188 THE entomologist's recokd. 



The number of papers published by Sharp are too numerous to 

 mention here. His two volumes of Inxccta in the Cambridge Natural 

 History, is the work by which he is best known to the average ento- 

 mologist. This is one of the few text books of entomology in the 

 English language, which it is a pleasure to read from a point of 

 view of literature. 



Sharp was greatly interested in island life. He worked consider- 

 ably on New Zealand Coleoptera, and his interest in that country was 

 such that he eventually allowed his entire entomological library to go 

 to the Cawthorn Institute, Nelson, believing that it would be of greater 

 use to science out there than in England. 



The Rev. T. Blackburn was one of Sharp's earliest entomological 

 friends. The exact date of this friendship is uncertain, but in August, 

 1865, they were exchanging specimens. Upon the Rev. T. Blackburn 

 going out to Hawaii, Sharp's attention was tvirned to those islands. 

 Blackburn's collection of the Hawaiian insects were worked out by 

 various specialists, the Coleoptera being worked by himself and Sharp. 

 These collections demonstrated the peculiar precinctive fauna 

 of the Hawaiian Islands and aroused the interest of zoologists, 

 which led to the formation of the Sandwich Island Committee. 

 Professor Alfred Newton was the first Chairman, and Sharp the 

 Secretary and Editor of the publication. Sharp's judgment of men 

 was shown in his choice of Dr. R. C. L. Perkins for the field investiga- 

 tions, and it would have been difficult to have chosen a more fitting 

 man. The results of the years devoted to this work are great, these 

 islands being to-day more thoroughly worked than any similar group 

 within the tropics. It also stands as a monument of the value of 

 systematic work to economics. During the last eighteen years the 

 sugar industry of the islands has been rescued from destruction by the 

 introduction of parasites to control certain insect pests. It is estimated 

 that an average of some eight million dollars per annum has been 

 saved by this work. One of the chief reasons why the economic ento- 

 mologists have attained this success is because the insect fauna of the 

 islands was so thoroughly known. When a small leaf hopper was 

 found destroying the sugar-cane it was at once recognised as an intro- 

 duced insect and not a native ; when parasites were introduced it was 

 known if hyperparasites were present or not to attack them ; the 

 biological complex which surrounded these introduced insects 

 could be calculated with some certainty. Without the labours 

 of Sharp, Blackburn, and Perkins, along with various other syste- 

 matists, the economic entomologists would have had to work in the 

 dark. Sharp used to remark that he was an extravagant entomologist, 

 as he was not an economic one, but few economic entomologists can 

 claim greater economic results for their work than Sharp can for his 

 years devoted to the " Fauna Hawaiiensis." 



Sharp joined the Entomologicol Society of London in 1862, he 

 served as Secretary in 1867, President in 1887-8, Vice-President 1889, 

 1891-2, 1896, 1902-8. He was elected a special life Fellow in 1921. 

 At the time of his death he was, with one exception, the senior Fellow, 

 there being one other dating from 1861. 



In 1890 he was elected to the Royal Society. He was also an 

 honorary member of a number of foreign entomological societies. — F.M. 



