PassedthroughPennoworPenhow,asmallvillage。Thesceneryintheneighbourhoodofthisplaceishighlyinteresting。Tothenorth—westatsomedistanceisMynyddTurvey,asharppointedbluemountain。Tothesouth—east,ontheright,muchnearer,aretwobeautifulgreenhills,thelowestprettilywooded,andhavingitstopafairwhitemansioncalledPenhowCastle,whichbelongstoafamilyofthenameofCave。ThencetoLlanvaches,aprettylittlevillage。WhenIwasaboutthemiddleofthisplaceIheardanoddsound,somethinglikeanoteofrecognition,whichattractedmyattentiontoanobjectveryneartome,fromwhichitseemedtoproceed,andwhichwascomingfromthedirectioninwhichIwasgoing。Itwasthefigureseeminglyofafemale,wrappedinacoarsebluecloak,thefeetbareandthelegsbarealsonearlyuptotheknee,bothterriblysplashedwiththeslushoftheroad。
Theheadwassurmountedbyakindofhood,whichjustpermittedmetoseecoarseredhair,abroadface,greyeyes,asnubbednose,blubberlipsandgreatwhiteteeth—theeyeswerestaringintentlyatme。Istoppedandstaredtoo,andatlastthoughtIrecognisedthefeaturesoftheuncouthgirlIhadseenonthegreennearChesterwiththeIrishtinkerTourloughandhiswife。
\"Dearme!\"saidI,\"didInotseeyounearChesterlastsummer?\"
\"Tobesureyedid;andyeweregoingtopassmewithoutawordofnoticeorkindnesshadInotgivenyeabitofahail。\"
\"Well,\"saidI,\"Ibegyourpardon。Howisitallwidye?\"
\"Quitewell。Howisitwidyerehanner?’
\"Tolerably。Wheredoyoucomefrom?\"
\"FromChepstow,yerehanner。\"
\"Andwhereareyougoingto?\"
\"ToNewport,yerehanner。\"
\"AndIcomefromNewport,andamgoingtoChepstow。Where’sTourloughandhiswife?\"
\"AtCardiff,yerehanner;Ishalljointhemagainto—morrow。\"
\"Haveyoubeenlongawayfromthem?\"
\"Aboutaweek,yerehanner。\"
\"Andwhathaveyoubeendoing?\"
\"Sellingmyneedles,yerehanner。\"
\"Oh!yousellneedles。Well,Iamgladtohavemetyou。Letmesee。There’sanicelittleinnontheright:won’tyoucomeinandhavesomerefreshment?\"
\"Thankyerehanner;Ihavenoobjectiontotakeaglasswidanoldfriend。\"
\"Well,then,comein;youmustbetired,andIshallbegladtohavesomeconversationwithyou。\"
Wewentintotheinn—alittletidyplace。Onmycalling,arespectable—lookingoldmanmadehisappearancebehindabar。
Afterservingmycompanionwithaglassofpeppermint,whichshesaidshepreferredtoanythingelse,andmewithaglassofale,bothofwhichIpaidfor,heretired,andwesatdownontwooldchairsbeneathawindowinfrontofthebar。
\"Well,\"saidI,\"IsupposeyouhaveIrish:here’sslainte—\"
\"Slainteyuitashaoi,\"saidthegirl,tastingherpeppermint。
\"Well:howdoyoulikeit?’
