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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..20427c8 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #55025 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/55025) diff --git a/old/55025-8.txt b/old/55025-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 92c78e3..0000000 --- a/old/55025-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,15254 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Celtic Folklore: Welsh and Manx (Volume 1 -of 2), by John Rhys - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: Celtic Folklore: Welsh and Manx (Volume 1 of 2) - -Author: John Rhys - -Release Date: July 2, 2017 [EBook #55025] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CELTIC FOLKLORE: WELSH AND MANX *** - - - - -Produced by Jeroen Hellingman and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net/ for Project -Gutenberg (This file was produced from images generously -made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.) - - - - - - - - - - CELTIC FOLKLORE - - WELSH AND MANX - - BY - - JOHN RHYS, M.A., D.Litt. - - HON. LL.D. OF THE UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH - PROFESSOR OF CELTIC - PRINCIPAL OF JESUS COLLEGE, OXFORD - - - VOLUME I - - OXFORD - - AT THE CLARENDON PRESS - MDCCCCI - - - - - - - - - TO ALL THOSE - WHO HAVE IN ANY WAY CONTRIBUTED TO - THE PRODUCTION OF THIS WORK - IT IS RESPECTFULLY - DEDICATED - IN TOKEN OF HIS GRATITUDE - BY - THE AUTHOR - - - - - - - - - Our modern idioms, with all their straining after the - abstract, are but primitive man's mental tools adapted - to the requirements of civilized life, and they often - retain traces of the form and shape which the neolithic - worker's chipping and polishing gave them. - - - - - - - - -PREFACE - - -Towards the close of the seventies I began to collect Welsh folklore. I -did so partly because others had set the example elsewhere, and partly -in order to see whether Wales could boast of any story-tellers of -the kind that delight the readers of Campbell's Popular Tales of the -West Highlands. I soon found what I was not wholly unprepared for, -that as a rule I could not get a single story of any length from the -mouths of any of my fellow countrymen, but a considerable number of -bits of stories. In some instances these were so scrappy that it took -me years to discover how to fit them into their proper context; but, -speaking generally, I may say, that, as the materials, such as they -were, accumulated, my initial difficulties disappeared. I was, however, -always a little afraid of refreshing my memory with the legends of -other lands lest I should read into those of my own, ideas possibly -foreign to them. While one is busy collecting, it is safest probably -not to be too much engaged in comparison: when the work of collecting -is done that of comparing may begin. But after all I have not attempted -to proceed very far in that direction, only just far enough to find -elucidation here and there for the meaning of items of folklore -brought under my notice. To have gone further would have involved -me in excursions hopelessly beyond the limits of my undertaking, -for comparative folklore has lately assumed such dimensions, that it -seems best to leave it to those who make it their special study. - -It is a cause of genuine regret to me that I did not commence my -inquiries earlier, when I had more opportunities of pursuing them, -especially when I was a village schoolmaster in Anglesey and could -have done the folklore of that island thoroughly; but my education, -such as it was, had been of a nature to discourage all interest in -anything that savoured of heathen lore and superstition. Nor is that -all, for the schoolmasters of my early days took very little trouble -to teach their pupils to keep their eyes open or take notice of what -they heard around them; so I grew up without having acquired the -habit of observing anything, except the Sabbath. It is to be hoped -that the younger generation of schoolmasters trained under more -auspicious circumstances, when the baleful influence of Robert Lowe -has given way to a more enlightened system of public instruction, -will do better, and succeed in fostering in their pupils habits of -observation. At all events there is plenty of work still left to be -done by careful observers and skilful inquirers, as will be seen -from the geographical list showing approximately the provenance -of the more important contributions to the Kymric folklore in this -collection: the counties will be found to figure very unequally. Thus -the anglicizing districts have helped me very little, while the more -Welsh county of Carnarvon easily takes the lead; but I am inclined to -regard the anomalous features of that list as in a great measure due -to accident. In other words, some neighbourhoods have been luckier -than others in having produced or attracted men who paid attention -to local folklore; and if other counties were to be worked equally -with Carnarvonshire, some of them would probably be found not much -less rich in their yield. The anglicizing counties in particular are -apt to be disregarded both from the Welsh and the English points of -view, in folklore just as in some other things; and in this connexion -I cannot help mentioning the premature death of the Rev. Elias Owen -as a loss which Welsh folklorists will not soon cease to regret. - -My information has been obtained partly viva voce, partly by -letter. In the case of the stories written down for me in Welsh, -I may mention that in some instances the language is far from good; -but it has not been thought expedient to alter it in any way, beyond -introducing some consistency into the spelling. In the case of the -longest specimen of the written stories, Mr. J. C. Hughes' Curse of -Pantannas, it is worthy of notice in passing, that the rendering of -it into English was followed by a version in blank verse by Sir Lewis -Morris, who published it in his Songs of Britain. With regard to the -work generally, my original intention was to publish the materials, -obtained in the way described, with such stories already in print -as might be deemed necessary by way of setting for them; and to let -any theories or deductions in which I might be disposed to indulge -follow later. In this way the first six chapters and portions of -some of the others appeared from time to time in the publications of -the Honourable Society of Cymmrodorion and in those of the Folk-Lore -Society. This would have allowed me to divide the present work into -the two well marked sections of materials and deductions. But, when -the earlier part came to be edited, I found that I had a good deal of -fresh material at my disposal, so that the chapters in question had -in some instances to be considerably lengthened and in some others -modified in other ways. Then as to the deductive half of the work, -it may be mentioned that certain portions of the folklore, though -ever apt to repeat themselves, were found when closely scrutinized -to show serious lacunę, which had to be filled in the course of the -reasoning suggested by the materials in hand. Thus the idea of the -whole consisting of two distinctly defined sections had to be given -up or else allowed to wait till I should find time to recast it. But -I could no more look forward to any such time than to the eventual -possibility of escaping minor inconsistencies by quietly stepping -through the looking-glass and beginning my work with the index -instead of resting content to make it in the old-fashioned way at the -end. There was, however, a third course, which is only mentioned to -be rejected, and that was to abstain from all further publication; but -what reader of books has ever known any of his authors to adopt that! - -To crown these indiscretions I have to confess that even when most of -what I may call the raw material had been brought together, I had no -clear idea what I was going to do with it; but I had a hazy notion, -that, as in the case of an inveterate talker whose stream of words -is only made the more boisterous by obstruction, once I sat down to -write I should find reasons and arguments flowing in. It may seem -as though I had been secretly conjuring with Vergil's words viresque -adquirit eundo. Nothing so deliberate: the world in which I live swarms -with busybodies dying to organize everybody and everything, and my -instinctive opposition to all that order of tyranny makes me inclined -to cherish a somewhat wild sort of free will. Still the cursory -reader would be wrong to take for granted that there is no method -in my madness: should he take the trouble to look for it, he would -find that it has a certain unity of purpose, which has been worked -out in the later chapters; but to spare him that trouble I venture -to become my own expositor and to append the following summary:-- - -The materials crowded into the earlier chapters mark out the stories -connected with the fairies, whether of the lakes or of the dry land, as -the richest lode to be exploited in the mine of Celtic folklore. That -work is attempted in the later chapters; and the analysis of what -may briefly be described as the fairy lore given in the earlier ones -carries with it the means of forcing the conviction, that the complex -group of ideas identified with the little people is of more origins -than one; in other words, that it is drawn partly from history and -fact, and partly from the world of imagination and myth. The latter -element proves on examination to be inseparably connected with certain -ancient beliefs in divinities and demons associated, for instance, with -lakes, rivers, and floods. Accordingly, this aspect of fairy lore has -been dealt with in chapters vi and vii: the former is devoted largely -to the materials themselves, while the latter brings the argument to -a conclusion as to the intimate connexion of the fairies with the -water-world. Then comes the turn of the other kind of origin to be -discussed, namely, that which postulates the historical existence of -the fairies as a real race on which have been lavishly superinduced -various impossible attributes. This opens up a considerable vista -into the early ethnology of these islands, and it involves a variety -of questions bearing on the fortunes here of other races. In the -series which suggests itself the fairies come first as the oldest -and lowest people: then comes that which I venture to call Pictish, -possessed of a higher civilization and of warlike instincts. Next -come the earlier Celts of the Goidelic branch, the traces, linguistic -and other, of whose presence in Wales have demanded repeated notice; -and last of all come the other Celts, the linguistic ancestors of the -Welsh and all the other speakers of Brythonic. The development of these -theses, as far as folklore supplies materials, occupies practically the -remaining five chapters. Among the subsidiary questions raised may be -instanced those of magic and the origin of druidism; not to mention a -neglected aspect of the Arthurian legend, the intimate association of -the Arthur of Welsh folklore and tradition with Snowdon, and Arthur's -attitude towards the Goidelic population in his time. - -Lastly, I have the pleasant duty of thanking all those who have -helped me, whether by word of mouth or by letter, whether by -reference to already printed materials or by assistance in any -other way: the names of many of them will be found recorded in their -proper places. As a rule my inquiries met with prompt replies, and -I am not aware that any difficulties were purposely thrown in my -way. Nevertheless I have had difficulties in abundance to encounter, -such as the natural shyness of some of those whom I wished to examine -on the subject of their recollections, and above all the unavoidable -difficulty of cross-questioning those whose information reached me -by post. For the precise value of any evidence bearing on Celtic -folklore is almost impossible to ascertain, unless it can be made -the subject of cross-examination. This arises from the fact that we -Celts have a knack of thinking ourselves in complete accord with what -we fancy to be in the inquirer's mind, so that we are quite capable -of misleading him in perfect good faith. A most apposite instance, -deserving of being placed on record, came under my notice many years -ago. In the summer of 1868 I spent several months in Paris, where I -met the historian Henri Martin more than once. On being introduced to -him he reminded me that he had visited South Wales not long before, -and that he had been delighted to find the peasantry there still -believing in the transmigration of souls. I expressed my surprise, and -remarked that he must be joking. Nothing of the kind, he assured me, -as he had questioned them himself: the fact admitted of no doubt. I -expressed further surprise, but as I perceived that he was proud of the -result of his friendly encounters with my countrymen I never ventured -to return to the subject, though I always wondered what in the world -it could mean. A few years ago, however, I happened to converse with -one of the most charming and accomplished of Welsh ladies, when she -chanced to mention Henri Martin's advent: it turned out that he had -visited Dr. Charles Williams, then the Principal of Jesus College, -and that Dr. Williams introduced him to his friends in South Wales. So -M. Martin arrived among the hospitable friends of the lady talking -to me, who had in fact to act as his interpreter: I never understood -that he could talk much English or any Welsh. Now I have no doubt that -M. Martin, with his fixed ideas about the druids and their teaching, -propounded palpably leading questions for the Welsh people whom he -wished to examine. His fascinating interpreter put them into terse -Welsh, and the whole thing was done. I could almost venture to write -out the dialogue, which gave back to the great Frenchman his own exact -notions from the lips of simple peasants in that subtle non-Aryan -syntax, which no Welsh barrister has ever been able to explain to -the satisfaction of a bewildered English judge trying to administer -justice among a people whom he cannot wholly comprehend. - -This will serve to illustrate one of the difficulties with which -the collector of folklore in Wales has to cope. I have done my best -to reduce the possible extent of the error to which it might give -rise; and it is only fair to say that those whom I plagued with my -questionings bore the tedium of it with patience, and that to them -my thanks are due in a special degree. Neither they, however, nor I, -could reasonably complain, if we found other folklorists examining -other witnesses on points which had already occupied us; for in -such matters one may say with confidence, that in the multitude of -counsellors there is safety. - - -JOHN RHYS. - -Jesus College, Oxford, Christmas, 1900. - - - - - - - - -CONTENTS - - - PAGE - - GEOGRAPHICAL LIST OF AUTHORITIES xxv - - LIST OF BIBLIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCES xxxi - - - CHAPTER I - - Undine's Kymric Sisters 1 - - I. The legend of Llyn y Fan Fach 2 - II. The legend of Llyn y Forwyn 23 - III. Some Snowdon lake legends 30 - IV. The heir of Ystrad 38 - V. Llandegai and Llanllechid 50 - VI. Mapes' story of Llyn Syfadon 70 - - - CHAPTER II - - The Fairies' Revenge 75 - - I. Bedgelert and its environs 75 - II. The Pennant Valley 107 - III. Glasynys' yarns 109 - IV. An apple story 125 - V. The Conwy afanc 130 - VI. The Berwyn and Aran Fawdwy 135 - VII. The hinterland of Aberdovey 141 - VIII. Some more Merioneth stories 146 - IX. The Children of Rhys Dwfn 151 - X. Southey and the Green Isles of the Sea 169 - XI. The curse of Pantannas 173 - XII. More fairy displeasure 192 - - - CHAPTER III - - Fairy Ways and Words 197 - - I. The folklore of Nant Conwy 197 - II. Scenes of the Mabinogi of Math 207 - III. Celynnog Fawr and Llanaelhaearn 214 - IV. The blind man's folklore 219 - V. The old saddler's recollections 222 - VI. Traces of Tom Tit Tot 226 - VII. March and his horse's ears 231 - VIII. The story of the Marchlyn Mawr 234 - IX. The fairy ring of Cae Lleidr Dyfrydog 238 - X. A Cambrian kelpie 242 - XI. Sundry traits of fairy character 244 - XII. Ynys Geinon and its fairy treasures 251 - XIII. The aged infant 257 - XIV. Fairy speech 269 - - - CHAPTER IV - - Manx Folklore 284 - - The fenodyree or Manx brownie 286 - The sleih beggey or little people 289 - The butches or witches and the hare 293 - Charmers and their methods 296 - Comparisons from the Channel Islands 301 - Magic and ancient modes of thought 302 - The efficacy of fire to detect the witch 304 - Burnt sacrifices 305 - Laa Boaldyn or May-day 308 - Laa Lhunys or the beginning of harvest 312 - Laa Houney or Hollantide beginning the year 315 - Sundry prognostications and the time for them 317 - - - CHAPTER V - - The Fenodyree and his Friends 323 - - Lincolnshire parallels 323 - The brownie of Blednoch and Bwca'r Trwyn 325 - Prognostication parallels from Lincolnshire and - Herefordshire 327 - The traffic in wind and the Gallizenę 330 - Wells with rags and pins 332 - St. Catherine's hen plucked at Colby 335 - The qualtagh or the first-foot and the question - of race 336 - Sundry instances of things unlucky 342 - Manx reserve and the belief in the Enemy of Souls 346 - The witch of Endor's influence and the - respectability of the charmer's vocation 349 - Public penance enforced pretty recently 350 - - - CHAPTER VI - - The Folklore of the Wells 354 - - Rag wells in Wales 354 - The question of distinguishing between offerings - and vehicles of disease 358 - Mr. Hartland's decision 359 - The author's view revised and illustrated 360 - T. E. Morris' account of the pin well of Llanfaglan 362 - Other wishing and divining wells 364 - The sacred fish of Llanberis and Llangybi 366 - Ffynnon Grassi producing the Glasfryn lake 367 - The Morgan of that lake and his name 372 - Ffynnon Gywer producing Bala Lake 376 - Bala and other towns doomed to submersion 377 - The legend of Llyn Llech Owen 379 - The parallels of Lough Neagh and Lough Ree 381 - Seithennin's realm overwhelmed by the sea 382 - Seithennin's name and its congeners 385 - Prof. Dawkins on the Lost Lands of Wales 388 - Certain Irish wells not visited with impunity 389 - The Lough Sheelin legend compared with that of - Seithennin 393 - The priesthood of the wells of St. Elian and - St. Teilo 395 - - - CHAPTER VII - - Triumphs of the Water-world 401 - - The sea encroaching on the coast of Glamorgan 402 - The Kenfig tale of crime and vengeance 403 - The Crymlyn story and its touch of fascination 404 - Nennius' description of Oper Linn Liguan compared 406 - The vengeance legend of Bala Lake 408 - Legends about the Llynclys Pool 410 - The fate of Tyno Helig 414 - The belief in cities submerged intact 415 - The phantom city and the bells of Aberdovey 418 - The ethics of the foregoing legends discussed 419 - The limits of the delay of punishment 420 - Why the fairies delay their vengeance 423 - Non-ethical legends of the eruption of water 425 - Cutting the green sward a probable violation of - ancient tabu avenged by water divinities 427 - The lake afanc's rōle in this connexion 428 - The pigmies of the water-world 432 - The Conwy afanc and the Highland water-horse 433 - The equine features of March and Labraid Lore 435 - Mider and the Mac Óc's well horses 436 - The Gilla Decair's horse and Du March Moro 437 - March ab Meirchion associated with Mona 439 - The Welsh deluge Triads 440 - Names of the Dee and other rivers in North Wales 441 - The Lydney god Nudons, Nuada, and Llud 445 - The fairies associated in various ways with water 449 - The cyhiraeth and the Welsh banshee 452 - Ancestress rather than ancestor 454 - - - CHAPTER VIII - - Welsh Cave Legends 456 - - The question of classification 456 - The fairy cave of the Arennig Fawr 456 - The cave of Mynyd y Cnwc 457 - Waring's version of Iolo's legend of Craig y Dinas 458 - Craigfryn Hughes' Monmouthshire tale 462 - The story of the cave occupied by Owen Lawgoch 464 - How London Bridge came to figure in that story 466 - Owen Lawgoch in Ogo'r Dinas 467 - Dinas Emrys with the treasure hidden by Merlin 469 - Snowdonian treasure reserved for the Goidel 470 - Arthur's death on the side of Snowdon 473 - The graves of Arthur and Rhita 474 - Elis o'r Nant's story of Llanciau Eryri's cave 476 - The top of Snowdon named after Rhita 477 - Drystan's cairn 480 - The hairy man's cave 481 - Returning heroes for comparison with Arthur and - Owen Lawgoch 481 - The baledwyr's Owen to return as Henry the Ninth 484 - Owen a historical man = Froissart's Yvain de Gales 487 - Froissart's account of him and the questions it - raises 488 - Owen ousting Arthur as a cave-dweller 493 - Arthur previously supplanting a divinity of the - class of the sleeping Cronus of Demetrius 493 - Arthur's original sojourn located in Faery 495 - - - CHAPTER IX - - Place-name Stories 498 - - The Triad of the Swineherds of the Isle of Prydain 499 - The former importance of swine's flesh as food 501 - The Triad clause about Coll's straying sow 503 - Coll's wanderings arranged to explain place-names 508 - The Kulhwch account of Arthur's hunt of Twrch Trwyth - in Ireland 509 - A parley with the boars 511 - The hunt resumed in Pembrokeshire 512 - The boars reaching the Loughor Valley 514 - Their separation 515 - One killed by the Men of Llydaw in Ystrad Yw 516 - Ystrad Yw defined and its name explained 516 - Twrch Trwyth escaping to Cornwall after an - encounter in the estuary of the Severn 519 - The comb, razor, and shears of Twrch Trwyth 519 - The name Twrch Trwyth 521 - Some of the names evidence of Goidelic speech 523 - The story about Gwydion and his swine compared 525 - Place-name explanations blurred or effaced 526 - Enumeration of Arthur's losses in the hunt 529 - The Men of Llydaw's identity and their Syfadon home 531 - Further traces of Goidelic names 536 - A Twrch Trwyth incident mentioned by Nennius 537 - The place-name Carn Cabal discussed 538 - Duplicate names with the Goidelic form preferred - in Wales 541 - The same phenomenon in the Mabinogion 543 - The relation between the families of Llyr, Dōn, - and Pwyll 548 - The elemental associations of Llyr and Lir 549 - Matthew Arnold's idea of Medieval Welsh story 551 - Brān, the Tricephal, and the Letto-Slavic Triglaus 552 - Summary remarks as to the Goidels in Wales 553 - - - CHAPTER X - - Difficulties of the Folklorist 556 - - The terrors of superstition and magic 557 - The folklorist's activity no fostering of - superstition 558 - Folklore a portion of history 558 - The difficulty of separating story and history 559 - Arthur and the Snowdon Goidels as an illustration 559 - Rhita Gawr and the mad kings Nynio and Peibio 560 - Malory's version and the name Rhita, Ritho, Ryons 562 - Snowdon stories about Owen Ymhacsen and Cai 564 - Goidelic topography in Gwyned 566 - The Goidels becoming Compatriots or Kymry 569 - The obscurity of certain superstitions a difficulty 571 - Difficulties arising from their apparent absurdity - illustrated by the March and Labraid stories 571 - Difficulties from careless record illustrated by - Howells' Ychen Bannog 575 - Possible survival of traditions about the urus 579 - A brief review of the lake legends and the iron - tabu 581 - The scrappiness of the Welsh Tom Tit Tot stories 583 - The story of the widow of Kittlerumpit compared 585 - Items to explain the names Sģli Ffrit and Sģli - go Dwt 590 - Bwca'r Trwyn both brownie and bogie in one 593 - That bwca a fairy in service, like the Pennant - nurse 597 - The question of fairies concealing their names 597 - Magic identifying the name with the person 598 - Modryb Mari regarding cheese-baking as disastrous - to the flock 599 - Her story about the reaper's little black soul 601 - Gwenogvryn Evans' lizard version 603 - Diseases regarded as also material entities 604 - The difficulty of realizing primitive modes - of thought 605 - - - CHAPTER XI - - Folklore Philosophy 607 - - The soul as a pigmy or a lizard, and the word enaid 607 - A different notion in the Mabinogi of Math 608 - The belief in the persistence of the body through - changes 610 - Shape-shifting and rebirth in Gwion's - transformations 612 - Tuan mac Cairill, Amairgen, and Taliessin 615 - D'Arbois de Jubainville's view of Erigena's - teaching 617 - The druid master of his own transformations 620 - Death not a matter of course so much as of magic 620 - This incipient philosophy as Gaulish druidism 622 - The Gauls not all of one and the same beliefs 623 - The name and the man 624 - Enw, 'name,' and the idea of breathing 625 - The exact nature of the association still obscure 627 - The Celts not distinguishing between names and - things 628 - A Celt's name on him, not by him or with him 629 - The druid's method of name-giving non-Aryan 631 - Magic requiring metrical formulę 632 - The professional man's curse producing blisters 632 - A natural phenomenon arguing a thin-skinned race 633 - Cursing of no avail without the victim's name 635 - Magic and kingship linked in the female line 636 - - - CHAPTER XII - - Race in Folklore and Myth 639 - - Glottology and comparative mythology 640 - The question of the feminine in Welsh syntax 642 - The Irish goddess Danu and the Welsh Dōn 644 - Tynghed or destiny in the Kulhwch story 646 - Traces of a Welsh confarreatio in the same context 649 - Žokk in the Balder story compared with tynghed 650 - Questions of mythology all the harder owing to - race mixture 652 - Whether the picture of Cśchulainn in a rage be - Aryan or not 653 - Cśchulainn exempt from the Ultonian couvade 654 - Cśchulainn racially a Celt in a society reckoning - descent by birth 656 - Cśchulainn as a rebirth of Lug paralleled in - Lapland 657 - Doubtful origin of certain legends about Lug 658 - The historical element in fairy stories and lake - legends 659 - The notion of the fairies being all women 661 - An illustration from Central Australia 662 - Fairy counting by fives evidence of a non-Celtic - race 663 - The Basque numerals as an illustration 665 - Prof. Sayce on Irishmen and Berbers 665 - Dark-complexioned people and fairy changelings 666 - The blond fairies of the Pennant district - exceptional 668 - A summary of fairy life from previous chapters 668 - Sir John Wynne's instance of men taken for fairies 670 - Some of the Brythonic names for fairies 671 - Dwarfs attached to the fortunes of their masters 672 - The question of fairy cannibalism 673 - The fairy Corannians and the historical Coritani 674 - St. Guthlac at Croyland in the Fens 676 - The Irish sid, side, and the Welsh Caer Sidi 677 - The mound dwellings of Pechts and Irish fairies 679 - Prof. J. Morris Jones explaining the non-Aryan - syntax of neo-Celtic by means of Egyptian and - Berber 681 - The Picts probably the race that introduced it 682 - The first pre-Celtic people here 683 - Probably of the same race as the neolithic dwarfs - of the Continent 683 - The other pre-Celtic race, the Picts and the people - of the Mabinogion 684 - A word or two by way of epilogue 686 - - Additions and Corrections 689 - - Index 695 - - - - - - - - -We are too hasty when we set down our ancestors in the gross for -fools, for the monstrous inconsistencies (as they seem to us) -involved in their creed of witchcraft. In the relations of this -visible world we find them to have been as rational, and shrewd -to detect an historic anomaly, as ourselves. But when once the -invisible world was supposed to be opened, and the lawless agency -of bad spirits assumed, what measures of probability, of decency, of -fitness, or proportion--of that which distinguishes the likely from -the palpable absurd--could they have to guide them in the rejection -or admission of any particular testimony? That maidens pined away, -wasting inwardly as their waxen images consumed before a fire--that -corn was lodged, and cattle lamed--that whirlwinds uptore in diabolic -revelry the oaks of the forest--or that spits and kettles only danced -a fearful-innocent vagary about some rustic's kitchen when no wind -was stirring--were all equally probable where no law of agency was -understood.... There is no law to judge of the lawless, or canon by -which a dream may be criticised. - - Charles Lamb's Essays of Elia. - - - - - - - - -A GEOGRAPHICAL LIST OF AUTHORITIES AND SOURCES OF THE MORE IMPORTANT -CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE WELSH FOLKLORE - - -ANGLESEY. - -Aberffraw: E. S. Roberts (after Hugh Francis), 240, 241. - -Llandyfrydog: E. S. Roberts (after Robert Roberts), 239, 240. - -Llyn yr Wyth Eidion: (no particulars), 429. - -Mynyd y Cnwc: A writer in the Brython for 1859, 457, 458. - -Mynyd Mechell: Morris Evans (from his grandmother), 203, 204. - -Towyn Trewern: John Roberts, 36-8. - - ? : Lewis Morris, in the Gwyliedyd, 450-2. - - - -BRECKNOCKSHIRE. - -Cwm Tawe: Rd. L. Davies, 256, 257. - - ,, : Rd. L. Davies (after J. Davies), 251-6. - -Llangorse: Giraldus, in his Itinerarium Kambrię, 72. - - ? : Walter Mapes, in his book De Nugis, 70-2. - - ? : The Brython for 1863, 73, 74. - -Llyn Cwm Llwch neighbourhood: Ivor James, 21, 430, 445. - - ? : Ed. Davies, in his Mythology and Rites, 20, 21. - - - -CARDIGANSHIRE. - -Atpar: John Rhys (from Joseph Powell), 648, 649. - -Bronnant: D. Ll. Davies, 248, 249. - -Cadabowen: J. Gwenogvryn Evans, 603, 604. - -Llanwenog: J. Gwenogvryn Evans, 648. - -Llyn Eidwen: J. E. Rogers of Abermeurig, 578. - -Moedin: Howells, in his Cambrian Superstitions, 245. - - ,, : D. Silvan Evans, in his Ystźn Sioned, 271-3. - -Ponterwyd: John Rhys, 294, 338, 378, 391, 392. - - ,, : Mary Lewis (Modryb Mari), 601, 602. - -Swyd Ffynnon: D. Ll. Davies, 246, 247, 250. - -Tregaron and neighbourhood: John Rhys (from John Jones and others), -577-9. - -Troed yr Aur } : Benjamin Williams (Gwynionyd), 166-8. - and } : Gwynionyd, in the Brython for 1858 and 1860, - Verwig? } 151-5, 158-60, 163, 164, 464-6. - -Ystrad Meurig: Isaac Davies, 245. - - ,, ,, : A farmer, 601. - - ? : A writer in the Brython for 1861, 690. - - - -CARMARTHENSHIRE. - -Cenarth: B. Davies, in the Brython, 1858, 161, 162. - -Llandeilo: D. Lleufer Thomas, in Y Geninen for 1896, 469. - - ,, : Mr. Stepney-Gulston, in the Arch. Camb. for 1893, 468. - -Llandybie: John Fisher, 379, 380. - - ,, : Howells, in his Cambrian Superstitions, 381. - - ,, : John Fisher and J. P. Owen, 468. - -Mydfai: Wm. Rees of Tonn, in the Physicians of Mydvai, 2-15. - - ,, : The Bishop of St. Asaph, 15, 16. - - ,, : John Rhys, 16. - - ? : Joseph Joseph of Brecon, 16. - - ? : Wirt Sikes, in his British Goblins, 17, 18. - -Mynyd y Banwen: Llywarch Reynolds, 18, 19, 428-30. - - ? : I. Craigfryn Hughes, 487. - - - -CARNARVONSHIRE. - -Aber Soch: Margaret Edwards, 231. - - ,, : A blacksmith in the neighbourhood, 232. - - ? : Edward Llwyd: see the Brython for 1860, 233, 234. - - ? : MS. 134 in the Peniarth Collection, 572, 573. - -Aberdaron: Mrs. Williams and another, 228. - - ? : Evan Williams of Rhos Hirwaen, 230. - -Bedgelert: Wm. Jones, 49, 80, 81, 94-7, 99, 100-5. - - ,, : ,, in the Brython for 1861-2, 86-9, 98-9. - - ,, : The Brython for 1861, 470, 473, 474. - -Bethesda: David Evan Davies (Dewi Glan Ffrydlas), 60-4, 66. - -Bettws y Coed: Edward Llwyd: see the Cambrian Journal for 1859, 130-3. - -Criccieth neighbourhood: Edward Llewelyn, 219-21. - - ? : Edward Llwyd: see the Camb. Journal for 1859, 201, 202. - -Dinorwig: E. Lloyd Jones, 234-7. - -Dolbenmaen: W. Evans Jones, 107-9. - -Dolwydelan: see Bedgelert. - - ,, : see Gwybrnant. - -Drws y Coed: S. R. Williams (from M. Williams and another), 38-40. - - ? : ,, 89, 90. - -Edern: John Williams (Alaw Lleyn), 275-9. - -Four Crosses: Lewis Jones, 222-5. - -Glasfryn Uchaf: John Jones (Myrdin Fard), 367, 368. - - ,, ,, : Mr. and Mrs. Williams-Ellis, 368-72. - -Glynllifon: Wm. Thomas Solomon, 208-14. - -Gwybrnant: Ellis Pierce (Elis o'r Nant), 476-9. - -Llanaelhaearn: R. Hughes of Uwchlaw'r Ffynnon, 214, 215, 217-9. - -Llanberis: Mrs. Rhys and her relatives, 31-6, 604. - - ,, : M. and O. Rhys, 229. - - ,, : A correspondent in the Liverpool Mercury, 366, 367. - - ? : Howell Thomas (from G. B. Gattie), 125-30. - - ? : Pennant, in his Tours in Wales, 125. - -Llandegai: H. Derfel Hughes, 52-60, 68. - - ,, : ,, ,, in his Antiquities, 471, 472. - - ,, : E. Owen, in the Powysland Club's Collections, 237, 238. - -Llandwrog: Hugh Evans and others, 207. - -Llanfaglan: T. E. Morris (from Mrs. Roberts), 362, 363. - -Llangybi: John Jones (Myrdin Fard), 366. - - ,, : Mrs. Williams-Ellis, 366, 471. - -Llaniestin: Evan Williams, 228, 229, 584. - -Llanllechid: Owen Davies (Eos Llechid), 41-6, 50-2. - -Nefyn: Lowri Hughes and another woman, 226, 227. - - ,, : John Williams (Alaw Lleyn), 228. - - ,, : A writer in the Brython for 1860, 164. - -Penmachno: Gethin Jones, 204-6. - -Rhyd Du: Mrs. Rhys, 604. - -Trefriw: Morris Hughes and J. D. Maclaren, 198-201. - - ,, : Pierce Williams, 30. - -Tremadoc: Jane Williams, 221, 222. - - ,, : R. I. Jones (from his mother and Ellis Owen), 105-7. - - ,, : Ellis Owen (cited by Wm. Jones), 95. - -Waen Fawr: Owen Davies, 41. - - ? : Glasynys, in Cymru Fu, 91-3, 110-23. - - ? : ,, in the Brython for 1863, 40, 41. - - ? : A London Eistedfod (1887) competitor, 361, 362. - - ? : John Jones (Myrdin Fard), 361, 362, 364-8. - - ? : Owen Jones (quoted in the Brython for 1861), 414, 415. - -Yspytty Ifan?: A Liverpool Eistedfod (1900) competitor, 692. - - - -DENBIGHSHIRE. - -Bryneglwys: E. S. Roberts (from Mrs. Davies), 241, 242. - -Eglwyseg: E. S. Roberts (after Thomas Morris), 238. - -Ffynnon Eilian: Mrs. Silvan Evans, 357. - - ,, ,, : Isaac Foulkes, in his Enwogion Cymru, 396. - - ,, ,, : Lewis, in his Topographical Dictionary, 395, 396. - - ,, ,, : P. Roberts, in his Camb. Popular Antiquities, 396. - - ,, ,, : A writer in Y Nofeld, 396. - -Llangollen: Hywel (Wm. Davies), 148. - -Pentre Voelas: Elias Owen, in his Welsh Folk-Lore, 222. - - - -FLINTSHIRE. - -Nil. - - - -GLAMORGANSHIRE. - -Bridgend: J. H. Davies, D. Brynmor-Jones, J. Rhys, 354, 355. - -Crymlyn: Cadrawd, in the South Wales Daily News, 405, 406. - - ? : Wirt Sikes, in his British Goblins, 191, 192, 405. - -Kenfig: Iolo Morganwg, in the Iolo MSS., 403, 404. - - ? : David Davies, 402. - -Llanfabon: I. Craigfryn Hughes, 257-268. - -Llanwynno: Glanffrwd, in his Plwyf Llanwyno, 26. - -Merthyr Tydfil: Llywarch Reynolds (from his mother), 269. - -Quakers' Yard: I. Craigfryn Hughes, 173-91. - -Rhonda Fechan: Llewellyn Williams, 24, 25. - - ,, ,, : J. Probert Evans, 25, 27. - - ,, ,, : Ll. Reynolds (from D. Evans and others), 27-9. - -Rhonda Valley: D. J. Jones, 356. - - ? : Dafyd Morganwg, in his Hanes Morganwg, 356. - - ? : Waring, in his Recollections of Edward Williams, 458-61. - - - -MERIONETHSHIRE. - -Aberdovey: J. Pughe, in the Arch. Camb. for 1853, 142-6, 428. - - ,, : Mrs. Prosser Powell, 416. - - ? : M. B., in the Monthly Packet for 1859, 416, 417. - -Ardudwy: Hywel (Wm. Davies), 147, 148. - -Bala: David Jones of Trefriw: see Cyfaill yr Aelwyd, 376, 377. - - ,, : Wm. Davies and Owen M. Edwards, 378. - - ? : Humphreys' Llyfr Gwybodaeth Gyffredinol, 408-10. - - ? : J. H. Roberts, in Edwards' Cymru for 1897, 148-51. - -Dolgelley: Lucy Griffith (from a Dolgelley man), 243, 244. - -Llandrillo: E. S. Roberts (from A. Evans and Mrs. Edwards), 138-41. - -Llanegryn: Mr. Williams and Mr. Rowlands, 243. - - ,, : A Llanegryn man (after Wm. Pritchard), 242. - - ,, : Another Llanegryn man, 242, 243. - -Llanuwchllyn: Owen M. Edwards, 147. - - ? : J. H. Roberts, in Edwards' Cymru for 1897, 215-7, 457. - - ? : Glasynys, in the Brython for 1862, 137. - - ? : ,, in the Taliesin for 1859-60, 215, 216, 456, 457. - - - -MONMOUTHSHIRE. - -Aberystruth: Edm. Jones, in his Parish of Aberystruth, 195, 196. - -Llandeilo Cressenny: Elizabeth Williams, 192, 193. - -Llanover: Wm. Williams and other gardeners there, 193, 194. - - ,, : Mrs. Gardner of Ty Uchaf Llanover, 194, 195. - - ,, : Professor Sayce, 602. - -Risca?: I. Craigfryn Hughes (from hearsay in the district between -Llanfabon and Caerleon), 462-4, 487, 593-6. - - - -MONTGOMERYSHIRE. - -Llanidloes: Elias Owen, in his Welsh Folk-Lore, 275. - - - -PEMBROKESHIRE. - -Fishguard: E. Perkins of Penysgwarne, 172, 173. - - ,, : Ferrar Fenton, in the Pembroke County Guardian, 160. - -Llandeilo Llwydarth: The Melchior family, 398. - - ,, ,, : Benjamin Gibby, 399, 400. - -Nevern: J. Thomas of Bancau Bryn Berian, 689. - -Trevine: 'Ancient Mariner,' in the Pembroke County Guardian, 171. - - ? : Ferrar Fenton, in the Pembroke County Guardian, 171. - - ? : Ab Nadol, in the Brython for 1861, 165. - - ? : Southey, in his Madoc, 170. - - - -RADNORSHIRE. - -Nil. - - - - - - - - -TO ALL SORTS AND CONDITIONS OF MEN - - -The author would be glad to hear of unrecorded Welsh stories, or -bits of Welsh stories not comprised in this volume. He would also be -grateful for the names of more localities in which the stories here -given, or variants of them, are still remembered. It will be his -endeavour to place on record all such further information, except -stories about spooks and ghosts of the ordinary type. - - - - - - - - -LIST OF BIBLIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCES - - -Ab Gwilym: Bardoniaeth Dafyd ab Gwilym, edited by Cyndelw (Liverpool, -1873), 206, 233, 439, 444, 671. - -Adamnan: The Life of St. Columba, written by Adamnan, edited by -William Reeves (Dublin, 1857), 545. - -Agrippa: H. 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Gillen (London, 1899), 662, 663. - -Giraldus: Giraldi Cambrensis Itinerarium Kambrię et Descriptio -Kambrię, edited by James F. Dimock (Rolls Series, London, 1868), 72, -90, 269-71, 303, 389, 414, 441, 507, 509, 660. - -Glanffrwd: Plwyf Llanwyno: yr hen Amser, yr hen Bobl, a'r hen Droion, -by Glanffrwd [the Rev. W. Glanffrwd Thomas] (Pontyprid, 1888), 26. - -Gottingen: Göttingische gelehrte Anzeigen, unter der Aufsicht der -königl. Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften (Gottingen, 1890), 544. - -Gregor: Notes on the Folk-lore of the North-east of Scotland, by -the Rev. Walter Gregor, published for the Folk-Lore Society (London, -1881), 103. - -Griffin: The Poetical and Dramatic Works of Gerald Griffin (Dublin, -1857), 205, 418. - -Gröber: Grundriss der romanischen Philologie, unter Mitwirkung von -25 Fachgenossen, edited by Gustav Gröber (Strassburg, 1886), 563. - - ,, : Zeitschrift für romanische Philologie, edited by Gustav Gröber -(Halle, 1877-), 563. - -Gruter: Iani Gruteri Corpus Inscriptionum (part ii of vol. i, -Amsterdam, 1707), 580. - -Guest: The Mabinogion, from the Llyfr Coch o Hergest and other ancient -Welsh manuscripts, with an English translation and notes by Lady -Charlotte Guest (London, 1849), 69, 123, 196, 386, 442, 502, 507, -509, 538, 553, 560, 613, 620, 629, 645-7, 649, 672. - -Gwenogvryn: Facsimile of the Black Book of Carmarthen, reproduced -by the autotype mechanical process, with a palęographical note by -J. Gwenogvryn Evans (Oxford, 1888), 216, 217, 383, 384, 413, 432, -478, 513, 527, 543, 545, 563, 565, 619, 621. - - ,, : Report on Manuscripts in the Welsh Language, published by -the Historical MSS. Commission (vol. i, London, 1898-9), 280, 330, -487, 573. - - ,, : The Text of the Bruts from the Red Book of Hergest, edited -by John Rhys and J. Gwenogvryn Evans (Oxford, 1890), 163, 201, 442, -506, 512, 562. - - ,, : The Text of the 'Mabinogion' and other Welsh Tales from -the Red Book of Hergest, edited by John Rhys and J. Gwenogvryn Evans -(Oxford, 1887), 69, 142, 196, 207, 208, 217, 218, 225, 226, 233, 264, -280, 287, 315, 386, 388, 425, 430, 439, 440, 442, 498, 500, 502, 506, -507, 509-16, 519-27, 529-34, 536, 537, 543, 546-8, 550, 551, 553, 560, -561, 565, 580, 608-10, 613, 619, 620, 622, 628-30, 636, 637, 644, 645, -647, 649, 657, 672. - - ,, : The Text of the Book of Llan Dāv, reproduced from the -Gwysaney manuscript by J. G. Evans, with the co-operation of John Rhys -(Oxford, 1893) [this is also known as the Liber Landavensis], 163, -398, 476, 478, 528, 531, 568, 691. - - - -Hancock: Senchus Mór, vol. i, prefaced by W. Neilson Hancock (Dublin, -1865), 617. - -Hardy: Descriptive Catalogue of Materials relating to the History -of Great Britain and Ireland, by Thos. Duffus Hardy (vol. i, London, -1862), 476. - -Hartland: The Legend of Perseus, a study of tradition in story, -custom, and belief, by Edwin Sidney Hartland (London, 1894-6), 662. - -Hartland: The Science of Fairy Tales, an inquiry into fairy mythology, -by Edwin Sidney Hartland (London, 1891), 18, 268, 583. - -Henderson: Fled Bricrend, edited with translation, introduction, -and notes, by George Henderson (London, 1899), 501. - -Henderson: Notes on the Folk-Lore of the Northern Counties of England -and the Borders, by Wm. Henderson (London, 1879), 340, 346. - -Herbord: Herbordi Vita Ottonis Ep. Bambergensis, in vol. xiv of Pertz' -Monumenta Germanię Historica Scriptorum [= Script. vol. xii], edited -by G. H. Pertz (Hanover, 1826-85), 553. - -Hergest: The Red Book of Hergest: see Guest, Gwenogvryn, Skene. - -Heywood: The Dramatic Works of Thomas Heywood (London, 1874), 694. - -Higden: Polychronicon Ranulphi Higden Monachi Cestrensis, together -with the English translations of John Trevisa and an unknown writer -of the fifteenth century, edited by Ch. Babington (Rolls Series, -London, 1865-86), 330, 331. - -Holder: Alt-celtischer Sprachschatz, by Alfred Holder (Leipsic, -1896-), 533, 622, 659. - -Howells: Cambrian Superstitions, comprising ghosts, omens, witchcraft, -and traditions, by W. Howells (Tipton, 1831), 74, 155, 160, 173, 204, -245, 268, 331, 424, 453, 469, 576-9. - -Hübner: Das Heiligtum des Nodon: see 446. - - ,, : Inscriptiones Britannię Latinę, edited by Ęmilius Hübner and -published by the Berlin Academy (Berlin, 1873), 535. - -Humphreys: Golud yr Oes, a Welsh magazine published by H. Humphreys -(vol. i, Carnarvon, 1863), 493. - - ,, : Llyfr Gwybodaeth Gyffredinol, a collection of Humphreys' -penny series (Carnarvon, no date), 408. - - - -Iolo: Iolo Manuscripts, a selection of ancient Welsh manuscripts -in prose and verse from the collection made by Edward Williams -(Iolo Morganwg), with English translations and notes by his son, -Taliesin Williams Ab Iolo, and published for the Welsh MSS. Society -(Llandovery, 1848), 564, 565, 569, 619. - -Iolo Goch: Gweithiau Iolo Goch gyda Nodiadau hanesydol a beirniadol, -by Charles Ashton, published for the Cymmrodorion Society (Oswestry, -1896), 281, 367. - - - -Jacobs: Celtic Fairy Tales, selected and edited by Joseph Jacobs -(London, 1892), 567. - -Jamieson: An Etymological Dictionary of the Scottish Language, by -John Jamieson (new ed., Paisley, 1881-2), 591. - -Jamieson: Popular Ballads and Songs, by Robert Jamieson (Edinburgh, -1806), 592. - - - -Jenkins: Bed Gelert, its Facts, Fairies, and Folk-Lore, by -D. E. Jenkins (Portmadoc, 1899), 450, 453, 469, 533, 567. - -Johnstone: Antiquitates Celto-Normannicę, containing the Chronicle -of Man and the Isles, abridged by Camden, edited by James Johnstone -(Copenhagen, 1786), 334. - -Jones: see p. 195 for Edmund Jones' Account of the Parish of -Aberystruth (Trevecka, 1779), 195, 196. - - ,, : see p. 195 as to his Spirits in the County of Monmouth -(Newport, 1813), 195, 217, 350. - -Jones: The Elucidarium and other tracts in Welsh from Llyvyr Agkyr -Llandewivrevi, A.D. 1346 (Jesus College MS. 119), edited by J. Morris -Jones and John Rhys (Oxford, 1894), 529, 693. - -Jones: The Myvyrian Archaiology of Wales, collected out of ancient -manuscripts, by Owen Jones 'Myvyr,' Edward Williams, and William Owen -(London, 1801; reprinted in one volume by Thomas Gee, Denbigh, 1870), -441, 469, 529, 560, 610, 619. - -Jones: A History of the County of Brecknock, by the Rev. Theophilus -Jones (Brecknock, 1805, 1809), 516-8. - -Joyce: Old Celtic Romances, translated from the Gaelic by P. W. Joyce -(London, 1879), 94, 376, 381, 437, 662. - -Jubainville: Le Cycle mythologique irlandais et la Mythologie celtique, -by H. d'Arbois de Jubainville (Paris, 1884), 616, 617, 620. - - ,, : Essai d'un Catalogue de la Littérature épique de -l'Irlande, by H. d'Arbois de Jubainville (Paris, 1883), 549, 616, -617, 620. - - - -Kaluza: Libeaus Desconus, edited by Max Kaluza (Leipsic, 1890), 562. - -Keating: Forus Feasa air Éirinn, Keating's History of Ireland, book i, -part i, edited, with a literal translation, by P. W. Joyce (Dublin, -1880), 375. - -Kelly: Fockleyr Manninagh as Baarlagh, a Manx-English Dictionary by -John Kelly, edited by William Gill, and printed for the Manx Society -(Douglas, 1866), 316, 349. - -Kermode: Yn Lioar Manninagh, the Journal of the Isle of Man Natural -History and Antiquarian Society, edited by P. M. C. Kermode (Douglas, -1889-), 284, 289, 311, 334, 434. - -Kuhn: Beiträge zur vergleichenden Sprachforschung auf dem Gebiete der -arischen, celtischen und slawischen Sprachen, edited by Kuhn and others -(Berlin, 1858-76), 629. - - ,, : Zeitschrift für vergleichende Sprachforschung auf dem Gebiete - der indogermanischen Sprachen, edited by Kuhn and others (Berlin, - 1854-), 625. - - - -Lampeter: The Magazine of St. David's College, Lampeter, 156. - -Leem: Canuti Leemii de Lapponibus Finmarchię Commentatio (Copenhagen, -1767), 658, 663. - -Leger: Cyrille et Méthode, Étude historique sur la Conversion des -Slaves au Christianisme, by Louis Leger (Paris, 1868), 553. - -Lewis: A Topographical Dictionary of Wales, by Samuel Lewis (3rd ed., -London, 1844), 395, 397, 470. - -Leyden: The Poetical Works of John Leyden (Edinburgh, 1875), 466. - -Lhuyd: Commentarioli Britannicę Descriptionis Fragmentum, by Humfrey -Lhuyd (Cologne, 1572), 412. - -Lindsay: The Latin Language, an historical account of Latin sounds, -stems, and flexions, by Wallace Martin Lindsay (Oxford, 1894), 629. - -Loth: Les Mots latins dans les langues brittoniques, by J. Loth -(Paris, 1892), 383. - -Llais y Wlad, a newspaper published at Bangor, N. Wales, 234. - - - -Mabinogion: see Guest and Gwenogvryn. - -Macbain: The Celtic Magazine, edited by Alexander Macbain (Inverness, -1866-), 520. - -Malmesbury: De Gestis Pontificum Anglorum Libri Quinque, edited by -N. E. S. A. Hamilton (Rolls Series, London, 1870), 547. - -Malory: Le Morte Darthur, by Syr Thomas Malory, the original Caxton -edition reprinted and edited with an introduction and glossary by -H. Oskar Sommer (Nutt, London, 1889), 476, 562. - - ,, : Sir Thomas Malory's Morte Darthur, with a preface by John -Rhys, published by J. M. Dent & Co. (London, 1893), 543, 565. - -Mapes: Gualteri Mapes de Nugis Curialium Distinctiones Quinque, edited -by Thomas Wright and printed for the Camden Society, 1850 [at the last -moment a glance at the original Bodley MS. 851 forced me to deviate -somewhat from Wright's reading owing to its inaccuracy], 70-2, 496. - -Marquardt: Das Privatleben der Römer, by J. Marquardt (Leipsic, -1886), 650. - -Martin: A Description of the Western Islands of Scotland, by M. Martin -(London, 1703), 615, 691, 692. - -Maspero: see 682. - -Maximus: Valerii Maximi factorum dictorumque memorabilium Libri novem -ad Tiberium Cęsarem Augustum (the Didot ed., Paris, 1871), 623. - -Mela: Pomponii Melę de Chorographia Libri Tres, ed. Gustavus Parthey -(Berlin, 1867), 331, 550. - -Meyer: Festschrift Whitley Stokes, dedicated by Kuno Meyer and others -(Leipsic, 1900), 645. - - ,, : The Vision of MacConglinne, edited with a translation by Kuno -Meyer (London, 1892), 393, 501. - -Meyer: Zeitschrift für celtische Philologie, edited by Kuno Meyer -and L. C. Stern (Halle, 1897-), 500. - -Meyer: Romania, Recueil trimestriel consacré ą l'Étude des Langues -et des Littératures romanes, edited by Paul Meyer and Gaston Paris -(vol. xxviii. Paris, 1899), 690, 693, 694. - -Meyrick: The History and Antiquities of the County of Cardigan, -by Samuel Rush Meyrick (London, 1808), 579. - -Milton: English Poems, by John Milton, 288. - -Mind, a quarterly review of psychology and philosophy, edited by -G. F. Stout (London, 1876-), 633. - -Mommsen: Heortologie, antiquarische Untersuchungen über die städtischen -Feste der Athener, by August Mommsen (Leipsic, 1864), 310. - -Monthly Packet, the, now edited by C. R. Coleridge and Arthur Innes -(London, 1851-), 416, 417. - -Moore: The Folk-Lore of the Isle of Man, by A. W. Moore (London, -1891), 284. - - ,, : The Surnames and Place-names of the Isle of Man, by A. W. Moore -(London, 1890), 311, 332, 334. - -Morgan: An Antiquarian Survey of East Gower, Glamorganshire, by -W. Ll. Morgan (London, 1899), 404. - -Morganwg: Hanes Morganwg, by Dafyd Morganwg [D. W. Jones, -F.G.S.] (Aberdare, 1874) [an octavo volume issued to subscribers, -and so scarce now that I had to borrow a copy], 356. - -Morris: Celtic Remains, by Lewis Morris, edited by Silvan Evans and -printed for the Cambrian Archęological Association (London, 1878), -148, 413, 564, 566, 694. - -Myrdin: Prophwydoliaeth Myrdin Wyllt: see 485. - - - -Nennius: Nennius und Gildas, edited by San-Marte (Berlin, 1844), 281, -406, 407, 537-9, 570. - -New English Dictionary, edited by Dr. James H. Murray and Henry Bradley -(London and Oxford, 1884-), 317. - -Nicholson: Golspie, contributions to its folklore, collected and -edited by Edward W. B. Nicholson (London, 1897), 317. - -Nicholson: The Poetical Works of Wm. Nicholson (3rd ed., Castle -Douglas, 1878), 325. - -Notes and Queries (Bream's Buildings, Chancery Lane, E.C.), 563. - - ,, : Choice Notes from 'Notes and Queries,' consisting of folklore -(London, 1859), 140, 213, 217, 325, 418, 453, 454, 494, 596, 601, 611, -612. - -Nutt: The Voyage of Bran son of Febal to the Land of the Living, -by Kuno Meyer and Alfred Nutt (London, 1895, 1897), 618, 620, 622, -657, 662. - - ,, : Studies on the Legend of the Holy Grail, by Alfred Nutt (London, -1888), 287, 438, 548. - - - -O'Curry: On the Manners and Customs of the Ancient Irish, a series -of lectures delivered by the late Eugene O'Curry (London, 1873), 375, -392, 617, 632: see also Curry. - -O'Donovan: Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland by the Four Masters, -from the earliest period to the year 1616, edited by John O'Donovan -(2nd ed., Dublin, 1856), 414, 426-8, 433, 546, 569. - -O'Grady: Silva Gadelica, a collection of tales in Irish, with extracts -illustrating persons and places, edited from manuscripts and translated -by Dr. S. H. O'Grady (London, 1892), 381, 437. - -O'Reilly: An Irish-English Dictionary, by Edward O'Reilly, with a -supplement by John O'Donovan (Dublin, 1864), 142. - -Oliver: Monumenta de Insula Mannię, being vol. iv of the publications -of the Manx Society, by J. R. Oliver (Douglas, 1860), 314, 334. - -Owen: Ancient Laws and Institutes of Wales, edited by Aneurin Owen -for the Public Records Commission (London, 1841), 421. - -Owen: Welsh Folk-Lore, a collection of the folk-tales and legends of -North Wales, being the prize essay of the National Eistedfod in 1887, -by the Rev. Elias Owen (Oswestry and Wrexham, 1896), 222, 275, 690. - -Owen: The Poetical Works of the Rev. Goronwy Owen, with his life and -correspondence, edited by the Rev. Robert Jones (London, 1876), 84. - -Owen: The Description of Pembrokeshire, by George Owen of Henllys, -edited with notes and an appendix by Henry Owen (London, 1892), 506, -513, 515. - -Owen: The Cambrian Biography, or Historical Notices of celebrated men -among the Ancient Britons, by William Owen (London, 1803), 169, 170. - - - -Paris: Merlin, Roman en Prose du XIIIe Sičcle, edited by Gaston Paris -and Jacob Ulrich (Paris, 1886), 563. - -Parthey: Itinerarium Antonini Augusti et Hierosolymitanum ex Libris -manu scriptis, edited by G. Parthey and M. Pinder (Berlin, 1848), 514. - -Pembroke County Guardian, the, a newspaper owned and edited by -H. W. Williams and published at Solva, 160, 171, 172. - -Pennant: A Tour in Scotland, by Thomas Pennant (Warrington, 1774), 310. - - ,, : A Tour in Scotland and a Voyage to the Hebrides, MDCCLXXII, -by Thomas Pennant (Chester, 1774), 692. - - ,, : Tours in Wales, by Thomas Pennant, edited by J. Rhys -(Carnarvon, 1883), 125, 130, 532. - -Phillimore: Annales Cambrię and Old-Welsh Genealogies from Harleian -MS. 3859, edited by Egerton Phillimore, in vol. ix of the Cymmrodor, -408, 476, 480, 551, 570. - -Phillips: The Book of Common Prayer in Manx Gaelic, being translations -made by Bishop Phillips in 1610 and by the Manx clergy in 1765; -edited by A. W. Moore, assisted by John Rhys, and printed for the -Manx Society (Douglas, 1893, 1894), 320. - -Plautus: T. Macci Plauti Asinaria, from the text of Goetz and Schoell, -by J. H. Gray (Cambridge, 1894), 535. - -Plutarch: De Defectu Oraculorum (the Didot ed., Paris, 1870), 331, -456, 493, 494. - -Powysland: Collections, historical and archęological, relating to -Montgomeryshire and its Borders, issued by the Powysland Club (London, -1868-), 237. - -Preller: Griechische Mythologie, von L. Preller, vierte Auflage von -Carl Robert (Berlin, 1887), 310. - -Price: Hanes Cymru a Chenedl y Cymry o'r Cynoesoed hyd at farwolaeth -Llewelyn ap Gruffyd, by the Rev. Thomas Price 'Carnhuanawc' -(Crickhowel, 1842), 490. - -Ptolemy: Claudii Ptolemęi Geographia: e Codicibus recognovit Carolus -Müllerus (vol. i, Paris, 1883), 385, 387, 388, 445, 581. - -Pughe: The Physicians of Mydvai (Medygon Mydfai), translated by John -Pughe of Aberdovey, and edited by the Rev. John Williams Ab Ithel -(Llandovery, 1861) [this volume has an introduction consisting of the -Legend of Llyn y Fan Fach, contributed by Mr. William Rees of Tonn, -who collected it, in the year 1841, from various sources named], 2, 12. - -Pughe: A Dictionary of the Welsh Language explained in English, -by Dr. Wm. Owen Pughe (2nd ed., Denbigh, 1832), 383, 502. - - - -Rastell: A. C. Mery Talys, printed by John Rastell, reprinted in -Hazlitt's Shakespeare Jest-books (London, 1844), 599. - -Rees: An Essay on the Welsh Saints or the primitive Christians usually -considered to have been the founders of Churches in Wales, by the -Rev. Rice Rees (London and Llandovery, 1836), 163, 217, 396, 534. - -Rees: Lives of the Cambro-British Saints, by the Rev. W. J. Rees, -published for the Welsh MSS. Society (Llandovery, 1853), 693. - -Rennes: Annales de Bretagne publiées par la Faculté des Lettres de -Rennes (Rennes, 1886-), 500. - -Revue Archéologique (new series, vol. xxiii, Paris, 1800-), 386. - -Rhys: Celtic Britain, by John Rhys (2nd ed., London, 1884), 72. - - ,, : Lectures on Welsh Philology, by John Rhys (2nd ed., London, -1879), 566. - - ,, : Hibbert Lectures, 1886, on the origin and growth of religion -as illustrated by Celtic heathendom, by John Rhys (London, 1888), -310, 321, 328, 331, 373, 387, 432, 435, 444, 447, 511, 542, 570, -613, 654, 657, 694. - -Rhys: Studies in the Arthurian Legend, by John Rhys (Oxford, 1891), -217, 287, 331, 375, 382, 387, 435, 438-41, 466, 494, 496, 561, 573, -610, 613. - -Rhys: Cambrobrytannicę Cymraecęve Linguę Institutiones et -Rudimenta ... conscripta ą Joanne Dauide Rhęso, Monensi Lanuaethlęo -Cambrobrytanno, Medico Senensi (London, 1592), 22, 225. - -Richard: The Poetical Works of the Rev. Edward Richard (London, -1811), 577. - -Richards: A Welsh and English Dictionary, by Thomas Richards (Trefriw, -1815) 378. - -Roberts: The Cambrian Popular Antiquities, by Peter Roberts, (London, -1815), 396. - -Rosellini: see 682. - -Rymer: Foedera, Conventiones, Literę et cujuscunque Generis Acta -publica inter Reges Anglię et alios quosvis Imperatores, Reges, -Pontifices, Principes, vel Communitates, edited by Thomas Rymer -(vol. viii, London, 1709), 490. - - - -Sale: The Koran, translated into English with explanatory notes and -a preliminary discourse, by George Sale (London, 1877), 608. - -Sampson: Otia Merseiana, the publication of the Arts Faculty of -University College, Liverpool, edited by John Sampson (London), -393, 451. - -San-Marte: Beiträge zur bretonischen und celtisch-germanischen -Heldensage, by San-Marte (Quedlinburg, 1847), 611. - -Schwan: Grammatik des Altfranzösischen, by Eduard Schwan (Leipsic, -1888), 563. - -Scotland: Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland -(Edinburgh), 244. - -Scott: the Works of Sir Walter Scott, 320, 643, 689. - -Sébillot: Traditions et Superstitions de la Haute-Bretagne, by Paul -Sébillot (Paris, 1882), 273. - -Shakespeare: The Plays and Poems of Shakespeare, 197, 636, 694. - -Sikes: British Goblins, Welsh Folk-lore, Fairy Mythology, Legends and -Traditions, by Wirt Sikes (London, 1880), 17, 18, 99, 155, 160, 173, -191, 192. - -Silvan Evans: Dictionary of the Welsh Language (Geiriadur Cymraeg), -by D. Silvan Evans (Carmarthen, 1888-), 387, 431, 539, 580, 620, 621. - - ,, ,, : Y Brython, a periodical in Welsh for Welsh antiquities -and folklore, edited by the Rev. D. S. Evans, and published by Robert -Isaac Jones at Tremadoc (in quarto for 1858 and 1859, in octavo for -1860-2), 40, 73, 86, 98, 134, 137, 141, 151-5, 158-60, 202, 321, 413, -442, 456, 464, 470, 481, 690. - - ,, ,, : Ystźn Sioned, by D. Silvan Evans (Aberystwyth, 1882), -271-3. - -Simrock: Die Edda, die ältere und jüngere, nebst den mythischen -Erzählungen der Skalda, translated and explained by Karl Simrock -(Stuttgart, 1855), 652. - -Sinclair: The Statistical Account of Scotland, drawn up from the -communications of the ministers of the different parishes, by Sir -John Sinclair (Edinburgh, 1794), 310. - -Skene: Chronicles of the Picts, Chronicles of the Scots, and other -Memorials of Scottish History, edited by Wm. F. Skene (Edinburgh, -1867), 374. - -Skene: The Four Ancient Books of Wales, by Wm. F. Skene (Edinburgh, -1868) [vol. ii contains, besides notes and illustrations, the text -of the Black Book of Carmarthen, 3-61; the Book of Aneurin, 62-107; -the Book of Taliessin, 108-217; and some of the poetry in the Red Book -of Hergest, 218-308. These four texts are to be found translated in -vol. i], 226, 233, 269, 281, 387, 442, 541, 543, 550, 614-7. - -South Wales Daily News (Duncan, Cardiff), 376. - -Southey: Madoc, a poem by Robert Southey (London, 1815), 169-71. - -Speed: The Theatre of the Empire of Great Britaine, by John Speed -[not Speede] (London, 1611), 208. - -Steinmeyer: Die althochdeutschen Glossen, collected and elaborated -by Elias Steinmeyer and Eduard Sievers (Berlin, 1879-98), 683. - -Stengel: Li Romans de Durmart le Galois, altfranzösisches -Rittergedicht, published for the first time by Edmund Stengel -(Tübingen, 1873), 438. - -Stephens: The Gododin of Aneurin Gwawdryd, with an English translation -and copious notes, by Thomas Stephens; edited by Professor Powel, -and printed for the Cymmrodorion Society (London, 1888), 310, 543, 647. - -Stevenson: The Scottish Antiquary or Northern Notes and Queries, -edited by J. H. Stevenson (Edinburgh, 1886-), 693. - -Stokes: Cormac's Glossary: see Cormac. - - ,, : Goidelica, Old and Early-Middle-Irish Glosses, Prose and -Verse, edited by Whitley Stokes (2nd ed., London, 1872), 295, 374. - - ,, : Irische Texte mit Uebersetzungen und Wörterbuch, edited by -Whitley Stokes and E. Windisch (3rd series, Leipsic, 1891), 631. - - ,, : The Tripartite Life of Patrick, edited, with translations and -indexes, by Whitley Stokes (Rolls Series, London, 1887), 535. - - ,, : Urkeltischer Sprachschatz von Whitley Stokes, übersetzt, -überarbeitet und herausgegeben von Adalbert Bezzenberger, forming -the second part of the fourth edition of Fick's Vergleichendes -Wörterbuch der indogermanischen Sprachen (Gottingen, 1894), 671. - -Strabo: Strabonis Geographica recognovit Augustus Meineke (Leipsic, -1852-3), 654. - -Sturlęus: Edda Snorronis Sturlęi (Copenhagen, 1848), 652. - - - -Tacitus: Cornelii Taciti de Origine et Situ Germanorum Liber, edited -by Alfred Holder (Freiburg i. B., and Tübingen, 1882), 271. - -Taliesin, a Welsh periodical published at Ruthin in 1859-60, 135-7, -269. - -Taliessin: The Book of Taliessin (see Skene), 550, 614-7. - -Tegid: Gwaith Bardonol y diwedar barch. John Jones 'Tegid' [also called -Joan Tegid], edited by the Rev. Henry Roberts (Llandovery, 1859), 445. - -Triads: [The so-called Historical Triads, referred to in this volume, -are to be found in the Myvyrian Archaiology (London, 1801), series i -and ii in vol. ii, 1-22, and (the later) series iii in the same vol., -57-80. In the single-volume edition of the Myvyrian (Denbigh, 1870), -they occupy continuously pp. 388-414. Series ii comes from the Red -Book of Hergest, and will be found also in the volume of the Oxford -Mabinogion, pp. 297-309], 170, 281, 326, 382, 429-31, 433, 440, 441, -443-5, 498, 500, 501, 503-9, 565, 569. - -Tylor: Primitive Culture, Researches into the Development of Mythology, -Philosophy, Religion, Language, Art, and Custom, by Edward Tylor -(2nd ed., London, 1873), 290, 329, 601, 603, 641, 658. - -Twyne: Thomas Twyne's Breuiary of Britayne, a translation of Humfrey -Lhuyd's Fragmentum (London, 1573), 412. - - - -Ulfilas: Ulfilas, Text, Grammar, and Dictionary, elaborated and edited -by F. L. Stamm (Paderborn, 1869), 626. - - - -Vigfusson: An Icelandic Dictionary, enlarged and completed by Gudbrand -Vigfusson (Oxford, 1874), 288, 652. - -Vising: see 563. - - - -Waldron: A Description of the Isle of Man, by George Waldron, being -vol. xi of the Manx Society's publications (Douglas, 1865), 290. - -Waring: Recollections and Anecdotes of Edward Williams, by Elijah -Waring (London, 1850), 458. - -Westermarck: The History of Human Marriage, by Edward Westermarck -(London, 1894), 654. - -Weyman: From the Memoirs of a Minister of France, by Stanley Weyman -(London, 1895), 690. - -Williams: The English Works of Eliezer Williams, with a memoir of -his life by his son, St. George Armstrong Williams (London, 1840), 493. - -Williams: Brut y Tywysogion, or the Chronicle of the Princes, edited -by John Williams Ab Ithel (Rolls Series, London, 1860), 79, 513. - -Williams: A Biographical Dictionary of Eminent Welshmen, by the -Rev. Robert Williams (Llandovery, 1852), 534. - - ,, : Y Seint Greal, edited with a translation and glossary by the -Rev. Robert Williams (London, 1876), 438, 514, 580. - -Williams: The Doom of Colyn Dolphyn, by Taliesin Williams (London, -1837), 561. - - ,, : Traethawd ar Gywreined Glynn Ned, by Taliesin Williams: see -439. - -Williams: Observations on the Snowdon Mountains, by William Williams -of Llandegai (London, 1802), 48, 673, 674. - -Windisch: Irische Texte mit Wörterbuch, by Ernst Windisch (Leipsic, -1880), 501, 657. - - ,, : Kurzgefasste irische Grammatik (Leipsic, 1879), 291, 501, -502, 531, 546, 547, 603, 613, 618, 691. - - ,, : Über die irische Sage Noinden Ulad, in the Berichte der -k. sächs. Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften (phil.-historische Classe, -Dec. 1884), 654. - -Woodall: Bye-gones, a periodical reissue of notes, queries, and -replies on subjects relating to Wales and the Borders, published in -the columns of The Border Counties Advertizer, by Messrs. Woodall, -Minshall & Co. of the Caxton Press, Oswestry, 169, 378. - -Wood-Martin: Pagan Ireland, by W. G. Wood-Martin (London, 1895), 612. - -Worth: A History of Devonshire, with Sketches of its leading Worthies, -by R. N. Worth (London, 1895), 307. - -Wright: The English Dialect Dictionary, edited by Professor Joseph -Wright (London and Oxford, 1898-), 66. - -Wynne: The History of the Gwydir Family, published by Angharad Llwyd in -the year 1827, and by Askew Roberts at Oswestry in 1878, 490, 491, 670. - - - -Y Cymmrodor, the magazine embodying the transactions of the -Cymmrodorion Society of London (Secretary, E. Vincent Evans, 64 -Chancery Lane, W.C.), 374, 384, 480, 510, 513, 520, 600, 610, 690, -693, 694. - -Y Drych, a newspaper published at Utica in the United States of North -America, 234. - -Y Gordofigion, an extinct Welsh periodical: see p. 450. - -Y Gwyliedyd, a magazine of useful knowledge intended for the benefit -of monoglot Welshmen (Bala, 1823-37), 450. - -Y Nofelyd, a Welsh periodical published by Mr. Aubrey, of Llannerch -y Med, 396. - -Young: Burghead, by H. W. Young (Inverness, 1899), 345. - - - - - - - - -CELTIC FOLKLORE - -WELSH AND MANX - - - - - - - - -Gallias utique possedit, et quidem ad nostram memoriam. Namque -Tiberii Cęsaris principatus sustulit Druidas eorum, et hoc genus -vatum medicorumque. Sed quid ego hęc commemorem in arte Oceanum -quoque transgressa, et ad naturę inane pervecta? Britannia hodieque -eam attonite celebrat tantis cerimoniis, ut dedisse Persis videri -possit. Adeo ista toto mundo consensere, quamquam discordi et sibi -ignoto. Nec satis ęstimari potest, quantum Romanis debeatur, qui -sustulere monstra, in quibus hominem occidere religiosissimum erat, -mandi vero etiam saluberrimum. - - Pliny, Historia Naturalis, XXX. 4. - - -Pline fait remarquer que ces pratiques antipathiques au génie grec -sont d'origine médique. Nous les rencontrons en Europe ą l'état de -survivances. L'universalité de ces superstitions prouve en effet -qu'elles émanent d'une source unique qui n'est pas européenne. Il -est difficile de les considérer comme un produit de l'esprit aryen; -il faut remonter plus haut pour en trouver l'origine. Si, en Gaule, en -Grande-Bretagne, en Irlande, tant de superstitions relevant de la magie -existaient encore au temps de Pline enracinées dans les esprits ą tel -point que le grand naturaliste pouvait dire, ą propos de la Bretagne, -qu'il semblait que ce fūt elle qui avait donné la magie ą la Perse, -c'est qu'en Gaule, en Grande-Bretagne, et en Irlande le fond de la -population était composé d'éléments étrangers ą la race aryenne, -comme les faits archéologiques le démontrent, ainsi que le reconnait -notre éminent confrčre et ami, M. d'Arbois de Jubainville lui-mźme. - - Alexandre Bertrand, La Religion des Gaulois, pp. 55, 56. - - -Une croyance universellement admise dans le monde lettré, en France et -hors de France, fait des Franēais les fils des Gaulois qui ont pris -Rome en 390 avant Jésus-Christ, et que César a vaincus au milieu du -premier sičcle avant notre čre. On croit que nous sommes des Gaulois, -survivant ą toutes les révolutions qui depuis tant de sičcles ont -bouleversé le monde. C'est une idée préconēue que, suivant moi, la -science doit rejeter. Seuls ą peu prčs, les archéologues ont vu la -vérité.... Les pierres levées, les cercles de pierre, les petites -cabanes construites en gros blocs de pierre pour servir de dernier -asile aux défunts, étaient, croyait-on, des monuments celtiques.... On -donnait ą ces rustiques témoignages d'une civilisation primitive des -noms bretons, ou néo-celtiques de France; on croyait naļvement, en -reproduisant des mots de cette langue moderne, parler comme auraient -fait, s'ils avaient pu revenir ą la vie, ceux qui ont remué ces -lourdes pierres, ceux qui les ont fixées debout sur le sol ou mźme -élevées sur d'autres.... Mais ceux qui ont dressé les pierres levées, -les cercles de pierres; ceux qui ont construit les cabanes funéraires -ne parlaient pas celtique et le breton diffčre du celtique comme le -franēais du latin. - - H. d'Arbois de Jubainville, - Les premiers Habitants de l'Europe, II. xi-xiii. - - - - - - - - -CHAPTER I - -UNDINE'S KYMRIC SISTERS - - Undine, liebes Bildchen du, - Seit ich zuerst aus alten Kunden - Dein seltsam Leuchten aufgefunden, - Wie sangst du oft mein Herz in Ruh! - - De la Motte Fouqué. - - -The chief object of this and several of the following chapters is to -place on record all the matter I can find on the subject of Welsh -lake legends: what I may have to say of them is merely by the way -and sporadic, and I should feel well paid for my trouble if these -contributions should stimulate others to communicate to the public bits -of similar legends, which, possibly, still linger unrecorded among -the mountains of Wales. For it should be clearly understood that all -such things bear on the history of the Welsh, as the history of no -people can be said to have been written so long as its superstitions -and beliefs in past times have not been studied; and those who may -think that the legends here recorded are childish and frivolous, may -rest assured that they bear on questions which could not themselves -be called either childish or frivolous. So, however silly a legend -may be thought, let him who knows such a legend communicate it to -somebody who will place it on record; he will then probably find that -it has more meaning and interest than he had anticipated. - - - - -I. - -I find it best to begin by reproducing a story which has already been -placed on record: this appears desirable on account of its being -the most complete of its kind, and the one with which shorter ones -can most readily be compared. I allude to the legend of the Lady -of Llyn y Fan Fach in Carmarthenshire, which I take the liberty of -copying from Mr. Rees of Tonn's version in the introduction to The -Physicians of Mydvai [1], published by the Welsh Manuscript Society, -at Llandovery, in 1861. There he says that he wrote it down from -the oral recitations, which I suppose were in Welsh, of John Evans, -tiler, of Mydfai, David Williams, Morfa, near Mydfai, who was about -ninety years old at the time, and Elizabeth Morgan, of Henllys Lodge, -near Llandovery, who was a native of the same village of Mydfai; to -this it may be added that he acknowledges obligations also to Joseph -Joseph, Esq., F.S.A., Brecon, for collecting particulars from the -old inhabitants of the parish of Llandeusant. The legend, as given -by Mr. Rees in English, runs as follows, and strongly reminds one in -certain parts of the Story of Undine as given in the German of De la -Motte Fouqué, with which it should be compared:-- - -'When the eventful struggle made by the Princes of South Wales to -preserve the independence of their country was drawing to its close in -the twelfth century, there lived at Blaensawde [2] near Llandeusant, -Carmarthenshire, a widowed woman, the relict of a farmer who had -fallen in those disastrous troubles. - -'The widow had an only son to bring up, but Providence smiled upon her, -and despite her forlorn condition, her live stock had so increased in -course of time, that she could not well depasture them upon her farm, -so she sent a portion of her cattle to graze on the adjoining Black -Mountain, and their most favourite place was near the small lake called -Llyn y Fan Fach, on the north-western side of the Carmarthenshire Fans. - -'The son grew up to manhood, and was generally sent by his mother to -look after the cattle on the mountain. One day, in his peregrinations -along the margin of the lake, to his great astonishment, he beheld, -sitting on the unruffled surface of the water, a lady; one of the most -beautiful creatures that mortal eyes ever beheld, her hair flowed -gracefully in ringlets over her shoulders, the tresses of which -she arranged with a comb, whilst the glassy surface of her watery -couch served for the purpose of a mirror, reflecting back her own -image. Suddenly she beheld the young man standing on the brink of -the lake, with his eyes riveted on her, and unconsciously offering -to herself the provision of barley bread and cheese with which he -had been provided when he left his home. - -'Bewildered by a feeling of love and admiration for the object -before him, he continued to hold out his hand towards the lady, -who imperceptibly glided near to him, but gently refused the offer -of his provisions. He attempted to touch her, but she eluded his -grasp, saying-- - - - Cras dy fara; Hard baked is thy bread! - Nid hawd fy nala. 'Tis not easy to catch me [3]; - - -and immediately dived under the water and disappeared, leaving the -love-stricken youth to return home, a prey to disappointment and -regret that he had been unable to make further acquaintance with one, -in comparison with whom the whole of the fair maidens of Llandeusant -and Mydfai [4] whom he had ever seen were as nothing. - -On his return home the young man communicated to his mother the -extraordinary vision he had beheld. She advised him to take some -unbaked dough or "toes" the next time in his pocket, as there must -have been some spell connected with the hard-baked bread, or "Bara -cras," which prevented his catching the lady. - -'Next morning, before the sun had gilded with its rays the peaks of -the Fans, the young man was at the lake, not for the purpose of looking -after his mother's cattle, but seeking for the same enchanting vision -he had witnessed the day before; but all in vain did he anxiously -strain his eyeballs and glance over the surface of the lake, as only -the ripples occasioned by a stiff breeze met his view, and a cloud -hung heavily on the summit of the Fan, which imparted an additional -gloom to his already distracted mind. - -'Hours passed on, the wind was hushed, and the clouds which had -enveloped the mountain had vanished into thin air before the powerful -beams of the sun, when the youth was startled by seeing some of his -mother's cattle on the precipitous side of the acclivity, nearly on -the opposite side of the lake. His duty impelled him to attempt to -rescue them from their perilous position, for which purpose he was -hastening away, when, to his inexpressible delight, the object of his -search again appeared to him as before, and seemed much more beautiful -than when he first beheld her. His hand was again held out to her, -full of unbaked bread, which he offered with an urgent proffer of -his heart also, and vows of eternal attachment. All of which were -refused by her, saying-- - - - Llaith dy fara! Unbaked is thy bread! - Ti ni fynna'. I will not have thee [5]. - - -But the smiles that played upon her features as the lady vanished -beneath the waters raised within the young man a hope that forbade -him to despair by her refusal of him, and the recollection of which -cheered him on his way home. His aged parent was made acquainted -with his ill-success, and she suggested that his bread should next -time be but slightly baked, as most likely to please the mysterious -being of whom he had become enamoured. - -'Impelled by an irresistible feeling, the youth left his mother's -house early next morning, and with rapid steps he passed over the -mountain. He was soon near the margin of the lake, and with all the -impatience of an ardent lover did he wait with a feverish anxiety -for the reappearance of the mysterious lady. - -'The sheep and goats browsed on the precipitous sides of the Fan; -the cattle strayed amongst the rocks and large stones, some of which -were occasionally loosened from their beds and suddenly rolled down -into the lake; rain and sunshine alike came and passed away; but all -were unheeded by the youth, so wrapped up was he in looking for the -appearance of the lady. - -'The freshness of the early morning had disappeared before the sultry -rays of the noon-day sun, which in its turn was fast verging towards -the west as the evening was dying away and making room for the shades -of night, and hope had wellnigh abated of beholding once more the Lady -of the Lake. The young man cast a sad and last farewell look over -the waters, and, to his astonishment, beheld several cows walking -along its surface. The sight of these animals caused hope to revive -that they would be followed by another object far more pleasing; nor -was he disappointed, for the maiden reappeared, and to his enraptured -sight, even lovelier than ever. She approached the land, and he rushed -to meet her in the water. A smile encouraged him to seize her hand; -neither did she refuse the moderately baked bread he offered her; and -after some persuasion she consented to become his bride, on condition -that they should only live together until she received from him three -blows without a cause, - - - Tri ergyd diachos. Three causeless blows. - - -And if he ever should happen to strike her three such blows she would -leave him for ever. To such conditions he readily consented, and would -have consented to any other stipulation, had it been proposed, as he -was only intent on then securing such a lovely creature for his wife. - -'Thus the Lady of the Lake engaged to become the young man's wife, -and having loosed her hand for a moment she darted away and dived -into the lake. His chagrin and grief were such that he determined -to cast himself headlong into the deepest water, so as to end his -life in the element that had contained in its unfathomed depths the -only one for whom he cared to live on earth. As he was on the point -of committing this rash act, there emerged out of the lake two most -beautiful ladies, accompanied by a hoary-headed man of noble mien -and extraordinary stature, but having otherwise all the force and -strength of youth. This man addressed the almost bewildered youth in -accents calculated to soothe his troubled mind, saying that as he -proposed to marry one of his daughters, he consented to the union, -provided the young man could distinguish which of the two ladies -before him was the object of his affections. This was no easy task, -as the maidens were such perfect counterparts of each other that it -seemed quite impossible for him to choose his bride, and if perchance -he fixed upon the wrong one all would be for ever lost. - -'Whilst the young man narrowly scanned the two ladies, he could not -perceive the least difference betwixt the two, and was almost giving -up the task in despair, when one of them thrust her foot a slight -degree forward. The motion, simple as it was, did not escape the -observation of the youth, and he discovered a trifling variation in -the mode with which their sandals were tied. This at once put an end -to the dilemma, for he, who had on previous occasions been so taken -up with the general appearance of the Lady of the Lake, had also -noticed the beauty of her feet and ankles, and on now recognizing -the peculiarity of her shoe-tie he boldly took hold of her hand. - -'"Thou hast chosen rightly," said her father; "be to her a kind and -faithful husband, and I will give her, as a dowry, as many sheep, -cattle, goats, and horses as she can count of each without heaving or -drawing in her breath. But remember, that if you prove unkind to her -at any time, and strike her three times without a cause, she shall -return to me, and shall bring all her stock back with her." - -'Such was the verbal marriage settlement, to which the young man gladly -assented, and his bride was desired to count the number of sheep she -was to have. She immediately adopted the mode of counting by fives, -thus:--One, two, three, four, five--One, two, three, four, five; -as many times as possible in rapid succession, till her breath was -exhausted. The same process of reckoning had to determine the number -of goats, cattle, and horses respectively; and in an instant the full -number of each came out of the lake when called upon by the father. - -'The young couple were then married, by what ceremony was not stated, -and afterwards went to reside at a farm called Esgair Llaethdy, -somewhat more than a mile from the village of Mydfai, where they -lived in prosperity and happiness for several years, and became the -parents of three sons, who were beautiful children. - -'Once upon a time there was a christening to take place in the -neighbourhood, to which the parents were specially invited. When the -day arrived the wife appeared very reluctant to attend the christening, -alleging that the distance was too great for her to walk. Her husband -told her to fetch one of the horses which were grazing in an adjoining -field. "I will," said she, "if you will bring me my gloves which -I left in our house." He went to the house and returned with the -gloves, and finding that she had not gone for the horse jocularly -slapped her shoulder with one of them, saying, "go! go!" (dos, dos), -when she reminded him of the understanding upon which she consented -to marry him:--That he was not to strike her without a cause; and -warned him to be more cautious for the future. - -'On another occasion, when they were together at a wedding, in -the midst of the mirth and hilarity of the assembled guests, who -had gathered together from all the surrounding country, she burst -into tears and sobbed most piteously. Her husband touched her on her -shoulder and inquired the cause of her weeping: she said, "Now people -are entering into trouble, and your troubles are likely to commence, -as you have the second time stricken me without a cause." - -'Years passed on, and their children had grown up, and were -particularly clever young men. In the midst of so many worldly -blessings at home the husband almost forgot that there remained -only one causeless blow to be given to destroy the whole of his -prosperity. Still he was watchful lest any trivial occurrence should -take place which his wife must regard as a breach of their marriage -contract. She told him, as her affection for him was unabated, to be -careful that he would not, through some inadvertence, give the last -and only blow, which, by an unalterable destiny, over which she had -no control, would separate them for ever. - -'It, however, so happened that one day they were together at a -funeral, where, in the midst of the mourning and grief at the house -of the deceased, she appeared in the highest and gayest spirits, and -indulged in immoderate fits of laughter, which so shocked her husband -that he touched her, saying, "Hush! hush! don't laugh." She said that -she laughed "because people when they die go out of trouble," and, -rising up, she went out of the house, saying, "The last blow has been -struck, our marriage contract is broken, and at an end! Farewell!" Then -she started off towards Esgair Llaethdy, where she called her cattle -and other stock together, each by name. The cattle she called thus:-- - - - Mu wlfrech, Moelfrech, Brindled cow, white speckled, - Mu olfrech, Gwynfrech, Spotted cow, bold freckled, - Pedair cae tonn-frech, The four field sward mottled, - Yr hen wynebwen, The old white-faced, - A'r las Geigen, And the grey Geingen, - Gyda'r Tarw Gwyn With the white Bull, - O lys y Brenin; From the court of the King; - A'r llo du bach, And the little black calf - Syd ar y bach, Tho' suspended on the hook, - Dere dithau, yn iach adre! Come thou also, quite well home! - - -They all immediately obeyed the summons of their mistress. The -"little black calf," although it had been slaughtered, became alive -again, and walked off with the rest of the stock at the command of -the lady. This happened in the spring of the year, and there were -four oxen ploughing in one of the fields; to these she cried:-- - - - Pedwar eidion glas The four grey oxen, - Syd ar y maes, That are on the field, - Denwch chwithan Come you also - Yn iach adre! Quite well home! - - -Away the whole of the live stock went with the Lady across Mydfai -Mountain, towards the lake from whence they came, a distance of above -six miles, where they disappeared beneath its waters, leaving no trace -behind except a well-marked furrow, which was made by the plough the -oxen drew after them into the lake, and which remains to this day as -a testimony to the truth of this story. - -'What became of the affrighted ploughman--whether he was left on the -field when the oxen set off, or whether he followed them to the lake, -has not been handed down to tradition; neither has the fate of the -disconsolate and half-ruined husband been kept in remembrance. But of -the sons it is stated that they often wandered about the lake and its -vicinity, hoping that their mother might be permitted to visit the face -of the earth once more, as they had been apprised of her mysterious -origin, her first appearance to their father, and the untoward -circumstances which so unhappily deprived them of her maternal care. - -'In one of their rambles, at a place near Dōl Howel, at the Mountain -Gate, still called "Llidiad y Medygon," The Physicians' Gate, the -mother appeared suddenly, and accosted her eldest son, whose name -was Rhiwallon, and told him that his mission on earth was to be a -benefactor to mankind by relieving them from pain and misery, through -healing all manner of their diseases; for which purpose she furnished -him with a bag full of medical prescriptions and instructions for the -preservation of health. That by strict attention thereto he and his -family would become for many generations the most skilful physicians -in the country. Then, promising to meet him when her counsel was most -needed, she vanished. But on several occasions she met her sons near -the banks of the lake, and once she even accompanied them on their -return home as far as a place still called "Pant-y-Medygon," The -dingle of the Physicians, where she pointed out to them the various -plants and herbs which grew in the dingle, and revealed to them -their medicinal qualities or virtues; and the knowledge she imparted -to them, together with their unrivalled skill, soon caused them to -attain such celebrity that none ever possessed before them. And in -order that their knowledge should not be lost, they wisely committed -the same to writing, for the benefit of mankind throughout all ages.' - -To the legend Mr. Rees added the following notes, which we reproduce -also at full length:-- - -'And so ends the story of the Physicians of Mydfai, which has been -handed down from one generation to another, thus:-- - - -Yr hźn wr llwyd o'r cornel, The grey old man in the corner -Gan ci dad a glywod chwedel [6], Of his father heard a story, -A chan ci dad fe glywod yntau Which from his father he had heard, -Ac ar ei ōl mi gofiais innau. And after them I have remembered. - - -As stated in the introduction of the present work [i.e. the Physicians -of Mydvai], Rhiwallon and his sons became Physicians to Rhys Gryg, -Lord of Llandovery and Dynefor Castles, "who gave them rank, lands, -and privileges at Mydfai for their maintenance in the practice of their -art and science, and the healing and benefit of those who should seek -their help," thus affording to those who could not afford to pay, -the best medical advice and treatment gratuitously. Such a truly -royal foundation could not fail to produce corresponding effects. So -the fame of the Physicians of Mydfai was soon established over the -whole country, and continued for centuries among their descendants. - -'The celebrated Welsh Bard, Dafyd ap Gwilym, who flourished in the -following century, and was buried at the Abbey of Tal-y-llychau [7], -in Carmarthenshire, about the year 1368, says in one of his poems, -as quoted in Dr. Davies' dictionary-- - - -Medyg ni wnai mod y gwnaeth A Physician he would not make -Mydfai, o chai dyn medfaeth. As Mydfai made, if he had a mead - fostered man. - - -Of the above lands bestowed upon the Medygon, there are two farms -in Mydfai parish still called "Llwyn Ifan Fedyg," the Grove of Evan -the Physician; and "Llwyn Meredyd Fedyg," the Grove of Meredith the -Physician. Esgair Llaethdy, mentioned in the foregoing legend, was -formerly in the possession of the above descendants, and so was Ty -newyd, near Mydfai, which was purchased by Mr. Holford, of Cilgwyn, -from the Rev. Charles Lloyd, vicar of Llandefalle, Breconshire, -who married a daughter of one of the Medygon, and had the living -of Llandefalle from a Mr. Vaughan, who presented him to the same -out of gratitude, because Mr. Lloyd's wife's father had cured him -of a disease in the eye. As Mr. Lloyd succeeded to the above living -in 1748, and died in 1800, it is probable that the skilful oculist -was John Jones, who is mentioned in the following inscription on a -tombstone at present fixed against the west end of Mydfai Church:-- - - - HERE - Lieth the body of Mr. DAVID JONES, of Mothvey, Surgeon, - who was an honest, charitable, and skilful man. - He died September 14th, Anno Dom 1719, aged 61. - - JOHN JONES, Surgeon, - Eldest son of the said David Jones, departed this life - the 25th of November, 1739, in the 44th year - of his Age, and also lyes interred hereunder. - - -These appear to have been the last of the Physicians who practised -at Mydfai. The above John Jones resided for some time at Llandovery, -and was a very eminent surgeon. One of his descendants, named John -Lewis, lived at Cwmbran, Mydfai, at which place his great-grandson, -Mr. John Jones, now resides. - -'Dr. Morgan Owen, Bishop of Llandaff, who died at Glasallt, parish of -Mydfai, in 1645, was a descendant of the Medygon, and an inheritor -of much of their landed property in that parish, the bulk of which -he bequeathed to his nephew, Morgan Owen, who died in 1667, and was -succeeded by his son Henry Owen; and at the decease of the last of -whose descendants, Robert Lewis, Esq., the estates became, through the -will of one of the family, the property of the late D. A. S. Davies, -Esq., M.P. for Carmarthenshire. - -'Bishop Owen bequeathed to another nephew, Morgan ap Rees, son of -Rees ap John, a descendant of the Medygon, the farm of Rhyblid, -and some other property. Morgan ap Rees' son, Samuel Rice, resided -at Loughor, in Gower, Glamorganshire, and had a son, Morgan Rice, -who was a merchant in London, and became Lord of the Manor of Tooting -Graveney, and High Sheriff in the year 1772, and Deputy Lieutenant -of the county of Surrey, 1776. He resided at Hill House, which he -built. At his death the whole of his property passed to his only -child, John Rice, Esq., whose eldest son, the Rev. John Morgan Rice, -inherited the greater portion of his estates. The head of the family is -now the Rev. Horatio Morgan Rice, rector of South Hill with Callington, -Cornwall, and J.P. for the county, who inherited, with other property, -a small estate at Loughor. The above Morgan Rice had landed property in -Llanmadock and Llangenith, as well as Loughor, in Gower, but whether -he had any connexion with Howel the Physician (ap Rhys ap Llywelyn ap -Philip the Physician, and lineal descendant from Einion ap Rhiwallon), -who resided at Cilgwryd in Gower, is not known. - -'Amongst other families who claim descent from the Physicians were -the Bowens of Cwmydw, Mydfai; and Jones of Dollgarreg and Penrhock, -in the same parish; the latter of whom are represented by Charles -Bishop, of Dollgarreg, Esq., Clerk of the Peace for Carmarthenshire, -and Thomas Bishop, of Brecon, Esq. - -'Rees Williams of Mydfai is recorded as one of the Medygon. His -great-grandson was the late Rice Williams, M.D., of Aberystwyth, -who died May 16, 1842, aged 85, and appears to have been the last, -although not the least eminent, of the Physicians descended from the -mysterious Lady of Llyn y Fan [8].' - -This brings the legend of the Lady of the Fan Lake into connexion -with a widely-spread family. There is another connexion between -it and modern times, as will be seen from the following statement -kindly made to me by the Rev. A. G. Edwards, Warden of the Welsh -College at Llandovery, since then appointed Bishop of St. Asaph: -'An old woman from Mydfai, who is now, that is to say in January 1881, -about eighty years of age, tells me that she remembers "thousands and -thousands of people visiting the Lake of the Little Fan on the first -Sunday or Monday in August, and when she was young she often heard -old men declare that at that time a commotion took place in the lake, -and that its waters boiled, which was taken to herald the approach of -the Lake Lady and her Oxen."' The custom of going up to the lake on -the first Sunday in August was a very well known one in years gone by, -as I have learned from a good many people, and it is corroborated by -Mr. Joseph Joseph of Brecon, who kindly writes as follows, in reply -to some queries of mine: 'On the first Sunday in the month of August, -Llyn y Fan Fach is supposed to be boiling (berwi). I have seen scores -of people going up to see it (not boiling though) on that day. I do not -remember that any of them expected to see the Lady of the Lake.' As to -the boiling of the lake I have nothing to say, and I am not sure that -there is anything in the following statement made as an explanation of -the yearly visit to the lake by an old fisherwoman from Llandovery: -'The best time for eels is in August, when the north-east wind blows -on the lake, and makes huge waves in it. The eels can then be seen -floating on the waves.' - -Last summer I went myself to the village of Mydfai, to see if I could -pick up any variants of the legend, but I was hardly successful; -for though several of the farmers I questioned could repeat bits of -the legend, including the Lake Lady's call to her cattle as she went -away, I got nothing new, except that one of them said that the youth, -when he first saw the Lake Lady at a distance, thought she was a -goose--he did not even rise to the conception of a swan--but that -by degrees he approached her, and discovered that she was a lady in -white, and that in due time they were married, and so on. My friend, -the Warden of Llandovery College, seems, however, to have found a bit -of a version which may have been still more unlike the one recorded -by Mr. Rees of Tonn: it was from an old man at Mydfai last year, -from whom he was, nevertheless, only able to extract the statement -'that the Lake Lady got somehow entangled in a farmer's "gambo," -and that ever after his farm was very fertile.' A 'gambo,' I ought to -explain, is a kind of a cart without sides, used in South Wales: both -the name and the thing seem to have come from England, though I cannot -find such a word as gambo or gambeau in the ordinary dictionaries. - -Among other legends about lake fairies, there are, in the third -chapter of Mr. Sikes' British Goblins, two versions of this story: -the first of them differs but slightly from Mr. Rees', in that the -farmer used to go near the lake to see some lambs he had bought at -a fair, and that whenever he did so three beautiful damsels appeared -to him from the lake. They always eluded his attempts to catch them: -they ran away into the lake, saying, Cras dy fara, &c. But one day -a piece of moist bread came floating ashore, which he ate, and the -next day he had a chat with the Lake Maidens. He proposed marriage to -one of them, to which she consented, provided he could distinguish -her from her sisters the day after. The story then, so far as I -can make out from the brief version which Mr. Sikes gives of it, -went on like that of Mr. Rees. The former gives another version, -with much more interesting variations, which omit all reference, -however, to the Physicians of Mydfai, and relate how a young farmer -had heard of the Lake Maiden rowing up and down the lake in a golden -boat with a golden scull. He went to the lake on New Year's Eve, saw -her, was fascinated by her, and left in despair at her vanishing out -of sight, although he cried out to her to stay and be his wife. She -faintly replied, and went her way, after he had gazed at her long -yellow hair and pale melancholy face. He continued to visit the lake, -and grew thin and negligent of his person, owing to his longing. But -a wise man, who lived on the mountain, advised him to tempt her with -gifts of bread and cheese, which he undertook to do on Midsummer Eve, -when he dropped into the lake a large cheese and a loaf of bread. This -he did repeatedly, until at last his hopes were fulfilled on New -Year's Eve. This time he had gone to the lake clad in his best suit, -and at midnight dropped seven white loaves and his biggest and finest -cheese into the lake. The Lake Lady by-and-by came in her skiff to -where he was, and gracefully stepped ashore. The scene need not be -further described: Mr. Sikes gives a picture of it, and the story -then proceeds as in the other version. - -It is a pity that Mr. Rees did not preserve the Welsh versions out -of which he pieced together the English one; but as to Mr. Sikes, -I cannot discover whence his has been derived, for he seems not to -have been too anxious to leave anybody the means of testing his work, -as one will find on verifying his references, when he gives any. See -also the allusions to him in Hartland's Science of Fairy Tales, -pp. 64, 123, 137, 165, 278. - -Since writing the foregoing notes the following communication has -reached me from a friend of my undergraduate days at Jesus College, -Oxford, Mr. Llywarch Reynolds of Merthyr Tydfil. Only the first -part of it concerns the legend of Llyn y Fan Fach; but as the rest -is equally racy I make no apology for publishing it in full without -any editing, except the insertion of the meaning of two or three of -the Welsh words occurring in it:-- - -'Tell Rhys that I have just heard a sequel to the Medygon Mydfai story, -got from a rustic on Mynyd y Banwen, between Glynnźd and Glyntawė, on -a ramble recently with David Lewis the barrister and Sidney Hartland -the folklorist. It was to the effect that after the disappearance of -the forwn, "the damsel," into the lake, the disconsolate husband and -his friends set to work to drain the lake in order to get at her, -if possible. They made a great cutting into the bank, when suddenly -a huge hairy monster of hideous aspect emerged from the water and -stormed at them for disturbing him, and wound up with this threat:-- - - - Os na cha'i lonyd yn ym lle, If I get no quiet in my place, - Fi foda dre' 'Byrhondu! I shall drown the town of Brecon! - - -It was evidently the last braich, "arm," of a Triban Morgannwg, -but this was all my informant knew of it. From the allusion to Tre' -Byrhondu, it struck me that there was here probably a tale of Llyn -Safadon, which had migrated to Llyn y Fan; because of course there -would have to be a considerable change in the "levels" before Llyn -y Fan and the Sawde could put Brecon in any great jeopardy [9]. - -'We also got another tale about a cwmshurwr, "conjurer," who once -lived in Ystradgyrlais (as the rustic pronounced it). The wizard was -a dyn llaw-harn, "a man with an iron hand"; and it being reported -that there was a great treasure hidden in Mynyd y Drum, the wizard -said he would secure it, if he could but get some plucky fellow -to spend a night with him there. John Gethin was a plucky fellow -(dyn "ysprydol"), and he agreed to join the dyn llaw-harn in his -diablerie. The wizard traced two rings on the sward touching each -other "like a number 8"; he went into one, and Gethin into the other, -the wizard strictly charging him on no account to step out of the -ring. The llaw-harn then proceeded to trafod 'i lyfrau, or "busy -himself with his books"; and there soon appeared a monstrous bull, -bellowing dreadfully; but the plucky Gethin held his ground, and the -bull vanished. Next came a terrible object, a "fly-wheel of fire," -which made straight for poor Gethin and made him swerve out of the -ring. Thereupon the wheel assumed the form of the diawl, "devil," -who began to haul Gethin away. The llaw-harn seized hold of him and -tried to get him back. The devil was getting the upper hand, when the -llaw-harn begged the devil to let him keep Gethin while the piece of -candle he had with him lasted. The devil consented, and let go his hold -of Gethin, whereupon the cwmshurwr immediately blew out the candle, -and the devil was discomfited. Gethin preserved the piece of candle -very carefully, stowing it away in a cool place; but still it wasted -away although it was never lighted. Gethin got such a fright that -he took to his bed, and as the candle wasted away he did the same, -and they both came to an end simultaneously. Gethin vanished--and it -was not his body that was put into the coffin, but a lump of clay -which was put in to save appearances! It is said that the wizard's -books are in an oaken chest at Waungyrlais farm house to this day. - -'We got these tales on a ramble to see "Maen y Gwediau," on the -mountain near Coelbren Junction Station on the Neath and Brecon Railway -(marked on the Ordnance Map), but we had to turn back owing to the -fearful heat.' - -Before dismissing Mr. Reynolds' letter I may mention a story in point -which relates to a lake on the Brecon side of the mountains. It -is given at length by the Rev. Edward Davies in his Mythology and -Rites of the British Druids (London, 1809), pp. 155-7. According to -this legend a door in the rock was to be found open once a year--on -May-day, as it is supposed--and from that door one could make one's -way to the garden of the fairies, which was an island in the middle -of the lake. This paradise of exquisite bliss was invisible, however, -to those who stood outside the lake: they could only see an indistinct -mass in the centre of the water. Once on a time a visitor tried to -carry away some of the flowers given him by the fairies, but he was -thereby acting against their law, and not only was he punished with the -loss of his senses, but the door has never since been left open. It -is also related that once an adventurous person attempted to drain -the water away 'in order to discover its contents, when a terrific -form arose from the midst of the lake, commanding him to desist, -or otherwise he would drown the country.' This form is clearly of -the same species as that which, according to Mr. Reynolds' story, -threatened to drown the town of Brecon. Subsequent inquiries have -elicited more information, and I am more especially indebted to my -friend Mr. Ivor James, who, as registrar of the University of Wales, -has of late years been living at Brecon. He writes to the following -effect:--'The lake you want is Llyn Cwm Llwch, and the legend is very -well known locally, but there are variants. Once on a time men and -boys dug a gully through the dam in order to let the water out. A -man in a red coat, sitting in an armchair, appeared on the surface -of the water and threatened them in the terms which you quote from -Mr. Reynolds. The red coat would seem to suggest that this form of -the legend dates possibly from a time since our soldiers were first -clothed in red. In another case, however, the spectre was that of an -old woman; and I am told that a somewhat similar story is told in -connexion with a well in the castle wall in the parish of Llandew, -to the north of this town--Giraldus Cambrensis' parish. A friend of -mine is employing his spare time at present in an inquiry into the -origin of the lakes of this district, and he tells me that Llyn Cwm -Llwch is of glacial origin, its dam being composed, as he thinks, -of glacial débris through which the water always percolates into -the valley below. But storm water flows over the dam, and in the -course of ages has cut for itself a gully, now about ten feet deep -at the deepest point, through the embankment. The story was possibly -invented to explain that fact. There is no cave to be seen in the -rock, and probably there never was one, as the formation is the Old -Red Sandstone; and the island was perhaps equally imaginary.' - -That is the substance of Mr. James' letter, in which he, moreover, -refers to J. D. Rhys' account of the lake in his Welsh introduction -to his Grammar, published in London in 1592, under the title -Cambrobrytannicę Cymraecęve Linguę Institutiones et Rudimenta. There -the grammarian, in giving some account of himself, mentions his -frequent sojourns at the hospitable residence of a nobleman, named -M. Morgan Merźdydh, near y Bugeildy ynn Nyphryn Tabhīda o bhywn -Swydh Bhaesybhed, that is, 'near the Beguildy in the Valley of the -Teme within the county of Radnor.' Then he continues to the following -effect:--'But the latter part of this book was thought out under the -bushes and green foliage in a bit of a place of my own called y Clun -Hīr, at the top of Cwm y Llwch, below the spurs of the mountain of -Bannwchdeni, which some call Bann Arthur and others Moel Arthur. Below -that moel and in its lap there is a lake of pretty large size, -unknown depth, and wondrous nature. For as the stories go, no bird -has ever been seen to repair to it or towards it, or to swim on it: -it is wholly avoided, and some say that no animals or beasts of any -kind are wont to drink of its waters. The peasantry of that country, -and especially the shepherds who are wont to frequent these moels -and bans, relate many other wonders concerning it and the exceeding -strange things beheld at times in connexion with this loch. This lake -or loch is called Llyn Cwm y Llwch [10].' - - - - -II. - -Before dismissing the story of Llyn y Fan Fach I wish to append a -similar one from the parish of Ystrad Dyfodwg in Glamorganshire. The -following is a translation of a version given in Welsh in Cyfaill -yr Aelwyd a'r Frythones, edited by Elfed and Cadrawd, and published -by Messrs. Williams and Son, Llanelly. The version in question is by -Cadrawd, and it is to the following effect--see the volume for 1892, -p. 59:-- - -'Llyn y Forwyn, "the Damsel's Pool," is in the parish of Ystrad -Tyfodwg: the inhabitants call it also Llyn Nelferch. It lies about -halfway between the farm house of Rhonda Fechan, "Little Rhonda," and -the Vale of Safrwch. The ancient tradition concerning it is somewhat -as follows:-- - -'Once on a time a farmer lived at the Rhonda Fechan: he was unmarried, -and as he was walking by the lake early one morning in spring he beheld -a young woman of beautiful appearance walking on the other side of -it. He approached her and spoke to her: she gave him to understand that -her home was in the lake, and that she owned a number of milch cows, -that lived with her at the bottom of the water. The farmer fancied her -so much that he fell in love with her over head and ears: he asked -her on the spot for her hand and heart; and he invited her to come -and spend her life with him as his wife at the Rhonda Fechan. She -declined at first, but as he was importunate she consented at last -on the following conditions, namely, that she would bring her cattle -with her out of the lake, and live with him until he and she had three -disputes with one another: then, she said, she and the cattle would -return into the lake. He agreed to the conditions, and the marriage -took place. They lived very happily and comfortably for long years; -but the end was that they fell out with one another, and, when they -happened to have quarrelled for the third time, she was heard early -in the morning driving the cattle towards the lake with these words:-- - - - Prw dre', prw dre', prw'r gwartheg i dre'; - Prw Milfach a Malfach, pedair Llualfach, - Alfach ac Ali, pedair Ladi, - Wynebwen drwynog, tro i'r waun lidiog, - Trech llyn y waun odyn, tair Pencethin, - Tair caseg du draw yn yr eithin [11]. - - -And into the lake they went out of sight, and there they live to -this day. And some believed that they had heard the voice and cry of -Nelferch in the whisper of the breeze on the top of the mountain hard -by--many a time after that--as an old story (wedal) will have it.' - -From this it will be seen that the fairy wife's name was supposed -to have been Nelferch, and that the piece of water is called after -her. But I find that great uncertainty prevails as to the old name of -the lake, as I learn from a communication in 1894 from Mr. Llewellyn -Williams, living at Porth, only some five miles from the spot, that -one of his informants assured him that the name in use among former -generations was Llyn Alfach. Mr. Williams made inquiries at the Rhonda -Fechan about the lake legend. He was told that the water had long -since been known as Llyn y Forwyn, from a morwyn, or damsel, with a -number of cattle having been drowned in it. The story of the man who -mentioned the name as Llyn Alfach was similar: the maid belonged to -the farm of Penrhys, he said, and the young man to the Rhonda Fechan, -and it was in consequence of their third dispute, he added, that she -left him and went back to her previous service, and afterwards, while -taking the cattle to the water, she sank accidentally or purposely -into the lake, so that she was never found any more. Here it will -be seen how modern rationalism has been modifying the story into -something quite uninteresting but without wholly getting rid of the -original features, such as the three disputes between the husband -and wife. Lastly, it is worth mentioning that this water appears to -form part of a bit of very remarkable scenery, and that its waves -strike on one side against a steep rock believed to contain caves, -supposed to have been formerly inhabited by men and women. At present -the place, I learn, is in the possession of Messrs. Davis and Sons, -owners of the Ferndale collieries, who keep a pleasure boat on the -lake. I have appealed to them on the question of the name Nelferch -or Alfach, in the hope that their books would help to decide as to -the old form of it. Replying on their behalf, Mr. J. Probert Evans -informs me that the company only got possession of the lake and the -adjacent land in 1862, and that 'Llyn y Vorwyn' is the name of the -former in the oldest plan which they have. Inquiries have also been -made in the neighbourhood by my friend, Mr. Reynolds, who found the -old tenants of the Rhonda Fechan Farm gone, and the neighbouring farm -house of Dyffryn Safrwch supplanted by colliers' cottages. But he -calls my attention to the fact, that perhaps the old name was neither -Nelferch nor Alfach, as Elfarch, which would fit equally well, was once -the name of a petty chieftain of the adjoining Hundred of Senghenyd, -for which he refers me to Clark's Glamorgan Genealogies, p. 511. But -I have to thank him more especially for a longer version of the fairy -wife's call to her cattle, as given in Glanffrwd's Plwyf Llanwyno, -'the Parish of Llanwynno' (Pontyprid, 1888), p. 117, as follows:-- - - - Prw me, prw me, - Prw 'ngwartheg i dre'; - Prw Melen a Ioco, - Tegwen a Rhudo, - Rhud-frech a Moel-frech, - Pedair Lliain-frech; - Lliain-frech ag Eli, - A phedair Wen-ladi, - Ladi a Chornwen, - A phedair Wynebwen; - Nepwen a Rhwynog, - Tali Lieiniog; - Brech yn y Glyn - Dal yn dyn; - Tair lygeityn, - Tair gyffredm, - Tair Caseg du, draw yn yr eithin, - Deuwch i gyd i lys y Brenin; - Bwla, bwla, - Saif yn flaena', - Saf yn ol y wraig o'r Ty-fry, - Fyth nis godri ngwartheg i! - - -The last lines--slightly mended--may be rendered: - - - Bull, bull! - Stand thou foremost. - Back! thou wife of the House up Hill: - Never shalt thou milk my cows. - - -This seems to suggest that the quarrel was about another woman, and -that by the time when the fairy came to call her live stock into the -lake she had been replaced by another woman who came from the Ty-fry, -or the House up Hill [12]. In that case this version comes closer -than any other to the story of Undine supplanted by Bertalda as her -knight's favourite. - -Mr. Probert Evans having kindly given me the address of an aged farmer -who formerly lived in the valley, my friend, Mr. Llywarch Reynolds, -was good enough to visit him. Mr. Reynolds shall report the result -in his own words, dated January 9, 1899, as follows:-- - -'I was at Pentyrch this morning, and went to see Mr. David Evans, -formerly of Cefn Colston. - -'The old man is a very fine specimen of the better class of Welsh -farmer; is in his eighty-third year; hale and hearty, intelligent, -and in full possession of his faculties. He was born and bred in the -Rhonda Fechan Valley, and lived there until some forty years ago. He -had often heard the lake story from an old aunt of his who lived at -the Maerdy Farm (a short distance north of the lake), and who died -a good many years ago, at a very advanced age. He calls the lake -"Llyn Elferch," and the story, as known to him, has several points in -common with the Llyn y Fan legend, which, however, he did not appear -to know. He could not give me many details, but the following is the -substance of the story as he knows it:--The young farmer, who lived -with his mother at the neighbouring farm, one day saw the lady on -the bank of the lake, combing her hair, which reached down to her -feet. He fell in love at first sight, and tried to approach her; but -she evaded him, and crying out, Dali di dim o fi, crās dy fara! (Thou -wilt not catch me, thou of the crimped bread), she sank into the -water. He saw her on several subsequent occasions, and gave chase, -but always with the same result, until at length he got his mother -to make him some bread which was not baked (or not baked so hard); -and this he offered to the lady. She then agreed to become his wife, -subject to the condition that if he offended her, or disagreed with -her three times (ar yr ammod, os byssa fa yn 'i chroesi hi dair gwaith) -she would leave him and return into the lake with all her belongings. - -'1. The first disagreement (croes) was at the funeral of a neighbour, -a man in years, at which the lady gave way to excessive weeping and -lamentation. The husband expressed surprise and annoyance at this -excessive grief for the death of a person not related to them, and -asked the reason for it; and she replied that she grieved for the -defunct on account of the eternal misery that was in store for him -in the other world. - -'2. The second "croes" was at the death of an infant child of the -lady herself, at which she laughed immoderately; and in reply to the -husband's remonstrance, she said she did so for joy at her child's -escape from this wicked world and its passage into a world of bliss. - -'3. The third "croes" Mr. Evans was unable to call to mind, but -equally with the other two it showed that the lady was possessed of -preternatural knowledge; and it resulted in her leaving her husband -and returning into the lake, taking the cattle, &c., with her. The -accepted explanation of the name of the lake was Llyn El-ferch [13] -(= Hela 'r ferch), "because of the young man chasing the damsel" -(hela 'r ferch). - -'The following is the cattle-call, as given to me by Mr. Evans' -aged housekeeper, who migrated with the family from Rhonda Fechan -to Pentyrch: - - - Prw i, prw e [14], - Prw 'ngwartheg sha [= tua] thre'; - Mil a mōl a melyn gwtta; - Milfach a malfach; - Petar [= pedair] llearfach; - Llearfach ag aeli; - Petar a lafi; - Lafi a chornwan [= -wčn]; - [...] 'nepwan [= -wčn], - 'Nepwan drwynog; - Drotwan [= droedwen] litiog; - Tair Bryncethin; - Tair gyffretin; - Tair casag du - Draw yn yr ithin [= eithin], - Dewch i gyd i lys y brenin. - - -'Mr. Evans told me that Dyffryn Safrwch was considered to be a -corruption of Dyffryn Safn yr Hwch, "Valley of the Sow's Mouth"; -so that the explanation was not due to a minister with whom I -foregathered on my tramp near the lake the other day, and from whom -I heard it first.' - -The similarity between Mr. Evans' version of this legend and that of -Llyn y Fan Fach, tends to add emphasis to certain points which I had -been inclined to treat as merely accidental. In the Fan Fach legend -the young man's mother is a widow, and here he is represented living -with his mother. Here also something depends on the young man's bread, -but it is abruptly introduced, suggesting that a part of the story -has been forgotten. Both stories, however, give one the impression -that the bread of the fairies was regarded as always imperfectly -baked. In both stories the young man's mother comes to his help with -her advice. Mr. Evans' version ascribes supernatural knowledge to the -fairy, though his version fails to support it; and her moralizings -read considerably later than those which the Fan legend ascribes -to the fairy wife. Some of these points may be brought under the -reader's notice later, when he has been familiarized with more facts -illustrative of the belief in fairies. - - - - -III. - -On returning from South Wales to Carnarvonshire in the summer of -1881, I tried to discover similar legends connected with the lakes -of North Wales, beginning with Geirionyd, the waters of which form a -stream emptying itself into the Conwy, near Trefriw, a little below -Llanrwst. I only succeeded, however, in finding an old man of the -name of Pierce Williams, about seventy years of age, who was very -anxious to talk about 'Bony's' wars, but not about lake ladies. I was -obliged, in trying to make him understand what I wanted, to use the -word morforwyn, that is to say in English, 'mermaid'; he then told -me, that in his younger days he had heard people say that somebody -had seen such beings in the Trefriw river. But as my questions were -leading ones, his evidence is not worth much; however, I feel pretty -sure that one who knew the neighbourhood of Geirionyd better would -be able to find some fragments of interesting legends still existing -in that wild district. - -I was more successful at Llanberis, though what I found, at first, -was not much; but it was genuine, and to the point. This is the -substance of it:--An old woman, called Siān [15] Dafyd, lived at -Helfa Fawr, in the dingle called Cwm Brwynog, along the left side of -which you ascend as you go to the top of Snowdon, from the village -of lower Llanberis, or Coed y Dol, as it is there called. She was a -curious old person, who made nice distinctions between the virtues -of the respective waters of the district: thus, no other would do -for her to cure her of the defaid gwylltion [16], or cancerous warts, -which she fancied that she had in her mouth, than that of the spring -of Tai Bach, near the lake called Llyn Ffynnon y Gwas, though she -seldom found it out, when she was deceived by a servant who cherished -a convenient opinion of his own, that a drop from a nearer spring -would do just as well. Old Siān has been dead over thirty-five years, -but I have it, on the testimony of two highly trustworthy brothers, -who are of her family, and now between sixty and seventy years of -age, that she used to relate to them how a shepherd, once on a time, -saw a fairy maiden (un o'r Tylwyth Teg) on the surface of the tarn -called Llyn Du'r Ardu, and how, from bantering and joking, their -acquaintance ripened into courtship, when the father and mother of -the lake maiden appeared to give the union their sanction, and to -arrange the marriage settlement. This was to the effect that the -husband was never to strike his wife with iron, and that she was to -bring her great wealth with her, consisting of stock of all kinds -for his mountain farm. All duly took place, and they lived happily -together until one day, when trying to catch a pony, the husband threw -a bridle to his wife, and the iron in that struck her. It was then -all over with him, as the wife hurried away with her property into -the lake, so that nothing more was seen or heard of her. Here I may -as well explain that the Llanberis side of the steep, near the top of -Snowdon, is called Clogwyn du'r Ardu, or the Black Cliff of the Ardu, -at the bottom of which lies the tarn alluded to as the Black Lake of -the Ardu, and near it stands a huge boulder, called Maen du'r Ardu, -all of which names are curious, as involving the word du, black. Ardu -itself has much the same meaning, and refers to the whole precipitous -side of the summit with its dark shadows, and there is a similar Ardu -near Nanmor on the Merionethshire side of Bedgelert. - -One of the brothers, I ought to have said, doubts that the lake here -mentioned was the one in old Siān's tale; but he has forgotten which -it was of the many in the neighbourhood. Both, however, remembered -another short story about fairies, which they had heard another old -woman relate, namely, Mari Domos Siōn, who died some thirty years ago: -it was merely to the effect that a shepherd had once lost his way in -the mist on the mountain on the land of Caeau Gwynion, towards Cwellyn -[17] Lake, and got into a ring where the Tylwyth Teg were dancing: -it was only after a very hard struggle that he was able, at length, -to get away from them. - -To this I may add the testimony of a lady, for whose veracity I -can vouch, to the effect that, when she was a child in Cwm Brwynog, -from thirty to forty years ago, she and her brothers and sisters used -to be frequently warned by their mother not to go far away from the -house when there happened to be thick mist on the ground, lest they -should come across the Tylwyth Teg dancing, and be carried away to -their abode beneath the lake. They were always, she says, supposed -to live in the lakes; and the one here alluded to was Llyn Dwythwch, -which is one of those famous for its torgochiaid or chars. The mother -is still living; but she seems to have long since, like others, -lost her belief in the fairies. - -After writing the above, I heard that a brother to the foregoing -brothers, namely, Mr. Thomas Davies, of Mur Mawr, Llanberis, remembered -a similar tale. Mr. Davies is now sixty-four, and the persons from -whom he heard the tale were the same Siān Dafyd of Helfa Fawr, and -Mari Domos Siōn of Tyn [18] Gadlas, Llanberis: the two women were -about seventy years of age when he as a child heard it from them. At -my request, a friend of mine, Mr. Hugh D. Jones, of Tyn Gadlas, also -a member of this family, which is one of the oldest perhaps in the -place, has taken down from Mr. Davies' mouth all he could remember, -word for word, as follows:-- - -Yn perthyn i ffarm Bron y Fedw yr oed dyn ifanc wedi cael ei fagu, -nis gwydent faint cyn eu hamser hwy. Arferai pan yn hogyn fynd i'r -mynyd yn Cwm Drywenyd a Mynyd y Fedw ar ochr orllewinol y Wydfa i -fugeilio, a bydai yn taro ar hogan yn y mynyd; ac wrth fynychu gweld -eu gilyd aethant yn ffrindiau mawr. Arferent gyfarfod eu gilyd mewn -lle neillduol yn Cwm Drywenyd, lle'r oed yr hogan a'r teulu yn byw, -lle y bydai pob danteithion, chwareuydiaethau a chanu dihafal; ond -ni fydai'r hogyn yn gwneyd i fyny a neb ohonynt ond yr hogan. - -Diwed y ffrindiaeth fu carwriaeth, a phan soniod yr hogyn am idi -briodi, ni wnai ond ar un amod, sef y bywiai hi hefo fo hyd nes y -tarawai ef hi a haiarn. - -Priodwyd hwy, a buont byw gyda'u gilyd am nifer o flynydoed, a bu -idynt blant; ac ar dyd marchnad yn Gaernarfon yr oed y gwr a'r wraig -yn medwl mynd i'r farchnad ar gefn merlod, fel pob ffarmwr yr amser -hwnnw. Awd i'r mynyd i dal merlyn bob un. - -Ar waelod Mynyd y Fedw mae llyn o ryw dri-ugain neu gan llath o hyd ac -ugain neu deg llath ar hugain o led, ac y mae ar un ochr ido le tźg, -fford y bydai'r ceffylau yn rhedeg. - -Daliod y gwr ferlyn a rhoes ef i'r wraig i'w dal heb ffrwyn, tra bydai -ef yn dal merlyn arall. Ar ol rhoi ffrwyn yn mhen ei ferlyn ei hun, -taflod un arall i'r wraig i roi yn mhen ei merlyn hithau, ac wrth ei -thaflu tarawod bit y ffrwyn hi yn ei llaw. Gollyngod y wraig y merlyn, -ac aeth ar ei phen i'r llyn, a dyna diwed y briodas. - -'To the farm of Bron y Fedw there belonged a son, who grew up to -be a young man, the women knew not how long before their time. He -was in the habit of going up the mountain to Cwm Drywenyd [19] and -Mynyd y Fedw, on the west side of Snowdon, to do the shepherding, -and there he was wont to come across a lass on the mountain, so that -as the result of frequently meeting one another, he and she became -great friends. They usually met at a particular spot in Cwm Drywenyd, -where the girl and her family lived, and where there were all kinds -of nice things to eat, of amusements, and of incomparable music; but -he did not make up to anybody there except the girl. The friendship -ended in courtship; but when the boy mentioned that she should be -married to him, she would only do so on one condition, namely, that -she would live with him until he should strike her with iron. They -were wedded, and they lived together for a number of years, and had -children. Once on a time it happened to be market day at Carnarvon, -whither the husband and wife thought of riding on ponies, like all -the farmers of that time. So they went to the mountain to catch a -pony each. At the bottom of Mynyd y Fedw there is a pool some sixty -or one hundred yards long by twenty or thirty broad, and on one side -of it there is a level space along which the horses used to run. The -husband caught a pony, and gave it to the wife to hold fast without -a bridle, while he should catch another. When he had bridled his own -pony, he threw another bridle to his wife for her to secure hers; -but as he threw it, the bit of the bridle struck her on one of her -hands. The wife let go the pony, and went headlong into the pool, -and that was the end of their wedded life.' - -The following is a later tale, which Mr. Thomas Davies heard from -his mother, who died in 1832: she would be ninety years of age had -she been still living:-- - -Pan oed hi'n hogan yn yr Hafod, Llanberis, yr oed hogan at ei hoed hi'n -cael ei magu yn Cwmglas, Llanberis, ac arferai dweyd, pan yn hogan a -thra y bu byw, y bydai yn cael arian gan y Tylwyth Teg yn Cwm Cwmglas. - -Yr oed yn dweyd y bydai ar foreuau niwliog, tywyll, yn mynd i le -penodol yn Cwm Cwmglas gyda dsygiad o lefrith o'r fuches a thywel -glan, ac yn ei rodi ar garreg; ac yn mynd yno drachefn, ac yn cael -y llestr yn wag, gyda darn deuswllt neu hanner coron ac weithiau fwy -wrth ei ochr. - -'When she was a girl, living at Yr Hafod, Llanberis, there was a -girl of her age being brought up at Cwmglas in the same parish. The -latter was in the habit of saying, when she was a girl and so long -as she lived, that she used to have money from the Tylwyth Teg, in -the Cwmglas Hollow. Her account was, that on dark, misty mornings she -used to go to a particular spot in that Hollow with a jugful of sweet -milk from the milking place, and a clean towel, and then place them -on a stone. She would return, and find the jug empty, with a piece -of money placed by its side: that is, two shillings or half a crown, -or at times even more.' - -A daughter of that woman lives now at a farm, Mr. Davies observes, -called Plas Pennant, in the parish of Llanfihangel yn Mhennant, in -Carnarvonshire; and he adds, that it was a tale of a kind that was -common enough when he was a boy; but many laughed at it, though the old -people believed it to be a fact. To this I may as well append another -tale, which was brought to the memory of an old man who happened to be -present when Mr. Jones and Mr. Davies were busy with the foregoing. His -name is John Roberts, and his age is seventy-five: his present home -is at Capel Sļon, in the neighbouring parish of Llandeiniolen:-- - -Yr oed ef pan yn hogyn yn gweini yn Towyn Trewern, yn agos i Gaergybi, -gyda hen wr o'r enw Owen Owens, oed yr adeg honno at ei oed ef yn -bresennol. - -Yr oedynt unwaith mewn hen adeilad ar y ffarm; a dywedod yr hen -wr ei fod ef wedi cael llawer o arian yn y lle hwnnw pan yn hogyn, -a buasai wedi cael ychwaneg oni bai ei dad. - -Yr oed wedi cudio yr arian yn y ty, ond daeth ei fam o hyd idynt, -a dywedod yr hanes wrth ei dad. Ofnai ei fod yn fachgen drwg, mai -eu lladrata yr oed. Dywedai ei dad y gwnai ido dweyd yn mha le yr -oed yn eu cael, neu y tynnai ei groen tros ei ben; ac aeth allan a -thorod wialen bwrpasol at orchwyl o'r fath. - -Yr oed y bachgen yn gwrando ar yr ymdidan rhwng ei dad a'i fam, ac -yr oed yn benderfynol o gadw'r peth yn dirgelwch fel yr oed wedi ei -rybudio gan y Tylwyth Teg. - -Aeth i'r ty, a dechreuod y tad ei holi, ac yntau yn gwrthod ateb; -ymbiliai a'i dad, a dywedai eu bod yn berffaith onest ido ef, ac -y cai ef ychwaneg os cadwai'r peth yn dirgelwch; ond os dywedai, -nad oed dim ychwaneg i'w gael. Mod bynnag ni wrandawai y tad ar ei -esgusion na'i resymau, a'r wialen a orfu; dywedod y bachgen mai gan -y Tylwyth Teg yr oed yn eu cael, a hynny ar yr amod nad oed i dweyd -wrth neb. Mawr oed edifeirwch yr hen bobl am lad yr wyd oed yn dodwy. - -Aeth y bachgen i'r hen adeilad lawer gwaith ar ol hyn, ond ni chafod -byth ychwaneg o arian yno. - -'When a lad, he was a servant at Towyn Trewern, near Holyhead, to -an old man about his own age at present. They were one day in an -old building on the farm, and the old man told him that he had had -much money in that place when he was a lad, and that he would have -had more had it not been for his father. He had hidden the money at -home, where his mother found it and told his father of the affair: -she feared he was a bad boy, and that it was by theft he got it. His -father said that he would make him say where he got it, or else that -he would strip him of the skin of his back, at the same time that he -went out and cut a rod fit for effecting a purpose of the kind. The -boy heard all this talk between his father and his mother, and felt -determined to keep the matter a secret, as he had been warned by the -Tylwyth Teg. He went into the house, and his father began to question -him, while he refused to answer. He supplicatingly protested that -the money was honestly got, and that he should get more if he kept -it a secret, but that, if he did not, there would be no more to be -got. However, the father would give no ear to his excuses or his -reasons, and the rod prevailed; so that the boy said that it was from -the Tylwyth Teg he used to get it, and that on condition of his not -telling anybody. Greatly did the old folks regret having killed the -goose that laid the eggs. The boy went many a time afterwards to the -old building, but he never found any more money there.' - - - - -IV. - -Through the Rev. Daniel Lewis, incumbent of Bettws Garmon, I was -directed to Mr. Samuel Rhys Williams, of the Post Office of that place, -who has kindly given me the result of his inquiries when writing on -the subject of the antiquities of the neighbourhood for a competition -at a literary meeting held there a few years ago. He tells me that he -got the following short tale from a native of Drws y Coed, whose name -is Margaret Williams. She has been living at Bettws Garmon for many -years, and is now over eighty. He does not know whether the story is in -print or not, but he is certain that Margaret Williams never saw it, -even if it be. He further thinks he has heard it from another person, -to wit a man over seventy-seven years of age, who has always lived -at Drws y Coed, in the parish of Bedgelert:-- - -Y mae hanes am fab i amaethwr a breswyliai yn yr Ystrad [20], Betws -Garmon [21], pan yn dychwelyd adref o daith yn hwyr un noswaith, -darfod ido weled cwmni o'r Tylwyth Teg ynghanol eu hafiaeth a'u -glodest. Syfrdanwyd y llanc yn y fan gan degwch anghymarol un o'r -rhianod hyn, fel y beidiod neidio i ganol y cylch, a chymeryd ei eilun -gydag ef. Wedi idi fod yn trigo gydag ef yn ei gartref am ysbaid, -cafod gandi adaw bod yn wraig ido ar amodau neillduol. Un o'r amodau -hyn ydoed, na bydai ido gyffwrd yndi ag un math o haiarn. Bu yn wraig -ido, a ganwyd idynt dau o blant. Un diwrnod yr oed y gwr yn y maes yn -ceisio dal y ceffyl; wrth ei weled yn ffaelu, aeth y wraig ato i'w -gynorthwyo, a phan oed y march yn carlamu heibio gollyngod yntau y -ffrwyn o'i law, er mwyn ceisio ei atal heibio; a phwy a darawod ond -ei wraig, yr hon a diflannod yn y fan allan o'i olwg? - -'The story goes, that the son of a farmer, who lived at the Ystrad -in Bettws Garmon, when returning home from a journey, late in the -evening, beheld a company of fairies in the middle of their mirth and -jollity. The youth was at once bewildered by the incomparable beauty of -one of these ladies, so that he ventured to leap into the circle and -take his idol away with him. After she had tarried awhile with him at -his home, he prevailed on her, on special conditions, to become his -wife. One of these conditions was that he should not touch her with -iron of any description. She became his wife, and two children were -born to them. One day the husband was in the field trying to catch -the horse; seeing him unsuccessful, the wife went to him to help him, -and, when the horse was galloping past him, he let go the bridle at -him in order to prevent him from passing; but whom should he strike -but his wife, who vanished out of his sight on the spot.' - -Just as I was engaged in collecting these stories in 1881, a -correspondent sent me a copy of the Ystrad tale as published by -the late bard and antiquary, the Rev. Owen Wyn Jones, better known -in Wales by his bardic name of Glasynys [22], in the Brython [23] -for 1863, p. 193. I will not attempt to translate Glasynys' poetic -prose with all its compound adjectives, but it comes to this in a -few words. One fine sunny morning, as the young heir of Ystrad was -busied with his sheep on the side of Moel Eilio, he met a very pretty -girl, and when he got home he told the folks there of it. A few -days afterwards he met her again, and this happened several times, -when he mentioned it to his father, who advised him to seize her -when he next met her. The next time he met her he proceeded to do -so, but before he could take her away, a little fat old man came to -them and begged him to give her back to him, to which the youth would -not listen. The little man uttered terrible threats, but the heir of -Ystrad would not yield, so an agreement was made between them, that -the latter was to have the girl to wife until he touched her skin -with iron, and great was the joy both of the son and his parents in -consequence. They lived together for many years; but once on a time, -on the evening of the Bettws Fair, the wife's horse became restive, -and somehow, as the husband was attending to the horse, the stirrup -touched the skin of her bare leg, and that very night she was taken -away from him. She had three or four children, and more than one of -their descendants, as Glasynys maintains, were known to him at the -time he wrote in 1863. Glasynys regards this as the same tale which -is given by Williams of Llandegai, to whom we shall refer later; -and he says that he heard it scores of times when he was a lad. - -Lastly, I happened to mention these legends last summer among others to -the Rev. Owen Davies, curate of Llanberis, a man who is well versed -in Welsh literature, and thoroughly in sympathy with everything -Welsh. Mr. Davies told me that he knew a tale of the sort from his -youth, as current in the parishes of Llanllechid and Llandegai, -near Bangor. Not long afterwards he visited his mother at his native -place, in Llanllechid, in order to have his memory of it refreshed; -and he also went to the Waen Fawr, on the other side of Carnarvon, -where he had the same legend told him with the different localities -specified. The following is the Waen Fawr version, of which I give -the Welsh as I have had it from Mr. Davies, and as it was related, -according to him, some forty years ago in the valley of Nant y Bettws, -near Carnarvon:-- - -Ar brydnawngwaith hyfryd yn Hefin, aeth llanc ieuanc gwrol-dewr ac -anturiaethus, sef etifed a pherchennog yr Ystrad, i lan afon Gwyrfai, -heb fod yn nepell o'i chychwyniad o lyn Cawellyn, ac a ymgudiod yno -mewn dyryslwyn, sef ger y fan y bydai poblach y cotiau cochion--y -Tylwyth Teg--yn arfer dawnsio. Yr ydoed yn noswaith hyfryd loergannog, -heb un cwmwl i gau llygaid y Lloer, ac anian yn distaw dawedog, -odigerth murmuriad lledf y Wyrfai, a swn yr awel ysgafndroed yn -rhodio brigau deiliog y coed. Ni bu yn ei ymgudfa ond dros ychydig -amser, cyn cael difyrru o hono ei olygon a dawns y teulu dedwyd. Wrth -syllu ar gywreinrwyd y dawns, y chwim droadau cyflym, yr ymgyniweiriad -ysgafn-droediog, tarawod ei lygaid ar las lodes ieuanc, dlysaf, hardaf, -lunieidiaf a welod er ei febyd. Yr oed ei chwim droadau a lledneisrwyd -ei hagwedion wedi tanio ei serch tu ag ati i'r fath radau, fel ag yr -oed yn barod i unrhyw anturiaeth er mwyn ei hennill yn gydymaith ido -ei hun. O'i ymgudfa dywyll, yr oed yn gwylio pob ysgogiad er mwyn -ei gyfleustra ei hun. Mewn mynud, yn disymwth digon, rhwng pryder -ac ofn, llamneidiod fel llew gwrol i ganol cylch y Tylwyth Teg, ac -ymafaelod a dwylaw cariad yn y fun luniaid a daniod ei serch, a hynny, -pan oed y Tylwyth dedwyd yn nghanol nwyfiant eu dawns. Cofleidiod hi -yn dyner garedig yn ei fynwes wresog, ac aeth a hi i'w gartref--i'r -Ystrad. Ond diflannod ei chyd-dawnsydion fel anadl Gorphennaf, er -ei chroch dolefau am gael ei rhydhau, a'i hymegnion diflino i dianc -o afael yr hwn a'i hoffod. Mewn anwylder mawr, ymdygod y llanc yn -dyner odiaethol tu ag at y fun deg, ac yr oed yn orawydus i'w chadw -yn ei olwg ac yn ei fediant. Llwydod drwy ei dynerwch tu ag ati i -gael gandi adaw dyfod yn forwyn ido yn yr Ystrad. A morwyn ragorol -oed hi. Godrai deirgwaith y swm arferol o laeth odiar bob buwch, ac -yr oed yr ymenyn heb bwys arno. Ond er ei holl daerni, nis gallai -mewn un mod gael gandi dyweud ei henw wrtho. Gwnaeth lawer cais, -ond yn gwbl ofer. Yn damweiniol ryw dro, wrth yrru - - - Brithen a'r Benwen i'r borfa, - - -a hi yn noswaith loergan, efe a aeth i'r man lle yr arferai y Tylwyth -Teg fyned drwy eu campau yng ngoleuni'r Lloer wen. Y tro hwn eto, efe -a ymgudiod mewn dyryslwyn, a chlywod y Tylwyth Teg yn dywedyd y naill -wrth y llall--'Pan oedym ni yn y lle hwn y tro diwedaf, dygwyd ein -chwaer Penelope odiarnom gan un o'r marwolion.' Ar hynny, dychwelod -y llencyn adref, a'i fynwes yn llawn o falchder cariad, o herwyd ido -gael gwybod enw ei hoff forwyn, yr hon a synnod yn aruthr, pan glywod -ei meistr ieuanc yn ei galw wrth ei henw. Ac am ei bod yn odiaethol -dlos, a lluniaid, yn fywiog-weithgar, a medrus ar bob gwaith, a bod -popeth yn llwydo dan ei llaw, cynygiod ei hun idi yn wr--y celai fod yn -feistres yr Ystrad, yn lle bod yn forwyn. Ond ni chydsyniai hi a'i gais -ar un cyfrif; ond bod braid yn bendrist oherwyd ido wybod ei henw. Fod -bynnag, gwedi maith amser, a thrwy ei daerineb diflino, cydsyniod, -ond yn amodol. Adawod dyfod yn wraig ido, ar yr amod canlynol, sef, -'Pa bryd bynnag y tarawai ef hi ā haiarn, yr elai ymaith odi wrtho, -ac na dychwelai byth ato mwy.' Sicrhawyd yr amod o'i du yntau gyda -pharodrwyd cariad. Buont yn cyd-fyw a'u gilyd yn hapus a chysurus -lawer o flynydoed, a ganwyd idynt fab a merch, y rhai oedynt dlysaf -a llunieidiaf yn yr holl froyd. Ac yn rhinwed ei medrusrwyd a'i -deheurwyd fel gwraig gall, rinwedol, aethant yn gyfoethog iawn--yn -gyfoethocach na neb yn yr holl wlad. Heblaw ei etifediaeth ei hun--Yr -Ystrad, yr oed yn ffarmio holl ogled-barth Nant y Betws, ac odi yno -i ben yr Wydfa, ynghyd a holl Gwm Brwynog, yn mhlwyf Llanberis. Ond, -ryw diwrnod, yn anffortunus digon aeth y dau i'r dol i dal y ceffyl, -a chan fod y ceffylyn braid yn wyllt ac an-nof, yn rhedeg odi arnynt, -taflod y gwr y ffrwyn mewn gwylltineb yn ei erbyn, er ei atal, ac ar -bwy y disgynnod y ffrwyn, ond ar Penelope, y wraig! Diflannod Penelope -yn y fan, ac ni welod byth mo honi. Ond ryw noswaith, a'r gwynt yn -chwythu yn oer o'r gogled, daeth Penelope at ffenestr ei ystafell wely, -a dywedod wrtho am gymmeryd gofal o'r plant yn y geiriau hyn: - - - Rhag bod anwyd ar fy mab, - Yn rhod rhowch arno gób ei dad; - Rhag bod anwyd ar liw'r can, - Rhodwch arni bais ei mham. - - -Ac yna ciliod, ac ni chlywyd na siw na miw byth yn ei chylch. - -For the sake of an occasional reader who does not know Welsh, I add -a summary of it in English. - -One fine evening in the month of June a brave, adventurous youth, the -heir of Ystrad, went to the banks of the Gwyrfai, not far from where it -leaves Cwellyn Lake, and hid himself in the bushes near the spot where -the folks of the Red Coats--the fairies--were wont to dance. The moon -shone forth brightly without a cloud to intercept her light; all was -quiet save where the Gwyrfai gently murmured on her bed, and it was -not long before the young man had the satisfaction of seeing the fair -family dancing in full swing. As he gazed on the subtle course of the -dance, his eyes rested on a damsel, the most shapely and beautiful he -had seen from his boyhood. Her agile movements and the charm of her -looks inflamed him with love for her, to such a degree that he felt -ready for any encounter in order to secure her to be his own. From his -hiding place he watched every move for his opportunity; at last, with -feelings of anxiety and dread, he leaped suddenly into the middle of -the circle of the fairies. There, while their enjoyment of the dance -was at its height, he seized her in his arms and carried her away to -his home at Ystrad. But, as she screamed for help to free her from -the grasp of him who had fallen in love with her, the dancing party -disappeared like one's breath in July. He treated her with the utmost -kindness, and was ever anxious to keep her within his sight and in -his possession. By dint of tenderness he succeeded so far as to get -her to consent to be his servant at Ystrad. And such a servant she -turned out to be! Why, she was wont to milk the cows thrice a day, -and to have the usual quantity of milk each time, so that the butter -was so plentiful that nobody thought of weighing it. As to her name, -in spite of all his endeavours to ascertain it, she would never tell -it him. Accidentally, however, one moonlight night, when driving two -of his cows to the spot where they should graze, he came to the place -where the fairies were wont to enjoy their games in the light of the -moon. This time also he hid himself in a thicket, when he overheard one -fairy saying to another, 'When we were last here our sister Penelope -was stolen from us by a man.' As soon as he heard this off he went -home, full of joy because he had discovered the name of the maid that -was so dear to him. She, on the other hand, was greatly astonished to -hear him call her by her own name. As she was so charmingly pretty, -so industrious, so skilled in every work, and so attended by luck in -everything she put her hand to, he offered to make her his wife instead -of being his servant. At first she would in no wise consent, but she -rather gave way to grief at his having found her name out. However, -his importunity at length brought her to consent, but on the condition -that he should not strike her with iron; if that should happen, she -would quit him never to return. The agreement was made on his side -with the readiness of love, and after this they lived in happiness -and comfort together for many years, and there were born to them a -son and a daughter, who were the handsomest children in the whole -country. Owing, also, to the skill and good qualities of the woman, -as a shrewd and virtuous wife, they became very rich--richer, indeed, -than anybody else in the country around; for, besides the husband's own -inheritance of Ystrad, he held all the northern part of Nant y Bettws, -and all from there to the top of Snowdon, together with Cwm Brwynog -in the parish of Llanberis. But one day, as bad luck would have it, -they went out together to catch a horse in the field, and, as the -animal was somewhat wild and untamed, they had no easy work before -them. In his rashness the man threw a bridle at him as he was rushing -past him, but alas! on whom should the bridle fall but on the wife! No -sooner had this happened than she disappeared, and nothing more was -ever seen of her. But one cold night, when there was a chilling wind -blowing from the north, she came near the window of his bedroom, -and told him in these words to take care of the children:-- - - - Lest my son should find it cold, - Place on him his father's coat: - Lest the fair one find it cold, - Place on her my petticoat. - - -Then she withdrew, and nothing more was heard of her. - -In reply to some queries of mine, Mr. O. Davies tells me that Penelope -was pronounced in three syllables, Pénelōp--so he heard it from his -grandfather: he goes on to say that the offspring of the Lake Lady -is supposed to be represented by a family called Pellings, which was -once a highly respected name in those parts, and that there was a -Lady Bulkeley who was of this descent, not to mention that several -people of a lower rank, both in Anglesey and Arfon, claimed to be of -the same origin. I am not very clear as to how the name got into this -tale, nor have I been able to learn anything about the Pellings; but, -as the word appears to have been regarded as a corrupt derivative -from Penelope, that is, perhaps, all the connexion, so that it may -be that it has really nothing whatever to do with the legend. This -is a point, however, which the antiquaries of North Wales ought to -be able to clear up satisfactorily. - -In reply to queries of mine, Mr. O. Davies gave me the following -particulars:--'I am now (June, 1881) over fifty-two years of age, and I -can assure you that I have heard the legend forty years ago. I do not -remember my father, as he died when I was young, but my grandfather -was remarkable for his delight in tales and legends, and it was his -favourite pastime during the winter nights, after getting his short -black pipe ready, to relate stories about struggles with robbers, about -bogies, and above all about the Tylwyth Teg; for they were his chief -delight. He has been dead twenty-six years, and he had almost reached -eighty years of age. His father before him, who was born about the -year 1740, was also famous for his stories, and my grandfather often -mentioned him as his authority in the course of his narration of the -tales. Both he and the rest of the family used to look at Corwrion, -to be mentioned presently, as a sacred spot. When I was a lad and -happened to be reluctant to leave off playing at dusk, my mother or -grandfather had only to say that 'the Pellings were coming,' in order -to induce me to come into the house at once: indeed, this announcement -had the same effect on persons of a much riper age than mine then was.' - -Further, Mr. Davies kindly called my attention to a volume, entitled -Observations on the Snowdon Mountains, by Mr. William Williams, -of Llandegai, published in London in 1802. In that work this tale -is given somewhat less fully than by Mr. Davies' informant, but the -author makes the following remarks with regard to it, pp. 37, 40:--'A -race of people inhabiting the districts about the foot of Snowdon, -were formerly distinguished and known by the nickname of Pellings, -which is not yet extinct. There are several persons and even families -who are reputed to be descended from these people.... These children -[Penelope's] and their descendants, they say, were called Pellings, -a word corrupted from their mother's name, Penelope. The late Thomas -Rowlands, Esq., of Caerau, in Anglesey, the father of the late Lady -Bulkeley, was a descendant of this lady, if it be true that the name -Pellings came from her; and there are still living several opulent and -respectable people who are known to have sprung from the Pellings. The -best blood in my own veins is this fairy's.' - -Lastly, it will be noticed that these last versions do not distinctly -suggest that the Lake Lady ran into the lake, that is into Cwellyn, -but rather that she disappeared in the same way as the dancing party -by simply becoming invisible like one's breath in July. The fairies -are called in Welsh, Y Tylwyth Teg, or the Fair Family; but the -people of Arfon have been so familiarized with the particular one I -have called the Lake Lady, that, according to one of my informants, -they have invented the term Y Dylwythes Deg, or even Y Dylwythen Deg, -to denote her; but it is unknown to the others, so that the extent -of its use is not very considerable. - -This is, perhaps, the place to give another tale, according to which -the man goes to the Lake Maiden's country, instead of her settling -with him at his home. I owe it to the kindness of Mr. William Jones, -of Regent Place, Llangollen, a native of Bedgelert. He heard it from -an old man before he left Bedgelert, but when he sent a friend to -inquire some time afterwards, the old man was gone. According to -Mr. Jones, the details of the tale are, for that reason, imperfect, -as some of the incidents have faded from his memory; but such as he -can still remember the tale, it is here given in his own words:-- - -Ryw noson lawn lloer ac un o feibion Llwyn On yn Nant y Betws yn -myned i garu i Glogwyn y Gwin, efe a welod y Tylwyth yn ymlodestu a -dawnsio ei hochr hi ar weirglod wrth lan Llyn Cawellyn. Efe a nesaod -tuag atynt; ac o dipyn i beth fe'i llithiwyd gan bereiddra swynol eu -canu a hoender a bywiogrwyd eu chwareu, nes myned o hono tu fewn i'r -cylch; ac yn fuan fe daeth rhyw hud drosto, fel y collod adnabydiaeth -o bobman; a chafod ei hun mewn gwlad hardaf a welod erioed, lle'r oed -pawb yn treulio eu hamser mewn afiaeth a gorfoled. Yr oed wedi bod yno -am saith mlyned, ac eto nid oed dim ond megis breudwyd nos; ond daeth -adgof i'w fedwl am ei neges, a hiraeth yndo am weled ei anwylyd. Felly -efe a ofynod ganiatad i dychwelyd adref, yr hyn a rodwyd ynghyd a llu o -gymdeithion i'w arwain tua'i wlad; ac yn disymwth cafod ei hun fel yn -deffro o freudwyd ar y dol, lle gwelod y Tylwyth Teg yn chwareu. Trod -ei wyneb tuag adref; ond wedi myned yno yr oed popeth wedi newid, -ei rieni wedi meirw, ei frodyr yn ffaelu ei adnabod, a'i gariad wedi -priodi un arall.--Ar ol y fath gyfnewidiadau efe a dorod ei galon, -ac a fu farw mewn llai nag wythnos ar ol ei dychweliad. - -'One bright moonlight night, as one of the sons of the farmer who lived -at Llwyn On in Nant y Bettws was going to pay his addresses to a girl -at Clogwyn y Gwin, he beheld the Tylwyth Teg enjoying themselves in -full swing on a meadow close to Cwellyn Lake. He approached them, and -little by little he was led on by the enchanting sweetness of their -music and the liveliness of their playing until he had got within -their circle. Soon some kind of spell passed over him, so that he lost -his knowledge of the place, and found himself in a country, the most -beautiful he had ever seen, where everybody spent his time in mirth -and rejoicing. He had been there seven years, and yet it seemed to -him but a night's dream; but a faint recollection came to his mind of -the business on which he had left home, and he felt a longing to see -his beloved one. So he went and asked for permission to return home, -which was granted him, together with a host of attendants to lead -him to his country; and, suddenly, he found himself, as if waking -from a dream, on the bank where he had seen the fair family amusing -themselves. He turned towards home, but there he found everything -changed: his parents were dead, his brothers could not recognize him, -and his sweetheart was married to another man. In consequence of such -changes he died broken-hearted in less than a week after coming back.' - - - - -V. - -The Rev. O. Davies regarded the Llanllechid legend as so very like -the one he got about Cwellyn Lake and the Waen Fawr, that he has not -written the former out at length, but merely pointed out the following -differences: (1) Instead of Cwellyn, the lake in the former is the -pool of Corwrion, in the parish of Llandegai, near Bangor. (2) What -the Lake Lady was struck with was not a bridle, but an iron fetter: -the word used is llyfether, which probably means a long fetter -connecting a fore-foot and a hind-foot of a horse together. In Arfon, -the word is applied also to a cord tying the two fore-feet together, -but in Cardiganshire this would be called a hual, the other word, -there pronounced llowethir, being confined to the long fetter. In -books, the word is written llywethair, llefethair and llyffethair -or llyffethar, which is possibly the pronunciation in parts of North -Wales, especially Arfon. This is an interesting word, as it is no other -than the English term 'long fetter,' borrowed into Welsh; as, in fact, -it was also into Irish early enough to call for an article on it in -Cormac's Irish Glossary, where langfiter is described as an English -word for a fetter between the fore and the hind legs: in Anglo-Manx it -is become lanketer. (3) The field in which they were trying to catch -the horse is, in the Llanllechid version, specified as that called -Maes Madog, at the foot of the Llefn. (4) When the fairy wife ran -away, it was headlong into the pool of Corwrion, calling after her -all her milch cows, and they followed her with the utmost readiness. - -Before going on to mention bits of information I have received from -others about the Llanllechid legend, I think it best here to finish -with the items given me by Mr. O. Davies, whom I cannot too cordially -thank for his readiness to answer my questions. Among other things, -he expresses himself to the following effect:-- 'It is to this day -a tradition--and I have heard it a hundred times--that the dairy of -Corwrion excelled all other dairies in those parts, that the milk -was better and more plentiful, and that the cheese and butter were -better there than in all the country round, the reason assigned being -that the cattle on the farm of Corwrion had mixed with the breed -belonging to the fairy, who had run away after being struck with the -iron fetter. However that may be, I remember perfectly well the high -terms of praise in which the cows of Corwrion used to be spoken of -as being remarkable for their milk and the profit they yielded; and, -when I was a boy, I used to hear people talk of Tarw Penwyn Corwrion, -or "the White-headed Bull of Corwrion," as derived from the breed of -cattle which had formed the fairy maiden's dowry.' - -My next informant is Mr. Hugh Derfel Hughes, of Pendinas, Llandegai -[24], who has been kind enough to give me the version, of which I here -give the substance in English, premising that Mr. Hughes says that -he has lived about thirty-four years within a mile of the pool and -farm house called Corwrion, and that he has refreshed his memory of -the legend by questioning separately no less than three old people, -who had been bred and born at or near that spot. He is a native of -Merioneth, but has lived at Llandegai for the last thirty-seven years, -his age now being sixty-six. I may add that Mr. Hughes is a local -antiquary of great industry and zeal; and that he published a book -on the antiquities of the district, under the title of Hynafiaethau -Llandegai a Llanllechid, that is 'the Antiquities of Llandegai and -Llanllechid' (Bethesda, 1866); but it is out of print, and I have -had some trouble to procure a copy:-- - -'In old times, when the fairies showed themselves much oftener to -men than they do now, they made their home in the bottomless pool -of Corwrion, in Upper Arllechwed, in that wild portion of Gwyned -called Arfon. On fine mornings in the month of June these diminutive -and nimble folk might be seen in a regular line vigorously engaged -in mowing hay, with their cattle in herds busily grazing in the -fields near Corwrion. This was a sight which often met the eyes -of the people on the sides of the hills around, even on Sundays; -but when they hurried down to them they found the fields empty, with -the sham workmen and their cows gone, all gone. At other times they -might be heard hammering away like miners, shovelling rubbish aside, -or emptying their carts of stones. At times they took to singing -all the night long, greatly to the delight of the people about, -who dearly loved to hear them; and, besides singing so charmingly, -they sometimes formed into companies for dancing, and their movements -were marvellously graceful and attractive. But it was not safe to -go too near the lake late at night, for once a brave girl, who was -troubled with toothache, got up at midnight and went to the brink -of the water in search of the root of a plant that grows there full -of the power to kill all pain in the teeth. But, as she was plucking -up a bit of it, there burst on her ear, from the depths of the lake, -such a shriek as drove her back into the house breathless with fear -and trembling; but whether this was not the doing of a stray fairy, -who had been frightened out of her wits at being suddenly overtaken by -a damsel in her nightdress, or the ordinary fairy way of curing the -toothache, tradition does not tell. For sometimes, at any rate, the -fairies busied themselves in doing good to the men and women who were -their neighbours, as when they tried to teach them to keep all promises -and covenants to which they pledged themselves. A certain man and his -wife, to whom they wished to teach this good habit, have never been -forgotten. The husband had been behaving as he ought, until one day, -as he held the plough, with the wife guiding his team, he broke his -covenant towards her by treating her harshly and unkindly. No sooner -had he done so, than he was snatched through the air and plunged in the -lake. When the wife went to the brink of the water to ask for him back, -the reply she had was, that he was there, and that there he should be. - -'The fairies when engaged in dancing allowed themselves to be gazed -at, a sight which was wont greatly to attract the young men of the -neighbourhood, and once on a time the son and heir of the owner of -Corwrion fell deeply in love with one of the graceful maidens who -danced in the fairy ring, for she was wondrously beautiful and pretty -beyond compare. His passion for her ere long resulted in courtship, -and soon in their being married, which took place on the express -understanding, that firstly the husband was not to know her name, -though he might give her any name he chose; and, secondly, that he -might now and then beat her with a rod, if she chanced to misbehave -towards him; but he was not to strike her with iron on pain of her -leaving him at once. This covenant was kept for some years, so that -they lived happily together and had four children, of whom the two -youngest were a boy and a girl. But one day as they went to one of the -fields of Bryn Twrw in the direction of Pennard Gron, to catch a pony, -the fairy wife, being so much nimbler than her husband, ran before -him and had her hand in the pony's mane in no time. She called out -to her husband to throw her a halter, but instead of that he threw -towards her a bridle with an iron bit, which, as bad luck would have -it, struck her. The wife at once flew through the air, and plunged -headlong into Corwrion Pool. The husband returned sighing and weeping -towards Bryn Twrw, "Noise Hill," and when he had reached it, the twrw, -"noise," there was greater than had ever been heard before, namely that -of weeping after "Belenė"; and it was then, after he had struck her -with iron, that he first learnt what his wife's name was. Belenė never -came back to her husband, but the feelings of a mother once brought her -to the window of his bedroom, where she gave him the following order:-- - - - Os byd anwyd ar fy mab, If my son should feel it cold, - Rho'wch am dano gob ei dad; Let him wear his father's coat; - Os anwydog a fyd can [25], If the fair one feel the cold, - Rho'wch am dani bais ei mam. Let her wear my petticoat. - - -'As years and years rolled on a grandson of Belenė's fell in love with -a beautiful damsel who lived at a neighbouring farm house called Tai -Teulwriaid, and against the will of his father and mother they married, -but they had nothing to stock their land with. So one morning what was -their astonishment, when they got up, to see grazing quietly in the -field six black cows and a white-headed bull, which had come up out -of the lake as stock for them from old grannie Belenė? They served -them well with milk and butter for many a long year, but on the day -the last of the family died, the six black cows and the white-headed -bull disappeared into the lake, never more to be seen.' - -Mr. Hughes referred to no less than three other versions, as -follows:--(1) According to one account, the husband was ploughing, -with the wife leading the team, when by chance he came across her -and the accident happened. The wife then flew away like a wood-hen -(iar goed) into the lake. (2) Another says that they were in a stable -trying to bridle one of the horses, when the misfortune took place -through inadvertence. (3) A third specifies the field in front of the -house at Corwrion as the place where the final accident took place, -when they were busied with the cows and horses. - -To these I would add the following traditions, which Mr. Hughes further -gives. Sometimes the inhabitants, who seem to have been on the whole -on good terms with the fairies, used to heat water and leave it in a -vessel on the hearth overnight for the fairies to wash their children -in it. This they considered such a kindness that they always left -behind them on the hearth a handful of their money. Some pieces are -said to have been sometimes found in the fields near Corwrion, and that -they consisted of coins which were smaller than our halfpennies, but -bigger than farthings, and had a harp on one side. But the tradition -is not very definite on these points. - -Here also I may as well refer to a similar tale which I got last year -at Llanberis from a man who is a native of the Llanllechid side of the -mountain, though he now lives at Llanberis. He is about fifty-five -years of age, and remembers hearing in his youth a tale connected -with a house called Hafoty'r Famaeth, in a very lonely situation on -Llanllechid Mountain, and now represented only by some old ruined -walls. It was to the effect that one night, when the man who lived -there was away from home, his wife, who had a youngish baby, washed -him on the hearth, left the water there, and went to bed with her -little one: she woke up in the night to find that the Tylwyth Teg -were in possession of the hearth, and busily engaged in washing their -children. That is all I got of this tale of a well-known type. - -To return to Mr. Hughes' communications, I would select from them -some remarks on the topography of the teeming home of the fairies. He -estimated the lake or pool of Corwrion to be about 120 yards long, -and adds that it is nearly round; but he thinks it was formerly -considerably larger, as a cutting was made some eighty or a hundred -years ago to lead water from it to Penrhyn Castle; but even then -its size would not approach that ascribed to it by popular belief, -according to which it was no less than three miles long. In fact -it was believed that there was once a town of Corwrion which was -swallowed up by the lake, a sort of idea which one meets with in -many parts of Wales, and some of the natives are said to be able to -discern the houses under the water. This must have been near the end -which is not bottomless, the latter being indicated by a spot which -is said never to freeze even in hard winters. Old men remember it -the resort of herons, cormorants, and the water-hen (hobi wen). Near -the banks there grew, besides the water-lily, various kinds of rushes -and sedges, which were formerly much used for making mats and other -useful articles. It was also once famous for eels of a large size, -but it is not supposed to have contained fish until Lord Penrhyn placed -some there in recent years. It teemed, however, with leeches of three -different kinds so recently that an old man still living describes to -Mr. Hughes his simple way of catching them when he was a boy, namely, -by walking bare-legged in the water: in a few minutes he landed with -nine or ten leeches sticking to his legs, some of which fetched a -shilling each from the medical men of those days. Corwrion is now a -farm house occupied by Mr. William Griffiths, a grandson of the late -bard Gutyn Peris. When Mr. Hughes called to make inquiries about the -legend, he found there the foundations of several old buildings, and -several pieces of old querns about the place. He thinks that there -belonged to Corwrion in former times, a mill and a fuller's house, -which he seems to infer from the names of two neighbouring houses -called 'Y Felin Hen,' the Old Mill, and 'Pandy Tre Garth,' the Fulling -Mill of Tregarth, respectively. He also alludes to a gefail or smithy -there, in which one Rhys ab Robert used to work, not to mention that -a great quantity of ashes, such as come from a smithy, are found at -the end of the lake furthest from the farm house. The spot on which -Corwrion stands is part of the ground between the Ogwen and another -stream which bears the name of 'Afon Cegin Arthur,' or the River of -Arthur's Kitchen, and most of the houses and fields about have names -which have suggested various notions to the people there: such are the -farms called 'Coed Howel,' whence the belief in the neighbourhood that -Howel Da, King of Wales, lived here. About him Mr. Hughes has a great -deal to say: among other things, that he had boats on Corwrion lake, -and that he was wont to present the citizens of Bangor yearly with 300 -fat geese reared on the waters of the same. I am referred by another -man to a lecture delivered in the neighbourhood on these and similar -things by the late bard and antiquary the Rev. Robert Ellis (Cyndelw), -but I have never come across a copy. A field near Corwrion is called -'Cae Stabal,' or the Field of the Stable, which contains the remains -of a row of stables, as it is supposed, and of a number of mangers -where Howel's horses were once fed. In a neighbouring wood, called -'Parc y Gelli' or 'Hopiar y Gelli,' my informant goes on to say, -there are to be seen the foundations of seventeen or eighteen old -hut-circles, and near them some think they see the site of an old -church. About a mile to the south-east of Corwrion is Pendinas, -which Mr. Hughes describes as an old triangular Welsh fortress, -on the bank of the Ogwen; and within two stone's-throws or so of -Corwrion on the south side of it, and a little to the west of Bryn -Twrw mentioned in the legend, is situated Penard Gron, a caer or -fort, which he describes as being, before it was razed in his time, -forty-two yards long by thirty-two wide, and defended by a sort of -rampart of earth and stone several yards wide at the base. It used -to be the resort of the country people for dancing, cock-fighting -[26], and other amusements on Sundays. Near it was a cairn, which, -when it was dug into, was found to cover a kistvaen, a pot, and a -quern: a variety of tales attaching to it are told concerning ghosts, -caves, and hidden treasures. Altogether Mr. Hughes is strongly of -opinion that Corwrion and its immediate surroundings represent a spot -which at one time had great importance; and I see no reason wholly to -doubt the correctness of that conclusion, but it would be interesting -to know whether Penrhyn used, as Mr. Hughes suggests, to be called -Penrhyn Corwrion; there ought, perhaps, to be no great difficulty in -ascertaining this, as some of the Penrhyn estate appears to have been -the subject of litigation in times gone by. - -Before leaving Mr. Hughes' notes, I must here give his too brief -account of another thing connected with Corwrion, though, perhaps, -not with the legends here in question. I allude to what he calls the -Lantern Ghost (Ysbryd y Lantar):--'There used to be formerly,' he says, -'and there is still at Corwrion, a good-sized sour apple-tree, which -during the winter half of the year used to be lit up by fire. It -began slowly and grew greater until the whole seemed to be in a -blaze. He was told by an old woman that she formerly knew old people -who declared they had seen it. In the same way the trees in Hopiar y -Gelli appeared, according to them, to be also lit up with fire.' This -reminds me of Mr. Fitzgerald's account of the Irish Bile-Tineadh in -the Revue Celtique, iv. 194. - -After communicating to me the notes of which the foregoing are -abstracts, Mr. Hughes kindly got me a version of the legend from -Mr. David Thomas, of Pont y Wern, in the same neighbourhood, but as it -contains nothing which I have not already given from Mr. Hughes' own, -I pass it by. Mr. Thomas, however, has heard that the number of the -houses making up the town of Corwrion some six or seven centuries ago -was about seventy-five; but they were exactly seventy-three according -to my next informant, Mr. David Evan Davies, of Treflys, Bethesda, -better known by his bardic name of Dewi Glan Ffrydlas. Both these -gentlemen have also heard the tradition that there was a church at -Corwrion, where there used to be every Sunday a single service, after -which the people went to a spot not far off to amuse themselves, and -at night to watch the fairies dancing, or to mix with them while they -danced in a ring around a glow-worm. According to Dewi Glan Ffrydlas, -the spot was the Pen y Bonc, already mentioned, which means, among -other things, that they chose a rising ground. This is referred to -in a modern rhyme, which runs thus:-- - - - A'r Tylwyth Teg yn dawnsio'n sionc - O gylch magļen Pen y Bonc. - - With the fairies nimbly dancing round - The glow-worm on the Rising Ground. - - -Dewi Glan Ffrydlas has kindly gone to the trouble of giving me a brief, -but complete, version of the legend as he has heard it. It will be -noticed that the discovering of the fairy's name is an idle incident -in this version: it is brought in too late, and no use is made of it -when introduced. This is the substance of his story in English:--'At -one of the dances at Pen y Bonc, the heir of Corwrion's eyes fell -on one of the damsels of the fair family, and he was filled with -love for her. Courtship and marriage in due time ensued, but he had -to agree to two conditions, namely, that he was neither to know her -name nor to strike her with iron. By-and-by they had children, and -when the husband happened to go, during his wife's confinement, to a -merry-making at Pen y Bonc, the fairies talked together concerning -his wife, and in expressing their feelings of sympathy for her, -they inadvertently betrayed the mystery of her name by mentioning it -within his hearing. Years rolled on, when the husband and wife went out -together one day to catch a colt of theirs that had not been broken -in, their object being to go to Conway Fair. Now, as she was swifter -of foot than her husband, she got hold of the colt by the mane, and -called out to him to throw her a halter, but instead of throwing her -the one she asked for, he threw another with iron in it, which struck -her. Off she went into the lake. A grandson of this fairy many years -afterwards married one of the girls of Corwrion. They had a large -piece of land, but no means of stocking it, so that they felt rather -distressed in their minds. But lo and behold! one day a white-headed -bull came out of the lake, bringing with him six black cows to their -land. There never were the like of those cows for milk, and great -was the prosperity of their owners, as well as the envy it kindled -in their neighbours' breasts. But when they both grew old and died, -the bull and the cows went back into the lake.' - -Now I add the other sayings about the Tylwyth Teg, which Dewi Glan -Ffrydlas has kindly collected for me, beginning with a blurred story -about changelings:-- - -'Once on a time, in the fourteenth century, the wife of a man at -Corwrion had twins, and she complained one day to a witch, who lived -close by, at Tydyn y Barcud, that the children were not getting on, -but that they were always crying day and night. "Are you sure that -they are your children?" asked the witch, adding that it did not -seem to her that they were like hers. "I have my doubts also," said -the mother. "I wonder if somebody has exchanged children with you," -said the witch. "I do not know," said the mother. "But why do you not -seek to know?" asked the other. "But how am I to go about it?" said the -mother. The witch replied, "Go and do something rather strange before -their eyes and watch what they will say to one another." "Well, I do -not know what I should do," said the mother. "Well," said the other, -"take an egg-shell, and proceed to brew beer in it in a chamber -aside, and come here to tell me what the children will say about -it." She went home and did as the witch had directed her, when the -two children lifted their heads out of the cradle to find what she -was doing--to watch and to listen. Then one observed to the other, -"I remember seeing an oak having an acorn," to which the other replied, -"And I remember seeing a hen having an egg"; and one of the two added, -"But I do not remember before seeing anybody brew beer in the shell -of a hen's egg." The mother then went to the witch and told her what -the twins had said one to the other; and she directed her to go to a -small wooden bridge, not far off, with one of the strange children -under each arm, and there to drop them from the bridge into the -river beneath. The mother went back home again and did as she had -been directed. When she reached home this time, she found to her -astonishment that her own children had been brought back.' - -Next comes a story about a midwife who lived at Corwrion. 'One of -the fairies called to ask her to come and attend on his wife. Off -she went with him, and she was astonished to be taken into a splendid -palace. There she continued to go night and morning to dress the baby -for some time, until one day the husband asked her to rub her eyes -with a certain ointment he offered her. She did so, and found herself -sitting on a tuft of rushes, and not in a palace. There was no baby: -all had disappeared. Some time afterwards she happened to go to the -town, and whom should she there see busily buying various wares, -but the fairy on whose wife she had been attending. She addressed -him with the question, "How are you to-day?" Instead of answering -her, he asked, "How do you see me?" "With my eyes," was the prompt -reply. "Which eye?" he asked. "This one," said the woman, pointing to -it; and instantly he disappeared, never more to be seen by her.' This -tale, as will be seen on comparison later, is incomplete, and probably -incorrect. - -Here is another from Mr. D. E. Davies:--'One day Guto, the farmer of -Corwrion, complained to his wife that he lacked men to mow his hay, -when she replied, "Why fret about it? look yonder! There you have -a field full of them at it, and stripped to their shirt-sleeves -(yn llewys eu crysau)." When he went to the spot the sham workmen -of the fairy family had disappeared. This same Guto--or somebody -else--happened another time to be ploughing, when he heard some -person he could not see, calling out to him, "I have got the bins -(that is the vice) of my plough broken." "Bring it to me," said the -driver of Guto's team, "that I may mend it." When they finished the -furrow, they found the broken vice, with a barrel of beer placed -near it. One of the men sat down and mended the vice. Then they -made another furrow, and when they returned to the spot they found -there a two-eared dish filled to the brim with bara a chwrw, or -"bread and beer." The word vice, I may observe, is an English term, -which is applied in Carnarvonshire to a certain part of the plough: -it is otherwise called bins, but neither does this seem to be a Welsh -word, nor have I heard either used in South Wales. - -At times one of the fairies was in the habit, as I was told by more -than one of my informants, of coming out of Llyn Corwrion with her -spinning-wheel (troell bach) on fine summer days and betaking herself -to spinning. While at that work she might be heard constantly singing -or humming, in a sort of round tune, the words sģli ffrit. So that sģli -ffrit Leisa Bčla may now be heard from the mouths of the children in -that neighbourhood. But I have not been successful in finding out what -Liza Bella's 'silly frit' exactly means, though I am, on the whole, -convinced that the words are other than of Welsh origin. The last of -them, ffrit, is usually applied in Cardiganshire to anything worthless -or insignificant, and the derivative, ffrityn, means one who has no go -or perseverance in him: the feminine is ffriten. In Carnarvonshire my -wife has heard ffrityn and ffritan applied to a small man and a small -woman respectively. Mr. Hughes says that in Merioneth and parts of -Powys sģli ffrit is a term applied to a small woman or a female dwarf -who happens to be proud, vain, and fond of the attentions of the other -sex (benyw fach neu goraches falch a hunanol a fydai hoff o garu); -but he thinks he has heard it made use of with regard to the gipsies, -and possibly also to the Tylwyth Teg. The Rev. O. Davies thinks the -words sģli ffrit Leisa Bčla to be very modern, and that they refer -to a young woman who lived at a place in the neighbourhood, called -Bryn Bčla or Brymbčla, 'Bella's Hill,' the point being that this Bella -was ahead, in her time, of all the girls in those parts in matters of -taste and fashion. This however does not seem to go far enough back, -and it is possible still that in Bčla, that is, in English spelling, -Bella, we have merely a shortening of some such a name as Isabella -or Arabella, which were once much more popular in the Principality -than they are now: in fact, I do not feel sure that Leisa Bčla is -not bodily a corruption of Isabella. As to sģli ffrit, one might at -first have been inclined to render it by small fry, especially in -the sense of the French 'de la friture' as applied to young men and -boys, and to connect it with the Welsh sil and silod, which mean small -fish; but the pronunciation of silli or sģli being nearly that of the -English word silly, it appears, on the whole, to belong to the host of -English words to be found in colloquial Welsh, though they seldom find -their way into books. Students of English ought to be able to tell us -whether frit had the meaning here suggested in any part of England, -and how lately; also, whether there was such a phrase as 'silly frit' -in use. After penning this, I received the following interesting -communication from Mr. William Jones, of Llangollen:--The term sģli -ffrit was formerly in use at Bedgelert, and what was thereby meant -was a child of the Tylwyth Teg. It is still used for any creature -that is smaller than ordinary. 'Pooh, a silly frit like that!' (Pw, -rhyw sģli ffrit fel yna!). 'Mrs. So-and-So has a fine child.' 'Ha, -do you call a silly frit like that a fine child?' (Mae gan hon a hon -blentyn braf. Ho, a ydych chwi'n galw rhyw sģli ffrit fel hwnna'n -braf?) To return to Leisa Bčla and Belenė, it may be that the same -person was meant by both these names, but I am in no hurry to identify -them, as none of my correspondents knows the latter of them except -Mr. Hughes, who gives it on the authority of the bard Gutyn Peris, -and nothing further so far as I can understand, whereas Bčla will -come before us in another story, as it is the same name, I presume, -which Glasynys has spelled Bella in Cymru Fu. - -So I wrote in 1881: since then I have ascertained from Professor -Joseph Wright, who is busily engaged on his great English Dialect -Dictionary, that frit [27] is the same word, in the dialects of -Cheshire, Shropshire, and Pembrokeshire, as fright in literary -English; and that the corresponding verb to frighten is in them -fritten, while a frittenin (= the book English frightening) means a -ghost or apparition. So sģli ffrit is simply the English silly frit, -and means probably a silly sprite or silly ghost, and sģli ffrit Leisa -Bčla would mean the silly ghost of a woman called Liza Bella. But the -silly frit found spinning near Corwrion Pool will come under notice -again, for that fairy belongs to the Rumpelstiltzchen group of tales, -and the fragment of a story about her will be seen to have treated -Silly Frit as her proper name, which she had not intended to reach -the ears of the person of whom she was trying to get the better. - -These tales are brought into connexion with the present day in more -ways than one, for besides the various accounts of the bwganod -or bogies of Corwrion frightening people when out late at night, -Mr. D. E. Davies knows a man, who is still living, and who well -remembers the time when the sound of working used to be heard in the -pool, and the voices of children crying somewhere in its depths, -but that when people rushed there to see what the matter was, all -was found profoundly quiet and still. Moreover, there is a family -or two, now numerously represented in the parishes of Llandegai -and Llanllechid, who used to be taunted with being the offspring of -fairy ancestors. One of these families was nicknamed 'Simychiaid' or -'Smychiaid'; and my informant, who is not yet quite forty, says that -he heard his mother repeat scores of times that the old people used to -say, that the Smychiaid, who were very numerous in the neighbourhood, -were descended from fairies, and that they came from Llyn Corwrion. At -all this the Smychiaid were wont to grow mightily angry. Another -tradition, he says, about them was that they were a wandering family -that arrived in the district from the direction of Conway, and that the -father's name was a Simwch, or rather that was his nickname, based on -the proper name Simwnt, which appears to have once been the prevalent -name in Llandegai. The historical order of these words would in that -case have been Simwnt, Simwch, Simychiaid, Smychiaid. Now Simwnt seems -to be merely the Welsh form given to some such English name as Simond, -just as Edmund or Edmond becomes in North Wales Emwnt. The objection to -the nickname seems to lie in the fact, which one of my correspondents -points out to me, that Simwch is understood to mean a monkey, a point -on which I should like to have further information. Pughe gives simach, -it is true, as having the meaning of the Latin simia. A branch of the -same family is said to be called 'y Cowperiaid' or the Coopers, from -an ancestor who was either by name or by trade a cooper. Mr. Hughes' -account of the Smychiaid was, that they are the descendants of one -Simonds, who came to be a bailiff at Bodysgallan, near Deganwy, and -moved from there to Coetmor in the neighbourhood of Corwrion. Simonds -was obnoxious to the bards, he goes on to say, and they described the -Smychiaid as having arrived in the parish at the bottom of a cawell, -'a creel or basket carried on the back,' when chance would have it that -the cawell cord snapped just in that neighbourhood, at a place called -Pont y Llan. That accident is described, according to Mr. Hughes, -in the following doggerel, the origin of which I do not know-- - - - E dorai 'r arwest, ede wan, - Brwnt y lle, ar Bont y Llan. - - The cord would snap, feeble yarn, - At that nasty spot, Pont y Llan. - - -Curiously enough, the same cawell story used to be said of a widely -spread family in North Cardiganshire, whose surname was pronounced -Massn and written Mason or Mazon: as my mother was of this family, -I have often heard it. The cawell, if I remember rightly, was said, -in this instance, to have come from Scotland, to which were traced -three men who settled in North Cardiganshire. One had no descendants, -but the other two, Mason and Peel--I think his name was Peel, but I am -only sure that it was not Welsh--had so many, that the Masons, at any -rate, are exceedingly numerous there; but a great many of them, owing -to some extent, probably, to the cawell story, have been silly enough -to change their name into that of Jones, some of them in my time. The -three men came there probably for refuge in the course of troubles -in Scotland, as a Frazer and a Francis did to Anglesey. At any rate, -I have never heard it suggested that they were of aquatic origin, but, -taking the cawell into consideration, and the popular account of the -Smychiaid, I should be inclined to think that the cawell originally -referred to some such a supposed descent. I only hope that somebody -will help us with another and a longer cawell tale, which will make -up for the brevity of these allusions. We may, however, assume, -I think, that there was a tendency at one time in Gwyned, if not in -other parts of the Principality, to believe, or pretend to believe, -that the descendants of an Englishman or Scotsman, who settled among -the old inhabitants, were of fairy origin, and that their history was -somehow uncanny, which was all, of course, duly resented. This helps, -to some extent, to explain how names of doubtful origin have got -into these tales, such as Smychiaid, Cowperiaid, Pellings, Penelope, -Leisa Bčla or Isabella, and the like. This association of the lake -legends with intruders from without is what has, perhaps, in a great -measure served to rescue such legends from utter oblivion. - -As to a church at Corwrion, the tradition does not seem to be an old -one, and it appears founded on one of the popular etymologies of the -word Corwrion, which treats the first syllable as cor in the sense of -a choir; but the word has other meanings, including among them that -of an ox-stall or enclosure for cattle. Taking this as coming near -the true explanation, it at once suggests itself, that Creuwyryon in -the Mabinogi of Math ab Mathonwy is the same place, for creu or crau -also meant an enclosure for animals, including swine. In Irish the -word is cró, an enclosure, a hut or hovel. The passage in the Mabinogi -[28] relates to Gwydion returning with the swine he had got by dint of -magic and deceit from Pryderi, prince of Dyfed, and runs thus in Lady -Charlotte Guest's translation: 'So they journeyed on to the highest -town of Arllechwed, and there they made a sty (creu) for the swine, -and therefore was the name of Creuwyryon given to that town.' As to -wyryon or wyrion, which we find made into wrion in Corwrion according -to the modern habit, it would seem to be no other word than the usual -plural of wyr, a grandson, formerly also any descendant in the direct -line. If so, the name of an ancestor must have originally followed, -just as one of the places called Bettws was once Betws Wyrion Idon, -'the Bettws of Idon's Descendants'; but it is possible that wyrion -in Creu- or Cor-wyrion was itself a man's name, though I have never -met with it. It is right to add that the name appears in the Record -of Carnarvon (pp. 12, 25, 26) as Creweryon, which carries us back to -the first half of the fourteenth century. There it occurs as the name -of a township containing eight gavels, and the particulars about it -might, in the hand of one familiar with the tenures of that time, -perhaps give us valuable information as to what may have been its -status at a still earlier date. - - - - -VI. - -Here, for the sake of comparison with the Northwalian stories in -which the fairy wife runs away from her husband in consequence of -his having unintentionally touched or hit her with the iron in the -bridle, the fetter, or the stirrup, as on pp. 35, 40, 46, 50, 54, -61. I wish to cite the oldest recorded version, namely from Walter -Mapes' curious miscellany of anecdotes and legends entitled De Nugis -Curialium Distinctiones Quinque. Mapes flourished in the latter part -of the twelfth century, and in Distinctio ii. 11 of Thomas Wright's -edition, published in the year 1850, one reads the following story, -which serves the purpose there of giving the origin of a certain -Trinio, of whom Mapes had more to say:-- - -Aliud non miraculum sed portentum nobis Walenses referunt. Wastinum -Wastiniauc secus stagnum Brekeinauc [read Brecheinauc], quod in -circuitu duo miliaria tenet, mansisse aiunt et vidisse per tres -claras a luna noctes choreas fęminarum in campo avenę suę, et -secutum eum eas fuisse donec in aqua stagni submergerentur, unam -tamen quarta vice retinuisse. Narrabat etiam ille raptor illius quod -eas noctibus singulis post submersionem earum murmurantes audisset -sub aqua et dicentes, 'Si hoc fecisset, unam de nobis cepisset,' -et se ab ipsis edoctum quomodo hanc adepta [read -us] sit, quę -et consensit et nupsit ei, et prima verba sua hęc ad virum suum, -'Libens tibi serviam, et tota obedientię devotione usque in diem illum -prosilire volens ad clamores ultra Lenem [read Leueni] me freno tuo -percusseris.' Est autem Leueni aqua vicina stagno. Quod et factum -est; post plurimę prolis susceptionem ab eo freno percussa est, -et in reditu suo inventam eam fugientem cum prole, insecutus est, -et vix unum ex filiis suis arripuit, nomine Triunem Uagelauc. - -'The Welsh relate to us another thing, not so much a miracle as a -portent, as follows. They say that Gwestin of Gwestiniog dwelt beside -Brecknock Mere, which has a circumference of two miles, and that on -three moonlight nights he saw in his field of oats women dancing, -and that he followed them until they sank in the water of the mere; -but the fourth time they say that he seized hold of one of them. Her -captor further used to relate that on each of these nights he had -heard the women, after plunging into the mere, murmuring beneath the -water and saying, "If he had done so and so, he would have caught -one of us," and that he had been instructed by their own words, as -to the manner in which he caught her. She both yielded and became his -wife, and her first words to her husband were these: "Willingly will -I serve thee, and with whole-hearted obedience, until that day when, -desirous of sallying forth in the direction of the cries beyond the -Llyfni, thou shalt strike me with thy bridle"--the Llyfni is a burn -near the mere. And this came to pass: after presenting him with a -numerous offspring she was struck by him with the bridle, and on -his returning home, he found her running away with her offspring, -and he pursued her, but it was with difficulty that he got hold even -of one of his sons, and he was named Trinio (?) Faglog.' - -The story, as it proceeds, mentions Trinio engaged in battle with -the men of a prince who seems to have been no other than Brychan of -Brycheiniog, supposed to have died about the middle of the fifth -century. The battle was disastrous to Trinio and his friends, and -Trinio was never seen afterwards; so Walter Mapes reports the fact -that people believed him to have been rescued by his mother, and that -he was with her living still in the lake. Giraldus calls it lacus -ille de Brecheniauc magnus et famosus, quem et Clamosum dicunt, 'that -great and famous lake of Brecknock which they also call Clamosus,' -suggested by the Welsh Llyn Llefni, so called from the river Llefni, -misinterpreted as if derived from llef 'a cry.' With this lake he -connects the legend, that at the bidding of the rightful Prince of -Wales, the birds frequenting it would at once warble and sing. This -he asserts to have been proved in the case of Gruffud, son of Rhys, -though the Normans were at the time masters of his person and of his -territory [29]. After dwelling on the varying colours of the lake he -adds the following statement:--Ad hęc etiam totus ędificiis consertus, -culturis egregiis, hortis ornatus et pomeriis, ab accolis quandoque -conspicitur, 'Now and then also it is seen by the neighbouring -inhabitants to be covered with buildings, and adorned with excellent -farming, gardens, and orchards.' It is remarkable as one of the few -lakes in Wales where the remains of a crannog have been discovered, -and while Mapes gives it as only two miles round, it is now said to -be about five; so it has sometimes [30] been regarded as a stockaded -island rather than as an instance of pile dwellings. - -In the Brython for 1863, pp. 114-15, is to be found what purports to be -a copy of a version of the Legend of Llyn Syfadon, as contained in a -manuscript of Hugh Thomas' in the British Museum. It is to the effect -that the people of the neighbourhood have a story that all the land -now covered by the lake belonged to a princess, who had an admirer -to whom she would not be married unless he procured plenty of gold: -she did not care how. So he one day murdered and robbed a man who -had money, and the princess then accepted the murderer's suit, but -she felt uneasy on account of the reports as to the murdered man's -ghost haunting the place where his body had been buried. So she made -her admirer go at night to interview the ghost and lay it. Whilst he -waited near the grave he heard a voice inquiring whether the innocent -man was not to be avenged, and another replying that it would not be -avenged till the ninth generation. The princess and her lover felt -safe enough and were married: they multiplied and became numerous, -while their town grew to be as it were another Sodom; and the original -pair lived on so astonishingly long that they saw their descendants -of the ninth generation. They exulted in their prosperity, and one -day held a great feast to celebrate it; and when their descendants -were banqueting with them, and the gaiety and mirth were at their -zenith, ancestors and descendants were one and all drowned in a mighty -cataclysm which produced the present lake. - -Lastly may be briefly mentioned the belief still lingering in the -neighbourhood, to the effect that there is a town beneath the waters -of the lake, and that in rough weather the bells from the church -tower of that town may be heard ringing, while in calm weather the -spire of the church may be distinctly seen. My informant, writing in -1892, added the remark: 'This story seems hardly creditable to us, -but many of the old people believe it.' - -I ought to have mentioned that the fifteenth-century poet Lewis Glyn -Cothi connects with Syfadon [31] Lake an afanc legend; but this will -be easier to understand in the light of the more complete one from -the banks of the river Conwy. So the reader will find Glyn Cothi's -words given in the next chapter. - - - - - - - - -CHAPTER II - -THE FAIRIES' REVENGE - - In th'olde dayes of the king Arthour, - Of which that Britons speken greet honour, - Al was this land fulfild of fayerye. - The elf-queen, with hir joly companye, - Daunced ful ofte in many a grene mede; - This was the olde opinion, as I rede. - I speke of manye hundred yeres ago. - - Chaucer. - - -I. - -The best living authority I have found on the folklore of Bedgelert, -Drws y Coed, and the surrounding district, is Mr. William Jones, of -Llangollen. He has written a good deal on the subject in the Brython, -and in essays intended for competition at various literary meetings in -Wales. I had the loan from him of one such essay, and I have referred -to the Brython; and I have also had from Mr. Jones a number of letters, -most of which contain some additional information. In harmony, -moreover, with my usual practice, I have asked Mr. Jones to give -me a little of his own history. This he has been kind enough to do; -and, as I have so far followed no particular order in these jottings, -I shall now give the reader the substance of his letters in English, -as I am anxious that no item should be lost or left inaccessible to -English students of folklore. What is unintelligible to me may not be -so to those who have made a serious study of the subject. Mr. Jones' -words are in substance to the following effect:-- - -'I was bred and born in the parish of Bedgelert, one of the most -rustic neighbourhoods and least subject to change in the whole -country. Some of the old Welsh customs remained within my memory, -in spite of the adverse influence of the Calvinistic Reformation, -as it is termed, and I have myself witnessed several Knitting Nights -and Nuptial Feasts (Neithiorau), which, be it noticed, are not to -be confounded with weddings, as they were feasts which followed the -weddings, at the interval of a week. At these gatherings song and -story formed an element of prime importance in the entertainment at a -time when the Reformation alluded to had already blown the blast of -extinction on the Merry Nights (Noswyliau Llawen) and Saints' Fźtes -[32] (Gwyliau Mabsant) before the days of my youth, though many of -my aged acquaintances remembered them well, and retained a vivid -recollection of scores of the amusing tales which used to be related -for the best at the last mentioned long-night meetings. I have heard -not a few of them reproduced by men of that generation. As an example -of the old-fashioned habits of the people of Bedgelert in my early -days, I may mention the way in which wives and children used to be -named. The custom was that the wife never took her husband's family -name, but retained the one she had as a spinster. Thus my grandmother -on my mother's side was called Ellen Hughes, daughter to Hugh Williams, -of Gwastad Annas. The name of her husband, my grandfather, was William -Prichard [= W. ab Rhisiart, or Richard's son], son to Richard William, -of the Efail Newyd. The name of their eldest son, my uncle (brother -to my mother), was Hugh Hughes, and the second son's name was Richard -William. The mother had the privilege of naming her first-born after -her own family in case it was a boy; but if it happened to be a girl, -she took her name from the father's family, for which reason my -mother's maiden name was Catharine Williams. This remained her name -to the day of her death: and the old people at Bedgelert persisted -in calling me, so long as I was at home, William Prichard, after my -grandfather, as I was my mother's eldest child. - -'Most of the tales I have collected,' says Mr. Jones, 'relate to -the parishes of Bedgelert and Dolwydelen. My kindred have lived for -generations in those two parishes, and they are very numerous: in -fact, it used to be said that the people of Dolwydelen and Bedgelert -were all cousins. They were mostly small farmers, and jealous of -all strangers, so that they married almost without exception from -the one parish into the other. This intermixture helped to carry -the tales of the one parish to the other, and to perpetuate them -on the hearths of their homes from generation to generation, until -they were swept away by another influence in this century. Many of my -ancestors seem to have been very fond of stories, poetry, and singing, -and I have been told that some of them were very skilled in these -things. So also, in the case of my parents, the memory of the past -had a great charm for them on both sides; and when the relatives -from Dolwydelen and Bedgelert met in either parish, there used to -be no end to the recounting of pedigrees and the repeating of tales -for the best. By listening to them, I had been filled with desire to -become an adept in pedigrees and legends. My parents used to let me -go every evening to the house of my grandfather, William ab Rhisiart, -the clerk, to listen to tales, and to hear edifying books read. My -grandfather was a reader "without his rival," and "he used to beat -the parson hollow." Many people used to meet at Pen y Bont in the -evenings to converse together, and the stories of some of them were -now and then exceedingly eloquent. Of course, I listened with eager -ears and open mouth, in order, if I heard anything new, to be able -to repeat it to my mother. She, unwilling to let herself be beaten, -would probably relate another like it, which she had heard from her -mother, her grandmother, or her old aunt of Gwastad Annas, who was -a fairly good verse-wright of the homely kind. Then my father, if -he did not happen to be busy with his music-book, would also give -us a tale which he had heard from his grandmother or grandfather, -the old John Jones, of Tyn Llan Dolwydelen, or somebody else would -do so. That is one source from which I got my knowledge of folklore; -but this ceased when we moved from Bedgelert to Carnarvon in the year -1841. My grandfather died in 1844, aged seventy-eight. - -'Besides those,' Mr. Jones goes on to say, 'who used to come to -my grandfather's house and to his workshop to relate stories, the -blacksmith's shop used to be, especially on a rainy day, a capital -place for a story, and many a time did I lurk there instead of going -to school, in order to hear old William Dafyd, the sawyer, who, peace -be to his ashes! drank many a hornful from the Big Quart without ever -breaking down, and old Ifan Owen, the fisherman, tearing away for -the best at their yarns, sometimes a tissue of lies and sometimes -truth. The former was funny, and a great wag, up to all kinds of -tricks. He made everybody laugh, whereas the latter would preserve -the gravity of a saint, however lying might be the tale which he -related. Ifan Owen's best stories were about the Water Spirit, or, -as he called it, Llamhigyn y Dwr, "the Water Leaper." He had not -himself seen the Llamhigyn, but his father had seen it "hundreds of -times." Many an evening it had prevented him from catching a single -fish in Llyn Gwynan, and, when the fisherman got on this theme, his -eloquence was apt to become highly polysyllabic in its adjectives. Once -in particular, when he had been angling for hours towards the close -of the day, without catching anything, he found that something took -the fly clean off the hook each time he cast it. After moving from -one spot to another on the lake, he fished opposite the Benlan Wen, -when something gave his line a frightful pull, "and, by the gallows, -I gave another pull," the fisherman used to say, "with all the -force of my arm: out it came, and up it went off the hook, whilst -I turned round to see, as it dashed so against the cliff of Benlan -that it blazed like a lightning." He used to add, "If that was not -the Llamhigyn, it must have been the very devil himself." That cliff -must be two hundred yards at least from the shore. As to his father, -he had seen the Water Spirit many times, and he had also been fishing -in the Llyn Glās or Ffynnon Lās, once upon a time, when he hooked a -wonderful and fearful monster: it was not like a fish, but rather -resembled a toad, except that it had a tail and wings instead of -legs. He pulled it easily enough towards the shore, but, as its head -was coming out of the water, it gave a terrible shriek that was enough -to split the fisherman's bones to the marrow, and, had there not been -a friend standing by, he would have fallen headlong into the lake, -and been possibly dragged like a sheep into the depth; for there is -a tradition that if a sheep got into the Llyn Glās, it could not be -got out again, as something would at once drag it to the bottom. This -used to be the belief of the shepherds of Cwm Dyli, within my memory, -and they acted on it in never letting their dogs go after the sheep -in the neighbourhood of this lake. These two funny fellows, William -Dafyd and Ifan Owen, died long ago, without leaving any of their -descendants blessed with as much as the faintest gossamer thread of -the story-teller's mantle. The former, if he had been still living, -would now be no less than 129 years of age, and the latter about 120.' - -Mr. Jones proceeds to say that he had stories from sources besides -those mentioned, namely, from Lowri Robart, wife of Rhisiart Edwart, -the 'Old Guide'; from his old aunt of Gwastad Annas; from William -Wmffra, husband to his grandmother's sister; from his grandmother, who -was a native of Dolwydelen, but had been brought up at Pwllgwernog, -in Nanmor; from her sister; and from Gruffud Prisiart, of Nanmor, -afterwards of Glan Colwyn, who gave him the legend of Owen Lawgoch of -which I shall have something to say later, and the story of the bogie -of Pen Pwll Coch, which I do not know. 'But the chief story-teller of -his time at Bedgelert,' Mr. Jones goes on to say, 'was Twm Ifan Siams -(pronounced Siams or Shams), brother, I believe, to Dafyd Siōn Siams, -of the Penrhyn, who was a bard and pedigree man. Twm lived at Nanmor, -but I know not what his vocation was; his relatives, however, were -small farmers, carpenters, and masons. It is not improbable that he -was also an artisan, as he was conversant with numbers, magnitude, and -letters, and left behind him a volume forming a pedigree book known -at Nanmor as the Barcud Mawr, or "Great Kite," as Gruffud Prisiart -told me. The latter had been reading it many a time in order to know -the origin of somebody or other. All I can remember of this character -is that he was very old--over 90--and that he went from house to -house in his old age to relate tales and recount pedigrees: great -was the welcome he had from everybody everywhere. I remember, also, -that he was small of stature, nimble, witty, exceedingly amusing, -and always ready with his say on every subject. He was in the habit -of calling on my grandfather in his rambles, and very cordial was the -reception which my parents always gave him on account of his tales -and his knowledge of pedigrees. The story of the afanc, as given in my -collection, is from his mouth. You will observe how little difference -there is between his version [33] and that known to Edward Llwyd in the -year 1695. I had related this story to a friend of mine at Portmadoc, -who was grandson or great-grandson to Dafyd Siōn Siams, of Penrhyn, -in 1858, when he called my attention to the same story in the Cambrian -Journal from the correspondence of Edward Llwyd. I was surprised at -the similarity between the two versions, and I went to Bedgelert to -Gruffud Rhisiart, who was related to Twm Siōn Siams. I read the story -to him, and I found that he had heard it related by his uncle just as -it was by me, and as given in the Cambrian Journal. Twm Ifan Siams -had funny stories about the tricks of Gwrach y Rhibyn, the Bodach -[34] Glas, and the Bwbach Llwyd, which he localized in Nanmor and -Llanfrothen; he had, also, a very eloquent tale about the courtship -between a sailor from Moel y Gest, near Portmadoc, and a mermaid, -of which I retain a fairly good recollection. I believe Twm died in -the year 1835-6, aged about ninety-five.' - -So far, I have merely translated Mr. Jones' account of himself and -his authorities as given me in the letter I have already referred to, -dated in June of last year, 1881. I would now add the substance of his -general remarks about the fairies, as he had heard them described, and -as he expressed himself in his essay for the competition on folklore at -the Carnarvon Eistedfod of 1880:--The traditions, he says, respecting -the Tylwyth Teg vary according to the situation of the districts with -which they are connected, and many more such traditions continue to -be remembered among the inhabitants of the mountains than by those of -the more level country. In some places the Tylwyth Teg are described -as a small folk of a thieving nature, living in summer among the fern -bushes in the mountains, and in winter in the heather and gorse. These -were wont to frequent the fairs and to steal money from the farmers' -pockets, where they placed in its stead their own fairy money, -which looked like the coin of the realm, but when it was paid for -anything bought it would vanish in the pockets of the seller. In other -districts the fairies were described as a little bigger and stronger -folk; but these latter were also of a thieving disposition. They -would lurk around people's houses, looking for an opportunity to -steal butter and cheese from the dairies, and they skulked about -the cow-yards, in order to milk the cows and the goats, which they -did so thoroughly that many a morning there was not a drop of milk -to be had. The principal mischief, however, which those used to do, -was to carry away unbaptized infants, and place in their stead their -own wretched and peevish offspring. They were said to live in hidden -caves in the mountains, and he had heard one old man asserting his -firm belief that it was beneath Moel Eilio, also called Moel Eilian, -a mountain lying between Llanberis and Cwellyn, the Tylwyth Teg of -Nant y Bettws lived, whom he had seen many a time when he was a lad; -and, if any one came across the mouth of their cave, he thought that he -would find there a wonderful amount of wealth, 'for they were thieves -without their like.' There is still another species of Tylwyth Teg, -very unlike the foregoing ones in their nature and habits. Not only -was this last kind far more beautiful and comely than the others, -but they were honest and good towards mortals. Their whole nature was -replete with joy and fun, nor were they ever beheld hardly, except -engaged in some merry-making or other. They might be seen on bright -moonlight nights at it, singing and carolling playfully on the fair -meadows and the green slopes, at other times dancing lightly on the -tops of the rushes in the valleys. They were also wont to be seen -hunting in full force on the backs of their grey horses; for this -kind were rich, and kept horses and servants. Though it used to be -said that they were spiritual and immortal beings, still they ate -and drank like human beings: they married and had children. They were -also remarkable for their cleanliness, and they were wont to reward -neat maid-servants and hospitable wives. So housewives used to exhort -their maids to clean their houses thoroughly every night before going -to bed, saying that if the Tylwyth Teg happened to enter, they would -be sure to leave money for them somewhere; but they were to tell no -one in case they found any, lest the Tylwyth should be offended and -come no more. The mistresses also used to order a tinful of water to -be placed at the foot of the stairs, a clean cloth on the table, with -bread and its accompaniments (bara ac enllyn) placed on it, so that, if -the Tylwyth came in to eat, the maids should have their recompense on -the hob as well as unstinted praise for keeping the house clean, or, as -Mr. Jones has it in a couplet from Goronwy Owen's Cywyd y Cynghorfynt-- - - - Cael eu rhent ar y pentan, - A llwyr glod o bai llawr glān. - - Finding the fairies' pay on the hob, - With full credit for a clean floor. - - -Thus, whether the fairies came or not to pay a visit to them -during their sleep, the house would be clean by the morning, and -the table ready set for breakfast. It appears that the places most -frequently resorted to by this species were rushy combes surrounded -by smooth hills with round tops, also the banks of rivers and the -borders of lakes; but they were seldom seen at any time near rocks -or cliffs. So more tales about them are found in districts of the -former description than anywhere else, and among them may be mentioned -Penmachno, Dolwydelan, the sides of Moel Siabod, Llandegįi Mountain, -and from there to Llanberis, to Nantlle Lakes, to Moel Tryfan [35] -and Nant y Bettws, the upper portion of the parish of Bedgelert from -Drws y Coed to the Pennant, and the district beginning from there and -including the level part of Eifion, on towards Celynnog Fawr. I have -very little doubt that there are many traditions about them in the -neighbourhood of the Eifl and in Lleyn; I know but little, however, -about these last. This kind of fairies was said to live underground, -and the way to their country lay under hollow banks that overhung -the deepest parts of the lakes, or the deepest pools in the rivers, -so that mortals could not follow them further than the water, should -they try to go after them. They used to come out in broad daylight, -two or three together, and now and then a shepherd, so the saying -went, used to talk and chat with them. Sometimes, moreover, he fell -over head and ears in love with their damsels, but they did not -readily allow a mortal to touch them. The time they were to be seen -in their greatest glee was at night when the moon was full, when -they celebrated a merry night (noswaith lawen). At midnight to the -minute, they might be seen rising out of the ground in every combe -and valley; then, joining hands, they would form into circles, and -begin to sing and dance with might and main until the cock crew, when -they would vanish. Many used to go to look at them on those nights, -but it was dangerous to go too near them, lest they should lure the -spectator into their circle; for if that happened, they would throw -a charm over him, which would make him invisible to his companions, -and he would be detained by the fairies as long as he lived. At times -some people went too near to them, and got snatched in; and at other -times a love-inspired youth, fascinated by the charms of one of their -damsels, rushed in foolhardily to try to seize one of them, and became -instantly surrounded and concealed from sight. If he could be got -out before the cock crew he would be no worse; but once the fairies -disappeared without his having been released, he would never more be -seen in the land of the living. The way to get the captured man out -was to take a long stick of mountain ash (pren criafol), which two -or more strong men had to hold with one of its ends in the middle of -the circle, so that when the man came round in his turn in the dance -he might take hold of it, for he is there bodily though not visible, -so that he cannot go past without coming across the stick. Then the -others pull him out, for the fairies, no more than any other spirit, -dare touch the mountain ash. - -We now proceed to give some of Mr. Jones' legends. The first is -one which he published in the fourth volume of the Brython, p. 70, -whence the following free translation is made of it:-- - -'In the north-west corner of the parish of Bedgelert there is a -place which used to be called by the old inhabitants the Land of the -Fairies, and it reaches from Cwm Hafod Ruffyd along the slope of the -mountain of Drws y Coed as far as Llyn y Dywarchen. The old people -of former times used to find much pleasure and amusement in this -district in listening every moonlight night to the charming music of -the fair family, and in looking at their dancing and their mirthful -sports. Once on a time, a long while ago, there lived at upper Drws -y Coed a youth, who was joyous and active, brave and determined of -heart. This young man amused himself every night by looking on and -listening to them. One night they had come to a field near the house, -near the shore of Llyn y Dywarchen, to pass a merry night. He went, -as usual, to look at them, when his glances at once fell on one of -the ladies, who possessed such beauty as he had never seen in a human -being. Her appearance was like that of alabaster; her voice was as -agreeable as the nightingale's, and as unruffled as the zephyr in a -flower-garden at the noon of a long summer's day; and her gait was -pretty and aristocratic; her feet moved in the dance as lightly on -the grass as the rays of the sun had a few hours before on the lake -hard by. He fell in love with her over head and ears, and in the -strength of that passion--for what is stronger than love!--he rushed, -when the bustle was at its height, into the midst of the fair crowd, -and snatched the graceful damsel in his arms, and ran instantly with -her to the house. When the fair family saw the violence used by a -mortal, they broke up the dance and ran after her towards the house; -but, when they arrived, the door had been bolted with iron, wherefore -they could not get near her or touch her in any way; and the damsel -had been placed securely in a chamber. The youth, having her now under -his roof, as is the saying, endeavoured, with all his talent, to win -her affection and to induce her to wed. But at first she would on no -account hear of it; on seeing his persistence, however, and on finding -that he would not let her go to return to her people, she consented -to be his servant if he could find out her name; but she would not be -married to him. As he thought that was not impossible, he half agreed -to the condition; but, after bothering his head with all the names -known in that neighbourhood, he found himself no nearer his point, -though he was not willing to give up the search hurriedly. One night, -as he was going home from Carnarvon market, he saw a number of the -fair folks in a turbary not far from his path. They seemed to him -to be engaged in an important deliberation, and it struck him that -they were planning how to recover their abducted sister. He thought, -moreover, that if he could secretly get within hearing, he might -possibly find her name out. On looking carefully around, he saw that -a ditch ran through the turbary and passed near the spot where they -stood. So he made his way round to the ditch, and crept, on all fours, -along it until he was within hearing of the family. After listening -a little, he found that their deliberation was as to the fate of the -lady he had carried away, and he heard one of them crying, piteously, -"O Penelop, O Penelop, my sister, why didst thou run away with a -mortal!" "Penelop," said the young man to himself, "that must be the -name of my beloved: that is enough." At once he began to creep back -quietly, and he returned home safely without having been seen by -the fairies. When he got into the house, he called out to the girl, -saying, "Penelop, my beloved one, come here!" and she came forward -and asked, in astonishment, "O mortal, who has betrayed my name -to thee?" Then, lifting up her tiny folded hands, she exclaimed, -"Alas, my fate, my fate!" But she grew contented with her fate, -and took to her work in earnest. Everything in the house and on the -farm prospered under her charge. There was no better or cleanlier -housewife in the neighbourhood around, or one that was more provident -than she. The young man, however, was not satisfied that she should be -a servant to him, and, after he had long and persistently sought it, -she consented to be married, on the one condition, that, if ever he -should touch her with iron, she would be free to leave him and return -to her family. He agreed to that condition, since he believed that -such a thing would never happen at his hands. So they were married, -and lived several years happily and comfortably together. Two children -were born to them, a boy and a girl, the picture of their mother and -the idols of their father. But one morning, when the husband wanted -to go to the fair at Carnarvon, he went out to catch a filly that was -grazing in the field by the house; but for the life of him he could -not catch her, and he called to his wife to come to assist him. She -came without delay, and they managed to drive the filly to a secure -corner, as they thought; but, as the man approached to catch her, -she rushed past him. In his excitement, he threw the bridle after her; -but, who should be running in the direction of it, but his wife! The -iron bit struck her on the cheek, and she vanished out of sight on the -spot. Her husband never saw her any more; but one cold frosty night, a -long time after this event, he was awakened from his sleep by somebody -rubbing the glass of his window, and, after he had given a response, -he recognized the gentle and tender voice of his wife saying to him:-- - - - Lest my son should find it cold, - Place on him his father's coat; - Lest the fair one find it cold, - Place on her my petticoat. - - -It is said that the descendants of this family still continue in -these neighbourhoods, and that they are easy to be recognized by their -light and fair complexion. A similar story is related of the son of -the farmer of Braich y Dinas, in Llanfihangel y Pennant, and it used -to be said that most of the inhabitants of that neighbourhood were -formerly of a light complexion. I have often heard old people saying, -that it was only necessary, within their memory, to point out in -the fair at Penmorfa any one as being of the breed of the Tylwyth, -to cause plenty of fighting that day at least.' - -The reader may compare with this tale the following, for which I have -to thank Mr. Samuel Rhys Williams, whose words I give, followed by -a translation:-- - -Yr oed gwr ieuanc o gymydogaeth Drws y Coed yn dychwelyd adref o -Bedgelert ar noswaith loergan lleuad; pan ar gyfer Llyn y Gader -gwelai nifer o'r bonedigesau a elwir y Tylwyth Teg yn myned trwy eu -chwareuon nosawl. Swynwyd y llanc yn y fan gan brydferthwch y rhianod -hyn, ac yn neillduol un o honynt. Collod y llywodraeth arno ei hunan -i'r fath radau fel y penderfynod neidio i'r cylch a dwyn yn ysbail -ido yr hon oed wedi myned a'i galon mor llwyr. Cyflawnod ei fwriad -a dygod y fonediges gydag ef adref. Bu yn wraig ido, a ganwyd plant -idynt. Yn damweiniol, tra yn cyflawni rhyw orchwyl, digwydod ido ei -tharo a haiarn ac ar amrantiad diflannod ei anwylyd o'i olwg ac nis -gwelod hi mwyach, ond darfod idi dyfod at ffenestr ei ystafell wely -un noswaith ar ol hyn a'i annog i fod yn dirion wrth y plant a'i bod -hi yn aros gerllaw y ty yn Llyny Dywarchen. Y mae y tradodiad hefyd -yn ein hysbysu darfod i'r gwr hwn symud i fyw o Drws y Coed i Ystrad -Betws Garmon. - -'A young man, from the neighbourhood of Drws y Coed, was returning -home one bright moonlight night, from Bedgelert; when he came opposite -the lake called Llyn y Gader, he saw a number of the ladies known as -the Tylwyth Teg going through their nightly frolics. The youth was -charmed at once by the beauty of these ladies, and especially by one -of them. He so far lost his control over himself, that he resolved to -leap into the circle and carry away as his spoil the one who had so -completely robbed him of his heart. He accomplished his intention, and -carried the lady home with him. She became his wife, and children were -born to them. Accidentally, while at some work or other, it happened -to him to strike her with iron, and, in the twinkling of an eye, his -beloved one disappeared from his sight. He saw her no more, except that -she came to his bedroom window one night afterwards, and told him to -be tender to the children, and that she was staying, near the house, -in the lake called Llyn y Dywarchen. The tradition also informs us that -this man moved from Drws y Coed to live at Ystrad near Bettws Garmon.' - -The name Llyn y Dywarchen, I may add, means the Lake of the Sod or -Turf: it is the one with the floating island, described thus by -Giraldus, ii. 9 (p. 135):--Alter enim insulam habet erraticam, -vi ventorum impellentium ad oppositas plerumque lacus partes -errabundam. Hic armenta pascentia nonnunquam pastores ad longinquas -subito partes translata mirantur. 'For one of the two lakes holds a -wandering island, which strays mostly with the force of the winds -impelling it to the opposite parts of the lake. Sometimes cattle -grazing on it are, to the surprise of the shepherds, suddenly carried -across to the more distant parts.' Sheep are known to get on the -floating islet, and it is still believed to float them away from -the shore. Mr. S. Rhys Williams, it will be noticed, has given the -substance of the legend rather than the story itself. I now proceed -to translate the same tale as given in Welsh in Cymru Fu (pp. 474-7 -of the edition published by Messrs. Hughes and Son, Wrexham), in -a very different dress--it is from Glasynys' pen, and, as might be -expected, decked out with all the literary adornments in which he -delighted. The language he used was his own, but there is no reason -to think that he invented any of the incidents:--'The farmer of Drws -y Coed's son was one misty day engaged as a shepherd on the side of -the mountain, a little below Cwm Marchnad, and, as he crossed a rushy -flat, he saw a wonderfully handsome little woman standing under a -clump of rushes. Her yellow and curly hair hung down in ringed locks, -and her eyes were as blue as the clear sky, while her forehead was as -white as the wavy face of a snowdrift that has nestled on the side of -Snowdon only a single night. Her two plump cheeks were each like a red -rose, and her pretty-lipped mouth might make an angel eager to kiss -her. The youth approached her, filled with love for her, and, with -delicacy and affection, asked her if he might converse with her. She -smiled kindly, and reaching out her hand, said to him, "Idol of my -hopes, thou hast come at last!" They began to associate secretly, -and to meet one another daily here and there on the moors around -the banks of Llyn y Gader; at last, their love had waxed so strong -that the young man could not be at peace either day or night, as he -was always thinking of Bella or humming to himself a verse of poetry -about her charms. The yellow-haired youth was now and then lost for -a long while, and nobody could divine his history. His acquaintances -believed that he had been fascinated: at last the secret was found -out. There were about Llyn y Dywarchen shady and concealing copses: -it was there he was wont to go, and the she-elf would always be there -awaiting him, and it was therefore that the place where they used to -meet got to be called Llwyn y Forwyn, the Maiden's Grove. After fondly -loving for a long time, it was resolved to wed; but it was needful -to get the leave of the damsel's father. One moonlight night it was -agreed to meet in the wood, and the appointment was duly kept by the -young man, but there was no sign of the subterranean folks coming, -until the moon disappeared behind the Garn. Then the two arrived, -and the old man at once proceeded to say to the suitor: "Thou shalt -have my daughter on the condition that thou do not strike her with -iron. If thou ever touch her with iron, she will no longer be thine, -but shall return to her own." The man consented readily, and great -was his joy. They were betrothed, and seldom was a handsomer pair -seen at the altar. It was rumoured that a vast sum of money as dowry -had arrived with the pretty lady at Drws y Coed on the evening of her -nuptials. Soon after, the mountain shepherd of Cwm Marchnad passed -for a very rich and influential man. In the course of time they -had children, and no happier people ever lived together than their -parents. Everything went on regularly and prosperously for a number -of years: they became exceedingly wealthy, but the sweet is not to -be had without the bitter. One day they both went out on horseback, -and they happened to go near Llyn y Gader, when the wife's horse got -into a bog and sank to his belly. After the husband had got Bella off -his back, he succeeded with much trouble in getting the horse out, and -then he let him go. Then he lifted her on the back of his own, but, -unfortunately, in trying quickly to place her foot in the stirrup, -the iron part of the same slipped, and struck her--or, rather, -it touched her at the knee-joint. Before they had made good half -their way home, several of the diminutive Tylwyth began to appear -to them, and the sound of sweet singing was heard on the side of the -hill. Before the husband reached Drws y Coed his wife had left him, -and it is supposed that she fled to Llwyn y Forwyn, and thence to the -world below to Faery. She left her dear little ones to the care of -her beloved, and no more came near them. Some say, however, that she -sometimes contrived to see her beloved one in the following manner. As -the law of her country did not permit her to frequent the earth with -an earthly being, she and her mother invented a way of avoiding the -one thing and of securing the other. A great piece of sod was set -to float on the surface of the lake, and on that she used to be for -long hours, freely conversing in tenderness with her consort on shore; -by means of that plan they managed to live together until he breathed -his last. Their descendants owned Drws y Coed for many generations, and -they intermarried and mixed with the people of the district. Moreover, -many a fierce fight took place in later times at the Gwyl-fabsant at -Dolbenmaen or at Penmorfa, because the men of Eifionyd had a habit -of annoying the people of Pennant by calling them Bellisians.' - -In a note, Glasynys remarks that this tale is located in many -districts without much variation, except in the names of the places; -this, however, could not apply to the latter part, which suits Llyn -y Dywarchen alone. With this account of the fairy wife frequenting a -lake island to converse with her husband on shore, compare the Irish -story of the Children of Lir, who, though transformed into swans, -were allowed to retain their power of reasoning and speaking, so that -they used to converse from the surface of the water with their friends -on the dry land: see Joyce's Old Celtic Romances, pp. x, 1-36. Now -I return to another tale which was sent me by Mr. William Jones: -unless I am mistaken it has not hitherto been published; so I give -the Welsh together with a free translation of it:-- - -Yr oed ystori am fab Braich y Dinas a adrodai y diwedar hybarch -Elis Owen o Gefn y Meusyd yn lled debyg i chwedl mab yr Ystrad gan -Glasynys, sef ido hudo un o ferched y Tylwyth Teg i lawr o Foel -Hebog, a'i chipio i mewn i'r ty drwy orthrech; ac wedi hynny efe -a'i perswadiod i ymbriodi ag ef ar yr un telerau ag y gwnaeth mab yr -Ystrad. Ond clywais hen fonediges o'r enw Mrs. Roberts, un o ferched -yr Isallt, oed lawer hyn na Mr. Owen, yn ei hadrod yn wahanol. Yr oed -yr hen wreigan hon yn credu yn nilysrwyd y chwedl, oblegid yr oed hi -'yn cofio rhai o'r teulu, waeth be' deudo neb.' Dirwynnai ei hedau yn -debyg i hyn:--Yn yr amser gynt--ond o ran hynny pan oed hi yn ferch -ifanc--yr oed llawer iawn o Dylwyth Teg yn trigo mewn rhyw ogofau yn y -Foel o Gwm Ystradllyn hyd i flaen y Pennant. Yr oed y Tylwyth hwn yn -llawer iawn hardach na dim a welid mewn un rhan arall o'r wlad. Yr -oedynt o ran maint yn fwy o lawer na'r rhai cyffredin, yn lan eu -pryd tu hwnt i bawb, eu gwallt yn oleu fel llin, eu llygaid yn loyw -leision. Yr oedynt yn ymdangos mewn rhyw le neu gilyd yn chwareu, -canu ac ymdifyru bob nos deg a goleu; a bydai swn eu canu yn denu -y llanciau a'r merched ifainc i fyned i'w gweled; ac os bydent yn -digwyd bod o bryd goleu hwy a ymgomient a hwynt, ond ni adawent i -un person o liw tywyll dod yn agos atynt, eithr cilient ymaith o -fford y cyfryw un. Yrwan yr oed mab Braich y Dinas yn llanc hard, -heini, bywiog ac o bryd glan, goleu a serchiadol. Yr oed hwn yn hoff -iawn o edrych ar y Tylwyth, a bydai yn cael ymgom a rhai o honynt yn -aml, ond yn bennaf ag un o'r merched oed yn rhagori arnynt oll mewn -glendid a synwyr; ac o fynych gyfarfod syrthiod y dau mewn cariad -a'u gilyd, eithr ni fynai hi ymbriodi ag ef, ond adawod fyned i'w -wasanaeth, a chydunod i'w gyfarfod yn Mhant--nid wyf yn cofio yr enw -i gyd--drannoeth, oblegid nid oed wiw idi geisio myned gydag ef yn -ngwyd y lleill. Felly drannoeth aeth i fynu i'r Foel, a chyfarfydod -y rhian ef yn ol ei hadewid, ag aeth gydag ef adref, ac ymgymerod a'r -swyd o laethwraig, a buan y dechreuod popeth lwydo o dan ei llaw: yr -oed yr ymenyn a'r caws yn cynhydu beunyd. Hir a thaer y bu'r llanc -yn ceisio gandi briodi. A hi a adawod, os medrai ef gael allan ei -henw. Ni wydai Mrs. Roberts drwy ba ystryw y llwydod i gael hwnnw, -ond hynny a fu, a daeth ef i'r ty un noswaith a galwod ar 'Sibi,' -a phan glywod hi ei henw, hi a aeth i lewygfa; ond pan daeth ati ei -hun, hi a ymfodlonod i briodi ar yr amod nad oed ef i gyffwrd a hi -a haiarn ac nad oed bollt haiarn i fod ar y drws na chlo ychwaith, -a hynny a fu: priodwyd hwynt, a buont fyw yn gysurus am lawer o -flynydoed, a ganwyd idynt amryw blant. Y diwed a fu fel hyn: yr oed -ef wedi myned un diwrnod i dori baich o frwyn at doi, a tharawod -y cryman yn y baich i fyned adref; fel yr oed yn nesu at y gadlas, -rhedod Sibi i'w gyfarfod, a thaflod ynteu y baich brwyn yn direidus -tu ag ati, a rhag ido dyfod ar ei thraws ceisiod ei atal a'i llaw, -yr hon a gyffyrdod a'r cryman; a hi a diflannod o'r golwg yn y fan -yn nghysgod y baich brwyn: ni welwyd ac ni chlywyd dim odiwrthi mwyach. - -'There was a story respecting the son of the farmer of Braich y Dinas, -which used to be told by the late respected Mr. Ellis Owen, of Cefn -y Meusyd, somewhat in the same way as that about the Ystrad youth, -as told by Glasynys; that is to say, the young man enticed one of the -damsels of the fair family to come down from Moel Hebog, and then -he carried her by force into the house, and afterwards persuaded -her to become his wife on the same conditions as the heir of Ystrad -did. But I have heard an old lady called Mrs. Roberts, who had been -brought up at Isallt, and who was older than Mr. Owen, relating it -differently. This old woman believed in the truth of the story, as -"she remembered some of the family, whatever anybody may say." She -used to spin her yarn somewhat as follows:--In old times--but, for -the matter of that, when she was a young woman--there were a great -many of the fair family living in certain caves in the Foel from Cwm -Strįllyn [36] down to the upper part of Pennant. This Tylwyth was -much handsomer than any seen in any other part of the country. In -point of stature they were much bigger than the ordinary ones, fair -of complexion beyond everybody, with hair that was as light as flax, -and eyes that were of a clear blue colour. They showed themselves -in one spot or another, engaged in playing, singing, and jollity -every light night. The sound of their singing used to draw the lads -and the young women to look at them; and, should they be of clear -complexion, the fairies would chat with them; but they would let -no person of a dark hue come near them: they moved away from such a -one. Now the young man of Braich y Dinas was a handsome, vigorous, -and lively stripling of fair, clear, and attractive complexion. He -was very fond of looking at the fair family, and had a chat with some -of them often, but chiefly with one of the damsels, who surpassed all -the rest in beauty and good sense. The result of frequently meeting -was that they fell in love with one another, but she would not marry -him. She promised, however, to go to service to him, and agreed to -meet him at Pant y--I have forgotten the rest of the name--the day -after, as it would not do for her to go with him while the others -happened to be looking on. So he went up the next day to the Foel, -and the damsel met him according to her promise, and went with him -home, where she took to the duties of a dairymaid. Soon everything -began to prosper under her hand; the butter and the cheese were daily -growing in quantity. Long and importunately did the youth try to get -her to marry him. She promised to do so provided he could find out -her name. Mrs. Roberts did not know by what manoeuvre he succeeded -in discovering it, but it was done, and he came into the house one -night and called to "Sibi," and when she heard her name she fainted -away. When, however, she recovered her consciousness, she consented -to marry on the condition that he was not to touch her with iron, -and that there was not to be a bolt of iron on the door, or a lock -either. It was agreed, and they were married; they lived together -comfortably many years, and had children born to them. The end came -thus: he had gone one day to cut a bundle of rushes for thatching, -and planted the reaping-hook in the bundle to go home. As he drew -towards the haggard, Sibi ran out to meet him, and he wantonly threw -the bundle of rushes towards her, when she, to prevent its hitting her, -tried to stop it with her hand, which touched the reaping-hook. She -vanished on the spot out of sight behind the bundle of rushes, and -nothing more was seen or heard of her.' - -Mr. Ellis Owen, alluded to above, was a highly respected gentleman, -well known in North Wales for his literary and antiquarian tastes. He -was born in 1789 at Cefn y Meusyd near Tremadoc, where he continued -to live till the day of his death, which was January 27, 1868. His -literary remains, preceded by a short biography, were published in -1877 by Mr. Robert Isaac Jones of Tremadoc; but it contains no fairy -tales so far as I have been able to find. - -A tale which partially reminds one of that given by Dewi Glan -Ffrydlas respecting the Corwrion midwife, referred to at p. 63 above, -was published by Mr. W. Jones in the fourth volume of the Brython, -p. 251: freely rendered into English, it runs thus:-- - -'Once on a time, when a midwife from Nanhwynan had newly got to the -Hafodyd Brithion to pursue her calling, a gentleman came to the door -on a fine grey steed and bade her come with him at once. Such was the -authority with which he spoke, that the poor midwife durst not refuse -to go, however much it was her duty to stay where she was. So she -mounted behind him, and off they went, like the flight of a swallow, -through Cwmllan, over the Bwlch, down Nant yr Aran, and over the -Gader to Cwm Hafod Ruffyd, before the poor woman had time even to say -Oh! When they reached there, she saw before her a magnificent mansion, -splendidly lit up with such lamps as she had never seen before. They -entered the court, and a crowd of servants in expensive liveries came -to meet them, and she was at once led through the great hall into a -bed-chamber, the like of which she had never seen. There the mistress -of the house, to whom she had been fetched, was awaiting her. The -midwife got through her duties successfully, and stayed there until -the lady had completely recovered, nor had she spent any part of her -life so merrily, for there nought but festivity went on day and night: -dancing, singing, and endless rejoicing reigned there. But merry -as it was, she found that she must go, and the nobleman gave her a -large purse, with the order not to open it until she had got into her -own house. Then he bade one of his servants escort her the same way -that she had come. When she reached home she opened the purse, and, -to her great joy, it was full of money: she lived happily on those -earnings to the end of her life.' - -With this ending of the story one should contrast Dewi Glan Ffrydlas' -tale to which I have already alluded; and I may here refer to -Mr. Sikes' British Goblins, pp. 86-8, for a tale differing from both -Dewi's and Jones', in that the fairies are there made to appear as -devils to the nurse, who had accidentally used a certain ointment which -she was not to place near her own eyes. Instead of being rewarded -for her services she was only too glad to be deposited anyhow near -her home. 