Chapter II: Part 2

With respect to trade, Beaumaris can hardly be said to enjoy any exclusive advantages: the vessels belonging to the port are generally hired by neighbouring merchants and others, who have trading connexions with Liverpool and other ports on the English and Irish sides of the Channel. The bay, though not spacious, is safe and commodious, and affords shelter and good anchorage for vessels that take refuge here in tempestuous weather. The town has a weekly market on Wednesdays, and three annual cattle fairs in February, September, and December. During the season it is much resorted to as bathing-quarters, and has everything to recommend it as a summer residence. A steam-boat plies regularly between this and Liverpool, thereby affording every facility to visitors, and presenting in the passage a rich succession of beautiful, picturesque, and sublime scenery, which successively invites and fascinates the eye of the spectator.

HOLYHEAD.

Holyhead is familiar to every reader as the favourite point of rendezvous for all who are on their way to the Irish capital. By the admirable arrangements of the Post-office, and the sure and swift-sailing packets that are here in regular attendance, a passage across the Channel is now a matter of as much certainty, as to time, as that of the mail from London. The perfect order and the surprising expedition with which passengers and despatches may thus be forwarded to and from Dublin are the general theme of admiration amongst foreigners, and a means of vast accommodation to our own commercial houses. During a long series of years the improvement of Holyhead has engaged the special attention of Government; every suggestion, entitled to the approbation of skilful and experienced engineers, has been liberally carried into effect: so that in the present day it seems hardly possible that any packet-station can offer greater facilities for all the purposes of Government, or for the interests of social and commercial intercourse, than Holyhead. The steam-vessels which carry the daily mails are of the best possible construction, commanded by experienced naval officers, and affording excellent accommodation for the passengers who are constantly passing to and fro between the British and Irish shores.

The harbour of Holyhead is shaped by the natural cliffs which overhang the sea, on the verge of which stand the ancient sanctuary of the place and its cemetery. The foundation of this church--originally a small monastery--dates from the close of the fourth century: it was long afterwards remodelled into a college of presbyters by one of the Lords of Anglesey; and, after undergoing many alterations suitable to the varying taste of the ages through which it has passed, it assumed its present appearance--that of an embattled edifice built in the shape of a cross.

Under the Head--the mountain from which the harbour takes its name, and which overshadows the town--are two rocky eminences nearly opposite the church, both of which are crowned with ruins which carry the mind far back among the bright days of Cambrian independence. In the rock is a wide and lofty cavern, supported by natural columns, on which tradition has conferred the title of the Parliament-house; and it is not to be denied that patriotic legislators have been often worse accommodated. This curiosity requires to be visited in a boat. On the highest point stands an uncemented circular stone wall, about ten feet in circumference, which is conjectured to have served as a _pharos_ in ancient times; for this coast has a perilous celebrity attached to it, and no vessel could safely approach the haven by night without a warning signal of this kind.

The pier of Holyhead is admirably constructed. It is built on a small island north of the harbour, called Inys-halen, and combines in an eminent degree the requisites of security and accommodation in a work of such importance to the interests of trade. The foundation was laid in 1809, under fortunate auspices; and the grand object, which had been so long and anxiously cherished, was happily accomplished, under the able direction of Mr. Rennie, within a comparatively short period. It has a depth of four fathoms water, so that vessels of heavy burden can ride at anchor in perfect safety. At the extremity is a lighthouse, finely proportioned, substantially built, and highly ornamental as well as useful to the pier and harbour.

The pier extends a thousand feet in length; and close adjoining to it are the Custom-house, with several respectable family houses, among which are those for the harbour-master and resident engineers. The lighthouse contains twenty lamps and reflectors, at an elevation of more than fifty feet above the sea, and exhibiting in every direction a steady blaze of light. At the present time, works for improving and enlarging the harbour are proceeding on a very extensive scale, and bid fair, upon completion, to render Holyhead one of the first harbours of the United Kingdom.

(near Holyhead.)]

THE SOUTHSTACK LIGHTHOUSE,

HOLYHEAD.

"Approaching it from the water, its singular aspect, its wild site
and deserted air--the lighthouse towering seventy feet in
height--the neat, comfortable dwellings close under its guardian
wing--the sounds of life and industry mingled with the lashing of
the sea--and the cry of innumerable birds, ever circling above and
around--were altogether of so unwonted a character, that, had I
been transported to the antipodes, I could not have felt more
unfeigned surprise."--ROSCOE.

Few objects on the British coast excite more individual interest than the subject of this illustration. The singularity of its position, the difficulties which attended its erection, the grand objects of humanity to which it has been made subservient, are all calculated to interest the heart, and afford scope for the imagination.

The Southstack islet is about thirty yards from the rock known as the Head; and on this the lighthouse was erected in 1809, under the direction of Captain Evans, of the Royal Navy. Its form is that of a round tower, the foundation of which is a hundred and forty feet, and the light two hundred feet above the sea--so that it embraces within its sphere the whole bay of Caernarvon. The approach by water to this remarkable sanctuary of human life is well calculated to make a lasting impression upon every visitor, and should never be omitted where a favourable opportunity is presented by the state of the weather. It is here that the extremes of natural desolation and human industry are brought into juxtaposition; where human enterprise has established an asylum amidst the ruins of nature, the war of waves, the wreck of tempests, to shed the "light of hope" over the heart of many a despairing mariner.

