eted canopy,
stood at the north-east corner of the chancel, but has disappeared.
The windows of the nave and the west doorway have perished. It has
been for a long time desecrated. The nave is used as a bakehouse.
There is a large open grate, oven, and chimney in the centre, and the
chancel is a storehouse for logs. The upper part of the building has
been converted into an upper storey and divided into bedrooms, which
have broken-down ceilings. The roof is of thatch. Modern windows and a
door have been inserted. It is a deplorable instance of terrible
desecration.

The growth of ivy unchecked has caused many a ruin. The roof of the
nave and south aisle of the venerable church of Chingford, Essex, fell
a few years ago entirely owing to the destructive ivy which was
allowed to work its relentless will on the beams, tiles, and rafters
of this ancient structure.

Besides those we have mentioned there are about sixty other ruined
churches in Norfolk, and in Suffolk many others, including the
magnificent ruins of Covehithe, Flixton, Hopton, which was destroyed
only forty-four years ago through the burning of its thatched roof,
and the Old Minster, South Elmham.

Attempts have been made by the National Trust and the Society for the
Protection of Ancient Buildings to save Kirkstead Chapel, near
Woodhall Spa, Lincolnshire. It is one of the very few surviving
examples of the _capella extra portas_, which was a feature of every
Cistercian abbey, where women and other persons who were not allowed
within the gates could hear Mass. The abbey was founded in 1139, and
the chapel, which is private property, is one of the finest examples
of Early English architecture remaining in the country. It is in a
very decaying condition. The owner has been approached, and the
officials of the above societies have tried to persuade him to repair
it himself or to allow them to do so. But these negotiations have
hitherto failed. It is very deplorable when the owners of historic
buildings should act in this "dog-in-the-manger" fashion, and surely
the time has come when the Government should have power to
compulsorily acquire such historic monuments when their natural
protectors prove themselves to be incapable or unwilling to preserve
and save them from destruction.

We turn from this sorry page of wilful neglect to one that records the
grand achievement of modern antiquaries, the rescue and restoration of
the beautiful specimen of Saxon archite