CrtJjJAJfo.H.) BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF THE I ATE THOMAS SAY, ESQ. READ BEFORE THE ACADEMY OF NATURAL SCIENCES PHILADELPHIA, December 16, 1834a V BY BENJAMIN H. COATES, M. D. PUBLISHED BY ORDER OF THE ACADEMY. „v\ Gen/-; PHILADELPHIA: PRINTED BY W. F. GIBBONS, SIXTH AND CHERRY STREETS. 1835. I 4' BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH, &c. During the twenty-two years which have elapsed since the first institution of the Academy, it is re- markable that our body has never, till the present occasion, been called upon to lament the death of one of its founders. That which, according to the usual course of human events, might have been expected to take precedence in the order of time, has occurred in the second place ; and while we have had to de- plore the loss of many of the brightest ornaments and most useful labourers of our association, the shaft of death has never till now, alighted among that little band who first brought it into existence. The body which I have the honour to address, owes its origin to a few active individuals ; and while the feelings of pri- vate friendship naturally revert to the virtues of the deceased, the having assisted in the creation of such an Academy, and promoted its usefulness by a long, steady and active course of scientific labours, forms the strongest claim which his memory can possess to the grateful reminiscences of the public. This is in- deed pre-eminently the case in the present instance ; so large a mass of the early writings of Mr. Say hav- 4 IUOGKAPHICAI. SKETCH OF ing been published in the Journal of the Institution as in a great measure to identify him with it. The same efforts by which our departed fellow member raised the reputation and extended the usefulness of the body to which he belonged, formed the founda- tion of his own ; and it is perhaps not employing too strong a phrase, to allege, that the scholar and his in- fant association found their way to fame together. The family of our deceased fellow member had been settled in Pennsylvania from the time of its first colo- nization. His ancestors by the father's side are un- derstood to have been Huguenots, who emigrated to England in pursuit of religious liberty : and his lineal predecessor, in the fourth degree of proximity, came from England with William Penn, accompanied by others of his family. The integrity and activity of these high principled and determined men, were re- warded by a liberal share of the divine blessing upon the external circumstances which surrounded them. They and their descendants generally lived to an ex- treme age, surrounded by peace and abundance, and enjoying the confidence and respect of their fellow citizens within the colony. His grandfather, Thomas Say, was a very patriarchal man. Educated in the Episcopal church, by his step-father Paschall and his uncle Robinson, he was united, early in the eigh- teenth century, to the religious society of Friends. While in that connection, his personal conduct and character were such as to acquire for him a high es- THOMAS SAY. 5 timation among his friends and acquaintance. The confidence reposed in him was exemplified by his being frequently employed in the care of the estates of deceased persons, and in the guardianship of or- phans ; both of which trusts he conducted to great satisfaction, retaining, long after, the friendship of the parties he had served. It was also exhibited in the respect paid to his religious character; although, as appears by a memoir of his life, published by his son, he differed from the religious association with which he was connected in certain doctrinal princi- ples, inclining strongly to universalism. Dr. Benja- min Say, the immediate progenitor of the subject of these notes, was long known in this city as a skilful and benevolent practitioner of medicine, and enjoyed in that capacity a large share of public confidence and patronage. Having been connected with military proceedings during the war of independence, he joined that seceding portion of the society of Friends, known by the name of Free Quakers. The immediate subject of our memoir was born July 27th, 1787, and was the eldest son of Dr. Ben- jamin Say and Anna, his first wife, a daughter of Benjamin Bonsall, Esq. of Kingsessing. In his early youth he was brought up in rigid compliance with many of the peculiar observances of the society of Friends or Quakers. He received a considerable part of his education at their school at West town, in Pennsylvania; and the remainder of it generally at 6 BIOGKAPHH'M. SKETCH OF the institutions of that religious body. He manifest- ed, at this period, a remarkable docility of temper, a profound and confiding respect for his parents and teachers, and a great fondness for study. He pur- sued, by his own choice, an extended course of reading among the writers of his own language ; hav- ing compiled, at one time, a large volume of poetical extracts, arranged alphabetically. These latter pursuits, however, were not well suited to the bias of his mind : and he soon forsook poetry altogether, devoting himself exclusively to the accumulation of fact or natural truth. At an early period of his life, a near family con- nection with the celebrated naturalist, William Bar- tram, of Kingsessing, induced the young Say, to- gether with several of his acquaintance, to devote