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MEMOIRS OF AN OLD ST. PETER'S…
MEMOIRS OF AN OLD ST. PETER'S VICAR. [BY T. W. BARKER, DibeFEa-v RE&ISTBAB.] I 1 have been asked to furnish some particulars of the life- of my great-grandfather, the Rev. William Higgb Barker, who was Yicar o £ St. Peter's, Car- marthen in the year when the JouRNAX. was first issued, and to give a few details with regard to the living ot St. Peter's at that time. A memoir of my great-grandfather's life, written im Ibid by my grandfather, the Rev. John Crawford Barker, gives a good deal of information which may be interesting to those who would like to know something about what we should now consider the .3(_ dark age of the Church in this Diocees. My great-grandfather, whom I propose to call the old vtcar, was born on the 25th February, 1743, anI educated ab St. Paul's School, where he was a contemporary of Dr. Paley, and at Trinity College, Cambridge, where he took his B.A. degree in 1765. In the same year he became assistant Master and Fellow of Dulwich College, where he resided until he was ordained Priest by the Bishop of Winchester in 1767. About this time the Head Mastership of Carmarthen Grammar School became vacant, am he apphed for and obtained the post. The following is a copy of his appointment in the original spelling:— "The Borough of Carmarthen to wit at the Council Chamber, held at the New Bumper, in the said Borough, 22nd July, 1767. Be it remembered that on this Day We, the Mayor, Recorder, and Major part of the Common Council, having maturely considered the qualifies.- tions of the several candidates for the Mastership of the ffree Grammar School of Carmarthen, in consequence of a vacancy therein, Do approve of the Reverend Mr. William Higgs Barker, Fellow of Dulwich Colledge, Surry Clerk, to be a fit and proper person to be a Master of the said Free Grammar School, And we Do hereby .appoint him to be Master of the said Free Grammar School, And we Do hereby appoint him to be The Master of the said School and to receive the salary and all other Emoluments thereto belonging from Michaelmas Day next for so long time as he shall continue iaster,.thereof. j Yaugn. Horton, Mayor; Griff Phillips, Recorder; I Arthur Jones, Thos. Morris, Geo. Oakley, Williami Bowen, George Evans, Geo. Rice, Gwynn Davies, Edwd. Parry, Alex Seurlock, Albt. Bavids, Jno. Corrice (?). Corrice (?). The above is a true Coppy of the Original Order and appointment entered in the Book of Orders of the Mayor and Common 'Council of the Borough of Carmarthen. "JAMES NEWLAND, T. Clerk, 30th July, 1768. "I, William Higgs Barker, do declare that I do believe there is not any Transubstantiation in the Elements of Bread and Wine at or after the Con- secration thereof by any person whatsoever. WM. HIGGS BARKER." The Carmarthen Grammar School was, until the foundation of St. David's College, Lampeter, -he I chief Theological School of Instruction for Candi- dates for ordination in the Diocese of St. David's, and the old Vicar established a course of reading and lecturing in Divinity, and paid special attention to Elocution. That other were not neglected is shown by a printed advertisement, of which I have one of the original copies, and which read- as follows :— re4\ds as follows CARMARTHEN. Youth. Boarded and Educated by the Rev. W. H. Barker, M.A. £ s. d. £ s. d. Board per annum 15.15 0 English and the Classics per Quarter 0 10 6 Entrance. 0 10 6 Writing and Arithmetic 0 5 0 0 5 0 Drawing 0 10 "6 „ 0 lj) 6 Dancing 0 10 6 0 ™ 6 Lectures in Ex- per i m e n t a 1 Lectures in Ex- per i m e n t a 1 Philosophy 1 1 0 Parlour Boarders 21 0 0 I A Course of Lectures on Natural and Revealed Religion is read annually to the Divinity Class. Hereford:Printed by C. Pugh, 1783." My great-grandfather carried on the duties of 'Headmaster for nearly 30 years, and it is said that be hardly missed a day, and was always punctual in his attendance at the school. It was during that period that he published a Hebrew Grammar and a Hebrew Lexicon, both of which pagsed through two editions. From his position as Head Master of what was in fact the Diocesan Theological College, the old Vicar was naturally brought much into contact with the Bishops of St. David's, and it was in 1776 that he received his first Church preferment in the Diocese by being appointed to the Prebendal Stall of Llan- ddewi-Aberarth by Bishop Yorke, who was soon afterwards removed to the Diocese of Ely. In 1783 the old Vicar became Prebend of Bough- rood. in the Collegiate Church of Christ College, Brecon, in the gift of Dr. Smallwell, then Bishop of St. Da.vid's. This he resigned on being ap- pointed in the following year by the same Bishop to the Prebend and Vicarage of Llansaintffread, Radnorshire, both of which were vacated by him on his subsequent appointment in 1793 to the Rectory of Bleddfa, Radnorshire, and in 1795 to the Chancellorship of Christ College, Brecon. The Bishop in 1793 was Dr. Samuel Horsley, a most distinguished theologian, and the author of "Tracts in controversy with Dr. Priestly" on the Unitarian question. Gibbon, in Vol. I. of his Miscellaneous Works, says: "The Socinian Shield of Priestly has repeatedly been pierced by the jnighty spear of It is stated in the Memoir on the authority of the old Vicar's wife that when my grandfather was baptised he pulled off Bishop Horsley's wig to the great amusement of the congregation. On Bishop Horsley's translation to St. Asaph he was succeeded by the Honourable William Stuart, son of the Earl of Bute, and a great favourite of King George III., with whom he had been educated under the Earl's tutelage. On the recommendation of Bishop Beadon, the new Bishop appointed my great-grandfather his domestic and examining chap- lain, and shortly after this (in March, MT96) he resigned the Mastership of the Grammar School, and succeeded the Rev. John Rogers as Vie&r of St. Peter's, Carmarthen. In those days the see of St. David's