HisalefromShrewsburytownhebrings;
Hisusquebaughisdrinkforkings;
Braggethekeeps,breadwhiteoflook,And,blessthemark!abustlingcook。
Hismansionistheminstrels’home,You’llfindthemtherewhene’eryoucomeOfallhersexhiswife’sthebest;
ThehouseholdthroughhercareisblestShe’sscionofaknightlytree,She’sdignified,she’skindandfree。
Hisbairnsapproachme,pairbypair,Owhatanestofchieftainsfair!
HeredifficultitistocatchAsightofeitherboltorlatch;
Theporter’splaceherenonewillfill;
Herlargessshallbelavish’dstill,Andne’ershallthirstorhungerrudeInSycharthventuretointrude。
Anobleleader,Cambria’sknight,Thelakepossesses,hisbyright,Andmidstthatazurewaterplac’d,Thecastle,byeachpleasuregrac’d。
AndwhenIhadfinishedrepeatingtheselinesIsaid,\"Howmuchmorehappy,innocent,andholy,IwasinthedaysofmyboyhoodwhenItranslateIolo’sodethanIamatthepresenttime!\"ThencoveringmyfacewithmyhandsIweptlikeachild。
CHAPTERLXVII
CupofCoffee—Gwen—BluffoldFellow—ARabbleRout—AllfromWrexham。
AFTERawhileIarosefrommyseatanddescendingthehillreturnedtothehouseofmyhonestfriends,whomIfoundsittingbytheirfireasIhadfirstseenthem。
\"Well,\"saidtheman,\"didyoubringbackOwenGlendower?\"
\"Notonlyhim,\"saidI,\"buthishouse,family,andallrelatingtohim。\"
\"Bywhatmeans?\"saidtheman。
\"Bymeansofasongmadealongtimeago,whichdescribesSycharthasitwasinhistime,andhismanneroflivingthere。\"
PresentlyGwen,whohadbeenpreparingcoffeeinexpectationofmyreturn,pouredoutacupful,whichshepresentedtome,atthesametimehandingmesomewhitesugarinabasin。
Itookthecoffee,helpedmyselftosomesugar,andreturnedherthanksinherownlanguage。
\"Ah,\"saidtheman,inWelsh,\"IseeyouareaCumro。GwenandI
havebeenwonderingwhetheryouwereWelshorEnglish;butIseeyouareoneofourselves。\"
\"No,\"saidIinthesamelanguage,\"IamanEnglishman,borninapartofEnglandthefarthestofanyfromWales。Infact,IamaCarnSais。\"
\"AndhowcameyoutospeakWelsh?\"saidtheman。
\"ItookitintomyheadtolearnitwhenIwasaboy,\"saidI。
\"Englishmensometimesdostrangethings。\"
\"SoIhaveheard,\"saidtheman,\"butIneverheardbeforeofanEnglishmanlearningWelsh。\"
Iproceededtodrinkmycoffee,andhavingfinishedit,andhadalittlemorediscourseIgotup,andhavinggivenGwenapieceofsilver,whichshereceivedwithasmileandacurtsey,IsaidI
mustnowbegoing,\"Won’tyoutakeanothercup?\"saidGwen,\"youarewelcome。\"
\"No,thankyou,\"saidI,\"Ihavehadenough。\"
\"Whereareyougoing?\"saidthemaninEnglish。
\"ToLlanRhyadr,\"saidI,\"fromwhichIcamethismorning。\"
\"Whichwaydidyoucome?\"saidtheman。
\"ByLlanGedwin,\"Ireplied,\"andoverthehill。Isthereanotherway?\"
\"Thereis,\"saidtheman,\"byLlanSilin。\"
\"LlanSilin!\"saidI;\"isnotthattheplacewhereHuwMorrisisburied?\"
\"Itis,\"saidtheman。
\"IwillreturnbyLlanSilin,\"saidI,\"andinpassingthroughpayavisittothetombofthegreatpoet。IsLlanSilinfaroff?\"
\"Abouthalfamile,\"saidtheman。\"Gooverthebridge,turntotheright,andyouwillbetherepresently。\"
Ishookthehonestcouplebythehandandbadethemfarewell。Themanputonhishatandwentwithmeafewyardsfromthedoor,andthenproceededtowardsthefactory。Ipassedoverthebridge,underwhichwasastreamlet,whichalittlebelowthebridgereceivedthebrookwhichonceturnedOwenGlendower’scorn—mill。I
