overflowed by the waters of the sea, or of a river. Taff's Well, in
Glamorganshire, a pleasant walk from Cardiff, is situated practically
in the bed of the river Taff. One must wade through running water to
reach it, except in the summer season, when the water in the river is
very low. A rude hut of sheet iron has been built over it. This well
is still noted for its merits in healing rheumatism and kindred
ailments. The usual stories are told of miraculous cures. A primitive
custom of the place is that when men are bathing at this well they
shall hang a pair of trousers outside the hut; women, in their turn,
must hang out a petticoat or bonnet.
At Newton Nottage, Glamorganshire, a holy well called Sanford's is so
situated that the water is regulated in the well by the ocean tides.
From time immemorial wondrous tales have been told of this well, how
it ebbs and flows daily in direct contrariety to the tidal ebb and
flow. The bottom of the well is below high-water mark on the beach,
where it has an outlet into the sea. At very low tides in the summer,
when the supply of water in the well is scanty, it becomes dry for an
hour or two after low water. When the ocean tide rises, the sea-water
banks up and drives back the fresh water, and the well fills again and
its water rises. The villagers are accustomed to let the well-water
rise through what they call the 'nostrils of the well,' and become
settled a little before they draw it. Of course this phenomenon has
been regarded as something supernatural by the ignorant for ages, and
upon the actual visible phenomena have been built a number of magical
details of a superstitious character.
XIV.
The wide prevalence of some form of water-worship among Aryan peoples
is a fact of great significance. Superstitions in connection with
British wells are generally traceable to a Druidic origin. The worship
of natural objects in which the British Druids indulged, particularly
as regards rivers and fountains, probably had a connection with
traditions of the flood. When the early Christian preachers and
teachers encountered such superstitions among the people, they
carefully avoided giving unnecessary offence by scoffing at them; on
the contrary they preferred to adopt them, and to hallow them by
giving them Christian meanings. They utilized the old Druidic circles
as places of worship, chose young priests from among the educated
Druids, and consecrated to their own saints the mystic wells and
fountains. In this manner were continued practices the most ancient.
As time passed on, other wells were similarly sanctified, as the new
religion spread and parish churches were built. Disease and wickedness
being intimately associated in the popular mind--epileptics and like
sufferers being held to be possessed of devils, and even such vulgar
ills as warts and wens being considered direct results of some evil
deed, suffered or performed--so the waters of Christian baptism which
cleansed from sin, cleansed also from disease. Ultimately the virtue
of the waters came to be among the vulgar a thing apart from the rite
of baptism; the good was looked upon as dwelling in the waters
themselves, and the Christian rite as not necessarily an element in
the work of regeneration. The reader who will recall what has been
said in the chapter on changelings, in the first part of this volume,
will perceive a survival of the ancient creed herein, in the notion
that baptism is a preventive of fairy babe-thievery. Remembering that
the changeling notion is in reality nothing but a fanciful way of
accounting for the emaciation, ugliness, idiocy, bad temper--in a
word, the illness--of the child, it will be seen that the rite of
baptism, by curing the first manifestations of evil in the child's
system, was the orthodox means of preventing the fairies from working
their bad will on the poor innocent.
CHAPTER III.
Personal Attributes of Legendary Welsh Stones--Stone
Worship--Canna's Stone Chair--Miraculous Removals of
Stones--The Walking Stone of Eitheinn--The Thigh Stone--The
Talking Stone in Pembrokeshire--The Expanding Stone--Magic
Stones in the 'Mabinogion'--The Stone of Invisibility--The
Stone of Remembrance--Stone Thief-catchers--Stones of
Healing--Stones at Cross-roads--Memorials of King
Arthur--Round Tables, Carns, Pots, etc.--Arthur's
Quoits--The Gigantic Rock-tossers of Old--Mol Walbec and the
Pebble in her Shoe--The Giant of Trichrug--Giants and the
Mythology of the Heavens--The Legend of Rhitta Gawr.
I.
In the traditions concerning Welsh stones, abundant personal
attributes are accorded them, such as in nature belong only to
animals. They were endowed with volition and with voice; they could
travel from place to place without mortal aid; they would move
uneasily when disturbed by human contact; they expanded and contracted
at will; they clung to people who touched them with profane or guilty
purpose; they possessed divers qualities which made them valuable to
their possessors, such as the power of rendering them invisible, or of
filling their pockets with gold. In pursuing the various accounts of
these stones in Welsh folk-lore we find ourselves now in fairyland,
now in the domains of mother church, now listening to legends of
enchantment, now to tales of saintly virtue, now giving ear to a
magician, now to a monk. Stone-worship, of which the existing
superstitions are remains, was so prevalent under the Saxon monarchy,
that it was forbidden by law in the reign of Edgar the Peaceable,
(ninth century,) and when Canute came, in the following century, he
also found it advisable to issue such a law. That this pagan worship
was practised from a time of which there is now no record, is not
questioned; and the perpetuation of certain features of this worship
by the early Christians was in spite of the laws promulgated for its
suppression by a Christian king. In this manner the monks were enabled
to draw to themselves the peasantry in whose breasts the ancient
superstition was strong, and who willingly substituted the new story
for the old, so long as the underlying belief was not rudely uprooted.
II.
Among the existing stones in Wales with which the ancient ideas of
occult power are connected, one in Carmarthenshire is probably unique
of its kind. It is called Canna's Stone, and lies in a field adjoining
the old church of Llangan, now remote from the population whose
ancestors worshipped in it. The church was founded by an Armorican
lady of rank named Canna, who was sainted. The stone in question forms
a sort of chair, and was used in connection with a magic well called
Ffynon Canna, which is now, like the church, deserted and wretched.
Patients suffering from ague, in order to profit by its healing power,
must sit in the chair of Canna's stone, after drinking of the water.
If they could manage to sleep while in the chair, the effect of the
water was supposed to be made sure. The process was continued for some
days, sometimes for two or three weeks.
In the middle of this parish there is a field called Parc y Fonwent,
or the churchyard-field, where, according to local tradition, the
church was to have been originally built; but the stones brought to
the spot during the day were at night removed by invisible hands to
the site of the present church. Watchers in the dark heard the goblins
engaged in this work, and pronouncing in clear and correct Welsh these
words, 'Llangan, dyma'r fan,' which mean, 'Llangan, here is the spot.'
Similar miraculous removals of stones are reported and believed in
other parts of Wales. Sometimes visible goblins achieve the work;
sometimes the stones themselves possess the power of locomotion. The
old British historian Nennius[170] speaks of a stone, one of the
wonders of the Isle of Anglesea, which walks during the night in the
valley of Eitheinn. Being once thrown into the whirlpool Cerevus,
which is in the middle of the sea called Menai, it was on the morrow
found on the side of the aforesaid valley. Also in Builth is a heap of
stones, upon which is one stone bearing the impress of a dog's foot.
This was the famous dog of King Arthur, named Cabal, which left its
footprint on this stone when it hunted the swine Troynt. Arthur
himself gathered this heap of stones, with the magic stone upon it,
and called it Carn Cabal; and people who take away this stone in their
hands for the space of a day and a night cannot retain it, for it
returns itself to the heap. The Anglesea stone is also mentioned by
Giraldus, through whom it achieved celebrity under the name of Maen
Morddwyd, or the Thigh Stone--'a stone resembling a human thigh, which
possesses this innate virtue, that whatever distance it may be carried
it returns of its own accord the following night. Hugh, Earl of
Chester, in the reign of King Henry I., having by force occupied this
island and the adjacent country, heard of the miraculous power of this
stone, and for the purpose of trial ordered it to be fastened with
strong iron chains to one of a larger size and to be thrown into the
sea; on the following morning, however, according to custom, it was
found in its original position, on which account the Earl issued a
public edict that no one from that time should presume to move the
stone from its place. A countryman also, to try the powers of this
stone, fastened it to his thigh, which immediately became putrid, and
the stone returned to its original situation.'[171] This stone
ultimately lost its virtues, however, for it was stolen in the last
century and never came back.
FOOTNOTES:
[170] Harleian MSS., 3859.
[171] Sir R. C. Hoare's Giraldus, 'Itin. Camb.,' ii., 104.
III.
The Talking Stone Llechlafar, or stone of loquacity, served as a
bridge over the river Alyn, bounding the churchyard of St. David's in
Pembrokeshire, on the northern side. It was a marble slab worn smooth
by the tread of many feet, and was ten feet long, six feet broad, and
one foot thick. Ancient tradition relates that one day 'when a corpse
was being carried over it for interment the stone broke forth into
speech, and by the effort cracked in the middle, which fissure is
still visible; and on account of this barbarous and ancient
superstition the corpses are no longer brought over it.'[172]
In this same parish of St. David's, there was a flight of steps
leading down to the sea, among which were a certain few which uttered
a miraculous sound, like the ringing of a bell. The story goes that in
ancient times a band of pirates landed there and robbed the chapel.
The bell they took away to sea with them, but as it was heavy they
rested it several times on their way, and ever since that day the
stones it rested upon have uttered these mysterious sounds when
struck.
Also in this parish is the renowned Expanding Stone, an excavation in
the rock of St. Gowan's chapel, which has the magic property of
adapting itself to the size of the person who gets into it, growing
smaller for a small man and larger for a large one. Among its many
virtues was that if a person got into it and made a wish, and did not
change his mind while turning about, the wish would come true. The
original fable relates that this hollow stone was once solid; that a
saint closely pursued by Pagan persecutors sought shelter of the rock,
which thereupon opened and received him, concealing him till the
danger was over and then obligingly letting him out.