a considerable amount of time to collecting objects of natural history for their venerable friend's museum. This occurrence seems to have fixed his destiny: the student, young as he was, felt himself at once in his proper sphere. He immediately commenced the study of natural history; a pursuit which, though occasionally suffering a temporary interruption, was never wholly laid aside for the remainder of his life. The natural gaiety of youth, the attractions of fashion, the multiform allurements which surround a young man of easy fortune, and even the serious claims of a commercial establishment, were all capable of occu- pying his mind but for a short season, to be soon su- THOMAS SAY. 7 perseded by those boundless cravings for knowledge which an Almighty Power had placed within his breast. In the most elated moments of youthful ex- citement, he would abruptly relinquish the occupa- tion in which he was engaged, if an opportunity oc- curred for enriching his collections with an insect; and when, at a subsequent day, in compliance with the earnest wishes of his father, he entered into com- mercial engagements, the future naturalist was found by his friends occupied with those pursuits for which nature had designed him, and leaving the details of business to others. The commercial efforts proved unsuccessful; and Mr. Say, deprived of his patri- mony, instead of endeavouring to repair the loss, re- solved to devote himself exclusively to natural history. From this may be dated the commencement of his purely scientific career: he now began to consider science as a profession. As has so frequently been the case in the lives of learned men, the loss of worldly prosperity seemed the road to higher intel- lectual distinction and more enlarged usefulness. The studies of the youthful naturalist, about this period, underwent a temporary interruption, from his service as a volunteer in the last war between our country and England. In common with several of his friends and relations, he became a member of the first troop of city cavalry, and in that capacity pro- ceeded to Mount Bull: where he remained for some time during the years 1812 and 1813. The break- 8 BIOGKAPHICAL SKETCH OF ing up of this military post, however, soon left him at liberty to return to the pursuits for which he felt so strong an attachment. In pursuance of his recent determination, he had already devoted considerable labour to the study of natural history, and the collection of the natural pro- ductions of our country, when he found the arena of his usefulness suddenly extended by the formation of this Academy. When, on the 25th of January, 1812, the little association which had previously employed itself in pursuits of a more private character, agreed to assume the style and character of our pre- sent institution, it was considered of importance that Thomas Say, though absent from the meeting, should be assumed as an original member. The compliment thus paid to a modest and retiring man, shows, as was intended, the value which was then set upon his ad- hesion by the six others who thus associated him to their number. How amply his subsequent course justified their selection, all the volumes of the Journal, and all the foreign correspondence of the Academy can abundantly testify. He came among them a disciplined naturalist. Such was the effect of private study, that his subsequent acquaintance had no oppor- tunity of witnessing the infancy of his scientific powers. His elementary knowledge was complete; his ac- quaintance with classification adequate, and his power of observing and discriminating, accurate and ready. THOMAS SAY. 9 He was at once prepared for the difficult and labo- rious task of describing and cataloguing American productions in natural history. He was fully fitted at all points for academic usefulness. In the tasks undertaken by Mr. Say, either sepa- rately or with his colleagues, almost every thing was to be done. The study of the invertebral animals was to be introduced to the notice of our citizens. A taste for natural history was to be created and dif- fused. The departments of botany and ornithology, almost the only ones which then received a share of attention in Philadelphia—the one almost confined to the elementary pursuits of a few students of medicine, or young people from schools, ambitious of a more liberal education than they then received; the other, to the curious and admiring readers of Wil- son, were to be furnished with a rallying point; and the popular attention was to be at the same time di- rected to the various other branches. It was not that the studies selected by Mr. Say, then incom- plete, were to be further extended : the studies were to be created, and the students induced to prosecute them. For these purposes, his efforts were truly unre- mitting. Besides the very large amount of his; writings for the Journal, he was attentive and regular in his presence at the meetings ; and during the in- tervals may be said to have been always at bis post at the academy. Those who were then in the habit 10 BIOGKAPHICAL SKETCH OF of visiting the building, will abundantly recollect the uniformity with which he was to be found there. Others might attend more or less, as service on com- mittees, leisure, or the wish to pursue particular in- quiries might demand or render convenient; but Mr. Say was always added