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These rooms open on to the second staircase; and what does the captain do but have these two small rooms fitted up for hisself and his servant, Solomon Grundy, with a thin wooden partition, with little glass spy-holes in it, put across the two rooms, to make a kind of passage to the rooms beyond; so that night and day he can hear every footstep that goes by to Miss Gertrude's rooms.
Through these hagioscopes or "holy spy-holes" the prior could see mass being celebrated at the high altar and at the altars below in the transept, without entering the cathedral. These transeptal altars are in the Chapels of St. Martin and St. Stephen which occupy two apses in the eastern wall. St.
On the morrow the state of siege continued, and through that day the servants were sent many times to observe through spy-holes. "Go," he would say, "and find out if the worshipper of new gods has taken himself away." But the servants returned each time with the same information. "The new druid is still there," they said. All through that day no one could leave the stronghold.
The door opened, and in skipped a figure arrayed like the six already assembled, in a warm dressing-gown and a high peaked paper cap, with white tissue mask and spy-holes. All spoke in whispers, so it was almost impossible to recognize any one. But this only added to the fun and mystery. "Spread the feast, girls; the others will soon be here. Let's see, how many are there? Seven!
But even this was a matter of some risk, since the enemy had located these peep-holes, and from time to time fired a shot from a fixed rifle that came straight through them and buried its bullet in the hinder wall of the trench. Other spy-holes were therefore being made, but these were not yet finished, and for the present till they were dug, it was necessary to use the old ones.
The carriage was so made that when the doors were closed no one could see into it, though there were spy-holes arranged that the Duke could look out on all sides and not be observed. One day the Duke had sent his usual written order for his carriage to proceed by road to London. The postillions started quite oblivious that they had his Grace with them in his mysteriously-constructed vehicle.
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