soonreachedLlanSilin,avillageortownlet,havingsomehighhillsatashortdistancetothewestward,whichformpartoftheBerwyn。
Ienteredthekitchenofanold—fashionedpublic—house,andsittingdownbyatabletoldthelandlord,ared—nosedelderlyman,whocamebowinguptome,tobringmeapintofale。Thelandlordbowedanddeparted。Abluff—lookingoldfellow,somewhatunderthemiddlesize,satjustoppositetomeatthetable。Hewasdressedinawhitefriezecoat,andhadasmallhatonhisheadsetratherconsequentiallyononeside。Beforehimonthetablestoodajugofale,betweenwhichandhimlayalargecrabstick。Threeorfourotherpeoplestoodorsatindifferentpartsoftheroom。
Presentlythelandlordreturnedwiththeale。
\"Isupposeyoucomeonsessionsbusiness,sir?\"saidhe,asheplaceditdownbeforeme。
\"Arethesessionsbeingheldhereto—day?\"saidI。
\"Theyare,\"saidthelandlord,\"andthereisplentyofbusiness;
twobadcasesofpoaching,SirWatkin’skeepersareupatcourtandhopetoconvict。\"
\"Iamnotcomeonsessionsbusiness,\"saidI;\"Iammerelystrollingalittleabouttoseethecountry。\"
\"HeiscomefromSouthWales,\"saidtheoldfellowinthefriezecoat,tothelandlord,\"inordertoseewhatkindofcountrythenorthis。Wellatanyratehehasseenabettercountrythanhisown。\"
\"HowdoyouknowthatIcomefromSouthWales?\"saidI。
\"ByyourEnglish,\"saidtheoldfellow;\"anybodymayknowyouareSouthWelshbyyourEnglish;itissocursedlybad。Butlet’shearyouspeakalittleWelsh;thenIshallbecertainastowhoyouare。\"
Ididashebademe,sayingafewwordsinWelsh。
\"There’sWelsh,\"saidtheoldfellow,\"whobutaSouthWelshmanwouldtalkWelshinthatmanner?It’snearlyasbadasyourEnglish。\"
IaskedhimifhehadeverbeeninSouthWales。
\"Yes,\"saidhe;\"andabadcountryIfoundit;justlikethepeople。\"
\"IfyoutakemeforaSouthWelshman,\"saidI,\"yououghttospeakcivillybothoftheSouthWelshandtheircountry。\"
\"Iammerelypayingtitfortat,\"saidtheoldfellow。\"WhenIwasinSouthWalesyourpeoplelaughedatmyfolksandcountry,sowhenImeetoneofthemhereIservehimoutasIwasservedoutthere。\"
Imadenoreplytohim,butaddressingmyselftothelandlordinquiredwhetherHuwMorriswasnotburiedinLlanSilinchurchyard。Herepliedintheaffirmative。
\"Ishouldliketoseehistomb,\"saidI。
\"Well,sir,\"saidthelandlord,\"Ishallbehappytoshowittoyouwheneveryouplease。\"
Hereagaintheoldfellowputinhisword。
\"YouneverhadaprydyddlikeHuwMorrisinSouthWales,\"saidhe;
\"norTwmo’rNanteither。\"
\"SouthWaleshasproducedgoodpoets,\"saidI。
\"No,ithasn’t,\"saidtheoldfellow;\"itneverproducedone。Ifithad,youwouldn’thaveneededtocomeheretoseethegraveofapoet;youwouldhavefoundoneathome。\"
Ashesaidthesewordshegotup,tookhisstick,andseemedabouttodepart。Justtheninburstarabbleroutofgame—keepersandriver—watcherswhohadcomefromthepettysessions,andwereinhighglee,thetwopoacherswhomthelandlordhadmentionedhavingbeenconvictedandheavilyfined。Twoorthreeofthemwereparticularlyboisterous,runningagainstsomeoftheguestswhoweresittingorstandinginthekitchen,andpushingthelandlordabout,cryingatthesametimethattheywouldstandbySirWatkintothelast,andwouldneverseehimplundered。Oneofthem,afellowofaboutthirty,inahairycap,blackcoat,dirtyyellowbreeches,anddirtywhitetop—boots,whowasthemostobstreperousofthemall,atlastcameuptotheoldchapwhodislikedSouthWelshmenandtriedtoknockoffhishat,swearingthathewouldstandbySirWatkin;he,however,metaTartar。TheenemyoftheSouthWelsh,likeallcrustypeople,hadlotsofmettle,andwiththestickwhichheheldinhishandforthwithaimedablowatthefellow’spoll,which,hadhenotjumpedback,wouldprobablyhavebrokenit。