to the number, always employed in the one unremitting, untiring, unmodi- fied pursuit, the study of natural history. The value of such assiduous attendance, by such a man, may be easily imagined. Those who were disposed to visit the establishment, were at all times certain of agreeable society; for Mr. Say was ever attentive to all reasonable calls for conversation, so much so as even to surprise his friends. The books and speci- mens were, through his means, of ready access, while at the same time, his presence was a check upon confusion, loss and disorder. His uniform attend- ance operated as a powerful encouragement to the practice of studying within the walls of the institu- tion. This indefatigable and eminent naturalist was at all times ready to bestow the fruits of his own researches upon those of his friends who felt an interest in similar pursuits. In this manner he was incalculably ser- viceable to young students in natural history, by his advice and assistance : feeling far more anxious to extend the sphere of science in his country, than to increase his own fame. This generosity in bestowing upon others the results of his own industry, so highly THOMAS SAY. 11 characteristic of true genius and real love for science, might perhaps be referred, in part, to a sense of his own strength. He had reputation to spare, and could hardly avoid feeling aware, that the inquirer who grew in science must inevitably form a higher estimate of the teacher of whose merits he thus be- came a better judge. The effect of Mr. Say's libe- rality of disposition, with his amenity of manner, was peculiarly fascinating, and tended forcibly to produce, in the same individuals, a combined feeling of love for the science, and for the naturalist who had thus gained their affections. In May, 1817, the publication of the Journal was commenced, and Mr. Say continued, during the next ten years, to be one of its steadiest and most la- borious contributors. Whatever contingencies might take place in regard to the services of others, his assistance, personally, when in the city, and at all times by the labours of his pen, was never wanting. In the autumn of that year, the expedi- tion to Florida was organized, for the purpose of procuring objects of natural history. The party con- sisted of Messrs. Maclure, Ord, Say and Peale; who spent the winter in that country, and collected a large number of specimens, with descriptions of many of which they afterwards enriched the Journal. In 1819 and 1820, the celebrated expedition to the Rocky Mountains took place, the particulars of 12 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF which are before the public, so far as to render it un- necessary to enter into details in the present paper, particularly as these are not scientific in their cha- racter. His learning, his patient industry, and the confidence reposed in him by all the officers of the detachment, are visible in every page of the nar- rative; and the large portion which he contri- buted to the work is acknowledged by the editor. This embraces tiic whole of his favourite department, the invertebral animals, together with a great variety of additional subjects, to which, from circumstances of various kinds, it was convenient that Mr. Say should direct his attention. In the expedition to the sources of St. Peter's River &c, performed in 1823, at least equal labour, in proportion to the time em- ployed, was bestowed by our late member upon the collection of materials ; although a portion of the pre- paration for the press was saved him by his friend, W. H. Keating, Esq., the editor. During the period of our narrative, honours from abroad came thick upon him. On these, however, he set but a limited value, except where they were the means of extending or increasing a knowledge of natural history. His correspondence with distin- guished foreign naturalists occupied a large portion of his time, although constantly confined to matters of science; and thus superseded much of his domestic letter-writing. THOMAS SAY. 13 In the year 1825, at the foundation of the cele- brated settlement of New Harmony, Mr. Say re- moved to that place, at the request of his friend William Maclure, Esq. His residence there, as well as that of several other learned men, should not be con- founded with the eccentric experiment of which, by the agency of Mr. Robert Owen, the same place was made the theatre. It was for the purpose of consti- tuting a school of natural science under the patronage of our liberal President. By the munificence of that distinguished individual, he enjoyed, in the wilds of the far west, all the advantages of a splendid library, abundant facilities for making collections, and a ready printing press. It is unfortunate, that some of his elaboiate papers are not only rendered difficult of access to the scientific world, but exposed to the risk of being separated or destroyed, by their committal to the evanescent pages of the newspaper of the place, the New Harmony Disseminator. To this it may be added, that the columns of that paper suffer under the dislike and disapprobation of all that large portion of the community who stand opposed to the very peculiar doctrines in relation to religion, politics and domestic life, which were introduced to the public through its agency. Owing to these causes, naturalists are deprived of the use