90 



THE LANDSCAPE FEOM THE ALLT. 

 BY JOHN LLOYD, ESQ. 



There is a time-honoured toast in Shropshire, " All friends round the 

 Wrekin"; to-day it may be aptly applied to the Allt, but the "friends round 

 the Allt," whose acquaintance I wish you to make to-day, are places— not people. 



The view from the Allt, as you see, is remarkably fine. "Whether we look 

 north or south, east or west, a varied expanse of mountain and valley is before 

 us. Whichever way we turn, all that is required to make scenery perfect, 

 mountains, woods, river, lake, and smiling valleys, all are present. 



The ridge of the Allt, up which we have just come, called the Pennorth 

 ridge, is remarkable as forming the water shod of the two rivers the Usk and 

 the Wye. On the one side, to the South, the streams flow into the Usk, which 

 you see immediately beneath you, winding gracefully like a silver thread 

 through the luxuriant vale ; whilst those on the northern side flow into the 

 large, deep-shadowed lake of Llangorse or Llyn Savaddan, and thence by the 

 Llyfni stream into the Wye. At this point the sister rivers are nearer to each 

 other than anywhere else. 



The Wye, says Giraldus, has its source on the Elleuith Mountains ; the 

 Usk on those of Cantieff Bychan. The latter river flows by the Castle of 

 Brecheinioc, or Abcrhodni, that is, the fall of the Hodni into the Usk (for 

 Aber in the British language signifies every place where two r'vers unite their 

 streams), by the Castles of Abergavenni and Usk, through the ancient city of 

 the legions (Caerlcon), and discharges itself into the Severn sea not far from 

 Newport. 



Our position to-day being in the centre of Breconshire, a county, 



Where worshipful mountains so solemnly stand, 



we may pay homage to the numerous streams which flow down their sides, and 



it the truthfulness in part at least of the description given of them by 



Michael Draj ton : — 



" Brecknock lone; tit- ounty of much worth, 



Un' forth, 



iy or Gwent, 

 b do eh their high descant. 

 For Brecan was a prince onci ' great, 



Who " lame to that his noble scat, 



Messed by one and only wife. 

 Who for th ■ r 'tity of life 



To riv i i presence doth declare, 



i fcbey were by being what they are." 



