collections, remaining in old deserted mansions: I can certify that such a fate hath befallen some collections, from my own knowledge; and am sorry to be able to point out three ancient houses, now in the hands of tenants, in each of which there are large chests of old writings, which have been locked up for many years. It is lamentable to think how many valuable manuscripts have been lost in this manner; so that it may be safely averred, that a number equal to what now remains, hath perished through neglect, within the last two hundred years; that is to say, since the higher ranks of Welshmen have withdrawn their patronage from the cultivation of the literature of their native country. Before that time the bards were patronized, not only by the natives, but by the lords of the marches, and other strangers of distinction, who obtained possessions in Wales, whose policy it was to ingratiate themselves with the people, by encouraging their ancient learning. Several of these strangers even surpassed most of the natives in their zeal in this respect; for among the most distinguished patrons of the bards, we can boast of the following illustrious names: Jasper and William Herbert, earls of Pembroke; Richard Nevill, lord of Glamorgan; and sir Richard Basset, of Bewpyr Castle. To the three personages last named, and sir Edward Lewis, of Van, we owe a grateful remembrance, for being the means of preserving to us one of In the years 1467, 1612, and 1681. the most curious treasures of ancient times, that any nation can produce; 1 mean the system containing the institutes and discipline of the bards of the isle of Britain, as they always styled it themselves, but which was more generally known by the name of Druidism. For such a person the above noblemen caused several congresses to be held for the bards to bring together whatever had been handed down to them from their predecessors; all of which was carefully entered into books, by persons appointed to perform that office; + this was the state of things in South Wales; a similar spirit prevailed in the north district of that principality, and of the foreign families who settled there, the names of se veral of the Sales buries, the Middletons, and the Bulkeley's, stand distinguished as patrons and writers, whose memories are still revered by the natives. To such a spirit then is to be attributed the many collections of valuable manuscripts, which have been formed in different parts of Wales; and several of which still remain; and detached volumes also are commonly to be met with, in the hands of obscure individuals. Therefore, according to the nearest calculation that can be made, we have still preserved upwards of two thousand manuscript books, of various ages, from the beginning of the ninth, to the close of the sixteenth century. The most valuable of those collections are in the possession of some of the leading families in the principality; And it ought not to be forgotten, that the royal sanction was obtained from Henry VIIth for holding such meetings, of the bar is, as it is stated in the pretace to the papers which contained the transactions of one of those assen Wies. H principality; yet several others have been removed out of the country by various means. Of such treasures of British manuscripts, the following are to be pointed out as most deserving of attention : the contents of the before-mentioned stores of British learning may be classed are, poetry, bardic institutes, laws, history, theology, ethics, proverbs, dramatic tales, grammars. The first of these classes, the poetry, is by far the most extensive; In North Wales, the collections for it may be computed to fill about of Sir Watkin Williams Wynne, bart. at Wynnestay, Sir Thomas Mostyn, bart. at Gloddaith, Griffith Howell Vaughan, esq. at Paul Panton, esq. at Plas Gwyn, of Thomas Johnes, esq. at Havod. David Thomas, esq. at Trev y Groes, Rev. Josiah Rees, at Gelli Gron, Mr. Edward Williams, at Flimston, near Cowbridge. Out of Wales, the collections of The earl of Macclesfield, in Oxfordshire, Jesus College, Oxford, The British Museum, London, Rev. Mr. Kenrick, Exeter. eight parts out of ten of our old writings, omitting to take into account the heraldric collections all together; but with respect to the quantity that is printed, such a proportion may be reversed. On this subject I have made a calculation, so as to enable me to infer, that I have perused upwards of thirteen thousand poetical pieces, of various denominations, for the purpose of collecting words, in the course of about eighteen years that I have been compiling the dictionary of the Welsh language. Among 167 manuscript volumes in the Hengwrt collection, the leading articles of which are detailed by Llwyd, in the Archaeologia Britannica, the oldest that I have seen of Welsh poetry, is the Black Book, of Caermarthen; the first half of which, appears to have been written as early, at least, as the beginning of the ninth century; but the latter part of it is of later date, being generally supposed the hand-writing of Cynzelw, about the year 1160, one of whose productions, composed in that year, being added at the The principal heads under which end of the book*. The next de serving This curious manuscript contains, Dialogue between, Merzin (Merlin) of Caledonia, and Taliesin The Graves of the Warriors of Britain, by Taliesin A fragment of the Prospect of Dinbyc, by Taliesin serving of notice, for their antiquity, are two volumes of the same collection, written towards the close of the eleventh century; of which, one is filled with the works of Taliesin, and the other with the odes of Aneurin. Transcripts of the more early poetry are also numerously interspersed among the productions of the bards who flourished under the