CHAP. V. CHILDREN IN THE MUSEUM 75 



eldest daughter, now Mrs. Shann of Micklegate, 

 York :— 



When we were all small, and very happy and energetic, the 

 Museum of the College of Surgeons was a most familiar place to 

 us, as we lived in the house next door, and my father used to 

 enter it at all hours, and often take us with him. We delighted 

 in these visits, and had our special favourites among the exhibits. 

 These selections were of course personal, and not scientific. 

 The most exciting were the tall skeleton of the Irish giant, and 

 that of the little Polish dwarf with her tiny shoe and thimble, 

 which had long been among the treasures of the collection. 

 Another great object of our admiration was the remains of the 

 Siberian Mammoth, with its real skin and hair, and the monkeys. 

 These on certain wet half-holidays we were allowed to have out 

 to play with instead of a doll, whilst we paid and received visits 

 from and in our respectives "houses" under the big whale or 

 the giant sloth, which still are conspicuous and formidable 

 figures in the collection. I always recall the odour of fresh paint 

 and varnish (on the cases and stands) and the peculiar smell of 

 the carefully prepared and whitened bones. Occasionally we 

 were allowed the excitement of a good run round in the upper 

 galleries " all among the bottles." One of the strongest desires 

 of my childhood was to be allowed to spend a night in the 

 Museum ! This naturally was not gratified. But later I spent 

 many evenings there aiding my father in the rather laborious 

 work of measuring the great number of skulls in the Barnard 

 Davis Anthropological Collection. It was rather weird work, 

 going into the great empty halls, our footsteps and voices echoing 

 through the silence, and then sitting with the light of a lamp 

 falling on rows of skulls which one by one were filled with seed 

 as the elaborate measurements were taken. 



Flower's temperament and constitution were so 

 equable and so happily related to his mental 

 characteristics that he was able to enjoy family 

 life and society to the full while engaged in active 



