280 CWM BYCHAN. 



were not deemed of such consequence as to require a military force 

 to be sent against them. 



Mortimer had remained on the station in the valley of Ffestiniog 

 during this period ; but he had now only a small body of troops 

 with him ; and was in daily expectation of being recalled. Thal- 

 wyn had become his page and was his constant companion. He was 

 much attached to the youth, partly from a knowledge of his misfor- 

 tunes, and partly from his peculiarly engaging manners, his well- 

 informed mind, and the loftiness of his sentiments. Every spot of 

 his native mountains was familiar to him, and he would frequently 

 be Mortimer's guide through their wild scenery. When engaged 

 on these expeditions, the gloom which generally hung over him was 

 dispelled, and the free air of the hills seemed to give elasticity to the 

 mind as well as vigour to the body. 



Often when standing on some jutting rock or craggy pinnacle to 

 survey the lovely landscape which lay outspread beneath them, he 

 would forget his present condition and the woes of his country, and 

 with warm enthusiasm, with animated gesture and a beaming eye, 

 he would relate the traditions and legends of his father-land. 



When interrogated regarding his parents and kindred, he was 

 reserved and silent. The subject seemed to awaken the most pain- 

 ful sensations, and on this account it was seldom mentioned. 



At length the expected order arrived. Mortimer was to repair 

 instantly to Normandy, at the head of a considerable army, for the 

 purpose of quelling the rebellious vassals in that kingdom. As this 

 service was sure to be attended with much hazard and danger, he 

 proposed to his page that he should remain in England under the 

 eare of a trusty friend. Thalwyn heard the proposition with a 

 downcast look and a tearful eye ; but, after a moment's considera- 

 tion, with a brightening countenance, he replied : — " No ! this 

 must not be. I must accompany you. Yot> are my only friend, 

 my only guardian. I will share your fate, be it what it may ! 

 Think not that the chance of peril will blanch my cheek, or the 

 approach of danger make my heart quail. Have I not lived amidst 

 hardships and deprivation, strife and bloodshed ? Cradled in the 

 mists of the cloud-capped mountains and nursed in the ruthless blast 

 of the sweeping tempests, I dread not the power of the elements ! 

 Then, I have seen war and the direst devastation, with all the 

 aggravated enormities of fiendish cruelty. I have seen the bold and 

 the freeborn struggling against the oppression of the proud and 

 ambitious. I have seen the brave, the generous, the noble, despoiled 

 of their home and their heritage, severed from their fondest afFec- 



