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admirable training for the work of assistants. As the tran- 

 scribers showed themselves efficient he proposed to pick 

 out from among them the elite to fill the senior assistants' 

 places as they became vacant. The plan was very pro- 

 mising for the Museum, and for the young men themselves 

 nothing could be more satisfactory. The prospect of pro- 

 motion stimulates industry, and tempts a man to develope 

 all the ability he possesses — and this ability and 

 industry would have been at the service of the country. 

 But, as we have already seen, talent in the British Museum 

 exposes a man to jealousy from those who possess not 

 talent but office ; and zeal for the public service only invites 

 a snubbing. It is not therefore wonderful that Signor 

 Panizzi's idea has never been worked out by Mr. Jones. 

 The promotion of transcribers has been a mere farce. 

 None of them ever had a chance of it, unless they could 

 bring outdoor influence to bear. Mr. Jones and his clique 

 retain in their own hands all the patronage to the best 

 posts of assistants, and the system of direct nominations is 

 yearly on the increase. I take it that this is sufficiently 

 shewn by the fact that out of fourteen vacancies for the 

 post of senior assistant, during the last four years (for only 

 two of which has any special knowledge been required, 

 namely, Natural History and Hebrew) three alone have 

 been filled by the promotion of junior assistants on the 

 respective department* ). As an illustration of the manner 

 how appointments of this kind are made, we may take 

 a recent case. A short short time ago a vacancy 

 occurred in the post of first-class assistant in the 

 Printed Book Department. The appointment is in the 



* In the moment of going to press I hear of the promotion of Mr. 

 Gregory Eccles, thoroughly deserved, but looking much like an 

 acknowledgment of the rising storm. 



