第 14 节
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own valley; where you will buy a property; and settle down; and try
to recover your language; sir; and your health; sir; for you are
not the person you pretend to be; sir: I know you very well; and
shall be happy to work for you。〃
〃Well;〃 said I; 〃if I ever settle down here; I shall be happy to
employ you。 Farewell。〃
I went back the way I had come; till I reached the little hamlet。
Seeing a small public…house; I entered it。 A good…looking woman;
who met me in the passage; ushered me into a neat sanded kitchen;
handed me a chair and inquired my commands; I sat down; and told
her to bring me some ale; she brought it; and then seated herself
by a bench close by the door。
〃Rather a quiet place this;〃 said I; 〃I have seen but two faces
since I came over the hill; and yours is one。〃
〃Rather too quiet; sir;〃 said the good woman; 〃one would wish to
have more visitors。〃
〃I suppose;〃 said I; 〃people from Llangollen occasionally come to
visit you。〃
〃Sometimes; sir; for curiosity's sake; but very rarely … the way is
very steep。〃
〃Do the Tylwyth Teg ever pay you visits?〃
〃The Tylwyth Teg; sir?〃
〃Yes; the fairies。 Do they never come to have a dance on the green
sward in this neighbourhood?〃
〃Very rarely; sir; indeed; I do not know how long it is since they
have been seen。〃
〃You have never seen them?〃
〃I have not; sir; but I believe there are people living who have。〃
〃Are corpse candles ever seen on the bank of that river?〃
〃I have never heard of more than one being seen; sir; and that was
at a place where a tinker was drowned a few nights after … there
came down a flood; and the tinker in trying to cross by the usual
ford was drowned。〃
〃And did the candle prognosticate; I mean foreshow his death?〃
〃It did; sir。 When a person is to die his candle is seen a few
nights before the time of his death。〃
〃Have you ever seen a corpse candle?〃
〃I have; sir; and as you seem to be a respectable gentleman; I will
tell you all about it。 When I was a girl I lived with my parents a
little way from here。 I had a cousin; a very good young man; who
lived with his parents in the neighbourhood of our house。 He was
an exemplary young man; sir; and having a considerable gift of
prayer; was intended for the ministry; but he fell sick; and
shortly became very ill indeed。 One evening when he was lying in
this state; as I was returning home from milking; I saw a candle
proceeding from my cousin's house。 I stood still and looked at it。
It moved slowly forward for a little way; and then mounted high in
the air above the wood; which stood not far in front of the house;
and disappeared。 Just three nights after that my cousin died。〃
〃And you think that what you saw was his corpse candle?〃
〃I do; sir! what else should it be?〃
〃Are deaths prognosticated by any other means than corpse candles?〃
〃They are; sir; by the knockers; and by a supernatural voice heard
at night。〃
〃Have you ever heard the knockers; or the supernatural voice?〃
〃I have not; sir; but my father and mother; who are now dead; heard
once a supernatural voice; and knocking。 My mother had a sister
who was married like herself; and expected to be confined。 Day
after day; however; passed away; without her confinement taking
place。 My mother expected every moment to be summoned to her
assistance; and was so anxious about her that she could not rest at
night。 One night; as she lay in bed; by the side of her husband;
between sleeping and waking; she heard of a sudden a horse coming
stump; stump; up to the door。 Then there was a pause … she
expected every moment to hear some one cry out; and tell her to
come to her sister; but she heard no farther sound; neither voice
nor stump of horse。 She thought she had been deceived; so; without
awakening her husband; she tried to go to sleep; but sleep she
could not。 The next night; at about the same time; she again heard
a horse's feet come stump; stump; up to the door。 She now waked
her husband and told him to listen。 He did so; and both heard the
stumping。 Presently; the stumping ceased; and then there was a
loud 〃Hey!〃 as if somebody wished to wake them。 〃Hey!〃 said my
father; and they both lay for a minute expecting to hear something
more; but they heard nothing。 My father then sprang out of bed;
and looked out of the window; it was bright moonlight; but he saw
nothing。 The next night; as they lay in bed both asleep; they were
