Page:A tour through the northern counties of England, and the borders of Scotland - Volume I.djvu/111

. Of these the most ancient is the keep, preserved by its superior strength of structure from those effects of time which are more visible on the less substantial parts* We took it to be of the age of Stephen or John. Two fine windows of the chapel, rich in tracery, testify the beauty of this part of the building; and the dungeon under it points out the harsh usages of the feudal times, and the monstrous associations of those days, when they could make the praises of the Deity go hand in hand with the tortures of their fellow-creatures, and unite the mass with murder. Other apartments are of the architecture of the 16th century. Until the restoration of Charles II. Dudley-castle was entirely confined to military purposes, and generally in the hands of the crown; but when settled government rendered these securities against rebellion unnecessary, it passed into the family of a subject, and became the residence of the Lords Ward. In the early part of the eighteenth century being deserted, a troop of coiners fixed their abode in its dilapidating apartments; and carried on their illegal proceedings there without interruption for some time; deterring all idle curiosity from approaching the place, by imposing upon the superstition of the neighbourhood with strange VOL. I.