Marcu, 1917.] THE ORCHID REVIEW. 59 
a number of his old colleagues being present. He leaves a widow, two 
sons, and three daughters to mourn his loss. 
Pror. ALFRED CoGNniaux.—Information from Belgium has almost been 
cut off by the war, and we have only recently learnt that Prof. Alfred 
Cogniaux, author of the Orchidacee of the Flora Brasiliensis, passed away 
on August 15th last, a few days after reaching his -75th birthday. Born at 
Robechies, Herault, Belgium, on April 7th, 1841, Cogniaux studied at the 
Normal School of Nivelle, and at the age of 21 obtained his Diploma as 
Professor, where he remained for the next ten years, being afterwards. 
appointed Conservator of the Brussels Botanic Garden. After publishing 
Monographs of the large and difficult families, Cucurbitacee and Melas- 
tomacez, he was selected to write an account of the Orchidacee for the 
Flora Braziliensis. This work occupied some thirteen years, the first part 
appearing in 1893 and the last in 1906. For this he obtained the loan of 
Barbosa Rodrigues’ type drawings, and sent them to Kew for comparison 
and to enable copies to be made. He also paid two or three personal visits. 
Cogniaux next contributed a monograph of the Orchids of the West Indies 
to Urban’s Symbole Antillana, in which over 500 species are enumerated 
belonging to nearly 100 genera, this being completed in ryto. To 
cultivators of Orchids, Cogniaux was best known as joint author with A: 
Goossens of the Dictionnaiare des Orchidées, a work in which a large series of 
cultivated Orchids are illustrated by chromo-lithography from paintings by 
the latter. Cogniaux was also a contributor to the later volumes of the 
Lindenia, and of the Journal des Orchidées. His name is commemorated in 
Mormodes Cogniauxii, L. Lind., and Neocogniauxia monophylla, 
Schlechter, the latter a new genus formed in include the plant formerly 
known as Laelia monophylla, and another species not yet known in 
cultivation. 
Oscar Fanyau.—We recently heard from an esteemed correspondent of 
the death of M. Oscar Fanyau, the well-known French Orchidist of 
Hellemmes, and now the Gardeners’ Chronicle cites.from the Petit Paristen 
of February gth an account of the tragic circumstances: ‘‘ Some time ago 
the ‘Kommandantur’ of Hellemmes seized M. Fanyau’s house and 
grounds, leaving the underground floor in the occupation of the proprietor, 
his grandson, and an old servant. M. Fanyau was seventy years of age. 
When copper was requisitioned at Hellemmes, he refused to make the 
prescribed declaration, and, instead, addressed the Commandant thus: 
‘ For two years you have occupied my house. You know its contents. It 
it pleases you to take away my copper ornaments and works of art I cannot 
prevent it; but expect from me no declaration, nor any obedience to a 
German command. I am an old officer of 1870, and I refuse to betray my 
country by giving over to the enemy material for the manufacture of shells 
