Previous staff & Research Associates of Entomology & Arachnology

Complied and research by Ashley H. Kirk-Spriggs

John Hewitt c. 1958 (top left); as a young man in 1935 (top right); his signature (bottom left); examples of insect locality labels (bottom right)

South African Journal of Science 1961, 57: 312.

OBITUARY

JOHN HEWITT

On October [sic August] 4^th, 1961, John Hewitt passed away in Grahamstown at the age of 80 – for almost half a century his name had been associated with that of the Albany Museum. He was born on 23^rd December, 1880, at Dromfield, Sheffield, England, being the eldest of six children. From his early school days he showed an intense interest in science. Later he went to Jesus College, Cambridge, where he took a Tripos in Natural Sciences in 1903. During his vacation he collected in the Scottish Lakes and published several papers on his findings.

He was Curator of the Sarawak Museum from 1905 to 1908 and during this period he collected insects and plants extensively in Borneo. In 1907 his fiancé Miss F.E. Palmer, also of Dromfield, went out to the Far East and they were married in Singapore. From 1909 to 1910 he was assistant for Lower Vertebrates in the Transvaal Museum where he commenced his systematic work on the South African Arachnida publishing descriptions of a large number of new forms from the Transvaal and Rhodesia.

In 1910 he was appointed as Director of the Albany Museum which post he held until his retirement in 1958. Here he set to work with tremendous energy and enthusiasm to build op both the exhibitions and study collections. Within the limited financial means at his disposal, he rearranged most of the material and continually endeavoured to present the collections in a more attractive manner. During most of his period in office at the Albany Museum the grant-in-aid amounted to just over ₤2,000 from which had to be provided salaries and wages, maintenance, exhibition cases and specimens, books and publications, etc., as well as half interest and redemption on any new building. All this resulted in drastic stringencies in salaries, staff and all essentials – there were times when he had difficulty in finding money for his own salary.

Extensions to the Museum were completed in 1920 and 1938. On Saturday 6^th September, 1941, a fire broke out and all the front portion of the building was gutted. This was a tremendous blow to Hewitt as so much of his work of 31 years went up in flames. In spite of building restrictions and financial difficulties, the structure was restored and opened within a few years. Last year a new section was added and named the John Hewitt Wing in his honour.

After several unsuccessful efforts, Hewitt eventually persuaded the Cape Education Department to second a teacher, Miss Rothman, to the Albany Museum in 1936. This Museum School Service was the first travelling case scheme in South Africa. It is still in operation today and covers most of the Eastern half of the Cape Province.

Hewitt published widely and extensively in several groups such as Reptiles, Amphibia, Arachnida and in Archaeology. He described many new species and revised a number of groups. He monographed the scorpion fauna of South Africa and published important revisions of the Solifuges and Trapdoor spider groups on which he was the South African authority. He prepared two excellent guide books on the vertebrate fauna of the Eastern Cape. He carried out excavations in several caves being the first to recognise and describe the Wilton industry. He published several important papers on the distribution of the fauna of South Africa and endeavoured to interpret this data. The Records of the Albany Museum were published from 1903 to 1935, but were discontinued for financial reasons. Hewitt was President of Section D of the Association in 1923 and was awarded an Honorary D.Sc. in 1935 by Rhodes University.

John Hewitt was a sincere friend who assisted and encouraged many young workers. Above all else his enthusiasm was stimulating and unbounded. To his devoted and loving wife, his son and two daughters we extend our deepest sympathy.

The Ostrich 1961, 32: 146.

Dr. John Hewitt

To many the death of Dr. John Hewitt on 4 August last must seem like the end of an epoch. For close on fifty years, until his retirement in 1959, Director of the Albany Museum, Grahamstown, his name became almost synonymous with that institution. During all those years he built up the various collections and, practically single-handed, established it as one of the leading museums in the country. The Albany Museum was his life-work; as another friend recently remarked of him “If ever there was a dedicated man, that man was John Hewitt.”

We now live in an era of specialization but John Hewitt could well be described as a specialist in many branches of Natural Science. Primarily a zoologist, he was also a first-rate ornithologist and the section on birds in his “Guild to the Vertebrate Fauna of the Eastern Cape Province” (1931) is still, in my opinion, our most useful bird book. He was likewise an entomologist of note and he wrote a monograph on scorpions. Similarly with other branches of natural history such as reptiles and amphibian (see Part II of the Guide published in 1937), while molluscs too came within his orbit. These, however, did not exhaust his interests and erudition as witness his knowledge of archaeology, ethnology and local history. He was also a most successful photographer.

Although always busy and overworked Dr. Hewitt was most generous in his assistance to others; no trouble was too much for him, and all written enquires were dealt with by him personally. The provincial museums were not then staffed as they are to-day, and he had no typewriter or typist to assist him. When one visited him, it did not matter how busy he might be, everything was dropped and his attention was given entirely to the visitor and his or her problems. One invariably came away from such visits astounded afresh at the vast knowledge of Dr. Hewitt. And with all his knowledge there was his great humility, as well as his innate courtesy and kindliness. A schoolchild with a caterpillar or a bead was treated with the same courtesy and interest as a distinguished visiting savant, and sent on his way rejoicing, while the offering, however trivial, was duly accessioned. John Hewitt’s kindness and encouragement have helped many, and I, for one, owe him much. He was a great scientist and a great gentleman; his work will remain an inspiration for years to come.

To Mrs. Hewitt and his family we offer our deepest sympathy.

J.S.T.

South African Museums Association Bulletin 1961, 7: 245–246.

JOHN HEWITT

Dr. John Hewitt, after a life devoted to the service of the Albany Museum, died on 4^th August 1961 in Grahamstown at the age of 80, having retired as director only two years previously. During that period he attempted to complete a history of the museum, but was not well enough to do so. He is survived by his wife, by a daughter Florence teaching in Cape Town and by their son Frank and another daughter Joyce, both of the National Institute for Telecommunications Research.

During his directorship the museum developed extensively and in 1960 a new wing was added known as the John Hewitt Wing where there is an attractive portrait of him in the entrance. In 1941 a large part of the museum was destroyed by fire with the loss of some of the catalogues. This was a serious setback to the work of the museum and to Dr. Hewitt, and the results of the fire are still felt.

Dr. Hewitt worked specially on spiders, scorpions and lizards but was no narrow specialist and acquired an amazing knowledge of the local history and archaeology. He wrote numerous papers on stone implements and was best known in connexion with the Wilton industry. His great skill as a photographer helped greatly in his scientific work.

He was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of Science by the University of South Africa in 1935.

E.D.M.

The South African Archaeological Bulletin 1961, 16: 121.

JOHN HEWITT

Dr. John Hewitt, who died in Grahamstown on 4 August 1961, made an important contribution to the study of prehistory in South Africa. After previous appointments at the Sarawak Museum and the Transvaal Museum, he went to Grahamstown in 1910 as director of the Albany Museum, at a time when general surveys of South African prehistory were giving way to more detailed local surveys, and he soon began to explore Grahamstown and adjacent areas and to publish his researches. On collaboration with C.W. Wilmot he excavated a cave on the farm Wilton, and in his paper ‘On deveral implements and ornaments from Strandloper [sic = Standlooper] sites in the Eastern Province’ (S. Af. J. Sci. XVIII, 1921) described the culture that has ever since been known as Wilton and named the Wilton crescent for the first time. Later he collaborated with the Reverend A.P. Stapleton in describing sites, implements and rock-painting, and together they gave the first account of the Howieson’s Poort material in ‘Stone Impelements from a rock-shelter at Howieson’s Poort near Grahamstown’ (S. Af. J. Sci. XXIV, 1927, and XXV, 1928). He was particularly interested in the development of technique.

Dr. Hewitt was, however, primarily a biologist, and had a international reputation for his knowledge of reptiles, amphibians and spiders. In addition to numerous scientific papers he published several popular guide books.

It was in recognition of his contributions to many branches of science that he was made an honorary D.Sc. of the University of South Africa in 1935, and awarded the South Africa Medal of the South African Association for the Advancement of Science in 1936. He was also elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of South Africa. He was a founder member of the South African Museums Association and a member of council for many years. He retired from directorship of the Albany Museum at the end of 1958, and in 1959 the new wing of the Museum was named after him.

This distinguished scholar had a gentle and very likeable personality, and he will be remembered with affection by all who knew him. The Society’s sympathy of offered to his widow, son and daughters.

Grocott’s Daily Mail. 4 August 1961

OBITUARY

John Hewitt

We record with deep regret the passing on Friday evening of Dr John Hewitt for 48 years Director of the Albany Museum, Grahamstown. A funeral service was held this afternoon at 4 p.m. Christ Church, preparatory to cremation at Port Elizabeth.

Dr Hewitt who was in his 81^st year was born in England and took a B.A. (Cantab.) before accepting as a young man, the directorship of a Museum in Rajah Brooke’s country Sarawak N. Borneo.

His wife joined him there and they spent an interesting if comparatively short time among the head-hunters of Borneo. His next appointment was as Zoologist at the Transvaal Museum, Pretoria and after a short time there he came to Grahamstown as Director of the Albany Museum in 1910. He succeeded Dr Schönland who then became Professor of Botany in Rhodes University College.

Dr Hewitt was first and foremost a scientist, a naturalist who specialised in reptiles, amphibians and arachnids. His publication on South African scorpions is still a standard work of reference and much the same can be said of his “Birds and Mammals of the Eastern Province” and “The Lower Vertebrates of the Eastern Province”. He had to his credit at least 150 published articles and described more than 300 hitherto unknown species.

He was made a Doctor of Science (honoris causa) by Rhodes University College (then part of the University of South Africa) in recognition of his outstanding contribution Natural Science.

Deceased had very wide interests and was one of the pioneers of South African archaeology, particularly in respect of Stone Age Culture and the “Strandlopers”. In addition he collected a vast store of Settler knowledge. The fire which ravaged the museum in 1941 was a setback to it and a shock to him. As was said at the time: “All the wrong things burned,” and the task of rebuilding, with severe financial handicaps, was a heavy undertaking which he surmounted to his lasting credit.

Dr Hewitt was a life member of the South African Wild Life Society, the only Ornithological Society of South Africa, corresponding member of the Zoological Society of London, Fellow of the Museum Association of London, Fellow of the Royal Entomological Society of London, member of the British Ornithological Union of London, Entomological Society of Southern Africa, the South African Museum Association and the South African Archaeological Society.