Happily for the cause of humanity, vast efforts have been made, and are continually making, to diminish where they cannot entirely remove the dangers which have so long invested our native coast; and it is impossible to calculate the number of lives and the amount of merchandise which have thus been saved from imminent destruction. Much, however, still remains to be effected--much that is really practicable--and it is earnestly to be desired that the attention of Government should be constantly directed to those points on which the science of the engineer can be most beneficially employed. Holyhead in particular is still susceptible of vast improvements; and with the addition of a capacious outer harbour, sufficient to admit merchant-vessels and others of larger size than those now frequenting the port, it would speedily realize all that could be wished for by those most interested in the welfare of the place, and in the prosperity of trade. This is also a subject well deserving of attention on the part of the Admiralty; for, with proper accommodation, her Majesty's ships, in the event of a war, might be advantageously stationed at this port, so as to secure free intercourse, and serve as a protection to the coast, which is now in a defenceless condition and open to any attempt at hostile aggression. We are happy that this question has received the consideration of her Majesty's Government; and feel assured that the steps which are now making towards the accomplishment of so great a desideratum will ensure the grateful approbation of the public, and the increased prosperity of Holyhead.

The Southstack, as already mentioned, is cut off from the promontory by a deep chasm thirty yards in width, through which the sea roars and boils with great force and impetuosity. To cross this formidable ravine an oriental rope-bridge was formerly employed, that is--a sliding basket was attached to the cable, which was secured at either side of the abyss; the passenger entered the basket, and by the ingenious working of lateral pulleys it was sent off or hauled in, according to the arrival or departure of visitors. This hempen apparatus was replaced in 1827 by a handsome suspension-bridge, on the same principles as that over the Menai. It was suggested by the intelligent veteran already mentioned, Captain Evans, and has answered every purpose contemplated in its erection. The roadway is five feet in width, and its height above high-water mark is about seventy feet. The airy span of this bridge is highly graceful and picturesque, and adds greatly to the interest of the picture. On the rock, close under the walls of the lighthouse, are several cottages for the use of the Superintendent and those under his command. The different points of view which it comprises are all deeply interesting to a stranger, particularly from the lighthouse, where the sphere of vision is greatly enlarged.

EAGLE TOWER,

CAERNARVON CASTLE.

Caernarvon Castle, of which the Engraving annexed presents so faithful and striking a resemblance, is a subject of no ordinary interest: it generally engrosses the attention of all strangers in these parts, and is, in every sense, one of the noblest specimens of castellated architecture in existence. Like so many others of similar design and execution, this fortress owes its origin to the policy of Edward the First, who built it, according to contemporary history, by appropriating the revenues of the See of York, then vacant, to the purposes of warlike enterprise and ambition. The town is understood to have arisen under the same auspices. The Castle defends it on the south by means of a narrow, deep moat in front. In its west wall are three circular towers, with two others on either side, and a narrow gate or entrance, over which is placed a bare-headed figure with flowing locks,--the statue of the founder,--holding in his left hand a sword, which he draws with his right hand,--or rather, perhaps, is returning to its scabbard, in allusion to the subjugation of the Welsh,--and a defaced shield under his feet. This gate leads to a narrow, oblong court. At the west end is a polygon, or many-sided tower, with three others of hexagonal form above, and eagles sculptured on the battlements, from which it received the name, preserved in the Engraving, of the "Eagle Tower." It is a noble structure, having ten sides, and a staircase of three hundred steps to the battlements. In this tower is the birth-chamber of Edward the Second,--the first Prince of Wales,[1]--whose nativity, on the 25th of April, 1284, was an humiliating epoch to the spirit of Cambrian freedom. The room measures only eleven feet by seven,--dimensions little in accordance with the importance attached to that event,--but still in some measure characteristic of the fortunes of the royal heir, who, after an eventful reign, was destined at last to perish by a horrible death in the dungeon-room of Berkeley Castle. Adjoining this chamber is a semicircular apartment, traditionally described as the King's Nursery.

The Castle and the court which it encloses are very nearly a mile in circumference. From the outside, twelve towers are seen; out of which, as observed in those of Conway Castle, issue several smaller angular turrets, which, relieved against the horizon, produce a very picturesque effect. A gateway on the south side of the Castle is called the Queen's Gate, from the circumstance of Queen Eleanor having entered the fortress through this gate, by a temporary bridge erected for the occasion.

Our limits do not permit us to indulge in more minute description of this vast and imposing fortress, which, from the state of repair in which it is still kept, may brave the changes of season and the fury of the elements for many generations to come. Externally it is still entire, and challenges the admiration of all who have the least taste for what is sublime and striking in architecture. The castle-walls are still washed by the sea on the north and west, as they formerly were on the south. Founded upon a rock, and occupying so strong a position, it might well have been considered impregnable in the absence of gunpowder. Immense as the structure appears, it is said to have been built within the short space of twelve months; a fact which would appear incredible, did we not reflect that in those days of bitter vassalage the _will_ of the sovereign was a law that could not be transgressed without certain destruction to the offenders. If a work was considered impracticable, or of doubtful accomplishment, all hesitation was removed--all difficulties cancelled--by these expressive words, _Le Roi l'a voulu!_ And under the more than magical influence of this laconic phrase, the "towery fortress" of Caernarvon may have sprung into sudden existence.

