'with Lock and Keys, to keep them in, are also to be provided' (p. 19)- Vestry Clerk & Par. Lawyer.

X. VESTRY Вooks.-A Minute Book, in which the proceedings of all Vestry Meetings are to be entered, must be provided at the cost of the Parish, as laid down in the Statute: thus

"Minutes of the proceedings and resolutions of every Vestry 'are to be fairly and distinctly entered in a Book (to be provided for that purpose by the Churchwardens and Overseers of the 'Poor), and be signed by the Chairman and by such other of the 'inhabitants present as may think proper to sign the same'58 Geo. III. c. 69. s. 2.

MR. C. G. PRIDEAUX (Barrister-at-Law) says- The Vestry'Book is to be provided by the Churchwardens and Overseers of the Poor out of the Poor-Rate, and not by the Churchwardens out of 'the Church Rate...but, of course, this only applies to the Vestry ' of a Parish. Where the Vestry is constituted for Ecclesiastical purposes only, as under the Church-Building Acts, the Book 'must be provided by the Churchwardens.' (p. 47. n)—Churchwarden's Guide.

The Custody of the Parish Books and Papers is imposed on the person appointed by the Vestry: as laid down by the 'Vestries Act,' thus-'Be it enacted that as 'well the Books hereby directed to be provided and kept for the entry of the proceedings of Vestries (in Sec. 2. quoted above) as 'all former Vestry Books, and all Rates and Assessments, 'Accounts and Vouchers of the Churchwardens, Overseers of the 'Poor, and Surveyors of the High-ways, and other Parish Officers, 'and all certificates, orders of Courts and of Justices, and other 'Parish Books, Documents, Writings, and public papers of every Parish, except the Registry of Marriages, Baptisms, and 'Burials, shall be kept by such person or persons, and deposited in such place and manner, as the inhabitants in Vestry assembled 'shall direct.'-58 Geo. III. c. 69. s. 6.

Injuring, or With-holding the Parish Books, expo ses the party so offending to a penalty not exceeding £50, nor less than 40s.: thus-' If any person in whose hands or custody any such Book, Rate, Assessment, Account, Voucher, Certificate, Order, Document, Writing, or Paper shall be, shall wilfully or negligent'ly destroy, obliterate, or injure the same, or suffer the same to 'be destroyed, obliterated, or injured, or shall, after reasonable 'notice or demand, refuse or neglect to deliver the same in such place as shall by the order of any such Vestry be directed, every 'person so offending, and being lawfully convicted thereof, on his own confession, or on the oath of one or more credible witness or 'witnesses, by and before two of His Majesty's Justices of the 'Peace, upon complaint thereof to them made, shall for every such 'offence forfeit and pay such sum, not exceeding £50, nor less 'than 40s. as shall by such Justices be adjudged and determined.'

...to be levied as arrears of Poor-rates are, and applied to the relief of the Poor...and proceedings may be taken in any of His Majesty's Courts, civilly or criminally.—(ib).

Under the Special Vestries Act, Minute Books are also required to be provided at the cost of the Parish: thus

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'The Vestry of every Parish adopting this Act shall cause to 'be provided and kept a proper Book or Books, and proper entries to be made therein of the names of the several Vestry6 'men who shall attend the respective Meetings of the Vestry, and of all orders and proceedings made and taken at such Meetings; and all such Books shall at all reasonable times be " open to the inspection of the said Vestrymen, and of any other person rated or assessed to the Relief of the Poor of the 'said Parish, and of any Creditor on the Rates of the said Parish, without fee or reward; and the said Vestrymen, persons, and creditors, or any of them, shall and may take copies of, or extracts from, such Books respectively, without paying anything for the same; and in case the Clerk to the said Vestry, or other person having the care of such Books, shall refuse....he shall forfeit and pay any sum of money not 'exceeding £10 for every such offence.'-1 & 2 Will. IV. c. 60. s. 31. -The next Section (§ 32) provides that a Book of Accounts shall be kept, and be open to the inspection of any person rated to the Relief of the Poor; and that extracts may be taken from the said Book free of charge: refusal incurs a penalty not exceeding £10.-By Section 35, the Auditors may demand an inspection of the Books of Accounts and of other Books and Documents connected therewith refusal is a misdemeanor.

** A Vestry Clerk can be compelled to produce these Books and Papers when demanded for Parish purposes, or for advancing any Parochial right, but not if they are required for personal objects. The Court refused to compel a Vestry Clerk to produce documents from the Parish Chest in the case of May v. Gwynne, where the object was to furnish evidence against the Vestry Clerk in an action of libel brought against him by a Parishioner. (4 B. & A. 301). Yet a Vestry Clerk, who is called as a witness, cannot on the ground that it may criminate himself, object to produce the Vestry-Book, kept under the Statute, 58 Geo. III. c. 69. s. 2. (FRY'S Stat. Rel. to Parishes. p. 13. n ;) But if the Parish Books are in the custody of any other person, the Vestry Clerk may have a mandamus to compel the delivery of them to to him. (Rex v. Croydon (Chw. of) 5 T. R. 713). In another case however where the application was against a Churchwarden, LORD ELLENBOROUGH decided-'If the muniments belong to the Vestry Clerk as annexed to his office, he may bring an action of detinue or trover;' and his Lordship refused the rule. (Anon. 2 Chitt. 255).-STEPHENS' L. Rel. to Cl. 1334.

