第 4 节
作者:随便看看      更新:2021-02-25 00:46      字数:9322
  roused by the sight of ruined edifices on the tops of hills。  They
  were remains of castles built by Norman Barons。  Here; perhaps; the
  reader will expect from me a burst of Norman enthusiasm:  if so he
  will be mistaken; I have no Norman enthusiasm; and hate and
  abominate the name of Norman; for I have always associated that
  name with the deflowering of helpless Englishwomen; the plundering
  of English homesteads; and the tearing out of poor Englishmen's
  eyes。  The sight of those edifices; now in ruins; but which were
  once the strongholds of plunder; violence; and lust; made me almost
  ashamed of being an Englishman; for they brought to my mind the
  indignities to which poor English blood has been subjected。  I sat
  silent and melancholy; till looking from the window I caught sight
  of a long line of hills; which I guessed to be the Welsh hills; as
  indeed they proved; which sight causing me to remember that I was
  bound for Wales; the land of the bard; made me cast all gloomy
  thoughts aside and glow with all the Welsh enthusiasm with which I
  glowed when I first started in the direction of Wales。
  On arriving at Chester; at which place we intended to spend two or
  three days; we put up at an old…fashioned inn in Northgate Street;
  to which we had been recommended; my wife and daughter ordered tea
  and its accompaniments; and I ordered ale; and that which always
  should accompany it; cheese。  〃The ale I shall find bad;〃 said I;
  Chester ale had a villainous character in the time of old Sion
  Tudor; who made a first…rate englyn upon it; and it has scarcely
  improved since; 〃but I shall have a treat in the cheese; Cheshire
  cheese has always been reckoned excellent; and now that I am in the
  capital of the cheese country; of course I shall have some of the
  very prime。〃  Well; the tea; loaf and butter made their appearance;
  and with them my cheese and ale。  To my horror the cheese had much
  the appearance of soap of the commonest kind; which indeed I found
  it much resembled in taste; on putting a small portion into my
  mouth。  〃Ah;〃 said I; after I had opened the window and ejected the
  half…masticated morsel into the street; 〃those who wish to regale
  on good Cheshire cheese must not come to Chester; no more than
  those who wish to drink first…rate coffee must go to Mocha。  I'll
  now see whether the ale is drinkable;〃 so I took a little of the
  ale into my mouth; and instantly going to the window; spirted it
  out after the cheese。  〃Of a surety;〃 said I; 〃Chester ale must be
  of much the same quality as it was in the time of Sion Tudor; who
  spoke of it to the following effect:…
  〃Chester ale; Chester ale!  I could ne'er get it down;
  'Tis made of ground…ivy; of dirt; and of bran;
  'Tis as thick as a river below a huge town!
  'Tis not lap for a dog; far less drink for a man。'
  Well! if I have been deceived in the cheese; I have at any rate not
  been deceived in the ale; which I expected to find execrable。
  Patience! I shall not fall into a passion; more especially as there
  are things I can fall back upon。  Wife! I will trouble you for a
  cup of tea。  Henrietta! have the kindness to cut me a slice of
  bread and butter。〃
  Upon the whole we found ourselves very comfortable in the old…
  fashioned inn; which was kept by a nice old…fashioned gentlewoman;
  with the assistance of three servants; namely; a 〃boots〃 and two
  strapping chambermaids; one of which was a Welsh girl; with whom I
  soon scraped acquaintance; not; I assure the reader; for the sake
  of the pretty Welsh eyes which she carried in her head; but for the
  sake of the pretty Welsh tongue which she carried in her mouth;
  from which I confess occasionally proceeded sounds which; however
  pretty; I was quite unable to understand。
  CHAPTER III
  Chester … The Rows … Lewis Glyn Cothi … Tragedy of Mold … Native of
  Antigua … Slavery and the Americans … The Tents … Saturday Night。
  ON the morning after our arrival we went out together; and walked
  up and down several streets; my wife and daughter; however; soon
  leaving me to go into a shop; I strolled about by myself。  Chester
  is an ancient town with walls and gates; a prison called a castle;
  built on the site of an ancient keep; an unpretending…looking red
  sandstone cathedral; two or three handsome churches; several good
  streets; and certain curious places called rows。  The Chester row
  is a broad arched stone gallery running parallel with the street
  within the facades of the houses; it is partly open on the side of
