1025 SMYTH, REAR-ADMIRAL WILLIAM HENRY. 



SOWERBY, GEORGE BRETTINGHAM. 



1026 



Admiralty, in consequence of representations of the extremely defective 

 state of the charts of the Mediterranean Sea, and particularly of the 

 coasts and neighbourhood of Sicily. While engaged in these scientific 

 operations, he was appointed by the Lords of the Admiralty to the rank 

 of commander, September 18, 1815. He married, October 7, 1815, at 

 Messina, Aunarella, only daughter of T. Warringtoii, Esq., of Naples. 

 Captain Smyth was unable, from the subsequent political changes, to 

 execute the design he had originally projected of cutting a meridian 

 through the island, and measuring a permanent base-lino for the final 

 determination of its true position, extent, and form. He was conse- 

 quently obliged to execute the survey on a chronometric basis, connected 

 with geodetical operations. The utmost precision was used in laying 

 down the astronomical data, and the whole was grounded upon the posi- 

 tion of the Observatory at Palermo, as determined by the astronomer 

 Piazzi, and communicated by him to Captain Smyth. The result of 

 these surveys was the publication by the Lords of the Admiralty of an 

 ' Atlas of Sicily,' containing the charts, plans, and views of sea-port 

 towns, aud all the remarkable capes and headlands. As an accom- 

 paniment to the Atlas, but at the same time an independent work, 

 Captain Smyth published a 'Memoir, descriptive of the Resources, 

 Inhabitants, and Hydrography of Sicily and its Islands, interspersed 

 with Antiquarian and other Notices,' 4 to, 1824. In the mean time 

 Captain Smyth, in 1817, was appointed to the Aid, sloop-of-war, and in 

 January 1820, to the Adventure, 6 guns. He was also engaged in 

 completing the survey of the shores of the Adriatic Sea commenced 

 by Napoleon, which he completed in about two years, aud the results 

 of his labours were published by the Imperial Geographical Institute 

 of Milan. 



In 1823 and 1824 Captain Smyth was employed by the Lords of the 

 Admiralty in making a survey of the coasts of the island of Sardinia. 

 He had previously made two visits to the island during the war with 

 France, and now determined to make himself as well acquainted with 

 its general condition and resources as time and his professional duties 

 would allow. The results of his surveys of the coasts and visits to the 

 interior were published in a ' Sketch of the Present State of the Island 

 of Sardinia,' 8vo, 1828, a work full of accurate observations, and of 

 interesting details concerning the antiquities of Sardinia and the very 

 curious manners and customs of the inhabitants. 



Captain Smyth attained the rank of post-captain, February 7, 1824, 

 and paid off the Adventure in the following November. He afterwards 

 settled at Bedford, and built a small observatory in his garden, which 

 he furnished with a transit instrument, a circle, and an equatorial tele- 

 scope. The result of his observations of the heavens was the publication 

 of ' A Cycle of Celestial Objects for the use of Naval, Military, and 

 Private Astronomers, observed, reduced, and discussed by Captain W. 

 H. Smyth,' 2 vols., 8vo, 1844. Vol. I. contains the Prolegomena ; vol. 

 II., the Bedford Catalogue. The Prolegomena contains a sketch of the 

 history of astronomy, an elementary survey of its leading facts, a 

 description of Captain Smyth's own observatory, and advice as to the 

 mode of combining economy with efficiency in the structure and fur- 

 nishing of euoh a building ; and also plans and drawings of instruments. 

 The second volume, besides 850 observations of celestial objects, con- 

 tains a mass of detached remarks, on the history of the objects, on 

 preceding observers, and on astronomy generally. The volumes are 

 not only instructive, but amusing and almost popular. Captain Smyth 

 had published previously 'The Life and Services of Captain Philip 

 Beaver,' 8vo, 1829, and a 'Descriptive Catalogue of a Cabinet of 

 Roman Imperial Large Brass Medals,' 4to, Bedford, 1834. 