This stone may probably be considered as the monkish parallel for the
magic stones which confer on their possessor invisibility, as we find
them in the romances of enchantment. In the 'Mabinogion' such stones
are frequently mentioned, usually in the favourite form of a gem set
within a ring. 'Take this ring,' says the damsel with yellow curling
hair,[173] 'and put it on thy finger, with the stone inside thy hand;
and close thy hand upon the stone. And as long as thou concealest it,
it will conceal thee.' But when it is found, as we find in following
these clues further, that this Stone of Invisibility was one of the
Thirteen Rarities of Kingly Regalia of the Island of Britain; that it
was formerly kept at Caerleon, in Monmouthshire, the city whence St.
David journeyed into Pembrokeshire; and that it is mentioned in the
Triads thus: 'The Stone of the Ring of Luned, which liberated Owen the
son of Urien from between the portcullis and the wall; whoever
concealed that stone the stone or bezel would conceal him,' the strong
probability appears that we are dealing with one and the same myth in
the tale of magic and in the monkish legend. Traced back to a period
more remote than that with which these Welsh stories ostensibly deal,
we should find their prototype in the ring of Gyges.
The Stone of Remembrance is another stone mentioned in the
'Mabinogion,' also a jewel, endowed with valuable properties which it
imparts not merely to its wearer, but to any one who looks upon it.
'Rhonabwy,' says Iddawc to the enchanted dreamer on the yellow
calf-skin, 'dost thou see the ring with a stone set in it, that is
upon the Emperor's hand?' 'I see it,' he answered. 'It is one of the
properties of that stone to enable thee to remember that thou seest
here to-night, and hadst thou not seen the stone, thou wouldst never
have been able to remember aught thereof.'[174] Still another stone of
rare good qualities is that which Peredur gave to Etlym, in reward for
his attendance,[175] the stone which was on the tail of a serpent, and
whose virtues were such that whosoever should hold it in one hand, in
the other he would have as much gold as he might desire. Peredur
having vanquished the serpent and possessed himself of the stone,
immediately gave it away, in that spirit of lavish free-handedness
which so commonly characterizes the heroes of chivalric British
romance.
FOOTNOTES:
[172] Ibid., ii., 8.
[173] Lady Charlotte Guest's 'Mabinogion,' 13.
[174] Lady Charlotte Guest's 'Mabinogion,' 303.
[175] Ibid., 111.
IV.
In the church of St. David's of Llanfaes, according to Giraldus, was
preserved among the relics a stone which caught a thieving boy in the
act of robbing a pigeon's nest, and held him fast for three days and
nights. Only by assiduous and long-continued prayer were the unhappy
boy's parents able to get him loose from the terrible stone, and the
marks of his five fingers remained ever after impressed upon it, so
that all might see them. There was a stone of similar proclivities in
the valley of Mowddwy, which did good service for the church. A
certain St. Tydecho, a relation of King Arthur, who slept on a blue
rock in this valley, was persecuted by Maelgwn Gwynedd. One day this
wicked knight came with a pack of white dogs to hunt in that
neighbourhood, and sat down upon the saint's blue stone. When he
endeavoured to get up he found himself fastened to his seat so that he
could not stir, in a manner absurdly suggestive of French farces; and
he was obliged to make up matters with the saint. He ceased to
persecute the good man, and to make amends for the past gave him the
privilege of sanctuary for a hundred ages.[176]
FOOTNOTE:
[176] 'Celtic Remains,' 420. (Printed for the Cambrian Arch. Soc.,
London, 1878.)
V.
As for Stones of Healing, with qualities resembling those abiding in
certain wells, they appear in many shapes. Now it is a maenhir,
against which the afflicted peasant must rub himself; now it is a
pebble which he must carry in his pocket. The inevitable wart
reappears in this connection; the stone which cures the wart is found
by the roadside, wrapped in a bit of paper, and dropped on a
cross-road; to him who picks it up the wart is transferred. Children
in Pembrokeshire will not at the present day pick up a small parcel on
a cross-road, suspecting the presence of the wart-bearing stone. In
Carmarthen are still to be found traces of a belief in the Alluring
Stone, whose virtue is that it will cure hydrophobia. It is
represented as a soft white stone, about the size of a man's head,
originally found on a farm called Dysgwylfa, about twelve miles from
Carmarthen town. Grains were scraped from the stone with a knife, and
administered to the person who had been bitten by a rabid dog; and a
peculiarity of the stone was that though generation after generation
had scraped it, nevertheless it did not diminish in size. A woman who
ate of this miraculous stone, after having been bitten by a suspicious
cur, testified that it caused 'a boiling in her blood.' The stone was
said to have fallen from the sky in the first instance.
VI.
Stones standing at cross-roads are seldom without some superstitious
legend. A peasant pointed out to me, on a mountain-top near Crumlyn,
Monmouthshire, a cross-roads stone, beneath which, he asserted, a
witch sleeps by day, coming forth at night. 'Least they was say so,'
he explained, with a nervous look about him, 'but there you! _I_ was
never see anything, an' I was pass by there many nights--yes, indeed,
often.' The man's eagerness to testify against the truth of the
tradition was one of the most impressive illustrations possible of
lingering superstitious awe in this connection.
A famous Welsh witch, who used to sleep under a stone at Llanberis, in
North Wales, was called Canrig Bwt, and her favourite dish at dinner
was children's brains. A certain criminal who had received a
death-sentence was given the alternative of attacking this frightful
creature, his life to be spared should he succeed in destroying her.
Arming himself with a sharp sword, the doomed man got upon the stone
and called on Canrig to come out. 'Wait till I have finished eating
the brains in this sweet little skull,' was her horrible answer.
However, forth she came presently, when the valiant man cut off her
head at a blow. To this day they scare children thereabout with the
name of Canrig Bwt.
VII.
In every part of Wales one encounters the ancient memorials of King
Arthur--sometimes to be dimly connected with the historical character,
but more often with the mythical figure--each with its legend, or its
bundle of legends, poetic, patriotic, or superstitious. Arthur's Round
Table at Caerleon, Monmouthshire, is as well known to every boy in the
neighbourhood as any inn or shop of the village. It is a grass-grown
Roman amphitheatre, whence alabaster statues of Adrian's day have been
disinterred. There is also an Arthur's Round Table in Denbighshire, a
flat-topped hill thus called, and in Anglesea another, near the
village of Llanfihangel. Arthur's Seat, Arthur's Bed, Arthur's Castle,
Arthur's Stone, Arthur's Hill, Arthur's Quoit, Arthur's Board,
Arthur's Carn, Arthur's Pot--these are but a few of the well-known
cromlechs, rocking-stones, or natural objects to be found in various
neighbourhoods. They are often in duplicates, under these names, but
they never bear such titles by other authority than traditions
reaching back into the dark ages. Some of the stories and
superstitions which attach to them are striking, and of the most
fascinating interest to the student of folk-lore; others are merely
grotesque, as in the case of Arthur's Pot. This is under a cromlech at
Dolwillim, on the banks of the Tawe, and in the stream itself when the
water is high; it is a circular hole of considerable depth, accurately
bored in the stone by the action of the water. This hole is called
Arthur's Pot, and according to local belief was made by Merlin for
the hero king to cook his dinner in. Arthur's Quoits are found in many
parts of the country. A large rock in the bed of the Sawdde river, on
the Llangadock side of Mynydd Du, (the Black Mountain,) is one of
these quoits. The story is that the king one day flung it from the
summit of Pen Arthur, a mile away. There is another large rock beside
it, which was similarly flung down by a lady of Arthur's acquaintance,
whose gigantic proportions may be guessed from the fact that this
boulder was a pebble in her shoe, which annoyed her.
VIII.
Upon this hint there opens out before the inquirer a wealth of
incident and illustration, in connection with gigantic Britons of old
time who hurled huge rocks about as pebbles. There is the story of the
giant Idris, who dwelt upon Cader Idris, and who found no less a
number than three troublesome pebbles in his shoe as he was out
walking one day, and who tossed them down where they lie on the road
from Dolgelley to Machynlleth, three bulky crags. There are several
legends about Mol Walbec's pebbles in Breconshire. This lusty dame has
a full score of shadowy castles on sundry heights in that part of
Wales; and she is said to have built the castle of Hay in one night.
In performing this work she carried the stones in her apron; one of
these--a pebble about a foot thick and nine feet long--fell into her
shoe. At first she did not notice it, but by-and-by it began to annoy
her, and she plucked it out and threw it into Llowes churchyard, three
miles away, where it now lies. In many parts of Wales where lie rude
heaps of stones, the peasantry say they were carried there by a witch
in her apron.
