ings. In the
beginning he was "torn out of the reeds," and in the end he melts into
the Unknown, and for the rest, there are beef and wives, and foes to
conquer. But then oxen and gulls are not, so far as we know, troubled
with any spiritual parts at all, and in the noble savage such things are
not cultivated. They come with civilization.

But perhaps in the majority this condition, so necessary to the more
placid forms of happiness, is born of a conjunction of physical and
religious developments. So it was, at least, with the rich and fortunate
man whom we have seen trudging along the wind-swept cliff. By nature and
education he was of a strongly and simply religious mind, as he was in
body powerful, placid, and healthy to an exasperating degree. It may be
said that it is easy to be religious and placid on ten thousand a year,
but Owen Davies had not always enjoyed ten thousand a year and one of
the most romantic and beautiful seats in Wales. From the time he was
seventeen, when his mother's death left him an orphan, till he reached
the age of thirty, some six years from the date of the opening of this
history, he led about as hard a life as fate could find for any man.
Some people may have heard of sugar drogers, or sailing brigs, which
trade between this country and the West Indies, carrying coal outwards
and sugar home.

On board one of these, Owen Davies worked in various capacities for
thirteen long years. He did his drudgery well; but he made no friends,
and always remained the same shy, silent, and pious man. Then suddenly
a relation died without a will, and he found himself heir-in-law to
Bryngelly Castle and all its revenues. Owen expressed no surprise, and
to all appearance felt none. He had never seen his relation, and never
dreamed of this romantic devolution of great estates upon himself.
But he accepted the good fortune as he had accepted the ill, and said
nothing. The only people who knew him were his shipmates, and they could
scarcely be held to know him. They were acquainted with his appearance
and the sound of his voice, and his method of doing his duty. Also, they
were aware, although he never spoke of religion, that he read a chapter
of the Bible every evening, and went to church whenever they touched at
a port. But of his internal self they were in total ignorance. This
did not, however, prevent them from prophesying that Davies was a "deep
one," who, now that he had got the cash, would "blue it"