52 PROFESSOR OWEN ch. n. 



took the liberty to suggest that many objects of 

 natural history might afford subjects for archi- 

 tectural ornament ; and at Mr. Waterhouse's 

 request I transmitted numerous figures of such 

 as seemed suitable for that purpose. 



'I must mention that in 1867 Lord Elcho 

 pressed upon the House of Commons, through 

 the Hungerford Bridge Committee, the Thames 

 Embankment as a site for the new Museum 

 of Natural History, but unsuccessfully. The de- 

 bates thereon, nevertheless, caused some further 

 delay. 



'In 1 87 1, a vote of 40,000/. for beginning 

 the museum buildings at South Kensington was 

 carried without discussion. In 1872 a vote of 

 29,000/. for the same building was opposed by 

 Lord Elcho, but was carried by a majority of 40 

 (85 against 45). 



1 At last the necessary building was com- 

 menced after conflicts stretching over a score 

 or so of years. 



' Mr. Alfred Waterhouse, R.A., for the reali- 

 sation of the plans and requirements of our 

 Museum of Natural History, chose an adaptation 

 of the Round-arched Gothic, Romanesque, or 

 Romaic of the twelfth century. No style could 

 better lend itself to the introduction, for legitimate 

 ornamentation, of the endless beautiful varieties 



the excellent arrangements conveniences of the finished 

 agreed upon with the in- structure. 