\"It’sveryniceindeed。\"
\"That’smorethanIcansayoftheale,which,likeallthealeintheseparts,isbitter。Well,whatpartofIrelanddoyoucomefrom?\"
\"Fromnopartatall。IneverwasinIrelandinmylife。IamfromScotlandRoad,Manchester。\"
\"Why,IthoughtyouwereIrish?\"
\"AndsoIam;andallthemorefrombeingbornwhereIwas。
There’snotsuchaplaceforIrishinalltheworldasScotlandRoad。\"
\"WereyourfatherandmotherfromIreland?\"
\"MymotherwasfromIreland:myfatherwasIrishofScotlandRoad,wheretheymetandmarried。\"
\"Andwhatdidtheydoaftertheymarried?\"
\"Why,theyworkedhard,anddidtheirbesttogetalivelihoodforthemselvesandchildren,ofwhichtheyhadseveralbesidesmyself,whowastheeldest。Myfatherwasabricklayer,andmymothersoldapplesandorangesandotherfruits,accordingtotheseason,andalsowhiskey,whichshemadeherself,asshewellknewhow;formymotherwasnotonlyaConnachtwoman,butanout—and—outConnamaraquean,andwhenonlythirteenhadwroughtwiththeladswhousedtomaketheraalcraturontheislandsbetweenOchterardandBallynahinch。AssoonasIwasable,Ihelpedmymotherinmakinganddisposingofthewhiskeyandinsellingthefruit。Asfortheotherchildren,theyalldiedwhenyoung,offavers,ofwhichthereisalwaysplentyinScotlandRoad。Aboutfouryearsago—thatis,whenIwasjustfifteen—therewasagreatquarrelamongtheworkmenaboutwages。Somewantedmorethantheirmasterswerewillingtogive;otherswerewillingtotakewhatwasofferedthem。
Thosewhoweredissatisfiedwerecalledbricks;thosewhowerenotwerecalleddungs。Myfatherwasabrick;and,beingagoodmanwithhisfists,waslookeduponasaveryproperpersontofightaprincipalmanamongstthedungs。TheyfoughtinthefieldsnearSalfordforapoundaside。Myfatherhaditallhisownwayforthefirstthreerounds,butinthefourth,receivingablowundertheearfromthedung,hedropped,andnevergotupagain,dyingsuddenly。Agrandwakemyfatherhad,forwhichmymotherfurnishedusquebaughgalore;andcomfortablyanddacentlyitpassedovertillaboutthreeo’clockinthemorning,when,adisputehappeningtoarise—notonthematterofwages,fortherewasnotadungamongsttheIrishofScotlandRoad—butastowhethertheO’KeefsorO’KellyswerekingsofIrelandathousandyearsago,ageneralfighttookplace,whichbroughtinthepolice,who,beingsoondreadfullybaten,asweallturneduponthem,wentandfetchedthemilitary,withwhosehelptheytookandlockedupseveraloftheparty,amongstwhomweremymotherandmyself,tillthenextmorning,whenweweretakenbeforethemagistrates,who,afteraslightscolding,setusatliberty,oneofthemsayingthatsuchdisturbancesformedpartoftheIrishfuneralservice;whereuponwereturnedtothehouse,andtherestofthepartyjoiningus,wecarriedmyfather’sbodytothechurchyard,whereweburieditverydacently,withmanytearsandgroanings。\"
\"Andhowdidyourmotherandyougetonafteryourfatherwasburied?\"
