The Zoologist/4th series, vol 3 (1899)/Issue 698/The Late Sir William Henry Flower, Sclater
Our Science of Zoology has suffered a most severe loss by the death, at his residence, 26, Stanhope Gardens, on the 1st of July last, of Sir William Flower, until lately Director of the Natural History Departments of the British Museum, and for the last twenty years President of the Zoological Society of London.
Sir William had been, as is well known, in failing health for the past two years, and was compelled in 1898, under medical advice, to resign his important office at South Kensington. He passed the last winter with his family at San Remo, where it was hoped that perfect rest in a favourable climate might tend to restore him. But this was not to be the case, and he came back to England in May last with but little prospect of an ultimate recovery, as was painfully evident to the few friends who saw him after his return.
William Henry Flower, the son of Mr. Edward F. Flower, and member of a well-known family at Stratford-on-Avon, was born on Nov. 30th, 1831, and was educated for the medical profession at University College, London. When the Crimean War took place he entered the army as Assistant Surgeon, and served in the hospitals throughout the campaign, receiving the Crimean Medal with four clasps, as well as that given by the Turkish Government. On his return to this country young Flower, who had always shown a strong inclination for natural history and scientific work, and had become a Fellow of the Zoological Society of London in 1851, was appointed Assistant Surgeon and Demonstrator of Anatomy at Middlesex Hospital. He soon became a regular attendant at the scientific meetings of the Zoological Society, and in June, 1860, read an excellent paper on the structure of the gizzard in the Nicobar Pigeon and other granivorous birds. Flower's thorough and accurate style of investigation soon attracted attention, and led to his appointment, in 1861, as Conservator of the Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons. Here for twenty-three years he did excellent work in arranging and cataloguing the specimens, and in making large additions to the magnificent series of anatomical preparations belonging to that institution. Throughout this period Flower was also a frequent contributor to the publications of the Zoological Society, as will be seen by his numerous papers published in their 'Proceedings' and 'Transactions.' The difficult group of Cetaceans was one of Flower's favourite subjects, and six well-illustrated memoirs upon various members of this group in the Zoological Society's quarto 'Transactions' were the results of his labours. In 1869 Flower was chosen Hunterian Professor of Comparative Anatomy, and in 1870 published an important volume of introductory lectures. In the same year was also issued his 'Introduction to the Osteology of Mammals,' which went through two subsequent editions. During this period of his career his Catalogue of the specimens illustrating the Osteology and Dentition of Man and Mammals was prepared, besides numerous other papers and memoirs.
On the retirement of Professor Owen in 1884, Flower was appointed Director of the Natural History Museum at South Kensington, and during the fourteen years for which he held that post continued to exhibit the same admirable qualities in the discharge of his official duties which had signalized his career in Lincoln's Inn Fields. Every branch of the Institution under his government was carefully tended and improved, and the deficiencies existing in various parts of that vast establishment were one after another searched out and remedied. During this period the Director's time was, as might well be supposed, much taken up by his official duties; notwithstanding this, however, as will be seen by reference to the Zoological Society's publications, constant communications were made to that Society (of which he had become President in 1879, on the death of the late Marquess of Tweeddale) on various zoological subjects to which he had devoted attention. Until this last two years, in fact, when failing health kept him at home, Flower was most constant in his attendance at all the meetings of the Society, both those for scientific purposes and those for ordinary business, and always manifested the greatest interest in every branch of the Society's affairs.
Flower was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society at the early age of thirty-three, and received one of its Royal Medals in 1882. In 1878 he was President of the Biological Section of the British Association, and in 1881 Chairman of the Department of Anthropology. In 1889 he became President of the whole Association for the meeting at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and delivered the excellent address on Museums and their construction and management which was published in the Report of the Association for that year. From 1883 to 1885 Flower was also President of the Anthropological Institute. He was nominated President of the International Zoological Congress which met at Cambridge last year, but failing health compelled him at the last moment to transfer this office to Sir John Lubbock. He had likewise received honorary degrees from Oxford, Cambridge, and other Universities, and was a corresponding member of the Institute of France. He received the honour of the Commandership of the Bath in 1887, and was made K.C.B. in 1892. Finally, we may truly say that in private life no one was ever more deservedly esteemed and beloved than the late Sir William Flower. Most kind and affable to all classes, he was friends alike with all—high and low, rich and poor. No one ever heard him utter a rough word; no one met with otherwise than a most courteous reception when a question was to be asked or his advice was sought. During a very long and intimate acquaintance with the late Sir William Flower, the writer of this article never heard him utter an unkind expression towards anyone, or knew him swerve in the slightest degree from the most inflexible rectitude of purpose.
The published works and memoirs of the late Sir William Flower are very numerous, but of these we may select his admirable 'Introduction to the Study of Mammals' (in which he was assisted by Mr. Lydekker) as being perhaps the most useful and generally known of any of them.
We add the titles of fifteen others of his more important publications.
1. Introductory Lectures to the Course of Comparative Anatomy, delivered at the Royal College of Surgeons of England, 1870. 8vo, London, 1870.
2. An Introduction to the Osteology of the Mammalia. 8vo, 1870.
2nd ed., 1876.
3rd ed. Revised with the assistance of Hans Gadow. 8vo, 1885.
3. Catalogue of the Specimens illustrating the Osteology and Dentition of Vertebrated Animals, Recent and Extinct. Part I. Man; Part II. Mammalia. 8vo, London, 1879-84.
4. Fashion in Deformity (Nature Series). 8vo, London, 1881.
5. List of the Specimens of Cetacea in the Zoological Department of the British Museum. 8vo, London, 1885.
6. Recent Memoirs on the Cetacea by Professors Eschricht, Reinhardt, and Lilljeborg. Edited by W.H. Flower, (Ray Society.) Folio, London, 1866.
7. The Horse: a Study in Natural History. 8vo, London, 1891.
8. Essays on Museums, and other subjects connected with Natural History. 8vo, London, 1898.
9. Description of the Skeleton of Inia geoffrensis, and of the Skull of Pontoporia blainvillii, with Remarks on the Systematic Position of these Animals in the Order Cetacea. Trans. Zool. Soc. vi. p. 87. (1866.)
10. On the Osteology of the Cachalot, or Sperm-Whale (Physeter macrocephalus). Ibid. vi. p. 309. (1868.)
11. Description of the Skeleton of the Chinese White Dolphin (Delphinus sinensis, Osbeck). Ibid. vii. p. 151. (1870.)
12. On Risso's Dolphin, Grampus griseus (Cuv.). Ibid. viii. p. 1. (1872.)
13. On the Recent Ziphioid Whales, with a description of the Skeleton of Berardius arnouxi. Ibid. viii. p. 203. (1872.)
14. A further Contribution to the Knowledge of the existing Ziphioid Whales: genus Mesoplodon. Ibid. x. p. 415. (1878.)
15. On the External Characters of two Species of British Dolphins (Delphinus delphis, Linn., and D. tursio, Fabr.). Ibid. xi. p. 1. (1880.)
This work was published before January 1, 1929, and is in the public domain worldwide because the author died at least 100 years ago.
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