1895 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE. 



765 



the hospital-records, below. No words of mine 

 could add force to them. 



Shortly after the introduction of the English 

 sparrow into this country. Mr. Malin express- 

 ed to me his indignation of what seemed to him 

 such folly, in language somewhat as follows: 

 "Brother Lorenzo, if the men who imported 

 this pestiferous bird knew as much about it as 

 I do, some would think hanging was almost too 

 good for them ! My father was a small farmer; 

 and I can well remember that, just as soon as 

 the wheat had reached a growth that tempted 

 these marauders, we boys were sent into the 

 harvest-fields before daybreak with a lunch to 

 frighten away the sparrows, as soon as they 

 made their appearance; and there we stayed 

 until it was almost too dark for us to see our 

 hands before us." 



And then, growing more indignant at the bad 

 work that had been so ignorantly undertaken, 

 he went on: " Why, brother, in many parts of 

 Europe a premium is paid for the heads of 

 sparrows; and in some municipalities a certain 

 portion of the taxes must be paid in the heads 

 of this pest." 



What immense injuries have followed similar 

 carelessness in the introduction of the Eng- 

 lish rabbit into Australia, the Scotch thistle in- 

 to Canada, and the gipsy-moth into Massachu- 

 setts! I remember well the attempt of the 

 Commissioner of Agriculture, under President 

 Lincoln, to introduce the Mexican honey-hornet 

 into this country — an insect whose saw-like 

 mandibles are so admirably fitted for piercing 

 the skins of all kinds of fruits. Fortunately the 

 colony of these insects, which was established 

 in one of the public parks of Washington, per- 

 ished after the first hard frost. The late Sam- 

 uel Wagner, editor of the American Bee Jour- 

 nal, pointed them out to me before they died. 



Dayton, O., Aug. 13. L. L. Langstroth. 



WILLIAM UUNN MALIN, A FAITHTUL STEWARD. 



Mr. Malin entered tue institution as Clerk, March 

 29, 1824, and remained in its service for nearly sixty 

 years. At the expiration of this time, on account 

 of his advanced age, lie was relieved from duty by 

 the Board, which, in consideration of hi? faithful, 

 devoted, and long service, pensioned him, and offer- 

 ed him a liome iu the hospital during- the remainder 

 of his life. He died of pneumonia, in his apart- 

 ments at the Hospital, August 2, 1887. When he 

 first came to this country as an immigrant from 

 England, in ;1823, he was obliged fto, work as driver 

 of a brewer's wagon; and out of his savings he re- 

 turned, before the end of a year, to his parents, his 

 passage-money to America. He was fortunate in 

 finding more congenial occupation in tlie Hospital. 

 Henumhered the hooks i n thn librarj', and made a 

 catalogue, wlii ch lie presi/nted to the Board, Janu- 

 ary 26, 1S2!», and it was oi'dered pulilislied.CIn Sep- 

 tember of tiie same year it was^issued.Together 

 with an intoductory sketch, also prepared by him, 

 of the history of the Medical Library. Two years 

 late r, by direction of t he Managers, Mr. Malin com- 

 piled a small work entitled, " Some Accountof the 



Pennsylvania Hospital; its Origin, Objects, and 

 Present State," which was also published by the 

 Board. In 1840, when the Departmenv, for the In- 

 sane was opened in West Philadelphia, he was ap- 

 pointed Steward, and assisted in organizing the new 

 administration. Nine years later he was made 

 Steward, and prairtically Superintendent, of the 

 Department for the Sick and Injured, which posi- 

 tion he filled until 1883, when he was retired from 

 active duty. About this time he was complimented 

 by having a dinner given in his honor by the As- 

 sociation of Ex-Resident Physicians, many of whom 

 had been associated with him during his long ser- 

 vice in the institution. The library was used in 

 which to hold the banquet; there were flowers and 

 speeches, and the faithful Steward occupied the 

 seat of honor. On this occasion a life-sized por- 

 trait of Mr. Malin, in oil, was unveiled and formally 

 presented to the Hospital by the Association of Ex- 

 Resident Physicians. 



William Malin, the grandfather of Mr. Malin, was 

 a resident of Preston Capes, Northamptonshire, Eng- 

 land, where his son, John Malin, was born, who re- 

 moved to Woodford Halse, and married Mary, the 

 daughter of Joh n Gunn, of Banbury; of this union 

 William G. Malin sprang, a scion of good English 

 stock. His parents were religious, and of Moravian 

 connection. The grandfather on the mother's side 

 was a descendant of Olaf Rolfson, a noted Viking 

 and Vice-Jarl under the Earl of Orkney and Caith- 

 ness ; the youngest son of the adventurous Norse- 

 man was named Cuuni, and hence the surname 

 Gunn arose in the family that claimed through its 

 founder relationship to tlie" Lords of the Isles" 

 and " Kings of Man," famous in story and song. 



William Gunn Malin was born in Woodford, near 

 Byfleld, Northamptonshire, England, November T, 

 1801; he had scant schooling at Eydon, as his father 

 intended to equip him for no higher station than 

 that of market-carrier to Banbury and Deventry. 

 Being impressed with the idea that he was destined 

 for better things, he took passage in a sailing-ship, 

 the " Massasoit," for Baltimore; but a storm drove 

 the vessel into the port of Boston, by which means 

 he providentially escaped the danger of yellow 

 fever which was then epidemic in his original place 

 of destination. He made his way to Germantown, 

 now a part of the city of Philadelphia, and found 

 occupation temporarily. A year later he consider- 

 ed himself most fortunate in receiving the appoint- 

 ment as Clerk, and subsequently was ajipointed 

 Librarian. 



His handwriting was very legible, and so regular 

 that it was almost like engraving. Mr.^Malin was 

 largely self-educated, and was a modest and diligent 

 student. He loved books, especially old black-let- 

 ter English volumes, preferably Bibles and works 

 relating to the history of the Moravian Church, of 

 which he was a life-long consistent member. Much 

 of his leisure lime was occupied in poring over his 

 choice possessions, wliich included works in Latin, 

 Danish, Dutch, French, German, Italian, with which 

 he made so much progress as to be able to translate 

 the portions in which he took the most interest. At 

 his death he bequeathed his library in trust for the 

 Moravian Church, at Bethlehem, Pennsylvania; 

 and it was regarded as a particularly valuable col- 

 lection, since it possessed unique copies and rare 

 works on the early history of the Church, the fruit 

 of many years' patient studying of catalogues and 



