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Proverbs and recurrent, deep problems often go hand in hand. Below is the digest of the English part of a collection of Welch proverbs and maxims with English renderings, The Proverbs of Wales, collected by T. R. Roberts. Here are 111 proverbs and 73 entries from Robert's considerably larger, bilingual volume. For most part the focus here is on sayings of much value to others than Welch people too, at least if considered metaphorically. Entries appear alphabetically here, and not as in the original. However, since the original collection has an index, assessing both Welch expressions and unmodified English renderings there, will pose no great problems. Book data is furnished further down.
AdversityIn distress a friend is best (No. 15).
Advice
The fool loves not those who advise him (No. 13).
Odious is an orchard without apples (No. 5).
Bare is the land a sheep will not graze (No. 23).
Husbandry is no monkery (No. 28).
Who avoids not the smoke will avoid not its harm (No. 2).
It is [quite] easy to be cautious (Mod, no. 4).
The best choice is to do good (No. 5).
In every choice there is perplexity (No. 12).
He who complains of excess does not grieve at all (No. 2).
The hired ox cannot complain (No. 10).
The best of every man is his conscience (No. 3).
It is one thing to say, another to do (No. 18).
The best courage is to consider before striking (No. 7).
It is easy to incite the bold (No. 9).
There is no miser without his load of trouble (No. 15).
There is no belief without evidence (No. 10).
Long will the dumb be at the gate of the deaf (No. 1).
He who is dead will not be seen soon (No. 2).
Through the gates of death we may view a better world (Mod, no. 36).
Hypocrisy is natural to the deceitful (No. 8).
He is not as easily deceived who has been forewarned (Mod, no. 15).
He who will not take what he can get may not have what he wishes (Mod, no. 7).
Two parts of success [could be proper] diligence (Mod, no. 5).
The drop will perforate the stone (No. 22).
It is not easy to rob a thief (No. 14).
He who takes learning let him keep it (No. 4).
Keep securely what you learn (No. 6).
Odious is a scholar without books (No. 10).
It is natural for the learned to have a library (No. 17).
Better education than perfect wealth (No. 20).
Happy is he who obtains a good name, unless he is a monkey (Mod, no. 2).
None are timid but that run away (No. 13).
Woe to him who flatters everyone (No. 2).
Great is the poison of the flatterer (No. 3).
Every foolish person is an enemy (No. 2).
There are many kinds of folly (No. 3).
A man is feeble without nourishment (No. 2).
The best food may be milk (Mod, no. 8).
In distress will the faithful friend be seen (No. 5).
What man does God will judge (No. 5).
It is not the property of God that is disowned (No. 18).
He who does good deserves good (No. 2).
An art above many other arts is to be artful in goodness (Mod, no. 4).
Many men can do much good (No. 10).
A story hopefully loses nothing by being repeated (Mod, no. 9).
Hair by hair the head becomes bald, (No. 5).
In every honour there is respect (No. 16).
Many a hope in vain (No. 4).
The wiser the man the more humble he is (No. 7).
To throw brine into the sea (No. 4).
To show the path to one that knows it (No. 13).
Let every boat stand on its own bottom (No. 4).
Let everyone stand on his own feet (No. 5).
Excess of anything is not good (No. 5).
Bare is the cheek of the jealous (No. 5).
Do not joke with an enemy (No. 4).
The idle must have something to do (No. 23).
He who distributes to the many, let him do it kindly (No. 2).
He who has distributed has obtained heaven (No. 3).
He who has nothing cannot be liberal (No. 14).
It will not do to trust to long life (No. 8).
If love could see its weakness it would die of fright (No. 43).
The memory of a child is good (No. 4).
The unlucky will get a thorn in his porridge (No. 6).
All musicians are brothers (No. 2). [Of course not.]
Do not expect to find every musician wise (No. 8).
It is not with an axe that the violin is played (No. 9).
The want of the spring is not felt until it is dry (No. 20).
The best of the aged is his advice (No. 4).
The strength of the bee its patience (No. 8).
Odious is he who commits perjury until no one believes (No. 2).
Better play than fight (No. 8).
Play not till harm comes (No. 9).
A cat will not play after she is a year old (No. 10).
The best play is respectable *.
Let all do what noble they can (Mod, no. 4).
Handy is every skilful (No. 7).
Sound use may make masters (Mod, no. 4).
The best custom is rectitude (No. 13).
The best habit is to improve one's self (No. 14).
Let all praise the bridge that carries them over (No. 5).
Proud are ducks in the rain (No. 3).
Do not seek dignity from pride (No. 14).
A youth's promise is like the froth of water (No. 7).
The best place of defence is a sufficient distance (No. 2).
Before beginning see the end (No. 4).
Every prudent one is wise (No. 5).
Long consideration is hopefully better than violence (Mod, no. 9).
What God appoints let man respect (No. 2).
He that would revenge heavily on his foe let him conduct himself uprightly (No. 2]
Unsavoury is the revenge of the unskilful. *
Too much sickness does no good (No. 15).
In a major disease there is danger (Mod, no. 21).
Not much good may be expected from oversleeping (Mod, no. 8).
He who would succeed let him ask the consent of idleness (No. 1).
Badly will the devil keep his servant (No. 3).
The devil is civil as long as he is coaxed (No. 4).
The strength of a woman is her tongue (No. 5).
Odious is he who threatens everyone and whom no one fears (No. 1).
It is not easy to hide from time (No. 4).
There is nothing without some virtue in it (No. 3).
The religion of the devil is to instigate war (No. 1).
There is hope for a man from war, but not from the grave (No. 2).
Cold is the liquid of the slaughter, (No. 3).
In every warfare there is anxiety (No. 4).
There is no weak thing without its strength (No. 3).
The best wealth is wisdom (No. 10).
In all sin there is deep folly (Mod, no. 44).
The father of wisdom is memory and his mother is reflection (No. 23).
The best work is to do good (No. 3).
Blows received in youth are felt in old age (No. 7).
One strength of the young is obedience (Mod, no. 8).
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Roberts, T. R. comp. The Proverbs of Wales. Pennmaenmawr, North Wales: T. R. Roberts, 1885.
Harvesting the hay
Symbols, brackets, signs and text icons explained: (1) Text markers — (2) Digesting.
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