PREFACE. 



THE author of this work having been engaged for many years in forming 

 collections of the Coleoptera indigenous to New Zealand, with a view of 

 preparing a descriptive Catalogue, applied to the Council of the Auckland 

 Institute to assist him in the publication of his work. The Council not 

 being in a position to do so, applied to Government through the Geolo. 

 ,gical Survey and Museum Department, representing that it was a work 

 urgently required. On 25th July, 1877, the printing of the work was 

 authorised by the Hon. Dr. POLLEN, the Colonial Secretary, and the 

 preparation of the work was actively undertaken. The descriptions of 

 the Insects were completed during March, 1879, but it was not until 

 October following, that the complete MS. was received, and, through 

 pressure of other work, the first sheets were not sent to press until the 

 7th January, 1880. 



As the author resides in the Island of Kawau, it has been impossible 

 to afford him the opportunity of revising the proof sheets of his work, so 

 that the entire correction of the press was done in this office, but as the 

 MS. was most carefully and clearly prepared, and the precaution was 

 taken when possible to refer to the original authorities quoted, it is hoped 

 that the work will be found free from serious errors. Before the printing 

 of the work was finally proceeded with, the MS. was submitted to Professor 

 HUTTON, who has a special knowledge of this branch of Zoology, and who 

 reported that he considered it " a most excellent work, containing 1050 

 species, a large part of which are described for the first time, and that 

 no country outside Europe and the United States has produced such a 

 Catalogue." I think naturalists will endorse this opinion of the value 

 of the work, and when moreover it is known that the author has 

 laboured without any pecuniary reward, in a remote part of the Colony 

 away from libraries, thus entailing a very considerable expenditure in 

 providing himself with the necessary works of reference, this work 

 cannot fail to be regarded as a monument of the zeal and industry of an 

 ardent naturalist. 



