DEATH OF PROFESSOR AGASSIZ

Professor Alexander Agassiz '55, S.B., LL.D., S. D., died at sea last Sunday on board the steamship "Adriatic." He left the United States in the early part of January, and since then has been traveling in Egypt except for a few weeks spent in Europe, prior to his departure from Southampton for New York.

Professor Alexander Agassiz '55, the son of Louis Agassiz was born in Neuchatel, Switzerland, December 17, 1835. His early education was acquired previous to 1849, when he came to America, spending the next two years here in preparing for Harvard. Graduating from the University with the degree of A.B. he entered the Lawrence Scientific School and two years later received from there the degree of Bachelor of Science.

In 1859, he went to the Pacific coast where for a time he was engaged upon the North-West Boundary Survey. During his stay he visited the principal mines of California and collected specimens for the Museum at Cambridge. Upon his return in 1860, he became assistant in Zoology at the Museum, of which he took charge during his father's absence in Brazil. From 1866 to 1869 he was superintendent of the Calumet and Hecla Copper Company, which he developed from a state of insolvency into the most noted copper mine in the world. During the years 1869 and 1870 he carefully inspected the museums of England, France, Germany, and Scandinavia, after which he returned to his duties in Cambridge, and succeeded his father as curator of the museum of comparative zoology, which position he held until 1898, when he resigned to devote himself to his own expeditions.

He was director of the Anderson School of Natural History on Penikese Island in 1873, and in 1875 was a member of an expedition to the west coast of South America, for the purpose of inspecting the copper mines of Peru and Chile. While there he made a minute examination of the shores of Lake Titicaca, and collected many Peruvian antiquities which he deposited in the Peabody Museum.

He was called to Scotland for the purpose of assisting Sir Wyville Thompson in arranging the collections secured by the "Challenger" in her voyage of 68,900 miles while engaged in deep-sea exploration. A portion of these collections he brought with him on his return to America. From 1876 to 1881 he spent his winters in deep-sea dredging on the steamer "Blake" which was furnished him by the Government for that purpose. Subsequently he was engaged in examining the formation of coral reefs, visiting islands in all quarters of the world with reference to Darwin's theory of which he was one of the principal opponents. On certain forms of marine life, he was considered the best authority in the world, and was acknowledged to be the pioneer in the science of thalassography.

In 1902 he was made director of the University Museum, and last year he was a delegate to the Darwin celebration in June where he received the Victoria Research Medal of the Royal Geographical Society of England.

Besides the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, of which he was president, Mr. Agassiz was a member of numerous other scientific bodies, both in America and Europe. He was a Fellow of Harvard until 1885, served as Overseer, and has presented the University Museums with gifts amounting to over $1,000,000.

His writings, which consist of pamphlets upon scientific subjects, particularly marine zoology, the results of his expeditions to the West Indies and to the Pacific Ocean, contributions to scientific periodicals, and reports of scientific bodies, are numerous and cover all branches of natural history. He is the joint author with his stepmother, Mrs. Elizabeth C. Agassiz, of the fifth volume of "Contributions to the Natural History of the United States," which was left un-finished by his father, "Seaside Studies in Natural History," and "Marine Animals of Massachusetts Bay."