VI PREFACE. 



valuable cabinet, which, with few exceptions, had passed through 

 the hands of Mr Stephens, and been almost entirely named by 

 him. I had thus the advantage (second only to the use of Mr 

 Stephens' own specimens) of examining what I may call types 

 of his species. The distance of my place of residence from 

 London rendered it impossible to avail myself with effect of 

 the well-known liberality with which Mr Stephens gave access 

 to his collection : and in estimating the value of any opinion 

 expressed in the following pages upon the synonymy of any of 

 his species, it must be borne in mind that I proceed upon 

 nothing further than the testimony of species named by him ; 

 and that, although in many instances I saw numerous series so 

 named, I have not always found the whole of the series to con- 

 sist of the same insect. 



I have further availed myself of Dr Schaum's two valuable 

 papers on the synonymy of Mr Stephens' species of Geodephaga 

 and Hydrocantharidse, published in the Annals of Natural His- 

 tory and Zoologist, and of Mr Walton's papers on the Curcu- 

 lionidsB in the Annals of Natural History. I have also been 

 benefited by M. Jacquelin Duval's paper on the genus Bembi- 

 dium, published in the Annals of the ^Entomological Society of 

 France, and by his kindness in comparing my own specimens, 

 and favouring me with his remarks upon them. To M. 

 Aube", Paris, I owe similar thanks for having compared and 

 authentically named my specimens of Cercyon, Anisotoma, 

 Atomaria, and other minute and difficult genera ; also to M. 

 Jekel, Paris, for having performed a similar good office to my 

 Apions ; and to Professor Lacordaire of Liege, for having solved 

 some doubts I had upon some of the Chrysomelidse. I have 

 received similar kindness from Mr Wilson Saunders and Mr 

 Jansen, Mr White of the British Museum, and Mr Walton of 

 London ; and I owe much to the good offices of M. Javet of 

 Paris. I need not make similar acknowledgments for the infor- 

 mation derived from the works of Mulsant, Heer, Redtenbacher, 

 others ; these are public property. 