'But,' as the story goes on to relate, 'very many years -afterwards, being at a fair, she saw a man stealing something from a -stall, and, with one corner of her eye, beheld her old master pushing -the man's elbow. Unthinkingly she said, "How are you, master? how -are the children?" He said, "How did you see me?" She answered, -"With the corner of my left eye." From that moment she was blind of -her left eye, and lived many years with only her right.' Such is the -end of this tale given by Mr. Sikes. - -'But the fair family did not,' Mr. William Jones goes on to say, -'always give mortals the means of good living: sometimes they made no -little fun of them. Once on a time the Drws y Coed man was going home -from Bedgelert Fair, rather merry than sad, along the old road over -the Gader, when he saw, on coming near the top of the Gader, a fine, -handsome house near the road, in which there was a rare merrymaking. He -knew perfectly well that there was no such a building anywhere on his -way, and it made him think that he had lost his way and gone astray; -so he resolved to turn into the house to ask for lodgings, which were -given him. At once, when he entered, he took it to be a nuptial feast -(neithior) by reason of the jollity, the singing, and the dancing. The -house was full of young men, young women, and children, all merry, -and exerting themselves to the utmost. The company began to disappear -one by one, and he asked if he might go to bed, whereupon he was led -to a splendid chamber, where there was a bed of the softest down -with snow-white clothes on it. He stripped at once, went into it, -and slept quietly enough till the morning. The first thing to come -to his mind when he lay half asleep, half awake, was the jollity of -the night before, and the fact of his sleeping in a splendid chamber -in the strange house. He opened his eyes to survey his bedroom, but -it was too wide: he was sleeping on the bare swamp, with a clump of -rushes as his pillow, and the blue sky as his coverlet.' - -Mr. Jones mentions that, within his memory, there were still people -in his neighbourhood who believed that the fairies stole unbaptized -children and placed their own in their stead: he gives the following -story about the farmer's wife of Dyffryn Mymbyr, near Capel Curig, -and her infant:-- - -Yr oed y wraig hon wedi rhodi genedigaeth i blentyn iach a heinif -yn nechreu y cynheuaf ryw haf blin a thymhestlog: ac o herwyd fod y -tydyn getyn o fford odiwrth lan na chapel, a'r hin mor hynod o lawiog, -esgeuluswyd bedydio y plentyn yn yr amser arferol, sef cyn ei fod yn -wyth niwrnod oed. Ryw diwrnod teg yn nghanol y cynheuaf blin aeth y -wraig allan i'r maes gyda'r rhelyw o'r teulu i geisio achub y cynheuaf, -a gadawod y baban yn cysgu yn ei gryd o dan ofal ei nain, yr hon oed -hen a methiantus, ac yn analluog i fyned lawer o gwmpas. Syrthiod yr -hen wreigan i gysgu, a thra yr oed hi felly, daeth y Tylwyth i fewn, -a chymerasant y baban o'r cryd, a dodasant un arall yn ei le. Yn mhen -ennyd dechreuod hwn erain a chwyno nes deffro y nain, ac aeth at y -cryd, lle y gwelod gleiriach hen eidil crebachlyd yn ymstwyrian yn -flin. 'O'r wchw!' ebai hi, 'y mae yr hen Dylwyth wedi bod yma;' ac yn -dioed chwythod yn y corn i alw y fam, yr hon a daeth yno yn diatreg; -a phan glywod y crio yn y cryd, rhedod ato, a chodod y bychan i fynu -heb sylwi arno, a hi a'i cofleidiod, a'i suod ac a'i swcrod at ei -bronnau, ond nid oed dim yn tycio, parhau i nadu yn didor yr oed nes -bron a hollti ei chalon; ac ni wydai pa beth i wneud i'w distewi. O'r -diwed hi a edrychod arno, a gwelod nad oed yn debyg i'w mhebyn hi, -ac aeth yn loes i'w chalon: edrychod arno drachefn, ond po fwyaf yr -edrychai arno, hyllaf yn y byd oed hi yn ei weled; anfonod am ei gwr -o'r cae, a gyrrod ef i ymholi am wr cyfarwyd yn rhywle er mwyn cael ei -gynghor; ac ar ol hir holi dywedod rhywun wrtho fod person Trawsfynyd -yn gyfarwyd yn nghyfrinion yr ysprydion; ac efe a aeth ato, ac archod -hwnnw ido gymeryd rhaw a'i gorchudio a halen, a thori llun croes yn -yr halen; yna ei chymeryd i'r ystafell lle yr oed mab y Tylwyth, ac -ar ol agor y ffenestr, ei rhodi ar y tan hyd nes y llosgai yr halen; -a hwy a wnaethant felly, a phan aeth yr halen yn eiriasboeth fe aeth -yr erthyl croes ymaith yn anweledig idynt hwy, ac ar drothwy y drws -hwy a gawsant y baban arall yn iach a dianaf. - -'This woman had given birth to a healthy and vigorous child at the -beginning of the harvest, one wretched and inclement summer. As the -homestead was a considerable distance from church or chapel, and the -weather so very rainy, it was neglected to baptize the child at the -usual [37] time, that is to say, before it was eight days old. One -fine day, in the middle of this wretched harvest, the mother went -to the field with the rest of the family to try to save the harvest, -and left her baby sleeping in its cradle in its grandmother's charge, -who was so aged and decrepit as to be unable to go much about. The -old woman fell asleep, and, while she was in that state, the Tylwyth -Teg came in and took away the baby, placing another in its stead. Very -shortly the latter began to whine and groan, so that the grandmother -awoke: she went to the cradle, where she saw a slender, wizened old -man moving restlessly and peevishly about. "Alas! alas!" said she, -"the old Tylwyth have been here"; and she at once blew in the horn -to call the mother home, who came without delay. As she heard the -crying in the cradle, she ran towards it, and lifted the little one -without looking at him; she hugged him, put him to her breast, and -sang lullaby to him, but nothing was of any avail, as he continued, -without stopping, to scream enough to break her heart; and she knew -not what to do to calm him. At last she looked at him: she saw that -he was not like her dear little boy, and her heart was pierced with -agony. She looked at him again, and the more she examined him the -uglier he seemed to her. She sent for her husband home from the -field, and told him to search for a skilled man somewhere or other; -and, after a long search, he was told by somebody that the parson -of Trawsfynyd was skilled in the secrets of the spirits; so he went -to him. The latter bade him take a shovel and cover it with salt, -and make the figure of the cross in the salt; then to take it to -the chamber where the fairy child was, and, after taking care to -open the window, to place the shovel on the fire until the salt -was burnt. This was done, and when the salt had got white hot, the -peevish abortion went away, seen of no one, and they found the other -baby whole and unscathed at the doorstep.' Fire was also made use of -in Scotland in order to detect a changeling and force him to quit: see -the British Association's Report, 1896, p. 650, where Mr. Gomme refers -to Mr. Gregor's Folk-lore of the North-east of Scotland, pp. 8-9. - -In answer to a question of mine with regard to gossamer, which is -called in North Wales edafed gwawn, 'gwawn yarn,' Mr. Jones told me -in a letter, dated April, 1881, that it used to be called Rhaffau'r -Tylwyth Teg, that is to say, the Ropes of the Fair Family, which -were associated with the diminutive, mischievous, and wanton kind -of fairies who dwelt in marshy and rushy places, or among the fern -and the heather. It used to be said that, if a man should lie down -and fall asleep in any such a spot, the fairies would come and bind -him with their ropes so that he could not move, and that they would -then cover him with a sheet made of their ropes, which would make -him invisible. This was illustrated by him by the following tale he -had heard from his mother:-- - -Clywais fy mam yn adrod chwedl am fab y Ffrid, yr hwn wrth dychwelyd -adref o ffair Bedgelert yn rhywle odeutu Pen Cae'r Gors a welod beth -afrifed o'r Tylwyth Bach yn neidio a phrancio ar bennau y grug. Efe -a eistedod i lawr i edrych arnynt, a daeth hun drosto; ymollyngod i -lawr a chysgod yn drwm. A phan oed felly, ymosodod yr holl lu arno -a rhwymasant ef mor dyn fel na allasai symud; yna hwy a'i cudiasant -ef a'r tuded gwawn fel na allai neb ei weled os digwydai ido lefain -am help. Yr oed ei deulu yn ei disgwyl adref yn gynnar y nos honno, -ac wrth ei weled yn oedi yn hwyr, aethant yn anesmwyth am dano ac -aethpwyd i'w gyfarfod, eithr ni welent dim odiwrtho, ac aed gan -belled a'r pentref, lle en hyspyswyd ei fod wedi myned tuag adref -yn gynnar gyda gwr Hafod Ruffyd. Felly aed tua'r Hafod i edrych a -oed yno; ond dywedod gwr yr Hafod eu bod wedi ymwahanu ar Bont Glan -y Gors, pawb tua'i fan ei hun. Yna chwiliwyd yn fanwl bob ochr i'r -fford odiyno i'r Ffrid heb weled dim odiwrtho. Buwyd yn chwilio yr -holl ardal drwy y dyd drannoeth ond yn ofer. Fod bynnag odeutu yr -un amser nos drannoeth daeth y Tylwyth ac a'i rhydhasant, ac yn fuan -efe a deffrōd wedi cysgu o hono drwy y nos a'r dyd blaenorol. Ar ol -ido deffro ni wydai amcan daear yn mha le yr oed, a chrwydro y bu hyd -ochrau y Gader a'r Gors Fawr hyd nes y canod y ceiliog, pryd yr adnabu -yn mha le yr oed, sef o fewn llai na chwarter milltir i'w gartref. - -'I have heard my mother relating a tale about the son of the farmer -of the Ffrid, who, while on his way home from Bedgelert Fair, saw, -somewhere near Pen Cae'r Gors, an endless number of the diminutive -family leaping and capering on the heather tops. He sat him down -to look at them, and sleep came over him; he let himself down on the -ground, and slept heavily. When he was so, the whole host attacked him, -and they bound him so tightly that he could not have stirred; then -they covered him with the gossamer sheet, so that nobody could see him -in case he called for help. His people expected him home early that -evening, and, as they found him delaying till late, they got uneasy -about him. They went to meet him, but no trace of him was seen, and -they went as far as the village, where they were informed that he had -started home in good time with the farmer of Hafod Ruffyd. So they -went to the Hafod to see if he was there; but the farmer told them -that they had parted on Glan y Gors Bridge to go to their respective -homes. A minute search was then made on both sides of the road from -there to the Ffrid, but without finding any trace of him. They kept -searching the whole neighbourhood during the whole of the next day, -but in vain. However, about the same time the following night the -Tylwyth came and liberated him, and he shortly woke up, after sleeping -through the previous night and day. When he woke he had no idea where -on earth he was; so he wandered about on the slopes of the Gader and -near the Gors Fawr until the cock crew, when he found where he was, -namely, less than a quarter of a mile from his home.' - -The late Mr. Owen, of Cefn Meusyd, has already been alluded to. I -have not been able to get at much of the folklore with which he was -familiar, but, in reply to some questions of mine, Mr. Robert Isaac -Jones of Tremadoc, his biographer, and the publisher of the Brython, -so long as it existed, has kindly ransacked his memory. He writes to -me in Welsh to the following effect:-- - -'I will tell you what I heard from Mr. Owen and my mother when I -was a lad, about fifty-seven years ago. The former used to say that -the people of Pennant in Eifionyd had a nickname, to wit, that of -Belsiaid y Pennant, "the Bellisians of the Pennant"; that, when he was -a boy, if anybody called out Belsiaid y Pennant at the Penmorfa Fair, -every man jack of them would come out, and fighting always ensued. The -antiquary used to explain it thus. Some two or three hundred years ago, -Sir Robert of the Nant, one of Sir Richard Bulkeley's ancestors, had a -son and heir who was extravagant and wild. He married a gipsy, and they -had children born to them; but, as the family regarded this marriage -as a disgrace to their ancient stem, it is said that the father, the -next time the vagabonds came round, gave a large sum of money to the -father of the girl for taking her away with him. This having been done, -the rumour was spread abroad that it was one of the fairies the youth -had married, and that she had gone with him to catch a pony, when he -threw the bridle at the beast to prevent it passing, and the iron -of the bridle touched the wife; then that she at once disappeared, -as the fairies always do so when touched with iron. However, the two -children were put out to nurse, and the one of them, who was a girl, -was brought up at Plas y Pennant, and her name was Pelisha [38]; her -descendants remain to this day in the Nant, and are called Bellis, -who are believed there, to this day, to be derived from the Tylwyth -Teg. Nothing offends them more than to be reminded of this.' - -Mr. R. I. Jones goes on to relate another tale as follows:-- - -Dywedir fod lle a elwir yr Hafod Rugog mewn cwm anial yn y mynyd lle -y bydai y Tylwyth Teg yn arferol a mynychu; ac y bydent yn trwblio'r -hen wraig am fenthyg rhywbeth neu gilyd. Dywedod hithau, 'Cewch os -caniatewch dau beth cyntaf--i'r peth cyntaf y cyffyrdaf ag ef wrth y -drws dorri, a'r peth cyntaf y rhof fy llaw arno yn y ty estyn hanner -llath.' Yr oed carreg afael, fel ei gelwir, yn y mur wrth y drws ar -ei fford, ac yr oed gandi defnyd syrcyn gwlanen yn rhy fyr o hanner -llath. Ond yn anffodus wrth dod a'i chawellad mawn i'r ty bu agos idi -a syrthio: rhoes ei llaw ar ben ei chlun i ymarbed a thorod honno, -a chan faint y boen cyffyrdod yny ty a'i thrwyn yr hwn a estynnod -hanner llath. - -'It is said that there was a place called Hafod Rugog in a wild -hollow among the mountains, where the fair family were in the habit of -resorting, and that they used to trouble the old woman of Hafod for -the loan of one thing and another. So she said, one day, "You shall -have the loan if you will grant me two first things--that the first -thing I touch at the door break, and that the first thing I put my -hand on in the house be lengthened half a yard." There was a grip -stone (carreg afael), as it is called, in the wall near the door, -which was in her way, and she had in the house a piece of flannel -for a jerkin which was half a yard too short. But, unfortunately, -as she came, with her kreel full of turf on her back, to the house, -she nearly fell down: she put her hand, in order to save herself, -to her knee-joint, which then broke; and, owing to the pain, when she -had got into the house, she touched her nose with her hand, when her -nose grew half a yard longer.' - -Mr. Jones went on to notice how the old folks used to believe that the -fairies were wont to appear in the marshes near Cwellyn Lake, not far -from Rhyd-Du, to sing and dance, and that it was considered dangerous -to approach them on those occasions lest one should be fascinated. As -to the above-mentioned flannel and stone a folklorist asks me, why -the old woman did not definitely mention them and say exactly what -she wanted. The question is worth asking: I cannot answer it, but I -mention it in the hope that somebody else will. - - - - -II. - -Early in the year 1899 [39] I had a small group of stories communicated -to me by the Rev. W. Evans Jones, rector of Dolbenmaen, who tells me -that the neighbourhood of the Garn abounds in fairy tales. The scene -of one of these is located near the source of Afon fach Blaen y Cae, -a tributary of the Dwyfach. 'There a shepherd while looking after -his flock came across a ring of rushes which he accidentally kicked, -as the little people were coming out to dance. They detained him, -and he married one of their number. He was told that he would live -happily with them as long as he would not touch any instrument of -iron. For years nothing happened to mar the peace and happiness of -the family. One day, however, he unknowingly touched iron, with the -consequence that both the wife and the children disappeared.' This -differs remarkably from stories such as have been already mentioned -at pp. 32, 35; but until it is countenanced by stories from other -sources, I can only treat it as a blurred version of a story of the -more usual type, such as the next one which Mr. Evans Jones has sent -me as follows:-- - -'A son of the farmer of Blaen Pennant married a fairy and they -lived together happily for years, until one day he took a bridle -to catch a horse, which proved to be rather an obstreperous animal, -and in trying to prevent the horse passing, he threw the bridle at -him, which, however, missed the animal and hit the wife so that the -bit touched her, and she at once disappeared. The tradition goes, -that their descendants are to this day living in the Pennant Valley; -and if there is any unpleasantness between them and their neighbours -they are taunted with being of the Tylwyth Teg family.' These are, -I presume, the people nicknamed Belsiaid, to which reference has -already been made. - -The next story is about an old woman from Garn Dolbenmaen who was -crossing y Graig Goch, 'the Red Rock,' 'when suddenly she came across a -fairy sitting down with a very large number of gold coins by her. The -old woman ventured to remark how wealthy she was: the fairy replied, -Wele dacw, "Lo there!" and immediately disappeared.' This looks as -if it ought to be a part of a longer story which Mr. Evans Jones has -not heard. - -The last bit of folklore which he has communicated is equally short, -but of a rarer description: 'A fairy was in the habit of attending -a certain family in the Pennant Valley every evening to put the -children to bed; and as the fairy was poorly clad, the mistress of -the house gave her a gown, which was found in the morning torn into -shreds.' The displeasure of the fairy at being offered the gown is -paralleled by that of the fenodyree or the Manx brownie, described in -chapter iv. As for the kind of service here ascribed to the Pennant -fairy, I know nothing exactly parallel. - - - - -III. - -The next four stories are to be found in Cymru Fu at pp. 175-9, whence -I have taken the liberty of translating them into English. They were -contributed by Glasynys, whose name has already occurred so often in -connexion with these Welsh legends, that the reader ought to know more -about him; but I have been disappointed in my attempt to get a short -account of his life to insert here. All I can say is, that I made -his acquaintance in 1865 in Anglesey: at that time he had a curacy -near Holyhead, and he was in the prime of life. He impressed me as an -enthusiast for Welsh antiquities: he was born and bred, I believe, -in the neighbourhood of Snowdon, and his death took place about ten -years ago. It would be a convenience to the student of Welsh folklore -to have a brief biography of Glasynys, but as yet nothing of the kind -seems to have been written. - -(1) 'When the people of the Gors Goch one evening had just gone to bed, -they heard a great row and disturbance around the house. One could -not comprehend at all what it was that made a noise at that time -of night. Both the husband and the wife had waked up, quite unable -to make out what it might be. The children also woke, but no one -could utter a word: their tongues had all stuck to the roof of their -mouths. The husband, however, at last managed to move, and to ask, -"Who is there? What do you want?" Then he was answered from without by -a small silvery voice, "It is room we want to dress our children." The -door was opened: a dozen small beings came in, and began to search -for an earthen pitcher with water; there they remained for some hours, -washing and titivating themselves. As the day was breaking, they went -away, leaving behind them a fine present for the kindness they had -received. Often afterwards did the Gors Goch folks have the company -of this family. But once there happened to be there a fine plump and -pretty baby in his cradle. The fair family came, and, as the baby -had not been baptized, they took the liberty of changing him for one -of their own. They left behind in his stead an abominable creature -that would do nothing but cry and scream every day of the week. The -mother was nearly breaking her heart on account of the misfortune, -and greatly afraid of telling anybody about it. But everybody got to -see that there was something wrong at the Gors Goch, which was proved -before long by the mother dying of longing for her child. The other -children died broken-hearted after their mother, and the husband was -left alone with the little elf without any one to comfort them. But -shortly after, one began to resort again to the hearth of the Gors -Goch to dress children, and the gift, which had formerly been silver -money, became henceforth pure gold. In the course of a few years the -elf became the heir of a large farm in North Wales, and that is why -the old people used to say, "Shoe the elf with gold and he will grow" -(Fe daw gwidon yn fawr ond ei bedoli ag aur). That is the legend of -the Gors Goch.' - -(2) 'Once when William Ellis, of the Gilwern, was fishing on the bank -of Cwm Silin Lake on a dark misty day, he had seen no living Christian -from the time when he left Nantlle. But as he was in a happy mood, -throwing his line, he beheld over against him in a clump of rushes a -large crowd of people, or things in the shape of people about a foot -in stature: they were engaged in leaping and dancing. He looked on -for hours, and he never heard, as he said, such music in his life -before. But William went too near them, when they threw a kind of -dust into his eyes, and, while he was wiping it away, the little -family took the opportunity of betaking themselves somewhere out of -his sight, so that he neither saw nor heard anything more of them.' - -(3) 'There is a similar story respecting a place called Llyn y -Ffynhonnau. There was no end of jollity there, of dancing, harping, and -fiddling, with the servant man of Gelli Ffrydau and his two dogs in the -midst of the crowd, leaping and capering as nimbly as anybody else. At -it they were for three days and three nights, without stopping; and -had it not been for a skilled man, who lived not far off, and came to -know how things were going on, the poor fellow would, without doubt, -have danced himself to death. But he was rescued that time.' - -(4) The fourth story is one, of which he says, that he heard it from -his mother; but he has elaborated it in his usual fashion, and the -proper names are undoubtedly his own:--'Once on a time, a shepherd -boy had gone up the mountain. That day, like many a day before and -after, was exceedingly misty. Now, though he was well acquainted -with the place, he lost his way, and walked backwards and forwards -for many a long hour. At last he got into a low rushy spot, where he -saw before him many circular rings. He at once recalled the place, -and began to fear the worst. He had heard, many hundreds of times, -of the bitter experiences, in those rings, of many a shepherd who had -happened to chance on the dancing place or the circles of the fair -family. He hastened away as fast as ever he could, lest he should be -ruined like the rest; but, though he exerted himself to the point of -perspiring and losing his breath, there he was, and there he continued -to be, a long time. At last he was met by an old fat little man, with -merry blue eyes, who asked him what he was doing. He answered that -he was trying to find his way home. "Oh," said he, "come after me, -and do not utter a word until I bid thee." This he did, following him -on and on until they came to an oval stone; and the old fat little -man lifted it, after tapping the middle of it three times with his -walking-stick. There was there a narrow path with stairs visible here -and there; and a sort of whitish light, inclining to grey and blue, -was to be seen radiating from the stones. "Follow me fearlessly," -said the fat man; "no harm will be done thee." So on the poor youth -went, as reluctantly as a dog to be hanged. But presently a fine, -wooded, fertile country spread itself out before them, with well -arranged mansions dotting it all over, while every kind of apparent -magnificence met the eye and seemed to smile in the landscape; the -bright waters of the rivers meandered in twisted streams, and the -hills were covered with the luxuriant verdure of their grassy growth, -and the mountains with a glossy fleece of smooth pasture. By the time -they had reached the stout gentleman's mansion, the young man's senses -had been bewildered by the sweet cadence of the music which the birds -poured forth from the groves: then there was gold dazzling his eyes, -and silver flashing on his sight. He saw there all kinds of musical -instruments and all sorts of things for playing; but he could discern -no inhabitant in the whole place; and, when he sat down to eat, the -dishes on the table came to their places of themselves, and disappeared -when one had done with them. This puzzled him beyond measure; moreover, -he heard people talking together around him, but for the life of him -he could see no one but his old friend. At length the fat man said -to him: "Thou canst now talk as much as it may please thee;" but, -when he attempted to move his tongue, it would no more stir than if it -had been a lump of ice, which greatly frightened him. At this point, -a fine old lady, with health and benevolence beaming in her face, came -to them and slightly smiled at the shepherd: the mother was followed -by her three daughters, who were remarkably beautiful. They gazed with -somewhat playful looks at him, and at length began to talk to him; -but his tongue would not wag. Then one of the girls came to him, and, -playing with his yellow and curly locks, gave him a smart kiss on his -ruddy lips. This loosened the string that bound his tongue, and he -began to talk freely and eloquently. There he was, under the charm of -that kiss, in the bliss of happiness; and there he remained a year and -a day without knowing that he had passed more than a day among them; -for he had got into a country where there was no reckoning of time. But -by-and-by he began to feel somewhat of a longing to visit his old home, -and asked the stout man if he might go. "Stay a little yet," said he, -"and thou shalt go for awhile." That passed: he stayed on, but Olwen, -for that was the name of the damsel that had kissed him, was very -unwilling that he should depart. She looked sad every time he talked -of going away; nor was he himself without feeling a sort of a cold -thrill passing through him at the thought of leaving her. On condition, -however, of returning, he obtained leave to go, provided with plenty -of gold and silver, of trinkets and gems. When he reached home, nobody -knew who he was: it had been the belief that he had been killed by -another shepherd, who found it necessary to betake himself hastily far -away to America, lest he should be hanged without delay. But here is -Einion Lās at home, and everybody wonders especially to see that the -shepherd had got to look like a wealthy man: his manners, his dress, -his language, and the treasure he had with him, all conspired to give -him the air of a gentleman. He went back one Thursday night, the first -of the moon of that month, as suddenly as he had left the first time, -and nobody knew whither. There was great joy in the country below when -Einion returned thither, and nobody was more rejoiced at it than Olwen -his beloved. The two were right impatient to get married; but it was -necessary to do that quietly, for the family below hated nothing more -than fuss and noise; so, in a sort of a half-secret fashion, they -were wedded. Einion was very desirous to go once more among his own -people, accompanied, to be sure, by his wife. After he had been long -entreating the old man for leave, they set out on two white ponies, -that were, in fact, more like snow than anything else in point of -colour. So he arrived with his consort in his old home, and it was -the opinion of all that Einion's wife was the handsomest person they -had anywhere seen. Whilst at home, a son was born to them, to whom -they gave the name of Taliessin. Einion was now in the enjoyment -of high repute, and his wife received due respect. Their wealth was -immense, and soon they acquired a large estate; but it was not long -till people began to inquire after the pedigree of Einion's wife: the -country was of opinion that it was not the right thing to be without -a pedigree. Einion was questioned about it, but without giving any -satisfactory answer, and one came to the conclusion that she was one -of the fair family (Tylwyth Teg). "Certainly," replied Einion, "there -can be no doubt that she comes from a very fair family; for she has -two sisters who are as fair as she, and, if you saw them together, -you would admit that name to be a most fitting one." This, then, -is the reason why the remarkable family in the Land of Enchantment -and Glamour (Hud a Lledrith) is called the fair family.' - -The two next tales of Glasynys' appear in Cymru Fu, at pp. 478-9; -the first of them is to be compared with one already related (pp. 99, -100), while the other is unlike anything that I can now recall:-- - -(5) 'Cwmllan was the principal resort of the fair family, and the -shepherds of Hafod Llan used to see them daily in the ages of faith -gone by. Once, on a misty afternoon, one of them had been searching -for sheep towards Nant y Bettws. When he had crossed Bwlch Cwmllan, -and was hastening laboriously down, he saw an endless number of little -folks singing and dancing in a lively and light-footed fashion, while -the handsomest girls he had ever seen anywhere were at it preparing -a banquet. He went to them and had a share of their dainties, and it -seemed to him that he had never in his life tasted anything approaching -their dishes. When the twilight came, they spread their tents, and -the man never before saw such beauty and ingenuity. They gave him -a soft bed of yielding down, with sheets of the finest linen, and -he went to rest as proud as if he had been a prince. But, alas! next -morning, after all the jollity and sham splendour, the poor man, when -he opened his eyes, found that his bed was but a bush of bulrushes, -and his pillow a clump of moss. Nevertheless, he found silver money -in his shoes, and afterwards he continued for a long time to find, -every week, a piece of coined money between two stones near the spot -where he had slept. One day, however, he told a friend of his the -secret respecting the money, and he never found any more.' - -(6) 'Another of these shepherds was one day urging his dog at the -sheep in Cwmllan, when he heard a kind of low noise in the cleft -of a rock. He turned to look, when he found there some kind of a -creature weeping plenteously. He approached, and drew out a wee lass; -very shortly afterwards two middle-aged men came to him to thank him -for his kindness, and, when about to part, one of them gave him a -walking-stick, as a souvenir of his good deed. The year after this, -every sheep in his possession had two ewe-lambs; and so his sheep -continued to breed for some years. But he had stayed one evening in -the village until it was rather late, and there hardly ever was a -more tempestuous night than that: the wind howled, and the clouds -shed their contents in sheets of rain, while the darkness was such -that next to nothing could be seen. As he was crossing the river that -comes down from Cwmllan, where its flood was sweeping all before it -in a terrible current, he somehow let go the walking-stick from his -hand; and when one went next morning up the Cwm, it was found that -nearly all the sheep had been swept away by the flood, and that the -farmer's wealth had gone almost as it came--with the walking-stick.' - -The shorter versions given by Glasynys are probably more nearly given -as he heard them, than the longer ones, which may be suspected of -having been a good deal spun out by him; but there is probably very -little in any of them of his own invention, though the question whence -he got his materials in each instance may be difficult to answer. In -one this is quite clear, though he does not state it, namely the -story of the sojourn of Elfod the Shepherd in Fairyland, as given -in Cymru Fu, p. 477: it is no other than a second or third-hand -reproduction of that recorded by Giraldus concerning a certain -Eliodorus, a twelfth-century cleric in the diocese of St. David's -[40]. But the longest tale published by Glasynys is the one about -a mermaid: see Cymru Fu, pp. 434-44. Where he got this from I have -not been able to find out, but it has probably been pieced together -from various sources. I feel sure that some of the materials at least -were Welsh, besides the characters known to Welsh mythology as Nefyd -Naf Neifion, Gwyn ab Nud, Gwydion ab Dōn, Dylan, and Ceridwen, who -have been recklessly introduced into it. He locates it, apparently, -somewhere on the coast of Carnarvonshire, the chief scene being -called Ogof Deio or David's Cave, which so far as I know is not an -actual name, but one suggested by 'David Jones' locker' as sailors' -slang for the sea. In hopes that somebody will communicate to me any -bits of this tale that happen to be still current on the Welsh coast, -I give an abstract of it here:-- - -'Once upon a time, a poor fisherman made the acquaintance of a mermaid -in a cave on the sea-coast; at first she screeched wildly, but, when -she got a little calmer, she told him to go off out of the way of -her brother, and to return betimes the day after. In getting away, -he was tossed into the sea, and tossed out on the land with a rope, -which had got wound about his waist; and on pulling at this he got -ashore a coffer full of treasure, which he spent the night in carrying -home. He was somewhat late in revisiting the cave the next day, and -saw no mermaid come there to meet him according to her promise. But -the following night he was roused out of his sleep by a visit from her -at his home, when she told him to come in time next day. On his way -thither, he learnt from some fishermen that they had been labouring in -vain during the night, as a great big mermaid had opened their nets -in order to pick the best fish, while she let the rest escape. When -he reached the cave he found the mermaid there combing her hair: -she surprised him by telling him that she had come to live among the -inhabitants of the land, though she was, according to her own account, -a king's daughter. She was no longer stark naked, but dressed like a -lady: in one hand she held a diadem of pure gold, and in the other a -cap of wonderful workmanship, the former of which she placed on her -head, while she handed the latter to Ifan Morgan, with the order that -he should keep it. Then she related to him how she had noticed him -when he was a ruddy boy, out fishing in his father's white boat, and -heard him sing a song which made her love him, and how she had tried -to repeat this song at her father's court, where everybody wanted -to get it. Many a time, she said, she had been anxiously listening -if she might hear it again, but all in vain. So she had obtained -permission from her family to come with her treasures and see if he -would not teach it her; but she soon saw that she would not succeed -without appearing in the form in which she now was. After saying -that her name was Nefyn, daughter of Nefyd Naf Neifion, and niece -to Gwyn son of Nud, and Gwydion son of Dōn, she calmed his feelings -on the subject of the humble cottage in which he lived. Presently he -asked her to be his wife, and she consented on the condition that he -should always keep the cap she had given him out of her sight and -teach her the song. They were married and lived happily together, -and had children born them five times, a son and a daughter each time; -they frequently went to the cave, and no one knew what treasures they -had there; but once on a time they went out in a boat pleasuring, as -was their wont, with six or seven of the children accompanying them, -and when they were far from the land a great storm arose; besides -the usual accompaniments of a storm at sea, most unearthly screeches -and noises were heard, which frightened the children and made their -mother look uncomfortable; but presently she bent her head over the -side of the boat, and whispered something they did not catch: to their -surprise the sea was instantly calm. They got home comfortably, but -the elder children were puzzled greatly by their mother's influence -over the sea, and it was not long after this till they so teased -some ill-natured old women, that the latter told them all about the -uncanny origin of their mother. The eldest boy was vexed at this, -and remembered how his mother had spoken to somebody near the boat -at sea, and that he was never allowed to go with his parents to -Ogof Deio. He recalled, also, his mother's account of the strange -countries she had seen. Once there came also to Ifan Morgan's home, -which was now a mansion, a visitor whom the children were not even -allowed to see; and one night, when the young moon had sunk behind -the western horizon, Ifan and his wife went quietly out of the house, -telling a servant that they would not return for three weeks or a -month: this was overheard by the eldest son. So he followed them very -quietly until he saw them on the strand, where he beheld his mother -casting a sort of leather mantle round herself and his father, and -both of them threw themselves into the hollow of a billow that came -to fetch them. The son went home, broke his heart, and died in nine -days at finding out that his mother was a mermaid; and, on seeing her -brother dead, his twin sister went and threw herself into the sea; -but, instead of being drowned, she was taken up on his steed by a -fine looking knight, who then galloped away over the waves as if they -had been dry and level land. The servants were in doubt what to do, -now that Nefyd Morgan was dead and Eilonwy had thrown herself into -the sea; but Tegid, the second son, who feared nothing, said that -Nefyd's body should be taken to the strand, as somebody was likely to -come to fetch it for burial among his mother's family. At midnight a -knight arrived, who said the funeral was to be at three that morning, -and told them that their brother would come back to them, as Gwydion -ab Dōn was going to give him a heart that no weight could break, -that Eilonwy was soon to be wedded to one of the finest and bravest -of the knights of Gwerdonau Llion, and that their parents were with -Gwyn ab Nud in the Gwaelodion. The body was accordingly taken to the -beach, and, as soon as the wave touched it, out of his coffin leaped -Nefyd like a porpoise. He was seen then to walk away arm in arm with -Gwydion ab Dōn to a ship that was in waiting, and most enchanting -music was heard by those on shore; but soon the ship sailed away, -hardly touching the tops of the billows. After a year and a day had -elapsed Ifan Morgan, the father, came home, looking much better and -more gentlemanly than he had ever done before; he had never spoken of -Nefyn, his wife, until Tegid one day asked him what about his mother; -she had gone, he said, in search of Eilonwy, who had run away from her -husband in Gwerdonau Llion, with Glanfryd ab Gloywfraint. She would -be back soon, he thought, and describe to them all the wonders they -had seen. Ifan Morgan went to bed that night, and was found dead in -it in the morning; it was thought that his death had been caused by -a Black Knight, who had been seen haunting the place at midnight for -some time, and always disappearing, when pursued, into a well that -bubbled forth in a dark recess near at hand. The day of Ifan Morgan's -funeral, Nefyn, his wife, returned, and bewailed him with many tears; -she was never more seen on the dry land. Tegid had now the charge of -the family, and he conducted himself in all things as behoved a man -and a gentleman of high principles and great generosity. He was very -wealthy, but often grieved by the thought of his father's murder. One -day, when he and two of his brothers were out in a boat fishing in the -neighbouring bay, they were driven by the wind to the most wonderful -spot they had ever seen. The sea there was as smooth as glass, and -as bright as the clearest light, while beneath it, and not far from -them, they saw a most splendid country with fertile fields and dales -covered with pastures, with flowery hedges, groves clad in their green -foliage, and forests gently waving their leafy luxuriance, with rivers -lazily contemplating their own tortuous courses, and with mansions -here and there of the most beautiful and ingenious description; and -presently they saw that the inhabitants amused themselves with all -kinds of merriment and frolicking, and that here and there they had -music and engaged themselves in the most energetic dancing; in fact, -the rippling waves seemed to have absorbed their fill of the music, -so that the faint echo of it, as gently given forth by the waves, -never ceased to charm their ears until they reached the shore. That -night the three brothers had the same dream, namely that the Black -Knight who had throttled their father was in hiding in a cave on the -coast: so they made for the cave in the morning, but the Black Knight -fled from them and galloped off on the waves as if he had been riding -for amusement over a meadow. That day their sisters, on returning home -from school, had to cross a piece of sea, when a tempest arose and sunk -the vessel, drowning all on board, and the brothers ascribed this to -the Black Knight. About this time there was great consternation among -the fishermen on account of a sea-serpent that twined itself about -the rocks near the caves, and nothing would do but that Tegid and his -brothers should go forth to kill it; but when one day they came near -the spot frequented by it, they heard a deep voice saying to them, -"Do not kill your sister," so they wondered greatly and suddenly went -home. But that night Tegid returned there alone, and called his sister -by her name, and after waiting a long while she crept towards him in -the shape of a sea-serpent, and said that she must remain some time in -that form on account of her having run away with one who was not her -husband; she went on to say that she had seen their sisters walking -with their mother, and their father would soon be in the cave. But all -of a sudden there came the Black Knight, who unsheathed a sword that -looked like a flame of fire, and began to cut the sea-serpent into a -thousand bits, which united, however, as fast as he cut it, and became -as whole as before. The end was that the monster twisted itself in -a coil round his throat and bit him terribly in his breast. At this -point a White Knight comes and runs him through with his spear, so -that he fell instantly, while the White Knight went off hurriedly -with the sea-serpent in a coil round his neck. Tegid ran away for -his life, but not before a monster more terrible than anything he -had ever seen had begun to attack him. It haunted him in all kinds of -ways: sometimes it would be like a sea, but Tegid was able to swim: -sometimes it would be a mountain of ice, but Tegid was able to climb -it: and sometimes it was like a furnace of intense fire, but the heat -had no effect on him. But it appeared mostly as a combination of the -beast of prey and the venomous reptile. Suddenly, however, a young -man appeared, taking hold of Tegid's arm and encouraging him, when -the monster fled away screeching, and a host of knights in splendid -array and on proudly prancing horses came to him: among them he found -his brothers, and he went with them to his mother's country. He was -especially welcome there, and he found all happy and present save -his father only, whom he thought of fetching from the world above, -having in fact got leave to do so from his grandfather. His mother -and his brothers went with him to search for his father's body, and -with him came Gwydion ab Dōn and Gwyn ab Nud, but he would not be -wakened. So Tegid, who loved his father greatly, asked leave to remain -on his father's grave, where he remains to this day. His mother is -wont to come there to soothe him, and his brothers send him gifts, -while he sends his gifts to Nefyd Naf Neifion, his grandfather; -it is also said that his twin-sister, Ceridwen, has long since come -to live near him, to make the glad gladder and the pretty prettier, -and to maintain her dignity and honour in peace and tranquillity.' - -The latter part of this tale, the mention of Ceridwen, invoked by -the bards as the genius presiding over their profession, and of -Tegid remaining on his father's grave, is evidently a reference -to Llyn Tegid, or Bala Lake, and to the legend of Taliessin in the -so-called Hanes or history of Taliessin, published at the end of the -third volume of Lady Charlotte Guest's Mabinogion. So the story has -undoubtedly been pieced together, but not all invented, as is proved -by the reference to the curious cap which the husband was to keep -out of the sight of his mermaid wife. In Irish legends this cap has -particular importance attached to it, of which Glasynys cannot have -been aware, for he knew of no use to make of it. The teaching of -the song to the wife is not mentioned after the marriage; and the -introduction of it at all is remarkable: at any rate I have never -noticed anything parallel to it in other tales. The incident of the -tempest, when the mermaid spoke to somebody by the side of the boat, -reminds one of Undine during the trip on the Danube. It is, perhaps, -useless to go into details till one has ascertained how much of the -story has been based on genuine Welsh folklore. But, while I am on -this point, I venture to append here an Irish tale, which will serve -to explain the meaning of the mermaid's cap, as necessary to her -comfort in the water world. I am indebted for it to the kindness of -Dr. Norman Moore, of St. Bartholomew's Hospital, who tells me, in a -letter dated March 7, 1882, that he and the Miss Raynells of Killynon -heard it from an old woman named Mrs. Dolan, who lived on the property -of the late Mr. Cooke of Cookesborough, in Westmeath. The following -was her tale:--'There was a man named Mahon had a farm on the edge of -Loch Owel. He noticed that his corn was trampled, and he sat up all -night to watch it. He saw horses, colts and fillies rather, come up -out of the lake and trample it. He chased them, and they fled into the -lake. The next night he saw them again, and among them a beautiful girl -with a cap of salmon skin on her head, and it shone in the moonlight; -and he caught her and embraced her, and carried her off to his house -and married her, and she was a very good housewife, as all those -lake people are, and kept his house beautifully; and one day in the -harvest, when the men were in the fields, she went into the house, -and there she looked on the hurdle for some lard to make colcannon -[41] for the men, and she saw her old cap of fish skin, and she put -it on her head and ran straight down into the lake and was never seen -any more, and Mahon he was terribly grieved, and he died soon after -of a decline. She had had three children, and I often saw them in -the Mullingar market. They were farmers, too, on Loch Owel.' - - - - -IV. - -Let me now return to the fresh-water fairies of Snowdon and give -a reference to Pennant's Tours in Wales: in the edition published -at Carnarvon in 1883 we are told, ii. 326, how Mr. Pennant learned -'that, in fairy days, those diminutive gentry kept their revels' on the -margins of the Snowdon lake, called Llyn Coch. There is no legend now -extant, so far as I can ascertain, about the Llyn Coch fairies. So -I proceed to append a legend differing considerably from all the -foregoing: I owe it to the kindness of my friend Mr. Howell Thomas, -of the Local Government Board. It was written out by Mr. G. B. Gattie, -and I take the liberty of prefixing to it his letter to Mr. Thomas, -dated Walham Grove, London, S.W., April 27, 1882. The letter runs -as follows:-- - -'I had quite forgotten the enclosed, which I had jotted down during -my recent illness, and ought to have sent you long ago. Of course, the -wording is very rough, as no care has been taken on that point. It is -interesting, as being another version of a very pretty old legend which -my mother used to repeat. She was descended from a very old north Welsh -family; indeed, I believe my esteemed grandfather went so far as to -trace his descent from the great patriot, Owen Glendower himself! My -mother delighted not only in the ancient folklore legends and fairy -tales of the Principality, with which she was perfectly familiar, -but especially in the lovely national melodies, all of which she -knew by heart; and, being highly accomplished, would never tire of -playing or singing them. You will see the legend is, in the main, -much as related by Professor Rhys, though differing somewhat in the -singular terms of the marriage contract. The scene of the legend, -as related by my late mother, was, of course, a lake, the Welsh name -of which I have, unfortunately, forgotten, but it was somewhere, -I think, near Llanberis, and the hero a stalwart young farmer.' - -The legend itself reads as follows:-- - -'One hot day, the farmer, riding by the lake, took his horse into the -water to drink, and, whilst looking straight down over his horse's -ears into the smooth surface, he became aware of a most lovely face, -just beneath the tide, looking up archly at him. Quite bewildered, -he earnestly beckoned, and by degrees the head and shoulders which -belonged to the face emerged from the water. Overcome with emotion, -and nearly maddened by the blaze of beauty so suddenly put before -him, he leaped from his horse and rushed wildly into the lake to try -to clasp the lovely vision to his heart. As this was a clear case -of "love at first sight," the poor young man was not, of course, -answerable for his actions. But the vision had vanished beneath the -waves, to instantly reappear, however, a yard or two off, with the most -provoking of smiles, and holding out her beautiful white hands towards -her admirer, but slipping off into deep water the moment he approached. - -'For many days the young farmer frequented the lake, but without -again seeing the beautiful Naiad, until one day he sat down by the -margin hoping that she would appear, and yet dreading her appearance, -for this latter to him simply meant loss of all peace. Yet he rushed -on his fate, like the love-sick shepherd in the old Italian romance, -who watched the sleeping beauty, yet dreaded her awakening:--Io -perderņ la pace, quando si sveglierą! - -'The young man had brought the remains of his frugal dinner with -him, and was quietly munching, by way of dessert, an apple of rare -and delicious quality, from a tree which grew upon a neighbouring -estate. Suddenly the lady appeared in all her rare beauty almost -close to him, and begged him to "throw" her one of his apples. This -was altogether too much, and he replied by holding out the tempting -morsel, exhibiting its beautiful red and green sides, saying that, -if she really wanted it, she must fetch it herself. Upon this she -came up quite close, and, as she took the apple from his left hand, -he dexterously seized tight hold of her with his right, and held -her fast. She, however, nothing daunted, bawled lustily, at the top -of her voice, for help, and made such an outrageous noise, that at -length a most respectable looking old gentleman appeared suddenly -out of the midst of the lake. He had a superb white beard, and was -simply and classically attired merely in a single wreath of beautiful -water-lilies wound round his loins, which was possibly his summer -costume, the weather being hot. He politely requested to know what was -the matter, and what the young farmer wanted with his daughter. The -case was thereupon explained, but not without the usual amount of -nervous trepidation which usually happens to love-sick swains when -called into the awful presence of "Papa" to "explain their intentions!" - -'After a long parley the lady, at length, agreed to become the young -man's wife on two conditions, which he was to solemnly promise to -keep. These conditions were that he was never to strike her with -steel or clay (earth), conditions to which the young man very readily -assented. As these were primitive days, when people were happy and -honest, there were no lawyers to encumber the Holy Estate with lengthy -settlements, and to fill their own pockets with heavy fees; matters -were therefore soon settled, and the lady married to the young farmer -on the spot by the very respectable old lake deity, her papa. - -'The story goes on to say that the union was followed by two sons and -two daughters. The eldest son became a great physician, and all his -descendants after him were celebrated for their great proficiency -in the noble healing art. The second son was a mighty craftsman -in all works appertaining to the manufacture and use of iron and -metals. Indeed it has been hinted that, his little corracle of bull's -hide having become old and unsafe, he conceived the brilliant idea of -making one of thin iron. This he actually accomplished, and, to the -intense amazement of the wondering populace, he constantly used it -for fishing, or other purposes, on the lake, where he paddled about in -perfect security. This important fact ought to be more generally known, -as it gives him a fair claim to the introduction of iron ship-building, -pace the shades of Beaufort and Brunel. - -'Of the two daughters, one is said to have invented the small -ten-stringed harp, and the other the spinning-wheel. Thus were -introduced the arts of medicine, manufactures, music, and woollen work. - -'As the old ballad says, applying the quotation to the father and -mother:-- - - - They lived for more than forty year - Right long and happilie! - - -'One day it happened that the wife expressed a great wish for some -of those same delicious apples of which she was so fond, and of -which their neighbour often sent them a supply. Off went the farmer, -like a good husband that he was, and brought back, not only some -apples, but a beautiful young sapling, seven or eight feet high, -bearing the same apple, as a present from their friend. This they -at once proceeded to set, he digging and she holding; but the hole -not being quite deep enough he again set to work, with increased -energy, with his spade, and stooping very low threw out the last -shovelful over his shoulder--alas! without looking--full into the -breast of his wife. She dropped the sapling and solemnly warned him -that one of the two conditions of their marriage contract had been -broken. Accident was pleaded, but in vain; there was the unfortunate -fact--he had struck her with clay! Looking upon the sapling as the -cause of this great trouble he determined to return it forthwith to -his kind neighbour. Taking a bridle in his hand he proceeded to the -field to catch his horse, his wife kindly helping him. They both -ran up, one on each side, and, as the unruly steed showed no signs -of stopping, the husband attempted to throw the bridle over his -head. Not having visited Mexico in his travels, and thereby learned -the use of the lasso, he missed his horse's head and--misfortune -of misfortunes--struck his wife in the face with the iron bit, thus -breaking the second condition. He had struck her with steel. She no -sooner received the blow than--like Esau--she "cried with a great -and exceeding bitter cry," and bidding her husband a last farewell, -fled down the hill with lightning speed, dashed into the lake, and -disappeared beneath the smooth and glassy waters! Thus, it may be -said that, if an apple--indirectly--occasioned the beginning of her -married life, so an apple brought about its sad termination.' - -Such is Mr. Gattie's tale, and to him probably is to be traced its -literary trimming; but even when it is stripped of that accessory, -it leaves us with difficulties of somewhat the same order as those -attaching to some of the stories which have passed through the hands -of Glasynys. However, the substance of it seems to be genuine, and -to prove that there has been a Northwalian tradition which traced the -medical art to a lake lady like the Egeria of the Physicians of Mydfai. - - - - -V. - -Allusion has already been made to the afanc story, and it is convenient -to give it before proceeding any further. The Cambrian Journal for -1859, pp. 142-6, gives it in a letter of Edward Llwyd's dated 1693, -and contributed to that periodical by the late Canon Robert Williams, -of Rhyd y Croesau, who copied it from the original letter in his -possession [42], and here follows a translation into English of the -part of it which concerns Llyn yr Afanc [43], a pool on the river -Conwy, above Bettws y Coed and opposite Capel Garmon:-- - -'I suppose it very probable that you have heard speak of Llyn yr Afanc, -"the Afanc's Pool," and that I therefore need not trouble to inform -you where it stands. I think, also, that you know, if one may trust -what the country people say, that it was a girl that enticed the -afanc to come out of his abode, namely the pool, so as to be bound -with iron chains, whilst he slumbered with his head on her knees, -and with the grip of one hand on her breast. When he woke from his -nap and perceived what had been done to him, he got up suddenly -and hurried to his old refuge, taking with him in his claw the -breast of his sweetheart. It was then seen that it was well the -chain was long enough to be fastened to oxen that pulled him out of -the pool. Thereupon a considerable dispute arose among some of the -people, each asserting that he had taken a great weight on himself and -pulled far harder than anybody else. "No," said another, "it was I," -&c. And whilst they were wrangling in this way, the report goes that -the afanc answered them, and silenced their discontent by saying-- - - - Oni bae y dai ag a dyn - Ni dactha'r afanc byth o'r llyn. - - Had it not been for the oxen pulling, - The afanc had never left the pool. - - -'You must understand that some take the afanc to be a corporeal -demon; but I am sufficiently satisfied that there is an animal of the -same name, which is called in English a bever, seeing that the term -ceillie'r afanc signifies bever stones. I know not what kind of oxen -those in question were, but it is related that they were twins; nor -do I know why they were called Ychain Mannog or Ychain Bannog. But -peradventure they were called Ychain Bannog in reference to their -having had many a fattening, or fattening on fattening (having been -for many a year fattened). Yet the word bannog is not a good, suitable -word to signify fattened, as bannog is nought else than what has been -made exceeding thick by beating [or fulling], as one says of a thick -blanket made of coarse yarn (y gwrthban tew-bannog), the thick bannog -[44] blanket. Whilst I was dawdling behind talking about this, the oxen -had proceeded very far, and I did not find their footmarks as they came -through portions of the parish of Dolyd-Elan (Luedog) until I reached -a pass called ever since Bwlch Rhiw'r Ychen, "the Pass of the Slope -of the Oxen," between the upper parts of Dolydelan and the upper part -of Nanhwynen. In coming over this pass one of the oxen dropped one -of its eyes on an open spot, which for that reason is called Gwaun -Lygad Ych, "the Moor of the Ox's Eye." The place where the eye fell -has become a pool, which is by this time known as Pwll Llygad Ych, -"the Pool of the Ox's Eye," which is at no time dry, though no water -rises in it or flows into it except when rain falls; nor is there any -flowing out of it during dry weather. It is always of the same depth; -that is, it reaches about one's knee-joint, according to those who -have paid attention to that for a considerable number of years. There -is a harp melody, which not all musicians know: it is known as the -Ychain Mannog air, and it has a piteous effect on the ear, being as -plaintive as were the groanings of these Ychain under the weight of -the afanc, especially when one of the pair lost an eye. They pulled -him up to Llyn Cwm Ffynnon Las, "the Lake of the Dingle of the Green -Well," to which he was consigned, for the reason, peradventure, that -some believed that there were in that lake uncanny things already in -store. In fact, it was but fitting that he should be permitted to -go to his kind. But whether there were uncanny things in it before -or not, many think that there is nothing good in it now, as you will -understand from what follows. There is much talk of Llyn Cwm Ffynnon -Las besides the fact that it is always free from ice, except in one -corner where the peat water of clear pools comes into it, and that it -has also a variety of dismal hues. The cause of this is, as I suppose, -to be sought in the various hues of the rocks surrounding it; and the -fact that a whirlwind makes its water mixed, which is enough to give -any lake a disagreeable colour. Nothing swims on it without danger, -and I am not sure that it would be very safe for a bird to fly across -it or not. Throw a rag into its water and it will go to the bottom, -and I have with my own ears heard a man saying that he saw a goat -taking to this lake in order to avoid being caught, and that as soon -as the animal went into the water, it turned round and round, as if -it had been a top, until it was drowned.... Some mention that, as -some great man was hunting in the Snowdon district (Eryri), a stag, -to avoid the hounds when they were pressing on him, and as is the -habit of stags to defend themselves, made his escape into this lake: -the hunters had hardly time to turn round before they saw the stag's -antlers (mwnglws) coming to the surface, but nothing more have they -ever seen.... A young woman has been seen to come out of this lake -to wash clothes, and when she had done she folded the clothes, and -taking them under her arm went back into the lake. One man, whose -brother is still alive and well, beheld in a canoe, on this same lake -still, an angler with a red cap on his head; but the man died within -a few days, having not been in his right mind during that time. Most -people regard this as the real truth, and, as for myself, I cannot -refuse to believe that such a vision might not cause a man to become -so bewildered as to force on a disease ending with his death....' - -The name Llyn Cwm Ffynnon Las would have led one to suppose that -the pool meant is the one given in the ordnance maps as Llyn y -Cwm Ffynnon, and situated in the mountains between Pen y Gwryd and -the upper valley of Llanberis; but from the writer on the parish of -Bedgelert in the Brython for 1861, pp. 371-2, it appears that this is -not so, and that the tarn meant was in the upper reach of Cwm Dyli, -and was known as Llyn y Ffynnon Las, 'Lake of the Green Well,' about -which he has a good deal to say in the same strain as that of Llwyd in -the letter already cited. Among other things he remarks that it is a -very deep tarn, and that its bottom has been ascertained to be lower -than the surface of Llyn Llydaw, which lies 300 feet lower. And as -to the afanc, he remarks that the inhabitants of Nant Conwy and the -lower portions of the parish of Dolwydelan, having frequent troubles -and losses inflicted on them by a huge monster in the river Conwy, -near Bettws y Coed, tried to kill it but in vain, as no harpoon, no -arrow or spear made any impression whatsoever on the brute's hide; -so it was resolved to drag it away as in the Llwyd story. I learn from -Mr. Pierce (Elis o'r Nant), of Dolwydelan, that the lake is variously -known as Llyn (Cwm) Ffynnon Las, and Llyn Glas or Glaslyn: this last -is the form which I find in the maps. It is to be noticed that the -Nant Conwy people, by dragging the afanc there, got him beyond their -own watershed, so that he could no more cause floods in the Conwy. - -Here, as promised at p. 74, I append Lewis Glyn Cothi's words as to -the afanc in Llyn Syfadon. The bard is dilating in the poem, where -they occur, on his affection for his friend Llywelyn ab Gwilym ab -Thomas Vaughan, of Bryn Hafod in the Vale of Towy, and averring that -it would be as hard to induce him to quit his friend's hospitable home, -as it was to get the afanc away from the Lake of Syfadon, as follows:-- - - - Yr avanc er ei ovyn - Wyv yn llech ar vin y llyn; - O dņn Llyn Syfadon vo - Ni thynwyd ban aeth yno: - Ni'm tyn mčn nag ychain gwaith, - Odiyma hedyw ymaith. [45] - - The afanc am I, who, sought for, bides - In hiding on the edge of the lake; - Out of the waters of Syfadon Mere - Was he not drawn, once he got there. - So with me: nor wain nor oxen wont to toil - Me to-day will draw from here forth. - - -From this passage it would seem that the Syfadon story contemplated -the afanc being taken away from the lake in a cart or waggon drawn by -oxen; but whether driven by Hu, or by whom, one is not told. However, -the story must have represented the undertaking as a failure, and -the afanc as remaining in his lake: had it been otherwise it would -be hard to see the point of the comparison. - - - - -VI. - -The parish of Llanfachreth and its traditions have been the subject -of some contributions to the first volume of the Taliesin published -at Ruthin in 1859-60, pp. 132-7, by a writer who calls himself -Cofiadur. It was Glasynys, I believe, for the style seems to be his: -he pretends to copy from an old manuscript of Hugh Bifan's--both the -manuscript and its owner were fictions of Glasynys' as I am told. These -jottings contain two or three items about the fairies which seem to -be genuine:-- - -'The bottom of Llyn Cynnwch, on the Nannau estate, is level with the -hearth-stone of the house of Dōl y Clochyd. Its depth was found out -owing to the sweetheart of one of Siwsi's girls having lost his way -to her from Nannau, where he was a servant. The poor man had fallen -into the lake, and gone down and down, when he found it becoming -clearer the lower he got, until at last he alighted on a level spot -where everybody and everything looked much as he had observed on -the dry land. When he had reached the bottom of the lake, a short -fat old gentleman came to him and asked his business, when he told -him how it happened that he had come. He met with great welcome, -and he stayed there a month without knowing that he had been there -three days, and when he was going to leave, he was led out to his -beloved by the inhabitants of the lake bottom. He asserted that the -whole way was level except in one place, where they descended about -a fathom into the ground; but, he added, it was necessary to ascend -about as much to reach the hearth-stone of Dōl y Clochyd. The most -wonderful thing, however, was that the stone lifted itself as he came -up from the subterranean road towards it. It was thus the sweetheart -arrived there one evening, when the girl was by the fire weeping for -him. Siwsi had been out some days before, and she knew all about it -though she said nothing to anybody. This, then, was the way in which -the depth of Llyn Cynnwch came to be known.' - -Then he has a few sentences about an old house called -Ceimarch:--'Ceimarch was an old mansion of considerable repute, -and in old times it was considered next to Nannau in point of -importance in the whole district. There was a deep ditch round it, -which was always kept full of water, with the view of keeping off -vagabonds and thieves, as well as other lawless folks, that they -might not take the inmates by surprise. But, in distant ages, this -place was very noted for the frequent visits paid it by the fair -family. They used to come to the ditch to wash themselves, and to -cross the water in boats made of the bark of the rowan-tree [46], -or else birch, and they came into the house to pay their rent for -trampling the ground around the place. They always placed a piece -of money under a pitcher, and the result was that the family living -there became remarkably rich. But somehow, after the lapse of many -years, the owner of the place offended them, by showing disrespect -for their diminutive family: soon the world began to go against him, -and it was not long before he got low in life. Everything turned -against him, and in times past everybody believed that he incurred -all this because he had earned the displeasure of the fair family.' - -In the Brython for the year 1862, p. 456, in the course of an essay -on the history of the Lordship of Mawdwy in Merioneth, considered the -best in a competition at an Eistedfod held at Dinas Mawdwy, August -2, 1855, Glasynys gives the following bit about the fairies of that -neighbourhood:--'The side of Aran Fawdwy is a great place for the fair -family: they are ever at it playing their games on the hillsides about -this spot. It is said that they are numberless likewise about Bwlch y -Groes. Once a boy crossed over near the approach of night, one summer -eve, from the Gadfa to Mawdwy, and on his return he saw near Aber -Rhiwlech a swarm of the little family dancing away full pelt. The boy -began to run, with two of the maidens in pursuit of him, entreating -him to stay; but Robin, for that was his name, kept running, and the -two elves failed altogether to catch him, otherwise he would have been -taken a prisoner of love. There are plenty of their dancing-rings to -be seen on the hillsides between Aber Rhiwlech and Bwlch y Groes.' - -Here I would introduce two other Merionethshire tales, which I have -received from Mr. E. S. Roberts, master of the Llandysilio School, -near Llangollen. He has learnt them from one Abel Evans, who lives -at present in the parish of Llandysilio: he is a native of the parish -of Llandrillo on the slopes of the Berwyn, and of a glen in the same, -known as Cwm Pennant, so called from its being drained by the Pennant -on its way to join the Dee. Now Cwm Pennant was the resort of fairies, -or of a certain family of them, and the occurrence, related in the -following tale, must have taken place no less than seventy years ago: -it was well known to the late Mrs. Ellen Edwards of Llandrillo:-- - -Ryw diwrnod aeth dau gyfaill i hela dwfrgwn ar hyd lannau afon Pennant, -a thra yn cyfeirio eu camrau tuagat yr afon gwelsant ryw greadur -bychan lliwgoch yn rhedeg yn gyflym iawn ar draws un o'r dolyd yn -nghyfeiriad yr afon. Ymaeth a nhw ar ei ol. Gwelsant ei fod wedi myned -oditan wraid coeden yn ochr yr afon i ymgudio. Yr oed y dau dyn yn -medwl mae dwfrgi ydoed, ond ar yr un pryd yn methu a deall paham yr -ymdanghosai i'w llygaid yn lliwgoch. Yr oedynt yn dymuno ei dal yn -fyw, ac ymaith yr aeth un o honynt i ffarmdy gerllaw i ofyn am sach, -yr hon a gafwyd, er mwyn rhoi y creadur yndi. Yr oed yno dau dwll -o tan wraid y pren, a thra daliai un y sach yn agored ar un twll -yr oed y llall yn hwthio ffon i'r twll arall, ac yn y man aeth y -creadur i'r sach. Yr oed y dau dyn yn medwl eu bod wedi dal dwfrgi, -yr hyn a ystyrient yn orchest nid bychan. Cychwynasant gartref yn -llawen ond cyn eu myned hyd lled cae, llefarod lletywr y sach mewn -ton drist gan dywedyd--'Y mae fy mam yn galw am danaf, O, mae fy mam -yn galw am danaf,' yr hyn a rodod fraw mawr i'r dau heliwr, ac yn -y man taflasant y sach i lawr, a mawr oed eu rhyfedod a'u dychryn -pan welsant dyn bach mewn gwisg goch yn rhedeg o'r sach tuagat yr -afon. Fe a diflannod o'i golwg yn mysg y drysni ar fin yr afon. Yr -oed y dau wedi eu brawychu yn dirfawr ac yn teimlo mae doethach oed -myned gartref yn hytrach nag ymyrraeth yn mhellach a'r Tylwyth Teg. - -'One day, two friends went to hunt otters on the banks of the -Pennant, and when they were directing their steps towards the river, -they beheld some small creature of a red colour running fast across -the meadows in the direction of the river. Off they ran after it, -and saw that it went beneath the roots of a tree on the brink of -the river to hide itself. The two men thought it was an otter, but, -at the same time, they could not understand why it seemed to them -to be of a red colour. They wished to take it alive, and off one of -them went to a farm house that was not far away to ask for a sack, -which he got, to put the creature into it. Now there were two holes -under the roots of the tree, and while one held the sack with its mouth -open over one of them, the other pushed his stick into the other hole, -and presently the creature went into the sack. The two men thought they -had caught an otter, which they looked upon as no small feat. They set -out for home, but before they had proceeded the width of one field, -the inmate of the sack spoke to them in a sad voice, and said, "My -mother is calling for me; oh, my mother is calling for me!" This gave -the two hunters a great fright, so that they at once threw down the -sack; and great was their surprise to see a little man in a red dress -running out of the sack towards the river. He disappeared from their -sight in the bushes by the river. The two men were greatly terrified, -and felt that it was more prudent to go home than meddle any further -with the fair family.' So far as I know, this story stands alone in -Welsh folklore; but it has an exact parallel in Lancashire [47]. - -The other story, which I now reproduce, was obtained by Mr. Roberts -from the same Abel Evans. He learnt it from Mrs. Ellen Edwards, and -it refers to a point in her lifetime, which Abel Evans fixes at ninety -years ago. Mr. Roberts has not succeeded in recovering the name of the -cottager of whom it speaks; but he lived on the side of the Berwyn, -above Cwm Pennant, where till lately a cottage used to stand, near -which the fairies had one of their resorts:-- - -Yr oed perchen y bwthyn wedi amaethu rhyw ran fychan o'r mynyd ger llaw -y ty er mwyn plannu pytatws yndo. Felly y gwnaeth. Mewn coeden yn agos -i'r fan canfydod nyth bran. Fe fedyliod mae doeth fuasai ido dryllio y -nyth cyn amlhau o'r brain. Fe a esgynnod y goeden ac a drylliod y nyth, -ac wedi disgyn i lawr canfydod gylch glas (fairy ring) odiamgylch y -pren, ac ar y cylch fe welod hanner coron er ei fawr lawenyd. Wrth -fyned heibio yr un fan y boreu canlynol fe gafod hanner coron yn -yr un man ag y cafod y dyd o'r blaen. Hynna fu am amryw dydiau. Un -diwrnod dywedod wrth gyfaill am ei hap da a dangosod y fan a'r lle -y cawsai yr hanner coron bob boreu. Wel y boreu canlynol nid oed yno -na hanner coron na dim arall ido, oherwyd yr oed wedi torri rheolau -y Tylwythion trwy wneud eu haelioni yn hysbys. Y mae y Tylwythion -o'r farn na dylai y llaw aswy wybod yr hyn a wna y llaw dehau. - -'The occupier of the cottage had tilled a small portion of the -mountain side near his home in order to plant potatoes, which he -did. He observed that there was a rook's nest on a tree which was -not far from this spot, and it struck him that it would be prudent -to break the nest before the rooks multiplied. So he climbed the tree -and broke the nest, and, after coming down, he noticed a green circle -(a fairy ring) round the tree, and on this circle he espied, to his -great joy, half a crown. As he went by the same spot the following -morning, he found another half a crown in the same place as before. So -it happened for several days; but one day he told a friend of his -good luck, and showed him the spot where he found half a crown every -morning. Now the next morning there was for him neither half a crown -nor anything else, because he had broken the rule of the fair folks -by making their liberality known, they being of opinion that the left -hand should not know what the right hand does.' - -So runs this short tale, which the old lady, Mrs. Edwards, and the -people of the neighbourhood explained as an instance of the gratitude -of the fairies to a man who had rendered them a service, which in this -case was supposed to have consisted in ridding them of the rooks, -that disturbed their merry-makings in the green ring beneath the -branches of the tree. - - - - -VII. - -It would be unpardonable to pass away from Merioneth without alluding -to the stray cow of Llyn Barfog. The story appears in Welsh in -the Brython for 1860, pp. 183-4, but the contributor, who closely -imitates Glasynys' style, says that he got his materials from a paper -by the late Mr. Pughe of Aberdovey, by which he seems to have meant -an article contributed by the latter to the Archęologia Cambrensis, -and published in the volume for 1853, pp. 201-5. Mr. Pughe dwells in -that article a good deal on the scenery of the corner of Merioneth -in the rear of Aberdovey; but the chief thing in his paper is the -legend connected with Llyn Barfog, which he renders into English -as the Bearded Lake [48]. It is described as a mountain lake in a -secluded spot in the upland country behind Aberdovey; but I shall -let Mr. Pughe speak for himself:-- - -'The lovers of Cambrian lore are aware that the Triads in their record -of the deluge affirm that it was occasioned by a mystic Afanc y Llyn, -crocodile [49] of the lake, breaking the banks of Llyn Llion, the -lake of waters; and the recurrence of that catastrophe was prevented -only by Hu Gadarn, the bold man of power, dragging away the afanc -by aid of his Ychain Banawg, or large horned oxen. Many a lakelet -in our land has put forward its claim to the location of Llyn Llion; -amongst the rest, this lake. Be that as it may, King Arthur and his -war-horse have the credit amongst the mountaineers here of ridding -them of the monster, in place of Hu the Mighty, in proof of which is -shown an impression on a neighbouring rock bearing a resemblance to -those made by the shoe or hoof of a horse, as having been left there by -his charger when our British Hercules was engaged in this redoubtable -act of prowess, and this impression has been given the name of Carn -March Arthur, the hoof of Arthur's horse, which it retains to this -day. It is believed to be very perilous to let the waters out of -the lake, and recently an aged inhabitant of the district informed -the writer that she recollected this being done during a period of -long drought, in order to procure motive power for Llyn Pair Mill, -and that long-continued heavy rains followed. No wonder our bold but -superstitious progenitors, awe-struck by the solitude of the spot--the -dark sepial tint of its waters, unrelieved by the flitting apparition -of a single fish, and seldom visited by the tenants of the air--should -have established it as a canon in their creed of terror that the lake -formed one of the many communications between this outward world of -ours and the inner or lower one of Annwn--the unknown world [50]--the -dominion of Gwyn ap Nud, the mythic king of the fabled realm, peopled -by those children of mystery, Plant Annwn; and the belief is still -current amongst the inhabitants of our mountains in the occasional -visitations of the Gwraged Annwn, or dames of Elfin land, to this upper -world of ours. A shrewd old hill farmer (Thomas Abergraes by name), -well skilled in the folk-lore of the district, informed me that, in -years gone by, though when, exactly, he was too young to remember, -those dames were wont to make their appearance, arrayed in green, in -the neighbourhood of Llyn Barfog, chiefly at eventide, accompanied by -their kine and hounds, and that on quiet summer nights in particular, -these ban-hounds were often to be heard in full cry pursuing their -prey--the souls of doomed men dying without baptism and penance--along -the upland township of Cefnrhosucha. Many a farmer had a sight of -their comely milk-white kine; many a swain had his soul turned to -romance and poesy by a sudden vision of themselves in the guise of -damsels arrayed in green, and radiant in beauty and grace; and many a -sportsman had his path crossed by their white hounds of supernatural -fleetness and comeliness, the Cwn Annwn; but never had any one been -favoured with more than a passing view of either, till an old farmer -residing at Dyssyrnant, in the adjoining valley of Dyffryn Gwyn, -became at last the lucky captor of one of their milk-white kine. The -acquaintance which the Gwartheg y Llyn, the kine of the lake, had -formed with the farmer's cattle, like the loves of the angels for -the daughters of men, became the means of capture; and the farmer -was thereby enabled to add the mystic cow to his own herd, an event -in all cases believed to be most conducive to the worldly prosperity -of him who should make so fortunate an acquisition. Never was there -such a cow, never such calves, never such milk and butter, or cheese, -and the fame of the Fuwch Gyfeiliorn, the stray cow, was soon spread -abroad through that central part of Wales known as the district of -Rhwng y dwy Afon, from the banks of the Mawdach to those of the Dofwy -[51]--from Aberdiswnwy [52] to Abercorris. The farmer, from a small -beginning, rapidly became, like Job, a man of substance, possessed of -thriving herds of cattle--a very patriarch among the mountains. But, -alas! wanting Job's restraining grace, his wealth made him proud, his -pride made him forget his obligation to the Elfin cow, and fearing -she might soon become too old to be profitable, he fattened her for -the butcher, and then even she did not fail to distinguish herself, -for a more monstrously fat beast was never seen. At last the day of -slaughter came--an eventful day in the annals of a mountain farm--the -killing of a fat cow, and such a monster of obesity! No wonder all -the neighbours were gathered together to see the sight. The old farmer -looked upon the preparations in self-pleased importance--the butcher -felt he was about no common feat of his craft, and, baring his arms, -he struck the blow--not now fatal, for before even a hair had been -injured, his arm was paralysed--the knife dropped from his hand, and -the whole company was electrified by a piercing cry that awakened -echo in a dozen hills, and made the welkin ring again; and lo and -behold! the whole assemblage saw a female figure clad in green, with -uplifted arms, standing on one of the craigs overhanging Llyn Barfog, -and heard her calling with a voice loud as thunder:-- - - - Dere di velen Einion, - Cyrn Cyveiliorn--braith y Llyn, - A'r voel Dodin, - Codwch, dewch adre. - - Come yellow Anvil, stray horns, - Speckled one of the lake, - And of the hornless Dodin, - Arise, come home [53]. - - -And no sooner were these words of power uttered than the original lake -cow and all her progeny, to the third and fourth generations, were -in full flight towards the heights of Llyn Barfog, as if pursued by -the evil one. Self-interest quickly roused the farmer, who followed in -pursuit, till breathless and panting he gained an eminence overlooking -the lake, but with no better success than to behold the green attired -dame leisurely descending mid-lake, accompanied by the fugitive cows -and their calves formed in a circle around her, they tossing their -tails, she waving her hands in scorn as much as to say, "You may -catch us, my friend, if you can," as they disappeared beneath the -dark waters of the lake, leaving only the yellow water-lily to mark -the spot where they vanished, and to perpetuate the memory of this -strange event. Meanwhile the farmer looked with rueful countenance upon -the spot where the Elfin herd disappeared, and had ample leisure to -deplore the effects of his greediness, as with them also departed the -prosperity which had hitherto attended him, and he became impoverished -to a degree below his original circumstances; and, in his altered -circumstances, few felt pity for one who in the noontide flow of -prosperity had shown himself so far forgetful of favours received, -as to purpose slaying his benefactor.' - -Mr. Pughe did a very good thing in saving this legend from oblivion, -but it would be very interesting to know how much of it is still -current among the inhabitants of the retired district around Llyn -Barfog, and how the story would look when stripped of the florid -language in which Mr. Pughe thought proper to clothe it. Lastly, -let me add a reference to the Iolo Manuscripts, pp. 85, 475, where -a short story is given concerning a certain Milkwhite Sweet-milk Cow -(y Fuwch Laethwen Lefrith) whose milk was so abundant and possessed -of such virtues as almost to rival the Holy Grail. Like the Holy -Grail also this cow wandered everywhere spreading plenty, until she -chanced to come to the Vale of Towy, where the foolish inhabitants -wished to kill and eat her: the result was that she vanished in their -hands and has never since been heard of. - - - - -VIII. - -Here I wish to add some further stories connected with Merionethshire -which have come under my notice lately. I give them chiefly on the -authority of Mr. Owen M. Edwards of Lincoln College, who is a native of -Llanuwchllyn, and still spends a considerable part of his time there; -and partly on that of Hywel's essay on the folklore of the county, -which was awarded the prize at the National Eistedfod of 1898 [54]. A -story current at Llanuwchllyn, concerning a midwife who attends on a -fairy mother, resembles the others of the same group: for one of them -see p. 63 above. In the former, however, one misses the ointment, -and finds instead of it that the midwife was not to touch her eyes -with the water with which she washed the fairy baby. But as might be -expected one of her eyes happened to itch, and she touched it with -her fingers straight from the water. It appears that thenceforth -she was able to see the fairies with that eye; at any rate she -is represented some time afterwards recognizing the father of the -fairy baby at a fair at Bala, and inquiring of him kindly about his -family. The fairy asked with which eye she saw him, and when he had -ascertained this, he at once blinded it, so that she never could see -with it afterwards. Hywel also has it that the Tylwyth Teg formerly -used to frequent the markets at Bala, and that they used to swell -the noise in the market-place without anybody being able to see them: -this was a sign that prices were going to rise. - -The shepherds of Ardudwy are familiar, according to Hywel, with a -variant of the story in which a man married a fairy on condition -that he did not touch her with iron. They lived on the Moelfre and -dwelt happily together for years, until one fine summer day, when -the husband was engaged in shearing his sheep, he put the gwelle, -'shears,' in his wife's hand: she then instantly disappeared. The -earlier portions of this story are unknown to me, but they are not -hard to guess. - -Concerning Llyn Irdyn, between the western slopes of the Llawllech, -Hywel has a story the like of which I am not acquainted with: walking -near that lake you shun the shore and keep to the grass in order to -avoid the fairies, for if you take hold of the grass no fairy can -touch you, or dare under any circumstances injure a blade of grass. - -Lastly, Hywel speaks of several caves containing treasure, as for -instance a telyn aur, or golden harp, hidden away in a cave beneath -Castell Carn Dochan in the parish of Llanuwchllyn. Lewis Morris, -in his Celtic Remains, p. 100, calls it Castell Corndochen, and -describes it as seated on the top of a steep rock at the bottom of -a deep valley: it appears to have consisted of a wall surrounding -three turrets, and the mortar seems composed of cockle-shells: see -also the Archęologia Cambrensis for 1850, p. 204. Hywel speaks also -of a cave beneath Castell Dinas Brān, near Llangollen, as containing -much treasure, which will only be disclosed to a boy followed by a -white dog with llygaid arian, 'silver eyes,' explained to mean light -eyes: every such dog is said to see the wind. So runs this story, -but it requires more exegesis than I can supply. One may compare it -at a distance with Myrdin's arrangement that the treasure buried by -him at Dinas Emrys should only be found by a youth with yellow hair -and blue eyes, and with the belief that the cave treasures of the -Snowdon district belong to the Gwydyl or Goidels, and that Goidels -will eventually find them: see chapter viii. - -The next three stories are from Mr. Owen Edwards' Cymru for 1897, -pp. 188-9, where he has published them from a collection made for a -literary competition or local Eistedfod by his friend J. H. Roberts, -who died in early manhood. The first is a blurred version of the -story of the Lake Lady and her dowry of cattle, but enough of the -story remains to show that, had we got it in its original form, -it would be found to differ somewhat on several points from all the -other versions extant. I summarize the Welsh as follows:--In ages gone -by, as the shepherd of Hafod y Garreg was looking after his sheep on -the shores of the Arennig Lake, he came across a young calf, plump, -sleek, and strong, in the rushes. He could not guess whence the beast -could have come, as no cattle were allowed to approach the lake at -that time of the year. He took it home, however, and it was reared -until it was a bull, remarkable for his fine appearance. In time -his offspring were the only cattle on the farm, and never before had -there been such beasts at Hafod y Garreg. They were the wonder and -admiration of the whole country. But one summer afternoon in June, -the shepherd saw a little fat old man playing on a pipe, and then he -heard him call the cows by their names-- - - - Mulican, Molican, Malen, Mair, - Dowch adre'r awrhon ar fy ngair. - - Mulican, Molican, Malen and Mair, - Come now home at my word. - - -He then beheld the whole herd running to the little man and going -into the lake. Nothing more was heard of them, and it was everybody's -opinion that they were the Tylwyth Teg's cattle. - -The next is a quasi fairy tale, the outcome of which recalls the -adventure of the farmer of Drws y Coed on his return from Bedgelert -Fair, p. 99 above. It is told of a young harpist who was making his -way across country from his home at Yspyty Ifan to the neighbourhood -of Bala, that while crossing the mountain he happened in the mist -to lose his road and fall into the Gors Fawr, 'the big bog.' There -he wallowed for hours, quite unable to extricate himself in spite -of all his efforts. But when he was going to give up in despair, -he beheld close to him, reaching him her hand, a little woman who -was wondrous fair beyond all his conception of beauty, and with her -help he got out of the Gors. The damsel gave him a jolly sweet kiss -that flashed electricity through his whole nature: he was at once over -head and ears in love. She led him to the hut of her father and mother: -there he had every welcome, and he spent the night singing and dancing -with Olwen, for that was her name. Now, though the harpist was a mere -stripling, he thought of wedding at once--he was never before in such -a heaven of delight. But next morning he was waked, not by a kiss -from Olwen, but by the Plas Drain shepherd's dog licking his lips: -he found himself sleeping against the wall of a sheepfold (corlan), -with his harp in a clump of rushes at his feet, without any trace to -be found of the family with whom he had spent such a happy night. - -The next story recalls Glasynys' Einion Las, as given at pp. 111-5 -above: its peculiarity is the part played by the well introduced. The -scene was a turbary near the river called Afon Mynach, so named from -Cwm Tir Mynach, behind the hills immediately north of Bala:--Ages -ago, as a number of people were cutting turf in a place which was -then moorland, and which is now enclosed ground forming part of a -farm called Nant Hir, one of them happened to wash his face in a -well belonging to the fairies. At dinner-time in the middle of the -day they sat down in a circle, while the youth who had washed his -face went to fetch the food, but suddenly both he and the box of -food were lost. They knew not what to do, they suspected that it was -the doing of the fairies; but the wise man (gwr hyspys) came to the -neighbourhood and told them, that, if they would only go to the spot on -the night of full moon in June, they would behold him dancing with the -fairies. They did as they were told, and found the moor covered with -thousands of little agile creatures who sang and danced with all their -might, and they saw the missing man among them. They rushed at him, -and with a great deal of trouble they got him out. But oftentimes was -Einion missed again, until at the time of full moon in another June he -returned home with a wondrously fair wife, whose history or pedigree -no one knew. Everybody believed her to be one of the Tylwyth Teg. - - - - -IX. - -There is a kind of fairy tale of which I think I have hitherto not -given the reader a specimen: a good instance is given in the third -volume of the Brython, at p. 459, by a contributor who calls himself -Idnerth ab Gwgan, who, I learn from the Rev. Chancellor Silvan Evans, -the editor, was no other than the Rev. Benjamin Williams, best known -to Welsh antiquaries by his bardic name of Gwynionyd. The preface -to the tale is also interesting, so I am tempted to render the whole -into English, as follows:-- - -'The fair family were wonderful creatures in the imaginary world: -they encamped, they walked, and they capered a great deal in former -ages in our country, according to what we learn from some of our old -people. It may be supposed that they were very little folks like the -children of Rhys Dwfn; for the old people used to imagine that they -were wont to visit their hearths in great numbers in ages gone by. The -girls at the farm houses used to make the hearths clean after supper, -and to place a cauldron full of water near the fire; and so they -thought that the fair family came there to play at night, bringing -sweethearts for the young women, and leaving pieces of money on the -hob for them in the morning. Sometimes they might be seen as splendid -hosts exercising themselves on our hills. They were very fond of the -mountains of Dyfed; travellers between Lampeter and Cardigan used to -see them on the hill of Llanwenog, but by the time they had reached -there the fairies would be far away on the hills of Llandyssul, and -when one had reached the place where one expected to see the family -together in tidy array, they would be seen very busily engaged on the -tops of Crug y Balog; when one went there they would be on Blaen Pant -ar Fi, moving on and on to Bryn Bwa, and, finally, to some place or -other in the lower part of Dyfed. Like the soldiers of our earthly -world, they were possessed of terribly fascinating music; and in -the autumnal season they had their rings, still named from them, -in which they sang and danced. The young man of Llech y Derwyd [55] -was his father's only son, as well as heir to the farm; so he was -very dear to his father and his mother, indeed he was the light of -their eyes. Now, the head servant and the son were bosom friends: -they were like brothers together, or rather twin brothers. As the -son and the servant were such friends, the farmer's wife used to get -exactly the same kind of clothes prepared for the servant as for her -son. The two fell in love with two handsome young women of very good -reputation in the neighbourhood. The two couples were soon joined in -honest wedlock, and great was the merry-making on the occasion. The -servant had a suitable place to live in on the farm of Llech y Derwyd; -but about half a year after the son's marriage, he and his friend went -out for sport, when the servant withdrew to a wild and retired corner -to look for game. He returned presently for his friend, but when he -got there he could not see him anywhere: he kept looking around for -some time for him, shouting and whistling, but there was no sign of his -friend. By-and-by, he went home to Llech y Derwyd expecting to see him, -but no one knew anything about him. Great was the sorrow of his family -through the night; and next day the anxiety was still greater. They -went to see the place where his friend had seen him last: it was hard -to tell whether his mother or his wife wept the more bitterly; but -the father was a little better, though he also looked as if he were -half mad with grief. The spot was examined, and, to their surprise, -they saw a fairy ring close by, and the servant recollected that -he had heard the sound of very fascinating music somewhere or other -about the time in question. It was at once agreed that the man had -been unfortunate enough to have got into the ring of the Tylwyth, -and to have been carried away by them, nobody knew whither. Weeks and -months passed away, and a son was born to the heir of Llech y Derwyd, -but the young father was not there to see his child, which the old -people thought very hard. However, the little one grew up the very -picture of his father, and great was his influence over his grandfather -and grandmother; in fact he was everything to them. He grew up to be a -man, and he married a good-looking girl in that neighbourhood; but her -family did not enjoy the reputation of being kind-hearted people. The -old folks died, and their daughter-in-law also. One windy afternoon -in the month of October, the family of Llech y Derwyd beheld a tall -thin old man, with his beard and hair white as snow, coming towards -the house, and they thought he was a Jew. The servant maids stared -at him, and their mistress laughed at the "old Jew," at the same time -that she lifted the children up one after another to see him. He came -to the door and entered boldly enough, asking about his parents. The -mistress answered him in an unusually surly and contemptuous tone, -wondering why the "drunken old Jew had come there," because it was -thought he had been drinking, and that he would otherwise not have -spoken so. The old man cast wondering and anxious looks around on -everything in the house, feeling as he did greatly surprised; but it -was the little children about the floor that drew his attention most: -his looks were full of disappointment and sorrow. He related the -whole of his account, saying that he had been out the day before and -that he was now returning. The mistress of the house told him that -she had heard a tale about her husband's father, that he had been -lost years before her birth while out sporting, whilst her father -maintained that it was not true, but that he had been killed. She -became angry, and quite lost her temper at seeing "the old Jew" -not going away. The old man was roused, saying that he was the owner -of the house, and that he must have his rights. He then went out to -see his possessions, and presently went to the house of the servant, -where, to his surprise, things had greatly changed; after conversing -with an aged man, who sat by the fire, the one began to scrutinize -the other more and more. The aged man by the fire told him what had -been the fate of his old friend, the heir of Llech y Derwyd. They -talked deliberately of the events of their youth, but it all seemed -like a dream; in short, the old man in the corner concluded that his -visitor was his old friend, the heir of Llech y Derwyd, returning -from the land of the Tylwyth Teg after spending half a hundred years -there. The other old man, with the snow-white beard, believed in his -history, and much did they talk together and question one another for -many hours. The old man by the fire said that the master of Llech y -Derwyd was away from home that day, and he induced his aged visitor -to eat some food, but, to the horror of all, the eater fell down dead -on the spot [56]. There is no record that an inquest was held over -him, but the tale relates that the cause of it was, that he ate food -after having been so long in the world of the fair family. His old -friend insisted on seeing him buried by the side of his ancestors; -but the rudeness of the mistress of Llech y Derwyd to her father-in-law -brought a curse on the family that clung to it to distant generations, -and until the place had been sold nine times.' - -A tale like this is to be found related of Idwal of Nantclwyd, in -Cymru Fu, p. 85. I said 'a tale like this,' but, on reconsidering -the matter, I should think it is the very same tale passed through -the hands of Glasynys or some one of his imitators. Another of this -kind will be found in the Brython, ii. 170, and several similar -ones also in Wirt Sikes' book, pp. 65-90, either given at length, -or merely referred to. There is one kind of variant which deserves -special notice, as making the music to which the sojourner in Faery -listens for scores of years to be that of a bird singing on a tree. A -story of the sort is located by Howells, in his Cambrian Superstitions, -pp. 127-8, at Pant Shon Shencin, near Pencader, in Cardiganshire. This -latter kind of story leads easily up to another development, namely, -to substituting for the bird's warble the song and felicity of heaven, -and for the simple shepherd a pious monk. In this form it is located at -a place called Llwyn y Nef, or 'Heaven's Grove,' near Celynnog Fawr, -in Carnarvonshire. It is given by Glasynys in Cymru Fu, pp. 183-4, -where it was copied from the Brython, iii. 111, in which he had -previously published it. Several versions of it in rhyme came down -from the eighteenth century, and Silvan Evans has brought together -twenty-six stanzas in point in St. David's College Magazine for 1881, -pp. 191-200, where he has put into a few paragraphs all that is known -about the song of the Hen Wr o'r Coed, or the Old Man of the Wood, -in his usually clear and lucid style. - -A tale from the other end of the tract of country once occupied -by a sprinkling, perhaps, of Celts among a population of Picts, -makes the man, and not the fairies, supply the music. I owe it to -the kindness of the Rev. Andrew Clark, Fellow of Lincoln College, -Oxford, who heard it from the late sexton of the parish of Dollar, -in the county of Clackmannan. The sexton died some twelve years ago, -aged seventy: he had learnt the tale from his father. The following -are Mr. Clark's words:-- - -'Glendevon is a parish and village in the Ochils in County Perth, -about five miles from Dollar as you come up Glen Queich and down by -Gloomhill. Glen Queich is a narrowish glen between two grassy hills--at -the top of the glen is a round hill of no great height, but very neat -shape, the grass of which is always short and trim, and the ferns on -the shoulder of a very marked green. This, as you come up the glen, -seems entirely to block the way. It is called the "Maiden Castle." Only -when you come quite close do you see the path winding round the foot -of it. A little further on is a fine spring bordered with flat stones, -in the middle of a neat, turfy spot, called the "Maiden's Well." This -road, till the new toll-road was made on the other side of the hills, -was the thoroughfare between Dollar and Glendevon.' - -The following is the legend, as told by the 'Bethrel':--'A piper, -carrying his pipes, was coming from Glendevon to Dollar in the grey -of the evening. He crossed the Garchel (a little stream running into -the Queich burn), and looked at the "Maiden Castle," and saw only the -grey hillside and heard only the wind soughing through the bent. He had -got beyond it when he heard a burst of lively music: he turned round, -and instead of the dark knoll saw a great castle, with lights blazing -from the windows, and heard the noise of dancing issuing from the open -door. He went back incautiously, and a procession issuing forth at that -moment, he was caught and taken into a great hall ablaze with lights, -and people dancing on the floor. He had to pipe to them for a day or -two, but he got anxious, because he knew his people would be wondering -why he did not come back in the morning as he had promised. The fairies -seemed to sympathize with his anxiety, and promised to let him go -if he played a favourite tune of his, which they seemed fond of, -to their satisfaction. He played his very best, the dance went fast -and furious, and at its close he was greeted with loud applause. On -his release he found himself alone, in the grey of the evening, beside -the dark hillock, and no sound was heard save the purr of the burn and -the soughing of the wind through the bent. Instead of completing his -journey to Dollar, he walked hastily back to Glendevon to relieve his -folk's anxiety. He entered his father's house and found no kent face -there. On his protesting that he had gone only a day or two before, -and waxing loud in his bewildered talk, a grey old man was roused from -a doze behind the fire; and told how he had heard when a boy from -his father that a piper had gone away to Dollar on a quiet evening, -and had never been heard or seen since, nor any trace of him found. He -had been in the "castle" for a hundred years.' - -The term Plant Rhys Dwfn has already been brought before the reader: -it means 'the Children of Rhys Dwfn,' and Rhys Dwfn means literally -Rhys the Deep, but the adjective in Welsh connotes depth of character -in the sense of shrewdness or cunning. Nay, even the English deep is -often borrowed for use in the same sense, as when one colloquially says -un dīp iawn yw e, 'he is a very calculating or cunning fellow.' The -following account of Rhys and his progeny is given by Gwynionyd -in the first volume of the Brython, p. 130, which deserves being -cited at length:--'There is a tale current in Dyfed, that there is, -or rather that there has been, a country between Cemmes, the northern -Hundred of Pembrokeshire, and Aberdaron in Lleyn. The chief patriarch -of the inhabitants was Rhys Dwfn, and his descendants used to be -called after him the Children of Rhys Dwfn. They were, it is said, -a handsome race enough, but remarkably small in size. It is stated -that certain herbs of a strange nature grew in their land, so that -they were able to keep their country from being seen by even the most -sharp sighted of invaders. There is no account that these remarkable -herbs grew in any other part of the world excepting on a small spot, -about a square yard in area, in a certain part of Cemmes. If it chanced -that a man stood alone on it, he beheld the whole of the territory -of Plant Rhys Dwfn; but the moment he moved he would lose sight of -it altogether, and it would have been utterly vain for him to look -for his footprints. In another story, as will be seen presently, -the requisite platform was a turf from St. David's churchyard. The -Rhysians had not much land--they lived in towns. So they were wont in -former times to come to market to Cardigan, and to raise the prices -of things terribly. They were seen of no one coming or going, but only -seen there in the market. When prices happened to be high, and the corn -all sold, however much there might have been there in the morning, -the poor used to say to one another on the way home, "Oh! they were -there to-day," meaning Plant Rhys Dwfn. So they were dear friends in -the estimation of Siōn Phil Hywel, the farmer; but not so high in the -opinion of Dafyd, the labourer. It is said, however, that they were -very honest and resolute men. A certain Gruffyd ab Einon was wont to -sell them more corn than anybody else, and so he was a great friend -of theirs. He was honoured by them beyond all his contemporaries by -being led on a visit to their home. As they were great traders like -the Phoenicians of old, they had treasures from all countries under -the sun. Gruffyd, after feasting his eyes to satiety on their wonders, -was led back by them loaded with presents. But before taking leave -of them, he asked them how they succeeded in keeping themselves safe -from invaders, as one of their number might become unfaithful, and go -beyond the virtue of the herbs that formed their safety. "Oh!" replied -the little old man of shrewd looks, "just as Ireland has been blessed -with a soil on which venomous reptiles cannot live, so with our land: -no traitor can live here. Look at the sand on the sea-shore: perfect -unity prevails there, and so among us. Rhys, the father of our race, -bade us, even to the most distant descendant, honour our parents -and ancestors; love our own wives without looking at those of our -neighbours; and do our best for our children and grandchildren. And -he said that if we did so, no one of us would ever prove unfaithful -to another, or become what you call a traitor. The latter is a wholly -imaginary character among us; strange pictures are drawn of him with -his feet like those of an ass, with a nest of snakes in his bosom, -with a head like the devil's, with hands somewhat like a man's, while -one of them holds a large knife, and the family lies dead around the -figure. Good-bye!" When Gruffyd looked about him he lost sight of the -country of Plant Rhys, and found himself near his home. He became very -wealthy after this, and continued to be a great friend of Plant Rhys -as long as he lived. After Gruffyd's death they came to market again, -but such was the greed of the farmers, like Gruffyd before them, -for riches, and so unreasonable were the prices they asked for their -corn, that the Rhysians took offence and came no more to Cardigan to -market. The old people used to think that they now went to Fishguard -market, as very strange people were wont to be seen there.' On the -other hand, some Fishguard people were lately of opinion that it was -at Haverfordwest the fairies did their marketing: I refer to a letter -of Mr. Ferrar Fenton's, in the Pembroke County Guardian of October 31, -1896, in which he mentions a conversation he had with a Fishguard woman -as to the existence of fairies: 'There are fairies,' she asserted, -'for they came to Ha'rfordwest market to buy things, so there must be.' - -With this should be compared pp. 9-10 of Wirt Sikes' British Goblins, -where mention is made of sailors on the coast of Pembrokeshire and -Carmarthenshire, 'who still talk of the green meadows of enchantment -lying in the Irish Channel to the west of Pembrokeshire,' and of -men who had landed on them, or seen them suddenly vanishing. The -author then proceeds to abstract from Howells' Cambrian Superstitions, -p. 119, the following paragraph:--'The fairies inhabiting these islands -are said to have regularly attended the markets at Milford Haven and -Laugharne. They made their purchases without speaking, laid down their -money and departed, always leaving the exact sum required, which they -seemed to know without asking the price of anything. Sometimes they -were invisible; but they were often seen by sharp-eyed persons. There -was always one special butcher at Milford Haven upon whom the fairies -bestowed their patronage instead of distributing their favours -indiscriminately. The Milford Haven folk could see the green Fairy -Islands distinctly, lying out a short distance from land; and the -general belief was that they were densely peopled with fairies. It -was also said that the latter went to and fro between the islands and -the shore, through a subterranean gallery under the bottom of the sea.' - -Another tale given in the Brython, ii. 20, by a writer who gives -his name as B. Davies [57], will serve to show, short though it be, -that the term Plant Rhys Dwfn was not confined to those honestly -dealing fairies, but was used in a sense wholly synonymous with that -of Tylwyth Teg, as understood in other parts of Wales. The story -runs as follows, and should be compared with the Dyffryn Mymbyr one -given above, pp. 100-3:--'One calm hot day, when the sun of heaven was -brilliantly shining, and the hay in the dales was being busily made by -lads and lasses, and by grown-up people of both sexes, a woman in the -neighbourhood of Emlyn placed her one-year-old infant in the gader, -or chair, as the cradle is called in these parts, and out she went -to the field for a while, intending to return, when her neighbour, -an old woman overtaken by the decrepitude of eighty summers, should -call to her that her darling was crying. It was not long before she -heard the old woman calling to her; she ran hurriedly, and as soon as -she set foot on the kitchen floor she took her little one in her arms -as usual, saying to him, "O my little one! thy mother's delight art -thou! I would not take the world for thee, &c." But to her surprise -he had a very old look about him, and the more the tender-hearted -mother gazed at his face, the stranger it seemed to her, so that at -last she placed him in the cradle and told her trouble and sorrow to -her relatives and acquaintances. And after this one and the other had -given his opinion, it was agreed at last that it was one of Rhys Dwfn's -children that was in the cradle, and not her dearly loved baby. In this -distress there was nothing to do but to fetch a sorcerer, as fast as -the fastest horse could gallop. He said, when he saw the child, that -he had seen his like before, and that it would be a hard job to get -rid of him, though not such a very hard job this time. The shovel was -made red hot in the fire by one of the Cefnarth [58] boys, and held -before the child's face; and in an instant the short little old man -took to his heels, and neither he nor his like was seen afterwards -from Aber Cuch to Aber Bargoed at any rate. The mother, it is said, -found her darling unscathed the next moment. I remember also hearing -that the strange child was as old as the grandfather of the one that -had been lost.' - -As I see no reason to make any profound distinction between lake -maidens and sea maidens, I now give Gwynionyd's account of the mermaid -who was found by a fisherman from Llandydoch or St. Dogmael's [59], -near Cardigan: see the Brython, i. 82:-- - -'One fine afternoon in September, in the beginning of the last century, -a fisherman, whose name was Pergrin [60], went to a recess in the -rock near Pen Cemmes, where he found a sea maiden doing her hair, -and he took the water lady prisoner to his boat.... We know not -what language is used by sea maidens ... but this one, this time at -any rate, talked, it is said, very good Welsh; for when she was in -despair in Pergrin's custody, weeping copiously, and with her tresses -all dishevelled, she called out: 'Pergrin, if thou wilt let me go, -I will give thee three shouts in the time of thy greatest need.' So, -in wonder and fear, he let her go to walk the streets of the deep, -and visit her sweethearts there. Days and weeks passed without -Pergrin seeing her after this; but one hot afternoon, when the sea -was pretty calm, and the fishermen had no thought of danger, behold -his old acquaintance showing her head and locks, and shouting out in a -loud voice: 'Pergrin! Pergrin! Pergrin! take up thy nets, take up thy -nets, take up thy nets!' Pergrin and his companion instantly obeyed -the message, and drew their nets in with great haste. In they went, -past the bar, and by the time they had reached the Pwll Cam the most -terrible storm had overspread the sea, while he and his companion were -safe on land. Twice nine others had gone out with them, but they were -all drowned without having the chance of obeying the warning of the -water lady.' Perhaps it is not quite irrelevant to mention here the -armorial bearings which Drayton ascribes to the neighbouring county -of Cardigan in the following couplet in his Battaile of Agincourt -(London, 1631), p. 23:-- - - - As Cardigan the next to them that went, - Came with a Mermayd sitting on a Rock. - - -A writer in the Brython, iv. 194, states that the people of Nefyn -in Lleyn claim the story of the fisher and the mermaid as belonging -to them, which proves that a similar legend has been current there: -add to this the fact mentioned in the Brython, iii. 133, that a red -mermaid with yellow hair, on a white field, figures in the coat of -arms of the family resident at Glasfryn in the parish of Llangybi, -in Eifionyd or the southern portion of Carnarvonshire; and we have -already suggested that Glasynys' story (pp. 117-25) was made up, to a -certain extent, of materials found on the coasts of Carnarvonshire. A -small batch of stories about South Wales mermaids is given by a writer -who calls himself Ab Nadol [61], in the Brython, iv. 310, as follows:-- - -'A few rockmen are said to have been working, about eighty years -ago, in a quarry near Porth y Rhaw, when the day was calm and clear, -with nature, as it were, feasting, the flowers shedding sweet scent -around, and the hot sunshine beaming into the jagged rocks. Though an -occasional wave rose to strike the romantic cliffs, the sea was like -a placid lake, with its light coverlet of blue attractive enough to -entice one of the ladies of Rhys Dwfn forth from the town seen by -Daniel Huws off Trefin as he was journeying between Fishguard and -St. David's in the year 1858, to make her way to the top of a stone -and to sit on it to disentangle her flowing silvery hair. Whilst -she was cleaning herself, the rockmen went down, and when they got -near her they perceived that, from her waist upwards, she was like -the lasses of Wales, but that, from her waist downwards, she had the -body of a fish. And, when they began to talk to her, they found she -spoke Welsh, though she only uttered the following few words to them: -"Reaping in Pembrokeshire and weeding in Carmarthenshire." Off she -then went to walk in the depth of the sea towards her home. Another -tale is repeated about a mermaid, said to have been caught by men -below the land of Llanwnda, near the spot, if not on the spot, where -the French made their landing afterwards, and three miles to the west -of Fishguard. It then goes on to say that they carried her to their -home, and kept her in a secure place for some time; before long, she -begged to be allowed to return to the brine land, and gave the people -of the house three bits of advice; but I only remember one of them,' -he writes, 'and this is it: "Skim the surface of the pottage before -adding sweet milk to it: it will be whiter and sweeter, and less of -it will do." I was told that this family follow the three advices to -this day.' A somewhat similar advice to that about the pottage is -said to have been given by a mermaid, under similar circumstances, -to a Manxman. - -After putting the foregoing bits together, I was favoured by -Mr. Benjamin Williams with notes on the tales and on the persons from -whom he heard them: they form the contents of two or three letters, -mostly answers to queries of mine, and the following is the substance -of them:--Mr. Williams is a native of the valley of Troed yr Aur -[62], in the Cardiganshire parish of that name. He spent a part of -his youth at Verwig, in the angle between the northern bank of the -Teifi and Cardigan Bay. He heard of Rhys Dwfn's Children first from -a distant relative of his father's, a Catherine Thomas, who came to -visit her daughter, who lived not far from his father's house: that -would now be from forty-eight to fifty years ago. He was very young -at the time, and of Rhys Dwfn's progeny he formed a wonderful idea, -which was partly due also to the talk of one James Davies or Siąms -Mocyn, who was very well up in folklore, and was one of his father's -next-door neighbours. He was an old man, and nephew to the musician, -David Jenkin Morgan. The only spot near Mr. Williams' home, that -used to be frequented by the fairies, was Cefn y Ceirw, 'the Stag's -Ridge,' a large farm, so called from having been kept as a park for -their deer by the Lewises of Aber Nant Bychan. He adds that the late -Mr. Philipps, of Aberglasney, was very fond of talking of things -in his native neighbourhood, and of mentioning the fairies at Cefn -y Ceirw. It was after moving to Verwig that Mr. Williams began to -put the tales he heard on paper: then he came in contact with three -brothers, whose names were John, Owen, and Thomas Evans. They were -well-to-do and respectable bachelors, living together on the large -farm of Hafod Ruffyd. Thomas was a man of very strong common sense, -and worth consulting on any subject: he was a good arithmetician, -and a constant reader of the Baptist periodical, Seren Gomer, from -its first appearance. He thoroughly understood the bardic metres, -and had a fair knowledge of music. He was well versed in Scripture, -and filled the office of deacon at the Baptist Chapel. His death took -place in the year 1864. Now, the eldest of the three brothers, the -one named John, or Siōn, was then about seventy-five years of age, -and he thoroughly believed in the tales about the fairies, as will -be seen from the following short dialogue:-- - -Siōn: Williams bach, ma'n rhaid i bod nhw'i gāl: yr w i'n cofio yn -amser Bone fod marchnad Aberteifi yn llawn o lafir yn y bore--digon -yno am fis--ond cin pen hanner awr yr ōd y cwbwl wedi darfod. Nid ōd -possib i gweld nhwi: mā gida nhwi faint a fynnon nhwi o arian. - -Williams: Siwt na fyse dynion yn i gweld nhwi ynte, Siōn? - -Siōn: O mā gida nhwi dynion fel ninne yn pryni drostyn nhwi; ag y mā -nhwi fel yr hen siówmin yna yn gelli gneid pob tric. - -John: 'My dear Williams, it must be that they exist: I remember -Cardigan market, in the time of Bonaparte, full of corn in the -morning--enough for a month--but in less than half an hour it was -all gone. It was impossible to see them: they have as much money as -they like.' - -Williams: 'How is it, then, that men did not see them, John?' - -John: 'Oh, they have men like us to do the buying for them; and they -can, like those old showmen, do every kind of trick.' - -At this kind of display of simplicity on the part of his brother, -Thomas used to smile and say: 'My brother John believes such things -as those;' for he had no belief in them himself. Still it is from -his mouth that Mr. Williams published the tales in the Brython, which -have been reproduced here, that of 'Pergrin and the Mermaid,' and all -about the 'Heir of Llech y Derwyd,' not to mention the ethical element -in the account of Rhys Dwfn's country and its people, the product -probably of his mind. Thomas Evans, or as he was really called, -Tommos Ifan, was given rather to grappling with the question of -the origin of such beliefs; so one day he called Mr. Williams out, -and led him to a spot about four hundred yards from Bol y Fron, -where the latter then lived: he pointed to the setting sun, and -asked Mr. Williams what he thought of the glorious sunset before -them. 'It is all produced,' he then observed, 'by the reflection -of the sun's rays on the mist: one might think,' he went on to say, -'that there was there a paradise of a country full of fields, forests, -and everything that is desirable.' And before they had moved away the -grand scene had disappeared, when Thomas suggested that the idea of -the existence of the country of Rhys Dwfn's Children arose from the -contemplation of that phenomenon. One may say that Thomas Evans was -probably far ahead of the Welsh historians who try to extract history -from the story of Cantre'r Gwaelod, 'the Bottom Hundred,' beneath the -waves of Cardigan Bay; but what was seen was probably an instance of -the mirage to be mentioned presently. Lastly, besides Mr. Williams' -contributions to the Brython, and a small volume of poetry, entitled -Briallen glan Ceri, some tales of his were published by Llallawg -in Bygones some years ago, and he had the prize at the Cardigan -Eistedfod of 1866 for the best collection in Welsh of the folklore -of Dyfed: his recollection was that it contained in all thirty-six -tales of all kinds; but since the manuscript, as the property of the -Committee of that Eistedfod, was sold, he could not now consult it: -in fact he is not certain as to who the owner of it may now be, -though he has an idea that it is either the Rev. Rees Williams, -vicar of Whitchurch, near Solva, Pembrokeshire, or R. D. Jenkins, -Esq., of Cilbronnau, Cardiganshire. Whoever the owner may be, he -would probably be only too glad to have it published, and I mention -this merely to call attention to it. The Eistedfod is to be commended -for encouraging local research, and sometimes even for burying the -results in obscurity, but not always. - - - - -X. - -Before leaving Dyfed I wish to revert to the extract from Mr. Sikes, -p. 161 above. He had been helped partly by the article on Gavran, -in the Cambrian Biography, by William Owen, better known since as -William Owen Pughe and Dr. Pughe, and partly by a note of Southey's -on the following words in his Madoc (London, 1815), i. III:-- - - - Where are the sons of Gavran? where his tribe, - The faithful? following their beloved Chief, - They the Green Islands of the Ocean sought; - Nor human tongue hath told, nor human ear, - Since from the silver shores they went their way, - Hath heard their fortunes. - - -The Gavran story, I may premise, is based on one of the Welsh -Triads--i. 34, ii. 41, iii. 80--and Southey cites the article in the -Cambrian Biography; but he goes on to give the following statements -without indicating on what sources he was drawing--the reader has, -however, been made acquainted already with the virtue of a blade of -grass, by the brief mention of Llyn Irdyn above, p. 148:-- - -'Of these Islands, or Green Spots of the Floods, there are some -singular superstitions. They are the abode of the Tylwyth Teg, or -the fair family, the souls of the virtuous Druids, who, not having -been Christians, cannot enter the Christian heaven, but enjoy this -heaven of their own. They however discover a love of mischief, neither -becoming happy spirits, nor consistent with their original character; -for they love to visit the earth, and, seizing a man, inquire whether -he will travel above wind, mid wind, or below wind; above wind is -a giddy and terrible passage, below wind is through bush and brake, -the middle is a safe course. But the spell of security is, to catch -hold of the grass, for these Beings have not power to destroy a blade -of grass. In their better moods they come over and carry the Welsh in -their boats. He who visits these Islands imagines on his return that -he has been absent only a few hours, when, in truth, whole centuries -have passed away. If you take a turf from St. David's churchyard, -and stand upon it on the sea shore, you behold these Islands. A man -once, who thus obtained sight of them, immediately put to sea to find -them; but they disappeared, and his search was in vain. He returned, -looked at them again from the enchanted turf, again set sail, and -failed again. The third time he took the turf into his vessel, and -stood upon it till he reached them.' - -A correspondent signing himself 'the Antient Mariner,' and writing, -in the Pembroke County Guardian, from Newport, Pembrokeshire, Oct. 26, -1896, cites Southey's notes, and adds to them the statement, that -some fifty years ago there was a tradition amongst the inhabitants of -Trevine (Trefin) in his county, that these Islands could be seen from -Llan Non, or Eglwys Non, in that neighbourhood. To return to Madoc, -Southey adds to the note already quoted a reference to the inhabitants -of Arran More, on the coast of Galway, to the effect that they think -that they can on a clear day see Hy-Breasail, the Enchanted Island -supposed to be the Paradise of the Pagan Irish: compare the Phantom -City seen in the same sea from the coast of Clare. Then he asks a -question suggestive of the explanation, that all this is due to 'that -very extraordinary phenomenon, known in Sicily by the name of Morgaine -le Fay's works.' In connexion with this question of mirage I venture -to quote again from the Pembroke County Guardian. Mr. Ferrar Fenton, -already mentioned, writes in the issue of Nov. 1, 1896, giving a report -which he had received one summer morning from Captain John Evans, -since deceased. It is to the effect 'that once when trending up the -Channel, and passing Grasholm Island, in what he had always known -as deep water, he was surprised to see to windward of him a large -tract of land covered with a beautiful green meadow. It was not, -however, above water, but just a few feet below, say two or three, -so that the grass waved and swam about as the ripple flowed over it, -in a most delightful way to the eye, so that as watched it made one -feel quite drowsy. You know, he continued, I have heard old people -say there is a floating island off there, that sometimes rises to the -surface, or nearly, and then sinks down again fathoms deep, so that -no one sees it for years, and when nobody expects it comes up again -for a while. How it may be, I do not know, but that is what they say.' - -Lastly, Mr. E. Perkins, of Penysgwarne, near Fishguard, wrote on -Nov. 2, 1896, as follows, of a changing view to be had from the top -of the Garn, which means the Garn Fawr, one of the most interesting -prehistoric sites in the county, and one I have had the pleasure of -visiting more than once in the company of Henry Owen and Edward Laws, -the historians of Pembrokeshire:-- - -'May not the fairy islands referred to by Professor Rhys have -originated from mirages? During the glorious weather we enjoyed -last summer, I went up one particularly fine evening to the top of -the Garn behind Penysgwarne to view the sunset. It would have been -worth a thousand miles' travel to go to see such a scene as I saw -that evening. It was about half an hour before sunset--the bay was -calm and smooth as the finest mirror. The rays of the sun made - - - A golden path across the sea, - - -and a picture indescribable. As the sun neared the horizon the rays -broadened until the sheen resembled a gigantic golden plate prepared -to hold the brighter sun. No sooner had the sun set than I saw a -striking mirage. To the right I saw a stretch of country similar -to a landscape in this country. A farmhouse and out-buildings were -seen, I will not say quite as distinct as I can see the upper part -of St. David's parish from this Garn, but much more detailed. We -could see fences, roads, and gateways leading to the farmyard, but -in the haze it looked more like a panoramic view than a veritable -landscape. Similar mirages may possibly have caused our old tadau to -think these were the abode of the fairies.' - -To return to Mr. Sikes, the rest of his account of the Pembrokeshire -fairies and their green islands, of their Milford butcher, and -of the subterranean gallery leading into their home, comes, as -already indicated, for the most part from Howells. But it does not -appear on what authority Southey himself made departed druids of -the fairies. One would be glad to be reassured on this last point, -as such a hypothesis would fit in well enough with what we are told -of the sacrosanct character of the inhabitants of the isles on the -coast of Britain in ancient times. Take, for instance, the brief -account given by Plutarch of one of the isles explored by a certain -Demetrius in the service of the Emperor of Rome: see chapter viii. - - - - -XI. - -Mr. Craigfryn Hughes, the author of a Welsh novelette [63] with its -scene laid in Glamorgan, having induced me to take a copy, I read it -and found it full of local colouring. Then I ventured to sound the -author on the question of fairy tales, and the reader will be able -to judge how hearty the response has been. Before reproducing the -tale which Mr. Hughes has sent me, I will briefly put into English -his account of himself and his authorities. Mr. Hughes lives at the -Quakers' Yard in the neighbourhood of Pontyprid, in Glamorganshire. His -father was not a believer [64] in tales about fairies or the like, -and he learned all he knows of the traditions about them in his -father's absence, from his grandmother and other old people. The old -lady's name was Rachel Hughes. She was born at Pandy Pont y Cymmer, -near Pontypool, or Pont ap Hywel as Mr. Hughes analyses the name, -in the year 1773, and she had a vivid recollection of Edmund Jones of -the Tranch, of whom more anon, coming from time to time to preach to -the Independents there. She came, however, to live in the parish of -Llanfabon, near the Quakers' Yard, when she was only twelve years -of age; and there she continued to live to the day of her death, -which took place in 1864, so that she was about ninety-one years of -age at the time. Mr. Hughes adds that he remembers many of the old -inhabitants besides his grandmother, who were perfectly familiar with -the story he has put on record; but only two of them were alive when -he wrote to me in 1881, and these were both over ninety years old, -with their minds overtaken by the childishness of age; but it was -only a short time since the death of another, who was, as he says, -a walking library of tales about corpse candles, ghosts, and Bendith -y Mamau [65], or 'The Mothers' Blessing,' as the fairies are usually -called in Glamorgan. Mr. Hughes' father tried to prevent his children -being taught any tales about ghosts, corpse candles, or fairies; -but the grandmother found opportunities of telling them plenty, and -Mr. Hughes vividly describes the effect on his mind when he was a -boy, how frightened he used to feel, how he pulled the clothes over -his head in bed, and how he half suffocated himself thereby under -the effects of the fear with which the tales used to fill him. Then, -as to the locality, he makes the following remarks:--'There are few -people who have not heard something or other about the old graveyard -of the Quakers, which was made by Lydia Phil, a lady who lived at a -neighbouring farm house, called Cefn y Fforest. This old graveyard lies -in the eastern corner of the parish of Merthyr Tydfil, on land called -Pantannas, as to the meaning of which there is much controversy. Some -will have it that it is properly Pant yr Aros, or the Hollow of the -Staying, because travellers were sometimes stopped there overnight -by the swelling of the neighbouring river; others treat it as Pant -yr Hanes, the Hollow of the Legend, in allusion to the following -story. But before the graveyard was made, the spot was called -Rhyd y Grug, or the Ford of the Heather, which grows thereabouts in -abundance. In front of the old graveyard towards the south the rivers -Taff and Bargoed, which some would make into Byrgoed or Short-Wood, -meet with each other, and thence rush in one over terrible cliffs of -rock, in the recesses of which lie huge cerwyni or cauldron-like pools, -called respectively the Gerwyn Fach, the Gerwyn Fawr, and the Gerwyn -Ganol, where many a drowning has taken place. As one walks up over -Tarren y Crynwyr, "the Quakers' Rift," until Pantannas is reached, -and proceeds northwards for about a mile and a half, one arrives at a -farm house called Pen Craig Daf [66], "the Top of the Taff Rock." The -path between the two houses leads through fertile fields, in which -may be seen, if one has eyes to observe, small rings which are greener -than the rest of the ground. They are, in fact, green even as compared -with the greenness around them--these are the rings in which Bendith -y Mamau used to meet to sing and dance all night. If a man happened -to get inside one of these circles when the fairies were there, he -could not be got out in a hurry, as they would charm him and lead -him into some of their caves, where they would keep him for ages, -unawares to him, listening to their music. The rings vary greatly in -size, but in point of form they are all round or oval. I have heard -my grandmother,' says Mr. Hughes, 'reciting and singing several of the -songs which the fairies sang in these rings. One of them began thus:-- - - - Canu, canu, drwy y nos, - Dawnsio, dawnsio, ar Waen y Rhos - Y' ngoleuni'r lleuad dlos: - Hapus ydym ni! - - Pawb ohonom syd yn llon - Heb un gofid dan ei fron: - Canu, dawnsio, ar y ton [67]-- - Dedwyd ydym ni! - - - Singing, singing, through the night, - Dancing, dancing with our might, - Where the moon the moor doth light, - Happy ever we! - - One and all of merry mien, - Without sorrow are we seen, - Singing, dancing on the green, - Gladsome ever we! - - -Here follows, in Mr. Hughes' own Welsh, a remarkable story of revenge -exacted by the fairies:-- - -Yn un o'r canrifoed a aethant heibio, preswyliai amaethwr yn nhydyn -Pantannas, a'r amser hwnnw yr oed bendith y mamau yn ymwelwyr aml ag -amryw gaeau perthynol ido ef, a theimlai yntau gryn gasineb yn ei -fynwes at yr 'atras fwstrog, leisiog, a chynllwynig,' fel y galwai -hwynt, a mynych yr hiraethai am allu dyfod o hyd i ryw lwybr er cael -eu gwared odiyno. O'r diwed hysbyswyd ef gan hen reibwraig, fod y -fford i gael eu gwared yn digon hawd, ac ond ido ef rodi godro un -hwyr a boreu idi hi, yr hysbysai y fford ido gyrraed yr hyn a fawr -dymunai. Bodlonod i'w thelerau a derbyniod yntau y cyfarwydyd, yr -hyn ydoed fel y canlyn:--Ei fod i aredig yr holl gaeau i ba rai yr -oed eu hoff ymgyrchfan, ac ond idynt hwy unwaith golli y ton glas, -y digient, ac na deuent byth mwy i'w boeni drwy eu hymweliadau a'r lle. - -Dilynod yr amaethwr ei chyfarwydyd i'r llythyren, a choronwyd ei waith -a llwydiant. Nid oed yr un o honynt i'w weled odeutu y caeau yn awr; -ac yn lle sain eu caniadau soniarus, a glywid bob amser yn dyrchu -o Waen y Rhos, nid oed dim ond y distawrwyd trylwyraf yn teyrnasu o -gylch eu hen a'u hoff ymgyrchfan. - -Hauod yr amaethwr wenith, &c., yn y caeau, ac yr oed y gwanwyn gwyrdlas -wedi gwthio y gauaf odiar ei sed, ac ymdangosai y maesyd yn arderchog -yn eu llifrai gwyrdleision a gwanwynol. - -Ond un prydnawn, ar ol i'r haul ymgilio i yst felloed y gorllewin, -tra yr oed amaethwr Pantannas yn dychwelyd tua ei gartref cyfarfydwyd -ag ef gan fod bychan ar ffurf dyn, yn gwisgo hugan goch; a phan daeth -gyferbyn ag ef dadweiniod ei gled bychan, gan gyfeirio ei flaen at -yr amaethwr, a dywedyd, - - - Dial a daw, - Y mae gerllaw. - - -Ceisiod yr amaethwr chwerthin, ond yr oed rhywbeth yn edrychiad sarrug -a llym y gwr bychan ag a barod ido deimlo yn hynod o annymunol. - -Ychydig o nosweithiau yn diwedarach, pan oed y teulu ar ymneillduo i'w -gorphwysleoed, dychrynwyd hwy yn fawr iawn gan drwst, fel pe bydai y -ty yn syrthio i lawr bendramwnwgl, ac yn union ar ol i'r twrf beidio, -clywent y geiriau bygythiol a ganlyn--a dim yn rhagor--yn cael eu -parablu yn uchel, - - - Daw dial. - - -Pan oed yr yd wedi cael ei fedi ac yn barod i gael ei gywain i'r -ysgubor, yn sydyn ryw noswaith llosgwyd ef fel nad oed yr un dywysen -na gwelltyn i'w gael yn un man o'r caeau, ac nis gallasai neb fod -wedi gosod yr yd ar dan ond Bendith y Mamau. - -Fel ag y mae yn naturiol i ni fedwl teimlod yr amaethwr yn fawr -oherwyd y tro, ac edifarhaod yn ei galon darfod ido erioed wrando -a gwneuthur yn ol cyfarwydyd yr hen reibwraig, ac felly dwyn arno -digofaint a chasineb Bendith y Mamau. - -Drannoeth i'r noswaith y llosgwyd yr yd fel yr oed yn arolygu y difrod -achoswyd gan y tan, wele'r gwr bychan ag ydoed wedi ei gyfarfod -ychydig o diwrnodau yn flaenorol yn ei gyfarfod eilwaith a chyda -threm herfeidiol pwyntiod ei gledyf ato gan dywedyd, - - - Nid yw ond dechreu. - - -Trod gwyneb yr amaethwr cyn wynned a'r marmor, a safod gan alw y gwr -bychan yn ol, ond bu y cņr yn hynod o wydn ac anewyllysgar i droi ato, -ond ar ol hir erfyn arno trod yn ei ol gan ofyn yn sarrug beth yr oed -yr amaethwr yn ei geisio, yr hwn a hysbysod ido ei fod yn berffaith -fodlon i adael y caeau lle yr oed eu hoff ymgyrchfan i dyfu yn don -eilwaith, a rhodi caniatad idynt i dyfod idynt pryd y dewisent, -ond yn unig idynt beidio dial eu llid yn mhellach arno ef. - -'Na,' oed yr atebiad penderfynol, 'y mae gair y brenin wedi ei roi -y byd ido ymdial arnat hyd eithaf ei allu ac nid oes dim un gallu ar -wyneb y greadigaeth a bair ido gael ei dynnu yn ol.' - -Dechreuod yr amaethwr wylo ar hyn, ond yn mhen ychydig hysbysod y gwr -bychan y bydai ido ef siarad a'i bennaeth ar y mater, ac y cawsai -efe wybod y canlyniad ond ido dyfod i'w gyfarfod ef yn y fan honno -amser machludiad haul drennyd. - -Adawod yr amaethwr dyfod i'w gyfarfod, a phan daeth yr amser -apwyntiedig o amgylch ido i gyfarfod a'r bychan cafod ef yno yn -ei aros, ac hysbysod ido fod y pennaeth wedi ystyried ei gais yn -difrifol, ond gan fod ei air bob amser yn anghyfnewidiol y buasai y -dialed bygythiedig yn rhwym o gymeryd lle ar y teulu, ond ar gyfrif -ei edifeirwch ef na chawsai digwyd yn ei amser ef nac eido ei blant. - -Llonydod hynny gryn lawer ar fedwl terfysglyd yr amaethwr, a dechreuod -Bendith y Mamau dalu eu hymweliadau a'r lle eilwaith a mynych y clywid -sain eu cerdoriaeth felusber yn codi o'r caeau amgylchynol yn ystod -y nos. - - - -Pasiod canrif heibio heb i'r dialed bygythiedig gael ei gyflawni, -ac er fod teulu Pantannas yn cael eu hadgofio yn awr ac eilwaith, -y buasai yn sicr o digwyd hwyr neu hwyrach, eto wrth hir glywed y waed, - - - Daw dial, - - -ymgynefinasant a hi nes eu bod yn barod i gredu na fuasai dim yn -dyfod o'r bygythiad byth. - -Yr oed etifed Pantannas yn caru a merch i dirfediannyd cymydogaethol -a breswyliai mewn tydyn o'r enw Pen Craig Daf. Yr oed priodas y -par dedwyd i gymeryd lle yn mhen ychydig wythnosau ac ymdangosai -rhieni y cwpl ieuanc yn hynod o fodlon i'r ymuniad teuluol ag oed ar -gymeryd lle. - -Yr oed yn amser y Nadolig--a thalod y darpar wraig ieuanc ymweliad a -theulu ei darpar wr, ac yr oed yno wled o wyd rostiedig yn baratoedig -gogyfer a'r achlysur. - -Eistedai y cwmni odeutu y tan i adrod rhyw chwedlau difyrrus er mwyn -pasio yr amser, pryd y cawsant eu dychrynu yn fawr gan lais treidgar -yn dyrchafu megis o wely yr afon yn gwaedi - - - Daeth amser ymdļal. - - -Aethant oll allan i wrando a glywent y lleferyd eilwaith, ond nid oed -dim i'w glywed ond brochus drwst y dwfr wrth raiadru dros glogwyni -aruthrol y cerwyni. Ond ni chawsant aros i wrando yn hir iawn cyn -idynt glywed yr un lleferyd eilwaith yn dyrchafu i fyny yn uwch na -swn y dwfr pan yn bwrlymu dros ysgwydau y graig, ac yn gwaedi, - - - Daeth yr amser. - - -Nis gallent dyfalu beth yr oed yn ei arwydo, a chymaint ydoed eu -braw a'u syndod fel nad allent lefaru yr un gair a'u gilyd. Yn mhen -ennyd dychwelasant i'r ty a chyn idynt eisted credent yn dios fod yr -adeilad yn cael ei ysgwyd id ei sylfeini gan ryw dwrf y tu allan. Pan -yr oed yr oll wedi cael eu parlysio gan fraw, wele fenyw fechan yn -gwneuthur ei hymdangosiad ar y bwrd o'u blaen, yr hwn oed yn sefyll -yn agos i'r ffenestr. - -'Beth yr wyt yn ei geisio yma, y peth bychan hagr?' holai un o'r -gwydfodolion. - -'Nid oes gennyf unrhyw neges a thi, y gwr hir dafod,' oed atebiad y -fenyw fechan. 'Ond yr wyf wedi cael fy anfon yma i adrod rhyw bethau -ag syd ar digwyd i'r teulu hwn, a theulu arall o'r gymydogaeth ag a -dichon fod o dydordeb idynt, ond gan i mi derbyn y fath sarhad odiar -law y gwr du ag syd yn eisted yn y cornel, ni fyd i mi godi y llen -ag oed yn cudio y dyfodol allan o'u golwg.' - -'Atolwg os oes yn dy fediant ryw wybodaeth parth dyfodol rhai o -honom ag a fydai yn dydorol i ni gael ei glywed, dwg hi allan,' -ebai un arall o'r gwydfodolion. - -'Na wnaf, ond yn unig hysbysu, fod calon gwyryf fel llong ar y traeth -yn methu cyrraed y porthlad oherwyd digalondid y pilot.' - -A chyda ei bod yn llefaru y gair diwedaf diflannod o'u gwyd, na wydai -neb i ba le na pha fod! - -Drwy ystod ci hymweliad hi, peidiod y waed a godasai o'r afon, ond -yn fuan ar ol idi diflannu, dechreuod eilwaith a chyhoedi - - - Daeth amser dial, - - -ac ni pheidiod am hir amser. Yr oed y cynulliad wedi cael eu mediannu -a gormod o fraw i fedru llefaru yr un gair, ac yr oed llen o brudder -yn daenedig dros wyneb pob un o honynt. Daeth amser idynt i ymwahanu, -ac aeth Rhyderch y mab i hebrwng Gwerfyl ei gariadferch tua Phen -Craig Daf, o ba siwrnai ni dychwelod byth. - -Cyn ymadael a'i fun dywedir idynt dyngu bythol ffydlondeb i'w gilyd, -pe heb weled y naill y llall byth ond hynny, ac nad oed dim a allai -beri idynt anghofio eu gilyd. - -Mae yn debygol i'r llanc Rhyderch pan yn dychwelyd gartref gael ei -hun odifewn i un o gylchoed Bendith y Mamau, ac yna idynt ei hud-denu -i mewn i un o'u hogofau yn Nharren y Cigfrain, ac yno y bu. - - - -Y mae yn llawn bryd i ni droi ein gwynebau yn ol tua Phantannas a Phen -Craig Daf. Yr oed rhieni y bachgen anffodus yn mron gwallgofi. Nid -oed gandynt yr un drychfedwl i ba le i fyned i chwilio am dano, ac -er chwilio yn mhob man a phob lle methwyd yn glir a dyfod o hyd ido, -na chael gair o'i hanes. - -Ychydig i fyny yn y cwm mewn ogof dandaearol trigfannai hen feudwy -oedrannus, yr hwn hefyd a ystyrrid yn dewin, o'r enw Gweiryd. Aethant -yn mhen ychydig wythnosau i ofyn ido ef, a fedrai rodi idynt ryw -wybodaeth parthed i'w mab colledig--ond i ychydig bwrpas. Ni wnaeth -yr hyn a adrodod hwnnw wrthynt ond dyfnhau y clwyf a rhoi golwg fwy -anobeithiol fyth ar yr amgylchiad. Ar ol idynt ei hysbysu ynghylch -ymdangosiad y fenyw fechan ynghyd a'r llais wylofus a glywsent -yn dyrchafu o'r afon y nos yr aeth ar goll, hysbysod efe idynt -mai y farn fygythiedig ar y teulu gan Fendith y Mamau oed wedi -godiwedid y llanc, ac nad oed o un diben idynt fedwl cael ei weled -byth mwyach! Ond feallai y gwnelai ei ymdangosiad yn mhen oesau, -ond dim yn eu hamser hwy. - -Pasiai yr amser heibio, a chwydod yr wythnosau i fisoed, a'r misoed -i flynydoed, a chasglwyd tad a mam Rhyderch at eu tadau. Yr oed y -lle o hyd yn parhau yr un, ond y preswylwyr yn newid yn barhaus, -ac yr oed yr adgofion am ei golledigaeth yn darfod yn gyflym, ond -er hynny yr oed un yn disgwyl ei dychweliad yn ol yn barhaus, ac -yn gobeithio megis yn erbyn gobaith am gael ei weled eilwaith. Bob -boreu gyda bod dorau y wawr yn ymagor dros gaerog fynydoed y dwyrain -gwelid hi bob tywyd yn rhedeg i ben bryn bychan, a chyda llygaid yn -orlawn o dagrau hiraethlon syllai i bob cyfeiriad i edrych a ganfydai -ryw argoel fod ei hanwylyd yn dychwelyd; ond i dim pwrpas. Canol dyd -gwelid hi eilwaith yn yr un man, a phan ymgollai yr haul fel pelen -eiriasgoch o dān dros y terfyngylch, yr oed hi yno. - -Edrychai nes yn agos bod yn dall, ac wylai ei henaid allan o dyd i -dyd ar ol anwyldyn ei chalon. O'r diwed aeth y rhai syd yn edrych -drwy y ffenestri i omed eu gwasanaeth idi, ac yr oed y pren almon -yn coroni ei phen a'i flagur gwyryfol, ond parhai hi i edrych, ond -nid oed neb yn dod. Yn llawn o dydiau ac yn aedfed i'r bed rhodwyd -terfyn ar ei holl obeithion a'i disgwyliadau gan angeu, a chludwyd -ei gwedillion marwol i fynwent hen Gapel y Fan. - -Pasiai blynydoed heibio fel mwg, ac oesau fel cysgodion y boreu, ac -nid oed neb yn fyw ag oed yn cofio Rhyderch, ond adrodid ei golliad -disymwyth yn aml. Dylasem fynegu na welwyd yr un o Fendith y Mamau -odeutu y gymydogaeth wedi ei golliad, a pheidiod sain eu cerdoriaeth -o'r nos honno allan. - -Yr oed Rhyderch wedi cael ei hud-denu i fyned gyda Bendith y Mamau--ac -aethant ag ef i ffwrd i'w hogof. Ar ol ido aros yno dros ychydig o -diwrnodau fel y tybiai, gofynnod am ganiatad i dychwelyd, yr hyn a rwyd -ganiatawyd ido gan y brenin. Daeth allan o'r ogof, ac yr oed yn ganol -dyd braf, a'r haul yn llewyrchu odiar fynwes ffurfafen digwmwl. Cerdod -yn mlaen o Darren y Cigfrain hyd nes ido dyfod i olwg Capel y Fan, -ond gymaint oed ei syndod pan y gwelod nad oed yr un capel yno! Pa -le yr oed wedi bod, a pha faint o amser? Gyda theimladau cymysgedig -cyfeiriod ei gamrau tua Phen Craig Daf, cartref-le ei anwylyd, ond -nid oed hi yno, ac nid oed yn adwaen yr un dyn ag oed yno chwaith. Ni -fedrai gael gair o hanes ei gariad a chymerod y rhai a breswylient -yno mai gwallgofdyn ydoed. - -Prysurod eilwaith tua Phantannas, ac yr oed ei syndod yn fwy fyth -yno! Nid oed yn adwaen yr un o honynt, ac ni wydent hwythau dim am dano -yntau. O'r diwed daeth gwr y ty i fewn, ac yr oed hwnnw yn cofio clywed -ei dad cu yn adrod am lanc ag oed wedi myned yn disymwyth i goll er ys -peth cannoed o flynydoed yn ol, ond na wydai neb i ba le. Rywfod neu -gilyd tarawod gwr y ty ei ffon yn erbyn Rhyderch, pa un a diflannod -mewn cawod o lwch, ac ni chlywyd air o son beth daeth o hono mwyach. - -'In one of the centuries gone by, there lived a husbandman on the farm -of Pantannas; and at that time the fairies used to pay frequent visits -to several of the fields which belonged to him. He cherished in his -bosom a considerable hatred for the "noisy, boisterous, and pernicious -tribe," as he called them, and often did he long to be able to discover -some way to rid the place of them. At last he was told by an old witch -that the way to get rid of them was easy enough, and that she would -tell him how to attain what he so greatly wished, if he gave her one -evening's milking [68] on his farm, and one morning's. He agreed to her -conditions, and from her he received advice, which was to the effect -that he was to plough all the fields where they had their favourite -resorts, and that, if they found the green sward gone, they would take -offence, and never return to trouble him with their visits to the spot. - -'The husbandman followed the advice to the letter, and his work was -crowned with success. Not a single one of them was now to be seen -about the fields, and, instead of the sound of their sweet music, -which used to be always heard rising from the Coarse Meadow Land, -the most complete silence now reigned over their favourite resort. - -'He sowed his land with wheat and other grain; the verdant spring had -now thrust winter off its throne, and the fields appeared splendid -in their vernal and green livery. - -'But one evening, when the sun had retired to the chambers of the west, -and when the farmer of Pantannas was returning home, he was met by -a diminutive being in the shape of a man, with a red coat on. When -he had come right up to him, he unsheathed his little sword, and, -directing the point towards the farmer, he said:-- - - - Vengeance cometh, - Fast it approacheth. - - -'The farmer tried to laugh, but there was something in the surly -and stern looks of the little fellow which made him feel exceedingly -uncomfortable. - -'A few nights afterwards, as the family were retiring to rest, they -were very greatly frightened by a noise, as though the house was -falling to pieces; and, immediately after the noise, they heard a -voice uttering loudly the threatening words--and nothing more:-- - - - Vengeance cometh. - - -'When, however, the corn was reaped and ready to be carried to the -barn, it was, all of a sudden, burnt up one night, so that neither -an ear nor a straw of it could be found anywhere in the fields; -and now nobody could have set the corn on fire but the fairies. - -'As one may naturally suppose, the farmer felt very much on account -of this event, and he regretted in his heart having done according -to the witch's direction, and having thereby brought upon him the -anger and hatred of the fairies. - -'The day after the night of the burning of the corn, as he was -surveying the destruction caused by the fire, behold the little -fellow, who had met him a few days before, met him again, and, with -a challenging glance, he pointed his sword towards him, saying:-- - - - It but beginneth. - - -The farmer's face turned as white as marble, and he stood calling the -little fellow to come back; but the dwarf proved very unyielding and -reluctant to turn to him; but, after long entreaty, he turned back, -asking the farmer, in a surly tone, what he wanted, when he was told -by the latter that he was quite willing to allow the fields, in which -their favourite resorts had been, to grow again into a green sward, -and to let them frequent them as often as they wished, provided they -would no further wreak their anger on him. - -'"No," was the determined reply, "the word of the king has been given, -that he will avenge himself on thee to the utmost of his power; -and there is no power on the face of creation that will cause it to -be withdrawn." - -'The farmer began to weep at this, and, after a while, the little -fellow said that he would speak to his lord on the matter, and that -he would let him know the result, if he would come there to meet him -at the hour of sunset on the third day after. - -'The farmer promised to meet him; and, when the time appointed for -meeting the little man came, he found him awaiting him, and he was told -by him that his lord had seriously considered his request, but that, -as the king's word was ever immutable, the threatened vengeance was -to take effect on the family. On account, however, of his repentance, -it would not be allowed to happen in his time or that of his children. - -'That calmed the disturbed mind of the farmer a good deal. The fairies -began again to pay frequent visits to the place, and their melodious -singing was again heard at night in the fields around. - - - -'A century passed by without seeing the threatened vengeance carried -into effect; and, though the Pantannas family were reminded now and -again that it was certain sooner or later to come, nevertheless, -by long hearing the voice that said-- - - - Vengeance cometh, - - -they became so accustomed to it, that they were ready to believe that -nothing would ever come of the threat. - -'The heir of Pantannas was paying his addresses to the daughter of a -neighbouring landowner who lived at the farm house called Pen Craig -Daf, and the wedding of the happy pair was to take place in a few -weeks, and the parents on both sides appeared exceedingly content -with the union that was about to take place between the two families. - -'It was Christmas time, and the intended wife paid a visit to the -family of her would-be husband. There they had a feast of roast goose -prepared for the occasion. - -'The company sat round the fire to relate amusing tales to pass the -time, when they were greatly frightened by a piercing voice, rising, -as it were, from the bed of the river [69], and shrieking:-- - - - The time for revenge is come. - - -'They all went out to listen if they could hear the voice a second -time, but nothing was to be heard save the angry noise of the water as -it cascaded over the dread cliffs of the kerwyni; they had not long, -however, to wait till they heard again the same voice rising above the -noise of the waters, as they boiled over the shoulders of the rock, -and crying:-- - - - The time is come. - - -'They could not guess what it meant, and so great was their fright -and astonishment, that no one could utter a word to another. Shortly -they returned to the house, when they believed that beyond doubt -the building was being shaken to its foundations by some noise -outside. When all were thus paralysed by fear, behold a little woman -made her appearance on the table, which stood near the window. - -'"What dost thou, ugly little thing, want here?" asked one of those -present. - -'"I have nothing to do with thee, O man of the meddling tongue," said -the little woman, "but I have been sent here to recount some things -that are about to happen to this family and another family in the -neighbourhood, things that might be of interest to them; but, as I have -received such an insult from the black fellow that sits in the corner, -the veil that hides them from their sight shall not be lifted by me." - -'"Pray," said another of those present, "if thou hast in thy possession -any knowledge with regard to the future of any one of us that would -interest us to hear, bring it forth." - -'"No, I will but merely tell you that a certain maiden's heart is -like a ship on the coast, unable to reach the harbour because the -pilot has lost heart." - -'As soon as she had cried out the last word, she vanished, no one -knew whither or how. - -'During her visit, the cry rising from the river had stopped, but -soon afterwards it began again to proclaim:-- - - - The time of vengeance is come; - - -nor did it cease for a long while. The company had been possessed by -too much terror for one to be able to address another, and a sheet -of gloom had, as it were, been spread over the face of each. The -time for parting came, and Rhyderch the heir went to escort Gwerfyl, -his lady-love, home towards Pen Craig Daf, a journey from which he -never returned. - -'Before bidding one another "Good-bye," they are said to have sworn -to each other eternal fidelity, even though they should never see one -another from that moment forth, and that nothing should make the one -forget the other. - -'It is thought probable that the young man Rhyderch, on his way back -towards home, got into one of the rings of the fairies, that they -allured him into one of their caves in the Ravens' Rift, and that -there he remained. - - - -'It is high time for us now to turn back towards Pantannas and -Pen Craig Daf. The parents of the unlucky youth were almost beside -themselves: they had no idea where to go to look for him, and, though -they searched every spot in the place, they failed completely to find -him or any clue to his history. - -'A little higher up the country, there dwelt, in a cave underground, an -aged hermit called Gweiryd, who was regarded also as a sorcerer. They -went a few weeks afterwards to ask him whether he could give them any -information about their lost son; but it was of little avail. What that -man told them did but deepen the wound and give the event a still more -hopeless aspect. When they had told him of the appearance of the little -woman, and the doleful cry heard rising from the river on the night -when their son was lost, he informed them that it was the judgement -threatened to the family by the fairies that had overtaken the youth, -and that it was useless for them to think of ever seeing him again: -possibly he might make his appearance after generations had gone by, -but not in their lifetime. - -'Time rolled on, weeks grew into months, and months into years, until -Rhyderch's father and mother were gathered to their ancestors. The -place continued the same, but the inhabitants constantly changed, -so that the memory of Rhyderch's disappearance was fast dying -away. Nevertheless there was one who expected his return all the while, -and hoped, as it were against hope, to see him once more. Every morn, -as the gates of the dawn opened beyond the castellated heights of the -east, she might be seen, in all weathers, hastening to the top of a -small hill, and, with eyes full of the tears of longing, gazing in -every direction to see if she could behold any sign of her beloved's -return; but in vain. At noon, she might be seen on the same spot again; -she was also there at the hour when the sun was wont to hide himself, -like a red-hot ball of fire, below the horizon. She gazed until she -was nearly blind, and she wept forth her soul from day to day for -the darling of her heart. At last they that looked out at the windows -began to refuse their service, and the almond tree commenced to crown -her head with its virgin bloom. She continued to gaze, but he came -not. Full of days, and ripe for the grave, death put an end to all -her hopes and all her expectations. Her mortal remains were buried -in the graveyard of the old Chapel of the Fan [70]. - -'Years passed away like smoke, and generations like the shadows of -the morning, and there was no longer anybody alive who remembered -Rhyderch, but the tale of his sudden missing was frequently in -people's mouths. And we ought to have said that after the event no -one of the fairies was seen about the neighbourhood, and the sound -of their music ceased from that night. - -'Rhyderch had been allured by them, and they took him away into their -cave. When he had stayed there only a few days, as he thought, he asked -for permission to return, which was readily granted him by the king. He -issued from the cave when it was a fine noon, with the sun beaming -from the bosom of a cloudless firmament. He walked on from the Ravens' -Rift until he came near the site of the Fan Chapel; but what was his -astonishment to find no chapel there! Where, he wondered, had he been, -and how long away? So with mixed feelings he directed his steps towards -Pen Craig Daf, the home of his beloved one, but she was not there nor -any one whom he knew either. He could get no word of the history of -his sweetheart, and those who dwelt in the place took him for a madman. - -'He hastened then to Pantannas, where his astonishment was still -greater. He knew nobody there, and nobody knew anything about him. At -last the man of the house came in, and he remembered hearing his -grandfather relating how a youth had suddenly disappeared, nobody -knew whither, some hundreds of years previously. Somehow or other the -man of the house chanced to knock his walking-stick against Rhyderch, -when the latter vanished in a shower of dust. Nothing more was ever -heard of him.' - -Before leaving Glamorgan, I may add that Mr. Sikes associates fairy -ladies with Crymlyn Lake, between Briton Ferry and Swansea; but, -as frequently happens with him, he does not deign to tell us whence -he got the legend. 'It is also believed,' he says at p. 35, 'that a -large town lies swallowed up there, and that the Gwraged Annwn have -turned the submerged walls to use as the superstructure of their fairy -palaces. Some claim to have seen the towers of beautiful castles -lifting their battlements beneath the surface of the dark waters, -and fairy bells are at times heard ringing from those towers.' So -much by the way: we shall return to Crymlyn in chapter vii. - - - - -XII. - -The other day, as I was going to Gwent, I chanced to be in the Golden -Valley in Herefordshire, where the names in the churchyards seem -largely to imply a Welsh population, though the Welsh language has -not been heard there for ages. Among others I noticed Joneses and -Williamses in abundance at Abbey Dore, Evanses and Bevans, Morgans, -Prossers and Prices, not to mention Sayces--that is to say, Welshmen of -English extraction or education--a name which may also be met with in -Little England in Pembrokeshire, and probably on other English-Welsh -borders. Happening to have to wait for a train at the Abbey Dore -station, I got into conversation with the tenants of a cottage hard -by, and introduced the subject of the fairies. The old man knew -nothing about them, but his wife, Elizabeth Williams, had been a -servant girl at a place called Pen Pōch, which she pronounced with -the Welsh guttural ch: she said that it is near Llandeilo Cressenny -in Monmouthshire. It was about forty years ago when she served at -Pen Pōch, and her mistress' name was Evans, who was then about fifty -years of age. Now Mrs. Evans was in the habit of impressing on her -servant girls' minds, that, unless they made the house tidy before -going to bed, and put everything in its place overnight, the little -people--the fairies, she thinks she called them--would leave them -no rest in bed at night, but would come and 'pinch them like.' If -they put everything in its place, and left the house 'tidy like,' it -would be all right, and 'nobody would do anything to them like.' That -is all I could get from her without prompting her, which I did at -length by suggesting to her that the fairies might leave the tidy -servants presents, a shilling 'on the hearth or the hob like.' Yes, -she thought there was something of that sort, and her way of answering -me suggested that this was not the first time she had heard of the -shilling. She had never been lucky enough to have had one herself, -nor did she know of anybody else that 'had got it like.' - -During a brief but very pleasant sojourn at Llanover in May, 1883, -I made some inquiries about the fairies, and obtained the following -account from William Williams, who now, in his seventieth year, works -in Lady Llanover's garden:--'I know of a family living a little way -from here at ----, or as they would now call it in English ----, -whose ancestors, four generations ago, used to be kind to Bendith -y Mamau, and always welcomed their visits by leaving at night a -basinful of bread and milk for them near the fire. It always used to -be eaten up before the family got up in the morning. But one night -a naughty servant man gave them instead of milk a bowlful of urine -[71]. They, on finding it out, threw it about the house and went -away disgusted. But the servant watched in the house the following -night. They found him out, and told him that he had made fools of -them, and that in punishment for his crime there would always be a -fool, i.e. an idiot, in his family. As a matter of fact, there was -one among his children afterwards, and there is one in the family -now. They have always been in a bad way ever since, and they never -prosper. The name of the man who originally offended the fairies -was ----; and the name of the present fool among his descendants is -----.' For evident reasons it is not desirable to publish the names. - -Williams spoke also of a sister to his mother, who acted as servant -to his parents. There were, he said, ten stepping stones between his -father's house and the well, and on every one of these stones his -aunt used to find a penny every morning, until she made it known to -others, when, of course, the pennies ceased coming. He did not know -why the fairies gave money to her, unless it was because she was a -most tidy servant. - -Another Llanover gardener remembered that the fairies used to -change children, and that a certain woman called Nani Fach in that -neighbourhood was one of their offspring; and he had been told that -there were fairy rings in certain fields not far away in Llanover -parish. - -A third gardener, who is sixty-eight years of age, and is likewise in -Lady Llanover's employ, had heard it said that servant girls about -his home were wont to sweep the floor clean at night, and to throw -crumbs of bread about on it before going to bed. - -Lastly, Mrs. Gardner of Ty Uchaf Llanover, who is ninety years of age, -remembers having a field close to Capel Newyd near Blaen Afon, in -Llanover Uchaf, pointed out to her as containing fairy rings; and she -recollects hearing, when she was a child, that a man had got into one -of them. He remained away from home, as they always did, she said, a -whole year and a day; but she has forgotten how he was recovered. Then -she went on to say that her father had often got up in the night to -see that his horses were not taken out and ridden about the fields -by Bendith y Mamau; for they were wont to ride people's horses late -at night round the four corners of the fields, and thereby they often -broke the horses' wind. This, she gave me to understand, was believed -in the parish of Llanover and that part of the country generally. So -here we have an instance probably of confounding fairies with witches. - -I have not the means at my command of going at length into the folklore -of Gwent, so I will merely mention where the reader may find a good -deal about it. I have already introduced the name of the credulous -old Christian, Edmund Jones of the Tranch: he published at Trefecca -in the year 1779 a small volume entitled, A Geographical, Historical, -and Religious Account of the Parish of Aberystruth in the County of -Monmouth, to which are added Memoirs of several Persons of Note who -lived in the said Parish. In 1813, by which time he seems to have left -this world for another, where he expected to understand all about the -fairies and their mysterious life, a small volume of his was published -at Newport, bearing the title, A Relation of Apparitions of Spirits -in the County of Monmouth and the Principality of Wales, with other -notable Relations from England, together with Observations about -them, and Instructions from them, designed to confute and to prevent -the Infidelity of denying the Being and Apparition of Spirits, which -tends to Irreligion and Atheism. By the late Rev. Edmund Jones, of the -Tranch. Naturally those volumes have been laid under contribution by -Mr. Sikes, though the tales about apparitions in them are frequently -of a ghastly nature, and sometimes loathsome: on the whole, they -remind me more than anything else I have ever read of certain Breton -tales which breathe fire and brimstone: all such begin to be now out -of fashion in Protestant countries. I shall at present only quote a -passage of quite a different nature from the earlier volume, p. 72--it -is an interesting one, and it runs thus:--'It was the general opinion -in times past, when these things were very frequent, that the fairies -knew whatever was spoken in the air without the houses, not so much -what was spoken in the houses. I suppose they chiefly knew what -was spoken in the air at night. It was also said that they rather -appeared to an uneven number of persons, to one, three, five, &c.; -and oftener to men than to women. Thomas William Edmund, of Havodavel, -an honest pious man, who often saw them, declared that they appeared -with one bigger than the rest going before them in the company.' With -the notion that the fairies heard everything uttered out of doors -may be compared the faculty attributed to the great magician king, -Math ab Mathonwy, of hearing any whisper whatsoever that met the wind: -see the Oxford Mabinogion, p. 60, and Guest's Mabinogion, iii. 219; see -also respectively pp. 94, 96, and pp. 308, 310, as to the same faculty -belonging to the fairy people of the Corannians, and the strange -precautions taken against them by the brothers Llūd and Llevelys. - - - - - - - - -CHAPTER III - -FAIRY WAYS AND WORDS - - Heavens defend me from that Welsh fairy! - - Shakespeare. - - -In the previous chapters, the fairy lore of the Principality was -hastily skimmed without any method; and I fear that, now I have to -reproduce some of the things which I gleaned somewhat later, there -will be, if possible, still less method. The general reader, in case -he chances on these pages, will doubtless feel that, as soon as he -has read a few of the tales, the rest seem to be familiar to him, -and exceedingly tiresome. It may be, however, presumed that all men -anxious to arrive at an idea as to the origin among us of the belief -in fairies, will agree that we should have as large and exhaustive a -collection as possible of facts on which to work. If we can supply -the data without stint, the student of anthropology may be trusted -in time to discover their value for his inductions, and their place -in the history of the human race. - - - - -I. - -In the course of the summer of 1882 [72] I was a good deal in Wales, -especially Carnarvonshire, and I made notes of a great many scraps -of legends about the fairies, and other bits of folklore. I will now -string some of them together as I found them. I began at Trefriw [73], -in Nant Conwy, where I came across an old man, born and bred there, -called Morris Hughes. He appears to be about seventy years of age: -he formerly worked as a slater, but now he lives at Llanrwst, and -tries to earn a livelihood by angling. He told me that fairies came a -long while ago to Cowlyd Farm, near Cowlyd Lake, with a baby to dress, -and asked to be admitted into the house, saying that they would pay -well for it. Their request was granted, and they used to leave money -behind them. One day the servant girl accidentally found they had -also left some stuff they were in the habit of using in washing their -children. She examined it, and, one of her eyes happening to itch, she -rubbed it with the finger that had touched the stuff; so when she went -to Llanrwst Fair she saw the same fairy folks there stealing cakes from -a standing, and asked them why they did that. They inquired with what -eye she saw them: she put her hand to the eye, and one of the fairies -quickly rubbed it, so that she never saw any more of them. They were -also very fond of bringing their children to be dressed in the houses -between Trefriw and Llanrwst; and on the flat land bordering on the -Conwy they used to dance, frolic, and sing every moonlight night. Evan -Thomas of Sgubor Gerrig used to have money from them. He has been dead, -Morris Hughes said, over sixty years: he had on his land a sort of -cowhouse where the fairies had shelter, and hence the pay. - -Morris, when a boy, used to be warned by his parents to take care -lest he should be stolen by the fairies. He knew Thomas Williams -of Bryn Syllty, or, as he was commonly called, Twm Bryn Syllty, who -was a changeling. He was a sharp, small man, afraid of nothing. He -met his death some years ago by drowning near Eglwys Fach, when he -was about sixty-three years of age. There are relatives of his about -Llanrwst still: that is, relatives of his mother, if indeed she was -his mother (os oed hi'n fam ido fo, ynté). Lastly, Morris had a tale -about a mermaid cast ashore by a storm near Conway. She entreated -the fishermen who found her to help her back into her native element; -and on their refusing to comply she prayed them to place her tail at -least in the water. A very crude rhyme describes her dying of exposure -to the cold, thus:-- - - - Y forforwyn ar y traeth, - Crio gwaedu'n arw wnaeth, - Ofn y deuai drycin drannoeth: - Yr hin yn oer a rhewi wnaeth. - - The stranded mermaid on the beach - Did sorely cry and sorely screech, - Afraid to bide the morrow's breeze: - The cold it came, and she did freeze. - - -But before expiring, the mermaid cursed the people of Conway to be -always poor, and Conway has ever since, so goes the tale, laboured -under the curse; so that when a stranger happens to bring a sovereign -there, the Conway folk, if silver is required, have to send across -the water to Llansanffraid for change. - -My next informant was John Duncan Maclaren, who was born in 1812, -and lives at Trefriw. His father was a Scotsman, but Maclaren is in -all other respects a Welshman. He also knew the Sgubor Gerrig people, -and that Evan Thomas and Lowri his wife had exceeding great trouble to -prevent their son Roger from being carried away by the fairies. For -the fairy maids were always trying to allure him away, and he was -constantly finding fairy money. The fairy dance, and the playing -and singing that accompanied it, used to take place in a field in -front of his father's house; but Lowri would never let her son go -out after the sun had gone to his battlements (ar ol i'r haul fyn'd -i lawr i gaera). The most dangerous nights were those when the moon -shone brightly, and pretty wreaths of mist adorned the meadows by the -river. Maclaren had heard of a man, whom he called Siōn Catrin of Tyn -Twll, finding a penny every day at the pistyll or water-spout near -the house, when he went there to fetch water. The flat land between -Trefriw and Llanrwst had on it a great many fairy rings, and some of -them are, according to Maclaren, still to be seen. There the fairies -used to dance, and when a young man got into one of the rings the -fairy damsels took him away; but he could be got out unharmed at the -end of a year and a day, when he would be found dancing with them in -the same ring: he must then be dexterously touched by some one of his -friends with a piece of iron and dragged out at once. This is the -way in which a young man whom my notes connect with a place called -Bryn Glas was recovered. He had gone out with a friend, who lost him, -and he wandered into a fairy ring. He had new shoes on at the time, -and his friends brought him out at the end of the interval of a year -and a day; but he could not be made to understand that he had been away -more than five minutes, until he was asked to look at his new shoes, -which were by that time in pieces. Maclaren had also something to -say concerning the history and habitat of the fairies. Those of Nant -Conwy dress in green; and his mother, who died about sixty-two years -ago, aged forty-seven, had told him that they lived seven years on -the earth, seven years in the air, and seven years underground. He -also had a mermaid tale, like that of Pergrin from Dyfed, p. 163. A -fisherman from Llandrillo yn Rhos, between Colwyn and Llandudno, -had caught a mermaid in his net. She asked to be set free, promising -that she would, in case he complied, do him a kindness. He consented, -and one fine day, a long while afterwards, she suddenly peeped out -of the water near him, and shouted: Siōn Ifan, cwyd dy rwyda' a thyn -tua'r lan, 'John Evans, take up thy nets and make for the shore.' He -obeyed, and almost immediately there was a terrible storm, in which -many fishermen lost their lives. The river Conwy is the chief haunt of -the mysterious afanc, already mentioned, p. 130, and Maclaren stated -that its name used to be employed within his memory to frighten girls -and children: so much was it still dreaded. Perhaps I ought to have -stated that Maclaren is very fond of music, and that he told me of -a gentleman at Conway who had taken down in writing a supposed fairy -tune. I have made inquiries of the latter's son, Mr. Hennessy Hughes -of Conway; but his father's papers seem to have been lost, so that -he cannot find the tune in question, though he has heard of it. - -Whilst on this question of music let me quote from the Llwyd letter -in the Cambrian Journal for 1859, pp. 145-6, on which I have already -drawn, pp. 130-3, above. The passage in point is to the following -effect:-- - -'I will leave these tales aside whilst I go as far as the Ogo Du, -"the Black Cave," which is in the immediate vicinity of Crigcieth [74], -and into which the musicians entered so far that they lost their way -back. One of them was heard to play on his pipe, and another on his -horn, about two miles from where they went in; and the place where -the piper was heard is called Braich y Bib, and where the man with -the horn was heard is called Braich y Cornor. I do not believe that -even a single man doubts but that this is all true, and I know not -how the airs called Ffarwel Dic y Pibyd, "Dick the Piper's Farewell," -and Ffarwel Dwm Bach, "Little Tom's Farewell," had those names, unless -it was from the musicians above mentioned. Nor do I know that Ned Puw -may not have been the third, and that the air called Ffarwel Ned Puw, -"Ned Pugh's Farewell," may not have been the last he played before -going into the cave. I cannot warrant this to be true, as I have only -heard it said by one man, and he merely held it as a supposition, -which had been suggested by this air of Ffarwel Dic y Pibyd.' - -A story, however, mentioned by Cyndelw in the Brython for 1860, p. 57, -makes Ned Pugh enter the cave of Tal y Clegyr, which the writer in -his article identifies with Ness Cliff, near Shrewsbury. In that -cave, which was regarded as a wonderful one, he says the musician -disappeared, while the air he was playing, Ffarwel Ned Puw, "Ned Pugh's -Farewell," was retained in memory of him. Some account of the departure -of Ned Pugh and of the interminable cave into which he entered, will be -found given in a rambling fashion in the Cambrian Quarterly Magazine -(London, 1829), vol. i, pp. 40-5, where the minstrel's Welsh name -is given as Iolo ap Huw. There we are told that he was last seen in -the twilight of a misty Halloween, and the notes of the tune he was -last heard to play are duly given. One of the surmises as to Iolo's -ultimate fate is also recorded, namely, that in the other world he has -exchanged his fiddle for a bugle, and become huntsman-in-chief to Gwyn -ab Nūd, so that every Halloween he may be found cheering Cwn Annwn, -'the Hounds of the Other World,' over Cader Idris [75]. - -The same summer I fell in with Mr. Morris Evans, of Cerrig Mān, near -Amlwch. He is a mining agent on the Gwydir Estate in the Vale of Conwy, -but he is a native of the neighbourhood of Parys Mountain, in Anglesey, -where he acquired his knowledge of mining. He had heard fairy tales -from his grandmother, Grace Jones, of Llwyn Ysgaw near Mynyd Mechell, -between Amlwch and Holyhead. She died, nearly ninety years of age, -over twenty years ago. She used to relate how she and others of her -own age were wont in their youth to go out on bright moonlight nights -to a spot near Llyn y Bwch. They seldom had to wait there long before -they would hear exquisite music and behold a grand palace standing -on the ground. The diminutive folks of fairyland would then come -forth to dance and frolic. The next morning the palace would be found -gone, but the grandmother used to pick up fairy money on the spot, -and this went on regularly so long as she did not tell others of her -luck. My informant, who is himself a man somewhat over fifty-two, -tells me that at a place not far from Llyn y Bwch there were plenty -of fairy rings to be seen in the grass; and it is in them the fairies -were supposed to dance [76]. - -From Llanrwst I went up to see the bard and antiquary, Mr. Gethin -Jones. His house was prettily situated on the hillside on the left -of the road as you approach the village of Penmachno. I was sorry to -find that his memory had been considerably impaired by a paralytic -stroke from which he had suffered not long before. However, from his -room he pointed out to me a spot on the other side of the Machno, -called Y Werdon, which means 'The Green Land,' or more literally, -'The Greenery,' so to say. It was well known for its green, grassy -fairy rings, formerly frequented by the Tylwyth Teg; and he said he -could distinguish some of the rings even then from where he stood. The -Werdon is on the Bennar, and the Bennar is the high ground between -Penmachno and Dolwydelan. The spot in question is on the part nearest -to the Conwy Falls. This name, Y Werdon, is liable to be confounded -with Iwerdon, 'Ireland,' which is commonly treated as if it began with -the definite article, so that it is made into Y Werdon and Werdon. The -fairy Werdon, in the radical form Gwerdon, not only recalls to my mind -the Green Isles called Gwerdonau Llļon, but also the saying, common -in North Wales, that a person in great anxiety 'sees Y Werdon.' Thus, -for instance, a man who fails to return to his family at the hour -expected, and believes his people to be in great anxiety about him, -expresses himself by saying that they will have 'seen the Werdon on my -account' (mi fydan' wedi gwel'd y Werdon am dana'i). Is that Ireland, -or is it the land of the fairies, the other world, in fact? If the -latter, it might simply mean they will have died of anxiety; but I -confess I have not so far been able to decide. I am not aware that -the term occurs in any other form of expression than the one I have -given; if it had, and if the Werdon were spoken of in some other way, -that might possibly clear up the difficulty. If it refers to Ireland, -it must imply that sighting Ireland is equivalent to going astray at -sea, meaning in this sort of instance, getting out of one's senses; -but the Welsh are not very much given to nautical expressions. It -reminds me somewhat of Gerald Griffin's allusion to the Phantom City, -and the penalty paid by those who catch a glimpse of its turrets as -the dividing waves expose them for a moment to view on the western -coast of Ireland:-- - - - Soon close the white waters to screen it, - And the bodement, they say, of the wonderful sight, - Is death to the eyes that have seen it. - - -The Fairy Glen above Bettws y Coed is called in Welsh Ffos 'Nodyn, -'the Sink of the Abyss'; but Mr. Gethin Jones told me that it was -also called Glyn y Tylwyth Teg, which is very probable, as some -such a designation is required to account for the English name, 'the -Fairy Glen.' People on the Capel Garmon side used to see the Tylwyth -playing there, and descending into the Ffos or Glen gently and lightly -without occasioning themselves the least harm. The Fairy Glen was, -doubtless, supposed to contain an entrance to the world below. This -reminds one of the name of the pretty hollow running inland from the -railway station at Bangor. Why should it be called Nant Uffern, or -'The Hollow of Hell'? Can it be that there was a supposed entrance -to the fairy world somewhere there? In any case, I am quite certain -that Welsh place-names involve allusions to the fairies much oftener -than has been hitherto supposed; and I should be inclined to cite, as -a further example, Moel Eilio [77] or Moel Eilian, from the personal -name Eilian, to be mentioned presently. Moel Eilian is a mountain under -which the fairies were supposed to have great stores of treasure. But -to return to Mr. Gethin Jones, I had almost forgotten that I have -another instance of his in point. He showed me a passage in a paper -which he wrote in Welsh some time ago on the antiquities of Yspyty -Ifan. He says that where the Serw joins the Conwy there is a cave, -to which tradition asserts that a harpist was once allured by the -Tylwyth Teg. He was, of course, not seen afterwards, but the echo of -the music made by him and them on their harps is still to be heard -a little lower down, under the field called to this day Gweirglod y -Telynorion, 'The Harpers' Meadow': compare the extract from Edward -Llwyd's correspondence at p. 202 above. - -Mr. Gethin Jones also spoke to me of the lake called Llyn Pencraig, -which was drained in hopes of finding lead underneath it, an -expectation not altogether doomed to disappointment, and he informed -me that its old name was Llyn Llifon; so the moor around it was called -Gwaen Llifon. It appears to have been a large lake, but only in wet -weather, and to have no deep bed. The names connected with the spot -are now Nant Gwaen Llifon and the Gwaith (or Mine) of Gwaen Llifon: -they are, I understand, within the township of Trefriw. The name Llyn -Llifon is of great interest when taken in connexion with the Triadic -account of the cataclysm called the Bursting of Llyn Llifon. Mr. Gethin -Jones, however, believed himself that Llyn Llļon was no other than -Bala Lake, through which the Dee makes her way. - - - - -II. - -One day in August of the same year, I arrived at Dinas Station, and -walked down to Llandwrog in order to see Dinas Dinlle, and to ascertain -what traditions still existed there respecting Caer Arianrhod, -Llew Llawgyffes, Dylan Eilton, and other names that figure in the -Mabinogi of Math ab Mathonwy. I called first on the schoolmaster, -and he kindly took me to the clerk, Hugh Evans, a native of the -neighbourhood of Llangefni, in Anglesey. He had often heard people -talk of some women having once on a time come from Tregar Anthreg -to Cae'r 'Loda', a place near the shore, to fetch food or water, and -that when they looked back they beheld the town overflowed by the sea: -the walls can still be seen at low water. Gwennan was the name of one -of the women, and she was buried at the place now called Bed Gwennan, -or Gwennan's Grave. He had also heard the fairy tales of Waen Fawr -and Nant y Bettws, narrated by the antiquary, Owen Williams of the -former place. For instance, he had related to him the tale of the man -who slept on a clump of rushes, and thought he was all the while in -a magnificent mansion; see p. 100, above. Now I should explain that -Tregar Anthreg is to be seen at low water from Dinas Dinlle as a -rock not far from the shore. The Caranthreg which it implies is one -of the modern forms to which Caer Arianrhod has been reduced; and to -this has been prefixed a synonym of caer, namely, tref, reduced to -tre', just as Carmarthen is frequently called Tre' Gaerfyrdin. Cae'r -'Loda' is explained as Cae'r Aelodau', 'The Field of the Limbs'; but -I am sorry to say that I forgot to note the story explanatory of the -name. It is given, I think, to a farm, and so is Bed Gwennan likewise -the name of a farm house. The tenant of the latter, William Roberts, -was at home when I visited the spot. He told me the same story, -but with a variation: three sisters had come from Tregan Anrheg to -fetch provisions, when their city was overflowed. Gwen fled to the -spot now called Bed Gwennan, Elan to Tydyn Elan, or Elan's Holding, -and Maelan to Rhos Maelan, or Maelan's Moor; all three are names of -places in the immediate neighbourhood. - -From Dinas Dinlle I was directed across Lord Newborough's grounds at -Glynllifon to Pen y Groes Station; but on my way I had an opportunity -of questioning several of the men employed at Glynllifon. One of -these was called William Thomas Solomon, an intelligent middle-aged -man, who works in the garden there. He said that the three women -who escaped from the submerged city were sisters, and that he had -learned in his infancy to call them Gwennan bi Dōn, Elan bi Dōn, -and Maelan bi Dōn. Lastly, the name of the city, according to him, -was Tregan Anthrod. I had the following forms of the name that -day:--Tregar Anrheg, Tregar Anthreg, Tregan Anrheg, Tregan Anthreg, -and Tregan Anthrod. All these are attempts to reproduce what might -be written Tre'-Gaer-Arianrhod. The modification of nrh into nthr -is very common in North Wales, and Tregar Anrheg seems to have been -fashioned on the supposition that the name had something to do with -anrheg, 'a gift.' Tregan Anthrod is undoubtedly the Caer Arianrhod, -or 'fortress of Arianrhod,' in the Mabinogi, and it is duly marked -as such in a map of Speede's at the spot where it should be. Now the -Arianrhod of the Mabinogi of Math could hardly be called a lady of -rude virtue, and it is the idea in the neighbourhood that the place -was inundated on account of the wickedness of the inhabitants. So -it would appear that Gwennan, Elan, and Maelan, Arianrhod's sisters, -were the just ones allowed to escape. Arianrhod was probably drowned as -the principal sinner in possession; but I did not find, as I expected, -that the crime which called for such an expiation was in this instance -that of playing cards on Sunday. In fact, this part of the legend -does not seem to have been duly elaborated as yet. - -I must now come back to Solomon's bi Dōn, which puzzles me not -a little. Arianrhod was daughter of Dōn, and so several other -characters in the same Mabinogi were children of Dōn. But what is bi -Dōn? I have noticed that all the Welsh antiquaries who take Don out -of books invariably call that personage Dņn or Donn with a short o, -which is wrong, and this has saved me from being deceived once or -twice: so I take it that bi Dōn is, as Solomon asserted, a local -expression of which he did not know the meaning. I can only add, -in default of a better explanation, that bi Dōn recalled to my mind -what I had shortly before heard on my trip from Aberdaron to Bardsey -Island. My wife and I, together with two friends, engaged, after much -eloquent haggling, a boat at the former place, but one of the men who -were to row us insinuated a boy of his, aged four, into the boat, an -addition which did not exactly add to the pleasures of that somewhat -perilous trip amidst incomprehensible currents. But the Aberdaron -boatmen always called that child bi Donn, which I took to have been -a sort of imitation of an infantile pronunciation of 'baby John,' for -his name was John, which Welsh infants as a rule first pronounce Donn: -I can well remember the time when I did. This, applied to Gwennan bi -Dōn, would imply that Solomon heard it as a piece of nursery lore when -he was a child, and that it meant simply--Gwennan, baby or child of -Dōn. Lastly, the only trace of Dylan I could find was in the name of -a small promontory, called variously by the Glynllifon men Pwynt Maen -Tylen, which was Solomon's pronunciation, and Pwynt Maen Dulan. It is -also known, as I was given to understand, as Pwynt y Wig: I believe -I have seen it given in maps as Maen Dylan Point. - -Solomon told me the following fairy tale, and he was afterwards kind -enough to have it written out for me. I give it in his own words, -as it is peculiar in some respects:-- - -Mi'r oed gwr a gwraig yn byw yn y Garth Dorwen [78] ryw gyfnod maith yn -ol, ag aethant i Gaer'narfon i gyflogi morwyn ar dyd ffair G'langaeaf, -ag yr oed yn arferiad gan feibion a merched y pryd hynny i'r rhai oed -yn sefyll allan am lefyd aros yn top y maes presennol wrth boncan las -oed yn y fan y lle saif y Post-office presennol; aeth yr hen wr a'r -hen wraig at y fan yma a gwelent eneth lan a gwallt melyn yn sefyll -'chydig o'r neilldu i bawb arall; aeth yr hen wraig ati a gofynnod i'r -eneth oed arni eisiau lle. Atebod fod, ag felly cyflogwyd yr eneth -yn dioed a daeth i'w lle i'r amser penodedig. Mi fydai yn arferiad -yr adeg hynny o nydu ar ol swper yn hirnos y gauaf, ag fe fydai y -forwyn yn myn'd i'r weirglod i nydu wrth oleu y lloer; ag fe fydai -tylwyth teg yn dwad ati hi i'r weirglod i ganu a dawnsio. A ryw bryd -yn y gwanwyn pan esdynnod y dyd diangod Eilian gyd a'r tylwythion teg -i ffwrd, ag ni welwyd 'mo'ni mwyach. Mae y cae y gwelwyd hi diwethaf -yn cael ei alw hyd y dyd hedyw yn Gae Eilian a'r weirglod yn Weirglod -y Forwyn. Mi'r oed hen wraig y Garth Dorwen yn arfer rhoi gwraged yn -eu gwlāu, a bydai pawb yn cyrchu am dani o bob cyfeiriad; a rhyw bryd -dyma wr bonedig ar ei geffyl at y drws ar noswaith loergan lleuad, -a hithau yn glawio 'chydig ag yn niwl braid, i 'nol yr hen wreigan at -ei wraig; ag felly aeth yn sgil y gwr dļarth ar gefn y march i Ros y -Cowrt. Ar ganol y Rhos pryd hynny 'r oed poncan lled uchel yn debyg i -hen amdiffynfa a llawer o gerrig mawrion ar ei phen a charned fawr o -gerrig yn yr ochor ogledol idi, ag mae hi i'w gwel'd hyd y dyd hedyw -dan yr enw Bryn y Pibion. Pan gyrhaedasan' y lle aethan' i ogo' fawr -ag aethan' i 'stafell lle'r oed y wraig yn ei gwely, a'r lle crandia' -a welod yr hen wraig yrioed. Ag fe roth y wraig yn ei gwely ag aeth at -y tan i drin y babi; ag ar ol idi orphen dyna y gwr yn dod a photel -i'r hen wraig i hiro llygaid y babi ag erfyn arni beidio a'i gyffwr' -a'i llygaid ei hun. Ond ryw fod ar ol rhoi y botel heibio fe daeth -cosfa ar lygaid yr hen wraig a rhwbiod ei llygaid ā'r un bys ag oed -wedi bod yn rhwbio llygaid y baban a gwelod hefo 'r llygad hwnnw -y wraig yn gorfed ar docyn o frwyn a rhedyn crinion mewn ogo' fawr -o gerrig mawr o bob tu idi a 'chydig bach o dan mewn rhiw gornel, -a gwelod mai Eilian oed hi, ei hen forwyn, ag hefo'r llygad arall yn -gwel'd y lle crandia' a welod yrioed. Ag yn mhen ychydig ar ol hynny -aeth i'r farchnad i Gaer'narfon a gwelod y gwr a gofynnod ido--'Pa -sud mae Eilian?' 'O y mae hi yn bur da,' medai wrth yr hen wraig: 'a -pha lygad yr ydych yn fy ngwel'd?' 'Hefo hwn,' medai hithau. Cymerod -babwyren ag a'i tynod allan ar unwaith. - -'An old man and his wife lived at the Garth Dorwen in some period -a long while ago. They went to Carnarvon to hire a servant maid at -the Allhallows' [79] fair; and it was the custom then for young men -and women who stood out for places to station themselves at the top -of the present Maes, by a little green eminence which was where the -present Post-office stands. The old man and his wife went to that -spot, and saw there a lass with yellow hair, standing a little apart -from all the others; the old woman went to her and asked her if she -wanted a place. She replied that she did, and so she hired herself at -once and came to her place at the time fixed. In those times it was -customary during the long winter nights that spinning should be done -after supper. Now the maid servant would go to the meadow to spin by -the light of the moon, and the Tylwyth Teg used to come to her to sing -and dance. But some time in the spring, when the days had grown longer, -Eilian escaped with the Tylwyth Teg, so that she was seen no more. The -field where she was last seen is to this day called Eilian's Field, -and the meadow is known as the Maid's Meadow. The old woman of Garth -Dorwen was in the habit of putting women to bed, and she was in great -request far and wide. Some time after Eilian's escape there came a -gentleman on horseback to the door one night when the moon was full, -while there was a slight rain and just a little mist, to fetch the -old woman to his wife. So she rode off behind the stranger on his -horse, and came to Rhos y Cowrt. Now there was at that time, in the -centre of the rhos, somewhat of a rising ground that looked like an -old fortification, with many big stones on the top, and a large cairn -of stones on the northern side: it is to be seen there to this day, -and it goes by the name of Bryn y Pibion, but I have never visited the -spot. When they reached the spot, they entered a large cave, and they -went into a room where the wife lay in her bed; it was the finest place -the old woman had seen in her life. When she had successfully brought -the wife to bed, she went near the fire to dress the baby; and when she -had done, the husband came to the old woman with a bottle of ointment -[80] that she might anoint the baby's eyes; but he entreated her not -to touch her own eyes with it. Somehow after putting the bottle by, -one of the old woman's eyes happened to itch, and she rubbed it with -the same finger that she had used to rub the baby's eyes. Then she -saw with that eye how the wife lay on a bundle of rushes and withered -ferns in a large cave, with big stones all round her, and with a little -fire in one corner; and she saw also that the lady was only Eilian, -her former servant girl, whilst, with the other eye, she beheld the -finest place she had ever seen. Not long afterwards the old midwife -went to Carnarvon to market, when she saw the husband, and said to -him, "How is Eilian?" "She is pretty well," said he to the old woman, -"but with what eye do you see me?" "With this one," was the reply; -and he took a bulrush and put her eye out at once.' - -That is exactly the tale, my informant tells me, as he heard it from -his mother, who heard it from an old woman who lived at Garth Dorwen -when his mother was a girl, about eighty-four years ago, as he guessed -it to have been; but in his written version he has omitted one thing -which he told me at Glynllifon, namely, that, when the servant girl -went out to the fairies to spin, an enormous amount of spinning used to -be done. I mention this as it reminds me of the tales of other nations, -where the girl who cannot spin straw into gold is assisted by a fairy, -on certain conditions which are afterwards found very inconvenient. It -may be guessed that in the case of Eilian the conditions involved her -becoming a fairy's wife, and that she kept to them. Lastly, I should -like the archęologists of Carnarvonshire to direct their attention to -Bryn y Pibion; for they might be expected to come across the remains -there of a barrow or of a fort. - - - - -III. - -The same summer I happened to meet the Rev. Robert Hughes, of Uwchlaw'r -Ffynnon, near Llanaelhaearn, a village on which Tre'r Ceiri, or the -Town of the Keiri, looks down in its primitive grimness from the -top of one of the three heights of the Eifl, or Rivals as English -people call them. The district is remarkable for the longevity of its -inhabitants, and Mr. Hughes counted fifteen farmers in his immediate -neighbourhood whose average age was eighty-three; and four years -previously the average age of eighteen of them was no less than -eighty-five. He himself was, when I met him, seventy-one years of -age, and he considered that he represented the traditions of more -than a century and a half, as he was a boy of twelve when one of his -grandfathers died at the age of ninety-two: the age reached by one -of his grandmothers was all but equal, while his father died only a -few years ago, after nearly reaching his ninety-fifth birthday. - -Story-telling was kept alive in the parish of Llanaelhaearn by the -institution known there as the pilnos, or peeling night, when the -neighbours met in one another's houses to spend the long winter -evenings dressing hemp and carding wool, though I guess that a -pilnos was originally the night when people met to peel rushes for -rushlights. When they left these merry meetings they were ready, as -Mr. Hughes says, to see anything. In fact, he gives an instance of some -people coming from a pilnos across the mountain from Nant Gwrtheyrn -to Llithfaen, and finding the fairies singing and dancing with all -their might: they were drawn in among them and found themselves left -alone in the morning on the heather. Indeed, Mr. Hughes has seen the -fairies himself: it was on the Pwllheli road, as he was returning in -the grey of the morning from the house of his fiancée when he was -twenty-seven. The fairies he saw came along riding on wee horses: -his recollection is that he now and then mastered his eyes and -found the road quite clear, but the next moment the vision would -return, and he thought he saw the diminutive cavalcade as plainly -as possible. Similarly, a man of the name of Solomon Evans, when, -thirty years ago, making his way home late at night through Glynllifon -Park, found himself followed by quite a crowd of little creatures, -which he described as being of the size of guinea pigs and covered -with red and white spots. He was an ignorant man, who knew no better -than to believe to the day of his death, some eight or nine years -ago, that they were demons. This is probably a blurred version of -a story concerning Cwn Annwn, 'Hell hounds,' such as the following, -published by Mr. O. M. Edwards in his Cymru for 1897, p. 190, from -Mr. J. H. Roberts' essay mentioned above at p. 148:--'Ages ago as -a man who had been engaged on business, not the most creditable in -the world, was returning in the depth of night across Cefn Creini, -and thinking in a downcast frame of mind over what he had been -doing, he heard in the distance a low and fear-inspiring bark; then -another bark, and another, and then half a dozen and more. Ere long -he became aware that he was being pursued by dogs, and that they were -Cwn Annwn. He beheld them coming: he tried to flee, but he felt quite -powerless and could not escape. Nearer and nearer they came, and he -saw the shepherd with them: his face was black and he had horns on -his head. They had come round him and stood in a semicircle ready to -rush upon him, when he had a remarkable deliverance: he remembered -that he had in his pocket a small cross, which he showed them. They -fled in the greatest terror in all directions, and this accounts for -the proverb, Mwy na'r cythraul at y groes (Any more than the devil -to the cross).' That is Mr. Roberts' story; but several allusions -have already been made to Cwn Annwn. It would be right probably to -identify them in the first instance with the pack with which Arawn, -king of Annwn, is found hunting by Pwyll, king of Dyfed, when the -latter happens to meet him in Glyn Cuch in his own realm. Then in a -poem in the Black Book of Carmarthen we find Gwyn ab Nūd with a pack -led by Dormarth, a hound with a red snout which he kept close to the -ground when engaged in the chase; similarly in the story of Iolo ab -Huw the dogs are treated as belonging to Gwyn. But on the whole the -later idea has more usually been, that the devil is the huntsman, -that his dogs give chase in the air, that their quarry consists of -the souls of the departed, and that their bark forebodes a death, -since they watch for the souls of men about to die. This, however, -might be objected to as pagan; so I have heard the finishing touch -given to it in the neighbourhood of Ystrad Meurig, by one who, like -Mr. Pughe, explained that it is the souls only of notoriously wicked -men and well-known evil livers. With this limitation the pack [81] -seems in no immediate danger of being regarded as poaching. - -To return to Llanaelhaearn, it is right to say that good spirits too, -who attend on good Calvinists, are there believed in. Morris Hughes, -of Cwm Corryn, was the first Calvinistic Methodist at Llanaelhaearn; -he was great-grandfather to Robert Hughes' wife; and he used to be -followed by two pretty little yellow birds. He would call to them, -'Wryd, Wryd!' and they would come and feed out of his hand, and -when he was dying they came and flapped their wings against his -window. This was testified to by John Thomas, of Moelfre Bach, who -was present at the time. Thomas died some twenty-five years ago, at -the age of eighty-seven. I have heard this story from other people, -but I do not know what to make of it, though I may add that the little -birds are believed to have been angels. In Mr. Rees' Welsh Saints, -pp. 305-6, Gwryd is given as the name of a friar who lived about the -end of the twelfth century, and has been commemorated on November 1; -and the author adds a note referring to the Cambrian Register for -1800, vol. iii. p. 221, where it is said that Gwryd relieved the bard -Einion ab Gwalchmai of some oppression, probably mental, which had -afflicted him for seven years. Is one to suppose that Gwryd sent two -angels in the form of little birds to protect the first Llanaelhaearn -Methodist? The call 'Wryd, Wryd,' would seem to indicate that the -name was not originally Gwryd, but Wryd, to be identified possibly -with the Pictish name Uoret in an inscription at St. Vigean's, -near Arbroath, and to be distinguished from the Welsh word gwryd, -'valour,' and from the Welsh name Gwriad, representing what in its -Gaulish form was Viriatus. We possibly have the name Wryd in Hafod -Wryd, a place in the Machno Valley above Bettws y Coed; otherwise one -would have expected Hafod y Gwryd, making colloquially, Hafod Gwryd. - -Mr. Hughes told me a variety of things about Nant Gwrtheyrn, one of the -spots where the Vortigern story is localized. The Nant is a sort of a -cul de sac hollow opening to the sea at the foot of the Eifl. There is -a rock there called Y Farches, and the angle of the sea next to the -old castle, which seems to be merely a mound, is called Y Llynclyn, -or 'The Whirlpool'; and this is perhaps an important item in the -localizing of Vortigern's city there. I was informed by Mr. Hughes -that the grave of Olfyn is in this Nant, with a razed church close by: -both are otherwise quite unknown to me. Coming away from this weird -spot to the neighbourhood of Celynnog, one finds that the Pennard -of the Mabinogi of Math is now called Pennarth, and has on it a -well-known cromlech. Of course, I did not leave Mr. Hughes without -asking him about Caer Arianrhod, and I found that he called it Tre' -Gaer Anrheg: he described it as a stony patch in the sea, and it can, -he says, be reached on foot when the ebb is at its lowest in spring -and autumn. The story he had heard about it when he was a boy at school -with David Thomas, better known by his bardic name of Dafyd Du Eryri, -was the following:-- - -'Tregaer Anrheg was inhabited by a family of robbers, and among -other things they killed and robbed a man at Glyn Iwrch, near the -further wall of Glynnllifon Park: this completed the measure of -their lawlessness. There was one woman, however, living with them at -Tregaer Anrheg, who was not related to them, and as she went out one -evening with her pitcher to fetch water, she heard a voice crying out, -Dos i ben y bryn i wel'd rhyfedod, that is, Go up the hill to see a -wonder. She obeyed, and as soon as she got to the top of the hill, -whereby was meant Dinas Dinlle, she beheld Tregaer Anrheg sinking in -the sea.' - -As I have wandered away from the fairies I may add the following -curious bit of legend which Mr. Hughes gave me:--'When St. Beuno -lived at Celynnog, he used to go regularly to preach at Llandwyn on -the opposite side of the water, which he always crossed on foot. But -one Sunday he accidentally dropped his book of sermons into the water, -and when he had failed to recover it a gylfin-hir, or curlew, came -by, picked it up, and placed it on a stone out of the reach of the -tide. The saint prayed for the protection and favour of the Creator -for the gylfin-hir: it was granted, and so nobody ever knows where -that bird makes its nest.' - - - - -IV. - -One day in August of the same summer I went to have another look -at the old inscribed stone at Gesail Gyfarch [82], near Tremadoc, -and, instead of returning the same way, I walked across to Criccieth -Station; but on my way I was directed to call at a farm house called -Llwyn y Mafon Uchaf, where I was to see Mr. Edward Llewelyn, a bachelor -then seventy-six years of age. He is a native of the neighbourhood, -and has always lived in it; moreover, he has now been for some time -blind. He had heard a good many fairy tales. Among others he mentioned -John Roberts, a slater from the Garn, that is Carn Dolbenmaen, as -having one day, when there was a little mist and a drizzling rain, -heard a crowd of fairies talking together in great confusion, near -a sheepfold on Llwytmor Mountain; but he was too much afraid to look -at them. He also told me of a man at Ystum Cegid, a farm not far off, -having married a fairy wife on condition that he was not to touch her -with any kind of iron on pain of her leaving him for ever. Then came -the usual accident in catching a horse in order to go to a fair at -Carnarvon, and the immediate disappearance of the wife. At this point -Mr. Llewelyn's sister interposed to the effect that the wife did once -return and address her husband in the rhyme, Os byd anwyd ar fy mab, -&c.: see pp. 44, 55 above. Then Mr. Llewelyn enumerated several people -who are of this family, among others a girl, who is, according to him, -exactly like the fairies. This made me ask what the fairies are like, -and he answered that they are small unprepossessing creatures, with -yellow skin and black hair. Some of the men, however, whom he traced -to a fairy origin are by no means of this description. The term there -for men of fairy descent is Belsiaid, and they live mostly in the -neighbouring parish of Pennant, where it would never do for me to -go and collect fairy tales, as I am told; and Mr. Llewelyn remembers -the fighting that used to take place at the fairs at Penmorfa if the -term Belsiaid once began to be heard. Mr. Llewelyn was also acquainted -with the tale of the midwife that went to a fairy family, and how the -thieving husband had deprived her of the use of one eye. He also spoke -of the fairies changing children, and how one of these changelings, -supposed to be a baby, expressed himself to the effect that he had -seen the acorn before the oak, and the egg before the chick, but -never anybody who brewed ale in an egg-shell: see p. 62 above. As to -modes of getting rid of the changelings, a friend of Mr. Llewelyn's -mentioned the story that one was once dropped into the Glaslyn river, -near Bedgelert. The sort of children the fairies liked were those -that were unlike their own; that is, bairns whose hair was white, or -inclined to yellow, and whose skin was fair. He had a great deal to say -of a certain Elis Bach of Nant Gwrtheyrn, who used to be considered -a changeling. With the exception of this changing of children the -fairies seemed to have been on fairly good terms with the inhabitants, -and to have been in the habit of borrowing from farm houses a padell -and gradell for baking. The gradell is a sort of round flat iron, -on which the dough is put, and the padell is the patella or pan put -over it: they are still commonly used for baking in North Wales. Well, -the fairies used to borrow these two articles, and by way of payment -to leave money on the hob at night. All over Lleyn the Tylwyth are -represented as borrowing padell a gradell. They seem to have never -been very strong in household furniture, especially articles made of -iron. Mr. Llewelyn had heard that the reason why people do not see -fairies nowadays is that they have been exorcised (wedi eu hoffrymu) -for hundreds of years to come. - -About the same time I was advised to try the memory of Miss Jane -Williams, who lives at the Graig, Tremadoc: she was then, as I was -told, seventy-five, very quick-witted, but by no means communicative -to idlers. The most important information she had for me was to the -effect that the Tylwyth Teg had been exorcised away (wedi 'ffrymu) -and would not be back in our day. When she was about twelve she served -at the Gelli between Tremadoc and Pont Aberglaslyn. Her master's -name was Siōn Ifan, and his wife was a native of the neighbourhood -of Carnarvon; she had many tales to tell them about the Tylwyth, -how they changed children, how they allured men to the fairy rings, -and how their dupes returned after a time in a wretched state, with -hardly any flesh on their bones. She heard her relate the tale of -a man who married a fairy, and how she left him; but before going -away from her husband and children she asked the latter by name which -they would like to have, a dirty cow-yard (buches fudur) or a clean -cow-yard (buches lān). Some gave the right answer, a dirty cow-yard, -but some said a clean cow-yard: the lot of the latter was poverty, -for they were to have no stock of cattle. The same question is asked in -a story recorded by the late Rev. Elias Owen, in his Welsh Folk-lore, -p. 82 [83]: his instance belongs to the neighbourhood of Pentrevoelas, -in Denbighshire. - - - - -V. - -When I was staying at Pwllheli the same summer, I went out to the -neighbouring village of Four Crosses, and found a native of the place, -who had heard a great many curious things from his mother. His name -was Lewis Jones: he was at the time over eighty, and he had formerly -been a saddler. Among other things, his mother often told him that her -grandmother had frequently been with the fairies, when the latter was -a child. She lived at Plās Du, and once she happened to be up near Carn -Bentyrch when she saw them. She found them resembling little children, -and playing in a brook that she had to cross. She was so delighted with -them, and stayed so long with them, that a search was made for her, -when she was found in the company of the fairies. Another time, they -met her as she was going on an errand across a large bog on a misty -day, when there was a sort of a drizzle, which one might call either -dew or rain, as it was not decidedly either, but something between the -two, such as the Welsh would call gwlithlaw, 'dew-rain.' She loitered -in their company until a search was made for her again. Lewis Jones -related to me the story of the midwife--he pronounced it in Welsh -'midwaith'--who attended on a fairy. As in the other versions, -she lost the sight of one eye in consequence of her discovering -the gentleman fairy thieving; but the fair at which this happened -was held in this instance at Nefyn. He related also how a farmer at -Pennant had wedded a fairy called Bella. This tale proceeded like the -other versions, and did not even omit the fighting at Penmorfa: see -pp. 89, 93, 220. He had likewise the tale about the two youths who had -gone out to fetch some cattle, and came, while returning about dusk, -across a party of fairies dancing. The one was drawn into the circle, -and the other was suspected at length of having murdered him, until, -at the suggestion of a wizard, he went to the same place at the end -of a year and a day: then he found him dancing, and managed to get -him out. He had been reduced to a mere skeleton, but he inquired at -once if the cattle he was driving were far ahead. Jones had heard of -a child changed by the fairies when its mother had placed it in some -hay while she worked at the harvest. She discovered he was not her -own by brewing in an egg-shell, as usual. Then she refused to take any -notice of him, and she soon found her own baby returned; but the latter -looked much the worse for its sojourn in the land of the Tylwyth Teg. - -My informant described to me Elis Bach of Nant Gwrtheyrn, already -mentioned, p. 221, who died somewhat more than forty years ago. His -father was a farmer there, and his children, both boys and girls, -were like ordinary folks, excepting Elis, who was deformed, his legs -being so short that his body seemed only a few inches from the ground -when he walked. His voice was also small and squeaky. However, he was -very sharp, and could find his way among the rocks pretty well when -he went in quest of his father's sheep and goats, of which there used -to be plenty there formerly. Everybody believed Elis to have been a -changeling, and one saying of his is still remembered in that part of -the country. When strangers visited Nant Gwrtheyrn, a thing which did -not frequently happen, and when his parents asked them to their table, -and pressed them to eat, he would squeak out drily, Buta 'nynna buta'r -cwbwl, that is to say, 'Eating that means eating all we have.' - -He told me further that the servant girls used formerly to take care -to bring a supply of water indoors at the approach of night, that the -fairies might find plenty in which to bathe their children, for fear -that they might use the milk instead, if water was wanting. Moreover, -when they had been baking, they took care to leave the fairies both -padell and gradell, that they might do their baking in the night. The -latter used to pay for this kindness by leaving behind them a cake of -fairy bread and sometimes money on the hob. I have, however, not been -able to learn anything about the quality or taste of this fairy food. - -He had also a great deal to say about the making of bonfires about the -beginning of winter. A bonfire was always kindled on the farm called -Cromlech on the eve of the Winter Calends or Nos Galan Gaeaf, as it -is termed in Welsh; and the like were to be seen in abundance towards -Llithfaen, Carnguwch, and Llanaelhaearn, as well as on the Merioneth -side of the bay. Besides fuel, each person present used to throw into -the fire a small stone, with a mark whereby he should know it again. If -he succeeded in finding the stone on the morrow, the year would be a -lucky one for him, but the contrary if he failed to recover it. Those -who assisted at the making of the bonfire watched until the flames were -out, and then somebody would raise the usual cry, when each ran away -for his life, lest he should be found last. This cry, which is a sort -of equivalent, well known over Carnarvonshire, of the English saying, -'The devil take the hindmost,' was in the Welsh of that county-- - - - Yr hwch du gwta [84] A gipio'r ola'; - - -that is to say, 'May the black sow without a tail seize the hindmost.' - -The cutty black sow is often alluded to nowadays to frighten children -in Arfon, and it is clearly the same creature that is described in -some parts of North Wales as follows:-- - - - Hwch du gwta A cutty black sow - Ar bob camfa On every stile, - Yn nydu a chardio Spinning and carding - Bob nos G'langaea'. Every Allhallows' Eve. - - -In Cardiganshire this is reduced to the words:-- - - - Nos Galan Gaea', On Allhallows' Eve - Bwbach ar bob camfa. A bogie on every stile. - - -Welsh people speak of only three Calends--Calan-mai, or the first of -May; Calan-gaeaf, the Calends of Winter, or Allhallows; and Y Calan, -or The Calends par excellence, that is to say, the first day of -January, which last is probably not Celtic but Roman. The other two -most certainly are, and it is one of their peculiarities that all -uncanny spirits and bogies are at liberty the night preceding each -of them. The Hwch du gwta is at large on Allhallows' Eve, and the -Scottish Gaels have the name 'Samhanach' for any Allhallows' demon, -formed from the word Samhain, Allhallows. The eve of the first of May -may be supposed to have been the same, as may be gathered from the -story of Rhiannon's baby and of Teyrnon's colt, both of which were -stolen by undescribed demons that night--I allude to the Mabinogi of -Pwyll, Prince of Dyfed. - - - - -VI. - -At Nefyn, in Lleyn [85], I had some stories about the Tylwyth Teg from -Lowri Hughes, the widow of John Hughes, who lives in a cottage at Pen -Isa'r Dref, and is over seventy-four years of age. An aunt of hers, -who knew a great many tales, had died about six years before my visit, -at the advanced age of ninety-six. She used to relate to Lowri how the -Tylwyth were in the habit of visiting Singrug, a house now in ruins -on the land of Pen Isa'r Dref, and how they had a habit of borrowing -a padell and gradell for baking: they paid for the loan of them by -giving their owners a loaf. Her grandmother, who died not long ago -at a very advanced age, remembered a time when she was milking in a -corner of the land of Carn Bodüan, and how a little dog came to her -and received a blow from her that sent it rolling away. Presently, -she added, the dog reappeared with a lame man playing on a fiddle; -but she gave them no milk. If she had done so, there was no knowing, -she said, how much money she might have got. But, as it was, such -singing and dancing were indulged in by the Tylwyth around the lame -fiddler that she ran away as fast as her feet could carry her. Lowri's -husband had also seen the Tylwyth at the break of day, near Madrun -Mill, where they seem to have been holding a sort of conversazione; -but presently one of them observed that he had heard the voice of the -hen's husband, and off they went instantly then. The fairies were in -the habit also of dancing and singing on the headland across which lie -the old earthworks called Dinllaen. When they had played and enjoyed -themselves enough, they used to lift a certain bit of sod and descend -to their own land. My informant had also heard the midwife story, -and she was aware that the fairies changed people's children; in -fact, she mentioned to me a farm house not far off where there was a -daughter of this origin then, not to mention that she knew all about -Elis Bach. Another woman whom I met near Porth Dinllaen said, that the -Dinllaen fairies were only seen when the weather was a little misty. - -At Nefyn, Mr. John Williams (Alaw Lleyn) got from his mother the -tale of the midwife. It stated that the latter lost the sight of her -right eye at Nefyn Fair, owing to the fairy she there recognized, -pricking her eye with a green rush. During my visit to Aberdaron, -my wife and I went to the top of Mynyd Anelog, and on the way up -we passed a cottage, where a very illiterate woman told us that the -Tylwyth Teg formerly frequented the mountain when there was mist on -it; that they changed people's children if they were left alone on the -ground; and that the way to get the right child back was to leave the -fairy urchin without being touched or fed. She also said that, after -baking, people left the gradell for the fairies to do their baking: -they would then leave a cake behind them as pay. As for the fairies -just now, they have been exorcised (wedi'ffrymu) for some length of -time. Mrs. Williams, of Pwll Defaid, told me that the rock opposite, -called Clip y Gylfinir, on Bodwydog mountain, a part of Mynyd y Rhiw, -was the resort of the Tylwyth Teg, and that they revelled there -when it was covered with mist; she added that a neighbouring farm, -called Bodermud Isa', was well known at one time as a place where -the fairies came to do their baking. But the most remarkable tale I -had in the neighbourhood of Aberdaron was from Evan Williams, a smith -who lives at Yr Ard Las, on Rhos Hirwaen. If I remember rightly, he -is a native of Llaniestin, and what he told me relates to a farmer's -wife who lived at the Nant, in that parish. Now this old lady was -frequently visited by a fairy who used to borrow padell a gradell from -her. These she used to get, and she returned them with a loaf borne -on her head in acknowledgement. But one day she came to ask for the -loan of her troell bach, or wheel for spinning flax. When handing her -this, the farmer's wife wished to know her name, as she came so often, -but she refused to tell her. However, she was watched at her spinning, -and overheard singing to the whir of the wheel:-- - - - Bychan a wyda' hi Little did she know - Mai Sģli go Dwt That Silly go Dwt - Yw f'enw i. Is my name. - - -This explains to some extent the sģli ffrit sung by a Corwrion fairy -when she came out of the lake to spin: see p. 64 above. At first I -had in vain tried to make out the meaning of that bit of legend; but -since then I have also found the Llaniestin rhyme a little varied -at Llanberis: it was picked up there, I do not exactly know how, -by my little girls this summer. The words as they have them run thus:-- - - - Bychan a wyda' hi - Mai Trwtyn-Tratyn - Yw f'enw i. - - -Here, instead of Sģli go Dwt or Sģli ffrit, the name is Trwtyn-Tratyn, -and these doggerels at once remind one of the tale of Rumpelstiltzchen; -but it is clear that we have as yet only the merest fragments of the -whole, though I have been thus far unable to get any more. So one -cannot quite say how far it resembled the tale of Rumpelstiltzchen: -there is certainly one difference, which is at once patent, namely, -that while the German Rumpelstiltzchen was a male fairy, our Welsh Sģli -ffrit or Sģli go Dwt is of the other sex. Probably, in the Llaniestin -tale, the borrowing for baking had nothing to do with the spinning, -for all fairies in Lleyn borrow a padell and a gradell, while they -do not usually appear to spin. Then may we suppose that the spinning -was in this instance done for the farmer's wife on conditions which -she was able to evade by discovering the fairy helper's name? At -any rate one expects a story representing the farmer's wife laid -under obligation by the fairy, and not the reverse. I shall have an -opportunity of returning to this kind of tale in chapter x. - -The smith told me another short tale, about a farmer who lived not long -ago at Deunant, close to Aberdaron. The latter used, as is the wont -of country people, to go out a few steps in front of his house every -night to ---- before going to bed; but once on a time, while he was -standing there, a stranger stood by him and spoke to him, saying that -he had no idea how he and his family were annoyed by him. The farmer -asked how that could be, to which the stranger replied that his house -was just below where they stood, and if he would only stand on his -foot he would see that what he said was true. The farmer complying, -put his foot on the other's foot, and then he could clearly see that -all the slops from his house went down the chimney of the other's -house, which stood far below in a street he had never seen before. The -fairy then advised him to have his door in the other side of his house, -and that if he did so his cattle would never suffer from the clwy' byr -[86]. The result was that the farmer obeyed, and had his door walled -up and another made in the other side of the house: ever after he was -a most prosperous man, and nobody was so successful as he in rearing -stock in all that part of the country. To place the whole thing beyond -the possibility of doubt, Evan Williams assured me that he had often -seen the farmer's house with the front door in the back. I mention this -strange story in order to compare it, in the matter of standing on the -fairy's foot, with that of standing with one's foot just inside a fairy -ring. Compare also standing on a particular sod in Dyfed in order to -behold the delectable realm of Rhys Dwfn's Children: see p. 158 above. - - - - -VII. - -Soon afterwards I went to the neighbourhood of Aber Soch and Llanengan, -where I was lucky enough to find Professor Owen of St. David's College, -Lampeter, since appointed Bishop of St. David's, on a visit to his -native place. He took me round to those of the inhabitants who were -thought most likely to have tales to tell; but I found nothing about -the fairies except the usual story of their borrowing padell a gradell, -and of their changing children. However, one version I heard of the -process of recovering the stolen child differs from all others known -to me: it was given us by Margaret Edwards, of Pentre Bach, whose -age was then eighty-seven. It was to the effect that the mother, -who had been given a fairy infant, was to place it on the floor, -and that all those present in the house should throw a piece of iron -at it. This she thought was done with the view of convincing the -Tylwyth Teg of the intention to kill the changeling, and in order to -induce them to bring the right child back. The plan was, we are told, -always successful, and it illustrates, to my thinking, the supposed -efficacy of iron against the fairies. - -On the way to Aber Soch I passed by an old-fashioned house which -has all the appearance of having once been a place of considerable -importance; and on being told that its name is Castellmarch, I began -thinking of March ab Meirchion mentioned in the Triads. He, I had long -been convinced, ought to be the Welsh reflex of Labhraidh Lorc, or the -Irish king with horse's ears; and the corresponding Greek character -of Midas with ass's ears is so well known that I need not dwell on -it. So I undertook to question various people in the neighbourhood -about the meaning of the name of Castellmarch. Most of them analysed -it into Castell y March, the 'Castle of the Steed,' and explained -that the knight of the shire or some other respectable obscurity kept -his horses there. This treatment of the word is not very decidedly -countenanced by the pronunciation, which makes the name into one word -strongly accented on the middle syllable. It was further related to me -how Castellmarch was once upon a time inhabited by a very wicked and -cruel man, one of whose servants, after being very unkindly treated -by him, ran away and went on board a man-of-war. Some time afterwards -the man-of-war happened to be in Cardigan Bay, and the runaway servant -persuaded the captain of the vessel to come and anchor in the Tudwal -Roads. Furthermore he induced him to shell his old master's mansion; -and the story is regarded as proved by the old bullets now and then -found at Castellmarch. It has since been suggested to me that the -bullets are evidence of an attack on the place during the Civil War, -which is not improbable. But having got so far as to find that there -was a wicked, cruel man associated with Castellmarch, I thought I -should at once hear the item of tradition which I was fishing for; -but not so: it was not to be wormed out in a hurry. However, after -tiring a very old blacksmith, whose memory was far gone, with my -questions, and after he had in his turn tired me with answers of the -kind I have already described, I ventured to put it to him at last -whether he had never heard some very silly tale about the lord of -Castellmarch, to the effect that he was not quite like other men. He -at once admitted that he had heard it said that he had horse's ears, -but that he would never have thought of repeating such nonsense to -me. This is not a bad instance of the difficulty which one has in -eliciting this sort of tradition from the people. It is true that, as -far as regards Castellmarch, nothing, as it happens, would have been -lost if I had failed at Aber Soch, for I got the same information later -at Sarn Fyllteyrn; not to mention that after coming back to my books, -and once more turning over the leaves of the Brython, I was delighted -to find the tale there. It occurs at p. 431 of the volume for 1860. It -is given with several other interesting bits of antiquity, and at the -end the editor has put 'Edward Llwyd, 1693'; so I suppose the whole -comes from letters emanating from the great Lhwyd, for so, or rather -Lhuyd, he preferred to write his name. It is to the following effect:-- - -One of Arthur's warriors, whose name was March (or Parch) Amheirchion -[87], was lord of Castellmarch in Lleyn. This man had horse's ears -(resembling Midas), and lest anybody should know it, he used to kill -every man he sought to shave his beard, for fear lest he should not -be able to keep the secret; and on the spot where he was wont to -bury the bodies there grew reeds, one of which somebody cut to make -a pipe. The pipe would give no other sound than 'March Amheirchion -has horse's ears.' When the warrior heard this, he would probably -have killed the innocent man on that account, if he had not himself -failed to make the pipe produce any other sound. But after hearing -where the reed had grown, he made no further effort to conceal either -the murders or his ears. This story of Edward Llwyd's clearly goes -back to a time when some kind of a pipe was the favourite musical -instrument in North Wales, and not the harp. - - - - -VIII. - -Some time ago I was favoured with a short but interesting tale -by Mr. Evan Lloyd Jones, of Dinorwig, near Llanberis. Mr. Lloyd -Jones, I may here mention, published not long ago, in Llais y Wlad -(Bangor, North Wales), and in the Drych (Utica, United States of -North America), a series of articles entitled Llen y Werin yn Sir -Gaernarfon, or the Folklore of Carnarvonshire. I happened to see -it at a friend's house, and I found at once that the writer was -passionately fond of antiquities, and in the habit of making use -of the frequent opportunities he has in the Dinorwig quarries for -gathering information as to what used to be believed by the people of -Arfon and Anglesey. The tale about to be given relates to a lake called -Marchlyn Mawr, or the Great Horse-lake, for there are two lakes called -Marchlyn: they lie near one another, between the Fronllwyd, in the -parish of Llandegai, and the Elidyr, in the parishes of Llandeiniolen -and Llanberis. Mr. Lloyd Jones shall tell his tale in his own words:-- - -Amgylchynir y Marchlyn Mawr gan greigiau erchyll yr olwg arnynt; -a dywed tradodiad darfod i un o feibion y Rhiwen [88] unwaith tra yn -cynorthwyo dafad oed wedi syrthio i'r creigiau i dod odiyno, darganfod -ogof anferth: aeth i fewn idi a gwelod ei bod yn llawn o drysorau ac -arfau gwerthfawr; ond gan ei bod yn dechreu tywyllu, a dringo i fynu yn -orchwyl anhawd hyd yn nod yn ngoleu'r dyd, aeth adref y noswaith honno, -a boreu drannoeth ar lasiad y dyd cychwynnod eilwaith i'r ogof, ac heb -lawer o drafferth daeth o hyd idi: aeth i fewn, a dechreuod edrych o'i -amgylch ar y trysorau oed yno:--Ar ganol yr ogof yr oed bwrd enfawr -o aur pur, ac ar y bwrd goron o aur a pherlau: deallod yn y fan mai -coron a thrysorau Arthur oedynt--nesaod at y bwrd, a phan oed yn estyn -ei law i gymeryd gafael yn y goron dychrynwyd ef gan drwst erchyll, -trwst megys mil o daranau yn ymrwygo uwch ei ben ac aeth yr holl le -can dywylled a'r afagdu. Ceisiod ymbalfalu odiyno gynted ag y gallai; -pan lwydod i gyrraed i ganol y creigiau taflod ei olwg ar y llyn, -yr hwn oed wedi ei gynhyrfu drwydo a'i donnau brigwynion yn cael eu -lluchio trwy daned ysgythrog y creigiau hyd y man yr oed efe yn sefyll -arno; ond tra yr oed yn parhau i syllu ar ganol y llyn gwelai gwrwgl -a thair o'r benywod prydferthaf y disgynod llygad unrhyw dyn arnynt -erioed yndo yn cael ei rwyfo yn brysur tuag at enau yr ogof. Ond -och! yr oed golwg ofnadwy yr hwn oed yn rhwyfo yn digon i beri iasau -o fraw trwy y dyn cryfaf. Gallod y llanc rywfod dianc adref ond ni -fu iechyd yn ei gyfansodiad ar ol hynny, a bydai hyd yn nod crybwyll -enw y Marchlyn yn ei glywedigaeth yn digon i'w yrru yn wallgof. - -'The Marchlyn Mawr is surrounded by rocks terrible to look at, and -tradition relates how one of the sons of the farmer of Rhiwen, once -on a time, when helping a sheep that had fallen among the rocks to -get away, discovered a tremendous cave there; he entered, and saw -that it was full of treasures and arms of great value; but, as it -was beginning to grow dark, and as clambering back was a difficult -matter even in the light of day, he went home that evening, and next -morning with the grey dawn he set out again for the cave, when he -found it without much trouble. He entered, and began to look about -him at the treasures that were there. In the centre of the cave stood -a huge table of pure gold, and on the table lay a crown of gold and -pearls. He understood at once that they were the crown and treasures -of Arthur. He approached the table, and as he stretched forth his -hand to take hold of the crown he was frightened by an awful noise, -the noise, as it were, of a thousand thunders bursting over his head, -and the whole place became as dark as Tartarus. He tried to grope -and feel his way out as fast as he could. When he had succeeded in -reaching to the middle of the rocks, he cast his eye on the lake, -which had been stirred all through, while its white-crested waves -dashed through the jagged teeth of the rocks up to the spot on which -he stood. But as he continued looking at the middle of the lake he -beheld a coracle containing three women, the fairest that the eye of -man ever fell on. They were being quickly rowed to the mouth of the -cave; but the dread aspect of him who rowed was enough to send thrills -of horror through the strongest of men. The youth was able somehow to -escape home, but no health remained in his constitution after that, -and even the mere mention of the Marchlyn in his hearing used to be -enough to make him insane.' - -Mr. Lloyd Jones appends to the tale a note to the following -effect:--There is a small eminence on the shore of the Marchlyn -Mawr, in the parish of Llandegai, called Bryn Cwrwgl, or the 'Hill -of the Coracle'; and Ogof y Marchlyn, or the 'Marchlyn Cave,' is a -name familiar enough to everybody in these neighbourhoods. There -were some--unless he ought to say that there still are some--who -believed that there was abundance of treasure in the cave. Several -young men from the quarries, both of the Cae and of Dinorwig, have -been in the midst of the Marchlyn rocks, searching for the cave, -and they succeeded in making their way into a cave. They came away, -however, without the treasures. One old man, Robert Edwards (Iorwerth -Sardis), used to tell him that he and several others had brought -ropes from the quarry to go into the cave, but that they found no -treasure. So far, I have given the substance of Mr. Jones' words, -to which I would add the following statement, which I have from a -native of Dinorwig:--About seventy years ago, when the gentry were -robbing the poor of these districts of their houses and of the lands -which the latter had enclosed out of the commons, an old woman called -Siān William of the Garned was obliged to flee from her house with -her baby--the latter was known later in life as the Rev. Robert Ellis, -of Ysgoldy--in her arms. It was in one of the Marchlyn caves that she -found refuge for a day and night. Another kind of tale connected with -the Marchlyn Mawr is recorded in the Powys-land Club's Collections, -Hist. and Arch., vol. xv. p. 137, by the Rev. Elias Owen, to the effect -that 'a man who was fishing in the lake found himself enveloped in the -clouds that had descended from the hills to the water. A sudden gust -of wind cleared a road through the mist that hung over the lake, and -revealed to his sight a man busily engaged in thatching a stack. The -man, or rather the fairy, stood on a ladder. The stack and ladder -rested on the surface of the lake.' - - - - -IX. - -Mr. E. S. Roberts, of Llandysilio School, near Llangollen (p. 138), -has sent me more bits of legends about the fairies. He heard the -following from Mr. Thomas Parry, of Tan y Coed Farm, who had heard -it from his father, the late Evan Parry, and the latter from Thomas -Morris, of Eglwyseg, who related it to him more than once:--Thomas -Morris happened to be returning home from Llangollen very late on one -Saturday night in the middle of the summer, and by the time he reached -near home the day had dawned, when he saw a number of the Tylwyth -Teg with a dog walking about hither and thither on the declivity of -the Eglwyseg Rocks, which hung threateningly overhead. When he had -looked at them for some minutes, he directed his steps towards them; -but as they saw him approaching they hid themselves, as he thought, -behind a large stone. On reaching the spot, he found under the stone -a hole by which they had made their way into their subterranean -home. So ends the tale as related to Mr. Roberts. It is remarkable -as representing the fairies looking rather like poachers; but there -are not wanting others which speak of their possessing horses and -greyhounds, as all gentlemen were supposed to. - -One of Mr. Roberts' tales is in point: he had it from Mr. Hugh -Francis [89], of Holyhead House, Ruthin, and the latter heard it -from Robert Roberts, of Amlwch, who has now been dead about thirty -years:--About 105 years ago there lived in the parish of Llandyfrydog, -near Llannerch y Med, in Anglesey, a man named Ifan Gruffyd, whose cow -happened to disappear one day. Ifan Gruffyd was greatly distressed, -and he and his daughter walked up and down the whole neighbourhood -in search of her. As they were coming back in the evening from their -unsuccessful quest, they crossed the field called after the Dyfrydog -thief, Cae Lleidr Dyfrydog, where they saw a great number of little -men on ponies quickly galloping in a ring. They both drew nigh to -look on; but Ifan Gruffyd's daughter, in her eagerness to behold the -little knights more closely, got unawares within the circle in which -their ponies galloped, and did not return to her father. The latter -now forgot all about the loss of the cow, and spent some hours in -searching for his daughter; but at last he had to go home without her, -in the deepest sadness. A few days afterwards he went to Mynadwyn to -consult John Roberts, who was a magician of no mean reputation. That -'wise man' told Ifan Gruffyd to be no longer sad, since he could get -his daughter back at the very hour of the night of the anniversary of -the time when he lost her. He would, in fact, then see her riding round -in the company of the Tylwyth Teg whom he had seen on that memorable -night. The father was to go there accompanied by four stalwart men, -who were to aid him in the rescue of his daughter. He was to tie a -strong rope round his waist, and by means of this his friends were to -pull him out of the circle when he entered to seize his daughter. He -went to the spot, and in due time he beheld his daughter riding round -in great state. In he rushed and snatched her, and, thanks to his -friends, he got her out of the fairy ring before the little men had -time to think of it. The first thing Ifan's daughter asked him was, -if he had found the cow, for she had not the slightest reckoning of -the time she had spent with the fairies. - -Whilst I am about it, I may as well go through Mr. Roberts' -contributions. The next is also a tale related to him by Mr. Hugh -Francis, and, like the last, it comes from Anglesey. Mr. Francis' -great-grandfather was called Robert Francis, and he had a mill at -Aberffraw about 100 years ago; and the substance of the following tale -was often repeated in the hearing of Mr. Roberts' informant by his -father and his grandfather:--In winter Robert Francis used to remain -very late at work drying corn in his kiln. As it was needful to keep -a steady fire going, he used to go backwards and forwards from the -house, looking after it not unfrequently until it was two o'clock -in the morning. Once on a time he happened to leave a cauldron full -of water on the floor of the kiln, and great was his astonishment on -returning to find two little people washing themselves in the water. He -abstained from entering to disturb them, and went back to the house to -tell his wife of it. 