The church has an imposing, a noble interior.  It is wide, lofty, has a fine calm majestic look, and is excellently arranged.  The nave, which is 69 feet high, is supported by 14 stone pillars.  From nearly any point every part of the building may be seen; the nave pillars, do not, as is the case in some churches, obstruct the vision; and everything seems easy, clear, and open.  In the daytime a rich shadowy light is thrown into the church by the excellent disposition of its windows; at eventide the sheen of the setting sun, caught by the western window, falls like a bright flood down the nave, and makes the scene beautiful.  The high altar is a fine piece of workmanship; is of Gothic design, is richly carved, is ornamented with marbles, has a canopy of most elaborate construction, and is in good harmony with the general architecture.  Two small altars are near it.  One of them, dedicated to St. Joseph, and given by Mr. J. Pyke, of this town, is particularly handsome; the other, dedicated to the Blessed Virgin, is of a less costly, though very pretty, character.  Near one of the pillars on the north-eastern side there stands a square wooden frame, which is called the pulpit.  It is a deliciously primitive and remarkably common-place concern; but it is strong enough, and will have to stop where it is until money for something better is raised.  There are sittings in the church for 850 persons.  On Sundays there are masses at eight, and half-past nine; a regular service at eleven, and another at half-past six in the evening.  The aggregate attendance during the day is about 1,350.  The assemblage at the first mass is thin; at the second it is good—­ better than at any other time; at eleven it is pretty numerous; and in the evening it is fair.  Adults and children from the union workhouse, of the Catholic persuasion, attend the eleven o’clock service; and they come in tolerable force—­sometimes they number 100.

The general congregation consists nearly altogether of working class people, and it includes some of the best sleepers we have seen.  The members of the choir sit in a gallery at the western end.  Their performances are of a curious description.  Sometimes they sing very well—­are quite exact in their renderings and decidedly harmonious; at other times they torture the music somewhat.  But then they are young at the business, haven’t had so much experience, and have nothing to rely upon in the shape of instrumental music except the hard tones of an ordinary harmonium.  Organ accompaniments help up good choirs and materially drown the defects of bad ones.  With better instrumental assistance, the singers at the Church of the English Martyrs would acquit themselves more satisfactorily, and with additional practice they would still further improve matters.