harper stationed in the passage played upon his instrument "Codiad yr
ehedydd." "Of a surety," said I, "I am in Wales!"

CHAPTER VI

Llangollen--Wyn Ab Nudd--The Dee--Dinas Bran.

The northern side of the vale of Llangollen is formed by certain enormous
rocks called the Eglwysig rocks, which extend from east to west, a
distance of about two miles. The southern side is formed by the Berwyn
hills. The valley is intersected by the River Dee, the origin of which
is a deep lake near Bala, about twenty miles to the west. Between the
Dee and the Eglwysig rises a lofty hill, on the top of which are the
ruins of Dinas Bran, which bear no slight resemblance to a crown. The
upper part of the hill is bare with the exception of what is covered by
the ruins; on the lower part there are inclosures and trees, with, here
and there, a grove or farm-house. On the other side of the valley, to
the east of Llangollen, is a hill called Pen y Coed, beautifully covered
with trees of various kinds; it stands between the river and the Berwyn,
even as the hill of Dinas Bran stands between the river and the Eglwysig
rocks--it does not, however, confront Dinas Bran, which stands more to
the west.

Llangollen is a small town or large village of white houses with slate
roofs, it contains about two thousand inhabitants, and is situated
principally on the southern side of the Dee. At its western end it has
an ancient bridge and a modest unpretending church nearly in its centre,
in the chancel of which rest the mortal remains of an old bard called
Gryffydd Hiraethog. From some of the houses on the southern side there
is a noble view--Dinas Bran and its mighty hill forming the principal
objects. The view from the northern part of the town, which is indeed
little more than a suburb, is not quite so grand, but is nevertheless
highly interesting. The eastern entrance of the vale of Llangollen is
much wider than the western, which is overhung by bulky hills. There are
many pleasant villas on both sides of the river, some of which stand a
considerable way up the hill; of the villas the most noted is Plas Newydd
at the foot of the Berwyn, built by two Irish ladies of high rank, who
resided in it for nearly half a century, and were celebrated throughout
Europe by the name of the Ladies of Llangollen.

The view of the hill of Dinas Bran, from the southern side of Llangollen,
would be much more complete were it not for a bulky excrescence, t