Welsh Journals

perhaps Parry, at this early stage of his career, developed an awareness of publishing activity in Wales and the possibilities of the Welsh mar- ket.3 When the Civil War broke out in north America in 1861 Parry returned to Wales, apparently to Wrexham, where he was elected secre- tary of the branch of the 'Typographical Association' formed there on 6 October 1862.4 Two years later, on 15 November 1864, Parry married a widow, Margaret Jones of Great Boughton. She remained his wife for nearly 24 years until her death on 24 June 1888, and they had four children. It seems likely that it was to the service of Hughes and Son that Parry came on his return to Wales, so joining one of the principal presses in the country, a press active in many fields, including music. It appears that Hughes began to publish music around 1860, and launched Y Gyfres Gerddorol Gymreig ('the Welsh music series') in the following year. In 1865 the press took over the periodical Y Cerddor Cymreig ('the Welsh musician'), which had been established by Ieuan Gwyllt in 1861, and so took possession of the series of monthly choral supplements which appeared in the journal: Hughes was also responsible for the publication of Cerddor y Tonic Sol-ffa ('the tonic sol-fa musician') (1869-74), Y Cerddor Sol-ffa ('the sol-fa musician') (1881-86) and Y Cerddor ('the musician') in three series from 1889 to 1939. The press also published a stream of vocal solos and partsongs from the 1870s onwards, which earned them the name of 'Welsh Novellos'.5 When Parry joined the firm in the 1860s, Hughes and Son had grown 'until the flow of printing and binding work was far more than the office could handle', and no doubt there was need of extra hands.6 According to Y Cerddor at the time of Parry's death in 1910, he was employed to begin with as a compositor, but the Census of 1871 describes him as a 'publisher's clerk', and before long he was working as a travelling repre- sentative for the firm. This work took him to all parts of Wales, and was no doubt the means of fostering relationships with musicians and with businessmen, relationships which would benefit him at a later stage of his career. Tradition has it that he was the 'one of the men of Hughes and Son, Wrexham' who called on Joseph Parry with a request from Edward Stephen, 'Tanymarian', for a tune to be published in Ail Lyfr Tonau ac Emynau ('second book of tunes and hymns'; 1879), a request that inspired the world-famous hymn-tune, Aberystwyth.1 He may also have been broadening his horizons beyond the service of Hughes and Son, because in 1874 and again in 1876 and 1878, he is listed in dir- ectories of the Wrexham area as 'assistant bookseller, 6 Derby Street'.8 If he was living at 6 Derby Street at the time, he may have established a bookselling business or have been selling on behalf of another bookseller (it is not clear what the significance of the term 'assistant bookseller' is in this context). So with his experience of printing, of