CHAPTER 16
An autumn mist hung over Elchester as the line of school children made their way down the narrow road to the Cathedral.
Some red leaves still clung to the trees in the cathedral close, catching the watery sunlight that was beginning to shine through. The towers loomed ghostlike in the fog. Starlings sat among the lingering leaves and whistled and squeaked to themselves.
The procession from Ravenshurst made its way to the South Door, where a Cathedral Guide was waiting in the shadows of the porch to welcome them.
"Mr Wilson and the Ravenshurst school party?" he asked.
"That's right," said Mr Wilson.
Mr Bates, who was also with the party, came to the front, as did the two other teachers who had come. With the teachers in the lead, the guide conducted the school party into the cool gloom of the cathedral.
Even the most cynical among the children were amazed at the size of the building. Various 'Oohs' and 'Aaahs' could be heard.
"It's like a forest!" said Jane, and indeed it was. The pillars reached up like tree-trunks, branching overhead into shadowy vaulting, lit by carefully placed electric floodlights.
"They were really clever, those old builders," said Mr Bates. "They understood all about the stresses and how to place the weight of stones. They had a science of their own. Not like ours, but they certainly had all they needed to build a place like this."
"I understand that some of your pupils wanted to see the Library," said the guide to Mr Wilson.
"Yes, some of them did ask," Mr Wilson replied.
Mr Bates looked surprised, but said nothing.
"I can see the Librarian coming now, said the guide. "She has been told about your request - we can introduce her now to the interested parties."
A young-looking blonde girl came down the gloomy aisle towards them.
"I'm Shelley Adams, the Cathedral Librarian and Archivist," she said as she came up. "You're the Ravenshurst party?"
Mr Wilson said they were, and introduced James and Rodney.
"It's nice to have young people show an interest in what I do!" said Ms Adams. "I only wish there were more like you. Still, I think more people are interested in the past nowadays."
"We would like to see Abbot William's book - you know, the Ravenshurst Abbot," said James.
"Of course you can! I've got some other documents from that time as well. I expect you'd like to see them?"
"Yes please!" James replied.
"Rather!" said Rodney.
Ms Adams smiled. "I will get out all I can, while you have your tour." "You have quite a morning ahead of you," she added, smiling at the guide. "And a service of Mattins" - "Oh no," groaned someone - "so I shall see you later on." And at that she left them.
"Abbot William again?" enquired Mr Bates when she had gone.
"Yes," said James. "Well, it's history, isn't it?"
"Indeed it is!" interrupted Mr Wilson. "It's good to have so much interest shown in local history. It's not always like that," he went on with a sigh.
For the next half hour, it was a matter of looking at the wonders of the nave - or not, depending on who was interested and who wasn't. Each pupil had a duplicated sheet with questions and had to fill in answers to various questions on parts of the building, tombs, and so on. Some did better than others - some answered no questions at all.
James and Rodney did fairly well. Their interest in old buildings had grown, and anyway, who knew what important clues they might find to their own mystery. After all, it was all the Middle Ages, wasn't it? Mr Bates had to round up some of the more intrepid of the flock, who had drifted off into the north west transept and were trying to slide out of the Bishop's Door into the cloisters - and freedom.
Finally the guide led them up the steps, through the great stone screen, and into the Quire. "This is where we break for Mattins!" he said. "Take your seats in the stalls. You will find service books there so that you can follow the service. The service is on page 30 and the psalms are those for Day 28, towards the end of the book."
There were audible moans from the black sheep, disappointed that their escape attempt had failed. Mr Bates and Mr Wilson shepherded everyone into the wooden stalls, making sure the chief mischief-makers sat near the teachers.
James and Rodney riffled through the copies of The Book of Common Prayer while the choir - boys of their own age, and younger, and some grown-up men - filed in, gliding in their red and white robes.
"Will this be boring?" whispered Jane.
"Probably," said Rodney. "No guitars!"
Mr Bates leaned forward and glared round at him. Rodney shut up and turned to the prayer book, apparently concentrating hard.
The service began. The voices of the choir soared and echoed in the recesses of the roof. When they stopped singing, the echo carried on, slowly dying away into the tangle of vaulting.
"It's magic!" whispered Jane, who was sitting next to them, carried away by it all.
James turned the pages of The Book of Common Prayer, following the service closely. He was irritable - he wanted to go to the Library NOW. He tried to control his temper by concentrating on the beautiful ancient words.
"Then shall follow the Psalms..." said the Prayer Book. "Day 28," muttered James under his breath. He had marked the place with a torn piece of paper from his pocket. "Lord, remember David: and all his trouble.." sang the choir.
"He's not the only one with trouble!" thought James, glowering into the book.
Suddenly, James couldn't believe what he heard, except it was in black and white before him.
"Lo," sang the choristers lustily, "we heard of the same at Ephrata: and found it in the wood."
Abbot William's text from the chapel window. "We found it in the wood!" Of course, all that about fields of the woodwas just poetry, or red herrings. Look in the wood, James. Look in the wood!
The choir sang on and on...
James came back to reality just as the singers reached another intriguing verse - "There shall I make the horn of David to flourish: I have ordained a lantern for mine Anointed."
"In the house of David find light...!" Well, I never. Old William knew his Psalms! But then that was his job, James supposed. So, did he have the secret of the Ancients, the prehistoric light-bulb, not to mention the wealth that would presumably make David flourish? But who on earth was David?
James found it difficult to keep still through the rest of the service, but just about managed it. At last, the Queen had been prayed for, the blessing given, and the choir filed out behind their brass cross. The children, stiff from sitting in unaccustomed pews, rose and stretched themselves.
