ESSAY ON THE WELSH LANGUAGE. 29 1 



tions of its verbs. Each of thefe has about twenty 

 modifications, by means of qualifying prefixes ; and 

 in every form they can each be conjugated, either 

 by inflexions like the Latin, or by auxiliaries, as in 

 the Englidi language. The author of Letters from 

 Snowdon has juftly remarked, that the Welfh lan- 

 guage, at the fame time that it boafls " the foftnefs 

 and harmony of the Italian, has all the majefty and 

 exprefTion of the Greek." Of this I fliall tranfcribe 

 two fmgular inflances : the one in an englyn, or kind 

 of epigram, on the Silk- Worm, compofed entirely of 

 vowels ; and the other in a diftich on Thunder, the 

 grandeur of which is fcarcely furpaflfed in any lan- 

 guage : 



O'i wivv wy 1 weu c 'd, a'i weuau 

 O'l wyau y v/eua ; 

 E' weua ei we aia', 

 A'i, weuau yvv ieuau ia. 



I perifli by my art ; 



Dig my own grave : 

 I fpin my thread of life ; 



My death I weave. 



Tan a dwr yn ymwriaw, 

 Yw'r taranau dreigiau draw. 



The roaring thunder, dreadful in its ire, 

 Its v^'ater warring with aciial fire*. 



» The metre of the poeti*y is very artificial and 

 alliterative. The language abounds with confonants 



* Jones's Welfii Bards. 



u 2 and 



