Welsh Journals

Apl., 1875. BYE-GONES. 217 April 7,1875. NOTES. HOWARD AND SHREWSBURY GAOL.—The Bast of Howard the Philanthropist, on the gateway of the county gaol of Shrewsbury, was placed there at the joint expense of Thomas Knight, Esq., of Henley, and Rowland Hunt, Esq., of Boreatton, in August, 1798, soon after the prison was built. It was the work of J. Bacen, R A., and cost fifty guineas. On the 6th of the same August the Grand Jury at the assizes recorded a vote of thanks to those gentlemen for the " appropriate and handsome dona¬ tion;" which was signed by Sir Richard Hill, as foreman. SCBOBBBS BtBIG. LLANFOR CHURCH.—In one of the editions of the Gossiping Guide to Wales, in the railway ride from Euabon to Dolgelley we are told that " On our right, as we pass Aberbirnant estate, those whose eyes are sharp, and who know the country, may detect Llanvor Church, an old and rude building about a mile from the line. On the inside of one of the walls of this church there is an inscription—'a VOSENI ARCH IT—which the author of Dissertatio de Bardis took to refer to an ancient and cele¬ brated Welsh poet, Llywarch HSn, who is said to have been buried under the wall of the east corner of the church." This ehurch is now in the course of rebuilding, and under the steeple have been fixed into the wall, above that sup¬ posed to refer to Llywarch Hen, three other stones, which were found in the old wall (not far from the east end of the church) with the following letters on them:— KPARH ooFEcIT K1599P There was also a beam taken out of the old church marked thus :—W : P: 1755, no doubt intended for one of the Prices of Rhiwlas. As regards the three stones, the Rev. John Peter, F.G.S., of Bala, is of opinion that the letters on two of the stones should be read together, thus :— " Kadwaladr Price ap Rhobert hoc fecit." On the third stone we have the initials " K " and " P " at each end, with the date "1599" between. The above mentioned Rhobert was Rhobert ab Rhys; " Rhobert Abad," as he was called in Welsh: Robert Abbot of Boch- raiadr, near Bala, — who obtained Cwmtirmynach, which comprises Rbiwlas estate, on the dissolution of the monasteries. The before-mentioned Cadwaladr was his son. In Robert's time the family (Prices) became Protestant, but the Rhiwaedog family (Lloyds) continued Catholics to the last; consequently there was enmity between them, and Cadwaladr Price built a cross chapel, or wing (in the wall of which the inscribed stones were found) at the east end of the old church, with a door facing north, so as not to enter the church by the same door ^facing south) as the Rhiwaedog family; or during service to be within sight of that family. B. QUERIES. WAGONERS' VOCABULARY.—Are the words used by wagoners to their horses the same everywhere, or are such terms as " Heet, haw, come'narra, wo-up," &c, «c. purely Salopian? And will some one well-informed on the subject give readers the benefit of a complete list of tne words of command in use by our waroners, and their signification ? Tau,. REV. EVAN EVANS (IEUAN BRYDYDD i«„fc vS?" "*£ l find a complete copy of the Rev. Kichard Williams's Elegy on the Death of the R«v. Evan x x Evans (Ieuan Brydydd Hir) ? A portion of it will be found in the first volume of the Cambrian Quarterly Magazine, p. 134. I am anxious to meet with the whole of it. Cochwilliad. OSWESTRY VICARS AND SCHOOLMASTERS. —In Bye-gones, Dec. 30, 1874, I expressed my belief that Archibald Guild stated in our local histories to have bsen appointed Vicar in 1694, and Andrew Guild given as head¬ master at the same date, were one and the same person. Also that the Thomas Jones, said to have been made vicar in 1697, was the same Thomas Jones who figures at the same time as master. Since then I have discovered a minute in some old Corporation records that prove this in the case of Jones, as follows :—" Thomas Jones vicar and school¬ master made [a burgess] in the time of David Lloyd, mayor." And this entry reveals another error of dates in our local histories; for Lloyd was mayor in 1694, whereas Jones's appointment as vicar is stated to be 1697. So if we put the appointment of Jones as vicar and schoolmaster back three years, as the MS. I quote warrants, it will give his appointment during: the year our local histories record that of Guild, viz. 1694. No doubt our local guides are wrong in this date also; for, as I stated in Bye-gones, Nov. 29, 1871, our Corporation recommended Mr Guild to the notice of the patron, to succeed Mr Wilson as vicar, in 169L How the Corporation had any right to dictate in the choice of a vicar I am at a loss to say; it may have been that they had previously suggested Mr Guild to the^Bisfcop as master of the schools, for it would appear from the-in¬ teresting memorial, given in Bye-gones, Dec. 9, 1874, that although the Corporation had lost the power of nomina¬ ting, at least they exercised the privilege of suggesting head-masters. Have we no parish or school records that will settle these dates ? Jabco. REPLIES. STONE IMPLEMENTS IN WALES (Mar. 19, 1873).—A mill stone was found hid, as it were intention- ally, in a cavity of the rock, with a' lid' on it, on the side of a hill at Gwastadagnes, near Barmouth. It was very little worn, and was not hewn OHt of the stone of the neigh¬ bourhood : it measured about 16 inches across. I have seen two others very much worn, and larger, being about 19 inches in diameter; one at Llwyndu, and the other on the premises of Captain William Price at Barmouth. I have also seen two others made of the stone of the neighbour¬ ing rocks, but one of them is so disproportionately convex on one side that it may be doubted to what purpose it was originally designed—whether it was not some anchoring contrivance : its diameter was 14 inches. While writing about these stones perhaps I may be allowed to mention one that was found recently in taking down an old building, which was } of an inch thick, and square in form, measuring 2£ inches. On one side it was ornamented with wavy lines starting from a dot in the centre. We supposed it to be some ornamental stone of the ancients. It is to be regretted we have not some Society to encourage the forming of private collections, or the establishment of public museums. Dk Bermo. • WELSH FUNERALS (Mar. 25, 1874, Feb. 24, Mar. 17, 1875.)—It appears to have been a custom to in¬ vite a number of aged persons to the funeral of the gentry in days gone by, and to present each one with a suit of clothing. Madam Margt. Godolphin, the last of the name that resided on their estate at Abertinnad, herself prepared dresses to be in readiness for twelve poor widows of the palish of Llansantffraid, on the solemn occasion of her funeral. The women who followed 55