He was of retiring nature, quiet and unassuming, but with a keen sense of humour which was apt to catch his listeners unawares, and he treated everyone, young and old, with unfailing courtesy and interest.

Dr Hewitt is survived by his widow, two daughters and a son, all of whom were with him at the end.

To all we extend our sincere condolences.

[See also: Beyer, C.J. (ed). 1981. Dictionary of South African biography. Volume IV, p. 232.]

The Combined Publications of John Hewitt

(1880-1961)

[Based on a detailed search of the literature, the off-prints in the library and archives of the Albany Museum and an apparently unpublished list dated 1971 and initialled R.M.T. in the Albany Museum library. The author of this list is Ms. E.M. [Nancy] Tietz who at the time (1971), was based at the Albany Museum as Regional Librarian for the Cape Museum Service. Nancy subsequently served as Deputy Director of the McGregor Museum in Kimberley and then as Director of the East London Museum. She is now retired and lives in East London (B. Wilmot pers. comm. 2006). Information for the new list was provided by Henry Barlow (Malaysia) and Lorenzo Prendini (America), and the list was kindly checked for herpetological omissions by Aaron Bauer (USA) and Ansie Dippennar-Schoeman (South Africa).]

Albany Museum

Hewitt, J. 1910–1958. Director’s Reports. Reports of the Albany Museum 1910–1914, 1920–1925, 1927–1930, 1932, 1934–1937, 1942–1943, 1945–1946, 1948–1953, 1957–1958.

Hewitt, J. 1911. The mummy at the Albany Museum. Local Opinion, Grahamstown 23 September 1911.

Hewitt, J. 1912. An illustrated guide to the exhibited collections of the Albany Museum. Committee of the Albany Museum, Grahamstown, iv + 65 pp.

Hewitt, J. 1915. Foreword (p. [iii]). In Salisbury, F.S. Guide to the Greek and Roman coins in the Albany Museum. Albany Museum, Grahamstown, [v] + 45 pp.

Hewitt, J. 1922. Making a small vacuum cleaner. Work: A Weekly Journal for Amateur Mechanics. 21 October 1922.

Hewitt, J. 1936. The Albany Museum school service. South African Museums Association Bulletin 1(2): 25–28.

Hewitt, J. 1937. The Albany Museum. Foundation, growth and early history. Grocott’s Daily Mail. 17 August 1937: 2.

Hewitt, J. 1937. Albany Museum, Grahamstown. South African Museums Association Bulletin 1: 104–106.

Hewitt, J. 1937. The Albany Museum. Its steadily growing influence. New era under Dr. Schonland. Concluding article by John Hewitt. Grocott’s Daily Mail. 18 August 1937: 2, 4.

Hewitt, J. 1938. Our reptiles and fish. Daily Dispatch, East London. 23 February 1938: 8.

Hewitt, J. 1940. Notes on a short visit to some museums in England. South African Museums Association Bulletin 2(3): 60–64.

Hewitt, J. 1941. Albany Museum, Grahamstown. South African Museums Association Bulletin 2: 284–286.

Hewitt, J. 1942. The museum fire: Dr. Hewitt’s report. No direct evidence of cause. Grocott’s Daily Mail. 30 March 1942: 3, 4.

Hewitt, J. 1942. Albany Museum Director’s report. Grocott’s Daily Mail. 31 March 1942: 3, 4.

Hewitt, J. 1944. Albany Museum, Grahamstown. South African Museums Association Bulletin 3(5): 138–139.

Hewitt, J. 1945. Lobengula’s seals. African Notes and news 2(4): 127.

Hewitt, J. 1947. The Albany Museum, Grahamstown. South African Museums Association Bulletin 4 (4): 81–91.

Arachnology

Hewitt, J. 1909. Description of a new species of Hadogenes and of the male Hagogenes gunningi Purc. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 2(1): 41–43 + unnumbered plate.

Hewitt, J. 1909. Note on a Transvaal species of Onycophora (Opisthopatus). Annals of the Transvaal Museum 2(1): 44.

Hewitt, J. 1910. Description of two trap-door spiders from Pretoria (female of Acanthodon pretoriae Poc. and Stasimopus robertsi, n. sp.). Annals of the Transvaal Museum 2(3): 74–76.

Hewitt, J. 1912. Records and descriptions of some little known South African scorpions. Records of the Albany Museum 2(4): 300–311.

Hewitt, J. 1912. Description of a new species of Chelypus (Solpugidae). Records of the Albany Museum 2(4): 312–313.

Hewitt, J. 1913. Descriptions of new and little known species of trapdoor spiders (Ctenizidae and Migidae) from South Africa. Records of the Albany Museum 2(5): 404–434.

Hewitt, J. 1913. Description of a new trap-door spider from Cape Colony. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 4(1): 47.

Hewitt, J. 1913. Descriptions of new species of Arachnida from Cape Colony. Records of the Albany Museum 2(6): 462–481.

Hewitt, J. 1913. The Percy Sladen Memorial Expedition to Great Namaqualand, 1912–1913. Records and descriptions of the Arachnida of the collection. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 4(3): 146–159 + plate XV.

Hewitt, J. 1913. Records of species of Solifugae in the collection of the Transvaal Museum and descriptions of several new species of the family Solpugidae. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 4(3): 160–167.

Hewitt, J. 1914. Descriptions of new Arachnida from South Africa. Records of the Albany Museum 3(1): 1–37.

Hewitt, J. 1915. V.–Notes on several four-lunged spiders in the collection of the Durban Museum, with description of two new forms. Annals of the Durban Museum 1(2): 125–133.

Hewitt, J. 1915. Descriptions of new South African Arachnida. Records of the Albany Museum 3(2): 70–106.

Hewitt, J. 1915. Descriptions of several new or rare species of Araneae from the Transvaal and neighbourhood. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 5(2): 89–100 + plate XV.

Hewitt, J. 1915. New South African Arachnida. Annals of the Natal Museum 3(2): 289–327.

Hewitt, J. 1916. XV.–Descriptions of several species of Arachnida in the collections of the Durban Museum. Annals of the Durban Museum 1(3): 217–227.

Hewitt, J. 1916. Descriptions of new South African spiders. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 5(3): 180–213 + plates XXVI–XXVII.

Hewitt, J. 1917. Descriptions of new South African Arachnida. Annals of the Natal Museum 3(3): 687–711.

Hewitt, J. 1917. Note on the occurrence of a pedal nose in the male of the trap-door spider (Stasimopus). Report of the Fourteenth Annual Meeting of the South African Association for the Advancement of Science 1916: 335–341.

Hewitt, J. 1918. A survey of the scorpion fauna of South Africa. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa 6(2): 89–192 + plates XIX–XXXII.

Hewitt, J. 1919. Descriptions of new South African Araneae and Solifugae. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 6(3): 63–106 + plates I–IV.

Hewitt, J. 1919. Descriptions of new South African spiders and a solifuge of the genus Chelypus. Records of the Albany Museum 3(3): 196–215.

Hewitt, J. 1919. A short survey of the Solifugae of South Africa. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 7(1): 1–76 + plates I–VIII.

Hewitt, J. 1923. On certain South African Arachnida, with descriptions of three new species. Annals of the Natal Museum 5(1): 55–66.

Hewitt, J. 1925. Descriptions of some African arachnids. Records of the Albany Museum 3(4): 277–299 + plate XIII.

Hewitt, J. 1925. Facts and theories on the distribution of scorpions in South Africa. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa 12(4): 249–276.

Bedford, G.A.H. & Hewitt, J. 1925. Descriptions and records of several new or little-known species of ticks from South Africa. South African Journal of Natural History 5: 259–266.

Hewitt, J. 1927. On some new arachnids from South Africa. Records of the Albany Museum 3(5): 416–429 + plates XXV.

Hewitt, J. & Godfrey, R. 1929. South African pseudoscorpions of the genus Chelifer Geoffroy. Annals of the Natal Museum 6(2): 305–336 + plates XXI, XXII.

Hewitt, J. 1931. A new subspecies of scorpion from Natal. Annals of the Natal Museum 6(3): 459–460.

Hewitt, J. 1931. A new solifuge and scorpion from South-West Africa. Annals of the South African Museum 30(1): 93–99.

Hewitt, J. 1934. On several solifuges, scorpions and a trapdoor spider from South West Africa. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 15(3): 401–412 + unnumbered plate.

Hewitt, J. 1935. Scientific results of the Vernay-Lang Kalahari Expedition, March to September, 1930. The trap-door spiders, scorpions and solifuges. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 16(3): 459–479 + plates XII–XXV.

Hewitt, J. 1947. Button spiders. Grocott’s Daily Mail. 23 October 1957.

Archaeology and prehistory

Hewitt, J. 1912. Note on two remarkable implements presumably of Strandlooper origin. Records of the Albany Museum 2(4): 282–283 + plate XIII.

Hewitt, J. 1917. Stone implements from Port Alfred. Some interesting discoveries No. 1. [Note on clipping “Grocott’s Penny Mai. about 1917”].

Hewitt, J. 1921. Notes related to aboriginal tribes of the Eastern Province. South African Journal of Science 17(3/4): 304–321 + plates XXXI, XXXII.

Hewitt, J. 1921. On several implements and ornaments from Strandlooper sites in the Eastern Province. South African Journal of Science 18: 454–467 + plates IX–XII.

Hewitt, J. 1922. Note on a fire-flint of Strandlooper origin. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa 10(1): 49–53 + plate I.

Hewitt, J. 1925. Bushman pipe found at Miller. Blythswood Review 2(17): 66.

Hewitt, J. 1925. On some stone implements from the Cape Province. South African Journal of Science 22: 441–453 + plates XII–XVI.

Hewitt, J. & Stapleton, P. 1925. On some remarkable stone implements in the Albany Museum, Grahamstown. South African Journal of Natural History 5: 23–38 + plates I, II.

Hewitt, J. 1926. Some peculiar elements in the Wilton Culture of the Eastern Province. South African Journal of Science 23: 901–904 + plate XIX.

Stapleton, S.J. & Hewitt, J. 1927. Stone implements from a rock-shelter at Howieson’s [sic = Howison’s] Poort near Grahamstown. South African Journal of Science 24: 574–587 + XI–XV.

