The most bewildered visitor was hardly likely to stray off the red baize or miss his way to the door in front of him.

Within the great entrance-hall were palms and flowering shrubs in pots or tubs.

The mosaic flooring, imported from Italy, and a source of pride to all the Sisters, shone with much washing and polishing.

The Madonna with the blue eyes and the golden crown, before which even Bishops crossed themselves, was less in evidence than usual, for the expected guests were mostly heretics.

She stood retired behind the flower-pots, and veiled her benignity with the leaves of palms.
Right and left of the hall stretched corridors, whose shining parquet invited the curious to explore the working-rooms and eating-rooms which lay beyond.