The gigantic creatures whose dimensions are indicated by these stones
reappear continually in Welsh folk-lore. Arthur is merely the greatest
among them; all were of prodigious proportions. Hu Gadarn, Cadwaladr,
Rhitta Gawr, Brutus, Idris, are all members of the shadowy race whose
'quoits' and 'pebbles' are scattered about Wales. The remains at
Stonehenge have been from time immemorial called by the Cymry the Cor
Gawr, Circle or Dance of Giants. How the Carmarthen enchanter, Merlin,
transported these stones hither from Killara mountain in Ireland by
his magic art, everybody knows. It is only necessary that a stone
should be of a size to make the idea of removing it an apparently
hopeless one--that Merlin or some other magician brought it there by
enchantment, or that Arthur or some other giant tossed it there with
his mighty arm, is a matter of course.[177] The giant of Trichrug, (a
fairy haunt in Cardiganshire,) appears to have been the champion
pebble-tosser of Wales, if local legend may be trusted. Having invited
the neighbouring giants to try their strength with him in throwing
stones, he won the victory by tossing a huge rock across the sea into
Ireland. His grave is traditionally reported to be on that mountain,
and to possess the same properties as the Expanding Stone, for it fits
any person who lies down in it, be he tall or short. It has the
further virtue of imparting extraordinary strength to any one lying in
it; but if he gets into it with arms upon his person they will be
taken from him and he will never see them more.
FOOTNOTE:
[177] It is noteworthy that most of the great stones of these legends
appear to have really been transported to the place where they are now
found, being often of a different rock than that of the immediate
locality. To what extent the legends express the first vague
inductions of early geological observers, is a question not without
interest.
IX.
The gigantic stone-tossers of Wales associate themselves without
effort with the mythology of the heavens. One of their chiefest,
Idris, was indeed noted as an astrologer, and is celebrated as such in
the Triads:
Idris Gawr, or the Giant Idris;
Gwydion, or the Diviner by Trees;
Gwyn, the Son of Nudd, the Generous;
So great was their knowledge of the stars, that they could foretell
whatever might be desired to be known until the day of doom.
And among Welsh legends none is more familiar than that of Rhitta
Gawr, wherein the stars are familiarly spoken of as cows and sheep,
and the firmament as their pasture.
CHAPTER IV.
Early Inscribed Stones--The Stone Pillar of Banwan Bryddin,
near Neath--Catastrophe accompanying its Removal--The
Sagranus Stone and the White Lady--The Dancing Stones of
Stackpool--Human Beings changed to Stones--St. Ceyna and the
Serpents--The Devil's Stone at Llanarth--Rocking Stones and
their accompanying Superstitions--The Suspended Altar of
Loin-Garth--Cromlechs and their Fairy Legends--The Fairies'
Castle at St. Nicholas, Glamorganshire--The Stone of the
Wolf Bitch--The Welsh Melusina--Parc-y-Bigwrn
Cromlech--Connection of these Stones with Ancient Druidism.
I.
Paleographic students are more or less familiar with about seventy
early inscribed stones in Wales. The value of these monuments, as
corroborative evidence of historical facts, in connection with waning
popular traditions, is well understood. Superstitious prejudice is
particularly active in connection with stones of this kind. The
peasantry view them askance, and will destroy them if not restrained,
as they usually are, by fear of evil results to themselves.
Antiquaries have often reason to thank superstition for the existence
in our day of these ancient monuments. But there is a sort of
progressive movement towards enlightenment which carries the Welsh
farmer from the fearsome to the destructive stage, in this connection.
That dangerous thing, a little knowledge, sometimes leads its imbiber
beyond the reach of all fear of the guardian fairy or demon of the
stone, yet leaves him still so superstitious regarding it that he
believes its influence to be baleful, and its destruction a sort of
duty. It was the common opinion of the peasantry of the parish in
which it stood, that whoever happened to read the inscription on the
Maen Llythyrog, an early inscribed stone on the top of a mountain near
Margam Abbey, in Glamorganshire, would die soon after. In many
instances the stones are believed to be transformed human beings,
doomed to this guise for some sin, usually an act of sacrilege.
Beliefs of this character would naturally be potent in influencing
popular feeling against the stones. But on the other hand, however
desirable might be their extinction, there would be perils involved,
which one would rather his neighbour than himself should encounter.
Various awful consequences, but especially the most terrific storms
and disturbances of the earth, followed any meddling with them.
At Banwan Bryddin, a few miles from Neath, a stone pillar inscribed
'MARCI CARITINI FILII BERICII,' long stood on a tumulus which by the
peasants was considered a fairy ring. The late Lady Mackworth caused
this stone to be removed to a grotto she was constructing on her
grounds, and which she was ornamenting with all the curious stones she
could collect. An old man who was an under-gardener on her estate, and
who abounded with tales of goblins, declaring he had often had
intercourse with these strange people, told the Rev. Mr. Williams of
Tir-y-Cwm, that he had always known this act of sacrilege would not go
unpunished by the guardians of the stone. He had more than once seen
these sprites dancing of an evening in the rings of Banwan Bryddin,
where the 'wonder stone' stood, but never since the day the stone was
removed had any mortal seen them. Upon the stone, he said, were
written mysterious words in the fairy language, which no one had ever
been able to comprehend, not even Lady Mackworth herself. When her
ladyship removed the stone to Gnoll Gardens the fairies were very
much annoyed; and the grotto, which cost Lady Mackworth thousands of
pounds to build, was no sooner finished than one night, Duw'n catwo
ni! there was such thunder and lightning as never was heard or seen in
Glamorganshire before; and next morning the grotto was gone! The hill
had fallen over it and hidden it for ever. 'Iss indeed,' said the old
man, 'and woe will fall on the Cymro or the Saeson that will dare to
clear the earth away. I myself, and others who was there, was hear the
fairies laughing loud that night, after the storm has cleared away.'
II.
The Sagranus Stone at St. Dogmell's, Pembrokeshire, was formerly used
as a bridge over a brook not far from where it at present
stands--luckily with its inscribed face downwards, so that the
sculpture remained unharmed while generations were tramping over it.
During its use as a bridge it bore the reputation of being haunted by
a white lady, who was constantly seen gliding over it at the witching
hour of midnight. No man or woman could be induced to touch the
strange stone after dark, and its supernatural reputation no doubt
helped materially in its preservation unharmed till the present time.
It is considered on paleographic grounds to be of the fourth century.
In Pembrokeshire also are found the famous Dancing Stones of
Stackpool. These are three upright stones standing about a mile from
each other, the first at Stackpool Warren, the second further to the
west, on a stone tumulus in a field known as Horestone Park, and the
third still further westward. One of many traditions concerning them
is to the effect that on a certain day they meet and come down to
Sais's Ford to dance, and after their revel is over return home and
resume their places.
III.
There is a curious legend regarding three stones which once stood on
the top of Moelfre Hill, in Carnarvonshire, but which were long ago
rolled to the bottom of the hill by 'some idle-headed youths' who dug
them up. They were each about four feet high, standing as the corners
of a triangle; one was red as blood, another white, and the third a
pale blue. The tradition says that three women, about the time when
Christianity first began to be known in Britain, went up Moelfre Hill
on a Sabbath morning to winnow their corn. They had spread their
winnowing sheet upon the ground and begun their work, when some of
their neighbours came to them and reprehended them for working on the
Lord's day. But the women, having a greater eye to their worldly
profit than to the observance of the fourth commandment, made light of
their neighbours' words, and went on working. Thereupon they were
instantly transformed into three pillars of stone, each stone of the
same colour as the dress of the woman in whose place it stood, one
red, one white, and the third bluish.
Legends of the turning to stone of human beings occur in connection
with many of the meini hirion (long stones). Near Llandyfrydog,
Anglesea, there is a maenhir of peculiar shape. From one point of view
it looks not unlike the figure of a humpbacked man, and it is called
'Carreg y Lleidr,' or the Robber's Stone. The tradition connected with
it is that a man who had stolen the church Bible, and was carrying it
away on his shoulder, was turned into this stone, and must stand here
till the last trump sets him free.
At Rolldritch (Rhwyldrech?) there is or was a circle of stones,
concerning which tradition held that they were the human victims of a
witch who, for some offence, transformed them to this shape. In
connection with this circle is preserved another form of superstitious
belief very often encountered, namely, that the number of stones in
the circle cannot be correctly counted by a mortal.[178]
It is noteworthy that the only creature which shares with man the grim
fate of being turned to stone, in Welsh legends, is the serpent. The
monkish account of St. Ceyna, one of the daughters of Prince Brychan,
of Breconshire, relates that having consecrated her virginity to the
Lord by a perpetual vow, she resolved to seek some desert place where
she could give herself wholly up to meditation. So she journeyed
beyond the river Severn, 'and there meeting a woody place, she made
her request to the prince of that country that she might be permitted
to serve God in that solitude. His answer was that he was very willing
to grant her request, but that the place did so swarm with serpents
that neither man nor beast could inhabit it. But she replied that her
firm trust was in the name and assistance of Almighty God to drive all
that poisonous brood out of that region. Hereupon the place was
granted to the holy virgin, who, prostrating herself before God,
obtained of him to change the serpents and vipers into stones. And to
this day the stones in that region do resemble the windings of
serpents, through all the fields and villages, as if they had been
framed by the hand of the sculptor.' The scene of this legend is
mentioned by Camden as being at a place near Bristol, called Keynsham,
'where abundance of that fossil called by the naturalists Cornu
Ammonis is dug up.'
FOOTNOTE:
[178] Roberts, 'Camb. Pop. Ant.,' 220.
IV.