was treated merely as a stepping stone to future preferment. As the Episcopal Act Books show, nearly all the institu- tions were carried out by the old Vicar and others under Commissions from the Bishop, and there is no doubt that most of the diocesan work fell on his shoulders. When Dr. Stuart was translated to the Archbishopric of Armagh he pressed my great-grand- father to accompany him to Ireland, and held out to him the prospect of an Irish Bishopric, but he declined to leave Wales. Dr. Stuart accordingly wrote to his successor recommending my great- grandfather as "the person best able to manage the diocese," and when Lord George Murray was conse- crated Bishop in December, 1800, the old Vicar was appointed his domestic chaplain, and resumed his usual duties and residence at Abergwili. I have a silver inkstand which was presented by Dr. Stuart to my great-grandfather, and is inscribed W. Stuart, D.D., Ap Armagh, 1800." Bishop Murray was a man of great mechanical invention, and had made some improvements in the telegraph which were adopted at the Sea Ports and the Admiralty. Owing to the practice then in vogue of leasing Diocesan lands at a low rent and a high premium, the income of the see did not exceed 21,300 when Dr. Murray became Bishop, and as he had a large family and a limited private income, and did not hold any preferment in com- mendam as was usually the case in the poorer sees, he soon became-involved in pecuniary troubles, which added to the cares of his chaplain. Bishop Murray endeavoured to introduce a Bill into Parliament to authorise him to cancel all the leases of Diocesan lands and to re-let them, but it was successfully .ppo.ed on the not unreasonable plea that it would interfere with existing rights. His failure in this respect, and his increased embarrasments, preyed on his mind, and he died suddenly in London in the year 1803. His second son became Bishop of Sodor and Man, aad was subsequently translated to Rochester. The new Bishop, Dr. Thomas Burgess, appointed my great-grandfather once more as Domestic Chap- lain, and he resumed his residence sft Abergwili until increasing age and declining health compelled him, a few years' before his death, to retire from all public duties. Of Dr. Burgess' great abilities it is unnecessary to speak in detail. He will be re- membered as the founder of St. David's College, Lampeter, for which purpose he set apart a tenth of his income. His example was followed in this respect by my great-grandfather and nearly all the beneficed clergy in the diocese who were able to afSord it. The old Vicar died on the 25th May, 1816. and there is a monument to his memory in St. Peter's Church, which bears the following inscription:— "Sacred to the memory of the Revd. William Higgs Barker, A.M., Chancellor of Brecon, Rector of Rlethvaugh, in the County of Radnor, and during twenty years Vicar of this parish, who died in peace and ciiarity with all men on the 25th of May, 1816, aged 73 years. Sincerely attached to his profession lie was most strictly conscientious in the discharge of its various duties. In the Desk and in the Pulpit, his earnest, animated, and impressive manner^ never failed to command the attention of his congregation. The variety of his acquirements in Biblical, classical and general iit-erature rendered his conversation highly instructive and amusing, and in the inter- course of domestic and social life it may be truly said that they who knew him best loved him most." He was succeeded in both of the livings of St. Peter's, Carmarthen and Bleddfa by the Rev. Evan Holiday, The late Archdeacon Bevan has pointed out more than once that the much abused practice of holding livings in plurality was often necessitated by the meagre income in those days, and the emolu- ments of Si. Peter's, Carmarthen, as will be shown directly, hardly afforded a living wage at that time. In 1810 the ecclesiastical parish of St. Peter's, Car- marthen, was co-extensive with the present limits of the Borough. The Church of Llanllwch was of course in existence and was treated as a separate Ichapelry. It was then served by,a curate, but there was no separate district assigned to it. The population of St. Peter's, Carmarthen, WAS, I believe, about 6,000, and there were two curates. Four services were held every Sunday at St. Peter's, Church, one in Welsh at 7 a.m., one. in English at 11 a.m., and two in the afternoon and evening at 3 and 6, in Welsh and English alternately. The income of the living amounted to less than £ 105 (including the surplice fees), and consisted of the following items:—(1) B7 charged on the tithe of the Borough: (2) £ & derived under various wills; (3) the rent of the White Horse Inn in Priory-street and ad- joining cottages, which seem to have formed part of the ancient possessions of the living; (4) the rent of two farms known as Usgwm and Pantgwm, in the parish of Llangathen, which had been bought in 1732 for JE600. made up of JB200 given by Mr. Richard Yaughan in 1715, a similar s-um of S200 appointed in 11732 by the Rev. John King, D.D., Master of Charterhouse, out of Mr. John Pierrepoint's estate, and £ 200 granted by the Governors. of Queen Anne's Bounty out of the Royal Bounty money to meet Mr. Vaughan's gift: and (5) the rent of a house and 20 acres of land in the parish of Llanarth, which had been bought, in 1738 for £ 200 also granted out of f'ne Royal Bounty money to meet the B200 appointed by the Rev. John King. It was not until 1844 that the ecclesiastical districts of St. David's, Carmarthen, and Llanllwch were formed out of the old parish of St. Peter's. St. David's Church was consecrated in 1841; Christ Church in 1869: and St. John's in 1890. litidg'f-street Schoolroom was so licensed for ser- vice in 1870. but upon St. John's Church being consecrated the license was revoked. Bridege-street. Schoolroom was so licensed for ser- vice in TS71 Towyside Mission Room in 1873, and the room in Cambrian-place in 1896.
