Discourage, oppose, yea, even punish, them ; for they contribute to give a character to the nation, and to involve us all in one common disgrace. However commendable, on the whole, our national character may be, it is very far from perfect. Much may be dono by you to remove the blemishes which we have to deplore, and to give a higher tone to the morals and the manners of the peasantry. May I assume the privilege of addressing the working classes of the principality ? Fellow countrymen ! At a time when popular commotions take place, and when all that is dear to us is endangered, it is necessary that you should be WELSH AS A NATION. 159 very much on your guard, lest you should be tempted from your industrious, quiet, and orderly behaviour, to sacrifice your character, your comfort, and it may, be your life. You may have much to bear whilst performing the labours by which you obtain your subsistence ; but your difficulties would increase ten-fold, if you gave ear to selfish and -wicked men, who would seduce you from the even tenor of your way. Their doctrines are dangerous, and such as cannot be reduced to practice. They talk of equality, and of reducing all to the same level ! This has often been tried, but it has never succeeded. Undoubtedly all mankind would have been in a state of much greater equality had we continued in that state of perfection, in which our first parents came from the hand of the Creator. The great inequality at present, ex isting evidently results from the impossibility of corrupt. creatures remaining in even a comparative equal condition. We have lost that protection of natural law which would have prevented any from being oppressed by the power of others. It is confessed that inequality, as it exists in the economy of the world, is a curse, but a necessary one ; and, after all, it is a curse from which, in the present state of human nature, a blessing arises. But short-sighted agitators will say to you, let us remove the curse by reducing all to an equal con dition ! But you dare not, and you cannot accomplish such a purpose. By attempting such a thing you will labour in the fire for very vanity. Instead of listening to such wild vagaries, let me advise you to do all you can to remove the cause of the curse which has been brought upon us, and you will find the inequality of your condition much less a source of grief than it is at present, whilst you allow your passions and depraved propensities to govern your minds. " Godliness with contentment is great gain." Physical force, then, is not the agency by which you can ameliorate your condition. To use such an instrumentality would be as wicked as it would be foolish, involving a viola- 160 THE CHARACTER OF THE tion of the principles of justice, and tending to nothing but endless anarchy and ruin. If some of you have much to endure, whilst pursuing your daily work, you would have much more in a course of agitation, and especially in an endeavour to reduce the system of physical force into practice. Away with it, then, and have nothing to do with the madmen that are its advocates ! Let the great principles of justice, humanity, and religion, act on those