"Thatisagreatdeal,"saidI,"foragroatIoughttohaveapintofalemadeofthebestmaltandhops。"
"IgiveyouthebestIcanafford。Onemustlivebywhatonesells。Idonotfindthateasywork。"
"Isthishouseyourown?"
"Ohno!Ipayrentforit,andnotacheapone。"
"Haveyouahusband?
"Ihad,butheisdead。"
"Haveyouanychildren?"
"Ihadthree,buttheyaredeadtoo,andburiedwithmyhusbandatthemonastery。"
"Whereisthemonastery?"
"Agoodwayfartheron,atthestrathbeyondRhydFendigaid。"
"Whatisthenameofthelittleriverbythehouse?"
"AvonMarchnad(MarketRiver)。"
"WhyisitcalledAvonMarchnad?"
"Truly,gentleman,Icannottellyou。"
IwentonsippingmyaleandfindingfaultwithitsbitternesstillIhadfinishedit,whengettingupIgavetheoldladyhergroat,badeherfarewell,anddeparted。
CHAPTERXCI
PontyRhydFendigaid—StrataFlorida—TheYew—Tree—Idolatry—
TheTeivi—TheLlostlydan。
ANDnowfortheresting—placeofDafyddAbGwilym!AfterwanderingforsomemilestowardsthesouthoverableakmoorycountryIcametoaplacecalledFairRhos,amiserablevillage,consistingofafewhalf—ruinedcottages,situatedonthetopofahill。FromthehillIlookeddownonawidevalleyofarussetcolour,alongwhichariverrantowardsthesouth。Thewholescenewascheerless。
Sullenhillswereallaround。DescendingthehillIenteredalargevillagedividedintotwobytheriver,whichhererunsfromeasttowest,butpresentlymakesaturn。Therewasmuchmireinthestreet;immenseswinelayinthemire,whoturneduptheirsnoutsatmeasIpassed。WomeninWelshhatsstoodinthemire,alongwithmenwithoutanyhatsatall,butwithshortpipesintheirmouths;theyweretalkingtogether;asIpassed,however,theyheldtheirtongues,thewomenleeringcontemptuouslyatme,themenglaringsullenlyatme,andcausingtobaccosmokecurlinmyface;onmytakingoffmyhat,howeverandinquiringthewaytotheMonachlog,everybodywascivilenough,andtwentyvoicestoldmethewaytheMonastery。Iaskedthenameoftheriver:
"TheTeivi,sir:theTeivi。"
"Thenameofthebridge?"
"PonyyRhydFendigaid—theBridgeoftheBlessedFord,sir。"
IcrossedtheBridgeoftheBlessedFord,andpresentlyleavingthemainroad,Iturnedtotheeastbyadung—hill,upanarrowlaneparallelwiththeriver。Afterproceedingamileupthelane,amidsttreesandcopses,andcrossingalittlebrook,whichrunsintotheTeivi,outofwhichIdrank,Isawbeforemeinthemidstofafield,inwhichweretombstonesandbrokenruins,arustic—
lookingchurch;afarm—housestoodnearit,inthegardenofwhichstoodtheframeworkofalargegateway。Icrossedoverintothechurchyard,ascendedagreenmound,andlookedaboutme。IwasnowintheverymidstoftheMonachlogYstradFlur,thecelebratedmonasteryofStrataFlorida,towhichinoldtimesPopishpilgrimsfromallpartsoftheworldrepaired。Thescenewassolemnandimpressive:onthenorthsideoftheriveralargebulkyhilllookeddownupontheruinsandthechurch,andonthesouthside,somewaybehindthefarm—house,wasanotherwhichdidthesame。
Ruggedmountainsformedthebackgroundofthevalleytotheeast,downfromwhichcamemurmuringthefleetbutshallowTeivi。SuchisthescenerywhichsurroundswhatremainsofStrataFlorida:
thosescantybrokenruinscomposeallwhichremainsofthatcelebratedmonastery,inwhichsaintsandmitredabbotswereburied,andinwhich,orinwhoseprecincts,wasburiedDafyddAbGwilym,thegreatestgeniusoftheCimbricraceandoneofthefirstpoetsoftheworld。