suddenly aroused by a loud and terrible knocking。 Out sprang my
father from the bed; flung open the window; and looked out; but
there was no one at the door。 The next morning; however; a
messenger arrived with the intelligence that my aunt had had a
dreadful confinement with twins in the night; and that both she and
the babes were dead。〃
〃Thank you;〃 said I; and paying for my ale; I returned to
Llangollen。
CHAPTER XII
A Calvinistic…Methodist … Turn for Saxon … Our Congregation … Pont
y Cyssyltau … Catherine Lingo。
I HAD inquired of the good woman of the house; in which we lived;
whether she could not procure a person to accompany me occasionally
in my walks; who was well acquainted with the strange nooks and
corners of the country; and who could speak no language but Welsh;
as I wished to increase my knowledge of colloquial Welsh by having
a companion who would be obliged; in all he had to say to me; to
address me in Welsh; and to whom I should perforce have to reply in
that tongue。 The good lady had told me that there was a tenant of
hers who lived in one of the cottages; which looked into the
perllan; who; she believed; would be glad to go with me; and was
just the kind of man I was in quest of。 The day after I had met
with the adventures; which I have related in the preceding chapter;
she informed me that the person in question was awaiting my orders
in the kitchen。 I told her to let me see him。 He presently made
his appearance。 He was about forty…five years of age; of middle
stature; and had a good…natured open countenance。 His dress was
poor; but clean。
〃Well;〃 said I to him in Welsh; 〃are you the Cumro who can speak no
Saxon?〃
〃In truth; sir; I am。〃
〃Are you sure that you know no Saxon?〃
〃Sir! I may know a few words; but I cannot converse in Saxon; nor
understand a conversation in that tongue。〃
〃Can you read Cumraeg?〃
〃In truth; sir; I can。〃
〃What have you read in it?〃
〃I have read; sir; the Ysgrythyr…lan; till I have it nearly at the
ends of my fingers。〃
〃Have you read anything else besides the holy Scripture?〃
〃I read the newspaper; sir; when kind friends lend it to me。〃
〃In Cumraeg?〃
〃Yes; sir; in Cumraeg。 I can read Saxon a little but not
sufficient to understand a Saxon newspaper。〃
〃What newspaper do you read?〃
〃I read; sir; Yr Amserau。〃
〃Is that a good newspaper?〃
〃Very good; sir; it is written by good men。〃
〃Who are they?〃
〃They are our ministers; sir。〃
〃Of what religion are you?〃
〃A Calvinistic Methodist; sir。〃
〃Why are you of the Methodist religion?〃
〃Because it is the true religion; sir。〃
〃You should not be bigoted。 If I had more Cumraeg than I have; I
would prove to you that the only true religion is that of the
Lloegrian Church。〃
〃In truth; sir; you could not do that; had you all the Cumraeg in
Cumru you could not do that。〃
〃What are you by trade?〃
〃I am a gwehydd; sir。〃
〃What do you earn by weaving?〃
〃About five shillings a week; sir。〃
〃Have you a wife?
〃I have; sir。〃
〃Does she earn anything?〃
〃Very seldom; sir; she is a good wife; but is generally sick。〃
〃Have you children?〃
〃I have three; sir。〃
〃Do they earn anything?〃
〃My eldest son; sir; sometimes earns a few pence; the others are
very small。〃
〃Will you sometimes walk with me; if I pay you?〃
〃I shall be always glad to walk with you; sir; whether you pay me
or not。〃
〃Do you think it lawful to walk with one of the Lloegrian Church?〃
〃Perhaps; sir; I ought to ask the gentleman of the Lloegrian Church
whether he thinks it lawful to walk with the poor Methodist
weaver。〃
〃Well; I think we may venture to walk with one another。 What is
your name?〃
〃John Jones; sir。〃
〃Jones! Jones! I was walking with a man of that name the other
night。〃
〃The man with whom you walked the other night is my brother; sir;
and what he said to me about you made me wish to walk with you
also。〃
〃But he spoke very good English。〃
〃My brother had a turn for Saxon; sir; I had not。 Some people have
a turn for the Saxon; others have not。 I have no Saxon; sir; my
wife has digon iawn … my two youngest children speak good Saxon;
sir; my eldest son not a word。〃
〃Well; shall we set out?〃
〃If you please; sir。〃
〃To what place shall we go?〃
〃Shall we go to the Pont y Cyssylltau; sir?〃
〃What is that?〃
〃A mighty bridge; sir; which carries the Camlas over a valley on
its back。〃
〃Good! let us go and see the bridge of the junction; for that I
think is the meaning in Saxon of Pont y Cyssylltau。〃
We set out; my guide conducted me along the bank of the Camlas in