( Ixxxi ) 



It would be impossible in a few words to give any idea of 

 the extent of these collections, but they include valuable con- 

 tributions from the cabinets not only of Sir Hans Sloane, of 

 Petiver, Banks, Hunter, and Leach, but of Darwin, Stephens, 

 Vigors, Bates, Bowring, Desvignes, Buckler, Baly, F. Smith, 

 E. Saunders, Sir S. Saunders; of Grote, Zeller, Hewitson, 

 Braasche, Wollaston, Godman, and many others ; with many 

 typical specimens described by Linne, Fabricius, Drury, 

 Kirby, Spence, Haliday, Donovan, Curtis, Walker, Gyllenhal, 

 Imhoff, Saunders, M'Lachlan, Waterhouse, Westwood, New- 

 man, Latreille, Olivier, Candeze, Mulsant, Wallace, Deyrolle, 

 Hewitson, Zeller, Grote, and Butler. 



It would be difiScult to make even an approximate guess 

 at the number of specimens or species in the Entomological 

 Department, and the number of types could only be got at 

 by counting them in each separate drawer, which would 

 involve much time and labour. 



I have obtained, through the kindness of Dr, Giinther, an 

 account of the number of specimens added in the different 

 departments of Zoology during his keepership, and taking, 

 for convenience, a decade from 1877 to 1886, I find that 

 197,324 insects of all orders were received into the Museum 

 during that time, or something approaching 20,000 specimens 

 a-year, Lepidoptera and Coleoptera heading the list with 

 89,506 and 80,341 respectively. The figures would un- 

 doubtedly be very much higher if this branch of science were 

 further advanced in system and method. Such advancement 

 can only be founded on more mature knowledge ; and this can 

 only be reached by patient and exhaustive study of material 

 as it comes to hand. It is undoubtedly a fact that many 

 private collectors would gladly hand over their accumulations 

 of entomological wealth to the National Museum if they 

 could feel that such gifts would at once be rendered available 

 for study in connection with an already well organised and 

 systematically arranged series. This is sufficiently exem- 

 plified in the case of Ornithology, for although not more than 

 about 12,000 distinct species of birds are known at the present 

 time, a yearly average of 13,722 specimens have been received 

 in the Museum in the decade referred to, the majority being 



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