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imagination was ever an atheist in solitude, and though in the case of old Ellis religion was only the religion of fear, yet still it was better than no faith at all; it taught him a little more lenity to the faults of others.

thereof

a place in your entertaining Mis-
cellany, the insertion
would greatly oblige

Your's, &c.

OXONIENSIS.

A WELSH TRADITION.

In the park of Nannau, in Merionethshire, the seat of Sir Robert W. Vaughan, Bart. there stood, till within these few years, a hollow,

blanched and withered branches presented in spring and summer a striking contrast to the verdure of the surrounding woods. It was a noted tree, and the peasant, as he passed it in the gloom of evening, would quicken his pace, and, perhaps, murmur a prayer for the preservation of his person from the crafts and assaults of the evil

Nearly two years had thus past, when, one September's evening, a poor maniac, in squalid weeds, and with a face gaunt from long misery, came to his door and beg-large, and blasted oak,* whose ged a morsel of bread for the love of charity. It was his daughter! -The recognition was quick and mutual, but with very opposite feelings. Sorrow, and pain, and remorse, suddenly threw a dark cloud over the old man's face; while the maniac's eye was lit up with an expression of rage and triumph, that was truly fiendlike, as she screamed out, 'Ho, Ho, Ho! | one. Have I found you at last? Take back your curse, old man; I have borne it long enough, and a sad load, and a weary one it has been to me--but take it back-it has curdled the milk of my bosom to poison, and my poor babe sucked it and died.—But take it back, and look that it does not sink into the depths of hell.'

To be continued in our next.

you

To the Editor of the Orford Entertaining Miscellany.

Sir,

Should you deem the following extract from the "Cambro

"E'en to this day, the peasant still

In

With cautious fear treads o'er the ground;

each wild bush a spectre sees, And trembles at each rising sound."

A long succession of ages has rolled on since the event transpired which conferred on this tree an influence so appalling. During the wars of Owen Glyndwrt, in the former part of the 15th. century, a cousin of that hero resided at Nannau; his name Howel Sele.

It
appears that Howel had refused
to espouse his kinsman's and his
country's cause, thereby render-

This oak is called in Weish CEUBREN
YR ELLYLL, in English "the Hobgob-
lin's Hollow Tree."

Briton," vol.i. page 226, worthy | A celebrated Welsh Chieftain,

ing himself particularly obnoxi-Howel. At length one tempestuous to the choleric Glyndwr; ous evening in November, an armand an enmity was thus engendered ed horseman was described urgbetween the two chieftains, which ing his flagging steed up the hill was fostered on both sides with which leads to Nannau from the savage malignity. During a neighbouring town of Dolgellau.* cessation of arms, Owen sought He passed quickly on his way, amusement and exercise in the and arriving at the castle, demandpleasures of the chase, and he de- ed an audience of its sad and termined, like Earl Percy of old, solitary mistress. It was Madog, "to force the red deer from the who, his friend Glyndwr being forest brake" in the domains of dead, had hastened to clear up the his unbending kinsman. Thither mystery in which the disappearhe repaired, therefore, with a bo ance of Howel Sele was involved. som friend, named Madog, and a He told his tale, and led the small hunting train. As was to astonished and treinbling domesbe expected, he encountered How tics to the sepulchre, which en el alone, but armed, who demand-closed the bones of their lord. It ed with what right he, a rebel to was opened, and the skeleton of his king, thus intruded upon his Howel was discovered, grasping solitude? Reply succeeded reply, with his right hand, the sword he till they resolved to decide the was accustomed usually to wear. question by force of arms. They His remains were interred in the consequently fought, and Howel neighbouring monastery of Cymmer fell a victim to the superior prow-with all the pomp and ceremony ess of his kinsman. Near the place of catholic superstition, and masses were they contended, was a large were performed for the repose of his incensed and troubled spirit.

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to which I have alluded in the opening of this sketch; and on the night of the 13th of July, 1813, which was a very fine and sultry night, this venerable "mo narch of the forest," miraculously fell to the ground. A short time before its downfall an eminent amateur artist made a sketch of

oak, the trunk of which was hollow into this cavity the body of The Oak in which Howel's the brave but headstrong lord of body was deposited, is the same, Nannau was cast, and Owen and his train hastened home to Glyndwr-dwy. The disappearance of their lord caused the greatest alarm and consternation at the castle; all possible search was made, but without effect, and his sorrowing lady secluded herself from the world in the solitude of her lonely and now gloomy residence. Year succeeded year, and still no tidings were received of the absent

A market town of Merionethshire, situated near the foot of the celebrated mountain "Cader Idris."

F

Cæsare, nec bene fecit, nec male fecit, sed interfecit."

cen-,

Piovano Arlotto.---Piovano Arlotto was a native of Tuscany, and flourished in the 14th. tury. When only a poor Curate, his humble condition did not depress his vivacity, or check the sallies of his wit and humour. As he was once preparing to

it, from which engravings have been taken, and there is scarcely a house in Dolgellau, but what contains one at least of these engravings, framed in the very wood of this oak, which is of a beautiful dark colour approaching to ebony. At Nannau there are several relics of this majestic tree. Amongst others, I must not omit to mention, is a frame, containing an engraved full length portrait make a journey, several of his of the memorable Pitt. The friends requested him to make frame is unadorned by the gilder, but it presents an appearance, to use the phrase of a celebrated Welsh writer, "of magnificent simplicity." Under the portrait is the following Welsh motto, particularly happy in its allusion to the "pilot who weathered the storm."

