d. This space is now called "The Oaks." A bell tower,
_campanile_, doubtless used for tolling the passing bell, once stood on a
mound in the cemetery, close to the dividing wall. The houses on the south
side of this space are of no great antiquity or interest, and the site on
which they stand did not become part of the monastery grounds before a
comparatively late period. But if we skirt the east end of the cathedral
we come to the space formerly known as the "Homors," a word supposed to be
a corruption of _Ormeaux_, a French word, meaning elms.[1] Here stood the
building in which guests of rank and distinction were entertained; and the
great hall, with its kitchen and offices, is still preserved in a house in
the north-east corner of the inclosure, now the residence of one of the
prebendaries. The original building was one of great importance in a
monastery like Canterbury, which was so often visited, as has already been
shown, by royal pilgrims. It is said to have been rebuilt from top to
bottom by Prior Chillenden, and the nature of the architecture, as far as
it can be traced, is not in any way at variance with this statement. The
hall, as it originally stood, was pierced with oriel windows rising to the
roof, and at its western end a walled-off portion was divided into two
storeys, the lower one containing the kitchens, while the upper one was
either a distinct room separated from the hall, or it may have been a
gallery opening upon it.

[1] Though it is also derived from one Dr. Omerus, who lived on the spot
in the thirteenth century.

To the west of this house we find the #ruins of the Infirmary#, which
contained a long hall with aisles, and a chapel at the east end. The hall
was used as the hospital, and the aisles were sometimes divided into
separate compartments; the chapel was really part of the hall, with only a
screen intervening, so that the sick brethren could take part in the
services. This infirmary survived until the Reformation period, but not
without undergoing alterations. Before the fifteenth century the south
aisle was devoted to the use of the sub-prior, and the chancel at the east
end of the chapel was partially restored about the middle of the
fourteenth century. A large east window was put in with three-light
windows on each side. In the north wall there is a curious opening,
through which, perhaps, sufferers from infectious diseases were allowed to
assist at the services. On the southern