Stapleton, P. & Hewitt, J. 1928. Some stone implements from Howieson’s [sic = Howison’s] Poort, near Grahamstown. South African Journal of Science 25: 399–409 + plates IV, V.

Hewitt, J. & Stapleton, S.J. 1931. On paintings and artefacts in rock-shelters near Cala. Records of the Albany Museum 4(1): 163–415 + plates I–IX.

Hewitt, J. 1931. Discoveries in a Bushman cave at Tafelberg Hall. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa 19(2): 185–196 + plates XI–XVI.

Hewitt, J. 1931. Artefacts from Melkhoutboom. South African Journal of Science 28: 540–548 + plates XVIII, XIX.

Hewitt, J. 1932. Note on the mutual relationships of the Smithfield and Wilton Industries. South African Journal of Science 29: 724–730 + plate XII.

Hewitt, J. 1933. On the implements known as Kasouga flakes. South African Journal of Science 30: 552–558 + plate V.

Hewitt, J. 1934. On some arrow-heads and other stone-implements in the Albany Museum, Grahamstown. South African Journal of Science 31: 520–526 + plates X, XI.

Hewitt, J. 1935. Stone-implements. The Kissack collection its outstanding importance. Grocott’s Daily Mail. 29 July 1935: 2.

Hewitt, J. 1954. Pottery from the Eastern Cape Province. South African Archaeological Bulletin 9(34): 38.

Hewitt, J. 1954. Stone axe found on Albany farm is finest seen so far. Grocott’s Daily Mail. 2 July 1954: 3.

Hewitt, J. 1955. Further light on the Bowker implements. South African Archaeological Bulletin 10(39): 94–95.

Biogeography & faunal guides

[Some papers on this theme are also listed under Herpetology]

Hewitt, J. 1915. The distribution of animals. The Midland News, Special Supplement 5, 15 May 1915: 7.

Hewitt, J. 1918. A guide to the fauna of the Albany Museum. Part I – vertebrates (mammals, birds, reptiles and amphibians, but excluding fish). Albany Museum, Grahamstown, vii + 113 pp. + 31 plates.

Hewitt, J. 1920. Notes on the fauna of St. Croix Island. South African Journal of Natural History 2: 98–112.

Hewitt, J. 1920. Notes on the Eastern Province in pre-settler times (pp. 25–32). Souvenir in commemoration of the centenary of the 1820 settlers of Albany. Daily Dispatch, East London.

Hewitt, J. 1922. On the zoological evidence related to ancient land connections between Africa and other portions of the Southern Hemisphere. South African Journal of Science 19: 316–331.

Hewitt, J. 1923. Remarks on the distribution of animals in South Africa. South African Journal of Science 20(1): 96–123.

Hewitt, J. 1927. On longitudinal growth amongst animals in South Africa, considered from the distribution standpoint. South African Journal of Science 24: 452–456.

Hewitt, J. 1931. A guide to the vertebrate fauna of the Eastern Cape Province South Africa. Part I. – mammals and birds. The Albany Museum, Grahamstown, viii + 256 pp. + plates I–XXXX . [reviewed by: Robert, A. The Ostrich 3(1): 1932: 29–30; Godfrey, R. Blythswood Review 9(97) 1932: 35.]

Hewitt, J. 1937. A guide to the vertebrate fauna of the Eastern Cape Province South Africa. Part II. – Reptiles, amphibians, and freshwater fishes. The Albany Museum, Grahamstown, vii + 141 pp. + plates I–XXXIV + addenda. [reviewed in Our reptiles and fish. Daily Dispatch, East London, 23 February 1938: 8.]

Biography

Hewitt, J. 1920. Obituary: William Tyson. South African Journal of Natural History 2(2): 288–290.

Hewitt, J. 1920. Frank Pym. South African Journal of Natural History 2(2): 290–292 + unnumbered plate. [obituary].

Hewitt, J. 1931. Obituary. John William McCallum. The Ostrich 2(2): 69–74 + unnumbered plate.

Hewitt, J. 1940. Dr. Schönland of the Albany Museum. Grocott’s Daily Mail. 14 May 1940: 3, 4. [obituary].

Hewitt, J. 1940. Selmar Schönland. August, 1869 – May, 1940. Journal of South African Botany 6(4): 195–204. [obituary].

Hewitt, J. 1953. Frank Cruden – Nature’s man – an appreciation. Grocott’s Daily Mail. 29 May 1953: 3. [obituary].

Evolution

Hewitt, J. 1924. Is evolution reversible? South African Journal of Science 21: 425–431 + plate IX.

Herpetology

Hewitt, J. 1909. Description of a new species of Platysaurus and notes on the specific characters of certain species of Zonuridae, together with synoptic keys to all the known South African species and a résumé of our knowledge on their distribution: and a key to the known genera of South African lizards. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 2(1): 29–40 + unnumbered plate.

Hewitt, J. 1909. Description of a frog belonging to the genus Heleophryne and a note on the systematic position of the genus. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 2(1): 45–46.

Hewitt, J. 1910. The zoological region of Southern Africa as deduced from the composition of the Lacertilia. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 2(2): 56–71.

Hewitt, J. 1910. Description of a new snake, Prosymna transvaalensis, from the Transvaal. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 2(3): 73.

Hewitt, J. 1910. A key to the South African species of Geckonidae, Scinidae, Gerrhosauridae, and Lacertidae, together with some notes on the specific characters and a brief summary of the known facts of their distribution. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 2(3): 77–115.

Hewitt, J. 1910. S.A. lizards and their distribution. East London Dispatch 37(6147), 17 December 1910: 11.

Hewitt, J. 1911. A brief outline of the facts concerning the composition of the snake fauna of South Africa and its relationship to the Madagascar fauna. Report of the Eighth Annual Meeting of the South African Association for the Advancement of Science 1910: 306–315.

Hewitt, J. 1911. A key to the species of the South African Batrachia together with some notes on the specific characters and a synopsis of the known facts of their distribution. Records of the Albany Museum 2(3): 189–228.

Hewitt, J. 1911. A brief review of the relationship and probable origin of the amphibious fauna of S. Africa and Madagascar. Read before the Transvaal Biological Society, 4 April 1911.

Hewitt, J. 1911. A comparative review of the amphibian faunas of South Africa and Madagascar, with some suggestions regarding their former lines of dispersal. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 3(1): 29–39.

Hewitt, J. 1911. Records of South African Lacertilia and Amphibia. Addenda and corrigenda. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 3(1): 42–55.

Hewitt, J. 1911. Note on the relationship of the maxilla of vipers to that of Colubridae. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 3(2): 93–95.

Hewitt, J. 1912. Notes on the specific characters and distribution of some South African Ophidia and Batrachia. Records of the Albany Museum 2(4): 264–281.

Methuen, P.A. & Hewitt, J. 1913. On a collection of reptiles from Madagascar made during the year 1911. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 3(4): 183–193 + plates V–XI.

Hewitt, J. 1913. Description of Heliophryne natalensis, a new batrachian from Natal; and notes on several South African batrachians and reptiles. Annals of the Natal Museum 2(4): 475–484 + plate XXXIX.

Methuen, P.A. & Hewitt, J. 1913. On a collection of Batrachia from Madagascar made during the year 1911. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 4(2): 49–64 + plates IX, X.

Methuen, P.A. & Hewitt, J. 1913. The Percy Sladen Memorial Expedition to Great Namaqualand, 1912–1913. Records and descriptions of the reptiles and batrachians of the collection. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 4(3): 118–145 + plate XIV.

Hewitt, J. & Methuen, P.A. 1913. Descriptions of some new Batrachia and Lacertilia from South Africa. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa 3: 107–111 + plate VII.

Hewitt, J. & Power, J.H. 1913. A list of South African Lacertilia, Ophidia and Batrachia in the McGregor Museum, Kimberly; with field-notes on various species. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa 3: 147–176.

Hewitt, J. 1914. Notes on the distribution and characters of reptiles and amphibians in South Africa, considered in relation to the problem of discontinuity between closely allied species. Report of the Eleventh Annual Meeting of the South African Association for the Advancement of Science 1913: 238–253.

Hewitt, J. 1915. Descriptions of two new South African lizards Tetradactylus laevicauda and T. fitzsimonsi. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 5(2): 102–103.

Methuen, P.A. & Hewitt, J. 1915. A contribution to our knowledge of the anatomy of chameleons. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa 4: 89–104.

Hewitt, J. 1919. Anhydrophryne rattrayi, a remarkable new frog from Cape Colony. Records of the Albany Museum 3(3): 182–189 + plate V.

Hewitt, J. 1920. Note on the so-called second brachial arch in lizards. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa 8: 91–93.

Hewitt, J. 1921. II. – On some lizards and arachnids of Natal. Annals of the Durban Museum 3(1): 3–11.

Hewitt, J. 1922. Notes on some South African tadpoles. The South African Journal of Natural History 3(2): 60–65.

Hewitt, J. 1923. Description of two new S. African geckos of the genus Pachydactylus. Annals of the Natal Museum 5(1): 67–71 + plate IV.

Hewitt, J. 1925. Descriptions of three new toads belonging to the genus Breviceps Merrem. Annals of the Natal Museum 5(2): 189–194 + plate X.

Hewitt, J. 1925. On some new species of reptiles and amphibians from South Africa. Records of the Albany Museum 3(4): 343–368 + plates XV–XIX.

Hewitt, J. 1926. Descriptions of some new species of batrachians and lizards from S. Africa. Annals of the Natal Museum 5(3): 435–448 + plate XXV.

Hewitt, J. 1926. Descriptions of new and little-known lizards and batrachians from South Africa. Annals of the South African Museum 20: 413–431 + plates XXXV–XXXVII.

Hewitt, J. 1926. Some new and little-known reptiles and batrachians from South Africa. Annals of the South African Museum 20(6): 473–490 + plates XLIV–XLV.

Hewitt, J. 1927. Further descriptions of reptiles and batrachians from South Africa. Records of the Albany Museum 3(5): 371–415 + plates XX–XXIV.

Rose, W. & Hewitt, J. 1927. Description of a new species of Xenopus from the Cape Peninsula. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa 14(4): 343–346 + plate XVI.

Hewitt, J. 1929. On some Scincidae from South Africa, Madagascar and Ceylon. Annals of the Transvaal Museum 13(1): 1–8 + plates I–III.