A CENTURY'S NEWSPAPER PROGRESS
A CENTURY'S NEWSPAPER PROGRESS I [Br DAY1D DAVIES, EDITOR-MANAGER OF THE "SOPTH WALES DAILY POST."] I. 1810 to 1910-by an arbitrary division of time de- nominated a century-a period long in the sight of man, because longer than a mortal's span, but merely a short chapter in the story of humanity stretching back through the ages until lost in the dim half- light of the early world. In the reality of things 1810 is separated from laiU by profound changes transforming the conditions of existence to an extent without a parallel. The people who lived a hundred years ago—u> whom tne uugiity upheaval ot the French Revolution was a recent event, Napolcan an ogre in the flesh, casting a sinister shadow over all Europe, their nerves still vibrant to the thrill and glory of Trafalgar— might have been transported back to the 17tti or 16th century without experiencing any violent shock, so little had the outward aspect of the country, or the manners or usages of the inhabitants, been altered. But a patriarch of the dawn ot the 19th century recalled to earth a century later would move in a world strange and unfamiliar. For in the interval invention had been racking her brains as never before, and as a consequence wonder after, wonder had been unfolded. Ships scudded across the seas without sails, carriages travelled at incredible speed without horses, electricity setting a girdle round the earth provided the means for a truly miraculous method of communication. In the material world changes, vast, deep, wide-reaching, their influence penetrating into every social stratum a.nd a corresponding development in human mentality, due to the cheapening of the means of acquiring knowledge, improved facilities for travelling, the better organization of communities and of countries for the efficient exchange of products, the easier Miffu- new agencies for the enlightenment of man and in- cidentally broadening the popular conception of liberty. Amongst these agencies none more fertile, in conse- quences none more effective, in stirring the dormant intelligence into wakefulness, or in developing mental alertness, than the sheets of paper, whether bound as books and called magazines, or issued as miniature broadsides with the record of passing events and the thoughts of men regarding them stamped thereon, by pressing inked little moulds of letters forming words into the soft texture of paper made from rags. In this branch of human activity we have travelled far and fast sinw 1810. THE JOURNAL of that day was expensive, and would have appeared contemptibly mean in the sight of our present-day readers; upon every copy a duty had to be paid, represented by the stamp on the right of the title page; it was altogether a produc- tion that to all outward seeming did little credit to anyone concerned. But it was highly prized never- theless, passed from hand to hand, read aloud in the public inns/and its contents often set counties in a flutter. But though the scope of usefulness was cir- cumscribed by limitations almost incomprehensible to us, with no news by telegraph and dependant upon a postal service slow in movement and utterly untrust- worthy, and upon the chance gossip collected from mail-coaches arriving at long intervals, the JOURNAL of 1310 provided the one little window through whicWjl the great world could be dimly seen-kept in some sort of touch, however imperfect, the educated people of the Western Counties with the great events making history on a tragic scale in foreign lands. And the JocRXAL, like the other old-fashioned newspapers of the United Kingdom, influenced, and was influenced by the lightning changes inaugurated with the dis- covery and application of steam-power and the ad- vent generally of the scientific age. It grew and grew in size, importance and autho- rity. The repeal of the newspaper stamp duty com- municated a stimulus to advance; the discovery that suitable pulp for paper could be got from larch trees rity. The repeal of the newspaper stamp duty com- municated a stimulus to advance; the discovery that suitable pulp for paper could be got from larch trees gave another. So that to-day more is offered in paper alone for a penny than could have been ob- tained for thrice that sum in 1810, and there is ►brought swiftly within reach of the readers news from the remotest parts of the world. Even in the days of Shakespeare it was remarked that '"the peasant's [ toe kibes the courtier's heel," and by 1910, when the quarterly magazines have practically disappeared and the contents of the monthlies disclose symptoms of the difficulty experienced in keeping abreast of topi- cal subjects-so transient has become the stay of the average event under the gaze of the public—that it may seen out of place in the JOURNAL to observe that weekly newspapers are receding and disappear- ing from areas effectively covered by evening news- papers, which with their many editions produced in quick succession encourage the public to expect t!wi,- I news red-hot, thereby cultivating a distaste for :n- formation more than a few hours old. Like the Americans, who will only eat Lead when newly baked, our, people may become liable to have mental dyspepsia by the swallowing of indigestible literary substances. The JOURNAL has lived a long useful life. It is now renewing its youth and promises a future of in- creased vigour and success. I
THE CHURCH IN WALES IN THE…
THE CHURCH IN WALES IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY AND AFTER. [Br "EILIR."J The history of the Church in Wales and its efforts on behalf' of religion, education, and litera- ture in the eighteenth, and the first half of the nineteenth century has yet to be written. The distinguished authors of "The Welsh People," in- stead of investigating the facts for themselves, accepted, nothing doubting, the evidence of previous writers whose respectability until recent years was not called in question. One such writer was Johnes, author of "The Causes of Dissent in WTales," a work which elicited the approval of even the late Dean Edwards, of Bangor, but which is now known to be thoroughly unsound in many material particulars. The most important contribution to the his- tory of the period is an essay by the Rsv. Thomas Shankland, Welsh Libra- rian of the North Wales University College (Ban- gor), which was origin- ally a paper read before the Hon. Society of Cymmrodorion, in Lon- don, and published since in the Transactions of that body. Mr. Shank- land went to the foun- tain-head for