[1] The origin of the motto ICH DIEN--I serve--is generally attributed to Edward the Black Prince who, in leading the vanguard of his army to the battle of Cressy, slew John of Luxemburg, King of Bohemia, and then deplumed his helmet of those ostrich feathers which, in memory of this victory, became his _cognisance_,--sometimes using one feather, at others three, as appears on his seals and tomb, with scrolls containing this motto, ICH DIEN. But the ancient arms of the princes of Wales, while they were independent sovereigns, were quarterly _gules_ and _or_, four lions _passant_, counterchanged. The Charter of Edward the First to his son is dated March 24th, 1305,--_i.e._ when the Prince had attained his majority.

CAERNARVON CASTLE.

----"Rifled towers
That, beetling o'er the rock, rear the grey crest
Embattled."

The first royal charter granted in the Principality of Wales was that conferred on the town of Caernarvon by Edward the First. It is a place of great historical interest and importance, and, in connexion with its magnificent castle, presents one of the most imposing features on the British coast. The town is not large; but the recent improvements--public and private--which have been carried into effect have materially contributed to its internal convenience and outward embellishment. Of these the Baths demand especial notice, as one of the principal recommendations to strangers and invalids who resort to this part of the Cambrian shore either for health or relaxation. The building in itself is a good specimen of classical taste--combining elegance of design with excellent workmanship, and presenting, in the distribution of its apartments, every convenience for the reception of visiters and invalids, a choice of hot and cold sea-water baths, with the appendage of comfortable dressing-rooms. For those who have the pleasure in the "cold plunge," as the means of bracing the relaxed system by the exercise of swimming, there is excellent accommodation in a capacious bath, appropriated to that salutary purpose, which is refreshed by a constant supply of water drawn by a steam-engine from the sea through iron pipes, and received into large reservoirs of the same metal. This edifice, which combines in an eminent degree the useful and ornamental, was built at the expense of the Marquess of Anglesey, and is said to have cost upwards of ten thousand pounds.

Within the walls this ancient town is intersected by ten streets, crossing each other at right-angles, which, at various points, fix the stranger's attention by those features and recollections of "other times" with which they are so closely associated. Of these, the main or high street runs from the land to the Water-gate, and is a very fair specimen of that architecture which characterises almost all town buildings of the feudal period. Beyond the walls the town assumes a very different character; elegance, taste, and comfort, and those features which mark the progress of art and refinement, are brought into immediate view; while numerous cottages, and several villas of handsome design and finely situated, throw an air of luxury and domestic comfort over the rural suburbs, the natural character of which is highly favourable to buildings of this description. The town is well paved, lighted with gas, and abundantly supplied with water.

The Port of Caernarvon has accommodation for shipping not exceeding four hundred tons burden, and is frequented by a great number of vessels in the coasting-trade, as well as by others in connexion with London, Liverpool, Glasgow, Dublin, Cork, Bristol, and various port-towns in the United Kingdom. The principal exports consist of slate and copper-ore, the inland transport of which has been greatly facilitated since the construction of the railway. The imports are chiefly colonial produce, Birmingham and Manchester goods, and various articles of home-consumption from the London markets. The quay and harbour of Caernarvon, which formerly presented serious obstacles to the shipping interest on account of the _bar_ at the entrance, have been so improved that the danger, if not entirely removed, is at least so far diminished as to excite little apprehension for the safety of the ordinary craft in connexion with this port. To defray the expense of these public works, Government has levied additional port-dues; and it is much to be wished that, in all other harbours of difficult or dangerous access, the same advantages could be obtained on similar conditions.

The town is now, agreeably to the Municipal Act, divided into two wards, and governed by a mayor, six aldermen, and eighteen councillors. In addition to the picturesque civic retreats already alluded to, as giving so much animation to the native scenery, the neighbourhood is embellished with the baronial seats of the Marquess of Anglesey, Lord Boston, and Lord Newborough. The ruins of Segontium, several Roman stations, part of a military road, and a considerable number of primitive domestic edifices, are among the chief objects of antiquity which deserve the attention of visiters to this neighbourhood.

HARLECH CASTLE,

NORTH WALES.

"The tower that long had stood
The crash of thunder and the warring winds.
Shook by the slow but sure destroyer--Time,
Now hangs in doubtful ruins o'er its base."

Harlech Castle, according to the Welsh historians, derives its origin from Maelgwyn Gwynedd, prince of North Wales, who flourished at the commencement of the sixth century. The present castle appears to have been rebuilt by Edward I., on the foundations of the original fortress, portions of which are still observable in the masonry of the latter epoch, so well known as the "castle-building reign" in England. In the reign of Henry IV. the castle was seized by Owen Glendower, but was retaken four years later; and, after the battle of Northampton, in 1460, afforded temporary shelter to Margaret of Anjou.

In 1468, the castle of Harlech was captured, after a short siege, by the Earl of Pembroke; of whom Sir John Wynne, in his history of the Gwydir family, quotes some Cambrian lines expressive of the ravages committed by him in the counties of Merioneth and Denbigh at that unhappy period. The last of the many tempestuous scenes with which this fortress has been visited occurred in 1647, when William Owen, with a garrison of only twenty men, surrendered it to Cromwell's forces under General Mytton; but this was not accomplished till every other castle in Wales had deserted the royal cause.

This castle is a strong square building, with a round-tower at each angle, and one of the same form at each side of the gateway. Besides these there are four other turrets, smaller and higher, which rise above the towers at the angles, and are in a more dilapidated state. The entrance is under a pointed arch, which formerly contained six gates of massive strength and construction. Although the roofs, doors, and casements of this interesting stronghold have long disappeared, it still presents in the distance an air of even habitable preservation. There are the remains of stone staircases in every tower, and in the area one of these, leading to the top of the battlements, is still entire. In all the rooms fire-places, with pointed arches, are visible, as well as window recesses, which in the state apartments are three in a row, and of spacious dimensions; while those in the smaller rooms gradually contract outwards till they terminate in a "slit" or loophole, as in most other castles of this style and period.