\"Iwillnotbeinsultedbyyou,youvagabond,\"saidtheoldchap,\"norbySirWatkineither;goandtellhimso。\"
Thefellowlookedsheepish,andturningawayproceededtotakelibertieswithotherpeoplelessdangeroustomeddlewiththanoldcrabstick。He,however,soondesisted,andsatdownevidentlydisconcerted。
\"WereyoueverworsetreatedinSouthWalesbythepeopletherethanyouhavebeenherebyyourowncountrymen?\"saidItotheoldfellow。
\"Mycountrymen?\"saidhe;\"thisscampisnocountrymanofmine;norisoneofthewholekit。TheyareallfromWrexham,amixtureofbrokenhousekeepersandfellowstoostupidtolearnatrade;asetofscampsfitfornothingintheworldbuttoswearbodilyagainsthonestmen。TheysaytheywillstandupforSirWatkin,andsotheywill,butonlyinaboxintheCourttogivefalseevidence。
Theywon’tfightforhimonthebanksoftheriver。Countrymenofmine,indeed!theyarenocountrymenofmine;theyarefromWrexham,wherethepeoplespeakneitherEnglishnorWelsh,notevenSouthWelshasyoudo。\"
Thengivingakindofflourishwithhisstickhedeparted。
CHAPTERLXVIII
LlanSilinChurch—TombofHuwMorris—BarbaraandRichard—
WelshCountryClergyman—TheSwearingLad—Anglo—SaxonDevils。
HAVINGdiscussedmyaleIaskedthelandlordifhewouldshowmethegraveofHuwMorris。\"Withpleasure,sir,\"saidhe;\"prayfollowme。\"Heledmetothechurchyard,inwhichseveralenormousyewtreeswerestanding,probablyofanantiquitywhichreachedasfarbackasthedaysofHenrytheEighth,whentheyewbowwasstillthefavouriteweaponofthemenofBritain。Thechurchfrontsthesouth,theporticobeinginthatdirection。Thebodyofthesacrededificeisancient,butthesteeplewhichbearsagildedcockonitstopismodern。Theinnkeeperledmedirectlyuptothesouthernwall,thenpointingtoabroaddiscolouredslab,whichlayonthegroundjustoutsidethewall,aboutmidwaybetweentheporticoandtheorielend,hesaid:
\"UnderneaththisstoneliesHuwMorris,sir。\"ForthwithtakingoffmyhatIwentdownonmykneesandkissedthecoldslabcoveringthecoldremainsofthemightyHuw,andthen,stillonmyknees,proceededtoexamineitattentively。Itiscoveredoverwithlettersthreepartsdefaced。AllIcouldmakeoutoftheinscriptionwasthedateofthepoet’sdeath,1709。\"Agreatgenius,averygreatgenius,sir,\"saidtheinn—keeper,afterIhadgotonmyfeetandputonmyhat。
\"Hewasindeed,\"saidI;\"areyouacquaintedwithhispoetry?\"
\"Ohyes,\"saidtheinnkeeper,andthenrepeatedthefourlinescomposedbythepoetshortlybeforehisdeath,whichIhadheardtheintoxicatedstonemasonrepeatinthepublic—houseofthePandy,thedayIwenttovisitthepoet’sresidencewithJohnJones。
\"DoyouknowanymoreofHuw’spoetry?\"saidI。
\"No,\"saidtheinnkeeper。\"Thoselines,however,IhaveknowneversinceIwasachildandrepeatedthem,moreparticularlyoflatesinceagehascomeuponmeandIhavefeltthatIcannotlastlong。\"