\"Aswellaswecould,yerehanner;wesoldfruit,andnowandthenadropofwhiskey,whichwemade;butthisstateofthingsdidnotlastlong,foronedaymymotherseeingthedungwhohadkilledmyfather,sheflungalargeflintstoneandknockedouthisrighteye,fordoingwhichshewastakenupandtried,andsentencedtoayear’simprisonment,chieflyitwasthoughtbecauseshehadbeenheardtosaythatshewoulddothedungamischiefthefirsttimeshemethim。She,however,didnotsufferallhersentence,forbeforeshehadbeeninprisonthreemonthsshecaughtadisorderwhichcarriedheroff。Iwentonsellingfruitbymyselfwhilstshewasintrouble,andforsometimeafterherdeath,butverylonelyandmelancholy。AtlastmyuncleTourlough,or,astheEnglishwouldcallhim,Charles,chancingtocometoScotlandRoadalongwithhisfamily,Iwasgladtoacceptaninvitationtojointhemwhichhegaveme,andwiththemIhavebeeneversince,travellingaboutEnglandandWalesandScotland,helpingmyauntwiththechildren,anddrivingmuchthesametradewhichshehasdrivenfortwentyyearspast,whichisnotanunprofitableone。\"
\"Wouldyouhaveanyobjectiontotellmeallyoudo?\"
\"WhyIsellsneedles,asIsaidbefore,andsometimesIbuysthingsofservants,andsometimesItellsfortunes。\"
\"Doyoueverdoanythinginthewayofstriopachas?\"
\"Ohno!Ineverdoanythinginthatline;Iwouldbeburntfirst。
Iwonderyoushoulddreamofsuchathing。\"
\"Whysurelyitisnotworsethanbuyingthingsofservants,whonodoubtstealthemfromtheiremployers,ortellingfortunes,whichisdealingwiththedevil。\"
\"Notworse?Yes,athousandtimesworse;thereisnothingsoveryparticularindoingthemthings,butstriopachas—Ohdear!\"
\"It’sadreadfulthingIadmit,buttheotherthingsarequiteasbad;youshoulddononeofthem。\"
\"I’lltakegoodcarethatIneverdoone,andthatisstriopachas;
themotherthingsIknowarenotquiteright,andIhopesoontohavedonewidthem;anydayIcanshakethemoffandlookpeopleintheface,butwereIoncetodostriopachasIcouldneverholdupmyhead\"
\"Howcomesitthatyouhavesuchahorrorofstriopachas?\"
\"Igotitfrommymother,andshegotitfromhers。AllIrishwomenhaveadreadofstriopachas。It’stheonlythingthatfrightsthem;ImanesthewildIrish,forasforthequalitywomenIhaveheardtheyarenobitbetterthantheEnglish。Come,yerehanner,let’stalkofsomethingelse。\"
\"Youweresayingnowthatyouwerethinkingofleavingofffortune—
tellingandbuyingthingsofservants。Doyoumeantodependuponyourneedlesalone?\"
\"No;IamthinkingofleavingofftrampingaltogetherandgoingtotheTirnaSiar。\"
\"Isn’tthatAmerica?\"
\"Itis,yerehanner;thelandofthewestisAmerica。\"
\"Alongwayforalonegirl。\"
\"Ishouldnotbealone,yerehanner;IshouldbewidmyuncleTourloughandhiswife。\"
\"AretheygoingtoAmerica?\"
\"Theyare,yerehanner;theyintendsleavingoffbusinessandgoingtoAmericanextspring。\"
\"Itwillcostmoney。\"
\"Itwill,yerehanner;buttheyhavegotmoney,andsohaveI。\"
\"IsitbecausebusinessisslackthatyouarethinkingofgoingtoAmerica?\"
\"Ohno,yerehanner;wewishtogothereinordertogetridofoldwaysandhabits,amongstwhicharefortune—tellingandbuyingthingsofsarvants,whichyerehannerwasjistnowcheckingmewid。\"
\"Andcan’tyougetridofthemhere?\"
\"Wecannot,yerehanner。Ifwestayherewemustgoontramping,anditiswellknownthatdoingthemthingsispartoftramping。\"
\"AndwhatwouldyoudoinAmerica?\"
\"Oh,wecoulddoplentyofthingsinAmerica—mostlikelyweshouldbuyapieceoflandandsettledown。\"
\"Howcameyoutoseethewickednessofthetrampinglife?\"
\"ByhearingagreatmanysarmonsandpreachingsandhavingoftenhadtheBiblereadtousbyholywomenwhocametoourtent。\"
\"Ofwhatreligiondoyoucallyourselvesnow?\"
\"Idon’tknow,yerehanner;weareclaneunsettledaboutreligion。