AfterstandingforsometimeonthemoundIdescended,andwentuptothechurch。Ifoundthedoorfastened,butobtainedthroughawindowatolerableviewoftheinterior,whichpresentedanappearanceofthegreatestsimplicity。Ithenstrolledaboutthechurchyardlookingatthetombstones,whichwerehumbleenoughandforthemostpartmodern。Iwouldgivesomething,saidI,toknowwhereaboutsinthisneighbourhoodAbGwilymlies。That,however,isasecretthatnoonecanrevealtome。AtlengthIcametoayew—treewhichstoodjustbythenorthernwall,whichisataslightdistancefromtheTeivi。Itwasoneoftwotrees,bothofthesamespecies,whichstoodinthechurchyard,andappearedtobetheoldestofthetwo。Whoknows,saidI,butthisisthetreethatwasplantedoverAbGwilym’sgrave,andtowhichGruffyddGrygwroteanode?Ilookedatitattentively,andthoughtthattherewasjustapossibilityofitsbeingtheidenticaltree。Ifitwas,however,thebenisonofGruffyddGryghadnothadexactlytheeffectwhichheintended,foreitherlightningortheforceofwindhadsplittenoffaconsiderablepartoftheheadandtrunk,sothatthoughonepartofitlookedstrongandblooming,theotherwaswhiteandspectral。Nevertheless,relyingonthepossibilityofitsbeingthesacredtree,IbehavedjustasIshouldhavedonehadIbeenquitecertainofthefact。TakingoffmyhatIkneltdownandkisseditsroot,repeatinglinesfromGruffyddGryg,withwhichIblendedsomeofmyowninordertoaccommodatewhatIsaidtopresentcircumstances:—
"Otreeofyew,whichhereIspy,ByYstradFlur’sblestmonast’ry,Beneaththeelies,bycoldDeathbound,Thetongueforsweetnessoncerenown’d。
Betterfortheethyboughstowave,Thoughscath’d,aboveAbGwilym’sgrave,ThanstandinpristineglorydrestWheresomeignoblerbarddothrest;
I’dratherhearatauntingrhymeFromonewho’lllivethroughendlesstime,ThanhearmypraiseschantedloudBypoetsofthevulgarcrowd。"
Ihadleftthechurchyard,andwasstandingnearakindofgarden,atsomelittledistancefromthefarm—house,gazingaboutmeandmeditating,whenamancameupattendedbyalargedog。Hehadratherayouthfullook,wasofthemiddlesize,anddarkcomplexioned。Hewasrespectablydressed,exceptthatuponhisheadheworeacommonhairycap。
"Goodevening,"saidItohiminWelsh。
"Goodevening,gentleman,"saidheinthesamelanguage。
"HaveyoumuchEnglish?"saidI。
"Verylittle;Icanonlyspeakafewwords。"
"Areyouthefarmer?"
"Yes!IfarmthegreaterpartoftheStrath。"
"Isupposethelandisverygoodhere?"
"Whydoyousupposeso?"
"Becausethemonksbuilttheirhousehereintheoldtime,andthemonksneverbuilttheirhousesexceptongoodland。"
"Well,Imustsaythelandisgood;indeedIdonotthinkthereisanysogoodinShireAberteifi。"
"Isupposeyouaresurprisedtoseemehere;IcametoseetheoldMonachlog。"
"Yes,gentleman;Isawyoulookingaboutit。"
"AmIwelcometoseeit?"
"Croesaw!gwrboneddig,croesaw!many,manywelcomestoyou,gentleman!"
"Domanypeoplecometoseethemonastery?"
FARMER。—Yes!manygentlefolkscometoseeitinthesummertime。
MYSELF。—Itisapoorplacenow。
FARMER。—Verypoor,Iwonderanygentlefolkscometolookatit。
MYSELF。—Itwasawonderfulplaceonce;youmerelyseetheruinsofitnow。ItwaspulleddownattheReformation。
FARMER。—Whywasitpulleddownthen?
