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 J\A.ichael Ernest Sadler' 
 
 Universitu CoH^e-- 
 
 Oxford 
 
 THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 LOS ANGELES 
 
 Ex Lihris 
 
 SIR MICHAEL SADLER 
 
 ACQUIRED 1948 
 
 WITH THE HELP OF ALUMNI OF THE 
 
 SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
 
 J^ 
 
 THE 
 
 SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES; 
 
 AND 
 
 HISTORY OF WELSH LITERATURE; 
 
 ETC.
 
 # 
 
 KEV. THOMAS CHARLES OF BALA.
 
 THE 
 
 SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES, 
 
 THEIR • 
 
 ORIGIN, PEOGRESS, PECULIARITIES, & PROSPECTS 
 
 WITH INTRODUCTORY CHAPTERS ON 
 
 THE RELIGIOUS AND INTELLECTUAL STATE OF THE 
 
 COUNTRY FROM THE REFORMATION TO THE BEGINNING OF 
 
 THE NINETEENTH CENTURY, 
 
 CONTAINING AN ACCOUNT OF 
 
 THE WELSH VERSIONS OF THE HOLY SCRIPTURES. 
 ^ ©cntcnarg f^ributc. 
 
 EEV. DAYID EYANS, M.A. (Lond.), 
 
 GELLIGAER KNDOAVED GRAMMAR SCHOOL, CARDIFF. 
 
 ILLUSTRATED. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 SUNDAY SCHOOL UNION, 
 
 56, OLD BAILEY, E.G.
 
 3V 
 
 PREFACE, 
 
 In the j^ear 1880 the centenarj- of the establishment of the 
 Sunday Schools of England was celebrated. Many Welsh 
 schools, in the exuberance of their zeal for the cause of 
 Sunday Schools, and deeply sympathizing with every 
 movement tending to extend their usefulnesss, but quite 
 ignorant of the fact that the Sunday Schools of the 
 Principality had an origin and a history entirely apart 
 from those of England, heartily joined in the English 
 celebration. These, at the time, never expected that any 
 future call would be made upon their esteem and loyalty 
 in connection with their own. Others, though having a 
 faint idea that their system was indigenous and in many 
 respects unique, still could not resist the strong impulse 
 which they felt for honouring the institution, at the same 
 time tacitly nnderstanding that if it should be decided to 
 hold a centenary for Wales, their demonstration would be 
 none the less hearty and patriotic because of the fore- 
 stalled outburst of 1880. A third class, punctually 
 enlightened to some extent by their leaders in the history 
 of their own schools, remained content to rejoice in spirit 
 only with their English brethren, reserving the outward 
 manifestation until the time when it should be agreed 
 
 r-\ '-^ r~> /I <r><r%
 
 Vlll * PREFACE. 
 
 upon generally that the event of their inauguration should 
 be commemorated. Since then the subject has received a 
 considerable amount of attention in the organs of the 
 various religious denominations, and some of them in 
 their corporate capacity have already arranged the time 
 for holding the centenar3^ The general assembly of the 
 Calvinistic Methodists, held in Liverpool, in June, 1881, 
 fixed upon the year 1884, for the celebration ; but for 
 reasons which may become apparent from a perusal of 
 this work, changed' it to 1885, and in this they expect all 
 other bodies to join. 
 
 Many works on the origin of the English Sunday 
 Schools, and on other phases of that great movement, 
 were especially written for the centenary of 1880, which 
 have been much appreciated by the people generally. It 
 is not unreasonable to anticipate that a similar feeling of 
 curiosity and inquisitiveness, for important facts in con- 
 nection with their national institution, will be aroused in 
 the Welsh mind by such an interesting event as a cen- 
 tenary. In fact, provisions are already in course of 
 elaboration to satisfy this craving, and works in the 
 Welsh language have been announced to appear, before 
 that time, on the subject. Though wholly ignorant of 
 the plan and scope which such works may assume, and 
 even granting that they may be in every respect excellent 
 productions, still it is not uncharitable on my part to 
 assert, that on account of the barrier of language, they 
 will fail to give either information or pleasure to many 
 who feel deeply interested in these institutions. It may 
 seem at first anomalous to maintain that a work on a 
 purely Welsh institution, and whose proceedings have 
 been hitherto almost wholly carried on in that language, 
 is a desideratum in English. Nevertheless, this I hope to 
 be able to show is the case, and shall now proceed to
 
 PREFACE. IX 
 
 adduce some considera'ions in support of this view of the 
 subject. 
 
 1. Schools which were originally wholly Welsh, in fact 
 were established through the medium of that language, 
 have now for many years become altogether English. 
 Many instances of this class will at once occur to those 
 who are acquainted with the country. In the border 
 counties the number of these schools is very considerable. 
 A work in the language they understand can alone enable 
 the members to know the history of the good old people 
 who laboured through evil and good report to secure for 
 them this inestimable boon. 
 
 2. There are many schools in Wales connected with 
 the various English causes, which are now being rapidly 
 extended under the auspices of the various Welsh de- 
 nominations to meet the requirements of this transitional 
 state of things, whose model and spirit are entirely native, 
 and which are looked upon as having quite a Welsh 
 origin. The members of these again evidently need an 
 English work to enable them to trace their descent to its 
 proper source, and intelligently to join in honouring the 
 memory of their illustrious founder. 
 
 3. Even the English Churches of the Principality, 
 which are now becoming numerous and influential in the 
 large towns and seaports, and which from the beginning 
 were exclusively English in type, organization, and 
 sympathy, still take such lively interest in all the religious 
 movements that are peculiarly characteristic of their 
 adopted country, that it may be safely assumed an account 
 of the Sunday Schools of the country, in a language which 
 they appreciate, cannot fail to be looked upon with 
 favour. English people have now become very general 
 throughout the Principality; and to their credit be it 
 said, most of them, once having become resident, take
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 very kindly to the various institutions of the country — 
 its eisteddfodan, antiquities, literary gatherings, and 
 other social peculiaiities. Apart, therefore, from all 
 religious considerations, an institution in which Welsh 
 traits are so prominently developed might be expected to 
 he an object of peculiar interest. 
 
 4. Many children of Welsh parents, though brought up 
 in Welsh Sunday Schools, yet from their more frequent 
 use of English in the day schools, prefer all intellectual 
 exercises in this language. As these schools become more 
 general and higher in efficiency, the number of this class 
 of children will be continually on the increase, and no 
 doubt at a greater ratio for the coming hundred years 
 than for the past. Opinions differ much with regard to 
 the probable duiation or disappearance of the Welsh 
 language. The Departmental Committee, appointed to 
 inquire into the condition of intermediate and higher 
 education in Wales in 1880, maintain that "there is every 
 appearance that the Welsh language will long be cherished 
 by the large majority of the Welsh people, and that its 
 influence upon the progress of their education, and upon 
 their prospects in competing with English-born students, 
 will be for an indefinite time but little less in the future 
 than it has been in the past.* Incidents from time to 
 time, however, transpire to show that they did not become 
 possessed of all the evidence on the subject. The in- 
 fluence of railways, of the elementary schools, of the daily 
 press, and other causes, threaten to make shorter work 
 upon the dear old language than is generally anticipated. 
 It is a significant fact that at a written examination of a 
 Sunday-School district in West Glamoi-ganshire, com- 
 prising seventy-six schools, almost entirely Welsh, held 
 in 1882, it has been reported that "in the class between 
 * Report, p. xlviii.
 
 PREFACE. XI 
 
 twelve and eighteen years of age, thirty-four candidates 
 out of sixty-nine wrote in English ; and of the class under 
 twelve, three-fourths wrote in English." And if they 
 preferred to write English, it is certain they would be 
 still more at home in reading the language. It is true 
 that the quantity of Welsh literature of all kinds circu- 
 lating among the adults is very great— in 1875 said to be 
 no less in value than £100,000; but it must also be 
 remembered that parallel with this, English periodicals 
 and standard works are continually on the increase. The 
 educated classes deal much more in English literature 
 than in Welsh. 
 
 5. The last, but not the least important, consideration 
 is the fact generally admitted, that there are several 
 peculiarities belonging to the Welsh institutions which 
 recommend themselves for approval to every one interested 
 in Sunday-School work, of whatever country or language. 
 English people from time to time have generally assisted 
 in the amelioration of the Principality. As will be seen 
 from a perusal of the following pages, their sympathy 
 with Wales assumed an eminently tangible form through 
 the active liberality of Mr. Gouge and his friends. Eev. 
 Griffith Jones of Llanddowror, and Eev. Thomas Charles 
 of Bala, received very great encouragement in their 
 labours from the constant flow of English money to 
 replenish their oft-drained treasury. On the other hand, 
 England has not been altogether unindebted to Wales 
 for some precious original ideas which cannot be estimated 
 by any material equivalent. From Wales the project for 
 organizing adult schools was introduced, first into 
 England, and afterwards into America. The present hold 
 of Wales on the elder scholars, and the adult ])0])ulation 
 generally, is a peculiarity of its system of Sunday Schools, 
 which England and many other countries would- feel
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 proud of possessing. Wales, finally, supplied the first, if 
 not the mightiest impulse to the formation of that noble 
 institution, the British and Foreign Bible Society, which 
 has proved to be at once both one of the kingdom's greatest 
 blessings, as well as the source of its greatest honour. 
 
 Five chapters of the present work have been devoted to 
 what has been described as introductory and subsidiary. 
 A word or two, perhaps, may be desirable, in explanation 
 of this course, though the relevancy of the matter treated 
 therein will be felt to be, it is hoped, not far to seek. 
 From the schools to their exclusive text-book is not an un- 
 natural step; and the two chapters on the translation and 
 circulation of Scriptures may be looked upon as a neces- 
 sary adjunct to show how the blessed volume became 
 procurable for the schools. Besides, if the proposed re- 
 vision of the Welsh Scriptures, as has been accomplished 
 with the English, will be undertaken, it is expected that 
 a short resume of the history of all former versions, will 
 be deemed not inopportune. The short chapter on Welsh 
 literature is intended to throw a little light on a field 
 which has been hitherto, comparatively speaking, a terra 
 incognita to most English readers. The account of the 
 direct educational provisions of the country previous to 
 the rise of Sunday Schools will serve as a background to 
 the picture of the more popular institution, from one of 
 which — the circulating schools — it was the immediate and 
 almost necessary outcome. And lastly, with regard to the 
 chapter on the opposition shown from time to time to 
 the improvement of the people, one beneficial efi'ect, at 
 least, which it is hoped it may produce, is to throw some 
 light on the sinfulness of that narrow bigotry and bitter 
 sectarian animosity which has been for generations the 
 bane of the country ; but in which of late, happily, there 
 have been pleasing signs of dissolution and decay.
 
 PREFACE. Xlll 
 
 In the execution of the work I have been materially 
 assisted by the inquiries of previous authors, on the 
 various departments of the subject. No labour has been 
 spared in consulting, on almost every occasion, the original 
 productions, rather than transcribing them at second 
 hand. There is less need of specifying any here, inasmuch 
 as each quotation is acknowledged when made. Two, 
 however, I think, need special mention — Sir T. Phillips's 
 work on "Wales," and Judge Johnes's "Essay on the Causes 
 of Dissent in Wales." To the former I am indebted for a 
 concise statement of most of the educational statistics of 
 the Principality up to 1846. Those subsequent to that 
 time I have been able at some pains to continue, on 
 similar lines, myself. Both these authors, on matters 
 affecting the various denominations, have been cited to 
 the reader in their own words, as they are generally ad- 
 mitted to be thoroughly impartial in their utterances, 
 whether they give an opinion as judges, or state a fact as 
 witnesses. 
 
 In conclusion, I may be permitted to add that I have 
 undertaken this work from no consciousness of having any 
 special qualification for executing it. Such as they are 
 can be presented in modest and unpretentious terms. I 
 have great regard for the Sunday Schools of my country, 
 being indebted to them for most of my early training in 
 Scriptural knowledge ; and for some years now have 
 turned my attention to their history and constitution. I 
 have had the honour of being engaged as a teacher in 
 them from a comparatively early time of life ; and when 
 other duties called me away from this, I have continued 
 my humble co-operation in perfecting the district unions, 
 in organizing the various associations recently introduced, 
 and in adding a small quota to the literature of the 
 schools, in the vernacular. My experience as teacher in
 
 XIV PREFACE. 
 
 various classes of day schools enables me, I presume, to 
 speak with some authority on questions pertaining to 
 method, organization, and discipline. 
 
 At the same time, no one can be more conscious of 
 imperfections, both in the conception and execution of 
 the work. It is customary in offering a new work to the 
 public, to crave the indulgence of the reader and the 
 critic. This, I feel, I can solicit on more plausible grounds 
 than most, when it is remembered that the work has been 
 carried on, in the midst of other pressing and often dis- 
 tracting duties, at spare moments only, and at C(msiderable 
 inconvenience to refer to public cotiNulting libraiies. 
 
 Before finally dismissing mv humble tribute, for the 
 perusal of the public, I wish to express my ardent wish 
 and prayer that it may serve to peipetuate the memory 
 of the good and devoted men who laboured so honourably 
 in tht-ir foundation ; that it may make known the 
 excellences of the system bevond the pale of the Princi- 
 pality ; that it should furnish a pretty accurate guage of 
 the true extent and qualities of the institution at the end 
 of its first centenary ; and that it may create new zeal in 
 all labourers in this department of the Saviour's vineyard 
 for retaining what has already been secured, and bringing 
 about still greater improvements, so that at the end of 
 the second hundred years of its existence, greater triumphs 
 shall have to be recounted than those which have been 
 imperfectly described in these pages at the end of the 
 first. 
 
 Gelugaer Endowed Grammar School, Cardiff, 
 1st Auqust, 18 S3.
 
 CONTENTS, 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 PACK 
 
 The Religious and Intellectual Condition of Wales from 
 THE Reformation to the Rise of Sunday Schools — 
 Translation and Circulation of Scriptures — The New- 
 Testament ... ... ... ... ... ... 1 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 The Religious and Intellectual Condition of Wales from 
 the Reformation to the Rise of Sunday Schools — 
 Translation and Circulation of Scriptures — The Whole 
 Bible ... ... ... ... ... 23 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 The Religious and Intellectual Condition of Wales from 
 the Reformation to the Rise of Sunday Schools — 
 Spread of General Literature ... ... ... 49 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 The Religious and Intellectual Condition of Wales from 
 the Reformation to the Rise of Sunday Schools — 
 Direct Educational Provisions ... ... ... 73 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 Hindrances and Oppositions to Progress ... ... ... 106 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 The Rise of Methodism, and Early Years of Mr. Charles 129 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 The Earliest Sabbath Schools of Wales... ... ... 156 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 The Founding of the Welsh Sunday School System ... 176
 
 XVI CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 PACK 
 
 Charles's Coadjutors ... ... ... ... ... 192 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Peculiarities of the Sunday Schools of Wales— (a) Mem- 
 bers and Subjects of Study ... ... ... ...214 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 Peculiarities of the Sunday Schools of Wales — (6) Internal 
 
 Organization ... ... ... ... ... ... 236 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 Later Modifications and Improvements ... ... ... 258 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 The Sunday Schools of Wales and the British and 
 
 Foreign Bible Society ... ... ... ... ... 295 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 The Later Years of Charles's Life ... ... ... £14 
 
 ^CHAPTER XV. 
 A Survey of the Present State of the Sunday Schools 
 
 OF Wales ... ... ... ... ... ... 342 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 Conditions of the Future Prosperity of the Sunday 
 
 Schools of Wales ... ... ... ... ... 363 
 
 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 Mr. Charles's Portrait ... ... ... Frontispiece. 
 
 Facsimile of Title page to Salesbury's New Testament 
 
 Facsimile of Title page to Dr. Morgan's Bible ... 
 
 y Neuadd, Llandovery, formerly the residence of Vicar 
 
 Prichard 
 Portrait of Rev. Thomas Gouge 
 Portrait of Robert Raikes 
 Mr. Charles's House at Bala 
 Portrait of Rev. Owen Jones, Gelli 
 Mary Jones on the way — Cader Idris in the background . 
 Charles's Monument at Bala 
 Raikes's Statue on the Thames Embankment 
 "The Rock froai whence they were hewn" 
 
 22 
 
 48 
 
 61 
 86 
 157 
 180 
 194 
 298 
 334 
 341 
 386
 
 THE 
 
 SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 CHAPTER L 
 
 The Religious and Ixtellectual Condition of Wales from the 
 Reformation to the Rise of Sunday Schools — Translation 
 AND Circulation of Scriptures — The New Testament. 
 
 Introductory remarks — Opposition of the Clergy of the Ancient British 
 Church to Popery — Augustine's Conference — Continued resistance — 
 Augustin Thierry's testimony — This Church confined to Wales after 
 the final Saxon Conquest — Wholly converted to Rome, except in the 
 matter of supremacy, by the time of the Reformation — Wales more 
 dilatory than England in taking up the principles of the Reformation 
 — Means adopted to reform Wales — Translations of Scriptures — Versions 
 in manuscript before the Reformation — The Four Gospels at St. Asaph 
 — Dr. Davies' testimony — William Salesbury, first translator of New 
 Testament — His coadjutors — Dr. Richard Davies, bishop of St. David's 
 — Thomas Huet. 
 
 Wales, though the least of the four divisions which constitute the 
 British Isles, possesses many interesting characteristics, entirely- 
 distinct from whatever may belong to the remaining three, and 
 which naturally claim for it a certain amount of exclusive attention. 
 These elements of special interest fall imder the various heads of 
 physical, antiquarian, social, and religious. The physical peculiari- 
 ties of the country, it is true, consist neither in extent of territory, 
 nor in the boldness and grandeur of scale of its geographical 
 features ; they afford a less imposing, though to many not a less 
 
 c
 
 1 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 attractive, class of natural scenery, whose special recommendation 
 is variety and exquisite beauty. Here tlie tourist meets with a 
 happy combination of land and sea sights — beautiful valleys, roman- 
 tic glens, well- wooded hill-sides, precipitous rocks, solitary mountain 
 passes, charming lakes, picturesque waterfalls, well-defined bays, 
 secluded creeks, and hill-lined estuaries, in such a compass as 
 always to delight, never to weary, in the pursuit. In matters of 
 antiquity again, although it cannot point to such gigantic relics of 
 the past as the circles of Stonehenge and Avebury, still memorials 
 of the past history of the country abound, in the forms of cromlechs, 
 camps, castles and abbeys ; but it chiefly demands attention in 
 this respect, as being the home of a people who best represent the 
 earliest inhabitants of the island whether of Iberian or Keltic origin, 
 whose language is one of the most ancient now spoken in Europe, 
 being now substantially the same as that spoken by Casivellaunus 
 and Caractacus more than nineteen centuries ago, and whose litera- 
 ture is certainly more ancient than that of any of the Teutonic or 
 Sclavonic families of languages. Combining religion with antiquity, 
 it must be granted, that through this nation alone, in connection 
 with the Ancient British Church, we can trace our Christianity to 
 a beginning in the island, entirely apart from the interference of a 
 pope. Nearly five hundred years before Augustine and his monks 
 landed in Kent, had the Britons enjoyed the glorious light of the 
 gospel. It was a thoroughly organized and settled Church, dele- 
 gating her bishops to the continental councils, long before Gregory 
 dared to aspire to a supremacy over the religious affairs of the island, 
 and whose dignitaries never acknowledged theoretically, either his 
 or his successors' proud and unreasonable pretensions. Socially, 
 again, "Wales presents some noteworthy peculiarities. Here we 
 have an example of a country incorporated with England for many 
 centuries, whose people are entirely distinct from it in language and 
 manners, but which has been loyal to the crown and existing 
 government, with very few exceptions, throughout that period, 
 and in which, according to the repeated testimony of the judges who 
 come round the circuits, crime has been exceedingly rare. From 
 morality it is not a wide and unnatural transition to religion, though 
 it has been too much the custom of modern observers to ignore 
 religion altogether, as a factor in the production of the morality of 
 the Welsh. But no less remarkable is the organization which may
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 6 
 
 he looked upon as the permanent cause of tliis effect, the outcome of 
 religious zeal, than the eifect itself. In the Principality is found a 
 phenomenon UDique from all the other portions of the United King- 
 dom, if not from the whole world, of a people having provided for 
 themselves, entirely by means of the voluntary principle, a system of 
 religious worship and education which fully supplies their wants, 
 and which has been kept up for the last century in a thorough state 
 of efficiency and power. The religious zeal of the j^eople has been 
 developed in two prominent, though parallel, lines of action. By 
 the one, they have provided places of worship throughout the 
 country at their own expense, supporting at the same time an 
 educated and devoted ministry to discharge preaching and pastoral 
 duties ; and by the other, they have organized a complete system of 
 religious instruction through the instrumentality of the Sunday 
 Schools, the history and peculiarities of which it is proix)sed to 
 elucidate in the following pages. 
 
 Before entering upon the investigation of the special question as 
 to the first starting of Sunday Schools in Wales, which, no doubt, 
 is a natural and necessary topic for a centenary review, we shall, in 
 order to appreciate more fully the work accomplished by these 
 blessed agencies, ask the reader's attention to the general religious 
 and intellectual state of the country prior to their establishment. 
 In this preliminary undertaking we do not propose to go further to 
 the past than the date of the Reformation in England in 1535, 
 which mil give us a period of about two hundred and fifty years to 
 contemplate, with but somewhat meagre and scanty materials at 
 our disposal, directly bearing on the question at issue. Anticipating 
 here the result of this inquiry, Ave shall find that Wales, during this 
 interval, was not left the waste and howling wilderness which has 
 been too often taken for granted as being the condition of the 
 country at the time; nevertheless, ample cause will be found to 
 justify the wail of the best benefactors of the country over its com- 
 paratively benighted and neglected state, ere the sun of its prosperity 
 arose in the multiplication of Sabbath Schools throughout the length 
 and breadth of the land. 
 
 The thorough adherence and devotion of the Welsh clergy to 
 Roman Catholic usages and errors, at the time of the Reformation 
 and many years after, is in strildng contrast to the manly and 
 uncompromising rejection and abhorrence of them by the represen-
 
 4 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 tatives of the Ancient Britisli Church at the conference to which 
 they were summoned by Augustine under Austin's oak, on the con- 
 fines of Grloucestershire, in the year 603 a.d. Augustine, after 
 having been successful in converting the Saxons to Chi'istianity^ 
 Avas commissioned by Pope Gregory to bring about a union between 
 the Ancient British Church and tlie Church of Kome, of which he 
 had been appointed the recognized exponent in Britain. Though 
 the British Church differed from the Romish in many other customs, 
 Augustine expressed his readiness to tolerate all, if the Britons 
 would only accept the Catholic usages of Easter and baptism, and 
 unite with him in the common work of evangelizing the heathen. 
 The native Church had continued from the beginning to keep Easter 
 on the Sunday ranging between the 14th and 20th of the Paschal 
 month, instead of following the custom established by the Council 
 of Nicaea of holding it on the Sunday which happened on, or the 
 next after, the first full moon following the 21st of March. With 
 regard to baptism, too, they never practised the various symbolical 
 ceremonies introduced into the Romish ritual — the sign of the cross 
 on the forehead; the kiss of peace, in token of admission into 
 spiritual fellowship ; the tasting of milk and honey, to typify the 
 blessings of the heavenly Canaan ; throwing salt into the mouth, to 
 indicate purity of speech ; and white robes worn for seven days,, 
 figurative of the cleansing from sin. Augustine, at the first confer- 
 ence, had expressed his willingness to concede to the Britons all 
 their usages except in the matters of Easter and baptism, but 
 asserted peremptorily his claim to be acknowledged archbishop of 
 the whole island by them, under pain of incurring the anger of the 
 Romish Church, and that of the Anglo-Saxon kings. The Britons 
 in reply to this demand said, that they could not give up their 
 customs without the consent of their people, feeling at the same 
 time, though not expressing it, a firm determination not to abjure 
 their ancient right of independence. They therefore, with the 
 consent of Augustine, postponed the decision to a second and more 
 numerous conference, to be held at the same j^lace. The delegates 
 of the British Church to this second interview, consisted of seven 
 bishops, selected from different parts of the country, with many of 
 the most learned men of the great monastery of Bangor-is-coed, in 
 Flintshire, and their Abbot Dunod, a man of very venerable years. 
 With a haughtiness which ill became a follower of the meek and
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. O 
 
 lowly Jesus, Augustine received this august and influential body 
 without even deigning to rise from his seat. The words uttered by 
 Dunod, their spokesman, are very noteworthy, as showing in what 
 light the Britons looked upon this intrusion of the Roman pontiff 
 and his representative, as well as proving their just title to superi- 
 ority over such a degenerate organization. " We will never," said 
 lie, " admit the pretended rights of Roman ambition any more than 
 those of Saxon tyranny. In the bond of love and charity, we are 
 all subjects and servants to the Church of God, yea, to the Pope of 
 Rome, and every good Christian, to help them forward, both in deed 
 and word, to be children of God ; but for the submission of obedi- 
 ence, we owe that only to God, and, after God, to our venerable 
 head, the bishop of Caerleon-on-Usk." (They continued to call 
 him thus, though the archbishop lived at this time at Menevia, or 
 St. David's, m Pembrokeshire.) " Besides, we would ask, why those 
 who glorify themselves upon having converted the Saxons, have 
 never reprimanded them for their acts of violence towards us and 
 their spoliation of us." * Then, tm-ning to his friends, he added, 
 " As for this man, wdio does not rise and pay lis respect when he is 
 only om' equal, how much greater the contempt he would manifest 
 for us, if we admitted him superior." t Augustine repeated the 
 formal summons to acknowledge him as archbishop, and then, 
 assuming a threatening tone, thundered out, " Since you will not have 
 peace with your brethren, you shall have to endure war with your 
 foes ; since you refuse to join me in teaching the way of life to the 
 Saxons, ere long, by a just judgment of God, you shall have to 
 suffer jfrom the Saxons the bitter pains of death." | This was veri- 
 fied soon after, for, as it is supposed, at Augustine's instigation, 
 Ethelfrith, king of the Northumbrian Angles, overthrew the Britons, 
 near Chester, and massacred all the monks of Bangor — then reckoned 
 at twenty-one hundred — all except fifty, who made their escape. 
 
 Notwithstanding the dire penalty which the Britons so unjustly 
 brought upon themselves — not as Bede, whose writings in all that 
 appertains to this dispute between the rival Churches, mark his 
 •strong Anglican aversion of the Welsh, as well as his own adherence 
 to Roman customs, thinks they rightly deserved, as being "per- 
 fidious men who had slighted counsels in aid of their eternal sal- 
 
 * British MSS. quoted in vol. ii. of the " Horae Britannicae," p. 267. 
 t Bede, Hist. ii. 2. j Ibid.
 
 6 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 vation " — they were no readier afterwards to yield to the menaces, 
 allurements, and intrigues of Saxon kings or papal emissaries, to 
 renounce their ecclesiastical usages and independence. Thirty years 
 after this, in the year 692, their fidelity to peculiar practices and 
 convictions was tried in the matter of the tonsure. The British and 
 Scoto-Irish Churches adopted the custom of shaving the front of the 
 head, as far back as the ears, so that the hair formed a crescent, while 
 the Komans shaved the crown of the head, leaving a ring of hair 
 around it, in imitation of the crown of thorns. The Komans 
 claimed for their style the authority of Peter, and ascribed the 
 former to the institution of Simon Magus, his antagonist, whom 
 they asserted, but without any proof, to have been bald. So 
 great was the zeal of the Saxon bishops for the authority of 
 Peter, that they deputed Aldelm, an illustrious abbot, to prevail 
 upon Gerutius, the prince of Cornwall, to bring about the Welsh 
 bishops to conform with the practice of the Eomish Church. But 
 with the exception of a few waverers, who bordered upon the Saxon 
 territory, the great body of the Church remained true to their con- 
 victions, clearly proving that they were not so ignorant of Scripture 
 doctrine as to be overawed by a pretended assumption of apostolic 
 authority, and to yield to tradition the obedience they had only 
 lieen accustomed to give to the Word of God.* 
 
 This jealousy of Popish aggression, so spiritedly inaugurated by 
 the Welsh Church, continued with varying intensity and fluctuating 
 fortunes, for many centuries, — in fact, it had not entirely disap- 
 peared, especially with regard to the claim of independency, at the 
 dawn of the Keformation. Augustin Thierry, in his " History of 
 the Norman Conquest," has summarized, with appreciative dis- 
 cernment, the struggles of the oppressed Church during this period. 
 This able work deserves the special attention of the descendants 
 of those neglected populations whose revolutions and influence in 
 European civilization, he says, he has related " with that sentiment 
 of pleasure, which one experiences in repairing an injustice." 
 Judge Johnes, in his " Essay on the Causes which have produced 
 Dissent from the Established Church in the Principality of Wales," 
 speaks in very eulogistic terms of M. Thierry as a historian, 
 <lescribing him as " The French historian whose profound research 
 
 * " Hanes Crefydd yn Nghymru " gan D. Peter, pp. 211-216 (" History of 
 Religion in Wales").
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 7 
 
 is surpassed only by his eloquence, and whose minute knowledge 
 of Welsh history may put many of our countrymen to shame." * 
 With such credentials for impartiality and ability, his testi- 
 mony respecting the struggles of the Welsh Church to maintain 
 her independence must command our unqualified assent. " The 
 same Church," he remarks, " which expelled the censurer of the 
 Frank kings from Gaul, gave to the Anglo-Saxon kings con- 
 secrated crosses for standards, when they went to exterminate the 
 ancient Christians of Britain. The latter, in their national poems, 
 attribute much of their disasters to a foreign conspiracy, and to 
 monks whom they call unjust. In their conviction of the ill-will 
 of the Eomish Church towards them, they daily became more 
 confirmed in their determination to reject her dogmas and her 
 empire ; they preferred addressing themselves, as they repeatedly 
 did, to the Church of Constantinople, for counsel in theological 
 difficulties. The most renowned of their ancient sages, Cattawg, 
 at once bard and Christian priest, curses, in his political effusions* 
 the negligent shepherd who does not guard the flock of God against 
 the wolves of Eome. (The words referred to here : " Gime ny 
 cheidw ei ddefaid, Bhag hJeiddiau''r lihvfeiniaid, AH ffon gnwpa'' 
 are by others ascribed to Taliesin.) But the ministers and envoys 
 of the pontifical court, thanks to the religious dependence in which 
 they held the powerful Anglo-Saxon kings, gradually, by means of 
 terror, subdued the free spirit of the British Churches. In the 
 eighth century, a bishop of North Cambria celebrated the festival 
 of Easter on the day prescribed by the Catholic councils ; the other 
 bishops arose against this change ; and, on the rumour of this 
 dispute, the Anglo-Saxons made an irruption into the southern 
 provinces where the opposition was manifested. To obviate foreign 
 war and the desolation of his country, a Welsh chief attempted 
 to sanction, by his civil authority, the alteration of the ancient 
 religious customs ; the public mind was so irritated at this, that the 
 chieftain was killed in a revolt. However, the national pride soon 
 declined, and weariness of a struggle constantly renewing, brought 
 a large portion of the Welsh clergy to the centre of Catholicism. 
 The religious subjection of the country was thus gradually effected ; 
 but it was never so complete as that of England." f 
 
 * Page 142. 
 
 t " History of the Norman Conquest," bv Thierrv, vol, i. p. 48, Bohn's 
 Edition.
 
 8 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 Tliougli many a long and eventful century intervened between 
 the mission of Augustine and tlie Eeformation, we are hardly 
 prepared to find a resistance so well begun, terminating in that 
 abject adherence, at least to the dogmas and practices of Rome, 
 which was undeniably the case, before the dawn of Protestantism 
 broke upon the country. Mighty and persistent influences were, 
 no doubt, brought to bear upon the Church, besides the innate 
 tendency of the human heart to degeneracy and backsliding ; still, 
 in contrasting the simplicity, purity, and holy courage of Dunod 
 and his friends, with the idolatry, venality, and even apathy of 
 their successors on the eve of the Reformation, one cannot help 
 exclaiming in the words of the prophet, " How is the gold become 
 dim ! how is the most fine gold changed ! " * The only redeemirig 
 consideration is the fact, " that the religious subjection to papal 
 supremacy was never so complete as in England." There might 
 be here and there, in the remote corners of the land, a few true 
 representatives of the early Christians, wailing over the errors of 
 their countrymen in evil practices, as well as in allegiance to Rome ; 
 but those in authority had all been either purchased or overawed, 
 and with regard to the mass of the population, the universal law 
 \7as not falsified — " like priests, like fteople." 
 
 Wales was nothing behind England in its superstitious respect 
 of relics, and ready belief in the "lying wonders" imposed upon 
 the ignorant population by designing and crafty priests. After the 
 suppression of the monasteries in England and Wales, visitors 
 were sent to destroy the idols and other superstitious objects which 
 might be remaining in various parts of the kingdom. A gentle- 
 man known as Dr. Ellis Price, of Plas lolyn, having been sent on 
 this errand to the diocese of St. Asaph, found at Llandderrel, near 
 Bala, a huge rood, called Derfel Oadarn, or Derfel the Mighty, the 
 patron saint of the church, which the men of North Wales held 
 in high repute. There were from five to six hundred present as 
 pilgrims worshipping it when Dr. Price came to discharge his 
 mission. Some he found to have brought animals, and others 
 money to ofler to the idol ; and the people generally believed it 
 had the power of delivering from purgatory, whoever in any way 
 enriched its shrine. The money of course soon found its way to 
 the pockets of the priests. This imposture, like many others at 
 ■■'" Lam. iv. 1,
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 9 
 
 the time (1538), was exposed at St. Paul's; and as an old pro- 
 phecy had said that it should burn a forest, it was made, in cruel 
 mockery, to form part of the iire that consumed one friar Forest, 
 who denied the king's supremacy. At St. David's, too, there was 
 an image of the Virgin Mary, holding a wax candle in her hand, 
 which drew thither an immense number of pilgrims. The people 
 believed that this candle had been burning for nine years, and that 
 it only went out because some one committed perjury in its name. 
 The people of the neighbourhood of St. David's, at that time, were 
 so superstitious that nothing could reform them.* 
 
 M. Thierry is of opinion, that " when the religious supremacy of 
 the pope had been abolished in England, the Welsh, whom the 
 Roman Church had never aided in their attempts to maintain their 
 national independence, adopted, without repugnance, the religious 
 changes decreed by the English Grovernment." f This must refer 
 to a time subsequent to the reign of Queen Mary ; for between the 
 years 1534 and 1558, we find the Welsh clergy turning from 
 Popery to Protestantism, and from Protestantism to Popery, 
 exactly in the fashion and much on the principle of their better 
 known contemporary, the vicar of Bray. On the continent and 
 in other parts of Great Britain, the Protestant religion had 
 champions of talent, energy and piety, whose names rank amongst 
 the noblest heroes of the world ; but Wales had no eminent Pro- 
 testant teacher at that time to inaugurate the Eeformation ; and 
 when the nation was compelled by Acts of Parliament in the 
 reigns of Henry VIII., Edward VI., and Elizabeth, to renounce its 
 errors and superstitions, the remedy was almost as bad as the 
 disease ; for as is almost always the case, a political revolution 
 in which the religious element is not a contributory factor, only 
 produces the excesses of irreligion, in exchange for the pitiable 
 childishness of superstition. 
 
 That this was the character of the Welsh clergy and population 
 at the time, is further confirmed by the fact of so few Welshmen 
 having sufiered martyrdom in the reign of Queen Mary. The 
 Reformation in the true sense of the word, that is, an intelligent 
 and deep-rooted aversion to the errors of Popery, and not merely 
 a change of name from political considerations, made very little 
 
 * " Hanes Crefj'dd yn Nghymru," pp. 409, 410. 
 
 t " History of the Norman Conquest," vol. ii. p. 293.
 
 10 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 progress under Henry VIII. and Edward VI. Only three persons 
 are found among the whole martyrology of Wales at this period. 
 Bishop Farrar, of St. David's, suffered death by fire, at Caerrnarthen, 
 in the year 1555 ; Rawlins White, a poor fisherman, was burnt at 
 Cardiff in the same year; and William Nichol, of Haverfordwest, 
 in Pembrokeshire, was also burnt at this latter place in the year 
 1558, for having dared to utter some words against the authority 
 of the pope. Thus of the two hundred and eighty-four who joined 
 " the noble band of martyrs " in Britain at this period, Wales, 
 from its general devotion to the Roman Catholic religion, con- 
 tributed only three to the list. 
 
 When, however. Protestantism was well established in the 
 kingdom, the ignorance and superstition of the Principality were 
 not left unattacked both by legal enactments and by the voluntary 
 exertions of able and energetic teachers arisit^ within the nation 
 itself. We have mentioned legal enactments, as one productive 
 cause in the amelioration of Wales; the statement needs to be 
 qualified by the explanation that the eifect of these w^as almost 
 imperceptible. In fact, whatever claims the Principality had on 
 the Tudor princes, both on the score of blood relationship and 
 devotedness to their cause, the requital from the government of the 
 whole Tudor period was quite disaj)j)ointing to expectations and 
 disproportionate to deserts. Henry VII., though he owed his 
 victory and his crown to the devotion of the Welsh, who flocked 
 to his standard from North and South Wales, only marked his^ 
 obligation to them by granting titles to a few of the most pro- 
 minent leaders, and by placing in his own armorial bearings, 
 the Cambrian red dragon, beside the three lions of Normandy. 
 Henry VIII., it is true, at the petition of the Kymry, abolished 
 the old March laws, and the separate jurisdiction of the Lord 
 Marchers, which had been obstructing the course of justice and 
 directly encouraging robbery and pillage ; but this concession came 
 with bad grace from a prince who, at the same time, sought to- 
 destroy the ancient customs of the people, the remnant of their 
 social state, and even their language.* The legal enactments of 
 Elizabeth again, though pretending high things by way of ad- 
 vancing the moral and spiritual welfare of the people, were left, 
 as we shall see hereafter, a dead letter on the statute-book, so far 
 * " Archaiology of Wales," i. preface x.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 11 
 
 as any active measures were taken to carry them to efifect. The 
 ilawn, notwithstanding, did break upon the country during this 
 period ; and as it was this dawn, then darkly spread upon the hills, 
 which has attained to its comparatively bright daylight in the 
 Sunday School period, it cannot be looked upon as alien to the 
 more immediate object of the present work, to trace the progress 
 of this blessed light, throughout its checkered course to the rise 
 of Sunday Schools. If this branch of om* subject requires a more 
 definite description, it may be termed An investigation into 
 
 THE INTELLECTUAL, MORAL, AND EELIGIOUS CONDITION OF WaLES 
 
 FROM THE Reformation to the establishment of Sunday 
 Schools. For the further elucidation of this inquiry, it will be 
 advantageous to try to review the state of the country under these 
 three aspects, as shown by (1) The propagation of the Holy Scrip- 
 tures among the people ; (2) The circulation of other hooks and the 
 spread of literature generally; (3) The planting of day schools 
 ovhose direct ohject was to teach the reading of the Bihle, and the 
 inculcation of its doctrines and morality. The remainder of this 
 chapter we propose to devote to the first of these divisions. Intro- 
 ductory to this inquiry again, before dwelling at greater length 
 upon the exertions to spread printed Bibles among the people, it 
 may be interesting to refer briefly to the accounts Ave have of, 
 
 The Welsh Versions of the Scriptures in manuscript 
 before the reformation. 
 
 In the absence of any copy of a translation of the whole Bible, 
 or portions of it, made before the Reformation, being now extant, 
 the proof that such did exist must rest entirely on references and 
 inferences. It is generally believed that the Holy Scriptures were 
 translated into the Ancient British tongue, for the use of the 
 Ancient British Church, as early at least as the days of Con- 
 stantine, 316 a.d. He is said to have ordered the Bible to be 
 written and sent to every part of the empire after the great de- 
 struction of the Scriptures, during the persecution under Diocletian, 
 and it is very natural to conclude that he did not leaA'e his coun- 
 trymen, the Britons, to be destitute of them. Eusebius, who 
 wrote in the fourth century, says that the Scriptures had been then 
 translated into every language, both Greek and barbarian, through- 
 out the world ; and Theodoret, in the fifth century, has written
 
 IJ THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 words to a similar effect. Whether these words are to be taken 
 literally, or are merely intended as a general statement, meaning 
 a very extensive area, or all over the East only, is a question whicli 
 cannot now be decided. With regard to the Ancient Britisli 
 Church, Carnhuanawc, in his " History of Wales," summarizes the 
 result of the inquiry he made into the subject in the following 
 words : "It is possible, and indeed not improbable, that portions 
 of the Scriptures had been translated for the use of the Church 
 in the early ages, else I do not know how the British Church could 
 have held the general services, except she was less privileged than 
 other Churches; but it has been already shown that the reading 
 of the Scriptures formed a part of the public worship in every 
 Church of wliich we have any record." * 
 
 Coming lower doAvn, the proofs are more positive of the existence 
 of some kinds of version, or translation, of portions of the Bible. 
 Taliesin, a noted bard living near Llanrwst, who flourished about 
 540, made a successful effort, in his way, to bring the truths of 
 certain portions accessible to the people. He made a kind of metri- 
 cal paraphrase of " The ten plagues of Egypt," " Moses' Rod," and 
 some further lines concerning God and Christ. 
 
 There is an unmistakable reference to a copy of the four 
 Gospels belonging to the cathedral of St. Asaph in the year 1282. 
 It was considered old then, as is shown in the letters patent 
 granted by the Archbishop of Canterbury to the priests of St. 
 Asaph, giving them permission to carry it about the country foi- 
 exhibition; but there is no means of ascertaining who the author 
 was, or the date of its original production. The letter granted by 
 the Archbishop was written in Latin, to the following effect : — 
 
 " The circular of John, Archbishop of Canterbury, permitting the 
 Canons of St. Asaph, in Wales, to carry about the Scriptures. 
 
 " The Brother John, etc., to all the priests, as well as the lay- 
 men, in the Dioceses of Coventry, Lichfield, Hereford, and all the 
 Welsh Dioceses, health and everlasting j^eace in the Lord. The 
 Book, or words of the Gospels belonging to the Church of St. Asaph, 
 generally known under the name of Eneglthen,! which is, as we 
 
 * " Hanes Cymni " gan y Parch. Thomas Price, p. 216. 
 
 t This is a word of difficult etymology, arising most probably from cor- 
 rupt orthography. Can it have any connection with the Greek evayyeXior, 
 the Gospel, further disguised purposely for the sake of inspiring greater 
 respect ?
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 13 
 
 have learnt, in great repute and regard by the inhabitants of all 
 grades in parts of Wales and neighbourhood, and Avhich, for more 
 reasons than one, is occasionally carried about the country as a 
 jsacred thing, by the priests belonging to the above Church. We, 
 therefore, being disposed to sanction such i)ractice, desire you to 
 pay every honour to the Book and the persons who are described 
 liere as carrying it about, praying that you, for the respect you have 
 to Christ, who is the Author of the Gospels, will permit the afore- 
 said priests, with the above-mentioned Book to sojourn among you, 
 and that they should be caused to rejoice, because they received 
 ]~)eace and safety in their departure, their condition, and return to 
 their own place. 
 
 " Given under our hand at Lambeth, July 14th, in the year of 
 our Lord, 1282." * 
 
 This copy remained at St. Asaph until the time of Bishop Gold- 
 well, in 1555, every trace of it being lost then. Goldwell lost his 
 bishopric on the accession of Elizabeth, because he would not turn 
 Protestant. He went to Eome, and died there. It is not unlikely 
 that he took this manuscript with him, and that it may be still 
 found in the archives of the Vatican. One thing is certain, it was not 
 at St. Asaph in the time of Bishop Richard Davies, four years after, 
 who, as we shall find hereafter, would have surely mentioned it if 
 it was there. 
 
 Portions of the Bible were also rendered into a kind of metrical 
 paraphrase, by Dafj'-dd Hiraddug, a respectable poet, who flourished 
 about 1349. The subjects of his songs were, a portion of the first 
 chapter of the gospel according to Luke, the song of Zacharias, the 
 angel's address to Mary, the song of the three j'oung men in Baby- 
 lon, the song of Simeon, and a great part of the Psalms. 
 
 This subject of manuscript versions of the Bible, before the printed 
 issue, has been fully discussed by Bishop Davies, in a letter addressed 
 to the Welsh people, published as an introduction to William Sales- 
 bury's Testament. We shall insert this letter here, reserving our 
 further notice of its author, until we come to treat of the printed 
 editions : — 
 
 " I never succeeded to get a sight of the whole Bible in Welsh ; 
 but when a boy, I remember to have seen, ' The Five Books of 
 Moses,' in the house of an uncle of mine who was a learned man, 
 * Quoted in " Hanes y Bibl Cymraeg " gan Thomas Levi, pp. 14, 15.
 
 14 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 tlioiigli no one perused the book or set any value upon it. It is a 
 doubtful matter whether an entire Bible has been seen throughout 
 all Wales, since the time that the Welsh were robbed of all their 
 books. But before that time, it is my firm belief that the Bible was 
 common enough in Welsh. The perfect faith of the martyrs, both 
 clerical and lay, is a proof that they had the Holy Scriptures in 
 their own tongue. We also possess in the Welsh, many sayings 
 and proverbs, remaining still in force, which were drawn from the 
 very core of Holy Writ, and from the midst of the gospel of Christ ; 
 which is a sufficient proof that the Holy Scriptures were in the head 
 of all classes of men, when those sayings were originated and brought 
 to general use. These sayings are — ' God and enough ; ' ' Without 
 God, without everything ; ' ' And the Word of God uppermost ; ' 
 * The Son of grace ; ' ' Who toils not, and prays not, deserves not 
 his bread ; ' * Everybody's Church in his heart ; ' ' As true as the 
 Gospel ; ' * It is no wonder that a golden post will not grow through 
 the roof of the wicked; ' ' 111 will the devil keep his servant; ' 'Let 
 lis thank God for food, and the ability to eat it ; ' ' God's blessing 
 on the work ; ' and others of the same kind. Many personal names 
 in use among the Welsh from the earliest times is an additional 
 proof; such as Abraham, bishop of Menevia (St. David's); Adam 
 Fras (the stout), one of the bards ; Aaron, one of the chiefs of Gla- 
 morgan ; Asaph, bishop of St. Asaph ; Daniel, the first bishop of 
 Bangor ; James, son of Idwal ; Joseph, bishop of Menevia ; Samuel 
 Benlan, a learned priest ; Samson, the twenty-sixth and last bishop 
 (archbishop) of Menevia ; and others such who are often recorded 
 in old pedigrees. This shows that Holy Writ was w^ell known to 
 our ancestors of yore. The poetry of Taliesin, chief of the bards, 
 verifies the same, who lived in the time of Maelgwyn Gwynedd in 
 the sixth century." 
 
 The destruction of books referred to in the above letter is supposed 
 to have taken place during the bloody wars of Owen Glyndwr, 
 1400-15, and the suppression of the monasteries under Henry VIII. 
 A great number of very valuable Welsh manuscripts was also burnt 
 in the Tower of London, by one Scolan, whose name is now only 
 connected with that act of barbarity. * These manuscripts had 
 been carried there from time to time by the various Welsh chief- 
 tains, to while away their time, when detained as prisoners by their 
 • Warrington's " History of Wales," p. 344.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 15 
 
 English conquerors, so that the Tower for some years was the chief 
 repository of Cambrian lore. A striking evidence, from its necessary 
 impartiality, of the whole Bible existing during the Middle Ages, 
 in the Welsh tongue, is given in the prologue written by Eichard 
 Purvey to his revision of Wycliffe's Bible, published about a.d. 1388. 
 In this he says that his purpose, as that of Wycliffe had been, was 
 to give an English Bible to the English people. "He appeals to 
 the authority of Bede, of Alfred, and of Grostete, to the examples 
 
 * of Frenshe, and Beemers (Bohemians), and Britons.^ " * But it is 
 quite clear that the translators for the printed editions profited 
 nothing from the labours of their predecessors, as Dr. Davies, one 
 of the first who came forward to take compassion on his then be- 
 nighted countrymen, testifies that he was acquainted only with the 
 Pentateuch, and that no further than a boy's memory of having seen 
 a copy. In giving a somewhat detailed account of the various Welsh 
 editions during the period upon which we have now entered, we 
 propose to present the reader with short biographical sketches of the 
 translators and principal i)ropagators. The first name to claim our 
 attention is 
 
 William Salesbuky. 
 
 In the year 1.5G2, being the fifth of the reign of Queen Elizabeth, 
 an Act was passed ordaining that the whole Bible, containiog the 
 Old and New Testaments, together with the Book of Common 
 Prayer, should be translated into the British or Welsh tongue. The 
 preamble of this Act is interesting as confirming what has already 
 been advanced with respect to the intellectual state of the country 
 at the time. It states that " the most and greatest part of Her 
 Majesty's most loving and obedient subjects inhabiting within Her 
 Highness's dominion and country of Wales, are utterly destitute of 
 God's Holy Word, and do remain in like or rather more darkness 
 and ignorance than they were in the time of Papistry." It there- 
 fore enacted with the view of accomplishing the design that the 
 work of translation " should be superintended, used and acknow- 
 ledged, by the Bishops of St. Asaph, Bangor, St. David's, Llandaft', 
 and Hereford, and adopted in the chm-ches by the first day of March, 
 1566, under a penalty of forty pounds each, if not completed. That 
 
 * Smith's "Dictionary of the Bible"; Art. "Authorized Version," p. 1667.
 
 16 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 one printed copy at least of this translation was to be provided for, 
 and, to be in each church in Wales, read by the priests at the time 
 of Divine worship, and on other occasions, for the benefit and prac- 
 tice of all who wished to go to church for that purpose. Until this 
 translation of the Bible and the Book of Common Prayer should be 
 finished and published, that the priests in Wales, should read at the 
 time of public worship, the Epistles, Gospels, the Lord's Prayer, the 
 Articles of Christian Faith, the Litany, and such other portions of 
 the Book of Common Prayer, in the Welsh language, as should be 
 approved by the afore-named Bishops. That, not only during this 
 interval, but ever after, an English Bible also and a Book of Com- 
 mon Prayer, should be had in every church and chapel throughout 
 Wales, there to remain, that such as understood them might read 
 and peruse the same ; and that such as understood them not, might, 
 by conferring both tongues together, the sooner attain to the know- 
 ledge of the English tongue." 
 
 Notwithstanding the high authority of an Act of Parliament, and 
 the threatened penalty of forty pounds, like Damocles' sword hang- 
 ing over their devoted heads, the bishops paid little attention to the 
 statute, and no translation of the Bible was forthcoming by 1566. 
 Indeed, as far as the Bishops were concerned, it would never have 
 been accomplished. One reason assigned for this delay is, that many 
 in authority wished the Welsh to learn the English tongue ; and it 
 was thought that by keex)ing the Scriptures from them, this object 
 Avas most likely to be secured. Some try to excuse the bishops by 
 saying that the time was too short — only three or four years, — and 
 that the Act neither appointed men to do the work nor fixed the 
 salary for their labour ; that to keep the law would have cost more 
 to each of the bishops than the amount of his fine. When God, 
 however, has any work to do, the instrument to accomplish it will 
 not be long without making its appearance. Help having failed 
 from the bishops, God caused " deliverance to arise from another 
 place." The translation of the New Testament was completed within 
 a year to the limit prescribed by the royal decree, and that of the 
 whole Bible within twenty-two years ; the latter by a gentleman 
 whom the bishops had no hand in electing or appointing, and of 
 whom Ave shall speak fully hereafter ; the former, by William Sales- 
 bury, with some co-operation of the bishops in the final publication, 
 at least, if not in the first appointment.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 17 
 
 William Sale.sbury, the principal translator of the first printed 
 Welsh New Testament, was the second son of Ffoulk Salesbury, 
 Esq., of Plas Isaf, Llanrwst, Denbighshire. His grandfather's name 
 was Robert Salesbury, who was the fourth son of Thomas Salesbury, 
 of Lleweni, near the town of Denbigh. His grandfather came to 
 the possession of Plas Isaf through his marriage with Grwenhwyfar, 
 only daughter and heiress of Rhys ab Einion Fychan of that place, 
 and who was descended from some of the ancient princes of Wales. 
 The original form of the name was Saltzburg, and there is an account 
 of one Adam de Saltzburg coming over with William of Normandy 
 in 1066, to one of whose descendants of the same name Henry II. 
 gave the palace of Lleweni, when it was taken from Prince David. 
 The Rev. Walter Davies (Gwallter Mechain), in the " Gwyliedydd" 
 for June, 1826, says that " the Salesburys were of Norman origin, 
 but that by marrying with Welsh heiresses, these, like other respected 
 Normans of the names of Herbert, Stradling, Basset, Turberville, 
 etc., became patriotic Welshmen, as regards blood, language and 
 affections." 
 
 The exact date of William Salesbury's birth is not known, but it 
 is certain to have been very early in the sixteenth century. He 
 received the first rudiments of his knowledge in Wales. From thence 
 he went to Oxford, but there is some doubt whether he resided at St. 
 Alban's or the Broadgate (now Pembroke College), when an under- 
 graduate. From Oxford he removed to London, to study the law 
 first at Thavies' Inn, and afterwards, some say, at Lincoln's Inn. 
 It is believed he was conversant with nine languages, beside Welsh 
 and English, viz. Hebrew, Caldee, Syrian, Arabic, Greek, Latin, 
 French, Italian, and Spanish. In this he surpassed his nephew, a 
 .second cousin's son — the Venerable Archdeacon Edmund Prys, 
 author of the Metrical Psalms, who also acquired his eight languages. 
 
 When Salesbury undertook the task of translating the New 
 Testament, probably at the instigation of the bishops as well as his 
 own inclination, he lived at a place called Cae Du, in the parish of 
 Llansannan, in the county of Denbigh, a remote district, now quite 
 out of the ordinary commercial thoroughfares of the day, and then 
 still more remote, between the towns of Denbigh and Llanrwst. 
 Strange to think, this remote district has become noted for its pro- 
 <luction of eminent men in the literary annals of the Principality. 
 In modern times, Rev. Henry Rees, one of the most effective pulpit 
 
 c
 
 18 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 orators of his day ; his brother, Dr. William Eees, poet, preacher, 
 and lecturer ; and lorwerth Glan Aled, of similar descriptions in a 
 lower degree, are connected with the place by birth ; and Sir Charles 
 J. Watkin Williams, formerly member of Parliament, first for the 
 Denbighshire boroughs, then for Caernarvonshire, now one of the 
 Justices of the Queen's Bench Division of the High Court of Justice, 
 by parentage, though not by birth. A very plain and old-fashioned 
 room was, a few years ago, shown in the house of Cae Du, where it 
 is believed he carried on his important work, and which had pur- 
 posely been constructed on a most secret plan, in order to avoid the 
 Avrath of his persecutors. During the reign of Mary, his Protestant 
 zeal had rendered him obnoxious to the Queen and the Papists. 
 This room, therefore, was so constructed as to have the door open 
 to it through a part of the chimney in order to escape discover}'-. 
 On the death of his brother, Eobert, who left behind him no son, 
 only two daughters, he became possessed of much property, together 
 \vith the princely palace of Plas Isaf, but he continued to reside for 
 some time after at his remote nook of Cae Du. He went up to 
 London to superintend the printing of his Testament, which was 
 published in the year 1567. 
 
 This first edition appeared as a quarto volume, of 399 leaves, 
 not pages (for only one side of the leaf is numbered), and printed 
 in the usual black letter of the day. The contents are placed at 
 the head of every book and chapter, and an explanation of difficult 
 words on the margin ; but there are signs of some new plan being 
 adopted in the last books, for from 2 Timothy on, which is not the 
 case before, all the books are divided into verses, which seems to 
 imply that this was the suggestion of Dr. Davies, though in his 
 first contribution he follows the original plan. Salesbury had two 
 colleagues in the work of translation — the book of Revelation being 
 .subscribed with the initials T. H. C. M., or Thomas Huet, chantor 
 or precentor of Menevia (St. David's), and the first epistle to 
 Timothy, the epistle to the Hebrews, the epistle of James, and the 
 tw^o epistles of Peter, with the initials D. R. D. M., intended to 
 mean Dr. Richard Davies, Menevensis. The title-page is inter- 
 esting as showing the sources from which the translation was made. 
 It reads to the following effect : — " The New Testament of our 
 Lord Jesus Christ. Taken as far as the untranslatable words per- 
 mitted, from the Greek and Latin, the words not found in the
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 11^ 
 
 original being put in a different letter. Besides, every word sup- 
 posed to be unintelligible, whether from the idiom of the country, 
 or from want of use, has been marked, and explained on the opposite 
 margin." At the end of the volume, it is added : — •" Imprinted at 
 London, by Henry Denham, at the costes and charges of Humphrey 
 Toy, dwelling in Paule's Church Yard, at the sign of the ' Helmet.' 
 Oum privilegio ad irajprimendiirii solum. Anno 1567. Octob. 7." 
 Humphrey Toy, mentioned here, to whom the Welsh people are 
 indebted for his liberality in bringing out the first New Testament 
 at his OAvn expense, was the son of Eobert Toy, who carried on a 
 printing business, near The Bell, in St. Paul's Churchyard, from 
 1541 to 1546. His widow and her son continued the business. 
 Mrs. Elizabeth Toy, a lady of great spirit and energy, is supposed 
 to have been a Welshwoman, which explains to some extent the 
 interest taken by her son in the publication of the New Testament.* 
 
 Besides the text the volume contains in its beginning a calendar, 
 at the end a table to find out the epistle and gospel to be read in 
 the church throughout the year, and to explain Matt. xiii. 44,t there 
 is a very plain plate, representing men bargaining, with a stanza in 
 Welsh recommending the readers to buy at all cost the pearl of 
 great price. The most valuable additions, however, are the Welsh 
 letter to his fellow-countrymen by Dr. Davies, of St. David's, por- 
 tions of which have been already quoted, and a dedication of the 
 work in English, "To the most virtuous and excellent Princess 
 Elizabeth," in which he says that " his fellow-subjects had been 
 but lately worshipping idols, bells, and dead men's bones, instead 
 of the true God ; that at one time none had been more unwilling 
 than they to adopt the Popish religion, but latterly none had been 
 more unwilling to relinquish it." He thanks the Queen for de- 
 livering thousands of his fellow-countrymen from the darkness of 
 superstition and popery, and begs of her to cherish the version, and 
 receive it to her library. 
 
 It must not be thought that this is the present authorized version 
 of the Welsh Testament ; compared with that it is far inferior in 
 ease, simplicity, and accuracy. Many Greek, Latin, and English 
 words are left in it, without any attemj)t at translation, as hypo- 
 
 * Sir Sam. R. Meyrick's "Heraldry," vol. i. pp. 182-3, quoted in Dr. 
 Edwards's "Traethodau Llenyddol," p. 92. 
 t See Literary Notes at end of chapter ii.
 
 20 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 critieit, imrcibola, meinbranx, orribil (horrible), descendant. At the 
 same time, it must have been of great help, some years later, in 
 preparing the authorized version, and even now, editions of it are 
 published, as a work of curiosity, and out of respect to the pioneer 
 of Welsh Biblical literature. The number of copies of the first 
 issue is not known. 
 
 William Salesbury's death has been left in as great an obscurity 
 iis his birth, which shows how little regard the world very often 
 pays to its best benefactors, at the time. Various years are given, 
 ranging from 1560 according to Thomas Fuller, to 1599 according 
 to Sir John Wynne of Gwydir. He j)ublished many other works, 
 reference to which will be made in a subsequent chapter^ 
 
 Dr. Richard Da vies. 
 
 As already mentioned, he was the principal colleague of Salesbury 
 in translating the New Testament. His father's name was Dafydd 
 Gronw, rector of Cyffin, near Conway, Caernarvonshire, where the 
 son was born, in the year 1501. He also received his collegiate 
 education at Oxford, being a member of New Inn Hall. In 1550, 
 he was presented by Edward VI. to the vicarage of Burnham, and 
 the parsonage of Maidsmorton, Buckinghamshire ; but on the 
 accession of Mary, he was obliged to flee the kingdom, when he 
 Avent with his wife to Geneva, where he suffered many privations, 
 and had nothing to depend upon but the alms of his more opulent 
 fellow-refugees. Within three years of his arrival at Geneva he 
 had learnt French so thoroughly as to be able to preach in that 
 language, in consequence of which he was able to take the charge 
 of a chui'ch there, and to live comfortably for the remainder of 
 his sojourn. Three of his sons were born at Geneva — Thomas, 
 Peregrine, and Gershom. On the death of Mary, he returned to 
 his own country, and received back his livings from her sister 
 Elizabeth. In January, 1560, he was appointed to the bishopric 
 of St. Asaph, and fifteen months later, on the 21st of May, 1561, 
 he was translated to the see of St. David's, where he lived for 
 upwards of twenty years. While there he assisted Salesbury in 
 translating the New Testament into Welsh. The same year as the 
 Testament, the Book of Common Prayer was published by him 
 and his coadjutor, for the use of the Church. On the death of the 
 Earl of Essex, he published the sermon which he had delivered on
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 21 
 
 the occasion, at Caermarthen, m 1577. AVe must not omit to say 
 also that he was a scholar of considerable merit, many of his com- 
 X^ositions being still on record. His labours in connection with 
 literature were not confined to Wales and the Welsh. He was one 
 of the translators selected by Archbishop Parker for what is known 
 as " The Bishops' Bible," which was published in 1568. In the 
 Article on the Authorized Version, Guest,* Bishop of St. David's, 
 is mentioned as sharing in this work, and taking the Psalms ; but 
 this is evidently a mistake, for there never was a Guest, bishop of 
 that diocese, and moreover, if Dr. E. Davies is intended, it was not 
 the Psalms that were entrusted to him, but the books of Joshua, 
 Kuth, and the two books of Samuel. 
 
 Sir John Wynne testifies respecting his oversight of the see of 
 St. David's, that " he presided over it in a manner worthy of him- 
 self, and to the honour of our nation." He kept a very good 
 house, retaining in his service the younger sons of the best families 
 in the country, to whom he gave an excellent sustenance, and a 
 good education with his own childi'en. But he is accused of having 
 greatly impoverished the diocese in providing for his numerous 
 family, by leasing the land, and allowing the houses to fall into 
 ruins, a charge similar to that brought against Bishop Barlow iu 
 1538. Dr. Davies died at the episcopal palace of Abergwili, on 
 the 7th of jN'ovember, 1581, aged eighty years. When rebuilding the 
 church of Abergwili in the year 1850, the bishoj)'s tomb was dis- 
 covered. It consisted of a common slab, with only his name 
 engraved, and the year in whieh he died. His coffin was also seen 
 in the grave with some inscription round the edges, but only the 
 name was deciphered. Dr. Thirlwall, the bishop of the diocese at 
 the time, put up a marble tablet at his own expense, on the wall 
 of the chancel above his tomb, with a full and elaborate inscription, 
 embodying the chief incidents of his life as contained in this 
 sketch. Before dismissing this subject of the first Xew Testament 
 in Welsh, the little information must be added which we have, 
 concerning the remaining translator, Thomas Huet, who was the 
 chief chantor or precentor of St. David's from 1562 to 1588, and 
 also held the livings of Cefnllys and Diserth, in Piadnorshire. He 
 <lied on the 19th of August, 1591, and was buried in the church of 
 lilanafan, Breconshire. 
 
 * Smith's "Dictionary of the Bible," p. 1674.
 
 (ftmmt 
 
 ISIe^^ydcI ein ArgWydld 
 
 netei5»of{urfili'flj^|«U^gatriac-aooli ,<!£bli9&j^jnp 
 p war )io]) gBir a ^pbitopi |) bo^jw an^ea!(tjs> 
 
 «^ 
 
 MatHeuL xni.f. 
 
 ,/£cmewahan angm nyhy^^) 
 J gaelyTerlgoe} hip wejd 
 
 FACSIMILE OF TITLEPAGK TO SALESBURT'S NEW TESTAMENT. 
 
 llcduced from quarto.— British Museum. (For explanation, see notes at end of cliap. ii.)
 
 THE SU^'DAY S<JHOOLS OF WALES. 23 
 
 CHArTER ir. 
 
 The Keligiol's and Ixteleectual Condition of Wales from tiik 
 iteformation to the rise of sunday schools — translation 
 AND Circulation of Scriptures — The Whole Bible. 
 
 Interval between the publication of New Testament and The Whole 
 Bible — Dr. Morgan lirst translator of Old Testament — Edition of 
 Dr. Parn' and Dr. Davies, of Mallwyd — First edition for the use of 
 the population generally — Mr. R. Ileylin and Sir T. Mj'ddleton — - 
 Cronnvell's Bible, 165-i— Labours of Rev. Stephen Hughes — Rev. T. 
 Gouge — Last edition of 17th century — The various editions of the 18th 
 century — Rev. Moses Williams — Mr. R. Morris — Society for Pro- 
 moting Christian Knowledge — Dr. Llewellyn — Rev. Peter Williams — 
 Editions up to time of Bible Society — Tables of all the issues — 
 General inferences. 
 
 More than twenty years elapsed, after the publication of the Nev: 
 Testament, before the whole Bible made its appearance. The time 
 prescribed in the royal proclamation of 1562, within which it ought 
 to have been produced, was being continually left more hopelessly 
 behind; and the two men most likely to be able to execute the 
 work, from having translated the New Testament, were already in 
 their graves ; but the instrument chosen of God to accomplish it, 
 was all the time being prepared, and when hope was almost lan- 
 guishing into despair, from quite an unexpected quarter, the able 
 worker made his appearance in the person of 
 
 Dk. William Morgan. 
 
 Not far from the side of the railway which runs between Betws-y- 
 
 coed and Festiniog, and about half way between the former station 
 
 and Dolyddelen, in one of the wildest and most romantic parts of 
 
 Caernarvonshire, is still to be seen, at least the site of, the house
 
 24 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 where William Morgau was born. The exact locality is callet^ 
 Gwihernant or Ewyhrnant, and lies in the parish of Penmachno. 
 According to the first form of the word, which means " the dragon's- 
 dingle," the place is said to have derived its name from a destructive 
 dragon which at one time haunted its seclusion and terrified its 
 inhabitants. Though this derivation is more poetic, or at least 
 imaginative, the interest of truth calls upon us to decide in favour 
 of the more sober fomi of Eivyhrnant^ or the rapid torrent, de- 
 scriptive of the rapid course of the brook, as it hastens along here, 
 to join the much-admired Conway, at the Waterloo iron bridge. 
 Like William Salesbury, William Morgan is said also to have 
 descended from some of the ancient princes of Wales. His father's 
 name was either William or John Morgan, and his mother was 
 Lowri, daughter of William ab Ifan, ab Madog, ab Ifan Tegin, of 
 Betws. Nothing of his early history is knoAvn, but he appears to have 
 had a very liberal education, and upon this foundation he acquired, 
 at St. John's College, Cambridge, the further preparation which 
 enabled him to discharge so efficiently the great work he under- 
 took. He graduated B.A. in 1568 ; M.A. in 1571 ; B.D. in 1578, 
 and D.D. in 1583. In 1575 he was presented to the vicai'age of 
 Welshpool, Montgomeryshire, which is supposed to have been his 
 first living. Three years later he was promoted to the vicarage of 
 Llanrhaiadr-yn-Mochnant, Denbighshire, and there he conceived 
 the idea of translating the Bible. When some of his parishioners- 
 got to know that he was engaged in the work, incited very probably 
 by the papistical spirit which is against placing the Bible in the 
 hands of the common people, and disliking him because of his holy 
 living, and his denunciation of their wicked practices in his usual 
 ministrations, they preferred some mean charges against him, first 
 to his Bishop, and afterwards to the Archbishop of Canterbury. 
 He was obliged to aj^pear at Lambeth Palace to answer to the 
 charge. Thither he went with an anxious mind, but it was so 
 ordered by Providence, that what his enemies intended for his 
 greatest hindrance in the work, should transpire to be of the greatest 
 advantage to him. Archbishop Whitgift was much struck with 
 the nobleness of his demeanour, and was not long in discovering 
 that he was an excellent scholar, quite at home with both Hebrew 
 and Greek, which led him soon to suspect the malicious libels of 
 his accusers. One day the Archbishop asked him, " Do you know
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 25 
 
 Welsh so well as you know Latin, Hebrew, and Greek ? " "I 
 liope, my Lord," the vicar modestly re^^lied, " you will allow me to 
 assure you that I know my mother's tongue better than any other 
 language.'' Understanding that he had already completed the 
 translation of the Pentateuch, and discharging the complaints made 
 against him by his parishioners, he encouraged him to prosecute 
 the good work to the end, promising to render him all the aid at 
 his disposal. 
 
 From this time forward, others became interested in his favour, 
 to all of whom he gratefully refers in the dedicatory epistle to 
 Queen Elizabeth, which introduces the volume. His words are, 
 " and having commenced it, I should have failed, because of the 
 greatness of the work and of the cost, and would have brought out 
 the five books of Moses only, had not the Eev. John Whitgift, 
 Archbishop of Canterbury, the patron of learning, defender of 
 truth, and kind to our nation, assisted me, and supported me by his 
 liberality, his authority, and his counsel to go on. Following 
 liis example, other good men came to my aid, viz. the Bishoj)S of 
 ISt. Asaph and Bangor " (Dr. Hughes and Dr. Bellot, it is supposed), 
 " Dr. David Powell, Mr. Gabriel Goodman, Dean of Westminster, 
 INIr. Edmund Prys, Archdeacon of Merioneth, and Mr. Richard 
 Vaughan, Eector of Lutterworth, afterwards Bishop of Bangor, 
 Chester and London." There is no reason to think that Dr^ 
 Morgan undertook this work at the request of either the govern- 
 ment or the bishops, but was simply moved by the feeling of want, 
 to which he was an eye-witness ; and his sole object was the glory 
 of God and the good of his countrymen. The year in which he 
 began the work is uncertain. From the fact that Whitgift was not 
 promoted to the see of Canterbury until 1583, it is inferred that he 
 could not have gone much beyond the Pentateuch, according to his 
 vvm testimony, before that year, and still five years is but a short 
 time to complete the work in the circumstances under which he was 
 placed. That he was assisted in the work can hardly be doubted, 
 though there is no record extant of any of his immediate colleagues. 
 Most of the names mentioned in his dedicatory epistle could only 
 have afforded him indirect assistahce, such as granting him free 
 access to their libraries, and probably reviewing or correcting some 
 of the passages. While the work was passing through the press,. 
 he lived with the Dean of Westminster, and as a token of his grate-
 
 26 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 falness for this kindness lie presented the Dean and Chapter with a 
 copy of his Bible, which is still kept in their library. 
 
 The publication took place in the year 1588, the ever-memorable 
 year in which the invincible Armada was shattered upon our coasts. 
 1 1 appeared in the form of a huge folio in black letter, and contained, 
 in addition to the Old and New Testaments, the Apocrypha, the 
 Calendar, and a few references on the margin. It is divided into 
 chapters, each headed with its contents, and divided into verses. 
 The leaves alone are numbered, and they amount to 555. The 
 publishers were Christopher and Robert Barker, Tiger's Head, 
 Paternoster Row. 
 
 In the absence of every testimony as to the number contained 
 in this edition, the solution of this problem must be only a matter 
 of conjecture. The intention of the Act of Parliament was to 
 supply the parish churches, the chapels of ease, and collegiate 
 churches with a copy. These at the time in Wales did not 
 amount to more than from nine hundred to a thousand. When we 
 consider that it is one thing to decree and another to execute, that 
 this act failed to bring out a Welsh Bible at all, as far as it was 
 concerned, and that the real hardly ever reaches the ideal, the 
 probability is that the supply fell far short of meeting even this 
 meagre demand.* The publisher of the English Bible thought an 
 edition of fifteen hundred to be large for England, and therefore an 
 edition of five or six hundred must be considered to have been 
 proi^ortionately greater for Wales. 
 
 Sir John Wynne, of Gwydir, endeavoured to detract from Dr. 
 Morgan the honour of having translated the Bible, by maintaining 
 that " he had received advantage and help from the works of Bishop 
 Davies and William Salesbury, who indeed had translated a great 
 portion of it, but that Morgan took all the fame to himself." It is 
 a peculiar coincidence that Sir Thomas More, in his anxiety to 
 establish a point against Tyndal, asserted that " he had seen 
 English translations of the Bible, which had been made before 
 Wycliffe, and that these were approved by the bishops, and were 
 allowed by them to be read by laymen, and even by devout 
 women " (Dialogues, ch. viii.-xiv. col. 82). The motives which 
 actuated More and Wynne to make these assertions might not be 
 the same, but the accuracy of the statements is equally doubtful. 
 * Gwyddoniadur, Art. Beibl.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 27 
 
 There is no evidence that Salesbuiy and Davies had translated any 
 of the Old Testament, and if they had, the labour of revision, as 
 shown by the work accomplished by Morgan on the New Testament, 
 was almost equal to an original translation. It is not to the 
 honour of Wynne (being far less excusable than More, a Eoman 
 Catholic, in his jealousy towards Tyndal, a Protestant) to find that 
 the occasion of this twitting originated in an ill-feeling which 
 existed between Sir John and the bishop respecting the tithes. 
 The honour of Dr. Morgan ■^vill ever remain unimpaired and un- 
 tarnished. Among the galaxy of good and able men who in that 
 age were the direct means of breaking the bread of life to the 
 hungry, to Dr. Morgan must be allotted the primacy of honour, 
 not indeed because he was the first in the field, but because un- 
 questionably his labours were the greatest.* 
 
 Nor was he unrewarded during his life-time. In the year that 
 he completed the Bible, he received the livings of Llanfyllin and 
 Penant-Melangell ; and in 1594, that of Denbigh was added to them. 
 In 1595, in accordance with the special command of Queen Elizabeth, 
 he was promoted to the episcopal chair of Llandaff, and in 1601 he 
 was translated to St. Asaph, where he died on the 10th of Sej)- 
 tember, 1604, and was buried in the cathedral, no one as yet 
 liaving honoured him with even a monument to mark his resting- 
 place, and commemorate Ids virtues. Sir John Wynne says " he 
 died a poor man." 
 
 It was intimated above, that with regard to the New Testament, 
 he only improved upon the translation of Salesbury, and incor- 
 porated it with the Old. Further than this, before his death in 
 1604, he had revised it again, and it was ready for the press. 
 Whether he intended to issue a new edition of the whole Bible is 
 not known, and it is equally uncertain whether his revised copy 
 of the New Testament was published or not. 
 
 Amongst the names mentioned by Dr. Morgan as having assisted 
 
 * With so many references to the translators of the Welsh Bible and 
 Testament being learned in Hebrew and Greek, there would seem to be no 
 need of making a positive statement that the Welsh versions were made 
 directly from the originals. But so persistent is the error fallen into by 
 even intelligent Englishmen, to think they were made from the English, 
 that in further refutation, the internal evidences plainly show that the 
 Welsh does not follow the English, being in very numerous instances more 
 faithful to the Hebrew and Greek originals.
 
 28 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 liim in the translation of the Bible, are found those of Dr. Davidi 
 Powell, of Rhiwabon, and Edmund Prys. While the others are 
 thought to have given only indirect aid, these two very probably 
 took an active part in the work, though the particular department 
 taken up by each is not recorded. Both deserve a fuller account of 
 their lives, but as they have enriched the literature of their country 
 in other connections, we shall defer our sketch until the next 
 chapter. 
 
 The year 1620 brings us to the third issue of Holy Writ in 
 W^elsh, and this time also the entire Bible, very much corrected 
 and improved. It was the joint work of 
 
 DeS. PtICHARD PaKRY AND JOHX DaVIES. 
 
 Eichard Parry was the eldest son, and heir of John Parry, of 
 PwUhaulog, near Ruthin. Documents do not agree respecting the 
 year of his birth, but most believe it was about 1560. For a time 
 he attended Westminster school, then under the mastership of 
 Camden, the author of " Britannia," and one of the ripest scholars 
 of his age. He afterwards completed his education at Oxford. In 
 the year 1592, he was made Chancellor of Bangor, and in the same 
 year, vicar of Gresford. In 1598, the title of S.T.P., or D.D., was- 
 conferred upon him, concomitant with his being made Dean of 
 Bangor. On the accession of James I. to the throne of England, 
 so high a notion had the king of his learning and piety that he- 
 was promoted to the see of St. Asaph, December, 1604. 
 
 In his dedication of this edition of the Bible, Dr. Parry enters at 
 length to the motives and inducements which influenced him to 
 undertake the work of revision. Among other things he says,. 
 " that the last edition of the Bible was exhausted, and that many 
 of the churches were either destitute of a copy, or at least those to 
 be found were both worn out and imperfect, and no one, as far as he 
 knew, was thinking of a second edition. In view of this state of 
 things, and urged by these considerations, he undertook the labour 
 of improving the last translation. A revised edition of the English 
 Bible had lately been issued under royal authority, and this had 
 induced him to supply his countrymen with a similar improved and 
 more accurate version of the Welsh Bible." Some object to this 
 being called a 7ieiu translation ; but if it be right that the divines 
 employed by King James to improve the former editions of
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 29 
 
 T^mdall and Coverdale should call their work a new translation, 
 isurely the changes and improvements introduced by Dr. Parry 
 justify the calling of his issue a new translation. Salesbury's 
 orthography was defective, and the language was stiff and very 
 iipintelligible. Dr. Morgan greatly improved upon this ; but Dr. 
 Parry brought the whole into such a state of perfection as to be a 
 standard of the "Welsh language unto this day. All subsequent 
 eilitions of the Bible agree with this, and so Dr. Parry's translation 
 of 1620 may be looked upon as the authorized version of the 
 Welsh Bible. Whatever changes have been since introduced, they 
 consist only in putting capitals for small letters, a new mode of 
 spelling some words, and other slight alterations. This edition has 
 done more than anything else in unifying the idioms of the different 
 l)arts of the Principality, for whatever divergences exist in the 
 colloquial talk of Xorth and South Wales, the language of the pulpit 
 is intelligible in all parts of the country, and this for the simple 
 reason that it is the same version of the Bible which is used every- 
 where. Dr. Parry's edition Avas printed in London, by Norton and 
 Bill, printers to his Majesty. A copy of it was presented to the 
 king, which is still extant, and preserved in the British Museum. 
 It is a folio edition, printed in black letter, divided into chapters 
 almost entirely on the plan of Dr. Morgan's edition, with tiie 
 references of King James's Bible on the margin. The number of 
 copies issued is believed to be about five hundred. Dr. Parry pre- 
 sided over the see of St. Asaph from 1604 to the year of his death, 
 in 1623. He held the living of Diserth, in Flintshire, with his 
 bishopric, and used t(j spend some of his time there occasionally. 
 There is a field still known as "Cae yr Esgob" (the bishop's field), 
 adjoining the house in which he died, just two years after publishing 
 the Bible. Dr. John Davies, of Mallwyd, rendered him material aid 
 in the work. He was one of the most accomplished scholars of his 
 <lays, and as he published many works of lasting value, a fuller 
 reference to his life and connections will be made when we brino- 
 those into notice. 
 
 Dr. Llewellyn remarks that " for upwards of seventy years from 
 the Eeformation to the reign of Queen Elizabeth ; for nearly one 
 hundred years from the separation from the Church of Piome, there 
 were no Bibles in Wales but onlv in the cathedrals, or in the parish 
 churches and chapels. There was no i)rovision made for the
 
 30 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 country, or for the people in general, as if they had nothing to do 
 with the Word of God, at least no farther than they might hear it 
 in their attendance upon public worship once in a week. This is 
 astonishing." * Judge Johnes explains this fact with the consider- 
 ation, that "from the Reformation to the time of Elizabeth was a 
 period of English bishops. The consequences of the system were 
 similar to what they now are. The people were during the whole 
 of that period without a translation of the Scriptures." f Bishop 
 Richard Davies, in his preflice to Salesburj^'s New Testament, 
 ascribes also to the Welsh Bishops whatever enlightenment came to 
 the Welsh people at this period. His words are : " No sooner did 
 that wise and patriotic princess ascend the throne than she filled 
 the Welsh bishoprics with native Welshmen ; men to whom Wales 
 in fact owes all the religious light she at present enjoys, and 
 but for whom it is more than probable she would have been, at 
 this moment, a Popish country, exposed to the superstitions and 
 miseries of a neighbouring and kindred people." The Welsh 
 bishops no doubt deserve great praise for their immense labours in 
 translating, improving and publishing the Bible at this time ; still, 
 the form in which it appeared (a huge folio), and the cost of pur- 
 chasing, rendered it very inaccessible to the population generally. 
 The bishops evidently in the first place cared for the churches, and 
 intended reaching the people only through public ministrations. 
 In the year 1630, it occurred to some aldermen and citizens of the 
 city of London to vary a little on the method, and issue an 
 edition in a smaller form, so that the people might have a copy in 
 their houses, which proved to be a very great boon. This was a 
 small octavo, and consisted of the whole Bible, the Apocrypha, the 
 Book of Common Prayer, and the metrical version of the Psalms. 
 The expense was chiefly borne by 
 
 Mr. Rowland Heylin and Sir Thomas Myddleton. 
 
 Mr. Heylin was a member of the family of Pentreheilin, in the 
 
 parish of Llandysilio, Montgomeryshire. The meaning of the word 
 
 heilin, is butler (hail, means a quantity, a service ; ' hail o ddiody a 
 
 service of drink ; the verb, heilio, means to deal out, to serve), and 
 
 * Historical Account of the " Welsh Versions and Editions of the 
 Bible," p. 36. 
 
 t " Essay on the Causes of Dissent," etc., p. 00.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 31 
 
 seems to have been given them, from tlie fact that this family had 
 been hereditary butlers to the earls of Powis. Mr. Rowland Heylin 
 i-emoved to London, where in the course of a virtuous and pros- 
 perous life he became an alderman and sheriff. He never forgot 
 liis native country, and in concert with others framed the project of 
 supplying his countrymen with the Bible in a portable little 
 volume, the expense of the undertaking (which was no trifle) being 
 chiefly borne by him. He brought out several other books at his 
 own cost. He died in the year 1634, leaving no heir, and his 
 property, through the marriage of his daughter, went over to a 
 family of the name of Congreve. He was an uncle to Dr. Peter 
 Heylin, the historian. 
 
 Sir Thomas Myddleton belonged to the illustrious family of 
 Gwaenynog, Denbighshire. He was a son of Richard Myddleton, 
 the governor of Denbigh Castle, during the reigns of Edward YI,, 
 ]\Iary, and Elizabeth. Here is an example of Normans by race, 
 becoming in course of time, through intermarriages, "Welshmen in 
 language and spirit. Sir Thomas had three brothers — William, a 
 poet, who assumed the nom de 'plume of Gwilym Canoldref, of 
 whom more will be said again ; Ffowk and Hugh, afterwards Sir 
 Hugh Myddleton, who, in the reign of James I., brought the New- 
 River to London, and whose monument is now in Islington Green, 
 Sir Thomas went up to London when young, and there became a 
 wealthy merchant. He was made successively alderman, justice 
 <»f the peace, and, in 1614, lord mayor of London. He purchased 
 the estate of Chirk Castle, Denbighshire, and was the founder of 
 the Myddleton family of that place. He shared with Mr. Heylin 
 the expense of publishing the octavo Bible in Welsh. He is said 
 also to have interested himself in the publication of two subsequent 
 editions. The Rev. Stephen Hughes (of whom we shall have 
 occasion to speak again), in his preface to a second edition of 
 "Canwyll y Cymry " (The Welshmen's Candle), usually called 
 " The Vicar's Book," prays for the blessing of Heaven to rest upon 
 lum for his thoughtfulness and liberality on this occasion. " I pray 
 from my heart," says he, "upon God, that every temporal and 
 spiritual blessing should fall on the head of every one of Sir 
 Thomas Myddleton's progeny in North Wales, and everywhere 
 else. May God grant them innumerable blessings, like the sand 
 of the sea, the grass of the fields, and the stars of heaven. And
 
 S2 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 may every one in Wales who loves God and longs for the salvation 
 of immortal souls, unite to say from the bottom of his heart, 
 Amen, and Amen, so let it be. O gracious Lord, bless the de- 
 scendants of Sir Thomas Myddleton, and may his name remain 
 honoured for ever." 
 
 It is more than probable that with reference to this edition, 
 Vicar Prichard composed his "Advice to hear and read God's 
 Word." In his quaint language he refers once and again to the 
 cheapness of its price, being only a crown, and exhorts all to 
 procure it, and study it well for the salvation of the soul. He 
 .says :— 
 
 " jNIae'r Bibl bach yn awr yn gyson, 
 Yn iaith dy fam iV gael er coron ; 
 (jwerth dy grys cyn bod beb hwnw, 
 Mae'n Avell na tliref dy dad i'th gadw." 
 
 (The little Bible now is ready, 
 In thine own tongue for one crown only ; 
 To get it, sell thy shirt, if need be, 
 'Tis more than any 'state to save thee.) 
 
 The piece consists in all of eighty-seven similar stanzas. We 
 can hardly nowadays appreciate the value of such a boon as to 
 get a complete Bible for five shillings. In the days of Queen 
 I^^lizabeth and James I. wages were so low and the price of a Bible 
 80 high that it would have been necessary for a labourer to put by 
 his earnings for thirty-seven years in order to be able to buy one. 
 The crown Bible of Vicar Prichard, and surely the fourpenny one 
 of our days, ought to be looked upon as marvels of cheapness. 
 ' In the year 1647, the New Testament alone was printed in a 
 12mo form, without the contents of chapters, and about one 
 thousand copies were issued. 
 
 In 1654, the whole Bible was again issued in small octavo. As this 
 was the first year of the rule of Cromwell, it was generally called 
 (Jromwell's Bible. The number of copies issued was six thousand, 
 and this is the first instance of the exact number contained in an 
 edition being recorded. Mr. Charles Edwards, author of " Hanes 
 y Ffydd " (History of the Faith), furnishes us with this detail, but 
 he omits to state whom the country Avas indebted to for this very 
 liberal supply, as it must have been considered at that time. In 
 " Llyfryddiaeth y Cymry " (The Bibliography of the Welsh), it is 
 stated that Walter Cradoc and Vavasor Powell were instrumental
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 33 
 
 in bringing out this edition ; but Dr. Llewellyn says " that we are 
 indebted to Mr. Charles Edwards for its production." It is not 
 unlikely that the three co-operated in the honourable work. Seeing 
 that an Act of Parliament was passed at this time, providing for 
 the spread of the Gospel in Wales, it is not improbable that this 
 edition of the Bible was the result of the same authority. So 
 intense was the rehgious feeling of the country at the time, and 
 so great was the respect shown the Holy Scriptures, that Biblical 
 phrases were interwoven with the common parlance of society. 
 Such expressions as " The Lord of Hosts," " God with us," were the 
 war-cry of battles, the mottoes of coats of arms, and the inscriptions 
 on coins ; and even personal Christian and surnames consisted often 
 of Scriptural phrases. It is no wonder, then, that with so much 
 rehgious fervour in England, Wales should not have been left 
 destitute of an ample supply of the Word of Life. The demand 
 was very pressing for the issue, since the last supply of both 
 Testaments and Bibles had been comi^letely exhausted. This same 
 year, 1654, an edition of the New Testament, in a larger type? 
 consisting of one thousand copies, was also published. 
 
 In 1672, an edition of two thousand copies (octavo) of the New 
 Testament was issued, together with the Psalms in prose and verse. 
 The prime mover in the publication of this was 
 
 Key. Stephen Hughes. 
 This gentleman, who was directly connected with the next two 
 issues of the whole Bible also, has deserved well of his country, 
 and therefore demands here more than a passing notice. He was 
 a native of the town of Caermarthen, being born about the year 
 1622. He obtained the living of Meidrym, in his native county, 
 in 1645, and according to his prefatory song to the " Yicar's Book," 
 had some connection with the parish of Merthyr, in the same 
 county. By the passing of the Act of Uniformity, in 1662, he 
 was among the two thousand ministers who were ejected from their 
 livings, and had to cast himself upon the world for whatever 
 maintenance he could find. More fortunate than most of his 
 brethren, he married a lady of some means at Swansea, by the 
 help of whose dowry, economy, and industry, he was enabled to 
 devote all his time to the welfare of his country. He was an 
 intelligent, methodical, and affectionate preacher, always delivering 
 
 D
 
 34 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 the great truths of the Gospel with much unction. With the 
 lieavenly message he delighted to visit the remotest and obscurest 
 corners of the land. As he was in much favour with the higher 
 class, he would very often be permitted to preach in the parish 
 churches, even after his ejection, which on such occasions would 
 be filled to overflowing from the neighbouring parishes. This 
 aroused the jealousy of some of the interested clergy, and at one 
 time, in consequence of their prosecution, he was placed in Caer- 
 marthen prison, but soon liberated in a w^onderful manner. He 
 was the means of founding many of the dissenting congregations 
 about his native town and Swansea. When preaching one day at 
 Wernchwith, near Llanedi, in Caermarthenshire, a gentleman of 
 the neighbourhood, who had been brought up for the Cimrch, went 
 to hear him. This gentleman was tall, and altogether of a comely, 
 commanding aspect, and quite unknown to the preacher. When 
 Mr. Hughes saw him enter the place of worship he thought at 
 once he was the civil officer coming to apprehend him and take 
 him to prison. When the service was over the stranger came 
 forward to greet Mr. Hughes, and took hold of his hand. " Sir," 
 said the preacher, " I hope by giving you my hand I am not 
 caught and made a prisoner." " No, my dear sir," replied the 
 stranger ; " but you have caught me." From that time forward 
 he became a constant hearer at the meeting-house, and afterwards 
 was known as the noted preacher — Kev. David Penry, of Llanedi 
 Palace. Mr. Hughes laboured extensively in preaching the Gospel, 
 founding churches, and editing useful books for the people. These 
 manifold engagements before long began to tell upon his health. 
 During his latter days, in the year 1688, he was very much afraid 
 lest his mind should become deranged, and that he should say 
 something dishonourable to religion. He used to refer often to 
 this topic in his prayers, saying, " Lord, remember us in the pang 
 of death, and permit us not to dishonour thee in our last moments." 
 In this he was remarkably hearkened. After arranging his house, 
 giving instructions to the church of which he was pastor, and 
 committing his family to God, he turned his face to the wall and 
 died without a pang. He was sixty-five years of age, and was 
 buried at St. John's Church, Swansea.* He received the name 
 during his lifetime, and which is still associated with him, of " The 
 * " Hanes Crefydd yu Nghymru," jjassjm, pp. 561-593.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 35 
 
 Apostle of Caermarthenshire." In the edition of the New Testa- 
 ment above referred to, he received assistance by way of subscrip- 
 tions from Rev. W. Thomas, Dean of Gloucester, and four other 
 clergymen from different parts of Wales. 
 
 In 1678, he was very actively engaged in bringing out the 
 hitherto largest edition of the whole Bible, and which consisted 
 of eight thousand copies octavo. With this also were incorporated 
 the Apocrypha, the Book of Common Prayer, and the metrical 
 version of Psalms by Edmund Prys. Mr. Hughes was associated 
 in this work with Rev. Thomas Gouge, of London, and both 
 patronized by Archbishop Tillotson. Mr. Gouge became an eminent 
 benefactor of Wales at this time in many connections, but as he is 
 chiefly known for the active part he took in the establishment of 
 day schools, a fuller sketch of his life and doings will be found 
 with our notices of the educational provisions of the period.* 
 Before this issue of the edition of 1678, it was found, after an 
 active search made for all the Welsh Bibles and Testaments in the 
 country, in order to present them to the poor at once, that only 
 twenty Bibles could be found in the city of London, and not more 
 than thirty-two throughout England and Wales. The edition 
 of which these jDrobably formed a part, generally known as 
 " Cromwell's Bible," was very defective in many respects. Words 
 and whole phrases from many a passage had been inadvertently 
 entirely omitted ; and to prevent a recurrence of such blemishes, 
 the whole work was carefully revised by Mr. Hughes, who, being 
 quite conversant with the Welsh language, saw that every error 
 was corrected, and the work in every department thoroughly well 
 executed. Mr. Gouge gave away at once one thousand copies of 
 this edition to the poor, and sent the remaining seven thousand to 
 the chief towns of Wales, to be sold at four shillings each. 
 
 In the year 1690, another octavo edition of ten thousand copies 
 was issued under the superintendence of Rev. David Jones, who 
 had been ejected from Llandysilio, in Caermar then shire, in con- 
 sequence of refusing to subscribe to the Act of Uniformity. The 
 chief patron of this edition was Thomas, Baron Wharton, who was 
 a zealous Protestant, a supporter of the revolution of 1688, a faithful 
 servant of King William, and one of Queen Anne's ministers during 
 the most prosperous portion of her reign. Judge Johnes, in his 
 * See page 85.
 
 36 THE sd:nday schools of walp:s. 
 
 table of the editions of the "Welsh Bible,* says it Avas Stephen 
 Hughes who was patronized by Lord Wharton in bringing out this 
 edition. But this is evidently a mistake, inasmuch as Hughes 
 died in 1688, unless he refers to the active preparation made by 
 Hughes for another edition before he was cut off by death. Others 
 l)eside Lord Wharton are known to have assisted Bev. David 
 Jones, the most prominent among whom were some ministers and 
 citizens of London. Dr. Calamy says that the ten thousand 
 cojiies were distributed by the editor himself; it is well known 
 that he was indefatigable in all the duties connected with the 
 issue. 
 
 In tliis same year, 1690, a folio edition of one thousand copies, 
 for the use of the churches, was published at Oxford, and generally 
 called " Bishop Lloyd's Bible," because Dr. William Lloyd, Bishop 
 of St. Asaph, had some share in its production. This Bishop Lloyd 
 was one of the seven bishops who signed the petition against the 
 Declaration of Indulgence made by James IL, whereby freedom of 
 worship was granted to the Roman Catholics, with whom Dissenters 
 were also included. For their opposition to the king's wishes, the 
 seven were committed to the Tower of London, but soon liberated 
 on being brought to trial. Though Bishop Lloyd was the chief 
 patron of this edition, the work of supervision was entrusted to 
 Mr. Pierce Lewis, a gentleman of Anglesea, then at Jesus College, 
 and who executed the work both accurately and well. This brings 
 us to the last issue of the seventeenth century. 
 
 In 1718, an octavo edition of the whole Bible, consisting of ten 
 thousand copies, was printed in London, and brought out under the 
 patronage of the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge. The 
 object of this society was to supply the British people of all nations 
 with the Bible and Book of Common Prayer. Hitherto every 
 edition of the Welsh Bible had been brought out through personal 
 exertions, and this was the first of a series undertaken by this 
 society. It is generally called " Moses Williams's Bible," because 
 it was the Eev. Moses Williams, vicar of Defynog, in Breconshire, 
 who superintended the press. Mr. Williams was a very learned 
 man both in the Welsh and the classical languages ; he translated 
 many useful books into Welsh, and assisted Dr. Wotton in the 
 ]niblication of his " Leges WallicEe." Several improvements were 
 * "Essay on the Causes of Dissent," p. 101,
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 37 
 
 introduced into this edition, such as the year of the world's age 
 at the top of every page, and the Apocrypha, with the prayers and 
 canons of tlie Established Church by themselves at the end. To 
 meet the feelings of Xonconformists he left out this appendix from 
 some copies of the edition, which came out a year before the others, 
 in 1717. In 1727, another octavo edition of five thousand copies 
 Avas issued by the same society, and under the superintendence of 
 the same gentleman. At the end of the volume he appended a 
 vocabulary of Hebrew and Greek words, which is still much 
 appreciated; but as he left out the contents of the chapters and 
 the marginal references, the whole edition had a much less favom'- 
 able reception by the people generally. 
 
 In 1746, the whole Bible appeared in octavo from Cambridge, in 
 an edition of fifteen thousand copies. It was superintended by Mr. 
 EicHARD MoERis, an officer of the Admiralty, called by the Welsh 
 *' Ehisiart Morys o Fun," and the Bible is called " Bibl Morys." 
 The editor was very conversant with the language and history of 
 his country, and always ready to advance the welfare of his coun- 
 trymen. This is the fii'st instance of the adoption of the small 
 Koman type in an octavo Bible, instead of the old black letter. The 
 plan of Moses Williams's Bible was followed, only some additions 
 were introduced, such as maps of the Israelites' wanderings in the 
 wilderness, the apostles' travels, and tables of money, weights and 
 measures, which were supplied by Mr. William Jones, Sir William 
 Jones's father. At the same time, this edition was somewhat 
 marred by errors and blemishes which probably arose from the cir- 
 cumstance of the press and superintendent being so far apart. 
 There is a marked progress perceptible now, in the number of 
 copies issued at a time, which is to be explained by the fact of the 
 Kev. Griffith Joxes, of Llanddowror, having now so much in- 
 creased the number of readers by his circulating schools, of which 
 a full account will be given in a subsequent chapter.* This edition 
 had a special connection with those schools, and Mr. Jones had 
 collected over £1200, which he handed over to the Society for 
 Promoting Christian Knowledge, towards the expenses. Some of 
 the Nonconformists succeeded in obtaining a number of copies of 
 this edition too, without the Common Prayer and Apocrypha. In 
 1752, Mr. Morris superintended another edition of the whole Bible, 
 * See page 93 et seq.
 
 38 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALKS. 
 
 Avhich was i^rinted in London, and is as free from imperfections as 
 any edition of Holy Writ hitherto published in Welsh. It nmn- 
 bered fifteen thousand coi^ies, and like the last was published under 
 the patronage of the Christian Knowledge Society. The issuing of 
 these thirty thousand copies cost the society about £6000. The 
 books were mostly distributed by the members or patrons of the 
 society in Wales, and it was ordered that each book was to be sold 
 for 4s. 6d. bound, but many were given to the poor connected with 
 the schools. . For this large and generous sujipl}', the society, no 
 doubt, deserves well from every Welshman. 
 
 The same year, 1752, two thousand copies of the New Testament 
 with the Psalms were issued by the same society, and were a 
 reprint of the edition of 1672. 
 
 In 1769, the whole Bible was again issued in octavo by the same 
 society, and printed in London. The gentleman that was chiefly 
 instrumental in procuring this edition for his countrymen was 
 
 Dr. Thomas Llewellyx. 
 The numerous references to Dr. LlcAvellyn in connection with 
 this inquiry into the circulation of the Scriptures in Wales, excite 
 in the reader, we presume, a desire to know a little more of his 
 history. He was born in Penalltau-isaf, in the parish of Gelligaer, 
 Glamorganshire. Having joined the Baptist Church at Hengoed, 
 near his home, he was induced to give himself up to the work of 
 the ministry. In order to prepare himself for the duties of his 
 office, he spent a short time at Trosnant, near Pontypool, from 
 whence he went to Bristol College, then under the superintendence 
 of Mr. Bernard Foskett. Afterwards, he settled in London, where 
 he also became an instructor of young men intended for the minis- 
 try. While following this profession, he was made a doctor of 
 laws. He was very partial to his native land, and in his latter 
 years divided his time pretty equally between London and Wales. 
 Wishing to enlist a strong public opinion in his favour, and hoping 
 it would strengthen his appeal for subscriptions to bring out a new 
 edition of the Bible, he wrote an account of the former editions of 
 the Welsh Bible under the title, " A Historical Account of British 
 or Welsh Versions and Editions of the Bible, 1768," and which 
 is still a standard work on the subject. This effort produced 
 the desired effect. The number of copies issued reached twenty
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 3f> 
 
 thousand; the society printed several thousands more than at 
 first intended, in order to meet the wants of Nonconformists. 
 He also wrote a work on the history of the Welsh language and 
 its connection with other languages. He died, after a lingering 
 ilhiess, in the year 1783, to the great regret of all his numerous 
 friends.* 
 
 In 1770, the whole Bible in quarto, with annotations at the end 
 of each chapter, by the Rev. Peter Williams, was published at 
 Ciermarthen. This was the first Welsh Commentary on the Bible. 
 Id is true that John Evans, M.A., had published " A Harmony of 
 the Fom* Gospels " five years before Peter Williams's Bible, with 
 short notes on the verses, but this consideration does not affect the 
 truth of the more general statement. This was the first time that 
 a Bible was printed in Wales. " Peter Williams's Bible " has been a 
 household word in Wales ever since its publication, and is now 
 considered an essential furniture of the house in almost every family 
 in the country. Eight thousand copies were published in the first 
 edition, and they were sold at £1 each, well bound. At least twelve 
 editions have been published at Caermarthen and other towns of 
 Wales since that time. The latest improvements are a folio edi- 
 tion, with plates by Fisher and Co., London, and another by the 
 London Printing and Publishing Company with even more elaborate 
 illustrations. Some of the doctrines bearing upon " The Person of 
 Christ," maintained in the first edition, were condemned by the 
 denomination to which the commentator belonged (the Calvinistic 
 Methodist), and brought upon him a considerable amount of 
 obloquy at the time. But these differences have now been long 
 reconciled, and Mr. Williams, both for the purity of his character, 
 his labom-s as an evangelist, and notably in connection with the 
 press, for the pre-eminent position he held, as the chief contribu- 
 tor to Welsh religious literature during the eighteenth century, is 
 justly looked upon as one of the best benefactors of his country. 
 The closing words of the preface to his commentary lucidly reflect 
 the simplicity of his character: "I can boldly assert," he says, 
 " that it was love for my nation, the Welsh, and a sincere desire for 
 their salvation, which induced me to write what I have written ; I 
 am glad to have had an opportunity thus to cast my mite to the 
 
 * Richard's "Life of Dr. Llewellyn," quoted in " Hanes Crefydd yn 
 Nghymruj" p. 654,
 
 40 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 treasury, and to be of some service for the Gospel in my day and 
 generation." 
 
 In 1779, an edition of tlie New Testament was publislied, but the 
 number of copies is not known. 
 
 We are now approaching the period of the rise of Sunday Schools 
 in Wales, and as we have devoted a subsequent chapter to relate 
 the connection between the Welsh Sunday Schools and the forma- 
 tion of the Bible Society, it may interest the reader, and serve for 
 future reference, to complete here the list of all the editions of tlie 
 Bible up to the formation of that society. 
 
 In 1789, the whole Bible was again issued in folio, for the use of 
 churches. The number of copies was small ; expense borne by the 
 Christian Knowledge Society. In 1790, the whole Bible was issued 
 in 12mo, with the marginal references of Mr. John Canne, who was 
 a Baptist minister in Holland. It was printed at Trevecca, under 
 the superintendence of Pievs. Peter Williams and David Jones. It 
 was after the publication of this Bible that the rupture between 
 Mr. Williams and his brethren in the matter of the Sabellian heresy 
 of which he was accused, came to a crisis, and which terminated 
 in his being expelled from the Calvinistic Methodist body. The 
 number of copies issued is not known. Another edition of the 
 same Bible was published at Caermarthen. 
 
 In 1799, the whole Bible was issued from Oxford, in an edition 
 of ten thousand copies octavo, Avitli the New Testament apart. 
 This was superintended by Eev. J. Roberts, and the Society for 
 Promoting Christian Knowledge undertook the publication, at the 
 earnest solicitations of Piev. T. Jones, curate of Creaton, Northamp- 
 tonshire. 
 
 In 1800, the New Testament was again printed at Oxford ; num- 
 ber of copies not known ; and the same year ten thousand copies of 
 the New Testament in various sizes were published at Shrewsbury. 
 We have now exhausted the list, up to the formation of the Bible 
 Society, and our further remarks * on this organization will show 
 liow the good work of supplying Wales with the Word of Trutli 
 has been carried on up to the present time. 
 
 * See Chap. XIII.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 41 
 
 The followiug tables will furnisli the reader -with a short compen- 
 '-lium of the most important particulars mentioned in the preceding 
 imges. 
 
 AVelsh Bible. 
 
 I'^DITIOXS OF. 
 
 Ist, folio 
 
 '2nd, folio 
 
 3rd, 8vo 
 4th, 8vo 
 
 Sth, 8v() 
 
 6th, 8vo 
 
 7th, folio 
 
 8th, 8vo 
 
 9th, 8vo 
 
 10th, 8vo 
 
 nth, 8vo 
 12th, 8vo 
 
 When 
 Published. 
 
 By whose Ixstrumentalitt. 
 
 1588 
 
 1G20 
 
 10:30 
 
 1G.34 
 
 1G78 
 
 1690 
 
 1G90 
 
 1718 
 1727 
 
 174G 
 
 1752 
 1770 
 
 Bishop Morgan, of St. Asaph. 
 
 "He undertook and accomplished the 
 translation of the Scriptures solely 
 from patriotic and religious principle." 
 —Llyicelyn's '•'History of Welsh Bible,'' 
 p. 17. 
 Bishop Parry, of St. Asaph, aided by Dr. 
 John Davies, of Mallwyd. 
 
 "Parry was entirely a volvmteer in this 
 affair, induced to undertake it merely 
 from a consideration of the absolute 
 ■wants and necessities of the countrj'. 
 Many, if not most, of the churches were 
 without Bibles, and we may rest assured 
 there were none elsewhere ; yet no provi- 
 sion was made or like to be made, but for 
 the voluntary, but for the spontaneous 
 undertaking of this truly Protestant and 
 xevy venerable bishop. — Llyvselyn" 
 Rowland Heylin and Sir Thomas Myddleton, 
 
 two patriotic "Welshmen. 
 In the time of the Commonwealth, supposed 
 by Dr. Llj^'elyn to have originated with 
 Cromwell, who was of Welsh origin. Six 
 thousand copies. 
 Thomas Gouge, a pious and charitable Non- 
 conformist, of London. Eight thousand 
 copies. 
 Stephen Hughes,* a Dissenting minister, 
 patronized bj' Lord "VMiarton. Ten thou- 
 sand copies. 
 Bishop Lloyd, of St. Asaph (one of the seven 
 
 bishops). One thousand copies. 
 Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge. 
 
 Ten thousand copies. 
 Ditto. . At the instigation of Griffith Jones, 
 j and in consequence of the demand 
 Ditto. I created by his schools. (&c "Welsh 
 I Piety," vol. i. pp. 20, 25.) In all 
 Ditto, j thirty thousand copies. f 
 Ditto. At the Instigation of Dr. Llywehii, a 
 Dissenting minister. Twenty thousand 
 copies. 
 
 * See page 36. 
 
 t Thirty-five thousand.
 
 42 
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 Editions of. 
 
 "When 
 Published. 
 
 Br WHOSE Instrumentalitt. 
 
 13th, 8vo 
 
 14th) 
 
 15th J. folio 
 16th J 
 17th, folio 
 18th, folio 
 
 19th, folio 
 
 1789 
 
 At the end 
 of this 
 century. 
 
 Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge. 
 By the Rev. H. Parry and Mr. John 
 Thomas. 
 
 The Rev. Peter Williams, a Methodist clergy- 
 man, with notes. In the whole, about 
 twenty thousand copies. 
 
 Charles, a Methodist clergyman. 
 
 The Society for Promoting Christian Know- 
 ledge, at the instigation of a AVelsh clergy- 
 man, the Rev. T. Jones, curate of Creaton, 
 Northamptonshire. 
 
