Rev. T. Lloyd Williams, Wrexham, lodged whilst he was at Ystrad Meurig School with a Mrs. Jones, Dolfawr, who was a firm believer in "Rhibo" or Rheibo, or witching, and this lady told my friend the following tales of Betty'r Bont, a celebrated witch in those parts.

A Man turned into a Hare.

One of the servant men at Dolfawr, some years before Mr. Williams lodged there, laughed at Betty'r Bont's supposed power. However, he lived to repent his folly. One night after he had gone to bed he found that he had been changed into a hare, and to his dismay and horror he saw a couple of greyhounds slipped upon him. He ran for bare life, and managed to elude his pursuers, and in a terrible plight and fright he ran to Dolfawr, and to his bed. This kind of transformation he ever afterwards was subjected to, until by spells he was released from the witch's power over him.

A Man changed into a Horse.

Mr. Williams writes of the same servant man who figures in the preceding tale:-" However, after that, she (Betty'r Bont) turned him into a grey mare, saddled him, and actually rode him herself; and when he woke in the morning, he was in a bath of perspiration, and positively declared that he had been galloping all night."

Singularly enough Giraldus Cambrensis mentions the same kind of transformation. His words are:

"I myself, at the time I was in Italy, heard it said of some districts in those parts, that there the stable-women, who had learnt magical arts, were wont to give something to travellers in their cheese, which transformed them into beasts of burden, so that they carried all sorts of burdens, and after they had performed their tasks, resumed their own forms."-Bohn's Edition, p. 83.

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From Brand's Popular Antiquities, p. 225, I find that a common name for nightmare was witch-riding, and the night-mare, he tells us, was "a spectre of the night, which seized men in their sleep and suddenly deprived them of speech and motion," and he quotes from Ray's Collection of Proverbs:

"Go in God's name, so ride no witches."

I will now leave this subject with the remark that people separated by distance are often brought together by their superstitions, and probably, these beliefs imply a common origin of the people amongst whom these myths prevail.

The following tales show how baneful the belief in witchcraft was; but, nevertheless, there was some good even in such superstitions, for people were induced, through fear of being witched, to be charitable.

A Witch who turned a Blue Dye into a Red Dye.

An old hag went to a small farmhouse in Clocaenog parish, and found the farmer's wife occupied in dyeing wool blue. She begged for a little wool and blue dye. She was informed by Mrs. that she was really very sorry that she could not part with either, as she had only just barely enough for her own use. The hag departed, and the woman went on with her dyeing, but to her surprise, the wool came out of the pot dyed red instead of blue. She thought that possibly it was the dye that was to blame, and so she gave up for the night her employment, and the next day she went to Ruthin for a fresh supply of blue to finish her work, but again she failed to dye the wool blue, for red, and not blue, was the result of her dyeing. She, in surprise, told a neighbour of her unaccountable failure to dye her wool blue. This neighbour asked her if she had been visited by anyone, and she in answer told her that old so and so had been at her house begging. "Ah," was the response, "I see

high time to speak to it, and said—'What seekest thou, thou foul thing? In the name of the Lord Jesus, go away!'. And by speaking this it vanished, and sank into the ground near the mare's feet. It appeared to be of a reddish oak colour."

In a footnote to this tale we are told that formerly near Clwyd yr Helygen, the Lord's Day was greatly profaned, and “it may be that the Adversary was wroth at the gɔod books and the bringer of them; for he well knew what burden the mare carried.”

The editor of the Cambro-Briton remarks that the superstitions recorded, if authentic," are not very creditable to the intelligence of our lower classes in Wales; but it is some satisfaction to think that none of them are of recent date." The latter remark was, I am sorry to say, rather premature.

One other quotation from the same book I will here make.

The Devil appearing to a Dissenting Minister at

Denbigh.

“The Rev. Mr. Thomas Baddy, who lived in Denbigh Town, and was a Dissenting Minister in that place, went into his study one night, and while he was reading or writing, he heard some one behind him laughing and grinning at him, which made him stop a little as well indeed it might. It came again, and then he wrote on a piece of paper, that devil-wounding scripture, 1st John, 3rd, For this was the Son of God manifested, that he might destroy the works of the Devil,'—and held it backwards from him, when the laughing ceased for ever; for it was a melancholy word to a scoffing Devil, and enough to damp him. It would have damped him yet more, if he had shewn him James, ii. 19 — 'The devils believe and tremble.' But he had enough for one time."

The following objectless tale, still extant, I believe, in the mountainous parts of Denbighshire, is another instance of the credulity in former days of the people.

Satan seen Lying right across a Road.

The story related to me was as follows:-Near Pentrevoelas lived a man called John Ty'nllidiart, who was in the habit of taking, yearly, cattle from the uplands in Lis neighbourhood, to be wintered in the Tale of Clayd Once, whilst thus engaged, he saw lying across the road right in front of him and the cattle, and computery momĘ up the way, Satan with his head on one wall and his tall oL the other, moaning horribly. John, as might be experet hurried homewards, leaving his charge to the ther cubee with the Evil One, but long before he came to LF DOUE DE odour of brimstone had preceded him and is vá ve Uy too glad to find that it was her husband the same tuFOUN the door, for she thought that it was someone els ind approaching.

The Devil's Tree by Eglwys van wer Low LOUI At the corner of the first turning after pasting the of Llanrhos, on the left hand side is a vineet but tre called by the natives of those parts the Derla Try! : was thought to be haunted, and therefore the young an timid were afraid to pass it of a dark

The Rev. W. Arthur Jones, late Curse of the part me that his horse was in the habit of eging v came opposite this blighted tree, and ti serat wecount for this by saying that the horse saw sobering toes VILCI was invisible to the sight of man be the artUN DIA tree has an uncanny appearance and a tad waan which some years ago was greatly forreases in as seent rence that happened there to Caiwalair W) satur & sou maker, who lived at Llansantrali Glan Conway

how it is you can never dye that wool blue, you have been witched, send the red wool and the part that you have not touched here to me, and I will finish the work for you." This was done, and the same colour was used by both women, but now it became blue, whilst with the other, it was red.

This tale was told me by a gentleman who does not wish his name to appear in print, as it would lead to the identification of the parties mentioned, and the descendants of the supposed witch, being respectable farmers, would rather that the tale of their canny grandmother were forgotten, but my informant vouches for the truth of the tale.

A Pig Witched.

A woman sold a pig at Beaumaris to a man called Dick y Green; she could not that day sell any more, but the following market day she went again to Beaumaris. Dick was there waiting her appearance, and he told her that the pig he bought was bewitched and she must come with him to undo the curse, Away the woman went with Dick, and when they came to the pig she said, " What am I to do now, Dick?" Draw thy hand seven times down his back," said Dick, and say every time, " Rhad Duw arnat ti," ie., "The blessing of God be on thee." The woman did so, and then Dick went for physic for the pig, which recovered.

Milk that would not churn, and the steps taken to counteract the malice of the Witch that had cursed the churn and its contents.

Before beginning this tale, it should be said that some witches were able to make void the curses of other witches. Bella of Denbigh, who lived in the early part of the present century, was one of these, and her renown extended over many counties.