his facts, which he obtained chiefly (8 t in the early records of the bcciety tor Promoting Christian Knowledge; and, though a I Nonconformist, he has done full justice to the Church. His labours, however, only extend from 1699 to 1737. Mcst Welsh Nonconformist writers trace the rise and progress of re- ligion and education in Wales to the great revival under Daniel Rowland and Howel Harris in the eighteenth century. Even the late Principal Viriamu Jones, in his paper on the Welsh Uni- versity, attributed the remarkable activity which Wales has shown in education in recent years to that upheaval, especially the Sunday-school, which is supposed to have sprung up in its wake. Such a view, however, is absolutely erroneous. There had existed in Wales a movement long anterior to the c "Methodist Revival," and anterior even to Griffith Jones, of Llanddowror, which had for its object the religious, moral, and educational advancement of the people. Mr. Shankland places this fact beyond question. He shows that a feature of the seventeenth century wa.s the rise of numerous religious and philanthropic Societies, a movement which largely aff-ected Wales. Prominent among the Associations formed was one for the education of the poor and the printing and distribution of Welsh religious literature, called the Welsh Trust, with its headquarters in London, established on lines laid down by Thomas Gouge and supported by Archbishop Tillotson, Bishop Stiliingtleet, and other men of great influence, in- cluding several Nonconformists. The Society, in fact, contained the leading men .of all denomina- tions. It did an enormous amount of work and exerted a far-reaching influence, the significance of which it not yet fully appreciated." With the death of Gouge, however, in 1681, the contributions and work of the Trust were withdrawn from Wales, and the funds were utilised in support of the charity-school movement in London and West- minster. There is ample evidence to show that religious Societies multiplied rapidly and extensively in North and South Wales between 1699 and 1737. Mr. Shankland writes of them:-—The extent and value of the excellent religious and philanthropic work of these Societies in Wales during" this im- portant, but unknown, period of its history have as yet received hardly any recognition at all. I will venture to say, after a study of their multi- form activities in the literatura of the period, that we observe in the rise and pro- gress of these Societies and their work the ante- cedent causes and the agencies that produced the great revival movement in the eighteenth cen- "tury in Wales, in all its various forms." The Societies for the Reformation of Manners came into existence about 1692. These were a protest "against profaning the Lord's Day, drunkenness, profane swearing and cursing, and all other lewd, enor- "mou". and disorderly practices," and were formed in many of the towns and counties of Wales. We learn of them in Pembrokeshire and Carmarthen- shire as early as 1699. They served an excellent purpose, and were so successful that in a letter written in May, 1701, we find that drunkenness, swearing, profanation of the Lord's Day, &c., are generally suppressed, and the state of religion very much mended." I BISHOP FERRAR. We now come to the foundation of the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, a movement with which Wales was closely connected from the first, one of the founders being Sir Humphrey Mackworth, and one of the leading members from the first, if not an original member, Sir John Philipps, of Picton Castle, Pembrokeshire, a man to whom Wales is more indebted than to any other Welshman in the eighteenth century. This Society supplemented the efforts of those for the Reformation of Manners in Wales by the circulation of special Welsh litera- ture. The first step taken by the S.P.C.K. to pro- vide Welsh literature was an order for the trans- "lation of pamphlets relating to the crusade against immorality and law-breaking." It was Sir John Philipps that first directed the attention of the Society to Wales, and his efforts were supported by other eminent Welsh Churchmen, including Sir Humphrey Mackworth, Dr. John Evans, Bishops Lloyd, of Gloucester, and Evans and Humphrys, of Bangor—the latter was afterwards Bishop of Here- ford—Dr. John Jones, Dean of Bangor, John Yaughan, of Derllys, Carmarthenshire (father of .5 the well-known Madam Bevan), the Rev. Griffith Jones, of Llanddowror, and the Rev. Moses Wil- [ liams. "A full account of the labours of the "Society in Wales," writes Mr. Shankland, "in "association with these and other eminent Welsh- men during the life-time of Sir John Philipps, would form one of the most romantic chapters in its early history." The literary activity of the Society in Wales was immense. It employed nearly aU the leading writers of the Principality in the work of translating Eng- lish books and pamphlets, and composing original ones in Welsh, which it distributed gratis, or at a nominal price. printing and distribution of copies of the Bible, the Prayer-book, and the Psalter demanded, of course, its special attention, and thousands upon thousands of copies were dis- Among those employed by the Society were:— Ellis Wynne, author of "Y Bardd Cwsg"; Edward Samuel; Theophilus Evans, author of "Drych y Prif Oescedd"; Samuel Williams, Llangunllo; Moses Williams; Thomas Williams, Denbigh; John Morgan, Matchin, Essex; Robert Lloyd: John Roderick, the printer; George Lewis, Abergwili; Thomas Richards, Llanfyllin, and others, writers who have never been surpassed in any age. The Society directed its attention also to the erection of parochial and Diocesan libraries, in accordance with a scheme originated by Dr. Bray. This branch of the work was eminently successful, and proved a godsend to the clergy and school- masters of Wales at the time. Many of them were poor and lived in such remote districts that they c(puld not provide themselves with the books neces- sary to carry on their work of preaching, teaching, and catechising. The library movement came to their rescue, and the good results that followed were apparent on all hands. These libraries were estab- lished in all parts of Wales. They placed a col- lect on of the best theological books obtainable within reach of all the ministers and schoolmasters of the Church in Wales, and rendered "special help to ministers who laboured in very poor livings." The first object was attained by establishing a central lending library in each diocese, and the second by establishing a permanent library in as many parishes as possible where the income did not exceed E30 a year. The leading figure in this great movement was Afoses Williams, a man whose important seraces to the Church have been too long, overlooked. A list of the parochial libraries founded at this time might be given, but those for Cardigan- shire atone must Town, 1765; Llanarth, 1766; Bangor Teify, 1786; Cellan, 1765; Ciliau Ayron, 1765; Llandyfriog, 1768; Llanddewi- Aberarth, 1765: Llandyssili-gogo, 1766; Lampeter, 1765; Llanbadan-Tref-Eglwys. 