REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF FISHERIKS. 173 
member of the Institute of France, appeared in 1904, entitled ‘‘Lcs 
Voyages du Naturaliste Ch. Alexandre Lesueur dans ’Amerique du 
Nord (1815-1837). It was published (1904) in the Journal de la Société 
des Americanistes de Paris (Vol. V) as a special ‘‘Numéro dédié par 
la Société a Poccasion de PExposition Universelle de Saint Louis.” 
It is illustrated by many landscape views reproduced from originals 
of Lesueur. j 
VE: 
Next in order of time comes a work whose like was never seen in 
any other country, and which has never been equaled. An expert in 
ichthyology who should see it for the first time without previous 
knowledge of it, might suppose that the author was an irresponsible 
idiot who had not intelligence enough to appreciate elementary facts. 
An ordinarily bad book might be left unnoticed, but the one in ques- 
tion is so abnormally bad as to be a curiosity of ichthyological litera- 
ture, and interest and wonder must be excited at the variety of errors 
an educated man may commit in a field of which he has no knowledge. 
Now hear who this man was and what positions of honor and profit 
were conferred on him. 
Jerome Van Crowninshield@ Smith was born in Conway, N. H., 
July 20 (or 22), 1800, was graduated at the medical department of 
Brown College in 1818, and again at Berkshire Medical School in 1825 
(or 1822). He became the first professor of anatomy and physiology 
in the latter institution. In 1825 he settled in Boston, was port phy- 
sician from 1826 to 1849, and meanwhile was editor of several medical 
or other periodicals, among which were the Boston Medical Intelli- 
gencer (1823-1826), the Boston Medical and Surgical Journal (1834— 
1856), and the Medical World (1857-1859). In 1854 he was elected by 
the Native American, otherwise called the ‘‘ Know-Nothing” party, 
mayor of Boston, and served a single term (1854-55). Subsequently he 
removed to New York, where his son was resident, and was appointed 
to the professorship of anatomy and physiology in the New York Med- 
ical College. During the war of 1861-1865 ‘‘ he went to New Orleans, 
where he accepted the position of acting inspector-general, with the 
rank of colonel, and he was the chairman of a commission appointed 
by Banks to consider the sanitary condition of the city.” He died at 
Richmond, Mass., at the residence of his sister-in-law, August 21, 1879. 
His obituarist, in his old periodical, the Boston Medical and Sur- 
gical Journal, records that, ‘talthough a man of no great ability, he 
could turn his hand to silent anything. For instance, it is said of 
him that as a college boy he was the champion drummer of his class. 
TEE in life he was 3 altern: ately anatomist, historian, naturalist, poly 
aThere isa Reeser pative een ine different Serene il sketches of Smith as to name (Crownin- 
shield or Crowningshield) and several dates. Crowninshield is the only form of the name in Boston 
directories. 