Our old friend the devil is once more to the fore when we encounter
the inscribed stone of the twelfth century, which stands in the
churchyard of Llanarth, near Aberaeron, in Cardiganshire. A cross
covers this stone, with four circular holes at the junction of the
arms. The current tradition of the place regarding it is that one
stormy night, there was such a tremendous noise heard in the belfry
that the whole village was thrown into consternation. It was finally
concluded that nobody but the diawl could be the cause of this, and
therefore the people fetched his reverence from the vicarage to go and
request the intruder to depart. The vicar went up into the belfry,
with bell, book, and candle, along the narrow winding stone staircase,
and, as was anticipated, there among the bells he saw the devil in
person. The good man began the usual 'Conjurate in nomine,' etc., when
the fiend sprang up and mounted upon the leads of the tower. The vicar
was not to be balked, however, and boldly followed up the remainder of
the staircase and got also out upon the leads. The devil finding
himself hard pressed, had nothing for it but to jump over the
battlements of the tower. He came down plump among the gravestones
below, and falling upon one, made with his hands and knees the four
holes now visible on the stone in question, which among the country
people still bears the name of the Devil's Stone.
V.
The logan stones in various parts of Wales, which vibrate mysteriously
under the touch of a child's finger, and rock violently at a push from
a man's stronger hand, are also considered by the superstitious a
favourite resort of the fairies and the diawl. The holy aerolite to
which unnumbered multitudes bow down at Mecca is indeed no stranger
thing than the rocking-stone on Pontypridd's sky-perched common. Among
the marvellous stones in Nennius is one concerning a certain altar in
Loin-Garth, in Gower, 'suspended by the power of God,' which he says a
legend tells us was brought thither in a ship along with the dead body
of some holy man who desired to be buried near St. Illtyd's grave, and
to remain unknown by name, lest he should become an object of too
reverent regard; for Illtyd dwelt in a cave there, the mouth of which
faced the sea in those days; and having received this charge, he
buried the corpse, and built a church over it, enclosing the wonderful
altar, which testified by more than one astounding miracle the Divine
power which sustained it. This is thought to be a myth relating to
some Welsh rocking-stone no longer known. The temptation to throw down
stones of this character has often been too much for the
destruction-loving vulgarian, both in Wales and in other parts of the
British islands; but the offenders have seldom been the local
peasantry, who believe that the guardians of the stone--the fairies or
the diawl, as the case may be--will heavily avenge its overthrow on
the overthrowers.
VI.
[Illustration: THE FAIRY FROLIC AT THE CROMLECH.]
Venerable in their hoary antiquity stand those monuments of a
long-vanished humanity, the cromlechs which are so numerous in Wales,
sharing with the logan and the inscribed stone the peasant's
superstitious interest. Even more than the others, these solemn rocks
are surrounded with legends of enchantment. They figure in many
fairy-tales like that of the shepherd of Frennifawr, who stood
watching their mad revelry about the old cromlech, where they were
dancing, making music on the harp, and chasing their companions in
hilarious sort. That the fairies protect the cromlechs with special
care, as they also do the logans and others, is a belief the Welsh
peasant shares with the superstitious in many lands. There is a
remarkable cromlech near the hamlet of St. Nicholas, Glamorganshire,
on the estate of the family whose house has the honour of being
haunted by the ghost of an admiral. This cromlech is called, by
children in that neighbourhood, 'Castle Correg.' A Cardiff gentleman
who asked some children who were playing round the cromlech, what they
termed it, was struck by the name, which recalled to him the Breton
fairies thus designated.[179] The korreds and korregs of Brittany
closely resemble the Welsh fairies in numberless details. The korreds
are supposed to live in the cromlechs, of which they are believed to
have been the builders. They dance around them at night, and woe
betide the unhappy peasant who joins them in their roundels.[180] Like
beliefs attach to cromlechs in the Haute Auvergne, and other parts of
France. A cromlech at Pirols, said to have been built by a fee, is
composed of seven massive stones, the largest being twelve feet long
by eight and a half feet wide. The fee carried these stones hither
from a great distance, and set them up; and the largest and heaviest
one she carried on the top of her spindle, and so little was she
incommoded by it that she continued to spin all the way.[181]
FOOTNOTES:
[179] Mr. J. W. Lukis, in an address before the Cardiff Nat. Soc. in
July, 1874.
[180] Keightley, 'Fairy Mythology,' 432.
[181] Cambry, 'Monuments Celtiques,' 232.
VII.
Among the Welsh peasantry the cromlechs are called by a variety of
names, one interesting group giving in Cardiganshire 'the Stone of the
Bitch,' in Glamorganshire 'the Stone of the Greyhound Bitch,' in
Carmarthenshire and in Monmouthshire 'the Kennel of the Greyhound
Bitch,' and in some other parts of Wales 'the Stone of the Wolf
Bitch.' These names refer to no fact of modern experience; they are
legendary. The Cambrian form of the story of Melusina is before us
here, with differing details. The wolf-bitch of the Welsh legend was a
princess who for her sins was transformed to that shape, and thus long
remained. Her name was Gast Rhymhi, and she had two cubs while a
wolf-bitch, with which she dwelt in a cave. After long suffering in
this wretched guise, she and her cubs were restored to their human
form 'for Arthur,' who sought her out. The unfortunate Melusina, it
will be remembered, was never entirely robbed of her human form.
'Ange par la figure, et serpent par le reste,'
she was condemned by the lovely fay Pressina to become a serpent from
the waist downwards, on every Saturday, till she should meet a man who
would marry her under certain specified conditions. The monkish touch
is on the Welsh legend, in the medieval form in which we have it in
the Mabinogi of 'Kilhwch and Olwen.' The princess is transformed into
a wolf-bitch 'for her sins,' and when restored, although it is for
Arthur, 'God did change' her to a woman again.[182]
FOOTNOTE:
[182] 'Mabinogion,' 259.
VIII.
In a field called Parc-y-Bigwrn, near Llanboidy, Carmarthenshire, are
the remains of a cromlech destroyed many years ago, concerning which
an old man named John Jones related a superstitious tale. It was to
the effect that there were ten men engaged in the work of throwing it
down, and that when they were touching the stone they became filled
with awe; and moreover, as the stone was being drawn away by six
horses the road was suddenly rent asunder in a supernatural manner.
This is a frequent phenomenon supposed by the Welsh peasantry to
accompany the attempt to move a cromlech. Another common catastrophe
is the breaking down of the waggon--not from the weight of the stone,
but through the displeasure of its goblin guardians. Sometimes this
awful labour is accompanied by fierce storms of hail and wind, or
violent thunder and lightning; sometimes by mysterious noises, or
swarms of bees which are supposed to be fairies in disguise.
IX.
A very great number of fanciful legends might be related in connection
with stones of striking shape, or upon which there are peculiar marks
and figures; but enough of this store of folk-lore has been given to
serve present ends. If more were detailed, there would in all cases be
found a family resemblance to the legends which have been presented,
and which lead us now into the enchanted country where Arthur reigns,
now wandering among the monkish records of church and abbey, now to
the company of the dwarfs and giants of fairyland. That the British
Druids regarded many of these stones with idolatrous reverence, is
most probable. Some of them, as the cromlechs and logans, they no
doubt employed in their mystic rites, as being symbols of the dimly
descried Power they worshipped. Of their extreme antiquity there is no
question. The rocking-stones may be considered natural objects, though
they were perhaps assisted to their remarkable poise by human hands.
The cromlechs were originally sepulchral chambers, unquestionably, but
they are so old that neither history nor tradition gives any aid in
assigning the date of their erection. Opinions that they were once
pulpits of sun-worship, or Druidic altars of sacrifice, are not
unwarranted, perhaps, though necessarily conjectural. The evidence
that the inscribed stones are simply funeral monuments, is extensive
and conclusive. Originally erected in honour of some great chief or
warrior, they were venerated by the people, and became shrines about
which the latter gathered in a spirit of devotion. With the lapse of
ages, the warrior was forgotten; even the language in which he was
commemorated decayed, and the marks on the stones became to the
peasantry meaningless hieroglyphics, to which was given a mysterious
and awful significance; and so for unnumbered centuries the tombstone
remained an object of superstitious fear and veneration.
CHAPTER V.
Baleful Spirits of Storm--The Shower at the Magic
Fountain--Obstacles in the way of Treasure-Seekers--The Red
Lady of Paviland--The Fall of Coychurch Tower--Thunder and
Lightning evoked by Digging--The Treasure-Chest under Moel
Arthur in the Vale of Clwyd--Modern Credulity--The Cavern of
the Ravens--The Eagle-guarded Coffer of Castell
Coch--Sleeping Warriors as Treasure-Guarders--The Dragon
which St. Samson drove out of Wales--Dragons in the
Mabinogion--Whence came the Red Dragon of Wales?--The
Original Dragon of Mythology--Prototypes of the Welsh
Caverns and Treasure-Hills--The Goblins of Electricity.
I.
