Mr. Crab then led us back along the cross corridor and opened the two cabinets which one finds in the first part of this cross-corridor at the outset where the contents—mostly playthings and likely to please the ignorant—are always shown. They are for the most part codices, elegantly written and painted or decorated with gold; but Mr. Crab never even mentioned what they are and probably neither knows nor can read them. Of one however he did remark: "That book is very old-more than eight hundred years." When I asked him how he knew this, he could reply nothing but: "It is certain, Dr. Grabe told me so," [i.e., the famous Joh. Ernst Grabius of Königsberg, with whom he considered himself great friends because they have similar sounding names], Thereupon he looked so desperately wise that one could not help laughing. What these codices which he said were so old really were I cannot say; for he put them back again so quickly and pointed out everything in such furious haste, that it was useless: but by their character I could see they are fairly old. Also, as I had hopes of finding them later in the catalogue and looking at them at leisure, I did not permit myself to be annoyed. Mr. Crab also showed in this cupboard such things as the following: several letters from Queen Elizabeth, Mary, James I and the like; an Alcoran, and some illuminated Chinese books. This is what is called seeing the famous, highly interesting Bibliotheca Bodleiana, about which many a man gives himself airs as a scholar on reaching home—especially when he tells what a great number of books he has seen, from the outside! Afterwards Mr. Crab led us up to the so-called gallery and showed us first a poor little room on the right, which he called "the study." It would perhaps serve as a museum for the Librarian or old Fellows in winter. In here hung some pictures, amongst which were several embroidered in silk. Mr. Crab made a great fuss over them, although I have seen many more beautiful, and even have better ones worked by my own grandmother. We were also shown a large volume with all sorts of collected engravings, amongst which were several by good artists. After this a great armchair was pointed out to us, as somethmg very special, because it is said to have been made out of the ship in which Captain Drake sailed round the world; also several Chinese staves, bow and arrows, and again a cylinder with some vile figures. The most remarkable thing was the marble, of which Monconys speaks in his travels. It is set in a frame and hangs on the wall. The lizard or squirrel formed in it is very strange and is a white vein natural to the marble which represents this animal very prettily. I know of course that deception is possible here and that Florentine marble is much helped out with corrosive acids and painting. But a blind man even though he could not see could yet feel that this is a natural vein (palpando experiri potest), whilst there is not the slightest trace that either the white or the vein have been inserted.