two long-horned oxen, bellowing horribly, went,
one on either side the lake, and with their mother disappeared within its
waters, and none were ever afterwards seen.

Notwithstanding that tradition buries these celebrated cattle in this
lake, I find in a book published by Dr. John Williams, the father of the
Rev. John Williams, M.A., Vicar of Llanwddyn, in the year 1830, on the
"Natural History of Llanrwst," the following statement. The author in
page 17, when speaking of _Gwydir_, says:--

"In the middle court (which was once surrounded by the house), there is a
large bone, which appears to be the rib of some species of whale, but
according to the vulgar opinion, it is the rib of the Dun Cow (_y Fuwch
Frech_), killed by the Earl of Warwick."

It may be stated that Llanrwst is not many miles distant from
Cerrig-y-drudion and yet we have in these places conflicting traditions,
which I will not endeavour to reconcile.

The Shropshire tale of the Fairy Cow is much the same as the preceding.
There she is known as _The White Cow of __Mitchell's Fold_. This place
is situated on the Corndon Hill, a bare moorland in the extreme west of
Shropshire. To this day there is to be seen there a stone circle known
as Mitchell's Fold.

The story of the Shropshire Cow is this. There was a dire famine in
those parts, and the people depended for support on a beautiful white
cow, a Fairy cow, that gave milk to everybody, and it mattered not how
many came, there was always enough for all, and it was to be so, so long
as every one who came only took one pailful. The cow came night and
morning to be milked, and it made no difference what size the vessel was
that was brought by each person, for she always gave enough milk to fill
it, and all the other pails. At last, there came an old witch to
Mitchell's Fold, and in spite and malice she brought a riddle and milked
the cow into it; she milked and milked, and at last she milked her dry,
and after that the cow was never seen. Folk say she was turned into a
stone.

I am indebted to Miss Burne's _Shropshire Folk-Lore_ for the particulars
above given.

A like tale is to be heard in Warwickshire, and also in Lancashire, near
Preston, where the Dun cow gave freely her milk to all in time of
drought, and disappeared on being subjected to the treatment of the Welsh
and Shropshire cow.

Mr. Lloyd, Llanfihangel Glyn Myfyr, gave me a different tale of the _Dau
ychain Banawg_ to that already