In the prominent part played by storm--torrents of rain, blinding
lightning, deafening thunder--in legends of disturbed cromlechs, and
other awful stones, is involved the ancient belief that these elements
were themselves baleful spirits, which could be evoked by certain
acts. They were in the service of fiends and fairies, and came at
their bidding to avenge the intrusion of venturesome mortals, daring
to meddle with sacred things. This fascinating superstition is
preserved in numberless Welsh legends relating to hidden treasures,
buried under cromlechs or rocky mounds, or in caverns. In the
'Mabinogion' it appears in the enchanted barrier to the Castle of the
Lady of the Fountain. Under a certain tall tree in the midst of a wide
valley there was a fountain, 'and by the side of the fountain a marble
slab, and on the marble slab a silver bowl, attached by a chain of
silver, so that it may not be carried away. Take the bowl and throw a
bowlful of water on the slab,' says the black giant of the wood to
Sir Kai, 'and thou wilt hear a mighty peal of thunder, so that thou
wilt think that heaven and earth are trembling with its fury. With the
thunder there will come a shower so severe that it will be scarce
possible for thee to endure it and live. And the shower will be of
hailstones; and after the shower the weather will become fair, but
every leaf that was upon the tree will have been carried away by the
shower.'[183] Of course the knight dares this awful obstacle, throws
the bowlful of water upon the slab, receives the terrible storm upon
his shield, and fights the knight who owned the fountain, on his
coming forth. Sir Kai is worsted, and returns home to Arthur's court;
whereupon Sir Owain takes up the contest. He sallies forth, evokes the
storm, encounters the black knight, slays him, and becomes master of
all that was his--his castle, his lands, his wife, and all his
treasures.
The peasant of to-day who sets out in quest of hidden treasures evokes
the avenging storm in like manner. Sometimes the treasure is in the
ground, under a cromlech or a carn; he digs, and the thunder shakes
the air, the lightnings flash, torrents descend, and he is frustrated
in his search. Again, the treasure is in a cavern, guarded by a
dragon, which belches forth fire upon him and scorches his eyeballs.
Welsh folk-lore is full of legends of this character; and the curious
way in which science and religion sometimes get mixed up with these
superstitions is most suggestive--as in the cases of the falling of
Coychurch tower, and the Red Lady of Paviland. The latter is the name
given a skeleton found by Dr. Buckland in his exploration of the
Paviland caves, the bones of which were stained by red oxide of iron.
The vulgar belief is that the Red Lady was entombed in the cave by a
storm while seeking treasure there--a legend the truth of which no one
can dispute with authority, since the bones are certainly of a period
contemporary with the Roman rule in this island. Coins of Constantine
were found in the same earth, cemented with fragments of charcoal and
bone ornaments. In the case of Coychurch tower, it undoubtedly fell
because it was undermined by a contractor who had the job of removing
certain defunct forefathers from their graves near its base. Some
eighteen hundred skulls were taken from the ground and carted off to a
hole on the east side of the church. But the country folk pooh-pooh
the idea that the tower fell for any reason other than sheer
indignation and horror at the disturbance of this hallowed ground by
utilitarian pickaxe and spade. They call your attention to the fact
that not only did the venerable tower come crashing down, after having
stood for centuries erect, but that in falling it struck to the earth
St. Crallo's cross--an upright stone in the churchyard as venerable as
itself--breaking it all to pieces.
FOOTNOTE:
[183] 'Mabinogion,' 8.
II.
A hollow in the road near Caerau, in Cardiganshire, 'rings when any
wheeled vehicle goes over it.' Early in this century, two men having
been led to believe that there were treasures hidden there (for a
fairy in the semblance of a gipsy had appeared and thrown out hints on
the fascinating subject from time to time), made up their minds to dig
for it. They dug accordingly until they came, by their solemn
statement, to the oaken frame of a subterranean doorway; and feeling
sure now, that they had serious work before them, prepared for the
same by going to dinner. They had no sooner gone than a terrible storm
arose; the rain fell in torrents, the thunder pealed and the lightning
flashed. When they went back to their work, the hole they had digged
was closed up; and nothing would convince them that this was done by
any other than a supernatural agency. Moreover, but a little above the
place where they were, there had been no rain at all.[184]
FOOTNOTE:
[184] 'Arch. Camb.' 3rd Se., ix., 306.
III.
There is a current belief among the peasants about Moel Arthur--a
mountain overlooking the Vale of Clwyd--that treasure, concealed in an
iron chest with a ring-handle to it, lies buried there. The place of
concealment is often illuminated at night by a supernatural light.
Several people thereabouts are known to have seen the light, and there
are even men who will tell you that bold adventurers have so far
succeeded as to grasp the handle of the iron chest, when an outburst
of wild tempest wrested it from their hold and struck them senseless.
Local tradition points out the place as the residence of an ancient
prince, and as a spot charmed against the spade of the antiquary.
'Whoever digs there,' said an old woman in Welsh to some men going
home from their work on this spot, after a drenching wet day, 'is
always driven away by thunder and lightning and storm; you have been
served like everybody else who has made the attempt.'
IV.
So prevalent are superstitions of this class even in the present day
that cases get into the newspapers now and then. The 'Herald Cymraeg'
of September 25, 1874, gave an account of some excavations made at
Pant-y-Saer cromlech, Anglesea, by the instigation of John Jones of
Llandudno, 'a brother of Isaac Jones, the present tenant of
Pant-y-Saer,' at the time on a visit to the latter. The immediately
exciting cause of the digging was a dream in which the dreamer was
told that there was a pot of treasure buried within the cromlech's
precincts. The result was the revelation of a large number of human
bones, among them five lower jaws with the teeth sound; but no crochan
aur (pitcher of gold) turned up, and the digging was abandoned in
disgust. Is it credible that between this account and the following
yawns the gulf of seven hundred years? Thus Giraldus: In the province
of Kemeys, one of the seven cantrefs of Pembrokeshire, 'during the
reign of King Henry I., a rich man who had a residence on the northern
side of the Preseleu mountains was warned for three successive nights
by dreams that if he put his hand under a stone which hung over the
spring of a neighbouring well called the Fountain of St. Bernacus, he
should find there a golden chain; obeying the admonition, on the third
day he received from a viper a deadly wound in his finger; but as it
appears that many treasures have been discovered through dreams, it
seems to me probable that some ought and some ought not to be
believed.'[185]
FOOTNOTE:
[185] Sir R. C. Hoare's Giraldus, 'Itin. Camb.' ii., 37.
V.
In a certain cavern in Glamorganshire, called the Ogof Cigfrain, or
Cavern of the Ravens, is said to be a chest of gold, watched over by
two birds of gloomy plumage, in a darkness so profound that nothing
can be seen but the fire of their sleepless eyes. To go there with
the purpose of disturbing them is to bring on a heaving and rolling of
the ground, accompanied by thunder and lightning. A swaggering drover
from Brecknockshire, though warned by a 'dark woman' that he had
better not try it, sneered that 'a couple of ravens were a fine matter
to be afraid of indeed!' and ventured into the cavern, with a long
rope about his waist, and a lantern in his hand. Some men who
accompanied him (seeing that he was bent on this rash and dangerous
emprise,) held the coil of rope, and paid it out as he went further
and further in. The result was prompt and simple: the sky cracked with
loud bursts of thunder and flashes of lightning, and the drover roared
with affright and rushed out of the dark cavern with his hair on end.
No coaxing ever prevailed on him to reveal the terrible sights he had
seen; when questioned he would only repeat in Welsh the advice of
'Punch' to those about to marry, viz., 'Peidiwch!'
VI.
In the legend of Castell Coch, instead of a raven it is a pair of huge
eagles which watch the treasure. Castell Coch is an easy and pleasant
two hours' walk from Cardiff Castle, with which it is vulgarly
believed to be connected by a subterranean passage. A short time
ago--well, to be precise, a hundred years ago, but that is no time at
all in the history of Castell Coch, which was a crumbling ruin then as
it is now[186]--in or about the year 1780, a reduced lady was allowed
to fit up three or four rooms in the ruin as a residence, and to live
there with two old servants of her house. One night this lady was
awakened from her sleep to receive the visit of a venerable ghost in
a full dress-suit of an earlier century, who distressed her by his
troubled countenance and vexed her by his eccentric behaviour, for
when she spoke to him from the depths of her nightcap he at once got
through the wall. He came on subsequent nights so often, and
frightened the servants so much by the noise he made--in getting
through the wall, of course--that the lady gave up her strange abode,
and was glad to pay house rent ever after in other parts. This old
ghost was in the flesh proprietor of the castle, it appears, and
during the civil wars buried an iron chest full of gold in the
subterranean passage--which is still there, guarded by two large
eagles. A party of gentlemen who somewhere about 1800 attempted to
explore the passage saw the eagles, and were attacked by the birds of
freedom so fiercely that they retreated in disorder. Subsequently they
returned with pistols and shot the eagles, which resented this
trifling impertinence by tearing the treasure-seekers in a shocking
manner. After having recovered from their wounds, the determined
Welshmen renewed the attack--this time with silver bullets, which they
had got blessed by a good-natured priest. The bullets rattled
harmlessly on the feathers of the terrible birds; the ground shook
under foot; rain descended in torrents; with their great wings the
eagles beat out the gold-hunters' torches, and they barely escaped
with their lives.
FOOTNOTE:
[186] It is at present being entirely restored and made habitable by
its owner, Lord Bute.
VII.
