CHAP, xii.] SKETCH BY THE EDITOR 87 



about all sorts of things, but probably the lecturer would 

 have been equally well pleased had none of her own sex 

 put in an appearance. 



In 1882 Miss Ormerod was invited by the Lords of the 

 Committee of Council on Education to become a member 

 of a committee to advise in the improvement of the collec- 

 tions relating to Economic Entomology in the South 

 Kensington and Bethnal Green Museums. The other 

 members of committee were Professor Huxley, Mr. W. 

 Thisleton Dyer, Professor J. O. Westwood, Mr. F. Orpen 

 Bower, Professor Wrightson, and Mr. Moore Colonel 

 Donnelly and Sir Philip Cunliffe Owen being present 

 officially. After serious consideration and a good deal of 

 pressure from influential quarters, Miss Ormerod accepted 

 the invitation and was a most useful member of committee 

 till her withdrawal from it in April, 1886. She continued, 

 however, to assist the supervision of the work, which 

 went on for some time after. At the first meeting she was 

 asked to prepare a scheme for a series of illustrations of 

 Economic Entomology, and her suggestion of classifying 

 injurious insects by the name of leading plant affected, and 

 not by the Natural Orders of the creatures, was accepted. 

 A collection of cases containing natural specimens in all 

 stages of development, as well as accurate drawings of them, 

 though never completed, was made, at first mainly under 

 Professor Westwood's direction, but later on, under Miss 

 Ormerod's supervision. Many of the specimens were taken 

 from Mr. Andrew Murray's earlier contributions. 



The collection was in 1885 removed from Bethnal Green 

 to the Western Exhibition Galleries, South Kensington 

 Museum. The value of Miss Ormerod's services and the 

 esteem in which she was personally held by her associates 

 in connection with the work of the committee, may be 

 gathered from the subjoined letter sent to her by Professor 

 Huxley. 



March 12, 1883. 



DEAR Miss ORMEROD, Many thanks for the trouble you 

 have taken. Your suggestion about utilising the figures 

 which are not specially wanted for our purpose, for schools, 

 seems to me excellent, and I hope you will bring it forward 

 at our next meeting. 



I hope our first discussion has convinced you that we 

 want nothing but to achieve something useful. And as I 

 have at any rate learned how to recognise practical know- 



