72 PROCEEDINGS OF THE 



years of the wards for diseases of women in the Infirmar}'. In 

 1889 he became Professor of Midwifery in St. Mungo's College, 

 which post lie held for fifteen years. 



Dr. Stirton was keenly interested in the study of plants, 

 devoting his attention particularly to J/ichens and Mosses, of 

 which he possessed exceptional knowledge, gained during many 

 visits to their haunts and by careful study of their microscopic 

 structure. He made many visits to tlie Scottish mountains, and 

 discovered numerous previously undetected species in these expe- 

 ditions. Ben Lawers was visited by him many times, rarely, it' 

 ever, without finding some novelty. Collections of these plants 

 were sent to him by correspondents from Canada, South America, 

 New Zealand, Australia, Tasmania, South Africa and elsewhere ; 

 and these yielded to his study many new and interesting species. 



The results were made known in numerous papers and short notes 

 communicated by him to scientific societies and journals. Among 

 the societies were the Natural History Society of Glasgow, the 

 Glasgow Eield Naturalists' Society, the Philosophical Society of 

 Glasgow, the Linnean Society of London, the Botanical Society 

 of Edinburgh, the New Zealand Institute, and the Royal Society of 

 Victoria, in Australia. Among periodical literature to which he 

 sent papers may be mentioned ' Grevillea,' the ' Scottish Natu- 

 ralist ' and its successor, the 'Annals of Scottish Natural History.' 

 To the Handbook ' On the Fauna and Flora of the AVest of 

 Scotland,' prepared in 1876 for the meeting in Glasgow of the 

 British Association, he contributed a general introduction " On 

 the Cryptogamic Botany " and the lists of Lichens and Mosses. 



In determining new species Dr. Stirton relied greatly among 

 lichens on their reactions with I and K, and among mosses on the 

 cellular structure of the leaves. 



He was elected a Fellow of the Linnean Society on 2nd Decem- 

 ber, 1875; he was also a Corresponding Member of various 

 European Societies. The esteem in which he was held hj those 

 who knew liim best was shown Ijy the terms of resolutions passed 

 by the Societies in Glasgow in support of his candidature for the 

 botanical chair in the University of Glasgow in 1868 and again in 

 1879, as well as by the testimony of those best qualified to speak 

 of his scientific merits. The memory of his worth will not readily 

 be lost by those who enjoyed his friendship. 



List of Papers and N'otes published by Dr. Stirton. 



Exhibitions or reports of rare or new forms, at meetings of Glasgow 

 Nat. Hist. Soc, mentioned in ' Proceedings ' for years 1858-69, 

 issued 1869 as Vol. i.. see pages 112. 11.5-6, 126, 142-3, 145, 165, 

 1!)7, 198, 199, 202-3, 225, 231, 238, 381 : Vol. ii. 1869-75, 18, 33. 



Exhibitions, etc., at meetings of Glasaow Field Nat. Soc, Vol- i. of 

 'Transactions.' issued 1873-7, pag^s 23, 28, 29, 34, 35, 37-8, 70, 

 72-3, 102, 104, 17(i. 



New and rare Mosses from Ben Lawers, Perthshire (1870). Edinburgh 

 Bot. Soc, Trans., x. 1870, 426 32, xi. 1873, 75-82. (A review of the 

 mosses of the Ben Lawers range of hills.) 