The view of Harlech Castle is among the finest in this picturesque and interesting country; the situation is commanding, and the effect of these venerable towers and battlements, as they first burst upon the traveller's eye, is strikingly bold and impressive. His fancy is hurried back to the days of other times: the shades of native harpers and native heroes flit before his eye; history and romance divide the empire of his mind; and for a time he rests with mute but intense interest on these castellated landmarks of Cambrian history.

The rock upon which the fortress is built rises from the Gamlas,--a level marsh, resembling water in the distance, nearly a mile in breadth, and which it is probable was once covered by the sea. On the side overlooking this marsh, the rock is precipitous, and steep at either end. In front it is on a level with the town of Harlech, from which it is separated only by a deep trench or moat, and overlooked by a group of magnificent mountains in the rear, from which the view is sublime. The whole platform of the rock is occupied by the castle, except a narrow belt of about four or five feet in width, forming a beautiful green path, which winds round the outer walls, skirting the very brink of the precipice.

The town of Harlech is an ancient free burgh, and originally one of the chief places in the county of Merioneth. It is now reduced to the condition of a secondary village, has a corporation governed by a mayor, is one of the polling-places for the county members, and is enlivened during the year by several periodical fairs and weekly markets.

Various objects of antiquity have been discovered from time to time in the neighbourhood of Harlech. In 1692 an ancient gold _torque_ was dug up in a garden near the castle. It is in the form of a wreathed bar, or several rods twisted together, about four feet long, flexible, bent in the form of a hat-band, neither sharp nor twisted, but plain, evenly cut, an inch in circumference, and in weight about eight ounces. This interesting relic is an heir-loom in the Mostyn family. Several coins of the Roman empire have also been found in and near this town, which afford indisputable evidence of its great antiquity. The distance of Harlech from London is two hundred and twenty-nine miles.

BARMOUTH:

OR, ABERMAW.

"Here, beneath the mountain's brow,
Hygeia hears the pilgrim's vow;
Here the breath of summer seas,
The balm of morn, the evening breeze,
The charms of a romantic land,
Refresh and gem the Cambrian strand,--
Where still the muse of Cymry lingers,
And strikes the harp with raptured fingers."

Barmouth, the only port in Merionethshire, occupies a romantic situation at the mouth of the river Mawddach, where the tide at high-water forms a bay of about a mile across, but rather hazardous, owing to the shifting sandbanks by which the channel is interrupted. Overhung by lofty mountains, which leave no adequate space for the horizontal expansion of the village, the houses appear to hang almost perpendicularly from the steep side of the cliffs, so that the chimneys of the one appear to be the foundation of the other. They form eight successive tiers or terraces, to which there is no better approach than by steps hewn in the rock.

This romantic village, which consists of only one irregular street, is much frequented as sea-bathing quarters, for which it has every accommodation, and, in respect to bold and picturesque scenery, has few rivals in the whole Principality. The sea-beach affords every facility for pedestrian exercise; the walks along the banks of the river are numerous, and command the most striking points of view; while regular assemblies, and some of the best Cambrian harps, promote social intercourse and hilarity among the visitors, and give a stir and animation to the whole neighbourhood.

Barmouth, says Mr. Roscoe, is considered to the north-west part of the kingdom, much like Weymouth and other fashionable watering-places to the south, and is resorted to during the summer months, not only by numbers of families in the Principality, but by many others residing in the surrounding counties. The sands are very fine and hard, extending along the beach for several miles, and the bathing is at all times as excellent as can be desired. The restless tides of the Channel dashing against the surrounding coast produce that constant and salubrious motion, which is extended to the waters of the bay. There are two convenient inns, the "Commercial," and the "Cors y Gedol Arms," besides a number of respectable lodging-houses.

The town has the benefit of weekly markets, with an excellent supply of fish and poultry, at a cheap rate, and is further enlivened by two annual fairs, in October and November. The native manufactures consist chiefly of flannel and hosiery, a great quantity of which is exported. The other _exports_ consist of corn, butter, cheese, oak-bark, timber, &c.; the _imports_, of coal, culm, and other articles for the use of the interior.

The number of small coasting-vessels, and others belonging to this haven that trade with Ireland, is stated at a hundred or upwards; and commercial business, upon the whole, is considered to be in a flourishing state.

The distance of Barmouth from London is two hundred and twenty-two miles, and it communicates with Caernarvon by a cross-mail. The resident population is considerably under two thousand, but is greatly augmented during the bathing season. The shipping at the pier communicates to the place a particular air of prosperity and cheerfulness, and gives employment to a very considerable portion of the inhabitants.

"The beauties of the road from Llanilltyd to Barmouth," says Mr. Pratt, "are so manifold and extraordinary that they literally beggar description. New pastures of the most exuberant fertility, new woods rising in all the majesty of foliage, the road itself curving in numberless unexpected directions,--at one moment shut into a verdant recess, so contracted that there seems neither carriage nor bridle-way out of it, and at another the azure expanse of the main ocean filling the eye. On one side, rocks glittering in all the colours of that beauty which constitutes the sublime, and of a height which diminishes the wild herds that browse, or look down upon you from the summit, where the largest animal appears insignificantly minute. On the other hand, plains, villas, cottages, or copses, with whatever belongs to that milder grace which appertains to the beautiful."

