of that
time, knows that Cadwaladr was the last king of Britain. Since his time
there are no works of the Bards extant till after the conquest, as I have
shewed in my Dissertatio de Bardis.

{47d} Dunawd, the son of Pabo Post Prydain, one of the heroes of the
sixth century, who fought valiantly with the Saxons.

{48a} Afan Ferddig, was the Bard of the famous Cadwallon, son of Cadfan
king of Britain. I have got a fragment of a poem of his composition on
the death of his patron Cadwallon; and as far as I understand it, it is a
noble piece, but very obscure on account of its great antiquity; as are
the works of all the Bards who wrote about this time. It is as difficult
a task, for a modern Welshman to endeavour to understand those venerable
remains, as for a young scholar just entered upon the study of the Greek
language to attack Lycophron or Pindar, without the help of a dictionary
or scholiast. How Mr. Macpherson has been able to translate the Erse
used in the time of Ossian, who lived a whole century at least before the
earliest British Bard now extant, I cannot comprehend. I wish some of
those that are well versed in the Erse or Irish language, would be so
kind to the public, as to clear these matters; for I can hardly believe
that the Erse language hath been better preserved than the British.

{48b} Cadwallon, the son of Cadfan, the most victorious king of Britain,
fought many battles with the Saxons; and, among the rest, that celebrated
one of Meugen, in which he slew Edward king of Mercia, where the men of
Powys behaved themselves with distinguished bravery; and had from thence
several privileges granted them by that brave prince. These privileges
are mentioned by Cynddelw Brydydd Mawr, a Powysian Bard, in a poem
entitled "Breintiau Gwyr Powys," or the Privileges of the men of Powys,
which is in my custody.

{48c} Mon, the Mona of the Latins, called by the English Anglesea, in
which, at a place called Aberffraw, was the palace of the princes of
North Wales. The Bard seems here to hint at the loss of
Llewelyn-ap-Griffydd, the last prince of Wales of the British line.

{48d} Arfon, the country now called Carnarvonshire.

{48e} Rheon, the name of a river in Carnarvonshire, often mentioned by
the Bards; but it must have altered its name since, for I do not
recollect any such river which bears that name at present.

{60a} P. 213. H. Steph. Edit. 1559.

{60b} P. 246. D.

{61} Footnote mark in