41 
But after this period of courtier prelates evil days came to the 
See ; the civil and ecclesiastical authorities could not agree. Peter 
of Blois writes of the Cathedral of Old Sarum as “ The Ark of 
Cod shut up in the temple of Baal.” So in the episcopate of 
Bishop Herbert Poore, the sixth Bishop of Old Sarum, the See 
was removed to New Sarum, and the decay of Old Sarum began. 
After inspecting the interesting exhibits in the museum, the 
party left for Salisbury, and were driven to the Church of St. 
Thomas of Canterbury, built in 1240 by Bishop Bingham, altered 
and partly rebuilt early in the 15th century, and restored by Mr. 
Street about 50 years ago. It is chiefly noted for the remarkable 
fresco of the Last Judgment over the chancel arch in excellent 
preservation. 
From the Church the party walked to the Poultry Cross, 
erected by a recanting Lollard as his penance in the 14th century. 
Tea was then had at Sutton’s, and the members returned 
home by the 4.54 p.m. train. 
Canford Manor. The last of the General Excursions was made 
on Tuesday, September 16th, when nearly 80 
members paid a visit to Canford Manor, the seat of Lord and 
Lady Wimborne. They went by the 11.45 a.m. train for Wim- 
borne, and from thence they drove to Canford Church, where they 
were met by the Vicar, the Rev. G. J. J. O’Shea, who gave a 
description of the Church. 
The date of the dedication of the Church was unknown. The 
living was what was known as a “ royal peculiar ” and attached 
to the Manor, the Church not being under the jurisdiction of the 
Bishop of the Diocese; which is no longer the case. Some of 
the massive columns and arcading are of Norman origin; the 
lower is peculiar in its position, it is built in three tiers, the 
lowest of which is 10th century work, and the others of the 
12th century. After the Vicar’s address, Mr. Geo. Brownen read 
a short paper on Canford and its possessors. In the late Saxon 
period the estate was held by a Crown tenant named Oliver, who 
was dispossessed by the Norman Conquest of 1066, and in the 
Domesday of 1086 it was held by Edward of Old Sarum, the 
Shire Reeve of Wilts, whose immediate descendants were created 
Earls of Salisbury. The Domesday record states that Canford 
Manor consisted of about 3,000 acres, of which about 1,380 acres 
were directly associated with the ancient hall. In the reign of 
Henry II. the daughter and sole heiress of Patrick of Salisbury 
was the wife of William Longespee, natural son of Henry II. and 
fair Rosamund. This warrior was made the founder of a new 
line of Earls of Salisbury ; he was poisoned at Old Sarum, and 
his tomb is in .Salisbury Cathedral. His son died in the Crusades, 
and his grand-daughter, in her widowhood, was forcibly abducted 
from her home at Canford in the troubles of Henry III. The 
