“The Town-hall is situated in the middle of the town, on a site which, from its confined character, is not in itself favourable to architectural effect. The tower is placed at one corner of the building, so as to face the principal street, and to form the main entrance to the Town-hall. The Tower is surmounted by a spire of a remarkable design, which, in common with the whole of the building, displays a marked Renaissance character, while from its position it gives an irregularity of outline to the entire design, greatly at variance with the symmetrical arrangement observable in Sir C. Barry’s earlier Italian buildings. It may be noted however that in the New Palace at Westminster, which has often been criticized as planned on Italian principles, he placed his towers in positions of great irregularity as regards the plan, which in other respects is arranged as far as possible on the principle of strict symmetry. The design at Halifax consists of two orders, with broken entablatures and arched windows in each bay. At the corner opposite to the Tower the Council-room forms a second projecting mass, thus departing still further from a symmetrical arrangement of plan, and there are also smaller projections at the other angles of the building. At Sir C. Barry’s death the foundations of the building were just completed, and its erection was intrusted by the corporation to me. At this time the details of the exterior had all been fully made out and revised and approved by him. The interior however had not been fully designed, and I am therefore responsible for its architectural treatment, as also for the addition of a high roof to the building, which latter feature was not to be found in the original design. I have also succeeded in restoring to the design several decorative features, which were at first omitted from the contract from motives of economy, but which were readily sanctioned, on my recommendation, by the corporation, whose public spirit and desire to do justice to Sir C. Barry’s last design deserve from me a word of grateful recognition.--E. M. B.”