Notes and Comments. 51 



the demands for the accommodation of the Air Ministry that it 

 is no longer necessary to appropi-iate a building of that size. 

 That, I may say in passing, was the sole reason for which the 

 proposal had been put forward to consider that place. Thus 

 it will be possible to locate the Air Ministry under my noble 

 friend on my left (Lord Rothermere) elsewhere. Meanwhile, 

 however, two of the floors of the new wing of the British 

 Museum have for some time been occupied by a Public Office 

 or for other War purposes. The progressive removal of 

 treasures to places of greater safety, which is being steadily 

 pursued — as I am sure it will be with the concurrence of the 

 House — will enable a still larger space in the Museum to be 

 employed for this purpose, and this space will, i&ith the consent 

 of the tnistees and in consultation nnth the Museum authorities, 

 be utilised for the accommodation for other non-combatant 

 departments similar to those which are already housed in the 

 Museum." 



THE NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM. 



' The second part of my noble friend's question relates to 

 the Natural History Museum, a branch of the British Museum 

 at South Kensington. As regards that place, it has been found 

 on detailed examination that any attempt to convert the gal- 

 leries to Government uses would entail the closing of the 

 building to the public, an extensive rearrangement of the con- 

 tents and possible damage in the course of removal, the con- 

 sumption of an enormous amount of labour and material, 

 and very considerable delay. In these circumstances it has 

 been decided that there is no necessity sufficiently urgent to 

 warrant the use of the Natural History Museum for Government 

 purposes.' Thus, apparently, the reason for the change in the 

 attitude of the Office of Works was not on account of the op- 

 position of the public and press, but merely that it was possible 

 to reduce the demands of the Air Ministry (one report says 

 by reducing the staff by 50 per cent. !), and therefore, that a 

 large building like the British Museum would not be required ; 

 also, that the time of removal, with possible damage to the 

 natural history specimens, caused the South Kensington 

 Museum to be unsuitable. All we can say is, ' We don't 

 think ! ' As one of the London papers puts it, ' All is well 

 that ends well, but the incident is not likely to be forgotten, 

 and the complete defeat of this mad project by the emphatic 

 condemnation of public opinion should be a salutary lesson 

 to the new bureaucracy wherever the lesson may be required.' 



THE TRUSTEES. 



One aspect of the case, now that it is all over, would be 

 amusing, if it were not so pathetic. The Trustees of the British 

 Museum, who morally and legally have absolute control of 



1918 Feb. 1. 



