22 



was a busy oue. The work of the divisiou had increased so rapidly 

 that more help was necessary, and an assistant was assigned to hiiu. 

 At this time Mr. Glover was very busy with the preparation of his 

 books of manuscript notes, particularly in Coleoptera and Lepidoptera, 

 adding to the mass of material which had accumulated for so many 

 years compilations from other authorities, to the end of '-completing- 

 to date" the histories of the insects he had figured. He was in frequent 

 correspondence at this time with Dr. Walsh, Messrs. Uhler, Kiley, San- 

 born, Grote, and Robinson, and other leading entomologists, receiving 

 from them new material for the Department collection, or to be figured 

 in his work, sending them in return new species for description from 

 the material which was beginning to be received from collectors in the 

 South and West. 



The museum was now attracting considerable attention, and the num- 

 ber of visitors was steadily increasing. To a man of Mr. Glover's 

 enthusiastic temperament, so ready a means of imparting information 

 and proving to the world the value of his ideas as now presented it- 

 self, was not to be lost. So it came about that by no means the least 

 interesting of the objects there to be seen by visitors was the ento- 

 mologist himself. Notwithstanding that Mr. Glover's life for many 

 years had been that of a recluse— for in his devotion to his entomolog- 

 ical work it amounted to the same thing — he was a social being, and 

 thoroughly enjoyed meeting and talking with peoplf^ of intelligence and 

 appreciation, whether strangers or not. It was a i)ortion of the duties 

 of his assistants, at this time, to interest the museum visitors as far as 

 possible, and to explain to them its objects and uses. Professor Glover 

 kindly took upon himself a just proportion of this rather tedious occu- 

 pation — members of Congress, Senators, and other high officials, includ- 

 ing strangers who were in any way prominent, being his especial prey. 

 The professor always maintained that duty alone called him from his 

 desk upon these occasions ; but sometimes there were ladies in the par- 

 ties, and the frequent ideals of laughter from a merry group convinced 

 us, in our quiet corners, that the entomologist might have made himself 

 a very agreeable society man had he chosen to divorce himself from work 

 long enough to indulge in such frivolous existence. None could blame 

 him if indeed this devotion to duty at such times was mere pretense, 

 for it was almost his only contact with the world, and " all work and 

 no play" does not conduce to the proverbial "Jack's" intellectual de- 

 velopment. 



In these years he was residing at the corner of Seventh and II streets, 

 occupying a single room which he was pleased to call his "den," and 

 in which, from choice, he ate, slept, wrote., sketched, engraved, and saw 

 his few intimate friends. What with his engraving and writing tables, 

 his book cases (constructed from boxes), trunks, tool-chest, and insect 

 cases, in addition to the stove and regular bedroom furniture, there was 

 little si)ace to spare. Bnt it was all he desired at the time, though a 

 very great change came over him in his manner of living a few years 



