﻿45 
  

  

  the 
  Prussian 
  Government 
  ; 
  the 
  only 
  important 
  part 
  of 
  it, 
  the 
  Ortho- 
  

   ptera, 
  will 
  be 
  retained 
  by 
  the 
  Berlin 
  Museum, 
  and 
  the 
  remainder 
  will 
  

   be 
  sent 
  to 
  the 
  University 
  of 
  Konigsburg. 
  

  

  With 
  a 
  view 
  of 
  rendering 
  the 
  Society's 
  labours 
  practically 
  useful, 
  

   the 
  plan 
  of 
  offering 
  a 
  prize 
  for 
  the 
  best 
  essay 
  on 
  a 
  given 
  subject 
  has 
  

   been 
  again 
  resorted 
  to, 
  a 
  plan 
  which 
  had 
  on 
  previous 
  occasions 
  been 
  

   successful 
  by 
  calling 
  forth 
  Mr. 
  Le 
  Keux's 
  ' 
  Essay 
  on 
  the 
  Turnip-flea 
  

   Beetle,' 
  and 
  Mr. 
  Newport's 
  ' 
  Essay 
  on 
  the 
  Athalia 
  Centifolise.' 
  On 
  

   this 
  occasion, 
  the 
  difficult 
  question 
  of 
  the 
  length 
  of 
  life 
  of 
  the 
  three 
  

   kinds 
  of 
  individuals 
  of 
  which 
  the 
  hive 
  is 
  composed, 
  was 
  selected, 
  with 
  

   reference 
  also 
  to 
  the 
  consequential 
  practical 
  relative 
  advantages 
  of 
  pre- 
  

   serving 
  swarms 
  or 
  stocks 
  ; 
  and 
  I 
  am 
  happy 
  to 
  inform 
  you 
  that 
  the 
  

   Council 
  have 
  received 
  three 
  essays 
  in 
  competition, 
  and 
  that 
  one 
  of 
  

   them, 
  by 
  Mr. 
  J. 
  G. 
  Desborough, 
  of 
  Stamford, 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  subject 
  

   is 
  treated 
  in 
  a 
  very 
  careful 
  manner, 
  has 
  been 
  unanimously 
  considered 
  

   by 
  the 
  Committee 
  to 
  which 
  they 
  have 
  been 
  referred, 
  as 
  deserving 
  of 
  

   the 
  prize. 
  

  

  I 
  must 
  here 
  allude 
  to 
  the 
  remarkable 
  effects 
  recently 
  produced 
  by 
  the 
  

   application 
  of 
  photography 
  in 
  the 
  delineation 
  of 
  objects 
  of 
  Natural 
  His- 
  

   tory, 
  not 
  only 
  of 
  the 
  natural 
  size, 
  but 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  magnified. 
  The 
  ease 
  

   with 
  which 
  these 
  results 
  are 
  produced, 
  and 
  the 
  necessary 
  truthfulness 
  

   and 
  artistic 
  effects 
  with 
  which 
  they 
  are 
  accompanied, 
  cannot 
  fail 
  to 
  

   give 
  a 
  far 
  greater 
  development 
  to 
  the 
  employment 
  of 
  the 
  microscope 
  

   in 
  the 
  investigation 
  of 
  the 
  more 
  minute 
  objects 
  of 
  our 
  study, 
  and 
  their 
  

   anatomical 
  structure, 
  than 
  it 
  has 
  hitherto 
  received 
  ; 
  indeed, 
  I 
  consider 
  

   it 
  to 
  be 
  a 
  great 
  reproach 
  to 
  our 
  Society 
  that 
  so 
  little 
  has 
  hitherto 
  been 
  

   done 
  in 
  this 
  direction 
  by 
  our 
  members, 
  at 
  a 
  time 
  when 
  such 
  improve- 
  

   ments 
  have 
  been 
  made 
  in 
  the 
  microscope. 
  

  

  Entomology, 
  Gentlemen, 
  I 
  am 
  pained 
  to 
  say, 
  has 
  experienced 
  se- 
  

   veral 
  grievous 
  losses 
  during 
  the 
  past 
  year. 
  

  

  Let 
  those 
  entomologists 
  still 
  amongst 
  us, 
  who 
  recollect 
  (for 
  those 
  

   who 
  do 
  not 
  can 
  scarcely 
  form 
  a 
  fitting 
  idea 
  of 
  the 
  difference) 
  the 
  state 
  

   of 
  Entomology 
  and 
  the 
  means 
  of 
  study, 
  in 
  the 
  year 
  1823, 
  as 
  compared 
  

   with 
  1853, 
  let 
  them, 
  I 
  repeat, 
  say 
  whether 
  James 
  Francis 
  Stephens 
  

   is 
  not 
  entitled 
  to 
  the 
  chief 
  merit 
  for 
  having 
  advanced 
  its 
  progress. 
  

  

  The 
  tomb 
  has 
  too 
  recently 
  closed 
  over 
  his 
  remains 
  to 
  enable 
  us 
  

   to 
  think 
  dispassionately 
  of 
  the 
  services 
  he 
  has 
  rendered 
  to 
  our 
  sci- 
  

   ence 
  ; 
  but 
  the 
  herculean 
  task 
  of 
  his 
  ' 
  Systematic 
  Catalogue,' 
  and 
  his 
  

   equally 
  remarkable 
  ' 
  Illustrations,' 
  produced, 
  as 
  the 
  latter 
  often 
  were, 
  

   in 
  seasons 
  both 
  of 
  mental 
  and 
  bodily 
  anguish, 
  claim 
  a 
  kindlier 
  word, 
  

   and 
  deserve 
  far 
  warmer 
  thanks 
  than 
  they 
  have 
  yet 
  received. 
  

  

  