James grabbed Rodney's sleeve. "Did you hear that psalm?"
"What psalm?"
"Didn't it mean anything to you?"
"No guitars," said Rodney sadly.
James was nearly beside himself with excitement and irritation, but seeing Mr Wilson glance in his direction, he took a deep breath. Opening the Prayer Book at Day 28, he showed the verses to Rodney.
"???" Then, light dawned. "Well I never! Old William's favourite verse. But so what?"
"'In the wood!' 'We found it in the wood!' We've been looking in the wrong place. Not the FIELLD - the wood!"
"Quiet over there!" commanded Mr Wilson. "This is a church, not a playground! Now concentrate. We now do the tour of the Quire, and then it's the Library for you two - if you can behave, of course."
The implied threat subdued James and Rodney, and they tried to focus on the stained glass in the Quire and the tombs of the knights and bishops. The glass was not as interesting as Abbot William's, though. No hidden clues that they could spot.
Finally, the ordeal was over. The party was split up. Mr Bates, Mr Wilson and one of the other teachers took the main party out into the cloisters to look at the remains of the Cathedral monastery. The fourth teacher, Miss Rhodes, took James and Rodney with her and followed the guide up a flight of stairs which led out of the north east transept and along a stone corridor. He opened a great oak door at the end, and there was Ms Adams waiting for them.
The guide then left, promising to come back for them later.
"Welcome to the Cathedral Library!" said Ms Adams, standing aside so that they could go in.
They found themselves in a long stone-vaulted room, lined with bookcases, except where interrupted by traceried gothic windows.
"This is the main room," said Ms Adams. "Under here there are several other rooms full of books, but they are really used for storage. This is the room we use if people want to read. Look, I have got out what I think you would like to see."
There was a long table down the middle of the room, and on this were laid out many books and boxes.
"Oh, no," laughed Ms Adams, as James looked appalled. "They're not all yours! Here are your ones. Be careful with them now. Actually, one's so delicate I shall have to handle it for you."
Ms Adams led them over to the table. She pointed to several old books and an ancient map.
"These are yours," said Ms Adams. "These books are not original, they are 19th century translations. But I am sure you wouldn't want to read the Latin!"
"No," agreed James. "We can't read Latin."
"What's the map?" asked Rodney.
"That is a map of Ravenshurst Abbey from just before the Dissolution - that is, before Henry VIII closed the Abbey down. I thought it would interest you."
"Can we look?"
"I will handle the map, but you can look at the books. I hope your fingers aren't sticky!"
They assured her that they were not, and Rodney took one book and James another. Ms Adams showed them to a side table, where they laid the books down and carefully turned the pages.
Miss Rhodes wandered off to look at a beautiful medieval book which was in a glass case at the other end of the room.
"Hey, this is interesting!" exclaimed Rodney. "Here's something about the cottage by the church. It says it's called "Bethlem Well."
"Didn't the Vicar say something about Ephrata meaning Bethlehem?" cried James.
"What's this all about?" asked Ms Adams. "Are you onto something here?"
"Oh, nothing really," lied James. "Just the name of a house near us. I didn't realise it was that old."
"Lots of places in this county are very old," said Ms Adams. "Far older than they look. Your cottage could date back to Abbot William, if that's what you are thinking."
Finally they had exhausted the books. "Now can we see the map?" asked James.
Ms Adams unfolded it. "It's quite different to the Ordnance Survey," said Rodney. "There's all little buildings drawn as if they're lying on their sides."
They studied the map closely, while Ms Adams held it flat for them.
Miss Rhodes was still looking in the various glass cases dotted around the room, having seen enough of the medieval manuscript. So she appeared to be unaware when James made his earth-shaking discovery.
"Here, Rodney," he whispered. "Look!"
In the middle of a crudely-drawn wood, next to Ravenshurst Abbey, was a sketch of a tower just like the one in Abbot William's window in the church.
Underneath it were the words "Seint David his Towr".
"What's this, Ms Adams?" asked James, pointing to the little picture.
"Oh, that's a building in the middle of the wood. It was called St David's Tower after a hermit who lived there, I believe."
"Is it called that now?"
"No, on the modern map it's called Coldharbour Castle - which means that it was a cold place for beggars to spend the night!"
James and Rodney both felt mounting excitement. "Tell me," said James. "Could it be meant by 'Turris Davidica' in Latin?"
"Yes indeed it could. But why? I didn't think you knew Latin."
"Oh, just an idea. Something I saw."
"Where did you see it? Oh, I see you aren't going to tell me. I suspect you are both up to something, but I am not going to find out what it is, am I? Well, when you do decide to say, let me be one of the first to know!"
James assured her that she would be. Then Miss Rhodes came up. "Time to be going, boys. Have you seen all you want to?"
"Yes, we have," said James. "Thank you very much, Ms Adams. It's been very good."
The cathedral guide put his head round the door. "Lunch time!" he said. "Time to join the others in the Cathedral Close Café!"
They followed the guide back down the stone corridor and out into the cathedral close, where the sun had finally won the war with the mist and was striking sparks from the wet trees.
"What was all that about Bethlehem and Vicars?" asked Miss Rhodes when they were in the café, attacking sausages and chips.
"Pass the salt!" interrupted Mr Bates from further down the table. "Come on now, boys, don't hang about!"
By the time the salt had been passed, Miss Rhodes was attacking her fry-up, apparently having forgotten her question.
"What were you doing in the Library?" enquired Jane from across the table.
"I expect you'll find out soon enough!" said James.
"So long as you don't end up like Uncle," muttered Jane. "I've got a feeling you're playing with fire!"
