NOTICES OF ESSEX ORNITHOLOGISTS. 21 



very last, and was buried in the churchyard of Epping Old Chiu-ch. 

 His cabinet of lepidoptera was purchased by Mr. T. J. Mann, and is 

 now at Hyde Hall, Sawbridgeworth. The Essex Field Club owns 

 specimens of his skill in preserving flowering plants and fungi, and a 

 list of Epping Forest Mosses left in MS. will shortly be published 

 in the Essex jVatura/ist." * 



FITCH, Edward Arthur, F.L.S., F.E.S., &c., of 



Brick House, Maldon, was born at Chelsea. His father, the late 

 Edward Fitch, of Bayswater, was born at Sible Hedingham, and 

 his mother {jiee Matilda Pannell) at Stoke-by-Clare, in Suffolk, close 

 on the Essex border. Mr. Fitch was educated at Great Ealing 

 School, and at King's College School, London, leaving the latter 

 establishment in July, 187 1. He was then third out of over 700 

 scholars, and the last speech-day he attended he took five prizes, and 

 might have held a scholarship. In 1870 he passed the Senior 

 Oxford Local (A. A. degree) with honours. He has resided in 

 Essex since 187 1, and in his present home since 1874. He 

 married Fannie, sixth daughter of the late Mr. W. J. Belcham, of 

 Rayleigh, at one time the largest farmer in Essex. On the i6th of 

 June, 1887, his eighth child, a boy, was born, and Mr. Fitch then 

 being mayor of Maldon, the child was named Thomas Maldon. 

 The burgesses of the borough noted the event by presenting to 

 their mayor a silver cradle. Mr. Fitch is now deputy-mayor of 

 Maldon, a town councillor, vice-chairman of the Maldon Union, 

 chairman of the Assessment Committee, president of the Essex 

 Field Club, a fellow of the Linnean and Entomological Societies, 

 (of which latter society he was secretary from 1881 to 1886) and ot 

 .several local natural history and archeeological societies. He is 

 a churchwarden of St. Mary's, Maldon. He farms over 2,000 

 acres of land in Maldon, Hazeleigh, Purleigh, and Woodham 

 Mortimer ; and last year was elected without a poll as County 

 Councillor for the Heybridge Division. He has rendered exceed- 

 ingly valuable assistance during the preparation of this work. 



GIBSON, Jabez (1794— 1838), of Saffron Walden, though 

 not eminent as a working ornithologist, deserves mention as having 

 been the chief of those who were instrumental in organizing the 

 noble Museum at Saffron Walden. He contributed very liberally 

 towards the expenses of its establishment and maintenance. In an 

 account of the Museum which appeared in the Essex Literary 



* For the foregoing notice of English, I am indebted to the kindness of Mr. William Cole. 