SWANSEA BAY.

GLAMORGANSHIRE.

"In front, the Bay its crystal wave expands,
Whose rippling waters kiss the glittering sands
Far o'er its bosom, ships with spreading sails
Export the _ores_ from Cambria's sunny vales.
Above--yon feudal bulwarks crown the steep,
Whose rocky base repels the stormy deep;
Here health is found,--there Industry resides,--
And Freedom on her native shore abides."

The reputation which Swansea has long enjoyed as a delightful watering-place has suffered no diminution in consequence of the numerous rivals with which this coast is so agreeably diversified. As bathing quarters, it enjoys peculiar advantages in its shore, which is admirably adapted for that purpose; while the adjacent scenery, and the various objects of interest or curiosity with which it abounds, serve as pleasing incentives to exercise and recreation,--the happy effects of which are soon observable in the health and appearance of invalids who make choice of Swansea as their summer residence. Every resource which visitors can desire, for promoting either health of body or agreeable occupation for the mind, is here amply provided. Warm, sea-water, and vapour, baths,--public rooms, billiard-tables, reading-rooms, circulating libraries,--with comfortable private lodgings and excellent hotels, are among the list of daily luxuries at their command.

The Harbour of Swansea is capacious,--well constructed, defended by two strong stone piers, about eighteen hundred feet in length,--and affords accommodation to a great many trading-vessels. On the west pier, a light-house and watch-tower offer additional security to the shipping; and every facility is provided for lading and unlading. The tide flows a considerable way up the river, which is navigable to the extent of two miles for vessels of burden. The canal, running parallel with the river, extends to Brecknockshire, a distance of sixteen miles; and in its course passes through thirty-six locks, and over several aqueducts. Its head is nearly four hundred feet higher than its mouth, which readily accounts for the great number of locks. There is also a canal from the Swansea to the Neath canal, on which a packet-boat is established, and a _tram_-road from the former to Oystermouth. With Bristol and Ilfracombe there is a regular communication kept up by means of steam-vessels, which leave and arrive according to the state of the tide.

The public buildings of Swansea--ancient and modern--are numerous in proportion to the population. The Town-hall, erected in 1829, is an elegant structure, approached by two flights of steps, and adorned with columns of the Doric order. The castle, situated nearly in the centre of the town, was originally a building of great extent, and of a strength well suited to the purposes of its erection. A massive tower, surmounted by a range of light arches which support a parapet, is the principal part now remaining of this once redoubtable fortress. It appears to have been founded at the remote epoch of 1113, by Henry Beaumont, Earl of Warwick,--a Norman leader who conquered Gowerland; but being soon after laid siege to by a Welsh chief,--Griffith ap Rhys ap Theodore,--a considerable portion of the outworks was destroyed. It is now in the possession of the Duke of Beaufort, "Earl" of Glamorgan, who is hereditarily entitled to the "prisage and butlerage" of all wines brought into the harbours of Swansea and Chepstow.

The public rooms of Swansea stand on the north side of the promenade, called the Burrows, which consist of several acres tastefully laid out in parterres. Here also are an excellent House of Industry and an Infirmary, established in 1817 and situated on the beach. Besides the free Grammar-school, founded in the seventeenth century, by Hugh, Bishop of Waterford and Lismore, there are the Lancasterian and National-schools, which are incalculable blessings to the increasing population of Swansea.

(Swansea Bay.)]

OYSTERMOUTH CASTLE.

"Here--the 'grim-visor'd knight,' at the head of his band,
Has cased him in armour, and girt on his brand;
While Beauty looked down from her lattice on high,
With the 'smile on her lip and the tear in her eye.'
But victor nor vassal shall hither return:--
The castle is roofless,--the chief's in his urn;
And those ramparts, that frown o'er the surf-beaten rocks,
Are the haunt of the sea-fowl,--the lair of the fox."

This stately relic of the feudal ages overlooks the picturesque Bay of Swansea, and attracts many strangers to its gate,--not only for its venerable antiquity, but for its bold position on the verge of lofty and abrupt limestone cliffs, which command a magnificent view of the subjacent scenery. It is supposed by some to have been erected by the Earl of Warwick, in the reign of Henry the First; by others, to have been the family fortress of the Lords of Gower, in the reign of King John. But to which of the two the credit of founder belongs is matter of conjecture. Like the Castle of Swansea, already mentioned, it is now the property of the Beaufort family, whose mineral possessions in this district are said to be of incalculable value.

The principal walls of this domestic fortress have suffered comparatively little from the lapse of time, or the hand of violence. Most of the original apartments may be easily traced out, so as to give a tolerably correct idea of their shape and dimensions, and the internal economy with which they were arranged. The general figure of the main body is polygonal; the ramparts are lofty and massive, but not flanked with towers, except at the entrance, which appears to have been strongly secured by double gates and a portcullis.

In many parts along this picturesque coast, the limestone rocks swell over a fine sandy beach into perpendicular cliffs of great boldness, exhibiting vast quantities of organic remains, and worn in many places into deep and lofty caverns. Built on a cliff of this description, and with all the necessary accessories of vigilance and security, it could have been hardly possible to have selected anything more eligible for a feudal keep, whose chiefs generally chose their fortalices as the eagle chooses his eyry,--to secure a wide field for himself, and exclude lesser birds of prey.

