98 
The Irish NaiuralisL 
June, 
OBITUARY. 
LIEUT. R. L. VALENTINE. 
One of the saddest aspects of the war is the drain it effects on the 
coming Ufe and spirit of the nation. The death of Lieutenant R. L. 
Valentine on April 30th from wounds received in an attack on the 
British lines near Loos, adds another to the list of scientists who have 
given away their youth and promise for a national ideal. When the 
war broke out he had only just entered upon his scientific career, and 
so had but little opportunity of earning a reputation for himself. That 
he would, however, have done so in time was abundantly clear to those 
who were intimately acquainted with him in his college life and during 
his first efforts at geological work. He possessed that readiness and 
adaptability under difficult circumstances which is a sure earnest of 
ultimate success. 
Robert L. Valentine was born in 1890 at Enniskillen, and was the son 
of W. J. M. Valentine, classical master at Portora. He was educated 
at the High School, Dublin, and thence obtained a scholarship in the 
Royal College of Science for Ireland, where he applied himself to the 
study of natural history and geology. After obtaining the Associateship 
of the College, he devoted much of his time to a study of the Carboniferous 
strata of Hook Head, Co. Waterford, endeavouring to apply to these 
beds the principles of zoning which have recently been employed with 
such success by Dr. Vaughan and other investigators in England. Wliile 
carrying on this work he obtained by competition the post of Geologist 
on the Geological Survey of Ireland, but had not yet entered upon his 
duties when the war broke out. He was among the earliest of those 
who rallied to the colours, and being impatient of the delays attendant 
upon obtaining a commission he enlisted, in August, 19 14, in the 7th 
Battalion, Royal Dublin Fusiliers. Shortly after, however, he was 
offered, and accepted, a commission, being transferred to the 8th 
Battalion. In his subsequent activities as a trainer of scouts and a 
machine-gun officer at Aldershot he showed marked ability, and devised 
a method of increasing the efficiency of the Lewis machine gun. He is 
said to have been extremely popular, both with his men and with his 
brother officers, and those who knew his ready wit and youthful 
enthusiasm will understand that this is no idle praise. 
The peculiar type of ability which goes to the making of a successful 
geologist is of no common occurrence. It is largely a matter of energy 
and adaptability, and these qualities Valentine possessed in a marked 
degree. That he would have been eminently successful in the profession 
he had chosen, those who knew him can have little doubt. 
W. B. W. 
