MEMOIR OF JOSEPH DL'NCAN PUTNAM W. J. McGEE. 243 



of his life), and not only became proficient in all common branches, 

 but, then and by subsequent unaided study, acquired a good knowl- 

 edge of Greek, Latin, German, French, and some other languages. 

 During the last of these years he mastered (untaught) the art ol" 

 printing, and, aided only by his younger brothei's, pulilished four 

 numbers of a " quarterly magazine devoted to the development of 

 amateur and domestic literature." Throughout tliis period his in- 

 terest in natural phenomena, and particularly in the insects, in- 

 creased, and he made numerous original and valuable observations, 

 a part of which were published, in popular form, in local media. 

 Especially in his seventeenth and eighteenth years (18T2 and 1873), 

 during which he accompanied Dr. C. C. Parry to Colorado and 

 Wyoming, his collections and notes added materially to our knowl- 

 edge of the distribution of certain forms of insect life, and even to 

 the then little known, but much discussed question of insect fertili- 

 zation of flowering plants. During the latter of these seasons he 

 also carried on a valuable series of meteorological (observations in 

 connection with Captain Jones' exploration of northwestei-ii Wyo- 

 ming. At the close of this season he began preparations for enter- 

 ing Harvard, but his always delicate health became so impaired 

 under the stress of study that he was soon compelled to relinquish 

 this design. The two following summeis (of 1874 and 1875) were 

 spent in the western territories; and though he vvas a constant in- 

 valid, and often for weeks apparently at the point of death, he 

 added largely to his collections and notes. In the later years of his 

 life he only did such out-door entomological work as circumstances 

 permitted during brief visits to various localities, either in pursuit of 

 health or in search of the rare and scattered works constituting the 

 literature of the obscure and little-known insect forms, in which he 

 was specially interested; but he was never after able to make ex- 

 tended out-door investigations. It was during these later years, 

 however, that his important studies of the bark lice, and of the pe- 

 culiar scorpion-like family of spiders {Solpugidre) were made, that 

 most of his work in connection with the Davenport Academy was 

 accomplished, and that his business labors were carried on. 



In June, 1869, Mr. Putnam became a member, in April, 1871, he 

 was made recording secretary, in March, 1876, he was called to the 

 office of corresponding secretary, and in January, 1881, he was 

 elected president, of the Davenport Academy of Natural Sciences. 

 All of his large and valuable collection was placed in the museum 

 of the Academy; and when the publication of the Proceedings was 



