82 
THE MONKS OF MARMOUTIER. 
which stood in front of the Priory Church, where the pathway 
and the stocks now are. The four kirk-maisters of this Church 
in 1453 got permission to rebuild their steeple of S. Nicholas, 
which had evidently come to grief, on the west bay of the 
north aisle of the Priory Church. The parapet line of the old 
aisle wall can he seen distinctly on the west side of this tower. 
The bases of the choir piers are still in existence about six 
feet down in the Rectory garden, five of which I saw some 
years ago, during an excavation, and a part of the south wall 
of the choir is standing twelve feet high, and used as a yard 
wall for some of the cottages in Trinity Lane. The site ot the 
Lady Chapel has just ceased to be used as a public-house 
skittle-alley, and quoits ground. In 1551 the central tower 
fell in a storm, in 1732 a flat underdrawn ceiling was erected, 
in 1793 a butcher's slaughter-house was built over the only 
remaining lancet in the tower, a hay-loft having been previously 
built over the other tower lancet ; round the tower five 
domestic offices had been built for the accommodation of 
the houses in Micklegate ; and in 1829 an ugly and useless 
gallery was erected, the principal use of which has been to 
encourage ghosts, and afford sitting accommodation for those 
who wished to study ghostly phenomena. I he slaughter-house 
has been purchased and is being taken down; the hay-loft has 
already gone, and the hidden lancet can once more be seen ; 
the other excrescences round the tower have been removed, 
the ruined west bay which for three centuries has been a 
rubbish heap is being restored with a faithful reproduction ol 
the west front of the Church, as far as the present scheme 
goes. The flat-ceiling is to be removed, the west gallery to he 
taken down, the built-up arcade of the tower to be opened out, 
and the floor to be restored to its old level. And this work is 
not being undertaken before time, as one may see from the 
ruinous condition of the Church which is apparent on the 
north side of the triforium. 
This scheme is to cost over £4,000, and since the work 
commenced, through the generosity of several members of the 
congregation, some stained-glass windows have been promised 
in which will be depicted a number of scenes connected with 
the history of the Church and parish. A beautiful ancient 
