38 LIFE OF SIR JOHN LUBBOCK ch. 



way to accepting this offer, you will at least not reject 

 it absolutely without giving me and the very able and 

 active Secretary of the Society, Dr. Roberts, an oppor- 

 tunity of putting the matter before you in a personal 

 interview. Even if you were finally unwilling to take up 

 the position of President or to associate yourself in any 

 way with the Society, there are certain matters of im- 

 portance, in connection with the development of higher 

 education in London, with regard to which we should 

 be grateful to have, in confidence, the benefit of your 

 advice. The Council think that they may venture to 

 appeal to you to this extent, not only as Member for the 

 University of London, but on account of your personal 

 position as a scientific and educational authority of the 

 greatest eminence. 



If you were willing to see me and Dr. Roberts, we 

 would call upon you at any time and place most con- 

 venient to you, except on Wednesday next, the 5th, 

 and would not detain you more than twenty minutes 

 or so. — Believe me, yours very truly, 



Alfred Milnek. 



The Rt. Hon. Sir John Lubbock. 



47, Duke Street, St. James's, S.W., 

 Dec. 7th, 04. 



Dear Sir John Lubbock — Roberts kindly came to 

 see me after his interview with you yesterday, and he 

 was here again this morning to tell me about what had 

 happened at the subsequent meeting of the Council. 



The Council were, of course, extremely pleased to 

 hear that there was a hope of your taking the Presidency. 

 Personally, I think this would be of such importance to 

 us, that, at the risk of being a bore, I venture to add one 

 or two words to what I have already said — rather with 

 the view of putting you into more complete possession 

 of all the relevant facts. . . . 



A point of importance is, that the Council have asked 

 Canon Browne of St. Paul's to take the acting chairman- 

 ship of the Council, and that, as I am privately informed, 

 he will accept. This is very material, for Browne is 

 familiar with the work (he was for years head of the 

 Cambridge University Extension system) and he is an 

 able, popular and most hard-working man. 



The conduct of the ordinary current business, is, 



