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lu the churchyard is an altar tomb, apparently of the fifteeuth 

 century, probably removed from the church. 



There are a number of bouses near the church, mostly of late date, 

 but preserving the ancient traditional character, well preserved and 

 but little altered. 



After thanking the Vicar for his information a short drive took 

 the members to the AV. entrance of Montacute house, where a 

 cordial reception from Mr. and Mrs. W, E. Phelips enabled them to 

 see both the exterior and inside of their noble mansion. Passing 

 beneath "and yours my friends" into the hall, they issued 

 '•■ through the wide-opening gate," where " none come too early, 

 none return too late," on to the courtyard opposite the W, 

 entrance. Attention was here directed to the grand Elizabethan 

 facade with its so called nine worthies writ in stone — Hector, son 

 of Priam, Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar, three G entiles ; 

 Joshua, David and Judas Maccabaeus, three Jews ; Arthur the 

 King, Charlemagne and Godfrey de Bouillon, three Christians. 

 Beneath the windows, of which there are said to be 365, a 

 number equal to days in the year, were round hollows — what 

 was their use? Mr. Talbot thought they were for statues 

 originally ; the round chimmeys too, were they a part of the 

 original structure, or a later introduction 1 Longleat had similar 

 ones, these the last authority thought were not original. Was John 

 of Padua the architect, or who? Records are silent; but the 

 founder of this noble house all know was Sir Edward Phelips, 

 Knt., Queen's Sergeant to Elizabeth between 1580 and 

 1601 ; and in possession of that family it has been ever since. 

 The eastern fagade has had a subsequent addition made to it, 

 the centre portion between the two wings having been brought 

 from the house of the Horsey's, Clifton, May Bank, and inserted 

 here ; " J. H." or " C. H." and the crest of the Horsey family, a 

 horse's head, being recognised in the loth century carving over 

 the porch and elsewhere. The members then entered the hall, in 

 which at the N. end is a curious plaster relief of the pratice called 



