lead, glass, iron, and timber, and reduced to the bare walls; in which situation it remained until 1606, when Dr. Montague, then Bishop of the diocese, undertook the task of repairing it, which, with the assistance of his brother, Sir Henry, and other munificent persons, he accomplished, in the elegant style in which it now appears.

This Church is built in the usual form of a cross, and is 210 feet in length, 72 feet wide, and 78 high; the transept is 126 feet long, and the central tower, which contains an excellent peal of ten bells, is 162 feet high. The west front is decorated with a great profusion of sculpture; the entrance is by a noble arch, ornamented with a variety of emblematic representations; on each side are rich canopied niches, containing statues of St. Peter and St. Paul, and the gate itself is highly ornamental. Over the arch runs a cornice, supporting an elegant open battlement, above which is the great west window, complicated in design, and surpassingly beautiful in execution; innumerable small angelic figures, and armorial bearings, are seen at every point, and the richness of this window and its accompaniments is not to be surpassed in any similar edifice in the country. The turrets which terminate each side of this magnificent front are also covered with a profusion of figures, supposed to indicate the vision which induced Bishop King to undertake the rebuilding of the Church; with three rows of statues, representing the apostles, &c. On each side of the great entrance is a smaller, but similar one, leading to the side aisles, and also surmounted by a window, resembling that in the centre. The whole fabric is lighted by fifty-two elegant and lofty windows, which give it so airy an appearance, that it has been denominated the Lantern of England.

On entering the Church by the great doorway, we descend four steps, and the view then presented to the eye fills the spectator with pleasure and admiration. The beauty, uniformity, and harmony of every part of the building, the lofty airiness of the roof, the brilliant light shed around by its numerous windows, and the elegant clustered columns, supporting the finely-proportioned arches which divide the nave from its side aisles, make a powerful impression on the visitor.

The nave is separated from the choir by a screen, above which is placed a very fine Organ; and a good painting of the Wise Men's Offering, presented by General Wade, ornaments the altar. The interior of the Church is distinguished by a great number of handsome monuments, both of ancient and modern erection. The most beautiful of these is the Chapel or Oratory of Prior Bird, who was a munificent contributor to the rebuilding of the Church, and died in 1525; his Chapel, which is placed in the Choir, is ornamented with a profusion and elegance characteristic of the age in which it was erected. Bishop Montague reposes in the nave, under a costly monument, exhibiting his figure, attired in the sacerdotal vestments: nearly opposite to this prelate the facetious James Quin rests in eternal silence, and his epitaph, by Garrick, is so appropriate that it deserves

insertion:

That tongue which set the table on a roar,

And charm'd the public ear, is heard no more;
Closed are those eyes, the harbingers of wit,

Which spake, before the tongue, what Shakspeare writ;
Cold is that hand, which living was stretch'd forth,

At Nature's call, to succour modest worth.

Here lies James Quin! Deign, reader, to be taught,
Whate'er thy strength of body, force of thought,
In Nature's happiest mould however cast,

"To this complexion thou must come at last."

Near Quin, is interred Richard Nash, the once powerful Monarch of this city, whose laws were immutable as those of the Medes and Persians; his stone bears a Latin and an English inscription. Among the other monuments are those of Lady Miller, of Batheaston Villa; Sir William Waller, mutilated by James II, in a fit of impotent malice; Colonel Walsh, the design and execution of which are strikingly beautiful; W.Melmoth, Esq. the translator of Pliny; and Doctor Harrington. Much to the credit of the Corporation, many of the buildings which hid this elegant edifice from public view have been recently pulled down, and its beauties are now beheld under much more favourable circumstances than heretofore.

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Beside the Abbey, Bath and its suburbs contain seven other Churches: St. James's is a neat building, with a tower, erected in 1769; the interior is handsomely finished; the altar is adorned with a good painting, and the organ is remarkable for the fine

ness of its tone. St. Michael's, rebuilt about 1742, does not possess any claim to particular notice. Walcot Church is in the liberties of the city, and was built in 1780, but has recently been much enlarged, and is a handsome edifice, with a good organ. Holy Trinity is a modern structure, of Gothic architecture, erected in 1822, principally with the view of providing a place of worship for the poor inhabitants of the neighbourhood; it is calculated to contain 2160 persons, and of this number the free seats amount to 1800: it is attached, as a district Church, to Walcot parish. Christ Church, built in 1798 by voluntary subscription, is also in great part appropriated to the use of the poor: it is a handsome edifice, with a fine altar-piece and organ. Bathwick Church, rebuilt in 1822, is an elegant structure of the florid Gothic style, with a lofty western tower, richly ornamented, and surmounted by light open battlements and pinnacles. The windows are filled with handsome tracery, those at the east end are of stained glass, and a fine altar-piece adds much to the beauty of the interior: here is also a fine-toned new Organ. The Church of Lyncombe and Widcombe is a small ancient edifice, in the village of Widcombe, but attached to the rectory of Bath.

