The Aberdeen Democrat. (Aberdeen, South Dakota) 1???-1909, 1903-09-25
The Story Of Wales
aud Its People
lJohn Jones, from wales]

SsSoASSs AAuAuJ tdtuCl Ulldu QGAVY.
They have dark hair, blue or dark
eyes, ruddy complexion and a fine.
open expression. They esteem noble
birth and generous descent above all
things. Everyone retains his gene
alogy and can not only readily recount
the names of grandfathers and great
grandfathers, but even refer back to
thesixthor seventh generation. Being
particularly attached to family des-
cent, and, naturally Of a passionate
and vindictive disposition. they
avenge with vehcmence the injuries
which may teEd to the disgrace of
their blood. AS is also quite natural
to expect, this nation is a very high
ly-strung religious one, and of course
prone to superstition. At the pres
ent time there are close upon two
hundred different religious denomin-
ations in Wales with it's population
of two ard half million, and sectar-
ian strifes are not infrequent, for ar
gumentatiye and dissenting analogy
lis a very strong point with them.
They study the bible until they know
lit by heart, because they look upon
lit as Gods own word sent down in
book form from heaven. Sund,y is
looked upon lis souls day-''dydd
marchnad enaid," and Sunday school
is a powerful institution. The
churches and clEapels that dot the
surface of the country in close ap-
Proclamation to each other are fine
solid structures of stone--made tc.
stand forgeneratioas. Eycninremote
country places people sacrifice great
deal for the sake Of the scsuse," as
they cali the organized brotherhood-
Ter daioni'r acllos.' Sometimes they
commemorate some great preachers
death by making a big collection" to
endow a scholarship at one Of the
Welsh universities, aud have known
people to go without the necessaries
of life In order to augment this fund
and perhaps also to see their names
in respectable company on the sub
|scription list. Though noE-conform-
|ity and liberalism are supposed to be
the lead ing features of young Wales,
there is, nevertheless, latent con-
servatism permeating the institutions
of the land-nor is this strange when
when we consider the environment.
Mona or Anglesia :. as the seat and
stronghold of the druids. And who
were they? The old histories tell us
that they were the priests or religious
teachers Of the people, chosen care
fully from the royal families of the
tribes. Over all was an arch-druid,
who lived apart from the people in
the sacred little island of Mona.
These druids took no part in the
wars; they paid no taxes: they had a
right to pass unharmed from place to
place, and the people stood in great
lave Of them. Not only were they
i their priests, but also their judges.
1t was the druids who administered
1.-THE law; they WHO doled out punish
|ment of slavery, exile or even death
and the druids who offered up human
sacrifices in their mysterious temples
These temples cons listed of a central
space, around which were set circles
Of upright stones at regular intervals
In the center of the circles stood .
cromlech, a fiat stone supported BY
two or three upright stones set in the
ground. They were probably used al
altars on which sacrifices were Offered
up, and on which the sacred fire wal
kept burning. Near to the temple
was a sacred mound or ''carnedd'
from which the druid priests wer'
won't to address the people. Yhes1
temples, whether standing on a plain
in valley, or on a hill, were Away
surrounded by groves of oak trees
and the whole enclosure was shut il
by banks Of earth. Sites Of man!
old druid temples may yet be traced
in Wales. Now these druids sur
|rounded their temples with oaks, be
cause they had curious beliefs about
1.-THE oak, and more especially about
the mistletoe that grows on the oak
They fought that God favored th'
oak above all other trees, and thai
everything growing on the oak came
from heaven. They therefore held
lgreat festival for gathering tn
| mistletoe, and arranged it as near th,
10th Of March as they could, for tha1
was their New Years day, and on th'
sixth day after the new moon. FRS
4 Of all two white bulls we're bound u
! the oak by their horns; then 9 druit
clothed in white mounted the tree
and with a knife Of gold cut tn
| mistletoe, while another, standing be
i low on the ground, held out his whit
robe to receive II. This ceremon