Page:Archaeological Journal, Volume 1.djvu/57

Rh as at Acton Turvill, nor yet by mere connection with the others, as at Harescomb. But the turret beneath the spire, which, like all the others, has a cruciform section below, becomes octagonal at the top, by means of a kind of bracket, which extends the cardinal faces sufficiently to make them correspond with the cardinal sides of the spire, and then, forming an obtuse angle in the horizontal plane, gives support to its diagonals. The form of the opening, as projected on a vertical plane, is trefoil-headed, the top being square. Round the base of the spire, which is ribbed, is a delicate moulding with a battlement, and on the top is a beautiful finial; there are no pinnacles. This belfry is difficult to describe, and not very easily drawn; but by examining it attentively, an artist would at once see its construction, and be able to form a model. Its style and date are clearly Perpendicular. Corston is about two miles from Malmsbury, on the Chippenham road.

These four turrets, it will be seen, are alike, in having a cruciform base and an octagonal spire, but they differ in the adaptation of the one to the other; and this variety gives them value in the eyes of the architect, as it will authorize him in forming combinations according to his skill, instead of scrupulously adhering to a given copy. They are also valuable as comprising all the pointed styles, and as admitting any degree of ornament. And it will be observed, that the belfry of Corston very gracefully occupies a position which could not have been properly occupied by a turret springing from the ground, viz. the middle of the west front.

If these specimens are worth imitation, à fortiori they are worth preserving. Now, though I am by no means in the habit of travelling through the country to spy out the nakedness of the land, I need feel no hesitation in saying, that one or two of the churches mentioned are in a state which must before long demand attention. In these days far less is to be feared from neglect than from injudicious restoration, or from the necessities of a parish forced to enlarge, repair, or rebuild, but unsupplied with funds sufficient for any thing beyond the least expensive mode of providing for the exigency. I am totally unacquainted with all the parishes which I have named, and know nothing of either their claims or resources, but I surely am not wrong in directing attention to the subject.