Blair Collection > Rhys Lewis, minister of Bethel

RHYS LEWIS. 267
hope or desire of this kind there might be in me. Eecollection
of my feelings at that time puts me in mind of the incident I
am now going to relate.
In the neighbourhood where I was brought up there was a
strange character known as "Old Nic'las," or, more often
"Old Nick;" a not inappropriate designation for, with my
boyish notions of his namesake, I fancied Nic'las and he
to possess a strong family likeness. The former was tall, had
a stoop, was muscular and strong. Although at the time I
speak of an old man, age had not softened or smoothed his
natural roughness of aspect. His bristly Hair obstinately re-
fused to whiten, his repulsive countenance was too firm set to
wrinkle. I believe he would have gone mad had he lost a
tooth. In walking, he always held his head down and rested his
hands on the small of his back, under his coat-tails. He looked
no one in the face save from the corners of his cunning eyes.
He was such a terror to the children, that when one of them cried
or refused to come home on being called, the mother might be
heard saying, "You wait a bit, my boy; here's old Nic'las
coming," which was quite enough to stop the cry or to send
the youngster running into the house for his life. Although
mother never threatened Nic'las upon me, I feared him great-
ly, notwithstanding. I remember when we were a crowd of
boys at play, directly we saw Nic'las coming, we scampered off
to hide, and kept as still as mice out ofthe way until he had gone
by. "Will Bryan would not believe he was human. Will used to
say he was a cross between a Gipsy and the Evil One. Nic'las
held no sort of communication with his neighbours, for which, so
far as I know, no one was the least bit sorry. A stranger to those
parts, his life and circumstances were a complete mystery.
Many, however, were the wild and fearful stories told about
him, implicitly accepted by the credulous and the supersti-
tious, no one being able to gainsay them. It was pretty
generally believed that he was of high family and very rich.
Mother was of opinion that he had sold himself to the Evil
One, and was living upon the proceeds. I fear her views of
the pecuniary resources of the Evil One were too broad ; only,
in face of such a charge, she would instantly answer that the
love of money is the root of all evil, and that it was not un-