I have from time to time been reading through the some of the journals that are available at “Welsh Journals on Line” site which is a fantastic resource for people wanting to know more about life in past times.   Recently I have been reading back issues of the Journal of the Cardiganshire Antiquarian Society and thought list members might be interested in a few snippets from them.   Lead mining was a key activity in Cardiganshire not only for the lead ore itself but also for the silver ore that was there.  In 1698 Sir Humphrey Mackworth of Neath decided to raise money for the development of his mines.  His Yorkshire born mine manager put together a prospectus which promised investors an annual profit of £171,970 9s. 9d. from the sale of lead alone.  Silver ore profits would be in addition to this.  Sir Humphrey had bought the shares in his company for £15,000.  Even in today’s money those amounts would be large numbers and provide an amazing return.  The National Archives estimate that £15,000 is about £1.7 million and that £171,000 is about £13 million in today’s terms.   At about the same time gunpowder began to be used in mines reducing the costs of extraction by about 90 per cent (according to Lewis Morris).  I could not find an equivalent analysis of the effect on the miners themselves.  Although there is a note that some miners were forced to buy extortionately priced provisions from shops which had been opened by mining company agents.  Lewis Morris fired one such agent in 1763.   I had always supposed that my ancestors who left West Wales for the mines in South East Wales did so solely as part of the industrial revolution and the move away from agriculture.  Whilst this was part of it there had been seasonal migrations of harvest gangs from Cardiganshire and Pembrokeshire for years before this returning home after the harvest.   Apparently in the Vale of Glamorgan the “Cardies” were known for their thrift and piety.  They slept in the farmer’s barns, which at night rang with the music of old Welsh hymns, and on Sunday’s filled the “free seats” in the Nonconformist Chapels.  They did however, have one habit that the local Chapel caretakers did not like, namely chewing tobacco.  Apparently they would chew throughout the service, and the more they like the service the more they chewed and spat!   Megan