The founders' secrets—Great bells of historic fame—The uses of bells—Old mortars.

The metal of which bells are made differs only from that used for other copper wares in its alloy. The ancients, however, made many mysteries about the constituents of the metal by which they were able to produce such beautiful notes and musical sounds. The modern bellfounder uses about 75 parts of copper and 25 parts of tin, varying it sometimes by a mixture of zinc and lead, and in that he differs little from the bellfounder of old, except that the older craftsman made a secret of his alloy and sometimes added a small quantity of other metals. The theory is that a large percentage of copper gives a deep tone, whereas the greater addition of zinc and tin gives a sharper ring.

The Founders' Secrets.

A knowledge of metals and of their qualities is a desirable accomplishment which all metal-workers and founders should possess, and it was doubtless because some of the early bellfounders intuitively, or as the result of accidental experiment, discovered the true properties of the alloys they used that they were able to excel in the craft. There are secrets associated with the mixing of the metal, too, especially that of heating the molten metal to the correct temperature at the most critical moment of running it into the mould. Much depends also upon tuning the bells by turning and reducing their thicknesses at the right place in the bell's cone. The accuracy of such details is essential, otherwise those mellow sounds for which many of the old bells are noted would be absent. It is true that the rich mellowness and musical notes so noticeable in some peals are due to some extent to age, the exact influence of which is not fully understood. The bellfounder has always regarded his work from a lofty standard, and has recorded the accomplishment of any great work by the inscriptions he has caused to be cast upon the surface of the bell. Such data is often accompanied by the name and trademark of the founder, the Bellfounders' arms being frequently added. Sometimes such inscriptions are dated; at others the lettering is sufficient to denote the date of the work.

The making of great bells was always regarded as an event of some importance. Most of those which have obtained historic fame have either been associated with some public use or have been cast for ecclesiastical purposes. Such events were often attended by kings and queens and great ecclesiastics, who threw into the melting-pot contributions of silver and gold, inscriptions upon the bells themselves often recording the special object of their manufacture.

The difficulties in the way of casting bells a distance away from the tower where they were to be hung often induced the founders to cast them on the spot; indeed, as late as 1762 the clock bell of Canterbury was recast in the Cathedral yard.

Great Bells of Historic Fame.

There are many great bells of historic fame, and others which have gained notoriety from their great size. The claim to the possession of the largest bell was formerly made by the Chinese, but the palm is usually accorded to the Great Bell of Moscow, which measures 19 ft. in height and 64 ft. in circumference. In our own country there are the Great Bell of St. Paul's, weighing five tons; "Great Tom" of Lincoln, of similar weight; "Peter" of York, weighing ten tons; and "Big Ben" of Westminster, scaling fourteen tons.

Some old churches and cathedrals are noted more for their beautiful chimes than for the size and weight of their larger bells. At Mechlin there are forty-four bells in the carillon, and in Antwerp Cathedral the chimes are played on sixty-five bells, the oldest in the set, named "Horrida," being dated 1316, but the bell which is said to be the best loved of all by the ringers is stamped "Carolas," having been given by Charles V.

There are bells of lesser size which have gained popularity, some from their former associations; others perhaps, more so because of their present location or ownership. Sometimes bells have been removed from old churches and after having changed hands several times have found a resting-place in the possession of laymen; often in museums, it is true, but not always so: as an instance there is the fine old bell in the possession of the Grocers' Company, cast in 1463 for the Church of All Hallows, Staining, where it hung for many years. The bell illustrated in Fig. 52, now in the Victoria and Albert Museum, is of more recent date, having been cast in Exeter in 1670 by John Pennington.

Bells have frequently been brought to this country as trophies of war. At the Tower there are several fine examples of Eastern workmanship, and there are others now in the United Service Museum at Whitehall.

The Uses of Bells.

The older bells have seen varied service; they have been hung in church towers and in public places; they have sounded the note of alarm, and given the signal for historic assemblies; they have rung the death-knell of illustrious persons, and in rural England have summoned many generations of worshippers to Divine Service.

The bells, the loud clanging of which can be heard afar, are, however, the outcome of a gradual process of development. The evolution from the handbell to the turret bell was doubtless slow.

The simple handbell in its early stages was only a slight advance beyond the bells hung round the necks of the leaders of the flock, which were made by the village smith. Such primitive, and not always musical, bells were used from the earliest times to summon servants and workers in the field and tenderers of the flock. The practice dates from Biblical days, for it was an early Eastern custom for sheiks and patriarchs from their tent doors to summon their followers, or give the danger signal, by means of a bell.