The village of Oystermouth--about half a mile to the south of the castle--occupies a beautiful position on the verge of the Bay. A lofty rock throws its shadow over it; the headland of which, called the Mumble Point, stretches far into the sea, and affords a safe anchorage for shipping. The village is chiefly inhabited by fishermen, who, as the name implies, are mostly employed in dredging for oysters, which are found of superior quality in the adjoining bay. During summer, it is much resorted to by strangers, for the benefit of sea-bathing,--a source of annual revenue to the inhabitants, who, by letting their apartments, secure very good returns.

This is understood to be the natal soil of Gower,--the father of English poetry,--and therefore classic ground:--

"Here, in the olden time the 'moral' GOWER
Attuned his harp upon that rocky strand;
Gather'd the shell, and pluck'd the vernal flower,
And struck the wild chord with a master's hand.
To him the summer sea, the stormy wave,
Were heaven-born music in their various keys;
As, thundering through yon subterranean cave,
The billows sang in chorus with the breeze."

The railway from Oystermouth to Swansea is a source of great convenience to the inhabitants, as a means of ready intercourse between the most frequented points of the coast adjacent. Newton, proverbially known as a healthy station for invalids and sea-bathers, and Caswell Bay, within half-an-hour's walk of Oystermouth, are well deserving of a stranger's attention. The latter is remarkable for the number and extent of the marine caverns already alluded to, as well as for the beauty and variety of the sea-shells with which the sands at low water are profusely enamelled.

(Swansea Bay.)]

THE MUMBLES' LIGHTHOUSE.

"Amidst the storms,--when winds and waves are high,
Unmoved I stand,--undimm'd I shed my light;
And through the blackness of December's sky
I pour effulgence on the seaman's sight."

INSCRIPTION FOR A LIGHTHOUSE.

The Mumbles' Lighthouse is much frequented by visitors from Swansea during the season. Few jaunts of this character can be productive of more enjoyment than a trip from Swansea to Oystermouth Castle and the Mumbles' rocks. The road, issuing from the western extremity of Swansea, follows the shore of the bay, with the open sea on the left, and on the right a range of wooded hills; of which advantage has been taken for the site of numerous pretty villas. Some gentlemen's seats occupy the intervening level, and their plantations skirt the high-road. Of these Singleton Abbey and Woodlands are the principal. As we near the extremity of the bay the scene is indeed beautiful. Oystermouth Castle, and the pretty village of the same name, lead the visitor onwards till he reaches a broken, breezy headland, the only ascent to which is by a kind of sheep-path, which zig-zags its way to the summit of a narrow promontory terminating in two islands, and on the farther of which is situated the Mumbles' Lighthouse. It is a structure admirably adapted for the purpose to which it is devoted. To every building of this description, devoted to the preservation of human life, a profound interest is attached; and we cannot but observe at a single glance how invaluable these Lights have been, and ever must be, where the danger of shipwreck is so greatly increased by the rugged nature of a coast--here walled in by precipitous cliffs, and there scattered with rocks that appear and disappear according to the tide. The means thus happily adopted along the Welsh coast have been crowned with success; and how comfortable is it to reflect, when calmly seated at our winter hearths, that--while the "winds howl round our steady battlements," and "ships break from their moorings,"--there are friendly lights sparkling around our coasts, to cheer and direct the bewildered mariner in his course, to show him his danger, and to point out "a way to escape."

To understand the importance of lighthouses, we need only remind the reader of the published "Statement," that the number of British vessels alone, which have been annually returned as wrecked, amounts to _five hundred and fifty_;--namely, "three shipwrecks every two days throughout the year." The average burden of merchant-vessels is about one hundred and ten tons; and if we value old and new together at half the price of building, we have L330,000 for the worth of the whole, which, by deducting the value of sails, masts, and other materials saved from some of those stranded, may be reduced to L300,000. If we add an equal sum for the cost of the cargoes, the whole loss from shipwrecks will amount to L600,000. This statement proceeds on an old estimate from 1793 to 1829; but M'Culloch, in the supplement to his Dictionary, says that the number of ships actually lost, or driven ashore, in 1833, amounted to _eight hundred_. It is probable, then, that the annual lost by shipwreck is not much short of a _million sterling_. If _one-fifth_ of this loss could be prevented by additional lighthouses, the saving of money would amount to a _million_ in five years,--to say nothing of the still more important saving in human life. We are anxious--not on the score of economy only, but of humanity--to place these lamentable facts before the eyes of Government, from whose hands the mitigation at least, if not the removal, of such disasters is confidently expected.

In the rock immediately under the lighthouse is a large cavern, called Bob's Cove,--a very characteristic feature, and a chief attraction to pleasure-parties, who resort hither at low water for the sake of the view, which from this isolated point is very striking and variegated:--

"Town and hamlet, sea and shore,
Wooded steep and mountain hoar;
Ships that stem the waters blue,
All concentrate in the view."

Expanding to the eastward, is the beautiful curve of Swansea Bay and the distant mountains; on the westward, the broken coast of Gower; in front, the boundless expanse of ocean. The bracing sea breezes inhaled upon this exposed promontory, its elastic turf, and the magnificent prospect it everywhere commands, never fail to produce a most agreeable and salutary exhilaration, and constitute the finest medical and physical tour in the world.

(near Bristol.)]

THE NASS SANDS LIGHTHOUSES.

