THOMAS MAYO BRKWER. 379 



writer of unusual ability. He soon after became a partner in the 

 ■well-known publishing firm of Swan and Tileston, bis connection with 

 which (later under the names of Ilickling, Swan, and Brewer, and 

 Brewer and Tileston) continued till 1877, when he retired from busi- 

 ness and passed two years in Europe. 



Dr. Brewer early evinced a strong interest in ornithology. He was 

 a warm friend of Audubon, whom he materially assisted in his great 

 work on North American Birds. As early as 1837 he published a 

 noteworthy paper on the birds of Massachusetts, and from this date 

 until his death was a frequent contributor of articles relating to his 

 favorite science to several of the scientific and literary journals of the 

 day. Although confining his attention mainly to the department of 

 oology, he became well known as an ornithologist, both in this country 

 and abroad. His larger works embrace (1.) a popular edition of 

 Wilson's "American Ornithology," published in 1840, to which he 

 contributed a " Synopsis " of all the birds then known as North Amer- 

 ican ; (2.) a work entitled " North American Oology," devoted to an 

 account of the geographical distribution of the birds of North America 

 during the breeding season, and embracing figures and descriptions of 

 their eggs ; and (3.), with Professor Spencer F. Baird and Mr. Robert 

 Ridgway, he shared the authorship of "A History of North American 

 Birds," to which he contributed the biographical portion. The 

 " Oology," owing to the great cost of the illustrations, was not con- 

 tinued beyond the first part, embracing the Birds of Prey, the Swifts, 

 Swallows, Goatsuckers, and Kingfishers, which was published in 1857, 

 in Volume IX. of the "'Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge." 

 He continued, however, to collect material for its completion, of which 

 there was reasonable prospect of accomplishment. Three volumes of 

 the " History of North American Birds," embracing the " Land Birds," 

 appeared in 1874. At the time of his death Dr. Brewer had finished 

 the final revision of the manuscript of his share of the remaining por- 

 tion of the work. His collection of eggs, which by his will he left to 

 the Museum of Comparative Zoology of Cambridge, was one of the 

 largest private collections extant, embracing over three thousand spe- 

 cies and not far from fifteen thousand specimens. 



His interest in educational matters led to his election in 1844 to the 

 Boston School Board, to which he was recently rechosen for the term 

 of three years, and of which he was the senior member. Fidelity to 

 friends and to his convictions of truth and duty were marked traits in 

 his character, while socially he was greatly esteemed. 



Dr. Brewer was a grandson of Colonel James Brewer, a patriot of 