of many of the most valuable papers of Mr. Say, which it were to be wished might be republished by some one of 14 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF the learned societies which are proud to acknowledge him among their members. The scientific world is, however, in possession of two volumes, the second and third, of his splendid American Entomology, and of six numbers of his Conchology. all which were among the fruits of his industry while at New Harmony. The volumes of the Entomology were published in Philadelphia—the others in Indiana. It was while at New Harmony that Mr. Say's do- mestic happiness was enhanced by his marriage with Miss Lucy W. Sistare, of New York, a lady in every way qualified to add to the felicity of such a man. In addition to many elegant accomplishments, Miss Sistare possessed the advantage of a fondness for the same pur- suits, and great readiness and neatness with the pen- cil : a talent which was employed to the advantage of the beautiful works which we have just named. Besides the elaborate description of a number of natural objects collected at New Harmony, and also in Mexico, during the tours in that country made by Mr. Maclure, our fellow member found himself, at this late period of life, again involved in the cares of business and the superintendance of property. Amid the chaos of mind which the settlement presented, Mr. Maclure felt the value and necessity of old and tried friendship, tested honour and untiring industry, in the care of his vast estates. In none could he con- fide with more unhesitating promptitude thau in the THOMAS SAY. 15 subject of our memoir; and he who in early youth had sacrificed his own property to the pursuit of science, was willing, in maturer age, to devote his ta- lents to the care of that of his friend. During the frequent periods of absence, which the state of Mr. Maclure's health or the various scientific objects he had in view rendered necessary, for several years, he left his large property in the care of Mr. Say; a cir- cumstance which materially added to the labours of the latter, and loaded him with a feeling of responsi- bility to which the middle of his life had been a stranger. Amid these accumulating tasks and this honourable charge, the termination of his studies was now gra- dually approaching. The hand of death was busy upon the WTabash. The season was one of unusual mortality; and the ordinary and general causes of disease could only co-operate with the severe and de- voted industry of the naturalist. Mr. Say's habits of steady and protracted application, excessive ab- stinence and loss of sleep, had long before this period exerted an injurious influence upon his health, exhi- biting their effects in repeated attacks of fever and dysentery; and when, in 1833, he paid a short visit to his friends in Philadelphia, for the conjoined ob- jects of health and science, the ravages of sickness were but too visible. Still, those who knew him were not conscious that it was then for the last time that he visited his native city, or the walls of his beloved 16 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF Academy. He recovered from one attack, however, to be subsequently prostrated by another: and finally, the closing malady appeared on the 20th of Septem- ber. This is described as a disease commencing with bilious symptoms, and closing with those of typhus fever with a highly nervous character, accom- panied w ith dysentery. On the 8th of that month he appeared to improve; but on the following day his debility increased in an alarming manner; and on the 10th he sunk into the arms of death by an easy dissolution. Thus perished, while yet in the vigour of his years, an individual on whom creative wisdom appeared to have stamped in the strongest manner the characters of a master mind in the study of the works of God. His last days cannot be said to have passed away with- out regrets. Declining health and laborious cares had slowly undermined his spirits, a tendency to depres- sion exhibited itself, and he appeared to feel, though surrounded by friendship and munificence, that he had not the independence to which his extraordinary talents and industry entitled him. The narrative is fruitful of instruction ; yet the sketch of his scientific and personal character, ought, perhaps, to occupy a larger share of our sheets than we have devoted to it. The communications of Mr. Say to natural science are numerous and of considerable bulk. We have appended a list of all those we have been able to obtain ; with the double object of giving the best view THOMAS SAY. 17 in our power of their number and variety, and of en- abling the future inquirer to find them with more fa- cility. They are scattered through a variety of pub- lications, not all devoted to natural history, and one of these even a newspaper; the student finds it im- possible, without considerable exertion, to avoid over- looking some of them ; and it is too much to be feared that individual memoirs are irrecoverably lost. Their number will probably surprise even some of his ac- quaintance. No estimate of their value, and the la- bour necessary to produce them, can, however, be founded upon their simple bulk; nor can they be compared to others upon such a principle. If we take into view the extreme labour which he uniformly bestowed upon his productions, first, to