Mountains are the barriers against change. Wherever there are moun tains you will find old memoria old beliefs, old habits, and unaltered ways. And the Welsh have perhaps changed less than any race in the British Isles. Someone has said that if a Roman colonial official of the second century could travel in Snowdonia, he would, in all probability recognize the hillman of to. day as the tribal Briton of yesterday. For the Welsh. I need hardly remind you, are the real Britons. After the Róman withdraw the Britons, driven westward by the invading Saxons, established themselves in the mountains and hills their descendants still inhabit. The name Welsh, comes from early days. It was the name given them by me Sexons; a word of Germanic origin, meaning foreigners. Apparently the Saxons called all whose, language they. could not understand. by that name. The Welsh called themselves "Cymry," which means comrades; and they called the protecting mountains by a somewhat similar name.
Driven westward, the Welsh were not conquered; they withdrew before the superior forces of the Saxon armies, but remained a menace for centuries. If time permitted, what a thrilling story could be told of life on the border, where the Lords of the Marches held their fortress ever.on the defence against the Britons in the hills of Wales.
It is fitting that we have to-night as the occasion of our vice, the presence of the men of the Royal Welch Fusiliers. The Welsh have been, and have produced formidable fighting men since the earliest days. Wales has never ceased fighting. When we first see the Britons, they are defying Caesar on the white cliffs of Dover. We see them fighting the Saxons. Later we see them helping the Saxon Earls to defy the Norman Barons. Then, for centuries Wales became the recruiting ground for the French Wars. The Welsh archers were the real victors of Cressy, and Agincourt. They taught us how to draw the long bow to the ear thing, before closing down again on an impenetrable mystery." Of this we are sure, David was a good man and a great man. All we know historically is that he was a great theologian, convincingly refuting the Pelagian heresy, and that he died at the age of 70. However we have tradition as well as history, and it is possible to construct a fairly consistent life of the Patron Saint.
Tradition tells us he was born near St Brides; he was of Princely family; of tall and dignified bearing, well fitted to become a leader of men. After taking Priests' Orders, he went to the School of Paulinus, and was there for many years, leaving it to come to the little valley where he built his Church and directed a monastic brotherhood.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.