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Any Stone our Island affords; which, unless the Quarries lie near the Sea, are toodear for general Use : The belt is Portland, or Roch-abbey Stone ; but these arcnot without their Faults. The next Material is the Lime; Chalk-lime is theconstant Practice, which, well mixed with good Sand, is not amiss, though muchworse than hard Stone-lime. The Vaulting of St. Paul’s is a Rendering as hardas Stone ; it is composed of Cockle-shell-lime well beaten with SanJ ; the moreLabout in the beating, the better and stronger the Mortar. 1 shall fay nothing ofMarble, (though England, Scotland , and Ireland, afford good, and of beautifulColours) but this will prove too costly for our Purpose, unless for Altar-pieces.In Windows and Doors Portland Stone may be used, with good Bricks, andStone Quoyns. As to Roofs, good Oak is certainly the best ; because it will bearsome Negligence : The Church-wardens Care may be defective in speedy mend- ,ing Drips; they usually white-wash the Church, and set up their Names, butneglect to prefer,ve the Roof over their Heads: It must be allowed, that the Roofbeing more out of Sight, is still more unminded. Next to Oak is good yellowDeal, which is a Timber of Length, and light, and makes excellent Work atfirst, but if neglected will speedily perish, especially if Gutters (which is a generalFault in Builders) be made to run upon the principal Rafters, the Ruin may besudden. Our Sea-service for Oak, and the Wars in the North-sea, make Tim-ber at present of excessive Price. 1 suppose ’ere long we must have recourse tothe Wejl-Indies , where most excellent Timber may be had for cutting and fetch-ing. Our Tiles are ill made, and our Slate not good; Lead is certainly thebest and lightest Covering, and being of our own Growth and Manufacture, andlasting, if properly laid, for many hundred Years, is, without question, the mostpreferable ; though 1 will not deny but an excellent Tile may be made to be verydurable; OU r Artisans are not yet instructed in it, and it is not soon done to informthem.

6. The Capacity and Dimensions of the new Churches may he determined bya Calculation. It is, as I take it, pretty certain, that the Number of Inhabitants,for whom these Churches are provided, are five times as many as those in theCity, who were burnt out, and probably more than 400,000 grown Persons thatshould come to Church, for whom these fifty Churches are to be provided, (be-sides some Chapels already built, though too small to be made parochial.) Now,if the Churches could hold each 2000, it would yet be very short of the necessarySupply. The Churches therefore must be large; but still, in our reformed Re-ligion, it should seem vain to make a Parijh-church larger, than that all who arepresent can both hear and see. The Romanists , indeed, may build largerChurches, it is enough if they hear the Murmur of the Mass, and fee the Ele-vation of the Host, but ours are to be fitted for Auditories. I can hardly thinkit practicable to make a single Room so capacious, with Pews and Galleries, asto hold above 2000 Persons, and all to hear the Service, and both to hear di-stinctly, and fee the Preacher. I endeavoured to effect this, in building theParish Church of St. James’s, Weftmmfter, which, I presume, is the most ca-pacious, with these Qualifications, that hath yet been built; and yet at a solemnTime, when the Church was much crowded, I could not discern from a Gallerythat 2000 were present. In this Church 1 mention, though very broad, andthe middle Nave arched up, yet as there are no Walls of a second Order, norLanterns, nor Buttresses, but the whole Roof rests upon the Pillars, as do alsothe Galleries; I think it may be found beautiful and convenient, and as such, thecheapest pf any Form I could invent.

7. Concerning the placing of the Pulpit, I shall observe-A moderate Voice

tnay be heard 50 Feet distant before the Preacher, 30 beet on each Side, and20 behind the Pulpit, and not this, unless the Pronunciation be distinct and equal,without losing the Voice at the last Word of the Sentence, which is commonly

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