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London, and otliers who had been associated with him from time to time in 

 work of various kinds, took place on the following Thursday at Putney Vale 

 Cemetery. 



So passes the oldest and one of the dearest of my friends ; and from 

 among contemporary British entomologists surely one of the most enthusiastic, 

 generous, and personally attractive votaries of the science that engages our 

 study. What Long-staff did for Entoaiology — more specially what he did for 

 the work and collections in the Hope Department of the Oxford Museum — I 

 will leave Professor Poulton to say. On such points he will speak with 

 authority. In this memorial note which the Editor has so kindly asked me to 

 contribute, I confine myself to a slight appreciation of the character of my friend 

 as it impressed itself upon me with increasing force through a close unbroken 

 intimacy of over fifty years. 



It was in the October term of 1868 that he and I first met as Freshmen 

 at New College, Oxford. Two main interests brought us into companionship 

 — a love of Art, and a love of Natural History. Longstafl'had come up from 

 Rugby, having gained at New College an open Natural Science scholarship. 

 During his school years he had devoted much serious care to observing insect 

 life alike in the neighbourhood of Eugby and his home at Wandsworth. And 

 here it is interesting to note how thus early it was the difficult group of the 

 Tortrtcina which peculiarly attracted him ; so that, indeed, he became tilled 

 with an ambition of some day specializing upon it, and producing a standard 

 work dealing exhaustively with the group. Alas ! dis aliter visum. He had not 

 been long an undergraduate before a shocking accident deprived him of the 

 sight of one of his eyes, and put a stop for ever to all such schemes of scientific 

 studv as would involve close microscopic investigation. Well, the way in 

 which he bore this bitter stroke of fate was charac eristic of him. Far from 

 sitting down a disheartened rebel, he at once pulled his energies together, and 

 addressed himself cheerfully to other lines of study and work for which 

 minute eyesight was not indispensable. 



Certainly this indomitable cheerfulness or buoyancy of temperament, 

 united as it was with an unusual power of perseverance, and what one may 

 without exaggeration call a passion for thoroughness, went far towards keeping 

 George Longstaff throughout his life not only the busiest of men, but the most 

 enthusiastic and youthful. No one came across him even to the last but was 

 struck by his alert vivacity, both physical and mental. It was hard to associate 

 hiui with the thought of age. Let me here illustrate this by reference to a 

 little incident. When the London County Council was first established, Long- 

 staft' was elected one of its members ; and, when later on the difficult business 

 of bringing in the New Building Act occupied its attention, he was appointed 

 chairman of that important committee. I remember one day asking a builder 

 on the Council whether he chanced to know my friend. " Know him ! " he 

 replied, " I should think I did. Why, somehow or another, Dr. Longstaff has 

 learned to understand pretty well as much about the practical side of the building 

 trade as we builders ourselves do ! " Of course he had. For indeed George 

 Longstaff was a man who never did anything by halves. Whatever he took 

 in hand, he would first of all set himself to find out all he could about the 

 nature and right conduct of it, and then go on seriously to see the thing 



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