James William Helenns Trail. J. Ramshottom. 297 



JAMES WILLIAM HELENUS TRAIL. 



(1S51— 1919.) 



By J. Ramsbottom. 



James William Helenus Trail , Professor of Botany at Aberdeen, 

 died on Sept. i8th last. He was born at Orkney and was the 

 son of a parish minister who afterwards became Professor of 

 Systematic Theology at Aberdeen. As, in addition, his maternal 

 grandfather was a Professor of Moral Philosophy it is not to be 

 wondered at that his early training was all on the side of the 

 humanities. But, even in his schoolboy days Trail began that 

 systematic collecting which he was to carry on until his death. 

 In spite of lack of encouragement, when he graduated in arts 

 at Aberdeen in 1870 he did so with honours in natural science. 

 He then entered the medical faculty not apparently with any 

 idea of e\'entually practising, but for the purpose of further 

 scientific training. However, having an opportunity of visiting 

 Brazil as botanist to an expedition organised by the Amazon 

 Steam Navigation Company he left his medical studies for a 

 couple of years. 



His work on his botanical and zoological collections brought 

 him into notice and in 1876 he was appointed government 

 botanist to British Guiana. Before he sailed, however, Professor 

 Dickie who was in failing health resigned from the botanical 

 chair and Trail, at the age of twenty-six, was appointed by the 

 Crown to fill the vacancy. From the year 1870 onwards Trail 

 contributed a series of papers and notes on various natural 

 history subjects. He early became interested in systematic 

 mycology being first attracted by parasitic microfungi probably 

 because of his intensive work on phanerogams and on galls. He 

 published valuable revisions of the Scottish species of Perono- 

 sporeae, Sphaeropsideae and Melanconieae, Discomycetes, 

 Uredineae and Ustilagineae, and Perisporiaceae, in all of which 

 he made noteworthy additions to the British fungus flora. He 

 contributed to the Scottish Naturalist from its foundation in 

 1871 and became its Editor from 1883 until 1892 when it was 

 incorporated in the Annals of Scottish Natural History of which 

 he was botanical editor until 191 1. 



A hint as to his all-round knowledge is given by the fact that 

 when he was a medical student he acted as assistant to the 



