Welsh Journals

Search over 450 titles and 1.2 million pages

f' 'OLD BRECKNOCK CHIPS." A Column of Antiquarian Chit-Chat relating to the County of Brecknock. NOTES, QUERIES, AND REPLIES, on Subjects inter¬ esting to Breconshire, must be addressed EDITOR, Brecon County Times, Brecon. Real names and addresses must be given in confidence, and MSS. must be written legibly, on one side of the paper only. JANUARY 21st, 1887- NOTES. FAEMEES' FAEE IN BBECONSHIEE. —About the year 1800 the following is described as the average fare of the "mid¬ dling " farmers :—They kill one beast in November or December and a pig about Christmas which are salted and roofed : this is the principal stock and capital for the ensuing year ; a piece of this, out of the pot, forms one day's dinner, the broth in which it is boiled with a dessert of bread and cheese washed down by water or whey, follows for the two or three succeeding days and flum¬ mery and milk and vegetables, as potatoes, turnips, etc., with the usual assistance of the brown loaf and skim cheese fill up the week ; butcher's meat, fresh, is rarely seen in small houses, and consequently when in¬ troduced is considered as a luxury. Q. TEAMPS IN BEECONSHIEE IN THE 16th CENTUEY.—This is how tramps and vagabonds were dealt with in our county and the whole of Wales in the 16th century. By 4 Henry IV., a statute which re¬ mained unrepealed at the time (the 16th century) when Wales was united to England, it was enacted: " that to eschew many diseases and mischiefs which may have happened before this time in the land of Wales by many wasters [gwestwr—unbidden guest], rhymers, minstrels, and other vaga¬ bonds, it is oi'dained and stablished that no waster, rhymer, minstrel, nor vagabond be in anywise sustained in the land of Wales to make comorthies [cymorthan--contributions] or gathering on the common people there." A few weeks ago our borough superinten¬ dent of police reported that during the past year 20,000 wasters had passed through Brecon. Truly a little of Henry IV.'s law would not be amiss in these go-ahead times. The Editor. THE CUSTOMS OF " LOEDS MAE- CHEES."—I find the following in Jones's Breconshire (1805) :— Upon the conquest of Breconshire by Bernard Newmarch and upon erecting castles in the county by the Normans, they compelled the tenantry to provide a certain number of cattle for the lord's larder yearly, in proportion to the quantity of land they held ; this exaction (in an insulting and sarcas¬ tic phraseology) they called " the benevolence of the Welshmen." The Vuwch Larder or memento of this custom or subjection is known and recollected at this day and the figure of a cow, rudely carved in wood, was until very lately seen over a window in the present manor house within the castle of Breck¬ nock. Jaeco II. THE MANNEE (MANOR) OF INA- HIOUEE (?) AND LLANSPYTHID, 1655. —I have just perused a very old document written on parchment in what must have been originally red ink, but now has a brick-colour appearance. With the help of a magnifying glass I have deciphered the whole of it excepting a word here and there. But the first-named portion of the manor is a com¬ plete riddle to me. There is no mistaking the name, because it is in plain old English text. Here follows a transcript of the document, which is 231 years old :— The Rent Rouile [Roll] of all and singular------rents from ye free tenants within ye manner to be payed to ye lord of ye manner yearly upon ye 29th September by ye highway iu court on ye first day of May, 1655, before Thomas Williams, Esq., Steward of ye said manner, by oath of ye said named and hereunto subscribed Hoo Games, Esqr., for ye lands called £ s. d. Tyr Kewen ........................ 0 8 0 For a sloape called fainfforddlas, now in ye tenure of Thomas William Lewis .. 0 3 0 Upon ye same for ye tenement called Tyr gonywyn, now in ye tenure of Henry John "............................. 1 0 0 Upon ye same for ye lands called Mynydd- fawr, now in ye tenure of Thomas Games, Esq......................... 3 0 0 Upon Mrs Mary Walbieff, ye late wife of i harles Walbieff, Esq., junior, for one messuage, lands and tenement, now in ye tenure of Jonett ap Harry, &c, late wife of John ap John Willim ........ 2 0 0 Upon ye same for one messuage, now in ye tenure of Thomas W. Lewis had from Thomas Jenkin Parry................ 0 3 0 Upon Edward Winter, Esq., for a mes¬ suage called Tynygarnvachan, now in ye tenure of Thomas W. Lewis........ 0 9 0 Upon ye same for a tenement called Tyny- pant gwyn, now in ye tenure of Thomas W. Lewis and his under tenants...... 3 0 0 Upon ye same for ye lands called Tynpn- ynhewl, now in ye tenure of Henry John Prichard .......................... 2 2 0 John Jeffreyes, Esq., for a tenement called Tyr Edward ap Edward, now in ye tenure of Richard David ............ 0 9 0 Upon Howell Jeffreyes, gent., for a tene¬ ment called Cumyllan, now in ye tenure of John Jeffreyes, gent............... 0 9 0 Upon ye same for Kaeyrpant, now in ye tenure of Richard David.............. 0 6 0 Upon ye same for Kae Llewelin Twy, now in ye tenure of Richard David.... 0 3 0 Upon John Jeffreyes, gent............. 1 1 0 Upon John Jeffreyes, gent., upon ye lands now in ye tenure of John Watkin Pheelipp .......................... 0 10 0 Upon ye same for ye lands called Kai yn G------ .......................... 0 5 0 Upon Howell Jeffreyes, gent., for ye lands called Ynyllwyn Duy, now in ye tenure of Richard David.................... 2 0 0 Upon ye same for ye lands called ye land, of John Thomas, Tylwyn, now in ye tenure of John Howel Llewelyn ...... 0 7 0 Upon Jenkin Griffith, for a tenement called Tyrhowell William, now in ye tenure of William Thomas.................... 0 3 0 Upon Llewelin Jenkins for a tenement called Tyrmawr, now in ye tenure of William Howell and Lewis Howell.... 0 6 0 Upon William Powell.................. 0 6 0 Upon Llewelin Powell ................ 0 1 0 Upon Howell Jeffreyes for ye lands now in ye tenure of Edward David........ 0 8 0 Upon James Harries for ye lands in ye tenure of William Howell............ 0 6 0 Upon Thomas William Lewis for one messuage .......................... 0 3 0 Upon Richard David for one messuage .. 0 8 0 Upon Richard David for another messuage 17 0