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Henry George Keith (1899-1982), known as Harry Keith, was a British forester and plant collector. Keith is credited with starting the process of large-scale conservation of the forests of North Borneo (now Sabah). In 1984 a new species of ''Rafflesia'' endemic to Sabah, ''Rafflesia keithii'', was named in his honour.〔 Keith was the husband of author Agnes Newton Keith. ==Life== Keith was born in New Plymouth, New Zealand, to English parents and grew up there, before being sent abroad to be schooled in England and then in California, United States. Keith served in the United States Navy in the First World War, and then took a degree at the University of California, Berkeley (B.Sc. 1924).〔 In 1925, Keith was appointed the Assistant Conservator of Forests for the government of North Borneo (now Sabah) under the Chartered Company, based at Sandakan, and was promoted to Conservator of Forests in 1931, and later again to Director of Agriculture and Wildlife. He was also Honorary Curator of the Sandakan Museum. In 1934 Keith married Agnes Newton Keith (1901-1982), an American who was later to become a celebrated writer. Keith had been a friend of Agnes’ brother Al when both boys had been at the same school in San Diego. Keith had first met Agnes when she was eight years old and he was two years older. Keith had not seen Agnes in ten years when he visited California while on leave in 1934. As soon as they re-met they fell in love, and married three days later, and Agnes accompanied him to North Borneo. During the Japanese occupation of Borneo in World War II Keith was imprisoned at Berhala Island near Sandakan and then in Batu Lintang internment and POW camp near Kuching in Sarawak, as were Agnes and their infant son George. Agnes later wrote a book on their wartime experiences, ''Three Came Home'', which was also made into a film. After a short period of recuperation in Canada, Keith resumed his position as head of the Department of Agriculture in British North Borneo (1946-1952). Keith is credited with starting the process of large-scale conservation of North Borneo's forests.〔 In 1931 the Forestry Department, under Keith's guidance, aimed to have at least 10% of the total land area of North Borneo created as Forest Reserves (the total in 1930 was 0.37%); after the interruption of World War II Keith observed that the Forestry Department’s management of forest resources was one of ‘exploitation’ rather than ‘sustained yield’ and so in 1948, the ‘sustained yield’ Forest Policy was officially adopted by the Government, while also reaffirming the 10% aim. By 1984, some 45.4% of Sabah's land was designated a Forest Reserve.〔 After formal retirement from service in British North Borneo in 1952, Keith held several temporary appointments. In 1953 he joined the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations, and was posted to the Philippines as instructor at the Timber Graders School in Manila. In 1955 Keith became FAO Representative at Benghazi in Libya, and served six years as forestry adviser in the country. He finally retired in 1964.〔 Throughout his career Keith collected plants for scientific study. His collections are now housed in the Natural History Museum and Kew Gardens in London, the Herbarium Bogoriense at Bogor Botanical Gardens in Indonesia, and the Herbarium of the Forest Department at Sandakan, Sabah.〔〔 All but one of his wife Agnes’ books are autobiographical and detail the family’s life in the various countries in which they lived. Keith and Agnes retired to British Columbia, where they died within a few months of each other in 1982. In 1984 a new species of ''Rafflesia'' endemic to Sabah, ''Rafflesia keithii'', was named in Keith's honour. This parasitic plant is the largest ''Rafflesia'' found in Sabah, with flowers reaching up to one metre in diameter.〔〔 In addition, ''Dryobalanops keithii'', a heavy hardwood tree, and ''Randia keithii'', a shrub or small tree in the genus ''Randia'' were also named after Keith.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Harry Keith」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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