 The Bible Society, which was formed in con- 
 sequence of Mr. Jones failing to procure an 
 additional supply from the Society for Pro- 
 moting Christian KnoAvledge.* 
 
 Editions of the New Testament.! 
 
 Date. 
 
 Pauticulaus. 
 
 1551 
 
 1567 
 1647 
 
 1654 
 1672 
 1752 
 
 1779 
 1799 
 
 1800 
 1800 
 
 The Gospels and Epistles, from the translation of William Sales- 
 bury. 
 
 The whole of the New Testament. William Salesbury. 
 
 The New Testament, 12mo, without the contents of the chapters. 
 One thousand copies. 
 
 In larger type. One thousand copies. 
 
 With the Psalms in prose and verse. Tavo thoi;sand copies, 8vo. 
 
 With the Psalms. Two thousand copies, 8vo. A reprint of the 
 edition of 1672. 
 
 The New Testament only. 
 
 An edition printed at Oxford at the same time as that of the whole 
 Bible. Two thousand copies. 
 
 Another at Oxford. Number of copies not known. 
 
 Ten thousand copies of various sizes printed at Shrewsbury. 
 
 Inasmuch as Judge Jolmes and the " Gwyddoniadur " do not 
 agree in several particulars respecting the editions of the Bible after 
 1789, we shall here insert the list as given by the latter authority, 
 iind which seems on the whole more consistent. 
 
 * Given in Johnes's "Essay," p. 101. 
 
 + Culled from the " Gwyddoniadur," Art. 
 
 Beibl.'
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 43 
 
 Editions of the Bibt-e from 1789 (" Gwyddoniadur "). 
 
 Date. 
 
 PAKTICrLAItS. 
 
 1789 
 1770-1800 
 
 1790 
 1799 
 
 The Bible, folio, London. For the use of the churches. By 
 
 the S. P. C. K. 
 The Bible, 4to, with annotations on every chapter, by Peter 
 
 Williams, Caermarthen. Several editions. 
 The Bible, 12mo, with marginal references by John Canne. 
 The Bible, 8vo, ten thousand copies, Oxford, by the same 
 
 society, and under the care of Eev. J. Roberts. 
 
 Judge Jolines has, apparently, fallen into a few slight errors in 
 his enumeration of the editions of the Bible. That of 1789 he 
 describes as octavo when it ought to have been folio — the edition 
 intended for the chui'ches. The three editions of Peter Williams he 
 calls folio ; they were quarto ; and with regard to his seventeenth 
 number, there is no account of Mr. Charles having been directly 
 instrumental in procuring any edition before those he prepared 
 for the Bible Society. 
 
 Drawing a few general conclusions from the above lists and statis- 
 tics, and supplying the deficiency in the account by assigning a ver}^ 
 moderate average for the editions in which the exact number of copies 
 is not known, we find that about 156,000 copies of the whole Bible 
 and New Testament were distributed in the country during the 
 250 years preceding the formation of the Bible Society, or iMor to 
 the year 1800, for no edition appeared after that date until the first 
 issued by this society. Again, dividing this period into two unequal 
 portions of 150 and 100 years, we find that in the eighteenth cen- 
 tury, or the 100 years immediatel}^ preceding the formation of the 
 society, 116,000 copies were distributed; and in the 150 years 
 before that, 40,000. Dividing the 150 and the 100 years into 
 periods of twenty-five years each, and assuming the average popu- 
 lation of Wales during the 150 years to be 350,000, and during the 
 100 years, 400,000, it is found that one Bible or Testament was 
 distributed amongst every fifty of the population every twenty-five 
 years, during the 150 years after the first issue of the gosj)els and 
 epistles by William Salesbury, in 1551; whilst during the 100 
 years after, one copy for every fourteen of the population is the 
 average. We may further add that this estimate of the population 
 is no imaginary assumption, but has been deduced from the actual
 
 44 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF A\' ALES. 
 
 numbers fixed by statisticians for difierent i^eriods prior to tlie 
 first actual census made in 1801.* During the first fifty years of 
 the existence of the Bible Society, it is true that the country was 
 -supplied with about 1,000,000 copies of Bibles and Testaments 
 through the various agencies at work ; or one for every two of the 
 l^opulation every twenty-five years, and a copy for each man, woman, 
 iind child in fifty years ; but the proportion supplied during the two 
 former periods specified, is by no means contemptible, which plainly 
 shows that the coimtry was neither entirely neglected at that time, 
 nor always sunk into that state of ignorance and superstition too 
 often taken for granted to be the case. These various editions were 
 not pressed upon the country against its will, but in every instance 
 were sought as bread by the hungry, and very often a large edition 
 of twenty thousand copies would be disposed of as readily as one 
 of eight or ten thousand. There could not be this eagerness for the 
 supply apart from an ability to peruse them, which clearly i^roves 
 that there must have been some other agency at work teaching 
 the people to read the Divine word, and to understand its doctrines. 
 The consideration of this subject will occupy our attention in a 
 subsequent chapter, but before dismissing this branch of our inquiry, 
 it is worthy of note that whilst the high honour of having translated 
 the sacred volume into the Welsh tongue belongs to the clergy of 
 the Church of England, the zeal manifested in reproducing and 
 circulating it, has been the common characteristic of every denomi- 
 nation and party alike. 
 
 Literary Notes on the First Copies of the Welsh Versions 
 OF Scriptures. 
 
 Having made a personal inspection of some of the earliest copies 
 of the Welsh Testament and Bible in the library of the British 
 Museum, it is thought the following gleanings will not be uninter- 
 esting to the reader. 
 
 William Salesbury's Testament of 1567, is in quarto size, and 
 the copy is complete. It seems to have originally belonged to a 
 Mr. Matthew Skinner, sergeant-at-law, whose crest is on the cover, 
 bearing date 1735. Then it came to the possession of Mr. Eichard 
 Morris, of the Navy Office, who has his name written on the top of 
 title-page thus, Llyfr Rhisiart Morns or Nafi Offis, Llundain, 1761. 
 * See " The National Cyclopaedia," Art. "Census."
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 45 
 
 On the title-page, which, is a little ornamented, is a square woodcut 
 with the verse from John iii. c, all round the top, " And this is the 
 condemnation that light is come into the world, and men loved 
 darkness rather than light." Under it is a reference to Matthew 
 xiii. f, with a Welsh stanza exhorting to sell all and buy the pearl 
 of great price. The letters c and f after the chapters refer to the 
 page of the chapter in which the verse is found ; thus c is the third 
 page, and the verse in the present division is the nineteenth ; so f 
 is page six and the verse forty-four. From 2nd Timothy it is 
 divided into verses, but not before ; hence the page references. 
 
 There are different views respecting the meaning of the woodcut. 
 Some take it to illustrate Matthew xiii. 44, and that it rej)resents 
 people buying and selling. It looks more likely to illustrate John 
 iii. 19, for a very narrow jiart of the pictm-e is light, but the greater 
 proportion dark, and only a few transacting business in the former, 
 while the dark field is full. 
 
 In Dr. Morgan's Bible of 1588, the title-page is wanting, also two 
 leaves of calendar and one leaf of errata. On leaf seventy-three is^ 
 written the name of a former owner, thus : David XichoJs, his book, 
 etc., 1713. 
 
 The title-page of Dr. Morgan's Bible can, however, be seen in a 
 copy of Dr. Llewellj^n's history of Welsh versions, by G. Offor, 
 London. It is worth while calling attention to this interesting 
 copy, as it is the only one of its kind. The full title is, " An His- 
 torical Account of the British or Welsh Versions and Editions of the 
 Bible, etc. MS. notes by G. Offor. — Xote. Interleaved with cuttings 
 from Newspapers (catalogues, is meant), facsimiles, etc., with speci- 
 men of the ornaments and typography in the first portion of Sacred 
 Scriptures in the Welsh Language." 
 
 Dr. Llewellyn, on page seven, says that 2nd Epistle to Timothy 
 Avas translated by Dr. Davies. In this he is evidently -wTong, though 
 now followed by many; he no doubt intended 1st Epistle to Timothy. 
 So Offor is vrrong when he says on margin of his copy that the 
 Testament is divided into verses from 1st Timothy. It should be- 
 from 2nd. The catalogue of the Museum is further still at fault, 
 when it says that the Testament is not at all divided into verses. 
 Opix)site page six, the interleaved notes say that it was printed at 
 Frankfort, Cologne, or some city on the Ehine. How is this to be 
 reconciled with the copy's own statement, " Imprynted at London " ?
 
 46 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 Dr. Parry's folio Bible of 1620, and which can be looked upon as 
 the authorized version, still looks quite new. It is a splendid 
 copy, highly ornamental, and preserved in very strong and handsome 
 binding. 
 
 The excerpts from different catalogues pasted on Offer's copy of 
 Dr. Llewellyn's book, state that the Duke of Sussex's copy of Dr. 
 Morgan's Bible was sold for £59, and a copy of Salesbury's Testa- 
 ment was offered, in 1853, for £21. 
 
 The copy of Dr. Morgan's Bible in the library of the Dean and 
 Chapter at Westminster, which was presented by the translator 
 himself, is in excellent preservation. There is another copy in the 
 collection of the British and Foreign Bible Society in London. 
 
 The following extract from Mr. Oftbr's remarks in Dr. Llewellyn's 
 book is interesting, as showing what glaring errors some English 
 authors have from time to time propagated with regard to Welsh 
 subjects. It is found opposite page seven : 
 
 "First Edition of New Testament in Welsh. 
 
 " Few books have been so much neglected, and perhaps none so 
 ill-treated as this handsome and very interesting volume. The 
 epistle to the reader has never been published in English ; it is long 
 and may contain some curious information. The dedication to 
 Elizabeth is reprinted in the appendix to this book ; the original is 
 on two leaves, and on carefully collating it with this reprint, I have 
 corrected one hundred and forty-eight errors. Mr. Herbert, in the 
 ' Typograxihical Antiquities,' vol. ii. p. 934, gives a description of 
 the book and copy of the title in eight lines, and in these eight 
 lines has made sixteen errors." 
 
 Mr. Watson, in the "History of English Poetry," revised by 
 Ritson, Ashby, Douce, Park, and other eminent antiquaries, or by 
 the editor in 1824, has in every edition published a slanderous and 
 most unfounded reflection upon the translator ; this, although not 
 connected with poetry, has a place in the index and has been coi^ied 
 by Herbert : — 
 
 "I cannot help mentioning in this place a pleasant mistake of 
 Bishop Morgan, in his translation of the New Testament into Welsh, 
 printed 1567. He translates the vials of lurath in the Eevelations 
 by Orythaxi^ i.e. crouds, or fiddles, Rev. v. 8. The Greek is (piaXai.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 47 
 
 Now it is probable the bishop translated only from the English, 
 where he found vials which he took for vlohy It is very singular 
 that a work which displays indefatigable research, written by a D.D. 
 and revised by so many eminent antiquaries, should have published 
 a mis-statement so palpable. Kev. v. 8 does not refer to vials of 
 vrrath ; the words are " golden vials full of odours, which are the 
 prayers of the saints ; " this the learned bishop renders — " a phiohv 
 am' yn llawn o arogley, y rhein ydynt gweddie'r sainct." The word 
 vial or vials occurs twelve times in the Book of Revelation, and in 
 no other part of the New Testament. The pious translator uni- 
 iorraly translates it " phiol.'' 
 
 To this it might be added that it is quite incomprehensible why 
 such flagrant falsehoods should have been ever uttered. What a 
 number of blunders have been collected into so small a sj)ace ! 
 Mr. Offor has pointed out some. To these must be added, that 
 Bishop Morgan did not translate the Book of Revelation, but Thomas 
 Huet, Chancellor of St. David's. Besides, we find here the since oft- 
 repeated assumption broached, perhaps for the first time, that the 
 AVelsh version is only a translation of the English. Dr. Watson 
 must evidently have been drawing upon his imagination for every 
 l^articular in the extract.
 
 FACSIMILE OF TITLE-PAGE TO DK. JIOliGAN's T.IBLE. 
 
 (Reduced from folio, taken from an interleaved copy of Dr. Llewellyn's Welsh 
 Versions, by U. Offor.— British Museum.)
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALE?, 40 
 
 CHAPTEE III. 
 
 The Religious and Intellectual Condition of Wales from the 
 Reformation to the Rise of Sunday Schools — Spread of 
 General Literature. 
 
 This epoch almost coincident with the third period of Welsh literature — 
 Limits of the four periods— A brief survey of the first two— Thierry's 
 estimate of the literary qualities of the Welsh during the first two 
 periods — A more general survey of the third period — The first book 
 printed in the Welsh language — Others from the pen of William 
 Salesbury— Fuller's remarks on Salesbury's English-Welsh Dic- 
 tionary—Works by Griffith Roberts— The Grammars of the period — 
 Edmund Prys and his Metrical Version of the Psalms— Dr. Davies of 
 Mallwvd and his Grammar and Dictionaries of the language in Latin — 
 Rhys Prichard and "The Candle of the Welsh "—The works of 
 Morgan Llwyd of Wrexham—" The History of the Faith," by Charles 
 Edwards — JBooks produced during the years 1666-1784 — Henry 
 Richard's estimate of the intelligence of the people during the third 
 period — General characteristics of the fourth period up to the present 
 time. 
 
 The time comprised within the above limits very nearly coincides 
 with what is generally described as the third period of the history 
 of Welsh literature. The first is described as extending from the 
 earliest times to the Norman conquest in 1066 ; the second, from 
 that period to the Reformation ; the third from the Reformation to 
 the commencement of the reign of George III. in 1760, within 
 about twenty-four years to the establishment of Sunday Schools, 
 and the fourth from 1760 to the present time. 
 
 A very brief survey of the periods immediately preceding that 
 in which we are now more particularly interested, will show that 
 the Welsh were always a nation to which literature presented 
 peculiar charms. The Welsh Triads, and Mabinogion, though 
 published in a connected form during the second period, constituted,
 
 50 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 as it were, the unwritten lore of the people from time immemorial. 
 The former are maxims in triplets, each setting forth a historical 
 event, or a moral principle, of which there are extant several hun- 
 dreds ; the latter are tales of heroes, some real and some imaginary, 
 intended to be repeated at the fireside, to while away the time of 
 young chieftains. The earliest manuscripts extant belong to the 
 sixth century ; it is not improbable that many belonging to an 
 earlier date were wantonly destroyed in the manner described in 
 the preceding chapter. In the year 1801, the most valuable of the 
 Welsh manuscripts were collected from the libraries of colleges or 
 of private individuals, by Mr. Owen Jones, a furrier of London, and 
 published in three vols, octavo, at great expense, under the title of 
 " The Myvyrian Archaiology of Wales." The work was called 
 Myvyrian after Mr. Jones's native place, who also called himself 
 Owain Myvyr. He was assisted by two eminent Welsh scholars, 
 Dr. W. Owen Pughe and Edward Williams. 
 
 The earliest Welsh poet whose work is now extant, was Aneurin, 
 who is supposed to have flourished between 510 and 560 a.d. 
 His work is called " G-ododin," and is a poem describing the ad- 
 ventures of the Ottadini, a tribe of the Cymry, before their immi- 
 gration from Cumberland to Wales, where they afterwards settled. 
 The next in point of time were Taliesin Benbeirdd (The Prince of 
 Bards), from 520-570 ; Llywarch Hen, or Llywarch the old, from 
 550-640; Myrddin Wyllt (Merlin the wild), from 530-600; 
 Gwyddno, Gwilym ab Don, and Golyddan, author of Arymes 
 Prydyn Vawr (the great armed confederacy of Britain), in which 
 all the nations having a common cause with the Britons are invoked 
 to assemble together to resist the encroachments of the Saxons. 
 
 The prose compositions of the earliest period, still extant, are 
 the " Laws of Hy wel Dda " (King Howel the good), who died in 
 748, after a reign of forty years ; and the proverbs of Catwg Ddoeth 
 (Catog the wise), who flourished in the sixth century. King 
 Howel's laws were published in Wotton's " Leges Wallicae," in 
 1830, in the preparation of which Kev. Moses Williams Defynog 
 assisted the compiler ; and in 1841, by the Record Commission. 
 
 The Myvyrian Archaiology contains the compositions of no less 
 than fifty-nine poets, of the second period, who all, indeed, flour- 
 ished between 1120 and 1380. The most eminent of them are 
 Llywarch ab Llewellyn and Cynddelw Brydydd mawr (the great
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 51 
 
 iX)et) ; but the best known in later times is Davydd ab Gwilym, 
 called the Cambrian Petrarch, because he composed no less than 
 seven score and seven poems to Morfudd, a lady of high rank, to 
 whom he was attached. It is generally remarked that his style 
 has a great resemblance to that of the Scottish poet Burns. 
 
 The most eminent prose writers of the second period were 
 Caradoc of Llancarvan, a monkish chronicler, who wrote the history 
 of Wales from the year 1089, to his own death in 1156, afterwards 
 continued to 1196 ; and Grriffith ab Arthur, commonly called 
 Geoffrey of Monmouth, who was archdeacon of Monmouth, after- 
 wards Bishop of St. Asaph, the author of " Historia Britonum," 
 which has been a rich supply for many subsequent works of fiction. 
 The general devotion of the Welsh people to literature during 
 these two periods cannot be better expressed than in the words of 
 the French historian : — 
 
 " The ancient Britons lived and breathed in poetry : the ex- 
 pression may seem extravagant, but it is not so in reality, for in 
 their political maxims, preserved to our own times, they place the 
 poet musician beside the agriculturist and the artist, as one of the 
 three pillars of national existence (Trioedd Beirdd Ynys Prydain). 
 Their poets had but one theme : the destiny of their country, its 
 misfortunes, and its hopes. The nation, a poet in its turn, caught 
 up and adopted their fictions with earnest enthusiasm, giving the 
 wildest construction to their simplest expressions; that which in 
 the bard was merely a patriotic wish, became to the excited ima- 
 gination of the hearers a national promise ; his expectations were 
 for them prophecies ; his very silence was a confirmation of their 
 dreamiest speculations." * 
 
 With this brief resume, as an introduction, we intend to enter at 
 greater length upon the history of the productions of the third 
 PERIOD, which we have marked out as our special field. Three 
 influences w(?re evidently at work from the commencement of this 
 period, but gaining strength with the lapse of years, in changing 
 and nourishing the national taste. These were the Eeformation, 
 the discovery of the art of printing, and the incorporation of Wales 
 with England by an Act of Henry VIII., in 1536, through which 
 the people acquiesced in their political amalgamation with the 
 greater country. As a natural consequence, we find the Awen of 
 * Thierry's "Norma,n Conquest," vol. i. p. 53 (Boha's).
 
 52 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 the bards becoming comparatively dormant during this third period, 
 to break forth with a greater energy and in a sublimer strain in 
 the fourth, having no doubt profited from the more comprehensive 
 training afforded to the poets by the superior literature of the 
 post-Reformation period. It is not our intention, however, to deal 
 exhaustively with the subject, judging it more in harmony with 
 the object we have in view, to confine ourselves to those works 
 which carried the most direct influence in moulding the character 
 of the people. Those, however, who wish to pursue this subject 
 more minutely, will find every assistance in a work of immense 
 labour, entitled, " Cambrian Bibliography," * in which is given an 
 account of the books printed in the Welsh language, or relating to 
 Wales, from the year 1546 to the end of the eighteenth century, 
 with biographical notices, by the Rev. William Rowlands (Gwilym 
 Lleyn), edited and enlarged by the Rev. D. Silvan Evans, B.D., 
 rector of " Llan yn Mowddwy," Merioneth. A continuation of this 
 work is in course of preparation by the Cymmrodorion Society, 
 London. 
 
 As a matter of curiosity, it may be interesting to record, that 
 the first book printed in the Welsh language, was a kind of small 
 almanac, but very different in character from books of the same 
 class in the present day. The title-page reads thus : — " Bible. In 
 this Book is treated AVelsh Science — Calendar — The Creed or Points 
 of the Catholic Faith — The Paternoster, or Lord's Prayer — The 
 Ten Commandments — The Seven Virtues of the Church — The 
 Games in use, f etc. 4to. London, 1546." William Salesbury 
 seems to have been the author of the work, but Sir John Price, of 
 The Priory, Brecon, had a share in its production, as well as the 
 sole charge of the printing. The word " Bible," in large characters, 
 was put as the heading of its first page, in order to draw attention, 
 because the Bible was then very strange to Wales, and because it 
 contained the portions of Scripture mentioned in the title-page. 
 The next year, the same author published an English- Welsh Dic- 
 tionary, dedicated by permission to King Henry VIII. On the 
 title-page of this work, it is stated that it was "Imprynted at 
 
 * " Llyfryddiaeth y Cymry." 
 
 t The Welsh expression is, Y Kampay arveradwy. Silvan Evans, dif- 
 fering from Rowlands, maintains that it means, virtues to be practised, 
 like Gweddiau gocheladwy in same Bible, meaning prayers for deliverance.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 53 
 
 London in Foster Lane by me John Waley, 1547, cum privilegio 
 ad imprimendum solum." The quaint Thomas Fuller, in his 
 "Worthies," has made a lengthy reference to this book and its 
 author. In his characteristic, pithy and humorous style he says : — 
 
 " This gentleman, out of love to his native language, amorpatrice 
 ratione valentior omni (love of country is stronger than any argu- 
 ment), composed a short English and Welsh dictionary, first pri- 
 vately presented to and approved by King Henry the Eighth (being 
 a Tuthar {Tudor) by his father's side of Welch extraction), and 
 then publicly printed, Anno Domini 1547. Some captious spirits 
 will quarrel the usefulness thereof, seeing the Welch did not want, 
 and the English did not wish, a book of that nature. But let them 
 know that it is useful for both nations ; to the English for attaining, 
 to the Welch for retaining, that language. Attaining. For, being 
 an original tongue, an antiquary is lame without it (which I find 
 by my own defect) to understand the (few of many) remaining 
 monuments of that nation. Retaining. That tongue, as well as 
 others, by disuse being subject not only to corruption but oblivion, 
 by the confession of the natives of that country. Indeed, all dic- 
 tionaries of languages are very useful: words bringing matter to 
 the tongue, and, as Plato well observed, ovofxa ea-n opyauov SiSatr/ca- 
 KiKov (a name or a word is an instrument of instruction), and 
 ushereth knowledge into our understanding. However, seeing 
 nothing can be begun and finished at once, Salesbury's book (as 
 the first of this kind) did rather essay than effect the work, and 
 since then hath been completed by others." * 
 
 In the year 1550, another work emanated from the same pen, 
 entitled, " The overthrow of the Pope's High Altar, 8vo, London," 
 and also " An easy and plain Introduction to the Welsh Language," 
 a second and revised edition of which appeared in 1567. In the 
 year 1551, Salesbury also published " As many passages from 
 Scriptures as were read in churches at Communion time, on Sundays 
 and Feast Days throughout the year." This contained a translation 
 of the portions of the gospels and epistles which were used in the 
 service of the church. The same year was composed his " Rhe- 
 toric, or the Expounder of Wit." This was left after him in 
 manuscript, and at the request of his relative, John Salesbury, of 
 
 * Fuller's "Worthies of England" (Nuttall), vol. ill. p. 533. First 
 published in 1662.
 
 54 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 Lleweni, was revised and enlarged by the Rev. H. Perri B.D. It 
 was an excellent treatise, and was published as a quarto volume in 
 London. These books were all issued before the New Testament was 
 translated, and were no unworthy harbingers of the greater boon 
 which the indefatigable author had in store for his fellow-countrymen. 
 He received much support from Sir William Herbert, just created 
 Earl of Pembroke, and Sir John Price. It should be remembered 
 that the people generally were bound in the fetters of Popery, and 
 the Protestant zeal of Salesbury led him to judge rightly that their 
 enfranchisement could only be eifected by enlightening their in- 
 tellect. During the dark days of Queen Mary, his efforts in this 
 direction were entirely suspended, so far as they could be shown by 
 any outward manifestation. But no doubt he was qualifying him- 
 self in the interval for the crowning point of all his efforts — the 
 publication of his New Testament in 1567. 
 
 It is an ominous fact that the first books printed in the Welsh 
 language were of a useful and religious character. In this they differ 
 entirely from the earliest production of the press on English soil, 
 which was " The Game and Playe of the Chesse." Who knows but 
 the nation is indebted for its present undoubted religious literary 
 taste to the high religious tone infused into the first-fruits of the 
 vernacular press by one of the country's best benefactors, William 
 Salesbury ? 
 
 In the year 1567, a " Grammar of the Welsh Language " was 
 published at Milan, in Italy, by Dr. Griffith Roberts. Very little is 
 known of the author, except that he was brought up in a college at 
 Sienna, in Italy, through the liberality of Sir William Herbert, 
 Earl of Pembroke, and lord of Cardiff", to whom he dedicates his 
 work. This grammar is still extant, and shows that the author 
 was thoroughly conversant with the Welsh language, and able to 
 reduce the study of it to a complete and well-digested system. It 
 is the first grammar of the language. * 
 
 In the year 1584, there was published by the same author a 
 religious book, called "Y Drych Cristianogol " (The Christian 
 Mirror), " in which," as is further stated in the title page, " a man 
 may perceive the root and beginning of every spiritual good." This 
 was printed at Rouen, on the Seine, in France, and it is a curious 
 
 * The Traethodydd for .January, 1872, " Hen Lyfrauy Cymry," by Rev. 
 John Peters (loan Pedr), Bala.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 55 
 
 fact that two books intended for the Welsh people should have 
 been printed on the Continent. The publisher of the latter was 
 Mr. Roger Smyth, of the town of St. Asaph, near the town of 
 Denbigh ; but how he came to dwell at Rouen is, and as it seems 
 probable, must remain, a mystery. Both the author and the pub- 
 lisher have wiitten very interesting letters to the Welsh people to 
 introduce the book. The former proves himself an interesting 
 'vriter, as well as an accurate grammarian, and above all, he had 
 much at heart the spiritual welfare of his countrymen. * About 
 this time, also, several Latin and English works from the pen of a 
 Welshman, Dr. Humphrey Lloyd, of Denbigh, a noted antiquary, 
 ind Member of Parliament for Oxford, were published. He trans- 
 lated into English " The History of Wales, by Caradoc of Llan- 
 carvan," already mentioned as a work of the second period; and 
 Dr. David Powell, of Rhiwabon, himself also an antiquarian, in 
 the year 1584, published it, with explanatory notes of his own. 
 This seems to have been an age of grammars. In the year 1592, a 
 "Grammar of the Welsh language, and of the Principles of Ac- 
 centuation," was published in London in a folio volume, by Dr. John 
 David Rhys, who, like Dr. GrifiBth Roberts, after finishing a course 
 of study in Oxford, went to the University of Sienna, in Italy, to 
 study medicine. He was so conversant with the Italian tongue 
 that he was elected president of the school of Pistria, in Tuscany, 
 and left behind him a treatise on the orthography and pronunciation 
 of that language. His work on the Welsh language is a lasting 
 monument of his wonderful talent and unsparing labour. The 
 title is " Camhrohrytannicoe Cymrcecaeve Linguce Institutiones et 
 Budimenta." The next year, 1593, Captain William Myddleton 
 (Grwilym Canoldref), a commander in Queen Elizabeth's navy, and 
 an able poet, published a grammar and an explanation of Welsh 
 metre and poetry. Soon after, he undertook a strange work for a 
 naval commander, rocked in the cradle of the deep, often engaged 
 in hot skirmishes with the Spaniards, and interrupted by the noisy 
 duties of a seafaring life, viz. the turning of the Psalms of David 
 into Welsh metre. He chose also the straitest of the Muse's 
 shackles — what is known as the pedwar-mesur ar-hugain (the 
 twenty-four metres). In a note f appended to the last psalm, he 
 
 * Traethodydd, January, 1872, Ibid. 
 
 t The note is in Latin, and reads, "Apud Scutum Insulam Occidantalium
 
 56 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 says that he finished the work on the 24th of January, 1595, off 
 an island in the West Indies. The book was published in 1603, 
 and a reprint issued in 1827. Though much esteemed as a linguistic 
 monument, it never came into general use, and that chiefly, 
 no doubt, because the metres he chose were not adapted for con- 
 gregational singing. In the year 1593, Morris Kyffin translated 
 the " Defence of the Church of England," by Bishop Jewel, which 
 may be reckoned as the last issue of the sixteenth century. Though 
 the principles of the Reformation were only just beginning to be 
 generally recognized in Wales during the last thirty years of the 
 century, a great deal was accomplished in that short time, especially 
 in connection with the translation of Scriptures ; and the fact that 
 as many as fifteen works were printed in the language during this 
 short interval, shows that the intellectual activity of the country 
 was beginning to be effectually awakened. 
 
 Another metrical version of the Psalms appeared in the early part 
 of the seventeenth century, which, for many simple reasons, was 
 destined to become more widely used than that of Captain William 
 Myddleton. In fact it became very soon, and has so conliuued unto 
 this day, the best known work in the language. The author of 
 this was 
 
 Eev. Edmund Prys. 
 
 This able poet and linguist was born at a farm called Gerddi 
 bluog, in the parish of Llandecwyn, in the county of Merioneth, in 
 the year 1541. He was educated at Cambridge, where he graduated 
 M. A., and having received priest's orders, was appointed to the living 
 of Festiniog, with which Maentwrog is joined. In the year 1570, 
 he became also the archdeacon of Merioneth. It is said that he 
 was conversant with eight languages. He deserves a respected 
 memory for the assistance he rendered Dr. Morgan in the transla- 
 tion of the Old Testament, very probably taking up the psalms ; 
 but the nation is under a greater obligation to him for the excellent 
 metrical version with which his name is inseparably connected. He 
 had several advantages over his competitor, Myddleton. Living 
 amidst the wilds of Merioneth, everything was favourable for medita- 
 tion and worship. The metre he chose, too, was far more simple, 
 
 Indorum finitum erat hoc opus vicesimo Januario quarto Anno salutis 
 nostrae, 1595."
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 57 
 
 probably an invention of his own, and is now known by the name 
 of Mesur Salm (psalm metre). It is said that he was accustomed 
 to prepare a psalm against every Sunday until he went through the 
 whole book, and that thus every one had been publicly sung before 
 being published for the benefit of the country generally. There are 
 evident marks throughout of the authors acquaintance with the 
 original Hebrew, and although most of his stanzas are patterns of 
 smooth and expressive rhythm, some, from his too great anxiety to 
 adhere to the text, are somewhat stiff and unmelodious. He com- 
 posed some scores of " odes " on different subjects, but many of these 
 are unworthy of such an illustrious parentage, being mere literary 
 squabbles between him and a neighbouring bard of the name of 
 William Cynwal. He died about the year 1624, in the eighty-third 
 year of his age, and was buried in the churchyard of Maentwrog, 
 with no indication to mark his final resting-place. His motto was, 
 " Mbr aniuyl yw 3Ieirionydd^' (How dear is Merioneth). The first 
 publication of his metrical version was in connection with the 
 popular edition of the Bible in 1630. It afterwards appeared as a 
 separate volume in 1648, but the most usual form has always been 
 as an appendix to the Bible. 
 
 Another author of this period, whose fame has long outlived his 
 own immediate days, because he served his country well, both by 
 the part he took in the translation of the Scriptures and by enrich- 
 ing its literature generally, was 
 
 De. John Davies of Mallwyd. 
 He was the son of Davydd ab Sion ab Rhys, a weaver by trade, and 
 was born in the parish of Llanferras, Denbighshire, about the year 
 1570. Weaving was held in higher reputation in those days than it 
 is now, and his father may have been in pretty good circumstances, 
 a surmise which is confirmed by the fact of the son having received 
 a liberal education from his youth. His biographers do not agree 
 as to the time he entered a grammar school, though they all agree 
 as to the place — Ruthin. The " Cambrian Plutarch " maintains it 
 was at Dr. Gabriel Goodman's school, but another authority, "Enwo- 
 gionCymru" (The worthies of Wales), proves that to have been im- 
 possible; for Dr. Davies had completed his academical course at 
 Jesus College, Oxfurd, and had returned to his own country, in 
 1592, three years before Dr. Goodman established the school which
 
 58 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 is called after his name. The " Cambrian Plutarch " also asserts 
 that his tutor at Ruthin was Dr. Richard Parry, afterwards Bishop 
 of St. Asaph. To reconcile these statements it is supposed that Dr. 
 Parry may have opened a private school at Ruthin, near his home, and 
 that thus the intimacy arose between them which lasted through 
 all their lifetime. They married two sisters, and later on many 
 preferments came to Davies' lot, apparently through the bishop's 
 influence. Before Dr. Parry's elevation to the see of St. Asaph, he had 
 been presented by the Crown to the living of Mallwyd, Merioneth, 
 though this was ten years after he had first taken his priest's ordina- 
 tion ; but after this, his honours fell heavily, though not fast, upon 
 him. In 1608, he returned for some time, it is not known how 
 long, to Lincoln College, Oxford. After his next settlement in 
 Wales, he was made Canon of St. Asaph in 1612, and the following 
 years he obtained the livings of Llanymawddwy, Darowain, Llan- 
 fair, and Llannefydd, which placed him in affluent circumstances. 
 In the year 1616, he received his diploma of S.T.P. from Lincoln 
 College. 
 
 The works with which his name is now chiefly'associated are 
 a " Grammar of the Welsh Language," in Latin, published in 1621, 
 a work of standard value, and a " Welsh and Latin Dictionary," 
 published in 1632, which was the great undertaking of his life. 
 A gentleman of the name of Thomas ab William, or Sir Thomas 
 Williams, a physician of Trefriw, near Llanrwst, had left behind 
 him in manuscript a Latin and Welsh Dictionary. Dr. Davis 
 undertook to revise and enlarge this, adding to it a counterpart 
 from Welsh to Latin. This work occupied the leisure hours of 
 nearly forty years of his life. Inasmuch as the great bulk of the 
 theological works of that time were written in Latin, this Dictionary 
 proved a great boon to the preachers of the Principality for many 
 years after. He also translated into Welsh " The Thirty-nine 
 Articles " of the Church of England, and Parson's " Christian 
 Exercises." He left behind him a manuscript volume of 800 pages, 
 containing odes, songs and stanzas, copied with marginal notes 
 of his own from some rare works, and which after his death was 
 published by lago ab Dewi of Pencadair. 
 
 There is no doubt that he had some share in Dr. Morgan and Dr. 
 Parry's editions of the Bible — less, possibly, in the former than the 
 latter. In his preface to the Welsh grammar which was dedicated
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 59 
 
 to Dr. Parry, he says that " he spent much time, for more than 
 thirty years, to study the language of his country, and that he had 
 a hand in the translation of the two editions of the Bible into it." 
 He was an indefatigable worker, to whom literary labour seems to 
 have been a delight. With regard to the preparation of his Grrammar 
 and Dictionary, he further remarks, " I used to return from this 
 light labour (as he looked upon it) with greater zeal and redoubled 
 attention and diligence to my other important duties, of preaching 
 the gospel and translating the Scriptures into Welsh." 
 
 He died in 1644, at the age of seventy-four, and was buried in 
 the chancel of Mallwyd church. A Latin inscription to the following 
 effect] was placed over his grave : " John Davis, S.T.P., Rector of 
 the Parish Church of Mallwyd, who died on the 15th day of May, 
 and was buried on the 19th, a.d. 1644, more to commemorate his 
 virtues than his name." This latter phrase refers to his general cha- 
 racter, for he was remarkable for his kind disposition, his public 
 benefactions, and his alms to the poor. 
 
 In the year 1630, " 'Jhe Practice of Piety, directing a Christian 
 how to walk that he may please God," was translated into Welsh 
 by Mr. Rowland Vychan of Caergai, near Bala, and published in 
 London. The translator was a sheriff of Merioneth, in 1044. The 
 author of this treatise was born at Caermarthen, and educated at 
 Exeter College, Oxford. He was made Bishop of Bangor on the 
 death of Dr. Rowland in 1616. His book was so popular with the 
 English that by the year 1734 it had reached its fifty-ninth edition. 
 It soon reached in Wales, too, a number of editions far above the 
 average books of the period, under the title of " Llyfr Yr Ymarfer o 
 Dduwioldeb." The publication of the first edition was undertaken 
 at the expense of Alderman Heylin, who, as already mentioned, 
 was the chief mover in securing for his country what has been very 
 properly called, the first People's Bible. Mr. Vychan translated 
 two other books from the English, viz. " A Handbook of Prayer,'* 
 and " A Defence from the Plague of Schism." 
 
 The book, however, which next to the Bible was the most 
 popular with the Welsh, and which next to it exerted the greatest 
 influence in forming their morals, was " Canwyll y Cymry " (The 
 Candle of the Welsh), by
 
 60 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 The Key. Ehys Prichakd. 
 
 No one who takes any interest in Welsh literature, or in the social 
 and intellectual progress of the people, ought to be ignorant of its 
 illustrious author. Khys Prichard was born in the town of Llan- 
 dovery, Caermarthenshire, in the year 1579, which was the thirty- 
 first year of the reign of Elizabeth. He was descended from a 
 respectable and rich family in the neighbourhood. His father's 
 name, according to the old Welsh style of surnaming, was Dafydd 
 ap Khisiart ap Dafydd ap Khys ap Dafydd. There is not much 
 to be reported of the son in his younger days, but the tradition that 
 he was addicted to intemperate habits. In this he followed the 
 example of low companions, but was turned from his evil ways 
 through the instrumentality of a he-goat. The goat, it is said, was 
 accustomed to follow him wherever he went, and so, used to ac- 
 company him to the public houses. Once he or his irregular asso- 
 ciates gave the goat some ale to drink until it was intoxicated, but 
 after that event he could never induce the goat to follow him to 
 the tavern or to taste a drop of the intoxicating drink. Noticing 
 the temperate habits of the goat, says the story, its owner was 
 convinced of his own lawlessness ; and this conviction was so far 
 intensified that he not only renounced his reprobate habits, and 
 forsook his companions, but also consecrated himself to the ser- 
 vices of his Lord, as a new creature in Christ Jesus. 
 
 Having been brought up at Oxford, he was ordained priest with a 
 view to the curacy of Wiltham, or Wytham, in Essex, 25th April, 
 1602. On the 6th of August following, he was appointed by Dr. 
 Anthony Rudd, Bishop of St. David's, to the vicarage of Llandingad, 
 connected with which is the parochial chapel of Llanfair-ar-y-bryn. 
 Llandovery is a town in the parish of Llandingad, from which he 
 came to be generally known as "The Vicar of Llandovery." Thus Mr. 
 Prichard was inducted into his native parish, and to the midst of his 
 own property. In 1613, he was chosen a chaplain to Robert, Earl of 
 Essex, who was a nephew to Sir George Devereux, Llwyn-y-brain, 
 near Llandovery ; and as this peer's chaplain he was enabled to 
 receive the rectorship of Llanedi, Caermarthenshire, which was given 
 him by King James I. In 1614, he was presented to a prebend in 
 the collegiate church of Brecon. In 1626, he was made also a 
 chancellor of St. David's, with which ofiice the rectory of Llan-
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 61 
 
 hauaden is joined. We find that Mr. Pricliard was favoured with 
 considerable rations of church livings and preferments, and this 
 while he was still young. He was friendly with many gentlemen 
 of note and position, and rich himself ; but it is certain he never 
 flattered to the great for the sake of promotion, though his influen- 
 tial frends most probably exerted their power in his favour. It is 
 natural to conclude that it was impossible for one of Mr. Prichard's 
 talents not to draw the attention of his ecclesiastical superiors, as 
 there were at that time but few clergymen in Wales possessing 
 
 T yEVADD, LLANDOVERY, FORMERLY THE RESIDENCE OF VICAR PRICHARD. 
 
 suitable ministerial qualifications, as regards piety, learning, or 
 genius. 
 
 Tradition describes the Yicar as of a short, well-built bodily 
 frame, and that he wore a moustache, with a long flowing beard, 
 according to the fashion of the ancient druids. His voice was very 
 melodious, and his countenance full of vivacity when in the pulpit.
 
 62 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 He delivered his sermons in a fiery and convincing style, showing 
 that his spirit was full of zeal for the eternal welfare of his hearers. 
 But notwithstanding his powerful and praiseworthy ministrations, 
 it appears that his exertions were ineffectual to reform and save 
 the inhabitants of his native town. In one of his songs he proclaims 
 " Mene tecel " above the town of Llandovery. In Llanedi, however, 
 his ministry was more acceptable and successful. When the Vicar 
 came there, he always drew together large congregations, and often 
 would he be compelled to withdraw to the graveyard to preach, 
 because the church was too small to contain the multitudes who 
 flocked to hear him. It was the same also in the cathedral church 
 of St. David's ; no preacher who came there approached him in 
 popularity. Many strangers from great distances attended there, 
 until the large church became too small, and it was necessary to 
 furnish him with a movable pulpit in the churchyard. 
 
 But his popularity was an eye-sore to some jealous people, and 
 his pungent sermons intolerable to worldly-wise hearers. They 
 found in him too much of what was described in later times, Methq- 
 distical ; and they took advantage of the fact that he thus preached 
 in graveyards, to complain against him in the Ecclesiastical Court. 
 
 In one of his songs or cantos he refers to this under the heading 
 " A prayer in great straits." They endeavoured to fetter, if not 
 entirely to stop, his much-needed ministry. In this they were 
 happily disappointed, for we find him next writing another song 
 called, "Thanksgiving for a deliverance from the hands of enemies." 
 
 Not long after his appointment to the vicarage of Llandingad, or 
 Llandovery, Mr. Prichard married. The issue of this was one son, 
 called Samuel. He hoped great things from Samuel, and wrote 
 much in song by way of teaching and affectionately warning him. 
 His future, however, turned out sad and disastrous. He became 
 friendly with a magnate of a neighbouring district. Sir Francis 
 Lloyd, Maesyfelin, near Llanpeter pont Stephen, who wholly gave 
 himself up to the direst corruptions of his age. In a drunken 
 scuffle with this gentleman, arising, it is said, from jealousy in love, 
 Samuel Prichard was suffocated between two feather beds, and his 
 body thrown into the river Tywi, in such a way as to lead his 
 fi-iends to believe that he had fallen there from his horse in 
 returning home, and so drowned. This also is commemorated in 
 one of his pieces.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 63 
 
 Nothing has been recorded respecting the Vicar's last days ; but 
 his death is said to have taken place about the end of the year 
 1644, in the sixty-fifth year of his age. He was buried in the church 
 of Llandingad. Neither monument nor stone marks the place of his 
 rest, possibly because it is thought that his " Canwyll y Cymry " 
 is sufficiently noted to immortalize his name. 
 
 Mr. Prichard, in his last will, left eleven fields near the church of 
 Llandingad towards building and supporting a free school at 
 Llandovery. But after four masters had successively superintended 
 the school, and received the rent of the land, the charity was sus- 
 pended by Mr. Thomas Mainwaring, son of Roger Mainwaring, 
 formerly Bishop of St. David's, who had married Elizabeth, the only 
 daughter of Samuel, the Vicar's son. This Mainwaring took 
 possession of the land, under the excuse that he would pay the 
 schoolmasters in money, which he did for a year or two, and then 
 withheld all, so that a school was no longer held there. Ere long a 
 large flood in the river Tywi, which ran close by, swept away the 
 school building, so that not a vestige of it was left. 
 
 It appears that Mr. Prichard was impelled to become a poet 
 more by Christian zeal than poetic inspiration. Commiserating the 
 ignorance and corrupt state of the people, he began to think what 
 more he could do to instruct and improve them. He knew that 
 but few could attend at his own church, and he had an aspiration 
 to influence the whole nation. In most parishes the people cared 
 not to hear sermons, and even his own hearers soon forgot his 
 remarks and lived at variance with his counsels. In his meditations, 
 his attention was arrested by the thought that the Welsh were 
 noted for their partiality to ballads and ballad singing. " Very well," 
 said the pious Vicar, " that shall be my plan ; I will give them 
 religious instruction through the medium of songs." As George 
 Herbert noticed in his days : — 
 
 " A verse may find him, who a sermon flies, 
 And turn delight into a sacrifice." 
 
 This was the origin of " Canwyll y Cymry." He searched for 
 the simplest metre and plainest words possible, in order to meet 
 the intelligence of the masses. He had observed that they made 
 hardly any use of the excellent metrical version of the Psalms by 
 Captain William Myddleton (or Gwilym Canoldref), published by
 
 64 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 Mr, Thomas Salesbury, already referred to, because of its somewhat 
 ingenious alliterations, and therefore he did not hesitate to make 
 use of the commonest word, or a comparatively vulgar expression, 
 if thereby he could better arrest the attention of his readers. In 
 this he wonderfully succeeded. By the year 1766, it had reached 
 its thirteenth edition. The publisher of that edition, writing about 
 the good effects of the book, says, " It has been the most effectual 
 means (except the Holy Bible itself) to bring many to the right 
 way, and to forsake their sins and transgressions." Often would 
 the devotional patriarch of his family, on long winter evenings, 
 read " The Complaint and Counsel of Dives," so as to produce 
 weeping and impressive sobbing all around. In church gatherings 
 or " experience societies," as they were called, it was not uncommon 
 to hear several, in reporting their religious progress, mentioning 
 some portion of the Vicar's book, as having clung to their thoughts. 
 Poor old women in going about to beg would introduce themselves 
 with the pieces of the book which best suited their case, and if 
 refused, they drew from the same store, the woe it contains upon 
 the miser and merciless. 
 
 Dark and dismal in the extreme was the state of the country 
 when this candle began to exert its beneficial influence. From 
 references throughout the book, we find that the clergy almost 
 universally neglected their duty. Most not only could not preach, 
 but could not even read with fluency. Injustice and oppression 
 almost crushed the people. Law Courts had become proverbially 
 venal. Sabbath breaking was rampant, as it could hardly be 
 otherwise, since in 1617, James I., and in 1633, Charles I., ordered 
 " The Book of Sports " to be read in churches after the service. 
 Drunkenness and all its attendant sins pervaded all classes — gentry, 
 clergy, and commonalty. Superstition was the order of the day ; 
 conjurers were held in great repute ; soothsaying and enchantment 
 were universally practised. Great, therefore, must have been the 
 influence exerted by this unpretentious production, so as to bring 
 about the effects described by the publisher of the edition of 1766. 
 The edition of the Welsh Bible in a small size, published in 1630, 
 by Sir Thomas Myddleton and Mr. Rowland Heylin, gave great joy 
 to the Vicar. This inspired him to compose one of his best cantos, 
 " An advice to hear and read God's Word." He exhorts his fellow- 
 countrymen in a lively and pathetic style to magnify their privilege
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 05 
 
 by purcliasing and reading it, since it was to be had now for a 
 crown. 
 
 It is a noteworthy fact that the two poets whose works have 
 
 been best known in Wales, and which have produced the most 
 
 beneficial effects on the morals and religion of the country, were from 
 
 the neighbourhood of Llandovery. The one, Yicar Prichard, was 
 
 the prince of moral and religious poetry of the seventeenth century ; 
 
 the other, William AVilliams, of Pantycelyn, a farmhouse not 
 
 flu- from the tovm, and whose mortal remains lie in the churchyard 
 
 of Llanfair ar y bryn, above the town, was the facile jprince2')s of the 
 
 eighteenth century, and indeed hitherto of all time. The writer who 
 
 lias supplied us with most of the above facts thus ably compares 
 
 and contrasts the two: — " Prichard was a planet shining in the night; 
 
 Williams was the morning star of the revival. The former was like 
 
 the brook in the desert, reviving the traveller amidst the arid 
 
 wastes of the wilderness ; the latter like the river Thames, the glory 
 
 of the metropolis, and conveying to the citizens treasures from all 
 
 parts. The first traverses the country from Dan to Beersheba, to 
 
 teach Israel and Judah the laws of the Lord ; the second almost 
 
 wholly occupies the hill of Calvary, to adore, to praise, and manifest 
 
 the great things done there. Prichard is a general labourer, engaged 
 
 in every w^ork around the palace of the great King, while Williams 
 
 occupies the head of the table to supply the children with the feast. 
 
 The old Vicar is the poet of the understanding and conscience, but 
 
 the old Methodist of Pantycelyn is the X)oet of the affections and 
 
 the will. One is our family bard, to amuse and instruct us on the 
 
 hearth ; the other is our sacred poet, enabling us to pour out our 
 
 most consecrated feelings in the sanctuary. Eternal regard be to 
 
 their memory." * The latter remark explains (together with the fact 
 
 that the Vicar's songs are not suitable for sacred music) why 
 
 Williams's works are now better known than ever, while " Canwyll 
 
 y Cymry " is almost forgotten. 
 
 Judge Johnes, speaking of the veneration felt in Wales for the 
 memory of Vicar Prichard, says that it " is mainly attributable to 
 a small volume of poems, which are not a little remarkable as a 
 summary of Christian doctrine and duty, at once simple, poetical, 
 and concise. No book, except the Bible, has been there so much 
 
 * Traethodydd for 1846, pp. 134-155 ; and Trvsorfa Ysprydol, vol. i. 
 pp. 321-326.
 
 »)6 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 and so entlmsiastically studied ; its author may justly be styled 
 the Watts of Wales ; and notwithstanding the unhappy divisions 
 that have since his day distracted her, the undiminished popularity 
 of this little book proves that there is even yet no schism in the 
 Principality as far as the ' Divine Poems ' of ' Vicar Prichard ' 
 are concerned. I can hardly hope that the following imperfect 
 translations will convey anything like a just conception of his 
 bardic merits, though they may perhaps afford some slight idea of 
 the peculiarities of his style. 
 
 "(JWEDDI FOREUOL. MORNING PRAYER. 
 
 At dawn, when first thy slumber flies, 
 Raise to the Lord of Hosts thine eyes ; 
 To him who watched, and gave, and blest, 
 Thy hours of helplessness and rest, 
 Oh ! give the first fruits of thy heart. 
 The first fruits of thy mind and tongue ; 
 For, second thoughts are not the part 
 Of Him to whom all hearts belong ! 
 
 " And two other stanzas. 
 
 "CYNGHOR PR MILWR. COUNSEL TO THE SOLDIER. 
 Before thou wendest to the fraj' 
 (For King and country) — Soldier ! pray 
 The Lord of Hosts to give thee heart 
 And strength to act a warrior's part. 
 
 In danger, prayer shall more avail 
 
 To him who shares the deadly strife. 
 
 Than mail to guard when foes assail, 
 
 Or brand to take the foeman's life. Etc., etc. 
 
 " In almost every cottage where the Scriptures were to be found, 
 the Vicar's little volume occupied a place beside them. It became 
 ii class-book in every school, and its most striking passages passed 
 into proverbs among the peasantry." * 
 
 The only remark, in the above very just estimate of Vicar 
 Prichard's character and peculiarity, likely to mislead, is to call 
 him the "Watts of Wales." The metre into which he has thought 
 it proper to render the original stanzas, surely tends to confirm the 
 appositeness of this epithet ; but this evidently is the weakest 
 point of the version. If he had adhered to the same metre as the 
 
 ■'' Johnes's Essay, pp. 16, 17.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OK WALES. 07 
 
 original, it would Iiave been at once apparent that he had hardly 
 anything in coramon with Watts, except his piety and generosity. 
 Watts's stanzas were hymns adapted to be sung in public worship, 
 but the Vicar's compositions were never sung even on the hearth. 
 The metre was a Trochaic fom- feet, a specimen of which has already 
 been given.* Though not adapted for singing, the comparative 
 shortness of the lines, the plainness of the language, the quaintness 
 < )f the style, as well as the witticism of many of the expressions, 
 made a ready and lasting impression on the memory. The author 
 during his lifetime does not appear to have printed more than two 
 cantos of the work, but a complete edition was published a year 
 after his death, in 1645, by the Eev. Stephen Hughes, and a second 
 edition by the same hand in 1672, to which reference has already 
 been made. The latest, if not the best, edition of "Canwyll y 
 Cymry" was published at Llandovery, in 1841, containing ex- 
 ]3lanatory notes and a biography of the author, by the Rev. Rice 
 Rees, B.D. This reached a third reissue in 1867. 
 
 Another worthy author of this period, who indeed exerted a most 
 beneficent influence on his countrymen, both by his spoken and 
 written word, was the Rev. Morgan Llwyd, of Wrexham. He was 
 born at Cynfal, in the parish of Maentwrog, Merioneth. Having 
 been led to Wrexham, about the year 1632, when the Rev. Walter 
 Cradoc was curate there, either to attend school or to follow some 
 trade or profession, he was converted to Christ, as he says, 
 through his powerful and pointed ministry. Mr. Cradoc, as we 
 lihall have occasion to observe again, was obliged to leave the 
 Church of England. In consequence of this, he became the 
 pastor of one of the earliest independent churches in North Wales, 
 in the very same town, Wrexham. On his giving up his charge 
 here, Mr. Morgan Llwyd was elected to be his successor, where he 
 laboured with earnestness and success until his death in 1659. He 
 is described as a man of strong intellect, deep in his meditations, 
 and of simple piety. He published several works, the most 
 important being " Llyfr y Tri aderyn " (The book of the tln-ee 
 birds), " Cyfarwyddyd i'r Cymry " " (Instruction for the Welsh), 
 -and " Gair o'r Gair " (A Word from the Word). Of these three, 
 the most popular was the first, being written in the style of a con- 
 versation between the eagle, the dove, and the vulture. It has 
 * See page 32.
 
 68 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 been tliouglit that the eagle represented Cromwell ; the dove, the 
 iS'onconformists ; and the vulture, the Established Church. But un- 
 doubtedly the book has a meaning within a meaning, and though, 
 the characters have, perhaps, an immediate reference to the above- 
 mentioned parties, the dove, beyond representing the Noncon- 
 formists, is intended to describe the true Christian of every age ; 
 the vulture represents the enemies of the truth, and persecutors of 
 spiritual religion ; while the eagle, in his regal attitude, represents 
 the conscientious, impartial man, mediating between the contending 
 parties. The author proves himself a profound thinker, a fearless 
 denouncer of hypocrisy and error, as well as a perfect master of the 
 somewhat difficult style of composition which he has adopted. It 
 is well w^orthy of remark that the original productions of this 
 period far surpass the translated works in intrinsic merit, and 
 especially in their adaptability to the w^ants of the age. 
 
 In the year 1666,t appeared another of these able original works, 
 entitled, " Hanes y Ffydd " (The History of the Faith ), in sub- 
 sequent editions developed into " Hanes a Ehinwedd y Ffydd 
 Gristianogol " (The History and Virtue of the Christian Faith). 
 The author's name is Charles Edwards, and, strange to say, this is 
 almost all that is known for certainty respecting him. It is 
 generally agreed, however, that he was born at Ehyd y Croesau, in 
 the parish of Llansilin, Denbighshire. Some think he was a 
 clergyman ; but the only fact wdiich can be authoritatively stated 
 is, that he was at least a member of the Church of England of the 
 same type and spirit as Leighton and Gurnal. Besides his own 
 great work, he published in 1671, a new edition of Bishop Jewel's 
 " Defence of the Church of England," first published in 1595, as 
 already described; and in the year 1675, he corrected the proofs 
 of a work, entitled, " Christian Instructions, showing, hoAv to walk 
 with God all the day," by the Bev. Thomas Gouge, but translated 
 into Welsh by Mr. Richard Jones, of Denbigh. Mr. Charles 
 Edwards wrote a short address at the end of the book, in which 
 he mentions that Mr. Gouge was printing 3500 of these books tc*- 
 be distributed gratis among the "Welsh. When dilating on the 
 fact that it was an Englishman who was .then benefiting Wales, 
 
 * "Traethodau Llenvddol," Dr. Edwards, p. 140. 
 
 t Traethodvdd for 1872, " lien Lvfrau v Cvmrv," bv loan Pedr.. 
 p. 101.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. iVJ 
 
 "he remarks, that if auy one in the days of Owen Glyndwr had 
 ventured to say that the people whom he contended against would 
 be their best friends ere long, it would have been as incredible to 
 them as Samson's riddle was inexplicable to the Philistine youth — 
 *' Out of the eater came forth meat, and out of the strong came 
 forth sweetness." 
 
 His own work on the Christian faith contains a history of the 
 ■Christian Church in different countries, and more especially among 
 the Welsh, with an inquiry into the external and internal evidences 
 <?i Christianity. He "wi-ites in an easy, readable style, and his 
 liappy use of metaphor and illustrations sho\\s that he was con- 
 versant with all the sciences and arts of the time, and a keen 
 observer of natural phenomena. This work reached its sixth 
 <3dition in 1822. The first edition, as already mentioned, appeared 
 Jn 1666 ; the second in London, in 1671 ; the third in Oxford, in 
 1677 ; the fourth in Shrewsbury, by John Eogers, in 1722 ; the 
 *ifth at Dolgelley, by Kichard Jones, in 1811 ; and the sixth also at 
 3^olgelley, in 1822, under the superintendence of Dr. Williams, of 
 Llanbedrog, near Pwllheli. 
 
 We have now brought our review of the spread of general 
 literature among the Welsh to the end of what may be described 
 4is the most sterile portion of the period anterior to the establish- 
 ment of Sunday Schools. Compared with the multitude of books 
 ■of all kinds issuing from the press of the present day, and the 
 immense quantity of newspaper literature circulating in the coun- 
 try, the appearance of works during that period was " like angels' 
 visits, few and far between." It must be remembered, however, 
 that facts and figures have a different meaning, relatively speaking, 
 at that time, from what they have now. The issuing of a book 
 then was never intended to create a demand for it. In days of such 
 uncertain reception, the demand must have existed before the work 
 was ever prepared. When we take into consideration the expense 
 at which books were then produced, the slow mode of transit, and 
 the jDaucity of agencies for their distribution, a higher value and 
 an enlarged meaning must be given to what appear absolutely but 
 feeble efforts. 
 
 Without entering minutely upon the history of the literature 
 •of the years 1666-1784, it will suifice for us to state that as we 
 have found the Bible to be oftener x^ublished during those years.
 
 70 THE SU^'DAY SCHOOLS Ol" WALES. 
 
 SO al«o other books became more general, both by the issuing of 
 first editions, and a reissue of those which were ah'eady in circula- 
 tion. It is said that in the latter half of the seventeenth century 
 above sixty new books were published, besides new editions of 
 works previously issued. Perhaps the most remarkable prose work 
 of this interval, both for originality of conception and complete- 
 ness of execution, was " Y Bardd Cwsg " (The Sleeping Bard), b}' 
 Ellis Wyn, of Lasynys, near Harlech, a moral and religious alle- 
 gory, which appeared about 1700. It was translated into English, 
 in 1860, by George Borrows, author of " Wild Wales," and " The 
 Bible in Spain." Up to the limits of time just now specified, it 
 will be found that there is no mention of any of the books named 
 as having been printed in Wales ; the fact is, that there was no 
 jirinting press in Wales until the year 1734, which was set up then 
 in Anglesea. The labours of the Revs. Stephen Hughes, Griffith 
 Jones, Llandowror, and William Williams of Pantycelyn, l)oth by 
 original productions, especialh^ the last of the three, and by 
 organizing means of circulation, were the most prominent during 
 the period immediately preceding the rise of Sunday Schools. 
 With regard to the general intelligence of the people of Wales from 
 the Reformation downward, we cannot do better than quote the 
 words of Henry Richard, M.P., on the subject. He says : — 
 
 " I believe that at no period of their history had the people of 
 AVales sunk into that utter mental torpidity which marks — if I may 
 say so without offence — some portions of the English peasantry. 
 Grossly ignorant and superstitious, multitudes of them undoubtedly 
 were, through the long ages of neglect of which I have already 
 spoken. But there were always influences at work which saved 
 them from absolute stagnation of intellect. The traditions of their 
 national history — not less fascinating because surrounded with a 
 nimbus of poetic myth — telling of their ancient kings, Druids and 
 bards, of Arthur and Merlin, of Llywarch Hen and Taliesin, of 
 Howell the Good, and Llewellyn, ' ein llyw olaf ' (our last prince), 
 as he is still fondly called — were cherished with great tenacity by 
 the popular mind. . . . Fragments of poetry and music, coming 
 down from immemorial times, were always floating plentifully iu 
 the air. ... In the worst times, also, the popular merry-makings 
 were never without some intellectual element which saved them 
 from degenerating into mere sensual orgies ; for the harp was there,
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 71 
 
 and ' iJennillion ' singing, an improvisation in verse accompanying 
 tlie harp, and in some parts of the country a sort of broad farces 
 or dramatic pasquinades, under the name of interludes, acted by 
 the peasantry. And there were better things than these; for 
 sometimes the people's natural genius for minstrelsy and song- 
 would seem suddenly to blossom with even an exuberant fertility. 
 If any one doubts this, he has but to consult the collection of old 
 melodies, and the words to which they were sung, taken down from 
 the lips of the peasants in the vales of Neath and Glamorgan, by 
 Miss Jane Williams, of Aber^Dergwui, herself — according to the 
 testimony of Mr. Chorley — the ' most exquisite amateur singer he 
 had ever heard.' My friend Dr. Davies, of Swansea — and there are 
 few more competent judges — says of these compositions, ' I consider 
 them without exception the finest pastorals I know, and may be 
 backed against the world for poetry, music, and purity of senti- 
 ment.' And those published by Miss Williams are only a small 
 selection from hundreds which she noted down from the singing 
 of the couutrj" joeople, all of which are supposed to have sprung 
 into existence from about 1680 to 1780." * 
 
 Though it be beyond our present object to inquire into the 
 intellectual state of the country during the foiu'th period of Welsh 
 literature, we may, however, briefly state that a great impetus was 
 given to the publication of books by the establishment of Sunday 
 Schools, the further development of the art of printing, the insti- 
 tution of literary societies, and the general revival of religion 
 among all denominations. Mr. Eichard has entered into very 
 minute statistics, showing the niunber of books and periodicals 
 jniblished up to the date of the publication of his letters in the 
 Morning and Evening Star in ISGS.f In the Eeport of the Com- 
 missioners (of whom he was one) appointed to inquire into the 
 condition of intermediate and higher education in Wales in 1881, 
 we are presented with a summary brought down sixteen years later. 
 This report says, that " Twelve newspapers, with a weekly circula- 
 tion of 74,500 ; eighteen magazines, with a circulation of 90,300 ; 
 and two quarterly publications, with a circulation of 3000, are 
 published in Welsh. A large number of useful books, translations 
 for the most part, are yearly published in Welsh. We were told 
 
 * " Letters on the Social and Political Condition of Wales," p. y-J. 
 t "Letters," p. 39.
 
 72 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 by one witness, tliat in the j^ear 1875, no less a sum than £100,000 
 was spent in Welsh literature of all kinds." * It hardly needs 
 to be added that a large quantity of English literature is also 
 regularly consumed in Wales. One fact seems to indicate a greater 
 demand for English literature than for AVelsh ; for while there is 
 no Welsh daily newspaper published throughout the whole Princi- 
 pality, there are two English ones published in South Wales alone. 
 The best English publications, whether books, daily newspapers, or 
 weekly and monthly serials and periodicals, are much in demand in 
 all Welsh towns and in not a few country districts besides. Taking 
 all these facts into consideration, we may venture to convert into 
 a direct assertion what Mr. Richard only suggests as a query, that 
 there is " no population of the same class in the kingdom among 
 whom the taste for solid reading, and the intelhgence and mental 
 activity it indicates, are more conspicuous." 
 * " Report," p. xlvii.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 The Religious axd Intellectual, Conditiox of "Wales fuom the 
 Reformation to the Rise of Sunday Schools — Direct Educa- 
 tional Provisions. 
 
 The connection between the spread of literature and the establishment of 
 schools — Indirect evidences of the existence of schools — No definite 
 records except of the endowed schools — A brief account of all the 
 endowed schools of "Wales — How far they supplied religious instruc- 
 tion — The educational and other charities of the Principality in 1880 
 — Some references to other schools — Rev. Thomas Gouge's system — 
 An account of his life — A society for promoting English instruction in 
 Wales — Archbishop Tillotson's funeral sermon to Gouge — His schools 
 not adapted to Welsh temperament and feeling — Rev. Griffith Jones 
 Llanddowror and his Circulating Schools — His life — His own account 
 of the schools in the volumes of ""Welsh Piety" — General diffusion 
 of the schools — Other labours of Mr. Jones — His connection with the 
 great Methodist Revival — Continuation of the schools after his death 
 — Statistics of the schools for forty years — An account of Madam 
 Bevan's charity — Present application — General conclusions. 
 
 Jt is only at two periods, and those not very far the one from the 
 •other, during this somewhat considerable interval, that any attempt 
 was made to organize a complete system of schools throughout the 
 country generally. The educational state of the country for the 
 remaining time, must be inferred from the records of the establish- 
 ment of individual schools, and from facts bearing upon the 
 ([uestion, already brought into notice in the preceding chapters.* 
 The references made to so many editions of the Bible issued during 
 this ]:)eriod, and the ever-increasing number of new books from 
 time to time emanating from the press, naturally lead to the con- 
 clusion that schools must have been previously started, teaching 
 the population to read, in order to enable them to consume such 
 literature — in fact to create the very demand for it. The fact of 
 ^o many eminent men also, of whom mention has already been
 
 74 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 made, wlio translated the Scriptures into the Welsh tongue, directly 
 from the original languages, and who enriched its literature in. 
 other ways, having gone up from their native country to the great 
 universities of the kingdom, sufficiently well grounded in the 
 rudiments of knowledge to enter at once on the university course, 
 plainly points to the existence of schools in different parts before 
 those organized at the two periods specified, and that those schools 
 were not altogether of the simple elementary class. Amongst the 
 number, we have already mentioned the names of William Sales- 
 bury, Dr. Morgan, Dr. Richard Davies, Dr. Parry, Dr. Davies, of 
 Mallwyd, and Edmund Prys, archdeacon of Merioneth; to these 
 may be added Wroth, Erbury, Walter Cradoc, Vavasor Powel, 
 Peregrine Phillips, and Hugh Owen, of Bron y Clydwr, among the 
 Nonconformists, besides a great many clergymen of the Church 
 of England, of every age of the period. The English schools, of 
 towns not far from the Welsh borders, were also resorted to, as 
 at later times, to supply the educational needs of the country. 
 It is distinctly stated that Daniel Rowlands, of Llangeitho, was 
 brought up at Hereford School ; and Shrewsbury School, from its 
 advantageous position for youth from North Wales, attracted a 
 goodly proportion of the better class of the sons of Cambria within, 
 its shades, from time to time. Most of, if not all, the endowed schools 
 of Wales were founded and started during the period between the 
 Reformation and the rise of the Sunday schools ; and the public 
 spirit which led to the founding of these in every county of Wales 
 is most likely to have found a vent in starting minor institutions, 
 serving for their day, but not placed on such a footing as to be 
 handed over to the posterity of our days. 
 
 The endowed schools of Wales, at present attract a considerable 
 amount of attention, but the most interesting facts in their history 
 are very little known by the public, the information about them 
 being contained either in musty deeds, chancery records, or not 
 very accessible Commissioners' Reports. We presume, therefore, that 
 a brief abstract of their history, besides directly elucidating this 
 branch of our inquiry, will be acceptable to the general reader. 
 An additional value will be given to our digest from the fact that 
 by quoting from the " Report of the Committee on Higher and 
 Intermediate Education in Wales," published in 1881, we cau 
 present an authentic account of ihe j^resent revenue of each school.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 75 
 
 A SHORT ACCOUNT OF THE GRAMMAR ScHOOLS OF WaLES, COM- 
 prising the time at which they were established, the names 
 of the founders, and amount of revenues in 1846 and 1880. 
 
 County of Anglesea. 
 
 Beaumaris. — 1. In 1609, David Hughes gave a house in the town, to be 
 for ever used for a free grammar school, and certain lands in Angle- 
 sea, the profits of which were to be employed for stipends for master 
 and usher ; for help to one or two of the poorest scholars of the 
 school, towards their travel or setting forward to the university, or 
 in some trade or occupation ; and for the support of an almshouse. 
 And he gave the surplus of his estate to provide fellowships in some 
 college in Oxford. The income of the charity in 1832 was £617, by 
 1846 it exceeded £700, three-fourths of which is applied to the 
 grammar school, and the remaining fourth to the almshouses. No 
 fellowships were ever founded, and only two exhibitions of £20 each 
 yearly, tenable at Jesus College, Oxford. 
 
 2. Under the will of William Lewis, D.D., made in 1681, lands in 
 Caernarvonshire were purchased, exceeding in value £200 a year, the 
 rents of which are applicable to eight exhibitions of £10 each at 
 Jesus College, Oxford, and Trinity College, Cambridge, preference 
 given to Anglesea scholars. The whole income of £1200, after 1880, 
 is available for the purposes of the school. 
 
 County of Caernarvon. 
 
 Bangor. — In 1557, Geffrey Glynne, LL.D., gave lands to the bishops of 
 Kochester and Bangor for a grammar school to be forever maintained 
 in the town of Bangor. He gave other lands of the yearly value of 
 £20, to the use of ten scholars, diligently to be brought up at the 
 school in virtue and learning, and to be lodged within his house 
 called the Friars, which he gave for the school. The number of 
 scholars was to be limited to one hundred. The rents of the charit}^ 
 estate amounted, in 1832, to £360, and the annual value in 1816 was 
 nearly £500. In 1880, the income was £776. 
 
 BoTTWxoG. — In 1616, the then Bishop of Bangor, by his will gave lands 
 to feoffees or trustees, for the maintenance of a free grammar school 
 within the parish of Mellteyrn or Bottwnog, his native parish, and 
 £6 a year to two poor scholars in the school. The charity estate 
 consists of a farm, of the yearly value of £200, with residences for a 
 head master and usher, and school buildings. 
 
 Dexio. — William Yaughan, in 1773, by will charged an estate, now in the 
 possession of the Mostyn family, with £40 a year, as a stipend to 
 a grammar school. Hugh Jones, a clergyman, had, in 1695, given 
 money to the Vaughans for founding or augmenting the endowment 
 of a school at Denio, and that devise of Mr. Yaughan was made 
 in lieu of such money. Up to 1843, the £40 was paid yearly by the 
 Mostyn family to the master of a school at Pwllheli. The rent-charge 
 has been withheld since 1843 ; biat it is said the Mostyn family are 
 Avilling to continue the payment, and secure the endowment.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 County of Merioneth. 
 
 Doi.GELLEY. — 1. John ElHs, clerk, in 1665, gave lands to trustees for the 
 maintenance of an able schoolmaster, to teach twelve poor children, 
 Avithout charge, until they should be sixteen j'ears of age. 
 
 2. Ellis Lewis, clerk, 1727, gave lands to be used in conjunction 
 with the devise of Dr. John Ellis, to the support of a free grammar 
 school. 
 
 3. In 1793, John Tamberlain, clerk, rector of Dolgelley, added a 
 sum in stock to the foundation. The income of the school was, in 
 1 832, £43 105. ; but since then some of the farms, if not all, have been 
 sold, and the" capital funded, by which the income has been some- 
 what increased. In 1880, it was reported to be £73. 
 
 Llaxegryn. — 1. Hugh Owen, in 1650, gave money for a free school in 
 Llanegryn for ever. A rent charge of £20 is payable in respect of 
 Mr. Owen's foundation. 
 
 2. In 1668, Griffith Owen gave monej'" to be laid out in land, and 
 directed one-third to be paid to a writing master, one-third to the 
 master for catechising the scholars and others in the parish church, 
 and the other third part for binding certain of the poor scholars, 
 apprentices. The income of the charity, in 1832, was £81 6s. William 
 Wynne, Esq., of Peniarth, on one of Avhose farms the rent-charge is 
 made, paid the money up to 1812, but after his death only one 
 member of his family among whom his estate was divided paid, so 
 that in the year 1847 the sum of £616 13s. 4d., remained as arrears 
 to the trustees. Elementary subjects only have been taught in the 
 school since 1847. 
 
 Llaxycil including Bala. — Edmund Meyricke, D.D., and a member of 
 the chapter of Bangor, in 1712, gave lands for a school, £15 yearly 
 for clothing the boys, and founded six scholarships and six exhibi- 
 tions in Jesus College, Oxford. The sum expended upon the school 
 from the charity estate, in 1847, was £155 ; viz. £60 for clothing 
 the boys, £80 to the master, and house, garden and lands free, to 
 the value of £15. The remainder goes for the exhibitions at Jesus 
 College, open to all natives of North Wales. Income in 1880, £166. 
 
 County of Denbigh. 
 
 Denbigh Town. — In 1726, land was conveyed to the corporation of Den- 
 bigh towards the maintenance of a free grammar school. In 1727, 
 lands were purchased by subscription and settled for the same pur- 
 pose. The rental of these lands in 1832 was £55 10s. In 1880, 
 income almost all sunk in the school buildings. 
 
 Llaxrwst.— In or about 1612, Sir John Wynne, of Gwydir, founded a 
 hospital and free school for the town of Llanrwst. A free school 
 existed here in 1803, but from then until 1837, the Charity Com- 
 missioners reported that no school answering to Sir John Wynne's 
 foundation had existed. The hospital was dealt with as private 
 property of Lord Gwydir since 1811, but subsequently the Attorney- 
 (ieneral succeeded against Lord Willoughby d'Eresby to establish the 
 right of the hospital to certain tithes and property of the yearly 
 value of £600, whereof an adequate portion has been assigned for the 
 support of the school. Income in 1880, £890.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 77 
 
 IIuABOx. — A grammar school existed here before 1632, and in 1707, Mr. 
 Robinson, the then vicar of the parish, p;aye lands for the better 
 support of it. The school income in 1832, was £99 18s. ; in 1880 
 £150. 
 
 KuTHiN.— 1. In 1595, Dr. Gabriel Goodman, Dean of Westminster, obtained 
 from the Queen a grant of a moiety of the advowson of Llanelidan 
 for the support of a grammar school in Ruthin, according to the 
 statutes of the dean in that behalf. The moiety of the tithes of 
 Llanelidan have been commuted for a rent-charge of £300. 
 
 2. In 1740, Edward Lloyd, clerk, gave money for the benefit of 
 Ruthin school with which the trustees bought lands of the yearlv 
 value, in 1847, of £100 ; and the rents are appropriated in exhibitions 
 of £20 and £25 each at the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge, 
 tenable for four years by poor boys, or A'oung men, educated at the 
 school for five years at the least, and being the best scholars. Income 
 in 1880, £550, with prospect of increase. 
 
 Wrexham.— In 1603, Valentine Broughton gave lands to the citizens of 
 Chester, charged with £6 13s. 4d. for the maintenance of a school- 
 master at Wrexham, for the education of youth in good erudition and 
 learning. Income in 1880, £48. 
 
 County of Flint. 
 
 St. Asaph. — Bishop Barrow, who died in 1679, either founded or augmented 
 the endowment of the grammar school here. The endowment pro- 
 vided a salary of £50 a year to the master ; the cost of books and 
 necessaries for free boys ; a piece of land, let at £2 a year ; and a 
 schoolroom, but no house. This school has come xmder a new scheme 
 in 1880. New school buildings having been erected, the income noA\- 
 is only £55. 
 
 Hawarden. — In 1606, George Ledsam gave money for the erection and 
 maintenance for ever of a free grammar school at Hawarden. The 
 master receives a stipend of £20, with a residence and good school- 
 rooms. Income in 1880, £24. 
 
 Newmarket. — In 1713, John Wynne gave a school house and a yearlv 
 rent-charge of £40, for ever, part of which was to support a public 
 grammar school. The Commissioners of Charity, however, state 
 that this charity has had no existence, as a source of benefit to the 
 parish, since 1764 ; and the rent-charge has been in arrear since 
 1799. 
 
 County of Montgomery, 
 
 Deythur. — In 1690, the Hon. Andrew Newport conveyed to trustees a 
 school house, built by him in the lordship of Deythur, and certain 
 lands for the maintenance of a school. In 1832, the income of the 
 school lands was £87 (shortly to be increased to £1C0), besides a large 
 house and stable. In 1880, the income was £120. 
 
 County of Monmouth. 
 
 Abergavenny. — King Henrj- YIIL, by letters patent, bearing date 24th 
 July, 1543, founded a grammar school for boy? and youths, for the 
 establishment of which he granted to the since dissolved corporation
 
 78 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 of the town, certain rectories and tithes belonging to the then late 
 dissolved priory of Bergavenny and monastery of Usk, subject to a 
 rent of 40s. to the king, and to the payment of certain salaries to the 
 master and usher. In the reign of William III., the corporation of 
 Bergavenny was dissolved. In 1760, an Act was passed for vesting 
 the rectory of Bedgworth in .Tesus College, Oxford, for ever, in trust, 
 to pay yearly to the master of Bergavenny £40 ; to admit the fellows 
 and scholars from the school to such stipend and advantages as 
 should be enjoyed by the other fellows and scholars of the college ; 
 and to pay yearly to two boys of the school £5 each. The income 
 of the charity, in 1847, was about £180 a year, exclusive of the stipend 
 payable by the principal and fellows of Jesus College to the master. 
 In 1880, by the voluntary payment of Jesus College, and an extension 
 of the local charity, the income reached £270. 
 
 Llantilio Croesenau. — In 1654, James Powell gave lands and premises 
 of the yearly value, in 1847, of £150 for the support of a school and 
 other charitable purposes. 
 
 Monmouth. — By letters patent of King James, dated March 19, 1614-5, 
 granted on the petition of William Jones, citizen and haberdasher of 
 London, it was ordained that there should be for ever, in the town of 
 Monmouth, one almshouse, for the maintenance of poor people, and 
 also one free grammar school, to be called "The Almshouse and 
 Free Grammar School of William Jones, in Monmouth." In January, 
 1613-4, lands in JNIonmouth were purchased and convej'ed to mem- 
 bers of the Haberdashers' Company ; and in 1613 and 1614 lands near 
 New Cross, in Surrey, and Deptford, in Kent, were purchased with 
 money supplied by Mr. Jones, and conveyed to the governors of the 
 charit3\ In the report of the Charity Commissioners, made in 1823, 
 it is stated that the rents of the estate in Kent and Surrey amounted 
 to £771. In Januar}', 1847, the ordinances of the charity were 
 revised, and the present laws, framed by the Haberdashers' Company, 
 provide among other things, that exhibitions of the value of £30 a 
 year each should be open to scholars who have been three years in 
 the school ; and such exhibitions are tenable for four years at any 
 college or hall of Oxford or Cambridge. In 1880, the company 
 applied a yearly sum of £3296 for the maintenance of the school. 
 
 Usk. — Koger Edwards, who died in 1624, founded a school and almshouses 
 at this place. The Charity Commissioners reported that the rental 
 of the charity estate was £438 10s. In 1880, the school endowment 
 Avas £205. 
 
 County of Glamorgan. 
 
 CowBRiDGE. — A school is Said to have been founded here by the Stradling 
 family, but the first endowment of which there is any record is by 
 Sir Leoline, or Llewellyn, Jenkins, in 1685, who filled several public 
 offices in the reign of Charles II., and had been educatod at Cow- 
 bridge. He devised to the principal, fellows and scholars of Jesus 
 (L'ollege, Oxford, all his lands, and the free school and school house 
 .at Cowbridge. He charged his land with £10 a year to support the 
 master ; £6 a year to each of five pensioners for four years, to be 
 educated at the school ; to three of these pensioners as should be fit 
 for college, an exhibition of £10 a piece for four j^ears, if not elected
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 79 
 
 in the meantime to a scholarship or fellowship; and a further sum of 
 £10 to the master for teaching ten youths from the town of Cowbridge 
 and the neighbouring parishes. He founded two fellowships at Jesus 
 College, in the election of whom a respect should be had, cccteris 
 paribus, to those bred at Cowbridge school. In 1880, the income of 
 the endowment was £50. 
 
 JSwAXSEA. — In 1682, Hugh Gore, Bishop of Waterford and Lismore, granted 
 an estate comprising six hundred and Mty acres of mountain land, 
 in the parishes of Llan-dyfodwg and Llangeinor, to instruct in the 
 Latin and Greek tongues twenty poor children, the sons of the poorer 
 sort of burgesses. The corporation of Swansea have augmented the 
 endowment by securing to the master £20 a year. The surface of 
 the Charity Farm was let in 1847 for £70 a year, but its principal 
 value consists in the unworked coal and iron-stone with which the 
 property abounds. The income has considerably increased of late, 
 but much monev has been spent from time to time in litigation. In- 
 come in 1880, £750. 
 
 <iELLiGAER. — Edward Lewis, of Gilfach-fargoed, a grandson of Sir William 
 LeAvis, Knight (who married Ann, daughter and co-heiress of William 
 Williams, of Gilfach-fargoed), and great-grandson of Sir Edward 
 Lewis, Knight, of Van, near Caerphily, and Blanch Morgan, of 
 Tredegar, left in 1728, certain farms in the parish of Gelligaer 
 towards educating, clothing and apprenticing poor boys, and to pay 
 for lectures to be preached in the parishes of Gelligaer, Bedwellty, 
 and Mynyddislwyn. Like the Swansea grammar school, the principal 
 value of the endowment consists in its mineral resources. The two 
 portions of the charity are now entirely separate. The school in its 
 present form was commenced in 1875, under a scheme framed by 
 the Endowed School Commissioners, in 1874. Income in 1880, £630, 
 with a prospect of a steady increase from the capitalized mineral 
 rent. ^ 
 
 County of Cardigan. 
 
 <?ARDiGAX Town. — In 1653, the Commissioners for the Propagation of the 
 Gospel in Wales settled £60 yearly, for the maintenance of a school 
 here, to be paid out of the impropriate tithes of Llansantffraid. This 
 was done under an ordinance of the Commons, made on 22nd February, 
 1649, for the better propagation and preaching the gospel in Wales, 
 ejecting scandalous ministers and schoolmasters, and the redress of 
 other grievances. The tithes of Llansantffraid, reverting to the 
 vicars choral of St. David's, all right to the stipend assigned to the 
 school at Cardigan, ceased at the Restoration. The school, however, 
 remained, and in 1731, Mrs. Comwallis directed the interest of a sum 
 of money, set apart by her for that purpose, to be paid for the sup- 
 port of the school. In 1785, the corporation received in respect of 
 that bequest a sum of £717 10s. 6d. stock, which is still invested for 
 the purpose. Income in 1880, only £20. 
 
 Lledrod. — In 1746, Mrs. Oliver settled lands, according to certain direc- 
 tions contained in the will of her husband, for the maintenance of a 
 grammar school in this parish. The rents of the charity property 
 amounted to £150 a year in 1836. Further particulars are given 
 under Ystrad-meirig, with which school the endowment was almost 
 from the very first associated.
 
 80 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 Ystrad-MeiPvIG. — In 1759, Edward Richard, the master of a school hehl 
 here, gave in perpetuity to trustees lands, the rents of .which were tt> 
 be paid towards its support. In 1771, the founder added more lands, 
 and by his Avill, made in 1777, gave his books to his successors in 
 the school and their scholars, but to be used only in the library. The 
 rents of the charity amounted, in 1836, to £86 10s. a year, and the 
 actual value of the charity estate far exceeds this sum. The school at 
 Ynys y gam, in Lledrod, seems to have been discontinued soon after 
 the foundation of that at Ystrad-Meirig, and the rents of the Lledrod 
 foundation Avere received by the master of the Ystrad-Meirig school ; 
 a preparatory school, however, was subsequently established in Lled- 
 rod, which was conducted by a master appointed by, and responsible 
 to, the master of Ystrad-Meirig. A new scheme for Ystrad-Meirig 
 school came into operation in 1881. In 1880, the income of Ystrad- 
 Meirig school was £206, that of Lledrod £l8o. 
 
 County of Caermaethen. 
 
 Caermartiien Town. — By letters patent of the 18th j-car of Queen Eliza- 
 beth, her Majesty granted a grammar school in the town of Caer- 
 marthen. Nothing is now known of this foundation. In 1644, the 
 then Bishop of Llandaff gave £20 a year to the school of Caermar- 
 then, to be issuing out of the rectory of St. Ishmael for ever. In 
 1676, the Archdeacon of Caermarthen gave premises in the town to 
 the masters of the free school there, successively, for ever. The 
 income consists of £20, issuing out of the tithes of St. Ishmael, and 
 £15 is paid by the corporation yearly for house-rent. A new scheme 
 has lately been applied to this school. Income in 1880, £137. 
 
 Llandovery. — Thomas Phillips, of Brunswick Square, London, in the 
 year 1847, transferred into the names of five trustees £4666 13.s. 4(f., 
 three per cent, stock (producing an income of £140 a year), for 
 founding and endowing a school here, and intended chiefl}' for 
 fitting young men to become efficient ministers of the Church of 
 England, in the Principality. Among other conditions, the founder 
 enjoined "that the scholars should be instructed in Welsh reading, 
 grammar, and composition ; in English, Latin, Greek, Hebrew, 
 arithmetic, algebra, and mathematics ; in sacred, English, and gene- 
 ral history, and geography ; and in such other branches of education 
 as the trustees, with the sanction of the visitor, should appoint. 
 The Welsh language shall be taught exclusivel}^ during one hour 
 every school day, and be then the sole medium of communication in 
 the school, so as to familiarize the scholars with its use as a collo- 
 quial language. The master shall give lectures in that language 
 upon subjects of a philological, scientific, and general character, so 
 as to supply the scholars Avith examples of its use as a literary lan- 
 guage, and the medium of instruction on grave and important sub- 
 jects. The primary intent and object of the founder (which is 
 instruction and education in the Welsh language) shall be faithf iilly 
 observed. Should the language, however, cease as a colloquial and 
 literary language, the education shall still be such as to qualif\- 
 young men either for Lampeter college or other useful callings ; and 
 * it is recommended that instruction in geology, mineralogy, and 
 chemistry— particularly such portions of those sciences as may be
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 81 
 
 applicable to the soil and substrata of the Principality — shall be sub- 
 stituted for the disused Welsh language ; the object of the founder 
 being the dissemination of useful and practical knowledge in Wales, 
 and the elevation of the character of its people, both morally and 
 intellectually." Income in 1880, £700. 
 
 County of Pembroke. 
 
 St. David's. — A school has existed here from a remote period, and was 
 probably established by the dean and chapter, but there seems to be 
 no document by which its origin is explained. Before the Refor- 
 mation a collegiate foundation existed, the remains of which still 
 are visible. The master of the school has a vicar's stall in the 
 cathedral, and receives an ancient yearly payment from the chapter, 
 of £10, and a second payment of £10 10s., styled a gift. Six of the 
 scholars are to be educated as choristers, and each receives £3 3s. 4d. 
 from the chapter funds. 
 
 Haverfordwest. — 1. In 1613, lands were conveyed by Thomas Lloyd to 
 trustees, who should for ever cause an efficient grammar school tt) 
 be kept within the town. 
 
 2. John Milward, in 1654, gave a house in, and lands near. 
 Birmingham, to the principal of Brazenose College, the bailiff of 
 Birmingham, and the mayor of Haverfordwest ; the rents and 
 profits to be divided in equal parts between the college, the free 
 school of Birmingham, and the free school of Haverfordwest ; 
 and the portion of the college to be bestowed on a scholar towards 
 part of his education and maintenance, to be sent from the 
 free schools of Birmingham and Haverfordwest by turns. The nett 
 income up to 1847 had not been more than £100 a year from both 
 endowments, but it was estimated that by a change about to be 
 introduced then in the disposal of Milward's estate, the income 
 would be increased to £300 a year. By the year 1880, the income 
 had reached £570. 
 
 Pembroke Town. — There is a small foundation for a grammar school at 
 this place, amounting to £11 3s. id. 
 
 County of Eadnor. 
 
 CwM-DAUDDWR. — The Rev. Charles Price, in 1719, gave certain land after 
 the death of his son, who lived until 1780, to support a school here. 
 For many years it was united to a school at Rhayader, but from 1836 
 had a separate existence. The charity estate at that time was of 
 the value of £50 a year. 
 
 Presteign. — In 1505, John Beddoes settled lands for ever to support a 
 school here. In 1827, the charity property produced a rental of 
 £138 18s. 6d, and in 1847, over £150 per annum. Income in 1880, 
 £324. 
 
 County of Brecknock. 
 
 Brecon Town. — On the morrow of the Nativity, a.d. 1283, Thomas 
 Beck, who was then Bishop of St. David's and Lord Treasurer of 
 England, founded a college by a charter, giving for its perpetual 
 support twenty-one parish churches as prebends to an equal number
 
 82 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 of canons. This collecre was intended for the good of the neigh- 
 bourhood of Ystrad-Tj'wi, but the place where it was built is not 
 mentioned in the charter, and some have identified Llangadock as 
 the site of Bishop Beck's college, whence it was said to have been 
 removed to Abergwili by Bishop Gower, elected to the see of St. 
 David's in 1328. Others maintain that the college was built at 
 Aberffwili in the first instance, for this place is mentioned as early 
 as 1299, in a charter of Edward I., as a collegiate foundation, and 
 references are made to it in documents bearing date 6th of May, 
 1334, which are also connected with 10th of April, 1331. 
 
 On the 19th of January, in the thirty-third year of his reign, 
 King Henry VIII., by his charter, founded the College of Christ, 
 Brecknock, on the site of the Priory of Friars Preachers in that 
 town, which had been surrendered to the king by the late prior and 
 convent ; and the king granted to William, then Bishop of St. 
 David's, and his successors for ever, the priory, and all lands and 
 possessions which had come to the hands of his Majesty by virtue 
 of such surrender, to be held by fealty only ; and also the College 
 of Aber2:wili, with full licence and authority to transfer the minis- 
 ters of the College of Abergwili to Christ's College, Brecknock. By 
 the same charter, the king empowered the Bishop of St. David's and 
 all ministers of the College of Abergwili to reside at Brecknock, in 
 the church of the late priory, and within the ambit and precinct 
 thereof, and to hold all manors, lands, churches and possessions, 
 theretofore of the College of Abergwili, for the support and main- 
 tenance of Christ's College, Brecknock. In the reign of Elizabeth 
 this right was confirmed to the bishop. Mention is made in the 
 ordinances of Archbishop Abbot of a master and usher of the school, 
 and, by letters patent of King Henry VIII., it was ordained that a 
 grammar school should be founded at Brecknock. In 1847, this 
 school, which had been for some time closed, was carried on by the 
 incumbent of the parish in which it is situate. The yearly rent- 
 charges for which the tithes annexed to the prebends have been 
 commuted, and which went to the support of the collegiate church 
 and the school, amounted to £7213 lOs. Ohd. In 1880, the income 
 was about £1200, but at the time, temporarily burdened owing to 
 a large expenditure incurred in improving and extending the 
 buildings. 
 
 Of the thirty-two schools mentioned in the above summary, six 
 were founded in the sixteenth century, seventeen in the seventeenth, 
 eight in the eighteenth, and one in the nineteenth. This activity 
 in founding schools very nearly corresponds with the activity which 
 has been already described in the circulation of Scriptures and the 
 propagation of general literature. There are no means of ascertain- 
 ing how many pupils actually passed through these schools during 
 the period of their existence, or their efficiency at different times ; 
 but one fact at least is plainly proved with regard to each, and 
 which is intimately connected with our present inquiry, viz. that 
 they aimed directly at influencing the religious character, as well
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 83 
 
 as developing the intellectual powers of their pupils. In these days, 
 when secular instruction has almost wholly monopolized the 
 elementary school curriculum, and is threatening also to invade the 
 territory of the intermediate and higher schools, we are apt to 
 forget the peculiarly religious character of the foundations of the 
 sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Sir T. Phillips conclusively 
 proves that religious instruction was an essential part of their course 
 of study. Summarizing his remarks on this subject, he says, " A 
 strange misapprehension exists in many minds that grammar 
 schools were founded for classical instruction only, instead of being 
 foundations wherein religious instruction, in accordance with the 
 formularies of the Church of England, should be given by men 
 licensed for their office, after an examination into their religious 
 tenets." * It may be assumed that what is specially mentioned in 
 most, was actually practised in all the schools of the earlier foun- 
 dations — "That the scholars should be taught the Articles of 
 the Christian faith, the Lord's Prayer, the Ten Commandments, 
 and all other things concerning the Christian faith and religion.'' 
 It was early declared by the judges that the school is, by the laws 
 of England, an ecclesiastical institution, and this decision is only 
 modified by laws passed since the reign of William III. Grammar 
 schools were so called, because a grammar of the Latin tongue, to 
 which Erasmus and Dean Colet contributed, having been published 
 in 1513, by William Lily, the first master of St. Paul's school, and 
 approved of by Henry VIII. and Edward VL, it was by Eoyal 
 injunction required that it should be taught in all schools, and 
 hence public or free schools were so designated, even when the 
 founder did not direct the learned languages to be taught. 
 
 Before leaving this subject of the endowed schools, it may not be 
 uninteresting to add a few facts with regard to the nature and 
 value of the endowments of Wales, as they are given in the Com- 
 missioners' Pieport for 1881. The schools of Newmarket, Flint- 
 shire ; Llanegryn, Merionethshire ; Cwm-dauddwr, Radnorshire, and 
 a few others, are mentioned as having either fallen into abeyance, or 
 into the condition of merely elementary schools. There were only 
 three endowed schools for girls throughout all Wales and Mon- 
 mouthshire, viz. the Howell's school at Denbigh, with an income of 
 £2500, the Howell's school at Llandafi", with an income of £1900, 
 ♦ Sir T. PhUlips's ''Wales," p. 395.
 
 84 THE StJNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 and Dr. Daniel Williams's school at Dolgelley, with an income of 
 about £300 a year. 
 
 The aggregate amount of endowed charities of Wales and Mon- 
 mouthshire, as given in the Digest of 1877, but which is consider- 
 ably less than the true value by 1880, was distributed as follows : 
 
 £ s. d. 
 
 North Wales 14,802 15 1 
 
 South Wales 10,047 4 10 
 
 Monmouthshire 6,827 2 5 
 
 Total £31,677 2 4 
 
 The aggregate endowments of existing schools in 1880, providing 
 for the education of boys only, was — 
 
 £ 
 
 North Wales 4,352 
 
 South Wales 4,665 
 
 Monmouthshire 3,771 
 
 Total £12,788 
 
 Besides this, there was in the year 1880, about £4000 devoted to 
 elementary education, and about £8000 might, under the power 
 given by the Endowed Schools Acts, be made applicable to educa- 
 tion from the other charitable endowments, so that the aggregate 
 annual endowments in Wales which might be devoted to interme- 
 diate and higher education, amount to about £25,000. 
 
 £ s. d. 
 
 The whole endowed charities of the forty counties of Eng- 
 land amount to 2,167,247 2 4 
 
 The whole endowed charities of thirteen counties of Wales 
 
 and Monmouthshire 31,677 2 4 
 
 The proportion of educational endowments of Wales to those of 
 England relatively to population, is but one to three.* 
 
 After this brief, and it is to be hoped not inapposite digression, 
 we shall take up the few references to educational agencies which 
 were at work contemporaneously with the founding of endowed 
 schools. Several of the ejected ministers, in consequence of the 
 passing of the Act of Uniformity in 1662, by which they were 
 forbidden to preach, earned a precarious subsistence by keeping 
 private adventure schools in different parts of the country. The 
 
 * " Report of Committee on Intermediate and Higher Education in 
 Wales " — passim.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 85 
 
 provisions of the Five-mile Act, passed in 1664, prove that this was 
 a general custom. Not only were the dissenting teachers pro- 
 hibited from forming separate congregations to whom to minister 
 in spiritual things, they were also prohibited to keep a school 
 within five miles of any town or borough under the penalty of £40. 
 Between the years 1674 and 1681, the first successful effort was 
 made to organize a complete system of schools throughout the 
 Principality. The principal agent in this good work was 
 
 The Rev. Thomas Gouge. 
 
 He was a native of London, being the son of Dr. William Gouge, 
 who was a minister of Blackfriars forty-six years, and who died in 
 1653. The son was born on the 19th Sept., 1605, brought up at 
 Eton school, and elected a member of King's College, Cambridge, in -J 
 1626. He was presented to the benefice of Colsden, near Croydon, 
 in Surrey, which he held for two or three years, and was removed 
 from thence, in 1638, to St. Sepulchre, London. Here he continued to 
 discharge the duties of the ministry with zeal and devotion for 
 twenty-four years, when, from dissatisfaction with the terms of 
 conformity demanded by the Act of 1662, he quitted his living, but 
 continued throughout his life a faithful member of the Church of 
 England. It is not known what turned his attention to Wales, 
 but the most likely thing is that he came in contact with Charles 
 Edwards or Stephen Hughes, or some of the Welshmen who were 
 going up to London to solicit aid for procuring Bibles and other 
 books for the use of the people. In the year 1674, in conjunction 
 with several pious and eminent men, among whom were Dr. 
 Tillotson, then Dean, afterwards Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. 
 Stillingfleet, afterwards Bishop of Worcester, Dr. Patrick, afterwards 
 Bishop of Gloucester, Dr. Wilkins, afterwards Bishop of Chester, 
 Richard Baxter, author of " Saints' Rest," and Mr. Firman, a London 
 merchant, Mr. Gouge formed a society for promoting in Wales 
 instruction in the English tongue, and to circulate the Holy Scrip- 
 tures, the Book of Common Prayer, and other good books in the 
 Welsh language. From an account of the engagement entered into 
 by the associated members, together with the " Life of James Owen " 
 and the funeral sermon of Gouge, preached by Dr. Tillotson, almost 
 all the particulars of this good man's benefactions to Wales, and
 
 mmp!^ 
 
 (From a Porxbait at the Beitish Museum.)
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 97 
 
 wMch ought to be highly prized by all natives of the Principality, 
 can be gathered. The terms of the engagement are as follows : — 
 
 " Whereas there are two thousand copies of a treatise called the 
 "Practice of Piety," formerly translated into Welsh, and also 
 some thousands of other licensed Welsh works, and of our Church 
 Catechism, and a Practical Exposition of the same, now printing, 
 the buying of which, to be freely given to poor families in 
 Wales, would be a singular work of charity, leading to the 
 good of many hundreds who otherwise might be destitute of 
 the means of knowledge, and in regard that few poor children are 
 there brought up to reading, it would be another good work 
 of charity to raise and maintain several schools for teaching 
 the poorest of Welsh children to read English, and the boys to 
 write and cast accounts, whereby they will be enabled to read our 
 English Bibles and treatises, to be more serviceable to the country, 
 and to live more comfortable in the world ; we therefore, whose 
 names are underwritten, do promise to contribute, during our 
 pleasure, towards the printing and buying the forementioned 
 treatises, as also towards the teaching of poor Welsh children to 
 read English, write and cast accounts, in such towns where schools 
 are not already created by the charity of others; provided that 
 this charitable and pious work be ordered and managed by Dr. 
 Tillotson, Dean of Canterbury, and the rest whose names are under- 
 written : — John Tillotson, Benjamin Whichcote, Simon Ford, 
 William Bates, William Outram, Simon Patrick, William Durham, 
 Edward Stillingfleet, John Meriton, Hezekiah Burton, Richard 
 Baxter, Thomas Gouge, Matthew Poole, Edward Fowler, William 
 Turner, Richard Newman, James Reading, Thomas Griffith, John 
 Short, William Gape, Thomas Firman." 
 
 Amongst the agents employed in the distribution of the funds 
 entrusted to the care of Dr. Tillotson was James Owen, a native of 
 Caermarthenshire, who afterwards became a Nonconformist minister 
 and who, in September, 1681, in conjunction with Philip Henry, 
 managed a public dispute with Bishop Lloyd, at the town hall of 
 Oswestry, on the question — " Whether ordination by such diocesans 
 as have uninterrupted succession of canonical ordination from tbe 
 Apostles, be so necessary that churches and ministry are null 
 without it ?" In the " Life of Owen," published in 1709, is found — 
 " An account of what has been done in Wales this last year from
 
 88 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 Midsummer, 1674, to Lady-day, 1675, in pursuance of the above 
 said trust, upon the encoura,(2;ement given by divers worthy persons 
 to this pious and charitable design. In fifty-one of the chief towns 
 of Wales, eight hundred and twelve poor children have been put to 
 school last year by the charity of others, before this trust began. 
 There have been bought and distributed in several families thirty- 
 two Welsh Bibles, which were all that could be had in Wales or 
 London. Two hundred and forty New Testaments in Welsh, to be 
 given away to poor people that can read Welsh, five hundred ' Whole 
 Duties of Man,' in Welsh, to be distributed in like manner, which 
 pious and charitable undertaking has already provoked divers of the 
 better sort of the Welsh to put above five hundred of the poorest 
 Welsh children to school upon their owna account, so that about one 
 thousand eight hundred and fifty in all are already put to school to 
 learn to read English. Attested by us — 
 
 "John Tillotson. Edward Stillingfleet. 
 
 " Benjamin Whichcote. John Meriton. 
 
 " Simon Ford. Thomas Gouge. 
 
 " William Durham. Matthew Poole." 
 
 No further report has been found of the progress of the society 
 until the 4th November, 1681, when the funeral sermon of Gouge 
 was preached by Dr. Tillotson, in which he thus describes the 
 labours of that benevolent man : — 
 
 " For about nine or ten years last past, he did, as is well known 
 to many here present, almost wholly apply his charity to Wales, 
 because there he judged was most occasion for it ; and because this 
 was a very great work, he did not only lay out upon it whatever he 
 could spare out of his own estates, but employed his whole time 
 and pains to excite and engage the charity of others for his assis- 
 tance in it. And in this he had two excellent designs — one to 
 have poor children brought up to read and write, and to be care-; 
 fully instructed in the principles of religion ; the other to furnish 
 persons of grown age, the poor especially, with the necessary helps 
 and means of knowledge, as the Bible, and other books of piety and 
 devotion, in their own language, to which end he procured the 
 
 * Church Catechism,' the ' Practice of Piety,' and that best of books, 
 
 * Tlie Whole Duty of Man,' besides several other pious and useful 
 treatises, some of them to be translated into the Welsh tongue, and
 
 TOE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 89 
 
 great numbers of all of them to be printed and sent down to the 
 chief towns in Wales, to be sold at easy rates to those that were 
 able to buy them, and to be freely given to those that were not. 
 And in both these designs, through the blessing of God upon his 
 unwearied endeavours, he found very great success, for by the large 
 and bountiful contributions which, chiefly by his industry and 
 [>rudent application, were obtained from charitable persons of all 
 ranks and conditions, from the nobility and gentry of Wales and the 
 neighbouring counties, and several of that quality in and about 
 London, from divers of the right reverend bishops and of the clergy, 
 and from that perpetual fountain of charity, the city of London, led 
 on and encouraged by the most bountiful example of the Right Hon. 
 the Lord Mayor and the Court of Aldermen, to all which he con- 
 stantly added two- thirds of his own estate, which, as I have been 
 credibly informed, was two hundred pounds a year ; I say by all 
 these together, there were every year educated eight hundred, 
 sometimes a thousand poor children, and by this example several of 
 the most considerable towns of Wales were excited to bring up at 
 their own charge the like number of poor children in the like 
 manner, and under his inspection and care. He likewise gave very 
 great numbers of the books above mentioned, both in the Welsh and 
 English tongues, to so many of the poorer sort as were unable to 
 buy them, and willing to read them. But, which was the greatest 
 work of all, and amounted indeed to a mighty charge, he procured 
 a new and very fair impression of the Bible and Liturgy of the 
 Church of England in the Welsh tongue (the former impression 
 being spent, and hardly twenty of them to be had in all London), 
 to the number of eight thousand, one thousand whereof were freely 
 given to the poor, and the rest sent to the principal cities and 
 towns of Wales, to be sold to the rich at very reasonable and low 
 rates, viz. at four shillings a-piece, well bound and clasped, which 
 was much cheaper than any English Bible was ever sold that was 
 of so fair a print and paper, a work of that charge, that it was not 
 likely to have been done any other way, and for which this age, 
 and perhaps the next, will have great cause to thank God on his 
 l>ehalf. In these good works he employed all his time and care 
 and pains, and his whole heart was in them, so that he was very 
 little affected with anything else, and seldom either minded or 
 kcew anything of the strange occurrences of this troublesome and
 
 90 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OK WALES. 
 
 busy age, such as I think are hardly to be paralleled in any other ; 
 or if he did mind them, he scarce ever spoke anything of them. 
 For this was the business he laid to heart, and knowing it to be so 
 much and so certainly the will of his Heavenly Father, it was his 
 meat and drink to be doing of it ; and the good success he had in 
 it was a continual feast to him, and gave him a perpetual serenity, 
 both of mind and countenance. His great love and zeal for this 
 work made all the pains and difficulties of it seem nothing to him. 
 He would rise early and sit up late, and continued the same 
 diligence and industry to the last, though he was in the threescore 
 and seventeenth year of his age. And that he might manage the dis- 
 tribution of this great charity with his own hands, and see the good 
 effect of it with his own eyes, he always once, but usually twice a 
 year at his own charge, travelled over a great part of Wales, none of 
 the best countries to travel in. But for the love of God and men, 
 he endured all that, together with the extremity of heat and cold 
 (which in their several seasons are both very great there), not only 
 with patience, but with pleasure, so that all things considered 
 there have not since the primitive times of Christianity been many 
 among the sons of men to whom that glorious character of the Son 
 of God might be better applied — that he went about doing good. 
 And now methinks it is a pity so good a design, so happily prosecuted, 
 should fall and die with this good man ; and it is now under 
 deliberation, if possible, still to continue and carry it on, and 
 a very worthy and charitable person pitched upon for that pur- 
 pose, who is willing to undertake that part which he that is 
 gone performed so well. But this will depend upon the con- 
 tinuance of the former charities, and the concurrence of those 
 worthy and well-disposed persons in Wales to contribute their 
 part as formerly, which I persuade myself they will cheerfully do." 
 
 The biographer of Thomas Firman, one of the subscribers to the 
 undertaking of 1674, says : — 
 
 " After Mr. Gouge's death, I find the sum of £419 9s. given to 
 buy a number of Welsh Bibles, whereof Dr. Tillotson (then Dean 
 of St. Paul's), gave £50 ; Mr, Morris, £67 ; other persons the rest ; 
 but there wants in the receipts £26 13s., to balance the disburse- 
 ment, and that, I judge, was Mr. Firman's money." 
 
