CHAPTER XIII. 



Lieut. GEO. M. WHEELER, Corps of Engineers, U. S. A. : 



DEAR SIR: The Orthoptera which you have submitted to me for exam- 

 ination includes your collections made during the explorations of 1871, 1872, 

 1873, and 1874. Those of first two years are comparatively small, but those 

 of 1873 and 1874 are the most extensive I have seen from the West, and 

 contain much of value and interest to foreign as well as our own orthopterists. 

 Although the first is small, yet it contains several new species and also one 

 new genus. This genus presents some very interesting features and pecu- 

 liarities. In fact, so important was this deemed, that with your permission a 

 description of it, as well as a few other new species of Acridida, was pub- 

 lished in the Proceedings of the Philadelphia Academy of Sciences, in order 

 that I might avail myself of this new material for publication in my "Synop- 

 sis of the Acridida? of North America", which I desired to have as complete 

 as possible for the use of our entomologists. You will see by an examina- 

 tion of my work that I have availed myself of your kind permission in this 

 respect; nevertheless, as this material was obtained by your expedition, I 

 have not only inserted the descriptions here in full, but have also added such 

 remarks as I deemed of scientific interest. 



This collection is of peculiar interest to me besides, for the following 

 reasons : it contains a specimen in color, and a female of Locusta fuliginosa, 

 Thos., which I described from a single male furnished by Dr. Palmer. As 

 this was the first specimen of Locusta observed in the United States, I was 

 very anxious to obtain the female, and, if possible, a specimen in color. This 

 wish has been gratified by the receipt of your collection. Although some 

 doubt was expressed at the time as to the correctness of my opinion as to 



