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was Thomas Jefferson, whose ancestors lived at the foot of Snowdon, whence they came to Virginia. He was very proud of his British descent. Benjamin Harrison of Virginia, whose ancestors also came from Wales, was chairman of the committee which reported the Declaration of Independence. John Penn was born in Virginia, of a Welsh family. Stephen Hopkins, the representative of Rhode Island at the convention, came of a Welsh family; and John and Samuel Adams were of Welsh birth. William Williams, the delegate of Connecticut at the convention, was a Welshman. Francis Hopkins, the author of "Hail Columbia," "The Battle of the Keggs," and various other patriotic pamphlets, was a Welshman, and represented New Jersey at the Continental Congress. Robert Morris, the delegate of Pennsylvania, was born in Wales, in 1733. He was an able financier, and for a long time his individual credit was superior to that of the Congress itself. He died comparatively poor, having lost a great fortune in the war. Francis Henry Lightfoot Lee was a signer from Virginia, and of Welsh birth. Arthur Middleton was of Welsh origin, born in South Carolina. He, like Robert Morris, lost a great portion of his fortune in the cause. John Morton of Pennsylvania, a native of Delaware, was descended from a Welsh family, by his mother. He was one of the committee which reported the articles of confederation. Richard Henry Lee, of Virginia, was also a Welshman. He had the honour to offer the resolution declaring the colonies free and independent. Button Guinnett, a delegate from Georgia to the Continental Congress, was born in 1732, and was a native of Wales. He was instrumental in forming the State Constitution of Georgia, and was president of the State. Of the four delegates who were sent by New York to the Continental Congress in 1766, three were Welshmen,-William Floyd, Francis Lewis, and Lewis Morris. Floyd was born on Long Island, in 1734; Francis Lewis was born in South Wales, in 1713, Lewis Morris was born in 1726, of a Welsh family. He lost a large amount of property by the war.

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"Pembrokeshire," are very vague and unsatisfactory compared with the work of men who went before them and with that of men like A. N. Palmer, G. T. Clarke, and Henry Taylor in our days. It is impossible to write good county histories before antiquarians have done for every Welsh county what Mr. Clarke is doing for Glamorganshire, Mr. Taylor for Flintshire, and Mr. Palmer for portions of Denbighshire. There are many serviceable county biographical dictionaries.

George Owen's "Description of Pembrokeshire," dated 1603, and lately published for the Cymmrodorion by Henry Owen, is still, perhaps, our best county history. George Owen wrote a short account of all the shires of Wales in 1602. I copied his description of Merioneth from his MS. at the Bodleian library. J. M. EDWARDS.

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Aran

Bwlch y Groes
Clawedog

Kadair y Vorwyn

Bwlch Carreg y Vran

Aberdyvy

Bermo

Dyvi

Dyvynuy

Mowthuy

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broade Berthkelert,, Marlloyd 25

6. WELSH COUNTY HISTORIES. - Undoubtedly the best and most thorough of the histories of Welsh counties is that on the county of Brecknock, in three large quarto volumes, which was published by Messrs. W. and G. North, of Brecon, 1805-9. The author was Theophilus Jones, attorney and deputy-registrar of the Archdeaconry of Brecon, grandson of the quaint Theophilus Evans.

Meyrick's "History of the County of Cardigan " is a large quarto, of pretentious promise, but it is very disappointing in fulfilment. Jones' "Breconshire" has very important pedigrees of all the chief county families (though by no means always correct). Meyrick's "Cardigan" was published in London, in 1808.

66

Next in importance, we may class Coxe's History of Monmouthshire," 2 volumes, quarto, (1801); an inferior work (demy quarto) is Williams' "Monmouthshire" (1796), and Fenton's "Pembrokeshire," thick demy quarto, published in 1811. For a very complete "Bibliography of Local and County Histories relating to Wales and Monmouth" see a very scarce volume, "Old Welsh Chips," published and edited in 1888, by Mr. Edwin Poole of Brecon, author of "The Illustrated History and Biography of the County of Brecknock," and publisher of other local topographical and biographical works.