WewereonceCatholicsandcarriedSaintColmanofCloyneaboutwidusinabox;butafterhearingasermonatachurchaboutimages,wewenthome,tookthesaintoutofhisboxandcasthimintoariver。\"
\"OhitwillneverdotobelongtothePopishreligion,areligionwhichupholdsidol—worshipandpersecutestheBible—youshouldbelongtotheChurchofEngland。\"
\"Well,perhapsweshould,yerehanner,ifitsministerswerenotsuchproudviolentmen。Oh,youlittleknowhowtheylookdownuponallpoorpeople,especiallyonustramps。Oncemypooraunt,Tourlough’swife,whohasalwayshadstrongerconvictionthananyofus,followedoneofthemhomeafterhehadbeenpreaching,andbeggedhimtogiveherGod,andwastoldbyhimthatshewasathief,andifshedidn’ttakeherselfoutofthehousehewouldkickherout。\"
\"Perhaps,afterall,\"saidI;\"youhadbetterjointheMethodists—
IshouldsaythattheirwayswouldsuityoubetterthanthoseofanyotherdenominationofChristians。\"
Yerehannerknowsnothingaboutthem,otherwiseyewouldn’ttalkinthatmanner。Theirwayswouldneverdoforpeoplewhowanttohavedonewithlyingandstaring,andhavealwayskeptthemselvesclanefromstriopachas。Theirwordisnotwortharottenstraw,yerehanner,andineverytransactionwhichtheyhavewithpeopletheytrytocheatandoverreach—askmyuncleTourlough,whohashadmanydealingswiththem。Butwhatisfarworse,theydothatwhichthewildestcalleent’othersideofOugteraardewouldbeburntratherthando。WhocantellyemoreonthatpointthanI,yerehanner?Ihavebeenattheirchapelsatnights,andhavelistenedtotheirscreamingprayers,andhaveseenwhat’sbeengoingonoutsidethechapelsaftertheirservices,astheycallthem,wereover—IneversawthelikegoingonoutsideFatherToban’schapel,yerehanner!Yerehanner’shanneraskedmeifIeverdidanythinginthewayofstriopachas—nowItellyethatIwasneveraskedtodoanythinginthatlinebutbyoneofthemfolks—agreatmanamongstthemhewas,bothinthewayofbusinessandprayer,forhewasacommercialtravellerduringsixdaysoftheweekandapreacherontheseventh—andsuchapreacher。Well,oneSundaynightafterhehadpreachedasermonanhour—and—a—halflong,whichhadputhalfadozenwomenintowhattheycallstaticfits,heovertookmeinadarkstreetandwantedmetodostriopachaswithhim—hedidn’tsaystriopachas,yerhanner,forhehadnoIrish—
buthesaidsomethinginEnglishwhichwasthesamething。\"
\"Andwhatdidyoudo?\"
\"Why,Iaskedhimwhathemeantbymakingfunofapooruglygirl—
fornooneknowsbetterthanmyself,yerehanner,thatIamveryugly—whereuponhetoldmethathewasnotmakingfunofme,forithadlongbeenthechiefwishofhishearttocommitstriopachaswithawildIrishPapist,andthathebelievedifhesearchedtheworldheshouldfindnonewilderthanmyself。\"
\"Andwhatdidyoureply?\"
\"Why,Isaidtohim,yerehanner,thatIwouldtellthecongregation,atwhichhelaughedandsaidthathewishedIwould,forthatthecongregationwouldsaytheydidn’tbelieveme,thoughathearttheywould,andwouldlikehimallthebetterforit。\"
\"Well,andwhatdidyousaythen?\"
\"Nothing,atall,yerehanner;butIspatinhisfaceandwenthomeandtoldmyuncleTourlough,whoforthwithtookoutaknifeandbegantosharpitonawhetstone,andImakenodoubtwouldhavegoneandstuckthefellowlikeapig,hadnotmypoorauntbeggedhimnotonherknees。AfterthatwehadnothingmoretodowiththeMethodistsasfarasreligionwent。\"
