MY FIRST VISIT TO THE ENGADINE. O 



Steinbok to try their luck there; wishing them every success 

 in their expedition, I proceeded again in search of the Weisses 

 Kreuz, and by dint of inquiry succeeded in finding it, — and 

 there I found Dr. Staudinger, Herr von Heinemann,and Herr 

 Benteli, of Berne. 



The previous day they had been on one of the Alps 

 near Samaden, considerably above the snow line, and had 

 made numerous captures, so that the wet day, which I 

 found a trial to my temper, was very convenient to them, 

 giving them the necessary leisure for setting out the booty 

 thev had collected. Dr. Staudino;er o;ave me some larvae of 

 a Depi-essaria, which he had collected in the umbels of a 

 species of Laserpitium ; from these larvae I have since bred 

 both Depressaria Laserpitn and D. Heydenvi. Herr von 

 Heinemann showed me some of the insects he had collected 

 the previous week, amongst which were one or two which 

 appeared to be new species of the interminable genus Gele- 

 chia^ a Coleophora, probably new, and the interesting 

 CEcophora Hhceiica. Whilst thus employed, the morning 

 slipped away, and the dinner-hour, 1 p.m., arrived. 



On a wet day in a strange place dinner is particularly ac- 

 ceptable, and after dinner I certainly felt more amiable ; the 

 weather also had improved, for the rain had entirely ceased 

 and did not even threaten to commence again. We therefore 

 sallied forth for a walk, taking the road up the valley; the 

 ground had already dried wonderfully, and as we left Pontre- 

 sina behind us we felt that peculiar exhilaration which arises 

 from the thin mountain air and novelty of scene. We had 

 scarcely proceeded a mile when the end of what I supposed 

 must be the Morteratsch glacier attracted my attention. I had 

 understood that it was 3| miles from Pontresina, but that must 

 evidently be a mistake, for we had hardly walked a mile, 

 and evidently were only about the same distance from the 