Captain Smyth accepted the retirement pension, October 1, 1846. 

 He attained the rank of rear-admiral, May 28, 1853. 



Admiral Smyth's most valuable work, the result of his numerous 

 surveys and observations in the Mediterranean Sea, is entitled ' The 

 Mediterranean, a Memoir, Physical, Historical, and Nautical,' 8vo, 

 1854. The work is divided into five parts, the contents of which are 

 as follows : Part I., ' A Chorographical View of the Shores of the 

 Mediterranean Sea, with especial reference to their Produce and Com- 

 merce.' Part II., ' Of the Currents, Tides, and Waters of the Mediter- 

 ranean Sea.' Part III., ' Of the Mediterranean Winds, Weather, and 

 Atmospherical Phenomena,' Part IV., ' Of the Surveys and Geogra- 

 phical Investigations in the Mediterranean Sea.' Part V., ' Of the 

 Orthography and Nomenclature adopted ; the Geographical Points or 

 Co-ordinates of Latitude, Longitude, and Height of the Mediterranean 

 Shores ; with the Variation of the Magnetic Needle, and other Notanda.' 

 There have since appeared, ' Popular Astronomy, by Francis Arago, 

 translated from the original, and edited by Admiral W. H. Smyth and 

 Robert Grant, Esq.,' vol. 1, 8vo, 1855; 'Biographies of Distinguished 

 Scientific Men,' by Francis Arago, translated by Admiral W. H. Smyth, 

 Rev. Baden Powell, and Robert Grant, Esq., 8vo, 1857 ; and a ' History 

 of the New World, by Girolamo Benzoni, of Milan, showing his Travels 

 in America from A.D. 1541 to 1556, with some Particulars of the 

 Island of Canary, now first translated, and edited by Rear- Admiral W. 

 H. Smyth,' 8vo, 1857. (Printed for the Hakluyt Society.) 



The scientific world has heaped honours in abundance on Admiral 

 Smyth. In 1821 he was admitted a Fellow of the Antiquarian 

 Society, and of the Astronomical Society ; in 1826 he was unanimously 

 elected F.RS. In 1830 he was chosen one of the council of the Geo- 

 graphical Society of London. He was afterwards one of the committee 

 for improving and extending the ' Nautical Almanac.' He has been 



BIOO. JD1V, VOL. VI, 



created a D.C.L., is one of the Board of Visitors of the Royal Observa- 

 tory, and has been vice-president of the Royal Society and the Society 

 of Antiquaries, and! president of the Astronomical Society, and of the 

 Royal Geographical Society. He is also a corresponding and honorary 

 member of several foreign scientific societies, and has had medals and 

 other rewards presented to him by foreign sovereigns and by scientific 

 societies. 



Admiral Smyth has a family of several children. His eldest son, 

 WARINGTON WILKINSON SMYTH, is mining geologist to the Ordnance 

 survey. His second son, CHARLES PIAZZI SMYTH, is astronomer royal 

 for Scotland. In the summer of 1856 Professor Piazzi Smyth under- 

 took the task of transporting a large collection of instruments 

 meteorological and magnetical, as well as astronomical to a high 

 point on the Peak of Tenerifle. He selected two stations, at altitudes 

 above the sea of 8840 and 10,700 feet [respectively ; and obtained 

 important astronomical and magnetical results. The heat radiated 

 from the moon, which has been BO often sought for in vain in a lower 

 region, was distinctly perceptible even at the lower of the two stations. 



SOWERBY, an English family well known from their publications 

 as naturalists and natural history artists. The principal members of 

 this family are as follows : 



SOWERBY, JAMES, was born March 21st, 1757, and died October 

 25th, 1822. His father John Sowerby was a lapidary and lived at 

 Bolt-in-Tun Passage, Fleet-street. His son James was born at Mead 

 Place, Lambeth. Having early evinced a taste for drawing he became 

 a student of the Royal Academy and was articled to Richard Wright, 

 a painter of sea-views. He commenced his profession as a painter of 

 portraits and miniatures, of which many exist in London collections. 

