~Dissolution of the religious houses~, carried out by Henry VIII. in 1536-1540 for the sake of the plunder they afforded. ~Chloroform~: a colourless liquid which when inhaled produces complete insensibility to pain. ~Norman windows~: that is, built in a style introduced by the Normans. The rounded tops of doors and windows maybe seen in the illustration on p. 44. ~lanthorn~: a raised construction on the roof, with horn or glass sides to give light. ~clinical~: in attendance at the bedside of patients. ~residential college~: where they reside or dwell. ~convalescent hospital~: where those who have had some illness may get quite well and strong again. 21. THE TERROR OF LEPROSY. ~Leprosy~: a terrible disease of the skin and blood, once prevalent in Europe, now mostly confined to the East. ~lazar~: a leper; one suffering from a foul disease like Lazarus in St. Luke xvi. ~congregate~: flock together, crowd with. ~stringent~: strict. ~statutes~: rules or laws. ~Book of the Jewish Law~: that is, the book Leviticus. ~ulcerates~: is afflicted with ulcers or sores. ~Mass~: the celebration of the Lord's Supper in the Roman Catholic Church. ~Burton Lazars~: a village one mile from Melton Mowbray, in Leicestershire. Here, on account of its excellent sulphur springs, the chief leper-hospital was established in the reign of Stephen. ~hereditary~: transmitted from parents to children. 22. THE TERROR OF FAMINE. ~24 shillings a quarter~: this is not far from the present price of wheat, which gives us cheap bread. But in 1257 24_s._ would be equivalent to at least 20_l._ in our money. ~retainers~: those in the service of a nobleman and wearing his livery and badge. ~Hanseatic merchants~: merchants trading with the Hanse cities in Germany (among which was Hamburg) who had formed a league for self-protection about the twelfth century. ~granary~: a place for storing up grain or corn. 23. ST. PAUL'S CATHEDRAL. PART I. ~460 feet~: the loftiest spire in England, that of Salisbury Cathedral, is about 404 feet. ~its length was at least 600 feet~: the present cathedral, the third on the site, is 500 feet long. ~shrine~: a receptacle for relics and other sacred things. (The word means a 'chest.') ~aisle~ (pronounced _[=i]le_) is the side or wing of a church. ~scribe~: a writer. In those early times so few people could read or write that men often had to have recourse to professional writers. ~deed~: a written document relating to some legal transaction. ~conveyance~: a writing legally transferring from one person to another property, especially houses and land. ~Humphrey Duke of Gloucester~ was the youngest brother of Henry V., on whose death he was made regent in England in 1422. He died in 1447. ~St. Cuthbert~ was a monk, missionary, and bishop of Lindesfarne, an island off the coast of Northumberland, where he died in 687 A.D., and was buried in Durham Cathedral.