Obituary — Henri Milne Edicards. 479 



Edwards was selected to succeed him in the Academy of Sciences 

 in the Departments of Anatomy and Zoology. 



The Notice of his works on this occasion included a resume of 

 sixty-six original memoirs, apart from numerous articles inserted in 

 the Dictionnaire Classique d'Histoire Naturelle, and other similar 

 publications. In this same year Edwards began the superintendence 

 of the new edition of Lamarck's Histoire Naturelle des non-vertebres, 

 continued to 1845 ; and he was now charged with the class of 

 anatomy and comparative physiology until then under the direction 

 of Geoffrey Saint-Hilaire. These appointments, however, do not 

 appear to have interfered with the progress of his special pursuits. 

 In 1839, after further researches on the Coasts of la Manche, etc., 

 continued the year following at Nice, he published, in a series of 

 memoirs, the facts which he had gathered concerning the embryology 

 and comparative anatomy of the Ascidians. Herein he gave the 

 first definite account of the mode of reproduction bj'^ budding. The 

 development of beings which before had never been utilized in the 

 comparative study of animals appeared to him to constitute a subject 

 of the highest value ; and his speculations show how great a part 

 embryology plays in zoological science. In 1841 he succeeded his 

 friend J. V. Audouin as Professor of Entomology at the Museum of 

 the Faculty of Sciences. Bent on making progress with the study 

 of marine animals, Edwards conceived the idea of dredging up 

 specimens from the bottom of the sea, particularly at great depths, 

 and of bringing to light a submarine world of animal existence then 

 unknown. The appliances for dredging were at that time of a 

 primitive description, and he did not hesitate to risk his life in 

 diving operations. This happened on the coast of Sicily, during 

 a voyage undertaken in company with A. de Quatrefages and E. 

 Blanchard. The results were considerable, and were explained in 

 the work, Becherches anatomiques et zoologiques faites pendant un 

 voyage sur les cotes de la Sicile. They form a splendid quarto 

 volume of over 850 pages, illustrated with nearly 100 coloured 

 plates. The work is for the most part a corrected report of the 

 series of memoirs contributed to the Annales des sciences natiirelles. 

 On his return in 1844, Edwards was nominated Professor of Com- 

 parative Physiology to the Faculty of Sciences of Paris, and five 

 years later he undertook the functions of Dean of the Sorbonne, an 

 office which he held to the day of his death. The superintendence 

 of the removal of the laboratories was a task which Milne Edwards 

 successfully accomplished, to the great advantage of future students. 

 In April, 1847, he was created an officer of the Legion of Honour, 

 and was promoted, August 31, 1861, to the rank of a commander. 



Jointly with Jules Haime, Milne Edwards published in the 

 Palfeontographical Society's volumes for 1850-54 a Monograph 

 of the British Fossil Corals, and the next year a Monographic des 

 Polypiers fossiles, both subjects being treated in a masterly manner, 

 and forming a most solid contribution to palseontological knowledge. 

 The year succeeding Edwards produced anotlier long memoir — on 

 the Morphology of Crustacea; and very shortly after his work on 



