Our Churches and Chapels: Their Parsons, Priests, & Congregations: Being a Critical and Historical Account of Every Place of Worship in PrestonAtticus
History
Our Churches and Chapels: Their Parsons, Priests, & Congregations: Being a Critical and Historical Account of Every Place of Worship in Preston
Atticus
Preston (Lancashire, England) -- Church history
is ornamental but diminutive in many respects. There are three
doorways here, the collateral ones, which are very low, and quite
calculated to prevent people from entering the building with their
hats on, being patronised the most--not because there is an
offertory box in the central passage, but because the side roads are
the handiest. During a second visit to the church we went in by the
middle door, the medium course, as the proverb hath it, being the
safest, and seeing the offertory box--a remarkably strong, iron-
cornered article, fastened to the wall--we remarked to an official,
in his shirt sleeves, who was with us, "This will stand a deal of
money before falling." The official replied "It will so," and the
look, he gave us superinduced the conclusion that the offertory box
was not going to fall for some time.
We have seen no more deceptive-looking church than that we are now
at. Viewed externally, you would say that scarcely a good handful of
people could be accommodated in it; it seems so narrow, so entirely
made up of and filled in with stone, that one infers at first sight
it will hardly hold the parson and the sacrament-loving "old woman"
who invariably exists as a permanent arrangement at all our places
of worship; but this is a fallacy, for the building will accommodate
about 1,100 people. The interior consists of a nave, two aisles, and
a chancel. Everything in the building seems strong, clean, and good;
and considering the ponderous character of its architecture a fair
share of light is admitted to it. At the entrance, there is a glass
screen, ornamentally got up and surmounted with a small lion and
unicorn design. Just within this screen there is a curtained pew,
and sitting within its enclosure must be a very snug and select
thing. It is occupied by Mr. Hermon, M.P., and when he draws the
curtains all round--"he sometimes does," said the official
accompanying us--no one can see a morsel of him whilst he can see
never a one in the building, not even the parson, without a special
effort. The nave is broad and quadrangular, is supported by
immensely strong pillars, and has a fine high roof, looking clean
and spacious, but considerably spoiled by several commonplace
awkwardly fashioned beams. The roof of each aisle is similarily
marred. The seats are disposed in six parallel ranges, and the
generality are quite good enough for anybody. Along each side there
is a row of free seats--about 50 altogether--capable of
accommodating upwards of 300 persons. There are also many free seats
in the gallery.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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