The first vote of public money was made on July 3rd, 1837, and the first portion of the building, the river-wall, was at once proceeded with. The superintendence of this work was shared by the architect with Mr. James Walker, the well-known civil engineer. A coffer dam was constructed, and the foundations of the wall laid upon concrete, which in some places is as much as twelve feet in thickness. At the very outset of the work unforeseen difficulties were encountered, and unforeseen expenses incurred. The soil of the bed of the river was found to be exceedingly treacherous, in many places little better than a quicksand, and unfortunately the same character attached to the soil under a large portion of the building. Great care however was taken with the foundations, and they were made thoroughly satisfactory; still, as an additional precaution, Mr. Barry resolved not to draw the piles of the cofferdam, as had been at first intended, but to cut them off level with the dredged bed of the river, in order that the lower part of the dam might remain as a kind of fender or outwork to the wall, protecting it against the scour of the river, which has in other places proved so dangerous to the stability of buildings. The wall was faced with large blocks of Aberdeen granite, and completed in 1839, and meanwhile the rest of the work proceeded, till it was brought up as nearly as possible to the level of the terrace on the river wall. While the foundations were proceeding a commission was appointed to examine and report upon the various kinds of building stone, and select one, which should be at once thoroughly durable, and capable of being worked with tolerable ease and cheapness. The Commissioners were all distinguished men, Sir Henry (then Mr.) de la Beche, Mr. William Smith, Mr. C. H. Smith, and the architect. In 1838 they visited all the best-known quarries, and, after very careful inquiries and experiments, they presented a Report on March 16th, 1839, recommending the selection of the magnesian limestone from Bolsover Moor and its neighbourhood. It was subsequently found that the Bolsover quarries were insufficient to supply in good condition the large quantity of stone required, and for a considerable portion of the building a stone of the same general character (Anston stone) was used. Well knowing the deleterious effect of the atmosphere (especially the London atmosphere) on all stone, excepting those which, like granite, are fit only for works of the most simple and massive design, Mr. Barry was glad to share the responsibility of the selection with men of high scientific attainment and reputation. That, in spite of all that care and science could do, the stone has shown some signs of decay (in a degree, it may be remarked, greatly exaggerated) is well known; but it is doubtful whether any other selection would have proved more fortunate, considering all the requirements of the case.