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The west end of the Church is tolerably entire, and is composed of widely pointed arches, and massy Norman columns. The remains of the Abbey and Abbey-Church are spread over a vast tract of land: the chapter-house, the refectory, the dormitory, with about one hundred yards of the cloisters, (perfectly weather proof,) are tolerably entire.

Fountains Abbey, as before observed, is in the pleasure grounds of Studley Park; and in these grounds also is the Banqueting-House, an elegant room, where companies that bring their viands, are permitted to take refreshments. Every thing is conducted on the most liberal plan, which reflects the highest honor on the amiable proprietor. The

of the Indigo for the vegetation. The two latter colors will give the tones of the building, provided the parts which require to be kept down, are previously lowered with Indian ink, just warmed with a small quantity of Indian red. After the above process, all that will be requisite, is, to warm and retouch the strong parts of the shadows on the fore-ground, with some Cologne earth, or Van-Dyke brown; playing with it, for harmony' sake, a little among the light parts. These materials are enough in the hand of a master to do any thing with, from the slightest sketch to the most finished drawing. The interior of the Abbey affords several fine views; and two or three noble external ones may also be found: but it will be nearly impossible to embrace all the excellencies of this terrestrial paradise at a single visit; it would furnish ample amusement for a week, particularly to the lover of drawing.

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The grounds are kept in the most perfect order: but here, as at Hack-Fall, the hand of art is too strongly displayed, and the waterfalls, or cascades, want the air of nature.

"Fountains, or De Fontibus. Thirteen Benedictine Monks of St. Mary's, near York, left, A. D. 1132, their house, with a design to observe a more strict and reformed rule: whereupon Thurstan, Archbishop of York, gave them a place then called Skeldale, not far from Rippon, thereupon to found an Abbey of the Cistercian order, to the honor of the Blessed Virgin; which was soon after accomplished, and endowed with great revenues; said to be worth at the Dissolution, 9981. 6s. 8d. Dugdale; 11731. Os. 7d. Speed. The site was granted, the thirty-second of Henry the Eighth, to Sir Richard Gresham."* Burton estimates the income at 11251. 18s. 13d. There were lands belonging to this Abbey in 240 different lordships. Grose says, King Henry sold it for about the sum of 11631. to Sir Richard, who disposed of it to Sir Stephen Proctor, whose daughter and heiress conveyed it by marriage to John Messenger, Esq. of one of whose descendants it was purchased by the late W. Aislabie, Esq. who annexed it to his pleasure-grounds.

Many of our Kings were benefactors to this Abbey Henry the First granted that the monks of Fountains, their horses, men, and effects, should be exempt from the payment of tolls, for passage and pontage, and be duty free, wheresover they went, by land or by water, and especially to and from Boroughbridge. The Percys were among its greatest benefactors; and being considered as patrons, were applied to in cases of necessity. In the reign of Henry the Eighth, the monks complained against their Abbot, to Henry Percy, sixth Earl of Northumberland, whose letter on the subject to Thomas Arundel, Esq. is preserved in Grose's account of this Abbey. Within a short time after the monks had made their complaint, Layton, one of the visitors sent by King Henry, wrote the following letter to Lord Cromwell, which exactly agrees with the monks' charge, as set forth in the Earl's letter above alluded to, and to obtain which visitation, the monks of this Abbey paid a fine of one hundred marks.

"Please your worship to understand, that the Abbot of Fountaines hath so greatly dilapidated his house, wasted y woods, notoriously keeping six whores; and six days before our coming, he committed theft and sacrilege, confessing the same; for at midnight he caused his chapleyn to stele the keys of the sexton, and took out a jewel, a cross of gold with stones: one Warren, a gold

smyth

smyth of the Chepe, was with him in his chambre at the hour, and there they stole out a great emerode, with a rubye: the sayde Warren made the Abbot believe the rubye was a garnet, and so for that he paid nothing; for the emerode but 201. He sold him also plate without weight or Subscribed your poor priest and faithful

ounces.

servant,

R. LAYTON."

From Richmont (in con. Ebor.)

The 20th of January.

The Abbot at this period, according to Willis, was William Thurst; Burton calls him Thirske, admitted B. D. at Oxford, anno 1523; created Abbot 1526; and hanged at Tyburn, January 1537. Some idea of the wealth of this Abbey may be formed from the following list of stores found at the Dissolution.

Plate in the Church

£. S. d.

519 15

5

Ditto, in custody of my Lord Abbot 147 13 72 Ditto in the Buttery

30 8

74

3 3

7 4 10

As this Abbey is altogether the most perfect of any remaining in Yorkshire, it may be gratifying to the curious, to know the dimensions of the several parts; they are thus given in the History of Rippon.

"The Sanctum Sanctorum is immediately behind the chequered altar, and to this none but the heads of the order were admitted; its length is 132 feet, and its breadth thirty-six.

"In a Chapel to the left is a stone figure of the Earl of Mowbray, in full armour; arms on his shield.

"The Transept is 186 feet wide; (long:) at the top of the north corner window is the figure of an angel holding a scroll, with the date 1283. "The