33 



paper. Let me in conclusion ask Mr. Fowle, or any other gentleman present, if 

 they see any objection to Mr. Edmunds' derivation of the word " Ewyas" from 

 Tw-ys. 



The Rev. W. C. Fowle said that the origin of "Ewyas" had completely puzzled 

 that excellent antiquary, the Rev. John Webb, to whose kindness he had been 

 indebted for the copy of the Cartulary of the Priory, upon which his paper was 

 founded. To say that he had f aUed himself was nothing after this. He was 

 quite prepared to give up Ea, which had never seemed satisfactory to him, but 

 would rather leave Yw-ys to Webh scholars. He would say, however, that the 

 abundance of yew trees ia the district at the present time was certainly remarkable. 



J. E. Lee, Esq., said that ^a must certainly be given up. 



Jakes Davies, Esq., said he doubted very much whether Yw-yi could be 

 considered the right derivation of Ewyas, and gave references to some early 

 writings to show that the form of spelling at first adopted was ewis. 



Some one asked whether early spelling was much to be depended upon, and 

 thought that w, y, u, v, and even i, seemed to be used synonymously at times 

 (laughter). 



The origin of Pontrilas was then named. The first syllable being derived from 

 the Latin pons, a bridge, there being no Welsh word for a bridge, and probably 

 no bridges untU the Romans came and taught the people to build them. The 

 numeral tri three, and glds bluish green— the colour of water standing for water 

 itself. The bridge of the three streams : — of Dul^s, from du black, and gldi from 

 its darker water ; and of Honddu from Afon, a river, and ddu the feminine 

 " black" — the dark river. 



William Adams, Esq., the president of the Cardiff Naturalists Society, said 

 that he thought the las in Pontrilas would be derived rather from lais — the bridge ' 

 of the three murmuring voices ; and Dulas in the same way with the numeral di 

 for the origin of the first syllable, " the two murmiiring voices" ; and Mr. Rhys 

 Jones agreed with him. 



The President, afraid apparently of entering too far on the troubled waters 

 of Gallic derivations, called upon Dr. M'CuUough to give a description of the 

 quarry before them. Dr. M'CuUough then pointed out the peculiarities presented 

 by the comstone of the quarry, and at the next quarry on the top of the commoa 

 —the quarry in which he had found last year that unique fossil, the Pierygotvt 

 taurinus (Salter). He gave an address 



