NEW CHURCHES.-No. XII. ST. JOHN'S CHURCH, HE site of this Church having artificial foundation of piles was necessary to be formed before any part of the superstructure could be commenced. This operation took up about three months, and attracted great notice at the time. After the description of St. George's Church, Camberwell, which has already appeared in this vol. page 9, it will be unnecessary to go into a mi nute detail of the present edifice. The monotony of Mr. Bedford's designs has already been noticed under the head of that building, as well as Trinity Church, Newington; that the censure is not altogether misapplied, will be seen, by comparing the accompanying engraving, which comprizes two of Mr. Bedford's designs, with those of the two Churches before referred to. The present structure is built of brick, with stone dressings; the plan of the basement comprehends not only the Church, but a terrace in the front of it-the former is a parallellogram, the latter forms a transept at the west end, the whole of the area being laid out in catacombs. The terrace was rendered necessary to fill up the space between the Church and the road, which is considerably raised to meet the level of Waterloo bridge. The view of the superstructure shewn in Fig. 1. of the engraving, displays the western front and steeple, and the north side of the Church. To begin with the former: the whole of the design is occupied with a hexastyle portico of the Greek Doric order, sustaining an entablature, cornice, and pediment, of the same architectural character, and with the same defects as have already been noticed at Camberwell; a glance at the two engravings will be sufficient to shew that the designs are copies of each other, the only difference being in the dimensions, (which in the present Church are greater than the former one,) and the steeples. The western wall of the Church, within the por • Vol. xcv. ii. 393. GENT, MAG. May, 1827. tico, is guarded by antæ at the sides, and is divided into two stories by a plain course of stone; in the lower division are five doorways: in the upper, corresponding with them, are five windows, four of which are in that is glazed. The steeple is a redeeming feature in this view of the building; it differs from the other designs of Mr. Bedford most essentially, and it is unnecessary to add that the difference is for the better, your readers being capable of forming a judgment by comparison of the subjects in the engravings which have been previously given of St. George's and Trinity Church. The spectator cannot help lamenting that a want of funds has deprived the steeple of proportions adequate to the size of the building to which it is attached. The elevation, it will be seen, consists of a tower and spire, both of which are square in their plan; the story above the clock dial is of the Ionic order, and in each face is a circular headed window, filled in with weather boards; the other story is open, the columns are of no definite order. The angles of each story are ornamented with Grecian tiles, and the obelisk which crowns the whole, properly terminated with a stone ball and cross. Viewing it, on the whole, as an exception to the almost universal designs of the present day, in which a square story, sustaining a circular one, and finished with a dome, are the leading features, and as approaching nearer to the ancient models, which can never be surpassed, it must be regarded as a pleasing specimen of this sort of building; whoever sees it will agree with me that it is much to be wished that modern church architects would in more instances adopt the spire, the more so when it is recollected how admirably it was adopted to modern Churches and Italian architecture by Sir C. Wren. The south and north fronts of the Church are uniform; they are both divided in height into two stories, by a plain course of stone, and each story contains six windows; the lower are small, with low arched heads; the upper range are high, and are in the form of a parallellogram. The angles are guarded by antæ, and that portion of the building which contains the staircases and lobbies, is divided from the rest, by antæ. The entablature is continued round the Church, the chaplets of myrtle being retained in the frieze. The east front is made by antæ into three divisions, and is also divided into two stories. The centre contains a window, and the elevation is finished with an entablature and pediment. The liberties taken with the architecture of this Church are of the same character as have already been noticed at Camberwell. They are the offspring of the same taste which has given birth to the favourite style of the day, "Carpenter's Gothic;" and from them it will be seen that the pointed style has not been the only sufferer under the hands of the professional geniuses of the present times. THE INTERIOR. In this Church we find the same meeting-house character as at Camberwell and Trinity Churches, and, excepting a very few particulars, the internal features so exactly resemble those buildings, that it would be unnecessary to enter into a particular description. The altar screen, how ever, is more ornamented than at Camberwell, though it falls far short of what it ought to be. It consists of a pediment sustained upon antæ of white marble, the space between them being filled with panels of black marble, on which are inscribed the decalogue, &c. It closely resembles, if it is not a copy of, that at Trinity Church. The same perversion of ornament, as at Camberwell, appears in the organ-case, which is richly ornamented, and of a similar design. The instrument was the gift of Mr. Lett, a magistrate of the county, and an inhabitant of the district, who was also the donor of the site of the Church. There are few architects of the modern school who appear to comprehend the nature of the ornaments of the altar; it would be well for them to visit the Churches of St. Bride and St. Andrew in the City, from which they might learn what ought to be done. In the centre aile, and immediately beneath the front of the gallery, is a beautiful font of white marble, brought from Italy and presented to the Church by the Rev. Dr. Barrett, the first in cumbent. It is, with its cover, about four feet in height, and in the form of an antique urn. Two cherubims form The first stone was laid by the Archbishop of Canterbury on the 30th June, 1823; and on the 3d Nov. 1824, the Church was consecrated by the Bishop of Winchester. A peal of 8 bells are hung in the tower, the tenor weighing 19 cwt. The estimated expence of the building was 18,1917. 