ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY of the Marian reaction was completely swept away so far as Church goods were concerned. The great majority of the altars and rood-lofts were removed during the first year of Elizabeth's reign. There are numerous entries of the purchase of Communion-books, Psalters, &c., but it does not appear from the churchwardens' accounts that the new Prayer Book of 1559 was universally or even generally bought. In fact, with regard to the use of the Prayer Book and surplice there seems to have been no uniformity, while entries of payments for Communion bread and wine occur infrequently and at very irregular intervals. The Ten Commandments and Scripture texts were painted on the church walls, or framed and hung up. What were left of the old vestments and ornaments were sold."' Either by exchange or purchase every church was provided with a Communion cup.^*" It is to be regretted that while so much energy was devoted to the spoiling of the Church, such serious evils as gambling, irreverent and sacrilegious plays, and the disgraceful trafficking that went on in St. Paul's Cathedral, were left uncorrected until royal pro- clamations were issued for that purpose. °*^ From the parochial records it appears that there was a search for Ana- baptists in the City in 1559—60, and a similar search for ' pictures and images that were painted.' ^'^ The custom of singing the metrical version of the Psalms, which began in one of the smaller London churches, became general in the spring of 1560, the whole congregation at Paul's Cross joining after the sermons in the singing, which was considered very impressive.^*^ When Rogation-tide came round, Bishop Grindal ordered that there should be no processions with banners or lights, only ' perambulations' with the appointed form of prayer to be used 'at one or two convenient places.'^** On 20 May 1560 Dr. Fec- kenham, the last Abbot of Westminster, and Dr. Cole, ex-Dean of St. Paul's, were sent to the Tower. -*^ In September the queen found it necessary to issue a proclamation against breaking or defacing monuments of antiquity set up in churches, and converting church bells to private uses ; ^*° and another forbidding the immigration of Anabaptists and persons of dangerous and pernicious opinions, who were flocking into London and other English ports ' under pretence of flying from persecution against the professors of the Gospel.' -«^ In February 1560— i the mass-books, old church-books, banners, and super-altars of St. Martin Orgar were ' defaced ' by the archdeacon ; "** and in May the vestry of St. Saviour's Southwark ' agreed that all the church-books in Latin service (sk) should be defaced and cut according to the bishop's Injunctions.'^ A year later the bishop ordered the removal of ' the image and picture of Christ crucified from the jury book of the Court ' [of Common '" See especially St. Saviour's Southvvk. Vest. Min. 1559. '^ Par. Rec. generally. **' Sharpe, Lonii. and the Kingdom, i, 487.
- " St. Alphage London Wall Accts. 1559-60. '*' Zurich Letters, i, 71 ; Machyn, Diary, 228.
'** Lond. Epis. Reg. Grindal, fol. 21; cf. Grindal, Rem. (Parker Soc), 240. This is a command to the Archdeacon of Essex only, but Strype says that the same order was to be observed throughout the diocese. '" Machyn, Diary, 235. '*' S.P. Dom. Eliz. xiii, 32 ; Corp. Rec. Letter Bk. T, fol. ^b ; cf. Stow, 5urv. (ed. Kingsford), i, 204., 207, 243, 322, &c., for instances of the spoiling of graves &c. in London churches. '" S.P. Dom. Eliz. xiii, 35 ; Grindal, Rem. (Parker Soc), 297-8 ; Corp. Rec. Letter Bk. T, fol. db ; Journ. xvii, 268^ ; Zurich Letters, , 93. '*' Chwdns.' Accts. ^ Vest. Min. 31 May 1561.
