Welsh Journals

July, 1872. BYE-GONE S. 69 CUKE OF HOOPING COUGH (O.A. April 10, 1872).—You have given the cure by a ' Seventh Son' (O.A. Jan. 31), and the spider care. Here is another:—In a M.SS in my possession, written about 1816, the following occurs: "Wear to Putton Oak, in the parish of Stottesden, grows a thorn in the form of an arch, one em growing in Shropshire, the other in Staffordshire ; this is resort* d to by numbers in order to make their children pass u der for the cure of the hooping cough.1' Should this catch the eye of any of your readers living in that neighbourhood, perhaps they will say whether the "thorn" is still growing, and whether the people continue to use the above method of curing hooping cou^h.—D.Y.S. Oswestry Advertizer, July 3, 1872. MOTES. EPITAPH AT SELATTYN.—In Selattyn Church there is a monument to Sir Robert < >wen cf Porkington (now Brogyntyn), the great-great-grand father of its pre¬ sent possessor, with an inscription which somewhat resembles the Llanrhaiadr epitaph given by "S" in O.A. of 10th January last, but excels it, as some would think, in elegance if not in sentiment:— H. S. E. Robertus Owen de Porkington, Eques auratus ; Ex antiquo Hvvfoe ap Cynddelw, et Regis Oeni Gwyneth Stemmate oriundus. Probitate et fortitudme clarus, NulK infestus. Plurimis amicus. Bonis omnibus charus Dum vixit amatus Desideratus dum obiit 3tio Calendarum Aprilis MJDCXCVIII. V. QUERIES. BROOK-STREET, OSWESTRY.—In'deeds re¬ lating to property in Brook-street, Oswestry, I notice that about 150 years ago it was called ''Oswald-street, otherwise Street yr Aber, situate within the suburbs of the town of Oswestry." Can anyone explain how the name came to be altered ?—Pa jo. CATHOLIC PATRONAGE OF CHURCH LIVINGS. -In a little book called the Clergyman's Vade Mecum, edition 1709, it is stated "that any living becoming vacant, in the patronage of a Papist, in the fol¬ lowing counties" (among others Carmarthenshire, Breck¬ nockshire, and Montgomeryshire), the University of Oxford shall present, and among others, Shropshire, Cheshire, Radnorshire, Denbighshire, Flintshire, Carnarvonshire, Anglesea, Merionethshire, and Glamorganshire should any living become vacant in the gift of a Papist, the Uni¬ versity of Cambridge shou'd present. Were there any livings in Shropshire or Montgomeryshire at this time in the patronage of Papists, and were there any appointments under this Act of Parliament (I presume) or regulation?— Eorum. WITCHCRAFT IN WALES. — In Blagdon's Modern Geographer, published in 1808, speaking of the firm belief of the Welsh people in witches, it is said there were living (in 1808) two celebrated conjurors, or fortune¬ tellers, who were consulted by all the neighbours when their goods or cattle were missing; their names were Swuet Gorn, of Denbigh, and Dick Smot, of Oswestry. Are there any accounts extant of any supposed cures or dis¬ coveries effected by these men.—Eliola. REPLIED CROESWYLAN (O. A , Dec. 27, 1871, Jan. 10, May 29, June 19, 1872).--I have re.d the note about the early history of Oswestry (June 19), with much interest, but I know so little of Welsh that I can handy venture to remark on the difference in the spelling or meaning of Welsn words having nearly the same sounds. Although there are no ' sea-mews' within rtach of Oswestry, still, I think, it would be no stretch of a poet's licence to say ihat Oroesgwylan, the ' cross of the sea-mew' (which is a wailing bird), and Croes-wylau, meant prettv much the same thing. This reminds me of Childe Harold's beautiful song, when on leaving his native land he poured out to the elements his last 'good-night'— Adieu, ndieu! my native shore Fades o'er the wateiv blue ; The night wind sigh, th breakers roar, And shrieks 'he wild sea-mew. We have the tradition that Oswestry was the place of the death ■ f King Oswaid, who was nfterwards can >nized by the monks, and in support of such tradition we have the name of our town, and we have also St. Oswald's Well, and the fact that our old church was, unques ionably, dedicated by the monks to St. Oswald in very early times. That it was originally a monasfcry, as stated by Leland, is, I think, also .shown by the old square windows on the north side, which are of a style much more monastic than eccle¬ siastical. H. W. L. quotes Pennant, and in support of this there is an old survey of Oswestry (which I know to be authentic)in which appears a 'Cae-ner' (spelt 'CaeNe'), and curiously enough this field adjoins the present Maesyllan, or Maeserfield. where it has always been said the battle between Oswald a d Penda took place, and where Oswald was slain.—Scrutator. COL. JONES THE REGICIDE (O.A., June 5, 1872).—Your correspondent, N.W.S., copies from Notes and Queries a question put bv Jou.v J. L.ytting, of New York, relative to this Welsh worthy wh^ch is partly answered in a foot note to an article in the Camhro- Hriton, but I cannot say of what date, as I take it at seco"d hand Torn the Oswestry Advertizer of May 1, 1867, and in the newsp per no date is given. Tee article was signed " W.," and the note refers to an extract from an " old and scarce book," in which it is stated that J one* was married to Cromwell's sister; and states, "he w.is married, also, to Margaret, daughter of John Edwards, of Stansty, in the county of Denbigh, who must have been his first wife." The article does not say through « hich of these wives de¬ scends Sir William Jones and Jones of Nayland. Sir WiLiam Jones was the son of a man of no mean abilities as a mathematician, and a friend and protege" of Sir Isaac Newton, so the Merionethshire Roundhead has given to the world descendants worthy and honourable, and it would be interesting to know that they were descended also from the sturdy old Noll. I subjoin the whole of the communication I have referred to, as it possesses much local interest:— To the Editors. Gentlemen,—I enclose vnu a ropy of the original writ, return¬ ing Col. Jones (the reuicide) Knight of the Shire for the County of Merioneth Should you deem it worthv of a place in the Cambrian Quarterly Magazine I shall feel gratified at having placed it in yotu hands. To this I have suKj ined a -hort bio- g'-aphical Setch of Col. Jones, extracted from a somewhat rare work, giving an account of the trial of King Charles's judges. I have also added some brief notices of a few of the persons whose names occur in the writ.—I am, gentlemen, your obedient servant.—W. THE WRIT.—Haeo indeniura fact' in pleno com' comitat' Merioneth' tent' ap'd Harlech die Martis (vizt.) decimo secund' die Octobris Anno tegni dmi nri Curoli Dei grae' Anglie Scotie Ffrancie et Hib'nie Itegis fidei deffensoris, etc. vicesimo