_ties with any degree of attention. 
1811.] 
weekly duty is continued. Upon king 
Charles’s Martyrdom, I was induced to 
attend divine service at the cathedral, 
because I highly venerate that day, and 
greatly admire the solemnity of the ser- 
vice appropriated for the observance of 
it; and I was always led to understand, 
that, upon all state holidays, it was custo- 
mary either for the dean, or one of the 
prebendaries, to preach. The stalls, cer- 
tainly, were occupied (though not filled) 
by two prebendaries, and the sermon 
preached by cne of the minor canons, 
After the service was ended, I had the 
curiosity to enquire the cause of this 
alteration, but [ could not obtain any, 
satisfactory answer from the person I 
addressed, because (as I learnt after- 
wards) he was a servant belonging to the 
cathedral. But entering iuto conversa- 
tion with some of the citizens upon the 
subject, I was informed that this custom 
had prevailed for some time past, whe- 
ther from indolence or disloyalty in the 
dignitaries of the church, they could not 
pretend to say. I was agreeably in- 
formed that the dean (who stands high in 
the estimation of the public,) conde- 
scended (and I make no doubt from mo- 
tive of principle,) to preach on the King’s 
Accession. This example, one should 
have imagined, would have induced the 
other dignitaries of the church (especi- 
ally in the present times,) to have ‘¢ gone 
and done likewise.” 
During. my stay at Canterbury, I 
always make a point of visiting the Pre- 
cincts of the cathedral, which building 
cannot fail of giving great pleasure to 
those who survey its innamerable beau- 
To 
form some criterion of the pure Gothic, 
a more beautiful instance than the nave 
of the cathedral cannot be adduced. [ 
_was here highly gratified to find that most 
of the nuisances at the west end of the 
eathedral, and which have repeatedly 
raised the indignation of the antiquarian, 
_and the man of taste, are now removed, 
At the same time I was happy to hear 
that the dean and chapter (highly to their 
honour be it spoken,) had it in contem- 
pence to purchase of the archbishop’s 
essee the house which has, for a great 
number of years, been made use of asa 
arber’s shop. Should this take place, 
the building be removed, and the site of 
it laid open, it would have a grand effect, 
and become one of the greatest improve- 
ments which the cathedral has expe- 
fienced for many years. At the same 
et 
- 
Abuses, Ke. at Canierbury. 
231 
time, it gave me no small degree of plea- 
sure, to find that the abominable abuses 
which were constantly offered to the 
south side of the cathedral, were now 
likely to be remedied by the erection of 
iron palisades as far ‘as the south en- 
trance, which I was informed will be 
continued at some future time to the 
west end. This alteration, (and a very 
laudable one it is) would, I must confess, 
have met my approbation in a greater 
degree, if the base upon which these 
palisades are erected, had been con- 
structed of stone instead of brick, pro- 
vided the revenues of the church were 
adequate to the expence. 
My next visit was to that part of the 
Precincts called the Oaks, which I 
was happy to find much improved, and 
some oak trees planted there, in order to 
perpetuate its name, as there were none 
before existing there. From hence I di- 
rected my course to a place called the 
Green-court, which I found much im- 
proved, owing to tle grass-plats being 
levelled, and the gravel walks being kept 
in good preservation. | But here, £ 
am sorry to relate it, I found myself in 
great jeopardy, owing to the idie custom 
of coachinen and grooms exercising their 
masters’ horses in this contracted spot. 
That this dangerous custom ‘should be 
connived at, or permitted, by the dean 
and chapter, astonished me; more parti- 
cularly when I cousidered the great an- 
noyance it must be to the inhabitants, 
and the imminent danger it occasions to 
the young gentlemen educated at the 
King’s School, who have no oth-r place 
appropriated to them for their plays 
ground. It ismuch to he lamented, that 
some more retired spot, and one better 
calculated for the purpose, could not be 
found, But what disgusted me most of 
all was, that when I passed through the 
precincts in the evening, to find sucha 
deficiency of lamps; for [ am very confis 
dent, that even the inhabitants theme 
selves, cannot, without the greatest diti- 
culty, and without the assistance of their 
own Janthorns, find their way to their 
respective abodes. This darkness ts pro- 
ductive of vicious practices; for assicna- 
tions are made in the streets, and then 
the parties retire into the Precincts, be- 
cause ‘* they love darkness rather than 
fight, and because their deeds are evil.” 
Therefore, humbly hoping that these 
abuses will be rectified, and these nui= 
sances removed, I beg leave to subseribe 
myself, A Wawberer. 
To 
