frowning in gloom or illuminated by the radiance of the mid-day sun. Often have I drunk in the joy of such a scene as this; and many are the years which must elapse, ere I forget the magnificence of the prospect, which is seen from the Pont Vawr at Dolgellau. So Having crossed the river, we arrive opposite the residence of a very important person at Dolgellau,-of Richard Pughe, GuideGeneral to all the curiosities, natural and unnatural, near the town. His office is not so despicable as it would at first sight appear; nor is it devoid of emolument, as Richard, I dare say, can easily testify. And he well merits his appointment; for a more civil, attentive, and careful creature no where exists. But, while I thus do justice to living merit, I must not overlook the virtues of Richard's departed predecessor, Old Robin Edwards. He, honest man, was ductor ductorum, the guide of guides. antique was his appearance, so assiduous his attention, so copious his traditionary lore and antiquarianism, so kind and eccentric his disposition, and so various his virtues, that I am afraid it will be long, very long, ere the flourishing capital of Merionethshire be again honoured by such a concatenation of good qualities in an individual, so old and weather-beaten as was poor Robin. However, meliora speramus: we hope for the best. Richard is now in the very vigour of life, and, by perseverance, he may become every whit as accomplished as his hitherto matchless prototype. Turning to the left, after having passed the bridge, we proceed straight along the road, leaving on our right the snug residence of Major Edwards, who very creditably filled the office of high sheriff of Merioneth, two years ago. About a mile and a half from the town we reach Hengwṛt, a mansion belonging to Colonel Vaughan, brother to the hospitable proprietor of Naunau. Here there was formerly a very rare collection of documents, both in print and manuscript, relating to the history, antiquities, and literature of the Principality: the greatest portion have been removed to Rug, another estate belonging to the colonel, and that on which he now resides. The house is situated on an acclivity just above the Barmouth road on the right, and overlooks the beautiful village and fair vale of Llanelltyd. The woods around it contain some capital timber; and the estate, although not very extensive, is, on this account, of considerable value. Many years have not elapsed since the halls of Hengwrt, silent and unfrequemted as they now are, echoed loudly to the shout of mirth and good cheer. Famous were the dinners given there,-excellent was the wine, and potent the cwrw consumed there,—and merry were the catches carolled there. But tempora mutamur.—We cannot, however, continue the verse,-nos et mutamur in illis; for the gallant and generous owner of Hengwrt is too true a Welshman to restrain his liberality, and Rug is now the scene of Cambro-British festivity. The reader must bear in recollection that Hengwrt was the residence of our learned and indefatigable antiquary, Robert Vaughan; and, if I mistake not, the noble collection of Welsh literature was chiefly amassed by the industry of our erudite countryman *. Just beyond the gate which leads to Hengwrt is a path reaching to the decayed ruins of Vanner, already mentioned in the CAMBRO-BRITONT; and nearly contiguous is Llanelltyd bridge, a neat structure, over the Mawddach, here not more than thirty yards in breadth. The prospect from this spot is by no means so grand and extensive as that from the Pont-Vawr at Dolgellau. Still, however, it is not without beauty; and ten minutes, spent in viewing it, would be passed pleasantly enough by the genuine admirers of nature. Passing over the bridge, we turn to the left, and enter a region so wild and romantic, so exuberant in all the fantastic varieties of nature, that any thing like adequate description were impossible. At one moment the traveller is shut in between high banks, with merely the narrow and winding road before him,-at another, he is elevated far above the calın surface of the Mawddach, which he sees beneath him, rolling his monarchy of waters" towards the sea: 66 - One glowing green expanse, Save where along the bending line of shore Such hue is thrown, as when the peacock's neck Embath'd in emerald glory. There are not many tracts in Wales of equal distance with the road from Dolgellau to Barmouth, where so much beautiful scenery is to be seen. The approach to the latter too is in unison with the rich sublime landscape. The road, just before the entrance to the town, is cut on the declivity of a hill, and only separated from the river below by a tottering stone-work. The opposite shore presents a fine view of the hills of Celynin and Arthog, while the river itself, here about two miles broad, is † Vol. i. p. 306.-ED. * See vol. i. p. 411. in the note.-ED... enlivened by numerous little skiffs, containing, for the most part, parties of pleasure. But, after this lovely and inspiriting view, let not the stranger picture to himself an equal portion of loveliness in Barmouth itself; if he does, most grievously will he be mistaken. It has few good houses, and only one inn; the "streets are wofully dirty and disagreeable, and crowded, withal, with fine, fat, unwieldy porkers, on the breed and rearing of which the Barmouthians pride themselves not a little. But the magnificent scenery in the vicinity is some compensation for these désagrémens; and a person may very well continue to spend a week or two there, at the risk of a little ennui and heaviness. When a stranger visits Barmouth, let him by no means neglect to return to Dolgellau by water. The full beauty of the prospect along the banks of the Mawddach, on either side, can never be imagined or described. It is one wide picture of all that is grand, and majestic, and lovely in nature. MERVINIUS. CRITICISM. The HISTORIA BRITTONUM, commonly attributed to NENNIUS, from a MS. lately discovered in the Library of rhe Vatican Palace at Rome, with an ENGLISH VERSION and Fac Simile of the Original; NOTES and ILLUSTRATIONS by the Rev. W. GUNN, B. D. LONDON, 1819. WHATEVER may be the general opinion of the History ascribed to Nennius, or whatever may be the value and authenticity