MYSELF。—Becauseitwasahouseofidolatrytowhichpeopleusedtoresortbyhundredstoworshipimages。Hadyoulivedatthattimeyouwouldhaveseenpeopledownontheirkneesbeforestocksandstones,worshippingthem,kissingthem,andrepeatingpennilliontothem。
FARMER。—Whatfools!HowthankfulIamthatIliveinwiserdays。
IfsuchthingsweregoingonintheoldMonachlogitwashightimetopullitdown。
MYSELF。—Whatkindofarentdoyoupayforyourland?
FARMER。—Oh,ratherastiffishone。
MYSELF。—Twopoundsanacre?
FARMER。—Twopoundanacre!IwishIpaidnomore!
MYSELF。—Well,Ithinkthatwouldbequiteenough。Inthetimeoftheoldmonasteryyoumighthavehadthelandattwoshillingsanacre。
FARMER。—MightI?Thenthosecouldn’thavebeensuchbadtimes,afterall。
MYSELF。—Ibegyourpardon!Theywerehorribletimes—timesinwhichthereweremonksandfriarsandgravenimages,whichpeoplekissedandworshippedandsangpennillionto。Betterpaythreepoundsanacreandliveoncrustsandwaterinthepresentenlighteneddaysthanpaytwoshillingsanacreandsitdowntobeefandalethreetimesadayintheoldsuperstitioustimes。
FARMER。—Well,Iscarcelyknowwhattosaytothat。
MYSELF。—Whatdoyoucallthathighhillontheothersideoftheriver?
FARMER。—IcallthathillBunkPenBannedd。
MYSELF。—IsthesourceoftheTeivifarfromhere?
FARMER。—TheheadoftheTeiviisabouttwomilesfromherehighupinthehills。
MYSELF。—WhatkindofplaceistheheadoftheTeivi?
FARMER。—TheheadoftheTeiviisasmalllakeaboutfiftyyardslongandtwentyacross。
MYSELF。—WheredoestheTeivirunto?
FARMER。—TheTeivirunstothesea,whichitentersataplacewhichtheCumricallAberTeiviandtheSaxonsCardigan。
MYSELF。—Don’tyoucallCardiganshireShireAberTeivi?
FARMER。—Wedo。
MYSELF。—AretheremanygleisiaidintheTeivi?
FARMER。—Plenty,andsalmonstoo—thatis,fartherdown。Thebestplaceforsalmonandgleisiaidisaplace,agreatwaydownthestream,calledDinasEmlyn。
MYSELF。—DoyouknowananimalcalledLlostlydan?
FARMER。—No,Idonotknowthatbeast。
MYSELF。—ThereusedtobemanyintheTeivi。
FARMER。—WhatkindofbeastistheLlostlydan?
MYSELF。—Abeastwithabroadtail,onwhichaccounttheoldCumrididcallhimLlostlydan。Cleverbeasthewas;madehimselfhouseofwoodinmiddleoftheriver,withtwodoors,sothatwhenhuntercameuponhimhemighthavegoodchanceofescape。Hunteroftenafterhim,becausehehadskingoodtomakehat。
FARMER。—Ha,IwishIcouldcatchthatbeastnowinTeivi。
MYSELF。—Whyso?
Farmer。—BecauseIwanthat。Wouldmakemyselfhatofhisskin。
MYSELF。—Oh,youcouldnotmakeyourselfahatevenifyouhadtheskin。
FARMER。—Whynot?ShotconeyinBunkPenBanedd;mademyselfcapofhisskin。Sowhynotmakehatofskinofbroadtail,shouldI
catchhiminTeivi?
MYSELF。—HowfarisittoTregaron?
FARMER。—’Tistenmilesfromhere,andeightfromtheRhydFendigaid。
MYSELF。—MustIgobacktoRhydFendigaidtogettoTregaron?
FARMER。—Youmust。
MYSELF。—ThenImustbegoing,forthenightiscomingdown。
Farewell!
FARMER。—Farvel,Saxongentleman!
