Gwaith Goronwy Owen Cyf II/Anibyniaeth Barn

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ANIBYNIAETH BARN.
[At William Morris, Meh. 25, 1754]

BENDITH DDUW a ffynno iwch' am fenthyg eich Telyn Ledr; na thybiwch y byddaf mor greulawn anghrist'nogawl a'i chadw 'n rhy hir, rhag eich nychu o hiraeth! Och fi, onid gwych a fyddai gael tipyn ychwaneg o'r barddoniaeth yna? Ni flinwn byth bythoedd arno.

Ond dywedwch chwi a ddywetoch, ni wnewch byth i mi hoffi eich câr D. ap Gwilym yn fwy na 'r hen Gyrph. Er hynny i gyd ni ddywedais i erioed, fel yr y'ch chwi yn haeru, fod Gwalchmai wedi gwneuthur imi ffieiddio ar Ddeian, ond ar gywyddau pwy bynnag a'u gwnelsynt. Anacreon. amongst the Greeks and Ovid among the Latins, give to some people of particular complexions the most exquisite pleasure and delight. I do not condemn such people's taste; but give me Homer and Virgil; and, in my poor opinion, so much does Gwalchmai excel D. ap Gwilym and his class, as Homer does Anacreon. But every man to his own taste. I claim no sovereignty over any man's judgment, but would be glad to have the liberty of judging for myself.

Ai e! Cymro oedd Emrys Phylib? F' allai mai e. Ond mi adwaenwn frawd iddo oedd yn werthwr llyfrau yn Nghroes Oswallt nas mynnasai er dim ei gyfri'n Gymro. Pa ddelw bynnag ni wnaeth yr hen Ddeon mor llawer o gamwri ag ef. He did but expose and ridicule the infantine style for fear it should get in vogue as the taste of the age, and that we should have Iliads written in it; which is no more than I would have done, had I lived in D. ap Iemwnt's time, or in Gytun Gwrecsam's pan gaethiwodd y Braidd Gyffwrdd ac y dychymygawdd Orchest y Beirdd. I own with you that the Distressed Mother', my favourite tragedy, etc., are in esteem to this day, and that deservedly, and I will venture further to say that they will continue so while the English language is esteemed; but as to the preference given him to Pope by Mr. Addison, I can by no means agree with you; that being altogether a genteel sneer and satire upon his Pastorals. Can you read his commendations of Mr Ph***'s pastorals, where he quotes a passage with a How agreeable to nature, etc.!' without discovering the sneer? For my part, when I compare the passage commended with the 'commendation, methinks I see before my eyes the wry face and the grin. And, if he had pleased, he might have said as much of Pope's; for, in truth, I could heartily wish that neither of them had ever attempted to write Pastorals; their genius being much better adapted to greater things. They should have left Pastorals to "gentle Gay", who notwithstanding all his fustian, as it is called, is the only Englishman that deserves the name of a pastoral poet.

When you say, "Dyweded Camden a fynno, ni buasai'n hynafiaid byth yn dyfeisio y fath chwedl heb na lliw na llun, etc.", I cannot forbear smiling (I beg pardon for being so rude). If we have no better proof of our Trojan extraction than the bare veracity of our ancestors, I fear we may drop the argument; for I am afraid that if we say our forefathers neither could, nor would, fib upon occasions, we may be reckoned very great fibbers ourselves. Yet I cannot see what they could propose to themselves by inventing such a tale, unless it were to ingratiate themselves with the Romans by laying claim to the same common ancestors; and indeed that was temptation enough in all conscience. But admitting the story of Brutus to be true, and allowing Geoffrey of Monmouth all the authority and authenticity he can desire, and every other advantage, save infallibility, and I care not much if he had that too, yet it were absurd and even ridiculous to imagine the main bulk of our nation to be his descendants. What would you say were I to affirm that the good people of England were all descended from William the Conqueror, or that they are all Hanoverians, because his present Majesty is one? Brutus was here and was king, if you please, but still he and I are nothing akin.