153 



OBITUABY, 



EDMUXD JOHNSON" SPITTA, L.R.C.P. (Lond.), 

 M.R.C.S. (Eng.), F.R.A.S. 1853-1921. 



Edmund Johnson Spitta, who died on January 21, 1921, was 

 born at Clapliam sixty-eight years ago. Entering St. George's 

 Hospital in 1870, he followed up a successful career as a student 

 by completing his studies at St. Thomas's and at Westminster. 

 In 1874 he settled down to active work with his father, and for 

 thirty years enjoyed a lucrative and extensive practice. He was 

 an eminently successful general practitioner, and it was with some 

 reluctance that he gave up practice in 1904 and retired to Brighton. 



A man of tireless and almost restless energy, his mechanical 

 and practical mind found early scope for research in Astronomy 

 and Astrophysics, for he was elected a Fellow of the Eoyal 

 Astronomical Society in 1880, sitting as a member of the Council 

 for fourteen years, and later became Vice-President. In time his 

 observatory at Clapham became well known, and from it originated 

 several papers of great scientific interest, which were read before 

 the Eoyal Astronomical and other learned Societies. One of his 

 early contributions, on the " Satellites of Jupiter," put forth views 

 of an original and controversial character, which at the time 

 created much comment. 



Even in those days the charm of the microscope and the fascina- 

 tion of its study held him in a firm grip, and when he found the 

 calls on his time by professional work increasing, the observatory 

 gradually gave place to the " Powell and Lealand." This gave 

 Spitta the opportunity to apply his knowledge of photography to the 

 microscope, and formed the foundation upon which his reputation 

 as a photomicrographer was built. His investigations in this direc- 

 tion rapidly extended, and he devoted much time to the subject, with 

 the same vitality, singleness of purpose, and thoroughness as he 

 had shown in his earlier years when astronomical studies absorbed 

 his attention. 



His bent for photomicrography led to the publication of an 

 " Atlas of Bacteriology," produced in 1898 with Dr. Slater, then 

 Bacteriologist of St. George's Hospital, and marked the beginning 

 of a close and life-long friendship. This book met with great success, 

 and formed the nucleus from which developed his larger book upon 

 photomicrography published in 1899, which has passed through 

 several editions. 



In 1904, jointly with his son. Dr. Harold Spitta, he was asked 

 to form an exhibit of high-power photomicrography by the Govern- 

 ment, to represent Great Britain at the St. Louis International 



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