384 pages. Complete an unabridged!
From the INTRODUCTORY NOTE.
This rendering of 'Welsh Proverbs' was made by my father in the last few years of his life. Originally undertaken as an employment for leisure hours, the work grew under his hands, and it was finally his intention to translate all the 'Welsh Proverbs,' together with such of the laws and Bardic aphorisms as seemed to embody and give expression to the national wisdom. In many cases the original meaning of the proverbs was hard to discover, owing to the quaintness of their diction and the obscurity of the illustrations by which they were expressed. The English Rhyme, therefore, does not profess to be a literal translation of the British Reason ; it merely attempts to express the original sentiments in language as far as possible analogous to that used by the Welsh sages.
My father had intended to write an introductory essay dealing with the subject as a whole, but at the time of his death this was only just commenced. Until lately I have been prevented by other work from giving up the time necessary for correcting the press. As it is, my work has been much facilitated by the kindness of Professor Rhys, who has revised all the Welsh before it was finally sent to press, though where the Welsh is capable of various meanings he is not responsible for the rendering adopted. I am glad of this opportunity of gratefully acknowledging my indebtedness to him.
–W. W. V., Brighton, 1889.