Hewitt, J. 1931. Descriptions of some African tortoises. Annals of the Natal Museum 6(3): 461–506 + plates XXXVI–XXXVIII.

Hewitt, J. 1932. Some new species and subspecies of South African batrachians and lizards. Annals of the Natal Museum 7(1): 105–128 + plate VI.

Hewitt, J. 1933. Description of some new reptiles and a frog from Rhodesia. Occasional Papers of the Rhodesian Museum 1(2): 45–50 + plate.

Hewitt, J. 1933. On the Cape species and subspecies of the genus Chersinella Gray. Part I. Annals of the Natal Museum 7(2): 255–293 + plates XIV, XV.

Hewitt, J. 1934. On the Cape species and subspecies of the genus Chersinella Gray. Part II. Annals of the Natal Museum 7(3): 303–349 + plates XVI, XVII.

Hewitt, J. 1935. Some new forms of batrachians and reptiles from South Africa. Records of the Albany Museum 4(2): 283–357 + plates XXVII–XXXVI.

Hewitt, J. 1937. A selection of literature on South African lizards. Cape Naturalist 8(2): 199–209 = plate.

Hewitt, J. 1937. Descriptions of South African lizards. Annals of the Natal Museum 8(2): 199–209 + plate XII.

Hewitt, J. 1937. A note on the relationships of the Cape genera of land-tortoises. South African Journal of Science 33: 788–796 + plate X.

Hewitt, J. 1938. Descriptions of new forms of the genus Acontia Lin. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa 26(1): 39–48 + plates II, III.

Mammalogy

Hewitt, J. 1913. Note on a variety of Rhinolophus swinnyi Gough from Pirie, Cape Colony. Records of the Albany Museum 2(5): 402–403.

Hewitt, J. 1925. [Mountain zebra and quagga.] Blythswood Review 2(13): 7.

Hewitt, J. 1927. On several new rodents in the Albany Museum. Records of the Albany Museum 3(5): 430–440 + plates XXVI, XXVII.

Ornithology

Hewitt, J. 1913. Note on a three-toed ostrich chick. Journal of the South African Ornithologists’ Union 9(1): 55–56.

Hewitt, J. 1926. Birds of Eastern Cape Colony. Blythswood Review 3(30): 70.

Hewitt, J. 1930. A note on the matter of names. The Ostrich 1(2): 42–45.

Hewitt, J. 1932. Cisticola problems. Blythswood Review 9(100): 29.

Hewitt, J. 1934. Notes on some birds in the Albany Museum. The Ostrich 5(1): 1–16.

Hewitt, J. 1937. Several new and noteworthy records of sea-birds form the eastern coast of the Cape Province. The Ostrich 8(1): 1–9.

Bigalke, R. & Hewitt, J. 1941. Migration rings recovered from White Storks. The Ostrich 11(2): 139.

Hewitt, J. 1944. [Notes on various birds]. The Ostrich 15(2): 146 [letter to the editor].

Hewitt, J. 1948. Ringed White Stork records. The Ostrich 19(2): 152.

Plankton

Hewitt, J. 1910. Some distinctive characters in the freshwater plankton from various islands off the north and west coasts of Scotland. In Murray J. & Puller, L. (eds.). Report on the scientific results of the Bathymetrical Survey of the Scottish freshwater Lochs. Challenger Office, Edinburgh, 335–353 pp. + plates X–XV.

Sarawak

Brooks, C.J. & Hewitt, J. 1910. Notes on the fertilisation of a few orchids in Sarawak. Journal of the Straits Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society 54: 99–106.

Everett, H.H. & Hewitt, J. 1909. A history of Santubong, an island off the coast of Sarawak. Journal of the Straits Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society 52: 1–30 + 2 unnumbered maps and map.

Hewitt, J. & Lawrence, A.E. 1911. Head pressing among the Milanos of Sarawak. Journal of the Straits Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society 60: 69–71 + 2 plates.

Hewitt, J. 1905. About snakes. The Sarawak Gazette 35(477), 3 October 1905: 220–221.

Hewitt, J. 1905. Mosquitoes. The Sarawak Gazette. 32(476), 1 September 1905: 198.

Hewitt, J. 1905. On some local fish. The Sarawak Gazette. 32(476), 1 September 1905: 203–206.

Hewitt, J. 1905. Notes on edible fish and other marine animals. The Sarawak Gazette 35(479), 4 December 1905: 272–274.

Hewitt, J. 1905. On 3 insect pests of mango trees. Agricultural Bulletin of the Straits and Federated Malay States 4(10): 399–400.

Hewitt, J. 1905. Report on the Sarawak Museum for 1905. Sarawak Gazette Office, Sarawak, 1–14.

Hewitt, J. 1906. Dyes and dying amongst the Sea Dyaks of Sarawak. Agricultural Bulletin of the Straits and Federated Malay States 5(7): 232–237.

Hewitt, J. 1906. New World animals on an Old World island. The Sarawak Gazette. 4 April 1906: 81–82.

Hewitt, J. 1908. On some vegetable fats native to Sarawak. Agricultural Bulletin of the Straits and Federated Malay States 7: 173.

Hewitt, J. 1906. Report on the Sarawak Museum for 1906. Sarawak Gazette Office, Sarawak, 1–14.

Hewitt, J. 1907. A Land Dyak myth. The Sarawak Gazette 37(500), 4 September 1907: 210.

Hewitt, J. 1907. Report on the Sarawak Museum for 1907. Sarawak Gazette Office, Sarawak, 1–13.

Hewitt, J. 1908. Some rarities of natural history in Sarawak. The Sarawak Gazette 38(515), 1 September 1908: 220.

Hewitt, J. 1909. Tabu customs of the warpath amongst the Sea Dayaks of Sarawak. Journal of the Straits Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society 52: 117–119.

Hewitt, J. 1908. The cultivation of pepper in Sarawak. Agricultural Bulletin of the Straits and Federated Malay States 7(6): 189–195.

Hewitt, J. 1908. Vanishing Borneana. The Sarawak Gazette 38(512), 16 July 1908: 177–178.

Hewitt, J. 1908. Engkabang. Agricultural Bulletin of the Straits and Federated Malay States 7: 173.

Hewitt, J. 1908. Fat of Bassia motleyana. Agricultural Bulletin of the Straits and Federated Malay States 7: 174.

Hewitt, J. 1909. A note on the antique pottery found in Sarawak. The Sarawak Gazette 39(532), 17 May 1909: 110–111.

Hewitt, J. 1910. A brief sketch of the ethnography of Sarawak. Report of the Seventh Annual Meeting of the South African Association for the Advancement of Science, Bloemfontein 1909: 423–430.

Hewitt, J. 1910. Notes on the flora and fauna of Sarawak: considered more especially in comparison with that of South Africa. Report of the Seventh Annual Meeting of the South African Association for the Advancement of Science, Bloemfontein 1909: 203–213.

Hewitt, J. 1911. Account of three snakes. Journal of the Straits Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society 45: 282–283.

Hewitt, J. 1961. The first Land Dyaks. Sarawak Museum Journal 10(17–18): 108–117.

Hose, C. & Hewitt, J. 1907. On tally sticks and strings in Borneo. Journal of the Straits Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society 49: 7–10.

Lawrence, A.E. & Hewitt, J. 1908. Some aspects of spirit work amongst the Milano of Sarawak. Journal of the Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland 38: 388–408 + plate XXXIV.

Mulder, F.B. & Hewitt, J. 1911. Two religious ceremonies in vogue among the Milanos of Sarawak. Journal of the Straits Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society 57: 171–181.

Journal of the Entomological Society of Southern Africa 1973, 36(1): 183–184.

Obituary

JOSEPH OMER-COOPER (1893–1972)

Joseph Omer-Cooper was born in Reading, England, on the 16^th April 1893; he passed away in Port Elizabeth on the 9^th November 1972.

He went to school at Taunton and Bournemouth and then joined his father’s business as an estate agent. One can picture him writing deeds of sale in his immaculate longhand but not really liking the job. His real interest was in biology in the widest sense. He was a member of the Microscopical Society and his masterful slides in various techniques were on view at the yearly exhibitions.

His business activities were interrupted by the 1914–1918 war. He joined the R.A.M.C. and first saw army service on Salisbury Plain with the shadow of Stonehenge in the background. Here, with the menial tasks of an orderly he developed his interest in physiology and from blood and urine samples he acquired an original and remarkable diagnostic knowledge. After demobilization he entered Cambridge University and began the work of his life in the Natural Sciences. He obtained the B.A. degree in 1925 and the M.A. in 1927. From 1924 to 1927 he served on the staff of the Department of Zoology at Cambridge as demonstrator and lecturer. In 1927 he was appointed lecturer at the University of Durham. He held this appointment until 1936 when he came to Rhodes University College, Grahamstown, South Africa, as Senior Lecturer in charge of the Department of Zoology.

In the decade preceding his departure from England, he had already become a specialist on African fauna and ecology (or oecology as he preferred it written). He undertook expeditions to Tunisia in 1925, to Abyssinia in 1926 and to the Libyan Desert in 1935. He was an indefatigable collector and the publications on his North African collections by himself and other specialists form an important contribution to the knowledge of the North African fauna.

The Zoology Department at Rhodes University took new life with his arrival. The department was housed in a military barrack from the first half of the 19^th century and lacked the most essential amenities. In spite of meagre finances he started immediately to lay the foundation for adequate laboratory equipment and a departmental research library. He was promoted to Professor in 1940 and held this post until his retirement 1954. The first zoology building was built only after his retirement.

His special interest was in the Invertebrata and particularly the Arthropoda. He was an expert taxonomist and morphologist but he preferred the animal in nature, in different environments, desert, sea and fresh water and of each he had experience and first hand knowledge. In undergraduate teaching he emphasised entomology and in 1949 he established the sub-Department of Entomology and made entomology a major qualifying subject for the B.Sc. degree. Since that time the department has been known as the Department of Zoology and Entomology. The new entomology course was initially purely academic; economic entomology and insect control were hardly mentioned. But Omer-Cooper knew too well that there were many biological problems of economic importance in his immediate surroundings. Many of his postgraduate students devoted their studies for the M.Sc. and higher degrees to subjects with an economic flavour. They covered insect pests of citrus, hide and skin beetles, insect pests in turf-grasses and others. In all these studies the biological and ecological aspects were given prominence. From the early 1940’s his department became deeply involved in work on insecticide resistant ticks. This pioneer work has recently resulted in the establishment of the Tick Research Unit at Rhodes University.

