THE CAUSES WHICH PROPAGATE AND 

 DISTRIBUTE INSECT VARIETY. 



INTRODUCTION. 



Though by education and conviction no egotist, I am free to 

 confess that were the first personal pronoun uniformly eliminated 

 from books much loss would ensue as regards our general litera- 

 ture, and some of the traditions of Natural History would be 

 especially violated. Should the gentle reader share that opinion, 

 his indulgence will embolden me to introduce by way of preface 

 a slight chronological account of the present work, so far as to 

 trace some of the causes which led to its being ever undertaken, and 

 pursued under not, I think, invariably favourable circumstances. 

 I had indeed, I may say, given much attention to the 

 popular, but in these days often maligned, pursuit of But- 

 terflies and Moths, and amassed a considerable collection of our 

 familiar English sorts, before the topics here treated of intruded 

 themselves upon my notice. My first interest in insects dates 

 back to my school days at Southampton, and the editorial labours 

 of Mr. Stainton, whose numerous periodicals, the forerunners 

 of a new era of thought, duly introduced me to the mysteries 

 of the butterfly net, with its accompaniments of caterpillar 

 rearing and chrysalis digging; sallow beatings in the spring 

 and patient watchings at sugared tree-trunks, ivy flowers, and 

 street lamps at autumn, with other expedients employed to 

 obtain those delicate scale wings termed Lepidoptera — a pursuit 

 much fostered by the glow of charming colours, an inborn love 

 of sport, and perfect rage for novelties. The prosaic and 

 technical sweeping net, and nice laborious arts of bark-searching 



B 



