ing" peal; not so good as it should be for the neighbourhood of the "Palace of Westminster," to which it announces occasions of joy. But when the exterior of this ancient parish church has been improved, with new parapets, windows, &c. (instead of being recklessly swept away,) I think it will be found that the tower would bear a heavier peal. Poplar, about 21 cwt., Fulham, do. The New Church, Camberwell, will have a peal, with 25 cwt.; Chelsea New Church has one with 224 cwt., good; Streatham; St. John's, Horselydown, probably about 20 cwt., good.

PEALS OF 12.

St. Saviour's (or St. Mary Overy's), tenor 52 cwt., and said to be the heaviest peal in England. The tenth has been recast, this summer; all the rest are, I believe, about five centuries old. From the height of the tower, 150 feet, they have a mellow effect; the tone of the largest (alluded to in Wilson's "City of the Plague,") is certainly fine and full; it has much the sound of brass. The next (now) is St. Michael's, Cornhill, 41 cwt. It struck the writer that on the destruction of the Royal Exchange, the chimes might have been removed with effect to the tower of this, the parish church. The bells in this lofty tower were, about seven years ago, lowered 40 feet the upper story being, notwithstanding the solid appearance of the turrets, slight-not more than 18

inches thick. The sound is of course subdued. St. Bride's tenor I have known variously estimated at from 28 to 34 cwt.; it is probably about 31; the same as St. Martin's-in-theFields, which has a very long reverberation the ringers at the latter receive a "leg of mutton and trimmings" weekly, from a bequest of the somewhat notorious Nell Gwynne. Yet there have been worse persons than Nelly; especially when it is considered that to her spontaneous and disinterested urging, charity owes Greenwich, if not also Chelsea Hospital, and she died penitent and christian-wise. So let it be believed that it will be said to her, as to another of her class, spoken of by an Apostle as "justified" through an act of mercy, "Thy sins be forgiven thee."

Shoreditch, an excellent ring, scarcely sufficiently appreciated; tenor, powerful for its weight, 32 cwt.; and the peal has a very fine tone when muffled; the Chimes, however, are inferior and out of order: the 11th bell rings the curfew. Cripplegate, tenor about 34 cwt. famous for its Chimes, by far the best in London, which play, every three hours, having seven or eight different tunes, and changing the order on different days. In some notes, in one or two of the melodies, the chimes play the treble and bass on two bells at once; which I am not aware to be the case, though of course it may be so, with any other chimes in England.

THIS ancient mansion has had several names assigned to it, and has been known by the appellations of Plas Mawr (Great Place), Court Mawr (Great Court), and now by that of Plas Gôch (Red Place). They were probably given to it without any consultation of the owners, and have been changed with the veering fancies of popular caprice. It formed the ancient seat of the Bulkeleys, and was their principal residence until they removed to Baron Hill, in the reign of James 1. There is a tradition that one of the Dowager Lady Bulkeleys resided in

this mansion at a much later period, at the end of the 17th or beginning of the 18th century, and the internal condition of the building is in sufficient consonance with this supposition.

Before proceeding to describe the mansion, we may state that a small and interesting brass funereal plate commemorative of this family is still preserved on the north side of the chancel in Beaumarais Church,* where itno doubt was placed after having been

*This church is a chapel to Llandegvan, and is dedicated to the Virgin Mary.

taken from a slab in the pavement. It represents a gentleman of the time of Henry VIII. kneeling, on the dexter side, with two sons behind him, and on the sinister side his lady with one daughter. Between them are two blank spaces, once probably filled up with their emblazoned armorial bearings and some other device: while above, between two figures of St. John and the Virgin, is a representation of the Trinity, consisting of the Father seated with the Son crucified between his knees, and the Holy Dove hovering between the mouth of the Father and the head of the Son. From the mouth of the gentleman proceeds a scroll, with the words, Osanna in excelsis; and from that of the lady another, with the words, Kyrye Eleyson. In a compartment beneath these kneeling figures is the following inscription:

Hoc tegitur tumulo Ricardus nōie Bulkley
Hujus mercator providus oppiduli.
Elizabeth cōjux custos fidissima sacri

Cōjugiique sub hoc marmore clausa jacet.
Jucta Deo vivis fuerat quibus una voluntas,
Post obitum maneat unus item tumulus.

We will not criticise the scansion of the last verse, but will observe, that, at the time when this plate was engraved, the saying of Sir John Wynne might have been anticipated: "The lawyers of Caernarvon, the merchants of Beaumarais, and the gentlemen of Conway."

In

The house in question, or at least the greater portion of it, and especially that represented in the plate, is of the same date as this monument, and the mansion may have been erected by the person therein commemorated, or one of his immediate descendants. subsequent times, probably in the reign of Elizabeth, a large and stately addition was made at the back, its style being indicative of the Italian taste then introduced into this country. At the present day, however, the mansion has been allowed to go to ruin, and is now tenanted by numerous poor families, who will probably reside in it until the walls and roofs crumble about their ears. Without meaning to convey any impertinent hints as to the disposal of his property, we cannot avoid observing that it would be a proof of good archæological taste on the part of the present

representative of this noble family, the owner of Plas Gôch and Baron Hill, if he were to prevent the total destruction of this cradle of his family. The house might be so far repaired at a moderate expense as to make it fit for the residence of a respectable family; and, even if this were not the case, it might with great advantage to the town of Beaumarais, be converted into a museum for the reception of local antiquities, where the numerous relics of other days, found in various parts of the island, might obtain a secure resting-place, and where even a small cabinet of natural history might be added to a purely antiquarian collection. Any thing that would attract visitors to this watering place, already rising into fashionable note, would increase the value of landed property within the precincts of the town; and the trifle now received for the rent of the tenement might be quadrupled by a trifling fee of admission paid by the curious. But to proceed to a description of the mansion itself.

The principal portion of the older part of the house is occupied by a large hall, extending at right angles to the street from the middle of a building placed athwart it, and formed into two series of rooms: those on the ground-floor having been used as butteries and pantries, those above as dormitories. The family appears to have had their own chamber and parlours in the building behind, looking partly into the court-yard, partly into a spacious garden. The best feature of the house is the hall, the entrance to which is seen in the plate through a pointed doorway. Its dimensions was about 40 feet by 20, and 15 feet in height: the upper end is a canopied and paneled dais, once embellished with a large coat of arms. On the northern side of the hall is a large plain fire-place, and on the southern side is an ample square bay window, represented in the plate, with a small chamber above. The ceiling of this hall is remarkably elegant, consisting of a beautiful series of panels in plaster, with 18 pendents of most elaborate design,-no two being alike; while the inferior cornices were charged with scroll-work, flowerings, and armorial devices. In general design it resembles the ceil