i'lJEFACE. 



Thk j>resent vulmue consists primarily of a series of lieports to li.e 

 BiXiiil of A«jriculture, of KejKjrts and letters to a variety of uuofficial 

 corre^jH.ndeuts, and of Keports to the Foreij^n Ottice and to the 

 Colonial Oftice, drawn up by Mr. F. V. Theobald during the years 

 1901-rj<(2. Mr. Tljeobald has recently been employed by the 

 Trustees of the British Museum to assist the I >irector in such work, 

 esjx'cially with a view to furnishing the Hoard of Agriculture with 

 scieulitic information on Econi.»mic Zoology, in accordance with a 

 request made by that Department of his Majesty's (iovernment. 

 Mr. Theobald is well known as an authoritv on Economic Zoolo<rv 

 ami has the advantage, in carrying out his work at the Natural 

 History Museum, of consulting with the various specialists on the 

 scientific staiY, as well as of making use of the collections and library 

 of the Museum. 



I have added to Mr. Theobald's lieports an iutrotluctory scheme 

 or outline of the study known as Economic Zoology-, in the form of 

 a classified sm"vey of the various sub-divisions which it is found 

 convenient to recognise in the treatment of this subject. Fcir this 

 classification I am i-esjionsible, wliil.st Mr. Theobald h;is been good 

 enough to fill in the list of selected examples. 1 have also added 

 some correspondence on Tsetse-fly disease, and on the prop('seil 

 investigation of the Teail Fisheries of Ceylon, and on the Marine 

 Ilesources of the West Indies, which arose from my l)eing consultetl 

 in my official capacity by his Majesty's Secretaries of State for 

 Foreign Affairs and for the Colonies. 



The Trustees have ordered the publication ol the present Keport, 

 in order that the valuable information which it contains may be 

 made easily accessible; and further, in onler to make clear the 

 nature and amount of scientific information on matters of economic 

 imi>ortance which the staff of the Zoological Dejxirtment is almost 

 tlaily calle<l ujKtn and is preji&red to furnish to the public serviet? or 

 to individuals. It must be rememl»ere<l tliat the lieports and letters 

 printed in this volume form only a j>ortion of the work of econondc 

 im|>ortance wliich is carried out by this Museum, in addition to the 



