December 21, 18S3.] 



SCIENCE. 



785 



scriptions of new forms. This work was never 

 completed, but extended to tlie end of the 

 Ceramb3-cidae. The interruption of the work 

 by the war made an interval of time in which 

 the edition of the earlier-issued parts became 

 exhausted, and, to a certain extent, antiquated 

 from more recent studies. The results of this 

 book are alnnidanth" shown in the vast increase 

 in the number of intelligent students and col- 

 lectors, accompanied by a further demand for 

 the exhausted edition, rendering a new one 

 necessary. 



Before tlie new edition could be prepared, it 

 became imperative to study the Khynchoi)hora ; 

 and at this point LeConte made one of the 

 boldest strokes of his career in the isolation of 

 that series from other Coleoptera, and b}" pro- 

 posing a classification of them as remarkable 

 in novelty as it was true to nature. This was 

 followed bj' the ' Species of Rhvnchophora,' 

 published as a separate volume bj- the Ameri- 

 can philosophical society. 



The preparatory- studies having been thus 

 comi)leted, LeC'onte looked forward with pleas- 

 ure to an entirely new work to replace the old 

 ' Classification,' and mv co-operation was in- 

 vited in the preparation of monographic essays. 

 Two vears ago, his health then slightly failing, 

 he expressed the desire that the autljorship of 

 the new work should be equally divided : and 

 in January, 1882, the work was begun. It was 

 completed in March, 188.3, in time for him to 

 realize that it had been at least well received. 

 To speak further of this work would, for obvi- 

 ous reasons, be inappropriate : suffice it to say, 

 that his first edition made the ground-work of 

 the second, and his spirit actuated the embel- 

 lishment of the superstructure. 



Since the completion of this work, his health 

 has not admitted of much study : but he con- 

 tinued his work until within a few days of his 

 death, and the incomplete manuscript will be 

 published in the form he desired. 



While LeConte's reputation will be based 

 on his entomological writings, he by no means 

 limited himself to this field. Jlention has al- 

 ready been made of several important geologi- 

 cal contributions. There are others of less 



moment. He has contributed a number of 

 articles on vertebrate paleontology, and several 

 on existing mammals. His ' Zoological notes of 

 a visit to Panama' {Proc. Pliilad. acad., 1852) 

 illustrate the extent of his study in another 

 direction. At least one article on purely' social 

 science has emanated from his pen. 



In a general review of his writings, LeC*t)nte 

 is found remarkably free from controversial 

 tendencies. He gave to science the best re- 

 sults of his labor, knowing that what was 

 worthy- would in time be adopted. I know 

 that he was better pleased to have errors of 

 his own corrected than to correct those of an- 

 other. He was above the limit of those petty 

 jealousies which too often prevail between active 

 workers in the same field. Those who sought 

 his advice or assistance, either in person or by 

 correspondence, were alwa3's made welcome ; 

 and the numerous cabinets determined by him 

 gave evidence alike of his industry' and lib- 

 erality. The result of LeConte's labors has 

 been the elevation of colcopterologv in Amer- 

 ica from a traditional knowledge to a science 

 with a permanent and distinctive literature. 



LeConte was president of the American as- 

 sociation for the advancement of science in 

 1874 ; and his address on retiring, regarding 

 the relations of the geographical distribution 

 of Coleoptera to paleontology, opened a new 

 field for the thoughtful student. 



No prominent public position was ever held 

 by LeConte. He was urged by his friends for 

 the position of commissioner of agriculture ; 

 and, while he received an indorsement of which 

 any man might be proud, the choice of Presi- 

 dent Hayes gave it to another. That his emi- 

 nence as a naturalist was recognized is shown 

 in the numerous societies, at home and abroad, 

 of which he was elected a member. Of the 

 entomological societies of London, France, and 

 Berlin, he was made an honorary member, — a 

 distinction attainable by few, from the limited 

 number allowed by the societies' rules. At 

 the time of his death he was president of the 

 American entomological society, and a vice- 

 president of the American philosophical so- 

 ciety. 



