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But, Gentlemen, I look to you for more than a support of such ex- 

 ertions as I may myself make with this object in view. I look to you 

 for cordial co-operation in your endeavours to render our meetings 

 interesting and instructive ; since it is only by such means that we 

 can maintain our position among the Scientific Societies of the coun- 

 try, and can insure to ourselves, individually, the benefits of associa- 

 tion. With this consideration it has suggested itself to my mind, 

 that it might not be entirely useless to recall to your attention the 

 chief branches of entomological science, and which indeed seems the 

 more necessary, as too many of our younger members appear disposed 

 to regard Entomology simply as an amusement. Nobody can indeed 

 appreciate more completely than myself the pleasure attending a day's 

 stroll in the woods with an object in view, such as the discovery of 

 some rare insect or plant, and the increase of our collections by 

 our own personal exertions. Neither can the pleasant task of inves- 

 tigating the names of our captures, and the mutual interchange of our 

 novelties with our friends, be too highly regarded. The few observa- 

 tions which I now beg leave to address to you have, however, for their 

 object, a higher cultivation of the science, and a more severe applica- 

 tion of the mental faculties to the subjects of our research. 



That Entomology, as a science, possesses such claims upon the 

 attention of its votaries, will be evident, if we bestow but a few 

 moments' attention upon each of its main features ; to the cultivation 

 of one or the other of which, I would earnestly beg to direct your 

 attention, as the sure means of advancing the science. 



Descriptive Entomology, that branch of the science which teaches 

 us the names and distinctive characters of the species of insects, 

 merits the first consideration. It ought not, however, to be under- 

 taken without a careful investigation of the respective groups to which 

 any species proposed to be described naturally belongs. It is a great 

 mistake to suppose, that when a person has discovered what appears 

 to be a new species, he has only to sit down with the insect before him 

 and draw up a short technical description of it, without a careful study 

 of the naturally allied species, or an investigation of what has already 

 been published by previous authors upon the genus or family. Even 

 then, much judgment is required, as to the style and description to be 

 adopted, since some descriptions are as much too short as others are 

 needlessly too long. There is, in my opinion, no better advice to be 

 given on this branch of the subject, than to study the descriptions 

 drawn up by the great masters of our science. Here, also, I would 

 more especially be allowed to recommend the publication of mono- 