Itisveryoddhowfewoftheversesofgreatpoetsareinpeople’smouths。NotmorethanadozenofShakespear’slinesareinpeople’smouths:ofthoseofPopenotmorethanhalfthatnumber。
OfAddison’spoetrytwoorthreelinesmaybeinpeople’smouths,thoughIneverheardonequoted,theonlylinewhichIeverheardquotedasAddison’snotbeinghisbutGarth’s:
\"’Tisbestrepentinginacoachandsix。’
WhilstoftheversesofHuwMorrisIneverknewanyonebutmyself,whoamnotaWelshman,whocouldrepeatalinebeyondthefourwhichIhavetwicehadoccasiontomention,andwhichseemtobegenerallyknowninNorthifnotinSouthWales。
FromtheflagstoneIproceededtotheporticoandgazeduponitintensely。Itpresentednothingveryremarkable,butithadthegreatestinterestforme,forIrememberedhowmanytimesHuwMorrishadwalkedoutofthatporchattheheadofthecongregation,theclergymanyieldinghisownplacetotheinspiredbard。Iwouldfainhaveenteredthechurch,butthelandlordhadnotthekey,andtoldmethatheimaginedtherewouldbesomedifficultyinprocuringit。Iwasthereforeobligedtocontentmyselfwithpeepingthroughawindowintotheinterior,whichhadasolemnandvenerableaspect。
\"Withinthere,\"saidItomyself,\"HuwMorris,thegreatestsongsteroftheseventeenthcentury,knelteverySundayduringthelatterthirtyyearsofhislife,afterwalkingfromPontyMeibionacrossthebleakandsavageBerwyn。WithintherewasmarriedBarbaraWynn,theRoseofMaelai,toRichardMiddleton,thehandsomecavalierofMaelor,andwithintheresheliesburied,evenasthesongsterwholamentedheruntimelydeathinimmortalverseliesburiedouthereinthegraveyard。Whatinterestingassociationshasthischurchforme,bothoutsideandin,butallconnectedwithHuw;forwhatshouldIhaveknownofBarbara,theRose,andgallantRichardbutforthepoemontheiraffectionateunionanduntimelyseparation,thedialoguebetweenthelivingandthedead,composedbyhumbleHuw,thefarmer’ssonofPontyyMeibion?\"
AftergazingthroughthewindowtillmyeyeswateredIturnedtotheinnkeeper,andinquiredthewaytoLlanRhyadr。HavingreceivedfromhimthedesiredinformationIthankedhimforhiscivility,andsetoutonmyreturn。
BeforeIcouldgetclearofthetownIsuddenlyencounteredmyfriendR—,thecleverlawyerandmagistrate’sclerkofLlangollen。
\"Ilittleexpectedtoseeyouhere,\"saidhe。
\"NorIyou,\"Ireplied。
\"Icameinmyofficialcapacity,\"saidhe;\"thepettysessionshavebeenheldhereto—day。\"
\"Iknowtheyhave,\"Ireplied;\"andthattwopoachershavebeenconvicted。IcamehereonmywaytoSouthWalestoseethegraveofHuwMorris,who,asyouknow,isburiedinthechurchyard。\"
\"Haveyouseentheclergyman?\"saidR—。
\"No,\"Ireplied。
\"Thencomewithme,\"saidhe;\"Iamnowgoingtocalluponhim。I
knowhewillberejoicedtomakeyouracquaintance。\"
Heledmetotheclergyman’shouse,whichstoodatthesouth—westendofthevillagewithinagardenfencedwithanironpaling。Wefoundtheclergymaninanicecomfortableparlourorstudy,thesidesofwhichweredecoratedwithbooks。Hewasasharpclever—
lookingman,ofaboutthemiddleage。Onmybeingintroducedtohimhewasverygladtoseeme,asmyfriendR—toldmehewouldbe。Heseemedtoknowallaboutme,eventhatIunderstoodWelsh。
Weconversedonvarioussubjects:onthepoweroftheWelshlanguage;itsmutableletters;onHuwMorris,andlikewiseonale,withanexcellentglassofwhichheregaledme。Iwasmuchpleasedwithhim,andthoughthimacapitalspecimenoftheWelshcountryclergyman。HisnamewasWalterJones。
