of MSS. and books in the British Museum that are connected with Wales. I saw it, and think highly of it. It will be of great assistance to antiquarians and others, who will have to write Welsh history, &c. When this is published, then Glyn Cothi will undergo the ordeal of the press; but nothing will be done respecting it without your sanction and approval; and every sheet, as it is printed, will be submitted to you. You are rather cruel with respect to Deuma; rather waggish, I should say. I give it up. It is not to be found in the Bodleian Library, for I went there and looked everywhere. In my opinion, that is, I guess that it is somewhere in South Wales; but its locality I cannot fix. The Merthyr Guardian for August and September has been destroyed at Jesus College; however, I will try my best to find those in which Mynyddig figures, either in Oxford, or from my friend Mr. Henry Jones of Merthyr. Have you seen the prize poem-Taliesin's? I am not ashamed of mine after seeing his. I have written to Blackwell, begging him to have mine inserted in the Cylchgrawn. You take in the Cylchgrawn, I suppose; if not, in the number for April, you will see a portion of the Gododin, from Mr. Price of Crughywel's MS. copy. It will be continued. Your letter accompanying the last packet of L. G. C. to me, is dated December 31st, 1834. In conclusion, I scarcely need say, that whatever I can do for you in Oxford, I will do it with pleasure and readiness. The sooner you write to me the better, for I sometimes think of going to Bala, and to go if possible to Hengwrt, to see a MS. said to be in the handwriting of L. G. Cothi. However, it is an old MS. This information I received from Mr. Aneurin Owen, and I trust his information on this head is more accurate than it was with respect to the situation of Deuma. Yours very truly, TEGID. LXXVI. TEGID TO THE REV. WALTER DAVIES. MY DEAR SIR, my Christ Church, Oxford, I OUGHT perhaps to have written earlier on arrival in Oxford. I am now engaged in transcribing the glossary of Lewis G. Cothi's poems; when I shall have finished, I will send it to you. Would it not, at the same time, be better to send you the poems also, that they may be arranged for publication? I will classify them, as well as I can, first. I have a great mind, and will endeavour, to spend a week or so with you in October, in the earlier part, if I can leave this place, when we can consult each other, or, I should say, when I can consult you on the subject. My visit to Wales has made me to long for the land of my birth: yr wyf yn hiraethu am yr hen wlad. I am indeed tired of college life and its monotony. Ond nid yw Cymru hithau ddim yn rhydd oddi wrth ofidiau a thrallodion mwy no gwlad y Sais, ef allai: ond O! Gymru gu, mor deg wyt, Nef a ranodd i fryniau-yr hen wlad, Mae yn hon, ond eu mwynhau, You must excuse my extempore effusion; and as the Awen is upon me, I will add one more, for I cannot help it: Hiraeth, ysywaeth, y sydd-i'm dilyn, A mwy dolur beunydd; Ni ddaw dim, yn niwedd dydd, 64-III. I hope you have taken in hand the dialogue on Welsh Orthography, with Iolo foremost. I am glad that you were not aware that I was in the country when you wrote your last letter, for it is an excellent epistle. When you have leisure, do write to me again. Please to give my kindest regards to Mrs. Davies. With many thanks for your hospitality, I have the opportunity of sending to you the MS. copy of the works of L. G. Cothi, by Mr. R. J.1 The poems marked "H" have been collated with the Hengwrt MS. Mr. Jones will be in the country about two months, and will bring them back when he returns; and as I had rather trust to your judgement than to my own, in the arranging of the poems, which in a great measure you have already done, will you have the kindness, therefore, to classify them in bundles, in the order you should like to see them published, thus:-Class 1, Class 2, &c. Please also to pack together the rejected poems, among them "Molawd Mon," "Awdl Dychan Caerlleon Gawr," &c. * * TEGID. 1 [The present Vicar of All Saints, Rotherhithe, London.] LXXVIII. TEGID TO THE REV. WALTER DAVIES. DEAR SIR, Christ Church, Oxford. April 29, 1836. MR. R. J. returning to Oxford earlier than he intended, came away without having an opportunity of calling or sending to you. If you will, therefore, send me what you think will suffice for two or three sheets, I will set to work immediately; for I am weary of the delay. I remain, dear Sir, Very truly yours, TEGID. LXXIX. TEGID TO THE REV. WALTER DAVIES. I THANK you for your judicious arrangement of the poems, and your notes are invaluable. I could never have done justice to your department of the work. Everything shall be submitted to you before I send any portion to the press, which will take place, I expect, next spring. I have been so taken up with transcribing, that I have no time to attend to the historical part. I think that with the assistance of Bailey's Dictionary! I have been tolerably successful in finding out the meaning of words. I cannot tell you what wretched MS. copy I have to do with. * TEGID. LXXX. TO THE REV. JOHN JONES (TEGID). MY DEAR SIR, Manavon, June 7th, 1836. YOURS (dated London, June 2nd) I received this morning, June 7th, and I write immediately in return, that you may not expect a packet from me for a few days more; as I do not intend to send any until I send all your papers in one parcel, as I received it by Mr. Robert Jones of Jesus College. I thought I should be able to send it the beginning of this week, but several other calls prevented me: a tedious family pedigree for Burke's Commoners, &c.; thirteen Marwnadau on the lamented death of D. Pennant, Esq.; and thirty-two compositions by the Cymdeithas Llenyddion Merthyr Tydvil. The forty-five compositions are sent off, and the pedigree is required to be off this week. The compositions bore varieties of post-marks— Chester, Wrexham, Holywell, Denbigh, Bangor, Caernarvon, &c.; and what will appear mortifying to you and Caervallwch, &c., not one of the forty-five was written on the new-fangled system of orthography. Of course they had their choice, and they apparently decided, each for himself, and said, "Gwell yw yr hen." What I have been doing of late with Glyn Cothi is the classification of his poems. Class I, are those to the family of Syr Davydd Gam, Vaughans and Herberts; Class II, Urien Rheged, the family of Syr Rhys ab Thomas, K.G.; Class III, the tribe of Elystan Glodrydd; Class IV, the tribe of Bleddyn ab Cynfyn. These four will take in the greater number of the poems. I will leave the remainder, probably, for you to class together the royal class-the Tudors-Henry VII, &c. |