Cylchgronau Cymru

JOHN JONES, GELLILYFDY By NESTA LLOYD, M.A., d.phil. John Jones the famous scholar and collector of manuscriptsl was the eldest child of William Jones, of Gellilyfdy, Ysgeifiog, Flintshire and his wife Margaret. William Jones inherited the bulk of the estate of his father Sion ap Wiliam" but apart from this fact little is known about his life. The testament of William Jones8 who died in August 1622 shows that in addition to John there were eight other children-Roger (who pre-deeeased his father), Rhys, Thomas, William, Pyrs, Elin, Jane and Katherine. These siblings were to figure large in John Jones's many law-suits. It has been suggested4 that in 1598 John Jones was an apprentice attorney in the office of a Thomas Jones in Shrewsbury since an arithmetical treatise bearing that date is written by him on the backs and the margins of legal documents emanating from Thomas Jones's office. Although unable to explain this fact I think it is virtually certain that John Jones was a pupil at Shrewsbury School at this time and not an apprentice attorney. The evidence of John Jones's schooldays consists, in the first place, of entries in the Regestum Scholarium of Shrewsbury School; under the year 1595-6 is found the note, gen. filii. John Jones iij s. iiij d. October 20. Roger Jones ij s. vj d. while Roger Jones paid a fee of 2/6 on 16 October, 1596. Secondly, Peniarth 361 contains two letters bound into the manuscript which show that William Jones's sons were educated away at school. The letters were written by William Jones to John and are exactly the kind of letters which a father might send to a boy who was away at school-including the usual parental exhortations to work hard5 To his lovinge sone John Jones at Shrewsbury geve these: After my hartiest oomendacions etc. I have sent youe by this berer Hugh David xl.s., that is to saye xxxij. s. vj.d to pay Mrs. Heryng to make up the xl.s. I delyvered to youe at your goying from home for your boord or diete and the other 7s. and 6d. delyver to your brother from me and your mother xij.d. the rest take your self to keepe your purse and towardes the money youe layd owte for horse meate at Shrewsbury also your mother sondes v payer of gloves that is to say, two payer for Mr. Baker and hiw wyfe and two payer for Mrs. Heryng and herr doghter and one payer for Roger also you shall reoeyve of this berer for your self one payer of bridches, one payer of wheit knitt stockinges and a sherekyn and for your 11 do not intend discussing John Jones's work as a scholar and copyist in this article which is intended only to give an outline of the events of his life using some of his manuscripts and totters as biographical evidence. *Sion ap Wiliam's will is not extant but there is a copy in the Register of St. Asaph Diocese now kept in the National Library at Aberystwyth. 2N.L.W., MS. 1622, Kellilovday, N. Mold, William Jones. <Samuel Jones, The Lives and Labours of John Jones and Robert Vaughan, Scribes of the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries, M.A. (Wales), 1926, p. 21. sPoniarth MS. 361 (iv), pp. 21-2. My punctuation. Abbreviations have been extended through. out.