As onn a hylle one eve sittynge, At oure Ladie's Chyrche mouche wonderynge, The counynge handieworke so fyne, Han well nighe dazeled mine eyne; Quod I; some counynge fairie hande 5 Yreer'd this chapelle in this lande; Full well I wote so fine a syghte Was ne yreer'd of mortall wighte. Quod Trouthe; thou lackest knowlachynge; Thou forsoth ne wotteth of the thynge. 10 A Rev'rend Fadre, William Canynge hight, Yreered uppe this chapelle brighte; And eke another in the Towne, Where glassie bubblynge Trymme doth roun. Quod I; ne doubte for all he’s given 15 His sowle will certes goe to heaven. Yea, quod Trouthe; than goe thou home, And see thou doe as hee hath donne. Quod I; I doubte, that can ne bee; I have ne gotten markes three. 20 Quod Trouthe; as thou hast got, give almes-dedes soe; Canynges and Gaunts culde doe ne moe.
William Canynges the Younger (1399-1474) was a wealthy and powerful Bristol merchant who contributed greatly to the building and grandeur of St Mary Redcliffe. His tomb is in the south transept; an effigy of him in priestly robes was moved into the Church from Westbury College, on the outskirts of Bristol in Westbury-on-Trym, in 1544, when the College was dissolved. Canynges was credited with building the College too, where late in life he trained for the priesthood; hence Chatterton's line, 'where glassie bubblynge Trymme doth roun'.