Professor Westwood belonged to the good old academic type of scholar who made the responses in church in Latin. He was, till his death, Miss Ormerod’s mentor from her initiation into Entomology, and she regarded him as the greatest living scientific authority in the broad lines of their common subject during the whole period of her advisory work. They “got on famously,” and as she said, he “took the privilege,” which she highly appreciated, “of knocking her work about,” as the subjoined letter, written at an early stage of her career as an authoress, charmingly shows.
University Museum, Oxford,
January 10, 1884.
My Dear Miss Ormerod,—I congratulate you on the publication of your “Guide to Methods of Insect Life”—the nicest little Introduction to Entomology with which I am acquainted. You have been very fortunate in obtaining such a good series of woodcuts, many of which were new to me. Allow me to suggest one or two improvements after a hurried glance over the contents. It would have been well to have indicated more precisely the size of some of the objects figured; for instance, the locust, p. 28, is twice the size of the figure—whilst the earwig, on the same page, is about one-half the length of the figure. In p. 98, the Death’s-head moth, which is twice the size of the Eyed-hawk moth, is represented smaller than it is in next page. In p. 118 the fly is the Sirex juvencus, not the commoner one S. gigas. In p. 125 the Bee parasite has not the front portion of the wings black, but as milky as the other part. In p. 73, line 8, for “glassy” read “glossy.” I know you will thank me for these hurried suggestions, or I would not have troubled you with them.
Thanks for your kind enquiries. I am thankful to say that after two months’ attack of bronchitis I am nearly all right again, but have been much confined to the house, although I have been wanting to go to London. My kind remembrance to your sister. We should be very glad if you could come and give us a visit for a short time.—Yours very truly,
J. O. Westwood.
The high terms of approval and appreciation of her work by Miss Ormerod’s numerous foreign correspondents are shown in no halting manner in the subjoined letter:—
From Dr. J. A. Lintner, New York State Entomologist.[[39]]
Albany, N.Y.
May 29, 1889.