Afterstayingabouthalf—an—hourItookleaveofthegoodkindman,whowishedmeallkindofhappiness,spiritualandtemporal,andsaidthatheshouldalwaysbehappytoseemeatLlanSilin。MyfriendR—walkedwithmealittlewayandthenbademefarewell。
Itwasnowlateintheafternoon,theskywasgreyandgloomy,andakindofhalfwintrywindwasblowing。IntheforenoonIhadtravelledalongtheeasternsideofthevalley,whichIwillcallthatofLlanRhyadr,directingmycoursetothenorth,butIwasnowonthewesternsideofthevalley,journeyingtowardsthesouth。Inabouthalf—an—hourIfoundmyselfnearlyparallelwiththehighcragwhichIhadseenfromadistanceinthemorning。Itwasnowtotheeastofme。Itswesternfrontwasveryprecipitous,butonitsnorthernsideitwascultivatednearlytothesummit。
AsIstoodlookingatitfromnearthetopofagentleacclivityaboywithateam,whomIhadpassedalittletimebefore,cameup。
Hewaswhippinghishorses,whowerestraininguptheascent,andwasswearingatthemmostfrightfullyinEnglish。Iaddressedhiminthatlanguage,inquiringthenameofthecrag,butheansweredDimSaesneg,andthenagainfelltocursing;hishorsesinEnglish。
Iallowedhimandhisteamtogettothetopoftheascent,andthenovertakinghim,IsaidinWelsh:\"WhatdoyoumeanbysayingyouhavenoEnglish?YouweretalkingEnglishjustnowtoyourhorses。\"
\"Yes,\"saidthelad,\"IhaveEnglishenoughformyhorses,andthatisall。\"
\"YouseemtohaveplentyofWelsh,\"saidI;\"whydon’tyouspeakWelshtoyourhorses?\"
\"It’sofnousespeakingWelshtothem,\"saidtheboy;\"Welshisn’tstrongenough。\"
\"Isn’tMynDiawltolerablystrong?\"saidI。
\"Notstrongenoughforhorses,\"saidtheboy\"ifIweretosayMynDiawltomyhorses,orevenCasAndras,theywouldlaughatme。\"
\"Dotheothercarters,\"saidI,\"usethesameEnglishtotheirhorseswhichyoudotoyours?\"
\"Yes\"saidtheboy,\"they’llallusethesameEnglishwords;iftheydidn’tthehorseswouldn’tmindthem。\"
\"Whatatriumph,\"thoughtI,\"fortheEnglishlanguagethattheWelshcartersareobligedtohaverecoursetoitsoathsandexecrationstomaketheirhorsesgeton!\"
Isaidnothingmoretotheboyonthesubjectoflanguage,butagainaskedhimthenameofthecrag。\"ItiscalledCraigyGorllewin,\"saidhe。Ithankedhim,andsoonlefthimandhisteamfarbehind。
Notwithstandingwhattheboysaidaboutthemilk—and—watercharacterofnativeWelshoaths,theWelshhavesomeverypungentexecrations,quiteasefficacious,Ishouldsay,tomakeahorsegetonasanyintheEnglishswearingvocabulary。Someoftheiroathsarecurious,beingconnectedwithheathentimesandDruidicalmythology;forexamplethatCasAndras,mentionedbytheboy,whichmeanshatefulenemyorhorribleAndras。AndrasorAndrastewasthefuryorDemigorgonoftheAncientCumry,towhomtheybuilttemplesandofferedsacrificesoutoffear。CuriousthatthesameoathshouldbeusedbytheChristianCumryofthepresentday,whichwasinvogueamongsttheirpaganancestorssomethreethousandyearsago。However,thesamethingisobservableamongstusChristianEnglish:wesaytheDusetakeyou!evenasourheathenSaxonforefathersdid,whoworshippedakindofDevilsocalled,andnamedadayoftheweekafterhim,whichnamewestillretaininourhebdomadalcalendarlikethoseofseveralotherAnglo—Saxondevils。Wealsosay:GotooldNick!andNickorNikkurwasasurnameofWoden,andalsothenameofaspiritwhichhauntedfordsandwasinthehabitofdrowningpassengers。