insure their accuracy, and then to compress them within the smallest possible space, the amount of work executed by this indefatigable writer will appear enormously augmented. But it is not by the rules of arithmetic that the labours of Mr. Say are to be judged in any respect. To form a just idea of the space in public utility occupied by our deceased fellow member, it would be desirable to make an estimate of the vacui- ties which existed in American science, of the judg- ment which he formed of them, and of the success of his endeavours to fill them. To do this in an ade- quate manner would require an extended grasp of the mind. He who attempts it should possess an en- larged and accurate acquaintance with the subject, 18 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF the power of forming comprehensive views, and judgment and ability in expressing the results. To this rare combination, the gift of a few leading minds, your reporter fully feels that he possesses no claim ; but it would be committing a disrespect to your no- mination, to omit presenting such an outline as he is enabled to prepare. We have seen that the larger lacunae in the zoology of our country, embraced, at the time when Mr. Say began his labours, the immense and obscure masses of amphibia, fishes and the invertebral animals. The fishes were principally left to the researches of Dr. S. L. Mitchell and M. Lesueur. The amphibia were passed by till they subsequently attracted the atten- tion of M. Le Conte, Professor Green, Dr. Harlan, and others. It was in the immense range of the in- vertebrate that Mr. Say exhausted his labours ; and among these it may be said, as of a former writer, that he left scarce any department untouched, and none that he touched unimproved. His descriptions of species are most numerous among the annulosa and the mollusca; although he also made investigations among the radiata, as appears from the list of his pub- lications, and among the entozoaria. It is not to be supposed, that he exhausted any of these depart- ments : the stores of nature within our country are too extensive, and much doubtless remains for future observers. Yet he described the large and laborious numbers which serve for the general materials of THOMAS SAY. 19 classification; he constructed the extended and ac- curate map, to which the task of making local addi- tions is easy, but which forms the necessary and only guide to those who would make further admeasure- ments. It is not that there is no more gold in the mine; but in raising his own ore, Mr. Say has opened the shafts and galleries, pointed out the veins, and indicated, by his example, the best manner of working them. He has laid down the broad masses of colouring, which, however they may be augmented and retouched by the persevering pencil of the future artist, must still form the basis, and in very numerous cases the perfection, of the picture. Every familiar object in these departments, that frequently met the eye, but produced a feeling of dissatisfaction because no description or place for it was to be found in the writers on natural history, received its character from his hands. His task was that of Adam, to name the animals as they passed before him. His modesty at first induced him to attempt few and isolated species and departments of small extent; and as time gave him experience of his powers he ventured farther. A few scattered insects and shells, ascertained to be undescribed with great labour and precaution, first received their characters and names from him. Next, he undertook the Crustacea of the United States, which he described and classified. He then extended his labour to a larger number of shells, selecting those of the land and the fresh waters. 20 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF Next came the detached and still limited groups of theThysanourse, the Arachnides and the Myriapodae; and then he finally entered among the vast masses of the true insects. His publications in this field of toil principally relate to the Coleoplera, Diptera, Hemip- tera, Neuroptera and Hymenoptera. His account of the Neuroptera is liable to be overlooked from the circumstance of its publication in a journal of medi- cine instead of one devoted to natural history. When the late Dr. Godman published the Western Quar- terly Reporter, at Cincinnati, Ohio, he was desirous of enriching his work with contributions on natural science, and was gratified with the receipt of this valuable paper from Mr. Say, without which our large and conspicuous insects of this order would re- main undescribed. Our deceased fellow member had now achieved so much of his task that he could afford to be desultory; and his pieces from this period as- sume a more diversified character. His monograph on the genus Cicindela is much admired. His share in the history of the two expeditions by Major Long, is truly multifarious. Besides the departments which he considered peculiarly his own, it embraces, as we have already had occasion to observe, a very large amount of matter foreign to his ordinary habits of study, and requiring a different manner of composi- tion. We may here, without extravagance, admire the talents of the man, who, in a species of writing which for many years it had been his persevering THOMAS SAY. 21 study to avoid, should please the public with the fluency and