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ERATURE

EDUCATI

CATION

Magazine.

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UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE COMMITTEE OF GENERAL LITERATURE AND EDUCATION APPOINTED BY THE SOCIETY FOR PROMOTING CHRISTIAN KNOWLEDGE.

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THE CATHEDRAL OF ST. DAVID. THE early history of St. David's is involved in much obscurity: several historians have described it as occupying the site of the Roman station, Menapia; but from the absence at the modern city of all military works, or other Roman relics, it appears more probable that the site of Menapia was nearer the sea, on a sandy tract called "the Burrows," now covered by that element, which has made considerable encroachments on this part of the coast.

That the district now comprising the parish of St. David's was inhabited at a very early period, is, however, beyond dispute, from the numerous Druidical remains with which it abounds. In the fifth century it was called by the Welsh Mynyw, or Manyw, being probably a compound of the words Man and Yw, signifying small yew trees, which trees were formerly very numerous in the vicinity; and hence its Roman name Menevia, which is still retained in the title of the bishop, who is called Episcopus Menevensis.

The history of the present city commences with that of the saint whose name it bears, and to whom its origin is ascribed. The period of St. David's birth, a subject of much discussion amongst the learned, appears to have been somewhat later than the middle of the fifth century. Leland relates that he was baptized by Elveus, bishop of Meneria, and brought up by Gistilianus, his uncle, also bishop of the same place, which would prove it to have been an episcopal see, at least some years before David had arrived at maturity. After his admission to the priesthood, for which he had long studied under Paulinus in the Isle of Wight, he proceeded to instruct his countrymen in the great truths of Christianity, and to aid in extirpating the Pelagian Heresy, which first took root among his native hills. In these apostolic labours he displayed such unwearied zeal, and surpassing ability, that he was elected by his disciples, at a grand synod held at Llandewi-Brevi, in the county of Cardigan, to the archbishopric of Caerleon, in the place of the holy Dubricius, whose increasing age and infirmities rendered him incapable of sustaining the labours of the see. David, however, only accepted it on condition that he should be allowed to remove the metropolitan see from Caerleon to Menevia, at which latter place St. Patrick had already founded a monastery, held by David in great esteem. This was accordingly done by the consent of David's nephew, the renowned King Arthur, and Menevia was afterwards called by his countrymen, in respect to his memory, Ty Dewi, "the house of David," or, "St. David's," which name it has ever since retained. The archiepiscopal jurisdiction of David extended over the dioceses of Worcester, Hereford, Bangor, Llandaff, St. Asaph, Llanbadarn, and Margam. The first two became at an early period English bishoprics, and the two last being dissolved, the succeeding primates had only the bishops of the three remaining Welsh dioceses as suffragans.

The death of David, and the age he attained, are involved in as much obscurity as his birth. Most ancient writers, however, agree in stating that he reached the advanced age of 147 years. He was interred in the Cathedral he had founded, and many years after was canonized by Pope Calixtus the Second; but he attained not the distinction of patron saint of Wales, until a much later period. It were superfluous to relate sundry legends attaching to his birth and early years, which may be found in many of the old chroniclers; they are too palpably drawn from the regions of fiction to merit a place among the memorials of the saint.

St. David's suffered repeatedly from the incursions of the Danes. In 982, during the reign of Howel ap Jevav, Geoffrydh, son of the Danish king Harold, laid waste the church of St. David and its possessions; and towards the close of the same century, the Danes again landed, slew Bishop Morgenau, and destroyed with fire and sword the inhabitants and their property. The reigning sovereign, being unable to check the progress of these marauders, was compelled to purchase their departure by paying them a tribute of one penny for every man in his dominions, commonly called "the Tribute of the Black Army," and is said to have died of grief in consequence. But notwithstanding repeated disasters of this description, the city rapidly increased in wealth and magnificence, for which it was chiefly indebted to the many and rich offerings of the pilgrims who came thronging to the shrine of the patron saint. Two pilgrimages to this far-famed shrine were deemed as meritorious as one to Rome*. The annual amount of these largesses is said to have been so great, that the coin was divided among the members of the chapter by measure, to save the labour of counting it.

In 1077 William the Conqueror invaded Wales with a powerful army; but not meeting with any opposition from the natives, he, with his usual policy, changed his military expedition into a pilgrimage, and advanced at the head of his troops to this city, where he offered his devotions at the shrine of St. David, and received the homage of the Welch princes. It again fell three several times under the scourge of the Danish and Norman invaders, and at length, in the reign of Henry the First, a Norman ecclesiastic, of the name of Bernard, having been forcibly raised to the See by that monarch, in opposition to the wishes of the Welsh clergy, it was deprived of its archiepiscopal dignity, and its bishops, together with those of the other Welsh dioceses, became suffragans of the metropolitan See of Caterbury.

