PREFACE. • XIX 



increased, and otlier editors "were added. Amongst his papers in 

 the ' Field,' those on economic entomology are of the greatest 

 value ; and there can be no doubt that it will be long before his 

 "life-histories" are superseded. Amongst the master-pieces 

 are those of the goat -moth ; gooseberry grub ; turnip grub ; 

 daddy-longlegs ; and pear-tree slug : these valuable contributions 

 were continued to within a month of his death, as a column and 

 a half of the 'Field' for May 13tli, 1876, is taken up with his 

 *' Life-history of the Sandfly, or Simulium." He wrote of these 

 j)apers: — "My object in penning these notes is to bring the 

 creature face to face to face with his victims ; for unless we 

 know our enemy — his appearance, his ways, and his where- 

 abouts — all our attemps to compass his destruction must be 

 futile." Before his time it was usual to consider all insects 

 found on plants as "blight," and to purchase some proffered 

 nostrum in order to destroy them. No one seemed to consider 

 it possible that some insects might be useful, seeing that others 

 were so obviously hurtful. The articles on the inmates of 

 the Crystal Palace Aquarium — popularly written, yet full of 

 information — are also worthy of considerable attention. 



From 1858 to 1861 Mr. Newman was engaged on a series 

 of articles in 'Young England' on Insects and Birds. At the 

 same period he acted as Natural-History Editor of the ' Friend' 

 for about two years, writing a column or two in each month's 

 issue of that newspaper. 



In March, 1861, Mr. Newman had the gratification of receiving 

 a Testimonial — consisting of scientific books — from about seventy 

 gentlemen, in " high appreciation of services rendered in the 

 promotion and difiusion of scientific knowledge." Mr. Newman 

 had very properly refused to allow his own journal to be used as 

 a means for advertising the testimonial to himself, and by this 

 action many were led to believe that the project was distasteful, 

 and held aloof. The books, however, besides being of great use 

 and pleasure to the recipient of the testimonial, were higiily 

 appreciated by his Friday-night visitors. A fuU history of the 

 transaction will be found in the ' Zoologist ' for 1861 (Zool. 

 p. 7457), but modesty seems to have in-evented it being indexed. 



Mr. Ne"v\-man's writings had of late years assumed a more 

 ornithological complexion ; and in 1861 his small work, entitled 



