Having finished our observations and preparing to leave the church we were not a little surprized by a request made by the schoolmaster for something to drink our healths, though I complied with his request I at the same time conveyed a kind of hint that an instructor should not be mercinary. However he pocketed the reproof with the money and I cannot say I discerned anything of that hectic flush come across his cheek described by Sterne in his story of the poor Monk.
Continuing from hence and passing by the magic stone which had drawn us so much out of our way the preceeding night we called at the treasure dreamer’s cottage as he had promised to shew us an inscription which (fol. 111a) he knew to be worthy of notice as a clergyman of Llanerchymedd had been to copy it. He was from home but his wife catching up her half grown child in her arms walked before us at such a rate we could scarcely keep up with her to the field where it stood. We here found some characters and just as I was preparing to take the impression of them with putty so violent and cold a storm of sleet and rain came on that we were forced to take shelter at a neighbouring farm. The farm house though of considerable extent was open all the way up to the roof the beds, kitchen, dairy, &c. being all contiguous to each other. This we found on enquiry was the common custom of the country. The weather holding up a little we returned to the spot, in the interval having learnt that the stone had some time since been broken in two in order to make a gate post of the lower part, we procured an (fol. 113) iron crow and with the assistance of two stout lads from the farm turned it over, it measures about four feet in length but retains no appearance of characters on its surface though by measuring its width we clearly discovered that it must formerly have been united to the upper part which is now fixed in the ground about an hundred yards distant. On returning thither I took a very exact copy. The name of the stone is Maen Hîr Llanol with is interpreted the large stone with letters and when entire it must have been a conspicuous object from most parts of the island as it stands on very high ground.
The weather continuing cold and disagreeable we hastened our march to Llanerchymedd our intended station for the night. Although the distance to this place in a direct line is not above four miles and its situation clearly discerned from Maen Hîr Llanol yet on account of the bogs and (fol. 113a) overflowing of the river we were obliged to make a circuit of nearly twice that space round by Llanbabo. In our way passed a farm called Boddeiniol where we stopped to enquire for some druidical remains mentioned in Mr. Bingley’s list as still visible, but the farmer who is apparently near eighty years old said he had never had heard of anything of the kind since he had lived there. But some time back in cleaning a piece of rough ground in one of his fields he discovered four burying places as he took them to be the sides formed of flat stones set upright in the ground and covered by others of the same irregular shape. Some of the stones he shewed us lying against a fence but none of them appeared to be above two feet and a half high. Crossed the river Trepont [71] a little below Llanbabo. This river is styled the largest in Anglesea although I am sure one might easily leap over the widest part the channel (fol. 114) when not flooded being not above twelve or fourteen feet across. Arrived at Llanerchymedd a little before four, enquiring of the innkeeper for an ancient stone with an inscription near the town he accompanied us to the house of a clergyman who he said was very curious in these particulars and would furnish us with every information on the subject. Our reception was very pleasing but we had been misinformed in regard to the object of our enquiries there being no other antiques in the neighbourhood besides Maen Hîr Llanol and the stone at Llantrisant about four miles distant. In the evening Mr. Richards the above mentioned gentlemen called upon us at the inn and during our conversation gave some interesting particulars of druidical remains in Bodafon mountain which we purpose visiting in his company tomorrow. This gentleman had a very perfect coin of Diocletian of which I took an impression in sealing wax (fol. 114a) in order to make a fac simile of the coin in isinglass on my return—if we cannot procure originals we must be content with copies. Having noted down the occurrences of the day we retired to bed desiring to be called very early in order to get breakfast over by seven the time we had agreed to set out.
Saturday, Decr. 11
A little before seven called at Mr. Richards’s house whom we found waiting at the door ready to accompany us. He mounted his horse and we pursued the Beaumaris turnpike for half [72a] a mile when we turned to the left to look at a stone called Lleidr [72b] y Frydog or the thief stone. This is a rough stone about six feet high having a kind of hump or projection near the top. The country people report that a thief who had stolen some books from a neighbouring church was in this place turned into stone with the sack containing his theft laying over his shoulder. About a quarter of a mile further Mr. Richards pointed to the spot where formerly stood the nunnery of Clorach or St. Claire and not far from it by the road side we saw two wells whose waters were enclosed in a square reservoir of stone work. Tradition says that the two saints Seriol and Cybi (the former having a cell at Priestholme the latter at Holyhead where he founded a collegiate church) used to hold their weekly meetings at these springs to consult on religious matters, and from the circumstance of Seriol’s travelling westward in the morning and eastward in the evening, and Cybi on the contrary always facing the sun they were denominated
Seriol wyn a Chyby felyn.
Seriol the fair and Cybi the tawney.