While at Rhodes, Omer-Cooper led several student field courses and undertook research expeditions to different parts of South, Central and East Africa and in 1953 he organized an expedition to the Sudan. In all these expeditions he paid particular attention to the lakes and inland waters of the continent. His wife, Dr Joyce Omer-Cooper, herself a distinguished scientist, accompanied him on all these trips and she has published many papers on the Dytiscidae.

Professor Omer-Cooper was president of the Entomological Society of Southern Africa in 1954/1955. At the same time he was president of Section D of the South African Association for the Advancement of Science. His presidential address, “Still Waters” is characteristic, from its Biblical title to its wealth of detailed information, based on personal observations and experience.

He also had wide interests outside the Biological Sciences. He was a keen Freemason and a member of many degrees. He was a connoisseur of all the points of gracious living; in his hospitable home he was the ideal host and entertaining causeur with knowledge and opinion on practically any subject, but with an open and sympathetic ear for anybody’s point of view.

He had planned to go on more expeditions and work on his collections in his retirement. He discovered and described the first South African Kinorhynchs and a Protohydra from the Kleinemonde River Estuary; but the progression of disease gradually made serious work impossible.

Joseph Omer-Cooper was buried on the 13^th November, 1972, in Grahamstown. In the intimacy of beautiful Christ Church many friends and colleagues gathered for the last time. Our deepest sympathy goes to his wife Joyce and to their children John, Mary, Phoebe and Wilfred.

A.B.M.W.

J.C. v. H.

[Note: The authors of the above obituary are: A.B.M. Ward and J.C. van Hille.]

[For the obituary and publication list of Joyce Omer-Cooper (1899–1979) see Journal of the Entomological Society of Southern Africa 1979, 42(2): 405–408.]

Charles Jacot-Guillarmod, date unknown (top left); his signature (bottom left); and examples of insect specimen data labels (right).

Journal of the Entomological Society of Southern Africa 1980, 43(2): 379–384.

Obituary

Charles Fréderic Jacot Guillarmod

1912–1979

Charles Fréderic Jacot Guillarmod (known to colleagues and friends as Jacot or Charlot) was of Swiss and French descent. His maternal grandfather emigrated from Alsace-Lorraine to Lesotho as a missionary for the Paris Evangelical Mission Society and was based at Cana Mission. Jacot’s father came from Switzerland and was manger of various trading stations in Lesotho, where he met his wife. Louis Edouard and Sophie Jacot Guillarmod then took up farming in the Orange Free State, and Charles was born on the farm Lambertina, near Clocolan, on 24 August 1912. Shortly after his birth, the family moved to the farm Kincora near Reitz and then to the nearby farm Togwat. While there, at the age of about three, Jacot showed that he thought insects were important, since his mother discovered him and his elder brother assiduously eating ants one afternoon in the hope that they would gain some of the fabulous strength of their victims.

In 1918 the family returned to Lesotho, where Jacot’s father managed and later purchased the trading store at ‘Mamathe’s. As was the case with his two elder sisters, France and Marie, and his brother, Marcel, Charles received his initial education from his mother at home. Whenever he could, he would join the Basotho herd boys and share their feasts of freshly caught field mice or birds roasted over a fire. It was probably at this stage that his deep love of the countryside and the Basotho people first developed, a concern that was later to prompt his compilation of what is probably the most comprehensive collection of information on Lesotho in existence. His abiding interest in entomology was also kindled at this early age by observation of a cryptically coloured moth resting on the privy wall. After having shown the specimen, Jacot’s father encouraged the two boys to build up a collection, especially of butterflies, and made them nets and the other necessary apparatus. To maintain their interest, he used to take care of their caterpillars while they were at school and even added to the collection himself.

At the age of 12 Jacot was sent to Grey College in Bloemfontein, where he entered standard four. Adjustments must have been difficult, especially since his languages were French and Southern Sotho. He soon overcame the problems, however, and became fluent in both English and Afrikaans as well. He deterred would-be pilferers by keeping snakes in his locker, but reassured his mother that there was no danger to anyone since they were harmless. Whenever he could, he would spend his spare time at the National Museum increasing his knowledge. There must have been very happy years for him, since he maintained contact with the school until his death.

After finishing school, Jacot went to the University of Pretoria, where he gained hi B.Sc. in Zoology (1934) and his M.Sc. in Entomology (1936), both degrees being awarded cum laude. His thesis, carried out under the guidance and inspiration of J.C. Faure, was on the systematics of Thysanoptera and included a catalogue of the known South African species, this being the forerunner of his major work cataloguing the thrips of the world. He was also a close friend of A.J.T. Janse. During his frequent visits to the Transvaal Museum he became very friendly with G. van Son and also with Austin Roberts and his family. During his vacations he went out of his way to collect coverage of Robert’s books on the birds and mammals of South Africa. Then, as throughout his life, he was never happier than when roaming the countryside and collecting specimens. While at Pretoria he also gained his colours for tennis.

In 1936 he took up a post in the Department of Agriculture and Forestry and was involved in locust research for two years, during which he spent most of his time in Zululand and the Upington area of the northern Cape. In 1938 he was seconded from the Division of Entomology, as Assistant Professional Officer, to the Division of Plant Industry, to work on the insect transmission of virus diseases of plants. It was then that he met Amy Hean, a plant virologist, whom he married in 1940. During November 1939 Jacot’s father died, and he had to move to Lesotho in order to manage the trading store at ‘Mamathe’s for his mother. He attempted to enlist for service during the war but was prevented from doing so by the Lesotho authorities, who would not allow any more whites to leave the country because their manpower resources had already been seriously depleted. Despite the many trials and tribulations involved in store management, Jacot always found time for entomology and devoted much effort to the compilation of an extensive collection of insects, not only of the groups which were of particular interest to him (the thrips and scolioid wasps), but also many other orders. In this he was assisted by Amy and, later by their son, François. Amy also busied herself with investigations of the flora of Lesotho (and in 1971 was to publish a comprehensive book on the subject) and in addition did some lecturing at Pope Pius XII University College at Roma (later to become the National University of Lesotho). Despite his isolated position, Jacot established contacts with colleagues all over the world, especially those working on aculeate Hymenoptera and Thysanoptera. Foremost among these was George Arnold, of Bulawayo in Rhodesia, to whom many specimens of Hymenoptera were sent. Jacot also pursued his life-long concern with obtaining as much of the literature on the groups that interested him as possible. Unfortunately, some of this effort was doomed, because the house was destroyed by fire during January 1950. With the selfless help of the Basotho, not all was lost, however, and a new house was built.

In 1958, after 18 years in Lesotho, the family moved to Grahamstown, where Jacot had been appointed Professional Officer, Entomology, at the Albany Museum and Amy jointed the Botany Department of Rhodes University. Jacot immediately began a complex overhaul of the Entomology section, which had been rather neglected, and the following year was promoted to Senior Professional Officer. Although he had less time for it than he would have liked, he continued with his research on thrips and wasps, spending long hours during the evenings and weekends on this.

A few years after taking up his post, he was invited by J.C. Bradley of Cornell University in the United States of America to join him and J.G. Betrem of Holland in doing a complete revision of the Scoliidae of the world. He went to Cornell, where he was appointed Research Associate, in 1962 and stayed in the United States for two years, working on the scoliid project for most of that time. (The project was unfortunately much larger than anyone had anticipated, and much of it was not completed.) During 1963 Jacot attended the International Congress of Zoology in Washington D.C., and was appointed an alternate on the International Commission of Zoological Nomenclature for the duration of the Congress. At Cornell he also made contact with J.D. Hood, then the world’s foremost authority on Thysanoptera, and was the first person to be given free access to Hood’s collection and library. He made such a good impression that he was given Hood’s entire reprint library and notes and was also able to return to South Africa with a complete set of duplicate specimens from the Hood collection. These were vital resources which aided him immeasurably in his compilation of the world catalogue of Thysanoptera on which he had already been working for decades.

After his return from America, Jacot undertook the editorship of the Annals of the Cape Provincial Museums in 1964. He performed this often thankless task for more than 14 years, during which time the Annals gained considerably in prestige and influence, in large part because of his meticulous approach. During the same year the Director of the Albany Museum, T.H. Barry, resigned to take up the post of Director of the South African Museum in Cape Town. Jacot was appointed Acting Director and then towards the end of 1965 he was appointed Director. During the 12 years of his directorship, he fought incessantly for the improvement of the Museum. Staff numbers were almost doubled and staff benefits were vastly improved. Complete reorganization of displays was begun and service to the public was extended. A new building for the Cultural History section was completed. Under his guidance the Albany Museum experienced one of its greatest periods of development.

In 1974 Jacot and Amy disposed of their home in Grahamstown and moved to a large property that they had purchased 6 km out of town on the road to Highlands. The spacious house overlooks Howison’s Poort, with a magnificent view out to sea on a clear day and an equally magnificent view inland to the Winterberg and Hogsback. This provided a much appreciated refuge from museum affairs and was appropriately named ‘Faraway’. The entire property was overrun with pine trees, but Jacot managed to clear practically all of them, almost single-handedly. It is testimony to his hard work that most of the property is now reverting to its original fynbos and natural forest. He found it a great joy to explore the place, discovering traces of bushpig and other large mammals, noting the diverse insect life and becoming interested in the noisy pneumorids, and, not least, watching the birds, especially the raptors, which unfortunately did not include his favourites, the vultures.

After his resignation as Director of the Museum in August 1977, Jacot rejoined the staff in a temporary capacity as Assistant Curator of Entomology. At long last he was able to devote himself almost entirely to the things that he loved best, working on his thrips and aculeates, experimenting with the resin embedding of specimens for the school services section of the Museum, and also undertaking some extended field trips with his nephew, D.J. Brothers. Unfortunately, this happy period was not to last for very long. On the evening of Saturday 22 September 1979, after spending a very happy day exploring Faraway with Amy and doing some work on the thrips catalogue, Jacot suffered a massive coronary attack and passed away.

