TWO PRINCIPAL WORKS OF ROBINEAU-DESVOIDY 
181 
reputation for liis work on the Invertebrata; C. Dumeril (1774— 
1860), a celebrated zoologist and comparative anatomist, who, 
among other works, had published in 1801 an “ Exposition 
d'une methode naturelle pour l’etude de la classification des 
Insectes”; Blainville (H. M. Ducrotay de) (1777-1850), an able 
zoologist, student of Cuvier, and especially devoted to classifica¬ 
tion. After a careful study of the manuscript by these distin¬ 
guished men, Blainville was entrusted with the task of drawing 
up a “ Report,” which, signed by the members of the committee 
and countersigned by Baron Cuvier, Perpetual Secretary of the 
Academy, Commander of the Royal Order of the Legion of Honor, 
was read in the Academy on October 2, 1826, printed in pamphlet 
form (24 pages in 8vo), and distributed among the members 
of the Academy. 
This Report, although referred to by Rob.-Desvoidy himself in 
his Preface (1830), seems to have attracted very little attention on 
the part of dipterologists. It appeared at a time when Meigen had 
but recently published his fourth (1824) and fifth (1826) vol¬ 
umes, containing the Calyptrata; when Macquart was issuing the 
early parts of his “ Dipteres du Nord” (1823-1826), containing 
the Nemocera and a portion of the Orthorrhapha Brachycera; 
and when Fallen had completed his whole work with its last 
instalment (“ Supplementum Dipt. Sueciae,” 1826). In England, 
neither Holiday nor Curtis 1 had appeared on the stage. In Sweden, 
Zetterstedt had begun his publications, but they as yet contained 
nothing on Diptera. 
I consider this Report as a very important document for the 
history of dipterology of that time, and for this reason I shall give 
a detailed summary of its contents, with abundant verbatim 
extracts. 
The Report begins with a circumstantial account of the 
history of dipterology, describing its gradual progress since 
Linnd’s “ Systema Naturae” of 1748, explaining the different 
methods and nomenclatures adopted by Fabricius , Latreille, and 
Dumeril , and the temporary confusion which resulted from the 
1 John Curtis’s earliest issue of his “ British Entomology” is, however, dated 
1823. 