In 1180 Peter de Leia, then bishop, pulled down the ancient church, which, from the frequent assaults of the Danes and other piratical invaders, had been reduced almost to a ruin, and built upon the site a new church, dedicated, like the former, to St. Andrew and St. David, and which constitutes the greater part of the present edifice. This Cathedral is a cruciform structure, consisting of a nave, with aisles extending nearly the whole length of the building, a choir and chancel, north and south transepts, and a large square tower, of elegant proportions, rising from the intersection of the nave and transepts, and surmounted by pinnacles at the angles. The exterior, with the exception of an early Norman doorway on the north side, is wholly in the various styles of English architecture. The western front was rebuilt towards the close of the last century by Mr. Nash, and displays a fantastic intermixture of these various styles. The nave is separated from the aisles by five massive pillars on each side, alternately round and octagonal, with corresponding pilasters at either end, supporting six arches, richly ornamented in the later Norman style; above which is a double series of Norman arches, reaching to the roof of the nave; this is of Irish oak, divided into compartments, and ornamented with a carved pendant in the centre of each. The screen, erected by Bishop Gower, is considered to be one of the finest specimens of decorated English architecture. Beyond this is the choir, occupying the space within the four lofty arches that support the tower, three of which are English, but

"Roma semel quantum, bis dat Menevia tantum," is the old verse quoted in confirmation of this custom. It may be rendered, "As much as Rome grants for one visit, Menevia grants for two."

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the fourth, which is occupied by the rood-loft and screen above named, is Norman, and is supposed, from its dilapidated condition, to be the only one remaining of those upon which the tower was originally built by Peter de Leia. The chancel, which is separated from the choir by a low screen, contains a beautiful Mosaic pavement, inscribed with religious mottoes and other devices. Immediately beyond the altar-screen is a chapel, erected by Bishop Vaughan, in the reign of Henry the Eighth, almost rivalling in richness and elegance the Chapel of Henry the Seventh in Westminster Abbey *. The Chapel of the Virgin occupies the extreme east of the cathedral; it has been unroofed for some years, and is rapidly falling into decay. In the same condition are the aisles eastward from the transepts, which were greatly damaged by Cromwell's soldiers, those merciless spoliators of our most venerable and sacred edifices, who unroofed them for the sake of the lead, which they sold to one of their partisans, then in possession of the priory estate at Cardigan, who employed them in covering the church and priory-house there.

The dimensions of the cathedral are as follow:-
Extreme length, including the chapels. 2744 feet.
Breadth along the transepts
Width of nave and aisles

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184

76

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Among the monuments are several of great beauty and antiquity. The celebrated shrine of St. David, now scarcely distinguishable from other ancient tombs, occupies a recess on the north side of the chancel, consisting of three arches, in the ancient style of English architecture, resting on pillars of great delicacy and elegance, in the central one of which formerly stood an image of the Saint, those on either side being occupied by figures of St. Patrick and St. Denis. Beneath a horizontal slab were four quatrefoil holes, for the offerings of pilgrims, of which two have been closed; and the whole was formerly enriched with precious stones, and veiled with silken drapery.

Under recesses on each side of the altar are the monuments of Rhys ap Gruffydh, the last Prince of South Wales, who died in 1196, and of his son Rhys Gryg. The effigy of the former represents a man advanced in years, in a recumbent posture, his vizor raised, and his head supported by a helmet, with a sword suspended at his side by a rich belt, a lion rampant sculptured on his breast-plate, and another lion supporting his feet. His elegy, translated from the Welsh, in HIGDEN'S Polychronicon, conveys a curious illustration of the rhapsodies of

their ancient bards.

"O blysse of battayle! Chylde of chyvalry! Defence of countree! Worshyppe of armes.-The noble dyadame of fayrnesse of Wales is now fallen, that is, Rees is deed! All Wales gronyth Rees is deed.-The enemy is here, for Rees is not here. Now Wales helpith not itself, Rees is deed and taken awaye; but his noble name is not deed, for it is always newe in the worlde wyde.-His prowesse passed his maners, -his wytte passed his prowesse,-his fayre speche passed his wytte, his good thewes passed his fayre speche."