"After our ship did split,
When you, and that poor number saved with you,
Hung on our driving boat, I saw your brother,
Most provident in peril, bind himself--
Courage and hope both teaching him the practice--
To a strong mast that lived upon the sea,
Where, like Orion on the dolphin's back,
I saw him hold acquaintance with the waves
So long as I could see."

TWELFTH NIGHT.

The Nass Lights were erected by the late Mr. Nelson, in 1832, under the direction of the Trinity House. The eastern, or upper Light, burns at the height of one hundred and sixty-seven feet, and the western, or lower one, at one hundred and twenty-three feet above high-water mark. They are one thousand feet apart, built of the stone of the country, and stand on Nass Point, near Dunraven Castle, Glamorganshire.

It unfortunately was not merely the dangers of the ocean to which the luckless mariner was in past times exposed upon this iron-bound coast, to them was too frequently added the infamous deceptions of the wreckers, who were accustomed to resort to the artifice of driving to and fro an ass bearing two lanterns, so as to represent a distant vessel in motion, and thus lured many a ship to destruction among the rocks and sands. Numerous are the legends of fearful interest which the older inhabitants relate descriptive of the accidents attendant upon these murderous practices, now happily only matters of history.

The erection of lighthouses, beacons, and other means for the prevention of shipwreck, is every year becoming an object of greater importance to the members of that excellent corporation, the Trinity House. Within the last thirty years, great and permanent advantages have been secured to commerce by the vigilance and activity of that body. Much, however, is still left to call aloud for the exercise of their high privilege, skill, and humanity. The navigation of our coasts is still attended in many parts with imminent danger. Rocks, and shoals, and quicksands, indeed, cannot be obliterated by the hand of man; but the perils they involve, in respect to the shipping, may be greatly diminished by increasing the number of those monitory beacons to which the eye of the mariner is so often turned with intense anxiety. The erection of the two lighthouses which here illustrate the subject, has been attended with the happiest consequences. Many a shipwreck, we will venture to say, has been prevented by a timely regard to these friendly beacons. The Bristol Channel has often been the scene of sad catastrophes in the chronicles of seafaring life; but at present the danger to the foreign and coasting-trade has been greatly obviated by those judicious measures which have emanated from the above society.

The voyage up the Bristol Channel is singularly romantic and beautiful; but the coast is exposed to all the fury of the Atlantic, and the surf against the cliffs is distinctly visible at Swansea. The steamers now keep close along shore, in a channel inside the Nass Sands, which form an extensive and dangerous bank to seaward. The contrast between the tumultuous masses of breakers over these sands, when the wind is fresh, and the calmness of the narrow channel we are traversing in security, is very striking. These sands, and another large shoal, called the Skerweathers, have been fatal to many vessels. A large West Indiaman, with a cargo of rum and other valuable produce, was lost a few years ago on a rock called the Tusca, which disappears at high-water; and in 1831, this coast was fatal to the steamer _Frolic_, in which all the crew and passengers, amounting to nearly eighty persons, perished. The coast near Porthcaul appears at Swansea to be the eastern extremity of the bay; but the bluff point called the Nass, about eight miles further, is literally so. The coast onwards, past the Nass-point, as observed in the admirable Engraving annexed, is almost perpendicular, so as closely to resemble a lofty wall, in which the limestone rock is disposed in horizontal strata. When the sea runs high in this quarter, the scene, as may be readily conceived, is truly terrific--

"And not one vessel 'scapes the dreadful touch
Of merchant-marring rocks."

MERCHANT OF VENICE.

CARDIFF,

GLAMORGANSHIRE.

"Here British hearts the arms of Rome withstood,
Repulsed her cohorts with their native blood;
Till Caradoc and independence fell,
And freedom shrieked in CARDIFF'S citadel--
And Cambria's heroes, rushing on the glave,
Died gloriously for her they could not save!"

The county of Glamorgan, of which the principal town is represented in the accompanying plate, abounds in historical sites well adapted for the pencil, and furnishing the reader with many interesting facts and traditions. The southern portion of the country is remarkably fertile, highly cultivated, and presents to the stranger a long succession of luxuriant corn-fields, verdant pastures, and animated pictures of rural happiness and independence. It would be difficult to find any tract of land in Great Britain that can surpass the Vale of Glamorgan in richness of soil, or in soft and graceful scenery. This favoured region extends the whole length of the county--from the base of the mountains on the north to the shore of the Bristol Channel on the south-west. It presents throughout a most gratifying proof of what may be accomplished by judicious management, when soil and climate are both in favour of agricultural operations.

As a fair proof of the mild and salubrious nature of the atmosphere, we need only observe that the magnolia, the myrtle, and other delicate exotics, not only live but flourish in this auspicious climate. Equally favourable to health and longevity, this district has numerous living testimonies in the vigorous health and protracted age of its inhabitants, who are fully sensible of the blessings they enjoy. The valley, at its greatest breadth, measures about eighteen miles; in various places, however, it is contracted into less than the half of this space, and presents in its outline a constant variety of picturesque and graceful windings.

The town of Cardiff is built on the eastern bank of the river Taff, over which there is a handsome bridge of five arches, leading to Swansea. It is a thriving town, possessing considerable trade; and, by means of a canal from Pennarth to Merthyr-Tydvil, has become the connecting medium between these extensive iron-works and the English market, and is, in fact, the port of the latter. The Taff, which falls into the sea at Cardiff, forms a principal outlet for the mining districts of Glamorganshire, the produce of which has hitherto found its way to market through the Glamorganshire canal; but its sea-lock, constructed about fifty years ago, has long been found inadequate to the demands for increased accommodation, in consequence of the great prosperity of trade since the canal was opened.

