Page:The Biographical Dictionary of America, vol. 09.djvu/117

 RILEY

RILEY

brought the division of entomology from an obscure position to one of prominence in the de- partment of agriculture. He was married in 1878, to Emilie S. Gonzehnan of St. Louis, Mo. He was an honorary member of the London Entomological society; corresponding member of the French, Berlin, Swiss and Belgian ento- mological societies; president of the Academy of Sciences of St. Louis, 1876-78; a fellow of the American Philosophical society, the American p.) nological society, and the American Associa- tion for the Advancement of Science; a member ot the American Agricultural society; the Asso- ciation of Scientific Agriculturists, and the Philo- sophical and Anthropological societies of Wash- ington; a founder and first president of the Entomological society, Washington; president of the Association of Economic Entomologists, and a member or officer of many other foreign and domestic horticultural and agricultural bodies. The French government awarded him a gold medal in 1873. and the cross of the Legion of Honor, July 14, 1889. He lectured before Cor- nell university; the Kansas State Agricultural society; the Missouri State university; Wash- ington university, St. Louis, and the Lowell Institute, Boston. He received the honorary degrees A.M. from the Kansas State Agricultural college, 1872, and Ph.D. from Missouri State university, 1878. He presented his collection of ll.l.OOO mounted specimens to the entomological -department of the U.S. National Museum, of wi.ich institution he was honorary curator of insects. He is the author of: Reports on the Noxious, Beneficial and Other Insects of the State of Missouri (9 annual volumes, 1869-77); Potato Pests (1876); The Locust Plague in the United States (1877); and Annual Rejyorts as entomolo- gist of the department of agriculture, besides many articles, lectures and addresses in the lead- ing entomological and agricultural magazines. He died in Washington, D.C.. Sept. 14, 1895-

RILEY, Franklin Lafayette, historian, was born near Hebron, Lawrence county. Miss., Aug. 24. 1808; son of Franklin Lafayette and Balsorah (Weathersby) Riley; grandson of Edvrard Miles and Mary (Shows) Riley and of Edward Duncan and Elmira (McDaniel) AVeathersby, and a de- scendant of Edward Riley, who was born in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, about 1747. He was graduated from Mississippi college, A.B., 1889, A.M., 1891; began teaching at the Hebron high school, 1889; and was married at Clinton, Miss., July 15, 1891, to Fanny Townes. daughter of Charles Henry Leigh of Cleburne, Texas. He was a fellow at Jolms Hopkins, 1895-96, receiving Ids Ph.D. degree there in 1896; was president of Hillman College for Young Women, 1896-97. and became professor of history at the University of

Mississippi in 1897. He re-organized the Missis sippi Historical society and organized the Univer- sity Historical society in 1898; became secretary and treasurer of the former, and a member of other similar organizations. His published works include: Colonial Origin of New England Senates (1896); School History of Mississippi (1900); Trans- ition from Spanish to American Control in 3Iis- sissippi {1900}; Descriptive and Historical Sketch of Mississippi (1901); Extinct Towns and Villages of Mississippi (1902). He edited five volumes of the publications of the Mississi])pi Historical so- ciety, and contributed numerous historical articles to periodicals.

RILEY, James Whitcomb, poet, was born in Greenfield, Ind., in 1853; son of Reubin Alex- ander and Elizabeth (Marine) Riley. He was educated in the public schools; hopelessly studied law in his fatlier's office, then became a sign painter. He joined a traveling concert- wagon as advertiser, where he became proficient in impro- vising songs, and in 1873 returned to Greenfield, where he commenced work on a county paper, and contributed verses to Indianapolis papers, most of wiiich con- tributions were in the Hoosier dialect. He then went to Ander- son, Ind., and was on

the editorial staff of the Democrat, and while there wrote a poem entitled " Leonainie," in imitation of Edgar A. Poe, to which he signed that poet's initials. The poem was published in the Dispatch of Kokomo, Ind., with editorial claim that it had been discovered on the fly-leaf of an old Ains- worth Dictionary. Reviewers at home and abroad pronounced it genuine, and even wlien the name of the real author was disclosed, manj- critics maintained that it was Poe's. In conse- quence of this hoax, Mr. Rdey lost his position with the Anderson Democrat, but was soon called to regular employment in the office of the Indianapolis Journal. He became known as the "Hoosier poet"; subsequently engaged as a public reader, and published his first book under the pen-name of " Benj. F. Johnson of Boone." Hp is the autlior of: The Old Swimmin' -Hole and 'Leven More Poems (now Neighborly Poems) (1883); ' The Boss Girl ' and Other Sketches (1886): Afterwhiles (1887); Character Sketches and Poems (1887); Old-Fashioned Roses in England (1888); Pipes o' Pan at Zekesbury (1889); Rhymes of