1833-36 VISIT TO ETON 71 



young gentlemen have, I will describe. They 

 are limited to a single room each, in which there 

 is a turn-up bed, with their chest of drawers and 

 wash-stand ; two or three chairs, a small table, 

 reading stand, and book-case complete the furni- 

 ture. My room looked into the same garden as 

 George's. ' Mydelton ' cut on the bedstead indi- 

 cated the previous possessor. . . . The dames' 

 houses are all situated within the College, and 

 built with a view of rendering escape from them 

 as difficult and detectable as possible. The en- 

 trance to them from the street is by a long, low, 

 and narrow passage, but the house itself is sur- 

 rounded by gardens, which have high walls 

 separating them from the fields ; the windows of 

 such of the rooms as might afford any outlet are 

 barred and grated. . . . After dinner, went to 

 hear the speeches of the scholars elected to 

 King's College, Cambridge, spoken before the 

 Provost of the College. On this occasion he sits 

 in the Master's seat and takes precedence of him. 

 The boys are in full dress and step out into a 

 clear space in front of the Provost, behind whom 

 are a series of raised seats for visitors. We were 

 admitted on the floor, and sat behind the Fellows 

 of Eton. It was a very interesting sight ; the 

 speeches were in Latin and Greek, selected from 

 different classical authors. When that was over 

 we proceeded to walk to the river side to see a 

 procession of the boys in boats. They go up the 