The Marquess of Bute, possessing lands in this neighbourhood, obtained, in 1830, an act for constructing a new harbour, to be called the Bute ship-canal, and completed the work at his own expense. The great advantages of this enterprise are--a straight, open channel from Cardiff-roads to the new sea-gates, which are forty-five feet wide, with a depth of seventeen feet at neap, and thirty feet at spring-tide. On passing the sea-gate, vessels enter a capacious basin, having an area of about an acre and a half, sufficient to accommodate large trading-vessels and steamers. Quays are erected along the side of the canal, finished with strong granite coping, and comprising more than a mile of wharfs, with ample space for warehouses, exclusive of the wharfs at the outer basin. This great work was finished in the summer of 1839, at an expense to the proprietor of three hundred thousand pounds.

Cardiff Castle, which stands insulated on a high mound of earth, was partially restored and modernised by the late Marquess of Bute. This ancient fortress is connected with several interesting events in history. In one of its towers, or dungeons, Robert Duke of Normandy was twenty-five years imprisoned by his younger brother, Henry the First, who had previously usurped the throne and deprived him of his eyesight. In the reign of Charles the First it was bombarded by the Parliamentary forces during three successive days, and only surrendered in consequence of treachery on the part of the garrison.

GLOUCESTER.

"I which am the queene
Of all the British vales, and so have ever been
Since Gomer's giant brood inhabited this isle,
And that of all the rest myself may so enstyle."

DRAYTON. _Vale of Gloucester._

Caer-Glow, or the "fair city" of the ancient Britons, is a name happily characteristic of Gloucester. The beauty of its situation, on a gentle eminence overlooking the Severn, where its stream is divided into two channels by the Isle of Alney; the richness and fertility of the surrounding districts; its highly picturesque scenery; its splendid cathedral and numerous public buildings; and latterly the tide of prosperity occasioned by the vast improvements in regard to its inland port, present a combination of attractions for which it would be difficult to find a parallel in the British provinces. Commercial enterprise has now a fixed residence in the place, and within the last ten years has made great and important advances in the several departments of foreign and domestic industry.

The Port of Gloucester and the Cathedral, of which the accompanying plate gives a most correct and interesting view, are the two principal features; and to these, in accordance with the plan of the work, our descriptive text will be more strictly confined. The Port is of great antiquity,--so much so as to have existed as an inland harbour long prior to any written document of the place,--but it is only of late years that ships of burden could be anchored in the city basin. A century ago, as recorded in the _Magna Britannia_, the Port of Gloucester had a large quay and wharf on the banks of the river, very commodious for trade, to which belonged a custom-house, with officers proper for it; but the business was not great, as the city of Bristol, only a few miles distant, had engrossed all the foreign trade in this part of the country. The vessels which at the period in question navigated the Severn were generally small trading-craft, of between fifty and two hundred tons burden, so that Gloucester was deprived of all those advantages which have been so happily secured to it by modern enterprise and improvement. Of these, the Berkeley ship-canal is a noble monument. By the vast facilities thus afforded, the commerce of Gloucester has enjoyed a course of uninterrupted prosperity, and bids fair to eclipse even Bristol itself in the extent and ramifications of its still increasing trade. Ships of heavy burden are now safely moored in the basin, and discharge those cargoes in the heart of the city which had formerly to be transhipped at Bristol, and conveyed to their destination by means of barges and lighters.

The Gloucester Spa, which is now become a place of fashionable resort, has contributed in no small degree to the many attractions of the city and its vicinity. This saline chalybeate was first opened to the public by a grand fete, in May, 1815. The establishment contains every requisite for the health and recreation of the visitors, and vies as much with Cheltenham and Leamington in its appropriate and tasteful arrangements, as it does in the salubrious qualities of its spring--in proof of which numerous testimonies are daily added as the result of experience. There is a very handsome pump-room, with hot, cold, and vapour baths, and an abundant supply of water. The Spa is in the centre of grounds tastefully laid out, embellished with all the care and effect of landscape-gardening, and presenting to the _pieton_ and equestrian a pleasing variety of shady walks and rides,

"Mid rural scenes that fascinate the gaze,
And conjure up the deeds of other days."

The Cathedral of Gloucester is deservedly considered one of the noblest specimens of ecclesiastical architecture in Christendom. It is a grand object with every traveller who enters upon a tour of the English provinces, and makes a strong impression on the mind, even after he has visited the gorgeous temples of Rome and Milan.

In the interior of the cathedral are numerous specimens of monumental sculpture; among which the most remarkable are those of Robert, Duke of Normandy, and Richard the Second. The present altar, of the Corinthian order, is placed before the rich tracery of the original high-altar, which, except from the side-galleries of the choir, is concealed from view. The great elevation of the vault overhead, the richness and variety of its designs, the elaborate and minute tracery with which the walls are adorned, added to the vast dimensions of the great oriel--eighty-seven feet in height--render the choir an almost unrivalled specimen of what is styled the florid Gothic, and leave an impression upon the stranger's mind never to be obliterated.

(from Rownham Ferry.)]

BRISTOL,

FROM ROWNHAM FERRY.

"But Avon marched in more stately path,
Proud of his adamants[2] with which he shines,
And glistens wide; as als of wondrous Bath
And BRISTOW faire, which on his waves he buildeth hath."

SPENSER.