Beside these Churches, the increased population of Bath has occasioned the erection of several Chapels of Ease, most of which are handsome edifices, and fitted up with great taste. Here are also three Methodist Chapels, distinguished for their elegance; a Roman Catholic Chapel; and Meeting Houses for Quakers, Independents, Baptists, Moravians, Unitarians, and other sectaries.

With the exception of the metropolis, there is perhaps not any city in the kingdom, which contains so great a number of Charitable Institutions as Bath; among the foremost of these is the General Hospital, established about 1715, at the suggestion of Beau Nash, whose charity was as remarkable as his follies; the object of this benevolent establishment is to afford to the diseased poor of all parts of the country the benefit of the Bath waters; and 133 patients are accordingly maintained here, receiving the necessary medical advice, &c. The building is of freestone, extensive and convenient, and was completed in 1742.

The Infirmary, or United Hospital, is intended for the relief of poor inhabitants of the city, who are excluded from the former; the Puerperal Charity, that for the Relief of Lying-in-Women, the Humane Society, the Eye Infirmary, the Stranger's and the Sick Man's Friend Society, and the Female Orphan Asylum, are all excellent institutions, whose objects are sufficiently explained by their names. The Bath Penitentiary was established in 1805, with the same benevolent object as the Magdalen in London; here is also a Society for releasing Persons imprisoned for small debts; and another for the suppression of vagrants, and the relief of occasional distress; several others for various charitable purposes, and branch establishments of most of the religious societies of the metropolis. The Grammar School was founded and endowed by Edward VI, and the building in which it is now held was erected in 1752, and is an elegant pile, but receives no more than ten scholars. The Blue Coat Schools educate and clothe 50 boys and the same number of girls; and here are several National and Free Schools, an Infant School, Sunday and Adult Schools; while to the Roman Catholic, and most of the Dissenting Chapels, are also attached similar charities.

St. John's Hospital, a very ancient institution, main tains 12 poor persons, and has a small Chapel attached to it; the Bimberies, or Black Alms Hospital, receives ten aged inmates, each of whom has a black garment every second year, (in memory of Edward VI, towards the close of whose reign it was founded) and a small weekly allowance of money; this Almshouse has been recently rebuilt: Bellott's Hospital was established in the reign of James I, by the individual whose name it bears, and accommodates 12 poor strangers during their use of the waters, in which they have the liberty of bathing gratis, and receive, beside, a small sum weekly. Partis's College, on Newbridge Hill, in the vicinity, is an excellent establishment, founded by a lady of that name, pursuant to the will of her husband, and consists of 30 small houses, each containing four rooms, with a small garden attached, and appropriated to the reception of 30 decayed gentlewomen; ten of whom must be widows or daughters of Clergymen; and each receives a liberal annual income.

The buildings connected with fashion and amusement are of course numerous; the most magnificent are the Assembly Rooms, completed in 1771, at the expeuse of £20,000; they contain the most spacious and elegant suite of apartments devoted to amusement in the kingdom, and are decorated with the utmost taste and splendour. The Ball Room is 106 feet long, 42 feet wide, and the same in height; the card rooms, tea rooms, &c. are also of noble dimensions; and every apartment is superbly furnished with chandeliers, girandoles, mirrors, &c. The Public Baths, the origin of the wealth and importance of this city, are five in number, and are distinguished by the names of the King's, Queen's, Cross, Hot, and Kingston Bath, each of which is fitted up in a superior style, suitable to the rank of the majority of their visitors. The Pump Room, in which the waters are drank, is an elegant edifice, built in 1797, and adorned with a statue of Beau Nash; it also contains a music gallery, in which an excellent band is stationed for some hours of every day during the season; the healing stream issues from a marble vase, and is handed to the company by persons appointed for that purpose. A book is kept here for receiving the names of visitors, who are waited on by the Master of the Ceremonies shortly after their arrival, in order to ascertain their fitness for admission to the dignified society of the place. There is a smaller Pump Room attached to the Hot Bath; and a third at the Cross Bath. The taste of the waters is not disagreeable, and they are considered serviceable in bilious and nervous disorders, rheumatism, palsy, and gout; the terms for drinking are, £2. 2s. per ann. or 5s. per week: and the property of all, excepting the Kingston Baths (which belong to Earl Manvers) is vested in the Corporation, and considered to be productive of a large income.

Beside the Assembly Rooms, already described, here was formerly another suite, called the Lower Rooms, which being destroyed by fire in 1820, have not been rebuilt, but their site is now occupied by the Literary Institution, a simply elegant edifice, with a fine Doric portico, and containing a Library, Lecture and Reading Rooms, a Museum, Laboratory, &c.; in the Vestibule are deposited the numerous remains of Roman antiquity discovered in this city

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