1908.] Records of the Indian Museum. 3 



No account of Colonel Alcock's zoological work in India would 

 be complete without some reference to his connection with the 

 Asiatic vSociety of Bengal, the scientific collections of which formed 

 the nucleus of the Indian Museum. He became a member of this 

 Society in February 1888, was elected Natural History Secretary 

 in May 1894, General Secretary in April 1895^ and Vice-Presi- 

 dent in February 1901 ; for several 3'Xars his papers were by far 

 the most important contributed to the zoological section of the 

 Society's Journal. 



Colonel Alcock has worked, so far as his service in India is 

 concerned, for his successors rather than himself ; but it is for- 

 tunately impossible to think that his own work for India is finished. 

 We may confidently hope that it will continue for man}' years in his 

 retirement to bear the fruit of his unsurpassed accuracy of obser- 

 vation, his many-sided enthusiasm, and his liter ar}^ talent. As his 

 immediate successor I ma^^ be permitted to express m}^ gratitude 

 not only for the zoological knowledge acquired from him and for his 

 unfailing kindness in the Museum and in private life, but also for 

 that sound versatility which prevented the Museum, understaffed 

 as it is now acknowledged to have been, from becoming a lumber- 

 room with one corner set in order by a specialist. The admirable 

 organization of his office, which enabled his successor to take up 

 the threads of routine mechanically, is another matter for which it 

 is impossible to be too grateful : although changes will neces- 

 sarily take place as the Museum grows and develops, the ground- 

 work will alwa^'s be that constructed by Colonel Alcock, too 

 often without recognition and in spite of obstacles of which nothing 

 was known beyond the Museum walls. ■ " " . 



. ; •■" -f ; ■ ■■■ ".' ■ " N. Annandai.e, 

 Calcutta: Supcrinicndent, Indian Museum, 



January 22nd, 1908. ■•' .. ■ ■; ■ Natural History Section. 



