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SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XL. No. 1033 



was received in private schools and from spe- 

 cial tutors, and then lie studied law, but was 

 never admitted to the bar. As he grew to 

 manhood he developed an interest in natural 

 science and became especially interested in 

 fishes, frequently visiting the markets along 

 the river fronts in New York for the purpose 

 of examining the uncommon varieties that 

 were received there. During the winter of 

 1857-58 he visited Barbados, Trinidad and 

 other West Indian Islands for Mr. D. Jackson 

 Stewart, for whom he collected shells and vari- 

 ous specimens of natural history. The re- 

 sults of his explorations were worked up 

 mainly in the library of Mr. J. Carson Bre- 

 voort, and published in the Annals of the New 

 York Lyceum of Natural History and in the 

 Proceedings of the Philadelphia Academy of 

 Natural Sciences. It was in this library (the 

 best of its kind in the United States at that 

 time) of this patron of science that he laid the 

 foundations for that great knowledge of books 

 and authorities which, combined with a splen- 

 did memory, served him so well in his after 

 years. In 1859 he visited Newfoundland and 

 studied its. fauna, and in 1860 prepared a 

 report on the fishes of the northern boundary 

 for the State Department of the United States. 



In 1861 he came to Washington and was 

 given the teaching of zoology at Columbian, 

 now George Washington, University, with 

 which institution he remained connected until 

 his death, althoxigh subsequent to 1910 he was 

 emeritiTs professor of zoology. Por much of 

 the time during this long period he met his 

 classes regularly, considering it a privilege to 

 contribute his services to the university with- 

 out compensation. Even after his retirement 

 he continued his active interest in the depart- 

 ment which he had organized and freely con- 

 tributed aid and advice on all matters, de- 

 voting special attention, however, to the post- 

 graduate work. 



Almost immediately after settling in Wash- 

 ington, Gill came under the influence of Pro- 

 fessor Spencer P. Baird, who was quick to 

 appreciate his ability, and who found con- 

 genial work for him in the library of the 

 Smithsonian Institution, of which he had 

 charge from 1862 until 1866. When the li- 



brary was transferred to the National collec- 

 tions in the Capitol he continued in that 

 service until 1874 and was for a time assistant 

 librarian of the Library of Congress. He then 

 severed his connection with the library and 

 thereafter devoted his attention almost exclu- 

 sively to studies in natural history, working 

 largely in the libraries of the Smithsonian 

 Institution and the U. S. National Museum, 

 holding the honorable appointment of asso- 

 ciate in zoology on the scientific staff of the 

 museum subsequent to 1894. 



His activity as a zoologist was unceasing 

 and his contribution to science included over 

 five hundred separate papers, the greatest 

 number of which have been on ichthyology. 

 Of these many appear in the Proceedings of 

 the Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sci- 

 ences, but since 1878 the Proceedings of the 

 U. S. National Museum have been his favorite 

 medium of publication. His work was chiefly 

 on systematic ichthyology, especially in the ar- 

 rangement of fishes in classes, orders and 

 families, yielding a more natural and re- 

 stricted distribution of genera which is now 

 universally accepted in the United States, and 

 largely so in Europe. While no monumental 

 work is left to us from his pen, nevertheless 

 in nearly every zoological work his name will 

 be found in connection with the descriptions, 

 nomenclature, or classification of the speci- 

 mens under discussion. Among the more im- 

 portant monographs prepared by him are the 

 following : " Synopsis of Fresh-water Pishes "' 

 (1861) ; " Arrangement of the Pamilies of 

 Mollusks " (1871) ; " Arrangement of the 

 Pamilies of Mammals " (1872) ; " Arrange- 

 ment of the Pamilies of Pishes " (1872) ; 

 " Catalogue of the Pishes of the East Coast 

 of North America" (1861-73); "Principles 

 of Zoogeography " (1884) ; " Scientific and 

 Popular Views of Nature Contrasted ; " " Ac- 

 count of Progress in Zoology " (1879-84) ; 

 " Parental Care among Fresh-water Pishes " 

 (1906) ; " Contributions to the Life-histories of 

 Pishes " (1909). He wrote most of the volume 

 on fishes and much of that on mammals in the 

 " Standard Natural History " and was the 

 author of numerous addresses and reviews that 

 appeared in Nature, SciEisroE and other seien- 



