other side of the wall there was once a portion of a very old inscribed stone, which could not be deciphered; except a few capital letters. The individual, whose remains lie here, had his residence, therefore, some two miles and a half out to sea, on the coast plain which it is said once stretched from the Point of Air, in Flintshire, round Orme's Head, to the eastern banks of the Conway. And now, if the "Old Abergele", which when doomed to be drowned by the sea, much more than a thousand years ago, be alleged to have left its name as a perpetual legacy to its nearest neighbour, the present town, then the Gele, must have once discharged its waters into the sea due north; or, the real original Gele, must have been some creek now totally submerged, and one with the ocean. It is, however, a fact that in Christopher Saxton's maps, both of Denbighshire and Flintshire, Camden's Britain, edition 1637, the Gele appears to run right north, apparently emptying itself into the sea about Pensarn, having no junction with the Clwyd. In the days of their childhood the oldest inhabitants must have heard their grandsire's stories of spring-tides coming up the old water course, Hen Ffos y Clawdd, from Pensarn to Pentre Ucha, a very short distance below the present parsonage. Here you may still dig gravel, which some stream of water must have deposited in ages long gone by. Pensarn, we may presume, inherits its name from a causeway which crossed the Gele there at low water, before the Towyn was enclosed, and the sea embankment (now nearly levelled) was thrown up. It was within the memory of the last generation restored, an undertaking which old Father Oceanus seems never to have approved of, but to have coveted the whole plain, bit by bit; and sometimes yet he is defying the London and North-Western Railway Company to dispute his claims. Again, the present bed of the river, nearly all the way from the town to the Clwyd, seems to be more artificial than natural. But we leave the question to the local antiquary and geologist. Is there any parochial record of the inclosure of the Towyn, and the later inclosure of the Morva? Now, about Elbodius, or Elvod, as he passed among the Welsh, what was his connection with Abergele? Was he the founder of a church there? Could he have been a native? He endowed the church with a parcel of land on the River Gele, i.e., we presume, on the left bank of the stream just above the bridge, where the old houses were built upon land leased from the Bishop of St. Asaph. How did Elbodius acquire this strip of land? In Warrington's History of Wales, p. 559, we read that "the clergy of Wales had hitherto (A.D. 762) preserved, with great firmness, an independency of the Romish church. About this period, however, they suffered Elbodius to be appointed by the Pope, archbishop of North Wales; who soon brought them to act in conformity with the Romish observance of Easter, etc." But according to Brut y Tywysogion, "Elbodius, Archbishop of North Wales, died in A.D. 809, when there was an eclipse of the sun, and great contention among the clergy about the observance of Easter, for the bishops of Llandaff and Menavia would not submit to the Archbishop of Venedocia (North Wales); they themselves being archbishops by a more ancient right", see Hanes Cymru, reign of Cynan Tindaethwy. Hence, Elbodius must have held his archiepiscopate for nearly fifty years, and during that long period he may have built a cathedral at Abergele, such as that age could produce, attaching to it two or more chapelries. This may explain, in some measure, why the present large church stands upon the massive foundations of a former edifice discovered during the late restoration. But where are we to learn the connection of Abergele with the Cistercian Monks? The Towyn seems to have been inhabited to some extent, probably by fishermen, from an early time; a small door opening into north aisle, called "Drws y Tywyn", was made, no doubt, for their special convenience. It has been asserted that Peel signifies a small military post erected by the Danes. Is such the fact? There is a Peel at Abergele, and another at St. George, or Llansantsior. The antiquities and legends connected with Abergele are very numerous and interesting. GLANMOR. POOL PARK, RUTHIN. SIR, A question of great importance occurs to my mind in connection with this property, lately advertised for sale; and it is one I should like to see discussed in the Journal. As members will remember, there stand in front of the house two most interesting objects of rare antiquity, both of which have been in time past removed thither from their proper locale, namely, the Emlyn Stone and Cadair Fenhines. Both of them have been described by Professor Westwood in the volume for 1855, where also illustrations are given of them. But at that time the meaning of Edward Llhwyd's note of "ye stroaks on ye edges" of the Emlyn Stone had not been realised; and it was not until 1873 that they were discovered by Professor Rhys to be Oghams. So that we have here not only what appears to have been a coronation-chair, but also an Ogham inscription; the only one, I think, in the whole of North Wales; and that, moreover, a bilingual one; exposed to the chances of a sale, and therewith to the whims and idiosyncrasies of a purchaser who may show much less regard and care for them than has been done by the late and present Lord Bagot. It is, indeed, much to be hoped that no such evil may befall them; but it is a grave matter that such a chance should be possible, and I would suggest that an effort should be made to get a clause inserted in the Act for the Preservation of Ancient Monuments, to extend its provisions to all such like objects as are liable to transfer by sale and purchase. Those who may feel a real and intelligent interest in their acquisition will be thankful for the safeguard; and those who do not will be prevented from injuring, or at least destroying, what they may not be able to appreciate. ALUMNUS RUTHINENSIS. I am, etc., WOLVES. SIR,-The late Mr. Davies Gilbert, who wrote a history of Cornwall, has more than once stated that the last native wolf seen in England was captured at Rosperth, in Ludgvæn, in Cornwall. He does not appear to have given the date of this capture. The last wolf in Scotland was killed in 1680 by Sir Ewen Cameron; while these animals seem to have lingered on in Ireland until 1710, about which time the last presentment for their destruction in the county of Cork was made. Edward I issued a mandamus to all his bailiffs to assist Peter Corbet to destroy them in the counties of Gloucester, Salop, Hereford, and Worcester. The attempts to extirpate of Athelstan and Edgar seem to have failed. It would be, therefore, interesting to know when the capture of the Cornish wolf was made. As the exact spot is known, it is not impossible some information as to the time may be obtained from local sources. I am, Sir, your humble servant, AN INQUIRER. NOTICE TO MEMBERS. THE Subscription of Members is One Guinea, due annually on January 1st. Members residing in South Wales and Monmouthshire are requested to remit the same, by Post Office Order or Cheque, as soon as possible, to George E. Robinson, Esq., Cardiff; all other Members will remit their Subscriptions to the Rev. R. Trevor Owen, M.A., Llangedwyn, Oswestry. Or, Members may pay through the London and Westminster Bank, Lothbury, London, to the credit of the Rev. E. L. Barnwell, at the Melksham Branch of the Wilts and Dorset Bank. Members not receiving their Numbers of the Archeologia Cambrensis are requested to give notice to the General Secretary to whom they have paid their subscriptions. All Members in arrear are requested immediately to remit the amount due, that they may receive the Numbers of the Journal. All communications for the Editor are to be addressed, prepaid, until further notice, to the Rev. R. Trevor Owen, M.A., Llangedwyn, Oswestry. Copies of the Rules, and Lists of Members of the Association, may be had on application to either of the General Secretaries. |