Bible records tell of bells of gold suspended from the robes of priests, and of their use in temple worship. From that time onward they have been associated with religious ceremonials. In later times the early Christians employed bells of copper and brass and consecrated them to their use. Thus musical peals, rung collectively or individually, have sounded for all kinds of sacred rites. The bell—a mere handbell—was soon fixed over a doorway, or in some convenient place where it could with greater ease be rung by a cord. Then came the suggestion of larger bells, afterwards covered over, and finally hung in steeple or tower, like the campanile (a tower separated from the church) so often met with in Italy.

The church bell is said to have been introduced here by Paulinus, the Bishop of Mona, in A.D. 400. The next record of importance is the historical account of the Venerable Bede, who describes bells hung in towers—that was in A.D. 670. Some two hundred years after Bede's days a peal was rung for the first time in England, in the Abbey of Crowland. The pioneers of bell-ringing upon bells tuned in harmony were the ringers who produced such charming results with the bells of King's College, Cambridge.

The bells of churches were rung for ecclesiastical and for national and parochial purposes. There was the vesper bell for evensong, and there was the curfew bell which rang in obedience to the "lights out" enactments of Norman days (see Couvre de feu, p. 113).

Of the minor uses of bells there are many. In Tudor days small bells were familiar objects in hunting. They formed part of the equipment of the hawk or falcon. Of these we read in Shakespeare's works—of the "'larum bell and of sweet bells jangled out of tune." In Othello there is a record of the "snorting citizen with his bell."

Bellmen were the heralds of news in country towns, and the importance of their office was made clear by the "Oyez! Oyez!" by which they prefixed their tale. The ancient watchman clanged his bell and the light in the lantern slung at his waist flickered as he sounded the call. This is mentioned in an old ballad, the first verse of which reads:

Numerous examples of curious bells are to be seen in our museums. In the Welsh Museum at Cardiff there is an old Celtic bell from Llangwynodl, shown side by side with an electrotype of the famous bell of St. Patrick. There is rather a sad note in the story of the fate of the old division bell of the Irish House of Commons, which, when the Parliament was abolished, was sold for use in a Dublin theatre as a call bell, eventually to be resold as old metal. That curio would at this juncture have been regarded as an historical relic of some value.

The restoration of bells sometimes leads to mistakes when it is found that the inscriptions upon them appear to indicate an older date than would be judged to be correct from their appearance. Of such restoration work an instance may be given of the peal of twelve bells recently placed in the tower of St. Mary's Church, which has become the cathedral of the new diocese of Chelmsford. The bells were dedicated in the presence of ringers from a large number of towns and villages in Essex, a county noted for its bell-towers and bells. The peal of ten replaces one cast in 1777, and the old inscriptions have been placed on the new bells. One reads:

Perhaps one of the most pleasing thoughts associated with bells is that their earliest use has been perpetuated throughout the ages. The sheep bell hung round the neck of the bellwether in Eastern lands sounding so sweetly in the days of the Psalmist of old, finds its replica on the downlands of the Southern counties and on Salisbury Plain to-day, for there and in many other parts of rural England the tinkling jingle of the sheep bells may be heard.

Bells are not without their rivals, for gongs have been used in Eastern countries for years, and now they are popular elsewhere. They were originally a disc of beaten metal with upturned rim, although in some countries they took the place of drums in warfare, as well as playing a part in religious services. The circular gong is associated with China, Japan, and Java. The Burmese gong is of triangular form, and by way of contrast is made of polished metal, whereas those of the first-mentioned countries usually show hammer marks. Many of the old gongs were exceedingly musical, and when struck with a leather-covered wooden mallet were capable of producing a variety of sounds. Gongs old and new vary in size and, consequently, in depth of tone and volume of sound. Among the Eastern curios there are some highly decorative examples, especially among the smaller table gongs, the stands of which were often enriched by decorative ornament with inlays and enamels.

Old Mortars.

On account of being made of the same kind of alloy, bronze mortars are referred to in this chapter. They were usually cast by the bellfounders from the metal they used for bells, and many of them when struck give forth sonorous and deep-toned sounds. These mortars were moulded and often decorated with fanciful designs, frequently with the arms or initials of the prospective owners, others being dated. Those shown in Fig. 53 are representative types.

Many of the early mortars appear to have been imported into this country. The Dutch founders made many in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, some being especially handsome and of large size. Others still more ornate were of Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish origin.

In course of time the use of bell-metal was discarded, and brass mortars, cast and afterwards turned in a lathe, came into vogue. These gradually became little used, and when pestles and mortars were needed in the domestic kitchen, more modern types of marble and composition were introduced. To-day, these once necessary domestic appliances are relegated to the chimney-piece as honoured ornaments in the kitchen; the older and more valuable bell-metal mortars being given more prominent positions upon sideboard or cabinet. Such is the story of the bellfounders, whose art remains among modern crafts.

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