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[We shall add to the foregoing another curious paffage, though the tranfaction which it relates was in order of time fome years earlier.]

Enmitie did continue betweene Howellap Rysap Howell Vaughan, and the fonnes of John ap Meredith. After the death of Evan ap Robert, Gruffith ap John apGronw, (cozen german to John ap Meredith's fonnes of Gwynfryn, who had long ferved in France and had charge there), comeing home to live in the countrey, it happened that a fervant of his comeing to fish in Stymllyn, his fish was taken away, and the fellow beaten by Howell ap Rys his fervants, and by his commandment. Gruffith ap John ap Gronw tooke the matter in fuch dudgeon, that he challenged Howell ap Rys to the field; which he refufing, affembling his cofens John ap Meredith's fonnes and his friends together, affaulted Howell in his own houfe, after the manner he had feene in the French warres, and confumed with fire his barnes and his out-houfes. Whilst he was afterwards affaulting the hall, which Howell ap Rys and many other people kept, being a very strong houfe, he was fhot out of a crevile of the house, through the fight of his beaver, into the head, and flayne out-right, being otherwife armed at all points. Notwithstanding his death, the affault of the houfe was continued with great vehemence, the doors fired with great burthens of ftraw, befides this, the fmoake of the out-houfes and barnes not farre diftant, annoyed greatly the

defendants, foe that most of them lay under boordes and benches upon the floore in the hall, the better to avoyd the fmoake. During this scene of confufion, onely the old man Howell ap Rys never ftooped, but ftood valiantly in the middeft of the floor, armed with a 'gleve in his hand, and called unto them and bid them "arife like men, "for fhame, for he had knowne "there as greate a smoke in that "hall upon a Christmas even." In the end, feeing the house could noe longer defend them, being overlayed with a multitude, upon parley between them, Howell ap Rys was content to yeald himfelfe prifoner to Morris ap John ap Meredith, John ap Meredith's eldest fonne, foe as he would fweare unto him to bring him fafe to Carnarvon castle, to abide the triall of the law, for the death of Gruff' ap John ap Gronw, who was cofen german, removed to the faid Howell ap Rys and of the very fame house he was of. Which Morris ap John ap Meredith undertakeing, did put a guard about the faid Howell of his truftieft friends and fervants, who kept and defended him from the rage of the kindred, and efpecially of Owen ap John ap Meredith his brother, who was very eager against him. They paffed by leifure thence, like a campe†, to Carnarvon; the whole countrie being affembled, Howell his friends posted a horfe backe from one place or other by the way, who brought word that he was come thither fafe, for they were in great fear left he fhould be murthered, and that

Gleve fignifies a fword, from the French Glaive.

ti. e. Like an army which makes regular encampments during their march.

Morris

Morris ap John ap Meredith could not be able to defend him, neither durft any of Howell's friends be there for fear of the kindred. In the end, being delivered by Morris ap John ap Meredith to the conftable of Carnarvon castle, and there kept fafely in ward until the affifes; it fell out by law, that the burning of Howell's houfes and affaulting him in his owne house, was a more hainous offence in Morris ap John ap Meredith and the reft, than the death of Gruff' ap John ap Gronw in Howell ap Rys, who did it in his own defence; whereupon Morris ap John ap Meredith, with thirty-five more, were indicted of felonie, as appeareth by the copie of indictment, which I had from the records.

Howell, delivered out of prifon, never durst come to his owne house in Evionneth, but came to Pen machno to his mother's kindred, Rys Gethin's fonnes, and there died. It is a note worthy obferva. tion that the houfe by little and little decayed ever fince, neither hath any of his pofterity beene buried in his owne fepulchre, being four descents befides himfelfe.

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their hiftory: what preferves the remembrance of that people is only the round buildings wherein they dwelt, of which there are numbers over all the North, particularly Sutherland, Cathnefs, and Orkney. It is obfervable in these buildings, that there is no mortar of any kind, neither clay nor lime: nor had they any notion of cafting an arch. They confift of the beft ftones they could find, well laid and joined ; the wall was fometimes 14 feet thick, and the great room, which was quite round, 22 feet diameter; the perpendicular wall 12 feet high; and the roof was carried on round about with long ftones, till it ended in an opening at the top, which ferved both for light and a vent to carry off the fmoke of their fire. Where the ftones were long and good, they had fmall rooms for fleeping in the thickness of their wall. The door or entry was low, 3 feet for ordinary, fhut up by a large broad ftone. There is one of them entire in the parish of Loth, which the Bishop of Offory vifited and examined. It is the only one that is fo, as far as I could find, excepting one at Suifgil, in the parish of Kildonnan. It is to be obferved that where the ftones were not flat and well bedded, for fear the outer wall fhould fail, they built great heaps of ftones to fupport it, fo that it looks outwardly like a heap without any defign, which is the cafe at Loth beg, in the parish of Lothis. At the defire of the Bishop of Offory I measured feveral of them, and faw fome quite demolished. We found nothing in them but handmills, or what the Highlanders call Querns, which were only 18 inches

