1865.] OBITUARY — SIR W. J. HOOKER. 465 



I am indebted to my fellow-laborer in entomology, Mr. Geo. 

 JFno. Bowles, for the illustrations accompanying this paper. 

 Read before the, Quebec Branch, 7th Sept., 1865. 



OBITUARY NOTICES. 



SIR W. J. HOOKER. 



The brief announcement in our last number of the death of Sir 

 William Hooker will have been perused with feelings of regret by 

 all our readers, and by a very large circle with the deepest per- 

 sonal sorrow. During his long career he had succeeded in attach- 

 ing to himself the affectionate regard of a long series of friends, 

 pupils and correspondents ; and there is no corner of the earth 

 where his loss will not be mourned with heartfelt grief, by some 

 one to whom his uniform kindness lent a helping hand. For 

 more than fifty years he has occupied a distinguished place as a 

 man of science ; and throughout that long period, first as a suc- 

 cessful teacher, and later as the head of our great national esta- 

 blishment, with the rise and progress of which he is identified, he 

 has been conspicuous for his singleness of purpose, his forgetful- 

 ness of self, his zeal in the discharge of his duties, his sagacity in 

 forming plans, and the success with which he carried them out. 

 The death of such a man is no common loss to the world, and we 

 have therefore spared no pains in getting together authentic par- 

 ticulars of his life. 



Sir W. J. Hooker was born in 1785 ; his father, who was in 

 business at Norwich, being a man who devoted all his leisure to 

 reading, especially travels and German literature, and to the cul- 

 tivation of curious plants, by which, doubtless, was laid the foun- 

 dation of that love of Natural Histofy for which his son was so dis- 

 tinguished. Sir William's education was received at the High 

 School of Norwich. Having at an early age inherited an ample 

 competency from his godfather, William Jackson, Esq., he formed 

 the design of devoting his life to travelling and natural history. 

 Ornithology and entomology first attracted his attention ; but, 

 being happily the discoverer of a rare moss, which he took to Sir 

 J. E. Smith, he received from that eminent botanist the bias 

 which determined his future career. Henceforth, botany was his 

 sole aim ; and with the view of collecting plants, he made expedi- 



