Welsh Journals

when we have to advance the guardians of the public peace to the more onerous position of sur- veyors of our private souls. Ultimately, there are only two arguments against censorship, but they are more than sufficient; (1) the loss of personal and communal prestige occasioned by the enforcement of the moral and aesthetic standards of one man or body of men upon a community; (2) the extreme harm such censor- ship causes to original literature of permanent value. There is much mawkish stuff written that no one misses when it is banned, but I cannot tolerate a barrier which denies me free access to The Exiles' Corner. HUGH JONES-PRISONER AND PIONEER. Mathusalem Jones and his wife Nancy, of Caernarvon, were the parents of fourteen children; ten boys and four girls. The eldest son, Hugh, left home in 1776 to retrieve the family fortunes. After two years in Chester he became a sailor., He sailed from Chester in May, 1778, the American War of Independence being then at its height. As the letters below describe, his ship was captured by American privateers, and Hugh was taken in irons to Charleston. After the declaration of peace he married a Virginia girl and settled in Georgia. He wrote several letters to his family in Wales, but it was not till March 25th, 1790, nearly twelve years after he sailed from Chester, that he received a letter from the old country. Hugh then set about informing his family of his history. The brother Jack," to whom he addressed the latter half of the tale of his capture, was the well- known preacher, John Jones, of Pen-y-bryn, Edeyrn, near Pwllheli. (To his brother Evan). Wilkes County Georgia, Dear Brother, Brother John's letter dated September 4th, 1790, is come to hand. I received it the 6th inst., and if you will search the Register in the parish of Llandwrog, you will find that to be my birth- day. However, I am not so superstitious as to think anything of that more than other days. I cannot describe to you the pleasing satisfaction I received at the perusal of the above mentioned letter; it now looks like the Gulph is removed and the Embargo taken away sure enough. I am exceeding happy to be informed that you have received the four letters which I sent you last spring. I am glad to hear that my dear Father has turn'd to be a sober man; he cer- tainly sees now more real happiness than he used to see, for drunkenness is pernicious to both bodv and soul. I know this by experience, for while I was a sailor (especiallv in the West Indies) I was hardiv a day sober. I was then an abandoned wretch given to drinking, swear- Ulysses," Six Characters in Search of an Author," Waste," and Miss Julie," and which, until recently, banned The Cenci," Mrs. Warren," and Blanco Posnet." This is not futility it is active viciousness. Modern censorship would excommunicate the Bible, Shakespeare, Marlowe, Ben Jonson, Defoe, Swift, Congreve, much of Hardy and George Moore. The only consolation can be that fine work, inconvenienced by censorship to-day, will live to be received as we treat Shakespeare, Congreve, and the rest, with a tolerant and appreciative catholicism. February 13th, 1791. ing, and fighting. I can't say that I was so vicious as some of my shipmates in some other respects the tender care of my education would not admit of it. I am grieved to hear of dear mother's affliction, yet I congratulate her on the other hand for what the Lord hath done for her dear, tender soul; this will more than compensate for all her suffer- ings. Brother John is a Methodist preacher! Who would have thought that! Is it the same Jack that used to caper so well on the danceing floor? Yes, the very same. Well, I am glad to find that he has been brought to see his folly, and I dare say if he is so great an advocate and so active in the service of God as he used to be in the service of Satan, he will do well. I hope brother (Evan) you see things in another light now; the day star, I am persuaded, has arisen in your heart, and I'm in hopes it will shine more and more to the perfect day. I am glad to hear that a reformation has taken place in Carnarvon since my departure from thence when I went to school there the Metho- dist preachers used to meet with many opposi- tions. Mr. Roberts the Vicar and our school- master used to encourage us to mob them and drive them out of town. I dare say my mother remembers it very well, if you don't, but now behold the tables are turned, and the present teacher is a Methodist preacher. A great reformation has taken piace in the United States I have had a favourable account from Virginia and North Carolina. They say that a great revival of Religion has taken place among the Methodists and Babtists there, and in a certain part of Virginia I am creditably informed that a happy reformation has taken place among the Prespiteriance there. Dear brother, it matters not to what persuation we belong to provided we have the root of the matter. We won't be asked at the Day of Judg- ment to what denomination we belonged to, in order to be admitted to the Kingdom of Glory. I am glad to think my old companion, John Ellis, returned to Carnarvon. I am in hopes he has given you an account of what happened to us in the time of our captivity.. I intend, low- ever, to give you the same in writing, that you