ON THE PERPENDICULAR OF SOMERSET. 57 
tower of North Petherton, which is indeed honourable 
among its fellows, but which attaineth not unto the first 
three. This steeple will not come exactly under any of 
our heads, but certainly has most affinity with this third 
and noblest class. In like manner with them its stair- 
case-turret finishes below the belfry-stage, but the portion 
above the roof does not form one panelled mass, but is 
divided into two very large stages. The belfry windows 
are large and double, with some remarkable pierced panel- 
ling in a square frame over them. There are unfortunately 
no flat turrets, so that the parapet has little connexion with 
what is below, and altogether there is a great air of square- 
ness and sharpness about the belfry-stage. There are 
eight pinnacles, as at Wrington and Glastonbury ; perhaps 
it would have been better had there been a greater differ- 
ence in size between the prineipal and the subordinate ones. 
I will conelude this part of my subject by notieing the 
tower of Portishead, which remarkably combines the 
characteristics of the second and third class. In this case 
we may remark, by the way, that the solitary aisle is pro- 
longed nearly to the west face of the tower, quite contrary 
to the usual Somersetshire practice. Itis a much plainer 
tower than any that I have yet mentioned, having only 
single windows in all the three stages above the roof, and 
these diminishing in length towards the top. We may 
therefore pronounce, without hesitation, that the otherwise 
very beautiful west window of five lights is too large for 
its position. The parapet resembles Wrington, and the 
great pinnacles, which have something of the same character, 
but are less elegant, are closely connected withthe buttresses, 
but in a different manner. A staircase-turret, erowned with 
a somewhat larger pinnacle, occupies the north-east angle. 
This turret is square at the base, and becomes octagonal at 
1851, PART II H 