The shadowy Horror which keeps vigil over these hidden treasures is
now a dragon, again a raven or an eagle, again a worm. In the account
of the treasure-seeker of Nantyglyn, it is a winged creature of
unknown nature, a 'mysterious incubus,' which broods over the chest
in the cave. The terrible Crocodile of the Lake, which was drawn from
its watery hiding-place by the Ychain Banog, or Prominent Oxen of Hu
Gadarn, is also sometimes called a dragon (draig) in those local
accounts which survive in the folk-lore of several different
districts. It infested the region round about the lake where it lay
concealed, and the mighty oxen so strained themselves in the labour of
drawing it forth that one of them died and the other rent the mountain
in twain with his bellowing. Various legends of Sleeping Warriors
appear in Welsh folk-lore, in which the dragon is displaced by a
shadowy army of slumbering heroes, lying about in a circle, with their
swords and shields by their sides, guarding great heaps of gold and
silver. Now they are Owen Lawgoch and his men, who lie in their
enchanted sleep in a cavern on the northern side of Mynydd Mawr, in
Carmarthenshire; again they are Arthur and his warriors, asleep in a
secret ogof under Craig-y-Ddinas, waiting for a day when the Briton
and the Saxon shall go to war, when the noise of the struggle will
awaken them, and they will reconquer the island, reduce London to
dust, and re-establish their king at Caerleon, in Monmouthshire.
Dragon or demon, raven or serpent, eagle or sleeping warriors, the
guardian of the underground vaults in Wales where treasures lie is a
personification of the baleful influences which reside in caverns,
graves, and subterraneous regions generally. It is something more than
this, when traced back to its source in the primeval mythology; the
dragon which watched the golden apples of Hesperides, and the
Payshtha-more, or great worm, which in Ireland guards the riches of
O'Rourke, is the same malarious creature which St. Samson drove out
of Wales. According to the monkish legend, this pestiferous beast was
of vast size, and by its deadly breath had destroyed two districts. It
lay hid in a cave, near the river. Thither went St. Samson,
accompanied only by a boy, and tied a linen girdle about the
creature's neck, and drew it out and threw it headlong from a certain
high eminence into the sea.[187] This dreadful dragon became mild and
gentle when addressed by the saint; did not lift up its terrible
wings, nor gnash its teeth, nor put out its tongue to emit its fiery
breath, but suffered itself to be led to the sea and hurled
therein.[188] In the 'Mabinogion,' the dragon which fights in Lludd's
dominion is mentioned as a plague, whose shriek sounded on every May
eve over every hearth in Britain; and it 'went through people's
hearts, and so scared them, that the men lost their hue and their
strength, and the women their children, and the young men and maidens
lost their senses.'[189] 'Whence came the _red_ dragon of Cadwaladr?'
asks the learned Thomas Stephens.[190] 'Why was the Welsh dragon in
the fables of Merddin, Nennius, and Geoffrey, described as _red_,
while the Saxon dragon was _white_?' The question may remain long
unanswered, for the reason that there is no answer outside the domain
of fancy, and therefore no reason which could in our day be accepted
as reasonable.[191] The Welsh word 'dragon' means equally a dragon and
a leader in war. Red was the most honourable colour of military
garments among the British in Arthur's day; and Arthur wore a dragon
on his helmet, according to tradition.
His haughty helmet, horrid all with gold,
Both glorious brightness and great terror bred,
For all the crest a dragon did enfold
With greedy paws.[192]
But the original dragon was an embodiment of mythological ideas as old
as mankind, and older than any written record. The mysterious beast of
the boy Taliesin's song, in the marvellous legend of Gwion Bach, is a
dragon worthy to be classed with the gigantic conceptions of the
primeval imagination, which sought by these prodigious figures to
explain all the phenomena of nature. 'A noxious creature from the
rampart of Satanas,' sings Taliesin; with jaws as wide as mountains;
in the hair of its two paws there is the load of nine hundred waggons,
and in the nape of its neck three springs arise, through which
sea-roughs swim.[193]
FOOTNOTES:
[187] 'Liber Landavensis,' 301.
[188] Ibid., 347.
[189] 'Mabinogion,' 461.
[190] 'Literature of the Kymry,' 25.
[191] Mr. Conway, in his erudite chapter on the Basilisk, appears to
think that the red colour of the Welsh dragon, in the legend of Merlin
and Vortigern, determines its moral character; that it illustrates the
evil principle in the struggle between right and wrong, or light and
darkness, as black does in the Persian legends of fighting
serpents.--'Demonology and Devil-Lore,' p. 369. (London, Chatto and
Windus, 1879.)
[192] Spenser, 'Faerie Queene.'
[193] 'Mabinogion,' 484.
VIII.
For the prototype of the dragon-haunted caves and treasure-hills of
Wales, we must look to the lightning caverns of old Aryan fable, into
which no man might gaze and live, and which were in fact the attempted
explanation of thunderstorms, when the clouds appeared torn asunder by
the lightning.
Scholars have noted the impressive fact that the ancient Aryan people
had the same name for cloud and mountain; in the Old Norse, 'klakkr'
means both cloud and rock, and indeed the English word cloud has been
identified with the Anglo-Saxon 'clud,' rock.[194] Equally significant
here is the fact that in the Welsh language 'draig' means both
lightning and dragon.
Primeval man, ignorant that the cloud was in any way different in
structure from the solid mountains whose peaks it emulated in
appearance, started back aghast and trembling when with crashing
thunders the celestial rocks opened, displaying for an instant the
glowing cavern whose splendour haunted his dreams. From this
phenomenon, whose goblins modern science has tamed and taught to run
errands along a wire, came a host of glittering legends, the shining
hammer of Thor, the lightning spear of Odin, the enchanted arrow of
Prince Ahmed, and the forked trident of Poseidon, as well as the
fire-darting dragons of our modern folk-lore.
[Illustration: {THISTLE DECORATION.}]
FOOTNOTE:
[194] Max Mueller, 'Rig-Veda,' i. 44. And see Mr. Baring-Gould's
'Curious Myths of the Middle Ages,' etc.
INDEX
A.
Aberdovey, the Bells of, 339, 344
Aderyn y Corph, the, 212
All Fools' Day, 274
All Hallows, 280
Alluring Stone, the, 367
American Ghost Stories, 139, 185
Angels, Apparitions of, 208
Animals' Terrors at Goblins, 171
Annwn, the World of Shadows, 7, 34
Antic Spirits, 180
Aphrodite, the Welsh, 350
Apple Gift, the, 253
Arian y Rhaw, 333
Arthur, the Mythic and the Historic, vii.
Arthur's Dog, 363
" Pot, 369
" Quoits, 370
" Round Table, 369
" Seat, Bed, Castle, Stone, etc., 369
Ascension Day, Curious Superstition concerning, 25
Aura, the Human, its Perception by Dogs, 172
Avagddu, 219
Avalon, 8
B.
Ball-playing in Churchyards, 272
Bangu, the, 340
Banshee, the, 212
" " in America, 247
Banwan Bryddin, the Stone of, 374
Barnwell, Rev. E. L., cited, 324
Baron's Gate, Legend of the, 127
Barry Island, Mysterious Noises on, 353
Basilisks in Mines, 27
Beer-drinking at Funerals, 322
Bells, Superstitions concerning, 339
" of Aberdovey, 339, 344
" " St. Cadoc, 339
" " Rhayader, Legend of the, 341
" " St. Illtyd, 342
" " St. Oudoceus, 343
Beltane Fires, 278
Bendith y Mamau, 12
Betty Griffith and the Fairies, 115
Birds of Rhiannon, the, 91
Blabbing, Penalty of, 119
Black Book of Carmarthen, the, 350
" Maiden of Caerleon, the, 219
" Man of Ffynon yr Yspryd, 178
" Men in the Mabinogion, 178
Blue Petticoat, Old Elves of the, 132
Bogie, the, 32
Boxing-day, 295
Branwen, Daughter of Llyr, 91
Bread and Cheese in Fairy Mythology, 44
Brownie, the, 186
Bundling, or Courting Abed, 300
Buns, 267
Burial Customs, 321
Bush of Heaven, Legend of the, 73
Bute, the Marquis of, cited, 136
Bwbach, the, 30
" and the Preacher, the, 30
C.
Cadogan's Ghost, 149
Cadwaladr's Goat, the Legend of, 54
Cae Caled, the Dwarfs of, 28
Cae Mawr, the Mowing of, 61
Caerau, the Woman of, 239
Caerphilly, the Green Lady of, 132
Calan Ebrill, 274
Can y Tylwyth Teg, the, 99
Canna's Stone, 362
Canrig Bwt, the Legend of, 368
Canwyll Corph, the, 238
Caradoc the Bloody, 348
Caridwen's Caldron, 88
Carols, 288
Carrying the Kings, 276
" Cynog, 279
" Mortals through the Air, 157, 163
Castell Coch, the Eagles of, 390
" Correg, 380
Catrin Gwyn, the Legend of, 144
Catti Shon, the Witch of Pencader, 77
Cavern of Ravens, the, 389
Ceffyl Pren, the, 319
Chained Spirit, the, 168
Chaining at Weddings, 313
Changelings, 56
Cheese in Welsh Fairy Tales, 44
Christmas Observances, 286
Classification of Fairies, 11
" " Ghosts, 141
" " Customs, 252
Coblynau, 24
Cock-crow, Fairy Dislike of, 112
" a Death Omen when Untimely, 213
Colliers' Star, the, 294
Colour in Fairy Costume, 131
Compacts with the Diawl, 202
Conway, Mr., cited, 393
Coolstrin, the, 317
Corpse, an Insulted, 146
" Bird, the, 212
" Candle, the, 238
Courting Abed, 300
Courtship and Marriage, 298
Craig y Ddinas, a Fairy Haunt, 6
Criminals' Graves, Superstitions concerning, 331
Crocodile of the Lake, the, 392
Cromlechs, Superstitions concerning, 379
" Legendary Names of, 381
Cross-roads, Stones at, 368
Crown of Porcelain, the, 269
Crumlyn Lake, Legend of, 35
Curiosity Tales, 86
Cursing Wells, 355
Customs, Superstitious and Traditional, 250
Cutty Wren, the, 257
Cwm Llan, the Shepherds of, 121
Cwm Pwca, Breconshire, 20
Cwn Annwn, 233
Cwn y Wybr, 233
Cyhyraeth, the, 219
" of St. Mellons, the, 221
" " the Sea-coast, the, 221
D.