  the street; and just one story above it。  Within the rows; of which
  there are three or four; are shops; every shop being on that side
  which is farthest from the street。  All the best shops in Chester
  are to be found in the rows。  These rows; to which you ascend by
  stairs up narrow passages; were originally built for the security
  of the wares of the principal merchants against the Welsh。  Should
  the mountaineers break into the town; as they frequently did; they
  might rifle some of the common shops; where their booty would be
  slight; but those which contained the more costly articles would be
  beyond their reach; for at the first alarm the doors of the
  passages; up which the stairs led; would be closed; and all access
  to the upper streets cut off; from the open arches of which
  missiles of all kinds; kept ready for such occasions; could be
  discharged upon the intruders; who would be soon glad to beat a
  retreat。  These rows and the walls are certainly the most
  remarkable memorials of old times which Chester has to boast of。
  Upon the walls it is possible to make the whole compass of the
  city; there being a good but narrow walk upon them。  The northern
  wall abuts upon a frightful ravine; at the bottom of which is a
  canal。  From the western one there is a noble view of the Welsh
  hills。
  As I stood gazing upon the hills from the wall a ragged man came up
  and asked for charity。
  〃Can you tell me the name of that tall hill?〃 said I; pointing in
  the direction of the south…west。  〃That hill; sir;〃 said the
  beggar; 〃is called Moel Vamagh; I ought to know something about it
  as I was born at its foot。〃  〃Moel;〃 said I; 〃a bald hill; Vamagh;
  maternal or motherly。  Moel Vamagh; the Mother Moel。〃  〃Just so;
  sir;〃 said the beggar; 〃I see you are a Welshman; like myself;
  though I suppose you come from the South … Moel Vamagh is the
  Mother Moel; and is called so because it is the highest of all the
  Moels。〃  〃Did you ever hear of a place called Mold?〃 said I。  〃Oh;
  yes; your honour;〃 said the beggar; 〃many a time; and many's the
  time I have been there。〃  〃In which direction does it lie?〃 said I。
  〃Towards Moel Vamagh; your honour;〃 said the beggar; 〃which is a
  few miles beyond it; you can't see it from here; but look towards
  Moel Vamagh and you will see over it。〃  〃Thank you;〃 said I; and
  gave something to the beggar; who departed; after first taking off
  his hat。  Long and fixedly did I gaze in the direction of Mold。
  The reason which induced me to do so was the knowledge of an
  appalling tragedy transacted there in the old time; in which there
  is every reason to suppose a certain Welsh bard; called Lewis Glyn
  Cothi; had a share。
  This man; who was a native of South Wales; flourished during the
  wars of the Roses。  Besides being a poetical he was something of a
  military genius; and had a command of foot in the army of the
  Lancastrian Jasper Earl of Pembroke; the son of Owen Tudor; and
  half…brother of Henry the Sixth。  After the battle of Mortimer's
  Cross; in which the Earl's forces were defeated; the warrior bard
  found his way to Chester; where he married the widow of a citizen
  and opened a shop; without asking the permission of the mayor; who
  with the officers of justice came and seized all his goods; which;
  according to his own account; filled nine sacks; and then drove him
  out of the town。  The bard in a great fury indited an awdl; in
  which he invites Reinallt ap Grufydd ap Bleddyn; a kind of
  predatory chieftain; who resided a little way off in Flintshire; to
  come and set the town on fire; and slaughter the inhabitants; in
  revenge for the wrongs he had suffered; and then proceeds to vent
  all kinds of imprecations against the mayor and people of Chester;
  wishing; amongst other things; that they might soon hear that the
  Dee had become too shallow to bear their ships … that a certain
  cutaneous disorder might attack the wrists of great and small; old
  and young; laity and clergy … that grass might grow in their
  streets … that Ilar and Cyveilach; Welsh saints; might slay them …
  that dogs might snarl at them … and that the king of heaven; with
  the saints Brynach and Non; might afflict them with blindness …
  which piece; however ineffectual in inducing God and the saints to
  visit the Chester people with the curses with which the furious
  bard wished them to be afflicted; seems to have produced somewhat
  of its intended effect on the chieftain; who shortly afterwards; on
  learning that the mayor and many of the Chester people were present
  at the fair of Mold; near which place he resided; set upon them at
  the head o