The tower was at first intended to contain such of the public records as were not frequently in use, and was arranged accordingly with two lofty internal stories. Subsequently orders were given to accommodate all the records; not without great inconvenience, but with much ingenuity, accommodation was provided by the insertion of numerous floors and other contrivances. After all, the intention was abandoned by the authorities, and all the trouble and expense were thrown away. The clock-tower was the one feature of the building which gave the greatest trouble, and for which design after design was made and rejected. It was to be what its name implied: the clock was to be the one prominent feature, not a mere accessory--treated as an architectural ornament. For practical purposes it was to be raised on the highest story, and made of immense size; the ornamental character of the whole front required that the lower part of the tower should be faced with delicate panelling, and yet a “top-heavy” effect must be carefully avoided. It was at once decided that the lower part should be solid, with but slight openings. To make the clock-story duly prominent all sorts of devices were thought of, till at last an example was remembered in which the whole clock-story was made to project beyond the body of the tower. The suggestion was eagerly caught at; the example quoted differed in almost every respect from the character of the tower to be designed, and endless modifications were needed; but the general principle was preserved, and the result is one of the most striking features of the building. Still the termination remained; designs and models were tried over and over again; some forms appeared deficient in lightness, others were rejected as too ecclesiastical; till at last the form was devised which we now see. On the whole he felt satisfied with the tower, only thinking that the outline would have been improved by raising both the bell-chamber and the terminal portion of the roof, and regretting the angular projections on the face of the turrets below, which are terminated abruptly by the clock-story afterwards devised. His work on this and the Victoria tower gives a striking specimen of the process by which the whole design was worked out; no labour, no delay, no expense, seemed excessive in the pursuit of what he thought perfection, even in the minutest detail. They were temporary; the censures they might provoke were also temporary; the result was lasting, and worth any temporary sacrifice.[101] Such were the reasons which led to modifications of the original design in the chief portions of the building. Besides these, however, two general tendencies must be noticed.