Beacon,” a small, but rather influential county sheet.  I ought to observe, that, as it circulated chiefly in places where English was generally spoken, my ignorance of Welsh was of but little importance, especially as the foreman of the printing-office was a Cambrian, who could correct any errors I might make in Taffy’s orthography, which, prodigal as it is of consonants and penurious of vowels, and, as it regards pronunciation, embarrassing to the last degree, might drive Elihu Burritt back to his smithy in an agony of despair.

Thus assisted, I got on tolerably well, though at first I made some awful mistakes in the names of places mentioned by witnesses in courts of justice and elsewhere.  For instance, at the assizes, a man swore that he resided at a place which he pronounced Monothosluin, and so I spelt it in my report.  “Cot pless me, Sur!—­sure inteed, and you have not spelt hur right,” remarked Mr. Morgan, the foreman; and for my edification he set it up thus,—­Mynyddysllwyn.  I almost turned my tongue into a corkscrew, trying to speak the word as he did, and I fairly gave up in despair.  After that, I made it a rule, when I did not know how to spell some unpronounceable word, to huddle a number of consonants together in most admired disorder, and I was then usually nearer correctness than if I had orthographized by ear.

I had been installed in the editorial chair some six months when Mr. F——­ informed me it was necessary I should visit Abergavenny, a town some twenty-five miles distant, for the purpose of reporting the proceedings at the CYMREIGGDDYON.

“And what the deuse is that?” I inquired.

I learned that it was a Triennial Musical Festival, so called,—­at which all the musical talent of Wales would be present; in short, that it was a very grand occasion indeed, would be patronized by the aristocracy of the Principality, and full reports of each of the three days’ proceedings were absolutely necessary.

Here again the Welsh difficulty started up; but as the Cymreiggddyon would be quite a novelty, I determined to trust to Chance and Circumstance,—­two allies of mine who have gallantly aided me in many a tough battle of literary life.

Remembering the words of Goldsmith,—­“The young noble who is whirled through Europe in his chariot sees society at a peculiar elevation, and draws conclusions widely different from him who makes the grand tour on foot,” I determined to make my way to Abergavenny either by means of my own legs or through the chance aid of those of a Welsh pony.  So, one bright morning, with stick in hand, knapsack on shoulder, and a wandering artist for a companion, I started for the iron district, as that part of Wales is termed.  Wildly romantic were the roads we traversed; and after having threaded many a glen, leaped frequent torrents, ascended and descended mountains with impossible names, and plodded wearily across dreary moors, glad enough were we to observe, in the less thinly scattered cottages, indications of a town.