IN MEMORIAM— EDGAR ALEXANDER MEARNS, 1856-1916. 



By Chart.es W. Richmond. 



[With 1 plate.] 



In the death of Doctor Mearns the American Ornithologists' 

 Union has lost one of its founders and most active members, and 

 ornithology one of its most enthusiastic disciples. Friendly and 

 genial in disposition, with an all-consuming interest in the study of 

 nature, he craved the society of men of similar tastes, and looked 

 forward with keen anticipation to the rare occasions* when he was 

 permitted to attend the annual sessions of the Union. As an Army 

 surgeon, he was subject to the vicissitudes and uncertainties of that 

 calling, and during the greater part of his 26 years of active mili- 

 tary service was far removed from museums and libraries, both indis- 

 pensable adjuncts to the working naturalist. While this circum- 

 stance greatly interfered with his systematic studies, and prevented 

 him from publishing any extended results of his discoveries, which 

 he was well equipped by training and experience to perform, it 

 undoubtedly contributed largely to his development as a field natur- 

 alist, in which field he was without an equal in this country, and 

 enabled him to amass collections that are probably unrivaled as the 

 efforts of a single individual. His activities of over 40 years cov- 

 ered a wide range, of which but little, aside from his ornithological 

 achievements, can receive mention in the present notice. 2 



Edgar Alexander Mearns, son of Alexander and Nancy Reliance 

 (Carswell) Mearns, was born at the home of his grandfather (Alex- 

 ander Mearns), at Highland Falls, near West Point, N. Y., Sep- 

 temper 11, 1856. His grandfather, born a few miles from Aberdeen, 

 Scotland, in 1786, came to New York in 1805, after making several 



1 Reprinted by permission from The Auk, January, 1918. 



2 The War Department was asked for a copy of Doctor Mearns's military record, but 

 the request was refused, owing to the great amount of extra work now placed on the 

 department. 



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