diameter,

diameter, and great heaps of deer bones and horns, as they lived much more by hunting than any other

means.

Remains of Antiquities in the Isle of Arran; from Pennant's Voyage to the Hebrides.

T

AKE a ride into the country; defcend into the valley, at the head of the bay; fertile in barley, oats and peas. See two great ftones, in form of columns, fet erect, but quite rude: thefe are common to many nations; are frequent in North Wales, where they are called main hirion, i. e. tall fiones, meini gwir, or men pillars, and lleche; are frequent in Cornwal, and are alfo found in other parts of our iflands their use is of great antiquity; are mentioned in the Mofaic writings as memorials of the dead,

monuments of friendship, as marks to distinguish places of worfhip, or of folemn affembliest: the Northern nations erected them to perpetuate the memory of great actions, fuch as remarkable duels; of which there are proofs both in Denmark and in Scotland; and the number of stones was proportionable to the number of great men who fell in the fight: but they were befides erected merely as fepulchral for perfons of rank, who had deferved well of their country.

Not far from hence is a ftone the moft fingular that I ever remember to have feen, and the only one of the kind that ever fell within my obfervation: this lies on the ground, is twelve feet long, two broad, one thick; has, at one end, the rude

Jobua, xxiv. 26.

attempt to carve a head and shoul ders, and was certainly the first deviation from the former fpecies of monument; the first effay to give to stone a resemblance to the human body. All that the natives fay of this, that it was placed over a giant, and is called Mac Bhrolchin's ftone.

Afcend a steep hill, with vaft gullies on the fide; and, on defcending, arrive in a plain inhabited by curlews, reforting there to breed, and which flew round our heads like lapwings. At a place called Moni-quil is a fmall circle of small ftones, placed clofe to each other: whether a little druidical place of worship, or of assembly; or whether a family place of fepulture, as is ufual with the Northern nations, is not easy to determine. If an urn is found in the centre of this coronet, as is not uncommon, the doubt will cease.

Pafs by the rixer Machrai, flowing through arocky channel, which in one part has worn thro' a rock, and left fo contracted a gap at the top as to form a very easy step across. Yet not long ago a poor woman in the attempt, after getting one foot over, was ftruck with fuch horror at the tremendous torrent beneath, that the remained for fome hours in that attitude, not daring to bring her other foot over, till fome kind paffenger luckily came by, and affifted her out of her di

ftrefs.

Arrive at Tormore, an extenfive plain of good ground, but quite in à ftate of nature; feems formerly to have been cultivated, for there appear feveral veftiges of dikes, which might have ferved as boundaries. There is a tradition that

in old times the shores were covered with woods; and this was the habitable part.

The want of trees in the internal part at prefent; and the kindly manner in which they grow about Brodwic, favour this opinion,

On this plain are the remains of four circles, in a line, extending N. E. by S. W.; very few ftones are ftanding to perfect the inclofure, but thofe are of a great fize; and stand remote from each other. One is fifteen feet high and eleven in circumference. On the outside of thefe circles are two others: one differs from all I have feen, confifting of a double circle of ftones and a mound within the leffer. Near thefe are the reliques of a ftone cheft, formed of five flat ftones, the length of two yards in the infide: the lid or top is loft. In the middle of these repofitories were placed the urn filled with the afhes of the dead to prevent its being broken; or to keep the earth from mixing with the burnt remains. In all probability there had been a cairn or heap of ftones above.

