614 Obituary. [Ibis, 



In 1907 Goeldi retired from his post and settled in 

 Berne, where he was appointed Professor of Zoology at 

 the University. 



Goeldi's earliest contribution to ^The Ibis' was in 1894, 

 whea- he sent an account of the nesting-habits of two 

 Brazilian birds, Phibalura flavirostris and Lochmias nematura. 

 He also published in 'The Ibis' the ornithological results 

 of two important zoological explorations — one, of the coast 

 region of South Guyana {i. e. that portion of Brazil lying 

 between the mouth of the Amazons and French Guiana), 

 in 1897; and the other, of the Rio Capim in the State of 

 Para in 1903, besides many shorter contributions. 



In Brazil itself Goeldi published many papers in his own 

 Boletim, as well as a general work on Brazilian birds, 'As 

 Aves do Brasil/ of which part i. appeared in 1894 and 

 part ii. in 1900, while an album of 48 plates was sub- 

 sequently issued to illustrate the work. 



Goeldi was also much concerned with the protection of 

 Brazilian birds from the ravages of the plume-hunter, and 

 in 1890 he published a vigorous appeal to the Government 

 of the State of Para to stop the extermination of the Egrets 

 and. lied Ibis of the lower Amazons. This was translated 

 into English by Mr. W. H. Clifford in 1902 (see 'Ibis.' 

 1903, p. 615). 



Goeldi's last work dealt with the Fauna of Switzerland 

 from a somewhat original standpoint; the distribution in 

 time and space was specially emphasized. It contains a 

 chapter on the avifauna and. was reviewed in 'The Ibis' 

 (1915, p. 170). Only the first part, dealing with the 

 Vertebrates, was published before his premature death. 



Godfrey Vassal Webster. 

 By the death in action of Second Lieutenant Godfrey 

 Vassal Webster on August 4 last, during the recent " push" 

 of the Guards Brigade at the ''Front," ornithology has 

 lost a keen student. Born in 1897, and educated at Eton 

 and Sandhurst, he obtained his Commission in the Grenadier 

 Guards in October of last year. He was the only son of 