\"DidthisaffairoccurinEnglandorWales?\"
\"IntheheartofEngland,yerehanner;wehaveneverbeentotheWelshchapels,forweknowlittleofthelanguage。\"
\"Well,Iamgladitdidn’thappeninWales:IhaveratherahighopinionoftheWelshMethodist。TheworthiestcreatureIeverknewwasaWelshMethodist。AndnowImustleaveyouandmakethebestofmywaytoChepstow。\"
\"Can’tyerehannergivemeGodbeforeyego?\"
\"Icangiveyouhalf—a—crowntohelpyouonyourwaytoAmerica。\"
\"Iwantnohalf—crowns,yerehanner;butifyewouldgivemeGodI’dblessye。\"
\"WhatdoyoumeanbygivingyouGod?\"
\"PuttingHiminmyheartbysomegoodcounselwhichwillguidemethroughlife。\"
\"TheonlygoodcounselIcangiveyouistokeepthecommandments;
oneofthemitseemsyouhavealwayskept。Followtherestandyoucan’tgoverywrong。\"
\"IwishIknewthembetterthanIdo,yerehanner。\"
\"Can’tyouread?\"
\"Ohno,yerehanner,Ican’tread,neithercanTourloughnorhiswife。\"
\"Well,learntoreadassoonaspossible。WhenyouhavegottoAmericaandsettleddownyouwillhavetimeenoughtolearntoread。\"
\"Shallwebebetter,yerehanner,afterwehavelearnttoread?\"
\"Let’shopeyouwill。\"
\"Oneofthethings,yerehanner,thathavemadeusstumbleisthatsomeoftheholywomen,whohavecometoourtentandreadtheBibletous,haveafterwardsaskedmyauntandmetotellthemtheirfortunes。\"
\"Iftheyhave,themoreshameforthem,fortheycanhavenoexcuse。Well,whetheryoulearntoreadornot,stilleschewstriopachas,don’tsteal,don’tdeceive,andworshipGodinspirit,notinimage。That’sthebestcounselIcangiveyou。\"
\"Andverygoodcounselitis,yerehanner,andIwilltrytofollowit,andnow,yerehanner,letusgoourtwoways。\"
Weplacedourglassesuponthebarandwentout。Inthemiddleoftheroadweshookhandsandparted,shegoingtowardsNewportandI
towardsChepstow。AfterwalkingafewyardsIturnedroundandlookedafterher。Thereshewasinthedamploweringafternoonwendingherwayslowlythroughmudandpuddle,herupperformhuddledintheroughfriezemantle,andhercoarselegsbaretothetopofthecalves。\"Surely,\"saidItomyself,\"thereneverwasanobjectlesspromisinginappearance。Whowouldthinkthattherecouldbeallthegoodsenseandproperfeelinginthatuncouthgirlwhichtherereallyis?\"
CHAPTERCIX
ArrivalatChepstow—StirringLyric—Conclusion。
IPASSEDthroughCaerWent,onceanimportantRomanstation,andforalongtimeafterthedepartureoftheRomansacelebratedBritishcity,nowapoordesolateplaceconsistingofafewold—
fashionedhousesandastrange—lookingdilapidatedchurch。NoWelshisspokenatCaerWent,nortotheeastofit,norindeedfortwoorthreemilesbeforeyoureachitfromthewest。
ThecountrybetweenitandChepstow,fromwhichitisdistantaboutfourmiles,isdelightfullygreen,butsomewhattame。
Chepstowstandsonthelowerpartofahill,neartowherethebeautifulWyejoinsthenobleSevern。TheBritishnameoftheplaceisAberWyeorthedisemboguementoftheWye。TheSaxonsgaveitthenameofChepstow,whichintheirlanguagesignifiesaplacewhereamarketisheld,becauseeveninthetimeoftheBritonsitwasthesiteofagreatcheapormarket。AftertheNormanConquestitbecamethepropertyofDeClare,oneofWilliam’sfollowers,whobuiltnearitanenormouscastle,whichenjoyedconsiderablecelebrityduringseveralcenturiesfromhavingbeenthebirthplaceofStrongbow,theconquerorofIreland,butwhichisatpresentchieflyillustriousfromthementionwhichismadeofitinoneofthemoststirringlyricsofmoderntimes,apiecebyWalterScott,calledthe\"NormanHorseshoe,\"commemorativeofanexpeditionmadebyaDeClare,ofChepstow,withtheviewofinsultingwiththeprintofhiscourser’sshoethegreenmeadsofGlamorgan,andwhichcommencesthus:—