auspices of the latter princes of Wales, of which there are many copies, as well in the Hengwrt colleetion, as among 106 volumes in the Wynnestay library, and, indeed, in most of the collections already enumerated. The red book, of Jesus College, in Oxford, written about the year 1360, is, for the most part, filled with the earlier poetry, mixed with other pieces, written at various times, down to the date of the book. I do not pretend to state all the manuscripts now extant; of our ancient poets of those which exist, I only mention what I have seen myself. Some collections, as the earl of Macclefield's, which, I believe, to be valuable, and others I have bad, as yet, no opportunity of examining. I hope, that some persons better qualified than I am, will be induced to give an exaết catalogue of all our MSS. now in being. The bardic institutes were not regularly committed to writing, until they were arranged together under the authority of the congresses convened by the English noblemen in South Wales, as already mentioned. The original manuscripts then drawn up of such institutes, are in the collection of Mr. Turberville, at Llanaran, in Glamorganshire. Ancient copies of the Laws of the Britons are common in most collections: there are eighteen of them in that of Hengwrt; four in that of Wynnestay; and several in the British Museum and elsewhere: but I have not met with a late tran On the Inundation of Cantrev Gwaelod, by Gwyzno Contention with Gwyn ab nuz, by Gwyzno Dialogue between Arthur, Cai, and Glewlwyd A Religious Ode, by Cubelyn The same subject, by ditto The same subject, by ditto Moral verses, by Llywarc script, that is, since the introduction of paper; for they are all on vellum. Of historical documents, such as the Triads, Chronicles of the Kings of Britain, of the Saxons, and of the Princes of Wales, copies abound in most of the collections, written at various times, in the twelfth, thirteenth, and fourteenth centuries. Theological Tracts, Legends, and Lives of Saints, appear at the commencement of the fourteenth century. Our proverbs began to be gathered together at an early period: Cadoc, the first abbot of Llan Carvan, about the close of the sixth century, stands at the head of those who laboured in this branch, from whom we have any remains in the eleventh century, the aged Cyrys, of Jal, appeared conspicuous in the same track; again in the fifteenth century, Sypin, of Cyveilioc, increased what his predecessors had donc. Collectively, from these and others, I have by me upwards of ten thousand adages and aphorisms, the result of the observations of the Britons. The Mabinogion, or Juvenile Amusements, being a kind of dramatic tales, are, in themselves, some of our most singular productions; and I have little hesitation in asserting them to have been the origin of romance writing in Europe. It is to be lamented, that, owing to the credulity, or want of penetration in our early chroniclers, the high colouring and the ideal actions of those tales, were incorporated into our national history; so that it is from thence we are to account for the character drawn of Arthur and his knights, with other extravagancies of a similar kind. Detached pieces of this sort are very common, but there is a splendid treasure of them in the Hengwrt library. There are about thirty different old treatises on Welsh grammar and prosody preserved; of these, one is particularly deserving of notice, as a curious relic: it was composed by Geraint, about A. D. 880; revised by Einion, about A. D. 1200 ; and again by Edeyrn, about the year 1270; and regularly privileged by the different princes who then exercised sovereignty in Wales. Such, reverend sir, is the brief account which I presume to send you, with a design of giving to the society some information respecting the existence, and the general contents, of the old manuscripts, intended to be transmitted to posterity, by means of the Archaiology under con sideration. ject on which he is less likely to persuade. To a Mussulman, our notions regarding the treatment of females, always appear absurd and ridiculous; and he seldom seems more satisfied with his wisdom, than when he expatiates on the bad cons quences which are sometimes the result of them. It was to a conversation on this subject, with a learned Mussulman, who lately visited England, that we are indebted for "A Vindication of the Liberties of Asiatic Women," written in Persian, by Abu Taleb Khan, a native of Lucknow, in the province of Owde. This paper, atics, Europeans are, notwithstanding all that has been written upon the subject, worse informed than of any other. The very name of the apartments destined for the residence of married women, haram, (forbidden), implies the exclusion of all strangers, particularly males, from their abodes. Our medical gentlemen, (and even with them the occurrence is very rare), are the only persons ever suffered to approach the dwelling of a married woman of rank when, in case of any dangerous illness, a physician is applied to, he is only permitted to approach the door of the apartment, which is covered with a screen, and there he must prescribe without seeing her, according to the replies he receives to his enquiries, relating to her complaint. Hence the various relations, regarding the privileges, customs, and employment of Asiatic females, are generally the off-in a certain company, the conspring of the narrator's vanity, and may be regarded as destitute of truth the production of a learned Asiatic, upon this interesting subject, is a more authentic document, than, perhaps, the public are yet in possession of, relating to the married state of the Orientalists. "One day," says Abu Taleb, versation turned upon liberty, in re spect of which the English consider |