The beautiful ogival chamber which cuts the great hall and the armoury at right angles has thus been laid open. The door on the left leads to the armoury, and the way into the library is by the door at the far end of the great hall. Though three or four times larger, it bears a strong resemblance to the library of the Château de Montesquieu at La Brède, except that, if I remember rightly, the vaulting at La Brède is romanesque. Otherwise the general plan is the same. In the centre there is a huge case containing a remarkable collection of coins, among them a gold medallion of Conradin, which is a masterpiece. Five or six lecterns have been transformed into portable desks, the very thing for working. A splendid system of electric light makes research an easy matter, for the room is, indeed, so dark that it is impossible to read or write without artificial light. Don't expect me to give you even the most summary description of the riches amassed here since the time of Gutenberg. I don't believe it possible to write any kind of book on Germany without having recourse to the library of Lautenburg. The visitors' book contains the most famous signatures. Amongst others I noticed those of Leibnitz, Humboldt, Otfried Müller, Curtius, Schleiermacher and Renan. Even more precious are the treasures contained in the sacristy. There, in old wooden chests, formerly reserved for vestments and chalices, are housed the priceless manuscripts which comprise the public and private archives of the Dukes of Lautenburg, or purchases made by several of those dukes who were interested in such matters. They have to thank the Grand Duke Rudolf, brother of the present Grand Duke, for several of the most important items of the collection. The librarian, Herr Cyrus Beck, who is engaged in classifying them, kept them jealously under lock and key. This Professor Cyrus Beck, of Kiel University, was lent to the Grand Duke Rudolf ten years ago by the Rector Etlicher, for the special purpose of cataloguing his manuscripts. The present Grand Duke retained him in the same post in exchange for an undertaking to give four hours a week to teach Duke Joachim the exact sciences.