MURRAY: ALEXANDER AGASSIZ. 145 



Agassiz throughout his active scientific life was a constant student 

 of Echinoderms. He worked on Starfishes and Crinoids, but the 

 principal object of his interest was the recent Echini. His first pub- 

 lication on this fascinating group of animals was in 1863, and his last 

 in 1909. covering a term of forty-six years, a long period of sustained 

 interest and work. He described a considerable part of the deep-sea 

 species and genera known to science in his Monographs on the Deep- 

 Sea Echini collected by the "Challenger," "Blake," and "Albatross" 

 Expeditions. He described as new, about one-third of the known 

 recent Echini, of which there are some 450 species. 



In addition to systematic work, he published on the development 

 and morphology of Echini as well as on their geographical and bathy- 

 metrical distribution. His work was almost wholly on recent forms, 

 but in several of his works, especially the Revision, and "Challenger" 

 Report, there is discussion of, and some observations on, fossil Echini. 



The three years immediately succeeding his return from Europe in 

 December, 1870 were the most active, fruitful, and enjoyable of his 

 whole life. His financial position had greatly improved and his mind 

 was crowded with new schemes and new ideas with reference to the 

 study of the ocean. He visited the "Challenger" Expedition when 

 the ship reached Halifax in May, 1873. He was enthusiastic about 

 our captures, and he could teach us much we did not know, especially 

 about Echinoderm and Annelid larvae. I remember he showed us 

 how he had proved that Tornaria was the larva of Balanoglossus. All 

 the younger men of the Expedition were pronounced evolutionists 

 or Darwinists, and the name of Agassiz conjured up opposition to such 

 views, but the impression made by Alexander Agassiz was excellent 

 in every direction, the general judgment being that the younger 

 Agassiz was a very different man from his distinguished father. It 

 was freely prophesied that he would have a very brilliant scientific- 

 future. He was buoyant, cheerful, confident, and possessed a fund 

 of dry humour. He was rather above medium height, with brown 

 eyes and dark complexion. He had a fine presence, dignified bearing, 

 and gracious manners. The following note received on board the 

 "Challenger" some months after his" visits indicates conscious capacity 

 and the overflowing joy of life: — "We are all flourishing here after a 

 very successful summer at Penikese, about which you must have 

 seen plenty in the papers. The Museum is getting fuller than an egg, 

 and I don't know what we shall do for room. We have just secured 

 the collection of Wachsmuth — the finest collection of Crinoids 

 there is from the West, and with what we have, our collection is now 



