This tendency was, however, choked within me by too much work with the cattle, and by other farm labour.

In a word, I had but little fair weather in my search for knowledge.

One thing enticed me from another, to the detriment of my plans; some fair Eve often standing with an apple in hand, tempting me to taste of that.
"The old preacher's books at Pen Ceint were in Welsh.

I had not yet learned English, but tried to learn it by comparing one line in the English New Testament with the same line in the Welsh.

This was the Hamiltonian method, and the way in which I learnt most languages.