320 MELVII.L : OX SIR RAWSON WILLIAM RAWSOX. 



He was, moreover, an adept in botanical research, and during his 

 residence at the Cape, in conjunction with Dr. Pappe, the Colonial 

 botanist, he formed collections which were of the greatest service to 

 Drs. Harvey and Sonder, the authors of the " Flora Capensis." In 

 dedicating to him a genus — Rawsonia — belonging to the natural 

 order Bixineaz, these authors write as follows : — '" The generic name 

 of Rawscmia lucida is bestowed in honour of Rawson W. Rawson, 

 Esq., C.B., Secretary to Government, C.G.H., a gentleman strongly 

 attached to natural history, and joint author of a Synopsis Filicum 

 Africa Australis, and to whom the authors of the Flora Capensis 

 wish to express their sense of obligation for countenance and assist- 

 ance afforded to their undertaking." I recollect his pleasure when 

 I showed him a specimen of this plant (a handsome shrub with white 

 flowers and glossy leaves) in my herbarium, and he declared that Jt 

 was the first time he had had the opportunity of seeing a specimen. 



My personal acquaintance with Sir Rawson did not begin till about 

 twelve or thirteen years ago, when he visited my house at the time 

 of the British Association meeting in 1887. He possessed a particu- 

 larly genial, winning manner, and was always ready to give any 

 information with great good nature on any subject he had studied. 

 As already mentioned, conchology was his favourite science ; he was 

 a collector of the old school, rigidly systematic, and full of reminis- 

 cence of the days of Cuming, Stainforth, Reeve, Broderip, the elder 

 Sowerby, and other men famous in conchology half-a-century ago. 

 He was a great friend of Mr. F. W. Townsend, and encouraged him 

 in the prosecution of his dredging expeditions in the Arabian Sea 

 and Persian Gulf, which for the past six or seven years he has carried 

 out with unusual assiduity and success. Indeed the last time 

 I met Sir Rawson was in June, 1898, at the house of Mr. Townsend's 

 brother-in-law, Dr. Campbell Pope, at Shepherd's Bush, and though 

 much aged and looking very frail, he still continued to take his 

 wonted interest in these later discoveries, notably those of Seal ana 

 fimbriolata, Mitra stephanuclia, and a species which, at Mr. Town- 

 send's request, I had named Sistrum rawsoni. This has been 

 dredged in great quantity subsequently, and might stand, on con- 

 chological grounds alone, equally well as an Eugina, Canthari/s, or 

 a Sistrum. 



All those who knew him will keenly feel the loss of one who com- 

 bined with so kindly a nature the fruits of such large experience in so 

 many fields of research. Indeed, it has been given to few men to 

 possess such varied attainments as did the lamented subject of this 

 notice. 



1 Flora capensis, vol. i, p. 67. 



