From sean@... Thu Mar 22 05:44:13 2007 Return-Path: X-Sender: sean@... X-Apparently-To: mysterylights@yahoogroups.com Received: (qmail 6884 invoked from network); 22 Mar 2007 12:44:11 -0000 Received: from unknown (66.218.67.33) by m28.grp.scd.yahoo.com with QMQP; 22 Mar 2007 12:44:11 -0000 Received: from unknown (HELO n22a.bullet.scd.yahoo.com) (66.94.237.51) by mta7.grp.scd.yahoo.com with SMTP; 22 Mar 2007 12:44:11 -0000 Received: from [66.218.69.3] by n22.bullet.scd.yahoo.com with NNFMP; 22 Mar 2007 12:43:55 -0000 Received: from [66.218.66.85] by t3.bullet.scd.yahoo.com with NNFMP; 22 Mar 2007 12:43:55 -0000 Date: Thu, 22 Mar 2007 12:43:52 -0000 To: mysterylights@yahoogroups.com Message-ID: User-Agent: eGroups-EW/0.82 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable X-Mailer: Yahoo Groups Message Poster X-Yahoo-Newman-Property: groups-compose X-Originating-IP: 66.94.237.51 X-eGroups-Msg-Info: 1:6:0:0 X-Yahoo-Post-IP: 80.3.64.9 From: "Sean B. Palmer" Subject: James Motley's Notes to the Canwyll Corph X-Yahoo-Group-Post: member; u=264160903; y=eNSDnNKBZ6LtHeubmqW-prgq63ckU6vsTyyEN92Vypvg9A-KwguTCg X-Yahoo-Profile: sean_b_palmer Another transcription, this time of James Motley, Notes to the Canwyll Corph (i.e. Corpse Candle), from his 1848 Tales of the Cymry: http://inamidst.com/lights/wisp/motley1848 - James Motley, Quote from Tales of the Cymry Motley says that he has himself seen the ignis fatuus often, on "bogs, and even upon the mountain roads of Glamorganshire". After describing them, he says that though they're probably caused by phosphoretted hydrogen (the prevailing theory of the time), he has also observed some lights attached to riders and horses that appear more to be electrical in origin. These ignes lambens he says the Welsh call Ellyl D=C3=A2n or "Goblin fire". There was apparently a valley containing a tributary of the Rhondda fawr in Monmouthshire/Glamorgan which was well known for the Goblin fire, getting it the name "the Valley of glooms or spirits". It might be nice to attempt to locate this on a map. He then quotes Jabez Allies's piece on the subject of Will-o'-the-wisps, and goes on to say that St. Elmo's Fire ("known among sailors by the name of Corposants") are probably their electrical counterparts. Overall, his approach seems both learned an unpretentious, and generally insightful. It's a great shame that he didn't write more about his own experiences, &c. Cheers, -- Sean B. Palmer http://inamidst.com/lights/