The glory of the tower as we see it was not part of
the original plan, though that undoubtedly included some such crown
and consummation of the noble work beneath. But although the tower and
spire are of a later period--the Decorated, they blend so
harmoniously with the earlier building that all might have arisen in
one twelve months instead of being labours spread over one hundred
years. The rash courage which raised this great pyramid of stone, four
hundred and four feet above the sward, on the slender columns and
walls that have actually bowed under the great weight they uphold, has
often been commented upon. It has been said that the tower would have
fallen long ago had it not been for the original scaffolding that
remains within to tie and strengthen it. In the eighteenth century a
leaden casket was discovered by some workmen high in the spire,
containing a relic of our Lady, to whom the Cathedral is dedicated. In
the summer of 1921 the steeplejacks employed to test the lightning
conductor found that the iron cramps had rusted to such an extent as
to split the stonework.
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