119 



On the steps of the Council House the visitors parted from 

 their resident friends in order to catch the five o'clock train to 

 Bath, but not before they had expressed their hearty thanks to 

 Mr. Jones, for the trouble he had taken on their behalf and his 

 able and interesting explanations of all that they saw. The 

 Secretary is indebted to Mj. Harold Lewis for the above notes on 

 the Bristol excursion. 



St. Ch-egory's College, Downside.— On December 29th about 

 20 members availed themselves of the courteous invitation 

 of the Benedictine Fathers to visit their Monastery, and the 

 Secretary is indebted to Captain Huth for the following account 

 of the visit : — 



We started at 9.10 and arrived at Chilcompton at 9.45, numbering 

 altogether 19, including Father Wright who accompanied us. A 

 walk of about a mile brought us to the Monastery, where we were 

 received in the first place by Father Finch, and requested to write 

 our names and addresses in the Visitors' Book. We were then shown 

 over the old manor house of which the small reception room formed a 

 part, and which might be called the nucleus of the Monastery, as it is 

 the only old part of the magnificent range of buildings. Mr. Inman 

 and his son here left the party to take some photographs of the exterior 

 under very favourable circumstances as regards the atmosphere ; while 

 the rest of the party, now joined by two or three other monks, were 

 conducted over the whole of the Monastery— the library, refectory, 

 dormitory, playrooms, museum, lecture room, school room, private 

 studies, &c., and the church. The latter struck us much for its grandeur 

 and purity of style ; the tower is yet in an unfinished state ; there is 

 a very fine circular window of stained glass over the altar. Many of 

 us ascended a winding staircase to the gallery running round the 

 building inside in the thickness of the wall, a great height from the 

 floor ; and while there had au opportunity of judging of the tone of 

 the organ which is of great volume, though not very large, and was 

 well performed on by the monk organist. We were shown some very 

 beautifully embroidered vestments, chasubles, copes, <fec., some dating 

 before the Eeformation, and said to be 500 years old; also some 

 •' Persecution " vestments, made of very thin material, so that they 



