special mention.

The gates were made by Clarke, of Brackley, and were designed by Mr.
J.O. Scott for the donor, Rev. W.R.F. Hepworth. Intricate in their
design, and cleverly wrought as they are, they seem slightly
incongruous in this wooden screen. The shields bear the correct arms
of the Abbey, and round the shields are intertwining iron rods.
Scrolls with leaves and other devices are also introduced. Across the
top of the gates is a band of square panels with varied design in
pierced work, and on the top is an elaborate cresting.

On the inside of the gates, on the shields are the texts, "_Serve the
Lord with fear._"; and "_Rejoice unto Him with reverence._"

The whole screen looks too low for its position, whether it be viewed
from the west end or from the triforium of the choir at the east end.
The workmanship will not bear any minute comparison with the loving
hand-craftsmanship of mediaeval times; much of it is more skilful as
church furniture of a very mechanical kind than beautiful as real
carver's work.

The =Great West Window= dates back, as far as the masonry is
concerned, to 1686, and was erected then to replace the window blown
in by the wind in 1661. The glass was inserted in 1886 by Rev. C.W.
Grove in memory of his wife, and represents various scenes in the life
of Christ. In the lowest tier is the Annunciation, with the Nativity
in the centre, and the Presentation in the Temple on the right. Above
is the Baptism by St. John in the Jordan, the Last Supper in the
centre, the Agony in the Garden on the right. In the topmost tier is
the Bearing of the Cross, the Crucifixion, and the appearance of our
Lord to Mary after the Resurrection. In the head of the window are
angels, those in the two side lights on either side being engaged in
censing. In the central top light is Christ in Majesty, with angels.
The glass is by Hardman.

=The Aisles.=--The aisles of the nave are very much lower in height
than the nave, and the vaulting is simpler in character. There are,
however, many fine bosses, and, like those in the nave, they have been
treated in a tentative way with colour and gold. As a whole, the
effect of decorated bosses standing out in such strong relief from the
simple, unadorned stonework is rather spotty and distracting. The arms
of the Despenser family are to be found on some of the bosses in the
south aisle, and it is to the munificence of that powerful family that
the execution of the work is