CHAPTERXCII
NocturnalJourney—MaesyLynn—TheFigure—EarlofLeicester—
TwmShoneCatti—TheFarmerandBull—TomandtheFarmer—TheCave—TheThreat—TomaJustice—TheBigWigs—Tregaron。
ITwasduskbythetimeIhadregainedthehigh—roadbythevillageoftheRhydFendigaid。
AsIwasyeteightmilesfromTregaron,theplacewhereIintendedtopassthenight,Iputonmybestpace。InalittletimeI
reachedabridgeoverastreamwhichseemedtocarryaconsiderabletributetotheTeivi。
"Whatisthenameofthisbridge?"saidItoamanridinginacart,whomImetalmostimmediatelyafterIhadcrossedthebridge。
"PontVleer,"methoughthesaid,butashisvoicewashuskyandindistinct,verymuchlikethatofapersonsomewhattheworseforliquor,Iambynomeanspositive。
Itwasnowverydusk,andbythetimeIhadadvancedaboutamilefartherdarknightsettleddown,whichcompelledmetoabatemypacealittle,moreespeciallyastheroadwasbynomeansfirst—
rate。Ihadcome,tothebestofmycomputation,aboutfourmilesfromtheRhydFendigaidwhenthemoonbeganpartlytoshowitself,andpresentlybyitsglimmerIsawsomelittlewayoffonmyrighthandwhatappearedtobealargesheetofwater。Iwenton,andinaboutaminutesawtwoorthreehousesontheleft,whichstoodnearlyoppositetotheobjectwhichIhaddeemedtobewater,andwhichnowappearedtobeaboutfiftyyardsdistantinafieldwhichwasseparatedfromtheroadbyaslighthedge。GoinguptotheprincipalhouseIknocked,andawomanmakingherappearanceatthedoor,Isaid:
"Ibegpardonfortroublingyou,butIwishtoknowthenameofthisplace。"
"MaesyLynn—TheFieldoftheLake,"saidthewoman。
"Andwhatisthenameofthelake?"saidI。
"Idonotknow,"saidshe;"buttheplacewhereitstandsiscalledMaesLlyn,asIsaidbefore。"
"Isthelakedeep?"saidI。
"Verydeep,"saidshe。
"Howdeep?"saidI。
"Overthetopsofthehouses,"shereplied。
"Anyfishinthelake?"
"Ohyes!plenty。"
"Whatfish?"
"Oh,therearellysowen,andthefishwecallysgetten。"
"Eelsandtench,"saidI;"anythingelse?"
"Idonotknow,"saidthewoman;"folkssaythatthereusedtobequeerbeastinthelake,water—cowusedtocomeoutatnightandeatpeople’scloverinthefields。"
"Pooh,"saidI,"thatwasmerelysomeperson’scoworhorse,turnedoutatnighttofillitsbellyatotherfolks’expense。"
"Perhapsso,"saidthewoman;"haveyouanymorequestionstoask?"
"Onlyone,"saidI;"howfarisittoTregaron?"
"Aboutthreemiles:areyougoingthere?"
"Yes,IamgoingtoTregaron。"
"Pitythatyoudidnotcomealittletimeago,"saidthewoman;
"youmightthenhavehadpleasantcompanyonyourway;pleasantmanstoppedheretolighthispipe;hetoogoingtoTregaron。"
"Itdoesn’tmatter,"saidI;"Iamneverhappierthanwhenkeepingmyowncompany。"Biddingthewomangoodnight,Iwenton。Themoonnowshonetolerablybright,sothatIcouldseemyway,andI
spedonatagreatrate。Ihadproceedednearlyhalfamile,whenIthoughtIheardstepsinadvance,andpresentlysawafigureatsomelittledistancebeforeme。Theindividual,probablyhearingthenoiseofmyapproach,soonturnedroundandstoodstill。AsI
drewnearIdistinguishedastoutburlyfigureofaman,seeminglyaboutsixty,withashortpipeinhismouth。
"Ah,isityou?"saidthefigure,inEnglish,takingthepipeoutofhismouth;"goodevening,Iamgladtoseeyou。"Thenshakingsomeburningembersoutofhispipe,heputitintohispocket,andtrudgedonbesideme。
"WhyareyougladtoseeIme?"saidI,slackeningmypace;"Iamastrangertoyou;atanyrate,youaretome。"
"AlwaysgladtoseeEnglishgentleman,"saidthefigure;"alwaysgladtoseehim。"
"HowdoyouknowthatIamanEnglishgentleman?"saidI。
"Oh,IknowEnglishmanatfirstsight;noonelikehiminthewholeworld。"
"HaveyouseenmanyEnglishgentleman?"saidI。
"Ohyes,haveseenplentywhenIhavebeenupinLondon。"
"HaveyoubeenmuchinLondon?"