THE BISHOP'S PALACE: see p. 80. Another venerable, though less ancient building, is THE PALACE, erected by Bishop Gower, in the reign of Edward the Third. This building, together with that of the adjoining college, both of which are in ruins, presents a most impressive and picturesque appearance. "On entering the close," says Sir R. Hoare, "through a fine octagon gateway, they unexpectedly burst upon the sight, and form a coup d'œil which cannot fail to excite the surprise and admiration of even the most indifferent spectator." The palace See Saturday Magazine Vol. IV., p. 210.

seems originally to have formed a quadrangle, two sides of which only now remain. The bishops occupied the eastern apartments. On the southern side of this quadrangle is a magnificent apartment, 96 feet by 33, commonly called King John's Hall, which is entered from the court by an elegant porch, on the exterior of which are two niches, containing mutilated statues of Edward the Third and his Queen. It is lighted by lofty windows at the side, and a rich and curious circular window at the south-west end, formerly filled with painted glass. The eastern side of the quadrangle was "entirely appropriated to the bishop, whose hall was 67 feet by 25, and was approached by a handsome porch and flight of steps from the court, having at the north end a large drawing-room, and beyond that a chapel leading to the porter's lodge. At the south end of the bishop's hall was the kitchen, of a very curious and unique construction; it was an oblong square, 36 feet by 28, with a low pillar in the centre, from which sprung four groins, forming circular divisions, each division gradually lessening, funnel-wise, into a chimney, and including every culinary convenience on an immense scale; it was so contrived and placed, as to answer the suite of royal apartments as well as the bishop's, having doors into each t." This front of the palace runs parallel to the little river Alun, which crosses the close from north to south; but the most remarkable feature of these interesting ruins is the majestic open parapet, surmounting the walls, and which, rising to the height of seven feet above the ceilings of the upper rooms, is formed by a succession of arches, resting upon octagonal pillars with decorated capitals: besides its concealing the roof, and having been exceedingly ornamental to the palace, it afforded the means of defence similar to the battlements of a castle, and was adopted by the same bishop in his residences of Swansea Castle and Lamphey Court.

This noble building is indebted for its destruction, to Bishop Barlow, who succeeded to the see in 1535. He presided over it thirteen years; during which, in order (as it is said by Browne Willis) successively to provide for his five daughters, who were married to five bishops, he greatly impoverished it, even unroofing the Episcopal Palace for the sake of the lead, and thus occasioning so much damage to that magnificent structure, as to require the revenue of the see for twelve years to repair it; but this object was never attempted, so that now it presents a vast and imposing pile of ruins.

Robert Farrar, Barlow's successor, was, on the accession of Mary, burned as a heretic at Carmarthen, in 1555. The names of Laud, Bull, Lowth, and Horsley, among the succeeding bishops (the latter of whom was the 115th in succession from David,) need but be mentioned, to establish the claim of St. David's to number amongst her bishops many of our most eminent, and learned divines.

We make no apology for adding the following anecdote, connected with the spot; in the words of the ancient chronicler, Giraldus Cambrensis, "In clear weather, the mountains of Ireland are visible from hence, (i. e. from the Cathedral,) and the passage over the Irish Sea may be performed in one short day; on which account William, the son of William the Bastard, and the second of the Norman kings in England, who was called Rufus, and who had penetrated far into Wales, on seeing Ireland from these rocks, is reported to have said, I will summon hither all the ships of my realm, and with them make a bridge to attack that country.' Which speech being related to + FENTON'S Pembrokeshire

Murchard, Prince of Leinster, he paused awhile, and answered, 'Did the king add to this mighty threat, If God please?' And being informed that he had made no mention of God in his speech, rejoicing in such a prognostic, he replied, Since that man trusts in human, not divine power, I fear not his coming.'

The city of St. David's, exclusive of "the Close," is pleasantly situated on ground sloping gently towards the sea, and at the distance of one mile from it; it consisted formerly of five streets, but is now reduced in appearance to a mere village, the houses, with very few exceptions, besides those of the clergy, being small and meanly built. N. P. S. [Chiefly abridged from LEWIS's Topographical Dictionary.]

PROVERBS V.

