134 



THE NATURALIST. 



plant must be, and we were not long in 

 finding that the Cow Wheat, Melampy- 

 rum pratense, growing under the sweet 

 gale, was the only strange plant not com- 

 mon to every part of the moss ; a clue 

 once gained, I have never let it rest since, 

 and on Sunday last, being at Burnt Wood, 

 in Staffordshire with Mr. Greening and 

 H. Y. Moss, the moment I saw the plant 

 growing we began to hunt for this long 

 sought for larva, and soon Mr. Greening 

 handed me a pug larva feeding on the 

 small flower of this plant, which we have 

 no doubt is EupetJiecia hegrandaria, and I 

 write now, not to describe the larva, but 

 to call attention to this plant, before it is 

 too late in the season, that all who have 

 the plant near them, and wish to breed the 

 insect, may know that it is still feeding in 

 the flowers, eating the stamens, and is 

 rather like the larva of E. venosata, with 

 narrower extremities, the broad dorsal lines 

 being sometimes more pinky than in that 

 species, and the outer lines well defined. — 

 C. S. Gregson, August 10th, 1865. 



Hugh Cuming, Esq., F.L.S., C.M.Z.S., 



died after a short illness, at his residence in 

 Oower-street on the 10th of August last. 

 This eminent conchologist was born in Feb- 

 ruary, 1791, at West Alvington, Kings- 

 bridge, Devon. At this place, where 

 shells abounded, was developed and fos- 

 • tered that taste for the study of Conchology 

 which eventually became his ruling passion, 

 and which in after life made him celebrated 

 in that particular branch, of NaturalHistory. 

 At the usual age Mr. Cuming was ap- 

 prenticed to a sailmaker, and subsequently 

 settled himself, in this business, at Val- 

 paraiso, where he remained until 1827, 

 when he relinquished business, built him- 

 self a yacht and sailed for a cruize among 

 the islands of South Polynesia. The first 

 place he touched at was the little island 

 of Juan Fernandez, and proceeding thence 

 in the direction of the Society islands, he 



visited Pitcairn's Island, memorable in his- 

 tory as an instance of an uninhabited 

 island having become colonized by a fine 

 athletic family of christians, speaking 

 English, descendants of the mutineers of the 

 "Bounty." Thirty-five years had passed 

 since the mutiny ; and old John Adams, 

 the good seaman, who had been pressed 

 into it, still survived. Mr. Cuming found 

 him nobly engaged in the pastoral and 

 patriarchal offices, so touchingly described 

 by Captain Beechey, and having spent a 

 week with him in his house, he continued 

 his voyage. The rich Conchological novel- 

 ties that now rewarded Mr. Cuming's 

 toil, induced him to spend upwards of a 

 twelvemonth among the various little 

 known islands of this wide expanse of 

 ocean, and he reached his home laden with 

 Polynesian spoils collected from sea and 

 land. Soon after his return to Yalparaiso, 

 Mr. Cuming commenced preparations for 

 another Conchological voyage, selecting 

 this time the western coast of South 

 America, and after nearly two years explo- 

 ration of this coast, Mr. Cuming returned 

 to England with a very rich collection. 

 It was in 1831, that the scientific meetings 

 of the Zoological Society of London began 

 to be enlivened by the brilliant displays of 

 new shells described from Mr. Cuming's 

 cabinet, by the late Mr. Broderip, and the 

 late Mr. B. Sowerby, while Prof. Owen un- 

 dertook the severer task of describing the 

 anatomy of some of the more interesting of 

 the MoUusks. In 1835 Mr. Cuming 

 proceeded to the Philippine islands. Fur- 

 nished, through the influence of the Earl 

 of Derby, with letters from the authorities 

 at Madrid to the Governor and the Arch- 

 bishop of Manilla, he received every atten- 

 tion and assistance ; everywhere a hospita- 

 ble reception, with apartments, and the 

 best of living followed, and the services of 

 the school children were secured to scour 

 the woods for the snail shells, Mr. 

 Cuming always liberally rewarding their 

 exertions. The natives could not under- 

 stand his object in gathering shells, and 



