Cylchgronau Cymru

112 BYE-GONES. Sep., 1870. September 13, 1876. NOTES. SHIPPING IN WALES.—The Cambrian Register, v. 2, p. 418, gives the following statement of the number of ships, with their tonnage, belonging to the several ports of Wales, in 1796 :—Chepstow 33 ships, 2,401 tons ; Cardiff, 30—1,069; Swansea, 85-4,929; Llanelly, 63—2,681; Mil- ford, 13-694; Pembroke, 106-4,144; Cardigan, 255— 7,380; Aberystwyth, 93—3,544. In North Wales, Beau¬ maris, Conway, Carnarvon, and Pwllheli, 360—13,802; Holyhead (including Chester), 36—1,787. In the same year the number of ships belonging to Bristol was 168, and their tonnage 26,611; those of Liverpool, 567-87,094. Nemo. QUERIES. THE WISE MON OF HODGISTRY.—In an article on Wenlock and Madeley in the Sep. number of the "Salopian and West Midland Monthly Illustrated Journal," the writer, speaking of the belief in witchcraft, formerly so prevalent, says :— From a conversation recorded by a close observer of men and manners in the beginning of the present century, for instance, we learn that one of these wise men who lived as far off as Os¬ westry was occasionally consulted by the inhabitants here. Of course it was easy with a little tact for the wife to worm out the main facts in one room whilst the husband listened and sathered them up for use in another. Tom Bowlegs having missed a five-pound note from his cupboard holds the following conversation with a friend, who tells him he cannot help think¬ ing that the note has been mislaid, not stolen, and says :— " The five-pound peaper is not stolen but lost, and thee'lt be sartin to find it." " No sich thing Yedart," replies Bowlegs : " for I went to the wise-mon's and he tow'd me all about it," " The wise-mon 1 what wise-mon ?" " Dick Spot that lives slip side Hodgistry the yed ot aw the conjurors in Shropshire." " Aye, and what did he tell thee ?" "Well, thee shalt hear:—As a five-pound peaper was a jell for a poor mon to lose, I determined to know all about it, so off I sets for Dick Spot's house. After knocking at the door it was opened by an owd woman, as ugly as the divil himself, with a face as black as the easter. At first seet I thought I was tean to, and Mas for bowting; but wishing to know all about the peaper, I mustered aw my courage, and went in. ' Pray,' said I, 'is the Wise-mon a-whoam ?' 'No,' said she, 'but he will directly; sit down: I suppose you have lost something, and wants to know where it is.' 'Yes,' said I, 'you bin reet.' 'What is it that you have lost?' So I up and tow'd her, aw J abowt it. Just as I had finished, in comes the wise-mon ; and ! he (to my great surprise) said—'Follow me into this room'; while I was scraping with mi foot, dewking mi yed, and stroking j my yarr down, amounting altogether to a nation fine beawe, he said—' I was consulting the planets this morning, and found | that a £o Shifnal bank note had been stolen from under a sugar bason in your cupboard on Wednesday morning last, between the hours of nine and ten o'clock, by a tall mon, with a long visage marked by the small pox, gray eyes, and black beard.' ' Won¬ derful,' said 1, ' that i3 the very mon I suspect !' ' You will therefore, on your return home, make it known in his neigh¬ bourhood that if the bill is not returned in one week from this day, that he will lose one of his legs in a few weeks after. If this comes to his ears I have no deubfc the bill will be re¬ turned immediately, but if he does not, he shall be marked as I have told you, and in that case the bill will be irre¬ coverable. I knew by the planets that you would be here at 12 o'clock to-day, and having overstaid my time at Hodgistry (here he wiped the sweat from his face), I ran all the way to be in time to meet you.' " Where did Dick Spot live, and are there any good stories afloat about him 2 Ell. REPLIES. LOWER CROSS KEYS INN, OSWESTRY (Aug. 16,1876).—More than half a century ago the Grapes Inn, Willow-street, was called the "Little Cross Keys." J.W. CHARITY SCHOOLS in 1712 (Aug. 9, 1876)- Shrewsbury, Shropshire. Here are 4 schools wherein are 140 poor children, besides above 40 more in the suburbs or Abby. The subscription is above £70 per annum; the 140 are clothed and a few have been put out apprentices by particular contributions and other means. Lidbury North, Shropshire. A school for all the poor children of the parish, founded by Mr Shipman, who was servant to a gentleman in that parish, and gave £200 to this good use, the interest of which money is constantly paid by the de¬ scendants of the gentleman whom Mr Shipman served. Mainston, Shropshire. A school for 35 poor children. 'Tis well encouraged for a beginning, and likely to improve under the present management. There is a achool set up in another part of the parish for teaching 6 children. J.P.E. REV WALTER DAVIES (GWALLTER MECHAIN.) (Sept. 6, 1876.) Walter's muse was ever at the service of his poorer friends, and requests from the poor for assistance vould now and again be made through Walter in one of his original songs, I present one of this class not as having particularly any merit but as being one of his very earliest productions in the English language, (See appendix in future number.) Walter Davies's knowledge of timber and timber valuing soon became known. " To measure timber " was considered an accomplishment that few men attained to. Shon Stokes of Oswestry was the great authority on timber, he being partly commissioned at this time to buy timber from the Montgomeryshire owners for the government yards of Deptford ani Plymouth. But Walter Davies had also much of the confidence of timber growers and sellers of his district, and we are not surprised to know that during his Llanfechain experience he was employed to measure and value oak timber on part of Sir W. W. Wynn's estate. Those who have read his "General view of the Agriculture of iVorth Wales" will perceive that he had a practical knowledge of the timber trade and timber work. Whilst* a cooper at Llanfechain he sought informa¬ tion from every source, and as all the help he could get to perfect himself as a Welsh poet and master of the 24 meters and rules of Welsh alliteration was mainly if not only to be had orally, his task must have been a. very difficult one. Unfortunately for Walter Davies he just came on the field when all the bright lights of the 18th century had been extinguished. Lewis Morris, of Anglesea, and William Wynn, of Llangynhafal, were dead. Goronwy Owen had left Oswestry and his country in disappointment for America! The " Prydydd Hir " was a wandering outcast and a homeless vagrant! And now Jonathan Hughes, Twm o'r Nant, and Harri of Craig y gatb—men of no scholarly attainments, but of ready awen, were the only authorities in Walter Davies's younger days. There was therefore nothing for him to do if he would know anything of Dafydd Ab Edmwnd's fixed rules but to consult his little neighbour, "Harri Bach o Graig y gath." So one morning Walter Davies is seen trudgiiag along through Llanfyllin for Llanfihangel, and thence for Craig / gatb. On his way he called at Evel Lwydiarth public house, for refreshments, where he asked the waitress in rhyme for the same. Hereupon the young girl cried out,