About a mile north of the church the granite hills make their
appearance, and run across the parish in a curved line. The only
variety which this rock presents are coarse and fine grained masses,
and a kind of fluor, near Carraton Hill, containing hornblende.
Immediately south of the granite, on the side of a barren moor, masses
of compact and quartz ore felspar rock protrude, indicating the same
formation as at Trewist in Alternun. Near the church hornblende slate
prevails, which is said to contain veins of actynolite and asbestos. A
little further south, on the ridge of a barren down, massive
hornblende rock projects in tiers; and loose blocks of the same stone
lie scattered over the side of the hill, and in the adjacent valley.
The whole of the southern part of the parish is composed of varieties
of this same rock, several of which are well displayed in the vicinity
of Rosecradock.
[26] Probably this place took its name not from a gate
painted red being there placed, as is generally imagined,
but from its being situated just above Fowey river; Rhie-gat
signifies River’s course. The Fowey river at this place is
not above half a mile from the source of Looe river.
[27] The following account of these stones is copied from
Mr. Polwhele’s Cornwall, vol. ii. p. 195.
“In the parish of St. Clere, about 200 paces to the eastward
of Redgate, are two monumental stones which seem parts of
two different crosses. They have no such relation to each
other as to warrant the conclusion that they ever
contributed to form one monument. One is inscribed; the
other, without an inscription, called ‘the other half
stone,’ seems to have been the shaft of a cross, and
originally stood upright, but has latterly been thrown down,
from an idle curiosity to ascertain whether any concealed
treasures were beneath its base. On one of its sides are
some ornamental asterisks, but no letters of any kind. Its
present length is about eight feet; yet it seems to have
been once longer, as the upper part is broken, and displays
part of a mortice. The inscribed stone, nearly square,
appears to have been a plinth of a monumental cross, having
the words ‘Doniert rogavit pro anima’ inscribed upon it, in
similar characters to those used about the ninth century.
Doniert is supposed to mean Dungerth, who was king of
Cornwall, and accidentally drowned about the year 872. Of
the meaning and intention of this monument, see Borlase, pp.
361, 362.”
[28] I take some credit to myself for this conjecture as to
the original meaning of “the other half stone.” And I have,
long since writing this, accidentally discovered what
strongly confirms my opinion. The authors of the Beauties of
England and Wales, speaking of inscribed stones at
Ebchester, in Durham, say, there is one having the single
word “Have” for Ave on it. This stone is supposed by Horsley
to be sepulchral. Have Melitina Sanctissima. The custom of
thus saluting, as it were, the dead, or taking their last
farewell of them, is very well known, and it may seem almost
needless to produce any instances of it. Thus Æneas bids
eternal adieu to Pallas:
Salve æternum mihi, maxime Palla,
Æternumque vale.――Æneid, XI. 97.
Thus also a passage in Catullus,――Ave atque vale.
[29] DRUID, DRUIDES, OR DRUIDæ.――Some derive this word from
the Hebrew Derussim, or Drussim; which they translate
Contemplatores. Pliny, Salmasius, Vignierius, and others,
derive the name from δρυς, an oak, on account of their
inhabiting, or at least frequenting and teaching in forests,
or because they sacrificed under the oak. Menage derives the
word from the old British “Drus,” which signifies “Dæmon” or
“Magician;” Borel, from the old British “Dru” or “Deru;”
whence he takes δρυς to be derived. Goropius Becanus, lib.
i. takes “Druis” to be an old Celtic or German word, formed
from “trowis” or “truis,” signifying a “Doctor of the Truth
and Faith.” Father Peyron, in his book of the Original of
the Celtic Language, will have both Greek and Latin to come
from Celtic; and if so, the Greek word δρυς must come from
the Celtic “deru.” The groves where they worshipped were
called Llwyn; thence, probably, is derived the word “Llan,”
signifying now, in Welch, a church. These groves were
inclosures of spreading oak, ever surrounding their sacred
places; and in these words, “1st. Gorseddan,” or Hillocks,
where they sat, and from whence they pronounced their
decrees, and delivered their orations to the people; “2nd.
Carnedde,” or Heaps of Stones, on which they had a peculiar
mode of worship; “3rd. Cromlech,” or Altars, on which they
performed the solemnities of sacrifice.
There were several orders of them:――1st. Druids; the chief
of these was a sort of Pontifex Maximus, or High Priest;
these had the care and direction of matters respecting
religion; 2nd. Bards; who were an inferior order to the
Druids, and whose business it was to celebrate the praises
of their heroes, in songs composed and sung to their harps;
3rd. Eubates; who applied themselves chiefly to the study of
Philosophy, and the contemplation of the wonderful works of
Nature.
There were Women as well as Men Druids; for it was a female
Druid who foretold to Dioclesian, when a private soldier,
that he would be Emperor of Rome. They taught physics, or
natural philosophy; were versed in astronomy and the
computation of time; were skilled in arithmetic and
mechanics; and appear to have been the grand source from
whence the ages in which they lived derived all the
knowledge which they possessed.
Among the numerous places sacred to Druidical worship many
hieroglyphical characters have been discovered, which
doubtless were intended for something relative to their
opinions of the Deity to whom they paid their adoration.
But, in addition to this, they taught their pupils a number
of verses, which were only a sort of memorials or annals in
use amongst them. Some persons remained twenty years under
their instruction, which they did not deem it lawful to
commit to writing. They used indeed the Greek alphabet, but
not the language, as appears by a note, chap. xiii. lib. VI.
of Cæsar’s Commentaries de Bell. Gall. This custom,
according to Julius Cæsar, seems to have been adopted for
two reasons: first, not to expose their doctrines to the
common people; and, secondly, lest their scholars, trusting
to letters, should be less anxious to remember their
precepts, because such assistance commonly diminishes
application and weakens the memory.
The original manner of writing amongst the ancient Britons
was by cutting the letters with a knife upon sticks, which
were commonly squared, and sometimes formed with three
sides. Their religious ceremonies were but few, and similar
to those of the ancient Hebrews. The unity of the Supreme
Being was the foundation of their religion; and Origen, in
his Commentaries of Ezekiel, inquiring into the reasons of
the rapid progress of Christianity in Britain, says, “this
island has long been predisposed to it by the doctrine of
the Druids, which had ever taught the unity of God the
Creator.” (_Extracted from the Monthly Magazine and Literary
Panorama for November 1819._)
[30] This author is mistaken. Norden not only speaks of it
as follows, but has given a tolerably good plate of it. He
says, “Trethevic, called in Latin Casa Gigantis, a little
house raysed of mightie stones, standing on a little hill
within a field, the form hereunder expressed. This monument
standeth in the parish of St. Cleer. The cover being all one
stone is from A to B 16 foote in length; the breadth from C
to D is 10 foote; the thickness from G to H is 2 foote. E is
an artificial hole 8 inches diameter, made thorowe the roofe
very rounde, which served, as it seemeth, to put out a
staffe, whereof the house itself was not capable. F was the
door or entrance.”