2G2 [November, 



The general arrangement, indexing, &c., are good ; the illiistrations excel- 

 lent, and marvels of cheapness; and the \vork is worthy of the support of all 

 who are interested in the Lepidox>terii, or desirous for the wider dift'vision of 

 knowledge concerning them. 



(ibihiaries. 



George Henry Verrall, well known as the doyen of British Dipterists, and a 

 valued contribiitor to the pages of this Magazine, passed away, after a trying 

 illness of some months' duration, at his residence, Siissex Lodge, Newmarket, on 

 September 16th, 1911, in his 64th year. 



The youngest of seven chikh-en, he was born at Lewes, on February 7th, 

 1848, of a family whose ancestors had lived in the Borougli and had taken an active 

 interest in the administration of its affairs for hundreds of years. From 

 1857-1864, he attended Lewes Grammar School, receiving a good classical 

 education of the kind then taught in such old-established institutions. Upon 

 leaving, he read for the Civil Service (Somerset House), but decided that such 

 a sedentary life was not to his taste, nor were the prospects of promotion satis- 

 factory. About 1866, he became private secretary to his eldest brother, wlio 

 had tlie management of various race meetings, and remained witli him until 

 about 1875, at which jjeriod he was nearly tempted into following the example 

 of Bates and Wallace in undertaking a collecting exj^edition abroad. The duatli 

 of his brother, however, in 1877, and his appointment a& successor in tlie business 

 his brother had built up, gave him sufficient scope for his energies and kept him 

 in England. In 1879 he married and settled down for life at Newmarket, 

 building himself a house and calling it " Sussex Lodge," after the county of which 

 he was a native. He was very successful in business, becoming in 1881 j^artner 

 in the firm of Pratt & Co., Eace Coiu-se Managers and Bankers. In course of 

 time he accumulated sufficient wealth to enable him to proseciite with success 

 most of his ambitions, to supply the means to pursue his favourite study 

 of the Biptera, and to collect together a valuable library upon the subject. 



He developed a love for Natural History at school, and very shortly after 

 leaving decided to confine his attention to the Diptera, an order then in a state of 

 chaos ; by indefatigable collecting and.study he reduced this chaos into something 

 like order, publishing, in 1888, a " List " of the British species, of which a second 

 edition, the result of further research, appeared in 1901, while he was at work 

 upon a third edition at the time of his death. In his youth he was an intimate 

 associate of many of the famous entomologists of those days, including Stainton, 

 Rye, Douglas, Scott, McLachlan, etc., and learnt to appreciate the benefits of 

 friendly social intercourse among those devoted to the same pursuits. This led 

 him to take great interest in the " Entomological Club," a small and select 

 Society, founded in 1826, " for the purpose of social meetings at the residences 

 of members, for the commimication of facts, the comparison of notes, the 

 naming of specimens, and mutual improvement in the science of Entomology." 



