paw in the pocket that contained Huw
Llwyd's purse, he like lightning struck the cat's paw with his sword.
With terrible screams they both disappeared, and nothing further was seen
of them during the night.

Next morning, only one of the sisters appeared at the breakfast table.
To the traveller's enquiry after the absent lady of the house, her sister
said that she was slightly indisposed, and could not appear.

Huw Llwyd expressed regret at this, but, said he--"I must say good-bye to
her, for I greatly enjoyed her company last night." He would not be
refused, so ultimately he was admitted to her presence. After expressing
his sympathy and regret at her illness, the soldier held out his hand to
bid good-bye to the lady. She put out her left hand; this Huw refused to
take, averring that he had never taken a left hand in his life, and that
he would not do so now. Very reluctantly, and with evident pain, she put
out her right hand, which was bandaged, and this fact cleared up the
mystery connected with the robberies. These two ladies were two witches,
who in the form of cats had robbed travellers who lodged under their
roof. Huw, when he made this discovery said--"I am Huw Llwyd of Cynvael,
and I warn you of the risk you have incurred by your thefts, and I
promise you I will not let you off so easily the next time I have need to
visit you."

The preceding tale is circumstantial, but unfortunately similar tales are
current in other places, as shown by the following quotation:--

"The last instance of national credulity on this head was the story
of the witches of Thurso, who, tormenting for a long time an honest
fellow under the usual form of a cat, at last provoked him so that
one night he put them to flight with his broad sword and _cut off the
leg_ of one less nimble than the rest. On his taking it up, to his
amazement _he found it belonged to a female of his own species_, and
next morning discovered the owner, an old hag, with only the
companion leg to this."

_Brand's Popular Antiquities_, pp. 318-319.

_The Witches' Revenge on Huw Llwyd_.

Several months after the occurrence recorded above of Huw Llwyd, when he
had just started from his home one Sunday morning to go to his Church to
officiate there, for he was the parson of Llan Festiniog, he observed
that the Bettws-y-Coed ladies were approaching his house, and he
perceived that their object was to witch him. H