He then went amongst certain bricklayers, and induced them to teach him their craft; "and shortly," as he says, "became a very lion at bricklaying.

For the last four or five years," says he, towards the conclusion of his history, "my work has been to put up iron ovens and likewise furnaces of all kinds, also grates, stoves and boilers, and not unfrequently I have practised as a smoke doctor." The following feats of strength he performed after his return from South Wales, when he was probably about sixty years of age:-- "About a year after my return from the South," says he, "I met with an old carrier of wood, who had many a time worked along with me.

He and I were at the Hand at Ruthyn along with various others, and in the course of discourse my friend said to me: 'Tom, thou art much weaker than thou wast when we carted wood together.' I answered that in my opinion I was not a bit weaker than I was then.

Now it happened that at the moment we were talking there were some sacks of wheat in the hall which were going to Chester by the carrier's waggon.

They might hold about three bushels each, and I said that if I could get three of the sacks upon the table, and had them tied together, I would carry them into the street and back again; and so I did; many who were present tried to do the same thing, but all failed.
"Another time when I was at Chester I lifted a barrel of porter from the street to the hinder part of the waggon solely by strength of back and arms." He was once run over by a loaded waggon, but strange to say escaped without the slightest injury.
Towards the close of his life he had strong religious convictions, and felt a loathing for the sins which he had committed.