164 TRANSACTIONS OF THE [MaR. 27 



of his subject, and was, perhaps, somewhat indifferent to classi- 

 fication, and did not attempt to seriously philosophize.* 



In Botany. — His best work in botany, exclusive of paleobotany, 

 was done in the earlier years of his work, before it was crowded 

 to one side by geology. Before he entered college he had, as 

 stated above, gathered an herbarium and had made a Catalogue 

 of the Plants of Ohio. This list was published in 1859, making 

 forty-one pages of the Ohio Agricultural Report of that year. 

 His earliest and best botanical publication was the report in 

 1857 on "The Botany of Northern California and Oregon," in 

 the sixth volume of the Pacific Railroad Reports. His chapter 

 in this elegantly illustrated report upon the forest trees of the 

 region described is a classic in American forestry. 



In Zoology. — Dr. Newberry was, as a boy, interested in the 

 mollusca, and one of his earliest papers, 1851, was upon this 

 groujD. Only five papers of his can be strictly classed as 

 zoological, apart from the paleozoology, the most important 

 being u^Don the zoology of Northern California and Oregon. 

 However, there was no great branch of animal life with which 

 he was not ver}^ familiar. 



RELATION TO NEW YORK. SOCIETIES. 



Rarely in this country has one man been longer at the head 

 of a prominent scientific society continuously and without 

 opposition. For twenty-four years Dr. Newberry honored the 

 New York Academy of Sciences as its President. He was first 

 elected in February, 1868, and remained continuovisly in office 

 until February, 1892, when, on account of illness and absence, 

 he was made Honorary President. During all this time there 

 was no opposition to him, but, on the contrary', he was often 

 re-elected in the face of his positive declination. He was seldom 

 absent from the chair, and was a graceful and dignified presid- 

 ing ofiicer. In later years, perhaps, he did not use the power 

 of his position and reputation for the benefit of the Society lo 

 the extent that a critical judgment, or the expectation of mem- 

 bers might have demanded, but he was ever more than loyal, and 

 gave the Society an added dignity and standing. And if he did 

 not discover and develop the latent talent of the membership, 

 or in the meetings draw out the modest members in discussion, 

 he largely compensated by his own freely given knowledge. It 

 was rare that any subject was presented before the Society to 



* The writer is indebted to Professor E. D. Cope for the substance of this 

 ^estimate of Dr. Newberry's work on fossil fishes. 