ease of diction, which are found in some popular chapters contributed by him. Some of the most interesting portions are those which describe the manners of the Indians. He is the historian of all the facts that were collected in those districts which he traversed with a small de- tachment of troops under his separate command ; he obtained, although not professing philology, the voca- bulary of the Killisteno language; and on the Expedi- tion to the Sources of St. Peter's River, he made the whole of the botanical collections, which afterwards formed the basis of a memoir appended by the late Mr. De Schweinitz to the published narrative. In fossil zoology, his description of new species of the Crinoi- dea is considered highly valuable. Some other matter in this department, in which America until lately presented such a mass of unknown objects, will be found in the catalogue of his papers. Our fellow member, Dr. Morton, informs me that he was himself induced to undertake the study of the New Jersey marl fossils, in consequence of the perusal of Mr. Say's paper treating on that subject, in the 1st and 2d volumes of Professor Silliman's Journal. It would seem that his valuable papers on American shells, published in the New Harmony Disseminator, and communicated to me by the politeness of Mr. Poulson, are in reality very little known to naturalists. Some other publications were made by Mr. Say in BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF that periodical: it appearing to have been his first ob- ject in this as in many other instances, to procure a public record of his papers in print, so as to establish his claims to the date of his discoveries, while at the same time he obtained duplicates to transmit to his learned correspondents; leaving it to subsequent times to republish them, and thus secure their wider diffusion and mere easy access. The character of Mr. Say was in every way singu- larly fitted for the task which he thus made the busi- ness of his life. He was gifted with a strong intellect, accurate powers of observation, vast assiduity, a free- dom from those unsettled wanderings of the mind which are so frequently the bane of genius, and an enthusiastic attachment to the subject of his studies. Such was the ardour of his perseverance, that for a long period he actually lived at the Academy, sleep- ing within the walls, and only leaving the institution when necessary to obtain his meals. The hours of re- freshment were forgotten, and sleep unhesitatingly sacrificed, not as an occasional exertion, but as a per- manent and persevering habit. His extraordinary power of concentrating his industry, had an effect in producing the peculiar style of his pieces. The manner of writing in which he most delighted, was that of the utmost abridgment of which the subject was capable, cutting off every unnecessary word. It was not that he was incapable of a fluent style, for various parts of his writings demonstrate the contrary, THOMAS SAY. 23 such as some of his contributions to the narrative of the Expedition to the Rocky Mountains; but he seemed to think it an injustice to the reader and to science to detain men from knowledge with the smallest redundancy of language. At the same time, this severe judge was far irom criticising others with the same rigour which he exercised towards himself; and readily forgave the luxuriance of style in their works. His own manner, when he indulged in his beloved brevity, was certainly liable to the objec- tion of difficulty to untutored readers; but still more, perhaps, to the risk of alarming students by its ap- parent obscurity, than to the reality, as the know- ledge which was requisite was always actually pre- sent, though comprised in few words. It is unneces- sary to add, that to some profound naturalists this abridged style is a recommendation. In philosophy he was an advocate for that doctrine which attached exclusive importance to the evidence of the senses. Fact alone was the object which he thought worthy of his researches. Chains of reasoning on general principles he thought so frequently falla- cious, as to constitute an employment for the human intellect of secondary and even doubtful utility. We will not here stop to discuss this celebrated opinion. The influence which it has exerted through the minds of Mr. Say and others has contributed sensibly, with- in the city of Philadelphia, to stimulate our youth to the pursuit of science in preference to that of litera- 24 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF ture. It cannot therefore be considered as acting injuriously to this Academy, which should be consi- dered as a great school of observation and inductive science. The natural temper of our deceased member was one of the most amiable ever met with. The phrase was frequent in the mouths of his intimates, that " it was impossible to quarrel with him." His great re- spect for his parents, and his compliance with their wishes, have been already mentioned. He was re- paid, notwithstanding his retired life and his exclu- sive devotion to science, by a singular strength of attachment on the part of his friends; and we have already spoken of the confidence of Mr. Maclure. His modesty was so retiring, and the wish which he frequently expressed (i to save trouble" to others so great, that to men in the habit of living much in the world they