LIFE OF FLOWER 17 



his death, had also undertaken to preside over the 

 meeting of the International Zoological Congress held 

 at Cambridge in the summer of 1898, but was pre- 

 vented by failing health ; his place being filled by Lord 

 Avebury (Sir John Lubbock). On 29th November 

 1895, Sir William Flower delivered an address at the 

 opening of the Perth Museum, in which he pointed out 

 the special function of local museums. Five years 

 earlier (3rd November 1890) he had delivered another 

 address on a very similar occasion, namely, the opening 

 of the Booth Museum, in the Dyke Road, Brighton, 

 famed for its unrivalled collection of British birds, the 

 great majority of which had been shot and subsequently 

 mounted in a most artistic manner by its founder. This 

 splendid collection, it may be mentioned, was bequeathed 

 at Mr. Booth's death to the British Museum, but it 

 was reluctantly declined by the Trustees, who waived 

 their right in favour of the Corporation of Brighton. 

 At the end of October 1896, Sir William, then in fail- 

 ing health, somewhat rashly undertook a journey to 

 Scotland to assist Lord Reay in the inauguration of the 

 Gatty Marine Laboratory at St. Andrews. 



Another important address delivered by Flower was one 

 read before the Church Congress at their meeting, held 

 in October 1883, at Reading, on ' Recent Advances in 

 Natural Science in Relation to the Christian Faith." It 

 is reprinted in Essays on Museums. In this address 

 Flower, while proclaiming his full adherence to the 

 doctrine of the transmutation of species and the evolution 

 of every organic form from a pre-existing type, urged 

 that this did not in the least shake his confidence in all 

 the essential teaching of the Christian religion. At the 

 B 



