19101 The Ottawa Naturalist. 85 



has lost, the name of James Fletcher shines, and will shine, with 

 a radiance all its own. 



Mr. R. B. Whyte spoke on behalf of the Ottawa Field- 

 Naturalists' Club. He told of the early days in the history of 

 the society and of the keen interest which Dr. Fletcher, who had 

 been worthily styled its "father," always had in its welfare. 

 When the Club was organized in 1879, about 40 gentlemen join- 

 ed its ranks, largely through Dr. Fletcher's influence. No one 

 at that time ever expected the Club to develop in the remark- 

 able way it has done and to do the great amount of work it has 

 since accomplished. From that year until his death, during 

 which period the membership has increased to over 300, he was 

 at all times the chief mainstay, so to speak, of its varied branches 

 of work. As a field-naturalist, there was probably no one in 

 America who was his equal. He had a deep love for boys and 

 girls, and many well-known naturalists in Canada to-day owe 

 their early interest in plants and animals to him. At the excur- 

 sions of the Club he was always the leading centre of attraction. 

 Everyone wanted to go with Dr. Fletcher through the woods 

 and into the meadows and get from him some of his enthusiasm 

 and knowdedge about the forms of life which occurred every- 

 where. 



Mr. Frank T. Shutt, Chief Chemist of the Dominion Experi- 

 mental Farms, said that to those wdio knew James Fletcher 

 personally no monument in stone or bronze is needed to keep his 

 memory green. The charm of the true, kindly, cultured gentle- 

 man, w^hich we all felt when in his company, will not readily be 

 forgotten. But we have done well in the erection of this Fountain, 

 a tribute to his memory a tribute, as has been happily expressed 

 upon the stone, of affection from his friends, that may speak to 

 those who come after of the love and the admiration we had for 

 him; to tell them that James Fletcher was a man who did much 

 good in his day and generation. His work was of incalculable 

 benefit to the farmer and fruit-grower of this country in com- 

 batting weed, fungus and injurious insect. Probably of even 

 more value, however, was his inspiring enthusiasm, that power 

 to awaken in others an interest in the study of animate nature. 

 And in this connection we of Ottawa were particularly fortunate. 

 Whether on the excursions of the Field-Naturalists' Club or on 

 the lecture platform of the winter series of lectures, he was the 

 teacher that all listened to with pleasure. We do honour to-day 

 to the memory of a busy man called away in the prime of his 

 life, in the midst of his work. So far as we know he had made 

 no startling or brilliant discovery in the realm of pure science, 

 but that fact if fact it be does not in the least detract from 

 the honour that is rightly his. We are rather apt now^-a-days to 