might perhaps appear incredible. The contrast of these with the manners of the times was occasionally so remarkable as almost to amount to ec- centricity and satire. To those who have not seen him, it may be interest- ing to add, that he was tall, muscular, but spare, ap- parently endowed, before his health was injured by repeated illness, with considerable strength. This enabled him better to struggle with the fatigues of toilsome journeys and the wasting inactivity of study. His complexion was dark, with black hair. THOMAS SAY. 25 The best likeness of him is a small one, by Mr. Wood, in the possession of his family. In closing an account of the life of our deceased founder, it seems consonant with the spirit of our in- stitution to make but little comment. The fact and truth of which it is our habit to be in search, shine with as much clearness and instruction in the contem- plation of a life passed in the augmentation of natural Science, as they do in any other department of know- ledge. The institution which is now lamenting his death, is in a great measure the work of his hands. We can say, as was written of the architect of a splen- did temple, " Si monumenta quseris, circumspice." D 2b Extracts from the constituent Minutes of the Academy of Natural Sciences. Philadelphia, Saturday, Jan. 25, 1812. John Speakman, Esq. having taken the chair, Camillus Macmahon Mann, Doctor of Medicine, was called by the meeting, unanimously, to discharge the duties of secretary. Present, besides the said Chairman and Secretary, Gerard Troost, Esq. Med. Doctor, Jacob Gilliams, Esq. John Shinn, jr., Esq. Nicholas Pormantier, Esq. Who conjoinUy have proceeded to initiatory business, as well for them- selves, as for Mr. Thomas Say, absent Resolve—The gentlemen present agree to form, constitute and become a Society for the purpose of occupying their leisure occasionally, in each other's company, on subjects of natural science, interesting and useful to the country and the world, and in modes conducive to the general and'in. dividual satisfaction of the members, as well as to the primary object, the advancement and diffirsibn of useful, liberal, human knowledge. And the said gentlemen present.pledge themselves to the formation and persevering support of this said intended society accordingly. Determined. Signed by Thomas Say, Camillus M. Mann, Secretary, John Speakman, N. I. Parmantier, G. Troost, J. Gilliams. Philadelphia, March 17, 1812. * Academy of Natural Sciences. Thomas Say, Gerard Troost, Jacob Gilliams, John Speakman, Nicholas Parmantier, John Shinn, jr. and Camillus Macmahon Mann—Present—all the foundation members. Every individual of the present members, founders of the Academy of Natural Sciences, has equally felt that an association of this nature, ten. dency, operation and bearing, free and perpetually occlusive of political, re- ligious and national partialities, antipathies, preventions and prejudices, is necessary for the easier and more perfect acquirement and the better pro- gress of natural knowledge, wherever it may be desired. We will contribute to the formation of a Museum of Natural History, a Library of Works of Science, a Chemical Experimental Laboratory, an Experimental Philosophic Apparatus, and every other desirable appendage or convenience for the illustration and advancement of natural knowledge and for the common benefit of all the individuals who may be admitted mem' bers of our institution in the manner herein to be stated, or stated already. e. , . _, Camillus M. Mann, Secretary. Signed by Thomas Say, N. I. Parmantier, J. Gilliams, G. Troost, John Speakman, • The „,me « Ac.demy of V.turml Science.,'. wM fir.t turned ,t «hi. meeun,. 4? LIST OF THE PAPERS AND OTHER WORKS OF MR. SAY, SO FAR AS ASCERTAINED. Journal of the Academy of Natural Sciences. VOL I. Description of Seven Species of American Fresh Water and Land Shells, not noticed in the systems. Descriptions of several new species of North American Insects. Some account of the Insect known by the name of the Hessian Fly, and of a parasitic Insect that feeds on it. On a new genus of the Crustacea and the species on which it is established. An account of the Crustacea of the United States. Descriptions of New Species of Land and Fresh Water Shells of the United States. Account of two New Genera, and several New Species of Fresh Water and Land Shells. Notes on Professor Green's paper on the Amphibia. Observations on some of the Animals described in the Account of the Crustacea of the United States. Appendix to the Account of the Crustacea. Description of a New Genus of Fresh Water Bivalve Shells. Description of three New Species of the Genus Naesa. VOL. II. Descriptions of the Thysanouraa of the United States. Descriptions of the Arachnides of the United States. Descriptions of the Myriapodee of the United States. Descriptions of Univalve Shells of the United States. Account of some of the Marine Shells of the United States. Description of a Quadruped belonging to the Order Rodentia. 