Candlesticks &c. See Lights' infra.

Clocks, and Chimes.

I. CLOCKS, although highly useful and important, whether in the Tower of the Church for the benefit of the Parishioners generally, or in the interior of the Church for the convenience of the Officiating Minister, are not required by any CANON, or Statute Law, to be provided of necessity by the Churchwardens. Yet if a Clock has existed from time immemorial, the Parish is bound to keep it in order; or if the majority in a Vestry Meeting determine on setting up a Clock, and it has the consent of the Ordinary, the Parishioners are chargeable with its repair and preservation. The Clock within the Church is very frequently the gift of the Incumbent, who generally holds himself responsible for the expences attending it. Occasionally, the original outlay, and all subsequent charges are met by some Church-fund, or paid out of Pew-rents, where these are imposed.

Clocks in the Church Tower appear to have quite supplanted the old Sun-Dial; yet these, where they may be found, should not be suffered to go to decay. And, again, the Clocks within the Church have superseded the ancient Hour-Glass; indeed, the iron frame work which used to support it, is still to be seen in some few of our Churches.

DR. HOOK writes with respect to the Hour-glass-' Hour-glass, 'with long Sermons, a relic of puritanical times. It was till 'lately, occasionally seen fastened to the Pulpit.'-Ch. Dict. Art. 'HOUR-GLASS.'

II. CHIMES, which are an occasional accompaniment to Church Clocks, are not necessarily to be provided, nor kept in repair by the Churchwardens, except immemorial custom has imposed the burden on the Church-Rate, or some other Parish fund; yet with the consent of the majority of the Parishioners in Vestry assembled they may be set up, and maintained. The requisite machinery to connect

the Clock with the Bells in order to produce a set of Chimes is often supplied at the cost of a private individual, who will sometimes bequeath a sufficient sum to secure its preservation and repair. But he must first obtain the consent of the Ordinary, and the Incumbent, to the introduction of such Chimes; and the Incumbent should be very careful to determine the selection of Tunes.

Most Law authorities have decided with respect to Clocks, and Chimes, and other non-essential things of the like kind connected with the Church, that no provision is made for them by any special Law, and they must therefore be referred to the general power of the Churchwardens, with the consent of the major part of the Parishioners in Vestry assembled, and under the direction of the Ordinary. (See page 487. and BURN'S ECC. L. Phil. i. 374; CRIPPS. 419; STEER'S Par. L. Clive. 37; STEPHEN'S L. Rel. to. Cl. 292.).

The recent decision of the HOUSE OF LORDS, (August 12, 1853) in the celebrated 'Braintree case' seems likely however, to throw this matter, and indeed all others dependent on the Church-Rate, upon the voluntary system' for the supply of the requisite funds, until some fresh legislation shall determine the liability.

Communion - T.able, & its Furniture.

A Communion Table is directed by the 82nd CANON to be set up in Churches at the cost of the Parish; but, of what form and material it should be constructed, the CANON does not express. It merely requires that it shall be 'convenient and decent'; its costliness and character, therefore, are dependent upon the liberality of the Parishioners, and upon the taste the Churchwardens may possess in such matters, unless indeed these will defer to the judgment of the Incumbent. The CANON runs

'Whereas we have no doubt but that in all Churches within 'the Realm of England convenient and decent Tables are provided ' and placed for the celebration of the Holy Communion, we

'appoint, that the same Tables shall from time to time be kept 'and repaired in sufficient and seemly manner....to be done at 'the charge of the Parish.'-CANON 82.

The RUBRICS of the Office for the Administration of the Lord's Supper' repeatedly refer to the Communion-Table; and their requirements, which are binding in law, render it imperatively necessary that a Table should be provided in order to the due solemnization of the Holy Communion. In the Liturgy it is designated, sometimes the Lord's Table'; sometimes simply The Table'; while in the first Exhortation of the Communion-Office it is styled the Holy Table.' It is consequently acknowledged by, perhaps, the greater number of the Clergy, that Canonically, Rubrically, and therefore legally, the correct designation of this Ornament of the Church is The Communion Table.' Yet there are many who contend, that as the Rubric of our present Prayer Book directs us to the first LITURGY of Edward VI, for the 'Ornaments of the Church,' where this ‘Table' is called 'The Altar,' therefore the latter is the proper appellation. It may be well perhaps to examine this question a little further, since it has assumed in modern days somewhat of a controversial aspect: and this will require us to discuss the subject of the Communion-Table under a three-fold point of view; viz.-(1) its Appellation; (2) its Material; and (3) its Place.

I. Its Appellation.—In the first LITURGY of

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Edward VI (1549), as well as before the Reformation, we find that the Holy Communion was styled The Mass,' and the word' Altar' usually applied to what we now call the Communion-Table: yet in this very Liturgy the expressions The Lord's Table, God's Board' were adopted in certain of the Rubrics of this particular Office. (KEELING 167. 213; CLAY 100. c. 117. i.) As the Reformation advanced, however, a complete change of terms was effected by the voice of public authority.

In 1550. BP. RIDLEY issued injunctions to his Clergy, directing, among other things- Whereas in divers places 'some use the Lord's Board after the form of a Table, and some as an Altar, whereby dissention is perceived to 'arise among the unlearned: therefore wishing a godly unity to