I smiled and passed on. The mill was below the level of the road,
and its wheel was turned by the water of a little conduit supplied
by the brook at some distance above the mill. I had observed
similar conduits employed for similar purposes in Cornwall. A
little below the mill was a weir, and a little below the weir the
river ran frothing past the extreme end of the elephant's snout.
Following the course of the river I at last emerged with it from
the pass into a valley surrounded by enormous mountains. Extending
along it from west to east, and occupying its entire southern part
lay an oblong piece of water, into which the streamlet of the pass
discharged itself. This was one of the many beautiful lakes, which
a few days before I had seen from the Wyddfa. As for the Wyddfa I
now beheld it high above me in the north-east looking very grand
indeed, shining like a silver helmet whilst catching the glories of
the setting sun.
I proceeded slowly along the road, the lake below me on my right
hand, whilst the shelvy side of Snowdon rose above me on the left.
The evening was calm and still, and no noise came upon my ear save
the sound of a cascade falling into the lake from a black mountain,
which frowned above it on the south, and cast a gloomy shadow far
over it.
This cataract was in the neighbourhood of a singular-looking rock,
projecting above the lake from the mountain's side. I wandered a
considerable way without meeting or seeing a single human being.
At last when I had nearly gained the eastern end of the valley I
saw two men seated on the side of the hill, on the verge of the
road, in the vicinity of a house which stood a little way up the
hill. The lake here was much wider than I had hitherto seen it,
for the huge mountain on the south had terminated and the lake
expanded considerably in that quarter, having instead of the black
mountain a beautiful hill beyond it.
I quickened my steps and soon came up to the two individuals. One
was an elderly man, dressed in a smock frock and with a hairy cap
on his head. The other was much younger, wore a hat, and was
dressed in a coarse suit of blue nearly new, and doubtless his
Sunday's best. He was smoking a pipe. I greeted them in English
and sat down near them. They responded in the same language, the
younger man with considerable civility and briskness, the other in
a tone of voice denoting some reserve.
"May I ask the name of this lake?" said I, addressing myself to the
young man who sat between me and the elderly one.
"Its name is Llyn Cwellyn, sir," said he, taking the pipe out of
his mouth. "And a fine lake it is."
"Plenty of fish in it?" I demanded.
"Plenty, sir; plenty of trout and pike and char."
"Is it deep?" said I.
"Near the shore it is shallow, sir, but in the middle and near the
other side it is deep, so deep that no one knows how deep it is."
"What is the name," said I, "of the great black mountain there on
the other side?"
"It is called Mynydd Mawr or the Great Mountain. Yonder rock,
which bulks out from it, down the lake yonder, and which you passed
as you came along, is called Castell Cidwm, which means Wolf's rock
or castle."
"Did a wolf ever live there?" I demanded.
"Perhaps so," said the man, "for I have heard say that there were
wolves of old in Wales."
"And what is the name of the beautiful hill yonder, before us
across the water?"
"That, sir, is called Cairn Drws y Coed," said the man.
"The stone heap of the gate of the wood," said I.
"Are you Welsh, sir?" said the man.
"No," said I, "but I know something of the language of Wales. I
suppose you live in that house?"
"Not exactly, sir, my father-in-law here lives in that house, and
my wife with him. I am a miner, and spend six days in the week at
my mine, but every Sunday I come here and pass the day with my wife
and him."
"And what profession does he follow?" said I; "is he a fisherman?"
"Fisherman!" said the elderly man contemptuously, "not I. I am the
Snowdon Ranger."
"And what is that?" said I.
The elderly man tossed his head proudly, and made no reply.
"A ranger means a guide, sir," said the younger man; "my father-in-
law is generally termed the Snowdon Ranger because he is a tip-top
guide, and he has named the house after him the Snowdon Ranger. He
entertains gentlemen in it who put themselves under his guidance in
order to ascend Snowdon and to see the country."
"There is some difference in your professions," said "he deals in
heights, you in depths, both, however, are break-necky trades."
"I run more risk from gunpowder than anything else," said the
younger man. "I am a slate-miner, and am continually blasting. I
have, however, had my falls. Are you going far to-night, sir?"
"I am going to Beth Gelert," said I.
"A good six miles, sir, from here. Do you come from Caernarvon?"
"Farther than that," said I. "I come from Bangor."
"To-day, sir, and walking?"
"To-day, and walking."
"You must be rather tired, sir, you came along the valley very
slowly."
"I am not in the slightest degree tired," said I; "when I start
from here, I shall put on my best pace, and soon get to Beth
Gelert."
"Anybody can get along over level ground," said the old man,
laconically.
"Not with equal swiftness," said I. "I do assure you, friend, to
be able to move at a good swinging pace over level ground is
something not to be sneezed at.
