1872-82 MADE A C.B. . 223 



On his arrival in England (March 15), he 

 found his wife seriously ill, and throughout that 

 month and those following he records in his diary 

 the various stages of her illness. She made no 

 improvement, but on May 7 passed away, and 

 Owen lost one who had been his fitting helpmate 

 for nearly forty years, and who had, in her younger 

 days especially, assisted his work in no small 

 degree both by her acute powers of observation 

 and by her artistic skill. After the severe blow of 

 her death, Owen's letters became far less numerous.. 



On May 10 he wrote to his sister : ' We 

 have just returned from my dear Caroline's last 

 resting-place on earth, in the quiet, peaceful 

 churchyard of Ham ; a sweet summer's day. 

 Should I be called away here, I should desire to» 

 rest by her side.' 



On May 15, 1873, he received a letter from 

 the Prime Minister, Mr. Gladstone, saying that 

 he remembered ' with dissatisfaction that a name 

 so distinguished in the history of research remains 

 without a note of honour from the State,' and so 

 offering him a choice of distinctions. In reply 

 to this letter, Professor Owen intimated that 

 he would prefer the C.B., and on June 17 of the 

 same year he received the official announcement 

 from the College of Arms. 



Considerations for the completeness of the 

 new Museum were always present in Owen's mind, 

 and it is interesting to note from the following 



