It looked very
strange to see the fresh hue of these two pillars amidst the dingy
antiquity of the rest of the structure.
The body of the church is covered with pews, the wooden enclosures of
which seemed of antique fashion. There were also modern stoves; but the
sexton said it was very cold there, in spite of the stoves. It had, I
must say, a disagreeable odor pervading it, in which the dead people of
long ago had doubtless some share,--a musty odor, by no means amounting
to a stench, but unpleasant, and, I should think, unwholesome. Old
wood-work, and old stones, and antiquity of all kinds, moral and
physical, go to make up this smell. I observed it in the cathedral, and
Chester generally has it, especially under the Rows. After all, the
necessary damp and lack of sunshine, in such a shadowy old church as
this, have probably more to do with it than the dead people have;
although I did think the odor was particularly strong over some of the
tombstones. Not having shillings to give the sexton, we were forced to
give him half a crown.
The Church of St. John is outside of the city walls. Entering the East
gate, we walked awhile under the Rows, bought our tickets for Eaton Hall
and its gardens, and likewise some playthings for the children; for this
old city of Chester seems to me to possess an unusual number of
toy-shops. Finally we took a cab, and drove to the Hall, about four
miles distant, nearly the whole of the way lying through the wooded Park.
Pages:
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128