Welsh Journals

Classics and Philology. 45$ pile on the lobby floor ; without a shadow of suspicion that there was another like it in the wide world, and pretty Sure that that one would never be brought to light to plague me withal. Heu spes necquicquam dulces I By the aid of my earliest and dearest friend, W. L., who used to spend his holidays either at Pwllycrochon, or at " Old Evans', of Colwyn," this green dragon of a book was ferreted out, and in a few years, i.e., before I went to Haltoh's at ten, most of it was exactly where my Father had predicted. Q E. F. But in the meantime, I was imperceptibly un¬ dergoing a training still more valuable than "Propria quae maribus." I had imbibed Welsh quasi cum nutricis lacte, and was taught English expressly, besides the constant use of it in the family, my step-sisters being half English and knowing that language far better of the two. Thus, like many Welsh children, I became an early proficient in two languages; a very important intellectual advan¬ tage, which may help to account for our acknowledged superiority, cceterisparibusy to our neighbours, the "Saxon porkers" of Ivanhoe. But I had, in addition to this, a special leading to philological enquiry. My father frequently had intercourse with his rustic neighbours, workmen, &c, in the presence of English visitors, to whom he had to interpret the conversation ; and he would some¬ times call their attention, with honest pride, to the beauty and force of our Celtic idioms, and the difficulty of doing them justice in their lingo. This naturally led me to notice such facts for myself, and to question others. I was also present at justice business, which, from intimate knowledge of the parties, plaintiff and defendant, and the oddity of their complaints and excuses, were intensely amusing to an inquisitive urchin. Robert Edwards, of Groes, Shopkeeper, could swear conscientiously that John