the record seems to indicate that the place was already sacred as connected with the "Martyr Issiu" (Merthir issiu). And I take it that the western annex, or chapel, marks the site of the original hut and oratory, to which in after-time, a nave and chancel were added eastwards. The stone altar and the shrine handed on the sacredness of the primitive hermitage; the two stone altars in the nave, perhaps once the chancel of that added portion, betoken its reputation for sanctity, while the rich screen and rood-loft tell of the liberal offerings made by its devotees. It may be that the memory of beneficent and holy services rendered in the past saved it from the ruthless hand of the Commonwealth iconoclasts; or, at all events, that its secluded and solitary position at the foot of the Black Mountain was a sufficient protection. But had the place been always so lonely and little frequented? Was this the "Ultima Thule" the final goal of the pilgrim, or was it only a brief resting-place on his further journey? Did that deep-worn lane along which we had toiled end here, or was it continued on to other and busier spots ? To us who have come to depend so much on the railway and the wheeled conveyance it may look like the end of all things; but when people travelled only on foot or on horseback, it mattered but little whether the road was rough or smooth, over hill or through valley, so long as there was a firm foothold and a shelter in time of need. And this was in early times the way from Llantwit and Cardiff and Llandav to Hereford and Ludlow; one early map shows the lane continued on by Capel y Ffin to Hay.

After much deliberation, I have entitled this article. "Partrishow," rather than "Patrishow" as Professor Westwood wrote it in 1856, or "Patricio," under which the church was described in 1864 by Sir Stephen Glynne, and in 1874 by Mr. Matthew H. Bloxam; or "Patrishaw," as it is also sometimes given. But, strange to say, not one of these names is found in any document known to be earlier than the sixteenth century.