he sum of the story written withal
hath another use in it than one dumb idol or image standing by itself."
It was left to the Puritans, impelled by fanaticism and ignorance, to
make "a slanderous desolation of the places of prayer," and it is to
them we owe much of the destruction of the old mural paintings. At the
end of the eighteenth century there was a prejudice against these works
of art; for in 1773 we find the Bishop of London refusing to allow
Reynolds, West, and Barry to clothe the naked walls of St. Paul's
Cathedral with pictures painted by themselves. Coated over by layers of
plaster, or whitewashed until all traces were obliterated, these relics
of ancient art have remained for generations, and it is only when an old
church is being restored, and the coats of plaster and whitewash
removed, that their presence is revealed; and then too often the colours
fade away on exposure to the air.

[Illustration: ST. PAUL, KINGSTON LISLE]

One of the favourite subjects of mural decoration was a figure of St.
Christopher with the Infant Saviour on his shoulder.[8] He usually has a
staff, and strange-looking fish swim about his feet as he crosses the
river; on one side there is a hermitage, with the figure of a hermit
holding a lantern to guide the saint, and on the other a windmill. This
figure usually was painted on the wall opposite the principal entrance,
as it was deemed lucky to see St. Christopher on first entering a
church. Moreover the sight of the saint was a preservative against
violent death during the day, and also a preventive against drowsiness
during the service, as the following verses show:--

"Christophori sancti speciem quicunque tuetur
Illo namque die nullo languore tenetur."

Churchwardens' accounts record the painting of these figures--

"1503-4. It. payd to mylys paynter for payntyng
of Seynt X'fer viii's iiii'd"

"1521. It. payd to John Payne for payntyng
of Sent Leonard left by the wyffs
onpaynted xx'd"

A curious order was issued by Edward III. for arresting painters to work
in St. Stephen's Chapel at Westminster, to which artists of every
description were liable to surrender as often as the king required their
services.

[Illustration: ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST, KINGSTON LISLE]

In Saxon times Consecration crosses were painted on the interior walls,
twelve in number, on the spots where the bishop marked the cross with holy
oil; and someti