EXCURSION. 21 



lotli Century, related to the worship of tlie Virgin Maiy, 

 public and private prayers, the traffic of indulgences, and 

 other things of that nature, and tliat we need not a parti- 

 cular detail to convince iis that in this Century religion was 

 reduced to a shovvy Compound of splendid trifles. Now 

 just at this period, May 6th, 1424, we find Sir John 

 Percival presented Walter Toucker to the living of 

 Weston, on which occasion John Eeynolds, rector of 

 Portisbead, whpse emoluments had been infringed by his 

 parishioners frequenting the church of Weston, lodged a 

 Petition -with the bishop, and obtained an injunction that 

 the Said Walter Toucker should not, under a penalty of the 

 lesser excommunication, admit any of the parishioners of 

 Portishead to any of the religious rites of his church of 

 AValton, to the prejudice of the said church of Portishead. 

 May not then some of the additions made in the Eoman 

 ritual at this period have been celebi'ated in the church 

 porch of AA'eston, causing the erection of the gallery, and 

 attracting the parishioners from the neighbouring church of 

 Portishead ? " 



Weston once had a manor-house, but it has entirely dis- 

 appeared. The remains of an old building still in existence 

 was pronounced by Mr. Parker to be part of a barn of the 

 15th Century. 



Portishead Church has a nave, north aisle, chancel, 

 and western tower, and, like Weston, keeps its sancte-bell cot. 

 The tower has been described and criticised at length by 

 Mr. Freeman in the Society ^s Proceedings for 1851, p. 57. 

 The other points worthy of notice are the east window, a 

 specimen of transition from Geometrical to Flowing 

 tracer}', the fl}ing arch across the north aisle from the pier 

 of the chancel-arch, something like those at ßushden and 

 Thedor, in Northamptonshire, the stone pulpit, the coved 



