SECOND PERIOD. 3§ 



till then been reserved for the memory of those, 

 who had rendered the most eminent services 

 to their country. But the king , reading the 

 judgment of posterity on the merits of Buffon , 

 in that of his contemporaries, assented to the 

 proposal; and the celebrated Pajou was charged 

 w ith the execution. The statue was finished in 

 1776, and placed on the staircase leading to the 

 galleries : it is now in the library of the Mu- 

 seum. 



The health of Buffon being perfectly reesta- 

 blished in the beginning of 1772, he resolved to 

 fix his residence once more in the garden , and 

 to employ his influence for the benefit of the 

 establishment. With the aid of government, he 

 purchased two houses adjoining the Museum, 

 one of which he destined for the dwelling of 

 the intendant , and removed into it accordingly : 

 the first floor was appropriated to his household^ 

 and the others, to such objects as had not yet 

 found their place in the Museum. 



The return of Buffon forms an epoch in the 

 history of the garden : from that moment , every 

 branch of the establishment rapidly increased , 

 and the way was prepared for the improve- 

 ments which have taken place since the new 

 organisation. To give an idea of his services du- 

 ring the sixteen years of his administration , we 



