xlviii Annual Report of the Conncil. 



frank criticism of his early speculations on the origin of species. 

 Indeed, in his letters, Darwin frequently refers to the help 

 received from Sir Joseph Hooker, and undoubtedly Hooker's 

 espousal of the Darwinian theory of evolution afcer the 

 publication of the Origin of Species 6\^ much to gain acceptance 

 for it among botanists and drew these two great naturalists ever 

 closer together. 



Throughout this long period of his active scientific career 

 unsought but well-deserved honours were heaped upon Sir 

 Joseph Hooker, one of the last, and certainly not the least, 

 being the Order of Merit, which was conferred upon him on his 

 ninetieth birthday. Hale and hearty still, Hooker took an 

 active part in the following year in the Darwin-Wallace cele- 

 brations of the Linnean Society, and similarly in 1909 at 

 Cambridge, at the commemoration of the centenary of the birth 

 of Charles Darwin. 



Twenty years ago, Sir Joseph Hooker was elected an 

 honorary member of our Society, and in 1898 he was awarded 

 the Wilde Medal. F. E. W. 



William Wright Kirkman, whose death took place at The 

 Grange, Timperley, Cheshire, on the 29th of May, 191 1, in his 

 69th year, was the eldest son of the late Reverend T. P. 

 Kirkman, F.R.S., Rector of Crofc-cum-Southworth, near War- 

 rington, one of our honorary members, from whom we had 

 many papers, mostly on mathematical subjects. 



His son, the subject of this notice, was elected a member 

 of the Society on November 12th, 1895. He was a particularly 

 well-read man, and by members of his profession he was con- 

 sidered a very able and sound lawyer. Though he made no 

 communications at any of our meetings, he wrote an excellent 

 obituary notice of his father, which appeared in our Memoirs 

 Vol. 9, 4th Series). F. N. 



