"Much of the objection which you have expressed to the prevailing arrangement of the aisles," said Mr. Acres, continuing the conversation with his Vicar, "seems to me to apply also to that of the transepts—I believe that is the proper name for those portions of a church which extend in a transverse direction north and south?"

"Yes," replied the Vicar; "and the remedies for the evil are in both cases nearly the same. Great inconvenience often arises from the exclusive character of the parclose. I would have the solid part of this made lower, and the upper part more light and open."

"Pardon me, my friend, but I am ignorant as to what you mean by the word parclose."

"I refer now to the screen which encloses the chancel on the north and south sides; but I believe the word may apply to any screen in the church. By means of these screens, however, the persons in the transepts are needlessly excluded from a view of the altar."

"Yes; but the change in them which you suggest would not fully meet the difficulty, even if a squint or hagioscope should also be provided."

"I see that," said the Vicar; "and for that reason I would, as a rule, only have those portions of the transepts nearest the chancel fitted with permanent seats. On special occasions chairs could be placed in the back parts; or, perhaps, the whole of the transepts might be given up to the children of the parochial schools, the elder children, who could best understand the nature of the services, being placed in the front."

"A very proper arrangement, indeed, I should think, for all of them would be able at least to hear, and they would be conveniently placed for assisting in the musical parts of the service. It has often struck me as the refinement of cruelty to place these children in the remote damp corners of country churches, where too often they are to be found; or, worse still, in the topmost galleries of city churches, where the air they breathe is heated and impure. In both cases there is a manifest unconcern as well for the temporal as for the spiritual welfare of these little ones of Christ's flock."

"To whatever use, however, they may be applied, or even if they are entirely unappropriated, so far as regards affording accommodation for the congregation, I would, by all means, wherever practicable, retain the transeptal arrangement of our churches, not only as being the most ornamental form of structure, but as preserving in the entire building the distinct form of the Cross; and as symbolizing in the gathering together of each congregation of Christ's Church—which is His Body, that Body itself. Thus the nave represents the body, the transepts the outstretched arms, and the chancel—being the most excellent part of the church—the head[128] of our Lord. Some perhaps might think it fanciful, but to me there is something very solemn and beautiful in the idea, not only of the church's whole fabric assuming these symbolic forms, but also of the united prayers and praises of the congregation making, as it were, in their very sound the sign of the Cross."

"I think so too. And to my mind it has always seemed that the grand symbolism which looks through, as it were, the whole fabric of the church, and the whole congregation therein assembled, was formerly much marred in our churches, when there were many altars, dedicated to many saints, instead of the one altar, which we now only retain, dedicated to the one Head of the Christian Church."

"Yes; and your remark, of course, applies specially to the transepts about which we were speaking, since even in our country churches every transept had its separate altar, the piscina attached to which is still to be found in almost every old church."

"I suppose," said Mr. Acres, "that beautiful Gothic niche in our south transept which you recently restored is a piscina?"

"Yes, it is. The piscina was always placed on the south side of the altar, and it was used chiefly as the receptacle for the water used in cleansing the sacred vessels, or for that used by the priest in washing his hands[129]. It is to be found in our earliest Norman churches, and evidently dates from the time of their erection. There is often a shelf placed over the basin of the piscina, which was used as a credence[130]."

"We heard much about the credence-table some time since," interrupted the Squire, "when there was a suit in law about this and some other matters; but I confess I am still ignorant as to the purpose of the credence-table."

"It is usually a small table, or, when forming part of the piscina, a shelf, on which the elements intended for use at the Eucharist are placed before their consecration. Just before the prayer for the church militant in the Communion Service there is this direction: 'The priest shall then place upon the table (i.e. the altar) so much bread and wine as he shall think sufficient.' Now, you see, it would be very inconvenient, and a sad interruption of that part of the service, to bring these from a distant part of the church. The ancient custom, therefore, of placing the elements on the credence-table at the commencement of the service is most convenient for the proper observance of this rubric. And so, although the credence has only been preserved as an interesting relic, or ornament in other parts of the church, in the chancel it has been preserved or restored[131], as being still a most useful and important part of the furniture of the church."

Having now arrived at the vicarage-gate, the two friends bade each other good-night.

CHAPTER XXII

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THE CHANCEL SCREEN

"The vail shall divide unto you between the holy place and the most holy."

Exod. xxvi. 33.