and were cut out of single blocks of freestone, and though they have been conjectured to be Roman divinities, or designed for the decoration of some temple, the ruins of which might have been employed in constructing the church, it is obvious even from the inspection of the representations given in the History of Bury by Mr. Yates, that two of them were designed for the head of St. Edmund, accompanied by the leg of the wolf, his brute protector; and it is highly probable that the other two were rude designs on the same subject, though the latter had not any part of the quadruped remaining.

The Guildhall stands in the street of this name. The body of the building has been modernized; but for the gratification of the admirers of antiques the ancient porch, constructed of flint, brick, and stone, has been suffered to remain. The archives of the town are kept in a chamber over the entrance, under three keys, in the custody of the recorder, townclerk, and the alderman for the time being. The town sessions are held here, and the members of the corporation chosen at this place.

The Free Grammar School stands in Northgatestreet, and has the bust of Edward the Sixth, who was the original founder, over the front door. The founda❤ tion supports forty scholars, and the school is free for the sons of the towns people or inhabitants, who generally amount to about 80. Adjoining the school is a handsome house for the upper master. This town also contains three charity schools, and others on the plan of Mr. Lancaster, &c.

Upon what is called Hog Hill, or the beast market, is the common Bridewell, formerly a Jewish synagogue, called Moyse, or Moses Hall. The circular windows are an evidence of its high antiquity, supposed to be not much later than the Norman conquest, before which period the Jews were not allowed

to settle here. The dimensions of the building are thirty-six feet by twenty-seven. This toleration of the Jews was but of short continuance, for all their synagogues were closed or destroyed under the reign of Edward III.

The Wool Halls are at the upper side of the market: here great quantities of wool used to be deposited annually when that article formed the principal employment of the poorer inhabitants of Bury and its vicinity.

The Angel Inn, remarked as one of the most conspicuous buildings in the town, is upon the west side of Angel Hill. The vaults underneath this are said to have a subterraneous communication with those of the abbey, and to have belonged to it formerly.

The New Gaol, the late Mr. Neild observed, did honour to the county, and is superior to most in the kingdom; whether its construction to answer the three great purposes of security, health, and morals, are considered, or the liberality of the magistrates in providing every comfort which can attend imprisonment. The neat rustic stone front of this building was completed in 1805, and the whole is enclosed by a boundary wall twenty feet high, forming an irregular octagon, having a diameter of 290 feet. Four of the sides measure 192 feet each, and the other four 70 feet and a half. The turnkey's lodge forms the entrance, and the flat leaded roof is the place of execution for criminals. The keeper's house, also an octagon building, is in the centre of the prison, and so situated that all the court yards, as well as the entrance to the gaol, are open to his inspection. The chapel is in the centre of the keeper's house, up one pair of stairs; and as stone galleries lead to it from the several wings, and as the chapel is partitioned off, each class of prisoners is separated there the same as when in the prison.

The House of Correction stands near this prison, in the centre of a piece of ground enclosed by a separate

wall. This is a square building, and the classification of the different descriptions of prisoners, with the rules and regulations for their management, are truly excellent.

Bury, thus well provided with places of safety, and rich in the remains of antiquity, is not deficient in accommodations for the enjoyment of elegant and ́refined society. The Theatre, built in 1780, on the site of the old market cross, by Mr. Robert Adam, is no mean specimen of his taste and architectural skill. The body is of white brick, but the ornaments are of freestone. It has the advantage of standing unconnected with any other building. George, the second Earl of Bristol, gave 500l. towards the erection of this theatre, and 400l. towards completing the shambles in the same square opposite the theatre, and which are also built of freestone.

The Assembly Rooms are on the south of the opening, known by the name of the Angel Hill. It is a recent erection, of a simple exterior. The ball-room is well proportioned, 76 feet in length, 45 in breadth, and 29 feet high. An adjoining apartment is used as a card and supper room, 37 feet by 24. The three balls held annually during the great fair are in general attended by numbers of the first rank and fashion, as are also the four or five winter balls; but trades people, however respectable, are always rigorously excluded.

The Suffolk Library is in the Abbeygate-street, and was formed by the union of two, one of them instituted in 1790, the other in 1795. The books are selected from those of the first respectability, and the sum expended for them annually has been estimated at 1207.

Bury used to be considerably enlivened by its fairs. It has three: the first on the Tuesday and two following days in Easter week; the second for three days before and three days after the feast of St. Mat

thew, Sept. 21; and the third on the second of December for two or three days. The alderman, as lord of the fairs for the time being, has a right to prolong them at pleasure. The second, which is the principal, generally continues three weeks. The charter for this was granted to the abbot in 1272 by King Henry III., and it was formerly one of the most celebrated marts in the kingdom. Being held on the Angel Hill, different rows of booths were appropriated to the manufacturers of Norwich, Ipswich, Colchester, London, and other towns, and even to some foreigners, especially the Dutch. Bury, on this account, was the resort of persons of the highest distinction, for whom the abbot kept an open table, while those of inferior rank were entertained by the monks in the refectory. The widowed Queen of France, sister to Henry VIII., came here every year from her residence at Westhorp, with her noble consort, the Duke of Suffolk, and they had a magnificent tent for the reception of the numerous people of rank who came hither to pay their respects to them, and a band of music for their diversion. This fair, with respect to business, has been declining for more than a century past, and become rather a place of fashionable resort than a temporary mart, as most of the merchandize and goods now brought are articles of luxury and fancy.

Not far from the east gate stood St. Nicholas Hospital, the only vestiges of which at present are the original entrance, and one window on the north side, which is filled up. The building is now a farm house, and the chapel belonging to the hospital stands at a small distance to the west. It is an extensive building, and has seven buttresses on each side, but is much disfigured, as it now serves as a barn and a stable. On the north side of the road, between East Bridge and this hospital, the site of St. Stephen's Hospital is now recognized by a few fragments of the old wall.