"Ohyes;whenIwasadroverwasupinLondoneverymonth。"
"AndwereyoumuchinthesocietyofEnglishgentlemenwhenyouwerethere?"
"Ohyes;agreatdeal。"
"WhereaboutsinLondondidyouchieflymeetthem?"
"Whereabouts?Oh,inSmithfield。"
"Dearme!"saidI;"Ithoughtthatwasratheraplaceforbutchersthangentlemen。"
"Greatplaceforgentlemen,Iassureyou,"saidthefigure;"mettherethefinestgentlemanIeversawinmylife;verygrand,butkindandaffable,likeeverytruegentleman。TalkedtomeagreatdealaboutAngleseyrunts,andWelshlegsofmutton,andatpartingshookmebythehand,andaskedmetolookinuponhim,ifIwaseverdowninhisparts,andseehissheepandtastehisale。"
"Doyouknowwhohewas?"saidI。
"Ohyes;knowallabouthim;EarlofLeicester,fromcountyofNorfolk;fineoldmanindeed—youverymuchlikehim—speakjustinsameway。"
"Haveyougivenupthebusinessofdroverlong?"saidI。
"Ohyes;givenhimupalongtime,eversincedomm’drailroadcameintofashion。"
"Andwhatdoyoudonow?"saidI。
"Oh,notmuch;liveuponmymeans;pickedupalittleproperty,afewsticks,justenoughforoldcrowtobuildhimnestwith—
sometimes,however,undertakealittlejobforneighbouringpeopleandgetalittlemoney。Candoeverythinginsmallway,ifnecessary;buildlittlebridge,ifasked;—JackofallTrades—
liveverycomfortably。"
"Andwheredoyoulive?"
"Oh,notveryfarfromTregaron。"
"AndwhatkindofplaceisTregaron?"
"Oh,verygoodplace;notquitesobigasLondonbutverygoodplace。"
"Whatisitfamedfor?"saidI,"Oh,famedforverygoodham;besthamatTregaroninallShireCardigan。"
"Famedforanythingelse?"
"Ohyes!famedforgreatman,cleverthief,TwmShoneCatti,whowasbornthere。"
"Dearme!"saidI;"whendidhelive?"
"Oh,longtimeago,morethantwohundredyear。"
"Andwhatbecameofhim?"saidI;"washehung?"
"Hung,no!onlystupidthiefhung。TwmShonecleverthief;diedrichman,justiceofthepeaceandmayorofBrecon。"
"Verysingular,"saidI,"thattheyshouldmakeathiefmayorofBrecon。"
"OhTwmShoneCattiverydifferentfromotherthieves;funnyfellow,andsogood—naturedthateverybodylovedhim—sotheymadehimmagistrate,not,however,beforehehadbecomeveryrichmanbymarryinggreatladywhofellinlovewithhim。"
"Ah,ah,"saidI;"that’sthewayoftheworld。Hebecamerich,sotheymadehimamagistrate;hadheremainedpoortheywouldhavehunghiminspiteofallhisfunandgood—nature。Well,can’tyoutellmesomeofthethingshedid?"
