Iviii PROCEEDINGS OF THE GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY. [Mayipll, 



The Rev. George Ferris Whidborne was descended from 

 Sir Richard Whidborne, one of the Devonians who provided ships 

 to fight the Spanish Armada, and a founder of the Colony of 

 Newfoundland. He was born in 1846, and died somewhat suddenly 

 on February 14th, 1910, in the 64th year of his age. My first 

 duty as incoming President of the Society was to attend his funeral 

 at his beautiful house at Hammerwood, in the heart of the Weald. 

 He joined the Society in 1876, and several times served on its 

 Council and on the Council of the Paiaeontographical Society. He 

 contributed papers on Inferior Oolite fossils and on the geographical 

 distribution of the Plesiosaurs to the Quarterly Journal ; printed • 

 lists of Devonian fossils, largely from his own collection, in the 

 Proceedings of the Geologists' Association ; described fossils of 

 Lower Devonian if not Silurian affinities from the Morte Slates for 

 Dr. H. Hicks ; and published papers dealing mainly with Devonian 

 fossils in the ' Geological Magazine.' But his great geological 

 work was contributed to the Palaeontographical Society. At first 

 he contented himself with sending numerous brachiopods from his 

 collection to Thomas Davidson to deal with in his great Monograph. 

 But, later, he was prevailed upon to undertake the description of the 

 entire fauna of the Devonian Limestones and of the Marwood and 

 Pilton Beds in a single monograph. This was published, and forms 

 a complete work in three bulky volumes, the excellent illustrations 

 of which were, many of them, contributed at his own expense. 



Much of his life was occupied with hard and self-sacrificing 

 labour on behalf of the National Church ; but the only benefice 

 he held was that of St. George's, Battersea, which he retained for 

 eight years and resigned in 1896. He was connected with many 

 Church Institutions, most of which profited by his open-handed 

 generosity. He took an especial interest in the Church Missionary 

 Society and the Victoria Institute. It was only a comparatively 

 short time before his death that he bought his estate at Hammer- 

 wood and settled down in residence there. His valuable collection 

 of geological specimens and his library have been presented by 

 Mrs. Whidborne to the Sedgwick Museum at Cambridge. His 

 death removes one whose companionship was most genial, who 

 acted as a generous benefactor to several geological causes, a 

 palaeontologist of mark, and a man beloved by many friends. 



Thomas Mhsgrave Heaphy, who had become a Fellow of this 

 Society in 1876, died on March 29th, 1910. He was for many 

 years consulting electrical engineer to the Phoenix Fire Insurance 