'Oh,' said she, 'they are fairies.' He presently -went back to the kiln and found that they were gone. He fancied they -were man and wife. However, they had left the place very clean, and -to crown all, he found a sum of money left by them to pay him, as he -supposed, for the water and the use of the kiln. The ensuing night many -more fairies came to the kiln, for the visitors of the previous night -had brought their children with them; and the miller found them busy -bathing them and looking very comfortable in the warm room where they -were. The pay that night was also more considerable than the night -before, as the visitors were more numerous. After this the miller -never failed to leave a vessel full of water in the kiln every night, -and the fairies availed themselves of it for years, until, in fact, -they took offence at the miller telling the neighbours of the presents -of money which had been left him in the kiln. Thenceforth no fairies -were known to frequent the kiln belonging to the Aberffraw mill. - -The last tale communicated to me by Mr. Roberts is the following, -which he elicited from Margaret Davies, his housekeeper, by reading -to her some of the fairy legends published in the Cymmrodor a short -while ago--probably the Corwrion series, one of which bears great -resemblance to hers. Mrs. Davies, who is sixty-one years of age, says -that when her parents, Edward and Ann Williams, lived at Rhoslydan, -near Bryneglwys, in Yale, some seventy-five years ago, the servant -man happened one day in the spring to be ploughing in a field near -the house. As he was turning his team back at one end of the field, -he heard some one calling out from the other end, Y mae eisieu hoelen -yn y pģl, or 'The peel wants a nail'; for pģl is the English peel, -a name given to a sort of shovel provided with a long handle for -placing loaves in an oven, and for getting them out again. When at -length the ploughman had reached the end of the field whence he guessed -the call to have proceeded, he there saw a small peel, together with -a hammer and a nail, under the hedge. He saw that the peel required -a nail to keep it together, and as everything necessary for mending -it were there ready to hand, he did as it had been suggested. Then -he followed at the plough-tail until he came round again to the same -place, and there he this time saw a cake placed for him on the spot -where he had previously found the peel and the other things, which -had now disappeared. When the servant related this to his master, he -told him at once that it was one of the Tylwyth Teg of that locality -that had called out to him. With this should be compared the story -of the man who mended a fairy's plough vice: see p. 64 above. - - - - -X. - -Early this year I had occasion to visit the well-known Hengwrt Library -at Peniarth, and during my stay there Mr. Wynne very kindly took -me to see such of the Llanegryn people as were most likely to have -somewhat to say about the fairies. Many of the inhabitants had heard -of them, but they had no long tales about them. One man, however, -told me of a William Pritchard, of Pentre Bach, near Llwyngwryl, -who died at sixty, over eighty years ago, and of a Rhys Williams, the -clerk of Llangelynin, how they were going home late at night from a -cock-fight at Llanegryn, and how they came across the fairies singing -and dancing on a plot of ground known as Gwastad Meirionyd, 'the Plain -of Merioneth,' on the way from Llwyngwryl to Llanegryn. It consists, -I am told by Mr. Robert Roberts of Llanegryn, of no more than some -twenty square yards, outside which one has a good view of Cardigan -Bay and the heights of Merioneth and Carnarvonshire, while from the -Gwastad itself neither sea nor mountain is visible. On this spot, -then, the belated cockfighters were surrounded by the fairies. They -swore at the fairies and took to their heels, but they were pursued -as far as Clawd Du. Also I was told that Elen Egryn, the authoress, -some sixty years ago, of some poetry called Telyn Egryn, had also seen -fairies in her youth, when she used to go up the hills to look after -her father's sheep. This happened near a little brook, from which she -could see the sea when the sun was in the act of sinking in it; then -many fairies would come out dancing and singing, and also crossing -and re-crossing the little brook. It was on the side of Rhiwfelen, -and she thought the little folks came out of the brook somewhere. She -had been scolded for talking about the fairies, but she firmly believed -in them to the end of her life. This was told me by Mr. W. Williams, -the tailor, who is about sixty years of age; and also by Mr. Rowlands, -the ex-bailiff of Peniarth, who is about seventy-five. I was moreover -much interested to discover at Llanegryn a scrap of kelpie story, -which runs as follows, concerning Llyn Gwernen, situated close to -the old road between Dolgelley and Llanegryn:-- - -As a man from the village of Llanegryn was returning in the dusk of -the evening across the mountain from Dolgelley, he heard, when hard -by Llyn Gwernen, a voice crying out from the water:-- - - - Daeth yr awr ond ni daeth y dyn! - - The hour is come but the man is not! - - -As the villager went on his way a little distance, what should meet -him but a man of insane appearance, and with nothing on but his -shirt. As he saw the man making full pelt for the waters of the lake, -he rushed at him to prevent him from proceeding any further. But as -to the sequel there is some doubt: one version makes the villager -conduct the man back about a mile from the lake to a farm house -called Dyffrydan, which was on the former's way home. Others seem to -think that the man in his shirt rushed irresistibly into the lake, -and this I have no doubt comes nearer the end of the story in its -original form. Lately I have heard a part of a similar story about -Llyn Cynnwch, which has already been mentioned, p. 135, above. My -informant is Miss Lucy Griffith, of Glynmalden, near Dolgelley, -a lady deeply interested in Welsh folklore and Welsh antiquities -generally. She obtained her information from a Dolgelley ostler, -formerly engaged at the Ship Hotel, to the effect that on Gwyl Galan, -'the eve of New Year's Day,' a person is seen walking backwards and -forwards on the strand of Cynnwch Lake, crying out:-- - - - Mae'r awr wedi dyfod a'r dyn heb dyfod! - - The hour is come while the man is not! - - -The ostler stated also that lights are to be seen on Cader Idris -on the eve of New Year's Day, whatever that statement may mean. The -two lake stories seem to suggest that the Lake Spirit was entitled -to a victim once a year, whether the sacrifice was regarded as the -result of accident or design. By way of comparison, one may mention -the notion, not yet extinct, that certain rivers in various parts -of the kingdom regularly claim so many victims: for some instances -at random see an article by Mr. J. M. Mackinlay, on Traces of River -Worship in Scottish Folklore, a paper published in the Proceedings -of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, 1895-6, pp. 69-76. Take -for example the following rhyme:-- - - - Blood-thirsty Dee - Each year needs three; - - But bonny Don - She needs none. - - -Or this:-- - - - Tweed said to Till - 'What gars ye rin sae still?' - Till said to Tweed - 'Though ye rin wi' speed - - An' I rin slaw, - Yet whar ye droon ae man - I droon twa.' - - - - -XI. - -In the neighbourhood of Ystrad Meurig, between the Teifi and the -Ystwyth basins, almost everybody can relate tales about the fairies, -but not much that is out of the ordinary run of such stories -elsewhere. Among others, Isaac Davies, the smith living at Ystrad -Meurig, had heard a great deal about fairies, and he said that there -were rings belonging to them in certain fields at Tan y Graig and -at Llanafan. Where the rings were, there the fairies danced until -the ground became red and bare of grass. The fairies were, according -to him, all women, and they dressed like foreigners, in short cotton -dresses reaching only to the knee-joint. This description is somewhat -peculiar, as the idea prevalent in the country around is, that the -fairy ladies had very long trains, and that they were very elegantly -dressed; so that it is a common saying there, that girls who dress -in a better or more showy fashion than ordinary look like Tylwyth -Teg, and the smith confessed he had often heard that said. Similarly -Howells, pp. 113, 121-2, finds the dresses of the fairies dancing -on the Freni, in the north-east of Pembrokeshire, represented as -indescribably elegant and varying in colour; and those who, in the -month of May, used to frequent the prehistoric encampment of Moedin -[90] or Moydin--from which a whole cantred takes its name in Central -Cardiganshire--as fond of appearing in green; while blue petticoats -are said, he says, to have prevailed in the fairy dances in North Wales -[91]. - -Another showed me a spot on the other side of the Teifi, where the -Tylwyth Teg had a favourite spot for dancing; and at the neighbouring -village of Swyd Ffynnon, another meadow was pointed out as their resort -on the farm of Dōl Bydyė. According to one account I had there, the -fairies dressed themselves in very long clothes, and when they danced -they took hold of one another's enormous trains. Besides the usual -tales concerning men enticed into the ring and retained in Faery for a -year and a day, and concerning the fairies' dread of pren cerdingen or -mountain ash, I had the midwife tale in two or three forms, differing -more or less from the versions current in North Wales. For the most -complete of them I am indebted to one of the young men studying at -the Grammar School, Mr. D. Lledrodian Davies. It used to be related -by an old woman who died some thirty years ago at the advanced age of -about 100. She was Pąli, mother of old Rachel Evans, who died seven or -eight years ago, when she was about eighty. The latter was a curious -character, who sometimes sang maswed, or rhymes of doubtful propriety, -and used to take the children of the village to see fairy rings. She -also used to see the Tylwyth, and had many tales to tell of them. But -her mother, Pąli, had actually been called to attend at the confinement -of one of them. The beginning of the tale is not very explicit; but, -anyhow, Pąli one evening found herself face to face with the fairy -lady she was to attend upon. She appeared to be the wife of one of -the princes of the country. She was held in great esteem, and lived -in a very grand palace. Everything there had been arranged in the -most beautiful and charming fashion. The wife was in her bed with -nothing about her but white, and she fared sumptuously. In due time, -when the baby had been born, the midwife had all the care connected -with dressing it and serving its mother. Pąli could see or hear nobody -in the whole place but the mother and the baby. She had no idea who -attended on them, or who prepared all the things they required, for -it was all done noiselessly and secretly. The mother was a charming -person, of an excellent temper and easy to manage. Morning and evening, -as she finished washing the baby, Pąli had a certain ointment given -her to rub the baby with. She was charged not to touch it but with -her hand, and especially not to put any near her eyes. This was -carried out for some time, but one day, as she was dressing the baby, -her eyes happened to itch, and she rubbed them with her hand. Then -at once she saw a great many wonders she had not before perceived; -and the whole place assumed a new aspect to her. She said nothing, -and in the course of the day she saw a great deal more. Among other -things, she observed small men and small women going in and out, -following a variety of occupations. But their movements were as light -as the morning breeze. To move about was no trouble to them, and they -brought things into the room with the greatest quickness. They prepared -dainty food for the confined lady with the utmost order and skill, -and the air of kindness and affection with which they served her -was truly remarkable. In the evening, as she was dressing the baby, -the midwife said to the lady, 'You have had a great many visitors -to-day.' To this she replied, 'How do you know that? Have you been -putting the ointment to your eyes?' Thereupon she jumped out of bed, -and blew into her eyes, saying, 'Now you will see no more.' She never -afterwards could see the fairies, however much she tried, nor was -the ointment entrusted to her after that day. According, however, -to another version which I heard, she was told, on being found out, -not to apply the ointment to her eyes any more. She promised she -would not; but the narrator thought she broke that promise, as she -continued to see the fairies as long as she lived. - -Mr. D. Ll. Davies has also a version like the North Wales ones. He -obtained it from a woman of seventy-eight at Bronnant, near -Aberystwyth, who had heard it from one of her ancestors. According to -her, the midwife went to the fair called Ffair Rhos, which was held -between Ystrad Meurig and Pont Rhyd Fendigaid [92]. There she saw a -great many of the Tylwyth very busily engaged, and among others the -lady she had been attending upon. That being so, she walked up to -her and saluted her. The fairy lady angrily asked how she saw her, -and spat in her face, which had the result of putting an end for ever -to her power of seeing her or anybody of her race. - -The same aged woman at Bronnant has communicated to Mr. D. Ll. Davies -another tale which differs from all those of the same kind that I -happen to know of. On a certain day in spring the farmer living at ---- -(Mr. Davies does not remember the name of the farm) lost his calves; -and the servant man and the servant girl went out to look for them, -but as they were both crossing a marshy flat, the man suddenly missed -the girl. He looked for her, and as he could not see her he concluded -that she was playing a trick on him. However, after much shouting and -searching about the place, he began to think that she must have found -her way home, so he turned back and asked if the girl had come in, -when he found to his surprise that nobody had seen her come back. The -news of her being lost caused great excitement in the country around, -since many suspected that he had for some reason put an end to her -life: some accounted for it in this way, and some in another. But as -nothing could be found out about her, the servant man was taken into -custody on the charge of having murdered her. He protested with all -his heart, and no evidence could be produced that he had killed the -girl. Now, as some had an idea that she had gone to the fairies, it -was resolved to send to 'the wise man' (Y dyn hysbys). This was done, -and he found out that the missing girl was with the fairies: the trial -was delayed, and he gave the servant man directions of the usual kind -as to how to get her out. She was watched at the end of the period of -twelve months and a day coming round in the dance in the fairy ring -at the place where she was lost, and she was successfully drawn out -of the ring; but the servant man had to be there in the same clothes -as he had on when she left him. As soon as she was released and saw -the servant she asked about the calves. On the way home she told her -master, the servant man, and the others, that she would stay with them -until her master should strike her with iron, but they went their way -home in great joy at having found her. One day, however, when her -master was about to start from home, and whilst he was getting the -horse and cart ready, he asked the girl to assist him, which she did -willingly; but as he was bridling the horse, the bit touched the girl -and she disappeared instantly, and was never seen from that day forth. - -I cannot explain this story, unless we regard it as made up of pieces -of two different stories which had originally nothing to do with -one another; consistency, however, is not to be expected in such -matters. Mr. D. Ll. Davies has kindly given me two more tales like -the first part of the one I have last summarized, also one in which -the missing person, a little boy sent by his mother to fetch some barm -for her, comes home of himself after being away a year or more playing -with the Tylwyth Teg, whom he found to be very nice, pleasant people; -they had been exceedingly kind to him, and they even allowed him to -take the bottle with the barm home at the last. This was somewhere -between Swyd Ffynnon and Carmarthen. - -Mr. D. Ll. Davies finds, what I have not found anywhere else, -that it was a common idea among the old people in Cardiganshire, -that once you came across one of the fairies you could not easily be -rid of him; since the fairies were little beings of a very devoted -nature. Once a man had become friendly with one of them, the latter -would be present with him almost everywhere he went, until it became -a burden to him. However, popular belief did not adopt this item of -faith without another to neutralize it if necessary: so if one was -determined to get rid of the fairy companion, one had in the last -resort only to throw a piece of rusty iron at him to be quit of him -for ever. Nothing was a greater insult to the fairies. But though they -were not difficult to make friends of, they never forgave those who -offended them: forgiveness was not an element in their nature. The -general account my informant gives of the outward appearance of the -fairies as he finds them in the popular belief, is that they were -a small handsome race, and that their women dressed gorgeously in -white, while the men were content with garments of a dark grey colour, -usually including knee-breeches. As might be expected, the descriptions -differ very much in different neighbourhoods, and even in different -tales from the same neighbourhood: this will surprise no one. It was -in the night they came out, generally near water, to sing and dance, -and also to steal whatever took their fancy; for thieving was always -natural to them; but no one ever complained of it, as it was supposed -to bring good luck. - - - - -XII. - -Mr. Richard L. Davies, teacher of the Board School at Ystalyfera, in -the Tawė Valley, has been kind enough to write out for me a budget of -ideas about the Cwm Tawė Fairies, as retailed to him by a native who -took great delight in the traditions of his neighbourhood, John Davies -(Shōn o'r Bont), who was a storekeeper at Ystalyfera. He died an old -man about three years ago. I give his stories as transmitted to me by -Mr. Davies, but the reader will find them a little hazy now and then, -as when the fairies are made into ordinary conjurer's devils:-- - -Rhywbeth rhyfed yw yr hen Gastell yna (gan olygu Craig Ynys Geinon): -yr wyf yn cofio yr amser pan y bydai yn dychryn gan bobl fyned yn -agos ato--yn enwedig y nos: yr oed yn dra pheryglus rhag i dyn gael -ei gymeryd at Bendith eu Mamau. Fe dywedir fod wmred o'r rheiny yna, -er na wn i pa le y maent yn cadw. 'R oed yr hen bobl yn arferol o -dweyd fod pwll yn rhywle bron canol y Castell, tua llathen o led, -ac yn bump neu chwech llath o dyfnder, a charreg tua thair tynnell o -bwysau ar ei wyneb e', a bod fford dan y daear gandynt o'r pwll hynny -bob cam i ogof Tan yr Ogof, bron blaen y Cwm (yn agos i balas Adelina -Patti, sef Castell Craig y Nos), mai yno y maent yn treulio eu hamser -yn y dyd, ac yn dyfod lawr yma i chwareu eu pranciau yn y nos. - -Mae gandynt, mede nhw, ysgol aur, o un neu dwy ar hugain o ffyn; ar -hyd honno y maent yn tramwy i fyny ac i lawr. Mae gandynt air bach, -a dim ond i'r blaenaf ar yr ysgol dywedyd y gair hynny, mae y garreg -yn codi o honi ei hunan; a gair arall, ond i'r olaf wrth fyned i lawr -ei dywedyd, mae yn cauad ar eu hol. - -Dywedir i was un o'r ffermyd cyfagos wrth chwilio am wningod yn y -graig, dygwyd dyweyd y gair pan ar bwys y garreg, idi agor, ac ido -yntau fyned i lawr yr ysgol, ond am na wydai y gair i gauad ar ei ol, -fe adnabu y Tylwyth wrth y draught yn diffod y canwyllau fod rhywbeth o -le, daethant am ei draws, cymerasant ef atynt, a bu gyda hwynt yn byw -ac yn bod am saith mlyned; ymhen y saith mlyned fe diangod a llon'd -ei het o guineas gando. - -Yr oed efe erbyn hyn wedi dysgu y dau air, ac yn gwybod llawer am eu -cwtches nhw. Fe dywedod hwn y cwbl wrth ffarmwr o'r gymdogaeth, fe -aeth hwnnw drachefn i lawr, ac yr oed rhai yn dyweyd ido dyfod a thri -llon'd cawnen halen o guineas, hanner guineas, a darnau saith-a-chwech, -odiyno yr un diwrnod. Ond fe aeth yn rhy drachwantus, ac fel llawer -un trachwantus o'i flaen, bu ei bechod yn angeu ido. - -Canys fe aeth i lawr y bedwared waith yngwyll y nos, ond fe daeth y -Tylwyth am ei ben, ac ni welwyd byth o hono. Dywedir fod ei bedwar -cwarter e' yn hongian mewn ystafell o dan y Castell, ond pwy fu yno -i'w gwel'd nhw, wn i dim. - -Mae yn wir ei wala i'r ffarmwr crybwylledig fyned ar goll, ac na -chlybuwyd byth am dano, ac mor wir a hynny i'w dylwyth dyfod yn abl -iawn, bron ar unwaith yr amser hynny. A chi wydoch gystal a finnau, -eu bod nhw yn dywedyd fod ffyrd tandaearol gandynt i ogofau Ystrad -Fellte, yn agos i Benderyn. A dyna y Garn Goch ar y Drum (Onllwyn yn -awr) maent yn dweyd fod canoed o dynelli o aur yn stōr gandynt yno; -a chi glywsoch am y stori am un o'r Gethings yn myned yno i glodio yn -y Garn, ac ido gael ei drawsffurfio gan y Tylwyth i olwyn o dān, ac ido -fethu cael llonyd gandynt, hyd nes ido eu danfon i wneyd rhaff o sand! - -Fe fu gynt hen fenyw yn byw mewn ty bychan gerllaw i Ynys Geinon, -ac yr oed hi yn gallu rheibo, mede nhw, ac yr oed sōn ei bod yn -treulio saith diwrnod, saith awr, a saith mynyd gyda y Tylwyth Teg -bob blwydyn yn Ogof y Castell. Yr oed y gred yn lled gyffredinol -ei bod hi yn cael hyn a hyn o aur am bob plentyn a allai hi ladrata -idynt hwy, a dodi un o'i hen grithod hwy yn ei le: 'doed hwnnw byth -yn cynydu. Y fford y bydai hi yn gwneyd oed myned i'r ty dan yr esgus -o ofyn cardod, a hen glogyn llwyd-du mawr ar ei chefn, ac o dan hwn, -un o blant Bendith y Mamau; a bob amser os bydai plentyn bach gwraig -y ty yn y cawell, hi gymerai y swyd o siglo y cawell, a dim ond i'r -fam droi ei chefn am fynyd neu dwy, hi daflai y lledrith i'r cawell, -ai ymaith a'r plentyn yn gyntaf byth y gallai hi. Fe fu plentyn gan dyn -o'r gym'dogaeth yn lingran am flynydau heb gynydu dim, a barn pawb oed -mai wedi cael ei newid gan yr hen wraig yr oed; fe aeth tad y plentyn -i fygwth y gwr hysbys arni: fe daeth yr hen wraig yno am saith niwrnod -i esgus bado y bachgen bach mewn dwfr oer, a'r seithfed bore cyn ei -bod yn oleu, hi a gas genad i fyned ag ef dan rhyw bistyll, mede hi, -ond medai'r cym'dogion, myned ag ef i newid a wnaeth. Ond, beth bynag, -fe wellod y plentyn fel cyw yr wyd o hynny i maes. Ond gorfu i fam e' -wneyd cystal a llw wrth yr hen wraig, y gwnai ei dwco mewn dwfr oer -bob bore dros gwarter blwydyn, ac yn mhen y chwarter hynny 'doed dim -brafach plentyn yn y Cwm. - -'That is a wonderful thing, that old castle there, he would say, -pointing to the Ynys Geinon Rock. I remember a time when people would -be terrified to go near it, especially at night. There was considerable -danger that one might be taken to Bendith eu Mamau. It is said that -there are a great many of them there, though I know not where they -abide. The old folks used to say that there was a pit somewhere about -the middle of the Castle, about a yard wide and some five or six yards -deep, with a stone about three tons in weight over the mouth of it, -and that they had a passage underground from that pit all the way -to the cave of Tan yr Ogof, near the top of the Cwm, that is, near -Adelina Patti's residence at Craig y Nos Castle: there, it was said, -they spent their time during the day, while they came down here to -play their tricks at night. They have, they say, a gold ladder of -one or two and twenty rungs, and it is along that they pass up and -down. They have a little word; and it suffices if the foremost on -the ladder merely utters that word, for the stone to rise of itself; -while there is another word, which it suffices the hindmost in going -down to utter so that the stone shuts behind him. It is said that a -servant from one of the neighbouring farms, when looking for rabbits -in the rock, happened to say the word as he stood near the stone, -that it opened for him, and that he went down the ladder; but that -because he was ignorant of the word to make it shut behind him, -the fairies discovered by the draught putting out their candles that -there was something wrong. So they found him out and took him with -them. He remained living with them for seven years, but at the end -of the seven years he escaped with his hat full of guineas. He had by -this time learnt the two words, and got to know a good deal about the -hiding places of their treasures. He told everything to a farmer in -the neighbourhood, so the latter likewise went down, and some used to -say that he brought thence thrice the fill of a salt-chest of guineas, -half-guineas, and seven-and-sixpenny pieces in one day. But he got too -greedy, and like many a greedy one before him his crime proved his -death; for he went down the fourth time in the dusk of the evening, -when the fairies came upon him, and he was never seen any more. It -is said that his four quarters hang in a room under the Castle; -but who has been there to see them I know not. It is true enough -that the above-mentioned farmer got lost, and that nothing was heard -respecting him; and it is equally true that his family became very -well to do almost at once at that time. You know as well as I do that -they say, that the fairies have underground passages to the caves of -Ystradfellte, near Penderyn. There is the Garn Goch also on the Drum -(now called Onllwyn); they say there are hundreds of tons of gold -accumulated by them there, and you have heard the story about one of -the Gethings going thither to dig in the Garn, and how he [sic] was -transformed by the fairies into a wheel of fire, and that he could -get no quiet from them until he sent them to manufacture a rope of -sand!'--A more intelligible version of this story has been given at -pp. 19-20 above. - -'There was formerly an old woman living in a small house near Ynys -Geinon; and she had the power of bewitching, people used to say: -there was a rumour that she spent seven days, seven hours, and seven -minutes with the fairies every year in the cave at the Castle. It -was a pretty general belief that she got such and such a quantity of -gold for every child she could steal for them, and that she put one -of those old urchins of theirs in its place: the latter never grew -at all. The way she used to do it was to enter people's houses with -the excuse of asking for alms, having a large dark-grey old cloak on -her back, and the cloak concealed one of the children of Bendith eu -Mamau. Whenever she found the little child of the good woman of the -house in its cradle, she would take upon herself to rock the cradle, -so that if the mother only turned her back for a minute or two, she -would throw the sham child into the cradle and hurry away as fast -as she could with the baby. A man in the neighbourhood had a child -lingering for years without growing at all, and it was the opinion of -all that it had been changed by the old woman. The father at length -threatened to call in the aid of "the wise man," when the old woman -came there for seven days, pretending that it was in order to bathe the -little boy in cold water; and on the seventh day she got permission -to take him, before it was light, under a certain spout of water: so -she said, but the neighbours said it was to change him. However that -was, the boy from that time forth got on as fast as a gosling. But -the mother had all but to take an oath to the old woman, that she -would duck him in cold water every morning for three months, and by -the end of that time there was no finer infant in the Cwm.' - -Mr. Davies has given me some account also of the annual pilgrimage -to the Fan mountains to see the Lake Lady: these are his words on -the subject--they recall pp. 15-16 above:-- - -'It has been the yearly custom (for generations, as far as I can find) -for young as well as many people further advanced in years to make a -general excursion in carts, gambos, and all kinds of vehicles, to Llyn -y Fan, in order to see the water nymph (who appeared on one day only, -viz. the first Sunday in August). This nymph was said to have the -lower part of her body resembling that of a dolphin, while the upper -part was that of a beautiful lady: this anomalous form appeared on -the first Sunday in August (if the lake should be without a ripple) -and combed her tresses on the reflecting surface of the lake. The -yearly peregrination to the abode of the Fan deity is still kept up in -this valley--Cwmtawė; but not to the extent that it used to formerly.' - - - - -XIII. - -Mr. Craigfryn Hughes has sent me another tale about the fairies: it -has to do with the parish of Llanfabon, near the eastern border of -Glamorganshire. Many traditions cluster round the church of Llanfabon, -beginning with its supposed building by Saint Mabon, but which of the -Mabons of Welsh legend he was, is not very certain. Not very far is -a place called Pant y Dawns, or the Dance Hollow, in allusion to the -visits paid to the spot by Bendith y Mamau, as the fairies are there -called. In the same neighbourhood stand also the ruins of Castell -y Nos, or the Castle of the Night [93], which tradition represents -as uninhabitable because it had been built of stones from Llanfabon -Church, and on account of the ghosts that used to haunt it. However, -one small portion of it was usually tenanted formerly by a 'wise man' -or by a witch. In fact, the whole country round Llanfabon Church -teemed with fairies, ghosts, and all kinds of uncanny creatures:-- - -Mewn amaethdy ag syd yn aros yn y plwyf a elwir y Berth Gron, -trigiannai gwedw ieuanc a'i phlentyn bychan. Yr oed wedi colli ei gwr, -a'i hunig gysur yn ei hamdifadrwyd a'i hunigrwyd oed Gruff, ei mab. Yr -oed ef yr amser hwn odeutu tair blwyd oed, ac yn blentyn braf ar ei -oedran. Yr oed y plwyf, ar y pryd, yn orlawn o 'Fendith y Mamau'; ac, -ar amser llawn lloer, bydent yn cadw dynion yn effro a'u cerdoriaeth -hyd doriad gwawr. Rhai hynod ar gyfrif eu hagrwch oed 'Bendith' -Llanfabon, ac yr un mor hynod ar gyfrif eu castiau. Lladrata plant -o'r cawellau yn absenoldeb eu mamau, a denu dynion trwy eu swyno -a cherdoriaeth i ryw gors afiach a diffaith, a ymdangosai yn gryn -difyrrwch idynt. Nid rhyfed fod y mamau beunyd ar eu gwyliadwriaeth -rhag ofn colli eu plant. Yr oed y wedw o dan sylw yn hynod ofalus am -ei mab, gymaint nes tynnu rhai o'r cymydogion i dywedyd wrthi ei bod -yn rhy orofalus, ac y bydai i ryw anlwc ordiwes ei mab. Ond ni thalai -unrhyw sylw i'w dywediadau. Ymdangosai fod ei holl hyfrydwch a'i chysur -ynghyd a'i gobeithion yn cydgyfarfod yn ei mab. Mod bynnag, un diwrnod, -clywod ryw lais cwynfannus yn codi o gymydogaeth y beudy; a rhag bod -rhywbeth wedi digwyd i un o'r gwartheg rhedod yn orwyllt tuag yno, -gan adael y drws heb ei gau, a'i mab bychan yn y ty. Ond pwy a fedr -desgrifio ei gofid ar ei gwaith yn dyfod i'r ty wrth weled eisiau ei -mab? Chwiliod bob man am dano, ond yn aflwydiannus. Odeutu machlud -haul, wele lencyn bychan yn gwneuthur ei ymdangosiad o'i blaen, ac -yn dywedyd, yn groyw, 'Mam!' Edrychod y fam yn fanwl arno, a dywedod -o'r diwed, 'Nid fy mhlentyn i wyt ti!' 'Iė, yn sicr,' atebai y bychan. - -Nid ymdangosai y fam yn fodlon, na'i bod yn credu mai ei phlentyn hi -ydoed. Yr oed rhywbeth yn sisial yn barhaus wrthi mai nid ei mab hi -ydoed. Ond beth bynnag, bu gyda hi am flwydyn gyfan, ac nid ymdangosai -ei fod yn cynydu dim, tra yr oed Gruff, ei mab hi, yn blentyn cynydfawr -iawn. Yr oed gwr bychan yn myned yn fwy hagr bob dyd hefyd. O'r diwed -penderfynod fyned at y 'dyn hysbys,' er cael rhyw wybodaeth a goleuni -ar y mater. Yr oed yn digwyd bod ar y pryd yn trigfannu yn Nghastell y -Nos, wr ag oed yn hynod ar gyfrif ei ymwybydiaeth drwyadl o 'gyfrinion -y fall.' Ar ol idi osod ei hachos ger ei fron, ac yntau ei holi, -sylwod, 'Crimbil ydyw, ac y mae dy blentyn di gyd a'r hen Fendith -yn rhywle; ond i ti dilyn fy nghyfarwydiadau i yn ffydlon a manwl, -fe adferir dy blentyn i ti yn fuan. Yn awr, odeutu canol dyd y foru, -tor wy yn y canol, a thafl un hanner ymaith odiwrthyt, a chadw y -llall yn dy law, a dechreu gymysg ei gynwysiad yn ol a blaen. Cofia -fod y gwr bychan gerllaw yn gwneuthur sylw o'r hyn ag a fydi yn ei -wneuthur. Ond cofia di a pheidio galw ei sylw--rhaid ennill ei sylw -at y weithred heb ei alw: ac odid fawr na ofynna i ti beth fydi yn -ei wneuthur. A dywed wrtho mai cymysg pastai'r fedel yr wyt. A rho -wybod i mi beth fyd ei ateb.' - -Dychwelod y wraig, a thrannoeth dilynod gyfarwydyd y 'dyn cynnil' -i'r llythyren. Yr oed y gwr bychan yn sefyll yn ei hymyl, ac yn -sylwi arni yn fanwl. Ym mhen ychydig, gofynnod, 'Mam, beth 'i ch'i -'neuthur?' 'Cymysg pastai'r fedel, machgen i.' 'O felly. Mi glywais -gan fy nhad, fe glywod hwnnw gan ei dad, a hwnnw gan ei dad yntau, fod -mesen cyn derwen, a derwen mewn dār [94]; ond ni chlywais i na gweled -neb yn un man yn cymysg pastai'r fedel mewn masgal wy iar.' Sylwod y -wraig ei fod yn edrych yn hynod o sarug arni pan yn siarad, ac yr oed -hynny yn ychwanegu at ei hagrwch, nes ei wneuthur yn wrthun i'r pen. - -Y prydnawn hwnnw aeth y wraig at y 'dyn cynnil' er ei hysbysu o'r hyn -a lefarwyd gan y cņr. 'O,' ebai hwnnw, 'un o'r hen frid ydyw!' 'Yn awr, -byd y llawn lloer nesaf ym mhen pedwar diwrnod; mae yn rhaid i ti fyned -i ben y pedair heol syd yn cydgyfarfod wrth ben Rhyd y Gloch; am deudeg -o'r gloch y nos y byd y lleuad yn llawn. Cofia gudio dy hun mewn man -ag y cei lawn olwg ar bennau y croesffyrd, ac os gweli rywbeth a bair -i ti gynhyrfu, cofia fod yn llonyd, ac ymatal rhag rhodi ffrwyn i'th -deimladau, neu fe distrywir y cynllun, ac ni chei dy fab yn ol byth.' - -Nis gwydai y fam anffodus beth oed i'w deall wrth ystori ryfed y -'dyn cynnil.' Yr oed mewn cymaint o dywyllwch ag erioed. O'r diwed -daeth yr amser i ben; ac ar yr awr apwyntiedig yr oed yn ymgudio yn -ofalus tu cefn i lwyn mawr yn ymyl, o ba le y caffai olwg ar bob peth o -gylch. Bu am hir amser yno yn gwylio heb dim i'w glywed na'i weled--dim -ond distawrwyd dwfn a phrudglwyfus yr hanner nos yn teyrnasu. O'r diwed -clywai sain cerdoriaeth yn dynesu ati o hirbell. Nźs, nźs yr oed y sain -felusber yn dyfod o hyd; a gwrandawai hithai gyda dydordeb arni. Cyn -hir yr oed yn ei hymyl, a deallod mai gorymdaith o 'Fendith y Mamau' -oedynt yn myned i rywle. Yr oedynt yn gannoed mewn rhif. Tua chanol -yr orymdaith canfydod olygfa ag a drywanod ei chalon, ac a berod i'w -gwaed sefyll yn ei rhedwelļau. Yn cerded rhwng pedwar o'r 'Bendith' -yr oed ei phlentyn bychan anwyl ei hun. Bu bron a llwyr anghofio -ei hun, a llamu tuag ato er ei gipio ymaith odiarnynt trwy drais os -gallai. Ond pan ar neidio allan o'i hymgudfan i'r diben hwnnw medyliod -am gynghor y 'dyn cynnil,' sef y bydai i unrhyw gynhyrfiad o'i heido -distrywio y cwbl, ac na bydai idi gael ei phlentyn yn ol byth. - -Ar ol i'r orymdaith dirwyn i'r pen, ac i sain eu cerdoriaeth distewi -yn y pellder, daeth allan o'i hymgudfan, gan gyfeirio ei chamrau tua -'i chartref. Os oed yn hiraethol o'r blaen ar ol ei mab, yr oed yn -llawer mwy erbyn hyn; a'i hadgasrwyd at y cņr bychan oed yn hawlio -ei fod yn fab idi wedi cynydu yn fawr iawn, waith yr oed yn sicr yn -awr yn ei medwl mai un o'r hen frid ydoed. Nis gwydai pa fod i'w odef -am fynud yn hwy yn yr un ty a hi, chwaithach godef ido alw 'mam' arni -hi. Ond beth bynnag, cafod digon o ras ataliol i ymdwyn yn wedaid at y -gwr bychan hagr oed gyda hi yn y ty. Drannoeth aeth ar ei hunion at y -'dyn cynnil' i adrod yr hyn yr oed wedi bod yn llygad dyst o hono y -noson gynt, ac i ofyn am gyfarwydyd pellach. Yr oedd y 'gwr cynnil' -yn ei disgwyl, ac ar ei gwaith yn dyfod i'r ty adnabydod wrthi ei -bod wedi gweled rhywbeth oed wedi ei chyffroi. Adrodod wrtho yr hyn -ag oed wedi ei ganfod ar ben y croesffyrd; ac wedi ido glywed hynny, -agorod lyfr mawr ag oed gando, ac wedi hir syllu arno hysbysod hi -'fod yn angenrheidiol idi cyn cael ei phlentyn yn ol gael iār du heb -un plufyn gwyn nac o un lliw arall arni, a'i llad; ac ar ol ei lladd, -ei gosod o flaen tan coed, pluf a chwbl, er ei phobi. Mor gynted ag -y buasai yn ei gosod o flaen y tan, idi gau pob twll a mynedfa yn -yr adeilad ond un, a pheidio a dal sylw manwl ar ol y 'crimbil,' hyd -nes bydai y iār yn digon, a'r pluf i syrthio ymaith oddiarni bob un, -ac yna i edrych ym mha le yr oed ef. - -Er mor rhyfed oed cyfarwydyd y 'gwr,' penderfynod ei gynnyg; -a thrannoeth aeth i chwilio ym mhlith y ieir oed yno am un o'r -desgrifiad angenrheidiol; ond er ei siomedigaeth method a chael yr -un. Aeth o'r naill ffermdy i'r llall i chwilio, ond ymdangosai ffawd -fel yn gwgu arni--waith method a chael yr un. Pan ym mron digaloni -gan ei haflwydiant daeth ar draws un mewn amaethdy yng nghwr y plwyf a -phrynod hi yn dioedi. Ar ol dychwelyd adref gosodod y tan mewn trefn, -a lladod yr iār, gan ei gosod o flaen y tan disglaer a losgai ar yr -alch. Pan yn edrych arni yn pobi, anghofiod y 'crimbil' yn hollol, -ac yr oed wedi syrthio i rywfath o brudlewyg, pryd y synnwyd hi gan -sain cerdoriaeth y tu allan i'r ty, yn debyg i'r hyn a glywod ychydig -nosweithiau cyn hynny ar ben y croesffyrd. Yr oed y pluf erbyn hyn wedi -syrthio ymaith odiar y iār, ac erbyn edrych yr oed y 'crimbil' wedi -diflannu. Edrychai y fam yn wyllt o'i deutu, ac er ei llawenyd clywai -lais ei mab colledig yn galw arni y tu allan. Rhedod i'w gyfarfod, -gan ei gofleidio yn wresog; a phan ofynod ym mha le yr oed wedi bod -cyhyd, nid oed gando gyfrif yn y byd i'w rodi ond mai yn gwrando ar -ganu hyfryd yr oed wedi bod. Yr oed yn deneu a threuliedig iawn ei -wed pan adferwyd ef. Dyna ystori 'Y Plentyn Colledig.' - -'At a farm house still remaining in the parish of Llanfabon, which -is called the Berth Gron, there lived once upon a time a young widow -and her infant child. After losing her husband her only comfort in -her bereavement and solitary state was young Griff, her son. He was -about three years old and a fine child for his age. The parish was -then crammed full of Bendith y Mamau, and when the moon was bright -and full they were wont to keep people awake with their music till -the break of day. The fairies of Llanfabon were remarkable on account -of their ugliness, and they were equally remarkable on account of the -tricks they played. Stealing children from their cradles during the -absence of their mothers, and luring men by means of their music into -some pestilential and desolate bog, were things that seemed to afford -them considerable amusement. It was no wonder then that mothers used -to be daily on the watch lest they should lose their children. The -widow alluded to was remarkably careful about her son, so much so, -that it made some of the neighbours say that she was too anxious about -him and that some misfortune would overtake her child. But she paid no -attention to their words, as all her joy, her comfort, and her hopes -appeared to meet together in her child. However, one day she heard a -moaning voice ascending from near the cow-house, and lest anything had -happened to the cattle, she ran there in a fright, leaving the door -of the house open and her little son in the cradle. Who can describe -her grief on her coming in and seeing that her son was missing? She -searched everywhere for him, but it was in vain. About sunset, behold -a little lad made his appearance before her and said to her quite -distinctly, "Mother." She looked minutely at him, and said at last, -"Thou art not my child." "I am truly," said the little one. But the -mother did not seem satisfied about it, nor did she believe it was -her child. Something whispered to her constantly, as it were, that -it was not her son. However, he remained with her a whole year, but -he did not seem to grow at all, whereas Griff, her son, was a very -growing child. Besides, the little fellow was getting uglier every -day. At last she resolved to go to the "wise man," in order to have -information and light on the matter. There happened then to be living -at Castell y Nos, "Castle of the Night," a man who was remarkable for -his thorough acquaintance with the secrets of the evil one. When she -had laid her business before him and he had examined her, he addressed -the following remark to her: "It is a crimbil [95], and thy own child -is with those old Bendith somewhere or other: if thou wilt follow -my directions faithfully and minutely thy child will be restored to -thee soon. Now, about noon to-morrow cut an egg through the middle; -throw the one half away from thee, but keep the other in thy hand, and -proceed to mix it backwards and forwards. See that the little fellow -be present paying attention to what thou art doing, but take care not -to call his attention to it--his attention must be drawn to it without -calling to him--and very probably he will ask what thou wouldst be -doing. Thou art to say that it is mixing a pasty for the reapers that -thou art. Let me know what he will then say." The woman returned, -and on the next day she followed the cunning man's [96] advice to -the letter: the little fellow stood by her and watched her minutely; -presently he asked, "Mother, what are you doing?" "Mixing a pasty for -the reapers, my boy." "Oh, that is it. I heard from my father--he had -heard it from his father and that one from his father--that an acorn -was before the oak, and that the oak was in the earth; but I have -neither heard nor seen anybody mixing the pasty for the reapers in an -egg-shell." The woman observed that he looked very cross as he spoke, -and that it so added to his ugliness that it made him highly repulsive. - -'That afternoon the woman went to the cunning man in order to inform -him of what the dwarf had said. "Oh," said he, "he is of that old -breed; now the next full moon will be in four days--thou must go where -the four roads meet above Rhyd y Gloch [97], at twelve o'clock the -night the moon is full. Take care to hide thyself at a spot where -thou canst see the ends of the cross-roads; and shouldst thou see -anything that would excite thee take care to be still and to restrain -thyself from giving way to thy feelings, otherwise the scheme will -be frustrated and thou wilt never have thy son back." The unfortunate -mother knew not what to make of the strange story of the cunning man; -she was in the dark as much as ever. At last the time came, and by the -appointed hour she had concealed herself carefully behind a large bush -close by, whence she could see everything around. She remained there -a long time watching; but nothing was to be seen or heard, while the -profound and melancholy silence of midnight dominated over all. At -last she began to hear the sound of music approaching from afar; -nearer and nearer the sweet sound continued to come, and she listened -to it with rapt attention. Ere long it was close at hand, and she -perceived that it was a procession of Bendith y Mamau going somewhere -or other. They were hundreds in point of number, and about the middle -of the procession she beheld a sight that pierced her heart and made -the blood stop in her veins--walking between four of the Bendith she -saw her own dear little child. She nearly forgot herself altogether, -and was on the point of springing into the midst of them violently to -snatch him from them if she could; but when she was on the point of -leaping out of her hiding place for that purpose, she thought of the -warning of the cunning man, that any disturbance on her part would -frustrate all, so that she would never get her child back. When the -procession had wound itself past, and the sound of the music had died -away in the distance, she issued from her concealment and directed -her steps homewards. Full of longing as she was for her son before, -she was much more so now; and her disgust at the little dwarf who -claimed to be her son had very considerably grown, for she was now -certain in her mind that he was one of the old breed. She knew not -how to endure him for a moment longer under the same roof with her, -much less his addressing her as "mother." However, she had enough -restraining grace to behave becomingly towards the ugly little fellow -that was with her in the house. On the morrow she went without delay -to the "wise man" to relate what she had witnessed the previous night, -and to seek further advice. The cunning man expected her, and as she -entered he perceived by her looks that she had seen something that had -disturbed her. She told him what she had beheld at the cross-roads, -and when he had heard it he opened a big book which he had; then, after -he had long pored over it, he told her, that before she could get her -child back, it was necessary for her to find a black hen without a -single white feather, or one of any other colour than black: this she -was to place to bake before a wood [98] fire with its feathers and all -intact. Moreover, as soon as she placed it before the fire, she was to -close every hole and passage in the walls except one, and not to look -very intently after the crimbil until the hen was done enough and the -feathers had fallen off it every one: then she might look where he was. - -'Strange as the advice of the wise man sounded, she resolved to try -it; so she went the next day to search among the hens for one of the -requisite description; but to her disappointment she failed to find -one. She then walked from one farm house to another in her search; -but fortune appeared to scowl at her, as she seemed to fail in her -object. When, however, she was nearly disheartened, she came across -the kind of hen she wanted at a farm at the end of the parish. She -bought it, and after returning home she arranged the fire and killed -the hen, which she placed in front of the bright fire burning on -the hearth. Whilst watching the hen baking she altogether forgot the -crimbil; and she fell into a sort of swoon, when she was astonished -by the sound of music outside the house, similar to the music she had -heard a few nights before at the cross-roads. The feathers had by this -time fallen off the hen, and when she came to look for the crimbil -he had disappeared. The mother cast wild looks about the house, and -to her joy she heard the voice of her lost son calling to her from -outside. She ran to meet him, and embraced him fervently. But when -she asked him where he had been so long, he had no account in the -world to give but that he had been listening to pleasant music. He -was very thin and worn in appearance when he was restored. Such is -the story of the Lost Child.' - -Let me remark as to the urchin's exclamation concerning the cooking -done in the egg-shell, that Mr. Hughes, as the result of further -inquiry, has given me what he considers a more correct version; -but it is no less inconsequent, as will be seen:-- - - - Mi glywais gan fy nhad ac yntau gan ei dad, a hwnnw gan ei - dad yntau, - Fod mesen cyn derwen a'i phlannu mwn dįr: - Ni chlywais yn unman am gymysg y bastai yn masgal wy iār. - - I heard from my father and he from his father, and that one from - his father, - That the acorn exists before the oak and the planting of it in - the ground: - Never anywhere have I heard of mixing the pasty in the shell of - a hen's egg. - - -In Dewi Glan Ffrydlas' story from the Ogwen Valley, in Carnarvonshire, -p. 62 above, it is not the cooking of a pasty but the brewing of beer -in an egg-shell. However what is most remarkable is that the egg-shell -is similarly used in stories from other lands. Mr. Hartland cites one -from Mecklenburg and another from Scandinavia. He also mentions stories -in which the imp measures his own age by the number of forests which -he has seen growing successively on the same soil, the formula being -of the following kind: 'I have seen the Forest of Ardennes burnt seven -times,' 'Seven times have I seen the wood fall in Lessö Forest,' or -'I am so old, I was already in the world before the Kamschtschen Wood -(in Lithuania) was planted, wherein great trees grew, and that is -now laid waste again [99].' From these and the like instances it is -clear that the Welsh versions here in question are partially blurred, -as the fairy child's words should have been to the effect that he -was old enough to remember the oak when it was yet but an acorn; -and an instance of this explicit kind is given by Howells--it comes -from Llandrygarn in Anglesey--see p. 139, where his words run thus: -'I can remember yon oak an acorn, but I never saw in my life people -brewing in an egg-shell before.' I may add that I have been recently -fortunate enough to obtain from Mr. Llywarch Reynolds another kind -of estimate of the fairy urchin's age. He writes that his mother -remembers a very old Merthyr woman who used to tell the story of the -egg-shell cookery, but in words differing from all the other versions -known to him, thus:-- - - - Wy'n hén y dyd hedy, - Ag yn byw cyn 'y ngeni: - Eriōd ni welas i ferwi - Bwyd i'r fedal mwn cwcwll [100] wy iār. - - I call myself old this day, - And living before my birth: - Never have I seen food boiled - For the reapers in an egg-shell. - - -As to the urchin's statement that he was old and had lived before, it -is part of a creed of which we may have something to say in a later -chapter. At this point let it suffice to call attention to the same -idea in the Book of Taliessin, poem ix:-- - - - Hynaf uyd dyn pan anher - A ieu ieu pop amser. - - A man is wont to be oldest when born, - And younger and younger all the time. - - - - -XIV. - -Before closing this chapter, I wish to touch on the question of the -language of the fairies, though fairy tales hardly ever raise it, -as they usually assume the fairies to speak the same language as the -mortals around them. There is, however, one well-known exception, -namely, the story of Eliodorus, already mentioned, p. 117, as recorded -by Giraldus Cambrensis, who relates how Eliodorus, preferring at the -age of twelve to play the truant to undergoing a frequent beating -by his teacher, fasted two days in hiding in the hollow of a river -bank, and how he was then accosted by two little men who induced -him to follow them to a land of sports and other delights. There he -remained long enough to be able, years later, to give his diocesan, -the second Menevian bishop named David [101], a comprehensive account -of the people and realm of Faery. After Eliodorus had for some time -visited and revisited that land of twilight, his mother desired him -to bring her some of the gold of the fairies. So one day he tried to -bring away the gold ball with which the fairy king's son used to play; -but he was not only unsuccessful, but subjected to indignities also, -and prevented from evermore finding his way back to fairyland. So he -had to go again to school and to the studies which he so detested; -but in the course of time he learned enough to become a priest; -and when, stricken in years, he used to be entreated by Bishop -David to relate this part of his early history, he never could be -got to unfold his tale without shedding tears. Among other things -which he said of the fairies' mode of living, he stated that they -ate neither flesh nor fish, but lived for the most part on various -kinds of milk food cooked after the fashion of stirabout, flavoured -as it were with saffron [102]. But one of the most curious portions -of Eliodorus' yarn was that relating to the language of the fairies; -for he pretended to have learnt it and to have found it to resemble his -own Britannica Lingua, 'Brythoneg, or Welsh.' In the words instanced -Giraldus perceived a similarity to Greek [103], which he accounted for -by means of the fabulous origin of the Welsh from the Trojans and the -supposed sojourn made in Greece by those erring Trojans on their way -to Britain. Giraldus displays quite a pretty interest in comparative -philology, and talks glibly of the Lingua Britannica; but one never -feels certain that he knew very much more about it than the author -of the Germania, the first to refer to it under that name. Tacitus, -however, had the excuse that he lived at a distance and some eleven -centuries before the advent of Gerald the Welshman. - -Giraldus' words prove, on close examination, to be of no help to us -on the question of language; but on the other hand I have but recently -begun looking out for stories bearing on it. It is my impression that -such are not plentiful; but I proceed to subjoin an abstract of a -phantom funeral tale in point from Ystźn Sioned (Aberystwyth, 1882), -pp. 8-16. Ystźn Sioned, I ought to explain, consists of a number of -stories collected and edited in Welsh by the Rev. Chancellor Silvan -Evans, though he has not attached his name to it:--The harvest of 1816 -was one of the wettest ever known in Wales, and a man and his wife who -lived on a small farm in one of the largest parishes in the Hundred -of Moedin (see p. 245 above) in the Demetian part of Cardiganshire -went out in the evening of a day which had been comparatively dry -to make some reaped corn into sheaves, as it had long been down. It -was a beautiful night, with the harvest moon shining brightly, and -the field in which they worked had the parish road passing along -one of its sides, without a hedge or a ditch to separate it from the -corn. When they had been busily at work binding sheaves for half an -hour or more, they happened to hear the hum of voices, as if of a -crowd of people coming along the road leading into the field. They -stopped a moment, and looking in the direction whence the sounds -came, they saw in the light of the moon a number of people coming -into sight and advancing in their direction. They bent then again to -their work without thinking much about what they had seen and heard; -for they fancied it was some belated people making for the village, -which was about a mile off. But the hum and confused sounds went on -increasing, and when the two binders looked up again, they beheld a -large crowd of people almost opposite and not far from them. As they -continued looking on they beheld quite clearly a coffin on a bier -carried on the shoulders of men, who were relieved by others in turns, -as usual in funeral processions in the country. 'Here is a funeral,' -said the binders to one another, forgetting for the moment that it was -not usual for funerals to be seen at night. They continued looking -on till the crowd was right opposite them, and some of them did not -keep to the road, but walked over the corn alongside of the bulk -of the procession. The two binders heard the talk and whispering, -the noise and hum as if of so many real men and women passing by, -but they did not understand a word that was said: not a syllable -could they comprehend, not a face could they recognize. They -kept looking at the procession till it went out of sight on the -way leading towards the parish church. They saw no more of them, -and now they began to feel uneasy and went home leaving the corn -alone as it was; but further on the funeral was met by a tailor at a -point in the road where it was narrow and bounded by a fence (clawd) -on either side. The procession filled the road from hedge to hedge, -and the tailor tried to force his way through it, but such was the -pressure of the throng that he was obliged to get out of their way by -crossing the hedge. He also failed to understand a word of the talk -which he heard. In about three weeks after this sham funeral [104], -there came a real one down that way from the upper end of the parish. - -Such, in brief, is the story so charmingly told by Silvan Evans, -which he got from the mouths of the farmer and his wife, whom he -considered highly honest and truthful persons, as well as comparatively -free from superstition. The last time they talked to him about the -incident they were very advanced in years, and both died within a -few weeks of one another early in the year 1852. Their remains, -he adds, lie in the churchyard towards which they had seen the -toeli slowly making its way. For toeli is the phonetic spelling in -Ystźn Sioned of the word which is teulu in North Cardiganshire and -in North Wales, for Old Welsh toulu. The word now means 'family,' -though literally it should mean 'house-army' or 'house-troops,' -and it is practically a synonym for tylwyth, 'family or household,' -literally 'house-tribe.' Now the toeli or toulu is such an important -institution in Demetian Cardiganshire and some parts of Dyfed proper, -that the word has been confined to the phantom, and for the word -family in its ordinary significations one has there to have recourse -to the non-dialect form teulu [105]. In North Cardiganshire and North -Wales the toeli is called simply a cladedigaeth, 'burial,' or anglad, -'funeral'; in the latter also cynhebrwng is a funeral. I may add that -when I was a child in the neighbourhood of Ponterwyd, on the upper -course of the Rheidol, hardly a year used to pass without somebody -or other meeting a phantom funeral. Sometimes one got entangled in -the procession, and ran the risk of being carried off one's feet by -the throng. There is, however, one serious difference between our -phantom funerals and the Demetian toeli, namely, that we recognize -our neighbours' ghosts as making up the processions, and we have no -trouble in understanding their talk. At this point a question of some -difficulty presents itself as to the toeli, namely, what family does it -mean?--is it the family and friends of the departed on his way to the -grave, or does it mean the family in the sense of Tylwyth Teg, 'Fair -Family,' as applied to the fairies? I am inclined to the latter view, -but I prefer thinking that the distinction itself does not penetrate -very deeply, seeing that a certain species of the Tylwyth Teg, or -fairies, may, in point of origin, be regarded as deceased friends and -ancestors of the tylwyth, in the ordinary sense of the word. In fact -all this kind of rehearsal of events seems to have been once looked -at as friendly to the men and women whom it concerned. This will be -seen, for instance, in the Demetian account of the canwyll gorff, or -corpse candle, as granted through the intercession of St. David to the -people of his special care, as a means of warning each to get ready -in time for his death; that is to say, to prevent death finding him -unprepared. It is hard to guess why it was assumed that the canwyll -gorff was unknown in other parts of Wales. One or two instances in -point occur in Owen's Welsh Folklore, pp. 298-301; and I have myself -heard of them being seen in Anglesey, while they were quite well known -to members of Mrs. Rhys' mother's family, who lived in the parish -of Waen Fawr, in the neighbourhood of Carnarvon. Nor does it appear -that phantom funerals were at all confined to South Wales. Proof to -the contrary is supplied to some extent in Owen's Folklore, p. 301; -but there is no doubt that in recent times the belief in them, as -well as in the canwyll gorff, has been more general and more vivid -in South Wales than in North Wales, especially Gwyned. - -I have not been fortunate enough to come across anything systematic -or comprehensive on the origin and meaning of ghostly rehearsals -like the Welsh phantom funeral or coffin making. But the subject -is an interesting one which deserves the attention of our leading -folklore philosophers, as does also the cognate one of second sight, -by which it is widely overlapped. - -Quite recently--at the end of 1899 in fact--I received three brief -stories, for which I am indebted to the further kindness of Alaw Lleyn -(p. 228), who lives at Bynhadlog near Edern in Lleyn, and two out of -the three touch on the question of language. But as the three belong -to one and the same district, I give the substance of all in English -as follows:-- - -(1) There were at a small harbour belonging to Nefyn some houses in -which several families formerly lived; the houses are there still, -but nobody lives in them now. There was one family there to which -a little girl belonged: they used to lose her for hours every day; -so her mother was very angry with her for being so much away. 'I must -know,' said she, 'where you go for your play.' The girl answered that -it was to Pin y Wig, 'The Wig Point,' which meant a place to the west -of the Nefyn headland: it was there, she said, she played with many -children. 'Whose children?' asked the mother. 'I don't know,' she -replied; 'they are very nice children, much nicer than I am.' 'I must -know whose children they are,' was the reply; and one day the mother -went with her little girl to see the children: it was a distance of -about a quarter of a mile to Pin y Wig, and after climbing the slope -and walking a little along the top they came in sight of the Pin. It -is from this Pin that the people of Pen yr Allt got water, and it -is from there they get it still. Now after coming near the Pin the -little girl raised her hands with joy at the sight of the children. 'O -mother,' said she, 'their father is with them to-day: he is not with -them always, it is only sometimes that he is.' The mother asked the -child where she saw them. 'There they are, mother, running down to -the Pin, with their father sitting down.' 'I see nobody, my child,' -was the reply, and great fear came upon the mother: she took hold of -the child's hand in terror, and it came to her mind at once that they -were the Tylwyth Teg. Never afterwards was the little girl allowed to -go to Pin y Wig: the mother had heard that the Tylwyth Teg exchanged -people's children. - -Such is the first story, and it is only remarkable, perhaps, for its -allusion to the father of the fairy children. - -(2) There used to be at Edern an old woman who occupied a small -farm called Glan y Gors: the same family lives there still. One day -this old woman had gone to a fair at Criccieth, whence she returned -through Pwllheli. As she was getting above Gors Geirch, which was then -a turbary and a pretty considerable bog, a noise reached her ears: -she stopped and heard the sound of much talking. By-and-by she beheld -a great crowd of men and women coming to meet her. She became afraid -and stepped across the fence to let them go by. There she remained -a while listening to their chatter, and when she thought that they -had gone far enough she returned to the road and began to resume -her way home. But before she had gone many steps she heard the same -sort of noise again, and saw again the same sort of crowd coming; -so she recrossed the fence in great fear, saying to herself, 'Here -I shall be all night!' She remained there till they also had gone, -and she wondered what they could be, and whether they were people who -had been to visit Plas Madrun--afterwards, on inquiry, she found that -no such people had been there that day. Now the old woman was near -enough to the passers-by to hear them talking (clebran) and chattering -(bregliach), but not a word could she understand of what they uttered: -it was not Welsh and she did not think that it was English--it is, -however, not supposed that she knew English. She related further that -the last crowd shouted all together to the other crowd in advance of -them Wi, and that the latter replied Wi Wei or something like that. - -This account Alaw Lleyn has got, he says, from a great-granddaughter -of the old woman, and she heard it all from her father, Bard Llechog, -who always had faith in the fairies, and believed that they will -come again to be seen of men and women. For he thought that they had -their periods, a belief which I have come across elsewhere, and more -especially in Carnarvonshire [106]. Now what are we to make of such a -story? I recollect reading somewhere of a phantom wedding in Scotland, -but in Wales we seem to have nothing more closely resembling this -than a phantom funeral. Nevertheless what the old woman of Glan y Gors -thought she saw looks by no means unlike a Welsh wedding marching on -foot, especially when, as I have seen done, one party tried--seemingly -in good earnest--to escape the other and to take the bride away from -it. Moreover, that the figures making up the two crowds in her story -are to be regarded as fairies is rendered probable by the next story, -which describes the phantoms therein expressly as little men and -little women. - -(3) The small farm of Perth y Celyn in Edern used to be held by an -old man named Griffith Griffiths. In his best days he stood six foot, -and he has left behind him a double reputation for bodily strength -and great piety. My informant can well remember him walking to chapel -with the aid of his two sticks. The story goes that one day, when -he was in his prime, he set out from Perth y Celyn at two in the -morning to walk to Carnarvon to pay his rent: there was no talk in -those days of a carriage for anybody. After passing through Nefyn and -Pistyll, he came in due time to Bwlch Trwyn Swncwl [107]: he writes -this name also Bwlch Drws Wncwl, with the suggestion that it ought to -be Bwlch Drws Encil, and that the place must have been of importance -in the wars of the ancient Kymry. The high-road, he goes on to say, -runs through the Bwlch, and as Griffith was entering this gap what -should he hear but a great deal of talking. He stopped and listened, -when to his surprise he saw coming towards him, devoid of all fear, -a crowd of little men and little women. They talked aloud, but he could -not understand a single word they said: he thought that it was neither -Welsh nor English. They passed by him on the road, but he moved aside -to the ditch lest they should knock against him; but no feeling of fear -came upon him. The old man believed them to have been the Tylwyth Teg. - -In the story of the Moedin funeral the language of the toeli was -not intelligible to the farmer and his wife, or to the tailor, and -here in two stories from Lleyn we have it clearly stated that it was -neither Welsh nor, probably, English. Since the fairies are always -represented as old-fashioned in their ways, it is quite possible -that they were once regarded as talking a more ancient language of -the country. Which was it? An early version of these legends might -perhaps have supplied the answer, and told us that it was Gwydelig -or Goidelic, if not an earlier idiom, to wit that of the Aborigines -before they learnt Goidelic from the Celts of the first wave of Aryan -invasion, whether it was in the region of the Eifl or in the Demetian -half of Keredigion. As to the former it is worthy of note that when -Griffith had reached Bwlch Trwyn Swncwl he was in the outskirts of -the Eifl Mountains, on one of whose heights, not very far off, is -the extensive prehistoric fortress of Tre'r Ceiri, or the Town of the -Keiri, a vocable which may be provisionally rendered by 'giants.' In -any case it dissociates that stronghold from the Brythonic people of -Wales. We shall find, however, that a Goidel, or Pict, buried in a -cairn on Snowdon, is known as Rhita Gawr, 'Rhita the Giant'; and it is -possible that in the Keiri of Tre'r Ceiri we have no other race than -that of mixed Goidels and Picts whom the encroaching Brythons found -in possession of the west of our island. Nay, one may say that this -is rendered probable by the use made of the word ceiri in medieval -Welsh: thus in some poetry composed by a certain Dafyd Offeiriad, -and copied by Thomas Williams of Trefriw, we have a line alluding to -Britain in the words:-- - - - Coron ynys y Ceūri [108]. - - The Crown of the Giants' Island. - - -Here Ynys y Ceūri inevitably recalls the fact that Britain is called -Ynys y Kedyrn, or Island of the Mighty, in the Mabinogion, and also, -in effect, in the story of Kulhwch and Olwen. But such stories as -these, which enabled Geoffrey to say, i. 16, when he introduced his -banal brood of Trojans, that up to that time Britain had only been -inhabited by a few giants, are the legends, as will be pointed out -later, of the Brythonicized Goidels of Wales. So one may infer that -their ancestors had given this country the name of the Island of the -Mighty, unless it should prove more accurate to suppose them to have -somehow derived the term from the Aborigines. - -This last surmise is countenanced by the fact that in the Kulhwch -story, the British Isles as a group are called Islands of the -Mighty. The words are Teir ynys y kedyrn ae their rac ynys; that is, -the Three Islands of the Mighty and their Three outpost Islands. That -is not all, for in the same story the designation is varied thus: -Teir ynys prydein ae their rac ynys [109], or Prydain's Three Islands -and Prydain's Three outpost Islands; and the substantial antiquity of -the designation 'the Islands of Prydain,' is proved by its virtual -identity with that used by ancient Greek authors like Ptolemy, who -calls both Britain and Ireland a nźsos Pretanikź, where Pretanic and -Prydain are closely related words. Now our Prydain had in medieval -Welsh the two forms Prydein and Prydyn. But some time or other there -set in a tendency to desynonymize them, so as to make Ynys Prydein, -'the Picts' Island,' mean Great Britain, and Prydyn mean the Pictland -of the North. But just as Cymry meant the plural Welshmen and the -singular Wales, so Prydyn meant Picts [110] and the country of the -Picts. Now the plural Prydyn has its etymological Goidelic equivalent -in the vocable Cruithni, which is well known to have meant the Picts -or the descendants of the Picti of Roman historians. Further, this -last name cannot be severed from that of the Pictones [111] in Gaul, -and it is usually supposed to have referred to their habit of tattooing -themselves. At all events this agrees with the apparent meaning of the -names Prydyn and Cruithni, from pryd and cruth, the words in Welsh and -Irish respectively for form or shape, the designation being supposed -to refer to the forms or pictures of various animals punctured on the -skins of the Picts. So much as to the practical identity of the terms -Prydyn, Cruithni, and the Greeks' Pretanic; but how could Cedyrn and -Prydein correspond in the terms Ynys y Kedyrn and Ynys Prydein? This -one is enabled to understand by means of ceūri or ceiri as a middle -term. Now cadarn means strong or valiant, and makes the plural cedyrn; -but there is another Welsh word cadr [112] which has also the meaning -of valiant or powerful, and may have yielded some such a medieval form -as ceidyr in the plural. Now this cadr is proved by its cognates [113] -not to have always had the meaning of valiant or strong: its original -signification was more nearly 'fine, beautiful, or beautified.' Thus -what seems to have happened is, that cadarn, 'strong, powerful, -mighty,' influenced the meaning of cadr, 'beautiful,' and eventually -usurped its place in the name of the island, which from being Ynys -y Ceidyr became Ynys y Cedyrn. But the former meant the 'Island of -the fine or beautiful men,' which was closely enough the meaning -also of the words Prydain, Cruithni, and Picts, as names of a people -who delighted to beautify their persons by tattooing their skins and -making themselves distingué in that savage fashion. That is not all, -for on examination it turns out that the word ceiri, which has been -treated up to this point as meaning giants, is but a double, so to -say, of the word cadr in the plural, both as to etymology and original -meaning of beautiful. It is a word in constant use in Carnarvonshire, -where it is ironically applied to pretentious men fond of showing -themselves off, especially in the matter of clothes. 'D ydi nhw -'n geiri! 'Aren't they swells!' Dyna i ch'i gawr! 'There's a fine -fellow for you!' and so also with the feminine cawres. Of course the -cawr of standard Welsh is familiar enough in the sense of giant to -Carnarvonshire people, so the meaning can be best ascertained in the -case of the plural ceiri, which they hardly ever meet with in print; -and, so far as I have been able to ascertain, by ceiri they mean--in an -ironical sense it is true--fine fellows, with reference not to great -stature or strength but to their get-up. Thus one arrives at the true -interpretation of the name Tre'r Ceiri as the Town of the Prydyn or -Cruithni; that is to say, the Town of the Picts or the Aborigines, who -showed themselves off decorated with pictures. So far also from Ynys -y Ceiri being an echo of Ynys y Cedyrn, it turns out to be really the -more original of the two. Such names, when they are closely examined, -are apt to prove old beyond all hastily formed expectation. - - - - - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -MANX FOLKLORE - - -Be it remembrid that one Manaman Mack Clere, a paynim, was the first -inhabitour of the ysle of Man, who by his Necromancy kept the same, -that when he was assaylid or invaded he wold rayse such mystes by land -and sea that no man might well fynde owte the ysland, and he would make -one of his men seeme to be in nombre a hundred.--The Landsdowne MSS. - - -The following paper exhausts no part of the subject: it simply -embodies the substance of my notes of conversations which I have -had with Manx men and Manx women, whose names, together with such -other particulars as I could get, are in my possession. I have mostly -avoided reading up the subject in printed books; but those who wish to -see it exhaustively treated may be directed to Mr. Arthur W. Moore's -book on The Folklore of the Isle of Man, to which may now be added -Mr. C. Roeder's Contributions to the Folklore of the Isle of Man in -the Lioar Manninagh for 1897, pp. 129-91. - -For the student of folklore the Isle of Man is very fairly stocked -with inhabitants of the imaginary order. She has her fairies and her -giants, her mermen and brownies, her kelpies and water-bulls. - -The water-bull or tarroo ushtey, as he is called in Manx, is a creature -about which I have not been able to learn much, but he is described -as a sort of bull disporting himself about the pools and swamps. For -instance, I was told at the village of Andreas, in the flat country -forming the northern end of the island, and known as the Ayre, that -there used to be a tarroo ushtey between Andreas and the sea to the -west: it was before the ground had been drained as it is now. And an -octogenarian captain at Peel related to me how he had once when a boy -heard a tarroo ushtey: the bellowings of the brute made the ground -tremble, but otherwise the captain was unable to give me any very -intelligible description. This bull is by no means of the same breed as -the bull that comes out of the lakes of Wales to mix with the farmers' -cattle, for there the result used to be great fertility among the -stock, and an overflow of milk and dairy produce, but in the Isle of -Man the tarroo ushtey only begets monsters and strangely formed beasts. - -The kelpie, or, rather, what I take to be a kelpie, was called by my -informants a glashtyn; and Kelly, in his Manx Dictionary, describes -the object meant as 'a goblin, an imaginary animal which rises out of -the water.' One or two of my informants confused the glashtyn with -the Manx brownie. On the other hand, one of them was very definite -in his belief that it had nothing human about it, but was a sort of -grey colt, frequenting the banks of lakes at night, and never seen -except at night. - -Mermen and mermaids disport themselves on the coasts of Man, but -I have to confess that I have made no careful inquiry into what is -related about them; and my information about the giants of the island -is equally scanty. To confess the truth, I do not recollect hearing -of more than one giant, but that was a giant: I have seen the marks -of his huge hands impressed on the top of two massive monoliths. They -stand in a field at Balla Keeill Pherick, on the way down from the -Sloc to Colby. I was told there were originally five of these stones -standing in a circle, all of them marked in the same way by the same -giant as he hurled them down there from where he stood, miles away on -the top of the mountain called Cronk yn Irree Laa. Here I may mention -that the Manx word for a giant is foawr, in which a vowel-flanked -m has been spirited away, as shown by the modern Irish spelling, -fomhor. This, in the plural in old Irish, appears as the name of -the Fomori, so well known in Irish legend, which, however, does -not always represent them as giants, but rather as monsters. I have -been in the habit of explaining the word as meaning submarini; but no -more are they invariably connected with the sea. So another etymology -recommends itself, namely, one which comes from Dr. Whitley Stokes, -and makes the mor in fomori to be of the same origin as the mare in -the English nightmare, French cauchemar, German mahr, 'an elf,' and -cognate words. I may mention that with the Fomori of mythic origin have -doubtless been confounded and identified certain invaders of Ireland, -especially the Dumnonians from the country between Galloway and the -mouth of the Clyde, some of whom may be inferred to have coasted -the north of Ireland and landed in the west, for example in Erris, -the north-west of Mayo, called after them Irrus (or Erris) Domnann. - -The Manx brownie is called the fenodyree, and he is described as a -hairy and apparently clumsy fellow, who would, for instance, thrash -a whole barnful of corn in a single night for the people to whom he -felt well disposed; and once on a time he undertook to bring down for -the farmer his wethers from Snaefell. When the fenodyree had safely -put them in an outhouse, he said that he had some trouble with the -little ram, as it had run three times round Snaefell that morning. The -farmer did not quite understand him, but on going to look at the -sheep, he found, to his infinite surprise, that the little ram was -no other than a hare, which, poor creature, was dying of fright and -fatigue. I need scarcely point out the similarity between this and -the story of Peredur, who, as a boy, drove home two hinds with his -mother's goats from the forest: he owned to having had some trouble -with the goats that had so long run wild as to have lost their horns, -a circumstance which had greatly impressed him [114]. To return to the -fenodyree, I am not sure that there were more than one in Man--I have -never heard him spoken of in the plural; but two localities at least -are assigned to him, namely, a farm called Ballachrink, in Colby, -in the south, and a farm called Lanjaghan, in the parish of Conchan, -near Douglas. Much the same stories, however, appear to be current -about him in the two places, and one of the most curious of them is -that which relates how he left. The farmer so valued the services -of the fenodyree, that one day he took it into his head to provide -clothing for him. The fenodyree examined each article carefully, -and expressed his idea of it, and specified the kind of disease it -was calculated to produce. In a word, he found that the clothes would -make head and foot sick, and he departed in disgust, saying to the -farmer, 'Though this place is thine, the great glen of Rushen is -not.' Glen Rushen is one of the most retired glens in the island, -and it drains down through Glen Meay to the coast, some miles to -the south of Peel. It is to Glen Rushen, then, that the fenodyree -is supposed to be gone; but on visiting that valley in 1890 [115] in -quest of Manx-speaking peasants, I could find nobody there who knew -anything of him. I suspect that the spread of the English language -even there has forced him to leave the island altogether. Lastly, -with regard to the term fenodyree, I may mention that it is the word -used in the Manx Bible of 1819 for satyr in Isaiah xxxiv. 14 [116], -where we read in the English Bible as follows: 'The wild beasts of -the desert shall also meet with the wild beasts of the island, and -the satyr shall cry to his fellow.' In the Vulgate the latter clause -reads: et pilosus clamabit alter ad alterum. The term fenodyree has -been explained by Cregeen in his Manx Dictionary to mean one who -has hair for stockings or hose. That answers to the description of -the hairy satyr, and seems fairly well to satisfy the phonetics of -the case, the words from which he derives the compound being fynney -[117], 'hair,' and oashyr, 'a stocking'; but as oashyr seems to come -from the old Norse hosur, the plural of hosa, 'hose or stocking,' -the term fenodyree cannot date before the coming of the Norsemen; -and I am inclined to think the idea more Teutonic than Celtic. At any -rate I need not point out to the English reader the counterparts of -this hairy satyr in the hobgoblin 'Lob lie by the Fire,' and Milton's -'Lubber Fiend,' whom he describes as one that - - - Basks at the fire his hairy strength, - And crop-full out of doors he flings, - Ere the first cock his matin rings. - - -Lastly, I may mention that Mr. Roeder has a great deal to say about -the fenodyree under the name of glashtyn; for it is difficult to -draw any hard and fast line between the glashtyn and the fenodyree, -or even the water-bull, so much alike do they seem to have been -regarded. Mr. Roeder's items of folklore concerning the glashtyns -(see the Lioar Manninagh, iii. 139) show that there were male and -female glashtyns, and that the former were believed to have been too -fond of the women at Ballachrink, until one evening some of the men, -dressed as women, arranged to receive some youthful glashtyns. Whether -the fenodyree is of Norse origin or not, the glashtyn is decidedly -Celtic, as will be further shown in chapter vii. Here it will suffice -to mention one or two related words which are recorded in Highland -Gaelic, namely, glaistig, 'a she-goblin which assumes the form of -a goat,' and glaisrig, 'a female fairy or a goblin, half human, -half beast.' - -The fairies claim our attention next, and as the only other fairies -tolerably well known to me are those of Wales, I can only compare or -contrast the Manx fairies with the Welsh ones. They are called in Manx, -sleih beggey, or little people, and ferrishyn, from the English word -fairies, as it would seem. Like the Welsh fairies, they kidnap babies; -and I have heard it related how a woman in Dalby had a struggle with -the fairies over her baby, which they were trying to drag out of the -bed from her. Like Welsh fairies, also, they take possession of the -hearth after the farmer and his family are gone to bed. A man in Dalby -used to find them making a big fire in his kitchen: he would hear -the crackling and burning of the fire when nobody else could have -been there except the fairies and their friends. I said 'friends,' -for they sometimes take a man with them, and allow him to eat with -them at the expense of others. Thus, some men from the northern-most -parish, Kirk Bride, went once on a time to Port Erin, in the south, -to buy a supply of fish for the winter, and with them went a Kirk -Michael man who had the reputation of being a persona grata to the -fairies. Now one of the Port Erin men asked a man from the north who -the Michael man might be: he was curious to know his name, as he had -seen him once before, and on that occasion the Michael man was with -the fairies at his house--the Port Erin man's house--helping himself -to bread and cheese in company with the rest. As the fairies were -regaling themselves in this instance on ordinary bread and cheese -at a living Manxman's expense, the story may perhaps be regarded as -not inconsistent with one mentioned by Cumming [118] to the following -effect:--A man attracted one night as he was crossing the mountains, -by fairy music, entered a fairy hall where a banquet was going on. He -noticed among them several faces which he seemed to know, but no act -of mutual recognition took place till he had some drink offered him, -when one of those whom he seemed to know warned him not to taste of -the drink if he had any wish to make his way home again. If he partook -of it he would become like one of them. So he found an opportunity for -spilling it on the ground and securing the cup; whereupon the hall and -all its inmates instantaneously vanished. On this I may remark that -it appears to have been a widely spread belief, that no one who had -partaken of the food for spirits would be allowed to return to his -former life, and some instances will be found mentioned by Professor -Tylor in his Primitive Culture, ii. 50-2. - -Like the Welsh fairies, the Manx ones take men away with them and -detain them for years. Thus a Kirk Andreas man was absent from his -people for four years, which he spent with the fairies. He could not -tell how he returned, but it seemed as if, having been unconscious, -he woke up at last in this world. The other world, however, in which -he was for the four years was not far away, as he could see what his -brothers and the rest of the family were doing every day, although -they could not see him. To prove this, he mentioned to them how they -were occupied on such and such a day, and, among other things, how -they took their corn on a particular day to Ramsey. He reminded them -also of their having heard a sudden sharp crack as they were passing -by a thorn bush he named, and how they were so startled that one of -them would have run back home. He asked them if they remembered that, -and they said they did, only too well. He then explained to them the -meaning of the noise, namely, that one of the fairies with whom he -had been galloping the whole time was about to let fly an arrow at -his brothers, but that as he was going to do this, he (the missing -brother) raised a plate and intercepted the arrow: that was the sharp -noise they had heard. Such was the account he had to give of his -sojourn in Faery. This representation of the world of the fairies, -as contained within the ordinary world of mortals, is very remarkable; -but it is not a new idea, as we seem to detect it in the Irish story -of the abduction of Conla Rśad [119]: the fairy who comes to fetch -him tells him that the folk of Tethra, whom she represents, behold -him every day as he takes part in the assemblies of his country and -sits among his friends. The commoner way of putting it is simply to -represent the fairies as invisible to mortals at will; and one kind -of Welsh story relates how the mortal midwife accidentally touches -her eyes, while dressing a fairy baby, with an ointment which makes -the fairy world visible to her: see pp. 63, 213, above. - -Like Welsh fairies, the Manx ones had, as the reader will have seen, -horses to ride; they had also dogs, just as the Welsh ones had. This -I learn from another story, to the effect that a fisherman, taking a -fresh fish home, was pursued by a pack of fairy dogs, so that it was -only with great trouble he reached his own door. Then he picked up -a stone and threw it at the dogs, which at once disappeared; but he -did not escape, as he was shot by the fairies, and so hurt that he lay -ill for fully six months from that day. He would have been left alone -by the fairies, I was told, if he had only taken care to put a pinch -of salt in the fish's mouth before setting out, for the Manx fairies -cannot stand salt or baptism. So children that have been baptized are, -as in Wales, less liable to be kidnapped by these elves than those -that have not. I scarcely need add that a twig of cuirn [120] or rowan -is also as effective against fairies in Man as it is in Wales. Manx -fairies seem to have been musical, like their kinsmen elsewhere; for -I have heard of an Orrisdale man crossing the neighbouring mountains -at night and hearing fairy music, which took his fancy so much that -he listened, and tried to remember it. He had, however, to return, -it is said, three times to the place before he could carry it away -complete in his mind, which he succeeded in doing at last just as the -day was breaking and the musicians disappearing. This air, I am told, -is now known by the name of the Bollan Bane, or White Wort. As to -certain Welsh airs similarly supposed to have been derived from the -fairies, see pages 201-2 above. - -So far I have pointed out next to nothing but similarities between -Manx fairies and Welsh ones, and I find very little indicative of a -difference. First, with regard to salt, I am unable to say anything -in this direction, as I do not happen to know how Welsh fairies -regard salt: it is not improbable that they eschew salt as well as -baptism, especially as the Church of Rome has long associated salt -with baptism. There is, however, one point, at least, of difference -between the fairies of Man and of Wales: the latter are, so far as I -can call to mind, never supposed to discharge arrows at men or women, -or to handle a bow [121] at all, whereas Manx fairies are always -ready to shoot. May we, therefore, provisionally regard this trait -of the Manx fairies as derived from a Teutonic source? At any rate -English and Scotch elves were supposed to shoot, and I am indebted -to the kindness of my colleague, Professor Napier, for calling my -attention to the Leechdoms of Early England [122] for cases in point. - -Now that most of the imaginary inhabitants of Man and its coasts have -been rapidly passed in review before the reader, I may say something -of others whom I regard as semi-imaginary--real human beings to whom -impossible attributes are ascribed: I mean chiefly the witches, or, -as they are sometimes called in Manx English, butches [123]. That -term I take to be a variant of the English word witch, produced -under the influence of the verb bewitch, which was reduced in Manx -English to a form butch, especially if one bear in mind the Cumbrian -and Scottish pronunciation of these words, as wutch and bewutch. Now -witches shift their form, and I have heard of one old witch changing -herself into a pigeon; but that I am bound to regard as exceptional, -the regular form into which Manx witches pass at their pleasure being -that of the hare, and such a swift and thick skinned hare that no -greyhound, except a black one without a single white hair, can catch -it, and no shot, except a silver coin, penetrate its body. Both these -peculiarities are also well known in Wales. I notice a difference, -however, between Wales and Man with regard to the hare witches: -in Wales only the women can become hares, and this property runs, -so far as I know, in certain families. I have known many such, and my -own nurse belonged to one of them, so that my mother was reckoned to -be rather reckless in entrusting me to y Gota, or 'the Cutty One,' as -she might run away at any moment, leaving her charge to take care of -itself. But I have never heard of any man or boy of any such family -turning himself into a hare, whereas in the Isle of Man the hare -witches may belong, if I may say so, to either sex. I am not sure, -however, that a man who turns himself into a hare would be called a -wizard or witch; and I recollect hearing in the neighbourhood of Ramsey -of a man nicknamed the gaaue mwaagh, that is to say, 'the hare smith,' -the reason being that this particular smith now and then assumed the -form of a hare. I am not quite sure that gaaue mwaagh is the name of -a class, though I rather infer that it is. If so, it must be regarded -as a survival of the magic skill associated with smiths in ancient -Ireland, as evidenced, for instance, in St. Patrick's Hymn in the -eleventh or twelfth century manuscript at Trinity College, Dublin, -known as the Liber Hymnorum, in which we have a prayer-- - - - Fri brichta ban ocus goband ocus druad. - - Against the spells of women, of smiths and magicians [124]. - - -The persons who had the power of turning themselves into hares were -believed to be abroad and very active, together with the whole demon -world, on the eve of May-day of the Old Style. And a middle-aged -man from the parish of Andreas related to me how he came three or -four times across a woman reputed to be a witch, carrying on her -evil practices at the junction of cross-roads, or the meeting of -three boundaries. This happened once very early on Old May morning, -and afterwards he met her several times as he was returning home from -visiting his sweetheart. He warned the witch that if he found her again -he would kick her: that is what he tells me. Well, after a while he -did surprise her again at work at four cross-roads, somewhere near -Lezayre. She had a circle, he said, as large as that made by horses -in threshing, swept clean around her. He kicked her and took away her -besom, which he hid till the middle of the day. Then he made the farm -boys fetch some dry gorse, and he put the witch's besom on the top of -it. Thereupon fire was set to the gorse, and, wonderful to relate, -the besom, as it burned, crackled and made reports like guns going -off. In fact, the noise could be heard at Andreas Church--that is -to say, miles away. The besom had on it 'seventeen sorts of knots,' -he stated, and the woman herself ought to have been burned: in fact, -he added that she did not long survive her besom. The man who related -this to me is hale and strong, living now in the parish of Michael, -and not in that of Andreas, where he was born. - -There is a tradition at St. John's, which is overlooked by the mountain -called Slieau Whallian, that witches used at one time to be punished -by being set to roll down the steep side of the mountain in spiked -barrels; but, short of putting them to death, there were various ways -of rendering the machinations of witches innocuous, or of undoing the -mischief done by them; for the charmers supply various means of meeting -them triumphantly, and in case an animal is the victim, the burning of -it always proves an effective means of bringing the offender to book: -I shall have occasion to return to this under another heading. There -is a belief that if you can draw blood, however little, from a witch, -or one who has the evil eye, he loses his power of harming you; -and I have been told that formerly this belief was sometimes acted -upon. Thus, on leaving church, for instance, the man who fancied -himself in danger from another would sidle up to him or walk by his -side, and inflict on him a slight scratch, or some other trivial wound, -which elicited blood; but this must have been a course always attended -with more or less danger. - -The persons able to undo the witches' work, and remove the malignant -influence of the evil eye, are known in Manx English as charmers, -and something must now be said of them. They have various ways of -proceeding to their work. A lady of about thirty-five, living at Peel, -related to me how, when she was a child suffering from a swelling -in the neck, she had it charmed away by an old woman. This charmer -brought with her no less than nine pieces of iron, consisting of -bits of old pokers, old nails, and other odds and ends of the same -metal, making in all nine pieces. After invoking the Father, the Son, -and the Holy Ghost, she began to rub the girl's neck with the old -irons; nor was she satisfied with that, for she rubbed the doors, -the walls, and the furniture likewise, with the metal. The result, I -was assured, was highly satisfactory, as she has never been troubled -with a swelling in the throat since that day. Sometimes a passage -from the Bible is made use of in charming, as, for instance, in the -case of bleeding. One of the verses then pronounced is Ezekiel xvi. 6, -which runs thus:--'And when I passed by thee, and saw thee polluted in -thine own blood, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live; -yea, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live.' This was -told me by a Laxey man, who is over seventy years of age. The methods -of charming away warts are various. A woman from the neighbourhood -of St. John's explained to me how a charmer told her to get rid of -the warts on her hands. She was to take a string and make a knot on -it for every wart she had, and then tie the string round her hand, -or fingers--I forget which; and I think my informant, on her part, -forgot to tell me a vital part of the formula, namely, that the string -was to be destroyed. But however that may be, she assured me that the -warts disappeared, and have never returned since. A lady at Andreas has -a still simpler method of getting rid of warts. She rubs a snail on the -warts, and then places the snail on one of the points of a blackthorn, -and, in fact, leaves the snail to die, transfixed by the thorn; and -as the snail dies the warts disappear. She has done this in the case -of her niece with complete success, so far as the wart was concerned; -but she had forgotten to notice whether the snail had also succumbed. - -The lady who in this case applied the remedy cannot be in any sense -called a charmer, however much one may insist on calling what she -did a charm. In fact, the term charmer tends to be associated with a -particular class of charm involving the use of herbs. Thus there used -to be at one time a famous charmer living near Kirk Michael, to whom -the fishermen were in the habit of resorting, and my informant told -me that he had been deputed more than once by his fellow fishermen to -go to him in consequence of their lack of success in the fishing. The -charmer gave him a packet of herbs, cut small, with directions that -they should be boiled, and the water mixed with some spirits--rum, -I think--and partly drunk in the boat by the captain and the crew, -and partly sprinkled over the boat and everything in it. The charmer -clearly defined his position in the matter to my informant. 'I cannot,' -he said, 'put the fish in your nets for you; but if there is any -mischief in the way of your luck, I can remove that for you.' The -fishermen themselves had, however, more exaggerated notions of the -charmer's functions, for once on a time my informant spent on drink -for his boon companions the money which he was to give the charmer, -and then he collected herbs himself--it did not much matter what -herbs--and took them to his captain, who, with the crew, went through -the proper ritual, and made a most successful haul that night. In -fact, the only source of discontent was the charmer's not having -distributed the fish over two nights, instead of endangering their -nets by an excessive haul all in one night. They regarded him as able -to do almost anything he liked in the matter. - -A lady at Andreas gave me an account of a celebrated charmer who -lived between there and the coast. He worked on her husband's farm, -but used to be frequently called away to be consulted. He usually cut -up wormwood for the people who came to him, and if there was none to -be had, he did not scruple to rob the garden of any small sprouts -it contained of cabbage or the like. He would chop them small, -and give directions about boiling them and drinking the water. He -usually charged any one leaving him to speak to nobody on the way, -lest he break the charm, and this mysteriousness was evidently an -important element in his profession. But he was, nevertheless, a -thriftless fellow, and when he went to Peel, and sent the crier round -to announce his arrival, and received a good deal of money from the -fishermen, he seldom so conducted himself as to bring much of his -earnings home. He died miserably some seven or eight years ago at -Ramsey, and left a widow in great poverty. As to the present day, -the daughter of a charmer now dead is married to a man living in a -village on the southern side of the island, and she appears to have -inherited her father's reputation for charming, as the fishermen from -all parts are said to flock to her for luck. Incidentally, I have -heard in the south more than once of her being consulted in cases of -sudden and dangerous illness, even after the best medical advice has -been obtained: in fact, she seems to have a considerable practice. - -In answer to my question, how the charmer who died at Ramsey used -to give the sailors luck in the fishing, my informant at Andreas -could not say, except that he gave them herbs as already described, -and she thought also that he sold them wisps to place under their -pillows. I gather that the charms were chiefly directed to the removal -of supposed impediments to success in the fishing, rather than to any -act of a more positive nature. So far as I have been able to ascertain, -charming is hereditary, and they say that it descends from father -to daughter, and then from daughter to son, and so on--a remarkable -kind of descent, on which I should be glad to learn the opinion of -anthropologists. One of the best Manx scholars in the island related -to me how some fishermen once insisted on his doing the charmer for -them because of his being of such and such a family, and how he made -fools of them. It is my impression that the charming families are -comparatively few in number, and this looks as if they descended from -the family physicians or druids of one or two chieftains in ancient -times. It is very likely a question which could be cleared up by a -local man familiar with the island and all that tradition has to say -on the subject of Manx pedigrees. - -In the case of animals ailing, the herbs were also resorted to; -and, if the beasts happened to be milch cows, the herbs had to be -boiled in some of their milk. This was supposed to produce wonderful -results, described as follows by a man living at a place on the way -from Castletown up South Barrule:--A farmer in his parish had a cow -that milked blood, as he described it, and this in consequence of a -witch's ill-will. He went to the charmer, who gave him some herbs, -which he was to boil in the ailing cow's milk, and the charmer charged -him, whatever he did, not to quit the concoction while it was on the -fire, in spite of any noises he might hear. The farmer went home and -proceeded that night to boil the herbs as directed, but he suddenly -heard a violent tapping at the door, a terrible lowing of the cattle -in the cow-house, and stones coming down the 'chumley': the end of it -was that he suddenly fled and sprang into bed to take shelter behind -his wife. He went to the charmer again, and related to him what had -happened: he was told that he must have more courage the next time, -unless he wished his cow to die. He promised to do his best, and -this time he stood his ground in spite of the noises and the creaking -of the windows--until, in fact, a back window burst into pieces and -bodily let a witch in, who craved his pardon, and promised nevermore -to molest him or his. This all happened at the farm in question -in the time of the present farmer's grandfather. The boiling of -the charmer's herbs in milk always produces a great commotion and -lowing among the cattle, and it invariably cures the ailing ones: -this is firmly believed by respectable farmers whom I could name, -in the north of the island in particular, and I am alluding to men -whom one might consider fairly educated members of their class. - -In the last mentioned instance not only is the requisite cure -effected, but the witch who caused the mischief is brought on the -spot. I have recently heard of a parallel to this in a belief which -appears to be still prevalent in the Channel Islands, more especially -Guernsey. The following incidents have been communicated to me by an -ardent folklorist, who has friends in the islands:-- - -An old woman in Torteval became ill, and her two sons were told that -if they tried one of the charms of divination, such as boiling certain -weeds in a pot, the first person to come to the house would prove -to be the one who had cast a spell over their mother. Accordingly -they made their bouillederie, and who should come to the door but -a poor, unoffending Breton onion seller, and as he was going away -he was waylaid by the two sons, who beat him within an inch of his -life. They were prosecuted and sentenced to terms of imprisonment; -but the charming did not come out in the evidence, though it was -generally known to have been the reason for the assault. This account -was given my informant in 1898, and the incident appears to have -happened not very long before. Another is related thus:--A certain -family suffered from a plague of lice, which they regarded as the -consequence of a spell. They accordingly made their boiling of herbs -and looked for the first comer. He turned out to be a neighbour of -theirs who wished to buy some turnip seeds. The family abused him -roundly. He went away, but he was watched and caught by two of the -sons of the house, who beat him cruelly. They, on being prosecuted, -had to pay him £5 damages. This took place in the summer of 1898, -in the narrator's own parish, in Guernsey. I have also another case -of recent date, to the effect that a young woman, whose churning was -so unsuccessful that the butter would not come, boiled herbs in the -prescribed way. She awaited the first comer, and, being engaged, her -intended husband was not unnaturally the first to arrive. She abused -him so unsparingly that he broke off the engagement. These instances -go far enough to raise the question why the boiling of herbs should -be supposed to bring the culprit immediately on the spot, but they -hardly go any further, namely, to help us to answer it. - -Magic takes us back to a very primitive and loose manner of thinking; -so the marvellously easy way in which it identifies any tie of -association, however flimsy, with the insoluble bond of relationship -which educated men and women regard as connecting cause and effect, -renders even simpler means than I have described quite equal to the -undoing of the evils resulting from the activity of the evil eye. Thus, -let us suppose that a person endowed with the evil eye has just passed -by the farmer's herd of cattle, and a calf has suddenly been seized -with a serious illness, the farmer hurries after the man of the evil -eye to get the dust from under his feet. If he objects, the farmer -may, as has sometimes been actually done, throw him down by force, -take off his shoes, and scrape off the dust adhering to their soles, -and carry it back to throw over the calf. Even that is not always -necessary, as it appears to be quite enough if he takes up dust where -he of the evil eye has just trod the ground. There are innumerable -cases on folk-record of both means proving entirely efficacious, -and they remind one of a story related in the Itinerarium Kambrię, -i. 11, by Giraldus, as to the archbishop when he was preaching in the -neighbourhood of Haverfordwest. A certain woman had lost her sight, -but had so much faith in that holy man that she sent her son to try and -procure the least bit of the fringe of his clothing. The youth, unable -to make his way through the crowd that surrounded the preacher, waited -till it dispersed, and then took home to his mother the sod on which -he had stood and on which his feet had left their mark. That earth was -applied by her to her face and eyes, with the result that she at once -recovered her sight. A similar question of psychology presents itself -in a practice intended as a preservative against the evil eye rather -than as a cure. I allude to what I have heard about two maiden ladies -living in a Manx village which I know very well: they are natives -of a neighbouring parish, and I am assured that whenever a stranger -enters their house they proceed, as soon as he goes away, to strew a -little dust or sand over the spot where he stood. That is understood -to prevent any malignant influence resulting from his visit. This -tacit identifying of a man with his footprints may be detected in a -more precarious and pleasing form in a quaint conceit familiar to me -in the lyrics of rustic life in Wales, when, for example, a coy maiden -leaves her lovesick swain hotly avowing his perfect readiness to cusanu -ol ei thraed, that is, to do on his knees all the stages of her path -across the meadow, kissing the ground wherever it has been honoured -with the tread of her dainty foot. Let me take another case, in which -the cord of association is not so inconceivably slender, namely, -when two or more persons standing in a close relation to one another -are mistakenly treated a little too much as if mutually independent, -the objection is heard that it matters not whether it is A or B, that -it is, in fact, all the same, as they belong to the same concern. In -Welsh this is sometimes expressed by saying, Yr un yw Huw'r Glyn a'i -glocs, that is, 'Hugh of the Glen and his clogs are all one.' Then, -when you speak in English of a man 'standing in another's shoes,' -I am by no means certain, that you are not employing an expression -which meant something more to those who first used it than it does to -us. Our modern idioms, with all their straining after the abstract, -are but primitive man's mental tools adapted to the requirements of -civilized life, and they often retain traces of the form and shape -which the neolithic worker's chipping and polishing gave them. - -It is difficult to arrange these scraps under any clearly classified -headings, and now that I have led the reader into the midst of matters -magical, perhaps I may just as well go on to the mention of a few -more: I alluded to the boiling of the herbs according to the charmer's -orders, with the result, among other things, of bringing the witch to -the spot. This is, however, not the only instance of the importance -and strange efficacy of fire. For when a beast dies on a farm, of -course it dies, according to the old-fashioned view of things as I -understand it, from the influence of the evil eye or the interposition -of a witch. So if you want to know to whom you are indebted for the -loss of the beast, you have simply to burn its carcase in the open -air and watch who comes first to the spot or who first passes by: -that is the criminal to be charged with the death of the animal, -and he cannot help coming there--such is the effect of the fire. A -Michael woman, who is now about thirty, related to me how she watched -while the carcase of a bewitched colt was burning, how she saw the -witch coming, and how she remembers her shrivelled face, with nose -and chin in close proximity. According to another native of Michael, -a well informed middle-aged man, the animal in question was oftenest -a calf, and it was wont to be burnt whole, skin and all. The object, -according to him, is invariably to bring the bewitcher on the spot, -and he always comes; but I am not clear what happens to him when -he appears. My informant added, however, that it was believed that, -unless the bewitcher got possession of the heart of the burning beast, -he lost all his power of bewitching. He related, also, how his father -and three other men were once out fishing on the west coast of the -island, when one of the three suddenly expressed his wish to land. As -they were fishing successfully some two or three miles from the shore, -they would not hear of it. He, however, insisted that they must put him -ashore at once, which made his comrades highly indignant; but they soon -had to give way, as they found that he was determined to leap overboard -unless they complied. When he got on shore they watched him hurrying -away towards where a beast was burning in the corner of a field. - -Manx stories merge this burning in a very perplexing fashion with what -may be termed a sacrifice for luck. The following scraps of information -will make it clear what I mean:--A respectable farmer from Andreas -told me that he was driving with his wife to the neighbouring parish of -Jurby some years ago, and that on the way they beheld the carcase of a -cow or an ox burning in a field, with a woman engaged in stirring the -fire. On reaching the village to which they were going, they found -that the burning beast belonged to a farmer whom they knew. They -were further told it was no wonder that the said farmer had one of -his cattle burnt, as several of them had recently died. Whether this -was a case of sacrifice or not I cannot say. But let me give another -instance: a man whom I have already mentioned, saw at a farm nearer -the centre of the island a live calf being burnt. The owner bears -an English name, but his family has long been settled in Man. The -farmer's explanation to my informant was that the calf was burnt to -secure luck for the rest of the herd, some of which were threatening -to die. My informant thought there was absolutely nothing the matter -with them, except that they had too little food. Be that as it may, -the one calf was sacrificed as a burnt offering to secure luck for -the rest of the cattle. Let me here also quote Mr. Moore's note in -his Manx Surnames, p. 184, on the place-name Cabbal yn Oural Losht, -or the 'Chapel of the Burnt Sacrifice.' 'This name,' he says, 'records -a circumstance which took place in the nineteenth century, but which, -it is to be hoped, was never customary in the Isle of Man. A farmer, -who had lost a number of his sheep and cattle by murrain, burned a calf -as a propitiatory offering to the Deity on this spot, where a chapel -was afterwards built. Hence the name.' Particulars, I may say, of time, -place, and person, could be easily added to Mr. Moore's statement, -excepting, perhaps, as to the deity in question: on that point I have -never been informed, but Mr. Moore was probably right in the use of -the capital d, as the sacrificer was, according to all accounts, a -devout Christian. I have to thank Sir Frederick Pollock for calling my -attention to a parallel this side of the sea: he refers me to Worth's -History of Devonshire (London, 1886), p. 339, where one reads the -following singular passage:--'Living animals have been burnt alive in -sacrifice within memory to avert the loss of other stock. The burial -of three puppies "brandise-wise" in a field is supposed to rid it -of weeds.' The second statement is very curious, and the first seems -to mean that preventive sacrifices have been performed in Devonshire -within the memory of men living in the author's time. - -One more Manx instance: an octogenarian woman, born in the parish of -Bride, and now living at Kirk Andreas, saw, when she was a 'lump of -a girl' of ten or fifteen years of age, a live sheep being burnt in -a field in the parish of Andreas, on May-day, whereby she meant the -first of May reckoned according to the Old Style. She asserts [125] -very decidedly that it was son oural, 'for a sacrifice,' as she put -it, and 'for an object to the public': those were her words when she -expressed herself in English. Further, she made the statement that -it was a custom to burn a sheep on Old May-day for a sacrifice. I was -fully alive to the interest of this evidence, and cross-examined her -so far as her age allows of it, and I find that she adheres to her -statement with all firmness, but I distinguish two or three points in -her evidence: 1. I have no doubt that she saw, as she was passing by -a certain field on the borders of Andreas parish, a live sheep being -burnt on Old May-day. 2. But her statement that it was son oural, or -as a sacrifice, was probably only an inference drawn by her, possibly -years afterwards, on hearing things of the kind discussed. 3. Lastly, -I am convinced that she did hear the May-day sacrifice discussed, both -in Manx and in English: her words, 'for an object to the public,' are -her imperfect recollection of a phrase used in her hearing by somebody -more ambitious of employing English abstract terms than she is; and -the formal nature of her statement in Manx, that it was customary -on May-day to burn as a sacrifice one head of sheep (Laa Boaldyn va -cliaghtey dy lostey son oural un baagh keyrragh), produces the same -impression on my mind, that she is only repeating somebody else's -words. I mention this more especially as I have failed to find anybody -else in Andreas or Bride, or indeed in the whole island, who will -now confess to having ever heard of the sheep sacrifice on Old May-day. - -The time assigned to the sheep sacrifice, namely May-day, leads -me to make some remarks on the importance of that day among the -Celts. The day meant is, as I have already said, Old May-day, in Manx -Shenn Laa Boaldyn, the belltaine of Cormac's Glossary, Scotch Gaelic -bealtuinn. This was a day when systematic efforts were made to protect -man and beast against elves and witches; for it was then that people -carried crosses of rowan in their hats and placed May flowers over -the tops of their doors and elsewhere as preservatives against all -malignant influences. With the same object in view crosses of rowan -were likewise fastened to the tails of the cattle, small crosses -which had to be made without the help of a knife: I exhibited a tiny -specimen at one of the meetings of the Folk-Lore Society. Early on May -morning one went out to gather the dew as a thing of great virtue, -as in other countries. At Kirk Michael one woman, who had been out -on this errand years ago, told me that she washed her face with the -dew in order to secure luck, a good complexion, and safety against -witches. The break of this day is also the signal for setting the -ling or the gorse on fire, which is done in order to burn out the -witches wont to take the form of the hare; and guns, I am told, -were freely used to shoot any game met with on that morning. With the -proper charge some of the witches were now and then hit and wounded, -whereupon they resumed the human form and remained cripples for the -rest of their lives. Fire, however, appears to have been the chief -agency relied on to clear away the witches and other malignant beings; -and I have heard of this use of fire having been carried so far that -a practice was sometimes observed--as, for example, in Lezayre--of -burning gorse, however little, in the hedge of each field on a farm -in order to drive away the witches and secure luck. - -The man who told me this, on being asked whether he had ever heard -of cattle being driven through fire or between two fires on May-day, -replied that it was not known to him as a Manx custom, but that it was -an Irish one. A cattle-dealer whom he named used on May-day to drive -his cattle through fire so as to singe them a little, as he believed -that would preserve them from harm. He was an Irishman, who came to -the island for many years, and whose children are settled in the island -now. On my asking him if he knew whence the dealer came, he answered, -'From the mountains over there,' pointing to the Mourne Mountains -looming faintly in the mists on the western horizon. The Irish custom -known to my Manx informant is interesting both as throwing light on -the Manx custom, and as being the continuation of a very ancient rite -mentioned by Cormac. That writer, or somebody in his name, says that -belltaine, May-day, was so called from the 'lucky fire,' or the 'two -fires,' which the druids of Erin used to make on that day with great -incantations; and cattle, he adds, used to be brought to those fires, -or to be driven between them, as a safeguard against the diseases of -the year. Cormac [126] says nothing, it will be noticed, as to one of -the cattle or the sheep being sacrificed for the sake of prosperity -to the rest. However, Scottish [127] May-day customs point to a -sacrifice having been once usual, and that possibly of human beings, -and not of sheep as in the Isle of Man. I have elsewhere [128] tried -to equate these Celtic May-day practices with the Thargelia [129] -of the Athenians of antiquity. The Thargelia were characterized by -peculiar rites, and among other things then done, two adult persons -were led about, as it were scapegoats, and at the end they were -sacrificed and burnt, so that their ashes might be dispersed. Here -we seem to be on the track of a very ancient Aryan practice, although -the Celtic season does not quite coincide with the Greek one. Several -items of importance for comparison here will be found passed under -careful review in a most suggestive paper by Mr. Lawrence Gomme, 'On -the Method of determining the Value of Folklore as Ethnological Data,' -in the Fourth Report of the Ethnographical Survey Committee [130]. - -It is probably in some ancient May-day custom that we are to look -for the key to a remarkable place-name occurring several times in -the island: I allude to that of Cronk yn Irree Laa, which probably -means the Hill of the Rise of Day. This is the name of one of the -mountains in the south of the island, but it is also borne by one -of the knolls near the eastern end of the range of low hills ending -abruptly on the coast between Ramsey and Bride parish, and quite a -small knoll bears the name, near the church of Jurby [131]. I have -heard of a fourth instance, which, as I learn from Mr. Philip Kermode, -editor of the Lioar Manninagh, is on Clay Head, near Laxey. It has -been attempted to explain it as meaning the Hill of the Watch by Day, -in reference to the old institution of Watch and Ward on conspicuous -places in the island; but that explanation is inadmissible as doing -violence to the phonetics of the words in question [132]. I am rather -inclined to think that the name everywhere refers to an eminence to -which the surrounding inhabitants resorted for a religious purpose -on a particular day in the year. I should suggest that it was to -do homage to the rising sun on May morning, but this conjecture is -offered only to await a better explanation. - -The next great day in the pagan calendar of the Celts is called in -Manx Laa Lhunys, in Irish Lugnassad, the assembly or fair, which was -associated with the name of the god Lug. This should correspond to -Lammas, but, reckoned as it is according to the Old Style, it falls -on the twelfth of August, which used to be a great day for business -fairs in the Isle of Man as in Wales. But for holiday making the -twelfth only suited when it happened to be a Sunday: when that was -not the case, the first Sunday after the twelfth was fixed upon. It is -known, accordingly, as the first Sunday of Harvest, and it used to be -celebrated by crowds of people visiting the tops of the mountains. The -kind of interference to which I have alluded with regard to an ancient -holiday, is one of the regular results of the transition from Roman -Catholicism to a Protestant system with only one fixed holiday, namely, -Sunday. The same shifting has partly happened in Wales, where Lammas -is Gwyl Awst, or the festival of Augustus, since the birthday of -Augustus, auspiciously for him and the celebrity of his day, fell in -with the great day of the god Lug in the Celtic world. Now the day -for going up the Fan Fach mountain in Carmarthenshire was Lammas, -but under a Protestant Church it became the first Sunday in August; -and even modified in that way it could not long survive under a -vigorous sabbatarian régime either in Wales or Man. As to the latter -in particular, I have heard it related by persons who were present, -how the crowds on the top of South Barrule on the first Sunday of -Harvest were denounced as pagans by a preacher called William Gick, -some seventy years ago; and how another man called Paric Beg, or -Little Patrick, preaching to the crowds on Snaefell in milder terms, -used to wind up the service with a collection, which appears to have -proved a speedier method of reducing the dimensions of these meetings -on the mountain tops. Be that as it may, they seem to have dwindled -since then to comparative insignificance. - -If you ask the reason for this custom now, for it is not yet quite -extinct, you are told, first, that it is merely to gather ling -berries; but now and then a quasi-religious reason is given, namely, -that it is the day on which Jephthah's daughter went forth to bewail -her virginity 'upon the mountains': somehow some Manx people make -believe that they are doing likewise. That is not all, for people -who have never themselves thought of going up the mountains on the -first Sunday of harvest or any other, will be found devoutly reading -at home about Jephthah's daughter on that day. I was told this first -in the south by a clergyman's wife, who, finding a woman in the parish -reading the chapter in question on that day, asked the reason for her -fixing on that particular portion of the Bible. She then had the Manx -view of the matter fully explained to her, and she has since found -more information about it, and so have I. It is needless for me to -say that I do not quite understand how Jephthah's daughter came to be -introduced: perhaps it is vain to look for any deeper reason than that -the mention, of the mountains may have served as a sort of catch-word, -and that as the Manx people began to cease from visiting the tops of -the mountains annually, it struck the women as the next best thing -for them to read at home of one who did 'go up and down upon the -mountains': they are great readers of the Bible generally. In any case -we have here a very curious instance of a practice, originally pagan, -modifying itself profoundly to secure a new lease of life. - -Between May-day and November eve, there was a day of considerable -importance in the island; but the fixing on it was probably -due to influence other than Celtic: I mean Midsummer Eve, or -St. John's. However, some practices connected with it would seem to -have been of Celtic origin, such as 'the bearing of rushes to certain -places called Warrefield and Mame on Midsummer Even.' Warrefield was -made in Manx into Barrule, but Mame, 'the jugum, or ridge,' has not -been identified. The Barrule here in question was South Barrule, and it -is to the top of that mountain the green rushes were carried, according -to Manx tradition, as the only rent or tax which the inhabitants paid, -namely, to Manannįn mac Lir (called in Welsh Manawydan ab Llyr), -whom the same tradition treats as father and founder, as king and -chief wizard of the Isle of Man, the same Manannįn who is quaintly -referred to in the illiterate passage at the head of this chapter -[133]. As already stated, the payment of the annual rent of rushes is -associated with Midsummer Eve; but it did not prevent the top of South -Barrule from being visited likewise later in the year. Perhaps it may -also be worth while mentioning, with regard to most of the mountains -climbed on the first Sunday of Harvest, that they seem to have near the -summit of each a well of some celebrity, which appears to be the goal -of the visitors' peregrinations. This is the case with South Barrule, -the spring near the top of which cannot, it is said, be found when -sought a second time; also with Snaefell and with Maughold Head, which -boasts one of the most famous springs in the island. When I visited -it last summer in company with Mr. Kermode, we found it to contain -a considerable number of pins, some of which were bent, and many -buttons. Some of the pins were not of a kind usually carried by men, -and most of the buttons decidedly belonged to the dress of the other -sex. Several people who had resorted many years ago to St. Maughold's -Well, told me that the water is good for sore eyes, and that after -using it on the spot, or filling a bottle with it to take home, one -was wont to drop a pin or bead or button into the well. But it had -its full virtue only when visited the first Sunday of Harvest, and -that only during the hour when the books were open at church, which, -shifted back to Roman Catholic times, means doubtless the hour when -the priest was engaged in saying Mass. Compare the passage in the -Mabinogi of Math, where it is said that the spear required for the -slaying of Llew Llawgyffes had to be a whole year in the making: the -work was to be pursued only so long as one was engaged at the sacrifice -on Sunday (ar yr aberth duw sul): see the Oxford Mabinogion, p. 76. -To return to Man, the restriction, as might be expected, is not -peculiar to St. Maughold's Well: I have heard of it in connexion -with other wells, such as Chibbyr Lansh in Lezayre parish, and with -a well on Slieau Maggyl, in which some Kirk Michael people have a -great belief. But even sea water was believed to have considerable -virtues if you washed in it while the books were open at church, as I -was told by a woman who had many years ago repeatedly taken her own -sister to divers wells and to the sea during the service on Sunday, -in order to have her eyes cured of a chronic weakness. - -The remaining great day in the Celtic year is called Sauin or Laa -Houney: in Irish, Samhain, genitive Samhna. The Manx call it in -English Hollantide, a word derived from the English All hallowen tide, -'the Season of All Saints [134].' This day is also reckoned in Man -according to the Old Style, so that it is our twelfth of November. That -is the day when the tenure of land terminates, and when servant men -go to their places. In other words, it is the beginning of a new year; -and Kelly, in his Manx-English Dictionary, has, under the word blein, -'year,' the following note:--'Vallancey says the Celts began their -year with January; yet in the Isle of Man the first of November is -called New Year's day by the Mummers, who, on the eve, begin their -petition in these words: To-night is New Year's night, Hog-unnaa [135], -&c.' It is a pity that Kelly, whilst he was on this subject, did not -give the rhyme in Manx, and all the more so, as the mummers of the -present day, if he is right, must have changed their words into Noght -oie Houney, that is to say, To-night is Sauin Night or Halloween. So -I had despaired of finding anybody who could corroborate Kelly in his -statement, when I happened last summer to find a man at Kirk Michael -who was quite familiar with this way of treating the year. I asked -him if he could explain Kelly's absurd statement--I put my question -designedly in that form. He said he could, but that there was nothing -absurd in it. He then told me how he had heard some old people talk of -it: he is himself now about sixty-seven. He had been a farm servant -from the age of sixteen till he was twenty-six to the same man, near -Regaby, in the parish of Andreas, and he remembers his master and a -near neighbour of his discussing the term New Year's Day as applied to -the first of November, and explaining to the younger men that it had -always been so in old times. In fact, it seemed to him natural enough, -as all tenure of land ends at that time, and as all servant men begin -their service then. I cross-examined him, without succeeding in any -way in shaking his evidence. I should have been glad a few years ago -to have come across this piece of information, or even Kelly's note, -when I was discussing the Celtic year and trying to prove [136] that -it began at the beginning of winter, with May-day as the beginning -of its second half. - -One of the characteristics of the beginning of the Celtic year with -the commencement of winter was the belief that indications can be -obtained on the eve of that day regarding the events of the year; but -with the calendar year gaining ground it would be natural to expect -that the Calends of January would have some of the associations of the -Calends of Winter transferred to them, and vice versa. In fact, this -can, as it were, be watched now going on in the Isle of Man. First, -I may mention that the Manx mummers used to go about singing, in -Manx, a sort of Hogmanay song [137], reminding one of that usual in -Yorkshire and other parts of Great Britain, and now known to be of -Romance origin [138]. The time for it in this country was New Year's -Eve, according to the ordinary calendar, but in the Isle of Man it -has always been Hollantide Eve, according to the Old Style, and this -is the night when boys now go about continuing the custom of the old -mummers. There is no hesitation in this case between Hollantide Eve -and New Year's Eve. But with the prognostications for the year it -is different, and the following practices have been usual. I may, -however, premise that as a rule I have abstained from inquiring too -closely whether they still go on, but here and there I have had the -information volunteered that they do. - -1. I may mention first a salt prognostication, which was described -to me by a farmer in the north, whose wife practises it once a year -regularly. She carefully fills a thimble with salt in the evening -and upsets it in a neat little heap on a plate: she does that for -every member of the family, and every guest, too, if there happen to -be any. The plate is then left undisturbed till the morning, when -she examines the heaps of salt to see if any of them have fallen; -for whoever is found represented by a fallen heap will die during -the year. She does not herself, I am assured, believe in it, but she -likes to continue a custom which she has learned from her mother. - -2. Next may be mentioned the ashes being carefully swept to the -open hearth, and nicely flattened down by the women just before -going to bed. In the morning they look for footmarks on the hearth, -and if they find such footmarks directed towards the door, it means, -in the course of the year, a death in the family, and if the reverse, -they expect an addition to it by marriage [139]. - -3. Then there is an elaborate process of eavesdropping recommended -to young women curious to know their future husbands' names: a girl -would go with her mouth full of water and her hands full of salt -to the door of the nearest neighbour's house, or rather to that -of the nearest neighbour but one--I have been carefully corrected -more than once on that point. There she would listen, and the first -name she caught would prove to be that of her future husband. Once -a girl did so, as I was told by a blind fisherman in the south, and -heard two brothers quarrelling inside the house at whose door she -was listening. Presently the young men's mother exclaimed that the -devil would not let Tom leave John alone. At the mention of that triad -the girl burst into the house, laughing and spilling the mouthful of -water most incontinently. The end of it was that before the year was -out she married Tom, the second person mentioned: the first either -did not count or proved an unassailable bachelor. - -4. There is also a ritual for enabling a girl to obtain other -information respecting her future husband: vessels placed about the -room have various things put into them, such as clean water, earth, -meal, a piece of a net, or any other article thought appropriate. The -candidate for matrimony, with her eyes bandaged, feels her way about -the house until she puts her hand in one of the aforesaid vessels. If -what she lays her hand on is the clean water, her husband will be a -handsome man [140]; if it is the earth, he will be a farmer; if the -meal, a miller; if the net, a fisherman; and so on into as many of -the walks of life as may be thought worthy of consideration. - -5. Lastly, recourse may be had to a ritual of the same nature as that -observed by the druid of ancient Erin, when, burdened with a heavy -meal of the flesh of a red pig, he laid him down for the night in -order to await a prophetic dream as to the manner of man the nobles of -Erin assembled at Tara were to elect to be their king. The incident -is given in the story of Cśchulainn's Sick-bed; and the reader, -doubtless, knows the passage about Brian and the taghairm in the -fourth Canto of Scott's Lady of the Lake. But the Manx girl has only -to eat a salt herring, bones and all, without drinking or uttering -a word, and to retire backwards to bed. When she sleeps and dreams, -she will behold her future husband approaching to give her drink. - -Probably none of the practices which I have enumerated, or similar -ones mentioned to me, are in any sense peculiar to the Isle of Man; -but what interests me in them is the divided opinion as to the proper -night for them in the year. I am sorry to say that I have very -little information as to the blindman's-buff ritual (No. 4); what -information I have, to wit, the evidence of two persons in the south, -fixes it on Hollantide Eve. But as to the others (Nos. 1, 2, 3, 5), -they are observed by some on that night, and by others on New Year's -Eve, sometimes according to the Old Style [141] and sometimes the -New. Further, those who are wont to practise the salt heap ritual, -for instance, on Hollantide Eve, would be very indignant to hear -that anybody should think New Year's Eve the proper night, and vice -versa. So by bringing women bred and born in different parishes -to compare notes on this point, I have witnessed arguing hardly -less earnest than that which characterized the ancient controversy -between British and Italian ecclesiastics as to the proper time for -keeping Easter. I have not been able to map the island according to -the practices prevalent at Hollantide and the beginning of January, -but local folklorists could probably do it without much difficulty. My -impression, however, is that January is gradually acquiring the upper -hand. In Wales this must have been decidedly helped by the influence -of Roman rule and Roman ideas; but even there the adjuncts of the -Winter Calends have never been wholly transferred to the Calends -of January. Witness, for instance, the women who used to congregate -in the parish church to discover who of the parishioners would die -during the year [142]. That custom, in the neighbourhoods reported -to have practised it, continued to attach itself to the last, so -far as I know, to the beginning of November. In the Isle of Man -the fact of the ancient Celtic year having so firmly held its own, -seems to point to the probability that the year of the Pagan Norsemen -pretty nearly coincided with that of the Celts [143]. For there are -reasons to think, as I have endeavoured elsewhere to show, that the -Norse Yule was originally at the end of summer or the commencement -of winter, in other words, the days afterwards known as the Feast -of the Winter Nights. This was the favourite date in Iceland for -listening to soothsayers prophesying with regard to the winter then -beginning. The late Dr. Vigfusson had much to say on this subject, -and how the local sibyl, resuming her elevated seat at the opening -of each successive winter, gave the author of the Volospį his plan of -that remarkable poem, which has been described by the same authority -as the highest spiritual effort of the heathen muse of the North. - - - - - - - - -CHAPTER V - -THE FENODYREE AND HIS FRIENDS - - Emoi de hai sai megalai eutychiai ouk areskousi, - to theion epistamenō hōs esti phthoneron..--Herodotus. - - -The last chapter is hardly such as to call for a recapitulation of -its principal contents, and I venture to submit instead of any such -repetition an abstract of some very pertinent notes on it by Miss -M. G. W. Peacock, who compares with the folklore of the Isle of Man -the old beliefs which survive in Lincolnshire among the descendants -of Norse ancestors [144]. She was attracted by the striking affinity -which she noticed between them, and she is doubtless right in regarding -that affinity as due in no small degree to the Scandinavian element -present in the population alike of Man and the East of England. She -is, however, not lavish of theory, but gives us interesting items of -information from an intimate acquaintance with the folklore of the -district of which she undertakes to speak, somewhat in the following -order:-- - -1. Whether the water-bull still inhabits the streams of Lincolnshire -she regards as doubtful, but the deep pools formed, she says, by the -action of the down-flowing water at the bends of the country becks -are still known as bull-holes. - -2. As to the glashtyn, or water-horse, she remarks that the -tatter-foal, tatter-colt, or shag-foal, as he is variously called, -is still to be heard of, although his visits take place less often -than before the fens and carrs were drained and the open fields and -commons enclosed. She describes the tatter-foal as a goblin of the -shape and appearance of a small horse or yearling foal in his rough, -unkempt coat. He beguiles lonely travellers with his numberless tricks, -one of which is to lure them to a stream, swamp, or water-hole. When -he has succeeded he vanishes with a long outburst of mockery, half -neigh, half human laughter. - -3. The fenodyree, one is told, has in Lincolnshire a cousin, but he -is diminutive; and, like the Yorkshire Hob or Robin Round-Cap, and the -Danish Niss, he is used to befriend the house in which he dwells. The -story of his driving the farmer's sheep home is the same practically -as in the Isle of Man, even to the point of bringing in with them the -little grey sheep, as he called the fine hare that had given him more -trouble than all the rest of the flock: see pp. 286-7 above. - -4. The story of this manikin's clothing differs considerably from -that of the fenodyree. The farmer gives him in gratitude for his -services a linen shirt every New Year's Eve; and this went on for -years, until at last the farmer thought a hemp shirt was good enough -to give him. When the clock struck twelve at midnight the manikin -raised an angry wail, saying:-- - - - Harden, harden, harden hemp! - I will neither grind nor stamp! - Had you given me linen gear, - I would have served you many a year! - - -He was no more seen or heard: he vanished for ever. The Cornish -counterpart of this brownie reasons in the opposite way; for when, -in gratitude for his help in threshing, a new suit of clothes is -given him, he hurries away, crying [145]:-- - - - Pisky new coat, and pisky new hood, - Pisky now will do no more good. - - -Here, also, one should compare William Nicholson's account of the -brownie of Blednoch [146], in Galloway, who wore next to no clothing:-- - - - Roun' his hairy form there was naething seen, - But a philabeg o' the rushes green. - - -So he was driven away for ever by a newly married wife wishing him -to wear an old pair of her husband's breeches:-- - - - But a new-made wife, fu' o' rippish freaks, - Fond o' a' things feat for the first five weeks, - Laid a mouldy pair o' her ain man's breeks - By the brose o' Aiken-drum. - - Let the learned decide, when they convene, - What spell was him and the breeks between: - For frae that day forth he was nae mair seen, - And sair missed was Aiken-drum! - - -The only account which I have been able to find of a Welsh counterpart -will be found in Bwca'r Trwyn, in chapter x: he differs in some -important respects from the fenodyree and the brownie. - -5. A twig of the rowan tree, or wicken, as it is called, was effective -against all evil things, including witches. It is useful in many ways -to guard the welfare of the household, and to preserve both the live -stock and the crops, while placed on the churn it prevents any malign -influence from retarding the coming of the butter. I may remark that -Celts and Teutons seem to have been generally pretty well agreed -as to the virtues of the rowan tree. Bits of iron also are lucky -against witches. - -6. Fairies are rare, but witches and wizards abound, and some of them -have been supposed to change themselves into dogs to worry sheep and -cattle, or into toads to poison the swine's troughs. But they do not -seem to change themselves into hares, as in Man and other Celtic lands. - -7. Witchcraft, says Miss Peacock, is often hereditary, passing most -frequently from mother to daughter; but when a witch has no daughter -her power may appear in a son, and then revert to the female line. This -appears far more natural than the Manx belief in its passing from -father to daughter and from daughter to son. But another kind of -succession is mentioned in the Welsh Triads, i. 32, ii. 20, iii. 90, -which speak of Math ab Mathonwy teaching his magic to Gwydion, -who as his sister's son was to succeed him in his kingdom; and of a -certain Rhudlwm Dwarf teaching his magic to Coll, son of Collfrewi, -his nephew. Both instances seem to point to a state of society which -did not reckon paternity but only birth. - -8. Only three years previous to Miss Peacock's writing an old man died, -she says, who had seen blood drawn from a witch because she had, as -was supposed, laid a spell on a team of horses: as soon as she was -struck so as to bleed the horses and their load were free to go on -their way again. Possibly no equally late instance could be specified -in the Isle of Man: see p. 296 above. - -9. Traces of animal sacrifice may still be found in Lincolnshire, -for the heart of a small beast, or of a bird, is necessary, Miss -Peacock says, for the efficient performance of several counter-charms, -especially in torturing a witch by the reversal of her spells, and -warding off evil from houses or other buildings. Apparently Miss -Peacock has not heard of so considerable a victim as a sheep or a -calf being sacrificed, as in the Isle of Man, but the objects of the -sacrifices may be said to be the same. - -10. Several pin and rag wells are said to exist in Lincolnshire, -their waters being supposed to possess healing virtues, especially -as regards eye ailments. - -11. Love-spells and prognostications are mentioned, some of them as -belonging to Allhallows, as they do partly in the Isle of Man: she -mentions the making of dumb cake, and the eating of the salt herring, -followed by dreams of the future husband bringing the thirsting -lass drink in a jug, the quality of which indicates the bearer's -position in life. But other Lincolnshire practices of the kind seem -to oscillate between Allhallows and St. Mark's Eve, while gravitating -decidedly towards the latter date. Here it is preferable to give Miss -Peacock's own words:--'Professor Rhys' mention of the footmark in the -ashes reminds me of a love-spell current in the Wapentake of Manley in -North Lincolnshire. Properly speaking, it should be put in practice -on St. Mark's E'en, that eerie spring-tide festival when those who -are skilled may watch the church porch and learn who will die in the -ensuing twelvemonth; but there is little doubt that the charm is also -used at Hallow E'en, and at other suitable seasons of the year. The -spell consists in riddling ashes on the hearthstone, or beans on the -floor of the barn, with proper ceremonies and at the proper time, -with the result that the girl who works her incantation correctly -finds the footprint of the man she is to marry clearly marked on the -sifted mass the following morning. It is to be supposed that the spirit -of the lover is responsible for the mark, as, according to another -folk-belief, any girl who watches her supper on St. Mark's E'en will -see the spirit of the man she will wed come into the room at midnight -to partake of the food provided. The room must be one with the door -and windows in different walls, and both must be open. The spirit -comes in by the door (and goes out by the window?). Each girl who -undertakes to keep watch must have a separate supper and a separate -candle, and all talking is to end before the clock goes twelve, -for there must not be any speaking before the spirits. From these -superstitions, and from the generally received idea that the spirits -of all the parishioners are to be observed entering the church on -St. Mark's E'en, it may be inferred that the Manx footprint is made -by the wraith of the person doomed to death.' Compare pp. 318-9 above. - -What Miss Peacock alludes to as watching the church porch was formerly -well known in Wales [147], and may be illustrated from a district so -far east as the Golden Valley, in Herefordshire, by the following -story told me in 1892 by Mrs. Powell of Dorstone, on the strength -of what she had learnt from her mother-in-law, the late Mrs. Powell, -who was a native of that parish:-- - -'On Allhallows Eve at midnight, those who are bold enough to look -through the church windows will see the building lighted with an -unearthly light, and the pulpit occupied by his Satanic majesty clothed -in a monk's habit. Dreadful anathemas are the burden of his preaching, -and the names of those who in the coming year are to render up their -souls may be heard by those who have courage to listen. A notorious -evil liver, Jack of France, once by chance passed the church at this -awful moment: looking in he saw the lights and heard the voice, and -his own name in the horrid list; and, according to some versions of -the story, he went home to die of fright. Others say that he repented -and died in good repute, and so cheated the evil one of his prey.' - -I have no list of places in Wales and its marches which have this -sort of superstition associated with them, but it is my impression -that they are mostly referred to Allhallows, as at Dorstone, and that -where that is not the case they have been shifted to the beginning -of the year as at present reckoned; for in Celtic lands, at least, -they seem to have belonged to what was reckoned the beginning of the -year. The old Celtic year undoubtedly began at Allhallows, and the day -next in importance after the Calends of Winter (in Welsh Calangįeaf) -was, among the Celts, the beginning of the summer half of the year, -or the Calends of May (in Welsh Calįnmai), which St. Mark's Eve -approaches too nearly for us to regard it as accidental. With this -modified agreement between the Lincolnshire date and the Celtic one -contrast the irreconcilable English date of St. John's Eve; and see -Tylor's Primitive Culture, i. 440, where one reads as follows of 'the -well-known superstition,' 'that fasting watchers on St. John's Eve -may see the apparitions of those doomed to die during the year come -with the clergyman to the church door and knock; these apparitions -are spirits who come forth from their bodies, for the minister has -been noticed to be much troubled in his sleep while his phantom was -thus engaged, and when one of a party of watchers fell into a sound -sleep and could not be roused, the others saw his apparition knock -at the church door.' With an unerring instinct for the intelligent -colligation of facts, Miss Peacock finds the nearest approach to the -yearly review of the moritures, if I may briefly so call them, in the -wraith's footprint in the ashes. Perhaps a more systematic examination -of Manx folklore may result in the discovery of a more exact parallel. - -For want of knowing where else to put it, I may mention here in -reference to the dead, a passage which has been copied for me by -my friend Mr. Gwenogvryn Evans, from Manuscript 163 in the Peniarth -Collection. I understand it to be of the earlier part of the sixteenth -century, and p. 10 has the following passage:-- - -Yn yr ynys honn [Manaw] y kair gweled liw dyd bobyl a vvessynt veirw / -Rrai gwedi tori penav / eraill gwedi torri i haelode / Ac os dieithred -a dissyfynt i gweled hwynt / Sengi ar draed gwyr or tir ac velly -hwynt a gaent weled yr hyn a welssynt hwyntav. - -'In this island [Man] one beholds in the light of day people who have -died, some with their heads cut off and others with their limbs cut -off. And if strangers desire to see them, they have to stand on the -feet of the natives of the land, and in that way they would see what -the latter had seen.' - -A similar instance of the virtue of standing on the feet of another -person has been mentioned in reference to the farmer of Deunant, at -p. 230 above; the foot, however, on which he had to stand in order -to get a glimpse of the fairy world, was a fairy's own foot. - -Lastly, the passage in the Peniarth Manuscript has something more to -say of the Isle of Man, as follows:-- - -Mawr oed arfer o swynion a chyvaredion gynt yn yr ynys honn / Kanys -gwraged a vydynt yno yn gwnevthvr gwynt i longwyr gwedir gav mewn tri -chwlm o edav aphan vai eissie gwynt arnynt dattod kwlm or edav anaynt. - -'Great was the practice formerly of spells and sorceries in this -island; for there used to be there women making wind for sailors, -which wind they confined within three knots made on a thread. And -when they had need of wind they would undo a knot of the thread.' - -This was written in the sixteenth century, and based probably -on Higden's Polychronicon, book I, chap. xliv. (= I. 42-3), but -the same practice of wind making goes on to this day, one of the -principal practitioners being the woman to whom reference was made -at p. 299. She is said to tie the breezes in so many knots which -she makes on the purchasing sailor's pocket-handkerchief. This -reminds one of the sibyl of Warinsey, or the Island of Guernsey, -who is represented by an ancient Norse poet as 'fashioning false -prophecies.' See Vigfusson and Powell's Corpus Poeticum Boreale, -i. 136; also Mela's first-century account of the virgins of the island -of Sena, which runs to the following effect:--'Sena, in the Britannic -Sea, opposite the coast of the Osismi, is famous for its oracle of a -Gaulish god, whose priestesses, living in the holiness of perpetual -virginity, are said to be nine in number. They call them Gallizenę, -and they believe them to be endowed with extraordinary gifts to rouse -the sea and the wind by their incantations, to turn themselves into -whatsoever animal form they may choose, to cure diseases which among -others are incurable, to know what is to come and to foretell it. They -are, however, devoted to the service of voyagers only who have set out -on no other errand than to consult them [148].' It is probable that -the sacrosanct [149] inhabitants of the small islands on the coasts of -Gaul and Britain had wellnigh a monopoly of the traffic in wind [150]. - -In the last chapter I made allusion to several wells of greater or less -celebrity in the Isle of Man; but I find that I have a few remarks to -add. Mr. Arthur Moore, in his book on Manx Surnames and Place-Names, -p. 200, mentions a Chibber Unjin, which means the Well of the Ash-tree, -and he states that there grew near it 'formerly a sacred ash-tree, -where votive offerings were hung.' The ash-tree calls to his mind -Scandinavian legends respecting the ash, but in any case one may -suppose the ash was not the usual tree to expect by a well in the Isle -of Man, otherwise this one would scarcely have been distinguished as -the Ash-tree Well. The tree to expect by a sacred well is doubtless -some kind of thorn, as in the case of Chibber Undin in the parish of -Malew. The name means Foundation Well, so called in reference probably -to the foundations of an ancient cell, or keeill as it is called in -Manx, which lie close by, and are found to measure twenty-one feet -long by twelve feet broad. The following is Mr. Moore's account of -the well in his book already cited, p. 181:--'The water of this well -is supposed to have curative properties. The patients who came to it, -took a mouthful of water, retaining it in their mouths till they had -twice walked round the well. They then took a piece of cloth from a -garment which they had worn, wetted it with the water from the well, -and hung it on the hawthorn tree which grew there. When the cloth -had rotted away, the cure was supposed to be effected.' - -I visited the spot a few years ago in the company of the -Rev. E. B. Savage of St. Thomas' Parsonage, Douglas, and we found -the well nearly dried up in consequence of the drainage of the field -around it; but the remains of the old cell were there, and the thorn -bush had strips of cloth or calico tied to its branches. We cut off -one, which is now in the Pitt-Rivers Museum at Oxford. The account -Mr. Savage had of the ritual observed at the well differed a little -from that given by Mr. Moore, especially in the fact that it made the -patient who had been walking round the well with water from the well -in his mouth, empty that water finally into a rag from his clothing: -the rag was then tied to a branch of the thorn. It does not appear that -the kind of tree mattered much; nay, a tree is not, it seems to me, -essential. At any rate, St. Maughold's Well has no tree growing near -it now; but it is right to say, that when Mr. Kermode and I visited -it, we could find no rags left near the spot, nor indeed could we -expect to find any, as there was nothing to which they might be tied -on that windy headland. The absence of the tree does not, however, -prove that the same sort of ritual was not formerly observed at -St. Maughold's Well as at Chibber Undin; and here I must mention -another well which I have visited in the island more than once. It -is on the side of Bradda Hill, a little above the village of Bradda, -and in the direction of Fleshwick: I was attracted to it by the fact -that it had, as I had been told by Mr. Savage, formerly an old cell -or keeill near it, and the name of the saint to which it belonged may -probably be gathered from the name of the well, which, in the Manx of -the south of the island, is Chibbyrt Valtane, pronounced approximately -Chuvurt Voltįne or Oldįne. The personal name would be written in -modern Manx in its radical form as Boltane, and if it occurred in -the genitive in Ogam inscriptions I should expect to find it written -Boltagni or Baltagni [151]. It is, however, unknown to me, though to -be placed possibly by the side of the name of the saint after whom the -parish of Santon is called in the south-east of the island. This is -pronounced in Manx approximately [152] Santane or Sandane, and would -have yielded an early inscriptional nominative SANCTANVS, which, -in fact, occurs on an old stone near Llandudno on the Welsh coast: -see some notes of mine in point in the Archęologia Cambrensis, 1897, -pp. 140-2. To return to the well, it would seem to have been associated -with an old cell, but it has no tree growing by. Mr. Savage and I were -told, nevertheless, that a boy who had searched the well a short time -previously had got some coins out of it, quite recent ones, consisting -of halfpennies or pennies, so far as I remember. On my observing to -one of the neighbours that I saw no rags there, I was assured that -there had been some; and, on my further saying that I saw no tree -there to which they could be tied, I was told that they used to be -attached to the brambles, which grew there in great abundance. Thus -it appears that, in the Isle of Man at any rate, a tree to bear the -rags was not an essential adjunct of a holy well. - -Before leaving these well superstitions the reader may wish to know -how they were understood in Ireland not long ago: so I venture to -quote a passage from a letter by the late Mr. W. C. Borlase on Rag -Offerings and Primitive Pilgrimages in Ireland, as follows:-- - -'Among the MSS. of the late Mr. Windele, of Cork, ... I find a passage -which cannot fail to interest students of folk-lore. It relates to the -custom of affixing shreds of rag to the hawthorn tree, which almost -invariably stands by the brink of the typical Irish "holy well," and -it gives us the meaning of the custom as understood, some half-century -since, by the inhabitants of certain localities in the province of -Munster. The idea is, says the writer, that the putting up these rags -is a putting away of the evils impending or incurred by sin, an act -accompanied by the following ritual words: Air impide an Tiarna mo -chuid teinis do fhagaint air an ait so; i. e. By the intercession of -the Lord I leave my portion of illness on this place. These words, he -adds, should be uttered by whoever performs the round, and they are, -no doubt, of extreme antiquity. Mr. Windele doubtless took down the -words as he heard them locally pronounced, though, to be correct, for -Tiarna should be read Tigerna; for teinis, tinneas; and for fhagaint, -fhagaim [153].' - -From the less known saints Boltane and Santane I wish to pass to the -mention of a more famous one, namely, St. Catherine, and this because -of a fair called after her, and held on the sixth day of December at -the village of Colby in the south of the island. When I heard of this -fair in 1888, it was in temporary abeyance on account of a lawsuit -respecting the plot of ground on which the fair is wont to be held; -but I was told that it usually begins with a procession, in which a -live hen is carried about: this is called St. Catherine's hen. The next -day the hen is carried about dead and plucked, and a rhyme pronounced -at a certain point in the proceedings contemplates the burial of the -hen, but whether that ever takes place I know not. It runs thus:-- - - - Kiark Catrina marroo: - Gows yn kione as goyms ny cassyn, - As ver mayd ee fo'n thalloo. - - Catherine's hen is dead: - The head take thou and I the feet, - We shall put her under the ground. - - -A man who is found to be not wholly sober after the fair is locally -said to have plucked a feather from the hen (T'eh er goaill fedjag -ass y chiark); so it would seem that there must be such a scramble to -get at the hen, and to take part in the plucking, that it requires -a certain amount of drink to allay the thirst of the over zealous -devotees of St. Catherine. But why should this ceremony be associated -with St. Catherine? and what were the origin and meaning of it? These -are questions on which I should be glad to have light shed. - -Manx has a word quaail (Irish comhdhįil), meaning a 'meeting,' and -from it we have a derivative quaaltagh or qualtagh, meaning, according -to Kelly's Dictionary, 'the first person or creature one meets going -from home,' whereby the author can have only meant the first met by -one who is going from home. Kelly goes on to add that 'this person is -of great consequence to the superstitious, particularly to women the -first time they go out after lying-in.' Cregeen, in his Dictionary, -defines the qualtagh as 'the first person met on New Year's Day, -or on going on some new work, &c.' Before proceeding to give the -substance of my notes on the qualtagh of the present day I may as -well finish with Cregeen, for he adds the following information:--'A -company of young lads or men generally went in old times on what they -termed the qualtagh, at Christmas or New Year's Day, to the houses -of their more wealthy neighbours; some one of the company repeating -in an audible voice the following rhyme:-- - - - Ollick ghennal erriu as bleļn feer vie, - Seihll as slaynt da'n slane lught thie; - Bea as gennallys en bio ry-cheilley, - Shee as graih eddyr mrane as deiney; - Cooid as cowryn, stock as stoyr, - Palchey phuddase, as skaddan dy-liooar, - Arran as caashey, eeym as roayrt; - Baase, myr lugh, ayns uhllin ny soalt; - Cadley sauchey tra vees shiu ny lhie, - As feeackle y jargan, nagh bee dy mie.' - - -It may be loosely translated as follows:-- - - - A merry Christmas, a happy new year, - Long life and health to all the household here. - Food and mirth to you dwelling together, - Peace and love to all, men and women; - Wealth and distinction, stock and store, - Potatoes enough, and herrings galore; - Bread and cheese, butter and gravy; - Die like a mouse in a barn or haggard; - In safety sleep while you lie to rest, - And by the flea's tooth be not distressed. - - -At present New Year's Day is the time when the qualtagh is of general -interest, and in this case he is, outside the members of one's own -household, practically the first person one sees on the morning of -that day, whether that person meets one out of doors or comes to -one's house. The following is what I have learnt by inquiry as to -the qualtagh: all are agreed that he must not be a woman or girl, -and that he must not be spaagagh or splay footed, while a woman from -the parish of Marown told me that he must not have red hair. The -prevalent belief, however, is that he should be a dark haired man -or boy, and it is of no consequence how rough his appearance may be, -provided he be black haired. However, I was told by one man in Rushen -that the qualtagh or 'first-foot' need not be a black haired person: -he must be a man or boy. But this less restricted view is not the one -held in the central and northern parts of the island, so far as I could -ascertain. An English lady living in the neighbourhood of Castletown -told me that her son, whom I know to be, like his mother, a blond, -not being aware what consequences might be associated with his visit, -called at a house in Castletown on the morning of New Year's Day, and -he chanced to be the qualtagh. The mistress of the house was horrified, -and expressed to the English lady her anticipation of misfortunes; and -as it happened that one of the children of the house died in the course -of the year, the English lady has been reminded of it since. Naturally -the association of these events are not pleasant to her; but, so far -as I can remember, they date only some eight or nine years ago [154]. - -By way of bringing Wales into comparison with Man, I may mention -that, when I was a very small boy, I used to be sent very early on -New Year's morning to call on an old uncle of mine, because, as I -was told, I should be certain to receive a calennig or a calends' -gift from him, but on no account would my sister be allowed to go, -as he would only see a boy on such an occasion as that. I do not -recollect anything being said as to the colour of one's hair or the -shape of one's foot; but that sort of negative evidence is of very -little value, as the qualtagh was fast passing out of consideration. - -The preference here given to a boy over a girl looks like one of the -widely spread superstitions which rule against the fair sex; but, as -to the colour of the hair, I should be predisposed to think that it -possibly rests on racial antipathy, long ago forgotten; for it might -perhaps be regarded as going back to a time when the dark haired -race reckoned the Aryan of fair complexion as his natural enemy, -the very sight of whom brought with it thoughts calculated to make -him unhappy and despondent. If this idea proved to be approximately -correct, one might suggest that the racial distinction in question -referred to the struggles between the inhabitants of Man and their -Scandinavian conquerors; but to my thinking it is just as likely that -it goes much further back. - -Lastly, what is one to say with regard to the spaagagh or splay footed -person, now more usually defined as flat footed or having no instep? I -have heard it said in the south of the island that it is unlucky to -meet a spaagagh in the morning at any time of the year, and not on New -Year's Day alone; but this does not help us in the attempt to find -the genesis of this belief. If it were said that it was unlucky to -meet a deformed person, it would look somewhat more natural; but why -fix on the flat footed especially? For my part I have not been trained -to distinguish flat footed people, so I do not recollect noticing any -in the Isle of Man; but, granting there may be a small proportion of -such people in the island, does it not seem strange that they should -have their importance so magnified as this superstition would seem -to imply? I must confess that I cannot understand it, unless we have -here also some supposed racial characteristic, let us say greatly -exaggerated. To explain myself I should put it that the non-Aryan -aborigines were a small people of great agility and nimbleness, and -that their Aryan conquerors moved more slowly and deliberately, whence -the former, of springier movements, might come to nickname the latter -the flat footed. It is even conceivable that there was some amount of -foundation for it in fact. If I might speak from my own experience, -I might mention a difficulty I have often had with shoes of English -make, namely, that I have always found them, unless made to measure, -apt to have their instep too low for me. It has never occurred to me to -buy ready-made shoes in France or Germany, but I know a lady as Welsh -as I am, who has often bought shoes in France, and her experience is, -that it is much easier for her to get shoes there to fit her than -in England, and for the very reason which I have already suggested, -namely, that the instep in English shoes is lower than in French ones. - -Again, I may mention that one day last term [155], having to address a -meeting of Welsh undergraduates on folklore, I ventured to introduce -this question. They agreed with me that English shoes did not, -as a rule, fit Welsh feet, and this because they are made too low -in the instep: I ought to have said that they all agreed except one -undergraduate, who held his peace. He is a tall man, powerful in the -football field, but of no dark complexion, and I have never dared -to look in the direction of his feet since, lest he should catch -me carrying my comparisons to cruel extremes. Perhaps the flatness -of the feet of the one race is not emphasized so much as the height -of the instep in those of the other. At any rate I find this way of -looking at the question somewhat countenanced by a journalist who -refers his readers to Wm. Henderson's notes on the Folklore of the -Northern Counties, p. 74. The passage relates more particularly to -Northumberland, and runs as follows:--'In some districts, however, -special weight is attached to the "first-foot" being that of a -person with a high-arched instep, a foot that "water runs under." A -flat-footed person would bring great ill-luck for the coming year.' - -These instances do not warrant the induction that Celts are higher -in the instep than Teutons, and that they have inherited that -characteristic from the non-Aryan element in their ancestry. Perhaps -the explanation is, at least in part, that the dwellers in hilly -regions tend to be more springy and to have higher insteps than -the inhabitants of flatter lands. The statement of Dr. Karl Blind -on this point does not help one to a decision when he speaks as -follows in Folk-Lore for 1892, p. 89:--'As to the instep, I can speak -from personal experience. Almost every German finds that an English -shoemaker makes his boots not high enough in the instep. The northern -Germans (I am from the south) have perhaps slightly flatter feet than -the southern Germans.' The first part of the comparison is somewhat -of a surprise to me, but not so the other part, that the southern -Germans inhabiting a hillier country, and belonging to a different -race, may well be higher in the instep than the more northern speakers -of the German language. But on the whole the more one examines the -qualtagh, the less clearly one sees how he can be the representative -of a particular race. More data possibly would enable one to arrive -at greater probability. - -There is one other question which I should like to ask before leaving -the qualtagh, namely, as to the relation of the custom of New Year's -gifts to the belief in the qualtagh. I have heard it related in -the Isle of Man that women have been known to keep indoors on New -Year's Day until the qualtagh comes, which sometimes means their being -prisoners for the greater part of the day, in order to avoid the risk -of first meeting one who is not of the right sex and complexion. On the -other hand, when the qualtagh is of the right description, considerable -fuss is made of him; to say the least, he has to accept food and drink, -possibly more permanent gifts. Thus a tall, black haired native of -Kirk Michael described to me how he chanced on New Year's Day, years -ago, to turn into a lonely cottage in order to light his pipe, and -how he found he was the qualtagh: he had to sit down to have food, -and when he went away it was with a present and the blessings of -the family. Now New Year's Day is the time for gifts in Wales, as -shown by the name for them, calennig, which is derived from calan, -the Welsh form of the Latin calendę, New Year's Day being in Welsh -Y Calan, 'the Calends.' The same is the day for gifts in Scotland -and in Ireland, except in so far as Christmas boxes have been making -inroads from England: I need not add that the Jour de l'An is the -day for gifts also in France. My question then is this: Is there any -essential connexion of origin between the institution of New Year's -Day gifts and the belief in the first-foot? - -Now that it has been indicated what sort of a qualtagh it is unlucky -to have, I may as well proceed to mention the other things which I -have heard treated as unlucky in the island. Some of them scarcely -require to be noticed, as there is nothing specially Manx about them, -such as the belief that it is unlucky to have the first glimpse of the -new moon through glass. That is a superstition which is, I believe, -widely spread, and, among other countries, it is quite familiar in -Wales, where it is also unlucky to see the moon for the first time -through a hedge or over a house. What this means I cannot guess, -unless it be that it was once considered one's duty to watch the first -appearance of the new moon from the highest point in the landscape -of the district in which one dwelt. Such a point would in that case -become the chief centre of a moon worship now lost in oblivion. - -It is believed in Man, as it used to be in Wales and Ireland, that -it is unlucky to disturb antiquities, especially old burial places -and old churches. This superstition is unfortunately passing away -in all three countries, but you still hear of it, especially in the -Isle of Man, mostly after mischief has been done. Thus a good Manx -scholar told me how a relative of his in the Ronnag, a small valley -near South Barrule, had carted away the earth from an old burial -ground on his farm and used it as manure for his fields, and how his -beasts died afterwards. The narrator said he did not know whether -there was any truth in it, but everybody believed that it was the -reason why the cattle died; and so did the farmer himself at last: -so he desisted from completing his disturbance of the old site. It -is possibly for a similar reason that a house in ruins is seldom -pulled down, or the materials used for other buildings. Where that has -been done misfortunes have ensued; at any rate, I have heard it said -so more than once. I ought to have stated that the non-disturbance -of antiquities in the island is quite consistent with their being -now and then shamefully neglected as elsewhere. This is now met by -an excellent statute recently enacted by the House of Keys for the -preservation of the public monuments of the island. - -Of the other and more purely Manx superstitions I may mention -one which obtains among the Peel fishermen of the present day: -no boat is willing to be third in the order of sailing out from -Peel harbour to the fisheries. So it sometimes happens that after -two boats have departed, the others remain watching each other for -days, each hoping that somebody else may be reckless enough to break -through the invisible barrier of 'bad luck.' I have often asked for -an explanation of this superstition, but the only intelligible answer -I have had was that it has been observed that the third boat has done -badly several years in succession; but I am unable to ascertain how -far that represents the fact. Another of the unlucky things is to -have a white stone in the boat, even in the ballast, and for that I -never could get any explanation at all; but there is no doubt as to -the fact of this superstition, and I may illustrate it from the case -of a clergyman's son on the west side, who took it into his head to -go out with some fishermen several days in succession. They chanced -to be unsuccessful each time, and they gave their Jonah the nickname -of Clagh Vane, or 'White Stone.' Now what can be the origin of this -tabu? It seems to me that if the Manx had once a habit of adorning the -graves of the departed with white stones, that circumstance would be -a reasonable explanation of the superstition in question. Further, -it is quite possible they did, and here Manx archęologists could -probably help as to the matter of fact. In the absence, however, -of information to the point from Man, I take the liberty of citing -some relating to Scotland. It comes from Mr. Gomme's presidential -address to the Folk-Lore Society: see Folk-Lore for 1893, pp. 13-4:-- - -'Near Inverary, it is the custom among the fisher-folk, and has been -so within the memory of the oldest, to place little white stones or -pebbles on the graves of their friends. No reason is now given for -the practice, beyond that most potent and delightful of all reasons -in the minds of folk-lore students, namely, that it has always been -done. Now there is nothing between this modern practice sanctioned -by traditional observance and the practice of the stone-age people -in the same neighbourhood and in others, as made known to us by their -grave-relics. Thus, in a cairn at Achnacrie opened by Dr. Angus Smith, -on entering the innermost chamber "the first thing that struck the eye -was a row of quartz pebbles larger than a walnut; these were arranged -on the ledge of the lower granite block of the east side." Near Crinan, -at Duncraigaig and at Rudie, the same characteristic was observed, -and Canon Greenwell, who examined the cairns, says the pebbles "must -have been placed there with some intention, and probably possessed a -symbolic meaning."' See also Burghead, by Mr. H. W. Young (Inverness, -1899), p. 10, where we read that at Burghead the 'smooth white pebbles, -sometimes five or seven of them, but never more,' have been usually -arranged as crosses on the graves which he has found under the fallen -ramparts. Can this be a Christian superstition with the white stones -of the Apocalypse as its foundation? - -Here I may mention a fact which I do not know where else to put, -namely, that a fisherman on his way in the morning to the fishing, -and chancing to pass by the cottage of another fisherman who is not -on friendly terms with him, will pluck a straw from the thatch of the -latter's dwelling. Thereby he is supposed to rob him of his luck in the -fishing for that day. One would expect to learn that the straw from -the thatch served as the subject of an incantation directed against -the owner of the thatch. I have never heard anything suggested to -that effect; but I conclude that the plucking of the straw is only -a partial survival of what was once a complete ritual for bewitching -one's neighbour, unless getting possession of the straw was supposed -to carry with it possession of everything belonging to the other man, -including his luck in fishing for that day. - -Owing to my ignorance as to the superstitions of other fishermen than -those of the Isle of Man, I will not attempt to classify the remaining -instances to be mentioned, such as the unluckiness of mentioning a -horse or a mouse on board a fishing-boat: I seem, however, to have -heard of similar tabus among Scottish fishermen; and, according to -Dr. Blind, Shetland fishermen will not mention a church or a clergyman -when out at sea, but use quite other names for both when on board a -ship (Folk-Lore for 1892, p. 89). Novices in the Manx fisheries have -to learn not to point to anything with one finger: they have to point -with the whole hand or not at all. This looks as if it belonged to a -code of rules as to the use of the hand, such as prevail among the -Neapolitans and other peoples whose chief article of faith is the -belief in malign influences: see Mr. Elworthy's volume on The Evil Eye. - -Whether the Manx are alone in thinking it unlucky to lend salt from one -boat to another when they are engaged in the fishing, I know not: such -lending would probably be inconvenient, but why it should be unlucky, -as they believe it to be, does not appear. The first of May is a day -on which it is unlucky to lend anything, and especially to give anyone -fire [156]. This looks as if it pointed back to some druidic custom of -lighting all fires at that time from a sacred hearth, but, so far as is -known, this only took place at the beginning of the other half-year, -namely, Sauin or Allhallows, which is sometimes rendered into Manx as -Laa 'll mooar ny Saintsh, 'the Day of the great Feast of the Saints.' - -Lastly, I may mention that it is unlucky to say that you are very well: -at any rate, I infer that it is regarded so, as you will never get a -Manxman to say that he is feer vie, 'very well.' He usually admits that -he is 'middling'; and if by any chance he risks a stronger adjective, -he hastens to qualify it by adding 'now,' or 'just now,' with an -emphasis indicative of his anxiety not to say too much. His habits -of speech point back to a time when the Manx mind was dominated by -the fear of awaking malignant influences in the spirit world around -him. This has had the effect of giving the Manx peasant's character -a tinge of reserve and suspicion, which makes it difficult to gain -his confidence: his acquaintance has, therefore, to be cultivated -for some time before you can say that you know the workings of his -heart. The pagan belief in a Nemesis has doubtless passed away, but not -without materially affecting the Manx idea of a personal devil. Ever -since the first allusion made in my hearing by Manxmen to the devil, -I have been more and more deeply impressed that for them the devil -is a much more formidable being than Englishmen or Welshmen picture -him. He is a graver and, if I may say so, a more respectable being, -allowing no liberties to be taken with his name, so you had better -not call him a devil, the evil one, or like names, for his proper -designation is Noid ny Hanmey, 'the Enemy of the Soul,' and in ordinary -Anglo-Manx conversation he is commonly called 'the Enemy of Souls.' I -well remember getting one day into a conversation with an old soldier -in the south of the island. He was, as I soon discovered, labouring -under a sort of theological monomania, and his chief question was -concerning the Welsh word for 'the Enemy of Souls.' I felt at once -that I had to be careful, and that the reputation of my countrymen -depended on how I answered. As I had no name anything like the one he -used for the devil, I explained to him that the Welsh, though not a -great nation, were great students of theology, and that they had by -no means neglected the great branch of it known as satanology. In -fact that study, as I went on to say, had left its impress on the -Welsh language: on Sunday the ministers of all denominations, the -deacons and elders, and all self-respecting congregations spoke of the -devil trisyllabically as diafol, while on the other days of the week -everybody called him more briefly and forcibly diawl, except bards -concocting an awdl for an Eistedfod, where the devil must always be -called diafl, and excepting also sailors, farm servants, post-boys and -colliers, together with country gentlemen learning Welsh to address -their wouldn't-be constituents--for all these the regulation form -was jawl, with an English j. Thus one could, I pointed out to him, -fix the social standing of a Welshman by the way he named 'the Enemy -of Souls,' as well as appreciate the superiority of Welsh over Greek, -seeing that Welsh, when it borrowed diabolos from Greek, quadrupled -it, while Greek remained sterile. He was so profoundly impressed -that I never was able to bring his attention back to the small fry, -spiritually speaking, of the Isle of Man, to wit, the fairies and -the fenodyree, or even the witches and the charmers, except that he -had some reserve of faith in witches, since the witch of Endor was in -the Bible and had ascribed to her a 'terr'ble' great power of raising -spirits: that, he thought, must be true. I pointed out to him that a -fenodyree (see p. 288) was also mentioned in his Bible: this display -of ready knowledge on my part made a deep impression on his mind. - -The Manx are, as a rule, a sober people, and highly religious; -as regards their tenets, they are mostly members of the Church -of England or Wesleyan Methodists, or else both, which is by no -means unusual. Religious phrases are not rare in their ordinary -conversation; in fact, they struck me as being of more frequent -occurrence than in Wales, even the Wales of my boyhood; and here and -there this fondness for religious phraseology has left its traces -on the native vocabulary. Take, for example, the word for 'anybody, -a person, or human being,' which Cregeen writes py'agh or p'agh: -he rightly regards it as the colloquial pronunciation of peccagh, -'a sinner.' So, when one knocks at a Manx door and calls out, Vel -p'agh sthie? he literally asks, 'Is there any sinner indoors?' The -question has, however, been explained to me, with unconscious irony, -as properly meaning, 'Is there any Christian indoors?' and care -is now taken in reading to pronounce the middle consonants of the -word peccagh, 'sinner,' so as to distinguish it from the word for a -Christian 'anybody': but the identity of origin is unmistakable. - -Lastly, the fact that a curse is a species of prayer, to wit, a prayer -for evil to follow, is well exemplified in Manx by the same words, -gwee [157], plural gwecaghyn, meaning both kinds of prayer. Thus I -found myself stumbling several times, in reading through the Psalms in -Manx, from not bearing in mind the sinister meaning of these words; -for example in Psalm xiv. 6, where we have Ta 'n beeal oc lane dy -ghweeaghyn as dy herriuid, which I mechanically construed to mean -'Their mouth is full of praying and bitterness,' instead of 'cursing -and bitterness'; and so in other cases, such as Ps. x. 7, and cix. 27. - -It occurred to me on various occasions to make inquiries as to the -attitude of religious Manxmen towards witchcraft and the charmer's -vocation. Nobody, so far as I know, accuses them of favouring -witchcraft in any way whatsoever; but as to the reality of witches -and witchcraft they are not likely to have any doubts so long as they -dwell on the Biblical account of the witch of Endor, as I have already -mentioned in the case of the old Crimean soldier. Then as to charmers -I have heard it distinctly stated that the most religious men are -they who have most confidence in charmers and their charms; and a lay -preacher whom I know has been mentioned to me as now and then doing -a little charming in cases of danger or pressing need. On the whole, -I think the charge against religious people of consulting charmers is -somewhat exaggerated; but I believe that recourse to the charmer is -more usual and more openly had than, for example, in Wales, where those -who consult a dyn hyspys or 'wise man' have to do it secretly, and at -the risk of being expelled by their co-religionists from the Seiet or -'Society.' There is somewhat in the atmosphere of Man to remind one -rather of the Wales of a past generation--Wales as it was at the time -when the Rev. Edmund Jones could write a Relation of Apparitions of -Spirits in the County of Monmouth and the Principality of Wales, as -a book 'designed to confute and to prevent the infidelity of denying -the being and apparition of spirits, which tends to irreligion and -atheism': see pp. 174, 195 above. - -The Manx peasantry are perhaps the most independent and prosperous in -the British Isles; but their position geographically and politically -has been favourable to the continuance of ideas not quite up to the -level of the latest papers on Darwinism and Evolution read at our -Church Congresses in this country. This may be thought to be here wide -of the mark; but, after giving, in the previous chapter, specimens of -rather ancient superstitions as recently known in the island, it is but -right that one should form an idea of the surroundings in which they -have lingered into modern times. Perhaps nothing will better serve to -bring this home to the reader's mind than the fact, for which there -is proof, that old people still living remember men and women clad -in white sheets doing penance publicly in the churches of Man. - -The following is the evidence which I was able to find, and I may state -that I first heard in 1888 of the public penance from Mr. Joughin, -who was an aged man and a native of Kirk Bride. He related how a -girl named Mary Dick gave an impertinent answer to the clergyman -when he was catechizing her class, and how she had to do penance -for it at church. She took her revenge on the parson by singing, -while attending in a white sheet, louder than everybody else in the -congregation. This, unless I am mistaken, Mr. Joughin gave me to -understand he had heard from his father. I mentioned the story to a -clergyman, who was decidedly of opinion that no one alive now could -remember anything about public penance. Not long after, however, I got -into conversation with a shoemaker at Kirk Michael, named Dan Kelly, -who was nearly completing his eighty-first year. He was a native of -Ballaugh, and stated that he remembered many successive occupants of -the episcopal see. A long time ago the official called the sumner had, -out of spite he said, appointed him to serve as one of the four of the -chapter jury. It was, he thought, when he was about twenty-five. During -his term of office he saw four persons, of whom two were married -men and two unmarried women, doing penance in the parish church of -Ballaugh for having illegitimate children. They stood in the alley -of the church, and the sumner had to throw white sheets over them; -on the fourth Sunday of their penance they stood inside the chancel -rails, but not to take the communion. The parson, whose name was -Stowell or Stowall, made them thoroughly ashamed of themselves on the -fourth Sunday, as one of the men afterwards admitted. Kelly mentioned -the names of the women and of one of the men, and he indicated to -me some of their descendants as well known in the neighbourhood. I -cross-examined him all the more severely, as I had heard the other -view of the remoteness of the date. But nothing could shake Kelly, -who added that soon after the date of the above mentioned cases the -civil functionary, known as the vicar-general, put an end to the -chapter jury and to public penance: according to his reckoning the -penance he spoke of must have taken place about 1832. Another old -man, named Kewley, living now near Kirk Michael, but formerly in the -parish of Lezayre, had a similar story. He thinks that he was born -in the sixth year of the century, and when he was between eighteen -and twenty he saw a man doing public penance, in Lezayre Church, I -presume, but I have no decided note on that point. However that may -be, he remembered that the penitent, when he had done his penance, -had the audacity to throw the white sheet over the sumner, who, the -penitent remarked, might now wear it himself, as he had had enough -of it. Kewley would bring the date only down to about 1825. - -Lastly, I was in the island again in 1891, and spent the first part of -the month of April at Peel, where I had conversations with a retired -captain who was then about seventy-eight. He is a native of the parish -of Dalby, but he was only 'a lump of a boy' when the last couple of -immorals were forced to do penance in white sheets at church. He gave -me the guilty man's name, and the name of his home in the parish, -and both the captain and his daughter assured me that the man had -only been dead six or seven years; that is, the penitent seems to have -lived till about the year 1884. I may here mention that the parish of -Dalby is the subject of many tales, which go to show that its people -were more old-fashioned in their ways than those of the rest of the -island. It appears to have been the last, also, to be reached by a -cart road; and I was amused by a native's description of the men at -Methodist meetings in Dalby pulling the tappag, or forelock, at the -name of Jesus, while the women ducked a curtsy in a dangerously abrupt -fashion. He and his wife appeared to be quite used to it: the husband -was an octogenarian named Quirc, who was born on the coast near the -low-lying peninsula called the Niarbyl, that is to say 'the Tail.' - -To return to the public penance, it seems to us in this country to -belong, so to say, to ancient history, and it transports us to a state -of things which we find it hard to realize. The lapse of years has -brought about profounder changes in our greater Isle of Britain than -in the smaller Isle of Man, while we ourselves, helpless to escape -the pervading influence of those profounder changes, become living -instances of the comprehensive truth of the German poet's words, - - - Omnia mutantur, nos et mutamur in illis. - - - - - - - - -CHAPTER VI - -THE FOLKLORE OF THE WELLS - - ... Iuvat integros accedere fontes.--Lucretius. - - -It is only recently [158] that I heard for the first time of Welsh -instances of the habit of tying rags and bits of clothing to the -branches of a tree growing near a holy well. Since then I have obtained -several items of information in point: the first is a communication -received in June, 1892, from Mr. J. H. Davies, of Lincoln College, -Oxford--since then of Lincoln's Inn--relating to a Glamorganshire holy -well, situated near the pathway leading from Coychurch to Bridgend. It -is the custom there, he states, for people suffering from any malady -to dip a rag in the water, and to bathe the affected part of the -body, the rag being then placed on a tree close to the well. When -Mr. Davies passed that way, some three years previously, there were, -he adds, hundreds of such shreds on the tree, some of which distinctly -presented the appearance of having been very recently placed there. The -well is called Ffynnon Cae Moch, 'Swine-field Well,' which can hardly -have been its old name; and a later communication from Mr. Davies -summarizes a conversation which he had about the well, on December 16, -1892, with Mr. J. T. Howell, of Pencoed, near Bridgend. His notes run -thus:--'Ffynnon Cae Moch, between Coychurch and Bridgend, is one mile -from Coychurch, one and a quarter from Bridgend, near Tremains. It -is within twelve or fifteen yards of the high-road, just where the -pathway begins. People suffering from rheumatism go there. They -bathe the part affected with water, and afterwards tie a piece of -rag to the tree which overhangs the well. The rag is not put in the -water at all, but is only put on the tree for luck. It is a stunted, -but very old tree, and is simply covered with rags.' A little less -than a year later, I had an opportunity of visiting this well in the -company of Mr. Brynmor-Jones; and I find in my notes that it is not -situated so near the road as Mr. Howell would seem to have stated to -Mr. Davies. We found the well, which is a powerful spring, surrounded -by a circular wall. It is overshadowed by a dying thorn tree, and -a little further back stands another thorn which is not so decayed: -it was on this latter thorn we found the rags. I took off a twig with -two rags, while Mr. Brynmor-Jones counted over a dozen other rags on -the tree; and we noticed that some of them had only recently been -suspended there: among them were portions undoubtedly of a woman's -clothing. At one of the hotels at Bridgend, I found an illiterate -servant who was acquainted with the well, and I cross-examined him -on the subject of it. He stated that a man with a wound, which he -explained to mean a cut, would go and stand in the well within the -wall, and there he would untie the rag that had been used to tie up -the wound and would wash the wound with it: then he would tie up the -wound with a fresh rag and hang the old one on the tree. The more -respectable people whom I questioned talked more vaguely, and only of -tying a rag to the tree, except one who mentioned a pin being thrown -into the well or a rag being tied to the tree. - -My next informant is Mr. D. J. Jones, a native of the Rhonda Valley, -in the same county of Glamorgan. He was an undergraduate of Jesus -College, Oxford, when I consulted him in 1892. His information was to -the effect that he knows of three interesting wells in the county. The -first is situated within two miles of his home, and is known as Ffynnon -Pen Rhys, or the Well of Pen Rhys. The custom there is that the person -who wishes his health to be benefited should wash in the water of the -well, and throw a pin into it afterwards. He next mentions a well at -Llancarvan, some five or six miles from Cowbridge, where the custom -prevails of tying rags to the branches of a tree growing close at -hand. Lastly, he calls my attention to a passage in Hanes Morganwg, -'The History of Glamorgan,' written by Mr. D. W. Jones, known in Welsh -literature as Dafyd Morganwg. In that work, p. 29, the author speaks of -Ffynnon Marcros, 'the Well of Marcros,' to the following effect:--'It -is the custom for those who are healed in it to tie a shred of linen -or cotton to the branches of a tree that stands close by; and there -the shreds are, almost as numerous as the leaves.' Marcros is, I may -say, near Nash Point, and looks on the map as if it were about eight -miles distant from Bridgend. Let me here make it clear that so far -we have had to do with four different wells [159], three of which are -severally distinguished by the presence of a tree adorned with rags by -those who seek health in those waters; but they are all three, as the -reader will have doubtless noticed, in the same district, namely, the -part of Glamorganshire near the main line of the Great Western Railway. - -There is no reason, however, to think that the custom of tying rags -to a well tree was peculiar to that part of the Principality. One -day, in looking through some old notes of mine, I came across an -entry bearing the date of August 7, 1887, when I was spending a few -days with my friend, Chancellor Silvan Evans, at Llanwrin Rectory, -near Machynlleth. Mrs. Evans was then alive and well, and took a -keen interest in Welsh antiquities and folklore. Among other things, -she related to me how she had, some twenty years before, visited -a well in the parish of Llandrillo yn Rhos, namely Ffynnon Eilian, -or Elian's Well, between Abergele and Llandudno, when her attention -was directed to some bushes near the well, which had once been covered -with bits of rags left by those who frequented the well. This was told -Mrs. Evans by an old woman of seventy, who, on being questioned by -Mrs. Evans concerning the history of the well, informed her that the -rags used to be tied to the bushes by means of wool. She was explicit -on the point, that wool had to be used for the purpose, and that even -woollen yarn would not do: it had to be wool in its natural state. The -old woman remembered this to have been the rule ever since she was -a child. Mrs. Evans noticed corks, with pins stuck in them, floating -in the well, and her informant remembered many more in years gone by; -for Elian's Well was once in great repute as a ffynnon reibio, or a -well to which people resorted for the kindly purpose of bewitching -those whom they hated. I infer, however, from what Mrs. Evans was -told of the rags, that Elian's Well was visited, not only by the -malicious, but also by the sick and suffering. My note is not clear on -the point whether there were any rags on the bushes by the well when -Mrs. Evans visited the spot, or whether she was only told of them by -the caretaker. Even in the latter case it seems evident that this -habit of tying rags to trees or bushes near sacred wells has only -ceased in that part of Denbighshire within this century. It is very -possible that it continued in North Wales more recently than this -instance would lead one to suppose; indeed, I should not be in the -least surprised to learn that it is still practised in out of the way -places in Gwyned, just as it is in Glamorgan: we want more information. - -I cannot say for certain whether it was customary in any of the cases -to which I have called attention to tie rags to the well tree as -well as to throw pins or other small objects into the well; but I -cannot help adhering to the view, that the distinction was probably -an ancient one between two orders of things. In other words, I am -inclined to believe that the rag was regarded as the vehicle of the -disease of which the ailing visitor to the well wished to be rid, -and that the bead, button, or coin deposited by him in the well, or in -a receptacle near the well, formed alone the offering. In opposition -to this view Mr. Gomme has expressed himself as follows in Folk-Lore, -1892, p. 89:--'There is some evidence against that, from the fact that -in the case of some wells, especially in Scotland at one time, the -whole garment was put down as an offering. Gradually these offerings -of clothes became less and less till they came down to rags. Also -in other parts, the geographical distribution of rag-offerings -coincides with the existence of monoliths and dolmens.' As to the -monoliths and dolmens, I am too little conversant with the facts to -risk any opinion as to the value of the coincidence; but as to the -suggestion that the rag originally meant the whole garment, that will -suit my hypothesis admirably. In other words, the whole garment was, -as I take it, the vehicle of the disease: the whole was accursed, -and not merely a part. But Mr. Gomme had previously touched on the -question in his presidential address (Folk-Lore for 1892, p. 13); -and I must at once admit that he succeeded then in proving that a -certain amount of confusion occurs between things which I should -regard as belonging originally to distinct categories: witness the -inimitable Irish instance which he quotes:--'To St. Columbkill--I -offer up this button, a bit o' the waistband o' my own breeches, an' -a taste o' my wife's petticoat, in remimbrance of us havin' made this -holy station; an' may they rise up in glory to prove it for us in the -last day.' Here not only the button is treated as an offering, but also -the bits of clothing; but the confusion of ideas I should explain as -being, at least in part, one of the natural results of substituting a -portion of a garment for the entire garment; for thereby a button or -a pin becomes a part of the dress, and capable of being interpreted -in two senses. After all, however, the ordinary practices have not, -as I look at them, resulted in effacing the distinction altogether: -the rag is not left in the well; nor is the bead, button, or pin -attached to a branch of the tree. So, in the main, it seemed to me -easier to explain the facts, taken altogether, on the supposition that -originally the rag was regarded as the vehicle of the disease, and the -bead, button, or coin as the offering. My object in calling attention -to this point was to have it discussed, and I am happy to say that I -have not been disappointed; for, since my remarks were published [160], -a paper entitled Pin-wells and Rag-bushes was read before the British -Association by Mr. Hartland, in 1893, and published in Folk-Lore -for the same year, pp. 451-70. In that paper the whole question is -gone into with searching logic, and Mr. Hartland finds the required -explanation in one of the dogmas of magic. For 'if an article of my -clothing,' he says, 'in a witch's hands may cause me to suffer, the -same article in contact with a beneficent power may relieve my pain, -restore me to health, or promote my general prosperity. A pin that has -pricked my wart ... has by its contact, by the wound it has inflicted, -acquired a peculiar bond with the wart; the rag that has rubbed the -wart has by that friction acquired a similar bond; so that whatever -is done to the pin or the rag, whatever influences the pin or the rag -may undergo, the same influences are by that very act brought to bear, -upon the wart. If, instead of using a rag, or making a pilgrimage to a -sacred well, I rub my warts with raw meat and then bury the meat, the -wart will decay and disappear with the decay and dissolution of the -meat.... In like manner my shirt or stocking, or a rag to represent -it, placed upon a sacred bush, or thrust into a sacred well--my name -written upon the walls of a temple--a stone or a pellet from my hand -cast upon a sacred image or a sacred cairn--is thenceforth in continual -contact with divinity; and the effluence of divinity, reaching and -involving it, will reach and involve me.' Mr. Hartland concludes from -a large number of instances, that as a rule 'where the pin or button is -dropped into the well, the patient does not trouble about the rag, and -vice versa.' This wider argument as to the effluence of the divinity -of a particular spot of special holiness seems to me conclusive. It -applies also, needless to say, to a large category of cases besides -those in question between Mr. Gomme and the present writer. - -So now I would revise my position thus:--I continue to regard the -rag much as before, but treat the article thrown into the well as -the more special means of establishing a beneficial relation with the -well divinity: whether it could also be viewed as an offering would -depend on the value attached to it. Some of the following notes may -serve as illustrations, especially those relating to the wool and -the pin:--Ffynnon Gwynwy, or the Well of Gwynwy, near Llangelynin, -on the river Conwy, appears to be partly in point; for it formerly -used to be well stocked with crooked pins, which nobody would touch -lest he might get from them the warts supposed to attach to them, -whence it would appear that a pin might be regarded as the vehicle -of the disease. There was a well of some repute at Cae Garw, in the -parish of Pistyll, near the foot of Carnguwch, in Lleyn, or West -Carnarvonshire. The water possessed virtues to cure one of rheumatism -and warts; but, in order to be rid of the latter, it was requisite to -throw a pin into the well for each individual wart. For these two items -of information, and several more to be mentioned presently, I have -to thank Mr. John Jones, better known in Wales by his bardic name of -Myrdin Fard, and as an enthusiastic collector of Welsh antiquities, -whether in the form of manuscript or of unwritten folklore. On -the second day of the year 1893 I paid him a visit at Chwilog, on -the Carnarvon and Avon Wen Railway, and asked him many questions: -these he not only answered with the utmost willingness, but he also -showed me the unpublished materials which he had collected. I come -next to a competition on the folklore of North Wales at the London -Eistedfod in 1887, in which, as one of the adjudicators, I observed -that several of the competitors mentioned the prevalent belief, that -every well with healing properties must have its outlet towards the -south (i'r dź). According to one of them, if you wished to get rid of -warts, you should, on your way to the well, look for wool which the -sheep had lost. When you had found enough wool you should prick each -wart with a pin, and then rub the wart well with the wool. The next -thing was to bend the pin and throw it into the well. Then you should -place the wool on the first whitethorn you could find, and as the wind -scattered the wool, the warts would disappear. There was a well of the -kind, the writer went on to say, near his home; and he, with three or -four other boys, went from school one day to the well to charm their -warts away. For he had twenty-three on one of his hands; so that he -always tried to hide it, as it was the belief that if one counted the -warts they would double their number. He forgets what became of the -other boys' warts, but his own disappeared soon afterwards; and his -grandfather used to maintain that it was owing to the virtue of the -well. Such were the words of this writer, whose name is unknown to me; -but I guess him to have been a native of Carnarvonshire, or else of one -of the neighbouring districts of Denbighshire or Merionethshire. To -return to Myrdin Fard, he mentioned Ffynnon Cefn Lleithfan, or the -Well of the Lleithfan Ridge, on the eastern slope of Mynyd y Rhiw, -in the parish of Bryncroes, in the west of Lleyn. In the case of -this well it is necessary, when going to it and coming from it, to be -careful not to utter a word to anybody, or to turn to look back. What -one has to do at the well is to bathe the warts with a rag or clout -which has grease on it. When that is done, the clout with the grease -has to be carefully concealed beneath the stone at the mouth of the -well. This brings to my mind the fact that I noticed more than once, -years ago, rags underneath stones in the water flowing from wells -in Wales, and sometimes thrust into holes in the walls of wells, -but I had no notion how they came there. - -On the subject of pin-wells I had in 1893, from Mr. T. E. Morris, -of Portmadoc, barrister-at-law, some account of Ffynnon Faglan, -or Baglan's Well, in the parish of Llanfaglan, near Carnarvon. The -well is situated in an open field to the right of the road leading -towards the church, and close to it. The church and churchyard form an -enclosure in the middle of the same field, and the former has in its -wall the old stone reading FILI LOVERNII ANATEMORI. My friend derived -information from Mrs. Roberts, of Cefn y Coed, near Carnarvon, as -follows:--'The old people who would be likely to know anything about -Ffynnon Faglan have all died. The two oldest inhabitants, who have -always lived in this parish of Llanfaglan, remember the well being -used for healing purposes. One told me his mother used to take him -to it, when he was a child, for sore eyes, bathe them with the water, -and then drop in a pin. The other man, when he was young, bathed in it -for rheumatism; and until quite lately people used to fetch away the -water for medicinal purposes. The latter, who lives near the well, at -Tan y Graig, said that he remembered it being cleaned out about fifty -years ago, when two basinfuls of pins were taken out, but no coin of -any kind. The pins were all bent, and I conclude the intention was to -exorcise the evil spirit supposed to afflict the person who dropped -them in, or, as the Welsh say, dadwitsio. No doubt some ominous words -were also used. The well is at present nearly dry, the field where it -lies having been drained some years ago, and the water in consequence -withdrawn from it. It was much used for the cure of warts. The wart -was washed, then pricked with a pin, which, after being bent, was -thrown into the well. There is a very large and well-known well of -the kind at C'lynnog, Ffynnon Beuno, "St. Beuno's Well," which was -considered to have miraculous healing powers; and even yet, I believe, -some people have faith in it. Ffynnon Faglan is, in its construction, -an imitation, on a smaller scale, of St. Beuno's Well at C'lynnog.' - -In the cliffs at the west end of Lleyn is a wishing-well called -Ffynnon Fair, or St. Mary's Well, to the left of the site of Eglwys -Fair, and facing Ynys Enlli, or Bardsey. Here, to obtain your wish, -you have to descend the steps to the well and walk up again to the -top with your mouth full of the water; and then you have to go round -the ruins of the church once or more times with the water still in -your mouth. Viewing the position of the well from the sea, I should -be disposed to think that the realization of one's wish at that price -could not be regarded as altogether cheap. Myrdin Fard also told me -that there used to be a well near Criccieth Church. It was known as -Ffynnon y Saint, or the Saints' Well, and it was the custom to throw -keys or pins into it on the morning of Easter Sunday, in order to -propitiate St. Catherine, who was the patron of the well. I should -be glad to know what this exactly meant. - -Lastly, a few of the wells in that part of Gwyned may be grouped -together and described as oracular. One of these, the big well in -the parish of Llanbedrog in Lleyn, as I learn from Myrdin Fard, -required the devotee to kneel by it and avow his faith in it. When -this had been duly done, he might proceed in this wise: to ascertain, -for instance, the name of the thief who had stolen from him, he had -to throw a bit of bread into the well and name the person whom he -suspected. At the name of the thief the bread would sink; so the -inquirer went on naming all the persons he could think of until the -bit of bread sank, when the thief was identified. How far is one to -suppose that we have here traces of the influences of the water ordeal -common in the Middle Ages? Another well of the same kind was Ffynnon -Saethon, in Llanfihangel Bachellaeth parish, also in Lleyn. Here it was -customary, as he had it in writing, for lovers to throw pins (pinnau) -into the well; but these pins appear to have been the points of the -blackthorn. At any rate, they cannot well have been of any kind of -metal, as we are told that, if they sank in the water, one concluded -that one's lover was not sincere in his or her love. - -Next may be mentioned a well, bearing the remarkable name of Ffynnon -Gwyned, or the Well of Gwyned, which is situated near Mynyd Mawr, -in the parish of Abererch: it used to be consulted in the following -manner:--When it was desired to discover whether an ailing person would -recover, a garment of his would be thrown into the well, and according -to the side on which it sank it was known whether he would live or die. - -Ffynnon Gybi, or St. Cybi's Well, in the parish of Llangybi, was the -scene of a somewhat similar practice; for there, girls who wished to -know their lovers' intentions would spread their pocket-handkerchiefs -on the water of the well, and, if the water pushed the handkerchiefs -to the south--in Welsh i'r dź--they knew that everything was right--in -Welsh o dź--and that their lovers were honest and honourable in their -intentions; but, if the water shifted the handkerchiefs northwards, -they concluded the contrary. A reference to this is made by a modern -Welsh poet, as follows:-- - - - Ambell dyn, gwaeldyn, a gyrch - I bant gorķs Moel Bentyrch, - Mewn gobaith mai hen Gybi - Glodfawr syd yn llwydaw'r lli. - - Some folks, worthless [161] folks, visit - A hollow below Moel Bentyrch, - In hopes that ancient Kybi - Of noble fame blesses the flood. - - -The spot is not far from where Myrdin Fard lives; and he mentioned, -that adjoining the well is a building which was probably intended -for the person in charge of the well: it has been tenanted within -his memory. Not only for this but also for several of the foregoing -items of information am I indebted to Myrdin; and now I come to -Mrs. Williams-Ellis, of Glasfryn Uchaf, who tells me that one day not -long ago, she met at Llangybi a native who had not visited the place -since his boyhood: he had been away as an engineer in South Wales -nearly all his life, but had returned to see an aged relative. So the -reminiscences of the place filled his mind, and, among other things, -he said that he remembered very well what concern there was one day -in the village at a mischievous person having taken a very large -eel out of the well. Many of the old people, he said, felt that much -of the virtue of the well was probably taken away with the eel. To -see it coiling about their limbs when they went into the water was -a good sign: so he gave one to understand. As a sort of parallel I -may mention that I have seen the fish living in Ffynnon Beris, not -far from the parish church of Llanberis. It is jealously guarded -by the inhabitants, and when it was once or twice taken out by a -mischievous stranger he was forced to put it back again. However, -I never could get the history of this sacred fish, but I found that -it was regarded as very old [162]. I may add that it appears the -well called Ffynnon Fair, 'Mary's Well,' at Llandwyn, in Anglesey, -used formerly to have inhabiting it a sacred fish, whose movements -indicated the fortunes of the love-sick men and maidens who visited -there the shrine of St. Dwynwen [163]. Possibly inquiry would result -in showing that such sacred fish have been far more common once in -the Principality than they are now. - -The next class of wells to claim our attention consists of what I -may call fairy wells, of which few are mentioned in connexion with -Wales; but the legends about them are of absorbing interest. One of -them is in Myrdin Fard's neighbourhood, and I questioned him a good -deal on the subject: it is called Ffynnon Grassi, or Grace's Well, -and it occupies, according to him, a few square feet--he has measured -it himself--of the south-east corner of the lake of Glasfryn Uchaf, -in the parish of Llangybi. It appears that it was walled in, and -that the stone forming its eastern side has several holes in it, -which were intended to let water enter the well and not issue from -it. It had a door or cover on its surface; and it was necessary to -keep the door always shut, except when water was being drawn. Through -somebody's negligence, however, it was once on a time left open: -the consequence was that the water of the well flowed out and formed -the Glasfryn Lake, which is so considerable as to be navigable for -small boats. Grassi is supposed in the locality to have been the name -of the owner of the well, or at any rate of a lady who had something -to do with it. Grassi, or Grace, however, can only be a name which a -modern version of the legend has introduced. It probably stands for -an older name given to the person in charge of the well; to the one, -in fact, who neglected to shut the door; but though the name must be -comparatively modern, the story, as a whole, does not appear to be -at all modern, but very decidedly the contrary. - -So I wrote in 1893; but years after my conversation with Myrdin Fard, -my attention was called to the fact that the Glasfryn family, of which -the Rev. J. C. Williams-Ellis is the head, have in their coat of arms -a mermaid, who is represented in the usual way, holding a comb in her -right hand and a mirror in her left. I had from the first expected -to find some kind of Undine or Liban story associated with the well -and the lake, though I had abstained from trying the risky effects of -leading questions; but when I heard of the heraldic mermaid I wrote -to Mr. Williams-Ellis to ask whether he knew her history. His words, -though not encouraging as regards the mermaid, soon convinced me that -I had not been wholly wrong in supposing that more folklore attached -to the well and lake than I had been able to discover. Since then -Mrs. Williams-Ellis has taken the trouble of collecting on the spot -all the items of tradition which she could find: she communicated them -to me in the month of March, 1899, and the following is an abstract -of them, preceded by a brief description of the ground:-- - -The well itself is at the foot of a very green field-bank at the -head of the lake, but not on the same level with it, as the lake -has had its waters lowered half a century or more ago by the outlet -having been cut deeper. Adjoining the field containing the well is -a larger field, which also slopes down to the lake and extends in -another direction to the grounds belonging to the house. This larger -field is called Cae'r Ladi, 'the Lady's Field,' and it is remarkable -for having in its centre an ancient standing stone, which, as seen -from the windows of the house, presents the appearance of a female -figure hurrying along, with the wind slightly swelling out her veil -and the skirt of her dress. Mr. Williams-Ellis remembers how when -he was a boy the stone was partially white-washed, and how an old -bonnet adorned the top of this would-be statue, and he thinks that -an old shawl used to be thrown over the shoulders. - -Now as to Grassi, she is mostly regarded as a ghostly person somehow -connected with the lake and the house of Glasfryn. One story is to -the effect, that on a certain evening she forgot to close the well, -and that when the gushing waters had formed the lake, poor Grassi, -overcome with remorse, wandered up and down the high ground of Cae'r -Ladi, moaning and weeping. There, in fact, she is still at times to -be heard lamenting her fate, especially at two o'clock in the early -morning. Some people say that she is also to be seen about the lake, -which is now the haunt of some half a dozen swans. But on the whole -her visits appear to have been most frequent and troublesome at -the house itself. Several persons still living are mentioned, who -believe that they have seen her there, and two of them, Mrs. Jones -of Talafon, and old Sydney Griffith of Tydyn Bach, agree in the main -in their description of what they saw, namely, a tall lady with well -marked features and large bright eyes: she was dressed in white silk -and a white velvet bonnet. The woman, Sydney Griffith, thought that -she had seen the lady walking several times about the house and in -Cae'r Ladi. This comes, in both instances, from a young lady born -and bred in the immediate neighbourhood, and studying now at the -University College of North Wales; but Mrs. Williams-Ellis has had -similar accounts from other sources, and she mentions tenants of -Glasfryn who found it difficult to keep servants there, because they -felt that the place was haunted. In fact one of the tenants himself -felt so unsafe that he used to take his gun and his dog with him to -his bedroom at night; not to mention that when the Williams-Ellises -lived themselves, as they do still, in the house, their visitors have -been known to declare that they heard the strange plaintive cry out -of doors at two o'clock in the morning. - -Traces also of a very different story are reported by -Mrs. Williams-Ellis, to the effect that when the water broke forth to -form the lake, the fairies seized Grassi and changed her into a swan, -and that she continued in that form to live on the lake sixscore years, -and that when at length she died, she loudly lamented her lot: that cry -is still to be heard at night. This story is in process apparently of -being rationalized; at any rate the young lady student, to whom I have -referred, remembers perfectly that her grandfather used to explain -to her and the other children at home that Grassi was changed into -a swan as a punishment for haunting Glasfryn, but that nevertheless -the old lady still visited the place, especially when there happened -to be strangers in the house. At the end of September last Mrs. Rhys -and I had the pleasure of spending a few days at Glasfryn, in the hope -of hearing the plaintive wail, and of seeing the lady in white silk -revisiting her familiar haunts. But alas! our sleep was never once -disturbed, nor was our peace once troubled by suspicions of anything -uncanny. This, however, is negative, and characterized by the usual -weakness of all such evidence. - -It is now time to turn to another order of facts: in the first place -may be mentioned that the young lady student's grandmother used to -call the well Ffynnon Grās Siōn Gruffud, as she had always heard that -Grās was the daughter of a certain Siōn Gruffyd, 'John Griffith,' -who lived near the well; and Mrs. Williams-Ellis finds that Grās was -buried, at a very advanced age, on December 14, 1743, at the parish -church of Llangybi, where the register describes her as Grace Jones, -alias Grace Jones Griffith. She had lived till the end at Glasfryn, -but from documents in the possession of the Glasfryn family it is -known that in 1728 Hugh Lloyd of Trallwyn purchased the house and -estate of Glasfryn from a son of Grace's, named John ab Cadwaladr, -and that Hugh Lloyd of Trallwyn's son, the Rev. William Lloyd, -sold them to Archdeacon Ellis, from whom they have descended to the -Rev. J. C. Williams-Ellis. In the light of these facts there is no -reason to connect the old lady's name very closely with the well or -the lake. She was once the dominant figure at Glasfryn, that is all; -and when she died she was as usual supposed to haunt the house and -its immediate surroundings; and if we might venture to suppose that -Glasfryn was sold by her son against her will, though subject to -conditions which enabled her to remain in possession of the place to -the day of her death, we should have a further explanation, perhaps, -of her supposed moaning and lamentation. - -In the background, however, of the story, one detects the possibility -of another female figure, for it may be that the standing stone in -Cae'r Ladi represents a woman buried there centuries before Grace -ruled at Glasfryn, and that traditions about the earlier lady have -survived to be inextricably mixed with those concerning the later -one. Lastly, those traditions may have also associated the subject of -them with the well and the lake; but I wish to attach no importance -to this conjecture, as we have in reserve a third figure of larger -possibilities than either Grace or the stone woman. It needs no better -introduction than Mrs. Williams-Ellis' own words: 'Our younger boys -have a crew of three little Welsh boys who live near the lake, to -join them in their boat sailing about the pool and in camping on the -island, &c. They asked me once who Morgan was, whom the little boys -were always saying they were to be careful against. An old man living -at Tal Llyn, "Lake's End," a farm close by, says that as a boy he was -always told that "naughty boys would be carried off by Morgan into -the lake." Others tell me that Morgan is always held to be ready to -take off troublesome children, and somehow Morgan is thought of as a -bad one.' Now as Morgan carries children off into the pool, he would -seem to issue from the pool, and to have his home in it. Further, he -plays the same part as the fairies against whom a Snowdonian mother -used to warn her children: they were on no account to wander away -from the house when there was a mist, lest the fairies should carry -them to their home beneath Llyn Dwythwch. In other words, Morgan may -be said to act in the same way as the mermaid, who takes a sailor -down to her submarine home; and it explains to my mind a discussion -which I once heard of the name Morgan by a party of men and women -making hay one fine summer's day in the neighbourhood of Ponterwyd, -in North Cardiganshire. I was a child, but I remember vividly how -they teased one of their number whose 'style' was Morgan. They hinted -at dreadful things associated with the name; but it was all so vague -that I could not gather that his great unknown namesake was a thief, -a murderer, or any kind of ordinary criminal. The impression left -on my mind was rather the notion of something weird, uncanny, or -non-human; and the fact that the Welsh version of the Book of Common -Prayer calls the Pelagians Morganiaid, 'Morgans,' does not offer an -adequate explanation. But I now see clearly that it is to be sought -in the indistinct echo of such folklore as that which makes Morgan -a terror to children in the neighbourhood of the Glasfryn Lake. - -The name, however, presents points of difficulty which require some -notice: the Welsh translators of Article IX in the Prayer Book were -probably wrong in making Pelagians into Morganiaid, as the Welsh -for Pelagius seems to have been rather Morien [164], which in its -oldest recorded form was Morgen, and meant sea-born, or offspring of -the sea. In a still earlier form it must have been Morigenos, with -a feminine Morigena, but when the endings came to be dropped both -vocables would become Morgen, later Morien. I do not remember coming -across a feminine Morgen in Welsh, but the presumption is that it -did exist. For, among other things, I may mention that we have it -in Irish as Muirgen, one of the names of the lake lady Liban, who, -when the waters of the neglected well rushed forth to form Lough -Neagh, lived beneath that lake until she desired to be changed into -a salmon. The same conclusion may be drawn from the name Morgain or -Morgan, given in the French romances to one or more water ladies; -for those names are easiest to explain as the Brythonic Morgen -borrowed from a Welsh or Breton source, unless one found it possible -to trace it direct to the Goidels of Wales. No sooner, however, had -the confusion taken place between Morgen and the name which is so -common in Wales as exclusively a man's name, than the aquatic figure -must also become male. That is why the Glasfryn Morgan is now a male, -and not a female like the other characters whose rōle he plays. But -while the name was in Welsh successively Morgen and Morien, the man's -name was Morcant, Morgant, or Morgan [165], so that, phonologically -speaking, no confusion could be regarded as possible between the -two series. Here, therefore, one detects the influence, doubtless, -of the French romances which spoke of a lake lady Morgain, Morgan, -or Morgue. The character varied: Morgain le Fay was a designing -and wicked person; but Morgan was also the name of a well disposed -lady of the same fairy kind, who took Arthur away to be healed at -her home in the Isle of Avallon. We seem to be on the track of the -same confusing influence of the name, when it occurs in the story of -Geraint and Enid; for there the chief physician of Arthur's court is -called Morgan Tut or Morgant Tut, and the word tut has been shown -by M. Loth to have meant the same sort of non-human being whom an -eleventh-century Life of St. Maudez mentions as quidam dęmon quem -Britones Tuthe appellant. Thus the name Morgan Tut is meant as the -Welsh equivalent of the French Morgain le Fay or Morgan la Fée [166]; -but so long as the compiler of the story of Geraint and Enid employed -in his Welsh the form Morgan, he had practically no choice but to treat -the person called Morgan as a man, whether that was or was not the sex -in the original texts on which he was drawing. Of course he could have -avoided the difficulty in case he was aware of it, if he had found -some available formula in use like Mary-Morgant, said to be a common -name for a fairy on the island of Ouessant, off the coast of Brittany. - -Summarizing the foregoing notes, we seem to be right in drawing the -following conclusions:--(1) The well was left in the charge of a woman -who forgot to shut it, and when she saw the water bursting forth, -she bewailed her negligence, as in the case of her counterpart in -the legend of Cantre'r Gwaelod. (2) The original name of the Glasfryn -'Morgan' was Morgen, later Morien. (3) The person changed into a swan -on the occasion of the Glasfryn well erupting was not Grassi, but most -probably Morgen. And (4) the character was originally feminine, like -that of the mermaid or the fairies, whose rōle the Glasfryn Morgan -plays; and more especially may one compare the Irish Muirgen, the -Morgen more usually called Lķban. For it is to be noticed that when -the neglected well burst forth she, Muirgen or Lķban, was not drowned -like the others involved in the calamity, but lived in her chamber at -the bottom of the lake formed by the overflowing well, until she was -changed into a salmon. In that form she lived on some three centuries, -until in fact she was caught in the net of a fisherman, and obtained -the boon of a Christian burial. However, the change into a swan is also -known on Irish ground: take for instance the story of the Children of -Lir, who were converted into swans by their stepmother, and lived in -that form on Loch Dairbhreach, in Westmeath, for three hundred years, -and twice as long on the open sea, until their destiny closed with -the advent of St. Patrick and the first ringing of a Christian bell -in Erin [167]. - -The next legend was kindly communicated to me by Mr. Wm. Davies already -mentioned at p. 147 above: he found it in Cyfaill yr Aelwyd [168], -"The Friend of the Hearth," where it is stated that it belonged to -David Jones' Storehouse of Curiosities, a collection which does -not seem to have ever assumed the form of a printed book. David -Jones, of Trefriw, in the Conwy Valley, was a publisher and poet -who wrote between 1750 and 1780. This is his story: 'In 1735 I had a -conversation with a man concerning Tegid Lake. He had heard from old -people that near the middle of it there was a well opposite Llangower, -and the well was called Ffynnon Gywer, "Cower's Well," and at that -time the town was round about the well. It was obligatory to place a -lid on the well every night. (It seems that in those days somebody -was aware that unless this was done it would prove the destruction -of the town.) But one night it was forgotten, and by the morning, -behold the town had subsided and the lake became three miles long -and one mile wide. They say, moreover, that on clear days some -people see the chimneys of the houses. It is since then that the -town was built at the lower end of the lake. It is called Y Bala -[169], and the man told me that he had talked with an old Bala man -who had, when he was a youth, had two days' mowing of hay [170] -between the road and the lake; but by this time the lake had spread -over that land and the road also, which necessitated the purchase of -land further away for the road; and some say that the town will yet -sink as far as the place called Llanfor--others call it Llanfawd, -"Drown-church," or Llanfawr, "Great-church," in Penllyn.... Further, -when the weather is stormy water appears oozing through every floor -within Bala, and at other times anybody can get water enough for the -use of his house, provided he dig a little into the floor of it.' - -In reference to the idea that the town is to sink, together with -the neighbouring village of Llanfor, the writer quotes in a note the -couplet known still to everybody in the neighbourhood as follows:-- - - - Y Bala aeth, a'r Bala aiff, - A Llanfor aiff yn Llyn. - - Bala old the lake has had, and Bala new - The lake will have, and Llanfor too. - - -This probably implies that old Bala is beneath the lake, and that the -present Bala is to meet the like fate at some time to come. This kind -of prophecy is not very uncommon: thus there has been one current -as to the Montgomeryshire town of Pool, called, in Welsh, Trallwng -or Trallwm, and in English, Welshpool, to distinguish it from the -English town of Pool. As to Welshpool, a very deep water called Llyn -Du, lying between the town and the Castell Coch or Powys Castle, -and right in the domain of the castle, is suddenly to spread itself, -and one fine market day to engulf the whole place [171]. Further, when -I was a boy in North Cardiganshire, the following couplet was quite -familiar to me, and supposed to have been one of Merlin's prophecies:-- - - - Caer Fyrdin, cei oer fore; - Daear a'th lwnc, dw'r i'th le. - - Carmarthen, a cold morn awaits thee; - Earth gapes, and water in thy place will be. - - -In regard to the earlier half of the line, concerning Bala gone, -the story of Ffynnon Gywer might be said to explain it, but there is -another which is later and far better known. It is of the same kind -as the stories related in Welsh concerning Llynclys and Syfadon; but -I reserve it with these and others of the same sort for chapter vii. - -For the next legend belonging here I have to thank the Rev. J. Fisher, -a native of the parish of Llandybļe, who, in spite of his name, is a -genuine Welshman, and--what is more--a Welsh scholar. The following are -his words:--'Llyn Llech Owen (the last word is locally sounded w-en, -like oo-en in English, as is also the personal name Owen) is on Mynyd -Mawr, in the ecclesiastical parish of Gors Lās, and the civil parish of -Llanarthney, Carmarthenshire. It is a small lake, forming the source of -the Gwendraeth Fawr. I have heard the tradition about its origin told -by several persons, and by all, until quite recently, pretty much in -the same form. In 1884 I took it down from my grandfather, Rees Thomas -(b. 1809, d. 1892), of Cil Coll Llandebļe--a very intelligent man, -with a good fund of old-world Welsh lore--who had lived all his life -in the neighbouring parishes of Llandeilo Fawr and Llandybļe. - -'The following is the version of the story (translated) as I had -it from him:--There was once a man of the name of Owen living on -Mynyd Mawr, and he had a well, "ffynnon." Over this well he kept a -large flag ("fflagen neu lech fawr": "fflagen" is the word in common -use now in these parts for a large flat stone), which he was always -careful to replace over its mouth after he had satisfied himself or -his beast with water. It happened, however, that one day he went on -horseback to the well to water his horse, and forgot to put the flag -back in its place. He rode off leisurely in the direction of his home; -but, after he had gone some distance, he casually looked back, and, -to his great astonishment, he saw that the well had burst out and -was overflowing the whole place. He suddenly bethought him that he -should ride back and encompass the overflow of the water as fast as -he could; and it was the horse's track in galloping round the water -that put a stop to its further overflow. It is fully believed that, -had he not galloped round the flood in the way he did, the well would -have been sure to inundate the whole district and drown all. Hence -the lake was called the Lake of Owen's Flag, "Llyn Llech Owen." - -'I have always felt interested in this story, as it resembled that -about the formation of Lough Neagh, &c.; and, happening to meet the -Rev. D. Harwood Hughes, B.A., the vicar of Gors Lās (St. Lleian's), -last August (1892), I asked him to tell me the legend as he had -heard it in his parish. He said that he had been told it, but in -a form different from mine, where the "Owen" was said to have been -Owen Glyndwr. This is the substance of the legend as he had heard -it:--Owen Glyndwr, when once passing through these parts, arrived here -of an evening. He came across a well, and, having watered his horse, -placed a stone over it in order to find it again next morning. He then -went to lodge for the night at Dyllgoed Farm, close by. In the morning, -before proceeding on his journey, he took his horse to the well to give -him water, but found to his surprise that the well had become a lake.' - -Mr. Fisher goes on to mention the later history of the lake: how, -some eighty years ago, its banks were the resort on Sunday afternoons -of the young people of the neighbourhood, and how a Baptist preacher -put an end to their amusements and various kinds of games by preaching -at them. However, the lake-side appears to be still a favourite spot -for picnics and Sunday-school gatherings. Mr. Fisher was quite right in -appending to his own version that of his friend; but, from the point of -view of folklore, I must confess that I can make nothing of the latter: -it differs from the older one as much as chalk does from cheese. It -would be naturally gratifying to the pride of local topography to be -able to connect with the pool the name of Owen Glyndwr; but it is -worthy of note that this highly respectable attempt to rationalize -the legend wholly fails, as it does not explain why there is now a -lake where there was once but a well. In other words, the euhemerized -story is itself evidence corroborative of Mr. Fisher's older version, -which is furthermore kept in countenance by Howells' account, p. 104, -where we are told who the Owen in question was, namely, Owen Lawgoch, -a personage dear, as we shall see later, to the Welsh legend of the -district. He and his men had their abode in a cave on the northern -side of Mynyd Mawr, and while there Owen used, we are informed, to -water his steed at a fine spring covered with a large stone, which it -required the strength of a giant to lift. But one day he forgot to -replace it, and when he next sought the well he found the lake. He -returned to his cave and told his men what had happened. Thereupon -both he and they fell into a sleep, which is to last till it is -broken by the sound of a trumpet and the clang of arms on Rhiw Goch: -then they are to sally forth to conquer. - -Now the story as told by Howells and Fisher provokes comparison, -as the latter suggests, with the Irish legend of the formation of -Lough Ree and of Lough Neagh in the story of the Death of Eochaid -McMaireda [172]. In both of these legends also there is a horse, a -kind of water-horse, who forms the well which eventually overflows and -becomes Lough Ree, and so with the still larger body of water known -as Lough Neagh. In the latter case the fairy well was placed in the -charge of a woman; but she one day left the cover of the well open, -and the catastrophe took place--the water issued forth and overflowed -the country. One of Eochaid's daughters, named Lķban, however, was -not drowned, but only changed into a salmon as already mentioned at -p. 376 above. In my Arthurian Legend, p. 361, I have attempted to show -that the name Lķban may have its Welsh equivalent in that of Llļon, -occurring in the name of Llyn Llļon, or Llļon's Lake, the bursting -of which is described in the latest series of Triads, iii. 13, 97, -as causing a sort of deluge. I am not certain as to the nature of -the relationship between those names, but it seems evident that the -stories have a common substratum, though it is to be noticed that -no well, fairy or otherwise, figures in the Llyn Llļon legend, which -makes the presence of the monster called the afanc the cause of the -waters bursting forth. So Hu the Mighty, with his team of famous oxen, -is made to drag the afanc out of the lake. - -There is, however, another Welsh legend concerning a great overflow in -which a well does figure: I allude to that of Cantre'r Gwaelod, or the -Bottom Hundred, a fine spacious country supposed to be submerged in -Cardigan Bay. Modern euhemerism treats it as defended by embankments -and sluices, which, we are told, were in the charge of the prince -of the country, named Seithennin, who, being one day in his cups, -forgot to shut the sluices, and thus brought about the inundation, -which was the end of his fertile realm. This, however, is not the -old legend: that speaks of a well, and lays the blame on a woman--a -pretty sure sign of antiquity, as the reader may judge from other old -stories which will readily occur to him. The Welsh legend to which I -allude is embodied in a short poem in the Black Book of Carmarthen -[173]: it consists of eight triplets, to which is added a triplet -from the Englynion of the Graves. The following is the original with -a tentative translation:-- - - - Seithenhin sawde allan. - ac edrychuirde varanres mor. - maes guitnev rytoes. - - Boed emendiceid y morvin - aehellygaut guydi cvin. - finaun wenestir [174] mor terruin. - - Boed emendiceid y vachteith. - ae . golligaut guydi gueith. - finaun wenestir mor diffeith. - - Diaspad mererid y ar vann caer. - hid ar duu y dodir. - gnaud guydi traha trangc hir. - - Diaspad mererid . y ar van kaer hetiv. - hid ar duu y dadoluch. - gnaud guydi traha attreguch. - - Diaspad mererid am gorchuit heno. - ac nimhaut gorlluit. - gnaud guydi traha tramguit. - - Diaspad mererid y ar gwinev kadir - kedaul duv ae gorev. - gnaud guydi gormot eissev. - - Diaspad mererid . am kymhell heno - y urth uyistauell. - gnaud guydi traha trangc pell. - - Bet seithenhin synhuir vann - rug kaer kenedir a glan. - mor maurhidic a kinran. - - - - Seithennin, stand thou forth - And see the vanguard of the main: - Gwydno's plain has it covered. - - Accursed be the maiden - Who let it loose after supping, - Well cup-bearer of the mighty main. - - Accursed be the damsel - Who let it loose after battle, - Well minister of the high sea. - - Mererid's cry from a city's height, - Even to God is it directed: - After pride comes a long pause. - - Mererid's cry from a city's height to-day, - Even to God her expiation: - After pride comes reflection. - - Mererid's cry o'ercomes me to-night, - Nor can I readily prosper: - After pride comes a fall. - - Mererid's cry over strong wines, - Bounteous God has wrought it: - After excess comes privation. - - Mererid's cry drives me to-night - From my chamber away: - After insolence comes long death. - - Weak-witted Seithennin's grave is it - Between Kenedyr's Fort and the shore, - With majestic Mor's and Kynran's. - - -The names in these lines present great difficulties: first comes -that of Mererid, which is no other word than Margarita, 'a pearl,' -borrowed; but what does it here mean? Margarita, besides meaning -a pearl, was used in Welsh, e.g. under the form Marereda [175], as -the proper name written in English Margaret. That is probably how -it is to be taken here, namely, as the name given to the negligent -guardian of the fairy well. It cannot very well be, however, the -name belonging to the original form of the legend; and we have the -somewhat parallel case of Ffynnon Grassi, or Grace's Well; but what -old Celtic name that of Mererid has replaced in the story, I cannot -say. In the next place, nobody has been able to identify Caer Kenedyr, -and I have nothing to say as to Mor Maurhidic, except that a person of -that name is mentioned in another of the Englynion of the Graves. It -runs thus in the Black Book, fol. 33a:-- - - - Bet mor maurhidic diessic unben. - post kinhen kinteic. - mab peredur penwetic. - - The grave of Mor the Grand, ... prince, - Pillar of the ... conflict, - Son of Peredur of Penwedig. - - -The last name in the final triplet of the poem which I have attempted -to translate is Kinran, which is otherwise unknown as a Welsh name; -but I am inclined to identify it with that of one of the three -who escaped the catastrophe in the Irish legend. The name there is -Curnįn, which was borne by the idiot of the family, who, like many -later idiots, was at the same time a prophet. For he is represented -as always prophesying that the waters were going to burst forth, -and as advising his friends to prepare boats. So he may be set, -after a fashion, over against our Seithenhin synhuir vann, 'S. of -the feeble mind.' But one might perhaps ask why I do not point out -an equivalent in Irish for the Welsh Seithennin, as his name is now -pronounced. The fact is that no such equivalent occurs in the Irish -story in question, nor exactly, so far as I know, in any other. - -That is what I wrote when penning these notes; but it has occurred to -me since then, that there is an Irish name, an important Irish name, -which looks as if related to Seithenhin, and that is Setanta Beg, 'the -little Setantian,' the first name of the Irish hero Cśchulainn. The nt, -I may point out, makes one suspect that Setanta is a name of Brythonic -origin in Irish; and I have been in the habit of associating it with -that of the people of the Setantii [176], placed by Ptolemy on the -coast of what is now Lancashire. Whether any legend has ever been -current about a country submerged on the coast of Lancashire I cannot -say, but the soundings would make such a legend quite comprehensible. I -remember, however, reading somewhere as to the Plain of Muirthemhne, -of which Cśchulainn, our Setanta Beg, had special charge, that it -was so called because it had once been submarine and become since the -converse, so to say, of Seithennin's country. The latter is beneath -Cardigan Bay, while the other fringed the opposite side of the sea, -consisting as it did of the level portion of County Louth. On the -whole, I am not altogether indisposed to believe that we have here -traces of an ancient legend of a wider scope than is represented by -the Black Book triplets, which I have essayed to translate. I think -that I am right in recognizing that legend in the Mabinogi of Branwen, -daughter of Llyr. There we read that, when Brān and his men crossed -from Wales to Ireland, the intervening sea consisted merely of two -navigable rivers, called Lli and Archan. The story-teller adds words -to the effect, that it is only since then the sea has multiplied its -realms [177] between Ireland and Ynys y Kedyrn, or the Isle of the -Keiri, a name which has already been discussed: see pp. 279-83. - -These are not all the questions which such stories suggest; for -Seithennin is represented in later Welsh literature as the son of -one Seithyn, associated with Dyfed; and the name Seithyn leads off -to the coast of Brittany. For I learn from a paper by the late M. le -Men, in the Revue Archéologique for 1872 (xxiii. 