OBITUARY — GEORGE SIM, A.L.S. 131 



hy them. George had made a considerable collection of 

 birds, the prizes of many a ramble, often taken during the 

 time that should have been given to rest. He had often 

 thought of taxidermy as a livelihood, and on leaving Tarland 

 he resolved to supplement the experience gained in the pre- 

 servation of skins for his own collection by a regular train- 

 ing, which he took under Mr. Sanderson, Edinburgh. After 

 a short visit to London he came to Aberdeen in 1862, and 

 commenced business in King Street. His success surpassed 

 his hopes, and from this time he lived in Aberdeen, moving 

 into a larger shop in a more prominent situation, in Castle 

 Street, after some years. To his business as a taxidermist 

 he added the sale of antiquarian and similar articles, of which 

 he possessed an excellent knowledge. His integrity and 

 skill were so relied on by all with whom he had dealings that 

 this branch of his business extended largely. 



Mr. Sim had married some time before he settled in 

 Aberdeen, and his wife and child resided there while he 

 tried his fortune in London. It must have been an anxious 

 time for him until a livelihood seemed assured in the new 

 venture ; but he did not spare himself, working from an 

 early hour until late at night, often until nearly midnight, in his 

 shop or in the workroom beside it. Yet though so assiduous 

 in his business, he spent many an hour in the investigation 

 of the fauna of Aberdeen and its vicinity, often spending 

 much or even all of the night in his rambles. 



For a number of years he paid great attention to Fishes 

 and Crustaceans ; and few mornings passed without a visit to 

 the sands between the Dee and the Don, or to the boats on 

 their return from fishing. From the lines and from the 

 trawl-nets many prizes were gathered, while the trawlers 

 fished the nearer seas ; but in later years the longer time 

 spent between the fishing grounds and port resulted in the 

 nets and decks being cleared before arrival. The fish-market 

 was also one of Mr. Sim's favourite haunts, and strange fish 

 were kept for him, or brought to his shop. 



Results of his study of the Crustaceans and Fishes were 

 published in 1878 in the Transactions of the Aberdeen 

 Natural History Society in a " List of the Crustacea of the 

 North-East Coast of Scotland," and a " Catalogue of Fish 



