gy that amiable simplicity which she has had in the times of Linnæus, of Geoffrey, and of the first productions of Fabricius, and yet present her as she is to-day, with all the richness which she has acquired from observation, but without surcharging her with it; to conform her, in one word, to the model which I have under my eyes, the work of Cuvier—such is the end which I have taken upon myself to attain."
Dr. Fitch, to a large extent, accomplished this work; but his published treatises form only a small portion of his labors in that direction. One hundred note-books filled with complete and accurate entomological descriptions still remain on the shelves of his office, nearly or quite ready for the press; and it is much to be regretted that his life went out before he had finally completed and published them, and before he had arranged for the pertinent retention in this country of his cabinet of insects.
The position of Dr. Fitch as State Entomologist, and the wide circulation of his published writings, brought to him from all quarters insects of rare and little known species to be named and classified. This, joined to his own untiring energy as a collector, enabled him to fill his cabinet to overflowing with the rarest and least known species of many lands. It is rich in all the orders, and especially so in useful, obnoxious, and curious species; and is probably one of the most valuable collections in this country, and one that it would be impossible to duplicate. As such it should be purchased and retained by the State.
It is impossible to summarize the benefits which scholars of Dr. Fitch's character confer upon the world. But it is safe to assume that they are of incalculable value. It is many millions the richer for Dr. Fitch's researches in the science of entomology, and would have been had he written only of the wheat-midge, the Hessian fly, and the currant-worm.
Dr. Fitch lived to the age of seventy. His life was full of strong, pure manhood—full of such labor and study as few men have physical power to endure—full of the gentleness, the kindliness, and peace which come of well-living, and full of the honors which his labors had earned. He died April 8, 1879, the death of a good man.