52), that the Īle -de Sein is called in Breton Enez-Sun, in which Sun is a dialectic -shortening of Sizun, which is also met with as Seidhun. That being so, -one would seem to be right in regarding Sizun as nearly related to -our Seithyn. That is not all--the tradition reminds one of the Welsh -legend: M. le Men refers to the Vie du P. Maunoir by Boschet (Paris, -1697) p. 126, and adds that, in his own time, the road ending on -the Pointe du Raz opposite the Īle de Sein passed 'pour źtre l'ancien -chemin qui conduisait ą la ville d'Is (Kaer-a-Is, la ville de la partie -basse).' It is my own experience, that nobody can go about much in -Brittany without hearing over and over again about the submerged city -of Is. There is no doubt that we have in these names distant echoes of -an inundation story, once widely current in both Britains and perhaps -also in Ireland. With regard to Wales we have an indication to that -effect in the fact, that Gwydno, to whom the inundated region is -treated as having belonged, is associated not only with Cardigan Bay, -but also with the coast of North Wales, especially the part of it -situated between Bangor and Llandudno [178]. Adjoining it is supposed -to lie submerged a once fertile district called Tyno Helig, a legend -about which will come under notice later. This brings the inundation -story nearer to the coast where Ptolemy in the second century located -the Harbour of the Setantii, about the mouth of the river Ribble, -and in their name we seem to have some sort of a historical basis for -that of the drunken Seithennin [179]. I cannot close these remarks -better than by appending what Professor Boyd Dawkins has recently -said with regard to the sea between Britain and Ireland:-- - -'It may be interesting to remark further that during the time of -the Iberian dominion in Wales, the geography of the seaboard was -different to what it is now. A forest, containing the remains of their -domestic oxen that had run wild, and of the indigenous wild animals -such as the bear and the red deer, united Anglesey with the mainland, -and occupied the shallows of Cardigan Bay, known in legend as "the -lost lands of Wales." It extended southwards from the present sea -margin across the estuary of the Severn, to Somerset, Devon, and -Cornwall. It passed northwards across the Irish Sea off the coast -of Cheshire and Lancashire, and occupied Morecambe Bay with a dense -growth of oak, Scotch fir, alder, birch, and hazel. It ranged seawards -beyond the ten-fathom line, and is to be found on most shores beneath -the sand-banks and mud-banks, as for example at Rhyl and Cardiff. In -Cardigan Bay it excited the wonder of Giraldus de Barri [180].' - -To return to fairy wells, I have to confess that I cannot decide what -may be precisely the meaning of the notion of a well with a woman set -carefully to see that the door or cover of the well is kept shut. It -will occur, however, to everybody to compare the well which Undine -wished to have kept shut, on account of its affording a ready access -from her subterranean country to the residence of her refractory knight -in his castle above ground. And in the case of the Glasfryn Lake, the -walling and cover that were to keep the spring from overflowing were, -according to the story, not water-tight, seeing that there were holes -made in one of the stones. This suggests the idea that the cover was -to prevent the passage of some such full-grown fairies as those with -which legend seems to have once peopled all the pools and tarns of -Wales. But, in the next place, is the maiden in charge of the well -to be regarded as priestess of the well? The idea of a priesthood in -connexion with wells in Wales is not wholly unknown. - -I wish, however, before discussing these instances, to call attention -to one or two Irish ones which point in another direction. Foremost -may be mentioned the source of the river Boyne, which is now -called Trinity Well, situated in the Barony of Carbury, in County -Kildare. The following is the Rennes Dindsenchas concerning it, as -translated by Dr. Stokes, in the Revue Celtique, xv. 315-6:--'Bóand, -wife of Nechtįn son of Labraid, went to the secret well which was -in the green of Sķd Nechtįin. Whoever went to it would not come from -it without his two eyes bursting, unless it were Nechtįn himself and -his three cup-bearers, whose names were Flesc and Lįm and Luam. Once -upon a time Bóand went through pride to test the well's power, -and declared that it had no secret force which could shatter her -form, and thrice she walked withershins round the well. (Whereupon) -three waves from the well break over her and deprive her of a thigh -[? wounded her thigh] and one of her hands and one of her eyes. Then -she, fleeing her shame, turns seaward, with the water behind her as -far as Boyne-mouth, (where she was drowned).' This is to explain why -the river is called Bóand, 'Boyne.' A version to the same effect in -the Book of Leinster, fol. 191a, makes the general statement that no -one who gazed right into the well could avoid the instant ruin of -his two eyes or otherwise escape with impunity. A similar story is -related to show how the Shannon, in Irish Sinann, Sinand, or Sinend, -is called after a woman of that name. It occurs in the same Rennes -manuscript, and the following is Stokes' translation in the Revue -Celtique, xv. 457:--'Sinend, daughter of Lodan Lucharglan son of Ler -out of Tir Tairngire (Land of Promise, Fairyland), went to Connla's -Well, which is under sea, to behold it. That is a well at which are -the hazels and inspirations (?) of wisdom, that is, the hazels of the -science of poetry, and in the same hour their fruit and their blossom -and their foliage break forth, and these fall on the well in the same -shower, which raises on the water a royal surge of purple. Then the -salmon chew the fruit, and the juice of the nuts is apparent on their -purple bellies. And seven streams of wisdom spring forth and turn there -again. Now Sinend went to seek the inspiration, for she wanted nothing -save only wisdom. She went with the stream till she reached Linn Mna -Feile, "the Pool of the Modest Woman," that is Bri Ele--and she went -ahead on her journey; but the well left its place, and she followed it -[181] to the banks of the river Tarr-cįin, "Fair-back." After this -it overwhelmed her, so that her back (tarr) went upwards, and when -she had come to the land on this side (of the Shannon) she tasted -death. Whence Sinann and Linn Mna Feile and Tarr-cain.' - -In these stories the reader will have noticed that the foremost -punishment on any intruder who looked into the forbidden well was -the instant ruin of his two eyes. One naturally asks why the eyes -are made the special objects of the punishment, and I am inclined to -think the meaning to have originally been that the well or spring was -regarded as the eye of the divinity of the water. Should this prove -well founded it looks natural that the eyes, which transgressed by -gazing into the eye of the divinity, should be the first objects of -that divinity's vengeance. This is suggested to me by the fact that -the regular Welsh word for the source of a river is llygad, Old Welsh -licat, 'eye,' as for instance in the case of Licat Amir mentioned by -Nennius, § 73; of Llygad Llychwr, 'the source of the Loughor river' -in the hills behind Carreg Cennen Castle; and of the weird lake in -which the Rheidol [182] rises near the top of Plinlimmon: it is called -Llyn Llygad y Rheidol, 'the Lake of the Rheidol's Eye.' By the way, -the Rheidol is not wholly without its folklore, for I used to be told -in my childhood, that she and the Wye and the Severn sallied forth -simultaneously from Plinlimmon one fine morning to run a race to the -sea. The result was, one was told, that the Rheidol won great honour -by reaching the sea three weeks before her bigger sisters. Somebody -has alluded to the legend in the following lines:-- - - - Tair afon gynt a rifwyd - Ar dwyfron Pumlumon lwyd, - Hafren a Gwy'n hyfryd ei gwed, - A'r Rheidol fawr ei hanrhyded. - - Three rivers of yore were seen - On grey Plinlimmon's breast, - Severn, and Wye of pleasant mien, - And Rheidol rich in great renown. - - -To return to the Irish legends, I may mention that Eugene O'Curry -has a good deal to say of the mysterious nuts and 'the salmon of -knowledge,' the partaking of which was synonymous with the acquisition -of knowledge and wisdom: see his Manners and Customs of the Ancient -Irish, ii. 142-4. He gives it as his opinion that Connla's Well was -situated somewhere in Lower Ormond; but the locality of this Helicon, -with the seven streams of wisdom circulating out of it and back again -into it, is more intelligible when regarded as a matter of fairy -geography. A portion of the note appended to the foregoing legend by -Stokes is in point here: he traces the earliest mention of the nine -hazels of wisdom, growing at the heads of the chief rivers of Ireland, -to the Dialogue of the Two Sages in the Book of Leinster, fol. 186b, -whence he cites the poet Néde mac Adnai saying whence he had come, -as follows:--a caillib .i. a nói collaib na Segsa ... a caillib -didiu assa mbenaiter clessa na sśad tanacsa, 'from hazels, to wit, -from the nine hazels of the Segais ... from hazels out of which are -obtained the feats of the sages, I have come.' The relevancy of this -passage will be seen when I add, that Segais was one of the names -of the mound in which the Boyne rises; so it may be safely inferred -that Bóand's transgression was of the same nature as that of Sinand, -to wit, that of intruding on sacred ground in quest of wisdom and -inspiration which was not permitted their sex: certain sources of -knowledge, certain quellen, were reserved for men alone. - -Before I have done with the Irish instances I must append one in the -form it was told me in the summer of 1894: I was in Meath and went -to see the remarkable chambered cairns on the hill known as Sliabh na -Caillighe, 'the Hag's Mountain,' near Oldcastle and Lough Crew. I had -as my guide a young shepherd whom I picked up on the way. He knew all -about the hag after whom the hill was called except her name: she was, -he said, a giantess, and so she brought there, in three apronfuls, -the stones forming the three principal cairns. As to the cairn on -the hill point known as Belrath, that is called the Chair Cairn from -a big stone placed there by the hag to serve as her seat when she -wished to have a quiet look on the country round. But usually she -was to be seen riding on a wonderful pony she had: that creature was -so nimble and strong that it used to take the hag at a leap from one -hill-top to another. However, the end of it all was that the hag rode -so hard that the pony fell down, and that both horse and rider were -killed. The hag appears to have been Cailleach Bhéara, or Caillech -Bérre, 'the Old Woman of Beare,' that is, Bearhaven, in County Cork -[183]. Now the view from the Hag's Mountain is very extensive, and -I asked the shepherd to point out some places in the distance. Among -other things we could see Lough Ramor, which he called the Virginia -Water, and more to the west he identified Lough Sheelin, about which -he had the following legend to tell:--A long, long time ago there -was no lake there, but only a well with a flagstone kept over it, -and everybody would put the flag back after taking water out of the -well. But one day a woman who fetched water from it forgot to replace -the stone, and the water burst forth in pursuit of the luckless woman, -who fled as hard as she could before the angry flood. She continued -until she had run about seven miles--the estimated length of the -lake at the present day. Now at this point a man, who was busily -mowing hay in the field through which she was running, saw what -was happening and mowed the woman down with his scythe, whereupon -the water advanced no further. Such was the shepherd's yarn, which -partly agrees with the Boyne and Shannon stories in that the woman -was pursued by the water, which only stopped where she died. On -the other hand, it resembles the Llyn Llech Owen legend and that -of Lough Neagh in placing to the woman's charge only the neglect to -cover the well. It looks as if we had in these stories a confusion -of two different institutions, one being a well of wisdom which no -woman durst visit without fatal vengeance overtaking her, and the -other a fairy well which was attended to by a woman who was to keep -it covered, and who may, perhaps, be regarded as priestess of the -spring. If we try to interpret the Cantre'r Gwaelod story from these -two points of view we have to note the following matters:--Though it is -not said that the moruin, or damsel, had a lid or cover on the well, -the word golligaut or helligaut, 'did let run,' implies some such an -idea as that of a lid or door; for opening the sluices, in the sense -of the later version, seems to me out of the question. In two of the -Englynion she is cursed for the action implied, and if she was the -well minister or well servant, as I take finaun wenestir to mean, -we might perhaps regard her as the priestess of that spring. On the -other hand, the prevailing note in the other Englynion is the traha, -'presumption, arrogance, insolence, pride,' which forms the burden -of four out of five of them. This would seem to point to an attitude -on the part of the damsel resembling that of Bóand or Sinand when -prying into the secrets of wells which were tabu to them. The seventh -Englyn alludes to wines, and its burden is gormod, 'too much, excess, -extravagance,' whereby the poet seems to lend countenance to some -such a later story as that of Seithennin's intemperance. - -Lastly, the question of priest or priestess of a sacred well has -been alluded to once or twice, and it may be perhaps illustrated on -Welsh ground by the history of Ffynnon Eilian, or St. Elian's Well, -which has been mentioned in another context, p. 357 above. Of that -well we read as follows, s. v. Llandrillo, in the third edition of -Lewis' Topographical Dictionary of Wales:--'Fynnon Elian, ... even in -the present age, is frequently visited by the superstitious, for the -purpose of invoking curses upon the heads of those who have grievously -offended them, and also of supplicating prosperity to themselves; -but the numbers are evidently decreasing. The ceremony is performed by -the applicant standing upon a certain spot near the well, whilst the -owner of it reads a few passages of the sacred Scriptures, and then, -taking a small quantity of water, gives it to the former to drink, -and throws the residue over his head, which is repeated three times, -the party continuing to mutter imprecations in whatever terms his -vengeance may dictate.' Rice Rees, in his Essay on the Welsh Saints -(London, 1836), p. 267, speaks of St. Elian as follows: 'Miraculous -cures were lately supposed to be performed at his shrine at Llanelian, -Anglesey; and near to the church of Llanelian, Denbighshire, is a -well called Ffynnon Elian, which is thought by the peasantry of the -neighbourhood to be endued with miraculous powers even at present.' - -Foulkes, s. v. Elian, in his Enwogion Cymru, published in Liverpool -in 1870, expresses the opinion that the visits of the superstitious -to the well had ceased for some time. The last person supposed to have -had charge of the well was a certain John Evans, but some of the most -amusing stories of the shrewdness of the caretaker refer to a woman -who had charge of the well before Evans' time. A series of articles on -Ffynnon Eilian appeared in 1861 in a Welsh periodical called Y Nofelyd, -printed by Mr. Aubrey at Llanerch y Med, in Anglesey. The articles -in question were afterwards published, I am told, as a shilling book, -which I have not seen, and they dealt with the superstition, with the -history of John Evans, and with his confessions and conversion. I -have searched in vain for any account in Welsh of the ritual -followed at the well. When Mrs. Silvan Evans visited the place, -the person in charge of the well was a woman, and Peter Roberts, -in his Cambrian Popular Antiquities, published in London in 1815, -alludes to her or a predecessor of hers in the following terms, -p. 246:--'Near the Well resided some worthless and infamous wretch, -who officiated as priestess.' He furthermore gives one to understand -that she kept a book in which she registered the name of each evil -wisher for a trifling sum of money. When this had been done, a pin was -dropped into the well in the name of the victim. This proceeding looks -adequate from the magical point of view, though less complicated than -the ritual indicated by Lewis. This latter writer calls the person who -took charge of the well the owner; and I have always understood that, -whether owner or not, he or she used to receive gifts, not only for -placing in the well the names of men who were to be cursed, but also -from those men for taking their names out again, so as to relieve them -from the malediction. In fact, the trade in curses seems to have been -a very thriving one: its influence was powerful and widespread. - -Here there is, I think, very little doubt that the owner or guardian of -the well was, so to say, the representative of an ancient priesthood -of the well. That priesthood dated its origin probably many centuries -before a Christian church was built near the well, and coming down -to later times we have unfortunately no sufficient data to show how -the right to such priesthood was acquired, whether by inheritance or -otherwise; but we know that a woman might have charge of St. Elian's -Well. - -Let me cite another instance, which I unexpectedly discovered -some years ago in the course of a ramble in quest of -early inscriptions. Among other places which I visited was -Llandeilo Llwydarth, near Maen Clochog, in the northern part of -Pembrokeshire. This is one of the many churches bearing the name of -St. Teilo in South Wales: the building is in ruins, but the churchyard -is still used, and contains two of the most ancient post-Roman -inscriptions in the Principality. If you ask now for 'Llandeilo' -in this district, you will be understood to be inquiring after the -farm house of that name, close to the old church; and I learnt from -the landlady that her family had been there for many generations, -though they have not very long been the proprietors of the land. She -also told me of St. Teilo's Well, a little above the house: she -added that it was considered to have the property of curing the -whooping-cough. I asked if there was any rite or ceremony necessary -to be performed in order to derive benefit from the water. Certainly, -I was told: the water must be lifted out of the well and given to the -patient to drink by some member of the family. To be more accurate, I -ought to say that this must be done by somebody born in the house. Her -eldest son, however, had told me previously, when I was busy with the -inscriptions, that the water must be given to the patient by the heir, -not by anybody else. Then came my question how the water was lifted, -or out of what the patient had to drink, to which I was answered -that it was out of the skull. 'What skull?' said I. 'St. Teilo's -skull,' was the answer. 'Where do you get the saint's skull?' I -asked. 'Here it is,' was the answer, and I was given it to handle -and examine. I know next to nothing about skulls; but it struck me -that it was the upper portion of a thick, strong skull, and it called -to my mind the story of the three churches which contended for the -saint's corpse. That story will be found in the Book of Llan Dāv, -pp. 116-7, and according to it the contest became so keen that it -had to be settled by prayer and fasting. So, in the morning, lo and -behold! there were three corpses of St. Teilo--not simply one--and so -like were they in features and stature that nobody could tell which -were the corpses made to order and which the old one. I should have -guessed that the skull which I saw belonged to the former description, -as not having been much thinned by the owner's use of it; but this I -am forbidden to do by the fact that, according to the legend, this -particular Llandeilo was not one of the three contending churches -which bore away in triumph a dead Teilo each. The reader, perhaps, -would like to take another view, namely, that the story has been -edited in such a way as to reduce a larger number of Teilos to three, -in order to gratify the Welsh weakness for triads. - -Since my visit to the neighbourhood I have been favoured with an -account of the well as it is now current there. My informant is -Mr. Benjamin Gibby of Llangolman Mill, who writes mentioning, among -other things, that the people around call the well Ffynnon yr Ychen, -or the Oxen's Well, and that the family owning and occupying the -farm house of Llandeilo have been there for centuries. Their name, -which is Melchior (pronounced Melshor), is by no means a common one in -the Principality, so far as I know; but, whatever may be its history -in Wales, the bearers of it are excellent Kymry. Mr. Gibby informs -me that the current story solves the difficulty as to the saint's -skull as follows:--The saint had a favourite maid servant from the -Pembrokeshire Llandeilo: she was a beautiful woman, and had the -privilege of attending on the saint when he was on his death-bed. As -his end was approaching he gave his maid a strict and solemn command -that in a year's time from the day of his burial at Llandeilo Fawr, -in Carmarthenshire, she was to take his skull to the other Llandeilo, -and to leave it there to be a blessing to coming generations of men, -who, when ailing, would have their health restored by drinking water -out of it. So the belief prevailed that to drink out of the skull -some of the water of Teilo's Well ensured health, especially against -the whooping-cough. The faith of some of those who used to visit -the well was so great in its efficacy, that they were wont to leave -it, he says, with their constitutions wonderfully improved; and he -mentions a story related to him by an old neighbour, Stifyn Ifan, -who has been dead for some years, to the effect that a carriage, -drawn by four horses, came once, more than half a century ago, to -Llandeilo. It was full of invalids coming from Pen Clawd, in Gower, -Glamorganshire, to try the water of the well. They returned, however, -no better than they came; for though they had drunk of the well, they -had neglected to do so out of the skull. This was afterwards pointed -out to them by somebody, and they resolved to make the long journey -to the well again. This time they did the right thing, we are told, -and departed in excellent health. - -Such are the contents of Mr. Gibby's Welsh letter; and I would now -only point out that we have here an instance of a well which was -probably sacred before the time of St. Teilo: in fact, one would -possibly be right in supposing that the sanctity of the well and its -immediate surroundings was one of the causes why the site was chosen by -a Christian missionary. But consider for a moment what has happened: -the well paganism has annexed the saint, and established a belief -ascribing to him the skull used in the well ritual. The landlady and -her family, it is true, neither believe in the efficacy of the well, -nor take gifts from those who visit the well; but they continue, out -of kindness, as they put it, to hand the skull full of water to any -one who perseveres in believing in it. In other words, the faith in -the well continues in a measure intact, while the walls of the church -have long fallen into utter decay. Such is the great persistence of -some primitive beliefs; and in this particular instance we have a -succession which seems to point unmistakably to an ancient priesthood -of a sacred spring. - - - - - - - - -NOTES - - -[1] As to the spelling of Welsh names, it may be pointed out for the -benefit of English readers that Welsh f has the sound of English v, -while the sound of English f is written ff (and ph) in Welsh, and -however strange it may seem to them that the written f should be -sounded v, it is borrowed from an old English alphabet which did -so likewise more or less systematically. Th in such English words -as thin and breath is written th, but the soft sound as in this and -breathe is usually printed in Welsh dd and written in modern Welsh -manuscript sometimes like a small Greek delta: this will be found -represented by d in the Welsh extracts edited by me in this -volume.--J. R. - -[2] 'Blaensawde, or the upper end of the river Sawde, is situate about -three-quarters of a mile south-east from the village of Llandeusant. It -gives its name to one of the hamlets of that parish. The Sawde has -its source in Llyn y Fan Fach, which is nearly two miles distant from -Blaensawde House.' - -[3] The rendering might be more correctly given thus: 'O thou of the -crimped bread, it is not easy to catch me.'--J. R. - -[4] 'Mydfai parish was, in former times, celebrated for its fair -maidens, but whether they were descendants of the Lady of the Lake -or otherwise cannot be determined. An old pennill records the fact -of their beauty thus:-- - - Mae eira gwyn - Ar ben y bryn, - A'r glasgoed yn y Ferdre, - Mae bedw mān - Ynghoed Cwm-brān, - A merched glān yn Mydfe. - -Which may be translated, - - There is white snow - On the mountain's brow, - And greenwood at the Verdre, - Young birch so good - In Cwm-brān wood, - And lovely girls in Mydfe.' - -[5] Similarly this should be rendered: 'O thou of the moist bread, -I will not have thee.'--J. R. - -[6] In the best Demetian Welsh this word would be hwedel, and in the -Gwentian of Glamorgan it is gwedel, mutated wedel, as may be heard -in the neighbourhood of Bridgend.--J. R. - -[7] This is not generally accepted, as some Welsh antiquarians -find reasons to believe that Dafyd ap Gwilym was buried at Strata -Florida.--J. R. - -[8] This is not quite correct, as I believe that Dr. C. Rice Williams, -who lives at Aberystwyth, is one of the Medygon. That means the year -1881, when this chapter was written, excepting the portions concerning -which the reader is apprised of a later date.--J. R. - -[9] Later it will be seen that the triban in the above form was meant -for neither of the two lakes, though it would seem to have adapted -itself to several. In the case of the Fan Fach Lake the town meant -must have been Carmarthen, and the couplet probably ran thus: - - Os na cha'i lonyd yn ym lle, - Fi foda dre' Garfyrdin. - -[10] Llwch is the Goidelic word loch borrowed, and Llyn Cwm y Llwch -literally means the Lake of the Loch Dingle. - -[11] I make no attempt to translate these lines, but I find that -Mr. Llewellyn Williams has found a still more obscure version of them, -as follows:-- - - Prw med, prw med, prw'r gwartheg i dre', - Prw milfach a malfach, pedair llualfach, - Llualfach ac Acli, pedair lafi, - Lafi a chromwen, pedair nepwen, - Nepwen drwynog, brech yn llyn a gwaun dodyn, - Tair bryncethin, tair cyffredin, - Tair caseg du, draw yn yr eithin; - Dewch i gyd i lys y brenin. - -[12] The Ty-fry is a house said to be some 200 years old, and situated -about two miles from Rhonda Fechan: more exactly it is about one-fourth -of a mile from the station of Ystrad Rhonda, and stands at the foot -of Mynyd yr Eglwys on the Treorky side. It is now surrounded by the -cottages of colliers, one of whom occupies it. For this information -I have to thank Mr. Probert Evans. - -[13] It is to be borne in mind that the sound of h is uncertain -in Glamorgan pronunciation, whether the language used is Welsh or -English. The pronunciation indicated, however, by Mr. Evans comes -near enough to the authentic form written Elfarch. - -[14] In the Snowdon district of Gwyned the call is drwi, drwi, drw-i -bach, while in North Cardiganshire it is trwi, trwi, trw-e fach, also -pronounced sometimes with a surd r, produced by making the breath cause -both lips to vibrate--tR'wi, tR'wi, which can hardly be distinguished -from pR'wi, pR'wi. For the more forcibly the lips are vibrated the -more difficult it becomes to start by closing them to pronounce p: -so the tendency with R' is to make the preceding consonant into some -kind of a t. - -[15] This is the Welsh form of the borrowed name Jane, and its -pronunciation in North Cardiganshire is Siān, with si pronounced -approximately like the ti of such French words as nation and the -like; but of late years I find the si made into English sh under -the influence, probably, to some extent of the English taught at -school. This happens in North Wales, even in districts where there -are still plenty of people who cannot approach the English words -fish and shilling nearer than fiss and silling. Siōn and Siān -represent an old importation of English John and Jane, but they are -now considered old-fashioned and superseded by John and Jane, which -I learned to pronounce Dsiņn and Dsiźn, except that Siōn survives -as a family name, written Shone, in the neighbourhood of Wrexham. - -[16] This term dafad (or dafaden), 'a sheep,' also used for 'a wart,' -and dafad (or dafaden) wyllt, literally 'a wild sheep,' for cancer -or epithelioma, raises a question which I am quite unable to answer: -why should a wart have been likened to a sheep? - -[17] The name is probably a shortening of Cawellyn, and that perhaps -of Cawell-lyn, 'Creel or Basket Lake.' Its old name is said to have -been Llyn Tardenni. - -[18] Tyn is a shortening of tydyn, which is not quite forgotten in -the case of Tyn Gadlas or Tyn Siarlas (for Tydyn Siarlys), 'Charles' -Tenement,' in the immediate neighbourhood. Similarly the Anglesey -Farm of Tyn yr Onnen used at one time to be Tydyn yr Onnen in the -books of Jesus College, Oxford, to which it belongs. - -[19] That is the pronunciation which I have learnt at Llanberis, -but there is another, which I have also heard, namely Derwenyd. - -[20] Ystrad is the Welsh corresponding to Scotch strath, and it is -nearly related to the English word strand. It means the flat land -near a river. - -[21] Betws (or Bettws) Garmon seems to mean Germanus's Bede-hus or -House of Prayer, but Garmon can hardly have come down in Welsh from -the time of the famous saint in the fifth century, as it would then -have probably yielded Gerfon and not Garmon: it looks as if it had -come through the Goidelic of this country. - -[22] One of the rare merits of our Welsh bards is their habit of -assuming permanent noms de plume, by means of which they prevent a -number of excellent native names from falling into utter oblivion -in the general chaos of Anglo-Hebrew ones, such as Jones, Davies, -and Williams, which cover the Principality. Welsh place-names have -similarly been threatened by Hebrew names of chapels, such as Bethesda, -Rehoboth, and Jerusalem, but in this direction the Jewish mania has -only here and there effected permanent mischief. - -[23] The Brython was a valuable Welsh periodical published by -Mr. Robert Isaac Jones, at Tremadoc, in the years 1858-1863, and -edited by the Rev. Chancellor Silvan Evans, who was then the curate -of Llangļan in Lleyn: in fact he was curate for fourteen years! His -excellent work in editing the Brython earned for him his diocesan's -displeasure, but it is easier to imagine than to describe how hard it -was for him to resign the honorarium of £24 derived from the Brython -when his stipend as a clergyman was only £92, at the same time that -he had dependent on him a wife and six children. However much some -people affect to laugh at the revival of the national spirit in Wales, -we have, I think, got so far as to make it, for some time to come, -impossible for a Welsh clergyman to be snubbed on account of his -literary tastes or his delight in the archęology of his country. - -[24] This parish is called after a saint named Tegįi or Tygįi, like -Tyfaelog and Tysilio, and though the accent rests on the final syllable -nothing could prevent the grammarian Huw Tegai and his friends from -making it into Tégai in Huw's name. - -[25] For can they now usually put Ann, and Mr. Hughes remembers -hearing it so many years ago. - -[26] I remember seeing a similar mound at Llanfyrnach, in -Pembrokeshire; and the last use made of the hollow on the top of this -also is supposed to have been for cock-fights. - -[27] My attention has also been called to freit, frete, freet, -fret, 'news, inquiry, augury,' corresponding to Anglo-Saxon freht, -'divination.' But the disparity of meaning seems to stand in the way -of our ffrit being referred to this origin. - -[28] The Oxford Mabinogion, p. 63; Guest, iii. 223. - -[29] See the Itinerarium Kambrię, i. 2 (pp. 33-5), and Celtic Britain, -p. 64. - -[30] As for example in the Archęologia Cambrensis for 1870, pp. 192-8; -see also 1872, pp. 146-8. - -[31] Howells has also an account of Llyn Savadhan, as he writes it: -see his Cambrian Superstitions, pp. 100-2, where he quaintly says that -the story of the wickedness of the ancient lord of Syfadon is assigned -as the reason why 'the superstitious little river Lewenny will not mix -its water with that of the lake.' Lewenny is a reckless improvement -of Mapes' Leueni (printed Lenem); and Giraldus' Clamosum implies -an old spelling Llefni, pronounced the same as the later spelling -Llyfni, which is now made into Llynfi or Llynvi: the river so called -flows through the lake and into the Wye at Glasbury. As to Safadan -or Syfadon, it is probably of Goidelic origin, and to be identified -with such an Irish name as the feminine Samthann: see Dec. 19 in the -Martyrologies. To keep within our data, we are at liberty to suppose -that this was the name of the wicked princess in the story, and that -she was the ancestress of a clan once powerful on and around the lake, -which lies within a Goidelic area indicated by its Ogam inscriptions. - -[32] These were held, so far as I can gather from the descriptions -usually given of them, exactly as I have seen a kermess or kirchmesse -celebrated at Heidelberg, or rather the village over the Neckar -opposite that town. It was in 1869, but I forget what saint it was with -whose name the kermess was supposed to be connected: the chief features -of it were dancing and beer drinking. It was by no means unusual for -a Welsh Gwyl Fabsant to bring together to a rural neighbourhood far -more people than could readily be accommodated; and in Carnarvonshire -a hurriedly improvised bed is to this day called gwely g'l'absant, -as it were 'a bed (for the time) of a saint's festival.' Rightly -or wrongly the belief lingers that these merry gatherings were -characterized by no little immorality, which made the better class -of people set their faces against them. - -[33] Since the editing of this volume was begun I have heard that it -is intended to publish the Welsh collection which Mr. Jones has made: -so I shall only give a translation of the Edward Llwyd version of -the afanc story: see section v. of this chapter. - -[34] This word is not in Welsh dictionaries, but it is Scotch and -Manx Gaelic, and is possibly a remnant of the Goidelic once spoken -in Gwyned. - -[35] Our charlatans never leave off trying to make this into Tryfaen so -as to extract maen, 'stone,' from it. They do not trouble themselves -to find out whether it ever was Tryfaen or not: in fact they rather -like altering everything as much as they can. - -[36] Ystrįdllyn, with the accent on the penult, is commonly pronounced -Strįllyn, and means 'the strand of the lake,' and the hollow is -named after it Cwm Strįllyn, and the lake in it Llyn Cwm Strįllyn, -which literally means 'the Lake of the Combe of the Strand of the -Lake'--all seemingly for the luxury of forgetting the original name -of the lake, which I have never been able to ascertain. - -[37] So Mr. Jones puts it: I have never heard of any other part of -the Principality where the children are usually baptized before they -are eight days old. - -[38] I cannot account for this spelling, but the ll in Bellis is -English ll, not the Welsh ll, which represents a sound very different -from that of l. - -[39] Where not stated otherwise, as in this instance, the reader is -to regard this chapter as written in the latter part of the year 1881. - -[40] See Giraldus' Itinerarium Kambrię, i. 8 (pp. 75-8); some -discussion of the whole story will be found in chapter iii of this -volume. - -[41] Dr. Moore explains this to be cabbages and potatoes, pounded -and mixed with butter or lard. - -[42] It would be interesting to know what has become of this letter -and others of Llwyd's once in the possession of the canon, for it is -not to be supposed that the latter ever took the trouble to make an -accurate copy of them any more than he did of any other MSS. - -[43] There is also a Sarn yr Afanc, 'the Afanc's Stepping Stones,' -on the Ogwen river in Nant Ffrancon: see Pennant's Tours in Wales, -iii. 101. - -[44] The oxen should accordingly have been called Ychain Pannog; -but the explanation is not to be taken seriously. These oxen will -come under the reader's notice again, to wit in chapter x. - -[45] The lines are copied exactly as given at p. 189 (I. vi. 25-30) -of The Poetical Works of Lewis Glyn Cothi, edited for the Cymmrodorion -by Gwallter Mechain and Tegid, and printed at Oxford in the year 1837. - -[46] This, I should say, must be a mistake, as it contradicts all -the folklore which makes the rowan an object of dread to the fairies. - -[47] See Choice Notes from 'Notes and Queries' (London, 1859), p. 147. - -[48] It is more likely that it is a shortening of Llyn y Barfog, -meaning the Lake of the Bearded One, Lacus Barbati as it were, the -Bearded One being somebody like the hairy monster of another lake -mentioned at p. 18 above, or him of the white beard pictured at p. 127. - -[49] So far from afanc meaning a crocodile, an afanc is represented in -the story of Peredur as a creature that would cast at every comer a -poisoned spear from behind a pillar standing at the mouth of the cave -inhabited by it; see the Oxford Mabinogion, p. 224. The corresponding -Irish word is abhac, which according to O'Reilly means 'a dwarf, -pigmy, manikin; a sprite.' - -[50] I should not like to vouch for the accuracy of Mr. Pughe's -rendering of this and the other Welsh names which he has introduced: -that involves difficult questions. - -[51] The writer meant the river known as Dyfi or Dovey; but he would -seem to have had a water etymology on the brain. - -[52] This involves the name of the river called Disynni, and Diswnwy -embodies a popular etymology which is not worth discussing. - -[53] It would, I think, be a little nearer the mark as follows:-- - - Come thou, Einion's Yellow One, - Stray-horns, the Particoloured Lake Cow, - And the Hornless Dodin: - Arise, come home. - -But one would like to know whether Dodin ought not rather to be -written Dodyn, to rhyme with Llyn. - -[54] Hywel's real name is William Davies, Tal y Bont, Cardiganshire. As -adjudicator I became acquainted with several stories which Mr. Davies -has since given me permission to use, and I have to thank him for -clues to several others. - -[55] Or Llech y Deri, as Mr. Williams tells me in a letter, where -he adds that he does not know the place, but that he took it to be -in the Hundred of Cemmes, in North-west Pembrokeshire. I take Llech -y Derwyd to be fictitious; but I have not succeeded in finding any -place called by the other name either. - -[56] Perhaps the more usual thing is for the man returning from Faery -to fall into dust on the spot: see later in this chapter the Curse of -Pantannas, which ends with an instance in point, and compare Howells, -pp. 142, 146. - -[57] B. Davies, that is, Benjamin Davies, who gives this tale, was, -as I learn from Gwynionyd, a native of Cenarth. He was a schoolmaster -for about twelve years, and died in October, 1859, at Merthyr, near -Carmarthen: he describes him as a good and intelligent man. - -[58] This is ordinarily written Cenarth, the name of a parish on -the Teifi, where the three counties of Cardigan, Pembroke, and -Carmarthen meet. - -[59] The name Llan Dydoch occurs in the Bruts, A.D. 987 and 1089, -and is the one still in use in Welsh; but the English St. Dogmael's -shows that it is derived from that of Dogfael's name when the mutation -consonant f or v was still written m. In Welsh the name of the saint -has been worn down to Dogwel, as in St. Dogwell's near Fishguard, and -Llandogwel in Llanrhudlad parish in Anglesey: see Reece's Welsh Saints, -p. 211. It points back to an early Brythonic form Doco-maglos, with -doco of the same origin as Latin dux, ducis, 'a leader,' and maglo-s = -Irish mal, 'a lord or prince.' Dogfael's name assumes in Llan Dydoch a -Goidelic form, for Dog-fael would have to become in Irish Doch-mhal, -which, cut down to Doch with the honorific prefix to, has yielded -Ty-doch; but I am not clear why it is not Ty-doch. Another instance of -a Goidelic form of a name having the local preference in Wales to this -day offers itself in Cyfelach and Llan Gyfelach in Glamorganshire. The -Welsh was formerly Cimeliauc (Reece, p. 274). Here may also be -mentioned St. Cyngar, otherwise called Docwinnus (Reece, p. 183), -but the name occurs in the Liber Landavensis in the genitive both as -Docunn-i and Docguinni, the former of which seems easily explained as -Goidelic for an early form of Cyngar, namely Cuno-caros, from which -would be formed To-chun or Do-chun. This is what seems to underlie the -Latin Docunnus, while Docguinni is possibly a Goidelic modification -of the written Docunni, unless some such a name as Doco-vindo-s has -been confounded with Docunnus. In one instance the Book of Llan Dāv -has instead of Abbas Docunni or Docguinni, the shorter designation, -Abbas Dochou (p. 145), which one must not unhesitatingly treat as -Dochon, seeing that Dochou would be in later book Welsh Dochau, -and in the dialect of the district Docha; and that this occurs in -the name of the church of Llandough near Cardiff, and Llandough near -Cowbridge. The connexion of a certain saint Dochdwy with these churches -does not appear at all satisfactorily established, but more light is -required to help one to understand these and similar church names. - -[60] This name which may have come from Little England below Wales, -was once not uncommon in South Cardiganshire, as Mr. Williams -informs me, but it is now mostly changed as a surname into Davies and -Jones! Compare the similar fortunes of the name Mason mentioned above, -p. 68. - -[61] I have not succeeded in discovering who the writer was, who used -this name. - -[62] This name as it is now written should mean 'the Gold's Foot,' -but in the Demetian dialect aur is pronounced oer, and I learn from -the rector, the Rev. Rhys Jones Lloyd, that the name has sometimes -been written Tref Deyrn, which I regard as some etymologist's futile -attempt to explain it. More importance is to be attached to the name -on the communion cup, dating 1828, and reading, as Mr. Lloyd kindly -informs me, Poculum Eclyseye de Tre-droyre. Beneath Droyre some -personal name possibly lies concealed. - -[63] Y Ferch o Gefn Ydfa ('The Maid of Cefn Ydfa'), by Isaac Craigfryn -Hughes, published by Messrs. Daniel Owen, Howell & Co., Cardiff, 1881. - -[64] In a letter dated February 9, 1899, he states, however, that as -regards folklore the death of his father at the age of seventy-six, -in the year 1889, had been a great loss to him; for he adds that he -was perfectly familiar with the traditions of the neighbourhood and -had associated with older men. Among the latter he had been used to -talk with an old man whose father remembered Cromwell passing on his -way to destroy the Iron Works of Pant y Gwaith, where the Cavaliers -had had a cannon cast, which was afterwards used in the engagement -at St. Fagan's. - -[65] This term is sometimes represented as being Bendith eu Mamau, -'their Mother's Blessing,' as if each fairy were such a delightful -offspring as to constitute himself or herself a blessing to his or her -mother; but I have not found satisfactory evidence to the currency -of Bendith eu Mamau, or, as it would be pronounced in Glamorgan, -Béndith i Mįma. On the whole, therefore, perhaps one may regard the -name as pointing back to the Celtic goddesses known in Gaul in Roman -times as the Mothers. - -[66] On Pen Craig Daf Mr. Hughes gives the following note:--It -was the residence of Dafyd Morgan or 'Counsellor Morgan,' who, he -says, was executed on Kennington Common for taking the side of the -Pretender. He had retreated to Pen y Graig, where his abode was, -in order to conceal himself; but he was discovered and carried away -at night. Here follows a verse from an old ballad about him:-- - - Dafyd Morgan ffel a ffol, Taffy Morgan, sly and daft, - Fe aeth yn ol ei hyder: He did his bent go after: - Fe neidod naid at rebel haid He leaped a leap to a rebel swarm, - Pan drod o blaid Pretender. To arm for a Pretender. - -[67] A tņn is any green field that is used for grazing and not meant to -be mown, land which has, as it were, its skin of grassy turf unbroken -for years by the plough. - -[68] On this Mr. Hughes has a note to the effect that the whole of -one milking used to be given in Glamorgan to workmen for assistance -at the harvest or other work, and that it was not unfrequently enough -for the making of two cheeses. - -[69] Since this was first printed I have learnt from Mr. Hughes that -the first cry issued from the Black Cauldron in the Taff (o'r Gerwyn -Du ar Daf), which I take to be a pool in that river. - -[70] The Fan is the highest mountain in the parish of Merthyr Tydfil, -Mr. Hughes tells me: he adds that there was on its side once a chapel -with a burial ground. Its history seems to be lost, but human bones -have, as he states, been frequently found there. - -[71] The above, I am sorry to say, is not the only instance of this -nasty trick associating itself with Gwent, as will be seen from the -story of Bwca'r Trwyn in chapter x. - -[72] This chapter, except where a later date is suggested, may be -regarded as written in the summer of 1883. - -[73] Trefriw means the town of the slope or hillside, and stands for -Tref y Riw, not tref y Rhiw, which would have yielded Treffriw, for -there is a tendency in Gwyned to make the mutation after the definite -article conform to the general rule, and to say y law, 'the hand,' -and y raw, 'the spade,' instead of what would be in books y llaw and -y rhaw from yr llaw and yr rhaw. - -[74] Why the writer spells the name Criccieth in this way I cannot -tell, except that he was more or less under the influence of the more -intelligible spelling Crugcaith, as where Lewis Glyn Cothi. I. xxiv, -sang - - Rhys ab Sion ā'r hysbys iaith, - Gwr yw acw o Grugcaith. - -This spelling postulates the interpretation Crug-Caith, earlier Crug -y Ceith, 'the mound or barrow of the captives,' in reference to some -forgotten interment; but when the accent receded to the first syllable -the second was slurred almost out of recognition, so that Crug-ceith, -or Cruc-ceith, became Crśceth, whence Crścieth and Cricieth. The Bruts -have Crugyeith the only time it occurs, and the Record of Carnarvon -(several times) Krukyth. - -[75] Out of excessive fondness for our Arthur English people translate -this name into Arthur's Seat instead of Idris' Seat; but Idris was -also somebody: he was a giant with a liking for the study of the -stars. But let that be: I wish to say a word concerning his name: -Idris may be explained as meaning 'War-champion,' or the like; -and, phonologically speaking, it comes from Iud-rys, which was made -successively into Id-rys, Idris. The syllable iud meant battle or -fight, and it undergoes a variety of forms in Welsh names. Thus before -n, r, l, and w, it becomes id, as in Idnerth, Idloes, and Idwal, while -Iud-hael yields Ithel, whence Ab Ithel, anglicized Bethel. At the end, -however, it is yd or ud, as in Gruffud or Gruffyd, from Old Welsh -Grippiud, and Maredud or Meredyd for an older Marget-iud. By itself -it is possibly the word which the poets write ud, and understand to -mean lord; but if these forms are related, it must have originally -meant rather a fighter, soldier, or champion. - -[76] There is a special similarity between this and an Anglesey story -given by Howells, p. 138: it consists in the sequence of seeing the -fairies dance and finding money left by them. Why was the money left? - -[77] It was so called by the poet D. ab Gwilym, cxcii. 12, when -he sang: - - I odi ac i luchio To bring snow and drifting flakes - Odiar lechwed Moel Eilio. From off Moel Eilio's slope. - -[78] This is commonly pronounced 'Y Gath Dorwen,' but the people of the -neighbourhood wish to explain away a farm name which could, strangely -enough, only mean 'the white-bellied cat'; but y Garth Dorwen, -'the white-bellied garth or hill,' is not a very likely name either. - -[79] The hiring time in Wales is the beginning of winter and of -summer; or, as one would say in Welsh, at the Calends of Winter and -the Calends of May respectively. In North Cardiganshire the great -hiring fair was held at the former date when I was a boy, and so, -as I learn from my wife, it was in Carnarvonshire. - -[80] In a Cornish story mentioned in Choice Notes, p. 77, we have, -instead of ointment, simply soap. See also Mrs. Bray's Banks of -the Tamar, pp. 174-7, where she alludes to H. Cornelius Agrippa's -statement how such ointment used to be made--the reference must, -I think, be to his book De Occulta Philosophia Libri III (Paris, -1567), i. 45 (pp. 81-2). - -[81] See the Mabinogion, pp. 1-2; Evans' Facsimile of the Black Book -of Carmarthen, fol. 49b-50a; Rhys' Arthurian Legend, pp. 155-8; Edmund -Jones' Spirits in the County of Monmouth, pp. 39, 71, 82; and in this -volume, pp. 143, 203, above. I may mention that the Cornish also have -had their Cwn Annwn, though the name is a different one, to wit in the -phrase, 'the Devil and his Dandy-dogs': see Choice Notes, pp. 78-80. - -[82] As it stands now this would be unmutated Césel Gżfarch, 'Cyfarch's -Nook,' but there never was such a name. There was, however, Elgżfarch -or Aelgżfarch and Rhygżfarch, and in such a combination as Césel -Elgżfarch there would be every temptation to drop one unaccented el. - -[83] Owing to some oversight he has 'a clean or a dirty cow' instead -of cow-yard or cow-house, as I understand it. - -[84] Cwta makes cota in the feminine in North Cardiganshire; the -word is nevertheless only the English cutty borrowed. Du, 'black,' -has corresponding to it in Irish, dubh. So the Welsh word seems to -have passed through the stages dyv, dyw, before yw was contracted -into ū, which was formerly pronounced like French ū, as proved by -the grammar already mentioned (p. 22) of J. D. Rhys, published in -London in 1592; see p. 33, to which my attention has been called -by Prof. J. Morris Jones. In Old or pre-Norman Welsh m did duty -for m and v, so one detects dyv as dim in a woman's name Penardim, -'she of the very black head'; there was also a Penarwen, 'she of the -very blonde head.' The look of Penardim having baffled the redactor -of the Branwen, he left the spelling unchanged: see the (Oxford) -Mabinogion, p. 26. The same sort of change which produced du has -produced cnu, 'a fleece,' as compared with cneifio, 'to fleece'; -lluarth, 'a kitchen garden,' as compared with its Irish equivalent -lubhghort. Compare also Rhiwabon, locally pronounced Rhuabon, and -Rhiwallon, occurring sometimes as Rhuallon. But the most notable rōle -of this phonetic process is exemplified by the verbal nouns ending in -u, such as caru, 'to love,' credu, 'to believe,' tyngu, 'to swear,' -in which the u corresponds to an m termination in Old Irish, as in -sechem, 'to follow,' cretem, 'belief,' sessam or sessom, 'to stand.' - -[85] In medieval Welsh poetry this name was still a dissyllable; -but now it is pronounced Llyn, in conformity with the habit of -the Gwyndodeg, which makes into porfyd what is written porfeyd, -'pastures,' and pronounced porféid in North Cardiganshire. So in the -Lleyn name Sarn Fyllteyrn the second vocable represents Maelteyrn, -in the Record of Carnarvon (p. 38) Mayltern: it is now sounded -Mylltyrn with the second y short and accented. Lleyn is a plural of -the people (genitive Llaėn in Porth Dinllaėn), used as a singular of -their country, like Cymru = Cymry, and Prydyn. The singular is llain, -'a spear,' in the Book of Aneurin: see Skene, ii. 64, 88, 92. - -[86] It is also called dolur byr, or the 'short disease'; I believe -I have been told that it is the disease known to 'the vet.' as anthrax. - -[87] Here the writer seems to have been puzzled by the mh of -Amheirchion, and to have argued back to a radical form Parch; -but he was on the wrong tack--Amheirchion comes from Ap-Meirchion, -where the p helped to make the m a surd, which, with the syllabic -accent on the succeeding vowel, became fixed as mh, while the p -disappeared by assimilation. We have, later on, a similar instance -in Owen y Mhaxen for Owen Amhacsen = O. ap Macsen. Another instance -will be found at the opening of the Mabinogi of Branwen, to wit, -in the word prynhawngweith, 'once on an afternoon,' from prynhawn, -'afternoon,' for which our dictionaries substitute prydnawn, -with the accent on the ultima, though D. ab Gwilym used pyrnhawn, -as in poem xl. 30. But the ordinary pronunciation continues to be -prynhįwn or pyrnhįwn, sometimes reduced in Gwyned to pnawn. Let me -add an instance which has reached me since writing the above: In the -Archęologia Cambrensis for 1899, pp. 325-6, we have the pedigree of -the Ameridiths from the Visitation of Devonshire in 1620: in the course -of it one finds that Iuan ap Merydeth has a son Thomas Amerideth, who, -knowing probably no Welsh, took to writing his patronymic more nearly -as it was pronounced. The line is brought down to Ames Amerideth, -who was created baronet in 1639. Amerideth of course = Ap Meredyd, -and the present member of the family who writes to the Archęologia -Cambrensis spells his patronymic more correctly, Ameridith; but if -it had survived in Wales it might have been Amheredyd. For an older -instance than any of these see the Book of Taliessin, poem xlix (= -Skene, ii. 204), where one reads of Beli Amhanogan, 'B. ab Mynogan.' - -[88] This is pronounced Rhiwan, though probably made up of Rhiw-wen, -for it is the tendency of the Gwyndodeg to convert e and ai of -the unaccented ultima into a, and so with e in Glamorgan; see such -instances as Cornwan and casag, p. 29 above. It is possibly a tendency -inherited from Goidelic, as Irish is found to proceed in the same way. - -[89] I may mention that some of the Francises of Anglesey are supposed -to be descendants of Frazers, who changed their name on finding -refuge in the island in the time of the troubles which brought there -the ancestor of the Frazer who, from time to time, claims to be the -rightful head of the Lovat family. - -[90] According to old Welsh orthography this would be written Moudin, -and in the book Welsh of the present day it would have to become -Meudin. Restored, however, to the level of Gallo-Roman names, it would -be Mogodunum or Magodunum. The place is known as Castell Moedin, and -includes within it the end of a hill about halfway between Llannarth -and Lampeter. - -[91] For other mentions of the colours of fairy dress see pp. 44, -139 above, where red prevails, and contrast the Lake Lady of Llyn -Barfog clad in green, p. 145. - -[92] This name means the Bridge of the Blessed Ford, but how the -ford came to be so called I know not. The word bendigaid, 'blessed,' -comes from the Latin verb benedico, 'I bless,' and should, but for -the objection to nd in book Welsh, be bendigaid, which, in fact, -it is approximately in the northern part of the county, where it is -colloquially sounded Pont Rhyd Fyndiged, Fydiged, or even Fdiged, also -Pont Rhyd mdiged, which represents the result of the unmutated form -Bdiged coming directly after the d of rhyd. Somewhat the same is -the case with the name of the herb Dail y Fendigaid, literally 'the -Leaves of the Blessed' (in the feminine singular without any further -indication of the noun to be supplied). This name means, I find, -'hypericum androsęmum, tutsan,' and in North Cardiganshire we call -it Dail y Fyndiged or Fdiged, but in Carnarvonshire the adjective -is made to qualify dail, so that it sounds Dail Bydigad or Bdigad, -'Blessed Leaves.' - -[93] I am far from certain what y nos, 'the night,' may mean in -such names as this and Craig y Nos, 'the Rock of the Night' (p. 254 -above), to which perhaps might be added such an instance as Blaen Nos, -'the Point of (the?) Night,' in the neighbourhood of Llandovery, in -Carmarthenshire. Can the allusion be merely to thickly overshadowed -spots where the darkness of night might be said to lurk in defiance -of the light of day? I have never visited the places in point, -and leading questions addressed to local authorities are too apt to -elicit misleading answers: the poetic faculty is dangerously rampant -in the Principality. - -[94] Dār is a Glamorgan pronunciation, metri gratiā of what is written -daear, 'earth': compare d'ar-fochyn in Glamorgan for a badger, -literally 'an earth pig.' The dwarf's answer was probably in some -sort of verse, with dār and iār to rhyme. - -[95] Applied in Glamorgan to a child that looks poorly and does -not grow. - -[96] In Cardiganshire a conjurer is called dyn hysbys, where hysbys -(or, in older orthography, hyspys) means 'informed': it is the -man who is informed on matters which are dark to others; but the -word is also used of facts--Y mae 'r peth yn hysbys, 'the thing -is known or manifest.' The word is divisible into hy-spys, which -would be in Irish, had it existed in the language, so-scese for an -early su-squestia-s, the related Irish words being ad-chiu, 'I see,' -pass. preterite ad-chess, 'was seen,' and the like, in which ci and ces -have been equated by Zimmer with the Sanskrit verb caksh, 'to see,' -from a root quas. The adjective cynnil applied to the dyn hyspys in -Glamorgan means now, as a rule, 'economical' or 'thrifty,' but in -this instance it would seem to have signified 'shrewd,' 'cunning,' or -'clever,' though it would probably come nearer the original meaning of -the word to render it by 'smart,' for it is in Irish conduail, which -is found applied to ingenious work, such as the ornamentation on the -hilt of a sword. Another term for a wizard or conjurer is gwr cyfarwyd, -with which the reader is already familiar. Here cyfarwyd forms a link -with the kyvarwyd of the Mabinogion, where it usually means a -professional man, especially one skilled in story and history; and what -constituted his knowledge was called kyvarwydyt, which included, -among other things, acquaintance with boundaries and pedigrees, but -it meant most frequently perhaps story; see the (Oxford) Mabinogion, -pp. 5, 61, 72, 93. All these terms should, strictly speaking, have -gwr--gwr hyspys, gwr cynnil, and gwr cyfarwyd--but for the fact -that modern Welsh tends to restrict gwr to signify 'a husband' or -'a married man,' while dyn, which only signifies a mortal, is made -to mean man, and provided with a feminine dynes, 'woman,' unknown -to good Welsh literature. Thus the spoken language is in this matter -nearly on a level with English and French, which have quite lost the -word for vir and anźr. - -[97] Rhyd y Gloch means 'the Ford of the Bell,' in allusion, as -the story goes, to a silver bell that used in former ages to be -at Llanwonno Church. The people of Llanfabon took a liking to it, -and one night a band of them stole it; but as they were carrying it -across the Taff the moon happened to make her appearance suddenly, -and they, in their fright, taking it to be sunrise, dropped the bell -in the bed of the river, so that nothing has ever been heard of it -since. But for ages afterwards, and even at the present day indeed, -nothing could rouse the natives of Llanfabon to greater fury than to -hear the moon spoken of as haul Llanfabon, 'the sun of Llanfabon.' - -[98] It was peat fires that were usual in those days even in Glamorgan. - -[99] See Hartland's Science of Fairy Tales, pp. 112-6. - -[100] In no other version has Mr. Reynolds heard cwcwll wy iār, -but either plisgyn or cibyn wy iār, to which I may add masgal from -Mr. Craigfryn Hughes' versions. The word cwcwll usually means a cowl, -but perhaps it is best here to treat cwcwll as a distinct word derived -somehow from conchylium or the French coquille, 'a shell.' - -[101] The whole passage will be found in the Itinerarium Kambrię, -i. 8 (pp. 75-8), and Giraldus fixes the story a little before his time -somewhere in the district around Swansea and Neath. With this agrees -closely enough the fact that a second David, Dafyd ab Geralld or David -Fitzgerald, appears to have been consecrated Bishop of St. David's -in 1147, and to have died in 1176. - -[102] The words in the original are: Nec carne vescebantur, nec pisce; -lacteis plerumque cibariis utentes, et in pultis modum quasi croco -confectis. - -[103] Perhaps it is this also that suggested the name Eliodorus, as -it were Hźliodōros; for the original name was probably the medieval -Welsh one of Elidyr = Irish Ailithir, ailither, 'a pilgrim': compare -the Pembrokeshire name Pergrin and the like. It is curious that Elidyr -did not occur to Glasynys and prevent him from substituting Elfod, -which is quite another name, and more correctly written Elfod for -the earlier El-fodw, found not only as Elbodu but also Elbodug-o, -Elbodg, Elbot and Elfod: see p. 117 above. - -[104] For one or two more instances from Wales see Howells, -pp. 54-7. Brittany also is a great country for death portents: see -A. Le Braz, Légende de la Mort en Basse-Bretagne (Paris, 1893), also -Sébillot's Traditions et Superstitions de la Haute-Bretagne (Paris, -1882), i. pp. 270-1. For Scotland see The Ghost Lights of the West -Highlands by Dr. R. C. Maclagan in Folk-Lore for 1897, pp. 203-256, -and for the cognate subject of second sight see Dalyell's Darker -Superstitions of Scotland, pp. 466-88. - -[105] Another word for the toeli is given by Silvan Evans as used -in certain parts of South Wales, namely, tolaeth or dolath, as to -which he mentions the opinion that it is a corruption of tylwyth, -a view corroborated by Howells using, p. 31, the plural tyloethod; -but it could not be easily explained except as a corruption through -the medium of English. Elias Owen, p. 303, uses the word in reference -to the hammering and rapping noise attending the joinering of a -phantom coffin for a man about to die, a sort of rehearsal well known -throughout the Principality to every one who has ears spiritually -tuned. Unfortunately I have not yet succeeded in locating the use -of the word tolaeth, except that I have been assured by a Carmarthen -man that it is current in Welsh there as toleth, and by a native of -Pumsant that it is in use from Abergwili up to Llanbumsant. - -[106] See, for instance, pp. 200, 221, 228. - -[107] Mrs. Williams-Ellis of Glasfryn writes to me that the place is -now called Bwlch Trwyn Swncwl, that it is a gap on the highest part -of the road crossing from Llanaelhaearn to Pistyll, and that it is -quite a little mountain pass between bleak heather-covered hillsides, -in fact a very lonely spot in the outskirts of the Eifl, and with -Carnguwch blocking the horizon in the direction of Cardigan Bay. - -[108] For this I am indebted to Mr. Gwenogvryn Evans' Report on -MSS. in the Welsh Language, i. 585 k. The words were written by -Williams about the beginning of the seventeenth century, and his ū -does not mean w. He was, however, probably thinking of cawr, cewri, -and such instances as tawaf, 'taceo,' and tau, 'tacet.' At all events -there is no trace of u in the local pronunciation of the name Tre'r -Ceiri. I have heard it also as Tre' Ceiri without the definite article; -but had this been ancient one would expect it softened into Tre' Geiri. - -[109] See the Oxford Mabinogion, pp. 110, 113, and 27-9, 36-41, 44, -also 309, where a Triad explains that the outposts were Anglesey, Man, -and Lundy. But the other Triads, i. 3 = iii. 67, make them Orkney, -Man, and Wight, for which we have the older authority of Nennius. § -8. The designation Tair Ynys Brydain, 'The Three Isles of Prydain,' -was known to the fourteenth-century poet, Iolo Goch: see his works -edited by Ashton, p. 669. - -[110] For Prydyn in the plural see Skene's Four Ancient Books of Wales, -ii. 209, also 92, where Pryden is the form used. In modern Welsh the -two senses of Cymry are distinguished in writing as Cymry and Cymru, -but the difference is merely one of spelling and not very ancient. - -[111] So Geoffrey (i. 12-15) brings his Trojans on their way to -Britain into Aquitania, where they fight with the Pictavienses, -whose king he calls Goffarius Pictus. - -[112] Cadarn and cadr postulate respectively some such early forms -as catrno-s and cadro-s, which according to analogy should become -cadarn and cadr. Welsh, however, is not fond of dr; so here begins a -bifurcation: (1) retaining the d unchanged cadro-s yields cadr, or (2) -dr is made into dr, and other changes set in resulting in the ceir -of ceiri, as in Welsh aneirif, 'numberless,' from eirif, 'number,' -of the same origin as Irish įram from *ad-rim = *ad-rima, and Welsh -eiliw, 'species, colour,' for ad-liw, in both of which i follows d -combinations; but that is not essential, as shown by cader, cadair, -for Old Welsh cateir, 'a chair,' from Latin cat[h]edra. The word that -serves as our singular, namely cawr, is far harder to explain; but on -the whole I am inclined to regard it as of a different origin, to wit, -the Goidelic word caur, 'a giant or hero,' borrowed. The plural cewri -or cawri is formed from the singular cawr, which means a giant, though, -associated in the plural with ceiri, it has sometimes to follow suit -with that vocable in connoting dress. - -[113] The most important of these are the old Breton kazr, now kaer, -'beautiful or pretty,' and old Cornish caer of the same meaning; -elsewhere we have, as in Greek, the Doric kekadmai and kekadmenos, -to be found used in reference to excelling or distinguishing one's -self; also kosmos, 'good order, ornament,' while in Sanskrit there is -the theme ēad, 'to excel or surpass.' The old meaning of 'beautiful,' -'decorated,' or 'loudly dressed,' is not yet lost in the case of ceiri. - -[114] For the text see the Oxford Mabinogion, pp. 193-4, and for -comparisons of the incident see Nutt's Holy Grail, p. 154 et seq.; -and Rhys' Arthurian Legend, pp. 75-6. A more exact parallel, however, -is to be mentioned in the next chapter. - -[115] This chapter was written mostly in 1891. - -[116] The spelling there used is phynnodderee, to the perversity of -which Cregeen calls attention in his Dictionary. In any case the -pronunciation is always approximately fun-ó-dur-i or fun-ód-ri, -with the accent on the second syllable. - -[117] I am inclined to think that the first part of the word fenodyree -is not fynney, the Manx word for 'hair,' but the Scandinavian word -which survives in the Swedish fjun, 'down.' Thus fjun-hosur (for the -fjun-hosa suggested by analogy) would explain the word fenodyree, -except its final ee, which is obscure. Compare also the magic -breeks called finn-brękr, as to which see Vigfusson's Icelandic -Dict. s. v. finnar. - -[118] Cumming's Isle of Man (London, 1848), p. 30, where he refers his -readers to Waldron's Description of the Isle of Man: see pp. 28, 105. - -[119] See Windisch's Irische Grammatik, p. 120. - -[120] The Manx word for the rowan tree, incorrectly called a mountain -ash, is cuirn, which is in Mod. Irish caorthann, genitive caorthainn, -Scotch Gaelic caorunn; but in Welsh books it is cerdin, singular -cerdinen, and in the spoken language mostly cerdin, cerding, singular -cerdinen, cerdingen. This variation seems to indicate that these -words have possibly been borrowed by the Welsh from a Goidelic source; -but the berry is known in Wales by the native name of criafol, from -which the wood is frequently called, especially in North Wales, coed -criafol, singular coeden griafol or pren criafol. The sacredness of the -rowan is the key to the proper names Mac-Cįirthinn and Der-Chįirthinn, -with which the student of Irish hagiology is familiar. They mean the -Son and the Daughter of the Rowan respectively, and the former occurs -as Maqui Cairatini on an Ogam inscribed stone recently discovered in -Meath, not very far from the Boyne. - -[121] I am sorry to say that it never occurred to me to ask whether -the shooting was done with such modern things as guns. But Mr. Arthur -Moore assures me that it is always understood to be bows and arrows, -not guns. - -[122] Edited by Oswald Cockayne for the Master of the Rolls (London, -1864-6): see more especially vol. ii. pp. 156-7, 290-1, 401; -vol. iii. pp. 54-5. - -[123] Mr. Moore is not familiar with this term, but I heard it at -Surby, in the south; and I find buidseach and buidseachd given as -Highland Gaelic words for a witch and witchcraft respectively. - -[124] See Stokes' Goidelica, p. 151. - -[125] This chapter was written in 1891, except the portions of it -which refer to later dates indicated. - -[126] See the Stokes-O'Donovan edition of Cormac (Calcutta, 1868), -pp. 19, 23. - -[127] Sir John Sinclair's Statistical Account of Scotland, xi. 620; -Pennant's Tour in Scotland in 1769 (3rd edition, Warrington, 1774), -i. 97, 186, 291; Thomas Stephens' Gododin, pp. 124-6; and Dr. Murray -in the New English Dictionary, s. v. Beltane. - -[128] In my Hibbert Lectures on Celtic Heathendom, pp. 517-21. - -[129] As to the Thargelia and Delia, see Preller's Griechische -Mythologie, i. 260-2, and A. Mommsen's Heortologie, pp. 414-25. - -[130] See section H of the Report of the Liverpool Meeting of the -British Association in 1896, pp. 626-56. - -[131] It is my impression that it is crowned with a small tumulus, -and that it forms the highest ground in Jurby, which was once an -island by itself. The one between Ramsey and Bride is also probably -the highest point of the range. But these are questions which I should -like to see further examined, say by Mr. Arthur Moore or Mr. Kermode. - -[132] Cronk yn Irree Laa, despite the gender, is the name as pronounced -by all Manxmen who have not been misled by antiquarians. To convey the -other meaning, referring to the day watch, the name would have to be -Cronk ny Harrey Laa; in fact, a part of the Howe in the south of the -island is called Cronk ny Harrey, 'the Hill of the Watch.' Mr. Moore -tells me that the Jurby cronk was one of the eminences for 'Watch and -Ward'; but he is now of opinion that the high mountain of Cronk yn -Irree Laa in the south was not. As to the duty of the inhabitants to -keep 'Watch and Ward' over the island, see the passage concerning it -extracted from the Manx Statutes (vol. i. p. 65) by Mr. Moore in his -Manx Surnames, pp. 183-3; also my preface to the same work, pp. v-viii. - -[133] Quoted from Oliver's Monumenta de Insula Mannię, vol. i. (Manx -Society, vol. iv) p. 84: see also Cumming's Isle of Man, p. 258. - -[134] See the New English Dictionary, s. v. 'Allhallows.' - -[135] This comes near the pronunciation usual in Roxburghshire and -the south of Scotland generally, which is, as Dr. Murray informs -me, Hunganay without the m occurring in the other forms to be -mentioned presently. But so far as I have been able to find, the Manx -pronunciation is now Hob dy naa, which I have heard in the north, -while Hob ju naa is the prevalent form in the south. - -[136] See my Hibbert Lectures, pp. 514-5; and as to hiring fairs in -Wales see pp. 210-2 above. - -[137] See Robert Bell's Early Ballads (London, 1877), pp. 406-7, -where the following is given as sung at Richmond in Yorkshire:-- - - To-night it is the New-Year's night, to-morrow is the day, - And we are come for our right, and for our ray, - As we used to do in old King Henry's day. - Sing, fellows, sing, Hagman-heigh. - If you go to the bacon-flick, cut me a good bit; - Cut, cut and low, beware of your maw; - Cut, cut and round, beware of your thumb, - That me and my merry men may have some. - Sing, fellows, sing, Hagman-heigh. - If you go to the black-ark bring me X mark; - Ten mark, ten pound, throw it down upon the ground, - That me and my merry men may have some. - Sing, fellows, sing, Hagman-heigh. - -[138] The subject is worked out in Nicholson's Golspie, pp. 100-8, also -in the New English Dictionary, where mention is made of a derivation -involving calendę, which reminds me of the Welsh call for a New-Year's -Gift--Calennig! or C'lennig! in Arfon 'Y Ngh'lennig i! 'My Calends -gift if you please!' - -[139] On being asked, after reading this paper to the Folk-Lore -Society, who was supposed to make the footmarks in the ashes, I had -to confess that I had been careless enough never to have asked the -question. I have referred it to Mr. Moore, who informs me that nobody, -as I expected, will venture on any explanation by whom the footmarks -are made. - -[140] This seems to imply the application of the same adjective, some -time or other, to clean water and a handsome man, just as we speak -in North Cardiganshire of dwr glān, 'clean water,' and bachgen glān, -'a handsome boy.' - -[141] In Phillips' Book of Common Prayer this is called Lį nolick y -biggy, 'Little Nativity Day,' and Lį ghian blieny, 'The Day of the -Year's End,' meaning, of course, the former end of the year, not the -latter: see pp. 55, 62, 66. - -[142] See my Hibbert Lectures, pp. 514-5, and the Brython, ii. 20, -120: an instance in point occurs in the next chapter. - -[143] This has been touched upon in my Hibbert Lectures, p. 676; but -to the reasons there briefly mentioned should be added a reference to -the position allotted to intercalary months in the Norse calendar, -namely, at the end of the summer half, that is, as I think, at the -end of the ancient Norse year. - -[144] My paper was read before the Folk-Lore Society in April or May, -1891, and Miss Peacock's notes appeared in the journal of the Society -in the following December: see pp. 509-13. - -[145] See Choice Notes, p. 76. - -[146] See the third edition of Wm. Nicholson's Poetical Works -(Castle-Douglas, 1878), pp. 78, 81. - -[147] See p. 321 above and the references there given; also Howells' -Cambrian Superstitions, p. 58. - -[148] Pomponius Mela De Chorographia, edited by Parthey, iii, chap. 6 -(p. 72); see also my Hibbert Lectures, pp. 195-6, where, however, -the identification of the name Sena with that of Sein should be -cancelled. Sein seems to be derived from the Breton Seidhun, otherwise -modified into Sizun and Sun: see chap. vi below. - -[149] See my Hibbert Lectures, pp. 195-7; also my Arthurian Legend, -pp. 367-8, where a passage in point is cited at length from Plutarch -De Defectu Oraculorum, xviii. (= the Didot edition of Plutarch's -works, iii. 511); the substance of it will be found given likewise -in chap. viii below. - -[150] For an allusion to the traffic in winds in Wales see Howells, -p. 86, where he speaks as follows:--'In Pembrokeshire there was a -person commonly known as the cunning man of Pentregethen, who sold -winds to the sailors, after the manner of the Lapland witches, and -who was reverenced in the neighbourhood in which he dwelt, much more -than the divines.' - -[151] This may turn out to be all wrong; for I learn from the -Rev. John Quine, vicar of Malew, in Man, that there is a farm called -Balthane or Bolthane south of Ballasalla, and that in the computus -(of 1540) of the Abbey Tenants it is called Biulthan. This last, -if originally a man's name, would seem to point back to some such a -compound as Beo-Ultįn. In his Manx Names, p. 138, Mr. Moore suggests -the possibility of explaining the name as bwoailtyn, 'folds or pens'; -but the accentuation places that out of the question. See also the -Lioar Manninagh, iii. 167, where Mr. C. Roeder, referring to the -same computus passage, gives the name as Builthan in the boundary -inter Cross Jvar Builthan. This would be read by Mr. Quine as inter -Cross Ivar et Biulthan, 'between Cross-Ivar and Bolthane.' For the -text of the boundary see Johnstone's edition of the Chronicon Mannię -(Copenhagen, 1786), p. 48, and Oliver's Monumenta de Insula Mannię, -vol. i. p. 207; see also Mr. Quine's paper on the Boundary of Abbey -Lands in the Lioar Manninagh, iii. 422-3. - -[152] I say 'approximately,' as, more strictly speaking, the ordinary -pronunciation is Sndaen, almost as one syllable, and from this arises -a variant, which is sometimes written Stondane, while the latest -English development, regardless of the accentuation of the Anglo-Manx -form, which is Santon, pronounced Sįntn, makes the parish into a -St. Ann's! For the evidence that it was the parish of a St. Sanctįn -see Moore's Names, p. 209. - -[153] The Athenęum for April 1, 1893, p. 415. I may here remark that -Mr. Borlase's note on do fhagaint is, it seems to me, unnecessary: let -do fhagaint stand, and translate, not 'I leave' but 'to leave.' The -letter should be consulted for curious matter concerning Croagh -Patrick, its pagan stations, cup-markings, &c. - -[154] Since this paper was read to the Folk-Lore Society a good deal -of information of one kind or another has appeared in its journal -concerning the first-foot: see more especially Folk-Lore for 1892, -pp. 253-64, and for 1893, pp. 309-21. - -[155] This was written at the beginning of the year 1892. - -[156] With this compare what Mr. Gomme has to say of a New Year's -Day custom observed in Lanarkshire: see p. 633 of the Ethnographic -Report referred to at p. 103 above, and compare Henderson, p. 74. - -[157] Old-fashioned grammarians and dictionary makers are always -delighted to handle Mrs. Partington's broom: so Kelly thinks he has -done a fine thing by printing guee, 'prayer,' and gwee, 'cursing.' - -[158] This was written at the end of 1892, and read to a joint meeting -of the Cymmrodorion and Folk-Lore Societies on January 11, 1893. - -[159] Some account of them was given by me in Folk-Lore for 1892, -p. 380; but somehow or other my contribution was printed unrevised, -with results more peculiar than edifying. - -[160] In Folk-Lore for 1893, pp. 58-9. - -[161] In the neighbourhood I find that the word gwaeldyn in this verse -is sometimes explained to mean not a worthless but an ailing person, -on the strength of the fact that the adjective gwael is colloquially -used both for vile and for ailing. - -[162] Since writing the above remarks the following paragraph, -purporting to be copied from the Liverpool Mercury for November 18, -1896, appeared in the Archęologia Cambrensis for 1899, p. 334:--'Two -new fishes have just been put in the "Sacred Well," Ffynnon y Sant, -at Tyn y Ffynnon, in the village of Nant Peris, Llanberis. Invalids -in large numbers came, during the last century and the first half of -the present century, to this well to drink of its "miraculous waters"; -and the oak box, where the contributions of those who visited the spot -were kept, is still in its place at the side of the well. There have -always been two "sacred fishes" in this well; and there is a tradition -in the village to the effect that if one of the Tyn y Ffynnon fishes -came out of its hiding-place when an invalid took some of the water -for drinking or for bathing purposes, cure was certain; but if the -fishes remained in their den, the water would do those who took it -no good. Two fishes only are to be put in the well at a time, and -they generally live in its waters for about half a century. If one -dies before the other, it would be of no use to put in a new fish, -for the old fish would not associate with it, and it would die. The -experiment has been tried. The last of the two fishes put in the well -about fifty years ago died last August. It had been blind for some -time previous to its death. When taken out of the water it measured -seventeen inches, and was buried in the garden adjoining the well. It -is stated in a document of the year 1776 that the parish clerk was to -receive the money put in the box of the well by visitors. This money, -together with the amount of 6s. 4d., was his annual stipend.' Tyn y -Ffynnon means 'the Tenement of the Well,' tyn being a shortened form -of tydyn, 'a tenement,'as mentioned at p. 33 above; but the mapsters -make it into ty'n = ty yn, 'a house in,' so that the present instance, -Ty'n y Ffynnon, could only mean 'the House in the Well,' which, -needless to say, it is not. But one would like to know whether the -house and land were once held rent-free on condition that the tenant -took care of the sacred fish. - -[163] See Ashton's Iolo Goch, p. 234, and Lewis' Top. Dict. - -[164] See my Hibbert Lectures, p. 229, and the Iolo MSS., pp. 42-3, -420-1. - -[165] A curious note bearing on this name occurs in the Jesus -College MS. 20 (Cymmrodor, viii. p. 86) in reference to the name -Morgannwg, 'Glamorgan':--O enw Morgant vchot y gelwir Morgannwc. -Ereill a dyweit. Mae o en&wwelsh; Mochteyrn Predein. 'It is from -the name of the above Morgan that Morgannwg is called. Others say -that it is from the name of the mochdeyrn of Pictland.' The -mochteyrn must have been a Pictish king or mórmįer called Morgan. -The name occurs in the charters from the Book of Deer in Stokes' -Goidelica. pp. 109, 111, as Morcunt, Morcunn, and Morgunn undeclined, -also with Morgainn for genitive; and so in Skene's Chronicles of the -Picts and Scots, pp. 77, 317, where it is printed Morgaind; see also -Stokes' Tigernach, in the Revue Celtique, xvii. 198. Compare -Geoffrey's story, ii. 15, which introduces a northern Marganus to -account for the name Margan, now Margam, in Morgannwg. - -[166] M. Loth's remarks in point will be found in the Revue Celtique, -xiii. 496-7, where he compares with tut the Breton teuz, 'lutin, -génie malfaisant ou bienfaisant'; and for the successive guesses on -the subject of the name Morgan tut one should also consult Zimmer's -remarks in Foerster's Introduction to his Erec, pp. xxvii-xxxi, and -my Arthurian Legend, p. 391, to which I should add a reference to the -Book of Ballymote, fo. 360a, where we have o na bantuathaib, which -O'Curry has rendered 'on the part of their Witches' in his Manners and -Customs of the Ancient Irish, iii. 526-7. Compare dį bhantuathaigh, -'two female sorcerers,' in Joyce's Keating's History of Ireland, -pp. 122-3. - -[167] For all about the Children of Lir, and about Liban and Lough -Neagh, see Joyce's Old Celtic Romances, pp. 4-36, 97-105. - -[168] On my appealing to Cadrawd, one of the later editors, he -has found me the exact reference, to wit, volume ix of the Cyfaill -(published in 1889), p. 50; and he has since contributed a translation -of the story to the columns of the South Wales Daily News for February -15, 1899, where he has also given an account of Crymlyn, which is to -be mentioned later. - -[169] Judging from the three best-known instances, y bala meant the -outlet of a lake: I allude to this Bala at the outlet of Llyn Tegid; -Pont y Bala, 'the Bridge of the bala,' across the water flowing from -the Upper into the Lower Lake at Llanberis; and Bala Deulyn, 'the bala -of two lakes,' at Nantlle. Two places called Bryn y Bala are mentioned -s. v. Bala in Morris' Celtic Remains, one near Aberystwyth, at a spot -which I have never seen, and the other near the lower end of the Lower -Lake of Llanberis, as to which it has been suggested to me that it is -an error for Bryn y Bela. It is needless to say that bala has nothing -to do with the Anglo-Irish bally, of such names as Ballymurphy or -Ballynahunt: this vocable is in English bailey, and in South Wales -beili, 'a farm yard or enclosure,' all three probably from the late -Latin balium or ballium, 'locus palis munitus et circumseptus.' Our -etymologists never stop short with bally: they go as far as Balaklava -and, probably, Ballarat, to claim cognates for our Bala. - -[170] Cadrawd here gives the Welsh as '2 bladur ... 2 dyd o wair,' -and observes that the lacuna consists of an illegible word of three -letters. If that word was either sef, 'that is,' or neu, 'or,' the -sense would be as given above. In North Cardiganshire we speak of a -day's mowing as gwaith gwr, 'a man's work for a day,' and sometimes -of a gwaith gwr bach, 'a man's work for a short day.' - -[171] See By-Gones for May 24, 1899. The full name of Welshpool in -Welsh is Trallwng Llywelyn, so called after a Llywelyn descended from -Cuneda, and supposed to have established a religious house there; -for there are other Trallwngs, and at first sight it would seem as if -Trallwng had something to do with a lake or piece of water. But there -is a Trallwng, for instance, near Brecon, where there is no lake to -give it the name; and my attention has been called to Thos. Richards' -Welsh-English Dictionary, where a trallwng is said to be 'such a soft -place on the road (or elsewhere) as travellers may be apt to sink into, -a dirty pool.' So the word seems to be partly of the same derivation -as go-llwng, 'to let go, to give way.' The form of the word in use -now is Trallwm, not Trallwng or Trallwn. - -[172] See the Book of the Dun Cow, fo. 39a-41b and Joyce's Old Celtic -Romances, pp. 97-105; but the story may now be consulted in O'Grady's -Silva Gadelica, i. 233-7, translated in ii. 265-9. On turning over -the leaves of this great collection of Irish lore, I chanced, i. 174, -ii. 196, on an allusion to a well which, when uncovered, was about to -drown the whole locality but for a miracle performed by St. Patrick to -arrest the flow of its waters. A similar story of a well bursting and -forming Lough Reagh, in County Galway, will be found told in verse in -the Book of Leinster; fo. 202b: see also fo. 170a, and the editor's -notes, pp. 45, 53. - -[173] See Evans' autotype edition of the Black Book of Carmarthen, -fos. 53b, 54a, also 32a: the punctuation is that of the MS. In the -seventh triplet kedaul is written keadaul, which seems to mean kadaul -corrected into kedaul; but the a is not deleted, so other readings -are possible. - -[174] In the Iolo MSS., p. 89, finaun wenestir is made into -Ffynon-Wenestr and said to be one of the ornamental epithets of the -sea; but I am convinced that it should be rather treated as ffynnon -fenestr with wenestir or fenestr mutated from menestr, which meant -a servant, attendant, cup-bearer: for one or two instances see -Pughe's Dictionary. The word is probably, as suggested by M. Loth -in his Mots Latins, p. 186. the old French menestre, 'cup-bearer,' -borrowed. Compare the mention of Nechtįn's men having access to the -secret well in Sid Nechtįin, p. 390 below, and note that they were -his three menestres or cup-bearers. - -[175] See the Cymmrodor, viii. 88 (No. xxix), where a Marereda is -mentioned as a daughter of Madog son of Meredyd brother to Rhys Gryg. - -[176] There is another reading which would make them into Segantii, -and render it irrelevant--to say the least of it--to mention them here. - -[177] See the Mabinogion, p. 35: the passage has been mistranslated -in Lady Charlotte Guest's Mabinogion, iii. 117. - -[178] See my Arthurian Legend, pp. 263-4. - -[179] I do not profess to see my way through the difficulties which -the probable etymological connexion between the names Setantii, -Setanta, Seithyn, and Seithennin implies. But parts of the following -string of guesses may be found to hold good:--Seithyn is probably -more correct than Seithin, as it rhymes with cristin = Cristyn (in -Cristynogaeth: see Silvan Evans' Geiriadur, s. v., and Skene's Four -Ancient Books, ii. 210); and it might be assumed to be from the same -stem as Seizun; but, supposing it to represent an earlier Seithynt, -it would equate phonologically with Setanta, better Setinte, of which -the genitive Setinti actually occurs, as a river name, in the Book of -the Dun Cow, fo. 125b: see my Hibbert Lectures, p. 455, and see also -the Revue Celtique, xi. 457. It would mean some such an early form -Setntio-s, and Seithenhin, another derivative from the same stem, -Setntino-s. But the retention of n before t in Setinte proves it -not to be unconnected with Seithyn, but borrowed from some Brythonic -dialect when the latter was pronounced Seithntio-s. If this -be anywhere nearly right one has to assume that the manuscripts of -Ptolemy giving the genitive plural as Setantiōn or Segantiōn should -have read Sektantiōn, unless one should rather conjecture Segtantiōn -with cht represented by gt as in Ogams in Pembrokeshire: witness -Ogtene and Maqui Quegte. This conjecture as to the original reading -would suggest that the name was derived from the seventh numeral -sechtn, just as that of the Galloway people of the Novantę seems to -be from the ninth numeral. Ptolemy's next entry to the Harbour of the -Setantii is the estuary of the Belisama, supposed to be the Mersey; -and next comes the estuary of the Seteia or Segeia, supposed to be -the Dee. Now the country of the Setantii, when they had a country, -may have reached from their harbour near the mouth of the Ribble -to the Seteia or the Dee without the name Seteia or Segeia having -anything to do with their own, except that it may have influenced -the latter in the manuscripts of Ptolemy's text. Then we possibly -have a representative of Seteia or Segeia in the Saidi or Seidi, -sometimes appended to Seithyn's name. In that case Seithyn Saidi, -in the late Triad iii. 37, would mean Seithyn of Seteia, or the -Dee. A Mab Saidi occurs in the Kulhwch story (Mabinogion, p. 106), -also Cas, son of Saidi (ib. 110); and in Rhonabwy's Dream Kadyrieith, -son of Saidi (ib. 160); but the latter vocable is Seidi in Triad ii. 26 -(ib. 303). It is to be borne in mind that Ptolemy does not represent -the Setantii as a people in his time: he only mentions a harbour -called after the Setantii. So it looks as if they then belonged to the -past--that in fact they were, as I should put it, a Goidelic people -who had been conquered and partly expelled by Brythonic tribes, to -wit, by the Brigantes, and also by the Cornavii in case the Setantii -had once extended southwards to the Dee. This naturally leads one to -think that some of them escaped to places on the coast, such as Dyfed, -and that some made for the opposite coast of Ireland, and that, by the -time when the Cśchulainn stories came to be edited as we have them, -the people in question were known to the redactors of those stories -only by the Brythonic form of their name, which underlies that of -Setanta Beg, or the Little Setantian. Those of them who found a home -on the coast of Cardigan Bay may have brought with them a version -of the inundation story with Seithennin, son of Seithyn, as the -principal figure in it. So in due time he had to be attached to some -royal family, and in the Iolo MSS., pp. 141-2, he is made to descend -from a certain Plaws Hen, king of Dyfed, while the saints named as -his descendants seem to have belonged chiefly to Gwyned and Powys. - -[180] See the Professor's Address on the Place of a University in the -History of Wales, delivered at Bangor at the opening ceremony of the -Session of 1899-1900 (Bangor, 1900), p. 6. The reference to Giraldus -is to his Itin. Kambrię, i. 13 (p. 100), and the Expugnatio Hibernica, -i. 36 (p. 284). - -[181] Instead of 'she followed it' one would have expected 'it followed -her'; but the style is very loose and rough. - -[182] As a 'Cardy' I have here two grievances, one against my -Northwalian fellow countrymen, that they insist on writing Rheidiol -out of sheer weakness for the semivowel i; and the other against -the compilers of school books on geography, who give the lake -away to the Wye or the Severn. I am told that this does not matter, -as our geographers are notoriously accurate about Natal and other -distant lands; so I ought to rest satisfied. - -[183] Professor Meyer has given a number of extracts concerning -her in his notes to his edition of The Vision of Mac Conglinne -(London, 1892), pp. 131-4, 208-10, and recently he has published -The Song of the Old Woman of Beare in the Otia Merseiana (London, -1899), pp. 119-28, from the Trinity College codex, H. 3, 18, where -we are told, among other things, that her name was Digdi, and that -she belonged to Corcaguiny. The name Béara, or Bérre, would seem to -suggest identification with that of Bera, daughter of Eibhear, king -of Spain, and wife of Eoghan Taidhleach, in the late story of The -Courtship of Moméra, edited by O'Curry in his Battle of Magh Leana -(Dublin, 1855); but the other name Digdi would seem to stand in the -way. However none of the literature in point has yet been discovered -in any really old manuscript, and it may be that the place-name Berre, -in Caillech Bérri, has usurped the place of the personal name Béra, -whose antiquity in some such a form as Béra or Méra is proved by -its honorific form Mo-mera: see O'Curry's volume, p. 166, and his -Introduction, p. xx. - - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Celtic Folklore: Welsh and Manx -(Volume 1 of 2), by John Rhys - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CELTIC FOLKLORE: WELSH AND MANX *** - -***** This file should be named 55025-8.txt or 55025-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/5/0/2/55025/ - -Produced by Jeroen Hellingman and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net/ for Project -Gutenberg (This file was produced from images generously -made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.) - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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-} -.xd25e6148 { -text-indent:4em; -} -.xd25e9153 { -text-indent:8em; -} -.xd25e13128 { -text-indent:12em; -} -.xd25e13345 { -text-indent:6em; -} -@media handheld { -} -</style> -</head> -<body> - - -<pre> - -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Celtic Folklore: Welsh and Manx (Volume 1 -of 2), by John Rhys - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: Celtic Folklore: Welsh and Manx (Volume 1 of 2) - -Author: John Rhys - -Release Date: July 2, 2017 [EBook #55025] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK CELTIC FOLKLORE: WELSH AND MANX *** - - - - -Produced by Jeroen Hellingman and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net/ for Project -Gutenberg (This file was produced from images generously -made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.) - - - - - - -</pre> - -<div class="front"> -<div class="div1 cover"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#toc">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first"></p> -<div class="figure cover-imagewidth"><img src="images/new-cover.jpg" -alt="Newly Designed Front Cover." width="480" height="720"></div> -</div> -</div> -<div class="div1 frenchtitle"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#toc">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first xd25e118">CELTIC FOLKLORE</p> -<p class="xd25e118">J. RHŶS</p> -</div> -</div> -<div class="div1 imprint"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#toc">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first xd25e118">HENRY FROWDE, M.A.</p> -<p class="xd25e118">PUBLISHER TO THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD</p> -<div class="figure logowidth"><img src="images/logo.png" alt= -"Publisher’s logo." width="82" height="88"></div> -<p class="xd25e118">LONDON, EDINBURGH, AND NEW YORK</p> -</div> -</div> -<div class="div1 titlepage"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#toc">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first"></p> -<div class="figure titlepage-imagewidth"><img src= -"images/titlepage.png" alt="Original Title Page." width="445" height= -"720"></div> -</div> -</div> -<div class="titlePage"> -<div class="docTitle"> -<div class="mainTitle">CELTIC FOLKLORE</div> -<div class="subTitle">WELSH AND MANX</div> -</div> -<div class="byline">BY<br> -<span class="docAuthor">JOHN RHŶS, M.A., <span class= -"sc">D.Litt.</span></span><br> -HON. LL.D. OF THE UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH<br> -PROFESSOR OF CELTIC<br> -PRINCIPAL OF JESUS COLLEGE, OXFORD</div> -<div class="docImprint">VOLUME I<br> -OXFORD<br> -AT THE CLARENDON PRESS<br> -<span class="docDate">MDCCCCI</span></div> -</div> -<div class="div1 imprint"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#toc">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first xd25e176">Oxford<br> -PRINTED AT THE CLARENDON PRESS<br> -BY HORACE HART, M.A.<br> -PRINTER TO THE UNIVERSITY</p> -</div> -</div> -<div class="div1 dedication"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#toc">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first xd25e187">TO ALL THOSE<br> -WHO HAVE IN ANY WAY CONTRIBUTED TO<br> -THE PRODUCTION OF THIS WORK<br> -IT IS RESPECTFULLY<br> -DEDICATED<br> -IN TOKEN OF HIS GRATITUDE<br> -BY<br> -THE AUTHOR</p> -</div> -</div> -<div class="div1 note"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#toc">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">Our modern idioms, with all their straining after the -abstract, are but primitive man’s mental tools adapted to the -requirements of civilized life, and they often retain traces of the -form and shape which the neolithic worker’s chipping and -polishing gave them. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e209" href= -"#xd25e209" name="xd25e209">vii</a>]</span></p> -</div> -</div> -<div class="div1 preface"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#toc">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h2 class="main">PREFACE</h2> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">Towards the close of the seventies I began to collect -Welsh folklore. I did so partly because others had set the example -elsewhere, and partly in order to see whether Wales could boast of any -story-tellers of the kind that delight the readers of Campbell’s -<i>Popular Tales of the West Highlands</i>. I soon found what I was not -wholly unprepared for, that as a rule I could not get a single story of -any length from the mouths of any of my fellow countrymen, but a -considerable number of bits of stories. In some instances these were so -scrappy that it took me years to discover how to fit them into their -proper context; but, speaking generally, I may say, that, as the -materials, such as they were, accumulated, my initial difficulties -disappeared. I was, however, always a little afraid of refreshing my -memory with the legends of other lands lest I should read into those of -my own, ideas possibly foreign to them. While one is busy collecting, -it is safest probably not to be too much engaged in comparison: when -the work of collecting is done that of comparing may begin. But after -all I have not attempted to proceed very far in that direction, only -just far enough to find elucidation here and there for the meaning of -items of folklore brought under my notice. To have gone further would -have involved me in excursions hopelessly beyond the limits of my -undertaking, for comparative folklore has lately assumed <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="xd25e219" href="#xd25e219" name= -"xd25e219">viii</a>]</span>such dimensions, that it seems best to leave -it to those who make it their special study.</p> -<p>It is a cause of genuine regret to me that I did not commence my -inquiries earlier, when I had more opportunities of pursuing them, -especially when I was a village schoolmaster in Anglesey and could have -done the folklore of that island thoroughly; but my education, such as -it was, had been of a nature to discourage all interest in anything -that savoured of heathen lore and superstition. Nor is that all, for -the schoolmasters of my early days took very little trouble to teach -their pupils to keep their eyes open or take notice of what they heard -around them; so I grew up without having acquired the habit of -observing anything, except the Sabbath. It is to be hoped that the -younger generation of schoolmasters trained under more auspicious -circumstances, when the baleful influence of Robert Lowe has given way -to a more enlightened system of public instruction, will do better, and -succeed in fostering in their pupils habits of observation. At all -events there is plenty of work still left to be done by careful -observers and skilful inquirers, as will be seen from the geographical -list showing approximately the provenance of the more important -contributions to the Kymric folklore in this collection: the counties -will be found to figure very unequally. Thus the anglicizing districts -have helped me very little, while the more Welsh county of Carnarvon -easily takes the lead; but I am inclined to regard the anomalous -features of that list as in a great measure due to accident. In other -words, some neighbourhoods have been luckier than others in having -produced or attracted men who paid attention to local folklore; and if -other counties were to be worked equally with Carnarvonshire, some of -them would probably be found <span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e223" -href="#xd25e223" name="xd25e223">ix</a>]</span>not much less rich in -their yield. The anglicizing counties in particular are apt to be -disregarded both from the Welsh and the English points of view, in -folklore just as in some other things; and in this connexion I cannot -help mentioning the premature death of the Rev. Elias Owen as a loss -which Welsh folklorists will not soon cease to regret.</p> -<p>My information has been obtained partly viva voce, partly by letter. -In the case of the stories written down for me in Welsh, I may mention -that in some instances the language is far from good; but it has not -been thought expedient to alter it in any way, beyond introducing some -consistency into the spelling. In the case of the longest specimen of -the written stories, Mr. J. C. Hughes’ Curse of Pantannas, it is -worthy of notice in passing, that the rendering of it into English was -followed by a version in blank verse by Sir Lewis Morris, who published -it in his <i>Songs of Britain</i>. With regard to the work generally, -my original intention was to publish the materials, obtained in the way -described, with such stories already in print as might be deemed -necessary by way of setting for them; and to let any theories or -deductions in which I might be disposed to indulge follow later. In -this way the first six chapters and portions of some of the others -appeared from time to time in the publications of the Honourable -Society of Cymmrodorion and in those of the Folk-Lore Society. This -would have allowed me to divide the present work into the two well -marked sections of materials and deductions. But, when the earlier part -came to be edited, I found that I had a good deal of fresh material at -my disposal, so that the chapters in question had in some instances to -be considerably lengthened and in some others modified in other ways. -Then as to the deductive half of the work, it may be mentioned that -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e230" href="#xd25e230" name= -"xd25e230">x</a>]</span>certain portions of the folklore, though ever -apt to repeat themselves, were found when closely scrutinized to show -serious lacunæ, which had to be filled in the course of the -reasoning suggested by the materials in hand. Thus the idea of the -whole consisting of two distinctly defined sections had to be given up -or else allowed to wait till I should find time to recast it. But I -could no more look forward to any such time than to the eventual -possibility of escaping minor inconsistencies by quietly stepping -through the looking-glass and beginning my work with the index instead -of resting content to make it in the old-fashioned way at the end. -There was, however, a third course, which is only mentioned to be -rejected, and that was to abstain from all further publication; but -what reader of books has ever known any of his authors to adopt -that!</p> -<p>To crown these indiscretions I have to confess that even when most -of what I may call the raw material had been brought together, I had no -clear idea what I was going to do with it; but I had a hazy notion, -that, as in the case of an inveterate talker whose stream of words is -only made the more boisterous by obstruction, once I sat down to write -I should find reasons and arguments flowing in. It may seem as though I -had been secretly conjuring with Vergil’s words <i lang= -"la">viresque adquirit eundo</i>. Nothing so deliberate: the world in -which I live swarms with busybodies dying to organize everybody and -everything, and my instinctive opposition to all that order of tyranny -makes me inclined to cherish a somewhat wild sort of free will. Still -the cursory reader would be wrong to take for granted that there is no -method in my madness: should he take the trouble to look for it, he -would find that it has a certain unity of purpose, which has been -worked out in the later chapters; but to spare him that trouble -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e237" href="#xd25e237" name= -"xd25e237">xi</a>]</span>I venture to become my own expositor and to -append the following summary:—</p> -<p>The materials crowded into the earlier chapters mark out the stories -connected with the fairies, whether of the lakes or of the dry land, as -the richest lode to be exploited in the mine of Celtic folklore. That -work is attempted in the later chapters; and the analysis of what may -briefly be described as the fairy lore given in the earlier ones -carries with it the means of forcing the conviction, that the complex -group of ideas identified with the little people is of more origins -than one; in other words, that it is drawn partly from history and -fact, and partly from the world of imagination and myth. The latter -element proves on examination to be inseparably connected with certain -ancient beliefs in divinities and demons associated, for instance, with -lakes, rivers, and floods. Accordingly, this aspect of fairy lore has -been dealt with in chapters vi and vii: the former is devoted largely -to the materials themselves, while the latter brings the argument to a -conclusion as to the intimate connexion of the fairies with the -water-world. Then comes the turn of the other kind of origin to be -discussed, namely, that which postulates the historical existence of -the fairies as a real race on which have been lavishly superinduced -various impossible attributes. This opens up a considerable vista into -the early ethnology of these islands, and it involves a variety of -questions bearing on the fortunes here of other races. In the series -which suggests itself the fairies come first as the oldest and lowest -people: then comes that which I venture to call Pictish, possessed of a -higher civilization and of warlike instincts. Next come the earlier -Celts of the Goidelic branch, the traces, linguistic and other, of -whose presence in Wales have demanded repeated notice; and last of all -come the other Celts, the linguistic <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"xd25e241" href="#xd25e241" name="xd25e241">xii</a>]</span>ancestors of -the Welsh and all the other speakers of Brythonic. The development of -these theses, as far as folklore supplies materials, occupies -practically the remaining five chapters. Among the subsidiary questions -raised may be instanced those of magic and the origin of druidism; not -to mention a neglected aspect of the Arthurian legend, the intimate -association of the Arthur of Welsh folklore and tradition with Snowdon, -and Arthur’s attitude towards the Goidelic population in his -time.</p> -<p>Lastly, I have the pleasant duty of thanking all those who have -helped me, whether by word of mouth or by letter, whether by reference -to already printed materials or by assistance in any other way: the -names of many of them will be found recorded in their proper places. As -a rule my inquiries met with prompt replies, and I am not aware that -any difficulties were purposely thrown in my way. Nevertheless I have -had difficulties in abundance to encounter, such as the natural shyness -of some of those whom I wished to examine on the subject of their -recollections, and above all the unavoidable difficulty of -cross-questioning those whose information reached me by post. For the -precise value of any evidence bearing on Celtic folklore is almost -impossible to ascertain, unless it can be made the subject of -cross-examination. This arises from the fact that we Celts have a knack -of thinking ourselves in complete accord with what we fancy to be in -the inquirer’s mind, so that we are quite capable of misleading -him in perfect good faith. A most apposite instance, deserving of being -placed on record, came under my notice many years ago. In the summer of -1868 I spent several months in Paris, where I met the historian Henri -Martin more than once. On being introduced to him he reminded me that -he had <span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e245" href="#xd25e245" name= -"xd25e245">xiii</a>]</span>visited South Wales not long before, and -that he had been delighted to find the peasantry there still believing -in the transmigration of souls. I expressed my surprise, and remarked -that he must be joking. Nothing of the kind, he assured me, as he had -questioned them himself: the fact admitted of no doubt. I expressed -further surprise, but as I perceived that he was proud of the result of -his friendly encounters with my countrymen I never ventured to return -to the subject, though I always wondered what in the world it could -mean. A few years ago, however, I happened to converse with one of the -most charming and accomplished of Welsh ladies, when she chanced to -mention Henri Martin’s advent: it turned out that he had visited -Dr. Charles Williams, then the Principal of Jesus College, and that Dr. -Williams introduced him to his friends in South Wales. So M. Martin -arrived among the hospitable friends of the lady talking to me, who had -in fact to act as his interpreter: I never understood that he could -talk much English or any Welsh. Now I have no doubt that M. Martin, -with his fixed ideas about the druids and their teaching, propounded -palpably leading questions for the Welsh people whom he wished to -examine. His fascinating interpreter put them into terse Welsh, and the -whole thing was done. I could almost venture to write out the dialogue, -which gave back to the great Frenchman his own exact notions from the -lips of simple peasants in that subtle non-Aryan syntax, which no Welsh -barrister has ever been able to explain to the satisfaction of a -bewildered English judge trying to administer justice among a people -whom he cannot wholly comprehend.</p> -<p>This will serve to illustrate one of the difficulties with which the -collector of folklore in Wales has <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"xd25e249" href="#xd25e249" name="xd25e249">xiv</a>]</span>to cope. I -have done my best to reduce the possible extent of the error to which -it might give rise; and it is only fair to say that those whom I -plagued with my questionings bore the tedium of it with patience, and -that to them my thanks are due in a special degree. Neither they, -however, nor I, could reasonably complain, if we found other -folklorists examining other witnesses on points which had already -occupied us; for in such matters one may say with confidence, that -<i>in the multitude of counsellors there is safety</i>.</p> -<p class="signed">JOHN RHŶS.</p> -<p class="dateline"><span class="sc">Jesus College, Oxford</span>,<br> -<i>Christmas, 1900</i>. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e264" href= -"#xd25e264" name="xd25e264">xv</a>]</span></p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="toc" class="div1 contents"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#toc">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h2 class="main">CONTENTS</h2> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first"> -<span class="tocPageNum">PAGE</span></p> -<p><a href="#geographical" id="xd25e275" name="xd25e275"><span class= -"corr" id="xd25e276" title="Source: GOEGRAPHICAL">GEOGRAPHICAL</span> -LIST OF AUTHORITIES</a> -<span class="tocPageNum">xxv</span></p> -<p><a href="#biblio" id="xd25e284" name="xd25e284">LIST OF -BIBLIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCES</a> -<span class="tocPageNum">xxxi</span></p> -<p>CHAPTER I</p> -<p><span class="sc"><a href="#ch1" id="xd25e294" name= -"xd25e294">Undine’s Kymric Sisters</a></span> - <span class= -"tocPageNum">1</span></p> -<table class="tocList"> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">I.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch1.1" id="xd25e305" -name="xd25e305">The legend of Ỻyn y Fan Fach</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">2</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">II.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch1.2" id="xd25e315" -name="xd25e315">The legend of Ỻyn y Forwyn</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">23</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">III.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch1.3" id="xd25e325" -name="xd25e325">Some Snowdon lake legends</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">30</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">IV.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch1.4" id="xd25e335" -name="xd25e335">The heir of Ystrad</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">38</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">V.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch1.5" id="xd25e345" -name="xd25e345">Ỻandegai and Ỻanỻechid</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">50</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">VI.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch1.6" id="xd25e355" -name="xd25e355">Mapes’ story of Ỻyn Syfađon</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">70</td> -</tr> -</table> -<p>CHAPTER II</p> -<p><span class="sc"><a href="#ch2" id="xd25e366" name="xd25e366">The -Fairies’ Revenge</a></span> -<span class="tocPageNum">75</span></p> -<table class="tocList"> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">I.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch2.1" id="xd25e377" -name="xd25e377">Beđgelert and its environs</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">75</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">II.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch2.2" id="xd25e387" -name="xd25e387">The Pennant Valley</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">107</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">III.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch2.3" id="xd25e397" -name="xd25e397">Glasynys’ yarns</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">109</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">IV.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch2.4" id="xd25e407" -name="xd25e407">An apple story</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">125</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">V.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch2.5" id="xd25e417" -name="xd25e417">The Conwy afanc</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">130</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">VI.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch2.6" id="xd25e427" -name="xd25e427">The Berwyn and Aran Fawđwy</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">135</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">VII.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch2.7" id="xd25e437" -name="xd25e437">The hinterland of Aberdovey</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">141</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">VIII.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch2.8" id="xd25e447" -name="xd25e447">Some more Merioneth stories</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">146</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">IX.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch2.9" id="xd25e457" -name="xd25e457">The Children of Rhys Đwfn</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">151</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">X.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch2.10" id="xd25e467" -name="xd25e467">Southey and the Green Isles of the Sea</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">169</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">XI.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch2.11" id="xd25e477" -name="xd25e477">The curse of Pantannas</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">173</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">XII.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch2.12" id="xd25e488" -name="xd25e488">More fairy displeasure</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">192</td> -</tr> -</table> -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e495" href="#xd25e495" name= -"xd25e495">xvi</a>]</span> -<p>CHAPTER III</p> -<p><span class="sc"><a href="#ch3" id="xd25e500" name="xd25e500">Fairy -Ways and Words</a></span> -<span class="tocPageNum">197</span></p> -<table class="tocList"> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">I.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch3.1" id="xd25e511" -name="xd25e511">The folklore of Nant Conwy</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">197</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">II.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch3.2" id="xd25e521" -name="xd25e521">Scenes of the Mabinogi of Math</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">207</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">III.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch3.3" id="xd25e531" -name="xd25e531">Celynnog Fawr and Ỻanaelhaearn</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">214</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">IV.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch3.4" id="xd25e541" -name="xd25e541">The blind man’s folklore</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">219</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">V.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch3.5" id="xd25e551" -name="xd25e551">The old saddler’s recollections</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">222</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">VI.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch3.6" id="xd25e561" -name="xd25e561">Traces of Tom Tit Tot</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">226</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">VII.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch3.7" id="xd25e571" -name="xd25e571">March and his horse’s ears</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">231</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">VIII.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch3.8" id="xd25e581" -name="xd25e581">The story of the Marchlyn Mawr</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">234</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">IX.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch3.9" id="xd25e591" -name="xd25e591">The fairy ring of Cae Ỻeidr Dyfrydog</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">238</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">X.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch3.10" id="xd25e601" -name="xd25e601">A Cambrian kelpie</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">242</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">XI.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch3.11" id="xd25e611" -name="xd25e611">Sundry traits of fairy character</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">244</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">XII.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch3.12" id="xd25e622" -name="xd25e622">Ynys Geinon and its fairy treasures</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">251</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">XIII.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch3.13" id="xd25e632" -name="xd25e632">The aged infant</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">257</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum">XIV.</td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7"><a href="#ch3.14" id="xd25e642" -name="xd25e642">Fairy speech</a></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">269</td> -</tr> -</table> -<p>CHAPTER IV</p> -<p><span class="sc"><a href="#ch4" id="xd25e654" name="xd25e654">Manx -Folklore</a></span> <span class= -"tocPageNum">284</span></p> -<table class="tocList"> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The fenodyree or Manx brownie</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">286</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The sleih beggey or little -people</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">289</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The butches or witches and the -hare</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">293</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Charmers and their methods</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">296</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Comparisons from the Channel -Islands</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">301</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Magic and ancient modes of -thought</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">302</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The efficacy of fire to detect the -witch</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">304</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Burnt sacrifices</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">305</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Laa Boaldyn or May-day</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">308</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Laa Lhunys or the beginning of -harvest</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">312</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Laa Houney or Hollantide beginning -the year</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">315</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Sundry prognostications and the -time for them</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">317</td> -</tr> -</table> -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e747" href="#xd25e747" name= -"xd25e747">xvii</a>]</span> -<p>CHAPTER V</p> -<p><span class="sc"><a href="#ch5" id="xd25e752" name="xd25e752">The -Fenodyree and his Friends</a></span> - <span class= -"tocPageNum">323</span></p> -<table class="tocList"> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Lincolnshire parallels</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">323</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The brownie of Blednoch and -Bwca’r Trwyn</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">325</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Prognostication parallels from -Lincolnshire and Herefordshire</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">327</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The traffic in wind and the -Gallizenæ</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">330</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Wells with rags and pins</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">332</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">St. Catherine’s hen plucked -at Colby</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">335</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The qualtagh or the first-foot and -the question of race</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">336</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Sundry instances of things -unlucky</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">342</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Manx reserve and the belief in the -Enemy of Souls</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">346</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The witch of Endor’s -influence and the respectability of the charmer’s vocation</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">349</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Public penance enforced pretty -recently</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">350</td> -</tr> -</table> -<p>CHAPTER VI</p> -<p><span class="sc"><a href="#ch6" id="xd25e841" name="xd25e841">The -Folklore of the Wells</a></span> -<span class="tocPageNum">354</span></p> -<table class="tocList"> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Rag wells in Wales</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">354</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The question of distinguishing -between offerings and vehicles of disease</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">358</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Mr. Hartland’s decision</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">359</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The author’s view revised and -illustrated</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">360</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">T. E. Morris’ account of the -pin well of Ỻanfaglan</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">362</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Other wishing and divining -wells</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">364</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The sacred fish of Ỻanberis -and Ỻangybi</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">366</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Ffynnon Grassi producing the -Glasfryn lake</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">367</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The Morgan of that lake and his -name</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">372</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Ffynnon Gywer producing Bala -Lake</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">376</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Bala and other towns doomed to -submersion <span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e925" href="#xd25e925" -name="xd25e925">xviii</a>]</span></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">377</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The legend of Ỻyn Ỻech -Owen</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">379</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The parallels of Lough Neagh and -Lough Ree</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">381</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Seithennin’s realm -overwhelmed by the sea</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">382</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Seithennin’s name and its -congeners</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">385</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Prof. Dawkins on the Lost Lands of -Wales</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">388</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Certain Irish wells not visited -with impunity</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">389</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The Lough Sheelin legend compared -with that of Seithennin</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">393</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The priesthood of the wells of St. -Elian and St. Teilo</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">395</td> -</tr> -</table> -<p>CHAPTER VII</p> -<p><span class="sc">Triumphs of the Water-world</span> - <span class= -"tocPageNum">401</span></p> -<table class="tocList"> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The sea encroaching on the coast of -Glamorgan</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">402</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The Kenfig tale of crime and -vengeance</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">403</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The Crymlyn story and its touch of -fascination</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">404</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Nennius’ description of Oper -Linn Liguan compared</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">406</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The vengeance legend of Bala -Lake</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">408</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Legends about the Ỻynclys -Pool</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">410</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The fate of Tyno Helig</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">414</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The belief in cities submerged -intact</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">415</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The phantom city and the bells of -Aberdovey</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">418</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The ethics of the foregoing legends -discussed</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">419</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The limits of the delay of -punishment</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">420</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Why the fairies delay their -vengeance</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">423</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Non-ethical legends of the eruption -of water</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">425</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Cutting the green sward a probable -violation of ancient tabu avenged by water divinities</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">427</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The lake afanc’s rôle -in this connexion</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">428</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The pigmies of the water-world</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">432</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The Conwy afanc and the Highland -water-horse</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">433</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The equine features of March and -Labraid Lore</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">435</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Mider and the Mac Óc’s -well horses</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">436</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The Gilla Decair’s horse and -Du March Moro</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">437</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">March ab Meirchion associated with -Mona <span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e1143" href="#xd25e1143" name= -"xd25e1143">xix</a>]</span></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">439</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The Welsh deluge Triads</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">440</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Names of the Dee and other rivers -in North Wales</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">441</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The Lydney god Nudons, Nuada, and -Ỻuđ</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">445</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The fairies associated in various -ways with water</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">449</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The cyhiraeth and the Welsh -banshee</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">452</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Ancestress rather than -ancestor</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">454</td> -</tr> -</table> -<p>CHAPTER VIII</p> -<p><span class="sc">Welsh Cave Legends</span> - <span class= -"tocPageNum">456</span></p> -<table class="tocList"> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The question of classification</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">456</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The fairy cave of the Arennig -Fawr</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">456</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The cave of Mynyđ y Cnwc</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">457</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Waring’s version of -Iolo’s legend of Craig y Đinas</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">458</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Craigfryn Hughes’ -Monmouthshire tale</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">462</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The story of the cave occupied by -Owen Lawgoch</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">464</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">How London Bridge came to figure in -that story</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">466</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Owen Lawgoch in Ogo’r -Đinas</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">467</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Dinas Emrys with the treasure -hidden by Merlin</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">469</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Snowdonian treasure reserved for -the Goidel</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">470</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Arthur’s death on the side of -Snowdon</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">473</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The graves of Arthur and Rhita</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">474</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Elis o’r Nant’s story -of Ỻanciau Eryri’s cave</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">476</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The top of Snowdon named after -Rhita</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">477</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Drystan’s cairn</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">480</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The hairy man’s cave</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">481</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Returning heroes for comparison -with Arthur and Owen Lawgoch</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">481</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The baledwyr’s Owen to return -as Henry the Ninth</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">484</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Owen a historical man = -Froissart’s Yvain de Gales</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">487</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Froissart’s account of him -and the questions it raises</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">488</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Owen ousting Arthur as a -cave-dweller</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">493</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Arthur previously supplanting a -divinity of the class of the sleeping Cronus of Demetrius</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">493</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Arthur’s original sojourn -located in Faery</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">495</td> -</tr> -</table> -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e1363" href="#xd25e1363" name= -"xd25e1363">xx</a>]</span> -<p>CHAPTER IX</p> -<p><span class="sc">Place-name Stories</span> - <span class= -"tocPageNum">498</span></p> -<table class="tocList"> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The Triad of the Swineherds of the -Isle of Prydain</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">499</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The former importance of -swine’s flesh as food</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">501</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The Triad clause about -Coỻ’s straying sow</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">503</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Coỻ’s wanderings -arranged to explain place-names</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">508</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The Kulhwch account of -Arthur’s hunt of Twrch Trwyth in Ireland</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">509</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">A parley with the boars</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">511</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The hunt resumed in -Pembrokeshire</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">512</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The boars reaching the Loughor -Valley</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">514</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Their separation</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">515</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">One killed by the Men of -Ỻydaw in Ystrad Yw</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">516</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Ystrad Yw defined and its name -explained</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">516</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Twrch Trwyth escaping to Cornwall -after an encounter in the estuary of the Severn</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">519</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The comb, razor, and shears of -Twrch Trwyth</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">519</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The name Twrch Trwyth</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">521</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Some of the names evidence of -Goidelic speech</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">523</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The story about Gwydion and his -swine compared</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">525</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Place-name explanations blurred or -effaced</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">526</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Enumeration of Arthur’s -losses in the hunt</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">529</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The Men of Ỻydaw’s -identity and their Syfađon home</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">531</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Further traces of Goidelic -names</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">536</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">A Twrch Trwyth incident mentioned -by Nennius</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">537</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The place-name Carn Cabal -discussed</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">538</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Duplicate names with the Goidelic -form preferred in Wales</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">541</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The same phenomenon in the -Mabinogion</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">543</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The relation between the families -of Ỻyr, Dôn, and Pwyỻ</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">548</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The elemental associations of -Ỻyr and Lir</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">549</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Matthew Arnold’s idea of -Medieval Welsh story</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">551</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Brân, the Tricephal, and the -Letto-Slavic Triglaus</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">552</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Summary remarks as to the Goidels -in Wales</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">553</td> -</tr> -</table> -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e1581" href="#xd25e1581" name= -"xd25e1581">xxi</a>]</span> -<p>CHAPTER X</p> -<p><span class="sc">Difficulties of the Folklorist</span> - <span class= -"tocPageNum">556</span></p> -<table class="tocList"> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The terrors of superstition and -magic</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">557</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The folklorist’s activity no -fostering of superstition</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">558</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Folklore a portion of history</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">558</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The difficulty of separating story -and history</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">559</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Arthur and the Snowdon Goidels as -an illustration</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">559</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Rhita Gawr and the mad kings Nynio -and Peibio</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">560</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Malory’s version and the name -Rhita, Ritho, Ryons</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">562</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Snowdon stories about Owen Ymhacsen -and Cai</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">564</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Goidelic topography in -Gwyneđ</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">566</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The Goidels becoming Compatriots or -Kymry</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">569</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The obscurity of certain -superstitions a difficulty</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">571</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Difficulties arising from their -apparent absurdity illustrated by the March and Labraid stories</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">571</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Difficulties from careless record -illustrated by Howells’ Ychen Bannog</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">575</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Possible survival of traditions -about the urus</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">579</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">A brief review of the lake legends -and the iron tabu</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">581</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The scrappiness of the Welsh Tom -Tit Tot stories</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">583</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The story of the widow of -Kittlerumpit compared</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">585</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Items to explain the names -Sìli Ffrit and Sìli go Dwt</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">590</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Bwca’r Trwyn both brownie and -bogie in one</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">593</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">That bwca a fairy in service, like -the Pennant nurse</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">597</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The question of fairies concealing -their names</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">597</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Magic identifying the name with the -person</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">598</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Modryb Mari regarding cheese-baking -as disastrous to the flock</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">599</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Her story about the reaper’s -little black soul</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">601</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Gwenogvryn Evans’ lizard -version</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">603</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Diseases regarded as also material -entities</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">604</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The difficulty of realizing -primitive modes of thought</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">605</td> -</tr> -</table> -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e1786" href="#xd25e1786" name= -"xd25e1786">xxii</a>]</span> -<p>CHAPTER XI</p> -<p><span class="sc">Folklore Philosophy</span> - <span class= -"tocPageNum">607</span></p> -<table class="tocList"> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The soul as a pigmy or a lizard, -and the word enaid</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">607</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">A different notion in the Mabinogi -of Math</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">608</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The belief in the persistence of -the body through changes</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">610</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Shape-shifting and rebirth in -Gwion’s transformations</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">612</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Tuan mac Cairill, Amairgen, and -Taliessin</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">615</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">D’Arbois de -Jubainville’s view of Erigena’s teaching</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">617</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The druid master of his own -transformations</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">620</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Death not a matter of course so -much as of magic</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">620</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">This incipient philosophy as -Gaulish druidism</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">622</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The Gauls not all of one and the -same beliefs</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">623</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The name and the man</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">624</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Enw, ‘name,’ and the -idea of breathing</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">625</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The exact nature of the association -still obscure</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">627</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The Celts not distinguishing -between names and things</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">628</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">A Celt’s name on him, not by -him or with him</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">629</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The druid’s method of -name-giving non-Aryan</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">631</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Magic requiring metrical -formulæ</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">632</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The professional man’s curse -producing blisters</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">632</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">A natural phenomenon arguing a -thin-skinned race</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">633</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Cursing of no avail without the -victim’s name</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">635</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Magic and kingship linked in the -female line</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">636</td> -</tr> -</table> -<p>CHAPTER XII</p> -<p><span class="sc">Race in Folklore and Myth</span> - <span class= -"tocPageNum">639</span></p> -<table class="tocList"> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Glottology and comparative -mythology</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">640</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The question of the feminine in -Welsh syntax</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">642</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The Irish goddess Danu and the -Welsh Dôn</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">644</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Tynghed or destiny in the Kulhwch -story</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">646</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Traces of a Welsh confarreatio in -the same context</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">649</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Þokk in the Balder story -compared with tynghed</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">650</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Questions of mythology all the -harder owing to race mixture <span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e2007" -href="#xd25e2007" name="xd25e2007">xxiii</a>]</span></td> -<td class="tocPageNum">652</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Whether the picture of -Cúchulainn in a rage be Aryan or not</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">653</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Cúchulainn exempt from the -Ultonian couvade</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">654</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Cúchulainn racially a Celt -in a society reckoning descent by birth</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">656</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Cúchulainn as a rebirth of -Lug paralleled in Lapland</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">657</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Doubtful origin of certain legends -about Lug</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">658</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The historical element in fairy -stories and lake legends</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">659</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The notion of the fairies being all -women</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">661</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">An illustration from Central -Australia</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">662</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Fairy counting by fives evidence of -a non-Celtic race</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">663</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The Basque numerals as an -illustration</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">665</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Prof. Sayce on Irishmen and -Berbers</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">665</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Dark-complexioned people and fairy -changelings</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">666</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The blond fairies of the Pennant -district exceptional</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">668</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">A summary of fairy life from -previous chapters</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">668</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Sir John Wynne’s instance of -men taken for fairies</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">670</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Some of the Brythonic names for -fairies</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">671</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Dwarfs attached to the fortunes of -their masters</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">672</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The question of fairy -cannibalism</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">673</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The fairy Corannians and the -historical Coritani</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">674</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">St. Guthlac at Croyland in the -Fens</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">676</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The Irish sid, side, and the Welsh -Caer Sidi</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">677</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The mound dwellings of Pechts and -Irish fairies</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">679</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Prof. J. Morris Jones explaining -the non-Aryan syntax of neo-Celtic by means of Egyptian and Berber</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">681</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The Picts probably the race that -introduced it</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">682</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The first pre-Celtic people -here</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">683</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">Probably of the same race as the -neolithic dwarfs of the Continent</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">683</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">The other pre-Celtic race, the -Picts and the people of the Mabinogion</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">684</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="tocDivNum"></td> -<td class="tocDivTitle" colspan="7">A word or two by way of -epilogue</td> -<td class="tocPageNum">686</td> -</tr> -</table> -<p><span class="sc">Additions and Corrections</span> - <span class= -"tocPageNum">689</span></p> -<p><span class="sc">Index</span> -<span class="tocPageNum">695</span> <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"xd25e2224" href="#xd25e2224" name="xd25e2224">xxiv</a>]</span></p> -</div> -</div> -<div class="div1 epigraph"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#toc">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">We are too hasty when we set down our ancestors in the -gross for fools, for the monstrous inconsistencies (as they seem to us) -involved in their creed of witchcraft. In the relations of this visible -world we find them to have been as rational, and shrewd to detect an -historic anomaly, as ourselves. But when once the invisible world was -supposed to be opened, and the lawless agency of bad spirits assumed, -what measures of probability, of decency, of fitness, or -proportion—of that which distinguishes the likely from the -palpable absurd—could they have to guide them in the rejection or -admission of any particular testimony? That maidens pined away, wasting -inwardly as their waxen images consumed before a fire—that corn -was lodged, and cattle lamed—that whirlwinds uptore in diabolic -revelry the oaks of the forest—or that spits and kettles only -danced a fearful-innocent vagary about some rustic’s kitchen when -no wind was stirring—were all equally probable where no law of -agency was understood …. There is no law to judge of the -lawless, or canon by which a dream may be criticised.</p> -<p class="signed"><span class="sc">Charles Lamb’s</span> -<i>Essays of Elia</i>. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e2237" href= -"#xd25e2237" name="xd25e2237">xxv</a>]</span></p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="geographical" class="div1 bibliography"><span class= -"pagenum">[<a href="#xd25e275">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h2 class="main">A GEOGRAPHICAL LIST OF AUTHORITIES AND SOURCES OF THE -MORE IMPORTANT CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE WELSH FOLKLORE</h2> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">ANGLESEY.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Aberffraw</span>: E. S. Roberts (after Hugh -Francis), 240, 241.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻandyfrydog</span>: E. S. Roberts (after -Robert Roberts), 239, 240.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻyn yr Wyth Eidion</span>: (no particulars), -429.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Mynyđ y Cnwc</span>: A writer in the -<i>Brython</i> for 1859, 457, 458.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Mynyđ Mecheỻ</span>: Morris Evans (from -his grandmother), 203, 204.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Towyn Trewern</span>: John Roberts, 36–8.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Towyn Trewern</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: Lewis Morris, in the <i lang= -"cy">Gwyliedyđ</i>, 450–2.</p> -<p>BRECKNOCKSHIRE.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Cwm Tawe</span>: Rd. L. Davies, 256, 257.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Cwm</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s"><span class="sc">Tawe</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <span class="ditto"><span class= -"s">Rd.</span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s">L.</span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s">Davies</span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span> (after J. Davies), 251–6.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻangorse</span>: Giraldus, in his <i lang= -"la">Itinerarium Kambriæ</i>, 72.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻangorse</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: Walter Mapes, in his book <i lang="la">De -Nugis</i>, 70–2.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻangorse</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: The <i>Brython</i> for 1863, 73, 74.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻyn Cwm Ỻwch neighbourhood</span>: Ivor -James, 21, 430, 445.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻyn Cwm</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: Ed. Davies, in his <i>Mythology and -Rites</i>, 20, 21.</p> -<p>CARDIGANSHIRE.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Atpar</span>: John Rhys (from Joseph Powell), 648, -649.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Bronnant</span>: D. Ỻ. Davies, 248, 249.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Cadabowen</span>: J. Gwenogvryn Evans, 603, -604.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻanwenog</span>: <span class= -"ditto"><span class="s">J. Gwenogvryn</span><span class= -"d"><span class="i">,,</span></span></span><span class= -"ditto"><span class="s">Evans,</span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span> 648.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻyn Eiđwen</span>: J. E. Rogers of -Abermeurig, 578.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Moeđin</span>: Howells, in his <i>Cambrian -Superstitions</i>, 245.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Moeđin</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: D. Silvan Evans, in his <i lang= -"cy">Ystên Sioned</i>, 271–3.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ponterwyd</span>: John Rhys, 294, 338, 378, 391, -392.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ponterwyd</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: Mary Lewis (Modryb Mari), 601, 602.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Swyđ Ffynnon</span>: D. Ỻ. Davies, 246, -247, 250. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e2383" href="#xd25e2383" -name="xd25e2383">xxvi</a>]</span></p> -<p><span class="sc">Tregaron and neighbourhood</span>: John Rhys (from -John Jones and others), 577–9.</p> -<div class="table"> -<table class="xd25e2389"> -<tr> -<td rowspan="2" class="rowspan cellLeft cellTop cellBottom"> -<span class="sc">Troed yr Aur and Verwig?</span></td> -<td class="cellRight cellTop">: Benjamin Williams (Gwynionyđ), -166–8.</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="cellRight cellBottom">: Gwynionyđ, in the <i lang= -"cy">Brython</i> for 1858 and 1860, 151–5, 158–60, 163, -164, 464–6.</td> -</tr> -</table> -</div> -<p><span class="sc">Ystrad Meurig</span>: Isaac Davies, 245.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ystrad</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s"><span class="sc">Meurig</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: A farmer, 601.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s">Ystrad Meurig</span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: A writer in the <i lang="cy">Brython</i> -for 1861, 690.</p> -<p>CARMARTHENSHIRE.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Cenarth</span>: B. Davies, in the <i lang= -"cy">Brython</i>, 1858, 161, 162.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻandeilo</span>: D. Ỻeufer Thomas, in -<i lang="cy">Y Geninen</i> for 1896, 469.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻandeilo</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: Mr. Stepney-Gulston, in the <i lang= -"la">Arch. Camb.</i> for 1893, 468.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻandybie</span>: John Fisher, 379, 380.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻandybie</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: Howells, in his <i>Cambrian -Superstitions</i>, 381.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻandybie</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: John Fisher and J. P. Owen, 468.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Myđfai</span>: Wm. Rees of Tonn, in the -<i>Physicians of Myđvai</i>, 2–15.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Myđfai</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: The Bishop of St. Asaph, 15, 16.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Myđfai</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: John Rhys, 16.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Myđfai</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: Joseph Joseph of Brecon, 16.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Myđfai</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: Wirt Sikes, in his <i>British Goblins</i>, -17, 18.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Mynyđ y Banwen</span>: Ỻywarch Reynolds, -18, 19, 428–30.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s">Mynyđ y Banwen</span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: I. Craigfryn Hughes, 487.</p> -<p>CARNARVONSHIRE.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Aber Soch</span>: Margaret Edwards, 231.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Aber</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s"><span class="sc">Soch</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: A blacksmith in the neighbourhood, -232.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Aber Soch</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: Edward Ỻwyd: see the <i lang= -"cy">Brython</i> for 1860, 233, 234.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Aber Soch</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: MS. 134 in the <i>Peniarth Collection</i>, -572, 573.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Aberdaron</span>: Mrs. Williams and another, -228.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Aberdaron</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: Evan Williams of Rhos Hirwaen, 230.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Beđgelert</span>: Wm. Jones, 49, 80, 81, -94–7, 99, 100–5.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Beđgelert</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <span class="ditto"><span class= -"s">Wm.</span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s">Jones</span><span class="d"><span class="i">,,</span></span></span> -in the <i lang="cy">Brython</i> for 1861–2, 86–9, -98–9.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Beđgelert</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: The <i lang="cy">Brython</i> for 1861, -470, 473, 474.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Bethesda</span>: David Evan Davies (Dewi Glan -Ffrydlas), 60–4, 66.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Bettws y Coed</span>: Edward Ỻwyd: see the -<i>Cambrian Journal</i> for 1859, 130–3.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Criccieth neighbourhood</span>: Edward -Ỻewelyn, 219–21.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Criccieth</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: Edward Ỻwyd: see the <i>Camb. -Journal</i> for 1859, 201, 202.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Dinorwig</span>: E. Lloyd Jones, 234–7.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Dolbenmaen</span>: W. Evans Jones, 107–9.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Dolwyđelan</span>: see <span class= -"sc">Beđgelert</span>.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Dolwyđelan</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: see <span class="sc">Gwybrnant</span>. -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e2607" href="#xd25e2607" name= -"xd25e2607">xxvii</a>]</span></p> -<p><span class="sc">Drws y Coed</span>: S. R. Williams (from M. -Williams and another), 38–40.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Drws y Coed</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: <span class="ditto"><span class= -"s">S.</span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s">R.</span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s">Williams</span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span> 89, 90.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Edern</span>: John Williams (Alaw Ỻeyn), -275–9.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Four Crosses</span>: Lewis Jones, 222–5.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Glasfryn Uchaf</span>: John Jones (Myrđin -Farđ), 367, 368.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Glasfryn</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s"><span class="sc">Uchaf</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: Mr. and Mrs. Williams-Ellis, -368–72.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Glynỻifon</span>: Wm. Thomas Solomon, -208–14.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Gwybrnant</span>: Ellis Pierce (Elis o’r -Nant), 476–9.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻanaelhaearn</span>: R. Hughes of -Uwchlaw’r Ffynnon, 214, 215, 217–9.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻanberis</span>: Mrs. Rhys and her relatives, -31–6, 604.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻanberis</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: M. and O. Rhys, 229.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻanberis</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: A correspondent in the <i>Liverpool -Mercury</i>, 366, 367.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻanberis</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: Howell Thomas (from G. B. Gattie), -125–30.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻanberis</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: Pennant, in his <i>Tours in Wales</i>, -125.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻandegai</span>: H. Derfel Hughes, -52–60, 68.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻandegai</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <span class="ditto"><span class= -"s">H.</span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s">Derfel</span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s">Hughes</span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span> in his <i>Antiquities</i>, 471, 472.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻandegai</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: E. Owen, in the Powysland Club’s -<i>Collections</i>, 237, 238.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻandwrog</span>: Hugh Evans and others, -207.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻanfaglan</span>: T. E. Morris (from Mrs. -Roberts), 362, 363.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻangybi</span>: John Jones (Myrđin -Farđ), 366.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻangybi</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: Mrs. Williams-Ellis, 366, 471.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻaniestin</span>: Evan Williams, 228, 229, -584.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻanỻechid</span>: Owen Davies (Eos -Ỻechid), 41–6, 50–2.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Nefyn</span>: Lowri Hughes and another woman, 226, -227.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Nefyn</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: John Williams (Alaw Ỻeyn), 228.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Nefyn</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: A writer in the <i lang="cy">Brython</i> -for 1860, 164.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Penmachno</span>: Gethin Jones, 204–6.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Rhyd Đu</span>: Mrs. Rhys, 604.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Trefriw</span>: Morris Hughes and J. D. Maclaren, -198–201.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Trefriw</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: Pierce Williams, 30.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Tremadoc</span>: Jane Williams, 221, 222.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Tremadoc</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: R. I. Jones (from his mother and Ellis -Owen), 105–7.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Tremadoc</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: Ellis Owen (cited by Wm. Jones), 95.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Waen Fawr</span>: Owen Davies, 41.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Waen Fawr</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: Glasynys, in <i lang="cy">Cymru Fu</i>, -91–3, 110–23.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Waen Fawr</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: <span class="ditto"><span class= -"s">Glasynys,</span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span> in the <i lang="cy">Brython</i> for 1863, -40, 41.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Waen Fawr</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: A London Eisteđfod (1887) competitor, -361, 362.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Waen Fawr</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: John Jones (Myrđin Farđ), 361, -362, 364–8.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Waen Fawr</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: Owen Jones (quoted in the <i lang= -"cy">Brython</i> for 1861), 414, 415.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Yspytty Ifan</span>?: A Liverpool Eisteđfod -(1900) competitor, 692.</p> -<p>DENBIGHSHIRE.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Bryneglwys</span>: E. S. Roberts (from Mrs. -Davies), 241, 242.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Eglwyseg</span>: E. S. Roberts (after Thomas -Morris), 238.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ffynnon Eilian</span>: Mrs. Silvan Evans, 357.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ffynnon</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s"><span class="sc">Eilian</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: Isaac Foulkes, in his <i lang= -"cy">Enwogion Cymru</i>, 396. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e2846" -href="#xd25e2846" name="xd25e2846">xxviii</a>]</span></p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ffynnon</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s"><span class="sc">Eilian</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: Lewis, in his <i>Topographical -Dictionary</i>, 395, 396.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ffynnon</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s"><span class="sc">Eilian</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: P. Roberts, in his <i>Camb. Popular -Antiquities</i>, 396.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ffynnon</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s"><span class="sc">Eilian</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: A writer in <i lang="cy">Y -Nofelđ</i>, 396.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻangoỻen</span>: Hywel (Wm. Davies), -148.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Pentre Voelas</span>: Elias Owen, in his <i>Welsh -Folk-Lore</i>, 222.</p> -<p>FLINTSHIRE.</p> -<p><i>Nil.</i></p> -<p>GLAMORGANSHIRE.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Bridgend</span>: J. H. Davies, D. Brynmor-Jones, J. -Rhys, 354, 355.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Crymlyn</span>: Cadrawd, in the <i>South Wales -Daily News</i>, 405, 406.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Crymlyn</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: Wirt Sikes, in his <i>British Goblins</i>, -191, 192, 405.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Kenfig</span>: Iolo Morganwg, in the <i>Iolo -MSS.</i>, 403, 404.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Kenfig</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: David Davies, 402.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻanfabon</span>: I. Craigfryn Hughes, -257–268.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻanwynno</span>: Glanffrwd, in his <i lang= -"cy">Plwyf Llanwyno</i>, 26.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Merthyr Tydfil</span>: Ỻywarch Reynolds (from -his mother), 269.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Quakers’ Yard</span>: I. Craigfryn Hughes, -173–91.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Rhonđa Fechan</span>: Ỻewellyn Williams, -24, 25.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Rhonđa</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s"><span class="sc">Fechan</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: J. Probert Evans, 25, 27.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Rhonđa</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s"><span class="sc">Fechan</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: Ỻ. Reynolds (from D. Evans and -others), 27–9.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Rhonđa Valley</span>: D. J. Jones, 356.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Rhonđa Valley</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: Dafyđ Morganwg, in his <i lang= -"cy">Hanes Morganwg</i>, 356.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Rhonđa Valley</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: Waring, in his <i>Recollections of Edward -Williams</i>, 458–61.</p> -<p>MERIONETHSHIRE.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Aberdovey</span>: J. Pughe, in the <i>Arch. -Camb.</i> for 1853, 142–6, 428.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Aberdovey</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: Mrs. Prosser Powell, 416.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Aberdovey</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: M. B., in the <i>Monthly Packet</i> for -1859, 416, 417.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ardudwy</span>: Hywel (Wm. Davies), 147, 148.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Bala</span>: David Jones of Trefriw: see <i lang= -"cy">Cyfaiỻ yr Aelwyd</i>, 376, 377.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Bala</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: Wm. Davies and Owen M. Edwards, 378.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Bala</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: Humphreys’ Ỻyfr <i lang= -"cy">Gwybodaeth Gyffredinol</i>, 408–10.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Bala</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: J. H. Roberts, in Edwards’ <i lang= -"cy">Cymru</i> for 1897, 148–51.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Dolgeỻey</span>: Lucy Griffith (from a -Dolgeỻey man), 243, 244.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻandriỻo</span>: E. S. Roberts (from A. -Evans and Mrs. Edwards), 138–41.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻanegryn</span>: Mr. Williams and Mr. -Rowlands, 243.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻanegryn</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: A Ỻanegryn man (after Wm. -Pritchard), 242.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻanegryn</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: Another Ỻanegryn man, 242, 243. -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e3054" href="#xd25e3054" name= -"xd25e3054">xxix</a>]</span></p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻanuwchỻyn</span>: Owen M. Edwards, -147.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻanuwchỻyn</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: J. H. Roberts, in Edwards’ <i lang= -"cy">Cymru</i> for 1897, 215–7, 457.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻanuwchỻyn</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: Glasynys, in the <i lang="cy">Brython</i> -for 1862, 137.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻanuwchỻyn</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: <span class="ditto"><span class= -"s">Glasynys,</span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span> in the <i>Taliesin</i> for 1859–60, -215, 216, 456, 457.</p> -<p>MONMOUTHSHIRE.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Aberystruth</span>: Edm. Jones, in his <i>Parish of -Aberystruth</i>, 195, 196.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻandeilo Cressenny</span>: Elizabeth -Williams, 192, 193.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻanover</span>: Wm. Williams and other -gardeners there, 193, 194.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻanover</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: Mrs. Gardner of Ty Uchaf Ỻanover, -194, 195.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻanover</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: Professor Sayce, 602.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Risca?</span>: I. Craigfryn Hughes (from hearsay in -the district between Ỻanfabon and Caerleon), 462–4, 487, -593–6.</p> -<p>MONTGOMERYSHIRE.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻanidloes</span>: Elias Owen, in his <i>Welsh -Folk-Lore</i>, 275.</p> -<p>PEMBROKESHIRE.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Fishguard</span>: E. Perkins of Penysgwarne, 172, -173.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Fishguard</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: Ferrar Fenton, in the <i>Pembroke County -Guardian</i>, 160.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ỻandeilo Ỻwydarth</span>: The Melchior -family, 398.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Ỻandeilo</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s"><span class="sc">Ỻwydarth</span></span><span class= -"d"><span class="i">,,</span></span></span>: Benjamin Gibby, 399, -400.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Nevern</span>: J. Thomas of Bancau Bryn Berian, -689.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Trevine</span>: ‘Ancient Mariner,’ in -the <i>Pembroke County Guardian</i>, 171.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Trevine</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: Ferrar Fenton, in the <i>Pembroke County -Guardian</i>, 171.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Trevine</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: Ab Nadol, in the <i lang="cy">Brython</i> -for 1861, 165.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Trevine</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">?</span></span></span>: Southey, in his <i lang="cy">Madoc</i>, -170.</p> -<p>RADNORSHIRE.</p> -<p><i>Nil.</i> <span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e3192" href= -"#xd25e3192" name="xd25e3192">xxx</a>]</span></p> -</div> -</div> -<div class="div1 notice"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#toc">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h2 class="main"><i>TO ALL SORTS AND CONDITIONS OF MEN</i></h2> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first"><i>The author would be glad to hear of unrecorded -Welsh stories, or bits of Welsh stories not comprised in this volume. -He would also be grateful for the names of more localities in which the -stories here given, or variants of them, are still remembered. It will -be his endeavour to place on record all such further information, -except stories about spooks and ghosts of the ordinary type.</i> -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e3202" href="#xd25e3202" name= -"xd25e3202">xxxi</a>]</span></p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="biblio" class="div1 bibliography"><span class= -"pagenum">[<a href="#xd25e284">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h2 class="main">LIST OF BIBLIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCES</h2> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first"><span class="sc">Ab Gwilym</span>: <i lang= -"cy">Barđoniaeth Dafyđ ab Gwilym</i>, edited by Cyndelw -(Liverpool, 1873), 206, 233, 439, 444, 671.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Adamnan</span>: <i>The Life of St. Columba</i>, -written by Adamnan, edited by William Reeves (Dublin, 1857), 545.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Agrippa</span>: <i>H. Cornelius Agrippa De Occulta -Philosophia</i> (Paris, 1567), 213.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Aneurin</span>: <i>The Book of Aneurin</i> (see -<span class="sc">Skene</span>), 226, 281, 543.</p> -<p><i>Antiquary, the</i>, a magazine devoted to the study of the past, -published by Elliot Stock (London, 1880–), 467.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s"><i>Antiquary,</i></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>the Scottish</i>: see <span class= -"sc">Stevenson</span>.</p> -<p><i lang="la">Archæologia Cambrensis</i>, the Journal of the -Cambrian Archæological Association (London, 1846–), 73, -141–6, 233, 366, 403, 468, 528, 532, 533, 542, 566, 570, 579.</p> -<p><i>Athenæum, the</i>, a journal of English and foreign -literature, science, fine arts, music, and the drama (London, -1828–), 335, 612.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Atkinson</span>: <i>The Book of Ballymote</i>, a -collection of pieces (prose and verse) in the Irish language, compiled -about the beginning of the fifteenth century, published by the Royal -Irish Academy, with introduction, analysis of contents, and index by -Robert Atkinson (Dublin, 1887), 375.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Atkinson</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>The Book of Leinster</i>, sometimes -called the Book of Glendalough, a collection of pieces (prose and -verse) in the Irish language, compiled, in part, about the middle of -the twelfth century, published by the Royal Irish Academy, with -introduction, analysis of contents, and index by Robert Atkinson -(Dublin, 1880), 381, 390, 392, 528, 531, 616, 618, 635, 657.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Aubrey</span>: <i>Miscellanies collected by John -Aubrey</i> (London, 1696) [the last chapter is on second-sighted -persons in Scotland], 273.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Bastian</span>: <i lang="de">Zeitschrift für -Ethnologie</i>, edited by A. Bastian and others (Berlin, 1869–), -684.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Bathurst</span>: <i>Roman Antiquities at Lydney -Park</i>: see 445, 446.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Behrens</span>: <i lang="de">Zeitschrift für -französische Sprache und Litteratur</i>, edited by D. Behrens -(Oppeln and Leipsic, 1879–), 480. <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"xd25e3305" href="#xd25e3305" name="xd25e3305">xxxii</a>]</span></p> -<p><span class="sc">Bell</span>: <i>Early Ballads</i>, edited by Robert -Bell (London, 1877), 317.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Bertrand</span>: <i lang="fr">La Religion des -Gaulois, les Druides et le Druidisme</i>, by Alexandre Bertrand (Paris, -1897), 552, 622, 623.</p> -<p><i>Bible</i>: <i>The Holy Bible</i>, revised version (Oxford, 1885), -583.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><i>Bible</i></span><span class= -"d"><span class="i">,,</span></span></span>: The Manx <i>Bible</i>, -printed for the British and Foreign Bible Society (London, 1819), 288, -297, 348.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Boschet</span>: <i lang="fr">La Vie du Père -Maunoir</i>, by Boschet (Paris, 1697), 386.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Bourke</span>: <i>The Bull -‘Ineffabilis’ in four Languages</i>, translated and edited -by the Rev. Ulick J. Bourke (Dublin, 1868), 606.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Boyd Dawkins</span>: Professor Boyd Dawkins’ -<i>Address on the Place of a University in the History of Wales</i> -(Bangor, 1900), 388, 389.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Bray</span>: <i>The Borders of the Tamar and the -Tavy, their Natural History, Manners, Customs, Superstitions</i>, -&c., in a series of letters to the late Robert Southey, by Mrs. -Bray (new ed., London, 1879), 213.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Braz</span>: <i lang="fr">La Légende de la -Mort en Basse-Bretagne, Croyances, Traditions et Usages des Bretons -Armoricains</i>, by A. le Braz (Paris, 1892), 273.</p> -<p><span class="sc">British Archæological Association, the -Journal of the</span>: see 674.</p> -<p><span class="sc">British Association for the Advancement of Science, -Report</span> of the (John Murray, London, 1833–), 103, 310, 346, -590.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Brynmor-Jones</span>: <i>The Welsh People</i>, by -John Rhys and David Brynmor-Jones (London, 1900), 421, 448, 454, 488, -548, 554, 613, 656, 661.</p> -<p><i lang="cy">Brython, Y</i>: see <span class="sc">Silvan -Evans</span>.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Cambrian</span>: <i>The Cambrian Biography</i>: see -<span class="sc">Owen</span>.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Cambrian</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>The Cambrian Journal</i>, published -under the auspices of the Cambrian Institute [the first volume appeared -in 1854 in London, and eventually the publication was continued at -Tenby by R. Mason, who went on with it till the year 1864], 81, 130, -201, 202, 480, 564.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Cambrian</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>The Cambrian</i> newspaper, published -at Swansea, 468.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Cambrian</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>The Cambrian Popular Antiquities</i>: -see <span class="sc">Roberts</span>.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Cambrian</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>The Cambrian Quarterly Magazine</i> -(London, 1829–33), 202.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Cambrian</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>The Cambrian Register</i>, printed for -E. and T. Williams (London, 1796–1818), 217.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Campbell</span>: <i>Popular Tales of the West -Highlands</i>, with a translation, by J. F. Campbell (Edinburgh, -1860–2), 433, 434, 690.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Caradoc</span>: <i>The Gwentian Chronicle of -Caradoc of Ỻancarvan</i>, 404.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Caradoc</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>The History of Wales written originally -in British by Caradoc of Lhancarvan</i>, Englished by Dr. Powell and -augmented by W. Wynne (London, 1774), 476, 480.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Carmarthen</span>: <i>The Black Book of -Carmarthen</i> (see <span class="sc">Skene</span>), 543.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Carnarvon</span>: <i lang="la">Registrum vulgariter -nuncupatum ‘<span lang="en">The Record of -Carnarvon</span>,’ è Codice ms<sup>to</sup> Descriptum</i> -(London, 1838), 70, 201, 488, 567–9, 693. <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="xd25e3492" href="#xd25e3492" name= -"xd25e3492">xxxiii</a>]</span></p> -<p><span class="sc">Carrington</span>: <i>Report of the Royal -Commission on Land in Wales and Monmouthshire</i>, Chairman, the Earl -of Carrington (London, 1896), 488.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Chambers</span>: <i>Popular Rhymes of Scotland</i>, -by Robert Chambers (Edinburgh, 1841, 1858), 585.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Charencey, H.</span> de, in the <i lang= -"fr">Bulletin de la Société de Linguistique de Paris</i>, -664.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Chaucer</span>: <i>The Complete Works of Geoffrey -Chaucer</i>, edited from numerous manuscripts by the Rev. Prof. Skeat -(Oxford, 1894), 75.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Chrétien</span>: <i lang="de">Erec und Enide -von Christian von Troyes</i>, published by Wendelin Foerster (Halle, -1890), 375, 672.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Cicero</span>: <i lang="fr">Œuvres -Complètes de Cicéron</i> (the Didot ed., Paris, 1875), -652.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Clark</span>: <i lang="la">Limbus Patrum -Morganiæ et Glamorganiæ</i>, being the genealogies of the -older families of the lordships of Morgan and Glamorgan, by George T. -Clark (London, 1886), 26.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Clodd</span>: <i>Tom Tit Tot</i>, an essay on -savage philosophy in folklore, by Edward Clodd (London, 1898), 584, -598, 607, 627, 628, 630.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Cochrane</span>: <i>The Journal of the Royal -Society of Antiquaries of Ireland</i>, Robert Cochrane, Secretary -(Hodges, Figgis & Co., Dublin), 546.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Cockayne</span>: <i>Leechdoms, Wortcunning and -Starcraft of early England</i>, by the Rev. Oswald Cockayne (Rolls -Series, London, 1864–6), 293.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Cormac</span>: <i>Cormac’s Glossary</i>, -translated and annotated by John O’Donovan, edited with notes and -indices by Whitley Stokes (Calcutta, 1868), 51, 310, 521, 629, 632.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Corneille</span>: <i>Le Cid</i>, by P. Corneille, -edited by J. Bué (London, 1889), 655.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Cosquin</span>: <i lang="fr">Contes populaires de -Lorraine</i>, by Emmanuel Cosquin (Paris, 1886), 520.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Cothi</span>: <i>The Poetical Works of Lewis Glyn -Cothi</i>, a Welsh bard who flourished in the reigns of Henry VI, -Edward IV, Richard III, and Henry VII, edited for the Cymmrodorion -Society by the Rev. John Jones ‘Tegid,’ and the Rev. Walter -Davies ‘Gwaỻter Mechain’ (Oxford, 1837), 74, 134, -135, 201.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Coulanges</span>: <i lang="fr">La Cité -antique</i>, by N. D. Fustel de Coulanges (Paris, 1864), 649, 650.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Courson</span>: <i lang="fr">Cartulaire de -l’Abbaye de Redon en Bretagne</i>, published by M. -Aurélien de Courson (Paris, 1863), 544.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Craigfryn</span>: <i lang="cy">Y Ferch o Gefn -Ydfa</i>, by Isaac Craigfryn Hughes (Cardiff, 1881), 173.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Cregeen</span>: <i>A Dictionary of the Manks -Language</i>, by Archibald Cregeen (Douglas, 1835), 288.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Cumming</span>: <i>The Isle of Man, its History, -Physical, Ecclesiastical, Civil, and Legendary</i>, by Joseph George -Cumming (London, 1848), 314. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e3628" -href="#xd25e3628" name="xd25e3628">xxxiv</a>]</span></p> -<p><span class="sc">Curry</span>: <i>The Battle of Magh Leana</i>, -together with <i>The Courtship of Momera</i>, with translation and -notes, by Eugene Curry [later O’Curry] (Dublin, 1855), 393: see -also <span class="sc">O’Curry</span>.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Cynđelw</span>: <i lang="cy">Cymru Fu</i>, a -selection of Welsh histories, traditions, and tales, published by -Hughes & Son (Wrexham, 1862) [this was originally issued in parts, -and it has never borne the editor’s name; but it is understood to -have been the late poet and antiquary, the Rev. Robert Ellis -‘Cynđelw’], 66, 91, 109, 123, 155, 156, 481.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Dalyell</span>: <i>The Darker Superstitions of -Scotland illustrated from History and Practice</i>, by John Graham -Dalyell (Edinburgh, 1834), 273.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Davies</span>: <i>The Mythology and Rites of the -British Druids</i>, by Edward Davies (London, 1809), 20.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Davies</span>: <i lang="la">Antiquæ -Linguæ Britannicæ et Linguæ Latinæ Dictionarium -Duplex</i>, by Dr. John Davies (London, 1632), 13.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Derfel Hughes</span>: <i lang="cy">Hynafiaethau -Ỻandegai a Ỻanỻechid</i> (<i>Antiquities of -Ỻandegai and Ỻanỻechid</i>), by Hugh Derfel Hughes -(Bethesda, 1866), 52, 480.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Dionysius</span>: <i lang="la">Dionysii -Halicarnassensis Antiquitatum Romanorum quæ supersunt</i> (the -Didot edition, Paris, 1886), 650.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Domesday</span>: <i>Facsimile of Domesday Book</i>, -the Cheshire volume, including a part of Flintshire and Leicestershire -(Southampton, 1861–5), 563.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Dovaston</span>: [John F. M. Dovaston’s -poetical works appear to have been published in 1825, but I have not -seen the book], 410–3.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Doyle</span>: <i>Adventures of Sherlock Holmes</i>, -by A. Conan Doyle (London, 1893), 690.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Drayton</span>: <i>The Battaile of Agincourt</i>, -by Michaell Drayton (London, 1627), 164.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Dugdale</span>: <i lang="la">Monasticon -Anglicanum</i>, a history of the abbeys and other monasteries in -England and Wales, by Sir William Dugdale (vol. v, London, 1825), 443, -469, 479.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Edwards</span>: <i lang="cy">Cymru</i>, a monthly -magazine edited by Owen M. Edwards (Welsh National Press, Carnarvon), -148.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Elfed</span>: <i lang="cy">Cyfaiỻ yr Aelwyd -a’r Frythones</i>, edited by Elfed (the Rev. H. Elvet Lewis) and -Cadrawd (Mr. T. C. Evans), and published by Williams & Son, -Ỻaneỻy, 23, 376, 418.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Elton</span>: <i>Origins of English History</i>, by -Charles Elton (London, 1882), 615.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Elworthy</span>: <i>The Evil Eye, an Account of -this ancient and widespread Superstition</i>, by Frederick Thomas -Elworthy (London, 1895), 346.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Evans</span>: <i>The Beauties of England and -Wales</i> [published in London in 1801–15, and comprising two -volumes (xvii and xviii) <span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e3755" href= -"#xd25e3755" name="xd25e3755">xxxv</a>]</span>devoted to Wales, the -former of which (by the Rev. J. Evans; published in London in 1812) -treats of North Wales], 563.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Folk-Lore</span>: <i>Transactions of the Folk-Lore -Society</i> (published by David Nutt, 270 Strand, London), 273, 338, -341, 344, 346, 356, 358–60, 584, 585, 593, 608.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Foulkes</span>: <i lang="cy">Geirlyfr Bywgraffiadol -o Enwogion Cymru</i>, published and printed by Isaac Foulkes -(Liverpool, 1870), 396.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Fouqué</span>: <i lang="de">Undine, eine -Erzählung von Friedrich Baron de la Motte Fouqué</i> (11th -ed., Berlin, 1859), 1, 2, 27, 437, 661.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Frazer</span>: <i>The Golden Bough</i>, a study in -comparative religion, by Dr. J. G. Frazer (London, 1890), 638, 662.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Frazer</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>The Origin of Totemism</i> (in the -<i>Fortnightly Review</i> for April, 1899), 662, 663.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Froissart</span>: <i lang="fr">Œuvres de -Froissart, Chroniques</i>, edited by Kervyn de Lettenhove (Brussels, -1870–7), 489.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Froissart</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i lang="fr">Chroniques de J. -Froissart</i>, published for the ‘<i lang= -"fr">Société de l’Histoire de France</i>,’ by -Siméon Luce (Paris, 1869–), 489–91.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Froissart</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: Lord Berners’ translation (in black -letter), published in London in 1525, and Thomas Johnes’, in -1805–6, 490.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Gaidoz</span>: <i lang="cy">Revue Celtique</i>, -‘fondée par M. Henri Gaidoz,’ 1870–85 [since -then it has been edited by H. d’Arbois de Jubainville, and it is -now published by Bouillon in Paris (67 Rue de Richelieu)], 60, 374, -375, 387, 389, 390, 427, 432, 435, 480, 519, 546, 573, 580, 581, 603, -618, 619, 629, 631, 649.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Geoffrey</span>: <i>Gottfried’s von Monmouth -Historia Regum Britanniæ und Brut Tysylio</i>, published by -San-Marte (Halle, 1854), 4, 280, 281, 374, 406, 448, 503, 507, 547, -562, 611.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Gilbert</span>: <i lang="ga">Leabhar na -h-Uidhri</i>, a collection of pieces in prose and verse in the Irish -language, compiled and transcribed about A.D. 1100 by Moelmuiri mac -Ceileachar, published by the Royal Irish Academy, and printed from a -lithograph of the original by O’Longan & O’Looney -(preface signed by J. T. Gilbert, Dublin, 1870), 381, 387, 414, 424, -435, 498, 537, 547, 611, 613, 618, 620, 624, 654, 657, 661.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Gillen</span>: <i>The Native Tribes of Central -Australia</i>, by Baldwin Spencer and F. J. Gillen (London, 1899), 662, -663.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Giraldus</span>: <i lang="la">Giraldi Cambrensis -Itinerarium Kambriæ et Descriptio Kambriæ</i>, edited by -James F. Dimock (Rolls Series, London, 1868), 72, 90, 269–71, -303, 389, 414, 441, 507, 509, 660.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Glanffrwd</span>: <i lang="cy">Plwyf Ỻanwyno: -yr hen Amser, yr hen Bobl, a’r hen Droion</i>, by Glanffrwd [the -Rev. W. Glanffrwd Thomas] (Pontypriđ, 1888), 26.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Gottingen</span>: <i lang="de">Göttingische -gelehrte Anzeigen, unter der Aufsicht der königl. Gesellschaft der -Wissenschaften</i> (Gottingen, 1890), 544. <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="xd25e3870" href="#xd25e3870" name= -"xd25e3870">xxxvi</a>]</span></p> -<p><span class="sc">Gregor</span>: <i>Notes on the Folk-lore of the -North-east of Scotland</i>, by the Rev. Walter Gregor, published for -the Folk-Lore Society (London, 1881), 103.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Griffin</span>: <i>The Poetical and Dramatic Works -of Gerald Griffin</i> (Dublin, 1857), 205, 418.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Gröber</span>: <i lang="de">Grundriss der -romanischen Philologie, unter Mitwirkung von 25 Fachgenossen</i>, -edited by Gustav Gröber (Strassburg, 1886), 563.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Gröber</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i lang="de">Zeitschrift für -romanische Philologie</i>, edited by Gustav Gröber (Halle, -1877–), 563.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Gruter</span>: <i lang="la">Iani Gruteri Corpus -Inscriptionum</i> (part ii of vol. i, Amsterdam, 1707), 580.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Guest</span>: <i>The Mabinogion</i>, from the -<i lang="cy">Ỻyfr Coch o Hergest</i> and other ancient Welsh -manuscripts, with an English translation and notes by Lady Charlotte -Guest (London, 1849), 69, 123, 196, 386, 442, 502, 507, 509, 538, 553, -560, 613, 620, 629, 645–7, 649, 672.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Gwenogvryn</span>: <i>Facsimile of the Black Book -of Carmarthen</i>, reproduced by the autotype mechanical process, with -a palæographical note by J. Gwenogvryn Evans (Oxford, 1888), 216, -217, 383, 384, 413, 432, 478, 513, 527, 543, 545, 563, 565, 619, -621.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Gwenogvryn</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>Report on Manuscripts in the Welsh -Language</i>, published by the Historical MSS. Commission (vol. i, -London, 1898–9), 280, 330, 487, 573.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Gwenogvryn</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>The Text of the Bruts from the Red Book -of Hergest</i>, edited by John Rhys and J. Gwenogvryn Evans (Oxford, -1890), 163, 201, 442, 506, 512, 562.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Gwenogvryn</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>The Text of the -‘Mabinogion’ and other Welsh Tales from the Red Book of -Hergest</i>, edited by John Rhys and J. Gwenogvryn Evans (Oxford, -1887), 69, 142, 196, 207, 208, 217, 218, 225, 226, 233, 264, 280, 287, -315, 386, 388, 425, 430, 439, 440, 442, 498, 500, 502, 506, 507, -509–16, 519–27, 529–34, 536, 537, 543, 546–8, -550, 551, 553, 560, 561, 565, 580, 608–10, 613, 619, 620, 622, -628–30, 636, 637, 644, 645, 647, 649, 657, 672.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Gwenogvryn</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>The Text of the Book of Ỻan -Dâv</i>, reproduced from the Gwysaney manuscript by J. G. Evans, -with the co-operation of John Rhys (Oxford, 1893) [this is also known -as the <i lang="la">Liber Landavensis</i>], 163, 398, 476, 478, 528, -531, 568, 691.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Hancock</span>: <i lang="ga">Senchus -Mór</i>, vol. i, prefaced by W. Neilson Hancock (Dublin, 1865), -617.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Hardy</span>: <i>Descriptive Catalogue of Materials -relating to the History of Great Britain and Ireland</i>, by Thos. -Duffus Hardy (vol. i, London, 1862), 476.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Hartland</span>: <i>The Legend of Perseus</i>, a -study of tradition in story, custom, and belief, by Edwin Sidney -Hartland (London, 1894–6), 662. <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"xd25e3981" href="#xd25e3981" name="xd25e3981">xxxvii</a>]</span></p> -<p><span class="sc">Hartland</span>: <i>The Science of Fairy Tales</i>, -an inquiry into fairy mythology, by Edwin Sidney Hartland (London, -1891), 18, 268, 583.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Henderson</span>: <i>Fled Bricrend</i>, edited with -translation, introduction, and notes, by George Henderson (London, -1899), 501.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Henderson</span>: <i>Notes on the Folk-Lore of the -Northern Counties of England and the Borders</i>, by Wm. Henderson -(London, 1879), 340, 346.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Herbord</span>: <i lang="la">Herbordi Vita Ottonis -Ep. Bambergensis</i>, in vol. xiv of Pertz’ <i lang= -"la">Monumenta Germaniæ Historica Scriptorum</i> [= Script. vol. -xii], edited by G. H. Pertz (Hanover, 1826–85), 553.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Hergest</span>: <i>The Red Book of Hergest</i>: see -<span class="sc">Guest</span>, <span class="sc">Gwenogvryn</span>, -<span class="sc">Skene</span>.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Heywood</span>: <i>The Dramatic Works of Thomas -Heywood</i> (London, 1874), 694.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Higden</span>: <i lang="la">Polychronicon Ranulphi -Higden Monachi Cestrensis</i>, together with the English translations -of John Trevisa and an unknown writer of the fifteenth century, edited -by Ch. Babington (Rolls Series, London, 1865–86), 330, 331.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Holder</span>: <i lang="de">Alt-celtischer -Sprachschatz</i>, by Alfred Holder (Leipsic, 1896–), 533, 622, -659.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Howells</span>: <i>Cambrian Superstitions</i>, -comprising ghosts, omens, witchcraft, and traditions, by W. Howells -(Tipton, 1831), 74, 155, 160, 173, 204, 245, 268, 331, 424, 453, 469, -576–9.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Hübner</span>: <i lang="de">Das Heiligtum des -Nodon</i>: see 446.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Hübner</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i lang="la">Inscriptiones Britanniæ -Latinæ</i>, edited by Æmilius Hübner and published by -the Berlin Academy (Berlin, 1873), 535.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Humphreys</span>: <i lang="cy">Golud yr Oes</i>, a -Welsh magazine published by H. Humphreys (vol. i, Carnarvon, 1863), -493.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Humphreys</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span> <i lang="cy">Ỻyfr Gwybodaeth -Gyffredinol</i>, a collection of Humphreys’ penny series -(Carnarvon, no date), 408.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Iolo</span>: <i>Iolo Manuscripts</i>, a selection -of ancient Welsh manuscripts in prose and verse from the collection -made by Edward Williams (Iolo Morganwg), with English translations and -notes by his son, Taliesin Williams Ab Iolo, and published for the -Welsh MSS. Society (Ỻandovery, 1848), 564, 565, 569, 619.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Iolo Goch</span>: <i lang="cy">Gweithiau Iolo Goch -gyda Nodiadau hanesyđol a beirniadol</i>, by Charles Ashton, -published for the Cymmrodorion Society (Oswestry, 1896), 281, 367.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Jacobs</span>: <i>Celtic Fairy Tales</i>, selected -and edited by Joseph Jacobs (London, 1892), 567.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Jamieson</span>: <i>An Etymological Dictionary of -the Scottish Language</i>, by John Jamieson (new ed., Paisley, -1881–2), 591.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Jamieson</span>: <i>Popular Ballads and Songs</i>, -by Robert Jamieson (Edinburgh, 1806), 592. <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="xd25e4124" href="#xd25e4124" name= -"xd25e4124">xxxviii</a>]</span></p> -<p><span class="sc">Jenkins</span>: <i>Beđ Gelert, its Facts, -Fairies, and Folk-Lore</i>, by D. E. Jenkins (Portmadoc, 1899), 450, -453, 469, 533, 567.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Johnstone</span>: <i lang="la">Antiquitates -Celto-Normannicæ</i>, containing the Chronicle of Man and the -Isles, abridged by Camden, edited by James Johnstone (Copenhagen, -1786), 334.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Jones</span>: see p. 195 for Edmund Jones’ -<i>Account of the Parish of Aberystruth</i> (Trevecka, 1779), 195, -196.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Jones</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: see p. 195 as to his <i>Spirits in the -County of Monmouth</i> (Newport, 1813), 195, 217, 350.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Jones</span>: <i>The Elucidarium</i> and other -tracts in Welsh from <i lang="cy">Ỻyvyr Agkyr -Ỻandewivrevi</i>, <span class="sc">A.D.</span> 1346 (Jesus -College MS. 119), edited by J. Morris Jones and John Rhys (Oxford, -1894), 529, 693.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Jones</span>: <i>The Myvyrian Archaiology of -Wales</i>, collected out of ancient manuscripts, by Owen Jones -‘Myvyr,’ Edward Williams, and William Owen (London, 1801; -reprinted in one volume by Thomas Gee, Denbigh, 1870), 441, 469, 529, -560, 610, 619.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Jones</span>: <i>A History of the County of -Brecknock</i>, by the Rev. Theophilus Jones (Brecknock, 1805, 1809), -516–8.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Joyce</span>: <i>Old Celtic Romances</i>, -translated from the Gaelic by P. W. Joyce (London, 1879), 94, 376, 381, -437, 662.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Jubainville</span>: <i lang="fr">Le Cycle -mythologique irlandais et la Mythologie celtique</i>, by H. -d’Arbois de Jubainville (Paris, 1884), 616, 617, 620.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Jubainville</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i lang="fr">Essai d’un Catalogue de -la Littérature épique de l’Irlande</i>, by H. -d’Arbois de Jubainville (Paris, 1883), 549, 616, 617, 620.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Kaluza</span>: <i lang="la">Libeaus Desconus</i>, -edited by Max Kaluza (Leipsic, 1890), 562.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Keating</span>: <i lang="ga">Forus Feasa air -Éirinn</i>, Keating’s <i>History of Ireland</i>, book i, -part i, edited, with a literal translation, by P. W. Joyce (Dublin, -1880), 375.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Kelly</span>: <i lang="gv">Fockleyr Manninagh as -Baarlagh</i>, a Manx-English Dictionary by John Kelly, edited by -William Gill, and printed for the Manx Society (Douglas, 1866), 316, -349.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Kermode</span>: <i lang="gv">Yn Lioar -Manninagh</i>, the Journal of the Isle of Man Natural History and -Antiquarian Society, edited by P. M. C. Kermode (Douglas, 1889–), -284, 289, 311, 334, 434.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Kuhn</span>: <i lang="de">Beiträge zur -vergleichenden Sprachforschung auf dem Gebiete der arischen, celtischen -und slawischen Sprachen</i>, edited by Kuhn and others (Berlin, -1858–76), 629.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Kuhn</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i lang="de">Zeitschrift für -vergleichende Sprachforschung auf dem Gebiete der indogermanischen -Sprachen</i>, edited by Kuhn and others (Berlin, 1854–), 625.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Lampeter</span>: <i>The Magazine of St. -David’s College, Lampeter</i>, 156.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Leem</span>: <i lang="la">Canuti Leemii de -Lapponibus Finmarchiæ Commentatio</i> (Copenhagen, 1767), 658, -663. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e4264" href="#xd25e4264" name= -"xd25e4264">xxxix</a>]</span></p> -<p><span class="sc">Leger</span>: <i lang="fr">Cyrille et -Méthode, Étude historique sur la Conversion des Slaves au -Christianisme</i>, by Louis Leger (Paris, 1868), 553.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Lewis</span>: <i>A Topographical Dictionary of -Wales</i>, by Samuel Lewis (3rd ed., London, 1844), 395, 397, 470.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Leyden</span>: <i>The Poetical Works of John -Leyden</i> (Edinburgh, 1875), 466.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Lhuyd</span>: <i lang="la">Commentarioli -Britannicæ Descriptionis Fragmentum</i>, by Humfrey Lhuyd -(Cologne, 1572), 412.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Lindsay</span>: <i>The Latin Language</i>, an -historical account of Latin sounds, stems, and flexions, by Wallace -Martin Lindsay (Oxford, 1894), 629.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Loth</span>: <i lang="fr">Les Mots latins dans les -langues brittoniques</i>, by J. Loth (Paris, 1892), 383.</p> -<p><i lang="cy">Ỻais y Wlad</i>, a newspaper published at Bangor, -N. Wales, 234.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Mabinogion</span>: see <span class= -"sc">Guest</span> and <span class="sc">Gwenogvryn</span>.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Macbain</span>: <i>The Celtic Magazine</i>, edited -by Alexander Macbain (Inverness, 1866–), 520.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Malmesbury</span>: <i lang="la">De Gestis -Pontificum Anglorum Libri Quinque</i>, edited by N. E. S. A. Hamilton -(Rolls Series, London, 1870), 547.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Malory</span>: <i lang="fr">Le Morte Darthur</i>, -by Syr Thomas Malory, the original Caxton edition reprinted and edited -with an introduction and glossary by H. Oskar Sommer (Nutt, London, -1889), 476, 562.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Malory</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: Sir Thomas Malory’s <i lang= -"fr">Morte Darthur</i>, with a preface by John Rhys, published by J. M. -Dent & Co. (London, 1893), 543, 565.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Mapes</span>: <i lang="la">Gualteri Mapes de Nugis -Curialium Distinctiones Quinque</i>, edited by Thomas Wright and -printed for the Camden Society, 1850 [at the last moment a glance at -the original Bodley MS. 851 forced me to deviate somewhat from -Wright’s reading owing to its inaccuracy], 70–2, 496.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Marquardt</span>: <i lang="de">Das Privatleben der -Römer</i>, by J. Marquardt (Leipsic, 1886), 650.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Martin</span>: <i>A Description of the Western -Islands of Scotland</i>, by M. Martin (London, 1703), 615, 691, -692.