Dancing Stones of Stackpool, the, 375
Dancing in Churchyards, 273
" with Fairies, 70
Death Portents, 212
Devil, when Invented, 210
" as a Familiar Spirit, 197
" exorcising the, 199
" in his Customary Form, 202
" measured for a Suit of Clothes, 202
" his Stupidity, 202
" as a Bridge-builder, 206
" at Tintern Abbey, 207
" and the Foul Pipe, a Legend, 204
Devil's Bridge, Legends of the, 205
" Nags, the, 170
" Pulpit, the, 207
" Stone at Llanarth, the, 378
Dewi Dal and the Fairies, 61
Didactic Purpose in Welsh Fairy Tales, 44
" " " Spirits, 145
Dissenters, Fairy Antipathy to, 6
Divination, 302
Dog of Darkness, the, 168
Dogs of the Fairies, 234
" " Hell, 233
" " the Sky, 233
" Fetichistic Notions of, 172
" Ghosts of, 167
Dracae, 47
Dragons, 391
Dreams of Flying, 164
Druidic Fires, 278
Druids, Fairies Hiding, 129
Duffryn House, the Ghost of, 143
Duty-compelled Ghosts, 146
Dwarfs, 27
Dwynwen, the Welsh Venus, 299, 350
Dyfed, the Ancient, 5
E.
Early Inscribed Stones, Superstitions concerning, 373
Easter Customs, 269
Egg-shell Pottage, Story of the, 60
Eisteddfodau, 293
Eithin Hedges, a Protection against Fairies, 115
Elf Queen, the, 14
Elfin Dames, 34
" Cow, the, 36
Elidurus, the Tale of, 65
Ellylldan, the, 18
Ellyllon, 12
Elves, 13
Enchanted Harp, the, 94
Epimenides, 89
Equestrian Fairies, 107
" Ghosts, 174
Eumenides, 12
Euphemisms, 12, 114, 209
Excalibur, 53
Exorcism of Changelings, 57
" " Devils, 199
" " Fairies, 112, 116
" " Ghosts, 165
" " Child-stealing Elves, 62
Expanding Stone, the, 365
F.
Fair Folk, 12
Fairies, existing belief in, 2
" King of the, 6
" Welsh names of, 12
" at Market, 9
" of the Mines, 24
" of the Lakes, 34
" of the Mountains, 49
" Dancing with, 70
" of Frennifawr, Legend of the, 82
" on Horseback, 107
" the Red, 127
" hiding Druids, 129
" why in Wales, 132
" their Origin, 127
" Bad Spirits, 134
" on familiar terms with Ghosts, 157
" of the Cromlechs, 380
Fairy Land, 5
" Queen, 14
" Islands, 8, 45
" Food, 13
" Gloves, 13
" Coal-mining, 27
" Father, the, 45
" a, captured by a Welshwoman, 78
" Song, 99
" Rings, 103
" Conversations, 106
" Battle, a, 107
" Animals, 108
" Sheepfold, the, 109
" Gifts, 119
" Tales, debris of Ancient Mythology, 135
Falling of Coychurch Tower, 386
Familiar Spirits, 187
" " in Female Form, 191
Family Ghosts, 142
Fatal Draught, the, 83
Fetches, 215
Fetichism, 338
Fetichistic Notions of Lower Animals, 171
Ffarwel Ned Pugh, 99
Ffynon yr Yspryd, 178
Ffynon Canna, 362
Fiend Master, Legend of the, 86
Fire-damp Goblins, 27
Fires, Mysterious, 213
First Foot on New Year's Day, 254
First Night of Winter, 280
Flowering Sunday, 266
Food at Funerals, 322
Forest of the Yew, Legend of the, 73
Foul Pipe, Story of the, 204
Fountain of Venus, the, 350
Fountains Flowing with Milk, 356
Fourth of July, 278
Frennifawr, the Fairies of, 82
Friday, its Bad Reputation, 268
Frugal Meal, Legend of the, 58
Funeral Customs, 321
" the Goblin, 231
Future Life, the Question of a, 247
Fuwch Gyfeiliorn, the, 36
G.
Gallery under the Sea, 10
Gast Rhymhi, the Legend of, 381
Ghosts, Existing Belief in, 137
" in America, 139
" Classification of, 141
" with a Duty to Perform, 146
" of Ebbw Vale, 142
" on Horseback, 154, 174
" Exorcising, 165
" of Animals, 167
" Grotesque, 174
" Gigantic, 176
" their Origin, 247
" of Bells, 339
" Stories of--
The Weaver's Ghost, 147
Cadogan's Ghost, 149
The Ghost of Ystradgynlais, 157
The Admiral's Ghost, 143
The Miser's Ghost, 152
The Ghost of St. Donat's, 143
The Pont Cwnca Bach Ghost, 144
The Ghost of Noe, 147
Anne Dewy's Ghost, 153
The Clifford Castle Ghost, 155
The Ghost of Ty'n-y-Twr, 155
The Ghost of the Silver Spurs, 156
The Tridoll Valley Sprite, 181
The Mynyddyslwyn Sprite, 187
Giants, 370
Giants' Dance, the, 371
Gigantic Ghosts, 176
Giraldus Cambrensis, 65
Gitto Bach, the Legend of, 119
Gnomes, 24
Goats, Strange Beliefs concerning, 53
Gobelin, the French, 32
Goblin Animals, 167
" Funerals, 231
God's Name as an Exorcism, 112
" " in the Bardic Traditions, 209
Good Friday Customs, 266
Good Old Times, the, 252
Grassless Grave, Legend of the, 331
Green Lady of Caerphilly, the, 132
" Meadows of the Sea, 8
Groaning Spirits, 222
Grotesque Ghosts, 174
Guest, Lady Charlotte, 5
Guy Fawkes Day Customs, 284
Gwahoddwr, the, 307
Gwenfrewi, Legend of, 347
Gwerddonau Llion, 8
Gwion Bach (Taliesin), 88, 394
Gwrach y Rhibyn, the, 216
Gwragedd Annwn, the, 34
Gwraig of the Golden Boat, the, 41
Gwydion, the Wizard Monarch, 5
Gwyllgi, the, 168
Gwyllion, 49
Gwyn ap Nudd, 6, 372
H.
Hafod Lwyddog, Legend of, 124
Hallow E'en Customs, 280
Hares, Mythological Details, 162
Harp Music among Welsh Fairies, 94
Haunted Bridge, the, 144
" Castles and Houses, 143
" Margaret, 165
Headless Horse, the, 216
Hecate, 49
Hermes, 236
Hidden Treasures and Perturbed Ghosts, 151
" " Dragon-Guarded, 386
Hobgoblin, 32
Holy Thursday, Superstition concerning, 25, 268
Horse-Weddings, 310
Hot-cross Buns, 267
Household Fairy, the, 31
Howell Dda, 298
I.
Iago ap Dewi's Seven Years' Absence, 88
Ianto Llewellyn and the Fairies, 123
Idris the Giant, 370
Incubus, 193
Inscribed Stones, Superstitious Dread of, 373
Iolo ap Hugh, the Legend of, 99
Islands, the Enchanted, 8
J.
Jack-muh-Lantern, 18
Jennet Francis and the Fairy Child-Stealers, 62
John the Red Nose, 258
Jones, the Prophet, 104
Juan White, the Spirit of, 50
K.
Knife, Exorcism by the, 52
Knockers in Mines, 24
Kobolds, 29
L.
Lady of the Fountain, 178, 385
" " Wood, Legend of the, 193
Lake Fairies, 34
Lang, A., cited, 197
Language of the Fairies, 106
Lapse of Time under Enchantment, 89
Laws of the Welsh Spirit-World, 148
Leek, Wearing of the, 260
Lenten Customs, 266
Levitation of Mortals, 157, 163
Levy Dew, 255
Lies, the Tump of, 273
Lifting at Easter, 269
Lightning Caverns, 394
Linen, its Ancient Value, 133
Listening at the Church Door, 214
Lisworney-Crossways, the Legend of, 169
Living with Fairies, 65
Llandaff Gwrach y Rhibyn, the, 217
Llechlafar Stone, 364
Lledrith, the, 215
Llwyd the Magician, 159, 190
Llwyn y Nef, the Bush of Heaven, 72
Llyn Barfog, the Fairy Maiden of, 36
" y Dywarchen, the Lady of, 44
" y Fan Fach, the Sirens of, 38
" Glas, the Shepherd of, 124
" y Morwynion, the Maidens' Lake, 47
Logan Stones, Superstitions concerning, 378
Lord and Beggar, Legend of the, 230
Love Charms, 302
Lucky Days, 268
Lukis, J. W., cited, 3, 380
Luther and the Changeling, 57
M.