Merioneth does not seem to have been so fortunate as some of the other Welsh counties. I only know of Evans' "History of the Counties of Montgomeryshire and Merionethshire," (1810), and some articles in "The Cambrian Register," as well, of course, as the modern guide-books.

Caxton Buildings, Brecon. Sept. 12th, 1894.

EDWIN POOLE.

T was

THE TERROR
TERROR OF TWLL Y GARREG.

IT a mysterious, hungry looking cave, gaping ominously over the north end of the quarry, and only reached by a natural flight of steps formed out of the ledges of the rock as they abutted over each other. No one entered the cave who did not fix his eyes to his left as he ascended the few yards of gravel which led into its opening. For the yawning gulf which deepened in front of it dizzied the steadiest of the Disreputables, with whom Twll Dafydd y Garreg was a favourite resort. Sometimes they climbed into it every evening, more especially in summer, and invariably on Sunday afternoons. There, lazily smoking their shag, and exchanging the tales which men like to tell and women love to hear, they gazed undisturbed into the distance, where the ivy mantled ruins of Castell Caledfryn overlooked the slated roofs of the small town. Not that the Disreputables appreciated the soft beauty and calmness of the scene, or the copper coloured moors of the hills surrounding the valley, or the richly varied lues of the fields in the lowlands. They

resorted hither because they were secure from the pestering attentions of the rich spinster, who sought to save souls when the quarrymen had finished work, particularly in the street where all the Disreputables lived. Again, there they escaped the noisy hilarity of the children at home, and the family music of the chapel-going bricklayer next door, who taught all his children to sing in unison, and also away from the scornful lordliness of the pious.

"Yes," said the Poacher, reticent, selfcontained, "you may talk like a book, Tom, about your atheism, but you won't convince me that has no meaning."

As he spoke he directed his gaze to the blue sky, under which the glowing colours of the valley were toned with the soft shades of dusk.

"That ain't logic," answered Tom. He was an argumentative carpenter, fond of many things, but of nothing more than of discussing abstract theories which bore the least relation to saws and timber. “I tell you, chaps like Bradlaugh

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"Ah, yes, you were talking of him at

was Thomas Jefferson, whose ancestors lived at the foot of Snowdon, whence they came to Virginia. He was very proud of his British descent. Benjamin Harrison of Virginia, whose ancestors also came from Wales, was chairman of the committee which reported the Declaration of Independence. John Penn was born in Virginia, of a Welsh family. Stephen Hopkins, the representative of Rhode Island at the convention, came of a Welsh family; and John and Samuel Adams were of Welsh birth. William Williams, the delegate of Connecticut at the convention, was a Welshman. Francis Hopkins, the author of "Hail Columbia," 66 The Battle of the Keggs," and various other patriotic pamphlets, was a Welshman, and represented New Jersey at the Continental Congress. Robert Morris, the delegate of Pennsylvania, was born in Wales, in 1733. He was an able financier, and for a long time his individual credit was superior to that of the Congress itself. He died comparatively poor, having lost a great fortune in the war. Francis Henry Lightfoot Lee was a signer from Virginia, and of Welsh birth. Arthur Middleton was of Welsh origin, born in South Carolina. He, like Robert Morris, lost a great portion of his fortune in the cause. John Morton of Pennsylvania, a native of Delaware, was descended from a Welsh family, by his mother. He was one of the committee which reported the articles of confederation. Richard Henry Lee, of Virginia, was also a Welshman. He had the honour to offer the resolution declaring the colonies free and independent. Button Guinnett, a delegate from Georgia to the Continental Congress, was born in 1732, and was a native of Wales. He was instrumental in forming the State Constitution of Georgia, and was president of the State. Of the four delegates who were sent by New York to the Continental Congress in 1766, three were Welshmen,-William Floyd, Francis Lewis, and Lewis Morris. Floyd was born on Long Island, in 1734; Francis Lewis was born in South Wales, in 1713, Lewis Morris was born in 1726, of a Welsh family. He lost a large amount of property by the war.