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Maspero</span>: see 682.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Maximus</span>: <i lang="la">Valerii Maximi -factorum dictorumque memorabilium Libri novem ad Tiberium Cæsarem -Augustum</i> (the Didot ed., Paris, 1871), 623.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Mela</span>: <i lang="la">Pomponii Melæ de -Chorographia Libri Tres, ed. Gustavus Parthey</i> (Berlin, 1867), 331, -550.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Meyer</span>: <i lang="de">Festschrift Whitley -Stokes</i>, dedicated by Kuno Meyer and others (Leipsic, 1900), -645.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Meyer</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>The Vision of MacConglinne</i>, edited -with a translation by Kuno Meyer (London, 1892), 393, 501. <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="xd25e4406" href="#xd25e4406" name= -"xd25e4406">xl</a>]</span></p> -<p><span class="sc">Meyer</span>: <i lang="de">Zeitschrift für -celtische Philologie</i>, edited by Kuno Meyer and L. C. Stern (Halle, -1897–), 500.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Meyer</span>: <i lang="fr">Romania, Recueil -trimestriel consacré à l’Étude des Langues -et des Littératures romanes</i>, edited by Paul Meyer and Gaston -Paris (vol. xxviii. Paris, 1899), 690, 693, 694.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Meyrick</span>: <i>The History and Antiquities of -the County of Cardigan</i>, by Samuel Rush Meyrick (London, 1808), -579.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Milton</span>: <i>English Poems</i>, by John -Milton, 288.</p> -<p><i>Mind</i>, a quarterly review of psychology and philosophy, edited -by G. F. Stout (London, 1876–), 633.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Mommsen</span>: <i lang="de">Heortologie, -antiquarische Untersuchungen über die städtischen Feste der -Athener</i>, by August Mommsen (Leipsic, 1864), 310.</p> -<p><i>Monthly Packet, the</i>, now edited by C. R. Coleridge and Arthur -Innes (London, 1851–), 416, 417.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Moore</span>: <i>The Folk-Lore of the Isle of -Man</i>, by A. W. Moore (London, 1891), 284.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Moore</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>The Surnames and Place-names of the -Isle of Man</i>, by A. W. Moore (London, 1890), 311, 332, 334.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Morgan</span>: <i>An Antiquarian Survey of East -Gower, Glamorganshire</i>, by W. Ỻ. Morgan (London, 1899), -404.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Morganwg</span>: <i lang="cy">Hanes Morganwg</i>, -by Dafyđ Morganwg [D. W. Jones, F.G.S.] (Aberdare, 1874) [an -octavo volume issued to subscribers, and so scarce now that I had to -borrow a copy], 356.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Morris</span>: <i>Celtic Remains</i>, by Lewis -Morris, edited by Silvan Evans and printed for the Cambrian -Archæological Association (London, 1878), 148, 413, 564, 566, -694.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Myrđin</span>: <i lang="cy">Prophwydoliaeth -Myrđin Wyỻt</i>: see 485.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Nennius</span>: <i lang="de">Nennius und -Gildas</i>, edited by San-Marte (Berlin, 1844), 281, 406, 407, -537–9, 570.</p> -<p><i>New English Dictionary</i>, edited by Dr. James H. Murray and -Henry Bradley (London and Oxford, 1884–), 317.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Nicholson</span>: <i>Golspie</i>, contributions to -its folklore, collected and edited by Edward W. B. Nicholson (London, -1897), 317.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Nicholson</span>: <i>The Poetical Works of Wm. -Nicholson</i> (3rd ed., Castle Douglas, 1878), 325.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Notes and Queries</span> (Bream’s Buildings, -Chancery Lane, E.C.), 563.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Notes</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s"><span class="sc">and</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s"><span class="sc">Queries</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>Choice Notes from ‘Notes and -Queries,’</i> consisting of folklore (London, 1859), 140, 213, -217, 325, 418, 453, 454, 494, 596, 601, 611, 612.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Nutt</span>: <i>The Voyage of Bran son of Febal to -the Land of the Living</i>, by Kuno Meyer and Alfred Nutt (London, -1895, 1897), 618, 620, 622, 657, 662.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Nutt</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>Studies on the Legend of the Holy -Grail</i>, by Alfred Nutt (London, 1888), 287, 438, 548. <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="xd25e4547" href="#xd25e4547" name= -"xd25e4547">xli</a>]</span></p> -<p><span class="sc">O’Curry</span>: <i>On the Manners and Customs -of the Ancient Irish</i>, a series of lectures delivered by the late -Eugene O’Curry (London, 1873), 375, 392, 617, 632: see also -<span class="sc">Curry</span>.</p> -<p><span class="sc">O’Donovan</span>: <i>Annals of the Kingdom of -Ireland by the Four Masters</i>, from the earliest period to the year -1616, edited by John O’Donovan (2nd ed., Dublin, 1856), 414, -426–8, 433, 546, 569.</p> -<p><span class="sc">O’Grady</span>: <i>Silva Gadelica</i>, a -collection of tales in Irish, with extracts illustrating persons and -places, edited from manuscripts and translated by Dr. S. H. -O’Grady (London, 1892), 381, 437.</p> -<p><span class="sc">O’Reilly</span>: <i>An Irish-English -Dictionary</i>, by Edward O’Reilly, with a supplement by John -O’Donovan (Dublin, 1864), 142.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Oliver</span>: <i lang="la">Monumenta de Insula -Manniæ</i>, being vol. iv of the publications of the Manx -Society, by J. R. Oliver (Douglas, 1860), 314, 334.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Owen</span>: <i>Ancient Laws and Institutes of -Wales</i>, edited by Aneurin Owen for the Public Records Commission -(London, 1841), 421.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Owen</span>: <i>Welsh Folk-Lore</i>, a collection -of the folk-tales and legends of North Wales, being the prize essay of -the National Eisteđfod in 1887, by the Rev. Elias Owen (Oswestry -and Wrexham, 1896), 222, 275, 690.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Owen</span>: <i>The Poetical Works of the Rev. -Goronwy Owen</i>, with his life and correspondence, edited by the Rev. -Robert Jones (London, 1876), 84.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Owen</span>: <i>The Description of -Pembrokeshire</i>, by George Owen of Henỻys, edited with notes -and an appendix by Henry Owen (London, 1892), 506, 513, 515.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Owen</span>: <i>The Cambrian Biography, or -Historical Notices of celebrated men among the Ancient Britons</i>, by -William Owen (London, 1803), 169, 170.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Paris</span>: <i>Merlin, Roman en Prose du -XIII<sup>e</sup> Siècle</i>, edited by Gaston Paris and Jacob -Ulrich (Paris, 1886), 563.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Parthey</span>: <i lang="la">Itinerarium Antonini -Augusti et Hierosolymitanum ex Libris manu scriptis</i>, edited by G. -Parthey and M. Pinder (Berlin, 1848), 514.</p> -<p><i>Pembroke County Guardian, the</i>, a newspaper owned and edited -by H. W. Williams and published at Solva, 160, 171, 172.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Pennant</span>: <i>A Tour in Scotland</i>, by -Thomas Pennant (Warrington, 1774), 310.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Pennant</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>A Tour in Scotland and a Voyage to the -Hebrides, MDCCLXXII</i>, by Thomas Pennant (Chester, 1774), 692.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Pennant</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>Tours in Wales</i>, by Thomas Pennant, -edited by J. Rhys (Carnarvon, 1883), 125, 130, 532.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Phillimore</span>: <i>Annales Cambriæ and -Old-Welsh Genealogies from Harleian MS. 3859</i>, edited by Egerton -Phillimore, in vol. ix of the <i lang="cy">Cymmrodor</i>, 408, 476, -480, 551, 570. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e4676" href= -"#xd25e4676" name="xd25e4676">xlii</a>]</span></p> -<p><span class="sc">Phillips</span>: <i>The Book of Common Prayer in -Manx Gaelic</i>, being translations made by Bishop Phillips in 1610 and -by the Manx clergy in 1765; edited by A. W. Moore, assisted by John -Rhys, and printed for the Manx Society (Douglas, 1893, 1894), 320.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Plautus</span>: <i lang="la">T. Macci Plauti -Asinaria</i>, from the text of Goetz and Schoell, by J. H. Gray -(Cambridge, 1894), 535.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Plutarch</span>: <i lang="la">De Defectu -Oraculorum</i> (the Didot ed., Paris, 1870), 331, 456, 493, 494.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Powysland</span>: <i>Collections, historical and -archæological, relating to Montgomeryshire and its Borders</i>, -issued by the Powysland Club (London, 1868–), 237.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Preller</span>: <i lang="de">Griechische -Mythologie, von L. Preller, vierte Auflage von Carl Robert</i> (Berlin, -1887), 310.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Price</span>: <i lang="cy">Hanes Cymru a Chenedl y -Cymry o’r Cynoesoeđ hyd at farwolaeth Ỻewelyn ap -Gruffyđ</i>, by the Rev. Thomas Price ‘Carnhuanawc’ -(Crickhowel, 1842), 490.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ptolemy</span>: <i lang="la">Claudii Ptolemæi -Geographia: e Codicibus recognovit Carolus Müllerus</i> (vol. i, -Paris, 1883), 385, 387, 388, 445, 581.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Pughe</span>: <i>The Physicians of Myđvai -(Međygon Myđfai)</i>, translated by John Pughe of Aberdovey, -and edited by the Rev. John Williams Ab Ithel (Ỻandovery, 1861) -[this volume has an introduction consisting of the Legend of Ỻyn -y Fan Fach, contributed by Mr. William Rees of Tonn, who collected it, -in the year 1841, from various sources named], 2, 12.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Pughe</span>: <i>A Dictionary of the Welsh Language -explained in English</i>, by Dr. Wm. Owen Pughe (2nd ed., Denbigh, -1832), 383, 502.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Rastell</span>: <i>A<span class="corr" id= -"xd25e4747" title="Not in source">.</span> C. Mery Talys</i>, printed -by John Rastell, reprinted in Hazlitt’s <i>Shakespeare -Jest-books</i> (London, 1844), 599.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Rees</span>: <i>An Essay on the Welsh Saints or the -primitive Christians usually considered to have been the founders of -Churches in Wales</i>, by the Rev. Rice Rees (London and -Ỻandovery, 1836), 163, 217, 396, 534.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Rees</span>: <i>Lives of the Cambro-British -Saints</i>, by the Rev. W. J. Rees, published for the Welsh MSS. -Society (Ỻandovery, 1853), 693.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Rennes</span>: <i lang="fr">Annales de Bretagne -publiées par la Faculté des Lettres de Rennes</i> -(Rennes, 1886–), 500.</p> -<p><i lang="fr">Revue Archéologique</i> (new series, vol. xxiii, -Paris, 1800–), 386.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Rhys</span>: <i>Celtic Britain</i>, by John Rhys -(2nd ed., London, 1884), 72.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Rhys</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>Lectures on Welsh Philology</i>, by -John Rhys (2nd ed., London, 1879), 566.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Rhys</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>Hibbert Lectures</i>, 1886, on the -origin and growth of religion as illustrated by Celtic heathendom, by -John Rhys (London, 1888), 310, 321, 328, 331, 373, 387, 432, 435, 444, -447, 511, 542, 570, 613, 654, 657, 694. <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"xd25e4803" href="#xd25e4803" name="xd25e4803">xliii</a>]</span></p> -<p><span class="sc">Rhys</span>: <i>Studies in the Arthurian -Legend</i>, by John Rhys (Oxford, 1891), 217, 287, 331, 375, 382, 387, -435, 438–41, 466, 494, 496, 561, 573, 610, 613.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Rhys</span>: <i lang="la">Cambrobrytannicæ -Cymraecæve Linguæ Institutiones et Rudimenta … -conscripta à Joanne Dauide Rhæso, Monensi -Lanuaethlæo Cambrobrytanno, Medico Senensi</i> (London, 1592), -22, 225.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Richard</span>: <i>The Poetical Works of the Rev. -Edward Richard</i> (London, 1811), 577.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Richards</span>: <i>A Welsh and English -Dictionary</i>, by Thomas Richards (Trefriw, 1815) 378.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Roberts</span>: <i>The Cambrian Popular -Antiquities</i>, by Peter Roberts, (London, 1815), 396.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Rosellini</span>: see 682.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Rymer</span>: <i lang="la">Fœdera, -Conventiones, Literæ et cujuscunque Generis Acta publica inter -Reges Angliæ et alios quosvis Imperatores, Reges, Pontifices, -Principes, vel Communitates</i>, edited by Thomas Rymer (vol. viii, -London, 1709), 490.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Sale</span>: <i>The Koran</i>, translated into -English with explanatory notes and a preliminary discourse, by George -Sale (London, 1877), 608.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Sampson</span>: <i lang="la">Otia Merseiana</i>, -the publication of the Arts Faculty of University College, Liverpool, -edited by John Sampson (London), 393, 451.</p> -<p><span class="sc">San-Marte</span>: <i lang="de">Beiträge zur -bretonischen und celtisch-germanischen Heldensage</i>, by San-Marte -(Quedlinburg, 1847), 611.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Schwan</span>: <i lang="de">Grammatik des -Altfranzösischen</i>, by Eduard Schwan (Leipsic, 1888), 563.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Scotland</span>: <i>Proceedings of the Society of -Antiquaries of Scotland</i> (Edinburgh), 244.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Scott</span>: the Works of Sir Walter Scott, 320, -643, 689.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Sébillot</span>: <i lang="fr">Traditions et -Superstitions de la Haute-Bretagne</i>, by Paul Sébillot (Paris, -1882), 273.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Shakespeare</span>: The Plays and Poems of -Shakespeare, 197, 636, 694.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Sikes</span>: <i>British Goblins, Welsh Folk-lore, -Fairy Mythology, Legends and Traditions</i>, by Wirt Sikes (London, -1880), 17, 18, 99, 155, 160, 173, 191, 192.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Silvan Evans</span>: <i>Dictionary of the Welsh -Language (Geiriadur Cymraeg)</i>, by D. Silvan Evans (Carmarthen, -1888–), 387, 431, 539, 580, 620, 621.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Silvan</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s"><span class="sc">Evans</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i lang="cy">Y Brython</i>, a periodical -in Welsh for Welsh antiquities and folklore, edited by the Rev. D. S. -Evans, and published by Robert Isaac Jones at Tremadoc (in quarto for -1858 and 1859, in octavo for 1860–2), 40, 73, 86, 98, 134, 137, -141, 151–5, 158–60, 202, 321, 413, 442, 456, 464, 470, 481, -690.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Silvan</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span><span class="ditto"><span class= -"s"><span class="sc">Evans</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i lang="cy">Ystên Sioned</i>, by D. -Silvan Evans (Aberystwyth, 1882), 271–3. <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="xd25e4932" href="#xd25e4932" name= -"xd25e4932">xliv</a>]</span></p> -<p><span class="sc">Simrock</span>: <i lang="de">Die Edda, die -ältere und jüngere, nebst den mythischen Erzählungen der -Skalda</i>, translated and explained by Karl Simrock (Stuttgart, 1855), -652.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Sinclair</span>: <i>The Statistical Account of -Scotland</i>, drawn up from the communications of the ministers of the -different parishes, by Sir John Sinclair (Edinburgh, 1794), 310.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Skene</span>: <i>Chronicles of the Picts, -Chronicles of the Scots, and other Memorials of Scottish History</i>, -edited by Wm. F. Skene (Edinburgh, 1867), 374.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Skene</span>: <i>The Four Ancient Books of -Wales</i>, by Wm. F. Skene (Edinburgh, 1868) [vol. ii contains, besides -notes and illustrations, the text of the <i>Black Book of -Carmarthen</i>, 3–61; the <i>Book of Aneurin</i>, 62–107; -the <i>Book of Taliessin</i>, 108–217; and some of the poetry in -the <i>Red Book of Hergest</i>, 218–308. These four texts are to -be found translated in vol. i], 226, 233, 269, 281, 387, 442, 541, 543, -550, 614–7.</p> -<p><i>South Wales Daily News</i> (Duncan, Cardiff), 376.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Southey</span>: Madoc, a poem by Robert Southey -(London, 1815), 169–71.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Speed</span>: <i>The Theatre of the Empire of Great -Britaine</i>, by John Speed [not <i>Speede</i>] (London, 1611), -208.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Steinmeyer</span>: <i lang="de">Die -althochdeutschen Glossen</i>, collected and elaborated by Elias -Steinmeyer and Eduard Sievers (Berlin, 1879–98), 683.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Stengel</span>: <i lang="de">Li Romans de Durmart -le Galois, altfranzösisches Rittergedicht</i>, published for the -first time by Edmund Stengel (Tübingen, 1873), 438.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Stephens</span>: <i>The Gododin of Aneurin -Gwawdryđ</i>, with an English translation and copious notes, by -Thomas Stephens; edited by Professor Powel, and printed for the -Cymmrodorion Society (London, 1888), 310, 543, 647.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Stevenson</span>: <i>The Scottish Antiquary or -Northern Notes and Queries</i>, edited by J. H. Stevenson (Edinburgh, -1886–), 693.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Stokes</span>: <i>Cormac’s Glossary</i>: see -<span class="sc">Cormac</span>.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Stokes</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>Goidelica, Old and Early-Middle-Irish -Glosses, Prose and Verse</i>, edited by Whitley Stokes (2nd ed., -London, 1872), 295, 374.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Stokes</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i lang="de">Irische Texte mit -Uebersetzungen und Wörterbuch</i>, edited by Whitley Stokes and E. -Windisch (3rd series, Leipsic, 1891), 631.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Stokes</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i>The Tripartite Life of Patrick</i>, -edited, with translations and indexes, by Whitley Stokes (Rolls Series, -London, 1887), 535.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Stokes</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i lang="de">Urkeltischer Sprachschatz von -Whitley Stokes, übersetzt, überarbeitet und herausgegeben von -Adalbert Bezzenberger</i>, forming the second part of the fourth -edition of Fick’s <i lang="de">Vergleichendes Wörterbuch der -indogermanischen Sprachen</i> (Gottingen, 1894), 671. <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="xd25e5065" href="#xd25e5065" name= -"xd25e5065">xlv</a>]</span></p> -<p><span class="sc">Strabo</span>: <i lang="la">Strabonis Geographica -recognovit Augustus Meineke</i> (Leipsic, 1852–3), 654.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Sturlæus</span>: <i lang="la">Edda Snorronis -Sturlæi</i> (Copenhagen, 1848), 652.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Tacitus</span>: <i lang="la">Cornelii Taciti de -Origine et Situ Germanorum Liber</i>, edited by Alfred Holder (Freiburg -i. B., and Tübingen, 1882), 271.</p> -<p><i lang="cy">Taliesin</i>, a Welsh periodical published at Ruthin in -1859–60, 135–7, 269.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Taliessin</span>: <i>The Book of Taliessin</i> (see -<span class="sc">Skene</span>), 550, 614–7.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Tegid</span>: <i lang="cy">Gwaith Barđonol y -diweđar barch. John Jones ‘Tegid’</i> [also called -Joan Tegid], edited by the Rev. Henry Roberts (Ỻandovery, 1859), -445.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Triads</span>: [The so-called Historical Triads, -referred to in this volume, are to be found in the <i>Myvyrian -Archaiology</i> (London, 1801), series i and ii in vol. ii, 1–22, -and (the later) series iii in the same vol., 57–80. In the -single-volume edition of the <i>Myvyrian</i> (Denbigh, 1870), they -occupy continuously pp. 388–414. Series ii comes from the <i>Red -Book of Hergest</i>, and will be found also in the volume of the Oxford -<i>Mabinogion</i>, pp. 297–309], 170, 281, 326, 382, -429–31, 433, 440, 441, 443–5, 498, 500, 501, 503–9, -565, 569.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Tylor</span>: <i>Primitive Culture, Researches into -the Development of Mythology, Philosophy, Religion, Language, Art, and -Custom</i>, by Edward Tylor (2nd ed., London, 1873), 290, 329, 601, -603, 641, 658.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Twyne</span>: Thomas Twyne’s <i>Breuiary of -Britayne</i>, a translation of Humfrey Lhuyd’s <i>Fragmentum</i> -(London, 1573), 412.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Ulfilas</span>: <i>Ulfilas</i>, Text, Grammar, and -Dictionary, elaborated and edited by F. L. Stamm (Paderborn, 1869), -626.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Vigfusson</span>: <i>An Icelandic Dictionary</i>, -enlarged and completed by Gudbrand Vigfusson (Oxford, 1874), 288, -652.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Vising</span>: see 563.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Waldron</span>: <i>A Description of the Isle of -Man</i>, by George Waldron, being vol. xi of the Manx Society’s -publications (Douglas, 1865), 290.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Waring</span>: <i>Recollections and Anecdotes of -Edward Williams</i>, by Elijah Waring (London, 1850), 458.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Westermarck</span>: <i>The History of Human -Marriage</i>, by Edward Westermarck (London, 1894), 654.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Weyman</span>: <i>From the Memoirs of a Minister of -France</i>, by Stanley Weyman (London, 1895), 690.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Williams</span>: <i>The English Works of Eliezer -Williams</i>, with a memoir of his life by his son, St. George -Armstrong Williams (London, 1840), 493. <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"xd25e5196" href="#xd25e5196" name="xd25e5196">xlvi</a>]</span></p> -<p><span class="sc">Williams</span>: <i lang="cy">Brut y -Tywysogion</i>, or the Chronicle of the Princes, edited by John -Williams Ab Ithel (Rolls Series, London, 1860), 79, 513.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Williams</span>: <i>A Biographical Dictionary of -Eminent Welshmen</i>, by the Rev. Robert Williams (Ỻandovery, -1852), 534.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Williams</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i lang="cy">Y Seint Greal</i>, edited -with a translation and glossary by the Rev. Robert Williams (London, -1876), 438, 514, 580.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Williams</span>: <i>The Doom of Colyn Dolphyn</i>, -by Taliesin Williams (London, 1837), 561.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Williams</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i lang="cy">Traethawd ar Gywreineđ -Glynn Neđ</i>, by Taliesin Williams: see 439.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Williams</span>: <i>Observations on the Snowdon -Mountains</i>, by William Williams of Ỻandegai (London, 1802), -48, 673, 674.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Windisch</span>: <i lang="de">Irische Texte mit -Wörterbuch</i>, by Ernst Windisch (Leipsic, 1880), 501, 657.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Windisch</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i lang="de">Kurzgefasste irische -Grammatik</i> (Leipsic, 1879), 291, 501, 502, 531, 546, 547, 603, 613, -618, 691.</p> -<p><span class="ditto"><span class="s"><span class= -"sc">Windisch</span></span><span class="d"><span class= -"i">,,</span></span></span>: <i lang="de">Über die irische Sage -Noinden Ulad</i>, in the <i lang="de">Berichte der k. sächs. -Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften</i> (<i lang="de">phil.-historische -Classe</i>, Dec. 1884), 654.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Woodall</span>: <i>Bye-gones</i>, a periodical -reissue of notes, queries, and replies on subjects relating to Wales -and the Borders, published in the columns of <i>The Border Counties -Advertizer</i>, by Messrs. Woodall, Minshall & Co. of the Caxton -Press, Oswestry, 169, 378.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Wood-Martin</span>: <i>Pagan Ireland</i>, by W. G. -Wood-Martin (London, 1895), 612.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Worth</span>: <i>A History of Devonshire, with -Sketches of its leading Worthies</i>, by R. N. Worth (London, 1895), -307.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Wright</span>: <i>The English Dialect -Dictionary</i>, edited by Professor Joseph Wright (London and Oxford, -1898–), 66.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Wynne</span>: <i>The History of the Gwydir -Family</i>, published by Angharad Ỻwyd in the year 1827, and by -Askew Roberts at Oswestry in 1878, 490, 491, 670.</p> -<p><i lang="cy">Y Cymmrodor</i>, the magazine embodying the -transactions of the Cymmrodorion Society of London (Secretary, E. -Vincent Evans, 64 Chancery Lane, W.C.), 374, 384, 480, 510, 513, 520, -600, 610, 690, 693, 694.</p> -<p><i lang="cy">Y Drych</i>, a newspaper published at Utica in the -United States of North America, 234.</p> -<p><i lang="cy">Y Gordofigion</i>, an extinct Welsh periodical: see p. -450.</p> -<p><i lang="cy">Y Gwyliedyđ</i>, a magazine of useful knowledge -intended for the benefit of monoglot Welshmen (Bala, 1823–37), -450.</p> -<p><i lang="cy">Y Nofelyđ</i>, a Welsh periodical published by Mr. -Aubrey, of Ỻannerch y Međ, 396.</p> -<p><span class="sc">Young</span>: <i>Burghead</i>, by H. W. Young -(Inverness, 1899), 345. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="xd25e5337" href= -"#xd25e5337" name="xd25e5337">xlvii</a>]</span></p> -</div> -</div> -<div class="div1 frenchtitle"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#toc">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first xd25e5340">CELTIC FOLKLORE</p> -<p class="xd25e5340">WELSH AND MANX <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"xd25e5344" href="#xd25e5344" name="xd25e5344">xlviii</a>]</span></p> -</div> -</div> -<div class="div1 epigraph"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#toc">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<blockquote> -<p lang="la" class="first">Gallias utique possedit, et quidem ad -nostram memoriam. Namque Tiberii Cæsaris principatus sustulit -Druidas eorum, et hoc genus vatum medicorumque. Sed quid ego hæc -commemorem in arte Oceanum quoque transgressa, et ad naturæ inane -pervecta? Britannia hodieque eam attonite celebrat tantis cerimoniis, -ut dedisse Persis videri possit. Adeo ista toto mundo consensere, -quamquam discordi et sibi ignoto. Nec satis æstimari potest, -quantum Romanis debeatur, qui sustulere monstra, in quibus hominem -occidere religiosissimum erat, mandi vero etiam saluberrimum.</p> -</blockquote> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="xd25e5350"><span class="sc">Pliny</span>, <i lang= -"la">Historia Naturalis</i>, <span class="sc">XXX.</span> 4.</p> -<blockquote> -<p lang="fr" class="first">Pline fait remarquer que ces pratiques -antipathiques au génie grec sont d’origine médique. -Nous les rencontrons en Europe à l’état de -survivances. L’universalité de ces superstitions prouve en -effet qu’elles émanent d’une source unique qui -n’est pas européenne. Il est difficile de les -considérer comme un produit de l’esprit aryen; il faut -remonter plus haut pour en trouver l’origine. Si, en Gaule, en -Grande-Bretagne, en Irlande, tant de superstitions relevant de la -<i>magie</i> existaient encore au temps de Pline enracinées dans -les esprits à tel point que le grand naturaliste pouvait dire, -à propos de la Bretagne, qu’il semblait que ce fût -elle qui avait donné la magie à la Perse, c’est -qu’en Gaule, en Grande-Bretagne, et en Irlande le fond de la -population était composé d’éléments -étrangers à la race aryenne, comme les faits -archéologiques le démontrent, ainsi que le reconnait -notre éminent confrère et ami, M. d’Arbois de -Jubainville lui-même.</p> -</blockquote> -<p class="xd25e5350"><span class="sc">Alexandre Bertrand</span>, -<i lang="fr">La Religion des Gaulois</i>, pp. 55, 56.</p> -<blockquote> -<p lang="fr" class="first">Une croyance universellement admise dans le -monde lettré, en France et hors de France, fait des -Français les fils des Gaulois qui ont pris Rome en 390 avant -Jésus-Christ, et que César a vaincus au milieu du premier -siècle avant notre ère. On croit que nous sommes des -Gaulois, survivant à toutes les révolutions qui depuis -tant de siècles ont bouleversé le monde. C’est une -idée préconçue que, suivant moi, la science doit -rejeter. Seuls à peu près, les archéologues ont vu -la vérité …. Les pierres levées, les -cercles de pierre, les petites cabanes construites en gros blocs de -pierre pour servir de dernier asile aux défunts, étaient, -croyait-on, des monuments celtiques …. On donnait à -ces rustiques témoignages d’une civilisation primitive des -noms bretons, ou néo-celtiques de France; on croyait -naïvement, en reproduisant des mots de cette langue moderne, -parler comme auraient fait, s’ils avaient pu revenir à la -vie, ceux qui ont remué ces lourdes pierres, ceux qui les ont -fixées debout sur le sol ou même élevées sur -d’autres …. Mais ceux qui ont dressé les -pierres levées, les cercles de pierres; ceux qui ont construit -les cabanes funéraires ne parlaient pas celtique et le breton -diffère du celtique comme le français du latin.</p> -</blockquote> -<p class="xd25e5350"><span class="sc">H. d’Arbois de -Jubainville</span>, <i lang="fr">Les premiers Habitants de -l’Europe</i>, II. xi–xiii. <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb1" href="#pb1" name="pb1">1</a>]</span></p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<div class="body"> -<div id="ch1" class="div1 chapter"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e294">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h2 class="label">CHAPTER I</h2> -<h2 class="main"><span class="sc">Undine’s Kymric -Sisters</span></h2> -<div class="epigraph"> -<div lang="de" class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">Undine, liebes Bildchen du,</p> -<p class="line">Seit ich zuerst aus alten Kunden</p> -<p class="line">Dein seltsam Leuchten aufgefunden<span class="corr" id= -"xd25e5402" title="Source: ;">,</span></p> -<p class="line">Wie sangst du oft mein Herz in Ruh!</p> -</div> -<p class="first xd25e5350"><span class="sc">De la Motte -Fouqué</span>.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">The chief object of this and several of the following -chapters is to place on record all the matter I can find on the subject -of Welsh lake legends: what I may have to say of them is merely by the -way and sporadic, and I should feel well paid for my trouble if these -contributions should stimulate others to communicate to the public bits -of similar legends, which, possibly, still linger unrecorded among the -mountains of Wales. For it should be clearly understood that all such -things bear on the history of the Welsh, as the history of no people -can be said to have been written so long as its superstitions and -beliefs in past times have not been studied; and those who may think -that the legends here recorded are childish and frivolous, may rest -assured that they bear on questions which could not themselves be -called either childish or frivolous. So, however silly a legend may be -thought, let him who knows such a legend communicate it to somebody who -will place it on record; he will then probably find that it has more -meaning and interest than he had anticipated. <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb2" href="#pb2" name="pb2">2</a>]</span></p> -<div id="ch1.1" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e305">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">I.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">I find it best to begin by reproducing a story which -has already been placed on record: this appears desirable on account of -its being the most complete of its kind, and the one with which shorter -ones can most readily be compared. I allude to the legend of the Lady -of Ỻyn y Fan Fach in Carmarthenshire, which I take the liberty of -copying from Mr. Rees of Tonn’s version in the introduction to -<i>The Physicians of Myđvai</i><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e5422src" href="#xd25e5422" name="xd25e5422src">1</a>, published -by the Welsh Manuscript Society, at Ỻandovery, in 1861. There he -says that he wrote it down from the oral recitations, which I suppose -were in Welsh, of John Evans, tiler, of Myđfai, David Williams, -Morfa, near Myđfai, who was about ninety years old at the time, -and Elizabeth Morgan, of Henỻys Lodge, near Ỻandovery, who -was a native of the same village of Myđfai; to this it may be -added that he acknowledges obligations also to Joseph Joseph, Esq., -F.S.A., Brecon, for collecting particulars from the old inhabitants of -the parish of Ỻanđeusant. The legend, as given by Mr. Rees -in English, runs as follows, and strongly reminds one in certain parts -of the Story of Undine as given in the German of De la Motte -Fouqué, with which it should be compared:—</p> -<p>‘When the eventful struggle made by the Princes of South Wales -to preserve the independence of their country was drawing to its close -in the twelfth century, <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb3" href="#pb3" -name="pb3">3</a>]</span>there lived at Blaensawđe<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e5476src" href="#xd25e5476" name="xd25e5476src">2</a> -near Ỻanđeusant, Carmarthenshire, a widowed woman, the -relict of a farmer who had fallen in those disastrous troubles.</p> -<p>‘The widow had an only son to bring up, but Providence smiled -upon her, and despite her forlorn condition, her live stock had so -increased in course of time, that she could not well depasture them -upon her farm, so she sent a portion of her cattle to graze on the -adjoining Black Mountain, and their most favourite place was near the -small lake called Ỻyn y Fan Fach, on the north-western side of -the Carmarthenshire Fans.</p> -<p>‘The son grew up to manhood, and was generally sent by his -mother to look after the cattle on the mountain. One day, in his -peregrinations along the margin of the lake, to his great astonishment, -he beheld, sitting on the unruffled surface of the water, a lady; one -of the most beautiful creatures that mortal eyes ever beheld, her hair -flowed gracefully in ringlets over her shoulders, the tresses of which -she arranged with a comb, whilst the glassy surface of her watery couch -served for the purpose of a mirror, reflecting back her own image. -Suddenly she beheld the young man standing on the brink of the lake, -with his eyes riveted on her, and unconsciously offering to herself the -provision of barley bread and cheese with which he had been provided -when he left his home.</p> -<p>‘Bewildered by a feeling of love and admiration for the object -before him, he continued to hold out his hand towards the lady, who -imperceptibly glided near to him, but gently refused the offer of his -provisions. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb4" href="#pb4" name= -"pb4">4</a>]</span>He attempted to touch her, but she eluded his grasp, -saying—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Cras dy fara;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Nid hawđ fy nala.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Hard baked is thy bread!</p> -<p class="line">’Tis not easy to catch me<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e5502src" href="#xd25e5502" name="xd25e5502src">3</a>;</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">and immediately dived under the water and disappeared, -leaving the love-stricken youth to return home, a prey to -disappointment and regret that he had been unable to make further -acquaintance with one, in comparison with whom the whole of the fair -maidens of Ỻanđeusant and Myđfai<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e5507src" href="#xd25e5507" name="xd25e5507src">4</a> whom he had -ever seen were as nothing.</p> -<p>On his return home the young man communicated to his mother the -extraordinary vision he had beheld. She advised him to take some -unbaked dough or “toes” the next time in his pocket, as -there must have been some spell connected with the hard-baked bread, or -“Bara cras,” which prevented his catching the lady.</p> -<p>‘Next morning, before the sun had gilded with its rays the -peaks of the Fans, the young man was at the lake, not for the purpose -of looking after his mother’s cattle, but seeking for the same -enchanting vision he <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb5" href="#pb5" -name="pb5">5</a>]</span>had witnessed the day before; but all in vain -did he anxiously strain his eyeballs and glance over the surface of the -lake, as only the ripples occasioned by a stiff breeze met his view, -and a cloud hung heavily on the summit of the Fan, which imparted an -additional gloom to his already distracted mind.</p> -<p>‘Hours passed on, the wind was hushed, and the clouds which -had enveloped the mountain had vanished into thin air before the -powerful beams of the sun, when the youth was startled by seeing some -of his mother’s cattle on the precipitous side of the acclivity, -nearly on the opposite side of the lake. His duty impelled him to -attempt to rescue them from their perilous position, for which purpose -he was hastening away, when, to his inexpressible delight, the object -of his search again appeared to him as before, and seemed much more -beautiful than when he first beheld her. His hand was again held out to -her, full of unbaked bread, which he offered with an urgent proffer of -his heart also, and vows of eternal attachment. All of which were -refused by her, saying—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Ỻaith dy fara!</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Ti ni fynna’.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Unbaked is thy bread!</p> -<p class="line">I will not have thee<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e5582src" href="#xd25e5582" name="xd25e5582src">5</a>.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">But the smiles that played upon her features as the -lady vanished beneath the waters raised within the young man a hope -that forbade him to despair by her refusal of him, and the recollection -of which cheered him on his way home. His aged parent was made -acquainted with his ill-success, and she suggested that his bread -should next time be but slightly baked, as most likely to please the -mysterious being of whom he had become enamoured.</p> -<p>‘Impelled by an irresistible feeling, the youth left -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb6" href="#pb6" name= -"pb6">6</a>]</span>his mother’s house early next morning, and -with rapid steps he passed over the mountain. He was soon near the -margin of the lake, and with all the impatience of an ardent lover did -he wait with a feverish anxiety for the reappearance of the mysterious -lady.</p> -<p>‘The sheep and goats browsed on the precipitous sides of the -Fan; the cattle strayed amongst the rocks and large stones, some of -which were occasionally loosened from their beds and suddenly rolled -down into the lake; rain and sunshine alike came and passed away; but -all were unheeded by the youth, so wrapped up was he in looking for the -appearance of the lady.</p> -<p>‘The freshness of the early morning had disappeared before the -sultry rays of the noon-day sun, which in its turn was fast verging -towards the west as the evening was dying away and making room for the -shades of night, and hope had wellnigh abated of beholding once more -the Lady of the Lake. The young man cast a sad and last farewell look -over the waters, and, to his astonishment, beheld several cows walking -along its surface. The sight of these animals caused hope to revive -that they would be followed by another object far more pleasing; nor -was he disappointed, for the maiden reappeared, and to his enraptured -sight, even lovelier than ever. She approached the land, and he rushed -to meet her in the water. A smile encouraged him to seize her hand; -neither did she refuse the moderately baked bread he offered her; and -after some persuasion she consented to become his bride, on condition -that they should only live together until she received from him three -blows without a cause,</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Tri ergyd diachos.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Three causeless blows.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">And if he ever should happen to strike her three such -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb7" href="#pb7" name= -"pb7">7</a>]</span>blows she would leave him for ever. To such -conditions he readily consented, and would have consented to any other -stipulation, had it been proposed, as he was only intent on then -securing such a lovely creature for his wife.</p> -<p>‘Thus the Lady of the Lake engaged to become the young -man’s wife, and having loosed her hand for a moment she darted -away and dived into the lake. His chagrin and grief were such that he -determined to cast himself headlong into the deepest water, so as to -end his life in the element that had contained in its unfathomed depths -the only one for whom he cared to live on earth. As he was on the point -of committing this rash act, there emerged out of the lake <i>two</i> -most beautiful ladies, accompanied by a hoary-headed man of noble mien -and extraordinary stature, but having otherwise all the force and -strength of youth. This man addressed the almost bewildered youth in -accents calculated to soothe his troubled mind, saying that as he -proposed to marry one of his daughters, he consented to the union, -provided the young man could distinguish which of the two ladies before -him was the object of his affections. This was no easy task, as the -maidens were such perfect counterparts of each other that it seemed -quite impossible for him to choose his bride, and if perchance he fixed -upon the wrong one all would be for ever lost.</p> -<p>‘Whilst the young man narrowly scanned the two ladies, he -could not perceive the least difference betwixt the two, and was almost -giving up the task in despair, when one of them thrust her foot a -slight degree forward. The motion, simple as it was, did not escape the -observation of the youth, and he discovered a trifling variation in the -mode with which their sandals were tied. This at once put an end to the -dilemma, for he, <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb8" href="#pb8" name= -"pb8">8</a>]</span>who had on previous occasions been so taken up with -the general appearance of the Lady of the Lake, had also noticed the -beauty of her feet and ankles, and on now recognizing the peculiarity -of her shoe-tie he boldly took hold of her hand.</p> -<p>‘ “Thou hast chosen rightly,” said her -father; “be to her a kind and faithful husband, and I will give -her, as a dowry, as many sheep, cattle, goats, and horses as she can -count of each without heaving or drawing in her breath. But remember, -that if you prove unkind to her at any time, and strike her three times -without a cause, she shall return to me, and shall bring all her stock -back with her.”</p> -<p>‘Such was the verbal marriage settlement, to which the young -man gladly assented, and his bride was desired to count the number of -sheep she was to have. She immediately adopted the mode of counting by -<i>fives</i>, thus:—One, two, three, four, five—One, two, -three, four, five; as many times as possible in rapid succession, till -her breath was exhausted. The same process of reckoning had to -determine the number of goats, cattle, and horses respectively; and in -an instant the full number of each came out of the lake when called -upon by the father.</p> -<p>‘The young couple were then married, by what ceremony was not -stated, and afterwards went to reside at a farm called Esgair -Ỻaethdy, somewhat more than a mile from the village of -Myđfai, where they lived in prosperity and happiness for several -years, and became the parents of three sons, who were beautiful -children.</p> -<p>‘Once upon a time there was a christening to take place in the -neighbourhood, to which the parents were specially invited. When the -day arrived the wife appeared very reluctant to attend the christening, -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb9" href="#pb9" name= -"pb9">9</a>]</span>alleging that the distance was too great for her to -walk. Her husband told her to fetch one of the horses which were -grazing in an adjoining field. “I will,” said she, -“if you will bring me my gloves which I left in our house.” -He went to the house and returned with the gloves, and finding that she -had not gone for the horse jocularly slapped her shoulder with one of -them, saying, “go! go!” (<i lang="cy">dos, dos</i>), when -she reminded him of the understanding upon which she consented to marry -him:—That he was not to strike her without a cause; and warned -him to be more cautious for the future.</p> -<p>‘On another occasion, when they were together at a wedding, in -the midst of the mirth and hilarity of the assembled guests, who had -gathered together from all the surrounding country, she burst into -tears and sobbed most piteously. Her husband touched her on her -shoulder and inquired the cause of her weeping: she said, “Now -people are entering into trouble, and your troubles are likely to -commence, as you have the <i>second</i> time stricken me without a -cause.”</p> -<p>‘Years passed on, and their children had grown up, and were -particularly clever young men. In the midst of so many worldly -blessings at home the husband almost forgot that there remained only -<i>one</i> causeless blow to be given to destroy the whole of his -prosperity. Still he was watchful lest any trivial occurrence should -take place which his wife must regard as a breach of their marriage -contract. She told him, as her affection for him was unabated, to be -careful that he would not, through some inadvertence, give the last and -only blow, which, by an unalterable destiny, over which she had no -control, would separate them for ever.</p> -<p>‘It, however, so happened that one day they were together at a -funeral, where, in the midst of the mourning and grief at the house of -the deceased, she appeared <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb10" href= -"#pb10" name="pb10">10</a>]</span>in the highest and gayest spirits, -and indulged in immoderate fits of laughter, which so shocked her -husband that he touched her, saying, “Hush! hush! don’t -laugh.” She said that she laughed “because people when they -die go out of trouble,” and, rising up, she went out of the -house, saying, “The last blow has been struck, our marriage -contract is broken, and at an end! Farewell!” Then she started -off towards Esgair Ỻaethdy, where she called her cattle and other -stock together, each by name. The cattle she called thus:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Mu wlfrech, Moelfrech,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Mu olfrech, Gwynfrech,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Pedair cae tonn-frech,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Yr hen wynebwen,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>A’r las Geigen,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Gyda’r Tarw Gwyn</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>O lys y Brenin;</i></p> -<p class="line xd25e5678"><i>A’r ỻo du bach,</i></p> -<p class="line xd25e5678"><i>Syđ ar y bach,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Dere dithau, yn iach adre!</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Brindled cow, white speckled,</p> -<p class="line">Spotted cow, bold freckled,</p> -<p class="line">The four field sward mottled,</p> -<p class="line">The old white-faced,</p> -<p class="line">And the grey Geingen,</p> -<p class="line">With the white Bull,</p> -<p class="line">From the court of the King;</p> -<p class="line xd25e5678">And the little black calf</p> -<p class="line xd25e5678">Tho’ suspended on the hook,</p> -<p class="line">Come thou also, quite well home!</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">They all immediately obeyed the summons of their -mistress. The “little black calf,” although it had been -slaughtered, became alive again, and walked off with the rest of the -stock at the command of the lady. This happened in the spring of the -year, and there were four oxen ploughing in one of the fields; to these -she cried:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Pedwar eidion glas</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Syđ ar y maes,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Denwch chwithan</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Yn iach adre!</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">The four grey oxen,</p> -<p class="line">That are on the field,</p> -<p class="line">Come you also</p> -<p class="line">Quite well home!</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">Away the whole of the live stock went with the Lady -across Myđfai Mountain, towards the lake from whence they came, a -distance of above six miles, where they disappeared beneath its waters, -leaving no trace behind except a well-marked furrow, which was made by -the plough the oxen drew after them into the lake, and <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb11" href="#pb11" name="pb11">11</a>]</span>which -remains to this day as a testimony to the truth of this story.</p> -<p>‘What became of the affrighted ploughman—whether he was -left on the field when the oxen set off, or whether he followed them to -the lake, has not been handed down to tradition; neither has the fate -of the disconsolate and half-ruined husband been kept in remembrance. -But of the sons it is stated that they often wandered about the lake -and its vicinity, hoping that their mother might be permitted to visit -the face of the earth once more, as they had been apprised of her -mysterious origin, her first appearance to their father, and the -untoward circumstances which so unhappily deprived them of her maternal -care.</p> -<p>‘In one of their rambles, at a place near Dôl Howel, at -the Mountain Gate, still called “Ỻidiad y -Međygon,” The Physicians’ Gate, the mother appeared -suddenly, and accosted her eldest son, whose name was Rhiwaỻon, -and told him that his mission on earth was to be a benefactor to -mankind by relieving them from pain and misery, through healing all -manner of their diseases; for which purpose she furnished him with a -bag full of medical prescriptions and instructions for the preservation -of health. That by strict attention thereto he and his family would -become for many generations the most skilful physicians in the country. -Then, promising to meet him when her counsel was most needed, she -vanished. But on several occasions she met her sons near the banks of -the lake, and once she even accompanied them on their return home as -far as a place still called “Pant-y-Međygon,” The -dingle of the Physicians, where she pointed out to them the various -plants and herbs which grew in the dingle, and revealed to them their -medicinal qualities or virtues; and the knowledge she imparted to them, -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb12" href="#pb12" name= -"pb12">12</a>]</span>together with their unrivalled skill, soon caused -them to attain such celebrity that none ever possessed before them. And -in order that their knowledge should not be lost, they wisely committed -the same to writing, for the benefit of mankind throughout all -ages.’</p> -<p>To the legend Mr. Rees added the following notes, which we reproduce -also at full length:—</p> -<p>‘And so ends the story of the Physicians of Myđfai, which -has been handed down from one generation to another, thus:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Yr hên wr ỻwyd o’r cornel,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Gan ci dad a glywođ chwedel<a class="noteref" -id="xd25e5764src" href="#xd25e5764" name="xd25e5764src">6</a>,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>A chan ci dad fe glywođ yntau</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Ac ar ei ôl mi gofiais innau.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">The grey old man in the corner</p> -<p class="line">Of his father heard a story,</p> -<p class="line">Which from his father he had heard,</p> -<p class="line">And after them I have remembered.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">As stated in the introduction of the present work -[i.e. <i>the Physicians of Myđvai</i>], Rhiwaỻon and his -sons became Physicians to Rhys Gryg, Lord of Ỻandovery and -Dynefor Castles, “who gave them rank, lands, and privileges at -Myđfai for their maintenance in the practice of their art and -science, and the healing and benefit of those who should seek their -help,” thus affording to those who could not afford to pay, the -best medical advice and treatment gratuitously. Such a truly royal -foundation could not fail to produce corresponding effects. So the fame -of the Physicians of Myđfai was soon established over the whole -country, and continued for centuries among their descendants.</p> -<p>‘The celebrated Welsh Bard, Dafyđ ap Gwilym, who -flourished in the following century, and was buried at the Abbey of -Tal-y-ỻychau<a class="noteref" id="xd25e5801src" href= -"#xd25e5801" name="xd25e5801src">7</a>, in Carmarthenshire, -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb13" href="#pb13" name= -"pb13">13</a>]</span>about the year 1368, says in one of his poems, as -quoted in Dr. Davies’ dictionary—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Međyg ni wnai mođ y gwnaeth</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Myđfai, o chai đyn međfaeth.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">A Physician he would not make</p> -<p class="line">As Myđfai made, if he had a mead fostered man.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">Of the above lands bestowed upon the Međygon, -there are two farms in Myđfai parish still called -“Ỻwyn Ifan Feđyg,” the Grove of Evan the -Physician; and “Ỻwyn Meredyđ Feđyg,” the -Grove of Meredith the Physician. Esgair Ỻaethdy, mentioned in the -foregoing legend, was formerly in the possession of the above -descendants, and so was Ty newyđ, near Myđfai, which was -purchased by Mr. Holford, of Cilgwyn, from the Rev. Charles Lloyd, -vicar of Ỻandefaỻe, Breconshire, who married a daughter of -one of the Međygon, and had the living of Ỻandefaỻe -from a Mr. Vaughan, who presented him to the same out of gratitude, -because Mr. Lloyd’s wife’s father had cured him of a -disease in the eye. As Mr. Lloyd succeeded to the above living in 1748, -and died in 1800, it is probable that the skilful oculist was John -Jones, who is mentioned in the following inscription on a tombstone at -present fixed against the west end of Myđfai Church:—</p> -<blockquote> -<p class="first xd25e118">HERE<br> -Lieth the body of Mr. DAVID JONES, of Mothvey, Surgeon,<br> -who was an honest, charitable, and skilful man.<br> -He died September 14th, Anno Dom̃ 1719, aged 61.</p> -<p class="xd25e118">JOHN JONES, Surgeon,<br> -Eldest son of the said David Jones, departed this life<br> -the 25th of November, 1739, in the 44th year<br> -of his Age, and also lyes interred hereunder.</p> -</blockquote> -<p>These appear to have been the last of the Physicians who practised -at Myđfai. The above John Jones resided for some time at -Ỻandovery, and was a very eminent surgeon. One of his -descendants, named <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb14" href="#pb14" -name="pb14">14</a>]</span>John Lewis, lived at Cwmbran, Myđfai, at -which place his great-grandson, Mr. John Jones, now resides.</p> -<p>‘Dr. Morgan Owen, Bishop of Ỻandaff, who died at -Glasaỻt, parish of Myđfai, in 1645, was a descendant of the -Međygon, and an inheritor of much of their landed property in that -parish, the bulk of which he bequeathed to his nephew, Morgan Owen, who -died in 1667, and was succeeded by his son Henry Owen; and at the -decease of the last of whose descendants, Robert Lewis, Esq., the -estates became, through the will of one of the family, the property of -the late D. A. S. Davies, Esq., M.P. for Carmarthenshire.</p> -<p>‘Bishop Owen bequeathed to another nephew, Morgan ap Rees, son -of Rees ap John, a descendant of the Međygon, the farm of Rhyblid, -and some other property. Morgan ap Rees’ son, Samuel Rice, -resided at Loughor, in Gower, Glamorganshire, and had a son, Morgan -Rice, who was a merchant in London, and became Lord of the Manor of -Tooting Graveney, and High Sheriff in the year 1772, and Deputy -Lieutenant of the county of Surrey, 1776. He resided at Hill House, -which he built. At his death the whole of his property passed to his -only child, John Rice, Esq., whose eldest son, the Rev. John Morgan -Rice, inherited the greater portion of his estates. The head of the -family is now the Rev. Horatio Morgan Rice, rector of South Hill with -Callington, Cornwall, and J.P. for the county, who inherited, with -other property, a small estate at Loughor. The above Morgan Rice had -landed property in Ỻanmadock and Ỻangenith, as well as -Loughor, in Gower, but whether he had any connexion with Howel the -Physician (ap Rhys ap Ỻywelyn ap Philip the Physician, and lineal -descendant from Einion ap Rhiwaỻon), who resided at Cilgwryd in -Gower, is not known. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb15" href="#pb15" -name="pb15">15</a>]</span></p> -<p>‘Amongst other families who claim descent from the Physicians -were the Bowens of Cwmydw, Myđfai; and Jones of Dollgarreg and -Penrhock, in the same parish; the latter of whom are represented by -Charles Bishop, of Dollgarreg, Esq., Clerk of the Peace for -Carmarthenshire, and Thomas Bishop, of Brecon, Esq.</p> -<p>‘Rees Williams of Myđfai is recorded as one of the -Međygon. His great-grandson was the late Rice Williams, M.D., of -Aberystwyth, who died May 16, 1842, aged 85, and appears to have been -the last, although not the least eminent, of the Physicians descended -from the mysterious Lady of Ỻyn y Fan<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e5855src" href="#xd25e5855" name="xd25e5855src">8</a>.’</p> -<p>This brings the legend of the Lady of the Fan Lake into connexion -with a widely-spread family. There is another connexion between it and -modern times, as will be seen from the following statement kindly made -to me by the Rev. A. G. Edwards, Warden of the Welsh College at -Ỻandovery, since then appointed Bishop of St. Asaph: ‘An -old woman from Myđfai, who is now, that is to say in January 1881, -about eighty years of age, tells me that she remembers “thousands -and thousands of people visiting the Lake of the Little Fan on the -first Sunday or Monday in August, and when she was young she often -heard old men declare that at that time a commotion took place in the -lake, and that its waters boiled, which was taken to herald the -approach of the Lake Lady and her Oxen.” ’ The custom -of going up to the lake on the first Sunday in August was a very well -known one in years gone by, as I have learned from a good many people, -and it is corroborated by Mr. Joseph Joseph of Brecon, who kindly -writes as follows, in reply to some queries <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb16" href="#pb16" name="pb16">16</a>]</span>of mine: -‘On the first Sunday in the month of August, Ỻyn y Fan Fach -is supposed to be boiling (<i lang="cy">berwi</i>). I have seen scores -of people going up to see it (not boiling though) on that day. I do not -remember that any of them expected to see the Lady of the Lake.’ -As to the boiling of the lake I have nothing to say, and I am not sure -that there is anything in the following statement made as an -explanation of the yearly visit to the lake by an old fisherwoman from -Ỻandovery: ‘The best time for eels is in August, when the -north-east wind blows on the lake, and makes huge waves in it. The eels -can then be seen floating on the waves.’</p> -<p>Last summer I went myself to the village of Myđfai, to see if I -could pick up any variants of the legend, but I was hardly successful; -for though several of the farmers I questioned could repeat bits of the -legend, including the Lake Lady’s call to her cattle as she went -away, I got nothing new, except that one of them said that the youth, -when he first saw the Lake Lady at a distance, thought she was a -goose—he did not even rise to the conception of a swan—but -that by degrees he approached her, and discovered that she was a lady -in white, and that in due time they were married, and so on. My friend, -the Warden of Ỻandovery College, seems, however, to have found a -bit of a version which may have been still more unlike the one recorded -by Mr. Rees of Tonn: it was from an old man at Myđfai last year, -from whom he was, nevertheless, only able to extract the statement -‘that the Lake Lady got somehow entangled in a farmer’s -“gambo,” and that ever after his farm was very -fertile.’ A ‘gambo,’ I ought to explain, is a kind of -a cart without sides, used in South Wales: both the name and the thing -seem to have come from England, <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb17" -href="#pb17" name="pb17">17</a>]</span>though I cannot find such a word -as <i>gambo</i> or <i>gambeau</i> in the ordinary dictionaries.</p> -<p>Among other legends about lake fairies, there are, in the third -chapter of Mr. Sikes’ <i>British Goblins</i>, two versions of -this story: the first of them differs but slightly from Mr. -Rees’, in that the farmer used to go near the lake to see some -lambs he had bought at a fair, and that whenever he did so three -beautiful damsels appeared to him from the lake. They always eluded his -attempts to catch them: they ran away into the lake, saying, <i lang= -"cy">Cras dy fara</i>, &c. But one day a piece of moist bread came -floating ashore, which he ate, and the next day he had a chat with the -Lake Maidens. He proposed marriage to one of them, to which she -consented, provided he could distinguish her from her sisters the day -after. The story then, so far as I can make out from the brief version -which Mr. Sikes gives of it, went on like that of Mr. Rees. The former -gives another version, with much more interesting variations, which -omit all reference, however, to the Physicians of Myđfai, and -relate how a young farmer had heard of the Lake Maiden rowing up and -down the lake in a golden boat with a golden scull. He went to the lake -on New Year’s Eve, saw her, was fascinated by her, and left in -despair at her vanishing out of sight, although he cried out to her to -stay and be his wife. She faintly replied, and went her way, after he -had gazed at her long yellow hair and pale melancholy face. He -continued to visit the lake, and grew thin and negligent of his person, -owing to his longing. But a wise man, who lived on the mountain, -advised him to tempt her with gifts of bread and cheese, which he -undertook to do on Midsummer Eve, when he dropped into the lake a large -cheese and a loaf of bread. This he did repeatedly, until at last -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb18" href="#pb18" name= -"pb18">18</a>]</span>his hopes were fulfilled on New Year’s Eve. -This time he had gone to the lake clad in his best suit, and at -midnight dropped seven white loaves and his biggest and finest cheese -into the lake. The Lake Lady by-and-by came in her skiff to where he -was, and gracefully stepped ashore. The scene need not be further -described: Mr. Sikes gives a picture of it, and the story then proceeds -as in the other version.</p> -<p>It is a pity that Mr. Rees did not preserve the Welsh versions out -of which he pieced together the English one; but as to Mr. Sikes, I -cannot discover whence his has been derived, for he seems not to have -been too anxious to leave anybody the means of testing his work, as one -will find on verifying his references, when he gives any. See also the -allusions to him in Hartland’s <i>Science of Fairy Tales</i>, pp. -64, 123, 137, 165, 278.</p> -<p>Since writing the foregoing notes the following communication has -reached me from a friend of my undergraduate days at Jesus College, -Oxford, Mr. Ỻywarch Reynolds of Merthyr Tydfil. Only the first -part of it concerns the legend of Ỻyn y Fan Fach; but as the rest -is equally racy I make no apology for publishing it in full without any -editing, except the insertion of the meaning of two or three of the -Welsh words occurring in it:—</p> -<p>‘Tell Rhŷs that I have just heard a sequel to the -Međygon Myđfai story, got from a rustic on Mynyđ y -Banwen, between Glynnêđ and Glyntawë, on a ramble -recently with David Lewis the barrister and Sidney Hartland the -folklorist. It was to the effect that after the disappearance of the -<i lang="cy">forwn</i>, “the damsel,” into the lake, the -disconsolate husband and his friends set to work to drain the lake in -order to get at her, if possible. They made a great cutting into the -bank, when suddenly a huge hairy monster of hideous aspect <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb19" href="#pb19" name="pb19">19</a>]</span>emerged -from the water and stormed at them for disturbing him, and wound up -with this threat:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Os na cha’i lonyđ yn ym ỻe,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Fi fođa dre’ -’Byrhonđu!</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">If I get no quiet in my place,</p> -<p class="line">I shall drown the town of Brecon!</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">It was evidently the last <i lang="cy">braich</i>, -“arm,” of a <i lang="cy">Triban Morgannwg</i>, but this was -all my informant knew of it. From the allusion to <i lang= -"cy">Tre’ Byrhonđu</i>, it struck me that there was here -probably a tale of <i lang="cy">Ỻyn Safađon</i>, which had -migrated to <i lang="cy">Ỻyn y Fan</i>; because of course there -would have to be a considerable change in the “levels” -before <i lang="cy">Ỻyn y Fan</i> and the <i lang= -"cy">Sawđe</i> could put Brecon in any great jeopardy<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e5938src" href="#xd25e5938" name= -"xd25e5938src">9</a>.</p> -<p>‘We also got another tale about a <i lang="cy">cwmshurwr</i>, -“conjurer,” who once lived in Ystradgyrlais (as the rustic -pronounced it). The wizard was a <i lang="cy">dyn ỻaw-harn</i>, -“a man with an iron hand”; and it being reported that there -was a great treasure hidden in Mynyđ y Drum, the wizard said he -would secure it, if he could but get some plucky fellow to spend a -night with him there. John Gethin was a plucky fellow (<i lang="cy">dyn -“ysprydol”</i>), and he agreed to join the <i lang="cy">dyn -ỻaw-harn</i> in his <i>diablerie</i>. The wizard traced two rings -on the sward touching each other “like a number 8”; he went -into one, and Gethin into the other, the wizard strictly charging him -on no account to step out of the ring. The <i lang= -"cy">ỻaw-harn</i> then proceeded to <i lang="cy">trafod ’i -lyfrau</i>, or “busy himself with his books”; and there -soon appeared a monstrous bull, bellowing dreadfully; but the plucky -Gethin held his ground, and the bull vanished. Next came a <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb20" href="#pb20" name="pb20">20</a>]</span>terrible -object, a “fly-wheel of fire,” which made straight for poor -Gethin and made him swerve out of the ring. Thereupon the wheel assumed -the form of the <i lang="cy">diawl</i>, “devil,” who began -to haul Gethin away. The <i lang="cy">ỻaw-harn</i> seized hold of -him and tried to get him back. The devil was getting the upper hand, -when the <i lang="cy">ỻaw-harn</i> begged the devil to let him -keep Gethin while the piece of candle he had with him lasted. The devil -consented, and let go his hold of Gethin, whereupon the <i lang= -"cy">cwmshurwr</i> immediately blew out the candle, and the devil was -discomfited. Gethin preserved the piece of candle very carefully, -stowing it away in a cool place; but still it wasted away although it -was never lighted. Gethin got such a fright that he took to his bed, -and as the candle wasted away he did the same, and they both came to an -end simultaneously. Gethin vanished—and it was not his body that -was put into the coffin, but a lump of clay which was put in to save -appearances! It is said that the wizard’s books are in an oaken -chest at Waungyrlais farm house to this day.</p> -<p>‘We got these tales on a ramble to see “Maen y -Gweđiau,” on the mountain near Coelbren Junction Station on -the Neath and Brecon Railway (marked on the Ordnance Map), but we had -to turn back owing to the fearful heat.’</p> -<p>Before dismissing Mr. Reynolds’ letter I may mention a story -in point which relates to a lake on the Brecon side of the mountains. -It is given at length by the Rev. Edward Davies in his <i>Mythology and -Rites of the British Druids</i> (London, 1809), pp. 155–7. -According to this legend a door in the rock was to be found open once a -year—on May-day, as it is supposed—and from that door one -could make one’s way to the garden of the fairies, which was an -island in the middle of the lake. This paradise of <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb21" href="#pb21" name= -"pb21">21</a>]</span>exquisite bliss was invisible, however, to those -who stood outside the lake: they could only see an indistinct mass in -the centre of the water. Once on a time a visitor tried to carry away -some of the flowers given him by the fairies, but he was thereby acting -against their law, and not only was he punished with the loss of his -senses, but the door has never since been left open. It is also related -that once an adventurous person attempted to drain the water away -‘in order to discover its contents, when a terrific form arose -from the midst of the lake, commanding him to desist, or otherwise he -would drown the country.’ This form is clearly of the same -species as that which, according to Mr. Reynolds’ story, -threatened to drown the town of Brecon. Subsequent inquiries have -elicited more information, and I am more especially indebted to my -friend Mr. Ivor James, who, as registrar of the University of Wales, -has of late years been living at Brecon. He writes to the following -effect:—‘The lake you want is Ỻyn Cwm Ỻwch, and -the legend is very well known locally, but there are variants. Once on -a time men and boys dug a gully through the dam in order to let the -water out. A man in a red coat, sitting in an armchair, appeared on the -surface of the water and threatened them in the terms which you quote -from Mr. Reynolds. The red coat would seem to suggest that this form of -the legend dates possibly from a time since our soldiers were first -clothed in red. In another case, however, the spectre was that of an -old woman; and I am told that a somewhat similar story is told in -connexion with a well in the castle wall in the parish of -Ỻanđew, to the north of this town—Giraldus -Cambrensis’ parish. A friend of mine is employing his spare time -at present in an inquiry into the origin of the lakes of this -<span class="corr" id="xd25e6005" title= -"Source: distriet">district</span>, and he tells me that Ỻyn -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb22" href="#pb22" name= -"pb22">22</a>]</span>Cwm Ỻwch is of glacial origin, its dam being -composed, as he thinks, of glacial débris through which the -water always percolates into the valley below. But storm water flows -over the dam, and in the course of ages has cut for itself a gully, now -about ten feet deep at the deepest point, through the embankment. The -story was possibly invented to explain that fact. There is no cave to -be seen in the rock, and probably there never was one, as the formation -is the Old Red Sandstone; and the island was perhaps equally -imaginary.’</p> -<p>That is the substance of Mr. James’ letter, in which he, -moreover, refers to J. D. Rhys’ account of the lake in his Welsh -introduction to his Grammar, published in London in 1592, under the -title <i lang="la">Cambrobrytannicæ Cymraecæve Linguæ -Institutiones et Rudimenta</i>. There the grammarian, in giving some -account of himself, mentions his frequent sojourns at the hospitable -residence of a nobleman, named M. Morgan Merêdydh, near <i lang= -"cy">y Bugeildy ynn Nyphryn Tabhîda o bhywn Swydh Bhaesybhed</i>, -that is, ‘near the Beguildy in the Valley of the Teme within the -county of Radnor.’ Then he continues to the following -effect:—‘But the latter part of this book was thought out -under the bushes and green foliage in a bit of a place of my own called -y Clun Hîr, at the top of Cwm y Ỻwch, below the spurs of -the mountain of Bannwchdeni, which some call Bann Arthur and others -Moel Arthur. Below that <i lang="cy">moel</i> and in its lap there is a -lake of pretty large size, unknown depth, and wondrous nature. For as -the stories go, no bird has ever been seen to repair to it or towards -it, or to swim on it: it is wholly avoided, and some say that no -animals or beasts of any kind are wont to drink of its waters. The -peasantry of that country, and especially the shepherds who are wont to -frequent these <i>moels</i> and <i>bans</i>, relate many other wonders -concerning it and <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb23" href="#pb23" -name="pb23">23</a>]</span>the exceeding strange things beheld at times -in connexion with this loch. This lake or loch is called Ỻyn Cwm -y Ỻwch<a class="noteref" id="xd25e6030src" href="#xd25e6030" -name="xd25e6030src">10</a>.’</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch1.2" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e315">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">II.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">Before dismissing the story of Ỻyn y Fan Fach I -wish to append a similar one from the parish of Ystrad Dyfodwg in -Glamorganshire. The following is a translation of a version given in -Welsh in <i lang="cy">Cyfaiỻ yr Aelwyd a’r Frythones</i>, -edited by Elfed and Cadrawd, and published by Messrs. Williams and Son, -Ỻaneỻy. The version in question is by Cadrawd, and it is to -the following effect—see the volume for 1892, p. 59:—</p> -<p>‘Ỻyn y Forwyn, “the Damsel’s Pool,” is -in the parish of Ystrad Tyfodwg: the inhabitants call it also Ỻyn -Nelferch. It lies about halfway between the farm house of Rhonđa -Fechan, “Little Rhonđa,” and the Vale of Safrwch. The -ancient tradition concerning it is somewhat as follows:—</p> -<p>‘Once on a time a farmer lived at the Rhonđa Fechan: he -was unmarried, and as he was walking by the lake early one morning in -spring he beheld a young woman of beautiful appearance walking on the -other side of it. He approached her and spoke to her: she gave him to -understand that her home was in the lake, and that she owned a number -of milch cows, that lived with her at the bottom of the water. The -farmer fancied her so much that he fell in love with her over head and -ears: he asked her on the spot for her hand and heart; and he invited -her to come and spend her life with him as his wife at the Rhonđa -Fechan. She declined at first, but as he was importunate she consented -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb24" href="#pb24" name= -"pb24">24</a>]</span>at last on the following conditions, namely, that -she would bring her cattle with her out of the lake, and live with him -until he and she had three disputes with one another: then, she said, -she and the cattle would return into the lake. He agreed to the -conditions, and the marriage took place. They lived very happily and -comfortably for long years; but the end was that they fell out with one -another, and, when they happened to have quarrelled for the third time, -she was heard early in the morning driving the cattle towards the lake -with these words:—</p> -<div lang="cy" class="lgouter"> -<p class="line"><i>Prw dre’, prw dre’, prw’r gwartheg -i dre’;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Prw Milfach a Malfach, pedair -Ỻualfach,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Alfach ac Ali, pedair Ladi,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Wynebwen drwynog, tro i’r waun lidiog,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Trech ỻyn y waun odyn, tair Pencethin,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Tair caseg đu draw yn yr eithin<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e6079src" href="#xd25e6079" name= -"xd25e6079src">11</a>.</i></p> -</div> -<p class="first">And into the lake they went out of sight, and there -they live to this day. And some believed that they had heard the voice -and cry of Nelferch in the whisper of the breeze on the top of the -mountain hard by—many a time after that—as an old story -(<i lang="cy">weđal</i>) will have it.’</p> -<p>From this it will be seen that the fairy wife’s name was -supposed to have been Nelferch, and that the piece of water is called -after her. But I find that great uncertainty prevails as to the old -name of the lake, as I learn from a communication in 1894 from -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb25" href="#pb25" name= -"pb25">25</a>]</span>Mr. Ỻewellyn Williams, living at Porth, only -some five miles from the spot, that one of his informants assured him -that the name in use among former generations was <i lang= -"cy">Ỻyn Alfach</i>. Mr. Williams made inquiries at the -Rhonđa Fechan about the lake legend. He was told that the water -had long since been known as Ỻyn y Forwyn, from a <i lang= -"cy">morwyn</i>, or damsel, with a number of cattle having been drowned -in it. The story of the man who mentioned the name as Ỻyn Alfach -was similar: the maid belonged to the farm of Penrhys, he said, and the -young man to the Rhonđa Fechan, and it was in consequence of their -third dispute, he added, that she left him and went back to her -previous service, and afterwards, while taking the cattle to the water, -she sank accidentally or purposely into the lake, so that she was never -found any more. Here it will be seen how modern rationalism has been -modifying the story into something quite uninteresting but without -wholly getting rid of the original features, such as the three disputes -between the husband and wife. Lastly, it is worth mentioning that this -water appears to form part of a bit of very remarkable scenery, and -that its waves strike on one side against a steep rock believed to -contain caves, supposed to have been formerly inhabited by men and -women. At present the place, I learn, is in the possession of Messrs. -Davis and Sons, owners of the Ferndale collieries, who keep a pleasure -boat on the lake. I have appealed to them on the question of the name -Nelferch or Alfach, in the hope that their books would help to decide -as to the old form of it. Replying on their behalf, Mr. J. Probert -Evans informs me that the company only got possession of the lake and -the adjacent land in 1862, and that ‘<span lang="cy">Ỻyn y -Vorwyn</span>’ is the name of the former in the oldest plan which -they have. Inquiries have also been made <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb26" href="#pb26" name="pb26">26</a>]</span>in the neighbourhood by -my friend, Mr. Reynolds, who found the old tenants of the Rhonđa -Fechan Farm gone, and the neighbouring farm house of Dyffryn Safrwch -supplanted by colliers’ cottages. But he calls my attention to -the fact, that perhaps the old name was neither Nelferch nor Alfach, as -Elfarch, which would fit equally well, was once the name of a petty -chieftain of the adjoining Hundred of Senghenyđ, for which he -refers me to Clark’s <i>Glamorgan Genealogies</i>, p. 511. But I -have to thank him more especially for a longer version of the fairy -wife’s call to her cattle, as given in Glanffrwd’s <i lang= -"cy">Plwyf Ỻanwyno</i>, ‘the Parish of -Ỻanwynno’ (Pontypriđ, 1888), p. 117, as -follows:—</p> -<div lang="cy" class="lgouter"> -<p class="line xd25e6148"><i>Prw me, prw me,</i></p> -<p class="line xd25e6148"><i>Prw ’ngwartheg i dre’;</i></p> -<p class="line xd25e6148"><i>Prw Melen a Ioco,</i></p> -<p class="line xd25e6148"><i>Tegwen a Rhuđo,</i></p> -<p class="line xd25e6148"><i>Rhuđ-frech a Moel-frech,</i></p> -<p class="line xd25e6148"><i>Pedair Ỻiain-frech;</i></p> -<p class="line xd25e6148"><i>Ỻiain-frech ag Eli,</i></p> -<p class="line xd25e6148"><i>A phedair Wen-ladi,</i></p> -<p class="line xd25e6148"><i>Ladi a Chornwen,</i></p> -<p class="line xd25e6148"><i>A phedair Wynebwen;</i></p> -<p class="line xd25e6148"><i>Nepwen a Rhwynog,</i></p> -<p class="line xd25e6148"><i>Tali Lieiniog;</i></p> -<p class="line xd25e6148"><i>Brech yn y Glyn</i></p> -<p class="line xd25e6148"><i>Dal yn dyn;</i></p> -<p class="line xd25e6148"><i>Tair lygeityn,</i></p> -<p class="line xd25e6148"><i>Tair gyffredm,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Tair Caseg đu, draw yn yr eithin,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Deuwch i gyd i lys y Brenin;</i></p> -<p class="line xd25e6148"><i>Bwla, bwla,</i></p> -<p class="line xd25e6148"><i>Saif yn flaena’,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Saf yn ol y wraig o’r Ty-fry,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Fyth nis godri ngwartheg i!</i></p> -</div> -<p class="first">The last lines—slightly mended—may be -rendered:</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line xd25e6148">Bull, bull!</p> -<p class="line xd25e6148">Stand thou foremost.</p> -<p class="line">Back! thou wife of the House up Hill:</p> -<p class="line">Never shalt thou milk my cows.</p> -</div> -<p class="first">This seems to suggest that the quarrel was about -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb27" href="#pb27" name= -"pb27">27</a>]</span>another woman, and that by the time when the fairy -came to call her live stock into the lake she had been replaced by -another woman who came from the <i lang="cy">Ty-fry</i>, or the House -up Hill<a class="noteref" id="xd25e6255src" href="#xd25e6255" name= -"xd25e6255src">12</a>. In that case this version comes closer than any -other to the story of Undine supplanted by Bertalda as her -knight’s favourite.</p> -<p>Mr. Probert Evans having kindly given me the address of an aged -farmer who formerly lived in the valley, my friend, Mr. Ỻywarch -Reynolds, was good enough to visit him. Mr. Reynolds shall report the -result in his own words, dated January 9, 1899, as follows:—</p> -<p>‘I was at Pentyrch this morning, and went to see Mr. David -Evans, formerly of Cefn Colston.</p> -<p>‘The old man is a very fine specimen of the better class of -Welsh farmer; is in his eighty-third year; hale and hearty, -intelligent, and in full possession of his faculties. He was born and -bred in the Rhonđa Fechan Valley, and lived there until some forty -years ago. He had often heard the lake story from an old aunt of his -who lived at the Maerdy Farm (a short distance north of the lake), and -who died a good many years ago, at a very advanced age. He calls the -lake “Ỻyn Elferch,” and the story, as known to him, -has several points in common with the Ỻyn y Fan legend, which, -however, he did not appear to know. He could not give me many details, -but the following is the substance of the story as he knows -it:—The young farmer, who lived with his mother at the -neighbouring farm, one day saw the lady on the bank of the lake, -combing her hair, which reached down to her feet. He fell in love at -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb28" href="#pb28" name= -"pb28">28</a>]</span>first sight, and tried to approach her; but she -evaded him, and crying out, <i lang="cy">Đali di đim o fi, -crâs dy fara!</i> (Thou wilt not catch me, thou of the crimped -bread), she sank into the water. He saw her on several subsequent -occasions, and gave chase, but always with the same result, until at -length he got his mother to make him some bread which was not baked (or -not baked so hard); and this he offered to the lady. She then agreed to -become his wife, subject to the condition that if he offended her, or -disagreed with her three times (<i lang="cy">ar yr ammod, os byssa fa -yn ’i chroesi hi dair gwaith</i>) she would leave him and return -into the lake with all her belongings.</p> -<p>‘1. The first disagreement (<i lang="cy">croes</i>) was at the -funeral of a neighbour, a man in years, at which the lady gave way to -excessive weeping and lamentation. The husband expressed surprise and -annoyance at this excessive grief for the death of a person not related -to them, and asked the reason for it; and she replied that she grieved -for the defunct on account of the eternal misery that was in store for -him in the other world.</p> -<p>‘2. The second “<i lang="cy">croes</i>” was at the -death of an infant child of the lady herself, at which she laughed -immoderately; and in reply to the husband’s remonstrance, she -said she did so for joy at her child’s escape from this wicked -world and its passage into a world of bliss.</p> -<p>‘3. The third “<i lang="cy">croes</i>” Mr. Evans -was unable to call to mind, but equally with the other two it showed -that the lady was possessed of preternatural knowledge; and it resulted -in her leaving her husband and returning into the lake, taking the -cattle, &c., with her. The accepted explanation of the name of the -lake was <i lang="cy">Ỻyn El-ferch</i><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e6290src" href="#xd25e6290" name="xd25e6290src">13</a> (= Hela -’r ferch), “because of the young man <i>chasing the -damsel</i>” (<i lang="cy">hela ’r ferch</i>). <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb29" href="#pb29" name="pb29">29</a>]</span></p> -<p>‘The following is the cattle-call, as given to me by Mr. -Evans’ aged housekeeper, who migrated with the family from -Rhonđa Fechan to Pentyrch:</p> -<div lang="cy" class="lgouter"> -<p class="line"><i>Prw i, prw e<a class="noteref" id="xd25e6314src" -href="#xd25e6314" name="xd25e6314src">14</a>,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Prw ’ngwartheg sha [= tua] -thre’;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Mil a môl a melyn gwtta;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Milfach a malfach;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Petar [= pedair] llearfach;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Llearfach ag aeli;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Petar a lafi;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Lafi a chornwan [= -wèn];</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>[…] ’nepwan [= -wèn],</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>’Nepwan drwynog;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Drotwan [= droedwen] litiog;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Tair Bryncethin;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Tair gyffretin;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Tair casag đu</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Draw yn yr ithin [= eithin],</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Dewch i gyd i lys y brenin.</i></p> -</div> -<p class="first">‘Mr. Evans told me that <i lang="cy">Dyffryn -Safrwch</i> was considered to be a corruption of <i lang="cy">Dyffryn -Safn yr Hwch</i>, “Valley of the Sow’s Mouth”; so -that the explanation was not due to a minister with whom I foregathered -on my tramp near the lake the other day, and from whom I heard it -first.’</p> -<p>The similarity between Mr. Evans’ version of this legend and -that of Ỻyn y Fan Fach, tends to add emphasis to certain points -which I had been inclined to treat as merely accidental. In the Fan -Fach legend the young man’s mother is a widow, and here he is -represented living with his mother. Here also something <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb30" href="#pb30" name="pb30">30</a>]</span>depends -on the young man’s bread, but it is abruptly introduced, -suggesting that a part of the story has been forgotten. Both stories, -however, give one the impression that the bread of the fairies was -regarded as always imperfectly baked. In both stories the young -man’s mother comes to his help with her advice. Mr. Evans’ -version ascribes supernatural knowledge to the fairy, though his -version fails to support it; and her moralizings read considerably -later than those which the Fan legend ascribes to the fairy wife. Some -of these points may be brought under the reader’s notice later, -when he has been familiarized with more facts illustrative of the -belief in fairies.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch1.3" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e325">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">III.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">On returning from South Wales to Carnarvonshire in the -summer of 1881, I tried to discover similar legends connected with the -lakes of North Wales, beginning with Geirionyđ, the waters of -which form a stream emptying itself into the Conwy, near Trefriw, a -little below Ỻanrwst. I only succeeded, however, in finding an -old man of the name of Pierce Williams, about seventy years of age, who -was very anxious to talk about ‘Bony’s’ wars, but not -about lake ladies. I was obliged, in trying to make him understand what -I wanted, to use the word <i lang="cy">morforwyn</i>, that is to say in -English, ‘mermaid’; he then told me, that in his younger -days he had heard people say that somebody had seen such beings in the -Trefriw river. But as my questions were leading ones, his evidence is -not worth much; however, I feel pretty sure that one who knew the -neighbourhood of Geirionyđ better would be able to find some -fragments of interesting legends still existing in that wild district. -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb31" href="#pb31" name= -"pb31">31</a>]</span></p> -<p>I was more successful at Ỻanberis, though what I found, at -first, was not much; but it was genuine, and to the point. This is the -substance of it:—An old woman, called Siân<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e6427src" href="#xd25e6427" name= -"xd25e6427src">15</a> Dafyđ, lived at Helfa Fawr, in the dingle -called Cwm Brwynog, along the left side of which you ascend as you go -to the top of Snowdon, from the village of lower Ỻanberis, or -Coed y Đol, as it is there called. She was a curious old person, -who made nice distinctions between the virtues of the respective waters -of the district: thus, no other would do for her to cure her of the -<i lang="cy">defaid gwyỻtion</i><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e6463src" href="#xd25e6463" name="xd25e6463src">16</a>, or -cancerous warts, which she fancied that she had in her mouth, than that -of the spring of Tai Bach, near the lake called Ỻyn Ffynnon y -Gwas, though she seldom found it out, when she was deceived by a -servant who cherished a convenient opinion of his own, that a drop from -a nearer spring would do just as well. Old Siân has been dead -over thirty-five years, but I have it, on the testimony of two highly -trustworthy brothers, who are of her family, and now between sixty and -seventy years of age, that she used to relate to them how a shepherd, -once on a time, saw a fairy maiden (<i lang="cy">un o’r Tylwyth -Teg</i>) on the surface of the tarn called Ỻyn Du’r -Arđu, and how, from bantering and <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb32" href="#pb32" name="pb32">32</a>]</span>joking, their -acquaintance ripened into courtship, when the father and mother of the -lake maiden appeared to give the union their sanction, and to arrange -the marriage settlement. This was to the effect that the husband was -never to strike his wife with iron, and that she was to bring her great -wealth with her, consisting of stock of all kinds for his mountain -farm. All duly took place, and they lived happily together until one -day, when trying to catch a pony, the husband threw a bridle to his -wife, and the iron in that struck her. It was then all over with him, -as the wife hurried away with her property into the lake, so that -nothing more was seen or heard of her. Here I may as well explain that -the Ỻanberis side of the steep, near the top of Snowdon, is -called Clogwyn du’r Arđu, or the Black Cliff of the -Arđu, at the bottom of which lies the tarn alluded to as the Black -Lake of the Arđu, and near it stands a huge boulder, called Maen -du’r Arđu, all of which names are curious, as involving the -word <i lang="cy">du</i>, black. Arđu itself has much the same -meaning, and refers to the whole precipitous side of the summit with -its dark shadows, and there is a similar Arđu near Nanmor on the -Merionethshire side of Beđgelert.</p> -<p>One of the brothers, I ought to have said, doubts that the lake here -mentioned was the one in old Siân’s tale; but he has -forgotten which it was of the many in the neighbourhood. Both, however, -remembered another short story about fairies, which they had heard -another old woman relate, namely, Mari Domos Siôn, who died some -thirty years ago: it was merely to the effect that a shepherd had once -lost his way in the mist on the mountain on the land of Caeau Gwynion, -towards Cweỻyn<a class="noteref" id="xd25e6491src" href= -"#xd25e6491" name="xd25e6491src">17</a> Lake, and got into a ring -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb33" href="#pb33" name= -"pb33">33</a>]</span>where the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> were -dancing: it was only after a very hard struggle that he was able, at -length, to get away from them.</p> -<p>To this I may add the testimony of a lady, for whose veracity I can -vouch, to the effect that, when she was a child in Cwm Brwynog, from -thirty to forty years ago, she and her brothers and sisters used to be -frequently warned by their mother not to go far away from the house -when there happened to be thick mist on the ground, lest they should -come across the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> dancing, and be carried -away to their abode beneath the lake. They were always, she says, -supposed to live in the lakes; and the one here alluded to was -Ỻyn Dwythwch, which is one of those famous for its <i lang= -"cy">torgochiaid</i> or chars. The mother is still living; but she -seems to have long since, like others, lost her belief in the -fairies.</p> -<p>After writing the above, I heard that a brother to the foregoing -brothers, namely, Mr. Thomas Davies, of Mur Mawr, Ỻanberis, -remembered a similar tale. Mr. Davies is now sixty-four, and the -persons from whom he heard the tale were the same Siân Dafyđ -of Helfa Fawr, and Mari Domos Siôn of Tyn<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e6515src" href="#xd25e6515" name="xd25e6515src">18</a> Gadlas, -Ỻanberis: the two women were about seventy years of age when he -as a child heard it from them. At my request, a friend of mine, Mr. -Hugh D. Jones, of Tyn Gadlas, also a member of this family, which is -one of the oldest perhaps in the place, has taken down from Mr. -Davies’ mouth all he could remember, word for word, as -follows:—</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Yn perthyn i ffarm Bron y Fedw yr oeđ dyn ifanc -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb34" href="#pb34" name= -"pb34">34</a>]</span>wedi cael ei fagu, nis gwyđent faint cyn eu -hamser hwy. Arferai pan yn hogyn fynd i’r mynyđ yn Cwm -Drywenyđ a Mynyđ y Fedw ar ochr orỻewinol y Wyđfa -i fugeilio, a byđai yn taro ar hogan yn y mynyđ; ac wrth -fynychu gweld eu gilyđ aethant yn ffrindiau mawr. Arferent -gyfarfod eu gilyđ mewn ỻe neiỻduol yn Cwm -Drywenyđ, ỻe’r oeđ yr hogan a’r teulu yn -byw, ỻe y byđai pob danteithion, chwareuyđiaethau a -chanu dihafal; ond ni fyđai’r hogyn yn gwneyd i fyny a neb -ohonynt ond yr hogan.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Diweđ y ffrindiaeth fu carwriaeth, a phan -soniođ yr hogyn am iđi briodi, ni wnai ond ar un amod, sef y -bywiai hi hefo fo hyd nes y tarawai ef hi a haiarn.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Priodwyd hwy, a buont byw gyda’u gilyđ am -nifer o flynyđoeđ, a bu iđynt blant; ac ar đyđ -marchnad yn Gaernarfon yr oeđ y gwr a’r wraig yn međwl -mynd i’r farchnad ar gefn merlod, fel pob ffarmwr yr amser hwnnw. -Awd i’r mynyđ i đal merlyn bob un.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Ar waelod Mynyđ y Fedw mae ỻyn o ryw -dri-ugain neu gan ỻath o hyd ac ugain neu đeg ỻath ar -hugain o led, ac y mae ar un ochr iđo le têg, fforđ y -byđai’r ceffylau yn rhedeg.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Daliođ y gwr ferlyn a rhoes ef i’r wraig -i’w đal heb ffrwyn, tra byđai ef yn dal merlyn -araỻ. Ar ol rhoi ffrwyn yn mhen ei ferlyn ei hun, taflođ un -araỻ i’r wraig i roi yn mhen ei merlyn hithau, ac wrth ei -thaflu tarawođ</i> bit <i>y ffrwyn hi yn ei ỻaw. -Goỻyngođ y wraig y merlyn, ac aeth ar ei phen i’r -ỻyn, a dyna điweđ y briodas.</i></p> -<p>‘To the farm of Bron y Fedw there belonged a son, who grew up -to be a young man, the women knew not how long before their time. He -was in the habit of going up the mountain to Cwm Drywenyđ<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e6567src" href="#xd25e6567" name= -"xd25e6567src">19</a> and Mynyđ <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb35" href="#pb35" name="pb35">35</a>]</span>y Fedw, on the west side -of Snowdon, to do the shepherding, and there he was wont to come across -a lass on the mountain, so that as the result of frequently meeting one -another, he and she became great friends. They usually met at a -particular spot in Cwm Drywenyđ, where the girl and her family -lived, and where there were all kinds of nice things to eat, of -amusements, and of incomparable music; but he did not make up to -anybody there except the girl. The friendship ended in courtship; but -when the boy mentioned that she should be married to him, she would -only do so on one condition, namely, that she would live with him until -he should strike her with iron. They were wedded, and they lived -together for a number of years, and had children. Once on a time it -happened to be market day at Carnarvon, whither the husband and wife -thought of riding on ponies, like all the farmers of that time. So they -went to the mountain to catch a pony each. At the bottom of Mynyđ -y Fedw there is a pool some sixty or one hundred yards long by twenty -or thirty broad, and on one side of it there is a level space along -which the horses used to run. The husband caught a pony, and gave it to -the wife to hold fast without a bridle, while he should catch another. -When he had bridled his own pony, he threw another bridle to his wife -for her to secure hers; but as he threw it, the bit of the bridle -struck her on one of her hands. The wife let go the pony, and went -headlong into the pool, and that was the end of their wedded -life.’</p> -<p>The following is a later tale, which Mr. Thomas Davies heard from -his mother, who died in 1832: she would be ninety years of age had she -been still living:—</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Pan oeđ hi’n hogan yn yr Hafod, -Ỻanberis, yr oeđ hogan at ei hoed hi’n cael ei magu yn -Cwmglas, <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb36" href="#pb36" name= -"pb36">36</a>]</span>Ỻanberis, ac arferai đweyd, pan yn -hogan a thra y bu byw, y byđai yn cael arian gan y Tylwyth Teg yn -Cwm Cwmglas.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Yr oeđ yn dweyd y byđai ar foreuau niwliog, -tywyỻ, yn mynd i le penodol yn Cwm Cwmglas gyda dsygiad o lefrith -o’r fuches a thywel glan, ac yn ei rođi ar garreg; ac yn -mynd yno drachefn, ac yn cael y ỻestr yn wag, gyda darn -deuswỻt neu hanner coron ac weithiau fwy wrth ei ochr.</i></p> -<p>‘When she was a girl, living at Yr Hafod, Ỻanberis, -there was a girl of her age being brought up at Cwmglas in the same -parish. The latter was in the habit of saying, when she was a girl and -so long as she lived, that she used to have money from the <i lang= -"cy">Tylwyth Teg</i>, in the Cwmglas Hollow. Her account was, that on -dark, misty mornings she used to go to a particular spot in that Hollow -with a jugful of sweet milk from the milking place, and a clean towel, -and then place them on a stone. She would return, and find the jug -empty, with a piece of money placed by its side: that is, two shillings -or half a crown, or at times even more.’</p> -<p>A daughter of that woman lives now at a farm, Mr. Davies observes, -called Plas Pennant, in the parish of Ỻanfihangel yn Mhennant, in -Carnarvonshire; and he adds, that it was a tale of a kind that was -common enough when he was a boy; but many laughed at it, though the old -people believed it to be a fact. To this I may as well append another -tale, which was brought to the memory of an old man who happened to be -present when Mr. Jones and Mr. Davies were busy with the foregoing. His -name is John Roberts, and his age is seventy-five: his present home is -at Capel Sïon, in the neighbouring parish of -Ỻanđeiniolen:—</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Yr oeđ ef pan yn hogyn yn gweini yn Towyn Trewern, -yn agos i Gaergybi, gyda hen wr o’r enw Owen Owens, oeđ yr -adeg honno at ei oed ef yn bresennol.</i> <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb37" href="#pb37" name="pb37">37</a>]</span></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Yr oeđynt unwaith mewn hen adeilad ar y ffarm; a -dywedođ yr hen wr ei fod ef wedi cael ỻawer o arian yn y -ỻe hwnnw pan yn hogyn, a buasai wedi cael ychwaneg oni bai ei -dad.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Yr oeđ wedi cuđio yr arian yn y ty, ond daeth -ei fam o hyd iđynt, a dywedođ yr hanes wrth ei dad. Ofnai ei -fod yn fachgen drwg, mai eu ỻadrata yr oeđ. Dywedai ei dad y -gwnai iđo đweyd yn mha le yr oeđ yn eu cael, neu y -tynnai ei groen tros ei ben; ac aeth aỻan a thorođ wialen -bwrpasol at orchwyl o’r fath.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Yr oeđ y bachgen yn gwrando ar yr -ymđiđan rhwng ei dad a’i fam, ac yr oeđ yn -benderfynol o gadw’r peth yn đirgelwch fel yr oeđ wedi -ei rybuđio gan y Tylwyth Teg.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Aeth i’r ty, a dechreuođ y tad ei holi, ac -yntau yn gwrthod ateb; ymbiliai a’i dad, a dywedai eu bod yn -berffaith onest iđo ef, ac y cai ef ychwaneg os cadwai’r -peth yn đirgelwch; ond os dywedai, nad oeđ dim ychwaneg -i’w gael. Mođ bynnag ni wrandawai y tad ar ei esgusion -na’i resymau, a’r wialen a orfu; dywedođ y bachgen mai -gan y Tylwyth Teg yr oeđ yn eu cael, a hynny ar yr amod nad -oeđ i đweyd wrth neb. Mawr oeđ edifeirwch yr hen bobl am -lađ yr wyđ oeđ yn dodwy.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Aeth y bachgen i’r hen adeilad lawer gwaith ar ol -hyn, ond ni chafođ byth ychwaneg o arian yno.</i></p> -<p>‘When a lad, he was a servant at Towyn Trewern, near Holyhead, -to an old man about his own age at present. They were one day in an old -building on the farm, and the old man told him that he had had much -money in that place when he was a lad, and that he would have had more -had it not been for his father. He had hidden the money at home, where -his mother found it and told his father of the affair: she feared he -was a bad boy, and that it was by theft he got it. His father said that -he would make him say where he got it, <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb38" href="#pb38" name="pb38">38</a>]</span>or else that he would -strip him of the skin of his back, at the same time that he went out -and cut a rod fit for effecting a purpose of the kind. The boy heard -all this talk between his father and his mother, and felt determined to -keep the matter a secret, as he had been warned by the <i lang= -"cy">Tylwyth Teg</i>. He went into the house, and his father began to -question him, while he refused to answer. He supplicatingly protested -that the money was honestly got, and that he should get more if he kept -it a secret, but that, if he did not, there would be no more to be got. -However, the father would give no ear to his excuses or his reasons, -and the rod prevailed; so that the boy said that it was from the -<i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> he used to get it, and that on condition -of his not telling anybody. Greatly did the old folks regret having -killed the goose that laid the eggs. The boy went many a time -afterwards to the old building, but he never found any more money -there.’</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch1.4" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e335">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">IV.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">Through the Rev. Daniel Lewis, incumbent of Bettws -Garmon, I was directed to Mr. Samuel Rhys Williams, of the Post Office -of that place, who has kindly given me the result of his inquiries when -writing on the subject of the antiquities of the neighbourhood for a -competition at a literary meeting held there a few years ago. He tells -me that he got the following short tale from a native of Drws y Coed, -whose name is Margaret Williams. She has been living at Bettws Garmon -for many years, and is now over eighty. He does not know whether the -story is in print or not, but he is certain that Margaret Williams -never saw it, even if it be. He further thinks he has heard it from -another person, to wit a man over seventy-seven years <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb39" href="#pb39" name="pb39">39</a>]</span>of age, -who has always lived at Drws y Coed, in the parish of -Beđgelert:—</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Y mae hanes am fab i amaethwr a breswyliai yn yr -Ystrad<a class="noteref" id="xd25e6640src" href="#xd25e6640" name= -"xd25e6640src">20</a>, Betws Garmon<a class="noteref" id="xd25e6651src" -href="#xd25e6651" name="xd25e6651src">21</a>, pan yn dychwelyd adref o -daith yn hwyr un noswaith, đarfod iđo weled cwmni o’r -Tylwyth Teg ynghanol eu hafiaeth a’u glođest. Syfrdanwyd y -ỻanc yn y fan gan degwch anghymarol un o’r rhianod hyn, fel -y beiđiođ neidio i ganol y cylch, a chymeryd ei eilun gydag -ef. Wedi iđi fod yn trigo gydag ef yn ei gartref am ysbaid, -cafođ ganđi ađaw bod yn wraig iđo ar amodau -neiỻduol. Un o’r amodau hyn ydoeđ, na byđai -iđo gyffwrđ ynđi ag un math o haiarn. Bu yn wraig -iđo, a ganwyd iđynt đau o blant. Un diwrnod yr oeđ -y gwr yn y maes yn ceisio dal y ceffyl; wrth ei weled yn ffaelu, aeth y -wraig ato i’w gynorthwyo, a phan oeđ y march yn carlamu -heibio goỻyngođ yntau y ffrwyn o’i law, er mwyn ceisio -ei atal heibio; a phwy a darawođ ond ei wraig, yr hon a -điflannođ yn y fan aỻan o’i olwg?</i></p> -<p>‘The story goes, that the son of a farmer, who lived at the -Ystrad in Bettws Garmon, when returning home from a journey, late in -the evening, beheld a company of fairies in the middle of their mirth -and jollity. The youth was at once bewildered by the incomparable -beauty of one of these ladies, so that he ventured to leap into the -circle and take his idol away with him. After she had tarried awhile -with him at his home, he prevailed on her, on special conditions, to -become his wife. One of these conditions was that he should not touch -her with iron of any description. She became <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb40" href="#pb40" name="pb40">40</a>]</span>his -wife, and two children were born to them. One day the husband was in -the field trying to catch the horse; seeing him unsuccessful, the wife -went to him to help him, and, when the horse was galloping past him, he -let go the bridle at him in order to prevent him from passing; but whom -should he strike but his wife, who vanished out of his sight on the -spot.’</p> -<p>Just as I was engaged in collecting these stories in 1881, a -correspondent sent me a copy of the Ystrad tale as published by the -late bard and antiquary, the Rev. Owen Wyn Jones, better known in Wales -by his bardic name of Glasynys<a class="noteref" id="xd25e6682src" -href="#xd25e6682" name="xd25e6682src">22</a>, in the <i lang= -"cy">Brython</i><a class="noteref" id="xd25e6690src" href="#xd25e6690" -name="xd25e6690src">23</a> for 1863, p. 193. I will not attempt to -translate Glasynys’ poetic prose with all its compound -adjectives, but it comes to this in a few words. One fine sunny -morning, as the young heir of Ystrad was busied with his sheep on the -side of Moel Eilio, he met a very pretty girl, and when he got home he -told the folks there of it. A few days afterwards he met her again, and -this happened several times, when he mentioned it to his father, who -advised <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb41" href="#pb41" name= -"pb41">41</a>]</span>him to seize her when he next met her. The next -time he met her he proceeded to do so, but before he could take her -away, a little fat old man came to them and begged him to give her back -to him, to which the youth would not listen. The little man uttered -terrible threats, but the heir of Ystrad would not yield, so an -agreement was made between them, that the latter was to have the girl -to wife until he touched her skin with iron, and great was the joy both -of the son and his parents in consequence. They lived together for many -years; but once on a time, on the evening of the Bettws Fair, the -wife’s horse became restive, and somehow, as the husband was -attending to the horse, the stirrup touched the skin of her bare leg, -and that very night she was taken away from him. She had three or four -children, and more than one of their descendants, as Glasynys -maintains, were known to him at the time he wrote in 1863. Glasynys -regards this as the same tale which is given by Williams of -Ỻandegai, to whom we shall refer later; and he says that he heard -it scores of times when he was a lad.</p> -<p>Lastly, I happened to mention these legends last summer among others -to the Rev. Owen Davies, curate of Ỻanberis, a man who is well -versed in Welsh literature, and thoroughly in sympathy with everything -Welsh. Mr. Davies told me that he knew a tale of the sort from his -youth, as current in the parishes of Ỻanỻechid and -Ỻandegai, near Bangor. Not long afterwards he visited his mother -at his native place, in Ỻanỻechid, in order to have his -memory of it refreshed; and he also went to the Waen Fawr, on the other -side of Carnarvon, where he had the same legend told him with the -different localities specified. The following is the Waen Fawr version, -of which I give the Welsh as I have had it from Mr. Davies, and as it -was <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb42" href="#pb42" name= -"pb42">42</a>]</span>related, according to him, some forty years ago in -the valley of Nant y Bettws, near Carnarvon:—</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Ar brydnawngwaith hyfryd yn Hefin, aeth ỻanc -ieuanc gwrol-đewr ac anturiaethus, sef etifeđ a pherchennog -yr Ystrad, i lan afon Gwyrfai, heb fod yn nepeỻ o’i -chychwyniad o lyn Caweỻyn, ac a ymguđiođ yno mewn -dyryslwyn, sef ger y fan y byđai poblach y cotiau cochion—y -Tylwyth Teg—yn arfer dawnsio. Yr ydoeđ yn noswaith hyfryd -loergannog, heb un cwmwl i gau ỻygaid y Ỻoer, ac anian yn -đistaw dawedog, ođigerth murmuriad ỻeđf y Wyrfai, -a swn yr awel ysgafndroed yn rhodio brigau deiliog y coed. Ni bu yn ei -ymguđfa ond dros ychydig amser, cyn cael difyrru o hono ei olygon -a dawns y teulu dedwyđ. Wrth syỻu ar gywreinrwyđ y -đawns, y chwim droadau cyflym, yr ymgyniweiriad ysgafn-droediog, -tarawođ ei lygaid ar las lodes ieuanc, dlysaf, harđaf, -lunieiđiaf a welođ er ei febyd. Yr oeđ ei chwim droadau -a ỻedneisrwyđ ei hagweđion wedi tanio ei serch tu ag -ati i’r fath rađau, fel ag yr oeđ yn barod i unrhyw -anturiaeth er mwyn ei henniỻ yn gydymaith iđo ei hun. -O’i ymguđfa dywyỻ, yr oeđ yn gwylio pob ysgogiad -er mwyn ei gyfleustra ei hun. Mewn mynud, yn đisymwth đigon, -rhwng pryder ac ofn, ỻamneidiođ fel ỻew gwrol i ganol -cylch y Tylwyth Teg, ac ymafaelođ a dwylaw cariad yn y fun -luniaiđ a daniođ ei serch, a hynny, pan oeđ y Tylwyth -dedwyđ yn nghanol nwyfiant eu dawns. Cofleidiođ hi yn dyner -garedig yn ei fynwes wresog, ac aeth a hi i’w -gartref—i’r Ystrad. Ond diflannođ ei -chyd-đawnsyđion fel anadl Gorphennaf, er ei chroch -đolefau am gael ei rhyđhau, a’i hymegnion diflino i -đianc o afael yr hwn a’i hoffođ. Mewn anwylder mawr, -ymđygođ y ỻanc yn dyner odiaethol tu ag at y fun deg, -ac yr oeđ yn orawyđus i’w chadw yn ei olwg ac yn ei -feđiant. Ỻwyđođ drwy ei dynerwch tu ag ati i gael -ganđi ađaw dyfod yn forwyn iđo yn yr Ystrad. A morwyn -ragorol oeđ hi. Godrai deirgwaith y swm arferol o laeth ođiar -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb43" href="#pb43" name= -"pb43">43</a>]</span>bob buwch, ac yr oeđ yr ymenyn heb bwys arno. -Ond er ei hoỻ daerni, nis gaỻai mewn un mođ gael -ganđi đyweud ei henw wrtho. Gwnaeth lawer cais, ond yn gwbl -ofer. Yn đamweiniol ryw dro, wrth yrru</i></p> -<div lang="cy" class="lgouter"> -<p class="line xd25e6148"><i>Brithen a’r Benwen i’r -borfa,</i></p> -</div> -<p lang="cy" class="first"><i>a hi yn noswaith loergan, efe a aeth -i’r man ỻe yr arferai y Tylwyth Teg fyned drwy eu campau -yng ngoleuni’r Ỻoer wen. Y tro hwn eto, efe a -ymguđiođ mewn dyryslwyn, a chlywođ y Tylwyth Teg yn -dywedyd y naiỻ wrth y ỻaỻ—‘Pan oeđym -ni yn y ỻe hwn y tro diweđaf, dygwyd ein chwaer Penelope -ođiarnom gan un o’r marwolion.’ Ar hynny, -dychwelođ y ỻencyn adref, a’i fynwes yn ỻawn o -falchder cariad, o herwyđ iđo gael gwybod enw ei hoff forwyn, -yr hon a synnođ yn aruthr, pan glywođ ei meistr ieuanc yn ei -galw wrth ei henw. Ac am ei bod yn odiaethol dlos, a -ỻuniaiđ, yn fywiog-weithgar, a medrus ar bob gwaith, a bod -popeth yn ỻwyđo dan ei ỻaw, cynygiođ ei hun -iđi yn wr—y celai fod yn feistres yr Ystrad, yn ỻe bod -yn forwyn. Ond ni chydsyniai hi a’i gais ar un cyfrif; ond bod -braiđ yn bendrist oherwyđ iđo wybod ei henw. Fođ -bynnag, gwedi maith amser, a thrwy ei daerineb diflino, cydsyniođ, -ond yn amodol. Ađawođ đyfod yn wraig iđo, ar yr -amod canlynol, sef, ‘Pa bryd bynnag y tarawai ef hi â -haiarn, yr elai ymaith ođi wrtho, ac na đychwelai byth ato -mwy.’ Sicrhawyd yr amod o’i du yntau gyda pharodrwyđ -cariad. Buont yn cyd-fyw a’u gilyđ yn hapus a chysurus lawer -o flynyđoeđ, a ganwyd iđynt fab a merch, y rhai -oeđynt dlysaf a ỻunieiđiaf yn yr hoỻ froyđ. -Ac yn rhinweđ ei medrusrwyđ a’i deheurwyđ fel -gwraig gaỻ, rinweđol, aethant yn gyfoethog iawn—yn -gyfoethocach na neb yn yr hoỻ wlad. Heblaw ei etifeđiaeth ei -hun—Yr Ystrad, yr oeđ yn ffarmio hoỻ ogleđ-barth -Nant y Betws, ac ođi yno i ben yr Wyđfa, ynghyd a hoỻ -Gwm Brwynog, yn mhlwyf Ỻanberis. Ond, ryw điwrnod, -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb44" href="#pb44" name= -"pb44">44</a>]</span>yn anffortunus đigon aeth y đau -i’r đol i đal y ceffyl, a chan fod y ceffylyn -braiđ yn wyỻt ac an-nof, yn rhedeg ođi arnynt, -taflođ y gwr y ffrwyn mewn gwyỻtineb yn ei erbyn, er ei -atal, ac ar bwy y disgynnođ y ffrwyn, ond ar Penelope, y wraig! -Diflannođ Penelope yn y fan, ac ni welođ byth mo honi. Ond -ryw noswaith, a’r gwynt yn chwythu yn oer o’r gogleđ, -daeth Penelope at ffenestr ei ystafeỻ wely, a dywedođ wrtho -am gymmeryd gofal o’r plant yn y geiriau hyn:</i></p> -<div lang="cy" class="lgouter"> -<p class="line"><i>Rhag bod anwyd ar fy mab,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Yn rhođ rhowch arno gób ei dad;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Rhag bod anwyd ar liw’r can,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Rhođwch arni bais ei mham.</i></p> -</div> -<p lang="cy" class="first"><i>Ac yna ciliođ, ac ni chlywyd na siw -na miw byth yn ei chylch.</i></p> -<p>For the sake of an occasional reader who does not know Welsh, I add -a summary of it in English.</p> -<p>One fine evening in the month of June a brave, adventurous youth, -the heir of Ystrad, went to the banks of the Gwyrfai, not far from -where it leaves Cweỻyn Lake, and hid himself in the bushes near -the spot where the folks of the Red Coats—the fairies—were -wont to dance. The moon shone forth brightly without a cloud to -intercept her light; all was quiet save where the Gwyrfai gently -murmured on her bed, and it was not long before the young man had the -satisfaction of seeing the fair family dancing in full swing. As he -gazed on the subtle course of the dance, his eyes rested on a damsel, -the most shapely and beautiful he had seen from his boyhood. Her agile -movements and the charm of her looks inflamed him with love for her, to -such a degree that he felt ready for any encounter in order to secure -her to be his own. From his hiding place he watched every move for his -opportunity; at last, with feelings of anxiety and dread, <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb45" href="#pb45" name="pb45">45</a>]</span>he -leaped suddenly into the middle of the circle of the fairies. There, -while their enjoyment of the dance was at its height, he seized her in -his arms and carried her away to his home at Ystrad. But, as she -screamed for help to free her from the grasp of him who had fallen in -love with her, the dancing party disappeared like one’s breath in -July. He treated her with the utmost kindness, and was ever anxious to -keep her within his sight and in his possession. By dint of tenderness -he succeeded so far as to get her to consent to be his servant at -Ystrad. And such a servant she turned out to be! Why, she was wont to -milk the cows thrice a day, and to have the usual quantity of milk each -time, so that the butter was so plentiful that nobody thought of -weighing it. As to her name, in spite of all his endeavours to -ascertain it, she would never tell it him. Accidentally, however, one -moonlight night, when driving two of his cows to the spot where they -should graze, he came to the place where the fairies were wont to enjoy -their games in the light of the moon. This time also he hid himself in -a thicket, when he overheard one fairy saying to another, ‘When -we were last here our sister Penelope was stolen from us by a -man.’ As soon as he heard this off he went home, full of joy -because he had discovered the name of the maid that was so dear to him. -She, on the other hand, was greatly astonished to hear him call her by -her own name. As she was so charmingly pretty, so industrious, so -skilled in every work, and so attended by luck in everything she put -her hand to, he offered to make her his wife instead of being his -servant. At first she would in no wise consent, but she rather gave way -to grief at his having found her name out. However, his importunity at -length brought her to consent, but on the condition that he should not -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb46" href="#pb46" name= -"pb46">46</a>]</span>strike her with iron; if that should happen, she -would quit him never to return. The agreement was made on his side with -the readiness of love, and after this they lived in happiness and -comfort together for many years, and there were born to them a son and -a daughter, who were the handsomest children in the whole country. -Owing, also, to the skill and good qualities of the woman, as a shrewd -and virtuous wife, they became very rich—richer, indeed, than -anybody else in the country around; for, besides the husband’s -own inheritance of Ystrad, he held all the northern part of Nant y -Bettws, and all from there to the top of Snowdon, together with Cwm -Brwynog in the parish of Ỻanberis. But one day, as bad luck would -have it, they went out together to catch a horse in the field, and, as -the animal was somewhat wild and untamed, they had no easy work before -them. In his rashness the man threw a bridle at him as he was rushing -past him, but alas! on whom should the bridle fall but on the wife! No -sooner had this happened than she disappeared, and nothing more was -ever seen of her. But one cold night, when there was a chilling wind -blowing from the north, she came near the window of his bedroom, and -told him in these words to take care of the children:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">Lest my son should find it cold,</p> -<p class="line">Place on him his father’s coat:</p> -<p class="line">Lest the fair one find it cold,</p> -<p class="line">Place on her my petticoat.</p> -</div> -<p class="first">Then she withdrew, and nothing more was heard of -her.</p> -<p>In reply to some queries of mine, Mr. O. Davies tells me that -Penelope was pronounced in three syllables, -Pénĕlôp—so he heard it from his grandfather: he -goes on to say that the offspring of the Lake Lady is supposed to be -represented by a family called <i>Pellings</i>, <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb47" href="#pb47" name="pb47">47</a>]</span>which -was once a highly respected name in those parts, and that there was a -Lady Bulkeley who was of this descent, not to mention that several -people of a lower rank, both in Anglesey and Arfon, claimed to be of -the same origin. I am not very clear as to how the name got into this -tale, nor have I been able to learn anything about the Pellings; but, -as the word appears to have been regarded as a corrupt derivative from -Penelope, that is, perhaps, all the connexion, so that it may be that -it has really nothing whatever to do with the legend. This is a point, -however, which the antiquaries of North Wales ought to be able to clear -up satisfactorily.</p> -<p>In reply to queries of mine, Mr. O. Davies gave me the following -particulars:—‘I am now (June, 1881) over fifty-two years of -age, and I can assure you that I have heard the legend forty years ago. -I do not remember my father, as he died when I was young, but my -grandfather was remarkable for his delight in tales and legends, and it -was his favourite pastime during the winter nights, after getting his -short black pipe ready, to relate stories about struggles with robbers, -about bogies, and above all about the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i>; for -they were his chief delight. He has been dead twenty-six years, and he -had almost reached eighty years of age. His father before him, who was -born about the year 1740, was also famous for his stories, and my -grandfather often mentioned him as his authority in the course of his -narration of the tales. Both he and the rest of the family used to look -at Corwrion, to be mentioned presently, as a sacred spot. When I was a -lad and happened to be reluctant to leave off playing at dusk, my -mother or grandfather had only to say that ‘the Pellings were -coming,’ in order to induce me to come into the house at once: -indeed, this announcement had <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb48" href= -"#pb48" name="pb48">48</a>]</span>the same effect on persons of a much -riper age than mine then was.’</p> -<p>Further, Mr. Davies kindly called my attention to a volume, entitled -<i>Observations on the Snowdon Mountains</i>, by Mr. William Williams, -of Ỻandegai, published in London in 1802. In that work this tale -is given somewhat less fully than by Mr. Davies’ informant, but -the author makes the following remarks with regard to it, pp. 37, -40:—‘A race of people inhabiting the districts about the -foot of Snowdon, were formerly distinguished and known by the nickname -of <i>Pellings</i>, which is not yet extinct. There are several persons -and even families who are reputed to be descended from these -people …. These children [Penelope’s] and their -descendants, they say, were called <i>Pellings</i>, a word corrupted -from their mother’s name, Penelope. The late Thomas Rowlands, -Esq., of Caerau, in Anglesey, the father of the late Lady Bulkeley, was -a descendant of this lady, if it be true that the name <i>Pellings</i> -came from her; and there are still living several opulent and -respectable people who are known to have sprung from the -<i>Pellings</i>. The best blood in my own veins is this -fairy’s.’</p> -<p>Lastly, it will be noticed that these last versions do not -distinctly suggest that the Lake Lady ran into the lake, that is into -Cweỻyn, but rather that she disappeared in the same way as the -dancing party by simply becoming invisible like one’s breath in -July. The fairies are called in Welsh, <i lang="cy">Y Tylwyth Teg</i>, -or the Fair Family; but the people of Arfon have been so familiarized -with the particular one I have called the Lake Lady, that, according to -one of my informants, they have invented the term <i lang="cy">Y -Dylwythes Deg</i>, or even <i lang="cy">Y Dylwythen Deg</i>, to denote -her; but it is unknown to the others, so that the extent of its use is -not very considerable. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb49" href="#pb49" -name="pb49">49</a>]</span></p> -<p>This is, perhaps, the place to give another tale, according to which -the man goes to the Lake Maiden’s country, instead of her -settling with him at his home. I owe it to the kindness of Mr. William -Jones, of Regent Place, Ỻangoỻen, a native of -Beđgelert. He heard it from an old man before he left -Beđgelert, but when he sent a friend to inquire some time -afterwards, the old man was gone. According to Mr. Jones, the details -of the tale are, for that reason, imperfect, as some of the incidents -have faded from his memory; but such as he can still remember the tale, -it is here given in his own words:—</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Ryw noson lawn ỻoer ac un o feibion Ỻwyn On -yn Nant y Betws yn myned i garu i Glogwyn y Gwin, efe a welođ y -Tylwyth yn ymlođestu a dawnsio ei hochr hi ar weirglođ wrth -lan Ỻyn Caweỻyn. Efe a nesaođ tuag atynt; ac o dipyn i -beth fe’i ỻithiwyd gan bereiđdra swynol eu canu a -hoender a bywiogrwyđ eu chwareu, nes myned o hono tu fewn -i’r cylch; ac yn fuan fe đaeth rhyw hud drosto, fel y -coỻođ adnabyđiaeth o bobman; a chafođ ei hun mewn -gwlad harđaf a welođ erioed, ỻe’r oeđ pawb -yn treulio eu hamser mewn afiaeth a gorfoleđ. Yr oeđ wedi bod -yno am saith mlyneđ, ac eto nid oeđ đim ond megis -breuđwyd nos; ond daeth adgof i’w feđwl am ei neges, a -hiraeth ynđo am weled ei anwylyd. Feỻy efe a ofynođ -ganiatad i đychwelyd adref, yr hyn a rođwyd ynghyd a ỻu -o gymdeithion i’w arwain tua’i wlad; ac yn đisymwth -cafođ ei hun fel yn deffro o freuđwyd ar y đol, ỻe -gwelođ y Tylwyth Teg yn chwareu. Trođ ei wyneb tuag adref; -ond wedi myned yno yr oeđ popeth wedi newid, ei rieni wedi meirw, -ei frodyr yn ffaelu ei adnabod, a’i gariad wedi priodi un -araỻ.—Ar ol y fath gyfnewidiadau efe a dorođ ei galon, -ac a fu farw mewn ỻai nag wythnos ar ol ei -đychweliad.</i></p> -<p>‘One bright moonlight night, as one of the sons of the -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb50" href="#pb50" name= -"pb50">50</a>]</span>farmer who lived at Ỻwyn On in Nant y Bettws -was going to pay his addresses to a girl at Clogwyn y Gwin, he beheld -the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> enjoying themselves in full swing on a -meadow close to Cweỻyn Lake. He approached them, and little by -little he was led on by the enchanting sweetness of their music and the -liveliness of their playing until he had got within their circle. Soon -some kind of spell passed over him, so that he lost his knowledge of -the place, and found himself in a country, the most beautiful he had -ever seen, where everybody spent his time in mirth and rejoicing. He -had been there seven years, and yet it seemed to him but a -night’s dream; but a faint recollection came to his mind of the -business on which he had left home, and he felt a longing to see his -beloved one. So he went and asked for permission to return home, which -was granted him, together with a host of attendants to lead him to his -country; and, suddenly, he found himself, as if waking from a dream, on -the bank where he had seen the fair family amusing themselves. He -turned towards home, but there he found everything changed: his parents -were dead, his brothers could not recognize him, and his sweetheart was -married to another man. In consequence of such changes he died -broken-hearted in less than a week after coming back.’</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch1.5" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e345">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">V.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">The Rev. O. Davies regarded the Ỻanỻechid -legend as so very like the one he got about Cweỻyn Lake and the -Waen Fawr, that he has not written the former out at length, but merely -pointed out the following differences: (1) Instead of Cweỻyn, the -lake in the former is the pool of Corwrion, in the parish of -Ỻandegai, near Bangor. (2) What the Lake Lady was struck with was -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb51" href="#pb51" name= -"pb51">51</a>]</span>not a bridle, but an iron fetter: the word used is -<i lang="cy">ỻyfether</i>, which probably means a long fetter -connecting a fore-foot and a hind-foot of a horse together. In Arfon, -the word is applied also to a cord tying the two fore-feet together, -but in Cardiganshire this would be called a <i lang="cy">hual</i>, the -other word, there pronounced <i lang="cy">llowethir</i>, being confined -to the long fetter. In books, the word is written <i lang= -"cy">llywethair</i>, <i lang="cy">llefethair</i> and <i lang= -"cy">llyffethair</i> or <i lang="cy">llyffethar</i>, which is possibly -the pronunciation in parts of North Wales, especially Arfon. This is an -interesting word, as it is no other than the English term ‘long -fetter,’ borrowed into Welsh; as, in fact, it was also into Irish -early enough to call for an article on it in Cormac’s <i>Irish -Glossary</i>, where <i lang="ga">langfiter</i> is described as an -English word for a fetter between the fore and the hind legs: in -Anglo-Manx it is become <i lang="gv">lanketer</i>. (3) The field in -which they were trying to catch the horse is, in the -Ỻanỻechid version, specified as that called Maes Madog, at -the foot of the Ỻefn. (4) When the fairy wife ran away, it was -headlong into the pool of Corwrion, calling after her all her milch -cows, and they followed her with the utmost readiness.</p> -<p>Before going on to mention bits of information I have received from -others about the Ỻanỻechid legend, I think it best here to -finish with the items given me by Mr. O. Davies, whom I cannot too -cordially thank for his readiness to answer my questions. Among other -things, he expresses himself to the following effect:— ‘It -is to this day a tradition—and I have heard it a hundred -times—that the dairy of Corwrion excelled all other dairies in -those parts, that the milk was better and more plentiful, and that the -cheese and butter were better there than in all the country round, the -reason assigned being that the cattle on the farm of Corwrion had mixed -with the breed belonging to the fairy, who <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb52" href="#pb52" name="pb52">52</a>]</span>had run -away after being struck with the iron fetter. However that may be, I -remember perfectly well the high terms of praise in which the cows of -Corwrion used to be spoken of as being remarkable for their milk and -the profit they yielded; and, when I was a boy, I used to hear people -talk of <i lang="cy">Tarw Penwyn Corwrion</i>, or “the -White-headed Bull of Corwrion,” as derived from the breed of -cattle which had formed the fairy maiden’s dowry.’</p> -<p>My next informant is Mr. Hugh Derfel Hughes, of Pendinas, -Ỻandegai<a class="noteref" id="xd25e6869src" href="#xd25e6869" -name="xd25e6869src">24</a>, who has been kind enough to give me the -version, of which I here give the substance in English, premising that -Mr. Hughes says that he has lived about thirty-four years within a mile -of the pool and farm house called Corwrion, and that he has refreshed -his memory of the legend by questioning separately no less than three -old people, who had been bred and born at or near that spot. He is a -native of Merioneth, but has lived at Ỻandegai for the last -thirty-seven years, his age now being sixty-six. I may add that Mr. -Hughes is a local antiquary of great industry and zeal; and that he -published a book on the antiquities of the district, under the title of -<i lang="cy">Hynafiaethau Ỻandegai a Ỻanỻechid</i>, -that is ‘the Antiquities of Ỻandegai and -Ỻanỻechid’ (Bethesda, 1866); but it is out of print, -and I have had some trouble to procure a copy:—</p> -<p>‘In old times, when the fairies showed themselves much oftener -to men than they do now, they made their home in the bottomless pool of -Corwrion, in Upper Arỻechweđ, in that wild portion of -Gwyneđ called <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb53" href="#pb53" -name="pb53">53</a>]</span>Arfon. On fine mornings in the month of June -these diminutive and nimble folk might be seen in a regular line -vigorously engaged in mowing hay, with their cattle in herds busily -grazing in the fields near Corwrion. This was a sight which often met -the eyes of the people on the sides of the hills around, even on -Sundays; but when they hurried down to them they found the fields -empty, with the sham workmen and their cows gone, all gone. At other -times they might be heard hammering away like miners, shovelling -rubbish aside, or emptying their carts of stones. At times they took to -singing all the night long, greatly to the delight of the people about, -who dearly loved to hear them; and, besides singing so charmingly, they -sometimes formed into companies for dancing, and their movements were -marvellously graceful and attractive. But it was not safe to go too -near the lake late at night, for once a brave girl, who was troubled -with toothache, got up at midnight and went to the brink of the water -in search of the root of a plant that grows there full of the power to -kill all pain in the teeth. But, as she was plucking up a bit of it, -there burst on her ear, from the depths of the lake, such a shriek as -drove her back into the house breathless with fear and trembling; but -whether this was not the doing of a stray fairy, who had been -frightened out of her wits at being suddenly overtaken by a damsel in -her nightdress, or the ordinary fairy way of curing the toothache, -tradition does not tell. For sometimes, at any rate, the fairies busied -themselves in doing good to the men and women who were their -neighbours, as when they tried to teach them to keep all promises and -covenants to which they pledged themselves. A certain man and his wife, -to whom they wished to teach this good habit, have never been -forgotten. The husband had been behaving as <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb54" href="#pb54" name="pb54">54</a>]</span>he -ought, until one day, as he held the plough, with the wife guiding his -team, he broke his covenant towards her by treating her harshly and -unkindly. No sooner had he done so, than he was snatched through the -air and plunged in the lake. When the wife went to the brink of the -water to ask for him back, the reply she had was, that he was there, -and that there he should be.</p> -<p>‘The fairies when engaged in dancing allowed themselves to be -gazed at, a sight which was wont greatly to attract the young men of -the neighbourhood, and once on a time the son and heir of the owner of -Corwrion fell deeply in love with one of the graceful maidens who -danced in the fairy ring, for she was wondrously beautiful and pretty -beyond compare. His passion for her ere long resulted in courtship, and -soon in their being married, which took place on the express -understanding, that firstly the husband was not to know her name, -though he might give her any name he chose; and, secondly, that he -might now and then beat her with a rod, if she chanced to misbehave -towards him; but he was not to strike her with iron on pain of her -leaving him at once. This covenant was kept for some years, so that -they lived happily together and had four children, of whom the two -youngest were a boy and a girl. But one day as they went to one of the -fields of Bryn Twrw in the direction of Pennarđ Gron, to catch a -pony, the fairy wife, being so much nimbler than her husband, ran -before him and had her hand in the pony’s mane in no time. She -called out to her husband to throw her a halter, but instead of that he -threw towards her a bridle with an iron bit, which, as bad luck would -have it, struck her. The wife at once flew through the air, and plunged -headlong into Corwrion Pool. The husband returned <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb55" href="#pb55" name="pb55">55</a>]</span>sighing -and weeping towards Bryn Twrw, “Noise Hill,” and when he -had reached it, the <i lang="cy">twrw</i>, “noise,” there -was greater than had ever been heard before, namely that of weeping -after “Belenë”; and it was then, after he had struck -her with iron, that he first learnt what his wife’s name was. -Belenë never came back to her husband, but the feelings of a -mother once brought her to the window of his bedroom, where she gave -him the following order:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Os byđ anwyd ar fy mab,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Rho’wch am dano gob ei dad;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Os anwydog a fyđ can</i><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e6916src" href="#xd25e6916" name="xd25e6916src">25</a>,</p> -<p class="line"><i>Rho’wch am dani bais ei mam.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">If my son should feel it cold,</p> -<p class="line">Let him wear his father’s coat;</p> -<p class="line">If the fair one feel the cold,</p> -<p class="line">Let her wear my petticoat.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">‘As years and years rolled on a grandson of -Belenë’s fell in love with a beautiful damsel who lived at a -neighbouring farm house called Tai Teulwriaid, and against the will of -his father and mother they married, but they had nothing to stock their -land with. So one morning what was their astonishment, when they got -up, to see grazing quietly in the field six black cows and a -white-headed bull, which had come up out of the lake as stock for them -from old grannie Belenë? They served them well with milk and -butter for many a long year, but on the day the last of the family -died, the six black cows and the white-headed bull disappeared into the -lake, never more to be seen.’</p> -<p>Mr. Hughes referred to no less than three other versions, as -follows:—(1) According to one account, the husband was ploughing, -with the wife leading the team, when by chance he came across her and -the accident happened. The wife then flew away like a wood-hen -(<i lang="cy">iar goed</i>) into the lake. (2) Another says that they -were in a stable trying to bridle one of the <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb56" href="#pb56" name="pb56">56</a>]</span>horses, -when the misfortune took place through inadvertence. (3) A third -specifies the field in front of the house at Corwrion as the place -where the final accident took place, when they were busied with the -cows and horses.</p> -<p>To these I would add the following traditions, which Mr. Hughes -further gives. Sometimes the inhabitants, who seem to have been on the -whole on good terms with the fairies, used to heat water and leave it -in a vessel on the hearth overnight for the fairies to wash their -children in it. This they considered such a kindness that they always -left behind them on the hearth a handful of their money. Some pieces -are said to have been sometimes found in the fields near Corwrion, and -that they consisted of coins which were smaller than our halfpennies, -but bigger than farthings, and had a harp on one side. But the -tradition is not very definite on these points.</p> -<p>Here also I may as well refer to a similar tale which I got last -year at Ỻanberis from a man who is a native of the -Ỻanỻechid side of the mountain, though he now lives at -Ỻanberis. He is about fifty-five years of age, and remembers -hearing in his youth a tale connected with a house called -Hafoty’r Famaeth, in a very lonely situation on -Ỻanỻechid Mountain, and now represented only by some old -ruined walls. It was to the effect that one night, when the man who -lived there was away from home, his wife, who had a youngish baby, -washed him on the hearth, left the water there, and went to bed with -her little one: she woke up in the night to find that the <i lang= -"cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> were in possession of the hearth, and busily -engaged in washing their children. That is all I got of this tale of a -well-known type.</p> -<p>To return to Mr. Hughes’ communications, I would select from -them some remarks on the topography of <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb57" href="#pb57" name="pb57">57</a>]</span>the teeming home of the -fairies. He estimated the lake or pool of Corwrion to be about 120 -yards long, and adds that it is nearly round; but he thinks it was -formerly considerably larger, as a cutting was made some eighty or a -hundred years ago to lead water from it to Penrhyn Castle; but even -then its size would not approach that ascribed to it by popular belief, -according to which it was no less than three miles long. In fact it was -believed that there was once a town of Corwrion which was swallowed up -by the lake, a sort of idea which one meets with in many parts of -Wales, and some of the natives are said to be able to discern the -houses under the water. This must have been near the end which is not -bottomless, the latter being indicated by a spot which is said never to -freeze even in hard winters. Old men remember it the resort of herons, -cormorants, and the water-hen (<i lang="cy">hobi wen</i>). Near the -banks there grew, besides the water-lily, various kinds of rushes and -sedges, which were formerly much used for making mats and other useful -articles. It was also once famous for eels of a large size, but it is -not supposed to have contained fish until Lord Penrhyn placed some -there in recent years. It teemed, however, with leeches of three -different kinds so recently that an old man still living describes to -Mr. Hughes his simple way of catching them when he was a boy, namely, -by walking bare-legged in the water: in a few minutes he landed with -nine or ten leeches sticking to his legs, some of which fetched a -shilling each from the medical men of those days. Corwrion is now a -farm house occupied by Mr. William Griffiths, a grandson of the late -bard Gutyn Peris. When Mr. Hughes called to make inquiries about the -legend, he found there the foundations of several old buildings, and -several pieces of old querns about the place. He <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb58" href="#pb58" name="pb58">58</a>]</span>thinks -that there belonged to Corwrion in former times, a mill and a -fuller’s house, which he seems to infer from the names of two -neighbouring houses called ‘Y Felin Hen,’ the Old Mill, and -‘Pandy Tre Garth,’ the Fulling Mill of Tregarth, -respectively. He also alludes to a <i lang="cy">gefail</i> or smithy -there, in which one Rhys ab Robert used to work, not to mention that a -great quantity of ashes, such as come from a smithy, are found at the -end of the lake furthest from the farm house. The spot on which -Corwrion stands is part of the ground between the Ogwen and another -stream which bears the name of ‘Afon Cegin Arthur,’ or the -River of Arthur’s Kitchen, and most of the houses and fields -about have names which have suggested various notions to the people -there: such are the farms called ‘Coed Howel,’ whence the -belief in the neighbourhood that Howel Đa, King of Wales, lived -here. About him Mr. Hughes has a great deal to say: among other things, -that he had boats on Corwrion lake, and that he was wont to present the -citizens of Bangor yearly with 300 fat geese reared on the waters of -the same. I am referred by another man to a lecture delivered in the -neighbourhood on these and similar things by the late bard and -antiquary the Rev. Robert Ellis (Cynđelw), but I have never come -across a copy. A field near Corwrion is called ‘Cae -Stabal,’ or the Field of the Stable, which contains the remains -of a row of stables, as it is supposed, and of a number of mangers -where Howel’s horses were once fed. In a neighbouring wood, -called ‘Parc y Geỻi’ or ‘Hopiar y -Geỻi,’ my informant goes on to say, there are to be seen -the foundations of seventeen or eighteen old hut-circles, and near them -some think they see the site of an old church. About a mile to the -south-east of Corwrion is Pendinas, which Mr. Hughes describes as -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb59" href="#pb59" name= -"pb59">59</a>]</span>an old triangular Welsh fortress, on the bank of -the Ogwen; and within two stone’s-throws or so of Corwrion on the -south side of it, and a little to the west of Bryn Twrw mentioned in -the legend, is situated Penarđ Gron, a <i lang="cy">caer</i> or -fort, which he describes as being, before it was razed in his time, -forty-two yards long by thirty-two wide, and defended by a sort of -rampart of earth and stone several yards wide at the base. It used to -be the resort of the country people for dancing, cock-fighting<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e6973src" href="#xd25e6973" name= -"xd25e6973src">26</a>, and other amusements on Sundays. Near it was a -cairn, which, when it was dug into, was found to cover a kistvaen, a -pot, and a quern: a variety of tales attaching to it are told -concerning ghosts, caves, and hidden treasures. Altogether Mr. Hughes -is strongly of opinion that Corwrion and its immediate surroundings -represent a spot which at one time had great importance; and I see no -reason wholly to doubt the correctness of that conclusion, but it would -be interesting to know whether Penrhyn used, as Mr. Hughes suggests, to -be called Penrhyn Corwrion; there ought, perhaps, to be no great -difficulty in ascertaining this, as some of the Penrhyn estate appears -to have been the subject of litigation in times gone by.</p> -<p>Before leaving Mr. Hughes’ notes, I must here give his too -brief account of another thing connected with Corwrion, though, -perhaps, not with the legends here in question. I allude to what he -calls the Lantern Ghost (<i lang="cy">Ysbryd y -Lantar</i>):—‘There used to be formerly,’ he says, -‘and there is still at Corwrion, a good-sized sour apple-tree, -which during the winter half of the year used to be lit up by fire. It -began slowly and <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb60" href="#pb60" name= -"pb60">60</a>]</span>grew greater until the whole seemed to be in a -blaze. He was told by an old woman that she formerly knew old people -who declared they had seen it. In the same way the trees in Hopiar y -Geỻi appeared, according to them, to be also lit up with -fire.’ This reminds me of Mr. Fitzgerald’s account of the -Irish Bile-Tineadh in the <i lang="fr">Revue Celtique</i>, iv. 194.</p> -<p>After communicating to me the notes of which the foregoing are -abstracts, Mr. Hughes kindly got me a version of the legend from Mr. -David Thomas, of Pont y Wern, in the same neighbourhood, but as it -contains nothing which I have not already given from Mr. Hughes’ -own, I pass it by. Mr. Thomas, however, has heard that the number of -the houses making up the town of Corwrion some six or seven centuries -ago was about seventy-five; but they were exactly seventy-three -according to my next informant, Mr. David Evan Davies, of Treflys, -Bethesda, better known by his bardic name of Dewi Glan Ffrydlas. Both -these gentlemen have also heard the tradition that there was a church -at Corwrion, where there used to be every Sunday a single service, -after which the people went to a spot not far off to amuse themselves, -and at night to watch the fairies dancing, or to mix with them while -they danced in a ring around a glow-worm. According to Dewi Glan -Ffrydlas, the spot was the Pen y Bonc, already mentioned, which means, -among other things, that they chose a rising ground. This is referred -to in a modern rhyme, which runs thus:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>A’r Tylwyth Teg yn dawnsio’n -sionc</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>O gylch magïen Pen y Bonc.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">With the fairies nimbly dancing round</p> -<p class="line">The glow-worm on the Rising Ground.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">Dewi Glan Ffrydlas has kindly gone to the trouble of -giving me a brief, but complete, version of the legend as he has heard -it. It will be noticed that the discovering <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb61" href="#pb61" name="pb61">61</a>]</span>of the -fairy’s name is an idle incident in this version: it is brought -in too late, and no use is made of it when introduced. This is the -substance of his story in English:—‘At one of the dances at -Pen y Bonc, the heir of Corwrion’s eyes fell on one of the -damsels of the fair family, and he was filled with love for her. -Courtship and marriage in <span class="corr" id="xd25e7007" title= -"Source: duetime">due time</span> ensued, but he had to agree to two -conditions, namely, that he was neither to know her name nor to strike -her with iron. By-and-by they had children, and when the husband -happened to go, during his wife’s confinement, to a merry-making -at Pen y Bonc, the fairies talked together concerning his wife, and in -expressing their feelings of sympathy for her, they inadvertently -betrayed the mystery of her name by mentioning it within his hearing. -Years rolled on, when the husband and wife went out together one day to -catch a colt of theirs that had not been broken in, their object being -to go to Conway Fair. Now, as she was swifter of foot than her husband, -she got hold of the colt by the mane, and called out to him to throw -her a halter, but instead of throwing her the one she asked for, he -threw another with iron in it, which struck her. Off she went into the -lake. A grandson of this fairy many years afterwards married one of the -girls of Corwrion. They had a large piece of land, but no means of -stocking it, so that they felt rather distressed in their minds. But lo -and behold! one day a white-headed bull came out of the lake, bringing -with him six black cows to their land. There never were the like of -those cows for milk, and great was the prosperity of their owners, as -well as the envy it kindled in their neighbours’ breasts. But -when they both grew old and died, the bull and the cows went back into -the lake.’</p> -<p>Now I add the other sayings about the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i>, -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb62" href="#pb62" name= -"pb62">62</a>]</span>which Dewi Glan Ffrydlas has kindly collected for -me, beginning with a blurred story about changelings:—</p> -<p>‘Once on a time, in the fourteenth century, the wife of a man -at Corwrion had twins, and she complained one day to a witch, who lived -close by, at Tyđyn y Barcud, that the children were not getting -on, but that they were always crying day and night. “Are you sure -that they are your children?” asked the witch, adding that it did -not seem to her that they were like hers. “I have my doubts -also,” said the mother. “I wonder if somebody has exchanged -children with you,” said the witch. “I do not know,” -said the mother. “But why do you not seek to know?” asked -the other. “But how am I to go about it?” said the mother. -The witch replied, “Go and do something rather strange before -their eyes and watch what they will say to one another.” -“Well, I do not know what I should do,” said the mother. -“Well,” said the other, “take an egg-shell, and -proceed to brew beer in it in a chamber aside, and come here to tell me -what the children will say about it.” She went home and did as -the witch had directed her, when the two children lifted their heads -out of the cradle to find what she was doing—to watch and to -listen. Then one observed to the other, “I remember seeing an oak -having an acorn,” to which the other replied, “And I -remember seeing a hen having an egg”; and one of the two added, -“But I do not remember before seeing anybody brew beer in the -shell of a hen’s egg.” The mother then went to the witch -and told her what the twins had said one to the other; and she directed -her to go to a small wooden bridge, not far off, with one of the -strange children under each arm, and there to drop them from the bridge -into the river beneath. The mother went back home again and did as she -had been directed. When she reached home <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb63" href="#pb63" name="pb63">63</a>]</span>this time, she found to -her astonishment that her own children had been brought -back.’</p> -<p>Next comes a story about a midwife who lived at Corwrion. ‘One -of the fairies called to ask her to come and attend on his wife. Off -she went with him, and she was astonished to be taken into a splendid -palace. There she continued to go night and morning to dress the baby -for some time, until one day the husband asked her to rub her eyes with -a certain ointment he offered her. She did so, and found herself -sitting on a tuft of rushes, and not in a palace. There was no baby: -all had disappeared. Some time afterwards she happened to go to the -town, and whom should she there see busily buying various wares, but -the fairy on whose wife she had been attending. She addressed him with -the question, “How are you to-day?” Instead of answering -her, he asked, “How do you see me?” “With my -eyes,” was the prompt reply. “Which eye?” he asked. -“This one,” said the woman, pointing to it; and instantly -he disappeared, never more to be seen by her.’ This tale, as will -be seen on comparison later, is incomplete, and probably incorrect.</p> -<p>Here is another from Mr. D. E. Davies:—‘One day Guto, -the farmer of Corwrion, complained to his wife that he lacked men to -mow his hay, when she replied, “Why fret about it? look yonder! -There you have a field full of them at it, and stripped to their -shirt-sleeves (<i lang="cy">yn ỻewys eu crysau</i>).” When -he went to the spot the sham workmen of the fairy family had -disappeared. This same Guto—or somebody else—happened -another time to be ploughing, when he heard some person he could not -see, calling out to him, “I have got the <i>bins</i> (that is the -<i>vice</i>) of my plough broken.” “Bring it to me,” -said the driver of Guto’s team, “that I may mend it.” -When they finished the furrow, they found the <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb64" href="#pb64" name="pb64">64</a>]</span>broken -vice, with a barrel of beer placed near it. One of the men sat down and -mended the vice. Then they made another furrow, and when they returned -to the spot they found there a two-eared dish filled to the brim with -<i lang="cy">bara a chwrw</i>, or “bread and beer.” The -word <i>vice</i>, I may observe, is an English term, which is applied -in Carnarvonshire to a certain part of the plough: it is otherwise -called <i>bins</i>, but neither does this seem to be a Welsh word, nor -have I heard either used in South Wales.</p> -<p>At times one of the fairies was in the habit, as I was told by more -than one of my informants, of coming out of Ỻyn Corwrion with her -spinning-wheel (<i lang="cy">troeỻ bach</i>) on fine summer days -and betaking herself to spinning. While at that work she might be heard -constantly singing or humming, in a sort of round tune, the words -<i lang="cy">sìli ffrit</i>. So that <i lang="cy">sìli -ffrit Leisa Bèla</i> may now be heard from the mouths of the -children in that neighbourhood. But I have not been successful in -finding out what Liza Bella’s ‘silly frit’ exactly -means, though I am, on the whole, convinced that the words are other -than of Welsh origin. The last of them, <i lang="cy">ffrit</i>, is -usually applied in Cardiganshire to anything worthless or -insignificant, and the derivative, <i lang="cy">ffrityn</i>, means one -who has no go or perseverance in him: the feminine is <i lang= -"cy">ffriten</i>. In Carnarvonshire my wife has heard <i lang= -"cy">ffrityn</i> and <i lang="cy">ffritan</i> applied to a small man -and a small woman respectively. Mr. Hughes says that in Merioneth and -parts of Powys <i lang="cy">sìli ffrit</i> is a term applied to -a small woman or a female dwarf who happens to be proud, vain, and fond -of the attentions of the other sex (<i lang="cy">benyw fach neu -goraches falch a hunanol a fyđai hoff o garu</i>); but he thinks -he has heard it made use of with regard to the gipsies, and possibly -also to the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i>. The Rev. O. <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb65" href="#pb65" name="pb65">65</a>]</span>Davies -thinks the words <i lang="cy">sìli ffrit Leisa Bèla</i> -to be very modern, and that they refer to a young woman who lived at a -place in the neighbourhood, called Bryn Bèla or Brymbèla, -‘Bella’s Hill,’ the point being that this Bella was -ahead, in her time, of all the girls in those parts in matters of taste -and fashion. This however does not seem to go far enough back, and it -is possible still that in <i lang="cy">Bèla</i>, that is, in -English spelling, <i>Bella</i>, we have merely a shortening of some -such a name as Isabella or Arabella, which were once much more popular -in the Principality than they are now: in fact, I do not feel sure that -<i lang="cy">Leisa Bèla</i> is not bodily a corruption of -<i>Isabella</i>. As to <i lang="cy">sìli ffrit</i>, one might at -first have been inclined to render it by small fry, especially in the -sense of the French ‘<span lang="fr">de la friture</span>’ -as applied to young men and boys, and to connect it with the Welsh -<i lang="cy">sil</i> and <i lang="cy">silod</i>, which mean small fish; -but the pronunciation of <i lang="cy">silli</i> or <i lang= -"cy">sìli</i> being nearly that of the English word -<i>silly</i>, it appears, on the whole, to belong to the host of -English words to be found in colloquial Welsh, though they seldom find -their way into books. Students of English ought to be able to tell us -whether <i>frit</i> had the meaning here suggested in any part of -England, and how lately; also, whether there was such a phrase as -‘silly frit’ in use. After penning this, I received the -following interesting communication from Mr. William Jones, of -Ỻangoỻen:—The term <i lang="cy">sìli ffrit</i> -was formerly in use at Beđgelert, and what was thereby meant was a -child of the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i>. It is still used for any -creature that is smaller than ordinary. ‘Pooh, a silly frit like -that!’ (<i lang="cy">Pw, rhyw sìli ffrit fel yna!</i>). -‘Mrs. So-and-So has a fine child.’ ‘Ha, do you call a -silly frit like that a fine child?’ (<i lang="cy">Mae gan hon a -hon blentyn braf. Ho, a ydych chwi’n galw rhyw sìli ffrit -fel hwnna’n <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb66" href="#pb66" -name="pb66">66</a>]</span>braf?</i>) To return to Leisa Bèla and -Belenë, it may be that the same person was meant by both these -names, but I am in no hurry to identify them, as none of my -correspondents knows the latter of them except Mr. Hughes, who gives it -on the authority of the bard Gutyn Peris, and nothing further so far as -I can understand, whereas Bèla will come before us in another -story, as it is the same name, I presume, which Glasynys has spelled -<i lang="cy">Bella</i> in <i lang="cy">Cymru Fu</i>.</p> -<p>So I wrote in 1881: since then I have ascertained from Professor -Joseph Wright, who is busily engaged on his great <i>English Dialect -Dictionary</i>, that <i>frit</i><a class="noteref" id="xd25e7154src" -href="#xd25e7154" name="xd25e7154src">27</a> is the same word, in the -dialects of Cheshire, Shropshire, and Pembrokeshire, as <i>fright</i> -in literary English; and that the corresponding verb to <i>frighten</i> -is in them <i>fritten</i>, while a <i>frittenin</i> (= the book English -<i>frightening</i>) means a ghost or apparition. So <i lang= -"cy">sìli ffrit</i> is simply the English <i>silly frit</i>, and -means probably a silly sprite or silly ghost, and <i lang= -"cy">sìli ffrit Leisa Bèla</i> would mean the silly ghost -of a woman called Liza Bella. But the silly frit found spinning near -Corwrion Pool will come under notice again, for that fairy belongs to -the Rumpelstiltzchen group of tales, and the fragment of a story about -her will be seen to have treated Silly Frit as her proper name, which -she had not intended to reach the ears of the person of whom she was -trying to get the better.</p> -<p>These tales are brought into connexion with the present day in more -ways than one, for besides the various accounts of the <i lang= -"cy">bwganod</i> or bogies of Corwrion frightening people when out late -at night, Mr. D. E. Davies knows a man, who is still living, and who -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb67" href="#pb67" name= -"pb67">67</a>]</span>well remembers the time when the sound of working -used to be heard in the pool, and the voices of children crying -somewhere in its depths, but that when people rushed there to see what -the matter was, all was found profoundly quiet and still. Moreover, -there is a family or two, now numerously represented in the parishes of -Ỻandegai and Ỻanỻechid, who used to be taunted with -being the offspring of fairy ancestors. One of these families was -nicknamed ‘Simychiaid’ or ‘Smychiaid’; and my -informant, who is not yet quite forty, says that he heard his mother -repeat scores of times that the old people used to say, that the -Smychiaid, who were very numerous in the neighbourhood, were descended -from fairies, and that they came from Ỻyn Corwrion. At all this -the Smychiaid were wont to grow mightily angry. Another tradition, he -says, about them was that they were a wandering family that arrived in -the district from the direction of Conway, and that the father’s -name was a Simwch, or rather that was his nickname, based on the proper -name Simwnt, which appears to have once been the prevalent name in -Ỻandegai. The historical order of these words would in that case -have been <i lang="cy">Simwnt</i>, <i lang="cy">Simwch</i>, <i lang= -"cy">Simychiaid</i>, <i lang="cy">Smychiaid</i>. Now <i lang= -"cy">Simwnt</i> seems to be merely the Welsh form given to some such -English name as <i>Simond</i>, just as <i>Edmund</i> or <i>Edmond</i> -becomes in North Wales <i lang="cy">Emwnt</i>. The objection to the -nickname seems to lie in the fact, which one of my correspondents -points out to me, that Simwch is understood to mean a monkey, a point -on which I should like to have further information. Pughe gives -<i lang="cy">simach</i>, it is true, as having the meaning of the Latin -<i lang="la">simia</i>. A branch of the same family is said to be -called ‘y Cowperiaid’ or the Coopers, from an ancestor who -was either by name or by trade a cooper. <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb68" href="#pb68" name="pb68">68</a>]</span>Mr. Hughes’ account -of the Smychiaid was, that they are the descendants of one Simonds, who -came to be a bailiff at Bodysgaỻan, near Deganwy, and moved from -there to Coetmor in the neighbourhood of Corwrion. Simonds was -obnoxious to the bards, he goes on to say, and they described the -Smychiaid as having arrived in the parish at the bottom of a <i lang= -"cy">caweỻ</i>, ‘a creel or basket carried on the -back,’ when chance would have it that the <i lang= -"cy">caweỻ</i> cord snapped just in that neighbourhood, at a -place called Pont y Ỻan. That accident is described, according to -Mr. Hughes, in the following doggerel, the origin of which I do not -know—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>E dorai ’r arwest, ede wan,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Brwnt y ỻe, ar Bont y Ỻan.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">The cord would snap, feeble yarn,</p> -<p class="line">At that nasty spot, Pont y Ỻan.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">Curiously enough, the same <i lang= -"cy">caweỻ</i> story used to be said of a widely spread family in -North Cardiganshire, whose surname was pronounced Massn and written -Mason or Mazon: as my mother was of this family, I have often heard it. -The <i lang="cy">caweỻ</i>, if I remember rightly, was said, in -this instance, to have come from Scotland, to which were traced three -men who settled in North Cardiganshire. One had no descendants, but the -other two, Mason and Peel—I think his name was Peel, but I am -only sure that it was not Welsh—had so many, that the Masons, at -any rate, are exceedingly numerous there; but a great many of them, -owing to some extent, probably, to the <i lang="cy">caweỻ</i> -story, have been silly enough to change their name into that of Jones, -some of them in my time. The three men came there probably for refuge -in the course of troubles in Scotland, as a Frazer and a Francis did to -Anglesey. At any rate, I have never heard it suggested that they were -of aquatic origin, but, taking the <i lang="cy">caweỻ</i> into -consideration, and the popular account of <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb69" href="#pb69" name="pb69">69</a>]</span>the Smychiaid, I should -be inclined to think that the <i lang="cy">caweỻ</i> originally -referred to some such a supposed descent. I only hope that somebody -will help us with another and a longer <i lang="cy">caweỻ</i> -tale, which will make up for the brevity of these allusions. We may, -however, assume, I think, that there was a tendency at one time in -Gwyneđ, if not in other parts of the Principality, to believe, or -pretend to believe, that the descendants of an Englishman or Scotsman, -who settled among the old inhabitants, were of fairy origin, and that -their history was somehow uncanny, which was all, of course, duly -resented. This helps, to some extent, to explain how names of doubtful -origin have got into these tales, such as <i lang="cy">Smychiaid</i>, -<i lang="cy">Cowperiaid</i>, <i>Pellings</i>, <i>Penelope</i>, <i lang= -"cy">Leisa Bèla</i> or <i>Isabella</i>, and the like. This -association of the lake legends with intruders from without is what -has, perhaps, in a great measure served to rescue such legends from -utter oblivion.</p> -<p>As to a church at Corwrion, the tradition does not seem to be an old -one, and it appears founded on one of the popular etymologies of the -word Corwrion, which treats the first syllable as <i lang="cy">cor</i> -in the sense of a choir; but the word has other meanings, including -among them that of an ox-stall or enclosure for cattle. Taking this as -coming near the true explanation, it at once suggests itself, that -Creuwyryon in the <i>Mabinogi</i> of Math ab Mathonwy is the same -place, for <i lang="cy">creu</i> or <i lang="cy">crau</i> also meant an -enclosure for animals, including swine. In Irish the word is <i lang= -"cy">cró</i>, an enclosure, a hut or hovel. The passage in the -<i>Mabinogi</i><a class="noteref" id="xd25e7329src" href="#xd25e7329" -name="xd25e7329src">28</a> relates to Gwydion returning with the swine -he had got by dint of magic and deceit from Pryderi, prince of Dyfed, -and runs thus in Lady Charlotte Guest’s translation: ‘So -they journeyed on to the highest town of Arỻechweđ, -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb70" href="#pb70" name= -"pb70">70</a>]</span>and there they made a sty (<i lang="cy">creu</i>) -for the swine, and therefore was the name of Creuwyryon given to that -town.’ As to <i lang="cy">wyryon</i> or <i lang="cy">wyrion</i>, -which we find made into <i lang="cy">wrion</i> in Corwrion according to -the modern habit, it would seem to be no other word than the usual -plural of <i lang="cy">wyr</i>, a grandson, formerly also any -descendant in the direct line. If so, the name of an ancestor must have -originally followed, just as one of the places called Bettws was once -<i lang="cy">Betws Wyrion Iđon</i>, ‘the Bettws of -Iđon’s Descendants’; but it is possible that <i lang= -"cy">wyrion</i> in Creu- or Cor-wyrion was itself a man’s name, -though I have never met with it. It is right to add that the name -appears in the <i>Record of Carnarvon</i> (pp. 12, 25, 26) as -Creweryon, which carries us back to the first half of the fourteenth -century. There it occurs as the name of a township containing eight -gavels, and the particulars about it might, in the hand of one familiar -with the tenures of that time, perhaps give us valuable information as -to what may have been its status at a still earlier date.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch1.6" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e355">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">VI.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">Here, for the sake of comparison with the Northwalian -stories in which the fairy wife runs away from her husband in -consequence of his having unintentionally touched or hit her with the -iron in the bridle, the fetter, or the stirrup, as on pp. 35, 40, 46, -50, 54, 61. I wish to cite the oldest recorded version, namely from -Walter Mapes’ curious miscellany of anecdotes and legends -entitled <i lang="la">De Nugis Curialium Distinctiones Quinque</i>. -Mapes flourished in the latter part of the twelfth century, and in -<i lang="la">Distinctio</i> ii. 11 of Thomas Wright’s edition, -published in the year 1850, one reads the following story, which serves -the purpose there of <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb71" href="#pb71" -name="pb71">71</a>]</span>giving the origin of a certain Trinio, of -whom Mapes had more to say:—</p> -<p><i lang="la">Aliud non miraculum sed portentum nobis Walenses -referunt. Wastinum Wastiniauc secus stagnum Brekeinauc</i> [read -<i lang="la">Brecheinauc</i>], <i lang="la">quod in circuitu duo -miliaria tenet, mansisse aiunt et vidisse per tres claras a luna noctes -choreas fæminarum in campo avenæ suæ, et secutum eum -eas fuisse donec in aqua stagni submergerentur, unam tamen quarta vice -retinuisse. Narrabat etiam ille raptor illius quod eas noctibus -singulis post submersionem earum murmurantes audisset sub aqua et -dicentes, ‘Si hoc fecisset, unam de nobis cepisset,’ et se -ab ipsis edoctum quomodo hanc adepta</i> [read <i>-us</i>] <i lang= -"la">sit, quæ et consensit et nupsit ei, et prima verba sua -hæc ad virum suum, ‘Libens tibi serviam, et tota -obedientiæ devotione usque in diem illum prosilire volens ad -clamores ultra Lenem</i> [read <i lang="la">Leueni</i>] <i lang="la">me -freno tuo percusseris.’ Est autem Leueni aqua vicina stagno. Quod -et factum est; post plurimæ prolis susceptionem ab eo freno -percussa est, et in reditu suo inventam eam fugientem cum prole, -insecutus est, et vix unum ex filiis suis arripuit, nomine Triunem -Uagelauc.</i></p> -<p>‘The Welsh relate to us another thing, not so much a miracle -as a portent, as follows. They say that Gwestin of Gwestiniog dwelt -beside Brecknock Mere, which has a circumference of two miles, and that -on three moonlight nights he saw in his field of oats women dancing, -and that he followed them until they sank in the water of the mere; but -the fourth time they say that he seized hold of one of them. Her captor -further used to relate that on each of these nights he had heard the -women, after plunging into the mere, murmuring beneath the water and -saying, “If he had done so and so, he would have caught one of -us,” and that he had been instructed by their own words, -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb72" href="#pb72" name= -"pb72">72</a>]</span>as to the manner in which he caught her. She both -yielded and became his wife, and her first words to her husband were -these: “Willingly will I serve thee, and with whole-hearted -obedience, until that day when, desirous of sallying forth in the -direction of the cries beyond the Ỻyfni, thou shalt strike me -with thy bridle”—the Ỻyfni is a burn near the mere. -And this came to pass: after presenting him with a numerous offspring -she was struck by him with the bridle, and on his returning home, he -found her running away with her offspring, and he pursued her, but it -was with difficulty that he got hold even of one of his sons, and he -was named Trinio (?) Faglog.’</p> -<p>The story, as it proceeds, mentions Trinio engaged in battle with -the men of a prince who seems to have been no other than Brychan of -Brycheiniog, supposed to have died about the middle of the fifth -century. The battle was disastrous to Trinio and his friends, and -Trinio was never seen afterwards; so Walter Mapes reports the fact that -people believed him to have been rescued by his mother, and that he was -with her living still in the lake. Giraldus calls it <i lang="la">lacus -ille de Brecheniauc magnus et famosus, quem et Clamosum dicunt</i>, -‘that great and famous lake of Brecknock which they also call -<i>Clamosus</i>,’ suggested by the Welsh <i lang="cy">Ỻyn -Ỻefni</i>, so called from the river <i lang="cy">Ỻefni</i>, -misinterpreted as if derived from <i lang="cy">ỻef</i> ‘a -cry.’ With this lake he connects the legend, that at the bidding -of the rightful Prince of Wales, the birds frequenting it would at once -warble and sing. This he asserts to have been proved in the case of -Gruffuđ, son of Rhys, though the Normans were at the time masters -of his person and of his territory<a class="noteref" id="xd25e7420src" -href="#xd25e7420" name="xd25e7420src">29</a>. After dwelling on the -varying colours of the lake he adds the following -statement:—<i lang="la">Ad hæc <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb73" href="#pb73" name="pb73">73</a>]</span>etiam -totus ædificiis consertus, culturis egregiis, hortis ornatus et -pomeriis, ab accolis quandoque conspicitur</i>, ‘Now and then -also it is seen by the neighbouring inhabitants to be covered with -buildings, and adorned with excellent farming, gardens, and -orchards.’ It is remarkable as one of the few lakes in Wales -where the remains of a crannog have been discovered, and while Mapes -gives it as only two miles round, it is now said to be about five; so -it has sometimes<a class="noteref" id="xd25e7434src" href="#xd25e7434" -name="xd25e7434src">30</a> been regarded as a stockaded island rather -than as an instance of pile dwellings.</p> -<p>In the <i lang="cy">Brython</i> for 1863, pp. 114–15, is to be -found what purports to be a copy of a version of the Legend of -Ỻyn Syfađon, as contained in a manuscript of Hugh -Thomas’ in the British Museum. It is to the effect that the -people of the neighbourhood have a story that all the land now covered -by the lake belonged to a princess, who had an admirer to whom she -would not be married unless he procured plenty of gold: she did not -care how. So he one day murdered and robbed a man who had money, and -the princess then accepted the murderer’s suit, but she felt -uneasy on account of the reports as to the murdered man’s ghost -haunting the place where his body had been buried. So she made her -admirer go at night to interview the ghost and lay it. Whilst he waited -near the grave he heard a voice inquiring whether the innocent man was -not to be avenged, and another replying that it would not be avenged -till the ninth generation. The princess and her lover felt safe enough -and were married: they multiplied and became numerous, while their town -grew to be as it were another Sodom; and the original pair lived on so -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb74" href="#pb74" name= -"pb74">74</a>]</span>astonishingly long that they saw their descendants -of the ninth generation. They exulted in their prosperity, and one day -held a great feast to celebrate it; and when their descendants were -banqueting with them, and the gaiety and mirth were at their zenith, -ancestors and descendants were one and all drowned in a mighty -cataclysm which produced the present lake.</p> -<p>Lastly may be briefly mentioned the belief still lingering in the -neighbourhood, to the effect that there is a town beneath the waters of -the lake, and that in rough weather the bells from the church tower of -that town may be heard ringing, while in calm weather the spire of the -church may be distinctly seen. My informant, writing in 1892, added the -remark: ‘This story seems hardly creditable to us, but many of -the old people believe it.’</p> -<p>I ought to have mentioned that the fifteenth-century poet Lewis Glyn -Cothi connects with Syfađon<a class="noteref" id="xd25e7451src" -href="#xd25e7451" name="xd25e7451src">31</a> Lake an <i lang= -"cy">afanc</i> legend; but this will be easier to understand in the -light of the more complete one from the banks of the river Conwy. So -the reader will find Glyn Cothi’s words given in the next -chapter. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb75" href="#pb75" name= -"pb75">75</a>]</span></p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<div class="footnotes"> -<hr class="fnsep"> -<div class="footnote-body"> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e5422" href="#xd25e5422src" name="xd25e5422">1</a></span> As to -the spelling of Welsh names, it may be pointed out for the benefit of -English readers that Welsh <i>f</i> has the sound of English <i>v</i>, -while the sound of English <i>f</i> is written <i>ff</i> (and -<i>ph</i>) in Welsh, and however strange it may seem to them that the -written <i>f</i> should be sounded <i>v</i>, it is borrowed from an old -English alphabet which did so likewise more or less systematically. -<i>Th</i> in such English words as <i>thin</i> and <i>breath</i> is -written <i>th</i>, but the soft sound as in <i>this</i> and -<i>breathe</i> is usually printed in Welsh <i>dd</i> and written in -modern Welsh manuscript sometimes δ, like a small Greek delta: -this will be found represented by <i>đ</i> in the Welsh extracts -edited by me in this volume.—J. R. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e5422src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e5476" href="#xd25e5476src" name="xd25e5476">2</a></span> -‘Blaensawđe, or the upper end of the river Sawđe, is -situate about three-quarters of a mile south-east from the village of -Ỻanđeusant. It gives its name to one of the hamlets of that -parish. The Sawđe has its source in Ỻyn y Fan Fach, which is -nearly two miles distant from Blaensawđe -House.’ <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e5476src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e5502" href="#xd25e5502src" name="xd25e5502">3</a></span> The -rendering might be more correctly given thus: ‘O thou of the -crimped bread, it is not easy to catch me.’—J. -R. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e5502src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e5507" href="#xd25e5507src" name="xd25e5507">4</a></span> -‘Myđfai parish was, in former times, celebrated for its fair -maidens, but whether they were descendants of the Lady of the Lake or -otherwise cannot be determined. An old penniỻ records the fact of -their beauty thus:—</p> -<div class="q"> -<div class="nestedtext"> -<div class="nestedbody"> -<div lang="cy" class="lgouter footnote"> -<p class="line"><i>Mae eira gwyn</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Ar ben y bryn,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>A’r glasgoed yn y Ferdre,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Mae bedw mân</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Ynghoed Cwm-brân,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>A merched glân yn Myđfe.</i></p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<p class="footnote cont">Which may be translated,</p> -<div class="q"> -<div class="nestedtext"> -<div class="nestedbody"> -<div class="lgouter footnote"> -<p class="line">There is white snow</p> -<p class="line">On the mountain’s brow,</p> -<p class="line">And greenwood at the Verdre,</p> -<p class="line">Young birch so good</p> -<p class="line">In Cwm-brân wood,</p> -<p class="line">And lovely girls in Myđfe.’</p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<p> <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e5507src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e5582" href="#xd25e5582src" name="xd25e5582">5</a></span> -Similarly this should be rendered: ‘O thou of the moist bread, I -will not have thee.’—J. R. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e5582src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote" lang="en"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" -id="xd25e5764" href="#xd25e5764src" name="xd25e5764">6</a></span> In -the best Demetian Welsh this word would be <i lang= -"cy">hweđel</i>, and in the Gwentian of Glamorgan it is <i lang= -"cy">gweđel</i>, mutated <i lang="cy">weđel</i>, as may be -heard in the neighbourhood of Bridgend.—J. R. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e5764src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e5801" href="#xd25e5801src" name="xd25e5801">7</a></span> This is -not generally accepted, as some Welsh antiquarians find reasons to -believe that Dafyđ ap Gwilym was buried at Strata -Florida.—J. R. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e5801src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e5855" href="#xd25e5855src" name="xd25e5855">8</a></span> This is -not quite correct, as I believe that Dr. C. Rice Williams, who lives at -Aberystwyth, is one of the Međygon. That means the year 1881, when -this chapter was written, excepting the portions concerning which the -reader is apprised of a later date.—J. R. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e5855src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e5938" href="#xd25e5938src" name="xd25e5938">9</a></span> Later it -will be seen that the <i lang="cy">triban</i> in the above form was -meant for neither of the two lakes, though it would seem to have -adapted itself to several. In the case of the Fan Fach Lake the town -meant must have been Carmarthen, and the couplet probably ran thus:</p> -<div class="q"> -<div class="nestedtext"> -<div class="nestedbody"> -<div lang="cy" class="lgouter footnote"> -<p class="line"><i>Os na cha’i lonyđ yn ym ỻe,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Fi fođa dre’ Garfyrđin.</i></p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<p> <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e5938src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e6030" href="#xd25e6030src" name="xd25e6030">10</a></span> -<i lang="cy">Ỻwch</i> is the Goidelic word <i>loch</i> borrowed, -and <i lang="cy">Ỻyn Cwm y Ỻwch</i> literally means the -Lake of the Loch Dingle. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e6030src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e6079" href="#xd25e6079src" name="xd25e6079">11</a></span> I make -no attempt to translate these lines, but I find that Mr. Ỻewellyn -Williams has found a still more obscure version of them, as -follows:—</p> -<div class="q"> -<div class="nestedtext"> -<div class="nestedbody"> -<div lang="cy" class="lgouter footnote"> -<p class="line"><i>Prw međ, prw međ, prw’r gwartheg i -dre’,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Prw milfach a malfach, pedair -ỻualfach,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Ỻualfach ac Acli, pedair lafi,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Lafi a chromwen, pedair nepwen,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Nepwen drwynog, brech yn ỻyn a gwaun -dodyn,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Tair bryncethin, tair cyffredin,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Tair caseg đu, draw yn yr eithin;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Dewch i gyd i lys y brenin.</i></p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<p> <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e6079src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e6255" href="#xd25e6255src" name="xd25e6255">12</a></span> The -Ty-fry is a house said to be some 200 years old, and situated about two -miles from Rhonđa Fechan: more exactly it is about one-fourth of a -mile from the station of Ystrad Rhonđa, and stands at the foot of -Mynyđ yr Eglwys on the Treorky side. It is now surrounded by the -cottages of colliers, one of whom occupies it. For this information I -have to thank Mr. Probert Evans. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e6255src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e6290" href="#xd25e6290src" name="xd25e6290">13</a></span> It is -to be borne in mind that the sound of <i>h</i> is uncertain in -Glamorgan <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb29n" href="#pb29n" name= -"pb29n">29</a>]</span>pronunciation, whether the language used is Welsh -or English. The pronunciation indicated, however, by Mr. Evans comes -near enough to the authentic form written <i lang= -"cy">Elfarch</i>. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e6290src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote" lang="en"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" -id="xd25e6314" href="#xd25e6314src" name="xd25e6314">14</a></span> In -the Snowdon district of Gwyneđ the call is <i lang="cy">drwi, -drwi, drŵ-i bach</i>, while in North Cardiganshire it is <i lang= -"cy">trwi, trwi, trw-e fach</i>, also pronounced sometimes with a surd -<i>r</i>, produced by making the breath cause both lips to -vibrate—<i lang="cy">tR′wi, tR′wi</i>, which can -hardly be distinguished from <i lang="cy">pR′wi, pR′wi</i>. -For the more forcibly the lips are vibrated the more difficult it -becomes to start by closing them to pronounce <i>p</i>: so the tendency -with <i>R′</i> is to make the preceding consonant into some kind -of a <i>t</i>. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e6314src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e6427" href="#xd25e6427src" name="xd25e6427">15</a></span> This is -the Welsh form of the borrowed name <i>Jane</i>, and its pronunciation -in North Cardiganshire is Si̯ân, with si̯ pronounced -approximately like the <i>ti</i> of such French words as <i>nation</i> -and the like; but of late years I find the si̯ made into English -<i>sh</i> under the influence, probably, to some extent of the English -taught at school. This happens in North Wales, even in districts where -there are still plenty of people who cannot approach the English words -<i>fish</i> and <i>shilling</i> nearer than <i>fiss</i> and -<i>silling</i>. Si̯ôn and Si̯ân represent an old -importation of English <i>John</i> and <i>Jane</i>, but they are now -considered old-fashioned and superseded by John and Jane, which I -learned to pronounce Dsi̯òn and Dsi̯ên, except -that Si̯ôn survives as a family name, written Shone, in the -neighbourhood of Wrexham. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e6427src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e6463" href="#xd25e6463src" name="xd25e6463">16</a></span> This -term <i lang="cy">dafad</i> (or <i lang="cy">dafaden</i>), ‘a -sheep,’ also used for ‘a wart,’ and <i lang= -"cy">dafad</i> (or <i lang="cy">dafaden</i>) <i lang= -"cy">wyỻt</i>, literally ‘a wild sheep,’ for cancer -or epithelioma, raises a question which I am quite unable to answer: -why should a wart have been likened to a sheep? <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e6463src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e6491" href="#xd25e6491src" name="xd25e6491">17</a></span> The -name is probably a shortening of Caweỻyn, and that perhaps of -<i lang="cy">Caweỻ-lyn</i>, ‘Creel or Basket Lake.’ -Its old name is said to have been <i lang="cy">Ỻyn -Tarđenni</i>. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e6491src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e6515" href="#xd25e6515src" name="xd25e6515">18</a></span> -<i lang="cy">Tyn</i> is a shortening of <i lang="cy">tyđyn</i>, -which is not quite forgotten in the case of <i lang="cy">Tyn Gadlas</i> -or <i lang="cy">Tyn Siarlas</i> (for <i lang="cy">Tyđyn -Siarlys</i>), ‘Charles’ Tenement,’ in the immediate -neighbourhood. Similarly the Anglesey Farm of <i lang="cy">Tyn yr -Onnen</i> used at one time to be <i lang="cy">Tyđyn yr Onnen</i> -in the books of Jesus College, Oxford, to which it -belongs. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e6515src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e6567" href="#xd25e6567src" name="xd25e6567">19</a></span> That is -the pronunciation which I have learnt at Ỻanberis, but there is -another, which I have also heard, namely <i lang= -"cy">Derwenyđ</i>. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e6567src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote" lang="en"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" -id="xd25e6640" href="#xd25e6640src" name="xd25e6640">20</a></span> -<i lang="cy">Ystrad</i> is the Welsh corresponding to Scotch -<i>strath</i>, and it is nearly related to the English word -<i>strand</i>. It means the flat land near a river. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e6640src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote" lang="en"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" -id="xd25e6651" href="#xd25e6651src" name="xd25e6651">21</a></span> -<i lang="cy">Betws</i> (or <i lang="cy">Bettws</i>) <i>Garmon</i> seems -to mean Germanus’s <i>Bede-hūs</i> or House of Prayer, but -<i>Garmon</i> can hardly have come down in Welsh from the time of the -famous saint in the fifth century, as it would then have probably -yielded <i>Gerfon</i> and not <i>Garmon</i>: it looks as if it had come -through the Goidelic of this country. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e6651src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e6682" href="#xd25e6682src" name="xd25e6682">22</a></span> One of -the rare merits of our Welsh bards is their habit of assuming permanent -<i lang="fr">noms de plume</i>, by means of which they prevent a number -of excellent native names from falling into utter oblivion in the -general chaos of Anglo-Hebrew ones, such as Jones, Davies, and -Williams, which cover the Principality. Welsh place-names have -similarly been threatened by Hebrew names of chapels, such as Bethesda, -Rehoboth, and Jerusalem, but in this direction the Jewish mania has -only here and there effected permanent mischief. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e6682src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e6690" href="#xd25e6690src" name="xd25e6690">23</a></span> The -<i lang="cy">Brython</i> was a valuable Welsh periodical published by -Mr. Robert Isaac Jones, at Tremadoc, in the years 1858–1863, and -edited by the Rev. Chancellor Silvan Evans, who was then the curate of -Ỻangïan in Ỻeyn: in fact he was curate for fourteen -years! His excellent work in editing the <i lang="cy">Brython</i> -earned for him his diocesan’s displeasure, but it is easier to -imagine than to describe how hard it was for him to resign the -honorarium of £24 derived from the <i lang="cy">Brython</i> when -his stipend as a clergyman was only £92, at the same time that he -had dependent on him a wife and six children. However much some people -affect to laugh at the revival of the national spirit in Wales, we -have, I think, got so far as to make it, for some time to come, -impossible for a Welsh clergyman to be snubbed on account of his -literary tastes or his delight in the archæology of his -country. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e6690src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e6869" href="#xd25e6869src" name="xd25e6869">24</a></span> This -parish is called after a saint named <i lang="cy">Tegái</i> or -<i lang="cy">Tygái</i>, like <i lang="cy">Tyfaelog</i> and -<i lang="cy">Tysilio</i>, and though the accent rests on the final -syllable nothing could prevent the grammarian Huw Tegai and his friends -from making it into <i lang="cy">Tégai</i> in Huw’s -name. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e6869src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e6916" href="#xd25e6916src" name="xd25e6916">25</a></span> For -<i>can</i> they now usually put <i>Ann</i>, and Mr. Hughes remembers -hearing it so many years ago. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e6916src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e6973" href="#xd25e6973src" name="xd25e6973">26</a></span> I -remember seeing a similar mound at Ỻanfyrnach, in Pembrokeshire; -and the last use made of the hollow on the top of this also is supposed -to have been for cock-fights. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e6973src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e7154" href="#xd25e7154src" name="xd25e7154">27</a></span> My -attention has also been called to <i>freit</i>, <i>frete</i>, -<i>freet</i>, <i>fret</i>, ‘news, inquiry, augury,’ -corresponding to Anglo-Saxon <i>freht</i>, ‘divination.’ -But the disparity of meaning seems to stand in the way of our <i lang= -"cy">ffrit</i> being referred to this origin. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e7154src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e7329" href="#xd25e7329src" name="xd25e7329">28</a></span> The -Oxford <i>Mabinogion</i>, p. 63; Guest, iii. 223. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e7329src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e7420" href="#xd25e7420src" name="xd25e7420">29</a></span> See the -<i lang="la">Itinerarium Kambriæ</i>, i. 2 (pp. 33–5), and -<i>Celtic Britain</i>, p. 64. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e7420src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e7434" href="#xd25e7434src" name="xd25e7434">30</a></span> As for -example in the <i lang="la">Archæologia Cambrensis</i> for 1870, -pp. 192–8; see also 1872, pp. 146–8. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e7434src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e7451" href="#xd25e7451src" name="xd25e7451">31</a></span> Howells -has also an account of Ỻyn Savadhan, as he writes it: see his -<i>Cambrian Superstitions</i>, pp. 100–2, where he quaintly says -that the story of the wickedness of the ancient lord of Syfađon is -assigned as the reason why ‘the superstitious little river -Lewenny will not mix its water with that of the lake.’ -<i>Lewenny</i> is a reckless improvement of Mapes’ <i>Leueni</i> -(printed <i>Lenem</i>); and Giraldus’ <i>Clamosum</i> implies an -old spelling <i lang="cy">Ỻefni</i>, pronounced the same as the -later spelling <i lang="cy">Ỻyfni</i>, which is now made into -<i lang="cy">Ỻynfi</i> or <i lang="cy">Ỻynvi</i>: the river -so called flows through the lake and into the Wye at Glasbury. As to -<i lang="cy">Safađan</i> or <i lang="cy">Syfađon</i>, it is -probably of Goidelic origin, and to be identified with such an Irish -name as the feminine <i lang="ga">Samthann</i>: see Dec. 19 in the -Martyrologies. To keep within our data, we are at liberty to suppose -that this was the name of the wicked princess in the story, and that -she was the ancestress of a clan once powerful on and around the lake, -which lies within a Goidelic area indicated by its Ogam -inscriptions. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e7451src">↑</a></p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch2" class="div1 chapter"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e366">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h2 class="label">CHAPTER II</h2> -<h2 class="main"><span class="sc">The Fairies’ -Revenge</span></h2> -<div class="epigraph"> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">In th’olde dayes of the king Arthour,</p> -<p class="line">Of which that Britons speken greet honour,</p> -<p class="line">Al was this land fulfild of fayerye.</p> -<p class="line">The elf-queen, with hir joly companye,</p> -<p class="line">Daunced ful ofte in many a grene mede;</p> -<p class="line">This was the olde opinion, as I rede.</p> -<p class="line">I speke of manye hundred yeres ago.</p> -</div> -<p class="first xd25e5350"><span class="sc">Chaucer.</span></p> -</div> -<div id="ch2.1" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e377">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">I.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">The best living authority I have found on the folklore -of Beđgelert, Drws y Coed, and the surrounding district, is Mr. -William Jones, of Ỻangoỻen. He has written a good deal on -the subject in the <i lang="cy">Brython</i>, and in essays intended for -competition at various literary meetings in Wales. I had the loan from -him of one such essay, and I have referred to the <i lang= -"cy">Brython</i>; and I have also had from Mr. Jones a number of -letters, most of which contain some additional information. In harmony, -moreover, with my usual practice, I have asked Mr. Jones to give me a -little of his own history. This he has been kind enough to do; and, as -I have so far followed no particular order in these jottings, I shall -now give the reader the substance of his letters in English, as I am -anxious that no item should be lost or left inaccessible to English -students of folklore. What is unintelligible to me may not be so to -those who have made a serious study of the subject. Mr. Jones’ -words are in substance to the following effect:—</p> -<p>‘I was bred and born in the parish of Beđgelert, -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb76" href="#pb76" name= -"pb76">76</a>]</span>one of the most rustic neighbourhoods and least -subject to change in the whole country. Some of the old Welsh customs -remained within my memory, in spite of the adverse influence of the -Calvinistic Reformation, as it is termed, and I have myself witnessed -several Knitting Nights and Nuptial Feasts (<i lang= -"cy">Neithiorau</i>), which, be it noticed, are not to be confounded -with weddings, as they were feasts which followed the weddings, at the -interval of a week. At these gatherings song and story formed an -element of prime importance in the entertainment at a time when the -Reformation alluded to had already blown the blast of extinction on the -Merry Nights (<i lang="cy">Noswyliau Ỻawen</i>) and Saints’ -Fêtes<a class="noteref" id="xd25e7544src" href="#xd25e7544" name= -"xd25e7544src">1</a> (<i lang="cy">Gwyliau Mabsant</i>) before the days -of my youth, though many of my aged acquaintances remembered them well, -and retained a vivid recollection of scores of the amusing tales which -used to be related for the best at the last mentioned long-night -meetings. I have heard not a few of them reproduced by men of that -generation. As an example of the old-fashioned habits of the people of -Beđgelert in my early days, I may mention the way in which wives -and children used to be named. The custom was that the wife never took -her husband’s family name, but retained the one she had as a -spinster. Thus my grandmother on my mother’s side was called -Ellen Hughes, daughter to Hugh Williams, <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb77" href="#pb77" name="pb77">77</a>]</span>of Gwastad Annas. The -name of her husband, my grandfather, was William Prichard [= <i>W. ab -Rhisiart</i>, or Richard’s son], son to Richard William, of the -Efail Newyđ. The name of their eldest son, my uncle (brother to my -mother), was Hugh Hughes, and the second son’s name was Richard -William. The mother had the privilege of naming her first-born after -her own family in case it was a boy; but if it happened to be a girl, -she took her name from the father’s family, for which reason my -mother’s maiden name was Catharine Williams. This remained her -name to the day of her death: and the old people at Beđgelert -persisted in calling me, so long as I was at home, William Prichard, -after my grandfather, as I was my mother’s eldest child.</p> -<p>‘Most of the tales I have collected,’ says Mr. Jones, -‘relate to the parishes of Beđgelert and Dolwyđelen. My -kindred have lived for generations in those two parishes, and they are -very numerous: in fact, it used to be said that the people of -Dolwyđelen and Beđgelert were all cousins. They were mostly -small farmers, and jealous of all strangers, so that they married -almost without exception from the one parish into the other. This -intermixture helped to carry the tales of the one parish to the other, -and to perpetuate them on the hearths of their homes from generation to -generation, until they were swept away by another influence in this -century. Many of my ancestors seem to have been very fond of stories, -poetry, and singing, and I have been told that some of them were very -skilled in these things. So also, in the case of my parents, the memory -of the past had a great charm for them on both sides; and when the -relatives from Dolwyđelen and Beđgelert met in either parish, -there used to be no end to the recounting of pedigrees and the -repeating of tales for <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb78" href="#pb78" -name="pb78">78</a>]</span>the best. By listening to them, I had been -filled with desire to become an adept in pedigrees and legends. My -parents used to let me go every evening to the house of my grandfather, -William ab Rhisiart, the clerk, to listen to tales, and to hear -edifying books read. My grandfather was a reader “without his -rival,” and “he used to beat the parson hollow.” Many -people used to meet at Pen y Bont in the evenings to converse together, -and the stories of some of them were now and then exceedingly eloquent. -Of course, I listened with eager ears and open mouth, in order, if I -heard anything new, to be able to repeat it to my mother. She, -unwilling to let herself be beaten, would probably relate another like -it, which she had heard from her mother, her grandmother, or her old -aunt of Gwastad Annas, who was a fairly good verse-wright of the homely -kind. Then my father, if he did not happen to be busy with his -music-book, would also give us a tale which he had heard from his -grandmother or grandfather, the old John Jones, of Tyn Ỻan -Dolwyđelen, or somebody else would do so. That is one source from -which I got my knowledge of folklore; but this ceased when we moved -from Beđgelert to Carnarvon in the year 1841. My grandfather died -in 1844, aged seventy-eight.</p> -<p>‘Besides those,’ Mr. Jones goes on to say, ‘who -used to come to my grandfather’s house and to his workshop to -relate stories, the blacksmith’s shop used to be, especially on a -rainy day, a capital place for a story, and many a time did I lurk -there instead of going to school, in order to hear old William -Dafyđ, the sawyer, who, peace be to his ashes! drank many a -hornful from the <i>Big Quart</i> without ever breaking down, and old -Ifan Owen, the fisherman, tearing away for the best at their yarns, -sometimes a tissue of lies and sometimes truth. The former was funny, -and a great wag, up to all kinds <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb79" -href="#pb79" name="pb79">79</a>]</span>of tricks. He made everybody -laugh, whereas the latter would preserve the gravity of a saint, -however lying might be the tale which he related. Ifan Owen’s -best stories were about the Water Spirit, or, as he called it, <i lang= -"cy">Ỻamhigyn y Dwr</i>, “the Water Leaper.” He had -not himself seen the <i lang="cy">Ỻamhigyn</i>, but his father -had seen it “hundreds of times.” Many an evening it had -prevented him from catching a single fish in Ỻyn Gwynan, and, -when the fisherman got on this theme, his eloquence was apt to become -highly polysyllabic in its adjectives. Once in particular, when he had -been angling for hours towards the close of the day, without catching -anything, he found that something took the fly clean off the hook each -time he cast it. After moving from one spot to another on the lake, he -fished opposite the Benlan Wen, when something gave his line a -frightful pull, “and, by the gallows, I gave another pull,” -the fisherman used to say, “with all the force of my arm: out it -came, and up it went off the hook, whilst I turned round to see, as it -dashed so against the cliff of Benlan that it blazed like a -lightning.” He used to add, “If that was not the <i lang= -"cy">Ỻamhigyn</i>, it must have been the very devil -himself.” That cliff must be two hundred yards at least from the -shore. As to his father, he had seen the Water Spirit many times, and -he had also been fishing in the Ỻyn Glâs or Ffynnon -Lâs, once upon a time, when he hooked a wonderful and fearful -monster: it was not like a fish, but rather resembled a toad, except -that it had a tail and wings instead of legs. He pulled it easily -enough towards the shore, but, as its head was coming out of the water, -it gave a terrible shriek that was enough to split the -fisherman’s bones to the marrow, and, had there not been a friend -standing by, he would have fallen headlong into the lake, and been -possibly dragged like a sheep into <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb80" -href="#pb80" name="pb80">80</a>]</span>the depth; for there is a -tradition that if a sheep got into the Ỻyn Glâs, it could -not be got out again, as something would at once drag it to the bottom. -This used to be the belief of the shepherds of Cwm Dyli, within my -memory, and they acted on it in never letting their dogs go after the -sheep in the neighbourhood of this lake. These two funny fellows, -William Dafyđ and Ifan Owen, died long ago, without leaving any of -their descendants blessed with as much as the faintest gossamer thread -of the story-teller’s mantle. The former, if he had been still -living, would now be no less than 129 years of age, and the latter -about 120.’</p> -<p>Mr. Jones proceeds to say that he had stories from sources besides -those mentioned, namely, from Lowri Robart, wife of Rhisiart Edwart, -the ‘Old Guide’; from his old aunt of Gwastad Annas; from -William Wmffra, husband to his grandmother’s sister; from his -grandmother, who was a native of Dolwyđelen, but had been brought -up at Pwỻgwernog, in Nanmor; from her sister; and from -Gruffuđ Prisiart, of Nanmor, afterwards of Glan Colwyn, who gave -him the legend of Owen Lawgoch of which I shall have something to say -later, and the story of the bogie of Pen Pwll Coch, which I do not -know. ‘But the chief story-teller of his time at -Beđgelert,’ Mr. Jones goes on to say, ‘was Twm Ifan -Siams (pronounced Si̯ăms or Shăms), brother, I believe, -to Dafyđ Siôn Siams, of the Penrhyn, who was a bard and -pedigree man. Twm lived at Nanmor, but I know not what his vocation -was; his relatives, however, were small farmers, carpenters, and -masons. It is not improbable that he was also an artisan, as he was -conversant with numbers, magnitude, and letters, and left behind him a -volume forming a pedigree book known at Nanmor as the <i lang= -"cy">Barcud Mawr</i>, or “Great Kite,” as Gruffuđ -Prisiart told me. The latter had been reading it many <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb81" href="#pb81" name="pb81">81</a>]</span>a time -in order to know the origin of somebody or other. All I can remember of -this character is that he was very old—over 90—and that he -went from house to house in his old age to relate tales and recount -pedigrees: great was the welcome he had from everybody everywhere. I -remember, also, that he was small of stature, nimble, witty, -exceedingly amusing, and always ready with his say on every subject. He -was in the habit of calling on my grandfather in his rambles, and very -cordial was the reception which my parents always gave him on account -of his tales and his knowledge of pedigrees. The story of the afanc, as -given in my collection, is from his mouth. You will observe how little -difference there is between his version<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e7601src" href="#xd25e7601" name="xd25e7601src">2</a> and that -known to Edward Ỻwyd in the year 1695. I had related this story -to a friend of mine at Portmadoc, who was grandson or great-grandson to -Dafyđ Siôn Siams, of Penrhyn, in 1858, when he called my -attention to the same story in the <i>Cambrian Journal</i> from the -correspondence of Edward Ỻwyd. I was surprised at the similarity -between the two versions, and I went to Beđgelert to Gruffuđ -Rhisiart, who was related to Twm Siôn Siams. I read the story to -him, and I found that he had heard it related by his uncle just as it -was by me, and as given in the <i>Cambrian Journal</i>. Twm Ifan Siams -had funny stories about the tricks of <i lang="cy">Gwrach y Rhibyn</i>, -the <i>Bodach<a class="noteref" id="xd25e7616src" href="#xd25e7616" -name="xd25e7616src">3</a> Glas</i>, and the <i lang="cy">Bwbach -Ỻwyd</i>, which he localized in Nanmor and Ỻanfrothen; he -had, also, a very eloquent tale about the courtship between a sailor -from Moel y Gest, near Portmadoc, and a mermaid, of which I retain a -fairly <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb82" href="#pb82" name= -"pb82">82</a>]</span>good recollection. I believe Twm died in the year -1835–6, aged about ninety-five.’</p> -<p>So far, I have merely translated Mr. Jones’ account of himself -and his authorities as given me in the letter I have already referred -to, dated in June of last year, 1881. I would now add the substance of -his general remarks about the fairies, as he had heard them described, -and as he expressed himself in his essay for the competition on -folklore at the Carnarvon Eisteđfod of 1880:—The traditions, -he says, respecting the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> vary according to -the situation of the districts with which they are connected, and many -more such traditions continue to be remembered among the inhabitants of -the mountains than by those of the more level country. In some places -the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> are described as a small folk of a -thieving nature, living in summer among the fern bushes in the -mountains, and in winter in the heather and gorse. These were wont to -frequent the fairs and to steal money from the farmers’ pockets, -where they placed in its stead their own fairy money, which looked like -the coin of the realm, but when it was paid for anything bought it -would vanish in the pockets of the seller. In other districts the -fairies were described as a little bigger and stronger folk; but these -latter were also of a thieving disposition. They would lurk around -people’s houses, looking for an opportunity to steal butter and -cheese from the dairies, and they skulked about the cow-yards, in order -to milk the cows and the goats, which they did so thoroughly that many -a morning there was not a drop of milk to be had. The principal -mischief, however, which those used to do, was to carry away unbaptized -infants, and place in their stead their own wretched and peevish -offspring. They were said to live in hidden caves in the mountains, and -he had heard one old man asserting his firm <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb83" href="#pb83" name="pb83">83</a>]</span>belief -that it was beneath Moel Eilio, also called Moel Eilian, a mountain -lying between Ỻanberis and Cweỻyn, the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth -Teg</i> of Nant y Bettws lived, whom he had seen many a time when he -was a lad; and, if any one came across the mouth of their cave, he -thought that he would find there a wonderful amount of wealth, -‘for they were thieves without their like.’ There is still -another species of <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i>, very unlike the -foregoing ones in their nature and habits. Not only was this last kind -far more beautiful and comely than the others, but they were honest and -good towards mortals. Their whole nature was replete with joy and fun, -nor were they ever beheld hardly, except engaged in some merry-making -or other. They might be seen on bright moonlight nights at it, singing -and carolling playfully on the fair meadows and the green slopes, at -other times dancing lightly on the tops of the rushes in the valleys. -They were also wont to be seen hunting in full force on the backs of -their grey horses; for this kind were rich, and kept horses and -servants. Though it used to be said that they were spiritual and -immortal beings, still they ate and drank like human beings: they -married and had children. They were also remarkable for their -cleanliness, and they were wont to reward neat maid-servants and -hospitable wives. So housewives used to exhort their maids to clean -their houses thoroughly every night before going to bed, saying that if -the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> happened to enter, they would be sure -to leave money for them somewhere; but they were to tell no one in case -they found any, lest the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth</i> should be offended -and come no more. The mistresses also used to order a tinful of water -to be placed at the foot of the stairs, a clean cloth on the table, -with bread and its accompaniments (<i lang="cy">bara ac -enỻyn</i>) placed on it, so that, if the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth</i> -came in to eat, the maids should <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb84" -href="#pb84" name="pb84">84</a>]</span>have their recompense on the hob -as well as unstinted praise for keeping the house clean, or, as Mr. -Jones has it in a couplet from Goronwy Owen’s <i lang= -"cy">Cywyđ y Cynghorfynt</i>—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Cael eu rhent ar y pentan,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>A ỻwyr glod o bai ỻawr -glân.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Finding the fairies’ pay on the hob,</p> -<p class="line">With full credit for a clean floor.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">Thus, whether the fairies came or not to pay a visit -to them during their sleep, the house would be clean by the morning, -and the table ready set for breakfast. It appears that the places most -frequently resorted to by this species were rushy combes surrounded by -smooth hills with round tops, also the banks of rivers and the borders -of lakes; but they were seldom seen at any time near rocks or cliffs. -So more tales about them are found in districts of the former -description than anywhere else, and among them may be mentioned -Penmachno, Dolwyđelan, the sides of Moel Siabod, -Ỻandegái Mountain, and from there to Ỻanberis, to -Nantỻe Lakes, to Moel Tryfan<a class="noteref" id="xd25e7676src" -href="#xd25e7676" name="xd25e7676src">4</a> and Nant y Bettws, the -upper portion of the parish of Beđgelert from Drws y Coed to the -Pennant, and the district beginning from there and including the level -part of Eifion, on towards Celynnog Fawr. I have very little doubt that -there are many traditions about them in the neighbourhood of the Eifl -and in Ỻeyn; I know but little, however, about these last. This -kind of fairies was said to live underground, and the way to their -country lay under hollow banks that overhung the deepest parts of the -lakes, or the deepest pools in the rivers, so that mortals could not -follow them further than the water, should they try to go after them. -They used to come out in broad daylight, <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb85" href="#pb85" name="pb85">85</a>]</span>two or three together, -and now and then a shepherd, so the saying went, used to talk and chat -with them. Sometimes, moreover, he fell over head and ears in love with -their damsels, but they did not readily allow a mortal to touch them. -The time they were to be seen in their greatest glee was at night when -the moon was full, when they celebrated a merry night (<i lang= -"cy">noswaith lawen</i>). At midnight to the minute, they might be seen -rising out of the ground in every combe and valley; then, joining -hands, they would form into circles, and begin to sing and dance with -might and main until the cock crew, when they would vanish. Many used -to go to look at them on those nights, but it was dangerous to go too -near them, lest they should lure the spectator into their circle; for -if that happened, they would throw a charm over him, which would make -him invisible to his companions, and he would be detained by the -fairies as long as he lived. At times some people went too near to -them, and got snatched in; and at other times a love-inspired youth, -fascinated by the charms of one of their damsels, rushed in foolhardily -to try to seize one of them, and became instantly surrounded and -concealed from sight. If he could be got out before the cock crew he -would be no worse; but once the fairies disappeared without his having -been released, he would never more be seen in the land of the living. -The way to get the captured man out was to take a long stick of -mountain ash (<i lang="cy">pren criafol</i>), which two or more strong -men had to hold with one of its ends in the middle of the circle, so -that when the man came round in his turn in the dance he might take -hold of it, for he is there bodily though not visible, so that he -cannot go past without coming across the stick. Then the others pull -him out, for the fairies, no more than any other spirit, dare touch the -mountain ash. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb86" href="#pb86" name= -"pb86">86</a>]</span></p> -<p>We now proceed to give some of Mr. Jones’ legends. The first -is one which he published in the fourth volume of the <i lang= -"cy">Brython</i>, p. 70, whence the following free translation is made -of it:—</p> -<p>‘In the north-west corner of the parish of Beđgelert -there is a place which used to be called by the old inhabitants the -Land of the Fairies, and it reaches from Cwm Hafod Ruffyđ along -the slope of the mountain of Drws y Coed as far as Ỻyn y -Dywarchen. The old people of former times used to find much pleasure -and amusement in this district in listening every moonlight night to -the charming music of the fair family, and in looking at their dancing -and their mirthful sports. Once on a time, a long while ago, there -lived at upper Drws y Coed a youth, who was joyous and active, brave -and determined of heart. This young man amused himself every night by -looking on and listening to them. One night they had come to a field -near the house, near the shore of Ỻyn y Dywarchen, to pass a -merry night. He went, as usual, to look at them, when his glances at -once fell on one of the ladies, who possessed such beauty as he had -never seen in a human being. Her appearance was like that of alabaster; -her voice was as agreeable as the nightingale’s, and as unruffled -as the zephyr in a flower-garden at the noon of a long summer’s -day; and her gait was pretty and aristocratic; her feet moved in the -dance as lightly on the grass as the rays of the sun had a few hours -before on the lake hard by. He fell in love with her over head and -ears, and in the strength of that passion—for what is stronger -than love!—he rushed, when the bustle was at its height, into the -midst of the fair crowd, and snatched the graceful damsel in his arms, -and ran instantly with her to the house. When the fair family saw the -violence used by a mortal, they broke up the dance and ran after her -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb87" href="#pb87" name= -"pb87">87</a>]</span>towards the house; but, when they arrived, the -door had been bolted with iron, wherefore they could not get near her -or touch her in any way; and the damsel had been placed securely in a -chamber. The youth, having her now under his roof, as is the saying, -endeavoured, with all his talent, to win her affection and to induce -her to wed. But at first she would on no account hear of it; on seeing -his persistence, however, and on finding that he would not let her go -to return to her people, she consented to be his servant if he could -find out her name; but she would not be married to him. As he thought -that was not impossible, he half agreed to the condition; but, after -bothering his head with all the names known in that neighbourhood, he -found himself no nearer his point, though he was not willing to give up -the search hurriedly. One night, as he was going home from Carnarvon -market, he saw a number of the fair folks in a turbary not far from his -path. They seemed to him to be engaged in an important deliberation, -and it struck him that they were planning how to recover their abducted -sister. He thought, moreover, that if he could secretly get within -hearing, he might possibly find her name out. On looking carefully -around, he saw that a ditch ran through the turbary and passed near the -spot where they stood. So he made his way round to the ditch, and -crept, on all fours, along it until he was within hearing of the -family. After listening a little, he found that their deliberation was -as to the fate of the lady he had carried away, and he heard one of -them crying, piteously, “O Penelop, O Penelop, my sister, why -didst thou run away with a mortal!” “Penelop,” said -the young man to himself, “that must be the name of my beloved: -that is enough.” At once he began to creep back quietly, and he -returned home safely without having been seen by the fairies. -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb88" href="#pb88" name= -"pb88">88</a>]</span>When he got into the house, he called out to the -girl, saying, “Penelop, my beloved one, come here!” and she -came forward and asked, in astonishment, “O mortal, who has -betrayed my name to thee?” Then, lifting up her tiny folded -hands, she exclaimed, “Alas, my fate, my fate!” But she -grew contented with her fate, and took to her work in earnest. -Everything in the house and on the farm prospered under her charge. -There was no better or cleanlier housewife in the neighbourhood around, -or one that was more provident than she. The young man, however, was -not satisfied that she should be a servant to him, and, after he had -long and persistently sought it, she consented to be married, on the -one condition, that, if ever he should touch her with iron, she would -be free to leave him and return to her family. He agreed to that -condition, since he believed that such a thing would never happen at -his hands. So they were married, and lived several years happily and -comfortably together. Two children were born to them, a boy and a girl, -the picture of their mother and the idols of their father. But one -morning, when the husband wanted to go to the fair at Carnarvon, he -went out to catch a filly that was grazing in the field by the house; -but for the life of him he could not catch her, and he called to his -wife to come to assist him. She came without delay, and they managed to -drive the filly to a secure corner, as they thought; but, as the man -approached to catch her, she rushed past him. In his excitement, he -threw the bridle after her; but, who should be running in the direction -of it, but his wife! The iron bit struck her on the cheek, and she -vanished out of sight on the spot. Her husband never saw her any more; -but one cold frosty night, a long time after this event, he was -awakened from his sleep by somebody rubbing the glass of his window, -and, after he had given <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb89" href= -"#pb89" name="pb89">89</a>]</span>a response, he recognized the gentle -and tender voice of his wife saying to him:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">Lest my son should find it cold,</p> -<p class="line">Place on him his father’s coat;</p> -<p class="line">Lest the fair one find it cold,</p> -<p class="line">Place on her my petticoat.</p> -</div> -<p class="first">It is said that the descendants of this family still -continue in these neighbourhoods, and that they are easy to be -recognized by their light and fair complexion. A similar story is -related of the son of the farmer of Braich y Dinas, in -Ỻanfihangel y Pennant, and it used to be said that most of the -inhabitants of that neighbourhood were formerly of a light complexion. -I have often heard old people saying, that it was only necessary, -within their memory, to point out in the fair at Penmorfa any one as -being of the breed of the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth</i>, to cause plenty of -fighting that day at least.’</p> -<p>The reader may compare with this tale the following, for which I -have to thank Mr. Samuel Rhys Williams, whose words I give, followed by -a translation:—</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Yr oeđ gwr ieuanc o gymydogaeth Drws y Coed yn -dychwelyd adref o Beđgelert ar noswaith loergan ỻeuad; pan -ar gyfer Ỻyn y Gader gwelai nifer o’r boneđigesau a -elwir y Tylwyth Teg yn myned trwy eu chwareuon nosawl. Swynwyd y -ỻanc yn y fan gan brydferthwch y rhianod hyn, ac yn -neiỻduol un o honynt. Coỻođ y ỻywodraeth arno ei -hunan i’r fath rađau fel y penderfynođ neidio i’r -cylch a dwyn yn ysbail iđo yr hon oeđ wedi myned a’i -galon mor ỻwyr. Cyflawnođ ei fwriad a dygođ y -foneđiges gydag ef adref. Bu yn wraig iđo, a ganwyd plant -iđynt. Yn đamweiniol, tra yn cyflawni rhyw orchwyl, -digwyđođ iđo ei tharo a haiarn ac ar amrantiad -diflannođ ei anwylyd o’i olwg ac nis gwelođ hi mwyach, -ond đarfod iđi đyfod at ffenestr ei ystafeỻ wely -un noswaith ar ol hyn a’i annog i fod yn dirion wrth y plant -a’i bod hi yn aros gerỻaw y ty <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb90" href="#pb90" name="pb90">90</a>]</span>yn -Ỻyny Dywarchen. Y mae y trađodiad hefyd yn ein hysbysu -đarfod i’r gwr hwn symud i fyw o Đrws y Coed i Ystrad -Betws Garmon.</i></p> -<p>‘A young man, from the neighbourhood of Drws y Coed, was -returning home one bright moonlight night, from Beđgelert; when he -came opposite the lake called Ỻyn y Gader, he saw a number of the -ladies known as the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> going through their -nightly frolics. The youth was charmed at once by the beauty of these -ladies, and especially by one of them. He so far lost his control over -himself, that he resolved to leap into the circle and carry away as his -spoil the one who had so completely robbed him of his heart. He -accomplished his intention, and carried the lady home with him. She -became his wife, and children were born to them. Accidentally, while at -some work or other, it happened to him to strike her with iron, and, in -the twinkling of an eye, his beloved one disappeared from his sight. He -saw her no more, except that she came to his bedroom window one night -afterwards, and told him to be tender to the children, and that she was -staying, near the house, in the lake called Ỻyn y Dywarchen. The -tradition also informs us that this man moved from Drws y Coed to live -at Ystrad near Bettws Garmon.’</p> -<p>The name Ỻyn y Dywarchen, I may add, means the Lake of the Sod -or Turf: it is the one with the floating island, described thus by -Giraldus, ii. 9 (p. 135):—<i lang="la">Alter enim insulam habet -erraticam, vi ventorum impellentium ad oppositas plerumque lacus partes -errabundam. Hic armenta pascentia nonnunquam pastores ad longinquas -subito partes translata mirantur.</i> ‘For one of the two lakes -holds a wandering island, which strays mostly with the force of the -winds impelling it to the opposite parts of the lake. Sometimes cattle -grazing on it are, <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb91" href="#pb91" -name="pb91">91</a>]</span>to the surprise of the shepherds, suddenly -carried across to the more distant parts.’ Sheep are known to get -on the floating islet, and it is still believed to float them away from -the shore. Mr. S. Rhys Williams, it will be noticed, has given the -substance of the legend rather than the story itself. I now proceed to -translate the same tale as given in Welsh in <i lang="cy">Cymru Fu</i> -(pp. 474–7 of the edition published by Messrs. Hughes and Son, -Wrexham), in a very different dress—it is from Glasynys’ -pen, and, as might be expected, decked out with all the literary -adornments in which he delighted. The language he used was his own, but -there is no reason to think that he invented any of the -incidents:—‘The farmer of Drws y Coed’s son was one -misty day engaged as a shepherd on the side of the mountain, a little -below Cwm Marchnad, and, as he crossed a rushy flat, he saw a -wonderfully handsome little woman standing under a clump of rushes. Her -yellow and curly hair hung down in ringed locks, and her eyes were as -blue as the clear sky, while her forehead was as white as the wavy face -of a snowdrift that has nestled on the side of Snowdon only a single -night. Her two plump cheeks were each like a red rose, and her -pretty-lipped mouth might make an angel eager to kiss her. The youth -approached her, filled with love for her, and, with delicacy and -affection, asked her if he might converse with her. She smiled kindly, -and reaching out her hand, said to him, “Idol of my hopes, thou -hast come at last!” They began to associate secretly, and to meet -one another daily here and there on the moors around the banks of -Ỻyn y Gader; at last, their love had waxed so strong that the -young man could not be at peace either day or night, as he was always -thinking of Bella or humming to himself a verse of poetry about her -charms. The yellow-haired youth was now and <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb92" href="#pb92" name="pb92">92</a>]</span>then -lost for a long while, and nobody could divine his history. His -acquaintances believed that he had been fascinated: at last the secret -was found out. There were about Ỻyn y Dywarchen shady and -concealing copses: it was there he was wont to go, and the she-elf -would always be there awaiting him, and it was therefore that the place -where they used to meet got to be called <i lang="cy">Ỻwyn y -Forwyn</i>, the Maiden’s Grove. After fondly loving for a long -time, it was resolved to wed; but it was needful to get the leave of -the damsel’s father. One moonlight night it was agreed to meet in -the wood, and the appointment was duly kept by the young man, but there -was no sign of the subterranean folks coming, until the moon -disappeared behind the Garn. Then the two arrived, and the old man at -once proceeded to say to the suitor: “Thou shalt have my daughter -on the condition that thou do not strike her with iron. If thou ever -touch her with iron, she will no longer be thine, but shall return to -her own.” The man consented readily, and great was his joy. They -were betrothed, and seldom was a handsomer pair seen at the altar. It -was rumoured that a vast sum of money as dowry had arrived with the -pretty lady at Drws y Coed on the evening of her nuptials. Soon after, -the mountain shepherd of Cwm Marchnad passed for a very rich and -influential man. In the course of time they had children, and no -happier people ever lived together than their parents. Everything went -on regularly and prosperously for a number of years: they became -exceedingly wealthy, but the sweet is not to be had without the bitter. -One day they both went out on horseback, and they happened to go near -Ỻyn y Gader, when the wife’s horse got into a bog and sank -to his belly. After the husband had got Bella off his back, he -succeeded with much trouble in getting the horse out, and then -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb93" href="#pb93" name= -"pb93">93</a>]</span>he let him go. Then he lifted her on the back of -his own, but, unfortunately, in trying quickly to place her foot in the -stirrup, the iron part of the same slipped, and struck her—or, -rather, it touched her at the knee-joint. Before they had made good -half their way home, several of the diminutive <i lang="cy">Tylwyth</i> -began to appear to them, and the sound of sweet singing was heard on -the side of the hill. Before the husband reached Drws y Coed his wife -had left him, and it is supposed that she fled to Ỻwyn y Forwyn, -and thence to the world below to Faery. She left her dear little ones -to the care of her beloved, and no more came near them. Some say, -however, that she sometimes contrived to see her beloved one in the -following manner. As the law of her country did not permit her to -frequent the earth with an earthly being, she and her mother invented a -way of avoiding the one thing and of securing the other. A great piece -of sod was set to float on the surface of the lake, and on that she -used to be for long hours, freely conversing in tenderness with her -consort on shore; by means of that plan they managed to live together -until he breathed his last. Their descendants owned Drws y Coed for -many generations, and they intermarried and mixed with the people of -the district. Moreover, many a fierce fight took place in later times -at the <i lang="cy">Gwyl-fabsant</i> at Dolbenmaen or at Penmorfa, -because the men of Eifionyđ had a habit of annoying the people of -Pennant by calling them Bellisians.’