494 APPENDIX. 



time ; and, having possession of them, I frequently availed myself of the 

 opportunity to read them. I was never restricted from reading them, 

 or from making any extracts I thought proper from them." 



Q. 5389. (Mr. Warburton.) — " Had you made any extracts from the 

 manuscripts?" 



A. "As I said, I was not restricted in the least, and thinking there 

 was a great deal of useful information in them, I made large extracts 

 from some of them." 



Q. 5390. (Mr. Warburton.) — "What proportion of the papers have 

 you been instrumental in preserving, in substance, by means of these 

 extracts?" 



A. "I hope nearly half." 



Until the year 1800, the Hunterian collections and manuscripts were 

 the property of the Executors of John Hunter. At the beginning of 

 1800, the collections having been purchased by Parliament, were trans- 

 ferred to the custody of the Corporation, afterwards Eoyal College, of 

 Surgeons. 



To Q. 5047 (p. 60), Mr. CLift replies,—" The MSS. were removed 

 shortly before the collection was transferred to the College of Surgeons." 



Ans. to Q. 5050 (p. 61). — " Those manuscripts were taken by me 

 in a cart to Sir Everard Home's house by his order." It was abso- 

 lute. In reply to another question, Mr. Clift answers, — "He," Sir 

 Everard, " was the acting Exerator. Nothing passed relative to their 

 use, destination, or return." 



In July 1823, Mr. Clift first received information of the destruction 

 of the Himterian manuscripts. He was returning with Sir Everard 

 Home from a meeting of the Medico-botanical Club, which had been 

 held at Kew. 



" Sir Everard Home," Mr. Clift states, " began by telling me that 

 an accident had very nearly occurred at his house ; that it had been 

 nearly on fire ; that the engines came, and the firemen insisted upon 

 taking possession of his house. They saw the flames coming out of the 

 chimney. He did not wish to admit them, but they insisted upon being 

 admitted. I asked him how it happened, and then he told me that it 

 was in burning those manuscripts of Mr. Hunter." 



" The Board of Curators of the College of Surgeons obtained a know- 

 ledge of the existence of those papers, and that Sir Everard Home had 

 in his possession all Hunter's manuscripts, from Sir Everard Home 

 himself, whilst he was a member of that Board." — P. 63. 



It was not, however, until Mi*. Clift had reported to the Board their 

 alleged destruction, that the 'Board' applied to Sir Everard Home on 

 the subject, when he returned the following answer: — 



