The Geographical Journal (Journal of the Royal Geographical Society): Volume X, No. 6 [‎127r] (106/186)

OBITUARY.
645
Society, of which he had been a Fellow since 1862, and during his two years’ tenure
of the office, as also subsequently as Vice-President, he gave the Society the
benefit of his wide experience, frequently taking part in the discussions on papers
read at the evening meetings. He was also Chairman of the African Exploration
Fund, and thus took part in the labours which resulted in the despatch of Mr. Keith
JohnstCn and Mr. Joseph Thomson to East Africa, and, by bringing the latter into
notice, had such important results in the direction of the opening up of that part of
the continent. Another important service rendered by him to the British enterprise
abroad was that which he performed as first chairman of the British North Borneo
Company, in the formation of which he had taken much interest. He remained on
the Council of our Society until May, 1893.
Sir Rutherford Alcock was twice married. His first wife—daughter of Mr.
Charles Bacon, of London—died during his consulate at Shanghai, and he subse
quently, in 1862, married the widow of Mr. Lowder, formerly chaplain at Shanghai.
Dr. Don Agustin Aspiazu.
The recently formed Bolivian Geographical Society has to lament the loss of
its distinguished President, Dr. Don Agustin Aspiazu, who died on March 18 last.
In Bolivia a scholar, one who desires to acquire more than superficial knowledge,
labours under almost insuperable difficulties, and must possess great energy and
perseverance, as well as talent. With a fertile imagination and remarkable power
of application, young Aspiazu very soon mastered all that could be taught in the
university of his native country, and devoted himself to the study of sciences un
known in Bolivia. Except when occasionally occupying official posts, he devoted
his whole time to study during fifty years. He also traversed the wildest parts of
the Andes to take observations and make scientific investigations. Born in 182 1 ,
Dr. Aspiazu was one of the founders of the “ Ateneo de Bolivar ” when he was a
youn<* man only twenty-three years of age, and before many years he was Minister of
Instruction and Chancellor of the University of San Andres, frequently representing
the city of La Paz in congress. He wrote a course of physics (1852), a paper on
the theory of earthquakes (1868), a work of considerable merit entitled “ Cono-
cimiento del Tiempo ” (1880), almost amounting to a nautical almanac; and since
1889 various papers by Dr. Aspiazu have been communicated to the Geographical
Society of La Paz. The most important of these are his memoirs on the plateaus of
the Andes, on methods of determining longitude, and on the boundary-line between
the Bolivian province of Caupolican and Peru. He left behind him some very useful
papers on astronomical geography, with solutions of problems, which have been
printed. Mr. Aspiazu was a man of whom his country may well be proud, and his
loss will be much felt by the members of the La Paz Geographical Society, to
whom, however, he has set an excellent example.
o
X
No. YI. —December, 1897.]