Blair Collection > Rhys Lewis, minister of Bethel

46 J^BYS LEWIS.
cleaned the Church, nicknamed the " Skulk," who had carried
the news to master, and the threats were legion that were
launched at his head. On the return to school Ehys Lewis and
John Beck were called up to the desk to give an account of
their stewardship. It was a fearful moment, but Will Bryan
rose equal to the occasion. He came up to the desk, unasked,
to give testimony, and declared unflinchingly that it was Beck
who had challenged me and struck me first. This was empha-
tically denied by Beck. Another witness was called who,
happening to be an enemy of Beck's, confirmed Will's evidence,
whereupon the old Soldier, saying that inasmuch as this was
the first day I had been at school, he would let me off un-
punished, but as for Beck, he should receive three strokes with
the cane, one for fighting without reasonable cause, one for
taking a beating from his opponent, and one for denying the
accusation which had been brought against him.
I sympathised sincerely with Beck. He was hoisted, poor
chap, on the back of the stoutest lad in school, denuded of his
clothing at a particular part of the body which I did not then
care to see and do not now care to name, and had inflicted upon
him the punishment prescribed.
The old Soldier prefaced each stroke as follows: — "This is
for fighting without a reasonable cause" (whack!) "This is for
coming vanquished out of the fight " (whack! ) " And this is
for denying the truth of the accusation brought against him "
(whack ! )
In subsequent days I heard the same formula repeatedly gone
thi-ough, which is why I remember it so well. It was a sermon
of exceptionally direct applicability and influence, this one of
the old Soldier's, which was doubtless why he delivered it so
often. In his turn I saw every boy but one of the whole school
dancing and shouting from its effects, although not for joy.
That boy was Will Bryan. Be the old Soldier's humour what
it might, he could never get a cry out of Will, who thus be-
came a hero in our eyes, and the very embodiment of bravery.
It seemed to me that the lads, as a whole, enjoyed immensely
the fiogging of poor Beck, which I considered very cruel of
them, seeing none knew but that he himself might be the next
to come in for similar treatment.