xxxi. 



WINCHESTER MEETING. The second Field Meeting was held at Winchester on 

 Thursday and Friday, July 26th and 27th, 1900, and was attended by about 30 

 members and friends. The President was unable to be present, but three of the 

 Vice -Presidents viz., 'Mr. Vaughan Cornish, the Hon. Secretary, and Hon. 

 Treasurer took his place during different parts of the meeting. 



The party reached Winchester at 12.48, and made the George Hotel their 

 head- quarters. On assembling at the West Gate at 2.0 p.m they were conducted 

 by Mr. Jacob over some of the most interesting portions of the town. The West 

 Gate is the last remaining one of the four city gates. It had been cleared from 

 accumulations of rubbish and was now in much the same condition as when 

 used as a prison in Queen Mary's time. The room above it is used as a Museum 

 by the Corporation, and contains amongst many other interesting articles 

 standard weights and measures of the time of Henry VII. and Elizabeth, a 

 leaden box which when found in 1823 contained 6,000 silver coins of William 

 the Conqueror, &c. The County Hall, a modern structure, and the Great Hall 

 of the Norman Castle were next visited. The architecture of the latter is, how- 

 ever, chiefly Early English. On the wall hangs " King Arthur's Round Table," 

 inscribed with the names of himself and his 24 Knights. It was first mentioned 

 as hanging in its present position by John Harding early in the 15th century, and 

 the earliest account of it which we have is of an order by the builder of the palace 

 about the time of Heniy III. to construct a wheel of fortune. Its origin, how- 

 ever, seems to be uncertain. The Parliaments met in this Hall for nearly 400 

 years ; and there is an arrangement of a hole in the western wall by means of 

 which the King could hear their proceedings in his private apartment. 



A subterranean passage runs beneath the castle, and was entered by some of 

 the party, who afterwards visited one or two old houses and the City Cross on the 

 way to the College, which they reached at four o'clock. Here they were re- 

 ceived by the Headmaster, Dr. Fearon, who, assisted by the Bursar and others, 

 showed them the various buildings and gave some account of the College and its 

 institutions. It was founded by William of Wykeham in 1382, but there had 

 existed for a long period an earlier school in the same locality, under the Monks 

 of St. Swithun's Priory, at which William of Wykeham and, it is said, the Kings 

 Ethel wolf and Alfred attended. The College was founded for 120 persons, and 

 there are now 70 scholars, besides between 300 and 400 not on the foundation, 

 called " Commoners." The cellar was first inspected, together with the passage 

 outside, containing the well-known picture of the " Trusty Servant" and the lines 

 describing his qualities. This painting was probably originally made in 1599, 

 but the present one is of the period of Queen Anne. 



The Hall was visited and also some of the rooms near, in one of which was 

 some tapestry, presented by Archbishop Warhain, and some curious panels 

 painted with Spanish figure subjects, dating from the occasion when Philip and 

 Mary visited the College in July, 1553. Some of the tiles are Flemish, of the 

 15th century. The chapel, finished in 1390, and added to in the next century, 

 has a fine roof and east window, but the old glass has nearly all been, replaced by 