 Although Archbishop Tillotson lived until 1694, nothing is known 
 of the proceedings of the associated members after the death of
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 91 
 
 Gouge, either in circulating Welsh books or teaching Welsh children 
 to read English, beyond this short extract given from the life of 
 Firman * 
 
 Very few more facts can be added to the life of Mr. Gouge. 
 Though he had a licence to preach, and occasionally did so in Wales, 
 nevertheless he was persecuted from place to place, and was finally 
 excommunicated from the Church of which he was a member whilst 
 engaged in this work of goodness. His love to the souls of men 
 enabled him to bear these indignities patiently, and he never flagged 
 in his labours until he finished his course with joy and exultation. 
 He died in his sleep in the year 1681, in the 77th year of his age.t 
 
 The associated members, and notably Mr. Gouge, were very well- 
 intentioned towards Wales, and he prosecuted his object at the 
 expense of much personal sacrifice ; still it must be confessed that 
 they were far from fortunate in the plan they had adopted. They 
 entered upon the work without having sufficiently studied the 
 peculiarity of the people. The ignorance which Archbishop Tillot- 
 son has betrayed in his estimate of the geographical, or perhaps 
 more accurately meteorological, character of the country, was only 
 paralleled by his ignorance of the best mode of benefiting the people 
 educationally. He speaks of the ** extremity of heat and cold 
 (which in their several seasons are both very great there)," much in 
 the same strain as Caesar speaks of the peculiarity of the winters in 
 Gaul as compared with those of Eome. Something similar, was 
 the mistake of teaching the people to read English first. The 
 mechanical labour of teaching reading alone, was immeasurably 
 greater than if they had begun with the Welsh and then taken up 
 the English. And besides, no real love of literature was implanted 
 in their minds, as they could little appreciate the thoughts of the 
 authors. This result is plainly seen in the little hold these schools 
 had upon the affections of the people, as not long after the death 
 of their principal supporter, they altogether declined and vanished. 
 It remained for a native of the Principality, fifty years after, who 
 knew the wants and taste of the nation far better, to discover a 
 system of schools which profoundly and permanently roused the 
 enthusiasm of the people. That eminent benefactor was 
 
 ♦Phillips's "Wales," p. 260. 
 
 t Palmer's Noncon. Mem., vol. i. pp. 184-188 ; Neal'e Hist. Pur., vol. ii. 
 pp. 727, 729, 730.
 
 92 THE SUNDAY SCHOaLS OF WALES. 
 
 The Rev. Griffith Jones, of Llanddowror. 
 
 Taking into consideration the novelty and suitability of his plans, 
 the amount of his labours, and his devotion to his work for so many 
 years, he must be looked upon as at least second, if not equal, to 
 the founder of the Welsh Sunday Schools himself. In one thing 
 alone does he appear to fall behind him — in that his institutions 
 did not so long survive their author. As being the originator of 
 the system of day schools, which were revived by Mr. Charles, and 
 which proved so helpful to the development of the Sunday Schools, 
 well does he deserve the appellation of " The Morning Star" of the 
 Methodistical Revival, as well as of the educational outcome of that 
 important event. Mr. Jones was born in the parish of Cilrhedyn, 
 Caermarthenshire, in the year 1683, and his family had been noted 
 for many years past for their respectability and piety, among its 
 quiet inhabitants. He lost his father when rather young, the whole 
 care of training the child thereby devolving upon the mother. 
 From his early youth, he is said to have evinced a great aptitude to 
 learn, and considerable quickness of parts. Like most boys of his 
 circumstances, he received the first rudiments of his knowledge at 
 the schools of his immediate neighbourhood, when, after exhausting 
 the curriculum usually supplied in such seminaries, he was removed 
 to the grammar school at Caermarthen. Here he made an exten- 
 sive acquaintance with the Latin and Greek languages, although, 
 like Timothy, he was labouring under the disadvantage of having 
 a weak and fragile body. During his connection with school, 
 instead of following the levity and low amusements by which many 
 young men have often been corrupted, he used to retire to his apart- 
 ment for prayer and meditation, and in this, his sober and staid 
 demeanour was in direct contrast with that of the majority of his 
 fellow-students. Not long after adopting this course, through 
 reading the Bible and theological works, he felt an inclination to 
 devote himself to the work of the ministry. In the year 1708, he 
 was ordained deacon by the learned Bishop Bull, of St. David's, and 
 the following year received priest's orders. In 1711, he was pre- 
 sented to the living of Llandeilo-Abercowyn, and in 17] 6, obtained 
 the vicarage of Llanddowror, with which place his name has ever 
 after been associated. Besides these two parishes, Mr. Jones used 
 to minister occasionally at Llanllwch, near Caermarthen. Under
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 93 
 
 his ministry in this place, Miss Bridget Vaughan, of Derllysg, in the 
 parish of Merthyr, was induced to seek a Saviour, and became a 
 zealous co-worker with him in elevating her nation. She after- 
 wards married Arthur Bevan, Esq., of Langharne, and under the 
 name of Madame Bevan, her memory is sacred in the Principality 
 as an enlightened advocate and supporter of day schools for the 
 people. 
 
 Mr. Jones had intended at one time to go out to India as a mis- 
 sionary, under the patronage of the Society for the Propagation of 
 the Gospel in Foreign Countries; but when he found that Provi- 
 dence had cut out for him a field of labour in his own country, he 
 devoted himself to the work with as much enthusiasm as if he had 
 been engaged in what would, no doubt, have been looked upon as 
 the more heroic undertaking, of converting the tawny-skinned 
 Hindoos to the faith of Christ. He had been admitted a corres]X)nd- 
 ing member of the Christian Knowledge Society on the 18th of June,' 
 1713, three years befo]-e he came to live at Llanddowror, and his 
 connection with this suciety in after time was of great advantage 
 to him in carrying out his plans of benefiting the people. He has 
 been chiefly eminent for having first started, in 1730, the circulating 
 schools, which for many years were peculiar institutions of this 
 country. They have been known under various names, such as 
 Schools of Piety, Catechetical Charity Schools, Circulating Schools, 
 and subsequently Madame BevarCs Schools. Of the two most 
 descriptive of these epithets, one refers to the catechetical manner 
 of instruction, the other to the temporary continuance of the 
 schools in one place, and their circulation from place to place. About 
 seven years after the start of the first school at Llanddowror, and 
 when this had been succeeded by similar schools in other parishes 
 of both North and South Wales, he published yearly reports of 
 the schools, under the name of Welsh Piety. These reports con- 
 tinued to be issued annually between 1737 and 1760, the year 
 before he died. The immediate result of the publicity given to the 
 primitive character and remarkable success of the schools, was to 
 cause the contributions of generous benefactors to flow in without 
 solicitation, not only from Wales but also from England, which 
 enabled their organizer to extend from year to year the sphere of 
 their usefulness. From one of these reports, published in the year 
 1744, we are able to learn how the idea originated, and how the
 
 94 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 scheme was enlarged, as written in the author's own simple and 
 unpretentious style. 
 
 " The occasion which, through the grace of God, led gradually to 
 the thought of them, was a catechising exercise after the second 
 lesson in Divine service upon Saturdays before the monthly Sacra- 
 ment Sundays, when several adult and elderly, as well as young 
 people (particularly such as desired to partake of that blessed ordi- 
 nance), were examined, not only in the Catechism, but also in a brief 
 system of divinity, and discoursed with in an easy, familiar, and 
 very serious way, about every answer they made, explaining it 
 clearly to their understanding, and strongly applying it to their 
 consciences. But the greatest part of those who most Avanted such 
 kind of instruction, and the application of it, stood off; being old in 
 ignorance, they were ashamed to be thus taught and catechised 
 publicly ; while many others, after a proper and friendly way of 
 dealing with them about it, submitted to the method willingly, and 
 at length would not be content without it. In compassion to the 
 poor (yet precious) souls of others, public notice was given in church 
 on Sunday to summon them (I mean all the poor people) to come 
 there at the same time with the rest, to receive a dole of bread, 
 provided for them with part of the money the communicants gave 
 at the Sacrament. Being come together, and placed orderly, in a 
 row, to receive the bread, a few plain and easy questions were asked 
 them, with great tenderness and caution, not to puzzle or give 
 them cause to blush, having instructed and made private interest 
 with the best-disposed of them beforehand to lead on and encourage 
 the others. This being repeated once a month, the number of the 
 elderly catechumens increased, and all came willingly, giving oppor- 
 tunity to proceed from easier to harder questions, and by degrees 
 to teach them in all the plain doctrines of Christian knowledge 
 needful to salvation, and cheerfully learning by heart two or three 
 verses from the Holy Scriptures, as would be given them to be re- 
 peated at next catechising .... After many years' practice of 
 the method above, it occurred at length to wish for Welsh Charity 
 Schools, to instruct both the young and old ignorant people, which 
 thereupon were attempted to be set up in some places, without any 
 great prospect of success. But through the blessing of God, they 
 have prospered beyond expectation to this time, for seven years 
 past, which gave frequent opportunities for further discoveries of
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 95 
 
 the most deplorable ignorance among the poor. When they were 
 examined at their first coming to school, they could not answer the 
 easiest questions in religion, especially in those places where non- 
 residence, plurality of curacies, English preaching to Welsh con- 
 gregations, abound ; or where there is only a sort of preaching, 
 neither well adapted, nor so much as accompanied with a fervent 
 desire, to illuminate and convert the blind and the wicked. And it is 
 very amazing to consider how long and how incredibly ignorant the 
 generality of the people have continued, even under very plain and 
 powerful preaching, where catechising is omitted or performed with- 
 out a familiar explication of its doctrine to all the people 
 
 The business of the schoolmasters (of these schools) is ' to teach all 
 the ignorant people that come to them to read the Word of God in 
 their mother tongue ; to sing a psalm, and pray with them night 
 and morning ; to instruct them twice a day in the Church Cate- 
 chism, and the meaning thereof, by the help of such expositions as 
 both masters and scholars are provided with ; to talk to them about 
 their duty to God and man, and to warn them against all, particu- 
 larly the reigning, vices of the world ; likewise to teach them a 
 devout and decent behaviour in Divine worship, and to train them 
 up to answer reverently the responses in our Divine service, and to 
 bring their scholars to the parish church, that the minister, when 
 he finds it convenient, may examine them publicly.' A copy of 
 the rules is sent with every master. . . . 
 
 " Perhaps it may be suggested that it were better to set up Charity 
 Schools for the Welsh people in the English language, which, to be 
 sure, will be altogether as edifying as preaching English sermons 
 to Welsh congregations, that understand no tongue but their own. 
 Shall we be more concerned for the propagation of the English 
 language, than the salvation of our people ? Alas ! must they not 
 be taught in the things which concern their salvation till they be 
 instructed in a language they do not as yet understand? This 
 would be harder treatment than the common people meet with in 
 Popish countries, who, though they have not the prayers, yet are 
 favoured with the instructions of the church in their own lan- 
 guage. Most of the Welsh poor, particularly the elderly people 
 among us, will find it impossible to learn English, and very many 
 that have been three or four years in an English school could 
 hardly be taught to read perfectly, and could learn no more of the
 
 06 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 language than to speak a little broken English about their common 
 affairs, but were altogether unable to understand English books or 
 sermons, and other religious instructions ; whereas they may be 
 taught the principles of religion, and not only to read, but likewise 
 to understand what they read in their own British tongue, in three 
 or four months, or sooner. Such as are able to acquire the know- 
 ledge of the English language may apply themselves, as some have 
 done, to learn it. The Welsh Charity Schools are not in the least 
 a hindrance, but rather a help to it, for if they learn their own 
 language first, as all nations in the world do, they will find the 
 difficulty less to learn another afterwards; to proceed from the 
 easier task to a harder is the most natural method. This objection 
 has been already very fully answered in the yearly accounts of 
 these schools to which I must refer you, and therefore I need say 
 no more than this, that Welsh Charity Schools are only for the 
 Welsh poor people, that neither do nor can understand any other 
 language. To give them English schools, must be the same thing 
 as setting up French Charity Schools for the poor in England. It 
 is absurd, in the very reason and nature of the thing, to set 
 about instructing the people in religion in any other language but 
 such as they understand. 
 
 " Your most humble servant, 
 
 " Griffith Jones." 
 " Llanddowror, December 24, 1744." 
 
 From other numbers of these Reports, it is gathered that the 
 sole object of the schools was to enable the people to read the Holy 
 Scriptures in Welsh. The plan of the schools was for each master 
 to remain at a particular place until a number had been taught to 
 read, and then remove, to bring about similar results in another 
 place; hence the meaning of the term circulating. The Society 
 for Promoting Christian Knowledge efficiently supported the 
 schools by donations of Bibles and thousands of other books. 
 At times, too, assistance was given to support poor families while 
 giving their time to attend school. All ages — children, youth, 
 middle-aged, and old people— frequented them, and they extended, in 
 varying numbers, to almost all the counties of Wales. By the year 
 1760 it is computed that there were 215 schools in active operation 
 with numbers amounting to 8687. They were thus distributed : —
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 97 
 
 South Wales 
 
 
 North 
 
 Wales 
 
 , 
 
 Schools. 
 
 Scholars. 
 
 Schools. 
 
 Scholars 
 
 Breconshirc ... 4 
 
 . 196 
 
 Anglesea 
 
 25 .. 
 
 1023 
 
 Cardiojan ... 20 
 
 1153 
 
 Caernarvon . . . 
 
 27 .. 
 
 981 
 
 Caermarthen ... 54 
 
 . 2410 
 
 Merioneth ... 
 
 15 .. 
 
 508 
 
 Glamorgan ... 25 
 
 . 872 
 
 Denbigh 
 
 8 .. 
 
 307 
 
 Monmouth ... 2 
 
 61 
 
 Montgomery... 
 
 12 .. 
 
 339 
 
 Pembroke ... 23 .. 
 
 . 837 
 
 
 
 
 Total 128 
 
 5529 
 
 Total 
 
 87 
 
 3158 
 
 Judge Jolmes, from a careful perusal of the volumes of Welsh 
 Piety, presents us with the following interesting summary and 
 inferences : — 
 
 " In 1761, the year of Mr. Jones's decease, that is about thirty 
 years after the first experiment had been tried with ' the sacrament 
 money of the parish of Llanddowror ' (Last Letter of Griffith 
 Jones, at the end of the third volume of Welsh Piety), the number 
 of schools which had been established at different times and in 
 various places (it should not be forgotten that a school rarely or 
 (n)ever continued in the same place for more than half a year at a 
 time) in Wales, amounted to 3495, and the number of scholars 
 who had been educated in them amounted to 158,237. This was 
 certainly a degree of success which the most sanguine friends of 
 the institution could hardly have anticipated ; we can only justly 
 appreciate its real extent, when we recollect that the population of 
 Wales during this period continued on an average between four and 
 five hundred thousand. It should also be kept in mind that the 
 number of scholars just given applies merely to those who frequented 
 the schools in the day-time; Griffith Jones informs us that those who 
 received tuition by the night visits of the schoolmasters were twice 
 as numerous {Welsh Piety, 1st No. p. 65) a class as the regular 
 day-scholars. Nor are these details in any respect a matter of 
 vague conjecture, as one of the duties of the schoolmasters was to 
 keep (Griffith Jones' Letter in Welsh Piety, Ist^No. p. 3) a minute 
 account of the names, dispositions, and progresses of their pupils. 
 Two-thirds of the regular day-scholars were adults ( Welsh Piety, 
 p. 65), and many instances are recorded of old men who ' for age 
 were obliged to wear spectacles, coming to the schools for the 
 purpose of learning to read' {Welsh Piety, p. 26); and this in- 
 teresting feature of humble literary zeal is well Ivnown to have 
 presented itself frequently in more recent times, when schools of a 
 
 >/
 
 08 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 similar character were founded in North Wales, by Mr. Charles of 
 Bala, and his coadjutors. Many old persons came, and bursting 
 into tears lamented ' that they had not had an opportunity of 
 learning forty or fifty years sooner ' ( Welsh Piety ^ pp. 5, 6) ; and 
 several blind persons attended during the hours of tuition, and by 
 dint of attention to what was going on, learnt by heart several 
 chapters of the Bible. Servants were in the habit of hiring la- 
 bourers ' to serve in their room,' to enable them to frequent the 
 schools, and afterwards of spending the long winter nights in imiDart- 
 ing their little stock of lore to their fellow-servants ; in one word, 
 every incident in the history of these schools contributes to prove 
 that the ignorance of the Welsh of that period was ascribable to a 
 total want of the means of knowledge, and not to any indisposition 
 in the people to employ them when offered." * 
 
 Mr. Jones from time to time received many testimonials from all 
 parts of the country, expressing the value set upon them by the 
 people, and showing how jealous they were for the good name of 
 the schoolmasters to be vindicated against the calumnies of oppo- 
 nents and persecutors. One of these is presented to the reader here 
 as a specimen of a host of others : — 
 
 Letter to Griffith Jones, on the subject of the schools, illus- 
 trating the effect of the schools in reviving religion in the Church 
 of England. 
 
 Extract of a Utter from the Bev. P. Thomas^ curate of Gelligaer, 
 Glamorganshire. 
 
 " 1. Our churches in general in this neighbourhood are now near 
 iis full again of auditors as they used to be before those Welsh 
 Charity Schools circulated about the country. Their ministers 
 endeavoured before, both by fair and rough means, to bring the 
 people under the droppings of the sanctuary, but all in vain, yet 
 now (blessed be God) our solemn assemblies are thronged ; and 
 what is more to be taken notice of, there is a visible change for the 
 better in the lives and behaviour of the people, which induces me 
 to hope that God pours down his blessing in great abundance upon 
 this new way (if I may so call it) of reviving religion among us. 
 As by learning to read they are taught to see their master's will 
 with their own eyes, as well as to hear it with the ear, it is hoped 
 * Johnes's "Essay," pp. 26, 27.
 
 THE SUI^DAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 9^ 
 
 that the advantage they receive by both senses will doubly increase 
 tlieir love and affections to God and his holy ways. 
 
 " 2. We have now a monthly communion about us here in several 
 l^arish churches, where within very few years past it could hardly 
 be administered so often as thrice a year, for want of persons to 
 receive it ; but (thanks be to God) I hear there are near six score 
 monthly communicants in one of these parishes at present, viz. 
 Eglwys Helen, where not long since they wanted a convenient 
 number to minister the sacrament on one of the three solemn 
 feasts of the year. I am also informed that the communicants 
 increase monthly at Bedwas, Mynydd-islwyn, and Bedwellty, in 
 Monmouthshire, and in several other parishes distant from me, 
 where the schools have been for one or two quarters ; and if you 
 had been able to afford them the continuance of the schools for a 
 longer time, it is thought that by the blessing of God the effect 
 would have been proportionable ; as we find it has been in other 
 places, where they have been for three or four quarters. 
 
 " 3. It was difficult for the poor to find fit persons, according to 
 the excellent institution of our Church, to stand godfathers and 
 godmothers to their children when they brought them to be bap- 
 tized ; as few made conscience of receiving the Lord's supper, 
 indeed very few could give a tolerable account of it, nor of the 
 creed and ten commandments, nor of the very plainest principles 
 <!'f the Christian religion. 
 
 "4. The Welsh schools have been the means, under God, to 
 reform the profanation of the Sabbath day ; which the generality 
 of the common people, formerly spent in tippling, gaming, etc., 
 notwithstanding all the good laws in force against it. Many of 
 them at present, are as fervent for the sanctification of it, as before 
 they were in profaning it ; for as then they assembled together for 
 their plays and diversions without much interruption, neighbours 
 associate noio on the Lord's day evening to read their Bibles or 
 ether good books, and to repeat what they remember of the 
 instructions given them from the pulpit in the morning ; singing 
 psalms and praying with their families, which before they were 
 taught to read they neither did nor could do. They gratefully outi 
 the light and reformation they are now blessed with, to be owing 
 <next under God) to the charitable supporters of these schools ; 
 which they acknowledge to be the most beneficial charity that ever
 
 100 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 could be offered towards promoting religion among the poor and: 
 ignorant, praying God to continue and prosper, and abundantly tO' 
 reward the authors of it."* 
 
 Similar testimonials, or certificates as they were called, were- 
 received from Kev. Jenkin Jones, curate of Llanbadock, Monmouth- 
 shire, Rev. John Kenrick, minister of Llangernyw, Denbighshire, 
 and also a vindication of a schoolmaster by the parishioners of 
 Llanfihangel rhos y Corn, Caermarthenshire, dated 7th day of July,. 
 A.D. 1741. 
 
 Besides his labours as an educationist, Mr. Jones was also, in his- 
 day, the most popular and successful preacher and evangelist in the- 
 Principality. His style as a preacher was pointed, convincing, often 
 thundering in his denunciations ; as regards matter he was doctrinaL 
 and intellectual, and always supporting his ministry by a thoroughljr 
 consistent conversation. So much did his reputation as a preacher 
 spread, that he was often asked by his neighbours to occupy their 
 pulpits, but wherever he went he endeavoured to follow out his 
 practice of public catechising ; and this novelty would bring together 
 so many from all parts to hear him that the churches would be too 
 small to hold the congregations. Very often had he to adjourn tf> 
 the open air, utilizing a tombstone as a vantage ground to address 
 the thronging multitude. In time he arranged to make a kind of 
 periodical tour through the neighbouring districts of South Wales, 
 choosing mostly, Easter and Whitsun weeks as the most suitable 
 seasons for his excursions. His chief object in fixing upon this 
 time, was to come across the scenes of revelry, drunkenness and 
 fightings, which at those festivals always abounded in all parts of 
 the country. He was very successful in putting down these rustic 
 carnivals. One individual who often accompanied him on his preach- 
 ing tours, says that in the beginning of his address to the uproarious 
 attendants of the feasts " he was generally received with looks of 
 anger and churlish disdain, but the conclusion was always marked 
 by symptoms of strong emotion and by an expression of reverence 
 and awe from the whole assembled multitude." 
 
 Notwithstanding his vast labours in preaching, teaching and 
 
 catechising, he found time to enrich the literature of his country 
 
 with both original works and translations from English into Welsh. 
 
 Amongst these may be enumerated his " Explanation of the Church. 
 
 * Quoted in Jolines's "Essay," pp. 21, 22.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 101 
 
 Catechism ; '' "A Call to the Throne of Grace ; " *' Directions how to 
 come to the Throne of Grace ; " " Forms of Prayer ; " "A Cheap 
 Advice ; " " A Book on the Duty of Instructing the Ignorant ; " " An 
 Exhortation to Praise God ; " and " A Collection of the Songs of the 
 Piev. Rhys Prichard." It has been already mentioned how he was 
 instrumental in obtaining two editions of the Bible in "Welsh, in 
 1746 and 1752. He was specially and directly connected with the 
 •great religious revival which commenced during his lifetime, and 
 Avhose beneficial effects have been continued up to our days. For 
 more than one reason has he deserved the title of " The Morning 
 Star of the Methodistical Revival." It was under his ministry, 
 <luring one of his itineracies at Llanddewibrefi, in Cardiganshire, 
 that the Rev. Daniel Rowlands " Offeiriad bach Llangeitho " (The 
 little Priest of Llangeitho), as he was called, was converted. From 
 his school at Llanddowror, another efficient labourer in the revival? 
 the Rev. Howell Davies went forth, who chose Pembrokeshire as his 
 field. The wife of the Rev. William Williams, of Pantycelyn, the 
 noted hymnologist of the Welsh, was for some time brought up in 
 his family, she having been a lady companion to Mrs. Jones, who 
 was a daughter of Sir Erasmus Phillips, and half-sister to Sir John 
 Phillips, of Picton Castle, in Pembrokeshire. The effect of his 
 teaching (for he was remarkable for his devotedness to family 
 instruction and worship), exercised no small influence on the mind 
 of the bard, through the medium of his wife, to whom he often 
 refers in his songs under the familiar name of Mali (Mary). After 
 serving his nation according to the will of God, he slept in Jesus at 
 the house of his friend Madam Bevan, on the 8th of April, 1761, in 
 the seventy-seventh year of his age, and was buried in the church of 
 Llanddowror, where he had been ministering for forty-five years. 
 His death was greatly felt by the general public, and great weeping 
 marked the bearing of his mortal remains to their last resting-place. 
 In his intercourse with the i:)eople he had alwaj^s been meek, earnest, 
 kind and humble, which had greatly endeared him to all his friends 
 and acquaintances. By his ministry he had been the instrument, 
 through God's spirit, to bring manj' a soul to a saving knowledge of 
 the truth ; by his schools he had enabled thousands to read God's 
 Word in their own tongue ; and by the combined eflect of the course 
 of instruction in the schools, and his own direct appeals, he had 
 greatly succeeded in improving the morals of the country, especially
 
 102 
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 by putting down tlie evil practices of sabbath-breaking, drunken- 
 ness and public rioting. 
 
 The schools were carried on after his death, under the supervision 
 of Madam Bevan. The following table may be interesting as show- 
 ing their growth and fluctuations from their commencement to the 
 year of that virtuous lady's death : — 
 
 Statement of the number of schools established by Griffith Jones 
 and Mrs. Bevan, and the number of scholars instructed in them 
 from the commencement in 1737 till the death of that lady in 1777, 
 a period of forty years.* 
 
 
 
 Schools. 
 
 Scholars. 
 
 
 
 Schools. 
 
 Scholars 
 
 n the year 1737 
 
 37 
 
 2400 
 
 In the year 1759 
 
 206 
 
 8539 
 
 
 1738 
 
 71 
 
 3981 
 
 .J 
 
 1760 
 
 215 
 
 8687 
 
 
 1739 
 
 71 
 
 3989 
 
 
 1761 
 
 210 
 
 8023 
 
 
 1740 
 
 150 
 
 8767 
 
 
 1762 
 
 225 
 
 9616 
 
 
 1741 
 
 128 
 
 7995 
 
 
 1763 
 
 279 
 
 11770- 
 
 
 1742 
 
 89 
 
 5123 
 
 
 1764 
 
 195 
 
 946a 
 
 
 1743 
 
 - 75 
 
 4881 
 
 
 1765 
 
 189 
 
 9029 
 
 
 1744 
 
 74 
 
 4253 
 
 
 1766 
 
 219 
 
 10986 
 
 
 1745 
 
 120 
 
 5843 
 
 
 1767 
 
 190 
 
 8422 
 
 
 1746 
 
 116 
 
 5635 
 
 
 1768 
 
 148 
 
 7149 
 
 
 1747 
 
 110 
 
 6633 
 
 
 1769 
 
 173 
 
 8637 
 
 
 1748 
 
 136 
 
 6223 
 
 
 1770 
 
 159 
 
 9042 
 
 
 1749 
 
 142 
 
 6543 
 
 
 1771 
 
 181 
 
 9844 
 
 
 1750 
 
 130 
 
 6244 
 
 
 1772 
 
 219 
 
 12044 
 
 
 1751 
 
 129 
 
 5669 
 
 
 1773 
 
 242 
 
 13205 
 
 
 1752 
 
 130 
 
 5724 
 
 5J 
 
 1774 
 
 211 
 
 11685 
 
 
 1753 
 
 134 
 
 6118 
 
 
 1775 
 
 148 
 
 9002 
 
 
 1754 
 
 149 
 
 6018 
 
 
 1776 
 
 118 
 
 7354 
 
 
 1755 
 
 163 
 
 7015 
 
 
 1777 
 
 144 
 
 9576 
 
 
 1756 
 
 172 
 
 7064 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 1757 
 
 220 
 
 9037 
 
 
 Total 
 
 6465 
 
 314051 
 
 
 1758 
 
 218 
 
 9834 
 
 
 
 
 
 The prominent share which these schools had in the enlighten- 
 ment of the Welsh people for so considerable a period, and the 
 familiarity with which Madam Bevan's name is mentioned even to 
 this day, will, we presume, render every further information respect- 
 ing her charity to support the schools, its subsequent history and 
 present application very acceptable to the reader. The former 
 particulars have been supplied us by Sir T. Phillips. He write;? 
 respecting them : — 
 
 " Kev. Griffith Jones left at his death upwards of £7000 in the 
 hands of his friend Madam Bevan, to be applied by her to the sup- 
 * Given in Judge Johnes's " Essay," p. 103.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 103 
 
 port and extension of the circulating schools ; and that lady, who 
 died in 1779, gave the books and estate of the late Griffith Jones, 
 and also the residue of her own estate, for the use of the Welsh 
 Circulating Charity Schools, so long as the same should continue ; 
 and for the increase and improvement of Christian knowledge. One 
 of the trustees of the will of Madam Bevan possessed herself of the 
 property thus bequeathed, and, having refused to apply it for the 
 charitable purposes directed by the will, the schools were closed for 
 many years, pending an information by the Attorney-general ; and 
 the charity only came again into operation in 1809, since which 
 :ime it has been managed under a scheme embodied in an order of 
 ihe Lord Chancellor, made the 11th of July, 1807, of which the 
 following are the principal regulations : — 
 
 *' ' That the trustees of the charity ai:»point schoolmasters of com- 
 petent abilities and good character (members of the Established 
 Church), who, being approved of by the bishop of the diocese, or by 
 some two or more clergymen named by him, shall receive salaries 
 1 ot exceeding £7 10s. a quarter ; but no person shall be appointed 
 a schoolmaster without conforming himself pursuant to the Act of 
 Uniformity. 
 
 " ' That the trustees appoint schools at such towns, villages, and 
 iJaces within the Principality of Wales, as, with the concurrence of 
 tiie bishop or such clergymen, they shall deem convenient. 
 
 " ' That the duty of the schoolmaster shall consist in teaching the 
 cMldren, both male and female, of poor indigent persons to read ; in 
 making them learn by heart the Creed, the Lord's Prayer, the 
 Commandments, and the Church Catechism ; and in going with and 
 attending such children to the parish church on the Lord's day, and 
 as often on other days, when Divine service shall be performed, as 
 ]nay be convenient. 
 
 " ' That the trustees appoint two fit and discreet members of the 
 Church, to be approved of by the bishop of the diocese, at a salary 
 not exceeding £30 a year for each, to be visitors of the schools, who 
 shall visit and inspect every school in their district once in six 
 months, and report on the state of the schools to the trustees and 
 the bishop. 
 
 " * That the trustees meet yearly in the town of Cardigan, on the 
 last day of the Autumn Great Sessions for that county, to take into 
 consideration the general state and concerns of the charity.'
 
 104 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 " The fund now consists of £31,486 12s. 2d. three per cent, con- 
 sols, producing a yearly income of £944 12s., which has been 
 hitherto employed in supporting a school at Newport, in Pembroke- 
 shire, where the schoolmasters employed by the trustees receive 
 what is called training ; in small stipends to three visitors of the 
 circulating schools ; and in salaries of £20 and £25 a year to a 
 certain number of masters." * 
 
 With regard to the present application of the charity, the Com- 
 missioners of 1880, on the " Condition of Intermediate and Higher 
 Education in "Wales," remark, " That certain charities were specially 
 referred to (by witnesses) as capable of being made by a change in 
 the manner of their application much more conducive than at pre- 
 sent to the advancement of education in Wales. One of these was 
 the charity of Bridget Bevan, originally given for the maintenance 
 of the Welsh circulating schools set on foot in 1733 by the Rev. 
 Griffith Jones, but now, under a scheme of the Court of Chancery, 
 used, among other things, to" subsidise elementary schools connected 
 Avith the Church of England in various parts of Wales. SmaE 
 payments are made to each of the aided schools, and the result is 
 not so much to promote the education of the poor as to relieve tlie 
 localities assisted of some part of the burden now cast on them by 
 the Elementary Education Acts." f 
 
 The review now concluded brings us to the eve of the establisl.- 
 ment of Sunday Schools. In endeavouring to gauge the real amount 
 of good produced upon the country through the influence of tlie 
 ■schools of the period, the particulars we have been able to furnish 
 will show at once the difficulty of arriving at any correct estimate. 
 The fact that considerable sums of money were left in some coun- 
 ties towards supplying their educational needs, is no safe indication 
 that the object was always secured. Too often in the case of the 
 smaller endowments, all the emoluments to all intents and purposes 
 went to increase the clergyman's salary, who relegated the duties of 
 instructing the youth to a less qualified person, and whose services 
 could be secured at a small fraction of the proceeds. Even very 
 lately did the vicar of the parish church and the head master of the 
 school meet in the same individual, but the latter office was only a 
 fiction of law, in order to divert the endowment from its intended 
 application. In the larger schools, too, the children of the wealthier 
 * Phillips's "Wales," pp. 285, 286. t Report, p. xxxvii.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 105 
 
 classes would mostly, if not. exclusively, be benefited. That there 
 were private adventure schools carried on in many to\vns and some 
 of the larger villages can hardly admit of a doubt ; but even grant- 
 ing this, large tracts of the country must have been left throughout 
 this long period in a state of profoundest ignorance. It can be 
 .safely affirmed only of the schools founded by Revs. Thomas Gouge 
 and Griffith Jones, that they really touched the condition of the 
 masses generally. Thus, characterizing the whole period, oiu' 
 ilescription can hardly justify more than a negative statement — 
 that the country was not altogether a land of total darkness. 
 Even the light to which we have referred, was made up of faint 
 streaks and occasional emissions, certainly not a generally diffused 
 influx. The whole period may not inaptly be described in the 
 words of the prophet, especially with reference to the bright con- 
 trast of the Sunday School period : " And there was a day — neither 
 night nor day — but there will be light in the evening."
 
 106 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES, 
 
 CHAPTEE Y. 
 
 HlNDKA>XES AND OrPOSITIONS TO PROGRESS. 
 
 Presumptive evidence of the neglected state of the country — Direct influ- 
 ences at work — Neglect of duty by spiritual teachers — Dr. Meyrick, of 
 Bangor — Dr. Hughes, of St. Asaph — State of dioceses during the reigns- 
 of James I. and Charles I. — Rev. Rhys Prichard's testimony — State of 
 the country during the commonwealth — The ordinance for ejecting 
 scandalous ministers — Itinerant preachers in the country — Evidence of 
 the biographer of Charles of Bala — Of Mr. Charles himself — Sir Thomas 
 Phillips's estimate of the period — Direct opposition to the efforts to 
 enlighten the people — The earlier Puritans — John Penry — Persecution 
 of good pastors by Laud — The labours of Wroth, Erbury and Walter 
 Cradoc — Opposition to the evangelistic work of Vavasor Powell — 
 Johnes's general conclusions — Operation of the Acts of Uniformity, 
 the Conventicle, and Five-mile Acts — Griffith Jones of Llanddowror 
 and his ecclesiastical superiors — His charges against his brother clergj' 
 — General effect of persecution. 
 
 The concluding remarks of the previous cliapter may have prepared 
 the way for the coming change in the character of our remarks. 
 Hitherto we have dwelt altogether on the bright side of the ques- 
 tion — the efforts and immediate success, so far as it went, of good 
 men to dispel the darkness with which they were surrounded, 
 eliminating from our consideration all hostile influences, except the 
 consciousness of the fact that the human heart is always averse tO' 
 he acted upon for its good. But even when confining our observa- 
 tion to the direct influences at work for the enlightenment of the 
 people, we are compelled to come to the conclusion that the results 
 were but meagre and transitory. The long intervals of mental in- 
 activity, as shown by the slow issue of Scriptures and other books 
 from the press, throughout the whole period ; the totally inadequate 
 provisions afforded by the schools to bring the population generallj- 
 under training; the necessary immediate relapse into which the
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 107 
 
 country fell, after the bright but comparatively short periods of 
 renaissance brought about through the instrumentality of such men 
 as Thomas Gouge and Griffith Jones of Llanddowror, because the 
 efforts they originated -were not continued and sustained — all these 
 considerations, in themselves apart from all active hostilities, must 
 point to a state of things in which, taking a general survey, the 
 darkness must have far predominated over the light. But further 
 influences are forced upon our notice which were directly at variance 
 Avith even the meagre efforts exerted, and effectually retarding them 
 from producing the fullest effects they were capable of, towards the 
 improvement of the country. These hindrances to progress are com- 
 prised under two headings : (1) Cv.l/pohle dereliction of duty hy those 
 to whom tliespirituid and. intelJectvxd a. melioration of the people was 
 naturally and officicdly entrusted ; (2) Direct persecution of those ivho 
 were labour in y for their country's good hy men in authority, ivhc^ 
 ought rather to have heartily co-operated, ivith them in their labours. 
 
 1. With regard to the former of these two hostile elements, due 
 credit, we hope, has been and ought to have been given, to the 
 noble array of pious, able and devoted clergymen who laboured 
 to promote religion and encourage education among the middle 
 and lower classes at different times; but their virtues cannot 
 possibly atone for the multitude of sins of omission and commission 
 which many of their brethren were guilty of in the positions they 
 occupied. In no spirit of fault-finding or crowing over the defects 
 of any section of the Protestant Church, do we refer to this subject, 
 but merely in the interest of historical truth which the proper elucida- 
 tion of this branch of our inquiry demands. This remissness was 
 found to prevail more or less throughout the period, and since too 
 often the bishops were foremost in the iniquity, the character of the 
 majority of the subordinate clergy could not be expected to have 
 been much diflerent. 
 
 In 1560, Dr. Meyrick, Bishop of Bangor, states that he had only 
 two preachers in all his diocese, and Strype,inhis "Life of Archbishop 
 Parker," speaking of the same see, in 1565, saj's " that there was no- 
 preaching used, and pensionary concubinage was openly continued, 
 that is, allowance of concubinage to the clergy by paying a pension, 
 notwithstanding the liberty of marriage granted.*' In the year 
 1587, a charge was brought against Dr. ^yilliam Hughes, Bishop of 
 St. Asaph, of misgoverning his diocese. An inquiry was instituted.
 
 108 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 the result of wliicli was to substantiate tlie following allegations : — 
 that he himself held sixteen rich livings in commendam ; that most 
 of the other great livings were in possession of persons who lived 
 out of the country ; and that only three clergymen in the whole 
 <liocese resided on their livings. Only three are described as living 
 worthily of the gospel, viz. Dr. Powell of Kuabon, Dr. William 
 Morgan of Llanrhaiadr-yn-Mochnant, and another old clergyman, 
 who was about eighty years of age. One redeeming trait in the 
 character of this prelate is that he rendered material assistance in 
 getting the Bible translated into Welsh. Archbishop Laud, in a 
 letter addressed to the king in relation to the diocese of St. David's, 
 incidentally, and no doubt unintentionally, throws light on the 
 conduct of the clergy of the period. " He complains much," says the 
 Archbishop, speaking of the Bishop of St. David's, " and surely with 
 cause enough, that there are few ministers in those poor and remote 
 places that are able to preach and instruct the people." In the 
 same strain writes the Bishop of St. Asaph to his bigoted primate 
 respecting his efforts in getting the " Book of Sports " (of which we 
 shall have more to say in the next section) read in the churches. 
 He says " that they were not anywhere troubled with Inconformity 
 {that is a refusal to read the " Book of Sports "), but that he heartily 
 wished they might as well be acquitted of superstition and profane- 
 ness." In the year 1641, the Long Parliament sent a number of 
 itinerant preachers to Wales, commanding them to preach wherever 
 there might be need. In a petition sent from Wales to the king* 
 and parliament this year, the state of religion in the country is 
 ■descril)ed as being very low, that there were hardly as many faithful 
 preachers as counties in Wales, and that very few made an open 
 profession of religion. The Eev. Ehys Prichard of Llandovery, 
 referring to the state of the country between 1602 and 1646, states 
 that " not one in a hundred of his countrymen could read ; that no 
 ■copy of the Scriptures was found even in the mansions of many of 
 the gentry ; that the clergy were asleep, leaving the people to wallow 
 in their sins unwarned and unrebuked ; that the upper classes, witli 
 rare exceptions, were totally regardless of religion, and the common 
 people ignorant and unwilling to receive instruction." His own 
 words on the subject are remarkably strong and uncompromising. 
 
 " Licentiousness," he says, " drunkenness, dishonesty, falsehood, 
 and infidelity are rampant through the principality. Judges and
 
 THE SU^^DAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 109 
 
 juries sympatliise with drunken murderers, and permit extortioners 
 to rob widows and orphans. Sheriffs and their deputies pkmder 
 innocent people by virtue of their offices. The Lord's Day is a day 
 for drunkenness, dancing, idleness, games, and wanton lewdness 
 among the Welsh." 
 
 The result of the jDctition above referred to, presented to the Long 
 Parliament, was to pass an ordinance specialh^ framed for Wales, on 
 the 22nd of February, 1649, called " An ordinance for the better 
 propagation and preaching the gospel in Wales ; for ejecting scanda- 
 lous ministers and schoolmasters, and the redress of some grievances, 
 to continue in force for three years, from the 25th March, 1650." 
 The charges brought against several of the clergy throughout Wales 
 were immoral life, drunkenness, and ignorance of the principles of 
 the Christian religion. There are some who think that these were 
 too severely dealt with, and that they ought rather to have been 
 warned and allowed time to reform, and not thrust altogether 
 from their livings. Few deny the charges in toto, for that implies 
 at once a spirit of persecution in the commissioners, for which no 
 justification can be found. But even granting that their zeal for 
 the house of the Lord carried them to extremes, after making the 
 greatest allowances, the amount of neglect still remaining, shows 
 the country to have been in a most deplorable state. We shall 
 here present the facts, and leave the reader to draw the conclusions 
 which seem to him just. 
 
 On the 17th of January, Colonel Harrison was appointed to bring 
 in an Act for the preaching of the gospel in Wales, which w^as 
 passed on the 22nd of February. It was commended to the special 
 care of Colonel Harrison, to have some instructions considered for 
 the direction of the commissioners as to their proceedings, under 
 the titles of Malignancy, Delinquency, Nonresidency, and Scandal. 
 .... The measures taken under this ordinance had the intention 
 of uprooting a parochial ministry in AVales, in accordance with a 
 scheme of Hugh Peters, for propagating the gospel in that country, 
 by sequestering all ministers, bringing the revenues of the Church 
 into one treasury, and allowing thereout stipends of £100 a year to 
 six itinerant ministers, to preach in each county. From another 
 ordinance, jjassed on the 30th of August, 1654, for appointing com- 
 missioners to take an account of the moneys received under the 
 former ordinance, and for securing the payment into the Exchequer
 
 110 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 of all surplus moneys, it appears that the commissioners named in 
 the first ordinance were empowered to receive and dispose of all the 
 profits of all ecclesiastical livings, whether in the disposal of the 
 Parliament, or under sequestration, and to appoint a yearly mainten- 
 ance for such persons as should be recommended and appointed for 
 the work of the ministry, or for the education of children, and for 
 such other ministers as were then residing in the country. Before 
 the end of 1652, between the counties of Glamorgan, Monmouth, 
 Brecon, Cardigan, Caermarthen, Pembroke, and Eadnor, there were 
 336 livings sequestered by the commissioners or otherwise vacated. 
 In the same seven counties, there were livings in the hands of the 
 commissioners in the year 1650, 273 ; in 1651, 292 ; in 1652, 209. 
 In the same six counties, omitting Radnor, of episcopally ordained 
 ministers existing in 1645 who retained their benefices in 1652, 
 there were 127. On the 10th of March, 1651, a petition was pre- 
 sented to the Parliament from 15,000 of the inhabitants of six 
 counties of South Wales, complaining of various sufferings inflicted 
 by the commissioners for propagating the gospel. The committee 
 of plundered ministers received a Report from the commissioners of 
 their proceedings, with which they appear to have been satisfied, and 
 further refused what the petitioners sought, namely, an examination 
 of their allegations by a commissioner appointed to visit the country 
 for the purpose .... There are entries in the sequestrators' accounts 
 for Monmouthshire in 1650 and 1651, showing how they supplied 
 the places of some of the ejected ministers. Thus : — 
 
 " Distributed amongst twenty godly members of the churches 
 of Llanfaches and Mynyddislwyn, sent forth to exercise their gifts, 
 and to help in the work of the Lord amongst the Welsh in the 
 mountains, £340." 
 
 That the charges against the ejected clergy were not unfounded 
 is proved by the confessions of Rev. John Edwards, who was him- 
 self among the number. He acknowledges that at the time " not 
 one in fifteen of his clerical contemporaries could read or write the 
 Welsh language." In 1677, a pious clergyman writing to his 
 brethren says, " There are to be found in each of the Welsh dio- 
 ceses from forty to sixty churches without a sermon on Sundays." 
 Coming down to the eve of the establishment of Sunday Schools, 
 Mr. Morgan of Syston, himself a clergyman of the Church of 
 England, and well known as the able biographer of Mr. Charles of
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. Ill 
 
 Bala, says " that the Church ministers were in a most degenerate 
 state, both as to principles and practice, while the gentry used no 
 influence in favour of religion or good morals, but themselves gave 
 example of many kinds of wickedness." And Mr. Charles himself 
 had borne testimony to the same effect, saying, " In those days the 
 land was dark indeed ; hardly any of the lower ranks could read at 
 all. The morals of the country were very corrupt, and in this 
 respect there was no difference between gentle and simple, laymen 
 and clergymen. Gluttony, drunl^enness, and licentiousness ])re- 
 vailed throughout the whole country." 
 
 Sir Thomas Phillips, who can never be suspected of dealing 
 unjustly towards the Church of which he was so bright a member, 
 candidly acknowledges that the clergy during this period had egre- 
 giously failed of their duty towards those whom they were en- 
 trusted to instruct. The very same causes which in later times 
 brought about the alienation of the people from the Church of 
 England, always entailed as one result at least, the increase 
 of ignorance and superstition, inasmuch as the ministers of that 
 church, for a long time, were the only instructors of the people. 
 The simony, nepotism, non-residence, x^luralism, and especially 
 incompetence to instruct, arising from the fact that so many were 
 holding livings who could not preach to the people in a language 
 " imderstanded of them," prevailing for so many years, brought 
 about the natural results of utter contempt on the part of the 
 people for the means of grace as dispensed within the walls of the 
 establishment, and the consequent relapse, not so much into infi- 
 delity, as into superstition and immorality. The various influences 
 by which the Church in Wales has been weakened, and most of 
 the malpractices of the clergy, especially those which affected the 
 moral and intellectual condition of the people, are thus summarised 
 by him : — " We have found," he says, " the ecclesiastical rulers of 
 this clergy and chief pastors of the people, as well as many other 
 holders of valuable church prefennent, to consist often of strangers 
 to the country, ignorant alike of the language and character of the 
 inhabitants, by many of whom they are regarded with distrust and 
 dislike ; unable to instruct the flock committed to their charge, or 
 to teach and exhort with wholesome doctrine, or to preach the 
 word, or to withstand and convince gainsayers in the language 
 familiar to the common people of the land."
 
 112 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 2. With regard to the second class of influences at work 
 militating against the intellectual, social and religious advancement 
 of the people, we have specified as chief the direct persecution of 
 men labouring with this object in view, by those who ought rather 
 to have been but too glad to co-operate with them. And here the 
 picture of intolerance and malevolence is far sadder and more 
 pitiable than the neglect of duty from which we now turn. In 
 some cases, probably, the persecutors, like Saul of Tarsus, believed 
 they were doing service to God by enforcing their convictions, 
 nolens volens, on all with whom they came in contact. Others 
 again thought that adherence to existing rules and regulations was 
 to be insisted upon, however much that was at variance with the 
 moral regeneration of the country ; while most of the persecutors, 
 it is to be feared, if ever they troubled their minds with any 
 reflecting thought, must have prided themselves on being the 
 direct agents of the Prince of Darkness to extend and perpetuate 
 his rule over mankind. How much higher would the country have 
 stood in knowledge, virtue and religion, if, like Moses, who Avished 
 that all his brethren were proj^hets provided some good came out 
 of their inspiration, they also, had encouraged and not persecuted 
 those who had at heart the advancement of their countrymen; 
 and how much wiser Avould it have been for bishops, clergy, and 
 gentry generally, before hurling their weapons of oi^position against 
 good and patriotic men, to have acted the counsel of Gamaliel, and 
 consider whether they were not in danger of finding themselves 
 ere long to have been, from the commencement, fighting against God. 
 
 The resistance habitually and strenuously offered by those in 
 power to the efforts of others to enlighten and improve the people 
 continued over the three different periods corresponding to the 
 three different phases of its manifestation. These phases are, the 
 oxtposition shoiun (1) to the Puritans, (2) to the Noiiconformists ; 
 and (3) to the Methodists, immediately before the rise of Sunday 
 Schools. The first as well as the most prominent of the Puritans, 
 labouring for the good of the Principality, but who fell under the 
 displeasure of those in authority, was a native of Breconshire, 
 
 John Penry (born about 1559). 
 
 He was brought up first at Cambridge, and afterwards at Oxford, 
 where he gained a respectable position, for he preached with ap-
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 113 
 
 13robatiou before the two universities. Eeturning to Wales, lie 
 exercised his gifts here, and according to his own showing was the 
 first who publicly preached to the Welsh, and scattered the good 
 seed among the hills of his native country about the year 1588. 
 Feeling intensely for the neglected state of his " dear " native 
 country (as he calls it), he published two books setting forth his 
 grievance with regard to it. The first is entitled, " A survey of 
 the public defects and disorders in Wales, with a public petition to 
 Parliament to reform the same." The second is " An Exhortation 
 to the Governors and the people of Wales to strive earnestly to get 
 the Gospel preached amongst them." Not long after this the series 
 of libels against the bishops and episcopacj', known as Martin 
 Mar-prelate, were issued. These were printed at a movable press, 
 which was shifted to different parts of the country as the pm'suit 
 grew hot. They contained little serious argimients, and must be 
 characterized as the unwarrantable invectives of angry men who 
 stuck at no calumny to blacken those in authority. The authors 
 (for many are believed to have had a share in their production) 
 could not be traced with certainty, but strong suspicion fell upon 
 Penry, and a warrant from the Privy Council was issued in 1590, 
 for his apprehension, as an enemy to the State. When he heard 
 this he fled into Scotland and remained there in concealment for 
 nearly three years. While there, he wrote many notes for his own 
 private use on matters appertaining to religion, and also drew up 
 a Petition to be sent to the Queen to show her the true state of 
 religion, and how ignorant she was of the abuses practised in the 
 Church of England, especially in the disj)osal of ecclesiastical 
 patronage. In this petition a special request was made that he 
 should be authorized to go down to Wales, his native country, and 
 ]3reach the gospel to his fellow countrymen. With this petition 
 in his pocket, he made his way towards London, intending to 
 present it to the Queen with his own hand whenever a suitable 
 opportunity might occur. When he came, however, to the neigh- 
 bourhood of the metropolis, in May, 1593, he was apprehended; 
 and from these unpublished notes, not from what had appeared in 
 Martin Mar-prelate, an accusation was drawn up against him. He 
 was arraigned under the Act of 23 Eliz. ch. 2, for writing seditious 
 matter against the Queen's Majesty. The Act was evidently 
 strained beyond its intended scope, for the writings charged against
 
 114 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 him being confined to subjects of religious controversy or of eccle- 
 siastical discipline, he was not within the compass of a statute 
 jDassed for the protection of the royal person and authority. 
 Altliough this argument was submitted on his behalf, it was of 
 little avail, as state prisoners in those days had very little chance 
 of escaping from the clutches of the law, except by the death of 
 the reigning monarch, whatever defence might be offered in their 
 favour. He was found guilty, and sentenced to be hanged like 
 a felon, Archbishop Whitgift being the first to sign the warrant for 
 his execution. 
 
 Penry made a pathetic protestation of his innocence, asking in 
 a letter addressed to Lord Treasurer Burghley on the 22nd of 
 May, 1593, that it should be submitted to the Queen. This 
 document is worthy of preservation both for its dignified and 
 tender style, as well as being a true indication of the character of 
 the accused. In it he says : 
 
 " I am a poor young man, born and bred in the mountains of 
 "Wales. I am the first since the springing of the Gospel in this 
 latter age that publicly laboured to have the blessed seed thereof 
 sown in those barren mountains. I have often rejoiced before my 
 God, as he knoweth, that I had the favour to be born and live 
 under Her Majesty for the promoting this work. In the earnest 
 desire I had to see the Gospel planted in my native country, and 
 the contrary corruptions removed, I might well, as I confess in my 
 published wi'itings, with Hegetorides the Thracian, forget mine 
 own danger, but my loyalty to my Prince did I never forget. And 
 being now to end my days before I am come to one half of my 
 years in the likely course of nature, I leave the success of these 
 my labours unto such of my countrymen as the Lord is to raise 
 up after me for the accomplishing of that work, which, in the 
 calling of my country unto the knowledge of Christ's blessed 
 Gospel, I began. I never took myself for a rebuker, much less for 
 a reformer of states and kingdoms. Far was that from me, yet 
 in the discharge of my conscience, all the world was to bear with 
 me, if I preferred the testimony which I was bound to yield unto 
 the truth of Jesus Christ, before the favour of any creature. The 
 standing of the State, Kingdom, and Prince, was always most dear 
 imto me, as He knoweth by whom States are preserved and princes 
 do bear rule. The beginning of Her Majesty's reign I never saw,
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 115 
 
 and l^eseech the Lord that uo creature may see tlie end of her 
 prosperity. An enemy unto any good order and policy, either in 
 church or commonwealth, was I never. All good learning, and 
 knowledge of the arts and tongues, I laboured to attain unto, and 
 to promote unto the uttermost of my power. Whatsoever I wrote 
 in religion, the same I did simply for no other end than for the 
 bringing of God's truth to light. I never did anything in this 
 cause (Lord thou art witness) for contention, vain glory, or to 
 draw disciples after me, or to be accounted singular. Whatsoever 
 I wrote or held, beside the warrant of the written word, I have 
 always warned all men to leave it. And wherein I saw that I had 
 erred myself, I have, as all this land doth now know, confessed my 
 ignorance, and framed my judgment and practice according to the 
 tnith of the Word. Notwithstanding that this be prejudicial to 
 my public writings, yea and life, the like am I ready to do in 
 anything which I hold beside the truth at this hour. That brief 
 confession of my faith and allegiance unto the Lord and Her 
 Majesty, wiitten since my imprisonment, and delivered to the 
 worshij)ful Mr. Justice Young, I take, as I shall answer before 
 Jesus Clu'ist and the elect angels, to contain nothing but God's 
 eternal verity in it, and therefore, if my blood were an ocean sea, 
 and every drop thereof were a life unto me, I would give them all, 
 by the help of the Lord, for the maintenance of the same, my 
 confession. Yet if any error can be showed therein, that will I not 
 maintain. Otherwise, far be it that either the saving of an earthly 
 life, the regard which in nature I ought to have to the desolate 
 outward state of a poor friendless widow, and four poor fatherless 
 infants, whereof the eldest is not above fom- years old, which I am 
 to leave behind me, or any other outward thing, should enforce me, 
 by the denial of God's truth contrary unto my conscience, to lose 
 mine own soul, the Lord, I trust, will never give me over unto this 
 Kin. Great things in this life I never sought for, not so much as 
 in thought. A mean and base outward state, according to my 
 mean condition, I was content with. Sufficiency I have had with 
 great outward troubles, but most contented I was with my lot. 
 And content I am, and shall be, with my undeserved and untimely 
 <leath, beseeching the Lord that it be not laid unto the charge of 
 any creature in this land. For I do, from my heart, forgive all 
 those that seek ray life, as I desire to be forgiven in the day of
 
 116 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 strict account, praying for tliem as for mine own soul, tliat,. 
 altliough upon earth we cannot accord, we may yet meet in heaven, 
 unto our eternal comfort and unity, where all controversies shall be 
 at an end. And if my death can procure any quietness unto the 
 Church of God, and unto the state of my Prince, and her kingdom, 
 wherein I was born, glad I am that I had a life to bestow in this 
 service ; I know not to what better use it could be employed if it 
 were reserved ; and therefore, in this cause I desire not to spare the 
 same. Thus have I lived towards the Lord and my Prince, and 
 thus mean I to die, by his grace. Many such subjects I wish unto 
 my Prince, though not such reward unto any of them. My only 
 request, being also as earnest as possible, I can utter the same unto 
 all those, both honourable and worshipful, unto whose hands this 
 my last testimony may come, is, that Her Majesty may be 
 acquainted herewith, before my death if it may be, or at least after 
 my departure. Subscribed with the heart and the hand which 
 never devised or wrote anything to the discredit or defamation of 
 my Sovereign Queen Elizabeth (I take it on my death, as I hope to 
 have a life after this) by me, « j^^^^^ Peney." 
 
 Hallam characterizes his trial, as well as that of Udal, another 
 Puritan minister who was condemned for an alleged libel on the 
 bishops, and most of the other political trials of the age, as " dis- 
 gracing the name of English justice." * His protestation above 
 quoted, he describes as being " in a style of the most simple and 
 affecting eloquence, in striking contrast to the coarse abuse for 
 which he suffered." Whether he was concerned in the production 
 of Martin Mar-prelate has never been ascertained, but that he was 
 a man of culture and learning, as well as of an earnest and heroic 
 spirit, full of unbounded zeal in the cause of his own native 
 country's enlightenment, is unmistakably proven. Had the rulers 
 of the Church given him every facility for labouring in that part 
 of the vineyard for which his heart yearned, instead of damping 
 his ardour and imprisoning him for only a conceivable offence, he 
 might have been the instrument for accomplishing an incalculable 
 amount of good. But rather than that, as soon as this phantom 
 of a trial was over, without allowing him to speak a word to the 
 people, or to make a confession of his faith in God, and his alle- 
 * Hallam's "History of England," vol. i. p. 206.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 117 
 
 giance to the Queen, about five o'clock in the evening of the 
 :29th of May, 1593, his life was brought to a premature end at 
 St. Thomas Waterings, on the Southwark side of the Thames, in 
 the thirty-eighth year of his age. 
 
 Puritanism in the reign of Elizabeth was chiefly manifested in 
 the opposition made by those known under this appellation, to the 
 Romish practices still allowed to linger in the Church of England, 
 and to the episcopal form of Church government wherever found ; 
 in the reigns of James I. and Charles I. it was mostly shown in the 
 refusal to read the Book of Sports in the churches, after divine 
 service on Sundays. The declaration made by James in 1618, 
 ' exhorting all the people except the Eoman Catholics, to indulge 
 in all sorts of games — dancing, jumping, shooting — after divine 
 service was renewed at the instigation of Archbishop Laud, by 
 •Charles, in 1633. Though the most earnest men in the country, 
 including many gentlemen and the judges, heartily disapproved of 
 this profanity sanctioned by royal and ecclesiastical arrogance, 
 some going so far as to petition the king for the sake of the honour 
 of religion and the good of the country to discontinue this exercise 
 of authority, the king and Laud, as if in defiance of both human 
 and divine laws, added to the decree of James a clause command- 
 ing the civil officers not to hinder or distm-b the people in their 
 amusements, and renewing the mandate that all clergymen should 
 announce the order of the sports after divine service. Many in 
 consequence of this declaration, in order to preserve a clear con- 
 science, left the Church at once, and cast theh lot with the Puritans. 
 Others, though remaining in the Church, neglected the king's 
 behest, judging that they showed greater respect to him as their 
 civil and ecclesiastical head, by refusing to obey him in this matter. 
 Others, again, read the declaration as instructed, and then to 
 smooth their consciences added, " So you have heard what man 
 commands, now hear what God commands," and then read the 
 fourth commandment. One witty priest, after reading the " Book 
 of Sports," is said to have added, " I do not believe that the king 
 intended you should thus behave, but that he rather proves you ; 
 he shows that like your old mother, you have a predilection for 
 the forbidden fruit, and so because you do not keep the Sabbath 
 when commanded to do it, he expects you will, when he commands 
 you not to do it."
 
 118 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 The very clergymen who were most zealous in their efforts tO' 
 instruct their hitherto benighted and neglected flocks, were also most 
 decidedly opposed to the reading of the " Book of Sports " ; but it 
 was against these that the bishops of the several Welsh dioceses, at 
 the instigation of their primate, directed a system of ruthless per- 
 secution. The archbishop, recounting the faithfulness of these 
 bishops in a letter addressed to the king which is still extant, 
 boasts of their vigorous measures in driving beyond the pale of the 
 Church those " who preached schismatically and dangerously to the 
 people." He further states that they put down every species of 
 " Inconformity," by which he meant not " Nonconformity," in the 
 sense it came to be* used after the Kestoration, and with reference 
 to the Act of Uniformity, but simply a refusal to read the " Book 
 of Sports." These are now generally known as the early dissenters^ 
 being thus distinguished from the Nonconformists dating from the 
 reign of Charles II. Many of these men are respectfully and grate- 
 fully remembered by their countrymen ; the example of their faith 
 and patience has sustained many a fainting worker in later times, 
 and the seed which they sowed as it were amid the tears of persecu- 
 tion is now looked upon in connection with the rich and abundant 
 harvest which it produced, while the very names of their assailants 
 have been forgotten, and the work in which they ingloriously 
 exulted is now only mentioned to be deprecated and condemned. 
 Some of the most prominent of these pioneers of the missionary 
 spirit in Wales deserve from us somewhat more than a passing, 
 remark. The first in order of time was 
 
 Mr. Wroth of Llanfaches. 
 The place of his birth is not known, though some maintain that 
 this honour belongs to the jmrish of Llanelen, near Abergavenny. 
 He was educated in Oxford, where he graduated M.A. In the year 
 1620, he was presented to the living of Llanfaches, Monmouth- 
 shire, by the kindness of Sir William Lewis of the Fan, near Caer- 
 philly, one of the ancestors of the founder of the Gelligaer charity."'^ 
 It is said that he was about fifty years of age before he began to 
 feel anything serious in the matter of his soul's welfare, and which 
 
 * See p. 79. The pedigree of this family may be seen in a very inte- 
 resting volume by G. T. Clark of Dowlais,'" A Description of the Castles 
 of Kidwelly and Caerphilly," pp. 34, 68.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 119 
 
 was brought about in this wise : Mr. Wroth was always very fond 
 of music and was accustomed after the morning service to play on 
 an instrument in the churchyard, to the great delight of his 
 parishioners. After following this practice for many years, an 
 incident happened which entirely checked it at once, and was the 
 occasion of giving a new tone to the whole remainder of his life. A 
 friend of his, a respectable man in the neighbourhood, with whom 
 he lodged, was called up to London as a party to a law-suit in 
 which he was interested. The case having been decided in his 
 favour, in order to celebrate the event when he should come home, 
 he purchased a new harp for the vicar, in whose company he pro- 
 mised himself much merriment and joviality. The day for his 
 return had been appointed ; great were the preparations for his 
 reception, the vicar leading in the arrangements for the sports of 
 the day. But when all things were ready for the demonstration, 
 the news reached the village that he had died on the road, and the 
 rejoicings were at once changed into bitter lamentation. Mr. 
 Wroth was deeply affected at the news, and the Lord blessed it to 
 the conversion of his soul. From that day forward he began to 
 meditate on the uncertainty of life, the value of the soul, and the 
 great importance of the things which appertain to the eternal 
 world. The inconsistency of his life as a minister of the Gospel 
 flashed upon his conscience, and the general result of the whole was 
 a complete change in his life and conversation. 
 
 With the anxiety for his own salvation, the lamentable state of 
 his parishioners, and the benighted condition of the country at 
 large, began to press upon his mind, and soon, in addition to reading 
 the usual lessons on Sunday in a more impressive manner, he sup- 
 plemented them with a sermon, though at first, no doubt, with 
 great difficulty, owing to his inexperience in the work. This, 
 together with the effect of his doctrine, caused his fame to spread 
 much abroad. Many from distant parts came to hear him ; so 
 great was the congregation at times, that he had to leave the 
 church and preach in the graveyard. They came to hear him from 
 the counties of Biecon, Glamorgan, and Gloucester, yea, even from 
 Bristol and London, so far had the work done by the Lord through 
 hjm been noised abroad. Sir Lewis Mansel of Margam, a gentle- 
 man of high position and reputation, was often among his hearers. 
 Not only was he the means himself of turning many from darkness
 
 120 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 into light, but many other successful labourers in the vineyard were 
 called through his ministry, the most eminent of whom was Walter 
 Cradoc. 
 
 This course of usefulness did not long continue unchecked. The 
 " Book of Sports " was now the great stumbling-block to all church- 
 men who feared God. He also received the mandate to read it after 
 Divine service, and for refusing, a writ was issued, summoning him 
 before the High Commission Court. It is not known what verdict 
 was given upon his conduct by that court, but a conversation which 
 he had with Dr. Theophilus Field, the Bishop of Llandaff, respect- 
 ing his insubordination to the higher powers and his wonderful 
 style of preaching, has been preserved. In answer to the charges, 
 he is said to have burst into tears, saying, " There are immortal 
 souls hurrying into perdition in their sins, and ought I not, through 
 the means most likely to be effectual, to try to save them ? " This 
 so affected the bishop that he also wept. The end, however, was 
 to turn Mr. Wroth from his living. He afterwards preached secretly 
 in his old neighboLirhood, and the people whom he succeeded to 
 gather together were, about the year 1639, formed into the first dis- 
 senting church in that part of the kingdom. Mr. Walter Cradoc 
 tef>tified in his sermon before the Parliament that there were at that 
 time over eight hundred souls in this congregation thoroughly 
 awakened to the welfare of their souls. Llanfaches was the mother 
 church of dissenters in South Wales in those days. Many coming 
 from far to the services, it was his custom to entertain all at his 
 table of a Sunday. When the viands had been arranged thereon, 
 he asked a blessing on the repast and then addressed his guests : — 
 " Good food has been provided for you, and it is a good God that 
 has given it ; eat, and welcome. " Then he would retire to his 
 room until the afternoon service. He died about the year 1640, 
 and, according to his own request, his body was laid to rest under 
 the threshold of Llanfaches church. This was the first instance of 
 a secession or rather expulsion from the Established Church in 
 Wales, but which exactly a century after was repeated in greater 
 force, and it has been a special feature of the ecclesiastical history 
 of the country during the last two centuries. About the same time 
 as Mr. Wroth, another special object of Laud's persecution was
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 121 
 
 William Erbury. 
 
 He was a native of Glamorganshire, and had been brought up 
 at Oxford. Some time after leaving college he was appointed 
 vicar of St. Mary's, Cardiff, where he successfully ministered in 
 godly things for many years. About the year 1630 he was 
 summoned to Lambeth Palace to answer before the Archbishop 
 for refusing to read the " Book of Sports." He fell under the 
 primate's displeasure, and was turned out of his living, after 
 which he went about preaching wherever he found an opportunity. 
 For many years after this trial he went about the country doing 
 good, and was the means of starting the first dissenting cause at 
 Cardiff. He died in the year 1654. Labouring as a curate under 
 Mr. Erbury at the time of the refusal to read the " Book of 
 Sports " was , 
 
 Walter Cradoc* 
 
 He also came under the same ban as his master, being pro- 
 hibit'jd to preach and deprived of his curacy. Mr. Cradoc was 
 a native of Trefela, in the parish of Llangwm, near Llanfaches, 
 in Monmouthshire. The time of his birth is not known, but is 
 conjectured to have been about the year 1600, or shortly after. 
 His conversion, under the ministry of Mr. Wroth, has been already 
 mentioned. So great was the esteem in which he held his spiritual 
 father that he used to call him, " The Apostle of South Wales." 
 After having been deprived of his curacy at Cardiff, he travelled 
 through the counties of Brecknock, Radnor, and Montgomery, 
 eventually settling down as a pastor of a church at Wrexham. He 
 was eminently successful in his labours here, and among his 
 converts was Mr. Morgan Llwyd of Givynedd, as he was called, 
 who became the pastor of Mr, Cradoc's church after he left. The 
 enemies of true religion were roused against him and his flocks in 
 the neighbourhood of Wrexham ; and until very lately a man some- 
 what above the ordinary level in Christian virtues, was known in 
 those parts as a Cradockian. This cause at Wrexham was the 
 first dissenting Church in North Wales. 
 
 * This eminent man's name is variously spelt, by some Caradoc, by others 
 Craddocke ; we have adopted the shorter form, Cradoc. The Romanized 
 form, according to Rhys's Celtic Britain (p. 280), was Caratacus, but which 
 he spells, Caratacos.
 
 122 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 From Wrexham Mr. Cradoc removed to St. Mary Waterdine, in 
 Herefordshire, where the same divine blessing attended his ministry 
 as heretofore. Here Mr. Vavasor Powell had the opportunity of 
 hearing him, and although he had been impressed by the truth 
 before, his intercourse with the reformer was greatly blessed for his 
 further enUghtenment and confirmation. • From Herefordshire Mr. 
 Cradoc returned to his native county, where he laboured in 
 conjunction with Mr. Wroth until the latter's death, when the 
 charge of all the churches in the district fell to his share, but 
 he was not without many coadjutors. 
 
 In the year 1643, we find him in the city of Bristol, for he was 
 among the besieged there when it was taken by the royal army 
 under the command of Princes Rupert and Maurice. When the 
 besieged were brought out through the city gates, it is said that 
 Mr. Cradoc escaped the hostile notice of the two princes who were 
 standing by, through the ingenuity of a certain Welshman in the 
 king's army, Roger Watkin, who knew him. When coming 
 through the gates his countryman accosted him in his homely 
 brogue, " Wat, Chwat, where be thy knapsack ? " which caused the 
 princes to burst into laughter, and the poor preacher escaped un- 
 noticed. From Bristol he probably returned into Monmouthshire, 
 where he continued to labour until 1647, when we find him appear- 
 ing in London. He was sent for to the metropohs by Oliver 
 Cromwell, who had probably heard of his preaching powers, and 
 especially of the great revival of religion under his ministry. He 
 was appointed preacher at the church of All Hallows the Great, 
 and also one of the " Triers,'"' whose duty was to examine those who 
 offered themselves as preachers and to decide upon their qualifi- 
 cations. Many of the sermons which he delivered in London have 
 been published, which testify to his eminent gifts, his zeal, and his 
 simple evangelical doctrine. In the summer of 1659, he returned 
 to his old friends in Wales, intending after a short sojourn to 
 resume his connection with London. But on his journey thither he 
 heard of the probable restoration of Charles II., and therefore he 
 retraced his footsteps to Wales, where he died in peace on Christmas- 
 day, 1659, and was buried with Mr. Wroth at Llanfaches. Another 
 bright star of this constellation of early reformers, and who ex- 
 perienced more than an ordinary share of opposition in his praise- 
 worthy labours, was
 
 THE SU^'DAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 123 
 
 Vavasor Powell. 
 When lie began to go about preaching, the quarrel between the 
 Long Parliament on the one hand, and the king and bishops on the 
 other was at its height. Those ministers who had left the com- 
 munion of the Church of England because they could not conscien- 
 tiously approve of many of the rites and practices inculcated by 
 their superiors were bitterly persecuted in their efforts to spread 
 the Gospel, the ostensible plea being that they preached in un- 
 consecrated places. Mr. Yavasor Powell was specially signalled 
 out for a harassing course of opposition. He was a native of Ead- 
 norshire, was brought up at Oxford, and after being ordained, was 
 a curate for some time for his uncle, Erasmus Powell. Having on 
 one occasion been led to hear Walter Cradoc preach, he found that 
 the principles and practices of the Puritans were more in accordance 
 with the Scriptures than those of the party with whom he had 
 hitherto been allied, and therefore he cast his lot with them. This 
 was at once a sufficient disqualification for his being permitted to 
 preach in the churches, and consequently he held services in any 
 edifice which might be placed at his disposal, thereby incurring the 
 hatred of his more fastidious brethren, and placing his life in 
 imminent jeopardy. Whilst preaching in a house in Breconshire 
 about ten o'clock at night, in the year 1640, he and about fifty of 
 his hearers were api^rehended and locked up in the parish church 
 until the morning. In the course of the day they were brought 
 before the magistrate, who delivered them to the charge of the 
 police officer. The day after, the magistrate having called to his 
 assistance two lay justices and six clergjanen, ordered Mr. Powell 
 and his fellow-prisoners to be brought before the bench, when, after 
 interrogating and threatening them, all the while assuming their 
 guilt, he dismissed them from the court. Not long after, Mr. Powell 
 was again taken up by order of the high sheriff while preaching in 
 an open field in Eadnorshire, and committed to the charge of six- 
 teen constables to be conveyed to prison. These all, except one, 
 refused to carry out the sheriff's order, and that one allowed Mr. 
 Powell to lodge for the night in his own (the prisoner's) house, 
 which was on the way. When, on the following morning, he heard 
 Mr. Powell pray so earnestly with his family, he was so troubled 
 in his mind that he returned home, leaving the prisoner a free man
 
 124 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 in his own lioiise. Mr. Powell, however, lest the policeman should 
 iDe implicated for deserting his charge, of his own accord appeared 
 at the next quarter sessions of the county. Being put to his trial 
 lie was honourably acquitted, and he so impressed his judges in 
 his favour, that they invited him with them to dinner. This 
 incident was the occasion of furthering the good cause in that 
 district for a time, but the high sheriff was so annoyed at the issue 
 of the trial that he determined to drive his victim out of that x^art. 
 
 In the year 1646 a short lull happened in the storm which had 
 been raging now for some time between the king and the Parlia- 
 ment, and Mr. Powell, with some other Puritan ministers who had 
 been obliged to flee to England at the beginning of the civil war, 
 returned to Wales and began to go about to x^reach as before. So 
 great were this good man's energy and zeal that he often preached 
 twice and three times a day, seldom spending two days of the week 
 without being engaged in active duty. Very often he travelled a 
 hundred miles a week, preaching everywhere he found an oppor- 
 tunity. He preached at fairs and markets, on mountain sides and 
 remote villages; and God so prospered his utterances that thou- 
 sands behoved and turned to the Lord. He was imprisoned no less 
 than thirteen times, and at last died in prison in the year 1670, in 
 the fifty-third year of his age, having lingered there for eleven 
 years. He is described as a man of most thorough uprightness, 
 most fervent piety, and fearless courage. He finished his course in 
 joy, and was allowed to be buried in the Nonconformist burial 
 place at Bunhill Fields, London. We cannot better summarize the 
 doings of these pious and devoted men than in the words of Judge 
 Jolmes. " In the time of the Stuarts," he remarks, " dissent from 
 the Episcopal Church became once more an object of persecution ; 
 but the ministers of the Welsh Nonconformists still continued to 
 traverse the wild hills of the Principality, braving all dangers for 
 the sake of their few and scattered followers. Their congregations 
 still occasionally met, but it was in fear and trembling, generally at 
 midnight or in woods and caverns, amid the gloomy recesses of the 
 mountains." * 
 
 This brings us to notice briefly the opposition shown in their labour 
 of love to those ministers in Wales who w^ere ejected from their livings 
 through the operation of the Act of Uniformity which was put in force 
 * " Essay on the Causes of Dissent," p. 10.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 125 
 
 on St. Bartliolomew's Day, 1662. By this Act every minister was 
 required to conform in all things with the service of the Established 
 Clim-ch, to sign the Thirty-nine Articles, and to declare his consent 
 and assent to all things contained in the new edition of the Book 
 of Common Prayer. About two thousand left the Church through- 
 out the kingdom rather than conform to the requirements of the 
 Act. The term " Nonconformists " had its origin in this secession. 
 Many of these clergymen belonged to Wales, but a greater pro- 
 portion to South than North Wales. By these ejections many large 
 congregations were left without pastors, and many a district in 
 consequence became enveloped in darkness and immorality. Though 
 many of these ministers were willing and anxious to preach for 
 nothing, not only was this privilege refused them, and also that of 
 keeping a school, but the utmost rigour of the law was inflicted 
 upon them for daring to attempt either. Their ardour to do 
 good was also checked by many other tyrannical and iniquitous 
 laws, such as the Conventicle Act, passed in 1664, and the Five- 
 mile Act, passed in 1665. By the former, every one above the age 
 of sixteen who should be present at any religious meeting not held 
 in a consecrated j^lace, where five persons besides the family should 
 be present, was for the first ofience to suffer three months' im- 
 prisonment or pay five pounds ; for the second offence, six months' 
 imprisonment or ten pounds fine ; for the third, seven years' trans- 
 portation or pay one hundred pounds : and if he should return or 
 escape he was to suffer death. According to the latter, ever}' 
 minister was required to swear that he would never propose any 
 change in the arrangements of the Church or the State. If any 
 refused to take this oath, they were not to come within five miles 
 of any city or borough, or of any place they formerly joreached or 
 kept a school in, under a penalty of forty pounds. Many of the 
 ejected ministers were imprisoned from time to time, and hampered 
 in all manner of ways in their eff'orts to benefit their countrymen. 
 We have already seen how Mr. Gouge, though licensed to preach 
 occasionally in Wales, was persecuted from place to place ; and it 
 is pitiable to find that just in proportion to one's zeal to advance 
 his country's good, and the greater the probability for that zeal to 
 be crowned w^ith success, the more was the bitterness with which 
 the law was enforced to obstruct and punish them by those to 
 whom the majesty of the law was entrusted. Dr. Calamy tells us
 
 126 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 that among many others, Mr. Stephen Hughes, who has already- 
 been described as a man of the most inoffensive manners and un- 
 bounded benevolence, fell under the displeasure of " the conser- 
 vators of the sacred keys who passed the censures of the Church 
 upon him, and delivered him to the secular power, who confined 
 him to a close prison in Caermarthen, to the prej adice and hazard 
 of his life." 
 
 This persecution was carried on with unabated zeal until the 
 death of Charles II. ; for we find that in 1681, godly Phillip Henry 
 was apprehended for w^orshipping God otherwise than according to 
 the rites of the Established Church. He was fined £20, and because 
 he would not pay the fine, thirty-three loads of corn which he had 
 just cut, with hay, coals, and other things, were distrained. The 
 master of the house in which Mr. Henry preached was also com- 
 pelled to pay £20, and each of the hearers five shillings. A warrant 
 was issued to apprehend the Eev. James Owen, of Oswestry, for a 
 similar ofifence, but by keeping within his house he evaded the 
 track of his pursuers. Though the laws against Nonconformists 
 became less harsh in the reigns of Anne and William, the petty 
 annoyances to which they were submitted scarcely relaxed. Oppo- 
 sition to all labours of love, except to those carried on in conformity 
 to certain rules and regulations, was vigorously kept up, even 
 against those who were recognized ministers of the Church of 
 England. This is clearly shown in the case of Grifiith Jones of 
 Llanddowror. From none of the Welsh bishops, and from very 
 few of the clergy, did he receive any encouragement to persevere in 
 the work to which he was so much devoted, and which he saw 
 crowned with such signal success. He is said to have suffered 
 persecution for twenty years in the ecclesiastical court, because he 
 dared to preach out of his own parish and in unconsecrated places. 
 With regard to the attitude maintained by the clergy generally 
 towards the labours of Griffith Jones, Judge Johnes remarks, " how, 
 notwithstanding the zealous support afforded to him by a large 
 j)ortion of the clergy, there can be no difficulty in affirming that he 
 must have met with quite as much opposition from another portion 
 of his brethren; in those days many of the higher classes were 
 systematically opposed to the education of the poor ; a few of the 
 Welsh clergy (though, I trust, but a few) are so even yet. He 
 unequivocally intimates in one of his letters, that the bishops of
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 127 
 
 Wales had not even couuteDanced his measures (Welsh Piety 
 for 1741, p. 29). Alluding to the various discouragements and 
 vexatious calumnies to which he had been exposed, he adds, with 
 much feeling and eloquence, ' the temple work, it seems, must be 
 carried on still with a weapon of defence in one hand, as well as 
 •with a building instrmnent in the other.' " * 
 
 The apology which he has written for the conduct of the dis- 
 senters of his days, and up to that time, in leaving the communion 
 of his own Church, indirectly reflects on the shortcomings of his 
 brethren with regard to their duty towards the people. " I must 
 also," he says, " do justice to the dissenters of Wales, and will 
 appeal for the truth of it to all comj)etent witnesses and to all 
 those themselves who separate from us, that it was not any scruple 
 of conscience about the principles or orders of the Established 
 Church that gave occasion to scarce one in ten of the dissenters of 
 this country to separate from us at first, whatever objections they 
 may have afterwards imbibed against conforming. 'No, sir, they 
 generally dissent at first for no other reason than for want of plain, 
 practical pressing and zealous x^reaching, in a language and dialect 
 they are able to understand, and freedom of friendly access to 
 advice about their spiritual state. . . . The people will not believe 
 that there is anything in reason, law, or gospel that should oblige 
 them to starve their souls to death for the sake of conforming, if 
 their pastor (whose voice perhaps they do not know, or who resides 
 a great way from them) will not vouchsafe to deal out unto them 
 the bread of life." f 
 
 It was said at the commencement of this section that the third 
 phase of opposition made by those in power was to the efforts of 
 the Methodists immediately before the advent of brighter days, 
 under the auspices of Sunday Schools. These institutions being 
 the undoubted offspring of the Methodist revival, whatever oppo- 
 sition may be further taken note of, will be treated in connection 
 with this plant, and the nursery in which it was reared. Suffice it 
 here to say, in conclusion, that although hindrances and oi^positions 
 most often only stir up true worth and mettle into greater efforts, 
 and that as a rule every good cause has eventually been more 
 benefited than injured by the persecutions to which it has been 
 subjected, nevertheless the words of our Saviour are always true, 
 * Johnes's " Essay," p. 29. f Welsh Piety for 1741, pp. 12, 13.
 
 128 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 " Woe to tliem through whom offences come." So here, whatever 
 good was overruled by the inscrutable providence of God to result 
 from the persistent efforts put forth for so many years to stifle the 
 aspirations of noble souls for the moral regeneration of their fellow 
 beings, such conduct, even when most charitably estimated, can 
 only be characterized as narrow, selfish, and intolerant.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 129 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 The Rise of Methodism, and Early Years of Mr. Charles. 
 
 3Ir. Henry Richard's testimony with regard to the influence of the Metho- 
 dist revival on Wales — State of the country immediately before the 
 rise of Methodism — Dr. Rees's estimate of the labours of the earlier 
 Nonconformists — Other writers' estimate — Descriptions of the state of 
 the country at the time, by contemporaries — Connection between the 
 revival and intellectual progress of the people — Peculiar phases of the 
 revival — A simultaneous beginning at two different places — Howell 
 Harris and Daniel Rowlands— Distinct from the English Methodist 
 revival — Reluctance to leave the Established Church — Opposition 
 encountered — Persecutions and internal discords — Mr. Charles's early 
 years — At school — In college — Serving his curacies — Marriage — Fail- 
 ing to obtain employment within the Church — Mental struggle in 
 leaving the Establishment and joining the Methodists — Final step 
 taken — Speedy promise of special usefulness. 
 
 The able and eloquent author of the " Letters on the Social and 
 Political Condition of Wales," observes that " the real awakening of 
 the soul of the nation must be traced to the great religious revival 
 under the Methodists about the middle of the eighteenth century, 
 for which, however, there had been long and patient preparation, 
 not always sufficiently acknowledged, in the quiet labours for a 
 century and a half before of other bodies of Nonconformists. Still, 
 that certainly was the movement which to the country at large 
 was as life from the dead, and lifted the great mass of the people 
 for the first time into the enjoyment of something like a moral and 
 spiritual education ; and from that time light and knowledge have 
 gone on steadily diffusing themselves in an ever-widening circle." * 
 There are different opinions as to the true strength and condition 
 of Nonconformity in Wales at the beginning of the Methodist 
 * " Letters," etc., by Henry Richard.
 
 130 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 revival. Dr. Eees, in liis laborious work on " The History of Pro- 
 testant Nonconformity in Wales," takes the most hopeful view. 
 From returns made by Dr. John Evans, about the year 1715, and 
 still preserved in Dr. Williams's library in London, in which an 
 account is given of fifty-eight places of worship — in four columns, 
 the first containing the name of the place ; the second, the minister ; 
 the third, the average attendance ; and the fourth the social and 
 political standing of the attendants — Dr. Eees draws the following 
 inferences : " It will be observed," he says, " that returns of the 
 average number of hearers have been received from only 58 of the 
 places or pastoral charges named, and that the aggregate amount of 
 these is 20,007, or about 3i5 for each charge. By estimating the 
 other 13 which made no returns, at 345 each, which would be 
 rather below than alcove the mark, the aggregate number would 
 amount to 24,485. To this number again at least 3000 should be 
 added as the average of the attendants at the Meeting of Friends, 
 who were then comparatively numerous and influential in several 
 parts of the Principality ; thus the total would amount to 27,485. 
 But as it is an admitted rule in estimating the number of persons 
 belonging to any place of worship, to regard the number of actual 
 attendants at any ordinary service, as only a little more than one- 
 half of the people who consider such a place of worship as their 
 own, we may safely calculate that fifty thousand, or about one- 
 eighth of the population of Wales in 1715, were Nonconformists." * 
 
 Other writers are not so sanguine in their estimates. Sir T. 
 Phillips, reviewing the progress of dissent in Wales from the time 
 of the ejection of scandalous ministers by the Long Parliament to 
 the time of the accession of George XL, in 1727, remarks — 
 
 " Although the churches were unsupplied, there yet seem to have 
 arisen but few dissenting congregations. In 1649, a Baptist con- 
 gregation was founded at Ilston, in Grlamorganshire, by two natives 
 of Wales, who were baptized in London ; and this congregation 
 at Ilston is said to have been the first which admitted none to 
 fellowship who had not received adult baptism, the dissenting 
 communities before founded being of mixed communion. This 
 congregation removed from Ilston to Swansea. In 1649 a Baptist 
 congregation was founded at Llanharan, in the same county, which 
 was removed to Llantrisant, and afterwards to Hengoed, in the 
 * Eees' " Nonconformity in Wales," p. 292.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 131 
 
 5^)arish of Gelligaer. In 1650, the congregations of Ilston and Llau- 
 haran, with a Baptist congregation at Clodock, in Herefordshire, 
 said to have been founded in 1633, met in association at Ilston, and 
 yearly meetings of the Baptist congregations in the Principality 
 took place certainly up to 1656, and probably to 1660. In 1656, a 
 letter, dated 12th of 4th month, was ad<lressed by Dublin Baptists, 
 *' To the Churches at Ilston and Llantrisant." The growth of 
 Baptist congi-egations was slow in the Principality, and at the 
 Revolution there seem to have l3een only six ; in 1700, nine ; at 
 the accession of George II., thirteen; and at the accession of 
 George III., eighteen. The progress of other dissenting congrega- 
 tions cannot be shown with the same certainty, but it was ascer- 
 tained by Mr. Xeal, the historian of the Puritans, that soon after 
 the death of Queen Anne there were in England, excluding Mon- 
 mouthshire, 1099 dissenting congregations, whereof 245 were Bap- 
 tists ; in Monmouthshire, eight, whereof two were Baptists ; in 
 the six counties of South Wales, thirty-four ; and in the six 
 counties of Xorth Wales, nine, including all denominations. It 
 was estimated at that time that the Presbyterian dissenters in 
 England and Wales exceeded, in number of congregations and 
 members, the aggregate of all the other denominations ; and that 
 the Independent congregations and members were rather more 
 numerous than the Baptists ; but what has now become of the once 
 powerful Presbyterian congregations? In 1719, soon after the 
 Arian controversy was revived, a division took place at a meeting 
 of the dissenting ministers of London, on the question whether 
 subscription to the doctrines of the Trinity should be required as 
 a condition of Church communion, and a large number of Pres- 
 byterian and several general Baptist ministers advocated non-sub- 
 scription, whilst the Independents and Particular BajDtists advo- 
 cated subscription. From that time Arianism spread amongst the 
 English Presbyterian and the general Baptist congregations, and 
 they are now, with but few exceptions, claimed by the Unitarian 
 lx)dy.* 
 
 Before adducing further evidence in support of this side of the 
 
 question, in order to give due weight to what will be quoted, it 
 
 may be desirable to refer to a caution suggested by Dr. Rees with 
 
 regard to the evidence of the fathers of Methodism. " It seems," 
 
 * Phillips's "Wales," pp. lOd-117 passim.
 
 132 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF \VALES. 
 
 !sa\'s he, " that the early Methodists, either froipa prejudice against 
 their Nonconforming brethren, or a desire to claim to themselves 
 the undivided honour of having evangelized the Principality, 
 designedly misrepresented or ignored the labours of all other sects."" 
 It is quite possible for the labours of the earlier Nonconformists to 
 be ignored as well as the efforts of the Methodists to be too highly 
 extolled, but we can hardly think it to be within the compass of 
 human frailty that such good men as the early Methodists are 
 proved to have been, should have designedly misrepresented the 
 labours of others, either from want of thought or predominance of 
 maUce. But the testimony to the comparatively weak condition 
 of Nonconformity before the rise of Methodism is not confined to 
 members of this body. In addition to the view already referred to 
 as expressed by Sir T. Phillips, Judge Johnes also thinks that, " at 
 the Pievolution, the dissenters exhausted their strength by con- 
 troversies amongst themselves on the rite of baptism ; on which 
 subject a difference of opinion had long existed amongst them, though 
 persecution had prevented them from making it a ground of dis- 
 union. Till the breaking out of Methodism their cause continued 
 to decline.'" * The same author also refers to the testimony of one 
 of the early dissenters themselves in connection with an incident 
 which directly proves the waning state of religion in North Wales, 
 and which contains an indirect reference to a relative state of 
 things in South Wales. As the extract is valuable for some other 
 points confirmatory of the same general conclusion, it may be 
 interesting to quote it verhatim : — 
 
 " In the year 1736 there were only six dissenting chapels in all 
 North Wales. In this year an incident occurred which forms an 
 interesting link between the history of the early Welsh dissenters 
 (the followers of Wroth) and that of the Methodists, connecting 
 together the darkening prospects of the former and the first symp- 
 toms of that more powerful impulse which was communicated by 
 the latter. One Sunday, Mr. Lewis Eees, a dissenting minister 
 from South Wales, and father of the celebrated author of the 
 'Cyclopgedia,' visited Pwllheli, a town in the promontory of Lleyn, 
 in Caernarvonshire, and one of the few places in which the 
 Independents still possessed a chapel. After the service, the con- 
 gregation collecting around him, complained bitterly that their 
 * " Essay on some of the Causes of Dissent," p. 10.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 13o 
 
 numbers were rapidly diminishing, that the few who yet remained 
 were for the most part poor, and that everything looked gloomy to 
 their cause. To which the minister replied, ' The dawn of true 
 religion is again breaking in South Wales, — a great man named 
 Howell Harris has recently risen up, who goes about instructing 
 the people in the truths of the gospel.' Nor was he mistaken, 
 either in his anticipation that dissent was on the eve of bursting 
 forth with tenfold vigour in Wales, nor in the man from whom he 
 expected this result ; the first elements of Methodism were already 
 at work ; Howell Harris was its founder, and one of its most dis- 
 tinguished champions. Properly speaking the history of Methodism 
 is the history of dissent in Wales ; l)efore entering, however, upon 
 this interesting subject, it will be necessary to give a cursory view 
 of the state of the Church in Wales at the time of its origin, as 
 liardly a doubt can be entertained that the predisposing causes to 
 Methodism were to be found in the inefficiency of the Establish- 
 ment." * 
 
 Similar in effect is the evidence of a writer who belonged to a 
 <lenomination which had honourably laboured for the enlightenment 
 of the country long before the rise of Methodism, and who was a 
 contemporary with the founders of Methodism, whose evidence is of 
 so much greater value, inasmuch as he describes events of which 
 he himself was an eye-witness. " A great number of youth and 
 others," says this ^%Titer, " in Wales were then wholly irreligious. 
 They were accustome<l to meet together for the purpose of dancing, 
 ■drinking, and other sinful j^ractices. These for the greater part 
 reckoned themselves as members of the Church of England. Mr. 
 Howell Harris, in his journeys through the country, thundered 
 terribly against swearers, blasphemers, drunkards, fighters, liars, 
 Sabbath-breakers, etc., so much so that, if we may so speak, he 
 seemed to shower among them sparks of the fire and brimstone 
 from the bottomless pit itself. He exhorted in and out of doors ; 
 he cared not where, so long as he could attract people to listen to 
 his message from God. In this he was certainly only following the 
 example of Mr. Walter Cradoc and Mr. Vavasor Powell, who lived 
 a century before. But in our days this was a great novelty, and 
 vast multitudes therefore congregated to hear him. About the 
 same time the Piev. Daniel Piowlands, a clergyman of the Estab- 
 * Johnes's " Essay on the Causes of Dissent in Wales," p. 10.
 
 134 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF AVALES. 
 
 lished Clmrcli in Cardiganshire, began to preacli in a very extra- 
 ordinary manner in the church. I recollect having heard him 
 about the year 1737, in Caermarthenshire ; a great number of 
 people was present, and I heard some of the Independents in return- 
 ing home saying, ' We never heard any one to be compared to him 
 in the Church of England unless it was Mr. Griffith Jones.' In 
 our days there has appeared no such light among the members of 
 the Church of England. . . . Multitudes of people who never went 
 nigh a chapel or to any church but very seldom, yet gladly went 
 to hear him to dwelling-houses, yea to the highways and the 
 fields." * 
 
 No doubt Nonconformity was much weaker in North Wales at 
 the rise of Methodism than in South Wales, and possibly, in con- 
 sequence, irreligion was there more rampant. It would be quite 
 wrong to conclude that a description of the state of things in the 
 North at this time was applicable to the whole of Wales. Dr. Eees 
 justly remarks that such an assumption would be " quite as absurd 
 as if a person assumed that the majority of the population of 
 Ireland were Protestants because it happens to be so in some dis- 
 tricts of the Province of Ulster. It is well known that North 
 Wales, in respect both of area and population, constitutes little 
 more than one-third of the Principality, including Monmouthshire ; 
 and at that time its Nonconforming inhabitants scarcely amounted 
 to one-twentieth of the whole body of Welsh Nonconformists." On 
 the other hand it is but fair to add that the fact of a great number of 
 nominal adherents belonging to a religious body is no safe criterion 
 to measure thereby the state of true religion in a country. With- 
 out disputing for a moment the accuracy of the conclusions by 
 which the able author of the " History of Nonconformity in Wales " 
 has been able to claim such a fair proportion of the population as 
 belonging to dissent, the description of the early Methodists of the 
 darkness and torpor pred(jminant throughout the country before 
 they raised the trumpet sound of the gospel, can still be maintained 
 in its integrity. The time immediately preceding the Methodist 
 revival might have been a time of depression in true religion. 
 Indeed our surmise is greatly strengthened by the consideration 
 that the Great Arminian Controversy began in 1729, about 
 
 * "Hanes y Bedyddwyr yn mhlith y Cymry " (History of the Baptists 
 in Wales), p. 58. '
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 135 
 
 seven years before Howell Harris entered upon liis evangelistic 
 work. With regard to this Dr. Rees says, " that all the former 
 controversies in w^hich the Welsh Xonconformists had been en- 
 gaged sink to nothing in their importance and consequences when 
 compared with it. . . . This unhappy agitation, in the course of a 
 few years divided the Nonconformist body into two hostile, antago- 
 nistic, and irreconcilable parties." * Times of distraction such as 
 these at once militate against the development of true religion. 
 That the number of adherents belonging to Nonconformity at this 
 time indicated quantity rather than quality is plainly shown in 
 the little restrictive influence they exerted on the persecuting pro- 
 j^ensities of their fellow-countrymen, even in South Wales. Rev. 
 AV. Williams strikingly refers to this fact when he observes " that 
 earnest preachers of the gospel, who affectionately warned them to 
 flee from the wrath to come, w^ere received in every neighbourhood 
 with stones and brickbats, and met with the worst treatment as 
 far as South Wales was concerned, in some of those very localities 
 where, according to the statistics before us, Nonconformity had the 
 greatest number of adherents." f 
 
 Taking all these facts into consideration the descriptions given 
 of the enormous amount of profanity, drunkenness, superstition 
 and general immorality prevalent in the country at the rise of 
 Methodism, although chieflj^ applicable to North Wales, must be 
 looked upon as being equally true of too many localities in South 
 Wales, Several pictures have been drawn of the state of the 
 country at the time, but probably the most graphic as well as the 
 most valuable from the peculiar advantages which its author had 
 to bear record as an eye-witness, is that given us by Rev. John 
 Evans, of Bala, in the Trysorfa Ysprydol of 1799. He was then 
 bordering upon eighty years of age, but lived imtil he was ninety- 
 lour years old ; he describes the state of things in the year 1742, 
 Avhen he w^as about twenty years of age. The description is given 
 in the form of a dialogue between Scrutator and Senex, the former 
 representing, as it is supposed, Mr. Charles, and the latter Mr. 
 Evans. From this and other testimonies, the great work accom- 
 plished by the Sunday Schools can be better appreciated when it is 
 remembered that in less than half a century, these evil practices, 
 
 * " History of Protestant Xonconformity in Wales," p. 207. 
 t "Welsh Calvinistic Methodism," Introduction, p. I'd.
 
 3 36 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 like birds of the night, entirely disappeared before the glorious 
 light which they were the means of propagating. 
 
 " In those days," Senex replies to certain remarks of Scrutator, 
 " there was great darkness in the land. Bibles were very scarce ; 
 hardly any of the lower ranks could read at all ; and the customs 
 of the country were very corrupt and immoral. In this respect 
 there was no difference between gentle and simple, layman and 
 clergyman. Gluttony, drunkenness, and licentiousness like a 
 torrent overran the land. Nor were the doctrines and precepts of 
 the churches but dark and i"eeble to counteract these evils. From 
 the pulpit the name of the Redeemer was hardly ever heard ; nor 
 was much mention made of the natural sinfulness of man, nor of 
 the influence of the Holy Spirit. On Sunday mornings the poor 
 were more constant in their attendance at church than the gentry ; 
 but the Sunday afternoons were spent by all in idle amusements. 
 Almost every Sabbath there was what was called Chwar'yddfa 
 f/ampau, in some part of the district. In these the young men of 
 the neighbourhood had a trial of strength, and the people assembled 
 from the surrounding country to see their strength. On Saturday 
 nights, particularly in the summer, the young men and maids held 
 what they called singing eves (nosweithiau canu), that is they 
 met together and diverted themselves by singing in turns to the 
 harp, and by dancing till the dawn of the morning. In this town 
 (Bala), they used to employ the Sundays in the public houses 
 dancing and singing, or in playing tennis against the town hall 
 and other games. In every corner of the town some sport or other 
 went on till the light of the Sabbath day had faded away. In the 
 summer, ' interludes ' (a kind of rustic drama), were performed on 
 the table of the town hall, gentlemen and peasants sharing the 
 diversion together, to the utter profanation of the sacred day. A 
 set of vagabonds called Y hobl gerdded, walking people, who were of 
 corrupt and beastly habits, used to traverse the country, begging 
 and doing worse things with impunity, to the disgrace of the 
 officers for allowing them. With regard to true religion and god- 
 liness, if they are known by their fruits, there were hardly any — 
 at all events as far as I could perceive." * 
 
 The state of religion in North Wales shortly before the starting 
 of Sunday Schools is thus given in the "Life of Charles of Bala" : — 
 * Trysorfa Ysprydol for 1799, pp. 30, 31 {Spiritual Treasury),
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 137 
 
 " True religion had forsaken the country. There was nothing 
 like the semblance of it in the Church, nor was there much of it 
 among the few dissenters that were very thinly scattered here and 
 there. Those who possessed a little of its true spirit were the few 
 who had been, in different parts, converted, principally by the 
 labours of Daniel Eowland, H. Davis, Howell Harris, and W. and 
 P. Williams, who occasionally came up from South Wales and 
 itinerated through the country. This labour of love commenced 
 •about the year 1740. Though their converts collectively were 
 numerous, yet compared with the number of the inhabitants they 
 were but few. Many parts of the country never heard the sound 
 of the gospel ; the work, therefore, was in a great measure a mis- 
 sionary work. No more knowledge of God or of his word was to be 
 found in most places than in a heathen land. The immoralities and 
 ungodliness which prevailed were such as might be expected from 
 this state of spiritual ignorance. The Bible was almost an unknown 
 book, seldom to be met with, especially in the houses of the poor." 
 
 Another author directly substantiates the opinion that the time 
 before the rise of Methodism, was a period of great languor and 
 depression. " This awakening," says he, " was the means of not 
 only establishing a new sect in Wales, but also of reviving the old 
 sects which had previous existence there ; for though there were 
 celebrated and useful men among the Independents in the Princi- 
 pality, yet a torpidity and listlessness in spiritual concerns had to 
 a great degree cirept over every denomination. The revival by the 
 Methodists was hailed by all the Calvinistic sects in Wales and in 
 England, as the longed-for dawn of day and the rising of the sun, 
 after a protracted, wearisome and starless night." * 
 
 Judge Johnes also says respecting the Welsh people before the 
 rise of Methodism, that " with all their social sprightliness they 
 were then a superstitious and consequently a gloomy race. The 
 influence of the Church of England had confessedly done little to 
 ■civilize the people ; they still retained many habits apparently 
 derived from paganism, and not a few of the practices of popery. 
 Their funerals, like those of the Irish, were scenes of riot and 
 Avassail. When the Methodists first came into North Wales, the 
 peasantry expressed their horror of them and their opinions by the 
 truly popish gesture of crossing their foreheads : they also paid 
 * " Hanes Prydain Fawr " (History of Great Britain), pp. 567, 568.
 
 138 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 great veneration to a tale called 'Breuddvvyd Mair' (Mary's- 
 Dream), obviously a Popish legend (' Trysorva,' vol. ii. p. 51G. 
 Drych yr Amseroedd). Children were taught, even within my 
 recollection, to repeat a rhyme like the following as soon as they 
 had been put into bed at night : — 
 
 ' There are four corners to my bed, 
 And four angels there are spread ; 
 Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, 
 God bless the bed that I lie on.' 
 
 Some of their customs and notions were extremely fanciful. On 
 the Sunday after the faneral each relative of the deceased knelt on 
 his grave exclaiming, ' Nevoedd iddo,' literally, heaven to him ; 
 that is, ' may he soon reach heaven.' This is plainly a relict of 
 the Popish custom of praying the soul out of purgatory. If children 
 died before their parents, the parents regarded them as so many 
 candles to light them to Paradise. When Wesley came into 
 Wales, he found the ignorance of the people so great that he 
 pronounced them ' as little versed in the principles of Christianity 
 as a Creek or Cherokee Indian.' To this declaration he adds the 
 striking expression that, notwithstanding their superstition and 
 ignorance, the people ' were ripe for the Gospel,' and most 
 enthusiastically anxious to avail themselves of every opportunity 
 of instruction." * 
 
 One special feature belonging to the Methodist revival, at once 
 distinguishing it from the labours of the earlier Nonconformists-, 
 and ensuring a permanency for its results, was the impulse it gave 
 to education and love of literature among all denominations alike. 
 By organizing day and Sunday Schools, each wave of revivalism, 
 like the rising of the tide, was a level from which a still higher 
 wave arose in the moral and religious elevation of the people. 
 Whichever denomination worked the hardest, or most successfully, 
 in the past, for the welfare of the country, all alike, and much 
 in the same manner, after the rise of Methodism, have availed 
 themselves of the machinery of Sunday Schools, with the pecu- 
 liar characteristics stamped upon them by that revival, in order 
 to make continually, further inroads into the domains of ignor- 
 ance and irreligion. It being agreed by all, that the Sunday 
 Schools, now the common heritage of every denomination, must be 
 * Johnes's "Essay on Causes of Dissent," pp. 13, 14.
 
 139 
 
 traced to the Methodist body, as either directly or indirectly con- 
 nected with their production in Wales; and as the man whose 
 name is inseparably connected with their establishment, Thomas 
 Charles, was a member of that body, it will be necessary, in order 
 to place the reader en rapport with us in our future narration, to 
 explain, as briefly as possible, the progress of this body up to the 
 time when Mr. Charles began to labour in its ministry, and to 
 deliberate in its councils. Those who wish to enter more fully into 
 details will find every information on this subject in " A History 
 of Welsh Methodism," written in the vernacular, by the Eev. John 
 Hughes, of Liverpool, and published in three large octavo volumes 
 containing about six hundred pages each, or in a very interesting 
 compendium, entitled, " Welsh Calvinistic Methodism," written in 
 English, by the Rev. W. W^illiams, of Swansea. We shall confine 
 ourselves to the few facts necessary to elucidate our subject, at the 
 same time endeavouring to correct some popular errors, which are 
 constantly repeated, respecting the denomination. 
 
 A remarkable fact in connection with the Methodist revival is 
 that it began at two different parts of the country almost 
 simultaneously, but the movements were quite apart from each 
 other and entirely independent the one of the other. Like 
 two streams, they kept for a time flowing in different channels, 
 but eventually merged into one mighty river which watered the 
 whole country, and made glad the city of God therein, for many 
 generations. The originator of the revival in the one part, 
 Breconshire, was Howell Harris of Trefecca, and in the other, 
 Cardiganshire, Rev. Daniel Rowlands of Llangeitho. In both in- 
 stances it commenced within the Established Church— in the one 
 case through the instrumentality of a clergyman in full canonical 
 orders, in the other through a layman, who never received official 
 consecration to the work. Howell Harris dates his conversion from 
 AVliitsunday, 1735, when after weeks of conflict arising fi-om a 
 sense of the guilt of his sins, and a hope that through an 
 amended life and a multiplication of good works, he might be 
 able to make his peace with God, he was led to see the vanity 
 of this hope ; but that through Jesus Christ and his infinite merit 
 on his behalf, a peace which passeth understanding might become 
 his treasure and heritage. He believed in the Lord Jesus Christ ; 
 and his troubled soul, in due course, found the rest promised by
 
 140 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 liim to the weary and lieavy-laden. In the following November 
 he went up to Oxford, intending to follow the ordinary University 
 course, in order to qualify himself for preferment in the Church. 
 But he soon became tired of the sights of immorality and disorder 
 which daily met his eyes there; and consequently, at the ex- 
 piration of the term, he returned to Wales, and never more 
 thought of a University career. In the year 1736 he began that 
 course of warning and exhorting his fellow countrymen, in 
 matters appertaining to their eternal welfare, which was after- 
 wards, in one mode or another, uninterruptedly continued until 
 the day of his death, which took place 21st of July, 1773. He 
 was indefatigable in his labours. He traversed the country in 
 all directions with the everlasting gospel in his mouth ; he faced all 
 dangers and abuse, which were unsparingly laid in his path, to 
 carry out his important mission, as Williams of Pantycelyn, Avho 
 was converted through his instrumentality, in his elegy to him, 
 in the vernacular sums up his peregrinations — 
 
 " He proclaimed the rich provisions 
 Which the gospel has in store, 
 From the banks of placid Severn 
 To Saint Da^dd's western shore." 
 
