PREFATORY NOTE 
N THE occasion of the retirement from active service of 
John Henry Comstock, Professor of Entomology and 
General Invertebrate Zoology in Cornell University, 
his former students presented to him a fund ($2,500) 
for the establishment of a memorial library of Entomol¬ 
ogy. This fund was then presented by Professor Comstock to 
Cornell University, to keep in trust and to use its income for the 
purposes indicated by the donors of the fund. 
The exercises in connection with the presentation of this memorial 
were held in the Assembly Room, Roberts Hall, Saturday afternoon, 
June 13, 1914. The Floriculture Department had prepared elaborate 
floral decorations; the date ’73, when Professor Comstock was made 
instructor in Entomology, and ’14, the year of his retirement, together 
with a large C, were formed in flowers and hung on the wall back of 
the stage. 
At the hour set for the meeting, the University chimes were rung 
in honor of Professor Comstock, and very appropriately, for he was 
the chime master in 1872-3; and scores that had been arranged by 
him at that time were played. Some of these scores had been 
arranged at the special request of Jennie McGraw, the donor of the 
chimes. 
The exercises were largely attended by former students, col¬ 
leagues, trustees of the University, and other friends of Professor 
Comstock. An especially pleasant feature was the presence of many 
of his college classmates, who were in Ithaca, it being the fortieth 
anniversary of the graduation of their class.* 
♦CONNECTION OF JOHN HENRY COMSTOCK WITH CORNELL UNIVERSITY 
He entered the university in 1869 and graduated with the degree of B.S. in 1874. 
In the spring of 1872 he gave a course upon Entomology and was instructor in this subject 
from 1873 to 1876. In 1876 he became assistant Professor of Entomology and General Invertebrate 
Zoology and continued in that position till 1882 when he became Professor of Entomology and 
General Invertebrate Zoology. 
In 1914 he retired at the age of 65. 
During his connection with Cornell University he acted, during leaves of absence or during 
vacations, in the following capacities: 
Summer vacation of 1872—Advanced work in the Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard 
University. 
1875—Graduate work at Yale University. 
1888-1889—Graduate work at the University of Leipzig. 
In 1877—he gave a course in Zoology at Vassar College. 
1879-1881—he was U. S. Entomologist at Washington, D. C. 
1891-1900 — he was non-resident Professor of Entomology in Stanford University and spent 
his long yearly vacation in this work at Stanford. 