who are above you, and the improvement in your condition will advance, in proportion to the degree in which these principles will take effect on the hearts of your superiors. Great improvement has already taken place, but greater still will be effected, as Christianity succeeds in transforming the world. The Christian religion is the true friend of man. When the blissful period that awaits human nature will arrive, the oppressor will have been con verted into the friend and brother. None will have to com plain on account of excessive labour, nor because they will be in want of the necessaries, and even the conveniencies of nature. In the meantime, be it your study to improve your state of life by persevering labour, and by prudently using what you may earn. Every man, if properly educated, might become the artificer of his own fortune. Some years back, there lived in Ireland, a man of the name of Clerk, who was a joiner. His fellow- workmen, at one time, were amused whilst observing with what care he smoothed a bench, which was to be a seat for the magistrates of the county. But he told them that he intended to sit on it himself, in the course of time. And so it was. Being an honest, indus trious, and amiable man, his wealth and good name grew together, and he lived to become a magistrate, and sat on the bench which he had himself prepared. Most of the poverty and distress, on account of which so many suffer, is owing to the intemperance, the wickedness, or the imprudences of themselves or their parents ; why then must the virtues of those who have property be punished for the WELSH AS A NATION. 161 vices of those who are in distress ? Instead of cherishing idle dreams, let it be your endeavour to excel in your different callings, and it will have the effect of increasing your com fort, and of diminishing the inequality which subsists between you and those who move in a higher sphere of life. Excel in all the virtues, and those will be acquisition far better than riches. Do not cherish an inconstant disposition. Live not on excitement. Learn to cultivate a more contemplative frame of mind. It is one of the greatest mental diseases,in the lower classes of Wales, to be constantly running after novelty ; to be continually hearing, and hardly ever thinking. Be a little more devoted to good books, especially to the best of books. Do all you can to educate your children. En courage them to advance in knowledge as much as lies in your power. You had better suffer much inconvenience yourselves, than leave your offspring in a state of ignorance. Let them learn any profession well to which they may be apprenticed, for a slovenly workman is never likely to ascend very high on the hill of prosperity. — If the principles and directions, which have been thus recommended, should be entertained by the various classes to whom they are now addressed, the cha racter of our country, how much soever it may at present possess deserving of approbation, would, at no distant period, deserve the highest commendation to which a virtuous com munity can lay claim. CARNARVON: PRINTED BY W. POTTER AND CO., BOOKSELLERS. ERRATA. Some typographical errors