s plot in the center, and around these narrow
passages Wolsey probably rode on his ass."

"Ass!" cried John. "What for? With all his money, couldn't he even
have a horse?"

"Oh, rather!" Mrs. Pitt laughed. "No doubt Wolsey would have liked
one, but he was wise enough to always follow custom in such matters as
had to do with his outward appearance and attitude. All religious men
rode on asses; it was the habit of the day. Now, come this way, and
see the Great Hall. Oh, Philip! Please fetch me my umbrella; I left it
on the step in the court, there!"

Leading into the second or Clock Court, is Anne Boleyn's gateway.
Under this is a broad flight of stairs which takes one to the Great
Hall, erected by Henry VIII, probably on the site of Wolsey's earlier
hall. It is a grand old room with a fine timber roof, and complete
with its dais or raised platform at the end, its minstrels' gallery
over the entrance doors, its old tapestries, stags' heads, and suits
of armor, and its windows mostly filled with modern stained-glass. Out
of the hall are two smaller apartments, which also contain good
tapestries. From here, the visitor again descends to Anne Boleyn's
gateway.

"What a funny old clock!" exclaimed Betty, spying it, up above on the
tower under which they had just passed. "It seems to be so mixed up,
somehow, that I can't tell the time by it."

"It is curious! It's Henry VIII's Astronomical Clock; it has all sorts
of appliances and strange attachments. That's why you can't read it.
It was recently repaired and set going again."

"The King's Grand Staircase" is broad, stately, and quite as
impressive as its name, and this leads to the pompous State
Apartments. These great square rooms, one opening out of another,
seemed endless to the young people, and contained no attractions for
them. The walls are covered with pictures, some of which are fine, but
there are so many which are very similar that even Sir Peter Lely,
Holbein, and Van Dyck become hopelessly tiresome. These rooms also
contain some old furniture which is interesting, but on the whole, the
best thing about them is the ever charming view of the gardens from
the windows. The visitor may enter one tiny room called "Wolsey's
Closet," which is deeply impressive with its paneled walls and ancient
ceiling. The very atmosphere of the sixteenth century still seems to
linger here, and one can easily believe that nothing herein has been
changed since the great Cardinal