1763; New Quay, 1765; Trefilan, 1765; Llanbadarn-Fawr, 1765; anil Ystrad Meurig, 1808. Equally important was the charity-school move- ment initiated by the Society. Unlike that intro- duced by Thomas Gouge in 1674, this movement was conducted almost entirely by Churchmen. The work was taken up with great zeal both in North and South Wales. By the beginning of the eighteenth century the movement had spread into the four Welsh Dioceses. The enthusiasm with which Welshmen, both clerical and lay, threw themselves into it was remarkable, and by the year 1737 the provision made for elementary education in North Wales. especially, possibly also in South Wales, compared favourably with that of any other part of the kingdom. Space will not allow one to mention, even by name, the numerous charities founded by Church- men and Churchwomen in support of schools in Wales in the eighteenth century. The great work done by Griffith Jones, of Llanddowror, also, must only be briefly related. Mr. Jones was "discovered" by Sir John Philipps. Sir John was his friend and supporter from the first, and he aided the Vicar's efforts by his purse and influence. Jones's connection with the S.P.C.K. was due to Sir John's good offices. It was as the representative of the Society in Wales that the Vicar of Llanddowror did his best work and was able to accomplish so much. In the schools which he founded young and old were taught to read. He is sometimes referred to as the precursor of the "Methodist Revival," and spoken of as if he worked independently of Church authority or out- side the pale of the Church. Nothing, oi course, can be further from the truth. He was a ze«.us and consistent Churchman, the most eloquent preacher, and the greatest organiser the Church in Wales had in the eighteenth century. Though a strong Churchman, ho cherished no prejudice against Nonconformists. In his "Welsh Piety," the reports of his labours in connection with elementary education, he speaks most respectfully of them, and he did much to break down the parti- tion wall between them and the Church. He laboured incessantly for thirty years. In 1760 he had 215 schools in full swing, where 8,687 persons of all ages were being taught. It is estimated that the movement with which he was identified was the means of educating 314,000 persons, and that the number of schools reached 6,465. He was liberally supported by Madam Bevan, who left £ 10,000 to be applied to free education. Gnflith Jones himself left £7,000 for the same purpose. With Griffith Jones'-s death, his system of circu- lating schools ceased for a time owing to a legal misunderstanding in regard to Madam Bevan's charity, and the Church lost much in conse- quence. The Church, however, did not go to sleep. In the diocese of St. David's, in particular, at the beginning of the nineteenth century, a great .work was done in educational and religious spheres. In 1809 Madam Bevan's legacy was restored to the Church, and between that date and 1815, 424 schools were established in eleven Welsh counties, where 28,947 scholars were under instruction. Of these schools, 350 were in the counties of Carmarthen, Pembroke, and Cardigan, where 24,947 children were taught. The National Society also, appeared in the field, and in 1811—the year after the CAR- MAHTHEN JOURNAL was established-the Society began establishing schools. Before 1827 it had 106 schools in North Wales, and before 1847 it had 279. In these 18,732 children were taught. Right down to 1902, the Church schools increased in number. In that year as many as 91,605 children were edu- cated in them. This article is not purported to be a sketch of the Church's doings in connection with education, and its great work in regard to intermediate and higher education must be left untouched. All the endowed Grammar Schools of Wales were Church foundations. The latest, as it is the most important, of these institutions is Llandovery's famous school, itself a permanent proof of the patriotic attitude of the Church towards the Welsh language and the Welsh people. The Church's desire to promote higher education found expression in the foundation I of St. David's College, Lampeter, the most im- portant fact in the Welsh Church's history since the Reformation. Its foundation was followed by the establishment of the Training Colleges at Carmar- then and Carnarvoa. The latter was removed some years ago to Bangor. The latest effort of the 'Church to meet the needs of ministerial candidates was the establishment of St. Michael's College, now at Llandaff. Certain writers point to the eighteenth as the darkest century in the history of the Church in Wales. The Bishops, it is said, were Englishmen, and their policy was to Anglicise the Church and the people and ignore the claims of the Welsh clergy. The fattest livings were held by English- men, pluralists who cared nothing for their flocks. The clergy were ignorant and immoral, and so were the people. These and other charges are now fre- quently levelled against the Church, and are proved to be true, it is urged, by the existence of "one great fact"—the "Methodist Revival" It will interest English Churchmen to know what Mr. Shankland-who, by the way, is a Baptist minister- thinks of the period and the Church:—" The re- ligious status of Wales was far from ideal. The state of religion in the Established Church in r, Wales in this period was undoubtedly very un- "satisfactory from many points of view. Neverthe- less, the state of things in the Principality was not so bad as they are imagined to be by our historians. The truth is, our historians have not yet written the history of this period from original sources. The period is not yet properly understood, and therefore is not properly ap- fI preciated It would be difficult to prove that the policy of the Bishops, in the eighteenth century, and later. was to Anglicise Wales, or that the clergy were anti- national and gave no encouragement and support to Welsh literature. The facts of