 Daniel Rowlands, the originator of the movement in the other 
 part of the country, was a curate for his brother. Rev. John Row- 
 lands, in the parish church of Llangeitho, on the banks of the little 
 river Ayron, in Cardiganshire. He was a man of superior scholar- 
 ship for those times, and for that reason had been permitted to take 
 orders one year before the usual age. Even before his conversion 
 he had gained considerable popularity as a preacher, for in imitation 
 of a celebrated Independent minister of his neighbourhood. Rev. 
 Phillip Pugh of Llwynypiod, he adopted what he considered to be 
 the secret of his neighbour's strength, the " thundering " style of 
 pulpit oratory. So successful was he in the handling of this 
 weapon that it is said over a hundred of his congregation were 
 in deep anxiety for the eternal welfare of their souls before the 
 preacher himself had any care for his own salvation. His con- 
 version, as already mentioned, was brought about under the 
 ministry of Rev. (xriffith Jones, of Llanddowror, when preaching at, 
 Llanddewi Brefi, a place about five miles from Llangeitho, on 
 behalf of his circulatincr schools. Mr. Rowlands continued to
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALKS. 141 
 
 " thunder " for some time after, and with far greater effect than 
 before, as he did it now from the earnestness of personal conviction. 
 Ere long he began to mingle his terrors with the " balm of 
 Gilead," to soothe and comfort, the effect of which on the con- 
 gregation was to produce the feeling of " rejoicing " which often 
 broke out in loud demonstrations, and which has often since been 
 the result of a manifest outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The 
 *' times of refreshing " which the people enjoyed then, at the church 
 of Llangeitho, " from the presence of the Lord," were trulj^ re- 
 markable. Often they took no note of time, so entirely were 
 ])reacher and hearers absorbed into the spiritual world. One 
 Sabbath morning the preacher continued so long to exhort, and the 
 liearers to hang on his lips with no signs of weariness, that a ray 
 <:>f light coming in through the western window of the church alone 
 made him conscious of the duration of the service. They had been 
 together from the time of the morning service until the sun was 
 about to set. Very soon his fame spread in all directions, and 
 many from all parts of the country came to hear the wonderful 
 preacher. In this respect Eowland's ministry differed from that of 
 Harris. The latter's for many years was entirely itinerant. Not 
 being in holy orders, he had no authority to dispense the sacra- 
 ments. His great point was to preach to the people, and to organize 
 *' private societies," where they could meet together for spiritual 
 encouragement and edification, but he left them to partake of the 
 Lord's supper in their neighbouring churches. Kowlands, on the 
 other hand, having a regular charge at Llangeitho, drew the people 
 more to himself. It is true he made occasional evangelistic tours 
 beyond his own parish, and from time to time tliere was no part of 
 the Principality but received a visit from him. His popularity 
 and eloquence, however, were such that persons were known to 
 come from a distance of one hundred miles to hear him preach 
 on the Sabbaths of his administering the Lord's Supper at 
 Llangeitho. They came by sea and land, very often starting 
 early on Saturday morning and continuing their travels far into 
 the night, so as to reach their place of destination punctually for 
 the morning service. It was no uncommon occurrence to have so 
 many as three thousand communicants to dispense the sacrament 
 to, on a Sabbath morning, over whom Rowlands j^resided but was 
 assisted by other brethren. One beneficial effect of the periodical
 
 142 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 contact of clergymen and " exliorters " with Rowlands at Llangeitlio, 
 Avas that they caught a portion of his spirit, and went forth to 
 other parts to spread the truths in which they had experienced so 
 much consolation themselves. The " exliorters " were simply 
 preachers of the gospel, and corresponded almost entirely with the 
 class latterly known as lay preachers. Several clergymen, from 
 the earliest time, took an active part in the revival. Of those 
 known as the " fathers," in addition to Harris and Rowlands, were 
 Rev. Howell Davies of Pembrokeshire, who at one time had no 
 fewer than two thousand communicants in that county. Rev. 
 William Williams of Pantycelyn, and Rev. Peter WilUams of 
 Caermarthen. So mightily did the work of the Lord prosper by 
 means of their labours, that by the year 1742, six years after the 
 beginning of the revival, there were ten clergymen of the Church 
 of England, and forty exhorters, belonging to the army of the 
 reformers ; and two years later, as many as one hundred and forty 
 " societies," or embryo churches, were reckoned in South Wales 
 only. Rowlands continued to labour with varying success, but 
 mostly with marked blessings attending his ministrations, until his 
 death, which took place at a ripe age in the year 1790. 
 
 This movement is called " The Methodist Revival," the name by 
 which a similar movement in England about the same time is also 
 known ; but it should be remembered that the two movements 
 were quite distinct as regards origin and mode of development. 
 There is nothing more natural than to conclude, since Whitefield 
 and Wesley in England, Harris at Trefecca, and Rowlands at 
 Llangeitho, began to agitate the country in religious matters about 
 the same time, that they were associated together in their conversion, 
 and that they preconcerted measures, to take different parts of the 
 country by surprise together, in warning the people to flee from the 
 wrath to come. But facts unmistakably explain quite a different 
 course. Rowlands knew nothing of Harris's conversion, and 
 whether the latter came in contact with the English Reformers 
 at Oxford or not, it is quite evident that he had known Christ 
 as his Saviour, and had been actuated by His love to work in 
 His vineyard, before he ever went to the University. Two years 
 after the good work had been commenced, Harris received a 
 letter which was quite unexpected, from Whitefield, encouraging 
 him to continue ; and some few months i)reviously, he had
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 143 
 
 received intelligence of the wonderful outpouring experienced on 
 the banks of the Ayron. To a man in Harris's position who, 
 without episcopal ordination, or a call from any special congre- 
 gation, had gone forth to teach sinners in the way of life ever- 
 lasting, it was a matter of great consolation to receive AVhite- 
 field's encouraging words, and to kindle his zeal anew, when 
 iit times hesitating whether he was doing what was right. With 
 regard to the origin of these different movements we can there- 
 fore safely assert that, as it is said of Samson, " the spirit of 
 the Lord was moving him in the camp of Dan, between Zorah 
 and Eshtaol," so also the one and the same spirit moved White- 
 field in Gloucester, Harris at Trefecca and Talgarth, and Rowlands 
 at Llangeitho, but all three quite independently the one of the 
 other. Then with regard to the development of the movements. 
 The Welsh revivalists, according to the lively feelings of those 
 days with regard to doctrinal differences, could not have much 
 sympathy with the Wesleyan phase of the English revival. The 
 latter body, it is well known, were Arminians, but the former held 
 Calvinistic opinions. The Welsh reformers fraternized more with 
 Whitefield than with Wesley, but priority of action in all the steps 
 that led to secession, whether in connection with the one or the 
 other, though not in the very secession itself, evidently belongs to 
 the Calvinistic Methodists of Wales. Wesley did not begin to preach 
 in the open air till long after the first Welsh Methodists, but in 
 one thing he stole a march upon them — his followers left the Church 
 entirely in his life-time, and at his instigation, whereas the 
 Welshmen clung enthusiastically to the Church till the year 1810, 
 at which period the original founders of their body were in the grave. 
 The following comparison of dates may serve to put the subject 
 in a clearer light * : — 
 
 Welsh Methodists. English Methodists, 
 
 1735 — Field preaching by Howell 1739 — Field preaching in England b}'' 
 
 Harris (Whitefield was not in Whitefield. — Souther's "Life of 
 
 deacon's orders till 1736). Wesley," vol. i. p. 230. 
 
 1736 — Formation, by Howell Harris, 1739 — Formation of classes or so- 
 
 of religious societies, Avhich cieties by John Wesley. — Idem, 
 
 afterwards seceded from the vol. i. p. 391. 
 
 Church. 1784 — Wesley ordained Dr. Coke. 
 1810 — Ordination of laymen, by 
 
 Welsh Methodist clergymen. 
 
 * Quoted from Johnes's Essay, p. 33.
 
 144 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 The last item in the aboye comparisous justifies the enumeratioii 
 of another distinctive feature in the Welsh Methodist revival — the 
 extreme reluctance with which the leaders left the Established 
 Church. It was their evident wish to be retained in the Church. 
 They were hoping to the last moment that some terms of recon- 
 ciliation might be discovered by which they should be enabled to 
 return to the old fold. Hence it was that they never sought the 
 privilege of the sacraments except in connection with the Estab- 
 lished Church. Howell Harris and " his family " always com- 
 municated at Talgarth church ; and for seventy-five years, at great 
 inconvenience, were all the members of the body obliged to attend 
 the parish churches for the communion, or wait to be served by the 
 few episcopally-ordained ministers among themselves, who every 
 year were becoming fewer and weakei-. Though their champions 
 one by one had fallen under the discipline of their Church, and 
 were excommunicated from her pale, first Kev. AVilliam Williams 
 of Pantycelyn, then Peter Williams, and after the revival of 
 1762, the great Kowlands himself, still these, and their more 
 favoured brethren who were allowed to be Methodists and retain 
 their livings, were at great pains to teach their followers and impress 
 upon the world, that they were not dissenters. It was only in 
 1810, when the body had become far too numerous, and too much 
 scattered over the whole of Wales, to be supplied with the ordin- 
 ances by the existing provisions, that they felt compelled to go 
 over to the Nonconformists, by this final step of lay ordination. In 
 this light considered, the formation of the Calvinistic body was 
 more the result of expulsion than secession. Ptespect for the 
 Church of their fathers continued to linger long in the breasts of 
 the earlier Methodists ; but now for some years this body has become 
 as decidedly Nonconformist as any in the Principality. It remains 
 to be added respecting the Methodist revival, that it prospered 
 notwithstanding difficulties and much opposition. The hindrances 
 to its progress arose from two sources — attacks and persecutions 
 from without, as well as disunion and disruption from within. 
 AVith regard to the persecution, the anomalous position in which 
 the leaders chose to place themselves conduced greatly to increase 
 their difficulties. They might under ordinary circumstances have 
 availed themselves of the protection of the Act of Toleration, but 
 as they were unwilling to declare themselves " dissenters," and
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 145 
 
 preferred being considered members of the Churcli of England, they 
 were at once liable to the censure of the ecclesiastical courts, 
 without the benefit of civil protection. In them was again ful- 
 filled the prediction concerning the earlier Christians, that " man's 
 enemies would be those of his own household." In going beyond 
 the bounds of their own parishes, and preaching in unconsecrated 
 places, they evidently transgressed the laws of their Church, and 
 since this was not tolerated within the Church, they came very 
 often to a greater share of penalty than mere expulsion could have 
 entailed. Dr. Kees summarizes the various modes of attack to 
 which they were submitted in the following words : " The 
 inoffensive worshippers were abused, most mercilessly pelted with 
 stones, wounded with knives, shot at ; men, and even women, were 
 stripped naked in the presence of the crowd ; able-bodied men were 
 pressed for the army or navy, and driven away from their friends 
 and families like cattle to different parts of England. A full 
 account of the sufferings of the Nonconformists and Methodists in 
 North Wales in the eighteenth century would fill a large volume." * 
 
 The following extract from a letter written by Howell Harris to a 
 friend respecting a journey in North Wales in the year 1748, will 
 serve to show the nature of the Methodists' labours and their perils. 
 " I was," he says, " seven nights in succession during this journey 
 without undressing, and travelled a hundred miles from the morning 
 of one day to the evening of the next, without having any rest, 
 preaching at midnight or in the early morning on the mountains. 
 This I was obliged to do to avoid persecution. The week before 
 my visit a man near Wrexham had been fined £20 by Sir W. W. 
 Wynn, and several of the hearers had had to pay five shillings each, 
 and one ten shillings, a sum which he had been obliged to pay once 
 before. This is the tliird time that the brethren have been treated 
 in this manner ; and on the last occasion there was only one brother 
 present praying with a family." 
 
 More than once within the history of the Calvinistic Methodist 
 body, have internal dissensions arising from doctrinal disagreements 
 threatened to bring the cause to the verge of destruction. The first 
 culminated as early as the year 1751, and arose from apparently 
 different views held by Harris from the rest of his brethren respect- 
 ing the person of Christ. It is generally agreed upon now, that 
 
 * " History of Nonconformity in "Wales," p. 399. 
 
 L
 
 146 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 the difference was more iu words tlian in substance ; but so great 
 was the contention that the whole body was divided into two 
 separate camps. The one party was called " Harris's People," and 
 the other " Rowland's People." It was at this time that Harris 
 retired to his seclusion at Trefecca, taking the most faithful of his 
 followers with him there to "his family," as they were called, and 
 ceased itinerating in the way he had been accustomed, to the end of 
 his days. This unhappy contention had a withering effect on many 
 of the Churches, and the good cause was effectually checked in its 
 onward progress for about eleven years, at the end of which period 
 it pleased the Lord to visit his people again with a " power from on 
 high ; " the brethren who had been estranged forgot their differences, 
 the leaders became reconciled to each other, and the Churches 
 throughout the country rejoiced once more in beholding another special 
 manifestation of " the grace of God." With regard to subsequent 
 trials arising from doctrinal errors, the writer of " A Short History 
 of the Calvinistic Methodists," gives us the following general view 
 up to the beginning of the present century. "Before the year 
 1760," he says, " Antinomianism, with its fair but serpentine 
 sjjeeches, endeavoured to win over some of our party to the side of 
 carnal liberty. Towards the year 1765, Sandemanianism, with its 
 brazen front, most impudently attempted a breach of our ranks. 
 About the year 1770, Sabellianism, with its unhallowed views, 
 made an effort to enter itself in our midst. Soon after the 
 commencement of the present century, Neonomianism, newly 
 clad from head to foot in comely dress, priding itself on its 
 consummate order, and being extremely plausible in its natural 
 reasonings, founded on false philosophy and vain deceit, obtruded 
 itself among our people. To these errors — these wolves in sheep's 
 clothing — a few, of whom we had hoped better things, fell a prey ; 
 but through the kindness of our God, the connection may in 
 general employ the words of the apostle, " But out of them all the 
 Lord hath delivered me." * Since the above date, the conaection 
 lias not been free from important controversies on doctrinal points, 
 but they always served more as exercises iu theological learning 
 than impediments to the free course of the gospel in their midst. 
 This is proved from the uniform progress in numbers made through- 
 out the last decades of its history. By the year 1881, the date of 
 
 * "Enfrlisli Confession of Faith," p. 12.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 147 
 
 the last census, the statistics of the body show that there belonged 
 to it, in Wales, Monmouthshire, and the towns of England — 
 chapels and preaching stations, 1334: ; ministers and preachers, 957 ; 
 communicants, 118,979 ; hearers, 276,189 (that is about one-fifth of 
 the whole population of Wales). The voluntary contributions for 
 the year amounted to £157,348 10s. Sd. 
 
 The body had been in existence for about fifty years, when Mr. 
 Charles took the final step to associate himself with it; and 
 although by that time it had gained a firm hold in the country, his 
 extensive learning and practical genius became soon to be con- 
 sidered as valuable acquisitions to its strength. He at once became 
 the organizer of the body, bringing it as regards order and discipline 
 much to the shape in which it is now found. It is not our inten- 
 tion further to refer much to Mr. Charles in his character of builder 
 up of this body, for he was not a man of a denomination as much 
 as of the whole nation, yea of the world at large. His sympathies 
 were cosmopolitan, and though he may be incidentally referred to 
 in connection with the body of which he was a member, — which it is 
 lioped will be intelligible, after the above brief sketch, — all incidents, 
 we trust, however associated, will be considered valuable, if throwing 
 light on his ardent zeal and indefatigable labours whilst endeavouring 
 to realize the large-hearted aspirations of his soul. 
 
 Thomas Charles was born on the 14th of October, 1755. He was 
 the son of a respectable farmer, called Rice Charles, residing at 
 Pant dwfn, in the parish of Llanfihangel, Caermarthenshire, on the 
 left hand side of the road leading from St. Clears to Laugharn, and 
 about ten miles from the town of Caermarthen. His parents in- 
 tending him for the ministry, sent him, when between ten and 
 twelve years of age, to school to Llanddowror, where, as has already 
 been related, the Eev. Griffith Jones had so devotedly laboured up 
 to the time of his death, in 1761. He remained there for about four 
 years, and during his stay received what he calls, in his auto- 
 biography, his first religious impressions, but how or by what 
 means, he- had no distinct recollection. At first they were very 
 faint, which accounts for the dimness of the recollection ; in fact, the 
 chief signs of a religious leaning which he could revert to in after 
 life were the pleasure he derived from hearing sermons, reading the 
 Bible, and perusing all good books he could come across. The book 
 which proved the greatest blessing to him was " Bimyan on the
 
 148 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 Two Covenants ; " so great was tlie impression produced on his mind 
 when reading certain passages of this book that at the time he used 
 to weep bitterly. In the simplicity of his heart, he looked on all who 
 regularly attended church as religious, though he often wondered 
 how worldly the conversation of nmnj of them was, and especially 
 their demeanour on Sundays. For a long time he had no true friend 
 to whom to unbosom the feelings and difficulties of his heart ; but 
 eventually he became acquainted with an old disciple of Rev. Griffith 
 Jones, named Rhys Hugh, who lived not far from his father's house.. 
 In his diary he makes a very respectful mention of this humble 
 friend. He used to call with him once or twice every week, and so- 
 great was the profit he derived from his spiritual intercourse with 
 him that he came to love him as his own soul, and ever after looked 
 upon him as his father in Christ. At that time, he acknowledges 
 that he had but an imperfect conception of the nature of the gospel 
 plan of salvation. His religion consisted chiefly of strong aspira- 
 tions after something he had not yet attained, accompanied with an 
 entire devotion to the work of trying to secure it. With this feeling 
 in his heart, he made a public profession of religion, introduced 
 family worship into his father's house, and through his kindness 
 and earnestness greatly influenced every member of the family. 
 
 When about fourteen years of age, he was sent to the Presbyterian 
 College at Caermarthen, then under the superintendence of Rev.. 
 Mr. Jenkins ; and soon after he joined himself to the private society 
 of the Calvinistic Methodists, assembling together in that town.. 
 There he came in contact with many eminently pious brethren, 
 from whose example and counsels he derived much benefit. 
 " Harvey's Meditations," was a book from which he derived much 
 edification at this time. On the 20th of January, 1773, when about 
 eighteen years of age, he w^ent all the way from home to Capel 
 Newydd, in Pembrokeshire, to hear Rev. Daniel Rowlands of 
 Llangeitho preach. He has recorded the effect of the sermon on his 
 mind in the following words : — " His text was Hebrews iv. 16 ; this 
 was a day memorable to me as long as I live ; since that happy day 
 I have dwelt, as it were, in a new heaven and a new earth. The 
 change experienced by a blind man on receiving his sight is not 
 greater than that which I felt on that day. Then was I first 
 convinced of the sin of unbelief and of harbouring narrow and hard 
 thoughts respecting the Almighty. I had such a view of Christ as
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 149 
 
 the great High Priest, of his love, his compassion, his power, and 
 siiflQciency for all, 'as to fill my soul with wonder, * with joy un- 
 si)eakahle and full of glory,' My mind was overwhelmed with 
 w^onder. The truths brought before my mind appeared too gracious 
 to be believed. I could not believe for true joy. The glorious 
 views I then enjoyed, will, by meditating upon them, continue to 
 satisfy my soul for millions of ages to come. I had before some 
 ■outlines of gospel truths ; but they did not penetrate deeply into 
 my heart until now. The effects of this sermon remained with me 
 for more than half a year, and during that time I was mostly in a 
 liappy and heavenly mood. Often when walking in the fields, I 
 would look up to heaven and call it my home, longing the while for 
 the glorious appearing of my Saviour to take me to himself for ever." 
 When the 20th of January came round, he was accustomed to mark 
 it in his diary every year, so long as he continued to -^TL-ite in 
 it, as the day on which he was blessed with a special revelation of 
 the grace and mercy of God to his soid. 
 
 In the year 1775, Providence in an unexpected manner opened 
 the w^ay for him to go to Oxford. He went there, not without his 
 fears respecting the various temptations to which he understood he 
 would be exposed ; but he comforted himself with the thought that 
 it was as easy for God to keep him in one place as another, and that 
 with him nothing was impossible. On the 31st of May of that 
 year, he was received a member of the University, and of Jesus 
 College. Here he made the acquaintance of many religious young 
 men, in whose society he derived much benefit and support. But 
 in about two years from the date of his admission, he was brought 
 to a great strait through his supplies from Wales suddenly failing 
 him. This happened when he was a debtor to the college to the 
 amount of £20. As the most honourable way of proceeding under 
 the circiunstances, he had come to the resolution to explain his 
 ■condition to his creditors, and to return to Wales. But again, in 
 quite as unexpected a manner, he was completely delivered fi'om all 
 his anxiety. The particulars are thus given by himself: "One 
 morning, as I was writing to my people in Wales to acquaint them 
 of my embarrassment, and my consequent intentions, a dear friend 
 came in ; very soon, I disclosed unto him my aftairs, and how I had 
 resolved to leave the college. To this he replied that he doubted 
 not but that I should be assisted one way or another, at the same
 
 150 TPIE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 time desiring me to put my mind at rest in' the matter. A few 
 days after, a gentleman sent for me to dine at his house, and before 
 leaving, to my great surprise, handed me the £20 I was short of, 
 adding that I should lack nothing as* long as I remained at Oxford. 
 I was very glad and very grateful for this, and the gentleman made 
 good his word." 
 
 In the year 1777, he spent the summer vacation, together with a 
 pious friend, at the house of the Kev. John Newton, of Olney, Bucks, 
 to his great profit and consolation. He was ordained a deacon at. 
 Oxford, 14th of June, 1 778. After this he engaged to undertake a 
 curacy in Somersetshire, but as his rector did not require his 
 services until Michaelmas of that year, through the invitation of his 
 friend, Eev. Simon Lloyd, he visited Bala in Merionethshire. He 
 spent, between Bala and other places in North Wales through 
 which he made a tour, about five weeks. In the month of August, 
 he and his friend, on their way to his father's house in Caermarthen- 
 shire, called at Llangeitho, where they had the pleasure of hearing 
 two sermons from the Kev. Daniel Kowlands, which he says in his 
 introduction to his diary afforded him unspeakable comfort. In his 
 reminiscences of this visit to his father's house, Mr. Charles says, 
 " I looked upon the little nooks in the house, and the retired hedges 
 in the fields, with a pleasure difficult to be described — spots where 
 my soul had formerly striven with God in 'prayer, and where I had 
 obtained the blessing. I could look on those corners and spots 
 where I had enjoyed communion with God as no other than conse- 
 crated places. My father's farm wore a paradaisical aspect, and the 
 memories of the numerous blessings imparted to me on different 
 occasions filled my heart with gladness and praise. On the Sabbath- 
 day of August the 16th, I preached at Llanfihangel, my father's 
 parish church, and had the privilege of experiencing especial comfort 
 and earnestness in the work. It was great joy to my heart to see 
 once more my very dear and Christian friend Khys Hugh. I could 
 have almost wept for joy. It was the last meeting we had in this 
 Avorld ; a month after he escaped to heaven." 
 
 About Michaelmas, he commenced his ministry in Somerset- 
 shire; in March the following year, 1779, he took his degree of 
 B.A., and in 1780 he was received into full priestly orders. With 
 reference to the taking of his degree, he writes: — "I am no more a 
 member of the college. The goodness and mercy of God have been
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 151 
 
 great towards me during my sta}^ tliere. My heart shall ever be 
 
 submissive and grateful for the mercies I received. I Avas supported 
 
 there by ways and means of God's arrangements, which were such 
 
 as to clearly prove his invisible hand in ordaining them. The 
 
 temptations which attacked me were strong and numerous, but 
 
 the Lord preserved me from being overcome by them." Having 
 
 laboured in his curacy for about five years, he returned to Wales 
 
 to marry a young lady. Miss Jones of Bala, with whom probably 
 
 he had become acquainted during his visit to Mr. Lloyd in 1778. 
 
 The marriage took place on the 20th of August, 1783, after which 
 
 he settled at Bala for the remainder of his life, and found in his 
 
 wedded wife a true help meet for all his circumstances. It was 
 
 his desire after his marriage to obtain an appointment to minister 
 
 in the Church of which he was an ordained member, but for a long 
 
 time he had no opening (except to read the service and preach 
 
 once) nearer than Shawbury in Shropshire. He remained there 
 
 for some months, as an assistant to his friend, Kev. Mr. Mayer, 
 
 who was rector of the parish. In the early part of 1784, he 
 
 obtained the curacy of Llanymowddwy, about fourteen miles from 
 
 Bala. For the space of somewhat less than a year, he travelled 
 
 there every week, through all kinds of weather, sometimes on foot^ 
 
 sometimes on horseback, to perform his duties. The road at that 
 
 time was wretched, the steep and lonely ascent of the mountain 
 
 pass called Bwlch-y-groes forming a considerable part of the 
 
 journey. But neither the length and difiiculty of the journey 
 
 (twenty-eight miles between going and returning), the smallness 
 
 of the salary, the frowns and scorn he experienced at the hands of 
 
 some of his parishioners for his earnestness and faithfulness, nor 
 
 any other hindrance caused him to relinquish his charge. Mr, 
 
 Charles there revived the good old custom of catechising the 
 
 children every Sunday afternoon, after the vespers, though this 
 
 gave an offence to some of the members. The Lord at this time 
 
 did not allow his servant to labour without giving him tangible 
 
 proofs of the good effects of his teachings on some of his hearers, 
 
 though with others his assiduity and fidelity only excited them 
 
 to greater enmity against him. They sent a complaint respecting 
 
 his conduct to the rector of the parish, and he at once gave him 
 
 notice to quit his service in due time. Those to whom Mr. 
 
 Charles's actions were agreeable, drew iip a petition, to which
 
 152 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 many subscribed their names, praying that he might be allowed to 
 continue his ministration, but this did not reach the rector, owing 
 to the person who had undertaken to take it to him being per- 
 suaded to destroy the document on the way, as he himself confessed 
 some time after. The consequence was that Mr. Charles found 
 himself bound to leave when the notice exj^ired, that is on the 
 1st of January, 1785. 
 
 After this, he ministered for some time at Llanw^ddyn, a church 
 very similarly situated, as regards distance and locality, in an 
 easterly direction from Bala ; and rather than be idle, he again went 
 occasionally to preach to Shawbury, notwithstanding the distance 
 to go and return, besides other considerations. At this time he 
 was very undecided as to the best course to follow, but he was 
 beginning to interpret these signs as God's call for him to leave the 
 Established Church altogether, and never to preach again within 
 its walls. It is probable that either before leaving Llanymowddwy, 
 or immediately after, he wrote to his old friend and kind 
 patron, Mr. Newton of Olney, to relate to him his trials, and to 
 solicit the benefit of his prayers and counsel in the matter. His 
 advice was that Mr. Charles should leave Bala, North Wales, and 
 the Principality too, rather than give up the thought of ceasing 
 to minister within the walls of the Established Church. The 
 reply was that he could not think of leaving Wales, as he was 
 inclined to marry his country as he had married his wife, *'for 
 better and for w^orse," and *' until death should them part," Mr. 
 Newton was led to see after this, though he understood it not at the 
 time, that the Lord was leading his servant along the right way 
 for the promotion of his own glory, and the furtherance of his own 
 great cause ; for not only was his own nation blessed in the step 
 he ultimately took, but other nations and generations then unborn. 
 The great struggle and conflict through which his mind passed 
 when severing his connection with his mother Church, may be seen 
 reflected in the following extracts from letters to a friend: — 
 
 " There are no tidings of a church. But all friends here seem 
 to give me up for the chapels in Wales ; whilst at the same time 
 they are much satisfied with my conduct in waiting so long. All 
 I can say is, that I desire and hope sincerely to be where the Lord 
 would have me to be, I cannot carry a guilty conscience any longer 
 about me, which I must do, if my days are consumed in vanity,"
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 153 
 
 " June 12tli, 1784. I am in a strait, between leaving the 
 Churcli and continuing in it. Being turned out of three churches 
 in this country, without the prospect of another, what shall I do? 
 In the last church I served, I continued three months. There the 
 •Gospel was much blessed, as to the present appearance of things. 
 The people there are calling on me, with tears, to feed them with 
 the bread of life. What shall I do ? Christ's words continually 
 sound in my ears : ' Feed my lambs.' I think I feel ray heart 
 willing to engage in the work, be the consequences what they may. 
 But then I ought to be certain in my own mind that Grod calls me 
 to preach at large. This stimulates me to try all means to con- 
 tinue in the Church, and to wait a little longer to see what the 
 Lord will do. I thank the Lord I want nothing, but to know his 
 Avill, and strength to do the same." 
 
 In accordance with the feeling expressed in the last words 
 -quoted, he oifered to serve gratuitously in one of the churches of 
 his neighbourhood, but not being accepted his painful struggle 
 came to an end — he determined to follow what he considered to be 
 the intimation of Pi-ovidence and cast his lot with the denomination 
 sprung from the Methodist revival and now generally known as 
 ■" The Calvinistic Methodists " or " Welsh Presbyterians." This 
 took place in the early part of the year 1785. Twenty-five years 
 after, he was led to review the steps which led him to his decision, 
 in giving advice to a clerical friend who had sought his assistance, 
 under circumstances somewhat similar to his own. His words on 
 this occasion are valuable both as showing how completely he had 
 the approval of his conscience in the step he had taken, and what 
 delight he had experienced in the arduous labours which he 
 had undertaken entirely from his own spontaneous desire to do good. 
 
 " 1810. — In reply to your favour," he writes, *' I have but little 
 to say. I feel for your perplexity ; but I have no doubt that if 
 you look up simply to the Lord, he will graciously direct you in 
 the way you should go. But it is not for me to determine. Pro- 
 vidence, I am fully convinced, led me in the way in which I move. 
 Unbiassed by prejudice, self-interest, the love of ease, or the 
 honour which comes from men, lift up your eyes to the hills, from 
 whence our help cometh, and the Lord will guide you safely, and 
 in his own good time you will see the way clearly before you. 
 I feel cautious in advising the servant of another. The Lord only
 
 154 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 knows what lie has designed and fitted for you. Many formerly 
 were ready to advise me ; but the most forward were widest of the 
 mark. Gioell j^'^^yll nog mir (prudence is better than gold) ; ond 
 tan enw pivyll y daiu twyJl (but under the name of prudence deceit 
 will come). These are very wise Welsh adages. I most sincerely 
 pray that you may be directed." 
 
 In another letter he says : — 
 
 " You are much wanted in the Establishment, if suffered to 
 continue in it, and permitted to be faithful. On the other side, 
 there is work enough for you out of the Church, if called, and 
 gifted to proceed on the itinerant plan. As you are already in the 
 Church, I think rather you ought to continue in it, if not forced 
 out of it. When I began to itinerate, it was because they would 
 not employ me in the Church in this country. I intended remov- 
 ing to England as soon as circumstances admitted of it. By a few 
 excursions on the itinerant plan, I got, by degrees, so far into the 
 work, that I could not conscientiously recede from and leave it. 
 The leadings of Providence towards me, are no rule for others." 
 
 In a third letter written the same year, he says ; — 
 
 "I am glad you have it in your mind to do good, and to pro- 
 mote by all means in your power the eternal salvation of immortal 
 souls, who are perishing all around us. The work of the ministry, 
 and not emolument, ought to engage our attention. I might have 
 been preferred in the Church ; it has been repeatedly offered me ;. 
 but I really would rather to have spent the last twenty-three years 
 of my life as I have done, wandering up and down our cold and 
 barren country, than if I had been made an archbishop. It was 
 no choice of mine ; it was Providence that led me to it. Others' 
 line of usefulness may be different ; but in every line and in every 
 situation, it is required that we should be faithful, abounding 
 always in the work of the Lord." 
 
 It might have been expected that he would have received at 
 once a hearty welcome to the bosom of that denomination with 
 which he desired to cast his lot. Far otherwise it proved, however, 
 for awhile. Many of the members looked upon him as proud and 
 untalented ; but this arose entirely from a want of deeper insight 
 into his character, and greater acquaintance with him. As h& 
 turned more amongst them, he was continually becoming more
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 156 
 
 highly valued for his politeness as a gentleman, his zeal and 
 simplicity as a Christian, and the superiority of his matter as well 
 as the earnestness of his style as a preacher. About August, in 
 the year 1785, it is probable that the Kev. Daniel Kowlands heard 
 him preach for the first time in an Association at Llangeitho, 
 when, with evident warmth and joy, he gave utterance to those 
 memorable words, " Mr. Charles is the gift of God to North 
 Wales." Before Mr. Rowland's death he discovered that the words 
 had a much wider application. 
 
 Mr. Charles's history has now been briefly sketched up to the 
 time he began to be engaged in paving the way for the establish- 
 ment of Sunday Schools ; but as others are alleged to have been 
 in the field, some before him, and others contemporaneously with 
 him, we shall reserve Tor another chapter the discussion of the 
 question, " Who has the best claim to be recognized as the founder 
 of these institutions in Wales ? "
 
 ,156 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 The Earliest Sabbath Schools of Wales. 
 
 Xlivalry between localities for the honour of having first started a Sunday 
 School — The Crawlom School near Llanidloes started in 1770 — An 
 early School at Pwllheli — The earliest Sabbath School in South Wales 
 at Cilycwm near Llandovery — Sunday and Day Schools started by 
 Dr. Edward Williams, of Oswestry — Morgan John Rhj^s and Sunday 
 School of Hengoed in Glamorganshire — Mr. Charles's claims to be the 
 founder of the Sunday Schools of Wales weighed— He the originator 
 of the system — Not indebted to Raikes for the idea — Welsh Sunday 
 Schools a class sui generis — Developed from circulating schools — 'The 
 disappearance of Griffith Jones's schools before the days of Charles — 
 Direct evidence — The author of Drych yr Amseroedd, and these schools 
 — Indirect evidence derived from ignorance found during Mr. Charles's 
 first itineracies — Establishes a new system of circulating schools — 
 Character of teachers — How supported — Mr. Charles's multifarious 
 labours in connection therewith — Discontinued from want of support 
 after twenty years' existence — Their want not felt because Sunday 
 Schools become general — Mr. Charles's letters on the circulating 
 schools. 
 
 There can be no better proof of the liigli lionour in which the 
 .Sunday School is held in the present day, than the eagerness with 
 which different localities vie one with the other for the proud 
 distinction of having been the birthplace of the institution, or 
 for having cradled it in the days of its infancy and weakness. 
 Indeed, many a place in which it is well known that the opposition 
 was more evident than the support during the years of doubt and 
 trial, are now loudest in asserting their claim to have been the first 
 foster-parents of the organization. In this respect Sunday Schools 
 may be well compared to the treatment which the first as well as 
 the greatest epic poet suffered at the hands of his fellow men ; but 
 with this important difference, that the change in feeling towards
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 157 
 
 Sunday Scliools did not come too late to make amends for former 
 apathy and opposition. 
 
 " A hundred cities claimed blind Homer dead, 
 Along Tvliose streets alive, he begged his bread." 
 
 As was tlie case with the founder of the Sunday Schools of 
 England, Eobert Eaikes of Gloucester— others claiming to have- 
 
 discovered the idea before him, and maintaining that he wa& 
 founder only in the sense that from the one he started they were 
 multiplied without intermission throughout the length and breadth 
 of the land, — precisely so in the case of Thomas Charles of Bala, 
 there is not the least doubt that humbler individuals had formed 
 schools long before his time ; but he alone has the honour of having 
 begun the type of schools which never died away, on the contrary
 
 158 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 whose vital reproductiveness up to the present time promises no 
 fail or intermission. In one respect, however, the origin of the 
 l^resent system of Sunday Schools in England differs from the 
 Welsh. While it has been definitively ascertained that Mr. Raikes 
 started liis first school in the house of Mr. King, in St. Catherine 
 Street, Gloucester, in the month of July, 1780, with regard to the 
 schools first started by Mr. Charles in Wales they are only shown 
 us as the dawn scattered upon the mountains, with no specified 
 place or point of time in which the light first touched upon the 
 territory of darkness. Before, however, entering on the inquiry 
 :ibout the time and place that the Sunday-School system began in 
 Wales, it may be interesting to mention those established prior 
 to or contemporaneously with those of Mr. Charles. The first of 
 which there is any record is the school held at 
 
 Crawlom, near Llanidloes, in 1770. 
 There lived at that time in this farm-house a man named Owen 
 Brown, a Calvinistic Methodist, who was accustomed to lodge the 
 itinerant preachers on their journeys. Amongst the number enter- 
 tained by him from time to time was one Jenkin Morgan, a native 
 of Cardiganshire, who besides being a preacher, was one of the 
 schoolmasters employed by Madam Bevan in her circulating 
 schools. It was the practice of these schoolmasters, when on their 
 preaching tours, to inquire for places to start new schools, for 
 according to the terms of the organization none had a long duration 
 in the same place. Jenkin Morgan mentioned the subject to 
 Brown, and the result of the interview was that in the year 1769, 
 permission was given to him to start a school in a house not far 
 from Crawlom, called Ty'n y fron, which belonged to Brown. At 
 first this was only a day school. The master, however, soon noticed 
 that many of the adults who were thirsting for knowledge wished 
 to attend school with the children, but found it incompatible to 
 attend to their different avocations and school at the same time. 
 To meet their case, Morgan arranged to open a night school every 
 Wednesday evening at Crawlom, to which all ages were able to 
 come. As these were progressing in their simple education, and 
 the taste of knowledge creating a demand for more, to meet their 
 desire for more Scriptural knowledge, it was determined to hold 
 the schools on Sunday eveninfjs also. The report of the seminary
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 159 
 
 was noised abroad, and many attended from tlie district around, 
 enclosing a radius of five miles, so that ere long a goodly propor- 
 tion of the inhabitants were able to read God's word in their own 
 tongue. It cannot be ascertained with exactness how soon after 
 1769 Sabbath teaching was commenced at Crawlom, but it must 
 have been pretty soon after establishing the day school at Ty'n y 
 fron, for the simple reason that Madam Bevan's schoolmasters 
 were never permitted to remain long in the same place. The con- 
 clusion must therefore be arrived at that this Sabbath School could 
 not have been easily started after 1770. It is to be observed that 
 Morgan himself would most often not be present in the Sunday 
 School, being away preaching at the time in the different chapels 
 around, but the men and women whom he had been instrumental 
 in teaching in the night school, became in their turn the instructors 
 of the illiterate who came together on the Sabbaths. It is men- 
 tioned in connection with this school that the members read in 
 addition to the Bible the Vicar's book, as " The Candle of the 
 Welsh " was popularly called, which is a proof of its continued 
 popularity. Being written in simple language and containing 
 more familiar words than the authorized version of the Bible, in 
 the absence of a specially prepared primer, it was probably used as 
 the stepping-stone to the higher stage of Bible reading. The next 
 individual school started, of which we have any record, was at 
 
 Pwllheli in Caernarvonshire, in 1783. 
 
 The date has been arrived at by comparing what is known of the 
 school with the account given of the erection of the first Calvinistic 
 Methodist chapel in the town. This took place in 1781, and it is 
 asserted that before this chapel was two years old, a school was 
 kept within its walls. Two deacons were chiefly instrumental in 
 the good work — one of them, John Eoberts, was a poet of con- 
 siderable ability, known by the bardie name of Slion Lleyn, the 
 •other John Thomas, though of fewer parts, was his worthy peer 
 both for piety and assiduity. The school was not held regularly, 
 even for the comparatively short period of its existence. It never 
 rose higher than once a fortnight, most often once a month, within 
 the lifetime of the original founders. The first individual school 
 held in South "Wales is believed to be that of
 
 160 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 CiLYcwM, NEAR Llandovery, Caermarthenshire, 1785. 
 
 The chief instrument in starting this was Kev. William Williams^ 
 of Glangwenlas, who is represented as a clergyman of the Church 
 of England, very pious and full of zeal and energy to do good. He 
 had lived for thirty-seven years in England, when on account of 
 failing health he was obliged to resign his appointment and to 
 return to the scenes of his childhood in "Wales. His father, Rhys 
 Williams of Tynewydd, Cilycwm, was a member with the Cal- 
 vinistic Methodists, who had a cause here as early as 1740 ; and in 
 his days it was here that the bard of Pantycelyn worshipped with 
 all his family. The clergyman, after settling in his native valley, 
 joined the same denomination as his father, and not long after, in 
 the year 1785 it is thought, started a Sunday School in the house 
 of one David Elias, who was father of Eev. David Elias, a Cal- 
 vinistic Methodist minister well known in his days in Breconshire 
 and other parts of Wales. In conjunction with Rhys AVilliam 
 Morgan, of the same place, he is described as having started a 
 branch school in the hamlet of Brynteg, in another part of the 
 parish. A son of this Morgan was living there in the year 1880. 
 So indefatigable was Mr. Williams's zeal to multiply schools that 
 before long we find him trying the experiment at the town of 
 Caermarthen and other places. The first attempt here, however, 
 ■was for a while a failure, owing to the opposition of well-inten- 
 tioned though mistaken people, to Sunday work. But by the year 
 1803, the work had been accomplished, and Mr. Williams, on his 
 return from Bristol, after an absence there of some years, to his 
 native valley, had the gratification of finding there a flourishing 
 institution. He had the privilege too of starting Sunday Schools 
 in three other counties — in a place called Tref-fechan, a suburb of 
 Aberystwith, to which reference is made hereafter; in a place 
 called Llofft Wen, near Llanwrtyd Wells, Breconshire; and at 
 Llanbrynmair, in Montgomeryshire, in 1795. It appears that he 
 was acquainted with Mr. Raikes, and having participated liberally 
 of his spirit, had become a zealous and successful advocate of this 
 plan of imparting Scriptural knowledge.* The next Sunday 
 Schools in order of time, apart from those of Mr. Charles, were 
 founded by 
 
 * " Metliodistiaeth Cymrn," vol, ii. p. 45 ; vol. iii. p. 340.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF AVALES. IGl 
 
 Du. Edward Williams, of Oswestky, ix 1786. 
 Dr. Eees says * that by the contributions of some generous 
 English friends he opened a few Sunday Schools in North WaleS, 
 •which were afterwards converted into circulating day schools 
 under the superintendence of Dr. George Lewis, of Llanuwchllyn. 
 The scheme met with a considerable degree of support, so that 
 by the year 1799 thirteen masters were employed, who had 553 
 scholars under their care. The same author mentions earlier 
 schools than these. In a manuscript written in 1720 by one 
 Morgan John of Morriston, near Swansea, it is said that he had 
 learned to read at the Independent Sunday School at Tirdwncyn, 
 in that neighbourhood, in 1697, and that the Independent Church 
 at Neath also had a Sunday School at that time. These schools 
 are, however, supposed to be only catechetical meetings, such as 
 every Nonconformist Church in that age held regularly once a 
 week. The existence of these catechetical meetings is further con- 
 firmed by the fact that some of the catechisms used at them are 
 still extant. A Welsh catechism for the use of Baptist Churches 
 was published at Bristol in the year 1759. This was a translation 
 by Abel Morgan, of the Catechism of the Particular Baptists in 
 England, and the same as the Shorter Catechism of the West- 
 minster Conference, except a few questions and answers in its 
 beginning concerning baptism.f There was another isolated school, 
 which from the character of its founder has gained some notoriety, 
 held at 
 
 Hexgoed, in Glamorganshire, in 1787. 
 The Baptist Church of Hengoed, in the parish of Gelligaer, was 
 founded in the year 1650, and was one out of three represented in 
 the first Cymanfa (Association) held by that denomination in 
 Wales that year, at listen, near Swansea. The other two were 
 listen itself and Olchon. In the year 1701, Eev. Morgan Griffith, 
 from near Haverfordwest, in Pembrokeshire, accepted a call to 
 become pastor of the church. He is described as a modest, afiec-^ 
 tionate Christian, and an intelligent, affable preacher ; his name 
 remained highly respected amongst his survivors for a long time. 
 
 * "History of Nonconformity in Wales," p. 418. 
 t Greal y BedycMwyr tor 1827, p. 239. "'
 
 102 THE SU^"DAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 He continued pastor of this church until his death in 1738, 
 though he did not enjoy perfect tranquillity during the whole 
 <»f his pastorate. In the year 1730, at an Association held 
 in his chapel, Mr. Charles Winter, of Bedwellty, Mr. Griffith's 
 co-pastor, was charged with teaching Arminian doctrine to the 
 congregation. A very hot debate ensued on the subject, but 
 i>n Mr. Winter agreeing to subscribe to a confession of faith sub- 
 mitted to him in the meeting, he was permitted to retain his 
 appointment, which remained imdisturbed until his co-pastor's 
 death. This being taken an occasion to test Mr. Winter's hold 
 upon the Church, it was put to the vote whether he should be 
 -accepted pastor for the future, which resulted in his expulsion from 
 the Church, and that of twenty-four of his adherents. Mr. Winter 
 subsequently built a meeting house not far from Hengoed, at a place 
 called Craig Fargoed, where he continued to labour until his death. 
 From statistics of Nonconformist Churches, collected by Dr. John 
 Evans, in the year 1717, and still preserved in Dr. Williams's 
 library, in London, the Church at Hengoed is described as consist- 
 ing of seven hundred members, reckoning the men, women, and 
 children of every family in habitual attendance. This j^roves the 
 place to have been the centre of considerable activity, in those 
 comparatively dark and stormy times. 
 
 The members of this Church, in latter years, have been accus- 
 tomed to refer, with a certain amount of pardonable pride, to the 
 fact that a Sunday School has been associated with this chapel as 
 early as any in Wales after the one started by Raikes in England. 
 The particulars respecting this school are very meagre, but the 
 name of the founder, Morgan John Ehys, is still held in much 
 veneration. He is described as a most talented and energetic 
 minister. He got school books printed in the Welsh language, and 
 visited diiferent localities far and near to establish night schools 
 for the working classes, and Sunday Schools as Avell. He emigrated 
 to America in 1794. It is quite unknown whether the schools 
 started by him were continued uninterruptedly unto the present 
 time, or that they ceased to exist soon after the departure of their 
 founder beyond the Atlantic. That the parent school and the few 
 branches connected with it, served as a radiating focus from which 
 kindred institutions received their first illumination, or returned 
 thither to rekindle their f.agginn zeal, has, so far as we are aware.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES, l6o 
 
 been asserted by no one; and little, therefore, can isolated 
 examples of this kind, however commendable might have been 
 their organization, be looked upon as having any originating part 
 In the development of the general and compact system of schools 
 ■with which the Principality is adorned at the present day. In fact, 
 all the historians who have touched upon this subject, though dif- 
 fering a few years with regard to the date at which some of the above 
 .schools were started, agree in declaring that the honour of having 
 set afloat the noble scheme of Sunday Schools throughout Wales 
 belongs chiefly and pre-eminently to one man only, and that one 
 was Kev. Thomas Charles of Bala. He was the first to organize 
 a system of Sunday Schools throughout the length and breadth of 
 the land. Perhaps his claim to have been the Father of the Welsh 
 Sunday-School system has not been more fully, justly, and yet 
 temperately put forth than by his earliest biographer, Eev, Thomas 
 Jones of Denbigh, and who also was his contemporary. " Mr. 
 Charles," says Mr. Jones, " was one of the first, if not the first, 
 within the Principality who endeavoured and succeeded to estab- 
 lish Sabbath Schools, and to put them in order in any considerable 
 number and pretty generally. In the INIonthly Meetings and 
 Quarterly Associations of the Calvinistic Methodists wherever and 
 "whenever he was present, it was seldom, for many years, that he 
 allowed an opportunity to slip without earnestly exhorting his 
 brethren to render every aid within their power in carrying on the 
 work. His numerous, afi'ectionate, and spirited exhortations, as 
 well as his own earnest personal efforts, were not permitted to go 
 imrewarded. He found scores, hundreds, and thousands, of willing 
 assistants, according to their varied abilities, which were at best 
 but limited, in all parts of the country ; and there is every reason 
 to expect that much fruit will be found to follow in ages to come. 
 Hitherto the work has been going on and increasing within the 
 body already mentioned ; and not only have other Nonconformist 
 bodies shown a kindred zeal, but the Established Church also has. 
 in many places, put forth faithful efforts to the same intent." * 
 
 Whether and to w^hat extent Mr. Charles was influenced by the 
 
 example and success of Mr. Raikes in England, is more than can at 
 
 present be ascertained. That his labours began several years after 
 
 Raikes had become pretty generally known is evident enough, but 
 
 * Quoted in Tro^^thodydd for October, 1871, p. 481.
 
 104 
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 as it is a well attested fact that the first Sunday School ia Wales- 
 was established at least ten years before the now famous seminary 
 of St. Catherine Street, Gloucester, so the peculiar character of those 
 organized by Charles points to a conception and an origin more 
 allied to the earlier AVelsh type, and entirely distinct from the 
 schools of England. From the very first the teachers in Wales 
 gave their labours gratuitously ; adults as well as children were 
 always taught in them ; and being the direct outcome of a system 
 of circulating day and evening schools, they are marked at once as 
 a class sui generis, very difficult to be asssociated at all with the 
 system of English schools, and with no accident to suggest a con- 
 nection, except that the latter as a system had a priority of 
 existence. In short, the schools founded by Mr. Charles were an 
 exact counterpart of that founded by Jenkin Morgan, near Llanid- 
 loes, which, as already shown, was a growth out of the circulating 
 schools of Eev. Griffith Jones and Madam Be van. 
 
 An inquiry into the origin of Sunday Schools in Wales must 
 include an account of the circulating schools from which 
 they were developed. Mr. Charles, no doubt, copied his sys- 
 tem of circulating schools entirely from that of Griffith Jones. 
 Being fully conscious of the great benefit w^hich they had been 
 the means of accomplishing for his country, Mr. Charles set 
 to work at once, after he had joined the Methodists, to revive 
 the old institutions. Those by his time had become quite defunct ; 
 and owing to the litigation respecting the will of Madam Bevan, 
 then pending in the Court of Chancery (1780-1811), it was quite 
 uncertain whether the funds could ever become again available 
 for the object which that lady had so much cherished. A remark- 
 able proof of the high esteem in which those schools were held in 
 the country, whilst affording at the same time an indirect allusion 
 to the time their service was passing away, is given in the history 
 of the Rev. Robert Jones of Rhoslan, Caernarvonshire. He is the 
 author of an interesting little volume, entitled "Drych yr 
 Amseroedd" (The Mirror of the Times), in wiiich he describes, 
 partly from his own recollections, and partly from conversations 
 w^hich he had with elder people, the sufferings of the early Metho- 
 dists in their labours to enlighten and save their fellow men. This 
 good man had inherited a fair share of the zeal and energy of 
 those whom he so faithfully describes. When a young lad, under
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 1G5 
 
 'eighteen years of age, he walked all the vvay from Caernarvonshire 
 to Laugharne, to see Madam Bevan, and ask her for a school- 
 master for North Wales. In going he called at Trefecca, to see 
 and hear Howell Harris, and all the way from thence to the 
 lady's house he was praying that God should prosper him in his 
 journey. His prayer, howe\*er, was not answered that time, for, 
 to his great disappointment, when he arrived there, the lady was 
 not at home, and so he had to retrace his steps to the north, with 
 the only satisfaction of having seen the great apostle of the 
 revival. Nothing discouraged, he tried another journey, in the 
 year 1763, when about eighteen years of age, and this time he was 
 more successful. She told him that she had been greatly dis- 
 appointed in several of her schoolmasters, but touched with his 
 humble petition, and modest demeanour, she promised the grant 
 on condition that he should become the master of the school. To 
 this he consented, as he had been much better educated than most 
 young men of his class at the time. His mother had taught him 
 Griffith Jones's Catechism in addition to the Bible ; and he was 
 also acquainted with the Book of Common Prayer, which he had 
 learnt in a school kept by one Thomas Gough. As one of Madam 
 Bevan's masters, he began his circulating school at Capel Curig in 
 •Caernarvonshire, then removed to Brynsiencyn in Anglesea, and 
 was afterwards at Llangybi and other places, in his native county ; 
 but being a preacher, as well as schoolmaster, he came by his 
 full share of the persecutions of the times. As an example of the 
 petty annoyances to which he was subjected, there is a story 
 related of him, that when keeping a school in one of the churches 
 •of Caernarvonshire, he gave this question to the children to take 
 with them home, '' Where is the Church of God ? " One of the 
 wiseacres of the neighbourhood hearing the question from the 
 ■children, said in contempt, " Pooh, is that the kind of master you 
 have, asking where the church is, and he is in it every day?" 
 The remark was speedily carried to the master. He, wishing to 
 ■convince his critic of an error which was common to liim and 
 many others of mistaking the material for the spiritual, added that 
 the Bible spoke of the ears of the Church, referring to Actsxi. 22. 
 When the critic heard this remark, he burst out to deride the poor 
 schoolmaster much more, saying, " What a simpleton ! What is 
 easier for him to know than that the belfry is one of the church's
 
 166 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 ears ? " Whether he succeeded in discovering the other has not 
 transpired. 
 
 With regard to the discontiniiauce of Madam Bevan's scliools, 
 at this time, Judge Johnes also remarks, " In the meantime," he 
 says, " the means of knowledge had been withdrawn ; that splendid 
 instrument of education, which had risen like a dream — like a 
 dream had passed away; there was a void, and the Methodists 
 supplied it ! Schools on a similar model, as we shall hereafter 
 prove, were established in the interval by Mr. Charles of Bala ; and 
 before the year 1811, the whole country had learnt to regard the 
 Methodists and dissenters as the instructors of the people." * 
 
 Mr. Charles's testimony respecting the great ignorance of the 
 ]Teople, of which he became cognisant as soon as he began to 
 itinerate, is another indirect confirmation of the fact that Eev. 
 Griffith Jones's schools had by this time nearly all disappeared. 
 He became an itinerant preacher as soon as he joined the Metho- 
 dists in 1785, but during this year, at least, he never took very 
 distant journeys, for he never prolonged his stay from home beyond 
 a month, as he had arranged to administer the Lord's Supper to his 
 own Church at Bala the last Sunday of every month. There is no 
 record of all the places he visited at this time, but two are remark- 
 able as having been the scenes of extraordinary influences which 
 accompanied his preaching of the word. The first was at a place 
 called LOn Fudr, in the district of Lleyn, beyond Pwllheli, where his 
 visit was attended by a great addition of members to the Church. 
 The other was at Bontuchel, near Euthin, at an Association held in 
 Christmas week of that year, when he preached from Gal. iv. 4, 5, 
 on the Infinite Person, and the active and passive obedience of the 
 Saviour, with such perspicuity, authority, and heavenly influence 
 as to produce in the whole congregation a lively mood of grateful 
 wonder and adoration, blending all hearts together in such spiritual 
 sympathy that all with one accord could testify, *' Behold how 
 good, and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together, in 
 unity." He continued this journey to the following year, 1786, 
 and by the end of it, having covered a large tract of country, he 
 was able to arrive at an accurate estimate of the intellectual state 
 of the country, but the contemplation of which very much dis- 
 tressed him. There was scarcely a neighbourhood within the 
 * "Essays on the Caiises of Dissent," etc., p. 31.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 167 
 
 whole tract in which one out of every twenty of the populatiou 
 could read the word of God, while there were some localities in 
 which it was difficult to find a single person so far advanced. To 
 remedy this deplorable state of things, it struck him very forcibly 
 that circulating schools exactly on the model of those of Griffith 
 Jones should be at once revived. He set himself with all his heart 
 and soul to organize a general movement in the matter. For it 
 was evident to him, that although the people, in several places, 
 had been won to get pleasure in listening to the gospel, and like 
 the hearers of John the Baptist to rejoice for a time in its light, 
 they would still remain in comparative ignorance of its true beauty, 
 until they could read the Bible for themselves, and some means 
 were instituted to indoctrinate them in its essential truths. He 
 applied in every direction for help to put his idea into practice — 
 now he would submit his scheme to the kind consideration of 
 friends in England, at another time he sought the co-operation of 
 men of heart and means in Wales, and on the whole, his appeals 
 were not made in vain. His plan was to send a teacher to a certain 
 locality and keep him there just long enough to enable as many as 
 were willing to learn, young and old, to read Welsh pretty fluentl}', 
 and then remove him to some other neighbourhood to repeat the 
 process. He began with only one teacher, but ere long, through 
 the generosity of friends, who poured in their subscriptions in a 
 manner that both astonished and gladdened his anxious heart, he 
 was enabled to increase the number of his agents to twenty. From 
 six to nine months, was generally found sufficient to teach a child to 
 read his Bible, which is a much shorter time than is required to 
 iBarn to read English, because of the simplicity of the Welsh alphabet 
 — each vowel and consonant having but one sound to represent, 
 except in one or two instances. It must be also remembered 
 that these schools were altogether confined to teaching the reading 
 of the Bible, and that in Welsh only. 
 
 Before establishing a circulating school in a locality, Mr. Charles 
 would first of all visit the place, call a meeting of the inhabitants 
 together, and impress upon their minds the importance of having 
 their children taught to read the word of God. Then he would 
 signify his intention of sending a teacher to tbem, who, without 
 fee or reward, would instruct all that were willing to come to him, 
 on week-days, or in the evenings, or on the Sabbath day. Direct-
 
 168 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 ing afterwards his appeals more pointedly to parents, lie would 
 iirge them to send their children to school, promising to give books 
 gratuitously to all that were too poor to purchase them. 
 
 He was very careful in his selection of masters, lest he also 
 should be pained with similar disappointments in them, to which 
 Madam Bevan was so undeservedly subjected. As a rule, they 
 were men of humble circumstances, and the salary they received 
 only ranged from £12 to £15 a year. In this respect, they were 
 jnore suitable to the humble sphere in which they were intended 
 to labour. But although the remuneration which they got was 
 miserably small, the moral qualifications which they should 
 possess were to be unmistakably excellent. In describing them t«3 
 a friend, he says, " That it was necessary they should be men of 
 moderately good parts, humble, well-conducted, and of winning 
 ways, not proud, lazy, or talkative ; but above all, they must, as 
 far as could be judged by their life and conversation, be godly men." 
 
 In addition to this, he supplied each with a copy of the Rules of 
 Conduct, which he was expected to observe on entering upon any 
 charge. He was to receive no fees for instructing any child — not 
 to be burdensome to any of the parents — not to go to any house to 
 eat and drink, unless specially invited. When he remained at a 
 house for the night, he was expected to read and pray with the 
 family before going to rest, and also before he left on the following 
 morning. In the course of his stay he was to lead the conversation, 
 as soon as practicable, to his own special duties and avocation ; 
 and to be careful, on no account, to let it drift into vain and useless 
 talk ; such conduct was intended as an example to families how a 
 Christian ought to live, and what should be his demeanour towards 
 his neighbours. One can easily judge of the beneficial effects 
 which soon followed the labours of a band of men endowed with 
 these special qualifications. By teaching the people to read, new 
 ideas burst upon their consciousness; a new start was given to 
 their mental faculties ; sermons were better understood and appre- 
 ciated ; a thirst for general knowledge was awakened ; from the 
 cultivation of Welsh, the study of English followed ; but the chief 
 aim of the teacher was to be, the bringing of the people to a saving 
 knowledge of God in Christ. And in fact so it proved ; for in a 
 comparatively short time it is said, " that the whole aspect of the 
 country was marvellously changed."
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 169 
 
 It is easy to conceive the vast amount of labour which devolved 
 •on Mr. Charles to start and support these circulating schools 
 throughout the country. First of all, he had to fix upon the 
 locality and enlighten the inhabitants on their duty of accepting 
 and patronising the school; then he had to fix upon a suitable 
 teacher for the school, and in not a few instances to train teachers 
 for the work in which he wished them to be engaged. Further, it 
 was his commendable practice to visit the schools as often as he 
 •conld, in order to encourage the teacher in his work, as well as 
 to keep up the zeal of the people, by holding a kind of public 
 examination or exhibition of the progress of the scholars, which 
 went by the general description of catecliising. The most arduous 
 work of all, however, probably was to collect the necessary funds 
 in order to keep the important machinery a-going ; and in his 
 <;ase the committee, collector, secretary, and treasurer, met in 
 one man. 
 
 The sources whence the contributions came were both numerous 
 and various. In this respect, he himself gave the best example of 
 liberality, as well as of untired assiduity. All he got from his own 
 ministry was devoted to this purpose, while the wants of his own 
 family were being supplied from the profits of his dear wife's 
 industry. The several congregations throughout the country 
 always readily responded to his appeals for subscriptions — at Bala, 
 the whole collections on Communion Sundays always went to this 
 treasury. Once he received £50 from an unknown contributor, but 
 in the great majority of cases, he had to write to different persons 
 to solicit aid, which always required long explanations in intro- 
 ducing the subject, and the gratefulness of his heart did not allow 
 him to be brief in his acknowledgment, much less to make use of 
 a printed stereotyped form as is now in vogue. In the year 1798 
 we find a letter of his in the Evangelical Magazine, acknowledging 
 the receipt of £30 from a person bearing the initials G. T. G-., who, 
 though unknown, could not be allowed to go unthanked. In the 
 October number of the Drysorfa Ysprydol ( The Spiritual Magazine) 
 for 1800, he and Eev. T. Jones, of Denbigh, acknowledge the receipt 
 of the sum of £470, being a legacy bequeathed by D. Ellis, in the 
 parish of Helygen, Flintshire, towards this object. Eespecting this 
 money he wrote, " It has been left to us, in trust, chiefly to support 
 .the free schools. Only one has as yet been established in connec-
 
 170 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 tion with this bequest, and that in the parish of Cilcen, but we 
 intend very soon to add to the number." 
 
 The society formed in London about the year 1800, by some- 
 ladies of rank and charitable gentlemen, to aid poor curates and 
 vicars in Wales, who having large families had been reported to- 
 them as receiving very scanty stipends, devoted some of its funds 
 to aid the circulating schools. Mr. Charles had been chosen as 
 agent to dispense this charity. There is a letter extant, written to 
 him in June, 1802, by the secretary of the society, in which he 
 acknowledges the receipt of the particulars showing how the sum 
 of £500 had been distributed to aid indigent churchmen, and in 
 support of the schools. " We wish to assure you," says the secre- 
 tary, " that we are very sensible of the great trouble and care you 
 have taken in this business. Still, we trust it will be happy to 
 you as it will be satisfactory to us, if other similar occasions will 
 enable us to desire your further benevolent agency.*' From other 
 letters and direct evidence we find that Mr. Charles continued this 
 labour of love for many years, and that considerable sums of 
 money from time to time passed through his hands. His bio- 
 grapher remarks, with reference to this department of Mr. Charles's 
 labours, " that he thus gave proof that, although the Church of 
 England had shut her doors against him, he was very far from 
 being an antagonist either to her, her ministers, or her ministra- 
 tions." 
 
 In the year 1808, Mr. Charles complains that " all the annual 
 aids from England had almost simultaneously ceased except one." 
 This arose from the circumstance that after the establishment of 
 the Bible Society the English friends of the circulating schools, 
 finding the Welsh able to contribute so largely towards that society, 
 thought their support was no longer needed. Though that was 
 hardly the case, matters had then come to such a state that their 
 discontinuance did not prove a very material loss. Sabbath Schools 
 being now multiplied throughout the whole country, the need of 
 day schools to teach reading only was becoming less and less urgent, 
 until after a flourishing existence of about twenty years they dis- 
 appeared altogether. During this period it is estimated that Mr. 
 Charles paid on an average the sum of £200 annually in salaries, 
 to teachers. We have already seen that it was no small labour ta 
 provide this sum, and hardly less again was it to pay it personally
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 171 
 
 to between fifteen and twenty persons living in different parts of 
 the country at least quarterly, in most cases, monthly. 
 
 Before entering more fully into the connection between the cir- 
 culating schools and the system of Sunday Schools which sprung- 
 out of them, as an interesting summary of some of the details 
 already mentioned, we shall bring this chapter to a close by insert- 
 ing some letters written on different occasions by Mr. Charles 
 Idmself, describing his proceedings. 
 
 The first is to a lady in England, written in 1796, acknowledging 
 a subscription from her towards the schools. " In travelling," says 
 he, " through different parts of the country, more than nine years 
 ago, I found that extensive districts in the mountainous parts of 
 North "Wales were sunk in the deepest ignorance. The number of 
 those who were able to read was very small, and equally few were 
 those who had the word of God in their houses. I seriously began 
 to consider how it would be possible to remove so great an evil, 
 and I could think of no other plan which was likely to answer the 
 purpose than to set schoolmasters to work according to the aid 
 which I would receive, and send them to dark districts to teach 
 freely all who would come to them to read the Bible in their own 
 language, and to instruct them in the first principles of the Chris- 
 tian religion. By the help of kind friends to whom I made known 
 this plan, it was set on foot, and it has succeeded far beyond my 
 expectations. The demand for schoolmasters has gone on increas- 
 ingly, and there is a manifest change in the sentiments and morals 
 of the people where those schools have been at work. I established 
 Sabbath and night schools for the sake of those who were too much 
 engaged or too poor to avail themselves of the day schools. The 
 attempts which I have made in this direction have been marvel- 
 lously successful. The country is filled with schools of one kind 
 or another, and all are taught simultaneously. And there are 
 blessed results following the instruction — a great and deep interest 
 in spiritual things has been awaken in many localities ; many have 
 been made sensible of their sinful state and of their need of Christ, 
 and are now, I have every reason to believe, His faithful followers. 
 The schools have now been in oj^eration for nearly ten years, and 
 the results are similar in a greater or less degree. The number of 
 teachers has been increased or diminished according to the means 
 at my disposal. All that I get for my ministry I devote to this
 
 172 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 purpose, while the wants of my own family are provided for by 
 the industry of my dear wife. At present I pay £12 per annum 
 to each schoolmaster. They remain in the same place from six to 
 nine months, and are then removed to another locality. We find 
 that nine months is amply sufficient to teach the children to read 
 their Bibles fluently in the Welsh language. I visit the schools 
 myself, when I catechise them publicly, and have the unutterable 
 pleasure of seeing the general aspect of the country marvellously 
 changed. The desert blossoms as a rose, and the dry land has 
 become streams of water. By means of schools and the preaching 
 of the gospel religious knowledge spreads in every direction. Bless 
 the Lord, my soul ! " 
 
 The course taken by Mr. Charles to supply the want of schools 
 umongst his countrymen is also described in two letters written by 
 him in 1811, to Mr. Anderson, of Edinburgh, one of the secretaries 
 of the Gaelic Society, then in progress of formation. 
 
 " Soon after I assumed the care of the parish," he says, " I 
 attempted to instruct the rising generation by catechising them 
 every Sunday afternoon, but their not being able to read I found 
 to be a great obstacle to the progress of my work. This induced 
 me to inquire into the state of other parts of the country, and I 
 soon found the poor people to be, in general, in the same state of 
 ignorance. Two or three of the children of the wealthiest were 
 .sent to the next town to learn English, and this was all ; the 
 generality were left totally destitute of any instruction. As Mr. 
 Jones' schools had ceased to circulate, no relief could be obtained 
 from that quarter. A thought occurred to my anxious mind, for 
 so it really was, that by the charitable assistance of some friends I 
 might be able to obtain means of employing a teacher, and to 
 remove him from one place to another to instruct the poor ignorant 
 people. When I had succeeded in obtaining pecuniary aid, the great 
 difficulty of obtaining a proper person to teach occurred. This diffi- 
 culty was removed by instructing a poor man myself, and employ- 
 ing him at first near me, that his school might be, in a manner, 
 under my constant inspection. The next difficulty was to obtain 
 proper elementary books. In this point Mr. Jones' schools were 
 very deficient, as the books used in his schools were little better 
 than the English battledores, and very ill calculated to forward the 
 children in their learning. This obstruction also was gradually
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF W.SJLES. 17^> 
 
 .suniiounted. I composed three elemeutary books, beside.-^ two 
 catechisms, which are now used in all our schools, and very essen- 
 tially assist the progress of the children.* My teachers, as my 
 lunds increased, multiplied gradually from one to twenty ; but of 
 late the number has decreased, as the necessity of the week-day 
 schools is superseded by the increase of Sunday Schools, and my 
 attention is drawn to the extension of those as widely as possible. 
 The circulating, day schools have been the principal means of 
 erecting Sunday Schools, for without the former the state of the 
 country was such that we could not obtain teachers to carry on 
 the latter ; besides, Sunday Schools were set up in every place 
 where day schools had been. My mode of conducting the schools 
 has been as follows : — My first and greatest care has been in the 
 appointment of proper teachers. They are all poor people, as my 
 wages are but small ; besides, a poor person can assimilate himself 
 to the habits and mode of living among the poor, as it is his own 
 way of living. It is requisite he should be a person of moderate 
 abilities, but above all that he be truly pious, moral, decent, 
 humble, and engaging in his whole deportment. Not captious, not 
 disputatious, not conceited, no idle saunterer, no tattler, nor given 
 to the indulgence of any idle habits. My care has been abun- 
 dantly repaid, for my teachers in general are as anxious as myself 
 in the success of the work, and the eternal welfare of those they 
 are employed to instruct in their most important concerns. In 
 introducing a school into a place I pay a previous visit there, after 
 conversing a little with some of the principal inhabitants on the 
 subject, I convene the inhabitants together, after having sent a 
 previous message to them, intimating my intention of visiting 
 them and specifying the time of my coming. Wheil convened 
 together I publicly address them on the vast importance of having 
 their children taught to read the word of God ; and afterwards I 
 inform them of my intention of sending a teacher to assist in 
 
 * Griffith Jones published, both in "Welsh and English, expositions of 
 the Church Catechism, divided into the following parts : — 
 
 The Christian Covenant (Baptism). 
 
 The Christian Creed. 
 
 The Christian Duty (the Commandments). 
 
 The Christian Prayer. 
 
 The Christian Sacraments. 
 
 These are still found in many schools of Wales, where they have proved 
 oxtcnsivclv useful.
 
 174 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 instructing tlieir children, and also grown-up people who cannot 
 read, who will attend him on Sundays and as many nights in the 
 week as they please. I conclude by exhorting the parents to send 
 their children to school. I converse familiarly afterwards with the 
 parents, and promise to assist them with books if they should be 
 too poor to buy any. I take kind notices of the children also ; and 
 thus in general we are kind friends ever after the first interviews.. 
 The teacher is to take no entrance money; is charged not to 
 encroach upon them and intrude upon them, unless particularly 
 invited into their houses ; and then he is charged to have family 
 prayers night and morning wherever he goes to reside for a night ; 
 to introduce conversations respecting his own work, and not to 
 indulge himself with them in vain, idle talk ; that in him they 
 may see how a Christian lives, and how they ought to live. His 
 time is entirely at my command, and to be devoted wholly to the 
 work ; he is engaged in the evening as well as through the day, 
 and that every day. Before the school is removed I go there 
 twice, if possible, and examine the children publicly ; these public 
 examinations and catechisings I have found most profitable to the 
 parents and grown-up people. I have often seen them exceedingly 
 affected by the intelligence and proper responses of the children. 
 Before I leave them I exhort them to prevent the children from 
 forgetting what they have learnt; to further their progress in 
 learning, now they have happily begun, and this they generally 
 comply with. At first, the strong prejudice which universally 
 prevailed against teaching them to read Welsh first, and the idea 
 assumed that they could not read English so well if previously 
 instructed in the Welsh language, this, I say, proved a great 
 stumbling-block in the way of parents to send children to the 
 Welsh schools; together with another conceit they had, that if 
 they could read English, they would soon learn of themselves to 
 read Welsh ; but now these idle and groundless conceits are univer- 
 sally scouted. This change has been produced not so much by 
 flisputing as by the evident salutary effects of the schools, the 
 great delight with which 'the children attended them, and the 
 great progress they made in the acquisition of knowledge. The 
 school continues usually at one time in the same place six or nine 
 months, which depends on local circumstances, the number of 
 children, and the progress which the children make. (Here Mr.
 
 THE SUNDAY .SCHOOLS OF WALES. 175 
 
 Charles enters at length into the argument for teaching the 
 vernacular first, and English after, the reasons adduced in the 
 main agreeing with those of Piev. Griffith Jones, already quoted.) 
 I have of late turned my attention more than ever to the aged 
 illiterate j^eople in our country. On minute inquiries I find 
 there are many who cannot read, and of course are very ignorant ; 
 though I had before given general exhortations on that head, and 
 invited them to attend the schools, but with very little success. 
 At last, I determined to try what effect a school exclusively for 
 themselves would have. I fixed upon a district where I had been 
 informed that most of the inhabitants above fifty years of age 
 could not read, and I j^revailed on a friend to promise to attend 
 to teach them. 1 went there, after a previous publication being 
 given of my coming — published tlic school, and exhorted them 
 all to attend. My friend went there, and eighteen attended the 
 first Sunday, lie found them in a state of most deplorable 
 ignorance. T>y condescension, patience and kindness, he soon 
 engaged them to learn, and their desire for learning soon became 
 as great as any we have seen among the young people. They had 
 their elementary books with them whilst at work, and met in the 
 evenings of their own accord to teach one another. Their school 
 is now increased to eighty persons, and some of them read their 
 Testaments, though it is not three months since the school com- 
 menced. Children are excluded from this school, but we have 
 another school for them. The rumour of the success of this school 
 has spread abroad, and has greatly removed the discouragement 
 which old people felt in attempting to learn from the general per- 
 suasion that they could not learn at their age. This has been 
 practically proved to be false, for old persons of seventy-five years 
 of age had learnt to read in this school to their great joy."
 
 176 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 The Founding of the Welsh Sunday-School System. 
 
 llow the circulating schools were developed into Sabbath Schools— The 
 place of the first transformation not known — Time ascertained within 
 very narrow limits — One school started by Charles prior to, and 
 independent of, the system — This not improperly considered the 
 parent school — Place of starting accurately, time approximately, 
 known — Collateral evidence respecting date of system — Oppositions 
 encountered at the outset — Mr. Charles's conciliating spirit — ^Jlis 
 labours in preparing suitable text-books — His, ''Instructor in the 
 Principles of the Christian Religion " — A specimen page — Other un- 
 published papers, called "Pwngc Ysgol"- — A specimen — His Scrip- 
 tural Dictionary — The rapid development of the system accounted for. 
 
 It is a well-established fact that the Welsh Sunday- School 
 system was developed from the circulating schools. Mr. Charles's 
 own testuHony is conclusive evidence on this point. In the letter 
 written to the Secretary of the Gaelic Society, already quoted, he 
 says, " The circulating day schools have been the principal means 
 of erecting Sunday Schools, for, without the former, the state of 
 the country was such that we could not obtain teachers to carry on 
 the latter; besides Sunday Schools were set up in every place 
 where day schools had been." It would have been interesting to 
 be able to point out the particular school, which after the expiration 
 of its six or nine months' existence as a circulating school, first 
 assumed the more hallowed, as well as more permanent form of 
 a Sunday School. The traveller when standing on the bank of a 
 noble river, which from the size it has attained, tells him of a 
 course of several thousand miles run over, and which he doubts 
 not has fertilized many an extensive country, or drained many a
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 177 
 
 flourishing valley, besides being the means of communication 
 between distant inland towns, and of commercial intercourse for an 
 immense population, is naturally curious to trace the stream up- 
 wards to its tiny source ; so also is our curiosity excited to be able 
 to follow up the succession of Sunday Schools in the Principality, 
 which have so gradually grown, assumed such imposing and 
 orderly proportions, and have produced such incalculable benefits 
 for the population, to that simple and unpretentious assemblage to 
 which all must owe their origin. In this, however, our curiosity 
 is doomed to remain ungratified. The two important elements of 
 particularity — the place where and the time when the first Sunday 
 School of this system in Wales received a " local habitation and a 
 name," are involved in obscurity. At the same time, it is not 
 diflScult to discover the particular mode in which this transforma- 
 tion or development took place. 
 
 The same need for the day school to be supplemented by the 
 Sabbath School as existed in Jenkin Morgan's school, held at 
 Ty'n y fron, near Crawlom, Llanidloes, was soon experienced in 
 connection with Mr. Charles's institutions. The process of develop- 
 ment there has been already described in these words ; " At first 
 this was but a day school. The master, however, soon noticed 
 that many of the adults who were thirsting for knowledge wished 
 to attend school with the children, but found it incompatible to 
 attend to their different avocations, and school, at the same time. 
 To meet their case it was arranged _ to hold a night school every 
 Wednesday evening, and another school on Sunday evenings also." 
 This is precisely what took place in connection with Mr. Charles's 
 circulating schools. In the letter written to a lady in England in 
 1796, he says, " I established Sabbath and night schools for the 
 sake of those who were too much engaged or too poor to avail 
 themselves of the day schools.*' Comparing these two quotations 
 together, we can infer pretty accurately, how the first Sunday 
 School of the system instituted by Mr. Charles was inaugurated. 
 When the circulating school was fully established, and adults 
 began to desire to enjoy similar privileges with the children, the 
 schoolmaster opened a night school for their accommodation, and 
 finding that their thirst for knowledge was not thereby suffi- 
 ciently satisfied he supplemented those two with the Sunday 
 School. The people would be the more anxious to get the last 
 
 N
 
 178 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 fairly started, inasmuch as they knew that the master should be 
 removed from them at the end of his six or nine months' residence. 
 This view entirely harmonizes with Mr. Charles's further state- 
 ment respecting the progress of the work. " The attempts which 
 I have made in this direction," he adds, " have been marvellously 
 successful. The country is filled with schools of one kind or 
 another, and all are taught simultaneously." The meaning of this 
 we take to be — that in one and the same locality there would be a 
 day, a night, and a Sunday School, until the former two becoming 
 extinct by the removal of the teacher to another locality, left the 
 latter as the only and permanent institution. These being estab- 
 lished in connection with small congregations already partially en- 
 lightened by hearing the Gospel preached, and the Word pro- 
 claimed, will account for the readiness with which the movement 
 was taken up ; and the fact that those who were scholars in the 
 circulating schools became zealous teachers in the Sunday 
 Schools, will account for the rapidity with which the system was 
 developed and extended all over the country. There is no record, 
 however, so far as we are aware where the first circulating school 
 was started, and it is equally uncertain whether that first one, was 
 supplemented by a Sunday School or not. The probability is in 
 favour of the former alternative, from what is known of the pre- 
 vious history of Mr. Charles making use of the Sabbath day to 
 promote the religious instruction of the rising generation. 
 
 But with regard to the time ; by comparing the references in 
 several of Mr. Charles's letters, we can arrive at very narrow 
 limits within which Sunday Schools must have been started. 
 Some of these dates appear irreconcilable, but with closer atten- 
 tion to the wording the disagreement is found to disappear. For 
 instance, in one of the letters already quoted, bearing the date 
 1796, he says "that move than nine years ago he was travelling 
 through difi'erent parts of North Wales." From the portion of his 
 history already recorded, however, it is ascertained that he made 
 his first preaching tour in 1785, but as he renewed his itineracies 
 in 1786, he evidently intends the expression " more than nine 
 years " to cover all his tours of those two years. Writing to a 
 friend in London in 1808, he says, " In my travels through 
 different parts of North Wales, about twenty-three years ago 
 (i.e. in the year 1785), I found that the condition of the poor of
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES." 179 
 
 the conntry generally was so low with regard to religions know- 
 ledge, that scarcely one in twenty in several places could read the 
 Scriptures, and in some parts after making further inquiry, it was 
 difficult to find as many as one having heen taught to read. I 
 had then, and I now have, daily proofs of the ignorance of the poor 
 people who cannot read, and who never were instructed in the 
 principles, yea in places where there is no lack of preaching 
 regularly. In seeing this I was more grieved than I can relate, 
 and it caused me to search in earnest meditation for some speedy 
 and efiectiial remedy to remove the misfortune. Subsequently to 
 this, I put before a few friends a proposal to begin a subscription 
 towards paying the salary of a schoolmaster, and that one to be 
 removed from place to place in a circuit to teach the poor to read, 
 and to instruct them in the most important principles of Chris- 
 tianity by catechising. This work commenced in the year 1785 
 (the italics are ours). At first only one schoolmaster was engaged, 
 but as the aids increased, the schools were multiplied until they 
 reached twenty in number. I myself had to teach some of the 
 first schoolmasters, and they in turn became preceptors to others, 
 whom I sent to them, to learn to become schoolmasters." 
 
 In this letter we get Mr. Charles's direct testimony, that not 
 only was the ignorant condition of the country found out in 
 1785, but the first circulating school was also started in that 
 year. But how to reconcile this with the statements that it was 
 in 1786 the schools were established ? In the letter of 1796 he 
 states "The schools have been now in operation for nearly ten 
 years," and in a letter written in 1803, he says " The schools are 
 as flourishing as ever, now established seventeen years." The 
 statements are perfectly consistent, if we attend to the exact 
 wording. The first circulating school was started in 1785, in 
 connection with which he distinctly states that only one school- 
 master was engaged. The other expressions refer to schools, from 
 which it is inferred that by 1786 all the schools had become 
 pretty general in certain districts, for he also states that the night 
 and Sunday Schools were worked simultaneously with the circu- 
 lating. The general conclusion at which we therefore arrive is, 
 that it is almost certain Sunday Schools were hecome pretty 
 general in 1786, and that it is very probable the first was started in 
 1785 in connection with the first circulating school, which according 
 to Mr. Charles's positive statement, was begun in that year.
 
 180 
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 Our inquiry in the above disquisition has been confined alto- 
 gether to the Sunday Schools which sprung from the circulating 
 schools. There is, however, conclusive evidence of an isolated 
 school having been started by Mr. Charles even before he left the 
 Church of England, when the notice for the termination of his 
 curacy at Llanymowddwy had not fully expired. With regard to 
 the steps which led Mr. Charles to start this Sunday School, his 
 biographer, Mr. Morgan, of Syston, furnishes us with some details. 
 " His active mind," says he, " would not allow him to be wholly 
 unemployed. The ignorance which prevailed among the young 
 people at Bala excited his sympathy. He invited them to his 
 
 MR. CHARLES S HOUSE AT BALA. 
 
 house to give them religious instruction, and to catechise them. 
 His want of employment led him to this work of love, for which he 
 then probably acquired that taste and aptitude which afterwards 
 rendered him so distinguished, and his labours in this way so 
 beneficial to the whole country. His mode of treating the children 
 was peculiarly kind, affectionate and attractive. The love and 
 tenderness with which he addressed them melted them often into 
 tears, his house became soon too small to contain those who 
 attended. He was ofi'ered the use of their chapel by the Calvinistic 
 Methodists, who were then, and for a long time after, connected 
 with the Established Church, as the Methodists were formerly in
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 181 
 
 England. This offer lie accepted; and there he instructed and 
 catechised the numerous children that attended. The work was 
 the delight of his heart. This was, in fact, the commencement of 
 Sunday Schools, being anterior in time to any established in 
 England. How long it was before he finally made up his mind to 
 connect himself with the Methodists, is not known. It was at the 
 end of the year 1784, or the beginning of 1785, that he commenced 
 preaching among them." 
 
 In the light of later investigations, it is found that there are 
 several points out of harmony with facts in the above extract. 
 First, assuming that this school was instituted by Charles in the 
 year 1784, it could not even then be earlier than Eaikes's, which, 
 it is agreed by all now, was started in 1780. Then, Mr. Charles's 
 at Bala could not have been the first Sunday School in Wales, of 
 the system now in vogue there, for that was but an isolated 
 instance, taught by one man, and not at ail on the model of those 
 which arose soon after, in which several teachers assembled ii one 
 place to teach youth and adults, and to form classes for mutual 
 instruction. Finally, it is a well-ascertained fact that it was 
 towards the end of the first half of the year 1785, that Mr. Charles 
 joined the Methodists, soon after which event the circulating schools 
 were organized, and since the Sunday School system arose out of 
 these, the parent school could not have been started before the 
 latter half of 1785. Still, there is no impropriety, following the 
 example of Mr. Morgan, in calling that first effort at Bala, the 
 parent Sunday School of Wales. No great invention or discovery 
 reached its full maturity or development at once ; and since in Mr. 
 Charles's person, all the schools which rose after, have a connecting 
 link with the one carried on in the Calvinistic Methodist Chapel at 
 Bala, and prior to that in Mr. Charles's room ; and assuming also, 
 which is more than probable, that this good work was under-- 
 taken when his connection with Llanymowddwy had not been 
 quite severed, then the place and time of the origin of the Welsh 
 Sunday Schools are fixed, viz. at the town of Bala, in the year 
 1784. 
 
 Having discussed at such length the probable time that circulating 
 and Sunday Schools were organized by Mr. Charles, there is scarcely 
 any further need to correct the errors into which other historians 
 may have fallen. In fact, we are aware of only one, Dr. Eees, who
 
 182 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 disagrees with our conclusion, and he only by three years, preferring 
 1788 to 1785. In fixing on the former date, however, he grants 
 that he must suppose Mr. Charles's own memory to have failed 
 him in the letter he wrote in 1808, and that some of his other 
 manuscript letters must have been mutilated by his biographers ! * 
 But there are several other collateral proofs of the fact that Sunday 
 Schools became very general soon after the establishing of the 
 circulating schools, and in connection vs^ith some of them it is 
 amusing to notice how the smallest and remotest corners aspire to 
 the distinction of having actually first given birth to the idea. It 
 has been published that the first Sunday School in the remote parish 
 of Trawsfynydd, in the county of Merioneth, was started in the 
 summer of 1787, and that another was started about the same 
 time in the neighbouring parish of Festiniog. In the simple and 
 unsophisticated account given of the starting of the former of these 
 it is stated, " that the originators were afraid of meeting Mr. Charles 
 who soon after came to preach to the place, lest he should reprove 
 them for engaging in a work inconsistent with the sacredness of 
 the Sabbath day. However, when he came, they related to him 
 with fear and trembling what they had done. For a while he 
 remained in deep meditation, but at last said, * Indeed my friends, 
 it is a good work ; persevere in it and I will give all the support I 
 can to assist you.' From this interview he received the suggestion ; 
 he roused the country ; and Sunday Schools were established before 
 Jong throughout the land." From other sources -it is known that 
 some of the above statements are facts ; others are more the result 
 of simple credulity and innocent ambition than malicious falsifica- 
 tions. Instead of this school being self-originating as intimated, 
 from reliable sources we find that schools in the neighbourhoods of 
 Festiniog and Trawsfynydd were copied from those on the Bala 
 side, and that brethren from this district came over every Sunday 
 to assist those labouring with the newly-established branches. It 
 is far from being true, too, that Mr. Charles knew not of Sunday 
 Schools until 1787, whereas he says himself that they were general 
 in 1786, and in fact he had been engaged in Sunday teaching at 
 Bala in 1784. The sole value we place on the extract is that from 
 the date mentioned it is just to infer that if schools had been 
 established in remote villages and rural districts in 1787, they must 
 * " History of Nonconformity in Wales," p. 420 note.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 183 
 
 have been started in towns and other places near Mr. Charles's 
 home, in 1786 if not 1785. That he spoke the words of encourage- 
 ment to the brethren attributed to him is quite consistent with his 
 kindly disposition and ardent zeal in the cause. This, in fact, was 
 what he did in hundreds of places throughout the whole country, 
 and this remark leads us to enlarge on the multifarious labours 
 which fell to his lot in perfecting the important movement, and 
 farthering its extension. 
 
 Though the circulating schools had prepared many to assist in 
 Sunday School work, still it was no easy work to row against the 
 wind and tide of opposition which impeded their progress. There 
 were the evil customs of the country to be eradicated, for on the 
 Lord's day at this time, games and revels were the order of the day 
 with many of the young people, and not a few adults in most parts 
 of Wales. Besides, even professors of religion had to be reconciled to 
 the movement. Many delighted more in going about to hear sermons 
 on a Sunday afternoon than to be engaged in active teaching, some 
 conscientious brethren regarding instructing others as secular work 
 and therefore forbidden by the moral law\ They put the matter in 
 this light — that they reckoned it as sinful to teach the mechanical 
 art of reading on Sunday, as if they should take the plough to the 
 field in spring, or the scythe and the sickle in harvest time. Mr. 
 Charles met all this opposition in a mild and conciliating spirit. 
 His own personal holiness carried great weight to win the people 
 over to his ways, and when the weaker brethren perceived that the 
 most intelligent and influential men in all places were heartily 
 co-operating with him, all prejudice gradually disappeared alto- 
 gether. Ere long, almost the whole population began to find 
 pleasure either in learning or teaching, and with the lapse of time, 
 being enabled to judge of the tree by its fruit, they blessed God 
 because He had put in the heart of his servant to introduce such 
 beneficent institutions into the country. 
 
 Like the Jews who were building the second temj^le, bearing a 
 sword in one hand by which to defend themselves from their 
 enemies, and in the other the tools to build therewith the walls of 
 the city and the temple, so Mr. Charles at the same time that he 
 was defending the new institutions from the attacks of opponents, 
 had also to provide the means by which to secure their progress. 
 To make a school, it is not enough to have pupils and teachers, text
 
 184 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 books also are necessary in order to guide the classes in their studies. 
 Eev. Griffith Jones had in his time prepared a few, but Mr. Charles 
 disapproved of these, as being too much on the model of transla- 
 tions from the English, and therefore he prepared at least three 
 books directly for the use of the circulating and Sunday Schools, 
 chiefly the latter. The first was the Silly dd, or spelling-book, 
 being a graduated series of lessons for learning the Welsh language, 
 to which were added some practical hints on morality and good 
 behaviour. This passed through many editions, the fifth being 
 published by Mr. R. Saunderson of Bala, in 1834. Though very 
 popular at one time, it has now been entirely superseded in all the 
 schools of Wales. The next was the Eyfforddwr, or Instructor, 
 and the other, Eglurhad hyr ar y Deg Gorchymyn (A Short Expo- 
 sition of the Ten Commandments). The Instructor is a Catechism 
 on the most important doctrines of the Christian religion. The 
 author was thoroughly convinced of the importance of grounding 
 the people well in the doctrines of Christianity, for writing to a 
 friend in the year 1808, he says, " These examples prove the need 
 there is for ministers and teachers of all denominations to labour in 
 spreading the knowledge of God by catechising, as well as by public 
 sermons. I find that the expressions generally used by us in 
 preaching are not intelligible to a great part of our congregations 
 because of their ignorance of Holy Scriptures. Let whoever will 
 take the trouble to inquire, and he will soon find out the truth of 
 what I say." To assist in this work, he spared no labour in 
 preparing the best book he could produce. In it he was eminently 
 successful, for next to the Bible his catechism is the best known 
 work in the language. The first edition was published at Trefecca, 
 in the year 1789, the second at Wrexham, in 1791, the fourth in 
 1806, and the sixty-second in 1877. There are thousands of the 
 youth of the denomination to which he belonged, of both sexes, who 
 have learnt it by heart, though it contains 84 pages 12mo of very 
 small type. The author bestowed particular attention to perfect 
 the work, which is seen from the emendations introduced to the 
 various editions, and from the different titles it bore since its first 
 issue. In the first edition its title is, " A Compendium of the 
 Principles of Religion ; or a Short Catechism for children to learn." 
 In the fourth edition, it is called, " A Short Catechism ; or a 
 Compendium of Evangelical Principles," and some time after the
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 185 
 
 fourth, it has assumed its permanent name of " Instructor in the 
 Principles of the Christian Rehgion." Besides a change of matter, 
 a different classification, and an improvement in expression in the 
 different editions, the number of chapters also varies. In the first 
 edition the number is eleven, in the fourth ten, in the twelfth and 
 all subsequent issues, seventeen. In the first edition, too, a shorter 
 catechism was appended to it, containing questions on some 
 passages of Scripture, suitable for children unable to read, so as to 
 lead their minds gradually to the doctrines treated in the longer 
 catechism ; but in later editions this has been altogether omitted. 
 Such was the demand for these three books of Mr. Charles at the 
 time, that between the years 1803 and 1814, 320,000 copies were 
 printed and circulated. 
 
 This work in its perfected form has been translated into English 
 by the late Eev. D. Charles, D.D., a grandson of the author. As 
 it may interest the reader to get a notion of the catechism which has 
 been of so much value to the Sunday Schools of Wales, especially of 
 one denomination, we here subjoin a portion of the sixth chapter, on 
 
 The Offices of Christ. 
 
 Q. 89. What is the meaning of the name Jesus ? 
 
 A. A Saviour. "For the Son of Man is not come to destroy 
 men's lives, but to save them." Luke ix. 56. 
 
 Q. 90. From what does Jesus save his people? 
 
 A. (1) From their sins. " And thou shalt call his name Jesus, 
 for he shall save his people from their sins." Matt. i. 21. 
 
 (2) From the curse of the law. " Christ hath redeemed 
 us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us." Gal. 
 iii. 13. 
 
 (3) From temptations, afflictions, and the power of Satan. 
 " There hath no temptation taken you, but such as is common to 
 man ; but Grod is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted 
 above that you are able ; but will with the temptation, also make 
 a way to escape that ye may be able to bear it." 1 Cor. x. 13 ; 
 2 Peter ii. 9. 
 
 Q. 91. What is the meaning of the name Christ ? 
 
 A. Anointed. 
 
 Q. 92. By whom was he anointed ?
 
 186 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 A. By God the Father. " Thou hast loved righteousness, and 
 hated iniquity, therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee 
 with the oil of gladness ahove thy fellows." Heb. i. 9. 
 
 Q. 93. With what was Christ anointed ? 
 
 A. " With the Holy Ghost and with power." Acts x. 38. 
 
 Q. 94. What does Christ's anointing imply ? 
 
 A. His appointment to and qualification for the offices of 
 Prophet, Priest, and King, to his Church. " The Spirit of the 
 Lord is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good 
 tidings unto the meek, he hath sent me to bind up the broken- 
 hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the 
 prison to them that are bound." Isa. Ixi. 1 ; Matt. iii. 11 ; John 
 iii. 34. 
 
 Q. 95. What does Christ perform as a prophet ? 
 
 A. He teaches his people. *' A prophet shall the Lord your God 
 raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me ; him shall ye 
 hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you." Acts iii. 
 22 ; Deut. xviii. 15.* 
 
 Mr. Charles published an abridged form of the Welsh "Instructor," 
 in English, which he describes as " A short Evangelical Catechism, 
 containing the First Principles of Christianity." In 1808, he issued 
 a third edition, and the jDreface is interesting as containing the 
 author's testimony to the good effects produced by the Welsh and 
 English editions in their respective forms. " This short cate- 
 chism," he says, " was first composed for the use of our charity and 
 Sunday Schools in Wales. It has been (and continues to be) 
 learnt by thousands of our poor children ; and I have reason to 
 believe that the truths contained in it have been understood, and 
 savingly embraced by many in their younger days, some of whom 
 continue to sustain an unblamable character, and to adorn the 
 gospel by a corresponding holy conversation ; others, we hope with 
 confidence, have entered into rest and the joy of their Lord. The 
 favourable reception it has met with, and the continual application 
 for it, have induced me to send it forth-a third time in an English 
 dress. That the Lord would graciously bless with success every 
 attempt to instruct the rising generation in the knowledge and 
 practice of divine truths is the daily prayer of — T. Charles, Bala, 
 January 29, 1808." Then follows the testimony of Sir Richard 
 * " The Christian Instructor," pp. 20, 21.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 187 
 
 Hill, Bart., in favour of the work, in which from the date, it is 
 evident that he refers to the first two editions. " Hawkstone, 
 April 3, 1807. I have repeatedly and attentively read the follow- 
 ing little catechism, and every time I have done so, it has been 
 with fresh satisfaction and delight. Herein are all the glorious 
 truths and fundamental doctrines of the Gospel comprised in a 
 very narrow compass, and that in so plain and experimental a 
 manner as the poorest and most unlearned may, by the blessing of 
 God, be made wise unto salvation. Having said this, more would 
 be quite unnecessary. I therefore only add, that the piece (inde- 
 pendent of my own personal knowledge of and high esteem for 
 the pious worthy author) has my entire approbation and recom- 
 mendation, together with my best wishes and prayers that it may 
 prove effectual to the conversion, edification, and comfort of the 
 readers into whose hands it may fall. (Signed), R. Hill." 
 
 In the end the author adds a postscript in which he describes the 
 method adopted in teaching the scholars and testing their know- 
 ledge by public catechising. "The foregoing questions and 
 Scriptural answers," he says, " are here published as specimens to 
 exemplify the method adopted among us in the Principality in the 
 further instruction of the children of our schools. After they 
 have learnt this little catechism, questions are proposed to them, 
 and they themselves are to adduce apposite Scriptures to elucidate 
 and prove them. To some questions they have replied in the very 
 words here put down without any previous notice or time for 
 search, which clearly proved their knowledge of the truth, and 
 their familiar acquaintance with the sacred writings. To others 
 they have had a month or more time to prepare their answers. 
 Previously to our adoption of this method, they have been in the 
 habit of being frequently catechised, and of learning and repeating 
 chapters out. Hundreds can repeat whole epistles, scores of 
 chapters, some of them even to the number of two hundred. The 
 method here exemplified has been attended with great delight and 
 improvement to the young people ; and as these questions are pro- 
 posed, and the answers repeated publicly before numerous congre- 
 gations, it has also been attended with no small profit in the 
 instruction of the large assemblies collected on those occasions." 
 
 He has added seven chapters, each containing " a few examples 
 of questions answered by the children without any assistance, in
 
 188 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 different places." With regard to the first question inserted, " What 
 proofs have you of the being of God ? " he says that when he 
 asked the question in a certain place, one little boy replied, '' I 
 stand ! " "I asked him," he adds, " Could you not stand if there 
 was no God ? He replied ' No.' Q. ' Is it God that supports 
 youV A. *Yes.' Q. 'Is it God that supports all things ? ' A. 
 ' Yes.' Q. ' Is he not weary in supporting all things ? ' ^. * No ; 
 there is no weakness in Him that He should be weary. ' " 
 
 The subjects of the seventeen chapters into which "The 
 Christian Instructor " is divided are — God, etc. ; The Creation ; 
 The Fall of Man, etc. ; The Person of Christ, and the Covenant of 
 Grace; The Two Covenants; The Offices of Christ; Faith and 
 Justification ; The Work of the Holy Spirit (two chapters) ; The 
 Law ; The Sum and Substance of the Lav/ ; The Means of Grace 
 and the Ordinances of the Gospel ; The Sacraments ; The Lord's 
 Supper ; The Resurrection and Exaltation of Christ ; The General 
 Eesurrection ; The Day of Judgment. 
 
 Besides this published manual, Mr. Charles prepared a great 
 number of short papers called Pwngc Ysgol (School Theme), which 
 he would send to different schools to get up by the time he came 
 round in his accustomed visits. This Pwngc Ysgol was much the 
 same as what is now known under the name of "Notes of a Lesson," 
 and only differed in the mode of using. At present the teacher 
 reserves his notes for his own guidance exclusively, but with Mr. 
 Charles copies were multiplied and supplied to a whole school to 
 exercise in before his arrival. When he came, a special service 
 was arranged to publicly catechise on the subject. Many remark- 
 able meetings are recorded to have been enjoyed in different parts 
 of the country, full of heavenly unction, and producing lasting 
 impressions on the minds of all present with regard to the import- 
 ance of the duty inculcated, for Mr. Charles was always eminently 
 successful as a public catechiser. These papers were not printed, 
 but written out for the use of one school only ; several, however, 
 have been preserved, and lately some of them have been published 
 in the Sunday School periodical, Cronicl Yr Ysgol Sabhothol. The 
 following on " Envy " may serve as a specimen : — 
 
 Q. What is envy ? 
 
 A. 1. Envy is a feeling of sorrow to see another prospering ; for 
 example : —
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 189 
 
 (1) In riches. Psalm Ixxiii. 2, 3 ; Genesis xxvi. 14. 
 
 (2) In respect and eminence. Dan. vi. 4. 
 
 (3) In doing good, and nprightness. Eccles. iv. 4. 
 
 (4) In being loved. Gen. xxxvii. 4, 11 ; Acts vii. 9. 
 
 (5) In religion as regards talent, usefulness, approbation of 
 man and recognition by God. 
 
 2. Or to feel glad on perceiving another's trouble, or some 
 misfortune befalling him. Prov. xvii. 5 ; xxi. 10 ; and xxiv. 17 ; 
 Psalm XXXV. 15, 26 ; and xxxviii. 16. 
 
 Q. Does God in his word speak against envy ? 
 A. Yes. Prov. xxiv. 1, 19 ; Gal. v. 26 ; Psa. xxxvii. 1 ; 1 Pet. 
 ii. 1. 
 
 Q. What considerations show the heinousness of this sin ? 
 A. (1) That envy arises from vanity, pride, and ignorance. 1 
 Tim. vi. 4. 
 
 (2) That it leads to strife, confusion, etc. James iii. 16. 
 
 (3) It is a sign of men serving their lusts. "Titus iii. 3. 
 
 (4) It is a rottenness to the bones. Prov. xiv. 30. 
 
 (5) It kills. Job V. 2. 
 
 (6) A man under the dominion of envy knows nothing of 
 charity. 1 Cor. xiii. 14. 
 
 (7) It is worse than wrath and anger. Prov. xxxvii. 4. 
 
 (8) What one from envy wishes and intends for another is 
 most likely to come upon himself. Ezek. xxxv. 11 ; Psa. vii- 
 15 ; Prov. xxvi. 27 ; Psa. Ivii. 7 ; compare Esther v. 11-14 
 and vii. 9, 10. 
 
 (9) Miriam was struck with leprosy because of this sin. 
 Num. xii. 1, 2, 9, 10. 
 
 (10) It was for envying Moses and Aaron that Korah, Dathan, 
 and Abiram were swallowed alive into the earth. Psa. cvi. 
 16, 17. Num. xvi. 1, 3, 30. 
 
 (11) It is a devihsh sin. James iii. 14, 15. 
 
 (12) It shuts out of the kingdom of heaven. Gal. v. 21. 
 Another work edited by Mr. Charles, and mostly composed by 
 
 him also, was a Scriptural Dictionary, which has been of inestimable 
 value to the Welsh nation. It contains articles on the various 
 books of the Old and New Testaments, explanations of geographical 
 and historical references, expositions of the more difficult passages 
 of Scripture, besides an exhaustive resume of various doctrinal
 
 190 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 points, making up, in fact, a complete body of divinity. The work 
 is remarkable also for its simple and lucid style, ai:d next to the 
 authorized version of the Bible has contributed most to preserve 
 the present purity of the Welsh language. It proved a rich store 
 of knowledge for the Sunday School teachers and ministers of the 
 past generation, and is hardly being superseded by more exten- 
 sive works of later date. This was the last great literary work of 
 its author, having been completed in the year 1805. At first it 
 was published in four volumes, on very rough paper, in rather a 
 primitive fashion. By the year 1877, it reached its seventh edition, 
 published in a single handsome imperial octavo volume of 932 pages. 
 With regard to the subjects treated therein, it approaches more 
 nearly to Dr. Fairbairn's Biblical Dictionary than Dr. Smith's Bible 
 Dictionary ; like the former taking up doctrinal subjects, but much 
 shorter and less critical than the latter. 
 
 Endowed with these few and simple text-books, under the active 
 superintendence of their illustrious founder, the schools rapidly 
 prospered, and in quick and uninterrupted succession were multiplied 
 in all directions. When a school had been established in one 
 locality, the inhabitants of the neighbouring hamlet would soon 
 become apprised of its beneficial efi'ects, and at the mere beck of 
 any one, like the man of Macedonia in the apostle's vision, calling 
 for assistance, a number of volunteers from the older institution were 
 ready at once to start what was called a " branch school," taking 
 the charge of its management until it became self-supporting. In 
 the multiplication of the schools, the prophecy of Isaiah was actually 
 fulfilled, " For thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the 
 left ; and thy seed shall inherit the Gentiles, and make the desolate 
 cities to be inhabited." And not only would branch Sunday Schools 
 thus be established, from the school before long the nucleus of a 
 congregation would be formed, ultimately ending in the organiza- 
 tion of a Church. Some of the most flourishing causes in the 
 country at the present day, have gone through all the various stages 
 now implied. Possibly beginning with a Sunday School in a farm- 
 house, before long a suitable schoolroom was erected, then in addi- 
 tion to a school held one part of the Sunday, a sermon was arranged 
 to be preached occasionally, until the final stage was reached in the 
 building of a commodious chapel with all arrangements complete, 
 « for the edifying of the Body of Christ."
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 191 
 
 How true is the analogy between this multiplication of Sunday- 
 Schools and the spread of the celebrated banyan of India, which has 
 been described as — 
 
 " Branching so broad and long, that in the ground 
 The bended twigs take root, and daughters grow 
 About the mother tree." 
 
 One human agency only remains again to be noticed, in account- 
 ing for the rapid spread of the schools, namely, the noble band of 
 workers who co-operated with the illustrious founder, and to these 
 we shall next direct special attention.
 
 192 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 • CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Charles's Coadjutors. 
 
 These better known than those of Mr. Griffith Jones — Tioo selected as speci- 
 mens — Reasons for the selection — The first, Rev. Owen Jones of Gelli 
 — His early life — Aptitude to teach shown from his youth — His Sunday 
 School at Aberystwith — Remarkable revival originating in it — A painful 
 parting — Removes to Llanidloes — Labours at Shrewsbury — Settles in 
 Montgomeryshire — Faithful with Sunday Schools to his death — His 
 catechism and peculiarities of style — The second, Rev. Lewis Williams 
 of Llanfachreth — One of Mr. Charles's schoolmasters — His conversion 
 — Sets up a school of himself — Novel and original methods of instruc- 
 tion — Interview with Mr. Charles — Appointed schoolmaster — The 
 diiferent localities of his labours — A successful elocutionist — His 
 character as a preacher — A warm supporter of every good cause — His 
 death-bed charge — Another eminent co-worker in South Wales, Rev. 
 Ebenezer Richard of Tregaron — His contributions to the success of 
 the movement — A remarkable instance of ignorance — The relation of 
 the different denominations to the work. 
 
 In the history given of the great land and sea victories of the 
 world, the common soldier and the subaltern officer have too often 
 been forgotten in the eulogies bestowed upon the illustrious com- 
 manders-in-chief, so also the host of humble but indefatigable 
 workers who so effectually carried out Mr. Griffith Jones's and Mr. 
 Charles's plans for the enlightenment of their country are apt to be 
 forgotten in the great lustre which necessarily surrounds the memory 
 of the great organizers. But the moral victory over the darkness 
 and degradation of those times is due almost as much to the co- 
 operation of those devoted workers, as to the power of thought 
 and capacity of painstaking which characterized the originating 
 and presiding geniuses. Even the names of most of Griffith Jones's 
 staff are not mentioned in any extant record, and the few who are
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 193 
 
 mentioned, sncli as Jenkin Morgan of Crawlom, near Llanidloes,* 
 and Henry Richard, the father of the two celebrated ministers, 
 Revs. Ebenezer and Thomas Richard, who, in 1767, came to keep 
 one of the circulating schools from Pembrokeshire to Llanaber, near 
 Barmouth, f though w^orthy of a longer memoir, have been dis- 
 missed with only an adventitious remark. Others, such as Robert 
 Jones of Rhoslan, J who have secured a more extensive notice, did 
 so, not because of the value set upon their praiseworthy efforts as 
 teachers, but because they have reared, as it were, their own monu- 
 ments in the literary works which they produced, or distinguished 
 themselves in other pursuits, which their contemporaries were 
 either more willing or abler to appreciate. More attention, however, 
 having been bestowed in Wales, during the last fifty years, upon the 
 history of its intellectual and religious movements, the names of 
 more of Mr. Charles's teachers and co-workers have escaped oblivion, 
 but of the great majority of them, little else than their names is 
 known in their pedagogic career. We have much pleasure, how- 
 ever, in being able to reproduce a few incidents in the lives of two 
 of his most successful coadjutors, and as these two may be looked 
 upon as typical of scores of others, their history will be serviceable 
 in elucidating points in the progress of the work which have been 
 only hinted at in connection with Mr. Charles himself. The two 
 persons to whom we refer are Rev. Owen Jones of Gelli, Mont- 
 gomeryshire, and Rev. Lewis Williams of Llanfachreth, Merioneth- 
 shire. One was engaged exclusively in building up the Sunday 
 School system, and entered upon his labours without any direct 
 inspiration from the master mind ; the other was at first one of 
 Mr. Charles's schoolmasters, and conducted in various places the 
 usual process of developing the temporary day school into the per- 
 manent Sunday School. The former was a gentleman of varied 
 talents and considerable mental powers, whose labours and success 
 were second only to those of the founder himself; the latter is an 
 example of what faithfulness, simplicity, and burning zeal for the 
 good cause are able to perform, even when unaccompanied with 
 any special gifts, except the inventiveness generated by love. Both 
 began as laymen, and gradually enlarged their spheres of useful- 
 
 * See p. 158. 
 
 t " Methodistiaeth Cymru," vol. i. p. 519. 
 X See p. 164.
 