have escaped the corrector of the press. The following require particular notice : — Page 42, line 15, for demination, read denomination. Page 86, the two last lines ought to be, 'A'r awyr yn adruaw, A mawr drwst gan y mdr draw.' Page 114, for Socrating, read Socratic. SUBSCRIBERS. ANGLESEY. Bulkeley, Sir R. B. W. Bart., Buron Hill, (the value of two guineas.) Davies, Rev. Morgan, Holyhead. Mr. H. N., Llangevni. Edwards, Mr. P. B., Beaumaris. Elias, Mr. Thomas, Pias y Glyn, Llauvwrog. Ellis, Rev. Arthur, B.A., Llan- gwyllog. Evans, Capt. Hugh, Holyhead. Griffith, Rev. Henry, M.A. Llan- drygaru. Rev. John, M.A. Llanerch- ymedd, (2 copies). Mr. John, Clynog. R. Trygarn, Esq., Gareg Lwyd. (6 copies.) Hughes, W. B., Esq., M.P., Pias Coch. (5 copies.) Rev. Rice, M.A., Rector of Newborough (2 copies). Rev. Howel, M.A., Rector of Rhoscolyn. Mr. Edward, Bodedern. Rev. Rich. Hendrev, Gwalch- mai. Rev. Stephen R., B.A., Bod- ewryd. Mr. H. G. Druggist, Holy head. Mr. W. Post Office, Bod edern. Mr. David, Teacher, Trev- draetb. Mr. Wm. Cleivog Mawr. Mr. Wm., Bull, Bryngwran. Wm. Esq., Madyn, Am lwch. Jones, Rev. H. Wynoe, M.A., Rector of Aberfraw, (6 copies). Rev. J. Wynne, M.A., P.C. of Holyhead. Rev. J., M. A., P.C. of Am lwch. Rev. J. O., P.C, Llangoed. Rev. Isaac, Llauddaniel Vab. Mr. Hugh, hatter, Holyhead. Mr. Owen, Bod-derwydd. Mr. Wm., George, Bodedern. Kains, Capt. Holyhead. Lewis, Mr. Wm., Teacher, Bodedern. Mr. Owen ( Philotechnus) , Amlwch. Lloyd, Mrs. at Treddolffin. Meyi'ick, O. F. Esq., Bodorgan, (6 copies). Moulsdale, Mr. R., Gwyndy. Owen, Rev. H. D., D.D. Beaumaris. Miss do. Mr. Griffith, Stamp Office, Holyhead. Rev J. M.A., Rector of Llan- eilian. Owen, Esq., solicitor, Holy head. Mr. Timothy, Llangevni. Mr. W. Pos't Office, do. Mr. W. Gwyndy Bach. Mr. W. Teacher, Bryngwran. Price, Rev. W. B.A., Llanrhyddlad. Mrs. Bryngwran. Prys, Mr. R. ap Ieuan, Llanrhydd lad. Parry, Mr. Thos. Llangwyllog. Pritchard, Mrs. Eiienns Point, (2 co* pies). 164 LIST OF SUBSCRIBERS. Pritchard, Mr. O. Ty'nllan, Tregaian. Rees, Mr. J. Traphwll. Roberts, Mr. H. Llangevni. Rev. J. M.A., Llangristiolus. Mr. James, Nant, do. Rowlands, Rev. Henry, M.A. Pias Gwyn. (3 copies), Thomas, Rev. W.„ M.A., Trevor. (2 copie3.) Trevor, Rev. J. W., M.A., Rector of Llanbeulun. (G copies),. Williams, Rev. Dr., Rector of Trev- draeth. Pev. Bulkeley, M.A. Wig- edd. Rev. Evan, M.A., Rector of Llangevni. Rev. Gethin, Rhiwlas. Williams, Rev. James, M.A., Rector of Llanvairynghornwy, (4 copies). John, Esq., Treffos. (2 co pies). Rev. Wynne, M.A., Rector of Llangeinwen. Miss Cathriue, Treddolffin. Gwen, do . Owen, M.D., at do. Mr. Robt. do. John, Esq., Treban. Rev. Thomas, B.A., Pen- mynydd.' Rev. T. M., B.A., Llan- bedr Goch. Mr, Thomas, CaeVadog. CARDIGANSHIRE. Davies, Mrs. John, Cardigan. Jenkins, Griffith, Esq., Pantirion, near Cardigan. (2 copies). Jenkins, R. D., Esq., Cardigan'. ABERYSTWYTH. Daniel, Mr. Charles. Davies, Mr. Hugh, Pier Head. Mr. Thomas, grocer. Edwards, Mr. Robt , draper. Evans, Mr. John, cabinet maker. Mr. Morris, tanner, Llanbadarn Vawr. Mr. R., Aberystwyth. Hughes, John, Esq., Mayor (1840) do. Rev. John, Vicar of Llan badarn Vawr &c. Rev. Griffith. James, Mr. Richd. wine-merchant. Jones, Mr. David, draper, &c. D. J. Esq., timber merchant. Mr. John, {loan Ivon). Rice, Esq.. Bank. Lewis, Lewis Esq., Bridge street. Mathews, Mr. John, British Empo rium. Morgan, Mr. Job, Nat. School. Mr. John, (Ieuan Glan Me- lindwr). Owens, Rev. Owen, Tal-y-bont, near do. Mr. Richd. Pres. of the Lled- rod Lit. So. Roberts, Mr. Hugh, merchant. Mr. John, Llanbadarn Vawr. Mr. Joseph, London House, Aberystwyth. Mr. Richd. chemist and druggist. Rowlands, Mr. J. C. Lluniedydd. Thomas, Mr. Robt. (Helenydol). Saunders, Rev. Joho. Wolseley, Mr. David, Cevnllan, near do. Also 36 copies of the Essay in the Welsh language. CARMARTHENSHIRE. The Eight Rev. The Lord Bishop of St. David's, (5 copies). LIST OF SUBSCRIBERS. 165 CARNARVON. Bryan, Mr. John, King's Head-street. Davids, Rev. John, M.A. Carnarvon. Griffith, Mr. David, (Clwydvardd). Capt. Wm. Castle-squure. Hughes, Mr. John, Pool street. Jones, Mr. David, Turf-square. Mr. Griffith, Eastgate. Joseph, Esq., Terrace. Mason, Dr. Wm. Church-street. Mathew, Mr. Wm. Eastgate. Morgan, Rev. J. P. J. Esq., Bank. Mr. John, Wesley-street. Morris, Mr. Henry, Eastgate. Owen, Mr. Robt., Castle-square. OweD, Mr. Wm., Stamp Office. Parry, Mr. James, Twthill. Mr. John, Bridge-street. Preece, R. M. Esq., Bank. Roberts, Wm. Esq., surgeon, (3 co- ^ pies.) Thomas, Rev. John. Rev. Thomas, M.A., Vicar age, (2 copies). Williams, Rev. Robt. M.A., Quellyo. Robt. Esq., solicitor. Mr., Bridge-street. Rev. Wm., (Gwilym Cal- edvryn). CARNARVONSHIRE. Baxter, Mr., Penrhyn, near Bangor. Cotton, The very Reverend J. C, B.C.L., Dean of Bangor. De Winton, Rev. J., Llandwrog. Griffith, Mr. E., surgeon, Bangor. Mr. R. M., Bangor. Haraer, Rev. Mr. M.A., Vicar of do. Hughes, John, Esq., solicitor, do. Rev. Lewis, M.A., Vicar of Clynog. Rev. Morris, M.A., Incum bent of St. Anns. Jones, Rev. Ed., M.A., TC. of Llan- degai. Rev. Hugh, B.A., Llangian, Rev. John, M.A., Rector of Llanllyvci. Rev. John, M.A., Rector of Llanvihangel y Pennant. Rev. W. L., M.A., Rector of Llanddeiniolen. Mr. Wm , Ysgubor Hen, Llan- ystumdwy. Newborough, Right Hon. Lord (5 co pies). Owen, Rev. Ellis Anwyl, M.A., Rector of Llanystumdwy (2 copies). Rev. Hugh, M.A., Llanllechid. Rev. John, M.A., Rector of Llanbedrog. Parry, Sir Love, P. J., G.C.H., Madryn Park (5 copies). Price, Rev. Mr. M.A., \Jicar of Bangor. Pritchard, Mr. R., Post Office, do. Richards, Rev. Mr., Rector of Llan- wnda. Roberts, Mr. Hamilton, surgeou, Bangor. Mr. John, Dolawen. Thomas, Mr. Robt., Port Penrhyn. Vincent, Rev. J. V., M.A., Llanvair- Vechan. Walker, Rev. W. L., M.A., Aber. Capt., Heudre Gadno, Ynys. Williams Mr. B., wine-merchant, Bangor. Rev. D., M.A., Rector of Llandwrog (3 copies). Mr. John, Royal Oak, Baugor. Mr. John, surgeon, Llan- ystymdwy. Rev. H. B., M.A., Llan- beris. Rev. Morris, M.A., Ban gor. Rev. Wm., Llanddein iolen. Rev. W. L., B.A., Dwy- gyvylchi. Mr. D., Ty Ddewi, Di- uorwig (3 copies). Mr.Rowl. Dinorwic House (3 copies). Rev. St. George Arm strong, M.A., V.Q., of Bettws Garmon &c. Wynne, Miss, at the Rectory, Llan dwrog. 166 LIST OF SUBSCRIBERS. CHESHIRE.