46. What's BRED in the bone will never come out of the flesh. It has been well observed, that habit becomes a second nature. And this, with the proverb quoted above, by showing us the difficulty of overcoming evil habits, may do something towards checking them in the beginning. How solemn is the inference of the prophet! Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil. Jerem. xiii., 23. As the bough of a tree bent from its usual course returns to its old position as soon as the force by which it had yielded is removed; so do men return to their old habits as soon as the motives, whether of interest or fear, which had influenced them, are done away. "Nature," says Lord Bacon, " is often hidden, sometimes overcome, seldom extinguished. Let not a man trust his victory over his nature too far; for nature will lie buried a great time, and yet revive upon the occasion or temptation; like as it was with sop's damsel, turned from a cat to a woman, who sat very demurely at the board's end till a mouse ran before her." The same philosopher gives the following admirable caution:-"A man's nature runs either to herbs or weeds; therefore let him seasonably water the one, and destroy the other."

47. BETTER alittle fire that warms, than mickle that burns. "One may be very uneasy with a plentiful fortune, and as happy in an humble condition, for it is the mind that makes us either the one or the other. A plain, an honest, and a temperate industry, contents itself with a little. And who would not rather sleep quietly upon a hammock, without either cares in his head, or crudities in his stomach, than lie upon a bed of state with the qualms and twinges that accompany surfeit and excess?" Far from Jupiter, far from the thunder. Agur's prayer (Prov. xxx. 8, 9,) is a continual lecture to him that covets more than enough. Socrates, passing through the markets, cried, How much is here I do not want! That suit is best that fits me best, says an English adage, and one of our own poets has agreeably depicted the comforts of content:

The best and fairest house to me, Is that where best I love to be. They are not houses builded large and high, Ceil'd all with gold, and paved with porphyry, Hung round with arras, glazed with crystal-giass, And covered o'er with plates of shining brass, Which are the BEST; but rather those where we In safety, health, and best content may be, And where we find, though in a mean estate, That portion which maintains a quiet fate. G. WITHER, 1635. 48. BETTER half a loaf than no bread.

This is a self-evident, but not less useful truth. The following, however, which conveys much the same meaning, is more obscure, and furnishes some amusement in the act of understanding it; he that has but one eye sees the BETTER for it. The next is similar;

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51. Small BIRDS must be fed.

Which Ray thus explains:-Children must be fed, they cannot be maintained with nothing. It may teach proper economy for the sake of a family either in existence, or expected.

52. BETTER say, Here it is, nor (than) Here i was.-Scotch.

Another lesson of decent frugality. 53. BETTER lose a jest than a friend.

uttered at the expense of another's feelings. It is a misWit is always misplaced, and often injurious when fortune to some persons to possess a quick sense of the facetious, and a talent at repartee. We would, therefore, under the form of a proverb, appeal to their judgment and humanity, in which they are frequently not deficient, to check the light or unkind remark ere it rises to the lips. The Arabian maxim pithily says, Let not your tongue cut your throat. If the happy conceit must be formed, it will side within; or to treat it as we have been told to serve & be a good discipline of the mind to curb it and make it subcucumber, namely, to give it the pepper, and salt, and acid, and then to throw it out of window; that, is rather tɔ lose a jest than a friend; for He who makes others afraid of his wit, had need to be afraid of their memories.

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As Sir Edward, who hoped for something at court, was walking with his arms folded under Queen Elizabeth's window, she asked, What a man thinks of when he thinks of nothing? Sir Edward, who had hitherto been disappointed about a grant from the queen, looked up and answered, Madam, he thinks of a woman's promise. The queen drew in her head, and was heard to say, “ Sir Edward, I must not confute you! Anger makes men witty, but it keeps them poor." One more anecdote ; I knew' says Bacon," two noblemen of the west part of England, whereof the one was given to scoff, but ever kept royal cheer in his house; the other would ask of those that had been at the table-Tell truly, was there never a flout, or dry blow given?' To which the guest would answer Such and such a thing passed. The nobleman would say, I thought he would mar a good dinner. Discretion of speech is more than eloquence.'

54. An idle BRAIN is the devil's workshop.

We need not enlarge much on this expressive sentence. It is clear that all have something given them to do. Youth ought to be employed in qualifying themselves for the service of their country, or their friends, or for earning their future maintenance; and not only so, but idleness, in any person, is inconsistent with the Christian character, exposing him to many temptations to do evil. There is an old saying, The idle are seldom virtuous; and Idleness is the parent of beggary; and Bishop Sanderson observes," Idle gentlemen and idle beggars are the very pests of the state."

55. Every BEAN hath its black.

fect character? Socrates being asked, Who was the wisest Where on earth can we meet with an entirely perman? answered, He that offends least.

It is a good horse that never stumbles. And he, who has no cause for self-reproof, is indeed an admirable being, "A faultless monster that the world ne'er saw." Let the proverb remind us, (for we have higher and in spired teaching to the same effect; to be humble, to take heed as to ourselves, and to be cautious and tender in censuring the conduct of a neighbour. Lay your hand often upon your own heart, and you will not speak ill of others. 55. BEAUTY is a blossom.

