Short Fiction · Chapter
At Treff Loyne Farm explained
The chapter describes the eerie isolation of the Welsh countryside during the terror, focusing on the mysterious disappearance of Thomas Griffith and his family at Treff Loyne farm.
What happens
The chapter describes the eerie isolation of the Welsh countryside during the terror, focusing on the mysterious disappearance of Thomas Griffith and his family at Treff Loyne farm. A yellow sheepdog's desperate attempts to lead people to the farm are ignored, and a hollow wailing sound heard at night is dismissed as a natural phenomenon. Eventually, a party including farmers, police, and soldiers sets out to investigate the farm, unaware of what they will find.
Themes in this chapter
The Urban Mystery
The chapter contrasts the loneliness of remote Welsh farms with the townsman's limited understanding of true isolation, emphasizing the mystery of events in hidden places.
Madness and Psychological Horror
The dog's frantic, desperate behavior and the hollow wailing sound create an atmosphere of psychological dread and foreboding.
Characters to notice
- Tom Griffith
Thomas Griffith, the farmer of Treff Loyne, has not been seen for days, missing market day and church, and his family has vanished.
- Dr. Lewis
Dr. Lewis joins the search party, concerned about a young painter lodging at Treff Loyne.
- Mr. Remnant
Remnant hears a gardener's account of the hollow wailing sound and speculates it might be caused by a subterranean blowhole.
- Mr. and Mrs. Merritt
Merritt is mentioned as the foolish farmer who thought he saw signal lights from Penyrhaul.
Key passages
“Let it be remembered, again and again, that, all the while that the terror lasted, there was no common stock of information as to the dreadful things that were being done.”
It must be stressed repeatedly that during the terror, there was no shared knowledge about the horrific events occurring.
The narrator emphasizes the lack of public information and the resulting confusion.
“The dog became like a possessed creature. He barked furiously. He ran up to one of the men and looked up at him, 'as if he were begging for his life,' as the man said, and then rushed to the gate and stood by it, wagging his tail and barking at intervals.”
The dog acted as if possessed, barking wildly and running to the men as if pleading, then dashing to the gate and barking repeatedly.
The dog's frantic behavior is a clear sign that something is wrong at Treff Loyne.
“That melancholy and hollow sound, that wailing summons that appalled the hearts of those who heard it was, indeed, a human voice, produced in a very exceptional manner;”
The sad, hollow wailing that terrified listeners was actually a human voice, made in an unusual way.
The narrator reveals that the mysterious sound is human in origin, adding to the horror.