Welsh Journals

May, 1885. BYE-GONES. 213 MAY 6, 1885. NOTES. OSWESTRY RACE COURSE,—The following extract, showing that the Race Course is to remain free, open, and unenclosed, is interesting. It is an extract from the Articles of Agreement, dated the 1st day of January, 1806, for the Innlosure of the Commons and Waste Land3 in the several townships of Llanforda, Trefarclawdd, Cyn- yDion, and Pentregaer, in the parish of Oswestry, and manor of Duparts, in the county of Salop:—"Provided always, and it is hereby further agreed, and declared by and between the said parties to these presents that nothing herein contained shall extend or be construed to extend to give any power or authority to the said Arthur Davies to take in, assign, allot, divide, or inclose any part of the waste land within the line of the Antient Course called Cyru y Bwch, otherwise Cefn y Bwch race course within the township of Llanforda aforesaid, nor any part of the waste land within the space or distance of fifty yards of the outside of the line of the said racecourse, or of any part thereof, as the same now is, or usually has been exercised and enjeyed, but that the same shall be and remain free, open, and uuinclosed, and proper public roads or avenues shall be left for the c mvmience of passengers and persons with horses and carriages going to or returning from the said race course."—The Earl of Powis is the Lord of the Manor of Duparts, to whom the Seigniory, Royalty, &c, are reserved. J. WILLIAM SALUSBURY, TYDDYN-Y-DDOL (April 22, 1885.)—I have had an opportunity of looking at some old papers relating to Llansannan since I sent you my former note about this gentleman. Hum¬ phrey Jones, the " book collector," evidently derived from the Joneses of Cadwgan Hall, Denbighshire; his mother was sister to William Salusbury, and through her he was a descendant of the more famous William, of Cae-Du, Llansannan. I do not however think that Edward Salusbury was in the line of descent, but that he derived from the Llanrhaiadr family ©f his name, some members of whom had emigrated to Pennsylvania, in the Stuart times. Their descendants remained there, for in 1850 Mr Swan wick Salisbury visited some of them, and also those of Captain Richard Swan wick (a Whitchurch man) who was attached to the forces of Sir William Howe during the war of Independ¬ ence. Being a loyalist, he returned to England, and died at Wem, and the tradition is that he was buried under the hearth-stone of the drawing room of the house in which he dwelt there. In a letter dated 1782 to his brother, he refers to Henry Salisbury, who had derived from the Nant and Llanrhaiadr families, as fighting on the American side ; and I see that a Robert Salusbury of Llan¬ sannan had married Elizabeth Holland, that they had a son William, who claimed to belong to the family of " Wild David of Llanberis "—and therefore Llanrhaiadr people originally—that this William had a grandson, Edward, who did go out to America, and that he had a grandson Henry, who may be the person alluded to by Captain Swan wick. It is clear at all events that neither of these came from the gentleman living at Tyddyn-y- Ddol. Redwabdb. MINSTRELS.—" Some time ago " (says a corres¬ pondent of the Mirror, 1829), "a discussion arose in the public papers respecting the right of the King's Sergeant trumpeter to grant licences to minstrels for carrying on their calling in London and Westminster. I do not recollect whether this officer succeeded in establishing the right, but the following account of a similar privilege in another part of the country is founded on fact, and may furnish amusement to some of your readers :—About the latter end of the reign of Richard I., Randal Biundeville, Earl of Chester, was closely besieged by the Welsh in his Castle, in Flintshire. In this extremity the Earl sent to his constable, Roger Lacy (who for his fiery qualities received the cognomen of h------), to hasten with what force he could collect, to his relief. It happened to be Midsummer day, when a great fair was held at Chester, the humours of which, it should seem, the worthy constable, witless of his lord's peril, was then enjoying. He immedi¬ ately got together, in the words of my authority, ' a great, lawless mob of fiddlers, players, cobblers, and such like,' and marched towards the earl. The Welsh, although a musical people, not relishing this sort of chorus, thought it prudent to beat a retreat, and fled." The earl, by this well-timed presto movement, being released from danger, returned with his constable to Chester, and in reward of his service, granted by deed to Roger aud his heirs, authority ' over all the fiddlers, minstrels, and cobblers in Chester !' About the end of the reign of John, or the be¬ ginning of that of Henry III., the fire of Roger being ex¬ tinguished by death, his son, John Lacy, granted this privilege by deed to his steward, one Hugh Dutton, and his heirs, in the words following :—' Dedi et concessi, et per hacpresenti charta mea confirmavi Hugoni de Dutton, et heredibus suis, magistratum omnium lecatorum, et meretricum, totius Cestershirae,' &c. Dugdale relates in his Monasticon, p. 860, that, ' under this grant, aod by ancient custom, the heirs of Dutton claim and exercise authority over all the common fiddlers and minstrels in Chester and Cheshire ; and, in memory of it, keep a yearly court at Chester on Midsummer Day, being Chest-r fair, and in a solemn manner ride attended through the city to St. John the Baptist's Church, with all the fiddlers of the county playing before the Lord of Dutton, and then at the court renew their licences yearly ; and that none ought to use the trade or employment of a minstrel, or fiddler, either within the city or county, but by an order or licence of that court!' I find, too, that this privilege has received the sanction of the Legislature ; for by the Act of 17 George II., cap. 5., commonly called the Vagrant Act, which includes ' minstrels,' under that amiable class of independents, the rights of the family of Dutton, in the county of Chester, are expressly reserved." It would be interesting to know when the custom was discontinued. Oswestry. ______ Vebax. QUERIES. CHANGING SERVANTS.—In some parts of Shropshire, including Oswestry and Shrewsbury, it is the custom to change servants in May; in others, including Newport, Whitchurch, and Wem, Christmas is the time. I believe May is the month in many parts of Wales, but will residents in Montgomeryshire, Denbighshire, and Flint¬ shire say what the practice is in those counties ? Infor¬ mation from Ellesmere, Baschurch, Kinnerley, and other parts of Shropshire would also be acceptable, and I hope farmers and others may be kind enough to give me the in¬ formation I seek. At the same time, they might say whether the " hiring-shilling " is given. E.S. THE CERISTMAS BRAND IN SHROPSHIRE. "In 1845 I was at a farmhouse called the Vessons, near Eastridge Coppice, the property, I believe, of the Earl of Tankerville. The floor was of flags, an un¬ usual thing in this part. Observing a sort of roadway through the kitchen, and the flags much broken, I en¬ quired what caused it, and was told it was frum the horses' hoofs, drawing in the Christmas Brand, which was