NightcamequicklyuponmeafterIhadpassedtheswearinglad。
However,IwasfortunateenoughtoreachLlanRhyadr,withouthavingexperiencedanydamageorimpedimentfromDiawl,Andras,Duse,orNick。
CHAPTERLXIX
ChurchofLlanRhyadr—TheClerk—TheTablet—Stone—FirstViewoftheCataract。
THEnightwasbothwindyandrainyliketheprecedingone,butthemorningwhichfollowed,unlikethatofthedaybefore,wasdullandgloomy。AfterbreakfastIwalkedouttotakeanotherviewofthelittletown。AsIstoodlookingatthechurchamiddle—agedmanofaremarkablyintelligentcountenancecameupandaskedmeifI
shouldliketoseetheinside。ItoldhimIshould,whereuponhesaidthathewastheclerkandwouldadmitmewithpleasure。
Takingakeyoutofhispocketheunlockedthedoorofthechurchandwewentin。Theinsidewassombre,notsomuchowingtothegloominessofthedayastheheavinessofthearchitecture。Itpresentedsomethingintheformofacross。Isoonfoundtheclerkwhathiscountenancerepresentedhimtobe,ahighlyintelligentperson。Hisanswerstomyquestionswereingeneralreadyandsatisfactory。
\"Thisseemsratheranancientedifice,\"saidI;\"whenwasitbuilt?\"
\"Inthesixteenthcentury,\"saidtheclerk;\"inthedaysofHarryTudor。\"
\"Haveanyremarkablemenbeenclergymenofthischurch?\"
\"Several,sir;amongstitsvicarswasDoctorWilliamMorgan,thegreatSouthWelshman,theauthoroftheoldWelshversionoftheBible,whoflourishedinthetimeofQueenElizabeth。ThentherewasDoctorRobertSouth,aneminentdivine,who,thoughnotaWelshman,spokeandpreachedWelshbetterthanmanyofthenativeclergy。Thentherewasthelastvicar,WalterD—,agreatpreacherandwriter,whostyledhimselfinprintGwalterMechain。\"
\"AreMorganandSouthburiedhere?\"saidI。
\"Theyarenot,sir,\"saidtheclerk;\"theyhadbeentransferredtootherbeneficesbeforetheydied。\"
IdidnotinquirewhetherWalterD—wasburiedthere,forofhimI
hadneverheardbefore,butdemandedwhetherthechurchpossessedanyancientmonuments。
\"Thisistheoldestwhichremains,sir,\"saidtheclerk,andhepointedwithhisfingertoatablet—stoneoveralittledarkpewontherightsideoftheorielwindow。Therewasaninscriptionuponit,butowingtothedarknessIcouldnotmakeoutaletter。Theclerk,however,readasfollows。
1694。21Octr。
HicSepultusEstSidneusBynner。
\"DoyouunderstandLatin?\"saidItotheclerk。
\"Idonot,sir;Ibelieve,however,thatthestoneistothememoryofoneBynner。\"
\"ThatisnotaWelshname,\"saidI。
\"Itisnot,sir,\"saidtheclerk。
\"ItseemstoberadicallythesameasBonner,\"saidI,\"thenameofthehorriblePopishBishopofLondoninMary’stime。DoanypeopleofthenameofBynnerresideinthisneighbourhoodatpresent?\"
\"None,sir,\"saidtheclerk;\"andiftheBynnersaredescendantsofBonner,itis,perhaps,wellthattherearenone。\"
Imadetheclerk,whoappearedalmostfittobeaclergyman,asmallpresent,andreturnedtotheinn。AfterpayingmybillI
flungmysatchelovermyshoulder,tookmyumbrellabythemiddleinmyrighthand,andsetofffortheRhyadr。
Ienteredthenarrowglenatthewesternextremityofthetownandproceededbrisklyalong。Thescenerywasromanticallybeautiful;
onmyleftwasthelittlebrook,thewatersofwhichrunthroughthetown;beyonditaloftyhill;onmyrightwasahillcoveredwithwoodfromthetoptothebottom。Ienjoyedthescene,andshouldhaveenjoyeditmorehadtherebeenalittlesunshinetogildit。
