Some said that he was travelling through the valleys,
accompanied by some of the harpers, who have always taken a leading
part in stirring up the Welsh to insurrection. Some avow that he has
retired to a fortress, and was there weaving designs for the overthrow
of Lord Grey, and even of the whole of the English castles. Some say
that he claims to be a descendant of Llewellyn, and the rightful king
of Wales.
"There is some foundation for this, for I have talked to some of the
better class of Welsh; who have, like Glendower, studied in our
universities. The Welsh are, above all things, fond of long pedigrees,
and can trace, or pretend to trace, the lineage of all their principal
families up to Noah; and some of them admit that there is some ground
for the claim Glendower is said to have made.
"Still, all these rumours make me feel uneasy. As we have had many
years of quiet here, it has not been necessary to keep up more than a
sufficient number of men-at-arms for the defence of this castle. I
might have increased the force, for the people of these parts bear a
deep animosity against the Welsh, and dread them greatly; as they may
well do, from the many wrongs and outrages they have suffered at their
hands.
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