l staircase of solid oak, which is three hundred
years old; but the entire building is filled with little passages and
unexpected, remote nooks and corners, which, like the quaint bedrooms,
are crowded with curios, old pictures, and superb antique furniture.
Betty declared she had never seen such a "darling old four-poster" as
the one which stood in her room, the favorite Number Nine for which
all visitors clamor. Altogether, they considered it a most delightful
place, and Betty thought that without too great a stretch of the
imagination, she could even think of Robin Hood or Little John there.

The hostess hastened to prepare a delicious, early lunch especially
for the party, and having partaken of it, they went at once to the
open carriage which was drawn up in the odd little inn-yard. John, as
usual, claimed the seat beside the driver, the others settled
themselves, and they started off.

No sooner had they reached the open country than Betty's pent-up
spirits overflowed entirely.

"Oh, do you see that little river flowing through the meadows?" she
suddenly cried, standing up to point at it excitedly. "See the reeds
along its edges, the field of tall grain, and the old tree trunk
which has fallen across the water! I just know that must be the place
where Robin first met Little John. They had a fight on a narrow
foot-bridge, you know, and Little John (who wasn't 'little' at all)
was the stronger, and tumbled Robin Hood over into the brook. Don't
you remember, John? That looks exactly like the picture in my Howard
Pyle's 'Robin Hood,' at home. Oh, I'm perfectly sure it must be the
same place! Aren't you, Mrs. Pitt?"

This enthusiasm of Betty's was soon caught by the rest, and during the
whole afternoon they took turns in telling, one after another, the
"Merry Adventures of Robin Hood," as they recalled them. There could
not be a section of country which more perfectly suggests the setting
for that particular group of legends which has been associated with
it. Here surely is the identical woodland through which Robin Hood and
his merry men roamed. No one could possibly mistake it! Here are the
very same trees, behind which one can almost see lurking the men in
"Lincoln green." Here are ideal little glades carpeted with dainty
ferns, here and there touched with the sunlight which flashes between
the leaves. Sometimes the road emerges from the forest, and winds
along through broad fields,--the "high road" bordered by