collection" of zoological specimens. After his return from New Guinea, Macleay fostered the Linnean Society. He presented many books and materials for scientific work to it, however all were destroyed when the Garden Palace was burnt down in September 1882. In spite of this blow the society continued on its way and gradually built up another library. In 1885 Macleay erected a building for the use of the society in Ithaca road, Elizabeth Bay, and endowed it with the sum of £14,000. He had contributed several papers to the Proceedings of the society, and in 1881 his two-volume Descriptive Catalogue of Australian Fishes was published. Three years later a Supplement to this catalogue appeared, and in the same year his Census of Australian Snakes was reprinted from the Proceedings. Macleay had hoped to make a descriptive catalogue of the Dipterous insects of Australia, but his health began to fail and it was not completed. Legacy Macleay realized that a lot could be done to prevent diseases like typhoid fever and strongly urged the appointment of a government bacteriologist. Receiving little support he eventually left £12,000 to the University of Sydney for the foundation of a chair or lectureship in bacteriology, but this was rejected by the university senate due to the conditions of the bequest and the money went to the Linnean Society. Nearly 40 years later a professorship in bacteriology was established from the Bosch fund. In 1890 the government having provided a building in the university grounds he handed the valuable Macleay collection to the university, together with an endowment of £6000 to provide for the salary of a curator. Macleay was knighted in 1889. He died on 7 December 1891; his wife, Susan, died in 1903 and there were no children. Macleay left £6000 to the Linnean Society for general purposes and after his wife died, £35,000 was given to the Linnean Society to provide four Linnean Macleay fellowships of £400 per annum each, to encourage and advance research in natural science. See also :Category:Taxa named by William John Macleay References External links 1884-1887; Letters received by Sir William John Macleay. Correspondents include Sir George Macleay, Sir Charles Nicholson, Henry Nottidge Moseley, George Barnard, Nikolai de Miklouho-Maclay. Also includes Macleay's commission as captain of the Sydney Volunteer Artillery in 1866 and undated biographical notes, Macleay family - papers, 1811-1887, 1920-1929, 1983-1988, State Library of New South Wales,