Page:The National Gazetteer - A Topographical Dictionary of the British Islands, Volume 1.djvu/365

Rh BRECKNOCKSHIRE, 355 BRECKNOCKSHIRE. domi int formation is the Old KeJ sandstone, especially in t ! districts S. of tho Usk ; and in the narrow vullc of Cwmdwr, tho junction of the Ludlow rocks with 10 Old Rod sandstone is well laid open. In the west' i part of tho county the grauwacke slates are faum which, in one part, are penetrated by volcanic 'I 'rap and porphyry rocks of the transition series appe: in the N.W., and present a striking contrast to tlin.ii i the same scries in the neighbouring counties, by liriiiL -ntirely destitute of limestone. The geology of Bred ockshire is of high interest, and has been pro- founc ' studied by Sir It. S. JIurchison, who in his great work ' Siluria," alludes to the tile-stones of Owmdwr, li Horeb Chapel stands, as full of the casts of uong which are characteristic forms, such as the 'm, Turbo ll'il/iaiHsi, lie/u-tiji/iun tri/uliatus, Silurii system of that geologist, the upper members of wl h system constitute the escarpments of My&ydd Bwli v-groes and Hynydd-Eppynt. The county in wild, magnificent, and beautiful scenery. ' n many rivers in Brecknockshire, but none .a. The principal are the Wye and the Usk. The rdors tho county on the N.E. for above 30 miles, HL' it from the county of Radnor. It flows by Builttnd Hay, at the Litter place entering Herefordshire, and si sequently joining the Severn. The scenery along se is of singular beauty, and charmingly diver- Tho Usk has its source on the Carmarthenshire . and Mowing in a south-easterly direction, passes knock to Crickhowell, thence entering Mon- iire. Among the other rivers are the Claerwen, .i.rthern border of the county ; the Irvon, which > the Wye near Builth, the Honddhu, joining at Brecknock ; the Taf, formed by the union of .. ' nl the Brecknockshire Beacons, and r a rapid course southwards, enters the county of
 * i y others. Part of the district belongs to the
 * 'iin to the W. of Merthyr Tydvil ; the Neath,

Tawe. The NYalh is formed by two streams, 'te and the Hepsk, running southwards from the mi both of which there are cascades, and the 1' which is remarkable for having an .under- above half a mile through a cavern e 1'ortu Ogov, after which it runs over a fall of There are several small lakes in the county, ipal of which is Llyn Safadda, a little to the cknock. It js also called Llangorse pool, or I is about 2 miles long by 1 broad. It cou- ' and perch, and very tine eels. The privilege r here under certain limitations was granted to s nf Brecknock in 1235. There are no impor- rals in the county, with the exception of iron
 * and these are found in the beds belonging to

coal-field of South Wales, which extend across iary of Monmouthshire a short distance into this Limestone is found in the western part of tho Near Ponderyn and Pont Neath Vaughan am xcellent fire-clay. Traces of lead and copper discovered, but attempts to work them have not been si -essful. Brecknockshire, from the great irregu- l:n : s surface, the height, of its mountains, and depth . of its v leys, has a singularly various climate. The dis- te Kppynt Hills, extending between Builth and .Trec.st, is the most desolate part of the county, and the mi'-i >it to severe cold, snow, rain, and storms. ate is similar on the lofty mountains of the range. In the valleys the temperature is Although much rain falls, the air is not found icalthy. There is a great variety of soils in ty, but the proportion of good land is very n the slaty tract of the north and the coal dis- 'ie southern border there is much clay, which surface cold and wet. A fertile loam exists onir i banks of the Wye and the Irvon. In the red districts of the centre, along the valley of 'the soil is remarkably light and sandy, but yielding good grain crops. The best soil is und ii he eastern quarter, in tho hund. of Talgarth id Ci ;howell, where excellent crops of wheat are produced. In this district are some hop-grounds, and orchards, from which good cider is made. An Agricul- tural Society was established at Brecknock in 17 55, to whose exertions the county owes many of the improve- ments in farming which havo been effected. It was tho first society of the kind in Wales, and one of the earliest in Great Britain. Barley and oats are the principal crops grown on tho cold clays, and oats on the high grounds. The produce of ordinary grain, peas, turnips, and potatoes is sufficient for home consumption. The mountainous tracts afford pasturage to the native breed of small black cattle and the small mountain sheep. In the valley of the Usk and other lowlands the Hereford- shire breed of white-faced cattle is found, and many varieties have sprung from the intermixture of this and the native breed. Brecknockshire has also a good native breed of small horses. The county is divided into the six hundreds of Builth, Crickhowell, Devynnock, Mer- thyr, Penkelly, and Talgarth. Brecknock is the county town and the only borough. The county contains four market towns Brecknock, Builth, Crickhowell, and Hay, all of which are the heads of Poor-law Unions and County Court districts. Tho assizes are held at Breck- nock, the county being included in the South Wales cir- cuit. For ecclesiastical purposes Brecknock is com- prised in the archdeac. of Brecknock, in the dioc. of St. David's, and prov. of Canterbury. Itcontains 66 pars., 3 of which are in Brecknock, and 1 2,929 inhabited houses, with a population, according to the census of 1861, of 61,627, having increased 153 in the decennial period from 1851. The county returns one member, and the borough of Brecknock one, to the imperial parliament. The local government is vested in a lord-lieutenant, a high sheriff, and a body of magistrates, in number between 40 and 50. Brecknockshire has no important manufacture, ex- cept that of iron, which employs a large number of per- sons. The works are chiefly situated near the south- eastern border, and are those of Clydach, in Llanelly ; Beaufort, in Llangattock ; Romney, and Ynyscedemi. Attempts were at one time made to establish the linen and woollen manufactures, but without permanent suc- cess. Flannel, coarse cloth, baize, and stockings are made to a small extent. There are numerous tanyards, and the leather made is considered of excellent quality. The county exports cattle and sheep, manufactured iron, leather, fire-clay, &c. The remains of antiquity in this county are numerous and interesting. Among those of British origin are several stone circles, camps, and crom- lechs one of the last mentioned is called Ty Illtyd ; and remains of ancient camps or British towns may be seen at Pemnyarth, Crug Hywel, near Crickhowell, and at Venni Wood, Llanvillo, Aberhran, &c. Traces are found of two important Roman stations, the principal of which is the Caer Barman, situated on the banks of the Usk, where the Yscir meets it. This is a rectangular camp, supposed to be identical with Eannium, a British town which preceded Brecknock, und was adopted as a station by the Reman general, Ostorius Scapula. This station occupied a space above 620 feet long and 456 feet broad, and the remains of it are still considerable, comprising the ruins of several ramparts and the foun- dations of walls, in several places from 3 to 6 feet high, partly overgrown with underwood. But the stones were removed by the Norman Conqueror of Brecknockshire, Newmarch, to his castle lower down the Usk, where the county town now stands. Here is also a curious ancient relic called Maen-y-moncynion, or the Maiden Stone, adorned with carving, and bearing a Latin inscription, now almost obliterated. The other station, also called Cacr, or Gaer, and of about the same extent, is near Cwm Dhu, in the hund. of Crickhowell. Fragments of bricks are strewed over the sites, and Roman coins have been found at both stations. The way allied the Via, Julia Montana, a branch of that formed along the south coast of Wales, and called the Via Julia Maritima, entered this county near Abergavenny (the Roman Gobannium), and passing the Caer and the Caer Bannau, crossed into Carmarthenshire. Scarcely any vestiges of this road remain. There were two vicinal or cross roads con-