284 Obituary— Mr. Wm. Reed, F.G.S. 



to the Society of the valuable geological collection of their respected 

 Vice-President, William Reed, Esq., F.Gr.S. The collection presented 

 by Mr. Reed has been formed at a great cost over a period of many 

 years, and has been well known to geologists as one of the most 

 valuable private collections in the United Kingdom. The Council 

 congratulate the Society on its possession, as tending to raise the 

 Museum to the first rank among similar scientific Institutions in 

 this country." 



The collection presented by Mr. Reed consists of: — 1. A complete 

 set of shells of the land, freshwater, and marine mollusca of Great 

 Britain, compi'ising several forms first ascertained to be still living 

 members of the British Fauna during the dredging expedition of the 

 " Lightning "and " Porcupine." 2. An extensive collection of mam- 

 malian remains from English Post-Tertiary deposits, remarkable 

 among which, for their fine state of preservation, are the teeth and 

 bones of Rhinoceros, Horse, Hippopotamus, Urus, Megaceros, 

 Elephant, Bear, Lion, Hyaena, Beaver, etc. 3. A large series of shells 

 of the same period, from fluviatile and marine deposits, in various 

 parts of England, Scotland, and Ireland. 4. A magnificent collection 

 of fossils from the Norwich and Coralline Crags. The suite of verte- 

 brate remains, especially, is of great value. This is probably the 

 finest private collection of Crag fossils in England, and it is doubtful 

 whether it can be equalled in any of our great public museums. 

 5. A fine series of plant remains from the beds of Bovey Tracey, 

 Mull, and Antrim. A collection of Miocene shells from the neigh- 

 bourhood of Bordeaux and Cannes. 6. A large collection of Eocene 

 fossils in a beautiful state of preservation, in which the sevei-al 

 subdivisions of the deposits of that period in England are fully 

 rejaresented. 7. An extensive assemblage of fossils from the Chalk, 

 Greensand, Gault, Neocomian, and Wealden. 8. A ver}^ large and 

 valuable series of Jurassic fossils. 9. A series of British Palaeozoic 

 fossils, especially rich in Cai-boniferous limestone fossils from the 

 neighbourhood of Settle (upwards of 200 species). A most important 

 feature from a scientific point of view in Mr. Reed's collection is the 

 great care which has been taken to indicate, by labels, the exact 

 locality from which the several specimens have been obtained, so 

 that thorough reliance may be placed on them. 



In December, 1880, Mr, Reed made a second presentation to the 

 Society. This consisted of a collection of specimens formed by the 

 late Mr. Edward Wood, F.G.S., of Richmond, Yorkshire, and since 

 known as the " Wood Collection." This, although by no means 

 equal to the one previously presented, is yet a collection of gi-eat 

 value to geologists, being particularly rich in Yorkshire fossils. 

 Four great collections had up to that date been formed in Yorkshire 

 during the last half century — namely, those of Mr. Bean and Mr. 

 Leckenby, of Scarborough ; Mr. Wood, of Richmond ; and Mr. Reed, 

 of York. Of these, a considerable portion of Mr. Bean's fossils were 

 purchased by the Yorkshire Philosophical Society in 1860 for £200, 

 and two of the other collections — Mr. Wood's and Mr. Reed's — have 

 by the public-spiritedness and liberality of the last-named gentlemen 



