eceived for them the not very munificent but
quite adequate sum of 40s. per square yard. They soon began to show
symptoms of decay, and Mr. Parris, the painter, invented an apparatus by
which they could easily be repaired, but no funds could then be found;
yet when the paintings fell off in flakes, much money and labour was
expended on the restoration, which has now proved useless. Mr. Penrose
has shown that so ignorant was Sir James of perspective, that his
painted architecture has actually the effect of making Wren's thirty-two
pilasters seem to lean forward.

Much has already been done in St. Paul's. Two out of the eight large
spandrel pictures round the dome are already executed. There are
eventually to be four evangelists and four major prophets. Above the
gilt rails of the whispering gallery an inscription on a mosaic and gold
ground has been placed. A marble memorial pulpit has been put up. The
screen has been removed, and the organ, greatly enlarged and improved,
has been divided into two parts, which have been placed on either side
of the choir, above the stalls; the dome is lighted with gas; the golden
gallery, ball, and cross have been re-gilt. The great baldachino is
still wanting, but nine stained-glass windows have been erected, and
among the donors have been the Drapers' and Goldsmiths' Companies; there
are also memorial windows to the late Bishop Blomfield and W. Cotton,
Esq. The Grocers', Merchant Taylors', Goldsmiths', Mercers', and
Fishmongers' Companies have generously gilt the vaults of the choir and
the arches adjoining the dome. Some fifty or more windows still require
stained glass. The wall panels are to be in various places adorned with
inlaid marbles. It is not intended that St. Paul's should try to rival
St. Peter's at Rome in exuberance of ornament, but it still requires a
good deal of clothing. The great army of sable martyrs in marble have
been at last washed white, and the fire-engines might now advantageously
be used upon the exterior.

A few figures about the dimensions of St. Paul's will not be
uninteresting. The cathedral is 2,292 feet in circumference, and the
height from the nave pavement to the top of the cross is 365 feet. The
height of St. Peter's at Rome being 432 feet, St. Paul's could stand
inside St. Peter's. The western towers are 220 feet high. From east to
west, St. Paul's is 500 feet long, while St. Peter's is 669 feet. The
cupola is considered by many as more graceful t