﻿rROCEEDINGS 
  OF 
  THE 
  MALACOLOGICAL 
  SOCIETY. 
  217 
  

  

  the 
  Conohological 
  Society 
  of 
  Great 
  Britain 
  and 
  Ireland 
  in 
  December, 
  

   1890, 
  he 
  touched 
  " 
  On 
  the 
  Nomenclature 
  of 
  certain 
  genera 
  of 
  British 
  

   Land 
  and 
  Freshwater 
  Shells 
  ", 
  whilst 
  his 
  Presidential 
  Addresses 
  to 
  

   this 
  Society, 
  in 
  February, 
  1902 
  and 
  1904, 
  covered 
  wider 
  ground, 
  

   being 
  devoted, 
  the 
  former 
  to 
  " 
  The 
  supposed 
  similarity 
  between 
  the 
  

   Mollusca 
  of 
  the 
  Arctic 
  and 
  Antarctic 
  Regions 
  ", 
  and 
  the 
  latter 
  to 
  

   a 
  discussion 
  "On 
  the 
  Mollusca 
  of 
  Lake 
  Tanganyika 
  ", 
  provoked 
  by 
  

   the 
  conclusions 
  that 
  had 
  been 
  published 
  by 
  J. 
  E. 
  S. 
  Moore. 
  

  

  B. 
  B. 
  W. 
  

  

  John 
  Henry 
  Ponsonby-Fane, 
  

   1848-1916. 
  

  

  By 
  the 
  death 
  of 
  J. 
  H. 
  Ponsonby-Fane, 
  Malacology 
  lias 
  lost 
  one 
  of 
  her 
  

   most 
  painstaking 
  workers, 
  possessed 
  of 
  a 
  large 
  store 
  of 
  knowledge 
  

   and 
  experience. 
  

  

  Born 
  on 
  July 
  21, 
  1848, 
  the 
  eldest 
  son 
  of 
  the 
  lit. 
  Hon. 
  Sir 
  Spencer 
  

   Ponsonby-Fane, 
  G.C.B., 
  he 
  was 
  educated 
  at 
  Harrow, 
  and 
  on 
  leaving 
  

   school 
  became 
  a 
  clerk 
  in 
  the 
  Privy 
  Council 
  Office. 
  In 
  1875 
  he 
  

   married 
  the 
  eldest 
  daughter 
  of 
  Mr. 
  Harvie 
  Farquhar, 
  and 
  leaving 
  the 
  

   Privj' 
  Council 
  Office 
  became 
  a 
  partner 
  in 
  the 
  banking 
  firm 
  of 
  Herries, 
  

   Farquhar 
  & 
  Co., 
  remaining 
  on 
  when 
  the 
  business 
  was 
  later 
  transferred 
  

   to 
  Lloyds 
  Bank, 
  Limited. 
  On 
  the 
  death 
  of 
  his 
  father 
  he 
  added 
  

   the 
  additional 
  name 
  of 
  Fane 
  to 
  the 
  more 
  familiar 
  one, 
  to 
  us, 
  of 
  

   J. 
  H. 
  Ponsonby, 
  

  

  After 
  he 
  Avas 
  about 
  30 
  his 
  health 
  was 
  never 
  really 
  very 
  good, 
  

   and 
  of 
  late 
  years 
  he 
  gradually 
  gave 
  up 
  attending 
  the 
  meetings 
  of 
  this 
  

   Society, 
  as 
  of 
  others, 
  llecently 
  it 
  had 
  become 
  more 
  noticeable 
  that 
  

   his 
  powers 
  of 
  recovery 
  from 
  illness 
  were 
  not 
  so 
  great, 
  and 
  this 
  summer 
  

   he 
  suffered 
  greatlj^from 
  neuritis 
  of 
  the 
  spine, 
  which 
  gradually 
  became 
  

   worse, 
  and 
  he 
  passed 
  away 
  on 
  September 
  11, 
  1916. 
  

  

  Probably 
  few 
  men 
  were 
  so 
  widely 
  known 
  to 
  workers 
  in 
  other 
  

   countries; 
  he 
  was 
  a 
  regular 
  correspondent, 
  and 
  his 
  practice 
  of 
  

   generally 
  spending 
  his 
  holidays 
  abroad 
  added 
  to 
  the 
  ever-growing 
  

   circle. 
  

  

  His 
  keen 
  interest 
  in 
  Mollusca 
  developed 
  at 
  an 
  early 
  age 
  and 
  

   remained 
  with 
  him 
  all 
  his 
  life. 
  Originally 
  he 
  formed, 
  by 
  collecting, 
  

   exchange, 
  etc., 
  a 
  large 
  general 
  collection 
  of 
  all 
  branches; 
  then, 
  by 
  

   degrees, 
  he 
  began 
  to 
  specialize, 
  and 
  one 
  by 
  one 
  he 
  parted 
  with 
  various 
  

   groups 
  until 
  his 
  collection 
  became 
  composed 
  mainly 
  of 
  Helicoid 
  land 
  

   shells 
  and 
  their 
  allies, 
  some 
  Bulimoid 
  groups, 
  and 
  the 
  Terrestrial 
  

   Operculates. 
  A 
  regular 
  student 
  at 
  the 
  British 
  Museum, 
  it 
  will 
  be 
  

   hard 
  to 
  visualize 
  the 
  " 
  Shell 
  Gallery" 
  without 
  his 
  presence 
  and 
  that 
  

   of 
  Mr. 
  Edgar 
  Smith, 
  I.S.O. 
  

  

  A 
  man 
  of 
  retiring 
  disposition, 
  he 
  hesitated 
  to 
  add 
  largely 
  to 
  the 
  

   vast 
  accumulation 
  of 
  moUuscan 
  literature, 
  but 
  his 
  knowledge 
  was 
  

   ever 
  at 
  the 
  service 
  of 
  students, 
  eminent 
  or 
  humble 
  equally, 
  and 
  one 
  

   has 
  only 
  to 
  turn 
  over 
  the 
  pages 
  of 
  any 
  periodical 
  or 
  textbook 
  to 
  see 
  

   how 
  much 
  others 
  have 
  been 
  indebted 
  to 
  him. 
  Few 
  there 
  are 
  who 
  

   have 
  not 
  turned 
  to 
  him 
  for 
  help 
  in 
  a 
  difficulty, 
  and 
  readily 
  was 
  that 
  

  

  