Rhys,son of Gruffydd,by the instigation of his son Gruffydd,a cunning and artful man,took away by force,from William,son of Martin (de Tours),his son-in-law,the castle of Lanhever,notwithstanding he had solemnly sworn,by the most precious relics,that his indemnity and security should be faithfully maintained,and,contrary to his word and oath,gave it to his son Gruffydd;but since "A sordid prey has not a good ending,"the Lord,who by the mouth of his prophet,exclaims "Vengeance is mine,and I will repay!"ordained that the castle should be taken away from the contriver of this wicked plot,Gruffydd,and bestowed upon the man in the world he most hated,his brother Malgon.Rhys,also,about two years afterwards,intending to disinherit his own daughter,and two granddaughters and grandsons,by a singular instance of divine vengeance,was taken prisoner by his sons in battle,and confined in this same castle;thus justly suffering the greatest disgrace and confusion in the very place where he had perpetrated an act of the most consummate baseness.I think it also worthy to be remembered,that at the time this misfortune befell him,he had concealed in his possession,at Dinevor,the collar of St.Canauc of Brecknock,for which,by divine vengeance,he merited to be taken prisoner and confined.
We slept that night in the monastery of St.Dogmael,where,as well as on the next day at Aberteivi,we were handsomely entertained by prince Rhys.On the Cemmeis side of the river,not far from the bridge,the people of the neighbourhood being assembled together,and Rhys and his two sons,Malgon and Gruffydd,being present,the word of the Lord was persuasively preached both by the archbishop and the archdeacon,and many were induced to take the cross;one of whom was an only son,and the sole comfort of his mother,far advanced in years,who,steadfastly gazing on him,as if inspired by the Deity,uttered these words:-"O,most beloved Lord Jesus Christ,I return thee hearty thanks for having conferred on me the blessing of bringing forth a son,whom thou mayest think worthy of thy service."Another woman at Aberteivi,of a very different way of thinking,held her husband fast by his cloak and girdle,and publicly and audaciously prevented him from going to the archbishop to take the cross;but,three nights afterwards,she heard a terrible voice,saying,"Thou hast taken away my servant from me,therefore what thou most lovest shall be taken away from thee."On her relating this vision to her husband,they were struck with mutual terror and amazement;and on falling asleep again,she unhappily overlaid her little boy,whom,with more affection than prudence,she had taken to bed with her.The husband,relating to the bishop of the diocese both the vision and its fatal prediction,took the cross,which his wife spontaneously sewed on her husband's arm.
Near the head of the bridge where the sermons were delivered,the people immediately marked out the site for a chapel,{133}on a verdant plain,as a memorial of so great an event;intending that the altar should be placed on the spot where the archbishop stood while addressing the multitude;and it is well known that many miracles (the enumeration of which would be too tedious to relate)were performed on the crowds of sick people who resorted hither from different parts of the country.
CHAPTER III
Of the river Teivi,Cardigan,and Emelyn The noble river Teivi flows here,and abounds with the finest salmon,more than any other river of Wales;it has a productive fishery near Cilgerran,which is situated on the summit of a rock,at a place called Canarch Mawr,{134}the ancient residence of St.
Ludoc,where the river,falling from a great height,forms a cataract,which the salmon ascend,by leaping from the bottom to the top of a rock,which is about the height of the longest spear,and would appear wonderful,were it not the nature of that species of fish to leap:hence they have received the name of salmon,from salio.Their particular manner of leaping (as I have specified in my Topography of Ireland)is thus:fish of this kind,naturally swimming against the course of the river (for as birds fly against the wind,so do fish swim against the stream),on meeting with any sudden obstacle,bend their tail towards their mouth,and sometimes,in order to give a greater power to their leap,they press it with their mouth,and suddenly freeing themselves from this circular form,they spring with great force (like a bow let loose)from the bottom to the top of the leap,to the great astonishment of the beholders.The church dedicated to St.Ludoc,{135}the mill,bridge,salmon leap,an orchard with a delightful garden,all stand together on a small plot of ground.The Teivi has another singular particularity,being the only river in Wales,or even in England,which has beavers;{136}in Scotland they are said to be found in one river,but are very scarce.I think it not a useless labour,to insert a few remarks respecting the nature of these animals -the manner in which they bring their materials from the woods to the water,and with what skill they connect them in the construction of their dwellings in the midst of rivers;their means of defence on the eastern and western sides against hunters;and also concerning their fish-like tails.