bitandum est hoc fuesse opus Taliesini: nam praeter innumeros
codices vetustissimos, qui inscriptionem hujusmodi attestentur, nullo
reclamante, nullus est recentiorum qui vel phrasin illius tam antiquam,
carminisve majestatem assequi potuit. Et ideo summus ille vates inter
Britannos censetur et nominatur." I never could procure a perfect nor
correct copy of this poem of Taliesin, otherwise I would gratify the
curious with a translation of it. It is certain from his history, that
he was a very learned man for his time, and seems to have been well
versed in the doctrine of the Druids, particularly the [Greek text],
which accounts for the extravagant flights frequent in his poems. I have
now in my possession above fifty of them; but they are so difficult to be
understood, on account of their great antiquity, and numerous obsolete
words, and negligence of transcribers, that it is too great a task for
any man at this distance of time to go about a translation of them.
However I have selected this ode, as a specimen of his manner of writing,
not as it is the best in the collection, but as it is the only one I
could thoroughly understand. There are many spurious pieces fathered
upon this Bard, in a great many hands in North Wales; but these are all
forged either by the monks, to answer the purposes of the church of Rome,
or by the British Bards, in the time of the latter princes of Wales, to
spirit up their countrymen against the English, which anybody versed in
the language may easily find by the style and matter. It has been my
luck to meet with a manuscript of all his genuine pieces now extant,
which was transcribed by the learned Dr. Davies, of Mallwyd, from an old
manuscript on vellum of the great antiquary Mr. R. Vaughan, of Hengwrt.
This transcript I have shewn to the best antiquaries and critics in the
Welsh language now living. They all confess that they do not understand
above one half of any of his poems. The famous Dr. Davies could not, as
is plain from the many obsolete words he has left without any
interpretation in his dictionary. This should be a caveat to the English
reader concerning the great antiquity of the poems that go under the name
of Ossian, the son of Fingal, lately published by Mr. Macpherson. It is
a great pity Taliesin is so obscure, for there are many particulars in
his poems that would throw great light on the history, notions, and
manners of the Ancient Britons, especially of the Druids,