ry, was a debatable point. This question has now been finally
settled.

[Illustration: The Choir, looking East.] During some operations
necessitating the opening of the floor, in January 1895, certain
indications were found which led the diocesan architect, Mr C.H. Fowler,
and Canon Greenwell to continue the excavation. The result was the
discovery that Carileph's church certainly possessed three apses--a
large one terminating the choir, and smaller ones the aisles. The apses
of the aisles were square externally, and apsidal internally. The great
apse consisted of five bays, one on either side next to the choir,
forming an oblong between the choir and the springing line of the curve
of the apse, over which would be the great sanctuary arch. The
remainder, or apse proper, was divided into three bays by engaged
clustered shafts, similar to those of the choir and nave. It was
surrounded by a wall arcade of the same character as that of the rest of
the church. The base of one of the shafts of the arcade was found in
position. An extremely interesting point in this discovery is the fact
that the levels are the same as those of the nave and choir. The
foundations are on the rock at the same depth, and the aisle walls and
apse walls are in the same line. The external square line of the aisle
apses is in line with the springing of the choir apse. The foundations
of the apse to the north aisle have been thoroughly excavated, and there
is every reason to believe that that on the south side of the church
entirely corresponds. The width of the north aisle apse from north to
south is nine feet eight inches. There can be little doubt, judging from
the remainder of Carileph's work, that all three apses were covered with
stone vaults, though of precisely what character can only be a matter of
conjecture. The cracking, previously spoken of, which led to this part
of the church being taken down and the new eastern transept being
erected, cannot have arisen from any subsidence of the foundations. It,
in all probability, was the result of the thrust of the apse vaults on
to walls which were insufficiently buttressed. The marks on some of the
stones found during this excavation, and the shape of others, seem to
point to the conclusion that here we have the earliest part of the
church, and that Carileph used up in his foundations much of the stone
of Aldhun's White Church.

Of the two usual eastern endings to Norman churches--viz. those wit