The Warden

The Rev. Septimus Harding was, a few years since, a beneficed clergyman residing in the cathedral
town of ----; let us call it Barchester. Were we to name Wells or Salisbury, Exeter, Hereford, or
Gloucester, it might be presumed that something personal was intended; and as this tale will refer
mainly to the cathedral dignitaries of the town in question, we are anxious that no personality may
be suspected. Let us presume that Barchester is a quiet town in the West of England, more
remarkable for the beauty of its cathedral and the antiquity of its monuments than for any
commercial prosperity; that the west end of Barchester is the cathedral close, and that the
aristocracy
of
Barchester
are
the
bishop,