278 CWM BYCHAN. 



tedious hours of his suffering with anecdotes of life and adventure. 

 At first he received all the care and attention that was hestowed 

 upon him with silence and seeming indifference. After the poig- 

 nancy of his sorrows, however, had been blunted by time, the boy 

 acknowledged the kindness, and a grateful look, a slight pressure of 

 the hand, and a few low words of thanks would occasionally escape 

 from him. 



At length Thalwyn recovered his former health and vigour ; and 

 the first day on which he ventured from the tent to survey the beau- 

 tiful face of nature, he found himself standing in the midst of the 

 picturesque vale of Ffestiniog : he beheld the wood-clad rocks with 

 their luxuriant foliage. He turned to the river meandering like a 

 vein of silver through the more cultivated parts of the vale : he 

 strained his gaze to the distant ocean, now calmly sleeping in the 

 embrace of the azure sky. The contemplation of such a scene 

 awoke in his soul all its past associations. He thought on the days 

 of his childhood and the home of his fathers, on his lost country 

 and departed friends ; and then in the bitterness of utter bereave- 

 ment, he burst into a flood of tears. Mortimer regarded him with 

 pity and deep interest ; for the knowledge of his misfortunes and 

 the gentleness of his manners had won the regard of the English 

 general, who had witnessed the boy's bravery at the capture of his 

 king. There was something, also, in the young Cambrian's demean- 

 our, an innate nobility of bearing, which alike commanded sympa- 

 thy and respect. 



Thalwyn had the appearance of being about sixteen years of age. 

 He was tall and graceful. His form, though slight and delicate, 

 was beautifully symmetrical. There was an air of pensive melan- 

 choly and subdued sadness about his general behaviour, as if he 

 bore his fate with placid resignation ; but the occasional flashes 

 that gleamed from his expressive eye betrayed the inward workings 

 of an unsubdued spirit. His fair hair clustered in profuse curls 

 over an open and intelligent brow, on which might be traced 

 already the lines of suffering and of sorrow. 



Mortimer approached and spoke to the impassioned youth in the 

 soothing words of kindness. " Come, my brave boy," said he, 

 " cheer up ! you shall have nothing to fear : I will be your friend, 

 you shall be to me as a brother." The youth took his hand and 

 pressed it to his lips ; and, still keeping his eyes on the landscape, he 

 said, " I pray Heaven bless and reward you, noble and generous 

 foe ! I owe you much, infinitely more, than I can ever repay ; but 

 suffer my weakness now, for my heart is sick, my soul is oppressed. 