- Bird, Rev. E., Tattenhall. Hughes, Mr. Hugh, Artist, Chester. Jones, Dr. Phillips, do. Parry, Rev. Mr., St. Paul, do. Mr. Ed., 3, Bridge-street Row. DENBIGHSHIRE. Barnwell, Rev. E. L., M.A., Ruthin. Jones, Rev. J., M.A., Rector of Llan- gynhaval. Rowlands, Rev. W., Ruthin. FLINTSHIRE. Right Hon. Lord Mostyn, Pengwern. Hon. E. M. LI. Mostyn, Mostyn Hall. Hon. Pryse LI. Mostyn. Edwards, Mr. G. W., Ed. Prot. Mold. Richards, Rev. R., Rector of Caer- wys (2 copies). Roberts, Rev. E., M.A., Mold. Williams, Rev. D., M.A., do. Rev. Robt., B.A., Gweru- affield do. LANCASHIRE.— Liverpool. The Worshipful the Mayor — Thomas Bolton, Esq., (4 copies). Atkinson, Mr. Thomas, Brownlow- street. Brown, Mr. Wm., Islington. Clough, James Butler, Esq. Davies, Mr. Ed., Canton Buildings. Rev. Robt., M.A., St. David's Church. Evans, Mr. John, Shaw-street. Griffith, Rich. Esq., Old Hall-street.- Haliburton, Alexander, Esq., Whitley. Heywood, Francis, Esq., Exchange Buildings (2 copies). Hughes, John, Esq., M.D., St. Anne- street. Hughes, Mr. Rich., Exchange. James, Rev. David, St. Mary's Kirk- dale. Jones, Mr. D., Tythe Barn-street. Mr. J. Caldwell, Earle-street. Mr. Robt. Evans, Vice Pies, of Cym. Society. Morgan, Mr. Edward, Virgil-street. Roberts, Mr. R., 47, Great Newton- street. Mr, Robert, 42, Chapel- street. Walmsley, Sir Joshua, Wavertree. Williams, Mr. Oweu, Soho-street. Woodcock, Thomas, Esq., Bank House, Wigan. Manchester. Jones, Mr. H. E., 135, Oxford-street Roberts, Mr. (3 copies). Williams, Mr. Lloyd, Mr. LEICESTERSHIRE. Morgan, Rev. E., Vicar of Syston and RatclirTe, and Chaplain to Lord Ferre LIST OF SUBSCRIBERS. LONDON. 167 Hughes, Mr. H., 15, St. Martiu's-le- Jones, Win., Esq., solicitor, Abchurch- Grand (25 copies). lane. MERIONETHSHIRE. Casson, J. Esq., Blaenyddol. Davies, Mr. W., Watch-maker, Harlech. Ellis, Rev. Mr. Brondanw. Frances, Mr. Robt., Maentwrog. Griffith, Mr. Rees, Bank, Festiniog. Hird, Mr. excise officer, do. Jones, Mr. Edward do. Mr. Hugh, agent, near do. Mr. J., at Pias Tanybwlch. Wm. Esq., Glan William. Mr. 0., innkeeper. Lloyd, Mr. L., Oakeley Arms. Lloyd, Mr. Robt., Festiniog. Oakeley, Mrs., Pias Tanybwlch. Payne, Mr., surgeon, Festiniog. Pring, Rev. J. H., M.A., Llanvrothen. Pugh, Rev. H. J., Lodge, Maentwrog. Stokes, J. Esq., Bryn Llewelyn. J. J. Esq., do. Williams, Rev. D., MA., Rector of Trawsvynydd. Mr. Ed,, surgeon, Bala. Mr. J., Pandy, Festiniog. Wynne, Rev. John, M.A., near Corwen. MONMOUTHSHIRE. Bevan, Mr. Thomas, (Caradawg), Hall, Lady, (Gwenynen Gwent) do. Llanwenarth (6 copies). Lewis, Mr. John, ironmonger, Aber- Davies, Mr. David, Sirhowy shop, gavenny. near Tredegar (6 copies), Mr. Wm. do. do. Gruffydd, Mr. Ieuan ao, Sec. of Cym- Morgan, Mr. J. H., stationer, Aber- reigyddion So. Abergavenny. gavenny. Hall, Sir Benjamin, Llanover. MONTGOMERYSHIRE. Clive, Rev. W., M. A., Vicar of Pugh, Rev. Enoch, Kerry. Welshpool. Price, Rev. Ben., Newtown. Davies, D., Esq., Kerry. Richards, Rev. Thomas, Rector of Parker, Rev. J., M.A., Rector of Llangyniew. Llanmorewic. WESTMORELAND. Right Hon. Lord Brougham, Brougham Hall. YORKSHIRE. 'A Friend, anxious for the improve- Meredith, Rev. Mr., near Hudder- ment of the Church in Wales.' field. (24 copies). ^ >K p K