ECCLESIASTICAL HISTORY were given in every church of the deanery, and in varying terms, showing that each had its special needs, and that the instructions were not a mere formahty. This report is of interest also as describing the minimum of requirement during the Restoration period. The whitewashed walls were to be decorated with the Creed and Commandments, the royal arms and a table of the prohibited degrees of marriage. The altar was to be provided with a carpet of fine cloth (green or purple being the colour desired) of a quality which should not cost less than 141. a yard ; there was also to be a cloth of fine linen for use at the administration of the sacrament, and a hnen napkin to cover the elements. The font was to have a cover worked by a pulley ; the pulpit must have a seemly cushion ; and every church was to possess not only a Bible and Prayer Book, but the works of Jewel, the Paraphrases of Erasmus, and the Homilies. The scanty records of the i 8th century are singularly devoid of interest. In 1738 the rectory of Pickworth was finally united to that of Great Caster- ton, on the ground that both together were scarcely more than sufficient to support a priest, and that the church of Pickworth had been many ages demolished.** On the other hand, at the end of the century the church of Tickencote was rebuilt or rather restored by Dame Elizabeth Wingfield ; " and doubtless gifts of plate were as numerous here as in other parts of England. If no churches have been built in recent years,*' that is chiefly because there has been no pressing need for them : Rutland does not lie within any of the great centres of activity in the Midlands. But a great deal has been done in the way of restoration and repair, and there is not a single church in the county which has not in this way felt the effects of what is popularly known as the Oxford Movement.*' In regard to Church services, though it would not be reasonable to apply the same standard of requirement as in more stirring cen- tres of life, the official record of last year is a fair one for a small archdeaconry which only expects the attendance of about 10,000 people in all its churches put together. In more than half its parishes there is a celebration of the Holy Eucharist at least once a fortnight, and in fifteen places the offices of mattins and evensong are daily recited.'" This is certainly a real advance on the custom of small country parishes fifty years ago. ^ 'SioTt, Hist, of Rut. 190. In 1641 the rector complained that his church was in ruins all but the steeple and part of the chancel, and that the people were unwilling to do their part in the rebuilding, though he was quite ready to do the rector's part. Hist. MSS. Com. Rep. iv, App. 1 10. Blore says the union of 1738 was effected without any reference to the then rector, and complains of the injustice of the proceeding ; but we cannot help asking where the rector was, if such a change was carried out without his knowledge. " Blore, Hist, of Rut. 73. " The church of Pickworth was rebuilt in 1823. North, Church Bells of Rut.
- ' All three rural deans of this archdeaconry report that their churches are in good order, and that every
one has undergone some restoration or new furnishing during the last fifty years.
- " From the Statistical Returns of Parochial Work, issued yearly since 1888 by the S.P.C.K. The same
returns show the church accommodation for the whole county to be only a little beyond 10,000 sittings. 157
