24 ELEVENTIl ANN UAL MEETING. 



criiciform churcli. It had not four arches and a central 

 tower, like tliose of a fully developed cruciform shape, and 

 yet the transepts were vciy fine, and really superlor to 

 some that were of a more fully developed character. One 

 of the transepts went into the tower, and only one. At 

 Exeter Cathedral, and at Ottery St. Mary Church, and 

 a few other large bulldings, there were two side towers ; 

 bat liere, and in one or two other Somerset churches, such 

 as that of Stoke-sub-IIamdon, there was only a tower over 

 one transept. The tower was well worth noticing, fx'om 

 being a Somersetshire octagon. The octagon was a very 

 common form in Somerset, and also in Northamptonslüi'e ; 

 but the towers of this character were of two kinds ; in 

 Northampton the octagon was a mere top to the square 

 part ; in Somerset the square part was merely a base for 

 the octagon, which, therefore, gave a character to the 

 whole structure. He only knew of one or two instances 

 where the tower was octagonal from the base. The tower 

 appeared to have received an addition subsequent to its 

 first erection. The same thing was very conspicuous at 

 Stoke St. Gregory. There a much larger nave was built, 

 which quite out-topped the old tower, which was therefore 

 raised. The addition was not so apparent in the present 

 instance ; but still it AA'as quite palpable. The church was 

 in the Decorated style of the fourteenth Century, with 

 Perpendicular alterations. One of these consisted in the 

 addition of the tower which he had just spoken of; and 

 another was the very fine carved oak roof. This was a 

 kind of roof often found in Somersetshire churches where 

 there was a clerestory ; and where there was no clerestory 

 the coved roof was generally found. It was a roof of 

 which he was exceedingly fond, especially when it was so 

 magnificent as in the present instance, There was also a 



