22 



discussed, and whilst we were in vain endeavouring to catch a gleaui of sun- 

 shine on the distant Doghill, behind the town of Ledbury, glimpses would 

 occasionally, but only momentarily, illumine our own position. Under the 

 superintendence of Mr. J. E. Ballard, a heliograph of his own construction was 

 fixed, and a long continued discourse, from our side only, was carried on, but as 

 the members got more and more impatient for a reply, the President came to 

 their relief by giving a description of the geology of the district, upon the con- 

 clusion of which the distant mirror was at last observed shining most brilliantly, 

 whereupon our signalman at once took up the refrain from the merchant of 

 Venice — 



How fair that little candle throws his beams ! 



So shines a good deed in a naughty world. 



In answer the distant signalman now made rapid use of his heliograph whilst the 

 sun was shining upon his position. He had so much to communicate, and 

 manipulated his instrument with such rapidity, at least so it seemed to some of us 

 who had not had much experience with the Morse alphabet, that we began to 

 excuse ourselves by accusing him of being in a bad temper. Sergeant Mews, 

 however, who had been attached upon signalling duty to General Sir Frederick 

 Roberts's column in Afghanistan, was too experienced an old hand to allow him- 

 self to be ruffled by the caprices of May clouds. Having convinced ourselves that 

 long experience alone would make us sufficiently masters of the Morse alphabet — 

 the same as is used in the Telegraph dejaartment — to enable us to carry on a 

 correspondence with the heliograph, we were warned that we must begin the 

 descent. Upon this bleak hill our botanists failed to find anything worthy of 

 notice, but a few geological specimens were gathered from the neighbouring 

 quarries, where may be found atrypa, pentamerus, petraia, &c. , &c. 



Returning homewards by a different route Taynton Church was visited, its 

 registers examined— dating from 1536 ; this is one of the earliest registers in the 

 kingdom. Its position was observed to have been built due north and south with 

 the object of gratifying Puritan tastes. Its remarkable pulpit, partly 14th century, 

 has a panel of Henry VII's time, and the front and cornice Jacobean, with an 

 iron cage, in good condition, for holding the preacher's hour-glass. The pulpit is 

 at the south end of the building, whilst the altar table, which formerly used to 

 stand in the middle of the church, is now situated upon the eastern side. The 

 President here read a paper upon " Taynton Church " and matters pertaining to 

 it, with remarks upon the curious and interesting register. There are but few 

 existing hour-glasses now. The following gleaning from The Quiver gives some 

 interesting information upon the subject of 



PULPIT HOUR-GLASSES AND HALF-HOUR GLASSES. 



Shakespeare makes mention of hour-glasses. Holbein painted them cer- 

 tainly twice — once in his "Dance of Death," and again in a portrait mentioned by 

 Walpole. Nearly every pulpit appears to have been furnished with one. Old 

 churchwardens' accounts abound with entries relating to them. Yet they 

 have become so scarce as to form the subject of antiquarian jottings. An 



