Welsh Journals

named his farm Little Scotland in nostalgic remembrance, or hiraeth, as his Welsh friends might call it. Thomas's Elegy gave an idea of the man's character, his business in life, and it also listed the names of his sons and his daughters. He was, it seems, a kind and charitable countryman without an equal in the neighbourhood,' for he helped the poor and needy, he dealt in business with people overseas.' Not only was he a keen agricultur- alist,' but he built houses, went on long voyages and shared his wealth with his neighbours. His heir was his son Thomas (the III), and his other children were John and four daughters, Jane, Margaret, Nell and Sarah. A fifth, Mary, had died, but in life shared the family tradition and was a source of help and succour to the poor and needy.' The Elegy, as was to be expected, made no mention of his sixth daughter, the bastard Anne, but her father remembered her in his will, leaving her a legacy of £ 10, to be paid when she shall be of age of one and twenty, or be marryed.' Thomas II was buried in a tomb very close to the door of the church and the Vicar obtained a photograph of it for me, with a close-up of the inscription it bore. This ran as follows Here lieth Interrd the Body of Thomas Makeig late of Penlan in this Parish, who was a loving Husband, a tender Parent, a Friendly neighbour, Just & Fair in the several extensive Branches of his Dealings, both at home and abroad. He died very much lamented by all his Friends and Acquaintance on the Fourth Day of April, in the year 1766, aged 45 years. Also Jane the Second Daughter of the above named T. Makeig, she died April 7th 1824, Aged 77 years. Also David Jones husband of the above Jane. Poring over a map of the locality I sought to find the Penlan Mansion mentioned in the Elegy, will and tombstone inscription. There was a Penylan Hall very near to the church but the owner doubted that the Penlan Mansion I sought was the same one, as the Hall had been built by Squire Morgan Jones in 1834, whereas I was searching for an eighteenth century mansion. True, the vaulted cellar clearly belonged to a period very much earlier than 1834, and part of an older building was still to be seen forming the left hand side and back quarters of the Hall. These in themselves formed no proof. The owner of the Hall was struck, however, by the reference in the will to Panterlis 'or Pant y Ilys as on the map today-and regarded the fact as the final proof, for when the Hall was rebuilt in 1834, a piped water supply was brought from two sources on higher ground, one of which was Pant- erlis where there is a natural well and an underground reservoir. In the deeds conveying the property to the present owner, provision was made for the drawing of water, though it came from land in other