Phefack. 



The Catalogue of [udian Decapod Crustacea, of which this is the first instal- 

 ment, occnpied in its early preparatory stages inucli of the attention of my 

 predecessor Mr. James Wood-Mason, and has in execution taken up the greater 

 jiart of my own time, particularly in leisure honrs, during the last eight years. 



At the outset T looked foi'ward to signalizing on the title-page my late frientl's 

 connexion with this undertaking; but 1 now Hnd it necessary to take the entire 

 responsibility of the work as it stands, and to state that the idea of codifying oin- 

 knowledge of Indian carcinology originated many years ago Avith Wood-Mason, 

 and that by collecting and commencing to index all the classical literature of the 

 subject, by sorting into great-groups that part of the Museum collection of 

 Ci'ustacea tliat was made independently of the Survey Ship " Investigator," by 

 gradually ac(|uiring a considerable nnnil)er of authentically-named species of 

 Crustacea, and by provisionally naming a good uiany Tndo-Pacific species himself, 



Wood-Mason had gone no inconsiderable way towards eariying his idea into 

 effect. 



It is pi-0]»osed to issue the ('ataloguc in three collateral and iiulependent 

 series, one for the llraehijiira, anotluM' for the Marriiru, :ind a third for the 

 AitoTihiira. 



— I 



iisr 



THE INDIAN MUSEUM 



A. Ai.cocK, Major, I.M.S., 



Sn'iierinh'ndcnt of tlir Indian Mhschih. 