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5. The first Welsh political paper was edited by the Rev. Roger Edwards of Mold. It was called 'Cronicl yr Oes."

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There is much interesting information about the Welsh press in the Rev. T. M. Jones' " Llenyddiaeth fy Ngwlad," to be obtained of the author at Penmachno. Full lists of Welsh newspapers and periodicals were given in the sixth volume of "Cymru."

6. There is a good history of the Dolgellau district of Merioneth, in Welsh, by the late R. Prys Morris,-"Cantref Meirionnydd,"-a carefully written book of 600 pages, published by E. W. Evans, Dolgellau. Dafydd Morgannwg has a Welsh history of Glamorganshire.

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The old county histories, all written ish, --Rowland's Mona Antiqua," Meyric diganshire," Jones' "Breconshire,"ton's

"Pembrokeshire," are very vague and unsatisfactory compared with the work of men who went before them and with that of men like A. N. Palmer, G. T. Clarke, and Henry Taylor in our days. It is impossible to write good county histories before antiquarians have done for every Welsh county what Mr. Clarke is doing for Glamorganshire, Mr. Taylor for Flintshire, and Mr. Palmer for portions of Denbighshire. There are many serviceable county biographical dictionaries.

George Owen's "Description of Pembrokeshire," dated 1603, and lately published for the Cymmrodorion by Henry Owen, is still, perhaps, our best county history. George Owen wrote a short account of all the shires of Wales in 1602. I copied his description of Merioneth from his MS. at the Bodleian library. J. M. EDWARDS.

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Meyrick's "History of the County of Cardigan" is a large quarto, of pretentious promise, but it is very disappointing in fulfilment. Jones' "Breconshire" has very important pedigrees of all the chief county families (though by no means always correct). Meyrick's "Cardigan" was published in London, in 1808.

66

66

66

Next in importance, we may class Coxe's History of Monmouthshire," 2 volumes, quarto, (1801); an inferior work (demy quarto) is Williams' Monmouthshire" (1796), and Fenton's "Pembrokeshire," thick demy quarto, published in 1811. For a very complete Bibliography of Local and County Histories relating to Wales and Monmouth" see a very scarce volume, "Old Welsh Chips," published and edited in 1888, by Mr. Edwin Poole of Brecon, author of "The Illustrated History and Biography of the County of Brecknock," and publisher of other local topographical and biographical works.

Merioneth does not seem to have been so fortunate as some of the other Welsh counties. I only know of Evans' "History of the Counties of Montgomeryshire and Merionethshire," (1810), and some articles in "The Cambrian Register,' as well, of course, as the modern guide-books.

Caxton Buildings, Brecon. Sept. 12th, 1894.

THE TERROR OF TWLL Y GARREG.

IT was a mysterious, hungry looking cave, gaping ominously over the north end of the quarry, and only reached by a natural flight of steps formed out of the ledges of the rock as they abutted over each other. No one entered the cave who did not fix his eyes to his left as he ascended the few yards of gravel which led into its opening. For the yawning gulf which deepened in front of it dizzied the steadiest of the Disreputables, with whom Twll Dafydd y Garreg was a favourite resort. Sometimes they climbed into it every evening, more especially in summer, and invariably on Sunday afternoons. There, lazily smoking their shag, and exchanging the tales which men like to tell and women love to hear, they gazed undisturbed into the distance, where the ivy mantled ruins of Castell Caledfryn overlooked the slated roofs of the small town. Not that the Disreputables appreciated the soft beauty and calmness of the scene, or the copper coloured moors of the hills Surrounding the valley, or the richly varied lues of the fields in the lowlands. They

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EDWIN POOLE.

resorted hither because they were secure from the pestering attentions of the rich spinster, who sought to save souls when the quarrymen had finished work, particularly in the street where all the Disreputables lived. Again, there they escaped the noisy hilarity of the children at home, and the family music of the chapel-going bricklayer next door, who taught all his children to sing in unison, and also away from the scornful lordliness of the pious.

