Among the most notable buildings in England is Montacute, an interior of which is illustrated here (Plate XXXI). Its name, derived from _mons acutus_, explains that it is on a hilly site, from which it overlooks the picturesque village of Montacute. The castle was of Norman origin and was then owned by the Phelips family, the possessor of the present mansion being Mr. W. R. Phelips. Montacute was built at the end of the sixteenth century and gained a reputation for hospitality partly by the inscription over the entrance, “Through this wide-opening gate, None come too early, none return too late.” The place was sacked by Cromwell, who stayed there for a time. When Richardson visited the house it was in poor condition, “stripped in a great degree of its internal decorations and left to the mercy of time”; but restorations have been carried out. It is noteworthy that while the walls were richly panelled and decorated the ceilings throughout were kept plain, as indicated in the illustration. Among other interesting stone buildings erected in Somersetshire may be mentioned Barrington Court (Plate XLI), built for the first Earl of Bridgewater in the time of James I. This gabled mansion, with its twisted chimneys and pinnacles, was once of great beauty, but it fell into disrepair, and in a dilapidated state was occupied by a farmer. In 1907 it was acquired by the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, under whose directions restorations have been effected. The house at South Petherton, in the same county (Plate XXXVII), is an example of the use of tracery, now reserved for ecclesiastical buildings, but once common in domestic architecture. Dorfold Hall, Cheshire (Plates XXIX and XXX), the residence of Mr. H. J. Tollemache, is a Jacobean mansion about a mile from Nantwich. It is a brick building with stone dressings, the interior being decorated in lavish style. The plaster-work of the ceiling in the Great Chamber was especially ornate, though not so overwhelming, probably, as it seems to be in Richardson’s drawing.