A wholesome memento to the beautiful and vain. But let not this proverb, and the following, which is like it, give a false pleasure to the plain and envious; 57. BEAUTY is but skin deep;

For it is often deeper: the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, proving, in such a case, the consent of body and mind. And we have, in an ancient classic writer, "Virtue is fairer in a form that's fair." As a sad contrast to this is a French saying,58. Fie upon youth and BEAUTY not set off with humility. And the remark of the chief of satirists, who, however, wrote in the worst times of imperial Rome, is,"For rarely do we meet in one combined,

A beauteous body, and a virtuous mind.”—Juv. Sat. x. By way of illustration, we will give an old fable "There was a plantation of trees that were all fair and

well-grown, except one dwarf among them, knotty and crooked, which the rest had in derision. The master of the wood wanted to build a house, and ordered his men to cut down out of that grove every stick that they found fit for service. They did so, and the poor despised little tree was alone spared from the axe."

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59. 'Tis BETTER the dog be your friend than your foe. This is a Dutch saying. It has much of policy and worldly wisdom in it. And the author of A grey cap for a green head, in following it up thus advises us; Injure no man the meanest person may, once in seven years, have an opportunity of doing you much good or harm. Though we nave a thousand friends, we may lack more, but one enemy is too much." Let the proverb, however, be read in an enlarged and Christian sense, and in the charitable spirit of the Apostle's exhortation. If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.-Rom. xii. 18. M.

A FIGHT OF WILD BEASTS.

A TROOPER'S horse and a bull were turned out, and soon after were let loose a lion, and a tiger, and a bear, and a wolf, kept hungry for the purpose. The tiger crawled along upon the ground like a cat, and first jumped upon the bull's back, which soon brought the bull down, and then the great scramble began, the beasts tearing the bull to pieces, and likewise one another. The wolf and the tiger were first despatched. The lion and the bear had a long contest. The lion, with his teeth and with his claws, wounded the bear in several places, but could not penetrate much further than the skin. The bear, somehow or other, took the lion at an advantage, got him within his grasp, and gave him such a squeeze, as squeezed the breath out of his body. The bear then furiously attacked the trooper's horse, who was grazing all this while at a little distance, and not minding what was done; but the horse with his hindlegs gave him such a kick upon his ribs, as provoked him into tenfold fury; and at the second attack, a second kick upon his head broke both his jaws, and laid him dead upon the ground; so that, contrary to expectation, the trooper's

horse remained master of the field.- -NEWTON'S Memoirs. This happened some years ago, at Berlin.

THE SOUFFLEUR.

ON the south side of the Mauritius is a point, called THE SOUFFLEUR, from the following circumstance. A large mass of rock runs out into the

sea from the main-land, to which it is joined by a neck of rock not two feet broad. The constant beating of the tremendous swell which rolls in, has undermined it in every direction, till it has exactly the appearance of a Gothic building, with a number of arches in the centre of the rock, which is about thirty-five or forty feet above the sea; the water has forced two passages vertically upwards, which are worn as smooth and cylindrical as if cut by a chisel. When a heavy sea rolls in, it of course fills in an instant the hollow caverns underneath, and finding no other egress, and being borne in with tremendous violence, it rushes up these chimneys, and flies roaring furiously to a height of full sixty feet. The moment the wave recedes, the vacuum beneath causes the wind to rush into the two apertures with a loud humming noise, which is heard at a considerable distance.

My companion and I arrived there before high water, and having climbed across the neck of rock, we seated ourselves close to the chimneys, where I proposed making a sketch, and had just begun, when in came a thundering sea, which broke right over the rock itself, and drove us back much alarmed. Our Negro guide now informed us, that we must make haste to recross our narrow bridge, as the sea would get up as the tide rose. We lost no time, and got back dry enough; and I was obliged to make my sketches from the main-land.

In about three quarters of an hour the sight was truly magnificent. I do not exaggerate in the least when I say, that the waves rolled in, long and unbroken, full twenty-five feet high, till, meeting the headland, they broke clear over it, sending the spray flying over the main-land; while from the centre of this mass of foam, the Souffleur shot up with a noise which we afterwards heard distinctly between two and three miles off. Standing on the main cliff, more than a hundred feet above the sea, we were quite wet. All we wanted to complete the picture, was a large ship going ashore.

[Journal of the Geographical Society.]

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