 KEV. OWEN JONES, GELLI, MONTGOMERYSHIRE.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 195 
 
 ness by becoming ministers of the gospel ; but their mode of action 
 is only a type of the course adopted by hundreds of young men 
 during their time and since, some following through all the stages 
 they went through, and others remaining teachers only, but all, in 
 whatever capacity they appear, wholly devoted to the interests of 
 the heaven-born institution. Proceeding to enter more minutely 
 into their history, we shall begin with 
 
 Rev. Owen Jo^^:s of Gelli. 
 He was born at Towyn, in Merionethshire. His father's name was 
 John Jones, of Crynllwyn, near that town; his mother's name 
 was Elinor, and she was the daughter of a respectable farmer, from 
 the neighbourhood of Aberllefenni, in the same county. When 
 between seven and eight years of age, he was placed under the 
 tuition of Mr. John Jones of Penyparc, one of Mr. Charles's school- 
 masters in the neighbourhood, who is described as an able and 
 devoted teacher, an earnestly religious man, and whose memory is 
 held in great regard with the oldest inhabitants to the present 
 day. His young pupil showed much aptitude to learn, and was 
 endowed with a very retentive memory. He delighted much in 
 the study of Scripture, and very soon was able to take up the more 
 essential doctrinal subjects. Unlike most of his fellow pupils, when- 
 ever his master asked him, he was but too glad to abandon his play 
 and accompany him to the religious services which he had organized 
 in the town and the houses of the neiglibourhood around. From 
 Mr. Jones's he went for a short time to a school at High-ercal,near 
 Shrewsbury, in order, according to the custom of those days with 
 the middle class, to perfect himself in the English language. Not 
 long after his return, there was an occasion for his former master, 
 Mr. John Jones, to leave home for a time, and he asked young 
 Owen Jones, though he was a mere lad at the time, to undertake 
 the superintendence and instruction of the school during his absence. 
 Here he adopted the custom, which he had seen carried out with so 
 much success by Mr. John Jones, of simultaneously catechising the 
 children at the end of the afternoon school, in the various subjects 
 which they had been studying during the day. In this exercise, 
 he accidentally, as it were, discovered a power hitherto latent in 
 him, of being able to excite the attention and keep up the interest 
 of those who came within range of his questions, by the liveliness
 
 196 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 of his movements and earnestness of his maaner. This faculty, 
 further strengthened and developed by years of experience, rendered 
 him before he was thirty years of age, one of the most efficient 
 public viva voce examiners of his day. 
 
 He was, however, not permitted to engage for any length of 
 time at present, in daily teaching, by which he might have more 
 rapidly improved his talent ; for his father intended him to be a 
 saddler, and with that view apprenticed him to learn the trade in 
 the town of Aberystwith. Not long after beginning his term here, 
 the Eev. W. Williams of Cilycwm, Caermarthenshire, to whom 
 reference has already been made,* and who had been instrumental 
 in starting Sunday Schools ia more than one locality before, paid 
 a visit to Aberystwith, probably like many others at the time, as a 
 seaside resort for the benefit of his health. One Sunday during 
 his sojourn there, whilst walking through a suburb of the town still 
 known as Trefechan, he was grieved to see a number of people of 
 all ages idling about the lime-kiln, and delighting in practices 
 which shocked him as being palpably at variance with the sacred- 
 ness of the day. Burning with zeal to benefit the people, he first 
 of all sought out a room which he might hire, and having suc- 
 ceeded in his inquiry, prevailed upon a number of Sabbath-breakers 
 to accompany him to the room, where for two Sundays he acted 
 as their teacher, imparting unto them the little religious instruction 
 they were capable of receiving. By the third Sunday his stay in 
 the town was bound to come to an end, but being anxious that the 
 work should be continued, he looked about for some one of a 
 kindred spirit to take his place as its foster-parent. He heard of 
 a young lad called Robert Davies, who was already connected with 
 a small school in the town carried on by the Calvinistic Methodist 
 denomination. Going to him he got him to promise to super- 
 intend this school, and he called to his assistance his cousin, Owen 
 Jones of Towyn (they were sons of two sisters), now a saddler's 
 apprentice in the town. The two young men devoted themselves 
 heart and soul to the work, though at first they had no idea of its 
 surviving more than a few Sundays. So thought their enemies 
 too, and with a view of hastening its demise, they began to despise 
 and mock the young men in their humble efforts. But this small 
 beginning was destined by God to bring about mighty results. 
 * See p. 160.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 197 
 
 The number soon increased to about eighty scholars, and many 
 who at first looked upon the movement as an experiment only, 
 DOW joined and rendered what assistance they could command. 
 One man offered a new and more convenient room to hold the 
 school, another supplied coals for the winter, and gave money to 
 purchase books. Besides the ordinary Sabbath work in the school- 
 room, the young men held classes in different houses throughout 
 the town in rotation, every evening of the week except on Saturday. 
 Jones's happy style of questioning attracted a great number of 
 scholars of all ages to the school, and the earnestness of his appeals 
 to the consciences of his catechumens, produced a deep and lasting 
 impression. Singing also held a prominent place in their curri- 
 culum, which proved another source of considerable attraction. It 
 is not known which of the two cousins was the older, but Jones is 
 supposed to have been between seventeen and eighteen years of 
 age, and though they had for some time now advanced from the 
 mere mechanical labour of teaching the alphabet and simple read- 
 ing to the inculcation of religious belief and practice upon their 
 scholars, and opened and closed the meetings of their school by 
 prayer, still, strange to say, neither of them had himself made an 
 open profession of religion. In order to be consistent with their 
 practices, and to obey the dictates of their own conscience in a 
 matter of plain duty, they offered themselves as members of the 
 Calvinistic Methodist Church in the town, and were readily ac- 
 cepted. Their labours and success with the Sunday School at 
 Trefechan were sufficient letters of recommendation to ingratiate 
 them to the favour of the Church, and the simple narration in the 
 church-meeting of their zeal in doing good, had the natural result 
 of animating the whole fraternity with a kindred feeling. But 
 this feeling was more manifest among those under their special 
 charge and tuition. As a focus of activity and missionary zeal 
 the school of Trefechan was a pattern to the whole town. 
 
 A dark cloud, however, was now imminent over the happiness 
 of teacher and taught, for Jones's father, ignorant no doubt of his 
 son's peculiar relations to the Sunday School, and thinking he had 
 then profited enough from his instruction in the saddler's trade, 
 sent him an intimation that he must return at once to his home at 
 Towyn. The prospect of separation was a great trial, not only to 
 the teacher, but equally great to the scholars ; and hundreds
 
 198 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 besides, to whom he had become greatly endeared in the town, were 
 much grieved to think that his valuable services were thus to be 
 so abruptly terminated. He had, however, no intention of trying 
 to evade the parental authority. An evening was appointed for 
 holding a farewell meeting with the scholars, but other and greater 
 things than had been anticipated resulted from the meeting. 
 Dwelling on their near separation, he prayed long and earnestly 
 that God would grant the gift of life everlasting to his dear 
 scholars, so that whatever separations they might endure here 
 below they should be citizens of the heavenly Jerusalem, "Where 
 congregations ne'er break up, and Sabbaths have no end." Whilst, 
 like Jacob, thus wrestling for the blessing, such an outpouring of 
 the Holy Spirit was experienced that all present forgot things 
 earthly and, in the realization of their hope, great rejoicings broke 
 out similar to what characterized the revivals of those times. The 
 feeling spread among the crowd which had gathered around the 
 house. It now became too difficult for him to leave the town at 
 once, and he got permission from his father to prolong his stay. 
 The prayer-meetings were continued from evening to evening ; the 
 religious fervour of the few pioneers at Trefechan was shared by 
 the members of the congregation of the chapel to which they 
 belonged, and within a very short time eighty members were added 
 to the church. This awakening was not confined to the suburbs 
 and town of Aberystwith, but soon spread with similar results 
 over a district of fifty miles in length and twenty in breadth. An 
 Association of the Calvinistic Methodists was held at Aberystwith 
 while this revival was at its height. Mr. Charles, writing to the 
 Evangelical Magazine of May, 1805, thus describes its nature and 
 effects, tracing its origin to the humble efforts of Jones and Davies 
 with the Sunday School : — 
 
 " I am glad to say that there is a happy revival of religion in 
 some parts of Wales. At Aberystwith and the neighbouring dis- 
 tricts there is a general and mighty awakening among the young 
 people and children, and some hundreds have joined the religious 
 societies in those parts. I was lately at an Association of the 
 Calvinistic Methodists at Aberystwith, and it was estimated that 
 the multitude assembled together, amounted to at least twenty 
 thousand. It was a happy sight to a Christian. The sermons 
 were with the demonstration of the Spirit and with power. There
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 199 
 
 were hundreds of children from eight years old and upwards to be 
 seen in the congregation listening with as much attention as the 
 most earnest Christians, and bathed in tears. This work began in 
 a Sunday School which was conducted by two young men. Soon 
 after the commencement of this school, both teachers and scholars 
 were brought under deep impressions, and the work has now spread 
 over a district extending fifty miles in length and twenty in 
 breadth. In going along the road it is pleasant to hear the plough- 
 men and the lads who drive the horses singing hymns at their 
 work. There is nothing else to be heard ail over the country. 
 This I can testify with gratitude and joy." 
 
 The day for Owen Jones to leave Aberystwith at last arrived, 
 which indeed was not more than six weeks beyond his father's first 
 arrangement, and the parting was as difficult then as on the first 
 attempt. A large procession, consisting of his Sunday- School 
 pupils, and many men and women from the town, accompanied 
 him for some miles on his journey in the direction of Borth. When 
 they could proceed no farther, instead of turning round at once to 
 retrace their steps, they remained fondly gazing after him until he 
 was out of sight, and saw him fall on his knees three times to pray 
 for those whom he was leaving behind, and to whom he was so 
 greatly attached. He did not remain for a long time at Towyn, 
 for the same year, 1805, we find him at Llanidloes, prosecuting 
 the duties of his trade in the day time, and in the evening and on 
 Sundays as diligently engaged in instructing and catechising the 
 young. Here he was instrumental in infusing new life and vigour 
 into many a school established some time before, but now lan- 
 guishing for want of support, and also in establishing many new 
 ones. Very often he travelled from fifteen to twenty miles on foot 
 on a Sunday morning, in furtherance of the cause which he had so 
 much at heart. He inherited this great physical energy from his 
 father, for it is recorded that he once walked from Shrewsbury to 
 Towyn, a distance of seventy-two miles, in one day. A prominent 
 element in his mental constitution was great fixedness of purpose, 
 and this feature, coupled with his remarkably persuasive manner , 
 made his success as a promoter of schools almost certain before- 
 hand. It is related of him, going to the country one Sunday to 
 visit one of his schools, that he overtook some boys who had been 
 in search of crows' nests ; Mr. Jones at once, in his own irresistible
 
 200 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 style, asked them to be so kind as to accompany him to the Sunday 
 School, and not to persist in following a work so cruel in itself and 
 so directly opposed to the sanctity of the day on which they had 
 met. The boys could not refuse complying with his request, 
 though they had young crows then in their pockets, but they were 
 afraid every moment lest they should be betrayed by them. It 
 appears that the boys were as much in Mr. Jones's power as the 
 crows were in theirs. While residing at Llanidloes, he extended 
 his labours as far as Khayader on the Wye, where he planted a 
 school which numbered in a very short time 240 members. When 
 he found parents indisposed to send their children to be instructed, 
 he showed how well he understood human nature, in that he would 
 ask permission to bring a number of his scholars to their house 
 that he might catechise them in their hearing. He hardly ever 
 found ocular demonstration to be ineffectual. Like the American 
 who wanted to sell his clocks, but never put the matter in that 
 form, only asking permission to he allowed to leave one in the 
 house for a time, knowing, however, that the clock would make a 
 place for itself and secure an ultimate purchase, so the invariable 
 result of Mr. Jones's bringing the school to the "parents would be, to 
 get the parents to send their children to the school. 
 
 From Llanidloes, Mr. Jones went for short intervals to pur- 
 sue his trade in London and other places, settling down for a 
 longer period, in October, 1807, while yet only twenty years old, 
 at Shrewsbury. His first idea when he came here was to organize 
 a school for the Welsh, but failing in this object because they were 
 few and much scattered in the town, he went from house to house 
 to invite the English to come together. He succeeded in estab- 
 lishing an English Sunday School, numbering from a hundred to 
 a hundred and twenty scholars, which contiued to flourish as long 
 as he remained at Shrewsbury. On leaving, he transferred it to 
 the charge of Rev. Mr. Nunn, the incumbent of St. Chad's, and 
 it became the nucleus of a Sunday School in connection with that 
 Church. While living at Shrewsbury it was his regular custom 
 to travel far into the country on Sundays, to visit the different 
 schools which he had either founded himself or had renewed from 
 a languishing state. The young peo{)le in each school were 
 arranged to repeat chapters of the Bible by heart, in the hearing of 
 Mr. Jones by the time became round, and from this arose the good
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WJ^LES. 201 
 
 custom of repeating chapters at the beginning of most religious 
 services. His public questioning after, was always much enjoyed 
 both by the members of the school and by others who were 
 present as mere spectators. While pursuing these educational 
 excursions, he became pretty well acquainted with the state of 
 the marches between England and Wales, especially in the 
 county of Montgomery, for thitherward he mostly turned his 
 footsteps, which district became afterwards his special field of 
 labour for the remainder of his life. He very often visited a 
 farmhouse, called Perthi, not far from Welshpool, where a Sunday 
 School was kept under the superintendence of Mr. John Evans, 
 the master of the house. A chapel was afterwards built near the 
 place, called Tabernacle. The people during his first visits used 
 to call him " the young man from Shrewsbury," and he retained 
 his popularity with them as long as he lived. He made a short stay 
 at Towyn again before settling in Montgomeryshire, at which tow^n 
 he began to preach, and also instituted the first district meetings 
 in that part of the country which afterwards became an essential 
 part of the system. In the spring of 1808 he married a Miss 
 Jones of Gelli, near Llanfair Caereinion, in Montgomeryshire, which 
 occasioned his removal to his wife's home, and here he spent the 
 remainder of his life, attaining to some eminence as a preacher of 
 the gospel, but never forgetting the exercise of his talents as a 
 catechiser and organizer of schools. His visits to different parts 
 of Wales in his itineracies as a preacher,^ were as much appreciated 
 for the new spirit and vigour which he always infused into the 
 Sunday Schools, as for the enjoyment and blessing derived from 
 his style of preaching the everlasting Gospel. There are many 
 instances on record in which schools, both in North and South 
 Wales were looked upon as having a new lease of life extended 
 to them, from Mr. Jones's visit on his evangelizing and catechising 
 missions. Mr. Owen Jones composed a catechism in Welsh, much 
 on the same plan as Mr. Charles's English " Short Evangelical 
 Catechism." This was printed and published at Bala in 1820 ; 
 the author's introductory letter serves to show its object and 
 the state of Scriptural knowledge at the time. He addresses it 
 to the Sunday-School teachers in the following words : "Though 
 our schools in these days are numerous in attendants, both of young 
 and old, who evince a great desire to obtain knowledge, and great
 
 202 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 provisions have been made from time to time to supply them witli 
 useful books, still, on noticing the work done by the schools, I 
 thought that I saw a considerable number of children after finish- 
 ing the first catechism compelled to stop many years without 
 being able to proceed to take up " The Instructor," and many 
 adults also are in a similar position. Noticing this deficiency, my 
 mind was inclined to undertake the work of compiling a few 
 questions and answers in a manner easy to be remembered, 
 not to take the place of the smaller or larger catechism, but to 
 be in the middle between them, so that all grades may be able 
 to travel together in their labour of acquiring Scriptural know- 
 ledge. That it should be useful for such end is the wish and 
 prayer of your sincere friend, Owen Jones, Gelli. — March 11, 
 1820." 
 
 His catechism did not attain to much popularity, though no 
 doubt it supplied a want for a time. His own living voice and 
 impressive style were necessary to supplement the dead letter of 
 the written questions ; and his memory was cherished for years 
 as facile ^princeps, among the coadjutors of Mr. Charles, for his 
 ability to produce interest, sympathy, and deep impression, upon 
 the minds of both adults and children by his style of public 
 questioning. 
 
 The other representative of the labourers of that day, whose 
 history serves to illustrate many of the peculiar circumstances in 
 which the work was carried on, is 
 
 Rev. Lewis Williams of Llanfachreth. 
 He was one of Mr. Charles's schoolmasters. The character given 
 to his teachers in general, is specially applicable to him; "My 
 first and greatest care," he says, " has been in the appointment of 
 proper teachers, and it has been abundantly repaid; for my 
 teachers in general are as anxious as myself in the success of the 
 work, and the eternal welfare of those they are employed to in- 
 instruct in their most important concerns." We are indebted for 
 most of the particulars in the following sketch, to the pen of the 
 late Mr. R. Oliver Rees of Dolgelley, who in his interesting 
 account of " Mary Jones, the little Welsh girl without a Bible," * 
 which he published in a little volume, has inserted the chief 
 * See chap, xiii.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 203 
 
 incidents in the life of Lewis Williams, because he was her 
 teacher at the time of her memorable journey to Bala. These 
 particulars were supplied by the old teacher himself. We also had 
 the privilege of making this genuine Christian's acquaintance 
 during his later years, and can attest the truth of his biographer's 
 remarks. 
 
 Lewis Williams was the child of humble parents, having been 
 born at Penal in the year 1774. Like all the boys of those dark 
 times, he gave himself up during his youth to all kinds of sinful 
 l)ractices, especially on Sundays. When about eighteen years of 
 age, whilst learning the trade of a shoemaker, in the neighbourhood 
 of Cemmaes, Montgomeryshire, he happened to be present at a 
 prayer meeting, where Mr. Jones of Mathafarn was reading 
 the fifth chapter of Komans and making observations thereon. 
 The reading of the chapter produced deep, and to him very strange, 
 impressions on his mind. And when Mr. Jones came to the 
 words, *' Therefore as by the offence of one, judgment came upon 
 all men to condemnation," the truth pierced his heart like a deadly 
 weapon. He fell into a swoon and was conveyed out of the room 
 as a dead man. When he recovered consciousness, he felt as a 
 criminal sentenced to die. Overwhelmed by this feeling, his 
 attention w^as directed to the opposite truth, " Even so by the 
 righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justifi- 
 cation of life.'* A ray of the Mediator's glory and of the greatness 
 of the atonement shone into his darkened understanding, so as 
 to give him a measure of ease. He always looked back upon 
 this incident as the great turning point of his life. He wished 
 to join himself to the little church which the Calvinistic 
 Methodists had established at Cwmllinian. Thinking that money 
 would be an indispensable qualification for admission, he delayed 
 presenting himself as candidate until he had saved about half a 
 crown. On the evening of the church meeting he approached 
 the door of the farmhouse, where the little flock was assembled. 
 For a while he stood still as in a strait, and then with a shaking 
 hand he ventured to knock at the door. One of the brethren 
 opening the door, accosted him with the query, " What do you 
 want here, my boy ? " " I want to be admitted to your society if 
 you will allow me," he said ; " here's half a crown for you — 
 all that I have in the world, for coming, if you will let me."
 
 204 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 /' Coming ! my dear son," said the janitor, " Yes, keep your half- 
 crown, you are heartily welcome to us, for nothing." He was 
 asked further by the fraternity, " What if Jesus Christ should require 
 you to do something for him in the world, would you be willing to 
 doit?" "O yes," said he, " I would immediately do whatever 
 Jesus Christ should ask of me." In this reply is found a key to 
 Williams's character and subsequent life to his grave. 
 
 Some years after this, when serving with some relatives of his, 
 in a farm near Llanegryn, he began to feel keenly for the ignorance 
 of the youth of that village. He determined to try and establish 
 a school on Sundays and week-day evenings for teaching them to 
 read. He himself had not enjoyed a single day of either Sunday or 
 day-school instruction, and could hardly at this time read one word 
 accurately. And still, in the greatness of his zeal, he intended to 
 teach the children what he was no adept in himself. Such, however, 
 was his tact to influence young people, that they flocked to his 
 seminary. He did not know that there was anything like a Sun- 
 day School throughout the whole country at the time, except that 
 of Mr. John Jones of Penyparc, near Towyn, who greatly excelled 
 him in scholarship. Williams's teaching methods were very peculiar, 
 and undoubtedly original. He taught the alphabet to the lowest 
 class by causing them to sing it to the tune of " The March of the 
 Men of Harlech,''' which he had learnt when engaged as a militia- 
 man. Moffat is reported to have adopted a similar plan to teach the 
 Bechuanas, and so successful was he at one time that the children 
 of one village learnt the whole English alphabet in a day and 
 night by singing it to the tune of " Auld Lang Syne." 
 
 But the greatest feat of the Welsh teacher's genius and zeal was 
 his recourse to make readers of his highest class when he was so 
 backward in the art himself. In his emergency he became acquainted 
 with a kind and pious sister of the name of Betty Evan, and before 
 the commencement of the school on Sundays or week evenings, he 
 would be found resorting to her to be drilled in the lessons fixed for 
 the class. At other times he used to invite a number of boys from 
 the Llanegryn endowed school, who could read Welsh well, to a 
 reading competition in his house, for a trifling reward. The portion 
 selected as the field of competition would always be again, the 
 lesson fixed for the class in his own humble school. He carefully 
 observed how they pronounced every syllable, and profited much
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 205 
 
 from the discussions which would often arise amongst them respect- 
 ing the right sound and proper emphasis of a letter or sentence. Of 
 course he was the adjudicator, and what is most wonderful in the 
 whole transaction to relate, his decision always satisfied the com- 
 petitors, who were never led to suspect his qualifications for the 
 post which he had assumed for himself. 
 
 It was customary in the one Sunday School with which he was 
 acquainted, to begin and end the meeting by prayer. How was he 
 to preserve order with such wild and undisciplined Arabs so as to 
 perform these devotional exercises with becoming decorum ? For 
 this purpose he brought into requisition his knowledge of drilling 
 which he had acquired when serving with the militia. They very 
 readily, of course, conformed with his request to take up the play 
 of "little soldiers," as he termed drilling, and when after several 
 evolutions, he came to the '' Stand at ease," and " Attention" he 
 would offer a short prayer on their behalf to heaven, which was 
 speedily followed at the end, with the " Quick march" of dismissal. 
 
 When Lewis Williams was thus engaged in the double vocation 
 of farm-servant and master of his own scholastic institution at 
 Llanegryn, a monthly meeting of his denomination was held at 
 Abergynolwyn, in which Mr. Charles was to be present. The 
 evening before the meeting, Mr. Charles lodged with his own hired 
 schoolmaster at Bryncrug, Mr. John Jones of Penyparc, a young 
 man of greater attainments and wider reputation than most of the 
 schoolmasters of that age. In the course of conversation, Mr. Charles 
 inquired of Jones, if he knew of any other young man in those 
 parts qualified to become a master in one of his schools. He 
 replied that there was a young man at Llanegryn who was very 
 active and painstaking with the children on Sundays and some 
 evenings of the week too ; but as he understood he could not read 
 himself, he was afraid he could not be of much service as a school- 
 master. 
 
 " A young man able to teach children to read, without being able 
 to read'himself ? " interposed Mr. Charles. 
 
 " So they say," added Jones. 
 
 This was a mystery which Mr. Charles could neither comprehend 
 nor believe ; he therefore requested Jones to send to this inexplicable 
 young man, asking him to attend the monthly meeting at Aber- 
 gynolwyn, on the morrow. Lewis W^illiams presented himself
 
 206 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 accordingly, his primitive appearance betraying anything but the 
 scholar and preceptor. 
 
 " Well, my young man," said Charles, " they tell me that you 
 keep a school at Llanegryn on Sundays and week evenings, to teach 
 children to read. Are there many children attending those 
 meetings ? " 
 
 " Yes, sir ; more than I am able to deal with successfully, sir." 
 
 " Do they learn a little with you? " 
 
 " I think some of them do, sir." 
 
 " Do you know some English ? " 
 
 "■ Only a few words, which I heard with the militia, sir." 
 
 " Can you read Welsh well ? " 
 
 " I can hardly read at all, sir ; but I try to learn my best." 
 
 " Were you in school at all, before entering on service as farm 
 labourer ? " 
 
 " No, sir ; I never had a day of schooling, sir." 
 
 " Did not your father and mother teach you to read at home ? " 
 
 " No, sir ; my parents could not themselves read." 
 
 Mr. Charles opened the New Testament upon the first chapter of 
 the Epistle to the Hebrews, and desired him to read the first verses. 
 He made the attempt and succeeded in getting over the mono- 
 syllables by spelling every word, but all other words proved quite 
 insurmountable to him, although he got occasional help from John 
 Ellis, of Barmouth, who whispered some of the longest words 
 behind him. 
 
 "That is enough," my son, "that is enough," said Charles; 
 *' but it is quite beyond my comprehension to be able to understand 
 how you teach anyone to read. Tell me, my son, how you 
 manage to teach those children of yours to read." 
 
 The modest teacher gave him the particulars of a system of 
 didactics — the singing of the ABC; the preparatory lessons from 
 Betty Evan ; the reading competition of the grammar school boys ; 
 the playing of" little soldiers;" the praying, and all ; — such a totally 
 original system of teaching that neither Mr. Charles, nor any school 
 board since, has ever heard of its like. But the fact still remained, 
 as true as it was wonderful, that the young, illiterate, zealous 
 teacher had by it succeeded in teaching scores of the poor children 
 of Llanegryn to read. 
 
 Notwithstanding all unfavourable appearances, Mr. Charles dis-
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 2^7 
 
 cerned in this simple, rustic, and illiterate young man, the materials 
 for a teacher in one of his circulating schools. He plainly saw that 
 his will and desire to do good were much greater than his power ; 
 and that he only needed more power, that is more learning, to 
 make him "a good soldier" of Jesus Christ, and a faithful and 
 useful schoolmaster for him. He urged him to place himself for a 
 while under the tuition of the able teacher, Mr. John Jones, at 
 Bryncrug, about two miles from Llanegryn. Thither he resorted, 
 as often as circumstances permitted him, for about a quarter, and 
 that was all the day school education he ever enjoyed. So great 
 was his eagerness to become a schoolmaster under Mr. Charles, that 
 he bestirred himself to make the best use of his leisure hours in 
 order to qualify himself in the simplest branches of knowledge, 
 especially the art of reading. He had heard the expression fre- 
 quently used in those days, to describe the highest perfection in 
 reading — "to read like a parson." He therefore, very often attended 
 the parish churches of Llanegryn and Towyn, to hear the parsons 
 read, that he also might learn to articulate and emphasize Welsh 
 as they did. 
 
 About the year 1799, he was engaged by Mr. Charles to be a 
 schoolmaster in one of his schools at the salary of £4 a year, and 
 he further gave him lessons and instructions to qualify him for his 
 duties. In the year 1800, he was stationed at Abergynolwyn, and 
 there Mary Jones was one of his pupils at the time of her memorable 
 iourney to Bala, to get a Bible. He had, therefore, every oppor- 
 tunity to learn from herself at the time, as well as from Mr. Charles 
 after, all the particulars of her visit to him. 
 
 In his movements as a schoolmaster from place to place, he was 
 instrumental in establishing new Sunday Schools and resuscitating 
 declining ones in many localities. This latter state of things was 
 the case at Dolgelley. A Sunday School had been started here 
 by the former schoolmaster, John Ellis, but the opposition shown 
 by the most influential members of the Church assembling at the 
 " old chapel " to keep a school on the Lord's day, had proved fatal 
 to the struggling cause. But Lewis Williams restarted it when he 
 came to keep a school here in 1802, though he was sternly resisted 
 by all the Church leaders, except one. It was the custom to begin 
 the first public service at nine o'clock in the morning. He there- 
 fore arranged to hold the school meeting at six o'clock. Ere long
 
 208 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 the opponents removed the Church meetings to that early hour. 
 He then removed the school to the still earlier hour of four o'clock. 
 Between sixty and eighty children attended at those early hours. 
 Whilst he was almost exhausted, rowing as it were against these 
 contrary winds, his patron and protector, Mr. Charles, came to the 
 town on one of his usual preaching publications. Here he ^as 
 told about the peculiar circumstances of his favourite institution, 
 and calling the Church officers together, warmly advocated its 
 claims, ultimately succeeding, though evidently against their inner- 
 most feelings, in procuring it a place amongst the regular meetings 
 of the sacred day, and to commence at nine o'clock. From this 
 recognized position it never after was disturbed. The oppositions 
 which Lewis Williams and the Sabbath School had to bear here, 
 are only examples of what he suffered in almost every neighbourhood 
 which now boast in him, as the founder of their Sunday Schools. 
 
 Williams's delighted sphere of labour was the Sunday School and 
 all its attendant exercises, such as visiting the schools, holding 
 school associations, and preparing the '^ pivnc," or lesson to get up 
 for the occasion. He paid special attention to the art of reading. 
 He considered no part of Mr. Charles's spelling-book exceeding in 
 importance the remarks at its end on punctuation. With much 
 warmth he always maintained that the respect due to them was 
 not to be measured by their length there. He himself was a re- 
 markably clear and emphatic reader. When it is remembered that 
 he was never remarkable for great powers of thought, it is somewhat 
 wonderful to think what light and charm he succeeded in throwing 
 around many a passage of Holy Writ by his clear enunciation of every 
 syllable, and apposite emphasis of most of its deepest expressions. 
 His reading of the chapter at the beginning was justly considered 
 by the audience as about the best portion of the service. He 
 greatly regretted in his latter days that instructions in reading were 
 omitted from the later text-books of the Sunday Schools ; and he 
 maintained that the direct result of this was seen, in a generation 
 of public readers who degraded this most divine portion, to be the 
 least interesting and least instructive, of all the parts of the services 
 of the sanctuary. 
 
 In the earlier part of his career of labour with the Sunday 
 Schools, he often witnessed " the power from on high," attending 
 his catechising exercises. His labours were very abundant during
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 209 
 
 the religious revival of 1817-18. The heavenly flood at times 
 overflowed even into the day schools. Often would he leave off the 
 more secular lessons in order to catechise the children in the saving 
 truths of the gospel. Whenever this course was adopted, the 
 children around him, participating in the ruling spirit of the days, 
 would always break out into rejoicings (gorfoleddu). He often felt 
 himself in the heavenly mood to join them. But such was his 
 anxiety, lest any of the children should come by some bodily harm, 
 that he said " he never could find time to rejoice himself." As 
 the lambs are frisking about, the old sheep must diligently browse 
 in order to find them means of support. 
 
 When he first began to preach, he did not know. Having 
 such burning zeal for the Sunday Schools, and all other portions 
 of the Lord's work in the various places where he sojourned, in 
 connection with the circulating schools, he would often be called 
 " to speak a word," in the prayer meetings ; but some time in the 
 3'ear 1807 he came to be considered a " preacher " or " exhorter." 
 In the year 1817 he was formally received a member of his monthly 
 meeting, with his son in the faith, Eev. Richard Eoberts of 
 Dolgelley; and Rev. Richard Jones of Bala. He was but a small, 
 proverbially small, preacher, but different from the majority of 
 his little brethren he believed it. He was the standard of little 
 preachers for surrounding districts. If any other of the same calibre 
 arose, his standing would be fixed as " poorer than Lewis Williams." 
 But being an eminently pious man, his influence was felt wherever 
 he went, and often were great results seen to follow his humble 
 ministrations, exemplifying the well-known promise, **not by 
 might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith the Lord of Hosts." 
 Several of his sermons were never forgotten by those who listened 
 to them. 
 
 As a bookseller, too, he was eminently active and useful to the 
 good cause. For about fifty years he was the means of circulating 
 a vast amount of the best literature of his days, over a considerable 
 district. The catholicity of his spirit is shown by the fact that ho 
 had no hobhy^ but readily lent his co-operation to further every 
 organization of which he was satisfied that it had a beneficial 
 tendency. He took part in the first collection towards the Bible 
 Society in that district in the year 1805, From that time, until 
 his death in 1862, wherever he dwelt, he never once missed the 
 
 r
 
 °2l0 THE SUXDjiY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 jirivilege of collecting, except in 1861, when he was totally unable 
 10 cross his threshold. He had been quite deprived of his eyesight 
 some years before his death. Nevertheless, every year as before, the 
 venerable patriarch was seen, going about from house to house, in the 
 arm of another collector, as zealous and loquacious as ever, to re- 
 ])lenish the coffers of his favourite society. Not less faithful was 
 he in his labours on behalf of the London Missionary Society, 
 whose claims were first recommended to his sympathy by Mr. 
 Charles. He was also amongst the first to enlist under the banner 
 of the Temperance Society at the end of the year 1836. His pledge 
 to continue faithful to this new movement was conditional — as long 
 as he should continue to believe that total abstinence was from 
 Ood. He, however, continued to believe so, and to support the 
 principles of the society with Christian zeal and fidelity until the 
 day of his death. 
 
 Having entered rather minutely hitherto into the principal in- 
 cidents of his life, only a few remain to make up a complete record. 
 In 1819, whilst residing at Dolgelley, he entered the married state, 
 -and his wife proved " a help meet " and a " crown " unto him by 
 her thorough sympathy with him, in all his temporal and spiritual 
 labours. In 1824, he removed for the fourth time to Llanfachreth 
 to keep a school, having first gone there in the same capacity in 
 1800. This last time he opened a small business there, of general 
 dealer in country necessaries, and followed up the connection with 
 •considerable prosperity, — so much so, that in 1858, the happy couple 
 were able to retire from their worldly concerns and enjoy heaven's 
 blessing upon their former labours, in peace and tranquillity. He 
 died on the 14th day of August, 1862, aged 88 years. His passage 
 through the vale was remarkably triumphant — the God whom he 
 had so faithfully served, making " the shadow of death " to be a 
 bright daylight with no cloud, even of the size of a man's palm, 
 between his experience and heaven. A monument has been placed 
 on his grave bj'- means of subscriptions from members of the 
 Sunday Schools of the district in which he had laboured. No one 
 doubted his claim to this tribute, being universally recognized as 
 the father of the school district, and many of its individual schools ; 
 its first secretary, and the most faithful worker it ever produced. 
 
 This sketch of his life cannot be more appropriately terminated 
 than with the valedictory address to the school meeting of thedis-
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 211 
 
 trict which he faintly whispered into Mr. Rees' ears, one of the 
 last Sabbaths of his life, and to be conveyed through him to them. 
 " Affectionately remember me to all the brethren. Tell them that 
 my last request for ever to them is, that all should work their best 
 with the Sunday School ; ask all to think much better of Jesus 
 Christ as a rewarder. Here am I, having tried to do a very 
 little, as I could, in His service for nearly sixty years — He is by 
 far the best rewarder. It is ready money I always found. He 
 always gave me some feeling that I pleased Him ; He could never 
 have given to me a better acknowledgment to my liking. Here's 
 my service now at an end. He owes me not a farthing. Whatever 
 more He has to give me, in the great world whither I am going — 
 grace ! grace ! grace ! grace ! " Here his faint voice was over- 
 iX)wered by his feelings ; he added no other word to his message, 
 only whispering on to himself, " Grace ! grace ! grace ! " 
 
 Amongst the most eminent ministers who co-operated with Mr. 
 Charles in South Wales, both in starting schools and advocating 
 faithfulness in their support, was Eev. Ebenezer Richard of Tregaron. 
 He used to say that he was born in the same year as the Sunday 
 School in England, referring to the general belief then of Raikes's 
 school having commenced in 1782. A native of Pembrokeshire, he 
 settled at Tregaron, Cardiganshire, in 1809, and continued to labour 
 there specially, and in the country generally, for about twenty-eight 
 years. When the Rev. Ebenezer Morris died, in the year 1825, Mr. 
 Richard was looked upon as the Elisha to take up the mantle of 
 the departed prophet. In this the hopes of the people were not 
 <lisappointed, for he was well quali6ed to discharge all the duties 
 belonging to the work of the ministry. Eminent as he was for 
 his ability to preach to the great assembly with overpower- 
 ing effect, he did not think it any condescension to catechise 
 ■children and go about to advocate the cause of the Sunday Schools, 
 both in his own county, and far and wide throughout the whole of 
 the Principality. Often were the catechiser and the whole school 
 seen bathed in tears, when the examination in some Scriptural 
 topic, previously arranged, was being conducted; for it was the 
 essential aim of these meetings to awaken the conscience as well as 
 enlighten the understanding. The "Rules" which he framed for 
 conducting Sabbath Schools and Sabbath School Unions, and after- 
 vards published, proved very useful in giving a unity to the system,
 
 212 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 in facilitating the work of teaching, and in bringing each individual 
 school to feel the strength which is derived from the sense of being 
 an essential constituent of a greater whole. A memoir of this 
 excellent man has been published by his sons, E. W. Richard and 
 H. Richard, the latter being the senior member for Merthyr Tydfil, 
 and author of" The Letters on the Principality of Wales," more than 
 once referred to in these pages. It is no wonder that his zeal for 
 the spread of Scriptural knowledge was so great. Turning, as 
 he was, so much among the people, he often came in contact with 
 pitiable ignorance, and his soul was stirred within him, to support 
 the means which had already been so signally blessed to enlighten 
 the masses elsewhere. There is one instance recorded which oc- 
 curred to him when going round his pastoral circle at Tregaron. 
 One day he visited an old neighbour of his, of the name of Martha 
 Farrant, who lived in a small hut whose walls were composed of 
 earth, the roof covered with rushes, and the only window that be- 
 longed to it, stuffed at the time with rags to keep off the biting 
 blast. After a few introductory remarks, Mr. Richard tried to lead 
 her thoughts to the things appertaining to her eternal salvation, and 
 in his familiar manner said, " The earthly house is getting old and 
 decayed, Martha, dear." "Indeed, it is, sir," said she, " but the beam 
 is pretty strong still." " Yes, yes, Martha," added he, " it is the 
 earthly house of this tabernacle that I mean — this will soon now be 
 dissolved, do you think a little of securing a better home when 
 you quit it ?" "Yes, indeed, it will come down before long," she 
 replied ; " and as the hens go to the top of it and peck it, the fall 
 will be somewhat sooner, because of that." "I fear," said the 
 minister at last, "that it is very dark with you in matters relating to 
 your eternal welfare." "Indeed it is, sir," said the old woman 
 again ; " the wind broke the window the other night, and being 
 obliged to put in these rags to fill the holes, that is the reason why 
 it is so dark with me." It was utterly impossible by pursuing this 
 style of conversation to lead her from the earthly and natural to 
 things heavenly and spiritual. Her case was representative of too 
 many in those days, but thanks to his labours, and those of hundreds 
 of ministers and laymen since his days, such examples of heathenish 
 darkness are very rare now, if found at all, within the Principality. 
 These coadjutors of Mr. Charles have been selected from within 
 the denominatiou to which he belonged, and this chiefly because
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 213 
 
 Ihen, they were foremost in the ranks. It only needs to be added 
 -that almost all the other sections of the Christian Church came 
 forth very soon after, to labour heartily in the same direction. The 
 course of opposition and success experienced by one became 
 ■common to all the others in their turn. Each adopted very nearly 
 the same method of procedure; zealous men belonged to each; 
 each prepared its own peculiar text-books and catechisms ; and the 
 common prosperity enjoyed by the system throughout the country 
 is due to the contribution made by each, according to number and 
 influence, to the common cause.
 
 214 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALE.S. 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 rECULIAllITIES OF THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WaLES. 
 
 (a) ITcnibers and Subjects of Study. 
 
 Adults as numerous as children — Adult schools the original intention — The^ 
 first organized by Mr. Charles — The idea copied into England — The 
 Bristol societ}'' — Extended to America — Remarkable progress — Adult 
 schools noAv extinct in Wales — Adult scholars and children together — 
 Instances of adults benefited — Statistics of the present proportion of 
 adults in schools — Liverpool selected as a type — Subjects of instruc- 
 tion — Adapted to attainments of the members — This a source of 
 attraction — A description of a Welsh Sunday School — Contributory 
 causes to this characteristic — Religious controversies between 1707 and 
 1841 — Between Calvinists and Arminians — Between different sections 
 of Calvinists — Dr. Owen Thomas's summaries — Incidents from the life 
 of John Jones Talysarn — Influence of Traethocfydd on the national mind. 
 
 A REMARKABLE proof of the inadequacy of a word in itself to con- 
 vey the whole idea which it is intended to impl}^ is seen in the 
 fact that one and the same term is used to denote institutions so 
 widely different as the Sunday Schools of England and those of 
 Wales. It is true they contain some elements in common, but the- 
 points of difference are almost as numerous as the points of agree- 
 ment. The peculiarities of the Welsh Sunday Schools are not 
 things of recent importation ; they existed from the time of their 
 very formation ; all subsequent adaptations have been but a 
 development of germs which existed in their constitution from the 
 very beginning. We shall here enumerate some of their leading 
 characteristics. 
 
 1. The great 2'>Toportion of adults ivhich ahmys constituted their 
 menibers. This is one of the chief distinctions which separate a 
 Welsh from an English Sunday School ; all the rest, as it were, 
 result from this. Dr. Edwards of Bala, in his biographical re-
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 215 
 
 marks on Mr. Charles, considers this feature as that which con- 
 stitutes their unique character, as institutions without a parallel 
 in any other country on the face of the earth. " There are," says 
 he, " Sunday Schools in England : and they had begun there 
 earlier than in Wales. Because they bear the same name, many 
 think they are the same in reality. But there is as much difference 
 between them as there was between the Mosaic dispensation and 
 that of the New Testament. The object of the Sunday School in 
 every country except Wales, is to teach children only ; and not to- 
 teach all children, indeed, as such, but the children of the poor 
 alone, who are unable to obtain education in any other way. The 
 minister, the deacon, and the respectable members of the congre- 
 gation do not think of sending their children there. The con- 
 sequence is, that the Sunday School is unknown in places where 
 day schools abound, and are carried on under conditions suitable for 
 the children of the poor, as is the case in most parts of Scotland. 
 As day-school education becomes more general in England, the 
 probability is that Sunday Schools will be discontinued there, 
 unless they are based on higher principles. At any rate a meeting 
 to which all ages assemble on the Lord's day to search the Scrip- 
 tures, has been hitherto a thing unknown and incomprehensible to 
 every country except to Wales. Perhaps we should not err if we 
 were to state that this is the chief excellence of our nation, and the 
 training of the people in this habit, the most remarkable of the 
 many noble deeds of Charles of Bala." * 
 
 What was considered a desideratum in England so lately as the 
 year 1851, was a well-known institution in Wales from the very 
 commencement of its Sunday Schools. Mr. Horace Mann, in hi!> 
 admirable report on the education returns of the census of 1851 ^ 
 remarks : " The senior class is the grand desideratum to the per- 
 fect working of the Sunday School system, for without some 
 means of continuous instruction and maintaining influence when 
 the scholar enters the most critical period of life, the chances are 
 that what has been already done will prove to have been done in 
 vain. . . . But in proportion to the importance of these senior 
 classes is the difiBculty of establishing and conducting them, a 
 higher order of teachers being needful whose superiority of intel- 
 lect and information shall command the willing deference of the 
 * Traethodau Llenyddol, p. 27-2.
 
 216 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES 
 
 scholars, while their hearty sympathy with those they teach shall 
 render the connection rather one of friendship than of charity. 
 Such classes, too, will not be long continued with efficiency unless 
 the teacher feels so strong an interest in his pupils as to make 
 their secular prosperity a portion of his care. It is obvious, 
 therefore, that the scheme requires for its complete development 
 more aid from those who are, in age, position, and intelligence, 
 considerably superior to most of the present teachers, and who 
 hitherto have very sparingly contributed their personal efforts to 
 the cause of the Sunday School." 
 
 From Mr. Charles's letter to the committee of the Gaelic Society, 
 written in 1811, we find that his original idea was to have separate 
 schools for adults from those of children, several of which, in fact, 
 he actually established. " I have of late," he says, " turned my 
 attention more than ever to the aged illiterate people in our coun- 
 try," etc., etc.* One of his biographers claims this idea as originally 
 and peculiarly his, and like many other projects of this excellent 
 man, was only copied into other parts and countries under modified 
 forms. " After this," he remarks, " Mr. Charles made an effort to 
 awaken professors of religion of every name in that great city 
 (London) to the work of teaching, not children only, but adults 
 also, to read God's word in their own language. In this attempt 
 there is reason to hope that he has succeeded, and that the good 
 seed he sowed has germinated and borne fruit." f In a note to the 
 above remarks we are told that a "History of Adult Schools" 
 was subsequently published by Dr. Pole, in which he refers to 
 Mr. Charles as being their founder. It is interesting to notice 
 from this incident how a good idea once launched into being soon 
 gains strength, and how much alike are the results produced in 
 every clime and among every race. Not long after Mr. Charles 
 made known his success to the world ; " The Bristol Society for 
 Instructing the Adult Poor to read the Holy Scriptures" was 
 formed. It is said that in 1813 there were eight schools for men, 
 containing 147 scholars established, and eight for women, with 197 
 scholars. In the report of the society then published, some in- 
 teresting instances are adduced of the beneficial results of these 
 schools : — " I heard one of the scholars," reads the report, " who 
 had learned at eighty-five years of age to read the Bible, say that 
 '■^ See p. 175. f Preface to " Geiriadur," p. x.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 217 
 
 she would not part with the little learning she had acquired for as 
 many guineas as there were leaves in the Bible, notwithstanding 
 that she ranked amongst the poorest of the poor. A converted 
 Jew, who is upwards of eighty years of age, did not know when he 
 came into the school a letter in the alphabet, but in two months 
 he could read tolerably well a chapter in the New Testament. A 
 young man about twenty years of age, who had some knowledge 
 of the letters when he was admitted, but was not perfect in them, 
 in four months was able to read a chapter well. A woman sixty- 
 one years of age, who did not know a single letter when she began, 
 in two months could also read a chapter in the New Testament. A 
 poor woman wanting (to use her own expression) ' only two years 
 of a hundred,' goes daily to the boys' school established in Man- 
 chester for one thousand and fifty children, to receive instruction 
 from one of the monitors." * 
 
 From England the idea was taken up in America, and there it 
 ^ave an impulse to the formation of another cognate society, " The 
 New York Sunday School Union," for the instruction of children 
 and adults, which began its operations on the 16th February, 1816. 
 Mr. Prust, of Bristol, who had interested himself in the establish- 
 ment of adult schools in England, was the means of exciting the 
 Americans to action. He sent to Mr. Divie Bethune, of New York, 
 the narrative already referred to, prepared by Dr. Pole, of their 
 history and progress. They were first established in the city of 
 Philadelphia. Another society which very soon sprung out of 
 them, was " The Female Sunday School Union." It is a curious 
 proof of the widespread influence of Mr. Charles, that in the meet- 
 ing convened by some ladies of New York for the formation of the 
 latter union, among other communications read explaining the 
 operation of adult and Sunday Schools, two letters from Mr. Charles 
 were read. The first member of the adult school at Philadelphia 
 was a pious soul fifty-two years of age. The young lady who pre- 
 sided over this school adds, with respect to this interesting scholar, 
 " She comes with her spectacles on, and seems as if she would 
 •devour the book. She never fails giving us a blessing, and assures 
 us she has long been praying that the Lord would open some way 
 that she might learn to read the Bible." 
 
 * "Sunday School Eepositorv," 1814, pp. 414,415, quoted in "The 
 First Fifty Years of the Sunday School," pp. 83, 84.
 
 218 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 Exactly similar 'results had been produced in Wales some years* 
 before this. Mr. Charles refers to several instances in his account 
 of them, which he wrote to the secretary of the Gaelic Society.* 
 
 There are ample proofs besides, of the zeal with which adults 
 entered on the labour of learning to read, in connection with 
 both the adult and Sabbath Schools of Mr. Charles, similar tcj 
 what, as has been already mentioned, took place in the time of 
 Griffith Jones. At Penrhyn-deu-draeth, in the county of Merioneth, 
 it is recorded of an old sister of the name of Catherine Griffiths, 
 who accomplished this feat when actually an octogenarian. She- 
 was noted for her piety, zeal, and energy in promoting the cause of 
 her Kedeemer, from its commencement in those troublous times„ 
 This was about ten years before the Sunday School was instituted 
 there. Scon after it was started, however, she was informed by 
 her pastor, Eev. Robert Davies of Brynengan, who lived some 
 distance from Penrhyn, but who had the oversight of several of 
 the small causes around, that unless she frequented the Sabbath 
 School, and should learn to read her Bible, he would look upon it 
 as a proof of her lack of grace, and that he would soon come to 
 Penrhyn to discard her from Church communion. He said this 
 to prove her, as he firmly believed that, notwithstanding her age,, 
 she would make every effort to learn to read rather than draw 
 upon herself Church discipline, and the displeasure of the brethren, 
 " And I well remember seeing her," says the author of Methodis- 
 tiaeth Cymru's informant, " in the Sunday School with her A B 
 C primer, beginning to learn when eighty years of age ; and she- 
 could read pretty fairly in the New Testament before the end of 
 one year after beginning. She remained faithful and cheerful unta 
 death, and died in peace, old and full of days." f From this- 
 peculiarity of the Welsh Sunday Schools of affording the means of 
 learning to read, to so many adults at their very commencements 
 no doubt arose afterwards, the general custom of attending them 
 to discuss the precious truths of Holy Writ, long after the me- 
 chanical difficulty of reading it had been decidedly overcome. 
 
 There is no record left, as far as our information goes, of the 
 
 number of adult schools established in Wales, or how long they 
 
 continued to be maintained. The progress of general education^ 
 
 and especially the immediate effects of the Sunday Schools on the 
 
 * See p. 172. f Mcthodistiadh Cymru, vol. i. p. 525.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 21(> 
 
 young, gradually diminished the necessity of maintaining them 
 for the sake of learning to read only. Besides, the difficulty of 
 keeping up two organizations, one for children and another for 
 adults, as well as a scarcity of suitable buildings, soon brought 
 about their amalgamation, though, no doubt, to the greater incon- 
 venience of the senior department. A few, from time to time, 
 owing to a lack of early advantages, came in order to learn to read, 
 but the presence of adults in a Welsh Sunday School now, as indeed 
 was the case from a very early date in their history, is due to the 
 higher motive of coming to study God's word for the sake of the 
 inestimable treasures of knowledge contained therein. Conse- 
 i|uently, in these days, it is no uncommon sight to see wending 
 their way to a Welsh Sunday School the grandfather and grand- 
 son, going hand in hand ; and in the same room, in one corner, 
 the little grand-daughter is engaged learning the alphabet, placing 
 her foot as it were on the very first stepping-stone to Scriptural 
 knowledge ; while in another corner the grandmother, after a sixty 
 years' course of intellectual and experimental trainmg, still delights 
 to meet the surviving friends of her youth, in the much-loved 
 class. There, as she feels that all earthly possessions and pleasures 
 fail to give her any enjoyment, wdth greater zeal does she relish 
 the foretaste of heavenly and eternal pleasures as revealed to her 
 in the Bible ; and, consequently, 
 
 " In this charter reads with sparkling eyes, 
 Her title to a treasure in the skies." 
 
 This has ever been the peculiarity of the Sunday Schools of Wales. 
 Xative writers, from their familiarity with the sights, have been 
 too apt to pass by this feature unnoticed, while Englishmen, 
 struck with the novelty and strangeness of the fact that old people 
 should still delight in the apparent wearisomeness of learning, 
 never fail to bring it into due prominence. In the book already 
 referred to, " The First Fifty Years of the Sunday School," it is 
 mentioned as being almost incredible,* " that in one school, three 
 persons upwards of seventy years of age, were seen conning over 
 their lessons, and standing up in the class with their grand- 
 children. One of those, at that advanced age, underwent a painful 
 operation, from which he recovered. During the confinement- 
 * p. G3.
 
 220 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 which it occasioned, he used to engage some of the Sunday sch(jlars 
 to visit him, and to go over with him the lessons they had been 
 taught at school, that his learning might not be hindered. In a 
 school at Bangor, at a very recent period, a class was seen, every 
 member of which wore spectacles." Mr. Lingen, one of the Com- 
 missioners of 1846, says that in one of the schools which he 
 visited in the counties of Caermarthen, Glamorgan, and Pembroke, 
 a, woman, aged seventy-two, commenced learning the alphabet at 
 seventy, and read a page from an elementary book to him with 
 great accuracy. " In this school," he further states, " there were 
 among the scholars three old women, one upwards of eighty, who, 
 at that advanced age, had learned to read. She "was now blind, 
 but attended the school as a listener, and could repeat many 
 psalms." 
 
 The great preponderance of adults, constituting the members of 
 a Welsh Sunday School, is seen from various statistics published 
 from time to time. "Whether the school be held in the town or 
 country; whether among the hills and dales of the Principality, 
 or by the Welsh people keeping up their nationality and language 
 in the towns of England, this peculiarly-distinctive feature is 
 never lost or even impaired, of which fact we have many striking 
 proofs. In October, 1874, the Welsh Sabbath School Union of the 
 town of Liverpool instituted an inquiry into the number of the 
 Welsh population attending Sabbath Schools, as well as other 
 means of grace, and also not attending. For this purpose the 
 town was divided into districts, and 952 inquirers were appointed 
 to visit every house and individual, who discharged their trust with 
 much fidelity, and at the expense of much labour. The result is 
 very interesting, both as showing the number of the Welsh popu- 
 lation in that town, and the love they have for the institutions of 
 their native country, even after being removed amid comparative 
 strangers ; and inasmuch as the enumeration was executed in so 
 thorough a manner, it is a safe datum to go upon, in calculating 
 the percentage attending the means of grace throughout the 
 Principality, which is presumably higher than amongst the greater 
 temptations to neglect met with in the town. We shall only quote 
 the figures relating to the Sabbath Schools. The enumerators 
 having classified the scholars into those above fifteen, and those under, 
 it serves also to exemplify another interesting fact — how far the
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 2211 
 
 adult element still predominates in Welsh Sunday Schools, whether 
 held in the towns of England, or amongst the hills and valleys of 
 Wales. The table includes those able to speak Welsh, though from 
 various reasons preferring to attend English places of worship — 
 
 Denominations. Members of Sinday School^, 
 
 Welsh. Over 15. Under 15. Total. 
 
 Calvinistic Methodists 3954 1717 5671 
 
 Weslevan Methodists 1157 495 1652 
 
 Congrecjationalists 1076 416 149-_' 
 
 Baptists 713 313 1026 
 
 Church of England 66 8 74 
 
 Total 6966 2949 9915 
 English. 
 
 Church of England 420 589 1009 
 
 AVeslevan Methodists 217 215 432 
 
 Baptists 171 150 321 
 
 Presbyterians 171 113 284 
 
 Congregationalists 91 62 153 
 
 Primitive Methodists 43 61 104 
 
 Roman Catholics 1 5 6 
 
 Minor Denominations 13 15 28 
 
 Total 1127 1210 2337 
 
 Grand Total 8093 4159 12,252 
 
 It may be interesting to many, to know the totals of other items- 
 ascertained by this enumeration. The whole Welsh population 
 of the town in 1874 was 26,840 ; of these 16,775 attended Welsh 
 places of worship ; 6543 attended English places of worship ; 537 
 belonged to public institutions; while 2985, for whose sake the 
 inquiry was made, neglected public means of grace altogether.* The 
 following percentages, deduced from the above figures, exemplify, 
 to a great extent, the characteristics of the Welsh in these connec- 
 tions everywhere. Eighty-seven per cent, of the whole population 
 attend public worship ; over fifty-nine per cent, of the Welsh con- 
 gregations, and over forty-five per cent, of the whole population, 
 are members of the Sunday School ; nearly seventy per cent, of the 
 scholars are above fifteen years of age in the W^lsh schools, whilst 
 of the Welsh attending English Sunday Schools, the number under 
 fifteen exceeds those over fifteen years of age. The statistics of 
 one of these schools (the Princes Eoad Calvinistic Methodist) for 
 1878, fully confirm the above general conclusion, and also show 
 * Golcuad for 26th December. 1874.
 
 222 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 that lapse of years does not materially affect the relative value of 
 the figures. For that year, in this school, out of 683 members, 
 494 were above fifteen years of age, making a percentage of over 
 seventy-two. Of the whole school, too, 468 were Church members, 
 and the remainder mostly hearers of the congregation.* 
 
 Many incidents might be added to those already given, showing 
 the great interest taken by very old people in the institution. 
 ()ne deacon, eighty years old, with his eyesight rapidly failing, in 
 a short speech to the members of his congregation, urging greater 
 fidelity to the Sunday School, said " that he loved it so much that 
 he was determined to attend as long as he could discern his way ; 
 and he hoped further, that some one would be found kind enough 
 to lead him by the hand even when unable himself to direct his 
 footsteps; yea more, that he hoped some one would wheel him 
 there when he could not walk, and that he should have the satis- 
 faction of going to his grave from the Sunday School. He very 
 readily conceded that he could not be of much service there any 
 longer, as he could not see to read ; still he liked to come there to 
 hear others read, and to take part occasionally in the conversation." 
 The Great King would surely recognise this among his servants 
 even to the end, for with him, 
 
 "They also serve who only stand and wait." 
 
 Closely connected with the adult element in Welsh Sunday 
 Schools, indeed one of its essential conditions is 
 
 2. The variety and extent of Scriptural and theological subjects 
 taught and discussed in them. In this, we presume, lies the solu- 
 tion of the problem how it is that Welsh Sunday Schools have 
 been able to secure the attendance of adults of all ages. Mr. H. 
 Richard, in his " Letters on Wales," f has not only noticed the fact 
 but also given the true explanation of the causes which produce 
 it. " It is a matter of constant lamentation," he observes, " among 
 the promoters of Sunday Schools in England, that the elder scholars 
 when they have acquired a tolerable proficiency in reading, leave 
 the school and are withdrawn from the salutary influence which 
 jnight be otherwise exercised over them by their teachers at the 
 
 * In the year ending June, 1882, a slight deterioration is shown by the 
 statistics of the whole body as regards percentage of adults. Total number 
 of scholars and teachers = 6894 ; adults. 4179 ; percentage adults, fiO'fi. 
 }?y 1883 there is an increase of 619 adults.' t p. 30.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 223 
 
 most critical period of their life. But in Wales, however per- 
 fectly the young people may learn to read, they do not dream of 
 quitting the school. On the contrary, when that acquisition is 
 made, they frequent it with far more interest than before, for they 
 form themselves into classes, under the guidance of older and more 
 experienced men, for studying the Bible, bringing into the common 
 stock whatever means of illustration they can command, to throw 
 light over the history, geography, antiquities, and doctrines of the 
 book. By this means, the people almost universally, not only 
 learn to read with an understanding mind, but acquire also very 
 considerable stores of sound Scriptural and theological knowledge, 
 which among other things prepare and qualify them to be in- 
 telligent and appreciative hearers of their ministers' public 
 teaching." 
 
 In fact, Welsh Sunday Schools, so far as the adults are con- 
 cerned, have partaken more of the character of seminaries for 
 religious instruction than of elementary schools established merely 
 for the sake of teaching the mechanical art of reading. The 
 topics for discussion embrace the widest range possible. No in- 
 quiry is discouraged which is believed to be within the legitimate 
 bounds of Scriptural illustrations. The teacher, most often, is 
 more like the chairman of a debating society than a lecturer at 
 college — his province being more to guide and rule than to drill 
 and enlighten. Thus the classes, as a rule, are places of great 
 attraction to the members, and much preparation is made in the 
 course of the week and on leisure hours on Sundays by studying 
 commentaries and special works on doctrinal divinity, in order to 
 take part in the discussions to advantage. They are, to all pur- 
 poses, mutual instruction classes, possessing all the advantages 
 which have been well described as belonging to these : — " The 
 stimulus of united thought — the pleasing emulation in mental 
 effort — the division of labour, resulting in the multiplication of 
 knowledge — and the augmented interesting sacred themes set in 
 different lights by different speakers." The following vivid and 
 picturesque description of a Welsh Sunday School is well worthy 
 of reproduction : — 
 
 " We want at this point to give to those of our readers who are 
 unacquainted with Wales some idea of the Welsh Sabbath School, 
 for it is a very different affair from anything called by that name
 
 224 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 whicli tliey can find in England. It is not an institution of 
 teachers and children merely, but a meeting where the great bulk 
 of the congregation connected with the particular place of worship 
 to which it belongs assemble to instruct one another in Divine 
 things. It is very frequently the case that the first evidence of a 
 change in a so far thoughtless man, is his beginning to attend the 
 Sunday School. The majority of attendants are above fifteen 
 years of age, and they range between that and eighty or ninety.. 
 Of course the children of the congregation attend, but they are 
 outnumbered in most cases by the seniors. We could take our 
 reader to many a school in Wales where he would find more pairs- 
 of spectacles than in any ten in the metropolis together. There 
 is a female class in the corner of the room, the teacher of which 
 is a matron of seventy-two. Perhaps she has been there every 
 Sabbath, with very few exceptions, for the last forty years. Her 
 dear old teacher went to heaven twenty years ago, and she has 
 occupied her place ever since. The class is numerous, and her 
 oldest pupil is perhaj^s eighty-five years of age, and her youngest 
 approaching sixty. Of course she is under no necessity to teach 
 them to read ; that they have been able to do for many years, — 
 indeed long before we were born ; but they read a portion of the 
 Word of God together, and then talk. A thought has occurred to 
 one of them in reading, another to another, and each in her turn 
 expresses her thought. Possibly the conversation drifts more in 
 the direction of experience than in that of exegesis, but it is by no 
 means uncommon for the whole host of spectacles to be con- 
 siderably dimmed, and for the dear old sisters to go home more 
 refreshed than they have been under many a sermon. There is a 
 class of men of similar ages in the other corner, who possibly will 
 go deeper into doctrine than their sisters opposite. Then there are 
 classes of middle-aged, and of young people of both sexes, dis- 
 cussing, it may be, " The fall of man," " The universality of the 
 flood," "The journeys of Israel," "The travels of St. Paul," 
 " Justification by faith," " The difference between regeneration 
 and adoption," or any other imaginable biblical or theological 
 subject. It is this which accounts for the fact that such a largQ 
 number of the common people in Wales are so much at home in 
 the Holy Scriptures, and so well versed in theological knowledge. 
 We do not mean to assert that all the Welsh people are thus, or
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF W^y:.ES. 225 
 
 even the greater part of them, but we do believe we are right in 
 saying that it is so in the case of a larger proportion of the working 
 classes than in any other part of the kingdom. Some time ago we 
 passed three working men, we believe they were colliers, sitting 
 together on a heap of stones by the roadside, and earnestly dis- 
 cussing the question, " How to reconcile the sovereignty of G-od 
 with the responsibility of man." It struck us at the time that 
 people of that class do not usually discuss such subjects anywhere 
 out of Wales. Perhaps we were mistaken ; but we are certain 
 that they would not have done it, and would not have been able 
 to do it, in Wales, if it had not been for its peculiar system of 
 conducting the Sabbath School." * 
 
 A circumstance which contributed very largely towards deter- 
 mining the character of the Sunday Schools as religious seminaries, 
 but which has been entirely overlooked in all former disquisitions 
 on the subject, was the peculiar religious controversies which agitated 
 the country soon after they were established. The Calvinistic and 
 Wesleyan Methodist denominations being at the time in process 
 of development, were in the full vigour of youth ; the Congrega- 
 tionalist and Baptist, though having made considerable progress in 
 the country before, received an impulse which hitherto did not 
 belong to them. There is hardly a village throughout the whole 
 Principality in which each of these denominations is not represented, 
 and the members coming so often into contact one with another in 
 their daily avocations, it is natural to think that the peculiar tenets 
 of each would be warmly discussed and tested by all the others. 
 As each professed to lay its foundation upon the Holy Scriptures, 
 " the law and the testimony " would be continually appealed to, as 
 the criterion of truth. Hence the Sabbath Schools were frequented 
 with increasing interest as afifordiog the best means of becoming 
 -svell grounded in religious truths and doctrinal distinctions. 
 
 The most important controversies of this ]jeriod have been di- 
 vided into two great classes ; (1) the controversy of the Calvinists 
 with the Arminians ; (2) the controversies of the Calvinists among 
 themselves. The former is reckoned to have continued from the 
 year 1707 to 1831; the latter from 1811 to 1841. From this 
 chronology it is found that the former had begun long before the 
 advent of Sunday Schools into the country, but the interest excited 
 * " Welsh Calvinistic Methodism," pp. 170., 171, 172. 
 
 Q
 
 226 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 by tlie controversy tlien was merely local and transitory, compared 
 with the amount of attention it secured after the rise of Sunday 
 Schools. A few churches belonging to the early Presbyterians in 
 the neighbourhood of Llandysul in Cardiganshire, and to the Baptists 
 at Newcastle Emlyn in the same county, and at Hengoed in Gla- 
 morganshire, were greatly disturbed for a while by the different 
 views entertained upon these questions; but the great body of 
 these two denominations remained mere distant, and not very in- 
 terested, spectators of the agitation. With the rise of Wesleyan 
 Methodism, however, in the country, the subjects in debate were 
 taken up with much greater vigour, and the whole of Wales was in 
 one seething ferment, for this period of thirty years. It must not 
 be thought that the controversy was carried on between the members 
 of the body known as Calvinistic Methodists alone, and the Wes- 
 leyans ; sound Calvinists both of the Baptist and Congregational 
 bodies, were quite as prominent in asserting their convictions in 
 opposition to their brethren of the rival system. The Sabbath 
 Schools could scarcely avoid becoming interested in the issue, for it 
 is a noteworthy fact that the rise of Wesleyan Methodism and the 
 development of the Sabbath-School system were almost contem- 
 poraneous. The first place in which a Wesleyan cause was estab- 
 lished in Wales was Kuthin, in Denbighshire, in January, 1800. 
 This furnishes us with a sufficient reason why a more wide-spread 
 interest was shown in the controversy than when it broke out in 
 the eighteenth century. 
 
 Most of the points in which the two systems differ were keenly 
 debated, but the two contending forces struggled longer and more 
 fiercely about what were considered as the three most important 
 positions, viz. Predestination, Man's original state hy nature^ and 
 TJie design and extent of the atonement. With the Arminian, 
 the decree of redemption preceded the decree of election, which is 
 43onditioned upon the foreseen faith of the individual. With the 
 Calvinist, on the other hand, the decree of election preceded the 
 decree of redemption, and the decree of election conditioned upon 
 the simple good pleasure of God alone. Consistent with this, the 
 Arminian asserted the ground of election to be the faith and re- 
 pentance of the elect themselves, as foreseen by God ; while the 
 Calvinist looked upon the eternal, sovereign, and infinitely wise, 
 righteous and loving will of God, as the ground of predestination.
 
 tup: SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. L'L'7 
 
 The Arniiniau maintained that the doctrine of particular election 
 emanatin<; from the will of God, implies unconditional reprobation ; 
 while the Calviuist maintained that the rejection is the natural 
 consequence of the sinfulness and the guilt of the individual. 
 
 With regard to original sin, the Calvinists held that inasmuch 
 as Adam was the federal representative, as well as the natural 
 head and root, of all his descendants, the guilt, i.e. the legal respon- 
 sibility of his public sin, which closed his probation and theirs, is 
 righteously imputed to them ; and its penal consequences, the 
 wrath of God ; divorcement from his spirit ; spiritual, natural, and 
 eternal death ; are inflicted upon them in the line, and in part 
 through the agency, of natural generation. On the other hand, the 
 Arminian denied that the corruption of nature which mankind 
 inherit from Adam by ordinary generation, and as natural heirs, 
 is properly of the nature of sin, and deserving of the wrath of God, 
 since it is involuntary. They maintained rather that all men 
 inherit from Adam a natural infirmity, characterized as a destitu- 
 tion of original righteousness, making it certain that every in- 
 dividual uniformly sins, as soon as he commences voluntary agency. 
 
 Seeing that the key note of the two systems took its pitch, as it 
 were, from the view taken of the nature and extent of the atone- 
 ment, the battle raged longer about this point than any other. 
 The Arminian view diflered from the Calvinistic in two points. 
 They maintain that Christ died, (1) For the relief of all men, (2) 
 To make salvation possible. The Calvinists hold on the other 
 hand that Christ died, (1) For his elect, (2) To make their salva- 
 tion certain. In harmony with these views each maintained 
 totally distinct lines with regard to the application of redemption. 
 The Arminians admit the doctrine of man's total depravity, and 
 that in consequence thereof man is utterly unable to do anything 
 aright, in the unaided exercise of his natural faculties. Neverthe- 
 less, as Christ died equally for every man, sufficient grace enabling 
 its subject to do all that is required of him, is granted to all, 
 which sufficient grace becomes efficient only when it is co-operated 
 with and improved by the sinner. Calvinists on the other hand, 
 believe that the internal call is an exercise of divine power upon 
 the soul, immediate, spiritual, and supernatural, communicating a 
 new spiritual life, and thus making a new mode of spiritual 
 activity possible : tliat repentance, faith, trust, hope, love, etc.,
 
 228 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 are purely and simply the sinner's own acts ; but as such, are 
 possible to him only in virtue of the change wrought in the 
 moral condition of his faculties by the recreative power of God. 
 If Christ died only for his own people, the Arminians argued 
 that a general offer of the Gospel could not be sincere and 
 honest. To this the Calvinists answered that a hona fide offer of 
 the Gospel is to be made to all men, because the satisfaction 
 rendered to the law by Christ is sufficient for all men ; it is alsa 
 exactly adapted to the redemption of all, and further that God 
 designs that whosoever exercises faith in Christ shall be saved by 
 Him, The design of Christ's death being to secure the salvation of 
 His own people, incidentaily to the accomplishment of that end, 
 it comprehends the offer of that salvation freely and honestly to 
 all men on the condition of their faith. No man is lost for the 
 want of an atonement, or because there is another barrier in the 
 way of his salvation than his own most free and wicked will. 
 They retort also on the Arminian that if Christ died equally for 
 all men, and that it is certain that many will reject the Gospel and 
 perish for ever, then the sufferings of Christ were in vain on their 
 behalf, and the object of the atonement frustrated. 
 
 Minor points in the great controversy were also incidentally 
 handled, especially the different views held on justification, and the 
 perseverance of the saints. With regard to the former, Arminians 
 taught as to the nature of Christ's satisfaction, that although it 
 was a real propitiation rendered to justice for sins, it was not in 
 the rigour of justice, perfect, but was graciously accepted and acted 
 on as such by God. They further considered that it was not 
 strictly the substitution of Christ in place of his elect, but rather 
 that he suffered the wrath of God on behalf of all men, in order to 
 make it consistent with justice for God to offer salvation to all men 
 on condition of faith. The faith which is imputed to the believer 
 for righteousness, they consider to include evangelical obedience,. 
 i.e. the whole principle of religion in the heart. They consider it 
 also as the graciously adnoitted ground, rather than the mere in- 
 strument of justification ; faith being counted for righteousness 
 because Christ died. The Calvinists maintained that the active and 
 passive obedience of Christ, satisfying both the precept and penalty 
 of the law as a covenant of life, and thus constituting a perfect 
 righteousness is, upon being appropriated by the believer in the act
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 229 
 
 ■of faith, actually made his, in a legal sense, by imputation. Faith, 
 therefore, is the mere instrument whereby we partake in the right- 
 eousness of Christ, which is the true ground of our justification. 
 With regard to the perseverance of the saints, the Calvinists 
 believed that those whom God hath accepted in the Beloved, 
 effectually called, and sanctified by his Spirit can neither totally 
 nor finally fall away from the state of grace ; but shall certainly 
 persevere therein to the end, and be eternally saved. The Arminians, 
 on the other hand, maintained that those who were once justified 
 and regenerated may by neglecting grace and grieving the Holy 
 Spirit fall into such sins as are inconsistent with true justifying 
 faith, and continuing and dying in the same, may consequently 
 finally fall into perdition. 
 
 After this controversy between Calvinists and Arminians had 
 been carried on for about ten years, it transpired from the course 
 pursued by the former in maintaining their ground that they did 
 not quite agree among themselves as to the nature and extent of 
 the atonement. This gave rise to quite as animated a discussion 
 of the various points at issue, as had characterized its former 
 phase, especially after the year 1831, when the smouldering embers 
 of the former controversy became quite extinct, and then for ten 
 years more, the undivided attention of the country was devoted 
 to the various forms of the Calvinistic system alone. Rev. 
 Christmas Evans among the Baptists held that the suflSciency 
 of the atonement depended on its appointment, and so denied, 
 in a peculiar sense, its universal sufficiency. He upheld what was 
 called the pecuniary as opposed to the penal nature of Christ's 
 sufferings. By this he understood that the Saviour suffered an 
 exact equivalent for the sins of the elect only. Rev. John 
 Roberts of Llanbrynmair, among the Congregationalists, differed 
 somewhat from him in declaring that the atonement had a general 
 appointment with regard to some designs connected with the 
 divine government, such as the creation of mankind, the imparting 
 of temporal blessings to the world ; but that it had also a special 
 or particular connection with the elect. Rev. Thomas Jones of 
 Denbigh, with the Calvinistic Methodists combined the general 
 sufficiency and the particular appointment, granting at the same 
 time that there is a difficulty in reconciling the two views, but 
 iiccepting the apparentlj'' contradictory facts on the decided testi-
 
 2oO THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 mony of Scriptures. Many others beside the three now mentioned^ 
 took more or less prominent parts in the debate, in fact it was con- 
 tinued some years after each of them had laid aside his sword and 
 his bow in death. The questions belonging to each of the main 
 controversies were ventilated from the pulpit, through the press, and 
 in the Sabbath Schools. A host of pamphlets and several volumes 
 of considerable size were issued to maintain or combat the different 
 views, while all the periodicals of the period owed their chief 
 attraction to the amount of space devoted to this class of literature. 
 " Seren Gomer,^' " Ooleuad Cymru,'' " Y Dysgedydd,'' and " Y 
 Brysorfa^'^ — all monthly periodicals under the auspices of different 
 denominations, — were eagerly expected and carefully scanned by 
 almost all the reading population, with a view to enlightenment in 
 various asjDects of the controversy. As long as it was confined to a 
 discussion of principles only, results of a beneficial tendency alone 
 would have been produced. This, however, was far from being the 
 case, for it too often deteriorated into bitter personalities, coarse 
 expressions, and reckless misrepresentations of each other's views. 
 It is to be hoped, through all, that one good at least was secured — 
 the people were familiarizing themselves more and more with the 
 Word of God, through the help of the Sunday Schools ; like the 
 Bereans of old, the great proportion were continually searching the 
 Scriptures " to see if these things were so." Other points of differ- 
 ence between the various denominations were discussed with 
 fluctuating interest throughout this period. Between the Baptists 
 and all the others, the debate waxed warm and waned again, with 
 reference to the mode and subjects of Baptism ; between the Con- 
 gregationalists and Methodists with regard to its proper subjects 
 only ; between all denominations alike, as regards the most Scrip- 
 tural form of Church government, whether Episcopacy, Presbyte- 
 rianism, or Congregationalism. The classes of the Sunday Schools 
 were suitable gymnasia for members to exercise themselves in 
 the various Scriptural references to the peculiar tenets of each de- 
 nomination. 
 
 Eev. Owen Thomas, D.D., of Liverpool, who in his " Biography 
 of John Jones Talysarn," has written a very exhaustive and 
 laborious resume of the two great controversies already referred to, 
 with regard to the former of them, has made the following pertinent 
 and instructive remarks : — " After laying aside contention and
 
 THE SITNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 231 
 
 beginning to associate a little more one with the other as Christian 
 brethren, each party came to feel one towards another better than 
 they had been accustomed to think of the systems ; and they gra- 
 dually began to discover that there was enough Gospel truth — as, for 
 example, the provisions of grace for a perishing sinner — in the aspect 
 in which the one system and the other were practically presented 
 to the world, to permit them heartily and unfeignedly to rejoice in 
 each others prosperity. The Calvinists came to look upon their 
 Arminian brethren, in their zeal for the truth concerning the indis- 
 pensable necessity for the work of the Holy Spirit in regenerating 
 and reclaiming a sinner, and their earnest prayers for his inter- 
 vention, as practically to grant an everlasting election and sovereign 
 grace ; and the Arminians, on the other hand, to look upon their 
 Calvinistic brethren when exhorting all to accept the Saviour, at 
 the same time assuring their hearers if they should reject him the 
 blame of their perdition would be on their own head, as practically 
 to acknowledge universal redemption. The Arminian, says the 
 Calvinist, is totally inconsistent with the essence of his system ; the 
 Calvinist, says the Arminian, is quite contrary to himself, but 
 " the world " say both *' gets the advantage of the inconsistency." 
 Now, and indeed for some years past, while the conviction continues 
 and increases, that there is an essential difference between the two 
 systems, and the one section, like the other, is ready to maintain 
 that the advantage of that difference appertains to it, the most 
 thoughtful on each side are more ready than ever to acknowledge 
 that there are peculiar and enormous difficulties belonging to each — 
 such difficulties that the adoring mind can only exclaim when con- 
 templating them, " the depths," and therefore feels that it is 
 unfair as well as unwise to bring those difficulties forward as an 
 argument against either, apart from the direct evidence of divine 
 revelation." * 
 
 With regard to the second great controversy he also remarks : — 
 " Somehow after this (that is after each party, about the year 1841, 
 had become exhausted) it came to be felt that as much had been 
 said on each side as could be said, or at least needed to be said, 
 and still the parties were drawn no nearer together. The con- 
 sequence was, that some began to doubt if there were any hope of 
 
 * "Cofiant y Parch. John Jones," p. 361. (Memoir of the Rev. John 
 Jones.)
 
 232 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 reconciliation on the arena of controversy. At the same time the 
 conviction was increasing that the difference between them after all 
 did not affect the essence and life of the Gospel, but that the great 
 things appertaining to the salvation of a sinner were heartily and 
 firmly received by each, and that the difference only existed in the 
 Tiiode of presenting them ; it was also felt a great pity that such a 
 small, and in comparison trifling difference, should keep brethren 
 apart, and cause contentions and quarrels between them. The 
 notion was now gaining ground in the minds of the foremost and 
 best men in the Principality that the essential thing needed now 
 was not so much, disputing about iho, forms of the truth according 
 to the various systems of divinity, as presenting the truth itself in 
 its simplicity, its liberty, its fulness, its extent, yea even in its 
 apparent Scriptural inconsistency before the world. It came to be 
 considered that the Holy Scriptures not only contained the truths 
 that were to be presented in the ministry of the Gospel before men, 
 but also that the peculiar form in which those truths are therein 
 expressed, was a model of the best way or mode of making that 
 presentation. The result was that the ministry among the various 
 parties assumed a more Biblical and less systematical style — plain, 
 decided, and unambiguous on the doctrine of grace, but at the same 
 time clear, strong, and unfaltering on man's duty and responsibility, 
 so that by our time the controversies of our fathers are almost 
 incomprehensible to us. There are now, we presume, but few who 
 can sympathize with them in the importance placed by them on, 
 and the strong jealousy manifested for, the particular /orms in which 
 alone they judged it was proper to express the truth ; and our 
 greatest danger in these days is, forgetting the near and necessary 
 connection which in our apprehension of it exists between the truth 
 itself and the form it has in our mind, to become, in our disregard 
 of the form, negligent of the essence of the truth itself. We are 
 not sure that it would be no small blessing for Wales to get again a 
 period of earnest controversy, conducted in a Christian spirit, 
 respecting some of the great and vital truths of the Gospel." * 
 
 In the same work we find one or two incidental confirmations of 
 
 the remarks made respecting the delight which the people took at 
 
 this period in theological and even metaphysical inquiries, and also 
 
 the absorbing interest taken by the country generally in the various 
 
 * *' Cofiant y Parch. John Jones,", pp. 536, 537.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 233 
 
 phases of the Armiuian and Calvinistic controversy. The subject of 
 this memoir, Mr. John Jones, himself was eminently a child of the 
 Sabbath School. There is no record of his having enjoyed a single 
 day's school education throughout his whole lifetime, and yet he 
 turned out to be one of the most thoughtful, powerful, and refined 
 preachers Wales ever produced. He worked as a common quarry- 
 man for many years during the first period of his itinerant ministry. 
 When working in a quarry near Llanrwst, in the year 1821, it is 
 related that although many of his fellow-workmen were ungodly 
 men, and often engaged in frivolous and vicious conversations, still 
 when John Jones was present, these would be voluntarily dropped, 
 out of respect to him, and religious topics introduced instead, which 
 very often assumed a controversial form. One day the minuteness 
 and care of God in his providence occupied their attention as a 
 subject of debate. John Jones strongly pleaded that the smallest 
 occurrences were under the complete control of the Supreme Kuler, 
 and that all the Divine dispensations had been foreordained and 
 would certainly terminate for the good of those who loved God, at 
 the same time admitting that we could not always in the present 
 life explain many things which seemed to militate against that 
 outcome, and that it required the fuller knowledge of the future 
 state to show how perfect Wisdom and Goodness always presided 
 over all. This discussion proceeded that morning until the dinner 
 hour. But when John Jones went to seek his portion, it was found 
 that some dog which had accidentally strayed to the quarry had 
 made off with the parcel of bread and meat brought by him from 
 his lodgings that morning. Upon this his fellow-workmen came to 
 him and asked him in a somewhat jocular mood, whether he 
 thought Providence had a hand in that matter, and if he thought 
 that could be for some good. He, however, resolutely asserted, 
 and with what appeared to them under the circumstances a strange 
 gravity, that this incident had not taken place outside the range of 
 the Divine government, and that he was certain, though he knew 
 not how, it was also intended for good. That day, nevertheless, he 
 was compelled to get his dinner at his lodgings, which were some 
 distance from the quarry. By the time he came there, he found 
 that a friend had called to see him, and therefore he remained from 
 his work longer than he had intended. When he returned he found 
 his fellow-workmen dumb with astonishment and looking remark-
 
 234 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALE-S. 
 
 ably serious. The truth was, while absent with his dinner a large 
 part of the rock had fallen down to the place where he used to 
 work ; and if he had not been under the necessity that day of going 
 to his lodgings for his dinner, but eating it as usual in the quarry, 
 he would have been killed on the spot. By this it became evident 
 to his fellow-workmen, and more certain to him than it was before, 
 that the smallest occurrences, and those which appear to us even 
 frivolous, are under Divine control, and all intended for our good. 
 The Lord had a great work for him to do, and therefore the eye of 
 Providence watched over him, and as one very properly remarked, 
 he was ** immortal " until that should have been accomplished.* 
 
 Our next reference incidentally shows the great interest which 
 the controversies above described excited not only in Sabbath School 
 classes, but also among workmen while engaged with their daily 
 avocations ; it will also show the zeal which burned in the subject 
 of this biography for the honour of the Lord of Hosts. " He con- 
 tinued," says Dr. Thomas, " to utilize every opportunity to bring 
 the welfare of their souls to the consideration of his fellow workmen, 
 speaking to each individually, and urging him to embrace religion 
 with all his heart and without delay. He could not bear any to 
 indulge in coarse language in his presence, and he generally carried 
 so much influence with him that no one dared to transgress. One 
 of his fellow workmen, who was at the time irreligious, reports that 
 one Sunday he went to Llanrwst to a school meeting which was 
 held by the Wesleyans. This man at the time hardly knew any- 
 thing of the tenets of Arminianism and Calvinism. When John 
 Jones returned to his work on Monday, from his Sabbath publica- 
 tion, he inquired, as his custom was, where he had been on Sunday. 
 The man replied that it was to the Wesleyan Sunday School meet- 
 ing at Llanrwst, and began to praise the Wesleyans and to reiterate 
 that they were right, that their principles were more in accordance 
 with the Bible, and that they were the best people. ' John Jones 
 at first,' said the man, * took but little, if any, notice of me. Hear- 
 ing me, however, continuing to keep a noise, and in such a pre- 
 tentious way, when he knew well that I had very little knowledge 
 of those matters, he took me up, questioned me, and soon got me 
 plainly to contradict myself. When I felt this I became sopewhat 
 ruffled, and uttered an ugly oath. John Jones instantly stopped 
 * " Cofiant y Parch. John Jones," pp. 81, 82.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 2o'y 
 
 the conversation and spoke not a word with me that day. On the 
 morrow we went as usual to the rock together to get stones for 
 splitting. While loading the barrow I cut my finger. There again 
 I uttered an ugly oath. He at once let down the block which was 
 in his hand, came to me, took my stone from me, and placed it on 
 the ground. Then he laid hold of me with both his hands and 
 carried me like a rag, some distance apart, to the middle of the 
 terrace. The strength which I felt dealing with me made me quite 
 heartless to offer any resistance. He kept me as quiet as if I were 
 in a vice, for, as far as I can guess, about an hour's time. Looking 
 me right in the face he spoke to me about the wickedness of cursing 
 and every other crime of which I was guilty, so affectionately that 
 I wept like a child. After getting a solemn promise from me that 
 for the future I would thoroughly reform my conduct, he let me go 
 free. We went back to work, and ever after, as you can well imagine, 
 I was in constant dread, and kept strict watch over my temper and 
 words, lest I should do anything wrong in his presence or in his 
 hearing.' " * 
 
 In 1846, about five years after the termination of the theological 
 controversies in their more virulent form, a quarterly periodical 
 was started which carried gi-eat influence in guiding and fostering 
 the studies of the more intelligent iDortion of the people. We refer 
 to the Traethodydd (the Essayist). From its commencement it 
 partook more of a philosophical than theological character. Able 
 articles expounding the systems of Kant, Sir W. Hamilton, Mill, 
 Sir. J. Mackintosl), and others, were appearing in it without inter- 
 mission, and this opened out for the adult classes of the Sabbatii 
 Schools, fields of inquiries and contemplation quite as interesting, 
 but far less personal than the controversies of former years. It has 
 been the favourite study of the more advanced members ever since, 
 ho^^' to reconcile Scriptural truths with the fundamental principles 
 of the mental and moral sciences. The periodical which excited in 
 them this bias, has since been supported by others of the same 
 class, and foremost among them, by the greatest of all Welsh literary 
 productions — the G i/"?/c? Jo?< ?'ac?i( /' (Encyclopoedia); but the Traeth- 
 odydd still continues a guiding spirit, and retains much of the 
 vigour, though necessarily not the novelty, of its earlier years. 
 * " Cofiant y Parch. John Jones,"' pp. 82, 83.
 
 236 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 Peculiarities of the Sunday Schools of Wales. 
 
 (6) Internal Organization. 
 
 Ttlodem improvements in school instruction — Simultaneous teaching — The 
 public catechising of Welsh Sunday Schools identical with this — First 
 introduced by Griffith Jones of Llanddowror — Adopted by Charles — 
 Arrangements for carrying out this method — In individual schools — 
 In school associations — Mr. Charles's letter on these — Beneficial 
 effects — Division of country into districts for Sunday School Unions — 
 A description of an ordinary district meeting — Enumeration of results 
 — Special attention paid to statistics — An abstract of those of one 
 district from 1819 to 1880 — A faithful district secretary — Encourage- 
 ment given to treasuring the Bible in the memor}- — Remarkable 
 instances — The Kelts and strength of memory — Efficiency of school 
 inspection— Reports of same schools for 1827 and 1877— The district 
 meetings, and viva voce examinations — A strong impulse to seek 
 Scriptural knowledge — Instances — Services of teachers always gra- 
 tuitous — Favourable contrast Avith schools of England — Special aim to 
 secure eternal salvation of members — Revivals sprung from Sunday 
 Schools — Vindication of Welsh revivals — Special advantages of teachers 
 for influencing their scholars for good — Concluding remarks. 
 
 It is a noteworthy, and no doubt a creditable, tbougli somewhat 
 unaccountable fact, that some of the most important improvements 
 of modern times, in the art of teaching, were practised in Welsh 
 Sunday Schools from their very commencement. In some subjects, 
 it is true, such as teaching the alphabet, spelling, and reading, the 
 very worst methods of individual teaching have too long continued, 
 each scholar coming up singly to the teacher to repeat his or her 
 lesson, much to the detriment of order and discipline, as well as to 
 the waste of the teacher's time, tact, and patience. But when we 
 ascend above the mere mechanical art to the ultimate object of 
 Sunday School instruction, viz. the imparting of Scriptural know-
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 237 
 
 ledge, and its attendant blessings, the best methods are found to 
 have been universally adopted. One of these has been the due 
 proportion of collective teaching, by means of classes ; and the 
 other, simultaneous teaching, by the grouping of several classes 
 together into one whole. The latter is the leading feature of the 
 Glasgow, or training system, so lucidly explained by Mr. Stow. 
 In this system the school, or a considerable section of the school, 
 is dealt with simultaneously. Questions are not directed to the 
 individual, but to the whole group, and the answers are expected to 
 come from all together, in a lively, musical strain, " like the noise 
 of many waters." Certainly, this had been the most prominent 
 feature of the schools of the Principality, long before it became 
 known under its more recent nomenclature of the Glasgow system. 
 It is not our intention at present, however, to look upon this feature 
 as a special method of instruction, so much as upon the various 
 organizations arranged to call it to action, and to give effect to its 
 peculiar adaptation to the needs of the times. Therefore we 
 designate as most prominent among Welsh Sunday-School organi- 
 zations — 
 
 1. The facilities provided in individual schools, and also in large 
 districts, for catechetical or simidtaneous instruction. 
 
 There can scarcely be a doubt that Mr. Griffith Jones of Llan- 
 ddowror, originated, in this country, the plan of carrying on instruc- 
 tioji in sacred truths by means of general oral catechising. Later 
 organizers only applied the principle to more various subjects, and 
 perhaps more interesting combinations. In trying to account for 
 the early appearance of this method in the country, and the vast 
 popularity it attained, it should not be forgotten that the first and 
 best catechisers were ministers of the gospel. Witness the labours 
 of Mr. Jones and Mr. Charles. Accustomed to deal with the masses 
 simultaneously when addressing them from the pulpit, it was but a 
 small step to change to the catechetical style, and then, no doubt, 
 the exercise partook a good deal of the double character of question- 
 ing and addressing. Children and adults were both, but separately, 
 instructed by this method. The latter were brought together to be 
 catechised, in order to relieve the monotony of too long collective 
 or class teaching ; the former to impress them with religious truths 
 long before they were able to read themselves, and in order to break 
 the tedium of too much individual teaching. In later years public
 
 238 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 catechising takes far better witli the children than with adults in 
 the Sunday Schools. The reason generally assigned for this is, that 
 the method is better adapted to the institutions in their cruder state 
 than when more perfectly developed. The fact that simultaneous 
 instruction is more generally used in the infant department of the 
 modern day-school, than with the more advanced classes, seems to 
 favour this view. There is another reason, however, for the de- 
 terioration of catechising with the adults, viz. that the character 
 of the questioning has entirely changed. In former years, the 
 method both with adults and children, was used exclusively for 
 instruction ; but with the former now, it is used, perhaps, more for 
 examination — a purpose for which the system, it must be granted, 
 is very ill adapted. The success of simultaneous teaching depend.*^ 
 on the possibility of a great number giving an answer in the same 
 words and form of expression ; but since, in the more advanced 
 investigations, opinions and views vary as the individuals — tot 
 homines tot mentes — and, consequently, the expressions ; it follows, 
 as a matter of course, that the best method for adults is the ordinary 
 Sunday-School class, which furnishes a safe and effective medium 
 between the individual and simultaneous systems. 
 
 In the earlier Sunday Schools, however, the latter was the mode, 
 par excellence^ and was attended by very beneficial results. The 
 preparatory exercises presented much variety. Sometimes a chapter 
 of one of the catechisms already published, was selected as a field of 
 labour, and the whole school used to repeat together the answers 
 learnt out, in a slow, emphatic, and impressive style. On other 
 occasions, what was called Pwngc Ysgol (a school theme), was 
 prepared, a specimen of which, from the pen of Mr. Charles, has 
 been already given.* Slips of paper containing a question and 
 an answer from the Pimigc was given to each class, to be got up by 
 each member during the week, and while, in the public questioning, 
 only one class repeated the answer given to its charge, the whole 
 school took part together in trying to answer the extempore ques- 
 tions with which the catechist interspersed those already prepared. 
 This oral catechising occupied a considerable part of every meeting 
 of the school, generally the latter half. At stated times a whole 
 service was devoted from beginning to end to questioning the school 
 in the presence of the whole congregation, if any existed, not in- 
 * See p. 189.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 230 
 
 eluded in the school, as was pretty often not the case. At more 
 lengthened intervals the schools of a considerable district were 
 collected together into one place, when a whole day was devoted, 
 most often in the open air, to hear each repeating the allotted 
 lesson. By this coming together to one place, a spirit of healthy 
 emulation would be produced between the schools, which conduced 
 p;reatly to the liveliness of the scene. It was considered a higli 
 distinction for any school to have come off the examination without 
 failing, for the catechist now and then interjected some severe tests 
 of their knowledge of Scriptural references, or kindred points arising 
 (jut of the subject imder consideration, between the questions 
 already prepared ; nor was the service devoted to the cultivation of 
 the intellectual side of the scholar's nature only, the heart and 
 conscience also had their due share. The impressions produced 
 through these meetings in treating, for instance, such subjects as 
 truthfulness, the evil of profane swearing, obedience, the due 
 <jbservance of the Sabbath day, and a host of other subjects, re- 
 mained perceptible for months after, in the marked improvement 
 of the moral conduct with reference to the duty inculcated. 
 
 Mr. Charles, in a letter written by him in 1808, has given us 
 full particulars of this peculiar phase of Sunday-School work : — 
 " "We have also this year," he writes, " held associations of the 
 different schools. They meet in some central place to be publicly 
 catechised together. Three meetings of this nature have been held 
 in North Wales, and three in South Wales. A subject is given to 
 every school on which they are to be examined, and which they are 
 to elucidate by repeating appropriate passages from the Sacred 
 AVritings. At the appointed time, generally a Sabbath day, the 
 children of the different schools assemble, accompanied by their 
 teachers. vSome of the schools have walked ten miles by eight 
 o'clock in the morning. The children being scattered in their 
 different habitations over the country, for they dwell not together 
 in hamlets as in England, they all meet at an assigned place, and 
 ;vt the appointed hour pray and sing a verse of a hymn together, 
 and then march cheerfully and orderly for the place of their 
 destination. 
 
 "As no place of worship is spacious enough to contain the 
 immense concourse of people which attend on these occasions, we 
 have been obliged to erect stages out of doors in the fields ; a large
 
 240 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF AVALES. 
 
 one for the children, of two or three schools at a time ; another lor 
 the catechists, opposite to that of the children, at fifteen or eighteen 
 yards distant ; the space between is for the assembled congregation 
 to hear. We begin the work early in the morning, and the whole 
 day is spent in these examinations. Every examination lasts three 
 or four hours, and is generally concluded by an address to the 
 children of the congregation. In the short intervals between the 
 examinations, the children of eacli school are conducted by their 
 teachers into a room engaged for the purpose to partake of a little 
 refreshment, and at the appointed time they are reconducted to 
 the place of meeting. We have had on these occasions from fifteen 
 to twenty schools assembled together. Hitherto these associations 
 have been most profitable. The previous preparation gives em- 
 ployment for two months to all the youths of both sexes, in which 
 they engage with great eagerness and delight. The public exam- 
 inations, we have every reason to conclude, are also very profitable 
 to the hearers assembled. This is clear from their great attention, 
 and the feelings produced by hearing the responses of the children. 
 I have seen great meltings and tears among them. When the 
 work of the day is over the children are reconducted by their 
 teachers to their respective homes, or committed to the care of their 
 parents. 
 
 "In my intercourse with the children I have met with many 
 instances of uncommon quickness of intellect and strength of 
 memory. I have met with more than one who at the age of three 
 years would learn any common tune in a very short time ; and 
 others at the same age who would very soon commit to memory 
 long chapters without any apparent difficulty. There is a little 
 girl only five and a half years old who could repeat distinctly above 
 one hundred chapters, and goes on learning a chapter every week, 
 besides the catechism, and searching the Scriptures for passages on 
 different points in divinity. We have many blind people who 
 treasure up the Word of God in their memory. One blind lad 
 commits a whole chapter to memory by having it read over to him 
 about four times. I have also met with many melancholy instances 
 of very great ignorance among grown-up people, which has induced 
 me to press them earnestly to attend the Sunday School." 
 
 From this account we are led to conclude that there were two 
 kinds of associations very popular at that time with the Welsh,
 
 THE 6UNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES 241 
 
 and which in fact continue so until this day — one was the asso- 
 ciation for preaching and the other the school association. The 
 former has existed with unabated popularity, and with hardly any 
 modification, from the revival of Methodism unto this day, and are 
 common not only to that denomination but to the Baptists and 
 Congregationalists alike. In some of the most numerously-attended 
 meetings, from twenty to thirty thousand people are present to hear 
 double lectures of three services, in the open air, during the day — 
 each service lasting over two hours. The school associations have 
 undergone greater modifications in accordance with the advance of 
 education, but are now seldom held in the Of)en air, since no more 
 schools are brought together than can be comfortably accommodated 
 in the most spacious chapels of the district. With regard to the 
 beneficial effects of these associations in the past. Judge Johnes 
 bears the following testimony : — " The cause of the Methodists was 
 much advanced by their habits of meeting in large bodies for re- 
 ligious purposes. Nothing can be more imposing than such an 
 assemblage in a mountainous region, as is well known to those 
 who may have seen a * sacramental occasion ' in the highlands of 
 Scotland; to the feelings of the Welsh, it was peculiarly suited, 
 and the eflfect of such meetings may be judged of from the fol- 
 lowing anecdotes. Charles having heard that a kind of rural fes- 
 tivity colled by the country people 'Wakes,' was about to take 
 })lace in his neighbourhood, had a party of children drawn up before 
 the inn, near the scene w^here the merry making was to be held, 
 where he catechised them on Scripture precepts that seemed directed 
 against such rejoicing ; and strange to say the revel was actually 
 broken up ! At another time he had a similar examination before 
 the principal inn of a town in North Wales, long known as 'an 
 immoral and persecuting place.' The result was shortly afterwards 
 the establishment of a school there, containing one hundred chil- 
 dren ! The success of these bold experiments can only be ascribed 
 to the peculiar character of the Welsh people. ... On several 
 occasions, Charles assembled together in the open air, and in a 
 'central district, all the children who had been taught in the schools 
 of North Whales, and they amounted to several thousands." * 
 
 The effect of all this life and labour, drilling and manoeuvring, 
 has been to place the Welsh in their knowledge of Scripture 
 ♦ " Essays on the Causes of Dissent," pp. 45, 46. 
 
 B
 
 242 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES/ 
 
 and theology, probably foremost among all the nations of the. 
 world. From a very early age the people are thus prepared and. 
 qualified to understand and appreciate the public ministrations of 
 their pastors. Hence it is, also, that sermon-hearing is a source of 
 so much gratification to the mass of Welshmen. Their ministers 
 are enabled to enter more deeply and at greater length into doctrinal 
 points; the attention of the hearers can be secured for the whole 
 length of an hour's discourse without flagging, when the most 
 abstruse subjects are handled with the dexterity and unction which 
 are often at the command of some of the " masters of the congrega- 
 tion." It was well for the ministers that intellectual adaptations have 
 been more elastic than the material, else their labours in instructing 
 and edifying the people would have been doubly difficult. In 
 almost all the first chapels of the various denominations the pulpits 
 were invariably placed high, often in too close a proximity to the 
 ceiling for the steadiness of the preacher's head, and a happy 
 sympathy with his hearers. For the sake of acoustic convenience, 
 in later years, the distance and isolation have had to be corrected. 
 The remedy was effected in one of two ways, either by raising the 
 floor of the chapel or by lowering the pulpit — the latter method 
 being resorted to much oftener than the former. Intellectually, 
 however, the relative position of preacher and congregation has 
 continued in better harmony always, for the Sunday School, like a 
 mighty hydraulic power, has been the means of adjusting as it were 
 the platform of the hearers to a suitable and appreciative distance 
 from the standpoint of the preacher, however elevated it might be. 
 In this respect at least the levellivg up process has been in much 
 greater vogue than the levelling down. Long may Wales continue 
 to retain its proud pre-eminence for Scriptural knowledge, and long 
 may its ministers foster Sunday-School labours, which elevates the 
 people to them, rather than they should pamper to any vitiated 
 taste of the people. Another peculiar organization of the Welsh 
 Sunday Schools, and which has materially conduced to the extension 
 of the system has been — ■ 
 
 2. The division of the country into small districts for the purpose 
 of Sunday School Unions. This has mostly been the case with the 
 Calvinistic Methodist and Congregationalist denominations. The 
 number of schools belonging to the union varies from ten to twenty, 
 the limits being generally determined by geographical facilities.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 243 
 
 To the union belong a chairman, secretary, treasurer, and often, hut 
 not always, a raioisterial examiner or catechiser. A meeting is held 
 at one of the schools of the union every six weeks or two months, 
 at which the officers are expected to attend, and one delegate at 
 least from each of the schools constituting the union. The whole 
 Sunday is devoted to advance the interests of the schools of the 
 union generally, and those of the school at which the meeting is 
 held, in particular. One portion of the morning sitting is devoted 
 to the delegates and teachers alone, at which the accounts from 
 each school are read, detailing according to a prescribed form, the 
 number of scholars belonging to each school, the meetings held, 
 and the amount of work done, in committing to memory portions 
 of Scripture and the various catechisms, during the past six weeks. 
 New schemes for the advancement of the schools, or any proposals 
 affecting the good of the district, are here broached and discussed, 
 while considerable time is devoted to inquire of the teachers and 
 officers of the place, their experience in the work ; after which 
 follow counsels and exhortations to further devotedness and fidelity. 
 To the second part of the morning's meeting, the congregation 
 generally is admitted, when a department of the school, oftenest 
 the children, are catechised in a subject already prepared. In the 
 afternoon again, another department, say the youths of both sexes, 
 are similarly questioned, and this is followed by short addresses 
 from the delegates on some point of morality, such as Sabbath 
 profanation, drunkenness, profane swearing, truthfulness, etc., etc., 
 which it is thought from the signs of the time demand special 
 attention. Public exhortations to earnestness in all the work of 
 the institutions find a place in one or other of these meetings. In 
 the evening the whole school is generally catechised in a chapter 
 from one of the catechisms of the denominations or from the Bible, 
 which sometimes takes up the whole service ; but the most usual 
 course is to wind up the work of the day with a sermon from the 
 examiner on a subject bearing on some of the aspects of Sunday- 
 School labour. Most beneficial results have been secured through 
 thcvse organizations, to some of which we shall here briefly advert. 
 
 (1) By the system of statistics kept up the -work of the district 
 has been unified, and stability imparted to the various details of 
 school routine. 
 
 In many of the districts, the figures which represent the progress
 
 244 
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALKS. 
 
 of the schools from the earliest period of the formation of the 
 district to the present time, have been faithfully preserved by the 
 secretaries. As a proof of the care and minuteness exercised, it 
 may be interesting to peruse the following table, which shows the 
 progress of a certain school district in the county of Merioneth, 
 belonging to the Calvinistic Methodists, from the year 1819 to 1880, 
 at intervals of five or ten years. The district is called that of 
 Festiniog, but comprises the whole or part of five other contiguous 
 parishes to it, all connected with the extensive slate quarries which 
 form the staple industry of a wide area. The items inserted in 
 this table are (lonsidered the most important, though others were 
 supplied at the time, such as the average attendance each Sunday, 
 the number of teachers' meetings held, and number of chapters of 
 the various catechisms committed to memory. 
 
 Festiniog Suxday School District. 
 
 Year. 
 
 Schools in 
 
 Number of 
 
 Chapters and 
 
 Separate verses 
 
 District. 
 
 scholars. 
 
 psalms repeated. 
 
 repeated. 
 
 1819 
 
 8 
 
 827 
 
 10,844 
 
 31,098 
 
 1824 
 
 14 
 
 1189 
 
 10,688 
 
 39,346 
 
 1829 
 
 14 
 
 16G6 
 
 10,964 
 
 49,609 
 
 1834 
 
 15 
 
 1432 
 
 9,944 
 
 49,714 
 
 1839 
 
 15 
 
 1630 
 
 12,193 
 
 62,064 
 
 1844 
 
 19 
 
 1977 
 
 17,105 
 
 96,002 
 
 1849 
 
 19 
 
 2317 
 
 16,318 
 
 90,030 
 
 1854 
 
 21 
 
 2462 
 
 17,039 
 
 101,760 
 
 1869 
 
 22 
 
 2785 
 
 16,982 
 
 149,878 
 
 1865 
 
 24 
 
 3284 
 
 20,147 
 In these years 
 
 188,315 
 
 722,695 
 935,262 
 
 1875 
 
 29 
 
 4564 
 
 the chapters 
 
 1880 
 
 33 
 
 5434 j 
 
 are reckoned 
 by their num- 
 
 
 
 
 ber of verses. 
 
 
 In 1877, this district was sub-divided into three portions of about 
 eleven schools each, owing to its having become too unwieldy in its 
 original form, and each of these is now a complete organization in 
 itself. The faithful secretary who has preserved these records of 
 progress from the year 1819 to 1865, was Mr. Morris Lloyd of 
 Trawsfynydd, the father of Mr. Morgan Lloyd, Q.C, M.P. for the 
 Anglesea boroughs, who attended the district meetings with hardly 
 a failure up to the time of his death in April, 1867. In fact, he 
 was only absent from three altogether, though he lived quite at one
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 245 
 
 end of the district, and only then from unavoidable causes. Once 
 he was incapacitated through an accident which befel him, the 
 second time, death in the family prevented his attendance, and the 
 third time, a river which he had to cross had been rendered impassa- 
 ble by a great flood. 
 
 It must not be thought that the increase of scholars from 827 in 
 1819 to 5434 in 1880 is due altogether to evangelistic efforts, a 
 great proportion no doubt must be attributed to the increase of 
 population, for in the registration sub-district of Festiniog a popula- 
 tion of 11,484 in 1871 had increased to 15,112 in 1881, namely, an 
 increase of 3628 in ten years only, and in that of Llanfihangel y 
 Traethau, a portion of which belongs to the Festiniog school district, 
 a population of 4500 in 1871 rose to 5094 by 1881, an increase of 
 594 in ten years. It must be borne in mind also that the number of 
 Sunday School members included in the above table represents only 
 one denomination; if the numbers belonging to all the denominations 
 were put together, then, as is shown by other statistics on this work,* 
 the proportion to the whole population would be found as great as in 
 any other portion of the Principality. The whole county of Merio- 
 neth is divided into about ten school districts, belonging to the 
 Calvinistic Methodists, and every other county in North and South 
 Wales is similarly divided according to the population. 
 
 (2) Another beneficial result of these organizations has been, the 
 encouragement given to the commendable practice of treasuring 
 God's Word in the memory. Mr. Charles gave the first impulse to 
 this custom by asking some member or members of the Sunday 
 School to repeat a chapter of the Bible at the commencement of the 
 services when he was present, a practice which continued in vogue, 
 indeed, throughout the country until very lately. This phase of 
 the labour has now almost entirely disappeared, still the habit of 
 learning portions of the Scriptures by heart, and repeating them in 
 the class, is as prevalent as ever. In the district already referrad to, 
 as is seen from the table, the average reached in 1880 to more than 
 172 verses for each scholar, and in no previous year, we presume, 
 was it exceeded, though the comparison cannot be very perfectly 
 discovered, for in former years the chapters were reckoned separately, 
 whereas recently the verses contained in chapters are added to the 
 separate verses in order to make up the sum total. It has been 
 * See chap. xv.
 
