Welsh Journals

state the two sides of the question at issue with as much impartiality as is possible in dealing with a subject which admits of no neutrality. The layman who desires to know by what steps the Christian religion has reached its present position in Europe will find in this volume just what he needs. (ii) Professor Turberville's volume is confined to one particular aspect of the subject dealt with by Dr. Bevan-or rather a grim travesty of it. The author gives a clear and well-written account of the Inquisition and of religious life in Spain during the period under review. The subject matter will not make as wide an appeal as that of Dr. Bevan's volume, but the student of history will no doubt greatly welcome the volume. And the book may also be commended as an object lesson on the evils of intolerance. HYWEL HARRIS. Drama Bedair Act Qan Cynan Hughes a'i Fab, Wrecsam. 2s. 6d. Cynan has chosen for the setting of his drama one of the greatest periods in Welsh history and has introduced two of the great men of the period. One is grateful that he has treated them with greatness and imagination and has turned a deaf ear to the tittle-tattle of sniggering detractors. After. all, our only concern with a great man is his greatness; to emphasize the fact that Hywel Harris was libidinous or that William Williams peddled tea is beside the question. The central theme of the play is the contest between Madam Gruffydd and William Williams, Pantycelyn. for the soul of Hywel Harris; the one planning to make him the leader of a renascence of Welsh nationalism and native culture, the other striving to retain him for the evangeliza- tion of Wales. It is a striking theme and not unsupported by historical evidence. But it was almost inevitable that the character of Hywel Harris should suffer in being made the battle- ground for the conflict of two strong personal- ities; he is certainly a colourless character in com- parison with the other two, and the play, especially in the middle part, tends to be super- ficial in treatment. There are many evidences of sound craftsman- ship, and it should act well. One has doubts about the effectiveness of the sermon in the second act (will it not be bathetic after Williams's sing- ing of the hymn?), but this and similar doubts will be settled by a good production. The drama will not be easy to produce, but the dramatist has every right to call in all the help that skilful stage management can give. The minor characters are well-drawn, and the author, who is the Lord Chamberlain's official censor for Welsh dramas, has treated his own play with strict impartiality. T.H.J. E.D.J. A BIBLIOGRAPHY OF THE HISTORY OF WALES Ed. by R. T. Jmkin; and William Rees University of Wales Press Board, Cardiff, 1931. I os. 6d. In these days of specialization and intensive re- search, when the materials of knowledge increase at a quite alarming rate, bibliography has become the indispensable handmaid of every science. If the handmaid is to do her work adequately, she must be tidy and methodical in her methods; and this praise may certainly be given to the volume with which the Guild of Graduates, adding to so many services in the past, has enriched Welsh historical studies. The system adopted, after preliminary sections devoted respectively to General History and Local History, is to divide the survey chronologically, by periods, the Srst six of which extend from prehistoric times to 1719 A. D., while the last two cover the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Each section is again divided by subjects, and at the end is an index, facilitating quick reference, and an appendix in which is given a list of serial publications likely to be useful. As explained in the introduction, the work had a triple aim, being intended for the use of teachers, students, and the non-academic enquirer. It was,, moreover, a composite undertaking; and to meet adequately such varying needs and at the same time to secure a reasonable uniformity in the methods of reference and standards of selection- for the bibliography, dealing with a great mass of material of all degrees of utility, some of it very uncritical, was necessarily selective-can have been no easy task. It can truly be said that the results are admirable. There may be omis- sions of books and, more probably, articles which ought to have been included; but if such there are they cannot be many, and the reviewer's conscientious efforts to find them have been singu- larly unsuccessful. The only one he can allege with any assurance is that of Stern's "Davydd ab Gwilym" in the "Zeitschrift fur Celtische Philologie," which surely ought to have been mentioned. Two misprints have been noticed in the index: on p. 200, under Jones, T. Gwynn, R. Ambrose Jones, 1176 should be 1177, and on p. 206. under Owen, Edward, MSS. in B.M., [60] seems to be an error. On p. 3 the laconic "Valuable" is a little inadequate as a comment on the dictionary of National Biography. But really the would-be-unfavourable critic has very little chance with this volume. H.I.B. BOOKS RECEIVED. BRITISH AVIATION ILLUSTRATED. By C. A. Sims. Demy 8vo., 96pp. A. and C. Black, Ltd. 3/6. LLYFR NIA FACH. Gan T. Gwynn Jones. Dar- luniau gan R. LI. Huws. Wrecsam: Hughes a'i Fab. 1/6.