</p> -<p>In a note, Glasynys remarks that this tale is located in many -districts without much variation, except in the names of the places; -this, however, could not apply to the latter part, which suits -Ỻyn y Dywarchen alone. With this account of the fairy wife -frequenting a lake island to converse with her husband on shore, -compare the Irish story of the Children of Lir, who, though -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb94" href="#pb94" name= -"pb94">94</a>]</span>transformed into swans, were allowed to retain -their power of reasoning and speaking, so that they used to converse -from the surface of the water with their friends on the dry land: see -Joyce’s <i>Old Celtic Romances</i>, pp. x, 1–36. Now I -return to another tale which was sent me by Mr. William Jones: unless I -am mistaken it has not hitherto been published; so I give the Welsh -together with a free translation of it:—</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Yr oeđ ystori am fab Braich y Dinas a adrođai -y diweđar hybarch Elis Owen o Gefn y Meusyđ yn ỻed -debyg i chwedl mab yr Ystrad gan Glasynys, sef iđo hudo un o -ferched y Tylwyth Teg i lawr o Foel Hebog, a’i chipio i mewn -i’r ty drwy orthrech; ac wedi hynny efe a’i perswadiođ -i ymbriodi ag ef ar yr un telerau ag y gwnaeth mab yr Ystrad. Ond -clywais hen foneđiges o’r enw Mrs. Roberts, un o ferched yr -Isaỻt, oeđ lawer hyn na Mr. Owen, yn ei hadrođ yn -wahanol. Yr oeđ yr hen wreigan hon yn credu yn nilysrwyđ y -chwedl, oblegid yr oeđ hi ‘yn cofio rhai o’r teulu, -waeth be’ đeudo neb.’ Dirwynnai ei hedau yn debyg i -hyn:—Yn yr amser gynt—ond o ran hynny pan oeđ hi yn -ferch ifanc—yr oeđ ỻawer iawn o Dylwyth Teg yn trigo -mewn rhyw ogofau yn y Foel o Gwm Ystradỻyn hyd i flaen y Pennant. -Yr oeđ y Tylwyth hwn yn ỻawer iawn harđach na dim a -welid mewn un rhan araỻ o’r wlad. Yr oeđynt o ran -maint yn fwy o lawer na’r rhai cyffredin, yn lan eu pryd tu hwnt -i bawb, eu gwaỻt yn oleu fel ỻin, eu ỻygaid yn loyw -leision. Yr oeđynt yn ymđangos mewn rhyw le neu gilyđ yn -chwareu, canu ac ymđifyru bob nos deg a goleu; a byđai swn eu -canu yn denu y ỻanciau a’r merched ifainc i fyned i’w -gweled; ac os byđent yn digwyđ bod o bryd goleu hwy a -ymgomient a hwynt, ond ni adawent i un person o liw tywyỻ -đod yn agos atynt, eithr cilient ymaith o fforđ y cyfryw un. -Yrŵan yr oeđ mab Braich y Dinas yn ỻanc harđ, -heini, bywiog ac o bryd glan, goleu a serchiadol. Yr oeđ -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb95" href="#pb95" name= -"pb95">95</a>]</span>hwn yn hoff iawn o edrych ar y Tylwyth, a -byđai yn cael ymgom a rhai o honynt yn aml, ond yn bennaf ag un -o’r merched oeđ yn rhagori arnynt oỻ mewn glendid a -synwyr; ac o fynych gyfarfod syrthiođ y đau mewn cariad -a’u gilyđ, eithr ni fynai hi ymbriodi ag ef, ond -ađawođ fyned i’w wasanaeth, a chydunođ i’w -gyfarfod yn Mhant—nid wyf yn cofio yr enw i gyd—drannoeth, -oblegid nid oeđ wiw iđi geisio myned gydag ef yn ngwyđ y -ỻeiỻ. Feỻy drannoeth aeth i fynu i’r Foel, a -chyfarfyđođ y rhian ef yn ol ei hađewid, ag aeth gydag -ef adref, ac ymgymerođ a’r swyđ o laethwraig, a buan y -dechreuođ popeth lwyđo o dan ei ỻaw: yr oeđ yr -ymenyn a’r caws yn cynhyđu beunyđ. Hir a thaer y -bu’r ỻanc yn ceisio ganđi briodi. A hi a -ađawođ, os medrai ef gael aỻan ei henw. Ni wyđai -Mrs. Roberts drwy ba ystryw y ỻwyđođ i gael hwnnw, ond -hynny a fu, a daeth ef i’r ty un noswaith a galwođ ar -‘Sibi,’ a phan glywođ hi ei henw, hi a aeth i lewygfa; -ond pan đaeth ati ei hun, hi a ymfođlonođ i briodi ar yr -amod nad oeđ ef i gyffwrđ a hi a haiarn ac nad oeđ -boỻt haiarn i fod ar y drws na chlo ychwaith, a hynny a fu: -priodwyd hwynt, a buont fyw yn gysurus am lawer o flynyđoeđ, -a ganwyd iđynt amryw blant. Y diweđ a fu fel hyn: yr oeđ -ef wedi myned un diwrnod i dori baich o frwyn at doi, a tharawođ y -cryman yn y baich i fyned adref; fel yr oeđ yn nesu at y gadlas, -rhedođ Sibi i’w gyfarfod, a thaflođ ynteu y baich brwyn -yn đireidus tu ag ati, a rhag iđo đyfod ar ei thraws -ceisiođ ei atal a’i ỻaw, yr hon a gyffyrđođ -a’r cryman; a hi a điflannođ o’r golwg yn y fan -yn nghysgod y baich brwyn: ni welwyd ac ni chlywyd dim ođiwrthi -mwyach.</i></p> -<p>‘There was a story respecting the son of the farmer of Braich -y Dinas, which used to be told by the late respected Mr. Ellis Owen, of -Cefn y Meusyđ, somewhat in the same way as that about the Ystrad -youth, as told by Glasynys; that is to say, the young man enticed one -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb96" href="#pb96" name= -"pb96">96</a>]</span>of the damsels of the fair family to come down -from Moel Hebog, and then he carried her by force into the house, and -afterwards persuaded her to become his wife on the same conditions as -the heir of Ystrad did. But I have heard an old lady called Mrs. -Roberts, who had been brought up at Isaỻt, and who was older than -Mr. Owen, relating it differently. This old woman believed in the truth -of the story, as “she remembered some of the family, whatever -anybody may say.” She used to spin her yarn somewhat as -follows:—In old times—but, for the matter of that, when she -was a young woman—there were a great many of the fair family -living in certain caves in the Foel from Cwm <span class="corr" id= -"xd25e7779" title= -"Source: Straỻyn">Stráỻyn</span><a class="noteref" -id="xd25e7781src" href="#xd25e7781" name="xd25e7781src">5</a> down to -the upper part of Pennant. This <i lang="cy">Tylwyth</i> was much -handsomer than any seen in any other part of the country. In point of -stature they were much bigger than the ordinary ones, fair of -complexion beyond everybody, with hair that was as light as flax, and -eyes that were of a clear blue colour. They showed themselves in one -spot or another, engaged in playing, singing, and jollity every light -night. The sound of their singing used to draw the lads and the young -women to look at them; and, should they be of clear complexion, the -fairies would chat with them; but they would let no person of a dark -hue come near them: they moved away from such a one. Now the young man -of Braich y Dinas was a handsome, vigorous, and lively stripling of -fair, clear, and attractive complexion. He was very fond of looking at -the fair family, and had a chat with some of them often, <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb97" href="#pb97" name="pb97">97</a>]</span>but -chiefly with one of the damsels, who surpassed all the rest in beauty -and good sense. The result of frequently meeting was that they fell in -love with one another, but she would not marry him. She promised, -however, to go to service to him, and agreed to meet him at Pant -y—I have forgotten the rest of the name—the day after, as -it would not do for her to go with him while the others happened to be -looking on. So he went up the next day to the Foel, and the damsel met -him according to her promise, and went with him home, where she took to -the duties of a dairymaid. Soon everything began to prosper under her -hand; the butter and the cheese were daily growing in quantity. Long -and importunately did the youth try to get her to marry him. She -promised to do so provided he could find out her name. Mrs. Roberts did -not know by what manœuvre he succeeded in discovering it, but it -was done, and he came into the house one night and called to -“Sibi,” and when she heard her name she fainted away. When, -however, she recovered her consciousness, she consented to marry on the -condition that he was not to touch her with iron, and that there was -not to be a bolt of iron on the door, or a lock either. It was agreed, -and they were married; they lived together comfortably many years, and -had children born to them. The end came thus: he had gone one day to -cut a bundle of rushes for thatching, and planted the reaping-hook in -the bundle to go home. As he drew towards the haggard, Sibi ran out to -meet him, and he wantonly threw the bundle of rushes towards her, when -she, to prevent its hitting her, tried to stop it with her hand, which -touched the reaping-hook. She vanished on the spot out of sight behind -the bundle of rushes, and nothing more was seen or heard of her.’ -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb98" href="#pb98" name= -"pb98">98</a>]</span></p> -<p>Mr. Ellis Owen, alluded to above, was a highly respected gentleman, -well known in North Wales for his literary and antiquarian tastes. He -was born in 1789 at Cefn y Meusyđ near Tremadoc, where he -continued to live till the day of his death, which was January 27, -1868. His literary remains, preceded by a short biography, were -published in 1877 by Mr. Robert Isaac Jones of Tremadoc; but it -contains no fairy tales so far as I have been able to find.</p> -<p>A tale which partially reminds one of that given by Dewi Glan -Ffrydlas respecting the Corwrion midwife, referred to at p. 63 above, -was published by Mr. W. Jones in the fourth volume of the <i lang= -"cy">Brython</i>, p. 251: freely rendered into English, it runs -thus:—</p> -<p>‘Once on a time, when a midwife from Nanhwynan had newly got -to the Hafođyđ Brithion to pursue her calling, a gentleman -came to the door on a fine grey steed and bade her come with him at -once. Such was the authority with which he spoke, that the poor midwife -durst not refuse to go, however much it was her duty to stay where she -was. So she mounted behind him, and off they went, like the flight of a -swallow, through Cwmỻan, over the Bwlch, down Nant yr Aran, and -over the Gader to Cwm Hafod Ruffyđ, before the poor woman had time -even to say Oh! When they reached there, she saw before her a -magnificent mansion, splendidly lit up with such lamps as she had never -seen before. They entered the court, and a crowd of servants in -expensive liveries came to meet them, and she was at once led through -the great hall into a bed-chamber, the like of which she had never -seen. There the mistress of the house, to whom she had been fetched, -was awaiting her. The midwife got through her duties successfully, and -stayed there until the lady had completely recovered, nor had she spent -any part of her <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb99" href="#pb99" name= -"pb99">99</a>]</span>life so merrily, for there nought but festivity -went on day and night: dancing, singing, and endless rejoicing reigned -there. But merry as it was, she found that she must go, and the -nobleman gave her a large purse, with the order not to open it until -she had got into her own house. Then he bade one of his servants escort -her the same way that she had come. When she reached home she opened -the purse, and, to her great joy, it was full of money: she lived -happily on those earnings to the end of her life.’</p> -<p>With this ending of the story one should contrast Dewi Glan -Ffrydlas’ tale to which I have already alluded; and I may here -refer to Mr. Sikes’ <i>British Goblins</i>, pp. 86–8, for a -tale differing from both Dewi’s and Jones’, in that the -fairies are there made to appear as devils to the nurse, who had -accidentally used a certain ointment which she was not to place near -her own eyes. Instead of being rewarded for her services she was only -too glad to be deposited anyhow near her home. ‘But,’ as -the story goes on to relate, ‘very many years afterwards, being -at a fair, she saw a man stealing something from a stall, and, with one -corner of her eye, beheld her old master pushing the man’s elbow. -Unthinkingly she said, “How are you, master? how are the -children?” He said, “How did you see me?” She -answered, “With the corner of my left eye.” From that -moment she was blind of her left eye, and lived many years with only -her right.’ Such is the end of this tale given by Mr. Sikes.</p> -<p>‘But the fair family did not,’ Mr. William Jones goes on -to say, ‘always give mortals the means of good living: sometimes -they made no little fun of them. Once on a time the Drws y Coed man was -going home from Beđgelert Fair, rather merry than sad, along the -old road over the Gader, when he saw, on coming near <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb100" href="#pb100" name="pb100">100</a>]</span>the -top of the Gader, a fine, handsome house near the road, in which there -was a rare merrymaking. He knew perfectly well that there was no such a -building anywhere on his way, and it made him think that he had lost -his way and gone astray; so he resolved to turn into the house to ask -for lodgings, which were given him. At once, when he entered, he took -it to be a nuptial feast (<i lang="cy">neithior</i>) by reason of the -jollity, the singing, and the dancing. The house was full of young men, -young women, and children, all merry, and exerting themselves to the -utmost. The company began to disappear one by one, and he asked if he -might go to bed, whereupon he was led to a splendid chamber, where -there was a bed of the softest down with snow-white clothes on it. He -stripped at once, went into it, and slept quietly enough till the -morning. The first thing to come to his mind when he lay half asleep, -half awake, was the jollity of the night before, and the fact of his -sleeping in a splendid chamber in the strange house. He opened his eyes -to survey his bedroom, but it was too wide: he was sleeping on the bare -swamp, with a clump of rushes as his pillow, and the blue sky as his -coverlet.’</p> -<p>Mr. Jones mentions that, within his memory, there were still people -in his neighbourhood who believed that the fairies stole unbaptized -children and placed their own in their stead: he gives the following -story about the farmer’s wife of Dyffryn Mymbyr, near Capel -Curig, and her infant:—</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Yr oeđ y wraig hon wedi rhođi genedigaeth i -blentyn iach a heinif yn nechreu y cynheuaf ryw haf blin a thymhestlog: -ac o herwyđ fod y tyđyn getyn o fforđ ođiwrth lan -na chapel, a’r hin mor hynod o lawiog, esgeuluswyd bedyđio y -plentyn yn yr amser arferol, sef cyn ei fod yn wyth niwrnod oed. Ryw -điwrnod teg yn <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb101" href="#pb101" -name="pb101">101</a>]</span>nghanol y cynheuaf blin aeth y wraig -aỻan i’r maes gyda’r rhelyw o’r teulu i geisio -achub y cynheuaf, a gadawođ y baban yn cysgu yn ei gryd o dan ofal -ei nain, yr hon oeđ hen a methiantus, ac yn anaỻuog i fyned -lawer o gwmpas. Syrthiođ yr hen wreigan i gysgu, a thra yr -oeđ hi feỻy, daeth y Tylwyth i fewn, a chymerasant y baban -o’r cryd, a dodasant un araỻ yn ei le. Yn mhen ennyd -dechreuođ hwn erain a chwyno nes deffro y nain, ac aeth at y cryd, -ỻe y gwelođ gleiriach hen eiđil crebachlyd yn -ymstwyrian yn flin. ‘O’r wchw!’ ebai hi, ‘y mae -yr hen Dylwyth wedi bod yma;’ ac yn đioed chwythođ yn y -corn i alw y fam, yr hon a đaeth yno yn điatreg; a phan -glywođ y crio yn y cryd, rhedođ ato, a chodođ y bychan i -fynu heb sylwi arno, a hi a’i cofleidiođ, a’i -suođ ac a’i swcrođ at ei bronnau, ond nid oeđ dim -yn tycio, parhau i nadu yn đidor yr oeđ nes bron a -hoỻti ei chalon; ac ni wyđai pa beth i wneud i’w -đistewi. O’r diweđ hi a edrychođ arno, a -gwelođ nad oeđ yn debyg i’w mhebyn hi, ac aeth yn loes -i’w chalon: edrychođ arno drachefn, ond po fwyaf yr edrychai -arno, hyỻaf yn y byd oeđ hi yn ei weled; anfonođ am ei -gwr o’r cae, a gyrrođ ef i ymholi am wr cyfarwyđ yn -rhywle er mwyn cael ei gynghor; ac ar ol hir holi dywedođ rhywun -wrtho fod person Trawsfynyđ yn gyfarwyđ yn nghyfrinion yr -ysprydion; ac efe a aeth ato, ac archođ hwnnw iđo gymeryd -rhaw a’i gorchuđio a halen, a thori ỻun croes yn yr -halen; yna ei chymeryd i’r ystafeỻ ỻe yr oeđ mab -y Tylwyth, ac ar ol agor y ffenestr, ei rhođi ar y tan hyd nes y -ỻosgai yr halen; a hwy a wnaethant feỻy, a phan aeth yr -halen yn eiriasboeth fe aeth yr erthyl croes ymaith yn anweledig -iđynt hwy, ac ar drothwy y drws hwy a gawsant y baban araỻ -yn iach a dianaf.</i></p> -<p>‘This woman had given birth to a healthy and vigorous child at -the beginning of the harvest, one wretched and <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb102" href="#pb102" name= -"pb102">102</a>]</span>inclement summer. As the homestead was a -considerable distance from church or chapel, and the weather so very -rainy, it was neglected to baptize the child at the usual<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e7837src" href="#xd25e7837" name="xd25e7837src">6</a> -time, that is to say, before it was eight days old. One fine day, in -the middle of this wretched harvest, the mother went to the field with -the rest of the family to try to save the harvest, and left her baby -sleeping in its cradle in its grandmother’s charge, who was so -aged and decrepit as to be unable to go much about. The old woman fell -asleep, and, while she was in that state, the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth -Teg</i> came in and took away the baby, placing another in its stead. -Very shortly the latter began to whine and groan, so that the -grandmother awoke: she went to the cradle, where she saw a slender, -wizened old man moving restlessly and peevishly about. “Alas! -alas!” said she, “the old <i lang="cy">Tylwyth</i> have -been here”; and she at once blew in the horn to call the mother -home, who came without delay. As she heard the crying in the cradle, -she ran towards it, and lifted the little one without looking at him; -she hugged him, put him to her breast, and sang lullaby to him, but -nothing was of any avail, as he continued, without stopping, to scream -enough to break her heart; and she knew not what to do to calm him. At -last she looked at him: she saw that he was not like her dear little -boy, and her heart was pierced with agony. She looked at him again, and -the more she examined him the uglier he seemed to her. She sent for her -husband home from the field, and told him to search for a skilled man -somewhere or other; and, after a long search, he was told by somebody -that the parson of Trawsfynyđ was skilled in the secrets of the -spirits; <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb103" href="#pb103" name= -"pb103">103</a>]</span>so he went to him. The latter bade him take a -shovel and cover it with salt, and make the figure of the cross in the -salt; then to take it to the chamber where the fairy child was, and, -after taking care to open the window, to place the shovel on the fire -until the salt was burnt. This was done, and when the salt had got -white hot, the peevish abortion went away, seen of no one, and they -found the other baby whole and unscathed at the doorstep.’ Fire -was also made use of in Scotland in order to detect a changeling and -force him to quit: see the British Association’s <i>Report</i>, -1896, p. 650, where Mr. Gomme refers to Mr. Gregor’s <i>Folk-lore -of the North-east of Scotland</i>, pp. 8–9.</p> -<p>In answer to a question of mine with regard to gossamer, which is -called in North Wales <i lang="cy">edafeđ gwawn</i>, -‘<i lang="cy">gwawn</i> yarn,’ Mr. Jones told me in a -letter, dated April, 1881, that it used to be called <i lang= -"cy">Rhaffau’r Tylwyth Teg</i>, that is to say, the Ropes of the -Fair Family, which were associated with the diminutive, mischievous, -and wanton kind of fairies who dwelt in marshy and rushy places, or -among the fern and the heather. It used to be said that, if a man -should lie down and fall asleep in any such a spot, the fairies would -come and bind him with their ropes so that he could not move, and that -they would then cover him with a sheet made of their ropes, which would -make him invisible. This was illustrated by him by the following tale -he had heard from his mother:—</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Clywais fy mam yn adrođ chwedl am fab y -Ffriđ, yr hwn wrth đychwelyd adref o ffair Beđgelert yn -rhywle ođeutu Pen Cae’r Gors a welođ beth afrifed -o’r Tylwyth Bach yn neidio a phrancio ar bennau y grug. Efe a -eisteđođ i lawr i edrych arnynt, a daeth hun drosto; -ymoỻyngođ i lawr a chysgođ yn drwm. A phan oeđ -feỻy, ymosodođ yr hoỻ lu arno a rhwymasant ef mor dyn -fel <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb104" href="#pb104" name= -"pb104">104</a>]</span>na aỻasai symud; yna hwy a’i -cuđiasant ef a’r tuđed gwawn fel na aỻai neb ei -weled os digwyđai iđo lefain am help. Yr oeđ ei deulu yn -ei đisgwyl adref yn gynnar y nos honno, ac wrth ei weled yn oedi -yn hwyr, aethant yn anesmwyth am dano ac aethpwyd i’w gyfarfod, -eithr ni welent đim ođiwrtho, ac aed gan beỻed -a’r pentref, ỻe en hyspyswyd ei fod wedi myned tuag adref -yn gynnar gyda gwr Hafod Ruffyđ. Feỻy aed tua’r Hafod -i edrych a oeđ yno; ond dywedođ gwr yr Hafod eu bod wedi -ymwahanu ar Bont Glan y Gors, pawb tua’i fan ei hun. Yna -chwiliwyd yn fanwl bob ochr i’r fforđ ođiyno i’r -Ffriđ heb weled dim ođiwrtho. Buwyd yn chwilio yr hoỻ -ardal drwy y dyđ drannoeth ond yn ofer. Fođ bynnag -ođeutu yr un amser nos drannoeth daeth y Tylwyth ac a’i -rhyđhasant, ac yn fuan efe a đeffrôđ wedi cysgu o -hono drwy y nos a’r dyđ blaenorol. Ar ol iđo -đeffro ni wyđai amcan daear yn mha le yr oeđ, a chrwydro -y bu hyd ochrau y Gader a’r Gors Fawr hyd nes y canođ y -ceiliog, pryd yr adnabu yn mha le yr oeđ, sef o fewn ỻai na -chwarter miỻtir i’w gartref.</i></p> -<p>‘I have heard my mother relating a tale about the son of the -farmer of the Ffriđ, who, while on his way home from -Beđgelert Fair, saw, somewhere near Pen Cae’r Gors, an -endless number of the diminutive family leaping and capering on the -heather tops. He sat him down to look at them, and sleep came over him; -he let himself down on the ground, and slept heavily. When he was so, -the whole host attacked him, and they bound him so tightly that he -could not have stirred; then they covered him with the gossamer sheet, -so that nobody could see him in case he called for help. His people -expected him home early that evening, and, as they found him delaying -till late, they got uneasy about him. They went to meet him, but no -trace of him was seen, <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb105" href= -"#pb105" name="pb105">105</a>]</span>and they went as far as the -village, where they were informed that he had started home in good time -with the farmer of Hafod Ruffyđ. So they went to the Hafod to see -if he was there; but the farmer told them that they had parted on Glan -y Gors Bridge to go to their respective homes. A minute search was then -made on both sides of the road from there to the Ffriđ, but -without finding any trace of him. They kept searching the whole -neighbourhood during the whole of the next day, but in vain. However, -about the same time the following night the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth</i> -came and liberated him, and he shortly woke up, after sleeping through -the previous night and day. When he woke he had no idea where on earth -he was; so he wandered about on the slopes of the Gader and near the -Gors Fawr until the cock crew, when he found where he was, namely, less -than a quarter of a mile from his home.’</p> -<p>The late Mr. Owen, of Cefn Meusyđ, has already been alluded to. -I have not been able to get at much of the folklore with which he was -familiar, but, in reply to some questions of mine, Mr. Robert Isaac -Jones of Tremadoc, his biographer, and the publisher of the <i lang= -"cy">Brython</i>, so long as it existed, has kindly ransacked his -memory. He writes to me in Welsh to the following effect:—</p> -<p>‘I will tell you what I heard from Mr. Owen and my mother when -I was a lad, about fifty-seven years ago. The former used to say that -the people of Pennant in Eifionyđ had a nickname, to wit, that of -<i lang="cy">Belsiaid y Pennant</i>, “the Bellisians of the -Pennant”; that, when he was a boy, if anybody called out <i lang= -"cy">Belsiaid y Pennant</i> at the Penmorfa Fair, every man jack of -them would come out, and fighting always ensued. The antiquary used to -explain it thus. Some two or three hundred years ago, Sir Robert of the -Nant, one of Sir Richard Bulkeley’s ancestors, had a son and heir -who was extravagant <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb106" href="#pb106" -name="pb106">106</a>]</span>and wild. He married a gipsy, and they had -children born to them; but, as the family regarded this marriage as a -disgrace to their ancient stem, it is said that the father, the next -time the vagabonds came round, gave a large sum of money to the father -of the girl for taking her away with him. This having been done, the -rumour was spread abroad that it was one of the fairies the youth had -married, and that she had gone with him to catch a pony, when he threw -the bridle at the beast to prevent it passing, and the iron of the -bridle touched the wife; then that she at once disappeared, as the -fairies always do so when touched with iron. However, the two children -were put out to nurse, and the one of them, who was a girl, was brought -up at Plas y Pennant, and her name was <i>Pelisha</i><a class="noteref" -id="xd25e7896src" href="#xd25e7896" name="xd25e7896src">7</a>; her -descendants remain to this day in the Nant, and are called Bellis, who -are believed there, to this day, to be derived from the <i lang= -"cy">Tylwyth Teg</i>. Nothing offends them more than to be reminded of -this.’</p> -<p>Mr. R. I. Jones goes on to relate another tale as -follows:—</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Dywedir fod ỻe a elwir yr Hafod Rugog mewn cwm -anial yn y mynyđ ỻe y byđai y Tylwyth Teg yn arferol a -mynychu; ac y byđent yn trwblio’r hen wraig am fenthyg -rhywbeth neu gilyđ. Dywedođ hithau, ‘Cewch os -caniatewch đau beth cyntaf—i’r peth cyntaf y -cyffyrđaf ag ef wrth y drws dorri, a’r peth cyntaf y rhof fy -ỻaw arno yn y ty estyn hanner ỻath.’ Yr oeđ -carreg afael, fel ei gelwir, yn y mur wrth y drws ar ei fforđ, ac -yr oeđ ganđi đefnyđ syrcyn gwlanen yn rhy fyr o -hanner ỻath. Ond yn anffodus wrth đod a’i -chaweỻad mawn i’r ty bu agos iđi a syrthio: rhoes ei -ỻaw ar ben ei chlun i ymarbed a thorođ honno, a chan faint y -boen cyffyrđođ yny ty a’i thrwyn yr hwn a estynnođ -hanner ỻath.</i> <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb107" href= -"#pb107" name="pb107">107</a>]</span></p> -<p>‘It is said that there was a place called Hafod Rugog in a -wild hollow among the mountains, where the fair family were in the -habit of resorting, and that they used to trouble the old woman of -Hafod for the loan of one thing and another. So she said, one day, -“You shall have the loan if you will grant me two first -things—that the first thing I touch at the door break, and that -the first thing I put my hand on in the house be lengthened half a -yard.” There was a grip stone (<i lang="cy">carreg afael</i>), as -it is called, in the wall near the door, which was in her way, and she -had in the house a piece of flannel for a jerkin which was half a yard -too short. But, unfortunately, as she came, with her kreel full of turf -on her back, to the house, she nearly fell down: she put her hand, in -order to save herself, to her knee-joint, which then broke; and, owing -to the pain, when she had got into the house, she touched her nose with -her hand, when her nose grew half a yard longer.’</p> -<p>Mr. Jones went on to notice how the old folks used to believe that -the fairies were wont to appear in the marshes near Cweỻyn Lake, -not far from Rhyd-Đu, to sing and dance, and that it was -considered dangerous to approach them on those occasions lest one -should be fascinated. As to the above-mentioned flannel and stone a -folklorist asks me, why the old woman did not definitely mention them -and say exactly what she wanted. The question is worth asking: I cannot -answer it, but I mention it in the hope that somebody else will.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch2.2" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e387">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">II.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">Early in the year 1899<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e7937src" href="#xd25e7937" name="xd25e7937src">8</a> I had a -small group of stories communicated to me by the Rev. W. Evans Jones, -rector of Dolbenmaen, who tells me that the neighbourhood <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb108" href="#pb108" name="pb108">108</a>]</span>of -the Garn abounds in fairy tales. The scene of one of these is located -near the source of Afon fach Blaen y Cae, a tributary of the Dwyfach. -‘There a shepherd while looking after his flock came across a -ring of rushes which he accidentally kicked, as the little people were -coming out to dance. They detained him, and he married one of their -number. He was told that he would live happily with them as long as he -would not touch any instrument of iron. For years nothing happened to -mar the peace and happiness of the family. One day, however, he -unknowingly touched iron, with the consequence that both the wife and -the children disappeared.’ This differs remarkably from stories -such as have been already mentioned at pp. 32, 35; but until it is -countenanced by stories from other sources, I can only treat it as a -blurred version of a story of the more usual type, such as the next one -which Mr. Evans Jones has sent me as follows:—</p> -<p>‘A son of the farmer of Blaen Pennant married a fairy and they -lived together happily for years, until one day he took a bridle to -catch a horse, which proved to be rather an obstreperous animal, and in -trying to prevent the horse passing, he threw the bridle at him, which, -however, missed the animal and hit the wife so that the bit touched -her, and she at once disappeared. The tradition goes, that their -descendants are to this day living in the Pennant Valley; and if there -is any unpleasantness between them and their neighbours they are -taunted with being of the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> family.’ -These are, I presume, the people nicknamed <i lang="cy">Belsiaid</i>, -to which reference has already been made.</p> -<p>The next story is about an old woman from Garn Dolbenmaen who was -crossing y Graig Goch, ‘the Red Rock,’ ‘when suddenly -she came across a fairy sitting down with a very large number of gold -coins by <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb109" href="#pb109" name= -"pb109">109</a>]</span>her. The old woman ventured to remark how -wealthy she was: the fairy replied, <i lang="cy">Wele dacw</i>, -“Lo there!” and immediately disappeared.’ This looks -as if it ought to be a part of a longer story which Mr. Evans Jones has -not heard.</p> -<p>The last bit of folklore which he has communicated is equally short, -but of a rarer description: ‘A fairy was in the habit of -attending a certain family in the Pennant Valley every evening to put -the children to bed; and as the fairy was poorly clad, the mistress of -the house gave her a gown, which was found in the morning torn into -shreds.’ The displeasure of the fairy at being offered the gown -is paralleled by that of the fenodyree or the Manx brownie, described -in chapter iv. As for the kind of service here ascribed to the Pennant -fairy, I know nothing exactly parallel.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch2.3" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e397">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">III.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">The next four stories are to be found in <i lang= -"cy">Cymru Fu</i> at pp. 175–9, whence I have taken the liberty -of translating them into English. They were contributed by Glasynys, -whose name has already occurred so often in connexion with these Welsh -legends, that the reader ought to know more about him; but I have been -disappointed in my attempt to get a short account of his life to insert -here. All I can say is, that I made his acquaintance in 1865 in -Anglesey: at that time he had a curacy near Holyhead, and he was in the -prime of life. He impressed me as an enthusiast for Welsh antiquities: -he was born and bred, I believe, in the neighbourhood of Snowdon, and -his death took place about ten years ago. It would be a convenience to -the student of Welsh folklore to have a brief biography of Glasynys, -but as yet nothing of the kind seems to have been written. <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb110" href="#pb110" name="pb110">110</a>]</span></p> -<p>(1) ‘When the people of the Gors Goch one evening had just -gone to bed, they heard a great row and disturbance around the house. -One could not comprehend at all what it was that made a noise at that -time of night. Both the husband and the wife had waked up, quite unable -to make out what it might be. The children also woke, but no one could -utter a word: their tongues had all stuck to the roof of their mouths. -The husband, however, at last managed to move, and to ask, “Who -is there? What do you want?” Then he was answered from without by -a small silvery voice, “It is room we want to dress our -children.” The door was opened: a dozen small beings came in, and -began to search for an earthen pitcher with water; there they remained -for some hours, washing and titivating themselves. As the day was -breaking, they went away, leaving behind them a fine present for the -kindness they had received. Often afterwards did the Gors Goch folks -have the company of this family. But once there happened to be there a -fine plump and pretty baby in his cradle. The fair family came, and, as -the baby had not been baptized, they took the liberty of changing him -for one of their own. They left behind in his stead an abominable -creature that would do nothing but cry and scream every day of the -week. The mother was nearly breaking her heart on account of the -misfortune, and greatly afraid of telling anybody about it. But -everybody got to see that there was something wrong at the Gors Goch, -which was proved before long by the mother dying of longing for her -child. The other children died broken-hearted after their mother, and -the husband was left alone with the little elf without any one to -comfort them. But shortly after, one began to resort again to the -hearth of the Gors Goch to dress children, and the gift, which had -formerly been silver money, <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb111" href= -"#pb111" name="pb111">111</a>]</span>became henceforth pure gold. In -the course of a few years the elf became the heir of a large farm in -North Wales, and that is why the old people used to say, “Shoe -the elf with gold and he will grow” (<i lang="cy">Fe đaw -gwiđon yn fawr ond ei bedoli ag aur</i>). That is the legend of -the Gors Goch.’</p> -<p>(2) ‘Once when William Ellis, of the Gilwern, was fishing on -the bank of Cwm Silin Lake on a dark misty day, he had seen no living -Christian from the time when he left Nantỻe. But as he was in a -happy mood, throwing his line, he beheld over against him in a clump of -rushes a large crowd of people, or things in the shape of people about -a foot in stature: they were engaged in leaping and dancing. He looked -on for hours, and he never heard, as he said, such music in his life -before. But William went too near them, when they threw a kind of dust -into his eyes, and, while he was wiping it away, the little family took -the opportunity of betaking themselves somewhere out of his sight, so -that he neither saw nor heard anything more of them.’</p> -<p>(3) ‘There is a similar story respecting a place called -Ỻyn y Ffynhonnau. There was no end of jollity there, of dancing, -harping, and fiddling, with the servant man of Geỻi Ffrydau and -his two dogs in the midst of the crowd, leaping and capering as nimbly -as anybody else. At it they were for three days and three nights, -without stopping; and had it not been for a skilled man, who lived not -far off, and came to know how things were going on, the poor fellow -would, without doubt, have danced himself to death. But he was rescued -that time.’</p> -<p>(4) The fourth story is one, of which he says, that he heard it from -his mother; but he has elaborated it in his usual fashion, and the -proper names are undoubtedly his own:—‘Once on a time, a -shepherd boy had gone <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb112" href= -"#pb112" name="pb112">112</a>]</span>up the mountain. That day, like -many a day before and after, was exceedingly misty. Now, though he was -well acquainted with the place, he lost his way, and walked backwards -and forwards for many a long hour. At last he got into a low rushy -spot, where he saw before him many circular rings. He at once recalled -the place, and began to fear the worst. He had heard, many hundreds of -times, of the bitter experiences, in those rings, of many a shepherd -who had happened to chance on the dancing place or the circles of the -fair family. He hastened away as fast as ever he could, lest he should -be ruined like the rest; but, though he exerted himself to the point of -perspiring and losing his breath, there he was, and there he continued -to be, a long time. At last he was met by an old fat little man, with -merry blue eyes, who asked him what he was doing. He answered that he -was trying to find his way home. “Oh,” said he, “come -after me, and do not utter a word until I bid thee.” This he did, -following him on and on until they came to an oval stone; and the old -fat little man lifted it, after tapping the middle of it three times -with his walking-stick. There was there a narrow path with stairs -visible here and there; and a sort of whitish light, inclining to grey -and blue, was to be seen radiating from the stones. “Follow me -fearlessly,” said the fat man; “no harm will be done -thee.” So on the poor youth went, as reluctantly as a dog to be -hanged. But presently a fine, wooded, fertile country spread itself out -before them, with well arranged mansions dotting it all over, while -every kind of apparent magnificence met the eye and seemed to smile in -the landscape; the bright waters of the rivers meandered in twisted -streams, and the hills were covered with the luxuriant verdure of their -grassy growth, and the mountains with a glossy fleece of smooth -pasture. By the time they had <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb113" -href="#pb113" name="pb113">113</a>]</span>reached the stout -gentleman’s mansion, the young man’s senses had been -bewildered by the sweet cadence of the music which the birds poured -forth from the groves: then there was gold dazzling his eyes, and -silver flashing on his sight. He saw there all kinds of musical -instruments and all sorts of things for playing; but he could discern -no inhabitant in the whole place; and, when he sat down to eat, the -dishes on the table came to their places of themselves, and disappeared -when one had done with them. This puzzled him beyond measure; moreover, -he heard people talking together around him, but for the life of him he -could see no one but his old friend. At length the fat man said to him: -“Thou canst now talk as much as it may please thee;” but, -when he attempted to move his tongue, it would no more stir than if it -had been a lump of ice, which greatly frightened him. At this point, a -fine old lady, with health and benevolence beaming in her face, came to -them and slightly smiled at the shepherd: the mother was followed by -her three daughters, who were remarkably beautiful. They gazed with -somewhat playful looks at him, and at length began to talk to him; but -his tongue would not wag. Then one of the girls came to him, and, -playing with his yellow and curly locks, gave him a smart kiss on his -ruddy lips. This loosened the string that bound his tongue, and he -began to talk freely and eloquently. There he was, under the charm of -that kiss, in the bliss of happiness; and there he remained a year and -a day without knowing that he had passed more than a day among them; -for he had got into a country where there was no reckoning of time. But -by-and-by he began to feel somewhat of a longing to visit his old home, -and asked the stout man if he might go. “Stay a little -yet,” said he, “and thou shalt go for awhile.” That -passed: he stayed on, but Olwen, <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb114" -href="#pb114" name="pb114">114</a>]</span>for that was the name of the -damsel that had kissed him, was very unwilling that he should depart. -She looked sad every time he talked of going away; nor was he himself -without feeling a sort of a cold thrill passing through him at the -thought of leaving her. On condition, however, of returning, he -obtained leave to go, provided with plenty of gold and silver, of -trinkets and gems. When he reached home, nobody knew who he was: it had -been the belief that he had been killed by another shepherd, who found -it necessary to betake himself hastily far away to America, lest he -should be hanged without delay. But here is Einion Lâs at home, -and everybody wonders especially to see that the shepherd had got to -look like a wealthy man: his manners, his dress, his language, and the -treasure he had with him, all conspired to give him the air of a -gentleman. He went back one Thursday night, the first of the moon of -that month, as suddenly as he had left the first time, and nobody knew -whither. There was great joy in the country below when Einion returned -thither, and nobody was more rejoiced at it than Olwen his beloved. The -two were right impatient to get married; but it was necessary to do -that quietly, for the family below hated nothing more than fuss and -noise; so, in a sort of a half-secret fashion, they were wedded. Einion -was very desirous to go once more among his own people, accompanied, to -be sure, by his wife. After he had been long entreating the old man for -leave, they set out on two white ponies, that were, in fact, more like -snow than anything else in point of colour. So he arrived with his -consort in his old home, and it was the opinion of all that -Einion’s wife was the handsomest person they had anywhere seen. -Whilst at home, a son was born to them, to whom they gave the name of -Taliessin. Einion was now in the enjoyment of high <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb115" href="#pb115" name= -"pb115">115</a>]</span>repute, and his wife received due respect. Their -wealth was immense, and soon they acquired a large estate; but it was -not long till people began to inquire after the pedigree of -Einion’s wife: the country was of opinion that it was not the -right thing to be without a pedigree. Einion was questioned about it, -but without giving any satisfactory answer, and one came to the -conclusion that she was one of the fair family (<i lang="cy">Tylwyth -Teg</i>). “Certainly,” replied Einion, “there can be -no doubt that she comes from a very fair family; for she has two -sisters who are as fair as she, and, if you saw them together, you -would admit that name to be a most fitting one.” This, then, is -the reason why the remarkable family in the Land of Enchantment and -Glamour (<i lang="cy">Hud a Ỻedrith</i>) is called the fair -family.’</p> -<p>The two next tales of Glasynys’ appear in <i lang="cy">Cymru -Fu</i>, at pp. 478–9; the first of them is to be compared with -one already related (pp. 99, 100), while the other is unlike anything -that I can now recall:—</p> -<p>(5) ‘Cwmỻan was the principal resort of the fair family, -and the shepherds of Hafod Ỻan used to see them daily in the ages -of faith gone by. Once, on a misty afternoon, one of them had been -searching for sheep towards Nant y Bettws. When he had crossed Bwlch -Cwmỻan, and was hastening laboriously down, he saw an endless -number of little folks singing and dancing in a lively and light-footed -fashion, while the handsomest girls he had ever seen anywhere were at -it preparing a banquet. He went to them and had a share of their -dainties, and it seemed to him that he had never in his life tasted -anything approaching their dishes. When the twilight came, they spread -their tents, and the man never before saw such beauty and ingenuity. -They gave him a soft bed of yielding down, with sheets of the finest -linen, and he went to rest as proud as if he had <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb116" href="#pb116" name="pb116">116</a>]</span>been -a prince. But, alas! next morning, after all the jollity and sham -splendour, the poor man, when he opened his eyes, found that his bed -was but a bush of bulrushes, and his pillow a clump of moss. -Nevertheless, he found silver money in his shoes, and afterwards he -continued for a long time to find, every week, a piece of coined money -between two stones near the spot where he had slept. One day, however, -he told a friend of his the secret respecting the money, and he never -found any more.’</p> -<p>(6) ‘Another of these shepherds was one day urging his dog at -the sheep in Cwmỻan, when he heard a kind of low noise in the -cleft of a rock. He turned to look, when he found there some kind of a -creature weeping plenteously. He approached, and drew out a wee lass; -very shortly afterwards two middle-aged men came to him to thank him -for his kindness, and, when about to part, one of them gave him a -walking-stick, as a souvenir of his good deed. The year after this, -every sheep in his possession had two ewe-lambs; and so his sheep -continued to breed for some years. But he had stayed one evening in the -village until it was rather late, and there hardly ever was a more -tempestuous night than that: the wind howled, and the clouds shed their -contents in sheets of rain, while the darkness was such that next to -nothing could be seen. As he was crossing the river that comes down -from Cwmỻan, where its flood was sweeping all before it in a -terrible current, he somehow let go the walking-stick from his hand; -and when one went next morning up the Cwm, it was found that nearly all -the sheep had been swept away by the flood, and that the farmer’s -wealth had gone almost as it came—with the -walking-stick.’</p> -<p>The shorter versions given by Glasynys are probably more nearly -given as he heard them, than the longer <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb117" href="#pb117" name="pb117">117</a>]</span>ones, which may be -suspected of having been a good deal spun out by him; but there is -probably very little in any of them of his own invention, though the -question whence he got his materials in each instance may be difficult -to answer. In one this is quite clear, though he does not state it, -namely the story of the sojourn of Elfod the Shepherd in Fairyland, as -given in <i lang="cy">Cymru Fu</i>, p. 477: it is no other than a -second or third-hand reproduction of that recorded by Giraldus -concerning a certain Eliodorus, a twelfth-century cleric in the diocese -of St. David’s<a class="noteref" id="xd25e8014src" href= -"#xd25e8014" name="xd25e8014src">9</a>. But the longest tale published -by Glasynys is the one about a mermaid: see <i lang="cy">Cymru Fu</i>, -pp. 434–44. Where he got this from I have not been able to find -out, but it has probably been pieced together from various sources. I -feel sure that some of the materials at least were Welsh, besides the -characters known to Welsh mythology as Nefyđ Naf Neifion, Gwyn ab -Nuđ, Gwydion ab Dôn, Dylan, and Ceridwen, who have been -recklessly introduced into it. He locates it, apparently, somewhere on -the coast of Carnarvonshire, the chief scene being called <i lang= -"cy">Ogof Deio</i> or David’s Cave, which so far as I know is not -an actual name, but one suggested by ‘David Jones’ -locker’ as sailors’ slang for the sea. In hopes that -somebody will communicate to me any bits of this tale that happen to be -still current on the Welsh coast, I give an abstract of it -here:—</p> -<p>‘Once upon a time, a poor fisherman made the acquaintance of a -mermaid in a cave on the sea-coast; at first she screeched wildly, but, -when she got a little calmer, she told him to go off out of the way of -her brother, and to return betimes the day after. In getting away, he -was tossed into the sea, and tossed out on the <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb118" href="#pb118" name="pb118">118</a>]</span>land -with a rope, which had got wound about his waist; and on pulling at -this he got ashore a coffer full of treasure, which he spent the night -in carrying home. He was somewhat late in revisiting the cave the next -day, and saw no mermaid come there to meet him according to her -promise. But the following night he was roused out of his sleep by a -visit from her at his home, when she told him to come in time next day. -On his way thither, he learnt from some fishermen that they had been -labouring in vain during the night, as a great big mermaid had opened -their nets in order to pick the best fish, while she let the rest -escape. When he reached the cave he found the mermaid there combing her -hair: she surprised him by telling him that she had come to live among -the inhabitants of the land, though she was, according to her own -account, a king’s daughter. She was no longer stark naked, but -dressed like a lady: in one hand she held a diadem of pure gold, and in -the other a cap of wonderful workmanship, the former of which she -placed on her head, while she handed the latter to Ifan Morgan, with -the order that he should keep it. Then she related to him how she had -noticed him when he was a ruddy boy, out fishing in his father’s -white boat, and heard him sing a song which made her love him, and how -she had tried to repeat this song at her father’s court, where -everybody wanted to get it. Many a time, she said, she had been -anxiously listening if she might hear it again, but all in vain. So she -had obtained permission from her family to come with her treasures and -see if he would not teach it her; but she soon saw that she would not -succeed without appearing in the form in which she now was. After -saying that her name was Nefyn, daughter of Nefyđ Naf Neifion, and -niece to Gwyn son of Nuđ, and Gwydion son of Dôn, she calmed -his feelings on <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb119" href="#pb119" -name="pb119">119</a>]</span>the subject of the humble cottage in which -he lived. Presently he asked her to be his wife, and she consented on -the condition that he should always keep the cap she had given him out -of her sight and teach her the song. They were married and lived -happily together, and had children born them five times, a son and a -daughter each time; they frequently went to the cave, and no one knew -what treasures they had there; but once on a time they went out in a -boat pleasuring, as was their wont, with six or seven of the children -accompanying them, and when they were far from the land a great storm -arose; besides the usual accompaniments of a storm at sea, most -unearthly screeches and noises were heard, which frightened the -children and made their mother look uncomfortable; but presently she -bent her head over the side of the boat, and whispered something they -did not catch: to their surprise the sea was instantly calm. They got -home comfortably, but the elder children were puzzled greatly by their -mother’s influence over the sea, and it was not long after this -till they so teased some ill-natured old women, that the latter told -them all about the uncanny origin of their mother. The eldest boy was -vexed at this, and remembered how his mother had spoken to somebody -near the boat at sea, and that he was never allowed to go with his -parents to Ogof Deio. He recalled, also, his mother’s account of -the strange countries she had seen. Once there came also to Ifan -Morgan’s home, which was now a mansion, a visitor whom the -children were not even allowed to see; and one night, when the young -moon had sunk behind the western horizon, Ifan and his wife went -quietly out of the house, telling a servant that they would not return -for three weeks or a month: this was overheard by the eldest son. So he -followed them very quietly until he saw them on the strand, where he -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb120" href="#pb120" name= -"pb120">120</a>]</span>beheld his mother casting a sort of leather -mantle round herself and his father, and both of them threw themselves -into the hollow of a billow that came to fetch them. The son went home, -broke his heart, and died in nine days at finding out that his mother -was a mermaid; and, on seeing her brother dead, his twin sister went -and threw herself into the sea; but, instead of being drowned, she was -taken up on his steed by a fine looking knight, who then galloped away -over the waves as if they had been dry and level land. The servants -were in doubt what to do, now that Nefyđ Morgan was dead and -Eilonwy had thrown herself into the sea; but Tegid, the second son, who -feared nothing, said that Nefyđ’s body should be taken to -the strand, as somebody was likely to come to fetch it for burial among -his mother’s family. At midnight a knight arrived, who said the -funeral was to be at three that morning, and told them that their -brother would come back to them, as Gwydion ab Dôn was going to -give him a heart that no weight could break, that Eilonwy was soon to -be wedded to one of the finest and bravest of the knights of -Gwerđonau Ỻion, and that their parents were with Gwyn ab -Nuđ in the Gwaelodion. The body was accordingly taken to the -beach, and, as soon as the wave touched it, out of his coffin leaped -Nefyđ like a porpoise. He was seen then to walk away arm in arm -with Gwydion ab Dôn to a ship that was in waiting, and most -enchanting music was heard by those on shore; but soon the ship sailed -away, hardly touching the tops of the billows. After a year and a day -had elapsed Ifan Morgan, the father, came home, looking much better and -more gentlemanly than he had ever done before; he had never spoken of -Nefyn, his wife, until Tegid one day asked him what about his mother; -she had gone, he said, in search of Eilonwy, who had run away from her -husband in <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb121" href="#pb121" name= -"pb121">121</a>]</span>Gwerđonau Ỻion, with Glanfryd ab -Gloywfraint. She would be back soon, he thought, and describe to them -all the wonders they had seen. Ifan Morgan went to bed that night, and -was found dead in it in the morning; it was thought that his death had -been caused by a Black Knight, who had been seen haunting the place at -midnight for some time, and always disappearing, when pursued, into a -well that bubbled forth in a dark recess near at hand. The day of Ifan -Morgan’s funeral, Nefyn, his wife, returned, and bewailed him -with many tears; she was never more seen on the dry land. Tegid had now -the charge of the family, and he conducted himself in all things as -behoved a man and a gentleman of high principles and great generosity. -He was very wealthy, but often grieved by the thought of his -father’s murder. One day, when he and two of his brothers were -out in a boat fishing in the neighbouring bay, they were driven by the -wind to the most wonderful spot they had ever seen. The sea there was -as smooth as glass, and as bright as the clearest light, while beneath -it, and not far from them, they saw a most splendid country with -fertile fields and dales covered with pastures, with flowery hedges, -groves clad in their green foliage, and forests gently waving their -leafy luxuriance, with rivers lazily contemplating their own tortuous -courses, and with mansions here and there of the most beautiful and -ingenious description; and presently they saw that the inhabitants -amused themselves with all kinds of merriment and frolicking, and that -here and there they had music and engaged themselves in the most -energetic dancing; in fact, the rippling waves seemed to have absorbed -their fill of the music, so that the faint echo of it, as gently given -forth by the waves, never ceased to charm their ears until they reached -the shore. That night the three brothers <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb122" href="#pb122" name="pb122">122</a>]</span>had the same dream, -namely that the Black Knight who had throttled their father was in -hiding in a cave on the coast: so they made for the cave in the -morning, but the Black Knight fled from them and galloped off on the -waves as if he had been riding for amusement over a meadow. That day -their sisters, on returning home from school, had to cross a piece of -sea, when a tempest arose and sunk the vessel, drowning all on board, -and the brothers ascribed this to the Black Knight. About this time -there was great consternation among the fishermen on account of a -sea-serpent that twined itself about the rocks near the caves, and -nothing would do but that Tegid and his brothers should go forth to -kill it; but when one day they came near the spot frequented by it, -they heard a deep voice saying to them, “Do not kill your -sister,” so they wondered greatly and suddenly went home. But -that night Tegid returned there alone, and called his sister by her -name, and after waiting a long while she crept towards him in the shape -of a sea-serpent, and said that she must remain some time in that form -on account of her having run away with one who was not her husband; she -went on to say that she had seen their sisters walking with their -mother, and their father would soon be in the cave. But all of a sudden -there came the Black Knight, who unsheathed a sword that looked like a -flame of fire, and began to cut the sea-serpent into a thousand bits, -which united, however, as fast as he cut it, and became as whole as -before. The end was that the monster twisted itself in a coil round his -throat and bit him terribly in his breast. At this point a White Knight -comes and runs him through with his spear, so that he fell instantly, -while the White Knight went off hurriedly with the sea-serpent in a -coil round his neck. Tegid ran away for his life, but not before a -monster more terrible than <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb123" href= -"#pb123" name="pb123">123</a>]</span>anything he had ever seen had -begun to attack him. It haunted him in all kinds of ways: sometimes it -would be like a sea, but Tegid was able to swim: sometimes it would be -a mountain of ice, but Tegid was able to climb it: and sometimes it was -like a furnace of intense fire, but the heat had no effect on him. But -it appeared mostly as a combination of the beast of prey and the -venomous reptile. Suddenly, however, a young man appeared, taking hold -of Tegid’s arm and encouraging him, when the monster fled away -screeching, and a host of knights in splendid array and on proudly -prancing horses came to him: among them he found his brothers, and he -went with them to his mother’s country. He was especially welcome -there, and he found all happy and present save his father only, whom he -thought of fetching from the world above, having in fact got leave to -do so from his grandfather. His mother and his brothers went with him -to search for his father’s body, and with him came Gwydion ab -Dôn and Gwyn ab Nuđ, but he would not be wakened. So Tegid, -who loved his father greatly, asked leave to remain on his -father’s grave, where he remains to this day. His mother is wont -to come there to soothe him, and his brothers send him gifts, while he -sends his gifts to Nefyđ Naf Neifion, his grandfather; it is also -said that his twin-sister, Ceridwen, has long since come to live near -him, to make the glad gladder and the pretty prettier, and to maintain -her dignity and honour in peace and tranquillity.’</p> -<p>The latter part of this tale, the mention of Ceridwen, invoked by -the bards as the genius presiding over their profession, and of Tegid -remaining on his father’s grave, is evidently a reference to -<i lang="cy">Ỻyn Tegid</i>, or Bala Lake, and to the legend of -Taliessin in the so-called <i lang="cy">Hanes</i> or history of -Taliessin, published at the end of the third volume of Lady Charlotte -Guest’s <i>Mabinogion</i>. So the <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb124" href="#pb124" name="pb124">124</a>]</span>story has undoubtedly -been pieced together, but not all invented, as is proved by the -reference to the curious cap which the husband was to keep out of the -sight of his mermaid wife. In Irish legends this cap has particular -importance attached to it, of which Glasynys cannot have been aware, -for he knew of no use to make of it. The teaching of the song to the -wife is not mentioned after the marriage; and the introduction of it at -all is remarkable: at any rate I have never noticed anything parallel -to it in other tales. The incident of the tempest, when the mermaid -spoke to somebody by the side of the boat, reminds one of Undine during -the trip on the Danube. It is, perhaps, useless to go into details till -one has ascertained how much of the story has been based on genuine -Welsh folklore. But, while I am on this point, I venture to append here -an Irish tale, which will serve to explain the meaning of the -mermaid’s cap, as necessary to her comfort in the water world. I -am indebted for it to the kindness of Dr. Norman Moore, of St. -Bartholomew’s Hospital, who tells me, in a letter dated March 7, -1882, that he and the Miss Raynells of Killynon heard it from an old -woman named Mrs. Dolan, who lived on the property of the late Mr. Cooke -of Cookesborough, in Westmeath. The following was her -tale:—‘There was a man named Mahon had a farm on the edge -of Loch Owel. He noticed that his corn was trampled, and he sat up all -night to watch it. He saw horses, colts and fillies rather, come up out -of the lake and trample it. He chased them, and they fled into the -lake. The next night he saw them again, and among them a beautiful girl -with a cap of salmon skin on her head, and it shone in the moonlight; -and he caught her and embraced her, and carried her off to his house -and married her, and she was a very good housewife, as all those lake -people are, and kept his house <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb125" -href="#pb125" name="pb125">125</a>]</span>beautifully; and one day in -the harvest, when the men were in the fields, she went into the house, -and there she looked on the hurdle for some lard to make -colcannon<a class="noteref" id="xd25e8058src" href="#xd25e8058" name= -"xd25e8058src">10</a> for the men, and she saw her old cap of fish -skin, and she put it on her head and ran straight down into the lake -and was never seen any more, and Mahon he was terribly grieved, and he -died soon after of a decline. She had had three children, and I often -saw them in the Mullingar market. They were farmers, too, on Loch -Owel.’</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch2.4" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e407">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">IV.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">Let me now return to the fresh-water fairies of -Snowdon and give a reference to Pennant’s <i>Tours in Wales</i>: -in the edition published at Carnarvon in 1883 we are told, ii. 326, how -Mr. Pennant learned ‘that, in fairy days, those diminutive gentry -kept their revels’ on the margins of the Snowdon lake, called -Ỻyn Coch. There is no legend now extant, so far as I can -ascertain, about the Ỻyn Coch fairies. So I proceed to append a -legend differing considerably from all the foregoing: I owe it to the -kindness of my friend Mr. Howell Thomas, of the Local Government Board. -It was written out by Mr. G. B. Gattie, and I take the liberty of -prefixing to it his letter to Mr. Thomas, dated Walham Grove, London, -S.W., April 27, 1882. The letter runs as follows:—</p> -<p>‘I had quite forgotten the enclosed, which I had jotted down -during my recent illness, and ought to have sent you long ago. Of -course, the wording is very rough, as no care has been taken on that -point. It is interesting, as being another version of a very pretty old -legend which my mother used to repeat. She was descended from a very -old north Welsh family; indeed, <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb126" -href="#pb126" name="pb126">126</a>]</span>I believe my esteemed -grandfather went so far as to trace his descent from the great patriot, -Owen Glendower himself! My mother delighted not only in the ancient -folklore legends and fairy tales of the Principality, with which she -was perfectly familiar, but especially in the lovely national melodies, -all of which she knew by heart; and, being highly accomplished, would -never tire of playing or singing them. You will see the legend is, in -the main, much as related by Professor Rhys, though differing somewhat -in the singular terms of the marriage contract. The scene of the -legend, as related by my late mother, was, of course, a lake, the Welsh -name of which I have, unfortunately, forgotten, but it was somewhere, I -think, near Ỻanberis, and the hero a stalwart young -farmer.’</p> -<p>The legend itself reads as follows:—</p> -<p>‘One hot day, the farmer, riding by the lake, took his horse -into the water to drink, and, whilst looking straight down over his -horse’s ears into the smooth surface, he became aware of a most -lovely face, just beneath the tide, looking up archly at him. Quite -bewildered, he earnestly beckoned, and by degrees the head and -shoulders which belonged to the face emerged from the water. Overcome -with emotion, and nearly maddened by the blaze of beauty so suddenly -put before him, he leaped from his horse and rushed wildly into the -lake to try to clasp the lovely vision to his heart. As this was a -clear case of “love at first sight,” the poor young man was -not, of course, answerable for his actions. But the vision had vanished -beneath the waves, to instantly reappear, however, a yard or two off, -with the most provoking of smiles, and holding out her beautiful white -hands towards her admirer, but slipping off into deep water the moment -he approached.</p> -<p>‘For many days the young farmer frequented the <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb127" href="#pb127" name= -"pb127">127</a>]</span>lake, but without again seeing the beautiful -Naiad, until one day he sat down by the margin hoping that she would -appear, and yet dreading her appearance, for this latter to him simply -meant loss of all peace. Yet he rushed on his fate, like the love-sick -shepherd in the old Italian romance, who watched the sleeping beauty, -yet dreaded her awakening:—<i lang="it">Io perderò la -pace, quando si sveglierà!</i></p> -<p>‘The young man had brought the remains of his frugal dinner -with him, and was quietly munching, by way of dessert, an apple of rare -and delicious quality, from a tree which grew upon a neighbouring -estate. Suddenly the lady appeared in all her rare beauty almost close -to him, and begged him to “throw” her one of his apples. -This was altogether too much, and he replied by holding out the -tempting morsel, exhibiting its beautiful red and green sides, saying -that, if she really wanted it, she must fetch it herself. Upon this she -came up quite close, and, as she took the apple from his left hand, he -dexterously seized tight hold of her with his right, and held her fast. -She, however, nothing daunted, bawled lustily, at the top of her voice, -for help, and made such an outrageous noise, that at length a most -respectable looking old gentleman appeared suddenly out of the midst of -the lake. He had a superb white beard, and was simply and classically -attired merely in a single wreath of beautiful water-lilies wound round -his loins, which was possibly his summer costume, the weather being -hot. He politely requested to know what was the matter, and what the -young farmer wanted with his daughter. The case was thereupon -explained, but not without the usual amount of nervous trepidation -which usually happens to love-sick swains when called into the awful -presence of “Papa” to “explain their -intentions!”</p> -<p>‘After a long parley the lady, at length, agreed to -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb128" href="#pb128" name= -"pb128">128</a>]</span>become the young man’s wife on two -conditions, which he was to solemnly promise to keep. These conditions -were that he was never to strike her with <i>steel</i> or <i>clay</i> -(earth), conditions to which the young man very readily assented. As -these were primitive days, when people were happy and honest, there -were no lawyers to encumber the Holy Estate with lengthy settlements, -and to fill their own pockets with heavy fees; matters were therefore -soon settled, and the lady married to the young farmer on the spot by -the very respectable old lake deity, her papa.</p> -<p>‘The story goes on to say that the union was followed by two -sons and two daughters. The eldest son became a great physician, and -all his descendants after him were celebrated for their great -proficiency in the noble healing art. The second son was a mighty -craftsman in all works appertaining to the manufacture and use of iron -and metals. Indeed it has been hinted that, his little corracle of -bull’s hide having become old and unsafe, he conceived the -brilliant idea of making one of thin iron. This he actually -accomplished, and, to the intense amazement of the wondering populace, -he constantly used it for fishing, or other purposes, on the lake, -where he paddled about in perfect security. This important fact ought -to be more generally known, as it gives him a fair claim to the -introduction of iron ship-building, <i>pace</i> the shades of Beaufort -and Brunel.</p> -<p>‘Of the two daughters, one is said to have invented the small -ten-stringed harp, and the other the spinning-wheel. Thus were -introduced the arts of medicine, manufactures, music, and woollen -work.</p> -<p>‘As the old ballad says, applying the quotation to the father -and mother:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">They lived for more than forty year</p> -<p class="line xd25e5678">Right long and happilie!</p> -</div> -<p><span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb129" href="#pb129" name= -"pb129">129</a>]</span></p> -<p>‘One day it happened that the wife expressed a great wish for -some of those same delicious apples of which she was so fond, and of -which their neighbour often sent them a supply. Off went the farmer, -like a good husband that he was, and brought back, not only some -apples, but a beautiful young sapling, seven or eight feet high, -bearing the same apple, as a present from their friend. This they at -once proceeded to set, he digging and she holding; but the hole not -being quite deep enough he again set to work, with increased energy, -with his spade, and stooping very low threw out the last shovelful over -his shoulder—alas! without looking—full into the breast of -his wife. She dropped the sapling and solemnly warned him that one of -the two conditions of their marriage contract had been broken. Accident -was pleaded, but in vain; there was the unfortunate fact—<i>he -had struck her with clay</i>! Looking upon the sapling as the cause of -this great trouble he determined to return it forthwith to his kind -neighbour. Taking a bridle in his hand he proceeded to the field to -catch his horse, his wife kindly helping him. They both ran up, one on -each side, and, as the unruly steed showed no signs of stopping, the -husband attempted to throw the bridle over his head. Not having visited -Mexico in his travels, and thereby learned the use of the lasso, he -missed his horse’s head and—misfortune of -misfortunes—struck his wife in the face with the iron bit, thus -breaking the second condition. <i>He had struck her with steel.</i> She -no sooner received the blow than—like Esau—she “cried -with a great and exceeding bitter cry,” and bidding her husband a -last farewell, fled down the hill with lightning speed, dashed into the -lake, and disappeared beneath the smooth and glassy waters! Thus, it -may be said that, if an apple—indirectly—occasioned the -beginning <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb130" href="#pb130" name= -"pb130">130</a>]</span>of her married life, so an apple brought about -its sad termination.’</p> -<p>Such is Mr. Gattie’s tale, and to him probably is to be traced -its literary trimming; but even when it is stripped of that accessory, -it leaves us with difficulties of somewhat the same order as those -attaching to some of the stories which have passed through the hands of -Glasynys. However, the substance of it seems to be genuine, and to -prove that there has been a Northwalian tradition which traced the -medical art to a lake lady like the Egeria of the Physicians of -Myđfai.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch2.5" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e417">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">V.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">Allusion has already been made to the <i lang= -"cy">afanc</i> story, and it is convenient to give it before proceeding -any further. The <i>Cambrian Journal</i> for 1859, pp. 142–6, -gives it in a letter of Edward Ỻwyd’s dated 1693, and -contributed to that periodical by the late Canon Robert Williams, of -Rhyd y Croesau, who copied it from the original letter in his -possession<a class="noteref" id="xd25e8135src" href="#xd25e8135" name= -"xd25e8135src">11</a>, and here follows a translation into English of -the part of it which concerns Ỻyn yr Afanc<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8138src" href="#xd25e8138" name="xd25e8138src">12</a>, a pool on -the river Conwy, above Bettws y Coed and opposite Capel -Garmon:—</p> -<p>‘I suppose it very probable that you have heard speak of -Ỻyn yr Afanc, “the Afanc’s Pool,” and that I -therefore need not trouble to inform you where it stands. I think, -also, that you know, if one may trust what the country people say, that -it was a girl that enticed the afanc to come out of his abode, namely -the pool, so as to be bound with iron chains, whilst he <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb131" href="#pb131" name= -"pb131">131</a>]</span>slumbered with his head on her knees, and with -the grip of one hand on her breast. When he woke from his nap and -perceived what had been done to him, he got up suddenly and hurried to -his old refuge, taking with him in his claw the breast of his -sweetheart. It was then seen that it was well the chain was long enough -to be fastened to oxen that pulled him out of the pool. Thereupon a -considerable dispute arose among some of the people, each asserting -that he had taken a great weight on himself and pulled far harder than -anybody else. “No,” said another, “it was I,” -&c. And whilst they were wrangling in this way, the report goes -that the afanc answered them, and silenced their discontent by -saying—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Oni bae y dai ag a dyn</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Ni đactha’r afanc byth o’r -ỻyn.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Had it not been for the oxen pulling,</p> -<p class="line">The afanc had never left the pool.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">‘You must understand that some take the afanc to -be a corporeal demon; but I am sufficiently satisfied that there is an -animal of the same name, which is called in English a <i>bever</i>, -seeing that the term <i lang="cy">ceiỻie’r afanc</i> -signifies <i>bever stones</i>. I know not what kind of oxen those in -question were, but it is related that they were twins; nor do I know -why they were called <i lang="cy">Ychain Mannog</i> or <i lang= -"cy">Ychain Bannog</i>. But peradventure they were called <i lang= -"cy">Ychain Bannog</i> in reference to their having had many a -fattening, or fattening on fattening (having been for many a year -fattened). Yet the word <i lang="cy">bannog</i> is not a good, suitable -word to signify fattened, as <i lang="cy">bannog</i> is nought else -than what has been made exceeding thick by beating [or fulling], as one -says of a thick blanket made of coarse yarn (<i lang="cy">y gwrthban -tew-bannog</i>), the thick <i lang="cy">bannog</i><a class="noteref" -id="xd25e8198src" href="#xd25e8198" name="xd25e8198src">13</a> blanket. -Whilst I was dawdling <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb132" href= -"#pb132" name="pb132">132</a>]</span>behind talking about this, the -oxen had proceeded very far, and I did not find their footmarks as they -came through portions of the parish of Dolyđ-Elan (Lueđog) -until I reached a pass called ever since <i lang="cy">Bwlch -Rhiw’r Ychen</i>, “the Pass of the Slope of the -Oxen,” between the upper parts of Dolyđelan and the upper -part of Nanhwynen. In coming over this pass one of the oxen dropped one -of its eyes on an open spot, which for that reason is called <i lang= -"cy">Gwaun Lygad Ych</i>, “the Moor of the Ox’s Eye.” -The place where the eye fell has become a pool, which is by this time -known as <i lang="cy">Pwỻ Ỻygad Ych</i>, “the Pool of -the Ox’s Eye,” which is at no time dry, though no water -rises in it or flows into it except when rain falls; nor is there any -flowing out of it during dry weather. It is always of the same depth; -that is, it reaches about one’s knee-joint, according to those -who have paid attention to that for a considerable number of years. -There is a harp melody, which not all musicians know: it is known as -the <i lang="cy">Ychain Mannog</i> air, and it has a piteous effect on -the ear, being as plaintive as were the groanings of these <i lang= -"cy">Ychain</i> under the weight of the afanc, especially when one of -the pair lost an eye. They pulled him up to Ỻyn Cwm Ffynnon Las, -“the Lake of the Dingle of the Green Well,” to which he was -consigned, for the reason, peradventure, that some believed that there -were in that lake uncanny things already in store. In fact, it was but -fitting that he should be permitted to go to his kind. But whether -there were uncanny things in it before or not, many think that there is -nothing good in it now, as you will understand from what follows. There -is much talk of Ỻyn Cwm Ffynnon Las besides the fact that it is -always free from ice, except in one corner where the peat water of -clear pools comes into it, and that it has also a variety of dismal -hues. The cause of this is, as I suppose, to be <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb133" href="#pb133" name= -"pb133">133</a>]</span>sought in the various hues of the rocks -surrounding it; and the fact that a whirlwind makes its water mixed, -which is enough to give any lake a disagreeable colour. Nothing swims -on it without danger, and I am not sure that it would be very safe for -a bird to fly across it or not. Throw a rag into its water and it will -go to the bottom, and I have with my own ears heard a man saying that -he saw a goat taking to this lake in order to avoid being caught, and -that as soon as the animal went into the water, it turned round and -round, as if it had been a top, until it was drowned …. -Some mention that, as some great man was hunting in the Snowdon -district (Eryri), a stag, to avoid the hounds when they were pressing -on him, and as is the habit of stags to defend themselves, made his -escape into this lake: the hunters had hardly time to turn round before -they saw the stag’s antlers (<i lang="cy">mwnglws</i>) coming to -the surface, but nothing more have they ever seen …. A -young woman has been seen to come out of this lake to wash clothes, and -when she had done she folded the clothes, and taking them under her arm -went back into the lake. One man, whose brother is still alive and -well, beheld in a canoe, on this same lake still, an angler with a red -cap on his head; but the man died within a few days, having not been in -his right mind during that time. Most people regard this as the real -truth, and, as for myself, I cannot refuse to believe that such a -vision might not cause a man to become so bewildered as to force on a -disease ending with his death ….’</p> -<p>The name Ỻyn Cwm Ffynnon Las would have led one to suppose -that the pool meant is the one given in the ordnance maps as Ỻyn -y Cwm Ffynnon, and situated in the mountains between Pen y Gwryd and -the upper valley of Ỻanberis; but from the writer on the parish -of <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb134" href="#pb134" name= -"pb134">134</a>]</span>Beđgelert in the <i lang="cy">Brython</i> -for 1861, pp. 371–2, it appears that this is not so, and that the -tarn meant was in the upper reach of Cwm Dyli, and was known as -Ỻyn y Ffynnon Las, ‘Lake of the Green Well,’ about -which he has a good deal to say in the same strain as that of -Ỻwyd in the letter already cited. Among other things he remarks -that it is a very deep tarn, and that its bottom has been ascertained -to be lower than the surface of Ỻyn Ỻydaw, which lies 300 -feet lower. And as to the afanc, he remarks that the inhabitants of -Nant Conwy and the lower portions of the parish of Dolwyđelan, -having frequent troubles and losses inflicted on them by a huge monster -in the river Conwy, near Bettws y Coed, tried to kill it but in vain, -as no harpoon, no arrow or spear made any impression whatsoever on the -brute’s hide; so it was resolved to drag it away as in the -Ỻwyd story. I learn from Mr. Pierce (Elis o’r Nant), of -Dolwyđelan, that the lake is variously known as Ỻyn (Cwm) -Ffynnon Las, and Ỻyn Glas or Glaslyn: this last is the form which -I find in the maps. It is to be noticed that the Nant Conwy people, by -dragging the afanc there, got him beyond their own watershed, so that -he could no more cause floods in the Conwy.</p> -<p>Here, as promised at p. 74, I append Lewis Glyn Cothi’s words -as to the afanc in Ỻyn Syfađon. The bard is dilating in the -poem, where they occur, on his affection for his friend Ỻywelyn -ab Gwilym ab Thomas Vaughan, of Bryn Hafod in the Vale of Towy, and -averring that it would be as hard to induce him to quit his -friend’s hospitable home, as it was to get the afanc away from -the Lake of Syfađon, as follows:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Yr avanc er ei ovyn</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Wyv yn ỻech ar vin y ỻyn;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>O dòn Ỻyn Syfađon vo</i> -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb135" href="#pb135" name= -"pb135">135</a>]</span></p> -<p class="line"><i>Ni thynwyd ban aeth yno:</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Ni’m tỳn mèn nag ychain -gwaith,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Ođiyma heđyw ymaith.</i><a class="noteref" -id="xd25e8263src" href="#xd25e8263" name="xd25e8263src">14</a></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">The afanc am I, who, sought for, bides</p> -<p class="line">In hiding on the edge of the lake;</p> -<p class="line">Out of the waters of Syfađon Mere</p> -<p class="line">Was he not drawn, once he got there.</p> -<p class="line">So with me: nor wain nor oxen wont to toil</p> -<p class="line">Me to-day will draw from here forth.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">From this passage it would seem that the Syfađon -story contemplated the afanc being taken away from the lake in a cart -or waggon drawn by oxen; but whether driven by Hu, or by whom, one is -not told. However, the story must have represented the undertaking as a -failure, and the afanc as remaining in his lake: had it been otherwise -it would be hard to see the point of the comparison.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch2.6" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e427">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">VI.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">The parish of Ỻanfachreth and its traditions -have been the subject of some contributions to the first volume of the -<i lang="cy">Taliesin</i> published at Ruthin in 1859–60, pp. -132–7, by a writer who calls himself <i lang="cy">Cofiadur</i>. -It was Glasynys, I believe, for the style seems to be his: he pretends -to copy from an old manuscript of Hugh Bifan’s—both the -manuscript and its owner were fictions of Glasynys’ as I am told. -These jottings contain two or three items about the fairies which seem -to be genuine:—</p> -<p>‘The bottom of Ỻyn Cynnwch, on the Nannau estate, is -level with the hearth-stone of the house of Dôl y Clochyđ. -Its depth was found out owing to the sweetheart of one of Siwsi’s -girls having lost his way to her from Nannau, where he was a servant. -The <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb136" href="#pb136" name= -"pb136">136</a>]</span>poor man had fallen into the lake, and gone down -and down, when he found it becoming clearer the lower he got, until at -last he alighted on a level spot where everybody and everything looked -much as he had observed on the dry land. When he had reached the bottom -of the lake, a short fat old gentleman came to him and asked his -business, when he told him how it happened that he had come. He met -with great welcome, and he stayed there a month without knowing that he -had been there three days, and when he was going to leave, he was led -out to his beloved by the inhabitants of the lake bottom. He asserted -that the whole way was level except in one place, where they descended -about a fathom into the ground; but, he added, it was necessary to -ascend about as much to reach the hearth-stone of Dôl y -Clochyđ. The most wonderful thing, however, was that the stone -lifted itself as he came up from the subterranean road towards it. It -was thus the sweetheart arrived there one evening, when the girl was by -the fire weeping for him. Siwsi had been out some days before, and she -knew all about it though she said nothing to anybody. This, then, was -the way in which the depth of Ỻyn Cynnwch came to be -known.’</p> -<p>Then he has a few sentences about an old house called -Ceimarch:—‘Ceimarch was an old mansion of considerable -repute, and in old times it was considered next to Nannau in point of -importance in the whole district. There was a deep ditch round it, -which was always kept full of water, with the view of keeping off -vagabonds and thieves, as well as other lawless folks, that they might -not take the inmates by surprise. But, in distant ages, this place was -very noted for the frequent visits paid it by the fair family. They -used to come to the ditch to wash themselves, and to cross the water -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb137" href="#pb137" name= -"pb137">137</a>]</span>in boats made of the bark of the -rowan-tree<a class="noteref" id="xd25e8303src" href="#xd25e8303" name= -"xd25e8303src">15</a>, or else birch, and they came into the house to -pay their rent for trampling the ground around the place. They always -placed a piece of money under a pitcher, and the result was that the -family living there became remarkably rich. But somehow, after the -lapse of many years, the owner of the place offended them, by showing -disrespect for their diminutive family: soon the world began to go -against him, and it was not long before he got low in life. Everything -turned against him, and in times past everybody believed that he -incurred all this because he had earned the displeasure of the fair -family.’</p> -<p>In the <i lang="cy">Brython</i> for the year 1862, p. 456, in the -course of an essay on the history of the Lordship of Mawđwy in -Merioneth, considered the best in a competition at an Eisteđfod -held at Dinas Mawđwy, August 2, 1855, Glasynys gives the following -bit about the fairies of that neighbourhood:—‘The side of -Aran Fawđwy is a great place for the fair family: they are ever at -it playing their games on the hillsides about this spot. It is said -that they are numberless likewise about Bwlch y Groes. Once a boy -crossed over near the approach of night, one summer eve, from the Gadfa -to Mawđwy, and on his return he saw near Aber Rhiwlech a swarm of -the little family dancing away full pelt. The boy began to run, with -two of the maidens in pursuit of him, entreating him to stay; but -Robin, for that was his name, kept running, and the two elves failed -altogether to catch him, otherwise he would have been taken a prisoner -of love. There are plenty of their dancing-rings to be seen on the -hillsides between Aber Rhiwlech and Bwlch y Groes.’ <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb138" href="#pb138" name="pb138">138</a>]</span></p> -<p>Here I would introduce two other Merionethshire tales, which I have -received from Mr. E. S. Roberts, master of the Ỻandysilio School, -near Ỻangoỻen. He has learnt them from one Abel Evans, who -lives at present in the parish of Ỻandysilio: he is a native of -the parish of Ỻandriỻo on the slopes of the Berwyn, and of -a glen in the same, known as Cwm Pennant, so called from its being -drained by the Pennant on its way to join the Dee. Now Cwm Pennant was -the resort of fairies, or of a certain family of them, and the -occurrence, related in the following tale, must have taken place no -less than seventy years ago: it was well known to the late Mrs. Ellen -Edwards of Ỻandriỻo:—</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Ryw điwrnod aeth dau gyfaiỻ i hela dwfrgwn -ar hyd lannau afon Pennant, a thra yn cyfeirio eu camrau tuagat yr afon -gwelsant ryw greadur bychan ỻiwgoch yn rhedeg yn gyflym iawn ar -draws un o’r dolyđ yn nghyfeiriad yr afon. Ymaeth a nhw ar -ei ol. Gwelsant ei fod wedi myned ođitan wraiđ coeden yn ochr -yr afon i ymguđio. Yr oeđ y đau đyn yn međwl -mae dwfrgi ydoeđ, ond ar yr un pryd yn methu a deaỻ paham yr -ymđanghosai i’w ỻygaid yn ỻiwgoch. Yr -oeđynt yn dymuno ei đal yn fyw, ac ymaith yr aeth un o honynt -i ffarmdy gerỻaw i ofyn am sach, yr hon a gafwyd, er mwyn rhoi y -creadur ynđi. Yr oeđ yno đau dwỻ o tan wraiđ -y pren, a thra daliai un y sach yn agored ar un twỻ yr oeđ y -ỻaỻ yn hwthio ffon i’r twỻ araỻ, ac yn y -man aeth y creadur i’r sach. Yr oeđ y đau đyn yn -međwl eu bod wedi dal dwfrgi, yr hyn a ystyrient yn orchest nid -bychan. Cychwynasant gartref yn ỻawen ond cyn eu myned hyd -ỻed cae, ỻefarođ ỻetywr y sach mewn ton drist -gan đywedyd—‘Y mae fy mam yn galw am danaf, O, mae fy -mam yn galw am danaf,’ yr hyn a rođođ fraw mawr -i’r đau heliwr, ac yn y man taflasant <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb139" href="#pb139" name="pb139">139</a>]</span>y -sach i lawr, a mawr oeđ eu rhyfeđod a’u dychryn pan -welsant đyn bach mewn gwisg goch yn rhedeg o’r sach tuagat -yr afon. Fe a điflannođ o’i golwg yn mysg y drysni ar -fin yr afon. Yr oeđ y đau wedi eu brawychu yn đirfawr ac -yn teimlo mae doethach oeđ myned gartref yn hytrach nag ymyrraeth -yn mheỻach a’r Tylwyth Teg.</i></p> -<p>‘One day, two friends went to hunt otters on the banks of the -Pennant, and when they were directing their steps towards the river, -they beheld some small creature of a red colour running fast across the -meadows in the direction of the river. Off they ran after it, and saw -that it went beneath the roots of a tree on the brink of the river to -hide itself. The two men thought it was an otter, but, at the same -time, they could not understand why it seemed to them to be of a red -colour. They wished to take it alive, and off one of them went to a -farm house that was not far away to ask for a sack, which he got, to -put the creature into it. Now there were two holes under the roots of -the tree, and while one held the sack with its mouth open over one of -them, the other pushed his stick into the other hole, and presently the -creature went into the sack. The two men thought they had caught an -otter, which they looked upon as no small feat. They set out for home, -but before they had proceeded the width of one field, the inmate of the -sack spoke to them in a sad voice, and said, “My mother is -calling for me; oh, my mother is calling for me!” This gave the -two hunters a great fright, so that they at once threw down the sack; -and great was their surprise to see a little man in a red dress running -out of the sack towards the river. He disappeared from their sight in -the bushes by the river. The two men were greatly terrified, and felt -that it was more prudent to go home than meddle any further with the -fair family.’ So far as I know, <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb140" href="#pb140" name="pb140">140</a>]</span>this story stands -alone in Welsh folklore; but it has an exact parallel in -Lancashire<a class="noteref" id="xd25e8324src" href="#xd25e8324" name= -"xd25e8324src">16</a>.</p> -<p>The other story, which I now reproduce, was obtained by Mr. Roberts -from the same Abel Evans. He learnt it from Mrs. Ellen Edwards, and it -refers to a point in her lifetime, which Abel Evans fixes at ninety -years ago. Mr. Roberts has not succeeded in recovering the name of the -cottager of whom it speaks; but he lived on the side of the Berwyn, -above Cwm Pennant, where till lately a cottage used to stand, near -which the fairies had one of their resorts:—</p> -<p><i lang="cy">Yr oeđ perchen y bwthyn wedi amaethu rhyw ran -fychan o’r mynyđ ger ỻaw y ty er mwyn plannu pytatws -ynđo. Feỻy y gwnaeth. Mewn coeden yn agos i’r fan -canfyđođ nyth bran. Fe feđyliođ mae doeth fuasai -iđo đryỻio y nyth cyn amlhau o’r brain. Fe a -esgynnođ y goeden ac a đryỻiođ y nyth, ac wedi -disgyn i lawr canfyđođ gylch glas</i> (fairy ring) <i lang= -"cy">ođiamgylch y pren, ac ar y cylch fe welođ hanner coron -er ei fawr lawenyđ. Wrth fyned heibio yr un fan y boreu canlynol -fe gafođ hanner coron yn yr un man ag y cafođ y dyđ -o’r blaen. Hynna fu am amryw đyđiau. Un diwrnod -dywedođ wrth gyfaiỻ am ei hap đa a đangosođ y -fan a’r ỻe y cawsai yr hanner coron bob boreu. Wel y boreu -canlynol nid oeđ yno na hanner coron na dim araỻ iđo, -oherwyđ yr oeđ wedi torri rheolau y Tylwythion trwy wneud eu -haelioni yn hysbys. Y mae y Tylwythion o’r farn na đylai y -ỻaw aswy wybod yr hyn a wna y ỻaw đehau.</i></p> -<p>‘The occupier of the cottage had tilled a small portion of the -mountain side near his home in order to plant potatoes, which he did. -He observed that there was a rook’s nest on a tree which was not -far from this spot, and it struck him that it would be prudent to break -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb141" href="#pb141" name= -"pb141">141</a>]</span>the nest before the rooks multiplied. So he -climbed the tree and broke the nest, and, after coming down, he noticed -a green circle (a fairy ring) round the tree, and on this circle he -espied, to his great joy, half a crown. As he went by the same spot the -following morning, he found another half a crown in the same place as -before. So it happened for several days; but one day he told a friend -of his good luck, and showed him the spot where he found half a crown -every morning. Now the next morning there was for him neither half a -crown nor anything else, because he had broken the rule of the fair -folks by making their liberality known, they being of opinion that the -left hand should not know what the right hand does.’</p> -<p>So runs this short tale, which the old lady, Mrs. Edwards, and the -people of the neighbourhood explained as an instance of the gratitude -of the fairies to a man who had rendered them a service, which in this -case was supposed to have consisted in ridding them of the rooks, that -disturbed their merry-makings in the green ring beneath the branches of -the tree.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch2.7" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e437">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">VII.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">It would be unpardonable to pass away from Merioneth -without alluding to the stray cow of Ỻyn Barfog. The story -appears in Welsh in the <i lang="cy">Brython</i> for 1860, pp. -183–4, but the contributor, who closely imitates Glasynys’ -style, says that he got his materials from a paper by the late Mr. -Pughe of Aberdovey, by which he seems to have meant an article -contributed by the latter to the <i lang="la">Archæologia -Cambrensis</i>, and published in the volume for 1853, pp. 201–5. -Mr. Pughe dwells in that article a good deal on the scenery of the -corner of Merioneth in the rear of Aberdovey; but the chief thing in -his <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb142" href="#pb142" name= -"pb142">142</a>]</span>paper is the legend connected with Ỻyn -Barfog, which he renders into English as the Bearded Lake<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e8359src" href="#xd25e8359" name= -"xd25e8359src">17</a>. It is described as a mountain lake in a secluded -spot in the upland country behind Aberdovey; but I shall let Mr. Pughe -speak for himself:—</p> -<p>‘The lovers of Cambrian lore are aware that the <i>Triads</i> -in their record of the deluge affirm that it was occasioned by a mystic -Afanc y Ỻyn, crocodile<a class="noteref" id="xd25e8373src" href= -"#xd25e8373" name="xd25e8373src">18</a> of the lake, breaking the banks -of Ỻyn Ỻion, the lake of waters; and the recurrence of that -catastrophe was prevented only by Hu Gadarn, the bold man of power, -dragging away the afanc by aid of his <i lang="cy">Ychain Banawg</i>, -or large horned oxen. Many a lakelet in our land has put forward its -claim to the location of Ỻyn Ỻion; amongst the rest, this -lake. Be that as it may, King Arthur and his war-horse have the credit -amongst the mountaineers here of ridding them of the monster, in place -of Hu the Mighty, in proof of which is shown an impression on a -neighbouring rock bearing a resemblance to those made by the shoe or -hoof of a horse, as having been left there by his charger when our -British Hercules was engaged in this redoubtable act of prowess, and -this impression has been given the name of Carn March Arthur, the hoof -of Arthur’s horse, which it retains to this day. It is believed -to be very perilous to let the waters out of the lake, and recently an -aged inhabitant of the district informed the writer that she -recollected this being done during a period of long <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb143" href="#pb143" name= -"pb143">143</a>]</span>drought, in order to procure motive power for -Ỻyn Pair Mill, and that long-continued heavy rains followed. No -wonder our bold but superstitious progenitors, awe-struck by the -solitude of the spot—the dark sepial tint of its waters, -unrelieved by the flitting apparition of a single fish, and seldom -visited by the tenants of the air—should have established it as a -canon in their creed of terror that the lake formed one of the many -communications between this outward world of ours and the inner or -lower one of Annwn—the unknown world<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8393src" href="#xd25e8393" name="xd25e8393src">19</a>—the -dominion of Gwyn ap Nuđ, the mythic king of the fabled realm, -peopled by those children of mystery, Plant Annwn; and the belief is -still current amongst the inhabitants of our mountains in the -occasional visitations of the Gwrageđ Annwn, or dames of Elfin -land, to this upper world of ours. A shrewd old hill farmer (Thomas -Abergraes by name), well skilled in the folk-lore of the district, -informed me that, in years gone by, though when, exactly, he was too -young to remember, those dames were wont to make their appearance, -arrayed in green, in the neighbourhood of Ỻyn Barfog, chiefly at -eventide, accompanied by their kine and hounds, and that on quiet -summer nights in particular, these ban-hounds were often to be heard in -full cry pursuing their prey—the souls of doomed men dying -without baptism and penance—along the upland township of -Cefnrhosucha. Many a farmer had a sight of their comely milk-white -kine; many a swain had his soul turned to romance and poesy by a sudden -vision of themselves in the guise of damsels arrayed in green, and -radiant in beauty and grace; and many a sportsman had his path crossed -by their white hounds of supernatural <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb144" href="#pb144" name="pb144">144</a>]</span>fleetness and -comeliness, the Cwn Annwn; but never had any one been favoured with -more than a passing view of either, till an old farmer residing at -Dyssyrnant, in the adjoining valley of Dyffryn Gwyn, became at last the -lucky captor of one of their milk-white kine. The acquaintance which -the Gwartheg y Ỻyn, the kine of the lake, had formed with the -farmer’s cattle, like the loves of the angels for the daughters -of men, became the means of capture; and the farmer was thereby enabled -to add the mystic cow to his own herd, an event in all cases believed -to be most conducive to the worldly prosperity of him who should make -so fortunate an acquisition. Never was there such a cow, never such -calves, never such milk and butter, or cheese, and the fame of the -Fuwch Gyfeiliorn, the stray cow, was soon spread abroad through that -central part of Wales known as the district of Rhwng y đwy Afon, -from the banks of the Mawđach to those of the Dofwy<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e8399src" href="#xd25e8399" name= -"xd25e8399src">20</a>—from Aberdiswnwy<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8402src" href="#xd25e8402" name="xd25e8402src">21</a> to -Abercorris. The farmer, from a small beginning, rapidly became, like -Job, a man of substance, possessed of thriving herds of cattle—a -very patriarch among the mountains. But, alas! wanting Job’s -restraining grace, his wealth made him proud, his pride made him forget -his obligation to the Elfin cow, and fearing she might soon become too -old to be profitable, he fattened her for the butcher, and then even -she did not fail to distinguish herself, for a more monstrously fat -beast was never seen. At last the day of slaughter came—an -eventful day in the annals of a mountain farm—the killing of a -fat cow, and such a monster of obesity! No wonder all the neighbours -were gathered together <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb145" href= -"#pb145" name="pb145">145</a>]</span>to see the sight. The old farmer -looked upon the preparations in self-pleased importance—the -butcher felt he was about no common feat of his craft, and, baring his -arms, he struck the blow—not now fatal, for before even a hair -had been injured, his arm was paralysed—the knife dropped from -his hand, and the whole company was electrified by a piercing cry that -awakened echo in a dozen hills, and made the welkin ring again; and lo -and behold! the whole assemblage saw a female figure clad in green, -with uplifted arms, standing on one of the craigs overhanging Ỻyn -Barfog, and heard her calling with a voice loud as thunder:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Dere di velen Einion,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Cyrn Cyveiliorn—braith y Ỻyn,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>A’r voel Dodin,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Codwch, dewch adre.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Come yellow Anvil, stray horns,</p> -<p class="line">Speckled one of the lake,</p> -<p class="line">And of the hornless Dodin,</p> -<p class="line">Arise, come home<a class="noteref" id="xd25e8437src" -href="#xd25e8437" name="xd25e8437src">22</a>.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">And no sooner were these words of power uttered than -the original lake cow and all her progeny, to the third and fourth -generations, were in full flight towards the heights of Ỻyn -Barfog, as if pursued by the evil one. Self-interest quickly roused the -farmer, who followed in pursuit, till breathless and panting he gained -an eminence overlooking the lake, but with no better success than to -behold the green attired dame leisurely descending mid-lake, -accompanied by the fugitive cows and their calves formed in a circle -around her, they tossing their tails, she waving her hands in scorn as -much as to say, “You may catch us, my friend, if you can,” -as they disappeared beneath the dark waters of the lake, leaving only -the yellow water-lily to mark the spot where they <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb146" href="#pb146" name= -"pb146">146</a>]</span>vanished, and to perpetuate the memory of this -strange event. Meanwhile the farmer looked with rueful countenance upon -the spot where the Elfin herd disappeared, and had ample leisure to -deplore the effects of his greediness, as with them also departed the -prosperity which had hitherto attended him, and he became impoverished -to a degree below his original circumstances; and, in his altered -circumstances, few felt pity for one who in the noontide flow of -prosperity had shown himself so far forgetful of favours received, as -to purpose slaying his benefactor.’</p> -<p>Mr. Pughe did a very good thing in saving this legend from oblivion, -but it would be very interesting to know how much of it is still -current among the inhabitants of the retired district around Ỻyn -Barfog, and how the story would look when stripped of the florid -language in which Mr. Pughe thought proper to clothe it. Lastly, let me -add a reference to the <i>Iolo Manuscripts</i>, pp. 85, 475, where a -short story is given concerning a certain Milkwhite Sweet-milk Cow -(<i lang="cy">y Fuwch Laethwen Lefrith</i>) whose milk was so abundant -and possessed of such virtues as almost to rival the Holy Grail. Like -the Holy Grail also this cow wandered everywhere spreading plenty, -until she chanced to come to the Vale of Towy, where the foolish -inhabitants wished to kill and eat her: the result was that she -vanished in their hands and has never since been heard of.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch2.8" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e447">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">VIII.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">Here I wish to add some further stories connected with -Merionethshire which have come under my notice lately. I give them -chiefly on the authority of Mr. Owen M. Edwards of Lincoln College, who -is a native of Ỻanuwchỻyn, and still spends a considerable -part of his <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb147" href="#pb147" name= -"pb147">147</a>]</span>time there; and partly on that of Hywel’s -essay on the folklore of the county, which was awarded the prize at the -National Eisteđfod of 1898<a class="noteref" id="xd25e8484src" -href="#xd25e8484" name="xd25e8484src">23</a>. A story current at -Ỻanuwchỻyn, concerning a midwife who attends on a fairy -mother, resembles the others of the same group: for one of them see p. -63 above. In the former, however, one misses the ointment, and finds -instead of it that the midwife was not to touch her eyes with the water -with which she washed the fairy baby. But as might be expected one of -her eyes happened to itch, and she touched it with her fingers straight -from the water. It appears that thenceforth she was able to see the -fairies with that eye; at any rate she is represented some time -afterwards recognizing the father of the fairy baby at a fair at Bala, -and inquiring of him kindly about his family. The fairy asked with -which eye she saw him, and when he had ascertained this, he at once -blinded it, so that she never could see with it afterwards. Hywel also -has it that the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> formerly used to frequent -the markets at Bala, and that they used to swell the noise in the -market-place without anybody being able to see them: this was a sign -that prices were going to rise.</p> -<p>The shepherds of Ardudwy are familiar, according to Hywel, with a -variant of the story in which a man married a fairy on condition that -he did not touch her with iron. They lived on the Moelfre and dwelt -happily together for years, until one fine summer day, when the husband -was engaged in shearing his sheep, he put the <i lang= -"cy">gweỻe</i>, ‘shears,’ in his wife’s hand: -she then instantly disappeared. The earlier portions of this story are -unknown to me, but they are not hard to guess. <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb148" href="#pb148" name="pb148">148</a>]</span></p> -<p>Concerning Ỻyn Irđyn, between the western slopes of the -Ỻawỻech, Hywel has a story the like of which I am not -acquainted with: walking near that lake you shun the shore and keep to -the grass in order to avoid the fairies, for if you take hold of the -grass no fairy can touch you, or dare under any circumstances injure a -blade of grass.</p> -<p>Lastly, Hywel speaks of several caves containing treasure, as for -instance a <i lang="cy">telyn aur</i>, or golden harp, hidden away in a -cave beneath Casteỻ Carn Dochan in the parish of -Ỻanuwchỻyn. Lewis Morris, in his <i>Celtic Remains</i>, p. -100, calls it Casteỻ Corndochen, and describes it as seated on -the top of a steep rock at the bottom of a deep valley: it appears to -have consisted of a wall surrounding three turrets, and the mortar -seems composed of cockle-shells: see also the <i lang= -"la">Archæologia Cambrensis</i> for 1850, p. 204. Hywel speaks -also of a cave beneath Casteỻ Dinas Brân, near -Ỻangoỻen, as containing much treasure, which will only be -disclosed to a boy followed by a white dog with <i lang= -"cy">ỻygaid arian</i>, ‘silver eyes,’ explained to -mean light eyes: every such dog is said to see the wind. So runs this -story, but it requires more exegesis than I can supply. One may compare -it at a distance with Myrđin’s arrangement that the treasure -buried by him at Dinas Emrys should only be found by a youth with -yellow hair and blue eyes, and with the belief that the cave treasures -of the Snowdon district belong to the <i lang="cy">Gwyđyl</i> or -Goidels, and that Goidels will eventually find them: see chapter -viii.</p> -<p>The next three stories are from Mr. Owen Edwards’ <i lang= -"cy">Cymru</i> for 1897, pp. 188–9, where he has published them -from a collection made for a literary competition or local -Eisteđfod by his friend J. H. Roberts, who died in early manhood. -The first is a blurred version of the story of the Lake Lady and her -dowry of cattle, but <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb149" href="#pb149" -name="pb149">149</a>]</span>enough of the story remains to show that, -had we got it in its original form, it would be found to differ -somewhat on several points from all the other versions extant. I -summarize the Welsh as follows:—In ages gone by, as the shepherd -of Hafod y Garreg was looking after his sheep on the shores of the -Arennig Lake, he came across a young calf, plump, sleek, and strong, in -the rushes. He could not guess whence the beast could have come, as no -cattle were allowed to approach the lake at that time of the year. He -took it home, however, and it was reared until it was a bull, -remarkable for his fine appearance. In time his offspring were the only -cattle on the farm, and never before had there been such beasts at -Hafod y Garreg. They were the wonder and admiration of the whole -country. But one summer afternoon in June, the shepherd saw a little -fat old man playing on a pipe, and then he heard him call the cows by -their names—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Mulican, Molican, Malen, Mair,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Dowch adre’r awrhon ar fy ngair.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Mulican, Molican, Malen and Mair,</p> -<p class="line">Come now home at my word.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">He then beheld the whole herd running to the little -man and going into the lake. Nothing more was heard of them, and it was -everybody’s opinion that they were the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth -Teg’s</i> cattle.</p> -<p>The next is a quasi fairy tale, the outcome of which recalls the -adventure of the farmer of Drws y Coed on his return from -Beđgelert Fair, p. 99 above. It is told of a young harpist who was -making his way across country from his home at Yspyty Ifan to the -neighbourhood of Bala, that while crossing the mountain he happened in -the mist to lose his road and fall into the Gors Fawr, ‘the big -bog.’ There he wallowed for hours, quite unable to extricate -himself in spite of all his efforts. But when he was going to give up -in <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb150" href="#pb150" name= -"pb150">150</a>]</span>despair, he beheld close to him, reaching him -her hand, a little woman who was wondrous fair beyond all his -conception of beauty, and with her help he got out of the Gors. The -damsel gave him a jolly sweet kiss that flashed electricity through his -whole nature: he was at once over head and ears in love. She led him to -the hut of her father and mother: there he had every welcome, and he -spent the night singing and dancing with Olwen, for that was her name. -Now, though the harpist was a mere stripling, he thought of wedding at -once—he was never before in such a heaven of delight. But next -morning he was waked, not by a kiss from Olwen, but by the Plas Drain -shepherd’s dog licking his lips: he found himself sleeping -against the wall of a sheepfold (<i lang="cy">corlan</i>), with his -harp in a clump of rushes at his feet, without any trace to be found of -the family with whom he had spent such a happy night.</p> -<p>The next story recalls Glasynys’ Einion Las, as given at pp. -111–5 above: its peculiarity is the part played by the well -introduced. The scene was a turbary near the river called Afon Mynach, -so named from Cwm Tir Mynach, behind the hills immediately north of -Bala:—Ages ago, as a number of people were cutting turf in a -place which was then moorland, and which is now enclosed ground forming -part of a farm called Nant Hir, one of them happened to wash his face -in a well belonging to the fairies. At dinner-time in the middle of the -day they sat down in a circle, while the youth who had washed his face -went to fetch the food, but suddenly both he and the box of food were -lost. They knew not what to do, they suspected that it was the doing of -the fairies; but the wise man (<i lang="cy">gwr hyspys</i>) came to the -neighbourhood and told them, that, if they would only go to the spot on -the night of full moon in June, they would <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb151" href="#pb151" name= -"pb151">151</a>]</span>behold him dancing with the fairies. They did as -they were told, and found the moor covered with thousands of little -agile creatures who sang and danced with all their might, and they saw -the missing man among them. They rushed at him, and with a great deal -of trouble they got him out. But oftentimes was Einion missed again, -until at the time of full moon in another June he returned home with a -wondrously fair wife, whose history or pedigree no one knew. Everybody -believed her to be one of the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i>.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch2.9" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e457">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">IX.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">There is a kind of fairy tale of which I think I have -hitherto not given the reader a specimen: a good instance is given in -the third volume of the <i lang="cy">Brython</i>, at p. 459, by a -contributor who calls himself Idnerth ab Gwgan, who, I learn from the -Rev. Chancellor Silvan Evans, the editor, was no other than the Rev. -Benjamin Williams, best known to Welsh antiquaries by his bardic name -of Gwynionyđ. The preface to the tale is also interesting, so I am -tempted to render the whole into English, as follows:—</p> -<p>‘The fair family were wonderful creatures in the imaginary -world: they encamped, they walked, and they capered a great deal in -former ages in our country, according to what we learn from some of our -old people. It may be supposed that they were very little folks like -the children of <i lang="cy">Rhys Đwfn</i>; for the old people -used to imagine that they were wont to visit their hearths in great -numbers in ages gone by. The girls at the farm houses used to make the -hearths clean after supper, and to place a cauldron full of water near -the fire; and so they thought that the fair family came there to play -at night, bringing sweethearts for the young women, and <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb152" href="#pb152" name= -"pb152">152</a>]</span>leaving pieces of money on the hob for them in -the morning. Sometimes they might be seen as splendid hosts exercising -themselves on our hills. They were very fond of the mountains of Dyfed; -travellers between Lampeter and Cardigan used to see them on the hill -of Ỻanwenog, but by the time they had reached there the fairies -would be far away on the hills of Ỻandyssul, and when one had -reached the place where one expected to see the family together in tidy -array, they would be seen very busily engaged on the tops of Crug y -Balog; when one went there they would be on Blaen Pant ar Fi, moving on -and on to Bryn Bwa, and, finally, to some place or other in the lower -part of Dyfed. Like the soldiers of our earthly world, they were -possessed of terribly fascinating music; and in the autumnal season -they had their rings, still named from them, in which they sang and -danced. The young man of Ỻech y Derwyđ<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8575src" href="#xd25e8575" name="xd25e8575src">24</a> was his -father’s only son, as well as heir to the farm; so he was very -dear to his father and his mother, indeed he was the light of their -eyes. Now, the head servant and the son were bosom friends: they were -like brothers together, or rather twin brothers. As the son and the -servant were such friends, the farmer’s wife used to get exactly -the same kind of clothes prepared for the servant as for her son. The -two fell in love with two handsome young women of very good reputation -in the neighbourhood. The two couples were soon joined in honest -wedlock, and great was the merry-making on the occasion. The servant -had a suitable place to live in on the farm of Ỻech y -Derwyđ; but about half a year after the son’s marriage, -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb153" href="#pb153" name= -"pb153">153</a>]</span>he and his friend went out for sport, when the -servant withdrew to a wild and retired corner to look for game. He -returned presently for his friend, but when he got there he could not -see him anywhere: he kept looking around for some time for him, -shouting and whistling, but there was no sign of his friend. By-and-by, -he went home to Ỻech y Derwyđ expecting to see him, but no -one knew anything about him. Great was the sorrow of his family through -the night; and next day the anxiety was still greater. They went to see -the place where his friend had seen him last: it was hard to tell -whether his mother or his wife wept the more bitterly; but the father -was a little better, though he also looked as if he were half mad with -grief. The spot was examined, and, to their surprise, they saw a fairy -ring close by, and the servant recollected that he had heard the sound -of very fascinating music somewhere or other about the time in -question. It was at once agreed that the man had been unfortunate -enough to have got into the ring of the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth</i>, and -to have been carried away by them, nobody knew whither. Weeks and -months passed away, and a son was born to the heir of Ỻech y -Derwyđ, but the young father was not there to see his child, which -the old people thought very hard. However, the little one grew up the -very picture of his father, and great was his influence over his -grandfather and grandmother; in fact he was everything to them. He grew -up to be a man, and he married a good-looking girl in that -neighbourhood; but her family did not enjoy the reputation of being -kind-hearted people. The old folks died, and their daughter-in-law -also. One windy afternoon in the month of October, the family of -Ỻech y Derwyđ beheld a tall thin old man, with his beard and -hair white as snow, coming towards the house, and they thought he was -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb154" href="#pb154" name= -"pb154">154</a>]</span>a Jew. The servant maids stared at him, and -their mistress laughed at the “old Jew,” at the same time -that she lifted the children up one after another to see him. He came -to the door and entered boldly enough, asking about his parents. The -mistress answered him in an unusually surly and contemptuous tone, -wondering why the “drunken old Jew had come there,” because -it was thought he had been drinking, and that he would otherwise not -have spoken so. The old man cast wondering and anxious looks around on -everything in the house, feeling as he did greatly surprised; but it -was the little children about the floor that drew his attention most: -his looks were full of disappointment and sorrow. He related the whole -of his account, saying that he had been out the day before and that he -was now returning. The mistress of the house told him that she had -heard a tale about her husband’s father, that he had been lost -years before her birth while out sporting, whilst her father maintained -that it was not true, but that he had been killed. She became angry, -and quite lost her temper at seeing “the old Jew” not going -away. The old man was roused, saying that he was the owner of the -house, and that he must have his rights. He then went out to see his -possessions, and presently went to the house of the servant, where, to -his surprise, things had greatly changed; after conversing with an aged -man, who sat by the fire, the one began to scrutinize the other more -and more. The aged man by the fire told him what had been the fate of -his old friend, the heir of Ỻech y Derwyđ. They talked -deliberately of the events of their youth, but it all seemed like a -dream; in short, the old man in the corner concluded that his visitor -was his old friend, the heir of Ỻech y Derwyđ, returning -from the land of the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> after spending half a -hundred years there. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb155" href="#pb155" -name="pb155">155</a>]</span>The other old man, with the snow-white -beard, believed in his history, and much did they talk together and -question one another for many hours. The old man by the fire said that -the master of Ỻech y Derwyđ was away from home that day, and -he induced his aged visitor to eat some food, but, to the horror of -all, the eater fell down dead on the spot<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8597src" href="#xd25e8597" name="xd25e8597src">25</a>. There is -no record that an inquest was held over him, but the tale relates that -the cause of it was, that he ate food after having been so long in the -world of the fair family. His old friend insisted on seeing him buried -by the side of his ancestors; but the rudeness of the mistress of -Ỻech y Derwyđ to her father-in-law brought a curse on the -family that clung to it to distant generations, and until the place had -been sold nine times.’</p> -<p>A tale like this is to be found related of Idwal of Nantclwyd, in -<i lang="cy">Cymru Fu</i>, p. 85. I said ‘a tale like -this,’ but, on reconsidering the matter, I should think it is the -very same tale passed through the hands of Glasynys or some one of his -imitators. Another of this kind will be found in the <i lang= -"cy">Brython</i>, ii. 170, and several similar ones also in Wirt -Sikes’ book, pp. 65–90, either given at length, or merely -referred to. There is one kind of variant which deserves special -notice, as making the music to which the sojourner in Faery listens for -scores of years to be that of a bird singing on a tree. A story of the -sort is located by Howells, in his <i>Cambrian Superstitions</i>, pp. -127–8, at Pant Shon Shencin, near Pencader, in Cardiganshire. -This latter kind of story leads easily up to another development, -namely, to substituting for the bird’s warble the song and -felicity of heaven, and for the simple shepherd a pious monk. In -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb156" href="#pb156" name= -"pb156">156</a>]</span>this form it is located at a place called -Ỻwyn y Nef, or ‘Heaven’s Grove,’ near Celynnog -Fawr, in Carnarvonshire. It is given by Glasynys in <i lang="cy">Cymru -Fu</i>, pp. 183–4, where it was copied from the <i lang= -"cy">Brython</i>, iii. 111, in which he had previously published it. -Several versions of it in rhyme came down from the eighteenth century, -and Silvan Evans has brought together twenty-six stanzas in point in -<i>St. David’s College Magazine</i> for 1881, pp. 191–200, -where he has put into a few paragraphs all that is known about the song -of the <i lang="cy">Hen Wr o’r Coed</i>, or the Old Man of the -Wood, in his usually clear and lucid style.</p> -<p>A tale from the other end of the tract of country once occupied by a -sprinkling, perhaps, of Celts among a population of Picts, makes the -man, and not the fairies, supply the music. I owe it to the kindness of -the Rev. Andrew Clark, Fellow of Lincoln College, Oxford, who heard it -from the late sexton of the parish of Dollar, in the county of -Clackmannan. The sexton died some twelve years ago, aged seventy: he -had learnt the tale from his father. The following are Mr. -Clark’s words:—</p> -<p>‘Glendevon is a parish and village in the Ochils in County -Perth, about five miles from Dollar as you come up Glen Queich and down -by Gloomhill. Glen Queich is a narrowish glen between two grassy -hills—at the top of the glen is a round hill of no great height, -but very neat shape, the grass of which is always short and trim, and -the ferns on the shoulder of a very marked green. This, as you come up -the glen, seems entirely to block the way. It is called the -“Maiden Castle.” Only when you come quite close do you see -the path winding round the foot of it. A little further on is a fine -spring bordered with flat stones, in the middle of a neat, turfy spot, -called the “Maiden’s Well.” This road, till the new -toll-road was made on the other side <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb157" href="#pb157" name="pb157">157</a>]</span>of the hills, was the -thoroughfare between Dollar and Glendevon.’</p> -<p>The following is the legend, as told by the -‘Bethrel’:—‘A piper, carrying his pipes, was -coming from Glendevon to Dollar in the grey of the evening. He crossed -the Garchel (a little stream running into the Queich burn), and looked -at the “Maiden Castle,” and saw only the grey hillside and -heard only the wind soughing through the bent. He had got beyond it -when he heard a burst of lively music: he turned round, and instead of -the dark knoll saw a great castle, with lights blazing from the -windows, and heard the noise of dancing issuing from the open door. He -went back incautiously, and a procession issuing forth at that moment, -he was caught and taken into a great hall ablaze with lights, and -people dancing on the floor. He had to pipe to them for a day or two, -but he got anxious, because he knew his people would be wondering why -he did not come back in the morning as he had promised. The fairies -seemed to sympathize with his anxiety, and promised to let him go if he -played a favourite tune of his, which they seemed fond of, to their -satisfaction. He played his very best, the dance went fast and furious, -and at its close he was greeted with loud applause. On his release he -found himself alone, in the grey of the evening, beside the dark -hillock, and no sound was heard save the purr of the burn and the -soughing of the wind through the bent. Instead of completing his -journey to Dollar, he walked hastily back to Glendevon to relieve his -folk’s anxiety. He entered his father’s house and found no -kent face there. On his protesting that he had gone only a day or two -before, and waxing loud in his bewildered talk, a grey old man was -roused from a doze behind the fire; and told how he had heard when a -boy from his father that <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb158" href= -"#pb158" name="pb158">158</a>]</span>a piper had gone away to Dollar on -a quiet evening, and had never been heard or seen since, nor any trace -of him found. He had been in the “castle” for a hundred -years.’</p> -<p>The term <i lang="cy">Plant Rhys Đwfn</i> has already been -brought before the reader: it means ‘the Children of <i lang= -"cy">Rhys Đwfn</i>,’ and <i lang="cy">Rhys Đwfn</i> -means literally Rhys the Deep, but the adjective in Welsh connotes -depth of character in the sense of shrewdness or cunning. Nay, even the -English <i>deep</i> is often borrowed for use in the same sense, as -when one colloquially says <i lang="cy">un dîp iawn yw e</i>, -‘he is a very calculating or cunning fellow.’ The following -account of Rhys and his progeny is given by Gwynionyđ in the first -volume of the <i lang="cy">Brython</i>, p. 130, which deserves being -cited at length:—‘There is a tale current in Dyfed, that -there is, or rather that there has been, a country between Cemmes, the -northern Hundred of Pembrokeshire, and Aberdaron in Ỻeyn. The -chief patriarch of the inhabitants was Rhys Đwfn, and his -descendants used to be called after him the Children of Rhys Đwfn. -They were, it is said, a handsome race enough, but remarkably small in -size. It is stated that certain herbs of a strange nature grew in their -land, so that they were able to keep their country from being seen by -even the most sharp sighted of invaders. There is no account that these -remarkable herbs grew in any other part of the world excepting on a -small spot, about a square yard in area, in a certain part of Cemmes. -If it chanced that a man stood alone on it, he beheld the whole of the -territory of <i lang="cy">Plant Rhys Đwfn</i>; but the moment he -moved he would lose sight of it altogether, and it would have been -utterly vain for him to look for his footprints. In another story, as -will be seen presently, the requisite platform was a turf from St. -David’s churchyard. The Rhysians had not much land—they -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb159" href="#pb159" name= -"pb159">159</a>]</span>lived in towns. So they were wont in former -times to come to market to Cardigan, and to raise the prices of things -terribly. They were seen of no one coming or going, but only seen there -in the market. When prices happened to be high, and the corn all sold, -however much there might have been there in the morning, the poor used -to say to one another on the way home, “Oh! <i>they</i> were -there to-day,” meaning <i lang="cy">Plant Rhys Đwfn</i>. So -they were dear friends in the estimation of Siôn Phil Hywel, the -farmer; but not so high in the opinion of Dafyđ, the labourer. It -is said, however, that they were very honest and resolute men. A -certain Gruffyđ ab Einon was wont to sell them more corn than -anybody else, and so he was a great friend of theirs. He was honoured -by them beyond all his contemporaries by being led on a visit to their -home. As they were great traders like the Phœnicians of old, they -had treasures from all countries under the sun. Gruffyđ, after -feasting his eyes to satiety on their wonders, was led back by them -loaded with presents. But before taking leave of them, he asked them -how they succeeded in keeping themselves safe from invaders, as one of -their number might become unfaithful, and go beyond the virtue of the -herbs that formed their safety. “Oh!” replied the little -old man of shrewd looks, “just as Ireland has been blessed with a -soil on which venomous reptiles cannot live, so with our land: no -traitor can live here. Look at the sand on the sea-shore: perfect unity -prevails there, and so among us. Rhys, the father of our race, bade us, -even to the most distant descendant, honour our parents and ancestors; -love our own wives without looking at those of our neighbours; and do -our best for our children and grandchildren. And he said that if we did -so, no one of us would ever prove unfaithful to another, or -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb160" href="#pb160" name= -"pb160">160</a>]</span>become what you call a traitor. The latter is a -wholly imaginary character among us; strange pictures are drawn of him -with his feet like those of an ass, with a nest of snakes in his bosom, -with a head like the devil’s, with hands somewhat like a -man’s, while one of them holds a large knife, and the family lies -dead around the figure. Good-bye!” When Gruffyđ looked about -him he lost sight of the country of <i lang="cy">Plant Rhys</i>, and -found himself near his home. He became very wealthy after this, and -continued to be a great friend of <i lang="cy">Plant Rhys</i> as long -as he lived. After Gruffyđ’s death they came to market -again, but such was the greed of the farmers, like Gruffyđ before -them, for riches, and so unreasonable were the prices they asked for -their corn, that the Rhysians took offence and came no more to Cardigan -to market. The old people used to think that they now went to Fishguard -market, as very strange people were wont to be seen there.’ On -the other hand, some Fishguard people were lately of opinion that it -was at Haverfordwest the fairies did their marketing: I refer to a -letter of Mr. Ferrar Fenton’s, in the <i>Pembroke County -Guardian</i> of October 31, 1896, in which he mentions a conversation -he had with a Fishguard woman as to the existence of fairies: -‘There are fairies,’ she asserted, ‘for they came to -Ha’rfordwest market to buy things, so there <i>must</i> -be.’</p> -<p>With this should be compared pp. 9–10 of Wirt Sikes’ -<i>British Goblins</i>, where mention is made of sailors on the coast -of Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire, ‘who still talk of the -green meadows of enchantment lying in the Irish Channel to the west of -Pembrokeshire,’ and of men who had landed on them, or seen them -suddenly vanishing. The author then proceeds to abstract from -Howells’ <i>Cambrian Superstitions</i>, p. 119, the following -paragraph:—‘The fairies inhabiting these <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb161" href="#pb161" name= -"pb161">161</a>]</span>islands are said to have regularly attended the -markets at Milford Haven and Laugharne. They made their purchases -without speaking, laid down their money and departed, always leaving -the exact sum required, which they seemed to know without asking the -price of anything. Sometimes they were invisible; but they were often -seen by sharp-eyed persons. There was always one special butcher at -Milford Haven upon whom the fairies bestowed their patronage instead of -distributing their favours indiscriminately. The Milford Haven folk -could see the green Fairy Islands distinctly, lying out a short -distance from land; and the general belief was that they were densely -peopled with fairies. It was also said that the latter went to and fro -between the islands and the shore, through a subterranean gallery under -the bottom of the sea.’</p> -<p>Another tale given in the <i lang="cy">Brython</i>, ii. 20, by a -writer who gives his name as B. Davies<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8698src" href="#xd25e8698" name="xd25e8698src">26</a>, will serve -to show, short though it be, that the term <i lang="cy">Plant Rhys -Đwfn</i> was not confined to those honestly dealing fairies, but -was used in a sense wholly synonymous with that of <i lang="cy">Tylwyth -Teg</i>, as understood in other parts of Wales. The story runs as -follows, and should be compared with the Dyffryn Mymbyr one given -above, pp. 100–3:—‘One calm hot day, when the sun of -heaven was brilliantly shining, and the hay in the dales was being -busily made by lads and lasses, and by grown-up people of both sexes, a -woman in the neighbourhood of Emlyn placed her one-year-old infant in -the <i lang="cy">gader</i>, or chair, as the cradle is called in these -parts, and out she went to the field for a while, intending to return, -when her <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb162" href="#pb162" name= -"pb162">162</a>]</span>neighbour, an old woman overtaken by the -decrepitude of eighty summers, should call to her that her darling was -crying. It was not long before she heard the old woman calling to her; -she ran hurriedly, and as soon as she set foot on the kitchen floor she -took her little one in her arms as usual, saying to him, “O my -little one! thy mother’s delight art thou! I would not take the -world for thee, &c.” But to her surprise he had a very old -look about him, and the more the tender-hearted mother gazed at his -face, the stranger it seemed to her, so that at last she placed him in -the cradle and told her trouble and sorrow to her relatives and -acquaintances. And after this one and the other had given his opinion, -it was agreed at last that it was one of <i lang="cy">Rhys -Đwfn’s</i> children that was in the cradle, and not her -dearly loved baby. In this distress there was nothing to do but to -fetch a sorcerer, as fast as the fastest horse could gallop. He said, -when he saw the child, that he had seen his like before, and that it -would be a hard job to get rid of him, though not such a very hard job -this time. The shovel was made red hot in the fire by one of the -Cefnarth<a class="noteref" id="xd25e8716src" href="#xd25e8716" name= -"xd25e8716src">27</a> boys, and held before the child’s face; and -in an instant the short little old man took to his heels, and neither -he nor his like was seen afterwards from Aber Cuch to Aber Bargoed at -any rate. The mother, it is said, found her darling unscathed the next -moment. I remember also hearing that the strange child was as old as -the grandfather of the one that had been lost.’</p> -<p>As I see no reason to make any profound distinction between lake -maidens and sea maidens, I now give Gwynionyđ’s account of -the mermaid who was found <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb163" href= -"#pb163" name="pb163">163</a>]</span>by a fisherman from -Ỻandydoch or St. Dogmael’s<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8723src" href="#xd25e8723" name="xd25e8723src">28</a>, near -Cardigan: see the <i lang="cy">Brython</i>, i. 82:—</p> -<p>‘One fine afternoon in September, in the beginning of the last -century, a fisherman, whose name was Pergrin<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8861src" href="#xd25e8861" name="xd25e8861src">29</a>, went to a -recess in the rock near Pen Cemmes, where he found a sea maiden doing -her hair, and he took the water lady prisoner to his -boat …. We know not what language is used by sea maidens -… but this one, this time at any rate, talked, it is said, very -good Welsh; for when she was in despair in Pergrin’s custody, -weeping copiously, and with her tresses all dishevelled, she called -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb164" href="#pb164" name= -"pb164">164</a>]</span>out: ‘Pergrin, if thou wilt let me go, I -will give thee three shouts in the time of thy greatest need.’ -So, in wonder and fear, he let her go to walk the streets of the deep, -and visit her sweethearts there. Days and weeks passed without Pergrin -seeing her after this; but one hot afternoon, when the sea was pretty -calm, and the fishermen had no thought of danger, behold his old -acquaintance showing her head and locks, and shouting out in a loud -voice: ‘Pergrin! Pergrin! Pergrin! take up thy nets, take up thy -nets, take up thy nets!’ Pergrin and his companion instantly -obeyed the message, and drew their nets in with great haste. In they -went, past the bar, and by the time they had reached the Pwll Cam the -most terrible storm had overspread the sea, while he and his companion -were safe on land. Twice nine others had gone out with them, but they -were all drowned without having the chance of obeying the warning of -the water lady.’ Perhaps it is not quite irrelevant to mention -here the armorial bearings which Drayton ascribes to the neighbouring -county of Cardigan in the following couplet in his <i>Battaile of -Agincourt</i> (London, 1631), p. 23:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">As Cardigan the next to them that went,</p> -<p class="line">Came with a Mermayd sitting on a Rock.</p> -</div> -<p class="first">A writer in the <i lang="cy">Brython</i>, iv. 194, -states that the people of Nefyn in Ỻeyn claim the story of the -fisher and the mermaid as belonging to them, which proves that a -similar legend has been current there: add to this the fact mentioned -in the <i lang="cy">Brython</i>, iii. 133, that a red mermaid with -yellow hair, on a white field, figures in the coat of arms of the -family resident at Glasfryn in the parish of Ỻangybi, in -Eifionyđ or the southern portion of Carnarvonshire; and we have -already suggested that Glasynys’ story (pp. 117–25) was -made <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb165" href="#pb165" name= -"pb165">165</a>]</span>up, to a certain extent, of materials found on -the coasts of Carnarvonshire. A small batch of stories about South -Wales mermaids is given by a writer who calls himself Ab Nadol<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e8890src" href="#xd25e8890" name= -"xd25e8890src">30</a>, in the <i lang="cy">Brython</i>, iv. 310, as -follows:—</p> -<p>‘A few rockmen are said to have been working, about eighty -years ago, in a quarry near Porth y Rhaw, when the day was calm and -clear, with nature, as it were, feasting, the flowers shedding sweet -scent around, and the hot sunshine beaming into the jagged rocks. -Though an occasional wave rose to strike the romantic cliffs, the sea -was like a placid lake, with its light coverlet of blue attractive -enough to entice one of the ladies of <i lang="cy">Rhys Đwfn</i> -forth from the town seen by Daniel Huws off Trefin as he was journeying -between Fishguard and St. David’s in the year 1858, to make her -way to the top of a stone and to sit on it to disentangle her flowing -silvery hair. Whilst she was cleaning herself, the rockmen went down, -and when they got near her they perceived that, from her waist upwards, -she was like the lasses of Wales, but that, from her waist downwards, -she had the body of a fish. And, when they began to talk to her, they -found she spoke Welsh, though she only uttered the following few words -to them: “Reaping in Pembrokeshire and weeding in -Carmarthenshire.” Off she then went to walk in the depth of the -sea towards her home. Another tale is repeated about a mermaid, said to -have been caught by men below the land of Ỻanwnda, near the spot, -if not on the spot, where the French made their landing afterwards, and -three miles to the west of Fishguard. It then goes on to say that they -carried her to their home, and kept her in a secure place for -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb166" href="#pb166" name= -"pb166">166</a>]</span>some time; before long, she begged to be allowed -to return to the brine land, and gave the people of the house three -bits of advice; but I only remember one of them,’ he writes, -‘and this is it: “Skim the surface of the pottage before -adding sweet milk to it: it will be whiter and sweeter, and less of it -will do.” I was told that this family follow the three advices to -this day.’ A somewhat similar advice to that about the pottage is -said to have been given by a mermaid, under similar circumstances, to a -Manxman.</p> -<p>After putting the foregoing bits together, I was favoured by Mr. -Benjamin Williams with notes on the tales and on the persons from whom -he heard them: they form the contents of two or three letters, mostly -answers to queries of mine, and the following is the substance of -them:—Mr. Williams is a native of the valley of Troed yr -Aur<a class="noteref" id="xd25e8905src" href="#xd25e8905" name= -"xd25e8905src">31</a>, in the Cardiganshire parish of that name. He -spent a part of his youth at Verwig, in the angle between the northern -bank of the Teifi and Cardigan Bay. He heard of Rhys Đwfn’s -Children first from a distant relative of his father’s, a -Catherine Thomas, who came to visit her daughter, who lived not far -from his father’s house: that would now be from forty-eight to -fifty years ago. He was very young at the time, and of Rhys -Đwfn’s progeny he formed a wonderful idea, which was partly -due also to the talk of one James Davies or Siàms Mocyn, who was -very well up in folklore, and was one of his father’s next-door -neighbours. He was an old man, and nephew to the musician, David -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb167" href="#pb167" name= -"pb167">167</a>]</span>Jenkin Morgan. The only spot near Mr. -Williams’ home, that used to be frequented by the fairies, was -Cefn y Ceirw, ‘the Stag’s Ridge,’ a large farm, so -called from having been kept as a park for their deer by the Lewises of -Aber Nant Bychan. He adds that the late Mr. Philipps, of Aberglasney, -was very fond of talking of things in his native neighbourhood, and of -mentioning the fairies at Cefn y Ceirw. It was after moving to Verwig -that Mr. Williams began to put the tales he heard on paper: then he -came in contact with three brothers, whose names were John, Owen, and -Thomas Evans. They were well-to-do and respectable bachelors, living -together on the large farm of Hafod Ruffyđ. Thomas was a man of -very strong common sense, and worth consulting on any subject: he was a -good arithmetician, and a constant reader of the Baptist periodical, -<i lang="cy">Seren Gomer</i>, from its first appearance. He thoroughly -understood the bardic metres, and had a fair knowledge of music. He was -well versed in Scripture, and filled the office of deacon at the -Baptist Chapel. His death took place in the year 1864. Now, the eldest -of the three brothers, the one named John, or Siôn, was then -about seventy-five years of age, and he thoroughly believed in the -tales about the fairies, as will be seen from the following short -dialogue:—</p> -<p>Siôn: <i lang="cy">Williams bach, ma’n rhaid i bod -nhw’i gâl: yr w i’n cofio yn amser Bone fod marchnad -Aberteifi yn ỻawn o lafir yn y bore—digon yno am -fis—ond cin pen hanner awr yr ôđ y cwbwl wedi darfod. -Nid ôđ possib i gweld nhwi: mâ gida nhwi faint a -fynnon nhwi o arian.</i></p> -<p>Williams: <i lang="cy">Siwt na fyse dynion yn i gweld nhwi ynte, -Siôn?</i></p> -<p>Siôn: <i lang="cy">O mâ gida nhwi đynion fel ninne -yn pryni <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb168" href="#pb168" name= -"pb168">168</a>]</span>drostyn nhwi; ag y mâ nhwi fel yr hen -siówmin yna yn geỻi gneid pob tric.</i></p> -<p><i>John</i>: ‘My dear Williams, it must be that they exist: I -remember Cardigan market, in the time of Bonaparte, full of corn in the -morning—enough for a month—but in less than half an hour it -was all gone. It was impossible to see them: they have as much money as -they like.’</p> -<p><i>Williams</i>: ‘How is it, then, that men did not see them, -John?’</p> -<p><i>John</i>: ‘Oh, they have men like us to do the buying for -them; and they can, like those old showmen, do every kind of -trick.’</p> -<p>At this kind of display of simplicity on the part of his brother, -Thomas used to smile and say: ‘My brother John believes such -things as those;’ for he had no belief in them himself. Still it -is from his mouth that Mr. Williams published the tales in the <i lang= -"cy">Brython</i>, which have been reproduced here, that of -‘Pergrin and the Mermaid,’ and all about the ‘Heir of -Ỻech y Derwyđ,’ not to mention the ethical element in -the account of Rhys Đwfn’s country and its people, the -product probably of his mind. Thomas Evans, or as he was really called, -Tommos Ifan, was given rather to grappling with the question of the -origin of such beliefs; so one day he called Mr. Williams out, and led -him to a spot about four hundred yards from Bol y Fron, where the -latter then lived: he pointed to the setting sun, and asked Mr. -Williams what he thought of the glorious sunset before them. ‘It -is all produced,’ he then observed, ‘by the reflection of -the sun’s rays on the mist: one might think,’ he went on to -say, ‘that there was there a paradise of a country full of -fields, forests, and everything that is desirable.’ And before -they had moved away the grand scene had disappeared, when <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb169" href="#pb169" name= -"pb169">169</a>]</span>Thomas suggested that the idea of the existence -of the country of Rhys Đwfn’s Children arose from the -contemplation of that phenomenon. One may say that Thomas Evans was -probably far ahead of the Welsh historians who try to extract history -from the story of <i lang="cy">Cantre’r Gwaelod</i>, ‘the -Bottom Hundred,’ beneath the waves of Cardigan Bay; but what was -seen was probably an instance of the mirage to be mentioned presently. -Lastly, besides Mr. Williams’ contributions to the <i lang= -"cy">Brython</i>, and a small volume of poetry, entitled <i lang= -"cy">Briaỻen glan Ceri</i>, some tales of his were published by -Ỻaỻawg in <i>Bygones</i> some years ago, and he had the -prize at the Cardigan Eisteđfod of 1866 for the best collection in -Welsh of the folklore of Dyfed: his recollection was that it contained -in all thirty-six tales of all kinds; but since the manuscript, as the -property of the Committee of that Eisteđfod, was sold, he could -not now consult it: in fact he is not certain as to who the owner of it -may now be, though he has an idea that it is either the Rev. Rees -Williams, vicar of Whitchurch, near Solva, Pembrokeshire, or R. D. -Jenkins, Esq., of Cilbronnau, Cardiganshire. Whoever the owner may be, -he would probably be only too glad to have it published, and I mention -this merely to call attention to it. The Eisteđfod is to be -commended for encouraging local research, and sometimes even for -burying the results in obscurity, but not always.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch2.10" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e467">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">X.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">Before leaving Dyfed I wish to revert to the extract -from Mr. Sikes, p. 161 above. He had been helped partly by the article -on Gavran, in the <i>Cambrian Biography</i>, by William Owen, better -known since as William Owen Pughe and Dr. Pughe, and partly by a note -of Southey’s <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb170" href="#pb170" -name="pb170">170</a>]</span>on the following words in his <i lang= -"cy">Madoc</i> (London, 1815), i. III:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">Where are the sons of Gavran? where his tribe,</p> -<p class="line">The faithful? following their beloved Chief,</p> -<p class="line">They the Green Islands of the Ocean sought;</p> -<p class="line">Nor human tongue hath told, nor human ear,</p> -<p class="line">Since from the silver shores they went their way,</p> -<p class="line">Hath heard their fortunes.</p> -</div> -<p class="first">The Gavran story, I may premise, is based on one of -the Welsh Triads—i. 34, ii. 41, iii. 80—and Southey cites -the article in the <i>Cambrian Biography</i>; but he goes on to give -the following statements without indicating on what sources he was -drawing—the reader has, however, been made acquainted already -with the virtue of a blade of grass, by the brief mention of Ỻyn -Irđyn above, p. 148:—</p> -<p>‘Of these Islands, or Green Spots of the Floods, there are -some singular superstitions. They are the abode of the <i lang= -"cy">Tylwyth Teg</i>, or the fair family, the souls of the virtuous -Druids, who, not having been Christians, cannot enter the Christian -heaven, but enjoy this heaven of their own. They however discover a -love of mischief, neither becoming happy spirits, nor consistent with -their original character; for they love to visit the earth, and, -seizing a man, inquire whether he will travel above wind, mid wind, or -below wind; above wind is a giddy and terrible passage, below wind is -through bush and brake, the middle is a safe course. But the spell of -security is, to catch hold of the grass, for these Beings have not -power to destroy a blade of grass. In their better moods they come over -and carry the Welsh in their boats. He who visits these Islands -imagines on his return that he has been absent only a few hours, when, -in truth, whole centuries have passed away. If you take a turf from St. -David’s churchyard, and stand upon it on the sea shore, you -behold these Islands. A <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb171" href= -"#pb171" name="pb171">171</a>]</span>man once, who thus obtained sight -of them, immediately put to sea to find them; but they disappeared, and -his search was in vain. He returned, looked at them again from the -enchanted turf, again set sail, and failed again. The third time he -took the turf into his vessel, and stood upon it till he reached -them.’</p> -<p>A correspondent signing himself ‘the Antient Mariner,’ -and writing, in the <i>Pembroke County Guardian</i>, from Newport, -Pembrokeshire, Oct. 26, 1896, cites Southey’s notes, and adds to -them the statement, that some fifty years ago there was a tradition -amongst the inhabitants of Trevine (Trefin) in his county, that these -Islands could be seen from Ỻan Non, or Eglwys Non, in that -neighbourhood. To return to <i lang="cy">Madoc</i>, Southey adds to the -note already quoted a reference to the inhabitants of Arran More, on -the coast of Galway, to the effect that they think that they can on a -clear day see Hy-Breasail, the Enchanted Island supposed to be the -Paradise of the Pagan Irish: compare the Phantom City seen in the same -sea from the coast of Clare. Then he asks a question suggestive of the -explanation, that all this is due to ‘that very extraordinary -phenomenon, known in Sicily by the name of Morgaine le Fay’s -works.’ In connexion with this question of mirage I venture to -quote again from the <i>Pembroke County Guardian</i>. Mr. Ferrar -Fenton, already mentioned, writes in the issue of Nov. 1, 1896, giving -a report which he had received one summer morning from Captain John -Evans, since deceased. It is to the effect ‘that once when -trending up the Channel, and passing Grasholm Island, in what he had -always known as deep water, he was surprised to see to windward of him -a large tract of land covered with a beautiful green meadow. It was -not, however, <i>above water</i>, but just a few feet <i>below</i>, say -two or three, so that the grass waved and swam about <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb172" href="#pb172" name="pb172">172</a>]</span>as -the ripple flowed over it, in a most delightful way to the eye, so that -as watched it made one feel quite drowsy. You know, he continued, I -have heard old people say there is a floating island off there, that -sometimes rises to the surface, or nearly, and then sinks down again -fathoms deep, so that no one sees it for years, and when nobody expects -it comes up again for a while. How it may be, I do not know, but that -is what they say.’</p> -<p>Lastly, Mr. E. Perkins, of Penysgwarne, near Fishguard, wrote on -Nov. 2, 1896, as follows, of a changing view to be had from the top of -the Garn, which means the <i lang="cy">Garn Fawr</i>, one of the most -interesting prehistoric sites in the county, and one I have had the -pleasure of visiting more than once in the company of Henry Owen and -Edward Laws, the historians of Pembrokeshire:—</p> -<p>‘May not the fairy islands referred to by Professor Rhys have -originated from mirages? During the glorious weather we enjoyed last -summer, I went up one particularly fine evening to the top of the Garn -behind Penysgwarne to view the sunset. It would have been worth a -thousand miles’ travel to go to see such a scene as I saw that -evening. It was about half an hour before sunset—the bay was calm -and smooth as the finest mirror. The rays of the sun made</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">A golden path across the sea,</p> -</div> -<p class="first">and a picture indescribable. As the sun neared the -horizon the rays broadened until the sheen resembled a gigantic golden -plate prepared to hold the brighter sun. No sooner had the sun set than -I saw a striking mirage. To the right I saw a stretch of country -similar to a landscape in this country. A farmhouse and out-buildings -were seen, I will not say quite as distinct as I can see the upper part -of St. David’s parish from this Garn, but much more detailed. We -could see fences, <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb173" href="#pb173" -name="pb173">173</a>]</span>roads, and gateways leading to the -farmyard, but in the haze it looked more like a panoramic view than a -veritable landscape. Similar mirages may possibly have caused our old -<i lang="cy">tadau</i> to think these were the abode of the -fairies.’</p> -<p>To return to Mr. Sikes, the rest of his account of the Pembrokeshire -fairies and their green islands, of their Milford butcher, and of the -subterranean gallery leading into their home, comes, as already -indicated, for the most part from Howells. But it does not appear on -what authority Southey himself made departed druids of the fairies. One -would be glad to be reassured on this last point, as such a hypothesis -would fit in well enough with what we are told of the sacrosanct -character of the inhabitants of the isles on the coast of Britain in -ancient times. Take, for instance, the brief account given by Plutarch -of one of the isles explored by a certain Demetrius in the service of -the Emperor of Rome: see chapter viii.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch2.11" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e477">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">XI.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">Mr. Craigfryn Hughes, the author of a Welsh -novelette<a class="noteref" id="xd25e9060src" href="#xd25e9060" name= -"xd25e9060src">32</a> with its scene laid in Glamorgan, having induced -me to take a copy, I read it and found it full of local colouring. Then -I ventured to sound the author on the question of fairy tales, and the -reader will be able to judge how hearty the response has been. Before -reproducing the tale which Mr. Hughes has sent me, I will briefly put -into English his account of himself and his authorities. Mr. Hughes -lives at the Quakers’ Yard in the neighbourhood of -Pontypriđ, in Glamorganshire. His father was not a -believer<a class="noteref" id="xd25e9065src" href="#xd25e9065" name= -"xd25e9065src">33</a> in <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb174" href= -"#pb174" name="pb174">174</a>]</span>tales about fairies or the like, -and he learned all he knows of the traditions about them in his -father’s absence, from his grandmother and other old people. The -old lady’s name was Rachel Hughes. She was born at Pandy Pont y -Cymmer, near Pontypool, or <i lang="cy">Pont ap Hywel</i> as Mr. Hughes -analyses the name, in the year 1773, and she had a vivid recollection -of Edmund Jones of the Tranch, of whom more anon, coming from time to -time to preach to the Independents there. She came, however, to live in -the parish of Ỻanfabon, near the Quakers’ Yard, when she -was only twelve years of age; and there she continued to live to the -day of her death, which took place in 1864, so that she was about -ninety-one years of age at the time. Mr. Hughes adds that he remembers -many of the old inhabitants besides his grandmother, who were perfectly -familiar with the story he has put on record; but only two of them were -alive when he wrote to me in 1881, and these were both over ninety -years old, with their minds overtaken by the childishness of age; but -it was only a short time since the death of another, who was, as he -says, a walking library of tales about corpse candles, ghosts, and -<i lang="cy">Bendith y Mamau</i><a class="noteref" id="xd25e9077src" -href="#xd25e9077" name="xd25e9077src">34</a>, or ‘The -Mothers’ Blessing,’ as the fairies are usually called in -Glamorgan. Mr. Hughes’ father tried to prevent his children being -taught any tales about ghosts, corpse <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb175" href="#pb175" name="pb175">175</a>]</span>candles, or fairies; -but the grandmother found opportunities of telling them plenty, and Mr. -Hughes vividly describes the effect on his mind when he was a boy, how -frightened he used to feel, how he pulled the clothes over his head in -bed, and how he half suffocated himself thereby under the effects of -the fear with which the tales used to fill him. Then, as to the -locality, he makes the following remarks:—‘There are few -people who have not heard something or other about the old graveyard of -the Quakers, which was made by Lydia Phil, a lady who lived at a -neighbouring farm house, called Cefn y Fforest. This old graveyard lies -in the eastern corner of the parish of Merthyr Tydfil, on land called -Pantannas, as to the meaning of which there is much controversy. Some -will have it that it is properly Pant yr Aros, or the Hollow of the -Staying, because travellers were sometimes stopped there overnight by -the swelling of the neighbouring river; others treat it as Pant yr -Hanes, the Hollow of the Legend, in allusion to the following story. -But before the graveyard was made, the spot was called Rhyd y Grug, or -the Ford of the Heather, which grows thereabouts in abundance. In front -of the old graveyard towards the south the rivers Taff and Bargoed, -which some would make into Byrgoed or Short-Wood, meet with each other, -and thence rush in one over terrible cliffs of rock, in the recesses of -which lie huge <i lang="cy">cerwyni</i> or cauldron-like pools, called -respectively the Gerwyn Fach, the Gerwyn Fawr, and the Gerwyn Ganol, -where many a drowning has taken place. As one walks up over Tarren y -Crynwyr, “the Quakers’ Rift,” until Pantannas is -reached, and proceeds northwards for about a mile and a half, one -arrives at a farm house called Pen Craig Daf<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e9095src" href="#xd25e9095" name="xd25e9095src">35</a>, “the -Top of the <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb176" href="#pb176" name= -"pb176">176</a>]</span>Taff Rock.” The path between the two -houses leads through fertile fields, in which may be seen, if one has -eyes to observe, small rings which are greener than the rest of the -ground. They are, in fact, green even as compared with the greenness -around them—these are the rings in which <i lang="cy">Bendith y -Mamau</i> used to meet to sing and dance all night. If a man happened -to get inside one of these circles when the fairies were there, he -could not be got out in a hurry, as they would charm him and lead him -into some of their caves, where they would keep him for ages, unawares -to him, listening to their music. The rings vary greatly in size, but -in point of form they are all round or oval. I have heard my -grandmother,’ says Mr. Hughes, ‘reciting and singing -several of the songs which the fairies sang in these rings. One of them -began thus:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Canu, canu, drwy y nos,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Dawnsio, dawnsio, ar Waen y Rhos</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Y’ ngoleuni’r ỻeuad dlos:</i></p> -<p class="line xd25e9153"><i>Hapus ydym ni!</i></p> -</div> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Pawb ohonom syđ yn ỻon</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Heb un gofid dan ei fron:</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Canu, dawnsio, ar y ton<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e9169src" href="#xd25e9169" name= -"xd25e9169src">36</a></i>—</p> -<p class="line xd25e9153"><i>Dedwyđ ydym ni!</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Singing, singing, through the night,</p> -<p class="line">Dancing, dancing with our might,</p> -<p class="line">Where the moon the moor doth light,</p> -<p class="line xd25e9153">Happy ever we!</p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">One and all of merry mien,</p> -<p class="line">Without sorrow are we seen,</p> -<p class="line">Singing, dancing on the green,</p> -<p class="line xd25e9153">Gladsome ever we!</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">Here follows, in Mr. Hughes’ own Welsh, a -remarkable story of revenge exacted by the fairies:—</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Yn un o’r canrifoeđ a aethant heibio, -preswyliai amaethwr yn nhyđyn Pantannas, a’r amser hwnnw yr -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb177" href="#pb177" name= -"pb177">177</a>]</span>oeđ bendith y mamau yn ymwelwyr aml ag -amryw gaeau perthynol iđo ef, a theimlai yntau gryn gasineb yn ei -fynwes at yr ‘atras fwstrog, leisiog, a chynỻwynig,’ -fel y galwai hwynt, a mynych yr hiraethai am aỻu dyfod o hyd i -ryw lwybr er cael eu gwared ođiyno. O’r diweđ hysbyswyd -ef gan hen reibwraig, fod y fforđ i gael eu gwared yn đigon -hawđ, ac ond iđo ef rođi godro un hwyr a boreu iđi -hi, yr hysbysai y fforđ iđo gyrraeđ yr hyn a fawr -đymunai. Bođlonođ i’w thelerau a derbyniođ -yntau y cyfarwyđyd, yr hyn ydoeđ fel y canlyn:—Ei fod i -aredig yr hoỻ gaeau i ba rai yr oeđ eu hoff ymgyrchfan, ac -ond iđynt hwy unwaith goỻi y ton glas, y digient, ac na -đeuent byth mwy i’w boeni drwy eu hymweliadau a’r -ỻe.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Dilynođ yr amaethwr ei chyfarwyđyd i’r -ỻythyren, a choronwyd ei waith a ỻwyđiant. Nid -oeđ yr un o honynt i’w weled ođeutu y caeau yn awr; ac -yn ỻe sain eu caniadau soniarus, a glywid bob amser yn dyrchu o -Waen y Rhos, nid oeđ dim ond y distawrwyđ trylwyraf yn -teyrnasu o gylch eu hen a’u hoff ymgyrchfan.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Hauođ yr amaethwr wenith, &c., yn y caeau, ac -yr oeđ y gwanwyn gwyrđlas wedi gwthio y gauaf ođiar ei -seđ, ac ymđangosai y maesyđ yn arđerchog yn eu -ỻifrai gwyrđleision a gwanwynol.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Ond un prydnawn, ar ol i’r haul ymgilio i yst -feỻoeđ y gorỻewin, tra yr oeđ amaethwr Pantannas -yn dychwelyd tua ei gartref cyfarfyđwyd ag ef gan fod bychan ar -ffurf dyn, yn gwisgo hugan goch; a phan đaeth gyferbyn ag ef -dadweiniođ ei gleđ bychan, gan gyfeirio ei flaen at yr -amaethwr, a dywedyd,</i></p> -<div lang="cy" class="lgouter"> -<p class="line"><i>Dial a đaw,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Y mae gerỻaw.</i></p> -</div> -<p lang="cy" class="first"><i>Ceisiođ yr amaethwr chwerthin, ond -yr oeđ rhywbeth yn edrychiad sarrug a ỻym y gwr bychan ag a -barođ iđo deimlo yn hynod o annymunol.</i> <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb178" href="#pb178" name="pb178">178</a>]</span></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Ychydig o nosweithiau yn điweđarach, pan -oeđ y teulu ar ymneiỻduo i’w gorphwysleoeđ, -dychrynwyd hwy yn fawr iawn gan drwst, fel pe byđai y ty yn -syrthio i lawr bendramwnwgl, ac yn union ar ol i’r twrf beidio, -clywent y geiriau bygythiol a ganlyn—a dim yn rhagor—yn -cael eu parablu yn uchel,</i></p> -<div lang="cy" class="lgouter"> -<p class="line"><i>Daw dial.</i></p> -</div> -<p lang="cy" class="first"><i>Pan oeđ yr yd wedi cael ei fedi ac -yn barod i gael ei gywain i’r ysgubor, yn sydyn ryw noswaith -ỻosgwyd ef fel nad oeđ yr un dywysen na gweỻtyn -i’w gael yn un man o’r caeau, ac nis gaỻasai neb fod -wedi gosod yr yd ar dan ond Bendith y Mamau.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Fel ag y mae yn naturiol i ni feđwl teimlođ -yr amaethwr yn fawr oherwyđ y tro, ac edifarhaođ yn ei galon -đarfod iđo erioed wrando a gwneuthur yn ol cyfarwyđyd yr -hen reibwraig, ac feỻy đwyn arno đigofaint a chasineb -Bendith y Mamau.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Drannoeth i’r noswaith y ỻosgwyd yr yd fel -yr oeđ yn arolygu y difrod achoswyd gan y tan, wele’r gwr -bychan ag ydoeđ wedi ei gyfarfod ychydig o điwrnodau yn -flaenorol yn ei gyfarfod eilwaith a chyda threm herfeiđiol -pwyntiođ ei gleđyf ato gan đywedyd,</i></p> -<div lang="cy" class="lgouter"> -<p class="line"><i>Nid yw ond dechreu.</i></p> -</div> -<p lang="cy" class="first"><i>Trođ gwyneb yr amaethwr cyn wynned -a’r marmor, a safođ gan alw y gwr bychan yn ol, ond bu y -còr yn hynod o wydn ac anewyỻysgar i droi ato, ond ar ol -hir erfyn arno trođ yn ei ol gan ofyn yn sarrug beth yr oeđ -yr amaethwr yn ei geisio, yr hwn a hysbysođ iđo ei fod yn -berffaith fođlon i adael y caeau ỻe yr oeđ eu hoff -ymgyrchfan i dyfu yn don eilwaith, a rhođi caniatad iđynt i -đyfod iđynt pryd y dewisent, ond yn unig iđynt beidio -dial eu ỻid yn mheỻach arno ef.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>‘Na,’ oeđ yr atebiad penderfynol, -‘y mae gair y brenin wedi ei roi y byđ iđo ymđial -arnat hyd eithaf ei aỻu ac <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb179" -href="#pb179" name="pb179">179</a>]</span>nid oes dim un gaỻu ar -wyneb y greadigaeth a bair iđo gael ei dynnu yn ol.’</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Dechreuođ yr amaethwr wylo ar hyn, ond yn mhen -ychydig hysbysođ y gwr bychan y byđai iđo ef siarad -a’i bennaeth ar y mater, ac y cawsai efe wybod y canlyniad ond -iđo đyfod i’w gyfarfod ef yn y fan honno amser -machludiad haul drennyđ.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Ađawođ yr amaethwr đyfod i’w -gyfarfod, a phan đaeth yr amser apwyntiedig o amgylch iđo i -gyfarfod a’r bychan cafođ ef yno yn ei aros, ac -hysbysođ iđo fod y pennaeth wedi ystyried ei gais yn -đifrifol, ond gan fod ei air bob amser yn anghyfnewidiol y buasai -y dialeđ bygythiedig yn rhwym o gymeryd ỻe ar y teulu, ond -ar gyfrif ei edifeirwch ef na chawsai đigwyđ yn ei amser ef -nac eiđo ei blant.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Llonyđođ hynny gryn lawer ar feđwl -terfysglyd yr amaethwr, a dechreuođ Bendith y Mamau dalu eu -hymweliadau a’r ỻe eilwaith a mynych y clywid sain eu -cerđoriaeth felusber yn codi o’r caeau amgylchynol yn ystod -y nos.</i></p> -<hr class="tb"> -<p lang="cy"><i>Pasiođ canrif heibio heb i’r dialeđ -bygythiedig gael ei gyflawni, ac er fod teulu Pantannas yn cael eu -hadgofio yn awr ac eilwaith, y buasai yn sicr o đigwyđ hwyr -neu hwyrach, eto wrth hir glywed y waeđ,</i></p> -<div lang="cy" class="lgouter"> -<p class="line"><i>Daw dial,</i></p> -</div> -<p lang="cy" class="first"><i>ymgynefinasant a hi nes eu bod yn barod i -gredu na fuasai dim yn dyfod o’r bygythiad byth.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Yr oeđ etifeđ Pantannas yn caru a merch i -dirfeđiannyđ cymydogaethol a breswyliai mewn tyđyn -o’r enw Pen Craig Daf. Yr oeđ priodas y par dedwyđ i -gymeryd ỻe yn mhen ychydig wythnosau ac ymđangosai rhieni y -cwpl ieuanc yn hynod o fođlon i’r ymuniad teuluol ag -oeđ ar gymeryd ỻe.</i> <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb180" -href="#pb180" name="pb180">180</a>]</span></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Yr oeđ yn amser y Nadolig—a thalođ y -đarpar wraig ieuanc ymweliad a theulu ei darpar wr, ac yr oeđ -yno wleđ o wyđ rostiedig yn baratoedig gogyfer a’r -achlysur.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Eisteđai y cwmni ođeutu y tan i adrođ -rhyw chwedlau difyrrus er mwyn pasio yr amser, pryd y cawsant eu -dychrynu yn fawr gan lais treiđgar yn dyrchafu megis o wely yr -afon yn gwaeđi</i></p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p lang="cy" class="line"><i>Daeth amser ymdïal.</i></p> -</div> -<p lang="cy" class="first"><i>Aethant oỻ aỻan i wrando a -glywent y ỻeferyđ eilwaith, ond nid oeđ dim i’w -glywed ond brochus drwst y dwfr wrth raiadru dros glogwyni aruthrol y -cerwyni. Ond ni chawsant aros i wrando yn hir iawn cyn iđynt -glywed yr un ỻeferyđ eilwaith yn dyrchafu i fyny yn uwch na -swn y dwfr pan yn bwrlymu dros ysgwyđau y graig, ac yn -gwaeđi,</i></p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p lang="cy" class="line"><i>Daeth yr amser.</i></p> -</div> -<p lang="cy" class="first"><i>Nis gaỻent đyfalu beth yr -oeđ yn ei arwyđo, a chymaint ydoeđ eu braw a’u -syndod fel nad aỻent lefaru yr un gair a’u gilyđ. Yn -mhen ennyd dychwelasant i’r ty a chyn iđynt eisteđ -credent yn đios fod yr adeilad yn cael ei ysgwyd iđ ei -sylfeini gan ryw dwrf y tu aỻan. Pan yr oeđ yr oỻ wedi -cael eu parlysio gan fraw, wele fenyw fechan yn gwneuthur ei -hymđangosiad ar y bwrđ o’u blaen, yr hwn oeđ yn -sefyỻ yn agos i’r ffenestr.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>‘Beth yr wyt yn ei geisio yma, y peth bychan -hagr?’ holai un o’r gwyđfodolion.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i><span class="corr" id="xd25e9333" title= -"Not in source">‘</span>Nid oes gennyf unrhyw neges a thi, y gwr -hir dafod,’ oeđ atebiad y fenyw fechan. ‘Ond yr wyf -wedi cael fy anfon yma i adrođ rhyw bethau ag syđ ar -đigwyđ i’r teulu hwn, a theulu araỻ o’r -gymydogaeth ag a đichon fod o đyđordeb iđynt, ond -gan i mi đerbyn y fath sarhad ođiar law y gwr du ag syđ -yn eisteđ yn y cornel, ni fyđ i mi godi y ỻen ag -oeđ yn cuđio y dyfodol aỻan o’u golwg.’</i> -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb181" href="#pb181" name= -"pb181">181</a>]</span></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>‘Atolwg os oes yn dy feđiant ryw wybodaeth -parth dyfodol rhai o honom ag a fyđai yn đyđorol i ni -gael ei glywed, dwg hi aỻan,’ ebai un araỻ o’r -gwyđfodolion.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>‘Na wnaf, ond yn unig hysbysu, fod calon gwyryf -fel ỻong ar y traeth yn methu cyrraeđ y porthlad -oherwyđ digalondid y</i> pilot.’</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>A chyda ei bod yn ỻefaru y gair diweđaf -diflannođ o’u gwyđ, na wyđai neb i ba le na pha -fođ!</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Drwy ystod ci hymweliad hi, peidiođ y waeđ a -godasai o’r afon, ond yn fuan ar ol iđi điflannu, -dechreuođ eilwaith a chyhoeđi</i></p> -<div lang="cy" class="lgouter"> -<p class="line"><i>Daeth amser dial,</i></p> -</div> -<p lang="cy" class="first"><i>ac ni pheidiođ am hir amser. Yr -oeđ y cynuỻiad wedi cael eu međiannu a gormod o fraw i -fedru ỻefaru yr un gair, ac yr oeđ ỻen o bruđder -yn daenedig dros wyneb pob un o honynt. Daeth amser iđynt i -ymwahanu, ac aeth Rhyđerch y mab i hebrwng Gwerfyl ei gariadferch -tua Phen Craig Daf, o ba siwrnai ni đychwelođ byth.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Cyn ymadael a’i fun dywedir iđynt dyngu -bythol ffyđlondeb i’w gilyđ, pe heb weled y naiỻ -y ỻaỻ byth ond hynny, ac nad oeđ dim a aỻai beri -iđynt anghofio eu gilyđ.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Mae yn debygol i’r ỻanc Rhyđerch pan -yn dychwelyd gartref gael ei hun ođifewn i un o gylchoeđ -Bendith y Mamau, ac yna iđynt ei hud-đenu i mewn i un -o’u hogofau yn Nharren y Cigfrain, ac yno y bu.</i></p> -<hr class="tb"> -<p lang="cy"><i>Y mae yn ỻawn bryd i ni droi ein gwynebau yn ol -tua Phantannas a Phen Craig Daf. Yr oeđ rhieni y bachgen anffodus -yn mron gwaỻgofi. Nid oeđ ganđynt yr un drychfeđwl -i ba le i fyned i chwilio am dano, ac er chwilio yn mhob man a phob -ỻe methwyd yn glir a dyfod o hyd iđo, na chael gair -o’i hanes.</i> <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb182" href="#pb182" -name="pb182">182</a>]</span></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Ychydig i fyny yn y cwm mewn ogof danđaearol -trigfannai hen feudwy oedrannus, yr hwn hefyd a ystyrrid yn đewin, -o’r enw Gweiryđ. Aethant yn mhen ychydig wythnosau i ofyn -iđo ef, a fedrai rođi iđynt ryw wybodaeth parthed -i’w mab coỻedig—ond i ychydig bwrpas. Ni wnaeth yr -hyn a adrođođ hwnnw wrthynt ond dyfnhau y clwyf a rhoi golwg -fwy anobeithiol fyth ar yr amgylchiad. Ar ol iđynt ei hysbysu -ynghylch ymđangosiad y fenyw fechan ynghyd a’r ỻais -wylofus a glywsent yn dyrchafu o’r afon y nos yr aeth ar -goỻ, hysbysođ efe iđynt mai y farn fygythiedig ar y -teulu gan Fendith y Mamau oeđ wedi gođiweđid y -ỻanc, ac nad oeđ o un diben iđynt feđwl cael ei -weled byth mwyach! Ond feaỻai y gwnelai ei ymđangosiad yn -mhen oesau, ond đim yn eu hamser hwy.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Pasiai yr amser heibio, a chwyđođ yr -wythnosau i fisoeđ, a’r misoeđ i flynyđoeđ, a -chasglwyd tad a mam Rhyđerch at eu tadau. Yr oeđ y ỻe o -hyd yn parhau yr un, ond y preswylwyr yn newid yn barhaus, ac yr -oeđ yr adgofion am ei goỻedigaeth yn darfod yn gyflym, ond -er hynny yr oeđ un yn disgwyl ei đychweliad yn ol yn barhaus, -ac yn gobeithio megis yn erbyn gobaith am gael ei weled eilwaith. Bob -boreu gyda bod dorau y wawr yn ymagor dros gaerog fynyđoeđ y -dwyrain gwelid hi bob tywyđ yn rhedeg i ben bryn bychan, a chyda -ỻygaid yn orlawn o đagrau hiraethlon syỻai i bob -cyfeiriad i edrych a ganfyđai ryw argoel fod ei hanwylyd yn -dychwelyd; ond i đim pwrpas. Canol dyđ gwelid hi eilwaith yn -yr un man, a phan ymgoỻai yr haul fel pelen eiriasgoch o -dân dros y terfyngylch, yr oeđ hi yno.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Edrychai nes yn agos bod yn đaỻ, ac wylai ei -henaid aỻan o đyđ i đyđ ar ol anwylđyn -ei chalon. O’r diweđ aeth y rhai syđ yn edrych drwy y -ffenestri i omeđ eu gwasanaeth iđi, ac yr oeđ y pren -almon yn coroni ei <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb183" href="#pb183" -name="pb183">183</a>]</span>phen a’i flagur gwyryfol, ond parhai -hi i edrych, ond nid oeđ neb yn dod. Yn ỻawn o -đyđiau ac yn aeđfed i’r beđ rhođwyd -terfyn ar ei hoỻ obeithion a’i disgwyliadau gan angeu, a -chludwyd ei gweđiỻion marwol i fynwent hen Gapel y -Fan.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Pasiai blynyđoeđ heibio fel mwg, ac oesau fel -cysgodion y boreu, ac nid oeđ neb yn fyw ag oeđ yn cofio -Rhyđerch, ond adrođid ei goỻiad disymwyth yn aml. -Dylasem fynegu na welwyd yr un o Fendith y Mamau ođeutu y -gymydogaeth wedi ei goỻiad, a pheidiođ sain eu -cerđoriaeth o’r nos honno aỻan.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Yr oeđ Rhyđerch wedi cael ei hud-đenu i -fyned gyda Bendith y Mamau—ac aethant ag ef i ffwrđ -i’w hogof. Ar ol iđo aros yno dros ychydig o điwrnodau -fel y tybiai, gofynnođ am ganiatad i đychwelyd, yr hyn a -rwyđ ganiatawyd iđo gan y brenin. Daeth aỻan o’r -ogof, ac yr oeđ yn ganol dyđ braf, a’r haul yn -ỻewyrchu ođiar fynwes ffurfafen đigwmwl. -Cerđođ yn mlaen o Darren y Cigfrain hyd nes iđo -đyfod i olwg Capel y Fan, ond gymaint oeđ ei syndod pan y -gwelođ nad oeđ yr un capel yno! Pa le yr oeđ wedi bod, a -pha faint o amser? Gyda theimladau cymysgedig cyfeiriođ ei gamrau -tua Phen Craig Daf, cartref-le ei anwylyd, ond nid oeđ hi yno, ac -nid oeđ yn adwaen yr un dyn ag oeđ yno chwaith. Ni fedrai -gael gair o hanes ei gariad a chymerođ y rhai a breswylient yno -mai gwaỻgofđyn ydoeđ.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Prysurođ eilwaith tua Phantannas, ac yr oeđ -ei syndod yn fwy fyth yno! Nid oeđ yn adwaen yr un o honynt, ac ni -wyđent hwythau đim am dano yntau. O’r diweđ daeth -gwr y ty i fewn, ac yr oeđ hwnnw yn cofio clywed ei dad cu yn -adrođ am lanc ag oeđ wedi myned yn đisymwyth i goỻ -er ys peth cannoeđ o flynyđoeđ yn ol, ond na wyđai -neb i ba le. Rywfođ neu gilyđ tarawođ gwr y tŷ ei -ffon yn erbyn Rhyđerch, pa un a điflannođ <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb184" href="#pb184" name="pb184">184</a>]</span>mewn -cawod o lwch, ac ni chlywyd air o son beth đaeth o hono -mwyach.</i></p> -<p>‘In one of the centuries gone by, there lived a husbandman on -the farm of Pantannas; and at that time the fairies used to pay -frequent visits to several of the fields which belonged to him. He -cherished in his bosom a considerable hatred for the “noisy, -boisterous, and pernicious tribe,” as he called them, and often -did he long to be able to discover some way to rid the place of them. -At last he was told by an old witch that the way to get rid of them was -easy enough, and that she would tell him how to attain what he so -greatly wished, if he gave her one evening’s milking<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e9410src" href="#xd25e9410" name= -"xd25e9410src">37</a> on his farm, and one morning’s. He agreed -to her conditions, and from her he received advice, which was to the -effect that he was to plough all the fields where they had their -favourite resorts, and that, if they found the green sward gone, they -would take offence, and never return to trouble him with their visits -to the spot.</p> -<p>‘The husbandman followed the advice to the letter, and his -work was crowned with success. Not a single one of them was now to be -seen about the fields, and, instead of the sound of their sweet music, -which used to be always heard rising from the Coarse Meadow Land, the -most complete silence now reigned over their favourite resort.</p> -<p>‘He sowed his land with wheat and other grain; the verdant -spring had now thrust winter off its throne, and the fields appeared -splendid in their vernal and green livery.</p> -<p>‘But one evening, when the sun had retired to the chambers of -the west, and when the farmer of Pantannas <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb185" href="#pb185" name="pb185">185</a>]</span>was -returning home, he was met by a diminutive being in the shape of a man, -with a red coat on. When he had come right up to him, he unsheathed his -little sword, and, directing the point towards the farmer, he -said:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">Vengeance cometh,</p> -<p class="line">Fast it approacheth.</p> -</div> -<p class="first">‘The farmer tried to laugh, but there was -something in the surly and stern looks of the little fellow which made -him feel exceedingly uncomfortable.</p> -<p>‘A few nights afterwards, as the family were retiring to rest, -they were very greatly frightened by a noise, as though the house was -falling to pieces; and, immediately after the noise, they heard a voice -uttering loudly the threatening words—and nothing -more:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">Vengeance cometh.</p> -</div> -<p class="first">‘When, however, the corn was reaped and ready to -be carried to the barn, it was, all of a sudden, burnt up one night, so -that neither an ear nor a straw of it could be found anywhere in the -fields; and now nobody could have set the corn on fire but the -fairies.</p> -<p>‘As one may naturally suppose, the farmer felt very much on -account of this event, and he regretted in his heart having done -according to the witch’s direction, and having thereby brought -upon him the anger and hatred of the fairies.</p> -<p>‘The day after the night of the burning of the corn, as he was -surveying the destruction caused by the fire, behold the little fellow, -who had met him a few days before, met him again, and, with a -challenging glance, he pointed his sword towards him, -saying:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">It but beginneth.</p> -</div> -<p class="first">The farmer’s face turned as white as marble, and -he stood calling the little fellow to come back; but the <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb186" href="#pb186" name= -"pb186">186</a>]</span>dwarf proved very unyielding and reluctant to -turn to him; but, after long entreaty, he turned back, asking the -farmer, in a surly tone, what he wanted, when he was told by the latter -that he was quite willing to allow the fields, in which their favourite -resorts had been, to grow again into a green sward, and to let them -frequent them as often as they wished, provided they would no further -wreak their anger on him.</p> -<p>‘ “No,” was the determined reply, “the -word of the king has been given, that he will avenge himself on thee to -the utmost of his power; and there is no power on the face of creation -that will cause it to be withdrawn.”</p> -<p>‘The farmer began to weep at this, and, after a while, the -little fellow said that he would speak to his lord on the matter, and -that he would let him know the result, if he would come there to meet -him at the hour of sunset on the third day after.</p> -<p>‘The farmer promised to meet him; and, when the time appointed -for meeting the little man came, he found him awaiting him, and he was -told by him that his lord had seriously considered his request, but -that, as the king’s word was ever immutable, the threatened -vengeance was to take effect on the family. On account, however, of his -repentance, it would not be allowed to happen in his time or that of -his children.</p> -<p>‘That calmed the disturbed mind of the farmer a good deal. The -fairies began again to pay frequent visits to the place, and their -melodious singing was again heard at night in the fields around.</p> -<hr class="tb"> -<p>‘A century passed by without seeing the threatened vengeance -carried into effect; and, though the Pantannas family were reminded now -and again that it was certain <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb187" -href="#pb187" name="pb187">187</a>]</span>sooner or later to come, -nevertheless, by long hearing the voice that said—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">Vengeance cometh,</p> -</div> -<p class="first">they became so accustomed to it, that they were ready -to believe that nothing would ever come of the threat.</p> -<p>‘The heir of Pantannas was paying his addresses to the -daughter of a neighbouring landowner who lived at the farm house called -Pen Craig Daf, and the wedding of the happy pair was to take place in a -few weeks, and the parents on both sides appeared exceedingly content -with the union that was about to take place between the two -families.</p> -<p>‘It was Christmas time, and the intended wife paid a visit to -the family of her would-be husband. There they had a feast of roast -goose prepared for the occasion.</p> -<p>‘The company sat round the fire to relate amusing tales to -pass the time, when they were greatly frightened by a piercing voice, -rising, as it were, from the bed of the river<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e9473src" href="#xd25e9473" name="xd25e9473src">38</a>, and -shrieking:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">The time for revenge is come.</p> -</div> -<p class="first">‘They all went out to listen if they could hear -the voice a second time, but nothing was to be heard save the angry -noise of the water as it cascaded over the dread cliffs of the <i lang= -"cy">kerwyni</i>; they had not long, however, to wait till they heard -again the same voice rising above the noise of the waters, as they -boiled over the shoulders of the rock, and crying:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">The time is come.</p> -</div> -<p class="first">‘They could not guess what it meant, and so -great was their fright and astonishment, that no one could utter a word -to another. Shortly they returned to the <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb188" href="#pb188" name="pb188">188</a>]</span>house, when they -believed that beyond doubt the building was being shaken to its -foundations by some noise outside. When all were thus paralysed by -fear, behold a little woman made her appearance on the table, which -stood near the window.</p> -<p>‘ “What dost thou, ugly little thing, want -here?<span class="corr" id="xd25e9496" title= -"Source: ’">”</span> asked one of those present.</p> -<p>‘ “I have nothing to do with thee, O man of the -meddling tongue,” said the little woman, “but I have been -sent here to recount some things that are about to happen to this -family and another family in the neighbourhood, things that might be of -interest to them; but, as I have received such an insult from the black -fellow that sits in the corner, the veil that hides them from their -sight shall not be lifted by me.”</p> -<p>‘ “Pray,” said another of those present, -“if thou hast in thy possession any knowledge with regard to the -future of any one of us that would interest us to hear, bring it -forth.”</p> -<p>‘ “No, I will but merely tell you that a certain -maiden’s heart is like a ship on the coast, unable to reach the -harbour because the pilot has lost heart.”</p> -<p>‘As soon as she had cried out the last word, she vanished, no -one knew whither or how.</p> -<p>‘During her visit, the cry rising from the river had stopped, -but soon afterwards it began again to proclaim:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">The time of vengeance is come;</p> -</div> -<p class="first">nor did it cease for a long while. The company had -been possessed by too much terror for one to be able to address -another, and a sheet of gloom had, as it were, been spread over the -face of each. The time for parting came, and Rhyđerch the heir -went to escort Gwerfyl, his lady-love, home towards Pen Craig Daf, a -journey from which he never returned. <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb189" href="#pb189" name="pb189">189</a>]</span></p> -<p>‘Before bidding one another “Good-bye,” they are -said to have sworn to each other eternal fidelity, even though they -should never see one another from that moment forth, and that nothing -should make the one forget the other.</p> -<p>‘It is thought probable that the young man Rhyđerch, on -his way back towards home, got into one of the rings of the fairies, -that they allured him into one of their caves in the Ravens’ -Rift, and that there he remained.</p> -<hr class="tb"> -<p>‘It is high time for us now to turn back towards Pantannas and -Pen Craig Daf. The parents of the unlucky youth were almost beside -themselves: they had no idea where to go to look for him, and, though -they searched every spot in the place, they failed completely to find -him or any clue to his history.</p> -<p>‘A little higher up the country, there dwelt, in a cave -underground, an aged hermit called Gweiryđ, who was regarded also -as a sorcerer. They went a few weeks afterwards to ask him whether he -could give them any information about their lost son; but it was of -little avail. What that man told them did but deepen the wound and give -the event a still more hopeless aspect. When they had told him of the -appearance of the little woman, and the doleful cry heard rising from -the river on the night when their son was lost, he informed them that -it was the judgement threatened to the family by the fairies that had -overtaken the youth, and that it was useless for them to think of ever -seeing him again: possibly he might make his appearance after -generations had gone by, but not in their lifetime.</p> -<p>‘Time rolled on, weeks grew into months, and months into -years, until Rhyđerch’s father and <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb190" href="#pb190" name= -"pb190">190</a>]</span>mother were gathered to their ancestors. The -place continued the same, but the inhabitants constantly changed, so -that the memory of Rhyđerch’s disappearance was fast dying -away. Nevertheless there was one who expected his return all the while, -and hoped, as it were against hope, to see him once more. Every morn, -as the gates of the dawn opened beyond the castellated heights of the -east, she might be seen, in all weathers, hastening to the top of a -small hill, and, with eyes full of the tears of longing, gazing in -every direction to see if she could behold any sign of her -beloved’s return; but in vain. At noon, she might be seen on the -same spot again; she was also there at the hour when the sun was wont -to hide himself, like a red-hot ball of fire, below the horizon. She -gazed until she was nearly blind, and she wept forth her soul from day -to day for the darling of her heart. At last they that looked out at -the windows began to refuse their service, and the almond tree -commenced to crown her head with its virgin bloom. She continued to -gaze, but he came not. Full of days, and ripe for the grave, death put -an end to all her hopes and all her expectations. Her mortal remains -were buried in the graveyard of the old Chapel of the Fan<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e9530src" href="#xd25e9530" name= -"xd25e9530src">39</a>.</p> -<p>‘Years passed away like smoke, and generations like the -shadows of the morning, and there was no longer anybody alive who -remembered Rhyđerch, but the tale of his sudden missing was -frequently in people’s mouths. And we ought to have said that -after the event no one of the fairies was seen about the neighbourhood, -and the sound of their music ceased from that night. <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb191" href="#pb191" name="pb191">191</a>]</span></p> -<p>‘Rhyđerch had been allured by them, and they took him -away into their cave. When he had stayed there only a few days, as he -thought, he asked for permission to return, which was readily granted -him by the king. He issued from the cave when it was a fine noon, with -the sun beaming from the bosom of a cloudless firmament. He walked on -from the Ravens’ Rift until he came near the site of the Fan -Chapel; but what was his astonishment to find no chapel there! Where, -he wondered, had he been, and how long away? So with mixed feelings he -directed his steps towards Pen Craig Daf, the home of his beloved one, -but she was not there nor any one whom he knew either. He could get no -word of the history of his sweetheart, and those who dwelt in the place -took him for a madman.</p> -<p>‘He hastened then to Pantannas, where his astonishment was -still greater. He knew nobody there, and nobody knew anything about -him. At last the man of the house came in, and he remembered hearing -his grandfather relating how a youth had suddenly disappeared, nobody -knew whither, some hundreds of years previously. Somehow or other the -man of the house chanced to knock his walking-stick against -Rhyđerch, when the latter vanished in a shower of dust. Nothing -more was ever heard of him.’</p> -<p>Before leaving Glamorgan, I may add that Mr. Sikes associates fairy -ladies with Crymlyn Lake, between Briton Ferry and Swansea; but, as -frequently happens with him, he does not deign to tell us whence he got -the legend. ‘It is also believed,’ he says at p. 35, -‘that a large town lies swallowed up there, and that the <i lang= -"cy">Gwrageđ Annwn</i> have turned the submerged walls to use as -the superstructure of their fairy palaces. Some claim to have seen the -towers of beautiful castles lifting their battlements beneath the -surface of the dark <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb192" href="#pb192" -name="pb192">192</a>]</span>waters, and fairy bells are at times heard -ringing from those towers.’ So much by the way: we shall return -to Crymlyn in chapter vii.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch2.12" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e488">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">XII.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">The other day, as I was going to Gwent, I chanced to -be in the Golden Valley in Herefordshire, where the names in the -churchyards seem largely to imply a Welsh population, though the Welsh -language has not been heard there for ages. Among others I noticed -Joneses and Williamses in abundance at Abbey Dore, Evanses and Bevans, -Morgans, Prossers and Prices, not to mention Sayces—that is to -say, Welshmen of English extraction or education—a name which may -also be met with in Little England in Pembrokeshire, and probably on -other English-Welsh borders. Happening to have to wait for a train at -the Abbey Dore station, I got into conversation with the tenants of a -cottage hard by, and introduced the subject of the fairies. The old man -knew nothing about them, but his wife, Elizabeth Williams, had been a -servant girl at a place called Pen Pôch, which she pronounced -with the Welsh guttural <i>ch</i>: she said that it is near -Ỻandeilo Cressenny in Monmouthshire. It was about forty years ago -when she served at Pen Pôch, and her mistress’ name was -Evans, who was then about fifty years of age. Now Mrs. Evans was in the -habit of impressing on her servant girls’ minds, that, unless -they made the house tidy before going to bed, and put everything in its -place overnight, the little people—the fairies, she thinks she -called them—would leave them no rest in bed at night, but would -come and ‘pinch them like.’ If they put everything in its -place, and left the house ‘tidy like,’ it would be all -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb193" href="#pb193" name= -"pb193">193</a>]</span>right, and ‘nobody would do anything to -them like.’ That is all I could get from her without prompting -her, which I did at length by suggesting to her that the fairies might -leave the tidy servants presents, a shilling ‘on the hearth or -the hob like.’ Yes, she thought there was something of that sort, -and her way of answering me suggested that this was not the first time -she had heard of the shilling. She had never been lucky enough to have -had one herself, nor did she know of anybody else that ‘had got -it like.’</p> -<p>During a brief but very pleasant sojourn at Ỻanover in May, -1883, I made some inquiries about the fairies, and obtained the -following account from William Williams, who now, in his seventieth -year, works in Lady Ỻanover’s garden:—‘I know -of a family living a little way from here at ——, or as they -would now call it in English ——, whose ancestors, four -generations ago, used to be kind to <i lang="cy">Bendith y Mamau</i>, -and always welcomed their visits by leaving at night a basinful of -bread and milk for them near the fire. It always used to be eaten up -before the family got up in the morning. But one night a naughty -servant man gave them instead of milk a bowlful of urine<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e9563src" href="#xd25e9563" name= -"xd25e9563src">40</a>. They, on finding it out, threw it about the -house and went away disgusted. But the servant watched in the house the -following night. They found him out, and told him that he had made -fools of them, and that in punishment for his crime there would always -be a fool, i.e. an idiot, in his family. As a matter of fact, there was -one among his children afterwards, and there is one in the family now. -They have always been in a bad way ever since, and they never prosper. -The name of the man who originally <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb194" -href="#pb194" name="pb194">194</a>]</span>offended the fairies was -——; and the name of the present fool among his descendants -is ——.’ For evident reasons it is not desirable to -publish the names.</p> -<p>Williams spoke also of a sister to his mother, who acted as servant -to his parents. There were, he said, ten stepping stones between his -father’s house and the well, and on every one of these stones his -aunt used to find a penny every morning, until she made it known to -others, when, of course, the pennies ceased coming. He did not know why -the fairies gave money to her, unless it was because she was a most -tidy servant.</p> -<p>Another Ỻanover gardener remembered that the fairies used to -change children, and that a certain woman called Nani Fach in that -neighbourhood was one of their offspring; and he had been told that -there were fairy rings in certain fields not far away in Ỻanover -parish.</p> -<p>A third gardener, who is sixty-eight years of age, and is likewise -in Lady Ỻanover’s employ, had heard it said that servant -girls about his home were wont to sweep the floor clean at night, and -to throw crumbs of bread about on it before going to bed.</p> -<p>Lastly, Mrs. Gardner of Ty Uchaf Ỻanover, who is ninety years -of age, remembers having a field close to Capel Newyđ near Blaen -Afon, in Ỻanover Uchaf, pointed out to her as containing fairy -rings; and she recollects hearing, when she was a child, that a man had -got into one of them. He remained away from home, as they always did, -she said, a whole year and a day; but she has forgotten how he was -recovered. Then she went on to say that her father had often got up in -the night to see that his horses were not taken out and ridden about -the fields by <i lang="cy">Bendith y Mamau</i>; for they were wont to -ride people’s horses late at night round the four corners of the -fields, and thereby they often <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb195" -href="#pb195" name="pb195">195</a>]</span>broke the horses’ wind. -This, she gave me to understand, was believed in the parish of -Ỻanover and that part of the country generally. So here we have -an instance probably of confounding fairies with witches.</p> -<p>I have not the means at my command of going at length into the -folklore of Gwent, so I will merely mention where the reader may find a -good deal about it. I have already introduced the name of the credulous -old Christian, Edmund Jones of the Tranch: he published at Trefecca in -the year 1779 a small volume entitled, <i>A Geographical, Historical, -and Religious Account of the Parish of Aberystruth in the County of -Monmouth, to which are added Memoirs of several Persons of Note who -lived in the said Parish</i>. In 1813, by which time he seems to have -left this world for another, where he expected to understand all about -the fairies and their mysterious life, a small volume of his was -published at Newport, bearing the title, <i>A Relation of Apparitions -of Spirits in the County of Monmouth and the Principality of Wales, -with other notable Relations from England, together with Observations -about them, and Instructions from them, designed to confute and to -prevent the Infidelity of denying the Being and Apparition of Spirits, -which tends to Irreligion and Atheism. By the late Rev. Edmund Jones, -of the Tranch.</i> Naturally those volumes have been laid under -contribution by Mr. Sikes, though the tales about apparitions in them -are frequently of a ghastly nature, and sometimes loathsome: on the -whole, they remind me more than anything else I have ever read of -certain Breton tales which breathe fire and brimstone: all such begin -to be now out of fashion in Protestant countries. I shall at present -only quote a passage of quite a different nature from the earlier -volume, p. 72—it is an interesting one, and it runs -thus:—‘It was the general opinion in times past, when these -things were very <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb196" href="#pb196" -name="pb196">196</a>]</span>frequent, that the fairies knew whatever -was spoken in the air without the houses, not so much what was spoken -in the houses. I suppose they chiefly knew what was spoken in the air -at night. It was also said that they rather appeared to an uneven -number of persons, to one, three, five, &c.; and oftener to men -than to women. Thomas William Edmund, of Havodavel, an honest pious -man, who often saw them, declared that they appeared with one bigger -than the rest going before them in the company.’ With the notion -that the fairies heard everything uttered out of doors may be compared -the faculty attributed to the great magician king, Math ab Mathonwy, of -hearing any whisper whatsoever that met the wind: see the Oxford -<i>Mabinogion</i>, p. 60, and Guest’s <i>Mabinogion</i>, iii. -219; see also respectively pp. 94, 96, and pp. 308, 310, as to the same -faculty belonging to the fairy people of the Corannians, and the -strange precautions taken against them by the brothers -Ỻûđ and Ỻevelys. <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb197" href="#pb197" name="pb197">197</a>]</span></p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<div class="footnotes"> -<hr class="fnsep"> -<div class="footnote-body"> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e7544" href="#xd25e7544src" name="xd25e7544">1</a></span> These -were held, so far as I can gather from the descriptions usually given -of them, exactly as I have seen a <i lang="de">kermess</i> or <i lang= -"de">kirchmesse</i> celebrated at Heidelberg, or rather the village -over the Neckar opposite that town. It was in 1869, but I forget what -saint it was with whose name the <i>kermess</i> was supposed to be -connected: the chief features of it were dancing and beer drinking. It -was by no means unusual for a Welsh <i lang="cy">Gwyl Fabsant</i> to -bring together to a rural neighbourhood far more people than could -readily be accommodated; and in Carnarvonshire a hurriedly improvised -bed is to this day called <i lang="cy">gwely -g’l’absant</i>, as it were ‘a bed (for the time) of a -saint’s festival.’ Rightly or wrongly the belief lingers -that these merry gatherings were characterized by no little immorality, -which made the better class of people set their faces against -them. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e7544src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e7601" href="#xd25e7601src" name="xd25e7601">2</a></span> Since -the editing of this volume was begun I have heard that it is intended -to publish the Welsh collection which Mr. Jones has made: so I shall -only give a translation of the Edward Ỻwyd version of the afanc -story: see section v. of this chapter. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e7601src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e7616" href="#xd25e7616src" name="xd25e7616">3</a></span> This -word is not in Welsh dictionaries, but it is Scotch and Manx Gaelic, -and is possibly a remnant of the Goidelic once spoken in -Gwyneđ. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e7616src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e7676" href="#xd25e7676src" name="xd25e7676">4</a></span> Our -charlatans never leave off trying to make this into <i lang= -"cy">Tryfaen</i> so as to extract <i lang="cy">maen</i>, -‘stone,’ from it. They do not trouble themselves to find -out whether it ever was <i lang="cy">Tryfaen</i> or not: in fact they -rather like altering everything as much as they can. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e7676src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e7781" href="#xd25e7781src" name="xd25e7781">5</a></span> <i lang= -"cy">Ystrádỻyn</i>, with the accent on the penult, is -commonly pronounced <i lang="cy">Stráỻyn</i>, and means -‘the strand of the lake,’ and the hollow is named after it -<i lang="cy">Cwm Stráỻyn</i>, and the lake in it <i lang= -"cy">Ỻyn Cwm Stráỻyn</i>, which literally means -‘the Lake of the Combe of the Strand of the Lake’—all -seemingly for the luxury of forgetting the original name of the lake, -which I have never been able to ascertain. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e7781src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e7837" href="#xd25e7837src" name="xd25e7837">6</a></span> So Mr. -Jones puts it: I have never heard of any other part of the Principality -where the children are usually baptized before they are eight days -old. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e7837src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e7896" href="#xd25e7896src" name="xd25e7896">7</a></span> I cannot -account for this spelling, but the <i>ll</i> in <i>Bellis</i> is -English <i>ll</i>, not the Welsh <i>ỻ</i>, which represents a -sound very different from that of <i>l</i>. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e7896src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e7937" href="#xd25e7937src" name="xd25e7937">8</a></span> Where -not stated otherwise, as in this instance, the reader is to regard this -chapter as written in the latter part of the year 1881. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e7937src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8014" href="#xd25e8014src" name="xd25e8014">9</a></span> See -Giraldus’ <i lang="la">Itinerarium Kambriæ</i>, i. 8 (pp. -75–8); some discussion of the whole story will be found in -chapter iii of this volume. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e8014src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8058" href="#xd25e8058src" name="xd25e8058">10</a></span> Dr. -Moore explains this to be cabbages and potatoes, pounded and mixed with -butter or lard. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e8058src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8135" href="#xd25e8135src" name="xd25e8135">11</a></span> It -would be interesting to know what has become of this letter and others -of Ỻwyd’s once in the possession of the canon, for it is -not to be supposed that the latter ever took the trouble to make an -accurate copy of them any more than he did of any other -MSS. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e8135src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8138" href="#xd25e8138src" name="xd25e8138">12</a></span> There -is also a <i lang="cy">Sarn yr Afanc</i>, ‘the Afanc’s -Stepping Stones,’ on the Ogwen river in Nant Ffrancon: see -Pennant’s <i>Tours in Wales</i>, iii. 101. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e8138src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8198" href="#xd25e8198src" name="xd25e8198">13</a></span> The -oxen should accordingly have been called <i lang="cy">Ychain -Pannog</i>; but the explanation is not to be taken seriously. These -oxen will come under the reader’s notice again, to wit in chapter -x. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e8198src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote" lang="en"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" -id="xd25e8263" href="#xd25e8263src" name="xd25e8263">14</a></span> The -lines are copied exactly as given at p. 189 (I. vi. 25–30) of -<i>The Poetical Works of Lewis Glyn Cothi</i>, edited for the -Cymmrodorion by Gwaỻter Mechain and Tegid, and printed at Oxford -in the year 1837. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e8263src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8303" href="#xd25e8303src" name="xd25e8303">15</a></span> This, I -should say, must be a mistake, as it contradicts all the folklore which -makes the rowan an object of dread to the fairies. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e8303src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8324" href="#xd25e8324src" name="xd25e8324">16</a></span> See -<i>Choice Notes from ‘Notes and Queries’</i> (London, -1859), p. 147. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e8324src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8359" href="#xd25e8359src" name="xd25e8359">17</a></span> It is -more likely that it is a shortening of <i lang="cy">Ỻyn y -Barfog</i>, meaning the Lake of the Bearded One, <i lang="la">Lacus -Barbati</i> as it were, the Bearded One being somebody like the hairy -monster of another lake mentioned at p. 18 above, or him of the white -beard pictured at p. 127. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e8359src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8373" href="#xd25e8373src" name="xd25e8373">18</a></span> So far -from <i lang="cy">afanc</i> meaning a crocodile, an <i lang= -"cy">afanc</i> is represented in the story of Peredur as a creature -that would cast at every comer a poisoned spear from behind a pillar -standing at the mouth of the cave inhabited by it; see the Oxford -<i>Mabinogion</i>, p. 224. The corresponding Irish word is <i lang= -"cy">abhac</i>, which according to O’Reilly means ‘a dwarf, -pigmy, manikin; a sprite.’ <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e8373src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8393" href="#xd25e8393src" name="xd25e8393">19</a></span> I -should not like to vouch for the accuracy of Mr. Pughe’s -rendering of this and the other Welsh names which he has introduced: -that involves difficult questions. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e8393src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8399" href="#xd25e8399src" name="xd25e8399">20</a></span> The -writer meant the river known as Dyfi or Dovey; but he would seem to -have had a water etymology on the brain. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e8399src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8402" href="#xd25e8402src" name="xd25e8402">21</a></span> This -involves the name of the river called Disynni, and <i lang= -"cy">Diswnwy</i> embodies a popular etymology which is not worth -discussing. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e8402src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8437" href="#xd25e8437src" name="xd25e8437">22</a></span> It -would, I think, be a little nearer the mark as follows:—</p> -<div class="q"> -<div class="nestedtext"> -<div class="nestedbody"> -<div class="lgouter footnote"> -<p class="line">Come thou, Einion’s Yellow One,</p> -<p class="line">Stray-horns, the Particoloured Lake Cow,</p> -<p class="line">And the Hornless Dodin:</p> -<p class="line">Arise, come home.</p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<p class="footnote cont">But one would like to know whether <i lang= -"cy">Dodin</i> ought not rather to be written <i lang="cy">Dodyn</i>, -to rhyme with <i lang="cy">Ỻyn</i>. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e8437src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8484" href="#xd25e8484src" name="xd25e8484">23</a></span> -Hywel’s real name is William Davies, Tal y Bont, Cardiganshire. -As adjudicator I became acquainted with several stories which Mr. -Davies has since given me permission to use, and I have to thank him -for clues to several others. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e8484src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8575" href="#xd25e8575src" name="xd25e8575">24</a></span> Or -<i lang="cy">Ỻech y Deri</i>, as Mr. Williams tells me in a -letter, where he adds that he does not know the place, but that he took -it to be in the Hundred of Cemmes, in North-west Pembrokeshire. I take -<i lang="cy">Ỻech y Derwyđ</i> to be fictitious; but I have -not succeeded in finding any place called by the other name -either. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e8575src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8597" href="#xd25e8597src" name="xd25e8597">25</a></span> Perhaps -the more usual thing is for the man returning from Faery to fall into -dust on the spot: see later in this chapter the Curse of Pantannas, -which ends with an instance in point, and compare Howells, pp. 142, -146. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e8597src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8698" href="#xd25e8698src" name="xd25e8698">26</a></span> B. -Davies, that is, Benjamin Davies, who gives this tale, was, as I learn -from Gwynionyđ, a native of Cenarth. He was a schoolmaster for -about twelve years, and died in October, 1859, at Merthyr, near -Carmarthen: he describes him as a good and intelligent -man. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e8698src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8716" href="#xd25e8716src" name="xd25e8716">27</a></span> This is -ordinarily written Cenarth, the name of a parish on the Teifi, where -the three counties of Cardigan, Pembroke, and Carmarthen -meet. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e8716src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8723" href="#xd25e8723src" name="xd25e8723">28</a></span> The -name Ỻan Dydoch occurs in the Bruts, <span class="sc">A.D.</span> -987 and 1089, and is the one still in use in Welsh; but the English -<i>St. Dogmael’s</i> shows that it is derived from that of -Dogfael’s name when the mutation consonant <i>f</i> or <i>v</i> -was still written <i>m</i>. In Welsh the name of the saint has been -worn down to <i lang="cy">Dogwel</i>, as in St. Dogwell’s near -Fishguard, and Ỻanđogwel in Ỻanrhuđlad parish in -Anglesey: see Reece’s <i>Welsh Saints</i>, p. 211. It points back -to an early Brythonic form <i lang="cy">Doco-maglos</i>, with <i lang= -"cy">doco</i> of the same origin as Latin <i lang="la">dux</i>, -<i>dŭcis</i>, ‘a leader,’ and <i lang="cy">maglo-s</i> -= Irish <i lang="ga">māl</i>, ‘a lord or prince.’ -Dogfael’s name assumes in Ỻan <i lang="cy">Dydoch</i> a -Goidelic form, for Dog-fael would have to become in Irish <i lang= -"ga">Doch-mhāl</i>, which, cut down to <i lang="cy">Doch</i> with -the honorific prefix <i>to</i>, has yielded <i lang="cy">Ty-doch</i>; -but I am not clear why it is not <i lang="cy">Ty-đoch</i>. Another -instance of a Goidelic form of a name having the local preference in -Wales to this day offers itself in <i lang="cy">Cyfelach</i> and -Ỻan <i lang="cy">Gyfelach</i> in Glamorganshire. The Welsh was -formerly <i lang="cy">Cimeliauc</i> (Reece, p. 274). Here may also be -mentioned St. Cyngar, otherwise called <i lang="cy">Docwinnus</i> -(Reece, p. 183), but the name occurs in the Liber Landavensis in the -genitive both as <i>Docunn-i</i> and <i>Docguinni</i>, the former of -which seems easily explained as Goidelic for an early form of <i lang= -"cy">Cyngar</i>, namely <i>Cuno-caros</i>, from which would be formed -<i>To-chun</i> or <i>Do-chun</i>. This is what seems to underlie the -Latin <i lang="la">Docunnus</i>, while <i>Docguinni</i> is possibly a -Goidelic modification of the written <i>Docunni</i>, unless some such a -name as <i>Doco-vindo-s</i> has been confounded with <i>Docunnus</i>. -In one instance the Book of Ỻan Dâv has instead of <i>Abbas -Docunni</i> or <i>Docguinni</i>, the shorter designation, <i>Abbas -Dochou</i> (p. 145), which one must not unhesitatingly treat as -<i>Dochon</i>, seeing that <i>Dochou</i> would be in later book Welsh -<i>Dochau</i>, and in the dialect of the district <i>Docha</i>; and -that this occurs in the name of the church of Ỻandough near -Cardiff, and Ỻandough near Cowbridge. The connexion of a certain -saint Dochdwy with these churches does not appear at all satisfactorily -established, but more light is required to help one to understand these -and similar church names. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e8723src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8861" href="#xd25e8861src" name="xd25e8861">29</a></span> This -name which may have come from Little England below Wales, was once not -uncommon in South Cardiganshire, as Mr. Williams informs me, but it is -now mostly changed as a surname into <i>Davies</i> and <i>Jones</i>! -Compare the similar fortunes of the name Mason mentioned above, p. -68. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e8861src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8890" href="#xd25e8890src" name="xd25e8890">30</a></span> I have -not succeeded in discovering who the writer was, who used this -name. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e8890src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e8905" href="#xd25e8905src" name="xd25e8905">31</a></span> This -name as it is now written should mean ‘the Gold’s -Foot,’ but in the Demetian dialect <i>aur</i> is pronounced -<i>oer</i>, and I learn from the rector, the Rev. Rhys Jones Lloyd, -that the name has sometimes been written <i lang="cy">Tref Deyrn</i>, -which I regard as some etymologist’s futile attempt to explain -it. More importance is to be attached to the name on the communion cup, -dating 1828, and reading, as Mr. Lloyd kindly informs me, <i lang= -"cy">Poculum Eclyseye de Tre-droyre</i>. Beneath <i lang= -"cy">Droyre</i> some personal name possibly lies -concealed. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e8905src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e9060" href="#xd25e9060src" name="xd25e9060">32</a></span> -<i lang="cy">Y Ferch o Gefn Ydfa</i> (‘The Maid of Cefn -Ydfa’), by Isaac Craigfryn Hughes, published by Messrs. Daniel -Owen, Howell & Co., Cardiff, 1881. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e9060src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e9065" href="#xd25e9065src" name="xd25e9065">33</a></span> In a -letter dated February 9, 1899, he states, however, that as regards -folklore the death of his father at the age of seventy-six, in the year -1889, had been a great loss to him; for he adds that he was perfectly -familiar <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb174n" href="#pb174n" name= -"pb174n">174</a>]</span>with the traditions of the neighbourhood and -had associated with older men. Among the latter he had been used to -talk with an old man whose father remembered Cromwell passing on his -way to destroy the Iron Works of Pant y Gwaith, where the Cavaliers had -had a cannon cast, which was afterwards used in the engagement at St. -Fagan’s. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e9065src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e9077" href="#xd25e9077src" name="xd25e9077">34</a></span> This -term is sometimes represented as being <i lang="cy">Bendith eu -Mamau</i>, ‘their Mother’s Blessing,’ as if each -fairy were such a delightful offspring as to constitute himself or -herself a blessing to his or her mother; but I have not found -satisfactory evidence to the currency of <i lang="cy">Bendith eu -Mamau</i>, or, as it would be pronounced in Glamorgan, <i lang= -"cy">Béndith ĭ Máma</i>. On the whole, therefore, -perhaps one may regard the name as pointing back to the Celtic -goddesses known in Gaul in Roman times as the Mothers. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e9077src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e9095" href="#xd25e9095src" name="xd25e9095">35</a></span> On Pen -Craig Daf Mr. Hughes gives the following note:—It was the -residence of Dafyđ Morgan or ‘Counsellor Morgan,’ who, -he says, was <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb176n" href="#pb176n" name= -"pb176n">176</a>]</span>executed on Kennington Common for taking the -side of the Pretender. He had retreated to Pen y Graig, where his abode -was, in order to conceal himself; but he was discovered and carried -away at night. Here follows a verse from an old ballad about -him:—</p> -<div class="q"> -<div class="nestedtext"> -<div class="nestedbody"> -<div class="lgouter footnote"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg footnote"> -<p class="line"><i>Dafyđ Morgan ffel a ffol,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Fe aeth yn ol ei hyder:</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Fe neidod naid at</i> rebel <i>haid</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Pan drođ o blaid Pretender.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg footnote"> -<p class="line">Taffy Morgan, sly and daft,</p> -<p class="line">He did his bent go after:</p> -<p class="line">He leaped a leap to a rebel swarm,</p> -<p class="line">To arm for a Pretender.</p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<p> <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e9095src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote" lang="en"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" -id="xd25e9169" href="#xd25e9169src" name="xd25e9169">36</a></span> A -<i>tòn</i> is any green field that is used for grazing and not -meant to be mown, land which has, as it were, its skin of grassy turf -unbroken for years by the plough. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e9169src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e9410" href="#xd25e9410src" name="xd25e9410">37</a></span> On this -Mr. Hughes has a note to the effect that the whole of one milking used -to be given in Glamorgan to workmen for assistance at the harvest or -other work, and that it was not unfrequently enough for the making of -two cheeses. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e9410src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e9473" href="#xd25e9473src" name="xd25e9473">38</a></span> Since -this was first printed I have learnt from Mr. Hughes that the first cry -issued from the Black Cauldron in the Taff (<i lang="cy">o’r -Gerwyn Đu ar Daf</i>), which I take to be a pool in that -river. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e9473src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e9530" href="#xd25e9530src" name="xd25e9530">39</a></span> The Fan -is the highest mountain in the parish of Merthyr Tydfil, Mr. Hughes -tells me: he adds that there was on its side once a chapel with a -burial ground. Its history seems to be lost, but human bones have, as -he states, been frequently found there. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e9530src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e9563" href="#xd25e9563src" name="xd25e9563">40</a></span> The -above, I am sorry to say, is not the only instance of this nasty trick -associating itself with Gwent, as will be seen from the story of -<i lang="cy">Bwca’r Trwyn</i> in chapter x. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e9563src">↑</a></p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch3" class="div1 chapter"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e500">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h2 class="label">CHAPTER III</h2> -<h2 class="main"><span class="sc">Fairy Ways and Words</span></h2> -<div class="epigraph"> -<p class="first">Heavens defend me from that Welsh fairy!</p> -<p class="xd25e5350"><span class="sc">Shakespeare.</span></p> -</div> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">In the previous chapters, the fairy lore of the -Principality was hastily skimmed without any method; and I fear that, -now I have to reproduce some of the things which I gleaned somewhat -later, there will be, if possible, still less method. The general -reader, in case he chances on these pages, will doubtless feel that, as -soon as he has read a few of the tales, the rest seem to be familiar to -him, and exceedingly tiresome. It may be, however, presumed that all -men anxious to arrive at an idea as to the origin among us of the -belief in fairies, will agree that we should have as large and -exhaustive a collection as possible of facts on which to work. If we -can supply the data without stint, the student of anthropology may be -trusted in time to discover their value for his inductions, and their -place in the history of the human race.</p> -<div id="ch3.1" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e511">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">I.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">In the course of the summer of 1882<a class="noteref" -id="xd25e9623src" href="#xd25e9623" name="xd25e9623src">1</a> I was a -good deal in Wales, especially Carnarvonshire, and I made notes of a -great many scraps of legends about the fairies, and other bits of -folklore. I will now string <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb198" href= -"#pb198" name="pb198">198</a>]</span>some of them together as I found -them. I began at Trefriw<a class="noteref" id="xd25e9628src" href= -"#xd25e9628" name="xd25e9628src">2</a>, in Nant Conwy, where I came -across an old man, born and bred there, called Morris Hughes. He -appears to be about seventy years of age: he formerly worked as a -slater, but now he lives at Ỻanrwst, and tries to earn a -livelihood by angling. He told me that fairies came a long while ago to -Cowlyd Farm, near Cowlyd Lake, with a baby to dress, and asked to be -admitted into the house, saying that they would pay well for it. Their -request was granted, and they used to leave money behind them. One day -the servant girl accidentally found they had also left some stuff they -were in the habit of using in washing their children. She examined it, -and, one of her eyes happening to itch, she rubbed it with the finger -that had touched the stuff; so when she went to Ỻanrwst Fair she -saw the same fairy folks there stealing cakes from a standing, and -asked them why they did that. They inquired with what eye she saw them: -she put her hand to the eye, and one of the fairies quickly rubbed it, -so that she never saw any more of them. They were also very fond of -bringing their children to be dressed in the houses between Trefriw and -Ỻanrwst; and on the flat land bordering on the Conwy they used to -dance, frolic, and sing every moonlight night. Evan Thomas of Sgubor -Gerrig used to have money from them. He has been dead, Morris Hughes -said, over sixty years: he had on his land a sort of cowhouse where the -fairies had shelter, and hence the pay.</p> -<p>Morris, when a boy, used to be warned by his parents <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb199" href="#pb199" name="pb199">199</a>]</span>to -take care lest he should be stolen by the fairies. He knew Thomas -Williams of Bryn Syỻty, or, as he was commonly called, Twm Bryn -Syỻty, who was a changeling. He was a sharp, small man, afraid of -nothing. He met his death some years ago by drowning near Eglwys Fach, -when he was about sixty-three years of age. There are relatives of his -about Ỻanrwst still: that is, relatives of his mother, if indeed -she was his mother (<i lang="cy">os oeđ hi’n fam iđo -fo, ynté</i>). Lastly, Morris had a tale about a mermaid cast -ashore by a storm near Conway. She entreated the fishermen who found -her to help her back into her native element; and on their refusing to -comply she prayed them to place her tail at least in the water. A very -crude rhyme describes her dying of exposure to the cold, -thus:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Y forforwyn ar y traeth,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Crio gwaeđu’n arw wnaeth,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Ofn y deuai drycin drannoeth:</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Yr hin yn oer a rhewi wnaeth.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">The stranded mermaid on the beach</p> -<p class="line">Did sorely cry and sorely screech,</p> -<p class="line">Afraid to bide the morrow’s breeze:</p> -<p class="line">The cold it came, and she did freeze.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">But before expiring, the mermaid cursed the people of -Conway to be always poor, and Conway has ever since, so goes the tale, -laboured under the curse; so that when a stranger happens to bring a -sovereign there, the Conway folk, if silver is required, have to send -across the water to Ỻansanffraid for change.</p> -<p>My next informant was John Duncan Maclaren, who was born in 1812, -and lives at Trefriw. His father was a Scotsman, but Maclaren is in all -other respects a Welshman. He also knew the Sgubor Gerrig people, and -that Evan Thomas and Lowri his wife had exceeding great trouble to -prevent their son Roger from being carried away by the fairies. For the -fairy maids were always trying to allure him away, and he was -constantly finding fairy money. The fairy dance, and the playing and -singing that accompanied it, used to take place in <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb200" href="#pb200" name="pb200">200</a>]</span>a -field in front of his father’s house; but Lowri would never let -her son go out after the sun had gone to his battlements (<i lang= -"cy">ar ol i’r haul fyn’d i lawr i gaera</i>). The most -dangerous nights were those when the moon shone brightly, and pretty -wreaths of mist adorned the meadows by the river. Maclaren had heard of -a man, whom he called Siôn Catrin of Tyn Twỻ, finding a -penny every day at the <i lang="cy">pistyỻ</i> or water-spout -near the house, when he went there to fetch water. The flat land -between Trefriw and Ỻanrwst had on it a great many fairy rings, -and some of them are, according to Maclaren, still to be seen. There -the fairies used to dance, and when a young man got into one of the -rings the fairy damsels took him away; but he could be got out unharmed -at the end of a year and a day, when he would be found dancing with -them in the same ring: he must then be dexterously touched by some one -of his friends with a piece of iron and dragged out at once. This is -the way in which a young man whom my notes connect with a place called -Bryn Glas was recovered. He had gone out with a friend, who lost him, -and he wandered into a fairy ring. He had new shoes on at the time, and -his friends brought him out at the end of the interval of a year and a -day; but he could not be made to understand that he had been away more -than five minutes, until he was asked to look at his new shoes, which -were by that time in pieces. Maclaren had also something to say -concerning the history and habitat of the fairies. Those of Nant Conwy -dress in green; and his mother, who died about sixty-two years ago, -aged forty-seven, had told him that they lived seven years on the -earth, seven years in the air, and seven years underground. He also had -a mermaid tale, like that of Pergrin from Dyfed, p. 163. A fisherman -from Ỻandriỻo yn Rhos, between Colwyn and Ỻandudno, -had caught <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb201" href="#pb201" name= -"pb201">201</a>]</span>a mermaid in his net. She asked to be set free, -promising that she would, in case he complied, do him a kindness. He -consented, and one fine day, a long while afterwards, she suddenly -peeped out of the water near him, and shouted: <i lang="cy">Siôn -Ifan, cwyd dy rwyda’ a thyn tua’r lan</i>, ‘John -Evans, take up thy nets and make for the shore.’ He obeyed, and -almost immediately there was a terrible storm, in which many fishermen -lost their lives. The river Conwy is the chief haunt of the mysterious -afanc, already mentioned, p. 130, and Maclaren stated that its name -used to be employed within his memory to frighten girls and children: -so much was it still dreaded. Perhaps I ought to have stated that -Maclaren is very fond of music, and that he told me of a gentleman at -Conway who had taken down in writing a supposed fairy tune. I have made -inquiries of the latter’s son, Mr. Hennessy Hughes of Conway; but -his father’s papers seem to have been lost, so that he cannot -find the tune in question, though he has heard of it.</p> -<p>Whilst on this question of music let me quote from the Ỻwyd -letter in the <i>Cambrian Journal</i> for 1859, pp. 145–6, on -which I have already drawn, pp. 130–3, above. The passage in -point is to the following effect:—</p> -<p>‘I will leave these tales aside whilst I go as far as the Ogo -Đu, “the Black Cave,” which is in the immediate -vicinity of Crigcieth<a class="noteref" id="xd25e9719src" href= -"#xd25e9719" name="xd25e9719src">3</a>, and into which the musicians -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb202" href="#pb202" name= -"pb202">202</a>]</span>entered so far that they lost their way back. -One of them was heard to play on his pipe, and another on his horn, -about two miles from where they went in; and the place where the piper -was heard is called Braich y Bib, and where the man with the horn was -heard is called Braich y Cornor. I do not believe that even a single -man doubts but that this is all true, and I know not how the airs -called Ffarwel Dic y Pibyđ, “Dick the Piper’s -Farewell,” and Ffarwel Dwm Bach, “Little Tom’s -Farewell,” had those names, unless it was from the musicians -above mentioned. Nor do I know that Ned Puw may not have been the -third, and that the air called Ffarwel Ned Puw, “Ned Pugh’s -Farewell,” may not have been the last he played before going into -the cave. I cannot warrant this to be true, as I have only heard it -said by one man, and he merely held it as a supposition, which had been -suggested by this air of Ffarwel Dic y Pibyđ.’