Next to the rail which separates the altar from the rest of the chapel, there are some brass memorials. The most significant of these is to the memory of Mgr Basil Feilding, the son of the Earl of Denbigh, who was a curate at this church at the time of its consecration in 1905, and gave as a gift to mark the occasion the cloth of gold High Mass vestments which are still occasionally worn on the greatest feasts. The door to the sacristy is here on the right, with two fine carved heads as corbels or end stones to the moulding over the doorway: these are remarkably good likenesses of the two popes who were reigning, first Bl. Pius IX when the nave was opened in 1855, secondly Leo XIII who was pope when the chancel was opened in 1880. To the right of this door one can look through another fine wooden screen into the chapel of St Teresa of Lisieux, the Carmelite saint who was canonised in 1925. Only from this position can the lovely windows in the side of the chapel be seen clearly, showing St Teresa receiving roses from the Blessed Virgin and her son. She then drops them onto the earth as a sign of her intercession for us. Just before leaving the chapel, on the right can be seen the little door to a small spiral staircase which was intended to lead to the top of a large screen at the top step of the Sanctuary. From this access it would have been possible to reach a passageway across the entire width of the Sanctuary and light candles for the adornment of greater feasts. This screen, however, was never built, probably at Bishop Ullathorne’s request, in all likelihood so that the ceremonies of the liturgy might be more clearly seen by everyone in the nave of the Church. It is undeniable that the absence of a screen is a great benefit to the church and we can be grateful that one was never built to interrupt the clear view of the High Altar from the nave.
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