history point other- wise. The attitude of the Bishops of Wales 'towards the Welsh language may be seen in the work of the S.P.C.K., which continued throughout the eighteeneth century to publish editions of the Welsh Bible and Prayer Book. It must be that the policy of the Society was identical with that of the bishops. It would be absurd to think otherwise, xiut we have direct evidence showing what the policy of some of the bishops was.. Bishop Bull, of St. David's, urged his clergy to forward the circulation of the Welsh Prayer Book. Beveridge arranged for a popular edition of the Prayer Book, and distributed at his own expense a Welsh translation of Nelson's tract on Confirmation. Fleetwood, of St. Asaph, complained, early in the eighteenth century of the conduct of those clergy who gave an English sermon to favour one or two families in a parish where the rest of the population were Welsh. To come to later times, Bishop Cleaver is given an excellent name in the periodical "Cylchgrawn (tymru." He was Bishop of Bangor from 1800 to 1806, and of St. Asaph from 1806 to 1815. Although an Englishman he made his clergy hold Welsh ser- p vices where required. He appointed no incumbent to a Welsh-speaking parish without having him examined as to his competency to officiate in Welsh. He wished the parochial clergy to preach twice every Sunday, and to give a Welsh and English sermon in bilingual parishes. He was a great sup- porter of the Sunday School, and publisehd an edi- tion of the Welsh Bible to the accuracy of which he paid much attention. The Church in Wales owes a permanent debt of gratitude to that great Englishman-Bishop Burgess. He did much for elementary and higher education in his diocese, and paid much attention to the training of candidates for ordination. At a ruri- decanal meeting at Abergwili in 1813, he unfolded a plan for obtaining funds for the support of such candidates, the bishop himself heading the list with £ 120—the tenth part of the income of his see. Fourteen years afterwards St. David's College was opened. This bishop impressed upon the clergy the importance of teaching the people English, but by utilising the Welsh language as a means, as is being done in our time. Bishop Burgess's right hand man was Arch- deacon Beynon, a patriot to the core. In his time, valuable prizes were offered in St. David's for essays and poems, for which the clergy competed. This movement led, in 1819, to the revival of the Eisteddfod at Carmarthen, of which Archdeacon Beynon was the heart and soul. Lord Dynevor and Bishop Burgess presided over the meetings. Llandaff, in common with the other Welsh dioceses, felt the new life that now pulsated through the Church. It is impossible to fully realise the marvellous revival which that diocese witnessed in the early nineteenth century. Van Mildert, Sumner, Coplesline, Ollivant-all Englishmen-left an excel- lent record behind them. Like bishops, like clergy, and, like people. Church- men generally, and the clergy in particular were net indifferent, much less, hostile to Welsh literature. An insight into the attitude of Welsh Churchmen, clerical and lay, may be got from the Nsts of sub- scribers to Welsh books published in the eighteenth century. Two instances will suffice for our pur- pose. One, "Drych y Prif Oesoedd," a Welsh history which has become a classic, was first pub- lished in 1716, and again in 1746. The list of sub- scribers includes the four Welsh bishops and other dignitaries, besides a large number of the parochial clergy, the majority of whom are graduates. It in- cluded also a. large number of the gentry in Glamorgan, Carmarthenshire, and Cardiganshire, and of Welshmen at the Universities. The other instance is Thomas Richarde's well-known dictionary, published in 1753. Appended is a list of subscribers of some 600-a very large number considering the price of the volume-six shillings—and the popula- tion of the country at the time. In this list the number of clergymen is very large, the majority being Oxford and Cambridge men. The scope of the list is very extensive, embracing the counties of North Wales as well as South Wales. It affords a good view of the state of education among the upper and middle classes in Wales at the time. Of the 600 subscribers, as many as 173 are clergymen, and we may feel sure that neither they nor the influential and wealthy laity of Wales in the eighteenth century were antagonistic to Welsh literature and the Welsh language. i It is frequently stated that Church as an institution was out of sympathy with the Welsh people. It is difficult to see how this could have people. It is difficult to see how this could have been the case in the eighteenth century or in the nineteenth. It has always identified itself with all movements that were national and patriotic. The oldest and most patriotic institutions Welshmen can boast of are the Society of Ancient Britons, estab- lished in 1715, the Honourable Society of Cymmro- dorion, 1751, the Eisteddfod revived in 1819, and the Cambrian Archaeological Association, 1845. It was by the efforts of Welsh Churchmen all four were started, at a time when the Church is said to have been at a very low ebb. Evidence might be produced to show—diocesan returns and other data-that the Welsh people in the eighteenth century were strongly attached to the Church, and the question suggests itself, how so many of them became alienated from it, and in time, positively hostile to it. One reason, and a strong one, is supplied by the nature of the revival to which we have referred. It was a quiet unobtrusive movement, extending its operations gradually. Its chief end was the enlightenment and education of the people, though at the same time it encouraged godliness and devotion and reformation of morals. But it lacked the one important element-warmth, fervency—an element so much in keeping with the Welsh character. Nonconformity in its earlier stages suffered from the same defect. Church leaders in the eighteenth century gave little support to emotion in religion. Fervency was counted a weak- ness, and something to be avoided. The Church suffered in consequence, a withering took hold of its system and the progress of the good work that had gone on so well was arrested until the Oxford movement, in the next century, breathed new life into it again. Re ders who wish to pursue the subject will find it dealt with in an article by the writer in The Guardian," March, 1908. and also in The Church- man's Shield," by the Rev. Lemuel J. James and the writer.
