264 THE ENTOMOLOGIST. 



OBITUARY. 



Philip Heney Gosse, F.R.S., was born at Worcester in 

 1810, and died at his residence at St. Mary Church, Torquay, 

 on the 23rd August, 1888. Mr. Gosse belonged to that class of 

 naturalists which it is, in the present day, somewhat the fashion 

 to look down upon, but they were the very men who created an 

 interest in Natural History amongst the people, and widely 

 extended the habit of observation ; thus not only paving the 

 way for grants of public money for " original research," but 

 actually bringing into existence the specialists of the present 

 day. Early in life Mr. Gosse removed to Poole, on the Dorset 

 coast, where he first developed the taste for Natural History 

 pursuits, which in after life became so valuable. His work, as 

 is well known, was that of the recording of facts popularly 

 stated, such records existing in his numerous books and still 

 more numerous scattered papers ; the Royal Society's catalogue 

 of scientific papers mentions up to 1873 no less than sixty of 

 such, while many others have since then appeared. As a 

 traveller, Mr. Gosse had some reputation, having, in 1827, in 

 pursuit of commercial occupations, visited, among other places, 

 and studied the Natural History of Canada, where he resided for 

 several years. He afterwards visited the United States, staying 

 in Alabama for about a year. In 1844 Mr. Gosse was in Jamaica, 

 where he lived for eighteen months, afterwards returning to 

 England. Ill-health caused his removal at a latter period from 

 London to the sea-side, Tenby being one of his favourite 

 hunting-grounds. Later he removed to the house where he 

 died, and where for long past naturalists visiting Torquay have 

 been made welcome. In 1856 Mr. Gosse was elected a Fellow of 

 the Eoyal Society. Among his best-known works are * The 

 Canadian Naturalist ' ; ' A Naturalist's Sojourn in Jamaica ' and 

 'Birds of Jamaica'; 'Naturalist's Piamble on the Devonshire 

 Coast ' ; ' The Aquarium,' of which study both in private and 

 public institutions he was practically the founder ; ' A Manual 

 of Marine Zoology '; 'Tenby, a Seaside Holiday'; ' History of 

 British Sea Anemones and Corals ' ; ' A Year at the Shore ' ; and 

 others. Mr. Gosse was very fond of the study of Entomology. 

 Papers on this subject appear from his pen in the early volumes 

 of the ' Entomologist ' and ' Zoologist.' Even so recently as in 

 1879 and 1880, vols. xii. and xiii. of this magazine contain 

 important illustrated papers by him. Of late years Mr. Gosse 

 was much engaged in religious teaching, having erected at his 

 own expense a public place of worship, in which he was to be 

 found both as worshipi^er and preacher. He, however, always 

 found time to add to his literary Natural History works, and 

 these have built a monument to his ardent and unceasing study 

 of the beauties of nature. — J. T. C. 