 He also engaged in landscape painting, and for the purpose of painting 

 accurately the plants in the foreground of his pictures he commenced 

 the study of botany. This he did under the direction of Mr. W. 

 Curtis, and afterwards assisted him in the production of the illustra- 

 tions to his botanical works. Sowerby having thus become acquainted 

 with plants, projected one of the most extensive botanical works that 

 has ever been completed in this country. This was the ' English Bo- 

 tany.' In this great work, which contained coloured illustrations of 

 every species of British plant, he was assisted by Sir James Edward 

 Smith, who wrote the descriptions of the plants contained in that 

 work. He also published a folio volume ' On the English Fungi or 

 Mushrooms.' This work contained coloured illustrations of all this 

 family that were then known, and embraced figures of several species, 

 published for the first time. It appeared in parts from 1796 to 1799. 

 In 1802 he commenced a series of illustrations of ' British Mineralogy,' 

 comprising an account of the minerals of Great Britain with figures. 

 In 1806 he published a series of illustrations of animals with the title 

 ' British Miscellany, or coloured figures of new, rare, or little known 

 Animal subjects, many not before ascertained to be natives of the 

 British Isles.' This work was succeeded by another on foreign k mine- 

 rals, 'en titled ' Exotic Mineralogy,' which was published in parts from 

 1811 to 181 7. His last great work was ' The Mineral Conchology of 

 Great Britain,' in which he gave figures of the various forms of fossil 

 shells as well as of other animal remains. Besides these works, which 

 were undoubtedly the most important natural history publications of 

 the day, Mr. Sowerby contributed many papers to the Transactions of 

 scientific societies, more especially to the Linnsean and Geological. 

 He also made a very large collection of specimens in British natural 

 history, including fossils. The Fungi, which he had drawn, he also 

 modelled with his own hand : this collection of models is now in the 

 British Museum. 



Sowerby's labours as an artist, besides those devoted to natural 

 history, were considerable. He published ' A Drawing Book,' and a 

 work on Colours, entitled 'A New Elucidation of Colour.' He was a 

 fellow of the Liunocan, Geological, and Zoological Societies. He left 

 three sons and two daughters. 



* SOWERBY, JAMES DE CARLE, eldest son of the above, was born at 

 Stoke-Newington on the 5th of June 1787, and is the secretary of the 

 Royal Botanic Society, Regent's Park. He was brought up by his 

 father to his own profession of an artist, but in assisting his father he 

 acquired a considerable knowledge of minerals, plants, and animals. 

 He was more particularly entrusted with the publication of the 

 British Mineralogy and Mineral Conchology. He supplied the chemical 

 arrangement for the former work, and made the original sketches for 

 the latter half of the English Botany. He also engraved the plates 

 for Smith's edition of ' Sibthorp's Flora Graeca,' which were executed 

 from the unrivalled drawings of Ferdinand Bauer. He contributed a 

 large number of the descriptions of the specimens of fossils, figured 

 in the Mineral Conchology. He has also published numerous descrip- 

 tions of fossil shells in the Transactions of the Geological Society, and 

 in many local geological works. On his father's death he became the 

 possessor of the collection of fossil shells, figured in the ' Mineral Con- 

 chology,' which he still holds. In 1838 he took an interest in the 

 establishment of the Botanic Gardens in Regent's Park and was ap- 

 pointed secretary, and to his energy and perseverance the great suc- 

 cess of the Society and Gardens has been in a great measure owing. 

 He is a Fellow of the Linnaean and Zoological Societies. 



SOWERBY, GEORGE BRETTINGHAM, second son of the above James 

 Sowerby, was born at Lambeth on the 12th of August 1788, and 

 died on the 2Cth of July 1854. He studied natural history with 



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