98 THE POOLE TOWN CELLAR. 



now, and fortunately so, as it enables me to supplement it with a 

 curious occurrence. On September 15th, 1887, at nine a.m., the 

 paviour, a man named Gover, who was relaying the pavement in 

 front of the New Inn, in Thames Street, came up to inform me he 

 had found something he thought I should like to see. I went 

 down and found, as I expected, a large stone, evidently a portion of 

 the wall of the Church of St. Clement's, connecting the parts 

 dissevered by Thames Street passing through it. This stone he 

 was obliged to remove, and did it with some difficulty, I standing 

 by to watch the operation. Before the stone was removed the 

 engineer of one of the local boats (named Norman) came up, and 

 pointing to the Cellar said " I saw a painting of that place about 

 35 years ago. I went to see the cartoons exhibited at Westminster 

 Hall with my wife, and when we came to Poole we recognised the 

 place at once. I obtained the following data from him. The 

 picture was painted in oil, in size about 2ft. Gin. by 1ft. 6in., having 

 the name of the painter in the left-hand corner, and in the right, 

 in pale yellow letters, the following inscription : " The Church of 

 the Monastery of St. Clement's, Poole, Dorset, 1612." It was 

 hung next to a painting of the burial of Sir John Moore. He 

 subsequently corrected the date of seeing it to May, 1847, and 

 described the painting as follows : " There was no Quay, but the 

 vessels were loaded in the Channel from carts driven into the 

 water to their sides. The Town Cellar extended farther than now, 

 in a westerly direction, and turned sharply towards the back of 

 St. Clement's Inn. The building had but two doors, and at the 

 east end was a large archway, under which the carts were passing, 

 and this archway was surmounted by a square tower and a cupola. 

 I have endeavoured to trace this painting, but, although Mr. Rawle 

 has been most indefatigable in his exertions to trace it for me, up 

 to this time the search has been ineffectual. He has obtained 

 catalogues of cartoons exhibited in 1843 and 1845, but up to the 

 present time, not of 1847, although he has applied to the Houses of 

 Lords and Commons and the Metropolitan Board of Works, and in 

 fact nearly every authority in London ; but I have by no means 



