lviii PROCEEDINGS OF THE GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY. [May I906, 



1870, under the title of ' Observations on the Geology & Zoology 

 of Abyssinia/ in a handsome and well-illustrated volume. 



Back in India by November 1869, the following working seasons 

 were spent in the Nagpur, Hazaribagh, Godaveri, and Ellori 

 districts, while a vacation-trip was taken up the Sikhim Valley 

 to the Tibetan frontier. In the winter of 1871-72, a plan for the 

 detailed survey of Sind was interrupted by Blanford being ordered 

 to join the Persian Boundary-Commission, under Major (afterwards 

 Sir Oliver) St. John, in the same capacity as that in which he had 

 served in Abyssinia. This gave another opportunity for the study of 

 geographical distribution ; and, at the conclusion of the expedition 

 in 1872, Blanford enjoyed two years' home-furlough, during which 

 he worked at his collections : the results of his labours being 

 published in 1872 in the second volume of i Eastern Persia.' 



Beturning to India in 1874, Blanford set to work on the post- 

 poned survey of Sind, where results of great interest, including a 

 remarkably-large collection of echinoderms, were obtained. On the 

 completion of the Sind work in 1877, Blanford, after writing a 

 report on the same for the Survey Memoirs, joined Medlicott 

 (who by this time had become chief of the Survey) in writing the 

 ' Manual of the Geology of India/ an undertaking which will long 

 keep alive the memory of the two authors. Two years (1879- 

 1881) were again passed on furlough in England, at the close 

 of which Blanford was deputed to visit the Geological Congress at 

 Bologna, where he received the Order of St. Maurice & St. Lazarus 

 from H.M. the King of Italy ; and after returning for a short time 

 to Sind, and thus completing 27 years' service on the Indian 

 Survey, he finally retired on a pension in the spring of 1882. Had 

 it not been for a slight seniority on Mr. Medlicott's part, Mr. Blan- 

 ford would undoubtedly have been appointed Superintendent of the 

 Indian Survey; and, to recompense him in some degree for this 

 deprivation, the Government granted him a special allowance above 

 the salary of his grade as Deputy-Superintendent. During his later 

 Indian service he was President of the Asiatic Society of Bengal. 



So early as 1874 Blanford was elected a Fellow of the Boyal 

 Society, and in 1883 he received from the Council of our own 

 Society the award of the Wollaston Medal. In the same year he 

 married Ida Gertrude, daughter of Mr. K. T. Bellhouse, and took 

 up his residence at Campden Hill. Elected on our Council in 1883, 

 Dr. Blanford served as Secretary from 1884 till 1888, when he 

 was elected President ; in the latter office his two addresses dealing 



