The walls are very lofty and not much injured by time; the plan of the
various chambers, extensive vaults and chambers in the inner courtyard,
can be perfectly distinguished. The general form of the castle, which
must once have been very strong, is nearly a square, with a projecting
gatehouse to the S.E. which is almost perfect. The keep on the eastern
side commands a lovely view. About half a mile further is the village of
Oystermouth, clustering with its whitewashed roofs along the foot and
declivity of a high mass of rock, which juts boldly out into the sea
for half a mile, forming the south-eastern extremity of Gower, and
terminating Swansea Bay. The village is celebrated as a bathing place,
and for its extensive fishery for oysters, with which it supplies
Bristol, Gloucestershire, North Somerset, &c. This trade gives
occupation to a considerable number of fishermen who are the chief
inhabitants of the place; but in the spring and summer, Oystermouth,
in consequence of the great beauty of the situation, and its extreme
salubrity, is completely filled with strangers, and high rates are
obtained for lodgings; the accommodations are mostly indifferent, though
the place is improving fast. The prospect from the summit of the rocks
is truly exhilarating and beautiful. On one side, the spectator beholds
just below him, the Atlantic rushing with all its majesty up the Bristol
Channel--rising over the mixon sands into a really mountainous
swell--while on the other, Swansea Bay, glittering with the white sails
and varied combinations of a crowd of shipping, seems spread out like a
vast and beautiful lake; its eastern shores bounded in the distance by
the mountainous and woody scenery of Britton-Ferry, Aberavon, Margam,
gradually diminishing towards Pyle.
To the north, beyond the town of Swansea, an immense cloud of smoke is
seen suspended over the Vales of Tawy and Neath--an abomination in the
face of heaven. Such is the Welsh Bay of Naples, which presents this
remarkable appearance at this spot. The anchorage aside this range of
cliffs affords, except in an east wind, a very secure road for shipping;
sometimes in strong weather there are two or three hundred sail lying
here. At the termination of the peninsula are two rocky islands called
the Mumbles, and on the farthest is a large light-house; for the support
of which a rate is levied on all the shipping up and down channel. Below
the light-house an immense cavern called "Bob's Cove" can be seen at
low water. We were told that the village under the shadow of the rocks,
loses sight of the sun for three months in winter, but this is not
"quite correct." Let us proceed westward. About a mile from Oystermouth
is Newton; where there are several lodging-houses. There have been many
instances of great longevity at this village, which is perhaps the
healthiest spot on the coast. The road to Caswell Bay, which passes
through Newton, is almost impassable for horses; a new one however is
talked of. The rocky valley leading to Caswell Bay, which abruptly comes
in sight between two projecting rocks, is singularly wild and romantic.
The bay is absolutely a mine of the picturesque--the Lullworth Cove
of Wales. A day may be spent delightfully among its rocks and
caverns--taking care to visit them at low water. A few miles westward is
Oxwich Bay, the main attraction of the coast, along the rocky summit of
which the pedestrian should "wend his way," with the ocean roaring far
beneath him. We will, however, return to Swansea, and endeavour briefly
to recall our first excursion into Gower.
Let us fancy ourselves therefore, on a bright April morning, riding
along with a friend--a stranger like ourselves--on the high road from
Swansea into the interior of the peninsula. After cantering over about
seven miles of hill and valley and common, we entered a woody defile,
and at last opened, to use a nautical phrase, the "Gower inn," (eight
miles) which was built, we were told, expressly for the convenience of
tourists. After ascending a tremendous rocky hill, for road it cannot
be called, about a mile onwards, Oxwich Bay bursts at last in all its
beauty upon our sight. In our inquiries during the day, of the few
passengers we met, as to the distance of the village of Penrice, the
intended limit of our day's excursion, we were forcibly reminded of the
"mile and a bittock" of the north. The country is very thinly populated
here: at last we came in sight of the grounds of Penrice Castle, the
beautiful mansion of Mr. Talbot, the member for the county; the entrance
to the park is between two of the towers belonging to the extensive and
picturesque remains of the ancient Castle of Penrice, which stands close
to the road. Sixteen miles from Swansea, after "curses not loud but
deep" upon Welsh roads, we reached the sequestered village of Penrice,
which stands on a wooded eminence of no easy access, overlooking the
eastern shore of Oxwich Bay.
(_To be continued._)
* * * * *