48 



THE BRITISH ISLES. 



with ice, and the frozen rlN'ers probably extended to the sea, conveying into it 

 the blocks of rock and detritus resulting from the waste of the mountains. The 

 bards look upon Snowdon as a kind of Parnassus. It is their " Mount of Awen," 

 or, of the Muses, and tlie falling in of its summit is to herald the day of judg- 

 ment. 



Other summits rise to the north-east of the Pass of Llanberis, almost rivalling 

 Snowdon in height. Amongst them are Glyder Fawr (3,227 feet), Carnedd 

 Dafydd (3,430 feet), Carnedd Llewellyn (3,482 feet), and Y Foel Fras (3,091 

 feet). In no other part of AVales are mountains met with equalling these iu 



Fig. 21.— Snowdox. 

 Scale 1 : 425,000. 



Depth under 5 Fathoms 



5 to 10 Fathoms 



Over 10 Fathoms. 

 10 Miles. 



elevation, and as many of them rise close by the sea, the aspect they present 

 is bold in the extreme, and they remind us, if not of the Alps, at all 

 events of their lower spurs. Cader Idris (2,958 feet), the " Seat of Idris," a 

 fabulous warrior and astronomer, is a mountain of volcanic origin, hardly inferior 

 to Snowdon in the grandeur of the prospect which it affords those who climb 

 its craggy summits to look down upon the chaotic masses of rock which extend 

 thence to Cardigan Bay. In a deep hollow on its flank lies Llyn Y Can, one 

 of the finest tarns in the principality. A branch stretches north-eastward to 

 the Aran Mowddwy (2,970 feet) and Berwyn range (2,716 feet) : from the latter 

 may be seen the valley of the Dee, and Lake Bala, in which that river rises. 