Jacot will be remembered by many for his cheerful and gentle manner. He was a true humanist, always ready to help anyone in need, no matter what their colour or political persuasions. He was always a gentleman in the true sense of the word and was completely unselfish. His quiet sense of humour was a constant delight and he had a special way with children, showing infinite patience and encouragement. One of his last achievements as Director, and one of which he was proudest, was the special Children’s Gallery at the Museum.

In the entomological field, his influence extended much farther than that of his publications alone. His insistence on the highest standards from himself and others was an inspiration to all who came in contact with him and was especially influential on students and younger colleagues. He was a perfectionist in his work, sometimes almost to a fault, since he would probably have published many more papers if he had been satisfied with anything less. His dedication to his work was legendary, and proof of this can be seen in his catalogue of the Thysanoptera of the World, of which five parts had been published before his death and a sixth was in press. (He unfortunately left this work uncompleted but arrangements are being made for it to be completed posthumously). His store of knowledge about all things entomological, as well as many other areas of natural history and especially ornithology, was vast, to the extent that he was able to give valuable advice about almost any problem. He was a prolific collector of insects and was meticulous in his preparation of specimens. He was also very generous in supplying colleagues with material, going out of his way to collect specimens for them and then devoting the necessary effort to their proper mounting.

In southern Africa he was a further valuable influence in that he was one of the prime movers behind the establishment of our Society, the Entomological Society of Southern Africa. He was a Founder Member of the Society and was its first Treasurer. In fact, he has been referred to as the person who was ultimately responsible for the existence of the Society. He served as President of the Society for two separate terms, in 1955-56 and 1967-68 and was Vice-President for a total of 16 years.

The breadth of Jacot’s interests can be gauged from perusal of a list of the other societies of which he was a fellow or member, in many cases for most of his working life. These included the Royal Entomological Society of London, Society for British Entomology, Schweizerischen entomologischen Gesellschaft, Entomological Society of Washington, American Entomological Society, Kansas Entomological Society, Entomological Society of Canada, Société entomologique d’Égypte, Zoological Society of London, South African Ornithological Society, British Ornithologists Union, Diaz Cross Bird Club, Biological Society of South Africa, Royal Society of South Africa, Southern African Museums Association, Systematics Association, Sigma Xi and Basutoland (later Lesotho) Scientific Association (of which he and Amy were two of the four founders, Jacot being President for the first two years of its existence). He was also a Founding Member of the Bathurst Agricultural Museum.

Although it may not be realised by most, since he was never pretentious, the influence of Charles Jacot Guillarmod on the development of entomology in southern Africa was profound. Through his example at the very least, it has risen to heights which it would otherwise not have attained. His loss is a great blow to all, but we can only be grateful that we had the benefit of the presence and inspiration for as long as we did.

Publications of C.F. Jacot Guillarmod

1932. Some notes on birds in Basutoland. Ostrich 3: 35–40.

1936. Review: Annals of the Transvaal Museum, vol. XVIII, part 3. [3 papers by Austin Roberts]. Ostrich 7: 72–74.

1937. Ten new species of Thysanoptera and a catalogue of the known South African forms. Publ. Univ. Pretoria (Ser. 2, nat. Sci.) 3: 1–62.

1939a New species of Phlaeothripidae (Thysanoptera) from South Africa. J. ent. Soc. Sth. Afr. 1: 47–77.

1939b. Phlaeothripidae (Thysanoptera) new to South Africa, with descriptions of new genera and species. J. ent. Soc. Sth. Afr. 2: 36–62.

1940a. Studies on South African Thysanoptera – I. J. ent. Soc. sth. Afr. 3: 131–138.

1940b. (with J.C. Faure) Field experiments on poison bait against hoppers of the red locust: 1936–37. Sci. Bull. Dept. Agric. S. Afr. No. 211: 1–52.

1941. Studies on South African Thysanoptera – II. J. ent. Soc. sth. Afr. 4: 80–100.

1942. Studies on South African Thysanoptera – III. J. ent. Soc. sth. Afr. 5: 64–74.

1946. Wasps and their ways. S. African Insect Life (Pretoria) (1945) 1: 41–43.

1951. A South Africa leguminous plant attractive to Hymenoptera. Ent. mon. Mag. 87: 235–236.

1953. Preliminary notes on South African Tiphiidae (Hymenoptera). Proc. R. ent. Soc. London (B) 22: 15–18.

1955a. Contributions a l’étude de la faune entomologique du Ruanda-Urundi (Mission P. Basilewsky 1953) LXXV. Hymenoptera Tiphiidae. Ann. Mus. R. Congo Belge Tervuren (in 8⁰, Sci. zool.) 40: 391–396.

1955b. Zoologists of Basutoland. Rep. Basutoland Sci. Ass. (Maseru) 1955: 7–9.

1956. Animal distribution in Basutoland. Rep. Basutoland Sci. Ass. (Maseru) 1956: 6–9.

1957. Notes on the insect complex on Calpurnia intrusa in Basutoland. J. ent. Soc. sth. Afr. 20: 10–13.

1959a. Some hitherto unrecognised synonyms among the Tiphiidae (Hymenoptera). J. ent. Soc. sth. Afr. 22: 148–149.

1959b. (with J.D. Hood) A note on Monilothrips kempi Moulton (Thysanoptera: Thripidae). J. ent. Soc. sth. Afr. 22: 489–493.

1960. European starling Sturnus vulgaris in Grahamstown. Ostrich 31: 173.

1961. The hymenopterous types of Peter Cameron in the Albany Museum, Grahamstown, South Africa, with notes on their condition. Ann. Cape Prov. Mus. 1: 1–14.

1963a. (with J.G. Betrem & J.C. Bradley) Heterelis Costa, 1887 (Insecta, Hymenoptera): request for a decision on the type species. Z.N. (S.) 1175. Bull. zool. Nomencl. 20: 204–205.

1963b. (with J.C. Bradley & J.G. Betrem) Ascoli Guérin-Méneville, 1939 and Ascoli Betrem, 1926 (Insecta, Hymenoptera): proposed rejection as unavailable. Z.N.(S.)1176. Bull. zool. Nom. 20: 294–295.

1963c. Catalogue of the birds of Basutoland. S. Afr. Avifauna Ser. 8: 1–111.

1965. The openbill Anastomus lamelligerus in the Eastern Cape Province. Ostrich 36: 138.

1969. The rôle of the systematist in South African entomology. J. ent. Soc. sth. Afr. 32: 1–4.

1970a. Catalogue of the Thysanoptera of the World. (Part 1). Ann. Cape. Prov. Mus. (nat. Hist.) 7: i–iv, 1–216.

1970b. South African recoveries of birds ringed abroad: Wandering Albatross Diomedea exulans. Ostrich 41: 268.

1971. Catalogue of the Thysanoptera of the World. (Part 2). Ann. Cape. Prov. Mus. (nat. Hist.) 7: 217–515.

1974a. Catalogue of the Thysanoptera of the World. (Part 3). Ann. Cape. Prov. Mus. (nat. Hist.) 7: 516–976.

1974b. Order Hymenoptera. In: Coaton, W.G.H. ed., Status of the Taxonomy of the Hexapoda of Southern Africa. Entomology Mem. Dep. Agric. Tech. Serv. Repub. S. Afr, 38: 119–124.

1975. Catalogue of the Thysanoptera of the World. (Part 4). Ann. Cape. Prov. Mus. (nat. Hist.) 7: 977–1255.

1978. Catalogue of the Thysanoptera of the World. (Part 5). Ann. Cape. Prov. Mus. (nat. Hist.) 7: 1257–1556.

1979. Catalogue of the Thysanoptera of the World. (Part 6). Ann. Cape. Prov. Mus. (nat. Hist.) 7: 1557–1724.

[Part 7 of the Catalogue of the Thysanoptera of the World was published posthumously on 30^th May 1986 with D. Brothers:

JACOT-GUILLARMOD, C.F. & BROTHERS, D.J. 1986. Catalogue of the Thysanoptera of the World (Part 7). Annals of the Cape Provincial Museums (Natural History) 17(1): 1–93.]

[Additional Note: At the time of Jacot’s death he had considerable material on loan from various museums, especially the Scoliidae (Hymenoptera). Some of these loans have recently been identified and North American specimens have been returned to the American Museum of Natural History, New York. Enquires regarding outstanding loans should be directed to the Curator.]

Reginald Lawrence, date unknown (top left); in 1984 (top right); and his signature (bottom left).

Transactions of the Royal Society of Southern Africa 1992, 48(2): 192–194.

OBITUARY: REGINALD FREDERICK LAWRENCE, FRSSAf

By

Peter Croeser

Department of Arachnology, Natal Museum, Pietermaritzburg

With the death of Dr Reginald Frederick Lawrence after a short illness at the age of 90 in Pietermaritzburg on 9 October 1987 the South African scientific community lost one of its most prolific and respected researchers.

Through his internationally recognized research, extensive field work and more than 200 papers and books, he helped establish a firm foundation for the systematic study of the arachnids and myriapods of southern Africa. His publications span nearly 60 years, from the first of a series of papers on the arachnids of papers on the arachnids of Namibia in 1927 to his invaluable The Centipedes and Millipedes of southern Africa: A Guide in 1984. He worked on all the myriapod and arachnid groups (with the exception of ticks) as well as the Onychophora, and pioneered the study of African ectoparasitic mites. While the bilk of his research was taxonomic, he also published papers on the zoogeography, ecology and biology of arthropods. His book The Biology of the cryptic fauna of forests with special reference to the indigenous forests of South Africa (1953) was well ahead of its time, and is still considered one of the most important contributions in its field.

Recognition for his contributions to zoology included his election to a variety of offices: Fellow of the Royal Society of South Africa (1935), President of the Entomological Society of Southern Africa (1953), Sectional President of the South African Association for the Advancement of Science (1958) and Vice-President of the international arachnological society, the Paris-based Centre Internationale de Documentation Arachnologique (C.I.D.A.) (1974). He also joined the select few to receive Honorary Membership of the Societé Royale de Entomologie Belgique (1974) and of the American Arachnological Society (1985), and was awarded the distinguished contribution medals of the SA Association for the Advancement of Science (1956) and the Zoological Society of SA (1973). The latter ‘in appreciation of and admiration for his completion of half-a-century of distinguished scientific work’. In 1964 the Natal Museum published a Festschrift edition of the Annals of the Natal Museum in his honour with contributions from many of the world’s leading arachnologists. Apart from his work and research he did much to promote the cause of science and zoology, and was a founder member of the Southern African Museums Association.

