signed--1720, Some restorations performed by Wren on north transept, front and west towers--1740, Hawkesmoor completes the towers--1802, Separation of Rochester bishopric from Deanery of Westminster--1866, Sir G. Scott restores the north transept front and chapter house. How utterly incapable the most experienced writer must feel when called upon to describe worthily the abbey of Westminster! Apart from all the legendary matter connected with the noble pile, and the glamour which surrounds the ancient Benedictine church, the abbey stands out as the receptacle of all that is best and grandest in the history of England. The tombs of the kings and queens, the monuments erected since the Reformation in memory of notable men and women in literature, music, and all other arts, make history a nearer and more living thing. To pass beneath the noble west front into the sacred building, teaming with memories of the past, is to enter another world, so different is the peaceful and mysterious atmosphere within the abbey from the bustle and hum of London without. Looking eastwards from the west door, the aspect is truly inspiring and beautiful. From the graceful pointed arches, dividing the nave from the aisles, and surmounted by the triforium and clerestory, the eye falls on the choir, with its magnificent stone screen, and beyond this again to the dim and apsidal east end. The loftiness of the building, the fine triforium, the harmony of work in the nave (which took over 200 years to build), will deeply impress the beholder.