 246 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 thought that this strength of meraory is a peculiarity of WelshrDsn. 
 The following remarks will he read with interest by those who are 
 disposed to favour this view. " The form of the Triad was no doubt 
 adopted as an aid to the memory, by the artificial association of 
 three unconnected events ; and in connection with that remarkable 
 power of memory not unfrequently evinced by Welshmen (a power 
 manifested by the Celts of Britain, and alluded to by Caesar in a 
 passage already quoted, in which he mentions the Druidical practice 
 of committing to memory a great number of verses), attention may 
 be directed to a statement in one of the reports on education, that 
 in a Welsh Sunday School in 1845, there were repeated by the 
 scholar.-? 105 chapters, containing 1716 verses, and 7988 single 
 verses; and that one boy had learned and repeated thirty-five psalms."* 
 We are rather disposed to think that this phenomenon is to be 
 attributed more to a love of the Bible, and to the diligence with 
 which this duty is inculcated on the members, together with the 
 encouragement given in recording the amount of work done and 
 reporting it to the district meeting, than to any innate superiority 
 ])ossessed by the race in the faculty of memory. Other nations are 
 found able enough to learn by heart, whatever they have a liking to, 
 — witness the long extracts so perfectly retained by actors in Eng- 
 land and abroad, for dramatic representation. Nay, the Welsh have 
 been to taught to prize the Bible and to show their appreciation of 
 it, by treasuring it in the heart. They know that it cannot be a 
 " lamp unto the feet and a light unto the path," without being 
 treasured in the memory. The young man cannot " cleanse his 
 way by taking heed thereto according to the word," if that woid 
 has not been impressed upon his mind. The teachers have learnt 
 from the pages of the Word of Truth, that the Comforter, the Holy 
 Ghost, has been promised to bring to remembrance, that is to con- 
 sciousness, the -word once lodged in the memory ; and with the hope 
 that this may be verified in the case of some of their scholars to 
 bring about their conversion, when they themselves may have been 
 laid low in their graves, they persevere in inculcating the duty of 
 learning the word by heart, thus " casting their bread upon the 
 waters," hoping " to find it again after many days." It is said of 
 one of the early Methodist preachers, Eev. David Cadwalader of 
 Bala, that he knew all the New Testament by heart, and a great 
 * Sir T. Phillips's " Wales," p. 21.
 
 . THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 247 
 
 part of the old, but be undertook this labour because he had a real 
 love for tlie Bible. "When it was told him that the Papists were 
 again likely to be in the ascendant, and that they would bum all 
 the Bibles in the land, his reply was^ " They will not burn my Bible, 
 without burning me too." 
 
 (3) Tlie Sunday School Union has contributed much to the effi- 
 ciency of individual schools hy jjromoting a system of periodical 
 inspection. The need of inspection commended itself to some of 
 the leading men of the movement from the very commencement. 
 A number of the most competent members of the union are ap- 
 pointed every year to visit each school, in order to notice any defect 
 or excellence, and to bring a report to the six-weekly meeting, 
 which is read in the hearing of the delegates, each taking 
 home with him the remarks which belong to his school. Many 
 of these visitors or inspectors have shown much aptitude for 
 the work. They have been able to discern the essential quali- 
 fications of a good school, and in the faithful discharge of the 
 trust imposed upon them have been as full in exposing short- 
 comings as in praising superiority. There is a record of some of 
 these inspections dating so far back as the year 1827. Of late, it 
 has been a much more common practice to publish these reports. 
 By selecting those of the same schools for the year 1877, we va^y 
 institute a comparison between their condition, after an interval of 
 fifty years, which will serve to elucidate the character of the inspec- 
 tion, the early development of the schools, and the permanency of 
 the work done, for at least half a century. We shall distinguish the 
 Schools by numbers and not by names, as it is not our object to 
 give prominence to any particular localities, but to illustrate facts 
 which are common to scores of schools throughout the country. 
 
 1827. 1877. 
 1. There are but few children 1. A good school. As regards 
 here unable to read, and few attend- organization and discipline, all that 
 ing altogether compared with what might be expected. AVe thought 
 might have been expected. The this was, to a great extent, to be 
 adults present were generally good attributed to the skill and activity 
 readers. We found tive classes of of the superintendent. The classes 
 men, and one large enough to make read fluently and answer readily, 
 three good ones. The members It is a pity the school had not build- 
 are rather unpunctual in coming to- ings more worthy of its dignity. 
 gether and somewhat lax in learn- 
 ing the Bible by heart, They recited . .
 
 248 
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF V ALES. 
 
 1827. 
 at the end of the school, the 16th 
 chapter of the Instructor, and the 
 3rd chapter of Ephesians was re- 
 peated by one old woman who was 
 over eighty years of age. 
 
 2. A cheerful but small school, 
 no little children belonging to it, 
 and many others besides children 
 neglecting to attend. They repeated 
 passages from Scriptures showing 
 the riches of Christ. 
 
 3. A very numerous school. Very 
 good readers, with the exception 
 of a few. Some adults have neg- 
 lected school. The first chapter of 
 the Instructor was being studied 
 and learnt by the school. Signs 
 of great labour bestowed upon the 
 young children in training them to 
 commit verses to memory. 
 
 4. A large school made up of all 
 ages. Several boys of considerable 
 age unable to read, and consequently 
 not knowing the Ten Command- 
 ments, or any kind of catechism. 
 All conversant with the Lord's 
 Praver. 
 
 1877. 
 
 2. A small but satisfactory school, 
 aiming at a higher standard through 
 many difficulties. It would be a 
 blessing for the school if its leaders 
 took a somewhat more hopeful view 
 of things. We should not be dis- 
 heartened in doing a good work ; 
 for we know not " what will prosper 
 whether this or that." 
 
 3. A flourishing school. The 
 higher classes reading very well. 
 It would be an advantage for the 
 children to be taught spelling and 
 reading from cards, and not from 
 books in the old style. We inferred 
 from the juvenile appearance of the 
 school that the pastoral spirit was 
 lacking here. 
 
 4. A strong school, and as re- 
 gards organization and activity 
 deserving high commendation. We 
 ascribed this to the zeal and un- 
 mistakable ability of the teachers. 
 
 5. A good school, kept not in a 
 chapel, but in four dwelling-houses. 
 The reading on the whole was good, 
 and the answering satisfactory. 
 Cards are wanted here also for the 
 children. 
 
 5. This school is mostly made 
 up of old people and children. Evi- 
 dent signs of labour and diligence 
 with the juvenile classes. They 
 excel all we have come across in 
 their behaviour in some things. 
 They repeated several verses refer- 
 ring to the Sabbath day, and also 
 the first chapter of the Instructor. 
 
 The visitors of 1827, one of whom afterguards became a preacher, 
 and an author of a very good catechism on " The last hours of 
 Jesus Christ," the Rev. Lewis Jones of Bala, add to their report 
 some very suggestive general remarks on the character of the 
 whole district. They have arranged them under several heads. 
 1. Very deficient in answering general questions when catechised
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALKS. 249r 
 
 from the Instructor. There should be greater desire shown by the 
 teachers and the classes able to read, to enlighten one another in the 
 Word. 3. There should be better discretion shown in arranging 
 the size of classes. We often saw classes large enough to be sub- 
 divided into three. 4. Children should not be allowed to proceed 
 with their books without knowing thoroughly what they have gone 
 over, and no class of good readers should be left to mutual instruc- 
 tion without being under the charge of a special teacher. 5. No 
 one should be appointed a teacher without being duly enlightened 
 in the importance of the office. 6. There were too many proofs 
 of many remaining satisfied with being able to pronounce the words 
 without making any effort to expre^^s the meaning of the whole 
 jtassage. There should be more pains taken by the teachers to get 
 their classes to understand what they read by patiently questioning 
 them, and by making sure in the first place that they themselves 
 understand what is read. 
 
 (4) The district union meetings have no doubt secured longer life 
 and greater effi^ciency to the practice of public catechising or ex- 
 amining. Most schools are liable to flag and degenerate in this 
 praiseworthy department of Sunday-School work. One special 
 provision which has undoubtedly conduced to keep up the practice, 
 has been the great day for the public demonstration of school work 
 which came round to each at least ever}'' twelve or eighteen months, 
 in connection with the district meeting. The subjects for exami- 
 nation are selected a long time beforehand, and a part of every 
 school meeting is devoted to a special preparation for the great day. 
 Although the delegates are not expected to take part in answering, 
 still the fact that strangers from neighbouring schools are sure 
 to be present as hearers, stimulates the whole school to greater 
 thoroughness in the preparation. It is reckoned a matter of con- 
 siderable disgrace for any school to fail to give a satisfactory answer 
 to a question within the range prescribed to the examiner. In 
 cases of great emergency some of the most proficient of the dele- 
 gates will kindly step to the rescue of a struggling school. 
 
 The author well remembers when a youth in his native home 
 the revered patriarch, Mr. Morris Lloyd, the indefatigable secretary 
 already referred to, interposing with a helping hand when one of 
 the largest schools of the district had been completely nonplussed. 
 The subject of examination was "The offices of Christ," from the
 
 '250 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 Instructor, and the catecbist was, Eev. Griffith Hughes of Edeyrn. 
 When proceeding with the extempore questioning the inquiry 
 incidentally turned to the personal poverty of the Saviour and the 
 general character of his followers in this respect. A question was 
 propounded whether he had any of the wealthy class among his 
 attendants. The names of Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemiis 
 were readily instanced. More were required, and a few more very 
 slowly produced. But one at least was still wanting, and when 
 knowledge or memory had entirely failed, and the whole school kept 
 in a painful suspense for some moments with no one able to break 
 the silence, Mr. Lloyd quietly solved the difficulty by responding, 
 "Johanna, wife of Chusa, Herod's steward." The Eev. John 
 Piytherch, in Anglesea, was considered in his day an excellent 
 carechist. When he used to come to a locality, whether in con- 
 nection with a district meeting or with his ordinary Sunday pub- 
 lication, it was always arranged for the school to be catechised as 
 part or whole of one of the services. Weeks were devoted to pre- 
 pare against his coming. Rev. John Hughes, D.D., of Liverpool, 
 speaking in an Association on the Sunday School, testified to Mr. 
 Prytherch's popularity as a catecbist. He said that when he was 
 a boy the children thought much more of Mr. Prytherch than of 
 Rev. John Elias. It was considered a great distinction to be able 
 to answer a question after all had failed. 1'he subject on one 
 occasion, he remembered, was *' The History of Saul, King of 
 Israel." After progressing favourably for some time in answering, 
 a question came at which they all staggered — " Who were Saul's 
 children ? " He happened to have got up that portion well, and 
 when profound silence had reigned for some time he called out 
 with great confidence, "Jonathan, Abinadab, and Melchishuah." 
 In commenting upon this incident he remarked, " that although he 
 had forgotten far more important answers given at the time, the 
 names of Saul's sons had been indelibly impressed on his memory 
 ever since, showing how much a certain amount of enthusiasm 
 conduces to progress in every department of learning." 
 
 3. We must not omit another special characteristic of Welsh 
 Sunday Schools, as distinguished from those of England, though 
 not strictly included in the term "organization," viz. that the 
 labours of the teachers from the commencement were entirely gra- 
 tuitous. It was not so at first, we find, with Mr. Raikes's schools.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 251 
 
 The particular mode in which he proceeiled to establish his schools 
 was as follows : Alter being fully persuaded that it was his duty 
 to " try " and reform the notorious immorality of the children of 
 a certain part of the parish of St. Johu's, Grioucester, and having 
 fixed upon the house of one Mr. King, St. Catherine Street, to open 
 a school, he placed about ninety children whose names he had pre- 
 viously procured to attend, under the care of four persons to whom 
 he paid each one shilling a Sunday. Writing to Mrs. Harris, of 
 Chelsea, November 5, 1787, the proportion of payment is more 
 fully described. " The stipend to the teachers here is a shilling 
 each Sunday, but we find them firing, and bestow gratuities as 
 rewards of diligence, which may make it worth sixpence more." 
 In the year 1785, Mr. William Fox, a deacon of the Baptist Church 
 worshipping at Prescott Street, London, succeeded in forming a 
 " Society for the Establishment and Support of Sunday Schools 
 throughout the Kingdom of Grreat Britain." In the first report of 
 the committee, published in January, 1786, it is stated that they 
 had established five schools in the neighbourhood of London, and 
 had received subscriptions to the amount of £987 Os. Qd. It was 
 felt from the commencement in England that the expense of hiring 
 teachers was a great impediment to the prosperity of the schools. 
 In fourteen years, between 1780 and 1800, the Sunday School 
 Society alone paid upwards of £4000 in stipends ; gradually the 
 system of hiring gave way to the employment of gratuitous teachers. 
 The idea is said to have originated in a meeting of zealous Wesleyan 
 office-bearers, one of wliom, when the others were lamenting over 
 the fact that they had no funds for hiring teachers said, " Let's do 
 it ourselves." 
 
 In Wales this difficulty never presented itself. Mr. Charles 
 never dreamt of allowing the instruction of his fellow-countrymen 
 in the grand truths of Scripture to rest on such a weak foundation. 
 No doubt he w^as assisted in this by the intense religious feeling pre- 
 valent in the country at the time. As has been already described, 
 it is true the few circulating schoolmasters who were instrumental 
 in establishing many of them, were paid a scanty pittance for their 
 general service, but when the people were thoroughly convinced 
 that the work of instructing each other in Scriptural truths was 
 God's service, there was no lack of volunteers ; of each it might be 
 said, " what this one could do, he or she did it." The efficiency of
 
 252 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 the work done is very greatly attributable to the fact that the mer- 
 cenary feeling of labouring for hire has been entirely dispensed 
 with. When the schools of England were conducted on the hiring 
 principle it was said of the teachers " that many appeared rather to 
 continue their services for the purpose of securing the trifling 
 emoluments to which they were thereby entitled than from zeal 
 to promote the object of the institution." A far higher principle 
 actuated the Welsh teachers at all times— they were prompted to 
 the work by a love of souls and a burning zeal to see the bounds of 
 the Saviour's kingdom continually extended. The same feeling as 
 impelled Raikes and Charles to commence the good work ruled in 
 the breast of each teacher to continue it, and to whom therefore 
 they were not unworthy followers. The credit due to the teachers 
 of the Welsh schools and their scholars too, does not end here. 
 Not only do the former receive no hire, they and their scholars 
 have been eminent these many years for their liberality towards 
 every good cause. In many schools there is scarcely a Sunday 
 passing but that contributions are solicited from them towards the 
 support of various philanthropic movements and Christian agencies. 
 A new house for the Bible Society, a million Testaments for China, 
 a monument to Mr. Charles of Bala, the liquidating of chapel debts, 
 supporting preaching anniversaries, besides expenses incident to 
 the promotion of the system itself, such as providing text books 
 and prizes for the schools and the maintenance of the district 
 union — these and other objects too many to be enumerated, have 
 been and are, continually receiving to their appeals for aid, a ready 
 and cheerful response. The character of the gift is not marred by 
 its want of heart ; on the contrary, it is full of this essential 
 element of true generosity — 
 
 " The quality of mercy is not strained ; 
 It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven." 
 
 4. The last special phase of the Welsh Sunday Schools, which has 
 been the aim of every organization and peculiarity, is the great 
 object steadily pursued from the comrn en cement ; being no other than 
 the eternal salvation of all coming within the range of their instruc- 
 tion. It was this high and holy end which was sought to be ob- 
 tained that was brought forward by the early promoters, to justify 
 the preliminary and preparatory forms of instruction, as consistent 
 with the sacredness of the Sabbath-day. In earlier years the cate-
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 253 
 
 chising had its direction much more to awaken the conscience than 
 to enlighten the understanding. This was peculiarly the style of 
 Mr. Charles and Mr. Owen Jones. To this cause, no doubt, is to be 
 attributed the numerous religious awakenings which either directly 
 emanated from the schools in their origin, or were chiefly indebted to 
 co-operation from them, for their extension. We have already inserted 
 a letter by Mr. Charles dated May, 1805, in which he attributed 
 the great revival of that period, immediately to the intensity of 
 feeling produced at the Sunday School just commenced at Aberyst- 
 with by Mr. Owen Jones. An earlier revival, which took place at 
 Bala and neighbourhood in 1791, was directly and chiefly connected 
 with the schools. " Here at Bala," writes Mr. Charles, describing 
 it, " we have been blessed with a great, mighty, and glorious out- 
 pouring of the Spirit upon the congregation, and especially upon the 
 children and young peo[)le. Scores of the wildest and most thought- 
 less young men and women have been converted. ... I would not 
 have died without seeing what I have lately seen — no, not for the 
 world. The free schools are greatly blessed. The children, who 
 were like pearls hid in the dust and mire, now shine with great 
 brilliancy and beauty. Little children from six to twelve years of 
 age are melted and overcome. Their little minds are full of sjDiritual 
 things night and day. All this is an undeniable fact ; I do not use 
 exaggeration, but, on the contrary, have only selected a small part 
 of that which is. The Lord has done great things for us, and to 
 Him be the praise ! " The same may be said of almost every other 
 revival in Wales, and they have been very numerous from time to 
 time, that the children of the Sunday Schools have been specially 
 benefited, thus fulfilling the words of the prophet Joel, " And your 
 sons and daughters shall prophecy, . . . your young men shall see 
 visions, and also upon thy servants, and upon thy handmaids, in 
 those days, will I pour out my Spirit." 
 
 It may not be amiss here to speak a word in favouc- of the 
 revivals which have formed so remarkable a feature in the religious 
 progress of the Principality. Of late, awakenings, described as 
 revivals, have been brought into some disrepute, and this ap- 
 parently not without some show of reason. Too often have they 
 been liable to a well sustained charge of being entirely made-up 
 things. Professional revivalists have been going about from place 
 to place, abounding in expressions, and revelling in conduct, if not
 
 254 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 absolutely blasphemous, at least grating to the feelings of all 
 refined minds and reverent Christians, Tn the special services held 
 with the view of producing a revival, every effort is put forth to 
 excite the religious susceptibilities, and the promoters do not feel 
 satisfied in breaking up the meeting without effecting at least an 
 outward demonstration of some unusual influences. We do not 
 forget that the Spirit works by means of human instrumentalities, 
 and we are not ready to assert that he repudiates efforts directly 
 aimed at producing results of a predetermined form, all we say, 
 now is, that the revivals connected with tiie Sunday Schools of 
 Wales were not of this type ; and in this respect we presume that 
 they agree better with the Scriptural description of the working of 
 the Divine inflatus, " The wind bloweth where it listeth ; and 
 thou henrest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, 
 and whither it goeth ; so is every one that is born of the Spirit." 
 In the revivals originating with the Sunday Schools it was at the 
 usual catechising exercise, in singing a hymn at the middle or 
 end of the school, or at a prayer meeting not held with a view of 
 producing a revival, but as a farewell service to a young man whose 
 labours had been eminently blessed before, that the mighty over- 
 powering influence came ; and, in the last instance referred to, the 
 feeling evidently was not the natural manifestation of sorrow at 
 parting with a dear friend and benefector, but a deep solicitude 
 pervading all, for the welfare of the soul, and a strong desire that 
 all should be found within the bonrls of that covenant, over which 
 neither death nor the grave has any dominion. 
 
 Sir T. Phillips, in his work on Wales, though not uttering his 
 own views on the essential value of these revivals, has, nevertheless, 
 quoted an extract from the pen of an eye-witness of one of them, 
 which he does not undertake to criticise. The extract is inserted 
 here, in order to elucidate the remarks made above respecting their 
 spontaneous origin, and we also shall leave the reader to satisfy 
 himself, after duly weighing the evidence, as it was asked with 
 reference to the baptism of John, " whether it was of God or 
 of men." 
 
 The following description of religious revivals, characteristic as 
 they are of the people, and of the system of Methodism, should not 
 be overlooked : — 
 
 " By a revival is understood an exterior awakening at a particular
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 255' 
 
 timo. Occasional conversions are not considered revivals, but such 
 awakenings as are numerous, and extend nearly at the same time 
 over a large portion of the country. It was deemed a revival when 
 many were convinced and brought to the knowledge of the truth. 
 It usually began in some one place, spread through the neighbour- 
 hood, and extended at times through several counties. Scores and 
 even hundreds were at the same time pricked in their hearts, and 
 were led and constrained to cry out, " Men and brethren, what 
 shall we do to be saved ? " It is said that seven of these remarkable 
 revivals took place in Rowlands' lifetime. This wonderful work 
 began while Rowlands was ministering in the Established Church ; 
 and it is commonly said that it commenced in Llangeitho church 
 while Rowlands was reading the Litany, and while he was reading 
 these words, ' By thine agony and bloody sweat, good Lord, 
 deliver us.' The words in Welsh are very expressive and 
 affecting — ' Trwy dy ddirfawr Ing, a'th chwys gwaedlyd, gwared 
 ni, Arglwydd daionus.' 
 
 " The touching and melting manner in which Rowlands repeated 
 these words affected the whole assembly so much that they 
 almost all wept, and wept loudly. The extreme agony, as the 
 Welsh expression is, of the Saviour, while suffering for their sins, 
 was what touched their feelings and melted their hearts and filled 
 their eyes with tears. They looked on Him whom they had 
 pierced, and they mourned and wept. Many in the congregation 
 were really convinced and converted, as their posterior conduct 
 proved. This awakening was not confined to Llangeitho, bat 
 extended through the neighbourhood. The third visitation of 
 this kind took place a short time after Rowlands had been ejected 
 from his churches, and is probably what has been called the 
 Great Revival on account of its extent, having spread through all 
 the counties of South Wales. It began at Llangeitho chajjel 
 while Rowlands was preaching. His late son remembered the 
 commencement of this, and, as he told the writer, the effect was 
 very wonderful. The whole chapel seemed as if it was filled with 
 some supernatural element, and the whole assembly was seized 
 with extraordinary emotions ; hundreds of them, with tears 
 streaming down their faces, some evidently from excess of sorrow, 
 others from the overflowing of joy, some broken and contrite with 
 penitence, others rejoicing with the hope of glory. It may have
 
 256 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 been that on this occasion a passage of Scripture had, as stated by 
 his son, an uncommon impression on tlie people. The passage was, 
 * I thank thee, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou 
 hast hid these tilings from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed 
 them unto babes; even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Thy 
 sight.' Matt. xi. 25, 26. It was in these revivals that jumping 
 or leaping for joy occurred, the excited feelings breaking forth at 
 one and the same time, not only in jumping, but also in ejacula- 
 tions, signifying glory or hallelujah." * 
 
 With regard to the jumping referred to in the above extract, it 
 may be desirable to explain that this practice was altogether con- 
 fined to the earlier revivals, and that no such manifestations have 
 been attending those of later times. 
 
 But it is not in connection with revivals only that the Sabbath 
 Schools have been the means of securing the eternal salvation of 
 their members. Steadily and consistently throughout the years 
 has this object been kept in view, and whenever it is feared that 
 this essential mission is too much lost sight of, faithful messages 
 are sent from the District Union Meeting, through the delegates, 
 urging the teachers not to flag in endeavouring to bring home the 
 truths of the Bible to the heart and conscience of the scholars. 
 Many a pious teacher has never remained satisfied until he has had 
 reason to believe that all under his care have been brought to a 
 saving knowledge of the truth. Every individual member of the 
 class is made the subject of special prayer, that God should 
 graciously bless the teaching to the conversion of his soul, so that 
 none, after so many years of happy intercourse here below, should 
 be for ever separated in the world to come. 
 
 The result of so much earnest labour has been to add considerably 
 to the number of Church members. Statistics of the Churches 
 show that the great proportion of their present members have been 
 added through the agency of Sunday School teachers. Nor is this 
 so much to be wondered at. It is quite evident that the teacher 
 has many advantages over the minister of the Gospel in particu- 
 larizing his aim. The minister, from the pulpit, can only appeal 
 in general and random remarks to the varied needs of his hearers ; 
 the teacher has the means of ascertaining the peculiar feelings, the 
 difficulties and experiences of each member, and so bring all his 
 * Phillips's " Wales," pp. 144, 145.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 257 
 
 arguments to bear directly on the point at issue. Many a teacher 
 having reason to suspect that some of his scholars, like Israel of 
 old on Mount Carmel, were halting between two opinions, has pre- 
 vailed upon one and another to decide for Christ, and to say, " The 
 Lord he is the God ! The Lord he is the God " ; and to many has 
 he given a helping hand by standing as it were their sponsor at 
 the Church meetings, when the new convert declared his wish " to 
 give himself first to the Lord, and afterwards to his people." That 
 this spirit may continue to animate all present and future teachers, 
 is the urgent prayer of all true lovers of the institution.
 
 258 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 CHAPTER XIT. 
 
 Later Modifications and Improvements. 
 
 Criticisms on Welsh Sunday Schools — The Commissioners of 1846 — Cir- 
 cumstances of their appointment — Subsequent estimates of their 
 fitness for the work — Mr. Henry Richard's remarks in 1866 — Mr. 
 Lewis Morris's in 1882 — Mr. Lingen's report on the Sunday Schools 
 of a part of South Wales quoted — Also Mr. Symons's on the other 
 part — And Mr. Johnson's on those of North Wales — Sir Charles 
 Reed's subsequent report to the committee of English Sunday School 
 Union — A review of Mr. Lingen's remarks — Brings worldly principles 
 to explain the working of a Christian institution — An entire miscon- 
 ception of the character of the Welsh workman — Not lacking in 
 deference to superior — Obliged to be self-educated — Not actuated by 
 ambition — The Sunday Schools always aiming at the promotion of 
 every moral virtue — Mr. Symons superior in discernment — His 
 disapproval of metaphj'sical and theological inquiries discussed — The 
 teaching of children to read not to be dispensed with — Whether 
 greater isolation desirable — Improvement in organization since those 
 days — Standards of attainment introduced — More thoughtfulness in 
 style of questioning — Mr. Fitch on "Thoughtless questions" and 
 "Catechisms " — Sunday School "Associations " — Specimens of prepar- 
 atory questions — Written examinations — Concluding remarks on the 
 modifications. 
 
 The Sunday Schools of Wales have been subjected to all sorts of 
 criticisms, some favourable and some adverse, on almost all the 
 peculiar features which have been described in the two preceding 
 chapters. The former class have not been entirely confined to 
 natives of the Principality, who from a natural leaning towards an 
 indigenous institution, might be looked upon as disqualified to form 
 an impartial and disinterested judgment, but Englishmen also, after 
 making them objects of special inspection and study, have declared 
 their great, though not unqualified, admiration of most of the 
 arrangements and general results. The latter class have no doubt 
 emanated mostly from strangers ; but with some, the correctness of
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 259 
 
 tbeir decisions is open to grave suspicion, both on account of thfir 
 well-known ignorance of peculiar circumstances, and from the 
 hasty and cursory survey upon which they have based their con- 
 clusions. Introductory to our discussion of the modern improve- 
 ments adopted into the schools, we shall call the reader's attention 
 to some of these criticisms, of both kinds, and then proceed to point 
 out how far, we think, those remarks were justified, what defects 
 have been remedied in accordance with those remarks, and how far 
 the reformed state agrees with the spread of knowledge and the 
 progress made in educational methods and appliances generally. 
 
 The first witnesses whose evidence we shall quote, are the Com- 
 missioners of 1846. When we remember the great importance 
 attached to their criticisms at the time, and the frequent references 
 made to their reports even at these days, it may not be uninterest- 
 ing to recall the circumstances under which they were appointed, 
 and especially the nature of the instructions they received in their 
 inquiry into the Sunday-School system of the Principality. 
 
 On the 10th day of March, 1846, a motion was made in the House 
 of Commons for an address to the Queen, praying her Majesty " to 
 direct an inquiry to be made into the state of education in the 
 Principality of Wales, especially into the means afforded to the 
 labouring classes of acquiring a knowledge of the English language." 
 The Secretary of State for the Home Department having, on that 
 occasion, undertaken that such an inquiry should be instituted, the 
 duty of conducting it was confided to the Committee of Council on 
 Education, who did not employ for that purpose their own in- 
 spectors, but on the 1st October, 1846, instructed three gentlemen, 
 who are designated Commissioners of Inquiry into the State of 
 Education in Wales, "to ascertain as accurately as circumstances 
 will pjermit, the existing number of schools of all descriptions in 
 Wales for the education of the children of the labouring classes 
 or of adults, the amount of attendance, the ages of the scholars, 
 and the character of the instruction given in the schools, in 
 order that her Majesty's government and parliament may be 
 enabled, by having these facts before them, in connection with the 
 wants and circumstances of the population of the Principality, to 
 consider what measures ought to be taken for the improvement of 
 the existing means of education in Wales." 
 
 In the instructions issued from the Committee of Council on
 
 260 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 Education, on the 1st October, 1846, to these gentlemen, are con- 
 tained the following passages directly bearing on the special sphere 
 with which we are now concerned : — 
 
 " Numerous Sunday Schools have been established in Wales, and 
 their character and tendencies should not be overlooked in an attempt 
 to estimate the provision for the instruction of the poor. The 
 Sunday School must be regarded as the most remarkable, because 
 the most general spontaneous effort of the zeal of the Christian 
 congregations for education. Its origin, organization, and tendencies, ' 
 are purely religious. The amount of secular instruction com- 
 municated is generally limited to the art of reading ; while, there- 
 fore, you avail yourself of any opportunity afforded you to enter 
 such schools, you will bear in mind that they are schools of religion, 
 and that the respect which is due from you, as an officer of the 
 government, for the liberty which religious communities enjoy, 
 should render you exceedingly careful that you in no degree 
 infringe the civil privileges of religious congregations, either while 
 in the school, or by the use you make of the information you may 
 be permitted to acquire." 
 
 It might have been expected from the high authority by which 
 they received their appointment, and the special care, as shown in 
 the above extract, with which the nature of their duties, and the 
 limits of their inquiry were defined, that the commissioners them- 
 selves would have been men eminently qualified in every respect 
 for the work entrusted to them. The general verdict now is, 
 however, that they were eminently disqualified, both as regards 
 their own personal experience and the influence to which they 
 submitted themselves when collecting their information. Being 
 anxious not to supply any occasion to repeat the injustice done to 
 the people by the reproduction of their remarks, we shall premise 
 our quotations with the generally-accepted estimate of the qualifica- 
 tions of the witnesses. This is no more than what is done by 
 every tribunal. Eighteen years after the report had been issued 
 Mr. Henry Richard reflected the general verdict of his countrymen 
 respecting these officials in the following terms: — "The com- 
 mission consisted of three young barristers, who went about their 
 work in utter ignorance of the language, the character, and all the 
 social and religious peculiarities of the people. While groping 
 about in the dark for some means of acquiring the information
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 261 
 
 they were in search of, they fell into the hands of one class, who 
 hood- winked and misguided them in every possible way. The 
 result of their labours was presented to the public in the form of 
 three enormous blue books, containing a picture of the people, as 
 respects their intelligence, morality and religion, which was un- 
 hesitatingly, and with singular unanimity, pronounced by all who 
 had any real acquaintance with the country, to be a gross and 
 hideous caricature. Unhappily, however, coming from men who 
 in some sense represented the government, it was widely accepted 
 in England as a true representation, and some traditionary echo 
 from those huge official libels still lingers in many minds." * 
 
 After such a sweeping denunciation, it is easily felt that in no 
 spirit of self-imposed importance does Mr. Lewis Morris, a member 
 of the Commission of 1880, contrast the qualifications of his fellow- 
 commissioners with those of the Commission of 1846. " Of that 
 commission," writes he, " composed as it was of young English 
 barristers, with no more knowledge of the wants of the country on 
 which they had to report, than if it had been Timbuctoo, it is 
 impossible to say that it was in any sense a success, or to deny that 
 it had the effect of seriously misleading and retarding the growth of 
 public opinion. Hasty dicta, reflecting gravely on the intellect and 
 morals of a people of whose language and circumstances they knew 
 nothing, are far too frequent in the pages of that report. They 
 were thrown out in the same light-hearted way in which a lad 
 fresh from the University sets himself cheerfully to review and 
 underrate the life-work of some established writer or statesman, of 
 whose defects or excellences he is in the happiest ignorance. But 
 the haste and the flippancy of which the critics have no doubt long 
 since been heartily ashamed, still rankle in the hcMrt of the Welsh 
 people, and after the lapse of thirty-six years, are still widely 
 known among them as, ' Brad y llyfrau gleision,' — The Treason of 
 the Blue Books." f 
 
 Though it is generally admitted that their report on the Sunday 
 Schools of the Principality, in accordance with the nature of their 
 instructions from head-quarters, has been conceived in a better 
 spirit than their remarks on the other departments of their inquiry, 
 
 * " Letters on the Social and Political Condition of Wales," p. 2. 
 t " Higher Education in Wales," Contemporary Review^ April 1882, pp. 
 656, 657.
 
 262 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 still the character of flippancy and lightheartedness with which 
 they are charged is enough to justify a request for the reader to 
 defer his verdict until he hears what can be said to quality much 
 of their criticisms. Mr. Lingen, who visited the counties of Caer- 
 marthen, Glamorgan and Pembroke, is particularly struck with the 
 phenomenon of the lower orders endeavouring to educate themselves 
 without any help or guidance from their social superiors. Rather 
 than troubling himself to ascertain whether the system really 
 effected what it aimed at, he proceeds at once to find fault that 
 such rashness should ever have been contemplated. His estimate 
 of the Welsh workman in his laudable efforts for self-elevation is 
 anything but flattering : — ■ 
 
 " Cut off from," he says of him, " or limited to, a purely material 
 agency in the practical world, his mental faculties, so far as they 
 are not engrossed by the hardships of rustic, or the intemperance of 
 manufacturing life, have hitherto been exerted almost exclusively 
 upon theological ideas. In this direction, too, from causes which it 
 is out of my province to particularize, he has moved under the 
 same isolating destiny, and his worship, like his life, has grown 
 difi'erent from that of the classes over him. Nor has he failed of 
 tangible results in his chosen province of independent exertion. 
 He has raised the buildings, and maintains the ministry of his 
 worship over the whole face of his country, to an extent adequate 
 to his accommodation. I am at liberty to consider only one part of 
 this system — the Sunday Schools — which I shall at once do, with 
 some minuteness, as exhibiting the most characteristic development 
 of native intellect, and the eflbrts of the mass of a people, utterly 
 unaided to educate themselves upon their own model. These 
 schools have been almost the sole — they are still the main and 
 most congenial — centres of education. Through their agency the 
 younger portion of the adult labouring classes in Wales can generally 
 read, or are in course of learning to read, the Scriptures in their 
 mother tongue. A fifth of the entire population is returned as 
 attending these schools, and half of this number is returned as able 
 to read the Scriptures. The type of the Sunday School is no more 
 than this: — A congregation meets in its chapel; it elects those 
 whom it considers to be its most worthy members, intellectually 
 and religiously, to act as teachers to the rest — and one or more to 
 superintend the whole ; Bible-classes, Testament-classes, and classes
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 263 
 
 which cannot read, are formed. They meet in the afternoon, and 
 sometimes in the morning also, of each Sunday. The superinten- 
 dent, or one of the teachers, begins the school by prayer ; they 
 then sing ; then follows the class instruction— the Bible and Testa- 
 ment classes reading and discussing the Scriptures, the others 
 learning to read ; school is closed in the same way as it began. 
 Sections of the same congregation, where distance or other causes 
 render it difficult for them to assemble in the chapel, establish 
 similar schools elsewhere. These are called branches. The consti- 
 tution throughout is purely democratic, presenting an office and some 
 sort of title to every man who is able and willing to take an active 
 part in its administration, without much reference to his social 
 position during the other six days of the week. My returns show 
 11,000 voluntary teachers with an allowance of about seven scholars 
 to each. Whatever may be the accuracy of the numbers, I believe 
 this relative proportion to be not far wrong. The position of teacher 
 is coveted as a distinction, and is multiplied accordingly ; it is not 
 unfrequently the first prize to which the most proficient pupils in 
 the parochial schools look ; for them it is a step towards the office 
 of preacher and minister. The universality of these schools, and 
 the large proportion of the persons attending them who take part 
 in their government, have very generally familiarized the people 
 with some of the more ordinary terms and methods of organization 
 such as committee and secretary. Thus, there is everything about 
 such institutions which can recommend them to the popular taste — 
 they gratify that gregarious sociability which animates the Welsh 
 towards each other — they present the charms of office to those who 
 on all other occasions are subject, and of distinction to those who 
 have no other chance of distinguishing themselves. The topics 
 current in them are those of the most general interest, and are treated 
 in a mode partly didactic, partly polemical, partly rhetorical ; finally 
 every man, woman, and child, feels comfortably at home in them. 
 It is all among neighbours and equals. Whatever ignorance is 
 shown, whatever mistakes are made, whatever strange speculations 
 are started, there are no superiors to smile and open their eyes; 
 common habits of thought pervade all; they are intelligible or 
 excusable to one another ; hence, every one that has got anything 
 to say is under no restraint from saying it. Whatever such 
 •Sunday Schools may be as places of instruction, they are real fields
 
 264 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 of mental activity ; the Welsh working man rouses himself for them ; 
 Sunday is to him more than a day of bodily rest and devotion— it 
 is his best chance of showing himself, all the week through, in his 
 own character ; he marks his sense of it by a suit of clothes regarded 
 with a feeling hardly less Sabbatical than the day itself. I do not 
 remember to have seen an adult in rags in a single Sunday School 
 throughout the poorest districts ; they always seemed to be better 
 dressed on Sundays than the same classes in England." 
 
 After thus minutely and philosophically describing the schools, 
 according to his theory, as a reflection of the characteristics of the 
 people, and the people as being confirmed in those peculiarities by 
 the essential arrangements of the schools, Mr. Lingen proceeds in 
 the next place to explain, as understood by him, some of the special 
 features which have been described in the preceding pages. His 
 words are : — 
 
 " The original idea of the Welsh Sunday School (a mixture of 
 worship, discussion, and elementary instruction, which the congre- 
 gation performs for itself, and without other agency than its own) is 
 found under every variety of development between a highly 
 elaborated and the rudest form. 
 
 " In the rudest form of the institution little more is attempted 
 than reading, or slowly learning to read, the Scriptures. Each class 
 by itself, reads through the Bible from beginning to end. There is 
 no questioning or discussion in the greater number of classes, or, if 
 any, it is merely those verbatim interrogatories which I shall here- 
 after have to describe. Besides this, there is the learning to repeat 
 verses, chapters, and Pwncau. With regard to the verses and 
 chapters, we find such curious records as the following : — 
 
 " * In the last year, 105 chapters of Holy Scriptures, containing 
 1716 verses, and 7988 single verses, were repeated in the school ' 
 (then follows a table of seven schools, showing number of scholars, 
 number of verses learned, or number of psalms and chapters). 
 ■ "■ At the time that this account was taken, prizes were given to 
 Levy Lewis, a boy employed on the wharfs, who had learned and re- 
 peated thirty-five psalms ; and to David Hughes, a collier's boy, who 
 had learned and repeated twenty-six chapters of the Old Testament, 
 during the preceding quarter. 
 
 " Pwncmi is the plural of Pwnc, which means a point, sc, of 
 doctrine, printed in question and answer, with Scripture proofs.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 265 
 
 Each denomination, almost each chapel, has Pimicau of its own, 
 which are, from time to time, published in the cheapest form 
 possible. The different classes in a school have several parts of a 
 Pwnc assigned to them. Each class learns its own part only. As 
 soon as it is well committed to heart, the school makes a sort of 
 triumphant procession to other chapels, very often to churches, to 
 repeat publicly what they have thus learned. The mode of recita- 
 tion is a species of chant, taken up in parts, and at the end joined in 
 by all. It is generally expected that they should be able to sing a 
 hymn or two at the same time. 
 
 " In such schools there is usually to be seen some very old person, 
 who, at that age, has learned to read in them. 
 
 " A woman aged seventy-two, commenced learning the alphabet at 
 seventy, and read a page from an elementary book to me, with great 
 accuracy. 
 
 " In this school, there were among the scholars, three old women, 
 one upwards of eighty, who, at that advanced age, had learned to 
 read. She was now blind, but attended the school as a listener, 
 and could repeat many psalms. 
 
 " Regular accounts of attendance are seldom kept. The school 
 itself is sometimes dropped, during bad weather and short days. On 
 its recommencement, it is said to be ' revived.' This generally is 
 done by a prayer-meeting. 
 
 *' Very different from the foregoing are those instances in which 
 the vigour of the old institution has been clothed in more modern 
 dress, such as Capel Mair, Capel Penygroes, the Narberth Sunday 
 School Union, the Wesleyan and Independent schools at Milford, or 
 the Wesleyan at Bridgend and Cardiff. The distinguishing mark of 
 superiority in these latter schools is, that all the classes which can 
 read the Scriptures are simultaneously employed upon the same 
 passage ; generally a very short one. By this plan, the minister, if 
 he takes part in the school, is enabled to prepare all the teachers 
 beforehand, or the teachers to meet and discuss the passage among 
 themselves, and at the end of school all the classes can be catechised 
 simultaneously. 
 
 " The causes which have been pointed out as enhancing the 
 popularity, and so far, the utility of Sunday schools, apply to adults 
 rather than to the young. In country districts, where the great 
 majority of Sunday scholars are adults, the teaching of the junior
 
 266 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 classes is most meagre and unmethodical. It is true, they learn to 
 read in time, and, as they grow older, work themselves into the 
 system of the school. Except, however, as preparing them for this, 
 the education which they can get on such occasions is worth little. 
 Though Sunday Schools are too often the only substitute for daily 
 education, it is not pretended that they can supply its deficiency. 
 On this point no evidence is more positive than that of Sunday 
 School teachers and superintendents : — 
 
 "Mr. John Davies, — 'The education received at a Sunday School 
 is nothing like sufficient for the wants of the poor.' 
 
 "ifr. Rhys Jones. — ' The Sunday Schools effect a great deal in the 
 moral and religious instruction of the people ; and very few children 
 fail to attend some Sunday School or other. The instruction, how- 
 ever, which is possible for them to acquire here, is inadequate to 
 their wants ; being confined to purely religious topics and the art of 
 reading. We experience much difficulty in making even thus much 
 progress with a child that attends no day school at all.' 
 
 " Mr. B, Thomas. — ' The instruction received at a Sunday School 
 is quite inadequate for the general education of the children of the 
 poor.' 
 
 *' The popular Sunday Schools are maintained at little or no 
 expense. Almost every adult scholar possesses his own Bible. The 
 elementary books used are little stitched pamphlets of the com- 
 monest kind. These are purchased by subscription. Commentaries 
 are usually the property of individuals. They are possessed and 
 read to a considerable extent. The rabbinical sort of learning, or 
 exalted doctrine, often contained in them, suits the popular taste. 
 I have heard the most minute accounts given of such customs as 
 Expulsion from the Synagogue, and the Constitution of the Jewish 
 Councils, and it will be seen by reference to the reports of my 
 assistant, Mr. Morris, that a familiar acquaintance with formulae em- 
 bodying the more abstruse parts of the Divinity is far from being 
 uncommon. Maps were seldom in use, but the Rev. David Rees, of 
 Llanelly, told me that he believed the generality of Sunday scholars 
 to be better versed in the geography of Palestine than of Wales. 
 The addition of a lending library belongs only to the best organized 
 schools. 
 
 " The influence which a separating language has had in giving 
 this peculiar turn to popular education may be estimated from the
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 267 
 
 following table (extracted from the Parochial Summary), in which 
 the two first hundreds are Welsh-spoken, lying in the upper part 
 of Caermarthenshire ; the two last, English-spoken, lying in the 
 south of Pembrokeshire. 
 
 Hundreds. 
 
 Cathinog 
 Perfedd 
 Castleraartin 
 Xarberth 
 
 Popula- 
 tion. 
 
 11,067 
 7460 
 4607 
 
 13,151 
 
 No. of 
 
 Day 
 
 Schools. 
 
 No. of 
 
 Sunday I 
 
 Schools. Scholars. Church 
 
 No. of I No. of Sunday Scholars 
 
 Day ~ 
 
 Dissenting. 
 
 602 
 
 445 
 
 479 
 
 1274 
 
 356 
 
 278 
 407 
 961 
 
 2600 
 
 2600 
 
 93 
 
 1252 
 
 Total. 
 
 2956 
 
 2878 
 
 500 
 
 2213 
 
 " Most singular is the character which has been developed by this 
 theological bent of minds isolated from nearly all sources, direct or 
 indirect, of secular information. Poetical and enthusiastic warmth 
 of religious feeling, careful attendance upon religious services, 
 zealous interest in religious knowledge, the comparative absence of 
 crime, are found side by side with the most unreasoning prejudices 
 or impulses, an utter want of method in thinking and acting, and 
 (what is far worse) with a widespread disregard of temperance 
 whenever there are the means of excess, uf chastity, of veracity, and 
 of fair dealing." 
 
 Deferring, for the present, the observations we have to make on 
 the above evidence and conclusions, we proceed to the report of 
 another Commissioner of 1846, Mr. Symons, who visited the counties 
 of Brecknock, Cardigan, Ptadnor and Monmouth. His remarks on 
 the Sunday Schools of his district are the following : — 
 
 " The general tendency of Sunday Schools is decidedly beneficial. 
 In many places, they have been the means of imparting most of the 
 small amount of Scriptural knowledge which exists ; and I believe 
 that three-fourths of all the correct answers made to me in day- 
 school examinations have been the result of Sunday School-teaching. 
 I have met with a few excellent Church Sunday Schools, \vhere the 
 Scriptures are explained as well as read, and the Church catechism, 
 instead of being presented to the child's mind as a string of words 
 for the barren exercise of the memory unassociated with ideas, 
 becomes a living letter of doctrine and a fruitful code of moral 
 precept. Such schools exist at Aberystwith, Llangenny, and St. 
 Maiy's Brecknock, where instruction extends to the Liturgy of our
 
 268 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 Church ; and there are some other instances of real instruction im- 
 parted in Church Sunday Schools, of all which full notes are given 
 under the title of those parishes ; but in all these cases the effect is 
 produced by the personal superintendence and continual exertions 
 of the clergyman himself, or of some educated persons who personally 
 instruct the children. When these are absent, all sink into the deep 
 ruts of the rote system, and the mechanical exercise of reading. The 
 child ceases to regard the instruction in any other light than as an 
 appendage to the drudgery of the week-day routine, and all the 
 sanctity of character and spiritual effect of the Sabbath School is 
 utterly lost. These schools sadly preponderate in number. As 
 regards the method pursued in Sunday Schools, little need be said ; 
 it has no distinctive feature. This is, in my humble judgment, 
 their chief defect ; the ordinary routine of hymn, reading verse by 
 verse for a length of time, generally without illustration, comment, 
 or question by the teacher, and the repetition of collect and catechism 
 comprise the sum of the instruction attempted. There is nothing 
 to awaken the faculties, arouse the interest, soften the feelings, and 
 reach the hearts of the children. Simultaneous exhortation exists, 
 1 believe, scarcely any where in Church Sunday Schools. They want 
 life. The whole system is spiritless and monotonous, and repulsive 
 instead of attractive to children. The good Sunday Schools belong- 
 ing to the Church, where the Church is alive and energetic, do vast 
 good ; but even the best are capable of improvement in energy, 
 animation and method, 
 
 " The Dissenting Sunday Schools are decidedly more effective for 
 the purposes of religious instruction than those of the Church. They 
 have defects of mental and spiritual exercise, but their system is far 
 superior, where it is effectively administered. These schools are of 
 a character wholly distinctive from that of Church Sunday schools ; 
 they are intended less for the instruction of children in elementary 
 religious education, than designed as a familiar means of spiritual 
 improvement for the congregation at large ; hence the large number 
 of adults who attend them. It is a pleasing sight to see a chapel 
 thronged with the poorer classes, each pew containing from five to 
 ten persons, consisting either of male or female adults, or children, 
 and in each pew a teacher, selected for the superiority of his zeal 
 and knowledge, reading with the rest, and endeavouring in most 
 cases with his utmost ability to explain the Scriptures to his little
 
 THE SCTNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 269 
 
 flock, who in all good schools are questioned to the best of his 
 powers as to the meaning of all difficult passages. When it is con- 
 sidered that, with scarcely an exception, the thousands who throng 
 these schools belong exclusively to the working classes, and that 
 numbers in every chapel are surrendering the best part of their only 
 day of rest to the office of teaching and improving their still humble 
 neighbours ; and when I remember that in many places these 
 working people, in their Sunday Schools und chapels have alone 
 kept religion alive, and have afforded the only effective means of 
 making known the gospel, — I must bear my cordial testimony to 
 the services which these humble congregations have rendered to the 
 community. At the same time, the defects of the dissenting 
 schools are obvious. In many there is far too little mental exercise, 
 and in such cases the school degenerates into a mere seminary for 
 learning to read and sing. This defect is always proportioned to 
 the greater or less degree of ability in the teacher. The system is 
 not in fault ; it is owing in great measure to want of competent 
 information in the teachers — and this is especially the case with 
 female teachers — and a good deal to the comparative neglect of these 
 schools by the dissenting ministers, whom I scarcely ever saw in 
 them, and who, it may be supposed, would be most competent to direct 
 and stimulate the teachers. This office is wholly left in most cases 
 to the superintendent, who does not always perform his function 
 effectively, especially in the personal visiting of each class, and in 
 the exhortation which ought to be given invariably at the conclusion 
 of the school. This excellent method of keeping alive attention, 
 and giving oral instruction, is imperfectly practised in most of the 
 dissenting Sunday Schools, and almost wholly unpractised, to the 
 best of my knowledge, in Church Sunday Schools. 
 
 " In some of the dissenting Sunday Schools questioning leads to 
 discussion, and discussion not infrequently to a profitless inquiry 
 into abstruse points of polemics and diversities of creed which 
 tend little to Christian improvement. I have heard very curious 
 and recondite inquiries directed to solve even pre- Adamite mysteries 
 in these schools. The Welsh are very prone to mystical and pseudo- 
 metaphysical discussion, especially in Cardiganshire. The great 
 doctrines and moral precepts of the Gospel are, I think, too little 
 taught in Sunday Schools. They are more prone to dive into 
 abstract and fruitless questions upon minute incidents, as well as
 
 270 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 debatable doctrines, — as for example, who the angel was that 
 appeared to Balaam, — than to illustrate and enforce moral duties 
 or explain the parables. The essential means of salvation are 
 usually better taught, but not always with sufficient simplicity. 
 
 " The routine is admirable. In all the best schools nothins; is done 
 to weary — everything to keep attention awake and to enliven the 
 school ; nothing is tediously prolonged. There is continual diversity 
 of mental occupation, varied by hymns ; and vocal music is exceed- 
 ingly well taught and practised in some few of these schools. I 
 would beg especially to refer your Lordship to the reports of the 
 Aberystwith Sunday Schools for full details of the interesting cha- 
 racter of the system pursued. One of its main merits is that of 
 training teachers by previous preparation. It is impossible, on 
 visiting dissenting Sunday Schools, not to feel a desire to see a little 
 more of the same attention, sympathy and pains bestowed by the 
 rich and educated classes on those below them, which the better 
 portion of the working classes bestow on their poorer neighbours. 
 It is much to be feared that there are more Samaritans among the 
 poor than among the rich in these counties, and that the remark of 
 Mr. Phillips, a gentleman of great benevolence and large property 
 in Radnorshire, is very just — ' Until the landed proprietors and 
 clergy take a much greater interest in the conduct of the farmers 
 and of the labouring population, little permanent good can be 
 expected ' 
 
 " I cannot close these remarks on Sunday Schools without ventur- 
 ing to express my disapproval of the practice, common alike to 
 Church and dissenting schools, of allowing young children to learn 
 to read in them. This is surely a perversion of the object and 
 spirit of the institution. I have frequently seen persons occupied 
 in teaching little children to spell and pronounce small words, not 
 only engrossing their time with the drudgery of elementary instruc- 
 tion, but disturbing the rest of the scholars. Schools thus conducted 
 cease to be seminaries of religious knowledge and sink into week 
 day schools of the lowest class. It is a fallacy to say that no 
 secular instruction is given in Welsh Sunday Schools ; this is 
 secular instruction, and of the most profitless and least spiritual 
 kind. 
 
 " I have ventured to speak freely of the defects I have witnessed in 
 Sunday Schools, because I am deeply impressed with the extensive
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 271 
 
 benefit they are capable of, and because I believe that a friendly- 
 development of what appear to be their shortcomings may not be 
 without its use." 
 
 Mr. Johnson also, who visited North Wales, has devoted a very 
 limited space to report on the Sunday Schools in some general terms. 
 His words are : — 
 
 "The nature and object of the Welsh Sunday Schools are 
 distinctly marked. In the week-day schools all profess to learn 
 English, in the Sunday Schools (speaking generally) all learn 
 Welsh. The object which the poor desire from the former is secular 
 knowledge ; the end to which they devote their whole attention in 
 the Sunday School is religion, to the exclusion of every other study. 
 
 " The course of proceeding in these schools is much the same, to 
 whatever denomination they belong. They are commenced as a 
 religious service, by reading a chapter of the Bible, singing hymns, 
 and by prayer. The classes are then distributed in pews, each pew 
 containing from five to ten scholars, with their teacher. These are 
 occupied for nearly an hour in reading the Bible in Welsh, repeating 
 portions by heart, and answering questions addressed to them by 
 the teacher. This is followed by a simultaneous catechising of the 
 whole school from some doctrinal catechism peculiar to the religious 
 denomination to which the school belongs, the questions being 
 answered simultaneously by the older or younger portion of the 
 members, according as they are respectively addressed by the 
 superintendent, who explains and enforces the catechism in use by 
 extempore interpolations. The proceedings conclude, as they began, 
 by devotional exercises. The humble position and attainments of 
 the individual engaged in the establishment and support of Welsh 
 Sunday Schools enhance the value of this spontaneous effort for 
 education ; and however imperfect the results, it is impossible not 
 to admire the vast number of schools which they have established, 
 the frequency of the attendance, the number, energy, and devotion 
 of the teachers, the regularity and decorum of the proceedings, and 
 the striking and permanent effects which they have produced upon 
 society." 
 
 We shall now add, what indeed will furnish us with an indirect 
 comment on some of the views of the Commissioners, extracts from 
 the refx)rt of Sir Charles Reed, a gentleman who took much interest 
 in the cause of education generally, was chairman of the London
 
 272 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 School Board up to the time of his death, some two or three years 
 ago, and was particularly interested in religious education. In the 
 year 1850, at the request of the Committee of the Sunday School 
 Union, he visited the Principality to make a fair inquiry into the 
 state of the religious education of the country. His field of inquiry 
 was chiefly South Wales, but he says that he talked with friends 
 connected with Sunday Schools in North Wales, at Festiniog, 
 Harlech, Portmadoc, Tremadoc, etc. With reference to some of 
 the schools in South Wales, Sir Charles offers the following 
 remarks : — 
 
 " The schools consist not so much of children from the streets, as 
 those belonging to the congregations ; and in them also are found 
 adults as well as children. Scores of old people, with feeble steps, 
 were seen directing their way towards the Sunday Schools, and out 
 of almost every house, father, mother and children hasten thither. 
 In the school itself the sight is very interesting. I have seen 
 schools in almost every county in England, and those very 
 numerous, but never before have I seen schools like these. Far 
 behind in plan, organization and method, and the numerous appli- 
 ances possessed by English schools, there were also absent, the dull 
 formality, and that heavy mechanism which so often impede our 
 actions. The life and earnestness of religious teaching were evident. 
 The subjects taught were made interesting and attractive ; every 
 eye appeared fixed, every mind chained; and overcoming the 
 inconvenience arising from the want of suitable premises to carry on 
 public instruction, the classes seemed eager to press on to meet the 
 teacher's voice. These schools supply an insight into the most 
 characteristic development of the national intellect, and of the 
 people's efforts for self-tuition according to peculiar methods of 
 their own. It is no wonder that it has been said of the people of 
 Wales that the Simday School has been her chief instrument of 
 civilization and religious instruction." 
 
 Summarizing his remarks after taking a general survey of the 
 schools Sir Charles proceeds to say: — "The Sunday schools are 
 large. Taking twenty in one part of the country, they were found to 
 contain on an average, three hundred persons each. They are almost 
 universal throughout the country, and, of course, are to be found of 
 every type — some lacking much in points of order, and others again 
 highly elaborate. Every chapel has its school, which is expected
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 273 
 
 to be commensurate with the congregation, for all who attend the 
 place of worship are expected to take their places in the school. 
 The work of teaching is not left to the young and inexperienced ; 
 but the best belonging to the church are publicly elected, and when 
 called to the work no distinction is made between rich and poor. 
 It is not to be wondered at, therefore, that ninety per cent, of these 
 teachers are truly religious men and that the instruction given is 
 eminently devotional . . . Objection has been taken to the high 
 doctrinal character of the education conveyed. It may be so, but 
 it is closely connected with plain evangelical instruction. The 
 numerous accessions made to the churches from the schools, prove 
 that an instrumentality quite different from what has been insinuated 
 is at work there. Testimony to this effect is given to me every- 
 where. I attribute the general Scriptural knowledge of the people 
 entirely to the spread of Sunday Schools. If the people, having a 
 theological bent of mind, are sometimes liable to plunge to fruitless 
 and mmute investigations, they are careful not to lose sight of a 
 constant inculcation of moral duties and a simple representation of 
 gospel truth. 
 
 " One remarkable peculiarity of these schools, is the presence of 
 adults. In 440 schools, while there are only 20,179 children under 
 fifteen years of age, there are 22,915 members above that age, and 
 a great proportion of these are made up of heads of families who 
 always feel attached to the institutions in which they were brought 
 up. Out of this number, 20,981 are females and 22,113, males ; 
 showing in comparison to the population a great preponderance of 
 the latter. And this is still more strikingly apparent in reference 
 to the teachers. Out of 5893 teachers in 440 schools, no fewer than 
 4714 are males while only 1179 are females. This is said to be 
 mainly attributable to the want of early attention to the education 
 of the female sex in the rural districts. . . . 
 
 " Absent scholars are carefully looked after, and visited on Sundays 
 when found to neglect the class. The general attendance is 
 punctual and regular, on the part of the teachers as well as the 
 scholars. Great attention is paid to vocal music. Good discipline 
 is generally maintained; the fules are obeyed by high and low 
 alike, though in most cases they are very stringent. Above all, 
 the devotional exercises both in the school and the prayer meetings 
 bear witness of the most decided character that there belong to the 
 
 T
 
 274 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 people, pure love, and zealous attacliment to the work of the Sunday 
 Schools, such as is not surpassed in any part of our highly privileged 
 country. Well might Mr. Symons grant that ' in the midst of all, 
 the schools had proved a marked feature in the mental and religious 
 progress of the people, and inasmuch as they are necessarily the 
 spontaneous effort of Christian zeal, they well deserve our respectful 
 consideration' If he had inquired into the nature of the institu- 
 tions as thoroughly as some have done — looking less to walls and 
 forms, registers and book-lore, and more at earnest purpose and 
 spiritual qualifications — he would have paid the higher tribute 
 to their worth, and added that these people 'are wise to win 
 souls.' 
 
 " From the ardour of the people's religious feelings, their mental 
 power of application and comprehension, their attachment to old 
 landmarks, their constant clinging to evangelical truth, and their 
 efforts to spread the Sunday-School system, one can easily under- 
 stand how the tone of their morals is so high — which is evident 
 from the comparative absence of crime — and how to account for the 
 fact that the people of Wales are so inoffensive and simple ; instead 
 of branding them as enthusiasts, their schools as inefficient, and 
 directly leading to immorality, the people riotous, cunning, and 
 ignorant — skilful to evade the law, though always ready and wicked 
 enough to transgress it. Notwithstanding the sad proofs of the 
 prevalence of intemperance, yet the public testimony, and the 
 aspect of fairs and wakes, and, above all, the state of the streets at 
 night, show how greatly exaggerated is the statement which has 
 been lately published. 
 
 " People speak of the Rebecca riots. Let them inquire into the 
 history of this inoffensive and poor nation, and judge in the face 
 of the tyranny and the extreme intolerance to which they have 
 been exposed, whether the wonder is not that such scenes happen 
 so seldom. But, strange to say, the Sunday School is held respon- 
 sible for these disturbances, and the teachers of the people are 
 charged with being guilty of inciting the popular mind to this 
 conduct, of infusing into them the principles of rebellion rather 
 than those of peace, and of keeping up the Welsh language with 
 the sole object of being able thereby more secretly to scatter the 
 seeds of evil ! 
 
 " Notwithstanding all adverse criticisms, the fact remains uncon-
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 275 
 
 troverted, that the inhabitants of Wales are receiving excellent 
 religious instruction, which with the advantages of secular educa- 
 tion rapidly increasing among them, and this education free from 
 state interference and control, and with their Sunday Schools still 
 preserved from the imminent destruction which threatens them, 
 but sustained in improved efficiency, will enable them to give the 
 best answer possible to their calumniators — by proving themselves 
 a free, prosperous, and godly people." * 
 
 In reading the evidence of the three commissioners we feel at 
 once that it is Mr. Lingen's which shows the most unmistakable 
 signs of self-sufficiency and infallibility, and at the same time 
 betrays the greatest lack of the proper qualifications to enable him 
 to produce a candid and unprejudiced report. He undertakes to 
 pass judgment on a Christian institution, when apparently ignorant 
 of the very first principles of Christianity. With only ordinary 
 weights in his bag, quite unconscious of the incongruity, he pro- 
 ceeds to estimate qualities which can be duly appreciated only by 
 the " weights of the sanctuary." He has brought most unfounded 
 charges against the character of the Welsh peasant, and has been 
 so unfair as to visit the crimes and foibles of the irreligious on the 
 community generally. By implication he makes the best members 
 of the Sunday Schools to be ignorant, narrow-minded, disrespectful 
 of their superiors, ambitious ; and explicitly denounces them as 
 regardless " of temperance whenever there are the means of excess, 
 of chastity, of veracity, and of fair dealing." 
 
 In the same proportion, as he conceives, that the Welsh work- 
 men are desii-ous of rising in the social scale, does he sneer as well 
 at their method of self-culture, as at the endeavour itself. From 
 the oft-recurring contrast which he draws between them and " the 
 classes over them," " their superiors," " social position during the 
 other six days of the week," and from the numerous references he 
 makes to his belief of a studied intention on their part to shut out 
 those classes from all rule over them, on Sunday at least, we 
 cannot but be reminded of the haughty Roman patrician Corio- 
 lanus in his estimate of the common people, calling them, " time- 
 pleasers, flatterers, foes to nobleness." Instead of, like a Christian 
 
 * Sunday School Union Magazine fox 1850, pp. 271-5. Translated from 
 a Welsh version, but on coinparison with the English original — wrongly- 
 referred to in the Welsh extracts — found to agree not only in meaning, 
 but nearly in expression.
 
 276 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 philanthropist, rejoicing at every effort towards self-improvement, 
 this commissioner must speak disparagingly if not sneeringly, of 
 the Welshman's love of his Sunday suit, and the " Sabbatical," 
 whatever this may mean, feeling with which he regards it. Can 
 it be possible that he also, like the haughty Roman senator would 
 rather they had always remained in a state of serfdom and obse- 
 quiousness? — 
 
 " Woollen vassals, things created 
 
 To buy and sell with groats ; to show bare heads 
 
 In congregations, to yawn, be still, and wonder 
 
 When one but of his ordinance stood up 
 
 To speak of peace or war." 
 
 Mr. Lingen, when speaking of the Welsh peasant's " worship 
 like his life having grown different from that of the classes over 
 him," and of his "province of independent exertion," as being 
 " chosen," seems to imply that they must have rejected the offers 
 of their superiors to undertake their education. But herein he 
 evidently betrays lamentable ignorance of the history of the country. 
 The people were bound "to educate themselves upon their own 
 model," or to remain in utter darkness as far as their social 
 superiors showed any signs of moving in the matter. It was the 
 want of that "attention, sympathy, and pains" on the part of the 
 "rich and educated classes towards those below them," spoken 
 of by Mr. Symons which compelled the working people of Wales 
 to strike out for themselves or perish. One of the most important 
 missions of Christianity is the elevation of the masses, and in the 
 sacred books it is not prescribed that if " social superiors," neglect 
 to accept the privilege, the people are to sink lower and lower into 
 ignorance and degradation rather than adopt a course of mutual 
 instruction, which is urged upon them by men risen from their 
 own ranks. This commissioner, too, is quite mistaken when he 
 asserts that no superiority is acknowledged within the precincts 
 of a Sunday School. Truly, he says that an " office and some sort 
 of title are presented to every man who is able to take an active 
 part in its administration without much reference to his social 
 position during the other six days of the week." But surely, he 
 should not be surprised at this. The remark is another proof of 
 his ignorance of the principles of Christianity, for in the divine 
 code of morals which members of Sunday Schools are taught to 
 recognize, and which is indeed their special study, it is particularly
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 277 
 
 enacted that the true basis of superiority is not that which arises 
 from social position, but that which is founded upon unblemished 
 character, unostentatious goodness, and eminent piety. "The 
 constitution," we grant, "j's purely democratic," but it is a democracy 
 not of communistic socialism as much as of a Christian brotherhood 
 founded upon the apostolic standard of distinction, " let each 
 esteem others better than themselves," or if the words of an un- 
 inspired poet be more intelligible, they have acted on the under- 
 standing that — 
 
 * ' The rank is but the guinea stamp, 
 The man's the gold for all that." 
 
 Next to the sweeping charges which grace Mr. Lingen's closing 
 remarks with reference to the moral character of the Welsh people, 
 there is no imputation which grates so harshly on the feelings of 
 men devoted to Sunday-School work as that with reference to the 
 motives which actuate the Welsh workman in undertaking the 
 office of teacher. " The position of teacher," he says, " is coveted 
 as a distinction, and is multiplied accordingly." The Sunday 
 Schools "present the charms of office to those who on all other 
 occasions are subject, and of distinction to those who have no other 
 chance of distinguishing themselves." " Sunday is to him the best 
 chance of showing himself, all the week through, in his own 
 character," the character, we suppose, of "democrat" and "bragga- 
 docio." How are we to account for this utter want of courtesy 
 and candour on the part of the commissioner? Is it what Bacon 
 describes as the idol of the forum that has warped his better 
 judgment to arrive at such an ignominious verdict? Because he 
 had too much reason to know how dominant these principles are 
 at Lincoln's-Inn-Fields and Downing Street; what scheming, 
 cringing, and jostling for office and distinction too often characterize 
 municipal and parliamentary advancements, he must heeds apply 
 the same principle to explain the impulses which sway the poor 
 Welsh peasant in seeking an opportunity to exercise functions of 
 gratuitous toil, drudgery, and self-denial, in connection with the 
 Sunday School. The work of the Sunday-School teacher has always 
 been a labour of love, an opportunity for one who -feels he has 
 received all from his Saviour to show his sense of gratitude, by 
 giving himself "a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable," in His service. 
 A direct and uncompromising denial has been given to such an
 
 278 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 explanation by the whole tenor and import of the preceding 
 chapters. Instead of the office, forsooth, from the lack of that 
 constraining love in many, being so much sought after, it has too 
 often to go a-begging and to be urged for acceptance, with all the 
 art of persuasion that the superintendent can command. Many 
 of these would only be too glad to find as a matter of fact, though 
 certainly not from the motive implied, that classes were to be 
 multiplied because of the pressure for the office of teacher. Their 
 actual experience, on the contrary, is that classes must be grouped 
 together, thereby becoming too unwieldy to be efficiently handled, 
 because of the want of competent and often any teachers whatever 
 volunteering for the service. As to the office being coveted by the 
 young aspirant after distinction in order to be a stepping-stone to 
 the rank of preacher and minister, such aim being known would be 
 considered a direct disqualification, tliough no doubt fidelity and 
 assiduity in the discharge of the duties of this office have always, 
 and no doubt very properly so, been considered as an important 
 recommendation in favour of a candidate for the higher sphere. 
 Because he has been faithful in the least he is placed over many. 
 It is curious to think how prone men of a somewhat high social 
 position are to attribute pride and vanity as motives in the humbler 
 classes for the desire of an enlargement in their sphere of usefulness 
 Almost the only point in which we differ from Judge Johnes in 
 his otherwise just discernment of the character of the dissenters, 
 is when he attributes ambition as the ruling principle urging the 
 first Methodist lay preachers to call for ordination. His words 
 are, " It is well known that Charles and his clerical brethren were 
 urged into this indefensible measure by the continual importunity 
 of some of the lay preachers who were ambitious to participate in 
 the privileges of that profession." Whatever may have led the 
 Judge to this uncharitable remark, it is not difficult to trace the 
 origin of the commissioner's error. This is readily solved in the 
 light of the apostle's canon, " The natural man receiveth not the 
 thinf^s of the Spirit of God, neither can he know them, because 
 they are spiritually discerned." 
 
 Perhaps the same idol mentioned by Bacon will explain the 
 genesis of the grand discovery he made, that, "As soon as the 
 Pwnc is well committed to heart, the school makes a sort of 
 triumphal procession to other chapels, very often to churches, to
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 279 
 
 repeat publicly what they have learned." Did it ever occur to the 
 commissioner that the procession might have been got up, not 
 because of the exuberance of joy for having mastered the pwnc, nor 
 from a passion for demonstration accompanying its recital, but 
 simply because better order is secured in a Sunday School, as well 
 as in every other concentration of the masses, by a march than by 
 a scramble ? 
 
 No idol of Bacon, however, it is to be feared, will account for 
 the venomous sting in the tail of his report when he designates 
 "the character developed by the theological bent of mind of the 
 people as a widespread disregard of temperance whenever there are 
 the means of excess, of chastity, of veracity, and of fair dealing." 
 We readily grant that the vices enumerated have been and are too 
 prevalent in the Principality, as elsewhere ; but not more so than 
 elsewhere, nor so much so as many other places ; and we venture 
 to assert that here they are found mostly among the four-fifths who 
 do not belong to the Sunday Schools, and not the one-fifth who 
 frequent them. At least, the direct aim of the education imparted 
 in them has been to weed society of such noxious and loathsome 
 weeds. We hope, as it has already been apologized on their behalf, 
 that what was too hastily uttered has been leisurely and heartily 
 repented for ; and that it may be a warning against any amount of 
 flippancy and light-heartedness being thought a sufficient justifica- 
 tion for traducing a whole nation, and so becoming guilty of as 
 great an immorality as any denounced in their victims. " Thou 
 shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour." 
 
 After writing the above remarks we were pleased to find our 
 views confirmed in the following paragraph, written within two 
 years of the appointment of the commission : — 
 
 " The Welsh Commission present a report, in which the Sunday 
 Schools of the Principality are roughly handled. Would that the 
 Government had a little more discretion in the selection of their 
 inspectors ! Mr. Lingen is a gentleman of high intellectual powers 
 and legal acumen, but he is not the man to appreciate the devoted 
 labours of gratuitous Sunday-School teachers ; and those who know 
 anythiog of the schools of Wales will grieve to see so unfair a 
 picture. It is easier to kick the beam than to hold the balance 
 with a steady and impartial hand. Of the efficiency of the Welsh 
 schools report has ever borne testimony, and of their increase the
 
 280 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 following 
 
 numbers 
 
 will 
 
 tell. 
 
 The 
 
 children 
 
 in Sunda 
 
 were in — 
 
 1818 
 24,408 
 
 
 
 1833 
 173,171 
 
 
 1846 
 238,740 
 
 giving in 1818, 1 to 28 of the population; in 1833, 1 to 4f ; and 
 1846, 1 to 4. And this in the midst of so much poverty and so 
 few advantages." * 
 
 Mr. Symons has evidently come to the work better qualified in 
 every sense to discharge its important duties. He has not been 
 dogmatic in matters which he rightly perceived were within the 
 domain of empirics ; and, directly opposed to the practice of his 
 colleague, he has attributed the very same conduct on the part of 
 the Welsh peasant, to love of virtue, honour, and nobleness, where 
 the other only saw unmistakable signs of pride, vanity, and 
 meanness. Nothing can be a more effectual refutation of the 
 vagaries of the first than the well-weighed words and just discern- 
 ment of the other two. The office of teacher, in his estimation, 
 is much more likely to fall into dishonour from the natural tendency 
 of the best of mankind to become " weary in well-doing, because 
 it takes up the greater part of the teacher's only day of rest," than 
 to be too eagerly sought after, notwithstanding the aliment it may 
 supply to a pitiable craving for notoriety and distinction in a 
 depraved appetite. 
 
 We are at one with this gentleman in his censures and eulogiums, 
 on all the points he touches, with the exception perhaps of one or 
 two. It is difficult to understand why he and Mr. Lingen should 
 object so much to the Welsh showing a familiarity with " the more 
 abstruse parts of divinity," and a proneness to "mystical and 
 pseudo-metaphysical discussions." In any other nation, such as the 
 Greek or the Scotch, this is considered an honourable distinction, 
 but to the Welsh it is circumscribed as forbidden ground. Even if 
 it were true that the " abstract and fruitless questions " are taken 
 up at the expense of neglecting the inculcation of moral duties and 
 the explanation of parables, still the recommendation remains, of 
 peasants and hard-worked labourers finding pleasure in such intel- 
 lectual pursuits. The truth, however, has already been proved to 
 be far otherwise, for from the days of Mr. Charles until now, both 
 
 * The Sunday School Magazine for 1848, p. 48.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 281 
 
 by questioning and public exhortation, there is hardly a moral duty 
 which is not explained and enforced, each in its turn, or according 
 as circumstances show the need of calling attention to a particular 
 duty. Sir Charles Reed confirms this testimony when he says that 
 "they are careful not to lose sight of a constant inculcation of 
 moral duties, and a simple representation of evangelical truths." 
 
 We maintain that the "curious" questions propounded in the 
 schools are far less frequent than the " recondite ; " and the " profit- 
 less " than the " debatable." With regard to the example of the 
 profitless question asked, "who the angel was that appeared to 
 Balaam ? " if by that be meant his name, we think it as likely such 
 question to have been asked as that the name of the ass that carried 
 him should have been sought after. But there is nothing improb- 
 able, or quite fruitless, in such an inquiry as "whether it was 
 the great angel of the covenant, the second person in the Trinity, in 
 his pre-incarnate existence, or one of the created angels that 
 appeared unto him ? " So far as our experience goes the subjects 
 discussed in the Sunday-School classes instead of being " curious," 
 and " profitless," most often naturally and necessarily rise from the 
 passages ordinarily read ; and since these contain " the deep things 
 of God," can it be wondered at that they are abstruse and meta- 
 physical? The commissioner is surprised to learn that questions 
 "to solve pre- Adamite mysteries," are taken up in these schools. 
 Did it ever strike him that most of the mysteries in theology are 
 pre- Adamite ? Is not the existence of God himself, the very founda- 
 tion of theology, a pre- Adamite mystery ? Bather than the questions 
 discussed in them being vain, futile and trivial, what we have heard 
 discussed in them were such as these : — " What is the connection 
 between the foreknowledge of God and predestination ? " " How is 
 the certainty of the divine knowledge to be reconciled with the 
 contingency of human volition ? " " What constitutes a moral, a 
 free, a voluntary action? " "Which is the more correct view, to 
 attribute liberty to an action and an agent, or to the will as a 
 faculty ? " " How is the freedom of the will consistent with 
 regeneration ? " " What is the connection between justification and 
 regeneration? " "God being said to 'justify the ungodly' and also 
 that 'he who believeth is justified,' can a man be a believer and 
 ungodly at the same time ? " In fact there is hardly a question 
 within the domains of theology and metaphysics but that some of
 
 282 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 the adult members will dare grapple with, if it arises naturally from 
 the passage under consideration. When Milton was bethinking 
 himself of a list of subjects most suitable for the discourse of the 
 highest created intelligences it was on these very subjects that he 
 
 decided. He says that they 
 
 " reason'd high 
 Of Providence, foreknowledge, will and fate ; 
 Fix'd fate, free will, foreknowledge absolute ; 
 Of good and evil much they argued then ; 
 Of happiness, and final misery, 
 Passion and apathy, and glory and shame." * 
 
 Surely, then, it should be thought no discredit for the poor 
 "Welsh peasants, in class assembled, when quite ignorant of the 
 flights of Milton, and the disquisitions of Plato and Aristotle, but 
 merely from a constitutional bias, to discuss these subjects, at the 
 same time guiltless of all ambition to be considered clever, profound 
 or distinguished. 
 
 Another point raised by Mr. Symons deserves a remark or two — 
 the objection he makes to " permitting young children to learn to 
 read in the schools." It is not quite apparent whether the objection 
 is to teaching young children to read at all in the schools, or to 
 carrying on the teaching in the same room as the adult classes. If 
 the former, then it is quite evident that Mr. Symons is mistaken as 
 to the primary intention of the institution. Teaching children to 
 read and adults too, ignorant of the art, was the very first object of 
 the Welsh Sunday School. The fact that they have turned out also 
 to be "colleges for religious instruction," was but a collateral 
 development of the chief end, the former being the foundation of 
 the latter. As long as there will be children continually growing 
 up to whom reading must be an art to be acquired, it does not seem 
 clear how the drudgery of teaching them can be avoided. But if 
 the objection be to their being assembled in the same room as the 
 adults, to the inevitable disturbance of the more advanced classes, 
 this defect has ere this in most schools been remedied, by the 
 building of a separate schoolroom for the children, in connection 
 with the places of worship. This remedy, however, has its draw- 
 backs. Teachers of children have an objection to be isolated from 
 the general concern, since they are thereby deprived of the privi- 
 leges which are common to all the departments. To remedy this 
 * Paradise Lost, bk. ii. lines 561-565.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 283 
 
 objection to a certain extent, it is the custom in many schools to 
 march the children to the main room during the time of public 
 catechising, whether this exercise is to be confined to them 
 altogether or to be chiefly directed to the adult classes. Another 
 more serious objection to this isolation of children .is the loss 
 incurred of being accustomed from their tenderest years to look 
 upon the Sunday School as an institution worthy of the attendance 
 of a whole life ; and to have ever present before their eyes, all the 
 grades, from the alphabet class to those engaged in deep discussions 
 by patriarchal sires, and in exchanging edifying experience by 
 mature matrons. Perhaps with improved methods of teaching, the 
 maximum of work can be combined with the minimum of noise, 
 and that the advantages resulting from carrying on together, a 
 mixed republic of every age, can yet be secured. 
 
 All the witnesses above quoted have called attention to the want 
 of system and method in almost all the schools. By this they 
 mean that classes of similar attainments are distributed promis- 
 cuously throughout the school instead of occupying a common 
 quarter ; that classes are permitted to study different portions of the 
 Scriptures instead of having a common theme for all; and that 
 members are allowed to join any class they prefer without any 
 supervision by the superintendent, thus causing every attempt at 
 graduation according to attainments to be entirely lost sight of. 
 Since the time to which their reports refer, considerable improve- 
 ments have been effected in each of these divisions, though much 
 still remains to be accomplished. Eeverting to the last, as possibly 
 the most important, we find that the system of graduation into 
 standards adopted in our day-schools has been successfully intro- 
 duced into some of our Sunday Schools. For the sake of guiding 
 other schools which may yet be behindhand in this matter we shall 
 here insert the full description of standards which have been proved 
 to work well in Grorphwysfa chapel, Llanberis, Caernarvonshire, 
 since the year 1878, with the principles of which we entirely 
 agree. 
 
 Standard 1. — To master the alphabet and first primer ; to learn 
 by heart the Lord's prayer, and " Mother's gift," chapters i.-vii. 
 
 Standard 11. — To read words of two syllables, and answer 
 questions on the verses read ; to spell words of two syllables ; to 
 learn by heart " Mother's gift," chapter viii. to end.
 
 284 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 Standard HI. — To read fluently, with attention to punctuation ; 
 to answer easy questions on the pronouns, and the persons 
 speaking the different portions of a narrative ; to answer one-third 
 of the questions on the first twelve years of the Life of JesuS 
 Christ; to learn by heart the Ten Commandments and the first part 
 of " Father's gift ; " to spell trisyllables. 
 
 Standard IV. — To read fluently and accurately, with due atten- 
 tion to articulation and punctuation ; to answer one-third of a 
 number of questions asked on the history of the patriarchs from 
 Noah to Abraham ; to know the second part of " Father's gift ; " to 
 answer two-thirds of the questions on the Baptism and Temptation 
 of Christ ; to spell acurately any six words. 
 
 Standard V. — To read with proper emphasis ; to answer one- 
 third of the questions on the history of the children of Israel from 
 the birth of Moses to his death ; to draw a map of Palestine against 
 the examination, or to answer one-third of the questions on the 
 geography of the country and to point out the proper places of the 
 particles ac and ag, mat and mae, yw and i'lv in a sentence ; to 
 learn the latter part of " Father's gift ; " to answer five out of twenty 
 questions in the history of Jesus Christ from the Upper Chamber 
 to the Ascension. 
 
 Standard VI. — To read accurately six verses ; to give a personal 
 opinion with regard to the views of some author on the portion 
 appointed as the field of study for the district ; to form a number 
 of questions on the verses read ; to point out the nouns, pronouns, 
 verbs and adjectives in a passage ; to answer in writing six questions 
 on " The extent and minuteness of God's Providence," out of Hodge's 
 " OutHnes of Theology " pp. 262-270. 
 
 With the view of promoting the scholars through the various 
 standards regularly and carefully the following rules are added : — 
 
 1. To have two superintendents appointed over the juvenile 
 department of the school. 
 
 2. That the superintendents should bestow special attention 
 upon the classes by often visiting them. 
 
 3. That the attention of the teachers be specially called to the 
 importance of their office, and their co-operation invited to carry out 
 the scheme and to impart the necessary instruction efficiently. 
 
 4. That an examination be held twice a year on week evenings. 
 6. That three examiners be appointed, one to go out of office
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 285 
 
 evory year, and to have the right to nominate his successor, to be 
 confirmed by the teachers' meeting. 
 
 6. That every Candidate passing a standard shall have a certifi- 
 cate for that standard, to be signed in one of three grades, /air, 
 good, or excelUnt, and to be publicly presented to the successful 
 candidates. 
 
 7. That a public meeting be held every year in connection 
 with the scheme to make a demonstration of the efiiciency of the 
 work and to exhort to future perseverance. 
 
 With regard to the attempts to unify the subject of study in the 
 adult classes to which Mr. Lingen attaches so much importance, 
 various schemes have been from time to time adopted in diflferent 
 schools. A certain theme is sometimes fixed by the district 
 meeting for all the schools to study for the following six or twelve 
 months ; in other schools the portion for the following Sunday 
 is announced at the end of every school meeting, and others again 
 take up the portions selected by the English Sunday School Union. 
 However, from the various capacities of the different classes, and 
 especially from the different abilities of the teachers, though the 
 classes start together, very soon the uniformity is completely 
 broken up. After all, perhaps, it is quite as well to leave the 
 selection of the portions for study much to the discretion of the 
 teachers, subject to some general suggestions made by the superin- 
 tendent or visitor. 
 
 Since the days of Mr. Charles, various modifications have been 
 introduced into the method of public catechising. The great aim 
 of all the changes has been to excite greater thoughtfulness on the 
 part of the scholars. It has been charged against several of the 
 schools that too little habit of thinking is a prominent defect in 
 them. In feeble hands, no doubt the old style of catechising was 
 liable to give too much encouragement to noisy declamation as 
 compared with quiet thoughtfulness. Deep waters always run 
 silently. With the old pwnc, the answers had to be learnt by 
 heart, and success was too often measured by the strength and 
 quantity of harmonious sound with which these answers were 
 uttered by a whole class or school, than by the readiness and 
 accuracy with which diflferent members answered the extempore 
 questions. This tendency was most often manifested with the 
 children. With many an interrogator the sum and substance of
 
 286 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 the answers expected from them was to vociferate, " yes " or " no " 
 to questions which suggested the alternative to be taken up, on 
 their very form ; as " God is very good to us all, is he not my 
 children?" "Yes." "He has created us, has he not?" "Yes." 
 " He did not create us to dishonour him, -did he ? " " No." " Nor 
 to forget. him?" " No." etc., etc. The only variation to this sing- 
 song proceeding was when the questioner led the children to say 
 "yes," when they ought to have said "no," which in virtue 
 of the inertia produced by the previous series they invariably 
 shouted. As for example, the questioner continuing the series 
 said, " God is not dishonoured when a child takes his name in 
 vain, is he?" "No," would the children thoughtlessly cry out, 
 until he advised them to pause a little, and think over the 
 matter, when the very check produced would suggest unto them 
 the " yes," and not because they had got any deeper insight into 
 the subject. 
 
 The same view of the worthlessness of questions requiring only 
 " yes " or " no " for an answer, we are happy to find, is taken by Mr. 
 Fitch in his widely known lecture on " The Art of Questioning." 
 Feeling how important this subject is to many Welsh teachers 
 because of the abuses of the past, we are tempted to quote some of 
 his remarks in full : — ■ 
 
 " There is a class of questions," says he, " which hardly deserve 
 the name, and which are, in fact, fictitious or apparent, but not 
 true questions. I mean those which sim|>ly require the answer 
 *yes' or 'no.' Nineteen such questions out of twenty, carry 
 their own answers in them ; for it is almost impossible to propose 
 one, without revealing, by the tone and inflection of the voice, the 
 kind of answer you expect. For example, — ' Is it right to honour 
 our parents ? ' ' Did Abraham show much faith when he offered 
 up his son ? ' * Do you think the author of the Psalms was a good 
 man ? ' ' Were the Pharisees real lovers of truth ? ' Questions 
 like these elicit no thought whatever ; there are but two possible 
 answers to each of them, and of these I am sure to show, by my 
 manner of putting the question, which one I expect. Such 
 questions should therefore, as a general rule, be avoided, as they 
 seldom serve any useful purpose, either in teaching or examining . . . 
 Hence, however such simple affirmative and negative replies may 
 look like work, they may coexist with utter stagnation of mind on
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 287 
 
 the part of the scholars, and with complete ignorance of what we 
 are attempting to teach." * 
 
 The same author in another lecture on " Memory," objects to the 
 learning of catechisms or whole pages of any other ordinary book by 
 heart. But on examining his reasons for objecting, we find that 
 they do not bear upon the method adopted in the best style of 
 catechising in the Welsh Sunday School. One reason he adduces 
 against learning an answer from a catechism, is that " the phrase- 
 ology in which the answer is couched is probably neither better 
 nor worse, than the language which any person who understood 
 the subject, would spontaneously use," and consequently he finds 
 that the mind is subjected to the drudgery of a mere mechanical 
 association of words, instead of an association of thought, which is 
 really what is wanted. At the same time he agrees that it is 
 desirable to cultivate their verhal association in learning by heart 
 passages of Scripture, and verses of religious poetry ; and such 
 formulae as the creed or the commandments. The reason for the 
 exception in favour of the first two, is that " not only is the suh- 
 stance of the thing remembered valuable, but the exact form is 
 also important. There being in these cases a certain fitness and 
 propriety in certain words, we must make the children remember 
 the words as well as the ideas which they signify." And with 
 regard to the last two, " the sentences are complete in themselves, 
 and are concise formuloe of faith and duty, which, if remembered, 
 will serve a definite purpose." f 
 
 Herein consist the very reasons for tolerating the practice of 
 learning the catechism used in the Welsh Sunday Schools. The 
 answers are mostly theological formulge, which require accuracy of 
 expression, and they are couched in a phraseology which hardly 
 any person could spontaneously command, much less the class of 
 people who get them up by heart there. Besides, each answer 
 is substantiated by a passage of Scripture, which also was to be 
 learnt by heart, and which is one of the class of expressions not 
 objected to by the author. And finally, the catechising was not 
 confined altogether to the questions and answers of the catechisms, 
 
 * "The Art of Questioning," by J. G. Fitch, M. A., Sunday School Union, 
 pp. 19, 20. 
 
 t Lecture on "Memory," by J. G. Fitch, M.A., Sunday School Union, 
 pp. 30-36 passim.
 
 288 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 but other extempore questions and answers took up as mucli time 
 as the prepared formulse, which exercise is much more of the type of 
 a simultaneous object lesson in the modern day school, than a mere 
 rote exercise of individual teaching. It has been found, however, 
 that this method is liable to be abused in the manner indicated 
 by Mr. Fitch ; and to remedy the evil, various plans have been 
 adopted. One is, to give a chapter of the Bible to prepare without 
 any intimation of the scope to be taken up by the examiner. The 
 whole school has to repeat each verse of the chapter in a strong 
 united voice as directed by the catechist. But all further unison 
 of answers depends on the mere accident of a number adopting the 
 same form of expression to utter their thoughts, which very seldom 
 happens. The direct effect of this method was to produce more 
 research and thoughtfulness. Lately, a plan has been adopted to 
 divide every school into three portions, children, youths, and adults, 
 and then to supply each section with a few leading questions bear- 
 ing on the subject allotted for the public catechising, and in these 
 they have to labour for some months before the testing day arrives. 
 For the children, some of the most interesting biographical themes 
 of the Old Testament are usually selected, such as the history of 
 Joseph, Moses or Samuel ; for the youths of both sexes some portion 
 of the life of the Saviour, the travels of Paul, or a section of Old 
 Testament history ; while for the adults, a doctrinal subject or 
 some moral duty is almost invariably selected. As specimens of 
 this class of questions we shall here insert a few out of a number 
 prepared by Dr. Edwards of Bala, on " The Person of the Holy 
 Spirit," for adults, and some others which the author was asked 
 to prepare for the youths of some Sunday Schools in Liverpool, on 
 " The Life of Christ," previous to holding a public oral questioning 
 on the subject. 
 
 (1) " The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit." 
 By the Rev. Dr. Edwards, Bala. 
 
 1. Prove that the Holy Ghost is a Divine person, and explain 
 why he is called Holy Spirit. 
 
 2. \¥hy is it said He " proceeds from," and not " is begotten 
 by" the Father? 
 
 3. Prove that He proceeds from the Father and the Son, and not from 
 the Father only. What is the tenet of the Greek Church on this point ?
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 289 
 
 4. Inasmuch as Christ is a divine person, what need was there of 
 giving; Him the Spirit ? 
 
 5. What is the relation between the work of the Son and the 
 work of the Holy Spirit ? Trace this subject into its various 
 branches as taught in the New Testament. 
 
 6. What is the difference between natural light in the conscience, 
 and the supernatural light imparted in regeneration; and what 
 difference is there between the general and effectual work of the 
 Holy Spirit ? 
 
 7. It is Faid in Mr. Charles's Scriptural Dictionary that " the 
 nature of the will, like the will itself, is free, else it would not be a 
 will, and such a faculty would not belong to a man ; " to what 
 degree has man by nature, freedom of the will ? What is the differ- 
 ence between this freedom and the freedom brought him in regenera- 
 tion? etc. 
 
 (2) " The Life of Jesus Christ." 
 
 By the Rev. D. Evans, M.A., Dolgelley. 
 
 I. From His Birth to His Baptism. 
 
 1. What is the difference between the names " Jesus " and 
 " Christ?" What other persons of the same name are mentioned 
 in the New Testament? 
 
 2. What historical allusions are there in the Gospels that may 
 aid in fixing the date of His birth ? Why did Mary and Joseph go 
 to Bethlehem ? Mention prophecies that refer to the time and place 
 of Christ's birth, and the tribe from which He sprang. 
 
 3. What remarkable events, in connection with Christ's birth, 
 preceded and followed it? Whence, and why, did Jesus go to 
 Egypt, and whither did he return? State what is related of the 
 Saviour's childhood and youth. 
 
 II. From His Baptism to the First Passover. 
 
 1. What was Christ's age at His baptism ? What time is likely 
 to have elapsed from that event until the First Passover ? Describe 
 the political condition of Canaan when Christ began His public 
 ministry ? Who baptized Christ ? When and why was He 
 baptized ? 
 
 2. When, where, why, to what sins, and with what results, was 
 Christ tempted ?
 
 290 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 3. What disciples are mentioned soon after the temptation ? 
 
 4. Mention the other circumstances relating to the history of 
 Jesus until His First Passover ? 
 
 III. From the First Passover to the Second. 
 
 1. Where did Jesus keep the first Passover during His public 
 ministry, and whence had He come there ? Recount some of His 
 works in Judea on this occasion. What account have we of John 
 the Baptist when Jesus was in Judeea ? What two events bearing 
 some relation to the close of his life occurred in connection with the 
 first Passover ? 
 
 2. To what place did Jesus go from Judaia ? Which way did He 
 go, and what incidents occurred during the journey ? What part 
 of Canaan was, and why was it, the principal scene of Christ's 
 ministerial labours ? Which was His first tour through this 
 district, and who of His disciples accompanied Him? Specify in 
 detail the chief works of Jesus during this period. 
 
 IV. From the Second Passover to the Third. 
 
 1. From what verse is it inferred that Jesus went to Jerusalem 
 for the second Passover ? What works did He perform during this 
 visit? What gave rise to a discussion between Jesus and the 
 Pharisees on this occasion ? 
 
 2. Whither did Jesus go from Jerusalem ? How did He now 
 set apart His disciples ? Why did He choose twelve ? Name them. 
 To what part of Canaan did they belong ? Was there any con- 
 nection between the Sermon on the Mount, and this setting apart? 
 
 3. What communication passed at this time between John the 
 Baptist and Jesus in Galilee ? Where was he, and during what 
 stage in Christ's career did he die ? 
 
 4. How many journeys through Galilee did Jesus make during 
 this year? Mention the circumstances of the first journey. Why 
 were the disciples sent by themselves on the other ? What were 
 the effects ? 
 
 V. From the Third Passover to the Fourth. 
 (a). To the Feast of Tabernacles. 
 
 1. Where did Christ keep His third Passover ? Why did He not 
 go up to Jerusalem ? Recount some of the works done by Him at
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 291 
 
 this time. "What place out of Canaan, or at least on its borders, 
 did Christ visit soon after His third Passover ? Why did He go, 
 and what occurred there? 
 
 2. Where did He go afterwards ? Mention His miracles there. 
 
 3. When about to leave Galilee, and end His labours there, what 
 cities did He upbraid for their unbelief? Specify His principal 
 works at Capernaum? 
 
 4. When did the Transfiguration take place? What disciples 
 attended Him on the mountain, and where else did they accompany 
 Him without the others ? What miracle was performed after the 
 Transfiguration ? 
 
 5. What was the Feast of Tabernacles ? Narrate the circum- 
 stances under which Jesus went to Jerusalem. Which way did He 
 go? What occurred in Samaria? Who were the seventy? 
 When, and with what object, did Jesus send them on their mission ? 
 
 (b). From the Feast of Tabernacles to the Feast of Consecra- 
 tion. 
 
 1. What were the chief occurrences at Jerusalem during the 
 Feast of Tabernacles ? What are the various opinions concerning 
 the tour of Jesus between these two feasts ? 
 
 2. We assume that at this time, the conversation between 
 Martha and Mary, the return of the seventy, the blessing of little 
 children, the request of Salome on behalf of her sons, and the pas- 
 sage through Jericho, took place. Give details of all these events. 
 
 (c). From the Feast of Consecration to the last Passover. 
 
 1. What was the Feast of Consecration ? Where is Jesus said 
 to have been during this feast ? 
 
 2. Whither did Jesus go from this feast? When had He visited 
 this place before? What event called Him thence? Why did 
 the first three Evangelists omit all mention of a miracle so re- 
 markable as the raising of Lazarus ? How many persons did Jesus 
 raise from the dead? When were they raised, having regard to 
 this division of time by Passovers ? 
 
 3. Whither and why did Jesus retire from Bethany ? When 
 and why did He return thither? In what does John's account of 
 the supper at the house of Simon the leper differ from the narratives 
 of the other Evangelists ? How do you reconcile them ? 
 
 4. Detail Christ's travels, words, and works during the week of 
 His Passion, day by day until the Thursday.
 
 292 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 5. When did they eat the Passover? Recount the principal 
 incidents in the garden, the courts, and at the Crucifixion. 
 
 6. When was Jesus buried ? How do you reckon His time in 
 the tomb at three days and nights ? 
 
 7. Mention His principal appearances after His resurrection. 
 
 8. When and whence did Jesus ascend to Heaven, and who 
 witnessed His ascension ? 
 
 One tangible advantage accruing from this method has been the 
 unifying of the labours of the adult classes in the schools; and 
 inasmuch as these questions are usually issued at the end of the 
 year for public examination thereon to be held in summer, a subject 
 of inquiry is thus supplied for Bible classes on week evenings 
 throughout the winter months. The pastor whose time is wholly 
 occupied with preaching (most often three times a day) on Sunday, 
 is able to preside at these Bible classes, and his connection with 
 them is often as much to his own advantage as to those under his 
 charge. The Sunday engagements of the pastors will incidentally 
 explain (and which in justice to them ought to be specially notified) 
 what Mr. Symons describes as " their neglect of Sunday Schools," 
 and which he deplores as a loss to the teachers of "competent 
 persons to direct and stimulate them." The absence, far from being 
 the result of neglect, is not a matter of choice but of necessity. A 
 whole district generally labours in the same subjects, each division 
 of the school in its own particular branch, and at the general meet- 
 ing held at the end of the school year, all the schools assemble at 
 isome central place to answer publicly those questions and others 
 arising from them propounded at the time by the examiner. These 
 annual meetings are perhaps more general now throughout the 
 country than they were in the days of Mr. Charles ; but much of 
 the simultaneous answers which was the charm of those days, has 
 now given place to possibly less demonstration, but it is to be hoped 
 more thoughtfulness and consequently more real and permanent 
 benefit. One service in connection with these annual " associations," 
 as they are called, is usually devoted to congregational singing, which 
 has been always very closely allied with Sunday-School work ; and 
 to awarding prizes for the best essays and other compositions sent 
 in for adjudication some time before; and also to distributing 
 certificates for learning by heart the catechisms of the various 
 denominations as the result of a test carried on at the different
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 293 
 
 schools by duly appointed examiners against the great puhlic day. 
 Taken altogether, a vast amount of energy is awakened in connec- 
 tion with these school associations in districts where the institutions 
 are in a healthy and flourishing condition. 
 
 Of late years a considerable impetus has been given to Sunday- 
 School work by a system of written examinations and competitions 
 organized for different districts. This is nothing more in principle 
 than the old pwnc preparation, and which was an essential part of 
 school work from the beginning. The modifications introduced 
 into the working of that principle consist in merely specifying the 
 subject, but without any questions whatever supplied befoi ehand to 
 serve as a guide ; in requiring the answers to be given in writing 
 and not orally ; and in the questions being a series submitted for 
 the first time to the candidate at a certain sitting, to be answered 
 there and then. The extent of the district varies from the ordinary 
 school district to a whole county. As to the classification of 
 candidates it corresponds to that usually adopted for the school 
 associations — viz., children, youths, and adults. The following 
 were the classes and subjects selected for one of these county 
 districts ; — 
 
 I. The senior class, open to all ages. Subject. — The book of 
 Acts, its history, contents, and relation to the Epistles. 
 
 II. The middle class, those under 25 years of age. The Epistle 
 of James, its history and contents. 
 
 III. The junior class, children under 16 years of age. The 
 history of Saul, David, and Solomon. 
 
 A period of nine or twelve months is generally given for prepara- 
 tion. Each chapel, if it supplies no fewer than six candidates, is 
 constituted a centre for holding the examination. Some of the 
 local men are appointed to preside at the sitting whose duty is to 
 see that everything is carried on fairly in the time fixed to write 
 out the answers. All the papers are collected together from the 
 various centres, and sent to the examiner to be adjudicated and 
 classified. Prizes of different values are given to the foremost in 
 each class, and certificates to all who obtain a certain percentage of 
 the marks. In fact the whole system is only an adaptation of the 
 Cambridge and Oxford Local Examinations to Scriptural subjects 
 and Sunday-School work. 
 
 To the county of Montgomery the honour is believed to belong
 
 294 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 of haviag first instituted these examinations — the first having been 
 held there on the 7th of May, 1875. But now most of the counties 
 of both parts of the Principality have followed in the wake. It is 
 evident that this plan could not have been adopted in the days of 
 Mr. Charles, owing to the lack of general education, and the mability 
 of the great mass of the population to commit their thoughts to 
 writing; but with the multiplication of Board and other schools in 
 the country, the plan has not been only proved feasible, but 
 eminently successful. The combination of the two methods, of viva 
 voce answering at the annual associations with the written answers 
 at the local examinations, calls into play the three kinds of exercises 
 mentioned by Bacon as necessary to a man's complete education- 
 The reading in preparation for both maketh the full man ; the 
 speiking in the oral examination maketh the ready man; and the 
 writing in the local competition maketh the accurate man. 
 
 It is a direct proof of the suitability of the principle of the 
 Sunday School for all ages and for the different degrees of civiliza- 
 tion and Christian culture, that so few essential changes have been 
 found necessary to be introduced into the system in the space of a 
 hundred years ; and this is more evident when it is remembered 
 that the epoch now referred to has been eminently one of progress 
 and development in all the arts and sciences. And further the 
 vitality of the system is apparent from the success with which it 
 has coped witli a very rapid increase of population; and the readi- 
 ness with which it has secured the aid of the collateral improve- 
 ments of the age to the attainment of its own peculiar ends. It is 
 not intended to be implied that the system has been perfect in 
 either the comprehensiveness of the scheme or in the details of 
 execution, but enough has been done in the past to warrant a fond 
 hope of still greater progress in the future. We shall, however, 
 defer, as a matter of discussion for tlie final chapter, the improve- 
 ments which we deem essential in order to adapt the system still 
 more to the spirit and requirements of the age.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 295 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 The Sunday Schools of Wales, and the British and Foreign 
 Bible Society. 
 
 Scarcity of Bibles in the Principality at the beginning of the nineteenth 
 century — The dearth increased by the multiplication of schools— Mary 
 Jones of Abergynolwyn, " The little Welsh girl without a Bible " — A 
 fall relation of her story — How connected with the formation of the 
 Bible Societ}'— Ground prepared by the Rev. T. Jones of Creaton — The 
 exact parts played by Mr. Charles and Mr. Joseph Hughes, respectively, 
 in the drama— A letter from Mr. Joseph Tarn to Mr. Charles — The 
 true claims of Mr. Hughes to be called the " Father of the Society" — 
 The inquiry summed up— Wales the first object of the Society's care— 
 The number of Bibles sent to Wales by the Society from 1806 to 1885 
 — Welshmen's liberality towards the funds of the Society — Statistics 
 for 1880— Incidents in the life of Mary Jones, an index of the general 
 feeling — The present custody of " Mary Jones's Bible." 
 
 It jias been observed that the Bible Society " grew out of a want " 
 — tJie want of Wales. This want was the natural result of the 
 multiplication of Sunday Schools. The Society for Promoting 
 ChrBtian Knowledge issued an edition of 10,000 copies of the 
 Bible, complete, in 1799, but such was the demand at the time 
 that the whole edition was consumed in a few months. By the 
 spring of 1800, a Welsh Bible on sale, was as rare an article as it 
 ever had been. The last named society, too, had turned a deaf ear 
 to e^ery appeal asking for a further sujDply of Bibles for Wales. 
 We can easily imagine that Mr. Charles in his peregrinations 
 amongst the hills and dales of the Principality had met with many 
 a Utile girl and boy whose soul longed, and eyes melted to have a 
 Bible for their possession and use ; but writers and orators for many 
 yearj have been referring to one particular girl whose tears so 
 mucQ affected him that he made the ever-memorable appeal to the 
 Keligious Tract Society in London, which led to the formation of
 
 296 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 the Bible Society. The form in which the story has appeared in 
 its abridged form is, that Mr. Charles, meeting a little girl in the 
 streets of Bala, asked her where the last Sunday text was. She 
 replied with tears, that she had not been able to get at a Bible that 
 week, so as to learn the text, that she usually went two miles over 
 a rugged road every Monday to the nearest house where there was a 
 Bible, but that the stormy weather had prevented her from carrying 
 out her practice that week. Mr. R. 0. Rees, of Dolgelley, a warm 
 supporter of the Bible Society, and a well-known author in Wales, 
 who died early in 1881, has been able to trace the origin of this 
 pathetic story, and in January, 1879, he published full particulars of 
 it, in a little tract, entitled, '^ Mary Jones, y Qymraesfechan heb yr 
 un BihV' (Mary Jones, the little Welsh girl without a Bible). 
 The substance of this little volume had previously appeared in The 
 Sunday at Home, for December, 1878.* As the author ren:arks, 
 this little incident, though simple and unimportant in itself, has 
 acquired a meaning and a note as being a connecting link in the 
 chain of causes which terminated in the formation of the Bible 
 Society, and so exemplifying in a peculiar manner, "What great 
 results from small beginnings rise." 
 
 From this little book we gather that Mary Jones was born ia a 
 small tenement called Ty'n y ddol, Llanfihangel-y-Pennant, a sraall 
 hamlet lying in a narrow but romantic valley at the southern foot 
 of Cader Idris, in the year 1784. At that time this district, like all 
 others in Wales similarly situated, was remote and inaccessi^e ; 
 but since the introduction of railways into the country the aspect 
 of things has entirely changed; so this nook is now within a nice 
 walking exercise to the terminus of the narrow-gauge line from 
 Towyn, Merioneth, to Abergynolwyn. When Mary was ten jears 
 of age, Mr. Charles established one of his circulating schools at 
 Abergynolwyn, under the charge of John Ellis, afterwards of Bar- 
 mouth. The usual adjunct of day school in a place being the 
 introduction of a Sunday School, for the sake of others who eould 
 not become day-scholars, as well as for those who could be members 
 of both, so here, also, the double organization began to floirish 
 
 * Sunday at Home for 1878, p. 782. Title, " Pages for the Young A 
 Little Seed, and a Great Tree— Charles y Bala, D.R." The same storf has 
 been further amplified and illustrated in a very neat little volume t^' the 
 British and Foreign Bible Society, entitled, "From the Beginning; or, 
 The Story of Mary Jones and her Bible, retold by M. E. R."
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 297 
 
 very soon, under the watchful eye and strenuous hand of John Ellis. 
 One of his earliest scholars was Maiy Jones, and though she had 
 to travel about two miles of rough and exposed road to attend, 
 she was a punctual and regular pupil at both, soon outstripping 
 lier fellows in her ability to remember and recite whole chapters 
 of God's Word, as well as in ready appreciation of its meaning. 
 
 But Mary Jones had not a Bible of her own, neither could Ty'n 
 y ddol, her native home, like most cottages in Wales at the time, 
 boast of a complete copy of the Bible. The nearest Bible which 
 Mary was permited to use, lay in a farmhouse about two miles from 
 her home. She had free access to this whenever she pleased ; and 
 to this borrowed Bible she was seen to come every week, to read 
 it, search it, and treasure its chapters in her memory, for the school 
 on Sunday. For six long years she repeated her practice almost 
 without intermission, at the same time maturing her plans for 
 obtaining a Bible of her own, if possible. For this purpose she had 
 been in the habit of saving every copper she could get, so that by the 
 time she was sixteen years of age, in the year 1800, she thought 
 the sum total was sufficient to enable her to buy a copy of the new 
 edition of the Welsh Bible issued the previous year. She consulted 
 a local preacher, or exhorter, in her neighbourhood, of the name of 
 William Hugh — who was considered an oracle in the district in all 
 matters concerning the eternal welfare of his flock — if he knew 
 where she could get a Bible. He replied that no Bible was to be 
 had on sale anywhere nearer than Bala, with Mr. Charles, and he 
 was afraid that all the Bibles he had received from London had 
 been sold months ago. She had between twenty-five and thirty 
 miles to go from her home to Bala, but notwithstanding the dis- 
 tance, and the uncertainty whether she could get a copy after going, 
 she was determined to encounter all risks in order to try to realize 
 the wish of so many years. 
 