Born in George on 6 March 1897, he was educated at St Andrew’s College, Grahamstown, and in Cape Town. His studies at the University of Cape Town were interrupted by the First World War, during which he spent two years in the trenches in France before being wounded in 1918. After completing his first degree he was appointed by Dr Louis Peringuey to the staff of the South African Museum in 1922, later taking charge of the arachnid, myriapod, and herpetological collections of the museum. He undertook several important collecting expeditions during his first years at the museum; a solo effort, mostly by donkey-back, in Mozambique in 1923, followed by three donkey-trek expeditions in Namibia (1924–1926) with fellow museum colleagues Dr K. H. Barnard and Dr A. J. Hesse. Few knew that in addition to his many talents he was also a crack rifle shottist. This skill earned him the added duty of chief provider of fresh meat for the pot during the Namibian expeditions. The expeditions each took several months and he maintained that the leisurely pace of the donkey treks enabled far more thorough field collecting than any of the many motorized expeditions he later undertook. The results of the Namibian trips culminated in two major papers on the arachnid fauna of the territory and a Ph.D. from the University of Cape Town in 1928. He moved to Natal when he was appointed Director of the Natal Museum in Pietermaritzburg in 1935 and remained associated with the museum until he retired in 1966. He resigned as Director in 1948 to devote himself to full-time research, first as a Research Fellow of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research and later as Professional Officer on the museum staff. On retirement he and his wife, Professor Ella Tratt Yule, founder and first Professor of the Department of Psychology at the University of Natal, moved to Grahamstown and the finally settled in Port Alfred. He continued his research as a Research Associate of the Albany Museum in Grahamstown, maintaining a steady flow of articles and research papers until the early eighties. He remained in Port Alfred for some years after the death of his wife in 1978 until he returned to live near his two sons, Alistair and Jonathan, in Pietermaritzburg in 1984. He remained active and in good health until the end, still driving and living independently in a small hotel near the city’s extensive botanical gardens where he spent most afternoons walking.

Lawrie, as he was affectionately known by his many friends and colleagues, was a slight, wiry man with a shy and retiring nature; warm and charming to those he liked but unavailable to those whom he wished to avoid. At home he led a simple life-style, preferring books and classical music to social gatherings. At work he clearly perceived his objectives and had little time for meetings, bureaucratic haggling and administrative detail. It was with relief that he relinquished directorship of the Natal Museum to return to research and fieldwork. He worked alone for much of his life (only once coauthoring a paper) and in virtual isolation as the only arachnologist and myriapodologist in the country for several decades. A gifted taxonomist with an encyclopædic, precise memory he was able to prepare papers on quite different groups simultaneously without losing his way or momentum. Working quickly and accurately with a remarkable fluency of pen in both writing and illustrating, he achieved a sustained publishing output which few have rivaled in African taxonomy.

Despite all he achieved, he was probably proudest about his editing of the Annals of the Natal Museum during the 28 years he was associated with the museum. ‘I think it is one of the few things I have done well in my life’, he wrote in a letter to me in 1981. The high standards he set and his attention to detail helped establish it as an international recognized research journal.

Once, while talking to him about the problems of locating type specimens, Lawrie told me of an incident as a young man when he thought his then brief career as a systematist was about to come to an abrupt end. It took place in London where he was examining types in the British Museum of Natural History. In his excitement in finding a critical, but very small, opilionid type specimen he dropped it as he removed it from the vial. He searched the metal open-grate floor in vain, picturing his imminent disgrace and ultimate rejection by all museums once the word got round. On the off-chance that it had fallen through the grating, he dashed downstairs and to his enormous relief found the minute alcohol-bedraggled specimen. Fortunately the staff below were on lunch and the specimen was still intact. Only a fellow taxonomist would understand the strain of those harrowing few minutes in the most venerable of arachnid mausoleums.

He was an excellent correspondent and went out of his way to help and encourage younger researchers, both in South Africa and overseas; the many inscribed papers and theses that continued to arrive in the post long after his retirement bore witness to their gratitude and affection.

His warmth and enthusiasm won him, many friends outside the museum world as well. Eve Palmer, a close friend for many years, recalls with affection in her delightful The Plains of Camdeboo (Collins, 1966) her first meeting with him and his subsequent collecting trip to their family farm Cranemere, in the Karoo near Pearston. He was searching for the unusual solpugid [sic], Broomiella, known only from a single specimen collected in the district by the world famous palaenotologist [sic], Dr Robert Broom, at the turn of the century. He achieved his objective, at the same time his infectious enthusiasm kindling the family’s continuing fascination with the abundant arthropod fauna of the Karoo.

Dr Lawrence was our last member of the golden age of Arachnology; that period, from the middle of the last century to the first third of this century, in which the taxonomic foundation of the discipline were firmly laid by a handful of extremely productive researchers. He will long continue to be remembered through his papers and the many species either collected or described by him or named after him.

[Photo caption reads: Dr R. F. Lawrence in Pietermaritzburg, April 1984. (Photograph by Peter Crosser). He bequested a substantial sum to the Royal Society of South Africa, which has been used to furnish a room in the Society’s headquarters in Cape Town, now named the Lawrence Room.]

[See also Anon 1964. Dr. R.F. Lawrence: a biographical sketch. Annals of the Natal Museum 16: i–ix, which lists his publications to 1964.]

[Lawrence’s library came to the Albany Museum and is stored in the main library. The collection contains some very early and obscure works on arachnids.]

Johann van Hille, date unknown (top left); his signature (bottom left); and examples of his insect data labels (right)

African Entomology 1993, 1: 137–140.

Obituary

J.C. ‘Bob’ van Hille (1910–1991)

On 30 December 1991 a tragic accident at his home in Frere Street, Grahamstown, closed the book on the life of Prof. J.C. van Hille at the age of 81 years. But, it was the incongruously violent passing of this gentle and cultured man that has left his family and friends bereft and bewildered. Johann Christoph van Hille, or ‘Bob’ as he was known to his colleagues, ‘Doc’ to generations of students or simply ‘Opa’ to his closely-knit family, was uniquely talented and much-loved personality in Grahamstown, and at his beloved Rhodes University which he served with distinction for 50 years.

It is a daunting privilege to be entrusted to write a tribute to J.C. van Hille. Daunting, in that it is impossible to do full justice to his multifaceted personality in one short article. A privilege, in that having known Doc for 30 years, first as a student of his and later a colleague, it is a labour of great respect. For, after all those years, it can be honestly stated that never once was a derogatory utterance heard about this remarkable man. To facilitate the assignment I have also drawn freely from tributes published in the Grahamstown media, and especially from the personal reminiscences of his widow Gerda, and the moving eulogy delivered at Doc’s memorial service by his long-time colleague and friend, Prof. Brian Allanson.

Bob van Hille was born on 31 August 1910 in Zwolle in the province of Overijssel, in the eastern part of the Netherlands. He completed his schooling in the Hague, at a school where his father was headmaster and which provided a classical education, including both Latin and Greek. His mother, C.M. van Hille-Garthé, was a well known authoress who published over 20 books, catering for adults as well as children.

He met Gerda at University in Utrecht where they both read Zoology and Botany as majors, but a romance only developed after they had attained their respective M.Sc. degrees. When they became engaged they were both working on botanical Ph.D. research projects, Bob on photosynthesis and Gerda on nutrition transport in the hyphae of fungi and the phloem of higher plants. Production of Doctorates in those depressing times was very expensive, so Gerda attenuated her studies to help Bob with his experiments, and later in translating his thesis from Dutch into English. His dissertation, The quantitative relationship between rate of photosynthesis and chlorophyll content in Chlorella pyrenoidosa, was also defended orally in the Aula of the University of Utrecht on 30 June 1938.

In October of the same year Bob and Gerda came to South Africa under rather tenuous circumstances. Shortly after they were married, they embarked on a cargo ship from Hamburg bound for Cape Town where a vague promise of a job awaited them. After several weeks at sea, including four Sundays, they arrived in South Africa where the expected position at a Botanical Institute did not materialize! They decided to make their own way in this country, cut off from family and friends by the pending war and with very little money.

At first Bob taught a variety of subjects (including French) on a part-time basis at High Schools, and while they were happily living in Springbok he was offered a temporary Assistant Lectureship at Rhodes University. Their decision to accept the post was never regretted, and led to his long association with this University and to the enrichment of so many lives.

There were some anxious days during the war when he was called for military service in the Dutch Army in Indonesia. This call-up was deferred as Gerda was expecting their second child and they were then forgotten for a time by the authorities. Fortunately, the war ended before Doc could commence his military career. At this stage Bob and Gerda became South African citizens.

He began his tenure at Rhodes in October 1940, in the Department headed by Prof. Joseph Omer-Cooper, and immediately made his mark. In 1945 he was appointed to a permanent lectureship and began work on a revision of the South African Anthicidae, a group of beetles on which he became a world authority.

In 1950 he was promoted to Senior Lecturer and in 1966, whilst on sabbatical leave in New York, was appointed Reader in Zoology, a title upgraded to Associate Professor in 1973.

His time at Rhodes spanned that of three Heads of Department, Profs J. Omer-Cooper, D.W. Ewer and B.R. Allanson, all of whom he supported and guided, also acting as Head on several occasions. In the 1960s, under the leadership of Prof. Brian Allanson, the Department of Zoology and Entomology at Rhodes University underwent vital changes with the appointment of young enthusiastic staff members. Doc was the focal point of Departmental stability during this transformation phase. His quiet wisdom, humour in all situations and guidance was a primary factor in the emergence of the Department at Rhodes as a leading centre of excellence in biological teaching and research. He was a dedicated teacher whose lectures and practicals on invertebrates were a real treat, crammed with information and spiced with humour. What a privilege it was to have been taught by this inspiring and gifted man.

During all this he continued his research on the Anthicidae, collecting whenever possible and publishing widely as he steadily built a scientific reputation as the leading authority on the group. A list of Doc’s publications, compiled by Dr Fred Gess of the Albany Museum, and published below bears testimony to this. His extensive collections are now safely deposited in this respected institution, a few hundred metres from where he carried out his life’s work.

