SHAW. 



Shaw, Peter, a phyficjan, and contemporary of the 

 former, was the author of feveral works, which enjoyed 

 a confiderable reputation in their day. His firft pub- 

 lication was entitled " New Praftice of Phyfic," in two 

 vohimes, and iirit printed in 1726: it contained a brief 

 defcription of difeafes and the methods of treating them. 

 His next work was an " Enquiry into the Virtues of Scar- 

 borough Spaw Waters," which he viCted during the fea- 

 fon ; it was printed in 1734. In the fame year he pub- 

 liflied alfo " Chymical Ledtures publicly read in London 

 173 1, 1732, and Scarborough 1733." This was deemed 

 a fcientific and valuable work, and was tranflated into 

 French. He publifhed fome minor works, " A Portable 

 L,aboratory," 1731; "On Scurvy," 1736; " E flays in 

 Artificial Philofophy," 1731 ; " On the Juice of the 

 Grape," 1724; and he edited the " Difpenfatory of the 

 College of Phyficians of Edinburgh," in 1727. See Eloy 

 Dift. Hift. de la Med. : and the works mentioned. 



Shaw, George, the younger of two fons of the re- 

 verend Timothy Shaw, was born December i6th, 1 75 I, at 

 Bierton, in Bnckinghamfhire, of which place his father was 

 vicar. He (hewed, at a very early age, a great propenfity 

 to ftudy, and when he was only four years old, inftead of 

 following the amufemcnts common to young children, he 

 ufually entertained himfelf with books, or by the fide of 

 ditches and rivulets catching infefts, and taking them home, 

 and would fpend all his leifure time in watching their motions 

 and examining their ftrufture. He was educated entirely 

 by his father, and before he was fourteen years of age, his 

 proficiency was fuch as allowed him to enter with great ad- 

 vantage upon a courfe of college ftudies. In 1765 he was 

 entered at Magdalen-hall, Oxford, where he was no lefs dif- 

 tinguifhed by the regularity of his conduA, than by an un- 

 common diligent application to his ftudies. In 1769 he was 

 admitted to the degree of B.A. and in May 1772 to that of 

 M.A. In order that he might affill his father in his clerical 

 duties, he took Orders, and was ordained deacon in 1774, 

 at Buckdcn, by Dr. Green, bifhop of Lincoln, and regu- 

 larly performed the duty at Stoke and Biickland, two cha- 

 pels, each three miles apart from the mother church. As 

 foon as an opportunity offered, he laid afide his tiieological 

 career, which was never quite congenial to his mind, and 

 went to Edinburgh, to qualify himfelf for the pi-ofe(Iion of 

 phyfic. Having attended the leftures of Black, Ciillen, 

 and other eminent profefibrs for three years, he returned to 

 Oxford, where he was appointed deputy botanical lefturcr. 

 In this office he acquired much celebrity. He had been ap- 

 pointed to his office by Dr. Sibthorp, the botanical pro- 

 feffor, who was then upon the eve of fctting out upon his 

 travels into Greece. (See Sibthorp.) Upon the death of 

 this gentleman. Dr. Shaw became candidate for the vacant 

 profefforfhip, in which he would unqueflionably have been 

 fuccef^ful, had not an old ftatute been found, which pro- 

 hibits a pcrlon in orders from filling the office. In 1787 he 

 was admitted to the degrees of batchelor and do£lor of 

 medicine : it appears that at this time he had removed from 

 Magdalen-hall to Magdalen college. In the fame year he 

 removed to London, where he praftifed as a phyfician. 

 Shortly afccr this, feveral gentlemen, dillinguifiied for their 

 attachment to the Itudy of, and eminent for their acquirements 

 iji natural hillory, eltablifhed a fociety for the advancement 

 of this fcience, under the denomination of the Linnsean So- 

 ciety. Dr. (now fir James) Smith was elevated to the prc- 

 fidency, and Dr. Shaw was nominated one of the vice- 

 prefidents. To the Tranfaftions of this Society Dr. Sliaw 

 contributed the following papers. " Defcription of the 

 STyLEPHORi's Cordaitu," which fee ; " Defcription of the 



Vol. XXXII. 



