I gathered from him that he lived in the house on the hill, and was a farmer. I asked him to what place the road up the valley to the north led.
“We generally go by that road to Wrexham,” he replied; “it is a short but a wild road through the hills.”
After a little discourse on the times, which he told me were not quite so bad for farmers as they had been, I bade, him farewell.
Mounting the hill, I passed round the house, as the farmer had directed me, and turned to the west along a path on the side of the mountain. A deep valley was on my left, and on my right above me a thick wood, principally of oak. About a mile farther on the path winded down a descent, at the bottom of which I saw a brook and a number of cottages beyond it.
I passed over the brook by means of a long slab laid across, and reached the cottages. I was now, as I supposed, in Pentré y Dwr, and a pentré y dwr most truly it looked, for those Welsh words signify in English the village of the water, and the brook here ran through the village, in every room of which its pretty murmuring sound must have been audible. I looked about me in the hope of seeing somebody of whom I could ask a question or two, but seeing no one, I turned to the south, intending to regain Llangollen by the way of the monastery. Coming to a cottage, I saw a woman, to all appearance very old, standing by the door, and asked her in Welsh where I was.
“In Pentré Dwr,” said she. “This house and those yonder,” pointing to the cottages past which I had come, “are Pentré y Dwr. There is, however, another Pentré Dwr up the glen yonder,” said she, pointing towards the north—“which is called Pentré Dwr uchaf (the upper)—this is called Pentré Dwr isaf (the lower).”
“Is it called Pentré Dwr,” said I, “because of the water of the brook?”
“Likely enough,” said she, “but I never thought of the matter before.”
She was blear-eyed, and her skin, which seemed drawn tight over her forehead and cheek-bones, was of the colour of parchment. I asked her how old she was.
“Fifteen after three twenties,” she replied; meaning that she was seventy-five.