1 f
LOYD ORKNWYTlIliA of Ystradyfodwg,
Walcn. died rather than wed, keeping his
word and the oath that he took many
years ago and, coming back to life, he
has wedded Kdytha Knydolfawhr. Rather
than violate his word the man died or
physician declared him dead and after
two days of death, when the family was
L
beginning the preparations for his burial, he suddenly re
covered, sat up In his coffin, and greeted the mourners.
The strangest part of the entire business Is that
Grenwythga declares he really died, and that, by dying, he
absolved himself from his oath and was free to wed. The
rnse has attracted the attention of the medical authori
ties of Wales and even of England, and the great medical
journals of London are devoting much space to the dis
cussion of the alleged phenomenon of death, produced by
direct power of the will. Spiritualists and other cults of
the like see in the Ystradyfodwg case a support for their
contentions, but over and above it all there Is a romance
which Is one of the strangest ever told.
Student of the Occult.
Grenwythga was the son of well to do parents, well
educated, and a graduate of the manual training school at
Ystradyfodwg. afterwards studying at Cambridge and
graduating with honors. He was graduated In an en
gineering specialty which he pursued diligently, although
his entire turn of mind was In a different direction. He
studied at odd times the occult sciences o. the east, and .
on his stolid, materialistic Welsh mind these studies made
a deep and lasting Impression. He believed them. He
even practiced thtm.
There was. about that time, In Ystradyfodwg a girl
named Eileen McGinnls, whose father was an Irish miner,
and with this pretty, saucy, vivacious maid of Erin the
handsome, heavy Welsh mining engineer fell In love. Her
father was-ln charge of the loading of coal ships and the
transference of coal to the docks and yards. Qrenwythga
was the engineering expert In charge of t.ie works.
At first It Deemed as If the heavy, handsome, strong
young Welshman had a chance, but eventually she - re
jected him and married a young Irish officer of a' merchant
hip. And it was then that Grenwythga took his strange
oath. His fellows were twitting him abovlt marriage. He
arose from the table angrily.
.1 .
Vows Solemnly "Death First.
" I'll never get married until after I am dead."
declared solemnly.
The crowd roared, believing he intentionally had per
petrated a bull, but the Welshman strode away seriously,
and they, recalling his beliefs in certain eastern religions,
wondered if there was anything back of his oddly worded
retort. ,
The vow was taken fourteen or fifteen years ago the
friends do not remember which and during all that period
Grenwythga had little to do with womankind, except those
women that he met at meetings of some society for re
search into the religions of the east, of which he Waa an
earnest member. He attended meetings in London and
once traveled to Benares to consult with students or
priests.
Naturally, among the stolid, unimaginative Welsh
people there was some gossip concerning the strange
beliefs of the young mining engineer, but he still was
popular in Ystradyfodwg and among th workmen at the
tin mines, of which he was supervisor. He prospered in
his profession, being studious and hard working, and he
cultivated himself In other directions, becoming known as
a writer of force and an original thinker.
Keels His Fate on the Water.
About a year ago the man fell desperately, passion
ately in love with Edytha Kyndelfawhr. daughter of a
small manufacturer. She was a girl of rare beauty, dark,
lissome, and fearless, who (specially loved the water, and
It was while rowing on the ITsk, above Cardiff, that
Grenwythga first met the girl. She was with a party of
friends in a small sailboat, and one of them, recognising
the young engineer as he rowed by, hailed him and bade
him Join the party at a moonlight picnic party on ' the
banks of the river.
It was there that they became acquainted, and it Is
declared to have been a case of love at first sight. The
girl, scarcely 20 years old, fell desperately In love with
the serious, handsome fellow, but her passion was mild
compared with the storm that swept his heart Imme
diately afterward the man. without warning, asked for a
long leave of absence and departed for India. He had
sought every opportunity to see the girl, he had paid her
the most marked attentions, and one evening, amid the
commonplace surroundings of her home, he told her a
story which started her beautiful eyes from her pretty
face In astonishment and fright. Passionately he told her
of his love for her. and then, calmly and as if speaking
of everyday matters, he told her that he had sworn an
oath never to marry until he had died. .
The girl, abashed and ashamed because she had con
fessed her love and permitted him to kiss her In the first
cstacles of her Joy. shrank from him. and then, growing
Indignant and fired by her indignation, she demanded an
explanation and got one such as never before girl had
beard. The man calmly Informed her that he Intended to
die. to remain dead for a period, then return to life and
wed her. He left for India, leaving the girl .to weep and
wonder whether he was rraiy.
A few weeks ago Grenwythga. pale and much, more
lender than he had been, returned to Ystradyfodwg.. HIh
first act was to call upon Miss Kyndelfawhr. What he
JkM- $&sS rM - r fisted
In the "borne
of an
said to her no one knows, but when he left her aunt found
her hysterical and weeping, frightened, and clinging to a
chair for support.
Grenwythga went from there to the Engineers' club,
where he ate dinner alone and In silence. The waiter who
served him noticed that he ordered the lightest and sim
plest of dishes. Later he strode Into the smoking room,
and, standing inside the doorway, said quietly:
" Well, good-by. fellows."
"Going away again, Grenwythga?" asked one. "And
Just home at that! Whither away this'tlme?"
" I am going on a long Journey. I will never see you
again."
Several of the men sprang to their feet. " What's the
trouble, old man?'' asked one.
" Nothing. I will die tonight."
He spoke calmly and quietly, and the men'sat aa If
daxed by surprise. Then some tried to tell him he was
foolish. A few feared he would kill himself.
" But I will return In a few days In a different form,
and I hope to meet you all again."
That night Grenwythga died. At least four physicians,
an undertaker, and all his friends declared he died. He
was found dead in bed, with a happy smile upon his face
a smile as If of anticipation.
J J
Mourned as Dead by Ctrl.
Miss Kyndelfawhr mourned with the others. She wept
bitterly at the thought of his promise to return, but she
had no faith.
Preparations for the funeral were made, but because
the girl told her strange story and the men related his
remarks at the club there was a wait. The undertaker
started te perform his offices, and started to inject a so
lution Into his veins, but stopped. He declared there was
no sign of life. The physicians, Intensely intereated in
the curious case, made every test, and even declared that
hope was gone, as they vowed they saw signs of decom
position setting In.
The death happened some time on Tuesday night or
Wednesday morning. Friday afternoon Grenwythga or
he who had been Grenwythga suddenly sat up in his
coffin. Slowly the blood began to pulse through the veins,
the heart action strengthened, the color came back, and
before the frightened watchers could recover their senses
he asked feebly to be helped from the coffin. Then, seem
ing to revive with startling suddenness, he stood up and
walked across the room. He remained for two hours in
a half stupor; then, arousing from that, he asked that he
be taken to his rooms and permitted to dress in order
that he might call on the ,trl he loved.
The girl was terribly afraid at first, but her Joy at
regaining her lover or getting a new one, whichever it Is
was so great that she overcame her fear.
The man declares that he really died that all of the
old life went out of his body and that he la a new being
and he believes that he can wed now and still keep his
vow. '
One of the strangest things In connection with the en
tire thing Is that he has forgotten everything he ever
knew about' the occult art. He does not know where be
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went when he visited India, and he does not even recog-'
nice those with whom he associated in the society for
research.
Whether this knowledge was taken away from him foe
fear he might use his secret of life and death again he
does not ..now. .
He onlv knows that he Is the husband 01 one of the
prettiest girls In Wales.
iMK
BaclA iv claim Itjs briflc
