banks clad with wood, where every varied tint that autumn could afford added to their effect, cast a darkening fhade upon the ftream. With the green oak, all the different hues of the afh, the elm, and the hazel, were intermingled. Above the bridge arofe a few cottages, furrounded with foliage. The evening was calm, and the smoke, tinged by the fetting fun, defcended upon the vale, whilft the diftant mountains were brightened by his beams into a fine purple. I fat down on the bank of the river, and contemplated these beauties till the de clining fun had funk beneath the horizon, and twilight had begun to steal over the landscape, and blend into one every different fhade of reflection, and to cover the whole face of nature with its fober grey. I forced myfelf away, and purfued my journey to Ruabon, my intended refidence for the night.

RUABON

Is a village pleasingly fituated on a rifing ground, and has around it the refidences of feveral perfons of fortune. I spent two or three days very agreeably in this place, and in little excurfions around the neighbourhood.

The church is a good building: it contains an organ, an inftrument very unufual in, Welsh churches, which was given by the late fir Watkin Williams Wynne. At its east end I obferved a table monument of marble, with the date of 1526, in memory

of

of John ap Elis Euton, and Elizabeth Clefeley, his

wife:

A tombe, it is right rich and flately made,
Where two do lye, in ftone and auncient trade.
The man and wife with fumptuous folemne guife,
In this rich fort, before the aulter lies *.

His head on creft, and warlike helmet ftayes,
A lion blue, on top thereof comes out:
On lion's necke along his legges he layes,
Two gauntlets white are lying there about.
An auncient fquire he was, and of good race,
As by his armes appeeres in many a place:

His house and lands, not farre from thence, do fhow
His birth and blood were great, right long ago t.

Befides this, there are four other marble monuments, two of which deferve particular attention. One of these is in memory of the late fir Watkin Williams Wynne, and the other of his wife, lady Henrietta Williams Wynne. The latter is reprefented by a beautiful figure of Hope, reclining on an urn: the infcription is on a pedestal, within a ferpent with its head and tail united, expreffive of eternity. If I am not deceived in the recollection, they are both the workmanship of Roubiliac.

DR. DAVID POWEL,

The Welsh historian, was inftituted to this vicarage in the year 1571, and lies buried here.-He was born about the beginning of the reign of queen

*Not at prefent.

1

† Churchyard.

I 4

Eliza

Elizabeth; and after he left Oxford, obtained the living of Ruabon, and was made a prebendary of St. Afaph. Thus rendered eafy and independant in his circumstances, he ftudied with great affiduity the ancient history of Britain. For this he was well qualified by his extenfive acquaintance with the Welsh and other languages. He tranflated into English the History of Wales written in Welsh of Caradoc of Llancarvan; and edited the writings of Giraldus Cambrenfis, which he illuftrated, and corrected by many learned and valuable notes. He died in 1590, leaving behind him a large collection of ancient manuscripts,

CHAP. XIII.

· EXCURSION FROM RUABON TO BANGOR ISCOED,

Wynnflay.-eautiful Scene at Nant y Bele.-Overton.-Conjedures on the original Planting of Yew Trees in Church Yards.-Bangor Ifcoed, the oldeft Monaftery in Britain.-Account of Gildas Nennius, and of Tyfilio, the Authors of two very ancient Hiftories of Britain.

FROM Ruabon, I wandered into the grounds of fir Watkin Williams Wynne, baronet, at

WYNNSTAY.

These grounds are brought close up to the village; they are well wooded, and about eight miles in circumference. I obferved here fome immensely large oak, ash, and birch trees; the trunk of one of the oaks was near fifty feet in girth in the smallest part.

I afcended, by its well-ftaircase, to the top of a handsome, lately erected stone column, of very confiderable height. I had entertained hopes that from thence I fhould have had a fine view of the furrounding country, but was disappointed: the profpect was fufficiently extenfive, but in no degree interesting,

At

At a little diftance from the column there is a tolerab'y large pool. The rivulet that fupplies it is thrown over fome artificial rock-work, and forms not an inelegant cascade.

The house is deficient both in elegance and uniformity, having been erected at different periods, and in different ftiles of architecture.-From the ancient rampart called Watt's Dyke, which paffes through the grounds, this place was formerly called Wattftay: but, on the marriage of fir John Wynne with Jane, the daughter of Eyton Evans, and heiress of this property, he changed its name to Wynnstay. He inclofed the park, in the year 1678, with a stone wall for deer, and planted the avenues. Sir John died about forty years afterwards, and was buried at Ruabon. He bequeathed all his eftates to his relative Watkin Williams, afterwards fir Watkin Wil liams Wynne, bart., the grandfather of the prefent

owner.

This place was anciently the property and refi, dence of Madoc ap Griffith Maelor, the potent lord of Bromfield, and founder of Valle Crucis abbey, near Llangollen.

NANT Y BELE,

The Dingle of the Martin, within the grounds of Wynnftay, is a deep and wooded hollow. The fides are precipitous and rocky; and the waters of the Dee, which roll along the bottom, are blackened by the fhady banks, and for the most part concealed

from