with grotesque,
satirical, and irreverent devices. They are called miserere-stalls, and
were used by the monks or canons to lean against during the portions of
the long mediaeval services, when they were not allowed to be seated. As
this practice was a concession to human weakness or infirmity, the seats
were called in France _misericordes_, and in England _misereres_. The
subjects of the sculptures are often extremely curious. Domestic scenes,
fables, such as the "Fox and the Grapes," demons carrying off monks,
"The Seven Deadly Sins," are some of these subjects. Miss Phipson has
published a learned work on _Choir Stalls and their Carvings_, which
contains reproductions of three hundred of her sketches of curiously
wrought _misereres_.

[Illustration: VILLAGE CHURCH IN THE VALE]

The lectern formerly stood in the chancel; and then, as now, was often
in the form of a large eagle, emblematic of St. John. Most of these
reading-desks belong to the fifteenth and seventeenth centuries, and are
made of wood, latten, iron, or stone, as well as of brass. There is a
very curious wooden one at East Hendred, Berks, representing a foot
resting on the head of a dragon, emblematic of the word of God
conquering the powers of evil. Ancient wooden double reading-desks are
not uncommon. The ornamentation usually denotes the period when they
were constructed.

And now we approach the high altar of the church, made of stone, covered
with a beautifully worked frontal and cloth, and inclosed at the sides
with curtains suspended on iron rods projecting from the wall. A
crucifix hangs above the altar, and two candlesticks stand, one on each
side. The furniture and accessories of the altar in pre-Reformation
times were numerous. There was the pyx, a box or vessel of precious
metal, in which the Host was reverently preserved for the purpose of
giving communion to the sick and infirm. There were two small cruets or
vessels for containing the wine and water used in Holy Communion, one
engraved with the letter "V" (_vinum_), and the other "A" (_aqua_). An
_osculatorium_, or pax tablet, of ivory or wood, overlaid with gold, was
used for giving the kiss of peace during the High Mass just before the
reception of the Host. Of church plate generally we shall write in a
subsequent chapter.

[Illustration: NORMAN PISCINA, ROMSEY CHURCH, HANTS]

On the south we see the piscina, which is contained in a beautifully
carved niche--a hollow basin with a s