During one of my visits to the La Valette family's vast abode, when I had the pleasure of meeting the old baron's niece - a charming creature but sixteen springs old - my host, clearly proud of his lands and holdings, offered to show me around the keep's expansive and varied cellars. While he entertained me with conversation and anecdotes on various subjects, including the unique system of penalties designed for seducers of the underaged, I got a thorough tour of the dungeon beneath La Valette Castle. The guards were exceptionally polite and seemed to have an unerring sense of direction within the labyrinthine network of vestibules, cells and winding corridors. I imagined that without their help it would be easy to lose one's way there, wandering around for hours, unable to find an exit. I would not envy any soul imprisoned there.