Dr van Hille retired from teaching at the end of 1975, but continued his research on Anthicidae right up to his untimely death. He went to the Department each day and, in 1989, undertook a study trip to museums in England and France when already in his late seventies. Leaving Gerda in England with their son Philip and family, he travelled alone to Paris to continue his research on anthicids. His great delight during that excursion was to find a theatre he had frequented as a student, to discover the same production running as during his previous visit.

In the same year he was honoured with the award of Associate Professor Emeritus, and in 1990 a function was held at Rhodes to mark his 50 year association with the University.

Doc van Hille’s life revolved around three broad focal points, his family, music and theatre, and his academic life as a teacher and researcher. In all of these his humour and wisdom shone through as he contributed richly to the lives of the people and communities within his sphere.

As an academic, he also found time to serve on the Board of the Albany Museum for 24 years, nine of which were spent as Deputy Chairman. Upon retirement he was appointed an honorary research associate of the museum. He was also an authority on the historic signal towers that played such a significant role during the Settler/Xhosa confrontation of the last century. The present Director of the museum, Brian Wilmot, also a student of Doc’s had this to say ‘Doc was all that a gentleman should be. Not only was he a man of great scholarship and a fine example of a classical education but he had invaluable attributes of gentleness of character, a fine sense of humour and the ability to treat all people equally.’

An abiding passion and talent for music and theatre ran like a golden thread through his life, and it was here that he made a major contribution to the community of Grahamstown. When he and Gerda arrived in 1940 he was already an accomplished cellist and singer, with a very impressive bass baritone voice, and was welcomed with open arms by Grahamstown’s musical fraternity. He soon became chairman of the local Philharmonic Society and had a long-standing association with the Grahamstown Music Society, serving as Treasurer and Chairman for many years. He loved to play his cello as part of a small informal ensemble and there was always chamber music in the van Hille home. He also had a vital involvement in the Grahamstown Amateur Dramatic Society (GADS), Omnitheatre and the Grahamstown Players, appearing in many of their productions. He was particularly fond of Gilbert and Sullivan’s operettas and sang ‘lieder’ whenever the opportunity arose.

He was a superb orator and raconteur with a special talent for languages as Prof. Allanson recalls: ‘We are all very sensitive of the fact that Bob was the epitome of an educated man. He spoke at least four languages and had a remarkable facility with language. His humorous, cogent, delightful and often spontaneous comment upon the current scene was always appreciated by his listeners whether at a farewell function, birthday parties or at more formal social occasions.’ His sense of humour was legendary and numerous anecdotes abound. I recall being summoned one Saturday morning with the request ‘Please come to town with me to find a hat.’ Upon enquiring what type of hat was required he replied ‘Oh, a very large straw hat.’ Pressing him further he explained ‘We must find this hat quickly for under it is my wife and she has all my money.’

For all this, it was especially his family that was the joy and pride of Bob and Gerda’s lives which they shared for so many years. At their fiftieth wedding anniversary he showed a three minute film of this event in 1937 and again his love and humour were to the fore. He said ‘We are about to see a black and white film of our wedding, this is quite fitting because the bride wore white and the groom wore black.’ His daughter-in-law, Maureen wrote ‘If I think back to when I first met Opa 20 years ago, the memories I have are of his quiet strength, his wonderful, sometimes dry sense of humour, the tranquillity that always surrounded him and his love of music. His ability to write in verse and rhyme was another of his gifts. At Easter he always drew on an egg for each member of the family a highlight of something they had accomplished during the year. I remember how he read the ‘Wind in the Willows’ first to Erica’s three children and then to my two boys.’ Bob and Gerda have four children, Erica, Cathy, Ernst and Philip, eight grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. To each and all, the Committee and members of the Entomological Society of Southern Africa extends heartfelt condolences. All of us who were privileged to have known Doc mourn with you, but take solace from the fact that the world is a much richer place for his life’s journey through it.

Bob van Hille died through a tragic misunderstanding. He and his family were holidaying at their beach home at Kasouga and had notified the police that they would be away. Doc returned to Grahamstown to collect a pair of spectacles to replace those he had lost on a walk. He decided to spend the night at his home. The police were notified that lights were being switched on and off, and they called to investigate. When Dr van Hille answered the door a shot was fired, fatally wounding him.

A bursary fund has been established in memory of Prof. J.C. van Hille, which will go towards a post-graduate scholarship in Zoology and Entomology. Donations to this fund can be forwarded to the Doc van Hille Memorial Fund, The Bursaries Office, Rhodes University, P.O. Box 94, Grahamstown. 6140.

M.W.M

[Note: The author of the above obituary is Mervyn W. Mansell.]

LIST OF THE ENTOMOLOGICAL PUBLICATIONS OF J.C. VAN HILLE

(Compiled by F.W. Gess, Albany Museum, Grahamstown)

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1950. The position of Anthicus quadrillum Laf. (Coleoptera Heteromera) and related species in southern and eastern Africa. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of London (Series B) 19: 21–25.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1950. Note on Formicomus caeruleus Thunb. with description of two new species (Anthicidae, Coleoptera Heteromera). Journal of the Entomological Society of Southern Africa 13: 68–72.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1953. Note on Formicomus rufescens Pér. (Coleoptera: Anthicidae) and revision of the species of Formicomus with red prothorax in South Africa. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of London (Series B) 22: 9–14.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1953. The genus Formicomus (Coleoptera, Anthicidae) in H.C. Dollman’s Collection from N. Rhodesia. Proceedings of the Entomological Society of London (Series B) 22: 147–154.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1954. Cantharidin and Anthicidae. South African Journal of Science 51: 154–155.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1955. Note on Formicomus muelleri and Form. angustiformis Fairm. (Coleoptera, Anthicidae). Atti del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale Trieste 20: 25–29.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1958. Genus Formicomus (Coleoptera Polyphaga) (Fam. Anthicidae). Exploration du Parc National de l’Upemba. I. Mission G.F. de Witte 49: 24–31.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1961. Coleoptera: Anthicidae. In: Hanström, B., Brinck, P. & Rudebeck, G. (Eds) South African Animal Life 8: 217–258, Almqvist & Wiksells, Uppsala.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1967. Genus Formicomus (Coleoptera Polyphaga) (Family Anthicidae). Exploration du Parc National de la Garamba. Mission H. de Saeger 51: 3–34.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1968. The differences between the genera Mecynotarsus and Pseudonotoxus (Col., Anthicidae). Entomologist’s Monthly Magazine 104: 125–127.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1971. Anthicidae (Coleoptera) from Northern Zululand. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa 39: 367–391.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1972. New African species of Notoxus (Coleoptera Anthicidae). Entomologische Arbeiten aus dem Museum G. Frey 23: 270–285.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1974. Class Insecta. Order Coleoptera. Family Anthicidae. In: Coaton, W.G.H. (Ed.) Status of the taxonomy of the Hexapoda of southern Africa. Entomology Memoir. Department of Agricultural Technical Services. Republic of South Africa 38: 92.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1975. Ten African species of Notoxus (Col., Anthicidae). Koleopterologische Rundschau 52: 3–13.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1977. The African species of the genus Formicomus La Ferté with mat [sic] elytra (Coleoptera: Anthicidae). Journal of the Entomological Society of Southern Africa 40: 99–104.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1977. Species of the genus Formicomus Laf. from North-East Africa and adjacent parts of the Arabian Peninsula (Coleoptera: Anthicidae). Entomologica Scandinavica 8: 197–204.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1979. African species of Formicomus (Coleoptera, Anthicidae). Mitteilungen der Münchener Entomologischen Gesellschaft 68: 145–157.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1979. Obituary. Joyce Omer-Cooper, 19 October 1899 – 1 June 1979. Journal of the Entomological Society of Southern Africa 42: 405–408.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1980. Anthicidae in Maputaland. In: Bruton, M.N. and Cooper, K.H. (Eds) Studies on the Ecology of Maputaland. 144–145. Rhodes University, Grahamstown, and Wildlife Society, Durban.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1981. Anthicidae (Coleoptera: Heteromera): two corrections. Journal of the Entomological Society of Southern Africa 44: 89.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1982. A collection of Anthicidae (Coleoptera) from the Umlalazi Nature Reserve. Annals of the Natal Museum 25: 263–266.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1984. New South African species of Anthicus (Aulacoderus Laf.) and Notoxus Goeffr. (Coleoptera: Anthicidae). Durban Museum Novitates 13: 155–168.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1984. Monograph of Aulacoderus la Ferté, a subgenus of Anthicus Paykull (Coleoptera: Anthicidae). Annals of the Cape Provincial Museums (Natural History) 15: 1–171.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1984. Anthiciden (Coleoptera) aus Afrika. Folio Entomologica Hungarica 45: 103–104.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1985. New species of Anthicus (Aulacoderus), Anthicidae (Coleoptera) from the National Collection of Insects, Pretoria. Journal of the Entomological Society of Southern Africa 48: 315–324.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1985. Description of a new species of Anthicus Paykull (Auacoderus la Ferté) from southern Africa (Coleoptera: Anthicidae). Annals of the Transvaal Museum 34: 55–122.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1986. Anthicidae (Coleoptera heteromera) collected in Botswana, 1982–83. Botswana Notes and Records 17: 149–162.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1986. Report on a collection of Notoxinae (Anthicidae, Coleoptera heteromera) of the State Museum, Windhoek, South West Africa, with descriptions of new species. Cimbebasia (A) 7: 141–146.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1988. Three new South African species of Aulacodera la Ferté, a subgenus of Anthicus Paykull (Coleoptera: Anthicidae). Annals of the Cape Provincial Museums (Natural History) 16: 321–326.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1988. New species of Notoxus Fabricius 1792 and Anthicus Paykull 1798 subgenus Aulacoderus La Ferté 1848 (Coleoptera: Anthicidae) in the collection of the National Museum, Bloemfontein. Navoringe van die Nasionale Museum, Bloemfontein 6: 19–33.

VAN HILLE, J.C. 1989. Anthicidae from the Zoological Museum in Lund. I (Coleoptera: Anthicidae). Entomofauna 10: 317–329.

WARD, A.B.M. & VAN HILLE, J.C. 1973. Obituary, Joseph Omer-Cooper (1893–1972). Journal of the Entomological Society of Southern Africa 36: 183–184.

© Trustees of the Albany Museum

Page compiled by Ashley H. Kirk-Spriggs 2006; last modified December 2006.