------_-----_----' ONE HUNDRED…
ONE HUNDRED YEARS-1810-1910 [By GEORGE EYRE EVANS, SENIOR HONORARY SECRETARY, CARMARTHENSHIRE ANTIQUARIAN SOCIETY AND FIELD CLUB.] A memorable day in Caermarthen's historv is the 3rd of March, 1810, the day on which the first issue of the CARMARTHEN JOURNAL was. on sale. Only one other news- paper had preceded it in Wales, the Cambrian at Swansea; to-day we offer our congratula- tions to THE JOURNAL, as it is now called, on the One Hundredth Anni- versary of its birth. George the Third was then on the throne, and with ten years more of his long reign yet before him. It was the ministry of Spencer Perceval; Lord Robert Seymour was Member of Parliament for our county, having after a four days' poll, defeated the former Member, Sir William Paxton; and Admiral George Campbell sat for the Borough. The battles of Corunna and Talavera, and Wellesley's victory over Soult at Oporto were subjects most talked of then at Caermarthen Cross on a Sunday morning. The failure at Walcheren had brought about the fall of the Portland Ministry, and a new ministry had been formed out of the more Tory members of the late administration. If only a copy of the first number of the CARMARTHEN JOURNAL were forthcoming, it-s columns of Foreign Intelligence, as told to local readers would be of interest to us to-day. John, Lord Cawdor, was Mayor of the town, in 1810, a fact commemorated by his gift to the bur- gesses of those two silver maces, which have ever since been carried before the Mayor-whenever he appears in state. As the Right Honourable John opened eagerly the damp pages of the new venture he would read in them of the completion of the Borough Gaol, and of the visit to Caermarthen of Edmund Kean and his wife, in the "New Comedy" of "Man and Wife" The fiftieth anniversary of the coronation of George the Third had, but a few weeks earlier, been commemorated in the town, by attendances at the respective places of worship, and collections taken at such services "in aid of a general subscription to be made throughout the town, for the purpose of discharging or relieving debtors confined in the gaol for small debts, also for the relief of aged and indi- gent persons." The Town Council was emphatic in its resolution, as recorded in the Order Book,— "that there be NO illumination or public dinner" on the Thanksgiving Day, the only function in which the Corporation was immediately concerned being the "laying of the first stone of the dock on that day," and the ordering that "six barrels of ale be given to the populace of this County Borough at the expense of this Corporation." Stay though, the Corporation, at that time, did something else for the good of the town which was welcoming the new paper, it consented to the pay- ment of FIVE GUINEAS (no figures, please, so no mistake, printer!) FIVE GUINEAS of ratepayers' money "for a hat for the Cryer." Economy then as now was to the fore in the Guildhall! AN ANCIENT BELLMAN OF CARMARTHEN. CIRCA 1810. Note the three-cornered hat of felt as made in Carmarthen in those days. (From the collection of the Carmarthenshire Anti- quarian Society.) John Ross, king of Caermarthen printers, after an active life in the town from the year 1743, died at the end of October, 1807, and his apprentice JOHN DANIEL ESTABLISHED THE "CARMARTHEN JOURNAL." Whose imprint it bore at first is not yet known, nor whether it was a Company concern. Daniel was a farmer's son, and at the end of his apprenticeship left for London. Being a swift I "comp." he soon succeeded in entering the offiees of the King's printers. He worked on the Govern- ment despatches during the Gordon Riots in 1780. Three years later he returned to Caermarthen, and carried on business-first in King Street and after- wards in Hall Street. During the first fifteen years, Daniel issued no less than 74 different books, several being large and important volumes, such as the Rev. John Canne's Bible with marginal refer- ences. In 1798 Daniel issued the first edition of the Rev. Dr. Wm. Richards' English-Welsh Dictionary. He died in 1823, aged 68, and with his wife Ann Daniel is buried in the north-weiit oorner of Llangunnor Churchyard. For him that memorable 3rd day of March, 1810, must have been one of much anxiety. The price of his paper was 6 £ d., and in January, 1816, the price was raised to 7d. Soon after its establishment the CARMARTHEN JOURNAL was transferred from John Daniel to one David Rees, of whom little or nothing ie known. From the 10th October, 1812, to the 26th December, 1817, the paper was printed by David Rees and edited by Richard Phillips; and of their pro- duction issue No. 254, for Friday, the 6th of January, 1815-Waterloo Year-begins the long series of volumes now in the office of THE JOURNAL. The issue of the 12th February, 1819, is the last bearing the imprint of David Rees; that for the 19th July following carries the imprint of J[on] P[owell] Davies, who occupied the house of Daniel Lewis, grocer, King Street. He was a general printer, and seems to have been well patronized, especially during the reform years,—1829 to 1832,— when his political posters and handbills were very numerous. His imprint appears for the last time on the paper, in the issue of the 14th January, 1820, the file copies of that date having a. line drawn with pen and ink over it. On the 28th January, 1820, appears the sole name of Richard Phillips as printer and editor; and on the issue of the 25th February, comes the im- print of David Evans, eldest son of John Evans.