72 ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



in the Institution, says, that he inquired in particular, how things were 

 manag-ed, and he went often himself, and ate at the table, and the victuals 

 pleased him very much, and a pious youii;; man, that he knew, told him 

 that he had not heard a bad word uttered, since he had been in the 

 building. I have a great notion to send my oldest son John, who seems 

 to take learning very well. 



ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF PENNSYLVANIA. 



About three years ago, five gentlemen devoted to the study of ento- 

 mology, established a Society under the above designation. The lirst 

 meeting was held in York, when the constitution was adopted and ar- 

 rangements made to prosecute their favorite pursuit with combined en- 

 ergy. Dr. F. E. Melsheimer, of Dover, York Co. M'hose venerated sire 

 was the father of entomology in this country, was very properly elect- 

 ed President. The Society has held several meetings every year since 

 its organization, and thougli the members are but few, yet they have 

 contributed considerably to the promotion of the science in our country. 



The Society has described and published in the "Proceedings of the 

 Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences," more than 500 new species 

 of Coleoptera (beetles,) and many more still remain to be described. 

 All these are, of course, new additions to the already numerous publish- 

 ed species of our country, and every year unknown species are discov- 

 ered. 



One of the members has just finished a full monograph of our Amer- 

 ican Longicornes, (beetles with long antennae.) which will be published 

 in the next volume of the American Philosophical Society's Transac- 

 tions, and will be a most valuable addition to our entomological litera- 

 ture. 



But the principal w-ork on which the Society has been engaged for 

 the last two years, is a Catalogue of the Coleoptera of the United States. 

 This has cost immense labor and nice discrimination, but it will be 

 as full as possible at the present time, and will contain references to the 

 works in which the species are described. The principal credit of this 

 work is due to the President, Dr. Melsheimer. Its appearance, though 

 nothing more than a bare catalogue, is looked for with much anxiety in 

 Europe, as we learn from several scientific Journals and private letters. 



The Society is in correspondence with some of the most distinguish- 

 ed naturalists in Europe, such as Count Mannerheim, of Paissia, Dr. 

 Schoenherr, of Sweden, Mr. Doubleday, of London, Prof. Burineister, of 

 Halle, Prof. Guerin, of Paris, and others. These gentlemen express the 



