LOEW’S WORK ON AMBER DIPTERA 
65 
to obtain genera in which even a non-entomologist might easily 
locate his fossil species, and I also thought that, by this means, I 
should by and by obtain easily distinguishable genera for living 
species.” 1 
The meaning of the first part of this sentence is plain enough ; 
such genera were intended for amateur-collectors of fossil Amber 
species, and for the purpose of affording them the pleasure of 
affixing names to them. But the second part of the sentence, 
that Loew hoped in this way to get at the right definitions of genera 
for living species, is incomprehensible. He felt the weakness of 
his reasoning and concluded in a jocular tone: “ I had no doubt 
that such genera would be only provisional , because, with such a 
small equipment of characters, one could not expect better genera, 
but I consoled myself with the reflection that all our systematic 
work is merely provisional.” It would be superfluous to say that 
this coeur leger manner of treating a question is not the way of 
solving it. But it is evident at the same time that if Loew, before 
beginning his work on fossil Tipulidae , had made a thorough pre¬ 
liminary study of the living forms, he would have discovered, 
among the mass of fossil specimens at his disposal, a sufficiency of 
characters for introducing more satisfactory genera. In the mean¬ 
time Loew, as it seems, was preparing the publication of his de¬ 
tailed work on Amber Diptera, some plates of which he had shown 
me in 1865. He wrote me (July 24,1867) : “ I believe that the first 
part will be ready for publication (‘ druckfertig ’) before Michaelmas 
(September 29,1867).” This communication, I confess, astonished 
me, because Loew must have known when I saw him in 1865 that 
the manuscript he had prepared for the plates (and especially for 
the Tipulidae') was not in a condition fit for publication. 
A long interval elapsed after this communication, and, Loew’s 
expectations notwithstanding, the “ Amber Diptera ” had remained 
unpublished. Eleven years later Loew, already broken by age and 
sickness, in a letter from Guben (February, 1878) gave me the follow¬ 
ing explanation: “ I should have been very glad at last to pub- 
1 “ Ich hoffte so Gattungen zu erhalten, in welehen auch der Nicht-Entomolog die 
fossilen Arten leiclit unterbringen kbnnte, und daelite von da aus spiiter einmal zu 
Gattungen fur lebende Arten zu kornmen, deren Unterscheidung leiclit ware.” 
6 