</p> -<p>A story, however, mentioned by Cynđelw in the <i lang= -"cy">Brython</i> for 1860, p. 57, makes Ned Pugh enter the cave of Tal -y Clegyr, which the writer in his article identifies with Ness Cliff, -near Shrewsbury. In that cave, which was regarded as a wonderful one, -he says the musician disappeared, while the air he was playing, Ffarwel -Ned Puw, <span class="corr" id="xd25e9782" title= -"Source: ‘">“</span>Ned Pugh’s Farewell,” was -retained in memory of him. Some account of the departure of Ned Pugh -and of the interminable cave into which he entered, will be found given -in a rambling fashion in the <i>Cambrian Quarterly Magazine</i> -(London, 1829), vol. i, pp. 40–5, where the minstrel’s -Welsh name is given as Iolo ap Huw. There we are told that he was last -seen in the twilight of a misty Halloween, and the notes of the tune he -was last heard to play are duly given. One of the surmises as to -Iolo’s ultimate fate is also recorded, namely, that in the other -world he has exchanged his <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb203" href= -"#pb203" name="pb203">203</a>]</span>fiddle for a bugle, and become -huntsman-in-chief to Gwyn ab Nûđ, so that every Halloween he -may be found cheering <i lang="cy">Cwn Annwn</i>, ‘the Hounds of -the Other World,’ over Cader Idris<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e9794src" href="#xd25e9794" name="xd25e9794src">4</a>.</p> -<p>The same summer I fell in with Mr. Morris Evans, of Cerrig -Mân, near Amlwch. He is a mining agent on the Gwydir Estate in -the Vale of Conwy, but he is a native of the neighbourhood of Parys -Mountain, in Anglesey, where he acquired his knowledge of mining. He -had heard fairy tales from his grandmother, Grace Jones, of Ỻwyn -Ysgaw near Mynyđ Mecheỻ, between Amlwch and Holyhead. She -died, nearly ninety years of age, over twenty years ago. She used to -relate how she and others of her own age were wont in their youth to go -out on bright moonlight nights to a spot near Ỻyn y Bwch. They -seldom had to wait there long before they would hear exquisite music -and behold a grand palace standing on the ground. The diminutive folks -of fairyland would then come forth to dance and frolic. The next -morning the palace would be found gone, but the grandmother used to -pick up fairy money on the spot, and this went on regularly so long as -she did not tell others of her luck. My informant, who is himself a man -somewhat over fifty-two, tells me that at a place not far from -Ỻyn y Bwch there were <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb204" href= -"#pb204" name="pb204">204</a>]</span>plenty of fairy rings to be seen -in the grass; and it is in them the fairies were supposed to -dance<a class="noteref" id="xd25e9880src" href="#xd25e9880" name= -"xd25e9880src">5</a>.</p> -<p>From Ỻanrwst I went up to see the bard and antiquary, Mr. -Gethin Jones. His house was prettily situated on the hillside on the -left of the road as you approach the village of Penmachno. I was sorry -to find that his memory had been considerably impaired by a paralytic -stroke from which he had suffered not long before. However, from his -room he pointed out to me a spot on the other side of the Machno, -called <i lang="cy">Y Werđon</i>, which means ‘The Green -Land,’ or more literally, ‘The Greenery,’ so to say. -It was well known for its green, grassy fairy rings, formerly -frequented by the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i>; and he said he could -distinguish some of the rings even then from where he stood. The -Werđon is on the Bennar, and the Bennar is the high ground between -Penmachno and Dolwyđelan. The spot in question is on the part -nearest to the Conwy Falls. This name, <i lang="cy">Y Werđon</i>, -is liable to be confounded with <i lang="cy">Iwerđon</i>, -‘Ireland,’ which is commonly treated as if it began with -the definite article, so that it is made into <i lang="cy">Y -Werđon</i> and <i lang="cy">Werđon</i>. The fairy <i lang= -"cy">Werđon</i>, in the radical form <i lang= -"cy">Gwerđon</i>, not only recalls to my mind the Green Isles -called <i lang="cy">Gwerđonau Ỻïon</i>, but also the -saying, common in North Wales, that a person in great anxiety -‘sees <i lang="cy">Y Werđon</i>.’ Thus, for instance, -a man who fails to return to his family at the hour expected, and -believes his people to be in great anxiety about him, expresses himself -by saying that they will have ‘seen the Werđon on my -account’ (<i lang="cy">mi fyđan’ wedi gwel’d y -Werđon am dana’i</i>). Is that Ireland, or is it the land of -the fairies, the other world, in fact? <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb205" href="#pb205" name="pb205">205</a>]</span>If the latter, it -might simply mean they will have died of anxiety; but I confess I have -not so far been able to decide. I am not aware that the term occurs in -any other form of expression than the one I have given; if it had, and -if the Werđon were spoken of in some other way, that might -possibly clear up the difficulty. If it refers to Ireland, it must -imply that sighting Ireland is equivalent to going astray at sea, -meaning in this sort of instance, getting out of one’s senses; -but the Welsh are not very much given to nautical expressions. It -reminds me somewhat of Gerald Griffin’s allusion to the Phantom -City, and the penalty paid by those who catch a glimpse of its turrets -as the dividing waves expose them for a moment to view on the western -coast of Ireland:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">Soon close the white waters to screen it,</p> -<p class="line">And the bodement, they say, of the wonderful sight,</p> -<p class="line">Is death to the eyes that have seen it.</p> -</div> -<p class="first">The Fairy Glen above Bettws y Coed is called in Welsh -Ffos ‘Nođyn, ‘the Sink of the Abyss’; but Mr. -Gethin Jones told me that it was also called Glyn y Tylwyth Teg, which -is very probable, as some such a designation is required to account for -the English name, ‘the Fairy Glen.’ People on the Capel -Garmon side used to see the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth</i> playing there, and -descending into the Ffos or Glen gently and lightly without occasioning -themselves the least harm. The Fairy Glen was, doubtless, supposed to -contain an entrance to the world below. This reminds one of the name of -the pretty hollow running inland from the railway station at Bangor. -Why should it be called Nant Uffern, or ‘The Hollow of -Hell’? Can it be that there was a supposed entrance to the fairy -world somewhere there? In any case, I am quite certain that Welsh -place-names involve allusions to the fairies <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb206" href="#pb206" name="pb206">206</a>]</span>much -oftener than has been hitherto supposed; and I should be inclined to -cite, as a further example, Moel Eilio<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e9937src" href="#xd25e9937" name="xd25e9937src">6</a> or Moel -Eilian, from the personal name Eilian, to be mentioned presently. Moel -Eilian is a mountain under which the fairies were supposed to have -great stores of treasure. But to return to Mr. Gethin Jones, I had -almost forgotten that I have another instance of his in point. He -showed me a passage in a paper which he wrote in Welsh some time ago on -the antiquities of Yspyty Ifan. He says that where the Serw joins the -Conwy there is a cave, to which tradition asserts that a harpist was -once allured by the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i>. He was, of course, -not seen afterwards, but the echo of the music made by him and them on -their harps is still to be heard a little lower down, under the field -called to this day Gweirglođ y Telynorion, ‘The -Harpers’ Meadow’: compare the extract from Edward -Ỻwyd’s correspondence at p. 202 above.</p> -<p>Mr. Gethin Jones also spoke to me of the lake called Ỻyn -Pencraig, which was drained in hopes of finding lead underneath it, an -expectation not altogether doomed to disappointment, and he informed me -that its old name was Ỻyn Ỻifon; so the moor around it was -called Gwaen Ỻifon. It appears to have been a large lake, but -only in wet weather, and to have no deep bed. The names connected with -the spot are now Nant Gwaen Ỻifon and the Gwaith (or Mine) of -Gwaen Ỻifon: they are, I understand, within the township of -Trefriw. The name Ỻyn Ỻifon is of great interest when taken -in connexion with the Triadic account of the cataclysm called the -Bursting of Ỻyn Ỻiƒon. Mr. Gethin Jones, however, -believed himself that Ỻyn <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb207" -href="#pb207" name="pb207">207</a>]</span>Ỻïon was no other -than Bala Lake, through which the Dee makes her way.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch3.2" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e521">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">II.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">One day in August of the same year, I arrived at Dinas -Station, and walked down to Ỻandwrog in order to see Dinas -Dinỻe, and to ascertain what traditions still existed there -respecting Caer Arianrhod, Ỻew Ỻawgyffes, Dylan Eilton, and -other names that figure in the <i>Mabinogi</i> of Math ab Mathonwy. I -called first on the schoolmaster, and he kindly took me to the clerk, -Hugh Evans, a native of the neighbourhood of Ỻangefni, in -Anglesey. He had often heard people talk of some women having once on a -time come from Tregar Anthreg to Cae’r ’Loda’, a -place near the shore, to fetch food or water, and that when they looked -back they beheld the town overflowed by the sea: the walls can still be -seen at low water. Gwennan was the name of one of the women, and she -was buried at the place now called Beđ Gwennan, or Gwennan’s -Grave. He had also heard the fairy tales of Waen Fawr and Nant y -Bettws, narrated by the antiquary, Owen Williams of the former place. -For instance, he had related to him the tale of the man who slept on a -clump of rushes, and thought he was all the while in a magnificent -mansion; see p. 100, above. Now I should explain that Tregar Anthreg is -to be seen at low water from Dinas Dinỻe as a rock not far from -the shore. The Caranthreg which it implies is one of the modern forms -to which Caer Arianrhod has been reduced; and to this has been prefixed -a synonym of <i lang="cy">caer</i>, namely, <i lang="cy">tref</i>, -reduced to <i lang="cy">tre’</i>, just as Carmarthen is -frequently called <i lang="cy">Tre’ Gaerfyrđin</i>. -Cae’r ’Loda’ is explained as Cae’r -Aelodau’, ‘The Field of the Limbs’; but I am sorry to -say that I forgot to <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb208" href="#pb208" -name="pb208">208</a>]</span>note the story explanatory of the name. It -is given, I think, to a farm, and so is Beđ Gwennan likewise the -name of a farm house. The tenant of the latter, William Roberts, was at -home when I visited the spot. He told me the same story, but with a -variation: three sisters had come from Tregan Anrheg to fetch -provisions, when their city was overflowed. Gwen fled to the spot now -called Beđ Gwennan, Elan to Tyđyn Elan, or Elan’s -Holding, and Maelan to Rhos Maelan, or Maelan’s Moor; all three -are names of places in the immediate neighbourhood.</p> -<p>From Dinas Dinỻe I was directed across Lord Newborough’s -grounds at Glynỻifon to Pen y Groes Station; but on my way I had -an opportunity of questioning several of the men employed at -Glynỻifon. One of these was called William Thomas Solomon, an -intelligent middle-aged man, who works in the garden there. He said -that the three women who escaped from the submerged city were sisters, -and that he had learned in his infancy to call them Gwennan bi -Dôn, Elan bi Dôn, and Maelan bi Dôn. Lastly, the name -of the city, according to him, was Tregan Anthrod. I had the following -forms of the name that day:—Tregar Anrheg, Tregar Anthreg, Tregan -Anrheg, Tregan Anthreg, and Tregan Anthrod. All these are attempts to -reproduce what might be written Tre’-Gaer-Arianrhod. The -modification of <i lang="cy">nrh</i> into <i lang="cy">nthr</i> is very -common in North Wales, and Tregar Anrheg seems to have been fashioned -on the supposition that the name had something to do with <i lang= -"cy">anrheg</i>, ‘a gift.’ Tregan Anthrod is undoubtedly -the Caer Arianrhod, or ‘fortress of Arianrhod,’ in the -<i>Mabinogi</i>, and it is duly marked as such in a map of -Speede’s at the spot where it should be. Now the Arianrhod of the -<i>Mabinogi</i> of Math could hardly be called a lady of rude virtue, -and it is the idea in the <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb209" href= -"#pb209" name="pb209">209</a>]</span>neighbourhood that the place was -inundated on account of the wickedness of the inhabitants. So it would -appear that Gwennan, Elan, and Maelan, Arianrhod’s sisters, were -the just ones allowed to escape. Arianrhod was probably drowned as the -principal sinner in possession; but I did not find, as I expected, that -the crime which called for such an expiation was in this instance that -of playing cards on Sunday. In fact, this part of the legend does not -seem to have been duly elaborated as yet.</p> -<p>I must now come back to Solomon’s <i lang="cy">bi -Dôn</i>, which puzzles me not a little. Arianrhod was daughter of -Dôn, and so several other characters in the same <i>Mabinogi</i> -were children of Dôn. But what is <i lang="cy">bi Dôn</i>? -I have noticed that all the Welsh antiquaries who take Don out of books -invariably call that personage Dòn or Donn with a short -<i>o</i>, which is wrong, and this has saved me from being deceived -once or twice: so I take it that <i lang="cy">bi Dôn</i> is, as -Solomon asserted, a local expression of which he did not know the -meaning. I can only add, in default of a better explanation, that -<i lang="cy">bi Dôn</i> recalled to my mind what I had shortly -before heard on my trip from Aberdaron to Bardsey Island. My wife and -I, together with two friends, engaged, after much eloquent haggling, a -boat at the former place, but one of the men who were to row us -insinuated a boy of his, aged four, into the boat, an addition which -did not exactly add to the pleasures of that somewhat perilous trip -amidst incomprehensible currents. But the Aberdaron boatmen always -called that child <i lang="cy">bi Donn</i>, which I took to have been a -sort of imitation of an infantile pronunciation of ‘baby -John,’ for his name was John, which Welsh infants as a rule first -pronounce Donn: I can well remember the time when I did. This, applied -to <i lang="cy">Gwennan bi Dôn</i>, would imply that Solomon -heard it as a piece of nursery lore when he was a child, <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb210" href="#pb210" name="pb210">210</a>]</span>and -that it meant simply—Gwennan, baby or child of Dôn. Lastly, -the only trace of Dylan I could find was in the name of a small -promontory, called variously by the Glynỻifon men Pwynt Maen -Tylen, which was Solomon’s pronunciation, and Pwynt Maen Dulan. -It is also known, as I was given to understand, as Pwynt y Wig: I -believe I have seen it given in maps as Maen Dylan Point.</p> -<p>Solomon told me the following fairy tale, and he was afterwards kind -enough to have it written out for me. I give it in his own words, as it -is peculiar in some respects:—</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Mi’r oeđ gwr a gwraig yn byw yn y Garth -Dorwen<a class="noteref" id="xd25e10043src" href="#xd25e10043" name= -"xd25e10043src">7</a> ryw gyfnod maith yn ol, ag aethant i -Gaer’narfon i gyflogi morwyn ar đyđ ffair -G’langaeaf, ag yr oeđ yn arferiad gan feibion a merched y -pryd hynny i’r rhai oeđ yn sefyỻ aỻan am -lefyđ aros yn top y maes presennol wrth boncan las oeđ yn y -fan y ỻe saif y Post-office presennol; aeth yr hen wr a’r -hen wraig at y fan yma a gwelent eneth lan a gwaỻt melyn yn -sefyỻ ’chydig o’r neiỻdu i bawb araỻ; -aeth yr hen wraig ati a gofynnođ i’r eneth oeđ arni -eisiau ỻe. Atebođ fod, ag feỻy cyflogwyd yr eneth yn -đioed a daeth i’w ỻe i’r amser penodedig. Mi -fyđai yn arferiad yr adeg hynny o nyđu ar ol swper yn hirnos -y gauaf, ag fe fyđai y forwyn yn myn’d i’r -weirglođ i nyđu wrth oleu y ỻoer; ag fe fyđai -tylwyth teg yn dwad ati hi i’r weirglođ i ganu a dawnsio. A -ryw bryd yn y gwanwyn pan esdynnođ y dyđ diangođ Eilian -gyd a’r tylwythion teg i ffwrđ, ag ni welwyd -’mo’ni mwyach. Mae y cae y gwelwyd hi điwethaf yn cael -ei alw hyd y dyđ heđyw yn Gae Eilian a’r weirglođ -yn Weirglođ y Forwyn. Mi’r oeđ hen <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb211" href="#pb211" name= -"pb211">211</a>]</span>wraig y Garth Dorwen yn arfer rhoi gwrageđ -yn eu gwlâu, a byđai pawb yn cyrchu am dani o bob cyfeiriad; -a rhyw bryd dyma wr boneđig ar ei geffyl at y drws ar noswaith -loergan ỻeuad, a hithau yn glawio ’chydig ag yn niwl -braiđ, i ’nol yr hen wreigan at ei wraig; ag feỻy aeth -yn sgil y gwr dïarth ar gefn y march i Ros y Cowrt. Ar ganol y -Rhos pryd hynny ’r oeđ poncan ỻed uchel yn debyg i hen -amđiffynfa a ỻawer o gerrig mawrion ar ei phen a -charneđ fawr o gerrig yn yr ochor ogleđol iđi, ag mae hi -i’w gwel’d hyd y dyđ heđyw dan yr enw Bryn y -Pibion. Pan gyrhaeđasan’ y ỻe aethan’ i -ogo’ fawr ag aethan’ i ’stafeỻ ỻe’r -oeđ y wraig yn ei gwely, a’r ỻe crandia’ a -welođ yr hen wraig yrioed. Ag fe roth y wraig yn ei gwely ag aeth -at y tan i drin y babi; ag ar ol iđi orphen dyna y gwr yn dod a -photel i’r hen wraig i hiro ỻygaid y babi ag erfyn arni -beidio a’i gyffwr’ a’i ỻygaid ei hun. Ond ryw -fođ ar ol rhoi y botel heibio fe đaeth cosfa ar lygaid yr hen -wraig a rhwbiođ ei ỻygaid â’r un bys ag oeđ -wedi bod yn rhwbio ỻygaid y baban a gwelođ hefo ’r -ỻygad hwnnw y wraig yn gorfeđ ar docyn o frwyn a rhedyn -crinion mewn ogo’ fawr o gerrig mawr o bob tu iđi a -’chydig bach o dan mewn rhiw gornel, a gwelođ mai Eilian -oeđ hi, ei hen forwyn, ag hefo’r ỻygad araỻ yn -gwel’d y ỻe crandia’ a welođ yrioed. Ag yn mhen -ychydig ar ol hynny aeth i’r farchnad i Gaer’narfon a -gwelođ y gwr a gofynnođ iđo—‘Pa sud mae -Eilian?’ ‘O y mae hi yn bur đa,’ međai wrth -yr hen wraig: ‘a pha lygad yr ydych yn fy ngwel’d?’ -‘Hefo hwn,’ međai hithau. Cymerođ babwyren ag -a’i tynođ aỻan ar unwaith.</i></p> -<p>‘An old man and his wife lived at the Garth Dorwen in some -period a long while ago. They went to Carnarvon to hire a servant maid -at the Allhallows’<a class="noteref" id="xd25e10057src" href= -"#xd25e10057" name="xd25e10057src">8</a> fair; <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb212" href="#pb212" name="pb212">212</a>]</span>and -it was the custom then for young men and women who stood out for places -to station themselves at the top of the present <i lang="cy">Maes</i>, -by a little green eminence which was where the present Post-office -stands. The old man and his wife went to that spot, and saw there a -lass with yellow hair, standing a little apart from all the others; the -old woman went to her and asked her if she wanted a place. She replied -that she did, and so she hired herself at once and came to her place at -the time fixed. In those times it was customary during the long winter -nights that spinning should be done after supper. Now the maid servant -would go to the meadow to spin by the light of the moon, and the -<i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> used to come to her to sing and dance. But -some time in the spring, when the days had grown longer, Eilian escaped -with the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i>, so that she was seen no more. -The field where she was last seen is to this day called Eilian’s -Field, and the meadow is known as the Maid’s Meadow. The old -woman of Garth Dorwen was in the habit of putting women to bed, and she -was in great request far and wide. Some time after Eilian’s -escape there came a gentleman on horseback to the door one night when -the moon was full, while there was a slight rain and just a little -mist, to fetch the old woman to his wife. So she rode off behind the -stranger on his horse, and came to Rhos y Cowrt. Now there was at that -time, in the centre of the <i lang="cy">rhos</i>, somewhat of a rising -ground that looked like an old fortification, with many big stones on -the top, and a large cairn of stones on the northern side: it is to be -seen there to this day, and it goes by the name of Bryn y Pibion, but I -have never visited the spot. When they <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb213" href="#pb213" name="pb213">213</a>]</span>reached the spot, -they entered a large cave, and they went into a room where the wife lay -in her bed; it was the finest place the old woman had seen in her life. -When she had successfully brought the wife to bed, she went near the -fire to dress the baby; and when she had done, the husband came to the -old woman with a bottle of ointment<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e10079src" href="#xd25e10079" name="xd25e10079src">9</a> that she -might anoint the baby’s eyes; but he entreated her not to touch -her own eyes with it. Somehow after putting the bottle by, one of the -old woman’s eyes happened to itch, and she rubbed it with the -same finger that she had used to rub the baby’s eyes. Then she -saw with that eye how the wife lay on a bundle of rushes and withered -ferns in a large cave, with big stones all round her, and with a little -fire in one corner; and she saw also that the lady was only Eilian, her -former servant girl, whilst, with the other eye, she beheld the finest -place she had ever seen. Not long afterwards the old midwife went to -Carnarvon to market, when she saw the husband, and said to him, -“How is Eilian?” “She is pretty well,” said he -to the old woman, “but with what eye do you see me?” -“With this one,” was the reply; and he took a bulrush and -put her eye out at once.’</p> -<p>That is exactly the tale, my informant tells me, as he heard it from -his mother, who heard it from an old woman who lived at Garth Dorwen -when his mother was a girl, about eighty-four years ago, as he guessed -it to have been; but in his written version he has omitted one thing -which he told me at Glynỻifon, namely, that, when the servant -girl went out to the fairies to spin, an enormous amount of spinning -used to be done. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb214" href="#pb214" -name="pb214">214</a>]</span>I mention this as it reminds me of the -tales of other nations, where the girl who cannot spin straw into gold -is assisted by a fairy, on certain conditions which are afterwards -found very inconvenient. It may be guessed that in the case of Eilian -the conditions involved her becoming a fairy’s wife, and that she -kept to them. Lastly, I should like the archæologists of -Carnarvonshire to direct their attention to Bryn y Pibion; for they -might be expected to come across the remains there of a barrow or of a -fort.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch3.3" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e531">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">III.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">The same summer I happened to meet the Rev. Robert -Hughes, of Uwchlaw’r Ffynnon, near Ỻanaelhaearn, a village -on which Tre’r Ceiri, or the Town of the Keiri, looks down in its -primitive grimness from the top of one of the three heights of the -Eifl, or Rivals as English people call them. The district is remarkable -for the longevity of its inhabitants, and Mr. Hughes counted fifteen -farmers in his immediate neighbourhood whose average age was -eighty-three; and four years previously the average age of eighteen of -them was no less than eighty-five. He himself was, when I met him, -seventy-one years of age, and he considered that he represented the -traditions of more than a century and a half, as he was a boy of twelve -when one of his grandfathers died at the age of ninety-two: the age -reached by one of his grandmothers was all but equal, while his father -died only a few years ago, after nearly reaching his ninety-fifth -birthday.</p> -<p>Story-telling was kept alive in the parish of Ỻanaelhaearn by -the institution known there as the <i lang="cy">pilnos</i>, or -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb215" href="#pb215" name= -"pb215">215</a>]</span>peeling night, when the neighbours met in one -another’s houses to spend the long winter evenings dressing hemp -and carding wool, though I guess that a <i lang="cy">pilnos</i> was -originally the night when people met to <i>peel</i> rushes for -rushlights. When they left these merry meetings they were ready, as Mr. -Hughes says, to see anything. In fact, he gives an instance of some -people coming from a <i lang="cy">pilnos</i> across the mountain from -Nant Gwrtheyrn to Ỻithfaen, and finding the fairies singing and -dancing with all their might: they were drawn in among them and found -themselves left alone in the morning on the heather. Indeed, Mr. Hughes -has seen the fairies himself: it was on the Pwỻheli road, as he -was returning in the grey of the morning from the house of his -<i>fiancée</i> when he was twenty-seven. The fairies he saw came -along riding on wee horses: his recollection is that he now and then -mastered his eyes and found the road quite clear, but the next moment -the vision would return, and he thought he saw the diminutive cavalcade -as plainly as possible. Similarly, a man of the name of Solomon Evans, -when, thirty years ago, making his way home late at night through -Glynỻifon Park, found himself followed by quite a crowd of little -creatures, which he described as being of the size of guinea pigs and -covered with red and white spots. He was an ignorant man, who knew no -better than to believe to the day of his death, some eight or nine -years ago, that they were demons. This is probably a blurred version of -a story concerning <i lang="cy">Cwn Annwn</i>, ‘Hell -hounds,’ such as the following, published by Mr. O. M. Edwards in -his <i lang="cy">Cymru</i> for 1897, p. 190, from Mr. J. H. -Roberts’ essay mentioned above at p. 148:—‘Ages ago -as a man who had been engaged on business, not the most creditable in -the world, was returning in the depth of night across Cefn Creini, and -thinking in a downcast frame of mind <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb216" href="#pb216" name="pb216">216</a>]</span>over what he had been -doing, he heard in the distance a low and fear-inspiring bark; then -another bark, and another, and then half a dozen and more. Ere long he -became aware that he was being pursued by dogs, and that they were -<i lang="cy">Cwn Annwn</i>. He beheld them coming: he tried to flee, -but he felt quite powerless and could not escape. Nearer and nearer -they came, and he saw the shepherd with them: his face was black and he -had horns on his head. They had come round him and stood in a -semicircle ready to rush upon him, when he had a remarkable -deliverance: he remembered that he had in his pocket a small cross, -which he showed them. They fled in the greatest terror in all -directions, and this accounts for the proverb, <i lang="cy">Mwy -na’r cythraul at y groes</i> (Any more than the devil to the -cross).’ That is Mr. Roberts’ story; but several allusions -have already been made to <i lang="cy">Cwn Annwn</i>. It would be right -probably to identify them in the first instance with the pack with -which Arawn, king of Annwn, is found hunting by Pwyỻ, king of -Dyfed, when the latter happens to meet him in Glyn Cuch in his own -realm. Then in a poem in the <i>Black Book of Carmarthen</i> we find -Gwyn ab Nûđ with a pack led by Dormarth, a hound with a red -snout which he kept close to the ground when engaged in the chase; -similarly in the story of Iolo ab Huw the dogs are treated as belonging -to Gwyn. But on the whole the later idea has more usually been, that -the devil is the huntsman, that his dogs give chase in the air, that -their quarry consists of the souls of the departed, and that their bark -forebodes a death, since they watch for the souls of men about to die. -This, however, might be objected to as pagan; so I have heard the -finishing touch given to it in the neighbourhood of Ystrad Meurig, by -one who, like Mr. Pughe, explained that it is the souls only of -notoriously wicked men and well-known evil livers. <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb217" href="#pb217" name="pb217">217</a>]</span>With -this limitation the pack<a class="noteref" id="xd25e10143src" href= -"#xd25e10143" name="xd25e10143src">10</a> seems in no immediate danger -of being regarded as poaching.</p> -<p>To return to Ỻanaelhaearn, it is right to say that good -spirits too, who attend on good Calvinists, are there believed in. -Morris Hughes, of Cwm Corryn, was the first Calvinistic Methodist at -Ỻanaelhaearn; he was great-grandfather to Robert Hughes’ -wife; and he used to be followed by two pretty little yellow birds. He -would call to them, ‘<i lang="cy">Wryd, Wryd!</i>’ and they -would come and feed out of his hand, and when he was dying they came -and flapped their wings against his window. This was testified to by -John Thomas, of Moelfre Bach, who was present at the time. Thomas died -some twenty-five years ago, at the age of eighty-seven. I have heard -this story from other people, but I do not know what to make of it, -though I may add that the little birds are believed to have been -angels. In Mr. Rees’ <i>Welsh Saints</i>, pp. 305–6, Gwryd -is given as the name of a friar who lived about the end of the twelfth -century, and has been commemorated on November 1; and the author adds a -note referring to the <i>Cambrian Register</i> for 1800, vol. iii. p. -221, where it is said that Gwryd relieved the bard Einion ab Gwalchmai -of some oppression, probably mental, which had afflicted him for seven -years. Is one to suppose that Gwryd sent two angels in the form of -little birds to protect the first Ỻanaelhaearn Methodist? The -call ‘Wryd, Wryd,’ would seem to indicate that the name was -not originally <i lang="cy">Gwryd</i>, but <i lang="cy">Wryd</i>, to be -identified possibly with the Pictish name <i>Uoret</i> in an -inscription at St. Vigean’s, near Arbroath, and to be -distinguished <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb218" href="#pb218" name= -"pb218">218</a>]</span>from the Welsh word <i lang="cy">gwryd</i>, -‘valour,’ and from the Welsh name <i lang="cy">Gwriad</i>, -representing what in its Gaulish form was <i>Viriatus</i>. We possibly -have the name <i lang="cy">Wryd</i> in Hafod Wryd, a place in the -Machno Valley above Bettws y Coed; otherwise one would have expected -<i lang="cy">Hafod y Gwryd</i>, making colloquially, <i lang="cy">Hafod -Gwryd</i>.</p> -<p>Mr. Hughes told me a variety of things about Nant Gwrtheyrn, one of -the spots where the Vortigern story is localized. The Nant is a sort of -a <i lang="fr">cul de sac</i> hollow opening to the sea at the foot of -the Eifl. There is a rock there called <i lang="cy">Y Farches</i>, and -the angle of the sea next to the old castle, which seems to be merely a -mound, is called <i lang="cy">Y Ỻynclyn</i>, or ‘The -Whirlpool’; and this is perhaps an important item in the -localizing of Vortigern’s city there. I was informed by Mr. -Hughes that the grave of Olfyn is in this Nant, with a razed church -close by: both are otherwise quite unknown to me. Coming away from this -weird spot to the neighbourhood of Celynnog, one finds that the -Pennarđ of the <i>Mabinogi</i> of Math is now called Pennarth, and -has on it a well-known cromlech. Of course, I did not leave Mr. Hughes -without asking him about Caer Arianrhod, and I found that he called it -Tre’ Gaer Anrheg: he described it as a stony patch in the sea, -and it can, he says, be reached on foot when the ebb is at its lowest -in spring and autumn. The story he had heard about it when he was a boy -at school with David Thomas, better known by his bardic name of -<i lang="cy">Dafyđ Đu Eryri</i>, was the -following:—</p> -<p>‘Tregaer Anrheg was inhabited by a family of robbers, and -among other things they killed and robbed a man at Glyn Iwrch, near the -further wall of Glynnỻifon Park: this completed the measure of -their lawlessness. There was one woman, however, living with them at -Tregaer Anrheg, who was not related to them, and as she went out one -evening with <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb219" href="#pb219" name= -"pb219">219</a>]</span>her pitcher to fetch water, she heard a voice -crying out, <i lang="cy">Dos i ben y bryn i wel’d -rhyfeđod</i>, that is, Go up the hill to see a wonder. She obeyed, -and as soon as she got to the top of the hill, whereby was meant Dinas -Dinỻe, she beheld Tregaer Anrheg sinking in the sea.’</p> -<p>As I have wandered away from the fairies I may add the following -curious bit of legend which Mr. Hughes gave me:—‘When St. -Beuno lived at Celynnog, he used to go regularly to preach at -Ỻanđwyn on the opposite side of the water, which he always -crossed on foot. But one Sunday he accidentally dropped his book of -sermons into the water, and when he had failed to recover it a <i lang= -"cy">gylfin-hir</i>, or curlew, came by, picked it up, and placed it on -a stone out of the reach of the tide. The saint prayed for the -protection and favour of the Creator for the <i lang= -"cy">gylfin-hir</i>: it was granted, and so nobody ever knows where -that bird makes its nest.’</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch3.4" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e541">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">IV.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">One day in August of the same summer I went to have -another look at the old inscribed stone at Gesail Gyfarch<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e10250src" href="#xd25e10250" name= -"xd25e10250src">11</a>, near Tremadoc, and, instead of returning the -same way, I walked across to Criccieth Station; but on my way I was -directed to call at a farm house called Ỻwyn y Mafon Uchaf, where -I was to see Mr. Edward Ỻewelyn, a bachelor then seventy-six -years of age. He is a native of the neighbourhood, and has always lived -in it; moreover, he has now been for some time blind. He had heard a -good many fairy tales. Among others he mentioned John Roberts, a slater -from the <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb220" href="#pb220" name= -"pb220">220</a>]</span>Garn, that is Carn Dolbenmaen, as having one -day, when there was a little mist and a drizzling rain, heard a crowd -of fairies talking together in great confusion, near a sheepfold on -Ỻwytmor Mountain; but he was too much afraid to look at them. He -also told me of a man at Ystum Cegid, a farm not far off, having -married a fairy wife on condition that he was not to touch her with any -kind of iron on pain of her leaving him for ever. Then came the usual -accident in catching a horse in order to go to a fair at Carnarvon, and -the immediate disappearance of the wife. At this point Mr. -Ỻewelyn’s sister interposed to the effect that the wife did -once return and address her husband in the rhyme, <i lang="cy">Os -byđ anwyd ar fy mab</i>, &c.: see pp. 44, 55 above. Then Mr. -Ỻewelyn enumerated several people who are of this family, among -others a girl, who is, according to him, exactly like the fairies. This -made me ask what the fairies are like, and he answered that they are -small unprepossessing creatures, with yellow skin and black hair. Some -of the men, however, whom he traced to a fairy origin are by no means -of this description. The term there for men of fairy descent is -<i>Belsiaid</i>, and they live mostly in the neighbouring parish of -Pennant, where it would never do for me to go and collect fairy tales, -as I am told; and Mr. Ỻewelyn remembers the fighting that used to -take place at the fairs at Penmorfa if the term <i>Belsiaid</i> once -began to be heard. Mr. Ỻewelyn was also acquainted with the tale -of the midwife that went to a fairy family, and how the thieving -husband had deprived her of the use of one eye. He also spoke of the -fairies changing children, and how one of these changelings, supposed -to be a baby, expressed himself to the effect that he had seen the -acorn before the oak, and the egg before the chick, but never anybody -who brewed ale in an egg-shell: see p. 62 above. As to <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb221" href="#pb221" name= -"pb221">221</a>]</span>modes of getting rid of the changelings, a -friend of Mr. Ỻewelyn’s mentioned the story that one was -once dropped into the Glaslyn river, near Beđgelert. The sort of -children the fairies liked were those that were unlike their own; that -is, bairns whose hair was white, or inclined to yellow, and whose skin -was fair. He had a great deal to say of a certain Elis Bach of Nant -Gwrtheyrn, who used to be considered a changeling. With the exception -of this changing of children the fairies seemed to have been on fairly -good terms with the inhabitants, and to have been in the habit of -borrowing from farm houses a <i lang="cy">padeỻ</i> and <i lang= -"cy">gradeỻ</i> for baking. The <i lang="cy">gradeỻ</i> is -a sort of round flat iron, on which the dough is put, and the <i lang= -"cy">padeỻ</i> is the <i>patella</i> or pan put over it: they are -still commonly used for baking in North Wales. Well, the fairies used -to borrow these two articles, and by way of payment to leave money on -the hob at night. All over Ỻeyn the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth</i> are -represented as borrowing <i lang="cy">padeỻ a gradeỻ</i>. -They seem to have never been very strong in household furniture, -especially articles made of iron. Mr. Ỻewelyn had heard that the -reason why people do not see fairies nowadays is that they have been -exorcised (<i lang="cy">wedi eu hoffrymu</i>) for hundreds of years to -come.</p> -<p>About the same time I was advised to try the memory of Miss Jane -Williams, who lives at the Graig, Tremadoc: she was then, as I was -told, seventy-five, very quick-witted, but by no means communicative to -idlers. The most important information she had for me was to the effect -that the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> had been exorcised away (<i lang= -"cy">wedi ’ffrymu</i>) and would not be back in <i>our</i> day. -When she was about twelve she served at the Geỻi between Tremadoc -and Pont Aberglaslyn. Her master’s name was Siôn Ifan, and -his wife was a native of the neighbourhood of <span class="corr" id= -"xd25e10322" title="Source: Carnavon">Carnarvon</span>; she had many -tales to <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb222" href="#pb222" name= -"pb222">222</a>]</span>tell them about the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth</i>, -how they changed children, how they allured men to the fairy rings, and -how their dupes returned after a time in a wretched state, with hardly -any flesh on their bones. She heard her relate the tale of a man who -married a fairy, and how she left him; but before going away from her -husband and children she asked the latter by name which they would like -to have, a dirty cow-yard (<i lang="cy">buches fudur</i>) or a clean -cow-yard (<i lang="cy">buches lân</i>). Some gave the right -answer, a dirty cow-yard, but some said a clean cow-yard: the lot of -the latter was poverty, for they were to have no stock of cattle. The -same question is asked in a story recorded by the late Rev. Elias Owen, -in his <i>Welsh Folk-lore</i>, p. 82<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e10340src" href="#xd25e10340" name="xd25e10340src">12</a>: his -instance belongs to the neighbourhood of Pentrevoelas, in -Denbighshire.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch3.5" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e551">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">V.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">When I was staying at Pwỻheli the same summer, I -went out to the neighbouring village of Four Crosses, and found a -native of the place, who had heard a great many curious things from his -mother. His name was Lewis Jones: he was at the time over eighty, and -he had formerly been a saddler. Among other things, his mother often -told him that her grandmother had frequently been with the fairies, -when the latter was a child. She lived at Plâs Du, and once she -happened to be up near Carn Bentyrch when she saw them. She found them -resembling little children, and playing in a brook that she had to -cross. She was so delighted with them, and stayed so long with them, -that a search was made for her, when she was found in the company of -the fairies. Another time, they met her as <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb223" href="#pb223" name="pb223">223</a>]</span>she -was going on an errand across a large bog on a misty day, when there -was a sort of a drizzle, which one might call either dew or rain, as it -was not decidedly either, but something between the two, such as the -Welsh would call <i lang="cy">gwlithlaw</i>, ‘dew-rain.’ -She loitered in their company until a search was made for her again. -Lewis Jones related to me the story of the midwife—he pronounced -it in Welsh ‘midwaith’—who attended on a fairy. As in -the other versions, she lost the sight of one eye in consequence of her -discovering the gentleman fairy thieving; but the fair at which this -happened was held in this instance at Nefyn. He related also how a -farmer at Pennant had wedded a fairy called Bella. This tale proceeded -like the other versions, and did not even omit the fighting at -Penmorfa: see pp. 89, 93, 220. He had likewise the tale about the two -youths who had gone out to fetch some cattle, and came, while returning -about dusk, across a party of fairies dancing. The one was drawn into -the circle, and the other was suspected at length of having murdered -him, until, at the suggestion of a wizard, he went to the same place at -the end of a year and a day: then he found him dancing, and managed to -get him out. He had been reduced to a mere skeleton, but he inquired at -once if the cattle he was driving were far ahead. Jones had heard of a -child changed by the fairies when its mother had placed it in some hay -while she worked at the harvest. She discovered he was not her own by -brewing in an egg-shell, as usual. Then she refused to take any notice -of him, and she soon found her own baby returned; but the latter looked -much the worse for its sojourn in the land of the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth -Teg</i>.</p> -<p>My informant described to me Elis Bach of Nant Gwrtheyrn, already -mentioned, p. 221, who died somewhat more than forty years ago. His -father was a <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb224" href="#pb224" name= -"pb224">224</a>]</span>farmer there, and his children, both boys and -girls, were like ordinary folks, excepting Elis, who was deformed, his -legs being so short that his body seemed only a few inches from the -ground when he walked. His voice was also small and squeaky. However, -he was very sharp, and could find his way among the rocks pretty well -when he went in quest of his father’s sheep and goats, of which -there used to be plenty there formerly. Everybody believed Elis to have -been a changeling, and one saying of his is still remembered in that -part of the country. When strangers visited Nant Gwrtheyrn, a thing -which did not frequently happen, and when his parents asked them to -their table, and pressed them to eat, he would squeak out drily, -<i lang="cy">Buta ‘nynna buta’r cwbwl</i>, that is to say, -‘Eating that means eating all we have.’</p> -<p>He told me further that the servant girls used formerly to take care -to bring a supply of water indoors at the approach of night, that the -fairies might find plenty in which to bathe their children, for fear -that they might use the milk instead, if water was wanting. Moreover, -when they had been baking, they took care to leave the fairies both -<i lang="cy">padeỻ</i> and <i lang="cy">gradeỻ</i>, that -they might do their baking in the night. The latter used to pay for -this kindness by leaving behind them a cake of fairy bread and -sometimes money on the hob. I have, however, not been able to learn -anything about the quality or taste of this fairy food.</p> -<p>He had also a great deal to say about the making of bonfires about -the beginning of winter. A bonfire was always kindled on the farm -called Cromlech on the eve of the Winter Calends or <i lang="cy">Nos -Galan Gaeaf</i>, as it is termed in Welsh; and the like were to be seen -in abundance towards Ỻithfaen, Carnguwch, and Ỻanaelhaearn, -as well as on the Merioneth side of the bay. <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb225" href="#pb225" name= -"pb225">225</a>]</span>Besides fuel, each person present used to throw -into the fire a small stone, with a mark whereby he should know it -again. If he succeeded in finding the stone on the morrow, the year -would be a lucky one for him, but the contrary if he failed to recover -it. Those who assisted at the making of the bonfire watched until the -flames were out, and then somebody would raise the usual cry, when each -ran away for his life, lest he should be found last. This cry, which is -a sort of equivalent, well known over Carnarvonshire, of the English -saying, ‘The devil take the hindmost,’ was in the Welsh of -that county—</p> -<div lang="cy" class="lgouter"> -<p class="line"><i>Yr hwch đu gwta<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e10391src" href="#xd25e10391" name="xd25e10391src">13</a> A -gipio’r ola’</i>;</p> -</div> -<p class="first">that is to say, ‘May the black sow without a -tail seize the hindmost.’</p> -<p>The cutty black sow is often alluded to nowadays to frighten -children in Arfon, and it is clearly the same creature that is -described in some parts of North Wales as follows:— <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb226" href="#pb226" name="pb226">226</a>]</span></p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Hwch đu gwta</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Ar bob camfa</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Yn nyđu a chardio</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Bob nos G’langaea’.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">A cutty black sow</p> -<p class="line">On every stile,</p> -<p class="line">Spinning and carding</p> -<p class="line">Every Allhallows’ Eve.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">In Cardiganshire this is reduced to the -words:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Nos Galan Gaea’,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Bwbach ar bob camfa.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">On Allhallows’ Eve</p> -<p class="line">A bogie on every stile.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">Welsh people speak of only three -Calends—<i lang="cy">Calan-mai</i>, or the first of May; <i lang= -"cy">Calan-gaeaf</i>, the Calends of Winter, or Allhallows; and -<i lang="cy">Y Calan</i>, or The Calends <i lang="fr">par -excellence</i>, that is to say, the first day of January, which last is -probably not Celtic but Roman. The other two most certainly are, and it -is one of their peculiarities that all uncanny spirits and bogies are -at liberty the night preceding each of them. The <i lang="cy">Hwch -đu gwta</i> is at large on Allhallows’ Eve, and the Scottish -Gaels have the name ‘Samhanach’ for any Allhallows’ -demon, formed from the word <i lang="cy">Samhain</i>, Allhallows. The -eve of the first of May may be supposed to have been the same, as may -be gathered from the story of Rhiannon’s baby and of -Teyrnon’s colt, both of which were stolen by undescribed demons -that night—I allude to the <i>Mabinogi</i> of Pwyỻ, Prince -of Dyfed.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch3.6" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e561">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">VI.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">At Nefyn, in Ỻeyn<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e10596src" href="#xd25e10596" name="xd25e10596src">14</a>, I had -some stories about the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> from Lowri Hughes, -the widow of John <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb227" href="#pb227" -name="pb227">227</a>]</span>Hughes, who lives in a cottage at Pen -Isa’r Dref, and is over seventy-four years of age. An aunt of -hers, who knew a great many tales, had died about six years before my -visit, at the advanced age of ninety-six. She used to relate to Lowri -how the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth</i> were in the habit of visiting Singrug, -a house now in ruins on the land of Pen Isa’r Dref, and how they -had a habit of borrowing a <i lang="cy">padeỻ</i> and <i lang= -"cy">gradeỻ</i> for baking: they paid for the loan of them by -giving their owners a loaf. Her grandmother, who died not long ago at a -very advanced age, remembered a time when she was milking in a corner -of the land of Carn Bodüan, and how a little dog came to her and -received a blow from her that sent it rolling away. Presently, she -added, the dog reappeared with a lame man playing on a fiddle; but she -gave them no milk. If she had done so, there was no knowing, she said, -how much money she might have got. But, as it was, such singing and -dancing were indulged in by the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth</i> around the -lame fiddler that she ran away as fast as her feet could carry her. -Lowri’s husband had also seen the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth</i> at the -break of day, near Madrun Mill, where they seem to have been holding a -sort of conversazione; but presently one of them observed that he had -heard the voice of the hen’s husband, and off they went instantly -then. The fairies were in the habit also of dancing and singing on the -headland across which lie the old earthworks called Dinỻaen. When -they had played and enjoyed themselves enough, they used to lift a -certain bit of sod and descend to their own land. My informant had also -heard the midwife story, and she was aware that the fairies changed -people’s children; in fact, she mentioned to me a farm house not -far off where there was a daughter of this origin then, not to mention -that she knew all about Elis Bach. Another woman whom I <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb228" href="#pb228" name="pb228">228</a>]</span>met -near Porth Dinỻaen said, that the Dinỻaen fairies were only -seen when the weather was a little misty.</p> -<p>At Nefyn, Mr. John Williams (Alaw Ỻeyn) got from his mother -the tale of the midwife. It stated that the latter lost the sight of -her right eye at Nefyn Fair, owing to the fairy she there recognized, -pricking her eye with a green rush. During my visit to Aberdaron, my -wife and I went to the top of Mynyđ Anelog, and on the way up we -passed a cottage, where a very illiterate woman told us that the -<i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> formerly frequented the mountain when -there was mist on it; that they changed people’s children if they -were left alone on the ground; and that the way to get the right child -back was to leave the fairy urchin without being touched or fed. She -also said that, after baking, people left the <i lang= -"cy">gradeỻ</i> for the fairies to do their baking: they would -then leave a cake behind them as pay. As for the fairies just now, they -have been exorcised (<i lang="cy">wedi’ffrymu</i>) for some -length of time. Mrs. Williams, of Pwỻ Defaid, told me that the -rock opposite, called Clip y Gylfinir, on Bodwyđog mountain, a -part of Mynyđ y Rhiw, was the resort of the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth -Teg</i>, and that they revelled there when it was covered with mist; -she added that a neighbouring farm, called Bodermud Isa’, was -well known at one time as a place where the fairies came to do their -baking. But the most remarkable tale I had in the neighbourhood of -Aberdaron was from Evan Williams, a smith who lives at Yr Arđ Las, -on Rhos Hirwaen. If I remember rightly, he is a native of -Ỻaniestin, and what he told me relates to a farmer’s wife -who lived at the Nant, in that parish. Now this old lady was frequently -visited by a fairy who used to borrow <i lang="cy">padeỻ a -gradeỻ</i> from her. These she used to get, and she returned them -with a loaf borne on her head in acknowledgement. But one day she came -to <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb229" href="#pb229" name= -"pb229">229</a>]</span>ask for the loan of her <i lang="cy">troeỻ -bach</i>, or wheel for spinning flax. When handing her this, the -farmer’s wife wished to know her name, as she came so often, but -she refused to tell her. However, she was watched at her spinning, and -overheard singing to the whir of the wheel:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Bychan a wyđa’ hi</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Mai Sìli go Dwt</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Yw f’enw i.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Little did she know</p> -<p class="line">That Silly go Dwt</p> -<p class="line">Is my name.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">This explains to some extent the <i lang= -"cy">sìli ffrit</i> sung by a Corwrion fairy when she came out -of the lake to spin: see p. 64 above. At first I had in vain tried to -make out the meaning of that bit of legend; but since then I have also -found the Ỻaniestin rhyme a little varied at Ỻanberis: it -was picked up there, I do not exactly know how, by my little girls this -summer. The words as they have them run thus:—</p> -<div lang="cy" class="lgouter"> -<p class="line"><i>Bychan a wyđa’ hi</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Mai Trwtyn-Tratyn</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Yw f’enw i.</i></p> -</div> -<p class="first">Here, instead of <i lang="cy">Sìli go Dwt</i> -or <i lang="cy">Sìli ffrit</i>, the name is <i lang= -"cy">Trwtyn-Tratyn</i>, and these doggerels at once remind one of the -tale of Rumpelstiltzchen; but it is clear that we have as yet only the -merest fragments of the whole, though I have been thus far unable to -get any more. So one cannot quite say how far it resembled the tale of -Rumpelstiltzchen: there is certainly one difference, which is at once -patent, namely, that while the German Rumpelstiltzchen was a male -fairy, our Welsh <i lang="cy">Sìli ffrit</i> or <i lang= -"cy">Sìli go Dwt</i> is of the other sex. Probably, in the -Ỻaniestin tale, the borrowing for baking had nothing to do with -the spinning, for all fairies in Ỻeyn borrow a <i lang= -"cy">padeỻ</i> and a <i lang="cy">gradeỻ</i>, while they do -not usually appear to spin. Then may we suppose that the spinning was -in this instance done for the farmer’s wife on conditions which -she was able to evade by discovering the fairy <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb230" href="#pb230" name= -"pb230">230</a>]</span>helper’s name? At any rate one expects a -story representing the farmer’s wife laid under obligation by the -fairy, and not the reverse. I shall have an opportunity of returning to -this kind of tale in chapter x.</p> -<p>The smith told me another short tale, about a farmer who lived not -long ago at Deunant, close to Aberdaron. The latter used, as is the -wont of country people, to go out a few steps in front of his house -every night to —— before going to bed; but once on a time, -while he was standing there, a stranger stood by him and spoke to him, -saying that he had no idea how he and his family were annoyed by him. -The farmer asked how that could be, to which the stranger replied that -his house was just below where they stood, and if he would only stand -on his foot he would see that what he said was true. The farmer -complying, put his foot on the other’s foot, and then he could -clearly see that all the slops from his house went down the chimney of -the other’s house, which stood far below in a street he had never -seen before. The fairy then advised him to have his door in the other -side of his house, and that if he did so his cattle would never suffer -from the <i lang="cy">clwy’ byr</i><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e10771src" href="#xd25e10771" name="xd25e10771src">15</a>. The -result was that the farmer obeyed, and had his door walled up and -another made in the other side of the house: ever after he was a most -prosperous man, and nobody was so successful as he in rearing stock in -all that part of the country. To place the whole thing beyond the -possibility of doubt, Evan Williams assured me that he had often seen -the farmer’s house with the front door in the back. I mention -this strange story in order to compare it, in the matter of standing on -the fairy’s foot, with that of standing with one’s foot -just inside a fairy ring. Compare also standing on a particular -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb231" href="#pb231" name= -"pb231">231</a>]</span>sod in Dyfed in order to behold the delectable -realm of Rhys Đwfn’s Children: see p. 158 above.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch3.7" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e571">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">VII.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">Soon afterwards I went to the neighbourhood of Aber -Soch and Ỻanengan, where I was lucky enough to find Professor -Owen of St. David’s College, Lampeter, since appointed Bishop of -St. David’s, on a visit to his native place. He took me round to -those of the inhabitants who were thought most likely to have tales to -tell; but I found nothing about the fairies except the usual story of -their borrowing <i lang="cy">padeỻ a gradeỻ</i>, and of -their changing children. However, one version I heard of the process of -recovering the stolen child differs from all others known to me: it was -given us by Margaret Edwards, of Pentre Bach, whose age was then -eighty-seven. It was to the effect that the mother, who had been given -a fairy infant, was to place it on the floor, and that all those -present in the house should throw a piece of iron at it. This she -thought was done with the view of convincing the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth -Teg</i> of the intention to kill the changeling, and in order to induce -them to bring the right child back. The plan was, we are told, always -successful, and it illustrates, to my thinking, the supposed efficacy -of iron against the fairies.</p> -<p>On the way to Aber Soch I passed by an old-fashioned house which has -all the appearance of having once been a place of considerable -importance; and on being told that its name is Casteỻmarch, I -began thinking of March ab Meirchion mentioned in the Triads. He, I had -long been convinced, ought to be the Welsh reflex of Labhraidh Lorc, or -the Irish king with horse’s ears; and the corresponding Greek -character of Midas with ass’s ears is so well known that I need -not dwell on it. So I <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb232" href= -"#pb232" name="pb232">232</a>]</span>undertook to question various -people in the neighbourhood about the meaning of the name of -Casteỻmarch. Most of them analysed it into <i lang= -"cy">Casteỻ y March</i>, the ‘Castle of the Steed,’ -and explained that the knight of the shire or some other respectable -obscurity kept his horses there. This treatment of the word is not very -decidedly countenanced by the pronunciation, which makes the name into -one word strongly accented on the middle syllable. It was further -related to me how Casteỻmarch was once upon a time inhabited by a -very wicked and cruel man, one of whose servants, after being very -unkindly treated by him, ran away and went on board a man-of-war. Some -time afterwards the man-of-war happened to be in Cardigan Bay, and the -runaway servant persuaded the captain of the vessel to come and anchor -in the Tudwal Roads. Furthermore he induced him to shell his old -master’s mansion; and the story is regarded as proved by the old -bullets now and then found at Casteỻmarch. It has since been -suggested to me that the bullets are evidence of an attack on the place -during the Civil War, which is not improbable. But having got so far as -to find that there was a wicked, cruel man associated with -Casteỻmarch, I thought I should at once hear the item of -tradition which I was fishing for; but not so: it was not to be wormed -out in a hurry. However, after tiring a very old blacksmith, whose -memory was far gone, with my questions, and after he had in his turn -tired me with answers of the kind I have already described, I ventured -to put it to him at last whether he had never heard some very silly -tale about the lord of Casteỻmarch, to the effect that he was not -quite like other men. He at once admitted that he had heard it said -that he had horse’s ears, but that he would never have thought of -repeating such nonsense to me. This is not a bad instance of the -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb233" href="#pb233" name= -"pb233">233</a>]</span>difficulty which one has in eliciting this sort -of tradition from the people. It is true that, as far as regards -Casteỻmarch, nothing, as it happens, would have been lost if I -had failed at Aber Soch, for I got the same information later at Sarn -Fyỻteyrn; not to mention that after coming back to my books, and -once more turning over the leaves of the <i lang="cy">Brython</i>, I -was delighted to find the tale there. It occurs at p. 431 of the volume -for 1860. It is given with several other interesting bits of antiquity, -and at the end the editor has put ‘Edward Ỻwyd, -1693’; so I suppose the whole comes from letters emanating from -the great Lhwyd, for so, or rather <i lang="cy">Lhuyd</i>, he preferred -to write his name. It is to the following effect:—</p> -<p>One of Arthur’s warriors, whose name was March (or Parch) -Amheirchion<a class="noteref" id="xd25e10807src" href="#xd25e10807" -name="xd25e10807src">16</a>, was lord of Casteỻmarch in -Ỻeyn. This man had horse’s ears (resembling Midas), and -lest anybody should know it, he used to kill every <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb234" href="#pb234" name="pb234">234</a>]</span>man -he sought to shave his beard, for fear lest he should not be able to -keep the secret; and on the spot where he was wont to bury the bodies -there grew reeds, one of which somebody cut to make a pipe. The pipe -would give no other sound than ‘March Amheirchion has -horse’s ears.’ When the warrior heard this, he would -probably have killed the innocent man on that account, if he had not -himself failed to make the pipe produce any other sound. But after -hearing where the reed had grown, he made no further effort to conceal -either the murders or his ears. This story of Edward Ỻwyd’s -clearly goes back to a time when some kind of a pipe was the favourite -musical instrument in North Wales, and not the harp.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch3.8" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e581">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">VIII.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">Some time ago I was favoured with a short but -interesting tale by Mr. Evan Lloyd Jones, of Dinorwig, near -Ỻanberis. Mr. Lloyd Jones, I may here mention, published not long -ago, in <i lang="cy">Ỻais y Wlad</i> (Bangor, North Wales), and -in the <i lang="cy">Drych</i> (Utica, United States of North America), -a series of articles entitled <i lang="cy">Ỻen y Werin yn Sir -Gaernarfon</i>, or the Folklore of Carnarvonshire. I happened to see it -at a friend’s house, and I found at once that the writer was -passionately fond of antiquities, and in the habit of making use of the -frequent opportunities he has in the Dinorwig quarries for gathering -information as to what used to be believed by the people of Arfon and -Anglesey. The tale about to be given relates to a lake called Marchlyn -Mawr, or the Great Horse-lake, for there are two lakes called Marchlyn: -they lie near one another, between the Fronỻwyd, in the parish of -Ỻandegai, and the Elidyr, in the parishes of <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb235" href="#pb235" name= -"pb235">235</a>]</span>Ỻanđeiniolen and Ỻanberis. Mr. -Lloyd Jones shall tell his tale in his own words:—</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Amgylchynir y Marchlyn Mawr gan greigiau erchyỻ -yr olwg arnynt; a dywed trađodiad đarfod i un o feibion y -Rhiwen<a class="noteref" id="xd25e10920src" href="#xd25e10920" name= -"xd25e10920src">17</a> unwaith tra yn cynorthwyo dafad oeđ wedi -syrthio i’r creigiau i đod ođiyno, đarganfod ogof -anferth: aeth i fewn iđi a gwelođ ei bod yn ỻawn o -drysorau ac arfau gwerthfawr; ond gan ei bod yn dechreu tywyỻu, a -dringo i fynu yn orchwyl anhawđ hyd yn nod yn ngoleu’r -dyđ, aeth adref y noswaith honno, a boreu drannoeth ar lasiad y -dyđ cychwynnođ eilwaith i’r ogof, ac heb lawer o -drafferth daeth o hyd iđi: aeth i fewn, a dechreuođ edrych -o’i amgylch ar y trysorau oeđ yno:—Ar ganol yr ogof yr -oeđ bwrđ enfawr o aur pur, ac ar y bwrđ goron o aur a -pherlau: deaỻođ yn y fan mai coron a thrysorau Arthur -oeđynt—nesaođ at y bwrđ, a phan oeđ yn estyn -ei law i gymeryd gafael yn y goron dychrynwyd ef gan drwst -erchyỻ, trwst megys mil o daranau yn ymrwygo uwch ei ben ac aeth -yr hoỻ le can dywyỻed a’r afagđu. Ceisiođ -ymbalfalu ođiyno gynted ag y gaỻai; pan lwyđođ i -gyrraeđ i ganol y creigiau taflođ ei olwg ar y ỻyn, yr -hwn oeđ wedi ei gynhyrfu drwyđo a’i donnau brigwynion -yn cael eu ỻuchio trwy đaneđ ysgythrog y creigiau hyd y -man yr oeđ efe yn sefyỻ arno; ond tra yr oeđ yn parhau -i syỻu ar ganol y ỻyn gwelai gwrwgl a thair o’r -benywod prydferthaf y disgynođ ỻygad unrhyw đyn arnynt -erioed ynđo yn cael ei rwyfo yn brysur tuag at enau yr ogof. Ond -och! yr oeđ golwg ofnadwy yr hwn oeđ yn rhwyfo yn đigon -i beri iasau o fraw trwy y dyn cryfaf. Gaỻođ y ỻanc -rywfođ đianc adref ond ni fu <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb236" href="#pb236" name="pb236">236</a>]</span>iechyd yn ei -gyfansođiad ar ol hynny, a byđai hyd yn nod crybwyỻ enw -y Marchlyn yn ei glywedigaeth yn đigon i’w yrru yn -waỻgof.</i></p> -<p>‘The Marchlyn Mawr is surrounded by rocks terrible to look at, -and tradition relates how one of the sons of the farmer of Rhiwen, once -on a time, when helping a sheep that had fallen among the rocks to get -away, discovered a tremendous cave there; he entered, and saw that it -was full of treasures and arms of great value; but, as it was beginning -to grow dark, and as clambering back was a difficult matter even in the -light of day, he went home that evening, and next morning with the grey -dawn he set out again for the cave, when he found it without much -trouble. He entered, and began to look about him at the treasures that -were there. In the centre of the cave stood a huge table of pure gold, -and on the table lay a crown of gold and pearls. He understood at once -that they were the crown and treasures of Arthur. He approached the -table, and as he stretched forth his hand to take hold of the crown he -was frightened by an awful noise, the noise, as it were, of a thousand -thunders bursting over his head, and the whole place became as dark as -Tartarus. He tried to grope and feel his way out as fast as he could. -When he had succeeded in reaching to the middle of the rocks, he cast -his eye on the lake, which had been stirred all through, while its -white-crested waves dashed through the jagged teeth of the rocks up to -the spot on which he stood. But as he continued looking at the middle -of the lake he beheld a coracle containing three women, the fairest -that the eye of man ever fell on. They were being quickly rowed to the -mouth of the cave; but the dread aspect of him who rowed was enough to -send thrills of horror through the strongest of men. The youth was able -somehow to escape home, <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb237" href= -"#pb237" name="pb237">237</a>]</span>but no health remained in his -constitution after that, and even the mere mention of the Marchlyn in -his hearing used to be enough to make him insane.’</p> -<p>Mr. Lloyd Jones appends to the tale a note to the following -effect:—There is a small eminence on the shore of the Marchlyn -Mawr, in the parish of Ỻandegai, called <i lang="cy">Bryn -Cwrwgl</i>, or the ‘Hill of the Coracle’; and <i lang= -"cy">Ogof y Marchlyn</i>, or the ‘Marchlyn Cave,’ is a name -familiar enough to everybody in these neighbourhoods. There were -some—unless he ought to say that there still are some—who -believed that there was abundance of treasure in the cave. Several -young men from the quarries, both of the Cae and of Dinorwig, have been -in the midst of the Marchlyn rocks, searching for the cave, and they -succeeded in making their way into a cave. They came away, however, -without the treasures. One old man, Robert Edwards (Iorwerth Sardis), -used to tell him that he and several others had brought ropes from the -quarry to go into the cave, but that they found no treasure. So far, I -have given the substance of Mr. Jones’ words, to which I would -add the following statement, which I have from a native of -Dinorwig:—About seventy years ago, when the gentry were robbing -the poor of these districts of their houses and of the lands which the -latter had enclosed out of the commons, an old woman called Siân -William of the Garneđ was obliged to flee from her house with her -baby—the latter was known later in life as the Rev. Robert Ellis, -of Ysgoldy—in her arms. It was in one of the Marchlyn caves that -she found refuge for a day and night. Another kind of tale connected -with the Marchlyn Mawr is recorded in the Powys-land Club’s -<i>Collections, Hist. and Arch.</i>, vol. xv. p. 137, by the Rev. Elias -Owen, to the effect that ‘a man who was fishing in the lake found -himself enveloped in the clouds that had descended <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb238" href="#pb238" name="pb238">238</a>]</span>from -the hills to the water. A sudden gust of wind cleared a road through -the mist that hung over the lake, and revealed to his sight a man -busily engaged in thatching a stack. The man, or rather the fairy, -stood on a ladder. The stack and ladder rested on the surface of the -lake.’</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch3.9" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e591">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">IX.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">Mr. E. S. Roberts, of Ỻandysilio School, near -Ỻangoỻen (p. 138), has sent me more bits of legends about -the fairies. He heard the following from Mr. Thomas Parry, of Tan y -Coed Farm, who had heard it from his father, the late Evan Parry, and -the latter from Thomas Morris, of Eglwyseg, who related it to him more -than once:—Thomas Morris happened to be returning home from -Ỻangoỻen very late on one Saturday night in the middle of -the summer, and by the time he reached near home the day had dawned, -when he saw a number of the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> with a dog -walking about hither and thither on the declivity of the Eglwyseg -Rocks, which hung threateningly overhead. When he had looked at them -for some minutes, he directed his steps towards them; but as they saw -him approaching they hid themselves, as he thought, behind a large -stone. On reaching the spot, he found under the stone a hole by which -they had made their way into their subterranean home. So ends the tale -as related to Mr. Roberts. It is remarkable as representing the fairies -looking rather like poachers; but there are not wanting others which -speak of their possessing horses and greyhounds, as all gentlemen were -supposed to.</p> -<p>One of Mr. Roberts’ tales is in point: he had it from Mr. Hugh -Francis<a class="noteref" id="xd25e10975src" href="#xd25e10975" name= -"xd25e10975src">18</a>, of Holyhead House, Ruthin, <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb239" href="#pb239" name="pb239">239</a>]</span>and -the latter heard it from Robert Roberts, of Amlwch, who has now been -dead about thirty years:—About 105 years ago there lived in the -parish of Ỻandyfrydog, near Ỻannerch y Međ, in -Anglesey, a man named Ifan Gruffyđ, whose cow happened to -disappear one day. Ifan Gruffyđ was greatly distressed, and he and -his daughter walked up and down the whole neighbourhood in search of -her. As they were coming back in the evening from their unsuccessful -quest, they crossed the field called after the Dyfrydog thief, Cae -Ỻeidr Dyfrydog, where they saw a great number of little men on -ponies quickly galloping in a ring. They both drew nigh to look on; but -Ifan Gruffyđ’s daughter, in her eagerness to behold the -little knights more closely, got unawares within the circle in which -their ponies galloped, and did not return to her father. The latter now -forgot all about the loss of the cow, and spent some hours in searching -for his daughter; but at last he had to go home without her, in the -deepest sadness. A few days afterwards he went to Mynađwyn to -consult John Roberts, who was a magician of no mean reputation. That -‘wise man’ told Ifan Gruffyđ to be no longer sad, -since he could get his daughter back at the very hour of the night of -the anniversary of the time when he lost her. He would, in fact, then -see her riding round in the company of the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> -whom he had seen on that memorable night. The father was to go there -accompanied by four stalwart men, who were to aid him in the rescue of -his daughter. He was to tie a strong rope round his waist, and by means -of this his friends were to pull him out of the circle when he entered -to seize his daughter. He went to the spot, <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb240" href="#pb240" name="pb240">240</a>]</span>and -in due time he beheld his daughter riding round in great state. In he -rushed and snatched her, and, thanks to his friends, he got her out of -the fairy ring before the little men had time to think of it. The first -thing Ifan’s daughter asked him was, if he had found the cow, for -she had not the slightest reckoning of the time she had spent with the -fairies.</p> -<p>Whilst I am about it, I may as well go through Mr. Roberts’ -contributions. The next is also a tale related to him by Mr. Hugh -Francis, and, like the last, it comes from Anglesey. Mr. Francis’ -great-grandfather was called Robert Francis, and he had a mill at -Aberffraw about 100 years ago; and the substance of the following tale -was often repeated in the hearing of Mr. Roberts’ informant by -his father and his grandfather:—In winter Robert Francis used to -remain very late at work drying corn in his kiln. As it was needful to -keep a steady fire going, he used to go backwards and forwards from the -house, looking after it not unfrequently until it was two o’clock -in the morning. Once on a time he happened to leave a cauldron full of -water on the floor of the kiln, and great was his astonishment on -returning to find two little people washing themselves in the water. He -abstained from entering to disturb them, and went back to the house to -tell his wife of it. ‘Oh,’ said she, ‘they are -fairies.’ He presently went back to the kiln and found that they -were gone. He fancied they were man and wife. However, they had left -the place very clean, and to crown all, he found a sum of money left by -them to pay him, as he supposed, for the water and the use of the kiln. -The ensuing night many more fairies came to the kiln, for the visitors -of the previous night had brought their children with them; and the -miller found them busy bathing them and looking very comfortable in the -warm room where they were. The pay that night <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb241" href="#pb241" name="pb241">241</a>]</span>was -also more considerable than the night before, as the visitors were more -numerous. After this the miller never failed to leave a vessel full of -water in the kiln every night, and the fairies availed themselves of it -for years, until, in fact, they took offence at the miller telling the -neighbours of the presents of money which had been left him in the -kiln. Thenceforth no fairies were known to frequent the kiln belonging -to the Aberffraw mill.</p> -<p>The last tale communicated to me by Mr. Roberts is the following, -which he elicited from Margaret Davies, his housekeeper, by reading to -her some of the fairy legends published in the <i lang= -"cy">Cymmrodor</i> a short while ago—probably the Corwrion -series, one of which bears great resemblance to hers. Mrs. Davies, who -is sixty-one years of age, says that when her parents, Edward and Ann -Williams, lived at Rhoslydan, near Bryneglwys, in Yale, some -seventy-five years ago, the servant man happened one day in the spring -to be ploughing in a field near the house. As he was turning his team -back at one end of the field, he heard some one calling out from the -other end, <i lang="cy">Y mae eisieu hoelen yn y pìl</i>, or -‘The peel wants a nail’; for <i lang="cy">pìl</i> is -the English <i>peel</i>, a name given to a sort of shovel provided with -a long handle for placing loaves in an oven, and for getting them out -again. When at length the ploughman had reached the end of the field -whence he guessed the call to have proceeded, he there saw a small -peel, together with a hammer and a nail, under the hedge. He saw that -the peel required a nail to keep it together, and as everything -necessary for mending it were there ready to hand, he did as it had -been suggested. Then he followed at the plough-tail until he came round -again to the same place, and there he this time saw a cake placed for -him on the spot where he had previously <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb242" href="#pb242" name="pb242">242</a>]</span>found the peel and -the other things, which had now disappeared. When the servant related -this to his master, he told him at once that it was one of the <i lang= -"cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> of that locality that had called out to him. With -this should be compared the story of the man who mended a fairy’s -plough vice: see p. 64 above.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch3.10" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e601">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">X.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">Early this year I had occasion to visit the well-known -Hengwrt Library at Peniarth, and during my stay there Mr. Wynne very -kindly took me to see such of the Ỻanegryn people as were most -likely to have somewhat to say about the fairies. Many of the -inhabitants had heard of them, but they had no long tales about them. -One man, however, told me of a William Pritchard, of Pentre Bach, near -Ỻwyngwryl, who died at sixty, over eighty years ago, and of a -Rhys Williams, the clerk of Ỻangelynin, how they were going home -late at night from a cock-fight at Ỻanegryn, and how they came -across the fairies singing and dancing on a plot of ground known as -<i lang="cy">Gwastad Meirionyđ</i>, ‘the Plain of -Merioneth,’ on the way from Ỻwyngwryl to Ỻanegryn. It -consists, I am told by Mr. Robert Roberts of Ỻanegryn, of no more -than some twenty square yards, outside which one has a good view of -Cardigan Bay and the heights of Merioneth and Carnarvonshire, while -from the Gwastad itself neither sea nor mountain is visible. On this -spot, then, the belated cockfighters were surrounded by the fairies. -They swore at the fairies and took to their heels, but they were -pursued as far as Clawđ Du. Also I was told that Elen Egryn, the -authoress, some sixty years ago, of some poetry called <i lang= -"cy">Telyn Egryn</i>, had also seen fairies in her youth, when she used -to go up the hills to look <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb243" href= -"#pb243" name="pb243">243</a>]</span>after her father’s sheep. -This happened near a little brook, from which she could see the sea -when the sun was in the act of sinking in it; then many fairies would -come out dancing and singing, and also crossing and re-crossing the -little brook. It was on the side of Rhiwfelen, and she thought the -little folks came out of the brook somewhere. She had been scolded for -talking about the fairies, but she firmly believed in them to the end -of her life. This was told me by Mr. W. Williams, the tailor, who is -about sixty years of age; and also by Mr. Rowlands, the ex-bailiff of -Peniarth, who is about seventy-five. I was moreover much interested to -discover at Ỻanegryn a scrap of kelpie story, which runs as -follows, concerning Ỻyn Gwernen, situated close to the old road -between Dolgeỻey and Ỻanegryn:—</p> -<p>As a man from the village of Ỻanegryn was returning in the -dusk of the evening across the mountain from Dolgeỻey, he heard, -when hard by Ỻyn Gwernen, a voice crying out from the -water:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Daeth yr awr ond ni đaeth y dyn!</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">The hour is come but the man is not!</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">As the villager went on his way a little distance, -what should meet him but a man of insane appearance, and with nothing -on but his shirt. As he saw the man making full pelt for the waters of -the lake, he rushed at him to prevent him from proceeding any further. -But as to the sequel there is some doubt: one version makes the -villager conduct the man back about a mile from the lake to a farm -house called Dyffrydan, which was on the former’s way home. -Others seem to think that the man in his shirt rushed irresistibly into -the lake, and this I have no doubt comes nearer the end of the story in -its original form. Lately I have heard a part of a similar story about -Ỻyn Cynnwch, which has already been mentioned, p. 135, above. My -informant <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb244" href="#pb244" name= -"pb244">244</a>]</span>is Miss Lucy Griffith, of Glynmalden, near -Dolgeỻey, a lady deeply interested in Welsh folklore and Welsh -antiquities generally. She obtained her information from a -Dolgeỻey ostler, formerly engaged at the Ship Hotel, to the -effect that on Gwyl Galan, ‘the eve of New Year’s -Day,’ a person is seen walking backwards and forwards on the -strand of Cynnwch Lake, crying out:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Mae’r awr wedi dyfod a’r dyn heb -đyfod!</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">The hour is come while the man is not!</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">The ostler stated also that lights are to be seen on -Cader Idris on the eve of New Year’s Day, whatever that statement -may mean. The two lake stories seem to suggest that the Lake Spirit was -entitled to a victim once a year, whether the sacrifice was regarded as -the result of accident or design. By way of comparison, one may mention -the notion, not yet extinct, that certain rivers in various parts of -the kingdom regularly claim so many victims: for some instances at -random see an article by Mr. J. M. Mackinlay, on Traces of River -Worship in Scottish Folklore, a paper published in the <i>Proceedings -of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland</i>, 1895–6, pp. -69–76. Take for example the following rhyme:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Blood-thirsty Dee</p> -<p class="line">Each year needs three;</p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">But bonny Don</p> -<p class="line">She needs none.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">Or this:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Tweed said to Till</p> -<p class="line">‘What gars ye rin sae still?’</p> -<p class="line">Till said to Tweed</p> -<p class="line">‘Though ye rin wi’ speed</p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">An’ I rin slaw,</p> -<p class="line">Yet whar ye droon ae man</p> -<p class="line">I droon twa.’</p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch3.11" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e611">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">XI.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">In the neighbourhood of Ystrad Meurig, between the -Teifi and the Ystwyth basins, almost everybody can <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb245" href="#pb245" name= -"pb245">245</a>]</span>relate tales about the fairies, but not much -that is out of the ordinary run of such stories elsewhere. Among -others, Isaac Davies, the smith living at Ystrad Meurig, had heard a -great deal about fairies, and he said that there were rings belonging -to them in certain fields at Tan y Graig and at Ỻanafan. Where -the rings were, there the fairies danced until the ground became red -and bare of grass. The fairies were, according to him, all women, and -they dressed like foreigners, in short cotton dresses reaching only to -the knee-joint. This description is somewhat peculiar, as the idea -prevalent in the country around is, that the fairy ladies had very long -trains, and that they were very elegantly dressed; so that it is a -common saying there, that girls who dress in a better or more showy -fashion than ordinary look like <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i>, and the -smith confessed he had often heard that said. Similarly Howells, pp. -113, 121–2, finds the dresses of the fairies dancing on the -Freni, in the north-east of Pembrokeshire, represented as indescribably -elegant and varying in colour; and those who, in the month of May, used -to frequent the prehistoric encampment of Moeđin<a class="noteref" -id="xd25e11093src" href="#xd25e11093" name="xd25e11093src">19</a> or -Moyđin—from which a whole cantred takes its name in Central -Cardiganshire—as fond of appearing in green; while blue -petticoats are said, he says, to have prevailed in the fairy dances in -North Wales<a class="noteref" id="xd25e11108src" href="#xd25e11108" -name="xd25e11108src">20</a>.</p> -<p>Another showed me a spot on the other side of the Teifi, where the -<i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> had a favourite spot for <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb246" href="#pb246" name= -"pb246">246</a>]</span>dancing; and at the neighbouring village of -Swyđ Ffynnon, another meadow was pointed out as their resort on -the farm of Dôl Bydyë. According to one account I had there, -the fairies dressed themselves in very long clothes, and when they -danced they took hold of one another’s enormous trains. Besides -the usual tales concerning men enticed into the ring and retained in -Faery for a year and a day, and concerning the fairies’ dread of -<i lang="cy">pren cerdingen</i> or mountain ash, I had the midwife tale -in two or three forms, differing more or less from the versions current -in North Wales. For the most complete of them I am indebted to one of -the young men studying at the Grammar School, Mr. D. Ỻedrodian -Davies. It used to be related by an old woman who died some thirty -years ago at the advanced age of about 100. She was Pàli, mother -of old Rachel Evans, who died seven or eight years ago, when she was -about eighty. The latter was a curious character, who sometimes sang -<i lang="cy">masweđ</i>, or rhymes of doubtful propriety, and used -to take the children of the village to see fairy rings. She also used -to see the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth</i>, and had many tales to tell of -them. But her mother, Pàli, had actually been called to attend -at the confinement of one of them. The beginning of the tale is not -very explicit; but, anyhow, Pàli one evening found herself face -to face with the fairy lady she was to attend upon. She appeared to be -the wife of one of the princes of the country. She was held in great -esteem, and lived in a very grand palace. Everything there had been -arranged in the most beautiful and charming fashion. The wife was in -her bed with nothing about her but white, and she fared sumptuously. In -due time, when the baby had been born, the midwife had all the care -connected with dressing it and serving its mother. Pàli could -see or hear nobody in the whole place but <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb247" href="#pb247" name="pb247">247</a>]</span>the mother and the -baby. She had no idea who attended on them, or who prepared all the -things they required, for it was all done noiselessly and secretly. The -mother was a charming person, of an excellent temper and easy to -manage. Morning and evening, as she finished washing the baby, -Pàli had a certain ointment given her to rub the baby with. She -was charged not to touch it but with her hand, and especially not to -put any near her eyes. This was carried out for some time, but one day, -as she was dressing the baby, her eyes happened to itch, and she rubbed -them with her hand. Then at once she saw a great many wonders she had -not before perceived; and the whole place assumed a new aspect to her. -She said nothing, and in the course of the day she saw a great deal -more. Among other things, she observed small men and small women going -in and out, following a variety of occupations. But their movements -were as light as the morning breeze. To move about was no trouble to -them, and they brought things into the room with the greatest -quickness. They prepared dainty food for the confined lady with the -utmost order and skill, and the air of kindness and affection with -which they served her was truly remarkable. In the evening, as she was -dressing the baby, the midwife said to the lady, ‘You have had a -great many visitors to-day.’ To this she replied, ‘How do -you know that? Have you been putting the ointment to your eyes?’ -Thereupon she jumped out of bed, and blew into her eyes, saying, -‘Now you will see no more.’ She never afterwards could see -the fairies, however much she tried, nor was the ointment entrusted to -her after that day. According, however, to another version which I -heard, she was told, on being found out, not to apply the ointment to -her eyes any more. She promised she would not; but <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb248" href="#pb248" name="pb248">248</a>]</span>the -narrator thought she broke that promise, as she continued to see the -fairies as long as she lived.</p> -<p>Mr. D. Ỻ. Davies has also a version like the North Wales ones. -He obtained it from a woman of seventy-eight at Bronnant, near -Aberystwyth, who had heard it from one of her ancestors. According to -her, the midwife went to the fair called Ffair Rhos, which was held -between Ystrad Meurig and Pont Rhyd Fendigaid<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11134src" href="#xd25e11134" name="xd25e11134src">21</a>. There -she saw a great many of the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth</i> very busily -engaged, and among others the lady she had been attending upon. That -being so, she walked up to her and saluted her. The fairy lady angrily -asked how she saw her, and spat in her face, which had the result of -putting an end for ever to her power of seeing her or anybody of her -race.</p> -<p>The same aged woman at Bronnant has communicated to Mr. D. Ỻ. -Davies another tale which differs from all those of the same kind that -I happen to know of. On a certain day in spring the farmer living at -—— (Mr. Davies does not remember the name of the farm) lost -his calves; and the servant man and the servant girl went out to look -for them, but as they were both crossing a marshy flat, the man -suddenly missed the girl. He looked for her, and as he could not see -her he concluded that she was playing a trick on him. <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb249" href="#pb249" name= -"pb249">249</a>]</span>However, after much shouting and searching about -the place, he began to think that she must have found her way home, so -he turned back and asked if the girl had come in, when he found to his -surprise that nobody had seen her come back. The news of her being lost -caused great excitement in the country around, since many suspected -that he had for some reason put an end to her life: some accounted for -it in this way, and some in another. But as nothing could be found out -about her, the servant man was taken into custody on the charge of -having murdered her. He protested with all his heart, and no evidence -could be produced that he had killed the girl. Now, as some had an idea -that she had gone to the fairies, it was resolved to send to ‘the -wise man’ (<i lang="cy">Y dyn hysbys</i>). This was done, and he -found out that the missing girl was with the fairies: the trial was -delayed, and he gave the servant man directions of the usual kind as to -how to get her out. She was watched at the end of the period of twelve -months and a day coming round in the dance in the fairy ring at the -place where she was lost, and she was successfully drawn out of the -ring; but the servant man had to be there in the same clothes as he had -on when she left him. As soon as she was released and saw the servant -she asked about the calves. On the way home she told her master, the -servant man, and the others, that she would stay with them until her -master should strike her with iron, but they went their way home in -great joy at having found her. One day, however, when her master was -about to start from home, and whilst he was getting the horse and cart -ready, he asked the girl to assist him, which she did willingly; but as -he was bridling the horse, the bit touched the girl and she disappeared -instantly, and was never seen from that day forth.</p> -<p>I cannot explain this story, unless we regard it as <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb250" href="#pb250" name="pb250">250</a>]</span>made -up of pieces of two different stories which had originally nothing to -do with one another; consistency, however, is not to be expected in -such matters. Mr. D. Ỻ. Davies has kindly given me two more tales -like the first part of the one I have last summarized, also one in -which the missing person, a little boy sent by his mother to fetch some -barm for her, comes home of himself after being away a year or more -playing with the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i>, whom he found to be very -nice, pleasant people; they had been exceedingly kind to him, and they -even allowed him to take the bottle with the barm home at the last. -This was somewhere between Swyđ Ffynnon and Carmarthen.</p> -<p>Mr. D. Ỻ. Davies finds, what I have not found anywhere else, -that it was a common idea among the old people in Cardiganshire, that -once you came across one of the fairies you could not easily be rid of -him; since the fairies were little beings of a very devoted nature. -Once a man had become friendly with one of them, the latter would be -present with him almost everywhere he went, until it became a burden to -him. However, popular belief did not adopt this item of faith without -another to neutralize it if necessary: so if one was determined to get -rid of the fairy companion, one had in the last resort only to throw a -piece of rusty iron at him to be quit of him for ever. Nothing was a -greater insult to the fairies. But though they were not difficult to -make friends of, they never forgave those who offended them: -forgiveness was not an element in their nature. The general account my -informant gives of the outward appearance of the fairies as he finds -them in the popular belief, is that they were a small handsome race, -and that their women dressed gorgeously in white, while the men were -content with garments of a dark grey colour, usually including -knee-breeches. As <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb251" href="#pb251" -name="pb251">251</a>]</span>might be expected, the descriptions differ -very much in different neighbourhoods, and even in different tales from -the same neighbourhood: this will surprise no one. It was in the night -they came out, generally near water, to sing and dance, and also to -steal whatever took their fancy; for thieving was always natural to -them; but no one ever complained of it, as it was supposed to bring -good luck.</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch3.12" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e622">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">XII.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">Mr. Richard L. Davies, teacher of the Board School at -Ystalyfera, in the Tawë Valley, has been kind enough to write out -for me a budget of ideas about the Cwm Tawë Fairies, as retailed -to him by a native who took great delight in the traditions of his -neighbourhood, John Davies (<i lang="cy">Shôn o’r -Bont</i>), who was a storekeeper at Ystalyfera. He died an old man -about three years ago. I give his stories as transmitted to me by Mr. -Davies, but the reader will find them a little hazy now and then, as -when the fairies are made into ordinary conjurer’s -devils:—</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Rhywbeth rhyfeđ yw yr hen Gasteỻ yna (gan -olygu Craig Ynys Geinon): yr wyf yn cofio yr amser pan y byđai yn -đychryn gan bobl fyned yn agos ato—yn enwedig y nos: yr -oeđ yn dra pheryglus rhag i đyn gael ei gymeryd at Bendith eu -Mamau. Fe đywedir fod wmređ o’r rheiny yna, er na wn i -pa le y maent yn cadw. ’R oeđ yr hen bobl yn arferol o -đweyd fod pwỻ yn rhywle bron canol y Casteỻ, tua -ỻathen o led, ac yn bump neu chwech ỻath o đyfnder, a -charreg tua thair tynneỻ o bwysau ar ei wyneb e’, a bod -fforđ dan y đaear ganđynt o’r pwỻ hynny bob -cam i ogof Tan yr Ogof, bron blaen y Cwm (yn agos i balas Adelina -Patti, sef Casteỻ Craig y Nos), mai yno y maent yn treulio eu -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb252" href="#pb252" name= -"pb252">252</a>]</span>hamser yn y dyđ, ac yn dyfod lawr yma i -chwareu eu pranciau yn y nos.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Mae ganđynt, međe nhw, ysgol aur, o un neu -đwy ar hugain o ffyn; ar hyd honno y maent yn tramwy i fyny ac i -lawr. Mae ganđynt air bach, a dim ond i’r blaenaf ar yr -ysgol đywedyd y gair hynny, mae y garreg yn codi o honi ei hunan; -a gair araỻ, ond i’r olaf wrth fyned i lawr ei -đywedyd, mae yn cauad ar eu hol.</i></p> -<p><i lang="cy">Dywedir i was un o’r ffermyđ cyfagos wrth -chwilio am wningod yn y graig, đygwyđ dyweyd y gair pan ar -bwys y garreg, iđi agor, ac iđo yntau fyned i lawr yr ysgol, -ond am na wyđai y gair i gauad ar ei ol, fe adnabu y Tylwyth wrth -y</i> draught <i lang="cy">yn diffođ y canwyỻau fod rhywbeth -o le, daethant am ei draws, cymerasant ef atynt, a bu gyda hwynt yn byw -ac yn bod am saith mlyneđ; ymhen y saith mlyneđ fe -điangođ a ỻon’d ei het o guineas -ganđo.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Yr oeđ efe erbyn hyn wedi dysgu y đau air, ac -yn gwybod ỻawer am eu cwtches nhw. Fe đywedođ hwn y -cwbl wrth ffarmwr o’r gymdogaeth, fe aeth hwnnw drachefn i lawr, -ac yr oeđ rhai yn dyweyd iđo đyfod a thri -ỻon’d cawnen halen o</i> guineas, <i>hanner</i> guineas, -<i>a darnau saith-a-chwech, ođiyno yr un diwrnod. Ond fe aeth yn -rhy drachwantus, ac fel ỻawer un trachwantus o’i flaen, bu -ei bechod yn angeu iđo.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Canys fe aeth i lawr y bedwaređ waith yngwyỻ -y nos, ond fe đaeth y Tylwyth am ei ben, ac ni welwyd byth o hono. -Dywedir fod ei bedwar cwarter e’ yn hongian mewn ystafeỻ o -dan y Casteỻ, ond pwy fu yno i’w gwel’d nhw, wn i -đim.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Mae yn wir ei wala i’r ffarmwr crybwyỻedig -fyned ar goỻ, ac na chlybuwyd byth am dano, ac mor wir a hynny -i’w dylwyth đyfod yn abl iawn, bron ar unwaith yr amser -hynny. A chi wyđoch gystal a finnau, eu bod nhw yn dywedyd fod -ffyrđ tanđaearol ganđynt i ogofau <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb253" href="#pb253" name= -"pb253">253</a>]</span>Ystrad Feỻte, yn agos i Benderyn. A dyna y -Garn Goch ar y Drum (Onỻwyn yn awr) maent yn dweyd fod -canoeđ o dyneỻi o aur yn stôr ganđynt yno; a chi -glywsoch am y stori am un o’r Gethings yn myned yno i glođio -yn y Garn, ac iđo gael ei drawsffurfio gan y Tylwyth i olwyn o -dân, ac iđo fethu cael ỻonyđ ganđynt, hyd -nes iđo eu danfon i wneyd rhaff o</i> sand!</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Fe fu gynt hen fenyw yn byw mewn ty bychan gerỻaw -i Ynys Geinon, ac yr oeđ hi yn gaỻu rheibo, međe nhw, -ac yr oeđ sôn ei bod yn treulio saith diwrnod, saith awr, a -saith mynyd gyda y Tylwyth Teg bob blwyđyn yn Ogof y Casteỻ. -Yr oeđ y gred yn ỻed gyffredinol ei bod hi yn cael hyn a hyn -o aur am bob plentyn a aỻai hi ladrata iđynt hwy, a dodi un -o’i hen grithod hwy yn ei le: ’doeđ hwnnw byth yn -cynyđu. Y fforđ y byđai hi yn gwneyd oeđ myned -i’r tŷ dan yr esgus o ofyn cardod, a hen glogyn -ỻwyd-đu mawr ar ei chefn, ac o dan hwn, un o blant Bendith y -Mamau; a bob amser os byđai plentyn bach gwraig y tŷ yn y -caweỻ, hi gymerai y swyđ o siglo y caweỻ, a dim ond -i’r fam droi ei chefn am fynyd neu đwy, hi daflai y -ỻedrith i’r caweỻ, ai ymaith a’r plentyn yn -gyntaf byth y gaỻai hi. Fe fu plentyn gan đyn o’r -gym’dogaeth yn lingran am flynyđau heb gynyđu dim, a -barn pawb oeđ mai wedi cael ei newid gan yr hen wraig yr oeđ; -fe aeth tad y plentyn i fygwth y gwr hysbys arni: fe đaeth yr hen -wraig yno am saith niwrnod i esgus bađo y bachgen bach mewn dwfr -oer, a’r seithfed bore cyn ei bod yn oleu, hi a gas genad i fyned -ag ef dan rhyw bistyỻ, međe hi, ond međai’r -cym’dogion, myned ag ef i newid a wnaeth. Ond, beth bynag, fe -weỻođ y plentyn fel cyw yr wyđ o hynny i maes. Ond -gorfu i fam e’ wneyd cystal a ỻw wrth yr hen wraig, y gwnai -ei dwco mewn dwfr oer bob bore dros gwarter blwyđyn, ac yn mhen y -chwarter hynny ’doeđ dim brafach plentyn yn y Cwm.</i> -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb254" href="#pb254" name= -"pb254">254</a>]</span></p> -<p>‘That is a wonderful thing, that old castle there, he would -say, pointing to the Ynys Geinon Rock. I remember a time when people -would be terrified to go near it, especially at night. There was -considerable danger that one might be taken to <i lang="cy">Bendith eu -Mamau</i>. It is said that there are a great many of them there, though -I know not where they abide. The old folks used to say that there was a -pit somewhere about the middle of the Castle, about a yard wide and -some five or six yards deep, with a stone about three tons in weight -over the mouth of it, and that they had a passage underground from that -pit all the way to the cave of Tan yr Ogof, near the top of the Cwm, -that is, near Adelina Patti’s residence at Craig y Nos Castle: -there, it was said, they spent their time during the day, while they -came down here to play their tricks at night. They have, they say, a -gold ladder of one or two and twenty rungs, and it is along that they -pass up and down. They have a little word; and it suffices if the -foremost on the ladder merely utters that word, for the stone to rise -of itself; while there is another word, which it suffices the hindmost -in going down to utter so that the stone shuts behind him. It is said -that a servant from one of the neighbouring farms, when looking for -rabbits in the rock, happened to say the word as he stood near the -stone, that it opened for him, and that he went down the ladder; but -that because he was ignorant of the word to make it shut behind him, -the fairies discovered by the draught putting out their candles that -there was something wrong. So they found him out and took him with -them. He remained living with them for seven years, but at the end of -the seven years he escaped with his hat full of guineas. He had by this -time learnt the two words, and got to know a good deal about the hiding -places of their treasures. He told everything to <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb255" href="#pb255" name="pb255">255</a>]</span>a -farmer in the neighbourhood, so the latter likewise went down, and some -used to say that he brought thence thrice the fill of a salt-chest of -guineas, half-guineas, and seven-and-sixpenny pieces in one day. But he -got too greedy, and like many a greedy one before him his crime proved -his death; for he went down the fourth time in the dusk of the evening, -when the fairies came upon him, and he was never seen any more. It is -said that his four quarters hang in a room under the Castle; but who -has been there to see them I know not. It is true enough that the -above-mentioned farmer got lost, and that nothing was heard respecting -him; and it is equally true that his family became very well to do -almost at once at that time. You know as well as I do that they say, -that the fairies have underground passages to the caves of -Ystradfeỻte, near Penderyn. There is the Garn Goch also on the -Drum (now called Onỻwyn); they say there are hundreds of tons of -gold accumulated by them there, and you have heard the story about one -of the Gethings going thither to dig in the Garn, and how he -[<i>sic</i>] was transformed by the fairies into a wheel of fire, and -that he could get no quiet from them until he sent them to manufacture -a rope of sand!’—A more intelligible version of this story -has been given at pp. 19–20 above.</p> -<p>‘There was formerly an old woman living in a small house near -Ynys Geinon; and she had the power of bewitching, people used to say: -there was a rumour that she spent seven days, seven hours, and seven -minutes with the fairies every year in the cave at the Castle. It was a -pretty general belief that she got such and such a quantity of gold for -every child she could steal for them, and that she put one of those old -urchins of theirs in its place: the latter never grew at all. The way -she used to do it was to enter people’s houses <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb256" href="#pb256" name="pb256">256</a>]</span>with -the excuse of asking for alms, having a large dark-grey old cloak on -her back, and the cloak concealed one of the children of <i lang= -"cy">Bendith eu Mamau</i>. Whenever she found the little child of the -good woman of the house in its cradle, she would take upon herself to -rock the cradle, so that if the mother only turned her back for a -minute or two, she would throw the sham child into the cradle and hurry -away as fast as she could with the baby. A man in the neighbourhood had -a child lingering for years without growing at all, and it was the -opinion of all that it had been changed by the old woman. The father at -length threatened to call in the aid of “the wise man,” -when the old woman came there for seven days, pretending that it was in -order to bathe the little boy in cold water; and on the seventh day she -got permission to take him, before it was light, under a certain spout -of water: so she said, but the neighbours said it was to change him. -However that was, the boy from that time forth got on as fast as a -gosling. But the mother had all but to take an oath to the old woman, -that she would duck him in cold water every morning for three months, -and by the end of that time there was no finer infant in the -Cwm.’</p> -<p>Mr. Davies has given me some account also of the annual pilgrimage -to the Fan mountains to see the Lake Lady: these are his words on the -subject—they recall pp. 15–16 above:—</p> -<p>‘It has been the yearly custom (for generations, as far as I -can find) for young as well as many people further advanced in years to -make a general excursion in carts, gambos, and all kinds of vehicles, -to Ỻyn y Fan, in order to see the water nymph (who appeared on -one day only, viz. the first Sunday in August). This nymph was said to -have the lower part of her body resembling that of a dolphin, while the -upper part was that of a <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb257" href= -"#pb257" name="pb257">257</a>]</span>beautiful lady: this anomalous -form appeared on the first Sunday in August (if the lake should be -without a ripple) and combed her tresses on the reflecting surface of -the lake. The yearly peregrination to the abode of the Fan deity is -still kept up in this valley—Cwmtawë; but not to the extent -that it used to formerly.’</p> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch3.13" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e632">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">XIII.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">Mr. Craigfryn Hughes has sent me another tale about -the fairies: it has to do with the parish of Ỻanfabon, near the -eastern border of Glamorganshire. Many traditions cluster round the -church of Ỻanfabon, beginning with its supposed building by Saint -Mabon, but which of the Mabons of Welsh legend he was, is not very -certain. Not very far is a place called Pant y Dawns, or the Dance -Hollow, in allusion to the visits paid to the spot by <i lang= -"cy">Bendith y Mamau</i>, as the fairies are there called. In the same -neighbourhood stand also the ruins of Casteỻ y Nos, or the Castle -of the Night<a class="noteref" id="xd25e11297src" href="#xd25e11297" -name="xd25e11297src">22</a>, which tradition represents as -uninhabitable because it had been built of stones from Ỻanfabon -Church, and on account of the ghosts that used to haunt it. However, -one small portion of it was usually tenanted formerly by a ‘wise -man’ or by a witch. In fact, the whole country round -Ỻanfabon Church teemed with fairies, ghosts, and all kinds of -uncanny creatures:—</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Mewn amaethdy ag syđ yn aros yn y plwyf a elwir y -Berth Gron, trigiannai gweđw ieuanc a’i phlentyn -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb258" href="#pb258" name= -"pb258">258</a>]</span>bychan. Yr oeđ wedi coỻi ei gwr, -a’i hunig gysur yn ei hamđifadrwyđ a’i -hunigrwyđ oeđ Gruff, ei mab. Yr oeđ ef yr amser hwn -ođeutu tair blwyđ oed, ac yn blentyn braf ar ei oedran. Yr -oeđ y plwyf, ar y pryd, yn orlawn o ‘Fendith y Mamau’; -ac, ar amser ỻawn ỻoer, byđent yn cadw dynion yn effro -a’u cerđoriaeth hyd doriad gwawr. Rhai hynod ar gyfrif eu -hagrwch oeđ ‘Bendith’ Ỻanfabon, ac yr un mor -hynod ar gyfrif eu castiau. Ỻadrata plant o’r caweỻau -yn absenoldeb eu mamau, a denu dynion trwy eu swyno a cherđoriaeth -i ryw gors afiach a diffaith, a ymđangosai yn gryn đifyrrwch -iđynt. Nid rhyfeđ fod y mamau beunyđ ar eu -gwyliadwriaeth rhag ofn coỻi eu plant. Yr oeđ y weđw o -dan sylw yn hynod ofalus am ei mab, gymaint nes tynnu rhai o’r -cymydogion i đywedyd wrthi ei bod yn rhy orofalus, ac y byđai -i ryw anlwc orđiwes ei mab. Ond ni thalai unrhyw sylw i’w -dywediadau. Ymđangosai fod ei hoỻ hyfrydwch a’i chysur -ynghyd a’i gobeithion yn cydgyfarfod yn ei mab. Mođ bynnag, -un diwrnod, clywođ ryw lais cwynfannus yn codi o gymydogaeth y -beudy; a rhag bod rhywbeth wedi digwyđ i un o’r gwartheg -rhedođ yn orwyỻt tuag yno, gan adael y drws heb ei gau, -a’i mab bychan yn y ty. Ond pwy a fedr đesgrifio ei gofid ar -ei gwaith yn dyfod i’r ty wrth weled eisiau ei mab? Chwiliođ -bob man am dano, ond yn aflwyđiannus. Ođeutu machlud haul, -wele lencyn bychan yn gwneuthur ei ymđangosiad o’i blaen, ac -yn dywedyd, yn groyw, ‘Mam!’ Edrychođ y fam yn fanwl -arno, a dywedođ o’r diweđ, ‘Nid fy mhlentyn i wyt -ti!’ ‘Ië, yn sicr,’ atebai y bychan.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Nid ymđangosai y fam yn fođlon, na’i -bod yn credu mai ei phlentyn hi ydoeđ. Yr oeđ rhywbeth yn -sisial yn barhaus wrthi mai nid ei mab hi ydoeđ. Ond beth bynnag, -bu gyda hi am flwyđyn gyfan, ac nid ymđangosai ei fod yn -cynyđu dim, tra yr oeđ Gruff, ei mab hi, yn <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb259" href="#pb259" name= -"pb259">259</a>]</span>blentyn cynyđfawr iawn. Yr oeđ gwr -bychan yn myned yn fwy hagr bob dyđ hefyd. O’r diweđ -penderfynođ fyned at y ‘dyn hysbys,’ er cael rhyw -wybodaeth a goleuni ar y mater. Yr oeđ yn digwyđ bod ar y -pryd yn trigfannu yn Nghasteỻ y Nos, wr ag oeđ yn hynod ar -gyfrif ei ymwybyđiaeth drwyadl o ‘gyfrinion y -faỻ.’ Ar ol iđi osod ei hachos ger ei fron, ac yntau -ei holi, sylwođ, ‘Crimbil ydyw, ac y mae dy blentyn di gyd -a’r hen Fendith yn rhywle; ond i ti đilyn fy -nghyfarwyđiadau i yn ffyđlon a manwl, fe adferir dy blentyn i -ti yn fuan. Yn awr, ođeutu canol dyđ y foru, tor ŵy yn y -canol, a thafl un hanner ymaith ođiwrthyt, a chadw y -ỻaỻ yn dy law, a dechreu gymysg ei gynwysiad yn ol a blaen. -Cofia fod y gwr bychan gerỻaw yn gwneuthur sylw o’r hyn ag -a fyđi yn ei wneuthur. Ond cofia di a pheidio galw ei -sylw—rhaid enniỻ ei sylw at y weithred heb ei alw: ac odid -fawr na ofynna i ti beth fyđi yn ei wneuthur. A dywed wrtho mai -cymysg pastai’r fedel yr wyt. A rho wybod i mi beth fyđ ei -ateb.’</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Dychwelođ y wraig, a thrannoeth dilynođ -gyfarwyđyd y ‘dyn cynnil’ i’r ỻythyren. Yr -oeđ y gwr bychan yn sefyỻ yn ei hymyl, ac yn sylwi arni yn -fanwl. Ym mhen ychydig, gofynnođ, ‘Mam, beth ’i -ch’i ’neuthur?’ ‘Cymysg pastai’r fedel, -machgen i.’ ‘O feỻy. Mi glywais gan fy nhad, fe -glywođ hwnnw gan ei dad, a hwnnw gan ei dad yntau, fod mesen cyn -derwen, a derwen mewn dâr<a class="noteref" id="xd25e11324src" -href="#xd25e11324" name="xd25e11324src">23</a>; ond ni chlywais i na -gweled neb yn un man yn cymysg pastai’r fedel mewn masgal ŵy -iar.’ Sylwođ y wraig ei fod yn edrych yn hynod o sarug arni -pan yn siarad, ac yr oeđ hynny yn ychwanegu at ei hagrwch, nes ei -wneuthur yn wrthun i’r pen.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Y prydnawn hwnnw aeth y wraig at y ‘dyn -cynnil’ <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb260" href="#pb260" name= -"pb260">260</a>]</span>er ei hysbysu o’r hyn a lefarwyd gan y -còr. ‘O,’ ebai hwnnw, ‘un o’r hen frid -ydyw!’ ‘Yn awr, byđ y ỻawn ỻoer nesaf ym -mhen pedwar diwrnod; mae yn rhaid i ti fyned i ben y pedair heol -syđ yn cydgyfarfod wrth ben Rhyd y Gloch; am đeuđeg -o’r gloch y nos y byđ y ỻeuad yn ỻawn. Cofia -guđio dy hun mewn man ag y cei lawn olwg ar bennau y -croesffyrđ, ac os gweli rywbeth a bair i ti gynhyrfu, cofia fod yn -ỻonyđ, ac ymatal rhag rhođi ffrwyn i’th -deimladau, neu fe đistrywir y cynỻun, ac ni chei dy fab yn -ol byth.’</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Nis gwyđai y fam anffodus beth oeđ i’w -đeaỻ wrth ystori ryfeđ y ‘dyn cynnil.’ Yr -oeđ mewn cymaint o dywyỻwch ag erioed. O’r diweđ -daeth yr amser i ben; ac ar yr awr apwyntiedig yr oeđ yn -ymguđio yn ofalus tu cefn i lwyn mawr yn ymyl, o ba le y caffai -olwg ar bob peth o gylch. Bu am hir amser yno yn gwylio heb đim -i’w glywed na’i weled—dim ond distawrwyđ dwfn a -phruđglwyfus yr hanner nos yn teyrnasu. O’r diweđ -clywai sain cerđoriaeth yn dynesu ati o hirbeỻ. Nês, -nês yr oeđ y sain felusber yn dyfod o hyd; a gwrandawai -hithai gyda dyđordeb arni. Cyn hir yr oeđ yn ei hymyl, a -deaỻođ mai gorymdaith o ‘Fendith y Mamau’ -oeđynt yn myned i rywle. Yr oeđynt yn gannoeđ mewn rhif. -Tua chanol yr orymdaith canfyđođ olygfa ag a drywanođ ei -chalon, ac a berođ i’w gwaed sefyỻ yn ei -rhedwelïau. Yn cerđed rhwng pedwar o’r -‘Bendith’ yr oeđ ei phlentyn bychan anwyl ei hun. Bu -bron a ỻwyr anghofio ei hun, a ỻamu tuag ato er ei gipio -ymaith ođiarnynt trwy drais os gaỻai. Ond pan ar neidio -aỻan o’i hymguđfan i’r diben hwnnw -međyliođ am gynghor y ‘dyn cynnil,’ sef y -byđai i unrhyw gynhyrfiad o’i heiđo đistrywio y -cwbl, ac na byđai iđi gael ei phlentyn yn ol byth.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Ar ol i’r orymdaith đirwyn i’r pen, ac -i sain eu cerđoriaeth đistewi yn y peỻder, daeth -aỻan o’i hymguđfan, <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb261" href="#pb261" name="pb261">261</a>]</span>gan gyfeirio ei -chamrau tua ’i chartref. Os oeđ yn hiraethol o’r blaen -ar ol ei mab, yr oeđ yn ỻawer mwy erbyn hyn; a’i -hadgasrwyđ at y còr bychan oeđ yn hawlio ei fod yn fab -iđi wedi cynyđu yn fawr iawn, waith yr oeđ yn sicr yn -awr yn ei međwl mai un o’r hen frid ydoeđ. Nis -gwyđai pa fođ i’w ođef am fynud yn hwy yn yr un ty -a hi, chwaithach gođef iđo alw ‘mam’ arni hi. Ond -beth bynnag, cafođ đigon o ras ataliol i ymđwyn yn -weđaiđ at y gwr bychan hagr oeđ gyda hi yn y tŷ. -Drannoeth aeth ar ei hunion at y ‘dyn cynnil’ i adrođ -yr hyn yr oeđ wedi bod yn ỻygad dyst o hono y noson gynt, ac -i ofyn am gyfarwyđyd peỻach. Yr oedd y ‘gwr -cynnil’ yn ei disgwyl, ac ar ei gwaith yn dyfod i’r ty -adnabyđođ wrthi ei bod wedi gweled rhywbeth oeđ wedi ei -chyffroi. Adrođođ wrtho yr hyn ag oeđ wedi ei ganfod ar -ben y croesffyrđ; ac wedi iđo glywed hynny, agorođ lyfr -mawr ag oeđ ganđo, ac wedi hir syỻu arno hysbysođ -hi ‘fod yn angenrheidiol iđi cyn cael ei phlentyn yn ol gael -iâr đu heb un plufyn gwyn nac o un ỻiw araỻ -arni, a’i ỻađ; ac ar ol ei ỻadd, ei gosod o -flaen tan coed, pluf a chwbl, er ei phobi. Mor gynted ag y buasai yn ei -gosod o flaen y tan, iđi gau pob twỻ a mynedfa yn yr adeilad -ond un, a pheidio a dal sylw manwl ar ol y ‘crimbil,’ hyd -nes byđai y iâr yn đigon, a’r pluf i syrthio -ymaith oddiarni bob un, ac yna i edrych ym mha le yr oeđ -ef.</i></p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Er mor rhyfeđ oeđ cyfarwyđyd y -‘gwr,’ penderfynođ ei gynnyg; a thrannoeth aeth i -chwilio ym mhlith y ieir oeđ yno am un o’r desgrifiad -angenrheidiol; ond er ei siomedigaeth methođ a chael yr un. Aeth -o’r naiỻ ffermdy i’r ỻaỻ i chwilio, ond -ymđangosai ffawd fel yn gwgu arni—waith methođ a chael -yr un. Pan ym mron digaloni gan ei haflwyđiant daeth ar draws un -mewn amaethdy yng nghwr y plwyf a phrynođ hi yn đioedi. Ar ol -dychwelyd adref gosodođ y tan mewn trefn, a <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb262" href="#pb262" name= -"pb262">262</a>]</span>ỻađođ yr iâr, gan ei gosod -o flaen y tan disglaer a losgai ar yr alch. Pan yn edrych arni yn pobi, -anghofiođ y ‘crimbil’ yn hoỻol, ac yr oeđ -wedi syrthio i rywfath o bruđlewyg, pryd y synnwyd hi gan sain -cerđoriaeth y tu aỻan i’r ty, yn debyg i’r hyn a -glywođ ychydig nosweithiau cyn hynny ar ben y croesffyrđ. Yr -oeđ y pluf erbyn hyn wedi syrthio ymaith ođiar y iâr, -ac erbyn edrych yr oeđ y ‘crimbil’ wedi diflannu. -Edrychai y fam yn wyỻt o’i deutu, ac er ei -ỻawenyđ clywai lais ei mab coỻedig yn galw arni y tu -aỻan. Rhedođ i’w gyfarfod, gan ei gofleidio yn wresog; -a phan ofynođ ym mha le yr oeđ wedi bod cyhyd, nid oeđ -ganđo gyfrif yn y byd i’w rođi ond mai yn gwrando ar -ganu hyfryd yr oeđ wedi bod. Yr oeđ yn deneu a threuliedig -iawn ei weđ pan adferwyd ef. Dyna ystori ‘Y Plentyn -Coỻedig.’</i></p> -<p>‘At a farm house still remaining in the parish of -Ỻanfabon, which is called the Berth Gron, there lived once upon a -time a young widow and her infant child. After losing her husband her -only comfort in her bereavement and solitary state was young Griff, her -son. He was about three years old and a fine child for his age. The -parish was then crammed full of <i lang="cy">Bendith y Mamau</i>, and -when the moon was bright and full they were wont to keep people awake -with their music till the break of day. The fairies of Ỻanfabon -were remarkable on account of their ugliness, and they were equally -remarkable on account of the tricks they played. Stealing children from -their cradles during the absence of their mothers, and luring men by -means of their music into some pestilential and desolate bog, were -things that seemed to afford them considerable amusement. It was no -wonder then that mothers used to be daily on the watch lest they should -lose their children. The widow alluded to was remarkably careful about -her son, so much so, that it made some of the neighbours say that she -was <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb263" href="#pb263" name= -"pb263">263</a>]</span>too anxious about him and that some misfortune -would overtake her child. But she paid no attention to their words, as -all her joy, her comfort, and her hopes appeared to meet together in -her child. However, one day she heard a moaning voice ascending from -near the cow-house, and lest anything had happened to the cattle, she -ran there in a fright, leaving the door of the house open and her -little son in the cradle. Who can describe her grief on her coming in -and seeing that her son was missing? She searched everywhere for him, -but it was in vain. About sunset, behold a little lad made his -appearance before her and said to her quite distinctly, -“Mother.” She looked minutely at him, and said at last, -“Thou art not my child.” “I am truly,” said the -little one. But the mother did not seem satisfied about it, nor did she -believe it was her child. Something whispered to her constantly, as it -were, that it was not her son. However, he remained with her a whole -year, but he did not seem to grow at all, whereas Griff, her son, was a -very growing child. Besides, the little fellow was getting uglier every -day. At last she resolved to go to the “wise man,” in order -to have information and light on the matter. There happened then to be -living at Casteỻ y Nos, “Castle of the Night,” a man -who was remarkable for his thorough acquaintance with the secrets of -the evil one. When she had laid her business before him and he had -examined her, he addressed the following remark to her: “It is a -<i lang="cy">crimbil</i><a class="noteref" id="xd25e11376src" href= -"#xd25e11376" name="xd25e11376src">24</a>, and thy own child is with -those old <i>Bendith</i> somewhere or other: if thou wilt follow my -directions faithfully and minutely thy child will be restored to thee -soon. Now, about noon to-morrow cut an egg through the middle; throw -the one half away from thee, but keep the other in thy hand, and -proceed to mix it backwards and forwards. <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb264" href="#pb264" name="pb264">264</a>]</span>See that the little -fellow be present paying attention to what thou art doing, but take -care not to call his attention to it—his attention must be drawn -to it without calling to him—and very probably he will ask what -thou wouldst be doing. Thou art to say that it is mixing a pasty for -the reapers that thou art. Let me know what he will then say.” -The woman returned, and on the next day she followed the cunning -man’s<a class="noteref" id="xd25e11385src" href="#xd25e11385" -name="xd25e11385src">25</a> advice to the letter: the little fellow -stood by her and watched her minutely; presently he asked, -“Mother, what are you doing?” “Mixing a pasty for the -reapers, my boy.” “Oh, that is it. I heard from my -father—he had heard it from his father and that one from his -father—that an acorn was before the oak, and that the oak was in -the earth; but I have neither heard nor seen anybody <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb265" href="#pb265" name= -"pb265">265</a>]</span>mixing the pasty for the reapers in an -egg-shell.” The woman observed that he looked very cross as he -spoke, and that it so added to his ugliness that it made him highly -repulsive.</p> -<p>‘That afternoon the woman went to the cunning man in order to -inform him of what the dwarf had said. “Oh,” said he, -“he is of that old breed; now the next full moon will be in four -days—thou must go where the four roads meet above Rhyd y -Gloch<a class="noteref" id="xd25e11501src" href="#xd25e11501" name= -"xd25e11501src">26</a>, at twelve o’clock the night the moon is -full. Take care to hide thyself at a spot where thou canst see the ends -of the cross-roads; and shouldst thou see anything that would excite -thee take care to be still and to restrain thyself from giving way to -thy feelings, otherwise the scheme will be frustrated and thou wilt -never have thy son back.” The unfortunate mother knew not what to -make of the strange story of the cunning man; she was in the dark as -much as ever. At last the time came, and by the appointed hour she had -concealed herself carefully behind a large bush close by, whence she -could see everything around. She remained there a long time watching; -but nothing was to be seen or heard, while the profound and melancholy -silence of midnight dominated over all. At last she began to hear the -sound of music approaching from afar; nearer and nearer the sweet sound -continued to come, and she listened to it with rapt attention. Ere long -it was close at hand, and she perceived that it was a procession of -<i lang="cy">Bendith y <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb266" href= -"#pb266" name="pb266">266</a>]</span>Mamau</i> going somewhere or -other. They were hundreds in point of number, and about the middle of -the procession she beheld a sight that pierced her heart and made the -blood stop in her veins—walking between four of the <i lang= -"cy">Bendith</i> she saw her own dear little child. She nearly forgot -herself altogether, and was on the point of springing into the midst of -them violently to snatch him from them if she could; but when she was -on the point of leaping out of her hiding place for that purpose, she -thought of the warning of the cunning man, that any disturbance on her -part would frustrate all, so that she would never get her child back. -When the procession had wound itself past, and the sound of the music -had died away in the distance, she issued from her concealment and -directed her steps homewards. Full of longing as she was for her son -before, she was much more so now; and her disgust at the little dwarf -who claimed to be her son had very considerably grown, for she was now -certain in her mind that he was one of the old breed. She knew not how -to endure him for a moment longer under the same roof with her, much -less his addressing her as “mother.” However, she had -enough restraining grace to behave becomingly towards the ugly little -fellow that was with her in the house. On the morrow she went without -delay to the “wise man” to relate what she had witnessed -the previous night, and to seek further advice. The cunning man -expected her, and as she entered he perceived by her looks that she had -seen something that had disturbed her. She told him what she had beheld -at the cross-roads, and when he had heard it he opened a big book which -he had; then, after he had long pored over it, he told her, that before -she could get her child back, it was necessary for her to find a black -hen without a single white feather, or one of any other <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb267" href="#pb267" name= -"pb267">267</a>]</span>colour than black: this she was to place to bake -before a wood<a class="noteref" id="xd25e11519src" href="#xd25e11519" -name="xd25e11519src">27</a> fire with its feathers and all intact. -Moreover, as soon as she placed it before the fire, she was to close -every hole and passage in the walls except one, and not to look very -intently after the <i lang="cy">crimbil</i> until the hen was done -enough and the feathers had fallen off it every one: then she might -look where he was.</p> -<p>‘Strange as the advice of the wise man sounded, she resolved -to try it; so she went the next day to search among the hens for one of -the requisite description; but to her disappointment she failed to find -one. She then walked from one farm house to another in her search; but -fortune appeared to scowl at her, as she seemed to fail in her object. -When, however, she was nearly disheartened, she came across the kind of -hen she wanted at a farm at the end of the parish. She bought it, and -after returning home she arranged the fire and killed the hen, which -she placed in front of the bright fire burning on the hearth. Whilst -watching the hen baking she altogether forgot the <i lang= -"cy">crimbil</i>; and she fell into a sort of swoon, when she was -astonished by the sound of music outside the house, similar to the -music she had heard a few nights before at the cross-roads. The -feathers had by this time fallen off the hen, and when she came to look -for the <i lang="cy">crimbil</i> he had disappeared. The mother cast -wild looks about the house, and to her joy she heard the voice of her -lost son calling to her from outside. She ran to meet him, and embraced -him fervently. But when she asked him where he had been so long, he had -no account in the world to give but that he had been listening to -pleasant music. He was very thin and worn in appearance when he was -restored. Such is the story of the Lost Child.’</p> -<p>Let me remark as to the urchin’s exclamation concerning -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb268" href="#pb268" name= -"pb268">268</a>]</span>the cooking done in the egg-shell, that Mr. -Hughes, as the result of further inquiry, has given me what he -considers a more correct version; but it is no less inconsequent, as -will be seen:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Mi glywais gan fy nhad ac yntau gan ei dad, a hwnnw -gan ei dad yntau,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Fod mesen cyn derwen a’i phlannu mwn -dár:</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Ni chlywais yn unman am gymysg y bastai yn masgal wy -iâr.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">I heard from my father and he from his father, and that -one from <i>his</i> father,</p> -<p class="line">That the acorn exists before the oak and the planting -of it in the ground:</p> -<p class="line">Never anywhere have I heard of mixing the pasty in the -shell of a hen’s egg.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">In Dewi Glan Ffrydlas’ story from the Ogwen -Valley, in Carnarvonshire, p. 62 above, it is not the cooking of a -pasty but the brewing of beer in an egg-shell. However what is most -remarkable is that the egg-shell is similarly used in stories from -other lands. Mr. Hartland cites one from Mecklenburg and another from -Scandinavia. He also mentions stories in which the imp measures his own -age by the number of forests which he has seen growing successively on -the same soil, the formula being of the following kind: ‘I have -seen the Forest of Ardennes burnt seven times,’ ‘Seven -times have I seen the wood fall in Lessö Forest,’ or -‘I am so old, I was already in the world before the Kamschtschen -Wood (in Lithuania) was planted, wherein great trees grew, and -<i>that</i> is now laid waste again<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11568src" href="#xd25e11568" name="xd25e11568src">28</a>.’ -From these and the like instances it is clear that the Welsh versions -here in question are partially blurred, as the fairy child’s -words should have been to the effect that he was old enough to remember -the oak when it was yet but an acorn; and an instance of this explicit -kind is given by Howells—it comes from Ỻandrygarn in -Anglesey—see p. 139, where his words run thus: ‘I can -remember yon oak an acorn, but I never saw in my life people brewing in -an egg-shell before.’ I may add <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb269" href="#pb269" name="pb269">269</a>]</span>that I have been -recently fortunate enough to obtain from Mr. Ỻywarch Reynolds -another kind of estimate of the fairy urchin’s age. He writes -that his mother remembers a very old Merthyr woman who used to tell the -story of the egg-shell cookery, but in words differing from all the -other versions known to him, thus:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Wy’n hén y dyđ heđy,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Ag yn byw cyn ’y ngeni:</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Eriôd ni welas i ferwi</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Bwyd i’r fedal mwn cwcwỻ<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e11593src" href="#xd25e11593" name= -"xd25e11593src">29</a> wy iâr.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">I call myself old this day,</p> -<p class="line">And living before my birth:</p> -<p class="line">Never have I seen food boiled</p> -<p class="line">For the reapers in an egg-shell.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">As to the urchin’s statement that he was old and -had lived before, it is part of a creed of which we may have something -to say in a later chapter. At this point let it suffice to call -attention to the same idea in the <i>Book of Taliessin</i>, poem -ix:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Hynaf uyd dyn pan anher</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>A ieu ieu pop amser.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">A man is wont to be oldest when born,</p> -<p class="line">And younger and younger all the time.</p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch3.14" class="div2 section"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e642">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h3 class="main">XIV.</h3> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">Before closing this chapter, I wish to touch on the -question of the language of the fairies, though fairy tales hardly ever -raise it, as they usually assume the fairies to speak the same language -as the mortals around them. There is, however, one well-known -exception, namely, the story of Eliodorus, already mentioned, p. 117, -as recorded by Giraldus Cambrensis, who relates how Eliodorus, -preferring at the age of twelve to play the truant to undergoing a -frequent beating by his teacher, fasted two days in hiding in the -hollow of a river bank, and how he was then accosted by two little men -who <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb270" href="#pb270" name= -"pb270">270</a>]</span>induced him to follow them to a land of sports -and other delights. There he remained long enough to be able, years -later, to give his diocesan, the second Menevian bishop named -David<a class="noteref" id="xd25e11658src" href="#xd25e11658" name= -"xd25e11658src">30</a>, a comprehensive account of the people and realm -of Faery. After Eliodorus had for some time visited and revisited that -land of twilight, his mother desired him to bring her some of the gold -of the fairies. So one day he tried to bring away the gold ball with -which the fairy king’s son used to play; but he was not only -unsuccessful, but subjected to indignities also, and prevented from -evermore finding his way back to fairyland. So he had to go again to -school and to the studies which he so detested; but in the course of -time he learned enough to become a priest; and when, stricken in years, -he used to be entreated by Bishop David to relate this part of his -early history, he never could be got to unfold his tale without -shedding tears. Among other things which he said of the fairies’ -mode of living, he stated that they ate neither flesh nor fish, but -lived for the most part on various kinds of milk food cooked after the -fashion of stirabout, flavoured as it were with saffron<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e11670src" href="#xd25e11670" name= -"xd25e11670src">31</a>. But one of the most curious portions of -Eliodorus’ yarn was that relating to the language of the fairies; -for he pretended to have learnt it and to have found it to resemble his -own <i lang="la">Britannica Lingua</i>, ‘<i lang= -"cy">Brythoneg</i>, or Welsh.’ In the words instanced Giraldus -perceived a similarity to Greek<a class="noteref" id="xd25e11683src" -href="#xd25e11683" name="xd25e11683src">32</a>, which he accounted -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb271" href="#pb271" name= -"pb271">271</a>]</span>for by means of the fabulous origin of the Welsh -from the Trojans and the supposed sojourn made in Greece by those -erring Trojans on their way to Britain. Giraldus displays quite a -pretty interest in comparative philology, and talks glibly of the -<i lang="la">Lingua Britannica</i>; but one never feels certain that he -knew very much more about it than the author of the <i lang= -"la">Germania</i>, the first to refer to it under that name. Tacitus, -however, had the excuse that he lived at a distance and some eleven -centuries before the advent of Gerald the Welshman.</p> -<p>Giraldus’ words prove, on close examination, to be of no help -to us on the question of language; but on the other hand I have but -recently begun looking out for stories bearing on it. It is my -impression that such are not plentiful; but I proceed to subjoin an -abstract of a phantom funeral tale in point from <i lang= -"cy">Ystên Sioned</i> (Aberystwyth, 1882), pp. 8–16. -<i lang="cy">Ystên Sioned</i>, I ought to explain, consists of a -number of stories collected and edited in Welsh by the Rev. Chancellor -Silvan Evans, though he has not attached his name to it:—The -harvest of 1816 was one of the wettest ever known in Wales, and a man -and his wife who lived on a small farm in one of the largest parishes -in the Hundred of Moeđin (see p. 245 above) in the Demetian part -of Cardiganshire went out in the evening of a day which had been -comparatively dry to make some reaped corn into sheaves, as it had long -been down. It was a beautiful night, with the harvest moon shining -brightly, and the field in which they worked had the parish road -passing along one of its sides, without a hedge or a ditch to separate -it from <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb272" href="#pb272" name= -"pb272">272</a>]</span>the corn. When they had been busily at work -binding sheaves for half an hour or more, they happened to hear the hum -of voices, as if of a crowd of people coming along the road leading -into the field. They stopped a moment, and looking in the direction -whence the sounds came, they saw in the light of the moon a number of -people coming into sight and advancing in their direction. They bent -<span class="corr" id="xd25e11757" title="Source: them">then</span> -again to their work without thinking much about what they had seen and -heard; for they fancied it was some belated people making for the -village, which was about a mile off. But the hum and confused sounds -went on increasing, and when the two binders looked up again, they -beheld a large crowd of people almost opposite and not far from them. -As they continued looking on they beheld quite clearly a coffin on a -bier carried on the shoulders of men, who were relieved by others in -turns, as usual in funeral processions in the country. ‘Here is a -funeral,’ said the binders to one another, forgetting for the -moment that it was not usual for funerals to be seen at night. They -continued looking on till the crowd was right opposite them, and some -of them did not keep to the road, but walked over the corn alongside of -the bulk of the procession. The two binders heard the talk and -whispering, the noise and hum as if of so many real men and women -passing by, but they did not understand a word that was said: not a -syllable could they comprehend, not a face could they recognize. They -kept looking at the procession till it went out of sight on the way -leading towards the parish church. They saw no more of them, and now -they began to feel uneasy and went home leaving the corn alone as it -was; but further on the funeral was met by a tailor at a point in the -road where it was narrow and bounded by a fence (<i lang= -"cy">clawđ</i>) on either side. The procession filled the road -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb273" href="#pb273" name= -"pb273">273</a>]</span>from hedge to hedge, and the tailor tried to -force his way through it, but such was the pressure of the throng that -he was obliged to get out of their way by crossing the hedge. He also -failed to understand a word of the talk which he heard. In about three -weeks after this sham funeral<a class="noteref" id="xd25e11766src" -href="#xd25e11766" name="xd25e11766src">33</a>, there came a real one -down that way from the upper end of the parish.</p> -<p>Such, in brief, is the story so charmingly told by Silvan Evans, -which he got from the mouths of the farmer and his wife, whom he -considered highly honest and truthful persons, as well as comparatively -free from superstition. The last time they talked to him about the -incident they were very advanced in years, and both died within a few -weeks of one another early in the year 1852. Their remains, he adds, -lie in the churchyard towards which they had seen the <i lang= -"cy">toeli</i> slowly making its way. For <i lang="cy">toeli</i> is the -phonetic spelling in <i lang="cy">Ystên Sioned</i> of the word -which is <i lang="cy">teulu</i> in North Cardiganshire and in North -Wales, for Old Welsh <i lang="cy">toulu</i>. The word now means -‘family,’ though literally it should mean -‘house-army’ or ‘house-troops,’ and it is -practically a synonym for <i lang="cy">tylwyth</i>, ‘family or -household,’ literally ‘house-tribe.’ Now the <i lang= -"cy">toeli</i> or <i lang="cy">toulu</i> is such an important -institution in Demetian Cardiganshire and some parts of Dyfed proper, -that the word has been confined to the phantom, and for the word family -in its ordinary significations one has there to have recourse to the -non-dialect form <i lang="cy">teulu</i><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11813src" href="#xd25e11813" name="xd25e11813src">34</a>. In -North Cardiganshire and North Wales the <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb274" href="#pb274" name="pb274">274</a>]</span><i lang= -"cy">toeli</i> is called simply a <i lang="cy">clađedigaeth</i>, -‘burial,’ or <i lang="cy">anglađ</i>, -‘funeral’; in the latter also <i lang="cy">cynhebrwng</i> -is a funeral. I may add that when I was a child in the neighbourhood of -Ponterwyd, on the upper course of the Rheidol, hardly a year used to -pass without somebody or other meeting a phantom funeral. Sometimes one -got entangled in the procession, and ran the risk of being carried off -one’s feet by the throng. There is, however, one serious -difference between our phantom funerals and the Demetian <i lang= -"cy">toeli</i>, namely, that we recognize our neighbours’ ghosts -as making up the processions, and we have no trouble in understanding -their talk. At this point a question of some difficulty presents itself -as to the <i lang="cy">toeli</i>, namely, what family does it -mean?—is it the family and friends of the departed on his way to -the grave, or does it mean the family in the sense of <i lang= -"cy">Tylwyth Teg</i>, ‘Fair Family,’ as applied to the -fairies? I am inclined to the latter view, but I prefer thinking that -the distinction itself does not penetrate very deeply, seeing that a -certain species of the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i>, or fairies, may, -in point of origin, be regarded as deceased friends and ancestors of -the <i lang="cy">tylwyth</i>, in the ordinary sense of the word. In -fact all this kind of rehearsal of events seems to have been once -looked at as friendly to the men and women whom it concerned. This will -be seen, for instance, in the Demetian account of the <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb275" href="#pb275" name= -"pb275">275</a>]</span><i lang="cy">canwyỻ gorff</i>, or corpse -candle, as granted through the intercession of St. David to the people -of his special care, as a means of warning each to get ready in time -for his death; that is to say, to prevent death finding him unprepared. -It is hard to guess why it was assumed that the <i lang= -"cy">canwyỻ gorff</i> was unknown in other parts of Wales. One or -two instances in point occur in Owen’s <i>Welsh Folklore</i>, pp. -298–301; and I have myself heard of them being seen in Anglesey, -while they were quite well known to members of Mrs. Rhys’ -mother’s family, who lived in the parish of Waen Fawr, in the -neighbourhood of Carnarvon. Nor does it appear that phantom funerals -were at all confined to South Wales. Proof to the contrary is supplied -to some extent in Owen’s <i>Folklore</i>, p. 301; but there is no -doubt that in recent times the belief in them, as well as in the -<i lang="cy">canwyỻ gorff</i>, has been more general and more -vivid in South Wales than in North Wales, especially Gwyneđ.</p> -<p>I have not been fortunate enough to come across anything systematic -or comprehensive on the origin and meaning of ghostly rehearsals like -the Welsh phantom funeral or coffin making. But the subject is an -interesting one which deserves the attention of our leading folklore -philosophers, as does also the cognate one of second sight, by which it -is widely overlapped.</p> -<p>Quite recently—at the end of 1899 in fact—I received -three brief stories, for which I am indebted to the further kindness of -Alaw Ỻeyn (p. 228), who lives at Bynhadlog near Edern in -Ỻeyn, and two out of the three touch on the question of language. -But as the three belong to one and the same district, I give the -substance of all in English as follows:—</p> -<p>(1) There were at a small harbour belonging to Nefyn some houses in -which several families formerly lived; the houses are there still, but -nobody lives in them now. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb276" href= -"#pb276" name="pb276">276</a>]</span>There was one family there to -which a little girl belonged: they used to lose her for hours every -day; so her mother was very angry with her for being so much away. -‘I must know,’ said she, ‘where you go for your -play.’ The girl answered that it was to Pin y Wig, ‘The Wig -Point,’ which meant a place to the west of the Nefyn headland: it -was there, she said, she played with many children. ‘Whose -children?’ asked the mother. ‘I don’t know,’ -she replied; ‘they are very nice children, much nicer than I -am.’ ‘I must know whose children they are,’ was the -reply; and one day the mother went with her little girl to see the -children: it was a distance of about a quarter of a mile to Pin y Wig, -and after climbing the slope and walking a little along the top they -came in sight of the Pin. It is from this Pin that the people of Pen yr -Aỻt got water, and it is from there they get it still. Now after -coming near the Pin the little girl raised her hands with joy at the -sight of the children. ‘O mother,’ said she, ‘their -father is with them to-day: he is not with them always, it is only -sometimes that he is.’ The mother asked the child where she saw -them. ‘There they are, mother, running down to the Pin, with -their father sitting down.’ ‘I see nobody, my child,’ -was the reply, and great fear came upon the mother: she took hold of -the child’s hand in terror, and it came to her mind at once that -they were the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i>. Never afterwards was the -little girl allowed to go to Pin y Wig: the mother had heard that the -<i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i> exchanged people’s children.</p> -<p>Such is the first story, and it is only remarkable, perhaps, for its -allusion to the father of the fairy children.</p> -<p>(2) There used to be at Edern an old woman who occupied a small farm -called Glan y Gors: the same family lives there still. One day this old -woman had gone to a fair at Criccieth, whence she returned through -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb277" href="#pb277" name= -"pb277">277</a>]</span>Pwỻheli. As she was getting above Gors -Geirch, which was then a turbary and a pretty considerable bog, a noise -reached her ears: she stopped and heard the sound of much talking. -By-and-by she beheld a great crowd of men and women coming to meet her. -She became afraid and stepped across the fence to let them go by. There -she remained a while listening to their chatter, and when she thought -that they had gone far enough she returned to the road and began to -resume her way home. But before she had gone many steps she heard the -same sort of noise again, and saw again the same sort of crowd coming; -so she recrossed the fence in great fear, saying to herself, -‘Here I shall be all night!’ She remained there till they -also had gone, and she wondered what they could be, and whether they -were people who had been to visit Plas Madrun—afterwards, on -inquiry, she found that no such people had been there that day. Now the -old woman was near enough to the passers-by to hear them talking -(<i lang="cy">clebran</i>) and chattering (<i lang="cy">bregliach</i>), -but not a word could she understand of what they uttered: it was not -Welsh and she did not think that it was English—it is, however, -not supposed that she knew English. She related further that the last -crowd shouted all together to the other crowd in advance of them -<i lang="cy">Wi</i>, and that the latter replied <i lang="cy">Wi -Wei</i> or something like that.</p> -<p>This account Alaw Ỻeyn has got, he says, from a -great-granddaughter of the old woman, and she heard it all from her -father, Barđ Ỻechog, who always had faith in the fairies, -and believed that they will come again to be seen of men and women. For -he thought that they had their periods, a belief which I have come -across elsewhere, and more especially in Carnarvonshire<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e11921src" href="#xd25e11921" name= -"xd25e11921src">35</a>. Now what are we to make of such a story? I -recollect <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb278" href="#pb278" name= -"pb278">278</a>]</span>reading somewhere of a phantom wedding in -Scotland, but in Wales we seem to have nothing more closely resembling -this than a phantom funeral. Nevertheless what the old woman of Glan y -Gors thought she saw looks by no means unlike a Welsh wedding marching -on foot, especially when, as I have seen done, one party -tried—seemingly in good earnest—to escape the other and to -take the bride away from it. Moreover, that the figures making up the -two crowds in her story are to be regarded as fairies is rendered -probable by the next story, which describes the phantoms therein -expressly as little men and little women.</p> -<p>(3) The small farm of Perth y Celyn in Edern used to be held by an -old man named Griffith Griffiths. In his best days he stood six foot, -and he has left behind him a double reputation for bodily strength and -great piety. My informant can well remember him walking to chapel with -the aid of his two sticks. The story goes that one day, when he was in -his prime, he set out from Perth y Celyn at two in the morning to walk -to Carnarvon to pay his rent: there was no talk in those days of a -carriage for anybody. After passing through Nefyn and Pistyỻ, he -came in due time to Bwlch Trwyn Swncwl<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11928src" href="#xd25e11928" name="xd25e11928src">36</a>: he -writes this name also Bwlch Drws Wncwl, with the suggestion that it -ought to be Bwlch Drws Encil, and that the place must have been of -importance in the wars of the ancient Kymry. The high-road, he goes on -to say, runs through the Bwlch, and as Griffith was entering this gap -what should he hear but a great deal of talking. He stopped and -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb279" href="#pb279" name= -"pb279">279</a>]</span>listened, when to his surprise he saw coming -towards him, devoid of all fear, a crowd of little men and little -women. They talked aloud, but he could not understand a single word -they said: he thought that it was neither Welsh nor English. They -passed by him on the road, but he moved aside to the ditch lest they -should knock against him; but no feeling of fear came upon him. The old -man believed them to have been the <i lang="cy">Tylwyth Teg</i>.</p> -<p>In the story of the Moeđin funeral the language of the <i lang= -"cy">toeli</i> was not intelligible to the farmer and his wife, or to -the tailor, and here in two stories from Ỻeyn we have it clearly -stated that it was neither Welsh nor, probably, English. Since the -fairies are always represented as old-fashioned in their ways, it is -quite possible that they were once regarded as talking a more ancient -language of the country. Which was it? An early version of these -legends might perhaps have supplied the answer, and told us that it was -<i lang="cy">Gwyđelig</i> or Goidelic, if not an earlier idiom, to -wit that of the Aborigines before they learnt Goidelic from the Celts -of the first wave of Aryan invasion, whether it was in the region of -the Eifl or in the Demetian half of Keredigion. As to the former it is -worthy of note that when Griffith had reached Bwlch Trwyn Swncwl he was -in the outskirts of the Eifl Mountains, on one of whose heights, not -very far off, is the extensive prehistoric fortress of Tre’r -Ceiri, or the Town of the Keiri, a vocable which may be provisionally -rendered by ‘giants.’ In any case it dissociates that -stronghold from the Brythonic people of Wales. We shall find, however, -that a Goidel, or Pict, buried in a cairn on Snowdon, is known as Rhita -<i lang="cy">Gawr</i>, ‘Rhita the Giant’; and it is -possible that in the Keiri of <i lang="cy">Tre’r Ceiri</i> we -have no other race than that of mixed Goidels and Picts whom the -encroaching Brythons <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb280" href="#pb280" -name="pb280">280</a>]</span>found in possession of the west of our -island. Nay, one may say that this is rendered probable by the use made -of the word <i lang="cy">ceiri</i> in medieval Welsh: thus in some -poetry composed by a certain Dafyđ Offeiriad, and copied by Thomas -Williams of Trefriw, we have a line alluding to Britain in the -words:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Coron ynys y Ceûri</i><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11962src" href="#xd25e11962" name="xd25e11962src">37</a>.</p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">The Crown of the Giants’ Island.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">Here <i lang="cy">Ynys y Ceûri</i> inevitably -recalls the fact that Britain is called <i lang="cy">Ynys y Kedyrn</i>, -or Island of the Mighty, in the <i>Mabinogion</i>, and also, in effect, -in the story of Kulhwch and Olwen. But such stories as these, which -enabled Geoffrey to say, i. 16, when he introduced his banal brood of -Trojans, that up to that time Britain had only been inhabited by a few -giants, are the legends, as will be pointed out later, of the -Brythonicized Goidels of Wales. So one may infer that their ancestors -had given this country the name of the Island of the Mighty, unless it -should prove more accurate to suppose them to have somehow derived the -term from the Aborigines.</p> -<p>This last surmise is countenanced by the fact that in the Kulhwch -story, the British Isles as a group are called Islands of the Mighty. -The words are <i lang="cy">Teir ynys y kedyrn ae their rac ynys</i>; -that is, the Three Islands of the Mighty and their Three outpost -Islands. That is not all, for in the same story the designation is -varied thus: <i lang="cy">Teir ynys prydein ae their rac -ynys</i><a class="noteref" id="xd25e12027src" href="#xd25e12027" name= -"xd25e12027src">38</a>, or <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb281" href= -"#pb281" name="pb281">281</a>]</span>Prydain’s Three Islands and -Prydain’s Three outpost Islands; and the substantial antiquity of -the designation ‘the Islands of Prydain,’ is proved by its -virtual identity with that used by ancient Greek authors like Ptolemy, -who calls both Britain and Ireland a <span class="trans" title= -"nēsos Pretanikē"><span class="Greek" lang= -"grc">νῆσος -Πρετανική</span></span>, -where <i>Pretanic</i> and <i>Prydain</i> are closely related words. Now -our <i>Prydain</i> had in medieval Welsh the two forms <i>Prydein</i> -and <i>Prydyn</i>. But some time or other there set in a tendency to -desynonymize them, so as to make <i>Ynys Prydein</i>, ‘the -Picts’ Island,’ mean Great Britain, and <i lang= -"cy">Prydyn</i> mean the Pictland of the North. But just as <i lang= -"cy">Cymry</i> meant the plural Welshmen <i>and</i> the singular Wales, -so <i lang="cy">Prydyn</i> meant Picts<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12080src" href="#xd25e12080" name="xd25e12080src">39</a> -<i>and</i> the country of the Picts. Now the plural <i lang= -"cy">Prydyn</i> has its etymological Goidelic equivalent in the vocable -<i lang="cy">Cruithni</i>, which is well known to have meant the Picts -or the descendants of the <i lang="la">Picti</i> of Roman historians. -Further, this last name cannot be severed from that of the <i lang= -"la">Pictones</i><a class="noteref" id="xd25e12117src" href= -"#xd25e12117" name="xd25e12117src">40</a> in Gaul, and it is usually -supposed to have referred to their habit of tattooing themselves. At -all events this agrees with the apparent meaning of the names <i lang= -"cy">Prydyn</i> and <i lang="cy">Cruithni</i>, from <i lang= -"cy">pryd</i> and <i lang="cy">cruth</i>, the words in Welsh and Irish -respectively for <i>form</i> or <i>shape</i>, the designation being -supposed to refer to the forms or pictures of various animals punctured -on the skins of the Picts. So much as to the practical identity of the -terms <i lang="cy">Prydyn</i>, <i lang="cy">Cruithni</i>, and the -Greeks’ <i>Pretanic</i>; but how could <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb282" href="#pb282" name= -"pb282">282</a>]</span><i>Cedyrn</i> and <i>Prydein</i> correspond in -the terms <i>Ynys y Kedyrn</i> and <i>Ynys Prydein</i>? This one is -enabled to understand by means of <i>ceûri</i> or <i>ceiri</i> as -a middle term. Now <i>cadarn</i> means strong or valiant, and makes the -plural <i>cedyrn</i>; but there is another Welsh word -<i>cadr</i><a class="noteref" id="xd25e12183src" href="#xd25e12183" -name="xd25e12183src">41</a> which has also the meaning of valiant or -powerful, and may have yielded some such a medieval form as -<i>ceidyr</i> in the plural. Now this <i>cadr</i> is proved by its -cognates<a class="noteref" id="xd25e12299src" href="#xd25e12299" name= -"xd25e12299src">42</a> not to have always had the meaning of valiant or -strong: its original signification was more nearly ‘fine, -beautiful, or beautified.’ Thus what seems to have happened is, -that <i>cadarn</i>, ‘strong, powerful, mighty,’ influenced -the meaning of <i>cadr</i>, ‘beautiful,’ and eventually -usurped its place in the name of the island, which from being <i lang= -"cy">Ynys y Ceidyr</i> became <i lang="cy">Ynys y Cedyrn</i>. But the -former meant the ‘Island of the fine or beautiful men,’ -which was closely enough the meaning also of the words Prydain, -Cruithni, and Picts, as names of a people who delighted to beautify -their persons by tattooing their <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb283" -href="#pb283" name="pb283">283</a>]</span>skins and making themselves -<i>distingué</i> in that savage fashion. That is not all, for on -examination it turns out that the word <i>ceiri</i>, which has been -treated up to this point as meaning giants, is but a double, so to say, -of the word <i>cadr</i> in the plural, both as to etymology and -original meaning of beautiful. It is a word in constant use in -Carnarvonshire, where it is ironically applied to pretentious men fond -of showing themselves off, especially in the matter of clothes. -<i>’D ydi nhw ’n geiri!</i> ‘Aren’t they -swells!’ <i>Dyna i ch’i gawr!</i> ‘There’s a -fine fellow for you!’ and so also with the feminine -<i>cawres</i>. Of course the <i>cawr</i> of standard Welsh is familiar -enough in the sense of giant to Carnarvonshire people, so the meaning -can be best ascertained in the case of the plural <i>ceiri</i>, which -they hardly ever meet with in print; and, so far as I have been able to -ascertain, by <i>ceiri</i> they mean—in an ironical sense it is -true—fine fellows, with reference not to great stature or -strength but to their get-up. Thus one arrives at the true -interpretation of the name <i>Tre’r Ceiri</i> as the Town of the -<i>Prydyn</i> or <i>Cruithni</i>; that is to say, the Town of the Picts -or the Aborigines, who showed themselves off decorated with pictures. -So far also from <i>Ynys y Ceiri</i> being an echo of <i>Ynys y -Cedyrn</i>, it turns out to be really the more original of the two. -Such names, when they are closely examined, are apt to prove old beyond -all hastily formed expectation. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb284" -href="#pb284" name="pb284">284</a>]</span></p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<div class="footnotes"> -<hr class="fnsep"> -<div class="footnote-body"> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e9623" href="#xd25e9623src" name="xd25e9623">1</a></span> This -chapter, except where a later date is suggested, may be regarded as -written in the summer of 1883. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e9623src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e9628" href="#xd25e9628src" name="xd25e9628">2</a></span> <i lang= -"cy">Trefriw</i> means the town of the slope or hillside, and stands -for <i lang="cy">Tref y Riw</i>, not <i lang="cy">tref y Rhiw</i>, -which would have yielded <i lang="cy">Treffriw</i>, for there is a -tendency in Gwyneđ to make the mutation after the definite article -conform to the general rule, and to say <i lang="cy">y law</i>, -‘the hand,’ and <i lang="cy">y raw</i>, ‘the -spade,’ instead of what would be in books <i lang="cy">y -ỻaw</i> and <i lang="cy">y rhaw</i> from <i lang="cy">yr -ỻaw</i> and <i lang="cy">yr rhaw</i>. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e9628src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e9719" href="#xd25e9719src" name="xd25e9719">3</a></span> Why the -writer spells the name Criccieth in this way I cannot tell, except that -he was more or less under the influence of the more intelligible -spelling <i lang="cy">Crugcaith</i>, as where Lewis Glyn Cothi. I. -xxiv, sang</p> -<div class="q"> -<div class="nestedtext"> -<div class="nestedbody"> -<div lang="cy" class="lgouter footnote"> -<p class="line"><i>Rhys ab Sion â’r hysbys iaith,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Gwr yw acw o Grugcaith.</i></p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<p class="footnote cont">This spelling postulates the interpretation -<i lang="cy">Crug-Caith</i>, earlier <i lang="cy">Crug y Ceith</i>, -‘the mound or barrow of the captives,’ in reference to some -forgotten interment; but when the accent receded to the first syllable -the second was slurred almost out of recognition, so that <i lang= -"cy">Crug-ceith</i>, or <i lang="cy">Cruc-ceith</i>, became <i lang= -"cy">Crúceth</i>, whence <i lang="cy">Crúci̭eth</i> -and <i lang="cy">Crici̭eth</i>. The <i>Bruts</i> have <i lang= -"cy">Crugyeith</i> the only time it occurs, and the <i>Record of -Carnarvon</i> (several times) <i lang="cy">Krukyth</i>. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e9719src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e9794" href="#xd25e9794src" name="xd25e9794">4</a></span> Out of -excessive fondness for our Arthur English people translate this name -into Arthur’s Seat instead of Idris’ Seat; but Idris was -also somebody: he was a giant with a liking for the study of the stars. -But let that be: I wish to say a word concerning his name: Idris may be -explained as meaning ‘War-champion,’ or the like; and, -phonologically speaking, it comes from <i lang="cy">Iuđ-rys</i>, -which was made successively into <i lang="cy">Id-rys</i>, <i>Idris</i>. -The syllable <i lang="cy">i̭uđ</i> meant battle or fight, and -it undergoes a variety of forms in Welsh names. Thus before <i>n</i>, -<i>r</i>, <i>l</i>, and <i>w</i>, it becomes <i>id</i>, as in -<i>Idnerth</i>, <i>Idloes</i>, and <i>Idwal</i>, while <i lang= -"cy">Iuđ-hael</i> yields <i>Ithel</i>, whence Ab Ithel, anglicized -<i>Bethel</i>. At the end, however, it is <i lang="cy">yđ</i> or -<i>uđ</i>, as in <i lang="cy">Gruffuđ</i> or <i lang= -"cy">Gruffyđ</i>, from Old Welsh <i lang= -"cy">Grippi̭uđ</i>, and <i lang="cy">Mareduđ</i> or -<i lang="cy">Meredyđ</i> for an older <i lang= -"cy">Marget-i̭uđ</i>. By itself it is possibly the word which -the poets write <i lang="cy">uđ</i>, and understand to mean -<i>lord</i>; but if these forms are related, it must have originally -meant rather a fighter, soldier, or champion. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e9794src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e9880" href="#xd25e9880src" name="xd25e9880">5</a></span> There is -a special similarity between this and an Anglesey story given by -Howells, p. 138: it consists in the sequence of seeing the fairies -dance and finding money left by them. Why was the money -left? <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e9880src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e9937" href="#xd25e9937src" name="xd25e9937">6</a></span> It was -so called by the poet D. ab Gwilym, cxcii. 12, when he sang:</p> -<div class="q"> -<div class="nestedtext"> -<div class="nestedbody"> -<div class="lgouter footnote"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg footnote"> -<p class="line xd25e5678"><i>I odi ac i luchio</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Ođiar lechweđ Moel Eilio.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg footnote"> -<p class="line">To bring snow and drifting flakes</p> -<p class="line">From off Moel Eilio’s slope.</p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<p> <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e9937src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote" lang="en"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" -id="xd25e10043" href="#xd25e10043src" name="xd25e10043">7</a></span> -This is commonly pronounced ‘Y Gath Dorwen,’ but the people -of the neighbourhood wish to explain away a farm name which could, -strangely enough, only mean ‘the white-bellied cat’; but -<i lang="cy">y Garth Dorwen</i>, ‘the white-bellied <i lang= -"cy">garth</i> or hill,’ is not a very likely name -either. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e10043src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e10057" href="#xd25e10057src" name="xd25e10057">8</a></span> The -hiring time in Wales is the beginning of winter and of summer; or, as -one would say in Welsh, at the Calends of Winter and the Calends of -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb212n" href="#pb212n" name= -"pb212n">212</a>]</span>May respectively. In North Cardiganshire the -great hiring fair was held at the former date when I was a boy, and so, -as I learn from my wife, it was in Carnarvonshire. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e10057src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e10079" href="#xd25e10079src" name="xd25e10079">9</a></span> In a -Cornish story mentioned in <i>Choice Notes</i>, p. 77, we have, instead -of ointment, simply soap. See also Mrs. Bray’s <i>Banks of the -Tamar</i>, pp. 174–7, where she alludes to H. Cornelius -Agrippa’s statement how such ointment used to be made—the -reference must, I think, be to his book <i lang="la">De Occulta -Philosophia Libri III</i> (Paris, 1567), i. 45 (pp. -81–2). <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e10079src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e10143" href="#xd25e10143src" name="xd25e10143">10</a></span> See -the <i>Mabinogion</i>, pp. 1–2; Evans’ <i>Facsimile of the -Black Book of Carmarthen</i>, fol. 49<sup>b</sup>–50<sup>a</sup>; -Rhys’ <i>Arthurian Legend</i>, pp. 155–8; Edmund -Jones’ <i>Spirits in the County of Monmouth</i>, pp. 39, 71, 82; -and in this volume, pp. 143, 203, above. I may mention that the Cornish -also have had their <i lang="cy">Cwn Annwn</i>, though the name is a -different one, to wit in the phrase, ‘the Devil and his -Dandy-dogs’: see <i>Choice Notes</i>, pp. -78–80. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e10143src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e10250" href="#xd25e10250src" name="xd25e10250">11</a></span> As -it stands now this would be unmutated <i lang="cy">Césel -Gýfarch</i>, ‘Cyfarch’s Nook,’ but there never -was such a name. There was, however, <i lang="cy">Elgýfarch</i> -or <i lang="cy">Aelgýfarch</i> and <i lang= -"cy">Rhygýfarch</i>, and in such a combination as <i lang= -"cy">Césel Elgýfarch</i> there would be every temptation -to drop one unaccented <i>el</i>. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e10250src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e10340" href="#xd25e10340src" name="xd25e10340">12</a></span> -Owing to some oversight he has ‘a clean or a dirty -<i>cow</i>’ instead of <i>cow-yard</i> or <i>cow-house</i>, as I -understand it. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e10340src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote" lang="en"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" -id="xd25e10391" href="#xd25e10391src" name="xd25e10391">13</a></span> -<i lang="cy">Cwta</i> makes <i>cota</i> in the feminine in North -Cardiganshire; the word is nevertheless only the English <i>cutty</i> -borrowed. <i>Du</i>, ‘black,’ has corresponding to it in -Irish, <i lang="ga">dubh</i>. So the Welsh word seems to have passed -through the stages <i>dyv</i>, <i>dyw</i>, before <i>yw</i> was -contracted into <i>û</i>, which was formerly pronounced like -French <i>û</i>, as proved by the grammar already mentioned (p. -22) of J. D. Rhys, published in London in 1592; see p. 33, to which my -attention has been called by Prof. J. Morris Jones. In Old or -pre-Norman Welsh <i>m</i> did duty for <i>m</i> and <i>v</i>, so one -detects <i>dyv</i> as <i>dim</i> in a woman’s name -<i>Penardim</i>, ‘she of the very black head’; there was -also a <i>Penarwen</i>, ‘she of the very blonde head.’ The -look of <i>Penardim</i> having baffled the redactor of the -<i>Branwen</i>, he left the spelling unchanged: see the (Oxford) -<i>Mabinogion</i>, p. 26. The same sort of change which produced -<i>du</i> has produced <i>cnu</i>, ‘a fleece,’ as compared -with <i>cneifio</i>, ‘to fleece’; <i lang= -"cy">ỻuarth</i>, ‘a kitchen garden,’ as compared with -its Irish equivalent <i lang="ga">lubhghort</i>. Compare also <i lang= -"cy">Rhiwabon</i>, locally pronounced <i lang="cy">Rhuabon</i>, and -<i lang="cy">Rhiwaỻon</i>, occurring sometimes as <i lang= -"cy">Rhuaỻon</i>. But the most notable rôle of this -phonetic process is exemplified by the verbal nouns ending in <i>u</i>, -such as <i lang="cy">caru</i>, ‘to love,’ <i lang= -"cy">credu</i>, ‘to believe,’ <i lang="cy">tyngu</i>, -‘to swear,’ in which the <i>u</i> corresponds to an -<i>m</i> termination in Old Irish, as in <i lang="cy">sechem</i>, -‘to follow,’ <i lang="cy">cretem</i>, ‘belief,’ -<i lang="cy">sessam</i> or <i lang="cy">sessom</i>, ‘to -stand.’ <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e10391src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e10596" href="#xd25e10596src" name="xd25e10596">14</a></span> In -medieval Welsh poetry this name was still a dissyllable; but now it is -pronounced <i lang="cy">Ỻŷn</i>, in conformity with the -habit of the Gwyndodeg, which makes into <i lang= -"cy">porfŷđ</i> what is written <i lang= -"cy">porfeyđ</i>, ‘pastures,’ and pronounced <i lang= -"cy">porféiđ</i> in North Cardiganshire. So in the -Ỻeyn name <i lang="cy">Sarn Fyỻteyrn</i> the second vocable -represents <i lang="cy">Maelteyrn</i>, in the <i>Record of -Carnarvon</i> (p. 38) <i lang="cy">Mayltern̄</i>: it is now -sounded <i lang="cy">Myỻtyrn</i> with the second <i>y</i> short -and accented. <i lang="cy">Ỻeyn</i> is a plural of the people -(genitive <i lang="cy">Ỻaën</i> in <i lang="cy">Porth -Dinỻaën</i>), used as a singular of their country, like -<i lang="cy">Cymru</i> = <i lang="cy">Cymry</i>, and <i lang= -"cy">Prydyn</i>. The singular is <i lang="cy">ỻain</i>, ‘a -spear,’ in the <i>Book of Aneurin</i>: see Skene, ii. 64, 88, -92. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e10596src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e10771" href="#xd25e10771src" name="xd25e10771">15</a></span> It -is also called <i lang="cy">dolur byr</i>, or the ‘short -disease’; I believe I have been told that it is the disease known -to ‘the vet.’ as anthrax. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e10771src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e10807" href="#xd25e10807src" name="xd25e10807">16</a></span> Here -the writer seems to have been puzzled by the <i>mh</i> of -A<i>mh</i>eirchion, and to have argued back to a radical form -<i>Parch</i>; but he was on the wrong tack—<i>Amheirchion</i> -comes from <i>Ap-Meirchion</i>, where the <i>p</i> helped to make the -<i>m</i> a surd, which, with the syllabic accent on the succeeding -vowel, became fixed as <i>mh</i>, while the <i>p</i> disappeared by -assimilation. We have, later on, a similar instance in <i lang= -"cy">Owen y Mhaxen</i> for Owen Amhacsen = O. ap Macsen. Another -instance will be found at the opening of the <i>Mabinogi</i> of -Branwen, to wit, in the word <i lang="cy">prynhawngweith</i>, -‘once on an afternoon,’ from <i lang="cy">prynhawn</i>, -‘afternoon,’ for which our dictionaries substitute <i lang= -"cy">prydnawn</i>, with the accent on the ultima, though D. ab Gwilym -used <i lang="cy">pyrnhawn</i>, as in poem xl. 30. But the ordinary -pronunciation continues to be <i lang="cy">prynháwn</i> or -<i lang="cy">pyrnháwn</i>, sometimes reduced in Gwyneđ to -<i lang="cy">pnawn</i>. Let me add an instance which has reached me -since writing the above: In the <i lang="la">Archæologia -Cambrensis</i> for 1899, pp. 325–6, we have the pedigree of the -<i>Ameridiths</i> from the Visitation of Devonshire in 1620: in the -course of it one finds that Iuan ap Merydeth has a son Thomas -<i>Amerideth</i>, who, knowing probably no Welsh, took to writing his -patronymic more nearly as it was pronounced. The line is brought down -to Ames <i>Amerideth</i>, who was created baronet in 1639. -<i>Amerideth</i> of course = Ap Meredyđ, and the present member of -the family who writes to the <i lang="la">Archæologia -Cambrensis</i> spells his patronymic more correctly, <i>Ameridith</i>; -but if it had survived in Wales it might have been -<i>Amheredyđ</i>. For an older instance than any of these see the -<i>Book of Taliessin</i>, poem xlix (= Skene, ii. 204), where one reads -of <i lang="cy">Beli Amhanogan</i>, ‘B. ab -Mynogan.’ <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e10807src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote" lang="en"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" -id="xd25e10920" href="#xd25e10920src" name="xd25e10920">17</a></span> -This is pronounced <i lang="cy">Rhiwan</i>, though probably made up of -Rhiw-wen, for it is the tendency of the Gwyndodeg to convert <i>e</i> -and <i>ai</i> of the unaccented ultima into <i>a</i>, and so with -<i>e</i> in Glamorgan; see such instances as <i>Cornwan</i> and -<i>casag</i>, p. 29 above. It is possibly a tendency inherited from -Goidelic, as Irish is found to proceed in the same way. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e10920src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e10975" href="#xd25e10975src" name="xd25e10975">18</a></span> I -may mention that some of the Francises of Anglesey are supposed to be -descendants of Frazers, who changed their name on finding refuge in -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb239n" href="#pb239n" name= -"pb239n">239</a>]</span>the island in the time of the troubles which -brought there the ancestor of the Frazer who, from time to time, claims -to be the rightful head of the Lovat family. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e10975src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11093" href="#xd25e11093src" name="xd25e11093">19</a></span> -According to old Welsh orthography this would be written <i>Moudin</i>, -and in the book Welsh of the present day it would have to become -<i lang="cy">Meuđin</i>. Restored, however, to the level of -Gallo-Roman names, it would be <i>Mogodunum</i> or <i>Magodunum</i>. -The place is known as Casteỻ Moeđin, and includes within it -the end of a hill about halfway between Ỻannarth and -Lampeter. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e11093src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11108" href="#xd25e11108src" name="xd25e11108">20</a></span> For -other mentions of the colours of fairy dress see pp. 44, 139 above, -where red prevails, and contrast the Lake Lady of Ỻyn Barfog clad -in green, p. 145. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e11108src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11134" href="#xd25e11134src" name="xd25e11134">21</a></span> This -name means the Bridge of the Blessed Ford, but how the ford came to be -so called I know not. The word <i lang="cy">bendigaid</i>, -‘blessed,’ comes from the Latin verb <i lang= -"la">benedico</i>, ‘I bless,’ and should, but for the -objection to <i lang="cy">nđ</i> in book Welsh, be <i lang= -"cy">benđigaid</i>, which, in fact, it is approximately in the -northern part of the county, where it is colloquially sounded Pont Rhyd -<i lang="cy">Fynđiged</i>, <i lang="cy">Fyđiged</i>, or even -<i lang="cy">Fđiged</i>, also Pont Rhyd <i lang= -"cy">m̥điged</i>, which represents the result of the -unmutated form <i lang="cy">Bđiged</i> coming directly after the -<i>d</i> of <i lang="cy">rhyd</i>. Somewhat the same is the case with -the name of the herb <i lang="cy">Dail y Fendigaid</i>, literally -‘the Leaves of the Blessed’ (in the feminine singular -without any further indication of the noun to be supplied). This name -means, I find, ‘<i lang="la">hypericum androsæmum</i>, -tutsan,’ and in North Cardiganshire we call it Dail y <i lang= -"cy">Fynđiged</i> or <i lang="cy">Fđiged</i>, but in -Carnarvonshire the adjective is made to qualify <i>dail</i>, so that it -sounds Dail <i lang="cy">Byđigad</i> or <i lang= -"cy">Bđigad</i>, ‘Blessed Leaves.’ <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e11134src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11297" href="#xd25e11297src" name="xd25e11297">22</a></span> I am -far from certain what <i lang="cy">y nos</i>, ‘the night,’ -may mean in such names as this and <i lang="cy">Craig y Nos</i>, -‘the Rock of the Night’ (p. 254 above), to which perhaps -might be added such an instance as <i lang="cy">Blaen Nos</i>, -‘the Point of (the?) Night,’ in the neighbourhood of -Ỻandovery, in Carmarthenshire. Can the allusion be merely to -thickly overshadowed spots where the darkness of night might be said to -lurk in defiance of the light of day? I have never visited the places -in point, and leading questions addressed to local authorities are too -apt to elicit misleading answers: the poetic faculty is dangerously -rampant in the Principality. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e11297src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote" lang="en"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" -id="xd25e11324" href="#xd25e11324src" name="xd25e11324">23</a></span> -<i lang="cy">Dâr</i> is a Glamorgan pronunciation, <i lang= -"cy">metri gratiâ</i> of what is written <i lang="cy">daear</i>, -‘earth’: compare <i lang="cy">d’ar-fochyn</i> in -Glamorgan for a badger, literally ‘an earth pig.’ The -dwarf’s answer was probably in some sort of verse, with <i lang= -"cy">dâr</i> and <i lang="cy">iâr</i> to -rhyme. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e11324src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11376" href="#xd25e11376src" name="xd25e11376">24</a></span> -Applied in Glamorgan to a child that looks poorly and does not -grow. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e11376src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11385" href="#xd25e11385src" name="xd25e11385">25</a></span> In -Cardiganshire a conjurer is called <i lang="cy">dyn hysbys</i>, where -<i lang="cy">hysbys</i> (or, in older orthography, <i lang= -"cy">hyspys</i>) means ‘informed’: it is the man who is -<i>informed</i> on matters which are dark to others; but the word is -also used of facts—<i lang="cy">Y mae ’r peth yn -hysbys</i>, ‘the thing is known or manifest.’ The word is -divisible into <i lang="cy">hy-spys</i>, which would be in Irish, had -it existed in the language, <i lang="cy">so-scese</i> for an early -<i lang="cy">su-squesti̭a-s</i>, the related Irish words being -<i lang="cy">ad-chiu</i>, ‘I see,’ pass. preterite <i lang= -"cy">ad-chess</i>, ‘was seen,’ and the like, in which -<i lang="cy">ci</i> and <i>ces</i> have been equated by Zimmer with the -Sanskrit verb <i>caksh</i>, ‘to see,’ from a root -<i>quas</i>. The adjective <i lang="cy">cynnil</i> applied to the -<i lang="cy">dyn hyspys</i> in Glamorgan means now, as a rule, -‘economical’ or ‘thrifty,’ but in this instance -it would seem to have signified ‘shrewd,’ -‘cunning,’ or ‘clever,’ though it would -probably come nearer the original meaning of the word to render it by -‘smart,’ for it is in Irish <i lang="ga">conduail</i>, -which is found applied to ingenious work, such as the ornamentation on -the hilt of a sword. Another term for a wizard or conjurer is <i lang= -"cy">gwr cyfarwyđ</i>, with which the reader is already familiar. -Here <i lang="cy">cyfarwyđ</i> forms a link with the <i lang= -"cy">kyvarỽyd</i> of the <i>Mabinogion</i>, where it usually -means a professional man, especially one skilled in story and history; -and what constituted his knowledge was called <i lang= -"cy">kyvarỽydyt</i>, which included, among other things, -acquaintance with boundaries and pedigrees, but it meant most -frequently perhaps story; see the (Oxford) <i>Mabinogion</i>, pp. 5, -61, 72, 93. All these terms should, strictly speaking, have <i lang= -"cy">gwr</i>—<i lang="cy">gwr hyspys</i>, <i lang="cy">gwr -cynnil</i>, and <i lang="cy">gwr cyfarwyđ</i>—but for the -fact that modern Welsh tends to restrict <i lang="cy">gwr</i> to -signify ‘a husband’ or ‘a married man,’ while -<i lang="cy">dyn</i>, which only signifies a <i>mortal</i>, is made to -mean man, and provided with a feminine <i lang="cy">dynes</i>, -‘woman,’ unknown to good Welsh literature. Thus the spoken -language is in this matter nearly on a level with English and French, -which have quite lost the word for <i>vir</i> and <span class="trans" -title="anēr"><span class="Greek" lang= -"grc">ἀνήρ</span></span>. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e11385src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11501" href="#xd25e11501src" name="xd25e11501">26</a></span> -<i lang="cy">Rhyd y Gloch</i> means ‘the Ford of the Bell,’ -in allusion, as the story goes, to a silver bell that used in former -ages to be at Ỻanwonno Church. The people of Ỻanfabon took -a liking to it, and one night a band of them stole it; but as they were -carrying it across the Taff the moon happened to make her appearance -suddenly, and they, in their fright, taking it to be sunrise, dropped -the bell in the bed of the river, so that nothing has ever been heard -of it since. But for ages afterwards, and even at the present day -indeed, nothing could rouse the natives of Ỻanfabon to greater -fury than to hear the moon spoken of as <i lang="cy">haul -Ỻanfabon</i>, ‘the sun of -Ỻanfabon.’ <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e11501src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11519" href="#xd25e11519src" name="xd25e11519">27</a></span> It -was peat fires that were usual in those days even in -Glamorgan. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e11519src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11568" href="#xd25e11568src" name="xd25e11568">28</a></span> See -Hartland’s <i>Science of Fairy Tales</i>, pp. -112–6. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e11568src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote" lang="en"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" -id="xd25e11593" href="#xd25e11593src" name="xd25e11593">29</a></span> -In no other version has Mr. Reynolds heard <i lang="cy">cwcwỻ wy -iâr</i>, but either <i lang="cy">plisgyn</i> or <i lang= -"cy">cibyn wy iâr</i>, to which I may add <i lang="cy">masgal</i> -from Mr. Craigfryn Hughes’ versions. The word <i lang= -"cy">cwcwỻ</i> usually means a cowl, but perhaps it is best here -to treat <i lang="cy">cwcwỻ</i> as a distinct word derived -somehow from <i lang="cy">conchylium</i> or the French <i lang= -"fr">coquille</i>, ‘a shell.’ <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e11593src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11658" href="#xd25e11658src" name="xd25e11658">30</a></span> The -whole passage will be found in the <i lang="la">Itinerarium -Kambriæ</i>, i. 8 (pp. 75–8), and Giraldus fixes the story -a little before his time somewhere in the district around Swansea and -Neath. With this agrees closely enough the fact that a second David, -<i lang="cy">Dafyđ ab Geraỻd</i> or <i>David Fitzgerald</i>, -appears to have been consecrated Bishop of St. David’s in 1147, -and to have died in 1176. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e11658src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11670" href="#xd25e11670src" name="xd25e11670">31</a></span> The -words in the original are: <i lang="la">Nec carne vescebantur, nec -pisce; lacteis plerumque cibariis utentes, et in pultis modum quasi -croco confectis</i>. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e11670src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11683" href="#xd25e11683src" name="xd25e11683">32</a></span> -Perhaps it is this also that suggested the name <i>Eliodorus</i>, as it -were <span class="trans" title="Hēliodōros"><span class= -"Greek" lang= -"grc">Ἡλιόδωρος</span></span>; -for the original name was probably the medieval Welsh one of -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb271n" href="#pb271n" name= -"pb271n">271</a>]</span><i>Elidyr</i> = Irish <i>Ailithir</i>, -<i>ailither</i>, ‘a pilgrim’: compare the Pembrokeshire -name <i>Pergrin</i> and the like. It is curious that <i>Elidyr</i> did -not occur to Glasynys and prevent him from substituting <i>Elfod</i>, -which is quite another name, and more correctly written -<i>Elfođ</i> for the earlier <i lang="cy">El-fođw</i>, found -not only as <i>Elbodu</i> but also <i>Elbodug-o</i>, <i>Elbodg</i>, -<i>Elbot</i> and <i>Elfod</i>: see p. 117 above. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e11683src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11766" href="#xd25e11766src" name="xd25e11766">33</a></span> For -one or two more instances from Wales see Howells, pp. 54–7. -Brittany also is a great country for death portents: see A. Le Braz, -<i lang="fr">Légende de la Mort en Basse-Bretagne</i> (Paris, -1893), also Sébillot’s <i lang="fr">Traditions et -Superstitions de la Haute-Bretagne</i> (Paris, 1882), i. pp. -270–1. For Scotland see <i>The Ghost Lights of the West -Highlands</i> by Dr. R. C. Maclagan in <i>Folk-Lore</i> for 1897, pp. -203–256, and for the cognate subject of second sight see -Dalyell’s <i>Darker Superstitions of Scotland</i>, pp. -466–88. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e11766src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11813" href="#xd25e11813src" name="xd25e11813">34</a></span> -Another word for the <i lang="cy">toeli</i> is given by Silvan Evans as -used in certain parts of South Wales, namely, <i lang="cy">tolaeth</i> -or <i lang="cy">dolath</i>, as to which he <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb274n" href="#pb274n" name= -"pb274n">274</a>]</span>mentions the opinion that it is a corruption of -<i lang="cy">tylwyth</i>, a view corroborated by Howells using, p. 31, -the plural <i lang="cy">tyloethod</i>; but it could not be easily -explained except as a corruption through the medium of English. Elias -Owen, p. 303, uses the word in reference to the hammering and rapping -noise attending the joinering of a phantom coffin for a man about to -die, a sort of rehearsal well known throughout the Principality to -every one who has ears spiritually tuned. Unfortunately I have not yet -succeeded in locating the use of the word <i lang="cy">tolaeth</i>, -except that I have been assured by a Carmarthen man that it is current -in Welsh there as <i lang="cy">toleth</i>, and by a native of Pumsant -that it is in use from Abergwili up to Ỻanbumsant. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e11813src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11921" href="#xd25e11921src" name="xd25e11921">35</a></span> See, -for instance, pp. 200, 221, 228. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e11921src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e11928" href="#xd25e11928src" name="xd25e11928">36</a></span> Mrs. -Williams-Ellis of Glasfryn writes to me that the place is now called -Bwlch Trwyn Swncwl, that it is a gap on the highest part of the road -crossing from Ỻanaelhaearn to Pistyỻ, and that it is quite -a little mountain pass between bleak heather-covered hillsides, in fact -a very lonely spot in the outskirts of the Eifl, and with Carnguwch -blocking the horizon in the direction of Cardigan Bay. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e11928src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote" lang="en"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" -id="xd25e11962" href="#xd25e11962src" name="xd25e11962">37</a></span> -For this I am indebted to Mr. Gwenogvryn Evans’ <i>Report on MSS. -in the Welsh Language</i>, i. 585 k. The words were written by Williams -about the beginning of the seventeenth century, and his <i>û</i> -does not mean <i>w</i>. He was, however, probably thinking of -<i>cawr</i>, <i lang="cy">cewri</i>, and such instances as <i lang= -"cy">tawaf</i>, ‘<i lang="cy">taceo</i>,’ and <i lang= -"cy">tau</i>, ‘<i lang="cy">tacet</i>.’ At all events there -is no trace of <i>u</i> in the local pronunciation of the name <i lang= -"cy">Tre’r Ceiri</i>. I have heard it also as <i lang= -"cy">Tre’ Ceiri</i> without the definite article; but had this -been ancient one would expect it softened into <i lang="cy">Tre’ -Geiri</i>. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e11962src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12027" href="#xd25e12027src" name="xd25e12027">38</a></span> See -the Oxford <i>Mabinogion</i>, pp. 110, 113, and 27–9, -36–41, 44, also 309, where a Triad explains that the outposts -were Anglesey, Man, and Lundy. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb281n" -href="#pb281n" name="pb281n">281</a>]</span>But the other Triads, i. 3 -= iii. 67, make them Orkney, Man, and Wight, for which we have the -older authority of Nennius. § 8. The designation <i lang="cy">Tair -Ynys Brydain</i>, ‘The Three Isles of Prydain,’ was known -to the fourteenth-century poet, Iolo Goch: see his works edited by -Ashton, p. 669. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e12027src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12080" href="#xd25e12080src" name="xd25e12080">39</a></span> For -<i lang="cy">Prydyn</i> in the plural see Skene’s <i>Four Ancient -Books of Wales</i>, ii. 209, also 92, where <i lang="cy">Pryden</i> is -the form used. In modern Welsh the two senses of <i lang="cy">Cymry</i> -are distinguished in writing as <i lang="cy">Cymry</i> and <i lang= -"cy">Cymru</i>, but the difference is merely one of spelling and not -very ancient. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e12080src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12117" href="#xd25e12117src" name="xd25e12117">40</a></span> So -Geoffrey (i. 12–15) brings his Trojans on their way to Britain -into Aquitania, where they fight with the <i lang= -"la">Pictavienses</i>, whose king he calls Goffarius <i lang= -"la">Pictus</i>. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e12117src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12183" href="#xd25e12183src" name="xd25e12183">41</a></span> -<i>Cadarn</i> and <i>cadr</i> postulate respectively some such early -forms as <i>catṛno-s</i> and <i>cadro-s</i>, which according to -analogy should become <i>cadarn</i> and <i>cađr</i>. Welsh, -however, is not fond of <i>đr</i>; so here begins a bifurcation: -(1) retaining the <i>d</i> unchanged <i>cadro-s</i> yields <i>cadr</i>, -or (2) <i>dr</i> is made into <i>đr</i>, and other changes set in -resulting in the <i>ceir</i> of <i>ceiri</i>, as in Welsh -<i>aneirif</i>, ‘numberless,’ from <i>eirif</i>, -‘number,’ of the same origin as Irish <i>áram</i> -from *<i>ađ-rim</i> = *<i>ad-rīmā</i>, and Welsh -<i>eiliw</i>, ‘<i>species</i>, colour,’ for -<i>ađ-liw</i>, in both of which <i>i</i> follows <i>đ</i> -combinations; but that is not essential, as shown by <i>cader</i>, -<i>cadair</i>, for Old Welsh <i>cateir</i>, ‘a chair,’ from -Latin <i>cat[h]edra</i>. The word that serves as our singular, namely -<i>cawr</i>, is far harder to explain; but on the whole I am inclined -to regard it as of a different origin, to wit, the Goidelic word -<i>caur</i>, ‘a giant or hero,’ borrowed. The plural -<i>cewri</i> or <i>cawri</i> is formed from the singular <i>cawr</i>, -which means a giant, though, associated in the plural with -<i>ceiri</i>, it has sometimes to follow suit with that vocable in -connoting dress. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e12183src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12299" href="#xd25e12299src" name="xd25e12299">42</a></span> The -most important of these are the old Breton <i>kazr</i>, now -<i>kaer</i>, ‘beautiful or pretty,’ and old Cornish -<i>caer</i> of the same meaning; elsewhere we have, as in Greek, the -Doric <span class="trans" title="kekadmai"><span class="Greek" lang= -"grc">κέκαδμαι</span></span> -and <span class="trans" title="kekadmenos"><span class="Greek" lang= -"grc">κεκαδμένος</span></span>, -to be found used in reference to excelling or distinguishing -one’s self; also <span class="trans" title="kosmos"><span class= -"Greek" lang= -"grc">κόσμος</span></span>, -‘good order, ornament,’ while in Sanskrit there is the -theme <i>çad</i>, ‘to excel or surpass.’ The old -meaning of ‘beautiful,’ ‘decorated,’ or -‘loudly dressed,’ is not yet lost in the case of -<i>ceiri</i>. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e12299src">↑</a></p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch4" class="div1 chapter"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e654">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h2 class="label">CHAPTER IV</h2> -<h2 class="main"><span class="sc">Manx Folklore</span></h2> -<div class="epigraph"> -<p class="first">Be it remembrid that one Manaman Mack Clere, a paynim, -was the first inhabitour of the ysle of Man, who by his Necromancy kept -the same, that when he was assaylid or invaded he wold rayse such -mystes by land and sea that no man might well fynde owte the ysland, -and he would make one of his men seeme to be in nombre a -hundred.—<i>The Landsdowne MSS.</i></p> -</div> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">The following paper exhausts no part of the subject: -it simply embodies the substance of my notes of conversations which I -have had with Manx men and Manx women, whose names, together with such -other particulars as I could get, are in my possession. I have mostly -avoided reading up the subject in printed books; but those who wish to -see it exhaustively treated may be directed to Mr. Arthur W. -Moore’s book on <i>The Folklore of the Isle of Man</i>, to which -may now be added Mr. C. Roeder’s <i>Contributions to the Folklore -of the Isle of Man</i> in the <i>Lioar Manninagh</i> for 1897, pp. -129–91.</p> -<p>For the student of folklore the Isle of Man is very fairly stocked -with inhabitants of the imaginary order. She has her fairies and her -giants, her mermen and brownies, her kelpies and water-bulls.</p> -<p>The water-bull or <i>tarroo ushtey</i>, as he is called in Manx, is -a creature about which I have not been able to learn much, but he is -described as a sort of bull disporting himself about the pools and -swamps. For instance, I was told at the village of Andreas, in the flat -country forming the northern end of the island, and known as -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb285" href="#pb285" name= -"pb285">285</a>]</span>the Ayre, that there used to be a <i>tarroo -ushtey</i> between Andreas and the sea to the west: it was before the -ground had been drained as it is now. And an octogenarian captain at -Peel related to me how he had once when a boy heard a <i>tarroo -ushtey</i>: the bellowings of the brute made the ground tremble, but -otherwise the captain was unable to give me any very intelligible -description. This bull is by no means of the same breed as the bull -that comes out of the lakes of Wales to mix with the farmers’ -cattle, for there the result used to be great fertility among the -stock, and an overflow of milk and dairy produce, but in the Isle of -Man the <i>tarroo ushtey</i> only begets monsters and strangely formed -beasts.</p> -<p>The kelpie, or, rather, what I take to be a kelpie, was called by my -informants a <i>glashtyn</i>; and Kelly, in his <i>Manx Dictionary</i>, -describes the object meant as ‘a goblin, an imaginary animal -which rises out of the water.’ One or two of my informants -confused the glashtyn with the Manx brownie. On the other hand, one of -them was very definite in his belief that it had nothing human about -it, but was a sort of grey colt, frequenting the banks of lakes at -night, and never seen except at night.</p> -<p>Mermen and mermaids disport themselves on the coasts of Man, but I -have to confess that I have made no careful inquiry into what is -related about them; and my information about the giants of the island -is equally scanty. To confess the truth, I do not recollect hearing of -more than one giant, but that <i>was</i> a giant: I have seen the marks -of his huge hands impressed on the top of two massive monoliths. They -stand in a field at Balla Keeill Pherick, on the way down from the Sloc -to Colby. I was told there were originally five of these stones -standing in a circle, all of them marked in the <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb286" href="#pb286" name="pb286">286</a>]</span>same -way by the same giant as he hurled them down there from where he stood, -miles away on the top of the mountain called Cronk yn Irree Laa. Here I -may mention that the Manx word for a giant is <i>foawr</i>, in which a -vowel-flanked <i>m</i> has been spirited away, as shown by the modern -Irish spelling, <i>fomhor</i>. This, in the plural in old Irish, -appears as the name of the <i>Fomori</i>, so well known in Irish -legend, which, however, does not always represent them as giants, but -rather as monsters. I have been in the habit of explaining the word as -meaning <i>submarini</i>; but no more are they invariably connected -with the sea. So another etymology recommends itself, namely, one which -comes from Dr. Whitley Stokes, and makes the <i>mor</i> in -<i>fomori</i> to be of the same origin as the <i>mare</i> in the -English night<i>mare</i>, French cauche<i>mar</i>, German <i>mahr</i>, -‘an elf,’ and cognate words. I may mention that with the -Fomori of mythic origin have doubtless been confounded and identified -certain invaders of Ireland, especially the Dumnonians from the country -between Galloway and the mouth of the Clyde, some of whom may be -inferred to have coasted the north of Ireland and landed in the west, -for example in Erris, the north-west of Mayo, called after them -<i>Irrus</i> (or Erris) <i>Domnann</i>.</p> -<p>The Manx brownie is called the <i>fenodyree</i>, and he is described -as a hairy and apparently clumsy fellow, who would, for instance, -thrash a whole barnful of corn in a single night for the people to whom -he felt well disposed; and once on a time he undertook to bring down -for the farmer his wethers from Snaefell. When the fenodyree had safely -put them in an outhouse, he said that he had some trouble with the -little ram, as it had run three times round Snaefell that morning. The -farmer did not quite understand him, but on going to look at the sheep, -he found, to his infinite surprise, that <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb287" href="#pb287" name="pb287">287</a>]</span>the little ram was no -other than a hare, which, poor creature, was dying of fright and -fatigue. I need scarcely point out the similarity between this and the -story of Peredur, who, as a boy, drove home two hinds with his -mother’s goats from the forest: he owned to having had some -trouble with the goats that had so long run wild as to have lost their -horns, a circumstance which had greatly impressed him<a class="noteref" -id="xd25e12506src" href="#xd25e12506" name="xd25e12506src">1</a>. To -return to the fenodyree, I am not sure that there were more than one in -Man—I have never heard him spoken of in the plural; but two -localities at least are assigned to him, namely, a farm called -Ballachrink, in Colby, in the south, and a farm called Lanjaghan, in -the parish of Conchan, near Douglas. Much the same stories, however, -appear to be current about him in the two places, and one of the most -curious of them is that which relates how he left. The farmer so valued -the services of the fenodyree, that one day he took it into his head to -provide clothing for him. The fenodyree examined each article -carefully, and expressed his idea of it, and specified the kind of -disease it was calculated to produce. In a word, he found that the -clothes would make head and foot sick, and he departed in disgust, -saying to the farmer, ‘Though this place is thine, the great glen -of Rushen is not.’ Glen Rushen is one of the most retired glens -in the island, and it drains down through Glen Meay to the coast, some -miles to the south of Peel. It is to Glen Rushen, then, that the -fenodyree is supposed to be gone; but on visiting that valley in -1890<a class="noteref" id="xd25e12518src" href="#xd25e12518" name= -"xd25e12518src">2</a> in quest of Manx-speaking peasants, I could find -nobody there who knew anything of him. I suspect that the spread -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb288" href="#pb288" name= -"pb288">288</a>]</span>of the English language even there has forced -him to leave the island altogether. Lastly, with regard to the term -<i>fenodyree</i>, I may mention that it is the word used in the Manx -Bible of 1819 for <i>satyr</i> in Isaiah xxxiv. 14<a class="noteref" -id="xd25e12530src" href="#xd25e12530" name="xd25e12530src">3</a>, where -we read in the English Bible as follows: ‘The wild beasts of the -desert shall also meet with the wild beasts of the island, and the -satyr shall cry to his fellow.’ In the Vulgate the latter clause -reads: <i lang="la">et pilosus clamabit alter ad alterum</i>. The term -<i>fenodyree</i> has been explained by Cregeen in his <i>Manx -Dictionary</i> to mean one who has hair for stockings or hose. That -answers to the description of the hairy satyr, and seems fairly well to -satisfy the phonetics of the case, the words from which he derives the -compound being <i>fynney</i><a class="noteref" id="xd25e12557src" href= -"#xd25e12557" name="xd25e12557src">4</a>, ‘hair,’ and -<i>oashyr</i>, ‘a stocking’; but as <i>oashyr</i> seems to -come from the old Norse <i>hosur</i>, the plural of <i>hosa</i>, -‘<i>hose</i> or stocking,’ the term <i>fenodyree</i> cannot -date before the coming of the Norsemen; and I am inclined to think the -idea more Teutonic than Celtic. At any rate I need not point out to the -English reader the counterparts of this hairy satyr in the hobgoblin -‘Lob lie by the Fire,’ and Milton’s ‘Lubber -Fiend,’ whom he describes as one that</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">Basks at the fire his hairy strength,</p> -<p class="line">And crop-full out of doors he flings,</p> -<p class="line">Ere the first cock his matin rings.</p> -</div> -<p class="first">Lastly, I may mention that Mr. Roeder has a great deal -to say about the fenodyree under the name of glashtyn; for it is -difficult to draw any hard and fast <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb289" href="#pb289" name="pb289">289</a>]</span>line between the -glashtyn and the fenodyree, or even the water-bull, so much alike do -they seem to have been regarded. Mr. Roeder’s items of folklore -concerning the glashtyns (see the <i>Lioar Manninagh</i>, iii. 139) -show that there were male and female glashtyns, and that the former -were believed to have been too fond of the women at Ballachrink, until -one evening some of the men, dressed as women, arranged to receive some -youthful glashtyns. Whether the fenodyree is of Norse origin or not, -the glashtyn is decidedly Celtic, as will be further shown in chapter -vii. Here it will suffice to mention one or two related words which are -recorded in Highland Gaelic, namely, <i>glaistig</i>, ‘a -she-goblin which assumes the form of a goat,’ and -<i>glaisrig</i>, ‘a female fairy or a goblin, half human, half -beast.’</p> -<p>The fairies claim our attention next, and as the only other fairies -tolerably well known to me are those of Wales, I can only compare or -contrast the Manx fairies with the Welsh ones. They are called in Manx, -<i>sleih beggey</i>, or little people, and <i>ferrishyn</i>, from the -English word <i>fairies</i>, as it would seem. Like the Welsh fairies, -they kidnap babies; and I have heard it related how a woman in Dalby -had a struggle with the fairies over her baby, which they were trying -to drag out of the bed from her. Like Welsh fairies, also, they take -possession of the hearth after the farmer and his family are gone to -bed. A man in Dalby used to find them making a big fire in his kitchen: -he would hear the crackling and burning of the fire when nobody else -<i>could</i> have been there except the fairies and their friends. I -said ‘friends,’ for they sometimes take a man with them, -and allow him to eat with them at the expense of others. Thus, some men -from the northern-most parish, Kirk Bride, went once on a time to Port -Erin, in the south, to buy a supply of fish for the <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb290" href="#pb290" name= -"pb290">290</a>]</span>winter, and with them went a Kirk Michael man -who had the reputation of being a <i>persona grata</i> to the fairies. -Now one of the Port Erin men asked a man from the north who the Michael -man might be: he was curious to know his name, as he had seen him once -before, and on that occasion the Michael man was with the fairies at -his house—the Port Erin man’s house—helping himself -to bread and cheese in company with the rest. As the fairies were -regaling themselves in this instance on ordinary bread and cheese at a -living Manxman’s expense, the story may perhaps be regarded as -not inconsistent with one mentioned by Cumming<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12651src" href="#xd25e12651" name="xd25e12651src">5</a> to the -following effect:—A man attracted one night as he was crossing -the mountains, by fairy music, entered a fairy hall where a banquet was -going on. He noticed among them several faces which he seemed to know, -but no act of mutual recognition took place till he had some drink -offered him, when one of those whom he seemed to know warned him not to -taste of the drink if he had any wish to make his way home again. If he -partook of it he would become like one of them. So he found an -opportunity for spilling it on the ground and securing the cup; -whereupon the hall and all its inmates instantaneously vanished. On -this I may remark that it appears to have been a widely spread belief, -that no one who had partaken of the food for spirits would be allowed -to return to his former life, and some instances will be found -mentioned by Professor Tylor in his <i>Primitive Culture</i>, ii. -50–2.</p> -<p>Like the Welsh fairies, the Manx ones take men away with them and -detain them for years. Thus a Kirk Andreas man was absent from his -people for four years, which he spent with the fairies. He could not -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb291" href="#pb291" name= -"pb291">291</a>]</span>tell how he returned, but it seemed as if, -having been unconscious, he woke up at last in this world. The other -world, however, in which he was for the four years was not far away, as -he could see what his brothers and the rest of the family were doing -every day, although they could not see him. To prove this, he mentioned -to them how they were occupied on such and such a day, and, among other -things, how they took their corn on a particular day to Ramsey. He -reminded them also of their having heard a sudden sharp crack as they -were passing by a thorn bush he named, and how they were so startled -that one of them would have run back home. He asked them if they -remembered that, and they said they did, only too well. He then -explained to them the meaning of the noise, namely, that one of the -fairies with whom he had been galloping the whole time was about to let -fly an arrow at his brothers, but that as he was going to do this, he -(the missing brother) raised a plate and intercepted the arrow: that -was the sharp noise they had heard. Such was the account he had to give -of his sojourn in Faery. This representation of the world of the -fairies, as contained within the ordinary world of mortals, is very -remarkable; but it is not a new idea, as we seem to detect it in the -Irish story of the abduction of Conla Rúad<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12667src" href="#xd25e12667" name="xd25e12667src">6</a>: the -fairy who comes to fetch him tells him that the folk of Tethra, whom -she represents, behold him every day as he takes part in the assemblies -of his country and sits among his friends. The commoner way of putting -it is simply to represent the fairies as invisible to mortals at will; -and one kind of Welsh story relates how the mortal midwife accidentally -touches her eyes, while dressing a fairy baby, with an ointment which -makes the fairy world visible to her: see pp. 63, 213, above. -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb292" href="#pb292" name= -"pb292">292</a>]</span></p> -<p>Like Welsh fairies, the Manx ones had, as the reader will have seen, -horses to ride; they had also dogs, just as the Welsh ones had. This I -learn from another story, to the effect that a fisherman, taking a -fresh fish home, was pursued by a pack of fairy dogs, so that it was -only with great trouble he reached his own door. Then he picked up a -stone and threw it at the dogs, which at once disappeared; but he did -not escape, as he was shot by the fairies, and so hurt that he lay ill -for fully six months from that day. He would have been left alone by -the fairies, I was told, if he had only taken care to put a pinch of -salt in the fish’s mouth before setting out, for the Manx fairies -cannot stand salt or baptism. So children that have been baptized are, -as in Wales, less liable to be kidnapped by these elves than those that -have not. I scarcely need add that a twig of <i>cuirn</i><a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e12678src" href="#xd25e12678" name= -"xd25e12678src">7</a> or rowan is also as effective against fairies in -Man as it is in Wales. Manx fairies seem to have been musical, like -their kinsmen elsewhere; for I have heard of an Orrisdale man crossing -the neighbouring mountains at night and hearing fairy music, which took -his fancy so much that he listened, and tried to remember it. He had, -however, to return, it is said, three times to the place before he -could carry it away complete in his mind, which he succeeded in doing -at <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb293" href="#pb293" name= -"pb293">293</a>]</span>last just as the day was breaking and the -musicians disappearing. This air, I am told, is now known by the name -of the <i>Bollan Bane</i>, or White Wort. As to certain Welsh airs -similarly supposed to have been derived from the fairies, see pages -201–2 above.</p> -<p>So far I have pointed out next to nothing but similarities between -Manx fairies and Welsh ones, and I find very little indicative of a -difference. First, with regard to salt, I am unable to say anything in -this direction, as I do not happen to know how Welsh fairies regard -salt: it is not improbable that they eschew salt as well as baptism, -especially as the Church of Rome has long associated salt with baptism. -There is, however, one point, at least, of difference between the -fairies of Man and of Wales: the latter are, so far as I can call to -mind, never supposed to discharge arrows at men or women, or to handle -a bow<a class="noteref" id="xd25e12735src" href="#xd25e12735" name= -"xd25e12735src">8</a> at all, whereas Manx fairies are always ready to -shoot. May we, therefore, provisionally regard this trait of the Manx -fairies as derived from a Teutonic source? At any rate English and -Scotch elves were supposed to shoot, and I am indebted to the kindness -of my colleague, Professor Napier, for calling my attention to the -<i>Leechdoms of Early England</i><a class="noteref" id="xd25e12740src" -href="#xd25e12740" name="xd25e12740src">9</a> for cases in point.</p> -<p>Now that most of the imaginary inhabitants of Man and its coasts -have been rapidly passed in review before the reader, I may say -something of others whom I regard as semi-imaginary—real human -beings to whom impossible attributes are ascribed: I mean chiefly the -witches, or, as they are sometimes called in Manx <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb294" href="#pb294" name= -"pb294">294</a>]</span>English, <i>butches</i><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12749src" href="#xd25e12749" name="xd25e12749src">10</a>. That -term I take to be a variant of the English word <i>witch</i>, produced -under the influence of the verb <i>bewitch</i>, which was reduced in -Manx English to a form <i>butch</i>, especially if one bear in mind the -Cumbrian and Scottish pronunciation of these words, as <i>wutch</i> and -<i>bewutch</i>. Now witches shift their form, and I have heard of one -old witch changing herself into a pigeon; but that I am bound to regard -as exceptional, the regular form into which Manx witches pass at their -pleasure being that of the hare, and such a swift and thick skinned -hare that no greyhound, except a black one without a single white hair, -can catch it, and no shot, except a silver coin, penetrate its body. -Both these peculiarities are also well known in Wales. I notice a -difference, however, between Wales and Man with regard to the hare -witches: in Wales only the women can become hares, and this property -runs, so far as I know, in certain families. I have known many such, -and my own nurse belonged to one of them, so that my mother was -reckoned to be rather reckless in entrusting me to <i>y Gota</i>, or -‘the Cutty One,’ as she might run away at any moment, -leaving her charge to take care of itself. But I have never heard of -any man or boy of any such family turning himself into a hare, whereas -in the Isle of Man the hare witches may belong, if I may say so, to -either sex. I am not sure, however, that a man who turns himself into a -hare would be called a wizard or witch; and I recollect hearing in the -neighbourhood of Ramsey of a man nicknamed the <i>gaaue mwaagh</i>, -that is to say, ‘the hare smith,’ the reason being that -this particular smith now and then assumed the form of a hare. I am not -quite sure that <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb295" href="#pb295" -name="pb295">295</a>]</span><i>gaaue mwaagh</i> is the name of a class, -though I rather infer that it is. If so, it must be regarded as a -survival of the magic skill associated with smiths in ancient Ireland, -as evidenced, for instance, in St. Patrick’s Hymn in the eleventh -or twelfth century manuscript at Trinity College, Dublin, known as the -<i>Liber Hymnorum</i>, in which we have a prayer—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="ga" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Fri brichta ban ocus goband ocus druad.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Against the spells of women, of smiths and -magicians<a class="noteref" id="xd25e12797src" href="#xd25e12797" name= -"xd25e12797src">11</a>.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">The persons who had the power of turning themselves -into hares were believed to be abroad and very active, together with -the whole demon world, on the eve of May-day of the Old Style. And a -middle-aged man from the parish of Andreas related to me how he came -three or four times across a woman reputed to be a witch, carrying on -her evil practices at the junction of cross-roads, or the meeting of -three boundaries. This happened once very early on Old May morning, and -afterwards he met her several times as he was returning home from -visiting his sweetheart. He warned the witch that if he found her again -he would kick her: that is what he tells me. Well, after a while he did -surprise her again at work at four cross-roads, somewhere near Lezayre. -She had a circle, he said, as large as that made by horses in -threshing, swept clean around her. He kicked her and took away her -besom, which he hid till the middle of the day. Then he made the farm -boys fetch some dry gorse, and he put the witch’s besom on the -top of it. Thereupon fire was set to the gorse, and, wonderful to -relate, the besom, as it burned, crackled and made reports like guns -going off. In fact, the noise could be heard at Andreas -Church—that is to say, miles away. The <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb296" href="#pb296" name= -"pb296">296</a>]</span>besom had on it ‘seventeen sorts of -knots,’ he stated, and the woman herself ought to have been -burned: in fact, he added that she did not long survive her besom. The -man who related this to me is hale and strong, living now in the parish -of Michael, and not in that of Andreas, where he was born.</p> -<p>There is a tradition at St. John’s, which is overlooked by the -mountain called Slieau Whallian, that witches used at one time to be -punished by being set to roll down the steep side of the mountain in -spiked barrels; but, short of putting them to death, there were various -ways of rendering the machinations of witches innocuous, or of undoing -the mischief done by them; for the charmers supply various means of -meeting them triumphantly, and in case an animal is the victim, the -burning of it always proves an effective means of bringing the offender -to book: I shall have occasion to return to this under another heading. -There is a belief that if you can draw blood, however little, from a -witch, or one who has the evil eye, he loses his power of harming you; -and I have been told that formerly this belief was sometimes acted -upon. Thus, on leaving church, for instance, the man who fancied -himself in danger from another would sidle up to him or walk by his -side, and inflict on him a slight scratch, or some other trivial wound, -which elicited blood; but this must have been a course always attended -with more or less danger.</p> -<p>The persons able to undo the witches’ work, and remove the -malignant influence of the evil eye, are known in Manx English as -charmers, and something must now be said of them. They have various -ways of proceeding to their work. A lady of about thirty-five, living -at Peel, related to me how, when she was a child suffering from a -swelling in the neck, she had it charmed <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb297" href="#pb297" name="pb297">297</a>]</span>away by an old woman. -This charmer brought with her no less than nine pieces of iron, -consisting of bits of old pokers, old nails, and other odds and ends of -the same metal, making in all nine pieces. After invoking the Father, -the Son, and the Holy Ghost, she began to rub the girl’s neck -with the old irons; nor was she satisfied with that, for she rubbed the -doors, the walls, and the furniture likewise, with the metal. The -result, I was assured, was highly satisfactory, as she has never been -troubled with a swelling in the throat since that day. Sometimes a -passage from the Bible is made use of in charming, as, for instance, in -the case of bleeding. One of the verses then pronounced is Ezekiel xvi. -6, which runs thus:—‘And when I passed by thee, and saw -thee polluted in thine own blood, I said unto thee when thou wast in -thy blood, Live; yea, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, -Live.’ This was told me by a Laxey man, who is over seventy years -of age. The methods of charming away warts are various. A woman from -the neighbourhood of St. John’s explained to me how a charmer -told her to get rid of the warts on her hands. She was to take a string -and make a knot on it for every wart she had, and then tie the string -round her hand, or fingers—I forget which; and I think my -informant, on her part, forgot to tell me a vital part of the formula, -namely, that the string was to be destroyed. But however that may be, -she assured me that the warts disappeared, and have never returned -since. A lady at Andreas has a still simpler method of getting rid of -warts. She rubs a snail on the warts, and then places the snail on one -of the points of a blackthorn, and, in fact, leaves the snail to die, -transfixed by the thorn; and as the snail dies the warts disappear. She -has done this in the case of her niece with complete success, so far as -the wart was concerned; but <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb298" href= -"#pb298" name="pb298">298</a>]</span>she had forgotten to notice -whether the snail had also succumbed.</p> -<p>The lady who in this case applied the remedy cannot be in any sense -called a charmer, however much one may insist on calling what she did a -charm. In fact, the term charmer tends to be associated with a -particular class of charm involving the use of herbs. Thus there used -to be at one time a famous charmer living near Kirk Michael, to whom -the fishermen were in the habit of resorting, and my informant told me -that he had been deputed more than once by his fellow fishermen to go -to him in consequence of their lack of success in the fishing. The -charmer gave him a packet of herbs, cut small, with directions that -they should be boiled, and the water mixed with some spirits—rum, -I think—and partly drunk in the boat by the captain and the crew, -and partly sprinkled over the boat and everything in it. The charmer -clearly defined his position in the matter to my informant. ‘I -cannot,’ he said, ‘put the fish in your nets for you; but -if there is any mischief in the way of your luck, I can remove that for -you.’ The fishermen themselves had, however, more exaggerated -notions of the charmer’s functions, for once on a time my -informant spent on drink for his boon companions the money which he was -to give the charmer, and then he collected herbs himself—it did -not much matter what herbs—and took them to his captain, who, -with the crew, went through the proper ritual, and made a most -successful haul that night. In fact, the only source of discontent was -the charmer’s not having distributed the fish over two nights, -instead of endangering their nets by an excessive haul all in one -night. They regarded him as able to do almost anything he liked in the -matter.</p> -<p>A lady at Andreas gave me an account of a celebrated <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb299" href="#pb299" name= -"pb299">299</a>]</span>charmer who lived between there and the coast. -He worked on her husband’s farm, but used to be frequently called -away to be consulted. He usually cut up wormwood for the people who -came to him, and if there was none to be had, he did not scruple to rob -the garden of any small sprouts it contained of cabbage or the like. He -would chop them small, and give directions about boiling them and -drinking the water. He usually charged any one leaving him to speak to -nobody on the way, lest he break the charm, and this mysteriousness was -evidently an important element in his profession. But he was, -nevertheless, a thriftless fellow, and when he went to Peel, and sent -the crier round to announce his arrival, and received a good deal of -money from the fishermen, he seldom so conducted himself as to bring -much of his earnings home. He died miserably some seven or eight years -ago at Ramsey, and left a widow in great poverty. As to the present -day, the daughter of a charmer now dead is married to a man living in a -village on the southern side of the island, and she appears to have -inherited her father’s reputation for charming, as the fishermen -from all parts are said to flock to her for luck. Incidentally, I have -heard in the south more than once of her being consulted in cases of -sudden and dangerous illness, even after the best medical advice has -been obtained: in fact, she seems to have a considerable practice.</p> -<p>In answer to my question, how the charmer who died at Ramsey used to -give the sailors luck in the fishing, my informant at Andreas could not -say, except that he gave them herbs as already described, and she -thought also that he sold them wisps to place under their pillows. I -gather that the charms were chiefly directed to the removal of supposed -impediments to success in the fishing, rather than to any act of a more -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb300" href="#pb300" name= -"pb300">300</a>]</span>positive nature. So far as I have been able to -ascertain, charming is hereditary, and they say that it descends from -father to daughter, and then from daughter to son, and so on—a -remarkable kind of descent, on which I should be glad to learn the -opinion of anthropologists. One of the best Manx scholars in the island -related to me how some fishermen once insisted on his doing the charmer -for them because of his being of such and such a family, and how he -made fools of them. It is my impression that the charming families are -comparatively few in number, and this looks as if they descended from -the family physicians or druids of one or two chieftains in ancient -times. It is very likely a question which could be cleared up by a -local man familiar with the island and all that tradition has to say on -the subject of Manx pedigrees.</p> -<p>In the case of animals ailing, the herbs were also resorted to; and, -if the beasts happened to be milch cows, the herbs had to be boiled in -some of their milk. This was supposed to produce wonderful results, -described as follows by a man living at a place on the way from -Castletown up South Barrule:—A farmer in his parish had a cow -that milked blood, as he described it, and this in consequence of a -witch’s ill-will. He went to the charmer, who gave him some -herbs, which he was to boil in the ailing cow’s milk, and the -charmer charged him, whatever he did, not to quit the concoction while -it was on the fire, in spite of any noises he might hear. The farmer -went home and proceeded that night to boil the herbs as directed, but -he suddenly heard a violent tapping at the door, a terrible lowing of -the cattle in the cow-house, and stones coming down the -‘chumley’: the end of it was that he suddenly fled and -sprang into bed to take shelter behind his wife. He went to the charmer -again, and related to him what <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb301" -href="#pb301" name="pb301">301</a>]</span>had happened: he was told -that he must have more courage the next time, unless he wished his cow -to die. He promised to do his best, and this time he stood his ground -in spite of the noises and the creaking of the windows—until, in -fact, a back window burst into pieces and bodily let a witch in, who -craved his pardon, and promised nevermore to molest him or his. This -all happened at the farm in question in the time of the present -farmer’s grandfather. The boiling of the charmer’s herbs in -milk always produces a great commotion and lowing among the cattle, and -it invariably cures the ailing ones: this is firmly believed by -respectable farmers whom I could name, in the north of the island in -particular, and I am alluding to men whom one might consider fairly -educated members of their class.</p> -<p>In the last mentioned instance not only is the requisite cure -effected, but the witch who caused the mischief is brought on the spot. -I have recently heard of a parallel to this in a belief which appears -to be still prevalent in the Channel Islands, more especially Guernsey. -The following incidents have been communicated to me by an ardent -folklorist, who has friends in the islands:—</p> -<p>An old woman in Torteval became ill, and her two sons were told that -if they tried one of the charms of divination, such as boiling certain -weeds in a pot, the first person to come to the house would prove to be -the one who had cast a spell over their mother. Accordingly they made -their <i>bouillederie</i>, and who should come to the door but a poor, -unoffending Breton onion seller, and as he was going away he was -waylaid by the two sons, who beat him within an inch of his life. They -were prosecuted and sentenced to terms of imprisonment; but the -charming did not come out in the <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb302" -href="#pb302" name="pb302">302</a>]</span>evidence, though it was -generally known to have been the reason for the assault. This account -was given my informant in 1898, and the incident appears to have -happened not very long before. Another is related thus:—A certain -family suffered from a plague of lice, which they regarded as the -consequence of a spell. They accordingly made their boiling of herbs -and looked for the first comer. He turned out to be a neighbour of -theirs who wished to buy some turnip seeds. The family abused him -roundly. He went away, but he was watched and caught by two of the sons -of the house, who beat him cruelly. They, on being prosecuted, had to -pay him £5 damages. This took place in the summer of 1898, in the -narrator’s own parish, in Guernsey. I have also another case of -recent date, to the effect that a young woman, whose churning was so -unsuccessful that the butter would not come, boiled herbs in the -prescribed way. She awaited the first comer, and, being engaged, her -intended husband was not unnaturally the first to arrive. She abused -him so unsparingly that he broke off the engagement. These instances go -far enough to raise the question why the boiling of herbs should be -supposed to bring the culprit immediately on the spot, but they hardly -go any further, namely, to help us to answer it.</p> -<p>Magic takes us back to a very primitive and loose manner of -thinking; so the marvellously easy way in which it identifies any tie -of association, however flimsy, with the insoluble bond of relationship -which educated men and women regard as connecting cause and effect, -renders even simpler means than I have described quite equal to the -undoing of the evils resulting from the activity of the evil eye. Thus, -let us suppose that a person endowed with the evil eye has just passed -by the farmer’s herd of cattle, and a <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb303" href="#pb303" name="pb303">303</a>]</span>calf -has suddenly been seized with a serious illness, the farmer hurries -after the man of the evil eye to get the dust from under his feet. If -he objects, the farmer may, as has sometimes been actually done, throw -him down by force, take off his shoes, and scrape off the dust adhering -to their soles, and carry it back to throw over the calf. Even that is -not always necessary, as it appears to be quite enough if he takes up -dust where he of the evil eye has just trod the ground. There are -innumerable cases on folk-record of both means proving entirely -efficacious, and they remind one of a story related in the <i lang= -"la">Itinerarium Kambriæ</i>, i. 11, by Giraldus, as to the -archbishop when he was preaching in the neighbourhood of Haverfordwest. -A certain woman had lost her sight, but had so much faith in that holy -man that she sent her son to try and procure the least bit of the -fringe of his clothing. The youth, unable to make his way through the -crowd that surrounded the preacher, waited till it dispersed, and then -took home to his mother the sod on which he had stood and on which his -feet had left their mark. That earth was applied by her to her face and -eyes, with the result that she at once recovered her sight. A similar -question of psychology presents itself in a practice intended as a -preservative against the evil eye rather than as a cure. I allude to -what I have heard about two maiden ladies living in a Manx village -which I know very well: they are natives of a neighbouring parish, and -I am assured that whenever a stranger enters their house they proceed, -as soon as he goes away, to strew a little dust or sand over the spot -where he stood. That is understood to prevent any malignant influence -resulting from his visit. This tacit identifying of a man with his -footprints may be detected in a more precarious and pleasing form in a -quaint conceit <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb304" href="#pb304" name= -"pb304">304</a>]</span>familiar to me in the lyrics of rustic life in -Wales, when, for example, a coy maiden leaves her lovesick swain hotly -avowing his perfect readiness to <i>cusanu ol ei thraed</i>, that is, -to do on his knees all the stages of her path across the meadow, -kissing the ground wherever it has been honoured with the tread of her -dainty foot. Let me take another case, in which the cord of association -is not so inconceivably slender, namely, when two or more persons -standing in a close relation to one another are mistakenly treated a -little too much as if mutually independent, the objection is heard that -it matters not whether it is A or B, that it is, in fact, all the same, -as they belong to the same concern. In Welsh this is sometimes -expressed by saying, <i>Yr un yw Huw’r Glyn a’i glocs</i>, -that is, ‘Hugh of the Glen and his clogs are all one.’ -Then, when you speak in English of a man ‘standing in -another’s shoes,’ I am by no means certain, that you are -not employing an expression which meant something more to those who -first used it than it does to us. Our modern idioms, with all their -straining after the abstract, are but primitive man’s mental -tools adapted to the requirements of civilized life, and they often -retain traces of the form and shape which the neolithic worker’s -chipping and polishing gave them.