- printer of "Seren Gomer," and for Bishop Burgess. Son David was a wild, reckless fellow who, in 1823, suddenly left the town. This same issue of the 25th February, 1820, con- tain,N-otice. -All persons standing indebte-d to the late proprietors of the CARMARTHEN JOURNAL concern, are desired to pay the amount of their respective debts into the hands of Mr. Daniel Williams, Solicitor, Carmarthen, who is duly authorised to receive the same, and all those who have demands on the said Propretors are requested to send in the same, in order to their being examined and settled." Further notice was given on the 10th March, 1820, that "the Paper and printing concern, and goodwill have been disposed of at a General Meeting of the Proprietors to David Evans, eldest son of John ^vans; R. Phillips retaining management of Editorial department." The issue of the 18th July 1823, is the last to bear the imprint of David Evans What became of him, nobody seems to know. His brother, John Evans' imprint then goes on as "John Evans, Junior" until the 28th May, 1830, three days after the death of his father. T Death. On the 28th May, 1830, in his 56th rear, John Evans, printer, Guildhall Square, Proprietor and Publisher of "Seren Gomer," and many years proprietor and publisher of this paper." So runs the announcement in the CARMARTHEN JOURNAL of the passing of one of the town's many noted printers. -He was many years Deacon and Elder of the Independent Connexion in this town." He established himself, first, in Priory Street, where he r^uTn c yea"' -and in 1813' removed to E Colby Sans" PremiSG3 D°W OCCUPied Mr. The last issue of the paper from Red Lion Court was on the 22nd October, 1S30; on the 29th it came forth from Lammas-street. On the 2nd August, 1833, John Evans ceased to be its publisher the impnnt then readmg-"Printed and published by the. proprietor, William Evans," He printed it till the 9th August, 1844. William was also a son of John Evans, senior, and was in partnership with Ben Jones; for some years the firm was "Evans and Jones." FZ:n of G^dhall Square, and James Evans, of Spilman Street" ie the paper's imorint 184? Th 16th +August' im> to the 27th August, 1849. The next issue, on the 3rd September, bear. the imprint of Benjamin Jones only. died on the 7th August, 4th Af hZrTS: Wldow Louisa Jones, on the h May 1.883, in her 73rd year; and his son, SeS jSS J°°M- °n 'ie 24111 18S6. With the Jones period begins the preseni scribes personal knowledge of the CARMARTHEN Sn^rA^; 'th h- lad he stood in Guildhall Square with his father on the day of the last election by open voting for parliamentary candidates, and he distinctly remembers the windows of the houses overlooking the Square being crowded with ladies in red and blue shawls, and the lusty cheering of the comps. at the offices of the paper. The old title of the paper first gave place to that of THE JOURNAL" I837' DURID« TIM>• <>* July, 1883—7th September, 1888, of imprint of Swo rh 5^ MnS' Fif°m the 14th SePtember, Jw fV t £ November, 1888, its imprint was that of G. A. Hutchins; and on the 23rd November, aPPeared first imprint of present Com- pany. Of living men, writer of the bi-centenarr article, in 2010, will naturally be concerned; suffice it here to say tbat their Prai56 is in all readers' lips. One name is left unto this last, that of mv loved mentor, Quaker Tobit Evans, who passed on to the Nearer Presence on the 9th of 5th mo., 1908, and fripriH rrta! o 3rtS he close to those of our common Sfht^hfsV**ln? Churchyard, with £ THE JOURNAL. Tr?wJLaS a "f11 °j wide rcadin2> and his library at rewylan contained many rare volumes, with the oi an ot wnich he had made himself ac- JoTi his t letters were invariably good reading, so, too his stories. One may be new to some of our readers. Sitting in his chair by the fire on lllmS t 19u5' hG told me ho* "Brutus," when ing subscribers for his "Brutusiana" at 21s a copy came to the Rev. Noah S who WM "Brutus "it17 ln„ 'Haul,' then edited by "Brutus." "I know," said "Brutus," "I have often said hard things about you, Mr. S- in the Haul,' but if only you will take one copy, never Sla<% .„d wh.Pfe„ofe. ll be'JplSf'r00^ two brothers, so put down our names for three copies. In the next month's issue 'Haul' renewed its usual attack on Mr. S J renewea Tobit's "Holiday Rambles in Cornwall" is the story of his visit to that countv in 1806 Few publications have come from THE JOURNAL Office, £ ° whiE if °l preseTti0n thaQ this county of Tre, Pol, and Pen. turv; but THE JOuRNAL could turn out what Max cal Eve-ticklers," in its earliest yearø. A marriage is announced after the couple had known each other for a short period. THB JOURNAL neatly puts Ït- i™After u co"rtshiP of half-an-hour on their Chester coach from Wrexham to To the point: A generous parent gives his datio-hw » a he, wedding d,y. xL °° "Henry Lock, a gipsy, gave his daughter as a marriage portion, a pint of guineas." We Tail to improve it! Arehæology, tramping and are graphically described by the reporter in 1815- tu l..e £ -< £ kdv°rd0.' ,1 hio in Eofland hi KSt? <•«<»«' bj "'fa/a euiui! raised by copper sheet reflectors." ÅS a tramp of now SOIne 17,000 miles, 1 syznpathise and go on One wonders if there was a rush -of St. Peter', boys to answer this "ad. to be)raTwavS0ffiCellWanta aPPre°tice who is board an/4 i* j 1 way when wanted; must board and 18dge in the house to which the office is altwhed, and alii premium will be wJted !be b"d in «he. Marriage announcements are nothing if not read. able. What of thiS?- n Married at C j accomplished widow ^5 hJ I sixth husband, the tSl f bei°s'be ,la<3J « the three latter Englishmen Scotchman! One wonders if the last man survived his mue. marricd wife? Or take this— Job,2 jones to Jane Bezry. The 170 vear »nj ° ^appy amounted to Certamlj not fair to the yeunj or middle aged Again we read that- mothe0r'sbhi«band ^od* fift °Ider than her own." • J Jears *ou»*ar tha. t S, eZ^'paper'0 '°°k