"Ohyes,cantellyouplenty。OnedayintimeoffairTomShoneCattigoesintoironmonger’sshopinLlandovery。’Master,’sayshe,’Iwanttobuyagoodlargeironporridgepot;pleasetoshowmesome。’Sothemanbringsthreeorfourbigironporridgepots,theverybesthehas。Tomtakesuponeandturnsitround。’Thislookverygoodporridgepot,’saidhe;’Ithinkitwillsuitme。’
Thenheturnsitroundandroundagain,andatlastliftsitabovehisheadandpeeksintoit。’Ha,ha,’sayshe;’thiswon’tdo;I
seeoneholehere。Whatmeanyoubywantingtosellarticlelikethistostranger?’Saystheman,’Therebenoholeinit。’’Butthereis,’saysTom,holdingitupandpeekingintoitagain;’I
seetheholequiteplain。Takeitandlookintoityourself。’Sothemantakesthepot,andhavinghelditupandpeekedin,’asI
hopetobesaved,’sayshe,’Icanseenohole。’SaysTom,’Goodman,ifyouputyourheadin,youwillfindthatthereisahole。’
Sothemantriestoputinhishead,buthavingsomedifficulty,Tomlendshimahelpinghandbyjammingthepotquitedownovertheman’sface,thenwhiskinguptheotherpotsTomleavestheshop,sayingashegoes,’Friend,Isupposeyounowseethereisaholeinthepot,otherwisehowcouldyouhavegotyourheadinside?"’
"Verygood,"saidI;"canyoutellussomethingmoreaboutTwmShoneCatti?"
"Ohyes;cantellyouplentyabouthim。ThefarmeratNewton,justonemilebeyondthebridgeatBrecon,hadoneveryfinebull,butwithaveryshorttail。SaysTomtohimself:’ByGod’snailsandblood,Iwillstealthefarmer’sbull,andthensellittohimforotherbullinopenmarketplace。’ThenTommakesonefinetail,justforalltheworldsuchatailasthebulloughttohavehad,thengoesbynighttothefarmer’sstallatNewton,stealsawaythebull,andthenstickstothebull’sshortstumpthefinebull’stailwhichhehimselfhadmade。Thenextmarketdayhetakesthebulltothemarket—placeatBrecon,andcallsout;’Veryfinebullthis,whowillbuymyfinebull?’Quoththefarmerwhostoodnighathand,’Thatverymuchlikemybull,whichthiefstolet’othernight;IthinkIcansweartohim。’SaysTom,’Whatdoyoumean?
Thisbullisnotyourbull,butmine。’Saysthefarmer,’Icouldswearthatthisismybullbutforthetail。Thetailofmybullwasshort,butthetailofthisislong。Iwouldfainknowwhetherthetailofthisberealtailornot。’’Youwould?’saysTom;
’well,soyoushall。’Thereuponhewhipsoutbigknifeandcutsoffthebull’stail,somelittlewayabovewherethefalsetailwasjoinedon。’Ha,ha,’saidTom,asthebull’sstumpoftailbled,andthebitoftailbledtootowhichthefalsetailwasstuck,andthebullkickedandbellowed。’Whatsayyounow?Isitatruetailorno?’’Bymyfaith!’saysthefarmer,’Iseethatthetailisatruetail,andthatthebullisnotmine。Ibegpardonforthinkingthathewas。’’Beggingpardon,’saysTom,’isallverywell;butwillyoubuythebull?’’No,’saidthefarmer;’Ishouldbelothtobuyabullwithtailcutoffclosetotherump。’’Ha,’
saysTom;’whomademecutoffthetailbutyourself?Didyounotforcemetodosoinordertoclearmycharacter?Nowasyoumademecutoffmybull’stail,Iwillmakeyoubuymybullwithouthistail。’’Yes,yes,’criedthemob;’asheforcedyoutocutoffthetail,doyounowforcehimtobuythebullwithoutthetail。’Saysthefarmer,’Whatdoyouaskforthebull?’SaysTom:’Iaskforhimtenpound。’Saysthefarmer,’Iwillgiveyoueight。’’No,’
saysTom;’youshallgivemeten,orIwillhaveyouupbeforethejustice。’’Thatisright,’criedthemob。’Ifhewon’tpayyoutenpound,havehimupbeforethejustice。’Thereuponthefarmer,becomingfrightened,pulledoutthetenpoundsandgaveitforhisownbulltoTomShoneCatti,whowishedhimjoyofhisbargain。AsthefarmerwasdrivingthebullawayhesaidtoTom:’Won’tyougivemethetail?’’No,’saidTom;’IshallkeepitagainstthetimeIstealanotherbullwithashorttail;’andthereuponherunsoff。"
"Acleverfellow,"saidI;"thoughitwasrathercruelinhimtocutoffthepoorbull’stail。Now,perhaps,youwilltellmehowhecametomarrytherichlady?