§ MR. W. EWARTsaid, he wished to ask the First Commissioner of Public Works, Whether the iron rails which surround the statue of Achilles in Hyde Park, and those which surround other statues, will be removed, as has been done successfully with respect to the statue of Charles I. at Charing Cross, and that of George III; also, whether, on the water-colour drawings of Turner and other artists exhibited at South Kensington, labels will be fixed, giving the public information as to the subjects and the painters of such water-colour drawings?
MR. COWPERreplied that the railings had been removed from the statues at Charing Cross, in Cockspur Street, and in Whitehall Gardens, without any public inconvenience; they were not required for the protection of the statues; and it was his intention, as far as his authority extended, to remove any railings which obstructed the view either of public statues or their pedestals. In reply to the second question of his hon. Friend, he had to state that it was the practice of the Department of Science and Art to affix to the pictures in their collections descriptions of the subjects and the names of the artists. He took it for granted that his hon. Friend was referring to the water-colour drawings or sketches of Turner which be longed to the National Gallery, and were 1496 at present temporarily exhibited at the South Kensington Museum. He felt sure, that wherever they might be permanently arranged or hung, the necessary explanations would be attached to them.