of the information it contains, there can be no doubt that much credit is due to the individual, who shall undertake the illustration of a work, acknowledged to be, in no small degree, distinguished by its obscurity. To investigate the causes of this obscurity is beyond the design of the present article; but it may be generally and safely assumed, that much of it has arisen from the carelesness and illiterateness of transcribers, and, above all, from their total ignorance of the language and history of that people, to whom Nennius's imputed work particularly relates. Whoever, therefore, should successfully rescue this ancient chronicle from the confusion, in which it has been obviously involved, would have a strong claim on the gratitude of those, who can appreciate and admire the literary stores of antiquity. And even the attempt to effect this would not be without its due merit. For these reasons the recent edition of Nennius, by Mr. Gunn, is particularly entitled to notice, and especially in a publication exclusively devoted to the promulgation of every thing, that has reference to the early lore of the Cymry. The following is the account which Mr. Gunn gives of the newly-discovered MS., from which his translation is made, and with which it may be necessary to commence the notice of his performance. “The editor, some years since, during a residence in Rome, obtained permission to seach the library of the Vatican palace, for manuscripts relating to the history and affairs of this country. In the course of this interesting employment, an ancient exemplar of the ▾ Historia Brittonum' was discovered. Presuming that one, which dates much higher than any hitherto known, might be free from the inaccuracies and interpolations, long complained of in those of more recent date, a copy was procured; and it is this work to which the attention of the reader is solicited. "The original is on parchment, fairly written in double columns, and fills ten pages of a miscellaneous volume, of the folio size. Great care has been taken to obtain a faithful transcript of it: the orthography, however erroneous, is preserved, the capital and small letters correspond with the original; there is the same division of paragraphs; the forms of the points, and the location of them, though no guide to the sense, have one common resemblance; nor, except in a few instances, are any orthographical corrections attempted. So dry and abrupt is the style, as to set a literal version at defiance; in that, now offered, the meaning of the author is, I trust, preserved. I once entertained a doubt as to the propriety of one, since the perusal of the work will be limited to that description of readers, who will never refer to a translation as an authority, when the original is before them. "Respecting the age of the manuscript, the reader is, in the course of it, thrice referred to the tenth century; and the gentlemen, officially employed in the library, were unanimous in assigning it to that period. From the title 'Alexandriana,' we learn, that this manuscript once belonged to that extraordinary personage, Alexandria Christina, who, in whatever country she visited, after she had abdicated the throne of Sweden, suffered no literary curiosity to pass unappropriated, which she could obtain, either by recompense or favour. When in France she purchased the Petavian library; and, from a note on one of the leaves of the manuscript, it is said to have been procured by Alexander Petavius, from the monastery of St. Germain. Together with the spoils of the libraries of Prague and Dresden, (the gift of her father Gustavus Adolphus,) she bequeathed her collection to Pope Alexander the Eighth, who, with the addition of his private library, deposited the whole in the Vatican." And he afterwards tells us that "The present manuscript varies not, as to general import, from the copies of the Historia Brittonum' already known. It differs from those edited by Gale (Scrip. xv.) and Bertram (Scrip. iii.) in certain transpotisions of the subject-in the omission of two introductory prefaces-in not acknowledging the assistance of Samuel Bewly, (the reputed master of Nennius,)-in detaching the life of St. Patrick from the body of the work, and placing it at the end." The rest of the Preface is occupied partially with a parallel between this translation and the copy of Nennius edited by Bertram, "not only as being the latest but because it exhibits marks of care and diligence superior to all others." To this parallel succeed some ingenious remarks on the "origin of romantic fiction in Britain," a subject, unquestionably, of curious interest, and not wholly without its utility. But, as it is also one of peculiar uncertainty, a writer may reasonably be excused, if he should be found occasionally to wander too far into the seductive lands of hypothesis. Thus it appears, that Mr. Gunn has perhaps gone somewhat astray in adopting the fancies of those authors, who have attempted to convert the simple and unadorned fabric of bardism into the wild and enchanted temple of magic. Romantic fiction, wherever it may have had its birth, formed no necessary part of the ancient system of Druidism, which, being emphatically founded in truth *, could never have been the parent of fable and romance. That some traditions exist, which seem to countenance a contrary supposition, is not to be denied ;-but it remains to be proved, that they were ever recognised by the bards in their institutional character. Among these are the Mabinogion, or Romantic Tales, the origin of which, however, there does not appear any substantial reason for ascribing, with Mr. Gunn, to the Druids, at least not as "Institutional Tales." Yet this diminishes nothing from their value; wherefore, the following account of these very curious remains of Welsh literature cannot fail to be in the highest degree interesting, and more especially as the English public seem, in general, to be wholly unconscious of their existence. The passage, here extracted, occurs in a note on that part of the Preface, which relates to the origin of romantic fiction," and the name, by which it is sanctioned, must necessarily give it the stamp of authority. See CAMBRO-BRITON, vol, i. p. 450. |