158 



On Llangorse Common the broken columns of the adventurous 

 naturalists were re-formed, and no losses were reported except that of a rather 

 unweildy and worn vasculum which unfortunately received a compound frac- 

 ture from the wheel of a carriage going over it, and to the grief of its owner 

 was left hors-de-combat. The mysterious lake of Llynsafeddon, whose waters, 

 according to the legend, overwhelmed the old city of Loventium in days of old, 

 now tempted the naturalists to look out for those sunken towers that 

 Giraldus Cambrensis has mentioned ; and one gentleman, we understand, had 

 determined to find a crannoge, such as tho Swiss and Irish lakes furnish, if 

 possible. Several Charons, with boats, that had rather a flimsy appearance, 

 presented themselves, but these when loaded and in "the trough of the sea " 

 proved rather too suggestive for timorous landsmen, and the wind really 

 raising the disquieted lake into waves, it was not deemed ad^ isable to risk a 

 lodgment in the ruined towers below, and this part of the programme was 

 rather quickly rowed over ; but the zealous antiquary alluded to declared to 

 have seen "a pile" himself— though whether it can be assigned to the cran- 

 noge era is more than we are inclined to assert. The separation of the party in 

 boats, however, occasioned one little misadventure, which may adorn, or at 

 least vary our tale. A band of devoted medisevalists chartered a boat across 

 the lake to the church of Llangasty Tal-y-llyn, which as a prettily adorned 

 structure," all beauteous within," has attained some celebrity, and has 

 numeroxis "octaves" and services almost daily of a high ritualistic character. 

 Here lingering beyond the time noted on the card, seduced by the "dim 

 religious light " that invested them in the storied aisle, the coaches, by some 

 error or misunderstanding, went on from Llangorse, and the medisevalists 

 found too late that modem improvements in travelling were denied them, and 

 they had to foot it all the way to Talgarth, arriving when the feast had been 

 brought almost to a close, though, fortunately, some pike had been reserved 

 for them. 



No other incidents of flood or field intervened between Llangorse and 

 Talgarth, and the large room at the Ashburnham Arms was well furnished 

 with guests to a substantial dinner soon after four o'clock p.m. 



The President and leading members of the club did not go upon the lake, 

 but left at once for Talgarth to transact business before dinner, leaving the rest 

 to follow. R. M. Lingwood, Esq., the late honorai-y secretary to the club, and 

 Flavell Edmunds, Esq., were unanimously elected honorary members of the 

 club. This and the other business matters had scarcely been concluded, when 

 the carriages with the members and visitors began to arrive, and wander over 

 the hotel in all directions. At the dinner summons, however, they soon 

 assembled again in the large room, which they were not a little surprised to 

 find decorated with flowers, and flags, and evergreens and mottos, English 

 and Welsh, in great abundance. A fine painting of the harp ornamented the 

 top of the room, whilst the characteristic leek hung on the walls at tha 

 bottom. The Gwendolin festival had been held there the day before, and the 

 ladies had most kindly left their decorations for us. It was soon seen that 



