the fand washed from the mountain; and in the reign of the latter it produced not lefs than 300l. fterling; at this period no inconfiderable fum. The art of coining was, no doubt, in ufe previous to the arrival of the Romans; witnefs the gold fickles of the Druids, and the coins found in Cornwall. Different forts of metal were ufed, but chiefly gold, being the eafieft fufed, and moft fufceptible of an impreffion. Dr. Borlafe has preferved a series of these rude but valuable coins.-Previous to the Romans having attempted to form a face or impreffion on their coins, the first we know of which was infcribed, is that of Cassivelaunus, cotemporary with Cæfar. As foon as an intercourfe took place between the Britons and the Romans, they began to imitate them, by putting letters on their coins; but no fooner was their conqueft effected than their coin was fuppreffed. Coals were a ufeful article, well known to the ancient Britons before the arrival of the Romans, who had not even a name for them.-Their ufe, agreeable to Theophraftus, was common three centuries before Cæfar, to the workers of brass. The vaft coal-pits in the neighbourhood of Flint, Northop, and Mold, have before been noticed.-See tour to Chefter. Mr. Ray informs us, that in Flintshire there is a certain vegetable, rare in other places, which here grows in plenty on the mountains, and in May makes a pretty appearance, with its white flowers. However fingular it may appear, it is not noticed by the celebrated botanift, Linnæus. The drinking horn, fo famed in Welsh ftory, is a large bugle, or horn of an ox, enriched with fculptured filver, and with a chain of the fame metal. There were three fpecies of them ufed in the royal court, and each was to be worth a pound.-See Leges Wallicæ. To drink out of the royal cup at great entertainments was only a privilege of the officers of the palace. On all all feftive days, the horn was emptied at one tip, and then blown, to fhow there was not any deceit. The jovial horn was a fubject of much wit and poetry in those days. The bard, Owen Cyveiliog, has celebrated it in a poem compofed immediately after a great victory over the English in Maelor. To how the spirit of Welsh poetry at fo early a period, a few of the first stanzas, &c. are offered to the reader's notice: the tranflation was given by a perfon of confiderable poetic talents. ON THE DRINKING HORN. Uprofe the ruddy dawn of day: By Owen's arm the valiant bled, Fill the Hirlas horn, my boy, Whose walls with warlike fpoils are hung, This hour we dedicate to joy; Then fill the Hirlas horn, my boy, Whose azure handles, tipp'd with gold, The fons of liberty. D 2 Fill Fill it higher ftill, and higher, Who oft has dy'd his fpear in blood: But when to fight he goes no more, The feftal fhout refounds on Severn's winding Fill the horn with foaming liquor, Now, my boy, thy task is o'er, Thou shalt fill the horn no more. Long may the King of kings protect And crown with blifs my friends elect; Where liberty and truth refide, And virtue, truth's immortal bride, There may we all together meet, And former times renew in heavenly converfe fweet. It It may be fome matter of curiofity to notice the celebrated heroine Ethelfleda, fo frequently mentioned in the Mercian history. She flourished, A. D. 907, and was the undegenerate daughter of the great Alfred, and the wife of Ethelred Earl of Mercia, under his brotherin-law Edward, King of England. On the birth of her first child, the feparated from her husband, and devoted herself to deeds of arms. She lived upon the best terms with him, and they both united in all acts of piety and munificence, restored cities, founded abbeys, &c. After the death of her husband, A. D. 912, the af. fumed the government of the Mercian earldom, and, like an Amazon of old, took the command of the army. She became fo celebrated for her valour, that she had the dignified names of lord and king given her. She built no less than nine caftles; he took Brecknock, made its queen prifoner, and stormed Derby. After a glorious courfe, fhe died at Tamworth, 922. -Her lofs was much regretted by the whole king dom. We find left on record the following lines to her memory: ilfleda, terror of mankind, Stampt thee in woman's tender frame, Wales continued the refuge of the ancient Britons, when the Saxons had driven them out of England; and there they preferved the ancient blood royal of their kings, their laws, and ancient language, from the fury of their cruel enemy. D 3 There There always continued an implacable hatred between the two nations; and though Egbert, king of the Weft Saxons, reduced the heptarchy to a monarchy, yet he and his fucceffors received no obedience from the kings or princes of Wales; but they held their own native mountains and vallies as abfolute monarchs. Here Cadwallader, the last king of Britain, and his defcendants, governed the people as their lawful kings and princes, during the whole time of the Saxon go vernment. When William the Conqueror fubdued England, he difpoffeffed the Saxon iffue of the crown, and brought in the Normans. When he had obtained quiet poffeffion of the kingdom, the Welsh took no notice of his conqueft over the Saxons, but confidered it as a struggle between two nations. Roderick the Great, who poffeffed all Wales, divided it between his three fons, long before the conqueft : one governed the north, another the fouth, and the third Powys. Thefe three princes would never acknowledge the Conqueror had any fuperiority over Wales from whence cruel and bloody wars enfued, and they made daily incurfions on each other. The lords, at the conqueft of the country, built caftles for themselves and towns for their followers, in the moft fertile parts. This accounts for the numerous caftles in Wales, as may be seen in the ancient charters. There were towns before the conqueft. They held their lordships of the kings of England in chief, and they were bound to keep their caftles with fufficient men for the keeping the enemies of the king in subjection. The government by lords marchers continued in Wales till Henry the Eighth, from which period the Welsh have been governed by the laws of England. CURIOUS |