Ipassedthroughasmallvillage,thenameofwhichIthinkwasCynmen,andpresentlyovertookamanandboy。ThemansalutedmeinEnglish,andIenteredintoconversationwithhiminthatlanguage。HetoldmethathecamefromLlanGedwin,andwasgoingtoaplacecalledGwernsomething,inordertofetchhomesomesheep。AfteratimeheaskedmewhereIwasgoing。
\"IamgoingtoseethePistyllRhyadr,\"saidI
Wehadthenjustcometothetopofarisingground。
\"Yonder’sthePistyll!\"saidhe,pointingtothewest。
Ilookedinthedirectionofhisfinger,andsawsomethingatagreatdistance,whichlookedlikeastripofgreylinenhangingoveracrag。
\"Thatisthewaterfall,\"hecontinued,\"whichsomanyoftheSaxonscometosee。AndnowImustbidyougood—bye,master;formywaytotheGwernisontheright\"
Thenfollowedbytheboyheturnedasideintoawildroadatthecornerofasavage,precipitousrock。
CHAPTERLXX
MountainScenery—TheRhyadr—WonderfulFeat。
AFTERwalkingaboutamilewiththecataractalwaysinsight,I
emergedfromtheglenintoanoblongvalleyextendingfromsouthtonorth,havingloftyhillsonallsides,especiallyonthewest,fromwhichdirectionthecataractcomes。Iadvancedacrossthevaletillwithinafurlongofthisobject,whenIwasstoppedbyadeephollowornethervaleintowhichthewatersofthecataracttumble。OnthesideofthishollowIsatdown,andgazeddownbeforemeandoneitherside。Thewatercomesspoutingoveracragofperhapstwohundredfeetinaltitudebetweentwohills,onesouth—eastandtheothernearlynorth。Thesouthernhilliswoodedfromthetop,nearlydowntowherethecataractburstsforth;andso,butnotsothickly,isthenorthernhill,whichbearsasingularresemblancetoahog’sback。Grovesofpineareonthelowerpartsofboth;infrontofagrovelowdownonthenorthernhillisasmallwhitehouseofapicturesqueappearance。Thewaterofthecataract,afterreachingthebottomoftheprecipice,rushesinanarrowbrookdownthevaleinthedirectionofLlanRhyadr。
Tothenorth—east,betweenthehog—backedhillandanotherstrange—
lookingmountain,isawildglen,fromwhichcomesabrooktoswellthewatersdischargedbytheRhyadr。Thesouth—westsideofthevaleissteep,andfromacleftofahillinthatquarteraslenderstreamrushingimpetuouslyjoinsthebrookoftheRhyadr,liketherillofthenorthernglen。TheprincipalobjectofthewholeisofcoursetheRhyadr。WhatshallIlikenitto?Iscarcelyknow,unlesstoanimmenseskeinofsilkagitatedanddisturbedbytempestuousblasts,ortothelongtailofagreycourseratfuriousspeed。Throughtheprofusionoflongsilverythreadsorhairs,orwhatlookedsuch,IcouldhereandthereseetheblacksidesofthecragdownwhichtheRhyadrprecipitateditselfwithsomethingbetweenaboomandaroar。
AftersittingonthevergeofthehollowforaconsiderabletimeI
gotup,anddirectedmycoursetowardsthehouseinfrontofthegrove。IturneddownthepathwhichbroughtmetothebrookwhichrunsfromthenorthernglenintothewatersdischargedbytheRhyadr,andcrossingitbystepping—stones,foundmyselfonthelowestspurofthehog—backedhill。Asteeppathledtowardsthehouse。AsIdrewneartwohandsomedogscamerushingtowelcomethestranger。ComingtoadooronthenorthernsideofthehouseI
tapped,andahandsomegirlofaboutthirteenmakingherappearance,IinquiredinEnglishthenearestwaythewaterfall;