Y GWR
FAL Y DDERWEN

A WYNEBODD
Y DYMESTL.

Humour.

purchases for them in the town to which he was going; but all, excepting one, neglected to supply him with money for the purpose. He only executed the commission of this one; so that on his return, the others called upon him, and reproached him for his inattention to their wishes. "You must know, my friends," said Arlotto, "that in the course of my journey, I came to the side of a river, and there I took out the papers that contained your commissions, to look them over; on a sudden, a gust of wind arose, and carried all the papers down the stream, excepting one, which, as it had money in it, was too heavy to be blown away."

ESCULAPIUS,

Dryden.—It is related of Dryden, that, when at School, a theme was given him, on the disputed question whether Brutus did well or ill in Killing Cæsar. It ran in these terms, "An Brutus, occiso Cæsare, aut bene fecit, aut male fecit ?" Dryden, too idle, forgot the task, and be- kindly honoured by his late Majesing suddenly called on, he imme-ty with the Order of the Thistle, diately answered, "Brutus, occiso he dined with his learned friend Jekyll, who congratulating him on

On the day Lord Erskine was so

The man, who, like the oak, faced the tempest. this additional dignity, said he

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hoped that this would content him; Horace, Virgil, and Augus "yes," replied the newly-dubbed, tus.-Horace was remarkable for "Scotch knight," having obtained a difficulty of breathing, and Virthe green ribbon, the main object gil for a weak sight; so that Auof my ambition, I mean to rest gustus, who often asked them to politically quiet the rest of my dinner, observed of their company days!!—“That's right, my dear that, he sat between sighs and Erskine," rejoined the facetious tears. barrister, "for then you will become what your friends never expected The Green Man and - Still."

Griffiths, an actor, who was bandy legg'd, won a considerable wager by a singular circumstance. A gentleman present was very se

A Physician whose name was I. Letsom had the following written over his shop door.

I cure my patients with my art,

And with my physic sweats 'em; And, after, if they choose to die, What's that to me?-I. Lets'om.

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vere upon Griffiths' person, and To the Editor of the Oxford Enter taining Miscellany. -pointing to his left leg, offered a bet that there was not so ill-formed a limb in the

company.

Griffiths

pleasantly took up the offer and instantly exhibiting his right leg, exclaimed, "look, here's the fel

low to it.

SIR,

Like most other young men of; a musical turn, I unfortunately, (as the history of my adventures will prove,) treated myself with a ticket for the concerts, once more to hear the far-famed Madame Catalani. The first night passed off very well, without any remarkable adventure; but on the second, I had scarcely taken my seat at the upper end of the room,

The friends of a cockney sportsman were lately much alarmed at receiving a letter from him, in which he stated that, notwithstanding the high wind on Monday, when I found myself withiņ a he had shot a peasant.

Curious fact.-It is a singular fact, that Home wrote his tragedy of "Douglas;" Dr. Blair, his "Lectures ;" and Dr. Robertson, his "History of Charles V.;" in the same cottage, which is a small white one in one of the parks of Burnisford Links, in Scotland.

short distance of one of the prettiest girls I eyer beheld. Upon first sight of her, I felt conscious of strange emotions in my heart, which her affability and truly la dy-like behaviour soon increased to admiration; but it was not until I heard the enthusiasm with which she encored "Rule Britannia," and the encomiums bestowed

by her on that most beautiful spattered with mud, and rendered

totally unfit for further use; to say nothing of my disagreeable situation from wet, and the bruises which I had received in my fall. Fortunately the innocent author of my misfortunes was at too great a distance to perceive the catas trophe, or the consequences might have been serious.

Not in the least dispirited by

piece of music, of which I have always been a passionate admirer, that the full flame of affection burst from my heart, and quite overpowered my senses, It was too much for a soul like mine to withstand. It was then that I first determined to follow her to her home, that I might learn who it was for whom I entertained such tender feelings, and, through the accident, and indeed rather the medium of my friends, might invigorated, like the beautiful gain an introduction to so amiable grass on the banks of the Ganges, a creature. For this purpose, whose sweetness is only to be borne along almost by an irresist- drawn forth by trampling it unible impulse, I followed her to the der foot, after shaking myself to bottom of the stairs, where I had remove a little of the filth which the satisfaction to see her step clung to me in superfluous abuninto a "Fly" to avoid the cold night dance, and calling to mind those air, after the heat of the room, beautiful lines by Mr. T, Moore; and set forward on her journey. Love, all defying love, which sees But I had proceeded in my pur- No charms in trophies won with ease; suit no farther than the top of the Whose dearest, rarest fruits of bliss High Street, when, looking one Are pluck'd on danger's precipice,➡ way, and walking another, I had I was proceeding with renewed the misfortune to tumble over one vigour in the quest, when I perof the posts, which are placed ceived velvet in the distance, Althere for the protection of foot though I had in reality been passengers, but which, unfortu- guilty of no misconduct, yet not nately, proved no kind of protec- wishing to appear in my present tion whatever to me, and was indecent costume, I was gliding thereby extended at full length in swiftly up a dark alley, in order the kennel. Figure to yourself to avoid notice, when, as my bad for a moment, gentle reader, the fortune would have it, I stumbled condition in which I must have against another pair of shining appeared after rising from my sleeves, which I in vain used my "lowly bed." It almost baffles utmost efforts to avoid. "Siste description! A light blue coat, per fidem" soon reached my tremspick and span new for the occa-bling ears, and finding myself ension, a remarkably neat waistcoat, countered on both sides, I immepankeens and silks, completely be-diately drew up. After pleading

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