[Footnote 14: See p. 89.] but it cannot be said that he has been more successful in these parts of the church than elsewhere. The effect aimed at appears to have been that of tapestry with simple patterns; indeed, of the whole it is said, “cette décoration forme, jusque sous les roses, une sort de brillante tapisserie.” Some of the canopies are of the most intricate patterns, but they would be better suited to wood or metal work than to painting. The scheme includes a series of paintings by Perrodin of persons distinguished in the history of the diocese of Paris. The figures have elaborate decorative borders. The removal of statues and memorials from the nave, which we have already deplored, had just the shadow of a justification from the purely æsthetic standpoint. Many of the monuments were incongruous, some were positively grotesque. In Westminster Abbey we have an example of the shocking effect of inappropriate statuary in a Gothic building; we know, only too well, how terribly one of the most beautiful interiors in the world suffers from a crowd of tombs which are out of keeping with the very spirit of the place. By the removal of the memorials at Notre Dame, the church has doubtless regained the aspect intended by its designers. The nave leads uninterruptedly to the choir, which ends in the high altar; and the high altar, with the adjacent shrine of St. Marcel, was the primary reason of the existence of the cathedral. We have seen that in its earlier form little or no provision was made for chapels and consequently for side altars. Everything was arranged to concentrate the eye on the chief altar, and to lend dignity to its position. Its sacred character was respected even in the far-off days in which the body of the church was used for commercial purposes, or for festivals the reverse of religious.