78 
The Irish Naturalist. 
OBITUARY. 
SIR CHARLES BALL, BART., M.D. 
Scientific circles in Dublin are the poorer for the death of Sir Charles Ball, 
ex-President of the Royal Zoological Society. It would have been strange if 
he had not been a lover of nature. The influence of his father, Dr. Robert 
Ball, on the scientific life of Dublin in his day, and his services to the Royal 
Zoological Society— as Honorary Secretary from 1837 to i857 — ^^^^ i^ot soon 
be forgotten ; and at his home Edward Forbes, William Henry Harvey, Sir 
Richard Owen, William Thompson and Robert Patterson of Belfast — to 
mention but a few — were frequent guests. J. Reay Green, with his Protozoa 
and Coelenterata, lived with the Ball family for some years ; and from the 
cheerfully eccentric and enthusiastic " Joe Green," a favourite companion, 
the boys Robert, Valentine, and Charles imbibed largely the taste for natural 
science which brought them so much pleasure and distinction in after years. 
The association of the family with the Dublin " Zoo " has been worthily 
maintained. Valentine Ball was Honorary Secretary from 1885 till 1895 ; Sir 
Robert was President from 1890 till 1892, when he left Dublin; Sir Charles 
was President from 191 1 till 1916. 
Charles Bent Ball was born at No. 3 Granby Row, Dublin, in 1851. He 
entered Trinity College in 1868, and took his Arts degree with a senior mode- 
ratorship in Natural Science in 1871. His entry into the Medical School had, 
however, given a definite line to his scientific studies, and, after winning a 
medical scholarship in 1870, he completed his professional course in 1872. 
The travelling prize which he won in the latter year led him to study surgery 
in Vienna. Of his career as a surgeon it is not our privilege to write here ; it 
may be briefly mentioned that his affection for his old university was fitly 
crowned by his appointment to succeed Sir George Porter in the Regius Pro- 
fessorship of Surgery in 1895. He was President of the University Biological 
Society in 1885. 
Holidays were to him golden opportunities for botanical and zoological 
pursuits. In his college days there were adventures on the south coast of 
Ireland with one of his contemporaries, trawling and dredging as far off as 
the Nymph Bank, in craft of doubtful seaworthiness. Out of these, later on, 
arose his participation in expeditions off the south-west coast organised by 
the Dredging Committee of the Royal Irish Academy. His share of the work 
is thus described in the report of the cruise of the "Lord Bandon," in 
July, 1886 :— 
•'• C. B. Ball, M.D., F.R. C.S.I. —To have charge of the purely fishing ope- 
rations, to examine all fish for parasites, and to eviscerate the fish and pre- 
serve their viscera in spirits. . . . The practical experience of Dr. Ball in 
matters pertaining to yachting and fishing proved most valuable : fortunately,, 
his professional services were not required." 
