ENTOMOLOGY OF EPPING. 149 



this paper a little like what it ought to have been, and perhaps 

 would have been, and then trust to your readers' goodness 

 of heart to excuse the imperfections of my work. 



I remain, yours, most truly, 

 Epping, E. DoUBLEDAY. 



May 21, 1835. 



The town of Epping (anciently Eppinges) is now situated on 

 the road from London to Newmarket, about sixteen miles 

 from town. I say it is now situated, because, in former days, it 

 stood, I believe, two miles from its present location ; and, as it 

 has once migrated two miles, we may suppose, that should 

 similar causes operate again, it may make another move. 



According to a multitude of observations made by my uncle, 

 Mr. T. Squire, well known as a mathematician and astro- 

 nomer, the town stands in lat. 51° 41' 42" north long. 

 6' 15" east, at an elevation of 389 feet above the level of 

 the sea. The mean annual temperature is 50|°, the mean 

 of January 36°, of February 39°, of March 43°, of April 

 49°, of May 56°, of June 61°, of July 64°, of August 

 64°, of September 60°, of October 51°, of November 46°, 

 of December 39°. The mean annual fall of rain is 26.77 

 inches. The soil of the adjoining country is generally a 

 stiff cold clay, occasionally becoming more or less gravelly. 

 Its surface consists of gently undulating hills, whose summits 

 rise about one hundred, or rather more, feet, above the in- 

 tervening valleys — but this is more especially the case on the 

 eastern side of the road to London — and it is almost solely 

 to this part that my remarks in this paper will apply. The 

 eastern half of a circle, whose radius is about four miles, and 

 whose centre is situated about a quarter of a mile to the west 

 of the town, includes the place in which nearly all the insects 

 mentioned in this paper have been taken, with one or two 

 exceptions, by my brother, Mr. H. Doubleday, and myself. 

 As there are some parts of this limited district which I have 

 not thoroughly examined, I have no doubt that further 

 researches will enable me to add many more species, even to 

 the list of Lepidoptera. Last season our own little garden 

 afforded three species, which I had not before seen in this 

 neighbourhood — Miselia compta, Hadena saponarice, and 

 Agrotis radiola. 