 On a fine morning in the spring of 1800, after having got up with 
 the dawn, she is described as undertaking her long journey to Bala. 
 She had secured the loan of a wallet, to bring the treasure intact 
 home, if heaven and Mr. Charles should grant her what she 
 desired. She had shoes too, to put on, when she entered the town 
 of Bala, but she carried those in the wallet on her back, and walked 
 barefooted all the way to her destination. The morning was re- 
 markably fine, the genial air as it were kindly urging her on ; the
 
 298 
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 blue sky above, with no threatening cloud to discourage her, and 
 the great eye of heaven looking down upon her with the warmest 
 affection. So far as nature around her foreshadowed the outcome of 
 her adventure, nothing adverse or painful was suggested to her 
 thoughts. Not so, however, did the issue prove. She reached 
 
 MART JONES ON THE WAT — CADER IDRIS IN THE BACKGROUND. 
 
 Bala late, too late to see Mr. Charles that night, for it was one of 
 his fixed rules always, when at home, to adhere to what he believed 
 an essential condition of health, " Early to bed, and early to rise." 
 William Hugh had given her instructions before going to Mr. 
 Charles, to call on a venerable preacher in the town, named
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 299 
 
 David Edward, and tell her message to him. After hearing her 
 simple recital, he was at once won over to take the deepest interest 
 in her. Replying to her inquiries, he said, " Well, my dear girl, it 
 is too late to see Mr. Charles to-night ; he is accustomed to retire 
 to rest early, but he gets up with the dawn in the morning. You 
 shall sleep here to-night, and we will go to him as soon as he gets 
 up to-morrow, that you may be able to reach home before night." 
 Next morning, David Edward wakes Mary up with the dawn, 
 and they both turn their steps towards Mr. Charles's house. They 
 see light in his study. Mr. Charles is up, and Mary's anxious and 
 trying moment is come. David Edward knocks at the door, and 
 Mr. Charles himself opens. Mr. Rees graphically and pathetically 
 describes the interview. Having expressed his surprise at the 
 early call of his old friend, he invites them up to his study. The 
 venerable intercessor explains the message of his young protege, 
 and why they must disturb him so early. Mr. Charles questions 
 Mary respecting her personal history, her knowledge of the Scrip- 
 tures, and how she was able to attain to such an extensive ac- 
 quaintance with their contents when she had no Bible. Her 
 explanation of this mystery — the weekly visits to the neighbouring 
 farmhouse for the space of six years in order to read and learn by 
 heart chapters from a boiTowed Bible, her diligent saving of every 
 penny and halfpenny in order to make up the sum she now had in 
 her pocket to buy a Bible of her own — greatly affects Mr. Charles, 
 and he interposes with these words ; " I am extremely sorry to see 
 this little girl having come all the way from Llanfihangel to buy a 
 Bible, and not one for her to be had. All the Bibles I had from 
 London have been disposed of months ago, except a few copies, 
 which, according to promise, I have reserved for a few friends. 
 What I shall do for more Welsh Bibles, I know not." Mr. Charles 
 speaks these words with marked compassion, but they pierce the 
 ears and heart of his youthful visitor as so many pointed darts. 
 They destroy all the floodgates of her heart. She bursts into sobs 
 and cries over the whole house. What a disappointment ! Years 
 of the most intense longing to possess a complete Bible of her 
 own ; years of labour and anxiety to collect the coppers into her 
 little treasury, having become void, altogether in vain ! How 
 mortifying ! Nay, wait ; the heart of the best benefactor of Wales, 
 the father of the Simda}- Schools and their thousands of children,
 
 300 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES, 
 
 is not made of adamant. It is true he has been able to adhere to 
 his intentions in favour of other friends notwithstanding the urgent 
 appeals from his old friend David Edward, but now balls of in- 
 numerable tears, and arrows of heart-rending cries from the dis- 
 appointed little stranger, begin to make breaches in his fortitude ; 
 and his decrees in favour of other pleaders are utterly scattered to 
 the winds. " Well," says he, " my dear girl, I find you must have 
 a Bible, however difficult it is for me to give you one without 
 disappointing other friends ; it is impossible for me to refuse you." 
 Then Mr. Charles hands over a Bible to Mary, and she hands 
 over to him its price in money. If the little heroine before, wept 
 from anguish of heart, she now weeps more, if possible, from joy 
 of beart, that she has obtained such a complete victory over Mr. 
 Charles. Her heart is so full of gratitude to her sympathizing 
 benefactor, that her tongue, though attempting it, fails to utter a 
 word. But her eyes come to the rescue of the tongue. They weep 
 transparent pearls of thanksgiving to him, as she deposits the long- 
 wished treasure in the wallet to carry home. Her tears are con- 
 tagious ; Mr, Charles weeps, and David Edward weeps on looking 
 at them. " If you are pleased, my girl, to get a Bible," said Mr. 
 Charles to her, " so am I much pleased in giving it to you. Read 
 it often, treasure it in your heart, and be a good girl." " David 
 Edward," he added, in his tears, " is not such a scene as this 
 enough to melt the hardest heart — a young, poor, intelligent girl, 
 obliged thus to walk all the way from Llanfihangel here, a distance 
 of over fifty miles between coming and going, and barefooted too, 
 did you not say ? to get a Bible ! The Society for the Propagation 
 of Christian Knowledge, which used to print Welsh Bibles and 
 Testaments since the beginning of the last century, has peremp- 
 torily refused to supply the schools of Wales with any more Bibles 
 and Testaments. But this little intelligent girl has so much 
 afiected me that 1 cannot rest without discovering some other 
 means of meeting the great cry of our country for the Word of 
 God." We can easily imagine that Mary Jones tripped over her 
 journey home with lighter steps than those she had in leaving it; 
 and the contents of her wallet instead of adding to her burden, 
 directly served to inspire her with fresh courage and joy. She 
 afterwards, when an old woman, eighty-two years of age, on the 
 brink of her grave, wept for joy when telling Mr. Rees' informant
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 301 
 
 of Mr. Charles's mellow and heavenly siiirit, and his gracious words 
 speaking to her on that memorable morning, though a poor and 
 strange girl, disturbing him at so untimely an hour. 
 
 Two years after, Mr. Charles was supplying at Lady Hunting- 
 don's Chapel, Spafields. He embraced the opportunity at the 
 meeting of the Committee of the Religious Tract Society which 
 met in London, December, 1802, of bringing before their notice 
 the need of Wales and her Sunday Schools for the divine text- 
 book. Through his exertions and those of Mr. Joseph Tarn, 
 the assistant secretary of the committee, the members had 
 come together in a strong muster. The chairman was the Rev. 
 Matthew Wilks, and there were present also Revs. J. Hughes, J. 
 Townseud, Dr. Steinkopfif, J. Owen, the secretary, J. Tarn, and 
 many influential lay members. After completing the ordinary 
 transactions of the society, Mr, Tarn introduced Mr. Charles to the 
 meeting, at the same time explaining his special object in attending. 
 Mr. Charles proved the crying need of Wales for Bibles and Testa- 
 ments. After referring to many special cases, he came to his 
 climax with a touching account of his interview with Mary Jones 
 and David Edward as already related. This produced the deepest 
 impression upon all the committee, and the Rev. Joseph Hughes 
 readily realizing that the case of the little Welsh girl was but an 
 index of thousands of others throughout the world, exclaimed with 
 profound feeling, " Mr. Charles, if a society of this description for 
 Wales, why not for the kingdom, and indeed for the whole world?" 
 This agitation was kept up until the British and Foreign Bible 
 Society was completely organized in March, 1804, and the first 
 resolution of the society was to provide an edition of Welsh Bibles 
 and Testaments. They first inquired, as has ever been the practice 
 in like circumstances, whether a previous revision mi^ht not be 
 necessary : and since this was the case, some delay necessarily 
 took place, so that the supply of 20,000 Bibles, and 5000 large 
 Testaments, printed for the first time by stereotype plates, was not 
 ready for distribution until July, 1806. An eye-witness thus 
 describes its reception : — " When the arrival of the cart was 
 announced which carried the first sacred load, the Welsh peasants 
 went out in crowds to meet it, and welcomed it as the Israelites 
 did the ark of old, drew it into the town, and eagerly bore off every 
 copy as rapidly as they could be dispersed. The young people
 
 302 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 consumed the whole night in reading it, and labourers carried it 
 with them to the fields, that they might enjoy it during the 
 intervals of their labour." * 
 
 We have, in the above remarks, given the simple narrative of 
 the connection between the wants of Wales and the formation of 
 the British and Foreign Bible Society, without offering a note or 
 comment on any of the incidents, in order not to break the chain 
 of sequences which unites the simple, unsophisticated, and enthusi- 
 astic Mary Jones to the grand, noble, yea heavenly institution, which 
 is now fairly on the way of realizing its universal motto, " Beibl 
 i bawb o bobl y byd" (A Bible to all the people of the world). 
 Many points, however, may be, and indeed have been, critically 
 discussed, having reference to the exact and peculiar place of each 
 individual and circumstance in bringing about this glorious result. 
 Most prominent among the individuals whose exact shares in the 
 production of the society have been keenly weighed and estimated, 
 stand out in bold relief the names of Mr. Charles of Bala and Mr. 
 Joseph Hughes the baptist minister of Battersea. Mr. Charles's 
 share arose directly from his agitation to get the wants of Wales 
 supplied. Still it must be conceded that in thus agitating he did 
 not enter altogether on fallow ground, the Rev. Thomas Jones, 
 curate of Creaton, in Northamptonshire, had done much to enlist 
 the sympathy of the English with Wales, by various appeals 
 between 1791 and 1802. He is said to have paid a visit to Wales 
 on the first of these years, soon after the revival to which we have 
 referred in a preceding chapter,! by which he discovered that the 
 need of Bibles had been rendered more urgent than what was 
 already felt, by the immediate consequence of the extension of the 
 circulating and Sunday Schools. The craving which he witnessed 
 produced so great an impression upon his mind, that he corres- 
 ponded much with Mr. Charles, after he went home, on the subject, 
 and made strenuous efforts to get the deficiency supplied. It was 
 he who first made application to the Society for Promoting Christian 
 Knowledge, in 1792, to print an edition of 10,000 copies of the 
 Welsh Bible, and even went so far as to offer security of payment 
 for 5000 copies as soon as printed. Strange to say, after promising 
 to undertake the work, reluctantly no doubt, the engagement was 
 afterwards broken off, on the ground, notwithstanding all the clear 
 * " The Book and its Story," pp. 236, 237. f p. 253.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 303 
 
 proofs to the contrary, that such aa edition was not required. Mr. 
 Jones, however, persisted in his entreaty, and interested his 
 diocesan, Dr. Madan, the bishop of Peterborough, in the matter, 
 through whose influence the Board passed a resolution, in 1796, to 
 print the number specified. The edition was not out before 1799, 
 and being offered for sale at one-half the cost price, was no sooner in 
 the market than sold, though " not one-fourth part of the country," 
 as Mr. Jones remarks, " was supplied." Neither the solicitations 
 of Mr. Jones, the influence of the Bishop, nor the intercession of 
 other parties, could induce the society to issue another single copy. 
 Being deterred probably in 1799, by the expense which the further 
 publication would involve, it is somewhat unaccoimtable to see the 
 same society, in 1805, declaring its intention of issuing an edition 
 of 20,000 copies of the Welsh Bible, and actually publishing several 
 editions contemporaneously with the issues of the Bible Society 
 though the exact number is not known.* When Mr. Jones found 
 this society turning a deaf ear to his entreaties, he conceived a 
 plan to get a large edition published at Chester by means of liberal 
 subscriptions from the friends of Wales, so as to be able to offer copies 
 to the poor at an attainable price. But in this, too, his efforts were 
 doomed to disappointment. At the same time, it can be safely 
 asserted that the seed he was sowing in tears, as it were, did not 
 remain unproductive, for Mr. Charles, in his more successful efforts 
 with the members of the Religious Tract Society, was only reaping, 
 in a certain sense, with joy, the produce of the seed scattered with 
 such patriotic and Christian zeal by his less-known predecessor. 
 
 The question has been very warmly discussed on more than one 
 occasion and in more than one place, whether Mr. Charles of Bala 
 or Mr. Joseph Hughes of Battersea was the true originator of the 
 Bible Society? It is evident at the outset that this is a more 
 curious than useful or important inquiry, for it resolves itself into 
 the discussion — while the two factors are known to have been the 
 actual productive causes of the institution, which of the two would 
 have been the more likely to produce it, the one independent of the 
 other? To us at present it seems more in harmony with our 
 avowed object to prove that it was the multiplication of Sunday 
 Schools, particularly in Wales, which occasioned the forming of an 
 organization for putting into the hands of the people of Britain and 
 * '* Gwyddoniadur," voL i. p. 640.
 
 304 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 of all other lands, the Holy Scriptures in all their purity and fulness. 
 In the prosecution of this object, we Cannot avoid stumbling over 
 Mr. Charles's name ; for the great subject of his meditations in the 
 day time, and of his dreams in the night, was how to further this 
 good cause of founding schools with which the circulation of the Bible 
 was so nearly connected both as the result of, and means towards, 
 their multiplication. At the same time, no one can fail to see that 
 the part performed by Mr. Hughes was as essential as that of Charles, 
 to the formation of the society. If the latter, after the thought had 
 occurred to him while in London, one morning awake in bed, brood- 
 ing over the matter of having a Bible Society formed for Wales — 
 and he went no further than Wales — had not providentially met 
 with Mr. Tarn, and so getting the way smoothed for him to unfold 
 his plan at the meeting of the Committee of the Religious Tract 
 Society held on the 7th December, 1802, we cannot conceive how 
 the society could have been originated. If, on the other hand, Mr. 
 Hughes had not uttered, at that meeting, the memorable words, 
 *' Surely a society might be formed for the purpose, and if for Wales, 
 why not also for the empire and the world," and had not strenuously 
 worked to realize the object, it is quite evident that Mr. Charles's 
 appeals would have only resulted in a local and not a cosmopolitan 
 society. But just as the soil is necessary as well as the seed for 
 fructification, so the part acted by each of these distinguished 
 men was as essential as the other to the production of this grand 
 result. To ask, therefore, which of the two was the originator of the 
 society is as futile as if one should ask, "Whether it is Bahr el 
 Azrek or the Bahr el Abiad which makes up the Nile ? " when it is 
 well known that the name is only applied to the confluence of the 
 two ; or to borrow another comparison already used, " Who were 
 the authors of the victory at Waterloo, — whether the English, who 
 withstood the onset of the enemy for a whole trying day, or the 
 Prussians, who came forward at the end of the day and completed 
 the rout?" 
 
 This is the view taken by Mr. Charles himself, of the share he 
 had in the concern, though far from appropriating any praise or 
 glory to himself. Giving an account of the formation of the society 
 in an appendix to a small volume, entitled " A Compendium of the 
 History of Mr. Kicherer," he says, " while I was consulting in 
 London with some well-wishers to religion and piety, how a large
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 305 
 
 and cheap edition of the Bible could be had in Welsh, and how, if 
 possible, a permanent repository of Bibles could be procured, that 
 there might be no more a scarcity of them among the poor Welsh, 
 the Lord put in the hearts of some of those pious men with whom 
 I was conversing the kind and noble design, to form a society to 
 distribute the Bible, not only in our country, but also in foreign 
 countries, whether Christian, Mahometan, or Pagan, that there 
 might be no nation under heaven, nor any individual in the whole 
 world, without this precious treasure, if desirous of possessing it. 
 At first sight, the undertaking appeared, however desirable in itself, 
 yet so formidable that it was hardly worth while to cherish the 
 design with a view of accomplishing it. But through the hand of 
 God upon them, this glorious cause pressed so heavily and con- 
 tinuously upon the minds of some of the pious and worthy men with 
 whom I conversed, that they were prevailed upon to make the 
 attempt of realizing it, notwithstanding every consideration of dis- 
 couragement. Several of them met together to consult upon the 
 matter. In the first meeting (this was the meeting of 7th December, 
 1802), I was present; and when expatiating upon the desirability 
 and great blessedness of such an institution, the remarks on the 
 subject so affected their minds, that they shed in common, tears 
 of joy, at the prospect of being able to succeed."* 
 
 As further evidence that this was not Mr. Charles's own view 
 alone respecting his connection with the society, the following 
 letter, written to him by Mr. Tarn, describing the meeting held at 
 the London Tavern, March 7th, 1804, to organize the society, con- 
 firms the truth of some of the above remarks : — 
 
 " London, March 7, 1804. 
 " Dear Friend, 
 
 " With hearty pleasure I take up my pen to acquaint you 
 of the result of the numerous and respectable meeting held this 
 day at the London Tavern, for the formation of a Bible Society, 
 and in which the foundation was kid, as I hope, for circulating the 
 Holy Scriptures moie extensively than was hitherto seen. 
 
 *' 1'here were ])resent at the meeting, I should think, from two 
 to three hundred very respectable men belonging to the various 
 Christian communities ; and there was to be heard but the com- 
 
 * Life of the author, prefacing Mr. Charles's Dictionary, p. xiii. 
 
 X
 
 306 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 pletest unanimity, and all to be seen as if under a deep feeling of the 
 value and importance of the work, especially as regards its wide and 
 catholic object. The chair was taken by Grenville Sharpe, Esq. ; 
 from twelve to two in the afternoon the matter was under consider- 
 ation, and the work resolved upon to be commenced unitedly 
 according to the plan already prepared. The resolutions will be 
 seen to-morrow or the day after in several of the newspapers. A 
 subscription list was opened and £700 promised on the spot, and 
 we can certainly expect a large addition to this when the under- 
 taking is made generally known. 
 
 " The deficiency of Bibles in Wales received special attention, 
 and was deeply impressed upon the meeting, and this, I hope will 
 be one of the first matters to be considered by the committee. 
 The Rev. Mr. Owen was a great support to the cause, by speaking 
 without any previous appointment, after the other friends had gone 
 through the various parts arranged for them. He recommended 
 the scheme in a powerful, rational, and Scriptural speech, proving 
 that the society was laid on the sure foundation of the word and 
 promises of Grod. 
 
 " My dear brother, we cannot but rejoice together when we con- 
 sider that this work had its beginning in a conversation we had 
 together one morning which will never be forgotten. Hence I was 
 induced at the next meeting of the committee of the Tract Society 
 to mention the scarcity of Bibles in Wales ; and then it was that 
 the flame was kindled which now breaks out, and which I hope 
 will burn brighter and brighter till that glorious day of universal 
 knowledge come, when we shall no more teach our brother saying, 
 ' I know the Lord : but all shall know him from the least to the 
 greatest.' To the Lord be all the glory ; as for us who are utterly 
 unworthy of the least of his mercies, our duty is to account it an 
 inestimable privilege to be permitted in any degree to be instru- 
 mental to increase the knowledge of that salvation of which we 
 hope that we are partakers. 
 
 " Now let us unite in supplications, that the stone which is as it 
 were ' cut out of the mountain without hands,' and which we have 
 seen to-day becoming a hill, increase until it become a mountain, 
 to cast down the castles of sin and of Satan from east to west, 
 and from pole to pole ; and so, though we shall not live to see the 
 bright day, we may rejoice together that we laid down the first
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 307 
 
 stone of a building which, as we hope, will remain, and be the joy 
 of the whole earth. Soliciting your prayers, and those of the Welsh 
 brethren, for the success of the work, 
 
 " I am, yours in the fellowship of the Gospel, 
 
 " Joseph Tarn." 
 
 For a similar reason Mr. Hughes has been called the Father of 
 the Society, not so much because of the words he spoke to mark 
 out the extent of its boundaries, as for the direct labours he 
 bestowed in organizing and supporting it. Mr. Alers Hankey, who 
 was present at its first meeting, looks at the matter in this light : 
 speaking of Mr. Hughes, he says, " On the labours of our departed 
 friend during this important, and to all connected with it, anxious 
 period, I found the claim that his name should be transmitted to 
 future ages as the ' Father of the British and Foreign Bible Society,' 
 and that claim, I conceive, rests on so firm a basis that no one 
 should dare dispute it. With regard to the uncertain honour of 
 having been the speaker of the words dropped at the meeting of 
 the 7th of December, 1802, after hearing Mr. Charles's report, even 
 if it could be certain of the words themselves, they were but the 
 expression of the feeling of all present, and were too vague to 
 convey then any definite meaning. Some one said something. The 
 design of Providence was thus realized, and beyond this everything 
 is uncertain. I do not deny that he might be the person who 
 spoke them, whatever they were — the probability perhaps is in his 
 favour — but the claim to this at the time was not considered to be 
 of any importance, until Mr. Owen undertook to write the history 
 of the society, and the claim to be the author of the words rested 
 on Mr. Hughes's recollection only. But his claim to be looked 
 upon as its father, as I have already said, rests on a much firmer 
 foundation. From the very first moment that the spark was 
 kindled he fanned it with all his zeal until it became a mighty 
 flame." 
 
 Summing up this inquiry (which after all is a mere question of 
 accident), it is far easier to prove that the starting of the society 
 was occasioned by the want of Wales, than to arrive at a decision 
 which was the most immediate subsequent link in the chain of 
 cause and effect — whether Mr. Charles's appeal to a number of 
 godly people to devise some means to supply this want, at the
 
 308 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 same time suggesting a society, or Mr. Hughes's approval of the 
 idea, and the extended aim of such a society to the welfare, not of 
 Wales only, but of the whole human race. Altogether, it seems a 
 greater honour, indeed, to have been the means of creating this 
 want of Bibles, through years of unwearied application in travelling, 
 exhorting, organizing, and supporting, than to have hit in a happy 
 moment on a plan for its supply. Eeally there was nothing original 
 in the idea. Societies already existed for very similar purposes ; 
 for promoting Christian knowledge, for the extension of Christian 
 literature generally. Here was only a limitation of the principle 
 to one book, certainly the best of books, and an extension of area 
 beyond the limits of one language and kingdom, to " every tribe, 
 language, people, and nation." 
 
 It has been already mentioned that the first-fruits of the society's 
 operations was to su])ply the need of Wales by issuing, in 1806, an 
 edition of 20,000 Bibles, and 5000 Testaments. Nor did its gene- 
 rosity end in this single outburst. Ever since, amid its multifarious 
 engagements, translating the sacred text into the languages of the 
 world, meeting the appeals of missionaries from all parts for a 
 supply of Bibles, and organizing auxiliaries, like a widespread 
 banyan tree, at home and abroad, the little Principality of Wales 
 has always received a first-born's share of its attention and 
 liberality. 
 
 Mr. Charles, before his death in 1814, had the unspeakable 
 pleasure of seeing that Wales had received 100,000 copies of Bibles 
 and Testaments from the British and Foreign Bible Society within 
 the ten years of its first formation.* Up to March 31, 1880, there 
 have been issued to Wales of Bibles and Old Testaments, 824,186 ; 
 of New Testaments and New Testaments with Psalms, 1,062,407 ; 
 of portions of Old Testament, 53,920 ; of portions of New Testament 
 35,200, making a total of 1,975,713. Besides these, 89,086 copies 
 of Welsh and English New Testaments have been issued, and 50 
 portions of New Testaments for the blind. Up to 1875 Wales had 
 received 1,737,479 Bibles and Testaments, so that in the five years 
 ending March 31, 1880, it received 238,234 copies, or an average 
 per year of 47,647 ; and up to 1875, 77,086 Welsh and English 
 Testaments, iraking in the five years ending 1880, 12,000 with an 
 average per year of 2400. Taking this as the basis of calculation 
 * " Methodistiaeth Cymru," vol. i. p. 348. .
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 309 
 
 for the next five years, by the year 1885, or the Sunday School 
 Centenary in Wales, Wales will have received in all from the 
 Society 2,213,947 Bibles and Testaments, and 101,806 Welsh and 
 English Testaments, or more than one every fifty years to every 
 man, woman, and child, according to the average population of the 
 latter part of tbe century. Surely no people under the sun are 
 better supplied with copies of God's Holy Word. 
 
 The care taken for Wales by the society will be shown also by 
 the number of different editions and sizes of Welsh Bibles and 
 Testaments issued from the commencement. In all six different 
 editions of the former have been prepared, bound in twenty-six 
 different styles ; and nine different editions of the latter, in twenty- 
 nine different styles of binding. The latest acquisition is the whole 
 Bible with marginal references, and at the end six maps illustrative 
 of Biblical geography, which must be a greac help to the teacher 
 with his class. 
 
 Wales, on the other hand, has never forgotten the claims of the 
 society upon its sympathy and support. Ungrateful in the extreme, 
 and entirely at variance with the teaching of the Blessed Book so 
 much prized and multiplied in the land, would have been a forget- 
 fulness of such a consistent and extensive benefactor; and one 
 tangible proof of the influence of the Bible over the minds of the 
 people is the honourable support given to the society both by deed 
 and word. In the Evangelical Magazine for December, 1815, it is 
 reported that the society's accounts for the first two years of its 
 existence show that over £2626 was collected by the various con- 
 gregations of the Principality towards its funds. The whole contri- 
 butions for those years for England and Wales amounted to 
 £10,137 17s. Old, thus showing that Wales supplied more than 
 one-fourth.* This sum came not from the higher class and the 
 rich, but from the common people and the poor, the school children 
 being among the most prominent according to their limited ability. 
 On many occasions it is said that the ministers who brought the 
 claims of the society before the schools and the congregations had 
 to restrain the liberality of some, and take but one-half of what 
 they were willing to give. Once a servant-girl, whose yearly wages 
 only amounted to £3, was observed to place a guinea in the coUec- 
 
 * See also Society's Annual Reports for 1805-6. For the latter of these 
 two years England's share was £2637, Wales, 4:2004.
 
 310 
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 tion box, which she had covered with a halfpenny in order not to 
 draw attention to the sum, as she felt it was out of proportion to 
 her means. There are several proofs that the English friends were 
 quite taken by surprise at this unexpected flow of Welsh liberality, 
 and in one connection at least, as has already been mentioned,* the 
 effect was anything but agreeable to the contributors. Mr. Charles 
 complains in 1808 that all the annual aids from England, except 
 one, towards his circulating schools, had suddenly and unexpectedly 
 ceased. When he went to inquire for the cause he learnt that the 
 English friends of the schools finding the Welsh people able to 
 contribute so honourably towards the Bible Society had come to 
 the natural conclusion that their support was no longer necessary. 
 But their liberality towards the society received this shock without 
 being disturbed. And to their credit it must be said that theirs 
 was not an extraordinary ebullition of feeling consequent upon the 
 warmth of the " first love," Wales has kept up " her primacy of 
 honour " as compared with all other countries in this respect until 
 now. The following table, comparing Wales and one county 
 (Merionethshire) with England and two of its principal towns in 
 the matter of free contributions and purchases of Bibles for the year 
 1880, will serve to show how " poor little Wales," as the country 
 is often called, so easily bears the palm from her richer and more 
 populous neighbour. 
 
 A Comparison between England and Wales in their Contribu- 
 tions TOWARDS "The Bible Society," in 1880. 
 
 District. 
 
 Population 
 in 1881. 
 
 Free Contribu- 
 tions. 
 
 Amount 
 per 100 of 
 
 Purchases. 
 
 Amount 
 per 100 of 
 
 
 Population, 
 
 
 Population. 
 
 
 
 £ s. d. 
 
 £ s. d. 
 
 £ s. d. 
 
 £ s. d. 
 
 Wales 
 
 1,359,895 
 
 7166 18 8 
 
 10 6i 
 
 2177 13 6 
 
 3 2| 
 
 Merioneth 
 
 54,798 
 
 873 14 11 
 
 1 11 10| 
 
 219 2 11 
 
 8 
 
 England 
 
 24,608,391 
 
 42,849 16 1 
 
 8 5| 
 
 23,415 10 11 
 
 1 10| 
 llf 
 
 London 
 
 3,814,571 
 
 2017 3 6 
 
 1 Of 
 
 1891 10 9 
 
 Liverpool 
 
 552,000 
 
 539 
 
 1 llj 
 
 1351 8 4 
 
 4 101 
 
 The story told by the above table is at once evident. Wales in 
 proportion to the population gives three times as much as England 
 towards sending the Bible to all parts of the world ; and one of the 
 
 * See p. 170.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 311 
 
 counties of Wales, Merionetli contributes about thirty times more 
 than London towards the same object.- The same faithfulness is 
 shown by the Welsh when they settle in the towns of England. 
 Their circumstances here being not so much unlike, and the compari- 
 son therefore more just, the superiority of the Welsh over their 
 English fellow-citizens becomes at once more striking and conclu- 
 sive. In Liverpool, for instance, the Welsh population, though the 
 number is not exactly known, is never put above one-fifth of the 
 English portion, and yet the Welsh Auxiliary Society of that town, 
 for the year 1880, actually contributed only £14 less than the 
 whole English portion. In Manchester the Welsh are a mere 
 handful, not one-thirtieth part of the English population, still the 
 sum collected towards the propagation of Holy Scriptures to all 
 parts of the world by the Cambrian branch there, was £115, while 
 the English only collected £897 17s. Od. To keep up with the 
 Welsh, the English portion ought to have contributed at least 
 £3450, and to be equal to Merionethshire, it ought to have given 
 over £6000. 
 
 Love for the Bible and a desire to multiply copies of it over all 
 the world, are always concomitant feelings ; the former being the 
 productive cause of the latter. A proof of the existence of this 
 desire in the Welsh, apart from its cause, has now been furnished 
 through the cold abstractions of statistics; but the connections 
 between the effect and its cause cannot easily be realized except 
 when presented as working through the pulsations of living hearts, 
 and in the actions of laborious hands. Instances might be quoted 
 throughout the length and the breadth of the land, of this ex- 
 uberant love of the Bible resulting in various forms of sacrifices 
 and self-denial for its circulation ; but perhaps in none has it been 
 so strikingly exhibited as in that simple maid whose story has 
 already been related in connection with the formation of the Bible 
 Society. Some further incidents respecting her and her Bible, 
 illustrating as they do, at once both this deep-rooted liberality of 
 the people, and the nature of the work done by the Sunday Schools 
 of her days, will, it is hoped, form a fitting conclusion to our 
 remarks on the intimate relation between the Sunday Schools of 
 Wales and the British and Foreign Bible Society. 
 
 Mary Jones having become possessed of a Bible, proceeded at 
 Once to carry out her first resolution, which was to read it through
 
 312 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 miautely, word for word. She applied herself more assiduously 
 than ever to read, search, and learn by heart chapters from her 
 own new Bible. Some portion of it, so far as her health and 
 circumstances permitted, she read every day, during the whole of 
 the sixty-six years that she lived after buying it. She read it 
 consecutively four times over, and committed whole books of it to 
 memory, viz., the book of Job, the Psalms, Proverbs, Isaiah, the 
 Gospel and Epistles of John, the Epistles of Paul to the Romans 
 and Ephesians, the Epistle to the Hebrews, and Mr. Charles's own 
 " Instructor.'''' She continued a faithful member of the Sunday 
 School as long as her j^hysical strength enabled her to walk 
 there. It was Mr. Charles's practice, as we have already found, 
 to hold "school associations," where many schools would come 
 together for public catechising. Mary Jones attended these with 
 unflagging zeal in all places within a large district. Mr. Charles 
 always expected to see the young girl from Llanfihangel in every 
 meeting of the kind within her reach, and he was very seldom 
 disappointed. To any question of unusual difficulty in Scriptural 
 knowledge, he would look to this young disciple for the best answer ; 
 and very often did her ready and thoughtful remaiks affect to tears 
 of joy the large congregations always present at these gatherings. 
 She lived for the latter part of her life at the village of Bryncrug 
 near Towyn, Merioneth, and became very zealous for the missionary 
 causes. Here, from the advantageous position of her cottage, she 
 devoted herself to the cultivation of bees, of which she had a very 
 large number, and the excellence of her honey and wax was 
 proverbial. Her yearly income from the honey she used for the 
 support of herself and family, but she divided the proceeds from 
 the wax between the Bible Society and the Missionary Suciety of 
 the denomination to which she belonged. In favourable seasons 
 that sum was very considerable from a woman in her humble 
 circumstances. She was on very friendly terms with her bees. 
 Whenever she paid a visit to their numerous habitations in 
 the garden, they would welcome her with the most enthusiastic 
 reception. She would hold a handful of them on the palm of her 
 hand as fearlessly as if they were common flies. There is no 
 account of any of them having ever stung her, though they never 
 spared other intruders. She was gaining greater boldness amongst 
 them every day, as she firmly believed, seeing how productive they 
 
 1
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 313 
 
 were, that they also were full of " the missionary spirit." When 
 in the year 1854, a collection was made in her chapel, towards the 
 million testaments for China, one half-sovereign was found in the 
 heap of coppers and silver. At first it was thought it had been 
 deposited on the plate by mistake. It was soon ascertained, how- 
 ever, that it was given with a full consciousness of its colour and 
 value. This was the gift of the " poor widow " Mary Jones, which 
 her zealous bees had enabled her to contribute. For many years 
 she continued to draw consolation from her precious Bible. She was 
 often seen directing her short footsteps to the Sunday School with 
 her stafi" in one hand, and the Bible under her arm, until, depend- 
 ing on its faithful testimonies, she slept in Jesus on the 28th of 
 December, 1866, aged eighty-two years. Since her death her Bible 
 has had a history. On her death-bed it was given as a legacy to her 
 pastor, Rev. Robert GrifiBth of Bryncrug, who gave it over to Mr. 
 R. O. Rees together with a written account of the most striking facts 
 in the life of Mary Jones, and the particulars of its purchase from 
 Mr. Charles. In it is a record in ^Isivy Jones's own handwriting that 
 she bought it in the year 1800, at the age of sixteen years. Mr. 
 Rees afterwards presented it to the library of the Calvinistic 
 Methodist college at Bala, where Mr. Charles lived and where 
 too she had bought it of him ; since then the committee of the 
 Bible Society have made a pressing request for it in order to honour 
 it with a place in their library. The Bala college committee have 
 at length acceded to the request, and in return for the favour, the 
 committee of the Bible Society have presented both Mr. Rees and 
 the Bala library with specially-bound copies of their latest edition 
 with a note of a resolution explaining the circumstances, signed by 
 the chairman. On Mr. Rees's copy is the following lithographed 
 entry : — " Presented to Mr. R. 0. Rees by the committee of the 
 British and Foreign Bible Society in grateful acknowledgment of 
 his services in connection with the gift of Mary Jones* Bible to the 
 library of the Suciety, November, 1880. Shaftesbury (President). 
 John Sharpe, Charles E. B. Reed (Secretaries)."
 
 314 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 CHAPTER XIY. 
 
 The Later Years of Charles's Life. 
 
 The last fifteen years of Mr. Charles's life the most abundant in general 
 usefulness — His illness in 1799 — Richard Owen's prayer for an exten- 
 sion of fifteen years to his life — His labours in preparing a revised 
 copy of Bible for the press — At the call of the Irish Society visits 
 Ireland — Leaves from his journal — General results — His assistance in 
 directing the line of action taken by the Gaelic Society — Their tribute 
 of acknowledgment — Literary labours in connection with Wales — A 
 warm supporter of the London Missionary Society — A pastor at 
 Chester — Direct aids given to his own denomination — The part taken 
 in the first ordination of lay preachers — The vicar of Llanuwehllyn 
 and the repentance theory — The probable solution — Direct references 
 to Sunday-School labours during this period — Seeds of last illness 
 sown in 1811 — Gradual failing of health — Visits Barmouth — 
 Machynlleth — Return to Bala — Feelings and sayings on his deathbed 
 — Funeral — Unveiling of his statue in 1875 — Speeches by J. Roberts, 
 Esq., M.P., and others — Letter from Lord Shaftesbury — Judge 
 Johnes's estimate of his work and character. 
 
 The most important incidents in Mr. Charles's public life are un- 
 doubtedly connected with his labours on behalf of the Sunday- 
 Schools, and the spread of religious knowledge generally; his 
 actions apart from these objects are not long to recount, nor perhaps 
 remarkably interesting to unfold. Still, to those of our readers 
 who are especially concerned in his biography, and who have no 
 ready access to works exclusively devoted to this end, we presume 
 that it would be gratifying to become acquainted with some of his 
 principal acts in other connections up to the end of his compara- 
 tively short but eminently useful and well-«pent life. 
 
 It is a remarkable fact that almost all his benefactions in con- 
 nection with countries and objects beyond the Principality of 
 Wales are comprised within the last fifteen years of his life — a 
 period too^ at one time which seemed very doubtful he would ever
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 315 
 
 have been permitted to add to his earthly existence, but which 
 also afifords another striking illustration of the truth that God's 
 people are immortal so long as the work they have to accomplish 
 remains uncompleted. He had been naturally endowed with a 
 strong constitution, and a considerable amount of physical energy 
 and power of endurance. This enabled him to travel about in the 
 Lord's work through all extremes of w^eather, and cheerfully to put 
 up with the humble and risky hospitality which often fell to his 
 lot during his itineracies. Not seldom would he awake in the 
 nights to find the few locks that had been left him fluttering in 
 the wind, which had too easy an access to his bedroom through 
 the chinks in the walls and roof; and it had been no wonder for 
 him to see the snow by the morning forming another coverlet over 
 the supply under which he had initiated his night's rest. For 
 many years did he bear these hardships with apparent immunity. 
 But in the beginning of the winter of 1799-1800 he also fell a 
 prey to the severity of that inclement season. Crossing over the 
 Migneint mountain, which lies between Festiniog and Bala, as he 
 was returning from a tour through Caernarvonshire, on a bitterly 
 cold night, the thumb of his left hand was so severely frost-bitten 
 as to result in a long and painful affection. After trying several 
 remedies and consulting many physicians, amongst whom was an 
 eminent surgeon at Chester, he became reconciled to the advice 
 that he could do nothing better than return home and submit to an 
 amputation. The member w^as dislocated and entirely removed as 
 far as the inner joint. This circumstance was the occasion of much 
 affliction to him, to his family, and to all the churches which 
 became acquainted with the case. Many were the prayers offered 
 to heaven on his behalf — that the Lord would be pleased to spare, 
 him and grant him an extension of life, for the sake of his own 
 glory and the promotion of his cause. In the prayer-meeting held 
 by his own congregation at Bala, the attention of all present was 
 specially but spontaneously drawn to the words of a simple-hearted 
 and earnest Christian named Richard Owen. In his entreaty for 
 the prolongation of Charles's life he referred to the Lord's words 
 concerning Hezekiah, 2 Kings xx. 6, " Fifteen years more, Lord," 
 he pleaded ; " we pray for the addition of fifteen years to the days 
 of thy servant's life, and wilt thou not grant him fifteen years, 
 our God, for the sake of thy Church and thy cause." Whatever
 
 316 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 explanation may be ofifered of the circumstance, it is a fact worthy 
 of note that Mr. Charles actually terminated his earthly career 
 within a few days of the end of the fifteen years, and that during 
 this time he consolidated much of the good begun before, and 
 extended his usefulness in many new directions. 
 
 His labours in connection with the new edition of the Welsh 
 Bible were not altogether limited to his visit to London, and 
 pleading for the formation of a society for securing its circulation ; on 
 him too fell the great mental strain of preparing the copy for the 
 press. This labour continued from 1804 to 1806. In order to 
 produce the most perfect copy, both as regards orthography and 
 punctuation, he is said to have collated eight previous editions of 
 the Welsh Bible, and three of those which were considered best in 
 English, carefully examining every verse and sifting every punc- 
 tuation. In the years 1813, 1814, he was engaged in revising a 
 copy of an octavo Bible for the British and Foreign Bible Society, 
 taking as his foundation the edition published at Oxford in the 
 year 1809 for the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, and 
 which had been prepared by several eminent Welshmen at the 
 invitation of the Bishops of St. David's and Bangor. This, Mr. 
 Charles found pretty accurate, though not up to the standard of 
 perfection which he had set up before his mind ; and since it was 
 his ardent wish to procure a copy, perfect, full, and unblemished, 
 for the benefit of his fellow-countrymen, he spared neither labour 
 nor expense in the undertaking, without expecting either recompense 
 or acknowledgment from any human being whatever. The work 
 of revision was finished in August, 1814, a few weeks only before 
 his death. 
 
 In the year 1807 his assistance was asked in furtherance of the 
 object of a society which had then recently been formed with a 
 view of improving the social and religious condition of the Irish 
 population. The mass of that nation then as now was sunk in 
 ignorance, and consequently easily duped into the errors of Popery. 
 The nature of the aid required of Mr. Charles was to undertake, in 
 conjunction with three others, a journey into Ireland, and through 
 various parts of the island, to look into the moral and religious 
 condition of the people, and to report on the desirability or other- 
 wise of organizing a system of education for the poor Irish in their 
 own tongue, as it was a question in debate whether it was prefer-
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 317 
 
 able to teach them through that medium or by means of the 
 English language. His colleagues were Rev. D. Bogue, a Congre- 
 gational minister at Gosport; Rev. J. Hughes, a Baptist minister; 
 and Mr. Mills, a pious layman. Mr. Morgan, in his "Life of Mr. 
 Charles," has detailed this tour with some minuteness, quoting 
 much of Mr. Charles's diary, which it may be interesting to re- 
 produce, seeing the attention claimed by Ireland at the present day. 
 He says, " These four Christian tourists commenced their journey 
 July 24, traversed the country mostly two and two for nearly a 
 month, and returned August 30. Their report was published ; and 
 much of the good that has since been dune in Ireland must no 
 doubt be attributed to it. The observations then made by Mr. C, 
 as we find it remarked in the Evangelical Magazine for November, 
 1815, 'led him more especially to desire that schools might he 
 established in every part of the country ; in which such as require 
 it shuuld be taught in their native language ; ' and had he lived to 
 this day, when the Hibernian Society has now 111,952 children under 
 instruction, his generous heart would have exulted with joy. . . . 
 
 " Mr. C, in his tour, kept a journal, which I have now in my 
 possession. It is too long to be given whole, and too interesting 
 to be left out entirely. Few things in it shall be entered here. It 
 may be right to state before we proceed, that the Bible Society sent 
 1000 Testaments to Dublin, to be distributed by Mr. C. and his 
 companions while travelling through the country. 
 
 "Mr. C. preached on Sunday, July 20, at Bethesda Chapel, 
 Dublin. 
 
 ''Kilkenny. Called on Rev. P. Roe, and met the Rev. Gr. C. 
 of Ross, near Waterlbrd — both evangelical, zealous, and successful. 
 The carnal clergy oppose those that are evangelical more than they 
 do the Popish priest. — At Athy, when Mr. Kielly preached in the 
 court-yard, the Popish priest stood at the end of the lane to prevent 
 any of his people to go and hear. 
 
 " Waterford, Aug. 3. — Religious pe3ple here, as everywhere else, 
 in some degree infected with Sandemanianism. Sacrament every 
 Sunday — administered without a minister ; they spend their time 
 in vain janglings, instead of laying themselves out in endeavouring 
 to spread the gospel and save sinners who are perishing all around 
 them. 
 
 " Limerick, Aug. 7. — This is a large, fine-built, populous town,
 
 318 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 situated on the Shannon, the finest river in the British Empire. — 
 
 The gospel preached in the church by J. and W. Hoare. Mr. B 
 
 preached at the old Presbyterian meeting-house — served by an old 
 Socinian minister and a young gay fellow — both cannot keep up 
 a congregation. Were it not for the bounty allowed to dissenters, 
 the meeting must have been shut up years ago ; and it would have 
 
 been as well if it had, as no good is done. M and J two 
 
 evangelical ministers, met us at the chancellor's in the evening. 
 
 J is very active in carrying on schools over the country — assisted 
 
 \)j wr Esq., and others in England — trains up schoolmasters — 
 
 superintends the schools himself. 
 
 '* Tuam, Aug. 10.— The poor in their cabins very civil and com- 
 municative, hut ignorant of the Bible to a man, turned in to a few 
 of them in every place ; their ignorance of the Bible, the only source 
 of real and permanent comfort, affected me much. They have been 
 sadly neglected, indeed ! I hope the time is drawing nigh for the 
 Lord to show them mercy. The earth must be filled with the 
 knowledge of the Lord ; and as Ireland is a part of the earth, it 
 must also be filled with this knowledge. This is a cheering con- 
 sideration indeed. The clergy riot in wealth and luxury, unmindful 
 of their duty. The priests make a prey of the people, whom they 
 keep in ignorance for that purpose. The protestants of all denomi- 
 nations mind earthly things ; and, therefore, the cause of God is 
 neglected. Mercy or judgment must produce a change, and that 
 speedily. Nothing wanting but zeal and piety in the Protestants 
 and Grod's blessing to effect their conversion, just the same as other 
 sinners. 
 
 " Castlehar, Aug, 12. — We saw a motmtain in our way here, 
 called Croaugh Patrick ; from whence, the tradition is, St. Patrick 
 beat all the serpents and venomous creatures from Ireland into the 
 sea. A hermit dwells on this mountain, who is a half-witted man ; 
 and thousands flock here from all parts to perform stations, as they 
 call them, — to repeat Ave Maria and Paternosters, walking bare- 
 footed around a stone or heap of stones. The hermit directs them 
 in their devotions, for which he is paid. Kich people send him 
 money, and he performs for them. There is a lake in Galaway, to 
 which thousands resort every year to perform religious ceremonies, 
 to obtain a blessing on their cattle, etc. They offer butter to it by 
 throwing large lumps into it. . . .
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 319 
 
 " Near Castlebar is a well, consecrated to the Virgin Mary, fre- 
 quented certain days in the year by about 20,000 people from 
 different parts to perform stations. We saw several, fourteen miles 
 off, going there barefooted. In their distress they vow pilgrimages 
 to this well. There is a priest to direct them in their superstitious 
 devotions, for which he is paid. (Several places were visited by 
 them besides those named above ; such as Castle Comar, Clonmel, 
 Fermoy, Cork, Gort, Sligo, Bell-Turbah, Dunleer, Dundalk, Drog- 
 heda.) 
 
 " Aug. 19. — We came to Dublin, late in the evening, and lodged 
 at Judge Kelly's, where we were very kindly received." 
 
 Appended to Mr. C.'s journal are the following sentiments, which 
 explain the measures he thought should be pursued towards im- 
 proving the religious state of Ireland. " I am of opinion that 
 religion cannot be diffused in general among the Irish without 
 Bibles in their own language and schools to teach them to read 
 Irish. There are no elementary books in the language ! Circula- 
 tiug charity schools might do wonders. Many parts of Wales in 
 G. Jones's time were as dark as Ireland." * 
 
 One immediate result of this inspection was the issuing by the 
 Hibernian Society, under whose auspices it had originated, of a great 
 number number of Erse or Gaelic Testaments for the use of the 
 poor, and the preparation forthwith, chiefly through Mr. Charles's 
 advocac)% of the whole Bible in the same tongue, the visitors having 
 been particularly struck with the great proportion of the people still 
 speaking the vernacular language. The evidence of these respect- 
 able and thoroughly qualified witnesses was also the direct means 
 of rousing the sympathy and energy of many in England to assist 
 in enlightening and evangelizing the sister island. Soon after, in 
 addition to the Hibernian Society already mentioned, whose object 
 was to establish and support schools, another society was organized, 
 having as its special aim, the spread of the gospel through preach- 
 ing. How sad to think with what meagre results, as evinced by the 
 disturbances, the outrages, and assassinations of 1881 and 1882 ! " i 
 
 When the news respecting the success of the circulating and 
 Sunday Schools in Wales, reached the ears of some religious men 
 whose hearts were grieving over the deep ignorance of so many of 
 
 * '' The Life and Labours of Rev. T. Charles," by Rev. Ed. Morgan, 
 pp. 349-354.
 
 320 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 the population of the Highlands of Scotland, they wrote to Mr. 
 Charles asking for further information and instruction how to 
 establish similar schools in these remote districts. They were sorely 
 troubled to think that hundreds of thousands were unable to read 
 the Bible in their own tongue — the Gaelic — or in any other language. 
 The result of that appeal was the preparation by Mr. Charles of 
 those elaborate letters which we have already inserted,* and to 
 which we in this country owe so much for keeping on record the 
 history of their formation, theit mode of operation, and the imme- 
 diate good they produced. 
 
 At a meeting held in Edinburgh, on the 16th January, 1811, the 
 society for the support of Gaelic Schools was established, for the 
 sole object of teaching the inhabitants of the Highlands and Island 
 to read the Holy Scriptures in their own tongue. The plan adopted 
 by the Gaelic Society was the establishment of circulating schools, 
 such as Griffith Jones had established in Wales nearly a century 
 before, and of which the following opinion is pronounced by the 
 committee in their report : — 
 
 " It now remains for this committee to lay before the meeting 
 a plan which they consider as admirably adapted to this country, 
 both in a physical and moral point of view. Were the plan itself 
 theoretical, they could not have ventured to speak with confidence 
 respecting it, but as it has been acted upon irom 1730 up to the 
 present day, in another quarter of the United Kingdom, very similar 
 in many respects to our Highlands, your committee will not be con- 
 sidered precipitate in expecting the most beneficial effects to result 
 from its adoption. We at present allude to the Principality of 
 Wales. To suit the nature of that mountainous country, it was 
 found expedient and necessary to adopt schools of an ambulatory 
 kind, by which an ability to read has been widely diffused, and the 
 first elements of instruction have been conveyed with much celerity 
 from one valley to another. As, however, a most interesting 
 account of the commencement, the progress, and present state of 
 those measures, which have been found so successful in teaching 
 the Welsh their native language, will be read to this meeting, the 
 committee now proceed to mention a few particular regulations by 
 which they hope that, under the blessing of God, similar effects may 
 be produced in our own country." (The report here alludes to the 
 * See pp. 172-175.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 321 
 
 statement drawn up by Mr. Charles describing the nature and success 
 of the circulating schools in Wales.) 
 
 By the year 1835 the committee of the Gaelic Society were 
 enabled to declare : — 
 
 " That in the course of twenty-four years their teachers had 
 visited not less than 540 districts, and, at a moderate computation, 
 had taught nearly 70,000 persons to read the Scriptures, in their 
 vernacular tongue, which, on any other system than that of circu- 
 lating schools, would have been impossible, inasmuch as no other 
 method presents itself of dealing with a scattered population, than 
 to itinerate from station to station, abiding a limited period at each." 
 
 The effect of this scheme on the extension of the English language 
 which had been pointed out by both Mr, G-rifiQth Jones and Mr. 
 Charles, was fully realized in the case of these Scotch circulating 
 schools. The report farther remarks that : — 
 
 ** A more extended diffusion of the English language was the 
 immediate result — greater progress having been made in English 
 reading and speaking, throughout the Highlands and Islands of 
 Scotland, since the introduction of Gaelic schools, than for centuries 
 before ; so that, if no higher object was in contemplation than the 
 introduction of the English language, the most effectual mode of 
 doing so would be through the medium of their own tongue." 
 
 Sir T. Phillips remarks on this connection between the Gaelic 
 schools and the Welsh circulating schools, that ''Whilst from 
 Bangor to Brecon everything in Wales is barren in the eyes of 
 Education Commissioners, intelligent Scotchmen possessing a justly- 
 vaunted system of national education of their own, discerned in the 
 efforts of Welshmen, not only something to approve, but to imitate 
 and transplant to their own mountain land." * 
 
 In the year 1799, and from that to 1802, Mr. Charles, in con- 
 junction with the Kev. Thomas Jones of Denbigh, brought out in 
 parts the first volume of "The Spiritual Treasury" (Y Drysorfa 
 Ysprydol). In the year 1803, he introduced a printing press to the 
 town of Bala, and from that year until his death, issued 320,000 
 copies of the school books which he had prepared. During the 
 same period the following works emanated from his pen : — " The 
 Scripture Dictionary" (Y Geiriadur Ysgrythyrol), the greatest of 
 his productions ; the second volume of " The Spiritual Treasury," 
 * Sir T. Phillips's "Wales," pp. 515, 516. 
 
 Y
 
 322 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 1809-13; and his "Yiudication of the Welsh Methodists/' in 
 reply to a certain clergyman from Anglesea, who had tried to 
 prove that some members of the denomination, in a secret way, 
 were guilty of encouraging high treason. This little treatise is 
 noted for the purity and beauty of its language, as well as for its 
 eminently Christian spirit. In addition to these works, he com- 
 menced a Concordance to the Welsh Bible, but which he had no 
 tinie to complete. 
 
 He was indefatigable in his labours to promote the good cause, 
 whether directly in connection with Wales, or in supporting 
 societies whose area of usefulness had no earthly bound or limit. 
 Through the press, and by public appeals, he was the means, for 
 years, of collecting considerable sums of money towards the 
 support of The London Missionary Society ; and in the year 1806, 
 he was asked to preach the annual sermon in connection with its 
 May meeting, selecting for his text, Isaiah x. 27, " And the yoke 
 shall be destroyed because of the anointing." Though most often 
 in travels, he was not an entire stranger to the discharge of 
 pastoral duties, for in the year 1802, we find him undertaking the 
 oversight of several churches at Chester, which had been founded 
 by the Rev. Phillip Oliver, but who, dying in the year 1800, had 
 appointed Mr. Charles both trustee of the places of worship and 
 administrator of the whole internal arrangements of the cause. 
 
 In his own connexion, he travelled much during the last fifteen 
 years of his life (though his strength in this respect had been much 
 reduced since the sickness which overtook him in 1799) to attend 
 the Associations, and Monthly Meetings; he also made long preaching 
 tours through all the counties of North Wales, and sometimes in 
 South Wales too. It was he who drew up the " Rules regarding 
 the proper mode of conducting the Quarterly Associations," which 
 were agreed upon in 1790. The '' Order and Form of Church 
 Government, and Rules of Discipline," which were first published 
 in 1801, bear the impress of his mind, and being chairman of the 
 Committe of Elders, or deacons appointed to meet at Bala to discuss 
 finally the various particulars respecting the first ordination of 
 ministers in the body, he must have had the chief share in drawing 
 up the " Brief View," as it is called, ," of the manner and order 
 agreed upon, to ordain some of the preachers to administer the 
 ordinances of Baptism and the Lord's Supper in the Connexion."
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 323 
 
 This first ordination took place at the Quarterly Association held 
 at Bala, June 19 and 20, 1811. 
 
 In the year 1878, the Welsh people were somewhat startled by 
 an announcement made by the Eev. W. Hughes, Vicar of Llan- 
 uwchllyn, near Bala, sixty-four years after Mr. Charles's death, that 
 he had discovered the important fact, that Mr. Charles had avowed 
 liis deep-felt repentance of having ever taken part in the ordination 
 of 1811. Hardly less than their surprise, was their grief to find a 
 statement thus compromising the character of one whom they 
 so universally revered, made upon such flimsy evidence. Dr. 
 Edwards of Bala, Dr. Charles of Aberdovey, and Mr. R. 0. Eees of 
 Dolgelley, entered into a very lengthy and elaborate correspondence 
 with him at the time, clearly showing that he must have been 
 seriously misled in the charge he instituted. But it appears that 
 the whole effect of their arguments upon his mind, was only a 
 verification of the trite couplet : — 
 
 " Convince a man against his will, 
 And he is of the same opinion still." 
 
 For in the year 1881, Mr. Hughes published a volume on the life of 
 Mr. Charles,* in which he rearranges the facts and correspondence 
 already published by Mr. Morgan of Syston (to which reference 
 has been so often already made in this work), but whose grand 
 design evidently is, the promulgation of the startling discovery of 
 Mr. Charles's repentance. Mr. Morgan, be it observed, never men- 
 tioned anything to countenance the repentance theory. Mr. 
 Hughes brings forward twelve points f from which he endeavours 
 to substantiate his thesis ; but it is the last two that he evidently 
 deems the most important. The first ten are so simple, as hardly 
 to need refutation. The answer to each is at once evident to every- 
 one acquainted with the circumstances of the Calvinistic Methodist 
 body at the time, and which have been briefly described in the pre- 
 ceding pages. t His last two points are. (1) That Professor Joseph 
 Hughes, Bector of Cwmdu, Breconshire, and late Professor of 
 Welsh at Lampeter College, heard Mr. Saunderson of Bala, who 
 had married a sister of Mrs. Charles's, telling him in 1860, that Mr. 
 
 * The full title of the work is, " Life and Letters of the Rev. T. Charles, 
 B.A., of Bala, edited by the Kev. W. Hughes, Vicar of Llanuwchllyn, near 
 Bala, 1881." 
 
 t pp. 312-325. t See pp. 139-147.
 
 324 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 (Jharles had told him shortly before his death that '* the Methodists 
 were grieving him, and if God should spare his life, he would go again 
 to England, and would take a curacy in the Establishment." (2) 
 That Mr. Charles's niece, that is, Mr. Saunderson's daughter, told 
 Mr. Hughes that her father was present when Mr. Charles returned 
 to the house, from the meeting in which it was determined to ordain 
 the lay preachers, and that he exclaimed, with some excitement, 
 " They have conquered me, they have conquered me." 
 
 These two points, if allowed to go unchallenged, conclusively 
 prove Mr. Hughes's position, but from documents written by Mr. 
 Saunderson, as well as others by Mr. Charles himself, it is almost 
 certain that Professor Hughes was mistaken respecting the time to 
 which Mr. Charles's perturbed feelings referred ; that it was before^ 
 and not after the ordination. Further, if what Professor Hughes 
 alleges Mr. Saunderson to have said, be correct as regards the 
 time, then the latter's character for consistency is as much com- 
 promised as Mr. Charles's. Mr. Saunderson, being a zealous 
 member of the Church of England had been asked by Bishop Short, 
 of St. Asaph, to write him a statement of what he remembered re- 
 specting his old bosom friend, Mr. Charles,, his views, and his con- 
 nection with the Establishment. Mr. Saunderson's words respecting 
 the Ordination are these: — 
 
 " When the innovation commenced among the Methodists, about 
 three years before Mr. Charles's death, for the appointing of lay 
 preachers to administer the sacraments, it was a source of great 
 grief and sorrow to him, and he told the writer that it had cost him 
 many a sleepless night. His health certainly was affected by it." 
 
 It is a well-known fact that the policy of the step j^roposed by 
 the great proportion in the body, here called innovators^ was a 
 subject of great solicitude to Mr. Charles, as well as to all the 
 episcopally-ordained ministers then surviving; for by this step 
 would their secession from the Establishment be consummated, but 
 which they still fondly hoped, by some overture * or other from the 
 Bishops, might happily be averted. From the similarity of the 
 words quoted by Professor Hughes to the above extract, it seems 
 almost certain that they referred to this juncture. So long as there 
 was hope, Mr. Charles objected, but once convinced that the step was 
 inevitable, and also essential to the body as a separate denomination, 
 * See p. 144.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 325 
 
 not only was he reconciled to the policy, but actually took part in 
 the preliminary arrangements, as well as in the public performances. 
 The episode described by Mr. Charles's niece, here also finds its in- 
 telligible place. The *' overcoming " to which he referred on coming 
 to the house, evidently means the strong arguments used by his 
 brethren to bring him over to their views. Eather than there being 
 any repentance manifested after the act ; and especially near his 
 end, as the interview with Professor Hughes would imply, Mr. 
 Saunderson's description of his friend's death-bed scene, shuts out 
 the possibility altogether. These are his words in the same state- 
 ment to Bishop Short : — 
 
 " His end was most calm and resigned. The writer of this slept 
 in the same room with him during the last week of his life. . . . The 
 writer witnessed his last breath which was without the slightest 
 emotion." 
 
 Another incident may here be mentioned which directly tends to 
 discredit the words ascribed to Mr. Saunderson by Professor Hughes, 
 or certamly to compromise the former's character for consistency. 
 In about a year after Mr. Charles's death a memoir of him was 
 published, written by the Eev. Thomas Jones of Denbigh. The 
 words of this tribute respecting the ordination are : — 
 
 " In this matter Mr. Charles was endowed with much Christian 
 sagacity and deliberation, and to the end of his life it is known to 
 his nearest friends that his mind was calm and comfortable when 
 looking back on the occasion." Now Mr. Saunderson could not 
 have been ignorant of this statement, for the memoir was printed by 
 Mr. Saunderson himself, in his press at Bala, and it is strange, if the 
 words attributed to him by Professor Hughes be true, that he 
 remained from 1815 to 1860 without controverting them, and when 
 he did, that it was only in what appears to have been a casual con- 
 versation. So much in direct refutation of Mr. Hughes's points. 
 
 When we muster the positive evidence in favour of the accused, 
 the proof of his consistency is overwhelming. A week before his 
 death, Mr. Charles wrote a letter to his brethren, as they were 
 assembled at the Association then held at Caernarvon. In this he says 
 " that in the feeling of affectionate union with the preachers and 
 elders there assembled he was very thankful to the Lord lor being 
 pleased to persuade his mind and cause his lot to fall amongst 
 them, that he had enjoyed a happy communion with them lor
 
 326 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 twenty and nine years, that he supplicated the Lord to abide with 
 them in abundant tokens of his grace and favour, and that he asked 
 the aid of their prayers on his behalf, and also for his family in 
 their sickness and distress." And perhaps the strongest proof of' 
 all is that Mr. Charles did not separate himself from his brethren. 
 The same courage and decision of character which enabled him to 
 cast his lot with them at first, would also have enabled him to 
 withdraw from them, if to remain would have compromised his 
 consistency. The whole purport of the author's argument seems to 
 be the building up of a fond hope that the seceders will one day 
 return to the bosom of the Establishment ; in the words of an admired 
 predictur — " that the hees would again return to the old hive." But 
 the nexus of the argument is not very evident, for even if Charles 
 had so far dissented from the course adopted in the ordination as 
 to break his connection with the body altogether, that would not 
 have stopped the chariot from going forward ; and as has been well 
 and truly said, *' if that step {i.e. the ordination) had not been taken, 
 the Church would not have been one whit stronger in Wales at the 
 present day than it is. There is one dissenting denomination the 
 more, and, as we believe, a greater number of religious people in 
 consequence ; but if that had not been, it is the other dissenting 
 denominations, and not the Church, that would have been more 
 numerous. Tlie position of the Church has been made not by any 
 steps which have been taken outside of it, but by the character of 
 its own ministers." * We have somewhat diverted from the thread 
 of our narrative in the above disquisition, but our apology is, that 
 justice to the memory of a good and great man demanded a vindica- 
 tion of his character, on this the first opportunity after the charges 
 have assumed a permanent form, in a language where both sides will 
 appear to an equal advantage. 
 
 Before the digression, it will be remembered we were recounting 
 Mr. Charles's activity on behalf of good causes both at home and 
 abroad. The best of his thoughts and energies, however, were 
 spent in establishing and sustaining his favourite institution. 
 
 The following extracts having exclusive reference to Mr. C.'s 
 labours with the Sunday Schools, show how unflagging his zeal 
 was, and how indefatigable his efforts on their behalf, to the very 
 end of his life : — 
 
 * " Welsh Methodism," p. 190.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 327 
 
 " Bala, Nov. 27, 1808. Though my journey to in September 
 
 last was attended with consequences very painful to me in my late 
 illness, yet the effect of that meeting, and of public catechising of 
 the children in the open streets, before the largest inn in the town, 
 have proved most beneficial indeed to that place. . . . 
 
 "Last Sunday evening we had an association of children at Bala. 
 To attend it was the first thing I did after my illness. Our large 
 chapel overflowed ; and the effects of the work of that day are very 
 evident both in town and neighbourhood." 
 
 Writing to the secretary of the Tract Society about this time, he 
 says, " It has been my delightful work since I left London in 
 December last to catechise publicly every Sunday, and to hear 
 them repeating chapters before thousands of people ; besides preach- 
 ing generally twice every Sabbath, and sometimes thrice in different 
 places. . . . The Sunday Schools and the public examination of 
 them, have undoubtedly done wonders in Wales; and have suc- 
 ceeded in some places in moralizing the people when all other means 
 had failed." After mentioning the case of one town in which the 
 custom of gathering people together to drink and to dance was thus 
 put down, he says that the following day " the harper was met 
 going home by a person on the road. Surprised to see him leaving 
 the place so soon he asked him the reason ; ' Some parson,' said 
 he, ' with a black cap on (Mr. C. wore a black cap), has been 
 catechising there and persuaded the young people not to attend the 
 feast.' Poor fellow he went home quite disappointed. The parson 
 with the black cap deprived him of the hire of his iniquity." 
 
 Speaking of his work in 1806, he says, "In Liverpool, Man- 
 chester, and Chester, I catechised hundreds of children before the 
 congregations when fullest. The prospect was delightful." 
 
 In a letter dated Bala, 1807, he writes, " Here with us all over 
 the country, the schools prosper more than ever. Every Sunday 
 since I left London, I have catechised hundreds of children before 
 thousands of people, once, or twice, or three times, besides preaching. 
 Young people, yea, grown up people, now generally learn out the 
 principles of religion and chapters in the Bible, and stand up with 
 the children publicly to repeat them. Last Sunday I travelled 
 eighteen miles ; preached three times, gave the sacrament as often, 
 and catechised twice. I do not say this by way of boasting, but 
 that you may form some idea of the prosperity of the work. In
 
 328 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 some districts all in a mass are engaged in learning the Scriptures, 
 and appear publicly to repeat them ; and those public repetitions 
 leave a wonderful effect on all that hear. It is no uncommon thing 
 with us for whole families, master, mistress, children, and servants, 
 to learn the catechisms and chapters, and to come and repeat them 
 together. I never expected nor could hope in any degree that I 
 should ever see what I now see. Through mercy my health and 
 strength continue firm in these incessant labours to which I am 
 continually called. It is a delightful labour, indeed ! Many of my 
 brethren are most heartily engaged in the same blessed work." 
 
 Writing to a friend in London, Sept. 16, 1813, he states, "I am 
 happy to inform you that the work prospers in some parts of our 
 country. The Sunday Schools are, indeed, everywhere prosperous. 
 One of our teachers here told me last Sunday, that our chapel, which 
 holds three thousand people, would soon be too small to seat all the 
 adults and the children, which increasingly crowd the school every 
 Sunday. The sight was delightful, and such as I never expected 
 to see. Oh, for a Divine afidatus to waft them all to heaven ! I 
 have received a letter giving a pleasing account of the progress of 
 religion in some parts of the county of Caernarvon. The Sunday 
 Schools abound with scholars, and the teachers are diligent and 
 faithful. — Let us praise the Lord." 
 
 The next extracts bring us within twelve or thirteen months of 
 his death, and they all testify to the most intense concern for the 
 welfare of the schools. Writing on the 27th Sept., 1813, to a lady 
 
 named M. H at Liverpool he says, " Through mercy I am much 
 
 better. My frequent pains have left me ; and my strength is so 
 far improved that I was enabled to preach three times last Sunday 
 and catechise three times. These extra exertions I mean in future 
 to avoid as much as possible ; for I have every reason to believe 
 that they have in a degree been the means of bringing on my present 
 complaint, the effects of which I still feel. I very much approve of 
 your labour with the children of your school in improving them by 
 catechetical and more personally religious instructions. ... I am 
 happy to inform you that the prospect in our poor country is in 
 many parts encouraging. About three hundred have been in less 
 than a twelvemonth received into different societies in Caernarvon- 
 shire, ^rmciprt%/rom Me Sunday Schools, whicti increase exceed- 
 ingly both in number and in the progress they make in learning.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 329 
 
 Adults as well as children everywhere crowd into them ; and their 
 attention is great ; and their appearance sober and pleasing ; and 
 some join our churches continually. We have on the whole great 
 cause for thankfulness, and hope to see still greater things." 
 
 Writing to the s^me lady later in that year he says, "In a 
 religious and moral point of view, the state of our peasantry is 
 gradually and continually improving. Fresh advances are made 
 every year. Hundreds of children and young people have this 
 year joined our different societies. On Sept. 27, the children and 
 young people of a whole district w^ere publicly examined by me 
 in our chapel. I never witnessed so affecting a scene. They could 
 hardly make their responses, being so overcome with weeping ; and 
 the whole congregation was similarly affected." 
 
 In a letter written to a Mrs. A of London, June 24th, 1814, 
 
 within about three months of his death, he is full of enthusiasm 
 in behalf of every good cause, and especially the schools : " I comfort 
 
 myself much," says he, " with the thought of Mr. A 's care and 
 
 activity about the juvenile and adult schools. We had, last week, 
 our great annual meeting here (association). The congregation, 
 though always large, was more numerous b}^ some thousands than 
 we have ever witnessed before. . . . Great additions have been 
 made in general to our churches last year, about two thousand in 
 all. The Bible societies, the schools, and every good work set 
 on foot, succeed among us ; and we hope the kingdom of the little 
 stone will soon fill the land. May thy kingdom come speedily, 
 Lord." * 
 
 Some three years before his death he had felt the seeds of that 
 disease germinating within his constitution, which ultimately 
 proved fatal to him. Travelling by himself somewhere in Mont- 
 gomeryshire, on horseback, and having come to a gate, by too great 
 an effort to open it, he felt a sudden pain In his inside; which 
 turned out to be the commencement of a rupture. The pain which 
 he then felt, with the lapse of time, increased in severity, and he 
 neglecting to seek the proper remedy, it began to produce a serious 
 effect on his constitution. By the year 1813, many of his friends 
 were observing, to their great grief, that his strength was wasting, 
 and his voice greatly weakened, though he persevered in his travels 
 and labours nearly as much as before. In June of that year, he 
 * Morgan's "Life of Charles," passim.
 
 330 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 travelled with somewhat rapid strides, preaching on the way and 
 resting hut little the whole time, from Bala to Holyhead, where an 
 Association of the Methodists was heing held ; from thence in haste, 
 delivering a few sermons en route, he returned by way of Llanidloes, 
 where a meeting had been arranged to establish an auxiliary branch 
 of the Bible Society. This over-exertion crippled his powers 
 very much for the remainder of that year. In the spring of 
 1814, he attempted to renew his itineracies but with manifest 
 disadvantage ; and in the month of August he and his wife, who 
 also at this time was a great invalid, visited Barmouth, to see if the 
 change for sea air, would have some effect in reviving their drooping 
 spirits and weakened energies. While here, he remarked to his 
 wife, when talking over his infirmity with a cheerful tone, " Well, 
 dear Sarah, the fifteen years are nearly completed." Having 
 remained there for about a fortnight, they called on their return 
 home with their relations at Machynlleth, and it was here, on the 
 4th of September, that he preached his last sermons — in the morning 
 Irom Luke xv. 7, and in the evening from 1 Cor. xvi, 22. 
 
 The following week, he felt himself getting worse, and longed 
 very much to return to Bala, which place he reached on Saturday 
 afternoon, the 10th of September, in a state of weakness and 
 prostration which caused the greatest solicitude to his relations and 
 friends. To one who helped him to the house and his room, he 
 remarked, "I feel very thankful to the Lord for thus enabling 
 me once more to come home," and soon after added, " Now I have 
 nothing more to do, but to die." Some days after, he repeated 
 the words from 2 Kings xiii. 14, as producing a great impression 
 upon his mind, "Now Elishawas fallen sick of his sickness whereof 
 he died," adding, " I do not know what the Lord's intention is 
 concerning me, but I am in his hands, let Him 'do with me as it 
 seemeth good to Him. I have given myself to Him a thousand 
 times." 
 
 During his last days, it pleased the Lord to try him through 
 many family afflictions. Besides his own and his dear wife's 
 illness, a much-respected domestic servant was taken away by 
 a severe fever, after only three days' illness, and his eldest son was 
 also suffering from a very dangerous ailment. With reference to 
 all these afflictions he used to say, " The Lord has his rod on the 
 family, but it is in the hand of a tender father." To a friend who
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 331 
 
 had come to see him, he remarked, " You see that we are in the 
 furnace, but after we have suffered awhile, we shall be brought out 
 thoroughly sifted and purified." He was accustomed often to 
 repeat the words, " Charles is only a poor sinner — only a poor 
 sinner — I know that I cannot be saved without forgiveness; but 
 there is forgiveness with the Lord." When it was told him that 
 his son was beginning to recover, he exclaimed with peculiar 
 emphasis, " The Lord is very good, his mercy endureth for ever," 
 reiterating several times "for his mercy endureth for ever." Then 
 he asked his attendant to go to his library and get him a Hebrew 
 copy of the book of Psalms. Turning to Psalm cxxxvi, he seemed 
 to derive much consolation from the Hebrew word chesed, which 
 is there translated, " mercy," remarking that it was a word of very 
 wide import and great comfort. 
 
 Monday morning, the 3rd October, feeling himself better, he took 
 a walk in his garden, which gave his friends some hope for his 
 recovery. This, however, was but of short duration, for he got 
 worse in the evening, and spent the whole night in very great pain. 
 Notwithstanding all, his mind was calm, and he was greatly 
 sustained by the comfort of the Scriptures. Amongst many of his 
 sayings at this time the following illustrate the calmness of his 
 mind. " I have arranged the few earthly things which I had, and 
 have committed my soul to the Lord. ' I know whom I have 
 believed and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have 
 committed unto Him against that day.'" He also told a friend 
 that his bodily pains had been great, " bi^t when I think " he 
 added, "of my sinfulness, what I suffer is as nothing." About 
 six o'clock on Tuesday morning, after waking from a short slumber, 
 he said, " I have been thinking whereabouts heaven is, and how 
 I could find it, but I thought after, that the Lord would send some 
 kind angel to show me the way." When a friend remarked to hirn 
 the gi-eat loss which the Church and all the country would sustain 
 in his departure, he answered, " Be calm in the Lord ; he is able 
 to raise hundreds of servants abler and more successful than I ever 
 have been." About midday on Tuesday, he got up, but was very 
 weak, and all he said betokened that his mind was ripening for the 
 society of angels, and of the spirits of just men made perfect. 
 Attempting to walk across the room, he said, " My flesh and my 
 heart faileth, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion
 
 332 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 for ever." And very often with much impress! veness did he 
 soliloquize, "Now lettest thou tliy servant depart in peace, 
 according to thy word, for mine eyes have seen thy salvation." 
 To one who was placing a pillow under his head he remarked, 
 " I am very thankful for all the trouble you have taken with me, 
 and though I shall not have it in my power to repay you for all 
 your kindness, yet this I leave with you, ' Inasmuch as ye have 
 done it unto one of the least of these, my brethren, ye have done 
 it unto me.' " On retiiing to rest for the night he thus addressed 
 his wife, — " Well, my dear, if I die and leave you, the Lord still 
 lives to take care of you; he cannot die." He also expressed 
 a desire to spend the night without pain, and in this the Lord 
 granted him his wish, though he slept but little. About five o'clock 
 in the morning, he complained that he was cold, and shivers came 
 over him which continued for about an hour. After this he had 
 a respite for some time, but he remained quite silent. Then 
 a friend came to his bedside, and said to him, " Well, Mr. Charles, 
 the day of tribulation is come," to which he readily replied in the 
 remainder of the passage, " there is a refuge." These were about 
 the last words he uttered, and his spirit soon after soared away 
 through that space along which he had a few days before felt sure 
 he should have a guide. This was on Wednesday morning, October 
 5, 1814, when six daj^s short of completing the 59th year of his age. 
 On the Friday evening following, a large congregation of every 
 rank from Bala and the neighbourhood, and many from a distance 
 came together to show their last token of respect to the memory of 
 this faithful servant of Christ. Before starting from the house, the 
 Eev. I'homas Jones of Denbigh preached an earnest and impressive 
 sermon from Heb. xi. 4, " And by it, he being dead, yet speaketh." 
 When dwelling on the fruits of faith as exemplified in his laborious 
 and productive life, both preacher and hearers were affected unto 
 tears. All the way to the small church at Llanycil, about a mile 
 from the town, on the Dolgelley road, appropriate hymns were sung. 
 So large was the concourse that hundreds were obliged to remain 
 in the graveyard while the burial service was being read in the 
 church, after finishing which an anthem was sung, founded on 
 Psalm xxxix. A hymn having again been sung at the graveside, 
 his body was left in its quiet resting-place to await the general 
 awaking at the sound of the archangel's last trump.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 333 
 
 A monument to his memory in front of the Calvinistic Methodist 
 Chapel at Bala, was unveiled on the 17th June, 1875. It consists 
 of a statue representing Mr. Charles dressed in the Geneva preach- 
 ing gown, with one hand on his heart, and with the other offering 
 a Bible, as if giving expression to the words, " O'm calon rwy'n 
 dymuno — ' Bibl i bawb o bobl y byd.' " (" From my heart I 
 wish — ' A Bible to every one of the peoj^le of the world.' ") The 
 statue is of marble, seven feet high, with a marble pedestal eight 
 feet high, and a bas-relief representing Mr. Charles teaching a class, 
 with the inscription, Thomas Charles, born 1755, died 1814, 
 erected 1875. It was designed and executed by Mr. William 
 Davies (Mynorydd), Euston Koad, London. 
 
 The whole cost was about £650, and the expenses borne by 
 public subscriptions, chiefly from the denomination to which he 
 belonged. The following list shows how general the feeling was, 
 thus to honour his memorj'- : — 
 
 From the counties of North "Wales, including the Presbyteries, 
 Liverpool and Mancliester 
 ,, the counties of South Wales, the Home Mission district, 
 
 and London 
 ,, the children of North and South Wales 
 , , the W^elsh in Australia 
 ,, ,, Cincinnati 
 
 ,, individual subscriptions 
 
 Total 
 
 The ceremony of unveiling was performed at the public meeting 
 convened for the purpose in connection with the Quarterly Associa- 
 tion which was being held at Bala at the time, and as usual, 
 attended by thousands from all parts of the country. The chair 
 was taken by John Roberts, Esq., J.P. (afterwards M.P. for the 
 Flint boroughs, and chief promoter of the Act of Parliament for 
 the Sunday Closing of Public-houses in Wales, which, passed in 
 1881, was first enforced in 1882), who first of all spoke words to 
 the following effect in Welsh : He considered it a great privilege to 
 be called upon to take part in the proceedings. He never felt a 
 greater desire to be able to speak well in the old language, than on 
 that day. He said they had met as a nation, and not as a denomi- 
 nation. In a certain sense, Mr. Charles needed no monument, 
 because his name was connected, in the mind of every Welshman, 
 
 £ 
 
 s. 
 
 d. 
 
 !S, 
 
 ... 368 
 
 17 
 
 3 
 
 ;t, 
 
 ... 148 
 
 7 
 
 10 
 
 ... 82 
 
 
 
 6 
 
 ... 32 
 
 4 
 
 
 
 7 
 
 17 
 
 8 
 
 ... 10 
 
 5 
 
 
 
 .. £649 
 
 12 
 
 3
 
 CHARLES'S MONUMENT.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 335 
 
 with every Bible and Testament circulated by the Bible Society, 
 amongst all the nations of the world ; and his memory tied to the 
 Sunday School which he was the chief instrument in planting in Wales. 
 After committing the keeping of the monument to the charge of the 
 townsmen of Bala, he called upon Mrs. Edwards, the wife of Rev. 
 Lewis Edwards, D.U., Principal of the Calvinistic Methodist College 
 in the place, and grand-daughter of Mr. Charles, to unveil the 
 statue. Then Dr. Edwards was called upon to address the 
 audience, who said that he would not have thought it proper for 
 him to address them on the occasion, but for the reason that Mr. 
 Charles's grand-daughter was not accustomed to public speaking. 
 He wished to speak a word for her. Then he proceeded to state 
 that he was glad to announce that several clergymen from England 
 were present on the platform, having come to Bala on the sole 
 purpose to witness the ceremony ; that the Congregationalists were 
 represented by Rev. John Peters (loan Pedr), that two district 
 secretaries of the Bible Society — Revs. C. Jackson, M.A., and W, D. 
 Lewis, M.A., — had been deputed by the committee to represent the 
 society ; and that he had great pleasure in reading to the meeting 
 a letter from Earl Shaftesbury, the president, expressing his warm 
 sympathy with the proceedings, but who was unable personally to 
 attend r — 
 
 "June 3rd, 1875. 
 " Dear Sir, — Had early notice been given me, I should in all pro- 
 bability have been able to find a day for a journey into Wales, and 
 a share in the ceremony to do honour to the memory of the Rev. Mr. 
 Charles of Bala. But the 17th of this month is an impossible day 
 for me, and I can only express a deep regret that it is not in my 
 power to be present at your gathering, and there say what I think 
 and feel on the just and becoming tribute. My Welsh-speaking 
 accomplishments were never great, tho' I studied the language a 
 little. But I hope you will give my best and hearty love to the 
 Sunday-School children of the Principality, and say to them, for 
 me, in their own tongue, ' Y gwir yu erbyn y Byd ' (The Truth 
 against the World). Urge them to hold fast for ever to our Blessed 
 Lord, and we shall have no fear. It is a noble sum for the children 
 to have collected, and may God Almighty be ever with them. 
 
 " Your obedient Servant, 
 
 " Shaftesbury." 
 " Rev. Dr. Edwards."
 
 336 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 Ilev. David Charles, D.D., grandson of Mr. Charles and brother 
 to Mrs. Edwards, next addressed the assembly, who said that it 
 was natural for him to feel interested in the present occasion. He 
 looked upon it as a great privilege and honour to stand before them 
 as the grandson and representative of the man whom they wished 
 that day to honour. He could not say that he remembered his 
 grandfather, as he was but some two years and a quarter old when 
 his grandfather died. He remembered, however, one circumstance 
 in his life connected with him, although he was at the time but a 
 child. The first thing of all, in fact, he remembereil, was his going, 
 on the day of his death, into his study, to call him to his breakfast, 
 as his custom was. He shouted " grandpa, come to your breakfast." 
 But his uncle, Mr. Charles of Caermarthen, came to meet him, 
 weeping. That was the first incident he remembered in this world. 
 He also remembered the day of his funeral, when Rev. Thomas 
 Jones of Denbigh preached from the window and a great congrega- 
 tion listening to him. He should have been glad if he had received 
 a little of his friendship when young, and if he had enjoyed his 
 counsels and instructions. But his bright example had been ever 
 before his eyes. As his grandson, and bearing his name, he felt 
 a great responsibility lay upon him lest he should do anything 
 to dishonour that name. On three occasions during his lifetime 
 he had felt a just pride that he was at all connected with him. 
 One was, when he stood on the platform of the Bible Society* 
 at the time of its jubilee, at Exeter Hall. He felt that he stood 
 there as his representative. His grandfather was the chief instru- 
 ment in starting that glorious institution whose object was to fill 
 the world with Bibles. Another occasion was when he first met 
 Samuel Morley, Esq., with the late Kev. John Phillips, at Tenby. 
 Mr. Morley addressed him as they were parting ; " May I ask 
 you, are you a relative of Thomas Charles of Bala ? " "I am his 
 grandson," was the reply. " Ah," said he, " an honourable name, 
 known to all the world, and which will be remembered to the end 
 of time." The third occasion is the present. He wished to thank 
 the Calvinistic Methodists especially, and all others who had a share 
 in accomplishing this object. 
 
 1'he chairman here siid, they would change the language but 
 not the subject. It was proper that they should not confine 
 themselves to the Welsh language in this meeting, as those who
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 337 
 
 sympafhized with Mr. Charles were not confined to any countrj'', 
 party, or age. There had been many movements which, though 
 good in themselves, were temporary as regards their duration or 
 limited as regards their object, but those with which Mr. Charles's 
 name was connected, were not only general in their application for 
 a time, but continued as important and practical in this age as 
 they were when started by him three-fourths of a century ago. 
 His great ideas were, the Bible for every man, and religious instruc- 
 tion within 'the reach of all. The means he conceived for realizing 
 these two ideas were, the Bible Society and Sunday Schools ; and 
 if Mr. Charles was living now there would have been no need for 
 him either to change his doctrine or his practice. He could have 
 said now, in the face of the powers which they, as evangelical 
 Christians, had to combat and the perils they were open to, that 
 he had no other, nor did he desire better, weapons, than an open 
 Bible in the hand of every one, and pious and earnest men in our 
 Sunday Schools bringing its truths home to the hearts of the people. 
 Whatever advantages the Welsh possessed, and whatever excel- 
 lences they might boast of, must be attributed to the influence of 
 the Bible and the Sunday Schools. They had just now unveiled 
 the statue erected to the memory of Mr. Charles. What lessons 
 could they learn from this occasion ? What he himself wished to 
 learn, and also to impress on them all, was, to endeavour, in the 
 spirit of prayer, to follow the example of the great and good man 
 whose memory they were honouring. Perhaps it should not fall 
 to their lot — it was very likely it would not — to initiate some great 
 undertakings and thereby gain for themselves a name, so as to 
 have monuments to perpetuate their memory. But let them bear 
 in mind that those who laboured to carry out important discoveries 
 to practical issues acted as useful, though not so prominent a part, 
 as those who discovered them. He referred to scientific discoveries, 
 the power of electricity, steam, etc. Those who, at one time and 
 another, found out some new means of applying them continually 
 added to the value of those discoveries. So let them, by efforts to 
 extend the influence of God's Word, by applying the mechanism of 
 the Sunday School to new and beneficial objects, exert themselves, 
 and thus they would turn to additional productive uses those 
 measures started by Mr. Charles so many years ago. 
 
 The Kev. C. Jackson, M.A., comprised his address under the 
 
 z
 
 338 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 following heads : (1) the importance of carrying out the convictions 
 of our own minds for good ; (2) the power of combination ; (3) the 
 blessings of Christian liberality. 
 
 The Rev. W. Dickens Lewis, B.A., reviewed the state of Wales 
 before the rise of Sunday Schools, and the labours of Walter Cradoc, 
 Vavasor Powell, Griffith Jones, Howell Harris, and Rowlands, as 
 preparatory to the more permanent work instituted by Charles. 
 He compared Charles to a certain parent bird, which not only 
 gathered its young to the nest to protect them from the attacks 
 of a serpent, but also covered the nest with a leaf, the taste of 
 which was fatal to the serpent. So Mr. Charles had gathered the 
 young people of Wales into the nest of the Sunday Schools, and 
 had supplied them also with the leaves of the tree of life as an 
 antidote to the attacks of the great enemy of souls. He hoped 
 they would continue to show their respect for Mr. Charles by 
 making the schools more efficient than ever, and that chiefly by 
 endeavouring to make them a means of salvation for their members. 
 And further, he urged them to maintain their honourable position 
 as the most liberal contributors towards the Bible Society. 
 
 The Rev. Thomas Levi, who, by means of the Trysorfa y 'plant y a 
 periodical of which he was the editor, had been instrumental in 
 collecting so large a sum towards the statue from the children, 
 next spoke. He said that Mr. Charles was a man intended for 
 work. He felt like his Lord, " I must work." The ecclesiastical 
 rules which he was under, gave restrictions to this feeling. " I 
 will work," said Charles. " You shall not," said the Church. 
 " Don't work," said she. " Yes, I must work," said he. " If I am 
 not permitted to work within thee, I must go somewhere where I 
 am allowed to work." When thirty years of age he joined the 
 Methodists, and there he found not only a field of labour, but every 
 sympathy and co-operation. Mr. Charles had an eye to discern the 
 work needful to be done. Everything which Mr. Charles under- 
 took has lived. There is an ancient tradition about the Lord 
 Jesus, that He, in conjunction with other boys, was in the habit of 
 making images of birds, in clay. But with this difference, that 
 His birds became alive, and instantly began to fly. Just the same 
 with Mr. Charles^ everything he did became alive and increased. 
 One of the first acts of his planting, was to plant religion in his 
 family. He was the religious father of his family. He was the
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 330 
 
 father of his father. When a little child he came under the dis- 
 cipline of Rees Hugh, and very soon we find him like a little priest 
 in his family, and everybody paying deference to him. What he 
 did to his family, he did also to his nation to a great degree. No 
 one knows the amount of his labour, his application, and self-denial 
 with the circulating schools which he established to teach the 
 people to read. The Sabbath Schools of Wales were not the same 
 kind of plant as the Sunday Schools in England. Eaikes's object 
 was to teach poor little children to read. The conditions of ad- 
 mission were, clean faces, clean hands, and properly-combed hair. 
 But the object of the Sabbath Schools in Wales was to teach 
 everybody to read, and not only to read, but to understand, yea to 
 believe and love the Bible. Then he referred to Mr. Charles's con- 
 nection with the Bible Society. It might be considered strange 
 that a Welshman was the father of that Society, but such was the 
 fact. He hoped that the sight of this monument would be a direct 
 help to remember his noble character, and to kindle in all kindred 
 spirit and zeal. 
 
 After being addressed further by Rev. J. Peters, of the Congre- 
 gational College at Bala, w^ho made apposite remarks on Mr. 
 Charles as a Christian scholar, and by Rev. M. CoUey, of Shrews- 
 bury, on whose head, when a boy, Mr. Charles had laid his hands, 
 the meeting was terminated with the benediction by Rev. C. 
 Jackson. An adjourned meeting was also held on the green, to 
 hear addresses by several gentlemen on the Sunday Schools. 
 
 Further supplementing the above eulogiums, we cannot, perhaps, 
 more appropriately bring this chapter to a close than by quoting 
 the estimate of his life and character, by one who in the study of 
 the theme with which his name has since been connected, must 
 have associated much with his spirit and genius, and who, from 
 both his surroundings and general ability, is allowed by all to have 
 been a broad, just, and impartial critic. We refer to Judge Johnes, 
 who sums up the character and doings of Charles in the following 
 words : — " Though Methodism was at first extremely unpopular in 
 North Wales, towards the end of the last century, a missionary 
 sprung up, who was destined to carry it into the wildest recesses 
 of Snowdon. This was the Rev. Thomas Charles ; he was a native 
 of Caermarthenshire, but had served a curacy in North Wales. 
 Hereafter, few names will excite such mingled emotions of pride
 
 340 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 and regret in the jiearts of his countrymen. To him we owe much 
 of the very civilization of our laud. It was he who, in exchange 
 for the Popish ignorance of the last century, diffused among the 
 North Wales peasantry those deep, moral, and religious feelings, 
 and that thirst for information, which at present characterize them. 
 Nor was his influence confined to his own country ; he was the 
 founder of institutions which extend over the whole Christian 
 world. The Bible Society commenced with him, and two of his 
 countrymen ; and, according to Dr. Pole, he is to be considered as 
 the originator of the ' Adult Schools.' 
 
 " With such a leader, we need not be surprised that the progress of 
 Methodism in North Wales, was one of the most rapid of religious 
 changes. When he first joined them, they were a small and per- 
 secuted body ; at his death, their chapels were to be found in almost 
 every parish in that division of the Principality. ... Of Thomas 
 Charles of Bala, in his life, different opinions were held, according as 
 men dreaded the evils of schism on one hand, or felt scandalized at 
 the apathy of the Church on the other. Thus, while some looked 
 upon him as guilty of the sin of Jeroboam, others revered him as 
 the good "Samaritan, who gave the word of life to his countrymen ; 
 while their clergy, like the Jewish priest of old, passed haughtily 
 by on the other side. Yet, amongst those who knew him best, 
 there was but one impression as to the goodness of his general in- 
 tentions ; and perhajDs, as men feel more warmly towards AVales, 
 they will think less of his faults, and more of his temptations. 
 Seldom has any country given birth to a man who so eminently 
 combined the talents that guide and enlighten, with a guilelessness 
 and a childlike sensibility that seem hardly of this world." * 
 
 * Johnes's " Essay," pp. 44-49, passim.
 
 BAIKES'S STATUE ON THE THAMES EMBANKMEKT
 
 342 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 A Survey of the Present State of the Sunday Schools of Wales. 
 
 The general importance of statistics in gauging the efficiency of any 
 widely-extended organization — Charges of recent degeneracy of 
 Welsh Sunday Schools as regards quality and popularity— The bearing 
 of statistics on the question— Tables of numbers at different epochs 
 up to 1881— Explanations and general summary— Accuracy confirmed 
 by reference to individual cases — Relation of the schools to the 
 teaching of the Welsh language — Interest in the institution reviving — 
 Altered circumstances of the present time with regard to the teaching 
 of religious truths generally— The aid in the work from day schools 
 almost entirely lost— The spirit of the age decidedly in favour of 
 separating religious teaching from State control — This shown by 
 recent legislation — The report of the Commissioners of 1881 on the 
 subject- The spread of secular knowledge no safeguard of morality 
 — Spiritual regeneration the only true foundation of morality — 
 Biblical and religious instruction the only medium of this regeneration 
 — Whose mission is it to supply this instruction? — Is the Sunday 
 School sufficient to meet the need arising from the altered condition of 
 the country ? 
 
 The present is an age of statistics. The various topics upon which 
 they are brought to bear, and which they are made subservient to 
 elucidate, would seem almost to baffle enumeration. It was only 
 in the beginning of the present century — in the year 1801 — that 
 the first census of the population was made by the Grovernment of 
 this country, which is no doubt the most natural as well as one of 
 the most essential subjects of inquiry for a Government to make ; 
 but since then, this department of political science has extended 
 the area of its investigations into so many ramifications, that there 
 is now hardly a question but is referred to the test of statistics. 
 Pio-ures are now marshalled or manipulated to illustrate such wide-
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 343 
 
 reaching questions as the former condition of the State, the present 
 revenue of the country, the extent of its trade, commerce, and 
 navigation, and even the changes in the moral, social, and physical 
 condition of the people. JKo labour or expense is spared by the 
 government of this and many other countries to make their sta- 
 tistical investigations as thorough and accurate as possible. Fur 
 upon the facts brought to light by them, reasonings of the highest 
 import are based, and conclusions of the most vital consequences 
 deduced, both by the statesman and political economist. In fact, 
 no statement which can be tested by statistics is accepted as trust- 
 worthy, if unsupported by them ; and an array of figures duly 
 authenticated is enough to discredit any theory, however plausible, 
 with which they are inexorably at variance. 
 
 Information in matters affecting the condition and interests of 
 the people is very important to the Government. And as no legis- 
 lation is ordinarily undertaken without being based upon a clear 
 estimate of the statistics of points at issue, the Government makes 
 ample use of its great power and authority, to demand information 
 from the subjects, as well as of the vast means at its disposal for 
 collecting all necessary facts. No private person or corporate body 
 can compete with a Government in the extent, variety, thorough- 
 ness, or accuracy of its statistics ; still, tangible and reliable results, 
 within their respective spheres, have been obtained by various 
 associations, elaborate and trustworthy figures being supplied by 
 the voluntary service of their members. The incontrovertible 
 character of these special statistics have been as useful in dis- 
 pelling illusions with regard to the subjects with which they dealt, 
 as those collected under the auspices of a powerful state machinery. 
 It is curious to think how effectual the publication of the result of 
 the first census in England was, in quelling the croakings of certain 
 pessimists at the time. These were continually bewailing the 
 retrograde motion of the country, urging that England was be- 
 coming less populous from year to year. The result of the census 
 was, however, to prove that the country had actually increased by 
 two millions and a quarter between 1750 and the end of the century. 
 In like manner, the result of statistics collected by many a private 
 association or religious denomination has remanded many a deba- 
 table topic from the sphere of the imagination, at once to that of 
 plain and unvarnished fact.
 
 344 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 This has been notably the case in connection with the Sunday 
 Schools of Wales. From the beginning, it may be observed that 
 one special feature in their organization was to keep a record, by 
 means of figures, of the amount of work done from time to time, 
 and to register the number in actual attendance and on the books. 
 The denomination to which each school belongs carefully collects 
 the aggregate of these items, which are regularly published in their 
 respective year-books, so that it is no difficult matter to bring any 
 gratuitous assertion respecting their present state and condition to 
 be tested by the cold logic of facts and figures. Many of these 
 statements are made from no hostile feeling to the establishment, 
 but rather from a fear lest the charges adduced should be too true, 
 and with an anxious wish that the defects surmised should be 
 speedily remedied. Still it must be granted that facts are always 
 preferable to surmises, and it is to be regretted that any author 
 should generalize from insufficient data, or attach to ist)lated hearsay 
 evidence an importance almost oracular. The latest example 
 within our knowledge of this class of utterances, is what transpired 
 at the Cymmrodorian section of the National Eisteddfod, held at 
 Merthyr, August, 1881. Coming in the very same year as the 
 general census of the population and on the eve of our centenary, 
 some of the assertions then made naturally challenge a friendly 
 criticism. Mr. T. M. Williams, B.A., inspector under the London 
 School Board, in a very able paper, reviewing the report of the 
 Departmental Committee on the state of Higher and Intermediate 
 Education in Wales, then very recently published, incidentally 
 referred to what he conceived to be the state of the Sunday Schools 
 of the Principality. A perusal of the following pages will, Ave 
 hope, thoroughly convince the reader that the picture he drew, 
 from no hostile motive, is not a fair representation of facts. While 
 deprecating the discouragement given by the recent course of events 
 to religious or Biblical teaching in state-aided schools, he added, 
 " that it was the firm conviction of educated and observant Welsh- 
 men residing in the Principality that the Welsh Sunday Schools 
 were rapidly deteriorating in quality, were degenerating into 
 secular organizations, and were gradually losing their hold upon 
 the Welsh people ; that Welsh parents have latterly become un- 
 mindful of the religious teaching of their children." In reply to 
 some criticisms on his paper, he further explained " that he had as
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 345 
 
 his authority", men who were teachers in Welsh Sunday Schools in 
 North Wales, ' that their experience of Welsh Sunday Schools was 
 such as had driven them to the conclusion that the children of our 
 Welsh Sunday Schools were not now grounded in a knowledge of 
 the Bible and of God's law, as they were in days gone by.' The 
 objection which he saw to the plan now adopted in Sunday School 
 teaching in some districts, was a tendency to drift into a system 
 like that of the English Sunday Schools, by which it would become 
 something like a secular organization. The debate being continued, 
 it was further brought forward as a charge against the Welsh 
 Sunday Schools that a great deal of time was expended upon 
 instruction in the mother tongue of the people." 
 
 Now these are grave and sweeping charges brought against a 
 venerable and time-honoured institution. They deserve the greater 
 consideration because uttered by men qualified to speak upon the 
 subject, and whose language plainly proves their keen appreciation 
 of what the schools have produced in the past, and what they are 
 capable of producing in the future. The most unfortunate feature 
 in the denunciation is the total absence of appeal to facts which, 
 with some trouble, might have been quoted, if existing ; and also 
 the very unsatisfactory nature of the little evidence adduced, both 
 as regards quantity and quality. Happily for the interests of 
 truth, the most important perhaps of the series of indictments, 
 viz. "that the schools were gradually losing their hold upon the 
 Welsh people," can at once be referred to the test of figures. If 
 unsupported by this impartial witness, and surely if flatly con- 
 tradicted, then it ought to be conceded as a natural and fair in- 
 ference, that it is not a likely occurrence to see an institution which 
 is flourishing in the number of its adherents, degenerating in 
 quality. 
 
 But independent of the connection between number and quality, 
 the general import of our remarks in the preceding chapters, with 
 reference to school associations, public catechizing, new phases of 
 oral and written examinations, and other adaptation of means to 
 present wants and peculiarities, tended directly to disprove each of 
 the above indictments, especially a deterioration of quality. At 
 the very time these charges are made, we can refer to reports con- 
 tinually being published, in the recognized organs of the institu- 
 tions, of unusual efforts put forth in several localities to learn the
 
 346 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 Scriptures and the various theological formularies of the different 
 denominations by heart, besides other signs of an undying vitality. 
 It is quite unfair to infer, because a few isolated districts should 
 show signs of languor and decay, that the whole country is in a 
 similar state of apathy and retrogression. Why, in the published 
 records of the institution, we find that similar rumours and appre- 
 hensions were rife at almost every epoch of its history. While 
 certainly it is to be deplored that these fancies should be uttered 
 in the form of incontrovertible matters of fact, still as cries of 
 warning or incentives to renewed zeal and watchfulness, they 
 cannot be looked upon as unmitigated evils. 
 
 We shall here present some of the most important statistics 
 bearing upon the Sunday Schools of Wales, up to the year of the 
 last census, in 1881. They may be useful data of information in 
 more numerous connection than we have occasion to refer to. 
 Some of the tables will require a word of explanation, which will 
 be appended to each, reserving until the end the special points 
 which elucidate the subject of the present chapter. 
 
 The only available materials for estimating the extent of the 
 means of instruction afforded to the people of England and Wales, 
 in all schools, whether connected with the National Society or 
 otherwise, in the early part of the century, are the returns obtained 
 by a committee of the House of Commons in 1818 ; and the Sum- 
 mary of Education Returns, published in 1833, known as Lord 
 Kerry's Returns, which exhibit the following results : — 
 
 Day Schools, 1818. 
 
 England, excluding Monmouthshire — 
 
 Endowed 164,935 
 
 Unendowed 476,719 
 
 Wales, including Monmouthshire — 
 
 Endowed 8,123 
 
 Unendowed 26,106 
 
 640,654 
 
 34,229 
 
 Sunday Schools, 1818. 
 
 England, excluding Monmouthshire .... 452,394 
 Wales, including Monmouthshire .... 24,831 
 
 477,225
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 347 
 
 Day Schools, 1833. 
 
 England, excluding Monmouthshire — 
 , Scholars receiving daily instruction 
 
 Infant Schools 
 
 Wales, including Monmouthshire 
 
 Infant Schools 
 
 . 1,128,521 
 
 86,971 
 
 . 59,421 
 
 2,034 
 
 Sunday Schools — 
 
 England, excluding Monmouthshire 
 Wales, including Monmouthshire 
 
 1,276,947 
 
 . 1,363,174 
 185,716 
 
 1,548,890 
 
 The proportion of the Sunday scholars receiving instruction in 
 day schools is not indicated, either in the returns of 1818, or in the 
 Summary published in 1833 ; and thus the total number of persons 
 receiving instruction in both day and Sunday Schools cannot be 
 stated. The returns of 1818 do not indicate the number of schools 
 established by Dissenters, but in the Summary for 1833 they are 
 thus distinguished : — 
 
 Infant and daily Sunday 
 
 scholars. scholars. 
 
 England, excluding Monmouthshire 48,335 ... 609,374 
 
 Wales, including Monmouthshire . 3,487 ... 140,733 
 
 It would thus seem, that although only one in twenty-five in 
 England, and one in seventeen in Wales, of the children under daily 
 instruction in 1833, were taught in Dissenting Schools ; yet nearly 
 one-half .in England, and three-fourths in Wales, of all persons who 
 then received instruction in Sunday Schools, attended Dissenting 
 Schools. It is evident further, from the above tables, that a far 
 greater proportion of the children attended Sunday Schools in Wales 
 than in England. It is further deduced that if the whole number 
 attending Sunday Schools in Wales in 1833 was 185,716, of which 
 140,733 belonged to Dissenters, then the number of Church of 
 England Sunday scholars for that year was 44,983. In the follow- 
 ing tables, which have been prepared from returns obtained by the 
 National Society and comprised in their published reports, we shall 
 confine our attention exclusively to the Sunday scholars, the 
 numbers always comprising both the day scholars who attend 
 Sunday Schools and those who attend on Sundays only.
 
 348 
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 Table showing the increase in Church Sunday School education 
 between 1826 and 1846 :— 
 
 
 1826. 
 
 1831. 
 
 1837. 
 
 1846. 
 
 
 Diocese of Llandaff— 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Monmouth County . 
 
 } 2,793 { 
 
 3,111 
 
 3,963 
 
 9,366 
 
 
 Glamorgan . 
 
 4,030 
 
 4,565 
 
 6,985 
 
 
 St. David's— 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Brecon 
 
 ^ 
 
 1,435 
 
 1,709 
 
 3,058 
 
 
 Cardigan 
 
 
 3,831 
 
 2,848 
 
 4,396 
 
 
 Caermarthen 
 
 8,431 
 
 6,018 
 
 3,401 
 
 5,332 
 
 
 Pembroke 
 
 
 3,620 
 
 2,648 
 
 5,370 
 
 
 Radnor 
 
 ) 
 
 600 
 
 704 
 
 1,479 
 
 
 Bangor— 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Anglesea 
 
 ) 2,248 
 
 2,239 
 
 2,167 
 
 2,485 
 
 
 Caernarvon 
 
 1,929 
 
 2,953 
 
 5,973 
 
 
 Merioneth . 
 
 1,129 
 
 1,054 
 
 2,176 
 
 
 St. Asaph- 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Denbigh . 
 
 1 3,700 1 
 
 2,894 
 
 3,382 
 
 5,726 
 
 
 Flint . 
 
 2,963 
 
 3,729 
 
 7,190 
 
 
 Montgomery . 
 
 2,125 
 
 2,980 
 
 4,255 
 
 
 Total 
 
 17,172 
 
 34,924 
 
 36,103 
 
 63,791 
 
 From the foregoing table the following summary can be made, 
 showing the progress of Church Sunday-School education in Wales 
 in twenty years, namely, from 1826 to 1846 : — 
 
 Llandaff . 
 St. David's . 
 Bangor 
 St. Asaph 
 
 2,793 scholars to 16,351 
 8,431 „ 19,635 
 
 2,248 „ 10,634 
 
 3,700 „ 17,171 
 
 17,172 
 
 63,791 
 
 Table showing the percentage of scholars to population in Church 
 Sunday Schools in Wales for the year 1846 : — 
 
 
 Population in 
 1841. 
 
 Sunday- 
 scholars. 
 
 Gratuitous 
 teachers. 
 
 Percentage to 
 population. 
 
 Diocese of Llandaff— 
 
 Monmouth . 
 
 Glamorgan 
 Diocese of St. David's— 
 
 Brecon . 
 
 134,355 
 171,188 
 
 65,603 
 
 9,366 
 6,985 
 
 3,058 
 
 359 
 200 
 
 153 
 
 6-97 
 4-07 
 
 5-50 
 
 Carried forward 
 
 361,146 
 
 19,409 
 
 712 

 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES, 
 
 349 
 
 
 Population m 
 
 Sunday 
 
 Gratuitous 
 
 Percentage to 
 
 
 1841. 
 
 scholars. 
 
 teachers. 
 
 population. 
 
 Brought forward 
 
 361,146 
 
 19,409 
 
 712 
 
 
 Cardigan . 
 
 68,766 
 
 4,396 
 
 251 
 
 6-39 
 
 Caermarthen . 
 
 106,326 
 
 5,332 
 
 245 
 
 5-02 
 
 Pembroke . 
 
 88,044 
 
 5,370 
 
 128 
 
 6-10 
 
 Radnor . 
 
 25,356 
 
 1,479 
 
 26 
 
 5-83 
 
 Diocese of Bangor— 
 
 
 
 
 
 Anglesea . 
 
 50,891 
 
 2,485 
 
 46 
 
 4-88 
 
 Caernarvon . 
 
 81,093 
 
 5,973 
 
 173 
 
 7-37 
 
 Merioneth . 
 
