72 Obituary Notices of Fellows deceased. 



SIR WILLIAM FLOWER. 1831-1899. 



WILLIAM HENRY FLOWER was the second son of the late Edward 

 Fordham Flower, Esq., J.P., of The Hill, Stratford-on-Avon, being 

 born on the 30th November, 1831. The fine erect figure of his father, 

 also inherited by the son, was familiar in the Park when he was over the 

 threescore and ten, and he was also widely known for his philan- 

 thropy, and for his indefatigable efforts to abolish the bearing rein 

 of carriage horses ; indeed his interest in the lower animals dated 

 from his early experiences with his father in the American back- 

 woods. 



William Flower was educated chiefly at private schools, and from 

 boyhood developed a taste for collecting and arranging objects of 

 natural history. This led to his choosing the medical profession, the 

 only one indeed that then and for many years later formed a sphere 

 for such tendencies in those devoid of private fortunes. Entering Uni- 

 versity College, London, he had a distinguished career, gaining the 

 gold medal in Anatomy and Physiology, and the silver medal in 

 Zoology and Comparative Anatomy, the gold medal in the latter class 

 having been won by Joseph Lister, lately the distinguished President of 

 the Royal Society. He graduated as M.B. of the University of 

 London in 1851, and became a member of the Royal College of Sur- 

 geons. He extended his experiences after graduation, by a tour 

 through Holland and Germany in 1851, and through France and 

 the north of Spain in 1853, bringing home, as usual, many sketches 

 in pencil and sepia. 



Life as n young practitioner in London did not long continue, 

 for in 1854 he joined the Medical Department of the Army and 

 proceeded to tie Crimea as Assistant-Surgeon in the 63rd Regiment, 

 thus seeing service on land as his friend and predecessor in the 

 Hunterian Chair (Professor Huxley) had seen service afloat. Many 

 and varied were Sir William's experiences in this great campaign 

 both in field and hospital, for he was present at the battles of Alma, 

 Inkerman, and Balaclava, as well as at the capture of Sebastopol, 

 receiving the medal and four clasps, as well as the Turkish medal for 

 his services. The fatigues, exposure and privations of this campaign 

 severely tested the constitution of the young surgeon, yet in the 

 intervals of duty, and with the scanty materials at his disposal, such 

 as pen and ink and washes of ink and water, he made vivid sketches 

 of his surroundings. Those who remember the terrible sufferings of 



