RUTHIN TO LLANGOLLEN. l6g 



forely aflault hym that deftroyeth the neft ; going 

 downe in one baiket, and having another over 

 his hedde, to defend the fore ftripes of the egle." 

 For upwards of a niile this rock Hes flratum upon 

 ftratum, in fuch a direction as to form a kind ol 

 horizontal fteps, denominated by natuvdiliiis faxa /e- 

 dilia. — The inhabitants of Llangollen affert, that in 

 one part of the rock there is an opening, whence a 

 long arched paflage leads to the foundation of the 

 caftle. The latter part of this affertion is evidently 

 falfe from the fituation of the building ; and I could 

 fcarcely even credit the report of a cavern in the 

 rock, for, though fuch is generally believed to exift, 

 I was not able on frequent inquiry either to find 

 any perfon who had himfelf fcen it, nor could any 

 one point out its fituation to enable me to examine 

 it. 



Hlstory of Castell Dinas Bran. 



This fortrefs, from the ftile of its architecture, 

 was evidently the work of the Britons. It is fup- 

 pofed by fome writers to have been founded by 

 Brennus, the Gaulic general, who is reputed to have 

 come into this country to contend with his brother 

 Belinus. The fimilarity of names feems, however, 

 the only foundation for the conjecture, and the moft 

 accurate hiflorians believe it to have originated at a 

 much later period. — The mountain river Bran runs 

 at the foot of the hill, but whether the fortrefs 

 derived its name from the dream, or the ftream 



from 