5s. and the congregation accommodated are 2032 persons. ST. LUKE'S CHURCH, Architect, Bedford. THIS Church, like the former, is principally built of brick, and being the fourth Church erected by the same architect, which it has fallen to my lot to describe, your readers will not, hope, be disappointed at not receiving a minute description, which the uniform sameness of Mr. Bedford's designs renders it difficult to give said. All that will therefore remain without repeating what has before been for me to do, will be to point out in what particular the present building differs from those before described; and then by referring your readers to the three former descriptions, my task of describing the Church which forms the second subject in the present engraving, will be rendered comparatively easy. The west front and north side of the Church are shewn in the view. With a very slight variation in the roof of the upper story of the tower, the portico and steeple are copies of those existing at Trinity Church. This * When I make use of the term "west front," &c. I would wish to be understood that part of the building which in a Church In this and many other Churches, the buildusually faces such quarter of the horizon. ing does not stand due east or west. I prefer, however, to make use of the accustomed terms to avoid the confusion which would ensue from particularizing the exact situation of them. variation consists of a square pedestal, formed on the apex of the conical roof of the tower, and which sustains the ball and cross, as in the other instances. The south and north fronts of this Church have each a single range of windows, with arched heads. The east front is made into three divisions by antæ, and has an attached staircase, built against the centre division, one of the alterations which took place in consequence of the erection of galleries to be noticed subsequently. The entablature is continued from the west front round the whole of the building, and the eastern elevation is finished with a pediment. THE INTERIOR would have more exactly resembled the Churches before alluded to, if it had been originally fitted up with galleries in the manner in which they are; in the present it was only intended that a gallery should be erected across the western end of the Church. Since the building was finished, it was determined to make further accommodation, the western gallery was in consequence enlarged, and an additional one to correspond built at the east end. In consequence of which, an attached vestry was heightened and converted into a staircase, and the window which would have been over the altar, if the original plan had been adhered to, is now made into a doorway. No arrangement could possibly have effected so great an injury to the building as the present has done. The altar being displaced by the new gallery, has been set against the centre of the south wall, and the pulpit and reading-desk against the opposite one, so that the internal arrangement of the building is quite contrary to the usual mode. On enter ing from the west, instead of the altar facing the spectator, he finds it on his left hand, and the pulpit on his right, an arrangement which it is obvious must have greatly defaced the building. It would be unfair to charge these injudicious alterations upon the architect, but it is difficult to account for the making of them, from whatever quarter they proceeded. It is obvious that north and south galleries might have been erected without any disparagement to the building; the altar and pulpit would then have retained their stations, and not have appeared in such awkward situations as they do at present, and the windows would have afforded no objection to this plan being effected, as many Churches have galleries in which a single range of windows are ample for the purposes of lighting the spaces below and above the galleries. Whoever sees Norwood Church in its present state, will lament that these alterations have been effected, and it is to be hoped that the parish will do away with the effect of them, by taking down the present eastern gallery, and building others in the usual way, An organ is situated in the western gallery, and the decalogue, &c. are inscribed against slabs of marble on the wall, where the altar is placed, and which are the only indications of it. Upon concluding the description of the last of Mr. Bedford's Churches, I cannot help noticing the bad taste which has induced that gentleman to assimilate so closely his designs to each other, and in the present instance it is the more to be regretted, as the Church now under consideration stands in what may be called the country, where a spire would have been a far more appropriate ornament to the neighbourhood than a pepper-box tower and a Corinthian portico. What could induce the parish to select such a design, in preference to the pointed style, is difficult to imagine, nor can I help lamenting the want of taste, or whatever other cause it was, which has led to the preference. Norwood Church was commenced in the latter part of the year 1822, and was consecrated on the 15th July, 1825. The building affords accommodation for 1412 persons, and the estimate was 12,3871. 8s. 3d. Yours, &c. E. I. C. Mr. URBAN, May 10. worth Cliff (noticed in p. 359), THE following observations on Holillustrate, in some degree, the extraordinary phenomenon of Subterraneous Fire existing within its interior recesses, &c. Holworth Cliff forms the southern boundary of a farm called South Holworth (anciently written Oleworth, Holeworth, and Holwerde), the property of J. J. Lambert, Esq. of Dorchester; it is situate about two miles eastward of Osmington, and forms a very prominent object from Weymouth Bay. This Cliff is composed of a blue slaty lime stone, somewhat similar to |