"Yes," said the Poacher, reticent, selfcontained, "you may talk like a book, Tom, about your atheism, but you won't convince me that has no meaning."

As he spoke he directed his gaze to the blue sky, under which the glowing colours of the valley were toned with the soft shades of dusk.

"That ain't logic," answered Tom. He was an argumentative carpenter, fond of many things, but of nothing more than of discussing abstract theories which bore the least relation to saws and timber. I tell you, chaps like Bradlaugh

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"Ah, yes, you were talking of him at

the King's when your missus came in the other night," interjected Phil the impecunious, a blacksmith, who divided his leisure between bantering Tom and hammering out rhymes on the least provocation."

People who believe in creeds," continued Tom, ignoring the reference to his better half, "will believe in ghosts if it's ever fashionable. They mould their beliefs. into the shape of the time."

"I suppose you laugh at ghosts?" ventured Phil.

So does every man of common sense," responded the philosophical carpenter, absently.

"But you didn't laugh when you found yourself a prisoner here," snapped Phil, with a nasty emphasis.

"I know I didn't," said Tom, in a changed tone. "I was but a kiddie then. But, after all, the experience taught me the hollowness of ghost-belief."

"How did it happen?" asked the Poacher, who was doing twelve months at the time when the incident furnished the latest gossip at the quarry.

"It was like this," answered the carpenter, as he filled his pipe, an example of comfort which was followed by the two other Disreputables. "You remember that burning August day about ten years ago, when the old well,-pointing to the quarry, -was dried up?"

"I dont," replied the Poacher brusquely. He never liked a reference to the last decade. One of his peculiarities was that he was always silent as to his gaol experience.

66

Well," resumed Tom, "it was hot one Friday evening, and I came up here to sit down. I don't know whether it was in consequence of the air, but I fell asleep. How long I slept is a mystery. Anyway, when I woke it was pitch dark. For a moment I imagined I was dreaming, till I stretched out my arms and touched the cold, clammy rocks around me. When I realized where I was my hair stood almost on end, for it requires a cat to get out of here in the dark. Twenty summers had passed over my head then, but I felt as helpless as a child when I thought of the danger in front of me. I got up and felt

for my matchbox. I could find it nowhere. Then I searched for my pipe. It was not in my pockets, and in taking a step to the left I heard my heel crunch the clay to atoms. It must have dropped from my mouth to the floor when I fell asleep. I did not feel quite at ease I can tell you."

"Not so comfortable as at home, eh, Tom," interrupted Phil, who loved to harp on Tom's domesticity.

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'Shut up," growled the Poacher. Tom's experiences were getting interesting; they reminded him of the weary hours he had passed in night sporting.

"I must have been awake about two hours, as time seemed to me, when I heard the clock of Llanfair strike three. Suddenly the air became stuffy and close. By and bye I heard the dist int rumble of thunder, and then an occasional flash of lightning brightened the gloom. A few minutes after the rain came down in torrents, and for the next hour my spirits found companionship in the pattering raindrops, as they dashed upon the rock. Have you ever seen a storm at night?" broke off Tom.

'Don't want to," answered Phil, curtly. 'I have," said the Poacher, slowly. He had recollections of soaking clothes, empty nets, and pursuant gamekeepers.

It's one of the grandest sights on earth," continued Tom. "What a relief that thunder, lightning, and rain brought to my solitude! However, there's an end to all things, and an end came to the storm. Then followed the most fearful experience I ever suffered. The rapid swishing of the rain ceased; for a moment or two even the shrieking sound of the gusty winds died away, and the solitude of Twll Dafydd y Garreg became as heavy as the sorrow of death. There I was bounded in a cave five feet high, with six inches of gravel on one side to take me into the land of safety, and, on the other, about six hundred yards of space merging its deadly shadows into the valley. Add to this a darkness as intense as that of hell—

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"Thought you didn't believe in hell?" exclaimed his critic.

"I do when I hear such fellows as you," snarled Tom, a jubilant ring in his tone at getting in an effective retort. "Then, my

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