\"Redglowstheforge\"—
Iwenttotheprincipalinn,whereIengagedaprivateroomandorderedthebestdinnerwhichthepeoplecouldprovide。ThenleavingmysatchelbehindmeIwenttothecastle,amongsttheruinsofwhichIgropedandwanderedfornearlyanhour,occasionallyrepeatingversesoftheNormanHorseshoe。IthenwenttotheWyeanddrankofthewatersatitsmouth,evenassometimebeforeIhaddrunkofthewatersatitssource。ThenreturningtomyinnIgotmydinner,afterwhichIcalledforabottleofport,andplacingmyfeetagainstthesidesofthegrateIpassedmytimedrinkingwineandsingingWelshsongstillteno’clockatnight,whenIpaidmyreckoning,amountingtosomethingconsiderable。
ThenshoulderingmysatchelIproceededtotherailroadstation,whereIpurchasedafirst—classticket,andensconcingmyselfinacomfortablecarriage,wassoononthewaytoLondon,whereI
arrivedataboutfouro’clockinthemorning,havinghadduringthewholeofmyjourneyamostuproarioussetofneighboursafewcarriagesbehindme,namely,somehundredandfiftyofNapier’starsreturningfromtheirexpeditiontotheBaltic。
CUMROANDCUMRAEG。
THEoriginalhomeoftheCumrowasSouthernHindustan,theextremepointofwhich,CapeComorin,derivedfromhimitsname。ItmaybehereaskedwhatistheexactmeaningofthewordCumro?Thetruemeaningofthewordisayouth。ItisconnectedwithaSanscritword,signifyingayouth,andlikewiseaprince。Itissurprisinghowsimilarinmeaningthenamesofseveralnationsare:Cumro,ayouth;Gael,ahero;(24)Roman,onewhoiscomely,ahusband;(25)
FrankorFrenchman,afree,bravefellow;Dane,anhonestman;
Turk,ahandsomelad;Arab,asprightlyfellow。Lastly,RomanyChal,thenamebywhichtheGypsystyleshimself,signifyingnotanEgyptian,butaladofRome。(26)
ThelanguageoftheCumroiscalledafterhimCumraeg。OfCumrictherearethreedialects,thespeechofCumruorWales;thatofArmoricaor,astheWelshcallit,Llydaw,andtheCornish,whichisnolongerspoken,andonlyexistsinbooksandinthenamesofplaces。TheCumricbearsconsiderableaffinitytotheGaelic,orthelanguageoftheGael,ofwhichtherearealsothreedialects,theIrish,thespeechoftheScottishHighlanders,andtheManx,whichlastisrapidlybecomingextinct。TheCumricandGaelichavenotonlyagreatmanythousandwordsincommon,butalsoaremarkablegrammaticalfeature,themutationanddroppingofcertaininitialconsonantsundercertaincircumstances,whichfeatureispeculiartotheCelticlanguages。ThenumberofSanscriticwordswhichtheCumricandGaelicpossessisconsiderable。OfthetwotheGaelicpossessesthemost,andthosehavegenerallymoreoftheSanscriticcharacter,thanthewordsofthesameclasswhicharetobefoundintheWelsh。TheWelsh,however,frequentlypossessestheprimarywordwhentheIrishdoesnot。Ofthisthefollowingisaninstance。OneofthenumerousIrishwordsforamountainiscodadh。ThiswordisalmostidenticalwiththeSanscritkuta,whichalsosignifiesamountain;