Cancer Stagnalis;" " Remarks on the Scolopendra Elee- 

 trica and Scolopendra Subterranea ;" " A Note to Mr. 

 Kirby's Defcription of the new Species of Hirudo ;" 

 " Account of a minute Ichneun-.on ;" " Defcription of the 

 Species of Myfteria ;" " Defcription of the Mus Burfarius, 

 and Tubularia Magnifica." 



Dr. Shaw at this period delivered a courfe of leftures at 

 the Leverian Mufeum, and never failed, as well before, as 

 after, that rich and magnificent colletlion was removed from 

 Leiceflcr Fields, to attraft very large and fcientific au- 

 diences. In 1789 Dr. Shaw began to publifh " The Na- 

 tuialill's Mifceliany," which came out in monthly numbers, 

 and continued to his deceafe, when 286 parts had been 

 publiflied, and, according to the biography of the author 

 given in the Gentleman's Magazine, a pofthumous number, 

 with an index, was to terminate the work, which is defcribed 

 as a moll beautiful andextenfive production, comprifing, in 

 1064 plates, figures of the more curious and remarkable 

 produitions of the three kingdoms of nature, more particu- 

 larly of the animal kingdom, with defcriptions in Latin and 

 Englifh. In this year Dr. Shaw was elefted a fellow of 

 the Royal Society, and in 1790 he projefted a work in 

 4to. entitled " Speculum Linnxum ; or Linnaean Zoology," 

 but it probably did not promife fuccefs, as a fingle number 

 only appeared. In 1791 Dr. Shaw became a candidate for 

 the office of a librarian in the Britifh Mufeum, and his qua- 

 lifications, which were of the tirft order, procured him the 

 appointment of affiftant keeper of the natural hiftory. He 

 now quitted the duties of phyfician, and devoted himfelf 

 entirely to refearches in natural fcience. Between the 

 years 1792 — 6, appeared the following work ; " Mufsei Le- 

 veriani explicatio Anglica et Latina, opera et ftudio Georgii 

 Shaw, M.D. F. R.S. Adduntur figu;:c elegantur fculptse et 

 coloratx. Impenfis Jacobi Paikinfon." In 1794 Dr. Shaw, 

 in cnnjunftion with Dr. Smith and Mr. Sowerby, engaged 

 in a fptendid publication, illuflrative of the accellions which 

 had been made to natural fcience on the (horcs of New Hol- 

 land. The animals peculiar to that country were defcribed 

 by Dr. Shaw in a work entitled " The Zoology of New 

 Holland ;" the figures were delineated by Mr. Sowerby ; 

 and the botanical part was written by Dr. Smitli, and pub- 

 lifhed under the title of " The Botany of New Holland." 



Sixty large plates publifhed by Miller, the editor of the 

 Gardener's Diftionary, under the title of " Various Siibjcifts 

 in Natural Hiilory, wherein are delineated Birds, Animals, 

 and many curious Plants," being judged dcfeftive from 

 want of letter-prefs, Dr. Shaw lupplicd tlie deficiency in a 

 work entitled " Cimclia Phyfica : Figures of rare and cu- 

 rious Quadrupeds, Birds, &c. together with feveral moft 

 elegant Plants, engraved and coloured from the Subjefts 

 thcmfelvcs : whh Defcriptions by George Shaw, NI. D. 

 F.R.S." 



In the year 1800, Dr. Shaw began his great work, entitled 

 " General Zoology, or Natural Hiilory, with Plates from 

 the belt Authorities, and moft feleft Specimens." This work 

 had proceeded to the eighth volume during the lifetime of 

 the author, and a ninth was left ready for the prefs. In this 

 work he intended to comprifc the wliule of the hiftory of 

 the animal world. It began with quadrupeds, and had 

 proceeded through fifhes, amphibia, infcds, and part of the 

 birds. The Linnxan arrangement, with occafional varia- 

 tions, has been purfucd throughout. 



In the years 1806 and 1807, Dr. Shaw delivered a courfe 

 of zoological Icfturcs, which were publifhed in 1809 in 

 two large volumes 8vo. In the firft nine leftures the author 

 has comprefled the lubllance of what he had delivered in the 

 General Zoology, and in the three remaining leftuics is 

 3 F a (ketch 