 39,332 
 
 2,176 
 
 52 
 
 5-53 
 
 Diocese of St. Asaph — 
 
 
 
 
 
 Denbigh 
 
 88,866 
 
 5,726 
 
 221 
 
 6-44 
 
 Flint .... 
 
 66,919 
 
 7,190 
 
 272 
 
 10-74 
 
 Montgomerj'' . 
 
 69,219 
 
 4,255 
 
 155 
 
 6-29 
 
 Total 
 
 1,045,958 
 
 63,791 
 
 2281 
 
 6-01 
 
 Tables appended to the Commissioners* Reports stating the 
 number of Sunday scholars receiving instruction in Dissenting 
 Chapels, in 1846, as follows : — 
 
 Diocese of Llandaff — 
 
 Monmouth 14,337 
 
 Add for portion of county excluded 4,000 
 
 18,337 
 
 Glamorgan 27,605 
 
 Diocese of St. David's — 
 
 Brecon 11,245 
 
 Cardigan 23,057 
 
 Caermarthen 24,476 
 
 Pembroke 14,163 
 
 Pcadnor 1,163 
 
 Diocese of Bangor — 
 
 Anglesea 13,998 
 
 Caernarvon 25,308 
 
 Merioneth 16,075 
 
 Diocese of St. Asaph — 
 
 Denbigh 20,661 
 
 Flint 11,499 
 
 Montgomery 16,822 
 
 45,942 
 
 74,104 
 
 55,381 
 
 48,982
 
 350 
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 The following table shows how these were distributed between 
 the various denominations : — 
 
 Counties. 
 
 Number of Sunday Schools. 
 
 
 Baptist. 
 
 Inde- 
 pendent. 
 
 Calvinistic 
 Methodist. 
 
 Wesleyan 
 Methodist. 
 
 South Wales- 
 Monmouthshire 
 Glamorganshire . 
 
 4,396 
 5,610 
 
 3,745 
 10,188 
 
 2,292 
 8,626 
 
 3,304 
 1,709 
 
 
 10,006 
 
 13,933 
 
 10,918 
 
 5,013 
 
 Breconshire 
 
 Cardiganshire 
 
 Caermarthenshire 
 
 Pembrokeshire 
 
 Radnorshire 
 
 2,132 
 
 2,025 
 
 4,006 
 
 4,570 
 
 302 
 
 4,080 
 
 5,483 
 
 11,962 
 
 5,241 
 
 304 
 
 3,742 
 
 13,776 
 
 7,411 
 
 3,008 
 
 299 
 
 528 
 1,773 
 
 988 
 1,344 
 
 167 
 
 
 13,035 
 
 27,070 
 
 28,236 
 
 4,790 
 
 North Wales— 
 
 Anglesea . . 
 Caernarvonshire . 
 Denbighshire . 
 Flintshire 
 Merionethshire . 
 Montgomeryshire . 
 
 1,330 
 1,174 
 1,343 
 161 
 631 
 1,054 
 
 2,060 
 3,998 
 3,023 
 2,377 
 3,166 
 3,886 
 
 9,373 
 18,071 
 13,066 
 
 5,092 
 10,495 
 
 8,244 
 
 1,235 
 2,065 
 2,980 
 3,779 
 1,783 
 3,618 
 
 
 5,693 
 
 18,510 
 
 64,341 
 
 15,460 
 
 Total 
 
 28,734 
 
 59,513 
 
 103,495; 
 
 25,268 
 
 With regard to these, Sir T. Phillips remarks that nearly one- 
 half are taught in chapels belonging to the Welsh or Calvinistic 
 Methodists. 
 
 The total number of persons receiving religious instruction in 
 either day or Sunday Schools, exclusive of those attending Adven- 
 ture and other schools, where such instruction is not professedly 
 given, is shown in the following table : — 
 
 LlandafE 
 
 St. David's 
 Bangor . 
 St. Asaph . 
 
 Church. 
 
 Dissent. 
 
 16,351 
 
 45,942 
 
 19,635 
 
 74,104 
 
 10,634 
 
 55,381 
 
 17,171 
 
 48,982 
 
 63,791 
 
 224,409
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 351 
 
 Comparing increase of Church and Dissenting Schools between 
 1831 and 1846 in the former, and 1833 and 1846 in the latter, 
 we find the ratio to be nearly equal : — 
 
 Church Schools in 1831 . 34,924 ... In 1846 63,791 
 
 Dissenting Schools in 1833 . 140,733 ... In 1846 224,409 
 
 Xumber of persons receiving religious instruction for every 100 
 ' 'f the population in 1846 : — 
 
 In Giiirch Schools. Dissenting Schools. TotaL 
 
 Llandaff . . . 5-35 ... 15-04 ... 20-39 
 
 St. David's . . 5-71 ... 21-54 ... 27-25 
 
 Bangor . . . G-21 ... 32-32 ... 38-53 
 
 St. Asaph. . . 7-63 ... 21-77 ... 29-40 
 
 Note. — The number of Sunday scholars is taken from the tables 
 contained in the reports of the "Welsh Education Commissioners, 
 from which the agricultural districts of Monmouthshire are excluded ; 
 and for those districts some addition should be made. The tables 
 of the Commissioners' Reports appear to be framed from returns 
 made by the school managers. The only report of a Dissenting 
 body which contains the number of Sunday scholars, is that found 
 in the Methodist Almanac, which differs considerably from the Com- 
 missioners' tables in the case of North AVales, but substantially 
 agrees with them in South Wales. 
 
 N.B. — These figures refer to the state of the various religious 
 bodies in 1846, the year in which the Commissioners visited the 
 country. "We find Sir T. Phillips, in drawing up other tables of 
 members and chapels for the same year, obtains the particulars from 
 the reports of the several religious societies for 1847 and 1848. 7404 
 must be added to the totals of p. 350 in order to correspond with 
 the total given above, which equals 224,409 ; 4000 is accounted 
 for as above for the portion of Monmouthshire excluded from the 
 Commissioners' Reports. 
 
 In some counties, such as Merioneth in North Wales, and 
 Cardiganshire in South Wales, the number of persons re- 
 ceiving religious instruction is still greater — amounting in the 
 latter county to nearly forty per cent., and in the former to 
 upwards of forty -six per cent, of the entire population. That such 
 numbers must comprise a large proportion of adult members would 
 be apparent ; and in many Church Sunday Schools, adult attendants
 
 352 
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 on religious worship are present, and are formed into classes, for 
 the purpose of reading together portions of the Holy Scriptures. 
 Adult attendants are, however, far more numerous in Dissenting 
 than in Church Sunday Schools, in proportion to the children ; and 
 the number of Sunday scholars in the returns of Dissenting con- 
 gregations comprise as well the adult attendants as those members 
 of their families who have arrived at an age for receiving instruc- 
 tion — and thus include, more especially in the Welsh Methodist 
 connexion, all the regular attendants on public worship.* 
 
 We shall here present the most important table of all, as meeting 
 the assertion that the Sunday Schools are losing their hold on the 
 Welsh people. In it will be found the number of members be- 
 longing to the different denominations, and the percentage of the 
 totals to the population at different periods from 1833 to 1881 : — 
 
 Denomination. 
 
 1833. 
 
 1846. 
 
 1871. 
 
 1881. 
 
 Nonconforinists 
 Churcli of England 
 
 140,733 
 44,983 
 
 103,495 
 63,791 
 59,513 
 28,734 
 25,263 
 
 154,030 
 98,211 
 87,809 
 58,406 
 45,251 
 
 
 Total . 
 Calvinistic Methodists . 
 Church of England . 
 Congregationalists 
 Baptists 
 Wesleyan Methodists . 
 
 185,716 
 
 918,431 
 20-2 
 
 173,280 
 
 118,683 
 
 104,446 
 
 81,708 
 
 58,079 
 
 Total . 
 Population of Wales 1 
 and Monmouthshire ) 
 Percentage of population 
 
 288,200t 
 
 1,104,599 
 
 26 
 
 443,707 
 
 1,412,580 
 
 31-4 
 
 636,196 
 
 1,571,269 
 
 34-1 
 
 Note. — The particulars for 1883 and 1846 have been adopted 
 from the published statistics of Sir T. Phillips, and those for 1871 
 and 1881 from the year-books of the various Nonconformist de- 
 nominations for 1872 and 1882, which the author has personally 
 consulted. It is but fair to state here, as is candidly acknowledged 
 by that body itself, that the statistics of the Congregationalists are in 
 a very unsatisfactory state compared with the other denominations. 
 Two diaries, or year-books, are published by them, one at Dolgelley 
 
 * Collected and adapted from Sir T. Phillips's " Wales," passim. 
 f This total, it will be seen, is higher than the actual sum of the above 
 figures by 7404. For explanation, see p. 51.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 353 
 
 and the other at Bala. The latter adopts its statistics from the 
 general congregational year-book, and the former from returns sent 
 in by the various Churches of Wales. But for several years now, 
 none have been sent in, and therefore the same figures have appeared 
 for several years consecutively. The Bala year-book's highest 
 figure between 1872 and 1882 is 87,809, and that of Dolgelley 
 104,446. It is evident both cannot be correct, and therefore we 
 have taken the lowest to represent the number of Sunday scholars 
 and teachers in 1871, and the highest for that of 1881. A move- 
 ment is now on foot to get more accurate returns from the Churches. 
 The Church of England in "Wales does not publish the number of 
 its Sunday-School members, but we have endeavoured to be just in 
 our estimate of their present position. It will be recollected that 
 Sir T. Phillips * had discovered that the increase of Church scholars 
 between 1831 and 1846 was very nearly in the same ratio as that 
 of dissenting schools between 1833 and 1846. Now, we have 
 granted this proportion to be the same in 1871-81 between the 
 Nonconformists and the Church of England, as it was in 1846, 
 and upon this assumption have made our calculations. In com- 
 paring our totals with those found in the year-books, an apparent 
 discrepancy will at once be discovered ; but this will be soon re- 
 conciled, by remembering that we have in every instance deducted 
 the numbers belonging to Welsh Sunday Schools in England, as 
 our percentage has reference only to the population of Wales and 
 Monmouthshire. 
 
 In comparing this percentage for the several periods it is most 
 satisfactory to find, that not only has the number of members 
 belonging to the Sunday Schools kept up with the population, but 
 has also steadily gained upon it. In 1833 this percentage was 
 20*2 ; thirteen years after, in 1846, it was 26 ; twenty-five years 
 after, in 1871, it was 31'4 ; and ten years after, in 1881, 34*1. Com- 
 paring the rate of increase of Sunday-School members with that of 
 the population, we find the superiority to be much in favour of the 
 former. For whilst the population has only increased 11 '2 per 
 cent, in the decade 1871-81, Sunday-School members have increased 
 20'8 per cent. The general accuracy of this computation is tested 
 by reference to the statistics of individual places. On Sunday, 
 
 * See p. 351. 
 
 2 A
 
 354 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 December 4, 1881, a census was made in the town of Bala of the 
 members actually present at the various services for that day. The 
 numbers present in the Sunday Schools stood thus : — 
 
 Calvinistic Methodists 459 
 
 Church of England ...... 167 
 
 Congregationalists 144 
 
 Baptists 43 
 
 Total . 813 
 
 Population that year 1653 
 
 Percentage of population ." . . . .49*1 
 
 This was the number, be it observe(J, in actual attendance. 
 Adding one-fourth for the number on the books, the percentage here 
 reaches as high as 61"4. At the to\yn of Cardiff, in the year 1881, 
 all the members of the Sunday Schools were treated to a repast in 
 one of the public parks, in celebration of the birth of the Earl of 
 Dumfries. The following numbers were published in the papers 
 as having turned out on the occasion : — 
 
 Denominations. Scholars. Teachers. Total. 
 
 Nonconformists . 13,581 ... 1,198 ... 14,779 
 
 Church of England . 4,547 ... 350 ... 4,897 
 
 Roman Catholics . 2,200 ... 15 ... 2,215 
 
 20,328 1,563 21,891 
 
 Those were only the children. Tickets for about 20,000 adults 
 were also issued, making therefore an aggregate of 41,891. The 
 population of the sub-district of Cardiff for 1881 was 94,766, 
 which makes the percentage here to be 44-2. 
 
 With regard to the assertion " that a great deal of time is ex- 
 pended upon instruction in the mother tongue of the people," there 
 seems to be much misapprehension on the subject. If it be meant 
 that "instruction in the mother tongue of the people" is given 
 with the exclusive view of perpetuating the Welsh language, then 
 we maintain that the charge is utterly untrue, except in a very few 
 instances. It is certain that Welsh children are now taught to 
 read English in the day schools, and to understand that language 
 for ordinary conversation ; still Welsh is the great medium of 
 communication, as yet, with the bulk of the population. And this 
 is pre-eminently the channel of religious instruction, whether 
 through the pulpit, the press, or the Sunday School. It is evident,
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 355 
 
 therefore, that whatever time is devoted to the study of thie lan- 
 guage, is Eot for the sake of perpetuating it, but in order the better 
 to profit spiritually thereby. The only time expended with the 
 language exclusively as such, in addition to the mere mechanical 
 labour of learning to read it, is that occupied with the explanation 
 of the obsolete and unusual expressions of the Welsh Bible, which 
 is indeed a peculiarity belonging to every language. In the case 
 of children of Welsh parents living in English towns, or in parts 
 of Wales where the English tongue predominates, is it alone true, 
 that time is spent with the mother tongue for its own sake. Here, 
 it certainly is a case of acquiring another tongue for a result, wiiich 
 the child might obtain by means of the instrument already in its 
 possession, if only he attended an English place of worship. But 
 inasmuch as many parents prefer taking their children with them 
 to the Welsh churches and chapels, it is their wish that the chil- 
 dren should undergo the labour of acquiring the Welsh language 
 in addition to the English, in order to profit from the religious 
 teaching given by teachers and pastor exclusively in the former 
 tongue. Not imtil the English language has become so general in 
 Wales as to justify the conversion of existing Welsh causes into 
 English, will this practice be discontinued. This must be expected 
 to take place more rapidly in the future than has been the case in 
 the past. In this time of transition, and no doubt of trial, it is to 
 be sincerely hoped, however, that the efGcieccy of the schools will 
 not be suffered to droop ; but, on the contrary, that whatever is 
 superior and characteristic of them in their Welsh garb, shall 
 continue to flourish and gain even a higher development, though 
 the members should be found articulating in an adopted tongue. 
 
 We hope it has now been sufficiently demonstrated that the 
 Sunday Schools do not lose their hold upon the Welsh people, nor 
 do we think them to be less efficient than in days gone by, when 
 the altered circumstances of the present time are taken into con- 
 sideration. The people who delight in bewailing the degeneracy of 
 things modern have lived in the world at least since the days of 
 Solomon, and they still neglect his friendly admonition — " Say not 
 thou. What is the' cause that the former days were better than 
 these? for thou dost not inquire wisely concerning this." Lat- 
 terly, greater concern has been shown for the institution, than at 
 almost any period of its existence. Within our memory, Surday
 
 356 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 Schools were looked upon as organizations quite apart from the 
 Church, governed by separate officers, and working in a sphere 
 entirely outside Church interference. Within the last twenty 
 years, however a great reform has set in. The Church has taken 
 the Sunday School more into its counsels ; it inquires more for its 
 welfare ; advises, encourages, and incites to greater exertions for 
 its progress, but without attempting to control its individual 
 government ; and the higher courts and assemblies of the various 
 denominations, such as the congress of the Established Church, 
 the unions of the Baptists and Congregationalists, the conference 
 and assembly of the Wesleyan and Calvinistic Methodists, devote 
 some sittings in each year, to keep up the living flame of zeal and 
 devotion, or to fan it into ever-increasing intensity and brilliancy. 
 
 Nevertheless, it is now generally felt, that the adequacy of 
 Sunday Schools to supply the religious training of the children and 
 youth of the country, will be more than ever tested and strained, 
 these coming years. The country, just now, is in a transitional, 
 and no doubt truly critical, state. Religious teaching in day 
 schools has been either entirely discontinued, or reduced to a mini- 
 mum. Ever since the passing of the Elementary Education Act 
 of 1870, and the establishment of School Boards, followed by the 
 transfer of almost all the British and Denominational Schools in 
 Wales to the care of these Boards, Scriptural and religious 
 teaching has been manifestly on the wane, as a part of the day- 
 school curriculum. Though the Act does not directly discourage 
 Scriptural teaching, still the restrictions imposed with regard to 
 the time of such teaching, the necessity of applying the objec- 
 tionable conscience clause when undertaken, the feeling that 
 whatever time is devoted to it is taken from teaching subjects in- 
 cluded in a scheme of payment by results, and the general con- 
 viction amongst Nonconformists that it is wrong in principle for 
 the State to teach religion to its subjects, besides interfering with 
 the special privilege of the Church of Christ, have tended to make 
 what religious teaching is attempted, to be at once meagre, mean- 
 ingless, and jejune. 
 
 There is no better proof of the steady development of this spirit 
 of the age than what has been elaborately expressed in the recom- 
 mendations made by the Commissioners of 1881 . " We recommend," 
 they say, ''that in schemes for Welsh schools, other than schools of a
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 357 
 
 denominational character, any provision made for religious instruc- 
 tion shall be confined to the reading and explanation of Holy 
 Scriptures, and shall not include instruction in the doctrines or 
 formularies of any Church, sect, or denomination. We further 
 recommend that no such instruction shall he given to any scholar, 
 unless the written consent of the parent or guardian has been pre- 
 viously obtained." * Mr. Henry Richard, one of the commissioners, 
 in a memorandum appended to the report, dissents even from these 
 meagre recommendations of his colleagues, and gives as his views, 
 " that in schools receiving grants from public sources, the instruc- 
 tion should be confi.ned to secular elements." He even offers this 
 as an alternative for boarding schools, or that all public aid should 
 be given for proficiency in subjects other than religious, leaving 
 these to be cared for by a special arrangement between parents and 
 master. He further adds that " he has very little faith in the effi- 
 cacy of a religious teaching out of which everything definite and 
 positive has been eliminated, in deference to conscientious denomi- 
 national susceptibilities." f 
 
 In this, we think, Mr. Richard is quite mistaken. "Whatever be 
 the value of his experience, from knowledge which we fondly 
 believe to be hardly less authenticated, we would testify that the 
 Scriptural lessons given under the old regime of the British and 
 Foreign School Society, which was considered to be quite undenomi- 
 national, did produce lasting impressions on the minds and hearts 
 of the scholars. Sunday-School teachers were made agreeably con- 
 scious of this by the intelligent, ready, and reverent answers of 
 such scholars when questioned in the class, or in the general cate- 
 chising at the end of the school. The lack of religious knowledge 
 in the rising generation is becoming palpable in these days — a result 
 which arises, we think, not so much from any deterioration in the 
 Sunday Schools, as from the loss of co-operation in the work by 
 the day-school teacher. It stands to reason that so many hours 
 devoted daily in the British and National Schools to religious teach- 
 ing, and that by men fully competent to the work, most of them 
 actuated by no mercenary feeling, being now diverted altogether to 
 secular purposes, cannot but perceptibly tell upon the state of 
 religious knowledge in the country. The author has ample proofs 
 
 * " Report on Intermediate and Higher Education in Wales, 1881," p. 53. 
 f Ibid., Memorandum, p. 71.
 
 358 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 of this deficiency, in boys from elementary schools who seem to 
 have had very little, if any, religious training. Some gain scholar- 
 ships on the foundation of the institution with wliich he is connected, 
 and may be looked upon as the cream of intelligence in the schools 
 from which they come ; but the amount of Scriptural, not to say 
 religious, knowledge they possess is pitiably defective. These must 
 have depended entirely for this suj^ply on what was formerly im- 
 parted in the day schools. Others of his pupils, who he knows 
 have been trained in good Sunday Schools, supplemented by special 
 classes conducted by their pastors, or have been drilled under the 
 system of prizes organized by the London School Board, show a 
 decided superiority both in religious knowledge and good behaviour 
 over the alumni of school boards, where religious instruction is at 
 a discount, and who either neglect the Sunday School, or live in 
 districts where the institution is inefl&cient and lifeless. 
 
 There are few i^ersons in Wales, who, with all their zeal for the 
 spread of secular education among the masses, would rely upon this 
 as the sole or chief means for the moral regeneration of their country- 
 men. Few, indeed, we presume, would even take up the less 
 objectionable position, that secular instruction is an indispensaUe 
 supplement or adjunct to religious training. The author of some 
 very valuable hints on secular instruction was almost wholly con- 
 firmed in this theory by the report of the commissioners of 184:6, 
 on the state of education in Wales. This is a further instance of 
 the wrong done not only to the nation by that prejudiced report, 
 but also to truth, by supplying a false datum for this and, maybe, 
 other similar inferences. " From the report which has lately been 
 published on the state of education in Wales/' says this author,* 
 " there is one thing which appears very remarkable, independent of 
 the lamentable state of ignorance which seems generally to prevail, 
 which is this — that in those districts where the people seem to have 
 a very considerable knowledge of Scripture, the state of their morals 
 is of the lowest and most degrading kind." From this he infers, 
 that such secular instruction ought to supplement rehgious teaching 
 as " would, at the same time that it bore on their industrial pursuits, 
 lead to an improved moral condition, by instilling in early life those 
 feelings of self-respect and self-dependence, and those principles of 
 
 * Dawes' "Suggestive Hints," etc., p. xii. (//i^rot?.).
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 359 
 
 honesty and truth Avhich ought to be the guide of every one who 
 lays claim to the character of a Christian man." The position main- 
 tained by most Welsh educationists, on the contrary^ is that 
 intellectual advancement, far from being indispensable to the moral 
 improvement of the people, may, nevertheless, be made subservient 
 to this end. They willingly concede that the enlargement of the 
 intellect is not unfavourable to the improvement of the heart, that 
 what is gained from secular knowledge may eventually be gained 
 for Christianity ; but they strenuously maintain that Scriptural 
 truths alone are the foundation of all sound teaching, and without 
 which an education of an exclusively secular character may directly 
 lead to ruin and degradation. 
 
 The promoters of Sunday Schools go even further. They have 
 always acted on ttie belief that not only are Scriptural truths the 
 guide to moral actions, but that a hearty acceptance of them is the 
 only real foundation of morality. The motive power, the living 
 principle of the whole system of Christian morals, is " the love of 
 Christ." Those alone, they maintain, have been rightly started on 
 the path of duty and virtue, to whom Christ's commands are not 
 heavy, because " His love has been shed abroad in their hearts," 
 and who are able to say, " We love Him, because He first loved us." 
 Christian workers, through the medium of Sunday Schools, do not 
 wait, indeed, until they are satisfied of the child's regeneration, 
 before beginning to inculcate Scripture truths upon his mind. On 
 the contrary, having a regard to the age and capacity of those whom 
 they instruct, they endeavour to make the elementary truths of the 
 Christian faith to be understood and deeply rooted in the mind, from 
 the earliest period of life. They know that Scripture truths are the 
 basis of the Holy Spirit's operation. The instrument through which 
 He works in quickening the new life within, is the revealed and 
 inspired Word. " The words that I speak unto you," says the 
 Saviour, " they are spirit and they are life." The Word is " an in- 
 coiTuptible seed which liveth and abide th for ever." The special 
 function of the Spirit with regard to the written Word is what was 
 promised to the disciples with regard to the spoken Word — " He 
 shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remem- 
 brance, whatsoever I have spoken to you.'* The teacher does not 
 know what word will be blessed into life everlasting, nor when it 
 may receive the fructifying influence from above. Just as the tiny
 
 360 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 seeds, blown from the plant, and scattered by the winds to the four 
 quarters of the heavens, have been known to retain their germi- 
 nating power for years ; or as the grain of wheat, found by chance in 
 the sarcophagus of the Egyptian mummy, when brought into contact 
 with the earth, the rain, and the sun's heat, has been known to sprout 
 into life ; so also a word lodged in the memory through much trouble, 
 and with no apparent effect at the time, may years after, in the 
 Spirit's own good time, be the medium of an operation whose ulti- 
 mate development will be nothing less than life everlasting. 
 
 It is the teacher's peculiar privilege, to guide and encourage the 
 treasuring of God's Word in the memory of his scholars — " in the 
 morning," as it were, " sowing the seed, and in the evening withhold- 
 ing not his hand : for he knoweth not whether shall prosper, either this 
 or that, or whether they both shall be alike good." He does not 
 certainly delay the teaching of morality until he gets satisfactory 
 evidence that the child is actuated by a love to his Redeemer, in 
 order to endeavour to walk and please Him. On the contrary, he 
 is full}^ cognizant of the truth, that the natural disposition is not 
 altogether out of his reach to try to improve. Man, he knows, is 
 by nature a rational being, and much can be done, apart from the 
 special interposition of the Divine Agent, to train the child in the 
 proper dii^ernment of right and wrong, truth and falsehood, and to 
 a corresponding behaviour. He further believes this course to be 
 the most probable predisposing element for the heavenly operation. 
 Still with him it is an ever-present conviction, that no permanent 
 moral course, no efficient motive to uprightness of conduct, under 
 all circumstances and exigencies, can possibly result, but from a 
 feeling of obligation to live to " Him who loved us and gave 
 Himself for us." The experience of the old Roman poet and moralist, 
 as well as of the great Apostle of the Gentiles, will otherwise inva- 
 riably continue to recur : — " Meliora video proboque, deterioraque 
 sequor" (I know and approve of good things, but I follow the 
 evil). A feeling of self-respect, or a desire to merit the approbation 
 of society, may keep a man from many an evil action, but the fear 
 of the Lord, the fear of offending a loving Father and a com- 
 passionate Saviour, is alone the beginning of true wisdom. This 
 alone is the motive which can regulate the secret thoughts, and 
 make a man equally moral, whether he spends his life in the seclu- 
 sion of his closet, or every hour and moment in contact with the
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 361 
 
 most re6ned conventionalities of society. In short, this is the vital 
 distinction between the regenerate and wwregenerate. The one is 
 represented by our Saviour as the hearer of the word, but not the 
 doer of it — not the doer of it in the true sense of the word, from an 
 immutable and never-failing motive. The other is the hearer and 
 real doer of the word as well. The one is the house built upon the 
 sand, which is unable to resist the force of the wind of temptation, 
 the flood of affliction, and the great shock of death itself; the other 
 alone is the house on the rock whose innermost experience will be 
 calm and constant notwithstanding all the vicissitudes and extremes 
 of life, and who will have "boldness in the day of judgment," 
 because " perfect love casteth out fear." 
 
 It is not our intention farther to discuss whose province it is to 
 impart this high instruction — whether the Church exclusively, or 
 ought the State also to see that it is supplied for its subjects ? Those 
 who accept the latter alternative do not deny that the Church, as 
 a spiritual organization, apart from her connection with the State, 
 ought to look upon the teaching of religion and morality to the 
 rising generation as one of her peculiar functions. But they further 
 hold that the great opportunitj^ possessed by the State to supple- 
 ment this ought to be carefully utilized. Since, however, all past 
 legislation, as well as prospective arrangements, seem to favour its 
 relegation altogether to the Church, any further discussion of the 
 subject would seem too much like a dadl wedi ham — an argument 
 after the verdict — to justify its being taken up. In common with 
 the commissioner whose words have already been quoted, the advo- 
 cates of no-State-interference do not despair of the Church's fidelity 
 to her mission. Like him, they feel *' that in a country w^here the 
 doctrines and observances of religion are held in such high and uni- 
 versal estimation as they are in Wales, there is no danger that the 
 religious instruction of children will be neglected, if left to the care of 
 parents and their pastors." They advocate this course not because 
 they are "hostile or indifferent to religious instruction as a part of 
 education, but because they have the sincere conviction that this 
 plan will best subserve the interests not only of religious equality, 
 but of religious education." At the same time, we feel it our duty to 
 warn our fellow-Christians in Wales that belief alone is not suSicient 
 to bring about the desired result. Destruction has always been 
 easier than reconstruction. An efibrt must be made to go on, else
 
 362 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 a retrogressive motion will at once set in. Those who have been 
 the direct agents in bringing about an exclusion of the Bible, to all 
 intents and purposes, from the day schools, would show a commend- 
 able consistency, by heartily co-operating in having the deficiency 
 produced by this change immediately and efficiently remedied. 
 Sunday Schools must undoubtedly be one of the permanent institu- 
 tions for accomplishing this end; but whether they can be so 
 perfected as to be sufficient of themselves to secure the end, or must 
 be supplemented by some week-day organizations, time alone 
 will show. Hitherto in Wales no extra aid has been called to 
 requisition, and that most likely because of the faith which the 
 leaders of the people have in their venerable institution. Will it 
 be adequate? We are desirous of giving it a fair trial. But un- 
 doubtedly, numerous further modifications and adaptations will be 
 required to meet the exigencies of the times. Since this is a most 
 vital question at the present juncture, we shall reserve a few sugges- 
 tive hints on the subject for another and a final chapter.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALKS. 363 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 coxditioxs of the future prosperity of the suxday schools of 
 Wales. 
 
 Their existence in the future hardly doubtful — Still, many improvements 
 necessary — First, improved methods of instruction by teachers — Piety 
 and zeal not sufficient — Difficulties of religious instruction — Our fore- 
 fathers accomplishing much without system — Times changed — Better 
 order requisite in junior departments — How to secure the adoption of 
 better methods — Training classes for teachers to be formed — A sketch 
 of the rise of these in England— Unknown to Wales in connection with 
 Sunday Schools — More required than a class to prepare subject-matter 
 of lesson — What should be the aim of training classes ? — Studying the 
 science of education — Its principles founded on metaphysics — Advan- 
 tages of a knowledge of philosophy — Development of human faculties — 
 Association of ideas and memory — A knowledge of logic useful — This 
 department not alien to the Welsh mind — Training classes and the ort 
 of teaching — The various methods of communicating knowledge — Re- 
 lative importance — The catechetical to be supreme — Questions should 
 be connected — Adapted to age — Specimens — Suggestions to training 
 classes — Improved appliances also necessary for the success of schools — 
 Nothing, however, to dispense with personal preparation — Teachers of 
 the past noted for this— Incentives to preparation — For success of schools, 
 the missionary spirit to be kept alive — Day schools and average at- 
 tendance — To swell numbers in Sunday Schools, infant classes to be 
 organized— The last and chief aim of Sunday Schools to be always 
 kept in view, the moral regeneration of the people — What was done in 
 the past in this respect — Their rise opportune — Rapid increase of popu- 
 lation — Prospects of future material prosperity — Xeed of being sup- 
 ported — Conclusion. 
 
 Will the Sunday School exist in Wales at the end of another 
 century? Will it present the same efficient and flourishing state 
 then as it does now ? These are questions more easily asked than 
 answered. Many of the most ardent supporters of the institution 
 would at once reply that it luill and must exist ; more would
 
 364 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 humbly dare think that, because of the good work accomplished 
 by it in the past, it deserves to exist ; while inost will ac- 
 quiesce in the conclusion that in view of the great work con- 
 tinually requiring to be done, there is 7ieed for it to exist. We also 
 feel disposed to rank ourselves with the first class, at the same time 
 readily acknowledging that it must undergo several important 
 changes and modifications in order to secure what is implied in the 
 second of the above questions. The elasticity, however, which it 
 has shown in the past in meeting the exigencies of the times, is a 
 sufficient guarantee that its vitality and resources will prove effec- 
 tual, in coping with all the peculiarities of the future. But what are 
 the conditions of its future prosperity ? Bearing in mind the altered 
 circumstances of the Principality as already described in the pre- 
 vious chapter, and the increased taxation upon the resources of the 
 school because of the peculiar rivalry in which it is placed in relation 
 to secular institutions, we do not think it difficult to discover some 
 of the most important of these conditions. We shall, therefore, 
 as a not unfitting termination to our review of the past, offer a few 
 remarks on the future aspect of our subject. These must necessarily 
 assume the form more of suggestive hints than an exhaustive 
 discussion of all the questions bearing upon the inquiry. Some 
 difficulty, indeed, presents itself at the outset against a thoroughly 
 succinct treatment, owing to the twofold aspect of the Welsh 
 institution — being at the same time a school for the training up of 
 children in religious knowledge, and a kind of theological gymnasium 
 for youth and adults. But we must leave it to the good sense of 
 the reader to distinguish, without our always specifying it, what is 
 exclusively intended for the one, and what can only be applicable 
 to the other. Among the most important and pressing reforms and 
 practices essential to the future well-being of the Sunday Schools 
 in Wales, we enumerate the following : — 
 
 1. The desirability of adopting improved metJwds of instruc- 
 tion by the teachers. At present, it may be safely estimated, by 
 giving only one for every ten scholars, there are over sixty-seven 
 thousand teachers engaged in Sunday-School work in Wales, every 
 Sunday. In the highest qualifications requisite for a teacher, they 
 will bear comparison with those of any other country. They are 
 men possessing the deepest sympathy with the eternal welfare of 
 those whom they instruct ; they are endowed with undoubted piety
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 365 
 
 themselves as a class ; they have a strong conviction of the para- 
 mount importance of the truths which they teach ; and they are 
 ready to spend and be spent in the service of their Lord and Master. 
 Still when it is considered how deficient the great body of them are 
 in method, how limited their knowledge is of the art of teaching^ 
 this large army must be looked upon more in the light of undrilled 
 and raw recruits, than of disciplined and experienced veterans. An 
 inevitable consequence of this lack of knowledge of the principles of 
 teaching, is a waste of much of their resources, small results in pro- 
 portion to the time and labour bestowed, and a failure very often 
 to derive any real enjoyment from the act of teaching, however 
 much they may love the work. 
 
 The peculiarities of religious instruction are such that it requires 
 more tact, skill, and teaching power to impart it than any branch of 
 secular study. Though a child from early infancy has moral and 
 religious susceptibilities, still from the abstract nature of the subject 
 matter taught, there is great difficulty in arresting the attention and 
 concentrating the thought of children upon it for any length of time, 
 which is not the case with secular subjects. Whether we think of 
 geography, natural history, astronomy, or even natural philosophy, 
 the teacher can at once summon the natural curiosity which every 
 child has to know about objects immediately surrounding him, as a 
 potent aid in presenting to the mind of the learner, and fixing in 
 his memory, any information he has to impart concerning them. 
 But God is unseen ; heaven and hell can only be described by 
 figures and comparisons ; the various relations in which man stands 
 before God as a creature, a subject, and condemned sinner, together 
 with the grand provision disclosed in the scheme of salvation for 
 his restoration to the image which he has lost, have very few 
 counterparts in a child's experience to render them intelligible; 
 hence it is that the teacher's command of the best methods and 
 most approved style of communicating his knowledge is absolutely 
 necessary. Our forefathers in Wales, no doubt, were able to pro- 
 duce mighty results when comparatively ignorant of these modern 
 resources, which proves that zeal, earnestness, and determination 
 can make up for the lack of many accessories. " Ni ddiffyg arfar 
 was gwych " (A skilful workman will not fail for want of a tool). 
 Still, who can deny that the results would have been greater, if 
 they had been endowed with all the qualifications desirable for a
 
 366 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 teacher ; or, at any rate, that the same results would have been 
 achieved with greater enjoyment, and a considerable saving of 
 time and energy ? 
 
 The circumstances of the present times, however, imperatively 
 demand a knowledge of right methods of imparting knowledge, 
 before hardly any success in teaching can be expected. It is 
 necessary in order to secure the attention of the class. The same 
 children who for five days of the week, have been under the tuition 
 of men specially trained for their work — men who have profited from 
 the wisdom and experience of the past concerning the best way to 
 interest and edify those under their charge — naturally expect similar 
 tact in their Sunday-School instructors, before their attention can 
 be secured, and consequently their intellect and affections improved. 
 From the want of power to secure attention, arises, to a great 
 measure, the absence of good order too often noticed in the junior 
 classes of our Sunday Schools. The following description of a 
 school in England is not far from being applicable to the younger 
 department of many a school in Wales : — 
 
 " Most of the schools present scenes of sad disorder, if not of 
 absolute confusion during the hours of teaching. The Highland 
 piper, who spoke with rapture of one occasion when he was with 
 bonnie Prince Charlie, and when ' there were nineteen pipers 
 a' thegither, each playing a different tune,' and he ' thocht he was 
 in heaven ! ' would have felt thoroughly at home in many a London 
 school ; but the scene is hardly so pleasing to educational eyes and 
 ears." * 
 
 Some have attributed the tumultuous noise and palpable disorder 
 too often witnessed in a Sabbath School, to the natural shrinking 
 the teachers have from exercising their authority, lest the child 
 should be disgusted with school, and withdraw altogether from the 
 influence of Christian instruction. The teacher's services being 
 gratuitous, and the child's attendance optional, it is sometimes 
 maintained that the same authority and discipline which are the 
 first characteristic of a good day school, cannot be demanded or 
 secured for a Sunday SchooL But this defect far oftener results 
 from the inability of the teacher (owing to a want of previous 
 training) to interest the children, than from any undue advantage 
 
 * " Our Work," by W. H. Groser, B.Sc, p. 178.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 367 
 
 taken by the scholars of the peculiarity of the constitution of the 
 school. It is too often the painful duty of the Sunday-School 
 teacher, like his brother of the day school (quoting the characteristic 
 words of Sir Walter Scott), " to control petulance, to excite in- 
 diflference to action, to strive to enlighten stupidity, and to labour 
 to soften obstinacy ; " and this being so, can it be expected that the 
 desired results will be realized otherwise than by adopting similar 
 methods of arrangement, government, and of securing attention, 
 in the formei; class of schools, as in the latter? Before children 
 can be impressed, they must be instructed, and before they can be 
 instructed, their attention must be thoroughly aiuahened. How is 
 this to be secured ? There can be only one answer to the question : 
 By right methods. It is high time the antiquated notion " that 
 any one who knows is able to teach," should be hunted out of all 
 its remaining lurking places. From all the public elementary 
 schools, thanks to Government interference, it has been effectually 
 banished. In higher schools, both public and private, in too many 
 of the colleges, and especially in Sunday Schools, it still reigns in 
 almost undisturbed peace. For often in the latter institutions, it is 
 even now supposed, as Mr. Groser remarks, " that to be pious and 
 to be apt to teach are one and the same thing ; that a sufficiency of 
 Divine grace for personal salvation involves a sufficiency of Divine 
 knoioledge for the religious education of others, or that because one 
 has felt the renewing power of the Spirit, he is thereby invested 
 with ability rightly to " divide the word of truth." * Having now 
 sufficiently demonstrated, it is to be hoped, the need for teachers to 
 be well up in the art they are called upon to practise, the question 
 arises, how is this to be secured ? which leads us to another con- 
 dition of the prosperity of our schools. 
 
 2. The formation of a training class in connection with every 
 large school ; or for a number of smaller schools grouped together. 
 It is wonderful to think how slow Wales has been to move in this 
 matter. Preparatory classes for teachers to extend their knowledge 
 of Biblical and theological subjects, have been known in the 
 Principality as early as in England, if not earlier ; but it is an 
 undeniable fact that the latter country has been far ahead in the 
 provisions made for training teachers in the best methods of im- 
 
 * " Teacher-Training," p. 16.
 
 368 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 parting knowledge. The process of development was somewhat 
 slow there too. As far as we have been able to gather, it was 
 about the years 1848 and 1849 that " Teachers' Mutual Instruction 
 Classes " were first organized in London. These were confined 
 altogether to preparation in the subject-matter of the lesson taken 
 in hand. Several members had distinct subjects allotted to them, 
 on which they came prepared to give explanations, such as geo- 
 ■ graphy, manners and customs, evidences of Christianity, fulfilment 
 of prophecy, natural history, Jewish history, etc., and by this 
 division of labour the knowledge of the whole class was increased. 
 This was excellent so far as it went. But it soon became evident 
 that this did not cover the whole field of preparation in order to 
 become efficient teachers, and therefore, in 1856, a Training Class 
 was organized, having for its object to deliver a course of lectures on 
 the theory of teaching, supplemented by model lessons, in which the 
 members were brought to notice specimens of actual teaching, and 
 in turns to take part in a similar process themselves. Hitherto it 
 is to be observed, preparation classes and training classes had been 
 kept as separate organizations, but in the year 1859 a new arrange- 
 ment was inaugurated by the Sunday School Union, by which the 
 meetings for the preparations of lessons were incorporated with 
 the training class. The latter department consisted of lectures on 
 some topic connected with the science of education, of " Model 
 Lessons," and " Practice Lessons." This last arrangement has been 
 the type after which all such classes have been formed in various 
 parts of the country ever since. 
 
 Nothing of this kind, so far as wb are aware, has been ever 
 attempted in "Wales in connection with the Sunday Schools. Now 
 that the matter is ventilated, and having such beneficial results 
 demonstrated before our eyes, in the work of the normal colleges in 
 connection with day-school teachers' training, it is to be hoped that 
 the adoption of these classes will at once take place. There is now 
 no further need of the slow deliberation which preceded their 
 establishment in England. It is to the credit of Mrs, Davids that 
 in her prize essay on the Sunday School she advocated the forma- 
 tion of these classes at least twelve years before they were fairly 
 started. Her words are well worth quoting, as giving a concise 
 description of their nature to those who may still be ignorant of 
 them. " Attached to every school," she says, " should be a class
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 369 
 
 not merely for the purpose of imparting general Biblical instruction 
 but chiefly to train the young aspirants to office. The leader of 
 their class must pre-eminently know how to teach. He would, 
 from Sabbath to Sabbath, instruct the candidates as to the bes t 
 method of managing a class, giving them rules and hints, reading 
 with them, and explaining to them the lessons they would have to 
 impart. ... If it be asserted that young persons would object to 
 such a preparatory training, we can only say those who wish to 
 rush into a post so fearfully responsible as that of a Sunday School 
 teacher without any knowledge of the duties it imposes, and with- 
 out any wish to acquire the ability to discharge those duties aright, 
 are so morally unfit for the office that it is every minister's and 
 every superintendent's painful duty to refuse their services entirely," 
 Some have thought it desirable to distinguish actual from in- 
 tending teachers, and to have a special class for each. The training 
 class, strictly so called, is to be confined to the former, while what 
 is called a normal class would seem to be better adapted to the 
 latter. This normal class, in addition to hints on the best methods 
 of imparting knowledge, has for its object the acquisition of syste- 
 matic Bible knowledge, in which the raw recruits from whose ranks 
 actual teachers are drawn too often show themselves sadly deficient. 
 In Wales, however, at the outset, this subdivision will hardly be 
 thought necessary. Actual and intending teachers are too much 
 on a level in utter want of training for the duties of their important 
 office to require separate handling. Perhaps the best way of intro- 
 ducing these classes into Wales will be as an accretion to the Bible 
 classes already found to exist pretty generally. Most pastors of 
 churches have these for both males and females, conducted regu- 
 larly during the winter months, on one or two evenings a week. 
 Most of the members, again, being either actual or intending teachers 
 in the Sunday School, there would be nothing more natural and 
 reasonable, in the face of the altered circumstances of the times, 
 than to arrange another evening each week, or devote the greater 
 part [of their present arrangement for instruction in the active 
 duties of teachers. The pastor would, no doubt, obtain ready as 
 well as efficient help from the trained teachers of board schools, 
 who are now so numerous, and whose experience in the work, as 
 well as their well-known professional training, would cause their 
 suggestions to be received with all due deference and gratitude. 
 
 2 B
 
 370 
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 But before discussing other modes of operation with a view to this 
 end, inasmuch as this constitutes sucli an essential element of the 
 future prosperity of our schools, the exact topics of consideration 
 in the classes, or whatever other agency employed, demand a few 
 further remarks. 
 
 3. It is of paramount importance, in the first place, that teachers 
 of Sunday Schools should be well grounded in the science of educa- 
 tion. Every science is more important than its corresponding art, 
 for the latter is always founded on the former. Art is but a set of 
 rules, which must necessarily be limited to the number of cases 
 which have actually occurred, or are contemplated to occur ; but 
 science deals with fundamental principles, which apply alike to all 
 possible cases. It would be a poor preparation, in order to become 
 an accomphshed physician, to make a few occasional walks through 
 the wards of an hospital ; for here the student's knowledge would 
 be altogether limited to the number of cases which come under 
 his observation, and, however thoroughly he may have studied 
 these, he would be ill prepared to meet exceptional cases and 
 entirely new circumstances. Hence it is indispensable for the 
 medical practitioner, first of all, to have studied principles, and to 
 be conversant with the science of his calling, in order to observe 
 cases with any amount of intelligence, and to feel that he has safe 
 resources to fall back upon when required to deal with any sudden 
 and complicated exigency. It is exactly the same with teaching. 
 There are here a science and an art. The one supplies a number 
 of practical rules for guidance in the work ; the other takes up 
 more abstract points. It seeks to find a reason why one rule is 
 more applicable in one case than another, and codifies a collection 
 of principles which will enable the teacher to vary his methods in 
 order to meet the different ages, grades, and attainments of his 
 scholars, and all other circumstances which try the efficacy of his 
 sacred calling. 
 
 Now there is no science that is absolutely independent of every 
 other — far otherwise ; most, if not all, sciences are intertwined 
 with, or dove-tailed, as it were, into others. Thus the science of 
 astronomy depends upon arithmetic, geometry, algebra, natural 
 philosophy, etc. ; the science of medicine depends on physiology, 
 chemistry, mental and mechanical philosophy, etc. ; and so of 
 almost every other science. Agreeable to the same complicity, the
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 371 
 
 science of education is far from being isolated. In elaborating the 
 principles of this science, we must draw upon physiology, meta- 
 physics, ethics, and theology, but chiefly, no doubt, upon mental 
 philosophy or metaphysics. To a teacher whose avocation deals 
 exclusively with the various phenomena of the human mind, it 
 seems most reasonable that he himself should know something of 
 the faculties of the mind — their relation to the external world, their 
 connection with and interdependence upon one another, and gene- 
 rally with the laws which regulate the operation of this wonderful 
 mechanism. It is the province of the teacher to store the mind 
 with facts, to assist in the development of its faculties, and to train 
 it for discharging its highest functions; consequently, in order 
 to be able to accomplish this task in the most systematic way, he 
 ought to be conversant with the science of mind which analyzes 
 these faculties and investigates the laws of their uniform operation. 
 In itself this is a most exalted study. The mind is the instrument 
 with which every other science is elaborated, and not improperly 
 may the science of the mind, therefore, be styled the science of 
 sciences ; in short, quoting the words adopted as a motto by one of 
 the greatest of modern philosoj)hers, " On earth there is nothing 
 great but man ; in man there is nothing great but mind." The 
 practical connection between this science and the functions of the 
 teacher has been forcibly described by Dugald Stewart. " Educa- 
 tion," he says, " would be more systematic and enlightened if the 
 powers and faculties on which it operates were more scientifically 
 examined and better understood. What is the whole business of 
 education but a practical application of rules deduced from our own 
 experiments, or from those of others, on the most effectual modes 
 of developing and cultivating the intellectual faculties and the 
 moral principles ? " 
 
 A few illustrations of the practical connection between a know- 
 ledge of the science of mind and successful teaching may here be 
 not inopportune. The development of man's intellectual faculties 
 follows a certain order. The first period of a child's life has been 
 called the Age of Perception; the second period, that of Conception 
 or Imagination ; and the third, that of Reason, Judgment, or 
 Reflection. In the first, or infant stage, he is almost wholly con- 
 cerned with sensible objects. His knowledge is increased by 
 directly coming in contact with the external world. The child
 
 372 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 delights to exercise those senses through, which material objects 
 impress him — his sight, hearing, touch, taste, smell, and the sixth, 
 discovered by modern philosophers, the muscular sense. Hence, in 
 infant tuition, the successful teacher always illustrates his lessons 
 more by presenting to his class visible objects than by mere verbal 
 descriptions. In the age of conception the child has advanced a 
 considerable step. He is now able to recall his perceptions. The 
 " mind's eye " now sees an object which is no longer visible to the 
 bodily eye ; and the child, through the power of his imagination, 
 is able to group conceptions together, and to form secondary ideas. 
 The successful teacher is cognizant of this, and therefore he now 
 substitutes for ocular demonstrations, word pictures, and the 
 learning of the unknown through the known. Soon after passing 
 ten years of age, the third stage is entered upon — that of Beason 
 or Judgment ; and in order to secure the attention of his class, the 
 teacher must evidently enlarge the sphere of his subjects and his 
 methods. He now takes his pupils more into his own secrets, 
 makes them feel they have reached his own level as regards, at 
 least, all the modes of acquiring knowledge. His pupils now 
 delight in argument, in forming independent opinions, and in dis- 
 cerning abstract ideas, grouping objects by the qualities in whicb 
 they all agree, and not dealing with them individually. An 
 experienced teacher would no more think of applying the things 
 of one stage to another, than an experienced nurse would think of 
 feeding the infant under her charge with strong meat and not with 
 tender milk. It is the same with the development of the emotions 
 and the regulation of the will. The thoughtful teacher always 
 studies in what order the relative strength of the former is mani- 
 fested, so as to be able to present the strongest motives for the due 
 exercise of the latter. His highest aim is to cultivate in his 
 pupils an enlightened and sensitive conscience, which by many is 
 considered something more than an emotion — a separate moral 
 faculty— and to bring every consideration so to affect the will as to 
 cause it " to delight in the law of the Lord, and in his law to 
 meditate day and night." 
 
 Take another illustration of the importance of a knowledge of 
 mental philosophy for a teacher, as shown in the cultivation of the 
 faculty of memory. Every teacher is directly concerned with the 
 best way of strengthening this faculty, how it can be made to
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 373 
 
 contain the greatest number of facts, and to reproduce or recollect 
 these facts with the greatest readiness. To this end a knowledge 
 of the laws of association or mental suggestion is absolutely neces- 
 sary. By these he is taught to present facts to the mind according 
 to their true relations, and not as dependent upon incidental and 
 arbitrary connections. For example, cause and effect, principle 
 and reason, should always be presented together to the mind. In 
 teaching the. unknown, any point of similarity, or even dissimilarity, 
 to the known pointed out, will be a help to remember it ; and so 
 with regard to every other tie or link which is known to bind 
 associations together. 
 
 In like manner a practical knowledge of logic can be made most 
 subservient to the business of teaching. By an application of this 
 science, the teacher will be able to distinguish between sound and 
 false reasoning, to eliminate the accidental from the essential, to 
 discover and elaborate general principles, to accustom himself and 
 his pupils to connected arguments, and generally to acquire clear- 
 ness and precision of thought. 
 
 English writers and speakers have been accustomed to apologize 
 to Sunday School teachers in this country for directing their 
 attention to the study of metaphysics as a necessary part of their 
 avocation. One of these says that '' the mention of metaphysics 
 in almost every social circle will be found to excite a feeling, if not 
 an expression, of antipathy on the part of at least a majority of 
 the persons present. . . . The popular view of physiology in Eng- 
 land," he remarks, " is ' horrid ; ' metaphysics, ' dreadfully dry ; ' 
 ethics, ' a bore ; ' and theology, ' a thing for parsons and pro- 
 fessors.' " It would be strange if this were the case with the 
 Welsh teachers of the present day. Our English critics, without 
 exception, have declared metaphysical studies a predilection of 
 the Welsh mind — whether they were admiring the poor peasants 
 for their good taste in prosecuting them, or reproving them for 
 their temerity in meddling with them. We do not think the 
 present race to be degenerate descendants of nobler ancestors ; and 
 we presume, therefore, that they could enter on nothing with 
 greater zest than a course of lectures, elucidating the connection 
 between the science of mind and the science of education. This 
 would be doubly attractive, if a knowledge of general principles should 
 be brought to bear, not on the practice of teaching generally, but
 
 374 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 specially on the particular work'of a Sunday School, and, moreover — 
 with regard to the double aspect of the Welsh institution — a school 
 for children, and a college for adults. 
 
 4. Then a natural department of study for a training class 
 would be the practical rules which directly bear on the art of teach- 
 wg. Science deals with principles, art with rules. It has always 
 been found advantageous to express the investigations of science in 
 the shape of concise rules or formula?. The mathematical student, 
 when applying his formulee, does not take the trouble to go through 
 the process of deducting them, on every occasion that they are 
 used. He knows the principles on which they rest, but satisfies 
 himself with merely remembering the result of the lengthy investi- 
 gation, when applying it for any practical purpose. So it is with 
 the art of teaching. The study of the science has enabled educa- 
 tionists to draw up a number of rules which the teacher can easily 
 remember, and use as guides, both in the preparation of his 
 lessons, and in communicating his own knowledge to the class. 
 
 The most approved methods of communicating knowledge can 
 be comprised under four divisions : — 
 
 1. The Interrogative or Catechetical method. 
 
 2. The Elliptical method. 
 
 3. The Lecturing or Dogmatic method. 
 
 4. The Illustrative method. 
 
 Two other methods are sometimes added to these, viz.. The 
 Picturing-out method, and the Demonstrative method ; but a little 
 consideration will at once show that they are only modifications of 
 the fourth. Who can tell what an advantage it would be for every 
 teacher in our Sunday Schools, to be duly trained in the proper use 
 and relative importance of these different methods ? It is very 
 possible that some of the more gifted make use of these various 
 styles, though ignorant of the nomenclature by which they are 
 scientifically distinguished. If they teach at all, it is by one or 
 more of the above methods they perform the work. Being founded 
 on nature, the impulse of true genius necessarily finds its expres- 
 sion through these channels. It has been said of the mighty 
 preachers of the last generation in Wales that " they used, without 
 hesitation or stint, all the forms of speech that were at their com- 
 mand — trope, metaphor, allegory, graphic pictorial description, bold 
 prosopopoeia, solemn invocation, impassioned appeal, dramatic dia-
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 375 
 
 logue, and action. They did this, not of set purpose, for they 
 might not even 'know the names that rhetoricians had given to 
 those- figures of speech, but because, following the dictates of their 
 own natural genius for oratory, such were the means that seemed 
 best adapted to produce the impressions they desired." Because a 
 few of the leading preachers of the day stumbled, as it were, over 
 those various styles of oratory, would any one maintain that the 
 study of rhetoric, logic, and helles lettres, would have been super- 
 fluous to the class, or meaningless even to the leaders of pulpit 
 oratory? So of teachers; granting that a few have been able to 
 interest, instruct, and impress, without training, how many hundreds 
 have always existed to whom training was indispensable, and who 
 of the best endowed but would have gladly availed themselves of a 
 little systematic help ? 
 
 All the teachers in Wales, though untrained, make use of three, 
 at least, of the above methods of communicating knowledge. What 
 they mostly fail in, under the circumstances, is the undue pre- 
 ponderance they give to one over the others, and in the quality and 
 style of whatever method used. Most teachers are liable to adopt 
 the Lecturing or Dogmatic method too much, thereby making the 
 class mere passive listeners — too often with very lax attention — and 
 consequently taking with them but vague notions of the subject 
 under treatment. Untrained teachers very seldom try to lead their 
 pupils to find the answer out themselves. They are very deficient 
 in the art of drawing out from the scholars what knowledge they 
 already possess, in arriving at the unknown. Because of this, they 
 fail very often to interest the class, inasmuch as they forget what 
 pleasure it is for the young to exercise the faculties with which 
 they are endowed. The Commissioners of 1846 described the 
 teachers of the adults in Wales as too rhetorical, by which they 
 meant, no doubt, an undue preponderance of the lecturing style. 
 Two very important rules are laid down to guide teachers in this 
 matter. The first is, Never tell the pujpil what he may reasonably 
 he required to tell you. Of course some things must be told, but 
 before doing so the teacher ought td be satisfied that the answer 
 to the question could not be educed. And to guard against an 
 abuse of lecturing, a second rule is given. Never tell anything 
 of importance without drawing the suhstance of it again from, the 
 pupil in his own words. The following example of the art of
 
 376 
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 drawing out, but which is nothing abler than what is produced 
 by expert teachers in the course of almost every lesson delivered, 
 is given by Mr. Groser, slightly altered, as he says, from Mr. 
 Sydenham's " Notes of Lessons " : — 
 
 "The teacher wishes to explain what a 'vision' is, and first 
 requires a definition of a dream. But to the question, ' What is 
 a dream ? ' he gets no answer. He proceeds thus : ' See how hard 
 that little boy is working at his sums. What would you say his 
 mind is doing?' ^ He is thinking, teacher.' 'And what are you 
 doing all the day long ? ' ' Thinking.' ' Yes, and is your thinking 
 confined to the daytime or not?' 'iVb; we think in our sleep.' 
 ' When you think much during the night, what do you say you . 
 have been doing?' 'Dreaming, teacher.' 'In what state are you 
 when you are dreaming ? ' ' Asleep, teacher.' ' Then what is dream- 
 ing?' * Thinking in our sleep.'" An ordinary teacher, no doubt, 
 would have preferred by far to have told the children the definition 
 of a dream at once, even though he knew he had the power of 
 drawing it out. But who can fail to see how much livelier interest 
 has been excited, and more lasting impression produced, by the 
 method here described ? 
 
 Untrained teachers, as far as our experience goes, seldom, if ever, 
 make use of the Elliptical method. It consists in allowing the 
 pupils to fill in one or more words in a sentence which the teacher 
 has begun for them. The chief use of this method is in recapitu- 
 lating what has already been learned, and it is more suitable for the 
 younger classes, especially in simultaneous lessons. A specimen 
 will be given presently. 
 
 The Illustrative method is nothing more than an ocular demonstra- 
 tion, or a verbal description of a subject under consideration, or any 
 similitude by which it may be more easily and [thoroughly under- 
 stood and realized. The number and appositeness of illustrations 
 used will depend altogether upon the genius and ability of the 
 teacher in this department. This method is very necessary to 
 successful teaching, especially with the young. 
 
 But the most important of all these methods, as granted by all, 
 is the first on the list — the Interrogative or Catechetical method. 
 This method, therefore, should predominate over all the others. 
 Nothing shows the ability of a teacher better than his proficiency 
 in the art of questioning. Good questioning should be thoughtful.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 377 
 
 animated, definite, and adapted to the capacity of tJiose to whom 
 it is directed. It would be beside oar purpose to enter at length 
 into this important department. We can do nothing better 
 here than direct the reader's attention to an excellent lecture by- 
 Mr. Fitch on the subject, published by the Sunday School Union, 
 and content ourselves by making one or two extracts from it. 
 Speaking of the order and arrangement which should always 
 characterize a series of questions, he says : — 
 
 " We must ever remember that whatever is learnt confusedly is 
 remembered confusedly, and that all effective teaching must be 
 characterized by system and continuity. Hence, in proposing 
 questions, it is very necessary to keep in view the importance of 
 linking them together, of making each new answer the solution 
 of some difficulty, which the former answer suggested, but did not 
 explain, and of arranging all questions in the exact order in which 
 tbe subject would naturally develop itself in the mind of a logical 
 and systematic thinker. . . . We have often been struck, I dare 
 say, in reading the newspapers, to find what plain and sensible 
 evidence the witnesses all appear to give at judicial trials. We 
 recognize the name of some particular person, and we know, 
 perhaps, that he is an uneducated man, apt to talk in an incoherent 
 and desultory way on most subjects, utterly incapable of telling a 
 simple story without wandering and blundering, and very nervous 
 withal ; yet if he happens to have been a witness at a trial, and 
 we read the published report of his testimony, we are surprised to 
 find what a connected, straightforward story it is ; there is no 
 irrelevant or needless matter introduced, and yet not one significant 
 fact is omitted. We wonder how such a man could have stood 
 up in a crowded court, and narrated facts with all this propriety 
 and good taste. But the truth is that the witness is not entitled 
 to your praise. He never recited the narrative in the way implied 
 by the newspaper report. But he stood opposite to a man who 
 studied the art of questioning; and he replied in succession to a^ 
 series of interrogations which the barrister proposed to him. The 
 reporter for the press has done no more than copy down, in the 
 exact order in which they were given, all the replies to these 
 questions ; and if the sum of these replies reads to us like a con- 
 sistent narrative, it is because the lawyer knew how to marshal 
 his facts beforehand, had the skill to determinate what was neces-
 
 378 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 sary and what was not necessary to the case in hand, and to 
 propose his questions so as to draw out, even from a confused and 
 bewildered mind, a coherent statement of facts. We may take a 
 hint, I think, from the practice of the bar in this respect ; and 
 especiallj' in questioning by way of examination, we may remember 
 that the answers of the children, if they could be taken down at 
 the moment, ought to form a complete, orderly, and clear summary 
 of the entire contents of the lesson." * 
 
 Questions, it has been said, should be adapted to the capacity of 
 the pupils. To the young they ought not to be too difficult, so 
 as to discourage them ; and to the more advanced they should not 
 be too simple and easy, so as to produce tediousness and even 
 disgust. The following questions, adapted from the lecture already 
 quoted, will serve as an example of what is suitable to very young 
 children just beginning to read. They are supposed to have been 
 reading the parable of the Good Samaritan. The first verse having 
 been read — " A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, 
 and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and 
 wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead" (Luke x. 30) 
 — the teacher may now ask, What is the parable about ? A certain 
 man. Where did he go from ? Jerusalem. Where to ? Jericho. 
 What sort of people did he fall among ? Thieves. What did they 
 do with his raiment? Stripped him, of it. What did they do 
 with the man himself? Wounded him. In what state did they 
 leave him? Half dead. Having thus proceeded to the end of 
 the narrative it Avill be desirable to introduce the elliptical method, 
 by way of test that the lesson is thoroughly understood and re- 
 membered. The following may serve as a specimen of this method. 
 We have now been reading the parable of — The good Samaritan. 
 The traveller whom he so kindly assisted, started from — Jerusalem. 
 And was on his way to — Jericho. Somewhere between the two 
 places, probably in a lonely part of the road, he was attacked — By 
 thieves. These first of all — Stripped him. Then — Wounded him. 
 And such had been the violence of their treatment that they left 
 him — Half dead. And so on. 
 
 From children of very tender age not much more than what has 
 been described above could be expected ; but with a more advanced 
 class, questions avoiding the exact phraseology of Scripture should 
 * " The Art of Questioniog." by J. G. Fitch, M.A., pp. 21, 22.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 379 
 
 be considered, and answers in otlier words than those contained in 
 the narrative should be required. The teacher rtiight begin by 
 asking, What is the parable about ? (Various answers.) One 
 says, A man who went on a journey. What do you call a man 
 who goes on a journey ? A traveller. In what country was the 
 man travelling? Judc^a. Let us trace his route on the map. In 
 what direction was he travelling? Eastward. Through what 
 kind of country? (Here the teacher's own information should 
 supply a fact or two about its physical features.) What should 
 you suppose from the lesson was the state of the country at the 
 time ? Thinly peopled. Eoad unfrequented, etc. How do you 
 know this ? Because he fell among thieves. Give another expres- 
 sion for " fell among." Happened to meet with. Another word 
 for " thieves." Bobbers. How did the robbers treat this traveller ? 
 They stripped him of his raiment. What does the word " raiment " 
 mean ? Clothes. Besides robbing him of his clothes, what else 
 did they do ? Wounded him. Explain that word. Injured him. 
 Hurt him very much, etc. How do you know from the text that he 
 was much hurt ? They left him half dead. They almost killed him . 
 
 Without further enlarging on this head, we hope now to have 
 cursorily touched on the most important points which a training 
 class has to aim at. But no doubt, in order to secure the full 
 comprehension of the various principles and rules discussed, it is 
 indispensable to have recourse to the " Model lesson," These should 
 be given at first by the best teachers, and then all the members of 
 the class in succession should be asked to conduct a lesson in the 
 presence of the others, to be followed by a friendly criticism on the 
 faults and the merits. In addition to this, it would be well for 
 the office of " visitor" to be revived in all the schools, whose duties 
 should consist, not so much as formerly, in aiding the teacher to 
 arrange the matter of the lesson, as to give him practical hints in 
 method, thereby with Christian courtesy and consideration directly 
 aiding in making the results of the training in the class on the week 
 evening bear upon the actual teaching of the school on Sunday. 
 In country districts much good might also be secured by devoting 
 a portion of the district union meetings to enlighten the delegates, 
 and thereby the teachers, in this all-important matter of right 
 methods. 
 
 As it is to be hoped these training classes will speedily appear in
 
 380 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 the Principality, it may assist some to know what subjects have, 
 from time to time, been treated in them. Among others of the 
 metaphysical character, we have observed the following-: — The 
 mind and its growth ; the bodily powers and the senses ; gradual 
 unfolding of the mental and moral faculties ; association of ideas ; 
 the best means of availing ourselves of each faculty, and how to 
 direct its exercise. Of the practical side of the subject, the follow- 
 ing may serve as examples : — The art of questioning ; illustrations, 
 and how to use them ; methods of explanation ; arrangement and 
 organization of classes ; the teaching of infants ; rewards and 
 punishments ; government and discipline ; unruly scholars, and 
 how to deal with them ; the application of Bible truths ; personal 
 habits and example of the teacher. Many to whom this study of 
 the science and art of teaching may be a new enterprise, will feel 
 interested to know some of the works which have been published 
 in this department. Among others treating the subject in its 
 general aspects, we may mention Dunn's " Principles of Teacliing," 
 Stow's " Training School Manual," Gill's and Morrison's " School 
 Management," Collins's " Teacher's Companion," Currie's " Early 
 and Infant School Education," Tate's " Treatise on the Principles 
 of Education." The best list of books written on pedagogy, with 
 special reference to Sunday Schools, will be found in the catalogue 
 of the Sunday School Union. Among others may be specified, 
 " Lectures to Teachers," " Our Work," Todd's " Sunday School 
 Teacher," " The Infant Class in the Sunday School ; " and besides 
 these as direct aids, " Notes of Lessons," by G. Sydenham, and 
 Dr. and Miss Mayo on the same subject. 
 
 5. Another special requisite for the effective conduct of our 
 future Welsh Sunday School, is the adoption of improved ap- 
 pliances of instruction. From a defective recognition of the im- 
 portance of improved methods has probably resulted in past years 
 the all but complete disregard of improved appliances. By these 
 we mean chiefly whatever can be presented to the eye as helps in 
 conveying correct notions of objects to children, and in exciting 
 greater interest in them. The difficulty of procuring, in the 
 vernacular, such appliances as depend on language for an applica- 
 tion of their meaning, has, no doubt, been another cause of their 
 having been so little in requisition. But the chief reason, we guess, 
 has been the desire, inherited from the very starting of the schools
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 381 
 
 in Wales, arising from the peculiar objection urged against their 
 establishment, to avoid every appearance of manual labour ia 
 connection with them on the Lord's Day. It is high time, how- 
 ever, that such a sentiment should be resolutely scouted from 
 existence. Whatever is worth doing at all, is worth doing well. 
 If it has seemed good to the Divine Author of Scriptures to pre- 
 sent many a vital truth through parables, biographies, manners, 
 and customs different from our own, and in geographical connec- 
 tions which we cannot be expected to realize by eyesight, then 
 it is consistent with every reason that whatever efforts have for 
 their object to simplify and elucidate these media, must be in 
 harmony with the intentions of the Divine Author himself. With 
 the spread of the English lg,nguage in the Principahty, and the 
 familiarity of the rising generation with these appliances in the 
 day schools, the various provisions made to illustrate Scripture 
 truths can now be as thoroughly understood in English as in 
 Welsh. Hence the walls of the Sunday School-room should be 
 adorned with maps of the various countries mentioned in the 
 Bible, views of animals and plants, prints illustrating some of the 
 parables and the manners and customs of the Jews, chronological 
 tables of the most important Scriptural events, and genealogical 
 tables of the successive kings of Judah and Israel. Where practic- 
 able, a small museum, containing as many Scriptural specimens as 
 can be secured, would be a no mean acquisition. 
 
 Since the junior classes must be taught the alphabet, spelling, 
 and reading in our schools so long as the Welsh language is 
 upheld, a box of movable letters ought, in these days, to be con- 
 sidered as an indispensable piece of apparatus. Cards for spelling 
 and reading should also be more extensively used ; better- 
 graduated books should be prepared; and even the presence of a 
 black-board, with the manual labour of drawing letters and dia- 
 grams thereon, ought not to be looked upon as any invasion of the 
 sanctity of the Sabbath. The old drawling, humdrum method of 
 teaching the alphabet by repeating the letters from a to y (the 
 alpha and omega of the Welsh alphabet), and then back again, 
 should at once be replaced by the more philosophical plan of 
 choosing the most similar in form or sound, such as & and d; d 
 and dd ; m and n ; I and U, etc. ; and by means of the box of 
 movable letters, of combining them in short syllables and sen-
 
 382 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 tences, so as to give an interest to the children in the work, by- 
 leading them to perceive that what seemed to them at first to be 
 only an unmeaning sound, was, after all, the symbol of an agreeable 
 thought or a familiar expression. We need not dwell further on 
 the importance of making the eye, as far as possible, the assistant 
 of the other senses. " The eye," as has been well observed, " re- 
 members ; " and considering the accuracy of eye-perceptions, com- 
 pared with those of the other senses, another familiar expression 
 to philosophers can hardly be too strong, — "The eye makes no 
 mistakes." The truth so tersely expressed by the Koman poet, 
 to the Pisos, commends itself with equal, if not greater, force 
 to the Sunday-School teacher of the present day : — 
 
 " Segnius irritant animos demissa per aurem 
 Quam quae sunt oculis subjecta fidelibus, et quae 
 Ipse sibi tradit spectator." * 
 
 6. Hitherto we have dwelt on conditions of future prosperity, 
 which must be introduced as almost entirely new elements, into 
 the Welsh system. It must, however, be remembered that the 
 conditions of 'past progress do not become antiquated and meaning- 
 less. Rather in the comprehensive style of our Lord on another 
 subject, we would say, — the new conditions must be honoured and 
 the old must not be left dishonoured.' Foremost of these is the 
 absolute importance for every teacher to attend his class thoroughly 
 prepared in the lesson he intends to impart. To the credit of the 
 Welsh teachers of the past age, they have faithfully and honour- 
 ably done their duty in this respect, as far as preparing the subject- 
 matter of the lesson went. Though hard-worked during the day, 
 toiling in the depth of the coal-pit, or suspended from the rope 
 on the perilous edge of the slate quarry, or subjected to all the 
 vicissitudes of weather as farm labourers, or plying with unre- 
 mitted application the tools of their craft, in the quiet of the 
 evening, their zeal in the good work has enabled them to shake off 
 the lethargy of a tired and exhausted nature, in order to prepare 
 the allotted portion of Scripture against the Sunday class. Few 
 of them could command the seclusion of a separate room for a 
 study, or a great choice of authors, by which to whet their intel- 
 
 * More sluggishly do those things let in through the ear excite the mind 
 than those which are submitted to the faithful eyes, and which the on- 
 looker personally communicates to himself.
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 383 
 
 lect and guide their thonghts, but under multifarious disadvan- 
 tages of family arrangements, and probably with only one, though 
 a favourite commentary, to consult, they have been able to " search 
 the Scriptures," in all their bearing upon the lesson, and to attain 
 a success which has been truly wonderful. 
 
 This same devotedness to the work must be a characteristic of 
 their successors, if the work is to prosper. But in addition to 
 a mind well stored with the facts to be communicated, the teacher 
 of the future must study beforehand how he can best clear up 
 obscure points, how present old truths in new and varied aspects, 
 and how illustrate by diagrams, specimens, interesting anecdote, 
 and apt comparison, what he sees to be but imperfectly under- 
 stood. He may seek aid and guidance from the preparation and 
 training classes, but the secret of his success, after all, must result 
 from his o\vn private individual forethought and application. 
 Intellectually and physically there is no evading of the divinely- 
 appointed law, that no fruit is to be enjoyed but what has been 
 connected, one way or another, with " the sweat of the brow." In 
 order to arrive at exactness in the preparation, it is important that 
 the principal ideas intended to be touched upon should be com- 
 mitted to writing, always having a respect to the logical sequence 
 of thought. There would be no harm, indeed, in having the lead- 
 ing questions recorded, though every teacher should be such an expert 
 in the art of questioning that he can form his interrogations as 
 the occasion arises, but always directed towards a definite end. 
 
 As an incentive to the humblest labourer in this part of the 
 vineyard, to persevere in this peculiar phase of his work, it may 
 cheer him to remember that the most competent and successful 
 teachers have not thought it superfluous to bestow much labour 
 in preparations to meet their classes. Dr. Chalmers, when at St. 
 Andrews, had a class of poor children in the Sunday School, and 
 after his death, there were found, amongst his papers, several 
 sketches of lessons which he used to prepare for it. Dr. Arnold 
 was never accustomed to meet even the junior classes without some 
 special preparation. Being once asked why he kept up this prac- 
 tice, as though he was afraid he should not have enough to give 
 them — " It is not," replied he, " because I fear I should not have 
 enough to give them, but because I prefer that they should be 
 supplied from a rimning stream rather than from a stagnant pool."
 
 384 
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 7. Another of the old conditions of prosperity, but wliicli never 
 becomes antiquated, is a kindred missionary spirit to that which 
 actuated the Fathers, to gather numbers anew into the schools. 
 Seqular education has made wonderful strides, in respect to the 
 number attending school, during the past ten years, thanks to 
 the working of the Elementary Education Act of 1870. This has 
 gone up at a very marked ratio during the first decade of the Act. 
 The number of children on the school registers in England and 
 Wales in the year 1870 was 1,949,076 ; while in 1880 it was 
 3,895,824, that" is to say, it had actually doubled. Ten years ago 
 there was room in our elementary schools for only 1,878,584 
 scholars, there is now accommodation for 4,240,753. The average 
 attendance was, in 1870, 1,152,380, and in 1880, 2,750,916. 
 Which claim the most adherents at the present day in Wales, 
 the day schools or Sunday Schools ? It will be remembered that 
 the statistics of the latter refer always to number on books and 
 not to average attendance. Comparisons, therefore, in order to be 
 trustworthy, must be based on these data. From the Appendix to 
 the Education Report, we have computed the number in average 
 attendance in elementary schools under inspection, and according 
 to the above ratio for England and Wales, the number on the 
 registers, for South Wales and Monmouthshire, for the year ending 
 March 31, 1882. We here subjoin the particulars : — 
 
 Counties. 
 
 Population. 
 
 Average 
 Attendance. 
 
 Percentage. 
 
 Brecknock 
 
 Cardigan 
 
 Caermarthen .... 
 Glamorgan .... 
 
 Pembroke 
 
 Radnor 
 
 Monmouth 
 
 57,735 
 
 70,226 
 
 124,861 
 
 511,672 
 
 91,308 
 
 23,639 
 
 211,374 
 
 6,612 
 7,083 
 14,684 
 61,000 
 10,088 
 3,173 
 24,840 
 
 11-4 
 10-0 
 11-7 
 11-9 
 11-0 
 13-4 
 11-7 
 
 Total .... 
 
 1,090,715 
 
 127,480 
 
 11-7 
 
 Number on register in Elementary schools 
 J J ,, Private schools 
 
 ,, Endowed and Proprietary 
 
 Total 
 
 Percentage to population 
 
 180,326 
 2,854 
 1,224 
 
 184,404 
 16-9
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 385 
 
 We have already found * that the percentage of population 
 belonging to the Sunday Schools for the whole of Wales and Mon- 
 mouth was 34-1, and therefore, assuming the percentage of the 
 above table to be the same for all Wales, the Sunday Schools will 
 compare very favourably with the day schools. But it will be 
 remembered that a large proportion of the members of Sunday 
 Schools are adults, and the question is, how about the children ? 
 Assuming that the children are about the half, which, taking all 
 the schools together, is rather under than over the mark, the per- 
 centage is 17, and so the palm, under all circumstances, belongs 
 hitherto to the Sunday Schools. But what of the future? An 
 all-powerful agency is at the command of the School Boards — the 
 compulsory powers — and in future this will tell mightily on the 
 average attendance in day schools. State interfeience cannot, 
 under any garb, be entertained as applicable to Sunday Schools. 
 The same spirit which has divorced religious teaching in the day 
 schools from State aid and control, must also frown at the idea 
 of getting a state-paid attendance officer as a functionary of the 
 Sunday Schools. Not only is the State not allowed to be a 
 pedagogue, in the modern sense of the word, to impart religious 
 knowledge to children, it will not be permitted to discharge the 
 humbler duties of pedagogos, in its original and primary meaning, 
 to lead the children to the schools. How, then, is this defect to be 
 supplied? The same as hitherto, on the never-failing principle 
 of voluntary agency. What has been done already ought to be 
 looked upon as a sure earnest of what can be done again. The 
 good old custom must be still kept up, w^here found existing, and 
 revived where it has fallen into desuetude, of sending visitors 
 round the houses, not, indeed, armed with the terrors of the civil 
 officer, but with benignant smiles and earnest entreaties to enlist 
 recruits to the noble army. In past time, by song and procession 
 were children roused, some from cheerful homes, others from dens 
 of misery, and others from their play, to leave all behind, and 
 place themselves under religious training. Many are still living, 
 who can testify to the enchanting power of those words, wedded 
 to simple music, on their mind, '' Holl blant y wlad, i'r Ysgol Sul, 
 pa'm na ddowch, pa'm na ddowch?" (All children to the 
 Sunday School why not come, why not come ?) These means must 
 still be resorted to ; for the friends of religion and morality should 
 * Page 352. 
 
 2 C
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 387 
 
 not rest satisfied without keeping the Sunday Schools, even in 
 respect to children, at least equal to the day schools. All parts of 
 the country should emulate the county of Merioneth, which Sir T. 
 Phillips has put down to be forty-six per cent, in his days, and one 
 town of which in these days reaches 61*4 of the population. 
 
 To swell the numbers, much greater attention than has hitherto 
 been the case must be given in Welsh schools to the infant classes. 
 This department has been almost entirely neglected in our Welsh 
 institution. Now, it lias been proved to demonstration, over and 
 over again, in the English schools, that from thirty to fifty infants, 
 between the ages of three and six, can be easily handled by one 
 teacher, in a class-room, arranged in small galleries, and taught the 
 alphabet, spelling, and very simple Scripture narratives, in a 
 peculiarly interesting manner. With the aid of the models, prints, 
 and specimens, already described, the teaching becomes delightful 
 and the children's enjoyment intense. One writer, summing up 
 the peculiarity of this kind of teaching, says, " The great ad- 
 vantage of collective teaching is, that it brings the trained mind 
 of the teacher into direct and immediate communication with the 
 comparatively untrained minds of his pupils. Hence for the de- 
 velopment of the powers of the mind, for influencing the affections, 
 and directing the understanding to right views of moral and 
 spiritual truths, for checking evil habits, and encouraging good 
 ones, the collective lesson, in the hands of a well-trained, earnest- 
 minded Christian teacher, is a powerful instrument for good." 
 
 The indirect influence of such training also should not be over- 
 looked. The children are accustomed from their very infancy to 
 attend school, and with the special provisions of the Welsh schools 
 to meet the case of adults, the ranks of the aged and the departed 
 will ever be supplied from these recruits. Following faithfully the 
 advice of the wise man, " Train up a child in the way he should 
 go," the consequences pronounced by him may also be expected to 
 be realized, " and when he grows old he will not depart from it." 
 Whatever phases our schools are destined to go through in the 
 future, it is to be fondly hoped that this peculiarity will never be 
 lost, of uniting young, middle-aged, and old people under one roof 
 for the purposes of leligious instruction. 
 
 8. The last condition of the future prosperity of our schools 
 which we shall specify, is what has been their most prominent aim
 
 o88 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 from the beginning, viz. a never-failing faithfulness on the part of 
 the teachers to impress religious and moral truths on the minds 
 of the rising generation, and train them up to virtuous and God- 
 fearing habits. The great object of cultivating the intellect ought 
 to be the ultimate improvement of the emotions and the will. 
 Unless, therefore, the truths of the Bible be continually brought 
 to bear on the conscience and the heart, the whole effect of intel- 
 lectual training will only be to multiply sinners in the land, by 
 rendering men shrewder in the exercise of their wicked and de- 
 praved passions. During the past hundred years this high object 
 has been steadily kept in view, and though the backward state of 
 many a populous town, and some country villages, has still to be 
 deplored, nevertheless we have evident reasons for saying, " The 
 Lord has done great things for us, whereof we are glad." Standing 
 on the boundary line of the two centuries, looking back to the 
 past under the clear light of accomplished facts and well-defined 
 experience, but endeavouring to discern the gloomy landscape of 
 the future, through surmises and probabilities, one cannot help 
 feeling the great weight of responsibility which this most valuable 
 trust of our forefathers imposes upon their descendants. They 
 worked up the scheme into its present state of efficiency under 
 greater difficulties than any which appear to be possible for us. 
 The teachers were few, their disqualifications numerous, and the 
 supply of Bibles and text-books scanty and uncertain ; with every 
 external circumstance in our favour, it would be a matter of lasting 
 shame not to be able to hand over the institution to our posterity 
 in a state at least equal to that in which it came down to us. 
 
 Within the last hundred years it has given to the country some 
 thousands of teachers zealous for the moral regeneration of the 
 world. Sunday Schools in Wales have been the only colleges in 
 which many an eminent servant of Christ has been trained to the 
 work of the ministry. Missionaries have gone forth, carrying their 
 life, as it were, in their hands, to preach " the unsearchable riches 
 of Christ" among pagans and idolaters, who received their first 
 impulse to the good work while sucking "the pure milk of the 
 word" on the breasts of the Sabbath Schools; and great is the 
 company of the saved ones on the hills of immortality who have 
 been first led to Jesus by the hand of the Sunday-iSchool teacher, 
 and who in their turn have been the means of bringing others to
 
 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 380 
 
 the same refuge. Collecting the harvest, as it were, from various 
 directions, this noble institution can now point to a grand galaxy 
 of wise men who " shiue as the brightness of the firmament," and 
 because they have turned many into righteousness, will continue 
 " as the stars for ever and ever." 
 
 Wales is often pointed out as a pattern to all other parts of her 
 Majesty's dominions for its respect to law aod assiduous cultivation 
 of all social virtues. Who can say how much this state of moral 
 proficiency has been indebted to the influence of this heavenly 
 agency? What frightful amount of Sabbath breaking, profaneness, 
 disorder, and ungodliness, which were rampant at the end of last 
 century, must, therefore, have been expelled before the glorious 
 light of Scriptural instruction ? But it ought always to be borne 
 in mind that such evil practices are ever ready to return, and not 
 seldom with redoubled boldness and persistency, unless held in 
 check by constant activity and watchfulness. Evil weeds grow 
 apace. They may be expelled by force for a time, but immediately 
 the activity is suspended, up they spring at once, as if by magic, 
 " Naturam expelles furca, tamen usque recurret.^^ Profane swear- 
 ing, Sabbath desecration, disrespect towards superiors, disregard of 
 law and order, besides the worse phases of drunkenness, and all con- 
 comitant immorality, are ever ready to revive unless restrained by 
 a healthy public opinion. And in Wales nothing has been more 
 effectual in creating and directing this high moral tone than the 
 presence of her Sunday Schools. 
 
 The hand of Providence, indeed, has been plainly visible in 
 interposing with this beneficent instrumentality just at the time 
 when the population of the country was beginning to assume its 
 present rapid ratio of increase. Monmouthshire and Glamorgan- 
 shire, of all the counties of England and Wales, have made the 
 most rapid strides in population since the beginning of the present 
 century. Then we had hardly an assemblage of houses worthy of 
 the name of town ; now towns can be reckoned by tens, and some 
 will bear comparison with the most prosperous of our English 
 neighbours. How thankful ought we to feel that parallel with this 
 material growth was a most effectual remedial development. Just 
 at the time that the first practically successful locomotive in the 
 kingdom, patented to Trevethick and Vivian in 1802, was puffin" 
 its way on the tram-road near Merthyr Tydfil in 1804, at the rate
 
 390 THE SUNDAY SCHOOLS OF WALES. 
 
 of five miles an hour, with a net load of ten tons, thereby becoming 
 the inaugurator of the means of opening the mineral resources of 
 the county, this moral regenerator made its appearance in a power- 
 fully nascent state. What would have been the state of the teeming 
 population of the mining districts of Glamorgan, Caermarthen, 
 Monmouth, and Flint, had not this institution been developed 
 contemporaneously with the development of their mineral resources? 
 How comfortable is the thought that as the blast furnaces of 
 Dowlais, Tredegar, and Ebbw Vale, were summoning their thousands 
 to earn their daily bread by means of the industry created thereby, 
 this Divine illuminator exerted its influence to frighten the hideous 
 forms of crime always attendant on moral darkness, and to bring 
 them to labour also not for " the bread which perisheth, but that 
 which lasteth into life everlasting." In North Wales again, some 
 years before the blasting of the rock cannon was reverberating among 
 the mountains of Caernarvon and Merioneth, to open the rich 
 natural wealth of their slate quarries, had Sunday Schools been 
 organized in every village and hamlet, and were then ready to 
 supply the rapidly increasing population with a safeguard from 
 moral degeneracy and the means of rising to the highest possible life. 
 The resources of our country are not yet exhausted, nor the 
 increase of population arrested. The coal mines of the South, and 
 the slate quarries of the North, are still growing in number and 
 importance. The large towns of both parts of the Principality 
 show a steady growth from decade to decade. It is not improbable 
 that larger ports than even Cardiff, Swansea, and Llanelly, will be 
 rising to meet the ever-increasing commerce of the empire, upon 
 the great natural harbours of Milford Haven, Holyhead, and other 
 favourable inlets; and the question is, will the Sunday Schools 
 prove adequate to supply the religious training of the future as 
 they have done in the past? Our work of reviewing, however 
 imperfectly accomplished, is now over. At the expiration of another 
 hundred years, probably abler hands will undertake a similar labour 
 of love. Whatever peculiarity that performance will assume, we 
 hope it will contain the same account of devotedness to overcome 
 io-norance, indifference, and ungodliness ; that it will be able to 
 point to a greater " fruit of holiness " in this world as the result of 
 Sunday School labours, and to a greater number of their members 
 attaining " to life everlasting in the world to come."
 
 INDEX 
 
 Abergavenny Grammar School, 77 
 
 Aberystwith, first Sunilay School at, 196 
 
 Adult Sunday Schools, 175 ; the Bristol Society. 216 ; American adult 
 Scliools,"217; adult scholars in Sunday Schools, 218, 219, 265, 268, 
 273 ; proportion of adult scholars to whole school, 220 ; statistics 
 of adult scholars in the Welsh Sunday Schools of Liverpool, 221, 
 222 ; adults' subjects of study, 222, 223, 266, 267, 269, 273 
 
 Appliances of instruction, 380-382 
 
 Arminian controversy, the great, 131 
 
 Art of teaching, 370, 374-383 
 
 Associations, Sunday School, 238-241 ; recent annual, 292 
 
 Augustine, the monk, and representatives of the Ancient British 
 Church, 4, 5 
 
 Bala, Grammar School, see ''Llanycil ; " locale of Charles's first Sunday 
 School, 181 ; other connections with Charles, see "Charles " 
 
 Bangor Grammar School, 75 
 
 Beaumaris Grammar School, 75 
 
 Bevan, Madam, conversion, 93 ; her schools, 102, 164-166; her charity, 
 102-104 
 
 Bible, royal proclamation for translation of, into Welsh, 15, 23; Dr. 
 Morgan's assistants, 25; various editions, 28, 31-40; table of 
 editions up to year 1799,41-43; rate of distribution before 1800, 
 43, 44 ; notes on first editions, 45-47 ; facsimile of titlepage to 
 Dr. Morgan's, 48 
 
 Bible -teaching in Grammar Schools, 82, 83 ; in Board Schools, 356- 
 359 
 
 Book of sports, 108, 117; opposition to it by Welsh Nonconformists, 
 120, 121 
 
 Bottwnog school, 75 
 
 Brecon, Christ College, 81, 82 
 
 British and Foreign Bible Society and Sunday Schools of Wales, 295- 
 312
 
 392 INDEX. 
 
 Bunhill Fields, London, the burial-place of Vavasor Powell, 124 
 Burghley, Lord, Penry's letter to, 114-116 
 
 Caermarthen Grammar School, 80 
 
 Cambrian Bibliography, 52 
 
 Cardigan Grammar School, 79 
 
 Cardiff, first dissenting cause at, 121; statistics of Sunday Schools, 354 
 
 Carnhuanawc, on the Ancient British Church, 12 
 
 Catechising, public, 237, 238, 249, 250, 285-292 
 
 Charles, Rev. David, D.D., at the unveiling of his grandfather's 
 statue, 336 
 
 Charles, Rev. Thomas, portrait of, frontispiece; early years, 139, 147 ; at 
 Caermarthen, 148 ; at Oxford, 149,150; atOlney, 150; marriage, 
 151 ; curacies in Wales, 151, 152; leaves Church of England and 
 joins the Metliodists, 152-154; founder of the Sunday-School 
 system in Wales, 163 ; his first itineracies, 166, 167 ; establishes 
 circulating schools, 167-170; letters on the circulating and 
 Sunday Schools, 171-174 ; initiates adult schools, 175 ; merges 
 the circulating in Sunday Schools, 176, 177; his first Sunday 
 School, 178, 183; literary works, 184-190; Sunday-School text- 
 books, 184 ; Mary Jones's visit to him, 299-301 ; his connection 
 with the Bible Society, 301 ; his claims to be considered its father, 
 303-308 ; the last fifteen years of his life, 314-332 ; his illness 
 in 1799, 315 ; remarkable prayer on his behalf, 315, 316 ; prepares 
 copy of Welsh Bible, 316; visits Ireland, 317-319; connection 
 with the Gaelic Society, 319-321 ; literary labours, 321, 322 ; direct 
 services to his own denomination, 322 ; his share in the first ordi- 
 nation, 323 ; an explanation of the charge of inconsistency made 
 against him, 323-326 ; direct support to Sunday Schools, 326-329 ; 
 last illness and death, 329-332 ; the ceremony of unveiling his 
 statue, 333-340 ; Judge Johnes on his character, 339. 340 
 
 Church, the Ancient British, 2, 4, 5 ; resistance to Popery, 6 ; Augustin 
 Thierry on her struggles, 7 ; state at time of Reformation, 8, 9 
 
 Cilycwm, near Llandovery, an early Sunday School at, 160 
 
 Circulating schools of Grififith Jones, 92-103 ; of Madam Bevan, 102, 
 164-166; of Mr. Charles, 167-170 
 
 Commissioners of 1881, Preface x., 71, 72, 74, 83, 84, 357 ; of 1846, 
 259-283, 321, 375 
 
 Controversies, religious, in Wales, 134, 225-235 
 
 Conventicle Act, 125 
 
 Cowbridge Grammar School, 78 
 
 Cradoc, Kev. Walter, at Wrexham, 67; his education, 74; connection 
 with Wroth, 120 ; his sermon before Parliament, 120 ; sketch of 
 life, 121, 122 
 
 Crawlom, near Llanidloes, an early Sunday School at, 158, 159 
 
 Cwmdauddwr School, 81 
 
 Davies, Rev. Howell, of Pembrokeshire, 101, 142 
 Davies, Dr. John, of Mallwyd, 29, 57-59
 
 INDEX. 
 
 393 
 
 Davies, Mr. K., of Aberystwith, 196, 197 
 
 Davies, Rev. Richard, D.D., his introductory letter to Salesbury's 
 
 New Testanient quoted, 13, 30; his share in translating it, 18; 
 
 sketch of life, 20, 21 ; the Bishops' Bible, 21 
 Davies, Rev. Walter (Gwailter Mechain), on Norman families in 
 
 Wales, 17 
 Denbigh, Grammar School, 76 ; Howell's School, 83 
 Derfel Gadarn, a huge rood, 8 
 Denio School, 75 
 Deythur Grammar School, 77 
 Dolgelley Grammar School, 76 ; Dr. Williams's Endowed School for 
 
 Girls, 84 ; first Sunday School, 207, 208 
 Dunod, Abbot of Bangor-is-coed, 4 
 
 Edwards, Charles, 68, 69 
 
 Edwards, Rev. John, on state of country, 110 
 
 Edwards, Rev. Lewis, D.D., of Bala, on Morgan Llwyd of Gwynedd, 
 68; on peculiarity of Welsh Sunday Schools, 214, 215; his 
 questions on the Holy Spirit, 288, 289 ; assisting at the unveiling 
 of Charles's statue, 335 
 
 Endowments of Wales, 84, 102-104 
 
 Erbury, Rev. William, 121 
 
 Evans, Dr. John, his statistics of early Nonconformist Churches, 130, 
 162 
 
 Evans, Rev. John, of Bala, on state of country before rise of Metho- 
 dism, 135, 136 
 
 Examinations, written, 293, 294; oral, «ee " Catechising " and " Asso- 
 ciations " 
 
 Festiniog, early schools at, 192 ; statistics, 244, 245 
 Field, Dr. Theophilus, of Llandaff, 120 
 Five-mile Act, 125 
 Fuller, Thomas, on Salesbury's Dictionary, 53 
 
 Gelligaer, Grammar School, 79; Rev. P. Thomas of, and circulating 
 schools, 98, 99 ; Sir William Lewis and charity, 118 
 
 " Gododin," The, 50 
 
 Gouge, Rev. Thomas, and edition of Welsh Bible, 35, 88 ; his literary 
 productions, 68 ; Charles Edwards's remarks on his beneficence, 
 68, 69 ; sketch of life, 85-91 ; portrait, 86 
 
 Grammar Schools of Wales, 75-85 
 
 Hallum, his remarks on Penry, 116 
 
 Harris, Howell, 133, 139, 140, 142, 143; his " Family," at Trefecca, 
 
 144, 146 ; labours and trials, 145 
 Haverfordwest Grammar School, 77 
 
 Hengoed, Baptist Church of, 131 ; early Sunday School, 161, 162 
 Henry, Rev. Phillip, persecution of, 126 
 Heylin, Mr. Rowland, 31, 59, 64
 
 394 INDEX. 
 
 Huet, Thomas, 21 
 
 Hughes, Rev. John, author of Methodidiaeth Cymru, 139 
 
 Hughes, Rev. Joseph, of Battersea, and Bible Society, 301-308 
 
 Hughes, Rev. Stephen, life of, 33-35 ; Calamy's remarks on, 12G 
 
 Hughes, Dr. William, 107, 108 
 
 Hughes, Rev. W., of Llanuwchllyn, and Mr. CharleB, 323-326 
 
 Infants in Sunday Schools, 381, 387 
 Inspection of Schools, 247, 249 
 
 Johnes, Judge, on scarcity of Bibles, 30 ; on " The Caudle of the Welsh," 
 65, 66 ; on the persecutions of the Stuart period, 124 ; on Griffith 
 Jones of Llanddowror, 126; on the early Nonconformists, 132; on 
 state of country before the Methodist revival, 137, 138 ; on Madam 
 Bevan's schools, 166 ; on Charles's work and character, 339, 340 
 Johnson, a Commissioner ; his Report on Sunday Schools of North 
 
 Wales, 271 
 Jones, Rev. David, of Llandysilio, and edition of Welsh Bible, 35 
 Jones, Rev. Griffith, of Llanddowror, and edition of Welsh Bible, 37 ; 
 life of, 92-102 ; his apology for Dissenters, 127 ; his works, 173 
 note, 237 
 Jones, Mr. John, of Penyparc, near Towyn, 195, 205, 207 
 Jones, Rev. John, of Talsarn, extracts from his Memoir, 230-235 
 Jones, Mary, of Abergynolwyn, sketch of life, 296-301, 311-313 
 Jones, Rev. Owen, of Gelli, an account of his life, 193-202 ; por- 
 trait, 194 
 Jones, Rev. Robert, of Rhoslan, 164, 165, 193 
 Jones, Rev. Thomas, of Creaton, and Welsh Bible, 40, 302, 303 
 Jones, Rev. Thomas, of Denbigh, on Charles and his schools, 162, 
 163; co-operating with him, 169 ; his remarks on Charles's action 
 at the first ordination, 325 
 
 Kyffin, Morris, 56 
 
 Levi, Rev. Thomas, at the unveiling of Charles's statue, 338 
 
 Lewis, Pierce, of Anglesea, 36 
 
 Lewis, Rev. W. Dickens, at the unveiling of Charles's statue, 338 
 
 Lewis, Sir William, of the Fan ; his descendants, 79 ; and Wroth, 118 
 
 Liberality of Sunday-School Members, 252 
 
 Lingen, a Commissioner, his Report on Sunday 'Schools of part of 
 
 South Wales, 262-267 ; criticisms thereon, 275-280 
 Llandaff, Howell's school at, 83 
 
 Llandovery, see " Rhys Prichard ; " Grammar School, 80 
 Llanegryn Grammar School, 76 ; Lewis Williams and its scholars, 204 
 Llanidloes, Rev. Owen Jones's labours there, 199 
 Llanrwst Grammar School, 76 
 Llantilio Croesenau Grammar School, 78 
 Llanycil Grammar School, 76 
 Lledrod Grammar School, 79
 
 INDEX. 395 
 
 Llewellyn, Dr. Thomas, historian of Welsh Versions of Scripture, 20, 
 
 38, 39, 45-47 
 Llovd, Dr. Humphrey, of Denbigh, 55 
 Lloyd, Mr. INIorris, of Trawsfynydd, 244, 250 
 Lloyd, Dr. William, and edition of Welsh Bible, 36 
 Llwyd, Rev. Morgan, of Gwynedd, 67, 68; succeeds Cradoc, 121 
 
 Mabinogion, 49, 50 
 
 Mann, Mr. Horace, on senior classes, 215, 216 
 
 Mansel, Sir Lewis, of Margam and Wroth, 119 
 
 Martin Mar-prelate, Penry's share in production, 116 
 
 Metaphysics and the Welsh, 269, 280, 373; how bearing on the 
 
 science of education, 370-374 
 Methodism, Calvinistic, in Wales, 129-147 
 Methodism, Wesleyan, in Wales, 142, 143, 226-229, 234, 235 
 Methodistiaeth Cijmru, 139, quoted ^soss/m 
 Methodists, Calvinistic, and Church of England, 144, 145 ; strength in 
 
 1881, 146, 147 
 Methods of teaching, 364-367, 374-380 
 Meyrick, Dr., 107 
 
 Ministers and Sunday Schools, 292 
 Missionary spirit, 384-390 
 Model lessons, 379 
 Monmouth Grammar School, 78 
 Montgomeryshire and Rev. Owen Jones, 201 
 Morgan, Rev. Edward, of Syston, on state of country, 110, 111; on 
 
 Charles's first Sunday School, 180 
 Morgan, Rev. Jenkin, 158, 177, 193 
 Morgan, Dr. William, sketch of life, 23-28, 108 
 Morris, Mr. Lewis, remarks on commission of 1846, 261 
 Morvs, Rhisiart o Fon, 37 
 Myddleton, Hugh, 31 
 
 Myddleton, Sir Thomas, Rev. S. Hughes's prayer on his behalf, 32 
 Myddleton, William, 31 ; his metrical version of Psalms, 55, 5tJ, 63 
 
 Newmarket Grammar School, 77 
 
 New Testament, tianslation of, into Welsh, 16, 18; facsimile of title- 
 page to Salesbury's, 22 ; explanation of titlepage, 19, 45 ; various 
 editions, 32, 33, 3S, 40; table of all the editions up to 1800, 42 ; 
 notes on Salesbury's edition, 44, 45 
 
 Newton, Rev. John, of Olney, and Charles, 150, 152 
 
 Nonconformists, origin of term, 125 ; strength in Wales before Metho- 
 dist revival, 130-135 
 
 Normal classes, 369 
 
 Order and discipline in Sunday Schools, 366, 367 
 
 Ordinance of Long Parliament with reference to Wales, 109, 110 
 
 Owen, Rev. James, of Oswestry, 87, 126 
 
 Parry, Dr. Richard, and authorized Welsh version of Scriptures, 28, 29
 
 396 INDEX. 
 
 Pembroke Grammar School, 81 
 
 Penry, John, sketch of life, 112-117 
 
 Persecutions in Wales, 112-128 
 
 Phillips, Sir T., on causes of degeneracy of Church of England in 
 Wales, 111; on progress of early dissent, 130; on power of 
 memory in the Kelts, 246 ; on revivals, 254-256 ; on Charles and 
 the Gaelic Society, 321 ; his Sunday-School statistics, 346-352 
 
 Powell, Dr. David, of Ruabon, 25, 55, 108 
 
 Powell, Rev. Vavasor, sketch of life, 123, 124 
 
 Preparation for class, 382, 383 
 
 Presteign Grammar School, 81 
 
 Prichard, Rev. Rhys, alias Vicar Prichard, stanza to the small Bible, 
 32; sketch of life, 60-67; on state of country, 108, 109; his 
 " Candle of the Welsh," a text-book in early Sunday Schools, 159 
 
 Prydderch, Rev. John, of Anglesea, 250 
 
 Prys, Rev. Edmund, life of, 56, 57 
 
 Psychology and Education. See "Metaphysics" 
 
 Puritanism, in the reign of Elizabeth, 117; under the Stuarts, 117, 118 
 
 Pwllheli, an early Sunday School at, 159 
 
 Fwngc Ysqol, a specimen, 188, 189 ; how prepared and applied, 238- 
 240, 264, 265 
 
 Questioning, objectionable style of, 285, 286 ; hints on good, 286, 
 
 375-379 382 383 
 Questions, oA " The Work of the Holy Spirit," 288, 289 ; on " The 
 
 Life of Jesus Christ," 288, 289-292 
 
 Eaikes, founder of Sunday Schools of England, 157, 163, 164, 250, 
 251, 252 ; his portrait, 157 ; view of monument, 341 
 
 Reed, Sir Charles, his Report on Sunday Schools of Wales, 271-275 \ 
 
 Rees, Mr. R. Oliver, of Dolgelley, 202, 211, 296, 313 
 
 Rees, Dr. Thomas, of Swansea, on the early Nonconformists, 130; 
 on the Fathers of Methodism, 131 ; on the Arminian controversy, 
 134 ; on the persecution of early Nonconformists and Methodists, 
 145 ; on earlv Sunday Schools, 161 ; on Charles's first Sunday 
 School, 181, 182 
 
 Revivals, at Aberystwith, 198, 199 ; in connection with schools, 209, 
 253 ; remarks on, 254-256 
 
 Rhayader on the Wye, first Sunday School, 200 
 
 Rhys, Dr. John David, 55 
 
 Rhys, Morgan John, of Hengoed, 162, 163 
 
 Richard, Rev. Ebenezer, of Tregaron, 211, 212 
 
 Richard, Mr. Henry, on the Welsh and their literature, 70, 71 ; on the 
 Methodist revival, 129; on the Commissioners of 1846, 260, 261 ; 
 his Memorandum to Commissioners' Report of 1881, 357 
 
 Roberts, Dr. Griffith, and Welsh literature, 54, 55 
 
 Roberts, Mr. John, M.P. for tlie Flint boroughs, at the unveiling of 
 Charles's statue, 333, 336, 337
 
 INDEX. 397 
 
 Kowlands, Eev. Daniel, of Llangeitho, 74, 101, 139, 140; his con- 
 nection with Charles, 148, 155, 255, 256 
 Ruabon Grammar School, 77 
 Ruthin Grammar School, 77 
 
 Salesbury, "William, sketch of life, 15-20 ; issues first printed Welsh 
 
 book, 52 ; his other books, 53, 54 
 Schools, ordinary day, 84, 105 ; of Rev. T. Gouge, 87, 91 ; those of 
 
 present time, 384 
 Science of Education, 370-374 
 Shaftesbury, Earl of, and. presentation Bible, 312 ; letter on occasion 
 
 of unveiling Charles's statue, 335 
 Shrewsbury, Rev. Owen Jones's labours at, 200 ; St. Chad's Sunday 
 
 School, 200 
 Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge and editions of Welsh 
 
 Bible, 36-41 
 Standards in Sunday Schools, 283-285 
 St. Asaph, early manuscript of Four Gospels at, 12 ; Grammar 
 
 School, 77 
 Statistics, of Scriptures supplied to Wales, 43, 44, 308, 309 ; of Griffith 
 
 Jones's Schools, 97, 102; of Sunday Schools, 221, 244, 267, 273, 
 
 280, 346-354; of contributions to Bible Society, 310; general 
 
 remarks on, 342-344 ; of attendance at day schools, 384 
 St. David's, superstitious practices at, 9; school, 81 ; clergy of, 108 
 Swansea Grammar School, 79 
 Symons, a commissioner, his Report on Sunday Schools of a part 
 
 of South Wales, 267-271 ; criticisms thereon, 280-285 
 
 Tarn, Rev. Joseph, 301 ; his letters to Charles, 305-307 
 
 Thierry, Augustin, on the early Welsh Church, 6, 7, 9 ; on devotion 
 of Welsh to literature, 51 
 
 Thirlwall, Dr., his tablet to Dr. Davies, 21 
 
 Thomas, Rev. Owen, D.D., of Liverpool, on Welsh Religious Con- 
 troversies, 230-235 
 
 Tillotson, Dr., on Mr. Goitge, 88-90 
 
 Toy, Humphrey. 19 
 
 Traethorlydd and Sunday Schools, 235 
 
 Training classes, 367-380 
 
 Trawsfynvdd, an early Sunday School at, 182 
 
 Triads,' The Welsh. 49, 50 
 
 Triers, Walter Cradoc one of the, 122 
 
 Uniformity, Act of, 125 
 Unions, District, 242-250 
 Usk Grammar School, 78 
 
 Yychan, Rowland, of Caergai, 59
 
 308 INDEX. 
 
 Wales, peculiar features of, 1, 2, 3 ; martyrs of, at time of Reforma- 
 tion, 10; Tudor princes and, 10; morality of, 267, 274, 275, 279, 
 3S9 ; material prosperity of, 889, 390; prospects, 390 
 
 Welsh literature, different periods of, 49, 50, 51 ; statistics of, 71, 72 
 
 Welsh manuscripts, destructicm of, 14 
 
 Welsh versions of Scripture in manuscript, 11, 12; Bishop Davies' 
 remarks on, 13 ; duiiug Middle Ages, 15 
 
 Wharton, Thomas, Baron, and edition of Welsh Bible, 35, 36 
 
 Williams, Dr. Edward, of Oswestry, and catechetical schools, 161 
 
 AVillianis, Rev. Lewis, of Llanfachreth, sketch of life, 202-211 ; Mnry 
 Jones's teacher, 207 
 
 Williams, Rev. Moses, of Defynog, 36, 37, 50 
 
 Williams, Rev. Peter, and editions of Bible, 39, 40 
 
 Williams, Mr. T. M., on Sunday Schools, 344 
 
 Williams, Sir Thomas, of Trefriw, 58 
 
 Williams, Rev. W., of <>langwenlas, on early Sunday Schools, 160 
 
 Williams, Rev. W., of Pantycelyn, 65, 101 
 
 Williams, Rev. W., of Swansea, on early Nonconformists, 135 ; on 
 adults in Sunday Schools, 223-225 ; on Calvinistic Methodists 
 and Established Church, 326 
 
 Works on the science and art of teaching, 380 
 
 Wrexham, early dissenting cause at, 67, 121 ; Grammar School, 77 
 
 Wroth, Rev. Mr., of Llanfaches, sketch of life, 118-120 
 
 AVyn, Ellis, of Lasynys, 70 
 
 Wynne, Sir John, on Dr. Davies, 21 ; his remarks on Dr. Morgan as 
 translator, 26 
 
 Ystrad-Meirig Grammar School, 80 
 
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