</p> -<p>It is difficult to arrange these scraps under any clearly classified -headings, and now that I have led the reader into the midst of matters -magical, perhaps I may just as well go on to the mention of a few more: -I alluded to the boiling of the herbs according to the charmer’s -orders, with the result, among other things, of bringing the witch to -the spot. This is, however, not the only instance of the importance and -strange efficacy of fire. For when a beast dies on a farm, of course it -dies, according to the old-fashioned view of <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb305" href="#pb305" name= -"pb305">305</a>]</span>things as I understand it, from the influence of -the evil eye or the interposition of a witch. So if you want to know to -whom you are indebted for the loss of the beast, you have simply to -burn its carcase in the open air and watch who comes first to the spot -or who first passes by: that is the criminal to be charged with the -death of the animal, and he cannot help coming there—such is the -effect of the fire. A Michael woman, who is now about thirty, related -to me how she watched while the carcase of a bewitched colt was -burning, how she saw the witch coming, and how she remembers her -shrivelled face, with nose and chin in close proximity. According to -another native of Michael, a well informed middle-aged man, the animal -in question was oftenest a calf, and it was wont to be burnt whole, -skin and all. The object, according to him, is invariably to bring the -bewitcher on the spot, and he always comes; but I am not clear what -happens to him when he appears. My informant added, however, that it -was believed that, unless the bewitcher got possession of the heart of -the burning beast, he lost all his power of bewitching. He related, -also, how his father and three other men were once out fishing on the -west coast of the island, when one of the three suddenly expressed his -wish to land. As they were fishing successfully some two or three miles -from the shore, they would not hear of it. He, however, insisted that -they must put him ashore at once, which made his comrades highly -indignant; but they soon had to give way, as they found that he was -determined to leap overboard unless they complied. When he got on shore -they watched him hurrying away towards where a beast was burning in the -corner of a field.</p> -<p>Manx stories merge this burning in a very perplexing fashion with -what may be termed a sacrifice for luck. <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb306" href="#pb306" name="pb306">306</a>]</span>The following scraps -of information will make it clear what I mean:—A respectable -farmer from Andreas told me that he was driving with his wife to the -neighbouring parish of Jurby some years ago, and that on the way they -beheld the carcase of a cow or an ox burning in a field, with a woman -engaged in stirring the fire. On reaching the village to which they -were going, they found that the burning beast belonged to a farmer whom -they knew. They were further told it was no wonder that the said farmer -had one of his cattle burnt, as several of them had recently died. -Whether this was a case of sacrifice or not I cannot say. But let me -give another instance: a man whom I have already mentioned, saw at a -farm nearer the centre of the island a live calf being burnt. The owner -bears an English name, but his family has long been settled in Man. The -farmer’s explanation to my informant was that the calf was burnt -to secure luck for the rest of the herd, some of which were threatening -to die. My informant thought there was absolutely nothing the matter -with them, except that they had too little food. Be that as it may, the -one calf was sacrificed as a burnt offering to secure luck for the rest -of the cattle. Let me here also quote Mr. Moore’s note in his -<i>Manx Surnames</i>, p. 184, on the place-name <i>Cabbal yn Oural -Losht</i>, or the ‘Chapel of the Burnt Sacrifice.’ -‘This name,’ he says, ‘records a circumstance which -took place in the nineteenth century, but which, it is to be hoped, was -never customary in the Isle of Man. A farmer, who had lost a number of -his sheep and cattle by murrain, burned a calf as a propitiatory -offering to the Deity on this spot, where a chapel was afterwards -built. Hence the name.’ Particulars, I may say, of time, place, -and person, could be easily added to Mr. Moore’s statement, -excepting, perhaps, as to the <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb307" -href="#pb307" name="pb307">307</a>]</span>deity in question: on that -point I have never been informed, but Mr. Moore was probably right in -the use of the capital <i>d</i>, as the sacrificer was, according to -all accounts, a devout Christian. I have to thank Sir Frederick Pollock -for calling my attention to a parallel this side of the sea: he refers -me to Worth’s <i>History of Devonshire</i> (London, 1886), p. -339, where one reads the following singular -passage:—‘Living animals have been burnt alive in sacrifice -within memory to avert the loss of other stock. The burial of three -puppies “brandise-wise” in a field is supposed to rid it of -weeds.’ The second statement is very curious, and the first seems -to mean that preventive sacrifices have been performed in Devonshire -within the memory of men living in the author’s time.</p> -<p>One more Manx instance: an octogenarian woman, born in the parish of -Bride, and now living at Kirk Andreas, saw, when she was a ‘lump -of a girl’ of ten or fifteen years of age, a live sheep being -burnt in a field in the parish of Andreas, on May-day, whereby she -meant the first of May reckoned according to the Old Style. She -asserts<a class="noteref" id="xd25e12879src" href="#xd25e12879" name= -"xd25e12879src">12</a> very decidedly that it was <i>son oural</i>, -‘for a sacrifice,’ as she put it, and ‘for an object -to the public’: those were her words when she expressed herself -in English. Further, she made the statement that it was a custom to -burn a sheep on Old May-day for a sacrifice. I was fully alive to the -interest of this evidence, and cross-examined her so far as her age -allows of it, and I find that she adheres to her statement with all -firmness, but I distinguish two or three points in her evidence: 1. I -have no doubt that she saw, as she was passing by a certain field on -the borders of Andreas parish, a live sheep being burnt on <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb308" href="#pb308" name="pb308">308</a>]</span>Old -May-day. 2. But her statement that it was <i>son oural</i>, or as a -sacrifice, was probably only an inference drawn by her, possibly years -afterwards, on hearing things of the kind discussed. 3. Lastly, I am -convinced that she did hear the May-day sacrifice discussed, both in -Manx and in English: her words, ‘for an object to the -public,’ are her imperfect recollection of a phrase used in her -hearing by somebody more ambitious of employing English abstract terms -than she is; and the formal nature of her statement in Manx, that it -was customary on May-day to burn as a sacrifice one head of sheep -(<i lang="gv">Laa Boaldyn va cliaghtey dy lostey son oural un baagh -keyrragh</i>), produces the same impression on my mind, that she is -only repeating somebody else’s words. I mention this more -especially as I have failed to find anybody else in Andreas or Bride, -or indeed in the whole island, who will now confess to having ever -heard of the sheep sacrifice on Old May-day.</p> -<p>The time assigned to the sheep sacrifice, namely May-day, leads me -to make some remarks on the importance of that day among the Celts. The -day meant is, as I have already said, Old May-day, in Manx <i lang= -"gv">Shenn Laa Boaldyn</i>, the <i>belltaine</i> of Cormac’s -<i>Glossary</i>, Scotch Gaelic <i>bealtuinn</i>. This was a day when -systematic efforts were made to protect man and beast against elves and -witches; for it was then that people carried crosses of rowan in their -hats and placed May flowers over the tops of their doors and elsewhere -as preservatives against all malignant influences. With the same object -in view crosses of rowan were likewise fastened to the tails of the -cattle, small crosses which had to be made without the help of a knife: -I exhibited a tiny specimen at one of the meetings of the Folk-Lore -Society. Early on May morning one went out to gather the dew as a thing -of great virtue, as in other <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb309" href= -"#pb309" name="pb309">309</a>]</span>countries. At Kirk Michael one -woman, who had been out on this errand years ago, told me that she -washed her face with the dew in order to secure luck, a good -complexion, and safety against witches. The break of this day is also -the signal for setting the ling or the gorse on fire, which is done in -order to burn out the witches wont to take the form of the hare; and -guns, I am told, were freely used to shoot any game met with on that -morning. With the proper charge some of the witches were now and then -hit and wounded, whereupon they resumed the human form and remained -cripples for the rest of their lives. Fire, however, appears to have -been the chief agency relied on to clear away the witches and other -malignant beings; and I have heard of this use of fire having been -carried so far that a practice was sometimes observed—as, for -example, in Lezayre—of burning gorse, however little, in the -hedge of each field on a farm in order to drive away the witches and -secure luck.</p> -<p>The man who told me this, on being asked whether he had ever heard -of cattle being driven through fire or between two fires on May-day, -replied that it was not known to him as a Manx custom, but that it was -an Irish one. A cattle-dealer whom he named used on May-day to drive -his cattle through fire so as to singe them a little, as he believed -that would preserve them from harm. He was an Irishman, who came to the -island for many years, and whose children are settled in the island -now. On my asking him if he knew whence the dealer came, he answered, -‘From the mountains over there,’ pointing to the Mourne -Mountains looming faintly in the mists on the western horizon. The -Irish custom known to my Manx informant is interesting both as throwing -light on the Manx custom, and as being the continuation of a very -ancient rite <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb310" href="#pb310" name= -"pb310">310</a>]</span>mentioned by Cormac. That writer, or somebody in -his name, says that <i>belltaine</i>, May-day, was so called from the -‘lucky fire,’ or the ‘two fires,’ which the -druids of Erin used to make on that day with great incantations; and -cattle, he adds, used to be brought to those fires, or to be driven -between them, as a safeguard against the diseases of the year. -Cormac<a class="noteref" id="xd25e12916src" href="#xd25e12916" name= -"xd25e12916src">13</a> says nothing, it will be noticed, as to one of -the cattle or the sheep being sacrificed for the sake of prosperity to -the rest. However, Scottish<a class="noteref" id="xd25e12919src" href= -"#xd25e12919" name="xd25e12919src">14</a> May-day customs point to a -sacrifice having been once usual, and that possibly of human beings, -and not of sheep as in the Isle of Man. I have elsewhere<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e12937src" href="#xd25e12937" name= -"xd25e12937src">15</a> tried to equate these Celtic May-day practices -with the Thargelia<a class="noteref" id="xd25e12944src" href= -"#xd25e12944" name="xd25e12944src">16</a> of the Athenians of -antiquity. The Thargelia were characterized by peculiar rites, and -among other things then done, two adult persons were led about, as it -were scapegoats, and at the end they were sacrificed and burnt, so that -their ashes might be dispersed. Here we seem to be on the track of a -very ancient Aryan practice, although the Celtic season does not quite -coincide with the Greek one. Several items of importance for comparison -here will be found passed under careful review in a most suggestive -paper by Mr. Lawrence Gomme, ‘On the Method of determining the -Value of Folklore as Ethnological Data,’ in the Fourth Report of -the Ethnographical Survey Committee<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12953src" href="#xd25e12953" name="xd25e12953src">17</a>.</p> -<p>It is probably in some ancient May-day custom that <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb311" href="#pb311" name="pb311">311</a>]</span>we -are to look for the key to a remarkable place-name occurring several -times in the island: I allude to that of <i>Cronk yn Irree Laa</i>, -which probably means the Hill of the Rise of Day. This is the name of -one of the mountains in the south of the island, but it is also borne -by one of the knolls near the eastern end of the range of low hills -ending abruptly on the coast between Ramsey and Bride parish, and quite -a small knoll bears the name, near the church of Jurby<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e12966src" href="#xd25e12966" name= -"xd25e12966src">18</a>. I have heard of a fourth instance, which, as I -learn from Mr. Philip Kermode, editor of the <i>Lioar Manninagh</i>, is -on Clay Head, near Laxey. It has been attempted to explain it as -meaning the Hill of the Watch by Day, in reference to the old -institution of Watch and Ward on conspicuous places in the island; but -that explanation is inadmissible as doing violence to the phonetics of -the words in question<a class="noteref" id="xd25e12972src" href= -"#xd25e12972" name="xd25e12972src">19</a>. I am rather inclined to -think that the name everywhere refers to an eminence to which the -surrounding inhabitants resorted for a religious purpose on a -particular day in the year. I should suggest that it was to do homage -to the rising sun on May morning, but this conjecture is offered only -to await a better explanation. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb312" -href="#pb312" name="pb312">312</a>]</span></p> -<p>The next great day in the pagan calendar of the Celts is called in -Manx <i lang="gv">Laa Lhunys</i>, in Irish <i>Lugnassad</i>, the -assembly or fair, which was associated with the name of the god Lug. -This should correspond to Lammas, but, reckoned as it is according to -the Old Style, it falls on the twelfth of August, which used to be a -great day for business fairs in the Isle of Man as in Wales. But for -holiday making the twelfth only suited when it happened to be a Sunday: -when that was not the case, the first Sunday after the twelfth was -fixed upon. It is known, accordingly, as the first Sunday of Harvest, -and it used to be celebrated by crowds of people visiting the tops of -the mountains. The kind of interference to which I have alluded with -regard to an ancient holiday, is one of the regular results of the -transition from Roman Catholicism to a Protestant system with only one -fixed holiday, namely, Sunday. The same shifting has partly happened in -Wales, where Lammas is <i>Gwyl Awst</i>, or the festival of Augustus, -since the birthday of Augustus, auspiciously for him and the celebrity -of his day, fell in with the great day of the god Lug in the Celtic -world. Now the day for going up the Fan Fach mountain in -Carmarthenshire was Lammas, but under a Protestant Church it became the -first Sunday in August; and even modified in that way it could not long -survive under a vigorous sabbatarian <i>régime</i> either in -Wales or Man. As to the latter in particular, I have heard it related -by persons who were present, how the crowds on the top of South Barrule -on the first Sunday of Harvest were denounced as pagans by a preacher -called William Gick, some seventy years ago; and how another man called -Paric Beg, or Little Patrick, preaching to the crowds on Snaefell in -milder terms, used to wind up the service with a collection, which -appears to have proved a speedier method <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb313" href="#pb313" name="pb313">313</a>]</span>of reducing the -dimensions of these meetings on the mountain tops. Be that as it may, -they seem to have dwindled since then to comparative -insignificance.</p> -<p>If you ask the reason for this custom now, for it is not yet quite -extinct, you are told, first, that it is merely to gather ling berries; -but now and then a quasi-religious reason is given, namely, that it is -the day on which Jephthah’s daughter went forth to bewail her -virginity ‘upon the mountains’: somehow some Manx people -make believe that they are doing likewise. That is not all, for people -who have never themselves thought of going up the mountains on the -first Sunday of harvest or any other, will be found devoutly reading at -home about Jephthah’s daughter on that day. I was told this first -in the south by a clergyman’s wife, who, finding a woman in the -parish reading the chapter in question on that day, asked the reason -for her fixing on that particular portion of the Bible. She then had -the Manx view of the matter fully explained to her, and she has since -found more information about it, and so have I. It is needless for me -to say that I do not quite understand how Jephthah’s daughter -came to be introduced: perhaps it is vain to look for any deeper reason -than that the mention, of the mountains may have served as a sort of -catch-word, and that as the Manx people began to cease from visiting -the tops of the mountains annually, it struck the women as the next -best thing for them to read at home of one who did ‘go up and -down upon the mountains’: they are great readers of the Bible -generally. In any case we have here a very curious instance of a -practice, originally pagan, modifying itself profoundly to secure a new -lease of life.</p> -<p>Between May-day and November eve, there was a day of considerable -importance in the island; but the fixing on it was probably due to -influence other than <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb314" href="#pb314" -name="pb314">314</a>]</span>Celtic: I mean Midsummer Eve, or St. -John’s. However, some practices connected with it would seem to -have been of Celtic origin, such as ‘the bearing of rushes to -certain places called Warrefield and Mame on Midsummer Even.’ -Warrefield was made in Manx into <i>Barrule</i>, but <i>Mame</i>, -‘the <i>jugum</i>, or ridge,’ has not been identified. The -Barrule here in question was South Barrule, and it is to the top of -that mountain the green rushes were carried, according to Manx -tradition, as the only rent or tax which the inhabitants paid, namely, -to Manannán mac Lir (called in Welsh Manawyđan ab -Ỻyr), whom the same tradition treats as father and founder, as -king and chief wizard of the Isle of Man, the same Manannán who -is quaintly referred to in the illiterate passage at the head of this -chapter<a class="noteref" id="xd25e13023src" href="#xd25e13023" name= -"xd25e13023src">20</a>. As already stated, the payment of the annual -rent of rushes is associated with Midsummer Eve; but it did not prevent -the top of South Barrule from being visited likewise later in the year. -Perhaps it may also be worth while mentioning, with regard to most of -the mountains climbed on the first Sunday of Harvest, that they seem to -have near the summit of each a well of some celebrity, which appears to -be the goal of the visitors’ peregrinations. This is the case -with South Barrule, the spring near the top of which cannot, it is -said, be found when sought a second time; also with Snaefell and with -Maughold Head, which boasts one of the most famous springs in the -island. When I visited it last summer in company with Mr. Kermode, we -found it to contain a considerable number of pins, some of which were -bent, and many buttons. Some of the pins were not of a kind usually -carried by men, and most of the buttons decidedly belonged to the dress -of the other sex. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb315" href="#pb315" -name="pb315">315</a>]</span>Several people who had resorted many years -ago to St. Maughold’s Well, told me that the water is good for -sore eyes, and that after using it on the spot, or filling a bottle -with it to take home, one was wont to drop a pin or bead or button into -the well. But it had its full virtue only when visited the first Sunday -of Harvest, and that only during the hour when the books were open at -church, which, shifted back to Roman Catholic times, means doubtless -the hour when the priest was engaged in saying Mass. Compare the -passage in the <i>Mabinogi</i> of Math, where it is said that the spear -required for the slaying of Ỻew Ỻawgyffes had to be a whole -year in the making: the work was to be pursued only so long as one was -engaged at the sacrifice on Sunday (<i lang="cy">ar yr aberth duỽ -sul</i>): see the Oxford <i>Mabinogion</i>, p. 76. To return to Man, -the restriction, as might be expected, is not peculiar to St. -Maughold’s Well: I have heard of it in connexion with other -wells, such as Chibbyr Lansh in Lezayre parish, and with a well on -Slieau Maggyl, in which some Kirk Michael people have a great belief. -But even sea water was believed to have considerable virtues if you -washed in it while the books were open at church, as I was told by a -woman who had many years ago repeatedly taken her own sister to divers -wells and to the sea during the service on Sunday, in order to have her -eyes cured of a chronic weakness.</p> -<p>The remaining great day in the Celtic year is called <i>Sauin</i> or -<i>Laa Houney</i>: in Irish, <i>Samhain</i>, genitive <i>Samhna</i>. -The Manx call it in English <i>Hollantide</i>, a word derived from the -English <i>All hallowen tide</i>, ‘the Season of All -Saints<a class="noteref" id="xd25e13068src" href="#xd25e13068" name= -"xd25e13068src">21</a>.’ This day is also reckoned in Man -according to the Old Style, so that it is our twelfth of November. That -is the day when <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb316" href="#pb316" -name="pb316">316</a>]</span>the tenure of land terminates, and when -servant men go to their places. In other words, it is the beginning of -a new year; and Kelly, in his <i>Manx-English Dictionary</i>, has, -under the word <i>blein</i>, ‘year,’ the following -note:—‘Vallancey says the Celts began their year with -January; yet in the Isle of Man the first of November is called New -Year’s day by the Mummers, who, on the eve, begin their petition -in these words: <i>To-night is New Year’s night, -Hog-unnaa</i><a class="noteref" id="xd25e13085src" href="#xd25e13085" -name="xd25e13085src">22</a>, &c.’ It is a pity that Kelly, -whilst he was on this subject, did not give the rhyme in Manx, and all -the more so, as the mummers of the present day, if he is right, must -have changed their words into <i>Noght oie Houney</i>, that is to say, -To-night is Sauin Night or Halloween. So I had despaired of finding -anybody who could corroborate Kelly in his statement, when I happened -last summer to find a man at Kirk Michael who was quite familiar with -this way of treating the year. I asked him if he could explain -Kelly’s absurd statement—I put my question designedly in -that form. He said he could, but that there was nothing absurd in it. -He then told me how he had heard some old people talk of it: he is -himself now about sixty-seven. He had been a farm servant from the age -of sixteen till he was twenty-six to the same man, near Regaby, in the -parish of Andreas, and he remembers his master and a near neighbour of -his discussing the term New Year’s Day as applied to the first of -November, and explaining to the younger men that it had always been so -in old times. In fact, it seemed to him natural enough, as all -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb317" href="#pb317" name= -"pb317">317</a>]</span>tenure of land ends at that time, and as all -servant men begin their service then. I cross-examined him, without -succeeding in any way in shaking his evidence. I should have been glad -a few years ago to have come across this piece of information, or even -Kelly’s note, when I was discussing the Celtic year and trying to -prove<a class="noteref" id="xd25e13105src" href="#xd25e13105" name= -"xd25e13105src">23</a> that it began at the beginning of winter, with -May-day as the beginning of its second half.</p> -<p>One of the characteristics of the beginning of the Celtic year with -the commencement of winter was the belief that indications can be -obtained on the eve of that day regarding the events of the year; but -with the calendar year gaining ground it would be natural to expect -that the Calends of January would have some of the associations of the -Calends of Winter transferred to them, and vice versa. In fact, this -can, as it were, be watched now going on in the Isle of Man. First, I -may mention that the Manx mummers used to go about singing, in Manx, a -sort of Hogmanay song<a class="noteref" id="xd25e13113src" href= -"#xd25e13113" name="xd25e13113src">24</a>, reminding one of that usual -in Yorkshire and other parts of Great Britain, and now known to be of -Romance origin<a class="noteref" id="xd25e13150src" href="#xd25e13150" -name="xd25e13150src">25</a>. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb318" href= -"#pb318" name="pb318">318</a>]</span>The time for it in this country -was New Year’s Eve, according to the ordinary calendar, but in -the Isle of Man it has always been Hollantide Eve, according to the Old -Style, and this is the night when boys now go about continuing the -custom of the old mummers. There is no hesitation in this case between -Hollantide Eve and New Year’s Eve. But with the prognostications -for the year it is different, and the following practices have been -usual. I may, however, premise that as a rule I have abstained from -inquiring too closely whether they still go on, but here and there I -have had the information volunteered that they do.</p> -<p>1. I may mention first a salt prognostication, which was described -to me by a farmer in the north, whose wife practises it once a year -regularly. She carefully fills a thimble with salt in the evening and -upsets it in a neat little heap on a plate: she does that for every -member of the family, and every guest, too, if there happen to be any. -The plate is then left undisturbed till the morning, when she examines -the heaps of salt to see if any of them have fallen; for whoever is -found represented by a fallen heap will die during the year. She does -not herself, I am assured, believe in it, but she likes to continue a -custom which she has learned from her mother.</p> -<p>2. Next may be mentioned the ashes being carefully swept to the open -hearth, and nicely flattened down by the women just before going to -bed. In the morning they look for footmarks on the hearth, and if they -find such footmarks directed towards the door, it means, in the course -of the year, a death in the family, and if the reverse, they expect an -addition to it by marriage<a class="noteref" id="xd25e13179src" href= -"#xd25e13179" name="xd25e13179src">26</a>. <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb319" href="#pb319" name="pb319">319</a>]</span></p> -<p>3. Then there is an elaborate process of eavesdropping recommended -to young women curious to know their future husbands’ names: a -girl would go with her mouth full of water and her hands full of salt -to the door of the nearest neighbour’s house, or rather to that -of the nearest neighbour but one—I have been carefully corrected -more than once on that point. There she would listen, and the first -name she caught would prove to be that of her future husband. Once a -girl did so, as I was told by a blind fisherman in the south, and heard -two brothers quarrelling inside the house at whose door she was -listening. Presently the young men’s mother exclaimed that the -devil would not let Tom leave John alone. At the mention of that triad -the girl burst into the house, laughing and spilling the mouthful of -water most incontinently. The end of it was that before the year was -out she married Tom, the second person mentioned: the first either did -not count or proved an unassailable bachelor.</p> -<p>4. There is also a ritual for enabling a girl to obtain other -information respecting her future husband: vessels placed about the -room have various things put into them, such as clean water, earth, -meal, a piece of a net, or any other article thought appropriate. The -candidate for matrimony, with her eyes bandaged, feels her way about -the house until she puts her hand in one of the aforesaid vessels. If -what she lays her hand on is the clean water, her husband will be a -handsome man<a class="noteref" id="xd25e13192src" href="#xd25e13192" -name="xd25e13192src">27</a>; if it is the earth, he will be a farmer; -if the meal, a miller; if the net, a fisherman; and so on into as many -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb320" href="#pb320" name= -"pb320">320</a>]</span>of the walks of life as may be thought worthy of -consideration.</p> -<p>5. Lastly, recourse may be had to a ritual of the same nature as -that observed by the druid of ancient Erin, when, burdened with a heavy -meal of the flesh of a red pig, he laid him down for the night in order -to await a prophetic dream as to the manner of man the nobles of Erin -assembled at Tara were to elect to be their king. The incident is given -in the story of Cúchulainn’s Sick-bed; and the reader, -doubtless, knows the passage about Brian and the <i>taghairm</i> in the -fourth Canto of Scott’s <i>Lady of the Lake</i>. But the Manx -girl has only to eat a salt herring, bones and all, without drinking or -uttering a word, and to retire backwards to bed. When she sleeps and -dreams, she will behold her future husband approaching to give her -drink.</p> -<p>Probably none of the practices which I have enumerated, or similar -ones mentioned to me, are in any sense peculiar to the Isle of Man; but -what interests me in them is the divided opinion as to the proper night -for them in the year. I am sorry to say that I have very little -information as to the blindman’s-buff ritual (No. 4); what -information I have, to wit, the evidence of two persons in the south, -fixes it on Hollantide Eve. But as to the others (Nos. 1, 2, 3, 5), -they are observed by some on that night, and by others on New -Year’s Eve, sometimes according to the Old Style<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e13219src" href="#xd25e13219" name= -"xd25e13219src">28</a> and sometimes the New. Further, those who are -wont to practise the salt heap ritual, for instance, on Hollantide Eve, -would be very indignant to hear that anybody should think New -Year’s Eve the proper night, and vice versa. So by bringing women -bred and born in different <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb321" href= -"#pb321" name="pb321">321</a>]</span>parishes to compare notes on this -point, I have witnessed arguing hardly less earnest than that which -characterized the ancient controversy between British and Italian -ecclesiastics as to the proper time for keeping Easter. I have not been -able to map the island according to the practices prevalent at -Hollantide and the beginning of January, but local folklorists could -probably do it without much difficulty. My impression, however, is that -January is gradually acquiring the upper hand. In Wales this must have -been decidedly helped by the influence of Roman rule and Roman ideas; -but even there the adjuncts of the Winter Calends have never been -wholly transferred to the Calends of January. Witness, for instance, -the women who used to congregate in the parish church to discover who -of the parishioners would die during the year<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13233src" href="#xd25e13233" name="xd25e13233src">29</a>. That -custom, in the neighbourhoods reported to have practised it, continued -to attach itself to the last, so far as I know, to the beginning of -November. In the Isle of Man the fact of the ancient Celtic year having -so firmly held its own, seems to point to the probability that the year -of the Pagan Norsemen pretty nearly coincided with that of the -Celts<a class="noteref" id="xd25e13242src" href="#xd25e13242" name= -"xd25e13242src">30</a>. For there are reasons to think, as I have -endeavoured elsewhere to show, that the Norse Yule was originally at -the end of summer or the commencement of winter, in other words, the -days afterwards known as the Feast of the Winter Nights. This was the -favourite date in Iceland for listening to soothsayers prophesying with -regard to the winter then beginning. The late Dr. Vigfusson had much to -say <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb322" href="#pb322" name= -"pb322">322</a>]</span>on this subject, and how the local sibyl, -resuming her elevated seat at the opening of each successive winter, -gave the author of the <i>Volospá</i> his plan of that -remarkable poem, which has been described by the same authority as the -highest spiritual effort of the heathen muse of the North. <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb323" href="#pb323" name="pb323">323</a>]</span></p> -</div> -<div class="footnotes"> -<hr class="fnsep"> -<div class="footnote-body"> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12506" href="#xd25e12506src" name="xd25e12506">1</a></span> For -the text see the Oxford <i>Mabinogion</i>, pp. 193–4, and for -comparisons of the incident see Nutt’s <i>Holy Grail</i>, p. 154 -et seq.; and Rhys’ <i>Arthurian Legend</i>, pp. 75–6. A -more exact parallel, however, is to be mentioned in the next -chapter. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e12506src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12518" href="#xd25e12518src" name="xd25e12518">2</a></span> This -chapter was written mostly in 1891. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e12518src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12530" href="#xd25e12530src" name="xd25e12530">3</a></span> The -spelling there used is <i>phynnodderee</i>, to the perversity of which -Cregeen calls attention in his <i>Dictionary</i>. In any case the -pronunciation is always approximately -<i>fŭn-ṓ-đŭr-ĭ</i> or -<i>fŭn-ṓđ-rĭ</i>, with the accent on the -second syllable. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e12530src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12557" href="#xd25e12557src" name="xd25e12557">4</a></span> I am -inclined to think that the first part of the word <i>fenodyree</i> is -not <i>fynney</i>, the Manx word for ‘hair,’ but the -Scandinavian word which survives in the Swedish <i>fjun</i>, -‘down.’ Thus <i>fjun-hosur</i> (for the <i>fjun-hosa</i> -suggested by analogy) would explain the word <i>fenodyree</i>, except -its final <i>ee</i>, which is obscure. Compare also the magic breeks -called <i>finn-brækr</i>, as to which see Vigfusson’s -<i>Icelandic Dict.</i> s. v. <i>finnar</i>. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e12557src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12651" href="#xd25e12651src" name="xd25e12651">5</a></span> -Cumming’s <i>Isle of Man</i> (London, 1848), p. 30, where he -refers his readers to Waldron’s <i>Description of the Isle of -Man</i>: see pp. 28, 105. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e12651src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12667" href="#xd25e12667src" name="xd25e12667">6</a></span> See -Windisch’s <i lang="de">Irische Grammatik</i>, p. -120. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e12667src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12678" href="#xd25e12678src" name="xd25e12678">7</a></span> The -Manx word for the rowan tree, incorrectly called a mountain ash, is -<i>cuirn</i>, which is in Mod. Irish <i>caorthann</i>, genitive -<i>caorthainn</i>, Scotch Gaelic <i>caorunn</i>; but in Welsh books it -is <i>cerđin</i>, singular <i>cerđinen</i>, and in the spoken -language mostly <i>cerdin</i>, <i>cerding</i>, singular -<i>cerdinen</i>, <i>cerdingen</i>. This variation seems to indicate -that these words have possibly been borrowed by the Welsh from a -Goidelic source; but the berry is known in Wales by the native name of -<i>criafol</i>, from which the wood is frequently called, especially in -North Wales, <i>coed criafol</i>, singular <i>coeden griafol</i> or -<i>pren criafol</i>. The sacredness of the rowan is the key to the -proper names Mac-Cáirthinn and Der-Cháirthinn, with which -the student of Irish hagiology is familiar. They mean the Son and the -Daughter of the Rowan respectively, and the former occurs as <i>Maqui -Cairatini</i> on an Ogam inscribed stone recently discovered in Meath, -not very far from the Boyne. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e12678src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12735" href="#xd25e12735src" name="xd25e12735">8</a></span> I am -sorry to say that it never occurred to me to ask whether the shooting -was done with such modern things as guns. But Mr. Arthur Moore assures -me that it is always understood to be bows and arrows, not -guns. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e12735src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12740" href="#xd25e12740src" name="xd25e12740">9</a></span> -Edited by Oswald Cockayne for the Master of the Rolls (London, -1864–6): see more especially vol. ii. pp. 156–7, -290–1, 401; vol. iii. pp. 54–5. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e12740src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12749" href="#xd25e12749src" name="xd25e12749">10</a></span> Mr. -Moore is not familiar with this term, but I heard it at Surby, in the -south; and I find <i>buidseach</i> and <i>buidseachd</i> given as -Highland Gaelic words for a witch and witchcraft -respectively. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e12749src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12797" href="#xd25e12797src" name="xd25e12797">11</a></span> See -Stokes’ <i>Goidelica</i>, p. 151. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e12797src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12879" href="#xd25e12879src" name="xd25e12879">12</a></span> This -chapter was written in 1891, except the portions of it which refer to -later dates indicated. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e12879src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12916" href="#xd25e12916src" name="xd25e12916">13</a></span> See -the Stokes-O’Donovan edition of Cormac (Calcutta, 1868), pp. 19, -23. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e12916src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12919" href="#xd25e12919src" name="xd25e12919">14</a></span> Sir -John Sinclair’s <i>Statistical Account of Scotland</i>, xi. 620; -Pennant’s <i>Tour in Scotland in 1769</i> (3rd edition, -Warrington, 1774), i. 97, 186, 291; Thomas Stephens’ -<i>Gododin</i>, pp. 124–6; and Dr. Murray in the <i>New English -Dictionary</i>, s. v. <i>Beltane</i>. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e12919src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12937" href="#xd25e12937src" name="xd25e12937">15</a></span> In -my Hibbert Lectures on <i>Celtic Heathendom</i>, pp. -517–21. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e12937src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12944" href="#xd25e12944src" name="xd25e12944">16</a></span> As -to the Thargelia and Delia, see Preller’s <i>Griechische -Mythologie</i>, i. 260–2, and A. Mommsen’s -<i>Heortologie</i>, pp. 414–25. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e12944src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12953" href="#xd25e12953src" name="xd25e12953">17</a></span> See -section H of the <i>Report of the Liverpool Meeting of the British -Association</i> in 1896, pp. 626–56. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e12953src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12966" href="#xd25e12966src" name="xd25e12966">18</a></span> It -is my impression that it is crowned with a small tumulus, and that it -forms the highest ground in Jurby, which was once an island by itself. -The one between Ramsey and Bride is also probably the highest point of -the range. But these are questions which I should like to see further -examined, say by Mr. Arthur Moore or Mr. Kermode. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e12966src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e12972" href="#xd25e12972src" name="xd25e12972">19</a></span> -<i lang="gv">Cronk yn Irree Laa</i>, despite the gender, is the name as -pronounced by all Manxmen who have not been misled by antiquarians. To -convey the other meaning, referring to the day watch, the name would -have to be <i lang="gv">Cronk ny Harrey Laa</i>; in fact, a part of the -Howe in the south of the island is called <i lang="gv">Cronk ny -Harrey</i>, ‘the Hill of the Watch.’ Mr. Moore tells me -that the Jurby <i>cronk</i> was one of the eminences for ‘Watch -and Ward’; but he is now of opinion that the high mountain of -Cronk yn Irree Laa in the south was not. As to the duty of the -inhabitants to keep ‘Watch and Ward’ over the island, see -the passage concerning it extracted from the Manx Statutes (vol. i. p. -65) by Mr. Moore in his <i>Manx Surnames</i>, pp. 183–3; also my -preface to the same work, pp. v–viii. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e12972src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13023" href="#xd25e13023src" name="xd25e13023">20</a></span> -Quoted from Oliver’s <i lang="la">Monumenta de Insula -Manniæ</i>, vol. i. (<i>Manx Society</i>, vol. iv) p. 84: see -also Cumming’s <i>Isle of Man</i>, p. 258. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e13023src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13068" href="#xd25e13068src" name="xd25e13068">21</a></span> See -the <i>New English Dictionary</i>, s. v. -‘Allhallows.’ <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e13068src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13085" href="#xd25e13085src" name="xd25e13085">22</a></span> This -comes near the pronunciation usual in Roxburghshire and the south of -Scotland generally, which is, as Dr. Murray informs me, <i>Hunganay</i> -without the <i>m</i> occurring in the other forms to be mentioned -presently. But so far as I have been able to find, the Manx -pronunciation is now <i>Hob dy naa</i>, which I have heard in the -north, while <i>Hob ju naa</i> is the prevalent form in the -south. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e13085src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13105" href="#xd25e13105src" name="xd25e13105">23</a></span> See -my <i>Hibbert Lectures</i>, pp. 514–5; and as to hiring fairs in -Wales see pp. 210–2 above. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e13105src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13113" href="#xd25e13113src" name="xd25e13113">24</a></span> See -Robert Bell’s <i>Early Ballads</i> (London, 1877), pp. -406–7, where the following is given as sung at Richmond in -Yorkshire:—</p> -<div class="q"> -<div class="nestedtext"> -<div class="nestedbody"> -<div class="lgouter footnote"> -<p class="line">To-night it is the New-Year’s night, to-morrow is -the day,</p> -<p class="line">And we are come for our right, and for our ray,</p> -<p class="line">As we used to do in old King Henry’s day.</p> -<p class="line xd25e13128">Sing, fellows, sing, Hagman-heigh.</p> -<p class="line">If you go to the bacon-flick, cut me a good bit;</p> -<p class="line">Cut, cut and low, beware of your maw;</p> -<p class="line">Cut, cut and round, beware of your thumb,</p> -<p class="line">That me and my merry men may have some.</p> -<p class="line xd25e13128">Sing, fellows, sing, Hagman-heigh.</p> -<p class="line">If you go to the black-ark bring me X mark;</p> -<p class="line">Ten mark, ten pound, throw it down upon the ground,</p> -<p class="line">That me and my merry men may have some.</p> -<p class="line xd25e13128">Sing, fellows, sing, Hagman-heigh.</p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<p> <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e13113src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13150" href="#xd25e13150src" name="xd25e13150">25</a></span> The -subject is worked out in Nicholson’s <i>Golspie</i>, pp. -100–8, also in the <i>New English Dictionary</i>, where mention -is made of a derivation involving <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb318n" -href="#pb318n" name="pb318n">318</a>]</span><i>calendæ</i>, which -reminds me of the Welsh call for a New-Year’s -Gift—<i>Calennig!</i> or <i>C’lennig!</i> in Arfon -<i>’Y Ngh’lennig i!</i> ‘My Calends gift if you -please!’ <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e13150src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13179" href="#xd25e13179src" name="xd25e13179">26</a></span> On -being asked, after reading this paper to the Folk-Lore Society, who was -supposed to make the footmarks in the ashes, I had to confess that -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb319n" href="#pb319n" name= -"pb319n">319</a>]</span>I had been careless enough never to have asked -the question. I have referred it to Mr. Moore, who informs me that -nobody, as I expected, will venture on any explanation by whom the -footmarks are made. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e13179src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13192" href="#xd25e13192src" name="xd25e13192">27</a></span> This -seems to imply the application of the same adjective, some time or -other, to <i>clean</i> water and a <i>handsome</i> man, just as we -speak in North Cardiganshire of <i>dwr glân</i>, ‘clean -water,’ and <i>bachgen glân</i>, ‘a handsome -boy.’ <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e13192src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13219" href="#xd25e13219src" name="xd25e13219">28</a></span> In -Phillips’ <i>Book of Common Prayer</i> this is called -<i>Lá nolick y biggy</i>, ‘Little Nativity Day,’ and -<i>Lá ghian blieny</i>, ‘The Day of the Year’s -End,’ meaning, of course, the former end of the year, not the -latter: see pp. 55, 62, 66. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e13219src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13233" href="#xd25e13233src" name="xd25e13233">29</a></span> See -my <i>Hibbert Lectures</i>, pp. 514–5, and the <i>Brython</i>, -ii. 20, 120: an instance in point occurs in the next -chapter. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e13233src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13242" href="#xd25e13242src" name="xd25e13242">30</a></span> This -has been touched upon in my <i>Hibbert Lectures</i>, p. 676; but to the -reasons there briefly mentioned should be added a reference to the -position allotted to intercalary months in the Norse calendar, namely, -at the end of the summer half, that is, as I think, at the end of the -ancient Norse year. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e13242src">↑</a></p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch5" class="div1 chapter"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e752">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h2 class="label">CHAPTER V</h2> -<h2 class="main"><span class="sc">The Fenodyree and his -Friends</span></h2> -<div class="epigraph"> -<p class="first"><span class="trans" title= -"Emoi de hai sai megalai eutychiai ouk areskousi, to theion epistamenō hōs esti phthoneron."> -<span class="Greek" lang="grc">Ἐμοὶ -δὲ αἱ σαὶ -μεγάλαι -εὐτυχίαι -οὐκ -ἀρέσκουσι, -τὸ θεῖον -ἐπισταμένῳ -ὡς ἔστι -φθονερόν.</span></span>.—<span class="sc">Herodotus.</span></p> -</div> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">The last chapter is hardly such as to call for a -recapitulation of its principal contents, and I venture to submit -instead of any such repetition an abstract of some very pertinent notes -on it by Miss M. G. W. Peacock, who compares with the folklore of the -Isle of Man the old beliefs which survive in Lincolnshire among the -descendants of Norse ancestors<a class="noteref" id="xd25e13276src" -href="#xd25e13276" name="xd25e13276src">1</a>. She was attracted by the -striking affinity which she noticed between them, and she is doubtless -right in regarding that affinity as due in no small degree to the -Scandinavian element present in the population alike of Man and the -East of England. She is, however, not lavish of theory, but gives us -interesting items of information from an intimate acquaintance with the -folklore of the district of which she undertakes to speak, somewhat in -the following order:—</p> -<p>1. Whether the water-bull still inhabits the streams of Lincolnshire -she regards as doubtful, but the deep pools formed, she says, by the -action of the down-flowing water at the bends of the country becks are -still known as bull-holes. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb324" href= -"#pb324" name="pb324">324</a>]</span></p> -<p>2. As to the <i>glashtyn</i>, or water-horse, she remarks that the -tatter-foal, tatter-colt, or shag-foal, as he is variously called, is -still to be heard of, although his visits take place less often than -before the fens and carrs were drained and the open fields and commons -enclosed. She describes the tatter-foal as a goblin of the shape and -appearance of a small horse or yearling foal in his rough, unkempt -coat. He beguiles lonely travellers with his numberless tricks, one of -which is to lure them to a stream, swamp, or water-hole. When he has -succeeded he vanishes with a long outburst of mockery, half neigh, half -human laughter.</p> -<p>3. The fenodyree, one is told, has in Lincolnshire a cousin, but he -is diminutive; and, like the Yorkshire Hob or Robin Round-Cap, and the -Danish Niss, he is used to befriend the house in which he dwells. The -story of his driving the farmer’s sheep home is the same -practically as in the Isle of Man, even to the point of bringing in -with them <i>the little grey sheep</i>, as he called the fine hare that -had given him more trouble than all the rest of the flock: see pp. -286–7 above.</p> -<p>4. The story of this manikin’s clothing differs considerably -from that of the fenodyree. The farmer gives him in gratitude for his -services a linen shirt every New Year’s Eve; and this went on for -years, until at last the farmer thought a hemp shirt was good enough to -give him. When the clock struck twelve at midnight the manikin raised -an angry wail, saying:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">Harden, harden, harden hemp!</p> -<p class="line">I will neither grind nor stamp!</p> -<p class="line">Had you given me linen gear,</p> -<p class="line">I would have served you many a year!</p> -</div> -<p class="first">He was no more seen or heard: he vanished for ever. -The Cornish counterpart of this brownie reasons in the opposite way; -for when, in gratitude for his help in <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb325" href="#pb325" name="pb325">325</a>]</span>threshing, a new suit -of clothes is given him, he hurries away, crying<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13307src" href="#xd25e13307" name= -"xd25e13307src">2</a>:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">Pisky new coat, and pisky new hood,</p> -<p class="line">Pisky now will do no more good.</p> -</div> -<p class="first">Here, also, one should compare William -Nicholson’s account of the brownie of Blednoch<a class="noteref" -id="xd25e13321src" href="#xd25e13321" name="xd25e13321src">3</a>, in -Galloway, who wore next to no clothing:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">Roun’ his hairy form there was naething seen,</p> -<p class="line">But a philabeg o’ the rushes green.</p> -</div> -<p class="first">So he was driven away for ever by a newly married wife -wishing him to wear an old pair of her husband’s -breeches:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">But a new-made wife, fu’ o’ rippish -freaks,</p> -<p class="line">Fond o’ a’ things feat for the first five -weeks,</p> -<p class="line">Laid a mouldy pair o’ her ain man’s -breeks</p> -<p class="line xd25e13345">By the brose o’ Aiken-drum.</p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Let the learned decide, when they convene,</p> -<p class="line">What spell was him and the breeks between:</p> -<p class="line">For frae that day forth he was nae mair seen,</p> -<p class="line xd25e13345">And sair missed was Aiken-drum!</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">The only account which I have been able to find of a -Welsh counterpart will be found in <i lang="cy">Bwca’r Trwyn</i>, -in chapter x: he differs in some important respects from the fenodyree -and the brownie.</p> -<p>5. A twig of the rowan tree, or <i>wicken</i>, as it is called, was -effective against all evil things, including witches. It is useful in -many ways to guard the welfare of the household, and to preserve both -the live stock and the crops, while placed on the churn it prevents any -malign influence from retarding the coming of the butter. I may remark -that Celts and Teutons seem to have been generally pretty well agreed -as to the virtues of the rowan tree. Bits of iron also are lucky -against witches. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb326" href="#pb326" -name="pb326">326</a>]</span></p> -<p>6. Fairies are rare, but witches and wizards abound, and some of -them have been supposed to change themselves into dogs to worry sheep -and cattle, or into toads to poison the swine’s troughs. But they -do not seem to change themselves into hares, as in Man and other Celtic -lands.</p> -<p>7. Witchcraft, says Miss Peacock, is often hereditary, passing most -frequently from mother to daughter; but when a witch has no daughter -her power may appear in a son, and then revert to the female line. This -appears far more natural than the Manx belief in its passing from -father to daughter and from daughter to son. But another kind of -succession is mentioned in the Welsh Triads, i. 32, ii. 20, iii. 90, -which speak of Math ab Mathonwy teaching his magic to Gwydion, who as -his sister’s son was to succeed him in his kingdom; and of a -certain Rhuđlwm Dwarf teaching his magic to Coỻ, son of -Coỻfrewi, his nephew. Both instances seem to point to a state of -society which did not reckon paternity but only birth.</p> -<p>8. Only three years previous to Miss Peacock’s writing an old -man died, she says, who had seen blood drawn from a witch because she -had, as was supposed, laid a spell on a team of horses: as soon as she -was struck so as to bleed the horses and their load were free to go on -their way again. Possibly no equally late instance could be specified -in the Isle of Man: see p. 296 above.</p> -<p>9. Traces of animal sacrifice may still be found in Lincolnshire, -for the heart of a small beast, or of a bird, is necessary, Miss -Peacock says, for the efficient performance of several counter-charms, -especially in torturing a witch by the reversal of her spells, and -warding off evil from houses or other buildings. Apparently Miss -Peacock has not heard of so considerable a victim <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb327" href="#pb327" name="pb327">327</a>]</span>as a -sheep or a calf being sacrificed, as in the Isle of Man, but the -objects of the sacrifices may be said to be the same.</p> -<p>10. Several pin and rag wells are said to exist in Lincolnshire, -their waters being supposed to possess healing virtues, especially as -regards eye ailments.</p> -<p>11. Love-spells and prognostications are mentioned, some of them as -belonging to Allhallows, as they do partly in the Isle of Man: she -mentions the making of dumb cake, and the eating of the salt herring, -followed by dreams of the future husband bringing the thirsting lass -drink in a jug, the quality of which indicates the bearer’s -position in life. But other Lincolnshire practices of the kind seem to -oscillate between Allhallows and St. Mark’s Eve, while -gravitating decidedly towards the latter date. Here it is preferable to -give Miss Peacock’s own words:—‘Professor Rhys’ -mention of the footmark in the ashes reminds me of a love-spell current -in the Wapentake of Manley in North Lincolnshire. Properly speaking, it -should be put in practice on St. Mark’s E’en, that eerie -spring-tide festival when those who are skilled may watch the church -porch and learn who will die in the ensuing twelvemonth; but there is -little doubt that the charm is also used at Hallow E’en, and at -other suitable seasons of the year. The spell consists in riddling -ashes on the hearthstone, or beans on the floor of the barn, with -proper ceremonies and at the proper time, with the result that the girl -who works her incantation correctly finds the footprint of the man she -is to marry clearly marked on the sifted mass the following morning. It -is to be supposed that the spirit of the lover is responsible for the -mark, as, according to another folk-belief, any girl who watches her -supper on St. Mark’s E’en will see the spirit of the man -she will wed come into the room at midnight to <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb328" href="#pb328" name= -"pb328">328</a>]</span>partake of the food provided. The room must be -one with the door and windows in different walls, and both must be -open. The spirit comes in by the door (and goes out by the window?). -Each girl who undertakes to keep watch must have a separate supper and -a separate candle, and all talking is to end before the clock goes -twelve, for there must not be any speaking before the spirits. From -these superstitions, and from the generally received idea that the -spirits of all the parishioners are to be observed entering the church -on St. Mark’s E’en, it may be inferred that the Manx -footprint is made by the wraith of the person doomed to death.’ -Compare pp. 318–9 above.</p> -<p>What Miss Peacock alludes to as watching the church porch was -formerly well known in Wales<a class="noteref" id="xd25e13386src" href= -"#xd25e13386" name="xd25e13386src">4</a>, and may be illustrated from a -district so far east as the Golden Valley, in Herefordshire, by the -following story told me in 1892 by Mrs. Powell of Dorstone, on the -strength of what she had learnt from her mother-in-law, the late Mrs. -Powell, who was a native of that parish:—</p> -<p>‘On Allhallows Eve at midnight, those who are bold enough to -look through the church windows will see the building lighted with an -unearthly light, and the pulpit occupied by his Satanic majesty clothed -in a monk’s habit. Dreadful anathemas are the burden of his -preaching, and the names of those who in the coming year are to render -up their souls may be heard by those who have courage to listen. A -notorious evil liver, Jack of France, once by chance passed the church -at this awful moment: looking in he saw the lights and heard the voice, -and his own name in the horrid list; and, according to some versions of -the story, he went home <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb329" href= -"#pb329" name="pb329">329</a>]</span>to die of fright. Others say that -he repented and died in good repute, and so cheated the evil one of his -prey.’</p> -<p>I have no list of places in Wales and its marches which have this -sort of superstition associated with them, but it is my impression that -they are mostly referred to Allhallows, as at Dorstone, and that where -that is not the case they have been shifted to the beginning of the -year as at present reckoned; for in Celtic lands, at least, they seem -to have belonged to what was reckoned the beginning of the year. The -old Celtic year undoubtedly began at Allhallows, and the day next in -importance after the Calends of Winter (in Welsh -<i>Calangáeaf</i>) was, among the Celts, the beginning of the -summer half of the year, or the Calends of May (in Welsh -<i>Calánmai</i>), which St. Mark’s Eve approaches too -nearly for us to regard it as accidental. With this modified agreement -between the Lincolnshire date and the Celtic one contrast the -irreconcilable English date of St. John’s Eve; and see -Tylor’s <i>Primitive Culture</i>, i. 440, where one reads as -follows of ‘the well-known superstition,’ ‘that -fasting watchers on St. John’s Eve may see the apparitions of -those doomed to die during the year come with the clergyman to the -church door and knock; these apparitions are spirits who come forth -from their bodies, for the minister has been noticed to be much -troubled in his sleep while his phantom was thus engaged, and when one -of a party of watchers fell into a sound sleep and could not be roused, -the others saw his apparition knock at the church door.’ With an -unerring instinct for the intelligent colligation of facts, Miss -Peacock finds the nearest approach to the yearly review of the -moritures, if I may briefly so call them, in the wraith’s -footprint in the ashes. Perhaps a more systematic examination of Manx -folklore may result in the discovery of a more exact parallel. -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb330" href="#pb330" name= -"pb330">330</a>]</span></p> -<p>For want of knowing where else to put it, I may mention here in -reference to the dead, a passage which has been copied for me by my -friend Mr. Gwenogvryn Evans, from Manuscript 163 in the Peniarth -Collection. I understand it to be of the earlier part of the sixteenth -century, and p. 10 has the following passage:—</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Yn yr ynys honn</i> [<i>Manaw</i>] <i>y kair gweled liw -dyđ bobyl a vvessynt veirw / Rrai gwedi tori penav / eraiỻ -gwedi torri i haelode / Ac os dieithred a đissyfynt i gweled hwynt -/ Sengi ar draed gwyr or tir ac veỻy hwynt a gaent weled yr hyn a -welssynt hwyntav.</i></p> -<p>‘In this island [Man] one beholds in the light of day people -who have died, some with their heads cut off and others with their -limbs cut off. And if strangers desire to see them, they have to stand -on the feet of the natives of the land, and in that way they would see -what the latter had seen.’</p> -<p>A similar instance of the virtue of standing on the feet of another -person has been mentioned in reference to the farmer of Deunant, at p. -230 above; the foot, however, on which he had to stand in order to get -a glimpse of the fairy world, was a fairy’s own foot.</p> -<p>Lastly, the passage in the Peniarth Manuscript has something more to -say of the Isle of Man, as follows:—</p> -<p lang="cy"><i>Mawr oeđ arfer o swynion a chyvaređion gynt -yn yr ynys honn / Kanys gwrageđ a vyđynt yno yn gwnevthvr -gwynt i longwyr gwedir gav mewn tri chwlm o edav aphan vai eissie gwynt -arnynt dattod kwlm or edav anaynt.</i></p> -<p>‘Great was the practice formerly of spells and sorceries in -this island; for there used to be there women making wind for sailors, -which wind they confined within three knots made on a thread. And when -they had need of wind they would undo a knot of the thread.’</p> -<p>This was written in the sixteenth century, and based probably on -Higden’s <i>Polychronicon</i>, book I, chap. xliv<span class= -"corr" id="xd25e13438" title="Not in source">.</span> <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb331" href="#pb331" name="pb331">331</a>]</span>(= -I. 42–3), but the same practice of wind making goes on to this -day, one of the principal practitioners being the woman to whom -reference was made at p. 299. She is said to tie the breezes in so many -knots which she makes on the purchasing sailor’s -pocket-handkerchief. This reminds one of the sibyl of Warinsey, or the -Island of Guernsey, who is represented by an ancient Norse poet as -‘fashioning false prophecies.’ See Vigfusson and -Powell’s <i>Corpus Poeticum Boreale</i>, i. 136; also -Mela’s first-century account of the virgins of the island of -Sena, which runs to the following effect:—‘Sena, in the -Britannic Sea, opposite the coast of the Osismi, is famous for its -oracle of a Gaulish god, whose priestesses, living in the holiness of -perpetual virginity, are said to be nine in number. They call them -Gallizenæ, and they believe them to be endowed with extraordinary -gifts to rouse the sea and the wind by their incantations, to turn -themselves into whatsoever animal form they may choose, to cure -diseases which among others are incurable, to know what is to come and -to foretell it. They are, however, devoted to the service of voyagers -only who have set out on no other errand than to consult them<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e13446src" href="#xd25e13446" name= -"xd25e13446src">5</a>.’ It is probable that the -sacrosanct<a class="noteref" id="xd25e13469src" href="#xd25e13469" -name="xd25e13469src">6</a> inhabitants of the small islands on the -coasts of Gaul and Britain had wellnigh a monopoly of the traffic in -wind<a class="noteref" id="xd25e13484src" href="#xd25e13484" name= -"xd25e13484src">7</a>. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb332" href= -"#pb332" name="pb332">332</a>]</span></p> -<p>In the last chapter I made allusion to several wells of greater or -less celebrity in the Isle of Man; but I find that I have a few remarks -to add. Mr. Arthur Moore, in his book on <i>Manx Surnames and -Place-Names</i>, p. 200, mentions a Chibber Unjin, which means the Well -of the Ash-tree, and he states that there grew near it ‘formerly -a sacred ash-tree, where votive offerings were hung.’ The -ash-tree calls to his mind Scandinavian legends respecting the ash, but -in any case one may suppose the ash was not the usual tree to expect by -a well in the Isle of Man, otherwise this one would scarcely have been -distinguished as the Ash-tree Well. The tree to expect by a sacred well -is doubtless some kind of thorn, as in the case of Chibber Undin in the -parish of Malew. The name means Foundation Well, so called in reference -probably to the foundations of an ancient cell, or <i>keeill</i> as it -is called in Manx, which lie close by, and are found to measure -twenty-one feet long by twelve feet broad. The following is Mr. -Moore’s account of the well in his book already cited, p. -181:—‘The water of this well is supposed to have curative -properties. The patients who came to it, took a mouthful of water, -retaining it in their mouths till they had twice walked round the well. -They then took a piece of cloth from a garment which they had worn, -wetted it with the water from the well, and hung it on the hawthorn -tree which grew there. When the cloth had rotted away, the cure was -supposed to be effected.’</p> -<p>I visited the spot a few years ago in the company of the Rev. E. B. -Savage of St. Thomas’ Parsonage, Douglas, and we found the well -nearly dried up in consequence of the drainage of the field around it; -but the remains of the old cell were there, and the thorn bush had -strips of cloth or calico tied to its branches. <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb333" href="#pb333" name="pb333">333</a>]</span>We -cut off one, which is now in the Pitt-Rivers Museum at Oxford. The -account Mr. Savage had of the ritual observed at the well differed a -little from that given by Mr. Moore, especially in the fact that it -made the patient who had been walking round the well with water from -the well in his mouth, empty that water finally into a rag from his -clothing: the rag was then tied to a branch of the thorn. It does not -appear that the kind of tree mattered much; nay, a tree is not, it -seems to me, essential. At any rate, St. Maughold’s Well has no -tree growing near it now; but it is right to say, that when Mr. Kermode -and I visited it, we could find no rags left near the spot, nor indeed -could we expect to find any, as there was nothing to which they might -be tied on that windy headland. The absence of the tree does not, -however, prove that the same sort of ritual was not formerly observed -at St. Maughold’s Well as at Chibber Undin; and here I must -mention another well which I have visited in the island more than once. -It is on the side of Bradda Hill, a little above the village of Bradda, -and in the direction of Fleshwick: I was attracted to it by the fact -that it had, as I had been told by Mr. Savage, formerly an old cell or -<i>keeill</i> near it, and the name of the saint to which it belonged -may probably be gathered from the name of the well, which, in the Manx -of the south of the island, is Chibbyrt Valtane, pronounced -approximately Chŭ́vurt Voltáne or Olđáne. -The personal name would be written in modern Manx in its radical form -as Boltane, and if it occurred in the genitive in Ogam inscriptions I -should expect to find it written <i>Boltagni</i> or -<i>Baltagni</i><a class="noteref" id="xd25e13508src" href="#xd25e13508" -name="xd25e13508src">8</a>. It is, however, unknown to me, <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb334" href="#pb334" name= -"pb334">334</a>]</span>though to be placed possibly by the side of the -name of the saint after whom the parish of Santon is called in the -south-east of the island. This is pronounced in Manx -approximately<a class="noteref" id="xd25e13557src" href="#xd25e13557" -name="xd25e13557src">9</a> Santane or Sanđane, and would have -yielded an early inscriptional nominative <span class= -"sc">SANCTANVS</span>, which, in fact, occurs on an old stone near -Ỻandudno on the Welsh coast: see some notes of mine in point in -the <i lang="la">Archæologia Cambrensis</i>, 1897, pp. -140–2. To return to the well, it would seem to have been -associated with an old cell, but it has no tree growing by. Mr. Savage -and I were told, nevertheless, that a boy who had searched the well a -short time previously had got some coins out of it, quite recent ones, -consisting of halfpennies or pennies, so far as I remember. On my -observing to one of the neighbours that I saw no rags there, I was -assured that there had been some; and, on my further saying that I saw -no tree there to which they could be tied, I was told that they used to -be attached to the brambles, which grew there in great abundance. Thus -it appears that, in the Isle of Man at any rate, a tree to bear the -rags was not an essential adjunct of a holy well.</p> -<p>Before leaving these well superstitions the reader may wish to know -how they were understood in Ireland <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb335" href="#pb335" name="pb335">335</a>]</span>not long ago: so I -venture to quote a passage from a letter by the late Mr. W. C. Borlase -on Rag Offerings and Primitive <span class="corr" id="xd25e13579" -title="Source: Pilgimages">Pilgrimages</span> in Ireland, as -follows:—</p> -<p>‘Among the MSS. of the late Mr. Windele, of Cork, … I -find a passage which cannot fail to interest students of folk-lore. It -relates to the custom of affixing shreds of rag to the hawthorn tree, -which almost invariably stands by the brink of the typical Irish -“holy well,” and it gives us the meaning of the custom as -understood, some half-century since, by the inhabitants of certain -localities in the province of Munster. The idea is, says the writer, -that the putting up these rags is a putting away of the evils impending -or incurred by sin, an act accompanied by the following ritual words: -<i>Air impide an Tiarna mo chuid teinis do fhagaint air an ait so</i>; -i. e. By the intercession of the Lord I leave my portion of illness on -this place. These words, he adds, should be uttered by whoever performs -the round, and they are, no doubt, of extreme antiquity. Mr. Windele -doubtless took down the words as he heard them locally pronounced, -though, to be correct, for <i>Tiarna</i> should be read <i>Tigerna</i>; -for <i>teinis</i>, <i>tinneas</i>; and for <i>fhagaint</i>, -<i>fhagaim</i><a class="noteref" id="xd25e13605src" href="#xd25e13605" -name="xd25e13605src">10</a>.’</p> -<p>From the less known saints Boltane and Santane I wish to pass to the -mention of a more famous one, namely, St. Catherine, and this because -of a fair called after her, and held on the sixth day of December at -the village of Colby in the south of the island. When I heard of this -fair in 1888, it was in temporary abeyance on account of a lawsuit -respecting the plot of ground on which the fair is wont to be held; but -I was <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb336" href="#pb336" name= -"pb336">336</a>]</span>told that it usually begins with a procession, -in which a live hen is carried about: this is called St. -Catherine’s hen. The next day the hen is carried about dead and -plucked, and a rhyme pronounced at a certain point in the proceedings -contemplates the burial of the hen, but whether that ever takes place I -know not. It runs thus:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="gv" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Kiark Catrina marroo:</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Gows yn kione as goyms ny cassyn,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>As ver mayd ee fo’n thalloo.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Catherine’s hen is dead:</p> -<p class="line">The head take thou and I the feet,</p> -<p class="line">We shall put her under the ground.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">A man who is found to be not wholly sober after the -fair is locally said to have plucked a feather from the hen (<i lang= -"gv">T’eh er goaill fedjag ass y chiark</i>); so it would seem -that there must be such a scramble to get at the hen, and to take part -in the plucking, that it requires a certain amount of drink to allay -the thirst of the over zealous devotees of St. Catherine. But why -should this ceremony be associated with St. Catherine? and what were -the origin and meaning of it? These are questions on which I should be -glad to have light shed.</p> -<p>Manx has a word <i>quaail</i> (Irish <i>comhdháil</i>), -meaning a ‘meeting,’ and from it we have a derivative -<i>quaaltagh</i> or <i>qualtagh</i>, meaning, according to -Kelly’s <i>Dictionary</i>, ‘the first person or creature -one meets going from home,’ whereby the author can have only -meant the first met by one who is going from home. Kelly goes on to add -that ‘this person is of great consequence to the superstitious, -particularly to women the first time they go out after lying-in.’ -Cregeen, in his <i>Dictionary</i>, defines the <i>qualtagh</i> as -‘the first person met on New Year’s Day, or on going on -some new work, &c.’ Before proceeding to give the substance -of my notes on the <i>qualtagh</i> of the present day I may as well -finish with Cregeen, for he adds the following -information:—‘A company of young lads or men generally went -in <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb337" href="#pb337" name= -"pb337">337</a>]</span>old times on what they termed the -<i>qualtagh</i>, at Christmas or New Year’s Day, to the houses of -their more wealthy neighbours; some one of the company repeating in an -audible voice the following rhyme:—</p> -<div lang="gv" class="lgouter"> -<p class="line"><i>Ollick ghennal erriu as bleïn feer vie,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Seihll as slaynt da’n slane lught -thie;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Bea as gennallys en bio ry-cheilley,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Shee as graih eddyr mrane as deiney;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Cooid as cowryn, stock as stoyr,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Palchey phuddase, as skaddan dy-liooar,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Arran as caashey, eeym as roayrt;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Baase, myr lugh, ayns uhllin ny soalt;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Cadley sauchey tra vees shiu ny lhie,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>As feeackle y jargan, nagh bee dy -mie.</i>’</p> -</div> -<p class="first">It may be loosely translated as follows:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line">A merry Christmas, a happy new year,</p> -<p class="line">Long life and health to all the household here.</p> -<p class="line">Food and mirth to you dwelling together,</p> -<p class="line">Peace and love to all, men and women;</p> -<p class="line">Wealth and distinction, stock and store,</p> -<p class="line">Potatoes enough, and herrings galore;</p> -<p class="line">Bread and cheese, butter and gravy;</p> -<p class="line">Die like a mouse in a barn or haggard;</p> -<p class="line">In safety sleep while you lie to rest,</p> -<p class="line">And by the flea’s tooth be not distressed.</p> -</div> -<p class="first">At present New Year’s Day is the time when the -<i>qualtagh</i> is of general interest, and in this case he is, outside -the members of one’s own household, practically the first person -one sees on the morning of that day, whether that person meets one out -of doors or comes to one’s house. The following is what I have -learnt by inquiry as to the <i>qualtagh</i>: all are agreed that he -must not be a woman or girl, and that he must not be <i>spaagagh</i> or -splay footed, while a woman from the parish of Marown told me that he -must not have red hair. The prevalent belief, however, is that he -should be a dark haired man or boy, and it is of no consequence how -rough his appearance may be, provided he be black haired. However, I -was told by one man in Rushen that the <i>qualtagh</i> or -‘first-foot’ need not be <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb338" href="#pb338" name="pb338">338</a>]</span>a black haired -person: he must be a man or boy. But this less restricted view is not -the one held in the central and northern parts of the island, so far as -I could ascertain. An English lady living in the neighbourhood of -Castletown told me that her son, whom I know to be, like his mother, a -blond, not being aware what consequences might be associated with his -visit, called at a house in Castletown on the morning of New -Year’s Day, and he chanced to be the <i>qualtagh</i>. The -mistress of the house was horrified, and expressed to the English lady -her anticipation of misfortunes; and as it happened that one of the -children of the house died in the course of the year, the English lady -has been reminded of it since. Naturally the association of these -events are not pleasant to her; but, so far as I can remember, they -date only some eight or nine years ago<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13764src" href="#xd25e13764" name="xd25e13764src">11</a>.</p> -<p>By way of bringing Wales into comparison with Man, I may mention -that, when I was a very small boy, I used to be sent very early on New -Year’s morning to call on an old uncle of mine, because, as I was -told, I should be certain to receive a <i>calennig</i> or a -calends’ gift from him, but on no account would my sister be -allowed to go, as he would only see a boy on such an occasion as that. -I do not recollect anything being said as to the colour of one’s -hair or the shape of one’s foot; but that sort of negative -evidence is of very little value, as the <i>qualtagh</i> was fast -passing out of consideration.</p> -<p>The preference here given to a boy over a girl looks like one of the -widely spread superstitions which rule against the fair sex; but, as to -the colour of the hair, I should be predisposed to think that it -possibly rests <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb339" href="#pb339" name= -"pb339">339</a>]</span>on racial antipathy, long ago forgotten; for it -might perhaps be regarded as going back to a time when the dark haired -race reckoned the Aryan of fair complexion as his natural enemy, the -very sight of whom brought with it thoughts calculated to make him -unhappy and despondent. If this idea proved to be approximately -correct, one might suggest that the racial distinction in question -referred to the struggles between the inhabitants of Man and their -Scandinavian conquerors; but to my thinking it is just as likely that -it goes much further back.</p> -<p>Lastly, what is one to say with regard to the <i>spaagagh</i> or -splay footed person, now more usually defined as flat footed or having -no instep? I have heard it said in the south of the island that it is -unlucky to meet a <i>spaagagh</i> in the morning at any time of the -year, and not on New Year’s Day alone; but this does not help us -in the attempt to find the genesis of this belief. If it were said that -it was unlucky to meet a deformed person, it would look somewhat more -natural; but why fix on the flat footed especially? For my part I have -not been trained to distinguish flat footed people, so I do not -recollect noticing any in the Isle of Man; but, granting there may be a -small proportion of such people in the island, does it not seem strange -that they should have their importance so magnified as this -superstition would seem to imply? I must confess that I cannot -understand it, unless we have here also some supposed racial -characteristic, let us say greatly exaggerated. To explain myself I -should put it that the non-Aryan aborigines were a small people of -great agility and nimbleness, and that their Aryan conquerors moved -more slowly and deliberately, whence the former, of springier -movements, might come to nickname the latter the flat footed. It is -even conceivable that there was some <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb340" href="#pb340" name="pb340">340</a>]</span>amount of foundation -for it in fact. If I might speak from my own experience, I might -mention a difficulty I have often had with shoes of English make, -namely, that I have always found them, unless made to measure, apt to -have their instep too low for me. It has never occurred to me to buy -ready-made shoes in France or Germany, but I know a lady as Welsh as I -am, who has often bought shoes in France, and her experience is, that -it is much easier for her to get shoes there to fit her than in -England, and for the very reason which I have already suggested, -namely, that the instep in English shoes is lower than in French -ones.</p> -<p>Again, I may mention that one day last term<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13794src" href="#xd25e13794" name="xd25e13794src">12</a>, having -to address a meeting of Welsh undergraduates on folklore, I ventured to -introduce this question. They agreed with me that English shoes did -not, as a rule, fit Welsh feet, and this because they are made too low -in the instep: I ought to have said that they all agreed except one -undergraduate, who held his peace. He is a tall man, powerful in the -football field, but of no dark complexion, and I have never dared to -look in the direction of his feet since, lest he should catch me -carrying my comparisons to cruel extremes. Perhaps the flatness of the -feet of the one race is not emphasized so much as the height of the -instep in those of the other. At any rate I find this way of looking at -the question somewhat countenanced by a journalist who refers his -readers to Wm. Henderson’s notes on the <i>Folklore of the -Northern Counties</i>, p. 74. The passage relates more particularly to -Northumberland, and runs as follows:—‘In some districts, -however, special weight is attached to the “first-foot” -being that of a person with a high-arched instep, a foot that -“water runs under.” A flat-footed person would bring great -ill-luck for the coming year.’ <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb341" href="#pb341" name="pb341">341</a>]</span></p> -<p>These instances do not warrant the induction that Celts are higher -in the instep than Teutons, and that they have inherited that -characteristic from the non-Aryan element in their ancestry. Perhaps -the explanation is, at least in part, that the dwellers in hilly -regions tend to be more springy and to have higher insteps than the -inhabitants of flatter lands. The statement of Dr. Karl Blind on this -point does not help one to a decision when he speaks as follows in -<i>Folk-Lore</i> for 1892, p. 89:—‘As to the instep, I can -speak from personal experience. Almost every German finds that an -English shoemaker makes his boots not high enough in the instep. The -northern Germans (I am from the south) have perhaps slightly flatter -feet than the southern Germans.’ The first part of the comparison -is somewhat of a surprise to me, but not so the other part, that the -southern Germans inhabiting a hillier country, and belonging to a -different race, may well be higher in the instep than the more northern -speakers of the German language. But on the whole the more one examines -the <i>qualtagh</i>, the less clearly one sees how he can be the -representative of a particular race. More data possibly would enable -one to arrive at greater probability.</p> -<p>There is one other question which I should like to ask before -leaving the <i>qualtagh</i>, namely, as to the relation of the custom -of New Year’s gifts to the belief in the <i>qualtagh</i>. I have -heard it related in the Isle of Man that women have been known to keep -indoors on New Year’s Day until the <i>qualtagh</i> comes, which -sometimes means their being prisoners for the greater part of the day, -in order to avoid the risk of first meeting one who is not of the right -sex and complexion. On the other hand, when the <i>qualtagh</i> is of -the right description, considerable fuss is made of him; to say the -least, he has to accept food and drink, possibly more permanent -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb342" href="#pb342" name= -"pb342">342</a>]</span>gifts. Thus a tall, black haired native of Kirk -Michael described to me how he chanced on New Year’s Day, years -ago, to turn into a lonely cottage in order to light his pipe, and how -he found he was the <i>qualtagh</i>: he had to sit down to have food, -and when he went away it was with a present and the blessings of the -family. Now New Year’s Day is the time for gifts in Wales, as -shown by the name for them, <i>calennig</i>, which is derived from -<i>calan</i>, the Welsh form of the Latin <i>calendæ</i>, New -Year’s Day being in Welsh <i>Y Calan</i>, ‘the -Calends.’ The same is the day for gifts in Scotland and in -Ireland, except in so far as Christmas boxes have been making inroads -from England: I need not add that the <i>Jour de l’An</i> is the -day for gifts also in France. My question then is this: Is there any -essential connexion of origin between the institution of New -Year’s Day gifts and the belief in the first-foot?</p> -<p>Now that it has been indicated what sort of a <i>qualtagh</i> it is -unlucky to have, I may as well proceed to mention the other things -which I have heard treated as unlucky in the island. Some of them -scarcely require to be noticed, as there is nothing specially Manx -about them, such as the belief that it is unlucky to have the first -glimpse of the new moon through glass. That is a superstition which is, -I believe, widely spread, and, among other countries, it is quite -familiar in Wales, where it is also unlucky to see the moon for the -first time through a hedge or over a house. What this means I cannot -guess, unless it be that it was once considered one’s duty to -watch the first appearance of the new moon from the highest point in -the landscape of the district in which one dwelt. Such a point would in -that case become the chief centre of a moon worship now lost in -oblivion.</p> -<p>It is believed in Man, as it used to be in Wales and <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb343" href="#pb343" name= -"pb343">343</a>]</span>Ireland, that it is unlucky to disturb -antiquities, especially old burial places and old churches. This -superstition is unfortunately passing away in all three countries, but -you still hear of it, especially in the Isle of Man, mostly after -mischief has been done. Thus a good Manx scholar told me how a relative -of his in the Ronnag, a small valley near South Barrule, had carted -away the earth from an old burial ground on his farm and used it as -manure for his fields, and how his beasts died afterwards. The narrator -said he did not know whether there was any truth in it, but everybody -believed that it was the reason why the cattle died; and so did the -farmer himself at last: so he desisted from completing his disturbance -of the old site. It is possibly for a similar reason that a house in -ruins is seldom pulled down, or the materials used for other buildings. -Where that has been done misfortunes have ensued; at any rate, I have -heard it said so more than once. I ought to have stated that the -non-disturbance of antiquities in the island is quite consistent with -their being now and then shamefully neglected as elsewhere. This is now -met by an excellent statute recently enacted by the House of Keys for -the preservation of the public monuments of the island.</p> -<p>Of the other and more purely Manx superstitions I may mention one -which obtains among the Peel fishermen of the present day: no boat is -willing to be third in the order of sailing out from Peel harbour to -the fisheries. So it sometimes happens that after two boats have -departed, the others remain watching each other for days, each hoping -that somebody else may be reckless enough to break through the -invisible barrier of ‘bad luck.’ I have often asked for an -explanation of this superstition, but the only intelligible answer I -have had was that it has been observed that the third boat <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb344" href="#pb344" name="pb344">344</a>]</span>has -done badly several years in succession; but I am unable to ascertain -how far that represents the fact. Another of the unlucky things is to -have a white stone in the boat, even in the ballast, and for that I -never could get any explanation at all; but there is no doubt as to the -fact of this superstition, and I may illustrate it from the case of a -clergyman’s son on the west side, who took it into his head to go -out with some fishermen several days in succession. They chanced to be -unsuccessful each time, and they gave their Jonah the nickname of -<i>Clagh Vane</i>, or ‘White Stone.’ Now what can be the -origin of this tabu? It seems to me that if the Manx had once a habit -of adorning the graves of the departed with white stones, that -circumstance would be a reasonable explanation of the superstition in -question. Further, it is quite possible they did, and here Manx -archæologists could probably help as to the matter of fact. In -the absence, however, of information to the point from Man, I take the -liberty of citing some relating to Scotland. It comes from Mr. -Gomme’s presidential address to the Folk-Lore Society: see -<i>Folk-Lore</i> for 1893, pp. 13–4:—</p> -<p>‘Near Inverary, it is the custom among the fisher-folk, and -has been so within the memory of the oldest, to place little white -stones or pebbles on the graves of their friends. No reason is now -given for the practice, beyond that most potent and delightful of all -reasons in the minds of folk-lore students, namely, that it has always -been done. Now there is nothing between this modern practice sanctioned -by traditional observance and the practice of the stone-age people in -the same neighbourhood and in others, as made known to us by their -grave-relics. Thus, in a cairn at Achnacrie opened by Dr. Angus Smith, -on entering the innermost chamber “the first thing that struck -the eye was a row of quartz <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb345" href= -"#pb345" name="pb345">345</a>]</span>pebbles larger than a walnut; -these were arranged on the ledge of the lower granite block of the east -side.” Near Crinan, at Duncraigaig and at Rudie, the same -characteristic was observed, and Canon Greenwell, who examined the -cairns, says the pebbles “must have been placed there with some -intention, and probably possessed a symbolic -meaning.” ’ See also <i>Burghead</i>, by Mr. H. W. -Young (Inverness, 1899), p. 10, where we read that at Burghead the -‘smooth white pebbles, sometimes five or seven of them, but never -more,’ have been usually arranged as crosses on the graves which -he has found under the fallen ramparts. Can this be a Christian -superstition with the white stones of the Apocalypse as its -foundation?</p> -<p>Here I may mention a fact which I do not know where else to put, -namely, that a fisherman on his way in the morning to the fishing, and -chancing to pass by the cottage of another fisherman who is not on -friendly terms with him, will pluck a straw from the thatch of the -latter’s dwelling. Thereby he is supposed to rob him of his luck -in the fishing for that day. One would expect to learn that the straw -from the thatch served as the subject of an incantation directed -against the owner of the thatch. I have never heard anything suggested -to that effect; but I conclude that the plucking of the straw is only a -partial survival of what was once a complete ritual for bewitching -one’s neighbour, unless getting possession of the straw was -supposed to carry with it possession of everything belonging to the -other man, including his luck in fishing for that day.</p> -<p>Owing to my ignorance as to the superstitions of other fishermen -than those of the Isle of Man, I will not attempt to classify the -remaining instances to be mentioned, such as the unluckiness of -mentioning a horse or a mouse on board a fishing-boat: I seem, -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb346" href="#pb346" name= -"pb346">346</a>]</span>however, to have heard of similar tabus among -Scottish fishermen; and, according to Dr. Blind, Shetland fishermen -will not mention a church or a clergyman when out at sea, but use quite -other names for both when on board a ship (<i>Folk-Lore</i> for 1892, -p. 89). Novices in the Manx fisheries have to learn not to point to -anything with one finger: they have to point with the whole hand or not -at all. This looks as if it belonged to a code of rules as to the use -of the hand, such as prevail among the Neapolitans and other peoples -whose chief article of faith is the belief in malign influences: see -Mr. Elworthy’s volume on <i>The Evil Eye</i>.</p> -<p>Whether the Manx are alone in thinking it unlucky to lend salt from -one boat to another when they are engaged in the fishing, I know not: -such lending would probably be inconvenient, but why it should be -unlucky, as they believe it to be, does not appear. The first of May is -a day on which it is unlucky to lend anything, and especially to give -anyone fire<a class="noteref" id="xd25e13885src" href="#xd25e13885" -name="xd25e13885src">13</a>. This looks as if it pointed back to some -druidic custom of lighting all fires at that time from a sacred hearth, -but, so far as is known, this only took place at the beginning of the -other half-year, namely, <i>Sauin</i> or Allhallows, which is sometimes -rendered into Manx as <i>Laa ’ll mooar ny Saintsh</i>, ‘the -Day of the great Feast of the Saints.’</p> -<p>Lastly, I may mention that it is unlucky to say that you are very -well: at any rate, I infer that it is regarded so, as you will never -get a Manxman to say that he is <i>feer vie</i>, ‘very -well.’ He usually admits that he is ‘middling’; and -if by any chance he risks a stronger adjective, he hastens to qualify -it by adding ‘now,’ or ‘just now,’ with an -emphasis indicative of his anxiety not to say <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb347" href="#pb347" name="pb347">347</a>]</span>too -much. His habits of speech point back to a time when the Manx mind was -dominated by the fear of awaking malignant influences in the spirit -world around him. This has had the effect of giving the Manx -peasant’s character a tinge of reserve and suspicion, which makes -it difficult to gain his confidence: his acquaintance has, therefore, -to be cultivated for some time before you can say that you know the -workings of his heart. The pagan belief in a Nemesis has doubtless -passed away, but not without materially affecting the Manx idea of a -personal devil. Ever since the first allusion made in my hearing by -Manxmen to the devil, I have been more and more deeply impressed that -for them the devil is a much more formidable being than Englishmen or -Welshmen picture him. He is a graver and, if I may say so, a more -respectable being, allowing no liberties to be taken with his name, so -you had better not call him a devil, the evil one, or like names, for -his proper designation is <i>Noid ny Hanmey</i>, ‘the Enemy of -the Soul,’ and in ordinary Anglo-Manx conversation he is commonly -called ‘the Enemy of Souls.’ I well remember getting one -day into a conversation with an old soldier in the south of the island. -He was, as I soon discovered, labouring under a sort of theological -monomania, and his chief question was concerning the Welsh word for -‘the Enemy of Souls.’ I felt at once that I had to be -careful, and that the reputation of my countrymen depended on how I -answered. As I had no name anything like the one he used for the devil, -I explained to him that the Welsh, though not a great nation, were -great students of theology, and that they had by no means neglected the -great branch of it known as satanology. In fact that study, as I went -on to say, had left its impress on the Welsh language: on Sunday the -ministers of all denominations, the deacons <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb348" href="#pb348" name="pb348">348</a>]</span>and -elders, and all self-respecting congregations spoke of the devil -trisyllabically as <i>diafol</i>, while on the other days of the week -everybody called him more briefly and forcibly <i>diawl</i>, except -bards concocting an <i>awdl</i> for an Eisteđfod, where the devil -must always be called <i>diafl</i>, and excepting also sailors, farm -servants, post-boys and colliers, together with country gentlemen -learning Welsh to address their wouldn’t-be -constituents—for all these the regulation form was <i>jawl</i>, -with an English <i>j</i>. Thus one could, I pointed out to him, fix the -social standing of a Welshman by the way he named ‘the Enemy of -Souls,’ as well as appreciate the superiority of Welsh over -Greek, seeing that Welsh, when it borrowed <span class="trans" title= -"diabolos"><span class="Greek" lang= -"grc">διάβολος</span></span> -from Greek, quadrupled it, while Greek remained sterile. He was so -profoundly impressed that I never was able to bring his attention back -to the small fry, spiritually speaking, of the Isle of Man, to wit, the -fairies and the fenodyree, or even the witches and the charmers, except -that he had some reserve of faith in witches, since the witch of Endor -was in the Bible and had ascribed to her a ‘terr’ble’ -great power of raising spirits: that, he thought, must be true. I -pointed out to him that a fenodyree (see p. 288) was also mentioned in -his Bible: this display of ready knowledge on my part made a deep -impression on his mind.</p> -<p>The Manx are, as a rule, a sober people, and highly religious; as -regards their tenets, they are mostly members of the Church of England -or Wesleyan Methodists, or else both, which is by no means unusual. -Religious phrases are not rare in their ordinary conversation; in fact, -they struck me as being of more frequent occurrence than in Wales, even -the Wales of my boyhood; and here and there this fondness for religious -phraseology has left its traces on the native vocabulary. Take, for -example, the word for ‘anybody, a person, or human <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb349" href="#pb349" name= -"pb349">349</a>]</span>being,’ which Cregeen writes -<i>py’agh</i> or <i>p’agh</i>: he rightly regards it as the -colloquial pronunciation of <i>peccagh</i>, ‘a sinner.’ So, -when one knocks at a Manx door and calls out, <i>Vel p’agh -sthie</i>? he literally asks, ‘Is there any sinner -indoors?’ The question has, however, been explained to me, with -unconscious irony, as properly meaning, ‘Is there any Christian -indoors?’ and care is now taken in reading to pronounce the -middle consonants of the word <i>peccagh</i>, ‘sinner,’ so -as to distinguish it from the word for a Christian -‘anybody’: but the identity of origin is unmistakable.</p> -<p>Lastly, the fact that a curse is a species of prayer, to wit, a -prayer for evil to follow, is well exemplified in Manx by the same -words, <i>gwee</i><a class="noteref" id="xd25e13960src" href= -"#xd25e13960" name="xd25e13960src">14</a>, plural <i>gwecaghyn</i>, -meaning both kinds of prayer. Thus I found myself stumbling several -times, in reading through the Psalms in Manx, from not bearing in mind -the sinister meaning of these words; for example in Psalm xiv. 6, where -we have <i>Ta ’n beeal oc lane dy ghweeaghyn as dy herriuid</i>, -which I mechanically construed to mean ‘Their mouth is full of -praying and bitterness,’ instead of ‘cursing and -bitterness’; and so in other cases, such as Ps. x. 7, and cix. -27.</p> -<p>It occurred to me on various occasions to make inquiries as to the -attitude of religious Manxmen towards witchcraft and the -charmer’s vocation. Nobody, so far as I know, accuses them of -favouring witchcraft in any way whatsoever; but as to the reality of -witches and witchcraft they are not likely to have any doubts so long -as they dwell on the Biblical account of the witch of Endor, as I have -already mentioned in the case of the old Crimean soldier. Then as to -charmers <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb350" href="#pb350" name= -"pb350">350</a>]</span>I have heard it distinctly stated that the most -religious men are they who have most confidence in charmers and their -charms; and a lay preacher whom I know has been mentioned to me as now -and then doing a little charming in cases of danger or pressing need. -On the whole, I think the charge against religious people of consulting -charmers is somewhat exaggerated; but I believe that recourse to the -charmer is more usual and more openly had than, for example, in Wales, -where those who consult a <i>dyn hyspys</i> or ‘wise man’ -have to do it secretly, and at the risk of being expelled by their -co-religionists from the <i>Seiet</i> or ‘Society.’ There -is somewhat in the atmosphere of Man to remind one rather of the Wales -of a past generation—Wales as it was at the time when the Rev. -Edmund Jones could write a <i>Relation of Apparitions of Spirits in the -County of Monmouth and the Principality of Wales</i>, as a book -‘designed to confute and to prevent the infidelity of denying the -being and apparition of spirits, which tends to irreligion and -atheism’: see pp. 174, 195 above.</p> -<p>The Manx peasantry are perhaps the most independent and prosperous -in the British Isles; but their position geographically and politically -has been favourable to the continuance of ideas not quite up to the -level of the latest papers on Darwinism and Evolution read at our -Church Congresses in this country. This may be thought to be here wide -of the mark; but, after giving, in the previous chapter, specimens of -rather ancient superstitions as recently known in the island, it is but -right that one should form an idea of the surroundings in which they -have lingered into modern times. Perhaps nothing will better serve to -bring this home to the reader’s mind than the fact, for which -there is proof, that old people still living remember men and -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb351" href="#pb351" name= -"pb351">351</a>]</span>women clad in white sheets doing penance -publicly in the churches of Man.</p> -<p>The following is the evidence which I was able to find, and I may -state that I first heard in 1888 of the public penance from Mr. -Joughin, who was an aged man and a native of Kirk Bride. He related how -a girl named Mary Dick gave an impertinent answer to the clergyman when -he was catechizing her class, and how she had to do penance for it at -church. She took her revenge on the parson by singing, while attending -in a white sheet, louder than everybody else in the congregation. This, -unless I am mistaken, Mr. Joughin gave me to understand he had heard -from his father. I mentioned the story to a clergyman, who was -decidedly of opinion that no one alive now could remember anything -about public penance. Not long after, however, I got into conversation -with a shoemaker at Kirk Michael, named Dan Kelly, who was nearly -completing his eighty-first year. He was a native of Ballaugh, and -stated that he remembered many successive occupants of the episcopal -see. A long time ago the official called the sumner had, out of spite -he said, appointed him to serve as one of the four of the chapter jury. -It was, he thought, when he was about twenty-five. During his term of -office he saw four persons, of whom two were married men and two -unmarried women, doing penance in the parish church of Ballaugh for -having illegitimate children. They stood in the alley of the church, -and the sumner had to throw white sheets over them; on the fourth -Sunday of their penance they stood inside the chancel rails, but not to -take the communion. The parson, whose name was Stowell or Stowall, made -them thoroughly ashamed of themselves on the fourth Sunday, as one of -the men afterwards admitted. Kelly mentioned the names of the women and -of one of the <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb352" href="#pb352" name= -"pb352">352</a>]</span>men, and he indicated to me some of their -descendants as well known in the neighbourhood. I cross-examined him -all the more severely, as I had heard the other view of the remoteness -of the date. But nothing could shake Kelly, who added that soon after -the date of the above mentioned cases the civil functionary, known as -the vicar-general, put an end to the chapter jury and to public -penance: according to his reckoning the penance he spoke of must have -taken place about 1832. Another old man, named Kewley, living now near -Kirk Michael, but formerly in the parish of Lezayre, had a similar -story. He thinks that he was born in the sixth year of the century, and -when he was between eighteen and twenty he saw a man doing public -penance, in Lezayre Church, I presume, but I have no decided note on -that point. However that may be, he remembered that the penitent, when -he had done his penance, had the audacity to throw the white sheet over -the sumner, who, the penitent remarked, might now wear it himself, as -he had had enough of it. Kewley would bring the date only down to about -1825.</p> -<p>Lastly, I was in the island again in 1891, and spent the first part -of the month of April at Peel, where I had conversations with a retired -captain who was then about seventy-eight. He is a native of the parish -of Dalby, but he was only ‘a lump of a boy’ when the last -couple of immorals were forced to do penance in white sheets at church. -He gave me the guilty man’s name, and the name of his home in the -parish, and both the captain and his daughter assured me that the man -had only been dead six or seven years; that is, the penitent seems to -have lived till about the year 1884. I may here mention that the parish -of Dalby is the subject of many tales, which go to show that its people -were more old-fashioned in their ways than those of the rest of the -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb353" href="#pb353" name= -"pb353">353</a>]</span>island. It appears to have been the last, also, -to be reached by a cart road; and I was amused by a native’s -description of the men at Methodist meetings in Dalby pulling the -<i>tappag</i>, or forelock, at the name of Jesus, while the women -ducked a curtsy in a dangerously abrupt fashion. He and his wife -appeared to be quite used to it: the husband was an octogenarian named -Quirc, who was born on the coast near the low-lying peninsula called -the <span class="corr" id="xd25e14003" title= -"Source: Narbyl">Niarbyl</span>, that is to say ‘the -Tail.’</p> -<p>To return to the public penance, it seems to us in this country to -belong, so to say, to ancient history, and it transports us to a state -of things which we find it hard to realize. The lapse of years has -brought about profounder changes in our greater Isle of Britain than in -the smaller Isle of Man, while we ourselves, helpless to escape the -pervading influence of those profounder changes, become living -instances of the comprehensive truth of the German poet’s -words,</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<p class="line"><i lang="la">Omnia mutantur, nos et mutamur in -illis.</i></p> -</div> -<p><span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb354" href="#pb354" name= -"pb354">354</a>]</span></p> -</div> -<div class="footnotes"> -<hr class="fnsep"> -<div class="footnote-body"> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13276" href="#xd25e13276src" name="xd25e13276">1</a></span> My -paper was read before the Folk-Lore Society in April or May, 1891, and -Miss Peacock’s notes appeared in the journal of the Society in -the following December: see pp. 509–13. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e13276src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13307" href="#xd25e13307src" name="xd25e13307">2</a></span> See -<i>Choice Notes</i>, p. 76. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e13307src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13321" href="#xd25e13321src" name="xd25e13321">3</a></span> See -the third edition of Wm. Nicholson’s <i>Poetical Works</i> -<span class="corr" id="xd25e13326" title= -"Not in source">(</span>Castle-Douglas, 1878), pp. 78, -81. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e13321src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13386" href="#xd25e13386src" name="xd25e13386">4</a></span> See -p. 321 above and the references there given; also Howells’ -<i>Cambrian Superstitions</i>, p. 58. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e13386src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13446" href="#xd25e13446src" name="xd25e13446">5</a></span> -Pomponius Mela <i lang="la">De Chorographia</i>, edited by Parthey, -iii, chap. 6 (p. 72); see also my <i>Hibbert Lectures</i>, pp. -195–6, where, however, the identification of the name Sena with -that of Sein should be cancelled. <i>Sein</i> seems to be derived from -the Breton <i>Seidhun</i>, otherwise modified into <i>Sizun</i> and -<i>Sun</i>: see chap. vi below. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e13446src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13469" href="#xd25e13469src" name="xd25e13469">6</a></span> See -my <i>Hibbert Lectures</i>, pp. 195–7; also my <i>Arthurian -Legend</i>, pp. 367–8, where a passage in point is cited at -length from Plutarch <i lang="la">De Defectu Oraculorum</i>, -xviii<span class="corr" id="xd25e13480" title="Not in source">.</span> -(= the Didot edition of Plutarch’s works, iii. 511); the -substance of it will be found given likewise in chap. viii -below. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e13469src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13484" href="#xd25e13484src" name="xd25e13484">7</a></span> For -an allusion to the traffic in winds in Wales see Howells, p. 86, where -he speaks as follows:—‘In Pembrokeshire there was a person -commonly known as the cunning man of Pentregethen, who sold winds to -the sailors, after the manner of the Lapland witches, and who was -reverenced in the neighbourhood in which he dwelt, much more than the -divines.’ <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e13484src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13508" href="#xd25e13508src" name="xd25e13508">8</a></span> This -may turn out to be all wrong; for I learn from the Rev. John Quine, -vicar of Malew, in Man, that there is a farm called Balthane or -Bolthane south of Ballasalla, and that in the computus (of 1540) of the -Abbey Tenants it is called <i>Biulthan</i>. This last, if originally a -man’s name, would <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb334n" href= -"#pb334n" name="pb334n">334</a>]</span>seem to point back to some such -a compound as <i>Beo-Ultán</i>. In his <i>Manx Names</i>, p. -138, Mr. Moore suggests the possibility of explaining the name as -<i>bwoailtyn</i>, ‘folds or pens’; but the accentuation -places that out of the question. See also the <i>Lioar Manninagh</i>, -iii. 167, where Mr. C. Roeder, referring to the same computus passage, -gives the name as <i>Builthan</i> in the boundary <i>inter Cross Jvar -Builthan</i>. This would be read by Mr. Quine as <i>inter Cross -Ivar</i> et <i>Biulthan</i>, ‘between Cross-Ivar and -Bolthane.’ For the text of the boundary see Johnstone’s -edition of the <i lang="la">Chronicon Manniæ</i> (Copenhagen, -1786), p. 48, and Oliver’s <i>Monumenta de Insula -Manniæ</i>, vol. i. p. 207; see also Mr. Quine’s paper on -the <i>Boundary of Abbey Lands</i> in the <i>Lioar Manninagh</i>, iii. -422–3. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e13508src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13557" href="#xd25e13557src" name="xd25e13557">9</a></span> I say -‘approximately,’ as, more strictly speaking, the ordinary -pronunciation is Sn̥đǣ́n, almost as one -syllable, and from this arises a variant, which is sometimes written -<i>Stondane</i>, while the latest English development, regardless of -the accentuation of the Anglo-Manx form, which is Santon, pronounced -Sántn̥, makes the parish into a St. Ann’s! For the -evidence that it was the parish of a <i>St. Sanctán</i> see -Moore’s <i>Names</i>, p. 209. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e13557src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13605" href="#xd25e13605src" name="xd25e13605">10</a></span> The -<i>Athenæum</i> for April 1, 1893, p. 415. I may here remark that -Mr. Borlase’s note on <i>do fhagaint</i> is, it seems to me, -unnecessary: let <i>do fhagaint</i> stand, and translate, not ‘I -leave’ but ‘to leave.’ The letter should be consulted -for curious matter concerning Croagh Patrick, its pagan stations, -cup-markings, &c. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e13605src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13764" href="#xd25e13764src" name="xd25e13764">11</a></span> -Since this paper was read to the Folk-Lore Society a good deal of -information of one kind or another has appeared in its journal -concerning the first-foot: see more especially <i>Folk-Lore</i> for -1892, pp. 253–64, and for 1893, pp. 309–21. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e13764src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13794" href="#xd25e13794src" name="xd25e13794">12</a></span> This -was written at the beginning of the year 1892. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e13794src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13885" href="#xd25e13885src" name="xd25e13885">13</a></span> With -this compare what Mr. Gomme has to say of a New Year’s Day custom -observed in Lanarkshire: see p. 633 of the <i>Ethnographic Report</i> -referred to at p. 103 above, and compare Henderson, p. -74. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e13885src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e13960" href="#xd25e13960src" name="xd25e13960">14</a></span> -Old-fashioned grammarians and dictionary makers are always delighted to -handle Mrs. Partington’s broom: so Kelly thinks he has done a -fine thing by printing <i>guee</i>, ‘prayer,’ and -<i>gwee</i>, ‘cursing.’ <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e13960src">↑</a></p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<div id="ch6" class="div1 chapter"><span class="pagenum">[<a href= -"#xd25e841">Contents</a>]</span> -<div class="divHead"> -<h2 class="label">CHAPTER VI</h2> -<h2 class="main"><span class="sc">The Folklore of the Wells</span></h2> -<div class="epigraph"> -<p lang="la" class="first">… Iuvat integros accedere -fontes.—<span class="sc">Lucretius.</span></p> -</div> -</div> -<div class="divBody"> -<p class="first">It is only recently<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e14028src" href="#xd25e14028" name="xd25e14028src">1</a> that I -heard for the first time of Welsh instances of the habit of tying rags -and bits of clothing to the branches of a tree growing near a holy -well. Since then I have obtained several items of information in point: -the first is a communication received in June, 1892, from Mr. J. H. -Davies, of Lincoln College, Oxford—since then of Lincoln’s -Inn—relating to a Glamorganshire holy well, situated near the -pathway leading from Coychurch to Bridgend. It is the custom there, he -states, for people suffering from any malady to dip a rag in the water, -and to bathe the affected part of the body, the rag being then placed -on a tree close to the well. When Mr. Davies passed that way, some -three years previously, there were, he adds, hundreds of such shreds on -the tree, some of which distinctly presented the appearance of having -been very recently placed there. The well is called Ffynnon Cae Moch, -‘Swine-field Well,’ which can hardly have been its old -name; and a later communication from Mr. Davies summarizes a -conversation which he had about the well, on December 16, 1892, with -Mr. J. T. Howell, of Pencoed, near Bridgend. His notes run -thus:—‘<i>Ffynnon Cae Moch</i>, between Coychurch and -Bridgend, is one <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb355" href="#pb355" -name="pb355">355</a>]</span>mile from Coychurch, one and a quarter from -Bridgend, near Tremains. It is within twelve or fifteen yards of the -high-road, just where the pathway begins. People suffering from -rheumatism go there. They bathe the part affected with water, and -afterwards tie a piece of rag to the tree which overhangs the well. The -rag is not put in the water at all, but is only put on the tree for -luck. It is a stunted, but very old tree, and is simply <i>covered</i> -with rags.’ A little less than a year later, I had an opportunity -of visiting this well in the company of Mr. Brynmor-Jones; and I find -in my notes that it is not situated so near the road as Mr. Howell -would seem to have stated to Mr. Davies. We found the well, which is a -powerful spring, surrounded by a circular wall. It is overshadowed by a -dying thorn tree, and a little further back stands another thorn which -is not so decayed: it was on this latter thorn we found the rags. I -took off a twig with two rags, while Mr. Brynmor-Jones counted over a -dozen other rags on the tree; and we noticed that some of them had only -recently been suspended there: among them were portions undoubtedly of -a woman’s clothing. At one of the hotels at Bridgend, I found an -illiterate servant who was acquainted with the well, and I -cross-examined him on the subject of it. He stated that a man with a -wound, which he explained to mean a cut, would go and stand in the well -within the wall, and there he would untie the rag that had been used to -tie up the wound and would wash the wound with it: then he would tie up -the wound with a fresh rag and hang the old one on the tree. The more -respectable people whom I questioned talked more vaguely, and only of -tying a rag to the tree, except one who mentioned a pin being thrown -into the well <i>or</i> a rag being tied to the tree.</p> -<p>My next informant is Mr. D. J. Jones, a native of the <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb356" href="#pb356" name= -"pb356">356</a>]</span>Rhonđa Valley, in the same county of -Glamorgan. He was an undergraduate of Jesus College, Oxford, when I -consulted him in 1892. His information was to the effect that he knows -of three interesting wells in the county. The first is situated within -two miles of his home, and is known as <i>Ffynnon Pen Rhys</i>, or the -Well of Pen Rhys. The custom there is that the person who wishes his -health to be benefited should wash in the water of the well, and throw -a pin into it afterwards. He next mentions a well at Ỻancarvan, -some five or six miles from Cowbridge, where the custom prevails of -tying rags to the branches of a tree growing close at hand. Lastly, he -calls my attention to a passage in <i>Hanes Morganwg</i>, ‘The -History of Glamorgan,’ written by Mr. D. W. Jones, known in Welsh -literature as Dafyđ Morganwg. In that work, p. 29, the author -speaks of <i>Ffynnon Marcros</i>, ‘the Well of Marcros,’ to -the following effect:—‘It is the custom for those who are -healed in it to tie a shred of linen or cotton to the branches of a -tree that stands close by; and there the shreds are, almost as numerous -as the leaves.’ Marcros is, I may say, near Nash Point, and looks -on the map as if it were about eight miles distant from Bridgend. Let -me here make it clear that so far we have had to do with four different -wells<a class="noteref" id="xd25e14055src" href="#xd25e14055" name= -"xd25e14055src">2</a>, three of which are severally distinguished by -the presence of a tree adorned with rags by those who seek health in -those waters; but they are all three, as the reader will have doubtless -noticed, in the same district, namely, the part of Glamorganshire near -the main line of the Great Western Railway.</p> -<p>There is no reason, however, to think that the custom of tying rags -to a well tree was peculiar to that part of <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb357" href="#pb357" name="pb357">357</a>]</span>the -Principality. One day, in looking through some old notes of mine, I -came across an entry bearing the date of August 7, 1887, when I was -spending a few days with my friend, Chancellor Silvan Evans, at -Ỻanwrin Rectory, near Machynỻeth. Mrs. Evans was then alive -and well, and took a keen interest in Welsh antiquities and folklore. -Among other things, she related to me how she had, some twenty years -before, visited a well in the parish of Ỻandriỻo yn Rhos, -namely <i>Ffynnon Eilian</i>, or Elian’s Well, between Abergele -and Ỻandudno, when her attention was directed to some bushes near -the well, which had once been covered with bits of rags left by those -who frequented the well. This was told Mrs. Evans by an old woman of -seventy, who, on being questioned by Mrs. Evans concerning the history -of the well, informed her that the rags used to be tied to the bushes -by means of wool. She was explicit on the point, that wool had to be -used for the purpose, and that even woollen yarn would not do: it had -to be wool in its natural state. The old woman remembered this to have -been the rule ever since she was a child. Mrs. Evans noticed corks, -with pins stuck in them, floating in the well, and her informant -remembered many more in years gone by; for Elian’s Well was once -in great repute as a <i>ffynnon reibio</i>, or a well to which people -resorted for the kindly purpose of bewitching those whom they hated. I -infer, however, from what Mrs. Evans was told of the rags, that -Elian’s Well was visited, not only by the malicious, but also by -the sick and suffering. My note is not clear on the point whether there -were any rags on the bushes by the well when Mrs. Evans visited the -spot, or whether she was only told of them by the caretaker. Even in -the latter case it seems evident that this habit of tying rags to trees -or bushes near sacred wells has only <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb358" href="#pb358" name="pb358">358</a>]</span>ceased in that part -of Denbighshire within this century. It is very possible that it -continued in North Wales more recently than this instance would lead -one to suppose; indeed, I should not be in the least surprised to learn -that it is still practised in out of the way places in Gwyneđ, -just as it is in Glamorgan: we want more information.</p> -<p>I cannot say for certain whether it was customary in any of the -cases to which I have called attention to tie rags to the well tree as -well as to throw pins or other small objects into the well; but I -cannot help adhering to the view, that the distinction was probably an -ancient one between two orders of things. In other words, I am inclined -to believe that the rag was regarded as the vehicle of the disease of -which the ailing visitor to the well wished to be rid, and that the -bead, button, or coin deposited by him in the well, or in a receptacle -near the well, formed alone the offering. In opposition to this view -Mr. Gomme has expressed himself as follows in <i>Folk-Lore</i>, 1892, -p. 89:—‘There is some evidence against that, from the fact -that in the case of some wells, especially in Scotland at one time, the -whole garment was put down as an offering. Gradually these offerings of -clothes became less and less till they came down to rags. Also in other -parts, the geographical distribution of rag-offerings coincides with -the existence of monoliths and dolmens.’ As to the monoliths and -dolmens, I am too little conversant with the facts to risk any opinion -as to the value of the coincidence; but as to the suggestion that the -rag originally meant the whole garment, that will suit my hypothesis -admirably. In other words, the whole garment was, as I take it, the -vehicle of the disease: the whole was accursed, and not merely a part. -But Mr. Gomme had previously touched on the question in his -presidential address (<i>Folk-Lore</i> for 1892, p. 13); and I must -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb359" href="#pb359" name= -"pb359">359</a>]</span>at once admit that he succeeded then in proving -that a certain amount of confusion occurs between things which I should -regard as belonging originally to distinct categories: witness the -inimitable Irish instance which he quotes:—‘To St. -Columbkill—I offer up this button, a bit o’ the waistband -o’ my own breeches, an’ a taste o’ my wife’s -petticoat, in remimbrance of us havin’ made this holy station; -an’ may they rise up in glory to prove it for us in the last -day.’ Here not only the button is treated as an offering, but -also the bits of clothing; but the confusion of ideas I should explain -as being, at least in part, one of the natural results of substituting -a portion of a garment for the entire garment; for thereby a button or -a pin becomes a part of the dress, and capable of being interpreted in -two senses. After all, however, the ordinary practices have not, as I -look at them, resulted in effacing the distinction altogether: the rag -is not left in the well; nor is the bead, button, or pin attached to a -branch of the tree. So, in the main, it seemed to me easier to explain -the facts, taken altogether, on the supposition that originally the rag -was regarded as the vehicle of the disease, and the bead, button, or -coin as the offering. My object in calling attention to this point was -to have it discussed, and I am happy to say that I have not been -disappointed; for, since my remarks were published<a class="noteref" -id="xd25e14083src" href="#xd25e14083" name="xd25e14083src">3</a>, a -paper entitled <i>Pin-wells and Rag-bushes</i> was read before the -British Association by Mr. Hartland, in 1893, and published in -<i>Folk-Lore</i> for the same year, pp. 451–70. In that paper the -whole question is gone into with searching logic, and Mr. Hartland -finds the required explanation in one of the dogmas of magic. For -‘if an article of my clothing,’ he says, ‘in a -witch’s hands may cause me to suffer, the same article in contact -with a beneficent power may relieve my pain, restore me to <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb360" href="#pb360" name= -"pb360">360</a>]</span>health, or promote my general prosperity. A pin -that has pricked my wart … has by its contact, by the wound it -has inflicted, acquired a peculiar bond with the wart; the rag that has -rubbed the wart has by that friction acquired a similar bond; so that -whatever is done to the pin or the rag, whatever influences the pin or -the rag may undergo, the same influences are by that very act brought -to bear, upon the wart. If, instead of using a rag, or making a -pilgrimage to a sacred well, I rub my warts with raw meat and then bury -the meat, the wart will decay and disappear with the decay and -dissolution of the meat …. In like manner my shirt or -stocking, or a rag to represent it, placed upon a sacred bush, or -thrust into a sacred well—my name written upon the walls of a -temple—a stone or a pellet from my hand cast upon a sacred image -or a sacred cairn—is thenceforth in continual contact with -divinity; and the effluence of divinity, reaching and involving it, -will reach and involve me.’ Mr. Hartland concludes from a large -number of instances, that as a rule ‘where the pin or button is -dropped into the well, the patient does not trouble about the rag, and -vice versa.’ This wider argument as to the effluence of the -divinity of a particular spot of special holiness seems to me -conclusive. It applies also, needless to say, to a large category of -cases besides those in question between Mr. Gomme and the present -writer.</p> -<p>So now I would revise my position thus:—I continue to regard -the rag much as before, but treat the article thrown into the well as -the more special means of establishing a beneficial relation with the -well divinity: whether it could also be viewed as an offering would -depend on the value attached to it. Some of the following notes may -serve as illustrations, especially those relating to the wool and the -pin:—<i>Ffynnon <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb361" href= -"#pb361" name="pb361">361</a>]</span>Gwynwy</i>, or the Well of Gwynwy, -near Ỻangelynin, on the river Conwy, appears to be partly in -point; for it formerly used to be well stocked with crooked pins, which -nobody would touch lest he might get from them the warts supposed to -attach to them, whence it would appear that a pin might be regarded as -the vehicle of the disease. There was a well of some repute at Cae -Garw, in the parish of Pistyỻ, near the foot of Carnguwch, in -Ỻeyn, or West Carnarvonshire. The water possessed virtues to cure -one of rheumatism and warts; but, in order to be rid of the latter, it -was requisite to throw a pin into the well for each individual wart. -For these two items of information, and several more to be mentioned -presently, I have to thank Mr. John Jones, better known in Wales by his -bardic name of Myrđin Farđ, and as an enthusiastic collector -of Welsh antiquities, whether in the form of manuscript or of unwritten -folklore. On the second day of the year 1893 I paid him a visit at -Chwilog, on the Carnarvon and Avon Wen Railway, and asked him many -questions: these he not only answered with the utmost willingness, but -he also showed me the unpublished materials which he had collected. I -come next to a competition on the folklore of North Wales at the London -Eisteđfod in 1887, in which, as one of the adjudicators, I -observed that several of the competitors mentioned the prevalent -belief, that every well with healing properties must have its outlet -towards the south (<i>i’r dê</i>). According to one of -them, if you wished to get rid of warts, you should, on your way to the -well, look for wool which the sheep had lost. When you had found enough -wool you should prick each wart with a pin, and then rub the wart well -with the wool. The next thing was to bend the pin and throw it into the -well. Then you <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb362" href="#pb362" name= -"pb362">362</a>]</span>should place the wool on the first whitethorn -you could find, and as the wind scattered the wool, the warts would -disappear. There was a well of the kind, the writer went on to say, -near his home; and he, with three or four other boys, went from school -one day to the well to charm their warts away. For he had twenty-three -on one of his hands; so that he always tried to hide it, as it was the -belief that if one counted the warts they would double their number. He -forgets what became of the other boys’ warts, but his own -disappeared soon afterwards; and his grandfather used to maintain that -it was owing to the virtue of the well. Such were the words of this -writer, whose name is unknown to me; but I guess him to have been a -native of Carnarvonshire, or else of one of the neighbouring districts -of Denbighshire or Merionethshire. To return to Myrđin Farđ, -he mentioned <i lang="cy">Ffynnon Cefn Ỻeithfan</i>, or the Well -of the Ỻeithfan Ridge, on the eastern slope of Mynyđ y Rhiw, -in the parish of Bryncroes, in the west of Ỻeyn. In the case of -this well it is necessary, when going to it and coming from it, to be -careful not to utter a word to anybody, or to turn to look back. What -one has to do at the well is to bathe the warts with a rag or clout -which has grease on it. When that is done, the clout with the grease -has to be carefully concealed beneath the stone at the mouth of the -well. This brings to my mind the fact that I noticed more than once, -years ago, rags underneath stones in the water flowing from wells in -Wales, and sometimes thrust into holes in the walls of wells, but I had -no notion how they came there.</p> -<p>On the subject of pin-wells I had in 1893, from Mr. T. E. Morris, of -Portmadoc, barrister-at-law, some account of <i>Ffynnon Faglan</i>, or -Baglan’s Well, in the parish of Ỻanfaglan, near Carnarvon. -The well is <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb363" href="#pb363" name= -"pb363">363</a>]</span>situated in an open field to the right of the -road leading towards the church, and close to it. The church and -churchyard form an enclosure in the middle of the same field, and the -former has in its wall the old stone reading <span class="sc">FILI -LOVERNII ANATEMORI</span>. My friend derived information from Mrs. -Roberts, of Cefn y Coed, near Carnarvon, as follows:—‘The -old people who would be likely to know anything about <i>Ffynnon -Faglan</i> have all died. The two oldest inhabitants, who have always -lived in this parish of Ỻanfaglan, remember the well being used -for healing purposes. One told me his mother used to take him to it, -when he was a child, for sore eyes, bathe them with the water, and then -drop in a pin. The other man, when he was young, bathed in it for -rheumatism; and until quite lately people used to fetch away the water -for medicinal purposes. The latter, who lives near the well, at Tan y -Graig, said that he remembered it being cleaned out about fifty years -ago, when two basinfuls of pins were taken out, but no coin of any -kind. The pins were all bent, and I conclude the intention was to -exorcise the evil spirit supposed to afflict the person who dropped -them in, or, as the Welsh say, <i>dadwitsio</i>. No doubt some ominous -words were also used. The well is at present nearly dry, the field -where it lies having been drained some years ago, and the water in -consequence withdrawn from it. It was much used for the cure of warts. -The wart was washed, then pricked with a pin, which, after being bent, -was thrown into the well. There is a very large and well-known well of -the kind at C’lynnog, <i>Ffynnon Beuno</i>, “St. -Beuno’s Well,” which was considered to have miraculous -healing powers; and even yet, I believe, some people have faith in it. -<i>Ffynnon Faglan</i> is, in its construction, an imitation, on a -smaller scale, of St. Beuno’s Well at C’lynnog.’ -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb364" href="#pb364" name= -"pb364">364</a>]</span></p> -<p>In the cliffs at the west end of Ỻeyn is a wishing-well called -<i>Ffynnon Fair</i>, or St. Mary’s Well, to the left of the site -of Eglwys Fair, and facing Ynys Enỻi, or Bardsey. Here, to obtain -your wish, you have to descend the steps to the well and walk up again -to the top with your mouth full of the water; and then you have to go -round the ruins of the church once or more times with the water still -in your mouth. Viewing the position of the well from the sea, I should -be disposed to think that the realization of one’s wish at that -price could not be regarded as altogether cheap. Myrđin Farđ -also told me that there used to be a well near Criccieth Church. It was -known as <i>Ffynnon y Saint</i>, or the Saints’ Well, and it was -the custom to throw keys or pins into it on the morning of Easter -Sunday, in order to propitiate St. Catherine, who was the patron of the -well. I should be glad to know what this exactly meant.</p> -<p>Lastly, a few of the wells in that part of Gwyneđ may be -grouped together and described as oracular. One of these, the big well -in the parish of Ỻanbedrog in Ỻeyn, as I learn from -Myrđin Farđ, required the devotee to kneel by it and avow his -faith in it. When this had been duly done, he might proceed in this -wise: to ascertain, for instance, the name of the thief who had stolen -from him, he had to throw a bit of bread into the well and name the -person whom he suspected. At the name of the thief the bread would -sink; so the inquirer went on naming all the persons he could think of -until the bit of bread sank, when the thief was identified. How far is -one to suppose that we have here traces of the influences of the water -ordeal common in the Middle Ages? Another well of the same kind was -<i>Ffynnon Saethon</i>, in Ỻanfihangel Bacheỻaeth parish, -also in Ỻeyn. Here it was customary, as he had it in writing, -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb365" href="#pb365" name= -"pb365">365</a>]</span>for lovers to throw pins (<i>pinnau</i>) into -the well; but these pins appear to have been the points of the -blackthorn. At any rate, they cannot well have been of any kind of -metal, as we are told that, if they sank in the water, one concluded -that one’s lover was not sincere in his or her love.</p> -<p>Next may be mentioned a well, bearing the remarkable name of -<i>Ffynnon Gwyneđ</i>, or the Well of Gwyned, which is situated -near Mynyđ Mawr, in the parish of Abererch: it used to be -consulted in the following manner:—When it was desired to -discover whether an ailing person would recover, a garment of his would -be thrown into the well, and according to the side on which it sank it -was known whether he would live or die.</p> -<p><i>Ffynnon Gybi</i>, or St. Cybi’s Well, in the parish of -Ỻangybi, was the scene of a somewhat similar practice; for there, -girls who wished to know their lovers’ intentions would spread -their pocket-handkerchiefs on the water of the well, and, if the water -pushed the handkerchiefs to the south—in Welsh <i>i’r -dê</i>—they knew that everything was right—in Welsh -<i>o đê</i>—and that their lovers were honest and -honourable in their intentions; but, if the water shifted the -handkerchiefs northwards, they concluded the contrary. A reference to -this is made by a modern Welsh poet, as follows:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Ambeỻ đyn, gwaelđyn, a gyrch</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>I bant gorís Moel Bentyrch,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Mewn gobaith mai hen Gybi</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Glodfawr syđ yn ỻwyđaw’r -ỻi.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Some folks, worthless<a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e14192src" href="#xd25e14192" name="xd25e14192src">4</a> folks, -visit</p> -<p class="line">A hollow below Moel Bentyrch,</p> -<p class="line">In hopes that ancient Kybi</p> -<p class="line">Of noble fame blesses the flood.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">The spot is not far from where Myrđin Farđ -lives; and he mentioned, that adjoining the well is a building which -was probably intended for the person in charge <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb366" href="#pb366" name="pb366">366</a>]</span>of -the well: it has been tenanted within his memory. Not only for this but -also for several of the foregoing items of information am I indebted to -Myrđin; and now I come to Mrs. Williams-Ellis, of Glasfryn Uchaf, -who tells me that one day not long ago, she met at Ỻangybi a -native who had not visited the place since his boyhood: he had been -away as an engineer in South Wales nearly all his life, but had -returned to see an aged relative. So the reminiscences of the place -filled his mind, and, among other things, he said that he remembered -very well what concern there was one day in the village at a -mischievous person having taken a very large eel out of the well. Many -of the old people, he said, felt that much of the virtue of the well -was probably taken away with the eel. To see it coiling about their -limbs when they went into the water was a good sign: so he gave one to -understand. As a sort of parallel I may mention that I have seen the -fish living in <i>Ffynnon Beris</i>, not far from the parish church of -Ỻanberis. It is jealously guarded by the inhabitants, and when it -was once or twice taken out by a mischievous stranger he was forced to -put it back again. However, I never could get the history of this -sacred fish, but I found that it was regarded as very old<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e14214src" href="#xd25e14214" name= -"xd25e14214src">5</a>. I may add that it appears the well <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb367" href="#pb367" name= -"pb367">367</a>]</span>called <i>Ffynnon Fair</i>, ‘Mary’s -Well,’ at Ỻanđwyn, in Anglesey, used formerly to have -inhabiting it a sacred fish, whose movements indicated the fortunes of -the love-sick men and maidens who visited there the shrine of St. -Dwynwen<a class="noteref" id="xd25e14253src" href="#xd25e14253" name= -"xd25e14253src">6</a>. Possibly inquiry would result in showing that -such sacred fish have been far more common once in the Principality -than they are now.</p> -<p>The next class of wells to claim our attention consists of what I -may call fairy wells, of which few are mentioned in connexion with -Wales; but the legends about them are of absorbing interest. One of -them is in Myrđin Farđ’s neighbourhood, and I -questioned him a good deal on the subject: it is called <i>Ffynnon -Grassi</i>, or Grace’s Well, and it occupies, according to him, a -few square feet—he has measured it himself—of the -south-east corner of the lake of Glasfryn Uchaf, in the parish of -Ỻangybi. It appears that it was walled in, and that the stone -forming its eastern side has several holes in it, which were intended -to let water enter the well and not issue from it. It had a door or -cover on its surface; and it was necessary to keep the door always -shut, except when water was being drawn. Through somebody’s -negligence, however, it was once on a time left open: the consequence -was that the water <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb368" href="#pb368" -name="pb368">368</a>]</span>of the well flowed out and formed the -Glasfryn Lake, which is so considerable as to be navigable for small -boats. Grassi is supposed in the locality to have been the name of the -owner of the well, or at any rate of a lady who had something to do -with it. <i>Grassi</i>, or Grace, however, can only be a name which a -modern version of the legend has introduced. It probably stands for an -older name given to the person in charge of the well; to the one, in -fact, who neglected to shut the door; but though the name must be -comparatively modern, the story, as a whole, does not appear to be at -all modern, but very decidedly the contrary.</p> -<p>So I wrote in 1893; but years after my conversation with Myrđin -Farđ, my attention was called to the fact that the Glasfryn -family, of which the Rev. J. C. Williams-Ellis is the head, have in -their coat of arms a mermaid, who is represented in the usual way, -holding a comb in her right hand and a mirror in her left. I had from -the first expected to find some kind of Undine or Liban story -associated with the well and the lake, though I had abstained from -trying the risky effects of leading questions; but when I heard of the -heraldic mermaid I wrote to Mr. Williams-Ellis to ask whether he knew -her history. His words, though not encouraging as regards the mermaid, -soon convinced me that I had not been wholly wrong in supposing that -more folklore attached to the well and lake than I had been able to -discover. Since then Mrs. Williams-Ellis has taken the trouble of -collecting on the spot all the items of tradition which she could find: -she communicated them to me in the month of March, 1899, and the -following is an abstract of them, preceded by a brief description of -the ground:—</p> -<p>The well itself is at the foot of a very green field-bank at the -head of the lake, but not on the same level <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb369" href="#pb369" name="pb369">369</a>]</span>with -it, as the lake has had its waters lowered half a century or more ago -by the outlet having been cut deeper. Adjoining the field containing -the well is a larger field, which also slopes down to the lake and -extends in another direction to the grounds belonging to the house. -This larger field is called Cae’r Ladi, ‘the Lady’s -Field,’ and it is remarkable for having in its centre an ancient -standing stone, which, as seen from the windows of the house, presents -the appearance of a female figure hurrying along, with the wind -slightly swelling out her veil and the skirt of her dress. Mr. -Williams-Ellis remembers how when he was a boy the stone was partially -white-washed, and how an old bonnet adorned the top of this would-be -statue, and he thinks that an old shawl used to be thrown over the -shoulders.</p> -<p>Now as to Grassi, she is mostly regarded as a ghostly person somehow -connected with the lake and the house of Glasfryn. One story is to the -effect, that on a certain evening she forgot to close the well, and -that when the gushing waters had formed the lake, poor Grassi, overcome -with remorse, wandered up and down the high ground of Cae’r Ladi, -moaning and weeping. There, in fact, she is still at times to be heard -lamenting her fate, especially at two o’clock in the early -morning. Some people say that she is also to be seen about the lake, -which is now the haunt of some half a dozen swans. But on the whole her -visits appear to have been most frequent and troublesome at the house -itself. Several persons still living are mentioned, who believe that -they have seen her there, and two of them, Mrs. Jones of Talafon, and -old Sydney Griffith of Tyđyn Bach, agree in the main in their -description of what they saw, namely, a tall lady with well marked -features and large bright eyes: she was dressed in white silk and a -white velvet bonnet. <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb370" href="#pb370" -name="pb370">370</a>]</span>The woman, Sydney Griffith, thought that -she had seen the lady walking several times about the house and in -Cae’r Ladi. This comes, in both instances, from a young lady born -and bred in the immediate neighbourhood, and studying now at the -University College of North Wales; but Mrs. Williams-Ellis has had -similar accounts from other sources, and she mentions tenants of -Glasfryn who found it difficult to keep servants there, because they -felt that the place was haunted. In fact one of the tenants himself -felt so unsafe that he used to take his gun and his dog with him to his -bedroom at night; not to mention that when the Williams-Ellises lived -themselves, as they do still, in the house, their visitors have been -known to declare that they heard the strange plaintive cry out of doors -at two o’clock in the morning.</p> -<p>Traces also of a very different story are reported by Mrs. -Williams-Ellis, to the effect that when the water broke forth to form -the lake, the fairies seized Grassi and changed her into a swan, and -that she continued in that form to live on the lake sixscore years, and -that when at length she died, she loudly lamented her lot: that cry is -still to be heard at night. This story is in process apparently of -being rationalized; at any rate the young lady student, to whom I have -referred, remembers perfectly that her grandfather used to explain to -her and the other children at home that Grassi was changed into a swan -as a punishment for haunting Glasfryn, but that nevertheless the old -lady still visited the place, especially when there happened to be -strangers in the house. At the end of September last Mrs. Rhys and I -had the pleasure of spending a few days at Glasfryn, in the hope of -hearing the plaintive wail, and of seeing the lady in white silk -revisiting her familiar haunts. But alas! our sleep was never once -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb371" href="#pb371" name= -"pb371">371</a>]</span>disturbed, nor was our peace once troubled by -suspicions of anything uncanny. This, however, is negative, and -characterized by the usual weakness of all such evidence.</p> -<p>It is now time to turn to another order of facts: in the first place -may be mentioned that the young lady student’s grandmother used -to call the well <i>Ffynnon Grâs Siôn Gruffuđ</i>, as -she had always heard that Grâs was the daughter of a certain -Siôn Gruffyđ, ‘John Griffith,’ who lived near -the well; and Mrs. Williams-Ellis finds that Grâs was buried, at -a very advanced age, on December 14, 1743, at the parish church of -Ỻangybi, where the register describes her as <i>Grace Jones, -alias Grace Jones Griffith</i>. She had lived till the end at Glasfryn, -but from documents in the possession of the Glasfryn family it is known -that in 1728 Hugh Lloyd of Traỻwyn purchased the house and estate -of Glasfryn from a son of Grace’s, named <i>John ab -Cadwaladr</i>, and that Hugh Lloyd of Traỻwyn’s son, the -Rev. William Lloyd, sold them to Archdeacon Ellis, from whom they have -descended to the Rev. J. C. Williams-Ellis. In the light of these facts -there is no reason to connect the old lady’s name very closely -with the well or the lake. She was once the dominant figure at -Glasfryn, that is all; and when she died she was as usual supposed to -haunt the house and its immediate surroundings; and if we might venture -to suppose that Glasfryn was sold by her son against her will, though -subject to conditions which enabled her to remain in possession of the -place to the day of her death, we should have a further explanation, -perhaps, of her supposed moaning and lamentation.</p> -<p>In the background, however, of the story, one detects the -possibility of another female figure, for it may be that the standing -stone in Cae’r Ladi represents a <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb372" href="#pb372" name="pb372">372</a>]</span>woman buried there -centuries before Grace ruled at Glasfryn, and that traditions about the -earlier lady have survived to be inextricably mixed with those -concerning the later one. Lastly, those traditions may have also -associated the subject of them with the well and the lake; but I wish -to attach no importance to this conjecture, as we have in reserve a -third figure of larger possibilities than either Grace or the stone -woman. It needs no better introduction than Mrs. Williams-Ellis’ -own words: ‘Our younger boys have a crew of three little Welsh -boys who live near the lake, to join them in their boat sailing about -the pool and in camping on the island, &c. They asked me once who -<i>Morgan</i> was, whom the little boys were always saying they were to -be careful against. An old man living at Tal Ỻyn, -“Lake’s End,” a farm close by, says that as a boy he -was always told that “naughty boys would be carried off by Morgan -into the lake.” Others tell me that Morgan is always held to be -ready to take off troublesome children, and somehow Morgan is thought -of as a bad one.’ Now as Morgan carries children off into the -pool, he would seem to issue from the pool, and to have his home in it. -Further, he plays the same part as the fairies against whom a -Snowdonian mother used to warn her children: they were on no account to -wander away from the house when there was a mist, lest the fairies -should carry them to their home beneath Ỻyn Dwythwch. In other -words, Morgan may be said to act in the same way as the mermaid, who -takes a sailor down to her submarine home; and it explains to my mind a -discussion which I once heard of the name Morgan by a party of men and -women making hay one fine summer’s day in the neighbourhood of -Ponterwyd, in North Cardiganshire. I was a child, but I remember -vividly how they teased one of their number whose <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb373" href="#pb373" name= -"pb373">373</a>]</span>‘style’ was Morgan. They hinted at -dreadful things associated with the name; but it was all so vague that -I could not gather that his great unknown namesake was a thief, a -murderer, or any kind of ordinary criminal. The impression left on my -mind was rather the notion of something weird, uncanny, or non-human; -and the fact that the Welsh version of the Book of Common Prayer calls -the Pelagians <i>Morganiaid</i>, ‘Morgans,’ does not offer -an adequate explanation. But I now see clearly that it is to be sought -in the indistinct echo of such folklore as that which makes Morgan a -terror to children in the neighbourhood of the Glasfryn Lake.</p> -<p>The name, however, presents points of difficulty which require some -notice: the Welsh translators of Article IX in the Prayer Book were -probably wrong in making <i>Pelagians</i> into <i>Morganiaid</i>, as -the Welsh for <i>Pelagius</i> seems to have been rather -<i>Morien</i><a class="noteref" id="xd25e14322src" href="#xd25e14322" -name="xd25e14322src">7</a>, which in its oldest recorded form was -<i>Morgen</i>, and meant sea-born, or offspring of the sea. In a still -earlier form it must have been <i>Morigenos</i>, with a feminine -<i>Morigena</i>, but when the endings came to be dropped both vocables -would become <i>Morgen</i>, later <i>Mori̯en</i>. I do not -remember coming across a feminine <i>Morgen</i> in Welsh, but the -presumption is that it did exist. For, among other things, I may -mention that we have it in Irish as <i>Muirgen</i>, one of the names of -the lake lady Liban, who, when the waters of the neglected well rushed -forth to form Lough Neagh, lived beneath that lake until she desired to -be changed into a salmon. The same conclusion may be drawn from the -name <i>Morgain</i> or <i>Morgan</i>, given in the French romances to -one or more water ladies; for those names are easiest to explain as the -Brythonic <i>Morgen</i> borrowed from a Welsh or Breton source, unless -one found it possible to trace it direct to the <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb374" href="#pb374" name= -"pb374">374</a>]</span>Goidels of Wales. No sooner, however, had the -confusion taken place between Morgen and the name which is so common in -Wales as exclusively a man’s name, than the aquatic figure must -also become male. That is why the Glasfryn Morgan is now a male, and -not a female like the other characters whose rôle he plays. But -while the name was in Welsh successively <i>Morgen</i> and -<i>Morien</i>, the man’s name was <i>Morcant</i>, <i>Morgant</i>, -or <i>Morgan</i><a class="noteref" id="xd25e14382src" href= -"#xd25e14382" name="xd25e14382src">8</a>, so that, phonologically -speaking, no confusion could be regarded as possible between the two -series. Here, therefore, one detects the influence, doubtless, of the -French romances which spoke of a lake lady Morgain, Morgan, or Morgue. -The character varied: Morgain le Fay was a designing and wicked person; -but Morgan was also the name of a well disposed lady of the same fairy -kind, who took Arthur away to be healed at her home in the Isle of -Avallon. We seem to be on the track of the same confusing influence of -the name, when it occurs in the story of Geraint and Enid; for there -the chief physician of Arthur’s court is called Morgan Tut or -Morgant Tut, and the word <i>tut</i> has been shown by M. Loth to have -meant the same sort of non-human being whom an eleventh-century Life of -St. Maudez mentions as <i>quidam dæmon quem Britones</i> Tuthe -<i>appellant</i>. Thus the name <i>Morgan Tut</i> <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb375" href="#pb375" name="pb375">375</a>]</span>is -meant as the Welsh equivalent of the French <i lang="fr">Morgain le -Fay</i> or <i lang="fr">Morgan la Fée</i><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e14455src" href="#xd25e14455" name="xd25e14455src">9</a>; but so -long as the compiler of the story of Geraint and Enid employed in his -Welsh the form Morgan, he had practically no choice but to treat the -person called Morgan as a man, whether that was or was not the sex in -the original texts on which he was drawing. Of course he could have -avoided the difficulty in case he was aware of it, if he had found some -available formula in use like <i>Mary-Morgant</i>, said to be a common -name for a fairy on the island of Ouessant, off the coast of -Brittany.</p> -<p>Summarizing the foregoing notes, we seem to be right in drawing the -following conclusions:—(1) The well was left in the charge of a -woman who forgot to shut it, and when she saw the water bursting forth, -she bewailed her negligence, as in the case of her counterpart in the -legend of Cantre’r Gwaelod. (2) The original name of the Glasfryn -‘Morgan’ was Morgen, later Morien. (3) The person changed -into a swan on the occasion of the Glasfryn well erupting was not -Grassi, but most probably Morgen. And (4) the character was originally -feminine, like that of the mermaid or the fairies, whose rôle the -Glasfryn Morgan plays; and more especially may one compare the Irish -Muirgen, the <i>Morgen</i> more usually called Líban. For it is -to be noticed that when the neglected well burst forth she, Muirgen or -Líban, was not drowned like the others <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb376" href="#pb376" name= -"pb376">376</a>]</span>involved in the calamity, but lived in her -chamber at the bottom of the lake formed by the overflowing well, until -she was changed into a salmon. In that form she lived on some three -centuries, until in fact she was caught in the net of a fisherman, and -obtained the boon of a Christian burial. However, the change into a -swan is also known on Irish ground: take for instance the story of the -Children of Lir, who were converted into swans by their stepmother, and -lived in that form on Loch Dairbhreach, in Westmeath, for three hundred -years, and twice as long on the open sea, until their destiny closed -with the advent of St. Patrick and the first ringing of a Christian -bell in Erin<a class="noteref" id="xd25e14510src" href="#xd25e14510" -name="xd25e14510src">10</a>.</p> -<p>The next legend was kindly communicated to me by Mr. Wm. Davies -already mentioned at p. 147 above: he found it in <i>Cyfaiỻ yr -Aelwyd</i><a class="noteref" id="xd25e14520src" href="#xd25e14520" -name="xd25e14520src">11</a>, “The Friend of the Hearth,” -where it is stated that it belonged to David Jones’ <i>Storehouse -of Curiosities</i>, a collection which does not seem to have ever -assumed the form of a printed book. David Jones, of Trefriw, in the -Conwy Valley, was a publisher and poet who wrote between 1750 and 1780. -This is his story: ‘In 1735 I had a conversation with a man -concerning Tegid Lake. He had heard from old people that near the -middle of it there was a well opposite Ỻangower, and the well was -called <i>Ffynnon Gywer</i>, “Cower’s Well,” and at -that time the town was round about the well. It was obligatory to place -a lid on the well every night. (It seems that in those days somebody -was aware that unless this was done it would prove the <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb377" href="#pb377" name= -"pb377">377</a>]</span>destruction of the town.) But one night it was -forgotten, and by the morning, behold the town had subsided and the -lake became three miles long and one mile wide. They say, moreover, -that on clear days some people see the chimneys of the houses. It is -since then that the town was built at <i>the lower end of the lake</i>. -It is called <i>Y Bala</i><a class="noteref" id="xd25e14543src" href= -"#xd25e14543" name="xd25e14543src">12</a>, and the man told me that he -had talked with an old Bala man who had, when he was a youth, had two -days’ mowing of hay<a class="noteref" id="xd25e14618src" href= -"#xd25e14618" name="xd25e14618src">13</a> between the road and the -lake; but by this time the lake had spread over that land and the road -also, which necessitated the purchase of land further away for the -road; and some say that the town will yet sink as far as the place -called Ỻanfor—others call it Ỻanfawđ, -“Drown-church,” or Ỻanfawr, -“Great-church,” in Penỻyn …. Further, -when the weather is stormy water appears oozing through every floor -within Bala, and at other times anybody can get water enough for the -use of his house, provided he dig a little into the floor of -it.’</p> -<p>In reference to the idea that the town is to sink, <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb378" href="#pb378" name= -"pb378">378</a>]</span>together with the neighbouring village of -Ỻanfor, the writer quotes in a note the couplet known still to -everybody in the neighbourhood as follows:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Y Bala aeth, a’r Bala aiff,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>A Ỻanfor aiff yn Ỻyn.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Bala old the lake has had, and Bala new</p> -<p class="line">The lake will have, and Ỻanfor too.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">This probably implies that old Bala is beneath the -lake, and that the present Bala is to meet the like fate at some time -to come. This kind of prophecy is not very uncommon: thus there has -been one current as to the Montgomeryshire town of Pool, called, in -Welsh, Traỻwng or Traỻwm, and in English, Welshpool, to -distinguish it from the English town of Pool. As to Welshpool, a very -deep water called Ỻyn Du, lying between the town and the -<i>Casteỻ Coch</i> or Powys Castle, and right in the domain of -the castle, is suddenly to spread itself, and one fine market day to -engulf the whole place<a class="noteref" id="xd25e14664src" href= -"#xd25e14664" name="xd25e14664src">14</a>. Further, when I was a boy in -North Cardiganshire, the following couplet was quite familiar to me, -and supposed to have been one of Merlin’s prophecies:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Caer Fyrđin, cei oer fore;</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Daear a’th lwnc, dw’r i’th -le.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Carmarthen, a cold morn awaits thee;</p> -<p class="line">Earth gapes, and water in thy place will be.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">In regard to the earlier half of the line, concerning -Bala gone, the story of Ffynnon Gywer might be said to explain it, but -there is another which is later and far better known. It is of the same -kind as the stories <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb379" href="#pb379" -name="pb379">379</a>]</span>related in Welsh concerning Ỻynclys -and Syfađon; but I reserve it with these and others of the same -sort for chapter vii.</p> -<p>For the next legend belonging here I have to thank the Rev. J. -Fisher, a native of the parish of Ỻandybïe, who, in spite of -his name, is a genuine Welshman, and—what is more—a Welsh -scholar. The following are his words:—‘Ỻyn Ỻech -Owen (the last word is locally sounded <i>w-en</i>, like <i>oo-en</i> -in English, as is also the personal name Owen) is on Mynyđ Mawr, -in the ecclesiastical parish of Gors Lâs, and the civil parish of -Ỻanarthney, Carmarthenshire. It is a small lake, forming the -source of the Gwendraeth Fawr. I have heard the tradition about its -origin told by several persons, and by all, until quite recently, -pretty much in the same form. In 1884 I took it down from my -grandfather, Rees Thomas (<i>b.</i> 1809, <i>d.</i> 1892), of Cil -Coỻ Ỻandebïe—a very intelligent man, with a good -fund of old-world Welsh lore—who had lived all his life in the -neighbouring parishes of Ỻandeilo Fawr and -Ỻandybïe.</p> -<p>‘The following is the version of the story (translated) as I -had it from him:—There was once a man of the name of Owen living -on Mynyđ Mawr, and he had a well, “<i lang= -"cy">ffynnon</i>.” Over this well he kept a large flag -(“<i lang="cy">fflagen neu lech fawr</i>”: “<i lang= -"cy">fflagen</i>” is the word in common use now in these parts -for a large flat stone), which he was always careful to replace over -its mouth after he had satisfied himself or his beast with water. It -happened, however, that one day he went on horseback to the well to -water his horse, and forgot to put the flag back in its place. He rode -off leisurely in the direction of his home; but, after he had gone some -distance, he casually looked back, and, to his great astonishment, he -saw that the well had burst out and was overflowing the whole place. He -suddenly bethought him that he should ride <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb380" href="#pb380" name="pb380">380</a>]</span>back -and encompass the overflow of the water as fast as he could; and it was -the horse’s track in galloping round the water that put a stop to -its further overflow. It is fully believed that, had he not galloped -round the flood in the way he did, the well would have been sure to -inundate the whole district and drown all. Hence the lake was called -the Lake of Owen’s Flag, “<i lang="cy">Ỻyn Ỻech -Owen</i>.”</p> -<p>‘I have always felt interested in this story, as it resembled -that about the formation of Lough Neagh, &c.; and, happening to -meet the Rev. D. Harwood Hughes, B.A., the vicar of Gors Lâs (St. -Ỻeian’s), last August (1892), I asked him to tell me the -legend as he had heard it in his parish. He said that he had been told -it, but in a form different from mine, where the “Owen” was -said to have been Owen Glyndwr. This is the substance of the legend as -he had heard it:—Owen Glyndwr, when once passing through these -parts, arrived here of an evening. He came across a well, and, having -watered his horse, placed a stone over it in order to find it again -next morning. He then went to lodge for the night at Dyỻgoed -Farm, close by. In the morning, before proceeding on his journey, he -took his horse to the well to give him water, but found to his surprise -that the well had become a lake.’</p> -<p>Mr. Fisher goes on to mention the later history of the lake: how, -some eighty years ago, its banks were the resort on Sunday afternoons -of the young people of the neighbourhood, and how a Baptist preacher -put an end to their amusements and various kinds of games by preaching -at them. However, the lake-side appears to be still a favourite spot -for picnics and Sunday-school gatherings. Mr. Fisher was quite right in -appending to his own version that of his friend; but, from the point of -view of folklore, I must confess that I can make <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb381" href="#pb381" name= -"pb381">381</a>]</span>nothing of the latter: it differs from the older -one as much as chalk does from cheese. It would be naturally gratifying -to the pride of local topography to be able to connect with the pool -the name of Owen Glyndwr; but it is worthy of note that this highly -respectable attempt to rationalize the legend wholly fails, as it does -not explain why there is now a lake where there was once but a well. In -other words, the euhemerized story is itself evidence corroborative of -Mr. Fisher’s older version, which is furthermore kept in -countenance by Howells’ account, p. 104, where we are told who -the Owen in question was, namely, Owen Lawgoch, a personage dear, as we -shall see later, to the Welsh legend of the district. He and his men -had their abode in a cave on the northern side of Mynyđ Mawr, and -while there Owen used, we are informed, to water his steed at a fine -spring covered with a large stone, which it required the strength of a -giant to lift. But one day he forgot to replace it, and when he next -sought the well he found the lake. He returned to his cave and told his -men what had happened. Thereupon both he and they fell into a sleep, -which is to last till it is broken by the sound of a trumpet and the -clang of arms on Rhiw Goch: then they are to sally forth to -conquer.</p> -<p>Now the story as told by Howells and Fisher provokes comparison, as -the latter suggests, with the Irish legend of the formation of Lough -Ree and of Lough Neagh in the story of the Death of Eochaid -McMaireda<a class="noteref" id="xd25e14753src" href="#xd25e14753" name= -"xd25e14753src">15</a>. In both <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb382" -href="#pb382" name="pb382">382</a>]</span>of these legends also there -is a horse, a kind of water-horse, who forms the well which eventually -overflows and becomes Lough Ree, and so with the still larger body of -water known as Lough Neagh. In the latter case the fairy well was -placed in the charge of a woman; but she one day left the cover of the -well open, and the catastrophe took place—the water issued forth -and overflowed the country. One of Eochaid’s daughters, named -Líban, however, was not drowned, but only changed into a salmon -as already mentioned at p. 376 above. In my <i>Arthurian Legend</i>, p. -361, I have attempted to show that the name <i>Líban</i> may -have its Welsh equivalent in that of <i>Ỻïon</i>, occurring -in the name of <i>Ỻyn Ỻïon</i>, or -Ỻïon’s Lake, the bursting of which is described in the -latest series of Triads, iii. 13, 97, as causing a sort of deluge. I am -not certain as to the nature of the relationship between those names, -but it seems evident that the stories have a common substratum, though -it is to be noticed that no well, fairy or otherwise, figures in the -Ỻyn Ỻïon legend, which makes the presence of the -monster called the afanc the cause of the waters bursting forth. So Hu -the Mighty, with his team of famous oxen, is made to drag the afanc out -of the lake.</p> -<p>There is, however, another Welsh legend concerning a great overflow -in which a well does figure: I allude to that of <i>Cantre’r -Gwaelod</i>, or the Bottom Hundred, a fine spacious country supposed to -be submerged in Cardigan Bay. Modern euhemerism treats it as defended -by embankments and sluices, which, we are told, were in the charge of -the prince of the country, named Seithennin, who, being one day in his -cups, forgot to shut the sluices, and thus brought about the -inundation, which was the end of his fertile realm. This, however, is -not the old legend: that speaks of a well, and lays the blame on a -woman—a pretty sure sign of antiquity, as <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb383" href="#pb383" name="pb383">383</a>]</span>the -reader may judge from other old stories which will readily occur to -him. The Welsh legend to which I allude is embodied in a short poem in -the <i>Black Book of Carmarthen</i><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e14808src" href="#xd25e14808" name="xd25e14808src">16</a>: it -consists of eight triplets, to which is added a triplet from the -Englynion of the Graves. The following is the original with a tentative -translation:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Seithenhin sawde allan.</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>ac edrẏchuirde varanres mor.</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>maes guitnev rẏtoes.</i></p> -</div> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Boed emendiceid ẏ morvin</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>aehellẏgaut guẏdi cvin.</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>finaun wenestir<a class="noteref" id="xd25e14868src" -href="#xd25e14868" name="xd25e14868src">17</a> mor terruin.</i></p> -</div> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Boed emendiceid ẏ vachteith.</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>ae . golligaut guẏdi gueith.</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>finaun wenestir mor diffeith.</i></p> -</div> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Diaspad <span class="corr" id="xd25e14923" title= -"Source: vererid">mererid</span> ẏ ar vann caer.</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>hid ar duu ẏ dodir.</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>gnaud guẏdi traha trangc hir.</i></p> -</div> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Diaspad mererid . ẏ ar van kaer hetiv.</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>hid ar duu ẏ dadoluch.</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>gnaud guẏdi traha attreguch.</i></p> -</div> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Diaspad mererid am gorchuit heno.</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>ac nimhaut gorlluit.</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>gnaud guẏdi traha tramguit.</i></p> -</div> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Diaspad mererid ẏ ar gwinev kadir</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>kedaul duv ae gorev.</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>gnaud guẏdi gormot eissev.</i></p> -</div> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Diaspad mererid . am kẏmhell heno</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>ẏ urth uẏistauell.</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>gnaud guẏdi traha trangc pell.</i></p> -</div> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Bet seithenhin sẏnhuir vann</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>rug kaer kenedir a glan.</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>mor maurhidic a kinran.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Seithennin, stand thou forth</p> -<p class="line">And see the vanguard of the main:</p> -<p class="line">Gwyđno’s plain has it covered.</p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Accursed be the maiden</p> -<p class="line">Who let it loose after supping,</p> -<p class="line">Well cup-bearer of the mighty main.</p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Accursed be the damsel</p> -<p class="line">Who let it loose after battle,</p> -<p class="line">Well minister of the high sea.</p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Mererid’s cry from a city’s -height<span class="corr" id="xd25e15028" title="Source: .">,</span></p> -<p class="line">Even to God is it directed:</p> -<p class="line">After pride comes a long pause.</p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Mererid’s cry from a city’s height -to-day,</p> -<p class="line">Even to God her expiation:</p> -<p class="line">After pride comes reflection.</p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Mererid’s cry o’ercomes me to-night,</p> -<p class="line">Nor can I readily prosper:</p> -<p class="line">After pride comes a fall.</p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Mererid’s cry over strong wines,</p> -<p class="line">Bounteous God has wrought it:</p> -<p class="line">After excess comes privation.</p> -</div> -<p><span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb384" href="#pb384" name= -"pb384">384</a>]</span></p> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Mererid’s cry drives me to-night</p> -<p class="line">From my chamber away:</p> -<p class="line">After insolence comes long death.</p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Weak-witted Seithennin’s grave is it</p> -<p class="line">Between Kenedyr’s Fort and the shore,</p> -<p class="line">With majestic Mor’s and Kynran’s.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">The names in these lines present great difficulties: -first comes that of <i>Mererid</i>, which is no other word than -<i>Margarita</i>, ‘a pearl,’ borrowed; but what does it -here mean? <i>Margarita</i>, besides meaning a pearl, was used in -Welsh, e.g. under the form <i>Marereda</i><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e15084src" href="#xd25e15084" name="xd25e15084src">18</a>, as the -proper name written in English <i>Margaret</i>. That is probably how it -is to be taken here, namely, as the name given to the negligent -guardian of the fairy well. It cannot very well be, however, the name -belonging to the original form of the legend; and we have the somewhat -parallel case of <i>Ffynnon Grassi</i>, or Grace’s Well; but what -old Celtic name that of Mererid has replaced in the story, I cannot -say. In the next place, nobody has been able to identify <i>Caer -Kenedyr</i>, and I have nothing to say as to <i>Mor Maurhidic</i>, -except that a person of that name is mentioned in another of the -Englynion of the Graves. It runs thus in the <i>Black Book</i>, fol. -33<sup>a</sup>:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Bet mor maurhidic diessic unben.</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>post kinhen kinteic.</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>mab peredur penwetic.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">The grave of Mor the Grand, … prince,</p> -<p class="line">Pillar of the … conflict,</p> -<p class="line">Son of Peredur of Penweđig.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">The last name in the final triplet of the poem which I -have attempted to translate is <i>Kinran</i>, which is otherwise -unknown as a Welsh name; but I am inclined to identify it with that of -one of the three who escaped the catastrophe in the Irish legend. The -name there is <i>Curnán</i>, which was borne by the idiot of the -family, <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb385" href="#pb385" name= -"pb385">385</a>]</span>who, like many later idiots, was at the same -time a prophet. For he is represented as always prophesying that the -waters were going to burst forth, and as advising his friends to -prepare boats. So he may be set, after a fashion, over against our -<i>Seithenhin synhuir vann</i>, ‘S. of the feeble mind.’ -But one might perhaps ask why I do not point out an equivalent in Irish -for the Welsh Seithennin, as his name is now pronounced. The fact is -that no such equivalent occurs in the Irish story in question, nor -exactly, so far as I know, in any other.</p> -<p>That is what I wrote when penning these notes; but it has occurred -to me since then, that there is an Irish name, an important Irish name, -which looks as if related to <i>Seithenhin</i>, and that is <i>Setanta -Beg</i>, ‘the little Setantian,’ the first name of the -Irish hero Cúchulainn. The <i>nt</i>, I may point out, makes one -suspect that <i>Setanta</i> is a name of Brythonic origin in Irish; and -I have been in the habit of associating it with that of the people of -the Setantii<a class="noteref" id="xd25e15157src" href="#xd25e15157" -name="xd25e15157src">19</a>, placed by Ptolemy on the coast of what is -now Lancashire. Whether any legend has ever been current about a -country submerged on the coast of Lancashire I cannot say, but the -soundings would make such a legend quite comprehensible. I remember, -however, reading somewhere as to the Plain of Muirthemhne, of which -Cúchulainn, our Setanta Beg, had special charge, that it was so -called because it had once been submarine and become since the -converse, so to say, of Seithennin’s country. The latter is -beneath Cardigan Bay, while the other fringed the opposite side of the -sea, consisting as it did of the level portion of County Louth. On the -whole, I am not altogether indisposed to believe that we have here -traces of an ancient legend <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb386" href= -"#pb386" name="pb386">386</a>]</span>of a wider scope than is -represented by the <i>Black Book</i> triplets, which I have essayed to -translate. I think that I am right in recognizing that legend in the -<i>Mabinogi</i> of Branwen, daughter of Ỻyr. There we read that, -when Brân and his men crossed from Wales to Ireland, the -intervening sea consisted merely of two navigable rivers, called -Ỻi and Archan. The story-teller adds words to the effect, that it -is only since then the sea has multiplied its realms<a class="noteref" -id="xd25e15172src" href="#xd25e15172" name="xd25e15172src">20</a> -between Ireland and <i>Ynys y Kedyrn</i>, or the Isle of the Keiri, a -name which has already been discussed: see pp. 279–83.</p> -<p>These are not all the questions which such stories suggest; for -Seithennin is represented in later Welsh literature as the son of one -<i>Seithyn</i>, associated with Dyfed; and the name <i>Seithyn</i> -leads off to the coast of Brittany. For I learn from a paper by the -late M. le Men, in the <i lang="fr">Revue Archéologique</i> for -1872 (xxiii. 52), that the Île de Sein is called in Breton -<i>Enez-Sun</i>, in which <i>Sun</i> is a dialectic shortening of -<i>Sizun</i>, which is also met with as <i>Seidhun</i>. That being so, -one would seem to be right in regarding Sizun as nearly related to our -<i>Seithyn</i>. That is not all—the tradition reminds one of the -Welsh legend: M. le Men refers to the <i>Vie du P. Maunoir</i> by -Boschet (Paris, 1697) p. 126, and adds that, in his own time, the road -ending on the Pointe du Raz opposite the Île de Sein passed -‘<span lang="fr">pour être l’ancien chemin qui -conduisait à la ville d’Is (<i>Kaer-a-Is</i>, la ville de -la partie basse)</span>.’ It is my own experience, that nobody -can go about much in Brittany without hearing over and over again about -the submerged city of Is. There is no doubt that we have in these names -distant echoes of an inundation story, once widely current in both -Britains and perhaps also in Ireland. With regard to Wales we have an -indication <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb387" href="#pb387" name= -"pb387">387</a>]</span>to that effect in the fact, that Gwyđno, to -whom the inundated region is treated as having belonged, is associated -not only with Cardigan Bay, but also with the coast of North Wales, -especially the part of it situated between Bangor and -Ỻandudno<a class="noteref" id="xd25e15223src" href="#xd25e15223" -name="xd25e15223src">21</a>. Adjoining it is supposed to lie submerged -a once fertile district called Tyno Helig, a legend about which will -come under notice later. This brings the inundation story nearer to the -coast where Ptolemy in the second century located the Harbour of the -Setantii, about the mouth of the river Ribble, and in their name we -seem to have some sort of a historical basis for that of the drunken -Seithennin<a class="noteref" id="xd25e15229src" href="#xd25e15229" -name="xd25e15229src">22</a>. I cannot close these remarks better than -by <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb388" href="#pb388" name= -"pb388">388</a>]</span>appending what Professor Boyd Dawkins has -recently said with regard to the sea between Britain and -Ireland:—</p> -<p>‘It may be interesting to remark further that during the time -of the Iberian dominion in Wales, the geography of the seaboard was -different to what it is now. A forest, containing the remains of their -domestic oxen that had run wild, and of the indigenous wild animals -such as the bear and the red deer, united Anglesey with the mainland, -and occupied the shallows of Cardigan Bay, known in legend as -“the lost lands of Wales.” It extended southwards from the -present sea margin across the estuary of the Severn, to Somerset, -Devon, and Cornwall. It passed northwards across the Irish Sea off the -coast of Cheshire and Lancashire, and occupied Morecambe Bay with a -dense growth of oak, Scotch fir, alder, birch, and hazel. It ranged -seawards beyond the ten-fathom line, and is to be found on most -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb389" href="#pb389" name= -"pb389">389</a>]</span>shores beneath the sand-banks and mud-banks, as -for example at Rhyl and Cardiff. In Cardigan Bay it excited the wonder -of Giraldus de Barri<a class="noteref" id="xd25e15418src" href= -"#xd25e15418" name="xd25e15418src">23</a>.’</p> -<p>To return to fairy wells, I have to confess that I cannot decide -what may be precisely the meaning of the notion of a well with a woman -set carefully to see that the door or cover of the well is kept shut. -It will occur, however, to everybody to compare the well which Undine -wished to have kept shut, on account of its affording a ready access -from her subterranean country to the residence of her refractory knight -in his castle above ground. And in the case of the Glasfryn Lake, the -walling and cover that were to keep the spring from overflowing were, -according to the story, not water-tight, seeing that there were holes -made in one of the stones. This suggests the idea that the cover was to -prevent the passage of some such full-grown fairies as those with which -legend seems to have once peopled all the pools and tarns of Wales. -But, in the next place, is the maiden in charge of the well to be -regarded as priestess of the well? The idea of a priesthood in -connexion with wells in Wales is not wholly unknown.</p> -<p>I wish, however, before discussing these instances, to call -attention to one or two Irish ones which point in another direction. -Foremost may be mentioned the source of the river Boyne, which is now -called Trinity Well, situated in the Barony of Carbury, in County -Kildare. The following is the Rennes <i>Dindsenchas</i> concerning it, -as translated by Dr. Stokes, in the <i>Revue Celtique</i>, xv. -315–6:—‘Bóand, wife of Nechtán son of -Labraid, went to the secret well which was in the green of Síd -Nechtáin. Whoever went to it would not come <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb390" href="#pb390" name="pb390">390</a>]</span>from -it without his two eyes bursting, unless it were Nechtán himself -and his three cup-bearers, whose names were Flesc and Lám and -Luam. Once upon a time Bóand went through pride to test the -well’s power, and declared that it had no secret force which -could shatter her form, and thrice she walked withershins round the -well. (Whereupon) three waves from the well break over her and deprive -her of a thigh [? <i>wounded her thigh</i>] and one of her hands and -one of her eyes. Then she, fleeing her shame, turns seaward, with the -water behind her as far as Boyne-mouth, (where she was drowned).’ -This is to explain why the river is called <i>Bóand</i>, -‘Boyne.’ A version to the same effect in the <i>Book of -Leinster</i>, fol. 191<sup>a</sup>, makes the general statement that no -one who gazed right into the well could avoid the instant ruin of his -two eyes or otherwise escape with impunity. A similar story is related -to show how the Shannon, in Irish <i>Sinann</i>, <i>Sinand</i>, or -<i>Sinend</i>, is called after a woman of that name. It occurs in the -same Rennes manuscript, and the following is Stokes’ translation -in the <i>Revue Celtique</i>, xv. 457:—‘Sinend, daughter of -Lodan Lucharglan son of Ler out of Tir Tairngire (Land of Promise, -Fairyland), went to Connla’s Well, which is under sea, to behold -it. That is a well at which are the hazels and inspirations (?) of -wisdom, that is, the hazels of the science of poetry, and in the same -hour their fruit and their blossom and their foliage break forth, and -these fall on the well in the same shower, which raises on the water a -royal surge of purple. Then the salmon chew the fruit, and the juice of -the nuts is apparent on their purple bellies. And seven streams of -wisdom spring forth and turn there again. Now Sinend went to seek the -inspiration, for she wanted nothing save only wisdom. She went with the -stream till she reached <i>Linn Mna Feile</i>, “the <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb391" href="#pb391" name="pb391">391</a>]</span>Pool -of the Modest Woman,” that is Bri Ele—and she went ahead on -her journey; but the well left its place, and she followed it<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e15474src" href="#xd25e15474" name= -"xd25e15474src">24</a> to the banks of the river -<i>Tarr-cáin</i>, “Fair-back.” After this it -overwhelmed her, so that her back (<i>tarr</i>) went upwards, and when -she had come to the land on this side (of the Shannon) she tasted -death. Whence <i>Sinann</i> and <i>Linn Mna Feile</i> and -<i>Tarr-cain</i>.’</p> -<p>In these stories the reader will have noticed that the foremost -punishment on any intruder who looked into the forbidden well was the -instant ruin of his two eyes. One naturally asks why the eyes are made -the special objects of the punishment, and I am inclined to think the -meaning to have originally been that the well or spring was regarded as -the eye of the divinity of the water. Should this prove well founded it -looks natural that the eyes, which transgressed by gazing into the eye -of the divinity, should be the first objects of that divinity’s -vengeance. This is suggested to me by the fact that the regular Welsh -word for the source of a river is <i>ỻygad</i>, Old Welsh -<i>licat</i>, ‘eye,’ as for instance in the case of -<i>Licat Amir</i> mentioned by Nennius, § 73; of <i>Ỻygad -Ỻychwr</i>, ‘the source of the Loughor river’ in the -hills behind Carreg Cennen Castle; and of the weird lake in which the -Rheidol<a class="noteref" id="xd25e15507src" href="#xd25e15507" name= -"xd25e15507src">25</a> rises near the top of Plinlimmon: it is called -<i>Ỻyn Ỻygad y Rheidol</i>, ‘the Lake of the -Rheidol’s Eye.’ By the way, the Rheidol is not wholly -without its folklore, for I used to be told in my childhood, that she -and the Wye and the Severn sallied forth simultaneously from Plinlimmon -one fine morning <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb392" href="#pb392" -name="pb392">392</a>]</span>to run a race to the sea. The result was, -one was told, that the Rheidol won great honour by reaching the sea -three weeks before her bigger sisters. Somebody has alluded to the -legend in the following lines:—</p> -<div class="lgouter"> -<div lang="cy" class="lg"> -<p class="line"><i>Tair afon gynt a rifwyd</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Ar đwyfron Pumlumon lwyd,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>Hafren a Gwy’n hyfryd ei gweđ,</i></p> -<p class="line"><i>A’r Rheidol fawr ei hanrhydeđ.</i></p> -</div> -<div class="lg"> -<p class="line">Three rivers of yore were seen</p> -<p class="line">On grey Plinlimmon’s breast,</p> -<p class="line">Severn, and Wye of pleasant mien,</p> -<p class="line">And Rheidol rich in great renown.</p> -</div> -</div> -<p class="first">To return to the Irish legends, I may mention that -Eugene O’Curry has a good deal to say of the mysterious nuts and -‘the salmon of knowledge,’ the partaking of which was -synonymous with the acquisition of knowledge and wisdom: see his -<i>Manners and Customs of the Ancient Irish</i>, ii. 142–4. He -gives it as his opinion that Connla’s Well was situated somewhere -in Lower Ormond; but the locality of this Helicon, with the seven -streams of wisdom circulating out of it and back again into it, is more -intelligible when regarded as a matter of fairy geography. A portion of -the note appended to the foregoing legend by Stokes is in point here: -he traces the earliest mention of the nine hazels of wisdom, growing at -the heads of the chief rivers of Ireland, to the Dialogue of the Two -Sages in the <i>Book of Leinster</i>, fol. 186<sup>b</sup>, whence he -cites the poet Néde mac Adnai saying whence he had come, as -follows:—<i>a caillib .i. a nói collaib na Segsa … -a caillib didiu assa mbenaiter clessa na súad tanacsa</i>, -‘from hazels, to wit, from the nine hazels of the Segais … -from hazels out of which are obtained the feats of the sages, I have -come.’ The relevancy of this passage will be seen when I add, -that Segais was one of the names of the mound in which the Boyne rises; -so it may be safely inferred that Bóand’s transgression -was of the same nature as that of Sinand, to wit, that of intruding on -sacred ground in quest of wisdom and inspiration which <span class= -"pagenum">[<a id="pb393" href="#pb393" name="pb393">393</a>]</span>was -not permitted their sex: certain sources of knowledge, certain -<i>quellen</i>, were reserved for men alone.</p> -<p>Before I have done with the Irish instances I must append one in the -form it was told me in the summer of 1894: I was in Meath and went to -see the remarkable chambered cairns on the hill known as <i>Sliabh na -Caillighe</i>, ‘the Hag’s Mountain,’ near Oldcastle -and Lough Crew. I had as my guide a young shepherd whom I picked up on -the way. He knew all about the hag after whom the hill was called -except her name: she was, he said, a giantess, and so she brought -there, in three apronfuls, the stones forming the three principal -cairns. As to the cairn on the hill point known as Belrath, that is -called the Chair Cairn from a big stone placed there by the hag to -serve as her seat when she wished to have a quiet look on the country -round. But usually she was to be seen riding on a wonderful pony she -had: that creature was so nimble and strong that it used to take the -hag at a leap from one hill-top to another. However, the end of it all -was that the hag rode so hard that the pony fell down, and that both -horse and rider were killed. The hag appears to have been <i>Cailleach -Bhéara</i>, or <i>Caillech Bérre</i>, ‘the Old -Woman of Beare,’ that is, Bearhaven, in County Cork<a class= -"noteref" id="xd25e15577src" href="#xd25e15577" name= -"xd25e15577src">26</a>. Now the view <span class="pagenum">[<a id= -"pb394" href="#pb394" name="pb394">394</a>]</span>from the Hag’s -Mountain is very extensive, and I asked the shepherd to point out some -places in the distance. Among other things we could see Lough Ramor, -which he called the Virginia Water, and more to the west he identified -Lough Sheelin, about which he had the following legend to tell:—A -long, long time ago there was no lake there, but only a well with a -flagstone kept over it, and everybody would put the flag back after -taking water out of the well. But one day a woman who fetched water -from it forgot to replace the stone, and the water burst forth in -pursuit of the luckless woman, who fled as hard as she could before the -angry flood. She continued until she had run about seven -miles—the estimated length of the lake at the present day. Now at -this point a man, who was busily mowing hay in the field through which -she was running, saw what was happening and mowed the woman down with -his scythe, whereupon the water advanced no further. Such was the -shepherd’s yarn, which partly agrees with the Boyne and Shannon -stories in that the woman was pursued by the water, which only stopped -where she died. On the other hand, it resembles the Ỻyn -Ỻech Owen legend and that of Lough Neagh in placing to the -woman’s charge only the neglect to cover the well. It looks as if -we had in these stories a confusion of two different institutions, one -being a well of wisdom which no woman durst visit without fatal -vengeance overtaking her, and the other a fairy well which was attended -to by a woman who was to keep it covered, and who may, perhaps, be -regarded as priestess of the spring. If we try to interpret the -Cantre’r Gwaelod story from these two points of view we have to -note the following matters:—Though it is not said that the -<i>moruin</i>, or damsel, had a lid or cover on the well, the word -<i>golligaut</i> or <i>helligaut</i>, ‘did let run,’ -implies some such an idea <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb395" href= -"#pb395" name="pb395">395</a>]</span>as that of a lid or door; for -opening the sluices, in the sense of the later version, seems to me out -of the question. In two of the Englynion she is cursed for the action -implied, and if she was the well minister or well servant, as I take -<i>finaun wenestir</i> to mean, we might perhaps regard her as the -priestess of that spring. On the other hand, the prevailing note in the -other Englynion is the <i>traha</i>, ‘presumption, arrogance, -insolence, pride,’ which forms the burden of four out of five of -them. This would seem to point to an attitude on the part of the damsel -resembling that of Bóand or Sinand when prying into the secrets -of wells which were tabu to them. The seventh Englyn alludes to wines, -and its burden is <i>gormođ</i>, ‘too much, excess, -extravagance,’ whereby the poet seems to lend countenance to some -such a later story as that of Seithennin’s intemperance.</p> -<p>Lastly, the question of priest or priestess of a sacred well has -been alluded to once or twice, and it may be perhaps illustrated on -Welsh ground by the history of Ffynnon Eilian, or St. Elian’s -Well, which has been mentioned in another context, p. 357 above. Of -that well we read as follows, s. v. <i>Ỻandriỻo</i>, in the -third edition of Lewis’ <i>Topographical Dictionary of -Wales</i>:—‘Fynnon Elian, … even in the present age, -is frequently visited by the superstitious, for the purpose of invoking -curses upon the heads of those who have grievously offended them, and -also of supplicating prosperity to themselves; but the numbers are -evidently decreasing. The ceremony is performed by the applicant -standing upon a certain spot near the well, whilst the owner of it -reads a few passages of the sacred Scriptures, and then, taking a small -quantity of water, gives it to the former to drink, and throws the -residue over his head, which is repeated three times, the party -continuing to mutter imprecations <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb396" -href="#pb396" name="pb396">396</a>]</span>in whatever terms his -vengeance may dictate.’ Rice Rees, in his <i>Essay on the Welsh -Saints</i> (London, 1836), p. 267, speaks of St. Elian as follows: -‘Miraculous cures were lately supposed to be performed at his -shrine at Ỻanelian, Anglesey; and near to the church of -Ỻanelian, Denbighshire, is a well called Ffynnon Elian, which is -thought by the peasantry of the neighbourhood to be endued with -miraculous powers even at present.’</p> -<p>Foulkes, s. v. <i>Elian</i>, in his <i>Enwogion Cymru</i>, published -in Liverpool in 1870, expresses the opinion that the visits of the -superstitious to the well had ceased for some time. The last person -supposed to have had charge of the well was a certain John Evans, but -some of the most amusing stories of the shrewdness of the caretaker -refer to a woman who had charge of the well before Evans’ time. A -series of articles on <i>Ffynnon Eilian</i> appeared in 1861 in a Welsh -periodical called <i>Y Nofelyđ</i>, printed by Mr. Aubrey at -Ỻanerch y Međ, in Anglesey. The articles in question were -afterwards published, I am told, as a shilling book, which I have not -seen, and they dealt with the superstition, with the history of John -Evans, and with his confessions and conversion. I have searched in vain -for any account in Welsh of the ritual followed at the well. When Mrs. -Silvan Evans visited the place, the person in charge of the well was a -woman, and Peter Roberts, in his <i>Cambrian Popular Antiquities</i>, -published in London in 1815, alludes to her or a predecessor of hers in -the following terms, p. 246:—‘Near the Well resided some -worthless and infamous wretch, who officiated as priestess.’ He -furthermore gives one to understand that she kept a book in which she -registered the name of each evil wisher for a trifling sum of money. -When this had been done, a pin was dropped into the well in -<span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb397" href="#pb397" name= -"pb397">397</a>]</span>the name of the victim. This proceeding looks -adequate from the magical point of view, though less complicated than -the ritual indicated by Lewis. This latter writer calls the person who -took charge of the well the owner; and I have always understood that, -whether owner or not, he or she used to receive gifts, not only for -placing in the well the names of men who were to be cursed, but also -from those men for taking their names out again, so as to relieve them -from the malediction. In fact, the trade in curses seems to have been a -very thriving one: its influence was powerful and widespread.</p> -<p>Here there is, I think, very little doubt that the owner or guardian -of the well was, so to say, the representative of an ancient priesthood -of the well. That priesthood dated its origin probably many centuries -before a Christian church was built near the well, and coming down to -later times we have unfortunately no sufficient data to show how the -right to such priesthood was acquired, whether by inheritance or -otherwise; but we know that a woman might have charge of St. -Elian’s Well.</p> -<p>Let me cite another instance, which I unexpectedly discovered some -years ago in the course of a ramble in quest of early inscriptions. -Among other places which I visited was Ỻandeilo Ỻwydarth, -near Maen Clochog, in the northern part of Pembrokeshire. This is one -of the many churches bearing the name of St. Teilo in South Wales: the -building is in ruins, but the churchyard is still used, and contains -two of the most ancient post-Roman inscriptions in the Principality. If -you ask now for ‘Ỻandeilo’ in this district, you will -be understood to be inquiring after the farm house of that name, close -to the old church; and I learnt from the landlady that her family had -been there for many generations, though they have not very long been -the proprietors of <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb398" href="#pb398" -name="pb398">398</a>]</span>the land. She also told me of St. -Teilo’s Well, a little above the house: she added that it was -considered to have the property of curing the whooping-cough. I asked -if there was any rite or ceremony necessary to be performed in order to -derive benefit from the water. Certainly, I was told: the water must be -lifted out of the well and given to the patient to drink by some member -of the family. To be more accurate, I ought to say that this must be -done by somebody born in the house. Her eldest son, however, had told -me previously, when I was busy with the inscriptions, that the water -must be given to the patient by the heir, not by anybody else. Then -came my question how the water was lifted, or out of what the patient -had to drink, to which I was answered that it was out of the skull. -‘What skull?’ said I. ‘St. Teilo’s -skull,’ was the answer. ‘Where do you get the saint’s -skull?’ I asked. ‘Here it is,’ was the answer, and I -was given it to handle and examine. I know next to nothing about -skulls; but it struck me that it was the upper portion of a thick, -strong skull, and it called to my mind the story of the three churches -which contended for the saint’s corpse. That story will be found -in the <i>Book of Ỻan Dâv</i>, pp. 116–7, and -according to it the contest became so keen that it had to be settled by -prayer and fasting. So, in the morning, lo and behold! there were three -corpses of St. Teilo—not simply one—and so like were they -in features and stature that nobody could tell which were the corpses -made to order and which the old one. I should have guessed that the -skull which I saw belonged to the former description, as not having -been much thinned by the owner’s use of it; but this I am -forbidden to do by the fact that, according to the legend, this -particular Ỻandeilo was not one of the three contending churches -which bore away in triumph <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb399" href= -"#pb399" name="pb399">399</a>]</span>a dead Teilo each. The reader, -perhaps, would like to take another view, namely, that the story has -been edited in such a way as to reduce a larger number of Teilos to -three, in order to gratify the Welsh weakness for triads.</p> -<p>Since my visit to the neighbourhood I have been favoured with an -account of the well as it is now current there. My informant is Mr. -Benjamin Gibby of Ỻangolman Mill, who writes mentioning, among -other things, that the people around call the well <i>Ffynnon yr -Ychen</i>, or the Oxen’s Well, and that the family owning and -occupying the farm house of Ỻandeilo have been there for -centuries. Their name, which is Melchior (pronounced Melshor), is by no -means a common one in the Principality, so far as I know; but, whatever -may be its history in Wales, the bearers of it are excellent Kymry. Mr. -Gibby informs me that the current story solves the difficulty as to the -saint’s skull as follows:—The saint had a favourite maid -servant from the Pembrokeshire Ỻandeilo: she was a beautiful -woman, and had the privilege of attending on the saint when he was on -his death-bed. As his end was approaching he gave his maid a strict and -solemn command that in a year’s time from the day of his burial -at Ỻandeilo Fawr, in Carmarthenshire, she was to take his skull -to the other Ỻandeilo, and to leave it there to be a blessing to -coming generations of men, who, when ailing, would have their health -restored by drinking water out of it. So the belief prevailed that to -drink out of the skull some of the water of Teilo’s Well ensured -health, especially against the whooping-cough. The faith of some of -those who used to visit the well was so great in its efficacy, that -they were wont to leave it, he says, with their constitutions -wonderfully improved; and he mentions a story related to him by an old -neighbour, <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb400" href="#pb400" name= -"pb400">400</a>]</span>Stifyn Ifan, who has been dead for some years, -to the effect that a carriage, drawn by four horses, came once, more -than half a century ago, to Ỻandeilo. It was full of invalids -coming from Pen Clawđ, in Gower, Glamorganshire, to try the water -of the well. They returned, however, no better than they came; for -though they had drunk of the well, they had neglected to do so out of -the skull. This was afterwards pointed out to them by somebody, and -they resolved to make the long journey to the well again. This time -they did the right thing, we are told, and departed in excellent -health.</p> -<p>Such are the contents of Mr. Gibby’s Welsh letter; and I would -now only point out that we have here an instance of a well which was -probably sacred before the time of St. Teilo: in fact, one would -possibly be right in supposing that the sanctity of the well and its -immediate surroundings was one of the causes why the site was chosen by -a Christian missionary. But consider for a moment what has happened: -the well paganism has annexed the saint, and established a belief -ascribing to him the skull used in the well ritual. The landlady and -her family, it is true, neither believe in the efficacy of the well, -nor take gifts from those who visit the well; but they continue, out of -kindness, as they put it, to hand the skull full of water to any one -who perseveres in believing in it. In other words, the faith in the -well continues in a measure intact, while the walls of the church have -long fallen into utter decay. Such is the great persistence of some -primitive beliefs; and in this particular instance we have a succession -which seems to point unmistakably to an ancient priesthood of a sacred -spring.</p> -</div> -<div class="footnotes"> -<hr class="fnsep"> -<div class="footnote-body"> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e14028" href="#xd25e14028src" name="xd25e14028">1</a></span> This -was written at the end of 1892, and read to a joint meeting of the -Cymmrodorion and Folk-Lore Societies on January 11, -1893. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e14028src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e14055" href="#xd25e14055src" name="xd25e14055">2</a></span> Some -account of them was given by me in <i>Folk-Lore</i> for 1892, p. 380; -but somehow or other my contribution was printed unrevised, with -results more peculiar than edifying. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e14055src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e14083" href="#xd25e14083src" name="xd25e14083">3</a></span> In -<i>Folk-Lore</i> for 1893, pp. 58–9. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e14083src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e14192" href="#xd25e14192src" name="xd25e14192">4</a></span> In -the neighbourhood I find that the word <i>gwaeldyn</i> in this verse is -sometimes explained to mean not a worthless but an ailing person, on -the strength of the fact that the adjective <i>gwael</i> is -colloquially used both for vile and for ailing. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e14192src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e14214" href="#xd25e14214src" name="xd25e14214">5</a></span> Since -writing the above remarks the following paragraph, purporting to be -copied from the <i>Liverpool Mercury</i> for November 18, 1896, -appeared in the <i lang="la">Archæologia Cambrensis</i> for 1899, -p. 334:—‘Two new fishes have just been put in the -“Sacred Well,” Ffynnon y Sant, at Tyn y Ffynnon, in the -village of Nant Peris, Ỻanberis. Invalids in large numbers came, -during the last century and the first half of the present century, to -this well to drink of its “miraculous waters”; and the oak -box, where the contributions of those who visited the spot were kept, -is still in its place at the side of the well. There have always been -two “sacred fishes” in this well; and there is a tradition -in the village to the effect that if one of the Tyn y Ffynnon fishes -came out of its hiding-place when an invalid took some of the water for -drinking or for bathing purposes, cure was certain; but if the fishes -remained in their den, the water would do those who took it no good. -Two fishes only are to be put in the well at a time, and they generally -live in its waters for about half a century. If one dies before the -other, it would <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb367n" href="#pb367n" -name="pb367n">367</a>]</span>be of no use to put in a new fish, for the -old fish would not associate with it, and it would die. The experiment -has been tried. The last of the two fishes put in the well about fifty -years ago died last August. It had been blind for some time previous to -its death. When taken out of the water it measured seventeen inches, -and was buried in the garden adjoining the well. It is stated in a -document of the year 1776 that the parish clerk was to receive the -money put in the box of the well by visitors. This money, together with -the amount of 6<i>s.</i> 4<i>d.</i>, was his annual stipend.’ Tyn -y Ffynnon means ‘the Tenement of the Well,’ <i>tyn</i> -being a shortened form of <i>tyđyn</i>, ‘a -tenement,’as mentioned at p. 33 above; but the mapsters make it -into <i>ty’n</i> = <i>ty yn</i>, ‘a house in,’ so -that the present instance, <i>Ty’n y Ffynnon</i>, could only mean -‘the House in the Well,’ which, needless to say, it is not. -But one would like to know whether the house and land were once held -rent-free on condition that the tenant took care of the sacred -fish. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e14214src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e14253" href="#xd25e14253src" name="xd25e14253">6</a></span> See -Ashton’s <i>Iolo Goch</i>, p. 234, and Lewis’ <i>Top. -Dict.</i> <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e14253src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e14322" href="#xd25e14322src" name="xd25e14322">7</a></span> See -my <i>Hibbert Lectures</i>, p. 229, and the <i>Iolo MSS.</i>, pp. -42–3, 420–1<span class="corr" id="xd25e14330" title= -"Not in source">.</span> <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e14322src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e14382" href="#xd25e14382src" name="xd25e14382">8</a></span> A -curious note bearing on this name occurs in the Jesus College MS. 20 -(<i>Cymmrodor</i>, viii. p. 86) in reference to the name -<i>Morgannwg</i>, ‘Glamorgan’:—<i>O enỽ Morgant -vchot y gelwir Morgannỽc. Ereiỻ a dyweit. Mae o enỽ -Mochteyrn Predein.</i> ‘It is from the name of the above Morgan -that Morgannwg is called. Others say that it is from the name of the -<span class="corr" id="xd25e14393" title= -"Source: mechdeyrn">mochdeyrn</span> of Pictland.’ The -<i>mochteyrn</i> must have been a Pictish king or mórmáer -called Morgan. The name occurs in the charters from the <i>Book of -Deer</i> in Stokes’ <i>Goidelica</i>. pp. 109, 111, as -<i>Morcunt</i>, <i>Morcunn</i>, and <i>Morgunn</i> -undeclined<span class="corr" id="xd25e14415" title="Source: .">,</span> -also with <i>Morgainn</i> for genitive; and so in Skene’s -<i>Chronicles of the Picts and Scots</i>, pp. 77, 317, where it is -printed <i>Morgaind</i>; see also Stokes’ Tigernach, in the -<i>Revue Celtique</i>, xvii. 198. Compare Geoffrey’s story, ii. -15, which introduces a northern Marganus to account for the name -Margan, now <i>Margam</i>, in Morgannwg. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e14382src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e14455" href="#xd25e14455src" name="xd25e14455">9</a></span> M. -Loth’s remarks in point will be found in the <i lang="fr">Revue -Celtique</i>, xiii. 496–7, where he compares with <i>tut</i> the -Breton <i>teuz</i>, ‘<span lang="fr">lutin, génie -malfaisant ou bienfaisant</span>’; and for the successive guesses -on the subject of the name <i>Morgan tut</i> one should also consult -Zimmer’s remarks in Foerster’s Introduction to his -<i>Erec</i>, pp. xxvii–xxxi, and my <i>Arthurian Legend</i>, p. -391, to which I should add a reference to the <i>Book of Ballymote</i>, -fo. 360<sup>a</sup>, where we have <i>o na bantuathaib</i>, which -O’Curry has rendered ‘on the part of their Witches’ -in his <i>Manners and Customs of the Ancient Irish</i>, iii. -526–7. Compare <i lang="ga">dá bhantuathaigh</i>, -‘two female sorcerers,’ in Joyce’s Keating’s -<i>History of Ireland</i>, pp. 122–3. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e14455src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e14510" href="#xd25e14510src" name="xd25e14510">10</a></span> For -all about the Children of Lir, and about Liban and Lough Neagh, see -Joyce’s <i>Old Celtic Romances</i>, pp. 4–36, -97–105. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e14510src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e14520" href="#xd25e14520src" name="xd25e14520">11</a></span> On -my appealing to Cadrawd, one of the later editors, he has found me the -exact reference, to wit, volume ix of the <i>Cyfaiỻ</i> -(published in 1889), p. 50; and he has since contributed a translation -of the story to the columns of the <i>South Wales Daily News</i> for -February 15, 1899, where he has also given an account of Crymlyn, which -is to be mentioned later. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e14520src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e14543" href="#xd25e14543src" name="xd25e14543">12</a></span> -Judging from the three best-known instances, <i>y bala</i> meant the -outlet of a lake: I allude to this <i>Bala</i> at the outlet of -Ỻyn Tegid; <i>Pont y Bala</i>, ‘the Bridge of the -<i>bala</i>,’ across the water flowing from the Upper into the -Lower Lake at Ỻanberis; and <i>Bala Deulyn</i>, ‘the -<i>bala</i> of two lakes,’ at Nantỻe. Two places called -<i>Bryn y Bala</i> are mentioned s. v. <i>Bala</i> in Morris’ -<i>Celtic Remains</i>, one near Aberystwyth, at a spot which I have -never seen, and the other near the lower end of the Lower Lake of -Ỻanberis, as to which it has been suggested to me that it is an -error for <i>Bryn y Bela</i>. It is needless to say that <i>bala</i> -has nothing to do with the Anglo-Irish <i>bally</i>, of such names as -<i>Ballymurphy</i> or <i>Ballynahunt</i>: this vocable is in English -<i>bailey</i>, and in South Wales <i>beili</i>, ‘a farm yard or -enclosure,’ all three probably from the late Latin <i>balium</i> -or <i>ballium</i>, ‘<span lang="la">locus palis munitus et -circumseptus</span>.’ Our etymologists never stop short with -<i>bally</i>: they go as far as <i>Balaklava</i> and, probably, -<i>Ballarat</i>, to claim cognates for our <i>Bala</i>. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e14543src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e14618" href="#xd25e14618src" name="xd25e14618">13</a></span> -Cadrawd here gives the Welsh as ‘2 <i lang="cy">bladur</i> -… 2 <i>đyđ o wair</i>,’ and observes that the -lacuna consists of an illegible word of three letters. If that word was -either <i>sef</i>, ‘that is,’ or <i>neu</i>, -‘or,’ the sense would be as given above. In North -Cardiganshire we speak of a day’s mowing as <i lang="cy">gwaith -gwr</i>, ‘a man’s work for a day,’ and sometimes of a -<i lang="cy">gwaith gwr bach</i>, ‘a man’s work for a short -day.’ <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e14618src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e14664" href="#xd25e14664src" name="xd25e14664">14</a></span> See -<i>By-Gones</i> for May 24, 1899. The full name of Welshpool in Welsh -is <i>Traỻwng Ỻywelyn</i>, so called after a Ỻywelyn -descended from Cuneđa, and supposed to have established a -religious house there; for there are other Traỻwngs, and at first -sight it would seem as if <i>Traỻwng</i> had something to do with -a lake or piece of water. But there is a Traỻwng, for instance, -near Brecon, where there is no lake to give it the name; and my -attention has been called to Thos. Richards’ <i>Welsh-English -Dictionary</i>, where a <i>traỻwng</i> is said to be ‘such -a soft place on the road (or elsewhere) as travellers may be apt to -sink into, a dirty pool.’ So the word seems to be partly of the -same derivation as <i>go-ỻwng</i>, ‘to let go, to give -way.’ The form of the word in use now is <i>Traỻwm</i>, not -<i>Traỻwng</i> or <i>Traỻwn</i>. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e14664src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e14753" href="#xd25e14753src" name="xd25e14753">15</a></span> See -the <i>Book of the Dun Cow</i>, fo. 39<sup>a</sup>–41<sup>b</sup> -and Joyce’s <i>Old Celtic Romances</i>, pp. 97–105; but the -story may now be consulted in O’Grady’s <i>Silva -Gadelica</i>, i. 233–7, translated in ii. 265–9. On turning -over the leaves of this great collection of Irish lore, I chanced, i. -174, ii. 196, on an allusion to a well which, when uncovered, was about -to drown the whole locality but for a miracle performed by St. Patrick -to arrest the flow of its waters. A similar story of a well bursting -and forming Lough Reagh, in County Galway, will be found told in verse -in the <i>Book of Leinster</i>; fo. 202<sup>b</sup>: see also fo. -170<sup>a</sup>, and the editor’s notes, pp. 45<span class="corr" -id="xd25e14780" title="Not in source">,</span> 53. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e14753src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e14808" href="#xd25e14808src" name="xd25e14808">16</a></span> See -Evans’ autotype edition of the <i>Black Book of Carmarthen</i>, -fos. 53<sup>b</sup>, 54<sup>a</sup>, also 32<sup>a</sup>: the -punctuation is that of the MS. In the seventh triplet <i>kedaul</i> is -written <i>k<sup>e</sup>adaul</i>, which seems to mean <i>kadaul</i> -corrected into <i>kedaul</i>; but the <i>a</i> is not deleted, so other -readings are possible. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e14808src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote" lang="en"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" -id="xd25e14868" href="#xd25e14868src" name="xd25e14868">17</a></span> -In the <i>Iolo MSS.</i>, p. 89, <i>finaun wenestir</i> is made into -<i>Ffynon-Wenestr</i> and said to be one of the ornamental epithets of -the sea; but I am convinced that it should be rather treated as -<i>ffynnon fenestr</i> with <i>wenestir</i> or <i>fenestr</i> mutated -from <i>menestr</i>, which meant a servant, attendant, cup-bearer: for -one or two instances see Pughe’s <i>Dictionary</i>. The word is -probably, as suggested by M. Loth in his <i>Mots Latins</i>, p. 186. -the old French <i>menestre</i>, ‘cup-bearer,’ borrowed. -Compare the mention of Nechtán’s men having access to the -secret well in Sid Nechtáin, p. 390 below, and note that they -were his three <i>menestres</i> or cup-bearers. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e14868src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e15084" href="#xd25e15084src" name="xd25e15084">18</a></span> See -the <i>Cymmrodor</i>, viii. 88 (No. xxix), where a Marereda is -mentioned as a daughter of Madog son of Meredyđ brother to Rhys -Gryg. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e15084src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e15157" href="#xd25e15157src" name="xd25e15157">19</a></span> -There is another reading which would make them into <i>Segantii</i>, -and render it irrelevant—to say the least of it—to mention -them here. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e15157src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e15172" href="#xd25e15172src" name="xd25e15172">20</a></span> See -the <i>Mabinogion</i>, p. 35: the passage has been mistranslated in -Lady Charlotte Guest’s <i>Mabinogion</i>, iii. -117. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e15172src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e15223" href="#xd25e15223src" name="xd25e15223">21</a></span> See -my <i>Arthurian Legend</i>, pp. 263–4. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e15223src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e15229" href="#xd25e15229src" name="xd25e15229">22</a></span> I do -not profess to see my way through the difficulties which the probable -etymological connexion between the names Setantii, Setanta, Seithyn, -and Seithennin implies. But parts of the following string of guesses -may be found to hold good:—<i>Seithyn</i> is probably more -correct than <i>Seithin</i>, as it rhymes with <i>cristin</i> = -<i>Cristyn</i> (in <i>Cristynogaeth</i>: see Silvan Evans’ -<i>Geiriadur</i>, s. v., and Skene’s <i>Four Ancient Books</i>, -ii. 210); and it might be assumed to be from the same stem as -<i>Seizun</i>; but, supposing it to represent an earlier -<i>Seithynt</i>, it would equate phonologically with <i>Setanta</i>, -better <i>Setinte</i>, of which the genitive <i>Setinti</i> actually -occurs, as a river name, in the <i>Book of the Dun Cow</i>, fo. -125<sup>b</sup>: see my <i>Hibbert Lectures</i>, p. 455, and see also -the <i>Revue Celtique</i>, xi. 457. It would mean some such an early -form <i>Setn̥ti̯o-s</i>, and <i>Seithenhin</i>, another -derivative from the same stem, <i>Setn̥tīno-s</i>. But the -retention of <i>n</i> before <i>t</i> in <i>Setinte</i> proves it not -to be unconnected with <i>Seithyn</i>, but borrowed from some Brythonic -dialect when the latter was pronounced <i>Seithn̥ti̯o-s</i>. -If this be anywhere nearly right one has to assume that the manuscripts -of Ptolemy giving the genitive plural as <span class="trans" title= -"Setantiōn"><span class="Greek" lang= -"grc">Σεταντίων</span></span> -or <span class="trans" title="Segantiōn"><span class="Greek" lang= -"grc">Σεγαντίων</span></span> -should have read <span class="trans" title= -"Sektantiōn"><span class="Greek" lang= -"grc">Σεκταντίων</span></span>, -unless one should rather conjecture <span class="trans" title= -"Segtantiōn"><span class="Greek" lang= -"grc">Σεγταντίων</span></span> -with <i>cht</i> represented by <i>gt</i> as in Ogams in Pembrokeshire: -witness <i>Ogtene</i> and <i>Maqui Quegte</i>. This conjecture as to -the original reading would suggest that the name was derived from the -seventh numeral <i>sechtn̥</i>, just as that of the Galloway -people of the <i>Novantæ</i> seems to be from the ninth numeral. -Ptolemy’s next entry to the Harbour of the Setantii is the -estuary of the Belisama, supposed to be the Mersey; and next comes the -estuary of the <span class="trans" title="Seteia"><span class="Greek" -lang="grc">Σετεία</span></span> -or <span class="trans" title="Segeia"><span class="Greek" lang= -"grc">Σεγεία</span></span>, -supposed to be the Dee. Now the country of the Setantii, when they had -a country, may have reached from their harbour near the mouth of the -Ribble to the Seteia or the Dee without the name Seteia or Segeia -having anything to do with their own, except that it may have -influenced the latter in the manuscripts of Ptolemy’s text. Then -we possibly have a representative of <i>Seteia</i> or <i>Segeia</i> in -the <i>Saidi</i> or <span class="pagenum">[<a id="pb388n" href= -"#pb388n" name="pb388n">388</a>]</span><i>Seidi</i>, sometimes appended -to Seithyn’s name. In that case <i>Seithyn Saidi</i>, in the late -Triad iii. 37, would mean Seithyn of Seteia, or the Dee. A <i>Mab -Saidi</i> occurs in the Kulhwch story (<i>Mabinogion</i>, p. 106), also -Cas, son of Saidi (ib. 110); and in <i>Rhonabwy’s Dream</i> -Kadyrieith, son of Saidi (ib. 160); but the latter vocable is -<i>Seidi</i> in Triad ii. 26 (ib. 303). It is to be borne in mind that -Ptolemy does not represent the Setantii as a people in his time: he -only mentions a harbour called after the Setantii. So it looks as if -they then belonged to the past—that in fact they were, as I -should put it, a Goidelic people who had been conquered and partly -expelled by Brythonic tribes, to wit, by the Brigantes, and also by the -Cornavii in case the Setantii had once extended southwards to the Dee. -This naturally leads one to think that some of them escaped to places -on the coast, such as Dyfed, and that some made for the opposite coast -of Ireland, and that, by the time when the Cúchulainn stories -came to be edited as we have them, the people in question were known to -the redactors of those stories only by the Brythonic form of their -name, which underlies that of <i>Setanta Beg</i>, or the Little -Setantian. Those of them who found a home on the coast of Cardigan Bay -may have brought with them a version of the inundation story with -Seithennin, son of Seithyn, as the principal figure in it. So in due -time he had to be attached to some royal family, and in the <i>Iolo -MSS.</i>, pp. 141–2, he is made to descend from a certain Plaws -Hen, king of Dyfed, while the saints named as his descendants seem to -have belonged chiefly to Gwyneđ and Powys. <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e15229src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e15418" href="#xd25e15418src" name="xd25e15418">23</a></span> See -the Professor’s <i>Address on the Place of a University in the -History of Wales</i>, delivered at Bangor at the opening ceremony of -the Session of 1899–1900 (Bangor, 1900), p. 6. The reference to -Giraldus is to his <i>Itin. Kambriæ</i>, i. 13 (p. 100), and the -<i>Expugnatio Hibernica</i>, i. 36 (p. 284). <a class="fnarrow" -href="#xd25e15418src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e15474" href="#xd25e15474src" name="xd25e15474">24</a></span> -Instead of ‘she followed it’ one would have expected -‘it followed her’; but the style is very loose and -rough. <a class="fnarrow" href="#xd25e15474src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e15507" href="#xd25e15507src" name="xd25e15507">25</a></span> As a -‘Cardy’ I have here two grievances, one against my -Northwalian fellow countrymen, that they insist on writing -<i>Rheidiol</i> out of sheer weakness for the semivowel i̯; and -the other against the compilers of school books on geography, who give -the lake away to the Wye or the Severn. I am told that this does not -matter, as our geographers are notoriously accurate about Natal and -other distant lands; so I ought to rest satisfied. <a class= -"fnarrow" href="#xd25e15507src">↑</a></p> -<p class="footnote"><span class="label"><a class="noteref" id= -"xd25e15577" href="#xd25e15577src" name="xd25e15577">26</a></span> -Professor Meyer has given a number of extracts concerning her in his -notes to his edition of <i>The Vision of Mac Conglinne</i> (London, -1892), pp. 131–4, 208–10, and recently he has published -<i>The Song of the Old Woman of Beare</i> in the <i>Otia Merseiana</i> -(London, 1899), pp. 119–28, from the Trinity College codex, H. 3, -18, where we are told, among other things, that her name was Digdi, and -that she belonged to Corcaguiny. The name Béara, or -Bérre, would seem to suggest identification with that of Bera, -daughter of Eibhear, king of Spain, and wife of Eoghan Taidhleach, in -the late story of <i>The Courtship of Moméra</i>, edited by -O’Curry in his <i>Battle of Magh Leana</i> (Dublin, 1855); but -the other name Digdi would seem to stand in the way. However none of -the literature in point has yet been discovered in any really old -manuscript, and it may be that the place-name <i>Berre</i>, in -<i>Caillech Bérri</i>, has usurped the place of the personal -name <i>Béra</i>, whose antiquity in some such a form as -<i>Béra</i> or <i>Méra</i> is proved by its honorific -form <i>Mo-mera</i>: see O’Curry’s volume, p. 166, and his -Introduction, p. xx. <a class="fnarrow" href= -"#xd25e15577src">↑</a></p> -</div> -</div> -</div> -</div> -<div class="back"> -<div class="transcribernote"> -<h2 class="main">Colophon</h2> -<h3 class="main">Availability</h3> -<p class="first">This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no -cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give -it away or re-use it under the terms of the <a class="seclink xd25e45" -title="External link" href="https://www.gutenberg.org/license" rel= -"license">Project Gutenberg License</a> included with this eBook or -online at <a class="seclink xd25e45" title="External link" href= -"https://www.gutenberg.org/" rel="home">www.gutenberg.org</a>.</p> -<p>This eBook is produced by the Online Distributed Proofreading Team -at <a class="exlink xd25e45" title="External link" href= -"http://www.pgdp.net/">www.pgdp.net</a>.</p> -<h3 class="main">Metadata</h3> -<table class="colophonMetadata"> -<tr> -<td><b>Title:</b></td> -<td>Celtic Folklore: Welsh and Manx (Volume 1 of 2)</td> -<td></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td><b>Author:</b></td> -<td>John Rhŷs</td> -<td><a href="https://viaf.org/viaf/41967414/" class= -"seclink">Info</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td><b>Language:</b></td> -<td>English</td> -<td></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td><b>Original publication date:</b></td> -<td>1901</td> -<td></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td><b>Keywords:</b></td> -<td>Celts -- Wales -- Folklore.</td> -<td></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td></td> -<td>Folklore -- Isle of Man.</td> -<td></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td></td> -<td>Folklore -- Wales.</td> -<td></td> -</tr> -</table> -<h3>Catalog entries</h3> -<table class="catalogEntries"> -<tr> -<td>Related Open Library catalog page (for source):</td> -<td><a href="https://openlibrary.org/books/OL7078815M" class= -"seclink">OL7078815M</a></td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td>Related Open Library catalog page (for work):</td> -<td><a href="https://openlibrary.org/works/OL1685975W" class= -"seclink">OL1685975W</a></td> -</tr> -</table> -<h3 class="main">Encoding</h3> -<p class="first"></p> -<h3 class="main">Revision History</h3> -<ul> -<li>2017-06-14 Started.</li> -</ul> -<h3 class="main">External References</h3> -<p>This Project Gutenberg eBook contains external references. These -links may not work for you.</p> -<h3 class="main">Corrections</h3> -<p>The following corrections have been applied to the text:</p> -<table class="correctiontable" summary= -"Overview of corrections applied to the text."> -<tr> -<th>Page</th> -<th>Source</th> -<th>Correction</th> -<th>Edit distance</th> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="width20"><a class="pageref" href="#xd25e276">xv</a></td> -<td class="width40 bottom">GOEGRAPHICAL</td> -<td class="width40 bottom">GEOGRAPHICAL</td> -<td class="bottom">2</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="width20"><a class="pageref" href="#xd25e4747">xlii</a>, -<a class="pageref" href="#xd25e13438">330</a>, <a class="pageref" href= -"#xd25e13480">331</a>, <a class="pageref" href= -"#xd25e14330">373</a></td> -<td class="width40 bottom">[<i>Not in source</i>]</td> -<td class="width40 bottom">.</td> -<td class="bottom">1</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="width20"><a class="pageref" href="#xd25e5402">1</a></td> -<td class="width40 bottom">;</td> -<td class="width40 bottom">,</td> -<td class="bottom">1</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="width20"><a class="pageref" href="#xd25e6005">21</a></td> -<td class="width40 bottom">distriet</td> -<td class="width40 bottom">district</td> -<td class="bottom">1</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="width20"><a class="pageref" href="#xd25e7007">61</a></td> -<td class="width40 bottom">duetime</td> -<td class="width40 bottom">due time</td> -<td class="bottom">1</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="width20"><a class="pageref" href="#xd25e7779">96</a></td> -<td class="width40 bottom">Straỻyn</td> -<td class="width40 bottom">Stráỻyn</td> -<td class="bottom">1 / 0</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="width20"><a class="pageref" href="#xd25e9333">180</a></td> -<td class="width40 bottom">[<i>Not in source</i>]</td> -<td class="width40 bottom">‘</td> -<td class="bottom">1</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="width20"><a class="pageref" href="#xd25e9496">188</a></td> -<td class="width40 bottom">’</td> -<td class="width40 bottom">”</td> -<td class="bottom">1</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="width20"><a class="pageref" href="#xd25e9782">202</a></td> -<td class="width40 bottom">‘</td> -<td class="width40 bottom">“</td> -<td class="bottom">1</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="width20"><a class="pageref" href="#xd25e10322">221</a></td> -<td class="width40 bottom">Carnavon</td> -<td class="width40 bottom">Carnarvon</td> -<td class="bottom">1</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="width20"><a class="pageref" href="#xd25e11757">272</a></td> -<td class="width40 bottom">them</td> -<td class="width40 bottom">then</td> -<td class="bottom">1</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="width20"><a class="pageref" href="#xd25e13326">325</a></td> -<td class="width40 bottom">[<i>Not in source</i>]</td> -<td class="width40 bottom">(</td> -<td class="bottom">1</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="width20"><a class="pageref" href="#xd25e13579">335</a></td> -<td class="width40 bottom">Pilgimages</td> -<td class="width40 bottom">Pilgrimages</td> -<td class="bottom">1</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="width20"><a class="pageref" href="#xd25e14003">353</a></td> -<td class="width40 bottom">Narbyl</td> -<td class="width40 bottom">Niarbyl</td> -<td class="bottom">1</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="width20"><a class="pageref" href="#xd25e14393">374</a></td> -<td class="width40 bottom">mechdeyrn</td> -<td class="width40 bottom">mochdeyrn</td> -<td class="bottom">1</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="width20"><a class="pageref" href="#xd25e14415">374</a>, -<a class="pageref" href="#xd25e15028">383</a></td> -<td class="width40 bottom">.</td> -<td class="width40 bottom">,</td> -<td class="bottom">1</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="width20"><a class="pageref" href="#xd25e14780">381</a></td> -<td class="width40 bottom">[<i>Not in source</i>]</td> -<td class="width40 bottom">,</td> -<td class="bottom">1</td> -</tr> -<tr> -<td class="width20"><a class="pageref" href="#xd25e14923">383</a></td> -<td class="width40 bottom">vererid</td> -<td class="width40 bottom">mererid</td> -<td class="bottom">1</td> -</tr> -</table> -</div> -</div> - 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