28 LIST OF THE WORKS OF On a South American species of QSstrus, which inhabit* the human body. Descriptions of Univalve Terrestrial and Fluviatile Shells of the United States. VOL. III. Descriptions of Dipterous Insects of the United States. Descriptions of Coleopterous Insects collected in the Expedition to the Rocky Mountains. [229 pages, 356 species. Continued into vol. iv.] VOL. IV. Account of some of the Fossil Shells of Maryland. On the Fresh Water and Land Tortoises of the United States. Description of three New Species of Coluber inhabiting the United States. On two Genera and several Species of Crinoidea. Descriptions of New Hemipterous Insects collected in the Expedi- tion to the Rocky Mountains. A New Genus of Mammalia proposed, and a description of the spe- cies upon which it is founded. By T. Say and George Ord. Description of a New Species of Mammalia, whereon a New Genua is proposed to be founded. By T. Say and George Ord. On a new species of Modiola. VOL. V. Descriptions of New Species of Hister and Hololepta inhabiting the United States. Descriptions of some New Species of Fresh Water and Land Shells of the United States. On the Species of the Linnaean Genus Asterias inhabiting the coast of the United States. Descriptions of New Species of Coleopterous Insects inhabiting the United States. Descriptions of Marine Shells recently discovered on the coast of the United States. On the Species of the Linnaan Genus Echinus inhabiting the coast of the United States. THOMAS SAY. 29 Descriptions of North American Dipterous Insects. Descriptions of New North American Hemipterous Insects, be- longing to the first family of the section Homoptera of Latreille. Contributions of the Maclurian Lyceum of Philadelphia. Remarks on some Reptilia of Dr. Harlan. Note on Le Conte's Coleopterous Insects of North America. Descriptions of New Species of Hymenoptera of the United States. [Not completed.] Annals of the Lyceum of Natural History of New York, Vol. I. Descriptions of New American Species of the Genora Buprestis, Trachys and E later. Western Quarterly Reporter of Medical, Surgical and Na- tural Science; edited by John D. Qodman, M. D., Vol. II. Descriptions of Insects belonging to the Order Neuroptera, Linn., "* Latreille. Collected by the Expedition under the command of Major Long, [to the Rocky Mountains.] Silliman's Journal, Vol. I. Notes on Herpetology. Observations on some species of Zoophytes, Shells &C. principally fossil. [Continued into vol. ii. Contains the first account of New I Jersey Marl Fossils.] Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, 1819. On the Genus Ocythoe; being an extract of a letter from Thomas Say, Esq. of Philadelphia, to Wm. Elford Leach, M. D., F. R. S. American Philosophical Transactions, Vol. I. new series. A Monograph of North American Insects of the Genus Cicindela, 30 LIST OF THE WORKS OF VOL. II. Descriptions of Insects of the families of Carabici and Hydrocan- thari of Latreille, inhabiting North America. VOL. IV. Descriptions of New North American Insects, and Observations upon some already described. [Part of this paper was also printed in the New Harmony Disseminator.] In the "Account of an Expedition from Pittsburgh to the Rocky Mountains, performed in the years 1819 and 1820." The whole department of Zoology; with the addition of various Memoirs, Narratives and Notes, incorporated into the body of the work. Besides what is published, it will be remembered that Mr. Say was robbed of a large mass of collections and papers. In the "Narrative of an Expedition to the Source of St. Pe- ter's River, Lake Winnepeek, Lake of the Woods, fyc. 6fC performed in the year 1823." The notes of all that relates to the Zoology and Botany of the coun- try traversed; as well as much of the matter relating to the Indians. Also, the greater part of the Appendix, viz.: the article Zoology, in 124 pages; the specimens and other materials, which enabled Mr. de Schweinitz to compose the article Botany; and the Killisteno por- tion of the Vocabularies of Indian Languages. In the American edition of Nicholson's Encyclopaedia. The new modelling of the whole department of Natural History, with the addition of all the American matter, including an extensive account of American Insects and Shells. can Entomology, or Descriptions of the Insects of North i, illustrated by coloured figures from original drawings exe- THOMAS SAY. 31 euted from Nature. Philadelphia Museum. Vol. i. 1824; vol. ii. 1825; vol. iii. 1828; Glossary, 1825. American Conchology, or Descriptions of the Shells of North Ame- rica, illustrated by coloured figures, from original drawings executed from Nature. Six numbers and a Glossary. New Harmony, Indiana. 1830—1834. Descriptions of New Species of Curculionites of North America, with observations on some of the species already known. New Har- mony, Indiana. July, 1831.—Pamphlet. In the New Harmony Disseminator, (communicated by C. A. Poulson, Esq.) July 29,1829.—Descriptions of some new Terrestrial and Fluviatile Shells of North America. Continued to Nov. 18th. Nine articles. Dec. 30___New Terrestrial and Fluviatile Shells of North America. Continue* to Jan. 29. Three articles. We. are informed,, that other publication* were made by Mr. Say in the journal last named ; but of these we have, as yet, been unable to obtain a list. ERRATUM. It is much regretted, that notwithstanding considerable pains, an error of some importance has crept into our manuscript. Owing to the removal of Messrs. Shinn and Parmantier, two of the foundation members, to a dis- tance from Philadelphia, and to the cessation of their labours in the Academy, the death of these gentlemen was not known to the writer in time for an earlier correction.