Mab, 14
Mabinogion, the, 5, 14, 91
Magic Carpet, 164
" Harp, 95
Maidens' Lake, the, 47
Maid's Trick, the, 302
Making Christ's Bed, 267
Mallt y Nos, the, 215
Marget yr Yspryd, 165
Mari Lwyd, the, 256
Marketing on Tombstones, 280
Marriage Customs, 306
May-day Customs, 274
Meddygon Myddfai, Legend of the, 38
Melerius, the Legend of, 192
Melusina, the Welsh, 381
Memorials of Arthur, 369
Men of Ardudwy, the Legend of the, 47
Merlin the Enchanter, as a Stone Remover, 371
" " " and the Red Dragon, 393
" an Early Myth, viii.
Mermaids, 35, 47
Merthyr, the Rector of, cited, 3
Methodists, Banishers of Fairies, 6
Mid-Lent Sunday, 266
Midsummer Eve, 277
Milford Haven, the Fairies at, 9
Milk from Fountains, 356
Milk-white Milch Cow, Legend of the, 37
Mine Goblins, 24
Miner's Wraith, the, 215
Mirage, 173
Moel Arthur, the Treasure-Chest of, 388
Moelfre Hill, the Women of, 376
Mol Walbec the Giantess, 370
Monacella's Lambs, 162
Money thrown in Wells, 354
Morgan, Born of the Sea, 47
Morgana, 7
Mothering Sunday, 266
Mountain Ash, the Three Rods of, 210
" the Old Woman of the, 49
Mourning in Lent, 266
Music in Welsh Fairy Tales, 91, 98
Myfyr Morganwg, 277
Mystic Wells, 345
N.
Nadolig, 286
Names of Welsh Fairies, 12
Nant yr Ellyllon, 79
Narberth in Mythic Story, 198, 234
New Year's Day Customs, 252
Night Fiend, the, 215
Nights for Spirits, the Three, 280
Nis, the, 186
Noises, Mysterious, on Barry Island, 353
North Wales, Fairyland in, 5
Nos Calan Gauaf, 280
O.
Oaks, Superstitions concerning, 105
Odin's Spear, 395
Offrwm, the, 332
Old Woman of the Mountain, 49
" " " Torrent, 216
Origins of Fairies, 127
" " the Devil, 210
" " Death Omens, 245
" " Customs, 251
" " Spirits, 247
" " Mystic Well Superstitions, 359
" " Superstitions regarding Stones, 383
" " Dragons, 395
Owen Lawgoch and his Enchanted Men, 392
Owl's Screech a Death Omen, 213
P.
Palm Sunday Customs, 266
Pant Shon Shenkin, the Legend of, 75
Pant-y-Madoc, the Gwyllgi of, 170
Pant-y-Saer, the Treasure-Hunter of, 389
Parc-y-Bigwrn, the Cromlech of, 382
Parson's Penny, 332
Pebble-Tossers, Gigantic, 370
Pembrokeshire a Land of Mystery, 10
Peredur, the Legend of, 202, 366
Phantom Horseman, the, 174
" Ships and Islands, 173
Pigmies, 24
Pins in Enchantment, 354
Place of Strife, the Legend of the, 59
Plant Annwn, 34
Planting Weeds on Graves, 298
" Flowers on Graves, 299, 336
Plentyn-newid, the, 56
Plygain, the, 294
Poetico-Religious Theory of Fairies' Origin, 134
Polly Williams and the Fairies, 81
Polyphemus, the Welsh, 179, 202
Pontypridd, Druidic Ceremonies at, 277
Preacher and Bwbach, the, 30
Prolific Woman, Legend of the, 133
Pronunciation of Welsh Words, Preface
Propitiation of Goblins, 12, 114
Psyche, 86
Puck, the Welsh, 20
Puzzling Jug, the, 283
Pwca'r Trwyn, Account of, 187
" " chastises a Servant Girl, 22
" " travels in a Jug, 118
" " a Proscribed Noble, 128
" " was it a Fairy, 190
Pwyll, Prince of Dyfed, 234
Q.
Quintain, the, 284, 313
Quoits, Arthur's, 370
R.
Ravens, Cave of the, 389
Realistic Theory of Fairies' Origin, 129
Red Book of Hergest (Llyfr Coch), 5
" Fairies, the, 127
" Lady of Paviland, the, 386
Rhamanta, 302
Rhitta Gawr, the Giant, 372
Rhys and Llewellyn, the Story of, 70
Rice at Weddings, 314
Richard the Tailor, 160
Rip Van Winkle, the Original of, 89
Robber's Stone, the, 376
Rocking Stone, Superstitions concerning, 378
Rowli Pugh and the Ellyll, 15
S.
Sabbath-breakers Turned to Stone, 376
Sacred Wells, 345
Sagranus Stone, the, 375
Sailors' Superstitions, 9
St. Barruc's Well, 352
St. Ceyna, the Legend of, 377
St. Clement's Day, 284
St. Collen, the Legend of, 7
St. Cynfran's Well, 351
St. Cynhafal's Well, 351
St. David the Introducer of Death Portents into Wales, 245
" his Day, 259
" his Legendary Character, 260
St. Dogmell's Parish, 69, 273
St. Dwynwen's Well, 350
St. Elian's Well, 355
St. George's Well, 351
St. Gwenfrewi, the Legend of, 347
St. Gwynwy's Well, 353
St. Illtyd's Well, 357
St. John's Eve, 277
St. Mary's Well, 346
St. Melangell's Lambs, 162
St. Patrick and the Elfin Dames, 35
" a Welshman, 264
" his Day, 264
St. Samson and the Dragon, 392
St. Tegla's Well, 329, 349
St. Tydecho's Blue Stone, 367
St. Ulric's Day, 279
St. Valentine's Day, 259
St. Winifred's Well, 346
Salt at Funerals, 328
Sanford's Well, 358
Scapegoat, the, 329
Science, the Marvels of, 248
Seeing the Sun Dance, 273
Serpents Turned to Stones, 377
Seven Whistlers, the, 213
Sgilti Yscawndroed, the Lightfooted, 164
Shakspeare, his use of Welsh Folk-Lore, 14, 44
" his Visit to Wales, 20
Shepherds of Cwm Llan, the Legends of the, 121
Shoe-throwing, 314
Shon ap Shenkin, the Story of, 92
Showmen's Superstitions, 255
Shrove Tuesday, 265
Shui Rees and the Fairies, 67
Sin-eater, the, 324
Sion Cent the Magician, 203
Skulls, 145
Sleeping Saints, the, 73
" Heroes, Legends of, 162, 392
Snake Stone, the, 278
Soul, its Future Destiny, 249
Souls of Dogs, 167
Sowling, 258
Spade Money, 333
Spectral Animals, 167
Spirit Fountain, the, 178
" Life, the Question of a, 249
" Nights, the Three, 280
" World, Laws Governing the Welsh, 148
Spirits' Antics, 180
Spiritual Hunting Dogs, 235
Spiritualism, 139
Spitting at the Name of the Devil, 209
Stanley, Hon. W. O., cited, 19, 115
Stone-throwing Spirits, 180, 185
Stone-tossing Giants, 370
Stone-worship, 361
Stone of Invisibility, the, 365
" " Remembrance, the, 366
" " Golden Gifts, the, 366
Stones, Curious Superstitions concerning, 361
" at Cross-roads, 368
" of Healing, 367
Storms, Baleful Spirits of, 385
Stripping the Carpenter, 284
Suicides, Superstitions concerning, 146, 331
Sul Coffa, 335
Summoning Spirits, 199
Supernatural, What is the, 248
Superstition, its Degree of Prevalence, 138, 251
" in the United States, 139, 252
Sweethearts' Charms, 302
T.
Taff's Well, 358
Taffy ap Sion, the Shoemaker's Son, Legend of, 75
Tailor Magician of Glanbran, the, 200
Taliesin, the Tale of, 88
" his Dragon, 394
Talking Stone, the, 364
Tan-wedd, the, 213
Teetotallers, Fairy Antipathy to, 6
Teir-nos Ysprydnos, 280
Terrors of the Brute, Creation at Apparitions, 171
Teulu, the, 231
Thief-catching Stone, the, 366
Thigh Stone, the, 363
Thomas, Rev. Dr., cited, 300
Thor's Hammer, 395
Three Blows, the Story of the, 40
" Losses by Disappearance, the, 9
" Nights for Spirits, the, 280
Throwing at Cocks, 265
Thunder and Lightning as a Death Omen, 213
Toads and Warts, 352
Tolaeth, the, 225
Tolling the Bell, 340
Tooling, 258
Toriad y Dydd, 125
Transformation of Human Beings to Animals, 167, 381
" " " Stone, 374, 376
Transportation through the Air, 157, 163
Trichrug, the Giant of, 371
Tricking the Diawl, 203
Tridoll Valley Ghost, the, 181
Tudur of Llangollen, the Story of, 79
Tump of Lies, the, 273
Twelfth Night Customs, 256
Tylwyth Teg, the, 12
U.
Unknowable, the, 138
Unlucky Days, 268
V.
Vale of Neath, the, its Goblin Fame, 6
Vavasor Powell and the Devil, 198
Veil, the Goblin, 232
Venus, the Welsh, 299
" " her Well, 350
Villemarque cited, 58
W.
Walking Barefoot to Church, 266
Walking-stones, 363
Warts, 351, 367
Water Maidens, 47
" Worship, 359
Wedding Customs, 306