ACCOUNT OF BOOKS. 



9S5 



conclusive. When I ^vas in the 

 country, I was very desirous of see- 

 ing a copy of the remarks on these 

 SHpposcd a?rial spirits, that Mr. 

 Morris refers to in the second Ict- 

 t<.*r, but was not able to meet with 

 such. In endeavouring to account 

 for the noi'-es, for we must believe 

 that such noises have taken place, it 

 has been remarked that they mifcht 

 perhaps have proceeded fro^i the 

 echo of tiie miners at work, or from 

 the dropping of water in some hol- 

 low places in or near the mine. 

 'I'hese conjectures are, however, 

 Tery insulhcient, if we are to credit 

 Mr. Morris's assertion (and lie w.is 

 a man not likely to make an asser- 

 tion without being convinced of its 

 truth), that whilst the miners arc 

 engage^ in one kiwd of work, the 

 knockers, as they are called, are 

 carryifig on another ; while, for in- 

 stance, as he says, the miners are 

 boring, the kiiactccn are blasting, 

 the former conjecture must therefore 

 fall to the ground, as the droppings 

 of water could in no case produce an 

 effect that might be mistaken for 

 blasting. I am acquainted with the 

 subject only from report, ?>ut I can 

 assure my readers that 1 found few 

 people in Wales that did not give 

 full credence to it. The ahicidation 

 of these extraordinary facts must be 

 left to those persons who have bet- 

 ter ojjportunities of inquiring into 

 them than 1 have. I may be per- 

 mitted to exi>ress a hujje that the 

 subject will not be neglected, and 

 that those who reside in any neigh- 

 . bourhood where the noises are 

 heard, will carefully investigate 

 their cause, and, if possible, give to 

 the world a more accurate account 

 of them than the present. In the 

 year 1799, they were heard in some 

 mines in the parish of Llanvihaa> 

 •i 



gel Ysgeiviog in Anglesea, vyhere 

 they continued, at intervals, for 

 some weeks. 



" The lower class of the Welsh 

 yet continue to believe in the ex- 

 istence of witches. Many old wo- 

 men, therefore, only because they 

 happen to be old, and perhaps de- 

 formed, have to bear the odium of 

 preventing the cows from yielding 

 milk, and butter from forming in 

 the churn. Thej' are also believed 

 to possess the power of inflicting 

 disorders both on men and cattle, 

 and that they seldom neglect to do 

 it when they have been offended. 

 This will well account for the no- 

 tion of witches having been strenu- 

 ously maintained some centuries ago 

 even by the most enlightened per- 

 sons of the age. Qld women, on 

 whom the generally odious epithet 

 of witch has been once fixed by the 

 popular voice, have found it their 

 interest, and in W^ales to this day 

 find it their interest, to deny no- 

 thing that is alledged to them. They 

 become thus held in superstitious 

 fear by the people, and in many in- 

 stances obtain an easy livelihood 

 from their supposed extent of pow- 

 er. Wherever they ask alms, it 

 would be (say the common pcoplcj 

 the death of a cow or horse, or per- 

 haps even of one of the family, to 

 refuse them ; and the neighbouring 

 peasantry, much as they hold them 

 in detestation, believe it their own 

 interest to keep them always in 

 good humour. The old women 

 thus live, in some measure, in af- 

 fluence, with little other trouble 

 than feeding and training up three 

 or four cats, and attending minute- 

 ly to the concerns of their neigh- 

 bours. 



" On the eve of All Saints, the 

 Welsh people, as soon as it is dark, 



kindle 



