416 Linnean Society. [May 24, 



be a species of Crania," which is printed in the 13th volume of our 

 ' Transactions.' His principal work was ' The Genera of Recent 

 and Fossil Shells,' with illustrations by his elder brother, James De 

 Carle Sowerby, commenced in 1820, of which upwards of forty 

 numbers appeared, but which was never completed. This work 

 contributed most essentially to the introduction into England of the 

 views of Lamarck and his followers in regard to the classification of 

 shells. In 1824, he established, with the assistance of several 

 leading naturalists, a quarterly periodical entitled ' The Zoological 

 Journal,' which was continued for four years, and contains many 

 important memoirs by himself and others. ' A Catalogue of the 

 Tankerville Collection of Shells, with descriptions of many new 

 species,' appeared in 1825. In 1830 he published the first part of 

 what was intended to be a general ' Species Conchyliorum,' but 

 although a second part was prepared, the publication was dropped 

 for want of encouragement. He also described a great number of new 

 shells, chiefly from the collection of Mr. Cuming, in the ' Proceedings 

 of the Zoological Society ; ' and communicated several papers to the 

 ' Magazine of Natural History ' and to the ' Reports of the British 

 Association.' He traded largely in shells and minerals, and with good 

 reputation both for fair dealing and for knowledge of his business. 

 On this account he was frequently consulted on questions of value, 

 and his opinions justly carried great weight. But for many years his 

 health had been greatly enfeebled, the lingering illness which even- 

 tually terminated his existence having commenced before his mar- 

 riage in an inflammation of the lungs, the eff'ect of lying down to 

 rest upon cold grass when heated with violent exercise. He died on 

 the 26th of July 1854, having nearly completed his 66th year, at 

 his residence in the Hornsey Road, leaving behind him a large 

 family all more or less engaged in natural-history pursuits. 



John Ellerton Stocks, M.D., was born in the neighbourhood of 

 Hull, and acquired his medical education at University College, 

 London, where he distinguished himself by his love of botany, which 

 afterwards became his favourite pursuit. He obtained an appoint- 

 ment in the Bombay Medical Service, and in the course of his duties, 

 first as Vaccinator, and afterwards as Inspector of Forests in Scinde, 

 he made frequent and extensive excursions through the provinces of 

 Scinde and Beloochistan, by means of which he was enabled to ac- 

 cumulate a large and well-prepared collection of plants, together 

 with an extensive series of drawings executed by native artists, 

 under his own immediate inspection. On Dr. Gibson's quitting India 

 some four years ago on a visit to England, Dr. Stocks was appointed 