By the number of the circles; and by their fequeftred fituation; this feems to have been facred ground. These circles were formed for religious purposes. Boethius relates, that Mainus, fon of Fergus I. a restorer and cultivator of religion after the Egyptian manner (as he calls it) inftituted feveral new and folemn ceremonies and caufed great ftones to be placed in form of a circle; the largest was fituated towards the South, and served as an altar for the facrifices to the im

mortal gods. Boethius is right in part of his account: but the object of the worship was the fun, and what confirms this, is the fitu

ation of the altar pointed towards that luminary in his meridian glory. In this place the altar and many of the ftones are loft; probably carried to build houfes and dikes not very remote from the place.

At a fmall distance farther is a cairn of a moft ftupendous fize, formed of great pebbles: which are preferved from being fcattered about by a circle of large ftones that furround the whole bafe: a circumftance fometimes ufual in these monumental heaps.

Defcend through a narrow cleft of a rock to a part of the Western fhore called Druim-an-duin, or the ridge of the fort, from a round tower that ftands above. The beach is bounded by cliffs of whitifh girt ftone, hollowed beneath into vaft caves.. The most remarkable are thofe of Fin-mac cuil, or Fingal, the fon of Cumbal, the father of Offian, whom tradition fays, refided in this ifland for the fake of hunting. One of these caverns is a hundred and twelve feet long, and thirty high, narrowing to the top like a gothic arch; towards the end it branches into two: within these two receffes, which penetrate far, are on each fide feveral fma!! holes, oppofite to each other: in thefe were placed transverse beams, that held the pots, in which the heroes feethed their venifon; or probably, according to the mode of the times, the bags formed of the skins of animals flain in the chace, which were filled with flesh, and ferved as kettles fufficient frong to warm the contents; for the he roes of old devoured their meat half raw, holding, that the juices contained the best nourishment.

On the front of the divifion, between these receffes and on one

fide, are various very rude figures, cut on the ftone, of men, of animals, and of a clymore or twohanded fword; but whether thefe were the amufements of the Fingallian age, or of after-times, is not eafy to be ascertained; for caves were the retreats of pirates as well as heroes. Here are feveral other hollows adjacent, which are fhewn as the table, cellars and dog-kennel of the great Mac-cuil one cave, which is not honoured with a name, is remarkably fine, of great extent, covered with a beautiful flat roof, and very well lighted by two auguft arches at each end: through one is a fine perfpective of the promontory Carn-baan, or the white heap of ftones; whofe fide exhibits a long range of columnar rocks (not bafaltic) of hard gray whin ftone, refting on a horizontal ftratum of red ftone: at the extremity, one of the columns is infulated, and forms a fine obelisk.

After riding fome time along the fhore, afcend the promontory, on the fummit is an ancient retreat, fecured on the land fide by a great dike of loofe ftones, that inclofes the acceffible part; within is a fingle ftone, fet erect; perhaps to mark the spot where the chieftain held his council, or from whence he delivered his orders.

From this fhore is a fine view of Cantyre, the Western fide of Arran being separated from it by a ftrait about eight miles wide.

Leave the hills, and fee, at Feorling, another ftupendous cairn, a hundred and fourteen feet over, and of a vaft height; and from two of the oppofite fides are two vaft ridges; the whole formed of rounded ftones, or pebbles, brought from the fhores. Thefe immenfe

accumulations of ftones are the fepulchral protections of the heroes among the ancient natives of our iflands: the stone-chefts, the repofitory of the urns and afhes, are lodged in the earth beneath; fometimes one, fometimes more, are found thus deposited; and I have one inftance of as many as seventeen of these stone-chefts being difcovered under the fame cairn. The learned have affigned other causes for thefe heaps of ftones; have fuppofed them to have been, in times of inauguration, the places where the chieftain-elect food to fhew himself to beft advantage to the people; or the place from whence judgment was pronounced; or to have been erected on the road fide in honour of Mercury; or to have been formed in memory of fome solemn compact. These might have been the reafons, in fome inftances, where the evidence of stone chefts and urns are wanting; but those generally are found to overthrow all other fyftems.

Thefe piles may justly be fuppofed to have been proportioned in fize to the rank of the person, or to his popularity: the people of a whole diitrict affembled tofhew their refpect to the deceased, and, by an active honouring of his memory, foon acummulated heaps equal to thofe that aftonifh us at this time. But thefe honours were not merely thofe of the day; as long as the memory of the deceased endured, not a paffenger went by without adding a ftone to the heap: they fuppofed it would be an honour to the dead, and acceptable to his

manes.

Quanquam feftinas, non eft mora longa 1 licebit Injecto ter pulvere, curras.

To

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