Which, for the benefit of those unacquainted with the Welsh language, may be thus translated:—
“Three things do I desire,
To have indulgence for the guinea;
And have the Pretender on the throne;
And have French money to pay with.”
In North Wales the Jacobites appear to have been numerous and powerful. A social meeting that existed very recently, if it does not still exist, at Wrexham, and known as the “Cycle,” was originally a secret assembly of the Jacobites, established in Denbighshire, for the object of upholding and promoting the pretensions of the young Pretender, Prince Charles Edward, to the throne of this country. The rules of this society, to which the signatures of several of its leading members were appended, were published, about thirty years back, in the Cambrian Quarterly Journal; [10] and, as that work possessed a limited circulation, and has now become scarce, its reproduction may interest many persons to whom it would otherwise be unknown. This list of the names of the members is one of the earliest known. More recent ones are stated to have been drawn up in the form of a round robin; which, it is suspected, was adopted to prevent the possibility of either of the members being proceeded against as the principal of an assembly that was clearly of a treasonable character.
“We, whose names are underwritten, do promise at ye time and place to our names respectively affixed, and to observe the rules following, viz.
Imprs. Every member of this society shall, for default of his appearance, submit to be censur’d, and shall thereupon be censur’d by the judgmt of the society.
2ndly. Every member yt cannot come shall be obliged to send notice of his non-appearance by 12 of the clock at noon, together with his reason in writing, otherwise his plea shall not excuse him, if within the compass of fifteen miles from the place of meeting.
3rdly. Each member obliges himself to have dinner upon the table by 12 o clock [11] at noon, from Michaelmas to Lady-day, and, from Lady-day till Michaelmas, at 1 of the clock.
4thly. The respective masters of the places of meeting oblige themselves to take down in writing each default, and to deliver in the same at the general meeting.
5thly. Every member shall keep a copy of these articles by him, to prevent plea of mistake.
6thly. It is agreed yt a general meeting shall be held by all ye subscribers at the house of Daniel Porter, Junr. holden in Wrexham, on the 1st day of May, 1724, by 11 of ye clock in the forenoon, and there to dine; and to determine upon all points relating to and according to the sense and meaning of those articles.
1723 (Signed)
Thos. Puleston, May 21st (eldest son of Sir Roger Puleston, of Emral).
Rich. Clayton, June 11th.
Eubule Lloyd, (of Penyllan,) July 2nd.
Robtt. Ellis, July 23rd.
W. Wms. Wynn, (of Wynnstay,) Augt. 13th
Jno. Puleston, (of Pickhill,) Sep. 3rd.
Thos. Eyton, (of Leeswood,) Sep. 24th.
Wm. Edwards, Oct. 15th
Thomas Holland, Nov. 6th.
Ken Eyton, (of Eyton,) Nov. 26th.
Phil. Egerton, (of Oulton,) Dec. 17th.
Jno. Robinson, (of Gwersyllt,) Jany. 8th.
Geo. Shackerly, (of Gwersyllt,) Jany. 29th.
Robt. Davies, (of Gwyssany,) Feb. 19th.
John Puleston, (of Hafod y Wern,) March 13th.
Broughton Whitehall, (of Broughton,) April 3rd.
Wm. Hanmer, April 24th, 1724.”
In the second volume of the same Journal, [12] a tale was published anonymously, that exhibited considerable ability, and was especially interesting from the circumstance of its introducing the hero, Meredith Alynton, to the members of the Cycle Club, that was supposed to have assembled for one of its meetings at Wynnstay, the princely residence of Sir Watkin Wynn. In the description of this scene, the author has very agreeably and skilfully blended fact with fiction, and has introduced into this portion of the tale two remarkably interesting songs, that are stated to have been veritable Jacobite relics, and which were then printed for the first time. It is believed that they were written specially for the Cycle Club; and, at the time of their publication, the MSS. had been in the possession of Owen Ellis, Esq., a descendant of one of the original members of the Club, and his ancestors, for upwards of a century. As those songs are curious, and very little known, they are here reprinted.
OF QUARRELS, AND CHANGES, AND CHANGELINGS, I SING.
Of quarrels, and changes, and changelings, I sing,
Of courtiers and cuckolds, too; God save the King!
Now Munster’s fat grace lies in somebody’s place,
And hopeful and so forth are turned out to grass;
O, G—e, thou’st done wisely to make such a pother
Between one German w—e and the son of another.
Now that son of another, so stubborn and rusty,
Is turn’d out of doors, and thy favors, most justly,
Since he was so unwise as his child to baptize,
He may e’en thank himself if you bastardize.
For there ne’er would have been all this wrangling work,
If, instead of a Christian, he had bred him a Turk.
The youth that so long had dwelt under thy roof,
Might sure have found out, by many a good proof,
That you ne’er were so mild as to be reconciled,
If once you’re provok’d, to man, woman, or child.
But, alas, for poor England, what hopes can be had
From a prince not so wise as to know his own dad!
Were he twice more thy son than e’er anyone thought him,
There are forty and forty good reasons to out him,
For he trod on the toe of a gallant young beau,
And made it so sore that he hardly could go;
And unless for this due correction he feels,
Who knows but he soon may tread on thy own heels!