Welsh Journals

Search over 450 titles and 1.2 million pages

Sept. 4, 18&5. BYE-GONES. white of the Tudor period, in many places richly carved. The whole is surrounded by a moat 20ft. broad. Stokesay was formerly held by the de Lacys, but about 1115 the de Says were enfeoffed of this property by the de Lacys. During the Civil Wars the castle was held for the King, but was surrendered to the Parliamentary forces. After the war it was partly dismantled, but was repaired by the late Earl of Craven. It now belongs to Mr Allcrof t, who has completely restored the whole building. The church was destroyed in the Civil Wars, but re-built in 1654 in the Early English style. It stands close to the Castle. The day was lovely, and the excursion a very interest¬ ing and enjoyable one. There were present Mrs Barnes, the Rev H. M. Clifford and Mr J. Clifford, Mr and Miss Dovaston, Mr and Mrs Farthing.Mrs and Miss Halliday, the Rev H. J. Wilcox, the Rev O. M. Feilden,&c. Among the plants noticed were Hemlock, small flowered Mallow, Meadow Saffron, Betony, White and Welsh Stonecrops, Sweet Cicely, Burnet, Saxifrage, and the large- flowered Hemp-nettle. CARADOC AND SEVERN VALLEY FIELD CLUB. A large number of members joined the excur¬ sion from Shrewsbury to the neighbourhood of Welshpool on Thursday week. From Welshpool they drove to Leighton, where they divided,about half going to Leighton Hall, while the rest, includ¬ ing several ladies, ascended the Long Mountain, under the able guidance of the Rev J. Sawer. The weather, though not sunny, was fine and the air clear, and good views were enjoyed of the Severn Valley up to Plynlimon, while the distant sum¬ mits of Cader Idris, the Arrans, and the Berwyn range were distinctly visible. Diverging to the left at the top of the road, the Beacon Ring was visited (1,330 feet) a circular earthwork consisting of a single embankment about 10 ft. high and 200 ft. in diameter. Here Mr Sawer read some interesting notes on the history of the place, including the fol¬ lowing :—" The Hargrave and Beacon Ring " : Ex¬ tract of letter from Rev R. W. Huntley, vicar of Alberbury, to Sir Richard Jenkins, G.C.B.— " December 11, 1840. I take the liberty as vicar of the parish in which the Hargrave lies, to give you what I consider the origin of that name. In the reign of Alfred, the Danes made, among their many invasions, the following campaign in Eng¬ land : They sailed up the Thames, sacked London, Reading, Oxford, and Cricklade, and that line of country generally. At Cricklade, fortifying their gallies, they compelled the Saxons to transport their lifeboats over the Cotswold Ridge, till they launched them in the Severn, a land carriage of some twenty-five miles perhaps. They then sailed up the Severn, sacking Gloucester, Worcester, Bridgnorth. Shrewsbury, and Welshpool. This campaign gives a good idea of what the nation then suffered, and of the wild and predatory mode of warfare which those Northmen or Sea-kings then followed. Alfred at this time was engaged with another Danish party in Devonshire and the west of England generally. He detached, however, one of the thanes, named Ordhelm, a name which, if interpreted, means Wielder of the Hammer. This personage led his forces after them, and at Welshpool slow-footed justice overtook the marauders. The Danes found themselves, after some hammering, compelled to entrench themselves in that very beautiful speci¬ men of Danish fortifications, Beacon Ring, on the Long Mountain. Here Ordhelm blocked them up. When they had been compelled by famine to eat their horses the Danes made a general sortie, and a battle took place in which they were totally defeated.fled towards Pontesbury, where they were again attacked and routed, and, in their final retreat, meeting with some forces that were sent to sustain Ordhelm, were finally overthrown at Quatt, near Bridgnorth. All this success, how¬ ever, was not witnessed by Ordhelm. He fell in the hour of victory, in the battle on the Long Mountain—no doubt having wielded his hammer with crushing effect. What became of his body is not stated, but the words the Har-grave seem to say he was buried there, ' Her' or ' Har' being Saxon for a leader of an army, and ' grave' as now meaning the place of interment. This morceau of history is to be found in the Saxon Chronicles."— Leaving the Beacon Ring the descent of the moun¬ tain was made through a wooded dingle to Leigh¬ ton Home Farm, and then along the " Welling- tonia " avenue to the hall. Here the whole party, numbering thirty ladies and gentlemen, inspected the fine collection of paintings by Turner, De la Roche, Ary Scheffer, Landseer, and others. Those who came earlier in the day had the additional pleasure of seeing _ the beautiful gardens and grounds, and the living kangaroos, emus, &c. At 5.30 the members were entertained to tea, and at its conclusion a very hearty vote of thanks was passed to the Rev J. Sawer for his guidance, and to Mrs Naylor for so generously throwing open to the club the hall with its priceless collection of works or art, and for entertaining the members to tea. — Mr Sawer responded on behalf of Mrs Naylor and himself, and the party then entered the conveyances in waiting and drove to Welsh¬ pool in time for the 6.45 train to Shrewsbury. SBFTJSMBEB 4, 1895. NOTES. PARISH FOLK-LORE.—May I urge the great importance of collecting and recording local vari« ations in superstition. lb would not be difficult to get a list of lucky and unlucky animals, plants, day8, etc., in each parish, and the lists would be of great value. And leb no one omit a belief from the idea that it is universal. It is equally important to note the absence of super¬ stitious ideas attaching to common animals, etc. Of course, all items should be duly labelled with the locality in which they are found. Could not a systematic effort be made to collect the parish folk-lore, say of Montgomery¬ shire? N.W.T. COMPLAINT OF ABOMINABLE IDOLA¬ TRY AND DECEITFUL JUGGLING IN WALES.—The following summary of a letter dated March 31, 1538, is from W. Barlow,